Genetically Modified (Gm) Foods Essay

The Term â€Å"Genetically Modified (GM) foods† refers to crops produced for human or animal consumption using the recombinant DNA techniques. The world population is growing in a fast pace such that it is expected to double in the next 50 years. Supplying food to this growing population is a major challenge. GM foods can be considered as the major solution for the food security. These foods are produced by the modification of crop plants in the laboratory to enhance desired traits, mainly biotic and abiotic stress tolerance, improved nutritional content, etc. These traits were earlier carried out through conventional plant breeding, but these breeding methods are very time-consuming and often not very accurate. However, with recombinant DNA technology, plants with the desired traits can be produced, very rapidly and with greater accuracy. Process Recombinant DNA technology begins with the identification and isolation of a gene which expresses a desirable trait, with the aid of restriction enzymes. Then a recipient plant or animal is selected, and the gene is inserted and incorporated into its genome through a vector such as agrobacterium, through a gene gun shooting an elemental particle covered in plasmid DNA, electro oration, or a virus. Once part of the recipient, the newly inserted gene becomes part of the genome of the recipient and is regulated in the same way as its other genes. For example, we can isolate a gene responsible for conferring drought tolerance, introduce that gene into a plant, and make it drought tolerant. Crops can also be transformed using non-plant genes such as the use of Bt genes, in cotton and many other crops. Bt, or Bacillus thuringiensis, is a naturally occurring bacterium that produces crystal proteins that are lethal only to insect larvae. Bt crystal protein genes have been transferred into cotton, soya, corn, brinjal, enabling the plants to produce its own pesticides against insects such as the American bollworm, European corn borer. Bt genes are lethal only in the acidic medium, insect gut environment and do not get activated in an alkaline environment, prevalent in humans and other animals that feed on these plants. BENEFITS OF GM FOODS Drought tolerance/salinity tolerance: As the world population grows and more land is converted for housing instead of food production, farmers need to grow crops in non-arable land, previously unsuited for plant cultivation. Creating plants that can withstand long periods of drought or high salinity in soil and groundwater will help people to grow crops in large, barren wetlands/dry lands in our country. Pest resistance: Insect Pests are causing devastating financial loss for farmers, sometimes starvation. Indiscriminate use of pesticides is also a potential health hazard, and the run-off of agricultural wastes from excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers poisons the water supply and harms the environment. Ex: Growing GM foods such as Bt brinjal helps reduce the application of pesticides substantially, as 80 per cent of brinjal crop are infested with pests. Disease resistance: There are many viruses, fungi and bacteria that cause plant diseases and thereby contribute to yield loss. Plant biologists are working to create genetically engineered plants with resistance to these diseases. Ex: Developing sheath blight resistance in rice. Cold/heat tolerance: Farmers are facing the vagaries of weather, like unexpected frost or excess heat due to climate change. Researchers have identified an antifreeze gene from cold-water fish and introduced it into plants such as tobacco and potato to study the efficacy of the plant to withstand extreme temperatures. Also, research is on to identify plants that can survive excess heat, submergence tolerance etc. Nutrition: People in our country suffer from various nutrient deficiency diseases due to malnutrition. Most of the people rely on rice as a major staple food. But rice does not contain adequate amounts of all necessary micro and macronutrients. If rice could be genetically engineered to contain additional vitamins, iron and/or minerals, nutrient deficiencies could be alleviated. For example, MSSRF (M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation) are working on improving the iron content. Phytoremediation: Soil and groundwater pollution continues to be a problem in many parts of the world. Plants such as poplar trees, brassica spp are being genetically engineered to clean up heavy metal pollution from soil contaminated with metals like lead, arsenic, and cadmium. Concerns Most concerns about GM foods fall into three categories Environmental hazards: Unintended harm to other organisms; reduced effectiveness of pesticides; gene transfer to non-target species are some of the concerns of the environmental concerns of GM crops. Human health risks: Allergenecity, unknown effects on human health are some of the main health concerns. For example, Pioneer Hi-Bred tested the allergenicity of a transgenic soybean that expressed a Brazil nut seed storage protein in hope that the seeds would have increased levels of the amino acid methionine. The tests (radio allergosorbent testing, immunoblotting, and skin-prick testing) showed that individuals allergic to Brazil nuts were also allergic to the new GM soybean. Economic concerns Environmental activists, religious organizations, non-governmental organizations have criticized agribusiness for concentrating on profits through GM Foods without concern for potential hazards. They also criticized the government for failing to start a regulatory body. All GM crops should be subjected to thorough regulatory processes and toxicology and allergenicity tests data needs to be shared with the regulatory authorities prior to commercialization. Government Role Many new plant genetic engineering technologies and GM plants have been patented, and patent infringement is a big concern of agribusiness. So, bringing GM food to market is a lengthy and costly process. This is a genuine concern and therefore it is important for the government to fund and support public sector research in reputed universities or agriculture institutes to ensure quality research and also keep prices under check. Conclusion Government should check all the hazards, environmental, health and economic concerns and then decisions should be taken to commercialize a GM product. Though ambiguity during the process, once they get regulatory approve, it implies that they have been subjected to stringent scrutiny and are safe for commercial release. So, the governments around the world are hard at work to establish an effective regulatory process to monitor the effects of and approve new varieties of GM plants. According to M S Swaminathan, the chairman of the National Commission on Farmers, GM foods have the potential to solve many of the world’s hunger and malnutrition problems, and can protect and preserve the environment by increasing yield and reducing reliance upon chemical pesticides. Yet there are many challenges ahead for governments, especially in the areas of safety testing, regulation, international policy and food labeling.

Investigating stoichiometry Essay

In this experiment we are going to get a better understanding of chemical stoichiometry. We are going to be reacting sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) and sodium carbonate (Na2CO3) with hydrochloric acid (HCl). To start off the mass of two unknown substances (being the sodium bicarbonate and sodium carbonate) will be taken. We will need to construct balanced equations for both of the reactants with the HCl and use this to guide us to figure out how much HCl will be needed to react with each of the unknown substances. When this part is through we will then need to find the percent yield (actual yield/theoretical yield x 100). Determining the mass of sodium chloride at the end of the experiment is the actual yield. To find the theoretical yield we will need to heat the sodium chloride so that all the CO2 evaporates and that will leave us with the theoretical yield of sodium chloride. Chemical Reactions NaHCO3 + HCl = NaCl + H20 + CO2 Na2CO3 + HCl = 2NaCl + H2O + CO2 Theoretical yields .15g NaHCO3 (1mol NaHCO3/84.0059g NaHCO3) (1mol HCl/1mol NaHCO3) (58.44gNaCl/1molNaCl) = .1043 g NaCl .15g Na2CO3 (1mol Na2CO3/105.988g Na2CO3) (1mol HCl/1mol Na2CO3) (58.44gNaCl/1molNaCl) = .165 g NaCl Experimental Procedure Standardization of Unknown 1 1) Weigh duplicate 0.15 g samples of unknown 1. Dissolve samples in 100- ml distilled water. 2) Add bromocresol green indicator, until the solution turns into blue. Titrate it with HCl until green color is reached. 3) Heat and boil out CO2 gently. You should obtain a blue color again at the end of this step. Cool to room temperature, and continue titration until yellow color is reached. Note down the volume seen on the buret. 4) Heat the substance again until all the liquid is gone and you’re left with salt looking particles inside the beaker. 5) Weigh the beaker with the salt inside of it. Then, clean out the beaker thoroughly and weigh the empty  beaker again. Use these two weights to find the mass in grams of the salt like particles that were previously in the beaker. Standardization of Unknown 2 1) Weigh duplicate 0.15 g samples of unknown 1. Dissolve samples in 100- ml distilled water. 2) Add bromocresol green indicator, until the solution turns into blue. Titrate it with HCl until green color is reached. 3) Heat and boil out CO2 gently. You should obtain a blue color again at the end of this step. Cool to room temperature, and continue titration until yellow color is reached. Note down the volume seen on the buret. 4) Heat the substance again until all the liquid is gone and you’re left with salt looking particles inside the beaker. 5) Weigh the beaker with the salt inside of it. Then, clean out the beaker thoroughly and weigh the empty beaker again. Use these two weights to find the mass in grams of the salt like particles that were previously in the beaker. Now to identify which substance is NaHCO3 and which is Na2CO3 pay close attention the mass recorded for the salt like particles that were left in the beaker. The one that is closest to .1043 g is the NaHCO3 and the one closest to .165 g is the Na2CO3. Results Grams recorded for Unknown 1- .07 g Unknown 1=NaHCO3 Percent yield= 67% Grams recorded for Unknown 2- .14 g Unknown 2= Na2CO3 Percent yield= 85% Discussion When trying to identify which unknown substance was NaHCO3 and which was Na2CO3. We had to make sure to titrate and treat each unknown with the same amount of attention. By over titrating one of the unknowns we could have messed up the experiment and would have had to start over. When heating the liquid on the hot plate, we were making all the CO2 in the liquid evaporate leaving us with just the salt like particles that we were looking for. By weighing the salt we were able to justify what the substance was because of previous conversions that we had worked out. Conclusion The purpose of this experiment was to show how titrating a substance can help to identify that substance. Knowing how to work with stoichiometry equations is also a big part of this lab because we used those equations to help us compare and figure out the identity of the substance. After titrating and  evaporating the CO2, the weight of unknown 1 was .07 g which was closest to the theoretical yield of .1043 g. Unknown 1 was identified as NaHCO3. After titrating and evaporating the CO2, the weight of unknown 2 was .14 g which was closest to the theoretical yield of .165 g. Unknown 2 was identified as Na2CO3.

Film Extreme Measures Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Film Extreme Measures - Movie Review Example Taking someone's life into there own hands just to prove a research which benefits only certain type of people and not the whole society is absolutely wrong. Definitely, Luthan does not sympathize with Myrick's viewpoint to support research. He retorts by saying "I don't care if you find a cure for every disease on the planet! You tortured and murdered those men upstairs, and that makes you a disgrace to your profession!". The rule utilitarianism in this movie is that doctors believes that a good doctor is not torturing and murdering people, they took an oath to choose "what's best for their patient and what they didn't choose to be". (Dr Luthan) Guy Luthan who is a young doctor who tries to investigate a case where one of his patients dies with baffling symptoms. His efforts to investigate were not only a failure but the man's body also mysteriously disappears and his colleagues were unhelpful. He discovers that a number of leading doctors, including the eminent neurosurgeon Dr Myrick, are carrying out unethical experiments on homeless people in an attempt to find a cure for spinal injuries. When Dr Luthan is trying to find out the cause of death of the homeless, there were twist and turns of events In this process Dr Luthan becomes involved with the FBI and with Dr Myrick. The main aim of Dr Myrick is to find a cure paralysis. For this purpose he does not even feel guilty of murdering a human life of a homeless person just to remove his healthy nerve and grow them in victim's vertebrae. 3. Identify the ethical premise of the movie. The ethical premise of the movie "Extreme Measures" is in the scene in emergency room when Dr Luthan was given a choice that goes first on being operated. He chooses the wounded policeman over the more serious druggie. When the body of a man who died in the emergency room disappears, Dr. Luthun begins to ask questions that nobody wants to hear. Sacrificing a human life to cure certain number or paralyzed person. 4. Do the following characters follow act or rule utilitarian principles Give examples from the movie to support your answers. a) Dr Luthan: He follows the Rule Utilitarian principles as he denied the request of Dr Myrick in being part of the Triphase. He believes that "Great doctor have to do the right thing" and killing people to gain something is not the right thing to do. b) Dr Myrick: He follows the Act Utilitarian principles as he is only focusing on the end result which is curing the paralyzed and not thinking the immoral and unethical effect to other human life. He is behind name and fame because just being recognized on being the first to cure paralysis and getting the credit is his priority and not the consequences behind the cure. 5.) What is the ethical problem or ethical dilemma of the film In other words, what is it that the characters are doing that might have some ethical problems Dr Myrick's vision in making a paralyze person is giving him hope, a hope that he would be able to walk again and back to old life. But his ethical dilemma is that his vision of finding cure for paralysis is on the basis of sacrificing other human life. The other ethical dilemma is

Journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 48

Journal - Essay Example The story also presents an existing conflict between human rights bodies, tribesmen, and police, against ISIS. The group had done these actions before in Syria, which led to mass deaths, and abduction of women and children. The main aim of this story is to expose the extent of human rights violation by ISIS purporting to protect religion, but goes to the extreme mile of executing people, and kidnapping. The target audience in this story is human rights organizations and peacekeepers in Iraq. The writer presents photos and videos showing activities and executions done by ISIS in the past and seems to highlight the negative effects, pain and suffering people are going through because of ISIS. The picture presentation has an element of emotional appeal due to the dull pictures showing the ISIS in action holding guns, which gives a chilling effect. This story fails to give an in-depth background about ISIS and people reading this news for the first time shall not fully understand the

Evidence base practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Evidence base practice - Essay Example Thus, it is fundamental to explore the fundamental aspects of Evidence Based Practice (EBP) to determine its contribution to the provision of quality care. The scope The handout highlights essential elements that ensure stakeholders and various policy makers obtain credible information on Evidence Based Practice (EBP). The purpose of the study is highlighted so are the target population, objectives, critiques on the varied methods and major recommendations. The handout also covers the potential barriers to achieving effective Evidence based practice (EBP) in health institutions. These are vital in ensuring the provision of exemplary clinical services to patients. Purpose and target population The handout provides stakeholders in the health sector with information on the essentiality of Evidence Based Practice (EBP). The application of the practice is currently gaining momentum. This is because of its relevant in ensuring the provision of health services. The approach enhances the qua lity of clinical services provided by health officials (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2011). It is significant to note that clinical activities are crucial; thus, require proper execution by qualified professionals to avert any possible complication. The approach focuses on the integration of appropriate clinical equipments in institutions, hiring of highly qualified personnel, training staff and promoting the delivery of valuable services to patients. The target population includes students, patients, health professionals and customers (Melnyk, & Fineout-Overholt, 2011). It also allows stakeholder to identify their role in enhancing excellent delivery of health services. The stakeholders would understand that this process requires proper coordination and understanding. This will enable the stakeholders to undertake health activities based on the ethical guidelines. Objectives and questions I. To establish the imperativeness of Evidence Based Practice (EBP) in the delivery of clinical services II. To investigate the role of nursing officials in ensuring absolute adoption of Evidence based practice (EBP) III. To establish the critical steps that lead to effective implementation of Evidence based practice (EBP) IV. To ascertain whether Evidence based practice (EBP) facilitates value addition in service delivery to clients Questions I. What is the usefulness of Evidence Based Practice (EBP) in the delivery of clinical services? II. What is the role of nursing officials in ensuring absolute adoption of Evidence based practice (EBP)? III. What are the critical steps that lead to effective implementation of Evidence based practice (EBP)? IV. Does Evidence Based Practice (EBP) facilitate value addition in service delivery to clients? Professions represented in the document The medical professionals represented in the document are nurses and individuals from diverse medical background, for example, clinical officers, doctors and diagnosticians. These professionals have t he capacity to implement the process (Melnyk & Morrison-Beedy, 2012). Additionally, diagnosticians are represented because they perform medical assessment that requires proper assessment and evidence procedures. This allows the identification of a patient’s health complications accurately. The target population has been chosen due to their relevance. Furthermore, health professio

Capture, Processing, and Presentation of Exogenous Antigen by Essay - 6

Capture, Processing, and Presentation of Exogenous Antigen by Dendritic Cells - Essay Example As the paper stresses B and T cells differ in the manner they recognize antigens. B cells can recognize the antigen through its structure while T cells recognize the same protein only when it has been degraded and presented on the surface of the antigen presenting cell (APC). T cells do not attack free antigens that can be found in the cytosol. In the lymphoid tissues, dendritic cells are considered professional antigen presenting cells (APC) because they are strongest known stimulators of T cells in vivo and in vitro. Thus far, dendritic cells (DC) have only one known function, and that is to present antigens to T cells. Their name was derived dendron, Greek for tree, because of their morphological structure which resembles a tree with many branches or dendrites. From this paper it is clear that the DC arise from myeloid cells in the bone marrow and migrate to peripheral tissues like the skin and mucosa. In these tissues, the immature phenotype of dendritic cells prevail. Immature D C are not yet capable of stimulating T cells. However, the immature DC have receptors that allow them to recognize factors on microbial surfaces allowing them to take up or ingest exogenous antigens through macropinocytosis, endocytosis, and phagocytosis. During macropinocytosis, the dendritic cell membrane forms curved ruffles which fold in to form a pocket enclosing the antigens. The pocket forms a vesicle, called a macropinosome, with 1-5 um diameter, that is filled with extracellular fluid and other molecules including the antigens. The macropinosome then travels into the cytoplasm were it fuses with endosomes and lysosomes. This process occurs constitutively in immature DC and requires the presence of cholesterol. Macropinocytosis occurs in other cells but is only induced by the presence of growth factors.  

Plate tectonics and geodynamics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Plate tectonics and geodynamics - Essay Example Therefore, such components will melt at different temperatures and conditions, a process known as partial melting (Morgan & Chen, 1993 p6285). The process of partial melting takes place in the mantle (Best, 2009 p33). The mantle has four basic components; oxygen, silicon, magnesium and iron which have low melting points. Additionally, the upper mantle, which is below the ridges of the ocean, melts, since it comprises of the lithosphere that is brittle and fractures easily under low temperatures (Griffith, 1998 p67). Under normal circumstance, the mantle is formed of a solid rock substance called the peridotite (Annen & Zellmer, 2008 53). Partial melting of the peridotite is caused by the heat generated when rocks slide against one another on the base of the lithosphere, causing frictional kinetic energy at the subduction points (Sinton & Detrick, 1992 p198). This generates heat, which causes some elements of the peridotite with a low melting point to melt (Morgan & Chen, 1993 p6289). Consequently, partial melting occurs on the upper mantle, where the peridotite is melt to form a semi-solid substance called the magma (Best, 2009 p30). When the peridotite is melt, the semi-liquid substance formed is less dense than the materials above it. This is because, at such high temperatures, the magma is in a liquid state, which has a low density compared to the solid materials that are on the earth’s crust (Best, 2009 p28). The less dense magma looks for ways to escape upwards and settle above the solid components above it, due to its low viscosity and low density. Therefore, the hotter liquid substance will rise carrying its temperature with it, until it reaches a point where the temperatures are low. Here, its density is increased through solidification (Griffith, 1998 p70). Oceanic ridges tend to move from one another, creating a channel through which the magma can rise from the mantel of the earth to the earth’s crust

Play Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Play - Essay Example Both Jay and Billy are surprised to find no one else for attending the funeral. Wondering about the shape and color of the funeral urn, Billy finds from Jay that he wanted to have a proper death Jar as this urn, for his father, instead of going for depressing grey ones. This shows the feeling of Jay for the deceased, as he wanted the funeral to be bright. Perhaps this is the reason for him being disappointed to find a dark empty room, as he entered the hall. The father of these siblings has died and the urn is for his funeral, although he had been an atheist. However, the setting has little relevance to the urn and the church, as sister and brother virtually fight over the kind of life their father lived. While their parents had divorced, mother was suspected to have cheated upon their father, when he was away from home, to Russia. She married another man, Peter and betrayed their father. The reason for their failure to see each other, for a long time, has its root in the breaking of family, many years back. While their mother did not attend the funeral, other relatives avoided it, fearing that she would be there. The play highlights the grudge these siblings have against each other, as they feel that each-one has taken the side of father or mother. While they feel justified for taking such action, the oral fight resulted in the violence, as Jay cobra strikes his sister and she hits back, during the funeral setting, as both tried to defend their deeds. However, the theme of the play is strikingly conveyed to the audience in its last dialogue, when both miss having a family where brother and sister could live together. They are together, emotionally, for that moment, at-least. (Screenplays) This play by Ryan Isenhart has two characters, Jackie Keller and Wesley O’Connor, both around the age of 60 years. While both have been fighters, Jackie has won prize, in such contests. The theme of the play lies in the fighting spirit, which both have,

The Life of Claude Monet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Life of Claude Monet - Essay Example His mother was a musician and singing was part of Monet’s upbringing. His father was a shopkeeper but later was hired by hi half-sister Marie-Jeanne Gaillard’s husband called, Jacques Lecadre. The family had to relocate to Le Havre, on the Seine estuary, where Claude Monet received his primary education in a private school (Monet 2010 p. 1). Monet was an able and renowned artist who has produced masterpieces, nature being the focus of his pieces. It was at Seine estuary that Monet developed his artistic career. His love and perception recorded in his first youthful painting of the harbors, shores and small sailing craft. He learnt to appreciate nature and became sensitive of the weather. His hatred for school started as a young boy instead choosing to spend most of his time drawing images of his teachers in his copybooks. He spent most of his time along cliff and on beaches avoiding going to school. Monet’s love for the sea was immense and he claimed that, "I sho uld like to be always near it or on it, and when I die, to be buried in a buoy" (Monet 2010 p. 3). Most of the traits that made Monet a painter were evident by 1856 at age sixteen. He lacked faith in anything drawn from experience and was not religious. Monet was stimulated by hostility, diversity and lacked need for social approval. Monet was also very persistent in anything that he wanted to pursue. He was a heavy eater, and it was said that he ate food enough for four men. While pursuing his studies at Le Harve school of Arts, Monet started selling charcoal paintings to locals in the area. While studying under Jacques-Francois Ochard for several years, Monet met Eugene Boudin who helped him master oil paints and ‘Plein air’ techniques. After the passing away of his mother in 1857, Monet moved to live with his aunt Marie-Jeanne Lecadre (Artquotes p. 3). His observation of painters copying what famous artists had already done was evident in his tour of Louvre in Paris. As for Monet who travelled with his paints everywhere he went, he sat by the window and painted what was in view. He came closer to other painters during his visit to Paris. He met and befriended Edouard Manet. He went to Algeria and joined the first Regiment of African Light Cavalry in 1861, where he stayed for two years after contracting typhoid. Due to his unfulfilled work at Algeria, Monet agreed to join a university. While studying, he met Charles Gleyre in 1862 and met Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley, and Frederic Bazille. They shared ideas on rapid and new painting techniques. Monet met Camille Doncieux during this time and in 1867, they had a son. Claude suffered financial difficulties and attempted suicide but Camille supported him and in 1870 they got married (Artquotes p. 6). Monet and Camille decided to leave France when the Franco-Prussian War broke out in July of 1870. They took refuge in England and it was here that Monet studied famous artists like, John Consta ble and Joseph William Turner. Monet then moved to Zaandam after his works were denied exhibition at the Royal Academy. It was until in late 1871 that Monet returned to France settling in Argenteuil near Paris. It was while at Argenteuil that Monet focused on developing his impressionistic style, where he painted the famous impression, sunrise in 1872 which he later named the impressionist movement. Camille was diagnosed with tuberculosis in 1876, and never fully

Organizations are Beyond Budgets Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Organizations are Beyond Budgets - Assignment Example A survey of European enterprises conducted by Boeson (2000) showed managers agreeing that their planning and budgeting processes were inefficient and ineffective in controlling financial resources. Several respondents believed the budgeting process resulted to small benefits relative to the large amounts of resources at their disposal. This led to firms changing the budgeting process or abandoning it all together. Controllers think of new ideas such as balanced scorecards, operational performance measurement, and investment risk portfolios and so forth. These aspects make the budgetary processes complex and make business management a complex process. This complexity is evident in the fixed, costly, detailed, and unnecessary annual budgets of organizations. The changing business environment created by computers and standardized software has a lot of information that makes managers overburdened with the business processes. According to Cokins (2001) current managers are less informed a bout the company’s operations than managers operating 30 years ago. The beyond budgeting concept has been introduced in several organizations as a replacement for the traditional budget-making process. One significant contributor to this shift is the transition in the internal processes that have shifted from the seller’s market in the industrial period to the buyer’s market of the high-tech age (Welch and Byrne, 2003). Organizational processes involving purchase, production, and sales involving division of labor in the industrial age have shifted to processing chains that link supplies to customers. The linear relationships between input and output have led to dynamic customer-oriented business combinations facilitated by technological inventions. This has limited the applicability of traditional budgets in the high-tech age since they are products of the industrial society. Post-industrial business managers require controlling instruments that are flexible so as to compete in the dynamic business environment. The concept of Beyond Budgeting focuses on greater flexibility in the transition of transitional management model of production and sales to a model of market preview and production. The new model of management is based on customer demand. Self-optimization in the new financial management model is attainable by decentralizing responsibility and decision making to empowered and motivated employees. The budgeting process was based on a hierarchical management system that relied on decisions from top management levels. In this regard, executives used the budget as a foundation for outmoded and fixed performance in the organization (Boeson, 2002). The performance of an organization was gauged by budgetary allocations and stipulations achieved within a specified time. This made managers and employees do anything to reach budget goals (Jensen, 2001).

The Shakespeare Authorship Conspiracy Essay Example for Free

The Shakespeare Authorship Conspiracy Essay William Shakespeare was one of the most popular playwrights in history. With 38 plays, 154 sonnets and many other poems, Shakespeare’s work has been performed around the world more often than any other playwright. One gentleman, Hank Whittemore, created a blog that is strictly related to the notion that William Shakespeare was a pen-name of Edward De Vere who was the Earl of Oxford from 1550 to 1604. To many, this is an outlandish claim and is considered a conspiracy theory. His monthly blog continues to be filled with a narrow history lesson lined with an unpopular opinion. Interesting But Not Creditable Whittemore states, â€Å"It’s true that for twenty-three years I’ve been studying the life of Edward de Vere 17th Earl of Oxford (1550-1604) as the author of the â€Å"Shakespeare† works, but I never considered myself a â€Å"conspiracy nut† in any way. First of all I notice that it’s an opinion apparently held by a lot of otherwise rational, fair individuals. â€Å"Hey, you don’t think Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare? You must be one of those conspiracy minded whackos!† I’ve seen this opinion expressed so often in so many books and blogs and it’s been repeated so often that it must be true, right? No, I speak here for myself†. (H. Whittemore, 2012) His blog is very extensive going back to November of 2008 and he appears to have followers according to the comments left at the bottom of the blogs. Analyzing the validity of the data used by Whittmore, it appears that he is very knowledgeable and could be considered an expert on the history of this time period. As much content as Whittmore blogs on his site, it still appears one-dimensional and has a â€Å"fake† feel to it. His credibility comes into question because he doesn’t even place a biography on his site. There is no mention of what he does for a living or where he studied. For all we know, it is fiction. Endorsed By the Prince of Wales Another website that has large amounts of contributors and many opinions on the subject of Shakespeare’s authorship validity, is www.60-minutes.bloggingshakespeare.com. This site has amazing amount of information from many creditable sources including MacDonald Jackson, Professor Emeritus of English at the University of Auckland and a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand and Martin Wiggins, who is a Senior Lecturer and Fellow at The Shakespeare Institute at the University of Birmingham. There are 60 contributors on this site and is promoted by The Prince of Wales who is President of The Royal Shakespeare Company. A.J. Leon, a senior digital advisor to the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, states, â€Å"What I cannot understand is the way people who say he didn’t write the work have to ignore all the evidence that shows he did. We are not talking about a belief that can be interpreted differently depending on our point of view. The evidence for William Shakespeare of Stratford-upon-Avon is not circumstantial. It is factual and multi-faceted† (Leon, 2012). Conclusion On October of 2011 a new movie has been released called, â€Å"Anonymous†, a film based on the theory that it was in fact Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford, who penned Shakespeares plays. As much as Mr. Whittemore blogs about a Shakespeare conspiracy, this film must be considered a fiction. On his site, his logical fallacy is that he states many facts about the time period and the relationship between Edward De Vere and Queen Elizabeth I, but he never backs up his opinions with evidence. Although very informative from a historical point of view, Whittemore’s lack of resources and an overabundance of opinion damage his reliability and credibility.

Minimizing Verb Tense Errors

Minimizing Verb Tense Errors In 21st century, globalization, development of information technology and increase of population in English learners expand interests and demands on English writing skills (Warschauer, 2000). This gets connected to interests on effective composition strategies and it leads to promote development of effective English composition approach. While facilitating at a school of secondary level as student-teachers the researchers were able to notice that most students have a lot of difficulties when it comes to writing activities during English classes. It was also observable when one of the researchers was checking second year students formal theme writing. They are regularly required to write formal theme writing, and it was found out that most of them still commit grammatical errors. Although, they are monthly given time to write journal entries as writing activities, researchers could not observe clear improvements on their written outputs. English teachers at Paco Catholic School (PCS) usually check students thoughts within essays but not for grammatical errors in depth. When checking formal theme writing, the content is usually prioritized rather than grammar. As mentioned above, since writing is one of the significant factors in learning and teaching ESL and due to the existence of many problematic areas in writing, this study aims to build awareness about some L2 writing difficulties among learners and teachers with possible solutions to it. Problem Description and Documentation The present study is an attempt to observe and analyze the needs about specific difficulties among high school second year students in writing class. The data for this study are based on the analysis of formal theme writing, survey questionnaires given to the students, and interview of teacher. Analysis of Grammatical Errors in Formal Theme Writing The researchers collected and analyzed the formal theme of students from one section (II-13) in order to obtain some information about common grammatical areas that students commit errors. The purpose of this document analysis is to establish that the second year, section thirteen students have problems with their grammar problems in writing skills. First, formal theme of 40 students was checked by focusing on grammar. Overall, ten grammatical areas were classified, including verb form, tenses, verbs, preposition, pronoun, connectives, infinitives, article, degree of adjectives, and fragmentary. With all those areas, 324 grammatical errors were committed by the participants. Also, among those grammatical errors, verb tenses was identified as the highest rate by getting more than half percent. Taking the mean values of the overall errors, the results indicate four most common errors that the students made, which are verb tenses (5.25), verb forms (1.1), followed by pronouns (0.65), and preposition (0.55). The next visible error was verbs and infinitives (0.2) while article is reported 0.075 respectively. Next are connectives, degree of adjectives and fragmentary (0.025). This implies that the students have difficulty in the use of verb tenses when writing their formal theme. Through the results, researchers could figure out that most students failed to be consistent in using verb tenses. Even though they were discussing about the past events, past and present tenses were used alternatively. According to Darus and Subramaniam (2009), mistaken application of verb tense can be seen when the students did not apply the proper tense to the verb in the sentences. Meaning to say, it can be assumed that most of the students are not conscious of the different rules about tenses application. As an example, one student wrote: One day I have my family problem and I tell her (my friend) about this she listen and I cant expect that she tell my family problem to other people à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ From the result of the formal theme writing, it was found out that there are grammatical areas for students to improve in their writing activities, especially correct use of verb tenses. Thus, it will be a big help for them if they receive error correction feedback from the teacher, either the feedback is implicit or explicit. It would be much better if the students check the feedback over and over, so that they will learn from the experiences and be aware of their mistakes or errors. Survey Questionnaire Results On October 18, 2012, the survey was conducted with one section (II-13) at Paco Catholic School. One of the researchers facilitated thirty-five students to respond on survey questionnaire. Among forty students (whose formal theme writings were analyzed), only thirty-five students were involved in this Survey due to out of school activity. About thirty minutes were taken to conduct this survey. The questionnaire is managed with the aim of collecting data on the personal information of the respondents ideas of writing feedback. Most of the survey questionnaires items (from 2 to 5) are based on Ishiis (2011) study (Refer APPENDIX B). This question adopts 5-Likert scale item (1=poor; 2=fair; 3=good; 4=excellent; and 5=perfect). First of all, researchers would like to show the results of the subjective interpretation of the participants writing skill stands in class. The results showed that more than half of the respondents feel that their writing skill stands at fair. Followed by 28.57% answered their writing skill stands at good, 17.14% of students stated their writing skill stands at poor and lastly only 2.86% of students answered their writing skill stands at excellent. Next finding is on how often they read over their composition again when teacher returns their formal theme writing with score. Figure 2 indicates percentages of the responses given to this question. Most of the students stated that they seldom read over their composition when teacher returns formal theme writing. The other result is pointing out whether they check written comments or correction of teacher carefully or not. Figure 3 showed that 60% of respondents rarely check teachers comments and correction carefully. While only one student stated that she always checks teachers comments and correction carefully. Next survey question revealed the result of how they treat importance of having few errors in English as possible in their written work. Figure 4indicates the percentages of the responses given to the questions on how they treat importance of having few errors in their written activities. The results showed that 42.86 % of the students think it is somewhat important having few errors in written activities while only 17% of respondents think it is very important having few errors in written activities. As similar with previous question, following question is reported how respondents treat importance of teacher points out grammatical errors in their written output. The results indicated 26 students, that constitute 74% of the whole population, consider a teacher point out grammatical errors on their written output in class is important. While none of the respondents think there is no importance on pointing grammatical errors in their written work. The respondents were also asked about whether they are conscious about grammatical errors when doing written works in class or not. Figure 6 shows that 19 respondents are sometimes conscious about grammatical errors while only one respondent said that she is always conscious about grammatical errors when doing written works in class. Interview of the Teacher Ms. Azuilo is an English teacher of second year high school students at Paco Catholic School (PCS). She has been teaching for four years. This year, Ms. Azuilo is handling three boys classes (sections 10, 12 14) and two girls classes (sections 11 13). Researchers observed and taught on all five of Ms. Azuilos classes during practicum at PCS. Since Ms. Azuilo was the one, who suggested to the researchers to write about participants problematic area in writing, researchers decided to have an oral interview with her for a better understanding of this problem. The interview was conducted last October 18, 2012 inside the High School English faculty room and the interview took about twenty minutes. The first question was about particular difficulties her students seem to encounter when they deal with writing activities. Her response was that: It would be the grammar usage. When it comes to content, their thoughts are good but the grammar is not. In relation to first question, Ms. Azuilo was asked that if they commit any grammatical errors in their writing activities. She mentioned that: They do, specifically the verb tenses, as well as subject-verb agreement and some with the pronoun antecedent agreements. The students were able to use the grammar properly during the lessons, but since they can use English only during the lesson and not at home, they tend to easily forget the correct grammar usage. Lastly, researchers asked how the students deal with those difficulties and what teachers usually do to deal with their difficulties. Her response was that: Some of the students would have interventions, remedial or even ask questions to the teachers for clarifications. Therefore, I would usually have remediation classes or simply talk to the students personally. I also edit their papers and puts in the right grammar usage on it. Description of Work Setting This study will be conducted in Paco Catholic School (PCS), an educational institution known as the largest Catholic school in South East Asia that first opened its doors in 1912 by the Franciscan missionaries. PCS is currently celebrating its 100th Foundation Anniversary or its Centennial Year this 2012. Co-institutional system is implemented in PCS where the girls and the boys are separated into different sections (i.e. odd numbers for girls and even numbers for boys sections) PCS is divided into three departments: Early Childhood Education, Grade School, and High School Department. There is an average of 45 students in each class. There are bulletin board, teachers desk, air-conditioner (only for the boys sections), mini-library, plasma television, and blackboard in each classroom. The seating arrangement is traditional in most classrooms in a way that all the students are facing in front. Writers Role The writers are currently having their Practice Teaching or Practicum as student teachers in Paco Catholic School (PCS). The Practicum will last for three months, starting from September 2012 to December of the same year. It is required for them to accomplish 170 hours of direct teaching, 10 hours of classroom observation, and 120 hours of indirect activities. From Mondays to Thursdays, the writers have Practicum from 7 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. On Fridays, they stay in PCS for whole day, from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. One was assigned to handle second year and the other to handle third year English classes. Generally, English subject for secondary level consists of literature and grammar. So far, the writers were assigned to facilitate the classes about the students reporting and assigned to facilitate the lessons more on grammar in English. Before conducting the lessons, the cooperating teachers require to make lesson plans according to the format of PCS (i.e. Understanding by Design Lesson Plan). Review of Related Literature According to British Columbia Ministry of Education (1999), English as a Second Language (ESL) is defined as what refers students, those whose mother tongue language(s) or language(s) of the home, is other than English and who may therefore necessitate supplementary learning in order to build up proficiency in English or it simply refers students who speak disparities of English that differ significantly from the standard English. Writing with using different language is proved to be very difficult than writing with ones native language. Thus, ESL educators are often finding that there are some common mistakes among L2 writers make. Generally, these mistakes appeal when the writers apply the rule of their native languages rather than their new languages rules (British Columbia Ministry of Education, 1999). According to Supaproofread (n.d.), unfortunately, little errors among L2 writers paper can distract reader from what they actually try to deliver from written output. Proper usage to write numbers, capitalization, when to utilize the article a or an, appropriate usage of verb tenses and having the subject and verb agreement in numbers are a main mistakes as an ESL writer might make. Meaning to say, committing grammatical error in writing is very common for L2 learners. For those students who do not have enough language background, to articulate what they try to deliver in intelligible way is difficult in writing (Supaproofread, n.d.). Growing significance of English in L2 writing is becoming gradually more dominant in both instructive programs and in proficient writing in non-English dominant countries (Leki, 2001, cited in Giridharan Robson, 2012). Although, academic writing is an aspiration skill in secondary students, academic writing is frequently recognized as irresistible among L2 learners due to lack of grammatical and vocabulary competent (Giridharan Robson, 2012). In the context of this paper, the participants are all learners of English as Second Language (ESL). In this respect, ESL learning, specifically second language writing, becomes an important aspect of this study. Accuracy in Second Language Writing Writing is normally viewed as a complex skill and a difficult task (Graham, Harris Mason, 2005, cited in Jahin Idrees, 2012). This is frequently pointed to its intrinsically multifaceted features which mentioned by Wall (1981) as a range from mechanical control to creativity, with good grammar, knowledge of subject matter, awareness of stylistic conventions and various mysterious factors in between. According to Abu-Rass (2001), writing is a procedure for the writers throughout the investigation of thoughts and ideas, and the writers build them to be concise and concrete. It is a quite complicated skill for both native and nonnative speakers identical. In writing, learners should have sense of balance in various issues such as content, organization, purpose, audience, vocabulary, punctuation, spelling, and grammar structure. Thus, writing is particularly intricate for nonnative speakers because they are expected to produce written outputs that show mastery of all the aforesaid matters in a new language (Abu-Rass, 2001). Verb Tenses as a dominant problem in Second Language Writing The Writing Center (2009) reported that the top rated common grammatical error in writing is an incoherent usage of verb tenses. Moreover, it is proven that the participants of this study were found to be committing verb tense mistakes very commonly in their formal theme writing composition. Verb tense errors are not only committed by non-native English writers, but also native English writers. According to Lane and Lange (2011), verb-tense errors are worldwide (more serious) errors which builds a piece of writing to be complicated for the reader to comprehend content. Verb tenses express the time in sentence. Since the time controls a significant factor to deliver a message, a writer must be able to manage verb tenses in order for the reader to comprehend when actions and events go on (Lane Lange, 2011). In addition, writers necessitate controlling verb tenses in order to converse other information such as duration (as combat to the completion of an event in the past). To summarize , proper usage of verb tense is a significant factor in writing because if writers did not (or are not able to) manage verb tenses, readers will have a big difficulty following the progression of events in writing (The Writing Center, 2009). In another article, titled Inconsistent Tenses by Beckham (n.d.), the dominant problem encountered by ESL students is the verb tenses of their writing and more specifically, the consistency of usages in verb tenses. According to Beckham (n.d.), all the way through an ESL writing composition, it is not unusual to see tenses are messed up within incorrect form. As mentioned above, committing an error of verb tenses in writing composition is not only a concern for second language writers but also for native English writing students. Beckham (n.d.) specified with ESL students that they utilize verb tense errors very commonly in their written outputs. He further reported that there are several reasons for it. Second language writers may be confused about how to form the verb tense properly since selecting a proper verb tense is a complicated task for ESL students. In other words, they may choose the verb tense mistakenly due to lack of knowledge about proper usages of verb tense (e.g. irregular verb, present and past forms of verb, etc.). Another reason is that there may be different rules about using verb tenses in their mother tongue language hence, ESL students tend to apply their mother-tongue languages grammar rules in English grammar alike British Columbia Ministry of Educations (1999) study as mentioned above (Beckham, n.d.). Also, it is related with the study of Escamilla and Hopewell (2007). They further discussed about it through code-switching  [1]  theory. They asserted that ESL students do not eas ily convert skills, strategies and languages transversely; students may relocate themselves and their understandings living and growing up in concurrent worlds. This kind of code-switching is obvious in the theoretical code-switches. Particularly where learners appropriately displayed that when they lived experiences in one language and were inquired to notify about them in a second language, they necessitated utilizing code-switching to precisely explain the event (Escamilla Hopewell, 2007). Form-Focused Instruction In order for Second Language learners to have better application about forms of verb-tenses in writing composition, researchers decided to integrate Form-focused Instruction (FFI) in present study. The Form-focused Instruction refers to any planned or incidental instructional activity that is intended to induce language learners to pay attention to linguistic form (Ellis, 2001: 1-2). In Spada and Lightbrowns (2008) study, they use the terms isolated and integrated form-focused instruction. Isolated FFI in language activities is separated from communicative language use in teaching language forms, while in integrated FFI, the language learners are taught the language forms with combination of communicative or content-based activities. The limitation of isolated grammar lessons is that it may be hard for learners to retrieve learned language features through isolation when applying in the context of communicative interaction. In this reason, this paper will highlight more on integrated FFI where the students will be taught the selected language form by being exposed to communicative activities, in order for students to be able to retrieve and apply forms (i.e. verb tense). In the study of Han (2002) titled A Study of the Impact of Recasts on Tense Consistency in L2 Output, Han tried to investigate on whether recasts would help L2 learners maintain tense consistency in their written output. With the participants, who are divided into groups of recast and non-recast groups, written and oral tasks were administered. In giving treatment, the participants were given form-focused exercises in relation to the past and present tenses. Han used cartoon strips with consideration of the participants interest and familiarity as well as primarily because its stories can be described with the mention of a past or present time when narrating. The participants were first to see the cartoon strip for a few minutes and then write the story based on it. It was revealed that recasts helped students in maintaining tense consistency in written outputs. Error Feedback on Student Writing To integrate Form-focused Instruction (FFI) in intervention of this study, researchers will utilize Error Feedback as a method. However, giving an error feedback in writing has been a controversial topic as many related studies argued the efficacy in helping develop students linguistic accuracy in students writing. This controversial issue is the momentum for additional studies that attempts to take in hand whether written error feedback smooths the progress in second language acquisition. In relation to the error feedback on student writing, there are two fundamental issues, which are adequacy of teacher feedback and student uptake of error feedback. The teachers role is crucial in many ways in order to provide accurate and adequate corrective feedback. Through the investigation of student or learner uptake, it is a good way to see how students cognitively perceive teachers corrective feedback. In study of Ellis (2009, cited in Vyatkina, 2011), the effectiveness of Error Feedback is written as context-dependent. She discussed about several specific types of error feedback and said those specific feedbacks may be advantageous for the improvement of particular second language learner writing abilities in specific instructive contexts. Feedback can be offered as a direction for ultimate writing development (as far as learners are with apprehension) (Hyland, 2003). In the study of Chandler (2003), he experimented about whether teacher feedback in several types of errors could help East Asian college learners get better their writing accuracy and whether the effects would remain the rest of one semester. The results indicated that formal accuracy of student writing developed significantly. As there are varying options accessible to teachers to offer Writing Corrective Feedback (WCF), teachers need to take into account the appropriateness of each depending on learners language level (Herrera, 2011). Language teachers have a duty to help learners to revise errors, in particular, regarding the fact that the learners worth and expect teachers feedback on their written outputs (Jimena, Tedjaatmadja Tian, 2005). Meaning to say, language instructors play several significant roles as follows: Once language teachers have an authoritative in classroom, they should have the right to settle down objectives of what the students have to attain in the writing class (Crà ¨me Lea, 1997; Scott, 1996). However, level of students should be taken into consideration in this part, so that students will be able to achieve the expectations of teachers (Ferris, 2003). Therefore, language instructors need to amend anticipation of students achievements and teaching strategies to fit the students level. In this part, the teacher also should classify common errors what learners might make so that they will gain some ideas of what to do next with teachers teaching methodology (Leech, 1994). According to Jimena et al. (2005), language instructor also has a role as a designer; teachers should, for all time, concern about what is best fittingly for students. Teachers should modernize themselves with what is currently going on inside the classroom. It is to be able to make accurate educational conclusion and also to apply exacting error correction schemes to language classroom instruction. If possible, teachers have to be advocated to interchange information, experience and knowledge with other colleagues to enlarge their insights, and to obtain new ideas on error correction schemes (Jimena et al., 2005). In order to make available correction to students, teachers must take an action as scholars, who are fully attained with knowledge of the target language, such as grammar, vocabulary to facilitate them with supplying correction to students writing (Leech, 1994). Another role as a language instructor is that they need to enhance learners self-confidence and coach them to be more independent in their learning (Ferris, 2002). At this moment, teachers will help learners to identify their individual errors; then learners will have more time to pay attention to those errors (Ferris, 2002; Xiang, 2004). In the study of Wright (1987), learners affective surface also acts as a significant factor in improving their language growth. However, giving error feedback is unlikable practice for learners since some of them feel frustrated to be corrected their error. This is the reason why teachers have to encourage and persuade students to welcome their questions and worries. Encouraging comments, compliments about good points on their written outputs are also cooperative to motivate students to follow more (Wright, 1987). When it comes to learners uptake of corrective feedback on writing, it is more on learners cognitive processes. Due of the difficulty in data collection, few studies have been investigated this area. Those studies have collected cognitive feedback processing data through think-aloud protocols, retrospective interviews, or pair discussions, including the observations about depth of processing and learners attitudes toward the feedback provided (Storch Wigglesworth, 2010). In the study of Storch and Wigglesworth (2010), titled Learners Processing, Uptake, and Retention of Corrective Feedback on Writing, they implemented a case study composed of three sessions. The authors utilized pair discussions in order to collect data about the participants cognitive processing when given different types of corrective feedback. The discussions between all the pairs were audio-recorded. Through this study, it was found out that extensive engagement with the feedback on errors of certain grammatical areas led to high levels of uptake. In the case of this study, it could be better if extensive engagement with feedback on verb tenses might lead to uptake and correct use of these verb tenses (Storch Wigglesworth, 2010). Counter-Argument on Effects of Error Feedback on Student Writing Regardless of the arguments, as mentioned above, the effects of error feedback has been controversy on whether error feedback helps L2 students improve the accuracy and the quality of their writing. Truscott (2007) showed a strong view against error feedback through his several studies. He argued that all forms of error feedback of ESL learners in writing are not only unsuccessful but also damaging and should be abandoned. Moreover, he gave attention to that although most ESL learners evidently need grammatical error feedback, teachers should not give it to them (Truscott, 2007). Truscotts (2007) review of studies written within several studies (Kepner, 1991; Semke, 1984; Sheppard, 1992, cited in Bitchener et al., 2005), it is claimed that error correction does not have a significant effect on improving L2 student writing. Given this issue, Truscott (2007) sought to investigate the effect of three different types of feedback on the accuracy performance of three targeted linguistic error categories in new pieces of writing (Bitchener et al., 2005). The study found that the type of feedback provided did not have a significant effect on accuracy when the three targeted error categories were considered as a single group (Bitchener et al., 2005). From this finding, one could easily jump to the conclusion that Truscott (1996) was right when he claimed that the provision of corrective feedback on L2 writing is ineffective. Ferris (1999; 2002; 2004) on the other hand, makes a stand for the use of error correction in writing instruction. In her opinion Truscotts (1996) conclusions are premature. She reasons that results from prior research have shown to be inconclusive because of its inadequate methodology, with the main problem that most studies did not include a proper control group. Hence, she argues that well organized or constructed study must be arising with unless any conclusions can be drawn about the incompetence of error feedback to develop learners upcoming writing (Ferris, 2002). Direct and Indirect Feedback It may be helpful to define some of the terms associated with corrective feedback in the literature. Two important terms are direct and indirect feedback (Ferris Hedgcock, 1998; Ferris Roberts, 2001; Lalande, 1982; Robb, Ross Shortreed, 1986; Terry, 1989; Zamel, 1985, cited in Jafarpour Sharifi, 2012). Several studies have been compared between the effect of direct and indirect Written Corrective Feedback (WCF). These studies are controversially indicating ambiguous results. For example, Ferris (2003, cited in Vyatkina, 2011) figured out that indirect WCF strategies are more beneficial than direct WCF, while Chandler (2003) asserted that a better accuracy upgrading results are within direct WCF strategy, and Robb et al. (1986, cited in Vyatkina, 2011) mentioned no distinction between the two WCF strategies. According to Lee (2003), direct feedback refers to overt correction of student errors, that is, teachers locating and correcting errors for students, while indirect feedback refers to teachers indicating errors without correcting them for students. For direct location of errors, teachers put the symbols, codes or comments right above or next to the errors by indicating underlines or circles on the errors. For indirect location of errors, teachers simply put a code or symbol in the margin on a certain line where the error is indicated to identify the error type (Lee, 2003). Though Ferris (2006) points out that those codes have not always been used consistently among researchers, she also distinguished direct feedback from indirect feedback. She said that direct feedback is provided when a teacher gives the student a particular correction, Ferris calls it as coded, and indirect feedback is provided when the teacher simply marks the error but does not correct it, termed as un-coded. Acc ording to Ferris (2006), in providing indirect feedback, some teachers tend to put marks on the mistakes to indicate the exact location and type of error, while others provide un-coded feedback that simply locates the error without directly revealing the error type. It then becomes the students task to check over and over again and correct the mistakes by seeing un-coded feedback (Ferris, 2006). Acting upon this call, this study will report on investigation on the effect of error feedback on students accuracy of new pieces of writing. The researchers will compare the effectiveness of direct error feedback and indirect error feedback with two different experimental treatments. Purpose The purpose of this action research is to investigate an intervention that would help reducing grammatical errors in ESL learners written outputs regarding the provision of error feedback. Through researchers observation on survey questionnaire and analysis of formal theme writing, researchers were able to notice that only a few learners have no problems to write with clear grammar usages (e.g. verb tense). Moreover, during interview of teacher, researchers were able to confirm that participants of this study lack proficiency in writing with English language due to the only uses of English during English class but not at home. Therefore, they tend to easily forget the correct grammar usage. In this part, researchers felt a need for teachers to provide an error feedback on their written output in order for learners to be aware of their weaknesses in writing proficiency and to be conscious about grammatical knowledge even they are in where mother tongue language is primarily used. Ther efore, this study is purposed to conduct PCS secondary schools that adopted a language sensitive appr

Effect of Culture in the Formulation of Marketing Strategies

Effect of Culture in the Formulation of Marketing Strategies Introduction As a student of business administration and having experienced the multicultural cosmopolitan life in London, U.K., marketing strategies of various multinational companies have always intrigued me. These marketing strategies are more challenging for small and medium sized enterprises. Hence I am motivated to research on various marketing strategies focussing on Culture to determine how well an organization working under stressful economical conditions can formulate successful marketing strategies. After careful research and study small and medium sized enterprises can focus their marketing by understanding how culture influences consumer psychology. Consumers are influences by various external factors like demographics, age, geographical location and culture is an outside influence on the consumer. According to Professor Lars Perner of Marshall School of Business the study of psychology of how the consumer is influenced by his or her environment is important for companies to improve their marketing strategies. (Perner) By understand culture, we can develop and better streamline marketing strategies/campaings to reach the customers more efficiently and aggresively. Aims The aim of the research effort is to better understand consumer behaviour which includes research of the buyers decision making process. It will include understanding the psychology, socio-economic background (from consumers in India) and other factors. There are two distinct influences acting on the consumer during the decision making process namely internal and external influences Internal Influences: These types of influences are caused by the consumer demographics, personal lifestyles, educational qualifications, financial conditions etc. External Influences: The outside factors that act on the consumer are referred as external influences. These are caused by culture and sub-culture, geographical location, gender, ethnicity and social class. As mentioned earlier Culture plays an important role in the consumer decision making process and the aim of this research is to better understand and possibly provide some suggestions so that small and medium sized companies can better formulate their marketing strategies. Objectives I hope to present a clear and definite picture on how various enterprises can attain better financial results by focussing and developing marketing strategies which are inclusive of all cultures, sub cultures and consumer social classes. By explaining consumer behaviour more clearly and making it adaptive to our fast changing economical and financial situation I hope to provide solutions for marketing successfully including possible consumer research methods. I would like to use the survey mentioned in the methodology section to understand consumer behaviour. Due to my inability to reach out to consumer/survey volunteers in U.K. and/or USA I might restrict my findings to India but I would hopefully be able to support my solutions using use cases of already successful marketing strategies. Literature Review Following globalization regional small and medium sized companies in India, USA and the UK are under increased pressure to formulate better marketing strategies. In India dimensions of marketing are fast changing. As literacy rate is increasing there is increased consumer awareness. Therefore industries face new challenges. Retail markets are now flooded with retail chains posing serious threat to traditional businesses. Consumers are now experiencing elevated service level as service sector is adopting market-focussed approach. These fast changing scenario is creating lot of changes are expected to take at a fast pace. In this context, it is important for small and medium sized enterprises for adopt and change rapidly. Changes come at a price and are not easily acceptable. It is my effort to provide struggling firms to follow simple steps to design efficient marketing strategies. Marketing is the key for successful businesses. My knowledge about different marketing strategies and related topics is based on my review of available research papers and books written by economists and philosophers. My research concludes with books and websites on consumer behaviour. I have also researched and understood the role of culture and subculture based on my finding and hope to bring a new perspective in formulating marketing strategies for small and medium sized enterprises. Lars E. Perner and is Professor of Clinical Marketing with University of South Carolina, USA. He motivates me with his research available on the web at http://www.consumerpsychologist.com/. In the introduction to Psychology of Marketing he presents some ideas which I have tried to explain further using additional references based on my research which are duly referenced in bibliography section. His work helped me build the foundation of this thesis. Consumer should be the centre and possibly the only point of focus of any marketing campaign. Perner briefly describes the role of culture and subculture. Though it should be understood from a different perspective for Indian enterprises, some of the thoughts can be applied generally. The idea that subcultures in India have distinct identity and can be identified uniquely from their heterogeneous group forms a major challenge for marketers. In the section Formulating Marketing Strategies, I have described in detail how one can ensure to include different major and minor motives that at acting on the consumer during the decision making process to design good and appealing marketing campaigns. I hope that this succinct attempt will motivate and encourage readers to focus their marketing campaigns using suggested methodologies to include various segments as mentioned in the Consumer Culture and Subculture section. Another primary source of my research and motivation is a book written by Matin Khan. It was published in 2006 and presents a perfect picture about Indian consumers and their influences. After reading this book, I have realized that it is very challenging to completely understand Indian consumers at any point. Yet, the complexity is resolved when they are segmented based on factors like geographical location and dialect. There are more factors which are useful in market segmentation and I have listed them under the section Application of Consumer Behaviour Information of my thesis. In his book Consumer Behaviour and Advertising Management, Khan discusses about consumer behaviour and its importance for companies. He writes in detail about its application and market analysis. In the chapter 2 Psychographic or Lifestyle Segmentation Khan writes in detail about Indias family structure and how marketers can use the familys socio-cultural behaviour in their favour in defining winning marke ting strategies. I am an Indian and Matin Khan helps me explore my heritage and culture by carefully exploring the hidden motives that influence my decision making process when I try to purchase any asset for my family. In his chapter Concept of Culture and Subculture, Khan made an attempt to draw a parallel and to find common characteristics amongst different Indian cultures and subcultures. My research however has helped me conclude that culture and subculture are in changing continuously and their likeliness and differences will vary from time to time. Hence, marketing strategies based on common characteristics in subcultures may not be relevant throughout the tenure of the product. In such scenarios, the strategies have to be evaluated time to time and changed accordingly. In order to further understand consumer behaviour I have further researched Ray Wrights book called Consumer Behaviour. Wright writes in detail about buyer behaviour. Examining the study of consumer behaviour is important to demonstrate the roles of customer and the market economy in designing successful marketing campaigns. Firms should compare, evaluate and analyze to relate consumer behaviour and natural and social sciences. It is necessary to individually research all the factors that influence the consumers decision making process. India is now a part of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and with Capitalism dominating all the leading economies of the world; it is becoming challenging for Indian firms to adjust to the pricing provided by the Chinese counterparts. However, the idea of swades [1] is becoming more and more relevant to Indias educated classes. Hence, there is an opportunity to design marketing strategies which exploit this consumer behaviour to increase market shar e and product line-up. The societal benefits includes adaptation and reengineering of various industrial equipment imported by India for its growing economy as the rules relating to intellectual property are not yet clearly defined and implemented by Indian legislation. Though this might change (I do not condone), it is worth mentioning how Indian companies have adapted and to sudden changes in customer behaviour following liberalisation of Indian economy. Wright also explains about the consumers central position within the free market system. India is not yet a product driven market[2] and therefore marketing campaigns designed for various countries may not be equally appealing to Indian consumers. After carefully designed marketing strategies are rolled out, it is important to maintain and sustain those efforts. Hence, marketing management small companies will have to look into as well. Robert D. Hisrich is a Garvin Professor of Global Entrepreneurship and writes about the challenges in managing marketing in his book Marketing. He writes in detail about various methods in marketing research, packaging, pricing scenarios, best practices in advertising and distribution. This secondary source is very essential to enhance my understanding of stages of marketing after strategies are rolled out. In various aptly laid out chapters, Hisrich discusses the small and medium sized industries and external marketing environment affecting them. Effective planning is super important. This book provides supporting information for my thoughts in market segmentation. Unfortunately, this book is published in the USA and does not consider Indian market scenario. Therefore, I have used this book a s a secondary reference. My emphasis for market segmentation can is extension of the information provided in Analyzing Markets and Target Marketing. This book has enhanced my understanding of consumer behaviour from business intelligence perspective. It has expanded the role of marketing by focussing only on the behaviour of the consumer. As a reader I am presented with insightful information that makes me wonder if I should keep track of every consumer motive to design better marketing solutions. Hisrich explains in detail about theoretical models in understanding consumer behaviour. This includes Stimulus-Response Model Learning Model. It is based on the sequential placement of the research steps like drive, motivation, stimuli, cu[3]e and response to fulfil consumer needs. In the psychoanalytic model we make an attempt to understand the complex consumer motives. Within one segmented market and for each product there exist different groups who buy the product for satisfying diffe rent needs. Some buy it for functional requirements and some for symbolic concerns. Maslows hierarchy of needs theory also explains how the needs of human beings can be categorized into physical, sociological and the self-actualization. Indian consumers are now starting to think more rationally on the lines of western consumers. They make decisions based on rationally perceived self-interests. They have range of products from Indian and foreign manufacturers and given the limited amount of money for attaining satisfaction by attempting to satisfy only limited number of wants from many needs. Indian firms, therefore, should make efforts to maximize these demands as mentioned in the book as utility maximization. Having understood the influences on the consumer, it is important to understand the Indian market and how it is different from the economies of the west. The biggest contrast is that companies outside India create a demand rather than responding to it. Unlike the west, Indian manufacturers are very quick to get into the market and exit as rapidly as shown by traders and their traditional trading mentality. Foreign companies should have a strong basis for understanding Indian domestic market. It will ensure they are able to best penetrate it. Indians are more welcoming to new ideas and approaches. The consumers are reasonably receptive and reasonably enthusiastic. More comparisons about western and Indian consumers are explained in detail using case studies in Paul Daviess New Business in India. In a guide to marketing in India, Davies has insights of an economist and the discourse of a writer. He writes about the Indian feeling about competition from China which is accounting for st range consumer behaviour. Such behaviour is making domestic Indian firms start thinking about hurdles while entering the Indian market. They are too high and very risky. Yet there is a opportunity to explore. Davies poses questions about Indian market to prospective firms in India, questions to ask yourself (while entering Indian market) are the one of whether you can either complement Indian businesses or offer a competitive position that will enable you to establish your business. Putting this in context of my example of Maruti Suzuki, though Maruti hold the key position since 1984, Hyundai Motors India Limited (HMIL) was successfully able to offer consumers with its Santro model, and has gain prominent market share. As of 2009, HMIL became the second largest automobile manufacturer and largest exporter of automobiles in India[4]. Similarly, scores of life insurance companies are setting up franchises to cater the needs of demanding Indian consumers. Indian manufacturers need to have some competitive edge over their competitors to capture and expand their market share. It is my effort to provide some guidelines and suggestions so that they can adapt accordingly. For traditional Indian businesses it is important to understand their areas of competitive advantages. India has vast amount of natural resources. According to P.N. Mari Bhatt in Indian Demographic Scenario 2025, Institute of Economic Growth, New Delhi, there will be more than 882 million people in the age group of 15-64 years. The age of retirement in India is 64 years. So the workforce will near one billion Indians. Therefore I conclude that Indians to have superior skills, specialized knowledge, customer orientation, trade relationships and technical expertise. Indias abundant resources are made of extensive coverage, economies of large scales, availability of global financing schemes, and ease of foreign direct investments (FDI). This together with current cost and in tellectual property niche gives Indian manufacturers head start and leading ground. In the fifth edition of Marketing Book, the author Michael Baker makes these subtle rules for start-ups very evident. He includes notes and commentary on increasing focus on channel management, CRM, direct marketing, E-Marketing and communication integration. Indian manufacturers should also understand and develop methods to differentiate their products by providing superior product quality, more functionalities, impeccable after sales service, and wider range as discussed in the section Indian Consumer Characteristics of this thesis. Even for Indian manufacturers understanding the environment is the key to success. Constantly changing political scenario takes constant adjustments within the company to accommodate and comply with changing rules. Formal marketing audits should be carried out for market size and potential, customer behaviour, segmentation and supply channels. They should understand com petitors and should not assume their behaviour. There could be direct competitors, potential competitors, and their strengths and weaknesses. Side by product comparison helps in new design ideas. They should re-evaluate their own products and market position which will enable to compete aggressively. One of the biggest mistakes done by firms is their strategies and priorities are constantly changing and setting clear strategic priorities is necessary for continuous growth. Finally with products comes customer orientation. Baker writes (Companies should) develop customer orientation in all function. Ensure that every function understands that they are there to serve the customer, not their own functional interests. This applies best to all small and medium sized enterprises. They should focus on key indicators for performance and audit those often. Also in the same context it is implied that study of market needs market research. As a supporting document to my knowledge I have reviewed Introducing Market Research written by Paul Baines and Bal Chansarkar of Middlesex University Business School. After reading introduction I am now able to better articulate the marketing research and am able to appreciate the role that marketing research plays. In the chapters ahead, Baines and Chansarkar help me decide what and who should conduct marketing research for small and medium sized enterprises in the Indian market conditions. One common mistake firms in India repeatedly do is not being able to distinguish clearly between marketing research and market research. Market research is the research of the markets. Marketing research deals with analysis of marketing process. After market and marketing research it is time for strategic planning, which uses all the information collected during research. Strategic planning has five important elements; Product Strategy, Offer Strategy, Media Strategy, Distribution Strategy and Creative Strategies. India has Growing number of internet shoppers who necessitate small businesses to adapt these strategies in their favour. Edward L. Nashs Direct Marketing: Strategy, Planning, Execution is a great reference to understand each of these strategies. In its fourth edition, Nash explains how businesses can use internet and global marketing strategies to capture ground in this competitive marketplace. Internet is the newest form of direct marketing. Relying solely on the media can be catastrophic. Following the principles of strategic direct marketing we can create successful campaigns for any product and in any segment of market in India or any other country of the work. But it is very important to have a strategy clea rly defined. Earlier in India there was no co-ordination between product development team and the marketing team. The product development team rarely took information about the end user and the marketing team was responsible for selling it. Today, it is just the reverse. Product development teams are instructed to find products that can be marketed easily. The author takes example of Dell and Apple who allow users to configure the computers they would like to buy. The consumers tell the manufacturers what they want and it is made for them rather than buying preconfigured computers available in the market. This gives them the competitive advantage and greater market share. Something similar needs to happen in India. The author presents small businesses with retailing opportunity using the internet. There are many advantages associated with letting consumers buy products online. The physical store can be smaller but the online store can be vast with products that can be delivered just in time. Unlike traditional businesses where the consumers/end users are restricted, online shopping portals do not have geographical restriction. The online store is open almost all the time. Unlike physical stores, online portals can get a makeover almost instantly appealing to masses. It is very easy to gather consumer information as it is not a hassle when the shopping is being done online. Growing number of companies in India are switching to this model because of high cost of running physical stores. After speaking to business owners in Hyderabad and Kamareddy cities of Andhra Pradesh, India I have realized that businesses are looking for to a clearly and planned guide to marketing plan which is customized for them. Robert E Stevens, PhD is a Professor of Management and Marketing at University of Louisiana at Monroe. Along with his colleague David Loudan, PhD and Bruce Wrenn have collaborated to compose a Marketing Planning Guide. The book lays out step by step, wizard like actions for marketing planning. It introduces plannings importance in any organization and the formal marketing planning process. It has organizational considerations while marketing planning (organizational purpose, objectives and strategies, a look and current organizations structure, and market responsiveness). It introduces Indian businesses to database marketing planning using Hyundai Motor Company as an example. Types of data that we should keep information on and decision making process are well illustr ated. It also has steps one should have in any marketing research project. From the market analysis perspective we have to ensure thorough situational analysis, which has strategic implications of product and market analysis including sales and costs analysis of the product versus its competitor. As mentioned in my analysis, Professor Stevens lays strong emphasis on consumer analysis using market segmentation, lifestyle segmentation and introduces Market Grid Analysis to the small and medium enterprises. He also writes in detail about competitive analysis for establishing competitive advantage which is also discussed by Michael Baker. With increasing power to spend, Indias market is constantly increasing which gives every company an opportunity to succeed. An opportunity analysis should be carefully conducted identifying potential problems and opportunities. There exist internal and other risk factors that need to be considered. Companies should used data from situation analysis to set clear objectives for marketing. Companies should develop a strategy and also evaluate alternate marketing strategies. They should also evaluate other factors influencing the selected strategy. For manufacturers who offer variety of products, different product related decisions should also be made during marketing mix. Different product positioning strategies and quality based marketing should be initiated. Service strategy should be implemented and evaluated often. Improving customer service is the key to changing customers perception about the company. If the existing products need a makeover or change, relevant product line decisions should be taken. Distribution channels should be carefully selected and promotion decisions should be made only on the basis of target audience. Media and promotional media decisions should not be made without proper cause. For companies competing with Chinese manufacturers pricing also plays an important role in changing customers perspective about the company. Professor Stevens writes about penetration pricing and skimming pricing for making pricing decisions for new products. In designing successful marketing systems, companies should focus on the following four subsystems (departments) within the organization Organizational System: The super system which binds all other systems together and coordinates the interaction of all other systems. Marketing Planning System: This department identifies opportunities for marketing and should create consumer oriented plans. Marketing Control System: This system will monitor and audit performance of marketing plans to ensure marketing objectives are being met. Marketing Information System: This provides decision making information and data to all other departments of the company. Richard L. Sandhusen explains the importance of these systems in his book Marketing and explains why organization system harmonizes marketing efforts. It is because the organization system has infrastructure in which marketing analysis, marketing planning, implementation and controls can be efficiently coordinated. These can be customized for small and medium sized industries we have can more one or group of persons performing multiple tasks. These tasks should be divided once the company starts to grow. This books also talks about product design. The main consideration in product design is consumer preference. Companies should design what consumers want. Indian consumers are now expecting world class safety features in the cars they buy. Almost every car manufacturer now offers cars with air bags, and side impact bar. All those who were reluctant to offer have dealt serious loses. The main criterion for product competitiveness and profitability is pricing. Cost of labour and materia ls should be carefully used in the price of the product. Products should also be designed for compatibility as well. India is a large country with varied geographical and environmental constraints. There are different climates, and different measurements systems which should be considered during product design. The study of Indian marketing environment can never be adequate due to constantly changing dimensions. There are the forces that marketing managers should use to create and plan organization objectives. For Indian companies, microenvironment [Sandhusen, 2000][6] is the force that affects the ability of the company to serve its customers better than its competitors. The macroenvironment [Sandhusen, 2000][6] influence the microenvironment due to politics, economy, and changing culture and subculture. Finally, the game changing role is played by considering distribution systems. Unlike USA and UK, roadway and railway infrastructure is not very well maintained. Companies should make use of channel systems. In India, logistics are becoming the biggest deterrent to appealing marketing campaigns. Logistics requires material management and product distribution (packaging, transportation, storage, and inventory management) for bring products to the end users. These functions are interrelated. Indian companies should adopt structuring logistics into material management and product distribution for efficient logistics. If possible separate department should be created with greater communication between them. Sandhusen writes about the importance of logistics in marketing planning, and mentions marketing planning can be measured by a number of costly concerns: transportation, storage costs, number of (intermediate) channels in logistics, costs, etc. Methodology The primary aim of this research is to emphasize the impact of culture on marketing strategies for small and medium sized enterprises. Unlike large sized companies, small and medium enterprises face increased competition due to inadequate resources including capital, human resources and strategic assets. To better communicate with their target customer group the small and medium sized enterprises use various techniques in exploring existing or newer markets. I would like to limit my focus to the efforts in understanding the cultural impact on those marketing strategies and, to provide better solutions I would like to refer to the following ways of collecting information. The primary source of my research is books, magazines, historical articles and, other information available in hard copy. All references will be duly mentioned in the bibliography section. Information available on internet and white papers. While most of the information and statistics available on the web cannot be collaborated with strong facts, it secondary source of information which will act as supporting data for the information I would collect by preliminary research using books, journals and government provided economic data. Also, I would like to survey the existing marketing campaigns to find similarities and differences between different small sized enterprises. As the emphasis is on culture, I cannot limit my research to UK alone and would like to extend my survey to other countries including USA and India. The research poll will include a short questionnaire which can be an online survey and or a hand written copy. I would like to provide a parallel between the current trends in marketing strategies and the general opinion from the research poll. Though it is possible that there might be a difference in them, it is still valid as this effort is to better understand and streamline marketing. A sample questionnaire is enclosed for reference. Sample questions from research survey: 1. What is your age group? Answer choices: a. Between 18-24 b. Between 25-34 c. Between 34-44 d. Between 45-54 e. Between 55-54 f. Over 65 2. What is your gender? Answer choices: 3. Answer choices: a. UK b. U.S.A c. India 4a. For respondents in U.K. Do you feel London is an example of cross cultural metropolitan? Answer choices: a. Yes b. No 4b. If the answer is â€Å"yes† to question number 4a. Have you ever felt any commercial is particularly offensive to your culture/background? Answer choices: a. Yes b. No 5. If the answer is â€Å"no† to question number 4b. Will you be interested in purchasing a product of Company A if its marketing commercials portrays your culture/background in a positive way? Answer choices: a. Yes b. No 6. Have you recently been motivated to buy any product because its advertisement if inclusive and portrays your culture positively? Answer choices: a. Yes b. No 6b. If the answer is â€Å"yes† to the question number 6. Please mention the company name, product name and category if applicable. Answer choices: a. b. c. 1 What is your age group? a. Between 18-24 b. Between 25-34> c. Between 34-44 d. Between 45-54 e. Between 55-54 f. Over 65 2. What is your gender? a. Male b. Female 3. What is your primary country of residence? a. UK b. U.S.A c. India 4.a. For respondents in U.K.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Do you feel London is an example of cross cultural metropolitan? a. Yes b. No 4.b. If the answer is â€Å"yes† to question number 4a.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Have you ever felt any commercial is particularly offensive to your culture/background? a. Yes b. No 5. If the answer is â€Å"no† to ques

Kant and Mills Theories Essay -- social issues

Kant and Mill's Theories In July of 1994, Paul J. Hill, a former Presbyterian minister and later a pro-life activist, was prosecuted for killing Dr. John Britton, an abortion performing doctor, and James Barrett, a volunteer, outside a clinic in Pensacola, Florida. Prior to this, Hill commented on the murder of Dr. David Gunn, another abortion performing doctor, stating that it was a â€Å"biblically justified homicide (P. 215).† This statement shows how strong Hill’s beliefs were and leads one to assume that he did not regret killing Britton and Barrett. This paper will address the Hill case and determine the ethical parameter in which Paul Hill should have acted. The two philosophical approaches that will be examined and contrasted are the Kantian and Utilitarian perspectives. Kant and Mill’s point of view on the actions of Paul J. Hill will be presented based on their theories. Lastly, I will explain why I believe that Kant’s theory provides a more plausible account of morality . Kantianism and Utilitarianism are two theories that attempt to answer the moral nature of human beings. Immanuel Kant’s moral system is based on a belief that reason is the final authority for morality. John Stuart Mill’s moral system is based on the theory known as utilitarianism, which is based upon utility, or doing what produces the greatest happiness. One of Kant’s lasting contributions to moral philosophy was his emphasis on the notion of respect for persons. He considers respect for persons (a.k.a the Kantian respect) to be the fundamental moral principle of ethical philosophy. His Kantianism premise is a deontological moral theory which claims that the right action in any given situation is determined by the categorical imperative, which he calls the Supreme Principle. This imperative is a command that applies to all rational beings independent of their desires. It is a command that reason tells us to follow no matter what (P.31).† Kant considers this an objective law of reason and because it applies to all of us, he calls it a universal practical law for all rational beings. The hypothetical imperative, on the contrary, is a conditional command, which â€Å"we have reason to follow if (it) serve(s) some desire of ours (P.31).† For example, if you want X, then you will do Y, whereas with the categorical impe rative, X has nothing to do with why you do Y. Kant’s categor... ...es, I believe that Kantianism provides a more plausible account of ethics. Kantianism is more consistent of a theory and can be universally applied to all beings. It is more plausible because even if the consequences of performing an action are not necessarily the best, the agent is still obligated to perform the action because it is there duty to do so. Therefore, ethically and morally they are doing the right thing. In conclusion, this paper has discussed two main theories regarding the ethical behavior of human beings. Kantianism is a theory based on duties, maxims, willing and the categorical imperative. Also, it focuses on the motivation of actions, has clear and distinct set of universal rules, and is morally logical. On the other hand, Utilitarianism is based on the concept that we ought to do whatever produces the greatest overall utility and this will be the morally right action. Furthermore, it relies on the consequences of an action, has no set universal laws as each action is assessed on an individual basis, and morality is based on the results of the assessment. Because of these reasons, I believe that Kantianism is the more ethically plausible theory of the two.