Digital Convergence Processing and Transferring Data

Digital Convergence Processing and Transferring Data Introduction Digital convergence (DC) is the proliferation of information in digitized form (bits) and the efficient flow of information in the digital network. Digital convergence is the various ways in which digitized data are processed and transferred [1]. The Knowledge economy is driven by DC where digital systems are embedded ubiquitously in the business processes that help the users to exchange information, store and access data, collaborate, communicate, learn and trade in real time. The digital information can also be accessed from and stored in a remote location which supports workers that are mobile and/or located in distant locations. DC is facilitated by internet, access networks (like 3G,4G, wireless LAN, wireless broadband) and high network connectivity ; leading a surge in virtualization of computing and storage functions of digitized data [2]. Easy communication, information exchange and collaboration made possible over the global digital network with the aid of Digital Convergenc e has caused a surge in Cloud Computing; which is where digitized data, computational platform and infrastructure to compute enabled by the digital platform is stored in the cloud outside the walled premises of the organization on a sharable platform [2]. Digital Convergence is the current trend in Pervasive Computing which follows the mantra of access to information anywhere, anytime. Gartner Research states that worldwide cloud services revenue enabled by digitized data is estimated to exceed $56.3 billion in 2009, which is a jump of 21.3 percent from the $46.4 billion spent on the cloud last year [3]. Furthermore, Gartner analyst predicts by the year 2013, the Cloud service revenue will reach $150.1 billion[4]. Hence, Digital convergence (DC) is an important paradigm in information technology. Theory of digital options suggests that IT indirectly supports agility by offering firms with digital options [5], which are described as a set of IT-enabled capabilities in the form of digitized work processes and knowledge systems. This theory emphasizes that IT enhances the reach and richness of a firms knowledge and it is processed to help the firm improve its agility i.e. its ability to sense and respond to environment change. The term digital options denote that a firm may apply its IT-enabled capabilities in the form of digitized work processes to emerging opportunities, or they may remain unused depending on the dynamic capabilities of a firm [6]. In a dynamic environment; competitive advantage is short lived; hence firms continuously generate competitive actions to achieve series of short term competitive advantage and firms with greater number and variety of competitive actions achieve competitive position [7-9]. Attempts have been made to identify the factors that lead to competitiveness but there are no formal empirical study so far that investigates the link between Digital Convergence and competitive advantage. Research justification and research questions Dynamic capabilities of a firm are composed of Adaptive, Absorptive and Innovative capability[10]. Prior research has shown that Knowledge sharing and absorptive capability of the firm (ability and motivation of the firms employees to utilize knowledge) improves innovation capability of the firm[11]. Review of the previous IS research suggests that continuously generating competitive actions , Knowledge Management and Agility is important in achieving competitive position but there has been no formal empirical study that examines the role of innovation capability in improving firms business process agility and the role of Digital Convergence in leveraging innovation capability in competitive actions. There have been several calls for research to examine relationship between Organizational capabilities, Agility, digital systems and competitive actions. The specific research problems include examining the relationship between digital systems and competitive actions and Firm and network capabilities for leveraging digital systems in competitive actions[12] and examining what IT capabilities are vital to business success in contemporary digital environment? [13].There has been call for research to study the next wave of nomadic computing including Digital Convergence that enables organizations to: mobilize information, share the information, develop new forms of organizational structure, capability, and agility [1]. In response to these calls this study proposes to study the following research questions and the research model is illustrated in Fig 1. 1. Does Innovation capability of the firm help in making a firm more Agile? 2. What role does digital convergence play in influencing the strength of the proposed relationship between Innovation capability and Agility? 3. Does Digital Convergence help in developing the digital collaboration (both external and internal)? 4. What role does location of the partner play in building the innovation alliance network or in other words Digital collaborators of a firm are more locally dispersed / more globally dispersed / are they somewhat equally dispersed between local and global locations? Digital Convergence inhibits or facilitates Digital collaboration between partners that are local and global? 5. Does Digital Collaboration (like between competitors) have any role in shaping business process agility? 6. Improving the business process agility of the firm makes the firm more competitive? 7. Which type of digital collaboration is perceived to be the most valuable for enterprises innovation activities? Literature Review Digital convergence Prevalence of digitized data has resulted in Digital Convergence (DC) [14]. The Digital network today is connected with IP phone, IP camera, IP TV, Point of sale systems, digital learning devices, portable medical and other technologies that provide unified communication and collaboration tools even to those workers who are mobile. When all media is digitalBits co-mingle effortlessly. They start to get mixed up and can be used and re-used separately or together.[15] or in other words DC makes use and reuse of information easier. The definition of digital convergence (DC) has evolved over time. The assimilation of concepts on Digital Convergence from the review of literature is outlined below. In the year 1977, Japans NEC Corporation first defined DC as communications merging with computers. Digital convergence requires ubiquitous and powerful computers that can handle communications with digitized content[16, 17]. DC is the convergence of content ( character, sound, text, motion, picture into a bit stream ) and convergence of transmission ( bits can be managed and transmitted quickly and efficiently and in large volumes) enabled by distributed computing and internetworking [18]. DC can also be classified as Network convergence: Fixed to mobile convergence (FMC) is the seamless distribution of digitized content over mobile and fixed technologies enabling the collapse of boundary between fixed network operator and mobile network operators. It provides access to the digitized service irrespective of location and device. FMC means that a single device can connect and be switched between wired and wireless networks. [19]. Digital convergence can also be viewed as Business Process convergence or integration: It is the ability to represent audio, video, text and other media in digital form, manage this rich digital content and tie it to transactional capability and interactive services [20].For e.g. In a doctors office the patient signature can be captured digitally, all the business transactions like patient scheduling, recording of the information about the procedure performed and the rate for the services performed, payment collection, processing for insurance claim, patient medical records can be managed digitally and later those records can be accessed by management to track the performance of the clinic efficiently. Also the business process convergence can help business provide personalized interactive products for the consumers. DC is the ability to integrate and converge enterprise wide business process with single point of access to it, 247, where digitized data are stored in a shared repository and managed by enterprise wide software like the Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. DC is Device convergence where same digital device can be used for multiple forms of digital content used for complementary services like mobile phone can be used as video player, music player, and sound recorder, GPS, email and web search[16]. It is defined as the convergence of computing, communication and consumer electronics [21] In the current scenario, future digital convergence means producing digital environments that are aware, receptive and adaptive to humans connected in a network. The interacting computational devices connected to such pervasive, human-centered computing network are able to commu nicate with each other [22]. Digital convergence can help working from home, conduct live meeting without travelling using video conferencing. Based on Past research, Digital convergence can be summarized as convergence of: a) digital content, b) network/transmission, c) business process/service, d) digital devices and e) infrastructure supporting pervasive computing. Innovation Capability Past research on Innovation capability of a firm has concluded that it includes the ability of the firm to have product innovation capability, process innovation capability and market innovation capability which are summarized below. The role of environmental innovation capability and organizational innovation capability in shaping firm agility has not been studied so far. Product Innovation capability: Innovation capability is the ability to develop new products or services [23-25], ability to be first mover in the market [26] and ability to introduce more new products than other firms [26]. Process Innovation capability: This is the ability of the firm to develop new methods of production [23-25], develop new organizational forms[23], seek new and novel solutions to problems[23] and to discover new methods and sources of supply[23]. Market Innovativeness: This is the ability to identify new markets[23]. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is headquartered in Paris and administers Community Innovation Survey (CIS). The Community Innovation Survey (CIS) was updated recently in the year 2008 and it lists Organizational Innovation Capability and Environment Innovation Capability as new measures for innovativeness [27]. Innovation surveys were first experimented with in several Western European countries but have since been conducted in many other countries including Canada, all EU countries, Switzerland, Russia, Turkey, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, South Africa and most Latin American countries. Organizational Innovation Capability As per the CIS 2008 [27], organizational innovation capability is the ability of the firm to have new organizational method in the business practice. The new methods includes new business practices for organising work or procedures (i.e. supply chain management, business re-engineering, lean production, quality management, education/training systems, etc), new knowledge management systems to better use or exchange information, knowledge and skills within and outside the enterprise, New methods of workplace organisation for distributing responsibilities and decision making (i.e. first use of a new system of employee responsibilities, team work, decentralisation, integration or de-integration of departments, etc) and New methods of organising external relations with other firms or public institutions (i.e. first use of partnerships, outsourcing, alliances or sub-contracting, etc.) Environmental innovation capability: As per the CIS 2008 [27], this is the ability to produce new or signi ficantly improved product (good or service), process, organizational method or marketing method that generates environmental advantage compared to alternatives. CIS 2008 also suggests that firm marketing innovation capability of a firm includes ability to make significant changes to product design or packaging, ability to develop new media or techniques for product promotion, develop new sales channel and develop new methods of pricing goods. Product Innovation capability also includes the ability of the firm to develop products adaptive to the needs of the customer. Process innovation capability includes ability to develop new or improved supporting activities for business processes and ability to provide new method of providing staff welfare (employees are provided incentives and encouraged to behave in novel and original ways) and key executives are encouraged to take new risks [27]. Competition: Knowledge Management (KM) theory and the Science of competitiveness suggests that KM improves competitive position by improving productivity, agility, innovation and/or reputation PAIR [28, 29]. In dynamic markets knowledge assets become critical as a source of competition [30]. Along with KM , greater Agility will breed superior organizational performance [31].Entrepreneurial agility (the ability to anticipate and proactively take competitive actions) and Adaptive agility (the ability to sense and react to change) are both significant predictors of sustainable competitive advantage[32]. There is also significant relationship between sustainable competitive advantage and profitability [32]. Dynamic capabilities: In fast evolving markets, competition is a moving target and firms should have dynamic capabilities to gain competitive advantage [6]. Drawing on previous research findings, Dynamic capability is composed of adaptive capability, absorptive capability and innovative capabilit y[10]. Review of literature has defined Competitive action [and response] as externally directed, specific, and observable competitive move initiated by a firm to enhance its relative competitive position[33]. Previous research has concluded that Knowledge Assets, Agility, Dynamic capability are important for being competitive but the key question that this study investigates the relationship of digital convergence with Innovation capability, building innovation co-operation, Business Process agility and competitive advantage. Agility The different types of Agility identified in the literature are : Operational (internally focused initiative), Partnering (Supply chain initiative) and Customer (demand side initiative) [5], Entrepreneurial and Adaptive[32], Strategic[34], Business-Process [35]. Operational agility has been defined in the literature as the ability to sense and seize business opportunities quickly, accurately, and cost-efficiently. Customer agility is the ability to adapt to customers, identify new business opportunities and implement these opportunities with customers; and the role of IT in customer agility is to facilitate the development of virtual customer communities for designing new product, feedback and testing. Partnership agility: is the ability to leverage partners knowledge, competencies, and assets in order to identify and implement new business opportunities. Individual firms do not have all the resources required to effectively compete and value creation for the firm can be leveraged be tter through pooling of assets between partners. The role of IT in partnering agility is to support Inter organizational networks for collaboration, communication and integration of business processes. Organizational agility is important for business success [36]. Agility of an organization is significantly determined by the operational ability of the organization. Greater agility is achieved when the Inter-organizational system used has a task and strategic fit, has been assimilated into the organization and the system is adopted network wide [31]. Organizations that are agile i.e. to be able to take competitive actions continuously perform better than organizations that dont [37]. Business-processes agility can be classified as : process-level agility, which is how quickly an organization can add new capabilities into its standard processes (E.g. how quickly a company can acquire AJAX capability into its ordering process) ; and transaction-level agility, which measures the how good the organization is in customizing capabilities for individual customer transactions (For example, how well a company can customize AJAX ordering capability to include bar-code label on the box, an RFI D tag on a certain type of container, and paper invoice with bulk billing based on the individual transaction with a customer)[38]. Theory and Propositions Resource based view (RBV) of the firm [39, 40] suggests that valuable, rare, inimitable and non substitutable (VRIN) resources and capabilities as the source of competitive advantage. The extension to this is the theory of Dynamic capabilities. This theory emphasizes that development of organizational capabilities over the time and their constant renewal by management influences can be a source of competitive advantage. In contrast to the earlier view that IT infrastructure and IT investment provides the source of competitive advantage, dynamic capabilities theory emphasizes that consistent development of the capability to apply IT , allows firms to be flexible and innovate continuously, looking put for emerging opportunities, and countervailing threats from competitors to help shape a superior firm [41]. Theory of capability state competition lists Dynamic capabilities, core competencies and resources as a basis for superior performance of a firm [42] According to the Dynamic capabi lities theory it is not just the availability of resources that matter, but also the high performance routines operating inside the firm and embedded in the firms processes that utilizes them [43]. The theory proposes that a firms IT application can be imitable across firms but the firms capability to apply IT strategically can be inimitable [44]. Based on this theory the innovation capability of a firm cannot be easily replicated by other firms and will help the firm achieve competitive advantage. Innovation was described by Schumpeter (1934) as development of new products, new methods of production, new sources of supply, opening of new markets and new ways of organizing businesses. As per OECDs CIS 2008 survey innovation ability is the ability to implement new or significantly improved product (good or service), or process, a new marketing method, or a new organisational method, or a new environmentally friendly product or process in business practices, workplace organisation or external relations. It has been suggested that firms radical or incremental innovation drives the firm to respond to market changes and opportunities[45]. This study investigates this empirically by proposing the following. Proposition 1: Innovation capability will be related to Organizational Agility. Digital systems are pervasive and can make knowledge accessible through intranets, digital knowledge repositories and databases and can make the knowledge richer by video conferencing and digital collaborative facilities. Digitization offers firms significant opportunities to achieve greater agility [46]. Digital convergence allows for transfer of digitized information in different ways. Information theory provides completely rational explanations for competitive action: those who have the information will be most aware, motivated and capable of responding. ICT use on Multifactor productivity (MFP growth) are typically linked to firms experience in innovation [47]. It has been suggested that several firm capabilities like the firms digital platform is an important enabler of agility [5]. Thus this study proposes that Innovation Capability will drive agility more for firms that have Digital convergence than for firms that do not. Proposition 2: Relationship between Innovation capability and organizational Agility will be moderated by digital convergence Firms that have digitized their process have digital options that can help create new channels to access customers, build real-time integration within supply chain network , gain efficiencies in internal operations and offering new digital products or services [48]. This study proposes that firms that have digitized their processes will have digital convergence that can help digital collaboration with customers, other members in the supply chain network, other firms in the industry, competitors and other firms within the enterprise; both locally and globally. Proposition 4: Digital convergence will promote both local and international innovation partnership. It has been suggested that Digital collaborations will result in Co-evolution among businesses which implies flexibility in the asset mix , capabilities and knowledge resulting in Agility [49]. Knowledge management is related to organizational agility [50] and conducting knowledge management leads to five types of knowledge manipulation activities: knowledge acquisition, selection, generation, assimilation, and emission[28]. Proposition 5: Digital Collaboration for Innovation has a direct relationship with Agility. Proposition 6: Organizational Agility will be related to a higher level of competitive position/competitive advantage. Research Design Data Sample The proposed research model will be empirically tested using a data gathered from managers of companies. The target respondent list will be compiled from the Dun Bradstreet database consisting of large organizations both public and private operating in North America that has a certain level of market uncertainty and competition. As per OECDs definition there are two types of innovation intensive industries comprising of a) High tech industrial companies like Manufacturing and b) companies that provide knowledge intensive services like IT consultancy, Telecom services, Banking and Financial, Retail, Insurance, Health Care, Education etc . The diverse sample from both the public and the private sector will help increase the generalizability of the results from this study. The focus of this study is digital convergence. Although the surge in digital convergence with variable strength is seen across all industry sectors and all size firms; this study focuses on medium to large companies with large number of employees. The reason being, for large size companies the availability of finance makes it easier to invest in digital systems. Methodology A pilot study with IS academics and graduate students will be conducted for the preliminary assessment of the proposed scale for each construct and to identify ambiguous questions and instructions. Cronbachs alpha (a) coefficient will be computed for each multi item scale to test for reliability. Alpha greater than 0.7 is generally considered to be acceptable reliability[51]. It is important to assess the biases that results from using a single method, a mail survey administered at a single point in time, to measure the constructs proposed in this study due to Common Method Variance (CMV). The Harmons one factor test will be used to assess CMV[52]. Measures are being taken to elicit information about all the variables that are being studied. Whatever possible existing scales will be used but new scale to measure digital convergence will be developed. A seven point likert scale (1= very Weak, 7=Very strong) was used to measure the constructs. This study adapts the previously validated scales used in the past to measure organizational innovation capability [25-27, 53]. The adapted scale in the study consists of : Product innovation which has 3 questions, Process Innovation has 4,organizational innovation has 4,Marketing innovation has 4 and Environmental innovation has 2 questions as shown in the Appendix. Digital Collaboration for innovation is active participation with other enterprises or non-commercial institutions on innovation activities using a digital platform. This type of collaboration does not require for the collaborator to benefit commercially. Pure contracting out of work with no active co-operation is excluded in defining digital collaboration for innovation. The measure is adapted from the OECD community innovation survey, 2008. It consists of selecting the different types of collaborators and their location as shown in Appendix. Eight measures of business process agility was used from a previously validated instrument [35] which was developed based on conceptual framework provided by prior research [5, 54]. These items measure how quickly and well the firms can undertake key business actions such as responding to changes in aggregate demand, customizing a product to a specific customer or market, reaction to new product or service launches by competitors, change prices or product mix, move into or retrench from markets, adopt new process and redesign the supply chain. Little empirical work has been done on Digital Convergence and this proposal synthesizes concepts from the current IS literature on Digital Convergence to help develop the operationalization of the Digital convergence Construct. This study proposes breaking down DC into 6 first order constructs consisting of content convergence, transmission convergence, Network convergence, Business Process convergence or integration, Device convergence and Pervasive digital environment; which will be easier to operationalize . The Next step will be operationalize these variables, transform the propositions into formal hypotheses for the purpose of empirical testing. This study proposes to measure competitive position of a company based on performance of their company relative to their major competitors using a seven-point Likert scale( 1-significantly decreased, 7= significantly increased) in terms of : Market share, Sales volume and Customer Satisfaction. The results from the self reported will be validated by calculating correlation with the results from accounting related measures available from Financial Reports. Previous literature supports the use of accounting measures such as Return on Sales (ROS), Return on Assets (ROA) often used as proxy for efficiency, operation income to measure a companys position to compete Data Analysis This study proposes to use PLS to estimate the research model as it is common in behavioral literature to use multiple item measures for latent constructs. Path model using PLS will be used for interpreting the main results of this study because this study uses perceptual measures coming from one respondent for constructs that require multiple item indicators. Significance of this research Innovation and Agility are seen as being important across many industries, especially those operating in a dynamic and globally competitive environment. The impact of Digital Convergence upon a firms ability to compete in such an environment has important implications for managers. The relationship between Innovation capability and Business Process Agility has not been studied empirically in context with competitive advantage. The results from this proposed study can provide guidance to managers to answer questions like: Should managers develop environmental innovation capability, organizational and marketing innovation capability to gain more Agility? Should Managers invest in digital convergence for building digital collaboration for innovation? Is there any gain in collaboration for innovation (even with competitors) in improving firm agility? Does business process agility provide competitive advantage for large companies? Will the benefit in developing innovation capability increase by investment in Digital Convergence? This proposed study is important to researchers as it adds to the growing body of literature linking a Firms capability and Agility. It draws from resource-based view of the firm and dynamic capability theory to explain the relationship between firms innovation capability and its competitive performance. This study provides an empirical test of relationship between business process agility and competitiveness. The study also provides identification of Digital Convergence. Finally, the results of this proposed study is important to respondents as it answers if the leverage of innovation capability for competitive advantage is contingent on investment in Digital Convergence.

Maus :: essays research papers

Maus is one of the most famous of recent graphic novels. Winner of the prestigious Pulitzer prize for literature, it's the harrowing true story of a Jewish holocaust survivor, retold to his son decades later. The story has two main threads. The first is the true story of Holocaust survivor Vladek Spiegelman's experiences as a young Jewish man during the horrors leading up to and including his confinement in Auschwitz. The second intertwining story is about Vladek as an old man, recounting his history to his son Art, the author of the book, and the complicated relationship between the two of them. It's a difficult process for both father and son, as Vladek tries to make sense of his twighlight years, indelibly marked by his experiences and a slave to the processes he had to resort to in order to make it through. On this level, it's also about Art, as he comes to terms with what his father went through, while still finding the more irritating aspects of his father's personality difficult to live with. Maus uses anthropomorphic characters, using different species of animal to represent the different characters' race or nationality - Jews are mice, Germans are cats, Americans are dogs and the Polish are pigs. This doesn't always quite work, though Spiegleman is acutely aware of this as he struggles with whether or not to make his French wife, converted to Judaism before they got married, into a mouse or some other species. Please don't instantly dismiss this as childish nonsense though - it owes more to Animal Farm than Mickey Mouse. It's a sad tale, as although Vladek survives the Holocaust, the shadow of the great swathe of humanity that was butchered by the Nazi killing factories hangs over the entire book. It is also haunted by the ghosts of Vladek's first wife Anja and their son Richieu; the former surviving Auchwitz but eventually committing suicide, the latter not making it out of Poland. This book, originally a two volume work is now available in an excellent 'complete' edition in the UK, which binds both chilling volumes into one and is an excellent way for new readers to get hold of this classic work of literature.

The Knowledge Explosion :: Essays Papers

The Knowledge Explosion The current trends in education are moving educators toward adoption of an integrated curriculum. What is now referred to as the integrated curriculum was once known as interdisciplinary studies. Integration focuses on the organization of central themes or concepts combining several subjects. These themes, or concepts, allow students to interconnect information between subject areas. Giving students this skill will enable them to combine information in large quantities, assess the quality and validity of information, and help them to determine the importance of any given context. Replacing the isolated subject areas with an integrated curriculum develops in the student an interrelated view of learning. There are two common models for curriculum integration, the Daisy Model and the Rose Model. Independent subjects are organized around a central theme in the Daisy Model. The subjects refer back to the theme but are taught separately. The theme is represented by the center of the daisy surrounded by the unique and separate petals which represent subjects. On the other hand, the petals of the rose are intertwined symbolizing the fully integrated subjects of the Rose Model. The focus of the Rose Model is on a particular theme rather than individual subjects. The subjects are united under one theme and are taught simultaneously through the exploration of that theme.(Martin, D. J., 2000). Curriculum integration has become a way to redirect the aims and purposes of schooling because of its positive benefits for students. James Beane has found evidence that shows that "we have known for many years that movement in this direction benefits both young people and their teachers"(1992). One positive aspect of this curriculum is that students see the relevance of the instruction because of the connections made among subject areas(McDonald, J., 1994). This makes the instruction less abstract and more applicable to real life(Berlin, D. F., 1994). Students then tend to search for meanings and answers to their questions instead of simply memorizing facts to pass exams(Beane, J, 1992). Ms. M, a fifth grade teacher in Maryland, has observed this element of integration in the actions of her students. They seem more motivated by the subject matter when they can relate it to their personal experiences and other parts of their education. In addition, she noticed that the students had a better sense of accomplishment when they could draw from previous instruction and tie together information from each subject. Students who feel successful will acquire the skills necessary for cooperation, socialization, communication and self-motivation.

How far does Somerset deserve his reputation as the ‘Good Duke’? Essay

Edward Seymour, also known as the 1st Duke of Somerset, in many ways did not deserve his title as the ‘Good Duke’ due to the fact that not only did he used his position as Edward VI’s uncle to gain autocratic power as ‘Lord Protector’, his arrogant and selfish style of government led to a collapse of not only the economy, but created many social, religious and political problems, leading to rebellions spreading across the country. Because of this, it would be unfair to call him a ‘Good Duke’ as his legacy did little good for his successors, having created a nation in a terrible state to save the governing of. Somerset (then known as Earl of Hertford) claimed the title of Lord Protector after the death of Henry VIII, when sometime before it was decided that he and an equal group of others (forming the Regency Council) would manage the throne for Edward VI whilst he was a child, ‘thinking it the surest form of government and most fit for that commonwealth’. Being the boy king’s uncle, it seemed natural for him to be his guardian, and he had soon gained trust by many members – allowing him the favour of being one of the leaders on this council. Somerset, however, played a game of factions, and his rise to power quickly as (self-named) ‘Lord Protector’ allowed the so called ‘Good Duke’ to successfully alienate others – giving his supporters positions of authority around him, whilst leaving those with other ideas along the sides to look upon with confusion and bitterness. Ruling alone was his style of government, and appeasing his supporters with wealth, offices, land and titles was one of his ways to keep control. Somerset, who had made himself Duke – building a grand estate for himself as if he were the real king – gained much resentment from the Privy Council, who, although offered Somerset advice, could see that he was not interested in their views. Sir William Paget – an advisor to the former king – often criticised Somerset’s way of government, noticing that the policies created by the so called council were those only of Somerset, and later he would be one of the forces bringing Somerset down from power. It seems right to suggest that the power Somerset held had gotten to his head – where every policy he wrote, decision he made, and action he took were nothing but his own, and this can be an argument opposing the title of the ‘Good Duke’ he has earned by some, being quite selfish and power-hungry, cavorting around as if he was the actual king. As historian Susan Brigden put it (New Worlds, Lost Worlds): ‘Since Somerset had taken the devising of policy to himself, his would be the blame if, and when, it failed’. As a hard on, military commander, it seemed only natural that Somerset’s attention would have been strongly focussed on foreign policy, particularly, the issue of Edward VI’s suzerainty over Scotland. However, it can be said that Somerset was obsessed with the idea of ruling over Scotland – perhaps using Henry VIII’s initial idea of marrying the young Edward VI to the infant Mary Queen of Scots to strengthen the alliance between the two countries, as an excuse for the insanely increased expenditure over the war. Although relations with France so far had been fairly calm, the idea of Mary Queen of Scots marrying the dauphin of France allowed Somerset to see clearly in his way what was needed to gain Scotland – a war – in his opinion. All seemed well for Somerset, who’s tactic was to defeat the Scots and French in battle and force rule, and this subsequently started off successfully – bringing England victory with the Battle of Pi nkie in September 1547. Nevertheless, Somerset failed to recognise the fierce economic problems that were facing the nation at the time. The previous ruler, Henry VIII had already mangled inflation with the debasing of the coins – yet Somerset foolishly allowed this to continue, trying to fund the war with the Scots. In his Lenton Sermon of 1549, Latimer spoke of the debasing of the silver coin ‘so reddened with copper it blushed for shame’. Financing the war was still a huge problem and Somerset’s tactics seemed to have been failing due to the inability to defend all the forts that had been blocked previously. Without money, the war was crumbling, which led to further problems with the economy. Crop prices were a new high, and it was hard enough to grow grain as it was – this allowed the people of England to start resenting Somerset. In terms of his reputation at the ‘Good Duke’, his actions did not support this title – firstly, he chose to ignore the increasingly terrible economic situation of the country, allowing the rise of inflation and poor exchange rate to continue as a result of the debasing of the silver coins. Likewise his obsession with resolving the Scottish conflict led to heavy military expenditure for little gain, with the resultant garrisoning expensive and frail. Also, by avoiding confrontation with France, Somerset simply passed on England’s major concerns to future monarchs. These decisions were clearly poorly made and short sighted, and whilst he continuously debased the coins of the ordinary, spent much money on his own lavish property and funding a war that he seemed to have underestimated (both financially and skilfully – he realised the French Army was very strong), he refused to admit fault in his own policies, placing ‘the cause of society’s ill elsewhere’ (Brigden.), the ultimate show of arrogance, allowing further bitterness from the Council towards him. As a protector and so called ‘Good Duke’ he seemed to have failed to make any effective progress. In terms of Religious Policy, it was under Edwards VI’s rule, and so under Somerset, that the real changes to the church started to happen. Henry VIII had not only left a legacy that was riddled with debt for the economy, but also tensions amongst the Catholic Church after Henry’s controversial break from Rome. Edward VI, who at the time was being raised protestant, was sure to make reforms that made the majority Catholic country convert, according to his father’s wishes. How things were done was up to Somerset, who, totally different from his hard-faced and somewhat cruel military persona, was quite tolerable in terms of religious change. February 1547, one of the first and noticeable moves to convert to Protestantism made was the denunciation of images in churches in London, although it was not an official change, this act of iconoclasm was fully supported by the government and the protestant extremists such as Nicholas Ridley, showing the starting of religion reform under Somerset. It was not until July of that year that the government sent out injunctions to further attack the Catholic church – this time picking up on things such as candles, bell ringing, stained glass windows and images of saints in Catholic churches across the country, with visitations made by government which were to ‘precipitate the most sweeping changes in religion England had yet seen’ (Eamon Duffy, The Stripping of the Alters). In December of that year came a further change which had significant impact. Chantries, which were used to pray for the souls trapped in Purgatory – a state between heaven and hell in Catholic belief – were dissolved, with these buildings turned into bookshops and other things. Although these changes were changing the appearance of Catholicism in England, Somerset seemed to have ‘gotten away with it’ so far, as although people were perhaps angry with the changes, a lot of people accepted the changes quietly – after all they were not too hard to live with. It can be argued that these policies were soft – and Somerset in a kind fashion had not introduced any cruel punishment to punish those who opposed his idea – which led a lot of Catholics to hide their churchly images in annoyance rather than rebellion. It was not until May 1549 that Somerset introduced the Book of Common Prayer, did he really have a huge impact in terms of the religious reforms. These books were a guideline of what was to be said at all church services, and were completely in English, which was a huge leap from catholic Services which were held in Latin. This change aimed to make churches simpler – less about money and the show of religion, but more about the faith – according to the most radical Protestants. If the Book of Common Prayer was in English, it would be easier for everyone to hear the messages of God in clear plain English, something Catholics disagreed with, as they thought only trained and blessed priests should have been able to read the bible. It was this change that acted as a catalyst for the later rebellions. Although these religious changes seemed somewhat inevitable, and perhaps would have happened under anyone – not just Somerset – it can be argued that Somerset did not do much to drive the changes that were being made, and instead he cared about the conflict with Scotland overall much more. Another thing to take notice was that Somerset was interested in foreign policy, and of course for the future succession of the throne after Edward VI. At that point, most of Europe was Catholic, and Somerset knew that if there was much radical change in England with the church, England would lose important links to major countries such as Spain – which to Somerset – perhaps was not worth the risk of fast change. On the whole, this could have been the reason as to why he didn’t make too obvious changes at the beginning, explaining the relatively slow progress of change, with some policies not lasting very well under Somerset, which would explain why he seemed to be tolerating of religious change and didn’t try and force it too hard, even though it did eventually lead to rebellions. In 1549 many commons’ uprisings were occurring. These were surprising – ‘Not since 1381 had there been such widespread rebellion’ (Susan Brigden, New Worlds, Lost Worlds). Particularly significant, two rebellions occurred under Somerset – the first being the Western Rebellions, in the Cornish area of England. There was a building of tension here with the Cornish, who had a history of disliking the government as they wanted independence. This very strongly catholic state was outraged with the religious changes being made – and so challenged Somerset and his government with a list of demands. The second rebellion was the Kett Rebellion, taking place in East Anglia – which occurred less due to religious reforms, but in rise of the desperation of economic reform, especially after the extreme expenditure thanks to the Scottish war conflict and the over-debasing of the silver coins. The rebellion – named after Robert Kett who took lead – also had a list of things they wanted changing, however interestingly, were written with much more politeness, and had nothing to do with the religious reforms. This suggests to us that only a few parts of the country had so far been greatly affected by the religious reforms under Somerset. These rebellions tell us the general antagonism and resentment the population felt towards the condition of the country under Somerset, suggesting that he was far from being a ‘Good Duke’ However, it is important to argue that it was not just Somerset’s fault – it was too the gentry, ‘who in pursuit of self-interest had abdicated their duty to the commons, seemed powerless to act and looked upon one another’ (Susan Brigden). Although about different problems and the uprisings seemed to be unrelated, there was a ‘particular sharpness in social conflict’ (Andy Wood, the 1549 Rebellions and the Making of Early Modern England) that was very significant, and this blame that fell onto Somerset led to his demise in the time coming. Somerset was growing increasingly desperate to sort out the problems with the rebellions, and so appointed Lord Russell, a nobleman in the West, to sort out the uprisings in the area. Although it took time and strength, on the 4th August 1549, Somerset was able to defeat the rebels in the west, leaving him only the rebels in Kett, against whom he was defeated humiliatingly later on. Somerset then turned to his last hope, as he saw it, the Duke of Northumberland (then known as Earl of Warwick) to help him out with Kett, despite knowing that Northumberland was actually his potential rival. His strong opponent successfully sorted out the rebels, and bought light to the failures of Somerset – his demise was inevitable – and his enemies (Northumberland, Cranmer) who once sat in the shadows in resent towards his arrogant and autocratic rule were able to speak up against Somerset, using his failure against Scotland, worsening of the economy and religious reforms done poorly to accuse him of being a unsuitable Lord Protector, as after all, he did fail to protect the country from rebellions. Somerset, knowing his end was near and his enemies were plotting against him, moved himself and the young King to the Windsor Palace where they were safer. Edward in his diary, wrote ‘Me thinks I am in a prison’, and when it was discovered that Somerset had in fact locked Edward up – thinking that the ‘possession of his person was the key to power’ (Brigden). When discovered, Somerset surrendered and was executed for treason – offering ‘his life, not his liberty’ (Brigden). The fall of Somerset seems like he was perhaps targeted and plotted against, and the fact that he had many enemies alongside the knowledge of his failing policies, supports the argument that Somerset perhaps didn’t deserve the title of the ‘Good Duke’. On the other hand, to not argue Somerset as the ‘Good Duke’ would be unfair as there are things that made him perhaps not as bad as it seemed. Somerset did indeed inherit a legacy full of debt, economical issues, and religious conflict from Henry VIII, and so it would be unreasonable to say that the rebellions started solely due to Somerset’s policies – as he believed he was just carrying out the will of Henry VIII. Furthermore, Somerset was often described being very caring of the poor – ‘Somerset saw himself as the champion of the oppressed, hearing complacently the benisons if the poor.’ (Susan Brigden). This suggests that he was not as brutal as he was made out to be (normally because of his cruel Military regime against Scotland), another reason as to why he good have been considered ‘Good’ to an extent, as previous Monarchs/rulers weren’t often praised with ‘Oh the commons pray for you sir’. Also, he could also be compared to the Duke of Northumberland, who inherits his position as Lord Protector. Northumberland has been compared to being a typical ‘Machiavellian’ character – a person who stabbed the back of others to get what he wanted, and although reform was perhaps more effective under Northumberland, it would be unfair to, if talking in terms of morals, call Northumberland a better Duke than Somerset. Overall, there are some things supporting the argument that Somerset could be described as a ‘Good Duke’ if comparing him to Northumberland. Overall it would seem that Somerset did not deserve the title as the ‘Good Duke’ because of the overall negative effect he had in government, and his policies that failed to successfully bring religious reform in the country, whilst causing further economic damage due to his blind war expenditure from his obsession with the Scotland conflict. Somerset’s overall attitude towards governing was also partly to blame – he created many enemies for himself due to making decisions on his own constantly, alienating certain members who would then plot against him and because of this, he would be solely to blame for the actions he took. Although he didn’t mean to cause extra damage, it is undeniable that his actions proved that he didn’t deserve to be called the ‘Good Duke’.

Charles Martin in Uganda Essay

Charles Martin, a 29-year-old American who had worked for Hydro Generation (HG) for 2 years before embarking on the Ugandan damn project. Martins’ educational experience, a degree in African Studies from the University of Wisconsin as well as a MBA from the University of Maryland coupled with his experience working through the Peace Corps made Martin uniquely qualified to work for HG in their new venture in Africa, a hydro-electric damn in Uganda. During Martins tenure in Uganda , his assignments were to, gain support from local authorities, set up offices and insure the smooth operation of the office, overseeing operations including hiring, keeping inventory and keeping accounting records as well as logistical aspects such as dealing with customs. Martins’ job also included helping new expatriates settle into living and working in Uganda. Describe Ugandan cultural attributes that might affect operation for foreign company operating there? Uganda, a multilingual cultura lly diverse country of a little more than 25 million people poses many challenges to a foreign company operating there. In addition to what may considered mostly normal challenges Uganda holds challenges that may not be found in other countries. With a long history of political instability and political corruption that continues into the present companies doing business there are faced with the stark reality that their business dealings maybe tainted because with such corruption ones place among the powerful is never assured. Nepotism is the norm in Uganda. Nepotism, the practice of allowing relatives to get jobs or promotions, even when undeserved thrives in Uganda. With jobs being awarded to family members, mostly through word of mouth connections language is very important to a business dealing in Uganda. Although English is the official language, many other languages are spoken throughout Uganda. The use of many languages thorough different cultural venues makes for a difficult a foreign company to carry on business successfully, as one is never assured what language will be preeminent therefore communications are not always the easiest in Uganda. .Uganda many religions also make for challenges in business dealings. Although much of the population is Christian there are many tribal religions that are a strong influence, a foreign company would have to be accepting of their practices in order to successfully deal with the local peoples. In general, business is much slower moving in Uganda and it is not uncommon practice to pay off or â€Å"tip† officials to make things progress more quickly, a practice unheard of in the United States. How would you describe the respective attitudes of Martin and Green: ethnocentric, polycentric or geocentric? What factors do you suspect of having influenced their respective attitudes? Martin’s attitude was one of polycentrism. Polycentric thought is such that Martin would conduct business in such a way that would conform to and accept the customs of the country in which the business was. Martin showed his polycentric attitude by paying tips, living in the middle class neighborhoods rather than with other expatriates, participating in tribal ceremonies and using nepotism in his hiring practices. Greens attitude was of geocentric thought. Geocentric thought accepts that certain differences of thought are tolerable in order to ensure successful business dealings. Depending on the individual circumstances, the company adapts to either the new culture or working to integrate the belief system of the home country. Greens attitude was influenced by his desire to incorporate the belief system of the company into the business in Uganda while Martins main concern was to fulfill the requirements of the project regardless of the fallout from the stepping away from the corporate values. Who was right, Green or Martin, about the controversial actions? Martin took in the Uganda an operation. What might have been the results if he had not taken those actions? Martin was correct in his actions. With Martin’s prior knowledge of what actions would be required in order to succeed in business in Africa and his desire to complete the required tasks in a timely fashion adapting to local customs such as nepotism helped insure the success of his project. Although successful Martin did take risks when utilizing a polycentric approach to his work, at any point his participation in various activities such as tribal rituals could have back fired due to increased pressure from an unstable government and corrupt officials talking advantage of their increased leverage to exact higher and higher prices for continued cooperation. These problems coupled with the possibility of certain actions being illegal in HGs home country directly conflicts with corporate policy. Despite these increased perils, if Martin had not undertaken this approach to business in Uganda increased delays, would certainly have occurred, local collaboration would have been decreased, expensed would have been increased due to either longer wait periods or the eventual abandonment of the project due to lack of progress. In the next phase of the project running the power plant-should HG employ someone whose main function is that of a liaison between its corporate culture and the culture of its host country? If so, is Martin the right person for the job? In the next phase of this project, the running of the power plant HG should employ someone whose main function is to be a liaison between the corporate culture and the host country of Uganda. If there is, no liaison similar problems of cultural misunderstanding will happen over again. Martin would be the most capable of understanding the various nuances of the continuing project, as he already has an extensive knowledge of the inner workings of side project. HG, as the sponsor of the project could further its policy by working with Martin and other from corporate to establish firm guide lines of what is acceptable policy when dealing with projects that are in foreign countries.

Nel Cor Piu Non Mi Sento

Nel Cor Piu Non Mi Sento Composed by: Giovanni Paisiello Nel cor piu non mi sento Brillar la gioventu; Cagion del mio tormento, Amor, sei colpa tu. Mi pizzichi, mi stuzzichi, Mi pungichi, mi mastichi; Che cosa e Questo ahime? Pieta, pieta, pieta! Amore e un certo che, Che disperar mi fa. Nel Cor Piu Non Mi Sento Giovanni Paisiello was the most popular comic composer of his time. His operas (of which he is known to have composed 94) abound with melodies, the graceful beauty of which is still appreciated.His church music was very voluminous, composing of eight masses, besides many smaller works. He also produced 51 instrumental compositions and many detached pieces. As the eighteenth century operatic scene that surrounded and influenced Mozart emerged into clearer view, Giovanni Paisiello was recognized as one of its most significant shapers. He began composing opera as soon as he left the Conservatory of San Onofrio in Naples in 1763. In Naples, he soon became established as a popular local composer.He was noted for simplifying operatic style in the interests of getting more quickly to the plot and keeping it moving. His tendency towards concision was even greater strengthened when he accepted employment in the court of Catherine the Great of Russia in 1776. She demanded that productions in her theater last no more than an hour and a half. He strove to make his melodies more appealing, his orchestration more colorful, and make the music help illustrate the plot. This is clearly apparent in â€Å"Nel Cor Piu Non Mi Sento. This upbeat aria is one in which includes comic relief as well as a fast paced rhythm and mood. Well under two minutes, it is concise. Paisiello was known for his short compositions. This song does a great job of attracting people’s attention and keeping that attention, no matter how short or long the piece may be. â€Å"Nel Cor Piu Non Mi Sento† comes from â€Å"L’Amor contrastato, produced in Naples in 1789. It was perfo rmed throughout Europe for many, many years. In other cities, the opera was sometimes called different names.Nevertheless, this aria in general became immensely popular. Famous stars sang the elaborate piece, as Beethoven wrote piano variations of it. Audiences remembered â€Å"Nel Cor Piu Non Mi Sento† because it was simple. Also, it was repeated many times throughout the scene in the opera. It is sung by Rachelina, then by a tenor suitor, Colloandro, and the ending is repeated as a duet. Its short and quick rhythmic sound stuck in people’s minds in which contributed to the great success of this song.As for the character of this song, it is best shown through the actual character(s) it was written for. The scene of the opera takes place within Rachelina’s home in the countryside near Naples. Rachelina is described as â€Å"a rich mill-owner and imprudent in love. † In the scene, she is working; something that women in earlier operas seldom did. Sorroundi ng her I assume would be common items found within a home. I expect that she may be in her kitchen cleaning somewhere. As for what she wants, can be compared to what we all want. True love!Love has been driving her crazy and she does not feel as well as usual. She, like most of the world, does not understand how love can make us so crazy at times. Learning about a character that is already discovered and developed, it is almost easier to express emotion into this song. I believe this is because I am a woman and I can relate to how Rachelina is feeling. Also, I try to place myself in her shoes, and truly exert her emotions through my voice. It is a rewarding experience when you allow yourself to become another character. That’s what makes music so much fun!

Research paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 17

Research Paper Example Identity such as language, religion amongst others implies sovereignty, and from the struggle of the Native Americans in Hawaii and Alaska, albeit approached differently, defines the process towards sovereignty. This paper explores and discusses the sovereignty claims of the native tribes in Alaska and in Hawaii, the 49th and 50th states of the country respectively. As a matter of fact, efficient public service delivery can be disregarded for a chance to indulge in self governance. Nonetheless, with the federal government and the state governments responsible for a number of services for the people in Alaska, including the natives, the relevance of the Alaskan sovereign and the Hawaiian push for tribal sovereigns has been brought into question. The native Hawaiians situation with regards to sovereign assertions is markedly different from the Alaskan situation. However, the tribes in Native Hawaiians tribes had a centralized governing system with a royal queen being at the helm of the authority of the land before colonization and eventual annexation by the United States. Presently, the United States of America exhibit a three spiral form of sovereignty: federal, state and tribal governments. The sovereign status of the native tribes in Alaska has been defined as axiomatic, and this implies that the right to self govern is self evident. The Alaskan natives, similar to other tribes in the Americas, have governed themselves for thousands of years a similar pattern across America’s native tribes came. Assertions of tribal sovereignty as it is presently exist amongst the native Alaskan tribe took very many years to achieve fruition. During the years of sovereignty claims, the tribes used a combination political as well as legal activism. Sovereign assertion achieved by the native Indian tribes over the years is acknowledged within the federal corridors of justice, and entails the