Taino Lifestyle Essay Example for Free

Taino Lifestyle Essay The Arawak/Taino society was basically a very gentle culture. It was characterized by happiness, friendliness and a highly organized hierarchical, paternal society, and a lack of guile. Each society was a small kingdom and the leader was called a cacique. The cacique’s function was to keep the welfare of the village by assigning daily work and making sure everyone got an equal share. The relatives of the caciques lived together in large houses in the center of the village. These houses reflect the warmth of the climate and simply used mud, straw and palm leaves. The houses did not contain much furniture. People slept in cotton hammocks or simply on mats of banana leaves. The general population lived in large circular buildings called bohios, constructed with wooden poles, woven straw, and palm leaves. At the time of Columbus there were five different kingdoms on the island of Hispaniola. The Indians practiced polygamy. Most men had 2 or 3 wives, but the caciques had as many as 30. It was a great honor for a woman to be married to a cacique. Not only did she enjoy a materially superior lifestyle, but her children were held in high esteem. HOUSING AND DRESS The Arawak/Taino used two primary architectural styles for their homes. The general population lived in circular buildings with poles providing the primary support and these were covered with woven straw and palm leaves. They were somewhat like North American teepees except rather than being covered with skins they needed to reflect the warmth of the climate and simply used straw and palm leaves. The caciques were singled out for unique housing. Their house were rectangular and even featured a small porch. Despite the difference in shape, and the considerably larger buildings, the same materials were used. When the Africans came beginning in 1507 they introduced mud and wattle as primary building materials. However, there is no record of the Arawak/Tainos having used these materials. The house of the cacique contained only his own family. However, given the number of wives he might have, this constituted a huge family. The round houses of the common people were also large. Each one had about 10-15 men and their whole families. Thus any Arawak/Taino home might house a hundred people. The houses did not contain much furniture. People slept in cotton hammocks or simply on mats of banana leaves. They also made wooden chairs with woven seats, couches and built cradles for their children. In addition to houses the typical Arawak/Taino village contained a flat court in the center of the village which was used for ball games and various festivals, both religious and secular. Houses were around this court. This was a hierarchical society, and while there was only one cacique who was paid a tribute (tax) to oversee the village, there were other levels of sub-caciques, who were not paid, but did hold positions of honor. They were liable for various services to the village and cacique. Stone making was especially developed among the Arawak/Tainos, but they seem not to have used it at all in building houses. It was primarily used for tools and especially religious artifacts. The men were generally naked, but the women sometimes wore short skirts. Men and women alike adorned their bodies with paint and shells and other decorations. FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Arawak/Taino diet, like ours, centered around meat or fish as the primary source of protein. There never were many wild animals to hunt on Hispaniola, but there were some small mammals which were hunted and enjoyed. They also ate snakes, various rodents, bats, worms, birds, in general any living things they could find with the exception of humans. They were able to hunt ducks and turtles in the lakes and sea. The costal natives relied heavily on fishing, and tended to eat their fish either raw or only partially cooked. Since they did grow cotton on the island, the natives had fishing nets made of cotton. The natives of the interior relied more on agriculture and de-emphasized meat or fish in their diet. The Taino had a developed system of agriculture which was environmentally friendly and almost maintenance free. They raised their crops in a conuco, a large mound which was devised especially for farming. They packed the conuco with leaves which improved drainage and protected it from soil erosion. One of the primary crops cultivated by the Taino was cassava or yuca, which they ate as a flat bread. They also grew corn, squash, beans, peppers, sweet potatoes, yams, peanuts as well as tobacco. (As an aside I would like to comment that many people in the pre-Columbian Americas had virtually work free agriculture. This system meant that people living in these materially simple social systems had enormous amounts of free time and often developed elaborate religious rites which took a lot of their time, but also had highly developed systems of games and recreation. There are some nice advantages to very simple living and diet!) One of the Arawak/Taino’s primary crops was cassava. This is a root crop from which a poisonous juice must be squeezed. Then it is baked into a bread like slab. The current method of doing this in Haiti produces a flat bread, sort of like a stale burrito or pizza shell. The Arawak/Taino grew corn (maize), squash, beans, peppers, sweet potatoes, yams and peanuts. They not only had cotton, but they raised tobacco and enjoyed smoking very much. It was not only a part of their social life, but was used in religious ceremonies too. TRANSPORTATION The Arawak/Taino had no large animals like horses, oxen or mules to ride or use for work. But they did have river and sea transportation. They used dugout canoes which were cut from a single tree trunk and used with paddles. They could take 70-80 people in a single canoe and even used them for long travels on the sea. These dugouts allowed fishing the few lakes of Hispaniola as well as fishing out a bit off the coast. DEFENSE The Arawak/Taino themselves were quite peaceful people, but they did have to defend themselves from the Caribs who were cannibals. The Caribs of this area were centered at what is today Puerto Rico, but some did live in northeast Hispaniola, an area that today is the Dominican Republic. The Caribs were war-like cannibals. They often raided the more peaceful Arawak/Tainos, killing off the men, stealing and holding the women for breeding, and fattening the children to eat. Thus the Arawak/Taino had some weapons which they used in defense. They used the bow and arrow, and had developed some poisons for their arrow tips. They had cotton ropes for defensive purposes and some spears with fish hooks on the end. Since there were hardwoods on the island, they did have a war club made of macana. This was about 1†³ thick and reminds one very much of the cocomaque stick used in later Haitian days. They did not develop any armor or specifically defensive weapons (shields, etc.). RELIGION AND MYTH The Arawak/Taino were polytheists and their gods were called zemi. The zemi controlled various functions of the universe, very much like Greek gods did, or like later Haitian Voodoo lwa. However, they do not seem to have had particular personalities like the Greek and Haitian gods/spirits do. There were three primary religious practices: Religious worship and obeisance to the zemi themselves Dancing in the village court during special festivals of thanksgiving or petition Medicine men, or priests, consulting the zemi for advice and healing. This was done in public ceremonies with song and dance People had special dress for the ceremonies which included paint and feathers. From their knees on down they would be covered in shells. The shaman (medicine man or priests) presented the carved figures of the zemi. The cacique sat on wooden stool, a place of honor. (There are many surviving stone carvings of the cacique on his stool.) There was a ceremonial beating of drums. People induced vomiting with a swallowing stick. This was to purge the body of impurities, both a literal physical purging and a symbolic spiritual purging. This ceremonial purging and other rites were a symbolic changing before zemi. Women served bread (a communion rite), first to zemi, then to the cacique followed by the other people. The sacred bread was a powerful protector. (The interesting similarities between this ritual and the Christian practice of eucharist is obvious!) Finally came an oral history lesson — the singing of the village epic in honor of the cacique and his ancestors. As the poet recited he was accompanied by a maraca, a piece of hardwood which was beaten with pebbles. There was an afterlife where the good would be rewarded. They would meet up with dead relatives and friends. Since most of the people they would meet in this paradise were women, it is curious to speculate if it was mainly women who were considered good, or if some other reason accounted for this division of the sexes in the afterlife. There are many stone religious artifacts which have been found in Haiti. The zemi take on strange forms like toads, turtles, snakes, alligators and various distorted and hideous human faces. The zemi, as well as dead caciques, have certain powers over the natural world and must be dealt with. Thus these various services are ways of acknowledging their power (worship and thanksgiving) and at the same time seeking their aid. Because of these powers there are many Arawak/Tanio stories which account for the origins of some experienced phenomena in myth and or magic. Several myths had to do with caves. The sun and moon, for example, came out of caves. Another story tells that the people lived in caves and only came out at night. One guard was supposed to watch carefully over people to be sure they were well divided in the land. However, one day he was late in returning and the sun caught him and turned him into a stone pillar. Another Indian became angry at the sun for its various tricks and decided to leave. He convinced all the women to abandon their men and come with him along with their children. But, the children were deserted, and in their hunger they turned into frogs. The women simply disappeared. This left the men without women. But, they did find some sexless creatures roaming around and eventually captured them. (Actually they used people with a disease like mange since they had rough hands and could hold on to these elusive creatures.) However, they tied these creatures up and put woodpeckers on them. The birds, thinking these were trees started pecking on them and carved out the sex organs of women, thus re-establishing the possibility of survival. A different myth simply tells that once there were no women. Man brought woman from an island where there were only women. The origin of the oceans was in a huge flood which occurred when a father murdered his son (who was about to murder the father), and then put his bones in a calabash. The bones turned to fish and then the gourd broke and all the water of the world flowed from the broken gourd. GENOCIDE AGAINST THE ARAWAK/TAINO INDIANS There is a great debate as to just how many Arawak/Taino inhabited Hispaniola when Columbus landed in 1492. Some of the early Spanish historian/observers claimed there were as many as 3,000,000 to 4,000,000. These numbers seem to be based on very little reliable evidence and are thought to be gross exaggerations. However, since nothing like a census was done, the methods for estimating the numbers are extremely shaky, whether by these early historians or later critics. One long technical article on the population comes in the with the low estimate of 100,000. Several other modern scholars seem to lean more forcefully in the area of 300,000 to 400,000. Whatever the number, what happened to them is extremely tragic. They were not immune to European diseases, especially smallpox, and the Spanish worked them unmercifully in the mines and fields. By 1507 the Spanish were settled and able to do a more reliable job of counting the Arawak/Tainos. It is generally agreed that by 1507 their numbers had shrunk to 60,000. By 1531 the number was down to 600. Today there are no easily discerned traces of the Arawak/Tanio at all except for some of the archaeological remains that have been found. Not only on Hispaniola, but also across the Windward Passage in Cuba, complete genocide was practiced on these natives. Disease was a major cause of their demise. However, on Columbus’ 2nd voyage he began to require a tribute from the Arawak/Tainos. They were expected to yield a certain quantity of gold per capita. Failing that each adult of 14 was required to submit 25lbs. of cotton. For those who could not produce the cotton either, there was a service requirement for them to work for the Spanish. This set the stage for a system of assigning the Arawak/Taino to Spanish settlers as effective slave labor. This system contributed significantly to their genocide.

Identity theft and fraud Essay Example for Free

Identity theft and fraud Essay Identity theft and credit card fraud are two of the fastest growing white collar crimes in society today. Identity thieves and credit card fraud perpetrators are aided by todays continually developing technologies and low technology and crude methods like Dumpster diving or trash retrieval. However, more often than not, it is their victims own carelessness and public lack of awareness that often turn out to be these criminals biggest ally. On November 2007, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a report that put the number of cases of Identity theft reported in 2005 at 8. 9 million American adults or approximately 3. 7 percent of the US adult population. (FTC Releases Survey of Identity Theft in the U. S. Study Shows 8. 3 Million Victims in 2005) What is Identity theft? By definition, identity theft is what happens when someone other than ones self and without their knowledge uses his/her personal information such as social security and credit card numbers. With this information, it is easy for thieves to run up bills by ordering items on line or even apply for credit cards in the victims name. They of course get the benefit of spending while their poor victim is left with stacks of bills for purchases they did not make on cards they do not own. Some of these victims have even gone to jail and made to pay up debts they were not even aware existed (Identity Theft: How to, 24. ) There are a number of ways by which identity thieves and credit card frauds can victimize unsuspecting and hardworking citizens. The growing number of reports of instances where people are penalized for bills and financial charges they were not even aware of is alarming. What is even more alarming however is very few people are aware of how such incidents may be prevented by simple common sense measures. Detroit based Attorney and president of the American Bankruptcy Institute Richardo Kilpatrick stresses the importance of quick action saying that the longer the victim waits to dispute bills raised through fraud, the fewer rights they can expect to have. If not done properly, victims may be made responsible for the credit card charges. (24) To avoid credit card fraud and identity theft, the FTC along with other law enforcement and consumer advocacy groups recommend the following common-sense guidelines (Facts for Consumers) to protect themselves from identity theft and credit card fraud: 1. Keep your credit card in sight every time you use it. Make sure it is returned as quickly as possible. Unscrupulous people may easily write down your card number as well as other pertinent information found on your card. There are also electronic devices called skimmers (Shannon) that can not only read and copy card information embedded in the cards magnetic strip but also the verification codes that are needed by merchants to validate cards electronically from the issuing card companies. All the data downloaded by the skimmer are all a card counterfeiter needs to produce perfect duplicates of credit cards. 2. Keep identification, licenses and credit cards separate from your wallet. In case you are out shopping and your wallet gets snatched, at least your Ids and credit cards remain safe. Jason King, a spokesman for the American Association of Motor Vehicles Administrators (AAMVA) says that there are many ways an identity thief or common burglar may use a stolen drivers license and credit card. Access to someones drivers license, for example, leads to an amazing number of other opportunities in our society, he says, such as obtaining financial and health services, and everything else from renting a car to cashing a check and boarding an airplane. (Boulard) In a case cited in the US Department of Justice web site, a woman in the Southern District of Florida plead guilty to counts of federal charges on her applying for an obtaining a drivers license in the name of her victim. The said license was used by the woman to withdraw more that $13,000 from her victims bank account as well as applying for and receiving five department store credit cards in her victims name which she the used to rack up bills amounting to $4,000. (Identity Theft para. 16) In some cases, where ID cards have been stolen, thieves have been known to break into the homes of their victims stealing from them a second time. 3. Ignore emails that request for credit card information for verification purposes. Never entertain e-mail messages asking you to go to a web site to verify your personal and credit card information. There is a scam called phishing where computer-savvy identity thieves construct mirror web sites of legit companies such as PayPal or banks, that trick customers into divulging their personal and financial information. (OSullivan) 4. Sign credit cards as soon as you receive them. 5. Shred and dispose all credit card applications you receive in the mail. If thieves can get these applications it means they could also have gotten or have access to mail containing your personal information. Some thieves also resort to low-tech and old fashioned methods such as swiping mail from mailboxes, diving through trash cans and dumpsters, or working in league with employees of postal and card companies. At times, they also work with employees at restaurants, hotels and establishments that accept credit card payments warns Johnny May, an independent security consultant and author of Johnny Mays Guide to Preventing Identity Theft: How Criminals Steal Your Personal Information, How to Prevent it, and What to Do if You Become a Victim (Security Resources Unlimited L. L. C. ) (Young) The FTC also advises bank clients to tear up the change of address: forms that come with bank statements. In some cases, mail, pre-approved credit cards and other financial documents have been diverted by identity thieves to another address simply by filling out the banks change of address form that they dug out of your dumpster. 6. Never write your PIN numbers on ATM and credit cards. Once the card is stolen, the readiness of information on the card will just make it easier for thieves to bypass whatever validation or verification processes done by the card companies. When it comes to it, dont put slips of paper containing these PIN numbers in your wallet either. 7. Avoid leaving credit card receipts, bills and documents containing personal and financial information lying around even in familiar surroundings. In the magazine article Stolen Lives: Identity Theft Is the Countrys Fastest Growing Crime. Heres How to Protect Your Most Valuable Asset-You! by Stephanie Young, she details the experience of Tahira Scott who was victimized by her housemate who was also her cousin. We started getting bills in someone elses name. Then two employees from a car dealership came to Scotts job to see if the person who had tried to purchase a vehicle in her name was actually her. Although she was a little suspicious, Scott says she had no idea about her cousins misdeeds. I just thought it was a mistake, she says. (Young) 8. Keep an updated record of all bank and credit card account numbers with their expiration dates. Make sure that you also take note of the address and contact numbers of the bank and issuing card company just in case your cards get misplaced or stolen. There are people who realize that they cannot report credit card theft or losses simply because they have no record of their account and card numbers. 9. When using your credit card in public, it is better to be paranoid and shield your card from other peoples view just in case they manage to take pictures of your card face with all the info and numbers counterfeiters need. 10. Never carry around more credit cards than you need. The more cards a thief can get from you, the bigger the balances they can spend. 11. Do not delay opening your credit card bills. This may be crucial in determining whether you can still contest the charges made on your card. In my friend Brians case, his parents were away for months and therefore only got to open the bills when they got back. By then, it was too late to do anything but pay up or else suffer marks against their credit rating. 12. Keep receipts of purchases made with credit cards. That way, it will be easy to balance out credit card bills with purchases made. Any charges made without corresponding hard copies of receipts may necessitate a call to the card company to verify the charge. Always keep tracks of your monthly financial statements. The reason why most thieves get away with their activities is because some people just do not scrutinize the monthly statements from their banks and credit cards. 13. Never sign a blank credit card receipt. If such a receipt is presented to you, draw a line on the blank spaces to make it impossible for anyone to fill in amounts later on. Do not just sign anything absent-mindedly. As with contracts, signatures mean approval. And unfortunately, carelessness is not an acceptable reason in disputing bill payment collections. 14. Do not be taken in by calls from people offering prizes or credit cards with higher limits when they start asking for personal information. Social Security numbers, birthdays, mothers maiden name or credit card number, it is most likely a scam to get information out of you. Try to ask for a written application form or notice. Do not do over-the-phone transactions with people offering these kinds of things.

Analysis of Gun Shot Residue using Electron Microscopy (EM)

Analysis of Gun Shot Residue using Electron Microscopy (EM) Nathan Dean Thompson Review of the composition of gunshot residue (GSR) in coherence with its characteristics when analysed using electron microscopy (EM) and energy dispersive electron techniques. The key piece of evidence residing at incidents involving firearms is the gunshot residue (GSR) that is created when a gun is fired. Gunshot residue (GSR) can also be labelled as cartridge discharge residue (CDR) or firearms discharge residue (FDS) produced from firing a firearm. Gunshot residue contains a multitude of burned particles (potassium nitrite) however not all of the particles are burned and some particles remained unburned (Bailey et al, 2013), the discharge of a firearm initially produces a plume of airborne particulates; this plume contains a diverse mixture of vapours and particles that originates due to the upsurge of the cartridge from the firearm. Due to the organic disposition of the propellant, it has been proven that it can be difficult to analyse the GSR’s organic make-up from the propellants residue, although various techniques have been reported leading to promising analyses. Forensic analysts therefore typically use the inorganic components originating mainly from the primer to detect GSR particles on items in relation to the incident. The particular particulate of importance is composed of lead (Pb), barium (Ba) and antimony (Sb), each in varying quantities. The combusted material escapes the weapon through the openings as vapours and solidifies as particulate that varies in shape and size from submicron to over 100 microns (ÃŽ ¼m) when exposed to the rapid temperature change between the vapour and the particulate. The three major components in the primers compound play important roles in the formation and identification of GSR; the initiator component consists of lead styphnate, the oxidizer component consists of barium nitrate and the fuel component consisting of antimony sulphide (Schwoeble and Exline, 2000). Available to GSR analysis are a vast array of techniques that can be used individually or coupled together for analysis of GSR particulates. Electron Microscopy (EM) is microscopic technique uses a particle beam of electrons to illuminate the specimen to produce a magnified image. Electron microscopes have an increased resolving power than a standard light microscope as of their ability to achieve magnification levels of up to 2 million times, whereas ordinary light microscopes are limited to useful magnifications below 2 thousand times. The electron microscope uses electro-charged and electromagnetic lenses to control the magnitude and intensity of the electron beam before focussing it to form an image. In conveyance, the electron beam first gets diffracted by the specimen, and then the lenses re-focus the beam into a Fourier-transformed image of the diffracted pattern for the investigation of the targeted area of the sample. Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometry (SEM-EDX) has developed to become the technique of choice for GSR analysis due to it being widely available, spatially judicious and non-destructive. SEM looks at identifying different particles that have a light molecular weight, while the heavier elements rely on a technique known as x-ray diffraction (XDF). The electrons interact with the samples atoms that get detected through the detector, stored and produce signals containing information about the samples surface topography, composition and other elemental properties like conductivity. Throughout the interactions of primary electrons secondary particles; these electrons arise due to inelastic collisions between primary electrons (the beam) and loosely bound electrons of the conduction band (more probable) or tightly bound valence electrons. The energy transferred is sufficient enough to break the bond that binds them to the solid and are ejected. The interaction ejects electrons typically have ≈ 5 50 eV. 50 eV is an arbitrary cut-off point at which anything below this value is deemed to be secondary electrons. In SEM-EDX the spectra produced through the analyses of the backscattered electrons provides qualitative information of the particles present due to the high proportion of the numerous scattering effects. However the backscattered particles produced by the ionic beam customarily undertakes a single scattering event; this single event also encourages for the quantitative understanding of the particles energy levels and through being stored electronically and then gets presented on a spectra. The particle spectrum (EBS) allows for the calculation of the total charge being deposited against the dissimilarity of the charges present within the matrix’s signal as a function of depth; this allows the X-ray absorption to be calculated accurately thus further enabling the quantitative analysis of the constituent elements. X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy is also a non-destructive method of analysis but lacks spatial resolution and also suffers from quantification problems. While SEM coupled with Wavelength Dispersive X-ray Spectrometry (SEM-WDX) utilize a micro calorimeter detector which offers a greater enhanced sensitivity to detect minute trace elements compared with SEM-EDX but is incapable of providing quantitative information for the type of element present (Molina et al., 2007). Micro Particle Induced X-ray Emission (ÃŽ ¼-PIXE) uses an ionic beam consists of protons with energy values between 2 and 3 MeV to produce the same intensity of X-ray emissions as the SEM-EDX technique (Romolo et al, 2013), however ÃŽ ¼-PIXE detects elements at the value of mg kgÃâ€" ¾1 due to the lesser primary bremsstrahlung background of decelerated charged particulates produced by protons. Previous preliminary work has shown that ÃŽ ¼-PIXEs sensitivity levels are far greater than those of SEM/EDX to the trace elements in GSR particles (Christopher et al, 2013). Furthermore similar studies have recently demonstrated that ÃŽ ¼-PIXE coupled together with Particle Induced Gamma Emission (PIGE) technique is capable of providing an unprecedented characterization of the GSR particles that arise from primers not containing lead. Multivariate analysis confirms the validity of the approximations used in order to streamline the method, thus increasing the validation of the analytical procedures used. This procedure has the ability to provide reproducible and quantitative measurements of a population of GSR particles. A quantitative and discriminative protocol for populations of GSR’s is unprecedented, thus the grouping behavior of the particles from three cartridge designs from one manufacturer can be shown. The method was shown to be non-destructive even under unrealistically prolonged analysis times. Relocation of the particles from SEM technique was demonstrated down to diameters of 1 ÃŽ ¼m, and new developments in the technology could lower this limit in the near future (Dockery and Goode., 2003). The reproducibility of the method for reanalysis of the same set of particles showed variations in the measured concentrations for most elements of around 10% and to those that reflect the spatial inhomogeneity in the particles as well as the precision of the protocol. Two populations of particles from the hands of the shooter of the same make of cartridge could not be discriminated under the same protocol, however the discrimination between the three different makes of ammunition was obtained with a significant separation value with above 99% confidence rating after analysis of the shooters hands. This is particularly interesting in forensic science because we have studied three makes all containing lead, antimony and barium in the primer. Correspondingly, particles produced by one make of cartridge and compared with different firearms were not discriminated (Christopher et al., 2013) (Romolo et al., 2013). SEM-EDX is not a technique which should be dependent on upon the determination of firearm discharge by an individual, nor is it a reliable technique to determine self-inflicted sustained wounds or not self-inflicted. Moreover a positive GSR result may be of use, while a negative result produced is not helpful as the result may indicate that a person discharged the firearm post to death or whether the firearm was discharged prior to death. When the different types of cartridge shells or cases, belonging to a multitude of different firearms are recovered from the crime scene, the GSR particles are thoroughly compared and analysed, with a known ‘control’ source compared against the samples obtained from the suspect can lead to the inconclusive match between the particles morphology and characteristics and the discussion of the evidence in court. This is because of the sensitivity of the technique utilized to analyse trace elements and its inability to offer quantitative information from single particles having much lesser sensitivity levels to analyse light and heavy metals. Therefor this creates a requirement of a technique that retains its non-destructive nature with the enhanced sensitivity to analyse both light and heavy metal particles more efficiently (French and Morgan, 2015), yet it has a much greater proficiency than SEM-EDX to collect chemical information from singular GSR particles and quantify th is information allowing for greater judgement between multiple sources. The effectiveness of sample sizes is significant at low particle numbers. However their evidential value might still be added even at their low number of particles by excluding possible sources for a GSR sample. However there are still implications to be measured that arise from forensic investigation and the observation of analysis to be considered, including the need to prevent contamination of the sample through primary, secondary and possibly tertiary transfer during the collection phase, as well as the importance of acknowledging the potential risk of contamination that will result in the loss of integrity and the evidential value in court that might arise through firearm incidents reconstruction for further evidential analysis is also stressed. Through the means of experimental studies, present techniques can be advanced to further improve the dynamic understanding of GSR dynamics of transfer, depositing and assisting in forensic reconstruction of firearm incidents. References Christopher, M, E., Warmenhaeven, J, W., Romolo, F, S., Daghi, M., Webb, R., Jeynes, C., Ward, N, I., Kirkby, K, J., Bailey, M, J., (2013). A new quantitative method for gunshot residue analysis by ion beam analysis. Analyst. 138, (16), 4649-4655 Molina, D, K., Martinez, M., Garcia, J., Daimio, V, J., (2007). Gunshot residue testing in suicides: part1: analysis by scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive x-ray. Journal of Forensic Medical Pathology. (3), 187-190 Schwoeble, A, J and Exline, D, L., (2000). Current methods in Forensic Gunshot residue analysis. 1st ed. New York: CRC press Romolo, F, S., Christopher, M, E., Donghi, M., Ripani, L., Jeynes, C., Webb, R, P., Ward, N, I., Kirkby, K, J., Bailey, M, J., (2013). Integrated Ion Beam Analysis (IBA) in Gunshot Residue (GSR) characterisation. Forensic Science International. 231, (1-3), 219-228 Rosenberg, M, B and Dockery, C, R., (2008).Determining the lifetime of detectable amounts of gunshot residue in the hands of a shooter using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy. Applied Spectroscopy. 62, (11), 1238-1241 Dockery, C, R and Goode, S, R., (2003). Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for gunshot residue on the hands of a shooter. Applied Optics. 42, (30), 6153-6158 French, J and Morgan, R., (2015). An experimental investigation of the indirect transfer and deposition of gunshot residue: further studies carried out with SEM-EDX analysis. Forensic Science International. 247, 14-17 Weblearn, [online] accessed 27th April 2015, available from https://bblearn.londonmet.ac.uk/webapps/portal/execute/tabs/tabAction?tab_tab_group_id=_1_1>

African Americans Essay -- essays research papers

Differences in race lead to divergent levels of economic development within the United States. Analysts often try to explain this phenomenon by observing a specific ethnic group's tradition and cultural ideology. Economists expand their analysis on the economic behaviors of African Americans by taking into consideration personal histories and value systems of the group under study. American families measure economic status in terms of income, and factors associated with material security as a whole. These factors may consist of health care, college funds, and retirement plans. However, African American families lag well behind when conceptualizing economic development under these terms.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The reason is due to numerous instances of discrimination that occur in the U.S. Many of America's public policies aid in the underdevelopment of non-white families. Increased economic development within America is the key to upward political and social mobility. If minorities are denied inevitable rights to equality, access to economic development becomes a highly difficult process. Despite America's idealized view on equal opportunity, it is valid to assume that economic security has been limited on the basis of race. Therefore, it is important to investigate why white American families are economically better-off than non-white American families. One must take into account aspects of political participation, education, and the number of children a family has in the home in order to understand this research question. Contemporary Viewpoints:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The lack of political participation of minority groups is a prevalent issue within the United States, explaining why non-white American families are less economically developed when compared to white American families. According to Douglas S. Massey (1995), minority families increasingly speak languages and bear cultures quite different than the established norms within the U.S. regime. He has found that ethnic groups carry their customs into new generations, leading many non-white families to become displaced and impoverished. Brinck Kerr and Will Miller (1997) believe that it is necessary for non-white American families to participate in elections in order to obtain equal representation that they are now lacking. They go on to say that political representation is the key t... ...to ethnic prejudice and discrimination as the United States continues to assimilate into the melting pot for the American dream. Political participation, education, and the number of children within the home are variables that allow the transition to become a less arduous process for white American families. However, if non-white American families continue to do poorly in terms of economic development because of these variables, non-whites will continue to lag behind the income scale in comparison to whites.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Research along these lines will lead to the study of relative differences between ethnic cultures. An example is the discovery of why almost half the number of minorities return to their country of origin after experiences of economic injustice. Previous research may also benefit other analysis in the field of economics by itemizing fertility rates in terms of the higher number of non-white American families who lack the finances to properly nourish their children. These new variables along with my research can in time become valid determinants in explaining why white American families are economically better off that non-white American families.

Soy Protein: Can It Really Prevent Cancer? Essay -- Research Biology E

Soy Protein: Can It Really Prevent Cancer? Society possesses a natural fear of the disease cancer. Even though this term is common, uncertainty surrounds its meaning. What exactly is cancer? A simple definition for a complicated disease is this: abnormal cell growth. Cancer can develop in just about any part of the body, and as abnormal cells grow, they crowd and destroy healthy tissue. This disease is not infectious, for if it were, a vaccination would have probably been developed by now. However, extensive research is continuously being conducted to find a cure or more effective treatments for this mysterious disease. "Evidence shows that lifestyles and diet are mostly responsible for the different cancer rates around the world." The following information discusses possible cancer prevention by the consumption of soy products. Again, a familiarity with the studied term is necessary. What is soy? "Soy" comes from soybean, a legume which is native to Northern China. It is often called a complete protein. This is because it is the most complete protein source from vegetables and is as good as animal protein in meat products. Soy protein, which has been stated to be of "highest caliber," contains many essential nutrients. It has been stated that populations who regularly include soy protein in their diets and reduce meat intake are generally healthier in that their risks for certain diseases are reduced. These include cancer, especially breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men. The basic assumption that has been made about soy is that its consumption as a dietary staple reduces the risk of a variety of cancers, such as breast cancer, prostate cancer, and colon cancer. A relat... ... Works Cited Barnes, S., et al. "Soy Isoflavonoids and Cancer Prevention." Advances in Experimental Medicine & Biology 401. (1996): 87-100. Barnes, Stephen. "Anticancer Effects of Genistein." The Journal of Nutrition 125 (1995): 777S-783S. Bergan, R., et al. "Genistein-stimulated Adherence of Prostate Cancer Cells Is Associated with the Binding of Focal Adhesion Kinase to Beta-1-integrin." Clinical & Experimental Mestastasis 14(4) (1996 Sept.): 389-398. Messina, M. J., et al. "Soy Intake and Cancer Risk: A Review of the In Vitro and in Vivo Data." Nutrition & Cancer 21(2) (1994): 113-131. Steele, Vernon E., et al. "Nonisoflavone Soybean Anticarcinogens." The Journal of Nutrition 125 (1995) 713S-716S.

Professional Boundaries Essay example -- Health, Nursing, Medical Dire

Introduction Nurses frequently work in situations where the boundaries of the nurses are being tested. Their respond to these â€Å"tests† is a matter of nurses and professional integrity, by virtue of the power inherent in their professional role are expected to do the right thing even it is not always clear what â€Å"doing the right thing† might look like. Similar to the fence around one’s yard or the walls around one’s house, metaphorically boundaries mark the parameters of the professional role. (Baron, 2001; Wysoker, 2000). According to Holder & Schenthal (2007), a broad definition of professional boundaries is the â€Å"limit which protects the space between the professional’s power and the patient’s vulnerability†. Professional boundaries are the spaces between nurses and patients, nurses and doctors or even nurses with others multi inter professional health worker. The power of the nurses comes from the professional position, increase of knowledge, advance of role and accountability. Establishing boundaries allow the nurse to control this power differential and allows the safe connection in other to meet patient needs. The government policy makers shown that nursing service are provided and to affect the career pathways and education. The policies are impacting on professional roles and boundaries in health care service. Nurses are becoming more individually on their own practice and they have been at the vanguard of new role development. The nursing profession has also been challenges by advances technology in health care. By becoming more knowledgeable about policy, legal and ethical standard decision-making, nurses can conquer these challenges. The demand of policy, legal and ethical standard would promote greater knowledge, acco... ...ere taken to protect nurses. Common practice here is medical directive. Medical directive means a medical instruction given to paramedic regarding medical management or procedure to perform to patient. The document should include the procedures approved that can be performed by nurse and endorse by the head of department. These documents also have to audit frequently to ensure it is updated and relevant with the current situation and demands. As conclusion, crossing a professional boundaries bring a lots of benefits and weaknesses. However, nurses must remember they are nurses all the time thus it is vital to seek advice early when problem around professional boundaries arise and as for the medical profession, they have to value nurse’s knowledge and expertise in order to shares experience, knowledge and skills for future development of healthcare practitioner.

Best Buy Co., Inc. Customer-Centricity Essay

The consumer electronics giant, Best Buy, was first established in 1966 with a single location and a staff of three in St. Paul, Minnesota, selling audio equipment targeted at 18-25 year old males. Initially Sound of Music/Best Buy grew through acquisition, expanding to nine locations in the Twin Cities area by 1978. The name, Best Buy, and expanded product line, ranging from audio and video equipment to large appliances, were a result of a â€Å"best buy† sale of damaged inventory at bargain prices in 1981. In the mid-1980s, Best Buy launched superstores similar to those of their main competitor, Circuit City and expanded by 15 stores between 1985-86. In 1989, Best Buy launched itself as a self-service, value-store staffed with a salaried sales force to provide a no-pressure shopping experience. This approach resulted in Best Buy becoming the second largest electronics retailer. By 1995, Best Buy was opening an average of 35 new stores annually and in 2000, the retailer respo nded to the market by launching BestBuy.com. Best Buy attributes some of their success to their SOP, standard operating platform, which is a 200 page â€Å"how to† manual for nearly every feasible store situation ranging from product sales and service to inventory management. The purpose of the SOP was to train the sales force and promote uniformity across the organization. In addition to the SOP, Best Buy’s skillful merchandising and marketing, along with their sales force (â€Å"Blue Shirts†) are credited with the success of the retailer. Blue Shirts received extensive training and enjoyed a unique and rewarding corporate culture, with part-time associates making $8.00 per hour and full-time employees earning $20.00. Sales associates often received public recognition for strong performance in addition to immediate rewards such as restaurant vouchers. Supervisors were also incentivized based on annual department and store performance. Starting store managers in mid-size stores were compensated with salaries between $50,000 and $150,000. The success resulting from these practices did not go unnoticed by competitors such as Wal-Mart and Dell, who imitated many of Best Buy’s strategies and stole well trained Blue Shirts. Best Buy continued their growth by opening new stores and through the acquisition of various competitors through the U.S. and reaching into Canada, with the acquisition of Future Shop Ltd. in 2002. By November 1995, Best Buy operated 796 Best Buy stores plus 20 Magnolia Audio Video stores in the U.S. and 162 Best Buy owned stores in Canada (978 stores, not including Geek Squad outlets). In contrast, Circuit City operated over 600 stores in the U.S. and Canada around the same time, however, Best Buy managed to double the sales per square foot of their main competitor. With nearly 1600 stores between the two main players in the electronics market, the market is nearing saturation and growth will have to be achieved by a means other than new store openings. Best Buy’s pre-centricity model was easy for competitors to imitate and encroach on Best Buy’s market share. Best buy borrowed the superstore concept from Circuit City and Circuit City mirrored Best Buy’s staffing model and merchandising decisions. Low prices and a wide selection are hardly inimitable characteristics. While wide selection and expansive product offerings at discount prices (due to volume purchases) may be difficult for new entrants to copy, it is a minor/temporary barrier to entry with the introduction of the internet. Best Buy’s CEO, Brad Anderson, joined the company in 1973 when he joined the staff of three at the then single, Sound of Music, location. A music buff addicted to sales, with his long tenure with company and in the industry seems like the logical choice to lead the company to even greater success as CEO. Prior to becoming CEO in 2002, Anderson had spent 11 years as President and COO of Best Buy. Like most industries, it seems electronics consumers were prone to change as products evolved, so did the end-users and their buying habits. Best Buy had a history of being able to adapt to the changing markets and their ability to do so contributed to their success (i.e. the vastly expanded product line, evolution to superstores, expansion, acquisition, converting from commission to salaried sales force.). The perception that customers were focusing less on the technical aspect of products and redirecting their attention to service and support, led to Anderson’s custom-centricity initiative. This transition and the rollout of 144 new â€Å"centricity† Best Buy stores was being blamed for the company missing third quarter earnings in 2005, resulting in a 12% decline in stock value and a loss of nearly $2B in market capitalization. Did Anderson perform the proper strategic market planning analysis before selecting and implementing the centricity initiative? Assess the need for a change in Best Buy’s strategy when Brand Anderson became CEO. If the centricity concept is being blamed for not meeting earnings and the decline in Best Buy’s stock price and market capitalization, the question becomes was there a need for this change to the company’s strategy, was the strategy poorly implemented, was there a delayed market response to the change, or was the launch an overly aggressive action of a newly appointed CEO? The Best Buy leadership team first needed to evaluate whether there truly was a need for a (drastic) change and if so, was centricity the appropriate response to the market. The electronics industry and retail in general is cyclical and while Best Buy needs to be proactive and receptive to market changes, it is not uncommon for the industry to experience temporary contractions that would not require (costly and risky) restructuring of the company’s value proposition. Granted, Best Buy’s one style fits all approach may have been too broad and unrealistic for the long-term. Ignoring the signs that the market was changing or a delayed reaction to those changes could be more costly or even fatal than centricity and the alleged result on earnings and stock price. There are several approaches for Best Buy to evaluate this situation, the most desirable of which might be the Structure-Conduct-Performance-Paradigm. I will provide somewhat of a Resource Based View (listing a few marketing resources) and mention some of their Dynamic Capabilities, as provided in the case. Best Buy should fist consider their resources and the strengths that have made them successful in the past. While the past is not always indicative of the future, a historical perspective will provide some insight as to not only what has worked in the past, but how the company was able to implement various strategies to learn from their successes and failures. Historically, Best Buy has utilized their knowledge resources well. Their rapid growth and success would imply a strong customer and competitor knowledge. Overall, the Best Buy reputation, as the place to get brand name electronics at discount prices with just the right amount of customer service, has proven to be a positive reputational resource. Blue Shirts are a (human) resource that should not be overlooked; retention is crucial, as training is costly. Blue Shirts are a valuable (informational) resource to gain insight into what customers â€Å"really want,† as sales associates have the most direct customer interaction. Extracting this information from sales associates is a cost effective approach to assess the market before implementing major changes, such as centricity. Best Buy’s unique culture and structure are organizational resources that distinguish the company from the competition and support (non-managerial) employee retention. While supplier relationships are clearly a solid relational resource, customer relationships are somewhat of a gray area for Best Buy, as many customers are not loyal and often buy through various channels. Best Buy has responded to trend by launching their Reward Zone program to incentivize return customers and as a source to gain customer knowledge. An obvious physical resource of Best Buy is its number of stores, which results in volume purchases, allowing the company to sell brand name merchandise to customers at discount prices. In contrast, an operation of this size with nearly 1000 stores and 120,000 employees incurs significant overhead costs (a potential weakness and often the first resources to be cut in an effort to reduce expenses). Many of the aforementioned resources are imitable in some way or another. For example, employees can be trained or Blue Shirts poached or the competition could open more stores and purchase more inventory, strengthening their relationships with suppliers and pass along the resulting volume discounts to customers. A resource based view would indicate that while these are valuable resources to Best Buy, they (along with many of the company’s resources and capabilities) are substitutable (i.e. suppliers can be interchanged) and imitable by the competition. In response, Best Buy strives to not only offer the customer similar products and attributes as the competition, but to find a way to do so that provides a sustainable advantage. What makes Best Buy superior to its rivals? This requires a constant assessment of Best Buy’s marketing capabilities and this need to differentiate might explain Anderson’s drastic centricity approach. Pricing management is a complicated marketing capability at Best Buy with new technology products being constantly introduced, while others are becoming obsolete. It seems Best Buy excels in the selling and channel management marketing capabilities, with their ability to attract and retain knowledgeable sales associates and to maintain ongoing relationships with key suppliers. The likely and often misused approach would be for the organization to perform a current SWOT analysis to consider their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. I have already listed a few of Best Buy’s strengths (size, supplier relationships, Blue Shirts). Additionally, Best Buy has a history of evolving in response to the changing market and applying various innovative concepts in response. The ability to foresee or quickly assess and respond to market change seems to be a strength of the retailer. While extensive product offerings are a strength of Best Buy, having a significant inventory of products that rapidly become outdated is a necessary weakness of being an electronics retailer; finding a way to manage this would be a significant opportunity. Accordingly, keeping up with rapidly changing products and customer interests are a threat of Best Buy any technology retailer. Anderson is exploring the opportunities component of the analysis when he and his team identified and pursued the following initiatives: â€Å"customer centricity, efficient enterprise, win with service, and win in entertainment,† ultimately selecting on customer centricity. A few obvious threats to be considered are competitors such as Wal-Mart, Circuit City, and Amazon, as well as the ever changing electronics market. Not keeping up with the latest trend, product, or channel could be fatal and explains why Anderson and his team concluded the need to focus on customer centricity, which he felt was a proactive response to the shopping experience that customers were seeking going forward. What does the Customer-Centricity strategy imply and how is it different from a strategy of simply providing great service? The Customer-Centricity strategy implies that Best Buy knows their customers well and that only a few sub-segments are profitable enough to merit an increased level of service and attention. This increased focus on these target segments or fewer/more profitable clients and the assumption that catering to these customers will result in solution purchases is the foundation of Anderson’s initiative. The concept seems to do very little to increase sales to the groups outside of the target segment(s) and seemingly does not consider the untapped potential of these customers. This approach is in contrast to the concept of trying to be â€Å"everything to everyone† or â€Å"one style fits all.† Centricity was an effort to meet customer individual needs while still maintaining the chain’s broad focus. The idea of centricity was based on research that had found many of Best Buy’s customers were leaving dissatisfied and that roughly 20% of customer visits were unprofitable. It was an effort to revamp the store’s value proposition, which was a deviation from their previous winning formula and questionably a step a in a different direction from a core competency. Instead of the â€Å"one style fits all† approach which admittedly would leave some customers dissatisfied, while attempting to cater to the masses, Best Buy’s approach to centricity involved focusing on only one or two distinct customer segments at each store, which also required a new set of segment leaders. This approach was also a focus on Best Buy’s most profitable segments in an effort to deter their unprofitable shoppers. Best Buy could have expanded their customer service efforts, while still maintaining the â€Å"one style fits all† concept through a far less radical change than centricity required. This would seem to be the logical choice and would have relied more on the strengths that made Best Buy great. With the market nearing saturation due to the number of stores, the focus became to sell more to existing customers (versus adding stores to acquire new ones) based on a better understanding of customers’ requirements and â€Å"lavishing them with attention, service, and know how.† This would have been attainable by tweaking Best Buy’s current strategy. Both approaches would involve collecting and analyzing customer data and creating an appropriate action plan based on the findings. One aspect of the change was to â€Å"encourage employees to think and behave as owners and engage with customers to meet their unique needs.† This is one way to provide great service and obtainable outside of the centricity strategy. The objectives of building loyalty with profitable segments and leveraging the company’s existing assets, is not unique to centricity and could have been achieved by providing great customer service to all customers, while focusing on those that are more profitable. Both options involve customer research and additional training of sales associates; it would seem not implementing centricity, which required revamping the store format, new processes, and risked isolating some segments would be the more cost effective method to address the expected shift in the market. Best Buy assumed that their customers were comprised of 5 major segments, who combined accounted for 50%-90% of total revenue. These 5 segments were identified by shoppers’ demographics, behaviors, and attitudes, then assigned a name (Barry, Buzz, Jill, Ray, or BB4B (small businesses with less than 20 employees)) and assigned a segment leader focused on deeply understanding their segment’s shopping behavior and attitude. The case states â€Å"the idea behind customer-centricity was to become the customer’s â€Å"smart friend† and provide a â€Å"complete solution.† While being a trusted advisor to customers and working to sell bundles of products is a logical response to the changing customer orientation, this could have been achieved by less drastic means than those used to implement Anderson’s centricity. This concept seems to center around Best Buy’s market orientation, specifically the increasing customer benefits component, as Be st Buy already cannot take much action to further decrease the buyer’s costs. The introduction of Reward Zone was a step in the right direction for the centricity initiative. The benefits of the reward program were multifaceted; providing additional customer data as well as incentivizing current customers to be repeat customers and to make additional purchases. This is one means by which to help Best Buy achieve a SCA, however, many competitors offered similar programs. It is unclear whether Best Buy directed much, if any attention on their competitor orientation. In addition to gathering and analyzing customer data, it is advisable for the company to consider the strengths, weaknesses, strategies, and capabilities of their competitors. Anderson’s centricity plan does not appear to consider competitor orientation and focuses solely on a few select target segments. Keeping with the market orientation research, Best Buy already uses low costs as a source of competitive advantage and they are hoping that centricity will be a source of differentiation, however, competitor orientation is critical to the success of such an initiative. Customer-Centricity has many similarities to simply providing an increased level of customer service. The most significant difference is the focus on the chain’s most profitable segments, specific to each store and complicated testing and implementation process that was chosen for the launch. Both concepts could be used to move toward solution selling and the â€Å"smart friend† concept. Centricity and improved customer service could involve empowering managers and encouraging employees to think and behave as owners. Centricity was a drastic way to improve customer service, which resulted in some pilot stores reporting double the performance gains of other U.S. locations. There were many benefits that resulted from Anderson’s strategy such as reward zone and Geek Squad, which complimented the goal of providing a solution by adding a service component that Best Buy did not previously provide. Geek Squad was also a means by which to suggest a solution sale as well as it placed the retailer in the customer’s home or business, further strengthening the relationship with customer and providing the opportunity for addition recommendations and referrals when the â€Å"Geek† was onsite. The scientific approach that was used in the implementation of centricity was unique to the strategy, but in many ways could have been applied to multiple approaches to improve the customer experience. Centricity was ultimately a differentiation strategy used in hopes of being difficult for competitors to imitate. When Anderson launched centricity, he clearly realized that long term survival is more important than short-term profits. If nothing else the st rategy is rare and difficult to imitate. How was the new Customer-Centricity strategy implemented? What do you see as the strengths and weaknesses of the strategy’s implementation as described in the case? The Customer-Centricity strategy was first introduced in 12 laboratory stores, then 32 pilot stores (most of which were in California), then introduced to 110 addition stores after some pilot stores reported performance gains double some comparable U.S. stores. Deviating from the clearly defined SOP, associates were now trained to approach problems using a scientific method involving the creating of a hypothesis regarding the customer, testing it, and analyzing the results. If the hypothesis was substantiated, it could be tested in other stores, and ultimately become a general recommendation throughout the organization. This was concept of centricity that empowered associates and increased innovation from within, which is a strength of the new strategy. In contrast, the SOP was created to promote uniformity across the organization; this scientific component of centricity is a deviation from the uniform concept(s) that had been attributed to the company’s success. The resulting confusion in practices and procedures, while they may ultimately lead to a positive outcome and greater innovation, could be viewed as a weakness of the strategy (at least during the transition period). The additional responsibilities placed on managers and staff, were a struggle and weakness. Employees who had previously been given guidelines for most any issue were now being given the freedom to develop and test their own responses, however, they were held accountable for the resulting outcomes. It was now up to the store manager to execute the value proposition. GMs were expected to lead by example, in light of the increased responsibility. The new processes were stated to take â€Å"five times more time† and while the resulting innovation is good, the extra effort required resulting in a turnover rate of two-thirds among GMs and an expectation among associates to be compensated for their extra effort. However the ability for associates to tailor responses to individual customer situations, should ultimately improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, leading to increased profits. The entire focus of centricity is to increase customer satisfaction and improve retention, as acquisition is becoming increasingly difficult. This realization and reaction is itself if a response to the changing market, which is a strength of the organization. The empowerment of employees will result in exceeding customer’s initial expectations, as they are not accustomed to individualized solutions. This is another strength of centricity and how it was implemented. I question why the majority of the initial 32 pilot stores were in California and why only top performing stores were selected for centricity conversion. It would seem focusing on a single geographic region would generate findings based on an isolated group of similar customers. Marketing studies suggest that in order to increase confidence, research must be replicated in diverse environments over time. This does not appear to be the approach with the testing of centricity at Best Buy and could be viewed as a weakness. I further question the decision to launch the concept in only top performing stores. It makes sense to test the strategy in some top performing stores to see if their performance improves further; it does not make sense to risk a large number of top performing locations with an unproven theory that could negatively impact their performance. It seems logical to use the profits from top performing sites to offset some of the potential losses that are typical with the ramp up period of any significant launch or change. If a store is a top performer, I would first analyze what contributing factors make those stores top performers, be it location, management, or customer interactions, etc. to see if these points of differentiation could be applied to other locations to improve the performance of lesser stores, before revamping how the most successful locations achieve their success. There are many strengths and weakness of centricity and how Best Buy chose to implement it, the reality is that it is a long-term approach, which typically result in short term struggles and reduced profits. How would you resolve the tension between the three parts of the organization (merchandizing, stores, and segments)? Is the notion of a three-legged stool viable? Can Best Buy sustain its competitiveness with P&L responsibilities residing with three different organizations? The new strategy forced collaboration among groups that had not previously collaborated. It increased responsibility and accountability, while taking away control from groups that were accustomed to being in power. Shifting focus from a wide segment to a particular customer’s needs was a new concept requiring different resources. Segment organizations were now held accountable to deliver incremental growth. As a result of all these changes, the various parts of the organization felt â€Å"completely handcuffed.† As the previous sections indicate, higher gross profit margins could not compensate for the conversion costs of the changes being implemented. While the goal may have been to â€Å"have everybody feel like they’re part of the same story,† making three parts of the organization responsible for their individualize P&L only added to the tension. I do not dispute that the organizations should monitory P&L and be held accountable, but when the success of the organization is the common goal, they should be working together to improve the overall P&L of the organization. This approach made it unclear which part owned customer insight and who should report to whom and how they should work together. Clarifying these gray areas of ownership and responsibility are the first step in resolving the tension among the groups. The current practices promote confusion and tension. A uniformed approach would be optimal. In a retail organization, such as Best Buy, merchandizing, stores, and segments, are all critical to success. In varying situations, one â€Å"leg of the stool† may receive greater attention or responsibility, but that is typically for the advancement of the organization as a whole or to offset some of the focus of another part of the organization. All three legs are necessary for Best Buy to properly deliver their value proposition and all three are necessary to help management implement the marketing strategy. Merchandizing, stores, and segments are all part of Best Buy’s marketing mix. Merchandising and segments contribute to stores, but all are intertwined. The individualized P&L structure and scorecard assessment add to the tension and switch the weight placed on each leg, but without a leg or if one leg gets too weak (not enough focus), the stool (entire organization) could collapse. As new products are suggested and tested, this changes the (buying and selling) processes, causing merchandising to be more reactionary than they were accustomed to being in the past, shifting the weight from one leg to another, but not reducing the importance of that organization. The absence of any one particular group or attribute could be detrimental to the organization as a whole. While each piece is interdependent and critical to the whole and policies should be designed accordingly. The realization that each piece contains and shapes the other will result in policies that help to reduce the tension between varying parts of the organization. While Best Buy is focusing on the customer and tailoring products and services to meet their needs a reflection on internal practices and satisfaction would be helpful and achieving those goals and should be considered, tested, and adjusted as well. It will difficult for Best Buy to sustain its competitiveness with P&L responsibilities residing with three different organizations. As mentioned in the prior to sections, this practices ad tension to the organization, which is not good toward long-term success, and causes undue competition among the various organizations. Merchandizing is encouraged to improve their P&L, this may come at the price of a negative impact on the store’s P&L. This is the result of collaboration and reduces the competitive advantage of the overall organization. Centricity involves significant and complex changes, which both help and hinder the marketing strategy implementation. The success of the change will require the cooperation of all groups within the organization, especially merchandizing, stores, and segments. Having policies and practices in place that discourage cooperation within the organization by holding complimentary groups accountable for separate measurements does not help Best Buy (or any organization) create synergies leading to a sustainable competitive advantage. The degree of alignment in itself is an implementation driver and contrasting accountability measures do not lead to alignment of goals. Best Buy experiences enough competitive rivalry in the marketplace without encouraging it internally among organizations. Best Buy is clearly a marketing organization and contributing factors of success are: â€Å"all the components of marketing organization fit together †¦ in a way that simultaneously fits with the requirements of the firm’s strategy †¦ while also matching the needs of the marketplace.† Centricity is Anderson’s strategy to match the needs of the marketplace; the changing strategy requires some changes in various aspects of the company (including merchandizing, stores, and segments), however, it is still a requirement that they fit together, like the legs of a stool. I question if the continuation of separate P&Ls are the optimal way to maintain the fit and cooperation that is necessary for the success of a marketing organization. This seems contradictory to fit and is obviously a source of tension. How long before this becomes apparent and reveals itself to the marketplace; what effect with this have on stock price and market capitalization? In order for centricity to be successful, Best Buy must alter their resource deployments to conform to their strategy changes to achieve the intended goal(s) vs. creating practices that foster tension without any long-term benefit. Granted, it is a tradeoff to fit the strategy to the structure or the structure to the strategy, which is complicated by the complexity of the organization. It is a requirement that they match their resources to their capabilities to their strategy and to market conditions. I hope that I have provided a few suggestions on how they could go about achieving this goal. While I have questioned many aspects of centricity and its implementation, it was obviously a success as unlike Circuit City; Best Buy still exists today (although they continue to struggle due to short product life cycle and the ever changing technology market).