How Mountains Are Formed :: Informative Essays

How Are Mountains Formed?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mountains are formed over long periods of time by forces of the earth. Mountains just don’t appear in any place. Most are formed when plates, or huge pieces of the Earth’s crust, pull and push against each other. Great mountain ranges are formed by the movement of tectonic plates. Convection currents deep in the mantle of the earth, begins to well up towards the surface. As the pressure increases, it sets the crustal plates in motion. There are different kinds of mountains - Volcanic, Folded, Fault-block, and Dome mountains. Volcanic mountains are formed when magma comes up through cracks in the Earth’s crust and explodes out lava and ash. The Hawaiian volcanoes, Mt. Hood, Mt. Etna, Vesuvius, and Mt. Saint Helens are examples of volcanic mountains. Rocks are hard but in time they can bend or fold producing Folded mountains. The Alps formed as the Eurasian plate pushed against the African plate. Other examples of folded mountains are the Rockies, Himalayas, Appalayas, and the Andes. Fault-block mountains are formed when one plate pushes or pulls away from another plate. In the Earth, hot currents of magma or molten rock may well up and crack the weakened crust above. As the crust cracks, blocks of rock rise or fall forming Fault-block mountains. Examples of these mountains are the Sierra Nevada in California and the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. Dome mountains are formed by the same kind of molten rock that forms Volcanic mountains. As magma comes up in a crack in the Earth’s crust, it does not come to the surface, but the molten rock pushes the ground up into a dome. Examples are Yosemite’s Half Dome, the Adirondacks in New York, and the Black Hills in South Dakota.Some mountains started at the bottom of the sea. How Mountains Are Formed :: Informative Essays How Are Mountains Formed?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mountains are formed over long periods of time by forces of the earth. Mountains just don’t appear in any place. Most are formed when plates, or huge pieces of the Earth’s crust, pull and push against each other. Great mountain ranges are formed by the movement of tectonic plates. Convection currents deep in the mantle of the earth, begins to well up towards the surface. As the pressure increases, it sets the crustal plates in motion. There are different kinds of mountains - Volcanic, Folded, Fault-block, and Dome mountains. Volcanic mountains are formed when magma comes up through cracks in the Earth’s crust and explodes out lava and ash. The Hawaiian volcanoes, Mt. Hood, Mt. Etna, Vesuvius, and Mt. Saint Helens are examples of volcanic mountains. Rocks are hard but in time they can bend or fold producing Folded mountains. The Alps formed as the Eurasian plate pushed against the African plate. Other examples of folded mountains are the Rockies, Himalayas, Appalayas, and the Andes. Fault-block mountains are formed when one plate pushes or pulls away from another plate. In the Earth, hot currents of magma or molten rock may well up and crack the weakened crust above. As the crust cracks, blocks of rock rise or fall forming Fault-block mountains. Examples of these mountains are the Sierra Nevada in California and the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. Dome mountains are formed by the same kind of molten rock that forms Volcanic mountains. As magma comes up in a crack in the Earth’s crust, it does not come to the surface, but the molten rock pushes the ground up into a dome. Examples are Yosemite’s Half Dome, the Adirondacks in New York, and the Black Hills in South Dakota.Some mountains started at the bottom of the sea.

Genocide and Americans Actions :: essays research papers

Opinion 1: Lead the World in the Fight to Stop Genocide Military:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  According to the Genocide Convention signed and put into effect by the U.N December 9. 1948. Anyone committing genocide, whether constitutionally responsible rulers, public officials, or private individuals will be punished. Genocide is defined as the killing of members in a group, causing serious bodily or mental harm, imposing measures intended to prevent birth, or forcibly transferring children of that group to another group. This is exactly what is taking place in Darfur, Sudan. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates as many as 50,000 people have been killed and about 1 million internally relocated. In addition roughly 170,000 refugees have fled to eastern Chad. These actions led to Secretary of State Colin Powell along with President Bush to officially declare the crisis a genocide.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The U.N still has not recognized the crimes committed in Darfur as a Genocide. However in September 2004 the Security Council passed Resolution 1564 which threatens sanction against the Sudanese government if it does not stop attacks by the Arab Sudanese militias on black Sudanese villagers in the Darfur region. Sudanese officials have largely dismissed it, accusing the United States, for example of trying to overthrow an Arab government. They obviously don’t fear that sanction on their oil exports of some 320,000 barrels per day that will be imposed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This shows Sudanese resolve, they are willing to forfeit the economic status in order to eliminate these African tribes. As the worlds last superpower we have an obligation to protect those nearing extinction using any means necessary.

Places In To Kill a Mockingbird Essay

To Kill a Mockingbird is set in Maycomb County, an imaginary district in southern Alabama. The time is the early 1930s, the years of the Great Depression when poverty and unemployment were widespread in the United States. For parts of the deep South like Maycomb County, the Depression meant only that the bad times that had been going on for decades got a little bit worse. These rural areas had long been poor and undeveloped. Scout, through whose eyes the story is narrated, presents Depression-era Maycomb as†an old tired town†, describing the slow pace of life (â€Å"There was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb County†). As the problem of segregation is in the center of the novel it stands to reason if one takes into account that the action takes place in the South, namely in Alabama where segregation battles were especially fierce. In a way the novel is a coming-of-age story about southern culture as it took its steps toward emerging from its racist past. We can also trace the change of describing the setting. During the first half of Mockingbird Harper Lee constructs a sweet and affectionate portrait of growing up in the vanished world of small town Alabama..   Lee, however, proceeds to undermine her portrayal of small town gentility during the second half of the book.   Lee dismantles the sweet faà §ade to reveal a rotten, rural underside filled with social lies, prejudice, and ignorance. In my opinion, Scout, one of the main characters in the novel, is a dynamic one. At the beginning of the novel, Scout is an innocent, good-hearted five-year-old child who has no experience with the evils of the world. As the novel progresses, Scout has her first contact with evil in the form of racial prejudice, and the basic development of her character is governed by the question of whether she will emerge from that contact with her conscience and optimism intact or whether she will be bruised, hurt, or destroyed like Boo Radley and Tom Robinson. Thanks to Atticus’s wisdom, Scout learns that though humanity has a great capacity for evil, it also has a great capacity for good, and that the evil can often be mitigated if one approaches others with an outlook of sympathy and understanding. Scout’s development into a person capable of assuming that outlook marks the culmination of the novel and indicates that, whatever evil she encounters, she will retain her conscience without becoming cynical or jaded. Though she is still a child at the end of the book, Scout’s perspective on life develops from that of an innocent child into that of a near grown-up. Six-year-old Jean Louise â€Å"Scout† is a joyful, vigorous and defiant girl. Her appearance and manners are boyish. She works hard not to â€Å"act like a girl† by wearing overalls instead of dresses and beating up other children who antagonize her. Extremely smart and bright for her age, Scout loves to read. For example, Scout manages to keep out of fights until Christmas day, when her least favorite cousin calls Atticus a â€Å"nigger-lover,† and she responds by punching him. Or Though Scout is young and impressionable, she becomes a spokesperson for her entire class, interacting with the adult teacher comfortably; this shows that though a child, she is more grown-up than some of her peers. Scout spends her days playing outside with her older brother, Jem, and her best friend, Dill. Spunky and head strong, Scout often finds herself in trouble with her father, her housekeeper, Calpurnia, her neighbors, her aunt Alexandra, and her teachers.   Despite the rules of etiquette governing life in her small town, Scout voices her opinions and recognizes hypocrisy and injustice in her elders. As the novel progresses, the children’s changing attitude toward Boo Radley is an important measurement of her development from innocence toward a grown-up moral perspective. At the beginning of the book, he is merely a source of childhood superstition. In saving Jem and Scout from Bob Ewell, Boo proves the ultimate symbol of good.

Price Floors and Price Ceilings

Kristen Fowler Economics April 16, 2012 n   Price Controls: How efficient are  price ceilings and price floors? If you think one is better than the other, make sure to bring up examples from our economy to validate your stand. Price ceilings and price floors are essential aspects of our economy. Price ceilings are government enacted laws preventing suppliers from establishing prices of key resources higher than a certain price, which is set by the government. Price floors are price minimums that can be charged for a good or service.These price controls are put in place in order to maintain an affordable lifestyle and protect consumers from suffering form unfair inflation. However, when not executed properly, price controls can become ineffective. Price ceilings are enacted in order to benefit consumers. Price ceilings prevent businesses from charging unfair prices. For example, if only one seller has access to a certain product that is a necessity to consumers, without a price ce iling they have the ability to charge an outrageous price. Price ceilings also assist in keeping the cost of living reasonable in the case of high inflation.If prices rise faster than incomes do, people will be unable to maintain a comfortable standard of living. However, when enacted out improperly price ceilings can have a negative outcome. It is important that price ceilings are set above the market price. If a price ceiling is set below the market price, it will result in a shortage. An example of misuse of price ceilings is when a price ceiling is established on a product in which the price is thought to be too high; however a more efficient means of solving this problem would be to increase production.An ineffective price ceiling is one that is set above the market equilibrium price. The product is already selling for much lower than the price ceiling, so unless the price greatly increases, the price ceiling serves no vital purpose. Price floors are a government imposed limit of how low a price can be for a good or service. I do not believe that there should be a price floor set on products or services, and that the law of supply and demand should determine the pricing of products. However, a necessary price floor our government has in place is minimum wage.Minimum wage is essential because if employers were able to pay employees as little as they want, workers may not be able to afford the cost of living. Although minimum wage is beneficial to the people, it is also beneficial to the government as well. By setting a minimum wage, the need for public assistance decreases. Setting a minimum wage also encourages consumption. If people just have enough money to pay for their basic needs, they will not have money to spend and put back into the economy.The effectiveness of price floors greatly depends on where it is set in respect to the market equilibrium price. If the price floor is set underneath the market equilibrium price, it has no effect since the con sumer is already paying a higher price. This price floor will not be effective unless the market price decreases. A price floor will make a direct impact on the market if it is set above the market equilibrium price. By setting a higher price floor, you are ensuring that more products can be made, however there are negative results as well.Consumers will recognize that they are now paying a higher price for the same product, which may lead to less consumption, directly leading to a surplus. This idea holds true in the example of minimum wage as well. If the minimum wage rate is set too high, more unskilled workers will enter the labor force, and less employers will be willing to pay this rate leading to less hiring. Therefore setting the minimum wage rate too high will directly lead to increased unemployment. http://smallbusiness. chron. com/advantages-disadvantages-price-ceiling-25210. html

Define Individualism And Explain Its Importance Within Liberal Ideology

The liberal ideology is formed on several ideologies. Individualism is considered one of the most crucial. It's involved in most liberal characteristics like freedom, the economy and the role of the state. But there is notable division between modern and classic liberalists as to what it focuses on with modern liberalists focusing on individuality and classics believe in utilitarianism and and social darwinism. However it is widely agreed that individualism is a key concept within liberal ideology.Firstly, to discuss the importance of individualism, it must be defined. Individualism is the social theory favouring freedom of action for individuals over collective or state control. Essentially the belief that the individual is more important than the social group. This is then split further into methodological individualism where the individual is placed at the centre of political theory and ethical individualism where moral priority is given to the interests of the individual.One plac e where individualism plays a key role within liberalism is in the role of the state. This appears in the form of a constitutional government that liberal thinkers view as essential with two other aspects to guarantee individualism. The first is the separation of powers where capability would be disbanded between various parts of government in order to prevent a focused centre of power which would be able to destroy individual freedom. The second is a limited government, where the state is only given enough powers necessary to allow individuals to follow their own eccentric pursuits. Therefore it can be see individualism plays an important role in liberals ideology as liberal government is designed to protect this. John Locke sums this up as ‘the state that governs least is the state that governs best'.Another place where individualism is important within liberal ideology is with regard to the financial market. This became prominent through the thinkings of Ricardo and Smith ( writer of the wealth of nations). They believed that the individual should be enabled to act in their own interests  and this will therefore benefit society overall. This will in theory therefore promote freedom, well-being and prosperity. More recently, John Maynard Keynes put forward the requirement of demand management – that the government should inject money into the economy to ensure the individual can still act in their own interests.Individualism also plays a crucial part in the opinion of freedom within liberal ideology. It is not total freedom but freedom under the state and the rule of law. It warrants for people to develop their own abilities and ambitions. John Locke, a 17th century philosopher considered freedom of the individual to be a natural right.Modern liberals have moved away towards individuality, by suggesting life is about more than a selfish pursuit of ones own joys. John Stuart Mills expressed the desire of individuals to achieve self-realisation a nd autonomy, through ‘high' pleasures, which consist of intellectual and moral pursuits in comparison with ‘low' pleasures which are crude pleasures including activities such as promiscuity, drinking and gambling. This may suggest individualism has less of a role in modern liberalism because there's less focus on the simple pleasures that a classical liberalist would conform to.Classical liberals have an atomistic view of the individual, due to ideas such as Social Darwinism, that the hard-working and talented would survive and the lazy would fail. Spencer stressed this, and the importance of the individual responsibility. Utilitarianism is also a key concept within classical thinking on individualism, the idea that the proper course of action is the one that maximises utility. Bentham suggested this was key as individuals ought to be allowed to follow their own happiness. The focus and analysis of political theorists on what individualism should be shows its importance. To summarise, it is clear that individualism is greatly important in liberal ideology, particularly in the opinion of classical liberalists. In classical liberalism individualism takes a more pivotal role within most aspects of their ideals. However in modern liberalism individualism is slightly more subdued due to the state's larger role. Overall individualism can be seen to play an important role within liberalism as a whole.

Amul: Deary Cooperative in India Essay

Abstract In this paper we describe a case study of a dairy cooperative, AMUL, in western India that has developed a successful model for doing business in large emerging economy. It has been primarily responsible, through its innovative practices, for India to become world’s largest producer of milk. A subset of strategies followed by AMUL would still be very useful. Thus, firms that are contemplating addressing large undeveloped markets or have an intention of taking advantage of extensive but marginal supplier base would still benefit. Introduction The Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union Limited was established on December 14, 1946 as a response to exploitation of marginal milk producers in the city of Anand (in Kaira district of the western state of Gujarat in India) by traders or agents of existing dairies. Producers had to travel long distances to deliver milk to the only dairy, the Polson Dairy in Anand – often milk went sour, especially in the summer season, as producers had to physically carry milk in individual containers. These agents decided the prices and the off-take from the farmers by the season. Milk is a commodity that has to be collected twice a day from each cow/buffalo. In winter, the producer was either left with surplus unsold milk or had to sell it at very low prices. Moreover, the government at that time had given monopoly rights to Polson Dairy (around that time Polson was the most well known butter brand in the country) to collect milk from Anand and supply to Bombay city in tu rn (about 400 kilometers away). India ranked nowhere amongst milk producing countries in the world in 1946. The producers of Kaira district took advice of the nationalist leaders, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (who later became the first Home Minister of free India) and Morarji Desai (who later become the Prime Minister of India). They advised the farmers to form a cooperative and supply directly to the Bombay Milk Scheme instead of selling it to Polson (who did the same but gave low prices to the producers). Thus the Kaira District Cooperative was established to collect and process milk in the district of Kaira. Milk collection was also decentralized, as most producers were marginal farmers who would deliver 1-2 litres of milk per day. Village level cooperatives were established to organize the marginal milk producers in each of these villages. The first modern dairy of the Kaira Union was established at Anand (which popularly came to be known as AMUL dairy after its brand name). The new plant had the capacity to pasteurise 300,000 pounds of milk per day, manufacture 10,000 pounds of butter pe r day, 12,500 pounds of milk powder per day and 1,200 pounds of casein per day. Indigenous R&D and technology development at the Cooperative had led to the successful production of skimmed milk powder from buffalo milk – the first time on a commercial scale anywhere in the world. The foundations of a modern dairy industry in India had just been laid as India had one of the largest buffalo populations in the world. We move to year 2000. The dairy industry in India and particularly in the State of Gujarat looks very different. India has emerged as the largest milk producing country in the world. Gujarat emerges as the most successful State in terms of milk and milk product production through its cooperative dairy movement. The Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union Limited, Anand becomes the focal point of dairy development in the entire region and AMUL emerges as one of the most recognized brands in India, ahead of many international brands. Starting with a single shared plant at Anand and two village cooperative societies for milk procurement, the dairy cooperative movement in the State of Gujarat had evolved into a network of 2.12 million milk producers (called farmers) who are organized in 10,411 milk collection independent cooperatives (called Village Societies). These Village Societies (VS) supply milk to thirteen independent dairy cooperatives (called Unions). AMUL is one such Union. Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation or GCMMF is the marketing entity for products of all Unions in the State of Gujarat. GCMMF has 42 regional distribution centers in India, serves over 500,000 retail outlets and exports to more than 15 countries. All these organizations are independent legal entities yet loosely tied together with a common destiny. In a recent survey GCMMF was ranked amongst the top ten FMCG firms in the country while AMUL was rated the second most recognized brand in India amongst all Indian and MNC offerin gs. 2nd Phase: In 1966, Amul hired Sylvester daCunha, then managing director of the advertising agency AS to design a new ad campaign for Amul Butter. daCunha designed an add campaign as series of hoardings with topical ads, relating to day-to-day issues.[14]The campaign was widely popular and earned a Guiness world record for the longest running ad campaign in the world. Since the 1980s, cartoon artist Bharat Dabholkarhas been involved with sketching the Amul ads, who rejected the trend of using celebrities in advertisement campaigns. Despite encountering political pressure on several occasions, daCunha’s agency has made it a policy of not backing down. Some of the more controversial Amul ads include one commenting on Naxalite uprising in West Bengal, on the Indian Airlines employees strike, and the one depicting the Amul butter girl wearing a Gandhi cap. Amul hired DraftFCB+Ulka for the brands of Amul milk, chocolates, paneer, ghee, ice-cream. The establishment of Amul is also known as White Revolution. The White Revolution of India inspired the notable Indian film-makerShyam Benegal to base his film Manthan (1976) on it. The White Revolution ushered an era of plenty from a measly amount of milk production and distribution. Aside from the great measurable success that this project was, it also demonstrated the power of â€Å"collective might†. A small set of poor farmers of Kheda district in Gujarat had the vision and foresight to act in a way that was good for the society and not for the self alone. There have been several factors driving the restructuring of the dairy business (which has chiefly been organized around cooperative principles). These include efficiencies in managing fewer large plants versus a number of under-utilized small plants, need for more milk supply (and declining membership), need to offer wide variety, improvements in trucking & milk handling thereby facilitating long hauls, opening of new international markets (also markets for new products), seeking marketing clout and need to bring investment from outside the cooperatives. AMUL in India has learnt from many experiences and has been influenced by practices in dairies around the world especially in its formative years. It has, however, formed it own organizational structure (i.e., AMUL is a cooperative of village cooperatives) to bring about a change in the lives of marginal farmers of India. The AMUL experience has attracted considerable interest from the development community – predominantly an thropologists, development & agriculture economists, and political scientists. Key areas of their enquiry have been the role of AMUL in reducing social and economic inequality in the region of the cooperative, the sociology of cooperation, interface of the dairy cooperative and the rural power structure, relation of the State and the Cooperative and the role of government in its growth (interestingly, AMUL has successfully managed to exercise its independence from the government unlike other cooperatives in India), elements & replicability of the cooperative movement at Anand, cost effectiveness of subsidies to AMUL (in its initial years) etc. A few studies have evaluated the operational effectiveness of the operations at AMUL. Studies have reported usage of mobile veterinary dispensaries, wireless sets to link mobile units to service centers as early 1951, developing a programme of cross breeding of cows in early 1970s etc. that have led to a phenomenal rise in productivity of milk (Patel, 1988). AMUL’s Journey towards Excellence AMUL’s journey towards excellence is marked by some critical understanding of the business environment in large emerging economies like India where markets have to be developed by combining efficiency related initiatives with increasing the base of marginal suppliers and consumers. The essence of AMUL’s efforts were as follows: †¢ It combined market and social development in an emerging economy. It recognized the inter-linkages between various environments that governed the lives of marginal milk farmers and the unmet needs of consumers. It also changed the supply chain paradigm in order to reduce the cost to the consumer while increasing the return to the supplier. †¢ It realized that in order to achieve their objectives, it had to benefit a large number of people – both suppliers and consumers. While large scale had the danger of failure due to poor control and required more resources, it also had the advantage of creating a momentum that would be necessary to bring more people into the fold and thereby help more suppliers and consumers. †¢ It also realized that its goal could only be achieved in the long run and this required developing values in people and processes that were robust, replicable and transparent. †¢ It also realized that the cooperative would not be independent and viable in the face of competition if it were not financially sound. Leadership While Kaira Union (or AMUL) had the support of national leaders who were at the forefront of the Indian independence movement, its local leaders were trained in Gandhian simplicity and had their feet rooted firmly amongst people whom they had mobilized – the poor farmers of Anand. The foremost amongst them was Tribhuvandas Patel who had led the movement for the formation of cooperatives of small and marginal farmers in order to compete against investor owned enterprises on one hand, and keep bureaucracy away on the other hand. Tribhuvandas was the first Chairman of the cooperative. His skills lay in organizing the village producers, in making them believe in the power of cooperation and their rights towards improvement of human condition. He is remembered as fair and honest person whose highest sense of accountability to the members of the union laid the foundation of trust between network members. Another important aspect of his remarkable management style was his gentleness and ability to repose trust in people – he gave complete autonomy to managers of the union and earned complete commitment from them. Verghese Kurien was one such manager who would, first, shape the destiny of the Union and then the milk movement throughout the country. Several young people left better paying jobs to help create a dream of making India the milk capital of the world. Kurien had learnt the persuasive charm of Tribhuvandas through plain speaking and had soon created a cadre of highly capable managers to whom he had delegated both management as well as commitment. These leaders were created at the village, district and state levels in different organizations of the network. Tribhuvandas knew that his fledgling cooperative needed a technocrat manager who shared his concern for the farmers and also had the tenacity to organize marginal producers. Convincing farmers to join the cooperative required commitment bordering on stubbornness, a can do attitude and a desire to change lives of poor people. Verghese Kurien had those skills and had linkages to the government. He was charismatic in his communication and committed in his effort. Over a period of time, he developed a very close link with the poor farmers who, as he always says, â€Å"w ere his employers† at the cooperative. He would travel through the villages along with Tribhuvandas and work out the details of how the milk collection cooperative would work, how trucks would pickup milk from village societies, how the cattle would have to be taken care of and how all of this would help the poor milk farmer come out of poverty and the clutches of the middleman. Operational details were meticulously planned and executed. And then, he along with two of his close associates would work on the design of the dairy plant including conducting experiments to create powder out of buffalo milk – a task that was ridiculed by all who heard of it including the international aid agencies in the dairy industry. Tribhuvandas and Kurien were able to convince the government also of the value of his efforts and secured funding for several projects of the cooperative. Kurien’s biggest strength lay in his ability to convince people that the cause of rural farmers was important thus establishing an important shar ed value. Subsequently, he could convince the government to replicate the AMUL model in almost all states of the country. Strategy AMUL’s business strategy is driven by its twin objectives of (i) long-term, sustainable growth to its member farmers, and (ii) value proposition to a large customer base by providing milk and other dairy products a low price. Its strategy, which evolved over time, comprises of elements described below. Simultaneous Development of Suppliers and Customers: From the very early stages of the formation of AMUL, the cooperative realized that sustained growth for the long-term was contingent on matching supply and demand. Further, given the primitive state of the market and the suppliers of milk, their development in a synchronous manner was critical for the continued growth of the industry. The organization also recognized that in view of the poor infrastructure in India, such development could not be left to market forces and proactive interventions were required. Accordingly, AMUL and GCMMF adopted a number of strategies to assure such growth. For example, at the time AMUL was formed, the vast majority of consumers had limited purchasing power and was value conscious with very low levels of consumption of milk and other dairy products. Thus, AMUL adopted a low price strategy to make their products affordable and guarantee value to the consumer. The success of this strategy is well recognized and remains the main plank of AMUL’s strategy even today. To summarize, the dual strategy of simultaneous development of the market and member farmers has resulted in parallel growth of demand and supply at a steady pace and in turn assured the growth of the industry over an extended period of time. Cost Leadership: AMUL’s objective of providing a value proposition to a large customer base led naturally to a choice of cost leadership position. Given the low purchasing power of the Indian consumer and the marginal discretionary spending power, the only viable option for AMUL was to price its products as low as possible. This in turn led to a focus on costs and had significant implications for managing its operations and supply chain practices (described later). Focus on Core Activities: In view of its small beginnings and limited resources, it became clear fairly early that AMUL would not be in a position to be an integrated player from milk production to delivery to the consumer. Accordingly, it chose a strategy to focus on core dairy activities and rely on third parties for other complementary needs. This philosophy is reflected in almost all phases of AMUL network spanning R&D, production, collection, processing, marketing, distribution, retailing etc. For example, AMUL focused on processing of liquid milk and conversion to variety of dairy products and associated research and development. On the other hand, logistics of milk collection and distribution of products to customers was managed through third parties. However, it played a proactive role in making support services available to its members wherever it found that markets for such services were not developed. For example, in the initial stages, its small and marginal member farmers did not have access to finance, veterinary service, knowledge of basic animal husbandry etc. Thus to assure continued growth in milk production and supply, AMUL actively sought and worked with partners to provide these required services. Managing Third Party Service Providers: Well before the ideas of core competence and the role of third parties in managing the supply chain were recognized and became fashionable, these concepts were practiced by GCMMF and AMUL. From the beginning, it was recognized that the core activity for the Unions lay in processing of milk and production of dairy products. Accordingly, the Unions focused efforts on these activities and related technology development. Marketing efforts (including brand development) were assumed by GCMMF. All other activities were entrusted to third party service providers. These include logistics of milk collection, distribution of dairy products, sale of products through dealers and retail stores, some veterinary services etc. It is worth noting that a number of these third parties are not in the organized sector, and many are not professionally managed. Hence, while third parties perform the activities, the Unions and GCMMF have developed a number of mechanisms to retain control and assure quality and timely deliveries (see the sub-section on Coordination for Competitiveness later in the paper for more details). This is particularly critical for a perishable product such as liquid milk. Financial Strategy: AMUL’s finance strategy is driven primarily by its desire to be self-reliant and thus depend on internally generated resources for funding its growth and development. This choice was motivated by the relatively underdeveloped financial markets with limited access to funds, and the reluctance to depend on Government support and thus be obliged to cede control to bureaucracy. AMUL’s financial strategy may thus be characterized by two elements: (a) retention of surplus to fund growth and development, and (b) limited/ no credit, i.e., all transactions are essentially cash only. For example, payment for milk procured by village societies is in cash and within 12 hours of procurement (most, however, pay at the same time as the receipt of milk). Similarly, no dispatches of finished products are made without advance payment from distributors etc. This was particularly important, given the limited liquidity position of farmer/suppliers and the absence of banking facilities in rural India. This strategy strongly helped AMUL implement its own vision of growth and development. It is important to mention that many of the above approaches were at variance with industry practices of both domestic and MNC competitors of AMUL. Organization AMUL is organized as a cooperative of cooperatives (i.e., each village society, a cooperative in itself, is a member of the AMUL cooperative) thereby deriving the advantage of scale and uniformity in decision making. The founders of Kaira Union realized that to fulfill their objectives, a large number of marginal farmers had to benefit from the cooperative – a network of stakeholders had to be built. And once built, it had to grow so as to draw more rural poor to undertake dairy farming as a means of livelihood. The network had to have several layers – the organizational network where the voice of the owners governed all decisions, a physical network of support services and product delivery process and a network of small farmers that could deliver the benefit of a large corporation in the market place. More importantly, a process had to be put in place to build these networks. Building an organizational network that would represent the farmers and the customers was the most complicated task. A loose confederation was developed with GCMMF representing the voice of the customers, the Unions representing the milk processors and the village societies representing the farmers. Competition in the markets ensured that the entire network was responding to the requirements of the customers at prices that were very competitive. The task of ensuring that returns to the farmers was commensurate with the objectives with which the cooperatives were setup was achieved through representation of farmers at different levels of decision making throughout the network – the board of directors of societies, Unions and the Federation comprised farmers themselves. In order to ensure that most returns from sales went to the producers, the intermediaries had to operate very effectively and on razor thin margins. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise – the operations remained very â€Å"lean† and started to provide cost based advantage to the entire network. AMUL establ ished a group to standardize the process of organizing farmers into village societies. In addition to establishing the criteria for selecting members, the group had to train the VS to run the cooperative democratically, profitably and with concern for its members. This included establishing procedures for milk collection, testing, payment for milk purchased from member farmers and its subsequent sale to the union, accounting, ensuring timely collection and dispatch of milk on milk routes established by the union, etc. The Village Societies Division at AMUL acts as the internal representative of village societies in their dealings with the Union. Cooperative development programmes at the village level for educating & training its members have become an important part of the strategy to build this extensive network. Milk procurement activity at AMUL comprises development and servicing of village societies, increasing milk collection, procurement of milk from societies & its transport to the chilling locations, and resolving problems of farmers and village societies. Thei r stated objective is to ensure that producers get maximum benefits. The Village Societies Division coordinates these activities. Milk collection takes place over a large number of pre-defined routes according to a precise timetable. The field staff of this division also help village societies interface with the Union on various issues ranging from improvement of collection, resolving disputes, repair of equipments to obtaining financing for purchase of equipment etc. In addition, they are also responsible for the formation of new societies, which is an important activity at AMUL. In essence, the organization structure of AMUL allows effective utilization of resources without losing the democratic aspiration of individual members. It is obvious that such a system needs charismatic leadership to achieve consensus across issues – a process that has long-term benefits for any organization. Marketing GCMMF is the marketing arm of the network and manages the physical delivery and distribution of milk and dairy products from all the Unions to customers. GCMMF is also responsible for all decisions related to market development and customer management. These activities, which range from long-term planning to medium-term and short-term operational decisions are described below. As mentioned earlier, introduction of new products and choice of product mix and markets should be consistent with the growth strategy, and synchronous with growth in milk supply. GCMMF’s demand growth strategy may be characterized by two key elements: (i) developing markets for its high value products by graduating customer segments from low value products, and (ii) maintaining a healthy level of customer base for its base products (low value segment). This strategy often requires GCMMF to allocate sufficient quantity of milk supply to low value products, thereby sacrificing additional profits that coul d be generated by converting the same to high value products. Interestingly, advertisement & promotion (a la FMCG) was not considered to be enough of value addition and hence the budget was kept relatively small. Instead, GCMMF preferred a lower price with emphasis on efficiency in advertising. In this context, GCMMF provides umbrella branding to all the products of the network. For example, liquid milk as well as various milk products produced by different Unions are sold under the same brand name of AMUL. Interestingly, the advertising has centred on building a common identity (e.g., a happy & healthy â€Å"cartoon† AMUL girl) and evoking national emotion (e.g., the key advertising slogan says â€Å"AMUL – The Taste of India†). GCMMF also plays a key role in working with the Unions to coordinate the supply of milk and dairy products. In essence, it procures from multiple production plants (the thirteen Unions), which in turn procure from the Village Societies registered with each Union. GCMMF distributes its products through third party distribution depots that are managed by distributors who are exclusive to GCMMF. These distributors are also responsible for servicing retail outlets all over the country. GCMMF sales staff manages this process. Retailing of GCMMF’s products takes place through the FMCG retail network in India most of whom are small retailers. Liquid milk is distributed by vendors who deliver milk at homes. Since 1999, GCMMF has started web based ordering facilities for its customers. A well-defined supply chain has been developed to service customers who order in this manner.

The effects of heredity and environment on learning

Between heredity and environment, which one contributes a greater influence to larn? This is a inquiry that has led to lift of nature versus raising argument all over the universe. As the eternal argument goes on, instructors and parents should retrieve that familial factors set the bound of a given trait ( e.g. intelligence ) but the environment determines how much the possible can be realized as Ngaroga ( 2003 ) stated. It is hence necessary for both instructors and parents to ship much on proviso of a rich and stimulating environment to their kids so as to maximise their rational abilities every bit long as acquisition is concerned.Definition of FootingsLearningMyers ( 2001 ) defined larning as comparatively lasting alteration in being ‘s behavior due to see. Ngaroga ( 2003 ) defined larning as a comparatively lasting alteration in behaviour which comes as a consequence of pattern of an activity. Blair-Broeker ( 2003 ) defined larning as a comparatively lasting alteration in behaviour due to see.HeredityIngule, Rono and Ndambuki ( 1996 ) defined heredity as kid ‘s single heritage from his hereditary line.IntelligenceHarmonizing to Coon ( 2000 ) intelligence is an overall capacity to believe rationally, move purposefully and cover efficaciously with the environment.StimulationHarmonizing to Ormrod ( 2009 ) stimulation is thirstily interacting with 1s physical and societal environment.Question 1: Explain how heredity and environment influence acquisitionEffectss of Heredity on LearningHarmonizing to Ormorod ( 2009 ) Heredity influences acquisition because: – It lays the foundation for the rational potency or ability of an person. Each single inherits different types of intelligences from their parents. Some inherit analytical intelligence others prowess in originative intelligence and practical intelligences. Parents and instructors should therefore observe and place their kids ‘s possible spheres, raising and develop them. It determines ripening which is a factor impacting acquisition. Unfolding of genetically directed alterations as the kid develops for illustration basic motor accomplishments e.g. walking, running and leaping emerge chiefly as a consequence of neurological ( encephalon ) development, increased strength and increased muscular control alterations that are mostly determined by familial biological instructions. It determines personality e.g. disposition. Children seem to hold distinguishable dispositions about from birth. Disposition of an single dictates general activity degree, adaptability, continuity, venturesomeness, shyness, inhibitedness, crossness and distractibility. Temperament greatly affects acquisition. Ngaroga ( 2003 ) stated that familial factors set the bound of a given trait ( e.g. intelligence ) but the environment determines how much the possible can be realized. Ngaroga ( 2003 ) besides stated that mental deceleration during pre-natal period can be caused by heredity factors. Mentally retarded scholars have jobs in all academic countries and have short attending span. Ngaroga ( 2003 ) added that heredity factors such as albinism and color sightlessness may take to loss of sight which plays a really of import function in larning. Loss of sight can extremely impact larning. 1 Myers ( 2001 ) wrote that heredity contributes 50 to 70 per cent intelligence within a group of people. It is intelligence that determines the ability to larn. 2Effectss of Environment on LearningHarmonizing to Myers ( 2001 ) , Research surveies that compare kids reared in inattentive environments including those associated with poorness and malnutrition with those who have been reared in normal environments point to impact of environmental experiences on intelligence tonss. Findingss sing Head start and other pre-school plans indicate that high-quality plans can bring forth short-run cognitive additions and long-run positive effects. Recent surveies besides provide grounds that schooling and intelligence have a positive mutual consequence on each other. Ngaroga ( 2003 ) wrote that unequal nutrition to female parents and kids e.g. deficiency of equal Vitamin A can take to loss of sight. This can easy minimise larning result. Similarly, Ormorod ( 2009 ) wrote that environment affects IQ of an single e.g. traveling a kid from a inattentive, impoverished place environment to a more nurturing, exciting one ( e.g. through acceptance ) can ensue in IQ additions of 15 point or more. 3Question 2: Discuss how instructors and parents can supply a rich and exciting larning environment to their kidsOrmorod ( 2009 ) defined â€Å" a rich and exciting larning environment † as the environment that makes a learner tidal bore in interacting with his physical and societal environment. She groups larning environment into two classs: – Physical acquisition environment set up Psychological environment She gives the undermentioned general suggestions in proviso of strategic, rich and exciting learning environment.Communicating credence, attention and regard for every pupil.Human existences seem to hold cardinal demand to experience socially connected with others. Teachers can assist run into pupils ‘ demand for relatedness by showing, through many small things they do, that they care about and respect pupils as people. Effective communicating creates a bipartisan duologue diary in which pupils express their ideas and feeling, ask inquiries and petition aid.Making a goal-oriented businesslike ( but nonthreatening ) atmosphere.Although caring relationships with pupils are indispensable, instructors and pupils likewise must acknowledge that they are at school to acquire certain things accomplished. Consequently, a comparatively concern atmosphere should predominate in the schoolroom most of the clip. This is non to state that schoolroom activities must be deadening and boring. O n contrary, they should be interesting and piquant, and they can sometimes even be exciting. Entertainment and exhilaration should non be thought of as ends in and of themselves, nevertheless. Rather, they are means to a more of import end: mastering academic capable affair. Learning environment should ne'er be uncomfortable or threatening. 4Making a sense of community and belongingnessA acquisition environment in which the instructor and pupils systematically work together easy assist one another learn.ultimately instructor should besides make a sense of community in the learning environment-a sense that they and their pupils have shared ends are of course respectful and supportive of one another ‘s attempts and believe that everyone makes an of import part to larning procedure. Making sense of community engenders feelings of belongingness. Students see themselves as of import and valued members of the community.Communicating on a regular basis with parents and other primary health professionalsProductive parent-teacher relationships enhance pupils hearing and accomplishment in the acquisition environment. Parents and other health professionals provide information about current fortunes at place or effectual motivational schemes. Keeping pupils fruitfully engaged in worthwhile undertakings An effectual instructor should be after lessons and larning activities. He should besides be after specific ways of maintaining pupils on undertaking. The capable affair should be made interesting and relevant to pupils ‘ values and ends. A instructor should besides seek every bit much as possible attempt to utilize colorful audiovisual AIDSs, conduct fresh activities e.g. little group treatments, category arguments, or on occasion traveling to a different location.To maintain pupils fruitfully engaged a instructor can make the followers: –Have something specific for pupils to make each twenty-four hours, even on the first twenty-four hours of the category. Have stuffs organized and equipment set up before category. Behavior activities that guarantee all pupils engagement and engagement. 5 Kabiru and Njenga ( 2007 ) who seem to hold about similar schemes in proviso of a rich stimulating larning environment as Ormrod ( 2009 ) but they emphasized much on Maslow ‘s theory of self-actualization where basic needs seem to be a key in proviso of a rich and stimulating environment.They suggested the undermentioned extra points as representing a rich and stimulating environment- :Supplying quality nutrition for their kids.Parents must guarantee that they provide equal balanced diet for the kids. Quality nutrition ensures that the kid ‘s encephalon develop decently. As good, proper nutrition ensures that kids are healthy and develop a strong immune system. It besides ensures that kids have energy to take part in larning activities e.g. drama, geographic expeditions, experimentation and useProvision of quality wellness attention for kids.The parents should guarantee that the kids are to the full immunized from the immunizable diseases. They should besides supervise th eir growing, wellness and nutritionary position and dainty and every status quickly. Proper sanitation and clean H2O are of import. 6DecisionAs a instructor, it is of import to understand the effects of both heredity and environmental factors on larning. By so making, a instructor can be in a place to program and put a strategic environment for larning for their scholars. In add-on, this cognition can enable instructors advise parents and offer possible solutions to factors impacting academic public presentation of their kids at school. 7