TECHNOLOGICAL CONTROVERSY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

TECHNOLOGICAL CONTROVERSY - Essay Example As people use cell phone regularly and as it causes radiation it can cause cancer. The cell phone causing cancer is a controversial issue because some do not accept that this statement true. The scientific world has not gathered enough evidence to prove that cell phone can cause cancer. The assumption is based on the fact that the cell phone causes radiation. And radiation is a main reason for cancer. A continuous exposure to radiation is a fact that can convince the connection of cancer with cell phone use (NCI) .In theory, children have the potential to be at greater risk than adults for developing brain cancer from cell phones. Their nervous systems are still developing and therefore more vulnerable to factors that may cause cancer. So an examination of cell phone use and its effect on human body need to be studied. Scientists have been alerting people about the adverse effect of cell phone on humans. The fact is that the cell phone emits 1000 times higher than the base stations, and it has greater likelihood of causing problems to brain and upper part of human body. The epidemiological evidence suggests that there is an association between radio frequency emitted by wireless phones and head cancer. The radio frequency is classified by International Agency for Research on cancer as possibly carcinogens to humans. According to (Burrell 23-34 ) â€Å"A Swedish study on the use of wireless phones, including cell phones and cordless phones, has uncovered a link between electromagnetic radiation exposures and the risk of malignant and non-malignant brain tumors†. The studies reveal that the people who used cell phones for more than a year is at 70% risk of cancer and those who used cell phone for more than 1640 or more has 180% risk. The risk of cancer is greater in the part of the brain where cell phone was exposed. Many scientists have claimed that

Interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 6

Interview - Essay Example To begin with, her school, being all female offered all kinds of sports activities. These included but were not limited to swimming, basketball, volleyball, badminton, tennis, track and field, and Karate. Needless to say, almost all of the students participated in the school sanctioned sports activities. However, while some of them did it just for want of an activity to do after classes, there were those who took the sports seriously. These were the women who were considered â€Å"jocks† on campus and who sometimes found their sexuality called into question due to their diligence and dedication to their training programs. During her era, most of the women would go to the nearby soda shops and restaurants for a snack with their friends in order to unwind after a long day of classes. This is where the rest of the plans for their day were usually created. More often than not, this get together would continue either at a classmates house or at a nearby shopping area where they would look at entertainment magazines or see a movie. During her era, my interviewees favorite activity was going to the movies. She had always been a fan of Hollywood films and seeing those films helped her learn about the country and culture of the country that, unknown to her at the time, she would one day call her home. The 70s was the era of consciousness for the people in her country. For women of her age, sexual encounters were done but not spoken about openly for fear of social repercussion. There was a double standard of morality existing at that time for women. While men could openly discuss having sex with various women, women who engaged in sex needed to do it secretly and always with just one partner or else she would be deemed a woman of tremendously loose morals if word ever got out. Since my interviewees favorite activity when she was younger was going to the movies, she has been able to continue that activity of hers to this very day. Although

Nuclear Technology and Countries of the Persian Gulf Essay Example for Free

Nuclear Technology and Countries of the Persian Gulf Essay Nuclear energy has been used widely only for thirty years . In sixtieth it was an exotic source of power, researched by scientists, and widely discussed in press. Nowadays, as Ilan Lipper Jon Stone state in their article about nuclear powers and society, it is the second largest energy source in the U. S. There are more than 110 nuclear plants throughout the U. S, and they produce more energy than hydropower, oil or gas, researchers write. For the U. S nuclear energy became a cheap and relatively safe source of energy, and many countries decided to adopt American experience in this field. Today most European and Asian countries have nuclear plants that provide them with energy. Nevertheless, a question emerges which is whether it is safe to grant access to nuclear powers to countries of the Persian Gulf, like Iran, who are known for being aggressive and searching for the means to get weapons. Politicians and usual people all over the world are discussing this question. Their main fears are that nuclear power in wrong hands may be transformed into weapon, and thus harm the ecology severely. Discussions take place all over the world about the influence of nuclear power plants on the ecology. Some say that they are not safe, even when nuclear powers are used only as a source of energy, and not as a weapon. The thing is that nuclear power plants use radioactive materials like uranium and plutonium to produce energy, and there are toxic wastes left, the authors of encyclopedia entry on renewable energy source on NationMaster, a large statistical data source claim. They add that the results of one significant radiation leakage accident on Yucca Mountain were disastrous; so people should be really very careful when using nuclear energy as the source of electricity. In the same time, Ilan Lipper Jon Stone prove that the dangers of using nuclear power are overestimated. They state that unlike the wastes that stay after burning of coal, which stay toxic forever, nuclear wastes toxicity reduces with each passing day, as its elements are not stable. They prove that the amount of toxic wastes thrown into the air each year is less in the countries where nuclear plants are the main source of electricity, than in the countries where there are few or no nuclear plants. It is clearly seen that nuclear power is a very effective source of energy, and the damage it does to ecology in normal conditions is less than that of burning coal, or other means of getting electricity. Nevertheless human factor should not be forgotten. One serious human mistake is enough to let the effective and relatively safe nuclear power lead to disastrous consequences. In case an uncontrollable chain reaction emerges on the nuclear power plant, thousands of acres of lands and thousands of tons of water would be polluted, and the health of thousands of people would be damaged. The problem with nuclear power is that it is too powerful. When used correctly it can let governments save billions of dollars, as the energy produced by nuclear power plants is relatively cheap, and protect the environment from negative influence of toxic wastes other methods of getting electricity produce, but one mistake with nuclear power can lead to unpredictable and very serious consequences. Another serious problem with using nuclear power for producing energy is that the elements used for it can also be used for creating nuclear weapon. Human beings have always been at war with each other, and since prehistoric times they have been inventing more and more accomplished methods of murdering each other. On the present moment nuclear weapon is one of the most effective ones, along with bacteriological weapon. Nuclear weapon was used only two times in history, on Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. It slaughtered all the dwellers of these cities, and polluted the area so that people could not live there. More than sixty years passed, and still no one lives in these places. The consequences of using nuclear weapon were so disastrous and cruel that humans finally understood they had to stop. Most countries signed various agreements stating that they would not use and produce nuclear weapons. Still many countries have nuclear powers, either officially on non-officially, but no one comes to the scratch to use them. Everyone understands that the first bomb dropped will became the end of the world we all live in. Nuclear weapon is so powerful that dozen bombs dropped can slaughter several millions of people, depending on bombs’ sizes. The country which became the target of the nuclear attack will fight back with nuclear weapon murdering people and making land unfit to live on. That is why the issue of giving nuclear power to aggressive countries like those of the Persian Gulf is so debatable. The leaders of these countries state they need nuclear power in order to make the life of their people better, enhance their economy and protect ecology. For example, Iranian scientists prove that the oil and gas resources Iran has are not enough for satisfying the countries need of electricity, as the plants that recycle them to get electricity are out dated, with tons of equipment broken. The article published in Herald Tribune states that the demand on electricity is getting bigger with each passing year, and using non-renewable resources like oil for satisfying it is not rational, and, moreover, dangerous for the country’s ecology. They add that 57 of 60 oil fields need major repairs and modernization in order to produce enough oil to satisfy the demand in electricity. In general their viewpoint is easy to understand, as they want to use the cheap and relatively safe method of getting electricity most European and American countries use. In the same time Iranian aggressive politics towards other countries makes everyone suspect that they can use nuclear powers in purposes other than producing electricity. Giacomo Luciani, the Director of Gulf Research Center, states in his article â€Å"The Gulf Countries and Nuclear Energy† that the resources of oil are scarce in Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman. He proves that soon there will not be enough of oil there to satisfy the existing demand in electricity. He adds that the restrictions USA and its allies impose on Persian Gulf countries in the issue of nuclear energy put their industries from adequate development. Luciani reminds that there are some industries within these countries, like aluminium smelting and water desalination that are of crucial importance to this region, and to other countries. His viewpoint is that given that Persian Gulf countries are gradually becoming industrial ones it is not rational to deprive them of the means to get cheap electricity, which is essential for all industrial fields. â€Å"The key to success is exactly in viewing nuclear technology as an economic, not a political or security choice. † – says Luciani. Nevertheless, given the political situation in this region the question of granting access to nuclear power cannot be viewed as an economic issue only. Some of the leaders of these countries are too ambitious to be satisfied with current situation. Of course most people who vote for creating nuclear power plants in Iran, Dahrain and other countries of this region in fact want to provide electricity. Their goal is to help develop industry in this region, in order to provide well-being to its dwellers. Meanwhile one person in power who desires control would be enough to create nuclear power plants to security threat. There are no warranties that the leaders of these countries will not be able to access nuclear power plants, as their powers in their countries are almost unlimited. In addition, terroristic groups functioning in Persian Gulf region should not be forgotten. Terrorists are people who are ready for anything to reach their goals; murdering thousands of people is not an ethical problem for them; again, there is no warranty they will not be able to access elements used for nuclear reactions on plants producing electricity. Nuclear energy is a relatively safe and cheap source of electricity nowadays. Most American and European countries use it. Some economists see nuclear plants as a universal solution for satisfying the demand in electricity. Meanwhile there are aspects about nuclear energy that have to be considered when using it. Using nuclear power may be dangerous, as an uncontrollable chain reaction may occur, and lead to nuclear explosion. In the same time the danger exists that nuclear powers may be used to create nuclear weapons. This fear is one of the main obstacles for giving Iran and other countries of the Persian Gulf access to nuclear powers. Researchers prove it would be beneficial for their economy, but, given the current political situation in that region, the decision cannot be the purely economical one. At the moment giving nuclear powers to Persian Gulf countries is too dangerous for the well-being of all the people in the world. References 1. Lipper, I. , Stone, J. (1998). Nuclear Energy Society. Earth and Society Interaction Project. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www. umich. edu/~gs265/society/nuclear. htm 2. Luciani, G. (2007). The Gulf Countries and Nuclear Energy. Gulf Monitor, 6(20-23). Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www. grc. ae/data/contents/uploads/Gulf_Monitor_no_6_3450. pdf 3. Renewable Energy Source. (2005). Nation Master Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www. nationmaster. com/encyclopedia/Renewable-energy-source#Is_nuclear_energy_renewable. 3F 4. Sahimi, M. , Mojtahed-Zadeh, P. , Afrasiabi, K. L. (2003, October 14). Energy : Iran needs nuclear power. International Herald Tribune. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www. iht. com/articles/2003/10/14/edsahimi_ed3_. php

On Ageing by Maya Angelou Essay Example for Free

On Ageing by Maya Angelou Essay Warning by jenny joseph is a humorous way of looking towards old age. It is written as a monologue within which the poet describes how she will behave when she is an old woman. In The first stanza she talks about herself and lists all the things she will do when she is old. She says she will wear the colours purple and red which are significant in the fact that they are bright garish colours. The two colours clash with each other and would not be put together by someone who cares about keeping up their appearance. One of the main themes to this poem is the idea of rebelling against the way society expects you to behave and the idea of not conforming therefore she decides to deliberately make a statement with her appearance by wearing clashing colours to show rebellion against the idea of everyone looking the same- everyone conforming. This idea of rebellion is further emphasised when she says I shall spend my pension on brandy and say weve no money for butter. She has decided that she is going to be deliberately difficult and irresponsible. She is desperate to rebel against the norms of responsible adulthood and change the way she has always been escape from the sobriety of my youth . The acts she chooses are harmless and humorous and she will be likely to get away with them as people will think she is senile. The fact that all of these things are what she wants to do in the future shows that she has never done this before and so she could be saying that old age is the time for freedom and to escape from the rules in society. However this could also show that she is only able to do these things with the excuse of being elderly. She would never feel comfortable to break the rules without having the excuse of being senile etc hence why she is waiting until old age to do these things showing that she is still trapped in the rules of society. This shows the underlying more depressing image behind the humour that society doesnt allow for freedom and the message of how the pressure there is to conform prevents you from being yourself. All of the lines in the poem run on with a quick pace into each other reflecting the excitement and anticipation for the things she talks about doing. Throughout she repeats and and I which also adds to the pace and energy of the poem. The second stanza itself is one long sentence in which she directly addresses the reader with words of encouragement. She wants other people to feel and be able to do whatever they like without worrying about the social pressures of conformity, she could be thinking that if everyone does this then eventually those pressures will not be a problem anymore.

Review of literature

Review of literature REVIEW OF LITERATURE Porters (1980) segmentation analysis has plenty of value to describe competition amongst participants. This approach establishes how and by which means positions of dominance are achieved. Studies based on this methodology have been applied to banking to assess the competitive process. Finlay (2000) suggested that Market Penetration fits strategically for a firm when current markets are not saturated for the types of offer the firm is making and its present customers can be induced to buy more. And typically, when a company wants to attack the market share of the competitors, they will undertake market penetration as a way of increasing their own share in the market. Similarly, Oster (1994) contended that the size of the market share held by the firm as well as the size of the major firms in the market are important considerations. He suggests that firms with relatively small market shares can increase their market share many times over without adversely affecting the overall market share of a large market leader. A study by Philp Robert, Haynes Paula, Helms Marilyn (1992) stated that growth through a market penetration strategy, reaching and influencing customers already served, has proved to be a less profitable course of action than expected. This strategy failed to achieve the projected growth not because of the basic plan itself, but rather due to its improper implementation. Financial service providers have typically viewed their primary customer base as males between 30 and 50 years old (Bartos, 1982). These men are seen as the primary wage earners and decision makers for financial planning in their households. Hence, this segment has been considered golden geese of the financial market. While some growth was achieved through the introduction of new financial products and services, the financial services needs of women and of consumers over 50 years of age were blurred for the financial service providers (Javalgi et al., 1990). (Schiele, 1974) suggested that a â€Å"Net† approach should be used to catch the youth market as they drift downstream from adolescence to adulthood. The research findings indicated that this is a simplification of reality and that a number of interrelated streams exist before young people reach the pond of adulthood, at which they are likely to be locked into a financial service organisation. Hence, in the highly competitive retail financial marketplace, it is more critical than ever to narrowly define the markets financial service provider can serve. Differentiation through claims of excellent customer service fails to provide competitive distinctiveness, particularly to key segments of the existing customer base. Many banks, over the years, have relied on intermediaries like DSAs, DSTs to reach out to the customers. Jensen-Macklin (1976) or Diamond (1984) in their studies have tried to justify the existence and effects of intermediaries. For them agents exist to reduce moral hazard and asymmetric information. There are different means adopted by the organizations to increase the number of services availed by the customers. Cross-selling is the practice of promoting additional products and services to existing customers in addition to the ones a customer currently has (Butera, 2000). The interest in cross-selling is due to its advantages for firms. Specifically, the selling of additional services to existing customers could reduce the need to spend money on customer acquisition (e.g. advertising) and lead to a pricing advantage over competitors (Reichheld and Sasser, 1990). It is reasonable to expect that customers with strong repurchase intentions will also be likely to cross-buy from the same service provider. This is consistent with the view that it is easier to cross-sell new services to existing customers than to the new ones. Study conducted by (Day, 2000), suggested that although customers may want to engage in a relationship with a service provider, they may not want to have all th eir services provided by that single provider For some service categories, customers intrinsically develop a multi-brand loyalty (Jacoby and Chestnut, 1978). For example, in the banking industry most households use two or more financial providers. (Reichheld, 1996; Anderson and Mittal, 2000). Howley John, Savage Grahame (1980) in their paper titled, â€Å"Bank marketing in the Personal Sector† discuss about Cross-selling, whereby having opened a current account, customers are sold loans, travel facilities, insurance and other services for further banking penetration of each customer. At the same time, there is a word of caution as well saying that theres undoubtedly great potential here, but there are dangers of placing too much emphasis on peripheral activities to the overall corporate purpose of being a bank. Raj Arora (2008) focussed on yet another important strategy to increase sales to existing customers Price Bundling. The study points out that the intent of bundle pricing is to increase sales by offering a discount when a pre-specified bundle of items is purchased at the same time. Usually, the additional items in the bundle are those that are complementary to the main product. The assumption is that the bundle priced items offer more value and are therefore more attractive to the buyer. The seller makes the buyer aware that the buyer is getting a bargain in the bundle because if the items are purchased separately, the aggregate price far exceeds the bundle price (Yadav and Monroe, 2003). While price bundling is frequently used by marketers, its effectiveness needs more research especially when used with other marketing variables. Murphy Ruth, Bruce Margaret (2003) stated that internet can be used to sell more existing products into existing markets. This can be achieved by using internet for increasing awareness of the firm. Bloch et al. (1996) proposed that e-commerce offers cost advantages to firms via less expensive product promotions. They also advocate that e-commerce can enable a company to implement customer focus strategies through better customer relationships. If the internet segment continues to grow and the branch banking segment shrinks, more customers will be using Internet banks and fewer customers using Branch banks (Heffernan 1996). But evidence also suggests that many companies have engaged in e-commerce activity, whether it is on a business to business or business to consumer basis (B2C), without any consideration towards a return on investment (Damanpour and Madison, 2001). One of the reasons for this may be that many businesses fear that without an Internet presence, the firm will get lef t behind. Hence a number of companies have turned their focus towards e-commerce, often by emulating the business module of another firm, as â€Å"me too† entities. Stafford David, King Susan (1982) stated that Marketing strategies which have been important to recent bank development include branch rationalisation and refurbishment, and promotional activities, especially advertising. Price competition has not yet achieved major importance between the big four and so price structures do tend to be relatively stable and similar between banks. A similar view shared by Neven (1990) and Vives (1991) is that banks, especially retail banks, do not compete in price but in service quality. RESEARCH GAP GOOD WAY TO MAKE GAPS Thus, we observe a number of important gaps in the literature. First, our knowledge is deficient on which foreign market entry modes service firms apply, and similarly, on target market selection. Next, it is also important to investigate if there are systematic differences within service industries in foreign market entry mode selection. Finally, are the internationalization theories and models developed for manufacturing industries applicable to firms in service industries? Or, is the internationalization process of services so unique that there is a need to develop separate theory to explain the internationalization of service firms? OBJECTIVES 1. To measure the penetration of banking products in different demographic profiles. 2. To find the neglected niches in existing markets served by the banks. 3. To identify and compare the means that public private sector banks adopt to attract new customers in existing market. 4. To study the consumer preference regarding the means that banks adopt to attract new customers in existing market. 5. To investigate and compare the methods used by public private sector banks to increase number of services availed by the customers. 6. To study the consumer preference regarding the methods used by banks to increase number of services availed by the customers. 7. To determine ways to increase usage rate of services consumed by the customers. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Tentative The study will be based on Primary as well as secondary data both with their well known limitations. For collection of data from customers, Stratified Random Sampling will be used. Convenience Sampling will be used for collection of data from the employees as the data will be collected as per availability and convenience. / Structured Interviews The secondary data has and will be collected from various sources such as International Journal of Bank Marketing, Indian Bankers Association Journal, magazines, research papers, books, internet websites etc. Scope of the study: Two Public Sector Banks – Punjab Sind Bank and State Bank of India have been selected for the study. ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank will form part of Private Sector Banks selected for study. Study will be carried out in different areas of Punjab. Universe of the study: Bank employees as well as the customers visiting the bank will be the universe of the study. Sample: Only the employees of the bank working at â€Å"Manager† designation and above will form the sample of the study. For purpose of collection of data from customers, every third customer walking into the bank will form part of the study. Sample size: The respondent data will be collected from 200 customers out of which hundred customers will be taken from public sector banks and rest from private sector banks. Number of employees of banks to be contacted for information will be 40. Out of this, twenty employees will be from Public Sector Banks and rest twenty would be private sector bank employees. Hence, the number of employees from each bank will be ten. Collection of Data: For the purpose of collection of data, two set of questionnaires will be prepared. First questionnaire will help in knowing the strategies being adopted by the banks to increase Market Penetration and would be filled by the bankers. Second questionnaire, to be filled by the customers will be used to collect preferences of customers related to various strategies being adopted by banks to increase Market Penetration. Analysis and Interpretation: The analysis will be done on the basis of review of existing literature and information collected through questionnaires filled by the employees and customers of the Public and Private sector banks. Microsoft Excel and other appropriate statistical tools will be used for Data Analysis. TENTATIVE CHAPTER SCHEME Chapter I Introduction Chapter II Review of literature Chapter III Need, Objectives, Research Methodology Chapter IV Overview of Indian Banking System * Public Sector Banks * Private Sector Banks Chapter V Growth Strategies * Market Penetration * Product Development * Market Development * Diversification Chapter VI Market Penetration in Public Private Sector Banks Chapter VII Data Presentation Analysis Chapter VIII Findings Conclusion Recommendations Appendix Questionnaire Bibliography REFERENCES http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/market-penetration.html as on Jan 28, 2010. http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/india/article.cfm?articleid=4145, Jan11, 2007 as on Jan 31, 2010 Ansoff, I. (1965), Corporate Strategy, McGraw-Hill, New York, NY Title: Bank Marketing Strategies Author(s): Arthur Meidan Journal: International Journal of Bank Marketing Year: 1983 Volume: 1 Issue: 2 Page: 3 17 Banks to get sops for rural reach 3 Oct 2009, 0307 hrs IST, Anto Antony, ET Bureau http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/public-sector-banks-gain-market-share/383014/ David Stafford and Susan King, Bank Competition and Advertising by David C. Stafford, The Advertising Association, 1982 write references of foll. Articles in Emerald – A survey of critical factors in e-Banking Bank marketing Strategies P. Robert Philp, Paula J. Haynes and Marilyn M. Helms FINANCIAL SERVICE STRATEGIES: NEGLECTED NICHES International Journal of Bank Marketing, Vol. 10 No. 2, 1992, pp. 25-28 Title: Bank Marketing in the Personal Sector Author(s): John C. Howley, Grahame P. Savage Journal: Managerial Finance Year: 1980 Volume: 5 Issue: 3 Page: 271 276 Ruth Murphy and Margaret Bruce, Strategy, accountability, e-commerce and the consumer, Managerial Auditing Journal, 18/3 (2003) pg 193-201 www.emeraldinsight.com/1061-0421.htm Price bundling and framing strategies for complementary products Raj Arora University of Missouri – Kansas City, Kansas City, Kansas, USA Journal of Product Brand Management 17/7 (2008) 475–484 Yadav, M.S. and Monroe, K.B. (2003), â€Å"How buyers perceive savings in a bundle price: an examination of a bundles transaction value†, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 30 No. 3, pp. 350-8 Butera, A. (2000), â€Å"Cross-selling: capitalizing on the opportunities†, Hoosier Bank, Vol. 87 No. 7, pp. 14-16. Reichheld, F.F. (1996), The Loyalty Effect: The Hidden Force behind Growth, Profits and Lasting Value, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA. Reichheld, F.F. and Sasser, W.E. (1990), â€Å"Zero defections: quality comes to services†, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 68 No. 5, pp. 105-11. Anderson, E.W. and Mittal, V. (2000), â€Å"Strengthening the satisfaction-profit chain†, Journal of Service Research, Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 107-20. Day, G.S. (2000), â€Å"Managing market relationships†, Journal of Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 28 No. 1, pp. 24-30. Jacoby, J. and Chestnut, R.W. (1978), Brand Loyalty, John Wiley Sons, New York, NY. Schiele, G.W. (1974), How to Reach the Young Customer, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 52, March-April, pp. 77-86. http://www.answers.com/topic/market-penetration-2 as on Feb 28, 2010

The War of the Stars :: Essays Papers

The War of the Stars In 1975, a young director named George Lucas wrote the story of the rise and fall of Anakin Skywalker. The story was so long that it had to be broken up into a pair of trilogies, the first trilogy focusing on Anakin himself and the second focusing on his son, Luke. He determined the second trilogy to be the most exciting and resolved to film that one first. Unbeknownst to Lucas, he was creating what would soon become one of the most widely recognized and revered science fiction epics of all time. The epic is known to all, young and old, as Star Wars. The incredible popularity of the Star Wars universe was surprising to Lucas when he first made it. In fact, every producer he proposed the idea to rejected it, except for one: Twentieth Century Fox. At this time, science fiction (also called sci-fi) was not in any respects a profitable movie idea, but Lucas was determined to make his film. The executives of Twentieth Century Fox had seen Lucas’s previous film, American Graffiti, and vowed to produce Lucas’s next movie. Lucas made a deal with Fox that would end up making Lucas a multi-millionaire. The deal seemed so ridiculous to Fox that they thought they were ripping him off. In 1977, the first film of the second trilogy, Star Wars: A New Hope, was released, smashing box offices across the country and soon becoming the most successful film in North American history. In 1978, Lucas began production of the second chapter of the trilogy, The Empire Strikes Back. He financed the film out of his own pockets. The movie was released in 1980 and again smashed box offices, becoming the most successful movie of 1980. Soon thereafter, Lucas made The Return of the Jedi, the final chapter in the trilogy. It was released in 1983 and grossed over 265 million dollars. Just before its completion, however, Lucas announced that he was leaving the Star Wars project for another time, when computer generated effects were more advanced and cost-effective. For the next sixteen years, even without new films, the Star Wars universe continued to expand, gaining more fans every year. Many books telling the tales of the future and past of Star Wars were published. A handful of cartoon shows appeared on television, although none were overly successful.

Intellectual Property :: Star Trek Trekkie Websites Essays

Intellectual Property As I begin this narrative, readers will have to understand that I have been and always will be a Trekkie. The very first movie I was ever taken to see was Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. I was six months old and I did nothing but scream the entire time, but the fascination has nonetheless been there my entire life, and there is no twelve-step program to help me recover. That having been said, you might have some degree of understanding when I say that Viacom’s attempts in 1997 to eliminate all use of copyrighted material on fan sites, ranging from still pictures to movie and sound clips to the logos themselves, was war for me. For Viacom, the issue was that these copyrighted images were used at all. This spawned a whole host of further crackdowns and lawsuits in similar kingdoms of fanatics across the web. The situation I just described to you, while probably not the best example of the internet’s general abuse of intellectual property, is one of the earliest examples. Proper accreditation and documentation is a widespread problem on the internet, particularly now that the internet has grown in use and popularity. The internet hosts websites that directly violate the concept of intellectual property in ways that no other tool ever can. If copyrighted graphics or sound appear on any website trying to convey a message, particularly if these are recognizable to an average member of the site’s target audience, the validity of that argument is subconsciously undermined by the unaccredited presence of someone else’s ideas. For web writers, one solution to this dilemma seems to be to avoid copyrighted material as much as possible and create original content. â€Å"This content does not need to be entirely dissimilar from a copyrighted work you would have liked to use. Copyright law protects the expression of ideas, not the ideas themselves† (Farkas & Farkas 349). But this solution creates problems with recreational forms of websites. Those built by fans of a popular TV show, for instance, have no personal photos of their favorite actors and actresses and inevitably rely on scanned publicity photos and content from official sites to populate their galleries and create their custom graphics. This example might then fall under the fair use defense, which â€Å"has to make the case that [use] of the copyrighted work of another should be legally permitted, notwithstanding the copyright owner's exclusive rights in her work† (George Washington).