Ethnographic Observation

I set out to find a place to begin my observations, not knowing what to fully expect, what I may find. So I decided to look around at what is close to my home that isn’t a place I frequent or have even visited at all. Then it came to me, the Starbucks that is only about a mile away is a perfect place for me to observe subjects that I would consider different from myself, seeing as how I consider such obscene prices for coffee ridiculous. Starbucks is a very popular chain of coffee vendors that describe their product as more about quality than what Americans are used to in typical coffee joints. Although I know it is poor technique of me as an anthropologist to have prejudice about any place or people that may be at that place, but I have to admit I already had set in my mind that these people would be â€Å"stuck-up† â€Å"more money than sense† type of people. So upon entering the establishment I decided to blend into as much as possible by ordering one of their Grande size coffees, which is just their basic coffee in a medium size. Then, I found a spot in the corner and began to pretend I was reading the newspaper I had brought as a prop to further help me blend into my surroundings. The aroma of the building was very pleasant blend of coffee and various mixtures of chocolate and hazelnut. It also did have a very friendly feel and accepting sense to the whole thing. So after being in Starbucks for approximately thirty minutes I decided I had enough data to discuss my findings. The business definitely drew in a particular social group. It seemed to consist of mainly white males and females that appeared to be in their early twenties to upper twenties. Also most of them seemed to be more affluent to at least upper middle-class status. I came to this conclusion by the vehicles they drove and also the clothing they were wearing. Most of them were adorned in such brands as Columbia and The North Face, which are higher-end winter apparel. Most of their vehicles appeared to be if not new only a couple of years of age and were in very nice condition. Most of the groupings were either just singular people or couples coming to pick up either a plain coffee or most of the females ordering some mixed espresso or something to that degree. There were a couple of oddities in the data such as a one older couple that came by and also one black male also stopped by to pick up some coffee. Most the behavior I observed was a very casual and relaxed as the people seemed to all be friendly and enjoying their absurd priced beverages. Once in awhile someone would recognize a fellow customer and they would proceed to great each other with either a handshake or hug. Spatial arrangement between people was typical of most American norms. They typically had about a person length in between each person making sure not to get to close to bump into one another which is considered rude in this country. I did my research at approximately 1pm to 1:30pm in the afternoon. I do believe this did influence the type of people I saw in the establishment. If it were early in the morning I believe there would have been slightly older gathering of people going to their respectable jobs. Instead a majority of the customers were college students that were coming in for that mid day pick-up. As for the norms I witnessed they were typical for American establishments, the people working greeted the customers in an almost fake friendly manner that is supposed to comfort and make the customer feel â€Å"at home† in the environment. Then, the customer would reply with what they would like to order and then finish by paying for the product, in this case coffee. In conclusion I have to say that for the most part my presumptions were reinforced which is consistent with what I figured would be the case. Although, it isn’t entirely fair because I didn’t get to truly meet my subjects and understand them fully. I only observed how they behaved in that instance which may have been completely out there norm and even their first time at Starbucks.

Reason We Go to College Essay

Everyone has their own reason for wanting to get a degree in higher learning. Some of the reasons are; the love of learning, the chance to get away from their parents and be on their own. While others do it for the promise of a better future or just because they think that it is the right thing to do. Needless to say, there are countless reasons why we choose to further our education. Just like there are different reasons people go to college, there are different ways that people learn best. I will be telling you a little bit about my desire to earn my college diploma and how I think I learn best. Lots of people like to make money ever since currency was created and that is one of my motivations to complete college. According to Shaffer (2010), the top five reasons that people go to college are: to get an education, to expand their circle of awareness, to discover their passion, to network and to challenge themselves. I agree with all of these but as a parent, I also want to provide a great lifestyle for my children and complete what I’m teaching them to aim for. I love learning new things and having knowledge in my head instead of having to grab a dictionary, my phone or a computer to understand something. Though I love to increase my knowledge base, there are certain styles of learning that I excel in learning over others. Learning styles is new to me. All through high school and the first two years of college I have never heard of learning styles. I did know that I was more interested in a subject if a teacher/professor was lively, animated or just really excited about what they were teaching. I thought that’s how everyone else was. I was mistaken with that mindset. I took a couple of quizzes and learned that a few styles were my preferred method of learning. As written in Attribute advanogy. om (2004), There are seven main learning styles and they are: Visual (spatial), Aural (auditory), Verbal (linguistic), Physical (kinesthetic), Logical (mathematical), Social (interpersonal) and Solitary (intrapersonal). The tests that I took with Attribute (2004) and The Center for New Discoveries (2012), show that my preferred learning styles are verbal, aural, social and physical. My logical score was pretty high but it only showed up on one of the test results. The result are based on what I call the normal person standard, but I do not consider myself normal. Since that is the case, I will let you know if I agree with the results. Do I see myself as a verbal learner? Yes, because I love to talk and I like being able to get feedback instantly. I would rather give an oral presentation than type up a paper. If someone is lecturing on a subject, I will retain it easily if there is dialogue going back and forth in the class. The aural style I do not agree with as much because I can listen to music all day but if it is about school and it is something that I have to listen to, I will be going to sleep. I really enjoy touching things so the physical is a no brainer for me. I crave taking things apart to see how they work. As I said, I love to talk and I cannot talk to myself without being considered crazy, so yes, I am a social learner and I thrive off of others ideas. So, the tests got a three out of four which is not bad. Earning a college degree does not only hold the reward of monetary increase but it provides a sense of accomplishment and an example for our children who will be our future. Knowing how you learn best as an individual can help you know your shortcomings and prevent pitfalls and roadblocks on the road to a degree.

Finance: United States Dollar and Exchange Rate Risk Essay

Your write-up should be eight to ten pages (double-spaced). If you provide information outside the case or the textbook, use a footnote to indicate the source. You can use pictures, but no more than four, and each figure should be no more than half a page in size. 1. Executive Summary. Briefly describe the history and business of Tiffany’s Co. What type of decision did the company have to make in 1993? Why was the decision important? 2. History of Japanese Yen. Describe the historical exchange rates between Japanese Yen and U.S. dollar over time. Focus on the big changes and what was the exchange rate in (and years before) July 1993. 3. To Hedge or Not? Do you think Tiffany should actively manage its yen-dollar exchange rate risk? Why or why not? Explain the benefits and costs of hedging. 4. What to Hedge? If Tiffany were to manage its exchange rate risk, then identify what exposures should be managed via such a hedging program (e.g., hedge sales, hedge gross profit, or hedge cash flows, etc.). Explain why. 5. Forward or Options? If Tiffany were to hedge the yen-dollar exchange rate risk, it can choose either forward contracts or options. Explain how Tiffany can hedge using forward contracts? How to hedge using options? The available forward contracts and options are described in Exhibit 8, assuming Tiffany can only use those derivatives to hedge. Based on what you have learned in this course, what are the pros and cons of using options to hedge compared to using forward contracts to hedge? 6. Your Decision. If you were CFO of Tiffany, what would you have done in July 1993? No hedging at all? Or hedging? If you decided to hedge, quantify how much of these exposures should be covered and for how long. You have to justify your answers. Note that there is no â€Å"correct answer.† The reasoning is more important. You should obtain information from Tiffany’s financial statements (e.g., Exhibit 3) and use information in the case (e.g., on page 3 it says that â€Å"Tiffany’s sales accounted for only 1% of the $20 billion Japanese jewelry market†) and then make an educated guess on what is the exposure and how much you want to hedge and how (i.e., using forward contracts or options or a combination.) Again, if two groups have similar write-ups, both write-ups will receive a grade of 0. Also, you should provide an answer to each specific question. Quantify questions 5 and 6. Otherwise you have to rewrite. Finally, I just want to clarify the option prices in Exhibit 8 in case 2. The left panel says Calls: it means these are call options on U.S. dollars, and these are from Japan’s point of view, not from U.S.’s point of view. So the left panel gives you the right (but not obligation) to buy U.S. dollar with Yen (i.e., sell Yen for dollar), and that is what you want to use. Do not use the right panel. You may ask, how come the case says that Tiffany should use Yen put options to hedge? Well, a Yen put option IS a dollar call option, why? A call option on US dollar, written at an exercise price in terms of Yen, is a put option on Yen, written at an exercise in terms of dollar. For example, in Exhibit 8, the three months call option on dollar with a strike price of 92Yen has a premium of 2.52 100ths of a cent per yen (i.e., premium is 0.000252$/yen). This call option gives you (mainly Japanese investors) the right to buy $ using Yen, that is to say, it gives you the right to sell Yen at (1/92)$, therefore, this is a put option for Yen from U.S. investors’ point of view. Bottom line, since Tiffany has Yen exposure, so you want to sell Yen as financial manager of Tiffany, so you should use the left panel, not the right panel.

Virtual Reality Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Virtual Reality - Term Paper Example In view of the fact that it involves so many factors, hence it took a lot of time and efforts to build it what it is nowadays. In addition, the virtual reality is yet a great deal hyped term that carries people to consider on the eternal virtues of this rising technology and paradigm. However, with the passage of time we are observing a lot of real implementations of virtual reality appearing into life (VRS, 2009). This paper presents a detailed overview of virtual reality. In this scenario, this research will cover a lot of aspects which are related to virtual reality such as its history, its associated elements and advantages. History and Overview of Virtual Reality In the era of 80s and 90s, the trend of virtual reality started catching the attention of media and public, in particular the public interested in reading science fiction books. In this scenario, a number of researchers such as William Gibson, Vernor Vinge, Neal Stephenson, and many others offered an attractive and appe aling vision of the modern world in which virtual reality (VR) technology was invasive. In fact, it was believed by readers that it would not take a lot of time when circumstances discussed by authors would turn into the fact instead of fiction. Additionally, this scenario formed the environment where everyone was looking for their own private Holodeck, and in light of the media coverage, the idea it was simply a matter of exercising a small number of facts until Holodecks would become actually accessible (Allison & Hodges, 2000). Basically, the term Virtual Reality can be utilized in different scenarios with a number of definitions. For instance, the majority of people consider VR as a specific set of tools and technologies such as a Glove Input Device, Head Mounted Display and Audio. Additionally, a large number of people use this phrase to add traditional books, pure fantasy, movies and thoughts. However, the most common use of this term is seen in computer science where we limit virtual reality to computer supported systems. In this scenario, virtual reality refers to a technique for computer users to imagine, control and communicate with computers and enormously complicated data and information. In this definition, we used imagination part for the computer generating images, audio or other physical outputs to the people of a world inside the computer. In addition, this world can be a computer aided design model, a view into a database or an experimental imitation. In this scenario, the people are able to interact with the world as well we openly control items within the world. Moreover, some worlds can be designed through other operations, for instance, simple animation scripts or physical simulations. Hence, the communication with the virtual world, as a minimum with close to real time control of the view is a vital test for a virtual reality (Isdale, 1998). In the past few years, virtual reality has emerged as a quickly developing technology which effec tively makes use of the greater than ever potential and capabilities of computers to reproduce unreal and real-world situations and surroundings with a high level of interactiveness and practicality. In fact, this environment allows people to communicate and interact with the imaginary worlds or environments by making use of a wide variety of hardware devices and equipments (such as data gloves and joysticks). In this scenario, the feeling of in reality being in that virtual world or environment

The application of Task-based Approach in English Reading Teaching Essay

The application of Task-based Approach in English Reading Teaching - Essay Example The processes of material design, task demonstration and evaluation are covered in this essay, while relevant teaching theories or principles are subsequently treated. The process of foreign language acquisition in China is, to some extent, still based on the traditional educational system that emphasizes on the reading and writing of a foreign language like English with the hope of translating it. The students are primarily taught to learn English through reading various texts that could broaden their knowledge of the language (Adamson, 2004; Burkett, 2009; Dzau, 1990). As a result of this, teachers are saddled with the responsibility of making English seem understandable to their students. The current demand for English in China has also increased the pressure on primary school teachers to do more in the area of improving the reading skill of their students. The fundamental objective of adopting Task-Based Approach in the reading teaching at elementary level in China is to detect the reading competence of each student under the full watch of his or her Homeroom Teacher, who would provide the needed assistance to help the students become near-confident readers, if not totally-confident readers (Grellet, 1992). The students are given simple stories to read depending on their grades—the little harder reading comprehension goes to the farther end of the spectrum. The purpose of this is to improve their reading fluency, not necessarily to make them memorize their textbooks’ contents (Hiskes, 2007). Task-Based Approach lets the teachers perceive the students’ reaction to words they may have been taught before. For examples, showing the ability to identify and pronounce simple words about weather, food, fruits and colours as they appear on the textbooks used for this task. Most teachers believe that exposing children to th e words they had heard before may increase their ability to identify related words on

Humans and Time Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Humans and Time Paper - Essay Example hose days.   The night was divided up into twelve hours, which were designated by the position of stars in the sky.   The day was divided into ten hours and a shadow clock was used to keep track of these hours.   The twilight hours were the hours before dawn and after sunset. After a while, the Egyptians and other ancient societies realized that the sun rose and set in different places in the summer and winter. In fact, the sun never took the same course on any one day throughout the year and also if the sky is overcast throughout the whole day and night this method would not work. (Barnett, 1998) The major fault with sundials and shadow clocks is obvious so, around 1400 B.C. water clocks were invented named clepsydra. A water clock was made of two containers of water, one higher than the other. Water traveled from the higher container to the lower container through a tube connecting the containers. The containers had marks showing the water level, and the marks told the time. Water clocks worked better than sundials because they told the time at night as well as during the day. But it also had its own limitations like Water would flow more slowly or quickly when the temperature changed. The first mechanical clocks appeared in Europe, supposedly because of inspiration by the stories that came from China about mechanical clocks. The first mechanical clocks were rather simple and just sounded a bell every hour.   The first mechanical clocks had a weight that would slowly lower, moving gears which moved a hand which showed the hour.   They could only be built in tall towers because the weights needed to fall a great distance or else the clocks would only work for a short amount of time. (ThinkQuest, n.d) Galileo made an amazing contribution to the world of time. Galileo had noticed that the pendulums period of swing appeared to be independent of the extent of the arc of the swing and recognized its potential for timekeeping, but died before his work could be

Polyproplene and KRATON Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Polyproplene and KRATON - Essay Example The thermoplastic stands up quite well to steam-sterilization and autoclaving, managing to resist physical damage and environmental stress-cracking when exposed to high corrosion chemicals in tests. This result is something one can easily expect due to the ability of the material to be fatigue resistant, have high tensile strength, and unbelievable elongation abilities. Such high material characteristics ensures an almost infinite flex life for polypropylene oriented moldings in integrated hinges, making it quite responsive to injection speed and pressure. The plastic also sets in a shorter time when placed in the mold, which ensures a higher production rate for molders. Polyprolene has proven to be excellent when considering is chemical resistant abilities, abrasion strength, dimensional stability, and high surface gloss. Such unique qualities makes the polymer versatile and suitable for superior strength, grease resistance, and moisture barring in film and fibers. While pre-drying is not necessarily required when molding Injection Molding Polypropylene is molded in standard screw making equipment as these can be done without alteration in normal conditions, filled resins may sometimes require pre-drying. The manufacturing process however, isnt as simple as it sounds. The molder needs to take note of additional considerations such as the cylinder temperature and injection pressure. These two of the most closely related variables that take the forefront of the molding parameters will be discussed in the succeeding paragraphs. The most advisable temperature range for cylinders are between 400- 570Â °F. Normally the temperature should be 25-50Â °F above the normal temperature when molding polypropylene. However it should not be molded above 570Â °F so the normal range for molding would be kept anywhere between 400-525Â °F. The cylinder temperature is best kept with the hopper or feed section lower than the nozzle at 30-50Â °F.