The Father of Our Fathers Review Essay Example

The Father of Our Fathers Review Paper Essay on The Father of Our Fathers Who is this person and how we appeared on the Earth an issue of interest to all, perhaps, since people learned to think. Thats only answer to it is still there and But in science there are many versions, also on the subject written many articles in the press, books, and not only scientific but also artistic. One of them the Father of Our Fathers from the pen of the famous French writer Bernard Werber In general, I have great respect for this author, thats just reading it is necessary to break.. Otherwise, the brain might explode, digesting the information. In any case, the conclusion I came to after reading several books by this author in a row. And yet, today we are not talking at all about Werber., And about a particular book. So, the novel Father of Our Fathers, I associate with the sea Why? Just the interest in the book dies, then there is a new force, the storm and calm. We will write a custom essay sample on The Father of Our Fathers Review specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Father of Our Fathers Review specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Father of Our Fathers Review specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Roman lured me from the first page. Still, journalists, briefings, assignments, investigation It is native. But, by the middle of the first part, I was bored and had already begun to blame Bernard Werber, because it can not sustain the interest of the reader throughout the book. However, barely perelistnuv page, I realized that a little heated, but still, it was convinced that the French writer could actually surprise It is said also that Werber amazing style. Alas, I can neither confirm nor deny this assertion, that how to read it only in Russian, and any artwork when translating a lot to lose. No matter. I and without it many thoughts and impressions. For example, do you think, how many years ago the world was a man. Through the mouth of his characters Werber offers several options 1. Theory Professor Sanderson man was the result of a disease caused by a virus of extraterrestrial origin 2.. Theory Professor Conrod man was the result of a random combination of genes 3.. Theory of Dr. Wang Lisbeth man was the result of a conscious adaptation to climate change 4. Theory of Dr. Elyuana man appeared as a result of the need to beat the other animals to get food 5. There is another nailyubopytneyshaya theory, but about it I keep silence, so as not to spoil the impression of the book to those who have not read it It is better to talk about something else about the meaning of words, however, all the analogies in the novel are built on the peculiarities of the French language, but still interesting. you know, where there was the word fool ? From the Latin imbecille, which means not having the stick. A hint of what always has when walking rely on a cane to live without relying to any dogma, any one solid principle, not leaning to anything -. it needs to be brave ? Nce, though I hope I am a fool, and I want to keep them as long as possible I do not take offense, and on the definition of fool continued Katzenberg Gulupets3 derived from Latin stupidos startled amazement fool around surprised and pleased I hope the whole long stay foolish Idiot in Greek means special idiom -. this language feature I want to be special PS In general, this book I was really impressed, made me think about many things. We would like to ask a question and you, dear associates: what do you think, where there are people on Earth ?

Ultimate Guide to the University of California Schools

Ultimate Guide to the University of California Schools SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips The University of California schools are widely regarded as some of the best public universities in the nation. Because I have provided college counseling to hundreds of students in California and chaperoned college visits to UC campuses, I’m very familiar with these colleges and know people who have attended each of the nine UC schools that offer undergraduate education. In this article, I will describe the UC system, profile each of the University of California colleges, and explain how to choose which UC school to attend. About the UC System There arenine UC schools that offer both undergraduate and graduate education.UC San Francisco is only a graduate and professional school.The nine UC colleges are UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC San Diego, UC Irvine,UC Davis,UC Santa Cruz, UC Riverside, and UC Merced. The UC schools are large public research universities, and they are generally considered to be some of the best public universities in the country.The UC system has more than 238,000 students and more than 190,000 faculty and staff. Most of the UC schools are big and have over 20,000 undergraduate students. UC Merced, which opened in 2005, is the newest of the UC campuses and has the smallest enrollment. It has around 7,000 undergraduates. UCLA, which has the largest undergraduate enrollment, has over 30,000. The UCs are governed by The Regents of the University of California, a 26-member board established under the California Constitution.While each school is unique and has its own personality, the University of Californiaschools offer many of the same benefits and possible disadvantages.As parts of the UC system, they’re all well-regarded, selective, research-oriented colleges. They're generally strong in STEM, the humanities, and the social sciences. Also, UC studentstend to be diverse and accepting of diversity, although African-Americans and Latinos are underrepresented at most of the UC campuses. Many of the complaints about the University of California colleges are typical of complaints about large public universities. Class sizes can be very large, and some students have difficulty navigating the bureaucracy. Students can have trouble registering, getting into the classes they need, and dealing with financial aid.While the in-state tuition for California residents is significantly lower than tuition at private colleges, many students claim that there is not a lot of financial aid available for middle-class students, and tuition costs continue to rise. Comparing the UC Schools by the Numbers I created a table comparing the undergraduate enrollments, average standardized test scores, and acceptance rates for each of the UC campuses. Take a look at the table to get an idea of the size and selectivity of each UC institution. School Number of Undergraduates Middle 50% SAT Score Middle 50% ACT Score Acceptance Rate UC Berkeley 30,574 1340-1530 29-35 15.1% UCLA 31,002 1240-1490 27-33 16.1% UC San Diego 28,587 1250-1470 29-34 36% UC Santa Barbara 22,186 1240-1470 26-32 32% UC Davis 30,145 1120-1360 25-31 43.5% UC Irvine 29,307 1170-1410 24-30 36.5% UC Santa Cruz 17,577 1160-1370 24-30 51.4% UC Riverside 20,069 1090-1300 23-29 57.2% UC Merced 7,375 1020-1230 18-23 69.1% Ranking the UC Schools While rankings are somewhat subjective, based on reputation and objective statistics, I’vesortedthe UC schools into four tiers. The first tier is UC Berkeley and UCLA.They’re the most selective and generally the most well-regarded of the UC schools. Non-UC colleges that would be in this tier includeUniversity of Notre Dame, Georgetown University, USC, and the University of Virginia. The second tier is UCSB, UCSD, UC Davis, and UC Irvine.Their US News and Forbes rankings, average GPAs, average standardized test scores, and admission rates are all very similar. It would be difficult to definitively rank one ahead of the others. Non-UC colleges that would be in this tier include Boston University, Tulane University, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and University of Wisconsin-Madison. The third tier is UC Santa Cruz and UC Riverside.UC Santa Cruz probably has a better reputation and is ranked higher by various publications, but these two school'sacceptance rates and average standardized test scores are similar. Non-UC colleges in this tier would be University of Colorado-Boulder, University of San Diego, Florida State University, and University of San Francisco. The fourth tier is UC Merced. UC Mercedis not necessarily trying to directly compete with the other UC campuses. It’s the newest of the UC campuses and has a significantly smaller enrollment than all the others. It also has the highest percentage of underrepresented minorities and low-income students of all of the UCs. It’s heavily invested in providing access to education to students in the San Joaquin Valley of California and offering a UC education to more California residents. I created a table with my rankings of the UC schools. Also, I included their US News rankings for National Universities and their overall Forbes rankings.Basically, I just averaged the US News and Forbes rankings to determine my own. School US News Ranking ForbesRanking 1. UC Berkeley 22 14 2. UCLA 19 46 3. UCSB 30 85 4. UCSD 41 81 5. UC Davis 38 94 6. UC Irvine 33 96 7. UC Santa Cruz 70 185 8. UC Riverside 85 204 9. UC Merced 136 unranked UC Berkeley (Berkeley Lab/flickr) Profiles of EachUC School In many respects, there are more similarities between the UC schools than there are differences.They’re all selective, research-oriented schools that share the same governing board. They have diverse student bodies, emphasize sustainability and environmentalism, and they offer many on-campus opportunities for student involvement. However, I think the primary differences between the schools are related to their locations and campus cultures.I’ll give brief descriptions of each school’s location and some information about what makes each school unique compared to the other UCs.I’ve been to every UC campus except Merced, but I have been in the Merced area. Also, I have friends and former students who have attended each UC. My assessments are based on my campus visits, information from the school websites, the opinions of friends and former students who attended these schools, and published student reviews. After my assessments, I used quotes from current and former students for each college from Niche,a website that provides reviews, rankings, and statistics about neighborhoods and schools.I tried to include both pros and cons that revealed how students feel about their experience at the school and were representative of many of the comments that I read. UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley is located in Berkeley, 15 miles across the bay from San Francisco.Berkeley is a vibrant, unique college town.It’s affectionately known as â€Å"Bezerkeley† because of the eclectic students and history of radical political activism in the city. I've always enjoyed my trips to Berkeley because there seems to be so much going on both on and off campus.At UC Berkeley, in one evening, you can attend a cultural event, join a political rally, go to a frat party, and top the night off with some good, cheap eats at Blondie’s or Top Dog. UC Berkeley is the oldest of the UCs and is known for its academically gifted students and renowned faculty.Berkeley was ranked the #1 public national university by US News for 19 straight years (losing out to UCLA for 2019). Also, in 2012, Berkeley started a scholarship fund for undocumented students. Student Reviews Here's what students have to say about UC Berkeley: Pros: In general, students rave about the campus and the school’s location close to the Bay Area. It gives them lots of opportunities for social opportunities as well as internships and networking connections. One student says, â€Å"There is so much to do and see in the area - I'm constantly visiting SF or going on fun trips.† Students also praise the quality of the classes they take (even if they’re challenging) and the intelligence and motivation of their fellow classmates. One student said, â€Å"Amazing faculty, the smartest students. Many classes push everyone to their limits even if the topic seems somewhat easy.† Another mentioned, â€Å"Berkeley was definitely the most challenging thing I've encountered in my life so far. But the hard work and stress made me stronger.† Cons: A major drawback that many students mentioned is the prevalence of crime in the area. â€Å"The biggest issue is the amount of crime.†Another says, â€Å"There are robberies and sexual harassments [sic] around or even on campus every day.† Students also mention lack of diversity as an issue, although the school is working on improving the problem. One student stated, â€Å"As a student of color, it is hard to go from Los Angeles to Berkeley especially when there is no one to relate to there.† As a large public university, Berkeley also doesn’t have the ability to routinely check keep tabs on all students, and a common refrain was that students at Berkeley need to know how to do things on their own. â€Å"I felt like students were on their own. No one really held your hand through anything. You had to make all by yourself.† UCLA UCLA is located in Westwood, a very nice area of West Los Angeles. Also, UCLA isthe only UC in a big city. However, Westwood has a number of restaurants, bars, and off-campus apartments for students that give it a college town feel within a city. At UCLA, 96% of freshmen live on campus, which contributes to alively on-campus culture.UCLA is a very spirited school. Even though many of the UCs excel in different sports, UC Berkeley and UCLA have the biggest fan bases and are the only UCs with FBS football programs.I’ve been to many basketball and football games at UCLA. The student body and alumni love their Bruins, and UCLA has more NCAA championships than any other college in the country. Furthermore, there are 13 Nobel Prize winners among the faculty, and this year UCLA was ranked #1 in Top Public Schools by US News. Student Reviews Here's what students have to say about UCLA: Pros: Academics get high marks at UCLA. Most students are very happy with their professors and the quality of the classes they’re taking. â€Å"All my professors are super helpful and have extended office hours the week before midterms and finals. There are many research opportunities and internships open every quarter.† Beyond the classroom, students also feel that UCLA provides numerous activities for students to get involved in, and its location in Los Angeles means there are many additional opportunities nearby. â€Å"Being in Los Angeles there is everything you need to get a head start on your career with volunteer, student organizations and internships in most fields.† Students also praise the friendliness of their classmates and how easy it is to make friends at UCLA. â€Å"The social scene is great and you're bound to meet people who you can click with.† â€Å"There are plenty of clubs to allow students to develop their interests.† As a bonus, many students particularly loved the food offerings at UCLA. â€Å"The food is the best in the nation, and I can honestly vouch for the quality of it. There is tons of variety and there are also many healthy options.† Cons: Although UCLA’s large size allows it to provide lots of opportunities for students, some feel that attending such a large school has drawbacks because there are a lot of people to compete with, and it can be difficult to find the resources you need. One student said, â€Å"A thing that I do not like about UCLA is the fact that class enrollment is a very stressful process as most of the time you will not be able to get popular classes as there are so many students who want the same time and same lecture class as you. With such a big school, it is kind of hard to make really close friends as schedules are vastly different.† Another mentioned, â€Å"The only issue is that due to the largeness of the student body population, some resources are hard to access like counselors for instance.† The high cost of tuition and living expenses is also a drawback for some students. â€Å"I find UCLA to be a bit on the expensive side, particularly for those who live on-campus.† UCLA(Prayitno/flickr) UCSB UCSB is located in Isla Vista, a beach town about an hour and a half north of Los Angeles.The school is literally steps from the Pacific Ocean, and even though it’s an academically rigorous institution, the laid back beach vibe permeates the UCSB culture. UCSB also has garnered a reputation as a party school, even though not all of the students participate in the party scene. However, UCSB still maintains an excellent academic reputation. In its 2013 rankings of the world’s top 500 universities, Leiden University ranked UCSB #2 in terms of impact in the sciences. Also, the Koegel Autism Center at UCSB’s Gevirtz Graduate School of Education has been recognized by the National Research Council as one of the top 10 state-of-the-art treatment centers for autism in the US. Student Reviews Here's what students have to say about UCSB: Pros: Students love UCSB’s campus and its location in Santa Barbara. One student who praised the school ended by saying, â€Å"It also doesn't hurt that the campus is stunning and you can study right on the beach!† Social butterflies mentioned that it’s easy to find parties here, but students who don’t like partying still enjoy themselves and the social atmosphere at UCSB. One student said, â€Å"The social scene is always full of excitement and things to do,† while another mentioned that, â€Å"Everyone thinks UCSB is a huge party school, but I actually haven't been to one party there and I don't feel pressured to go to any.† Cons: Many students praised the academics at UCSB, but others weren’t completely satisfied with their classes there, especially intro classes. â€Å"As a chemistry major, the average class size for my major-related classes are easily in the 100s. There are some professors that are able to teach us complex topics; however, the general consensus is self-study.† â€Å"Class sizes are larger, and certain classes are difficult to get into.† Students also mention that the dorms are pretty small and somewhat dated. â€Å"Most of the dorms are triple occupancy and the only dorms that offer double occupancy is either too small or a mile away from campus. In addition, the cost of living on campus is on the expensive side.† Want to build the best possible college application for UC schools? We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. Ryosuke Yagi/Flickr UCSD UCSD is located in La Jolla, an affluent community in the northern part of San Diego.La Jolla is an extremely nice area and has an average daily temperature of 70.5 degrees. UCSD is also very close to the Pacific Ocean. It's home to the Scripps Institute of Oceanography, one of the first centers dedicated to ocean, earth, and atmospheric science research and education. The school is organized into six residential colleges that help give it a smaller college feel within a large university. The journal Nature ranked UCSD first in the US in earth and environmental research.It’s also top among all UCs in terms of total active inventions and total US patents. UCSD is known for having a less energetic and involved on-campus culture compared to other UCs like UCSB, UCLA, or Berkeley. However, I have friends who were part of Greek life and actively involved in extracurricular activities at UCSD, and they thoroughly enjoyed their UCSD experience. Student Reviews Here's what students have to say about UCSD: Pros: Students had many positive things to say about the academics at UCSD. â€Å"The professors really know their stuff, and the ones I have had are so full of information! They want you to learn material from their class, and their lectures are so passionate and interesting!† Another student stated that â€Å"The academics at the school were excellent because there are very interesting classes and the students here are serious and you can tell they very much value their education.† Students particularly praised STEM classes and research being done at the school. â€Å"I love how engaged this institution is with research; they conduct amazing studies for the department of psychology and cognitive science. Really allows students to get involved and think critically of how behavior and attitude are tied in with our mind.† Cons: The major drawback to UCSD that most students mentioned is the lack of a party scene. â€Å"It is very socially dead unless you have the friends and the people that aren't dead.† However, other students find that there are plenty of social opportunities, especially if you look beyond parties. â€Å"Just because UCSD holds the reputation of no parties does not make the school socially dead, there are other ways people can socialize! There are campus events for everyone in any college and there are events that are specific to each individual college.† Another drawback is the large and sprawling campus. â€Å"Biggest downside is that the campus is HUGE, getting to back to back classes is difficult. This means you often have to do a lot of walking, and it can make the school feel like less of a community because everything is so spread out." UCSD (SD Dirk/Flickr) UC Davis UC Davis is located in Davis, a rural townin Northern California.Davis is 11 miles from Sacramento and 70 miles from San Francisco. The town of Davis is known for its friendly community and small town feel.Many of the UC Davis students seem to appreciate that the campus is surrounded by nature. According to the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2016, UC Davis is rankedfirstin veterinary medicine in the world. Because the campus is somewhat secluded, the on-campus culture at UC Davis is pretty active. It’s not known for being as wild as UCSB or Berkeley, but students seem to be more involved and social on campus than students at UCSD, UC Irvine, or UC Riverside. Student Reviews Here's what students have to say about UC Davis: Pros: UC Davis’s small and peaceful campus, surrounded by nature, is a draw for many students. â€Å"The campus is extremely beautiful, there is so much agriculture and life surrounding it that I never feel as though I'm not at home.† The school is also known for high-quality research, particularly in the sciences, which students can get involved in. â€Å"The school offers many research opportunities for students in the field of biological sciences.† Additionally, many students also feel that the campus has a very tight-knit community where everyone is friendly and welcoming. â€Å"It is the perfect college town and everyone is very friendly.† â€Å"The people here are super nice! I can talk to virtually everyone about anything.† Cons: Students who aren’t used to or don’t enjoy rural life often have difficulties with UC Davis’ small town setting. â€Å"Many say that the smell of cows is overwhelming.† UC Davis is also primarily a bike campus which can be difficult if you’re used to driving and having your car nearby. "You absolutely need to have a bike here, and there are many paths specifically for bike use." UC Davis (Ivan Kozik/Flickr) UC Irvine UC Irvine is located in Irvine, an affluent city in Orange County, California.Irvine is consistently ranked as one of the safest cities in the US and has some of the best public schools. According to US News, among specific undergraduate programs, The Henry Samueli School of Engineering ranked43rd among engineering schools whose highest degree is a doctorate. Furthermore, in US News's most recent rankings of graduate programs and specialties, UCI's literary criticism and theory, criminology, and organic chemistry eachranked in the top 10 in the country. The city of Irvine is not known for being the most exciting place, and the UC Irvine campus is also on the quiet side. The people I know who had the most fun at UCI were outgoing and involved with on-campus activities. Student Reviews Here's what students had to say about UC Irvine: Pros: Students at UC Irvine frequently mention how supportive the school community is, particularly professors who go out of their way to help students succeed. â€Å"The students, faculty, and staff are very welcoming and very eager to discover who and what they want to be.† â€Å"Professors are really helpful and try to give as much help as they can.† Many students also feel that UC Irvine gives them lots of opportunities to get hands-on experience outside of the classroom. â€Å"The school offers a lot of research opportunities and a chance to gain experience.† Another student mentioned that â€Å"There are a lot of chances to get an internship because there are many companies near school.† Cons: Some students struggle with how quiet the UC Irvine social scene is. â€Å"There is a very limited party scene that is dominated by Greek life.† â€Å"I would like to see the school stop being a commuter school as on the weekends it is very boring.† However, others mentioned that there are lots of clubs to join and the school is working on providing more. UC Irvine (UCI UC Irvine/Flickr) UC Santa Cruz UC Santa Cruz is located in Santa Cruz, a coastal city about 32 miles south of San Jose and 75 miles south of San Francisco.Santa Cruz is known for its coastline, redwood forests, and being socially liberal. The biggest tourist attraction in the area is probably the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. The campus of UC Santa Cruz is in the forest, and the students have a reputation for being a tad on the hippie side.PETA2, the young adult division of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, rated UC Santa Cruz as the #1 most vegan-friendly college in 2011.Approximately 25 percent of produce served in dining halls is organic, with much of it coming from local providers, such as the Farm and Garden run by UCSC’s Center for Agroecology Sustainable Food Systems. In 2014, Bestcolleges.com ranked UCSC #1 in the nation among top 50 colleges for Hispanic students.My friends who attended UC Santa Cruz speak highly of their undergraduate experience. Because it’s smaller than most of the other UCs, it seems to have more of a community feel, and it offers a social, progressive environment. Student Reviews Here's what students have to say about UC Santa Cruz: Pros: The academics at UC Santa Cruz get a lot of positive feedback, especially the supportive professors and small class sizes. â€Å"From my experience, the majority of the classes are very small and very individually oriented comparative to other universities, and you will never be hard pressed to find help if you need it.† Students love UC Santa Cruz’s campus, and they feel like being surrounded by nature makes going to class and studying more enjoyable. â€Å"The campus is most literally placed in the middle of a forest. It has a great college town with the boardwalk/beach, great food, and a great little town.† â€Å"Honestly, this campus is probably the most beautiful campus I've ever seen.† Cons: Students looking for a stereotypical campus full of parties may be disappointed by UC Santa Cruz, which mostly has a smaller, quieter social scene. â€Å"The social scene isn't as big as other college campuses which is a bummer but everyone joins the clubs and activities they are interested in so it's not too bad.† Other students mentioned they think the school would be improved if the dining hall stepped up the quality of its food and if the school provided more on-campus housing for students. â€Å"Improvement of housing and dining services would help.† â€Å"Many students have been protesting the lack of available off-campus housing to the University Board of Executives.† Some students also mentioned the difficulty of getting into certain classes as another drawback to the school and possible consequence of having small classes. â€Å"I would love if UC Santa Cruz expanded the number of courses offered per quarter because enrollment for classes is one of this school's biggest inconvenience for students. Many students, including myself, have not been able to enroll in a class they need for their major thus interfering with their graduation dates.† UC Santa Cruz (Benjamin Pender/Flickr) UC Riverside UC Riverside is located in Riverside, about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.Riverside is the largest city in what is known as the Inland Empire of Southern California.The area around the campus is probably not the nicest, and students have commented on the crime and not feeling safe walking alone at night. Originally, UC Riverside was a small liberal arts college when it opened in 1954, but it became a general university in 1959.Over the years, the student body has expanded rapidly, and the school and student body are still growing.The UC Riverside School of Medicine enrolled its first class in 2013. Also, according to its website, UCR enrolls a higher percentage of Pell Grant recipients than any other top research university in the country.There seems to be a significant push by UCR to make sure that it’s on the same level as the other UCs. It's adding students, new facilities, and plans to add 330 ladder-ranked faculty members. UC Riverside doesn't have the most active on-campus culture. About 70 percent of students are commuters, and freshmen don’t have to live on campus. Student Reviews Here's what students have to say about UC Riverside: Pros: One of the most commonly mentioned strengths of UC Riverside is its supportive environment. Students feel that everyone, from professors to staff to other students, are ready to help and want students to do well. â€Å"There is so much help offered to students here. From academic, to personal, and financial help, they've pretty much got it all here.† â€Å"There are so many people that can help advise you when it comes to picking classes. Don't worry about being lost because there is a lot of help around!† UC Riverside is also known for being a very diverse school that welcomes all students. â€Å"From an African American standpoint, UC Riverside really feels like a home away from home for me as I am able to meet and connect with people that look like me.† Cons: Student opinion of campus social life is mixed. Some mention that you can have a very active social life if you join Greek life or a lot of clubs, but others feel that the school’s high number of commuters makes it difficult to find many things to do on weekends. â€Å"During the weekends it gets boring, a lot of people go home so if you don't live close or don't have a car or anything then it gets kinda boring.† â€Å"I recommend staying on campus If, not then join an active club. If you don't follow my recommendations, then prepare to be lonely like I was. The party scene is near to non-existent.† Some students also mention large class sizes as a drawback that can make it difficult to get one-on-one attention from professors. â€Å"The only downside is that there are way too many students per faculty so the individual problems are not attended right away.† â€Å"The classes were very overpopulated 300-500 students sometimes.† UC Riverside (Ken/Flickr) UC Merced UC Merced is located in Merced, a small city in the San Joaquin Valley of Northern California.Merced is less than two hours to Yosemite National Park to the east and Monterey Bay to the west.Merced is in more of a rural area. Also, UC Merced opened in 2005 and it has a substantially lower undergraduate enrollment than the rest of the UCs. According to its website, UC Merced is the only American university with every building on campus environmentally certified. It pledges a Triple Zero Commitment, a plan to consume zero net energy, produce zero landfill waste, and zero net emissions on campus by 2020. Some students wish that Merced was more of an exciting town while others appreciate the smaller tight-knit community on campus and the small town feel of Merced. Furthermore, many students seem to appreciate that they’re part of creating the on-campus culture at UC Merced because it’s only 10 years old. They get to start organizations and leave a lasting legacy for future students. Student Reviews Here's what students have to say about UC Merced: Pros: Many students find the fact that UC Merced is a small and growing school to be one of its biggest strengths. The small size fosters a sense of community among students, and since the school is so new, many of them feel they get to have an important role in shaping what the school will be like for future students. â€Å"The school consists of a very small tight-knit community. There is a lot of student involvement on campus.† â€Å"I enjoy attending University of California Merced since it is a new school it is currently growing and I am excited to be able to grow with it.† In contrast to many other UC schools, many students are also happy with the amount of financial aid they’ve gotten and how easy it is to communicate with the financial aid department. â€Å"The school leads the UC system in financial aid given to students.† Cons: Although students love the tight-knit atmosphere at UC Merced, many mentioned that campus can feel boring and isolated when they’re looking for things to do. â€Å"UC Merced is a great university, but is in the middle of nowhere which tends to make weekends uneventful.† This can be especially difficult for freshman, since they aren’t allowed to have cars on campus. â€Å"The school is like its own private island. Therefore, when ordering an Uber it takes about 20 minutes to arrive and takes an even longer time to get anywhere into town.† Also, as a fairly small and new school, UC Merced doesn’t have the diversity of majors and classes that many of the other UC schools offer. â€Å"I wish UC Merced have more specific majors instead of broad Biology with emphasis tracks.† However, this is expected to change as the school continues to grow. UC Merced (tanyaboza/Flickr) How Do You Decide Which UC Schools to Apply To? One benefit of applying to University of California colleges is that you can apply to all nine of the UC schools with just one application. However, I don't recommend applying to a school that you have no desire to attend. Also, unless you qualify for a fee waiver, you have to pay $70 for each campus that you apply to. Even if you qualify for a fee waiver, UC will only waive the application fee for up to four UC campuses. Fee waivers are based on your family's income; you can apply for a fee waiver within the online application, and you'll be notified immediately if you qualify. Before selecting the UC colleges you'll apply to, look at your list of all the colleges you're applying to. Make sure you have enoughsafety schools. If not, consider applying to at least one of the less selective UCs, if your credentials would make you an extremely strong candidate for admission. Generally, you should have at least an 80% chance of getting in to consider a college a safety school. To help determine your odds of admission for each UC, google the name of the school and "prepscholar admission requirements." On each school's profile, you'll find our admissions calculatorthat will help you roughly determine your chances of gaining admission to that college. Start by eliminating the UCs you know you don't want to attend. Research each of the campuses. If possible, visit and take campus tours. Which schools don't have the majors you're considering? Which schools have a location or on-campus culture that doesn't appeal to you? If you're applying to UCs, I recommend applying to two to six campuses, depending on how many other schools you're applying to and your specific needs. Also, if you're in the top 9% of California high school graduates and aren't admitted to any of the UC campuses you apply to, you'll be offered a spot at another campus if space is available. However, you shouldn't assume there will be available space; that's why you should apply to safety schools. Want to build the best possible college application? We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. How Do You Decide Which UC School To Attend? If you’re in the position to choose which UC school to attend, then congratulations!You’ve done well enough in high school to have the opportunity to attend a great college, regardless of which one you choose. Honestly, you should choose which UC to attend the same way you would go about choosing any college.Determine the factors that are most important to you in a college. Then, research the colleges you’re considering extensively. There are many factors to consider to determine if a college is a good fit for you including location, selectivity, support services, and the majors offered. Look at the school’s website, and use guidebooks, college finders, search websites, and other ranking lists to help you in the college selection process. If possible, consult with teachers, counselors, parents, current students, and alumni. Most students who are deciding between UCs seem to base their college decisions primarily on selectivity, location, and campus culture.Selectivity seems to be the biggest priority for most students who are deciding between UC schools. It’s rare to find a student who opts to go to UC Riverside over UCLA. Most students want to go to the most selective school that accepts them, especially if both colleges are in the same general area. The next biggest priority for most students is location. Even though Berkeley may be ranked a little higher and might be slightly more selective, many students choose to attend UCLA over Berkeley. Some students prefer Southern California to Northern California, or they find the environment in Berkeley to be too overwhelming and prefer the more subdued confines of Westwood. Additionally, some students want to be close to home and some prefer to be a little further away. If you want to be in a rural environment, UC Davis and UC Merced are good options.If you want to be by the beach, you may prefer UCSB, UC Santa Cruz, or UCSD.If you want to be in Northern California, you should consider UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Santa Cruz or UC Merced. Furthermore, the campus culture is an important factor for many students. By campus culture, I’m primarily referring to the energy and activity on campus. You can find parties and numerous on-campus activities and organizations at all UCs, but some are known for offering a more enthusiastic on-campus environment and a more festive culture. Some students prefer to embrace a more lively college experience while others like being in a more quiet environment to focus on their studies.UCSB, fairly or not, has probably earned the reputation for being the best party school.UCLA and UC Berkeley have lively campus cultures, big-time sports, and active Greek life.UC Irvine and UC Riverside have more commuter students and the on-campus environments are not quite as lively. Also, while all the UCs are well-regarded academic schools, they do have different majors and programs.Because UC Davis is in a more rural area, it has more majors related to agriculture. For example, you can get a Bachelor’s in food science or international agriculture at UC Davis. Meanwhile, you can’t major in any agriculture-related field at UC Berkeley. If you’re interested in a specific major or program, or if you want to compare the majors offered at the different UCs, I recommend using a college finder like Big Future to quickly and easily compare the different colleges and get a complete list of the available majors. Finally, finances can be a major factor for some students when deciding which UC to attend.The cost of attendance is basically the same for each UC, but the financial aid you receive from each school can vary.Also, some students save money by living at home, so they choose the campus that is closest for financial reasons. Especially because most upperclassmen live off campus at UCs, the cost of living of the area of the school is a factor for students who are concerned about finances.It’s much cheaper to live in Davis, Merced, or Riverside than in Los Angeles, Irvine, or Berkeley. What's Next? Not sure if you want to attend a UC school? Read our guide on which colleges you should apply to. Ready to start your UC application? Check out this post on how to apply for college. You may also want to read about how to write a perfect UC personal statementandlearn how to come up with great college essay ideas. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Effects of Advertising and Promotion on Purchasing Behavior of Essay

Effects of Advertising and Promotion on Purchasing Behavior of Chocolate Consumers in India - Essay Example During the contemporary period, companies operate in a highly competitive environment where they strive to gain competitive advantage over others in order to generate more profits. It is imperative for every organisation to carry out market research in order to gain knowledge about the customer needs with the aim of attracting new customers. However, the purchasing behavior of consumers is influenced by various factors and it is the company’s duty to portray its products in the best way that would appeal to many customers. Whilst there are various tools that are used to market different products to the consumers, advertising and promotion are often regarded as the most effective to organizations operating in a market that is characterized by high competition. It should also be noted that different people live in different regions of the world and they have diverse views about particular products and the company offering similar products to those offered by other organizations ought to be able to sustain competition through offering unique product information that would make it a preferred choice compared to others. It is against this background that the following study seeks to investigate how advertising and promotion strategies could change the purchasing behavior of the chocolate consumers in India. The study will particularly focus on two leading chocolate manufacturing companies namely Cadbury India and Nestle India whose several chocolate products are used by millions of consumers in India.

Week 6 learning activity Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Week 6 learning activity - Assignment Example Members of the organization should also participate in the determination of suitable corrective measures. Conversely, while using strategy evaluation there are variety of drawbacks in terms of consistency, consonance, feasibility, and advantage that affect is implementation in any organization, thus leading to unfavourable consequence. One of the pitfalls that affect implementation of an organizational strategy is failure of the firm’s to focus. The organizational goal and objectives have to be consistent for the success of the strategy. When an organization fails to focus, its consistency in the market is also affected; thereby the organization ability to gain advantage fails (Outram, 2003). This pitfall leads to loss of profits thus, hampering implementation of the strategy. To correct this kind of drawback, the organization has to determine its objective and focus on it. To ensure that the organization maintains its focus, the management plays significant roles. As a result, the organization can maintain its consistency in provision or a product or service in which it specializes to produce or offer. The second drawback that hampers strategy implementation in an organization is the incapability to nurture belief in its strategy. An organization trying to implement strategy in its operation without passion as a driving factor, will lead to failure of in implementing the intended strategy. This will deny the organization an advantage of creating a superior strategy against its competitors thus fails to ensure profitability as well (Outram, 2003). To correct this, organization has to demonstrate confidence in its culture and belief through effective communication with the intention to win its customers’ confidence. Organization strategic evolution is likely to fail when the organization does not inculcate a sense of pace in its operations. Mainly, organization’s inability to inculcate a sense of pace will affect the

Crisis Management Speech Manuscript Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Crisis Management Speech Manuscript - Assignment Example Good and useful lessons were drawn from this incident in the Sacks store. I hope such incidents will even bring some benefits to the company as they will improve the service at the store. Ms. Ryder has already admitted that it was a serious and important experience in her life which eventually brought her to the new level of her development.1 Therefore, I am going to provide you with all the information you need to know regarding this incident. Ms. Ryder came to Saks store on 12th December where she was a regular customer in order to purchase some clothes. However, her shopping went the wrong way and soon she was grabbing more and more clothes piling them in her arms, as it is seen on the video from cameras2. Allegedly Ms. Ryder went to the changing rooms where she was cutting of the tags with prices with the help of scissors. However, this information was only available from the words of the guards since there are no cameras in changing rooms. Ms. Ryder on her part denied this accusation, and it is hardly possible to determine what happened exactly in this couple of minutes in the cubicles. Later M. Ryder did paid for the part of her clothes while she was stopped with the rest of her unpaid things by the guard. She looked confused and asked whether her assistant had paid for these items.3 Totally there were 20 things that were not paid by Ms. Ryder and that could be considered stolen. The total price exceeded $1, 595. It is necessary to mention that Ms. Ryder did not resist accusations of the guard. She was cooperative and apologetic with the guards of Saks. Thus, I suppose making some concrete conclusions regarding the motivation of her actions is wrong because the case is complicated. There have been many questions of â€Å"Why did she do it?† and â€Å"How is it possible to trust her after this?† which can be answered. Ms. Ryder apologized for her behavior and

Effects of Website Attributes on Customer Satisfaction

Effects of Website Attributes on Customer Satisfaction ABSTRACT This study investigates the important attributes of online web stores in e-commerce by examining the possible website elements that determine different aspects of the association between customers satisfaction and e-commerce website attributes. A questionnaire consisting of 24 items was completed by 60 respondents. The instrument for this study was developed on the basis of â€Å"SERVQUAL† using a 5 point Likert scale. There were five independent variables used in the study out of which two were included as a result of stepwise multiple regression model which are: websResponse (accounting for 26.3% of the total variance); and webCustomization (accounting for 5.1% of the total variance). Results of a stepwise regression indicated that two website attributes significantly predict customer satisfaction (31.4% of the combined explained variance). Within the five website attributes in E-commerce website dimension, â€Å"website response† correlated highly with customer satis faction (26.3% of the explained variance). The results of the study indicate that the two website attributes of e-commerce (website response and website customization) impact the customers satisfaction and other three do not have a significant influence. The study concludes with related implications and design guidelines to enhancing customer satisfaction of e-commerce. Effects of website attributes on customer satisfaction in E-commerce SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION The Internet is no longer a niche technology it is mass media and an utterly integral part of modern life. As our lives become more fractured and cluttered, it isnt surprising that consumers turn to the unrivalled convenience of the Internet when it comes to searching and buying product. 1.1 INTROduction to E-COMMERCE The rise of the WWW gives birth to new phenomena in our daily lives, one of which is e-commerce. The internet has played a vital and important part to encourage selling products and services online which makes life convenient for the audiences, which in an inter-connected world, is well, the whole world. E-Commerce is a subset of an overall e-business strategy consists of the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet. E-commerce seeks to add revenue streams using the World Wide Web or the Internet to build and enhance relationships with clients and partners and to improve efficiency. E-commerce has given rise to the concept of completely online shops selling products and services, efficiently catalogued and available for the shoppers convenience. There are several websites that stock everything from lifestyle items, collectibles, books, electronic appliances etc. The level of e-commerce use can be measured by using an e-commerce capability indicator. E-commerce capability indicator by Molla Licker:  § No e-commerce indicates a company without e-mail or an Internet connection.  § Connected e-commerce represents a company that has an Internet connection and e-mail.  § Informational e-commerce indicates a company using a Web site to publish basic information about the company and its products/services in a static manner.  § Interactive e-commerce refers to the ability of users to search the companys product catalogue, make queries, and enter orders.  § Transactional e-commerce allows online selling and purchasing of products or services including online payment and customer service. E-business applications can be divided into three categories. First is an internal business system in which customer relationship management (CRM), Enterprise resource planning (ERP), and Human Resource management (HRM) type of systems are involved. Second is enterprise communication and collaboration such as content management system (CMS), business process management (BPM) and web conferencing etc. Third is e-commerce that includes Business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce and Business-to-customer (B2C) e-commerce. Online shopping comes under this category on which this study is conducted. Several e-commerce service providers are available on web that provides professional customized web designing services that suit their clients needs. Some common applications related to electronic commerce are the following:  § Online Shopping (Web Shop)  § Online Banking  § Online Marketing  § CRM etc 1.1.1 Online Shopping Online shopping is the process consumers go through to purchase products or services over the services over the web. Online shopping is a type of business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions. The term web shop also refers to a place of business where web development, web hosting and other types of web related activities take place (Web refers to the World Wide Web and shop has a idiomatic meaning used to describe the place). 1.2 service quality The level of service received on a web site. Dependent on reliability, responsiveness and availability of staff and the web site service. Service quality is comprised of five dimensions. These are:  § Tangibles: appearance of physical facilities, equipment, personnel, and written materials (Zeithaml, Bitner Gremler, 2006).  § Reliability: ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately.  § Assurance: employees knowledge and courtesy and their ability to inspire trust and confidence.  § Responsiveness: willingness to help customers and provide prompt service.  § Empathy: caring, individualized attention given to customers. 1.2.1 Service quality dimensions in e-commerce systems Lets examine how customers judge the five dimensions of service quality in perspective of e-commerce systems. Tangibles refer to the physical appearance of an e-commerce website, its structure, layout, theme etc and referred as â€Å"website structure†. Reliability represented as â€Å"website adequacy† which provides the relevant and needed information provided by an e-commerce system when customer clicked or requested for. Assurance termed as â€Å"website security† refers as the trustworthy service provider that could include a well reputable website, reliable payments methods etc. Responsiveness is the prompt and relevant response to the specific request of users described by â€Å"website response†. Empathy knows internal customers as individual; understanding individual needs and concerns such as by providing recommendations that matches the customers needs which is termed as â€Å"website customization† in world of web. 1.2.2 service quality framework (SERVQUAL) SERVQUAL was originally measured on 10 aspects of service quality: reliability, responsiveness, competence, access, courtesy, communication, credibility, security, understanding or knowing the customer and tangibles. By the early nineties the authors had refined the model to the useful acronym RATER.  § Reliability  § Assurance  § Tangibles  § Empathy, and  § Responsiveness SERVQUAL has its detractors and is considered overly complex, subjective and statistically unreliable. The simplified RATER model however is a simple and useful model for qualitatively exploring and assessing customers service experiences and has been used widely by service delivery organizations. 1.2.3 customer satisfaction Customer satisfaction refers to the extent to which customers are happy with the products and services provided by a business. Customer satisfaction levels can be measured using survey techniques and questionnaires. Gaining high levels of customer satisfaction is very important to a business because satisfied customers are most likely to be loyal and to make repeated orders and to use a wide range of services offered by a business. The basic definition of customer satisfaction says that Customer satisfaction is a term, is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation. Customer satisfaction is an abstract concept and the actual manifestation of the state of satisfaction will vary from person to person and product/service to product or service. The level of satisfaction can also vary depending on other options the customer may have and other products against which the customer can compare the organizations products or services. 1.3 Customer Satisfaction Based on Perceived service quality of e-commerce systems The overall satisfaction of e-commerce customers can be attained by providing the level of service quality that customers perceive in that system. The five dimensions of service quality are tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy. The website structure of an e-commerce websites is all about the tangibility dimension. The reliability dimension in this study is measured by the attribute called website adequacy. The website response variable indicates the responsiveness dimension. Website security as another attribute of an e-commerce system refers to the assurance dimension and the empathy dimension described by the website customization The overall customer satisfaction is based on the five service quality dimensions representing various service attributes: tangibility, reliability, assurance, responsiveness and empathy. The detailed model used in this study is presented in figure A. The website design elements are characterized into five different types which are supposed to influence the five service quality dimensions. This study hypothesizes that some website attributes that are based on service quality dimensions has an impact on an online customer satisfaction. In other words, customers satisfaction level will increase if the e-commerce system provides a higher level of service quality through different website attributes. 1.4 Increased trend of Online surfing and shopping in Pakistan The trend of an online surfing is increasing rapidly due to the increased benefits by the use of e-commerce business environment. People visit e-commerce web sites not only for buying but for several other reasons and the smart retailer just should not only focus on boosting online browse-to-buy conversion rates, but should also try to grab the attention of an online visitors who came in for review so as they could become a customer later. Many people feel it comfortable to review the products through an extensive knowledge provided over the internet before actually buying a particular product. For this purpose, e-commerce website provides an interface to the buyers to write their reviews and share their after-purchase experiences. Thus, the e-commerce systems reduce the time and efforts required for the first step of information search in consumer decision making process. That is, by just few clicks a consumer can have a concise analysis for what matches his/her needs. There are some factors emerged as a results of the changes in lifestyle and habits of consumer which has promoted the trend of online searching and shopping in Pakistan. Some of these factors are lack of time, need of convenience and easy access to the desired object. Moreover, e-commerce websites facilitates the visitor in many ways to boost up online browse-to-buy conversion rate. Whenever a new customer lands on an e-commerce website, he/she must be having many questions in their minds regarding the products and services. A well-framed ecommerce site has an enquiry page for their customers. This gives the chance to the visitor to post an enquiry with your site. Main aim of this page is to gather all relevant and necessary information from the customers so that they can be given response in an apt manner. Within the past decade, e-commerce has matured and grown exponentially. The result: now there are many types of e-commerce payment methods available online. If your credit is bad and you cannot afford a merchant account, there are alternative methods of payments on e-commerce websites which can help you. The e-commerce systems give customers controlled access to the data they need. In other words, not only are you managing your relationship with your customers, you are giving your customers the tools to manage their relationship with you. THESIS STRUCTURE This thesis consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 discusses the problem about which the research was carried out and in general about the trends of online shopping in Pakistan. Chapter 2 is about the literature review and the theoretical background is developed. In Chapter 3, researcher describes the methodology adopted including sources of information and data collection procedure is discussed. In chapter 4, the empirical data collected through questionnaire is analyzed and results are concluded on the basis of a survey. In Chapter 5, Conclusions are drawn and necessary recommendations are suggested. 1.5 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM â€Å"Effects of website attributes on customer satisfaction in e-commerce.† The main purpose of this research is to find out the different attributes which encourage consumers to visit, search and shop on a particular website. 1.6 OBJECTIVE The purposes of this study are as follows: To identify the most important website element of e-commerce with respect to the customer satisfaction. To examine what is important to the customer regarding website attributes in e-commerce with perspective of website builders. 1.6.1 Possible Research Findings The research will also provide the following significances.  § Help the organization to better understand what customers expect in e-commerce and how those expectations impact customer attitude.  § The study will examine what the customer views as major attributes of website in e-commerce.  § Able to investigate the major customer attitudes associated with website structure in e-commerce.  § The study will indicate the link between the website attributes and the customer attitudes. 1.7 HYPOTHESES H1: Website structure has a significant association with customer satisfaction. H2: Website adequacy has a significant association with customer satisfaction. H3: Website security has a significant association with customer satisfaction. H4: Website response has a significant association with customer satisfaction. H5: Website customization has a significant association with customer satisfaction. SECTION 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction to e-commerce: The propagation of WWW has originated few facts in our daily lives, one of which is e-commerce. A transaction between two or more participants through an electronic medium is defines as e-commerce (Kalacota and Whinston 1997). As an e-commerce is rapidly raising field, therefore for accomplishing success in this market, a top quality information system is necessary (Margherio et al. 1998). An e-commerce system is designed by selectively integrating many technical (e.g. search system) or managerial (e.g. the level of information related to product) design elements (Lohse and Spiller 1998). It is still very difficult, if not impossible; to make use of all the design factors presently available for the e-commerce system although many design factors have been suggested to improve the overall quality of e-commerce system (Selz and Schubert 1997, Lohse and Spiller 1998). This is because of the recent arrival of new design factors resulted by an increase in the interest of Internet (Selz and Schubert 1997). The main goal of this paper is to explore important design elements that have significant influence on the customer satisfaction regarding the performance of e-commerce systems. In this paper, the study presents a conceptual model of e-commerce websites that includes concrete design elements, perceived level of website quality and the customer satisfaction (JINWOO KIM and JUNGWON LEE 2002). There is remarkable potential for e-commerce in developing countries. Online shopping makes it easy to find things, merchants and best offerings and thus economical in terms of time and effort offerings (Balasubramanian, 1997). According to the Malone et al (1989) communicating a same piece of information through communication networks results in decreased cost and improved speed. There is tremendous potential for e-commerce in developing countries because the use of an e-commerce can potentially reduce transaction costs. As per Malone et al (1989) observation, the search costs such as cost of identifying a market (from where to buy a product) and /or a product or service are likely to reduce with the use of e-commerce systems and can be defined as potential e-commerce cost savings. From an organizations perspective, e-commerce systems provide the organization with the better market reach and an ability to provide their customer a customized service that suits their individual needs and preferences. For example the exchange between â€Å"richness† and â€Å"reach† can be minimized by e-commerce (Evans Wurster, 2000). Richness refers to the quality and quantity of information in terms of accuracy, relevance, customization, etc. and reach measures the number of people who can be got in touch with that information. 2.2 Service quality dimensions: The overall customer satisfaction can be measured by the level of service quality of an e-commerce system that customer perceives. Some researchers (Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry 1988) stated that consumer satisfaction or dissatisfaction is as an ancestor of service quality. Conversely, modern evidence recommends that it is an outcome of service quality (Woodside, Frey and Daly 1989; Cronin and Taylor 1992). Service quality attributes are the most important factors for the success of an e-commerce systems For example Liu and Arnett (2000) found that organizations that involve in e-commerce can only ensure the success of their system by keenly looking for the ways to improve their service quality. The customers decision whether to continue using a particular e-commerce system is based on the perceived quality of service (Bhattacherjee 2001) as the service quality impacts the overall satisfaction of a customer. Tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy are the five dimensions of service quality. (Parasuraman et al. 1985, 1991, Pit et al. 1995). The tool that is being used in this study to measure the dimensions of service quality is SERVQUAL According to Brown et al. this instrument has been proved valid and reliable and hence used in various domains. (Brown et al.1993, Fisk et al. 1993, Parasuraman et al. 1985, 1993). On the basis of previous researches, service quality despite being a main interesting field in services marketing for the past two decades (Zeithaml et al., 2000); electronic service quality is still in its early stages in research area. Reil el al in 2001concluded that there has been no theoretical conceptualization emerged for customer evaluation of electronic services that could have been accepted generally. Cox and Dale (2001) has supported this conception by the fact that most out of the dominant research on service quality cannot even be valid to e-business environment. By the year 2002, the existing studies on the determinants of electronic service quality were based on measuring B2C interactions (Gilbert, 2000; Barnes and Vidgens 2000, 2001 and 2002) and few exploratory researches on website quality and e-service quality by Zeithaml et al. In early stages of service quality research, researcher were required to find out what is service quality from customers perspective (Sasser et al.,1979; Lehtinen and Lehtinen,1982; Gronroos,1982). It was normally approved that the judgment of service quality came from comparisons between what customers feel a service provider should offer (expectations) and the actual service performance of the company (perceptions) (Zeithaml et al., 2000). This view was reinforced by Parasuraman Zeithaml (2000) and Berry (1985) in their study of service quality in different service industries with which they discussed the concept of service quality as a function of expectations-perception gap. Parasuraman et als, identified the 10 dimensions that customer uses in their assessment of service quality. These 10 service quality dimensions then shaped the source for the development of a scale (SERVQUAL) to measure service quality in direct service interactions. Research extended in other context and as a result refined the scale and reduced it to 5 dimensions (reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy and tangibles) Since the SERVQUAL scale has been widely used to measure service quality in many studies across a range of settings (IS Departments; Airlines; Universities; Ocean Freight Shipping; Professional Services; Health Providers; International Markets; Purchasing; Advertising; Banking; E-commerce). Initially the concept of services were created to capture the nature of service encounters (Meuter et al., 2000) which may not be sufficient to capture the characteristics of customer interactions with self-service technologies such as e-services (Dabholkar et al.,1996). Later on, many approaches have been proposed to study online service. (Gilbert, 2000; Gronroos et al., 2000; Parasuraman and Grewel, 2000; Kaynama and Black, 2000; Zeithaml, et al., 2000; ONeill, et al., 2001) proposed the use of existing service theory as a first type. The second type utilizes generated new categories for self-service technologies such as e-services (Szymanski and Hise, 2000; van Riel, et al., 2001; Wang and Tang, 2001; Ruyter et al., 2001). Third type develops information systems and web quality theory (Barnes and Vidgen, 2000; 2001; 2002; Aladwani and Palvia, 2001). These researches have centered on customer interactions with a variety of self-service technologies such as automated call centre technology, ATMs and Web sites and touch screen technologies. A redefined SERVQUAL instrument to measure the service expectations and perceptions of customers of Internet businesses was used by Gilbert in 2000 in which he concluded that to measure online service quality, the altered SERVQUAL scale was a practical instrument. The features that are useful, accurate, relevant and comprehensive information reflect the reliability of quality information (Bailey and Pearson 1983). Bailey and Pearson (1983) also identified that website reliability depends on to what level the information provided on the website about the product or service is true, precise and also depend to what level a customer can rely on a particular website that it provides enough amount of information available regarding each product. (Luedi 1997) stated that website personalization based on the ability of website to deliver individualized interface for a specific user which generated dynamically as per users needs. This may involve making purchase recommendations and /or providing the list of other relevant products that matchs the customer needs. This can be extracted through the previous data available regarding an individual user such as buying behavior, cart items and the current session contents. Providing customized services is the best way to create a loyal customer and make repeat visits on a website Luedi (1997). The concern over security continues to plague the online world. Variables like perceived security, reputation were included in this study to examine the customer attitude towards buying process. Even though the understanding of credit card transactions perceived secure like a waiters and waitresses, still security is the top concern of people who shop online (Salisbury et at. 2001, Luo 2002. Wilson and Abel 2002). Likewise security is the reason why people do not shop online (Luo 2002). The research variable of Security reflects trust in the online system and the variable reputation reflects trust in the specific vendor. Discovering whether vendors receive repeat business reflects the overall buying attitude of consumers. Overall customer satisfaction at online shopping measures which attributes helps the website meets expectations. 2.3 Website elements: The first phase of consumer decision making process that is the information search starts the minute customers look at the interface of e-commerce website and ends until they decide whether to place the purchase order or not (Schmid 1995). The role of website structure remains important during the phase of information search process such as site maps, navigation, content settings and layout of website etc. The content, structure and website elements should be portrayed explicitly on the e-commerce interface. Website structure that includes the presentation of design elements determines how the information is actually displayed on the screen to acquire the customer attention (Morris and Hinrich 1996). Convenient website structure defined as to what extent a customer feels that the e-commerce website is user friendly, simple and instinctive. (Ki-Han and Shin, 2008) Website adequacy describes the quality and quantity of the information provided in the e-commerce system. Content based on usefulness and comprehensiveness involves the type and scope of information to be included in the system (Morris and Hinrich 1996, Kim et al 1997). After the collection of appropriate information regarding the identified products or services, the contents must be placed in a well organized manner so that the customer can understand the interface easily (Gronroos 1982, Rosenfeld and Morville 1998). A well-defined and properly placed content is a feature of website which indicates the ability to made information easily available to visitors (Ki-Han and Shin, 2008). When adequate and reliable information has been properly dispersed across different web pages within the structure of the e-commerce website, an efficient interaction system must be provided to enable the customer to switch between different pages easily (Kim and Yoo 2000, Park and Kim 2000). Ballantine (2005) has found the impact of interactivity and product related information on customer satisfaction in an online trade setting. He argued in his study that the amount of product-related information affected consumer satisfaction of online shopping. An important design element that relates to the interaction system includes the involvement of website response and website customization ability. Website Customization is referred as the extent to which an e-commerce website can identify a customer and then modify the choice of products and shopping experience for that customer (Srinivasan et al., 2002). Cook and Coupey (2001) in their research argued that the improved accessibility of information on internet is likely to result in informed customers. And educated customers are able to make better quality decisions and will then experience more satisfaction with the visits and purchases they make. The connection between all of the five individual variables describes the basic architecture of web pages (Steinmetz and Nahrsted, 1995). The overall satisfaction of e-commerce customers can be attained by providing the level of service quality that customers perceive in that system. Satisfied customers have more potential to spread positive word-of-mouth (Gremler and Brown, 1999), and they avail further services (Zeithaml et al., 1996). The five dimensions of service quality are tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy (Parasuraman et al. 1985, 1991, Pit et al. 1995). Attributes related to the website structure such as physical appearance of e-commerce websites are represented by tangibility dimension. For example, the tangibility measures the appeal of the website design of e-commerce system presents to their customers. The ability of the website to provide the dependable, accurate service is represented by reliability dimension. (Pit et al. 1995). For example, the reliability dimension measures how often an e-commerce system provides useful and comprehensive information regarding the relevant products or services. The responsiveness dimension indicates how prepared the website is to promptly response the customer with the clicked option. (Parasuraman et al. 1991). For example, the responsiveness dimension measures how often an ecommerce system voluntarily provides services that are important to its customers such as less loading time. Or it can be measured by how often a website provides accurate and rich information after a user clicked a particular product. The trust and confidence encouraged in the customer by the information provided on e-commerce system refers to the assurance dimension (Parasuraman et al. 1991). For example, the assurance dimension can be measured by extent to which a website is able to give a secure feeling to an online buyer. The empathy dimension described as the individual attention to the customer that is being provided by the dynamic e-commerce website (Pit et al. 1995). For example this dimension measures how often an ecommerce system voluntarily offers recommendations that match to its customers needs in order to provide the individual customers benefit. In summary, the overall quality of an e-commerce system can be measured by the service quality level perceived by its customers and ultimately leads to the customer satisfaction (JINWOO KIM and JUNGWON LEE, 2002). Parasuraman, Zeithaml et al. (1988, 1991) in study on SERVQUAL found that the interactive elements of e-commerce systems are e-business features that help in building relationships with customer and are fall into five main sets that are tangibles, reliability, assurance, responsiveness and empathy. Due to the consistency of research findings stated in literature, it become easy to propose that the five main determinants of e-commerce include website structure, website adequacy, website security, website response and website customization (D. HORN, R. FEINBERG and G. SALVENDY, 2005). In an e-business structure, the customer interaction with the business is through the e-commerce website. Therefore, several original SERVQUAL items were modified to focus on e-commerce website. The definition of an empathy dimension was extended to include personalization or customization, which is the concept of web gurus as they believe the emotional connection between customer and web business (Peppers et al. 1999). The overall appearance and structure of e-commerce website shows its tangibility. The performance of promised services and adequacy of information explains the reliability of an e-commerce website. Responsiveness is the ability of e-commerce system to help and provide prompt response to the website user. The individualized attention and customized service provided by the e-commerce system to an individual customer is described as empathy. Security is the trust on an e-commerce system in protecting personal and financial information (D. HORN, R. FEINBERG and G. SALVENDY, 2005). The major factors that impact the customer attitude are the five main attributes of e-commerce system. The model in Figure 1 describes how these attributes of e-commerce system work together to achieve customer satisfaction. The satisfaction/dissatisfaction of customer is defined as an emotional response to a specific consumption experience (Swan and Oliver 1989). It is determined by to what extent a consumer perceives that the service fulfills his/her needs, wants or desires. Satisfaction is a â€Å"state† inconsistent in that a consumer can be â€Å"very dissatisfi

George Lawrence Mikan :: essays research papers fc

George Lawrence Mikan was born on June 18, 1924, in Joliet, Illinois. He was of Croatian and Lithuanian Decent. George’s height peaked at 6 feet 10 inches and he weighed 245 pounds. His family consisted of his mother Minnie, father Joseph, and two brothers Joe and Ed. All three boys worked in the family restaurant following school each day. At a young age George’s passion was the piano and he wanted to someday be a concert pianist. Throughout his life this proved to be a beloved hobby. As a boy George did not have many basketball skills and broke his leg in a game at the age of thirteen. He gave priesthood a try at the Quigley Seminary in downtown Chicago following his attendance at Joliet Catholic High School. The high school coach had discouraged George from basketball because of his eyesight. The Seminary was a thirty-five mile commute from Joliet, which left George no time for basketball. At this time his 6 foot 10 inch stature had done nothing but cause him to fee l awkward and shy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  George gave basketball another try at Notre Dame University. Coach George Keogan was very skeptical of his success because of the quarter inch glasses that he wore. When Notre Dame’s assistant coach Ray Meyer took over as head coach of Chicago’s DePaul University he decided to work with George. The workouts with more agile teammates improved his timing. He followed through with four varsity seasons for DePaul. In George’s first season, DePaul won nineteen games and lost only five. George’s ability to block shots that were dropping into the basket inspired a new National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rule against goaltending. In 1944 they lost the National Invitational Tournament but came back to win it the next season. George was a three time All-American, from 1944-1946 after performances such as his 120 points in his final three games at DePaul with a high of 53. In all, George led DePaul to an 83-18 record scoring 1,870 poin ts, a collegiate record at that time. George played baseball in the off-season and was being scouted by the major leagues as a pitcher. With his height and reputation it was inevitable that he would choose basketball.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The National Basketball League (NBL) had begun in 1937, but with a limited amount of teams it was a small time operation until World War II. George’s team was sponsored in the same way as many bowling teams.