The California Water Crisis Philosophy Essay

The California Water Crisis Philosophy Essay Water is an essential ingredient to life. It is used everyday throughout our daily lives, and it is no where short of irrelevant. It is also important to us Californians, and we must treat it this way. The California community however, is facing a water crisis, one that will affect our community negatively if we dont put this problem into realization and act to prevent it. All the water that will ever be is, right now (National Geographic Spokesman). That means that what we have now is all we have. Not only that, but just about everything on Earth uses water is someway or another. Clearly, it is important to man, so it deservers to be treated as such. This however is sadly not the case. The respect it deserves doesnt seem to be the respect that is given to it. Filthy water cannot be washed (West African Proverb). That means if we dont respect it now and allow it to become worthless, it will stay worthless. Many of us around the world know, but do we as Californians know? For many of us, we are unaware of the growing danger. It spreads quicker and faster, yet we do nothing to stop it. The California water crisis is one that our community must take head on to change the path of our future. Common Social Injustices Communities Face No community is considered perfect. They may come close, but will not be one-hundred percent. In order for a community to function however, it takes people. People are basically the community itself, and without people it is nothing. A man not only needs to know how to fish, he needs to have the freedom to do it. Thats where community comes in. We have to help each other, and we feel government has a very important role there in. (Bill Ayres). Problems can occur however. A community can be full of hard working people, but viewed in a different perspective by others. This is how communities can face social injustices, and be seen as gang ridden, filled with violence, or discriminators against people. Problems like this can really break a communitys image down. The California community itself faces these similar issues. Problems in My Community The Californian community is leaning towards disaster. Our community is already harmed by budget problems and gang violence. Our image is bad enough, and it will become worse if we let severe issues like this slip through are hands. The water crisis is a problem in which our water is quickly being depleted, as well as water improperly stored. Not only is there a as well as our money drained from our pockets. Not only is our water being affected, but everything that has to do with water is in danger. This includes crops as well as materials made from water. This creates an unwelcoming future for California and is something as a community that we cant let happen. Our water supply is quickly depleting more then expected. This is due to poor water storage techniques. The amount of water wasted because of faulty storage techniques is more than ridiculous. Not only are we losing water, but we are losing money. Money that could have gone towards schools and healthcare becomes money that is spent on spilled water, just because we cant keep it in its container. Another major issue of our water crisis is our Californian government. They are seen as weak decision makers, as well as weights that drag us down from our goals. The disappointing part is how its true. Because of how they make decisions, our water has to suffer. Budget cuts caused by our government dims the light of healing our water crisis. Education that is needed may not be given, provoking kids not to aim high or even make them join gangs. This appears to be a cycle that we are not breaking, and is in well need of repairs. Poor water storage leads to less water. Less water means less water for our farms. Agriculture is a big part of California, producing many types of fruits and vegetables. Though the climate is perfect the water is not. When we damage one of Californias biggest industries, it has to come with consequences. Farmers could be put out of jobs and produce prices could increase. Also, the money we make from selling these crops will not be as much. This shows just how far this problem can spread. Action is another problem. When we dont enforce our actions, no change will come. We must enforce the change. It is important, since the only way to solve this crisis is action. There simply not enough water to go around. Cities too need it, and we can only divide water so much. Communities in California must see that we may come to a situation where the government issues a water mandate. There is no doubt that this situation must be avoided. Solutions to the Problem Though we are headed in such a dark direction, it is not too late for change. Minor alterations are all it takes to lead our community to a brighter future. Simple changes are all it takes. One of them includes watching our government. Though there job is to help us, they arent doing a very good job of it, and we simply stand idle as they do nothing. Better monitoring of the people we put in charge can go a long way. Another solution includes limiting our supply of water. Many Californians are wasteful when it comes to water. When our water is at stake, we must watch how we use our water. My Recommended Solution In My Opinion, the best possible solution for this problem is action. When we act, we get closer to the solution. Not many people in our community realize that this is becoming a bigger and bigger problem everyday. When nothing is done, nothing is accomplished. Simple fixes to this problem will carry Californian communities a long way if we simply do it. Not only must we take action, but we need to watch the people in charge. That means our government. What they do is entirely our business. When they make changes to things important to us such as water, we must look twice and make sure there making the right decisions. When they were creating certain water protection policies, we knew that it didnt seem right. It was heavily flawed and filled with loopholes. Not only did we know what was going on, but they managed to get away with it. It goes to show that you are only as strong as your actions, not just thoughts alone. CONCLUSION Though we are facing quite a problem, we must again to continue to act to fight against it. Our community has faced many challenges in the past, and we must continue to succeed in solving these issues. If we learn what the problem is and act accordingly to it, much can be accomplished. The California water crisis is a threat to us and everything that has to do with water. The threat is real, and we are the only ones capable of fixing this. Though it seems that there is no light at the end of this tunnel, we must keep digging towards it. WORK CITE Wilson, John M. A crisis we cant ignore.  CaliforniaWater.  1 Jun. 2007. WEB. 7 May. 2010.

The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey Essay

Stephen R. Covey, the author of â€Å"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,† is empowering readers with problem solving tools needed to overcome the routine to the extreme situations of personal and workplace environments. Covey explains simply that you don’t have to be a genius to apply these principles of 7 habits, but you will have to possess balanced dimensions of nature: physical, spiritual, mental, and social/emotional. The ideas explained by Covey start by using the principles of natural laws and using these laws such as fairness, integrity, and honesty to increase your â€Å"circle of influence† which builds off of your proactive energy. This energy depends mainly upon your physical dimension; therefore, if you are having trouble with energy, you may need to increase your exercise agenda. To influence yourself, you must maintain your proactive energy. This is what will make your steps progress. Covey moves on to explain that your movements today are in fact your step towards your ultimate life’s goals. These goals are envisioned in a spiritual dimension and developed with proactive energy. Every move you make will ultimately lead you away from or closer to your final demise or victory. By keeping the end in mind, you will consistently keep your sense of direction on a daily basis to create your own destiny. More often than not, things must be done that have to be done. Possessing the wisdom to decipher, which things must be done and which things can be left undone, requi...

Green Mountain Coffee Essay

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) started as a small cafà © in Waitsfield, Vermont in the year of 1981. It was in 1993 that the company went public and acquired the early phase of Keurig Incorporated Inc, and then completed the acquisition in 2006. (Unknown.( 2004). Gmcr.Retrieved from http://www.gmcr.com/about-GMCR.html) Once these two companies combined it made the way we drink beverages different than ever before in both the home and office. According to GMCR’s website â€Å"Today, GMCR is recognized as a leader in specialty coffee and coffee makers, and acknowledged for its award-winning coffees, innovative brewing technology, and environmentally and socially responsible business practices.† ((Unknown.( 2004). Gmcr.Retrieved from http://www.gmcr.com/about-GMCR.html) GMCR has three business units that they operate with today. The first being specialty coffee which includes Green Mountain Coffee, Tully’s Coffee, Diedrich Coffee, and Coffee People. The 2nd unit is the Keurig business unit, which created the signal cup brewing system. The 3rd and final is the GMCR Canada. The GMCR Canada is owns all sales for the company and includes the Van Houtte business as well as Timothy’s World Coffee brand. ((Unknown.( 2004). Gmcr.Retrieved from http://www.gmcr.com/about-GMCR.html) The current CEO is Brian Kelley who joined GMCR in 2012. Before GMCR Brian Kelley was Coca-Cola’s Chief Product Supply Officer , and president and CEO of SIRVA, Inc. ((Unknown.( 2004). Gmcr.Retrieved from http://www.gmcr.com/about-GMCR.html) as well as other companies such as Ford Motor Company, GE, and Proctor and Gamble. In 2011 net sales were 2,650.9 million which was up 95% over fiscal 2010. (http://investor.gmcr.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=622448) The acquisition of Van Houtte which took place in December, 2010 in addition to the partnership with Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts with the K-cups option of their coffee has helped add over 321.4 million to the net sales in 2011. (http://investor.gmce.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=622448) GMCR has seen accelerated growth over the last couple of years due to its Keurig single cup brewing system and the K-cups that go along with it. Below is the breakout for the 2011 Fiscal Financial Review provided by (http://investor.gmcr.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=622448). 2011 2010 $ Increase SWOT ANALYSIS StrengthsWeakness S1-Strong reputation with it’s customersW1- Keurig single-cup brewers all made by one manufacture S2-AcquisitionsW2-Large % sales from one area of the business (K-cups & brewers) S3-Marketing W3-Forecasting due to such overnight success OpportunitiesThreats O1- Increase marketing to the age group of 40 and older T1- Risk of patents expiring allowing other competitors into the market O2-Increase marketing in the Supermarket locationsT2- Keurig single-cup brewers all made by one manufacture O3- Introduce other manufacturesT3-Product recalls & product liability T4- Coffee availability ANALYSIS VIA PORTER’S FIVE FORCES MODEL The threat of new entrantsThe bargaining power of buyersThe bargaining power of suppliers The competition of this type of product & service because of cost overhead would need to come from an already known company or a company that becomes successful after the patients expire that GMCR hold. Strong threatOver time as patients expire buyers will have bargaining power. ThreatGMCR has one manufacuting for the K-cups and brewing systems which resides in China. Weakness The threat of substitute product and servicesThe intensity of rivalry among competitors in an industry The threat of substitution is high. ThreatAlthough there are other companies that try to offer the same service, GMCR is at the top of the coffee industry for this type of service. Strength STRATEGY USED GMCR is using a differentiation strategy by offering a different way for the consumer to enjoy specialized coffees, teas, hot chocolate, and other hot beverages in their own homes, workplaces, and hotels at an overall lower cost than coffee houses. They are able to do this by taking the lead in the market due to their strengths in product development, licensing agreements with partners, and on-going successful acquisitions. GMCR growth through their acquisition strategy and their licensing agreements have been the biggest contributors to their growth. In 1998 when Keurig launched its first single- cup brewer for the office environment GMCR was there to partner with. (Dess,G, Lumpkin, G. & Eisner, A.(2012). Strategic Management (6e). Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin.) From that point on it just continued whether it be the agreement with Starbucks in 2011 or the agreement with Dunkin Donuts in that same year to sell K-cup’s with both Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts coffee they continue to thrive in the market. If we look at Porter’s generic strategies that our text talks of we can identify the following. †¢Differentiation – The product and service that GMCR brings to the market is the best value for price and quality. †¢Focus strategy – The acquisitions and licensing agreements that GMCR has been able to focus on continues to allow success to the buyer markets and geographic markets. †¢Overall cost leadership – GMCR is able to keep cost low because of the amount of product they supply to the customer without much competition. THE ISSUES AND CHALLENGES FACING THIS COMPANY I think for now GMCR will continue to have competitive advantage. GMCR should be able to accomplish this by continuing to offer their K-cups and brewing systems at the same competitive price to the same type of customer. Although patents are ready to expire and more of the product and service will be able to join the market, I feel that GMCR with their past record of new product innovation will continue to strive in the coffee market and lead the way for competitors to follow. COURSE OF ACTION RECOMMENDED It seems to be that because of the success of Keurig & K-cups that GMCR has put all their eggs in one basket without much focus on the rest of their products. We can see this in both the 2010 and 2011 earnings (http://investor.gmcr.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=622448). With patents becoming expired in the near future by recommendation would be that GMCR starts to focus on the other products that they sell or that they start to work on the next great product for the coffee industry. My fear is once patents expire that you may see some of the larger distributers try to come into the Market and possible succeed if there able to produce the same product at a lower cost. OPINION My opinion of the case study is first I had no idea that GMCR was such a large company. I don’t drink coffee but am a tea drinker and I guess I just didn’t pay much attention to the marketing and advertising . I’m sure they would like to hear this feedback, it may give them a clue as to where the marketing needs to go during the next phase. With that being said this company to me shows the true meaning of great business leadership and a successful supply chain and focus strategy. During the research I even found a joint venture with 3M the company I work with. It seems that 3M helped GMCR develop a coffee filter. This was a very enjoyable case study and it showed a great example of how to be successful in my opinion. References Dess, G., Lumpkin, G. & Eisner, A. (2012). Strategic Management (6e). Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin. Green mountain coffee roasters, inc.. (09/1). Retrieved from http://investor.gmcr.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=622448 Unknown. (2004). Gmcr. Retrieved from http://www.gmcr.com/about-GMCR.html

Learn about the Doppler Effect

Astronomers study the light from distant objects in order to understand them. Light moves through space at 299,000 kilometers per second, and its path can be deflected by gravity as well as absorbed and scattered by clouds of material in the universe. Astronomers use many properties of light to study everything from planets and their moons to the most distant objects in the cosmos.   Delving into the Doppler Effect One tool they use is the Doppler effect. This is a shift in the frequency or wavelength of radiation emitted from an object as it moves through space. Its named after Austrian physicist Christian Doppler who first proposed it in 1842.   How does the Doppler Effect work? If the source of radiation, say a star, is moving toward an astronomer on Earth (for example), then the wavelength of its radiation will appear shorter (higher frequency, and therefore higher energy). On the other hand, if the object is moving away from the observer then the wavelength will appear longer (lower frequency, and lower energy). You have probably experienced a version of the effect when you heard a train whistle or a police siren as it moved past you, changing pitch as it passes by you and moves away. The Doppler effect is behind such technologies as police radar, where the radar gun emits light of a known wavelength. Then, that radar light bounces off a moving car and travels back to the instrument. The resulting shift in wavelength is used to calculate the speed of the vehicle. (Note: it is actually a double shift as the moving car first acts as the observer and experiences a shift, then as a moving source sending the light back to the office, thereby shifting the wavelength a second time.) Redshift When an object is receding (i.e. moving away) from an observer, the peaks of the radiation that are emitted will be spaced farther apart than they would be if the source object were stationary. The result is that the resulting wavelength of light appears longer. Astronomers say that it is shifted to the red end of the spectrum. The same effect applies to all bands of the electromagnetic spectrum, such as radio, x-ray or gamma-rays. However, optical measurements are the most common and are the source of the term redshift. The more quickly the source moves away from the observer, the greater the redshift. From an energy standpoint, longer wavelengths correspond to lower energy radiation. Blueshift Conversely, when a source of radiation is approaching an observer the wavelengths of light appear closer together, effectively shortening the wavelength of light. (Again, shorter wavelength means higher frequency and therefore higher energy.) Spectroscopically, the emission lines would appear shifted toward the blue side of the optical spectrum, hence the name blueshift. As with redshift, the effect is applicable to other bands of the electromagnetic spectrum, but the effect is most often times discussed when dealing with optical light, though in some fields of astronomy this is certainly not the case. Expansion of the Universe and the Doppler Shift Use of the Doppler Shift has resulted in some important discoveries in astronomy. In the early 1900s, it was believed that the universe was static. In fact, this led Albert Einstein to add the cosmological constant to his famous field equation in order to cancel out the expansion (or contraction) that was predicted by his calculation. Specifically, it was once believed that the edge of the Milky Way represented the boundary of the static universe. Then, Edwin Hubble found that the so-called spiral nebulae that had plagued astronomy for decades were not nebulae at all. They were actually other galaxies. It was an amazing discovery and told astronomers that the universe  is much larger than they knew. Hubble then proceeded to measure the Doppler shift, specifically finding the redshift of these galaxies. He found that that the farther away a galaxy is, the more quickly it recedes. This led to the now-famous Hubbles Law, which says that an objects distance is proportional to its speed of recession. This revelation led Einstein to write that his addition of the cosmological constant to the field equation was the greatest blunder of his career. Interestingly, however, some researchers are now placing the constant back into general relativity. As it turns out Hubbles Law is only true up to a point since research over the last couple of decades has found that distant galaxies are receding more quickly than predicted. This implies that the expansion of the universe is accelerating. The reason for that is a mystery, and scientists have dubbed the driving force of this acceleration dark energy. They account for it in the Einstein field equation as a cosmological constant  (though it is of a different form than Einsteins formulation). Other Uses in Astronomy Besides measuring the expansion of the universe, the Doppler effect can be used to model the motion of things much closer to home; namely the dynamics of the Milky Way Galaxy. By measuring the distance to stars and their redshift or blueshift, astronomers are able to map the motion of our galaxy and get a picture of what our galaxy may look like to an observer from across the universe. The Doppler Effect  also allows scientists to measure the pulsations of variable stars, as well as motions of particles traveling at incredible velocities inside relativistic jet streams emanating from supermassive black holes. Edited and updated by Carolyn Collins Petersen.