The International Tourism Marketing Tourism Essay

The International Tourism Marketing Tourism Essay Tourism has experienced continued growth and deepening à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ½diversification to become one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the world. As an international exchange service, tourism has become one of the principal sectors of world trade. This sector is a source of foreign currency, a catalyst investment, and a means of local development. If it is well-managed it may change peoples lives for the better, because it may increase formal employment, draw entrepreneurs and politics attention in order to increase peoples quality of life and education, certainly propelled by communications and marketing activities not only in national extent but also international. Within the context of global competitiveness, it has been really hard to have a differential. Tourism as an export accounts for 30% of world exports. For many countries it is a major source of income and principal export sector for job creation necessary. Its the fourth sector in terms of export volume and represents 5% of global GDP. It is responsible for one in twelve existing jobs in the world. In 2012, there will be one billion tourists traveling the world. International tourist arrivals worldwide grew by almost 4% in 2011 to 983,000,000. International tourism in 2011 generated U.S. $ 1.032 billion (à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 741 billion) in export earnings. Evolution of tourism marketing The key to the importance of marketing within tourism has been the level of economic growth throughout the twentieth century which has led to subsequent improvements in living standards, an enlargement of the population, and increases in discretionary time. Before tourism demand was very limited, the firms were small and simple production systems and artisans where everything that is produced is sold by companies because they fit perfectly to the conditions of demand. Since 1960 the tourism market becomes more complex and actually starts a process of competition between firms and countries. Throughout its relativity short history, organizations operating in the international tourism industry have sought informal arrangements with other companies as a way of expanding their business and providing better products and services to the travelling public. As competition in the industry has intensified, companies have sought to expand their operations and spheres of influence through mergers, acquisitions and more formal linkages with industry partners. Globalization is one of the fastest-growing trends in the development of international tourism. Driven by economic and political motivations, the major commercial operators in tourism are seeking to grow their enterprises, increase market share and, ultimately, achieve world dominance in their particular industry sector. The most visible sign of the globalization of the international tourism industry is the growth in size and influence of the multinational corporations (MNCs), sometimes referred to as transnational corporations (TNCs). National, regional and local public bodies play a significant role in international tourism, both directly and indirectly. The functions of public sector tourism bodies vary between nations, any country that has a significant and established tourism industry is likely to have a separate department of government, known as the national tourism organization or public agencies. The precise functions undertaken and degree of public involvement in tourism will depend on the importance attached to the industry by the government concerned. Tourism marketing in every country differs depending on the type of product you offer. For example, Spain always offers an international tourism of sun and beach, which is now trying to change for a more cultural tourism. New Zealand moves the potential visitor to the country around the allure of The Lord of the Rings. Ireland always offers wonderful campaigns that promote their natural environment. Negative impacts of international tourism Private companies and countries have developed aggressive marketing practices to attract international tourists and as a result problems with over-exploitation tourism have ensued. A) Environmental impact As soon as tourism activity takes place, the environment is inevitably changed or modified either to facilitate tourism or during the tourism process. Many countries offer their products to international tourists regardless of the damage it can cause to the environment. International tourism has been particularly violent with the environment in various countries: urbanization of natural areas or integrated into the landscape, overuse of water resources, problems related to the treatment of waste, water pollution from runoff, destruction of historical monuments, air pollution, landscape changes to promote leisure activities such as golf. These processes are more incisive in southern countries, where environmental regulations are often more lax to promote the tourism industry and natural resources are easy prey to speculation. As an example we can point to the ecological crisis that is hurting the coast of Quintana Roo in Mexico, due to the excessive development of resorts like Cancun or Cozumel, such as the impact of tourism on the wildlife of Africa or the pollution of water in the Mediterranean. B) Ethical problems There are many ethical issues affecting international tourism, starting with the types of tourism that are offered. Many underdevelopment countries, offer unsustainable tourism with the country life. In countries like Bath or Bali, the pools are full of water and the golf courses are watered every day, while the local fields are dry and the native people drink water from wells. Women in parts of India walk miles to get water because groundwater is diverted to hotels. Farmers in Indonesia have been jailed for protesting the loss of their land for tourism development, and a protest in Mexico for the construction of a golf course on farmland led to clashes between farmers and authorities. International tourism also causes effects on the local population as the case of Burma. In recent years, the government has forced thousands of Burmese to work in tourism projects and millions more have been forced from their homes to make way for highways, development of hotels and other tourism-related infrastructure. The abuse of human rights in Burma is related to the development of international tourism. Another striking case about the ethical issues is the animal rights. Some African countries offer animal hunting tourism, for example South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Botswana are four countries that have not banned the hunting of elephants. The activity is a source of income for these countries and is strictly regulated in areas where the elephant population is not particularly at risk. Developed countries also have ethical problems in tourism promotion. Tour operators from different countries promote tourism by advocating alcohol and sex. A very famous in this regard is the town of Salou in Spain, where they celebrate the Saloufest that brings together young people from around the world attracted by the offer of alcohol. C) Socio-cultural issues The impacts that tourism has on the social and cultural lives of communities is one of the most important issues debated by tourism researchers. The socio-cultural consequences of tourist activity have the potential to be more damaging in the long term. This is a particularly in the developing nations of the world, many of whose strong cultural identities and traditions are coming to light through tourist travel for the first time in their history. Sadly, the same concern for such serious consequences is seldom voiced in a concrete fashion by tourist industry operators, although many do now include mentions of tourism ´s negative social and cultural effects in their policies and mission statements. International tourism also causes socio-cultural issues: Loss of native language, the massive influx of tourists to a destination can alter the native language. Loss of traditional industries, traditional industries can be lost when workers are tempted by jobs in tourism. Alterations to religious codes, many international tourists are unaware of the religion of the country they visit. This causes conflicts between tourists and native people Rise in social problems, tourism can be a catalyst for different social problems. Tourism can accelerates and exacerbates many social ills. CONCLUSION Tourism is an important economic sector for many countries. Today it represents an important source of economic development. International tourism has evolved over time, from the early twentieth century when it was a large-scale phenomenon and many countries realized the economic potential of this sector. To seize market share countries adopt various measures to promote its attractions in order to differentiate them from competitors. These marketing policies cause a number of problems that result in over-exploitation of tourism and result in legal, cultural, ethical or environmental conflicts. Therefore countries should adopt marketing policies that promotes responsible tourism.

Service Quality In Restaurants

Service Quality In Restaurants By conducting a literature review, the reader gets a better understanding of the question in hand. According to LeCompte et al(2003,p.124), conducting a literature review is a means of demonstrating an authors knowledge about a particular field of study, including vocabulary, theories, key variables and phenomena, and its methods and history. The research question which is addressed is service quality in restaurants, to which the literature review would focus to wherever necessary, with wide areas of service quality in general being looked into. Service Quality is not only an object of wide interest among organizations, but also is a topic that is widely discussed by researchers. Since it doesnt possess characteristics such as products do, service quality has never been easy to define. Researches have proposed different characteristics in terms of its dimensions, but few have been used. One of the most widely used model is based on the comparison between the expectations and perceptions of the customer about an organizations service. Parasuraman et al.(1985) created a model to measure service quality called the Gap Model. This was later used as a basis for creating the SERVQUAL model which is a 22-item scale used to measure service quality. It had a great impact on later works and evolved as one of the predominant tools t o be used across organizations. Restaurant is a field where SERVQUAL is used extensively for measuring their service quality. In the following section, the service quality literature is explained in detailed and later on, its linkage to the restaurant industry is looked into. 1. SERVICE QUALITY The service management literature argues that customer satisfaction is the result of a customers perception of the value received, where value equals perceived service quality relative to price (Hallowell, 1996, p. 29). 1.1 DEFINITION OF SERVICE In order to understand what Service Quality is, it is essential that the term Service is defined. Grà ¶nroos(2001) claims that services are processes and not physical entities or goods, and that service firms have processes that interact rather than products. According to Stromgren(2007, p.12) , a service is an activity or series of activities of a more or less intangible nature than normal, but not necessarily , take place in the interaction between the customer and service employees and/or physical resources or goods and/or systems of the service provider, which are provided as solutions to the customer problems. 1.2 DEFINITION OF QUALITY There are plenty of definitions of quality that are prescribed by different authors. According to Juran(1988), quality can be defined as the fitting to the intended use of the entity and thereby meeting the expected standards. In the case of an entity not fitting its intended use and expectations, the customers can bill it as of poor quality. Crosby(1979) prescribed quality as `conformance to requirements`; Garvin(1988) found internal and external failures of the entity and measured quality by the count of the failures. However, Parasuraman et al(1985) claims that quality cannot be defined using a product-based approach when dealing with service sectors and hence came forward with the term Service Quality. Considering that my research topic and questions is based on service quality, the explanation provided by Parasuraman et al(1985) is used. 1.3 DEFINITION OF SERVICE QUALITY The concept of service quality and its theories and practicality has been considered very important by the academics and practitioners over the past few decades because it acts as a chief contributor to customer satisfaction and profitability (Parasuraman et al,1985). Thus service quality has become as important factor for all organizations that need to survive in a competitive market. The definition of service quality as conceptualized in various literatures on service, centres on the quality perceived, and is defined as the judgement made by the customer about an entitys overall excellence or superiority (Parasuraman et al., 1988). In accordance with the finding of Ghobadian et al(1994),service generally has four characteristics which are different from manufacturing goods. The four characteristics are described below: Inseparability of production and consumption: This characteristic of services refers to the fact that production and consumption of service is inseparable as they are in contact with each other (Parasuraman et al.,1985). The service provider in turn becomes an important component of the service and is assessed by the consumers (Zeithaml et al., 2003). In the process, the consumers become co-producers of the service (Edvardsson,2005). In the service industry, the producers create the services which simultaneously involve its consumption. There is no room for complacency and quality shortfalls cannot be covered at this point. To illustrate, the service is being constructed at the same time that the customer is receiving it. Intangibility: Services are fundamentally intangible which means that it is impossible for the customers to physically see, smell or touch the product before the purchase is made. Services can easily be copied as a result of intangibility, because most of the services are not patented (Zeithaml et al.,2003). Intangibility results not only in difficulty to manage services, but it becomes hard for the consumers to evaluate(Lovelock et al.,2004). Hence, the customer turns to other alternatives such as obvious signs of quality such as reputation, physical tangibles, and word of mouth from previous users. In services, word of mouth and reputation have the most importance, and thus drives the service provider to deliver services right and flawless, the first time. Perishability : Service cannot be inventoried for later use which means that it impossible to have a final check like manufactured goods. According to Zeithaml et al.(2003), careful planning has to be made to manage services, as they cannot be resold or re-inventoried. Hill(1977,p.318), in his article, mentions that services can be seen as a change in the condition of a person, or of a good belonging to some economic unit, which is brought about as the result of the activity of some other economic. Another dimension to this was added by Lovelock et al.(2004) that stated that goods could be more complex to manage as the costs are incurred for its storage. So, service operations must get the right service first time. Heterogeneity: It involves service consistency and accuracy. Due to the fact that delivery of service usually involves a contact between provider and consumer, thus the behaviour of service provider can influence the perception of the customer. Moreover the accuracy of the information and the ability to interpret customers expectation correctly has a great influence on customers perception of service quality. However, expectations may change during delivery process. For this reason, service providers have to rely heavily on the ability of their staff to understand customers demand and respond in a suitable way. Service can be divided into two dimensions, the functional quality and the technical quality (Gronroos,1984). The technical quality essentially deals with what or what service is provided and functional quality deals with how or how the service is delivered. Another conceptual model which was brought forward by Lehtinen et al. (1991) comprises of physical, interactive and corporate qualities of an organization. Interactive quality deals with the overall interaction of the customers with the elements of the firm. Corporate quality deals with the image customers have about the firm. Physical quality deals with the physical good which is consumed during a service process, food at a restaurant for example and also the physical elements which make up the facilities of the restaurant. Going further deep into the service quality literature, Parasuraman et al. (1985) used 10 dimensions to explain service quality which were tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, courtesy, credibility, compet ence, access, communication, security and understanding. This model was later reduced to a scale of 5 dimensions after a process of reliability and validity testing (Parasuraman et al. , 1988). 2. CUSTOMER LOYALTY The satisfaction of the customers is one of the main aims in any business, the restaurant business in this case. Businesses recognize that maintaining current customers is much easier than winning over new ones to replace the loss (McColl-Kennedy Schneider, 2000). It is mandatory for restaurants to strategize their services to suit the ever-changing dining needs and lifestyles of customers, if they have to increase loyalty from customers. (Min et al,2002). Individuals dining expectations have evolved over the years due to changing social environment, better education, the development of culinary culture, healthy dieting awareness and cultural influences(Markovic, S .et al ,2010 p.182). According to Wishna (2000), customers, in future, would expand their dining horizons to a new level. They would need new experiences to satisfy their ever-changing requirements. Probably the most extensively debated topic about service quality field is the constructs of service quality and the related customer satisfaction (Johnston,1995). Many researches have come to a conclusion that they are two different entities but the relation between the two entities is still questioned(Cronin et al.1992). Parasuraman et al(1988,p16), suggested that perceived service quality is a global judgement, or attitude, relating to the superiority of the service, whereas satisfaction is related to a specific transaction. Parasuraman et al(1995) identified from their research that satisfaction is clearly linked to each specific transaction. They also mention that customers may be satisfied with the particular transaction but might not identify the firm as a high quality one. On one hand, there are other researches which support the argument that customer satisfaction is an antecedent of service quality(Bitner,1990). Bolton et al.(1991) suggest that satisfaction is derived from disconfirmation and becomes an important factor which influences customers opinion of the service quality. However, recent researches claim that service quality is the antecedent of satisfaction, in opposition to the arguments from the earlier works. According to Zeithaml et al(2003) states that while customer satisfaction is a broader concept, service quality is a component that comprises of customer satisfaction along with other components which includes price, product quality, personal factors and situational factors. 3. SERVICE QUALITY MODELS The use of technology can provide an organization with the needed thrust to enhance its service quality. There are several conceptual models of service quality available, which helps the management in identifying quality issues. By making sure these issues do not re-surface, it increases the possibility of improving the organizations profitability, efficiency and overall performance ( Parasuraman et al,1988). 3.1 THE GAP MODEL Service quality, unlike goods quality, cannot be measured in terms of the number of defects. It is an elusive component which is difficult to measure ( Parasuraman et al,1988). In their earlier research in 1985, Parasuraman et al. identified that service quality rises from the comparison of the expected quality and the perceived quality of service performed. They explored the concept of service quality by taking focus group interviews. The conceptual model which was identified as a result of the research consisted of five gaps in the desired service.The first four gaps is part of the perceptions and tasks in providing services, by the management. The last gap is the overall expectations from the customers. They formed a new service quality model which was based on the gaps between the expected and perceived quality. This is known as the GAP Model. Fig 1. Illustrates the model. The five Gaps that were identified are ( Parasuraman et al., 1985) : Knowledge GAP, Standards GAP, Delivery GAP, Communications GAP. GAP 1 : The Knowledge GAP is the difference in the level of expectation of the customer and the organizations perceptions of the customers expectations. In some cases, the management fails in understanding what the customers want. The dimensions identified by the management as important and which constitutes good service might not be the things that the customers look for. GAP 2 : The Standards GAP is the difference in organizations perceptions of the customers expectations and the service quality standards. The management find it difficult to deliver services according to the customers expectations due to lack of resources or other conditions which are not favourable. But they understand what the customers want. GAP 3 : The Delivery GAP is the difference between the organizations service delivery and its related communication with the customer. Staff performance towards delivery of the service plays a huge part in the customers perception of the service quality. But it can be inconsistent, even though the standards are specified. The quality of service delivery can be affected due to variability among providers. GAP 4 : The Communications GAP is the difference between the organizations service delivery and the communicated information about the service to the customers. This gap occurs when a firm fails to deliver the promised services. The consequences of overpromising in that the expectations of the customers are high and when the actual service is received, their perceptions of service quality sink. GAP 5: Overall experience of the service is the main point of focus here. The first four gaps form the perception of service that the customers receive whereas the fifth gap stands for the customers expectations compared to their perceptions, ie their view on the service quality. The diagram is illustrated in Fig 1. Fig.1 The GAP Model The GAP model is the most widely used and is one of the most important contributions to service quality literature (Brown et al. 1995). Gaps 1 to 4 shows how the service is delivered, while Gap 5 depicts the overall difference between the expected and perceived service with respect to the customer. Gap 5 is the most influential in the SERVQUAL model (Parasuraman et al, 1985). 3.2 SERVQUAL Measuring the quality of services in a restaurant is a daunting task as both the service outcome and service delivery is to be assessed. According to Wu et al. (2009), service encounters in restaurants comprise of three components: environmental elements (e.g. design, music,lighting), employees (e.g. professional skills, reliability) and customers (e.g. interaction with other customers). Environmental elements consist of the design of the restaurant interiors, the music being played and the lighting which is used. Employees form the core part of the service which helps to perform the service. To understand all characteristics of the restaurant service quality an appropriate measurement instrument should be developed. SERVQUAL is an instrument that is used to assess the customers perception of the service quality of a service. It is a multi-scale instrument, which took its shape from the GAP model originally, and later was developed further in the 1980s. The instrument contains two sections. One section consists of 22 items that measure consumers expectations. The other section includes 22 corresponding items that measure consumers perceptions of the service they received. The 22 statements represent the five service dimensions that consumers use to evaluate service quality: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy (Markovic, S., 2010, p.183). According to Parasuraman et al. (1988), Tangibles: Comprises of physical settings, the equipment used and the appearance of the employees Reliability: the ability of the employees to deliver the promised level of service Responsiveness: the ability of the employees to be willing to help out the customers and serve customers without any delay Assurance: is the level of knowledge the employees possess and their courtesy towards the customers, together with their ability to build trust and express their confidence Empathy: is the providing of individualized attention to the customers and be caring towards them. In SERVQUAL, the service quality measurement is based on the comparison of customers expectations and their perceptions of delivered service. The difference between expectations and perceptions scores is called the SERVQUAL gap. A negative gap indicates that received service did not met customers expectations. On the contrary, a positive gap indicates that customers perceived that service delivery exceeded their expectations. SERVQUAL is used as an instrument to diagnose an organizations weaknesses and strength in terms of service quality and uncover them. It creates a systematic, multi-stage process that is based on the dimensions identified and entities which correspond to that organization (Zeithaml et al., 1988). It can be used in businesses of any kind and provides a basis structure owing to its expectations-perceptions model, comprising statements for all the five different dimensions. 3.3 LIMITATIONS OF SERVQUAL Many organizations have used SERVQUAL for measuring their service quality with considerable amount of success, although there have been certain problems which have been identified. These problems are : Dimensions of the model Parasuraman et al.(1991) claimed that the five dimensions is SERVQUAL used to assess service quality can be used in all service contexts. However there were differences in opinion among other researchers. Buttle(1996) argued that the dimensions change with respect to numbers and the factors as SERVQUAL is used in different service contexts. According a research conducted in a retail setting by Finn et al.(1991), SERVQUAL dimensions are not generic. Babakus et al.(1992) noted that the dimensions can be simple or complex depending on the type of industries it is used in. A major argument to Parasuraman et al. was by Carman(1990), where he did not agree with the combining of the 10 original dimensions to five as he thinks the collapsed dimensions could have been important in certain areas and hence should be looked into as a separate dimension. Expectation of the service Expectation in a service context essentially means the desired level of service that a customer would like to receive ( Parasuraman et al., 1988). It is the minimum level of service quality that the provider should provide. But due to the ambiguous nature, it can be interpreted in different ways. While some may rate expectations according to their expected ideal or optimal performance, others may rate it as a minimum tolerable performance (Teas,1993). Issues with GAP scores The high rating of expectations by customers in the SERVQUAL setup leads to negative scores which immediately start questioning the analytical utility and interpretation of the concept (Smith, 1995). Process Focus According to Buttle(1996), SERVQUAL deals with only the process or the method by which services are delivered but not the quality of the final output that is provided. When service quality is assessed, both process and output should be used in SERVQUAL as both together can give the prediction of the choice that the customer would make rather than one without the other(Richard et al.,1993). Pricing Price plays an important role in determining the customers expectations and perceived quality(Smith,1995). He states that according to some customers, excellent food service comes with high price while lower prices are associated with restaurants which are targeting a lesser market. Hence, according to Smith(1995), price should be considered when measuring service quality. SERVQUAL is only one of those instruments which is used in measuring service quality. And going by the words of Asubonteng et al.(1996), until a model which is capable of better measurement evolves, SERVQUAL will be dominant. I am using SERVQUAL as the tool to measure service quality in the restaurants I am focussing on. 4. SERVICE QUALITY IN THE RESTAURANT INDUSTRY Expectations are defined as what the customer beliefs of the service that would be provided and is the main standard against which the actual performance is measured (Zeithaml, V. and Bitner, M., J. 2003). There are five types of expectations of the customers- (i) minimum tolerable expectations (ii) acceptable expectations (iii) experience-based norms (iv) normative should expectations (v) ideal expectations(Zeithaml, V. and Bitner, M., J. 2003) According to Garvin(1987), the common attributes of service quality are Performance, features, conformance, aesthetics, reliability, durability, serviceability and perceived quality. Parasuraman et al. (1990) developed a five-dimensional framework of service quality which consisted of tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy to analyse service quality. However, GroÈnroos (1990) came up with a framework of his own which consisted of six elements in measuring the perceived value of services. These are explained in Table 1. There are many factors that may influence customers assessments of restaurant quality. Previous researches suggested that food quality, physical environment and service are the major components of overall restaurant service quality (Dulen 1999; Susskind Chan 2000). Among these attributes, food quality is the most important dimension of the restaurant experience (Sulek Hensley 2004). What is more, it is an essential requirement to satisfy the needs and expectations of restaurant customers (Peri 2006). Although there is no consensus on the individual attributes that constitute food quality, the researchers focus on presentation, healthy options, taste, freshness and temperature (Namkung Jang 2008). Several studies have cited the importance of service quality for customer satisfaction with a service encounter (Stevens et al. 1995; Qu 1997). Additionally, in restaurants settings, service quality is an important determinant of customer satisfaction (Kim et al.2009) and return intention (Kivela et al. 2000). Stevens et al. (1995) developed an instrument called DINESERV which was based on the SERVQUAL. It was created to measure the perceptions of the customers about the restaurants service quality. It was used by many as a very reliable and simple tool for finding out the customers view on service quality. It consisted of 29 items, which fell into the five service quality dimensions. It is used in assessing different types of restaurants. Through the findings, it is known that the customers give the highest priority to reliability. Further researchers like Heung et al.(2000) have identified that the customers expectations vary depending on the restaurants. They used DINESERV to compare and contrast certain restaurants at an airport and found out that the expectations vary with different restaurants. However none of the tools have included food quality as a possible dimension. According to Andaleeb et al.(2006), SERVQUAL should include food quality as a service quality dimension as food quality covers the entire section of food service attributes. This was supported by Namkung et al.(2007) who valued the importance of food quality in measuring service quality as they identified in their research that it was the main factor which influenced customer satisfaction. They claim food quality constitute of presentation, variety, healthy options, taste, freshness and temperature(Namkung et al., 2007). Against this backdrop, the main aim of the research, the use of technology in improving service quality in restaurants is looked into. 5. USE OF EXISTING TECHNOLOGY IN RESTAURANTS TO AID SERVICE QUALITY The use of technology is increasing in all aspects of the restaurant industrys operations and management. Technology is traditionally viewed as the key component in industries. In recent years, technological developments have acted as the key catalyst in improving service operations and providing the customers with enhanced experiences at restaurants. According to Berry(1995), technology should be used as a servant rather than acting as the master. It should be used to add value to the service offered to the customers, not to completely replace the role of service. Technology offers a better method of performing the service, which eventually benefits the firm, the customers and the employees. It provides a better image to the firm, better dining experiences to the customers and varied and easy way of performing service, to the employees. To cite an example, McDonalds, the chain of restaurants maintain their business by deploying simple technologies to aid services. Devices like food timers and vegetable cutting machines are used to maintain the consistency of various products. When the management considers the type of technology to be adopted, they should also take into account, the reaction of the customers to it, apart from the expenses and benefits that the restaurant might face. It is worthwhile to note that, a new technology will not be of significance if it does not satisfy the customer. By using technology, it benefits both the customers and the restaurant management. 5.1 Benefits to customers Improved convenience The term service convenience deals with the desired time and effort the customers are ready to invest in dining out. An increase in service convenience is directly related to an increase in customer satisfaction (Holdern et al., 2008). Technology can be used to improve access convenience which deals with the relative ease with which an order can be placed, transaction convenience which deals with speeding up the payments and benefit convenience which deals with controlling the pace of their time at the restaurant (Dixon et al.,2009). Increased control Control is defined as the need to demonstrate ones competence, superiority, and mastery over the environment( Hui et al., 2002). From past researches, it has been proved that customers feel more satisfied when they feel they have substantial control over their service encounter( Ariely et al., 2000). Hence, when implementing new technologies, it is important to choose such that the majority of the control the service encounters remains with the customer. 5.2 Benefits to the restaurant management Service speed Increased speed of service can lead to more satisfaction and higher revenues, as more customers can be served. This is where use of technology steps up. The time taken for taking orders, communicating the orders to the kitchen, managing the tables, transaction times can all be reduced by the use of technology. Hand-held electronic devices like ipad and HP touchpad are widely used in restaurants. Orders taken through these devices can be directly sent to the electronic display board in the kitchen, so that there is no delay between taking the order and food preparation, which speeds up the service, and eventually better customer satisfaction. The tables in the restaurant can be managed by using advanced table managing softwares that are prevalent these days. This can help in effectively controlling queuing. Transactions and payments can be made faster by using handheld credit card machines at the table to ensure there are no delays. While faster service always leads to better satisfaction, it should be managed properly so that the customers must not feel the notion that they are being rushed through the service. Reduction in labour cost- Usage of technology helps in reducing cost incurred due to large number of staff. Usage of self-service kiosk and online and off-line reservations help reduce labor charges. Also, kitchen equipments like automatic dishwasher, plate warmer helps reduce costs incurred for staffs. A steady increase in volume and revenue A new trend in the modern restaurant industry is to create attractive websites and create their own accounts in various social networking websites like Facebook and Twitter. Customers can access information from these pages and can also subscribe to updates from these restaurants about the latest offerings, menu and special events if any. Online reservations provide the restaurants with a separate channel which makes the restaurant feel more accessible and also through which customers can be attracted. Previous researchers have found out 59% of the restaurants which uses online reservations encounter a steady increase in sales(Lang,2006). Other research identified that customers even make online reservations even during hours outside the working hours of the restaurant, which means the restaurants are capturing business during periods which they normally did not expect to( Layton, 2006; Ross, 2006). Improved service and product Technology if used appropriately, can aid restaurants to provide improved and consistent service to customers. Past researches have shown that an increase in the perceived product quality and service quality have led to an increase in the restaurants profit and better customer satisfaction ( Rust et al.,1995). The areas in a restaurant where technology are used can be divided into five section, namely(Dixon et al.(2009)): Queue management Menu Internet-based content Kiosk Transactions The usage is depicted in a tabular form in the next page. Category Technology used Relevance Queue Management 1.Table management software 2.Pagers given to the customers 3.Hand-held order-taking devices while waiting in the queue Pagers alert the customers seated in the waiting area when their table is ready Hand-held devices help to take the orders from the waiting customers and transfer it directly to the kitchen so as to minimize the delay of food preparation Menu Virtual menus available online which contains details of the nutritional values Virtual menus available at the table Customers can decide on the menu when ordering online based on the nutritional value Customers seated at a table gets to know the content of the food and its nutritional values before ordering Internet-based content Online table and food reservation system Websites to connect to the customers about new offers, special discounts and new items on the menu Accounts on social networks to create a sense of belonging to the customers Online ordering helps in reducing the waiting time for food at the restaurant Customers get to know the latest happenings at the restaurant and understand the new things on offer Urges customers to become part of the restaurants online family Kiosk Ordering food through kiosk Making payments through kiosk Ordering through kiosk helps the customers to order through a touch screen device, without other staff contact Making payments using kiosks add the personal touch to each customer Transcations Payment using hand-held credit card machines,SMS and NFC(Near-field communication) Makes payment much faster than the traditional cash or taking-card-to-counter method Table 1 : Usage of existing technology(Dixon et al.200

Statement of Cash Flows Essay -- essays research papers

Statement of Cash Flows Paper   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Statement of Cash flows is a very useful financial statement that can benefit investors, managers and even auditors. The statement of cash flows has not been around as long as the other financial statements such as the balance sheet or income statement. It basically â€Å"illustrates the way accounting evolves to meet the requirements of users of financial statements.† (Marshall, 2003) The statement of cash flows is designed to provide important information about the cash that a company has received or has paid out during a certain time period. It provides a reason for the changes of cash received and paid by a company by taking into account all financing, investing and operating activi...

Impact Of Prematurity On Development Essay -- essays research papers

Impact of Premature Birth on Development   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Years ago, premature birth almost always meant death for the baby. Today, however, we have the technology to nurture these infants’ development, and many of them survive to lead normal, healthy lives. Although, very premature infants (that is, those born before about the fifth month) are still not likely to survive, many born at five months and older will thrive. Some preterm babies, however, do have many obstacles to overcome. There are a variety of medical problems that affect some of them, they may have impaired mental or physical conditions, and they may be looked upon by others in their environment as slow, or they might be treated differently because they were premature. All of these factors, plus a few more that will be discussed, affect the development of preterm infants into their adolescent years, and sometimes beyond.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many preterm babies are born with medical problems because they simply were not ready to come into the world yet. They will not have very developed primitive reflexes, and they may look a little strange, with translucent skin, misshapen ears, and fine hair covering their entire bodies. One of the biggest problems for premature infants is a condition called Respiratory Distress Syndrome (RDS), in which the lungs do not produce enough surfactant, which is the substance that keeps the airsacs in the lungs from collapsing. If not treated in time, the infant’s brain will become oxygen deprived, which would lead to death. It can cause some brain damage. Another condition that often affects premature babies is Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA). This happens when the ductus arteriosus, which connects the pulmonary artery to the aorta, doesn’t close, leading to the infant’s blood not being properly oxgenated. This can also lead to brain damage if not caug ht in time. Premature infants also may just stop breathing, which is called apnea. This is why they must be closely monitored, for without close supervision, they could die.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another medical condition common to premature infants which affects the brain is Intraventricular Hermorrage, where the blood vessels in the brain bleed. This affects most premature babies, but it is not very severe in most cases, and is easily treated. In more severe cases, it can be associat... ...nd child had a better relationship, the child showed fewer behavioral disturbances than when the mother/child relationship was bad (Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, v.23 p 328-9). Typically, the more negative the environment, the less well-adjusted the premature child was. Another factor in their emotional development is the income of the family. In higher SES environments, the children were typically more well-adjusted. Birth weight is also a factor in this. The smaller the birth weight, the less emotionally adjusted and more behaviorally disturbed the child will be. Levy-Shift and Gili Einat concluded that the reason why premature babies have these problems is that they are generally less intelligent than full terms. They had more trouble learning, which could lead to negative emotional reactions. They say that premature children sometimes have impaired neurological processes that underlie cognitive dysfunction which is detrimental to behavioral and emotional functioning (Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, v.23 p 329). Premature children are less responsive, less alert, and less active when they are babies, which can lead to a bad start to the mother-child relationship.

We Must Put an End to Gender-related Stereotypes and Stereotyping Essay

We Must Put an End to Gender-related Stereotypes I have heard it said many times and by many women, "I wish that I were a man. Men have it so easy. . ." It is a statement which stems from the fear and anger that comes from so many years of oppression and abuse; a statement which stems from the pressure to meet the present impossible standards of beauty and bodily perfection. At times it seems to be an understandable statement to make. Admittedly, I have found myself wishing that very absurdity when the pressures of being a woman have seemed to be too much. But as I get older, and hopefully wiser, I am happy to say, and even very proud, that yes! I am a woman. It is a very exciting time for me as a young woman to watch the changes that our world is undergoing at the present moment. So much is going on around us that it seems like anything could happen and that all things are possible. It is all very scary and exciting at the same time. I am not exactly sure how or when the Women's Rights movement began, but I do believe that we have come a long way, and that we also have a long way to go before we are free of those gender-related stereotypes and immense pressures to be "The Perfect Woman." I know that many skeptics will question whether or not that freedom is attainable, but I truly do believe that at this point in time all things are possible. I believe in the equality of the sexes. I believe in the equality of all people whether they be black, white, female, or male. Perhaps it is easy for me to be so positive and hopeful amidst these skeptics because of the family that I have. I don't think that I was aware of the "roles" that men and women adopt because in my family there seemed to be no roles. Both of my parents have... ...he worth of the true beauty within us that so often goes unseen. I believe that every woman in America experiences this. There is so little self-acceptance as we end up living our lives for the fantastic expectations of men. Both Alice Walker and Nora Ephron were finally able to transcend their hang-ups but it took them so many years and an awful lot of tears to be able to finally throw up their hands and give up trying to meet all of the expectations of the world. It is sad that a woman must reach her mid-life, when the pure beauty of youth is lost forever, before she is finally able to shed all of those insecurities that are forced upon her throughout her life. It is hard, and I believe that an equal amount of effort is required from both of the sexes if we are ever going to be able to move beyond this. It is time to look within or we will continue to go without.

Achieving Fault-Tolerance in Operating System Essay

Introduction Fault-tolerant computing is the art and science of building computing systems that continue to operate satisfactorily in the presence of faults. A fault-tolerant system may be able to tolerate one or more fault-types including – i) transient, intermittent or permanent hardware faults, ii) software and hardware design errors, iii) operator errors, or iv) externally induced upsets or physical damage. An extensive methodology has been developed in this field over the past thirty years, and a number of fault-tolerant machines have been developed – most dealing with random hardware faults, while a smaller number deal with software, design and operator faults to varying degrees. A large amount of supporting research has been reported. Fault tolerance and dependable systems research covers a wide spectrum of applications ranging across embedded real-time systems, commercial transaction systems, transportation systems, and military/space systems – to name a few. The supporting research includes system architecture, design techniques, coding theory, testing, validation, proof of correctness, modelling, software reliability, operating systems, parallel processing, and real-time processing. These areas often involve widely diverse core expertise ranging from formal logic, mathematics of stochastic modelling, graph theory, hardware design and software engineering. Recent developments include the adaptation of existing fault-tolerance techniques to RAID disks where information is striped across several disks to improve bandwidth and a redundant disk is used to hold encoded information so that data can be reconstructed if a disk fails. Another area is the use of application-based fault-tolerance techniques to detect errors in high performance parallel processors. Fault-tolerance techniques are expected to become increasingly important in deep sub-micron VLSI devices to combat increasing noise problems and improve yield by tolerating defects that are likely to occur on very large, complex chips. Fault-tolerant computing already plays a major role in process control, transportation, electronic commerce, space, communications and many other areas that impact our lives. Many of its next advances will occur when applied to new state-of-the-art systems such as massively parallel scalable computing, promising new unconventional architectures such as processor-in-memory or reconfigurable computing, mobile computing, and the other exciting new things that lie around the corner. Basic Concepts Hardware Fault-Tolerance – The majority of fault-tolerant designs have been directed toward building computers that automatically recover from random faults occurring in hardware components. The techniques employed to do this generally involve partitioning a computing system into modules that act as fault-containment regions. Each module is backed up with protective redundancy so that, if the module fails, others can assume its function. Special mechanisms are added to detect errors and implement recovery. Two general approaches to hardware fault recovery have been used: 1) fault masking, and 2) dynamic recovery. Fault masking is a structural redundancy technique that completely masks faults within a set of redundant modules. A number of identical modules execute the same functions, and their outputs are voted to remove errors created by a faulty module. Triple modular redundancy (TMR) is a commonly used form of fault masking in which the circuitry is triplicated and voted. The voting circuitry can also be triplicated so that individual voter failures can also be corrected by the voting process. A TMR system fails whenever two modules in a redundant triplet create errors so that the vote is no longer valid. Hybrid redundancy is an extension of TMR in which the triplicated modules are backed up with additional spares, which are used to replace faulty modules -allowing more faults to be tolerated. Voted systems require more than three times as much hardware as non-redundant systems, but they have the advantage that computations can continue without interruption when a fault occurs, allowing existing operating systems to be used. Dynamic recovery is required when only one copy of a computation is running at a time (or in some cases two unchecked copies), and it involves automated self-repair. As in fault masking, the computing system is partitioned into modules backed up by spares as protective redundancy. In the case of dynamic recovery however, special mechanisms are required to detect faults in the modules, switch out a faulty module, switch in a spare, and instigate those software actions (rollback, initialization, retry, and restart) necessary to restore and continue the computation. In single computers special hardware is required along with software to do this, while in multicomputers the function is often managed by the other processors. Dynamic recovery is generally more hardware-efficient than voted systems, and it is therefore the approach of choice in resource-constrained (e.g., low-power) systems, and especially in high performance scalable systems in which the amount of hardware resources devoted to active computing must be maximized. Its disadvantage is that computational delays occur during fault recovery, fault coverage is often lower, and specialized operating systems may be required. Software Fault-Tolerance – Efforts to attain software that can tolerate software design faults (programming errors) have made use of static and dynamic redundancy approaches similar to those used for hardware faults. One such approach, N-version programming, uses static redundancy in the form of independently written programs (versions) that perform the same functions, and their outputs are voted at special checkpoints. Here, of course, the data being voted may not be exactly the same, and a criterion must be used to identify and reject faulty versions and to determine a consistent value (through inexact voting) that all good versions can use. An alternative dynamic approach is based on the concept of recovery blocks. Programs are partitioned into blocks and acceptance tests are executed after each block. If an acceptance test fails, a redundant code block is executed. An approach called design diversity combines hardware and software fault-tolerance by implementing a fault-tolerant computer system using different hardware and software in redundant channels. Each channel is designed to provide the same function, and a method is provided to identify if one channel deviates unacceptably from the others. The goal is to tolerate both hardware and software design faults. This is a very expensive technique, but it is used in very critical aircraft control applications. The key technologies that make software fault-tolerant Software involves a system’s conceptual model, which is easier than a physical model to engineer to test for things that violate basic concepts. To the extent that a software system can evaluate its own performance and correctness, it can be made fault-tolerant—or at least error aware; to the extent that a software system can check its responses before activating any physical components, a mechanism for improving error detection, fault tolerance, and safety exists. We can use three key technologies—design diversity, checkpointing, and exception handling—for software fault tolerance, depending on whether the current task should be continued or can be lost while avoiding error propagation (ensuring error containment and thus avoiding total system failure). Tolerating solid software faults for task continuity requires diversity, while checkpointing tolerates soft software faults for task continuity. Exception handling avoids system failure at the expense of current task loss. Runtime failure detection is often accomplished through an acceptance test or comparison of results from a combination of â€Å"different† but functionally equivalent system alternates, components, versions, or variants. However, other techniques— ranging from mathematical consistency checking to error coding to data diversity—are also useful. There are many options for effective system recovery after a problem has been detected. They range from complete rejuvenation (for example, stopping with a full data and software reload and then restarting) to dynamic forward error correction to partial state rollback and restart. The relationship between software fault tolerance and software safety Both require good error detection, but the response to errors is what differentiates the two approaches. Fault tolerance implies that the software system can recover from —or in some way tolerate—the error and continue correct operation. Safety implies that the system either continues correct operation or fails in a safe manner. A safe failure is an inability to tolerate the fault. So, we can have low fault tolerance and high safety by safely shutting down a system in response to every detected error. It is certainly not a simple relationship. Software fault tolerance is related to reliability, and a system can certainly be reliable and unsafe or unreliable and safe as well as the more usual combinations. Safety is intimately associated with the system’s capacity to do harm. Fault tolerance is a very different property. Fault tolerance is—together with fault prevention, fault removal, and fault forecasting— a means for ensuring that the system function is implemented so that the dependability attributes, which include safety and availability, satisfy the users’ expectations and requirements. Safety involves the notion of controlled failures: if the system fails, the failure should have no catastrophic consequence—that is, the system should be fail-safe. Controlling failures always include some forms of fault tolerance—from error detection and halting to complete system recovery after component failure. The system function and environment dictate, through the requirements in terms of service continuity, the extent of fault tolerance required. You can have a safe system that has little fault tolerance in it. When the system specifications properly and adequately define safety, then a well-designed fault-tolerant system will also be safe. However, you can also have a system that is highly fault tolerant but that can fail in an unsafe way. Hence, fault tolerance and safety are not synonymous. Safety is concerned with failures (of any nature) that can harm the user; fault tolerance is primarily concerned with runtime prevention of failures in any shape or form (including prevention of safety critical failures). A fault-tolerant and safe system will minimize overall failures and ensure that when a failure occurs, it is a safe failure. Several standards for safety-critical applications recommend fault tolerance—for hardware as well as for software. For example, the IEC 61508 standard (which is generic and application sector independent) recommends among other techniques: â€Å"failure assertion programming, safety bag technique, diverse programming, backward and forward recovery.† Also, the Defense standard (MOD 00-55), the avionics standard (DO-178B), and the standard for space projects (ECSS-Q-40- A) list design diversity as possible means for improving safety. Usually, the requirement is not so much for fault tolerance (by itself) as it is for high availability, reliability, and safety. Hence, IEEE, FAA, FCC, DOE, and other standards and regulations appropriate for reliable computer-based systems apply. We can achieve high availability, reliability, and safety in different ways. They involve a proper reliable and safe design, proper safeguards, and proper implementation. Fault tolerance is just one of the techniques that assure that a system’s quality of service (in a broader sense) meets user needs (such as high safety). History The SAPO computer built in Prague, Czechoslovakia was probably the first fault-tolerant computer. It was built in 1950–1954 under the supervision of A. Svoboda, using relays and a magnetic drum memory. The processor used triplication and voting (TMR), and the memory implemented error detection with automatic retries when an error was detected. A second machine developed by the same group (EPOS) also contained comprehensive fault-tolerance features. The fault-tolerant features of these machines were motivated by the local unavailability of reliable components and a high probability of reprisals by the ruling authorities should the machine fail. Over the past 30 years, a number of fault-tolerant computers have been developed that fall into three general types: (1) long-life, un-maintainable computers, (2) ultra dependable, real-time computers, and (3) high-availability computers. Long-Life, Unmaintained Computers Applications such as spacecraft require computers to operate for long periods of time without external repair. Typical requirements are a probability of 95% that the computer will operate correctly for 5–10 years. Machines of this type must use hardware in a very efficient fashion, and they are typically constrained to low power, weight, and volume. Therefore, it is not surprising that NASA was an early sponsor of fault-tolerant computing. In the 1960s, the first fault-tolerant machine to be developed and flown was the on-board computer for the Orbiting Astronomical Observatory (OAO), which used fault masking at the component (transistor) level. The JPL Self-Testing-and-Repairing (STAR) computer was the next fault-tolerant computer, developed by NASA in the late 1960s for a 10-year mission to the outer planets. The STAR computer, designed under the leadership of A. Avizienis was the first computer to employ dynamic recovery throughout its design. Various modules of the computer were instrumented to detect internal faults and signal fault conditions to a special test and repair processor that effected reconfiguration and recovery. An experimental version of the STAR was implemented in the laboratory and its fault tolerance properties were verified by experimental testing. Perhaps the most successful long-life space application has been the JPL-Voyager computers that have now operated in space for 20 years. This system used dynamic redundancy in which pairs of redundant computers checked each-other by exchanging messages, and if a computer failed, its partner could take over the computations. This type of design has been used on several subsequent spacecraft. Ultra-dependable Real-Time Computers These are computers for which an error or delay can prove to be catastrophic. They are designed for applications such as control of aircraft, mass transportation systems, and nuclear power plants. The applications justify massive investments in redundant hardware, software, and testing. One of the first operational machines of this type was the Saturn V guidance computer, developed in the 1960s. It contained a TMR processor and duplicated memories (each using internal error detection). Processor errors were masked by voting, and a memory error was circumvented by reading from the other memory. The next machine of this type was the Space Shuttle computer. It was a rather ad-hoc design that used four computers that executed the same programs and were voted. A fifth, non-redundant computer was included with different programs in case a software error was encountered. During the 1970s, two influential fault-tolerant machines were developed by NASA for fuel-efficient aircraft that require continuous computer control in flight. They were designed to meet the most stringent reliability requirements of any computer to that time. Both machines employed hybrid redundancy. The first, designated Software Implemented Fault Tolerance (SIFT), was developed by SRI International. It used off-the-shelf computers and achieved voting and reconfiguration primarily through software. The second machine, the Fault-Tolerant Multiprocessor (FTMP), developed by the C. S. Draper Laboratory, used specialized hardware to effect error and fault recovery. A commercial company, August Systems, was a spin-off from the SIFT program. It has developed a TMR system intended for process control applications. The FTMP has evolved into the Fault-Tolerant Processor (FTP), used by Draper in several applications and the Fault-Tolerant Parallel processor (FTPP) – a parallel processor that allows processes to run in a single machine or in duplex, tripled or quadrupled groups of processors. This highly innovative design is fully Byzantine resilient and allows multiple groups of redundant processors to be interconnected to form scalable systems. The new generation of fly-by-wire aircraft exhibits a very high degree of fault-tolerance in their real-time flight control computers. For example the Airbus Airliners use redundant channels with different processors and diverse software to protect against design errors as well as hardware faults. Other areas where fault-tolerance is being used include control of public transportation systems and the distributed computer systems now being incorporated in automobiles. High-Availability Computers Many applications require very high availability but can tolerate an occasional error or very short delays (on the order of a few seconds), while error recovery is taking place. Hardware designs for these systems are often considerably less expensive than those used for ultra-dependable real-time computers. Computers of this type often use duplex designs. Example applications are telephone switching and transaction processing. The most widely used fault-tolerant computer systems developed during the 1960s were in electronic switching systems (ESS) that are used in telephone switching offices throughout the country. The first of these AT&T machines, No. 1 ESS, had a goal of no more than two hours downtime in 40 years. The computers are duplicated, to detect errors, with some dedicated hardware and extensive software used to identify faults and effect replacement. These machines have since evolved over several generations to No. 5 ESS which uses a distributed system controlled by the 3B20D fault tolerant computer. The largest commercial success in fault-tolerant computing has been in the area of transaction processing for banks, airline reservations, etc. Tandem Computers, Inc. was the first major producer and is the current leader in this market. The design approach is a distributed system using a sophisticated form of duplication. For each running process, there is a backup process running on a different computer. The primary process is responsible for checkpointing its state to duplex disks. If it should fail, the backup process can restart from the last checkpoint. Stratus Computer has become another major producer of fault-tolerant machines for high-availability applications. Their approach uses duplex self-checking computers where each computer of a duplex pair is itself internally duplicated and compared to provide high-coverage concurrent error detection. The duplex pair of self-checking computers is run synchronously so that if one fails, the other can continue the computations without delay. Finally, the venerable IBM mainframe series, which evolved from S360, has always used extensive fault-tolerance techniques of internal checking, instruction retries and automatic switching of redundant units to provide very high availability. The newest CMOS-VLSI version, G4, uses coding on registers and on-chip duplication for error detection and it contains redundant processors, memories, I/O modules and power supplies to recover from hardware faults – providing very high levels of dependability. The server market represents a new and rapidly growing market for fault-tolerant machines driven by the growth of the Internet and local networks and their needs for uninterrupted service. Many major server manufacturers offer systems that contain redundant processors, disks and power supplies, and automatically switch to backups if a failure is detected. Examples are SUN’s ft-SPARC and the HP/Stratus Continuum 400. Other vendors are working on fault-tolerant cluster technology, where other machines in a network can take over the tasks of a failed machine. An example is the Microsoft MSCS technology. Information on fault-tolerant servers can readily be found in the various manufacturers’ web pages. Conclusion Fault-tolerance is achieved by applying a set of analysis and design techniques to create systems with dramatically improved dependability. As new technologies are developed and new applications arise, new fault-tolerance approaches are also needed. In the early days of fault-tolerant computing, it was possible to craft specific hardware and software solutions from the ground up, but now chips contain complex, highly-integrated functions, and hardware and software must be crafted to meet a variety of standards to be economically viable. Thus a great deal of current research focuses on implementing fault tolerance using COTS (Commercial-Off-The-Shelf) technology. References Avizienis, A., et al., (Ed.). (1987):Dependable Computing and Fault-Tolerant Systems Vol. 1: The Evolution of Fault-Tolerant Computing, Vienna: Springer-Verlag. (Though somewhat dated, the best historical reference available.) Harper, R., Lala, J. and Deyst, J. (1988): â€Å"Fault-Tolerant Parallel Processor Architectural Overview,† Proc of the 18st International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-18, Tokyo, June 1988. (FTPP) 1990. Computer (Special Issue on Fault-Tolerant Computing) 23, 7 (July). Lala, J., et. al., (1991): The Draper Approach to Ultra Reliable Real-Time Systems, Computer, May 1991. Jewett, D., A (1991): Fault-Tolerant Unix Platform, Proc of the 21st International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-21, Montreal, June 1991 (Tandem Computers) Webber, S, and Jeirne, J.(1991): The Stratus Architecture, Proc of the 21st International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-21, Montreal, June 1991. Briere, D., and Traverse, P. (1993): AIRBUS A320/ A330/A340 Electrical Flight Controls: A Family of Fault-Tolerant Systems, Proc. of the 23rd International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-23, Toulouse, France, IEEE Press, June 1993. Sanders, W., and Obal, W. D. II, (1993): Dependability Evaluation using UltraSAN, Software Demonstration in Proc. of the 23rd International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-23, Toulouse, France, IEEE Press, June 1993. Beounes, C., et. al. (1993): SURF-2: A Program For Dependability Evaluation Of Complex Hardware And Software Systems, Proc. of the 23rd International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-23, Toulouse, France, IEEE Press, June 1993. Blum, A., et. al., Modeling and Analysis of System Dependability Using the System Availability Estimator, Proc of the 24th International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing, FTCS-24, Austin TX, June 1994. (SAVE) Lala, J.H. Harper, R.E. (1994): Architectural Principles for Safety-Critical Real-Time Applications, Proc. IEEE, V82 n1, Jan 1994, pp25-40. Jenn, E. , Arlat, J. Rimen, M., Ohlsson, J. and Karlsson, J. (1994): Fault injection into VHDL models:the MEFISTO tool, Proc. Of the 24th Annual International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing (FTCS-24), Austin, Texas, June 1994. Siewiorek, D., ed., (1995): Fault-Tolerant Computing Highlights from 25 Years, Special Volume of the 25th International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-25, Pasadena, CA, June 1995. (Papers selected as especially significant in the first 25 years of Fault-Tolerant Computing.) Baker, W.E, Horst, R.W., Sonnier, D.P., and W.J. Watson, (1995): A Flexible ServerNet-Based Fault-Tolerant Architecture, Pr oc of the 25th International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-25, Pasadena, CA, June 1995. (Tandem) Timothy, K. Tsai and Ravishankar K. Iyer, (1996): â€Å"An Approach Towards Benchmarking of Fault-Tolerant Commercial Systems,† Proc. 26th Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-26, Sendai, Japan, June 1996. (FTAPE) Kropp Nathan P., Philip J. Koopman, Daniel P. Siewiorek(1998):, Automated Robustness Testing of Off-the-Shelf Software Components, Proc of the 28th International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing , FTCS’28, Munich, June, 1998. (Ballista). Spainhower, l., and T.A.Gregg, (1998):G4: A Fault-Tolerant CMOS Mainframe Proc of the 28th International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing FTCS-28, Munich, June 1998. (IBM). Kozyrakis, Christoforos E., and David Patterson, A New Direction for Computer Architecture Research, Computer, Vol. 31, No. 11, November 1998.

How far, and in what ways, do you agree that the story Essay

‘Hamlet’ is a revenge tragedy; a genre originally developed by plays such as ‘The Spanish Tragedy’ by Thomas Kyd from 1585-1590. The genre is characterized by the inclusion of death, murder, betrayal, madness, poison, surveillance and the supernatural in the narrative – themes that all frequently occur in ‘Hamlet’. However to what extent does the story of Polonius, Ophelia and Laertes conform to this idea of a revenge tragedy; and more broadly, how does the story of the family conform to the genre of tragedy as a whole? One issue is how to define a tragedy; Thomas Heywood wrote: â€Å"Comedies begin in trouble and end in peace; tragedies begin in calm and end in tempest†, ‘Apology for Actors’, 1612. By this definition, tragedy generally can be summarised as a sequence of events that lead to the destruction of the majority of its characters. In this sense, the story of Polonius and his family conforms to the basic skeleton of a tragedy – by the end of the play Polonius, Laertes and Ophelia are dead. However the family’s story does not conform as simply to other definitions of tragedy. ‘[Tragedy] would look with a sceptical eye at what was happening in the world around’, M. Mangan (1991). ‘Tragedy would look with a sceptical eye’ implies that tragedy has the role of both viewing and criticising society. This concept can be applied to Polonius, a character remarkably similar to Queen Elizabeth I’s spymaster, Sir Francis Walsingham. Shakespeare spent the majority of his life under Elizabeth’s rule; hence the Elizabeth’s gentry may have aided Shakespeare in creating his constructs. Polonius is characterized by his long, rambling speeches, for example in Act 2 Scene 2; ‘Either for tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastorical-comical, historical-pastoral, tragic-historical, tragical-comical-historical-pastoral unlimited’ The absurd repetition of the words ‘tragedy’, ‘comedy’, ‘history’ and ‘pastoral’ emphasize the loquaciousness of Polonius, but is perhaps also mocking Sir Francis Walsingham. Shakespeare is crafting a stereotype that spymasters are loquacious, obsequious characters. Perhaps Shakespeare is criticising society; society does not require spymasters spawning insincerity and deceit. If so, Shakespeare is using satire as a tool to portray this viewpoint. Polonius may be used by Shakespeare as a means to act as such a ‘sceptical eye’ on society, conforming to Mangan’s concept of the relevance of tragedy in real life. Aristotle was a key figure in defining tragedy, and stated in his ‘Poetics’ that a typical tragedy consisted of a noble protagonist, with a hamartia (tragic flaw), whose peripeteia (reversal of fortune) is brought about by an anagnorisis (moment of recognition). However it would be unwise to assume that Aristotle’s ‘Poetics’, written in c. 335 BC would still be completely relevant to Shakespearean tragedy, written some two thousand years later. However several aspects of Aristotle’s tragedy can be applied to Polonius and his family. Polonius has his tragic flaw: his obsession with spying. He tells Reynaldo before departing to France to spy on Laertes: ‘By indirections find directions out’ (Act 2 Scene 1) Not only does this indicate his unnatural interest in his son’s affairs, so much that he is willing to send a spy to observe his sons possible hedonism in Paris; but it also shows that he is experienced as a spymaster. Such advice is most likely to be learned from several years of manipulating people to his advantage. Essentially what he is saying is the most direct method of finding the truth is through being indirect, which holds to be true as we see later in the play with Hamlet’s ‘The Mousetrap’; a play within a play which exposes Claudius’ villainy through indirect and subtle methods. Furthermore on the topic of hamartia – Laertes has his tragic flaw of overreaction; a stark contrast to Hamlet whose tragic flaw is procrastination. When asked by Claudius what he will do when Hamlet returns to Denmark to avenge his father in Act 4 Scene VII, he replies ‘To cut his throat i’ the church. ‘ This directly mirrors the church scene, where Claudius is vulnerable yet Hamlet refrains from acting out his revenge. This displays Laertes’ as a traditional revenger, willing to act, unlike Hamlet who considers the legitimacy of the ghost’s claims before even considering revenge. Laertes does not take much persuading from Claudius. However it is this over-willingness to act that is the cause of his death. In his rage at the death of both his father and sister, he plots with Claudius to kill Hamlet; a move which kills him as he himself is poisoned by the sword intended for Hamlet. Over-willingness to act is Laerte’s hamartia; and so Laertes also conforms to this tragic skeleton laid out by Aristotle. However perhaps more tragic, although not conforming to Aristotle’s works, is the question; why is Laertes so willing to act? His father was voyeuristic, deceitful and loquacious – he used Ophelia as a tool to gain favour with the king, and spied on Laertes to ensure his name was not tarnished. He was a far from noble man, his life summarised accurately by his death; behind an arras spying on someone. In this regard, it is questionable whether Laertes’ brashness in relation to revenge is justified. From the aspects of Polonius’ character seen in the play, it does not appear that he was a ‘good’ father; in fact he seems villainous at times – for example when he disallows Ophelia to express her love for Hamlet, then makes her feel to blame when Hamlet puts on his antic disposition. It is questionable whether Polonius ‘deserves’ to be avenged. Hamlet seems to simply shrug off the murder of Polonius, noting of what the little worth he was when referring him simply as ‘guts’. This could be seen as tragic, as the worthlessness of Polonius’ character implies that Laertes died for nothing. One explanation is that Laertes may have been inclined to act out revenge with such little persuasion due to the fact Polonius was all he and his sister had. Since Hamlet put on his antic disposition, Ophelia lacked a love interest, as did Laertes assuming he did not have a lover in Paris; moreover they were not allowed to have a love interest due to Polonius caring too much about his image than the wishes of his children. With no love interests, and apparently no motherly figure, they were left with no figure of authority but Polonius, which may be the cause for Laertes’ brash attitudes towards revenge. Also likely is the concept of family honour driving Laertes’ revenge, a concept which an Elizabethan audience may have empathised with. The death of Ophelia in a modern day sense is considered tragic, like any suspected suicide. However during Elizabethan times her death would be considered on a more religious basis; the priest comments on the ‘questionable’ nature of her death, and whether it would warrant a Christian burial. This is an example of how the definition of tragedy shifts over time; even Laertes does not seem as shaken by the announcement of his sister’s death compared to his fathers, perhaps due to the nature of her death. Ophelia’s death is considered a tragedy in a modern day sense, but at the time her death not so much tragic, but rather symbolised the death of innocence in the play, as part of the build up to the climatic deaths in the final act. However, Ophelia’s death is an example of how ‘Hamlet’ is able to transcend traditional ideas on tragedy, and can hold relevance to modern day interpretations of what is considered tragic. In the 21st century, a tragic event is where an individual or group suffers to a greater extent than they are perceived to deserve. It could be argued that however you spin the story of Polonius and his family, they will always conform to this modern interpretation of tragedy, as well as the traditional tragedy theorised by Aristotle. Ophelia is being perpetually commanded and ordered throughout the play by the significant characters in her life; first Laertes, when he displays his disapproval of her intimacy with Hamlet, and Polonius when he conducts his own ‘play within a play’, ordering her to talk to Hamlet while he observes behind an arras. She has little to no freedom, despite the fact she has ‘done nothing wrong’; unlike her brother who had enjoyed the ‘primrose path of dalliance’ while in Paris, and the voyeuristic indulgence of Polonius. The death of Ophelia to a modern audience is tragic, so in this sense the story of Polonius and his family is a tragedy. I agree that the story of Polonius and his family should be considered ‘a tragedy within a tragedy’. Their story contains many of the frequently occurring aspects of a tragedy; death, love, murder, revenge and surveillance. As well as this, the family conforms to the concept of a tragedy as laid out by Aristotle. Finally, the story of Polonius and his family conforms to what is considered tragic in the present, as the tragedy has transcended the period in which the play was written. References Primary Text Shakespeare, W (~1600) ‘Hamlet’ London: Penguin (2005) Secondary Texts Aristotle (350 BC) ‘Poetics’ London: Penguin (1997) Heywood, T (1612) ‘An Apology for Actors’ New York: Scholars’ Facsimiles & Reprints (1999) Mangan, M (1991) ‘A Preface to Shakespeare’s Tragedies’ London: Longman.