The concepts of data warehouse and data mining in organization

The concepts of data warehouse and data mining in organization Introduction In today real world, most of information and data has been managed or organized by using information technology and also information system. Information systems are now widely use in every industry to stored data and information for future use. Data warehouse and data mining are the common process that can be found in information technology field. Data warehouse are used to store a huge volume of data and data mining can be defined as a process of pull out patterns fromdata. Data warehouse Adata warehouseworks as an electronic storage area of an organizations to stored data. Data warehouses are planned to assist in reporting and analysis for an organization. Retrieving and analyzing data, extracting, transforming and loading and managing data are also the fundamental components of a data warehousing. The data warehouse has specific characteristics that include the following: 1. Subject-Oriented Information is presented according to specific subjects or areas of interest, not simply as computer files. Data is manipulated to provide information about a particular subject. 2. Integrated Data stored in a worldwide accepted method with constant measurements, naming conventions, physical characteristic and encoding structures. 3. Non-Volatile Stable information that doesnt change each time an operational process is executed. Information is consistent in any case of when the warehouse is accessed. 4. Time-Variant Containing a history of the subject, as well as current information. Historical information is an important component of a data warehouse. 5. Process-Oriented It is important to view data warehousing as a process for delivery of information. The maintenance of a data warehouse is ongoing and iterative in nature. 6. Accessible Provide easy access for information to end-users. There are three Data Warehouse Models: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Enterprise warehouse collects all of the information about subjects across the entire organization à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Data Mart a subset of corporate-wide data that is of value to a specific groups of users. Its scope is confined to specific, selected groups, such as marketing data mart à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Virtual warehouse A set of views over operational databases .Only some of the possible summary views may be materialized Data Warehouse Concepts In data warehouse, there are several concepts that can be listed as valued to data ware housing and the value concepts as per below: 1. Dimensional Data Model- Dimensional data model is usually used in data warehousing systems. This section describes this modeling technique, and the two common schema types,star schemaandsnowflake schema. It is the most regularly used in data warehousing systems. 3rd normal form is different from it, regularly used for transactional (OLTP) type systems. There are few term that can be define regularly to understand dimensional data modeling: Dimension: A category of information. For example, the time dimension. Attribute: A unique level within a dimension. For example, Month is an attribute in the Time Dimension. Hierarchy: The specification of levels that represents relationship between different attributes within a dimension. For example, one possible hierarchy in the Time dimension is Year à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Quarter à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Month à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Day. Slowly Changing Dimension: This is a common issue facing data warehousing practioners. This section explains the problem, and describes the three ways of handling this problem with examples. Conceptual Data Model: A conceptual data model identifies the relationships between the different entities. character of conceptual data model including: Includes the important entities and the relationships among them. No specified attribute. There is no specified primary key. The figure below is an example of a conceptual data model. Conceptual Data Model From the figure above, we can see that the only information shown via the conceptual data model is the entities that describe the data and the relationships between those entities. No other information is shown through the conceptual data model. Logical Data Model: Logical data models explain the data in as much detail as feasible, without look upon to how they will be corporeal apply in the database. Features of a logical data model include: * Consist of all units, entities and relationships between them. * All attributes for each unit are precise and specific. * The primary key for each entity is particular precise. * Foreign keys (keys recognize the relationship between different entities) are specified. * Normalization transpires at this level. The steps for scheming the logical data model are as follows: 1. Identify input keys for all entities. 2. Locate the relationships between different entities. 3. Discover all attributes for each entity. 4. Determine many-to-many relationships. 5. Normalization. The figure below is an example of a logical data model. Logical Data Model The different between two conceptual data of the model from the diagram and the logical data as to be listed below: * Primary keys are present, whereas in a theoretical data model, no primary key is present in a logical data model. * All attributes are specified in an entity. No characteristic are specified in a conceptual data model also in a logical data model, * In a conceptual data model, the relationships are basically set, not explicit, so we simply know that two entities are related, but we do not specify what attributes are used for this relationship. The relationships between entities are specified using primary keys and foreign keys in a logical data model. Physical Data Model Conceptual, Logical, and Physical Data Model: Altered or different levels of abstraction for a data model. This part compares and contrasts the three other types of data models. Data Integrity: What is data integrity and how it is obligatory and enforced in data warehousing. OLAP- stands for On-Line Analytical Processing. The first detonation to provide a definition to OLAP was by Dr. Codd, who proposed 12 rules for OLAP. Then, it was discovered that this particular white paper was support by one of the OLAP tool vendors, thus causing it to drop objectivity. The OLAP Report has proposed the FASMI test, Fast Analysis of Shared Multidimensional Information. Bill Inmon vs. Ralph Kimball: These two data warehousing heavyweights have a different outlook of the role between data warehouse and data mart. In the data warehousing field, we frequently attend to about discussions on where a person / organizations viewpoint falls into Bill Inmons camp or into Ralph Kimballs camp. We describe below the difference between the two. Bill Inmons paradigm: Data warehouse is one part of the overall business intelligence system. An enterprise has one data warehouse, and data marts source their information from the data warehouse. In the data warehouse, information is stored in 3rd normal form. Ralph Kimballs paradigm: Data warehouse is the conglomerate of all data marts within the enterprise. Information is always stored in the dimensional model. http://www.1keydata.com/datawarehousing/concepts.html There is no accurate or incorrect between these two idea and views, as they symbolize diverse data warehousing philosophies. In reality, the data warehouse in most schemes is closer to Ralph Kimballs idea. This is because most data warehouses on the go out as a departmental attempt, and hence they invented as a data mart. Only when more data marts are built later do they develop into a data warehouse. There are many theories can be used in executing the data warehouse and depends on the criterion of data that appropriate the significance of the system needed. These concepts are copyright from the website http://www.1keydata.com/datawarehousing/inmon-kimball.html. The Benefits of data warehouse to the organization * The potential to handle server tasks and responsibilities connected to querying which is not used by most operation systems. * Can be ended within the good time frame * The set up do not need a technical skill workers * Data warehouses are exotic unique that they can act as a repository, a repository for transaction processing systems that have been cleaned. * Can produce reports, data extracts, can also be done from outside sources. * Chronological information for competent and competitive analysis * Niche data quality and completeness * Enhancement disaster recovery plans with another data back up source Data Mining Introduction Data mining is the progression of analyzing data from dissimilar standpoint and summarizing it into practical information information that can be used to increase profits, cuts costs, or both. Data mining can also called data or knowledge innovation or knowledge discovery. Software of data mining is one of a number of systematic and methodological tools for evaluating or analyzing data. It assigns the users to analyze and evaluate the data from many different scope or angles, dimensions, proportions, categorize it, and review and summarize the relationships identified. In technical view, data mining is the procedure of finding relationship or patterns among all of fields in large relational databases. The Knowledge Discovery in Databases procedure includes of a few steps the most important from raw and undefined data compilation to some form of innovative knowledge. The progression as of the following steps ²: * Data cleaning: also known as data cleansing, it is a stage in which noise data and irrelevant data are removed from the group collection. * Data integration: at this point, multiple data sources, often heterogeneous, may be combined in a general source. * Data selection: at this step, the data relevant to the analysis is decided on and retrieved from the data collection. * Data transformation: also known as data consolidation, it is a phase in which the certain data is transformed into forms suitable for the mining process. * Data mining: it is the vital step in which smart techniques are applied to extract patterns potentially valuable. * Pattern evaluation: in this step, firmly interesting patterns representing knowledge are identified based on given method. * Knowledge representation: is the final chapter in which the exposed knowledge is visually represented to the user. This crucial step uses visualization techniques to help users understand and infer the data mining results. Function Data mining is mainly data and knowledge for each relation of tools. It enables to decide relationships among home factors and external factors for each study. The purpose as large-scale information technology has been emergent detach transaction and analytical systems, data mining provides the link between the two. Data mining software analyzes relationships and patterns in stored transaction data based on open-ended user inquiry. Data mining consists of five major elements ³: * Remove, transform, and load transaction data onto the data warehouse system. * Store and administer the data in a multidimensional database system. * Provide data access to business forecaster and information technology professionals. * Analyze the data by relevance software. * Present the data in a useful format, such as a graph or chart.  ² http://www.exinfm.com/pdffiles/intro_dm.pdf  ³ http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/faculty/jason.frand/teacher/technologies/palace/datamining.htm Data Mining Concepts Data mining process contains of 5 processes, there are ³: * State the problem * Collect the data * Perform pre-processing * Approximate the model (mine the data) * Interpret the model draw the finale  ³http://media.wiley.com/product_data/excerpt/24/04712285/0471228524-1.pdf

Impacts of the Americans with Disabilities Act

Impacts of the Americans with Disabilities Act Adapted Fitness Activities Congress weighed the interests of the businesses that would need to update their facilities versus the interests of the people that would be helped and decided that helping Americans with Disabilities would be the fairest thing to do. As verbally expressed by the founding fathers of America â€Å"All men are created equal.† Black, white, brown, short, tall, perspicacious, and incoherent, all are engendered equipollently. Therefore every person deserves fair judgement. Unfortunately, it is a profound fact that not everyone is born mundane and capable of task typical for a mundane person, who is liberate from incapacitation. In my opinion, the quote â€Å"All men are created equal† accommodates to promote an amicable environment that avails inspirit parity among people and avails to apperceive the kindred attributes rather than the differences that dissevers men. Even so, with this hope, the incapacitated community still struggles for parity. The Americans with disabiliti es act further goes to destroy those barriers between the community. If everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedom that is set forth in the Declaration, disabled people should not be robbed of their rights. However, they are still devalued from conducting common tasks which puts them at the bottom of the priority list as an employee and even so as a friend. If everyone is entitled to all the rights and liberation that is set forth in the Declaration, incapacitated people should not be purloined of their rights. However, they are still devalued from conducting mundane tasks which puts them at the bottom of the priority list as an employee and even so as a friend. President George Bush signed the ADA into law that serves and protects people with disabilities. This law prohibits discrimination against the disabled by employers and required commercial establishments, public accommodation, and mass transportation be made accessible to disabled persons. hence the law was signed, new doors opened for the deaf and hard of hearing culture for a better opportunity in gaining equal rights. President Bush appointed four titles to protect deaf and hard of hearing people. In â€Å"The ADA and Deaf Culture† by Tucker, B. Title I, prohibits both public and private employers from refusing to hire or promote an individual because of his or her impairment and requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for applicants or employees who are deaf or hard of hearing (Tucker 28). If a deaf or hard of hearing employee can pass the essential part of the job qualification, he or she is protected by the ADA to be hired. Also, the ADA prohibits employers to discriminate disabled people in means of recruitment, job applications procedures, pay rates, and promotions. The second title, Title II, â€Å"Requires all state and local government agencies to make all of their services accessible to individuals with disability† (NAD 22). This ensures people with disability to be able to participate in services, programs, and activitie s who can meet the essential eligibility requirements. Such places that must make these accommodations are schools, libraries, police and fire department, public hospitals, jails and prisons, motor vehicle departments, parks and recreation programs, food stamp offices, and welfare and social service agencies. Because these places serves to the public they cannot neglect people with disabilities. Title III gives equal access to public accommodations which removes communication and physical barriers to people with disabilities from private businesses, professionals, and nonprofit organizations. These private entities may not discriminate â€Å"in the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages or accommodations of any place of public accommodation by any person who owns, lease, or operates a place of public accommodation† (NAD 28). Such places operated by a private entity of public accommodations are hotels or places of lodging, restauran t or establishment serving food or drink, theater, place of public gathering like convention center, zoo, nursery, bowling alley and more. Title IV requires â€Å"telephone companies to provide both local and long distance telecommunications relay services across the nation† (NAD 34). By providing an accessible telephone system, deaf and hard of people are able communicate much easier and would minimize traveling to relay a message. It also â€Å"requires all television public services announcements that are produced of funded by the federal government to include closed captioning† (NAD 34). With closed captioning, primary source of news and culture information, as well as emergency broadcast warnings will be accessible to the deaf and hard of hearing people. By appointing these four titles, deaf and hard of hearing are insured of their civil rights and acceptance in society. If American pursues to reach equality for all, people of color, language, and ability should b e able to find peace within the differences between themselves. Although the ADA protects people with disability, it is quite difficult to zero in a situation when people of disability are discriminated against during the time of the situation. In some cases the damage was done before justice is served. In one of the cases, a spouse of a pregnant women was denied of an interpreter because he was not the patient. However, he still deserved the right to be informed of the situation of his baby, therefore the judge rule in their favor and were compensated for their trouble. On July 1997 in an article by the New York Times â€Å"Judge Finds Bias at Hospital In Dealings With Deaf Man,† Mount Sinai Medical Center illegally discriminated against the Bravins by not providing an interpreter. Mr. Bravin, a Lexington School teacher for the deaf in Manhattan was unable to learn the Lamaze method to assist his wife give birth. Sinai Medical Center disapproved Mr. Bravin request for an interpreter because it’s Mrs. Bravins who was the patient not Mr. Bravin who was deaf. Nevertheless, Lamaze method is a team effort which Mr. Bravin needed to learn to assist his wife give birth. The judge ruled that the hospital violated state and federal laws requiring accommodations for the disabled (Stewart 1). This example violated the title II of the ADA which was to provide interpreters at hospital settings. Although it was not Mrs. Bravin who needed an interpreter while giving birth and could not interpret for her husband, it was Mr. Bravin who needed it to find the situation of their baby during the birth and the week that the baby was in the neonatal intensive care unit. Mr. and Mrs. Bravin, a family concerned about their baby, should have the right to be informed especially if the baby is in an intensive care unit. Because the hospital did not provide an interpreter the judge ruled in favor of the Bravins and was scheduled the decision on the amount of damages. Even though Mrs. Bravins was hearing, the hospital should have put in c onsideration to provide an interpreter for Mr. Bravin because Mrs. Bravins could not interpret for her husband for she was giving birth. Poor Mr Bravin was left in the dark to figure how he could had help his wife and find out what was happening to his baby. The hospital did not consider Mr. Bravin in the equation, therefore the hospital discriminated against him and are scheduled for the amount of damages. In another situation, a community of deaf and hard of hearing are neglected of their rights. In an article from The New York Times on July 29, 1997, titled â€Å"Judge Rules Fire Box Denies Access To The Deaf,† a federal judge ruled, â€Å"to shrink the city’s fire alarm box system† (Holloway 1) was in violation of the civil rights of deaf and hard of hearing residents of New York. When Judge Sweets ordered the city to refit the boxes that was removed or disconnected as a part of an experiment in 1995, the city reconnected the box system with only a single li ne to the police department, instead of two-button system, one to fire and other to police department. Their defense, fire department contended that single-boxes would drastically reduce false alarms. However according to Holloway, â€Å"Judge Sweet said the one-button boxes were â€Å"unusable† by a hearing impaired person, a violation of the American With Disabilities Act, which guarantees equal access to public services† (Holloway 2). Clearly, by replacing the box systems it reduces emergency calls, but it also prevents deaf and hard of hearing from making emergency calls, thus discriminating them of their right to telecommunications, especially for emergencies. Therefore, Judge sweets denied the city’s request to abolish the fire-box system entirely. Also, as stated by the ADA, state and local government must make accommodations for the disabled. One example where the disabled are severely mistreated is at prisons. In an article from Los Angeles Times, title d â€Å"a Win for Disabled Prisoners; Ruling: Federal appeals court says the state violated their rights during parole hearings,† by Krikorian, G. on November 29, 2001, the state officials was ordered to make it easier for thousands of disabled prisoners and ex-felons to attend in parole hearings by the U.S. 9th Circuit Court Appeals. Krikorian wrote, â€Å"Violations included prisoners who use wheelchairs being left to crawl up stairs to attend their parole hearings† (Krikorian 1) and â€Å"Deaf inmates also were sometimes deprived of interpreters during hearings or had their hands shackled and thus were unable to sign Wilken found† (Kirkorian 2). Evidently, this describes the nature of cruelty that happens in prisons. Although the prison is a place where people need to be disciplined or exiled, there still must be some balance. Aa Kirkorian described, the people who are on parole, who may be scheduled to leave, are still being deprived of their rights. Therefo re, because of the harsh environment disabled people have to face in prisons, the U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken ordered â€Å"that the board survey all its hearing rooms to ensure that they are accessible to the disabled, provide interpreters for deaf prisoners, supply assistants for inmates with mental retardation and learning disabilities and establish a grievance process† (Kirkorian 2). With this, state officials would be more lenient than before. These discrimination against the deaf and hard of hearing people would slowly depart as society realizes that these people are incapable to hear and/or understand words because of their disability. Therefore it would be inconsiderate to treat such people without accommodations. Because deaf and hard of hearing have problems communicating and socializing, it is only fair to accommodate for their loss. There are numerous things that these people can do, but hear. If they are assisted for their loss, most would generously reconcile with in society, boosting their self-esteem and making positive deeds. In an article from the Los angeles Times titled â€Å"UPS Ban on Deaf Drivers is Rejected† by Girion, L. on October 11, 2006, a federal appeals court ruled that the United Parcel Services Inc. (UPS) has illegally discriminated against deaf employees by excluding them from driving delivery vans. The San Francisco-Based U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the UPS has violated the ADA, employers must justify polices or job requirements that elude a group of people who are disabled. The UPS countered that the case was about safety not disability or discrimination. The Professor of Sanford University of Law, Mark Kelman, stated that the use of deaf dri vers by other companies made UPS’ exclusion a difficult policy to justify under the ADA. Therefore, it was perceived that the UPS was not permitting very much individual analysis; they were rejecting the hearing impaired. Joe Beachboard who is representing employers defended that if a UPS driver has a serious accident, the company would be sued; hearing impaired poses a safety problem because of their inability to hear other vehicles. However, U.S. Circuit Judge Marsh Berzon noted that drivers are offered warning signals when backing up a van, therefore she wrote, UPS â€Å"failed to show that those accidents would not also been avoided by a deaf driver who has compensated for his her loss of hearing by, for example, adapting modified driving techniques or using compensatory devices such as backing cameras or additional mirrors† (Girion 2). In addition, being a safe driver does not merely rely on hearing that is why deaf people are able to acquire a license to drive pa ssenger cars. Consequently, after a couple more hearings, federal ruled to require drivers of vehicles weighing more than 10,000 pounds or more to meet certain vision and hearing standards. The qualifications lets the companies determine drivers for lighter vehicles. The accommodation serves to allow deaf and hard of hearing employee to drive vehicles and keep their job. In another situation where accommodation are made for the deaf and hard of hearing is in the article â€Å"Dispute in Westchester on Deaf Child Accepted† from the New York Times by Greenhouse, Linda on November 3, 1981. Supreme Court agreed to provide a sign language interpreter for deaf third grader. The appeals was based on the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. Apparently, Amy Rowley a deaf student who was adept at lip reading and received help from her hearing aid was performing above average from her class without special help. However, the court ruled â€Å"she was entitled to be able to under stand everything said in the classroom, a goal that could be achieved only through sign language†(Greenhouse 2). Even though Amy Rowley in the top half of her class the court recognized that she is still being denied of her rights. Therefore, the court ruled in her favor to accommodate her for education. With the accommodation she will be given an opportunity to achieve her full potential. Not all individuals with disabilities are protected by the ADA. To be protected, individuals with disabilities must show that they are otherwise qualified for the job they want. They have to prove that they can perform the essential functions of that job with or without reasonable modifications, and they must have a disability that significantly limits them and show that they have suffered discrimination because of the disability. However the Americans with Disabilities Act is one in many steps for the towards the creation of an ideal society

The McDonaldization of Education Essay -- McDonaldization and Higher E

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Education remains a cornerstone for society as it has for decades. Technology advances, the economy fluctuates, and politics change, but education remains, not only important but imperative for personal and social growth. Yet, as important as it is touted to be, the quality and purpose of learning is often lost in the assembly-line, manufactured process of education that exists today.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In a highly structured and economics-driven world, the educational system may be viewed as a machine designed to churn out future workers and employees. Like the fast-food industry, education has been standardized in an attempt to provide the comforts of efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control. In our aptly named McDonaldized society, aspects as important as quality are sacrificed in lieu of speed and profit. As far as education is concerned, however, this attempt to systemize and order something as complex as learning proves futile and detrimental to the basic tenet of enlightenment.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The standardization of the learning process proposes a simplified, singular approach to providing education to those who can afford it. Limiting material provided and lessons taught, tests, grading, function to create an easily controlled system. â€Å"Education† has been transformed and has come to connote â€Å"the transmission from a central source of knowledge to passive recipients† (McClellan. Online). However, the question remains whether this definition can actually suffice. The futility of a packaged education is put into context when it is realized that â€Å"meaningful learning, deep knowledge, collective wisdom and innovative action do not come from slick, pre-packaged course materials and efficient one-way transmission of information† but rather through the more complex idea called learning (McClellan. Online).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Unfortunately, the purpose of the education system, as seen in most institutions of higher education, is in fact to instill in people the notion that they are incapable of learning. The standardization of education highlights the underlying assumption that people â€Å"cannot learn without a pre-determined set of institutionalized options forced upon them† (Kyhall. Online).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The view of education as a commodity, rather than a means for intellectual, spiritual, or interpersonal growth, results in most educators and teachers offering st... ...onal and social growth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The cost of McDonaldization is clear. In terms of standardizing education, the model is â€Å"anti-diversity, anti-creativity, and anti-democratic† (Kyhall. Online). As a whole, the consumption of the simple solution called education will not solve the problems. The modern world is much too complex to be solved in a single approach. Furthermore, education creates danger in the world by devaluing learning and dehumanizing people. Learning cannot be confined to formal allotments such as school or colleges, and in our changing times, it becomes even more imperative that education be not a product to sell but a tool to enlighten, a means to promote growth rather than division. This is the true purpose of education. And it does not come pre-packaged. Works Cited Gidley, J. and S. Inayatullah. Youth Futures: Comparative Research and Transformative Visions. (2002): 34. Kyhall. "The McDonaldization of Education" 15 Nov. 2012. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.    http://fundamentalsofsoc.edublogs.org/2012/11/15/the-mcdonaldization-of-education/ McClellan, Jock. â€Å"Metaphors, Words, and Models of a Wiser World.† The Swaraj Foundation. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.

KAL 801 :: essays research papers

Flight Synopsis Flight KAL 801 was scheduled to fly from Kimpo Airport in Seoul, Korea to A.B. Won Guam International Airport in Agana, Guam. The flight crew had met earlier to discuss the flight release, weather conditions and fill out all necessary paperwork. And on August 6th, 1997 at 9:27 PM the Boeing 747-300 departed Kimpo Airport for a three hour and fifty minute trip to Guam. The flight crew consisted of a captain, first officer and a flight engineer. The captain had several flight hours as a pilot in the Korea Air Force until Korean Air hired him in 1987. Not only did he have many hours flying a 747, he received a flight safety award from the company president, three months prior to the crash. He also earned two excellent evaluations in the simulator proficiency checks and passed the company’s mandatory Level three English test. In addition, the captain along with his first officer watched a video presentation based on the familiarization of the Guam Airport and studied approach charts several hours before the accident. (Krause, 2003) The first officer had also served in the Korean Air Force before joining the ranks with Korean Air in 1994. Although he was only two years younger than the captain, he had a high number of flight hours as a 747 first officer. However, his performances in the simulator evaluations were slightly above average. One instructor noted that his â€Å"altitude management on nonprecision approach was somewhat less than desirable† and adding that he was â€Å"somewhat slow to carry out directions† (Krause, 2003) The flight engineer was also a very distinguished pilot and was hired by KAL in 1979. Similar to the captain, he earned excellent ratings in his evaluations of crew management and simulator tests, and also passed the English proficiency exams. (Krause, 2003) â€Å"†¦a weak low pressure trough is moving slowly [through] the Mariana Islands†¦resulting in gentle to moderate easterly winds and scattered showers. The effects of the upper level low far to the northeast have diminished during the past 12 hours or so. Light to moderate showers should be expected except for isolated afternoon thunderstorms due to solar heating†, this was the weather report provided by the Guam Weather Station. However, at around 0122, the crew received a message via the Automatic Terminal Information Service (ATIS), â€Å"†¦wind calm, visibility seven [clouds] one thousand six hundred scattered, two thousand five hundred scattered, temperature two seven [Celsius], dew point two four, altimeter niner eight six, runway six in use.

Essay on The Picture of Dorian Gray as a Moral Book -- Picture Dorian

The Picture of Dorian Gray as a Moral Book The Picture of Dorian Gray was a remarkably well-written book due to the reaction of its themes by society. In the preface of the novel, Wilde introduces the opinion that "...there is no moral or immoral book. Books are well written or badly written. That is all." Numerous views can be taken upon this fastidious comment. Many would agree that Wilde is justifiably correct because the preface was written with the intention that his readers understand the deeper meaning of the themes than worrying about whether it is considered morally acceptable; or perhaps, the view that it could be considered moral or immoral by the impact it has on the readers' lives. Even though there are several positions held on what The Picture of Dorian Gray's most important meaning is about, the most prominent is the novel as a moral book. Lord Henry Wotton immediately begins to corrupt Dorian's mind after they first meet by forcing his immoral thoughts of "yielding to temptation" which allows Lord Henr y to hold his attention. After listening for quite a while to Lord Henry's views, Dorian begins to change his own to match them, and therefore begins to live a life of immorality. The yellow book is a device that Lord Henry uses to further corrupt and drive Dorian deeper into the pits of sin. Through Lord Henry's influence, the changes in Dorian Gray, and the impact of the yellow book, Oscar Wilde efficiently reveals The Picture of Dorian Gray as a moral book. Lord Wotton sees Dorian as "wonderfully handsome...all of youth's passionate purity," and cannot resist the t... ...self from the influence of this book. Or perhaps...that he never sought to free himself from it." Dorian procures nine copies from Paris to have them bound in different colors to fit his mood, which implies that he was in all probability never without it. From the yellow book the moral learned is "all access as well as all renunciation" leads to punishment. In conclusion, it has been reiterated that Lord Henry's influence, the changes in Dorian, and the immorality of the yellow book further enforced The Picture of Dorian Gray as a moral book. Oscar Wilde allows for those who could understand the real meaning of the novel by comprehending the importance of these three things to discern that he fully intended on writing this novel as a moral book.

Topshop Strategy

Top shop marketing plan essay Executive SummaryTop Shop is one of the leading retail brands known globally for its most up-to-date styles in clothing and other fashion accessories. Earlier only a low price clothing outlet primarily for the teenagers, Top Shop is now the hottest fashion clothing brand with its stores keeping the latest fashions and the exclusive and extraordinary designs that appeal to all age and socio-economic groups.The management has very carefully followed a perfect blend of cutting edge, highly fashionable styles with affordability by introducing new products and services in various countries worldwide under the new company called ‘TOPSHOP plus'.Realizing the importance of doing so, after repositioning itself, Top Shop will embark upon a carefully planned journey of simultaneous product and market development strategy as ‘TOPSHOP plus' Be it Kate Moss's exclusively introduced designer range, in-store ambiance, Style Advisor service or its sponsorship s for the young and aspiring fashion gurus, Top Shop stands out today amongst many other competing brands. The management must, however, bear in mind that while expanding into so many countries with its every increasing range of products, it would have to keep a very strict check on its supply chain.Furthermore, regular innovations are a key to success for this mighty brand. For as this growing company approaches maturity, it would run a greater risk of the competitors catching up until it commits to innovations that are hard to imitate or are at least time and resource consuming. Terms of ReferenceAim of the ReportThe report covers discusses ‘TopShop plus' an extension of the Arcadia chains conception and launch as an expansion to strategic measures taken since the time that transformed itself from being an ordinary low price clothing retailer for the teenagers to a hot fashion clothing hub for all age groups.It also brings forth various marketing promotions being undertaken by the company to maintain its current position and to gain on the market share. The in depth analysis helps understanding how each of its activities have been attempting to attract customers through provision of maximum value to them and not to the company only. The later part also suggests that despite being and extraordinary fashion retailer, there are a few areas where Top Shop would need to pay special attention in order to ensure long term growth and a sustainable bottom line.Scope of the ReportAs one of the businesses of the Arcadia Group, ‘TopShop plus' strategic marketing analysis has been provided in this report keeping in view all of its products and services. The services that make the shopping experience more of an entertainment are just as important a factor in Top Shop's success as are products that directly produce revenue for it. In a nutshell, the report analyzes Top Shop as a whole through its separate products and services which also act as tools for market ing for the company. 1.The CompanyWith an initial reputation of being a tacky low price clothing outlet, Top shop ‘plus' has now earned the fame of a leading store when it comes to fashion clothing. The success, however, came only with a change in its strategy; by going ‘upscale'. Top Shop ‘plus' will be one clothing retailer that stocks the most up-to-date fashion clothes and accessories before any of its competitors does in the market. Whereby the major focus earlier on was on price competitiveness, Top Shop ‘plus' products will arrive first in the market and will be of high quality and very low comparative price.Over time, Top Shop ‘plus' will come to be known not only as just the fashion accessory provider but much rather a trend setter especially with its in-house designer brands and those exclusively introduced and introduced by fashion industry leaders. Due to its various marketing efforts, innovations in the business and exclusive services for i ts customers, it is now the biggest and the most differentiated name in the fashion industry especially when it comes to retailers in the field. 2.The Fashion Retail Market at a GlanceA study showed that even while cutting down on other areas, the European consumers hardly cut down on their expenditure on clothes (Mintel, August 2003). Even when the year on year sales in the fashion industry slowed down in 2000 and 2001, the change was not as drastic as had been predicted by certain observers. During that period, Top Shop and some of its competitors caught up on the opportunity to provide fashion clothing at an affordable price.Few of the major players that have dominated the fashion retail industry with a reputation to preempt the latest catwalk designs include Top Shop, H;M. and Zara. Now, Top Shop is amongst the very few names that account for more than 60% of the total consumer expenditure on fashion clothing and accessories. 3. Current Marketing Activities:Arcadia group plc und er Top Shop has been engaged various marketing and promotional activities. The most major ones and their analysis with reference to the company's corporate & marketing strategy follow this section. . 1 New ImageLong ago, when Top Shop was only known as a low price clothing outlet, the increasing focus of the buyers on trendiness and the readiest availability of the new fashion accessories forced the managed to rethink its strategic position. Right at that time, the management decided to reposition Top Shop from being a discount seller to a hot trend setter brand. Initially, Top shop relied on copying the latest catwalk designs and releasing them in the market before any other competitor like H& M and Zara.Gradually however, while the other fashion brands focused following the same copying the strategy, Top Shop entered into the arena of introducing new self made designs initially under a brand named Unique. Since that time, Top Shop has been living the repute of being the high style up-to-date fashion god of the high street. Consider the following perceptual map taking bullet 1 as its initial and 2 as its later positioning with respect to certain other competing brands such as Marks & Spencer, H&M etc. Refer to 1c and 2c as the composite competitor positioning before and after Top Shop's transformation. . 2 High Price-High Quality Fashion ClothingPreviously, for quite some years, Top Shop had to experience low revenues and even lower profits primarily because of its excessive focus on price competitiveness. Later a shift its strategy helped the bottom line to sore up. The major factor contributing to such a result was the chain's new focus on female fashion clothing and accessories that it brought into the market before its competitors even if it had to pay more to the suppliers. Such a strategy assisted it in becoming a market leader where it came to the latest trends and fashion in the women-ware.It is also important to note that Top Shop offers products at usually a very low price even as low as three times comparative to the competitors. But because the customers get access to the latest fashion only here, the revenues at Top Shop are only positively affected. More so, with its discount offers such as those especially designed for the students, it can rest assured that even the young age groups can afford the trendy ware that it has to offer to its customers. Additionally, because ‘fashion' is this chain's selling point, the customers are often ready to pay a premium price for certain designs.In this manner, it is able to maintain an upscale image as well as smooth revenues. 3. 3 Celebrity EndorsementsKate Moss Collection by Top Shop has been another feather in the retailer's cap. This endorsement by the British super model would act to strengthen Top Shop's image as being first class in fashion clothing (Appendix 1). Furthermore, the hype and publicity that the mere fact of the supermodel introducing her own designer collectio n through Top Shop created would certainly reap long term benefits for the company. We intend to use same model for the brand awareness and project topshop‘plus' as a high end business.Primarily, it would further Top Shop's liking amongst the other celebrities who might have otherwise preferred some other retail brand. But with Kate Moss endorsing it, there is greater likelihood of the brand gaining on its recognition in the general public as well as the celebrity masses. Also, such endorsements are essentially important after the management's concern for maintaining Top Shop's fashion-focused upscale image. 3. 4 Discount offersOne of the most surprising consumer promotions offered by Top Shop is the student discount (Appendix 2).This proved to be a great success but with topshop ‘plus' because of Top Shop plus is an upscale fashion oriented global retail chain. However, such a discount can serve for Top Shop, two important purposes. Firstly, it would attract the young f ashion oriented members of the target market who have lower purchasing power comparative to any of its other targeted customers. Along side this, promotions of this nature would allow the management to explore opportunities related to the younger segment of the market in the long run by giving it first hand knowledge of the segment's preferences.Additionally, their preference for shopping at Top Shop today may continue to their later age thereby ensuring a smooth flow of revenues for the company. Secondly, and very importantly, such a discount offer is especially fruitful in times of recession. Where the sales of other upscale retail outlets may be going down due to high prices, keeping the young souls dressed in up-to-date trendy outfits obtainable at a special discounted price would prevent the sales going down beyond a certain acceptable level. 3. Membership cardsOne of the most distinguished promotions of this cutting edge fashion retailer is its exclusive membership for its cus tomers. The membership allows access to its superior fashion advice service, ‘Style Advisor' whereby its most loyal customers can reach to thousands of Style Advisors round the globe while seeking a hassle free shopping experience (Appendix 3). The membership can be rightly thought of as a promotion to ensure customer loyalty by inculcating in them a sense of pride being associated with Top Shop.Additionally, with preferred treatment in all the stores worldwide, such an initiative can ensure that the customers would help keeping the revenue flow smooth for this mighty fashion trend setter. 3. 7 Online PresenceIt is widely thought that a website primarily serves as a source of advertising and promotion for a brand. Additionally however, it also works effectively well in generating sales especially for an organization that has customers spread globally. Such a purpose is only served if the website allows the visitors to make order based purchases. Top Shop's online presence fits the aforementioned purposes.It not only contains information on the upcoming fashion accessories but also some very useful tips and fashion advice. This can actually be an attraction for Top Shop's target audience who seek such services to be available such that they can access it any time and with the least time spending. Along with its tailored -size ordering available online, the company can ensure least possible hassle caused to the customers (Appendix 4). Furthermore, the website would continuously allow Top Shop to be an online sales point for the young students whose life styles make such buying rather convenient.Although one cannot ignore the importance of its brick and mortar existence as well, the services available through its website may certainly add a lot of value to the business. It presence on Facebook and Twitter is another step forward in promoting itself far and wide. 3. 8 Sponsorships for the Rising Fashion TalentAs a gesture of its commitment to fashion and tre ndsetting, Top Shop has been closely associated with various initiatives for supporting and promoting young and aspiring fashion gurus. It provides title sponsorship for the Graduate Fashion Week.Also, it does a lot of work in support of the London Fashion Week and for launching the careers of various young designers through the endowment of a special award. Through this award many well known names such as Hussain Chalayan, Clements Riberio and several others earned repute in the fashion industry. Such activities do two important things for Top Shop ‘plus' directly and indirectly. Firstly, it promotes the brand amongst the youth and gains their support. Secondly, such efforts ensure Top Shop‘plus' customer, of its commitment and support for fashion and so helps strengthen its position in the industry. . Understanding the Product Life Cycle Currently, Top Shop ‘plus' should grow rapidly in early stage of the PLC model whereby as an early adapter of the strategy of p roviding high rated fashion clothing at an affordable price, it has been working towards maintaining its product quality and adding more and more services to increase value for the customer. Additionally, with a high market demand and comparatively easier competition due to its current position, it is able to maintain low prices and yet enjoys profits and a positive brand image.As it matures, it would certainly have to look into defending its market share since a lot of new entrants and existing players may catch up on its strategy. The future would therefore also require a very strong distribution network meshed with a extraordinary level of innovation in its products as well as its services. 5. SWOT AnalysisStrength:Topshop has been held in the UK market for over decades, it has created strong consumer loyalty over the time through unique taste, fashion and trends through the variety level on its product.Customers are perceive Topshop as a premium brand, so the brand image is a ke y strength for the company. Extensive marketing strategy includes various dynamic advertisements which targeted male and female youth. The negotiation of better promotions through retailers strengthens demand and different sizes of product packaging suits consumer needs and buying patterns are considered to be some of its key marketing strengths. Being a high street market leader in the UK creates the feasibility of inorganic growth. Weakness:Topshop has not been able to compete against its competitors due to lack of marketing strategy in the times of growth.The competitive advantage it once used to brush away the rivals was given away. M&S and others have taken the lead since. Opportunities:There has been a growth in the fashion industry even in midst of economic downturn. For a group like Arcadia, it gives an opportunity to expand its chain of businesses. With Topshop's existing brand name, it seems to be the logical and potentially good strategy. Threats:Threat of possible new en trant in the Britain market may increase for Topshop among people's attitude of American capitalism over Britain.Some people could possibly opt to their own country brand upon perceived imitation could reflect on changing purchasing behaviour. The increasingly cheap but trendy and fashionable products manufactured under the name of retail giants such as Tesco, Sainsbury's and ASDA are a threat to substitution of Arcadia's Topshop. 6. Strategic AnalysisAn attempt by the management, and a very successful attempt too, the revamped image of this fashion brand was a step towards repositioning Top Shop and changing consumer perceptions about it.After successfully doing so, Top Shop has been constantly at work to keep up its image as The Fashion Leader in the retail industry making shopping more of an entertaining experience for its customers through various other facilities, activities and services on its stores and online. Its association with fashion industry celebrities such as Kate Mo ss herself fortifies its position with reference to its brand values that blend up-to-date styles and affordability together. The shortest possible lead time industry wide, it further gains competitive advantage over so many other brands.Additionally, when its sponsors fashion events and financially supports the careers of the upcoming talent, its gains the loyalty and support of the youth that would give it revenues on a long term basis. Its presence online as not only a promotional banner but as a proper sale point is an advance towards more success as that can certainly help it reaching to its target market in countries where it is not present at least as yet. This is also an effective way to reach out to the teenaged members of its target market whose lifestyles would rather allow them to make purchases online more conveniently.For the matter of understanding, very simply put, the Ansoff's Matrix suggests that Top Shop is currently following a product-market growth strategy by f ocusing on both product and market development at the same time. However, the management must bear in mind that to maintain the current image of a cutting-edge affordable fashion provider, it must ensure a smooth supply chain system by which it would be able to carry on bringing in the latest fashion faster than any of its competitors. Also, now with its own designs out in the market, innovation and innovation only would be the key to its success.Loyalty programs such as the membership cards and sponsorships are of course going to supplement all these efforts. 7. RecommendationsThe current popularity and success status of Top Shop does suggest that it has been upholding its image really well with its promotional activities. To ensure long term success however, it may take a few steps at this stage. For instance, now that its membership program is already in place, it may introduce a member-get-member program by which each member bringing in a new member with his reference is rewarde d and acclaimed. This would help it in building upon its present clientele and lso on the loyalty level of the existing customers. As pointed out earlier as well, it is important that Top Shop pays attention to its supply chain. Its entry into self designed brands is a beginning but if it gains some control over its suppliers through backward integration, the risk may be greatly reduced. Otherwise, if the competitors somehow gain on this respect, it may cause serious damage to Top Shop's business. Therefore it is imperative that it pays attention to the factors that are a source of advantage for it now and are necessary for ensuring its long terms success. . ConclusionAs of now, Top Shop seems to be following a strong product-market growth strategy by focusing on increasing its worldwide presence alongside an increase in its products and services. Such a strategy would certainly prove fruitful when the competition paces up and a particular market for Top Shop reaches maturity. Howev er, only if Top Shop focuses on continuous innovation and provision of maximum value to the customer, taking its position in the market would be rather difficult for the competing fashion retailers.Furthermore, the various in-store services that it provides also act as an indirect way of diversification while being a part of the company's promotional strategy as well. References Baker, M. , 2003, The Marketing Book, 5th Edition, Butterworth-Heinemann,  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   pp. 87-109 Kurtz, D. , 2009,Contemporary Marketing, 2009 Edition, USA, Neil Marquardt, pp. 363 Kotler, P. , Armstrong, G. , 2008 Principles of Marketing, 12th Edition,Pearson Education, pp. 338 Ferrel, O. , Hartline, M. , 2007, Marketing Strategy, 4th Edition, Thomson Higher Education pp. 282 David, F. 2007, Strategic Management,10th Edition, Pearson Education, pp. 196-210 Daniels, M. , May 4, 2009, Top Shop: Deconstructing the Retail Marketing Phenomenon Smith, A. , How Top Shop Changed Fashion, UK Available at http:// www. time. com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1625185,00. html [Accessed on Jan 19, 2010] Brand Republic, 2005, Super Brands Case Study: Top Shop Available at http://www. brandrepublic. com/news/474559/superbrands-case-studies-topshop/ [Accessed: Jan 23, 2010] Read more: http://www. americanessays. com/study-aids/free-essays/marketing/top-shop-marketing-plan. php#ixzz2A1VU1VWU

Gran Torino Transcultural Analysis Essay

Gran Torino starring Clint Eastwood was about a man’s struggle in adapting to the changes in his environment when confronted by unfamiliar exposure to cultural differences. The film was chosen because it told a story about one’s struggle with traditional practice, cultural diversity, gender roles, and the acceptance of others. In terms of culture, there was an abundance of traditional practices related to the Hmong community. The screenplay was written by Nick Schenk and the movie was filmed in July 2008 (Longwell, T). Gran Torino was directed and produced by Clint Eastwood, who also played the role of the main character known as Walt Kowalski. Walt was an American man and a Korean War veteran who resided in a neighborhood that became inhabited by Hmong families (Gran Torino, 2008). The relationship that Walt had with his own family was disconnected and distant because his sons embraced the modern way of living but Walt was more traditional. Walt was portrayed as a grum py old man who did not like to socialize with others. All of that changed when Walt became associated with the Hmong children next door, Thao and Sue. Walt saved Thao from being taken by the Hmong gang members and was viewed as a hero by the Hmong families despite the fact that Walt was just trying to keep other people off his lawn. Upon an unexpected invitation by Sue, Walt’s world became intertwined with the Hmong community as he was introduced to various traditional Hmong customs and foods. After a series of events, the Hmong gang returned and injured Thao’s family which prompted Walt to seek redemption from his war past by sacrificing himself for the safety of Thao and Sue. The film portrayed culture clashes between an American and Hmong families while focusing on the struggles that Hmong immigrants endure to survive within their community. The Hmong population was great in Minneapolis, Minnesota and it was the original setting of Gran Torino and also the home town of screenplay writer Nick Schenk (Longwell). Schenk had never written any other featured films prior to Gran Torino and it was his first recognized piece. In the early 90s, Schenk worked at a factory where many of his co-workers were Hmong and he gained some knowledge about the history of Hmong people (Longwell). The Hmong sided with the U.S during the Vietnam War but ended up in refugee camps due to communist takeover after the U.S. troops left, which resulted in the Hmong fleeing to the U.S. to escape from the communist forces (Gran  Torino, 2008). Schenk began to incorporate Hmong families into the story with a Korean War veteran to emphasize a clash of cultures. The intended purpose of this film was to express the cultural barriers in the language, customs, and gender roles between Hmong people and Americans. The writers and directors did a great job on portraying masculinity as the perceived dominant role between the characters. In Gran Torino, Walt criticized Thao for doing things that men are not supposed to do such as gardening. Thao does a good job in representing role reversal because he was proud to do women chores like washing the dishes and gardening. Walt tried his best to look after Thao and made Thao masculine by teaching him how to talk to other â€Å"real† men. Walt believed that real American men are supposed to be strong, fight for themselves, pay taxes, and work hard at a hands-on laboring job. Walt eventually helped Thao become a man by getting him a â€Å"real† job, tools for construction work, and social skills to interact with other men. This film was derived from Schenk’s prior experience as a factory worker with other Hmong people and this writer did not create any other significant work subsequent to the production of Gran Torino. The plot of t he movie was to show how two different types of culture collide and interact. In addition, there was also indication that masculinity in males was important as shown by the main character, Walt. The sub-plot was to show the viewers that men are not supposed to be barbaric but to become a sophisticated people with class and follow society’s rule. The main characters were Walt Kowalski, Spider, Thao, and Thao’s older sister, Sue. Walt played the dominating male that represented how a real man should be. Spider, Thao and Sue’s cousin, represented an antagonist barbaric villain that supposed to be a gangster whom terrorized Walt’s neighborhood. Thao played an innocent feminine teenage role that Walt believed was not masculine, but has class and self-respect. Sue played the smart, sophisticated, typical school Asian girl who ended up getting injured by her cousin, Spider, and his gang. It was through the interaction with Sue and Walt that the viewers were able to experience Hmong history and cultural customs. In one of the scenes during a car ride home, Sue explained to Walt the origin of Hmong people and she also invited him to her house for meal where Walt thoroughly enjoyed the foods of Hmong culture. Walt and Spider treated Thao like a child because they both wanted to teach Thao how to become a man. Spid er taught Thao that  he needed to become a barbaric person to become a â€Å"real† man, while Walt taught Thao that hard work and following society norms was what a â€Å"real† man should do. Sue was the only main female character that was able to change Walt’s mind about Hmong people. Because of Sue’s persistence, Walt decided to help her and her family from Spider and his gang. Walt became the protagonist at the end of the movie by risking his own life to bring down Spider and his gang and restoring peace to the community. My opinion about the film was that the director did a good job on portraying masculinity and how a real man should act and treat a woman. There were a lot of racism coming out of Walt’s mouth about Asians, but in the end, I believed he had a change of heart about his Hmong neighbors. I believe he came to realizations that not all Asians are the same as he remembered during his Korean War days. The way Walt finally gave a confession to the priest and how he died for his neighbor was really unexpected. The acting of Walt’s character by Clint Eastwood was really good as well. Walt’s character caught my attention and made me want to know more about his previous life, especially when he talked about how he was in the Kore an War. The cinematography could have been better and at times, it felt like I was watching a biography rather than a movie. One of the flaws was that Walt did not get in a fight for his rude behavior towards everyone that he encountered. Another flaw was that he sacrificed his life for a neighbor when he knew that he could have called the cops on Spider and his crew for possession of a fire arm and shooting his neighbor’s house, rather than choosing death at the end. Also, I believed the movie could have been better if they left out his illness from the doctor’s visit. If they had left that out and continued with the suicidal death in the end rather than risking Walt’s life because of a terminal illness, Walt’s character would have been more heroic. On the contrary, a strength of the movie was when Sue corrected Walt about the pronunciation of her race while giving him a history of where Hmong people came from and why they immigrated to America. The ultimate strength was when Walt died for his neighbor by going to Spider’s apartment complex with witnesses around to see h im get murdered. Throughout the movie, the film showed the audience that Walt always carried a gun to scare off his foes, but at the end, he realized that he did not need a weapon to bring down Spider and his gang. One of the things that I learned from the film was that nurses should not be too quick to judge someone based on appearance, like how Walt called all the Asians â€Å"gooks† without knowing their nationality. In one of the scenes in the movie, Walt was in the waiting room at the hospital for a check-up and a nurse mispronounced his name. The nurse called him â€Å"Koski† while his name was â€Å"Kowalski.† Walt gave her a disgusting look and the nurse did not apologize or asked if she was mispronouncing his name or not. As a future nurse, I want to maintain a professional role and acknowledge patients by their correct name. Correctly pronouncing a patient’s name also eliminates human error and also prevents doctors from diagnosing the wrong person. In conclusion, I would recommend this movie to people who are uneducated about Asian culture. There were a lot of racist terms that Walt used in the movie about Asians and the stereotypes of Asians eating dogs which are not true. I would rate the movie a 4 out of 5 stars because the movie was rich in cultural content and character development. The film is appropriate for audiences ages 13 and up and mainly geared toward mal es. There were a lot of violent content and gang related terms involved. As a result of watching this movie, I learned that one can change if surrounded by the right people under inevitable circumstances such as Walt’s culture clash with his Hmong neighbors. In addition, helping one another was the most rewarding take home message of Gran Torino. Whether I am helping a patient or just lending a helping hand to my next door neighbor, I will remember to be kind as to prevent one another from going down the wrong paths. References Eastwood, C. (Producer & Director). (2008). Gran torino [Motion Picture]. Burbank, CA: Warner Bros. Longwell, T. (2008). Eastwood recognizes Hmong immigrants with new film. Reuters. Retrieved May 27, 2014, from http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/12/09/us-gran-idUSTRE4B81ZC20081209