Language Acquisition and Development

A huge variation in the rate of vocabulary and language development can be observed   in children , and parents/caretakers should not expect all children to develop at the same rate .The development of speech is dependent on the environment that the child is brought up in especially the social interactions the child has with the members of the household. A child who is spoken to often and is exposed to the daily routine of the house/ neighborhood develops its own interpretation and relation between words and actions. Kids typically try to use the type of communication conventional in their community for example a child brought up in a active Spanish household may start waving its arms to communicate before actually forming the words when it sees the people in its orbit doing so. A child brought up in a silent household may not speak early as it has negligible exposure to the use of verbal or non verbal communication. The Motor function development in the child also impacts the rate of speech development. Children who are read to often or encouraged to speak are seen to make better effort at communication rather than those children left to their own devices. It is also found that children of working parents, who are left in day care, adopt the speech mannerisms they are exposed to in the day care center. There are instances when children develop speech when they find they are not getting what they want or need and vice versa. There also needs to be allowances made such as the health of the child and its behavior patterns.   The development of speech is also dependent on the interest displayed by the child in learning and participating in activities like play or reading.   Therefore we can see that children develop at different rates depending on their environment and internal biological development. The exposure that a child is given compounded with the pace of motor functions impact the age of speech for different children. References Wegner, Lynn (2007).Screening for Speech and Language Delay in Preschool Children: More Answers Are Needed. Pediatrics. 533-534. Nelson, Heidi D., Nygren, Peggy, Walker, Miranda, & Panoscha, Rita (2007). Screening for Speech and Language Delay in Preschool Children: Systematic Evidence Review for the US Preventive Services Task Force. Pediatrics, 298-319. Wertsch, James 1985. Vygotsky and the Social Formation of Mind. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.   

Absolute Lymphocyte And Cd4 Count Health And Social Care Essay

Cluster of differentiation 4 counts have become a standard step of immunodeficiency in grownups infected with HIV in resource rich countries. However bulk of HIV positive people now live in developing states which are resource hapless lending to about 80 % of the planetary portion. World Health Organization ( WHO ) guidelines acknowledge that absolute lymph cell count ( ALC ) may be used to do intervention determination in resource hapless scenes when CD4 count is non available. Whereas ALC is an cheap and utile marker for presenting disease, the informations measuring the public-service corporation of ALC as cheap alternate marker of CD4 cell count to steer curative determinations is conflicting. Majority of HIV positive people now live in developing states like in Sub-Saharan Africa and South East Asia lending to about 80 % of the planetary portion [ 1 ] . It is besides true that this is besides the part where there is resource restriction to turn to the job like scarceness of CD4 appraisal counters to originate ART and follow-up. Access to ART is now turning. CD4 counts have become a standard step of immunodeficiency in grownups infected with HIV in resource rich countries where the load of the pandemic is low [ 3 ] . Mindful of this job, the current guidelines from World Health Organization ( WHO ) acknowledge that entire lymph cell count ( TLC ) may be used to do intervention determination in resource hapless scenes when CD4 count is non available and patients are mildly diagnostic [ 4 ] . Absolute Lymphocyte Count ( ALC ) is an cheap and utile marker for presenting disease, foretelling patterned advance to AIDS and decease and monitoring response to ART. The principle for the WHO ‘s recommendation is that most surveies concluded a diminution in TLC was strongly correlated with a diminution in CD4 count, though there were some disagreements [ 5-10 ] . However the informations measuring the public-service corporation of ALC as cheap alternate marker of CD4 cell count to steer curative determinations is conflicting including a recent study which mentioned that ALC & lt ; 1200 cells/mm3 was non optimum for placing patients necessitating ART since it showed low sensitiveness and specificity to foretell CD4 count below 200 cells/mm3 [ 10,11 ] . The survey was conducted at our infirmary which is besides a regional HIV/AIDS referral Centre. Over 35 patients are seen each hebdomad including new and follow up instances. The infirmary provides HIV attention such as guidance, intervention of timeserving infections, out patient every bit good as in patient attention and all HIV related complications and lab trials ( including CD4 lymph cell count trials for all instances and outsourced viral burden proving in choice instances ) , all free of cost. The infirmary besides provides information to patients refering the benefit of ART and entree to drugs. Eligible patients with CD4 & lt ; 350 cells/mm3 or WHO clinical phase 4 are started on ART which is besides provided free of cost. The patient spectrum includes instances with HIV infection both with and without ART and besides some who have advanced AIDS. From May 2009 to Jun 2010, two hundred and forty one back-to-back patients seen at our HIV/AIDS referral Centre who had obtained Complete blood count ( CBC ) and CD4 measurings on the same blood sample, were eligible for the survey. These survey topics were assessed for clinical unwellnesss on the same twenty-four hours as the lab trial measurings. A standardised information aggregation signifier was completed for each patient. Patient information on registration included demographics, clinical and laboratory data.Complete past medical records of all patients were either in their ownership or in our informations bank, our Centre being the regional referral Centre for HIV/AIDS. All the patients were evaluated for current age, manner of sensing of HIV ( voluntary showing or high hazard testing ) and twelvemonth of sensing of HIV infection. All past medical records were perused. All patients were subjected to a elaborate history and complete clinical scrutiny for marks of HIV disease or other timeserving infections. Two survey doctors determined the WHO clinical stage10. All patients underwent analysis for CD4+ T cell count at first sensing, six monthly for first one and half old ages and annually thenceforth. A basic Hemogram, urine analysis, Liver map trials and serum creatinine was carried out. Screening for pox, hepatitis B and C was besides done. Annually Chest X beam and ultrasound of the venters was done. Computerised imaging ( CT ) scan of venters, caput and thorax was carried out in relevant instances. Baseline and thenceforth two annual Mantoux trial was done. Baseline and thenceforth two annual Toxoplasma, Herpes Simplex virus 1 & A ; 2 and Cytomegalovirus antibody titers of IgG and IgM were besides done. Consecutive weight records were besides maintained. Any other relevant trials required for intervention of any specific instances were besides undertaken. Laboratory information included CD4 measured by a FACS Counter and complete blood counts by manual method including haemoglobin ( Hb ) ( Sahliaa‚Â ¬a„?s method ) , white bl ood cell count ( WBC ) and Absolute lymph cell count ( ALC ) . All blood indices were done on the same sample for each patient. Quality Control is monitored by internal controls and external proficiency plans. Quality Assurance and Quality Improvement Programs are in place.The informations set was de-identified and no references, alone identifiers or patient visit day of the months were included. The infirmary moralss commission reviewed the survey and cleared it for farther processing. A survey in 2004-05, in Europe and USA reported that absolute lymph cell count was a strong forecaster of short-run disease patterned advance, being merely marginally less prognostic than CD4-cell per centum in the pediatric population. However Johnson et Al ( 2009 ) concluded that low absolute lymph cell count did non correlate with terrible immunosuppression based on CD4 cell count in pediatric HIV infected population. Harmonizing to the WHO ‘s general rule to steer determination doing approximately when to originate ART in resource hapless scenes, a wider handiness of CD4 testing is indispensable. However, the scarceness of this engineering should n't be a cause to discourage intervention while the patient ‘s status deteriorates if there is entree to ALC and cognition of clinical presenting [ 4 ] . Several surveies revealed moderately equal sensitiveness and specificity to see ALC as a foster step for CD4 [ 5-10 ] . Gupta and co-workers ( 2007 ) , observed low sensitiveness and specificity of ALC as an surrogate marker to originate ART. As it was reported by Jacobson and co-workers ( 2003 ) , ALC may still be used in resource limited country with the apprehension of its low sensitiveness and specificity. Stebbing and co-workers besides indicated that despite minimally less dependability of TLC as a alternate for CD4, ALC is of import tool in the absence of expensive equipment to mensurate CD4. Current WHO guidelines Dec 2009, in resource-limited scenes clinical supervising alone may be an option for the first 2 old ages of intervention. We agree with the present consensus that clinical monitoring entirely may be better option than trusting on ALC. It is clip that we call drapes down on ALC as a foster marker of CD4 counts.

Hustle As Strategy by Amar Bhide in Harvard Business Review Essay

Hustle As Strategy by Amar Bhide in Harvard Business Review September-October(critical review of the article) - Essay Example (Porter, 2004). Author therefore seems to have taken a narrow view of how organizations can actually just rely on their own resources to gain competitive advantage and give less consideration to what competition is doing. Porter however, claims that operational efficiency is not the strategy though Porter believes that it is necessary but not the sufficient condition.(Porter, 1996). Author however, seem to have taken a view that operational effectiveness can actually materialize into successful strategy. Debating strategy from this perspective therefore can be considered as important because this is where strategy is actually directly linked with the maximization of the profits. (Davies, 2000). Author however, seem to differ by offering an indirect suggestion towards the use of differentiation as one of the (Porter, 1989) Such approach toward strategy therefore outlines that strategy is not just limited to understanding and exploring how to leverage the organizational resources in or der to compete effectively. (Speed, 1989). Within this perspective the debate presented in this article points out that strategy should be of evolutionary nature where only such strategies will survive which can produce best results. The author has given different examples of financial institutions where the international firms continued to re-evaluate their strategies in order to fit them according to what is working best. (Elfring, and Volberda, 2011) The evolutionary approach towards the strategy outlines that firms cannot withstand the competition but rather focus on developing their competencies in order to successful evaluate and challenge the competition. This also outlines that the firms must continue to focus upon the use innovative tools and techniques to successfully challenge the competition. (Henderson, 2007). This approach also outlines that the author has taken a broader view of how the firms can actually use their core competencies in order to compete. This thought o n strategy suggests that once the firms take care of developing their core competencies and resources, competition matters less to them. (Morden, 2007). These core competencies often translate into the competitive advantages for the firms and the firms resultantly develop into stronger and innovative organizations. It is also critical to understand that the firms pursuing such strategy must not be complacent and continue to evolve themselves according to the external situation. As such the link between the organizational strategies as well as the external environment is critical and the author has suggested the same. Overall, the author seems to have presented an evolutionary school of strategy for firms in this article. 2) One of the most important strengths of this article is based upon the fact that the author has produced a relatively different and fresh approach towards the strategy. By outlining different practical examples from financial services industry, author has critical ly offered a glimpse into how the managers think and evaluate their options before taking on any action. As such it is important for the managers to consider different aspects of the strategy making before it can actually be materialized. (Pretorius, & Maritz, 2011). What is unconvincing however is the fact that the author has just focused upon the financial service

Skills Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6250 words

Skills Development - Essay Example Skills need to be upgraded if the individual or organization wants to survive in the global competition of today. Organizations offer extensive training to their employees for specific skill sets. However, individuals can also choose to develop their skills by carrying out a self analysis. The result of self analysis will highlight those areas which need to be developed for personal growth and sustenance. Areas for Improvement After carrying out a self analysis and building a strong understanding of the concept of organizational behavior, I have come to the conclusion that my skills need to be developed in five areas. These areas are mentioned below: 1) Communication 2) Managing Change 3) Coping up with Emotions and Managing Stress 4) Conflict Management 5) Motivation Reasons for Picking These Areas For Improvement After bringing to your attention the areas which I feel need improvement, I would like to justify my choice with reasons Communication What on the earth would we do if we were unable to get our message across? How would we inform others what we want and respond to their messages without communication? Communication is equally important on individual and organizational level. In the absence of communication, every human being would become isolate. Communication is a way of expressing thoughts, ideas and feelings. It is due to communication that two persons are able to exchange views; and also understand what the other person wants. Timely and effective communication is required to make a better society. On the organizational level, communications helps employees understand the vision of the Chief Executive Officer. It is important for organizations to communicate the policies and strategies to employees within the organization so that they follow it and reach the defined goals. On the other hand, organizations also need to communicate their performance to the stakeholders outside the organization for building brand awareness, loyalty and enticing inve stors. Managing Change I see change as an idea or process introduced into any organization. Change, as we see it, is a transition from present to future state. Naturally, the first reaction to change is resistance. Even on individual level- whenever we are exposed to change, we respond by showing reluctance. Change is natural and should be welcomed. In reality, when we are faced with change, we get disturbed because we are coping well in our comfort zone and don’t want any outside force to act. Philosophically, things never remain stagnant- change is required to bring them into motion so that they develop and attain a better state. Coping up with Emotions and Managing Stress Emotions and stress are probably the two aspects that leave negative impacts on a personality. Emotions and stress need to be managed very carefully because these two factors are clearly those which are known to interfere with the individual/organizational growth and success. Emotions distract attention a nd may provoke an individual to take illogical or irrational decisions. In the same way, stress which arises due to various reasons needs to be controlled because it also affects the individual/employee’s thinking and focusing abilities. In case stress is left untreated, it may prolong and result in chronic health and mental diseases. Conflict Management The literal meaning of conflict is disagreement, dissension and divergence. At individual level, we are exposed to a number of situations

My personal statement for getting into nursing Essay

My personal statement for getting into nursing - Essay Example I have set up and run a first time mums group. This group consists of a five week programme: week one is an introduction to the other mums and we show the mums the signs and symptoms of meningitis; the second week is baby massage of which I am a trained teacher; the third week is weaning, the signs and what food to introduce and the implications of weaning too early; the fourth week is sleep and the sleep methods the PCT recommends. We also discuss SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). This week can be challenging but recommended because of the significance of the problem. The fifth week we discuss childrens development and how children do not need lots of toys for them to thrive. These groups are very successful and the feedback I get from them is very positive. An additional part of my role is to run the two years development check. This is a free screening service for children that are between two and two-and-half. I run these from a childrens centre with nine children screened twice weekly. These development checks are to determine whether the children have any trouble with their speech and language and to give advice to aid and guide speech. AI also invite them to a local drop in speech and language services. In addition, I look to see if the children have play and cognitive skills issues. We carry out some small tests to see if they are up to their age-related peers. We also test their fine and gross motor skills. This is done by carrying out small tests with the children. We also do their height and weight and plot in their red books (Child Health books). We check that the children are not overweight and not underweight and advise according Oto the government standard of which I was training by Middlesex University Institute of Nursin g and Midwifery. Another part of my role is to liaise with the health visitors on such delicate issues as children protection issues, and how to look after children and special needs children. I have also

Pay for performance increases job satisfaction Essay

Pay for performance increases job satisfaction - Essay Example Another point is that with financial reward workers tend to remain more reliable and honest in work. A contrasting view to this is that the employees can take the employer for granted and also they can end up in accidents due to excessive work. The paper will analyse all four different views and ultimately try to assess whether the pay for performance will give satisfaction to workers. The first argument states that workers are more satisfied when they are paid for their performance. The employees work more sincerely if they are give incentives for their work. Employees do respond well to incentives for better performance and to recognition for doing especially outstanding work. Employers shouldn’t ignore incentives if they want great performance from their employees. Workers always look forward for ways to achieve incentives for their handwork. Achen(2007)claims that â€Å" Properly designed performance incentive programs not only employees develop or enhance job skills†. The employees become even more committed once they realize that their work is being appreciated by the employer. They will try all the more to be sincere in their job and try to enhance their working skill to bring more productivity. The second argument is that when the employees are paid for performance they bring in more profit to the organization..According to Blinder(1990,p.41), â€Å" Since incentive system pay more to more productive workers, workers who are inherently more productive will tend to sort them towards incentive – using firms†. This shows that incentive giving companies receive more hardworking employees which in turn will increase their productivity.Billikof (2006)states that â€Å" Incentive pay has the potential to increase worker productivity if properly designed and maintained.†When the workers see that they are achieving financial reward for their work they are encouraged more to do better performance .They feel like achieving the goal of

Absorption Costing versus Variable Costing Essay

Absorption Costing versus Variable Costing - Essay Example Adopting absorption costing and variable costing by a firm is not considered mandatory however. They are essentially tools for the management to assess profitability. Absorption costing broadly refers to the manufacturing costs which get absorbed by a unit of product that is manufactured (Garrison, Noreen and Brewer, 2003). Absorption costs include raw material costs, labour costs, fixed and variable manufacturing expenses. The absorption costing system includes taking into consideration all types of fixed and variable costs and allocating the same under different heads and accordingly estimating the overall costs of the product (Garrison, Noreen and Brewer, 2003). A product, in the course of its manufacturing may absorb a number of different types of costs. As per the regulations of GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Priniciples), it is essential that the firm recognizes the value of its inventory on the basis of absorption costing (Garrison, Noreen and Brewer, 2003). However these costs are not recognized till the firm sells the goods and revenues are earned. They are not recognized when an entity makes payment for the same and therefore remai ns in the inventory cost as an asset (Garrison, Noreen and Brewer, 2003). Variable costing is considered to be suitable a management tool for assessing efficiency. It is often used as an alternative for absorption costing. GAAP does not allow the usage of variable costing for estimating the cost of production. However, managers are seen to use the same for assessing internal operations affectivity. The variable costing technique includes only the variable production costs. Fixed manufacturing expenses under this method are treated as period cost and are deducted from the income earned during the period (Hilton, 1994). Absorption costing is seen to be useful when all manufactured

Seugman Rhee's relationship with China Term Paper

Seugman Rhee's relationship with China - Term Paper Example The common perception is that China was a common enemy in the Korean War. However, some scholars have intimated that China played a role in the outbreak of the Korean War by siding with the Soviet Union. While the issue of China’s desire to curve their identity as a recognizable entity, there is also the belief that being a communist state they felt obliged to defend their ideologies by supporting the like-minded North Korea. Having been led by Seugman Rhee since independent, South Korea was directly leaning towards United States’ capitalism and democratic ideologies. South Korea became an enemy of the communists North Korea and China supported by Soviet Union. Seugman Rhee was a strong advocate of free market economy and democracy, probably due to his education background in the United States. South Korea’s Seugman Rhee had a strained relationship with China during his rule, largely due to his belief in free market economy and democratic leaning ideologies front ed by the United States, as opposed to China’s communism ideology spearheaded by the Soviet Union and North Korea. Although Rhee had a link with China after his early years in a Chinese school, he loathed at the communism ideology, and instead favoured capitalism. In order to understand this relationship, it is important to understand Seugman Rhee’s background as a young man, student and political life. The Life of Seugman Rhee Seungman Rhee was the first president of Korea, and later became the first president of the Republic of South Korea. Born in March 26, 1875, Rhee led Korea when the country was in serious turbulence both internally and externally. Considered an anti-communist in an era when communism was rampant in the region, the Korean strongman led the country in the Korean War. Rhee’s presidency between 1948 and 1960 was adversely affected by the threats from Cold War in the region. Rhee later resigned as a president after facing protests from the mas ses who accused him of rigging an election against his opponents. Exiled in Hawaii, United States, Rhee later died in July 19, 1965. The Korean War of 1950s happened during Rhee’s reign, and he was accused by the communist North and his political opponents in South Korea of instigating war. Despite having close association with China over his schooling years, Rhee did not find communism ideologies acceptable. Although Rhee was born in a rural family in the Province of Hwanghae Province, the family moved to Seoul when he was two years old. He was later got introduced into the Chinese language through early education on the Chinese literature. His family was poor and worse still this did not improve even as he grew up. However, Rhee received a critical break when he began his classical Chinese education at the age of twenty. The school, Paejae missionary institution was meant to prepare Rhee for a career as a government serviceman. It is during this period that Rhee joined the Independent Club and the Debating Society founded by the United States’ educated reformers such as Chae-pil. The expulsion of Chae-pil from Korea in 1898 gave way for the new leadership of the organization, which included Rhee and others (Sutter 27). Rhee’s move to United States helped him acquire a degree from George Washington University, Harvard, and Princeton. It is during his stay in the United States that he formed the

Mod 2 - TD Financial Analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Mod 2 - TD Financial Analysis - Assignment Example During entry, the client and consultant reach an agreement of their roles in the data collection and the feedback. It includes the introduction of the client and consultant and the decision that they will work until the end. Data collection includes collecting valid information about the client system and understanding the system. After this, the feedback stage gives the overall data analysis of the client system and be able to offer a good working relationship (Hackman, 1972). Organizational diagnosis and strategy are connected because organizational diagnosis leads to an improved and better marketing strategy as it becomes a spring board in getting better results. Mediating factors will include core competence such as the skills, technology and resources. The domain of the organization which includes the population it serves and the functions it performs could also be another factor. Organizational diagnosis helps in identifying how they will be able to communicate to the customers about their strengths, their customers’ requirements and changes in those requirements. Once the organizational diagnosis is successful, it means that the ways of improving the marketing strategy will be identified and this will lead to a better way of marketing. In today’s fast changing world, knowledge sharing and developing customer oriented systems will be able to influence the performance and thus increase the competitive advantage (Hackman,

Rising health care costs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Rising health care costs - Essay Example The author asserts that the Australian government keystone weakness is to deliberately favor the rich leaving the poor out of the best Medicare services equation. This is contrasted by the contemporaneous condition in the United States affirming that the Medicare private medical insurance, the predominant vehicle for funding healthcare, has disadvantaged poor people. It's profoundly clear that the long-term fiscal balance will ultimately rely on the future rate of growth of health care costs. As per the given Medicare and Medicaid costs threshold statistics, if the rates remain in the same continuum as the past few decades, overall federal costs incurred on those two programs will elevate from 5% to the stated 20% by 2050. I strongly concur that the policymakers focus to simply compound this menace is the core impeding factor in controlling overall federal incurrence over the long run void of tabling an addressing the driving forces behind the elevated private and public health care costs. I strongly concur to different authors assertions that distribution of the health care costs throughout the economy does not necessarily solve the issue at hand, and that cost reduction strategy can be achieved void of compromising quality.Also, the assertion of getting rid of financial incentives and ensuring that patients health care expenses are covered by their insurance providers is a key way to reduce overall health care costs. The overall insight to combine all possible cost saving options available is not only viable but also practical.

The most effective visual images Essay Example for Free

The most effective visual images Essay It was a dull night in November, I had completed my work. I accumulated all the equipment that I would use to breathe life into the lifeless monster on the ground; I was so nervous that I was nearly in pain. By one in the morning, the rain fell gloomily on the windows. My candle was about to go off, when I saw the yellow eye of the monster open. It breathed in deeply and an unexpected motion vibrated his limbs. Could I describe my feelings when I saw this? How could I create such an ugly man? His body had a nice figure and I tried to make him look good, but he came out extremely butters. Oh my days! He was uglier than the devil himself. Through his yellow skin, I could see the muscles and veins. Can you imagine, his hair was pure black and his teeth were white like WOH! The nasty difference was his dull eyes that appeared to be almost the same colour as his yellow face, apart from his proper thin black lips. To get to this point I worked for almost two years, you know. I went without rest and I even made myself sick, blad. I wanted this moment more than a man should want anything, now I had finished my work, the buffness that I had imagined it to be had gone and now I am full of disgust. Man, this thing that I have created was so butters, I would go blind if I looked at it. I quickly went out of the lab and for ages I was walking up and down my bedroom, trying to cool down, you get me. I did fall asleep, but it was proper edgy, full of bare nightmares. By Vivian Amobi Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Mary Shelley section.

Anastasia Romanov a Mystery Essay Example for Free

Anastasia Romanov a Mystery Essay Anastasia Romanov Anastasia was born on June 18, 1901 to Tasar Nicholas II of Russia and his wife Alexandra Fyodorvna (Evans 2009). She was the youngest the five children the couple had. Anastasia had three sisters and one brother: Grand Duchess Tatiana, Grand Duchess Maria, Grand Duchess Olga, and Alexei Nikolaevich of Russia. She was very close to her dad, grandmother, and cousin, Princess Xenia She was stubborn and hated school. She would climb trees and stay in them to avoid school until her dad came and ordered her to get down. Her playmates name was Tatiana Botkin (King). At age 16 she stared to smoke secretly because of stress and tense. Sometimes her sister Olga would Join her (Anastasia). Anastasia was short, had blue eyes, and brown hair which was sometimes said to be blond with a reddish tint (see fg. 1). Fig. 1. This is a picture of Anastasia Romanov when she was younger (Anastasia). During World War I the royal family were kept hostage. On July 17, 1918 the Bolshevik secret police murdered the Romanov family. They had burt through the doors and started to fire their guns immediately. The bullets had ricocheted off Anastasia ecause she had diamonds sewed into her clothing (King); she did this so she could carry them palace to palace. There were two bodies that were not found, Anastasias and her brothers, Alexei (Frazpatrick 2005). Women would pretend to be Anastasia. The most famous was Anna Anderson. She had captured the imagination of America and Europe. Other imposters pretended to be other members of the Romanov family but no one could grab the imagination like Anna had. They also had proof that the other member had died because their bodies were found. The reason Anna could rab the imagination of America and Europe was because she was the same age, height, weight and also had the same hair and eyes as Anastasia. Anna even had the same deformed foot Just like Anastasia had. Anna had Jumped Offa bridged to commit suicide but was taken to the hospital. She had claimed to be Anastasia and had the story of how she escaped from the soldiers and where she has been hiding. She was hiding because she was scared that if someone noticed her than she would be shot and killed (King). Anastasias playmate and cousin had both spoken to Anna and thought that it was actually Anastasia but later changed their minds (King). Other family members on Anastasia had asked Anna questions and some believed others did not believe her. For the people that did not believe that Anna was Anastasia they came up with their own ideas of what happened to the real Anastasia. Some people thought that the soldiers took pity on her and let her get away. Others had thought that the Bolshevik police had burned her body so that there were no remains left (Anastasia). threw her body down a mineshaft and set of grenades. She could have gone to her randmothers house to hide from the police because Anastasia was very close to her grandmother. In 1979 a body of a girl was found by a Soviet architect. In those times there was no way to prove that the body was Anastasias. In 1979 the body was buried a second time but was believed to have been Anastasias. In the mass grave there were suppose to be eleven bodies but there were only nine ever found. The nine bodies were Tasar Nicholas, Alexandra Fyodorvna, Grand Duchess Tatiana, Grand Duchess Maria, and Grand Duchess Olga. However, architects found two additional bodies, round the area that they had found Anastasias, in 2007 (Young). At this time there were more scientific tools such as DNA testing. Alexei was identified by DNA testing; they used the skull of Maria to identify Alexei. Alexei skull was used to prove Anastasia died in 1918 with the rest of her family. This mystery has been playing with peoples minds ever since the death of the Romanov family. There are people sill today that believe the DNA testing was incorrect. Others think that scientist made up the data so they can say that they solved the mystery.

Oil Exploration And Production Companies Management Essay

Oil Exploration And Production Companies Management Essay The oilfield service industry is a sector which mainly provides services to the oil exploration and production companies. Schlumberger is the leading name in the oilfield servicing market which has lots of stake in the highly competitive market environment of the Middle East. This report is basically an in depth understanding about the behavior and performance of Schlumberger in the highly competitive environment. The initial analysis of the report would focus on the qualitative aspects of the oil field service industry. It would provide an overview of about the current trends prevailing in the industry which would help in getting a better understanding about the issues and the current matters taking place. It would provide an in-depth analysis of how the oil and gas prices are affected by the demand in industry. In order to run a successful business, every company should have a competitive advantage in the market. This aspect would be analyzed through Porters five force model, which will identify the sources of competitive forces Schlumberger would face in the market in the future. The later part of the analysis would focus on the strategic approach of Schlumberger and the positioning of the company in the market with regards to its competitors which are Halliburton, Baker Hughes and Weatherford. The strategic approach identification of each company and the market position would be done by utilizing Porters framework of competitive analysis and will help in analyzing the position of the companies through its competitors array. This report will provide insights into the speed with which the competitors in Middle East are able to acquire the market share and also analyze Schlumbergers value-creating strategy which would determine how long this competitive advantage will last. List of figures: Figure 1: Revenue of the Oilfield Service Industry in Billion $ Figure 2: Upstream Capital Expenditure from 2001 2013 Figure 3: Average rig Count according to Baker Hughes International Figure 4: Porters five force model Figure 5: Production of crude oil in the Middle East Figure 6: Production of natural gas in the Middle East Figure 7: Revenue of Schlumbergers competitors region-wise Figure 8: Estimated percentage of merger and acquisitions in next 2 years. List of Tables: Table 1: Baker Hughes International Rig Count displaying the active rigs. Table 2: Relation between WTI crude oil price, upstream CAPEX and avg Rig Count Table 3: Impact of each force on the oilfield service industry Table 4: Key success factors of the oilfield service industry Table 5: Global and Middle East revenues of Schlumbergers competitors in Middle East Table 6: Comparative analysis of Schlumberger and its competitors Table 7: Competitors array of Schlumberger Table 8: YTD revenue of Schlumbergers competitors Contents Introduction: The oil and gas industry seems to have recovered from the slump in 2008-09 due to the economic crisis as we can see that the oil and gas prices are rising for the past three years. The oilfield service industry which is an integral part of the petroleum industry was no exception to this phenomenon. The oilfield service industry which provides services to the exploration industries has witnessed increase in the profitable quarters over the past three years and it continues to grow despite the current Eurozone crisis and all the challenges faced by the service industry due to economic situations such as the BP Deepwater Horizon incident. Schlumberger, which is the leading oilfield service company all across the globe, enjoys a major market share over other companies and has been one of the most profitable companies amidst all these hardships. As of December 31, 2011, the company had more than 113,000 people of over 140 nationalities working in approximately 85 countries. The companys revenue touched $39.54 billion in 2011 crossing the highest revenue by any company in this sector. Schlumberger is located in various geographic areas such North America, Latin America, Middle East/Asia, Europe and Africa. In the Middle East/Asia region, Schlumberger does have a competitive advantage over others but no competitive advantage is permanent. Thus the company has to keep a constant check on its existing competitors and the new players to the oil field services industry. Given the industry context mentioned above, the main aim of this business report is to analyze the current trend in this industry and also to analyze Schlumbergers competitors in the Middle East to sustain its competitive advantage. The primary objective of this report is to ensure that Schlumberger is aware of the changes going on in the Middle East that is affecting its ongoing strategies and business plans and also to keep a close eye on its competitors new strategies and the advancements they are making. It is also to ensure that their current strategies are in line with the business environment and if not, what changes can be brought about in order to keep it at par with the other competitors within the industry. The main findings of the project will assist Schlumberger not only in maintaining their strong position within the industry, but will also help them in evaluating and forecasting about the changes in advance and develop their business plans accordingly. Chapter 1: Literature Review: Porter five forces Model: There are a number of management tools which analyze the industrys profitability despite the existing competitions and changes in the economy. This section will help us in getting an understanding about the appropriate strategies to gauge industry analysis. For getting an understanding about the proper strategic analysis of an industry, there are a few management tools and theories such as SCP Paradigm, Porter five forces model and Value Net model. The Structure Control Performance framework is derived from the Industrial Organization (IO) economics and it studies the market based on the three elements and also tries to draw a connection between them, (Fu, 2003). Mason (1939, 1949) and Bain (1951, 1956, 1959) as cited in (Goddard, Wilson and Lipcztynski, 2005, p6) had developed the SCP paradigm. It correlates the relationship between the market structure, company conduct and company performance (Ajlouni, 2010). According to this approach, the structure of a market influences the conduct of the firms operating in the market, which in turn influences the performance of those firms. (Goddard, Wilson and Lipczynski, 2005, p6). Thus the SCP paradigm analyses the industry in three steps. First, the structure analyses the basic framework of the market which is required by the company for conducting business. It involves the buyers and sellers, barriers to entry, product differentiations, vertical integration and diversifications. Second, the model analyses the behavior of the firms to get an in depth analysis about the business objectives, pricing policies, research and development, acquisitions and mergers. The third, performance describes the parameters required to measure the performance of the industry through profitability, growth and increase efficiency. The SCP Paradigm is based mainly on empirical research than on theoretical aspects and it was one of the dominant models till the early 1980s (Slade, 2003). Thus there were many criticisms about the model because of its dependence on the empirical researches and one of the main problems of the paradigm was to analyze many of the variables in each factor of the paradigm. The further growth on the Industrial Organization witnessed the introduction of Porters five forces model. One of the well-known and an important framework is Porter Five Forces Model. Porters five forces is heavily influenced by the SCP Paradigm as one the Structure of the paradigm is basically the Porter Five Forces model and the other Performance is outcome of Porters model which is the profitability (Goddard, Wilson and Lipcztynski, 2005, p16-18). Micheal E.Porter (1979) developed this model which attempts to handle the main forces which affect the industry structure. Porter five forces model tries to explain the industry structure and the competitive conditions by evaluating the following forces: the risk of new entry in the industry, the degree of rivalry among established competitors, the bargaining power of buyers and suppliers and the threat of substitute products. According to Porter, the presence of stronger forces of the model, make the business environment of the industry to be more challenging and is less attractive to the investors. On the contrary, if the forces are weak, then the companies seem to be in a more profitable condition as there would be less competition in the market. According to Kevin Coyne and Somu Subramanian (1996) as cited in The McKinsey Quarterly(2001), this model is built under three essential assumptions: Firstly, the buyers, suppliers, substitutes and competitors are not related and do not interact with each other in the industry. Secondly, more capital will be available to the companies that have a structural advantage over their competitors and potential entrants. Thirdly, there is much lower risk involvement which let the companies in the market to plan properly and prepare a strategy accordingly. According to Mintzberg (1994), Porter assumption that future of the industry can be predicted based on the present market conditions is being discarded by Mintzberg. He explains that a company cannot forecast future market conditions precisely owing to economic changes and also technological innovations. Every model has its limitations and criticisms and Porter Five forces model is no exception to it. The limitations are: Firstly, the model was based originally on the economic situation of the eighties when there was a strong competition and relatively stable market structures. Second, it does not focus on the different challenges that a company faces as it enters international arena. The challenges faced by them in other nations are extremely different in comparison to what it faces in its own nation. Third, Porter takes into consideration only the industrial factors, whereas it overlooks the company resources available to the industry without which the profitability of the industry cannot be determined. Finally, as and when the companies expand, they diversify themselves into various other markets and other regions and thus the model does not concentrate on role of expansions and various acquisitions (Parnell, 2004, p50-51). Brandenberger and Nalebuff (1985) as cited in Unknown (n.d.) too identified an important flaw in the Porter model. In the book, Coopetition (Competition + Co-operation), has been discussed but the model ignores the strategic alliance which exists between some industries and which in turn helps each other to bring out a finalized product. These are mainly known as complementors in business terminology. Thus Brandenberger and Nalebuff in addition to suppliers, consumers and competitors introduced a new force namely the complementors. This was known as Value Net. This is basically an extension of the Porters model and is known by the name of Value Net model. Porters five forces analyze what are the challenges in the face of their growth opportunities whereas Value Net model analyses threats and opportunities available to the industry (Unknown, n.d.). Porter admits that developing a strategy in a new emerging industry or in a business undergoing revolutionary technological change is a daunting proposition (Downes and Mui, 2000, p60). According to Downes and Mui, Porter explains that the new digitalized and high tech world comes with a lot of complexities and developing a full proof strategy is a daunting task and this does not mean that the old rules are invalid. But if we look around in todays work environment, we will find that every industry is heavily dependent on the new technology. Thus Downes and Mui introduced three new forces to the Porter five force model namely Digitalization, Globalization and Deregulation (Downes and Mui, 2000, p64-67). These are the driving forces which steers the modern business houses in the right direction and amongst these the most important force is Digitalization. Thus the setback with the Porters framework is the absence of the digitalization force which has revamped the industries with the introduction of modern technology. Though from the above discussion it may appear that Porter five forces is outdated as it does not consider digitalization. But if we consider both its assumptions and limitations, it is one of the effective management tools that can be used in business and can easily be understood by the managers. Porters Competitive Framework: There are different strategic frameworks available which would be helpful for doing a competitor analysis. The most prominent among them are Porters Competitive Framework and SWOT analysis. Porters Competitive Framework is a management tool which is used to analyze the industry on four basic elements namely: future goals, current strategies, assumptions and capabilities. Future goals discuss what drives the competitor, current strategy discusses what a competitor is doing or can do, assumptions focus on the supposition made by the firm about itself and the industry and capabilities discuss about the strengths and weaknesses of the firm (Porter, 1980). This is one of the most prominent frameworks but a lot of researches are based on assumptions about competitor analysis which is discussed below. A lot of scholars have defined what a competitors analysis is but the most difficult part is the evaluation of the competitor at a firm level (Tsai, Su and Chen, 2011). A number of studies have been conducted on how a competitor could be analyzed at a firm level. Porac et al, 1995 presented a cognitive model which is developed on the basis of the observation the firm makes about its competitors actions and reactions and then decide on its strategy. Also, Baum and Lant (2003) as cited in (Tsai, Su and Chen, 2011) illustrated that resemblance in geographic location, price and size are sufficient for a firm to have an idea about their competitors. Chen in 1996 gave a different perspective of competitor by introducing the two-firm concept explaining that a competitor analysis is mainly based on market commonality and resource similarity. But many researchers found the two-firm concept to be difficult to relate with the competitor analysis. Competitors analysis is necessary for every enterprise as because there may be certain gaps which the company might not foresee while making competitive decisions. Zajac and Bazerman(1991) discussed the relation between the strategic decision making process and competitive analysis and named the gap between them as competitive blind spots. They discussed how a wrong assumption by a firm about its competitor may result in blind spots. Rothschild (1979) too discussed on where the companies many miss the link and what are the questions to be posed for a proper competitor analysis. Tsai, Su and Chen, 2011 gave a different perspective with regard to the competitor analysis by introducing the concept of competitor acumen. It illustrated about the relationship between the different firms in the same industry and also the extent to which a firm can understand its competitors. Every researcher mentioned above has challenged the Porters framework but none of these have the same prominence as Porters framework. However, there exists a challenge which in the Porters framework that cannot be ignored. Porter does discuss about the fact that when a competitor analysis is done, a firm should know both its direct (current) and indirect (emerging) competitors. However, it does not discuss whether a firm should consider all its competitors or only the top three or four or just a bunch of them. Thus the firm has to analyze the industry first, identify its competitors and then go for competitor analysis (Rao, 2011). The SWOT analysis focuses on the Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threats which a firm faces and its advantages in comparison to other competitors in the marketplace. SWOT analysis has a lot of advantages, for example its framework is extremely simple which helps a firm to identify its focus and can be applied to many intelligence reports like market intelligence. The analysis has a drawback as well. It can be too private and disconnected from the realities that are impacting the company (Evans, n.d, p7). Since Strength and Weakness part is been covered in the Capabilities part of the Porters framework and Opportunities and Threats are also discussed, it is an important competitor analysis tool despites its limitation. Chapter 2: Oilfield Service (OFS) Industry and its trends: 2.1 Background of the Oil Field Service Industry The energy sector comprises of the petroleum (oil and gas industry), electric power, coal, nuclear power and the renewable energy industries. The petroleum industry plays an important role in this sector as crude oil and unconventional natural gas account for a large percentage in worlds energy consumption which is around 56% (BP, 2012). Thus, the work of the petroleum industry is primarily classified into two main activities namely- upstream and downstream activities. The upstream activities in this industry are the exploration and production activities. The exploration activities include locating of the hydrocarbon reserves, such as oil and gas reserves, which can be done through desk study, aerial survey and seismic survey. After locating the reserves, the next step is to drill the surface and pump the hydrocarbon out of the reserves. This can be done both on the onshore (water) and offshore (land) through drilling rigs. After the drilling and getting an idea about the size of the oil field, the next step would be production and development activity where the oil and gas is produced through various techniques and services. After the oil and gas has been extracted from the reservoir and brought to the surface, it is then taken to the refineries where the downstream activities begin. The downstream activities in the industry include refining and processing of the oil and gas products and then further distribution of these products through various distribution channels like the retailers, distribution companies, chemical plants etc. The important industry which supports the upstream activities is the oilfield service industry. The oilfield service industry provides equipment and services which are utilized in the exploration and extraction of the hydrocarbons mainly oil and gas. This industry is thus the backbone of the oil and natural gas industry providing various services and equipments for the proper running of the industry. (Etechinternational, n.d.) 2.2 Demand for the oilfield service industry: The demand for the oil field services industry in the market can be measured in terms of the revenue generated by the industry over the years. Given below is the revenue generated by the industry in USD billion over the years from 2007-2011 and it also states about the forecast of the industry for the next five years till 2016. (Source: MarketLine, 2012) Figure 1: Revenue of the Oilfield Service Industry in Billion $ The global revenue of the industry increased till the 2008 where it reached the highest point of USD 361.9 billion. Then there was a decrease in the revenue in 2009 to USD 256.9 billion where the revenue declined by 29.1% mainly due to the global economic and financial crisis resulting in the drop of the oil price. The WTI Crude Oil Price for past few years (refer Appendix 1) indicates that the oil price was once at its peak in 2008 at $145.16/barrel (Yahoo Charts, 2012) and then there was a sudden drop in the oil price and this price drop did sustain in the industry for quite sometime. This drop in the price of the oil led to loss of billions of dollars due to various macro and micro-economic factors in the market (Hamilton, 2009). But later on after the financial crisis, the industry started to improve its business and now since the market has been stabilized and it seems to be rising and expected to reach global revenue of $638.4 billion by 2016 (MarketLine 2012). Knowing the basics of the oilfield service industry, gives us a brief idea about the indicators which is extremely useful for understanding the growth of the industry and the factors influencing its growth. 2.2 a Upstream Capital Expenditure: The growth of the oilfield service industry also depends upon the capital expenditure of the companies in the upstream industry. The companies in the upstream industry is basically segregated into large integrated super-major oil and natural gas companies, international independent oil and natural gas companies which are also known as the International Oil Companies(IOCs), and the national or state-owned oil companies known as the National Oil companies(NOCs). Thus the upstream expenditure will result as a combination of all these three types of companies. The upstream capital expenditure appears to be rising over the past few years and is expected to be profitable over the next few years as well. The total capital expenditure was estimated to be USD 450 billion in 2011(Brown, n.d), which was at an all time high over the years and the oil field service industry seemed profitable at this juncture. The oil and gas exploration and production capital expenditure (CAPEX) for the past decade and for the next few years is shown below. (Source: Combination of WoodMackenzie Corporate Analysis Tool and Upstream Service cited in Brown,n.d and Energy Equipment and Support Services Oilfield Services Sector Report, 2010, please refer Appendix 2 and 3) Figure 2: Upstream Capital Expenditure from 2001 2013 In the above figure we see that the upstream capital expenditure does not include the exploration and appraisal spend. In this graph, we see that the expenditure was increasing until 2008, after which there was a dip in 2009 due to the global economic and financial crisis. 2.2b Rig Count: There are many indicators where the investors of oilfield service industry can gauge the growth or the demand of the industry. The upstream capital expenditure is one of the principal indicators which provide insights on how the industry is generating the revenue but the major concern with the upstream capital expenditure is that the figures are not released on a timely basis as it is shown in the quarterly or the annual report. So it is difficult to have updated information for a particular period of time like weekly or monthly about the industry. Thus, to have timely updates about the industry, another important indicator which helps the investors to know about the global demands of the industry is known as the rig count. The rig count indicates the number of rigs which are currently active in the industry and this shows the number of active rigs, and the specific areas has more demand indicating the demand for more labor. It is very easy and the quickest way for accessing the growth in the oil field service industry. It is used by many companies, analysts like for example Wall Street analysts use the rig count for profit projections from the oil field service companies (Sprehe, 2004). There are a number of rig counts available to serve the industry like the Baker Hughes, Smith Tools but the most commonly used rig count is the Baker Hughes (BHI) rig count as it is one of the oldest rig counts in the industry. Baker Hughes Rig count gives a weekly update on the North America rigs and a monthly update on the International rigs. Area Last Count Count Change from Prior Count Date of Prior Count Change from Last Year Date of Last Years Count US 17-Aug-12 1914 -17 10-Aug-12 -60 19-Aug-11 Canada 17-Aug-12 326 +27 10-Aug-12 -160 19-Aug-11 International Jul-12 1264 -21 Jun-12 +114 Jul-12 (Source: BHI Rig Count as on 20-Aug-12, Baker Hughes Investor Relations, Rig Count) Table 1: Baker Hughes International Rig Count displaying the active rigs As we see in the above table, it shows the update on the active rigs in America, Canada and in the International arena as well where we can see that the last count for the America rigs is on the 17-August 2012(weekly) whereas for International it is July 2012(monthly). This table also analyses the changes in the active rig count from the date of prior count. This table also presents before us a clear picture on how the industry has grown comparing from previous years figures (Baker Hughes Investor Relations, Rig Count, 2012). The Baker Hughes rig count measures the number of rigs which are actually being drilled at a give point of time on a weekly (North America) and monthly (rest of world) basis. This indicator also provides additional information like rig count in different states, or whether the rigs were used for drilling the oil or the natural gas from the surface. A lot of products and services are required for an active rig and thus the use of these products and services show the demand for the services provided by the oilfield service industry (Brener, 2008). An increase or decrease in the rig count also shows the fluctuations in the job market of the oilfield service industry. Increase in rig count increases the job opportunities in the oilfield. The BHI count considers the count of active rigs which means the rigs which are actually drilling holes on the land or the sea to extract the oil or the gas. Therefore, if a rig is being transferred from one location to another, or is being involved in non-drilling activities like casing or completion and production activities, then Baker Hughes does not count the rig as active, even if the activity is still being performed at the field by a number of suppliers and outworkers. Though the rig count provides us with a brief idea about the drilling activity, it does not show many other important factors. The factors which the rig count does not focus on are production activities, depth, cost and location (Brener, 2008). The chart shows the average rig count worldwide from 2000 to June 2012 and we can observe that number of rigs have been on the increasing trend apart from when there was a dip during the financial crisis which hit the industry adversely. (Source: Baker Hughes Investor relations, Rig Count 2012). Figure 3: Global average Rig Count (Oil + Gas + Misc) according to Baker Hughes International The average rig counts for 2011-present from various geographical locations is shown in Appendix 4 where we observe that North America has been leading all the way and that is where the companies generate the maximum amount of revenue. 2.2c Current Industry Trend: The trends of an industry help us to understand what are the current issues and their effect which help us to speculate the likelihood of its impact in the future. There have been many other micro and macro factors which affect the industry trends like government rules and regulations, the oil and gas demand and supply etc which ultimately are the main reasons for the fluctuations in oil and gas price. Thus the trend of the industry can be known from the fluctuations in the oil and gas prices. High prices are beneficial for the industry and vice-versa. The following table shows the relation between the WTI oil price, upstream capital spending and the rig count. Avg. oil rig count Int. N.A. Canada Avg. WTI Oil Price 2007 768 297 127 76 2008 814 379 161 87 2009 764 278 103 55 2010 825 591 199 80.5 2011 897 984 278 95.5 2012(August) 946 1344 260 93.5 (Source: Avg.WTI Crude Oil Price Average WTI crude oil price Yahoo Charts. Upstream CAPEX Combination of WoodMackenzie Corporate Analysis Tool and Upstream Service cited in Brown, n.d and Energy Equipment and Support Services Oilfield Services Sector Report, 2010, please refer Appendix 2 and 3. Average oil Rig Count Baker Hughes Investor Relations) Table 2: Relation between WTI crude oil price, upstream CAPEX and oil Rig Count The above table shows the main trends in the industry indicating that the its demand is dependent on the Upstream CAPEX and Rig count which depend on the WTI crude oil price. This shows that when crude oil price increase, there is a tendency for the investors to invest more in this industry. We see a dip in 2008 due to the economic crisis but in this year we saw that the highest price was $145.16 per barrel in July and the lowest was $30.28 per barrel in December. The average rig counts has also seen a dip during the year 2009 from 2008 indicating that there was less demand of labor during that year. Thus we can suggest that the Rig Count depends on the Investment in the Upstream Industry which in turn is dependent on various factors such as crude oil and gas price fluctuations. Having known the trend in the industry we need to analyze how a company will maintain its profitability in different economic situation which holds good for the future as well. This can be analyzed in the next chapter using the Porter Five Forces Model. Chapter 3: Porter five forces analysis: In order to know the profitability of an industry, the corporate strategists suggest using the Porter five forces model as it is the best way for anticipating the competitive environment. Porter (2008) said Understanding the competitive forces, and their underlying causes, reveals the roots of an industrys current profitability while providing a framework for anticipating and influencing competition (and profitability) over time. The Porter 5 forces are: Rivalry among existing customers, Threats of substitutes, Power of suppliers, Power of buyers and Threats of new entrants. The impact of the forces on this industry is shown in the following table: Forces Impact Rivalry among the existing competitors HIGH Power of Suppliers MODERATE Threat of Substitutes LOW Power of Buyers HIGH Threat of New Entrants LOW Table 3: Impact of each force on the oilfield service industry (Source: 12manage, n.d.) Figure 4: Porters five force model 3. a Threat of new entrants: If we consider this particular industry, then one thing that is pretty clear is that the competitors have been operating in this sector for many years and giving them a tough challenge is not an easy task. An ideal new entrant tries to enter and capture the market share and put pressure on the competitors directly by applying new technology and new ideas. The impact of the new entrants in the oilfield service industry is low. The presence of

Digital Divide in the US and Around the World Essay -- Technology Tech

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Reading and Typography Essay -- Typography Reading Research Papers

Reading and Typography Reading is unavoidable. Students read textbooks; fathers read newspapers; engineers read manuals; technicians read webpages; politicians read bills; Christians read the Bible, and the list goes on. Everyone reads something. Seeing, perceiving, and recognizing lines and dots as a form of language is a process that is extremely complicated yet necessary. Scientists have researched many aspects of the visual reading process, and one of the most immediately applicable areas of concern is in the field of typography. Researchers are attempting to answer two questions posed by publics such as graphic artists, magazine editors, rà ©sumà © writers, and even standardized test publishers: What typestyle is best for what situations?, and How do different characteristics of a font affect different audiences? The term font is a generic word used to express the general computer category of typewritten characters. Similarly, a type or typeset refers to a complete family of sets of characters having a certain fundamental design or structure. For example, the Courier type may include the variations Courier New and Courier Bold. Other typesets are Caslon, Quill, and Old English. Typestyle is used to categorize types by attributive similarities. Two of the most recognizable, and most researched, typestyles are distinguished by the presence or absence of serifs and by fixed width (FW) and variable or proportional width (PW) pitch. Types which display the serif feature add short, decorative lines to the tips of the characters; this line of print (12pt PW) is in Garamond and has serifs. Types such as Arial, as in this line (12pt PW), do not have the serif addition and are thus called sans serifs. A fixed width font may be like... ...STRACT. Keller T. (1997). Choosing the right type translates into cash for your cause. Nonprofit World, 15(6), 18-19. Leat S.J., Li W., & Epp K. (1999). Crowding in central and eccentric vision: The effects of contour interaction and attention. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 40, 504-512. Mansfield J.S., Legge G.E., & Bane M.C. (1996). Psychophysics of reading XV: Font effects in normal and low vision. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 8, 1492-1501. Orton V. (1993). Why Johnny can't read. Zip/Target Marketing, 16(6), 11-12. ABSTRACT. Regan D. & Hong X.H. (1994). Recognition and detection of texture-defined letters. Vision Research, 34, 2403-2407. Yager D., Aquilante K., & Plass R. (1998). Rapid communication: High and low luminance letters, acuity reserve, and font effects on reading speed. Vision Research, 38, 2527-2531.