Saturday, January 25, 2020

Using Real World examples, illustrate both some of the potential :: Economics

Using Real World examples, illustrate both some of the potential benefits of monopolies and explain how monopoly firms may be able to engage in price discrimination practices. A monopolistic market or company is one where there is non existent competition. There is one leading market domineer that is producing and supplying the entire market. In a monopolistic market the company in question can determine prices or the amount of products sold to work in their advantage. The power of a monopoly company is that it can completely dominate a particular market subject to whether or not there are existing or up and coming substitutes. By this what is meant is that there could well be a substitute for the monopolist’s product. An example of this would be old public sector companies like British Rail. They controlled the entire rail travel market; however there were always alternative forms of travel like coach or air travel. This proves that there is no real possibility of a pure monopoly as there are always alternatives. There is another variant that decides to classification of a monopoly. This is the barriers of entry into that particular industry or sector of the market. If there are low barriers of entry, this will stimulate competition between firms competing for consumers of that market sector, however if the barriers are of high entry, then it is easy to say that the company dominating the market is that of a monopolistic nature. This echoes the fact that a monopolistic firm can indeed decide on price or quantity sold to influence demand. They can only influence demand to a certain extent because of other alternatives to their own product e.g. travel and different forms of transport. By doing this, a monopolist company can make non-standard profits in the long term future. A major advantage of a monopolistic firm is that it can use price discrimination as a tool in gaining more money. This is where a firm can make the consumer pay for a different price for the exact same service. A good example of this is through British telecom and how it is cheaper to ring during off peak tariffs rather that during the day when the cost of a phone call is substantially higher than that of a phone call during the evening. However, for price discrimination to happen there must be a number of factors occurring to make price discrimination work for the company. First, the company must know its customers and know that they have different demands to that of other people. This may be the travel of commuters into the city for work.

Thursday, January 16, 2020

It’s Time to End Pet Misery Year 11 Draft Essay

In the opinion piece ‘Let’s End Pet Misery’, featured in the Herald Sun on the 21st of July 2009, writer Susie O’Brien responds to the issue of animal cruelty in Victoria. In an outraged tone, the writer pleads with pet lovers and everyone else alike to support a new bill that aims to make animal desexing compulsory, reducing the rates of unwanted offspring and acts of animal cruelty committed against these animals. The writer begins her argument with the use of alliteration paired with a cliche. â€Å"A single stroke of the pen can save †¦ pets from a short life of misery. † The alliteration of the two words ‘single’ and ‘stroke’ draws more focus to the cliche; ‘a single stroke of a pen’. This emphasises how easily the problem could be solved, angering the reader due to the little that has been done to solve the problem. This technique also works to instil guilt within the reader, making it more likely for them to take action in assisting the cause, thereby supporting the writer’s contention to support the compulsory desexing of pets. One technique the writer uses is a frightening statistic that has been juxtaposed in a larger text. â€Å"In Victoria alone, 300 dogs are put down every day. That’s †¦ more than 100,000 a year. † This unbelievably shocking statistic is a perfect technique to support the writer’s contention. It is able to appeal to the fear and concern of pet lovers and all other citizens alike. This statistic works very well to draw the reader’s attention, due to its intelligent position just below the heading, and works to ‘recruit’ more people to the cause, as most would be unable to stop reading after being confronted with such a statistic. Additionally, it would inspire more people to support the writer’s contention and take action to stop all this death. One of the writer’s strongest persuasive technique is the use of a widely known anecdote paired with strong, emotive language. â€Å"In a devastating attack, someone †¦ hacked off his ears and tail and then left him to die in pain. † Through the use of the well-known story about Buckley, an eight week old Victorian puppy, the writer’s argument is strengthened in the eyes of many readers, as a majority of them would have heard of the story, and resented the horrific act of animal cruelty. Her argument is again reinforced by several instances of colourful language. Phrases like ‘hacked off’ and ‘die in pain’ don’t exaggerate the malevolence of the crime, but instead work to give the reader a clearer image of the vile act. This then makes the reader feel more strongly about the issue, making it more likely they do something about it. The strong use of visual media paired with the article is successful in giving the story an even greater effect; working as the figurative ‘icing’ on the argument. The largest image; that revealing the extent of Buckley’s shocking injuries, is a perfect accompaniment to the text, giving the reader a true idea of the result of his terrible wounds. Additionally, the images of pets behind bars, with their innocent eyes, and somewhat fearful expression makes the reader compare them to prisoners whom have been wrongly accused; forced to live a life of confinement for another’s crimes. These elements make readers wish to take action; ending the injustice, and is effective in supporting the writer’s contention. The opinion piece, â€Å"Let’s End Pet Misery,† is effective in persuading readers to support the author’s pledge to introduce a law making the desexing of pets compulsory. Whilst using a highly angered tone, the writer uses alliteration in conjunction with a cliche to give readers a greater idea of how appalling the government’s inaction is. The writer also shocks her readers through the use of an alarming statistic, revealing the true magnitude of the deaths of unwanted animals. Furthermore, the use of a terrifying anecdote used together with colourful language, as well as the images in the piece alert readers to the severity of the situation and appeal to one’s empathy, ultimately encouraging us to share an equally outraged view.

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Greek and Roman Mythology Depicted in Daily Life

Did you know youre already familiar with some of the main gods and goddesses from Greek mythology and some of the main mythical creatures, as well? [See if you can guess who the gods represented by letters are before checking the bottom of this article for answers.] You probably dont need to know Greek mythology. I mean, its not very likely that youll be in a life or death situation where youll have to veer your spaceship away from the Titan (a) and King of the Gods (b) planets and back towards the Love (c), War (d), and Messenger (e) deities in order to find your way back to Earth. Nor will it make very much difference if you fail to recognize the mythological figures behind the name of your car (Saturn or Mercury). However, Greco-Roman mythology is pervasive in Western culture and you probably already know a lot about it: The love goddess Venus, whose name is synonymous with beauty, is featured in song and art. Her name was lent to what used to be called social disease. Adonis, one of her lovers, is synonymous with male beauty. The narcissus flower was originally a vain young man. The laurel was a young nymph who preferred to be turned into a tree to the embraces of Apollo. The space mission Apollo is named after the god of music and prophecy. There is a petroleum company whose logo is the winged horse Pegasus. An automobile muffler company is named for the original man with the golden touch (f). A moving company is named for the Titan who was punished by having to carry the weight of the world on his shoulder (g). One brand of running shoes was named after the goddess of victory (h). A sink cleanser was named for a second-best Greek hero in the Trojan War (i) after Achilles had died. The number one hero gave his name to the word for a long, difficult trip or odyssey. Odysseus also devised the origina l gift that gave us the expression beware of Greeks bearing gifts (Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes). A chocolate candy company is named for the Roman god of war (d). Cereal is named for the Roman goddess of grain (j). The panic button is named for a son of Hermes (k). The list goes on and on. It may not make an appreciable difference to your quality of life, but knowing something about Roman and Greek mythology will give you insight into our cultural heritage, an understanding of the naming of space and exploration missions, and it may help you solve a crossword or two. Mythmans Mythological Influence on Modern Society Etymological Dictionary Classical Cliches Mythological References: (a)Saturn (b)Jupiter (c)Venus) (d)Mars (e)Mercury (f)Midas (g)Atlas (h)Nike (i)Ajax (j)Ceres (k)Pan Famous People BiographiesAncient / Classical History GlossaryMapsLatin Quotations and TranslationsPrimary Texts /Literature and Translations