The benefits of technology in giving presentations Essay

The benefits of technology in giving presentations - Essay Example Nowhere has the development of technology had a greater impact than in the domain of communication. In the world of academia and business, the usage of proprietary software like Microsoft PowerPoint, Word, Excel and Outlook have become quite common. The PowerPoint software in particular is a potent tool in giving presentations. Students use it to present their seminars; lecturers and professors use it to impart knowledge to their students; and business executives use it to convey ideas to their team members. In this sense, one could say that the use of technology in the world of colleges and business corporations has become quite pervasive. There are some decisive advantages in using tools such as PowerPoint over conventional chalk and black board. A PowerPoint presentation can be prepared beforehand whereas someone using white chalk on black board has to write down during the lecture. Moreover, using chalk can be cumbersome and clumsy compared to using PowerPoint. For example, the latter gives the user flexibility with respect to choice of template, font size, audio-visual options, color schemes, editing facilities, etc, which are not available in conventional methods used to give presentations. An allied tool that is used alongside PowerPoint is the overhead projector. Basically, the projector helps to magnify and display the content written in the PowerPoint slide onto a large white screen. The projector also allows the presenter to use light beam as a pointing tool. Moreover, the light shed by the projector on to the screen is quite bright, making it easier for the audience to focus on the lecture. The other striking aspect of technologically powered tools such as PowerPoint is provisions made by them for customizing the content. Instead of restricting the content creator with rigid templates and formats, these tools provide a range of customizing options that can be utilized to tailor the presentation to specific needs. While the overhead

Blue Duck Essay Example for Free

Blue Duck Essay This report is made on the objective of executing a strategic analysis and evaluation of Blue Duck Shearling in order to be able to answer the following problem statement: â€Å"How could Blue Duck increase their consumer based brand equity (CBBE) by improving their social media appearance?† In order to answer the question an assessment of Blue Duck’s marketing strategy and implementation of the strategy was carried through. It focused on the Blue Duck’s social media marketing strategy and it led to giving suggestions how to improve their current approach with the aim of improving Blue Duck’s consumer based brand equity. In order to find out the industry leading trends in Social Media Marketing there were examined reports and statistics about the leading tendencies and developments in social media marketing. Blue Duck is a premium high-end shearling outerwear manufacturer. They design, manufacture and distribute high quality shearling and fur-trimmed and fur-lined coats in addition accessories for men and women. All the coats are produced in their New York based showroom in the fashion district. The analysis of the company’s current situation was carried through examination of Blue Duck’s positioning strategy. It included forming a perceptual map about Blue Duck and its competitors as well analyzing the competitors’ online appearances. The evaluation showed that the main advantage of Blue Duck is to carry on improving and implementing their social media strategy, as the competitors seems to lack in terms of social media marketing. As well there was carried out a comparison by analyzing the points of parity and points of difference concerning the competitors. The examination showed that compared with the main competitors Blue Duck lacks trendiness. Nevertheless Blue Duck seemed to have the strongest social media marketing strategy that they could benefit from. In addition, to analyze the company’s strengths and weaknesses, learn the growth possibilities and external threats there was carried out a SWOT analysis. It revealed that the main assets of the company are the quality and long experience in the shearling industry; still their weakness is the limited distribution channels. As they are strongly dependent on the weather, the global warming and climate change might affect their business as an external threat for the company. In order to assess Blue Duck’s current marketing strategy there is examined the Integrated Marketing Communication practices carried out by the company. As well there is analyzed the company’s current social media marketing strategy in particular. According to the findings Blue Duck concentrates on online marketing and in addition to that they do a bit of print advertisement. Lately Blue Duck has been focusing on the social media marketing, as it is one of the fastest developing forms of marketing. The main focus of Blue Duck’s social media activities is to increase brand awareness and the goal is to build online audience and a strong online community. Thus far they have slowly been moving towards their goal and objectives. Still they could benefit from some adjustments in their strategy to get faster results. To evaluate the current customer based brand equity there were carried out interviews with 3 people from the target group. Based on the answers there was formed a CBBE pyramid. It appeared that the overall customer perception matches brand’s own positioning statement, though 2 out of 3 interviewees noted that Blue Duck lacks trendiness. The recommendations for the future to Blue Duck would be to keep on developing their social media strategy and making adjustments to it according to the needs. Still as the brand image is inclined to be outdated and old fashioned they should consider improving their design aesthetics and producing trendier designs as well. Fruthermore Blue Duck should pay more attention to Pinterest as it is a growing platform. In addition Blue Duck should consider inserting a product reviewing and rating to tool to their website as it might appeal for their target group. Following these suggestions Blue Duck will increase their customer based brand equity and will succeed in building a stronger online community. Introduction The aim of this report is to examine an American shearling outerwear manufacturer Blue Duck’s online appearance and give suggestions for their social media marketing strategy. Blue Duck is a small company that serves the needs of United States shearling market. It is one of the main manufacturers of luxury shearling in the US. As their core product is shearling outerwear the active business season for them is from October till March the following year. During the summer season they mainly deal with the product development and design of the next season’s collection. As the winter of 2011 and 2012 was rather warm, the business suffered and the sales volume declined. In the summer of 2012 Blue Duck decided to develop a new marketing plan and they hired branding agency Art Zulu to help building a social media marketing strategy. The main aim of the new approach was to increase brand awareness and build a strong online community. This report will be assessing and analyzing the implementation of the strategy and in the end gives suggestions according to the findings. Problem Statement To assess the possibilities of increased brand awareness following problem was formulated: How could Blue Duck increase their customer based brand equity (CBBE) by improving their social media appearance? To analyze the social media marketing trends in fashion industry the following sub-question was formed. 1.What are the leading social media trends in the USA fashion industry? Secondly to assess the company’s current situation and their strongest assets to rely on while building the social media presence following sub-question came up: 2.What are the key assets of the Blue Duck’s present customer based brand equity that the company should rely on while building social media presence? In addition to propose the strategy and implementation for Blue Duck following sub-question was formed: 3.What strategy should Blue Duck use in order to build a strong on-line presence? Finally, to find out which social media platforms and technologies to use in order to implement the strategy the following sub-question was formed: 4.What technologies and social media platforms should Blue Duck use in order to target their potential customers? Delimitation Market This report will analyze the social media marketing trends and the possibilities for Blue Duck to improve their customer based brand equity on their current target market. As well the report will be focusing on how Blue Duck could expand their target group and appeal to a younger market segment and give suggestions based on the research and analysis of the company’s current brand equity. Due to lack of consumer primary consumer data the CBBE matrix will not be as objective as it could be. Geographical Area As Blue Duck operates locally the report will be based on the United States market, with a special focus on New York area. Time Frame The report will be based on the on going financial year of 2012 as Blue Duck is going through development of new branding and marketing strategies. Finance The report will not be focusing on marketing budget and the financial situation of the company. Methodology This report will be based on primary and secondary research method. The primary data will be based on the information acquired directly from Blue Duck. To find out the latest social media marketing trends the report will be analyzing several marketing industry reports about the current tendencies. To analyze Blue Duck’s current situation and strategies and find the possibilities for improvements there will be used different branding and marketing analyzing methods such as CBBE matrix, PoDs/PoPs, SWOT and perceptual mapping. To evaluate Blue Duck’s customer based brand equity there will be interviewed 2-3 subjects from the company’s target group in order to get a little overview of the consumers’ perspective concerning Blue Duck. Due to the few examinees interviewed the results and consumer perception of the brand is rather subjective, still it gives a little impression about the brand equity. In the end based on the findings of the study the report will give suggestions and recommendations about Blue Duck’s social media strategy by following Bernoff’s four-step social strategy called the POST method. It will start with concluding the targeted PEOPLE’s social activities. Then it will evaluate the OBJECTIVES to decide what Blue Duck wants to accomplish. That will follow to the STRATEGY – the planning of how the relationship with the customer will change. To sum up the report will come up with the TECHNOLOGIES that Blue Duck should use in order to implement its strategy. (Bernoff Li, 2008) Social Media Trends Today companies are confronted with the raising influence of new communication channels. It is completely transforming the marketing field, as it has existed for 100 years now. The traditional ways of marketing are increasingly influenced and integrated with social media. Nevertheless mainstream medias will still be vital, but will be strongly influenced by the newcomers. (Gillin 2008) Top Social Media Marketers note that Social Media Marketing is disappearing in the means of a separate media. That implies that Social Media Marketing is becoming one of the marketing tools and it will not be a separate activity, but an integral part of marketing. (Dreamgrow 2012) In the last decade and in particular the last 4 years there has been radical changes how people consume and search for information. A part from getting the information from the direct source such as traditional institutions like corporations, people have started using technologies to get things they need from each other (Bernoff Li 2008). It is called the Groundswell. This trend can be very beneficial for the companies, if they set their strategies right, or it can be great threat for a company’s image if the Groundswell movement is disregarded. Following will point out the main trends that will affect Blue Duck and the fashion industry in general in the United States. Rise of Social Media Marketing In a survey of 700 marketers, Wildfire App discovered that nearly all marketers find value in Social Media Marketing and over 75% of them were planning to increase their Social Media Marketing budget. The main benefits noted by the marketers were the increased brand awareness and direct interaction with the customers. Furthermore Social Media Marketing efforts seemed to increase sales and reduce marketing spending. More businesses are investing in Social Media. According to Borrell Associates, small- and medium-sized businesses in USA doubled their social media advertising budgets in 2012. State of Social Media Marketing study by Awareness Networks found that 70% of businesses planned to expand their presents on social media platforms. (Mershon, 2012) Social Media as a Customer Service Tool For the past ten years companies have been directing their clients to their websites for supporting information instead of having them call to the expensive support line. As one part of the groundswell, companies can benefit from using their Social Media platforms for offering customer support. By doing that they build loyalty and might cut costs on customer support activities such as support calls. Today customers are able to contact the company in real time through social media networks. When a person can easily interact with the company on Facebook for example, it increases trust. People can rely on the company. Furthermore customers get help from each other as well by commenting each other’s posts and communicating online. This will save a lot on company’s customer support expenses if the customers are able to help themselves. On top it will facilitate the communication for the customers. (Bernoff Li, 2008) Social Sales As users have access to unlimited amounts of information online, consumers identify trust as a key factor for finding valuable solutions. Consumers will not even enter the purchase funnel if certain trust elements are not triggered (About.com, 2012). People are used to getting recommendations from their friends and family, but now social media integration will allow customers to get real user reviews and ratings about products straight on the product pages. People will be more encouraged to purchase a product if it has positive reviews from customers who already purchased it. At the same time brands have to be careful and make the reviewing process as transparent as possible by revealing negative reviews as well to make it trustworthy. In that way people get the most objective overviews. A study has shown that reviews seem to build more trust than â€Å"likes†. 50% of the consumer say that a brand having a lot of good reviews and a few negative ones adds trust, at the same time only 26% of consumers find that having a lot of â€Å"likes† adds trust. Consumers seem to get confused about the origin of â€Å"likes† so they prefer reviews from people who have already purchased the product (About.com, 2012). Social Media ROI While there has been a lot of controversy about Social Media ROI and if it could be measured, marketers seem to start evaluating the importance of measuring the outcome of their social media efforts. However less than half of the businesses measure their results. Lack of monitoring might lead to waste of investment as companies are increasing their spending on social media. This again will be indicated by the poor ROI. By monitoring the results it makes it easier to adjust the strategy and change over to more efficient ways of social media marketing. Pinterest as an Ecommerce Site Lately the new Internet bookmarking site Pinterest has exploded. Based on industry reports, Pinterest is becoming the most significant driver of social traffic to eCommerce sites, even outperforming the more mature social media giants as Twitter and Facebook. Lately many online retailers are integrating Pinterest to their product pages. In that way the consumer is able to pin the things they like on their inspirational boards. Amazon has added pin button to every product. The evidence that Pinterest is skyrocketing is clear considering the reports. In Q2 in 2012, referral traffic from Pinterest rose 2,535 percent year over year while at the same time referral traffic from Facebook is up 2,7 percent. On top of everything the traffic driven on Pinterest is free. Companies ought to pay a lot of attention on Pinterest as it can be a great traffic driver besides email campaigns and search engines. (Duryee, 2012) Tabletizing and Mobilizing Websites In connection with the new technologies and portable devices companies have to start conforming their online present. More than half social networking sites’ usage will be on mobile devices. As more people use smartphones and tablets, the companies have to adapt their websites for mobile use. People are getting used to sharing content on the go, no matter where they are. Brands as Entertainers As companies move on to Social Networks such as Facebook and Twitter they have to learn how to engage and entertain their customer that they will not loose interest in the brand page. On social media networks brands have to be aware that the branding and marketing messages displayed on the page will not get annoying and people will not perceive them as spam. As case studies have shown the most successful social brands have a subtle branding and marketing approach. They offer their audience everyday entertainment and news, while occasionally interposing brand messages to keep the brand on top of the mind. Every message that a brand posts on their Facebook does not have to be related to the brand. This leads to the following social media trend. Online News Will Become More Social It has been forecasted that in the near future applications integrated with social media will gradually replace online news websites. People will get their daily news straight on their Facebook news feed for example. As well the people who are reading/sharing/tweeting the news will decide which news are the most popular and there wise the trending stories appear on their friends newsfeed. It is the consumer who decides what will be read. News Brought to Us by Ourselves For example on many news-broadcast channels the audience can speak up through Twitter and interact with the live news show. Furthermore during live debates there is the possibility for the audience to vote and express their support through Twitter. In some cases of live TV the audience is the main influencer of the course of the show. Twitter has become sort of a live broadcast channel itself. During the Spring-Summer 2013 fashion weeks in the fashion capitals in September the tweets and pictures from people at the shows gave a good overview of what was going on for their followers. People are getting more involved in being distributors of information and news. It is not only the responsibility of the press to be the prime distributors of information any more – it is the consumer. Conclusion Concerning the latest trends mentioned above Blue Duck has to take a lot into consideration while building their online presence. Blue Duck must be sure that their social media profiles interact with the consumer and that the conversation taking place there is not unanswered. Furthermore in connection with new technologies and platforms Blue Duck has to indicate the ones that their target group is the most involved in and take them into focus while developing a social media strategy. For example Pinterest is a great bookmarking tool for women concerning home and lifestyle subjects. It is appealing for them to take inspiration from other people all over the world and make pin-boards with great ideas and products. Finally Blue Duck has to make sure that their social media pages are entertaining and provide interesting content for their customers, so that they will not loose interest in the brand and keep it on top of their mind.

Racism is Unacceptable Essay examples -- Racial Prejudice Discriminati

Racism is Unacceptable From the beginning of recorded history, possibly before then, humans have found a necessity for classifying and categorizing every aspect of life. This need for order has been used to efficiently organize and clarify the endless details on Earth. This arrangement of objects in groups has also created a very sinister and volatile mindset that some people live by. This associative manner of classification has lead to the formation of beliefs in race identities, stereotypes, and superiority in the form of racism. Racism is contempt for people who have physical characteristics different from your own (Nanda and Warms 1). This concept is often combined with what is called racialism. Racialism is an ideology based on the following suppositions: There are biologically fixed races; different races have different moral, intellectual, and physical characteristics (Nanda and Warms 1). This is the ideal that many people engage in consciously and the way some people think without even realizing i t. The only way to overcome this derogatory belief system is to define the meanings and misunderstandings of racial differences. Race is the term for classifications of people based on opinions about physical characteristics and differences between groups of individuals. The problem with this is that these differences do not really provide distinctions between ancestral lineages. In fact, these subtle differences between so called races, like broadened noses, physical structure, and skin color, are the results of environmental circumstances encountered by early nomadic human groups as they moved and settled in new territories. These traits are the products of many thousands of years of genetic hit or miss. Some of these... ... not curious about the skin colors, hair textures, bodily structures, and facial features associated with racial background (Rensberger 57). As a result of this, we can only hope that by not tolerating this type of thinking in our children and not being part of it with our associates we can help make racism an unpopular and unacceptable way of life. Works Cited 1. Keita, S. O. Y. and Kittles, Rick A. â€Å"The Persistence of Racial Thinking and the Myth of Racial Divergence.† American Anthropologist. 99 (September 1997): 534- 542. 2. Nanda, Serena and Warms, Richard L. Cultural Anthropology. Belmont, CA: West/ Wadsworth, 1998. 3. Rensberger, Boyce. â€Å"Racial Odyssey.† Science Digest. (January/ February 1981) Reprint. 57- 63. 4. Wachtel, Paul L. Race in the Mind of America: Breaking the Vicious Circle between Blacks and Whites. New York: Routledge, 1999.

Defining Honor

If I were to ask half a dozen people at random to tell me what they meant by the word â€Å"honor,† I think that I would probably receive very different answers. One of the reasons for this is that it often means different things in the minds of different people. For instance, we say that it was a great honor for Jim Smith to be elected captain of the football team; and then, on the other hand, we talk about a code of honor, — or the laws of honor. What does Jim Smith’s being captain of the eleven have to do with the laws of honor? What we mean, in the case of Jim, is that his election as captain shows that the other boys have confidence in his play, and therefore this position gives him a local reputation as a comparatively good player and leader. Now many people in the world have only this idea of honor; and, when they speak of holding their honor sacred above all else, they mean keeping their reputation good in the eyes of men. For this reason, they value any office or reward that adds to their reputation; and the more their reputation grows and the more distinction they earn, the more honorable they feels themselves to be. This was the idea of honor existing among the ancient heathen people before the Christian era. You know that, after the fall of the great Roman Empire, there was a period of about a thousand years, when the light of civilization went out in Europe, and the darkness of ignorance and barbarism took its place. During these dark days, there was much going on that was not better and sometimes even worse from a moral point of view than in the days of the Roman Empire; but, when the minds of men began to wake up again, their standards really had advanced further than the old heathen standards of life. A seed Christian principle had been germinating for all these years and finally blossomed out in the Age of Chivalry. This, as you know, was an assertion first of all that the notion that â€Å"Might makes Right† is false, although it had been almost universally believed to be true, in practice, before the coming of Christ. The orders of knighthood which arose in various parts of Europe were composed of men who made it their business to bring order out of confusion, — to kill the wild beasts that interfered with flocks and herds and made farming difficult, — to overpower and abolish the highwaymen and robbers who made traveling unsafe, — and to protect women and children in respect and security. These men bound themselves by solemn vows to keep certain laws which were necessary for carrying out their work, and their obligation or sense of responsibility to keep these laws they called their â€Å"Honor. † Hence a new conception of honor came into being, and their code of honor was the law according to which their conduct was judged among themselves. This is, of course, a very different idea of honor from that which consists of thinking that distinction before men is better worth having than anything else, and which therefore puts reputation above character. Anybody who compares these two ideas of honor can see that the one is only a counterfeit imitation of the other, and that there is not necessary connection between them at all; for a man may have character without reputation, and he may have reputation without character, for reputation may be either true or false; and, when true, it is in many cases because of the character underlying it. But many fine reputations of all sorts are the result of clever self-advertising, and this practice is one of the most destructive and degrading to character and true manliness. This is so because, when we seek reputation for its own sake, we are yielding to the temptation of vanity; and vanity is a weakness and disease of the soul. Everybody has temptations to overcome, and it is everybody’s business to know and work against his weaknesses; but, when our chief ambition in life fosters our weakness, and we deceive ourselves by giving the name of â€Å"honor† to that which weakens us, we can hardly expect to grow stronger as the years go by. The old knights had the right idea of honor, and there have been a great variety of orders of chivalry in different countries, such as those mentioned in the Boy Scout Manual; and the main idea in all of them was to hold up a standard of public service which would raise men above the habits and customs of selfish brutes and merely worldly men. There is another great distinction between these two conceptions of honor: when we think of our reputation as our honor we require spectators, for our reputation is what we are in the minds of other men; but the honor of character, which is our sacred obligation to keep the law of our code and to do our duty in God’s sight, is just as binding upon us when we are all alone, and therefore it must control our most private acts and secret thoughts. A little newsboy boarded a crowded car the other night with a very large bundle of papers, and the conductor, with coarse good-nature, tried to favor him by declining to take his fare, although of course he could not do this without cheating the railway. The boy looked at him with indignation and could not believe that he was the conductor. He went all through the car hunting for the real conductor to whom he could pay his fair. This little boy was richer than if he had had millions in bank in place of this high-minded feeling of honorable independence and of determination to fulfil all his obligations; and, if he remains true to this principle in all the phases of his life, he will accomplish far more than if he amassed millions, or became President of the United States. He will add to the joy and dignity of many other lives as well as his own; for, sooner or later, every human being finds out that without this loyalty to honor life cannot be happy, is — indeed, not worth living. But we must be careful to remember that, although this is such an important and central truth, we cannot expect every one to know about it; and therefore we cannot expect them to act accordingly. In this, as in all other such matters, we must be on our guard against feeling superior to those who have not had our advantages. Next to keeping our own obligations of honor is the duty of protecting the honor of all those with whom we have contact; — and especially of the weak and ignorant. The weak must be protected by whatever means is necessary and appropriate, and the ignorant may be taught if we go about it quietly and in a friendly spirit, without â€Å"laying down the law. † Of course, it is the duty of patrol leaders to see that all their boys understand as thoroughly as possible the nature of the obligations which they have taken upon themselves. It is also the duty of scouts to hand along whatever helpful knowledge they have to other scouts within reach of their friendship. But this holds good not only for boy scouts and their officers but for all men; and it cannot be done unless, in the first place, we ourselves try to practice what we teach and then teach it with a humble appreciation of the beauty or use of the subject, and without any vanity or conceit. There is no merit, but only privilege, — so great that it is difficult to estimate, — in teaching and being taught to understand and live by the deep and tested truths of life; and the more we learn, from obeying them, the more humbly grateful we shall be.

Forced Community Service Persuassive Essay

Benchmark Essay Courtney Ceurvels Purple 6/12/12 Students shouldn’t be required to perform seventy five hours of community service. This is because the work wouldn’t be done well if the students were forced. Also time would be taken away from clubs, sports, social life and school work. Then again it will make the town look better. If students were forced to do volunteer work to complete schooling then it would most likely not be done well.Being forced the students won’t get the same lesson and/or experience from it. Never mind the work wouldn’t be done as well because they don’t want to do it. Then if they don’t want to do it, the work won’t be done to the best of their ability. Also forcing 75 hours of volunteer work would take time away from school work, sports, clubs and social life. Most kids have sports practice or club meeting after school hours & then have t complete school work after that.With a schedule already that packed the n adding more responsibility to a student’s life could effect their sleeping habits and cause stress. Volunteer work could also lower grades and the sport skills of students if they miss practice or studying time over community service work. Some people might say that it would make the town a better place to make the students more involved. Also some might complain that it would keep kids out of trouble, when really all you’re doing if giving them another way to get in trouble.Since kids are forced to do the work and some are already extremely busy then they won’t complete their hours and then that would effect them receiving a diploma. This is why students shouldn’t be required to perform 75 hours of community service for schooling. The students are already too busy with their school work, clubs, sports and social life. They would have a bad work ethic since they were being forced, also it wouldn’t have the same meaning/lesson. The only pro is tha t it would help the town but in this situation, the cons greatly outweigh the pros.

Free Essays on When I Was Puerto Rican

A Developmental Analysis Of The Main Character In The Book â€Å"When I Was Puerto Rican† By Esmeralda Santiago Negi’s childhood home in Macun was in a community which had few ties with the rest of society. She was an intelligent child who grew up poor, with six siblings, a virtually absent father, and little knowledge of how the world worked. Yet she was driven to shape an identity separate from her family, and in her heart still remain the â€Å"jibara† she was raised as. Negi was a stable child with no significant drawbacks in her childhood that would inhibit healthy growth or development. She seemed healthy and happy. It is hard to consider Negi’s childhood as â€Å"normal† reading about it from an American viewpoint. Reason being she grew up in a country and a culture dramatically different from most people’s in America. Even though her houses were described as one or two room shacks, her bed shared by 5 or 6 siblings, she walked around barefoot outdoors, never visited the doctor, and ate rice and beans almost everyday; in her culture and in her community that is normal. People that have that experience growing up in America would be labeled â€Å"poor† or â€Å"underprivileged†. One must be culturally sensitive and consider the location and context of her childhood to fully appreciate her experience. Regardless of the context of the child, there are a number of general factors to consider when examining healthy development. Negi had a close knit family which provided love and support. Her mother encouraged maturation, education, responsibility, propriety, and respect. Her father, when he was present, promoted her growth by answering questions and bringing knowledge into the home usually in the form of reading material. According to Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman (2004), â€Å"A good family environment provides nurturance, support, guidance, and a safe, secure place to which children can turn† (p.158). Luckily this en... Free Essays on When I Was Puerto Rican Free Essays on When I Was Puerto Rican A Developmental Analysis Of The Main Character In The Book â€Å"When I Was Puerto Rican† By Esmeralda Santiago Negi’s childhood home in Macun was in a community which had few ties with the rest of society. She was an intelligent child who grew up poor, with six siblings, a virtually absent father, and little knowledge of how the world worked. Yet she was driven to shape an identity separate from her family, and in her heart still remain the â€Å"jibara† she was raised as. Negi was a stable child with no significant drawbacks in her childhood that would inhibit healthy growth or development. She seemed healthy and happy. It is hard to consider Negi’s childhood as â€Å"normal† reading about it from an American viewpoint. Reason being she grew up in a country and a culture dramatically different from most people’s in America. Even though her houses were described as one or two room shacks, her bed shared by 5 or 6 siblings, she walked around barefoot outdoors, never visited the doctor, and ate rice and beans almost everyday; in her culture and in her community that is normal. People that have that experience growing up in America would be labeled â€Å"poor† or â€Å"underprivileged†. One must be culturally sensitive and consider the location and context of her childhood to fully appreciate her experience. Regardless of the context of the child, there are a number of general factors to consider when examining healthy development. Negi had a close knit family which provided love and support. Her mother encouraged maturation, education, responsibility, propriety, and respect. Her father, when he was present, promoted her growth by answering questions and bringing knowledge into the home usually in the form of reading material. According to Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman (2004), â€Å"A good family environment provides nurturance, support, guidance, and a safe, secure place to which children can turn† (p.158). Luckily this en...

Germans to America - Passengers Arriving at US Ports

Germans to America - Passengers Arriving at US Ports Are you researching German immigrants to America during the 19th century? Germans to America, compiled and edited by Ira A. Glazier and P. William Filby, is a series of books which indexes passenger arrival records of ships carrying Germans to the U.S. ports of  Baltimore, Boston, New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia. It presently covers the  records of over 4 million passengers during  the period January 1850 through Jun 1897. Due to its inclusion criteria, this series is considered to be an incomplete- though fairly thorough- index to German passengers arriving in America during this period. The quality of the transcription varies, but the series is still an excellent research tool for tracking down German immigrant ancestors. If a listing is found in Germans to America, then the original passenger lists should be consulted, as they may contain further details.   Where to Find Germans to America The individual books in the Germans to America series  are fairly pricey, so the best research option is to either find a library with the series (most major genealogical libraries will have it), or locate a database version. The database version created by the Center for Immigration Studies at the Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies (the same group that created the published versions) was originally published on CD and is now available for free online from the National Archives and FamilySearch. It is unclear exactly how the data compiled in the Germans to America, 1850–1897 database relates directly to the published volumes.  NARA staff has found that there are ship manifests included in the database that are not included in the respective published volumes, and that there is also a difference in the covered time periods.   The Germans to America Series The first 9 volumes of the Germans to America series indexed only passenger lists of ships that contained at least 80% German passengers. Thus, a number of Germans who came over on ships from 1850–1855 are not included. Beginning with Volume 10, all ships with German passengers were included, regardless of the percentage. However, only those identifying themselves as German are listed; all other passenger names were not transcribed. Volumes 1–59 of Germans to America (through 1890) include arrivals to the major U.S. ports of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Boston and New Orleans. Beginning in 1891, Germans to America only includes arrivals to the port of New York. Some Baltimore arrivals are known to be missing from Germans to America- see  Why Some Baltimore Passenger Lists are Missing and How to Find Them  by Joe Beine for more information. Vol. 1 Jan 1850 - May 1851 Vol. 35 Jan 1880 - Jun 1880 Vol. 2 May 1851 - Jun 1852 Vol. 36 Jul 1880 - Nov 1880 Vol. 3 Jun 1852 - Sep 1852 Vol. 37 Dec 1880 - Apr 1881 Vol. 4 Sep 1852 - May 1853 Vol. 38 Apr 1881 - May 1881 Vol. 5 May 1853 - Oct 1853 Vol. 39 Jun 1881 - Aug 1881 Vol. 6 Oct 1853 - May 1854 Vol. 40 Aug 1881 - Oct 1881 Vol. 7 May 1854 - Aug 1854 Vol. 41 Nov 1881 - Mar 1882 Vol. 8 Aug 1854 - Dec 1854 Vol. 42 Mar 1882 - May 1882 Vol. 9 Dec 1854 - Dec 1855 Vol. 43 May 1882 - Aug 1882 Vol. 10 Jan 1856 - Apr 1857 Vol. 44 Aug 1882 - Nov 1882 Vol. 11 Apr 1857 - Nov 1857 Vol. 45 Nov 1882 - Apr 1883 Vol. 12 Nov 1857 - Jul 1859 Vol. 46 Apr 1883 - Jun 1883 Vol. 13 Aug 1859 - Dec 1860 Vol. 47 Jul 1883 - Oct 1883 Vol. 14 Jan 1861 - May 1863 Vol. 48 Nov 1883 - Apr 1884 Vol. 15 Jun 1863 - Oct 1864 Vol. 49 Apr 1884 - Jun 1884 Vol. 16 Nov 1864 - Nov 1865 Vol. 50 Jul 1884 - Nov 1884 Vol. 17 Nov 1865 - Jun 1866 Vol. 51 Dec 1884 - Jun 1885 Vol. 18 Jun 1866 - Dec 1866 Vol. 52 Jul 1885 - Apr 1886 Vol. 19 Jan 1867 - Aug 1867 Vol. 53 May 1886 - Jan 1887 Vol. 20 Aug 1867 - May 1868 Vol. 54 Jan 1887 - Jun 1887 Vol. 21 May 1868 - Sep 1868 Vol. 55 Jul 1887 - Apr 1888 Vol. 22 Oct 1868 - May 1869 Vol. 56 May 1888 - Nov 1888 Vol. 23 Jun 1869 - Dec 1869 Vol. 57 Dec 1888 - Jun 1889 Vol. 24 Jan 1870 - Dec 1870 Vol. 58 Jul 1889 - Apr 1890 Vol. 25 Jan 1871 - Sep 1871 Vol. 59 May 1890 - Nov 1890 Vol. 26 Oct 1871 - Apr 1872 Vol. 60 Dec 1890 - May 1891 Vol. 27 May 1872 - Jul 1872 Vol. 61 Jun 1891 - Oct 1891 Vol. 28 Aug 1872 - Dec 1872 Vol. 62 Nov 1891 - May 1892 Vol. 29 Jan 1873 - May 1873 Vol. 63 Jun 1892 - Dec 1892 Vol. 30 Jun 1873 - Nov 1873 Vol. 64 Jan 1893 - Jul 1893 Vol. 31 Dec 1873 - Dec 1874 Vol. 65 Aug 1893 - Jun 1894 Vol. 32 Jan 1875 - Sep 1876 Vol. 66 Jul 1894 - Oct 1895 Vol. 33 Oct 1876 - Sep 1878 Vol. 67 Nov 1895 - Jun 1897 Vol. 34 Oct 1878 - Dec 1879