The Character of Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour by...

The Character of Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin In The story of an Hour, Kate Chopin reveals the complex character, Mrs. Mallard, In a most unusual manner. THe reader is led to believe that her husband has been killed in a railway accident. The other characters in the story are worried about how to break the news to her; they know whe suffers from a heart condition, and they fear for her health. On the surface, the story appears to be about how Mrs. Mallard deals with the news of the death of her husband. On a deeper level, however, the story is about the feeling of intense joy that Mrs. Mallard experiences when she realizes that she is free from the influences of her husband and the consequences of†¦show more content†¦She noticed the there were patches of blue sky showing here and there through the clouds. The other characters in the story have one impression of Mrs. Mallard; she seems to have reacted to the terrible news as one would expect, but the r eader is aware that a distinct change has come over her. The story unviels its theme at this point: Mrs. Mallard, for the first time in her life, experiences a new-found freedom. Instead of dreading the future without her husband, she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. She could now live her life and be absolutely free of the imposing will of her husband: There would be no one to live for her during the coming years; she would live for herself. There would be now powerful will bending hers in the blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow creature.(15) Mrs. Mallard had, in that brief moment of illumination(15), stumbled upon a truth: she was now her own person, free from the confines of her husband. She had loved her husband, sometimes(15), but that didnt matter: What could love ....count for in the face of theis possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being! THE theme of the story unfolds at this point: Mrs. Mallard, through the death of her husband, is able to experience the joy of the realizationShow MoreRelatedReaction to the Character of Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin660 Words   |  3 PagesReaction to the Character of Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin In â€Å"The Story of an Hour,† Kate Chopin describes to her readers a young woman’s response to her husband’s death, or at least his presumed death. The opinions readers will draw from this story will vary from person to person due to personal experiences. The experience and wisdom that I have gained through the trails and tribulations of my life help me to understand, relate, and even despise Mrs. Mallard’s characterRead More Irony in Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour Essays1295 Words   |  6 PagesIrony in Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour A very dull and boring story can be made into a great story simply by adding in something that is unexpected to happen. When the unexpected is used in literature it is known as irony. An author uses irony to shock the reader by adding a twist to the story. The author of â€Å"The Story of an Hour† is Kate Chopin. Her use of irony in the story is incredibly done more than once. Irony is thinking or believing some event will happen but in return the unexpectedRead MoreThe Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin Essay1528 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin â€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin is very intriguing, not only because of the emotional change Louise Mallard goes through the hour after her husband’s tragic death but also the way Chopin uses irony in the story. During this analysis of â€Å"The Story of an Hour† we will discuss the summary, plot, setting, tone, theme, point of view, emotions of Louise Mallard and other characters involved in the story. Chopin’s story uses the feelings of a married womanRead More The Story of an Hour and The Hand Essay1161 Words   |  5 PagesThe â€Å"Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin and ‘†The Hand† by Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette are similar in theme and setting. Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette and Kate Chopin create the theme of obligatory love and the unhappiness it entails. Both stories illustrate the concealed emotions many women feel in their marriage yet fail to express them. The two stories take place in a sacred room of the house a nd both transpire in a brief amount of time. The differences between the two stories are seen through theRead MoreThe Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin881 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The Story of an Hour written by Kate Chopin is one of the most popular short story in literature. This story is somewhere reflected on real life of Kate Chopin, where she had to raise six children by herself after her husband’s death and other struggles in society. Kate Chopin used her literature knowledge to show woman’s freedom and other role of woman in society back in 1900th century. â€Å"The Story of an Hour† is also related to woman’s role in society, the story talks about the wife and husband’sRead MoreThe Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin862 Words   |  4 PagesFiction Analysis: The Story of an Hour Kate Chopin’s short story, â€Å"The Story of an Hour†, is about one married woman’s true hidden feelings of being married in the 19th century. The story was published in 1894, a time where it was unacceptable for women to express their wants and needs as a woman. Women were not seen equal to men and did not have the same privileges as men such as voting. Therefore, some of her literary works were considered controversial. It wasn’t soon until the late 20 centuryRead MoreThe Death From The Emotions1200 Words   |  5 Pagesthe Emotions In the short story The Story of an Hour written by Kate Chopin, Louise Mallard, the main character, is told that her husband, Mr. Brently Mallard, is dead in a railroad disaster. This short story is interesting mentioning the inner happenings of Louise character within an hour when she hears the news from her husband’s death until seeing her husband, peaceful and healthy, appearing at the downstairs. Although the story is told quite simple within only one hour of time, readers can realizeRead More Irony in Kate Chopins Story of an Hour Essay796 Words   |  4 Pagesin Chopins Story of an Hour    Irony is a useful device for giving stories many unexpected twists and turns. In Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour, irony is used as an effective literary device. Situational irony is used to show the reader that what is expected to happen sometimes doesnt. Dramatic irony is used to clue the reader in on something that is happening that the characters in the story do not know about. Irony is used throughout Chopins The Story of an Hour through theRead Moreâ€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin Essay922 Words   |  4 PagesKate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour is a brilliant short story of irony and emotion. The story demonstrates conflicts that take us through the character’s emotions as she finds out about the death of her husband. Without the well written series of conflicts and events this story, the reader would not understand the depth of Mrs. Mallard’s inner conflict and the resolution at the end of the story. The conflict allows us to follo w the emotions and unfold the irony of the situation in â€Å"The Story of anRead MoreThe Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin919 Words   |  4 Pagesthe title states, â€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin, is a story that takes place in a very brief period of time. The story revolves around a married woman, Louise Mallard, who is troubled both mentally and physically. Several other characters are present, such as Josephine, Mr. Mallard, and Richard, but play a limited role in the story. Mrs. Mallard is used to bring about a feminist theme in a time where women were viewed as invalidated until taking a husband. This story makes an effort to show

Explain Why the Nep Was Unpopular with Many Communists in...

Explain why the NEP was unpopular with many communists in the 1920’s USSR. The NEP, abbreviation for the ‘New Economic Policy’, was a number of policies deployed by Vladimir Lenin to improve the conditions of post war USSR. The NEP replaced the system of War Communism which was used between 1918 and 1921. The main motive for the War Communism policy was to support and supply the Red Army with food and weapons during the Russian Civil War. However, after the war the country was in turmoil and the majority of the Soviet Union’s population suffered hardship and poverty. This was when a quick solution was needed to revamp the Russian economy and the NEP policies were the solution. The NEP was made to balance the needs of the well of and†¦show more content†¦Other European countries used much more modernised equipments. However, the NEP does not encourage this modernisation which could in fact dramatically improve the country’s economy. Grain export was the most important source for their agriculture yet the exports were thre e fourth lower than it was a decade ago. This left the Russian economy to be far behind in modernisation than any other European countries. Modernisation was pivotal as it can enhance a country’s strength in many ways. Most importantly, it would help support Russia’s military at a time where an invasion to any European country could be foreseen. The Communists were afraid of this, since they were prone to any invasion with their weapons being out of date. The Communists felt they should be a major industrialization powerhouse against other European rivals such as Germany however the NEP would make the country even more vulnerable. Moreover, peasant realised feeding themselves is more important than buying insignificant consumer goods. So, they held grain for themselves and the grain export seems to have been abandoned. A system scale of individual peasant farming under the NEP couldn’t support plans for industrialisation and the Communists were out of favour for this plan and so, the current NEP policy needs to be replaced by a more vigorous and rapid one. Developing the Russian economy would further be significant as there was an increase in unemployment. The idleness wasShow MoreRelatedLenin13422 Words   |  54 PagesVladimir Ilyich Lenin Ð’Ð »Ã °Ã ´Ã ¸Ã ¼Ã ¸Ã'€ ИÐ »Ã'Å'Ð ¸Ã'‡ ЛÐ µÃ ½Ã ¸Ã ½ | | Lenin in 1920 | Chairman of the Council of People s Commissars of the Soviet Union (Premier of the Soviet Union) | In office 30 December 1922  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 21 January 1924 | Preceded by | Position created | Succeeded by | Alexei Rykov | Chairman of the Council of People s Commissars of the Russian SFSR | In office 8 November 1917  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 21 January 1924 | Preceded by | Position created | Succeeded by | Alexei Rykov | Member of the Politburo

Myth of powerlesness Essay Example For Students

Myth of powerlesness Essay Linda McQuaigs book, The Cult of Impotence: Selling the Myth of Powerlessness in the Global Economy, is a refreshing new approach to viewing the current state of global economy and Canadas place in it. In recent years, such mysterious terms as fiscal deficits, natural rate of unemployment, stock market fluctuations, interest rate cuts and zero inflation and so on, have received an exceptional level of public consideration. Nevertheless, in spite of the now generally acceptable importance of the terms, their meaning an the effects of the domestic economic policies is left for the professional economists to analyze and present the public, as well as nations governing bodies with a list of remedies. Their guiding logic and principles are rarely questioned and more rarely fully understood. In such an environment, McQuaig has earned a wide audience for her writings by stripping away the aura of complexity from controversial economic issues and making them accessible and relevant to a gene ral audience. Challenging the opinions of the experts, she is trying to bring back the debatable economic policies of the global age to democratic accountability. McQuaig is a notable journalist and a writer, who has written a number of books on the state of affairs that Canadas economy is. Unlike her previous books that she has written ,discussing deficit reduction and cuts to social programs among others, this time she drifted away from the specifics and focused on our general view and acceptance of the economic processes. In the book, she attacks nations political passivity and acceptance of the believed fact that the domestic economy fully depends on the global market situation and that is should follow the trends. Trapped in this view, governments act as a victims to the global economic process and accepts an its people and impose this view on the electorate. Canadas economic troubles is not unique. Although, Canada is enjoying a period of relative economic growth, and the level of unemployment is at its lowest level since April 1976 at 6.8% in January 2001 (Tam). However, these 6.8% still mean 1.1 million people jobless. McQuaig argues that combating the unemployment should be the number one national economic policy, at times at the expense of the corporate and governmental financial institutions and currency speculators. The fiscal conservatism of Bank of Canada under Gordon Thiessen, the banks governor, and anti-inflationism which have become, it seems, the ide fixe for most state financiers became a source of tremendous political apathy, hindering the capacity of elected officials to carry through on their more progressive and egalitarian campaign promises. Afteral, Jean Chretiens government has been elected in 1993 and re-elected again in 1998 because the electorate bought their promise of the increased social spending and more socia l programs, which mean more jobs. Instead, Chretien and the Liberals suddenly forgot their election promise of a spending program to create jobs, and decreased the government social programs by about 30 percent for a start. As a result, the country has eliminated its deficit at the expense of the government involvement in the economy, which has been reduced to the level of the 1940s. Linda McQuaig argues that a policy of economic growth through lowering interest rates would have cut the deficit without the side effects to the Canadian society. The core of the dispute actually goes back to Keynesian-Friedman economics debate. In its essence, which should have been made clear for the voters at during the election campaign, Keynesian economics about active role of the government in the nations economy to manage the level of demand. Demand, according to the theory, is the economy, because adjusting it, it is possible to indirectly affect all other economic derivatives. When economic activity is depressed, the government should spend more, and when the economy is booming the government should spend less to achieve equilibrium. If aggregate demand in low then the government should pursue reflationary policies such as cutting taxes or boosting government spending to push aggregate demand higher and boost employment and output. However, if aggregate demand is too high and causing then the government should pursue deflationary policies. The theory was conceived by English economist John Maynard Keynes (hence the name), in 1930s at the times of

MaxCo Research proposal Essay Example

MaxCo Research proposal Essay The Max Mar Group is one of the largest international fashion houses and the first Italian clothing company, recognized throughout the world as the precursor of modern prà ªtporter fashion. The Group was formed in 1951 the Group with the aim of offering haute De game feminine clothing, produced according to excellent industrial processes. This is a record that the Max Mar Group has consolidated over time through a meticulous, luxurious style that has always achieved rising success on a world-wide scale (Mascara Group), maintaining however its strongest market in Italy. The Group is composed of nine different brands, each targeting a different segment, none of which are particularly active through digital communications, with the exception of websites and online shops. MOB Research Agency was contacted to develop a study aimed at analyzing the use of social media and digital communication tools for the MaxCo brand, which as company results show, is the most developed of the nine brands on new media, with particular focus to the Italian market. In fact, the further development of this brand online will define a model for the Groups other brands to also develop a social media ND digital communication strategy accordingly both within Italy and worldwide. It must be noted that the rapid evolution of social media and digital communications has led fashion companies to develop new communication strategies aimed at establishing a closer relationship with their customers. For the fashion industry, social media have been identified as a powerful enabler to build strong relationships with their consumers. We will write a custom essay sample on MaxCo Research proposal specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on MaxCo Research proposal specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on MaxCo Research proposal specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Social media and fashion brands both show strong relational features; in fact, among all sectors, the fashion market appears to be the most social, u to its underlining mechanisms of social diffusion. From this derives the importance for fashion brands to build a social image which leads to high levels of social involvements, in contrast with the mere presence of social media; the number of social networking channels manned by brands has a clear correlation with the ROI of social media marketing strategies. 1. Max Max mainly targets young women, who appear to be also one of the most significant groups of social media and digital communications users, therefore the effectiveness of the Groups strategy in this sector is essential. Research shows that Faceable and Mainstream are the most popular social media in Italy, both of which MaxCo has been using for the past 3 years and 12 months, respectively. Faceable has become a tool for consumers to interact with other consumers and with the brands, and it can increase brand awareness; also, it is a tool for word of mouth, with about 1. Million users in Italy, has become a powerful tool for the fashion industry today, as it allow creating a connection directly through a brands products and ideas. However, Maxs results for March 2014 show and overall negative trend on the use of the brands Faceable page and Mainstream page. Furthermore, with regards to other digital communications, Maxs websites shows regular visits that peak at times of the release of a new collection as well as of sales. To even the presence on their website throughout the year, MaxCo has been developing websites to present certain items of the seasons collection. . 1. 1 Introducing the new Max app The Mascara Group has begun developing an app for smartness and tablet, which will allow to access information about videos, campaigns, press, and other events related to its brands. The idea is to develop an interactive mobile magazine, tit stories about t he brands everyday life, integrated with the brands social media sites (Faceable and Mainstream) and with the possibility to be customized by entering personal data for style tips and possible purchases. The app will also allow accessing an online store. The launch of the app for Max will be a part of the brands new digital communication strategy, the app will also allow accessing an online store. This will not only give the brand the opportunity to build a personal relationship with its loyal customers, but also increase its reach and gather valuable information on customers. Liquor and Donna Koran International have been identified as top competitors for MaxCo brand, within the Italian market and worldwide, respectively. Liquor Donna Koran International MaxCO Faceable x Twitter Mainstream Youth channel Website Online shops Smartened and tablet app As the table above shows, MaxCos direct competitors have been developing on all major social online platforms as well as they have developed a brand application for smartness and tablet. This has allowed both competing brands to build a deeper relationship with their customers, proving that Max is indeed in need to take action to be able to compete both within the Italian market and at worldwide level and avoid losing its position in the market. According to Gallbladder data for the last quarter of 2013, Italians are amongst the top users of social media and digital communication tools such data indicate a solid window of opportunity for the firm to expand rapidly and diminish the gap with its competitors regarding virtual activities. MOB has been asked to plan a research to respond to Max Mar Fashion Groups concern that it may be falling behind its competition due to the low social media and digital communication use for its brands. It was agreed with the client to begin the research by analyzing MaxCo, one of the nine brands managed by the Group; in fact, this is the most active in terms of presence on social media and digital communications, in particular regarding its use of Faceable, Mainstream and its website. The introduction of the new app has also been planned for MaxCo solely. The results presented for the brand show a negative trend in online users for the brand social accounts. Having stated the importance of social media and digital communication for the fashion industry, MOB truly believes that carrying out the proposed research will offer MaxCo (and later he whole Group) the opportunity to redirect its digital communication strategy and continue excelling in the future making their brands socially smart and directly involved with their customers. Additionally, this research intends to analyses the possibilities and threats related to the introduction of a smartened application (the MaxYou app), which main competitors have already done. Taking into account the increase in access through mobile devices, the launch of the app shall allow the brand to reach all equal position on the market, with regards to social media and International and Liquor) appear to be a few steps ahead as they have established themselves in the digital world, this research should truly represent the first step toward the improvement of MaxCo and later the whole Groups strategy. It is the goal of this research proposal to lay out a detailed plan of how to measure the effectiveness of social media and digital communications, in terms of reach and engagement, and reinforce the urgency of ensuring the Max Mar Fashion Group is responding to growing trends for social media involvement and activity in the Italian fashion sector. Main techniques used in this research intend to analyses Max activities online in terms of reach and engagement for Faceable, Mainstream and the brands website. Additionally, the study seeks to investigate possible customer responses to the launch of the new app. The study will primarily focus on fully disclosing customers understanding, awareness and perception of MaxCo online activities in relation to what they perceive as effective, involving and ethical. The goal is to allow the Group, through this assessment and information available, to gather valuable consumer insight on current possible future strategies, and adapt to best spoon to its customer needs and preferences, in order to increase competitiveness. MOB has identified the following research objectives: 2. Understand the attitudes across women between the age of 19 and 35 toward the use of social media and digital communication tools for interaction with fashion brands, with reference to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts, websites and finally smartened and tablet applications. 2. 1. 1 . What kind of activities do customers expect from fashion brands? 2. 1. 2. How frequently do they expect websites and social media accounts to be updated? 2. 1. 3. Do they like to interact with br ands? . 1. 4. How do Italian users feel about fashion brands Faceable pages? . 1. 5. How do Italian users feel about fashion brands Mainstream accounts? 2. 1. 6. How do Italian users feel about company website engagement and online shopping? 2. 1. 7. What do they think of a user-adjustable app for fashion brands? The first goal of this research is to offer the company a clear overview of what their customer target segment thinks and expects from social media and digital communication activities from fashion brands, with particular reference to company Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts and company websites, as well as APS. The target group identified for this study is representative of the people that most use such tools; the results are therefore expected to be reliable in outlining the attitudes (positive, negative or neutral) toward the use of social media and digital communication tools for interaction with fashion brands within the Italian market. 2. Analyses the perception of MaxCos existing customers regarding the brands use of Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts, websites for interaction and information in comparison to other customer experiences (with competitor brands) 2. 2. 1 In comparison with other fashion brands, re Max Faceable page and Mainstream account appealing in terms of content and activities? Sufficiently active? 2. 2. In comparison with other fashion brands, is Max website sufficiently informative and appealing for users? Is the online shop easy to use? 2. 2. 3 What are competitors doing? Are there other particular fashion doing? 2. 2. 4 Overall, what do customers think of Max a ctivities comparison with other fashion brands? Secondly, the research will look at Max existing customers perception of the brand use of social media and digital communication in comparison to other fashion brands. As it was noted before, the fashion industry is extremely sensitive to the use of these new means of communication and interaction between customers and brands, therefore the goal is to develop a thorough understanding of what customers think of what the brand is doing, in particular in comparison to what their competitors do within the Italian market, with regards to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts and commerce activities, as well as the use of smartened and tablet APS. 2. 3 Determine which channels MaxCo customers prefer to communicate and interact with brands with respect to social media and chital communications 2. . 1 Where and when do MaxCo customers prefer to interact with the brand? 2. 3. 2 Do MaxCo customers enjoy interacting with the brand on Faceable and Mainstream? How frequently? 2. 3. 3 Should MaxCo be posting/sharing more often? What content is preferred by customers? 2. 3. 4 Do MaxCo customers enjoy the brands website? When do they visit it and why? 2. 3. 5 Would Max customers use a user-adjustable app for online shopping and news about the brand? What should it include? Thirdly, the research will determine what are the contact situations that Max customers refer to interact with the brand. This includes the how, when, and where preferences for interaction, which will allow the company pinpoint what are the Groups strengths and weaknesses of the brands strategy at the moment, benchmarking the research results with company activities. Understanding when and where the customers prefers to be in touch with the brand will also serve as a basis for future developments on other media. While investigating on target segments preferences, this research will also examine the possible responses to the introduction of a new application, which competitors already have. Therefore, the goal at this stage is to outline what customers would like from MaxCo and the Group in order to build a strong and loyal relationship with the brand. 2. 4 Identify based on customer responses how the brand could improve its use of social media and digital communication for interaction with its customers 2. 4. 1 How and where else would MaxCo customers like to interact with the brand? 2. 4. 2 What could MaxCo do differently? 2. 4. 3 What can be improved in MaxCos Faceable page, Mainstream account and website? 2. 4. 4 Is there something that competitors do that Max customers would eke from the brand? The final goal of this research is to identify opportunities for improvement for the brands online activities, building upon responses to the other objectives and an overall evaluation of MaxCo customers. The goal is to identify specific activities for the brand to strengthen its social media and digital communications strategy, in particular with regards to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts and website activities, as well as new tools that competitors already use successfully, in accordance to customers attitudes and personal preferences expressed in their responses. The aim of this research is to benchmark Max position in this sector at the moment with how customers see it and how they would want the brand to act in the future. The research will begin with secondary data analysis in order to create a framework for the research, in particular using available data and information regarding the use of Faceable, Mainstream, company websites and APS by Italian users for fashion brands. Secondly, the research will proceed with collecting qualitative and quantitative data through focus groups and structured (close and open questions) questionnaires, respectively. The results are expected to provide a framework for the company to identify its strengths and weaknesses, and identify opportunities and threats for future digital developments to compete with other fashion brands. They will also define the most suitable strategy for the launch of the new Max smartened and tablet application. According to the Isomer Glossary secondary data is data that have already been collected and published for another research project; secondary data can be internal and external. For the purpose of this research internal secondary data will e obtained from internal company databases and previous research reports on the topic, while external secondary data will be taken from specialized researches and reports done by other specialized agencies and researchers. Available secondary research data will help clarify the target during the initial exploratory and descriptive research phases. The analysis of secondary research will provide the necessary background to ensure the research takes the correct direction in analyzing the problem, and will also give MOB and Max a set of information to test the research exults against at the end of the research, ensuring the accuracy of the results. In order to optimize the use of secondary data, considering the great availability of research on the topic of social media and digital communication, MOB will screen for relevance and inaccuracy and will ensure to use solely data strictly relevant for the purpose of this research, publicly available or from other partner agencies. In particular, secondary data will be evaluated based on the following criteria: credibility of publisher/researcher, purpose of the research, time of data collection, search methodology used for data collection, and relevance, comparability and reliability of data. The research will begin with the analysis of internal secondary data, company internal databases, which will be useful for the researchers to build an initial reference framework on the activities and results of the brand. MOB will be analyzing through data mining the following internal sources: Annual reports for 2012 and 2013, sales and communication reports determine trends and strengths and weaknesses of the brand as well as identify opportunities to develop Internal experts ports in order to get insight on the objectives and ideas of the brands employees Database of customer information and purchase history determine target segment and identify the participant for primary research. Secondary research will directly answer the first objective of this research, by outlining the general attitudes of the selected target group toward the use of social media and digital communication tools for interaction with fashion brands, with reference to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts, websites and finally smartened and tablet applications. External data research is also expected to generate initial espouses on customers preferred digital contact situations with brands, also for Max, thus partially responding to the second and fourth objective identify customer perception of Maxs digital strategy and opportunities for improvement. MOB will be gathering secondary data from the following external sources (syndicated data): Competitors annual reports, including social media reports highlight the strengths and weaknesses of competitors and benchmark results with Maxs Fashion reports on social media use by fashion brands, specifically data collected on MaxCo (Faceable and Mainstream reports) review activities of the rand so far and determine customer response to them Gallbladder reports on use of social media and web-based platforms in Italy gather information on the target segment use of social media and smartened and tablet APS, frequency of use as well as reason for using them. Primary research is defined as data that are collected specifically for a current research project (Isomer Glossary). For the purpose of this research, primary data will be collected through focus groups and a questionnaire administered to social media users and website visitors, to answer all the objective of this research from a alliterative and quantitative perspective (with the exception of objective 1 which will be measured solely through quantitative research). 3. 2. 1 Qualitative Qualitative research is defined as the use of unstructured exploratory techniques (such as group discussions and in-depth interviews) that are based on statistically small samples in order to understand a problem further (Isomer Glossary), which in this case will be collected through focus groups. Primary research will begin with qualitative data collection to identify non-quantifiable insights on the target segment; Hough quantitative data is by definition less structured and more flexible as well as it involves smaller samples, it allows to gain a deeper understanding of the topics (Wilson, 2006), it will be important to firstly obtain a thorough understanding of the attitudes and behaviors of the target group, to then develop accurate measurements through quantitative research. Qualitative data will be gathered through focus groups. Focus groups are a type of qualitative research that consists of an informal discussion of a particular topic with a small number of selected participants (Dib and Siskin, 2009). The discussion will be guided by a skilled moderator, ensuring that the group discusses all relevant subject areas and the views of the participants are as clear as possible (Isomer Glossary). The data gathered through qualitative research is expected to generate information about regards to social media and digital communications, in particular in reference to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts, company websites and APS. Additionally, the responses obtained from focus groups are expected to provide detailed information about customers perceptions and attitudes directly by being in contact with the people and observing their behaviors and emotions throughout the discussion about Max. MOB will ensure that solely MRS. certified and experienced moderators will run the focus groups. A discussion guide will be made available to each moderator, which will include an introduction to the research, its objectives and the agenda for the focus group. The moderator will give an introduction, after which the dissuasive part of the discussion guide will start. In this phase respondents will be put through the actual task and moderator will be there to run the focus group. In his section all the data will be collect by using voice recorders and cameras. This phase will run for 90 minutes. The last phase will be the summarizing and closing of the discussion group. It will take about 10-15 minutes. At the end, the moderator will administer all the equipment and data for analysis. MOB will arrange for participants to be selected from client databases of store in the main Italian cities (Turin, Milan, Bologna, Florence, Anaconda, Rome, Naples, Barb, Palermo and Calamari). It is estimated that a total of 40 of focus groups will be held in total, for an average of 4 per city elected number of focus groups will be assigned on the basis of volume and frequency of purchases and occupation of the subjects selected in each location. Measures to ensure that engaged and cooperative respondents are recruited for focus groups will be applied. Each participant will be given a ?10 gift card for Max stores. Each focus group will be executed in an ad-hoc location with a one- way mirror behind which the researcher will sit and observe the reactions of the participants to the questions asked. Each group will consist of 10 participants. The plan is to perform all focus groups in one day, from morning to evening. The moderator will ask the question and help frame the discussion among the participants; the moderator will also record the answers. Then the answers will be put on paper and analyses by the MOB experts. Projective techniques According to the Isomer Glossary projective techniques are a form of disguised questioning that encourage participants to attribute their feelings, beliefs or motivations to another person, object or situation. They represent a structured indirect way to investigate feelings, attitudes and motivation of focus groups participants in qualitative research. Projective techniques are based on the principle hat subjects may feel constrained in expressing their feelings, and say what they feel is expected in order to please the interviewer (Bradley, 2010). Responses gather through projective techniques then will need to be interpreted in terms of underlying meaning of the information and behaviors of the subjects. In order to prevent the gathering of non-representative results, focus group moderators will question participants indirectly by initiating the discussion with topics like changes in social environment due to the rising of Internet-based media, aiming to gain insights on heir use of social media. Moderator will then direct the discussion to fashion brands in Italy, what they do and how they interact with them, solely referring to other brand names. Additionally, MOB intends to use Photostat technique, namely present chosen in accordance to the research aims (Cain and Cervix, 2011). The initial images will represent different scenarios and objects not related to Max or social media. At a second stage the images will be social media and other fashion brands logos upon which the participants will continue discussing and exchanging views as well as hey will be asked to define an overall group position/view. MOB also suggests adding to each focus group a conflict participant, a member of the MOB team, to sit with the group and pose as the negative, issue-raising participant. This is intended to also evaluate customers responses and possible defensive attitudes towards the brand. 3. 2. 2 Quantitative Quantitative research is the collection of (statistically) large samples of quantitative data and usually some form of statistical analysis, which is often used to substantiate the findings from qualitative research (Isomer Glossary). Quantitative research will be conducted through structured questionnaires with close and open questions administered online. The use of a web based survey is will ensure speed of response, lower costs for the distribution of questionnaires and higher precision in the analysis of the data. Additionally, it is cost and time effective also for respondents, which will be more likely to take part in the research. Each participant will begin a ?10 gift card for MaxCo. Potential participants will be invited to participate in the survey through the brands online sites (Faceable, Mainstream and Bessie) where they will be given a link to a satellite website to complete thesaurus anonymously. The questionnaire will include multiple choice questions which offer respondents the ability to answer yes or no or choose from a list of several answer choices. Mostly close-end questions, and a few open questions, the survey will also include scales to ask respondents to rank their some of their answers (Dib and Siskin, 2009). The survey will be developed by MOB researchers using Snap package, and sent to Max Mar Group for approval. The aim is to develop a questionnaire that ill take the candidate about 15-20 minutes to complete (for a total of approximately 40 questions, divided in three sections). To ensure the accuracy of this research it is estimated that it will be necessary to gather 500 a total of questionnaires. The questionnaire will be administered online through hyperlinks embedded on Faceable and Mainstream posts of the Maxs official pages, which will be reposted up to 5 times per day for a week; additionally, the study will be on the company website. In case target number of participant is reached before the planned week, the hyperlink to the questionnaire will be deactivated in advance. However, due to the importance to maximize response rate in order to fulfill the objectives of the research, MOB reserves the right to repost the advertisements for the questionnaires for a longer period, until the set number of responses is collected for data analysis. It will also be important to count and control the number of participants recruited per medium: data should be obtained from an equal percentage of users from all three pages, which will be calculated based on average number of users each.

Commonly Asked Questions About Continents

Commonly Asked Questions About Continents Many people wonder which continent houses certain countries or locales. The seven continents  are  Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. Those places that  are not part of a continent can be included as part of a region of the world.  Here are some of the most frequent questions.   Some Commonly  Asked Continent Questions Is Greenland Part of Europe? Greenland is part of North America even though it is a territory of Denmark (which is in Europe). Which Continent Does the  North Pole Belong to? None. The North Pole is in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. Which Continents Does the Prime  Meridian Cross? The prime meridian runs through Europe, Africa, and Antarctica. Does the International Date Line Hit Any Continents? The international date line runs only through Antarctica. How Many Continents Does The Equator Pass Through? The equator passes through South America, Africa,  and Asia. Where is the Deepest Point on Land? The deepest point on land is the Dead Sea, located on the border of Israel and Jordan in Asia. On Which Continent is Egypt? Egypt is mostly part of Africa, although the Sinai Peninsula in northeastern Egypt is part of Asia. Are Islands Such as New Zealand, Hawaii, and the Islands of the Caribbean Part of Continents? New Zealand is an oceanic island far from a continent, and thus, it is not on a continent but is often considered to be part of the Australia and Oceania region. Hawaii is not on a continent, as it is an island chain far from a land mass. The Caribbean islands likewise- they are considered part of the geographic region known as North America or Latin America. Is Central America a Part of North or South America? The border between Panama and Colombia is the border between North America and South America, so Panama and countries to the north are in North America, and Colombia and countries south are in South America. Is Turkey Considered in Europe or Asia? Although most of Turkey lies geographically in Asia (the Anatolian Peninsula is Asian), far western Turkey lies in Europe. Continent Facts Africa Africa covers about 20 percent of the total land mass on planet Earth. Antarctica The ice sheet covering Antarctica amounts to about 90 percent of the Earths total ice. Asia The huge continent of Asia has both the highest points on Earth and the lowest. Australia Australia is home to more species than any developed country, and most of them are endemic, meaning that they arent found anywhere else. Thus, it also has the worst species extinction rate. Europe Britain separated from continental Europe only about 10,000 years ago.   North America North America extends from the Arctic Circle at the north all the way to the equator at the south. South America South Americas Amazon River, the second longest river in the world, is the greatest in volume of water moved. The Amazon Rainforest, sometimes called the lungs of the Earth, produces about 20 percent of the worlds oxygen.

Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue and Church Architecture

Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue and Church Architecture American architect Bertram G. Goodhue (born April 28, 1869 in Pomfret, Connecticut) was an innovator who combined Gothic and Hispanic designs with modern ideas. He revolutionized church (ecclesiastical) architecture by reawakening Medieval traditions, with a focus on modern detailing within traditional designs. His fanciful Spanish Churrigueresque buildings for the Panama-California Exposition brought new energy to Spanish Colonial Revival architecture in the United States. Later in his career, Goodhue moved beyond Gothic ornamentation to explore classical forms, designing landmark buildings such as the Nebraska State Capitol. Goodhue could not afford to attend college, although he was a known sketch artist throughout the New Haven military academy he attended. Instead of college, at age fifteen he went to work in the New York office of Renwick, Aspinwall and Russell. For six years he studied under James Renwick, Jr., architect of many public buildings and churches, including Smithsonian Institute Castle in Washington, DC and Grace Church and St. Patricks Cathedral in New York City. In 1891, he joined Ralph Adams Cram and Charles Wentworth in a Boston partnership that later became Cram, Goodhue Ferguson. The firm opened a branch in New York City, which by 1913 Goodhue had made his own. Although Goodhues early works were noted for their high Gothic style, he later adopted a Romanesque style. By the end of his career, his work tended toward simple, classical lines. The Los Angeles Central Library, completed after his death, has elements of Art Deco design. Today Goodhue is considered an American modernist. Youve probably seen his work, without knowing it. Goodhue is said to have invented two font styles: Merrymount, designed for the Merrymount Press of Boston; and Cheltenham, designed for the Cheltenham Press in New York City; Cheltenham was adopted by The New York Times for their headline typeface and by the L.L. Bean company for their distinctive logo. Goodhue died in New York City on April 23, 1924. Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue Architectural Drawings and Papers, 1882-1980 are archived at Columbia University in New York. Selected Projects Attributed to Goodhue: Bertram G. Goodhue was a known collaborator in architectural projects. The 1910 Cadet Chapel at West Point in New York is attributed to Cram, Goodhue, and Ferguson, although Goodhue was the lead architect. Projects from his own New York City office took advantage of a growing United States market of public and ecclesiastic architecture from coast to coast. His most notable works include the First Baptist Church (1912) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; the Church of the Intercession (1915) and St. Bartholomews Church (St. Barts, 1918) both in New York City. California works include the 1915 Panama-California Exposition Buildings in San Diego, the 1926 Los Angeles Central Public Library (LAPL), and the 1924Â  Master Plan for the California Institute of Technology. In between New York and California look for the 1922 Nebraska State Capitol building in Lincoln, Nebraska and the 1924 National Academy of Sciences Building in Washington, DC. In the Words of Goodhue: ...the trouble in our houses today is that we want everything to seem rich and extravagant- we want money, and then we want to show it in our surroundings. - from The New York Times, A Renowned Architects Home of His Own by Christopher Gray, January 22, 2006 [accessed April 8, 2014] Learn More: Bertram Goodhue: His Life And Residential Architecture by Romy Wyllie (2007)Buy on AmazonBertram Grosvenor Goodhue by Richard Oliver, MIT Press, 1983Buy on AmazonAlice in Wonderland - A Play With Illustrations by Bertram GoodhueBuy on AmazonA book of architectural and decorative drawings by Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue, 1924Buy on Amazon Source: The Alexander S. Lawson Archive, Ithaca Typothetae at www.lawsonarchive.com/april-23/ [accessed April 26, 2012]

To what extent was Llywelyn ap Gruffydds political misjudgement Essay

To what extent was Llywelyn ap Gruffydds political misjudgement responsible for the downfall of the Welsh Principality in 1277 - Essay Example Llywelyn entered the governance of Wales in 1258 and he started soon to expand his power over the country through the achievement of a series of victories in the battles developed across England – British have been since the appearance of this country – Wales – extremely hostile towards the people that are originated in the specific region. In order to understand the responsibility of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd for the downfall of Wales in 1277 it is necessary to present primarily a series of details regarding the presence of Llywelyn in the throne of Wales and his main strategic decisions in order to protect the country from potential conquerors. Llywelyn ap Gruffydd has been characterized as a powerful monarch who has based his power on his military successes across the country. Despite his achievements in the field of battles had been considerable, his ability to govern the country can be doubted. The research on the particular issue proved that Llywelyn has been a competent leader but with limited diplomacy skills; this fact has probable caused to the increase of hostility against him by the majority of politicians in Wales at that particular period of time (the term ‘politician’ in this case should be related with the political and social power of certain people, i.e. of their ability to influence the polit ical decisions in the country). Llywelyn ap Gruffudd – who is also known as Llewely the Last or as ‘Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf’ was ‘one of the four sons of Gruffydd, the illegitimate son of Llywelyn the Great’ (Wales Online, 2004, online article). He was born in 1228 and he died in 1282 and has been the last prince of Wales. In 1258 Llywelyn ap Gruffudd became the prince of Wales; his high ambitions regarding the conquest of territories and the expansion of his power soon led to the increase of hostility between Llywelyn and the rest Welsh princes. Llywelyn should have tried to

Portfolio management Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Portfolio management - Term Paper Example Generally, it is believed that the beginning of portfolio construction started in 1952 after the Portfolio Selection hypothesis of Harry Markowitz was published. This is the theory that introduced Modern Portfolio Theory to the world and offered a framework intended to maximize returns at a certain volatility level, described as the standard deviation of returns. Currently, an amalgamation of various theories forms the foundation for the process of investment consulting. It is this process of investment consulting that formalizes investing and develops a blue print for constructing one’s portfolio. Thus, the investor’s Financial Advisor must develop a blueprint for the investor on the basis of his/her needs and objectives, investment parameters as well as long-term asset allocation approach (McMillan & Pinto, 2011). After the strategic asset allocation has been developed, then, portfolio construction can start. As an aspect of the process of portfolio construction, investment options should be assessed not in seclusion but as complements to one another and as important elements of a bigger whole. When constructed suitably, the entire portfolio must minimize single-manager risk while at the same time looking to make the most of portfolio-wide returns, which is facilitated by combining managers that display low historical correlation in addition to exhibiting different behaviors in various market environments. There are four vital steps in portfolio construction which include determination of objectives and goals, asset allocation, searching and selection of a manager and performance monitoring. The first step is determination of investment parameters and involves cash flow requirements, risk tolerance of the investor, performance objectives, investment restrictions and time horizon. The second s tep is definition of investment strategy and consists of formulation of policy statement, risk optimization/reward

What Literacy Means to Me Essay Example for Free

What Literacy Means to Me Essay What literacy means for me and the impact that it has had on my life. Literacy refers to the ability to read for knowledge, write coherently, and think critically about the written word. The primary sense of literacy still represents the lifelong, intellectual process of gaining meaning from a critical interpretation of the written or printed text. Key to all literacy is reading development, a progression of skills that begins with the ability to understand spoken words and decode written words, and culminates in the deep understanding of text. Literacy is taught through parents by making reading to your child a regular part of your daily schedule, just as my mother did when I was younger. She would read both early readers and chapter books to me. When reading, she would point to the words as she said them and read slowly. This allowed me to read along with her. Once she noticed that I understood certain words, such as the word the, my mother would let me say that word a few times when it appears in the story. This method taught me to be quite an advanced reader by the age of 5 and was heading into kindergarten. The definition of literacy is a difficult one to answer. When the word literacy comes to mind I think of it first in basic terms of just being able to read, but I know it contains more elements of being just able to read. In my mind literacy as a whole defines the relationship that people have with literature. Just like the way my mother taught me the love of reading, which has continued to grow as Ive aged and encouraged me to develop a love for chapter books and the stories depicted in them. I find myself becoming engrossed in these stories and sometimes even comparing them to my own life experiences. Literacy as a whole means the relationship with different types of literature and how well people can comprehend them. There is the basic standard of literacy which would be reading. Then the next step would be how well the reader could comprehend what is being read. Understanding the words written and know most of their meaning. After that it would be how well the reader could analyze the text. The next step from there would be if the writer could then analyze the text well enough to point out anomalies, binaries, patterns, strands, and any repetition that the literature being read may have. After the interpretation of reading and understanding the literature one should be able to write about it. When writing on the literature the reader should be able to communicate clear decisive thoughts about the text that isn’t already spelled out in the literature. With a sharp focused analytical claim. This shows that the reader understood the literature and is capable of translating it to others without retelling the literature that has already been read. For me literacy is very important and has a really strong impact in my life. When I was a kid I remember my mother always telling me â€Å"the more you know the better it is†. I never really understood what she meant nor did I pay that much attention. Society has proven time and time again, it will reward those individuals who are competent and impede those who are not, whether expressed in terms of employment opportunities or just on a social level. One needs look no further than their everyday activities in order to realize how important literacy is. Without adequate literary skills one may not be able to identify on a label the correct amount of medicine to give a child, or read and interpret a sign giving instructions on what to do in case of a fire. These two examples bring perspective to literacys importance. I discovered that I mainly use text or literacy to communicate with others for maintaining family connections or for work related information. I use text or literacy for entertainment as well, but I spend far less time using it for work than I do for entertainment. Overall, I think literacy is a very fluid concept—it is ever changing and evolving as we change and as our way of life changes. A generation or two ago, it was merely important to be able to read and write. Now, one must be able to read and write and use technology to be successful in the world. And for this necessary ability, I have my mother to thank for all her hard work teaching me these skills as a young child.

DBQ 1820s 1830s Essay -- essays research papers

For quite some time Americans have been led to believe that during the 1820s and 30s, Jacksonian Democrats were the guardians of the people, and worked to improve the nation for the people. The truth remains, however, that during this period, President Jackson vetoed a bill to recharter the Bank of the United States of America, infringed on the rights of Native Americans, used â€Å"brute† force to bring Southerners under submission during the Tariff of 1832. He enacted the Spoils System which did not guarantee the best leadership, and was morally corrupt. Although the nation’s economy and political democracy flourished during the reign of President Jackson, constitutional rights, equal opportunity and individual liberties were discouraged. In her 1834 visit to America, british author Harriet Martineau wrote of the nation’s economy being strong and properous. The absence of poverty and ignorance and independence of every man are some of the observations she recorded (D). The national economy did in fact boom during the 1820s and early 30s. With Samuel Slater’s introduction of the â€Å"Factory System† to America, and Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gin, the United States’ speed in manufacturing textiles increased rapidly. In 1837, however, America experienced a tremendous financial depression. Bad land speculation, and the fall of the Federal Bank (due to Jackson’s failure to recharter the Bank in 1832) were the two main factors that caused the financial crisis. ...

Five forces for Zappos Essay

The threat of new entrants into the online shoe/apparel market is relatively small due to the fact that Zappos is such an established brand and has specialized their business model. It would be far too expensive for a new company to copy the characteristics of Zappos including their next day delivery and large overhead. The fact that Zappos was losing money initially illustrates this difficulty. Another issue that would create a high barrier to entry is Zappos commitment to the consumer through overnight shipping. Zappos stated that the overnight shipping caused them to leave their warehouses open for the entire day. Any other company would be at a competitive disadvantage if they didn’t match this business practice. In all the way Zappos does business creates too high a barrier to entry for threats of new entry to be high; for that reason we would rate it 2 OF 5. _Substitutes_ We would rate substitutes at 3 OF 5, being that the threat is somewhat average. With the uniqueness of Zappos, not many stores can match such a shopping experience service as Zappos. The reason we ranked the threat of substitutes at 3 of 5 is because there are Brick and Mortar Stores that may be used as substitutes of Zappos. These specialty stores are not up to Zappos standards, but at the same time their specialization with certain products make them a threat to Zappos. The whole person-to-person contact can have a big advantage in terms of customer service. Zappos answers by extraordinary customer service, which really makes the average consumer feel as if they are special and are in contact with a real person. _Rivalry_ The rivalry with existing firms for Zappos is fair, we gave it a rating of 3.5 OF 5. A main competitor for online retail is Amazon; however Amazon recently bought out Zappos. Since their largest competitor is now a sister company, the main competition Zappos faces are highly specialized online retailers – such as Karmaloop and EastBay. These competitors pose a threat to some of Zappos’ sections such as athletic shoes, sporting goods, accessories, and apparel. Both of these sites offer free shipping as well, so that takes away one of Zappos’ main competitive advantages. Zappos still has the premier customer service. Currently their biggest rival is eBay, eBay offers everything that Zappos does, and sometimes at a lower price. However since eBay is an auction site, it cannot guarantee a set price or free shipping like Zappos can. Customer service is where Zappos sets itself apart from its competition, offering a 365 day return policy and 24/7 call center hours based in the US. _Suppliers_ We rated the bargaining power of suppliers at a 5 OF 5 because Zappos has a lot of leverage. A reason behind this is Zappos couldn’t function effectively without a cooperative supplier since they are a distribution company. If the supplier decided that they wanted more money per shipment then Zappos most likely comply. Taking the resources to find new supplies can be very costly. Also, they may not be able to find a supplier that can offer them the same variety of brands and styles that the current supplier does. Another way the supplier has bargaining power is that there are other companies like Amazon or Overstock.com that they could choose to do business with if Zappos isn’t satisfying their needs. The supplier is possibly the most crucial link in the value chain for Zappos and for this reason they have a lot of bargaining power with Zappos. _Customers_ There are two aspects we can look at the bargaining power of customers. (1) Zappos is customer service based and the customers know that. If the  customers lose their power, Zappos may lose customers. (2) Customer’s do not have many direct substitutes. Shoes are a necessity and here are few options like Zappos for buying shoes online. In essence they lose a bit of their power by this fact. Chances are if the customer does not like brick and mortar stores (physical shopping) they will still need to purchase from Zappos but it opens up gap then of which a new entrant may try to take advantage. Keeping both those aspects in mind, the bargaining power of customers can be considered intermediate; thus a rating of 3 OF 5. CONCLUSION Zappos has created a very structural attractive company. There is a lot of room for growth with the recent purchase by Amazon. ‘ZAPPOS FIVE FORCES AND SWOT ANALYSIS’ First prepare a Five Force Analysis of how Zappos operates using Michael Porter’s framework. Provide a short, direct and to the point analysis of each of the five forces as well as a CONCLUSION about the overall structural attractiveness of the industry in which your company operates. Substantiate your analysis with DATA. Secondly, present an overall SWOT analysis of Zappos, discuss the implications of the analysis for future strategic options the company might address. You may use a narrative style or diagram for each of the industry  forces and your SWOT analysis. In all cases you must PROVIDE A SCALE of how you rate each force in terms of its effect on the industry’s competitiveness now and in the future, e.g. High/Medium/Low and Increasing/Decreasing/ Staying the Same. The objective of this case is for you to understand how the choices a company makes about its resources and capabilities will affect its strategic viability.

Global Crimes Analysis Essay

Global Crimes Analysis will allow individuals to understand everything that involves crime around the world as it relates to the least of the most dangerous crime committed. The United States crime rate is a known fact learned through news media, newspapers, and online news information. With the United States’ prison population it is evident that an overwhelming amount of crime committed as well as what the global crime rate is over the world. Unfortunately, crime occurs everywhere in the world where ever people are, which does affect the justice system internationally. In this paper, the identification of various major global crimes and criminal issues that have a global impact on national and international justice systems and processes will evolve as the report proceeds. A comparison and contrast of various international criminal justice systems and how these major global crimes and criminal issues addressed will emerge. Identification of Various Major Global Crimes Various major global crimes are spreading across the country, which is a phenomenon of an increasing globalization of criminal acts. Consider the following crimes: †¢ Ecstasy, the drug manufactured mainly in the Netherlands trafficked to the United States among other countries, Israeli sophisticated crime groups. †¢ Viruses created just for computers sent from the Philippines caused computers to crash with numerous United States government entities for a week long. †¢ A prominent United States’ bank found Russian organized crime groups were laundering money. †¢ In Columbia, crime groups informed through computer bank ledgers in drivers pulled aside from roadblocks in choosing wealthy abducted survivors. Examples such as these illustrate the latest version of criminal acts. The degree of unlawful acts of crime increased tremendously in the wake of globalization, and the people part of it had no regard for the act of loyalty to the nation, border, or authority. International crimes such as terrorist acts, trafficking people, and bringing in contraband, these crimes consist of extreme barbarity and bodily injury (Dobriansky, 2001). Identify Criminal Issues that have a Global Impact on national and international Justice Systems and Processes.   Criminal issues that have a global impact on national and international justice systems and processes are major problems for the United States. Internationally, crimes pose serious danger with a few basic connected fronts. First, it impacted surrounded communities; there were a significant number of people entering the U.S. against the law yearly. Crimes groups were secretly bringing in drugs, artillery, stolen vehicles, the pornography of children, and various types of contraband occurrences on a broad scale seized at U.S. borders. Second, with American businesses expanding around the world, there were openings of new jobs for immigrant-based offenders. Whenever Americans enterprises overseas are victims, the repercussions may consist of losing profit, production as well as work for American citizens at home. Third, international offenders take part in various acts, which could present serious risks for the nations’ security along with the strength and benefits for the world. For instance, serious harm consist of an acquisition of armory of mass destruction, exchange in prohibited or harmful materials, and illegal buying, and selling of women and children. Corrupt law enforcement and massive flow of unauthorized, illegal-production of proceeds are dangerous risks to the stability of democratic institutions and free market economies around the world. Compare and Contrast of Various International Criminal Justice Systems and how these Major Global Crimes and Criminal Issues In comparing and contrasting various international criminal justice systems and how these major global crimes and criminal issues are not much alike. The first step is identifying their differences of crime. The crime level recorded, along with a few outlooks on trends and comparison in regard to a couple of forms of crime, murder, and burglary. Comparing crime statistics from different jurisdictions is a hazardous undertaking. Initially, the classes of criminal acts of events recorded rely on what crime is lawful in certain countries. If the meaning of the offense differs countrywide, which is mostly the case; comparison would not but will have equal kinds of criminal acts. In a situation of law enforcement, some offenses made, the discretion is in use or the relevance to authority figures is identifiable. For instance, the interpretation differences betwixt extreme or regular assault in different legal areas of jurisdiction might have an alternate meaning which will reflect the number of incidents reported (Shaw, Dijk & Rhomberg, 2003). In international comparison of crime there are pertinent roles played in the perception of understanding how people with the criminal justice systems’ function. The criminal justice can aid in the improvement of them. Every jurisdiction has one criminal justice system that indicates the comparison of evidence concerning its performance but can distinguish it basically by observing methods in different countries. Likewise, whereas policy initiatives proposal for the justice system are at times ‘home-grown’, in addition, it is normal for policies overseas to influence them (Ministry of Justice Comparing International Criminal Justice Systems, 2012). Conclusion In conclusion, global crime analysis describes the danger of advanced crime nationally. Various major global crimes are spreading across the country, which is a phenomenon of an increasing globalization of criminal acts. Criminal issues that have a global impact on national and international justice systems and processes are major problems for the United States. Global dynamics as it relates to crime offenses across the world is in a stage of advanced criminal activity the country faces no matter where people go. Its impact nationally and internationally poses major threats to the United States is challenging to the justice system in which American live. Global crime comparison and contrast are much different, but often transcends its way into the country through borders. In comparing and contrasting various international criminal justice systems and how these major global crimes and criminal issues differ and the similarities of both. As the criminal justice system come close to resolving one situation of crime another arises, which makes law enforcements’ jobs heavily difficult in controlling its reminisce left behind. References Dobriansky, P. (2001, August). The Explosive Growth of Globalized Crime. U.S. Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs, 6(2), 1-41. Retrieved from http://guangzhou.usembassy-china.org.cn/uploads/images/sqVFYsuZI0LECJTHra1S_A/ijge0801.pdf Ministry of Justice Comparing International Criminal Justice Systems. (2012, February). National Title Audit, (), 1-51. Retrieved from http://www.rethinking.org.nz/assets/Newsletter_PDF/Issue_101/NAO_Briefing_Comparing_International_Criminal_Justice.pdf Stephens, M. (1996, January 6). GLOBAL ORGANIZED CRIME AS A THREAT TO NATIONAL SECURITY. GLOBAL ORGANIZED CRIME. Retrieved from http://www.fas.org/irp/eprint/snyder/globalcrime.htm Shaw, M., Dijk, J., & Rhomberg, W. (2003, December). DETERMINING TRENDS IN GLOBAL CRIME AND JUSTICE: AN OVERVIEW OF RESULTS FROM THE UNITED NATIONS SURVEYS OF CRIME TRENDS AND OPERATIONS OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEMS. Crime and Society, 3(1 and 2), 1-62. Retrieved from http://www.unodc.org/pdf/crime/forum/forum3_Art2.pdf

The Headless Horseman

The Headless Horseman Headless Horseman Short stories and movies that essentially share the same plot generally have a lot of similarities and differences. In Washington Irving's work, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", the Headless Horseman is not portrayed as a violent character, but more of a spirit that is unable to rest in peace. However, this is complete contrast to the character of the same name in the film Sleepy Hollow, directed by Tim Burton. Burton transforms the character into a supernatural serial killer who has come back from the dead at the calling of a bitter lady who has given her soul for his services. Regardless of this difference, as well as others, the two characters share a few of the same traits. Of all the similarities and differences, Burton's character minimally maintains the identity of the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow that Washington Irving develops in his short story.Both characters are decapitated Hessian soldiers who have been unable to rest in peace for different reasons. Washington Irving's grave in Sleepy Hollow, New Yo...Irving's Horseman haunts Sleepy Hollow in search of his "head that had been carried away by a cannon-ball in some nameless battle of the Revolutionary War." (Irving 2). Burton's Horseman rides as an assassin whose lost head helps lead him to his next victim with help from the Van Tessal stepmother. This difference in motive creates a difference in the way the reader feels towards the two Horsemen. With Irving's character there is a feeling of sympathy that is aroused because the spirit cannot find peace, while Burton's character does not show this emotion. Ironically, Irving's character never recovers his head, but Burton's character does.The Headless Horseman is first introduced to both the reader and the viewer through the people of Sleepy Hollow. Burton's Horseman turns out to be a character that is...

Biography of Corrie ten Boom, Hero of the Holocaust

Biography of Corrie ten Boom, Hero of the Holocaust Cornelia Arnolda Johanna Corrie ten Boom (April 15, 1892 – April 15, 1983) was a  Holocaust survivor who started a rehabilitation center for concentration camp survivors as well as a global ministry to preach the power of forgiveness. Fast Facts: Corrie ten Boom Known For: Holocaust survivor who became a renowned Christian leader, known for her teachings on forgivenessOccupation: Watchmaker and writer  Born: April 15, 1892 in Haarlem, the NetherlandsDied: April 15, 1983 in Santa Ana, CaliforniaPublished Works: The Hiding Place,  In My Fathers Place,  Tramp for the LordNotable Quote:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.† Early Life Corrie ten Boom was born in Haarlem, in the Netherlands, on April 15, 1892. She was the youngest of four children; she had a brother, Willem, and two sisters, Nollie and Betsie.  A brother Hendrik Jan died in infancy. Corrie’s grandfather, Willem ten Boom, opened a watchmaker’s shop in Haarlem in 1837. In 1844, he began a weekly prayer service to pray for the Jewish people, who even then experienced discrimination in Europe. When Willem’s son Casper inherited the business, Casper continued that tradition. Corrie’s mother, Cornelia, died in 1921. The family lived on the second floor, above the shop. Corrie ten Boom apprenticed as a watchmaker and in 1922 was named the first woman  to be licensed as a watchmaker in Holland. Over the years, the ten Booms took care of many refugee children and orphans. Corrie taught Bible classes and Sunday school and was active in organizing Christian clubs for Dutch children. Creating a Hideout During the German blitzkrieg across Europe in May 1940,  tanks and soldiers invaded the Netherlands. Corrie, who was 48 at the time, was determined to help her people, so she turned their home into a safe haven for people trying to escape the Nazis. Dutch resistance members carried grandfather clocks into the watch shop. Hidden inside the long clock cases were bricks and mortar, which they used to build a false wall and hidden room in Corrie’s bedroom. Although it was only about two feet deep by eight feet long, this hiding place could hold six or seven people: Jews or members of the Dutch underground. The ten Booms installed a warning buzzer to signal their guests to hide, whenever the Gestapo (secret police) were searching the neighborhood. The hideout worked well for nearly four years because people were constantly coming and going through the busy watch repair shop. But on February 28, 1944, an informant betrayed the operation to the Gestapo. Thirty people, including several of the ten Boom family, were arrested. However, the Nazis failed to find the six people hiding in the secret room. They were rescued two days later by the Dutch resistance movement. Prison Meant Death Corrie’s father Casper, then aged 84, was taken to Scheveningen Prison. He died ten days later. Corrie’s brother Willem, a Dutch Reformed minister, was released thanks to a sympathetic judge. Sister Nollie was also released. Over the next ten months, Corrie and her sister Betsie were shuttled from Scheveningen to Vugt concentration camp in the Netherlands, finally ending in Ravensbruck concentration camp near Berlin, the largest camp for women in German-controlled territories. The prisoners were used for forced labor in farm projects and armament factories. Thousands of women were executed there. Living conditions were brutal, with meager rations and harsh discipline. Even so, Betsie and Corrie conducted secret prayer services in their barracks, using a smuggled Dutch Bible. The women voiced prayers and hymns in whispers to avoid the attention of the guards.   On December 16, 1944, Betsie died at Ravensbruck of starvation and lack of medical care. Corrie later recounted the following lines as Betsies last words: †¦ (we) must tell them what we have learned here. We must tell them that there is no pit so deep that He is not deeper still. They will listen to us, Corrie, because we have been here.† Two weeks after Betsies death, ten Boom was released from the camp due to claims of a clerical error. Ten Boom  often called this occurrence a miracle. Shortly after ten Booms release, all of the other women in her age group at Ravensbruck were executed.   Post-War Ministry Corrie traveled back to Groningen in the Netherlands, where she recuperated in a convalescent home. A truck took her to her brother Willem’s home in Hilversum, and he arranged for her to go to the family home in Haarlem. In May 1945, she rented a house in Bloemendaal, which she converted into a home for  concentration camp survivors, fellow wartime resistance collaborators, and the disabled. She also set up a nonprofit organization in the Netherlands to support the home and her ministry.   In 1946, ten Boom boarded a freighter for the United States. Once there, she began speaking at Bible classes, churches, and Christian conferences. Throughout 1947, she spoke extensively in Europe and became affiliated with Youth for Christ. It was at a YFC world congress in 1948 that she met Billy Graham and Cliff Barrows. Graham would later play a major role in making her known to the world. From the 1950s through the 1970s, Corrie ten Boom traveled to 64 countries, speaking and preaching about Jesus Christ.  Her 1971 book, The Hiding Place, became a best-seller. In 1975, World Wide Pictures, the film branch of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, released a movie version, with  Jeannette Clift George in the role of Corrie. Later Life Queen Julianna of the Netherlands made ten Boom a knight in 1962. In 1968, she was asked to plant a tree at the Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations, at the Holocaust Memorial in Israel. Gordon College in the United States awarded her an honorary doctorate in Humane Letters in 1976. As her health deteriorated, Corrie settled in Placentia, California in 1977. She received resident alien status  but curtailed her travel after pacemaker surgery. The next year she suffered the first of several strokes, which reduced her ability to talk and get around by herself. Corrie ten Boom died on her 91st birthday, April 15, 1983. She  was buried at Fairhaven Memorial Park in Santa Ana, California. Legacy From the time she was released from  Ravensbruck until illness ended her ministry, Corrie ten Boom reached millions of people throughout the world with the message of the gospel. The Hiding Place remains a popular and impactful book, and ten Booms teachings on  forgiveness continue to resonate. Her family home in the Netherlands is now a museum dedicated to remembering the Holocaust.   Sources Corrie Ten Boom House. The Museum.  https://www.corrietenboom.com/en/information/the-museumMoore, Pam Rosewell.  Life Lessons from the Hiding Place: Discovering the Heart of Corrie Ten Boom. Chosen, 2004.United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. â€Å"Ravensbruck.† Holocaust Encyclopedia. www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId10005143.Wheaton College. Biography of Cornelia Arnolda Johanna ten Boom. The Billy Graham Center Archives.  http://www2.wheaton.edu/bgc/archives/GUIDES/078.htm#3

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Anti Jerk Control Of Hybrid Electric Vehicle Engineering Essay

Anti Jerk Control Of Hybrid Electric Vehicle Engineering Essay The report details the review done in the area of anti-jerk control of vehicles. It explains the phenomenon of driveline oscillations excited due to torsion of driveline at high engine torques causing unwanted longitudinal oscillations in vehicle body. Report starts with a broad introduction to the topic and lays down the aims and objectives of the research project. The aims and objectives of the project are to design an active feedback control for an electric motor of a hybrid electric vehicle to damp these undesirable oscillations. A summary review of previous research work done in this area is presented which defines the starting point of the project. Different techniques used for anti-jerk control in conventional vehicle are discussed. Basic approach to model based control design is presented in the report. An introduction to hybrid electric vehicle driveline and description of its components different from conventional vehicle is shown. The report also lays down the procedure of the work to be followed for the research project with a project plan. INTRODUCTION The increasing pressure of protecting the natural environment and to decrease the dependence on non-renewable sources of energy has encouraged vehicle manufacturers to develop more clean and efficient power systems. As a result Hybrid vehicles are hot topic for research among vehicle manufacturers. Efforts are being made to make the vehicles more fuel efficient with high performance and minimum CO2 emissions. Diesel hybrids are considered as next big thing among ecological designs since diesel engines are 20 % 30% more fuel efficient than their petrol counterparts. Nowadays noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) issues have become more important for a customer such that there are very stringent requirements for noise or vibration in a vehicle. Driveability of a vehicle is majorly impacted by NVH problems and is strongly felt as vehicles performance during various manoeuvres such as acceleration, braking, gear change etc. Thus vehicle manufacturers and OEMs have realized the importance of NVH issues and target to identify the root cause of vibration and incorporate the correcting measures at early stages of manufacturing with a main goal to refine the ride and driveability of a vehicle. These days efforts are being made to increase the performance of vehicles and to make them more fuel efficient by using different techniques and one of the techniques is electrification of various systems in a vehicle. Electronic power assist steering system, electric active roll control, electronic differential, brake by wire are some of the examples of electrification of vehicle systems. This kind of methodology becomes more evident in case of hybrid electric vehicles where electric power components including power electronics are integral part of the powertrain. It has been observed that using these electrification techniques not only helps in increasing the performance of the vehicle but also makes them more fuel efficient. Thus the electrification in a diesel hybrid powertrain to improve the driveability of vehicle forms the main platform for this research project. Problem Statement One of the major NVH issues in automobiles is torsional vibrations of driveline. The torsion of drivetrain at high engine torques causes oscillations in driveline. These oscillations are generally excited by various sources such as rapid or sudden load/torque change, gear change and unevenness of road surface. These oscillations cause longitudinal acceleration in vehicle structure and passenger compartment of the vehicle, which reduces the comfort and driveability of the vehicle and are experienced as unwanted jerking by the driver and passengers. These type of driveline oscillations are termed as Jerking, which is the main focus of this research. The high engine torques at low engine speeds makes this phenomenon more common in modern diesel engines. A sudden/abrupt pressing or releasing of accelerator pedal by the driver causing a rapid increase or decrease in engine torque called as tip-in and tip-out respectively, which gives rise to oscillations between frequency range of 2 10 HZ. To reduce these oscillations and to increase the comfort and improve the driveability of vehicle some kind of anti-jerk control is required. In conventional diesel engine vehicles, active control of engine fuelling and drivers torque demands and passive utilization of mechanical isolators such as dual mass flywheel (DMF) are used to permit feed forward active and passive damping of these oscillations. Aims and Objectives The aims of the research project are to investigate the phenomenon of jerking in a diesel hybrid electric vehicle and to electrify the anti-jerk control using the electric motor of hybrid vehicle to damp these oscillations. The aims of the project would be realized through following objectives: A feed forward approach in modeling the vehicle driveline to investigate driveline jerking using SIMULATION-X. The response of vehicle during tip-in, tip-out, idle and coast conditions would be studied. To design an active feedback control for electric motor of the hybrid vehicle to permit active damping of the investigated driveline oscillations. To analyse its effects on fuel consumption, comfort and sportiness of the vehicle and comparison with conventional anti-jerk control methods. To study the impact of passive damping of these oscillations using DMF in the driveline. Due to the diverse nature of the project the work has been divided between two students. It was decided that modelling of the driveline will be done by Pavan Mukkamala and Kamal Shamnani will take care of control design part of the project. Report Overview As it can be seen before, the report begins with the introduction to the current scenario of hybrid vehicles, driveability and electrification of vehicle systems. Then problem statement was defined followed by aims and objectives. The next chapter would summarize the undertaken review to understand the research work beginning with analyses of jerking. The literature review also serves as the basis to provide the expected response characteristics. It also explains the different control methods used on a conventional diesel engine vehicle. Chapter 3 lays down the outline of the procedure to be followed for the research project along with project plan. Conclusions based the literature review have been made in chapter 4. LITERATURE REVIEW Driveline Oscillations Different type of powertrain configurations (front wheel drive or rear wheel drive), engine type and dynamic response, engine torque at different engine speeds and vehicle mass excites different kind of oscillations in vehicle driveline. These oscillations have been summarized below [1]: Torsion of shaft causes jerking and pitching type oscillations in the driveline. Jerking then causes longitudinal acceleration of car body in a frequency range of 2 5 Hz. The pitch motion frequency is about 1 2.5 Hz. Engine movement and engine mount characteristic excites oscillations in a frequency range of 15 200 Hz. Gear box housing cause oscillations in the frequency range between 50 and 80 Hz. Combustion process, movement of pistons inside the cylinder and engine speed causes oscillations depending upon type of engine, number of cylinders and engine speed. Inline-four cylinder engine types engine exhibit large cyclic fluctuations of torque at idle speed. Driveline Jerking in a Diesel Engine Vehicle The fast response and high torque of modern direct injection diesel engines results in sharp and large changes in driveline torque. Moreover smaller and more powerful modern diesel engines with reduced flywheel inertias and reduced mass of powertrain components reduce the initial response to transient throttle demands by the driver. But on the other hand faster response and large changes in driveline torque make them more susceptible towards generation of driveline oscillations. These types of oscillations are commonly referred as driveline jerking, surging, driveline shuffle, driveline judder, jerk oscillations or bonanza effect. [2], [3] and [4]. These oscillations are generally excited due to the torsional vibrations of driveline when accompanied with sudden torque change. The sudden driveline torque change can be described as tip-in and tip-out manoeuvres. The tip-in and tip-out behaviour are described in figure-1 as a step input and after few seconds a step back to zero [2]. The tip-in and tip-out behaviour causes oscillations to engine speed. The difference between engine speed and wheel speed is generally used to describe the torsional oscillations of driveline shown as torsional speed in figure-2-1. These oscillations are transmitted to the vehicle body from wheel and tire and cause oscillations in vehicle longitudinal acceleration. The oscillations in longitudinal acceleration of vehicle body are shown in figure-2-2. The acceleration of vehicle body oscillates between the frequency range of 2 and 5 Hz. The observed frequency of oscillation is dominated by drivelines first natural frequency. This frequency lies between the resonance frequencies of various sensitive human body parts such as shoulders (4 6 Hz), stomach (4- 8 Hz) and trunk (3 6 Hz) [5]. So, these different body parts may resonate due to this jerking and hence very unpleasant for drivers and passengers. Figure 2: Effect of Tip-in and Tip-out on Engine and wheel speed [2] Figure 2: Body acceleration during Tip-in and Tip-out [2]. The phenomenon of jerking is more common where the manual clutch is not present, as a human driver uses manual clutch to reduce these vibrations. Whereas in automatic clutch units the design philosophy is to reduce the clutch engagement and disengagement time to prevail smooth torque transfer which gives rise to driveline oscillations. These oscillations differ at different gear ratios. It has been shown that oscillation frequency increases shifting from first gear to higher gears due to change in damping co-efficient associated with each gear and reflected engine inertia [6]. Generally driveline shuffle is also associated with phenomenon of clonk or gear rattle. Clonk is basically a noise which is a by-product of backlash present in gears. Backlash is allowed to incorporate operating clearances and manufacturing tolerances. The clonk can be reduced by increasing the driveline compliance but side effect of increasing compliance is the increased driveline oscillations hence jerking. Anti-Jerk Control of Conventional Vehicles The main parameters which govern the severity of jerking response of vehicle can be termed as engine torque rise rate and driveline compliance. Anti-jerk control acts as the balance between comfort and sportiness of the vehicle. The reduction in driveline oscillations is possible by controlling the engine torque rise rate, which can be done by smoothening of drivers torque demands. In a conventional diesel engine vehicle it is done by electronic fuelling control and in a petrol engine vehicle it is done by using spark advance and electronic throttle control. Various manufacturers use the filtering of drivers torque request but this becomes of no use when oscillations are excited by ground roughness. In practice, anti-jerk controller parameters are experimentally optimized to combine comfort and sportiness of the vehicle [2]. The parameters are tuned and accessed, to include non-linearities present in the system, by using various test-runs to find optimal controller parameters. All these parameters are stored in form of different maps and relationship between different engine parameters which are then used to obtain a feed-forward controller for the vehicle. The reductions in driveline oscillations in conventional drivetrain are possible by various active and passive methods. These include: Optimizing driveline parameters such as compliance of clutch, driveshaft and transmission, gear ratios and inertia of driveline components. Passive reduction of oscillations by adding damping to the system. Active control of engine torque. Model Based Anti-Jerk Control In past these parameters were obtained by using trial and error methods which may not be fully optimized and this strategy takes a lot of time depending upon the knowledge of automotive engineer [2]. These days as explained above that optimal anti-jerk control parameters are obtained experimentally by systematic and standardized computer aided test runs. This procedure still relies on time-consuming test runs. Whereas use of simulation can help in analytical assessment of a large number of performance, driveability and comfort parameters with reduced costs and less risk of testing. Simulation can determine highly optimized and accurate system parameters out of which only few parameters are required to be checked by real tests which save a lot of testing time. Due to this a lot of emphasis is given on use of simulation to obtain the optimal controller parameters and also if possible integration of model based controller in the vehicle is also being considered. A review of model based controller design approach is shown below. Modelling techniques Driveline of a conventional diesel engine vehicle is made up of an internal combustion engine which is connected to a gearbox through clutch whose output is connected to driveshafts which transmits torque to the wheels. In model based controller design gray-box approach is used to model the drivetrain. According to which driveline can be modelled as lumped parameter model which is made up of rotating bodies with lumped inertias, compliances, damping losses, input torque and load torque through environmental forces [6]. Even a complete linear state space model based upon this relatively simple transformation of driveline is of 14th order which is very complex and requires very extensive computational resources to run on a real time engine ECU and is therefore very expensive and cannot be implemented for mass production [4]. Structure of a complex rear wheel drivetrain is shown in figure -3 [4]. Figure 2: A rear wheel drive vehicle driveline structure [4] Thus it is required to define a reliable and low order linear representation of overall driveline dynamics. Since the purpose of anti-jerk controller is to damp the oscillations at drivelines first resonance mode, some approximations can be made to reduce the model complexity. To simplify the model it can be assumed that driveline oscillations at first resonance mode are caused due to torsion of drive shafts which can be explained as they are subjected to relatively highest torque since the torque from engine is amplified by the transmission and final drive [1], [7]. Clutch due to its higher stiffness can be considered as not contributing to first resonance mode. All these assumptions can be justified by measurements [1], [7]. This reduces the driveline model to a 2nd, 5th or 7th order depending upon the type of drive configuration and flywheel. For a reliable and accurate design of a model-based controller identification of model parameters is done on basis of measurement data. To incorporate the non-linearities present in driveline the values of parameters depending upon engine speed can be stored in form of look-up tables resulting in time-variant model which is more accurate and reliable [1], [7]. Different techniques such as least square optimization and extended kalman-filter can be used to optimize the non-linearities present in the system to reduce the error. The model can be validated by comparing the simulation results with real behaviour of the car. Controller Design In a model based anti-jerk controller design the controller is used in a feedback path. Here also different methodologies have been used to design the control strategy. One of them is to use the model to obtain the controller parameters. Thus in this case model based controller design approach is used to assist the engineer and to save time on testing [2]. This type of control topology is shown in figure 2-4 [2]. Figure 2: Model based designed controller structure [2] In this type of control architecture a two step procedure is used to damp the driveline oscillations first the requested driveline torque Tin is filtered to prevent jerking generation and then the feed-back controller minimizes the jerking further. State of the vehicle can be the feedback to the controller which can be engine speed, wheel speed, and vehicle speed etc, based on which variable controller parameters will be chosen from predefined maps. Advantage of this type of control structure is that it can be used to compensate for the disturbances from the ground roughness. The other advantage of this type of control strategy is that it requires only controller variable parameters to be stored in the ECU of the engine which will be extracted by two performance criteria i.e. sportiness of vehicle demanded by the driver and level of comfort required through no longitudinal oscillations [2]. The disadvantage of this type of controller is that it needs to store different parameter valu es for different gears and operating points which require the experience and knowledge of automotive engineer to adjust parameter maps. Also it may require some feedback of vehicle states from the vehicle which may be difficult to measure in a vehicle. Also the adjusted parameters values for comfort and sportiness will depend upon the subjective preferences of the engineer. A field of research in this case is the invention of tuneable factor between sportiness and comfort which enables customers to tune their car to their requirement [2]. Another approach in model based controller design is the predictive approach i.e. a reduced model of vehicle drivetrain will be included in vehicle ECU which will reproduce the occurrence of jerking before its actual occurrence and output of which is used as controller input which will then avoid jerking before its occurrence [1] , [7] and [4]. Figure 2: Model based predictive control structure [1] The dead time or the time delay due to engine combustion events is separated from dynamics of process and modelled separately at the end of model which makes the response of the model faster than actual vehicle [1], [7] hence enables the accurate reproduction of oscillations before their occurrence. Structure of a predictive model based controller is shown in figure 2-5 [1]. These types of controllers are generally equipped with an observer which incorporates the external disturbances such as ground surface roughness and compensates the model inaccuracies by including a feedback between model output and actual process output [1] and [7]. The response of observer is faster than that of the process to make the steady state error zero after a short period of time due to this its design is done separately and values for different engine speeds and demanded torques are stored in form of look up tables. Root locus method is used for designing these kind of controllers. An advantage of usin g this type of controller is that less dependence on automotive engineer to adjust parameter maps. However an appropriate compromise between comfort and sportiness needs to be defined. One of the ways to increase sportiness is to deliberately delay the activation of controller until initial vehicle acceleration. This type of method can give the user an option of different modes for example, sporty, everyday and comfort by changing the controller values [4]. It can also predict system states which are difficult to measure on a real vehicle hence a more accurate system response can be obtained. At the same time this type of controller can be very expensive as it requires significant computational resources added on to vehicle driveline ECU. Hybrid Vehicle Driveline A hybrid vehicle is a vehicle in which powertrain has more than one source of power, a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) has an internal combustion engine and an electric machine/motor. HEVs powertrain can be classified as series or parallel hybrid systems. A series hybrid system is one in which electric motor provides all the torque required for vehicle propulsion whereas a parallel hybrid system allows torque input from either internal combustion engine or electric motor or from both. Hybrid electric vehicles are the most important topic of research for the past few years. A series hybrid vehicle driveline does not have a direct mechanical link between the engine and driveline. It is connected to a generator which in turn provides electric supply to power electronics. The electric machine/motor is connected generally through a single speed gearbox, final drive and drive shafts to wheels. Thus driveline oscillations in a series hybrid vehicle will be present, similar to a conventional vehicle. The main difference will be because of propulsion mechanism which is an electric motor. Regarding the anti-jerk control for a series hybrid vehicle, it can be done by active control of electric motor torque. It has been explained in a publication by Borodani and Ambrosio [3] in which an active robust control algorithm based on the Hà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã… ¾ control technique was designed for a Fiat Bravo 1600 cc for electric only mode. In a parallel hybrid vehicle driveline both engine and motor are mechanically connected to the wheels through clutch, an automatic gearbox and drive shafts. The vibration modes of parallel hybrid driveline are similar to a conventional vehicle. A similar strategy can be used to minimize the jerking as used for conventional vehicles in engine only mode. Whereas an active control of electric motor torque can also be used to prevent jerking. As there is not enough evidence of work done regarding the investigation of jerking and development of anti-jerk control for hybrid vehicles, this will be a topic of this research. Figure 2: Block diagram of hybrid drivetrain to be used Electric motor in a hybrid vehicle driveline gives an opportunity to electrify the anti-jerk control which then can be compared with conventional methods of anti-jerk control for fuel consumption, degree of comfort and sportiness of the vehicle. A parallel four wheel driven diesel hybrid electric driveline with dual mass flywheel (DMF) of a sport utility vehicle will be used to investigate the driveline oscillation and then to design an active feedback control for electric motor to damp these oscillations. Vehicle drive configuration can be changed to front wheel drive by unlocking the central coupler. The effect electric real axle drive (ERAD) will not be considered for anti-jerk control design. The driveline is shown in figure 2-6. Some important components of driveline and their effect are explained below: Integrated Starter Generator (ISG) As name suggests ISG replaces both conventional starter and alternator/generator to a single electronically controlled device. An ISG can convert electrical energy to mechanical energy to start an engine and also mechanical energy to electrical energy to power all electrical systems in a vehicle such as lights, air conditioning etc and to charge battery. An ISG serves three important functions start-stop, electricity generation and power assistance [8]. It allows engine start-stop functionality to save fuel instead of idling when vehicle is not in motion. ISG generates electricity from spinning crankshaft of vehicle to charge the battery. In a hybrid vehicle an ISG can provide power assist to the engine during the boost-mode. Although it cannot propel a vehicle on its own but it can assist the engine and can be used to store energy while regenerative braking. The ISG is generally used in mild hybrids. An ISG can provide retarding force on crankshaft to generate electricity during bra king; this feature of ISG can be used for anti-jerk control. Dual Mass Flywheel A dual mass flywheel [DMF] consists of two rotating flywheels [primary and secondary] connected by long travel arc-springs [7]. Figure -7 shows the structure of a basic DMF [4]. A DMF can be used to mechanically isolate the driveline oscillations arising from high speed engine oscillations by decoupling the transmission from engine. It filters out the engine irregularities completely. Due to the smooth operation of secondary flywheel and transmission input shaft gear rattle is significantly reduced. DMF can provide good vibration isolation at low engine speeds which in turn reduces the fuel consumption of a vehicle. Due to its excellent vibration isolation and damping attributes, DMF today is found in many vehicle drivelines including low budget cars [4]. But despite of its advantaged DMF increases the system complexity. DMF is basically a spring damper unit having highly non-linear characteristics. It can temporarily store energy due to which it applies a reaction torque on internal combustion engine and alters the engine speed signal which is used by ECU. It increases the probability of undesirable side effects such as jerking. Figure 2: Dual Mass flywheel structure [4] PROCEDURE Procedure of work Driveline vibration is mainly a problem of engine torque profile and compliances of components in the driveline. To study the effect of jerking in hybrid vehicles a model of driveline with all system complexities will be developed using a SIMULATION-X. The simulation-X model will be a complex model replicating the complete dynamic behaviour of the vehicle. As the frequency range of interest is 2-5 Hz, drivelines first natural frequency the model will be reduced according to a final model to be implemented for the design on controller which can accurately predict the oscillations in the desired frequency range. An active feed-back control for electric motor torque and for engine fuelling control will be designed by implementing the reduced model in MATLAB/SIMULINK. Then both controllers will be implemented in the actual complex model in SIMULATION-X to observe the system performance in terms of fuel consumption, level of comfort and sportiness. Simulation tool Simulation-X Simulation-X has been chosen to investigate the phenomenon of jerking for the project due to its very user friendly graphical user interface. This interface provides a very intuitive and efficient lumped parameter modelling approach for modelling dynamic systems. It can model various physical systems (i.e. Electronics, Mechanics, Hydraulics, Pneumatics, Thermal etc) with much ease. It also allows for the signal and equation based modelling ideal for control systems. Another important feature of Simulation-X is the ease of parameterization i.e. it is very easy to define the system complexities and parameters depending upon the requirement. It has numerous possibilities for visualization, analysis and recording a large number of results associated with each element of a model. It is very beneficial for modal analysis as it can easily extract the dynamics of system by showing the modes of vibrations and the cause of these resonance modes. This feature is very handy and useful for this r esearch project as it can be used to differentiate between the causes of oscillations in the driveline and thereby helping to reduce the model for the desired frequency range. Project Plan CONCLUSIONS On the basis of literature review it can be stated that the high change in engine or load torque excites oscillations in vehicle driveline, known as jerking causing horizontal acceleration in vehicle body. The frequency of jerking lies in resonance frequency range of various sensitive body parts as a result it is entirely undesirable by the drivers. Comfort and driveability issues raise the need for anti-jerk control. There has not been enough work done on anti-jerk control for hybrid electric vehicles since not many hybrid electric vehicles are available in market. Other than the conventional methods, electrification of anti-jerk control can be done in a hybrid electric vehicle which will be the main aim of the research project. A model based controller design approach can be regarded as efficient and reliable. It can assist an automotive engineer in deciding control parameters for the controller, also it can be implemented directly to vehicle for anti-jerk control by reducing the order of driveline model. Driveline oscillations can also be damped using passive damping methods such as using DMF which will be studied as a part of research project. REFERENCES [1] Kiencke, U. and Nielsen, L. (2005), Automotive Control Systems for Engine, Driveline and Vehicle, Springer, Berlin, Germany. [2] Grotjahn, M., Quernheim, L. and Zemke, S. (2006), Modeling Identification of car driveline dynamics for anti jerk controller design, ICM 2006 IEEE 3rd International Conference on Mechatronics , 1-4244-9713-4/06. [3] Borodani, P. and Ambrosio, C. (2002), Robust control of active damping of a hybrid vehicle driveline shuffle, MED2002 Conference. [4] Walter, A. Kiencke, U., Jones, S. and Winkler, T. (2008), Anti-Jerk Idle Speed Control with Integrated Sub-Harmonic Vibration Compensation for vehicles with Dual Mass Flywheels, SAE International Powertrains, Fuels and Lubricants Congress Shanghai, China, 2008-01-1737. [5] McDevitt, I. (2005), Torsional Vibrations of Vehicle Driveline, MSc Thesis, Automotive Product Engineering, Cranfield University. [6] Lee, H.C. (2006), Driveline vibration control of electric vehicle, MSc Thesis, Automotive Product Engineering, Cranfield University. [7] Baumann, J., Torkzadeh, D., Ramstein, A., Kiencke, U. and Schlegl, T. (2005), Model-based Predictive Anti-Jerk Control, Control Engineering Practice 14 (2006) 259-266. [8] Viorel, I., Szabo, L., Lowenstein, L. and Stet, C (2004), Integrated Starter-Generators for Automotive Applications, Acta Electrotehnica, Volume 45 Number 3 2004. [9] Reik, W., Seebacher, R. and Kooy, A. (1998), Dual Mass Fly-wheel.