Classroom Management Styles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Classroom Management Styles - Essay Example From this essay it is clear that the severity of the problems that some teachers face is different from others, but the basic issues are the same. The basic concern for every teacher is on how to handle student misbehaviors in their classrooms. Most teachers are aware of how to handle the extreme misbehaviors, like swearing, fighting, stealing, drug use, and so on. In regard to these issues, most schools have a clear protocol on how to handle them. Of greater concern are smaller issues such as sleeping in class, excessive talking, and students getting out of their desks without permission. These minor misbehaviors can be much more disruptive and stressful for a teacher than the extreme issues. This is because a majority of teachers do not have an effective plan in place ahead of time to handle them. As a result, teachers are forced to react on the spot without a prepared response. Such response may aggravate the issue and may pass a teacher as one who has lost control of the class. I t should always be stressed that the critical issue in classroom management is that the teacher must always ensure absolute control. This way student feel obliged to follow instructions and behave in a way that is not disruptive to the others. Classroom problems have their genesis early in the lives of children.  

Doctors vs nurses Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Doctors vs nurses - Essay Example The education needed to qualify as a doctor or a nurse varies across countries, and even in some cases, there are variations within individual countries. A graduate degree in nursing in most countries is recommended to qualify as a nurse. This is the educational qualification that is only required. But in other countries, a degree in nursing is not enough for one to be approved as a nurse. For instance, in Canada and United States, there has been an increase in the educational requirement for one to qualify as a nurse, with a master’s degree becoming now a norm (OECD). But for the case of doctors, some countries require additional work experience for one to qualify or be approved as a doctor. Countries in sub-Sahara Africa have low education qualification for one to become a doctor as compared to other developed countries, whereby a master’s degree and work experience are factors considered before one is approved as a doctor. Remuneration levels are among critical factors affecting the performance and attractiveness of the various professions in different countries. There are substantial differences across various countries in the level of compensation for doctors and nurses. For instance, the average salary of doctors and nurses is the lowest in eastern European countries such as Turkey and Mexico and highest in Luxembourg. The range in the salaries across most countries is highest for the doctors, where the difference between the highest and lowest paying country is almost six fold. The nurses and doctors in Hungary are paid the lowest salary as compared to other countries. In all the countries, doctors earn the highest salary as compared to nurses (OECD). This may be as a result of the difference in the needed skills and the time required to train1. In many countries such as Australia, UK, USA and Canada, nurses are allowed to prescribe pharmaceutical

Business Analysis of British Airways (BA)

Business Analysis of British Airways (BA) British Airways plc provides air services operations both at international and domestic level. Its major business is commercial flight. It also caters to various services like cargo freight, mail services and other auxiliary services all over the world. Mainly it runs its business in United States and Europe. It is situated in Harmondsworth, Middlesex, employing 42,755 people all over. It is emerging to be competitive and sustain its integrity as the best airlines which stress superior customer service. It has 300 destinations throughout the world; this extent of operations offers customers with world-class services at various destinations. Its customers range from explorers to executive. The aim of this report is to enable readers to comprehend strategic review and analysis of British Airways by explaining: History of British Airways Current strategic situation Potential Strategic options Recommended strategic direction with rationale Identification of critical success factors Performance measurement criteria The procedure used to compile this report is mainly extensive reading of various text books on corporate strategy, online journal articles and company’s website. All the information, surveys and experimentations included are taken through proper referencing from standard sources. II. Main Body 1. History of British Airways British Airways which originated as Aircraft Transport and Travel started its maiden daily international scheduled air services between London and Paris after World War 1. In 1939, UK government merged British Airways and Imperial Airways to form British Overseas Airways, which became a state owned company. BOAC’s main operation was long haul services and British European Airways was established to serve continental European and domestic market. Both BOAC and BEA expanded their business geographically over a period of time and BOAC started its flights to New York (1946), Japan (1948), Chicago (1954) and west coast of the US (1957). At the same time BEA expanded its network to Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester. In 1970, BEA started its charter airline services, BEA air tours. BAOC and BEA were merged together in 1972 under British Airways Board and in 1974 British Airways was formed. In 1976, British Airways started its first supersonic passenger service jointly with Air France. British Airways was privatised in 1987 and was merged with British Caledonian. In 2002, British Airways CitiExpress was formed by merging British Regional Airlines and Brymon Airways which were wholly owned subsidiaries. Other two wholly owned subsidiaries of British Airways, British Airways Regional and Manx Airlines were also merged with British Airways CitiExpress making it a single entirely owned regional subsidiary airline. In 2003, British Airways sold Dba, its German subsidiary to a German based low cost airline Verwaltungsgesellschaft. Same year British Airways Holidays introduced its first program after re-integrating with British Airways. In 2004, to clear their debt, British Airways sold their 18.6% of stake in Australian airline Qantas for  £1.1billion and also sold their London Eye to Tussauds  £95 million. In 2006, British Airways CitiExpress was renamed as BA Connect and the same year, they sold 14.6% stake in an Indian based business services Provider VVNS Holdings. British Airways also sold its Travel Clinic business to MASTA (Medical Advisory Services for Travellers Abroad). Meanwhile British Airways came to an agreement with Maley Hungarian Airlines for code sharing on each other’s flights. They also started a flight from London to Calgary, Canada. At the same time they acquired American Airline’s Stake in Iberia Airlines. In 2007, British Airways started flights from London to New quay in UK and also they announced their intention of their investment in 777-200 ERs which were scheduled for delivery in 2009.In 2006 they also sold their regional operations of BA connect to an European regional airlines Flybe. At the same time, British Airways launched its new subsidiary, BA CityFlyer in Lodon city Airport. BA CityFlyer was expected to operate 250 flights a week from the Docklands airport to six UK and European destinations. In May 2007, British Airways placed an order for eight airbus A320 family aircraft which were scheduled to be delivered between 2008 and 2010. Same month they announced their decision to replace 14 oldest Boeing 737’s with Airbus A319 aircraft, but they were also de-listed from New York Stock Exchange in the same month. British Airways launched their services from Paris and Brussels to New York in January 2008 and in April, 2008 from London to New York. Each week British Airways operated 62 flights from Gatwick and 55 flights from Heathrow. To make best of EU-US Aviation agreement, that allowed carriers to fly between any destinations in the EU and US, British Airways started their first commercial flight inJune 2008 from Paris to New York under a new subsidiary airline â€Å"OpenSkies† In July 2008, British Airways bought L’Avion, a French airline, which expected to be integrated with OpenSkies by early 2009. In the same month British Airways and Iberia, a Spain based airline group held talks for the merger of two companies. 2. Current strategic situation 2.1 Internal analysis British Airways deals with the operations of domestic and international scheduled air services for freight and mail, carrying passengers and various supplementary services. The company mainly function in the America and Europe. Company’s operations are also spread across Australia, Middle East, East Asia, India and Africa. Its head office is located in Harmondsworth, Middlesex. As on March 31, 2008 it employed 42,377 people. British airways had 245 aircraft in service at the end of March 2008 in comparison to 242 in March 2007. During the financial year ended March 2008,  £8,753 million (approximately $17,572.3 million) revenue was recorded which was 3.1% increase over 2007,  £8,75 million (approximately $1,756.6 million) was the operating profit which was 57.4% increase over 2007,  £680 million (approximately $1,365.2 million) was the net profit in comparison to  £290 million (approximately $582 million) net profit in 2007. Airlines business and Non-Airlines business are the two segments in which the company has divided its business. Cargo operations, main scheduled passengers and revenue from ancillary services comprises airlines business. In addition to scheduled services, chartered services are also provided by company’s passenger transportation services at both domestic and international level. It’s among the largest scheduled international passenger airlines in the world with airline route network of 300 destinations. More than 33 million passengers travelled through British Airways in FY2008. BA Connect is a wholly owned subsidiary of British airways which operates on regional (UK) routes. Heathrow International Airport is the company’s principal base, where it carries 41% (approx) of airport passengers. Gatwick, London is its second base of operations. It maintains hangers, operates offices and other support services at Gatwick, Heathrow and other UK airports. Space and desks under lease or license is also occupied by the company throughout the UK including Glasgow, Newcastle, Manchester, Edinburgh and Birmingham. During the financial year ended March 31, 2008, 805,000 tons of cargo was carried by its cargo transportation services to destinations in the America, Europe and other parts of the world. Passenger aircrafts carries the majority of cargo, while the remaining is carried on part-chartered freighter aircraft or leased. A range of services to other air lines is also provided by British Airways like airframe maintenance, consultancy services, cargo handling and computer and communication services. Non-airline businesses comprise mainly Airmiles Travel Promotions (the UKs famous travel loyalty scheme provider) and BA Holidays (company’s subsidiary which offers sightseeing, transfer options, hotels and cars across 250 destinations over the world). 2.2 External Analysis We will briefly analyse the external analysis of British Airways based on â€Å"Porters five forces analysis† and PESTEL analysis. 2.2.0 Porter’s five forces analysis :http://www.themanager.org/Models/p5f.htm Competitor’s rivalry within the industry High. Rivalry is high due to power of buyers and threats of substitutes. It’s the only force which determines industry attractiveness. They compete with other airlines on the same city-pair routes, from charter services, from other modes of transport and from charter services. Virgin Atlantic, easy jet and other European airlines are in tough competition with British Airways as there is a free market for domestic flights operating in the whole of Europe. These airlines are free to decide the fares and operate on any route. There is competition not only in the air but also on ground as well, for instance a 17% decrease in rail journey times between London and Manchester in 2004 and 2007 led to 20% growth in the train’s share in total market. British airways introduced a corporate responsibility centre stage that helps the company to stand out from the other competitors. Threats of new entrants Low. Competitor’s mergers and acquisitions also have the potential to effect their revenue and market position. Very high cost is required by new entrants to start. British Airways have invested a huge amount on infrastructure, computers and online services. Therefore initial investment required to start up this business is very high. Further, its brand name and strong market position reduces the threat of new entrants. Bargaining power of suppliers High. Main suppliers of airline industry are for fuel, in-flight services and aircraft. The cost of changing suppliers proves very high in airlines business. The suppliers generally have a powerful brand in Airlines industry. For instance, like British Airways have Boeing and Airbus aircrafts, therefore they need to avail the services and maintenance of aircrafts from them. Bargaining power of buyers High. British Airways customers do don’t have any control over the prices or they lack bargaining power. However, they are very powerful as very high competition prevails in the airlines market. Their top competitors include Ryanair Holdings plc, Ryanair, Air France KLM, Virgin Atlantic Airways, Lufthansa etc and many times these airlines provide competitive offers to the customers with very low prices. Threat of substitutes Medium. The airlines industry has suffered a high loss of customer confidence after September 11, 2001 disaster in New York. There is no direct replacement available for airlines for long/overseas journeys. Coaches, Trains or ship/ferries can be used for short journeys. Rapid development of technology can be an indirect substitute of air transportation. According to International AirTransport Authority, Corporate Air Travel Survey 2002, for last 12 months â€Å"no frills/low cost† airlines were used by 1/3 of all business travellers basically for cost benefit. Further, video conferencing was used by 37% to save money and travel time. PESTEL The beginning of the new millennium has made the airlines industry witness the most difficult time it has ever faced. Political instability and unprecedented crisis have resulted from terrorist attacks in September 11, 2001 in New York and July 7, 2005 in London together with wars in Iraq. These incidents resulted in new security regulations from the US and EU and customer travelling confidence have also reduced. Economic factors are of vital importance. Fourth quarter of 2008 showed a 2.0% lower GDP than fourth quarter of 2007. This is mainly due to the recent credit crises and thereby economic slowdown. Company showed an operating profit of  £89 million as on 31st December’2008, which is 88% down compared to 2007. Further,  £70 million was the loss before tax for the same period and fuel cost went up by 48.4% to  £2,244 million. It is mainly due to economic weakness and fall in the value of sterling. Impacts of social factors vary from country to country. Size of potential market and customer’s needs are affected by them. Demographic changes have led to the growth of â€Å"grey† market which is incurring more expenses on travelling and leisure. Tastes, fashions and lifestyle are also changing. So as to maximize its capability to operate and plan in a most effective scheduling and routes possible, British airways is using route planning software. Use of standard technology will minimize cost and provide quality service to freight customers and passengers. (Gomm, 2005). Technology also enables to reduce the personal costs like automated check-in processes and e-ticketing and thereby enables the airlines to offer standard services with less human resource. BA is the first airline to introduce a unique technological system called â€Å"Microwave Landing Technology†, which increases the rate of safe landing during low visibility by 20%. Power of Trade Union is an important legal factor affecting British Airways. British Airways is aware of the consequences caused by Trade Unions (August 2004 and August 2005 strike actions). Factors which British Airways must consider are legal regulations on customer rights, employee rights and rise in ecological and environmental issues. 2.3 SWOT British Airways which has strong international operations network with 300 destinations across the world has its own strengths and weaknesses. Here is the SWOT analysis which helps to understand their business scenario better. Positive Negative INTERNAl Strengths Weakness Strong geographical presence at international level High employee productivity High Service Quality Large Airport Presence Strong operating performance first-rate new fleet of aircrafts Use of High end technology Competitive and quality customer service Bad performance at key markets in terms of revenue growth High Debt of the company Highly Dependent on Fuel Lack of effective marketing strategyEXTERNAlOpportunityThreats Growing global tourism industry and an increase in international travellers Growing air cargo industry EU-US aviation agreement Buracratic systems and management poor decision making Drastic change in technology and customer behaviour Intense competition from low cost airlines Increase in fuel cost Economic slowdown due to credit crunch 2.4. Current strategy â€Å"One Destination seeks to ensure our customers fly confident that, together, we are acting responsibly to take care of the world we live in.† is the vision of British Airways. Their corporate responsibility vision is to become the world’s most responsible airline and they have developed guiding principles describing what they are doing to achieve this goal. Leading the industry towards finding innovative solution is their determination. They plan to continually review how they fly, what they fly and what they buy to become the most responsible and efficient airlines in the world. The British Airways has developed a strategy where their main concern is to establish themselves in Terminal 5 and also acquire new aircrafts depending upon their financial performance by March 2010. They have adopted an approach to truly deliver this vision, uniting all areas of the organisation, divided into 4 major pillars:EnvironmentThey aim to minimise their impact on the environment, including their contribution to air quality, waste, climate change and noise. British Airways was the first airline to report its environmental performance in 1992 since they recognise the impact they have on our planet while delivering socially and economically vital service of air transport. So as to become the world’s most responsible airline, their environment strategy aims to minimise and manage the environmental impacts. Main focus: How they fly Efficient operation to minimise their impact on environment. What they fly Adopting recent technology including alternative fuels, airframes andengines to minimise their impact. What they buy Using economic tools like emissions trading for fully reflecting the cost oftheir environmental impact. Goals across these areas are: By 2010 landfill by zero waste in the UK. By 2025 they aim to improve the carbon efficiency by 25% reducing the carbon dioxidefrom 111 to 83 grammes per passenger per kilometre. By 2015* average noise per flight to reduce by 15%†¢By 2050 their net CO2 emissions to reduce by 50%*measured as the network average quota count (QC) for combined landing and take-off cycle. Comprehensive plan developed to achieve the Goals†¢Climate change British Airways overall strategy is to ensure maximum contributionto their share of global carbon dioxide emission reductions by 2050†¢Waste Focus on recycling, reducing, reusing and responsible waste disposal. Noise Their impact on the local communities nearby airport to be reduced. Air quality Air quality for communities nearby airport to be improved. Community Providing support to local communities in the country where British Airways operate is the main belief of the company. Conservation projects, small individual programmes, 120 international communities and various charities were helped by BA’s support. London Benchmarking Group reported British Airways direct and in-kind donations of  £5.7m last year. British Airways offer variety of support like cargo space, funding, fund raising events, merchandise, free flights and excess baggage. Their main concerns for support are Sustainable Tourism and Heritage, Education and Youth Development, Environment and Supporting employees. Marketplace British Airways suppliers and customers are involved in one destination in their marketplace pillar, to facilitate building up more sustainable business and to persuade dedication to corporate responsibility. Issue covered by their marketplace pillar comprises: How they fly Reliable customer What they buy Responsible procurement What they fly Sustainable products and services Goals across these areas are: 10% of customers to be encouraged to counterbalance their carbon on ba.com by 2012. By 2012 100% of their strategic suppliers to be audited for ethical practices. Corporate responsibility to be used as a decision criteria by 75% of corporate customersby 2010. Workplace British Airways aim to provide a work environment that engages, develops, motivates and support their colleagues. Encouraging employees to be committed to Corporate Responsibility is the main aim of British Airways workplace As employees plays a vital role in making up the airline and they need them onboard One destination. This commitment is not only going to help them deliver a great place to work, rather it will also ensure quality customer service in the industry. Issues covered by their workplace pillar comprise: How they fly Responsible colleague What they buy Tools to do the job What they fly Invest in people Our goals across these areas are: Every year British Airways 50% employees donate money to charity through ‘Pay Roll Giving’. Every year British Airways 50% employees donate time to communities and charities. 75% of employees committed to delivering our corporate responsibility goals by 2010 British Airways have recognized performance objectives to evaluate their development in each of these four sections. British Airways aim to deliver its corporate responsibility strategy by a programme plan developed including over 80 programme level activities and hundreds individual projects. Business Plan BP10Bring Terminal 5 aliveIn order to improve the operational performance and enhance customer experience British Airways main concern is successful delivery of terminal 5 at Heathrow base. Terminal 5 denote their sole biggest challenge and change. British Airways â€Å"Fit for 5† programme was set to be accomplished in the 1st year, which involved essential agreement modification and implementation on highly superior work performance all over the Heathrow terminals. BA Basics and Brilliance The British Airways board aims to offer â€Å"Brilliance† in its activities and deliver the â€Å"BA Basics† constantly. Business Plan 10 (BP10) primarily focuses on baggage performance and punctuality with additional plans to recover â€Å"BA Basics† in various areas for the long term. British Airways aims to offer â€Å"Brilliance† to their customers in numerous vital areas such as their customer services, Terminal 5, ba.com, their premium customer experience and their network and schedule from London. Competitive cost base Main priority of BP 10 is cost control; they expect savings from various areas of business too. The need to decrease considerable deficit position and resolution of pension’s problem is predominantly acknowledged in BP10. It’s quite difficult for them to achieve a competitive cost base if they are to accomplish their growth and investment plans. Invest in growth In the first year of the plan they campaign to commence a competition for the new long haul aircraft, if the pension’s deficit satisfactorily resolves. In order to meet their explicit growth plans they intended to secure first of these aircrafts in 2009, whilst the replacement of fleet will be started by 2011 with the second batch. The strategic significance of the operations in London and Gatwick airport is recognized in BP10. The key to British Airways network development programme from London airport is the operations maintenance of BA Connect’s London city, as part of British Airways regional business sale to Flybe. BP10 enablers The vital aspect behind implementation of BP10 is constant engagement and participation of British Airways’ people. A major segment of British Airways broader communication strategy was local face-to-face communication as it was accepted to be the most effectual engagement. The second major possibility for change in the business remained IT. British Airways investment plans in this sector comprised constant advancements in the functionality and usability of ba.com, Terminal 5, encouraging a variety of departmental change programmes and automating corporate processes plus simplifying services by use of employee self service. 3. Potential Strategic options After going through BA’s vision, goal and their current strategy, we are of the opinion that BA’s current strategy is very competitive and will definitely help British Airways to achieve their goals. In addition to the above strategy, we also have identified few more potential strategic options which could be helpful for BA’s further growth. The accessibility to enormous products and services creates an opportunity to exploit them appropriately. Making the most of global variations and technological trends serves as a potential opportunity to work with. The potential strategic options which British Airways could utilize for further development of business could be Virtual reality, which may serve as an innovative simulation, share expertise and attaining network software. Some of the potential strategic options for British Airways are discussed below:Global tourismThere are many factors which have a very strong influence on the airline industry and one of them is trends in global tourism industry. As per the World Tourism Organization survey, approximately 898 million international tourists travelled globally in 2007 which is 6% higher than the previous year (846 million- 2006). As per the Tourism Satellite Account research which is done by World Travel and Tourism council, it is been predicted that world travel and tourism will grow at an average rate of 4.3% per annum for the period of 2008-2017 and will generate $13 trillion for that period. Rising Air Cargo Industry There is a tremendous growth in the Air Cargo market and the volume of the business is doubling in every 10 years time. As per the International Civil Aviation Organization, the cargo business is expected to grow at an average rate of 6.5% per annum in next 20 years. Approximately 22.17 million tons of freight was carried throughout the world and it is expected to grow up to 60million in 2017. In 2008, BA transported 805000 tons of goods and these numbers will increase tremendously in coming years due to its operations presence in most part of the world and will be benefited by the growing trend in cargo market. Open Skies Agreement Open Skies aviation agreement between EU and US is an air transport agreement, which allows airlines of both EU and US to fly between any points among EU, US and non EU countries like Switzerland. This is the replacement for the previous agreement made between US and each European country. To take advantage of this agreement, British Airways started new subsidiary airlines â€Å"OpenSkies† and for the first time it started to fly direct flights from continental Europe to the US. The first flight of open skies was on June 2008, from Paris to New York. The new agreement has enabled British Airways to increase its operations in the key regions. Several Strategic options can also be identified with the help of the Ansoff Matrix analysis discussed below. Ansoff Matrix Market Penetration Market penetration strategy involves consolidating and protecting/building the existing product/services in the existing market. It occurs when a company with its existing product penetrates a market. This strategy starts with the existing customers of the organization. This strategy can be used to increase sales without losing focus on their existing product/services. British Airways can penetrate in the market through their joint business agreement with Iberia and American airways thereby gaining competitors customers, by upgrading the quality of their services and also increasing the frequency of the flights in the existing market. It is comparatively cheaper to retain existing customers than finding new ones. Product Development Product development strategy emphasises on building a new product with existing and new capabilities beyond current expectations in the existing market. In the present scenario of economic downturn, it is quite difficult to introduce new product considering the cost involved in developing new product and it is risky to predict customer reaction too. British airways have already invested a huge amount in setting up its infrastructure especially in Terminal 5. They should rather emphasise on maintaining and upgrading the quality of present services. Market Development Market development strategy focuses on finding new segments, territories, new uses of existing market with existing product/services. British Airways may go for new market development considering the current strategic situation of the market. However, as the company already operates in more than 300 destinations therefore we would recommend them to concentrate on maintaining the quality of services at the existing markets thereby further build up its position. Diversification Diversification concentrates on developing a new product in new market with existing and new capabilities beyond current expectations. Since British Airways have numerous services operating almost all over the world, it would involve high degree of uncertainty and financial risk to go for diversification. Mergers and acquisitions could be an important alternative for further growth. However the current financial situation of British Airways does not allow the same as they have already invested a huge amount on its current projects and it might prove to be difficult and risky too. Although British Airways may consider this decision once the company’s position is strengthened and there is potential for growth and acquisition in the market. It may be a useful strategy in order to attain fast market growth. Thus the strategy which we would advise British Airways is to concentrate on existing market and existing services and accomplishing its ongoing investment project. So as to achieve further growth in the market British Airways should make the best possible use of its investment projects and strengthen its brand name by providing new offers to the current customers and appealing to new niche market. 4. Recommended strategic direction with rationale After discussing the current strategy and potential strategic options for British Airways, we would like to further recommend the following strategic directions:Develop opportunitiesBritish Airways should try to continue their business tie-ups in the new market once they regain their financial stability. Though BA’s talks on merger with Quantas Airways Limited failed, they need to strengthen their existing joint business with Quantas to have a good hold on the Australian market. They need to concentrate on Asian and Middle East market which has a high potential for growth. Distributing the risk British Airways should concentrate on their Cargo industry which has got a great potential. They should also try to reach more markets through code sharing with other airlines which is a cost effective option. Manipulating strengths British Airways have got a very strong base in Heathrow Airport, UK. BA’s Terminal 5 presence will help them to maintain high standard of service as it will enable them to handle increased volumes of customers and baggage. Upgrading Customer experience They should focus on providing better facilities like T5 lounge, which provides premium customers better comfort and luxury like a private members club. They should strengthen their customer base by constantly upgrading their flight schedules, offering better competitive packages for customers and being competitive with the facilities provided on board so as to attract more customers and thereby creating an opportunity for increasing revenue. Controlling cost of expansion plan British Airways has been moderately successful by following its effective strategies. Currently, we would advise BA to control its expenditure on buying new fleets and expanding to new destinations. They also need to reduce the cost of high aircraft utilization so as to minimize environmental risks. Services British Airways needs to concentrate on providing value for money to the customers. There is an intense competition in the market from Virgin Airlines, Singapore Air, KLM, Quantas and Emirates who also fly in the same route. They might lose their customers if they do not provide something unique from their competitors. These days the number of low cost airlines is increasing through out the world in both domestic and international market. Hence, cost effective and better services should be provided. Passenger friendly airports It is of extreme importance for passengers to feel that their purchasing needs are met. British Airways should aim to establish an image of a major international hub with standard facilities.

AgDscam is a Receptor found in Vectors Correlates to Malaria Essay

Introduction The most dangerous creature in the world is the mosquito. Every year, mosquito-borne diseases, such as malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, viral encephalitis, and West Nile virus, cripple and kill millions of people. In fact, malaria, a parasitic mosquito-borne disease, infects more than 400 million people and kills more than two million people each year. It is one of the principal causes of mortality in Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. The most fatal version of the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, is transmitted by the mosquito Anopheles gambiae. Malaria infected Cell Disease-transmitting mosquitoes are exposed to a wide range of deadly pathogens, and yet, they are able to resist infection. These invertebrates produce pattern recognition receptors, PRRs, which discern the specific molecular pattern associated with a pathogen. Upon recognition, the PRRs activate the insects immune system, which then isolates the pathogens by confining it within another molecule. The Anopheles gambiae mosquito generates approximately 150 PRR genes, each one with the ability to distinguish the molecular pattern for a particular pathogen. Another insect, the Drosophila melanogaster, more commonly known as the fruit fly, contains a gene, Dscam (short for Down Syndrome Cell Adhesion Molecule), that plays a large role in producing PRRs. A recent study has shown that the fruit flies ability to quarantine bacteria is impaired when the Dscam gene is silenced. The Anopheles gambiae species has a related gene known as AgDscam. In this study, AgDscam was silenced; as a result, the mosquitos ability to resist infections with bacteria and defend against the malaria parasite Plasmodium was severely compromised. .. ... drawing forth the infectious organism through the production of challenge-specific splice form repertoires enriched with receptor molecules, which can easily identify molecules associated with microbial pathogens. The induction of this pathogen is done via immune signaling pathways. The mammalian down syndrome cell adhesion molecule gene does not undergo as much alternative splicing as that of insects, and it can only produce three different mRNA forms. This may imply that Dscam in mammalian nervous systems have a more specialized function which utilizes antibodies for patter recognition. Overall, understanding the immune system of the Anopheles Gambiae vector is very important. If we can become familiar with the way its immune system works and how it recognizes Plasmodium, it could become helpful in devising control strategies for the spread of malaria.

Agriculture in Nepal

The major economic source of the majority of the families in our country is agriculture. More than 70% of our human resources are involved in agriculture and this sector provides for nearly 40% of the gross domestic product. Thus agriculture is the major occupation, main enterprise and the major lifestyle of the country. The unit of the agricultural system in our country currently is a family. If we take a general representative example we see that the enterprise has familial investment, and the products of the enterprise are consumed in the family itself, and the products do not have access to the markets.Once in a while, if the production of the family exceeds the consumption it is obviously difficult for a family to find the markets, transport the products to the markets if they find one, and bargain for profits, and for the security of their farm or animal products. To add to that competitions with established national and international enterprises leads to economic failures whic h have interrupted the few efforts of enterpreneurship that were tried. With both remnants of the century-old systems and the sparks of modern agriculture systems seen, the major trends of the national agricultural behaviour, systems and production are as follows:1. Investment: The major share of investment on agriculture are occupied by land and human labour. Technology, irrigation, infrastructure development, and provision of chemical fertilizers are out of imagination and potentials for a family, and the government also is still to concentrate on this issue. Also a sizable number does not even have access to cultivable land and thus cheap human labour is all they can sell, which further limits their ambitions for financial prosperity.Even families with land are devoid of modern technology due to economic and/or educational reasons. The main agricultural tools are still the centuries old local kuto, kodalo and halo. 2. Financial Unit: At present, the study of the Madhes, Pahad, Hi mal or any geography reveals that entrepreneurship is lacking in part due to land fragmentation . Due to lack of collective agricultural systems small familial financial units are created which are incapable of competing with larger established national or international financial enterprises.Product Diversification: Although agriculture has to favorable according to the geology and climate, the present trend is that all families across the nation from mountains to the plains and across the east-west channel grow the same varieties of crops and rear the same livestock. There is a trend of each family growing all it needs for subsistence rather than farming according to the microclimate. 4. Mentality: The educated youth do not wish to pursue agriculture as a career. There is a general lack of promoting entrepreneurship in the country in general.Research and Development: There is little co-ordination if any between the limited Agricultural School and Research Centres. Farmers can only regret when their whole harvest is destroyed by pests. Lack of proper testing and pretesting of hybrids continue to ruin the investments of the poor farmers. Furthermore, it has been a challenge to retain the agroscientists and technicians in the country as seen in other technical sectors. 6. Support Systems and Infrastructure: There is a poor state of credit provision to the farmers. The corporate banks are investing well below the policy requirement of 10% in agriculture.Also the interest on agricultural loans is very high compared to real state and automobile loans. There is virtually no provision of insurance and securitization on the agriculture sector. The lack of supporting infrastructure needs no description, there are no adequate rural roads, storage facilities and cold-stores are a rarity and demand for the required electricity facilities is unmet. The focus of social and economic life of our country, the agriculture sector is still family-based, subsistent and non-profess ional. Therefore it has to be replaced to develop a technical, collective and entrepreneurial system of agriculture.

The Return: Midnight Chapter 10

Damon was making his way up the beautiful rose-covered trel is below the window of the bedchamber of M. le Princess Jessalyn D'Aubigne, a very wealthy, beautiful, and much-admired girl who had the bluest blood of any vampire in the Dark Dimension, according to the books he'd bought. In fact, he'd listened to the locals and it was rumored that Sage himself had changed her two years ago, and had given her this bijoux castle to live in. Delicate gem that it appeared, though, the little castle had already presented Damon with several problems. There had been that razor-wire fence, on which he ripped his leather jacket; an unusual y dexterous and stubborn guard whom it had real y been a pity to strangle; an inner moat that had almost taken him unawares; and a few dogs that he had treated with the Saber-tranquilizer routine – using Mrs. Flowers's sleeping powder, which he'd brought with him from Earth. It would have been easier to poison them, but Jessalyn was reputed to have a very soft heart for animals and he needed her for at least three days. That should be long enough to make him a vampire – if they did nothing else during those days. Now, as he pul ed himself silently up the trel is, he mental y added long rose thorns to the list of inconveniences. He also rehearsed his first speech to Jessalyn. She had been – was – would forever be – eighteen. But it was a young eighteen, since she had only two years'experience at being a vampire. He comforted himself with this as he climbed silently into a window. Still silently, moving slowly in case the princess had guardian animals in her bedchamber, Damon parted layer after layer of filmy, translucent black curtains that kept the blood-red light of the sun from shining into the chamber. His boots sank into the thick pile of a black rug. Making it out of the enfolding curtains, Damon saw that the entire chamber was decorated in a simple theme by a master of contrast. Jet-black and off-black. black. He liked it a lot. There was an enormous bed with more bil owing filmy black curtains almost encasing it. The only way to approach it was from the foot, where the diaphanous curtains were thinner. Standing there in the cathedral-like silence of the great chamber, Damon looked at the slight figure under the black silk sheets, among dozens of smal throw pil ows. She was a jewel like the castle. Delicate bones. A look of utter innocence as she slept. An ethereal river of fine, scarlet hair spil ing about her. He could see individual hairs straying on the black sheets. She looked a little like Bonnie. Damon was pleased. He pul ed out the same knife he had put to Elena's throat, and just for a moment hesitated – but no, this was no time to be thinking of Elena's golden warmth. Everything depended on this fragile-shouldered child in front of him. He put the point of the knife to his chest, deliberately placing it wide of his heart in case some blood had to be spil ed†¦and coughed. Nothing happened. The princess, who was wearing a black negligee that showed frail-looking arms as fine and pale as porcelain, went on sleeping. Damon noticed that the nails on her smal fingers were lacquered the exact scarlet of her hair. The two large pil ar candles set in tal black stands were giving off an enticing perfume, as wel as being clocks – the farther down they burned, the easier to tel time. The lighting was perfect – everything was perfect – except that Jessalyn was stil asleep. Damon coughed again, loudly – and bumped the bed. The princess woke, starting up and simultaneously bringing two sheathed blades out of her hair. â€Å"Who is it? Is someone there?†She was looking in every direction but the right one. â€Å"It's only me, your highness.†Damon pitched his voice low, but fraught with unrequited need. â€Å"You don't have to be afraid,†he added, now that she'd at last gotten the right direction and seen him. He knelt by the foot of her bed. He'd miscalculated a bit. The bed was so large and high that his chest and the knife were far below Jessalyn's line of sight. â€Å"Here I wil take my life,†he announced, very loudly to make sure that Jessalyn was keeping up with the program. After a moment or two the princess's head popped up over the foot of the bed. She balanced herself with hands spread wide and narrow shoulders hunched close to her. At this distance he could see that her eyes were green – a complicated green consisting of many different rings and speckles. At first she just hissed at him and lifted her knives held in hands whose fingers were tipped with nails of scarlet. Damon bore with her. She would learn in time that al this wasn't real y necessary; that in fact it had gone out of fashion in the real world decades ago and was only kept alive by pulp fiction and old movies. â€Å"Here at your feet I slay myself,†he said again, to make sure she didn't miss a syl able, or the entire point, for that matter. â€Å"You – yourself?†She was suspicious. â€Å"Who are you? How did you get here? Why would you do such a thing?† â€Å"I got here through the road of my madness. I did it out of what I know is madness I can no longer live with.† â€Å"What madness? And are you going to do it now?†the princess asked with interest. â€Å"Because if you're not, I'l have to cal my guards and – wait a minute,†she interrupted herself. She grabbed his knife before he could stop her and licked it. â€Å"This is a metal blade,†she told him, tossing it back. â€Å"I know.†Damon let his head fal so that hair curtained his eyes and said painful y: â€Å"I am†¦a human, your highness.† He was covertly watching through his lashes and he saw that Jessalyn brightened up. â€Å"I thought you were just some weak, useless vampire,†she said absently. â€Å"But now that I look at you†¦Ã¢â‚¬ A rose petal of a pink tongue came out and licked her lips. â€Å"There's no point in wasting the good stuff, is there?† She was like Bonnie. She said exactly what she thought, when she thought it. Something inside Damon wanted to laugh. He stood again, looking at the girl on the bed with al the fire and passion of which he was capable – and felt that it wasn't enough. Thinking about the real Bonnie, alone and unhappy, was†¦wel , passion-quenching. But what else could he do? Suddenly he knew what he could do. Before, when he'd stopped himself from thinking of Elena, he had cut off any genuine passion or desire. But he was doing this for Elena, as much as for himself. Elena couldn't be his Princess of Darkness if he couldn't be her Prince. This time, when he looked down at M. le Princess, it was differently. He could feel the atmosphere change. â€Å"Highness, I have no right even to speak to you,†he said, deliberately putting one booted foot on the metal scrol work that formed the frame of the bed. â€Å"You know as wel as I that you can kil me with a single blow†¦say, here† – pointing to a spot on his jaw – â€Å"but you have already slain me – â€Å" Jessalyn looked confused, but waited. † – with love. I fel in love with you the moment I saw you. You could break my neck, or – as I would say if I were permitted to touch your perfumed white hand – you could curl those fingers around my throat and strangle me. I beg you to do it.† Jessalyn was beginning to look puzzled but excited. Blushing, she held out one smal hand to Damon, but clearly without any intention of strangling him. â€Å"Please, you must,†Damon said earnestly, never taking his eyes off hers. â€Å"That is the only thing I ask of you: that you kil me yourself instead of cal ing your guards so that the last sight I see wil be your beautiful face.† â€Å"You're il ,†Jessalyn decided, stil looking flustered. â€Å"There have been other unbalanced minds who have made their way past the first wal of my castle – although never to my chambers. I'l give you to the doctors so that they can make you wel .† â€Å"Please,†said Damon, who had forged his way through the last of the filmy black hangings and was now looming over the sitting princess. â€Å"Grant me instant death, rather than leaving me to die a little each day. You don't know what I've done. I can't stop dreaming of you. I've fol owed you from shop to shop when you went out. I am already dying now as you ravish me with your nobility and radiance, knowing that I am no more than the paving stones you walk on. No doctor can change that.† Jessalyn was clearly considering. Obviously, no one had ever talked to her like this. Her green eyes fixed on his lips, the lower of which was stil bleeding. Damon gave an indifferent little laugh and said, â€Å"One of your guards caught me and very properly tried to kil me before I could reach you and disturb your sleep. I'm afraid I had to kil him to get here,†he said, standing between one pil ar candle and the girl on the bed so that his shadow was thrown over her. Jessalyn's eyes widened in approval even as the rest of her seemed more fragile than ever. â€Å"It's stil bleeding,†she whispered. â€Å"I could – â€Å" â€Å"You can do anything you want,†Damon encouraged her with a wry quirk of a smile on his lips. It was true. She could. â€Å"Then come here.†She thumped a place by the nearest pil ow on the bed. â€Å"What are you cal ed?† â€Å"Damon,†he said as he stripped off his jacket and lay down, chin propped on one elbow, with the air of one not unused to such things. â€Å"Just that? Damon?† â€Å"You can cut it stil shorter. I am nothing but Shame now,†he replied, taking another minute to think of Elena and to hold Jessalyn's eyes hypnotical y. â€Å"I was a vampire – a powerful and proud one – on Earth – but I was tricked by a kitsune†¦Ã¢â‚¬ He told her a garbled version of Stefan's story, omitting Elena or any nonsense about wanting to be human. He said that when he managed to escape the prison that had taken his vampire self, he decided to end his own human life. But at that moment, he had seen Princess Jessalyn and thought that, serving her, he would be happy with his sorry lot. Alas, he said, it only fed his disgraceful feelings for her highness. â€Å"Now my madness has driven me to actual y accost you in your own chambers. Make an example of me, your highness, that wil cause other evildoers to tremble. Burn me, have me flogged and quartered, put my head on a pike to cause those who might do you il to cast themselves into a fire first.†He was now in bed with her, leaning back a little to expose his bare throat. â€Å"Don't be sil y,†Jessalyn said, with a little catch in her voice. â€Å"Even the meanest of my servants wants to live.† â€Å"Perhaps the ones that never see you do. Scul ions, stable boys – but I cannot live, knowing that I can never have you.† The princess looked Damon over, blushed, gazed for a moment into his eyes†¦and then she bit him. â€Å"I'l get Stefan to go down to the root cel ar,†Elena said to Meredith, who was angrily thumbing tears out of her eyes. â€Å"You know we can't do that. With the police right here in the house – â€Å" â€Å"Then I'll do it – â€Å" â€Å"You can't! You know you can't, Elena, or you wouldn't have come to me!† Elena looked at her friend closely. â€Å"Meredith, you've been donating blood al along,†she whispered. â€Å"You never seemed even slightly bothered†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"He only took a tiny bit – always less from me than anyone. And always from my arm. I just pretended I was having blood drawn at the doctor's. No problem. It wasn't even bad with Damon back in the Dark Dimension.† â€Å"But now†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Elena blinked. â€Å"Now – what?† â€Å"Now,†Meredith said with a faraway expression, â€Å"Stefan knows that I'm a hunter-slayer. That I even have a fighting stave. And now I have to†¦to submit to†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Elena had gooseflesh. She felt as if the distance from her to Meredith in the room was getting larger. â€Å"A hunter-slayer?†she said, bewildered. â€Å"And what's a fighting stave?† â€Å"There's no time to explain now! Oh, Elena†¦Ã¢â‚¬  If Plan A was Meredith and Plan B was Matt, there was real y no choice. Plan C had to be Elena herself. Her blood was much stronger than anyone else's anyway, so ful of Power that Stefan would only need a – â€Å"No!†Meredith whispered right in Elena's ear, somehow managing to hiss a word without a single sibilant. â€Å"They're coming down the stairs. We have to find Stefan now! Can you tel him to meet me in the little bedroom behind the parlor?† â€Å"Yes, but – â€Å" â€Å"Do it!† And I stil don't know what a fighting stave is, Elena thought, al owing Meredith to take her arms and propel her toward the bedroom. But I know what a â€Å"hunter-slayer†sounds like, and I definitely don't like it. And that weapon – it makes a stake look like a plastic picnic knife. Stil , she sent to Stefan, who was fol owing the sheriffs downstairs: Meredith is going to donate as much blood as you need to Influence them. There's no time to argue. Come here fast and for God's sake look cheerful and reassuring. Stefan didn't sound cooperative. I can't take enough from her for our minds to touch. It might – Elena lost her temper. She was frightened; she was suspicious of one of her two best friends – a horrible feeling – and she was desperate. She needed Stefan to do just as she said. Get here fast! was al she projected, but she had the feeling that she'd hit him with al of the feelings ful force, because he suddenly turned concerned and gentle. I will, love, he said simply. While the female police officer was searching the kitchen and the male the living room, Stefan stepped into the smal first-floor guest room, with its single rumpled bed. The lamps were turned off but with his night vision he could see Elena and Meredith perfectly wel by the curtains. Meredith was holding herself as stiffly as an acrophobic bungee jumper. Take all you need without permanently harming her – and try to put her to sleep, too. And don't invade her mind too deeply – I'll take care of it. You'd better get out in the hallway, let them see at least one of us, love, Stefan replied soundlessly. Elena was obviously simultaneously frightened for and defensive about her friend and had sped right into micromanagement mode. While this was usual y a good thing, if there was one thing Stefan knew about – even if it was the only thing he knew – it was taking blood. â€Å"I want to ask for peace between our families,†he said, reaching one hand toward Meredith. She hesitated and Stefan, even trying his hardest, could not help but hearing her thoughts, like smal , scuttling creatures at the base of her mind. What was she committing herself to? In what sense did he mean family? It's really just a formality, he told her, trying to gain ground on another front: her acceptance of the touch of his thoughts to hers. Never mind it. â€Å"No,†Meredith said. â€Å"It's important. I want to trust you, Stefan. Only you, but†¦I didn't get the stave until after Klaus was dead.† He thought swiftly. â€Å"Then you didn't know what you were – â€Å" â€Å"No. I knew. But my parents were never active. It was Grandpa who told me about the stave.† Stefan felt a surge of unexpected pleasure. â€Å"So your grandfather's better now?† â€Å"No†¦sort of.†Meredith's thoughts were confusing. His voice changed, she was thinking. Stefan was truly happy that Grandpa's better. Even most humans wouldn't care – not really. â€Å"Of course I care,†Stefan said. â€Å"For one thing, he helped save al our lives – and the town. For another, he's a very brave man – he must have been – to survive an attack by an Old One.† Suddenly, Meredith's cold hand was around his wrist and words were tumbling from her lips in a rush that Stefan could barely understand. But her thoughts stood bright and clear under those words, and through them he got the meaning. â€Å"Al I can know about what happened when I was very young is what I've been told. My parents told me things. My parents changed my birthday – they actual y changed the day we celebrate my birthday on – because a vampire attacked my grandpa, and then my grandpa tried to kil me. They've always said that. But how do they know? They weren't there – that's part of what they say. And what's more likely, that my grandpa attacked me or that the vampire did?†She stopped, panting, trembling al over like a white-tailed doe caught in the forest. Caught, and thinking she was doomed, and unable to run. Stefan put out a hand that he deliberately made warm around Meredith's cold one. â€Å"I won't attack you,†he said simply. â€Å"And I won't disturb any old memories. Good enough?† Meredith nodded. After her cathartic story Stefan knew she wanted as few words as possible. â€Å"Don't be afraid,†he murmured, just as he had thought the soothing phrase into the mind of many an animal he'd chased through the Old Wood. It's all right. There's no reason to fear me. She couldn't help being afraid, but Stefan soothed her as he soothed the forest animals, drawing her into the darkest shadow of the room, calming her with soft words even as his canines screamed at him to bite. He had to fold down the side of her blouse to expose her long, olive-skinned column of neck, and as he did the calming words turned into soft endearments and the kind of reassuring noises he would use to comfort a baby. And at last, when Meredith's breathing had slowed and evened and her eyes had drifted shut, he used the greatest of care to slide his aching fangs into her artery. Meredith barely quivered. Everything was softness as he easily skimmed over the surface of her mind, too, seeing only what he already knew about her: her life with Elena and Bonnie and Caroline. Parties and school, plans and ambitions. Picnics. A swimming hole. Laughter. Tranquility that spread out like a great pool. The need for calm, for control. Al this stretching back as far as she could remember†¦ The farthest depths that she could remember were here at the center†¦where there was a sudden plunging dip. Stefan had promised himself he would not go deeply into her mind, but he was being pul ed, helpless, being dragged down by the whirlpool. The waters closed over his head and he was drawn at tremendous speed to the very depths of a second pool, this one not composed of tranquility, but of rage and fear. And then he saw what had happened, what was happening, what would forever be happening – there at Meredith's stil center.