Gap analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Gap analysis - Essay Example Proficiency in communication as an art can be learned depending upon motivations and goals (Littlejohn & Foss, 2008). The advent of information technology with electronic means of communication modernized even its learning process traversing what once were limitations in terms of culture, space and ethics (Littlejohn & Foss, 2008). Sociopsychologist, Cybernetics, and Sociocultural groups may slightly vary in interest, rights, and values in the aspects of communication as well as it motivations, but, bottom-line is the crossover between and among communicators (Littlejohn & Foss, 2008). Being proactive makes an efficient manager bringing about flexibility and the ability to make appropriate responses (Harrell, 2003). Being polite brings about respect, trust and honesty, a mark in trade that can be a lasting legacy (Harrell, 2003). With the advent of Information technology coupled with electronic communication means what is left as the gap facing global communications seems to be the priceless possession which is attitude (Harrell, 2003). It is the individual resolve to prosper as overall attitude determines the quality of life one may live (Harrell, 2003). The gap facing global communication is gradually easing up. Thanks to the contributions of Information technology and its latest electronic communication art.

Eye Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Eye - Essay Example The lens is located in the ciliary body, attached to suspensory muscle; it is formed by fine translucent filaments. The vitreous body, the posterior chamber, is a transparent jelly that is somewhat bigger as compared to the aqueous humor; it is positioned at the rear side of lens and is surrounded by the sclera. Glaucoma is an eye infection in which the regular fluid pressure within the eyes increases gradually, causing loss of sight. It is normally treated with eye drops, but surgery is also advised in some cases where drug treatment is not successful. Diabetic retinopathy is a very common diabetic eye disease and the main reason of blindness in grown-ups. Variations in retina’s blood vessels are the cause of this disease. Generally, treatment usually does not cure diabetic retinopathy; however, strict control of blood sugar will lessen the risk of vision loss (Samii & Jannetta, 2012). Another common visual impairment is myopia, in which the distant objects seem blurred. It can be treated with glasses, contact lenses, or corrective

Molecular Docking: Experimental Techniques

Molecular Docking: Experimental Techniques Experimental techniques for the determination of three-dimensional structure proteins crystallographic and magnetic resonance protocols have contributed for the deposition of over 12,000 protein structures in the Protein Data Bank. Although the number of available experimental protocols is large and improving rapidly, the determination of the structure of all detected protein-molecule interactions experimentally at high resolution is still an impossible task. Hence, reliable computational methods are of increasing importance. Protein docking involves the calculation of the three-dimensional structure of a protein-molecule complex. The molecule can be another protein, a small peptide or other small molecule (e. g. ligand). Ligand docking is nowadays of great importance in the drug discovery area, with great scientific and commercial interest. The main goal of protein docking is to predict how a pair of molecules interact, predicting accurate ligand poses and evaluating the main existi ng interactions. It should be able to adequately search the conformational available space and calculate the free energy of each conformation to identify the minimum energy conformation. Goals and Steps Protein docking requires the structures of the elements that form the complex and aims to predict correctly the binding site on the target, the orientation of the ligand and the conformation of both. At the end, a rank of possible docking poses based on estimated binding affinities or estimated free energies of binding is given. To successfully predict a target/ligand complex three steps are needed: (1) have accurate structures of the molecules involved in the interaction, (2) location of the binding site, and (3) determination of the binding mode and evaluation. According to Gray, the best docking targets are single-domain small proteins with known monomer structures, with experimentally-determined micromolar or better binding affinity, and minimal backbone conformational change after binding. The docking problem becomes more complicated when one of the structures undergoes significant conformational changes upon binding , for proteins whose structure was solves by homology modeling or for molecules with high degrees of freedom. However there have been reported successful docking results with modeled targets. The second step depends on the algorithm behind the docking software. Some of the used algorithms will be described further on. The hypothesis behind docking predictions is that the structure of a complex is the lowest free energy state that is accessible to the system. In Nature a protein-molecule complex change their conformations to become more compatible to one another, shifting two equilibriums progressively from less compatible to most compatible conformations for both, located at the local minimum of their potential energy surfaces. However ligands do not always adopt their lowest potential energy conformations when binding to their protein targets. Combining these two facts, the results can be influenced by the previous knowledge of the system. If a ligand has to explore a large area of the protein surface to find an adequate docking location, there is a lower probability of find the energy minimum than in the case of docking to a well-defined binding site on the protein. If a putative interaction region has been experimentally determined, this information can be used as useful input to guide the docking algorithm. Several new techniques to locate putative binding sites based on physicochemical properties or evolutionary conservation have been developed in recent years and are reviewed elsewhere. However, a good docking algorithm has to be able to predict realistically the docking site and distinguish it from nonspecific and/or energetically unfavorable ones even when performing a blind docking calculation. The third step is the determination of the binding mode and it mainly depends on the atoms surrounding the docking site and the distance between suitable interacting pairs, as well as the specific conformation and orientation of the molecules of the complex. The resulting conformation is ranked according to its evaluation by the used scoring function. Docking Approaches The speed and accuracy of the docking results depends on the used docking approach. Two major docking approaches are used by the available docking softwares. Shape Complementarity/Matching Methods This is the most common docking technique. The molecules are described in terms of descriptors, which may include structural complementarity terms (solvent-accessible area, overall shape and geometric constraints) and binding complementarity terms (hydrogen binding interactions, hydrophobic contacts and van der Waals interactions). Taking these terms into account, a given molecule is docked into the protein target by matching features. A combination of different descriptors is found to be able to enrich the number of near-native solutions in the set of best ranked docking solutions. This is a fast and robust technique that has been used successfully to screen large compound databases. Its main disadvantage is based on the incapacity of modeling accurately large protein motions and dynamic changes in the conformations. Simulation Methods The second approach simulates the real molecular recognition mechanism, a more complicated and detailed process. According to this method, the two molecules from the complex are distanced by a physical distance and the ligand explores its conformational space and finds its docking site after a finite number of moves. These moves can be translations, rotations, torsion angle rotations or others, and each have a different contribution to the final total energy of the system. The advantages of this approach include a better incorporation of ligand flexibility and a physically closer approach to what happens in reality. However, as the ligand has to explore a large energy landscape, this approach takes longer to evaluate the best docking site. Grid-based techniques and fast optimization methods are being developed to overcome this disadvantage. Mechanics of Docking The success of a docking software depends on two components: (1) the search algorithm, and (2) the scoring function. The combination of these two components will dictate the overall results of the docking task. Search Algorithm All possible rotational and translational orientations, distortions, backbone and side chain flexibility and various degrees of freedom make it impossible to perform an exhautive sampling. To lower the possibilities, most docking programs account only for ligand flexibility (e.g. representing it as a ensemble of structures), maintaining the target rigid. Others attempt to insert some target flexibility by using rotamer libraries, or some degree of side-chain flexibility by using soft interfaces and scaling sterical interactions, or a further side-chain refinement stage. Some of the most used search algorithms are described below. Systematic or stochastic torsional searches about rotatable bonds Rigid body methods This searching method is based on a simplified rigid body representation of the protein onto a regular 3D Cartesian grid. Then it distinguishes grid cells according to whether the two molecules are near or intersect the protein surface, or are deeply buried into the protein core and the degree of overlap is scored. This method generates a large number of docked conformations with favorable surface complementarity. The disadvantages of this searching method are that it maintains the target protein rigid and it cannot find binding modes with a high degree of accuracy due to its inherent simplification of the complex. However, most rigid-body procedures result in good docked conformation if the used structure of the target protein used is obtained by experimental data. Molecular dynamics simulations In this approach the protein is kept rigid while the ligand explores freely the conformational space, obtaining a ensemble of states accessible to the complex. The generated conformations are docked and a determined number of minimization steps are performed, followed by an overall ranking. This is a computational complex method, although it does not need a specialized scoring function and it provides a useful tool to generate ligand conformations. In principle, it allows for full atomic flexibility or flexibility restricted to relevant parts of the complex during the docking task. Genetic algorithms These searching algorithms perform global conformational searches particularly well. Based on the language of natural genetics and biological evolution, their goal is to evolve previous conformations into new low energy conformations. Each spatial arrangement of the pair is represented as a gene with a particular energy and the entire genome is a representation of the complete energy landscape which will be explored. Similar to biological evolution, random pairs of individuals are mated using a process of crossover and there is also the possibility of a random mutation in the offspring. During each iteration, high-scoring features in the current generation are preserved in the next cycle. This approach permits exploring of large conformational spaces. The main disadvantages include requiring the target protein to remain fixed during the docking task and multiple runs to obtain reliable results, which makes it a poor candidate to perform large databases screening. Limiting the conform ational space to explore and the explorations of conformational changes at sites of interest can largely increase the performance of the docking task using this algorithm. Scoring Function In docking, the goal of a scoring function is to serve as a mathematical method to predict the strength of the non-covalent interaction between the two molecules. Usually, this value is represented as the binding affinity, and indicates how favorable the binding interaction is. An ideal scoring function should be able to recognize favorable native contacts and discriminate non-native contacts with lower scores, and rank a set of molecules, predicting the correct modes of binding. These scoring functions can be parameterized (trained) against a set of experimental data for combinations of binding affinities, buried surface areas, desolvatation and electrostatic interation energies and hydrophobicity scores of molecular species similar to the species in study. There are four classes of scoring functions, which are described below. Choosing a scoring function should always be based on the resolution of the search method. Most scoring functions are physics-based molecular mechanics force fields that estimate the nonbonded interaction energy of the docking pose. Affinities are estimated based on the total internal energy, which is estimated taking into account the strength of intramolecular van der Waals and electrostatic interactions and the desolvation energy. It is know that the free energy of binding is higly dependent on the system and it is often dominated by desolvation or electrostatic contributions. Other software also take into account the torsional free energy and the unbound systems energy as penalizing terms. At the end, a low (negative) energy indicates a stable complex, with a likely binding interaction. Empirical scoring functions define simple functional forms for interactions between the two molecules of the complex. Some examples include the number atoms in contact between ligand and receptor, change in the solvent accessible surface area, number of hydrogen bonds, conformational entropy, and hydrophobic and hydrophilic contacts. These provide a fast method to rank potential inhibitory candidates. Knowledge-based scoring functions are based on statistical analysis on intermolecular interactions and interactions distances extracted from large databases of protein-ligand complexes (e.g. PDB). This method is based on the assumption that there are intramolecular interactions between certain atoms that occur more frequently, which will be energetically favorable. If detected these interaction will contributed more to a favorable binding affinity. Hybrid scoring functions combined one or more features from the ones described above. There has is always a focus on the scoring function when developing a new docking program. Newly developed scoring functions are evaluated based on their ability to reproduce known ligand-binding patters for well-studied receptors. Despite the development of new and improved scoring functions, there is still a difficulty in identifying the best docking solutions from a list of false positives or decoys. Disadvantages of Molecular Docking Docking calculations can be hampered by a number of reasons: (1) the ligand binds to deep specific pockets of the protein structure; (2) does not consider the presence of solvent, which can be crucial to allow hydrogen bond interactions to occur; (3) if there is an attachment of the ligand to a solid surface (e.g. resin) via a spacer arm; (4) ligands with high flexibility; (5) weak interactions between the ligand and the protein; (6) large-scale motions of the peptide backbone. However, new optimizations and extensions are being developed into existing programs to overcome these drawbacks. AutoDock Autodock (version 4.0.1) was the program package that was used for the docking task in this work. It is used for automated docking of small molecules (e.g. peptides, enzyme inihibitors and drugs) to macromolecules (e.g. proteins, antibodies, DNA and RNA). It is a very complete software package, allowing a robust and accurate procedure and a reasonable computational demand. AutoDock which allows the use of ligand with fixed and flexible degrees of freedom. The searching function used by AutoDock is the Lemarkian Genetic Algorithm (LGA), throughly described by Morris et al. LGA is a hybrid searching algorithm that combines the advantages of the global search of the common genetic algorithms and the advantages of a local search method to perform energy minimization, enhancing the performance relative to genetic algorithms. The local search does not require gradient information about the local energy landscape, facilitating torsional space search and allowing to handle more degrees of freedom. The AutoDock scoring function (described by Huey et al is a semi-empirical free energy force field scoring function that evaluates conformations and calculates the ligand-receptor binding affinity. The force field was parameterized using a large set of complexes with known inhibition constants (Ki), structure and binding energies. It evaluates enthalpic contributions (e.g. repulsion, hydrogen bonding) using a molecular mechanics approach and evaluates de changes in solvation and conformational mobility through an empirical approach. At the end of the docking task, Autodock returns a set of the top ranked answers according to the input system and parameters. Each is accompanied by the information regarding the estimated Ki and estimated free energy of binding, which is decomposed into (1) final intramolecular energy (van der Waals, hydrogen bond, desolvation and electrostatic energy), (2) final total internal energy, (3) torsional free energy, and (4) unbound systems energy and estimated as: (1)+(2)+(3)-(4). Due to its technical characteristics, automated docking with AutoDock is not widely used to screen a large number of compounds. However, Park et al performed a benchmarking which showed the potentialities of this software for database screening, with a overall better average docking time and performance than other tested docking software. The vast conformational sampling, degrees of freedom, complicated steric and chemical complementarity still offer a challenge for the computational approach to molecular docking. The inclusion of all possible conformational changes during docking searches is still impossible, and it would be of particular importance where only homology modeled structures are available. Slight modeling inaccuracies can result in false negatives, weak binding or even wrong docking poses. Better insights into the nature of protein folding and binding, protein dynamics and biomolecular energetics will allow the development of better docking algorithms. Unilever Case Study Analysis: SWOT Unilever Case Study Analysis: SWOT INTRODUCTION: There are many kinds of business everywhere; where there are many issues related to the growth of the company and Different strategies will enable different companies to reach those goals. Unilever is a company started in 1930 formed of Dutch Margarine Company and British based lever brothers. Unilever holds a wide range of products which include food, personal care, beverages, canned foods, ice creams and many more which are worlds best consumer brands. The case study describes a lot of information regarding Unilevers business strategies, key elements of Unilevers path to growth, how they rejuvenated and restructured the companies slow moving performance to wide range of brands across the world. BRIEF CASE STUDY: Unilever was created in 1930 as an outcome of merger with dual chairpersons and headquarters one in Netherlands and other in United Kingdom. This is of one the giant and best competitors in the industry which holds wide range of products. The two chairpersons have launched a strategy in early 2000 to recover the companys performance which was said to be lackluster. With the new strategies the company showed a significant progress and has gone through many dealings over the next years, this made the company to open 20 new acquisitions worldwide and increased the sales of the company. Thus the companys business was restructured, renovated and improved through its acquisitions. Then their came companies likes nestle which effecting the growth of Unilever. Unilever then started efforts to attract and motivate young, talented and innovative managers from outside its company. TASK 1: SWOT : A planning technique which is used for summarizing the key issues and evaluates the Strengths (S), Weaknesses (W), Opportunities (O) and Threats (T) in any business is called an SWOT analysis. Analysis is the brief study of any case how they are going to be obtained, who are responsible for causing it and solving it by planning which involves internal and external factors of a business or an organization; internal factors are classified as strengths(S) or weaknesses (W) and external factors are classified as Opportunities (O) or Threats (T). Strengths are those characteristics of a person or a company that are useful to achieve the goals. Weaknesses are the characteristics of a person or a company that is destructive to achieve the objective. Opportunities and threats are the external factors that are helpful in achieving and damaging the business performance respectively. The figure1 show the illustrative diagram of SWOT analysis. The internal factors include personal, finance, manufacturing capabilities, etc and the external factors may include technological changes which may cause changes in products and processes that is inventing a new product or making the product better which include quality of the product and the consumer desire, market influences due to unemployment rates effect the company and price factors is one of the important thing to keep in mind , market place is one more thing which is very important that is the company or a business should be located in a convenient environment to the consumers to attract and the product should be user friendly. Another important factor is that its external appearance the packing and the name of the products should be eye catchy. At last he customer relations should be friendly and consumer satisfaction is very necessary. Other than these there are some more factors which may be changing due to econ omic and social factors and competitive positions which may create new opportunities or threats. SWOT analysis is useful in decision making when most wanted these include nonprofit organizations, individuals. It is the only method for classification and has its own weaknesses. A SWOT which produces no strategies is of no use whereas which generates important strategies is useful. Unilever had a very tough competition during that time when it was bringing about the changes it was probably at this stage that these companies had moved forward with there various strategies. Skills, assets, finance, facilities are the resources which are used in any business to compete in the industry. In the same way Unilever used their own resources to grow as giant company. They have implemented SWOT analysis and implemented new business strategies and rejuvenated their company from lack lust to significant progress in sales. It has concentrated on marketing and advertising its business and gained increased pricing with supermarket vendors. Unilever was lagging in sales when compared with nestle, Procter Gamble, Kelloggs etc its path of growth strategy which met considerable uncertainty which made Unilever to undertake a series of actions by cutting the companies profile to reach corporate goals and introduced 20 new acquisitions worldwide and restructured the company into two divisions one includes all food products and other household and personal care. Then started other two new businesses across the world. The external market factors such as technological changes, social factors, and other companies growth made a very big impact on the consumer preferences and Unilever had to cut its revenue growth. Later it continued to obtain more products across the world and these products gave managers to make their own decision making to set priorities by introducing new initiatives. Unilever has even motivated and attracted young talented managers from outside the company to join their company. According to Unilevers SWOT analysis the strengths of the company are recognized as it is a global company with strong brand profile with worlds best brands and maintains strong relation with its retailers. But coming to its weaknesses it has insufficient management of brands and doesnt not connect with customers. And inability to maximize acquisitions has reduced spending for R D. Thought it has got many opportunities by introducing many products by changing customer preferences and increase in productio n of quality goods. There are threats equally which cause decrease in revenues with high market competition, increasing the number brands and exchange rates. There are many growth expectations, risks, profit margins in food and house hold industry which is composed of many sectors and sub sectors by challenging the change of customers preferences with challenging rival firms to gain market shares. Then with competitive achievement by creating attractive products through acquisitions and with capability of growing sales of the brands which existed and improve margins. For all this the many key to success was advertising the products. By improving the profits of the company not only included shifting sales of the products but also boosting efficiency and unit costs. There were three factors which worried in 2000, the consolidation pressures in food industry which bothered were slower growth rates in food industries, rapid consolidation among grocery markets that is between branded manufactures and private manufactures for good self space in the grocery stores. In the United States for several years the food industry was miserable and was expected to continue for few more years due to more women working and decreasing house hold sizes, single parents and singles. But the food industry in Europe, Asia, Africa and other less developed countries were attractive. Thought the competition between branded and private manufactures was a never ending issue, private manufactures improved their quality of products by growing market shares. Then there came many giant super markets and gave an opportunity for private brands with attractive prices below branded products and even provided checkout scanners to help the customers know price difference which tempt them to BRIEF SWOT ANALYSIS OF UNILEVERS CASE STUDY STRENGHTS WEAKNESSESS Global company. Reduced spending for R D. Best Brands. Inability to maximize acquisitions. Strong relation with retailers. Insufficient management of brands. Dual Leadership. OPPURTUNITIES THREATS Increasing in need of quality products. Decrease in revenues. Changing customer preferences. Strong competition. Increase in brands. shift to the private brands. Due to the heavy competition among them manufactures had to cut down the costs of the products, number of versions of the products and weed out weak brands and concentrate on those brands which were popular among the customers and those could develop into global brands. Introducing dual headquarters by dividing the food industry which consisted of 6 categories and household industry which consisted of 8 categories there were many benefits such as improving food and household industry by focusing more on them regionally and globally. Accelerating decision making and successful integration of R D though there were some critics that Unilever has been paying more for some of its acquisitions such as acquire Amora Maille. Unilever as of then in 2003 had been seen as a growing organization which probably had all the necessary requirements to make it a force to recon with, during the Path to Growth strategy many aspects of the company had come out some of them included the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths, probably the biggest strength that the company had at that time was the correct selection of the brands and the products it had in store unilever had done many researches and had to make many decisions to get the right combinations products that where to be sold it also had the right ideas to increase the sales and all the leading brands to help its cause. Unilever was very good at that time even if the financial aspect was taken into consideration it could experiment with various aspects of its store cause had the financial backup which was required at that time to help it implement various ideas and deal with the market pressures, for any company to improve its sales marke ting always plays a very important role this was probably there biggest strength as the marketing strategy applied by them managed to grab peoples attention as they easy to be connected to and much more simplistic and realistic. Unilever did manage all its clients very well considering that during a phase when they where cutting on the brands it would have been a risk to out anything at that time but it was very well managed by the company. Mainly the fact that unilever was now looking to make the higher range or the brands which where more famous as there core brands which made it much easier for them to advertise considering that it is much easier to promote a very well known and a trusted brand rather than a normal or new brand to increase the sales. Weaknesses, though unilever had a very good policy and all the right objectives to make a difference in the industry it couldnt happen basically due to the lack of proper organization, it was actually much like a bureaucratic organization where things where divided between too many people and it had become difficult to get the ideas moving due to the lack of proper organization, it probably all started with the fact that the company had to deal with too many brands in the first place it would obviously have the impact when the Path to Growth strategy came up cause of the then 1600 brands only 400 brands where retained and rest all where either removed or replaced, that shows that due the lack of proper organization and too many brands being part of it didnt help it in making the changes it wanted to in a better and quickest way. The organization was probably one field in which the company was lacking because it was felt that at the top of the company as there were too many people mak ing decisions and these decisions had to be put forward and this delayed the process of improvement for the company. Opportunities, during this phase of development and renewing it content and upgrading of the stock it turned out to be very fruitful as it provided many working opportunities for people it was at that time that many people where starting to get full time work, during this phase a lot of acquisition also took place with the major brands which resulted in some alterations in plans to that which were planned. SlimFast which is a private company is another acquisition of Unilever after implementing path to growth strategy in 2000 the company bargained an agreement to purchase slimfast diet foods. It had strong sales and network and has a special space in every super market and drugstores these products were made from natural ingredients and added vitamins and minerals to provide good nutritional profile. It also maintained a very good relationship with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other agencies. Unilever has concentrated more on this Slimfast since the company was growing fast and attracted the customers to buy more of it for healthier and long living life .Management of Unilever utilized the opportunity to globalize the product in other countries like Europe, Australia due to increase in the percent of obese. According to the world health organization percent of the obese was increasing gradually. UNILEVERS TOP COMPETITORS ? Figure: Competitors Performance Comparison http://finance.aol.com/company/unilever-plc-amer/ul/nys/top-competitors Ben Jerrys acquisitions which produces one of the finest ice creams anywhere in pint cartons and wholesale at groceries. Their sales slogan was Vermont finest All Natural Ice cream. They never use any artificial flavors thought the cost is little more it is worth the price. According to the time magazine Vermont makes the best ice cream in the world with 29 flavors in pint cartons and 45 flavors in bulk cartons. There products were distributed throughout the world. On demand Ben jerry operated three manufacturing plants where Vermont plant produces super premier ice cream and frozen yogurts where as spring field produces ice cream, lot fat ice creams in bulk, pint cartons and half gallons. Dreyers and Haagen-Dazs were the two major competitors of Ben jerry and other competitors were Colombo frozen yogurts, Kemps ice cream and star bucks. Ben Jerry produces a wide range of ice creams products like sticks, bars, frozen yogurt pops etc. Though Haagen- Dazs was the global market leader followed by Ben jerry it had an insignificant market share in United States where as Haagen- Dazs was more significantly sold in foreign markets. Both Ben jerry and Haagen-Dazs produced ice creams with cookies and candies in it. Bestfoods was a global company across the world almost in 60 countries which was busy in manufacturing and marketing the food products. Bestfoods profits are almost from outside of the United States that is almost 60 percent of its profits. It is one of the best managed food companies among United States who has much number of employees working with in their company in which half of them were at non US locations. The company increased payments for 14 successive years has its revenues grow by7.8 percent annual rate and suddenly slow downed during the period of 1997 and 1999. Then the company introduced a strategy with four core elements. Globalization of the companys core consumers: Products which are new in the market are needed to be globalized that is the products which are less popular among the consumers, are needed to be advertised and market those products to increase its sales and profits of those products. Few such products are knorr product line, salad dressing and food service operations. The advertising of such kind of products was done very well in order to get those products globally recognized and be accepted among many big brands and soon they became household names. Improvement in cost effectiveness: With changing customer preference the quality of the products must be improved and therefore there should also be improvement in cost effectiveness as the quality improves cost increases. Cost effectiveness is nothing but it is a way by which you show to a customer that a certain is product is worth using or is better than other product or the money u spend on it is worth it. Cost effectiveness in simple would be defined as showing the worth of the product. Looking for new market opportunities: Extending the product sales all over the world via new product introductions and extending sales of the products which are existed in the market. It is very important for any company to be always alert and look for opportunities to extend the business to a large scale and see it in a bigger picture based on the opportunities it gets. Using free cash to make new acquisition: With expanding the products and brands company has created 60 acquisitions in the global market. After struggling a lot in June 2000 best foods agreed to be acquired by Unilever. Best foods were the largest acquisition undertaken by Unilever by as far as concerned and which makes a largest combination of food companies in 12 years. Management of Unilever believed that combining and assimilating bestfoods would result in pre tax cost saving, better efficiencies in business process, synergy in distribution marketing, reformation of general and administrative functions and improved economies of scale. By creating robust business in United States market, increasing strengths of Unilever and best foods in Europe, building of best foods in Latin America to speed up the growth of Unilever brands, by distributing strengths in Asia- pacific to grow and sped up Bestfoods brands and increasing the sales of Unilever products by food service channel of Bestfoods. The work culture was so casual to make the atmosphere fun and lively with communication between the management and employees. The company respected the employees suggestions and respected them even paid the employees a reasonable salary Finally Unilever has announced sale of Bestfoods Backing Company to Canadian food and super market group known as George Weston for $ 1.76billion though Unilever declared to divest Bestfoods Baking Company and Unilever other products and bakery products does not exit any more at Unilever. Bestfoods has 19plans across the United States with a strong management team and was entirely US based. It was one of the best distributing for delivering the baked products which are really baked fresh and sent directly to the retail stores. With its dedication and hard work Bestfoods sales has increased its profit margins by 8 percent. Later again Unilever announced to sell 19 Bestfood brands across North America to ACH food companies which is a supplementary of Associated British Food. By successfully combining the operations of bestfoods with Unilever by the year end of 2003 the two companies had been merged in 63countries across the world TASK 2: Path to Growth: Path to growth strategy was initiated in 2000 and was restructured for several years for better and significant results. The key elements of this Unilevers path to growth strategy were cutting down its brands from 1600 brands to 400core brands to achieve top line sales and increase profits by advertising the brands which are more popular and leading brands across the world and concentrating on R D. Another important key element was divesting underperforming brands and theirs companies and introducing more innovated things to enhance the internal development of the organization and making new acquisitions. Unilevers years of slow performance and its lack of corporate strategy in the competition industry with low number of brands and ordinary performance in growing markets with a little global presence made to create a path to growth strategy which was a 5 year growth plan which made them to concentrate on more brands and product innovations for internal and external growth of the company. And made the company to grow with acquisitions. According to FitzGerald and Bergmans path to growth strategy they predicted to manufacture double digit wages per share growth and superior positions. Focusing on the key brands by advertising and marketing made business grow higher and build brand value and increased brands prices. The case study shows Unilever as a global company according to SOWT analysis after introducing the path to growth strategy the company had really increased its sales and with introducing more number of acquisitions and cutting down the cost of revenues. As the acquisitions like Slimfast, Ben jerry and best foods were rapidly growing their market across the world building a very strong profile and providing customers attractive products and offers. Slim fast has 20%anual growth rate with strong sales and distribution all over the world and also maintained good customer relation. Where Ben jerry was worlds giant ice cream products and yogurt maker with strong brand equity. Bestfoods was USs 10 largest foo d products company with a strong global position. The two key elements of the Unilevers new business strategy was to cut down on the number of brands that were being sold or being marketed by the company, at that time Unilever was operating with as many as 1600 brands and much more products due to this the cut down on the number of products and brands was considered, the 1600 brands that where part of the company were cut down to as many as 400 core brands, the core brands mostly included all the famous and popular brands which are generally very popular among people, this idea came up as to make sure that the products where sold and by doing this it would not be much of a problem for the marketi8ng of these products as most of these brands where already day to day and very famous brands which people would generally prefer buying, which would mean that it would take much less an effort to connect to the people and more over the marketing was also done in such a way that people where able to connect to it very easily, the other key e lement of the unilevers strategy was to remove all the underperforming companies or brands and introduce some other new brands or companies in order to enhance the internal development of the organization and make new acquisitions which would enhance the sales of the company and make it more likable for the people this strategy was designed to increase the sales of the company and get rid of the companies which where not much in demand . Weaknesses according to SWOT analysis showed the company has dual leadership, insufficient management of brands and reduced R D after all this slow performance and small global presence the management has introduced path to growth strategy, which increased the company sales with cutting down it costs and introducing more acquisitions resulted in globalizing the company. As a result there were few expectations to achieve a double digit growth and securing a better position in global market for food and household products by increasing the quality of the product to gain pricing power and attract more customers. But according to the strategy plan the targets which were set was really high that is top line sales growth of 5-6 percent annually, increasing profits, and plan to complete by the end of 2004. If we look and analyze the path to growth strategy we can tell whether the strategy is working or not, we can say that it is working by its success rates and increase in profits and increase in brands and acquisitions that is the consumer preferences have changed due to which the products quality has changed and prices have changed the leading brands sales have increased from 75 percent to 93 percent. Food and personal care industry have increased its profits consistently. Operating assets have also improved by 9 percent. Acquisitions like slim fast, Ben jerry and best foods have gradually improved its growth and established its acquisitions all over the world. But the other side it is completely not yes, Unilever was gaining profits significantly after introducing new strategies but it was losing too yes it reported a net loss of $318M as the competitions was increasing and new brands were coming in to the market and rivals were introducing new strategies to compete Unilever. In th e year 2004 sales grew only by .4 percent leading brands by .9 percent so this proves that Unilever was lagging behind competitors in terms of innovation and advertising. Unilevers lack of advertising and marketing failed to improve sales. The company was small and not globalized. In this case Unilever attracted the new young talented manages to join their company with innovated ideas to increase its company profits by new methods of advertising and marketing. To justify Unilever strategies it maintained dual headquarters and dual chairpersons which reduced effective thinking and slow downed the decision making. Unilever is divided into Unilever Plc and Unilever NV. This made Unilever to focus on the needs of the customers and increase its sales profits in various industries like food, personal case, and household industries all over the world. As customers demand the products which are of the best quality and branded but at the same time convenient, cheap and attractive. The market for household products have been decreased its profits as the numbers of single parents have been increased and the rate of females working out have been increased and the demand for the healthy and high quality food has been increased. The consumers preference of the products such as its look, quality of the product and nutritional values has been increased by providing a strong competition against its giant competitors and private manufactures. This allows Unilever to focus on the need of its customers by increasing its sales. In 2003 Unilever executing its path to growth strategy by increasing its operating margins to over 15percent, but the sales of the leading brands growth as slowdown and raised questions among the investors and retailers that whether company brands could deliver some 5-6 percent of growth in revenues in the next coming years. TASK 3: Unilevers current business Strategies: Ever since the ‘Path to Growth strategy ended in 2005 there has been a 15% increase in the sales and development in the overall progress of Unilever. After the ‘Path to Growth came to an end a new process was developed by Unilever called as the Brand Imprint which helped the marketing teams in understanding how the business could face risks as well as opportunities from the social, economic and environmental issues. In this process each brand was scrutinized by a team looking into various aspects of it such as the direct as well the indirect impacts of the product, it also checked how the brand would go ahead in the future looking at the products possibilities of growth both from a customer and a stakeholders point of view. The outcome of the Brand Imprint is that the process has helped in making important decisions for the company keeping the future in perspective it also developed in addressing social missions, social and environmental issues. The Brand Imprint provided a perfect experience to find some systematic and measurable ways to explore different brands and improve the brands by addressing social issues, helping people the product well and reducing the environmental issues. When the S.W.O.T analysis was done on the ‘Path to Growth strategy many different aspects of the strategy where scrutinized using the SWOT analysis in which it dealt with many aspects such as the strength, weakness, opportunities and the threats that are being faced. After the analysis it came out that it had been very useful to determine the various aspects attached to it. Unilever for years had been a slow developing company, though the company had the right infrastructure and the capital but it couldnt utilize it properly that was basically the reason why the path to growth and various other strategies where starting to come up to help the company to increase the sales of the products and improve the business. Path to growth played a major part in the development of the company. The Path to Growth strategy did prove to be quite a useful thing considering the fact that during this period almost all of the unsuccessful brands where removed or replaced and the brands which where trusted and kept managed to increase the sales by 75% to 93%. Unilevers growth was considerably slow during this phase because the company was at that stage making very drastic changes and for these changes to come up and make a difference was something unexpected but the companys growth was obvious in certain fields thanks to the new strategies that had come in to improve the sales of the company so as to improve the business of the company. It was due to the fact that the company probably took way too much time u started and implement its plans that it caused the success to be not as higher as expected. Many business analysts and commentators felt that most of the strategies of the path to growth where working fine but there was always a speculation that what ever progress was talking place was happening too slow considering the competition the market was in with at that time, it was also felt that as the basic functionality of the business was spread among way too many people made the management way to complex and it would have been better off if it was simpler. It did work out fine when it came to the advertising of the product and getting it known to the people as it was more public oriented and it used the sources to the full extent to connect to the people. It did experience a drastic growth during that period as the analysis had proved that the company had the highest growth percentage as compared to any other company during that period it did bring in high profits to the company but looking at the whole picture it did prove to be a huge loss for the company considering the fa ct that they faced a countable loss in the revenue margin and that proved to be the difference, though it did have the right amount of sales and customers due to the slowness of there analysis to sort out and remove or replace the stuff did make a difference to analysis in the larger picture. But the company did grow during that time which might as well have effected the revenue cause many new store where started and large number of employees where starting to be employed on a full time basis. It did do quite well on the international market as well. By looking at the way the company had grown during this stage is quite remarkable many business analysts and commentators had felt that they probably had the right scheme of action because during that time they where handling 1600 brands and which was way too much and among those were quit few brands which hardly made any diff to the company so then the whole idea of brands cut based on the market outlook and sales reports was looked into to classify as to which of the products or brands where fast selling and which had the scope to sell more. It was that idea to cut down on the number of brands and start promoting only few brands which where much easier to be marketed and which where more likable by the people by which it would increase the sales and also make the marketing of these products easier cause when you are promoting bigger brands which are often very well known to public would mean that u don have to spend much on the marketing. Did the company experience growth during this period? Yes, would be the right thing to say voiding the minor things which might effect the outcome but it did see the light of success though slowly and there process and ideas where starting to get implemented in a better way and in a more successful way to deal with the growth of the company, the process of cutting down on the under selling companies was probably the decision that started to turn the tide for the company as it was when the losses where starting to be covered and it was mor

White Power :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  White supremecy is a current issue in society today. It takes place throughout the world and is a very serious thing. There are a lot of people who have revolted against these White Power groups. While trying to overthrow or supress the White Power groups, people may have been beaten or killed in some cases. There are a lot of these groups out there now with thousands of followers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some White Power groups are only in special areas. Some of these groups are non-violent and try to fight the government for there demands. One of these non-violent groups is W.A.R. W.A.R. is a group in Arkansas fighting the government for an all white city.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Awaken White Americans or our race, heritage, history, and the future of our white children will be forever lost.†(www.airnet.net/niterider) This message was written from a Klansman Anarchist unnamed in the W.A.R. group. The quote is trying to recrute new members and telling the people about there orginization. The statement also proves that in a suppressive government people proceed with agression towards others easily in a society that tries to preach peace, love, and harmony.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The other three big white Power Groups are the Nazi’s, Klu Klux Klan or KKK, and Skinheads. Nazism originated under Hitler’s rule in Germany they are striving to achieve the Arian race that is against everyone except white protestants. The KKK are a bunch of hicks with guns with a lot of followers, they are against all blacks and Mexicans. The skinhead groups always vary; most skinheads are satanists, punks, or anarchists they are mainly against the government, blacks, and Mexicans.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Nazi’s are the biggest hate groups in the whole world. They mainly still live in Germany and still persecute the Jewish people and any people who try to suppress them. The Nazi’s are the most dangerous group to oppose, they have about two million followers in there organization. They also have great numbers of people in the United states.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Hate so cheap that even Jews are buying.† The quote is from the web site www.whitepride.net/home where you can buy Nazi music and flags. The site is trying to recrute new members to all of the White Power groups. The traditional clothes for Nazi’s were a brown coat brown pants and an armband with a swastika on it because it used to be good to expose you are a Nazi. Now the Nazi’s wear a camouflage or leather jacket, the leaders have hair, and the newer members have a shaved head and they wear Doc Martin black steel toed boots.

Locke and Publius

John Locke and Publius Valerius Publicola both believed in the capabilities of people to reason out for themselves. This reason is rooted in a commonwealth which is the product of the people’s rationality, forming, framing and judging that commonwealth. They both value the people’s ability to judge and interpret things, and that these people are the great considerations in creating rules and laws in the society. John Locke is an English philosopher who is considered to be a British empiricist, but is an important proponent of the social contract theory (Krishnananda, 2004). This theory is the view that tells us about the people’s moral (and political) obligations depends on an agreement which is set between them in order to mold our society. The power lies in the people and that they are way above the government. The government is merely a tool of the people, such that they need the consent of these masses for them to go on with their governance. If not, it will eventually lead to a rebellion. This means that the true power lies in the hands of the people, and that the government is merely a manifestation of that power. The people are protected by the rights of life, liberty and property, and that they have full potential in exercising these rights. The government is there to supervise and see that these rights of the people are achieved, and if not, the people could choose to reinstate another government in the form of a rebellion. Locke’s perspective greatly affected the political philosophy and that he is considered to be a major proponent of the liberal theory. Being liberal means concerning yourself with the concerns of the people, thinking of their needs and welfare, like their health, housing, education their jobs, their rights and liberties. Being liberal entails that you are looking ahead and not behind, being open to new ideas without rigid or violent reactions. The people are the main cause of liberalism. They are the ones treated as being the most important. It doesn’t just battle local governance, it shows that people should be treated well, always looking forward to meet their needs. Publius is a pseudonym that was taken up by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. This is taken from the Roman consul Publius Valerius Publicola who was a proponent of the Roman Republic. Most of the writings are done by Alexander Hamilton, who wrote about 51 of the 85 Federalist papers. James Madison, who was greatly credited for the creation of the Constitution, has written about 29 of the papers. Meanwhile, John Jay, who wrote more or less 5 Federalist papers, became the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The federalist papers that they wrote were pioneering. It became proponents of the law-making body of the country and that it could be accounted as important philosophical articles. When the Constitution was being thoroughly scrutinized in the late 1787, it was directly subject to criticisms especially by the anti-federalists. Anti-federalists papers under the pseudonym â€Å"Cato† and â€Å"Brutus† has surfaced. In response to that, Hamilton began writing the federal papers to contradict the opponents of ratification. He responded by explaining the new Constitution to induce its ratification. He has written the first federalist paper wishing to satisfactory answer all the objections that seem vague or catch the attention of the people. Hamilton recruited other people to write with him, and they took the roman name Publius, from Publius Valerius Publicola, who was not only a defender of the public but actually one of those who has contributed in shaping it. He was one of the first consuls who took position after the Imperial rule and has maintained it that way. He opposed the establishment and taking position of kings. His surname actually meant â€Å"friend of the people,† that is why it really fits to be used as a pseudonym by those who fights for the rights of the people. Hamilton. The writings were generally pro-people federalism, and how it values a large following of the republic. It gives power to the national and state governments, and follows a certain central power at that. Hamilton and the others advocated this cause, which they see is fit for the United States, basically because it unites the power and governance under one head. Leadership and unity has really been a big factor in this set-up. On being liberal Both John Locke and Publius (Hamilton, Madison, and Jay) are liberals. Both of them believe in welcoming new ideas without the rigidity of reactions and that they always see through the people’s welfares. This is both their concern, making sure that they receive the appropriate attention in terms of benefits like housing, schools, rights and more. Their outlook is looking ahead, and not regretting decisions that they have made. For John Locke, liberalism is a term attached with a lot of meanings, and that you could associate a lot of things to it. Locke associated liberalism with religion, wherein he clearly defines its difference with other types of liberalism. He compared religious liberalism to free-market liberalism, in terms of the age of existence. He said that this type of liberalism is in support of religious freedom, including tolerating it and the clear delineation of the church from the state. It also gives the people freedom on how they will interpret the writings of the Scripture (Bible). This opens a new view for the people, since it is a perspective that rejects the idea of heresy, wherein you can get expelled or denied from the church, tried and burned at the stake, or be excommunicated from the society, thus greatly affecting your job and could cause loss of life and property. All of this is because if holding different or contradicting views of what is being taught in the church or by the religious authorities. Publius Valerius Publicola’s take on liberalism was manifested by the writings, which prove to be pro-people. Even though it takes into consideration the concerns of leadership and ruling the country, they still take the people as a very important factor in the interests of the country. He expresses his views and concerns regarding the people’s welfares through enacting and passing laws that enrich their rights to certain liberties. Federalism helps in securing democracy and human rights because it is given as a free choice to the public. If ever they are not satisfied in the condition of another place, say another state, he can clearly move to another. This is a clear representation of his efforts to promote liberty for the people even though he emphasizes on proper leadership and politics. Similarities and differences An evident similarity between Locke and Publius was their attachment to the people. For both of them, the people should be the center of concern and be the top priority for the leaders. Locke considers giving the people freedom and freeing them from the unjust standards and laws that has been put up before. In Locke’s time, people are wrongly tried, instantly getting death sentences when they oppose the view of church. He wishes to abolish that view and end the trials because of heresy. He wanted the people to experience freedom not only with their right to live, but to be able to express themselves. They can also choose what they want to say for and against the church since it is their point of view. But many opposed this, especially those hugging the robes of the priests and church officials of that time. On the other hand, Publius advocates the welfare of the masses with the emphasis of unifying under a single body of leadership. The surname itself is a manifestation of his attachment to the people. It means â€Å"People-Minder† or â€Å"Friend of the people† which he lives up to other’s expectations. He gave a lot of benefits to these people, thus raising their confidence on the importance of leadership, an essential ingredient of federalism which is what Publius rooting for. The federalist papers are manifestations of their attachment to the people. They have devised it in a way that they are not hurting the interests of the majority while imposing unification under one head. Publius was proponent of excellent leadership, which doesn’t undermine the ideas of the people, instead stresses on their interests. These papers where written to support the constitution, and the constitution greatly considers the welfare of the people, along with these different states. There are also obvious differences between the two. John Locke is more into the religious orientation. His ideology on liberalism was on a religious footing. It was clear that wishes to spread his ideas on religious liberalism to the people. John Locke is much more of a calmer personality, being peace loving in nature. On the other hand, Publius was more on the political orientation. He gives emphasis on what it takes to be a leader of a nation, wherein all the power lies in his hands. He is undeniably a big influence in what we have today as the successful Federal government, which is why his outlook is highly political. In one of the writings, Publius stressed his disagreement of people involving into factions. This is because it is detrimental in the interests of the federal state, and that it encourages conglomeration of people who are against something, instead of directly addressing it to the federal government. This is to avoid an imbalance in the power from the people, thus could lead into a political unrest. To prevent this, there are corresponding punishments to such same actions. This is a manifestation of his affirmation of ruling with an iron hand while embracing liberalism. Locke and Publius’ attachment to reason Locke has a clear view of reason and distinguishes it from what others perceive as faith. Faith for Locke is a settled, stable principle which emanates of an assurance and has no shadow of doubt and hesitation. Faith can only be measured if a person’s agreement is with respect to a testimony from God, a response to the words of the Creator himself. But the question of uncertainty arises here, wherein how can one be sure that the testimony comes directly from God, or really is from God. Then we should have the liberty of checking on the credibility whether or not it came from the Creator himself. Weighing it against reason, Locke then distinguishes it by saying that it (reason) is the discovery of the actuality or the sureness of such claims or truths which the mind gets by making inferences and deductions. This are usually achieved with the use of man’s natural facilities, by using his senses and reflecting on it. We have been given of a lot of ways to perceive things, including the perception of what is true, as it is related to reason. According to Locke, the reason is structured into the three degrees of knowledge, wherein it is related into making various judgments. Comparing faith and reason, the former is said to be the agreement to something that is proposed which is not through the basis of reason, but instead based on God’s authority, his most extraordinary ways. God has been a factor as to how we tackle things. Reason is based on senses and Faith is based on God’s intervention. On the other hand, Publius has no concrete attachment to the concept of reason, wherein all his accounts can be justified towards his attitude on leadership and the propagation of peace and liberty in his reign. But as we can see, there may somewhat be a connection on the concept of reason with his pursuit of not affirming the rule of a king or monarchy, thus putting the rule into a sovereign body that would unify all necessary forces under one set of laws and rules. This is a manifestation that he is concerned with reason, such that having a king signifies something devoid of reason since there is a dictator. One cannot fully get the grasp of liberty if there are those who are telling you what to do, and that is basically what the king does. So, this is a manifestation of Publius’ connection to reason. Locke on Virtue According to John Locke, we refer to the nature of our thoughts, the words we speak, and the action that we do as virtue. It is basically the center of our Absolute-Experience wherein we can attain the meaning of real happiness, the true goal of living a human life. We are veering towards self-realization, and as we go towards it, we don’t mind fearing punishment and any other forms that could discourage us from our goal. We are moving towards it since it is the true goal in life. This is how Locke grasps the concept of virtue, just like how Publius sees it. Conclusion John Locke and Publius are two different mindsets from different times. They may have different views on things, but they also have a lot of similarities. These two are truly great proponents of ideals and beliefs, and has been the reason for the establishment of various laws and regulations that are present in out society even today. Their countless contributions had been the basis of various ideologies that has spurn out of time from other great people. They are truly amongst the strong foundations of our society and their ideas prove great importance for everyone in the society today. Because of their ideas, we really owe them a lot. References: Krishnananda, S. (2004). Studies in Comparative Philosophy: John Locke.  Ã‚   Retrieved April 2, 2007, from http://www.swami-krishnananda.org/com/com_lock.html Lendering, J. (2005). Publius Valerius Publicola.  Ã‚   Retrieved April 2, 2007, from http://www.livius.org/va-vh/valerius/publicola.html      

Compareison/ Han China an Roman Empire Essay

EMPIRE AND CULTURAL IDENTITY: PATTERNS OF IMPERIAL EXPANSION Arising out of preexisting territorial kingdoms, the Roman and Han empires marked a different scale and quality of empire building. With a population of over 50 million people and up to 4 million square miles under its control, the Han Empire had vast resources on which to draw. The Roman Empire governed equally vast land and territories, yet the two empires had separate patterns of development. The Chinese envisaged imperial culture as an ideal from the past to be emulated by the civilian magistrates and bureaucrats who managed the state. The Romans, in contrast, transformed—through experimentation and innovations—from a city-state ruled collectively by citizens into one-man imperial rule. And both empires became principal models for successor states. The Qin Dynasty King Zheng of Qin claimed the mandate of heaven and forged a central state far more powerful than that of the Zhou dynasty. He forced the families of  defeated states to move to his capital at Xianyang so he could ensure that they were not gathering armies against him. And he took the title Shi Huangdi—First August Emperor. ADMINISTRATION AND CONTROL Zheng divided China into thirty-six provinces (or commanderies) and each province into counties. Each commandery had a civilian and military governor, both of whom answered to an inspector general. Regional and local officials answered directly to the emperor, and they could be removed at the emperor’s discretion. Civilian governors rotated offices to prevent them from building an independent power base. All males were registered by clerks, providing lists for conscription and taxation. All able-bodied men were expected to serve in the army and provide labor for public works. The Qin took control over education and learning. Censorship of books was strongly enforced, and books in private residences confiscated and burned. Teachers were forbidden from using outlawed books. A new standard written script was created to facilitate communication. Standard weights and measures and currency were also established. An idea of â€Å"grand unity† emerged as the Qin began to extend the boundaries of China. The Qin chief minister Li Si subscribed to the principles of Legalism and established strict laws and punishments in order to provide social stability and order. The Qin also established a road network connecting the Qin capital to all parts of the empire. ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL CHANGES Building on trends in landownership that began during the Warring States period, the Qin dynasty championed free farmers who could be individually taxed by the state. By supporting agricultural production, the state could expand its tax revenues. As agriculture shifted from self-sufficient royal manors to farmers producing goods for the marketplace, landowners began to use contracts and money to strike bargains with laborers and with each other. The practice of farmers and traders using contracts was coming to replace the tradition of ties of blood dominating public and private  affairs. A class of merchants grew as long-distance trade expanded, aided by the new roads and canals built by the Qin dynasty. The Qin state, however, believed trade produced nothing of lasting value and encouraged the production of crops over trade. NOMADS AND THE QIN ALONG THE NORTHERN FRONTIER As the Qin dynasty sought to extend its borders to the north and west, it encountered the nomadic Xiongnu who traversed a large zone of the Inner Eurasian steppe. The Xiongnu sought to protect their pasturelands from the Qin and also engaged in trade and diplomacy with them. In order to secure the Xiongnu pasturelands for settlement, the Qin established a road and a massive defensive wall along the northern border and settled 30,000 colonists in the steppe lands of Inner Asia. In response, the Xiongnu formed a loose confederation among the steppe tribes and reconquered their lands when the Qin fell in 207 BCE. This pattern of trade and diplomacy punctuated by armed hostility persisted for centuries. THE QIN DEBACLE Qin rule collapsed quickly. Heavy tax and labor requirements resulted in mutinies from conscripted laborers, who were joined by local military leaders, influential merchants, and others. When Qin rule collapsed in 207 BCE, civil war erupted in which an unheralded commoner, Liu Bang, declared himself the prince of his home region of Han and in 202 BCE declared himself the first Han emperor. Liu Bang turned to Confucian scholars to justify his ascendancy by depicting the Qin as cruel, immoral despots. Yet the Han adopted much of the Qin bureaucratic system and penal codes while affirming the Confucian idea of the moral and cultural foundations of state power. The Han Dynasty The Han dynasty became China’s formative empire, extending Han rule in all directions. The Han relied on conscripted labor and state revenues from state lands, along with a land tax. The western Han dynasty (206 BCE–9 CE)  was marked by economic prosperity and expansion of the empire. After a usurper seized power from 9 to 23 CE, the Han claimed authority and the eastern Han dynasty lasted from 25 to 220 CE. FOUNDATIONS OF HAN POWER The Han Empire was distinguished by a tight-knit alliance between the imperial family and the new elite—the scholar-gentry class—who united in their effort to impose order on Chinese society. Economic and social supports, as well as a strong military and bureaucratic administration, contributed to the strength, expanse, and longevity of the Han Empire. Power and Administration In order to secure support, Liu Bang provided land grants to his military supporters and relatives who had helped to overthrow the Qin. Power emanated from the ruling family, whose kin were made nobles and given land over which they had direct power. Governors who administered the commanderies remained under central control, and a grand counselor headed the civil bureaucracy drawn from the educated men representing powerful local communities. At the outset of the Han dynasty, the central government refrained from interfering with regional communities. Thus, the emperor and his family and court represented a strong, centralized monarchy, but practical considerations always restrained the ruler’s power. The Han-centralized bureaucracy became an enduring source of state power. The Han court soon tightened its control over regional administration and removed powerful princes or regional lords. Regional officials came to govern these aristocratic enclaves as commanderies of the empire. A civilian official and military commandant administered each commandery, each with immense responsibilities. They were accountable for political stability and the collection of taxes. The state established schools to promote the scholar-official ideal, and eventually established a university with over 30,000 members who studied not only the Confucian classics but numerous aspects of the natural world. Officials selected students on the basis of recommendations, and at graduation these young men began careers in the bureaucracy. Increasingly, local elites encouraged their sons to become masters of Confucianism as a means to enter and advance in the ruling class.  The Confucian classics soon became the heart of the autocratic state. Over time, a bureaucratic political culture emerged that balanced the interests of the authoritarian emperor with the officials he needed to rule—a partnership between China’s rulers and its educated and economic elites. Confucian Ideology and Legitimate Rule The Han used Confucian thought as the primary ideological buttress of the empire, in which the welfare of the people was the foundation of legitimate rule. Not only were local elites expected to be supported, but the people were also expected to be civilized. By 100 BCE, the Confucian ideals of honor, tradition, respecting the lessons of history, and emphasizing the emperor’s responsibility to heaven became the official doctrine of the empire. By embracing Confucian political ideas, the Han established a polity that created a careful balance between the emperor and his officials and empowered officials to criticize bad government and even to impeach corrupt leaders. THE NEW SOCIAL ORDER AND THE ECONOMY The genius of the Han was their ability to win support of diverse social groups by forming alliances with key leaders. A massive agrarian base provided the Han with tax revenues, as did a variety of special revenue sources, such as tribute from outlying domains. The state also promoted growth in silk and iron production and established state monopolies in salt, iron, and wine to fund military campaigns. Government monopolies undercut the independence of merchants, forcing them to become partners with the rulers. Daily Life Wealthy families lived in lavish homes with women cloistered in inner quarters. Women from less wealthy backgrounds worked the fields or joined troops of entertainers. Silk was abundant and worn by members of all classes, and the rich exposed their wealth by the fashion of their meals. Music and entertainment became divorced from ritual occasions, although funerary rites were taken very seriously. Social Hierarchy At the base of Han society was a free peasantry who owned  and worked their own land. Peasants were honored for their productivity while merchants were subjected to a range of controls. Poor tenant farmers and hired laborers eked out an existence, and at the bottom of society resided convicts and slaves, who represented a small percentage of the population. Confucians and Daoists supported this hierarchy. The empire’s most loyal social group was the scholar-officials, who linked the imperial center with local society. By 99 BCE, local uprisings forced the Han to relax its efforts to control local lords, and landlords and local magnates became the dominant powers in the provinces. Disenfranchised agrarian groups turned to religious organizations to provide the organizational framework for dissent and revolt. Religion and Omens Under the Han emperor Wu, Confucianism slowly took on religious overtones with Confucius possessing aspects of divinity. Religion linked scholars and officials to the peasantry. A cluster of calamities or celestial omens was taken as a sign that the emperor had lost the mandate of heaven. EXPANSION OF THE EMPIRE AND THE SILK ROAD The Han created a powerful army that expanded the borders of the empire and created stable conditions for the transit of goods over the Silk Road. Emperor Wu made military service compulsory. Conscripts served in their local areas. The standing army totaled more than one million men. Roman field armies, in contrast, rarely exceeded 30,000 men. Expanding Borders The army expanded borders in all directions, including into northern Vietnam and Korea but struggled more in the south and southwest due to mountainous terrain and malaria. The Xiongnu, the Yuezhi, and the Han Dynasty The most serious military threat to the Han came from the nomadic peoples to the north, especially the Xiongnu. Emperor Wu launched offensive campaigns against the Xiongnu, eventually splitting the Xiongnu tribes in half. The southern tribes surrendered to the Han, while the northern tribes moved westward. The Chinese Peace: Trade, Oases, and the Silk Road After the defeat of the Xiongnu, a Pax Sinica ensued that allowed a period of extended peace and prosperity. Long-distance trade flourished, and the Han enjoyed tribute from peoples far outside the Han territory. The Xiongnu even began to serve as middlemen in the Silk Road trade. Wu extended the northern defensive wall and established a series of garrison cities. Military and farming settlements began to develop this area with support from the government. A similar system of oases was developed on the rim of the Taklamakan Desert. Traders could now find food and fodder along this route, which soon became part of the Silk Road. SOCIAL CONVULSIONS AND THE USURPER The vast Han army stretched over long distances requiring huge expenditures. Emperor Wu raised taxes, which strained the small landholders and peasants, but by the beginning of the first century CE the Chinese empire was financially drained. Economic decline ensued as natural disasters led to crop failures. Many free peasants fell into debt and were forced to sell their land to large landholders. The social fabric of Han society tore apart as fast-growing populations confronted land shortages. Rebel movements soon formed. Wang Mang, a Han minister, seized the throne, believing the Han had lost the mandate of heaven. Wang Mang enacted reforms to help the poor and sought to redistribute land equitably. He increased taxes on artisans, hunters, and silk weavers to pay for a storehouse system to alleviate grain shortages, but his reforms failed. NATURAL DISASTER AND REBELLION Wang Mang’s reign was quickly undermined by a violent upheaval that united peasants and large landholders against central authority. In 11 CE, the Yellow River broke its dikes and switched course to the south. The entire region was plunged into famine and banditry, affecting nearly half of China’s population. Wang Mang’s regime was unable to cope with the disaster. Daoist clerics led a march on Wang’s capital, and by 23 CE, they had  overthrown Wang Mang. The Han returned to the throne and repudiated Wang Mang’s reformist policies as well as adopting a conservative ethos favoring hereditary privilege. THE LATER HAN DYNASTY The Later Han dynasty restored Han rule by accepting social, political, and economic inequalities. These problems slowly diluted the central power of the emperor and the court into the hands of great aristocratic families who obtained even more private property and turned free peasants into tenants. Social turmoil emerged as inequality grew, and full-scale rebellion erupted in 184 CE. Popular religious groups championed new ideas among commoners and elites, and Daoist ideas gained popularity. At this propitious moment, Buddhist clerics arrived in northern China preaching a new religion of personal enlightenment for the elite and millennial salvation for the masses, and their ideas were warmly welcomed. Yet Daoism offered the greatest challenge to the Han dynasty as Daoist masters challenged Confucian ritual conformity. Religious groups such as the Yellow Turbans emerged across the empire and championed Daoist millenarian movements. As agricultural conditions further deteriorated, people refused to pay their taxes or provide forced labor, and internal wars engulfed the Han dynasty. After the 180s CE, three competing states replaced the Han. The Roman Empire Whereas the Han dominated an enormous continental landmass, the Romans dominated the lands along the world’s largest inland sea, the Mediterranean. Through almost unrelenting wars, the Romans forged an unparalleled number of ethnic groups and minor states into a single large political state. FOUNDATIONS OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE The Romans had no great imperial ancestors from which they drew imperial models. Up until 350 BCE, Rome was one of several city-states on the Italian peninsula, but then it entered a period of military and territorial  expansion. Within a century it controlled most of the Italian peninsula, due largely to the migration of foreign peoples and to Roman military and political innovations. Population Movements The invasion of Gallic peoples into the Italian peninsula in the late fifth and early fourth centuries BCE undermined the dominance of the Etruscans in that region. While the Gauls were repulsed, the Etruscans never reestablished their dominance over the other peoples in Italy, including the Romans. Military Institutions and the War Ethos The Romans created unassailable military power by organizing the communities they conquered in Italy into a system that provided huge reservoirs of manpower for the army. Beginning in 340 BCE, Rome defeated its fellow Latin city-states and then continued on to defeat other communities in Italy. Rome demanded that defeated communities provide men for the Roman army every year. Thus, the Roman army grew as its victories accumulated. By 265 BCE, Rome controlled the entire Italian peninsula and launched a series of three wars against Carthage. Through these Punic Wars, Rome established a dominant position in the western Mediterranean. Most dramatically, the Roman defeat of Hannibal during the Second Punic War demonstrated that the resources in terms of manpower and material that the Roman army could draw upon were of a qualitatively different character than those of a city-state such as Carthage. Such resources provided the Romans a decisive advantage. The Romans also created a war ethos in which honor precluded Roman soldiers from ever accepting defeat, pushing themselves into battle again and again. Roman soldiers also faced fierce discipline in which minor infractions were punishable by death. The Romans drafted and trained a large number of men—at its peak about 10 percent of the adult male population was drafted into military service. By 146 BCE the Romans had a monopoly of power over the entire Mediterranean basin. Military victory for generals brought not only glory and territory for the state but enormous personal rewards. Men of great talent and ambition were drawn into military service—and vast numbers died in Roman wars. Political Institutions and Internal Conflict Once the rush of military success slowed in the second century BCE, social and political problems in the Italian peninsula began to surface. The political institutions of the Roman city-state were now inadequate to manage a vast empire. Rome’s elite seized the wealth flowing into Rome from its empire and acquired huge tracts of land and imported slaves to work them. Poorer, free- citizen farmers were driven off their lands and into the cities, which resulted in a severe agrarian crisis. The Gracchus brothers, who served as tribunes to protect the interests of the common people, sought to institute land reforms but were assassinated. Poor Roman citizens increasingly looked toward army commanders to provide them with land and a decent income. Thus, generals became increasingly powerful political figures who ignored the state institutions and traditional rules of politics. In 90 BCE, a long series of civil wars began. EMPERORS, AUTHORITARIAN RULE, AND ADMINISTRATION After a half century of brutal civil war, Roman leaders sought to establish political stability, but such stability came at a price: one-man authoritarian rule. Peace depended on the power of one man who possessed sufficient authority to enforce orderly competition among the Roman aristocracy. Julius Caesar’s adopted son Octavian reunited the fractured empire and emerged as its undisputed master by 30 BCE. He assumed the name Augustus (the Revered One) and concentrated authority in his hands. The emperors were frequently cultivated as semidivine, yet they were careful to present themselves as civil rulers whose power depended on the consent of Roman citizens and the power of the army. Some emperors, such as Caligula, acted in the arbitrary ways that Romans associated with tyrannical kings. The position of emperor was fraught with difficulty, as fifteen of the twenty-two emperors between Augustus and the beginning of the third century died by murder or suicide. Emperors ruled with the help of several institutions, most importantly the army. Augustus transformed the army into a professional force. One joined for life and swore allegiance to the emperor and his family. The empire was divided into forty provinces, each headed by a governor appointed by the emperor. Governors depended on  lower-ranking officials to aid them. Compared to the Chinese bureaucracy, the Roman Empire was relatively underadministered. Governors were expected to maintain peace and collect taxes. TOWN AND CITY LIFE The emperor had to count on the local elites of the empire to see him as a presence that guaranteed stability and their personal well-being. Municipalities The towns in the empire provided the backbone of local administration. Roman town centers were dominated by an open-air forum around which were arranged the town’s main public buildings. In smaller towns, sanitation and health appear to have been reasonably good. Rome Rome, however, had over one million inhabitants. While aqueducts provided fresh water and basic food supplies were guaranteed, living conditions were appalling. Housing was dangerous and cramped, and crime and violence was rampant. The lack of sanitation led to a disease-ridden environment that killed off many inhabitants as new immigrants arrived. Mass Entertainment Every significant Roman town had a theater and an amphitheater, the most famous of which was the Colosseum in Rome. The Colosseum was a state-of-the-art entertainment facility, used most infamously for gladiatorial games in which well-trained men fought, sometimes to the death, for the enjoyment of huge crowds. The creation of public entertainments stresses the importance public citizens had in Roman life. Han Chinese elites, in contrast, created large palace complexes to impress and amuse themselves, not the general public. SOCIAL AND GENDER RELATIONS Men and women of wealth in the Roman Empire acted as patrons to clients of the lower classes. The wealthy made generous distributions of food and entertainment. These relationships were formalized in legal definitions of responsibilities of patrons to clients. The essence of Roman society,  however, was the presence of formal relationships governed by Roman laws and courts. The legal code featured not only a rich body of written laws but also institutions for settling legal disputes and educated men who specialized in interpreting the law. The apparatus of Roman law appeared in every town and city of the empire, and its influence long outlived the empire itself. The civil laws placed the family at the foundation of the Roman social order. The paterfamilias headed the family and had near total power over his dependents, yet compared to the women in the Greek city-states, Roman women had much greater freedom and control over their own wealth and property. They frequently entered into contracts and conducted business and personal transactions. ECONOMY AND NEW SCALES OF PRODUCTION Rome achieved a staggering transformation of scale in the production of agricultural, manufactured, and mined goods in the Mediterranean basin. The Romans also built an unprecedented number of roads and drew up complex land maps on which all major roads and the distances between towns were specified. They also coordinated the road network with sea routes to support the flow of commerce. Coinage was produced in massive quantities to facilitate the exchange of commodities and services. Large-scale commercial plantation agriculture emerged on estates called latifundia. Specializing in cash crops for urban markets, these estates required large numbers of slave laborers. These economic developments were supported by a firm belief in private property, which was codified into Roman law. RELIGIOUS CULTS AND THE RISE OF CHRISTIANITY The political unification of the Mediterranean under one empire suggested that the beliefs of the people might also be unified. The municipal charters of towns required town councilors to institute and maintain the support of a wide variety of official and semiofficial religious cults. Christianity emerged from a direct confrontation and dialogue with Roman imperial authority. Jesus was tried by a Roman governor and executed by the standard Roman penalty of crucifixion. Disciples of Jesus attempted to write about  his life and record his sayings in four books that came to be called the Gospels, explaining that Jesus had been divine. Jesus’ preachings were deeply Jewish, with Jesus as the shepherd of his people. Through the textual portrait of Jesus drawn in the Gospels and the preaching of a Jewish Roman citizen named Paul, the image of Jesus as divine began to spread through the Mediterranean. Followers formed a church in which death was the hallmark of faith: the death and resurrection of Jesus and their own deaths as witnesses and martyrs to God. The persecution of Christians remained sporadic and local. Not until the middle of the third century CE was a formal, empire-wide attack on Christianity directed by the state. By the late third century, Christian communities reflecting different strands of the movement were present throughout the empire. THE LIMITS OF EMPIRE The Romans extended their empire to its ecological limits to the west (the Atlantic Ocean) and the south (the Sahara Desert). To the east, the Romans were prevented from expanding beyond the Mediterranean periphery by the empire of the Parthians and their successors the Sasanians. The nomadic Parthians and Sasanians had a decisive advantage on the arid plains of Iran and Iraq against the cumbersome Roman infantry. In the lands to the north, the illiterate kin-based agricultural societies were led by warrior elites. Their relationships with the Romans were characterized by war and violence. The only commodity that these societies produced that was in demand in the Roman world was slaves, and the slave trade out of this region was immense. The Romans became enmeshed with these northern tribal societies, and the tribal societies were drawn into internal conflicts among the Roman elite.