American football culture Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

American football culture - Research Paper Example Additionally, its fame also emanates from the game’s inclusion in learning institutions like colleges and even states arranging for other professional events like â€Å"world champions† (Carroll, 2003). Mainly, American football’s unique way of sporting prompts numerous fans to gather, with the intention of witnessing what they usually refer as a military encounter. This is because of its â€Å"violence† besides domination by male gender though presently females have developed an interest in it, though they normally act as cheering squads. American football compared to other games like baseball it has a fascinating history and culture besides its â€Å"violent nature†, which presently has led to its immense popularity in America (Duncan, 2004). American football origin The game initially did not have well-structured rules meant to govern players as well as enable the players to play with those from other towns (Carroll, 2003). Therefore, each town p layed using their own rules, though they maintained two sides of dozen players. The mode of play entailed clearing the ball from one’s own goal towards that of the opponent, which required much physical contact, hence use of energy. Initially, players used to play barefooted, which earned the game the name of â€Å"Football† and spread rapidly after diverse states harmonized their varying rules. Early Cultural importance of the game Football game became one of the most thrilling and essential game in the American society after its harmonization of rules. Hence, giving rise to the socialization of people where fans supporting one team developed a certain bond of friendship and belonging (Carroll, 2003). This bridged wide gaps that were their before and yielded to a more closely-knit society especially among the football fans. However, racism was still evident especially among those people who did not have much to share with other races (Crothers, 2012). Besides, the foo tball competitions also acted as an opportunity for Commercial Corporations to advertise their products, for example, vehicle manufacturers and tourists’ firms. Mainly, this was via sponsoring diverse games’ activities thus contributing to the effective planning of the matches. Educational institutions also took this advantage to advertise the prowess especially during interschool or college competitions (Crothers, 2012). Modern entertainment industry This period characterized the â€Å"golden age† in 1920s. Contrary to other earlier periods, the responsible authorities made the game’s rules more advanced and refined, which ensured increased control during the matches (Carroll, 2003). Hence, there were fewer cases of casualties than those witnessed in earlier times. This led to the aspect of professionalism especially after 1920s where players were able to use their talents to earn or supplement their living (Duncan, 2004). This was not evident in earlier times where players specifically played out of pleasure with no intention of earning anything except to win trophies for their teams or institutions (Carroll, 2003). Consequently, professionalism yielded to the modern day entertainment due to the media focusing on broadcasting all competition events (Crothers, 2012). These ranged from educational institutions to interstates’ clubs or associations competitions. Modern football specialization started after 1920 when the four Midwestern regions convened at Canton with the intention of merging their rules

The impact of Apple company stocks on the economy Essay

The impact of Apple company stocks on the economy - Essay Example Paradoxically, the institutional investors of Apple had a stock value of $427 billion whereas those of Microsoft had the stock value of only $172 billion. Apple saw the peak value of its shares worth $702.10 on 19 September 2012, but its fall as of 16 November 2012 has been quite as remarkable, when the value of its shares dropped to $505.75. A senior research analyst, Brian Colello said, â€Å"It's just amazing because it's such a large company. The company lost about $35 billion in market cap in one day. That's the size of some large-cap stocks† (Colello cited in O’Brien, 2012). The senior index analyst, Howard Silverblatt, said, â€Å"The impact on shareholders and on the economy is incredible. We've not seen anything like this in the modern trading era. Ever† (Silverblatt cited in O’Brien, 2012). People tend to understand the behavior of Apple’s stock by considering the bits of bad news, the questions and controversies about Apple’s compe tition and its market share, that in reality, have little to do with the Apple shares. According to Steven Milunovich, a UBS analyst, the rate of manufacture of Apple iPhones would decline in the first quarter of the year 2013 (NBC News, 2012). Milunovich expects Apple to produce 2 million fewer iPads and 5 million fewer iPhones till September 2013, though he expects Apple to be able to sell up to 41 million iPhones in the first quarter of the year 2013, followed by 36 million in the second quarter and 33 million in the third quarter of 2013. In addition to that, Milunovich also expects sale of about 21.7 million iPads, 24.5 million iPads, and 20.7 million iPads in the first, second, and third quarter of the year 2013 respectively. Nevertheless, â€Å"The extraordinary volatility is the result of Apple's strength. People try to blame the volatility on Apple's weaknesses† (Schwarz cited in O’Brien, 2012). Since the establishment of Apple Inc. as a company, there have be en mixed effects on the economy. Apple has conventionally had tremendous effect on the economy. This is evident from the fact that the sales of iPhone added anywhere from 0.25 to 0.5 percentage point to the growth rate of the US economy (Rushe, 2012). While on one hand, consumers have contributed a lot to the economy by buying the supplies and the different electronic gadgets that Apple has made available to them, on the other hand, companies competing with Apple have faced a decrease in the values of their shares and so have their shareholders and investors since Apple has outdone them in the sale of products. Since Apple has contributed immensely to the economy in the recent years, the economy has started to increasingly depend and rely on Apple. Accordingly, with the downfall of the value of Apple’s shares, the economy goes down as well. However, the downfall of the value of Apple’s stock is not expected to sustain for too long and is expected to rise again as soon as Apple introduces another innovative product into the market. â€Å"Whether it is an iTV, wearable computers, or another new product category, we have faith that innovation is not dead† (Milonovich cited in NBC News, 2012). Concluding, despite the apparent decline in the value of its shares in the recent weeks, Apple still remains the most valuable company among all in the world. However, the investors are becoming increasingly cautious regarding the future of the company and its ability to introduce