United Utilities Competitor Analysis Essays

United Utilities Competitor Analysis Essays United Utilities Competitor Analysis Paper United Utilities Competitor Analysis Paper Competitor Analysis United Utilities is a British Utility company which owns and operates the water network mainly in the North West of England. It serves around seven million people in England and is considered to be the largest water listed company in the UK. The reason our group considers United Utilities as a major competitor to Severn Trent PLC is the competitiveness of the utility companies in the UK. Although United Utilities does not compete with Severn Trent PLC directly as Severn Trent PLC mainly serves areas around the Midlands of England and also certain regions of Wales. They remain close competitors as both companies strive to expand their market shares in their individual area where they mainly provide water. Both company also remain competitive in other non regulated services in different utility sectors such as waste water management, gas network and electricity sector. By assessing the share price movements between Severn Trent Plc and United Utilities which is shown in the plotted diagram, the movements shows the similarities of both companies throughout the study period. The first clear example would be the sudden increment of share price in between the November and December 2009 period. In this period, both companies share price increased almost at the same date and by the same amount. This is due to the released of sound set of interim financial results by both companies. Both companies recorded an increase of profit before tax which increased by 6% and 9. 8% for United Utilities and Severn Trent Plc respectively. After this period both companies did not show any significant changes in share prices and both companies share price movement remain closely similar till the starting period of February 2010 when both share a similar drop in share prices. This drop was not a result of any economic event but was due to the adverse weather occurring around UK which caused an increased in leakages and damages to both companies which in turn raises huge financial cost for the Utility industry. Other than these couple of events, both companies share price movement is almost identical. Reference Wikipedia the free Encyclopedia- Severn Trent http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Severn_Trent [Assessed 20/02/10] Wikipedia the free Encyclopedia- United Utilities http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/United_Utilities Assessed 20/02/10] United Utilities- About United Utilities-Where we operate-UK unitedutilities. com/UK. htm [Assessed 20/02/10] United Utilities- Investors Relations- Financial News- 2009 unitedutilities. com/financialnews-2009. htm [Assessed 20/02/10] Severn Trent- Investor Centre- Investor tools- Share Price Chart severn-trent. com/server. php? show=nav. 54 [Assessed 20/02/10] Severn Trent- Investor Centre- Announcements- 2009/2010 severn -trent. com/server. php? show=nav. 38 [Assessed 20/02/10]

How to break news to employees, Training Journal - Emphasis

How to break news to employees, Training Journal How to break news to employees, Training Journal Whether the message is good, bad or indifferent; now is no time for silence, says Rob Ashton. During the ancient wars, if you wanted to deliver a message you hired a messenger to hand over the scroll personally. But approaching enemy lines to pass on bad news was a high-risk job. The bearer of bad tidings is never popular and it wasnt unusual for the messenger to be killed out of rage. Delivering any news can be fraught with difficulties because you never know how the receivers will interpret it. But imparting news of recession-prompted change can place you right in the firing line. With the credit crunch still in full swing, workers have got used to a daily, media-delivered diet of layoffs, profit freefalls and horror stories of homeless executives living out of their briefcases. A climate of fear has spread throughout the business world. And many people have adopted the mantra that change is, quite literally, the enemy. But failing to update your team is a costly strategy. Employees are likely to become demotivated if they feel theyre out of the corporate loop. If a team cant turn to management when times get tough, they quickly begin to wonder if anyone is at the helm. The uncertainty may cause the best employees to submit their CVs to rival firms while others ride out the storm, vowing to jump ship once the outlook improves. The Association of Communicators in Business (CiB) have echoed this sentiment. They warned that organisations should redouble their internal communications efforts during uncertain economic times rather than putting them on the backburner. Broaching sensitive topics is never easy. But understanding your colleagues is to key to communicating effectively with them. Never be afraid to address the real issues, but communicate them in a style and manner that they will positively respond to. Whether the news is good, bad or indifferent, its got to be shared. Creating a culture of open communication, free of management speak, can make all the difference to company morale. Studies have shown that companies with high employee engagement levels have better financial performance. So, having an effective strategy for breaking news makes it more likely that youll emerge from the recession without nursing a lengthy corporate hangover. Communicating change Whatever industry you work in, the model for communicating change is the same. As soon as you know information, pass it on. Dont wait until you have every detail or your silence may breed distrust. And never communicate any information externally before youve told staff. Follow the six steps below to ensure that you are communicating strategically. 1) Explain the new direction In changing economic times, business goals have to be revised. Explain the direct impact of the recession on your industry and organisation and say what the firm will need to do to weather the storm. 2) Be honest and open Tell people about job or budget cuts as soon as possible, along with reasons and timescales. Having this open communication means that you need never worry about what youre telling people. 3) Create a vision Dont sugar-coat your message but paint a positive picture of the changes you are proposing. Be crystal clear about your message and its implications. 4) Keep communicating Keep up the information flow and make sure its two-way. Move quickly to correct any inaccurate information and make sure staff members fully understand the direction, vision and benefits of the news you are delivering. 5) Love the word change Energise the management team to make the word change the most positive word in the company. Explain to them the benefits of any changes and always associate positive emotional words with any changes. Constantly remind employees that change is not a one-off exercise. 6) Repeat the steps Changes will keep happening so repeat the steps as soon as any new information becomes available. Once people expect change, its a lot easier for them to deal with. The write way With up to 70 per cent of workplace communication taking place through writing, honing your writing skills can help you to break news with far more ease. By choosing your words wisely, you can help to calm your readers and energise them to embrace change. The first rule is to put people first. Remember that people act and react according to their own self-interest. So communicate news in terms of what employees want or what would benefit them, rather than focusing on the benefits to the organisation. Win over your readers by giving them information in the way they like to read it. For instance, you can still use your internal newsletter to explain the ins and outs of your corporate restructure, but make sure its format and style is appropriate to its readership. For example, if you know that the favourite magazines that your staff read are glossy celebrity weeklies such as Heat and Hello, you might want to create a question and answer type article or one that presents the information in bite size chunks. Information is much easier to swallow when its broken up. Just make sure that it still provides staff with the whole picture. Think of creative, interactive ways to communicate your news. The BBC internal communications team, for instance, uses Wikis. These two-way websites mean that as well as reading the content, employees can edit it and attach their own files. In addition, blogs and internet forums are a great way to share information. But if you feel a good old-fashioned report will say it best, make sure you include all of your recommendations or most important information at the beginning. No-one wants to wade through the corporate equivalent of War and Peace to get to the important stuff. Make sure that you translate information so that it is free from corporate speak. Leave phrases such as blue sky thinking and picking the low-hanging fruit well alone. Create rapport with your readers by using no-nonsense words and phrases that do exactly what they say on the tin. Simple is best. And dont be afraid to show your personality or inject life into your written communication. Your readers will thank you for it. Three steps to effective writing Before you put pen to paper, use the checklist below: Keep it short You may think that open, flowing communication needs to be wordy, but the opposite is true. Avoid flowery phrases and practise writing your sentences in the shortest, snappiest way. Aim for an average length of 15-20 words and stick to the rule of one sentence, one idea. Use active language Write We invested 130,000 in staff development last year, rather than last year an investment of 130,000 was made in staff development. The second version is livelier and easier to read because it says who before what. It also makes sure the company gets credit for the good things. Use verbs instead of nouns Make sentences shorter and easier to understand by choosing verbs over nouns We will consider proposals submitted by the end of July has more punch to it than proposals submitted by the end of July will be given consideration to. Email etiquette Email is best reserved for following up on face-to-face communication. If what you say affects peoples lives and jobs, allow a two-way dialogue to take place. Its also all too easy to send an email to the wrong person or dash off an abrupt angry message. If you wouldnt write it on a postcard, dont send it via email. Your email could end up being circulated far and wide with negative consequences. If youre just expanding on an already open dialogue, by all means send emails. But think carefully about what you put in the email subject box. Take inspiration from newspaper and magazine headlines and choose your words carefully. For instance, Now is no time for silence is much more effective than This months communication update. You can monitor who opens the emails, but its more difficult to measure how engaged people are with the contents. By honing your writing skills, you stand a better chance of connecting with your staff. 2009 Emphasis Training Limited, first British serial rights offered

How to fix America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

How to fix America - Essay Example This financial crisis and the recessionary time period have struck the United States and the rest of the world because of reduction in the investors’ confidence level. This reduction in investors’ confidence is primarily because of the Federal Reserve’s supporting behavior towards large institutional banks and brokerage houses. The Federal Reserve has allowed such large institutional banks and brokerage houses to perform normally when these institutions carried liabilities worth an estimated 10% of the entire annual economic output (GDP) of the nation. The FED has kept a discriminatory approach towards the other private sector organization, which go into receivership if they are found to have such liquidity issues. This approach of the FED lets the large institutional banks and brokerage houses to perform normally can lead the economy to shatter if any of these institutions are allowed to unwind. The major example is the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy issue. Such act ions of the FED have led to a reduction in the confidence level of investors. The approach that can be followed to address such issue is to cut down and reduce the size of each bank. This reduction in the size of each individual bank would reduce the impact on the entire system if any of these banks fail. This way each and every institution would be accountable for the amount of risk that it takes up. This way the lending policies would become more risk averse and cautious. Each and every bank would work upon their revenue and economic growth through a proper and reasonable interest rate. The other issue arises with the transparency of the FED. The FED should be fair and just in all its decisions and the excess printing of the dollar bill as compared to the inadequate backing of gold needs to be fixed. This would increase and restore the confidence in the value of each Dollar in circulation. This can be

Practice Analysis with Whistlers Mother Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Practice Analysis with Whistlers Mother - Essay Example The painter used different colors in order to differentiate between the background and the image of a woman. The background also includes things which show the viewer that the woman was in the house like the curtain and a piece of picture at the wall. The painter has used good colors which can make and an individual to think that the painting is real. The color of the face is that of a white woman. He has used different colors in order to differentiate different parts of the body and cloths. For example, the head cover is white in color while the dress is black ((Margaret ‎and James 77). The image is well designed and of high quality. The painter used color to make the image more attractive to the viewers. Black and white colors are hot and attract individuals from fare. The painter also painted the women sited in order to bring up the aspect of relaxing (Margaret ‎and James

Data Protection Act Essay Example for Free

Data Protection Act Essay Evaluate ways in which concerns about poor practice can be reported whilst ensuring whistle blowers and those who practice or behaviour being questioned are protected. The whistle blowing policy states that it is committed to openness, probity and accountability. The policy gives a voice to employees and others who have concerns about malpractice or feel that someone is not doing their job in school. In policies provide help and support if a member of staff for others need to speak up and feel that they are been supported. The school will take any concerns seriously and deal with them following procedures. The purpose of the policy is to make people feel that they are someone to talk to voice their concerns. How to raise the concern, you need to speak to a member of the SLT or write to the chair the governors. You will get a response within five working days. You will be asked to attend a meeting to voice your concerns and discuss them, they ask you write the problem down and give the names dates and places. After the meeting within 10 days you will receive a letter of your concern has been received and it outlined the issues and then tell you how they will deal with the matter if needed. If the SLT or chair a governor decides that an investigation is needed they will advise local authority, procedures for safeguarding of children will be followed. The investigation will not be carried out by anyone in your line management. If an investigation is carried out you will be informed of what is happening. The information that will be given to you may not be all the data involved because of the data protection act. If there is an anonymous allegation it can often be difficult to investigate it is better to raise concern in person. Anonymous allegations are investigated if the issue is a serious, the credibility of the allegation, being able to confirm the allegation (enough evidence). How the school trees whistleblowers. If you make an allegations in good faith no action will be taken against you if you make malicious allegations then disciplinary action can be taken against you. Disciplinary action can also be taken against other members of staff who try and stop employees raising concerns. Anybody who raises a concern has the opportunity to give feedback about any problems that you may have received this is so employees who raise a concern in good faith does not suffer.

Mozart :: essays research papers

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria on January 27th, 1756. He was born to Leopold and Anna Maria Pertl. Leopol was a very successful composer, voilinist, and the assistant concertmaster at the Salzburg court. Mozart showed musical talent at a very young age. By age five he was composing minuets.And at age six he played before the Bavarian Elector and the Austrian Empress.His father taught him, but said teahcing Wolfgang was hard because he knew so much already. His father was also his largest influence. In 1763 Wolfgang’s father, Leopold, took him and his sister, Maria Anna, on a concert tour of Europe. The children performed in many courts and large cities including Paris, London, and Germany. They astonished their audiences wherever they performed. In London Wolfgang wrote his first symphonies and met Johann Christian Brahm, who had a very large influence on him. In Paris Wolfgang published his first works, four sonatas for clavier with accompanying voilin. In 1768 he composed his first opera, La Finta Semplice, which was presented for the first time a year later in his home town of Salzburg. In 1769 Wolfgang and his father set out on another tour of Italy. Here Wolfgang wrote a new opera, Mitridate ri de Ponto. He also wrote two more operas for Milan, Ascanio in Alba and Lucio Silla. Three years later in 1772 Wolfgang was appointed concertmaster to the archbishop of Salzburg, his home town. He composed many works while he was concertmaster. But this job was not good for him and he did not get anolg with most of the people around him. So, he soon quit this job to travel to Paris with his mother and look for a new job. In 1777 Wolfgana and his mother, Maria Anna, went to Paris, France. While here Wolfgang composed many works including The Paris Symphony (1778). But, he could not find a permanent job there. His mother died in Paris this year and this upset Wolfgang very much. He returned to Salzburg in 1779 and was made the court organist. He wrote many church works then, including the famous Coronation Mass. He was supposed to write a new opera for Munich, Idomeneo. In 1781 he was called to Vienna by von Colloredo. His career in Vienna started out wonderfully. He was soon assigned to write The Abduction from the Seralio (1782). The emporer loved his music, and later got him the job of court composer. Mozart was now very popular in Vienna. That year he married Constenze Weber, from Germany. His father was not happy with this

British cycling safeguarding and protecting children policy Essay

There are strategies that aim to protect children and vulnerable adults from people who might seek to abuse them and cause them harm. And in order to achieve this is by monitoring people who seek admission to them through their work, paid, unpaid and voluntary. They will have to be registered under the vetting and barring scheme and will be checked against one of two barred lists and those wishing to work with children and one for those who want to work with vulnerable adults. Recruitment of staff: working with people who need much care can be so challenging and it requires trained staff who know how to deal with them. It is very important a person to undergo criminal records before working with vulnerable people, good checks and practice taking references from previous employers are very important as it might prevent risk coming to vulnerable people. People who require jobs that involve the care of vulnerable adults will always be required for CRB check and this is significant to the safeguarding of vulnerable adults as it means giving greater protection to susceptible adults. No Secrets -Department of Health Guidelines 2000: this offers a structure and content for development of local agency policies procedures and promotes safety to vulnerable people. This department is useful for people who feel they are at risk of abuse by their care providers and the local agency have the responsibility to protect and prevent any harm that comes to a vulnerable people. This also covers for to identify who is at risk and why this might be. And it sets out a multi-agency framework to encourage different agencies to work closer together. Safeguarding Adults – A National Framework for Good practice and outcomes in Adults Protection Work 2005: this protects and ensures that all services are doing their job and preventing any form of violence, abuse, bullying, humiliation, and degradation towards vulnerable people. These working strategies help reduce the risk of adults being abused as each organization is required the implementation of this work and representative on the local safeguarding Adults. This service also involves measuring achievements of the standards and introduced support programmes to assist in the process of safeguarding. They aim to ensure a nation-wide approach for protection of adults and closer multi-agency working. The Protection of Vulnerable Adults Scheme for Adults Placement Schemes 2004: this covers to protect adults from any sort of rick and harm and is required to staff who work in care homes, provide personal care in adult’s own homes or provide foster care for adults to be checked against the POVA list of banned professionals. Dignity in Care initiative 2006: This is a campaign that aims to end toleration of indignity in health and social care services through raising awareness and encouraging people to challenge poor service and lack of respect and also ensures all the order people to be treated with dignity and respect when receiving care from health and social care services. The service user receives a guide information which explains their rights and what they need to be provided and what they will be expecting from the health care services, this enables the elderly person to be aware of their rights and how they can identify when they are being abused by the care provider, this also helps reduce the risk and harm that might face the vulnerable adults. Human Right in Health Care -A Framework for Local Action 2007/08: This framework assists local NHS to trust develop and apply human rights approaches in the design and delivery of their services. Human rights aim to provide health care department with the principles of fairness, respect, equality, and dignity, this ensure all healthcare service users are not being discriminated against and are all being treated equally regardless of their backgrounds skin color and also as well as meeting Care Quality Commission standards of human rights and patients’ treatment and these working strategies reduces the risk of abuse towards patients and vulnerable people. Codes of Practice for Nursing and Social Work: This strategy of codes of practice for nursing and social work helps to reduce the risk of abuse against the vulnerable individual as the code presents the professional standards that nurses and midwives must uphold in order to be registered to practice in the UK. It is structured around four themes priorities people, practice effectively, preserves safety and promotes professionalism and trust and the code can be used by nurses and midwives as a way of reinforcing their professionalism.

The Effect Of Motivation, Values And Involvement Of The Buyers In The Market

In each and every market the buyers are unpredictable and therefore strategic marketing should be in a way that the marketers influence the decisions made by the buyers. Motivation, values and involvement of the buyers plays a very important role in influencing the decision of the buyers. For a business organization to be unique from other competitors in the industry it needs to form a strong relationship with the current buyers and the potential buyers.Considering the values of the buyers, involving them in the decision making process and motivating them accordingly are some of the ways that businesses can use to influence the behavior of the buyers. There is need to research on the motivation, value and involvement of the buyer because all of the successful sales are made not because of the excellence of the products being marketed but because the marketers either consciously or unconsciously have found a human reason to why their products should sell. The marketers need to underst and the role of motivation, values and involvement of the buyers so as to have a successful sale.Businesses that misunderstand the above role end up making wrong decisions concerning the behavior of the buyer and hence they incur significant losses. Research also needs to be carried out to show the differences in the levels of motivation and involvement between buyers who are purchasing for business reasons and those who are purchasing for personal reasons. Understanding the values, motivation and the involvement of the buyers also helps businesses retain their customers and hence have a stable market and a competitive advantage in the market.Due to the above factors which clearly show the importance of the motivation, values and involvement of the buyers there is need to carry out a research so as to provide more information to businesses on this topic. LITERATURE REVIEW In a business context the behavior of the consumers is referred to as the study of the reason why consumers purc hase specific items during a certain period in a certain place. In trying to understand the concept of consumer behavior a lot of research has looked at it from a social, psychology and economics view.A lot of research has been carried to evaluate the behavior of the consumers but most of the research is carried out on groups of the consumers and fails to investigate the behavior of a single consumer without the influence of the other consumers in the market. Most of the research that has been carried out studies the characteristics of consumers in groups so as to understand the needs and preferences of a certain group of consumers (Solomon et al: 121-135). This research study will study the consumers individually to understand personal needs and preferences of consumers.Studies have also been carried out to investigate the influence consumers get from their friends, families and the society as a whole. Consumer behavior also tries to study the consumer retention, the relationship o f the consumers and the business and also the values of the consumers. Businesses need to consider the motivation of the buyers in order to improve their sales. There are two types of motivations of the buyers: psychological motivation and physiological motivation (Hauftvet et al: 889).Consumer behavior studies are carried out to determine how the consumers use and dispose the product as well as to understand how the products are purchased. Marketers need to understand the use of the products they deal with because this affects how a product is positioned in the market and how the marketers can influence the consumption of the product. Due to the fact that environmental problems arise as a result of disposal of the products purchased by the consumers it is necessary to study the disposal of products as this affects the motivation of the buyers towards a certain product.The research will extend previous studies in that it will look at the effect of consumer behavior on the society fo r example aggressive marketing of foods rich in high foods has serious effects on the health of the population (Henry, 2004: 256-262). In the early 1900’s Dither carried out a qualitative market research and suggested that the motives of the consumers are initiated by concealed unconscious needs. However, most of the theories developed by Ditcher on consumer motivations have been disregarded in the modern marketing strategies (as cited in Ziems, 2004: 211).Ditcher identified five stages involved in the motivation process as underlying need, drive, desire, goal and behavior. Consumer involvement is the increased state of awareness that tends to motivate consumers to think about a product and seek information regarding the product before they buy it. High levels of involvement of the buyers have been seen to increase the attention of the buyers towards certain products and also the consumers place greater importance on the sources of the information relating to the products.Thi s research will also investigate whether there is more to motivating the consumers rather than unaware desires or wants of the consumers. Hein, 2006 noted that the only best way to hook a buyer into buying a certain product is touching the buyers emotionally (Hein, 2006: 42). HYPOTHESES The level of motivation of the buyers affects the competitive advantage of the business. The value of buyers on a certain product affects the sales of the product. High levels of involvement of the buyers increase the information the buyers have regarding the product.RESEARCH METHODS In selection of the research methods to be used in this research, time available for the research, the cost of the research and access to the information were the factors that will be put into consideration. For the successful completion of the study it will be necessary to collect data from various sources to enable the business produce items that the buyers want and not what the business thinks the buyers want. Both pr imary and secondary methods of research will be used in this study.Secondary research will involve making use of information that has been collected in previous studies. Primary data collection methods will also be used in this research. The methods used will include mail questionnaires, use of focus groups, phone surveys and direct observations. The research will focus more on the data collected through surveys because surveys produce more specific information regarding the buyers. The surveys will have open ended questions as well as close ended questions.Due to the fact that mail surveys are generally inexpensive they will be preferred in this research to cut down the cost of the research. MEASUREMENT APPROACH Collection of the data in this study will commence by informing the expected respondents of the need to carry out the research and how their responses will be treated during the research. The expected respondents will then be sent a copy of the questionnaire through mail. S o as to minimize the chances of unanswered questionnaires the researcher will take a sample of the respondents from a group of the consumers.The sample will consist of people of all races, ethnic group and age. Follow ups will then be done through the phone to ensure that the respondents have received the questionnaires and they are willing to respond to the questionnaires. Observations will then be made to understand the level of involvement of the respondents and how this affects the market of the product. After the questionnaires have been completed by the respondents the researcher will then collect all the questionnaires and analyze the data acquired.Analysis of the data will be carried out by use of SPSS and then graphs and charts will be derived from the data to present the data in a more clear way. The researcher will then collect secondary information from previous studies that have been carried out. The secondary information combined with the primary information will then be used to show how the values, motivation and the involvement of the buyers affect the market of the product. Statistical analysis will also be carried out on the data collected to test for validity and reliability of the data.DISCUSSION For the successful completion of this research contributions will be drawn from earlier researchers in the area. The marketers will also be expected to participate in the research in that they will give experiences on how the values, motivation and involvement of the consumers have affected the marketing of their products. One of the major difficulties expected during the research is unwilling respondents. This will result to unanswered questionnaires hence gaps in the expected data.An error may occur in the observation method of collecting information, this happens when the researcher observes the wrong behaviors of the sampled population. There will be need for further research in this area to clearly identify the measures that business organizat ions should take to ensure that the buyers are more involved in the business activities. WORD COUNT: 1, 480 WORK CITED Haugtvedt P. Curtis, Paul Herr and Frank R. Kardes, (2008), Handbook of consumer psychology, Illustrated Edition, New York, CRC Press Hein, K. (2006, October 2). Inside the Mind of the Marketer.Brandweek, 47(36), 16-21. Retrieved July 22, 2009, from the Academic Search Complete database Henry Assael, (2004), consumer behavior: a strategic approach, illustrated Edition, Boston, New York, Houghton Mifflin Publishers Solomon R Michael, Gary J. Bamossy, Soren Askegaard, (2001), Consumer behavior: A European perspective, Second Edition, New York, Prentice Hall Publishers. Ziems, D. (2004, June). The Morphological Approach for Unconscious Consumer Motivation Research. Journal of Advertising Research, 44(2), 210-215. Retrieved July 22, 2009 from EJC database

Letter to an Atheist †Theology Essay

Letter to an Atheist – Theology Essay Free Online Research Papers Letter to an Atheist Theology Essay Dear friend, Over the years, we have conversed about the existence of God. We have discussed creation and the unlikely theory that this vast, varied, and complex universe could have just come into existence by accident or have evolved over a trillion years. We have considered the Apostle Paul’s argument that from the creation of the world people have seen the earth and the sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature. So they are without excuse whatsoever for not knowing God. (See Romans 1:19-20.) These observations and other reasoning’s seemingly did not convince you of the existence of an almighty, awesome, and loving God. A God we can know personally and who knows us personally. (See Psalm 139.) You have had friends and now a dear loved one die. â€Å"The question now comes back to me,† you say, â€Å"How does one face death? I’m an atheist, but I have no idea what’s on the other side. Is there an after life? When someone dies, I often think about what happens – where do they go?† My friend, that’s a very perceptive and critical question. I think that it was Mark Twain who observed that there are only two things certain in life – death and taxes. â€Å"Everyone must die.† This trite sentence conceals a mass of questions, problems, yearnings, and troubles that have plagued all of us at some time in our lives. Is death the end of everything? Is this life as good as it gets? Or, is there an eternal life? Someone once said that there are no atheists in a foxhole. Perhaps that is true. In the book The Faith Letters by Helmut Thielicke, the story is told about the death of the wife of an older member of their project group in Germany. Some friends from America sent a letter of sympathy to the grieving gentleman. â€Å"Dear E-, . . . It would be of little use to come to you now with pious clichà ©s. But you should know that we suffer with you, that we accompany you in love upon your lonely way and that your name is spoken again and again in our prayers. Those who do not know God can only see death as the archfiend. For them it is the end and severs their relationship with everything we consider dear and valuable. For us Christians, however, it is only an incident, hardly an interruption. In the New Testament we are repeatedly struck by the spirit of joy which overcomes the pain of death. We pray that this certainty may also be yours . . .† The letter refers to â€Å"the incident of death†. The terror of death often appears as the absolute end. Consider how many deal with death. In many countries, funeral homes no longer use black hearses, but are â€Å"disguising† them in neutral colors. People are getting away from many customs of grieving to keep from reminding them of death. In the New Testament we are always struck by the spirit of joy concerning death. The focus is not on the way people â€Å"experience† death. The basis of the New Testament’s message and hope is not the human incapacity to bear death in its harshness but the defeat of death itself by and through Jesus Christ. Thielicke says, â€Å"The New Testament is thus not concerned how death can be made subjectively bearable, but with the victory over death as an objective power.† My friend, you ask â€Å"What happens in the end?† The Apostle Paul addressed that question. â€Å"If in this life only we have hope (in Christ), we are of all men most miserable† (I Corinthians 15:19). He further declared, â€Å"I face death daily . . . And what value was there in fighting wild beasts . . . if there be no resurrection from the dead? If there is no resurrection, let’s feast and get drunk, for tomorrow we die!† (I Corinthians 15:31-32 NLT). The hope and teaching of the Word of God is resurrection. Death is not the end. Death was conquered by Jesus when he arose from the dead on the third day, victorious over death, hell, and the grave. Jesus says, â€Å"Because I live you shall live also.† Jesus gave this promise to Martha after raising Lazarus from the dead, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die like everyone else, will live again. They are given eternal life for believing in me and will never perish . . .† (John 11:25-26 NLT). When we put faith in Christ and receive him as Savior and Lord, He takes us into His fellowship and will never let us go. He will go with us through deaths door and he will, as in the conversation with the penitent thief on the cross, â€Å"be with us in Paradise† (Luke 23:43). My friend, I noticed that the words â€Å"Love Says It All† was stamped on the back of the envelope that your letter came in. It’s so true. Paul writes concerning the power of Easter, â€Å"Neither death nor life . . . can separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord† (Romans 8:38-39 NLT). How do we face death? Look to the one who is victor over death – Jesus Christ. â€Å"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but has eternal life† (John 3:16). Research Papers on Letter to an Atheist - Theology EssayThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsCapital PunishmentComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XArguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS)Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayThe Fifth HorsemanTrailblazing by Eric AndersonEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenBringing Democracy to Africa

Italian Idioms and Sayings Using the Verb Fare

Italian Idioms and Sayings Using the Verb Fare If essere is the Swiss army knife of verbs, then fare is the all-in-one, handy-dandy kitchen appliance. The verb fare expresses the basic idea of doing or making, as in fare gli esercizi (to do the exercises) and fare il letto (to make the bed), but it is also used in many idioms. Note that the infinitive fare is frequently abbreviated to far before a consonant. For example, you may say far colazione, far male, far torto. Fare is also used in many expressions relating to the weather (note that in the following translations, it is an impersonal subject and does not have an equivalent in Italian): Che tempo fa? (How is the weather?)Fa bel tempo. (The weather is nice.)Fa cattivo tempo. (The weather is bad.)Ha fatto caldo. (It has been warm.)Qui fa sempre freddo. (Its always cold here.)In primavera fa sempre fresco. (In spring its always cool.) Besides idiomatic expressions, and expressions relating to the weather, the verb fare is used in a number of proverbs: Fare e disfare à ¨ tuttun lavorare. (Its all go, its a hard life.)Chi la fa laspetti. (You will get as good as you gave.)Chi fa da sà © fa per tre. (If you want something done, do it yourself.)Non fare agli altri cià ² che non vorresti fosse fatto a te. (Do as you would be done by.)Tutto fa brodo. (Every little bit helps.)Chi non sa fare, non sa comandare. (A bad worker is a bad master.) Idiomatic Expressions with Fare   fare i compiti to do ones homework fare il biglietto to purchase a ticket fare la fila / la coda stand on line / wait on line fare la spesa to go grocery shopping fare le spese to go shopping fare forca to play hooky fare vedere to show someone something fare una domanda to ask a question fare una fotografia to take a picture fare una passeggiata to take a walk fare colazione to have breakfast fare un viaggio to take a trip fare un capello in quattro to split hairs farsi la barba to shave farsi coraggio to take heart fare castelli in aria to daydream fare fingere to pretend, make believe fare male to be painful, to ache farsi in la to step to one side fare di tutto to do everything possible fare del proprio meglio to do ones best farsi degli amici to make friends fare alla romana to split the check fare il pieno to fill up the gas tank fare passare to let through

Doctor of Pharmacy program Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Doctor of Pharmacy program - Essay Example I am aware of the tremendous progress expected in the field of pharmacy in the coming years. I am fascinated by the transition of pharmacy from dispensing the correct medication to providing total pharmaceutical care. With huge advances taking place in medical science and technology, future pharmacists will have to constantly update their knowledge and be prepared to meet the new challenges. In future, professionals like medical practitioners, pharmacists and caregivers would be working as a team to provide better care and advice to patients. I am eager to be a part of the advances taking place in the field of pharmacy such as direct patient care. Another area that interests me is medication errors. The research I did before applying for the course indicates that this problem has gained a lot of emphasis in medical circles. Further, my brother is a doctor and my sister is already in the pharmacy field. Their discussions about drugs and their effects have awakened in me a keen interest in the subject. I believe that pharmacists can contribute in a significant way towards eliminating the threat. I would like to focus my efforts in this field. A Doctor of Pharmacy program would also fit my background, as mentioned earl