Literature Review for Concept Analysis Dissertation

Literature Review for Concept Analysis - Dissertation Example This is the premise in which exercise became an inevitable element for sustaining a healthy life. The changes that happened in the society were also reflected in the psychological and moral realm of lives as well. Thoughts about rights and power also emerged out of leisure and the question that who are the owners of leisure, and who commands it, arose. Though Oxford Dictionaries Online has offered several definitions for the term, ‘exercise’, I will explore the following two definitions in this concept analysis, a) â€Å"activity requiring physical effort, carried out especially to sustain or improve health and fitness,† †¦[and b)]†¦ â€Å"the use or application of a faculty, right, or process† (Oxford Dictionaries Online, 2010). The first definition stresses the meaning of exercise as a physical activity while, the second one views exercise as the fulfillment of a duty and as the claiming of a right. Taking these two definitions are taken as the yardsticks to understand the importance of education, this analysis envisages to find out how exercise attains a valuable place in the three areas of knowledge, namely, theology, psychology, and nursing. Exercise in theology In a democratic society, an individual has several rights and powers, the exercise of which is supposed to be the foundation of the democratic system itself. Whenever the exercise of any such right or power is denied, the foundations of democracy feel threatened. And this is why the people of many nations around the globe had to fight prolonged battles to be able to exercise these powers and rights. For example, in America, the people felt that â€Å"the right to vote was denied for so long to so many that we cannot afford to ignore any impediment to its exercise† (Grey, 2005). In the theological realm also, there are a set of such rights and powers, which follow the democratic rights but also give rise to many contentious issues as well. For example, Pos t (1995) has observed that â€Å"free exercise is justifiably overridden to promote public health- for example, medical treatment is required to minimize the spread of contagious disease or to benefit minors, even if religious belief is offended† (p.22). Though Post (1995) has reminded, â€Å"the free exercise clause of the First Amendment is central to American public life,† from a nurse’s point of view, situations may arise when a patient wants to exercise his/her right to refuse treatment and the nurse and the system in which he/she works are compelled to use authority and power to prevent that (p. 22). This is particularly important because, just as any other freedom, the freedom to exercise one’s religion also has limits and can be overridden if public health is at risk of being jeopardized (Post, 1995). Taking into consideration these two opposite yet justifiable positions, nurses have to be aware that a patient has the right to refuse or seek treat ment based on their religion and when the right to this free exercise is dishonored, it should be examined and justified. Post (1995) has discussed a legal case in which religion, law, and medicine clash. The article is based on the true story of Baby K, a baby born with anencephaly. The mother, who believes in the sanctity-of-life principle, wants Baby K kept on a ventilator; because of her faith, she believes that a person’

Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 3

Report - Essay Example After World War II Nestlà © saw a boom period and since then it grew at a faster pace leaving behind all the competitors of the market. Nestlà © is also listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange. It is also ranked at the number 1 position in the Fortune 500 companies in 2011. Nestlà © is serving over 150 countries at this time with almost 461 factories or operations in 83 countries. With the help of these facts and figures we can imagine the huge network of Nestlà ©. The basic key factor behind the foundation of Nestlà © Company was the research to find out the alternative for the infants whom mothers cannot feed. This was an intense social thinking and thus we can say that from its origin Nestlà © Company is aimed to work for the people and not for gaining profits. Nestlà © have taken many steps in the social concerns. They always try to satisfy their customer base not only with their products but also with the communication skills. Through this way they give value to the potential customers. Customer and supplier relationship management is an important tool to create a good company name. Nestlà © has always differentiated itself as the company focusing on the people who are very much health and nutrition conscious (Raza 2013). As per recent information, Nestlà © has announced to expand its research and development centre in Singapore. The primary focus of this R & D centre will be health and nutrition. The Nestlà © team also says that th e core aim of their company’s presence is to enhance the quality of people’s lives every day. This is also shown If we consider the world wide operations then there are almost 8000 brands which have been offered by Nestlà ©. As a result they have captured a huge market share and thus achieve success as compare to many other competitive firms. According to a news report Nestlà © is such a biggest company in the food industry that its financial results can predict the

Phase Interpolator Pll In Simulink Computer Science Essay

Phase Interpolator Pll In Simulink Computer Science Essay Phase Locked Loops (PLLs) is a negative feedback system that matches the output frequency to the input frequency. Many applications utilize PLLs such as: frequency synthesizers, skew cancellation, reference clean-up, and clock-data recovery [1]. For frequency synthesizers, the goal is to generate a clock at a higher speed to that of a slower reference clock. For example, generating a 1 GHz signal from a 100 MHz reference signal. This is a common goal for many optical applications. For example, current work performed by AOSense, a leading research and development company in atomic-level sensing requires clock frequencies well into the hundreds of megahertz and even into the gigahertz range. For this reasons, PLLs, such as the HMC698LP5 from Hittite Microwave are commonly used in their designs. standard pll design A basic PLL consist of four main building blocks; Phase Frequency Detector (PFD), Charge Pump (CP), Low Pass Filter (LPF), and Voltage Controlled Oscillator (VCO). Figure 1 is a block diagram of a basic PLL. http://madfeekree.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/basic-pll-block1.png?w=614 Figure 1. Basic PLL Block Diagram [2] The PFD detects any differences in phase and frequency of the reference and feedback signals and generates an appropriate Up or Down signal. These signals are then passed to the CP, in which, the CP sources current into the loop filter (Up signals) or sinks current from the loop filter (Down signals). The LPF converts the signal into an analog voltage for the VCO, in which the VCO outputs a clock at either a higher faster or slower frequency based on the UP DOWN signals generated by the PD. This process is repeated until the output frequency of the VCO properly matches that of the reference frequency. These blocks were constructed and simulated in MATLAB R2112a Simulink. A. Phase Frequency Detector As previously stated, PFD are devices that measures the difference between the reference and feedback clocks. There are two commonly used phase detectors: linear and binary. A linear phase detectors output is a pulse signal with a varying width. When the feedback signal is severely out of phase with the reference signal, the pulse width is larger compared to when the two signals are close to being similar. In contrast, a binary (bang-bang) phase detectors output is a fixed pulse width. This binary output signifies if the feedback signal arrived early or late compared to the reference signal. In this design, a modified version of a linear phase frequency detector was implemented in Simulink, as depicted in figure 2. This PFD generates a logic high for the UP signal when the feedback signals rising edge arrives ahead of the reference signals rising edge for the length of the difference. Similarly, when the feedback singals rising edge arrives after the reference signals rising edge, a logic high is given for the DOWN signal for the duration of the difference. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 2 PFD.png Figure 2. Phase Frequency Detector Model Applying a test signal to both the reference and variable (feedback) inputs and adjusting the feedback signal with some delay, demonstrates the proper functionality of the PFD. This is illustrated in figure 3. The plot is as given from the top down: UP, DOWN, Reference, and Variable CLK. The UP and DOWN signals are then fed to the charge pump, which directs the loop filter to increase or decrease in voltage, signifying an increase or decrease of the VCO output signal. But first, a discussion on the charge pump and its modelling is in order. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 3 PFD Test.pngFigure 3. PFD Test Results B. Charge Pump The charge pump block in figure 1 is designed to convert the UP and DOWN signals into current for the loop filter. When the UP signal is logic high, the charge pump will source current to the loop filter and when the DOWN signal is logic high, the charge pump will since current from the loop filter. A circuit representation of a charge pump is given in figure 4 below. From this representation, several key design challenges are noticed. Such as proper current matching from both I1 and I2, parasitic capacitance from the two current sources, and leakage current into and out of the loop filter. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 4 CP.png Figure 4. Charge Pump Circuit A Simulink model of a charge pump is given in figure 5. Notice how the DOWN signal is subtracted from the UP signal and then fed into a gain of 0.001. This gain value represents the current of the two current sources. The delay representsrepresents the current of the two current sources. The delay represents the capacitor, Cp, in figure 4. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 5 CP Block.png Figure 5. Charge Pump Model Simulating the charge pump model should show a slowly increasing value as long as the UP signal is high more often than the DOWN signal. Figure 6 below shows such a scenario as the CP_Out signal slowly ramps up. This signifies that the VCO will speed up to force the reference signal to catch up to the data signal. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 6 CP Test.png Figure 6. CP Test Results C. Loop Filter A loop filter is an entirely passive component device and consist of two capacitors and a resistors as illustrated in figure 7. The loop filter has two branches, the integral path and the proportional path. The integral path is the C2 branch, while the proportional path is the C1 and R branch. As the name implies, the loop filter filters high frequency noise spurs caused by sampling, but this also adds a pole at 1/RC2 [1]. A resistor in the loop filter provides an isolation phase correction from frequency correction. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 7 Loop Filter Circuit.png Figure 7. Loop Filter Circuit A simulink model of a loop filter is given in figure 8 below. The input to the loop filter is connected to the output of the charge pump. The purpose of the loop filter is to take a current and convert it into a voltage, called the control voltage of the VCO. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 8 Loop Filter Block.png Figure 8. Loop Filter Model Simulating the loop filter in Simulink gave the plot in figure 9. Re-examining this figure, there may be a an error in the loop filters output as its a sawtooth waveform. This will be compared to the VCO output plot for proper functionality in the next section. Figure 9. Loop Filter Test Results D. VCO The final block in figure 1 is the VCO block. Theres a slight modification to the VCO block compared to that in figure 1 due to the future use of phase interpolation. Due to this, a phase generator block was required. This phase generator block is given in figure 10. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 10 Phase Generator Block.png Figure 10. Phase Generator Model The purpose of the phase generator block is to allow various phases for the phase interpolation PLL in the forthcoming section. For this, the signal is limited to 360 degrees and various phases are generated as illustrated in figure 11. This is the final design of the VCO. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 11 VCO Block.png Figure 11. VCO Model A common VCO has a single output, known here as CLK_0. However, due to the use of phase interpolation in the second half of this PLL design, 3 other phases were generated. Each phase separated by 90 degrees. The feedback to the PDF is derived from CLK_0 signal that is passed through a relay that generates a clock signal from a sinusoidal signal. The final PLL design for the first potion is given in figure 12. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 12 PLL Block.png Figure 12. PLL Design Phase 1 Testing of the pll Testing of the PLL consisted of a pulse generator at the reference clock input. This signal was set to 50 Hz is mentioned in [3]. Figure 13 is a plot of the VCO output (CLK_0). The plot shows that in the beginning, the VCO is attempting to lock and after about 30 seconds, the system locks onto the frequency. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 13- PLL Test Results.png Figure 13. PLL Phase 1 Test Results phase interpolator design A. Theory Behind Phase Interpolators Phase Interpolators (PI) is a modified version of a PLL. PIs function by taking a weighted values and multiplying and adding them to two signals shifted in phase at the same frequency. These weighted values are call alpha and beta. Beta equals 1 minus alpha as given in equation (1) (1) Where, B. Binary Phase Detector The phase detector used in the PI loop has been modified to act as a bang-bang phase detector instead of a linear phase detector. A modified version of the bang-bang phase detector [4] was used. This modified bang-bang phase detector is given in figure 13i. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 13i- BBPD Block.png Figure 13i. Modified Bang-Bang Phase Detector A bang-bang phase detector is different from a linear phase detector since the output signals are fixed pulses and they signify if the feedback clocks rising edge is early or late. Those early and late signals are then fed into a charge pump, which tells the VCO (by means of a loop filter) to go faster or to slow down. Simulating this modified version of a phase detector was performed in Simulink. The feedback (reference) signal was delayed compared to the DATA clock. This implies that the phase detector outputs a logic high for the LATE signal, in which it does. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 13ii- BBPD Test.png Figure 13ii. Bang-Bang Phase Detector Test Results D. Quadrature Clocks Quadrature Clocks are clocks that are separated by 90 degrees. The model to accomplish this was given in figure 11 of the VCO. Testing this with a simple pulse generator input signal provided the plots in figure 14. These plots show four signals that are 90 degrees out of phase with one another. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 14- Quad Phases.png Figure 14. Quadrate Phases Reading from the top of figure 14 to the bottom, the phases are as follows: 0, 90, 180, and 270 degrees. E. Counter To ensure the entire 360 degrees of phases are covered, as given in the VCO, a counter was implemented. For this simulation, an 8-bit counter was used. This implies that for 360 degrees and an 8-bit counter, each degree represents 1.41 degrees of resolution. The importance of this is related to the unit circle. For a count from 0-255, each 64 counts represents a phase shift of 90 degrees. A simple counter was constructed in Simulink using a just three blocks as shown in figure 15. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 15- Counter.png Figure 15. Counter Model F. Alpha, Beta, and MUX Values To determine the alpha, beta, and the MUX values, a model was created in Simulink. From section C, an 8-bit counter was created. Of these 8-bits, bits 0-5 represent the alpha bits and bits 6-7 represent the MUX bits. These bits were extracted and then the alpha and the beta values were obtained as mentioned in section A and equation (1). A Simulink model is given in figure 16. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 16- Alpha Beta Mux.png Figure 16. Alpha, Beta, and MUX Extractor Testing the model in figure 16 revealed an interesting note. This model was taken directly from [3] and when a simple test of this block was performed, the MUX bits appeared to be out of the ordinary. It was expected that the MUX values would range from 0-4 as two bits were extracted, giving a four step ramp. However, the four step ramp ranged from 0-192. This is shown in figure 17. The next section discusses the MUX switching and this is why the issue was noticed. Because of this, this discussion will take place in the next section. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 17- Alpha Beta Mux Test.png Figure 17. Alpha, Beta, and MUX Test Results G. MUX Model Since a PI requires the use of two different phases simultaneously, a MUX is required to give the proper signals. In Simulink, a MUX was generated using multiport switch components. The model is given in figure 18 below. As there are four inputs, the select line is required to be a value of 1, 2, 3, or 4 in order to properly select the desired line. The select line is driven by the 2-bit MUX value that was obtained in the previous section, F. This implies that the MUX values should be a 1, 2, 3, or 4 value and not the values that are shown in figure 17. The four steps are correct, but further work is need to properly generate the appropriate select lines. Due to the MUX select lines not functioning properly, the final PI PLL design was unable to be properly tested. A solution to this problem is to write a piece of code that reads the MUX line and then determines the proper, 1, 2, 3, or 4 value. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 18- MUX Model.png Figure 18. MUX Model H. Finall PLL Block and Testing The final design of the complete PLL with the phase interpolator PLL is given in figure 19. As stated in MUX Model section, the MUX line had a critical error that prevented the PLL from being properly simulated. This error was due to the MUX select lines not being of the proper value. If given more time, code would be implemented to resolve this problem or the use of Simulink blocks to generate the proper values for the select lines. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 19- Final PLL Block.png Figure 19. Final PLL Design with PI For simplicity do to time constraints, a simple test was performed on the final design. Since the MUX select lines are not function properly, a constant value was fed into the select lines to manually pick the phases. When the select line was set to 1 for both, the graph in figure 20 was generated. M:SJSUEE 227ProjectReport PicturesFigure 20- Final PLL Test MUX 11.png Figure 20 PI Output/Feedback Pre Relay Figure 20 shows that the PLL is working to a degree. Unfortunately, it fails to be properly tested. Conclusion PLLs are commonly used devices in a wide range of applications. In this design, a phase interpolator version of a PLL was examined. Although the complete model was successfully constructed in Simulink, the final design was unable to be properly tested. This was due to the malfunction of the MUX select lines that prohibited the simulation to run. A quick work around was implemented, which meant the manual adjustment of the MUX select lines.

The American Penal System Essay -- solitary confinement, punishment, se

Imagine living your life inside of an enclosed, seven by twelve foot, concrete cell. The only access you have to outside world is the small slot in the door used for delivering medication and food, and a tiny window, used by the guards to make sure you are alive and breathing. The fact that they even have to check if you are alive should be a red flag to society. You are here for twenty three hours a day with only one hour of â€Å"recreation† outside of this cell. This time can be used to shower, workout or make a phone call, but you are still isolated. You are here locked up for weeks, months, or maybe even years. Throughout this whole time, you are left alone with no meaningful activity; just yourself and your thoughts, which can eventually drive you mad. This is solitary confinement. According to the Washington Post's â€Å"The Torture of Solitude,† â€Å"The United States holds the highest number of prisoners in solitary confinement of any democratic nation...â⠂¬  This is what approximately 80,000 prisoners across America have to suffer through. This is what the rest of the United States population should consider immoral. Solitary confinement was first introduced as a â€Å"humane alternative to hanging almost two hundred years ago† (ABS News). Yet there is nothing humane about it. The American Penal System needs to ban long term solitary confinement because it is unnecessary, inhumane, and ineffective. Many sentences of solitary confinement are unnecessary because many prisoners do not deserve such a harsh punishment. Deciding to place a criminal in solitary should be a last resort. Prison is a good enough punishment for people who have committed petty crimes. It is unnecessary for them to be placed in solitary, if they are not a danger to th... ... so they can eventually learn from their wrongs. They are eventually going to be integrated back into society, so we should help them become better people. Works Cited ABC News. "Solitary Confinement: No Way Out of the Monster Factory." YouTube. YouTube, 20 Sept. 2012. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. Curtis, Abigail. "Is Solitary Confinement Torture?: Proposed Bill would Place Limits on use of Solitary Confinement in State Prison." McClatchy - Tribune Business News. Oct 24 2009. ProQuest. Web. 28 Oct. 2013 . National Geographic Society. â€Å"Explorer: Solitary Confinement.† National Geographic Channel. Web Video. 22 Nov. 2013. "NYCLU Report Exposes Inhumane, Arbitrary use of Solitary Confinement in NY State Prisons." Targeted News Service. Oct 02 2012. ProQuest. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. "The Torture of Solitude." Washington Post. 2 July 2012. Academic OneFile. Web. 28 Oct. 2013.

Factors Influencing Decisions to Study Overseas Essay

Introduction Past few decades have witnessed massive inflow and outflow of students in order to acquire foreign higher education. International education and the international mobility of students can be traced back to ancient times, as early as 600 BC in India (Chen, 2007). Since the late 1990s the higher  education market is growing by 7 percent a year. (Kaul, 2006).The trend is not only common in Western world but Asian students also constitute a major proportion of international students in foreign universities. This Asian market continues to be a major one (Gatfield & Hyde, 2005). The existence of world class institutes in UK and USA make them most preferred destinations for students. The prominent education exporting countries (those which sell education to international student) include USA, UK, Canada and Australia while the education importing countries (those which buy education from foreign universities) include East Asian Tigers, China, India and Pakistan. Due to increasing trend of foreign education, the competition amongst the education exporting countries is also becoming intense and thus they pursue better marketing efforts in order to attract foreign students. Pakistan’s service sector has grown substantially in past decade and requires major human capital in order to sustain efficient growth. A skilled workforce is a key to successful operations of any business. The development of sectors like information technology, financial sector and the establishment of multinational corporations require educated personnel. Therefore an educated and highly skilled human capital is a prerequisite for a developing country like Pakistan to enable economic growth. In Pakistan, there are a handful of universities offering post-graduate programs. The disciplines offered are not much diverse and the numbers of seats are also limited. Research facilities for doctoral studies are also not as advanced as in world class institutes abroad. Beside these already established facts, my research would revolve around the influence of personal factors, the â€Å"external push-pull factors† and the influence of family, peers, sponsors and employers. (Chen, 2007) Literature Review There have been several studies conducted on this topic. The ones I have gone through while doing literature review were carried out in India, China, Australia, Portugal, Canada, Malaysia, United Kingdom and South Africa. A research suggested that in order to attract international graduate students, focus should be concentrated on investing in research and ensuring the standards of education by the institutions, while efforts should be devoted to â€Å"the internationalization of graduate education†, as well as devising a national marketing strategy to portray a better image of their higher education institutions and programs. (Chen, 2007). This research suggested that pull factors of host institutions in terms of cost, academic excellence and Canada’s good reputation for cultural tolerance are more significant as compared to other personal factors. It further stated that the quality of education was more important to students as compared to financial concerns. ‘Internationalization of higher education’ related activities are significant to impact the decision of PhD students’ choice of foreign university whereas marketing activities directly influence students’ choice in taught degree programs. (Chen, 2007) A study by World Bank stated that foreign education is no different than trade. It is trade of a service where one country’s resident buys education from the country which is selling it. This study made an in-depth analysis of the negative push factors associated with the home country. The demand for foreign education increases when there is excess demand for domestic education and seats are limited. Also, the changing business dynamics and work practices require a more qualified taskforce which make international degree more valuable. Countries like India have started a collaboration program with foreign institutes to so that their domestic education system is improved. The study revealed that education trade has adverse impacts on domestic education system of home countries especially the developing ones. â€Å"Nonetheless, this trade is bound to increase and diversify due to the growing demand for foreign qualifications and increasing competition among industrialized nations in the higher education market and also due to the entry of more higher education institutions from developing countries, which can compete on both price and quality.† (Bashir, 2007) Greater economic benefits are achieved if natives have acquired higher education. Education export is a business for which the administrators need to devise marketing strategies in order to stay at par with competitors. In this Malaysian  study, international students have also been termed as customers as they are paying for the service. This study analysed 48 factors and their relative strengths which influenced the international students’ decisions to select appropriate universities for their post graduate studies. This study identified 6 major factors which attracted foreign students, with quality of education and impact of influencers being the most important ones. Importance of each factor was determined using ANOVA and MANOVA. The research suggested that students from different regions had different preferences and ‘needs and wants’. However, all these students demanded a better ‘customer focus’ as they were paying heavily. All international students evaluated factors like ‘qualification of instructors, medium of communication, learning environment, socialization and location’. Quality education, cost, and facilities are directly related to services provided by the HEIs (higher education institutes) are the key determinants of decision-making process by the international students therefore these factors should be addressed by the HEIs (Padlee, Kamaruddin, & Baharun, 2010) A study carried out in UK revealed that the students have a desire to attend a world class institute which motivates them to go abroad. It was also revealed that US is the most popular destination for UK students. Students with good academic capabilities were mainly the ones who applied to foreign universities. The social class and parental educational background also influenced the decision-making and the upper class and highly educated parent’s children were most likely to go abroad. However it was analysed that family influence mattered least while decision-making. A few students opted to study in Australia because they were interested in permanent emigration. It is predictable that the factor of a desire to attend a world class university will become more influential in upcoming decades as there has been an exponential rise in globally emerging world class institutes. (Findlay & King, 2010) International post graduate students studying in Malaysia ranked the programs offered as the most important criteria while selecting a particular university, followed by fees, facilities and academic staff performance. The paper stated that Malaysia is amongst the most preferred countries for educational purposes these days. The academic excellence of visiting and  permanent faculty is noted to be major influencer to attract students. International publications by the professors or university also impact the university reputation. Scholarships offered and ‘environment built’ were least important factors. However it was observed that there lays a difference in priorities of students from West and Asia. A multi criteria decision making issues were evaluated using AHP technique. This technique ranked the importance of each factor. Marketing implications for Malaysian universities is that they should offer a wide range of programs along with scholarships and reasonable fee structure. (Dahari & Abduh, 2011) The benefits of acquiring foreign education are evident in form of a highly skilled and productive labour force. The experience of foreign culture adds to learning experience and a more diversified labour force is produced. Owing to these benefits, competition amongst the education exporters has become intense. A South African study found out that the pull factors associated with host country are more influential in decision making rather that the negative push factors associated with the home country. Students purse foreign education primarily for career development and to experience a foreign culture. 14 factors were examined individually and the most influential factor was found to be â€Å"seeking qualifications with worldwide recognition† through rank order analysis. Other major factors include limited course availability in home country, better employment prospect with a foreign degree, experiencing foreign culture and higher quality education abroad. The two least important factors were strict entry requirements criteria in domestic institutions and non-acceptance by domestic university for preferred course. There was not much variation in responses of students from different countries. As the competition amongst the education exporting countries is increasing, greater marketing efforts are needed by these countries in order to be a lucrative market for foreign student. Internet could prove to be a beneficial tool in terms of advertising. It must be ensured that the quality of education is excellent so that there is cross border recognition of higher education institutes. (Mpinganjira, 2009) Today, higher education is a central factor in order to match pace with the rapidly advancing technological world. A study conducted in Australia  investigated the choice patterns of Singaporean students. Australia is favoured for higher education by international students due to its relatively lower cost of education and accommodation as compared to other Western countries. This study explored the demographic profiles of students in detail through in-depth interviews and found out how the socio-economic background, cultural influence and psychological factors of student influence their decision making. The students wanted to have an independent living experience. The decision making process is a highly complex one which requires high involvement where social, personal and behavioural aspects come into play. Cultural, colonial, political and regional interest similarities between Australia and Singapore are favourable factors which allow for educational exchange between two countries. The natural physical endowments such as oceans, beaches and vast land were also one of the attractions for international students to opt for Australia. The study concluded with a recommendation to Australian institutes to attract foreign students through advertising. (Gatfield & Hyde, 2005) An Indian research highlighted the need for higher educational institutes in their domestic market as there is a need for skilled labour force for their emerging industries. Not only there is a boom in industrial sector, but financial, medical, biotechnical and information technology sectors are also developing rapidly along with advent of multinational corporations. These sectors require human capital which is a product of quality higher education. That paper has termed international higher education as a business with students being its clients. It proposes that foreign campus of international universities should be established in India so that students who do not afford foreign education abroad may earn the fruits of this joint venture between Indian public institutes and foreign universities. (Kaul, 2006) Decision making process is a multi step process influenced by various factors at each stage. A paper by Pimpa primarily focuses on family, peers and agents influence on decision making of Thai students for foreign education. The family factor is further dissected into factors like finance, persuasion, competition and expectations while peers and agents may  influence through information and competition. The study also developed a relation between age and family influence, the older the students the lesser the influence of family on their decision. Thai students enrolled in Australian institutes were taken as sample through convenience sampling. The results depicted that finance factor of family influence had a major impact followed by information provided by agents and peers whereas competition amongst the family members and persuasion from family members were least important criteria. This study added the agents influence in detail to already existing theories of external push and pull factors. (Pimpa, 2003) Apart from the role played by external push and pull factors, the impact of personal psychographics and behavioural factors along with socio-economic background were studied by Boey, Smith and Cuthbert. Gender difference has often been sidelined in this area of research however this study also incorporated that how the relative importance of each factor vary with respect to gender difference making this research unique from all the previous works done. The demographic profiles of each respondent were made to determine their social class and standing. The main importers of Australian education are Asian students. 50% of students belonged to single income families while other 50% belonged to double income families thus being capable to afford education in Australia. Fathers of respondents were more qualified than mothers but the influence of parents’ education level was very minute. Results depicted that sons were sent to UK or US for higher education while daughters were sent to Australia due to relative lesser cost of education than in US or UK. The reputation and academic standing of the institute were prime factors which influenced the selection of university followed by ‘campus environment’, facilities and location. Also, females opted for foreign education as an opportunity to experience life abroad in independent manner. The results depicted that gender have different approaches and further research may be carried to highlight these differences. (Smit, Boey, & Cuthbert) A Portuguese study analysed the factors which led to departure of graduates for doing scientific PhD from abroad. These factors included better employment opportunities after acquiring foreign degree, better research  facilities abroad and lack of competitive scientific environment at home. The reputation of the institution, scientific motivations, such as the resource availability and the composition of the research were pull factors stated in sequence of their importance. (Delicado, 2010) Since the emergence of world as a global village, higher foreign education has become an essential part of the globalisation process. The demand for highly qualified professionals has lead to increased flow of students to international markets for acquiring foreign degrees. The prime objective of foreign education is ‘self development’ but it eventually adds up to national interest. The most beneficial outcome of the international education is that students become well equipped with the required tools to understand the concept of ‘social equity and justice’ with respect to international issues. The term ‘internationalization’ has several meanings attached to it but with respect to education it could be referred to as the process of adopting a set of activities to make domestic education system well integrated with foreign education system in order to meet the challenges of globalisation. There could be four possible rationales for internationalization process namely; political, social/cultural, economic and academic. Different stakeholders assign varying level of significance to these rationales. The differences in interest of various stakeholders usually give rise to conflicts which may hinder the internationalization process. The internationalization of education could be done though elements such as: joint research projects, international conferences and seminars, visiting faculty, distant learning, international students, cross cultural training, intercultural campus events, student exchange programs and foreign language education etc. (Qiang, 2003) Globalisation and internationalization are two phenomena which are distinct in nature but are inter-related. In past decades there has been a phenomenal shift to service based industries which has resulted into creation of a ‘knowledge society’. Trained personnel are thus required in knowledge based industries in modern times. These elements constitute the process of globalisation. Internationalization too is a part of globalisation where academic institutions indulge in activities such as student exchange  programs, designing international standard curriculum, foreign language programs and branch campuses etc. The main education selling countries are UK and US and earn handsome profits through international students from Asian and Latin American countries. Some institutions from UK and US have opened up branch campuses in Qatar, Singapore and Spain along with some other countries which facilitate provision of international standard education in middle income countries. The factors which hinder the international student mobility include terrorism acts, cultural intolerance, greater cost of foreign education, government regulations, language barriers, government regulations and policies, distant learning programs and the emergence of private sector educational institutes. Provision of international education should not be aimed at earning profits; rather it should have a vision to benefit public on a mass scale. (Altbach & Knight, 2007) Chinese students compose the major chunk of world pie of international students and Australia is one of the biggest known for education export. It is a preferred destination for Chinese students because of security and friendly environment for foreigners. In the earlier times, Chinese government used to fund foreign studies of its students however now the Chinese family’s major expense second to food is their child’s education expense. Chinese push factors include inadequate number of institutions in domestic market, increasing trend of foreign education in society, increased ability for self funded foreign education due to rapid economic growth and the need for highly skilled labour. Parents are more aware of the potential benefits of foreign degree thus are willing to invest in their child’s future. While selecting the host country, Chinese students consider factors like the reputation of host country, the recognition of the institute, cost of living and tuition fee, the influence of family, friends and peers, the proximity of host country to Mainland China and the host countries’ laws and regulations. Chinese students surprisingly do not have an urge to live in West and experience their lifestyle and culture. Research proved that Australia was preferred over US, UK and Canada. The most important factor which influences their decision to study abroad is the better quality of education abroad as compared to that in their home country. Australia  attracts students because of its appealing immigration policy, lower crime rate, English-speaking country, cultural tolerance, lower cost of tuition and living and quick visa application processing. (Yang, 2007) Push factors are associated with the social and economic factors of the home country which propel the students to pursue foreign education. The selection of the host country is relied on pull factors which attract foreign students. In developing countries of Asia and Africa there are not enough opportunities in domestic market to acquire higher education therefore students direct themselves to foreign journey. The historical and colonial link of the host and home countries is one of the major factors which influence the decision of students in terms of selection of host country. Other factors include the language similarity, geographical proximity to home country and the technological advancement of the host country. The push factors of home country include the economic stability, its contribution to world economy, emphasis on education importance by the government and access to higher education at home. The pull model stated that the attraction to a particular country is influenced by the kind of economic and political ties which persist between the home and host country. The common model states the first step is to decide whether to study abroad or in home country, second is the choice of host country and the last decision is to select the host institution. Through each stage of the process, several independent factors influence the decision which includes the immigration intentions, barriers to entry in domestic institutes, limited courses offered at home, to experience foreign culture and better quality of education abroad. Major concerns are cost of living, travelling, tuition fees and career prospects. (Mazzarol & Soutar, 2002) Research Questions and Objectives The central research question is: What are the major factors which influence Pakistani students’ decisions to pursue post graduate studies in a foreign country? While attempting to address the central question, this study also incorporates following questions: 1. What are the characteristics of Pakistani students who acquired foreign degrees? 2. Why did students  prefer to study abroad? 3. How has their socioeconomic background and family setup influenced their decision? The basic purpose of this paper is to investigate factors that influence the decision to study abroad. It would explore the extent to which various factors influence the decision to study abroad and how different student’s preferences vary based on personal factors and their socioeconomic backgrounds. Finally this study would provide implications for Pakistani universities as to how they could improve their education system in order to attract native students. It would also be beneficial for education exporting countries as they could formulate their marketing strategies based on the findings of this paper.. Theoretical Framework It’s a three staged process where students first decide whether to go abroad for higher education or to study at a local institute. Once they have chosen to study abroad, they select a host country. This second stage is a critical decision to make where students have to weigh the positives and negatives of various options available. The last stage is the selection of the institute. This three staged process is commonly adapted by every student who considers studying abroad but sometimes students skip the second stage, the selection of host country, and finally pick up the institution for them. E.g. getting enrolled at Ivy League or Oxford is the aim of some students so they do not consider applying to any other country thereby skipping the second stage. The first stage is to take the decision whether to study in Pakistan or abroad. At this stage, personal motivation factors to study abroad and the influence of family and peers along with the external push and pull factors influence the decision. Once the student has decided to go abroad, the second stage comes into play which is selection of destination. Several factors come into consideration while selecting the host country. Major factors are proximity to home country, cultural similarity, language and ease of visa process. After the selection of host country, third stage is selection of host institution. While selecting the university, factors such  as programs offered, facilities, fee structure, international reputation and academic quality are evaluated. Throughout the three ages, following independent variables influence the students’ decisions. * â€Å"Personal characteristics & motivation† Personal characteristics include socioeconomic background, preferences, academic ability, social capital, and creative capital. (Chen, 2007) * â€Å"External push & pull factors† (Internationalization & Globalisation: Prospects of better employment, esteemed foreign degrees, opportunity to experience foreign culture, desired education not available, home country lacks research facilities, limited career prospects at home, financial support from home government or agency). — include positive and negative forces from the home and host countries, personal driving forces due to external influences, and institutional characteristics. (Chen, 2007) * â€Å"Friends and Family influence†. It includes encouragement from family / spouse, relatives, professors, sponsors, or employers. (Chen, 2007) The dependant variable is the decision to go abroad for post graduate studies. By the end of the search stage for institutions, students will derive a choice set of institutions from which to make applications. The final stage of the school choice is to select one school from the set of offers of admission. Students will make trade-offs among the factors considered in the search stage, and reach a final choice. Literature review covered factors like characteristics of graduate international students — as well as studies on college choice factors, such as location characteristics, economics of international graduate education, visa, and education / immigration / mobility. The push – pull model was also reviewed to understand the strengths of and relationships among various factors that influence the choice of a country, institution, program, and city. A push – pull model was originally used in the theory of migration (E. S. Lee, 1966) to explain the factors influencing the movement of people. The model has been used to understand the international students’ choice of a country (Mazzarol & Soutar, 2002). The push factors are the factors associated  with the home country. Some push factors are positive and some are negative in nature, while pull factors are in general positive to attract international students to the destination. In essence, the decision, motivations, and flow of international students are a function of the combined ‘pull’ factors and ‘push’ factors as influenced by intervening obstacles. The push factors had strength in the initial reasons for studying abroad, while the pull factors dominated the choices, especially the appeal of program availability. Hypotheses Ho: Family and Friends influence does not impact the decision to go abroad for post graduation. HA: Family and Friends influence does impact the decision to go abroad for post graduation. Ho: Personal motivation does not influence the decision to go abroad for post graduation. HA: Personal motivation does influence the decision to go abroad for post graduation. Ho: External push and pull factors do not influence the decision to go abroad for post graduation. HA: External factors push and pull factors do influence the decision to go abroad for post graduation. Methodology The methodology that has been adopted is a combination of qualitative and quantitative research to analyse the factors which are most influential during the process. Quantitative data from a survey questionnaire have been collected to determine the relative strength of each factor influencing the decision to purse foreign education. The impact of push and pull factors, personal motivation, family and peers influence and their relative importance in taking the final decision have been studied using regression and cross tabulations. The survey questionnaire used for this research purpose is taken from a study of English Alumni, administered by the University of Dundee (Professor Findlay) and University of Sussex (Professor King) in UK in 2010. The used for analysis is collected using survey questionnaires sent to international graduates who have returned to Pakistan after acquiring post graduate degrees from abroad or are currently enrolled in foreign universities. The survey comprised a structured, detailed and comprehensive questionnaire examining various factors related to international study. Targeted sample size was minimum 50 surveys to be obtained from the international postgraduate Pakistani students however only  45 were returned. Judgemental sampling was done. Diversity in age, gender and socio economic background were considered while selecting respondents. It was preferred to have a balance between male and female respondents. The data collected has been used to develop a framework which best describes the decision making process of Pakistani students when they decide to pursue foreign education. Instrumentation The questionnaire was designed and piloted in such a way as to ensure that maximum relevant information could be collected with minimal imposition on respondents. It takes 10 minutes to complete on average, with a range between 5 and 15 minutes. The questionnaire was designed to provide useful data to answer, or at least shed light on, the research aims. The questionnaire mainly involves closed questions, simple to tick or write a one-word response, with a few spaces for elaborations where it is thought necessary or useful. First three questions are basics about age, gender and the course of study that was completed abroad. Next question asks about the discipline that was chosen for study abroad. This question would help me figure the preferred courses which students pursue abroad. This would also help me explore that the decision to study abroad might was taken because that particular courses were not offered here in Pakistan. The question about financing of study program would help profile the students, which would in turn help me to analyse how financing issue impacted student’s choices to study abroad. The next question about guidance from school staff is related to the independent variable of the impact of significant others. This would help me analyse the importance and impact of information from school about opportunity to study abroad and whether this facilitated the decision to study abroad or it had no impact. The objective of the question which asks to mention preferred Pakistani universities is to identify the top preferred post-grad institutes where these students had considered to study in home country. The following question would explore that what was the impact of rejection or acceptance by domestic institutes on students’ decision to go abroad. Next question would help determine that whether the restrictions on number of places to study the preferred discipline in Pakistani u niversities a factor in encouraging students to consider studying abroad. Under the head of ‘impact of significant others’ there are questions  about the contact with acquaintances who were already present at the foreign university. Following is the question about whether there was any information given about scholarships/bursaries by the schools and was that important for those students in making a decision about foreign education. The next question is about the next two independent variables, ‘students’ characteristics & motivation’ and ‘ external push and pull factors of home and host country’. There are seven factors which are being analysed and have been assigned a scale ranging from very important to slightly important to not important and finally not applicable. It includes factors like family pressure to study abroad, personal motivation to attend a world class university, desire for a better career, limited courses available in Pakistan, opportunity to experience foreign culture, increasing trend of acquiring foreign degrees and finally the institutions’ ranking. The responses by respondents would help me identify how important was each of the stated factors. The next question is open ended which ask students to mention the key factors which influenced their choice of one country over other and the factors which led to selection of a particular institute. This would help me identify the pull factors which attract students to foreign universities. Next question is about the qualification level of the respondents’ parents. The level of education which they have might influence the decision of students for foreign post grad study. Last question is about the hindrances or the factors which might have concerned students about studying outside Pakistan. Again the degree of importance ranges from very important to not important. The purpose of these factors is to analyse how each factor affected their decision process. These factors include: problem with the foreign language, difficult to leave parental family or spouse/partner, cultural shock, financial constraints to bear expenses and concerns about obtaining visa.

Comic elements in the first act of “much ado about nothing”

In the era in which â€Å"much ado about nothing† was set the wealth and power of someone was far more credible than their personality and this is portrayed in the first few lines of the play when Leonato asks â€Å"how many gentleman have you lost in this action† and the messenger replies â€Å"but few of any sort, and none of name† he segregates the wealthy from the poor as though they are two different beings and doesn’t tell us how many lower class people died as if it is irrelevant. Vanity and hypocrisy are prominent themes that occur throughout the play, in the times of â€Å"much ado about nothing† the people were so focused on how they looked towards other people that their extravagant clothes, over the top mannerisms and the contrast in language in comparison to modern day were all somewhat outrageous and in turn humorous. Don John, the typical villain, only says one thing in act 1 scene 1 â€Å"I thank you, I am not of many words, But I thank you† this is quite a disappointing first line, the audience expects him to stamp his authority on the play but instead he stays relatively quiet, it Is an anti-climax with no climax accept the anticipation of how he will be portrayed in the play. The main comical relationship in this play is between Beatrice and Benedick and they also feature hugely in act 1scene 1. Beatrice first speaks of Benedick when she refers to him as â€Å"Signor Mountanto† which basically means ladies’ man; this is the first bit of intentional comedy in the whole play, you could argue its sarcasm or the mocking of his inability to bed down a relationship, which is ironic because Beatrice is in pretty much the same situation as Benedick. As a result of Beatrices complex humour the messenger gets somewhat confused â€Å"I know none of that name, lady, there was none such in the army of any sort† this is humorous at the messenger’s expense because of his confusion, an audience tends to like it when they are in the know and the people on stage are somewhat lost. Beatrice’s constant insulting almost seems uncontrollable, with everything she says comes some sort of insult towards Benedick. Benedick is extremely against marriage, because of the possibility of an unfaithful wife, and in lines 145 to 147 this becomes very evident, saying married men whose wives whom are unfaithful should wear caps â€Å"Is’t come to this? In faith, hath not the world one man, but he will wear his cap with suspicion?† Although Beatrice and Benedick argue every time they see each other, it can’t go unnoticed that Benedick is all Beatrice talks about, which makes it so painstakingly obvious that they will get married, it’s funny, it is also Dramatic irony because the audience know what is going to happen and Beatrice and Benedick don’t.