Gavin Menzies’ Voyages Free Essays

Gavin Menzies Essay Gavin Menzies was a royal navy submarine captain that worked for the British government and now is trying to let the world know his opinion on the discovery of the Americas: did the Chinese discover the Americas before Columbus? Menzies takes on a voyage where he tries to find evidence to support his thesis and comes up with several different theories; his first stop: Calicut. Menzies claims that the Ming dynasty’s famous navigator Zheng He managed to reach the cape of good hope and from there he should have reached the Americas too. Gavin also claims that a famous Italian writer of the time, Nicolo ‘ Di Conti, might have made contact with Zheng ‘s fleet in Calicut and might have also left with them for the New World; Unfortunately for Menzies this idea was quickly discarded for there are historical records that suggest that Di Conti immediately returned back to Italy after his trip to Calicut ( he might have also carried some Chinese maps of their voyages with him). We will write a custom essay sample on Gavin Menzies’ Voyages or any similar topic only for you Order Now Menzies then pulls out some more evidence that a map found was possibly a Chinese map that led to the islands of the Antilles, but according to a few historians and cartographers, the maps were confusing inaccurate and the islands were displaced in random places. The possibility of a slipway on one of the tropical islands was rejected by many geologists that state that those rocks where there for no peculiar reason. Still not giving up on his quest, Gavin Menzies slightly alters his theory: he affirms that an Italian, Verazzano, went on a voyage with the Chinese and stating that he saw â€Å"people running like Chinese†; but as we already know, even Columbus, thought that the people he thought were Chinese but they were just the Native American tribes that lived on the coastline. It was also verified that Indigenous people were descendants of other Asian tribes that might have reached the Americas by crossing an icy passage in North America. There is no concrete information or evidence that the Chinese ever got to America, because if that were so than the Chinese would have set up outposts, settled or maybe started trading the tropical goods with Europe and probably could have made a fortune! Lastly, Menzies tries convincing the people when he claims that an old Chinese report states that the Ming fleet arrived at the shore of about 3000 different countries(the only way to do this was by reaching the Americas too)! The Chinese historian that owned the archives rejects this last of Gavin’s theories because of a simple calligraphy misunderstanding: the Chinese character † † means 30 and † † means 3000 so the record can be misunderstood because the record actually just meant 30 different countries†¦ Any claims concerning history, especially when it has been firmly accepted by historians and other professionals on that certain topic, should have reliable and plausible evidence along with clarifications and explanations to be supported; That is how history has been built up so far and it’s how it will continue to be built. When an argument concerning history that relies on inaccurate evidence and unsupported theories, such as that found in Menzies’ show. The argument does not deserve to be reconsidered. How to cite Gavin Menzies’ Voyages, Essay examples

Brand Orientation and Market Orientation †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Brand Orientation and Market Orientation. Answer: Introduction: Lorna Jane is a brand that has been established in the year 1990 and this is the clothing retailer and manufacturer of active wears that are innovative in nature in order to meet the rising demands of the customers in the competitive market. The respective brand is particularly for the sports minded active as well as health conscious women. The current strategic market of Lorna Jane is that in the recent years it has reported sales as well as revenues of more than $195,360,000 in all over Australia (Lorna Jane, 2015). The particular brand is trying to expand recently to other countries as well. In order to contribute to the success of Lorna Jane, the company is commencing program of expansion internationally and they are now operating in more than 200 countries along with retail stores in US, Singapore and other stores as well. Lorna Jane has competition in the market as there are other new companies that are trying to attract strong customer base but it is not possible as Lorna Jane is providing the best kind of services to their target customers. Proper SWOT analysis will be conducted in order to analyze the external and internal threats and strengths of the company. Lorna Jane is a brand wherein the main priority of the brand is providing the customers a proper satisfaction by providing quality products to them. The main value of the respective brand Lorna Jane is to manufacture, design as well as sell the brands that are quality active wear and the brand endorsements are done by the celebrities. The main aim and concept of Lorna Jane brand is women empowerment and through this concept they want to expand their brand in other countries in the future as well. The particular brand mainly deals with sporty clothes that will be comfortable for the health conscious as well as fit women who are stylish in their approach as well (Yan Xin et al., 2014). Core values of brand Lorna Jane The core values of the brand Lorna Jane is to properly manufacture design as well as sell active wears those are of high quality and their main aim is to understand that there is no such impact on the environment of the products that are manufactured by them (Keller, 2016). The main aim of Lorna Jane brand is to sell products that are sustainable for the entire environment. The companies follow sustainable as well as ethical practices throughout the supply chain of the entire business. The other core values of Lorna Jane are to create a positive relationship with the employees as well as suppliers in the workplace and this helps the company in providing value to the customers. There are different elements of brand Lorna Jane wherein the mantra of the particular brand has to be identified along with image of the brand as this will help in understanding the brand identity concept as well. The elements of the brand have to be meaningful in nature as it should enable the customers to understand the meaning of the character of the brand that the company wants to portray (Rubio, Oubina Villasenor, 2014). Mantra of the brand Lorna Jane is Move, Nourish Believe There are three different sectors of the brand Loran Jane that are as follows: Emotional- wherein it focuses on the empowerment of women Descriptive- wherein it describes and focuses on athletic women Function- wherein it focuses on the active lifestyle of women (Seri?, Gil-Saura Ruiz-Molina, 2014) The focus that has been given on the empowerment is this will help in motivating the women customers in order to make them lead a lifestyle that is active in nature. Similarly, the athletic focuses on the customers who are strong, successful, disciplined as well as resilient. Lastly, active lifestyle focuses on the products of Lorna Jane as this will focus on stylish as well as active sportswear clothes (Huang Sarigollu, 2014). The logo of the brand Lorna Jane that indicates the following meaning: Move bodies every day Nourish from inside and out Believing in themselves Personality of brand The personality of the brand Lorna Jane helps in understanding that this brand focuses on providing strength to the women as this encourages empowerment of women, disciplined, resilient and successful individuals (Rossolatos, 2014). The particular brand Lorna Jane introduces trendy, stylish, athletic, and fashionable as well as empowerment of women in the society. The main mission of the brand is to empower each and every woman to lead her best life through wearing active sportswear and with the help of daily practice of MOVE, NOURISH AND BELIEVE (Buil, Chernatony Martnez, 2013). The brand communication helps in analyzing the combination of different activities that will help in influencing the behavior of the customers in the competitive market according to the different opinions of the company and the different products that are sold by them as well (Severi Ling, 2013). Lorna Jane is the brand that helps in promoting brand communication by informing the customers about the different innovations and the features of their products that are sold in the market (Su Tong, 2015). The communication of brand is essential for the internal customers as well as this will help in focusing on the communication of different information related to sales and revenues of the respective company (Sasmita Mohd Suki, 2015). A strong brand name is essential to be provided by the companies as this helps in attracting customers in the competitive market and helps in making the customers aware about the brand as well (Hutter et al., 2013). The brand name that is used by Lorna Jane is unique from other competitors in the market and the three dots that indicates move, nourish and believe helps in understanding that this logo with help in attracting large group of customers in the target market and this logo will help the customers in remembering about the company as well as the brand (Jillapalli Jillapalli, 2014). The main aim of the brand Lorna Jane is the empowerment of women in the society and this will help in marketing their active sportswear in the market as well (Mizik, 2014). The brand communication for the focal brand Lorna Jane is of good standard as the particular brand has segmented their market according to the geographic location and along with the behavior of customers (Kapferer, 2017). The main target market of Lorna Jane is the customers who are of age group of 25-45 years of age and the main communication method of the particular brand is empowerment of women and to help them lead an active life as well (Urde, Baumgarth Merrilees, 2013). Secondary brand associations The secondary brand association is leveraged by the different companies in order to build proper brand equity in the market (Choi, 2014). There are different sources of secondary brand association that includes place, people, things as well as other brands who are the competitors of the respective brand. The people of the respective brand are the employees as well as the endorsers. The secondary brand associations include the extension of the brand as well in different parts of the world along with understanding the ambassador of the brand (Ho et al., 2015). From the above diagram, it can be analyzed that the secondary brand association of Lorna Jane is that the particular brand is expanding their business in different countries and this helps in analyzing the countries wherein they want to expand their business and this will help the company in deciding on the endorsers as well. The employees and the endorsers have to be properly classified by the business owners as well as other marketing department employees in order to understand their nature of competitors (Wong Wickham, 2015). Ambassador of Lorna Jane Brand Kayla Itsines is the brand ambassador of the brand Lorna Jane and she is an Australian author, trainer as well as entrepreneur. She has got the idea of starting the business of active sportswear as she felt that the empowerment of women is a different idea and this can help them in increasing the business in different parts of the world as well. The main motive of the brand Lorna Jane was to help the women who are health conscious in nature as well as those who are fitness freaks as well. The brand Lorna Jane is expanding their market in different parts of the world as well as there is now extending the brand in their other products related to health care as well as other products in different gyms as well as stores of health food chains. The brand Lorna Jane is expanding their business in preparation of active living rooms as well. Lorna Jane is performing extremely well in the department of apparels for the empowerment of women as well as for the woman customers who are in demand for active living as well in different parts of the world. The brand Lorna Jane is positioned with proper philosophy of active living that is supported by the daily practice of Move, Nourish and Believe. The ethos of the brand Lorna Jane helps in encouraging the sense of empowerment along with strong bond with the customers emotionally. The brand ambassador of the brand Lorna Jane was herself an author and trainer and she started this particular brand for empowerment of women in the entire world. The target customers of the particular brand are the female who are fashion minded and who are active consumers as well. The Lorna Jane positions itself in such a way that it has attracted to large customers as well and this will help in being a competition to other brands such as Nike, Adidas as well. The brand Lorna Jane manufactures, designs as well as sells retail active wear products that includes sports bras, Tops, Tanks, Pants, Accessories, Shorts, Jackets, Hoddies, Grift cards and shoes. Analysis of competitors of Lorna Jane The brand Lorna Jane is positioned in the mainstream market in the upper section. The competition is being derived from brands of sportswear both globally as well as other national brands that are smaller in nature. The perceptual map analysis of the market of Lorna Jane is positioned along with the other key competitors that are measured by quality of brand as well as point of price as well. Segmentation of customers Geographic This helps in understanding where the customers are located of Lorna Jane. The geographic location of Lorna Jane helps in analyzing the different other companies that are based on ecommerce and this will help them in understanding the competition in the business Demographic The demographics of the brand Lorna Jane is categorized as follows: Female customers- 25-45 years of age The target customers are both high and middle class income group individuals The particular brand offers products that are physically active e and the range starts from XXS to XL Pyschographic The pyschographic of the brand Lorna Jane is categorized as follows: For the customers who are health and brand conscious For the customers who seeks proper and good quality of clothes For empowering the women customers and making them confident in their approaches as well SWOT analysis of Lorna Jane There are many strengths of the brand Lorna Jane wherein there are little strength that is as follows: The respective organization has managed in order to establish a strong brand for their company The management of the company has developed a proper inspiring brand image in the entire competitive market The respective organization managed to convince different women for their different products as this helped them in empowerment of the women Proper introduction of the sales has helped in increasing the sales and revenues of the product of the company The respective brand and the company has strong supply chain that helps the company in faster delivery of the goods and services in the market The other major strength of the company is that it sells products of the sportswear categories that are major choice of the customers in the competitive market The company must properly communicate the information of the product to the customers who are potential in nature (Brexendorf, Bayus Keller, 2015) Weaknesses The company has a low awareness about the brand against the entire world Another main weakness of the company is that it offers the clothing mainly for the women The company is not able to enjoy the sales of the sportswear clothes for men The organization uses low budget with regard to advertisements that are shown in TV The other weakness for low desire of the product from different target customers Opportunities There are different markets in Australia that sells sportswear for men in the market This is a perfect opportunity for Lorna Jane in order to develop products in the untapped potential of the competitive market The opportunities has to be properly utilized by the company in order to gain huge customer base Threats The major threat from the different firms that are new in the market wherein most of them uses technology that are modern in nature The other major threat that is faced by the company is that there are different men who are associated with the owner of the business and this implies that the company cannot excel in the production and manufacture of the clothes in the competitive market The other threat that is faced by the Lorna Brand that it is a premium brand and the customers in the market can migrate to the other brands that are lower in cost and they are cost effective as well The cost of manufacturing as well as quality of product may degrade in comparison to other competitors in the market The brand equity is defined as the commercial value that helps in deriving from the perception of the customers of the brand name of a particular service or product rather than the service or product itself. Lorna Jane can expand the business with the help of ecommerce and this will help them in gaining proper brand equity and competitive advantage as well. Proper active as well as healthy will be trendy always and this will help them in targeting communication campaigns as this will help in developing brand ideologies and improve the corporate social responsibility as well. Conclusion Therefore, it can be inferred that Lorna Jane must try to expand the business in different sectors of the world as this will help them in gaining proper competitive advantage in the competitive market. The main motto of Lorna Jane is to stay healthy and active and this is enhanced by them by developing different ideologies that helps in enhancing the awareness of the campaigns and engage in the improvement of the CSR. References Brexendorf, T. O., Bayus, B., Keller, K. L. (2015). Understanding the interplay between brand and innovation management: findings and future research directions.Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science,43(5), 548-557. Buil, I., De Chernatony, L., Martnez, E. (2013). Examining the role of advertising and sales promotions in brand equity creation.Journal of Business Research,66(1), 115-122. Choi, T. M. (2014).Fashion Branding and Consumer Behaviors. Springer New York. Ho, C. H., Chiu, K. H., Chen, H., Papazafeiropoulou, A. (2015). Can internet blogs be used as an effective advertising tool? The role of product blog type and brand awareness.Journal of Enterprise Information Management,28(3), 346-362. Huang, R., Sarigll, E. (2014). How brand awareness relates to market outcome, brand equity, and the marketing mix. InFashion Branding and Consumer Behaviors(pp. 113-132). Springer New York. Hutter, K., Hautz, J., Dennhardt, S., Fller, J. (2013). The impact of user interactions in social media on brand awareness and purchase intention: the case of MINI on Facebook.Journal of Product Brand Management,22(5/6), 342-351. Jillapalli, R. K., Jillapalli, R. (2014). Do professors have customer-based brand equity?.Journal of Marketing for Higher Education,24(1), 22-40. Kapferer, J. N. (2017). Managing luxury brands. InAdvances in Luxury Brand Management(pp. 235-249). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. Keller, K. L. (2016). Reflections on customer-based brand equity: perspectives, progress, and priorities.AMS review,6(1-2), 1-16. Lorna Jane. 2015. Lorna Jane Active Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/lornajane.active. Mizik, N. (2014, December). Assessing the total financial performance impact of brand equity with limited time-series data. American Marketing Association. Rossolatos, G. (2014).Brand equity planning with structuralist rhetorical semiotics. kassel university press GmbH. Rubio, N., Oubia, J., Villaseor, N. (2014). Brand awarenessBrand quality inference and consumers risk perception in store brands of food products.Food quality and preference,32, 289-298. Sasmita, J., Mohd Suki, N. (2015). Young consumers insights on brand equity: Effects of brand association, brand loyalty, brand awareness, and brand image.International Journal of Retail Distribution Management,43(3), 276-292. eri?, M., Gil-Saura, I., Ruiz-Molina, M. E. (2014). How can integrated marketing communications and advanced technology influence the creation of customer-based brand equity? Evidence from the hospitality industry.International Journal of Hospitality Management,39, 144-156. Severi, E., Ling, K. C. (2013). The mediating effects of brand association, brand loyalty, brand image and perceived quality on brand equity.Asian Social Science,9(3), 125. Su, J., Tong, X. (2015). Brand personality and brand equity: evidence from the sportswear industry.Journal of Product Brand Management,24(2), 124-133. Urde, M., Baumgarth, C., Merrilees, B. (2013). Brand orientation and market orientationFrom alternatives to synergy.Journal of Business Research,66(1), 13-20. Wong, T., Wickham, M. (2015). An examination of Marriott's entry into the Chinese hospitality industry: A Brand Equity perspective.Tourism Management,48, 439-454. Yan Xin, J., Ramayah, T., Soto-Acosta, P., Popa, S., Ai Ping, T. (2014). Analyzing the use of Web 2.0 for brand awareness and competitive advantage: An empirical study in the Malaysian hospitability industry.Information Systems Management,31(2), 96-103.

The Last mercy Review Essay Example

The Last mercy Review Paper Essay on The Last mercy Canadian author Louise Penny produced numerous awards for his fine detectives in which the investigation is suave Armand Gamache, senior police inspector of Quebec. Gamache intelligent, observant and invincible these attributes characterize a well-experienced detective series. Pennys charms well-crafted mystery of an ancient family whose old unhealed wounds lead him to the ultimate destruction. Psychological acuity, and excellent prose ingenious mystery makes every book worth reading for fans of detective stories and lovers of great literature. The seasonal cycle of detectives of Senior Inspector Gamache novel begins with something to hide a dead man. Total detectives in a series of four. The latter, released this year A RULE AGAINST MURDER / (THE MURDER STONE) However, the Russian language is translated only two first novel, What hid the dead and Last mercy, which at present time and presented on the website. Once upon a time gladly read the first book of Louise Penny something to hide a corpse. Because I do not like to read the summary before reading the book, and the work itself bought only because the author does not suggest that Last mercy will be a continuation. So it was nice to get back into the Three Pines and meet its inhabitants and Inspector Gamache. We will write a custom essay sample on The Last mercy Review specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Last mercy Review specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Last mercy Review specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The small village of Three Pines, where even at Christmas (and the action takes place in the Christmas season), life goes steadily and slowly. Similarly, steadily and slowly flowing narrative novel. Once again, I convinced that Louise Penny a master of detail. Everything is so well written, down to the last detail, that at some point, it begins to seem that already and itself exist picture in this. Not too busy detective, perhaps someone will seem boring, but the author so skillfully throws the puzzle and intrigue throughout the book, like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat, do not read to the end it is simply impossible. I liked about the meaning of life. And happiness. I am a happy man. And the most important thing that I know about it. And like God. Believe that in difficult times I will meet my personal Perhaps it should be said about the awards, which won the Louise Penny book:  «last favor » (A FATAL GRACE / DEAD COLD) In the list of US bestsellers, Australia, and Canada is one of the best books of 2007 the magazine Deadly Pleasures magazine the United States, Starred Reviews, Kirkus and Library journal  «What hides The dead man  »( « STILL LIFE  ») The winner of the prestigious Anthony award for the best debut novel in the United States. The winner of Barry awards approved by the readers of Mystery News and Deadly Pleasures Magazines  »in the US Winner of the Dilys Award -. in 2007, according to Aso iatsii store detective fiction in the United States, the book is very well sold 2006 New Blood Dagger -. 2006 for the best detective debut, the award given by the Association of British detective writers Arthur Ellis Award -. 2006 for the best detective debut, the award given detective novelist Canada. in the list of Canadas best-selling and the Association of detective fiction shops novel entered the top ten of the best detectives in 2006, according to the  «Kirkus Reiview ». and a few words from the most Louise: I grew up on the books of Agatha Christie and others ugih authors Zloty century detective. And I am deeply indebted to them. For many hours of comfort. And fun. For the opportunity to escape into a world that seemed to me my own. They were my companions at the time of loneliness. Created me company when I was sick.

Ancient Celtics essays

Ancient Celtics essays The Celtic peoples existence can be traced over more than twenty-five centuries. Celts occupied vast lands currently known as Eastern Europe, Greece, Northern Italy, Western Europe, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. By about 500 BC, the Celts had spread to France, Portugal, Spain, the British Isles, and Northern Italy. The history and literature of the non-literate culture was preserved through spoken tradition. The texts left by classical authors were the only written records of their civilization, the first of which appeared in 500 BC. These accounts, inaccurate as they may be, show that the Celts came into cultural contact, and sometimes competition, with the Romans and the Greeks. The Celts impressed the Greeks and Romans not only with their bold dress but also with their powerful appearance, particularly their tall stature. Ancient observers generally characterized them as people with fair hair, usually red or blonde, and light complexions. Most Celtic ladies usually towered over the average Roman citizen. Celtic women, upon maturing, caught on to braided hair, and colorful embroidered dresses were very popular. Plaids and wrapped woven cloaks were popular for women and men, and gold and silver toques, arm rills and rings decorated rich Celts. Gaelic men most likely spiked their hair and bleached it to a light blonde with chalky water, and had long beards, while the Bretons and Picts had blue tattoos on their arms and faces. Celtic art originated with sculpture making and carving and metal work. Coptic Christian Manuscripts later introduced knot works to Celtic art. It wasnt until the 15th century that the spinning wheel was invented. Before the spinning wheel was invented the only way was to use a distaff and spindle. The left hand held the distaff while the spindle was held in the right hand. Celts spun both wool and flax. Women always carried out the craft of spinning. To be...

Quartzite Rock Geology and Uses

Quartzite Rock Geology and Uses Quartzite is a nonfoliated metamorphic rock that consists mostly of quartz. Its usually a white to pale gray rock, but occurs in other colors, including red and pink (from iron oxide), yellow, blue, green, and orange. The rock has a grainy surface with a sandpaper texture, but polishes to a glassy shine. Key Takeaways: Quartzite Rock Quartzite is a hard, nonfoliated metamorphic rock formed by the action of heat and pressure upon sandstone.Usually, the rock is white or gray, but it occurs in other pale colors. It has a grainy, rough surface. Magnification reveals a mosaic of quartz crystals.Pure quartzite consists entirely of silicon dioxide, but usually iron oxide and trace minerals are present.Quartzite occurs in folded mountain ranges at convergent plate boundaries worldwide. How Quartzite Forms Quartzite forms when pure or nearly pure quartz sandstone undergoes heating and pressure. Usually this is caused by tectonic compression. The sand grains of sandstone melt and recrystallize, cemented together by silica. Quartzite arenite is the intermediate stage between sandstone and quartzite. Arenite is still considered to be a sedimentary rock, but it has an extremely high quartz content. However, its difficult to identify the transition from sandstone to quartzite. Some geologists use the term quartzite to refer to metamorphic rocks consisting almost exclusively of quartz. Here, quartzite is identified by the way it fractures across grain boundaries, while arenite breaks around them. Other geologists simply identify quartzite as a tightly-cemented rock found above or below a band of sedimentary quartz rock. Quartzite Composition Quartzite consists almost entirely of silicon dioxide, SiO2. If the purity is about 99% SiO2, the rock is called orthquartzite. Otherwise, quartzite commonly contains iron oxide and may contain trace amounts of the minerals rutile, zircon, and magnetite. Quartzite may contain fossils. Properties Quartzite has a Mohs hardness of 7, which is comparable to that of quartz and considerably harder than sandstone. Like glass and obsidian, it breaks with a conchoidal fracture. Its coarse texture makes it difficult to hone to a fine edge. Under magnification, quartzites interlocking crystal structure becomes apparent. Magnified thin section of quartzite displays its mineralogy. Jackdaan88 Where to Find Quartzite Quartzite forms at convergent tectonic plate boundaries. Converging plates bury sandstone and exert compression. As the boundary folds, mountains arise. Thus, quartzite is found in folded mountain ranges worldwide. While erosion weathers softer rock away, quartzite remains, forming peaks and cliffs. The rock also litters mountain sides as scree. Quartzite cliffs surround Lake Oberon in Tasmania, Australia. Whitworth Images / Getty Images In the United States, you can find quartzite in eastern South Dakota, southwestern Minnesota, the Wasatch Range of Utah, the Baraboo Range of Wisconsin, Central Texas, near Washington, D.C., portions of Pennsylvania, and the mountains of Arizona and California. The town of Quartzite in Arizona takes its name from the rock in the nearby mountains. Quartzite occurs throughout the United Kingdom, the La Cloche Mountains in Canada, the Rhenish Massif in Continental Europe, Brazil, Poland, and the Chimanimani Plateau of Mozambique. Uses Quartzites strength and toughness lends itself to many uses. Crushed quartzite is used in road construction and for railway ballast. It is used to make roofing tiles, stairs, and flooring. When cut and polished, the rock is quite beautiful, as well as durable. It is used to make kitchen countertops and decorative walls. High-purity quartzite is used to make silica sand, ferrosilicon, silicon carbide, and silicon. Paleolithic humans sometimes made stone tools out of quartzite, although it was harder to work than flint or obsidian. Quartzite Versus Quartz and Marble Quartzite is a metamorphic rock, while quartz is an igneous rock that crystallizes from magma or precipiates around hydrothermal vents. Sandstone under pressure becomes quartz arenite and quartzite, but quartzite does not become quartz. The construction industry further complicates the matter. If you buy quartz for countertops, it is actually an engineered material made from crushed quartz, resin, and pigments and not the natural rock. Another rock commonly confused with quartzite is marble. Both quartzite and marble tend to be pale-colored, non-foliated rock. Despite having a similar appearance, marble is a metamorphic rock made from recrystallized carbonate minerals, not silicates. Marble is softer than quartzite. An excellent test to distinguish the two is to apply a bit of vinegar or lemon juice to the rock. Quartzite is impervious to weak acid etching, but marble will bubble and retain a mark. Sources Blatt, Harvey; Tracy, Robert J. (1996). Petrology: Igneous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic (2nd ed.). Freeman. ISBN 0-7167-2438-3.Gottman, John W. (1979). Wasatch quartzite: A guide to climbing in the Wasatch Mountains. Wasatch Mountain Club. ISBN 0-915272-23-7.Krukowski, Stanley T. (2006). Specialty Silica Materials. In Jessica Elzea Kogel; Nikhil C. Trivedi; James M. Barker; Stanley T. Krukowski. Industrial minerals rocks: commodities, markets, and uses (7 ed.). Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (U.S.). ISBN 0-87335-233-5.Marshak, Stephen (2016). Essentials of Geology (5th ed.). W. W. Norton Company. ISBN 978-0393601107.

Paper 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Paper 1 - Essay Example The spreading of foreclosure has still not halted as the unemployment rates at 9 percent is the worst happenings US economy ever witnessed. The BOA stock dropped almost 29 percent in the last year is the worst performance in its history. In fact, BOA themselves admitted that they had undermined the mortgage crisis. They are trapped in the falling home price vortex for that leads to more defaults and then to claims from mortgage investors. After second quarter results got public declaring $8.8 billion losses, share price spurted by 28 cents. The phenomena can be explained by not the fundamentals of the company but by the technical analysis as stock market tends to move in opposite direction (contrary to the expectations of masses) for a short while; however a long term direction of the market follows fundamentals that is what happened with BOA also as the stock price is currently, as on 7/25, down at $10.01 having picked $10.23 on 7/21. The long term movement of the stock price of BOA will depend upon how the mortgage market takes turn in the coming months. (Historical prices, 2011) The BOA is not a safe buy now for there are no clear signs of economic recovery in general and housing market in particular. Moreover, unemployment rate is still hovering around 9 percent for the last several quarters. Housing market will improve only when unemployment rate improves and thereby the fortune of Bank of America. Wells Fargo came out with the results of second quarter showing net income of $3.9 billion that comes to 70 cents a share. The earning was up by 29% from 55 cents a share when compared with the figure of a year ago and that is in spite of â€Å"no remarkable change† in economy at macro level; however the revenue was down by 4.7%. That is indeed a good showing by Wells Fargo. Wells Fargos quality of home portfolio can be gauged by its

Oil and Gas Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Oil and Gas - Essay Example This could be described by a comparative analysis between a China, a developing economy and Russia, a developed economy. Diamond Theory The management of the global completions by the oil capitals can be explained with the management theory and the international competitiveness of Countries also called the ‘Diamond Theory’. The Diamond theory was advanced by Porter in 1990 to explain the competitive advantages of nations (Woolsey and Korin, 2008). The main focus of the theory was to find why some countries are more successful in particular industries than others. Four classes of country attributes were identified by Porter, which were called the National Diamond. These attributes provide the conditions underlying for the determination of the nation competitive advantage of a nation. These are the company strategy, structure and rivalry, related and support industries, demand conditions and factor conditions. Government policy and chance are two other factors that donâ₠¬â„¢t create lasting competitive advantages but support and complement the system of national competitiveness (Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeen shire Council, 2001). The role of government as a stakeholder seeks to strengthen local capabilities for innovation in China and Russia using the Diamond Theory- The success of government in the Oil and Gas industry in Russia and China can be explained by Diamond Theory. Four classes of country attributes providing the conditions underlying for the determination of the nation competitive advantage of a nation were identified by Porter, also called the National Diamond are: 1. The company strategy-The Chinese government took the decision to restructure the petroleum and petrochemical industry in 1998 using the upstream and downstream principles of integration. As a result Foundation of CNPC and Sinopec took place. The merger of CNOOC Limited with CNOOC, PetroChina Company Limited with CNPC, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation to Sinopec, were successfully founded. A crucial role is played by the Oil and gas industry in the political and economic development of Russia. Russia’s energy sector accounts for approximately 66% of its exports. The GDP contribution of the oil and gas sector is 30% of its GDP and 50% of the revenue generated from Federal Budgets. (Feng, Lianyong and et al. 2013) 2. The structure and rivalry- On the basis of launch of four exploration fields including, marine, overseas, eastern and western regions, oil reserves and output steadily increased in China. A high level annual increase of 100 million tons was seen from proven Chinese oil geological reserves. In the beginning of the 21st century, a major challenge was presented to the Russian Government due to the dramatic increase in the value of oil and gas resources of Russia, greater state intervention in the economy and increased budgetary revenues were followed by the increased prices of the resources. With the increased dependency on t he energy sector in Russia as a result of the economic crisis of 2008-2009, the state-capitalist model was developed. (Sharples, 2012) 3. The