Concepts, characteristics, and models of B2B and sales from catalogs

Abstract Firms have recognized the ability of B2B e-commerce to act as a hub by connecting businesses in an electronic marketplace. This has led to an increment in the number of firms doing their business operations in electronic way. The e-commerce has transformed business activities that were previously constrained by locations, costs, and time. Business professionals believe that the e-commerce shall eventually transform supply and value chains with effective solutions that can enhance efficiency in specific business processes.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Concepts, characteristics, and models of B2B and sales from catalogs specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Introduction Business-to-business (B2B) companies deal directly with other businesses instead of individuals consumers. E-business provides opportunity for firms to handle their operations directly with others in the supply chain because all tran sactions take place on an online platform. B2B enhances the relationship between various organizations for mutually advantageous results. The Internet has offered firms the opportunity to connect with other firms anywhere. This has promoted competition and increased delivery of services. The B2B model assists in enhancing the level of efficiency operations and quality in services without extra costs, and it makes transaction simple at any time and place. The B2B model focuses on four main areas. These include developing strong direct business relationships, improving operational efficiency, promoting business growth, and matching business competition in the marketplace. An online business model has allowed firms to conduct their operations efficiently and enhance timeliness and correctness of business transactions. Thus, they have been able to eliminate errors that result from wrong inputs and subsequent deliveries. Firms also connect directly to their suppliers, which enable them t o develop their relationships and brand images. B2B Concepts B2B e-commerce takes place electronically via the â€Å"Internet, extranets, intranets, or private networks† (Loshin, 2005). It is also known as â€Å"eB2B (electronic B2B) or just B2B† (Loshin, 2005). The three major forms of B2B e-commerce models are mainly transactional, process, and strategic relationships. The transactional model focuses on a given online approach for doing transactions within the supply chain. In addition, it applies the same approach to the whole system. Process-based B2B model takes place between two firms with a common business process. The process enhances efficiency between the two organizations. Strategic relationship model may comprise of two or more firms that have connected their business systems and processes in most areas of business operations.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Firms have adopted e-business because of the inherent values in the technology. The system saves time, reduces costs, workforce, and eliminates most of the errors in business processes. Figure 1: B2B e-commerce models Key business drivers for B2B There are three main factors, which drive e-commerce. These are economic forces, changes in marketing and interactions with customers, and development in technology. Economic forces are mainly evident in areas of cost reduction, efficiency in processes due to availability of technology, low-costs, increased speed in transactions, low costs of sharing and advertising the business, and availability of affordable customer service tools. Economic integration can take place both inside and outside a firm. Externally, integration involves electronic links with other organizations, suppliers, customers, and other business partners. These entities communicate virtually in a single environment in which the Internet is the mode of communication. Conversely, internal integration involves a network of different business units within the firm. A networked system of operations and processes provide effective way of document storage in electronic formats, which allow business departments to transmit information instantly. Corporate intranet is the best example of internal integration of operations and processes among various business units in a firm. This is common in major firms like Cisco, Nestle, IBM, and Intel among others. Marketing forces are responsible for the growth of e-commerce. The aim is to get attention of the global market through marketing and promotion. In this regard, the Internet has been an effective tool for improving customer services and support. Firms have noted that it is simple to provide business information through the Internet to their global customer base.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Concepts, characteristics, and models of B2B and sales from catal ogs specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The innovation in technology has been responsible for the rapid growth of the e-commerce. For instance, the development in document and data manipulation through digitalization, data transformation, integration, and resolution together with rise in open system technologies have strived to provide a single platform for communication. As a result, communication between partners has become efficient, easy, affordable, and fast as the need to create new forms of communications become irrelevant. For firms, customers, and their partners the possibility of relying on a single platform of communication offers the advantage of a streamed communication method. Technology has enhanced the concept of universal access, as most communication methods become convergence. High costs of setting communication channels like landline in areas with few customers have been a disincentive to many communication firms who focus on return on investment. Direct Sales from Catalogs Businesses usually have â€Å"one catalog for all customers and a customized catalog for each large customer† (Loshin, 2005) with aim of providing an opportunity for efficient customization of services. A direct sale is a company-based B2B model that concentrates on selling products and services. The supplier displays products and services on the catalog alongside a site for selling. The seller is a distributor or manufacturer who deals with several clients. Transactions take place via the Web site, which may be a Web-based platform for large firms or an extranet for small entities. In some cases, small entities have their own secured Web sites for conducting their business transactions. Firms may rely on direct selling through their â€Å"electronic catalogs requests for proposal (RFP), and selling via forward auctions, and or one-to-one dealing under a long-term contract† (Nguyen, 2009). The B2B direct selling allows firms to get the advantage of speedy business processes and elimination of rampant cases of errors. Such firms also have the advantage of reducing â€Å"order processing costs, logistics costs, and paperwork, especially the reduction of buyers’ search costs in finding sellers, competitive prices, and the reduction of sellers’ search costs in advertising to interested buyers† (Nguyen, 2009). Most multinational firms such as Dell and Cisco conduct their business with other organizations through secured online channels in which they can get all the order details as requested by a client.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Businesses have the opportunity to explore the entire catalog, select items, customize the list, save, and send for internal authorization prior to initiating an order. In addition, the platform offers tracking features, which allow customers to track and know the status of their order during the transaction. Still, customers can still track their orders during shipment. In direct sales catalog, a firm may pay fees or commissions for other entities that provided support and value-added services, but this usually depends on whether the distributor has not catered for such costs. A direct sale from catalogs has some limitations, which include â€Å"attracting buyers, channel conflicts, the method of electronic indication, and the required scale to operate efficiently† (Nguyen, 2009). In addition, there might be costs associated with value-added services and hosting services. In 2011, Endeca, a part of Oracle since 2012, conducted a study on the state of the B2B e-commerce in or der to assist other organizations improve their operations and processes. The study established that the â€Å"B2B online catalog and direct sales force continued to be key channels used by customers for decision-making† (Oracle-Endeca, 2012) as mobile platforms also gained a rate of significant growth as compared to previous studies. Merits of B2B e-commerce Businesses have touted the B2B business model as an innovative method of conducting business through the Internet. The model offers effective, efficient, and competitive advantages to users. Generally, the B2B e-commerce allows organizations to gain access to the global marketplace. Business transaction through the Internet has provided several opportunities for sellers and buyers to overcome challenges of time and geography. The system eliminates rampant cases of human errors and support real-time communication between organizations. In addition, Web-based communications have eliminated the need for costly modes of comm unication because businesses in the e-marketplace can afford the Internet. This model has addressed efficiently and effectively challenges associated with the supply chain management between entities. Business can control their supply chains in different processes in making the order (Kalakota and Robinson, 1999). It ends in effective coordination of business activities. The B2B e-commerce strengthens partnership between parties through supply chain management and sharing information for mutual benefits of all parties. In addition, the model has been effective tool for addressing customer relationship management and retention. An effective model helps firms in establishing loyal customers who get value and quality services from the firm. Limitations of B2B e-Commerce There are some challenges with the B2B e-commerce model. Some of these challenges include conflicts within the system, justification for high initial costs, integration challenges with partners who may be on different p latforms, and issues of trust among organizations because of sensitive information shared (Laudon Traver, 2007). In addition, Mohanbir Sawhney noted that most businesses executed their B2B models on a wrong concept (Sawhney, 2002). In most cases, firms already have established networks on managing their supplies. Therefore, if a firm adopts the B2B model, then it must change its operations and systems. Still, the other partners must also change their systems for compatibility. This situation may result in conflicts. The B2B e-commerce may not optimize its revenue generation due to a limited number of transactions. Thus, firms must generate enough revenues from few clients to cater for expenses. Justifying the need for such technologies may be difficult. A firm that has a sufficient number of customers, an established brand, and good prices can experience a thriving selling-side e-commerce. On buying-side, the volume of the trade should be enough to cover all costs in the business. Companies can reduce costs by outsourcing hosting services and value-added supports to its clients. This eliminates the need for running expensive systems. Integration with other systems is also technical aspects that may hinder B2B e-commerce model. Therefore, working with compatible software is necessary to avert operational challenges. New ventures may require initial a large number of buyers and seller to make them viable. However, this may be a challenge as the volume of transactions may not be enough to sustain and justify the costs. Therefore, a venture must have a substantial liquidity to fund the business before the volume of trade can increase. The B2B e-commerce involves â€Å"a full range of services, such as credit verification, insurance, payment, and delivery, is needed to attract small and medium businesses† (Nguyen, 2009). Verification is necessary because of online trading risks. Therefore, businesses would only trade with online firms, which can provide sec urity of their data. Firms must also promote high standards of business ethics in order to develop trust with partners. This also requires effective security measures for privacy and safety of partners. Conclusion Oracle-Endeca research indicated that the growth of B2B e-commerce has grown significantly. However, the model requires innovative approaches in order to thrive. Most businesses have limited their model to buying and selling. However, the model can also cover other areas like â€Å"collaborative commerce(c-commerce) and product life cycle maintenance in a Web-based system to meet final consumer demand by sharing information on product design, production planning, and forecasting or coordination† (Nguyen, 2009). Effective implementation of the model can eliminate challenges associated with the supply chain management and value creation. Most of the B2B e-commerce models face serious challenges of liquidity during initial stages. While some have been able to find buye rs and sellers, the challenge of â€Å"improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the processes by which they interact with existing suppliers and partners† (Sawhney, 2002) has emerged. This problem has escalated to other partners in the chain. The solution for B2B e-commerce is in effective software and solutions for improving business transactions in â€Å"specific business process† (Sawhney, 2002). References Kalakota, R. and Robinson, M. (1999). e-Business: Roadmap for Success. Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley. Laudon, C., Traver G.C. (2007). E-commerce: Business, Technology, Society (3rd Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Loshin, P. (2005). Electronic Commerce. New Delhi: Laxmi Publications. Nguyen, D.-D. (2009). Business-to-Business (B2B) Internet Business Models – 2008. Retrieved from http://www.csun.edu/~dn58412/B2B_Models2008.pdf Oracle-Endeca. (2012). 2012 B2B E-Commerce Survey: Results and Trends. Redwood Shores, CA: Oracle Corporation. Saw hney, M. (2002). B2B: Execution of the Concept Is Key to Success. Retrieved from https://www.cio.com/article/2440810/b2b–execution-of-the-concept-is-key-to-success.html This research paper on Concepts, characteristics, and models of B2B and sales from catalogs was written and submitted by user C00per to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. 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An Overview of Chinas Traffic Troubles

An Overview of China's Traffic Troubles China hasn’t always had a problem with traffic, but over the past couple of decades, as China rapidly urbanizes, the country’s urban denizens have had to adapt their lives to a new phenomenon: gridlock. How Bad Is China’s Traffic Problem? It’s really bad. You may have heard about the China National Highway 10 traffic jam on the news back in 2010; it was 100 kilometers long and lasted ten days, involving thousands of cars. But outside of the mega-jams, most cities are plagued with daily traffic that rivals the worst gridlock in Western cities. And thats despite a plethora of affordable public transportation options and anti-traffic legislation in many cities that mandates (for example) that cars with even and odd-numbered license plates must drive on alternating days, so only half of the city’s cars can legally take to the road at any given time. Of course, China’s urban traffic jams are also a major factor in its pollution problems. Why Is Traffic in China so Bad? There are a number of reasons for China’s traffic congestion woes: Like most older cities around the world, many of Chinas cities were not designed for cars. They were also not designed to support the massive populations they now boast (Beijing, for example, has more than 20 million people). As a result, in many cities, the roads are simply not big enough.Cars are considered a status symbol. In China, buying a car often isn’t as much about convenience as it is about showing that you can buy a car because you’re enjoying a successful career. Lots of white-collar workers in Chinese cities who might otherwise be satisfied with public transportation buy cars in the name of keeping up with (and impressing) the Joneses, and once they’ve got the cars, they feel obliged to use them.China’s roads are full of new drivers. Even a decade ago, cars were far less common than they are now, and if you go back in time twenty years. China didn’t break the two million vehicle mark until around the year 2000, but a decade later it had more than five million. That means that at any time, a significant percentage of the people driving on China’s roads only have a few years of experience. Sometimes, that leads to questionable driving decisions, and that can cause gridlock when those decisions lead to blocked roads for one reason or another. China’s driver education is not great. Driver education schools often only teach driving on closed courses, so new graduates are literally taking to the roads for the first time when they get behind the wheel. And because of corruption in the system, some new drivers haven’t taken any classes at all. As a result, China has a lot of accidents: its traffic fatality rate per 100,000 cars is 36, which is more than double the United States, and several times more than European countries like the UK, France, Germany, and Spain (which all have rates under 10).There are just too many people. Even with great driver education, wider roads, and fewer people buying cars, traffic jams would still be likely in a city like Beijing, which is host to more than twenty million people. What Does the Chinese Government Do About Traffic? The government has worked hard to create public transportation infrastructure that takes pressure off cities roads. Nearly every major city in China is building or expanding a subway system, and the prices of these systems are often subsidized to make them extremely enticing. Beijing’s subway, for example, costs as little as 3 RMB ($0.45 as of March 2019). Chinese cities also generally have extensive bus networks, and there are buses going virtually everywhere you could imagine. The government has also worked to improve long-distance travel, building new airports and rolling out a massive network of high-speed trains designed to get people where they’re going faster and keep them off the highways. Finally, city governments have also taken restrictive measures to limit the number of cars on the road, like Beijing’s even-odd rule, which stipulates that only cars with even- or odd-numbered license plates can be on the road on any given day (it alternates). What Do Regular People Do About Traffic? They avoid it as best they can. People who want to get where they’re going quickly and reliably generally take public transportation if they’re traveling in a city around rush hour. Biking is also a common way of avoiding the gridlock if you’re headed somewhere nearby. People also tend to be accommodating when it comes to the realities of rush-hour traffic in China; taxis, for example, often pick up more than one passenger at a time during busy hours to ensure they’re not spending hours sitting in traffic with a single fare. And Chinese subways get jam-packed with passengers during rush hour. It’s uncomfortable, but people have put it with it. Spending 30 minutes getting home in an uncomfortable subway car beats spending 3 hours in a slightly-more-comfortable regular car, at least for most people.

Family Communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Family Communication - Essay Example When considering verbal messages, which helps family members to understand each other in a better light, it helps to build better relationships within the family. Current research carried out utilizes first person narratives and other family functions to analyze patterns of interactions carried out within the family.It also examines the communication processes of different family members in relation to its ethnic patterns, structure, and their progressive experiences which in turn affect and is affected by the society at large. Understanding the patterns of verbal messages within the family is a great asset to its members and this is partly achieved by understanding communication within the family because it is the communication that shapes and is shaped by family relationships. For example, a couple who attends marriage education classes would be in a better position to communicate with each other on a much better level both verbally and non–verbally. Therefore by changing th eir communication habits after marriage, it would have a major positive effect on their relationship, not only with each other but towards other members in thefamily. Another example of this would be of siblings growing close to each other when they lose both parents. They learn to communicate with each other verbally by sharing all their joys and sufferings even after they marry and move away from each other.Non-abusive parents use more verbal â€Å"time-outs, privilege denials, and explanation of consequences to discipline their children.

One Page Response on 'Wayward Puritans' by KAI ERIKSON Essay

One Page Response on 'Wayward Puritans' by KAI ERIKSON - Essay Example One classic example to this is cannibalism. Most societies deem this as immoral but there are few communities that practice it thinking that eating their enemies will strengthen them, or similar to that line. The article enlightened my perspective in understanding deviant behavior. A group has subjective boundaries, something that changes through time depending on the experiences and situation that they are subjected to. These experiences become the string that attaches each member to each other, forming the community’s spirit and conformity. These experiences also set the behaviors that conforms and deviates with the group. It is important to note that when someone behaves differently from the group, it does not automatically mean that they are deviant. There are still levels of deviance that the group tolerates, being expected deviance such as teenagers behaving raucously. With this, the study of deviance revolves not one the individual that behaves differently but on the re actions and responses of the group that the individual belongs to. Deviance has and will always be part of our lives. I may have done deviant deeds but not to the extent that the group will shun me and discriminate me. This opened my eyes that our actions will always depend on our social environment.

Provide an analysis of the segmentation, targeting and positioning Essay

Provide an analysis of the segmentation, targeting and positioning strategy of a brand of your choice. Within your analysis you - Essay Example The STP strategy of Coca-Cola BlaK Segmentation strategy Coca Cola BlaK has been one of the major designs that Coca Cola developed to recover its declining sales during 2005. The BlaK drink was not only a flavour extension, but rather a stimulating blend of variety of coke refreshment, with quality coffee essence and lightly carbonated with an aim to appeal to adult consumers (singleservecoffee.com, 2006). The company targeted a specific segment for marketing BlaK, comprising of adult, 30-over savvy sophisticated achievers. Segmentation is a company’s key marketing dimensions to set strategic framework and are marketing processes used to identify the right customers of a company (Bygrave and Zacharakis, 2010, p. 170). Almost all companies segment its markets, breaking down the total market of a product or service in to distinct sub-groups (Lancaster and Reynolds, 2001, p. 68) such as Geographical (region/population density), demographic (age, sex, marital status, socio-economi c status, social class, religion etc), psychographic (life-style, personality, self-image etc) and behavioural (rate, volume, occasion, brand loyalty) (Stone and Desmond, 2007, p. 175). When it comes to the case of BlaK, the company identified an opportunity for BlaK from various regions including US, France, Spain, Czech Republic and later in Canada and UK. Demographically, its market was high-class, sophisticated achievers (Farr, 2007). The example of BlaK cola shows that extensive research often requires for an effective segmentation and targeting. As Loudon, Stevens and Wrenn (2004) pointed, a highly customized method of segmentation based upon extensive research and up to date data requires a high degree of expertise in research (p. 33). Coca-cola company has invested heavily in researches during 2002 about users and their perceptions of coke products. This research brought the significance of coke for adults who are between 30 and 50 age savvy people who are less likely to use Coca Cola’s other brands. The company executives thus thought to develop a unique drink merging ordinary coke with an energy drink or coffee essence aimed at adults over 30 savvy people (Wilbert, 2006). This research helped the company identify a hidden market opportunity and find a market segment which was until then left-untouched. Targeting Strategy Coca-Cola company targeted mainly the male demographics with ingredient of coffee essence. The Coca Cola BlaK was appealed mainly to older, more sophisticated and over-30 customers who are likely to spend more (Lamb, Hair and McDaniel, 2008, p. 258). A marketer may target a group of people or organizations by designing, implementing and maintaining a market mix in order to meet the needs of that specific group (Lamb, Hair and McDaniel, 2008, p. 220). When it comes to BlaK, the research conducted by Coca Cola found that there is an opportunity for a drink, being made quite unique with additional coffee essence, targeted for mal e-adults who are over-30 savvy and sophisticated achievers. the target was thus very specific. When a specific group is targeted, various marketing mixes like price, product, place and promotion can be developed according to the needs, behaviour and specific requirement of the targeted group. Ferrell and Hartline (2008) emphasized that a firm can adopt any or more

Genes And Other Factors Of Happiness Psychology Essay

Genes And Other Factors Of Happiness Psychology Essay Genes and circumstances contribute equally to human happiness in the short term, but genes and neurotransmitters cause  80% of the range of happiness people feel in the long term, according to recent research in behavioral genetics and neurochemistry (Sharpe and Bryant 2008:1-9) 1. Genetic information derived from scientific explorations of genetic traits may have important links to understanding the basis for feelings of well-being and potentially the phenomena associated with human happiness. While non-genetic oriented research of social, political, public policy, theology and economic studies have addressed the impact of social and institutional environments on mass political attitudes and behaviors, there is a paucity of solid research on the interrelation and influence of genetic and environmental factors on these parameters. The neuroscience and genes experiments have entailed basic propositions of well being and happiness into human brain which has made science unique. On th e other hands, Social Sciences especially economics, political science, theology or public policy has endeavored different aspects and corners of happiness research which made the issue not much different from what gene, neuroscience and psychology researchers have got. This paper would discuss the inevitability of the Science -Social Science Nexus in Happiness research and the findings. Keywords: Happiness, Genes, Science Social Science Nexus, Factors of Happiness. Introduction: Across culture, people rate subjective well being as most important elements of their life and more important than material success (Diener, 2000)2. Subjective well being is equally treated here as Happiness. In this paper we explore neurogenetics determination and its relationships with social science research on happiness throughout our lives. The abovementioned classical saying from Diener has got great value in Happiness Research. Despite the fact, the invention of Genetics Research during late 1800s flames the fire on Nature versus Nurture debate which has caused a rift within the scientific community, with researchers and theorists passionately defending both sides of the argument. Furthermore the Social science Researchers on Happiness has raised more issues which has become complicated to the neurogenetics researchers and by thus the inevitability of Social science and science nexus in happiness research has become more realistic. This holds especially true in the discourse of the determination of ones happiness.Resaerchers debate Human biological make up, i.e., the happiness is determined by configuration of human genetics. Even happiness is known to be related to personality traits. However, to date, nobody has examined whether personality and subjective well-being share a common genetic structure (Weiss, Bates and Luciano, 2008)3. Its novel approach to scientific analysis fusing biology, psychology and sociology was convincing to some researchers, but also thought of as unsubstantiated and too restrictive by others. The divisive line between those that supported the study of genetics within human behavioral research and those that simply dismissed its findings only grew with time, as more controversial theories and concepts began to emerge. A result of this conflict between nature and nurture is a lack of communication between both sides of the argument. Researchers tend to view genetics and life events as separate entities working to determine which one has greater power over the other in shaping emotional status. Genetics theorists such as David Lykken and Auke Tellegen4 focus most of their experiments on data analysis and genetics testing, while proponents of life events research such as Richard Lucas and Sonja Lyubomirsky use more of the qualitative methods, surveying specific individuals, as was familiar to sociologists. Though the differences between the two sides are stark, the two arguments can work together. Through the revelation of behavioral genetics research it is undeniable that new, significant findings in the realm of sociology will emerge. It cannot be counted out as a major force within the development of human emotion. Nevertheless, the inability of the two sides of this conflict to work together has led to numerous holes in research and conclusions by both points of view. In this paper we intend to prove that behavioral genetics greatly influences human behavior and emotion and should be taken into account in all social science research on individual happiness levels. We will first outline the research on genetics with respect to happiness and how it has evolved. Then we will look at the response to the genetic research by those who argue that happiness is determined by life-events. The final part of the literature will be a discussion of the integration of genetics and life-events, which will include the research which as been completed and that which we believe will further the field. We will then conclude the paper with a summary of the arguments and which side our study has led us to. Methodology: The methodology adopted here is Content Analysis, historical data analysis and analysis of case studies. We have consulted data and analysis of previous reports by scientific and social science experts on happiness research. The methodology is completely based on secondary data analysis and interpretation. In analyzing those data, we have carefully selected data which are related to our themes. We have also used those data and figures to show the science-social sciences nexus of happiness research. Characteristics of Happy People: In her recent study, Lyubomirsky suggests that happiness is determined by three influences: 50% set point or genetic make-up; 40% intentional activity; 10% circumstance (Lyubomirsky 2007).5 In 1996, University of Minnesota researcher David Lykken studied 4,000 sets of twins born in Minnesota from 1936-1955.   After comparing data on identical vs. fraternal twins, he came to the conclusion that 50% of ones satisfaction from life comes from genes. (Lykken, D.   Happiness is a Stochastic Phenomenon.  Ã‚  Minn Psychological Science  7(3), 1996)6 Martin Seligman, PhD, at the University of Pennsylvania taught a single happiness-enhancing strategy to a group of severely depressed people.   These individuals had difficulty staying out of bed.   They were encouraged to log onto a Web site and engage in a simple exercise.   The exercise involved recalling and writing down three good things that happened every day.   Within 15 days, their depression lifted from severe to moderate to mild.   Ninety-four percent reported relief (Authentic Happiness2002).7 Richard Davidson, known by colleagues as the king of happiness research, has been studying the link between prefrontal lobe activity and the sort of deep bliss that people who meditate experience. According to Davidson (2001)8, happiness isnt just a vague, ineffable feeling; its a physical state of the brain-one that you can induce deliberately. As researchers have gained an understanding of the physical characteristics of a happy brain, they have come to see that those traits have a powerful influence on the rest of the body. Numerous studies (Kubzansky, Sparrow, Vokonas, Kawachi, 2001)9 have discovered that happiness or related mental states like hopefulness, optimism, and contentment appear to reduce the risk or limit the severity of cardiovascular disease, pulmonary disease, diabetes, hypertension, colds, and upper respiratory infections as well. The benefits of being happy go beyond the temporary phase of feeling good. Happy people exhibit a high level of energy and can do attitude. They are emotionally intelligent and show more poise and grace in a crisis. Their immune systems are stronger, and they live longer and have more fruitful lives as a result. Over many decades, psychological researchers have begun to place more and more emphasis on understanding influences upon mental and emotional health and well-being. Some of Seligmans own research, for instance, had focused on optimism, a trait shown to be associated with good physical health, less depression and mental illness, longer life, and, yes, greater happiness. Perhaps the most eager explorer of this terrain was University of Illinois psychologist Edward Diener, a.k.a. Dr. Happiness. For more than two decades, Diener had been examining what does and does not make people feel satisfied with life. Seligmans goal was to shine a light on such work and encourage much, much more of it. A recent survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that people ages 20 to 24 are sad for an average of 3.4 days a month, as opposed to just 2.3 days for people ages 65 to 74. The earlier notion where you live makes you happy, has recently been challenged by the work of North and others (North  et al. 2008)10.  They suggest that  happiness can change and underscore the importance of exploring more deeply the role that family relationships play in facilitating such change and this is not related to economic status (Wenz, 1977)11. Similarly, the idea that  marriage increases happiness has been challenged by the evidence that married people may have been happier than single people because the former were happier to begin with. Scientific Research on Happiness: Genes and Happiness: Genes carry the instructions for the construction of neurotransmitters, their receptor and re-absorption portals. They also impart information on such things as their storage and release rates. Hence, genes can influence the prevalence, scarcity, and activity of serotonin and dopamine, and, in turn, whatever behaviors and feelings these neurotransmitters induce. For each of us, our happiness fluctuates within a small range that our genes largely determine. So concludes Dean Hamer in his review of studies on the role of genes in happiness or misery. Hamer12 directs our attention to two of the more than  300  known neurotransmitters, dopamine (the brains chemical for pleasure) and serotonin, the petrochemical for misery. Neurotransmitters pass information from the synapse or junction between a nerve cell and another nerve cell or a muscle. The nerve cells bulbous end releases them from storage when an electrical impulse moving along the nerve reaches it. Then they cross the junction to dock at the other nerve cells receptor, and either prompt or inhibit the impulses along the second cell. The first nerve cell reabsorbs excess neurotransmitters, but not necessarily all of them. Those that remain free-floating help create our happy or miserable states of being. How you feel right now is about equally genetic and circumstantial, says Hamer. But how you will feel on average over the next ten years is fully  80% because of your genes (Hamer  1996:  125).13 Further evidence for a physical/biochemical basis of happiness comes from neuroanatomy.  Richard Lane  and his colleagues preliminary research indicate that feelings of happiness, sadness, and disgust all co-occur with increased brain activity in the thalamus and medial prefrontal cortex. Greater activity near the ventral medial frontal cortex distinguishes happiness from sadness, whilst happiness correlates with significant increases in bilateral activity near the middle and posterior temporal cortex and hypothalamus. Lane concludes that, spatially distributed brain regions participate in each emotion (Lane, et al.  1997:930)14. Identical twins (those with the same genetic makeup) attain the same level of happiness  44  percent of the time. In comparison, fraternal twins, those who share genes as do ordinary siblings, reach the same level only eight percent of the time. Hamer adds: These data show that the broad heritability of well-being is  40  to  50% (Hamer  1996:  125)15. Studies by David Lykken and Auke Tellegen assess the happiness of twins over five to ten years, and show the slight impact of sex, age, race, and marital status, and the short-term influence of job loss or lottery winning. A recent report by psychologists Christopher Lewis and Stephen Joseph16 suggests that the Depression-Happiness Scale (which psychologists use to calculate happiness) measures happiness as a trait rather than a state, with subjects scores on the scale remaining relatively stable over a two-year period. Other studies show that a persons level of happiness remains stable over many years. Inherited genes account for the majority of this level. Figure- 1:  Happiness genes GENE ASSOCIATIONS DRD2 Alcoholism, Substance abuse, craving behavior, cocaine dependence, smoking, ADHD, parenting, Obesity, video gaming, sexual activity, posttraumatic stress disorder schizophrenia, Parkinsons, brain metabolism, BMI, executive functioning, love styles (EROS) pathological gambling. Pathological aggression, schizoid/avoidant behavior, criminal activity, politics party attachment. Energy, hypertension. Hyperphagia, growth, sexual maturation, brain development, depression, anorexia, bulimia, fibromyalgia, pain sensitivity, hunger, novelty seeking, extraversion, early onset sexual intercourse, defense style (lying), oppositional defiant disorder, panic disorder, developmental personality, Tourette Syndrome, Parkinsons, executive dysfunctioning, pleasure buzz ANNKI Smoking dependence, parental rule-setting, Schizophrenia, cognition deficit, alcohol and opiate dependence, pleasurable buzz, 5HT2A Eating disorders, obesity, Insulin resistance, love styles (romantic), suicide, ADHD, Panic disorders, impulsive aggression, cognitive impulsivity, anger, sweet tooth, antidepressant treatment outcomes, fibromyalgia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, borderline personality, smoking behavior, cocaine dependence, BMI. OPRK1 (kappa -opioid receptor) Alcohol and heroin dependence. Pain mechanisms and tolerance. OPRM1 (mu opioid   receptorreceptor) Pleasure buzz, smoking addiction, heroin addiction, alcoholism, pain sensitivity, BMI, type 2 diabetes mellitus. COMT Psychiatric and affective disorders, alcoholism, substance use disorder, smoking, post-surgical pain, fibromyalgia, Parkinsons disease, ADHD. SLC6A3 Post-surgical pain, cocaine abuse, alcohol dependence, smoking behavior, juvenile delinquency, pathological aggression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, ADHD, impulsive aggression, cognitive impulsivity. HTR3B Heroin addiction, migraine, impulsive behavioral aggression, cognitive -impulsivity, ADHD, alcoholism. NOS3 Pain mechanism, healing mechanisms, circulation, hypertension, cardiovascular. PPARG Type 2 diabetes, Obesity, Insulin sensitivity, Body composition, eating disorders, BMI, physical exercise, common metabolic disorders, body mass, waist circumference, inflammatory response, immune system. CHREBP Plasma triglycerides, triglyceridemia, obesity ,,improves plasma glucose, FTO Severe obesity, food intake, adiposity, body mass, energy intake, BMI, fat mass, pleasurable buzz. TNFalpha Inflammation, mortality, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, BMI, Immune response. PEMT Proinflamamtory, immunoregulation, apotosis, substance use disorder. MANEA Substance dependence LEPTIN-OB BMI, Schizophrenia, stress, obesity risk, food intake, craving behavior, diabetes, insulin sensitivity, adiposity, body composition, linear growth, metabolic factors, hyperphagia, cocaine dependence, lipogenesis, modulation of sweet substances, anorexia, bulimia, cardiovascular effects, fertility, sexual maturation, brain development, depression, fatty acid metabolism, hunger, MAO-A Pain sensitivity, bipolar affective disorder, ADHD, alcoholism, Substance Use Disorder, violent behavior, juvenile delinquency, smoking, child abuse, suicide, criminal activity, posttraumatic stress disorder, anti-depressant treatment response, alcoholism, panic disorder, schizophrenia, pathological gambling. ADIPOQ Metabolic syndrome, adiposity, fat mass, energy intake, obesity, lipogenesis, type 2 diabetes, BMI. STS ADHD VDR Obesity, BMI, overeating, metabolic syndrome, anthropometric measures, schizophrenia, temporal lobe epilepsy, immune system, type 2 diabetes, physical activity, BONE DENSITY (OSTEOPOROSIS). DBI ANXIETY DISORDERS GABRA6 Autism, alcoholism, stresses response. GABRB3 Autism, alcoholism, stress. MTHFR   Cardiovascular disease, Homocysteine levels, obesity, fat mass, Schizophrenia. MLXIPL (CARBOHYDRATE BINDING ELEMENT) Plasma triglycerides, glucose craving behavior, obesity. VEGF Angiogenesis factor, cognition, tissue healing, pain sensitivity, oxidative stress. DRD4 Financial risk taking, nicotine withdrawal, ADHD, novelty seeking, Alcoholism, aggression, impulsivity, delinquency, memory deficits, anger, temperament, schizophrenia, sexual intercourse, drug abuse, extraversion, obesity, stress, emotional reactivity, infant attachment, oppositional defiant disorder, fibromyalgia, hyperphagia, alcohol craving, pathological gambling, panic disorder, developmental personality, Tourette Syndrome, Parkinsons. VMAT2 Antidepressant treatment outcome, Parkinsons, ADHD, cocaine and methamphetamine dependence, spirituality GOD Gene. CLOCK Circadian system, mood, bipolar, endocrine and metabolic rhythms, stress, reproduction, morphine dependence MELETONIN Sleep anxiety, alcoholism OREXIN Hyperphagis and energy regulation Source: Blum, K et.al. (2009)17 The abovementioned Table showed the genes and its associations with different Situations. Genetic factors may also contribute to the drug abuse-derived pleasure form; in one genomic study on rats exposed to chronic methamphetamine abuse, the SLC6A gene and its variants were shown to be altered upon exposure to methamphetamine (Kobeissy, et al., 2008)(Gold, et al., 2009).18 This disorder is due to genetic defects in the dopamine reward pathways. As a result of such defects the natural rewards are no longer sufficient to improve mood and provide pleasure, and affected individuals pursue an excessive amount of unnatural rewards such as from alcohol, nicotine, drugs, gambling, sex and risk taking in the form of dangerous sports, such bungie and base jumping, sky diving, extreme skiing, race car driving, video gaming and others to stimulate their reward pathways. The SLC6A gene is involved in cocaine abuse, alcohol dependence, smoking behavior, juvenile delinquency, pathological aggression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, ADHD, impulsive aggression, cognitive impulsity and is a major component in the happiness gene map (see  Figure 1  and  Table 1). In 1995 Kenneth Blum coined the term RDS (Blum et al. 1996; Comings et al 2000; Blum et al. 2000).19 The fact that drugs of abuse such as alcohol, cocaine, speed and nicotine stimulate the release of dopamine explains part of the question of why humans become addicted to things; this does not explain why some people have serious problems with addictions. While environmental factors play a role, there is a significant variation in addictive potential among individuals exposed to the same environment or even substances ( Hoebel, Avena, Borcarsly, Rada, 2009,  Comings and Blum 2000).20  Ã‚   Another facet of certain environmental elements that may affect ones happiness and ultimately longevity is being in control. Langer (1989)21 carried out a landmark study that suggested that being in control resulted in greater longevity. In his study performed in a nursing home for the elderly, one group of subjects was given a plant and told to look after it, they were responsible for the plants health. Another group was also given a plant but told that the staff would look over the plant. Over the next 18 months twice as many of those who were not in control of their plants died compared to those in control of their plants. A test of this hypothesis has been successfully carried out by others in two strains of rodents. One strain liked drinking alcohol more than drinking water; the other strain did not. If the preference for alcohol was due to a defect in the dopamine D2 receptor, then increasing the level of D2 receptor in the reward pathways should eliminate the alcohol preference. This was accomplished by injecting copies of the D2 receptor gene directly in the nucleus accumbens. This resulted in a temporary over expression of the D2 receptors that lasted several days. The over expression of the D2 receptor gene reduces alcohol intake demonstrating that high levels of the D2 receptor gene are protective against alcohol abuse (Thanos et al 2001).22 Post (2005)23 suggests that altruism and volunteerism are associated with happiness, improved mood, enhanced self-esteem, and better mental and physical health; and that helping others, per se, may be a major part of the increased longevity seen in religious versus non-religious individuals. However others have rejected the idea that religion was a key factor. They concluded in their studies of over 8,832 subjects that volunteering, rather than its religious context, explained the beneficial effects and happiness (Musick  et al. 1999)24.  These findings are not so simple and cannot be taken without understanding that  we really cannot determine whether a confound drives an observed correlation. That is, that correlational data is always vulnerable to potential third-variable confounds. As we stated earlier, wealth does not necessarily correlate with happiness. In fact, as pointed out in Comings25 book  Did Man Create God,  a major reason for the lack of correlation between Gross National Product (GNP) and happiness is that people quickly adapt to a wide range of circumstances. He stated, Someone inheriting or winning a great deal of money may be temporarily be happier, but they soon settle back to their previous innate level of happiness. The same holds for those with progressively increasing yearly incomes. In support of this notion  Allen Parducci  (1995)26 suggested that after each raise, people adapt and return to a previous level of happiness (a set point genetically programmed), a phenomena he termed  hedonic treadmill. Figure-2 Source: Ibid, 2009 27 Psychology and Happiness: For most of its history, psychology has concerned itself with all that ails the human mind: anxiety, depression, neurosis, obsessions, paranoia, delusions, etc., and the behaviors they produce. The goal of practitioners has been to bring patients from a negative ailing state to a neutral normal state. Or, as University of Pennsylvania psychologist Martin Seligman puts it, from a minus five to a zero (Seligman 2002)28. In the tabe-1, we could see that DRD2 genes has associations with the psychological functions like Alcoholism, Substance abuse, craving behavior, cocaine dependence, smoking, ADHD, parenting, Obesity, video gaming, sexual activity, posttraumatic stress disorder schizophrenia, Parkinsons, brain metabolism, BMI, executive functioning, love styles (EROS) pathological gambling. Pathological aggression, schizoid/avoidant behavior, criminal activity, politics party attachment. Energy, hypertension. Hyperphagia, growth, sexual maturation, brain development, depression, anorexia, bulimia, fibromyalgia, pain sensitivity, hunger, novelty seeking, extraversion, early onset sexual intercourse, defense style (lying), oppositional defiant disorder, panic disorder, developmental personality, Tourette Syndrome, Parkinsons, executive dysfunctioning, pleasure buzz etc. At the same time, the gene like ANNKI has the effects on Smoking dependence, parental rule-setting, Schizophrenia, cognition deficit, alcohol and opiate dependence, pleasurable buzz. The gene 5HT2A has got associations with Eating disorders, obesity, Insulin resistance, love styles (romantic), suicide, ADHD, Panic disorders, impulsive aggression, cognitive impulsivity, anger, sweet tooth, antidepressant treatment outcomes, fibromyalgia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, borderline personality, smoking behavior, cocaine dependence, BMI. Genes like OPRK1 (kappa -opioid receptor) has associations with the Alcohol and heroin dependence. Pain mechanisms and tolerance. OPRM1 (mu opioid   Receptor) has associations with Pleasure buzz, smoking addiction, heroin addiction, alcoholism, pain sensitivity, BMI, type 2 diabetes mellitus. COMT has associations with Psychiatric and affective disorders, alcoholism, substance use disorder, smoking, post-surgical pain, fibromyalgia, Parkinsons disease, ADHD. SLC6A3 genes are associated with Post-surgical pain, cocaine abuse, alcohol dependence, smoking behavior, juvenile delinquency, pathological aggression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, ADHD, impulsive aggression, cognitive impulsivity. Heroin addiction, migraine, impulsive behavioral aggression, cognitive -impulsivity, ADHD, alcoholism is attached with the gene HTR3B. Pain mechanism, healing mechanisms, circulation, hypertension, cardiovascular are associated with the genes NOS3. Type 2 diabetes, Obesity, Insulin sensitivity, Body composition, eating disorders, BMI, physical exercise, common metabolic disorders, body mass, waist circumference, inflammatory response, immune system are affected with the genes PPARG. Plasma triglycerides, triglyceridemia, obesity ,,improves plasma glucose are asssociated iwth the genes CHREBP. Severe obesity, food intake, adiposity, body mass, energy intake, BMI, fat mass, pleasurable buzz are associated with the genes FTO. Inflammations, mortality, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, BMI, Immune response are associated with the gene TNFalpha. Proinflamamtory, immunoregulation, apotosis, substance use disorder are associated with the gene PEMT. Substance dependence is also associated with the gene MANEA. BMI, Schizophrenia, stress, obesity risk, food intake, craving behavior, diabetes, insulin sensitivity, adiposity, body composition, linear growth, metabolic factors, hyperphagia, cocaine dependence, lipogenesis, modulation of sweet substances, anorexia, bulimia, cardiovascular effects, fertility, sexual maturation, brain development, depression, fatty acid metabolism, hunger have great effects of the gene LEPTIN-OB. Pain sensitivity, bipolar affective disorder, ADHD, alcoholism, Substance Use Disorder, violent behavior, juvenile delinquency, smoking, child abuse, suicide, criminal activity, posttraumatic stress disorder, anti-depressant treatment response, alcoholism, panic disorder, schizophrenia, pathol ogical gambling are also affected by the gene MAO-A. Metabolic syndrome, adiposity, fat mass, energy intake, obesity, lipogenesis, type 2 diabetes, BMI has the same associations with the gene ADIPOQ. ADHD has the associations with the gene STS. Obesity, BMI, overeating, metabolic syndrome, anthropometric measures, schizophrenia, temporal lobe epilepsy, immune system, type 2 diabetes, physical activity, BONE DENSITY (OSTEOPOROSIS) has associations with the gene VDR. Anxiety Disorders has associations with the gene DBI. Autism, alcoholism, stress response has association with the gene GABRA6. Autism, alcoholism, stress has strongest associations with the gene GABRB3. Cardiovascular disease, Homocysteine levels, obesity, fat mass, Schizophrenia has associations with the gene MTHFR. Plasma triglycerides, glucose craving behavior, obesity has associations with the gene MLXIPL (CARBOHYDRATE BINDING ELEMENT). Angiogenesis factor, cognition, tissue healing, pain sensitivity, oxidative stress has associations with the gene VEGF. Financial risk taking, nicotine withdrawal, ADHD, novelty seeking, Alcoholism, aggression, impulsivity, delinquency, memory deficits, anger, temperament, schizophrenia, sexual intercourse, drug abuse, extrav ersion, obesity, stress, emotional reactivity, infant attachment, oppositional defiant disorder, fibromyalgia, hyperphagia, alcohol craving, pathological gambling, panic disorder, developmental personality, Tourette Syndrome, Parkinsons has association with the gene DRD4. Antidepressant treatment outcome, Parkinsons, ADHD, cocaine and methamphetamine dependence, spirituality GOD Gene has association with the gene VMAT2. CLOCK gene is associated with Circadian system, mood, bipolar, endocrine and metabolic rhythms, stress, reproduction, morphine dependence. Sleep anxiety, alcoholism is associated with the gene MELETONIN. OREXIN gene has associations with Hyperphagis and energy regulation. So from the above analysis what we could see is that several genes have had associations with the psychological orders and disorders of human body and mind. Genes like DRD2 and DRD4, ANNKI, COMT, SLC6A3, TNFalpha, PEMT, LEPTIN-OB, MAO-A, ADIPOQ, STS, VDR, DBI, GABRA6, GABRA3, MTHFR, VEGF, VMAT2, CLOCK, MELETONIN, OREXIN has associations with the Psychological disorders like Sleep anxiety, mood, bipolar, endocrine and metabolic rhythms, stress, reproduction, morphine dependence, cocaine and methamphetamine dependence, spirituality GOD Gene, Financial risk taking, nicotine withdrawal, ADHD, novelty seeking, Alcoholism, aggression, impulsivity, delinquency, memory deficits, anger, temperament, schizophrenia, sexual intercourse, drug abuse, extraversion, obesity, stress, emotional reactivity, infant attachment, oppositional defiant disorder, fibromyalgia, hyperphagia, alcohol craving, pathological gambling, panic disorder, developmental personality, Tourette Syndrome, Angiogenesis factor , cognition, pain sensitivity, oxidative stress, obesity, obesity, Schizophrenia, alcoholism, stress response, Anxiety disorders, bipolar affective disorder, ADHD, alcoholism, Substance Use Disorder, violent behavior, juvenile delinquency, smoking, child abuse, suicide, criminal activity, posttraumatic stress disorder, anti-depressant treatment response, alcoholism, panic disorder. But the most interesting thing is that not all the genes have the same disorders, rather each of the different genes has different syndroms which affects happiness of human being. But most interesting things is that more genes has associations with the same disorders like Schizophrenia of human being which seriously affects happiness. As well as more genes has the same affects like panic disorders which also affected happiness. In one hand, this is the genes associations with Psychology and happiness and on the other hands, there are more factors involved in the Psychology and happiness. James Montier29, a global equity strategist, has concluded with the almost same view of happiness where genes have the greatest associations with human happiness. About 50% of individual happiness comes from a  genetic set point.  That is, were each predisposed to a certain level of happiness. Some of us are just naturally more inclined to be cheery than others. About 10% of our happiness is due to our  circumstances.  Our age, race, gender, personal history, and, yes, wealth, only make up about one-tenth of our happiness. The remaining  40% of an individuals happiness seems to be derived from  intentional activity, from discrete actions or practices that people can choose to do. Economist Richard A. Easterlin30 at the University  was among the first to notice the paradoxical disconnection between a nations economic growth and the growth of its happiness. The Easterlin Paradox was once thought to be limited to rich

ben franklin Essay -- essays research papers

Ben Franklin Ben Franklin became famous for being a scientist, an inventor, a statesman, a printer, a philosopher, and a librarian. Today, we honor Ben Franklin as one of the men who founded America and as one of America's greatest citizens. Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston on January 17, 1706. He was the tenth son of soap maker, Josiah Franklin. Though Ben only had one year of schooling he was educated and loved to read and write. He worked as an apprentice to his brother, James, who was a printer, when he was fifteen years old. At the age of seventeen, Ben ran away and started a new life in Philadelphia as a result of arguments with James. Franklin found work as an apprentice printer and did so well the provincial governor of Pennsylvania promised to set him up a business if he traveled to England to buy supplies. The governor never followed up on his promise and Benjamin was forced to spend several months in England doing print work. On returning home, he opened up his own printing business. Around this period of time, in 1728, Ben fathered a child, William, of whom the mother is not known. Two years later he married his childhood sweetheart, Deborah Read. Not only did the Franklins own a print shop, they also opened a store selling almost everything and a bookstore. Ben Franklin had many accomplishments and was very successful in life. His newspaper, The Pennsylvania Gazette, was one of the most successful papers in the colonies. He first published Poor Richard’s...