Racism in America Essay

Racism is very much a problem in our country; we just can’t admit that it’s there. We bury it back in our minds, not able to admit the pressing problem in our nation. All of the groups in our nation demonstrate racism and believe that they are right for hating a certain type of people. The Klu Klux Klan, Aryans, Skinheads, Neo Nazis, and many more are a good example of the racism that still lingers. There is also a substantial amount of racial profiling now ever since the September 11th tragedies. Many people ridicule Middle Easterners and people who are considered to have â€Å"their color† because some of us think that since a few Middle Eastern terrorists bombed us, they all hate us and want us to die. This all started with slavery and the Africans being sent away from their homelands to break their backs working on our farms. We spit on them, treated them like shit, and expected them to work hard for us and like it. Many of the white people do feel sorry and are guilty for what we did to the African American ancestors, but there’s nothing we can do to take it back. It is history and we cannot change it. There is still racism towards African Americans. Whenever you hear a murder, robbery, assault, or drug bust on the news, they say it was an African American. There are just as many white people that commit those same crimes, but they aren’t on the news nearly as much. Affirmative Action in today’s society has nothing to do with slavery and if it does, it really shouldn’t. We use Affirmative Action to make a school or work environment have diversity, not pity on what we did. Affirmative Action is to make sure minorities have the same opportunities as everyone else.

Literature Review Global Financial Crisis Regulation

â€Å"Global Financial Crisis: Regulatory Arbitrage and Paradigm Shifts† In early 2008, the economy ground to an almost complete halt. As the stock indexes were overwhelmed by a virtual tsunami of never relenting red digits, it became clear that the financial markets had been hit by a crisis the scope and scale of which had not been witnessed since the Wall Street Crash of the 1930’s. Over time the causes became more clear, and as the dust settled, the world was left with several important questions to answer. First of all, there was the question of whether or not the global financial crisis was actually caused by flawed regulations and financial institutions or whether it is the fundamental behaviour of the financial market that is flawed, as caused by behavioural issues such as moral hazard and principle agent problems. As an extension of this, the second question involves whether or not financial regulation will be sufficient in realizing a stable and sustainable financial system or if a true paradigmal and behavioural shift is required. Finally and more practically, the third question is how such a change may be brought about in practice, and which exact aspects of the financial paradigm should be altered in order to realize sustainable financial markets. As we look more closely at the following questions and the appropriate literature, one can discern several issues, which may form the basis for further academic inquiry. First of all, it is clear that despite far reaching efforts of scholars, governments and other institutions to develop and introduce financial regulation in response to the financial crisis, recent evidence suggests that these measures fail to recognize fundamental flaws in the paradigms and values Freewriting exercise – Skills 3: Academic Writing S. N. Geesing – 342570 2010-2011 underlying actions of main financial institutions and firms, which need to be addressed in order to realise a sustainable financial process in the long term. From this main statement, we can now look into several direct causes of the crisis that can be related to the incentives that underlie these markets. One of these causes, as it appears, is the fact that Wall Street managed to lure the brightest minds in economics and mathematics with promises of wealth and fame, thus managing to consistently outsmart governmental institutions. By exploiting loop holes in regulatory frameworks, often done by developing complex financial derivates, the bulge bracket firms that set the tone in investment banking gained access to nearly limitless profits, foregoing issues of ethics and risk minimization in favour of short term and often personal gain. After recognizing this pattern, one may conclude that simply increasing bank reserves or bailing out mortgages (as many governments have done so far) will not allow for long term sustainability within financial markets. Other measures, such as increased transparency, caps on bonuses and reinvented incentive reward systems are more effective, but have proven difficult to practically implement. Introducing new regulation is always troublesome and this type of regulations has been met by heavy resistance, especially in the US, the place where new regulation is especially necessary. For this reason and more, a more indirect way of changing values and paradigms must be sought. Scholars have suggested that such measures are most likely to be found in economic theory and, more specifically, in forms of game theoretical applications, in which the government and the financial institutions act as â€Å"players† in a game that can be described as the general economy and financial markets.

Petroleum and Case Study

UNIVERSITI PUTRA MALAYSIA A CASE STUDY ON PETRONAS CARIGALI SDN BHD (Facing the International Challenges) WAN ZAINUDDIN HJ WAN MUDA GSM 1997 7 ? ‘IESIS A CASE STUDY ON PETRONAS CARIGALI SDN BHD (Facing the International Challenges) BY WAN ZJUNUDDIN HJ WAN MUDA MATRIC NO. : 45161 MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTIUlTION MALAYSIAN GRADUATE SCHOOL OF MANA. GEMENT UNIVERSITY PUTRA MALAYSIA. SERDllNG SELANGOR DmUL EHSAN DECEMBER, 1997 A. Case Study On Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd (Facing The International Challenges) By Wan Zainuddin Hj : Wan Muda 45161 Matrie No.This Case Study is submitted in partial fulfilment of the I'equirement fol' the Mastel' of Business Aclministl'ation, Malaysian Graduate School of Management, Univel'sity Putn Malaysia, Sel'dang, Selangol' Dal'Ul Ehsan. Confidentiality Statement The Case Study is purely an academic exercise undertaken by the author. The case herewith contains certain information that shall not be disclosed to the public. Thus no part of this documen t is to be reproduced in any form and be used in any manner without prior written permission from the author.Acknowledgement First, I would like to extend my deepest gratitude and appreciation to my Supervisor, Professor Dr. Mohd. Ismail Ahmad for his guidance, comments and valuable suggestions during the course of preparing this case study. A big thank you and credit shall also be given to all lecturers throughout the whole MBA programme for their interesting lecture which makes all of us more clear and understanding on the business concept and strategy which is important for today's competitive business environment.A word of thank shall also go to my wife and children who provide me a valuable inspiration and have been the most patient, understanding, supportive and encouraging for taking this course. Without them, the completion of this case study and the MBA programme would not have been possible. Thank you so much – I love you all †¦.. . Originality of the Document I, Wan Zainuddin Hj Wan Muda, Matric No. : 45161, a final year student of the MBA programme at the University Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan hereby confirmed that the case repared for the above programme is purely the sole effort of my goodself. Name: Date : ‘allg? _1Ihd ?l_1Xl†I †¦.. ,†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. ,, a.? __ ? P. T___ F_ Ii,. ,. ) FIGURE 1. 0 PETRONAS GROUP OF COMPANIES – 8 – I I I I I 1 I MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE GROUP PVBUC AFFAIRS BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRESIDENT ICEO DATO' M. HASSAN MERJCAN . : I I I I I -I 1- . .1 I BOARD AUDIT COMMrmE lAMe I INTERNAL AUDIT REGIOAAL OFACCS I I I HEALTH, SAFETY & ENVIRONMENT COMPANY SECRETARY &. LEGAl†¦ SERVICES CORPORATE PlANNING & BUSINESS DEVElOPMENT I I I CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT 1 I I I I EXPlORATION &. PROOUCTKlN SECTOR I . s PETROCHEMICAL SECTOR I ITEC? OGY . 1 1 RESOURCES & MANAGEMENT SECTOR REF? ING ‘ MARKETING SECTOR II TRANSPORTATION & MARINE SERVICES SECTOR I ) HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEME NT SECTOR I 1 FINANCE SECTOR J FIGURE 2. 0 PETRONAS ORGANISATION STRUCTURE – 9 – PETRONAS was now a full-fledged oil and gas company which engaged in a wide range of activities. covering petroleum exploration and production. oil refining. marketing. trading and distribution of crude oil and petroleum products. natural gas processing. ransmission and distribution. natural gas liquefaction and marketing oil liquefied natural gas. and manufacturing and marketing of petrochemicals and fertilisers. Due to the government's depletion policy. oil production in the country was levelled off between 600. 000 bopd to 650. 000 bopd. Today. within a strong foothold in the country. while building on to its domestic operations. PETRONAS was actively expanding into the global market forging towards its vision of becoming a multi-national petroleum corporation. As PETRONAS President says †¦. The most critical challenge would be to achieve and keep our competitive edge in the intern ational arena where we would be up against the most established and experience players. In order to realise the above. we need to re-examizJe ourselves order to achieve the iUld cOlltlnuously improve 011 everytlJJllg we do in most cost effectiveness. efficient utilisation of our resources †¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. we must continuously seek improvement in our organisation and respond positively to the constant changes in the dynamic business environment that we  · operatem †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ † . (3) 10 – 2. 1 . 1 VISION STATEMENT† MISSION STATEMENT PETRONAS, having consolidated its position at home and with the expertise and knowledge acquired over the span of 20 years of its existence, was spreading its wing and venturing abroad to pursue its â€Å"dreams†. In order to realise organisational goals, PETRONAS has recently launched the long term Vision Statement as well as creating a Mission Statement to benchmark and evaluate organisation success. PETRONAS VISION STATEME NT † To be a Leading Oil and Gas Multinational of Choice † PETRONAS MISSION STATEMENT We are a business entity, Petroleum was our resources, Our primary objective was to develop and add value to this national resources, Our obj ective was to contribute to the well being of the people and the nation† 2. 1 . 2 SIIARED VALUES In addition to having both Vision and Mission Statement, PETRONAS also launched organisational â€Å"Shared Values† to enhance organisational objective in achieving the goals. – II – Loyalty Professionalism – Loyalty to the Nation & Corporation Committed, Innovative and Proactive and Always Striving for Excellence Integrity CohesivenessHonest and Upright United in Purpose and Fellowship With the above Vision, Mission Statement as well as establishing â€Å"Shared Values† statement, it was envisaged that PETRONAS employee could foster a better teamwork, quality product and services which could provide competitive edge, and hence would portray PETRONAS image, reputation and success of the organisation not only at home but also at the international arena. 2. 2 PETRONAS CJlRIGALJ SDN BBD PETRONAS CARlGALI SON. BHD. (peSB) was one of the PETRONAS wholly owned subsidiaries incorporated on 11 at May 1978.With the increase business activities in the exploration and production of oU and gas and good potential for industry development, peSB has been entrusted by PETRONAS to spearheaded the challenge in the oil and gas exploration, development and production not only locally but also at the international arena. To date, peSB was the operator of more than 12 fields, producing about one third of the country's total oil and gas production. The fields operated by PCSB locally are Ouyong, Oulang, Bekok, Tapis and Pulai in Peninsular Malaysia, the Tembungo and Samarang in Sabah, nine oilfield in – 12 –Baram Delta area in Sarawak. Meanwhile, in the international area, peSB was operating Dai Hu ng in Vietnam, and few platforms in the Caspian sea which undergoing development phases. Currently, PCSB has been involved in a number of projects internationally. Among the international projects undertaken by PCSB was in the Asia region such as Thailand, Philippine, Vietnam, Burma, Indonesia, India; in the Middle East such as in Iran, Iraq, Syria; in Eastern Europe such as Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan; in Africa such as in Sudan and many more. Through the years, PCSB kept on venturing into new concession area and ggressively participate in the international arena to further strengthen its business. (4) 2. 2. 1 PCSB VISION STATEMENT Many multinational companies set a long term organisational objectives or goals known as vision statement. Likewise, as business activities were faCing a stiff challenge in todays global market environment, PCSB has also established company vision in realising its goals and objectives. With the vision, peSB was expected to enhance its capabiliti es. PCSB vision was † To Be A MultinatiolJal E & P CompalJY ofClJoice, Creating V alue TlJroug COlJtinuous ImprovemelJt & GrowtlJ â€Å". h – 13 – 2. . 2 PCSB BUSINESS OBJECTIVES One could argue that it was virtually impossible for an organisation to function without having establish some business goals or objectives. An objective set a future target or end result that an organisation wishes to achieve. It also set a direction where the organisation was heading towards achieving its dream. As part of globalisation effort to purse its business activities, PCSB has set few organisational objectives to spearhead the challenge of the oil and gas industry that was very competitive particularly in the international arena. PCSB business objectives were ; oTo actively participate in the exploration of petrolewn resources for the maximwn benefit of the peopJe o To attain lull operational and technical expertise through manpower development and the transfer of technology in the shortest possible time o To achieve an adequate production level so as to meet the nation? total crude oil and gas output o To ensure maximum Malaysian involvement in the fabricating and assembling of aD production facilities and provision of ancillary and supportive services in the oil and gas industry. The above business objectives were in line with PETRONAS President wishes who said that† †¦The most critical challenge would be to achieve and keep our competitive edge in the international arena where we would be – 14 – up against the most established and experienced players. In order to be competitive. we need to constantly re-examme ourselves iUJd CDlltbluously Improve Oil everytbblg we do in order to achieve cost effectiveness. efficient utilisation of our resources†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. we must continuously seek improvement in our organisation and respond positively to the constant changes in the dynamic business environment that we operate 11(5) m†¦. . †¢ 3. 0 PCSB ORGANISATION STRUCTUREHaving diversifying its business activities outside the domestic environment. PCSB basically adopting functional concept of the organisation structure. Current PCSB organisation structure composed of essentially five (5) main divisions that were Exploration. Development. Commercial Services. Domestic Operation. and International Operation. Each of these divisions was headed by the General Manager who reported directly to the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer. Exploration division focus on finding new oil and gas reserve that could provide substantial return to the company.Whenever Exploration teams find new oil and gas reserve. the field development was then be the responsibility of the Development division to further study how to produce hydrocarbon from offshore. Development division composed of Petroleum Department. Drilling Department. Design Department. Construction Department. and Services Department that specialise in cert ain work scope. Commercial Services Division mainly focused on all contractual matters pertaining to the project development and exploration activities. Meanwhile. for both – 15 –

Gilgamesh Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 5

Gilgamesh - Essay Example The gods recommended that Gilgamesh required a powerful, restless and adventurous hero to be his friend and worthy opponent. Aruru, the womb goddess, decided to pick on Enkidu who lived in the wilderness amongst the animals, disturbing hunters and farmers. Therefore, one of the gods convinced Shamhat, a temple harlot, to make a civilized and humble man out of him by sleeping with him for a period of one week. However, just after having the first taste of sex, Shamhat successfully manages to convince him to come and live in the temple. She promises to introduce her to some good friends and even teach him to live as a civilized human something that he accepts. Gilgamesh and Enkidu became great friends, and since that time, Gilgamesh became so committed to his duties as a king to extent that he turned down goddess Ishtar’s offer to sleep with her. The power of women and sex, in this play, is also demonstrated when Gilgamesh turns down goddess Ishtar’s offer to sleep with her. In response, he asked Ishtar, â€Å"but how could I repay you as a wife and still avoid the bitterness and strife that follow you?† (Jackson 36). This indicates how the gods and goddess were highly powerful and any attempt to reject their demands would result into a serious punishment. In this case, sex is used as a supreme demand that Gilgamesh has to accept. This is the reason why Ishtar released the bull to destroy the people of Uruk and it is what led to Enkidu’s death. This context is further used to change Gilgamesh’s attitudes and behaviors. In the attempt to end shame and acquire immortality, Gilgamesh again is helped by a woman, Utanapishtim’s wife. Gilgamesh is ashamed with his attitudes and behaviors, and he says, â€Å"I now race from place to place, dissatisfied with wherever I am and turn my step to Utnapishtim† (Jackson 59). He asked Utanapishtim, â€Å"Help me

Clean Development Mechanism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Clean Development Mechanism - Essay Example While this protocol enforced many restrictions upon the developing countries, it failed to enforce same tight measures upon the developed world. In fact developed world are the major culprits as far as the environmental problems are concerned. CDM was the flexibility mechanisms aimed to reduce the commitments of developing countries as far as emission reduction is concerned. This paper briefly analyses the CDM mechanism. The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), defined in Article 12 of the Protocol, allows a country with an emission-reduction or emission-limitation commitment under the Kyoto Protocol to implement an emission-reduction project in developing countries†. Such projects can earn saleable certified emission reduction (CER) credits, each equivalent to one tone of CO2, which can be counted towards meeting Kyoto targets (Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), n. d). Flexibility mechanisms were introduced in the Kyoto Protocol by United States in order to safeguard their interests. Even though, the developing countries are still not happy with the Kyoto Protocol, they agreed to implement it. Perhaps United States is the greatest contributor to the environmental problems because of the heavy industrialization and automobile usages in America. At the same time they are trying to restrict the green house gas emission from the developing world without taking serious steps in reducing their own greenhouse gas emissions. America is trying to educate the world that emission cut costs in developing world are less compared to that in the developed world and hence they are trying to enforce more restrictions upon the developing world. At the same time, if the developing world enforces too many restrictions upon greenhouse gas emission, their economic growth would be seriously affected. In other words, the developing world is suspecting the sincerity of Am erica is pressing the developing world to reduce greenhouse gas emission. Many people believe that

Malaysian Banks Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Malaysian Banks - Term Paper Example One of the most premiere cases where it is not shariah compliant that it most incur loss and gains in the house or business regardless of circumstances. A notable case was noted when an individual went to the Bank and said he cannot pay, but the bank refused to sell his house. This is completely against shariah in which the bank must split the loss. Hence, the concept of shariah finance is extremely hard because each country wants some revenue when it comes to financial securities. For the sake of assurance, most banks sugarcoat this with hidden fees and even charge a higher interest rate that are usually hidden in original clause terms. The concept of ‘service fee’ is highly demised because it is a vague term that all Malaysian banks utilized. Before understanding this issue, it is cognizant to understand the elements that surround Islamic Banking. Without a doubt, the Islamic law dictates that the asset must not be a ribawi material or in the medium exchange of gold, not silver. Additionally, a contract between two or more parties to accumulate in partnership. HSBC Malaysian bank also is one of these banks that is not shariah approved because of this issue. Another bank that is not confirm with the shariah standards is the fact Citibank Malaysia. Citibank Malaysia also offers these instruments along with the JP Morgan Malaysia Ltd. These banks financial statements dictate that these credit statements must be approved the counsel that is Shariah Compliant. Schroders Malaysia  is also under the same scrutiny as they sell bonds and other financial instruments that charge an interest rate and are not compatible with equal loss or gain since all payments for purchases are made in money. It is clear that not all banks have the understanding to conduct shariah and even do have an approval, tend to look for their own understanding of financial security. Additionally, the banks make it very clear in clause and terms that

Midterm Examination Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Midterm Examination - Essay Example The paper will incorporate historical evidence to support this stance. Open door imperialism can be basically defined as the act of powerful nations controlling the lesser powerful nation in the world so as to primarily safeguard the powerful nations’ interests. America being the world’s superpower has applied the open door imperialism to most parts of the world where it can reach. Its military is crucial to the United States spreading open door imperialism. The Monroe doctrine was the first step towards American open door imperialism. The doctrine implied that the United States would consider any acts by European states to interfere or colonize lands in north and South America as aggression towards the USA. Also, the act stated that America in return would not interfere with the internal running or colonies of European nations. The Monroe doctrine subsequently became a defining element of the USA foreign policy. Later, the doctrine would be relied upon and invoked by various USA presidents such as Ronald Reagan, John F Kennedy, and Theod ore Roosevelt. Contained in the doctrine are two significant themes of manifest destiny and exceptionalism. These two themes refer to the power and right of America to interfere, correct or, exert its power and influence across the globe. This doctrine was therefore used by the United States in several instances to justify USA intervention abroad throught most of the 19th century. For instance, the USA was involved in the Hawaii annexation and the Spanish American war (McCormick, 1963). The Monroe doctrine consequently came to basically define the United States’ control sphere that very few countries dared or dare to challenge. Its definition expanded greatly as the United States gained more power. America enacted the big brother policy in the early 1880s with a major aim of rallying Latin American countries behind it.

Health and Illness Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Health and Illness - Assignment Example I think World Health Organization did not include the definition of illness as such because illness is actually an aspect of health, since it is not merely and absence of disease. For me though, health is a general condition of the mind, body and spirit – it could be well or unwell. A person with a healthy outlook in life is usually physically healthy as well. Sickness can be a disease or an illness. Disease, for me, is physical damage to one’s body – a deficiency, maybe, or a wound or trauma. Illness, on the other hand, refers to the sociocultural context of having a disease, and this includes the experience and perception of a disease. It may also include religious and spiritual infirmities and disbeliefs. What I mean about the sociocultural context is that the patient and his community define, classify the episode of sickness in a way that it is meaningful to them and the society in general. It does not have to be a technical â€Å"malfunction of the body†, and can accommodate meaning defined by how a person is feeling and thinking. Preamble to the Constitution of the World Health Organization as adopted by the International Health Conference, New York, 19-22 June, 1946; signed on 22 July 1946 by the representatives of 61 States (Official Records of the World Health Organization, no. 2, p. 100) and entered into force on 7 April

Role of the Family Nurse Practitioner Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Role of the Family Nurse Practitioner - Essay Example Similarly, the status of FNP practice in Texas is compared with that of Hawaii, Florida, Mississippi, and Tennessee, with regard to (a) prescriptive Privileges, (b) collaboration agreements/supervision requirements, (c) Nurse Practitioner regulation bodies in each state, and (d) any other practice significant information. The role of the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) in the modern health care industry is often highlighted and training in FNP has become one of the essential aspects in the diagnosis and management of various common and complex medical conditions. Nurse Practitioners (NPs), in general, offer considerable contribution to the health care sector and the NPs "are registered nurses who are prepared beyond initial nursing education in an NP program to provide primary care directly to patients. The profession originated in the mid-1960s in response to shortages of physicians (MDs). NP educational requirements, certification mechanisms and legal scopes of practice are decided at the state level and vary considerably" (Christian, Dower, and O'Neil, 2007, p. 4). Significantly, Family nurse practitioners offer a wide range of health care services in the contemporary health care scenario and their service is particularly important for families. It is, therefore, fundamental to undertake a reflect ive exploration of the meaning and scope of the Family Nurse Practitioner, the current and future educational entry into practice requirements for the FNP, the role of the Family Nurse Practitioner in relation to the Family Practice Physician, Physician's Assistant, Chiropractor, and Clinical Nurse Specialist etc. Meaning of FNP: What is a Family Nurse Practitioner Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) has been realized as one of the important specialties of Nurse Practitioner (NP) which refers to a registered nurse with detailed advanced nursing education and training in the diagnosis and management of various intricate medical conditions. The Frontier School of Midwifery & Family Nursing defines a Family nurse practitioner as "a registered nurse who has completed specific advanced nursing education -generally a master's degree- and training in the diagnosis and management of common as well as complex medical conditions. Nurse Practitioners provide a broad range of health care services" (Frontier School of Midwifery & Family Nursing, 2008). Therefore, family nurse practitioners are people with specific advanced nursing education and training and they engage in various types of medical practices in conjunction with the physicians. According to the definition by California University's school of nursing, "a family nurse practitioner meets the health c are needs of the family by providing health assessments, direct care, and guidance, teaching, or counseling as appropriate, particularly around family self-care. The FNP typically works collaboratively with family primary care physicians and other professionals within the health care system" (School of Nursing: California University, 2007). Accordingly, apart from the to conventional practice in an office, clinic, or ambulatory

Humanism and the Renaissance + Protestant Reformation Essay Example for Free

Humanism and the Renaissance + Protestant Reformation Essay The later Middle Ages is characterized as a time of great transition and advancement, especially pertaining to areas of politics, economics, art and intellect. A new trend towards the pursuit of new knowledge and ideas first emerged in fifteenth century Renaissance Italy. This new area of intellect marks the emergence of humanism, which essentially came to be the defining characteristic leading up to the Scientific Revolution in the eighteenth century. The Protestant Reformation can be seen as the second catalyst to the Scientific Revolution, which occurred around the turn of the fifteenth century. It was the combination of the expansion of humanism first witnessed during the Renaissance creating the desire for knowledge, greater meaning and ultimate truths, with the power gained on part of the individual during the Protestant Reformation allowing for the pursuit of these new questions and ideas which, at the time, opposed existing knowledge that was universally accepted to be true; this combination ultimately culminated in the methods, principles, knowledge and foundations realized during the Scientific Revolution. The Renaissance is a seen a distinct period of time emerging in the beginning of the fifteenth century, immediately following what is now termed the Middle Ages. First manifesting itself in Italy, it is considered â€Å"a period which witnessed transition from the medieval to the modern age, that is to say, the latter part of the fifteenth and the beginning of the sixteenth century† (Bishop, 130).[i] Renaissance literally means â€Å"rebirth,† referring to the rebirth of antiquity, or Greco-Roman civilization. Prior to this, â€Å"the advanced knowledge of the natural world possessed by the ancient Greeks meant little to the Romans, and for a long time that knowledge went into decline,† – this is, until now (Henry, 557).[ii] Many aspects of life were greatly impacted, including areas of politics, economics, art and intellect. This new outlook sparked the initiation of a movement toward greater education. Education was seen as the key to living a prosperous and fulfilled life. In particular, the importance of liberal studies was widely agreed upon. Several key events during this time allowed for the spread of knowledge, creating the â€Å"beckoning toward wider horizons† (Buttimer, 11).[iii] For example, the invention of the printing press encouraged the printing of books, which culminated in scholarly research. Additionally, there was a greater availability to the lay people than ever before; previously, there was simply no access to such information. A historian describes this occurrence: â€Å"alien tongues and races have been drawn together, and have learned once again to understand each other’s speech, and to enter into each other’s thought† (Bishop, 131).[iv] Intellect and education began bringing people together who otherwise would not have ever circulated his or her new ideas and thoughts. Some individuals in particular are credited with the fact that â€Å"the reforms enacted were substantial. At an increasing number of Northern universities, Greek became a regular subject and specialists were hired to teach it. Old Textbooks †¦ were abandoned after having been used for centuries and were replaced with products of humanism† (Nauert, 429).[v] Among the individuals most recognized for their impact on this time in history exists Desiderius Erasmus. Inarguably, Erasmus can be seen as a perfect demonstration of a humanist. â€Å"Erasmus was before all else a scholar and a humanist. He was filled with a genuine enthusiasm for learning† (Bishop, 137).[vi] It was this motivated spirit that drove the culmination of the humanistic movement. Intellect and scholarly research was greatly dedicated to religion. Erasmus â€Å"insisted that the dialectic method of the academic theologians had produced a theological science that concentrated on trivial, abstruse questions of little or no real value to the needs of the church† (Nauert, 431).[vii] This argument became the basis for much of Erasmus’ highly esteemed, accredited work; he was â€Å"determined to defend [his] status as orthodox Catholic† (Nauert, 431).[viii] Soon, modern humanists greatest opposition was the church. Many criticized Erasmus, believing that he â€Å"lacked theological training and hence had neither a legal nor an intellectual right to speak and publish on questions involving theology and the Bible† (Nauert, 431).[ix] Until this point in my discussion thus far, not much opposition has been mentioned. It is very important and essential to note that this new topic of new knowledge created extreme amounts of tension, ultimately culminating in the Protestant Reformation. At the same as scholars such as Erasmus, Bacon and Galileo emerged, â€Å"scholastic theologians arrogantly sat back and issued condemnations,† which greatly hindered the advancement of intellect (Nauert, 431).[x] Clearly established thus far was the recently renewed desire for new knowledge; in response, many new education establishments received great support and ideas began to circulate. In order for the continuing and pursuit of the ever evolving goals of humanists, there needed to be some change that would allow for this. This is one contributing factor to Erasmus’ dedication to reforming the church. Conflicts among humanists and scholars â€Å"reflect[ed] a disharmony that is fundamental,† and furthermore came to define â€Å"the dispute over academic competency and ‘exacerbation of the debate during the Reformation’ as the two forces† behind the matter (Nauert, 432).[xi] By this point in time it was seen as a necessity that religion be transformed. Among several attempts throughout history, â€Å"the Protestant Reformation is the only attempt that was successfully institutionalized† (Bellah, 369).[xii] So much work thus far had been the foundational truth: â€Å"scholastic philosophers and theologians spent long years acquiring the skills of dialectical argumentation and familiarity with the opinions of the past authorities, both ancient and medieval† (Nauert, 433).[xiii] It would take great influence to override these criticisms, but Erasmus laid the foundation for Martin Luther. â€Å"Erasmus’ pains were those of a delicate body and a sensitive and intellectual mind, amid surrounds which were uncongenial and indeed fatal to any humane culture† (Bishop, 135).[xiv] Whereas this was so, â€Å"Luther’s misery arose from the pains and travail of his moral nature in his endeavor to find peace with God† (Bishop, 135).[xv] For, it was â€Å"out of these throes of conscience a great religious movement was to be born† (Bishop, 135).[xvi] It was the combination of the significant influence witnessed having been imparted by Erasmus and Martin Luther that finally instigated the long time coming Protestant Reformation. The Protestant Reformation was the main event occurring during the Renaissance that allowed for the institutionalizing of knowledge and new ways of obtaining and exploring it. The defining characteristic concerning the Protestant Reformation is â€Å"the collapse of the hierarchical structuring of both this and the other world† (Bellah, 368).[xvii] It was the leadership of modern intellectuals, or humanists, such as Erasmus and Luther that proved to be a catalyst to the movement: â€Å"Luther by a spiritual declaration of independence in which he boldly cast off, once and forever the ecclesiastical authority of Rome† (Bellah, 370).[xviii] It was the consistency marked by the motivation of the ever evolving humanists, with the newly found sense of confidence toward the ability to influence society that culminated in the beginnings of the Scientific Revolution. â€Å"During the late Middle Ages ,the application of natural philosophy logic to theology transformed it into an analytic discipline. The extraordinary nature of this transformation is manifested when we see the kinds of questions that were routinely discussed in the average theological treatise.†[xix] The humanists’ demands for answers and unceasing attitudes at the time finally paid off. Prior to the Protestant Revolution, the many attempts of humanists to voice their opinion and freely explore their new interests without having to fear the authorities. Historians have â€Å"emphasized human attitudes and values† in this fight for intellectual freedom† (Buttimer, 5).[xx] The Protestant Reformation as a continuation of the beginnings of the humanism movement paved the way for the Scientific Revolution. â€Å"Before science could have reached the stage it did in the seventeenth century, there had to be a widespread use of reason and reasoned analysis. The medieval universities supplied the intellectual context for all of Western Europe. They developed a new approach to nature† (Grant, 420).[xxi] The new religious organization allowed for intellectuals and humanists of the time to truly pursue their ideas that were in opposition to previously existing knowledge that had been universally accepted as being true. Overall this culmination of the split between Church and State, the power granted to the individual due to the Protestant Reformation, and the defining characteristics of humanism during the Renaissance were the leading factors in the birth of the Scientific Revolution. Intellectuals in the seventeenth century soon came to view the world and universe as never before. For example, it was now known that rather than existing in an earth-centered universe, they were in fact living in a sun-centered universe. Famous figures in history existing at this time continued the already established tradition, and were able to impart great influence. These figures include, but are not limited to, Galileo, Francis Bacon, Rene Descartes, and Isaac Newton. There emerged a shift from thinking the abstract, such subjects that previous philosophers had once been dedicated to, to pondering and experimenting the physical world around them. Prior to this time, Aristotle, Galen and Ptolemy were relied on for foundations concerning the fields of physics, medicine, and astronomy. Just as there were certain individuals and movements that laid the foundations previously, there are also those researchers who were responsible for the carrying on of life into the Scientific Revolution. â€Å"It remained for Galileo, however, to apply the mean speed theorem to the motion of real falling bodies and to devise and experiment to determine if bodies really fall with uniform acceleration. Thus began the new science of mechanics and the beginnings of modern physics† (Grant, 421).[xxii] Before Galileo was even able to begin his investigations concerning the previous, it was essential that the events and transformations during the fifteenth to sixteenth centuries occurred. More modern discoveries attributed to the seventeenth century and furthermore during the Enlightenment, would have been seriously delayed had this transformation not occurred. People were finally granted the power, and discovered a new found sense of confidence when it came to the pursuit of new kn owledge and ideas. If it had not been for this fight, individuals like Galileo would have had this job to do themselves. It is important to note that the culmination of the Scientific Revolution did â€Å"originate with the great scientific minds of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, from the likes of Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, and Newton† (Grant, 421).[xxiii] Furthermore, this historian in particular states that â€Å"although it is possible to insist that the full-blown concept of intertia did not appear before Newton, there can be no denying that Galileo, Pierre Gassendi, and Descartes played a role in opposing the Aristotelian concept that everything that moves must be continuously moved by something else and in suggesting instead that once something was moving perhaps it might simply carry on moving until something else stopped it† (Henry, 554).[xxiv] Several important foundations for the study of nature, and in general life at its core, were products of the Renaissance, Protestant Reformation, and ultimately the Scientific Revolution. If it were not for the perseverance of humanists, and their sense of devotion, the advancements included in the Scientific Revolution may have not come for some time down the road. One of the most important outcomes that is still used as a basis today for scientific experimentation is the scientific method. â€Å"The scientific method is such that, whatever the weaknesses of human endeavor, scientific truths will steadily emerge and will come to be recognized and established as a matter of inevitability† (Henry, 555).[xxv] In a way, Henry’s definition of the scientific method can be seen as already applying to the transformation that created it. ENDNOTES: [i] Bishop, W. S. B. (1906). The sewanee review. Erasmus,14(2), 129-148. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27530759 [ii] Henry, J. H. (2008). Isis. Ideology, Inevitability, and the Scientific Revolution, 99(3), 552-559. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/591713 [iii] â€Å"Geography, Humanism, and Global Concern.† Anne Buttimer. Annals of the Association of American Geographers , Vol. 80, No. 1 (Mar., 1990), pp. 1-33. [iv] Bishop, W. S. B. (1906). The Sewanee review. Erasmus,14(2), 129-148. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27530759 [v] Nauert, C. G. N. (1998). The sixteenth century journal.Humanism as Method: Roots of Conflict with the Scholastics , 29(2), 427-438. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2544524 . [vi] Bishop, W. S. B. (1906). The Sewanee review. Erasmus,14(2), 129-148. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27530759 [vii] Nauert, C. G. N. (1998). The sixteenth century journal.Humanism as Method: Roots of Conflict with the Scholastics , 29(2), 427-438. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2544524 . [viii] Nauert, C. G. N. (1998). The sixteenth century journal.Humanism as Method: Roots of Conflict with the Scholastics , 29(2), 427-438. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2544524 [ix] Nauert, C. G. N. (1998). The sixteenth century journal.Humanism as Method: Roots of Conflict with the Scholastics , 29(2), 427-438. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2544524 [x] Nauert, C. G. N. (1998). The sixteenth century journal.Humanism as Method: Roots of Conflict with the Scholastics , 29(2), 427-438. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2544524 [xi] Nauert, C. G. N. (1998). The sixteenth century journal.Humanism as Method: Roots of Conflict with the Scholastics , 29(2), 427-438. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2544524 [xii] Bellah, R. N. B. (1964). American sociological review.Religious Evolution, 29(3), 358-374. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2091480 [xiii] Nauert, C. G. N. (1998). The sixteenth century journal.Humanism as Method: Roots of Conflict with the Scholastics , 29(2), 427-438. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2544524 [xiv] â€Å"Bishop, W. S. B. (1906). The sewanee review. Erasmus,14(2), 129-148. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27530759 [xv] Bishop, W. S. B. (1906). The sewanee review. Erasmus,14(2), 129-148. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27530759 [xvi] Bishop, W. S. B. (1906). The sewanee review. Erasmus,14(2), 129-148. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27530759 [xvii] Bellah, R. N. B. (1964). American sociological review.Religious Evolution, 29(3), 358-374. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2091480 [xviii] Bellah, R. N. B. (1964). American sociological review.Religious Evolution, 29(3), 358-374. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2091480 [xix] Grant, E. G. (2004). Scientific Imagination in the Middle Ages.

Defining And Evaluating Methods Of Measuring Performance Accounting Essay

Defining And Evaluating Methods Of Measuring Performance Accounting Essay Performance measurement is the performance-based management process which is flowing from the organizational mission and the strategic planning process. Performance measurement are includes the objective and subjective assessments of the performance of both individuals and subunits of an organization such as divisions or departments. Performance measurement are effective in ensure that a strategy of organisation is successfully implemented by monitor an organisations effectiveness in satisfying its own predetermined goals or stakeholder desires. Performance measures may be based on non-financial as well as on financial information. The Return on Investment (ROI) Two measures of divisional performance are commonly used is ROI and RI. ROI is the most common profitability ratio. Nowadays, most of companies concentrate on the return on investment (ROI) of a division that is profit as a percentage in direct relation to investment of division which instead of focusing on the size of a divisions profits. ROI addressed divisional profit as a percentage of the assets employed in the division. Assets employed can be defined as total divisional assets, assets controllable by the divisional manager, or net assets. The main advantage of using ROI is provides a valuable information about the overall approximation on the success of a firms past investment policy by providing a abstract of the ex post return on capital invested. According to Kaplan and Atkinson, they state that however, lack of some form of measurement of the ex post returns on capital, there is still useful for accurate estimates of future cash flows during the capital budgeting process. When ROI is used as a managerial performance measure, Measuring returns on invested capital also focuses managers attention on the impact of levels of working capital (in particular, stocks and debtors) on the ROI. It can lead to decisions making that are optimal for individual divisions but sub-optimal for the company. ROI focuses on short-term profitability, looking only at the last quarter or last year for performance evaluation. This time horizon may not be long enough for many projects to be evaluated. According to Daiva BurkÃ…Â ¡aitienÄ-, a further attraction of ROI is that it can compare the return of different businesses field for example division within the company or competitors by adopting it as a common denominator. Therefore, corporate managers want their divisional managers to focus on ROI so that their performance measure is congruent with outsiders measure of the companys overall economic performance. However, the used of ROI for evaluating the economic performance of a division is more appropriate than evaluating the managerial performance, since controllable profit and assets are not exposed in external published financial statements. For comparing the economic performance of a division, net income is likely to be the preferred profit measure to be used as the numerator to compute ROI in order to ensure consistency with the measures that are derived from the financial reports of similar companies outside of the group. ROI has been most widely used financial mea sure for many years in all types of companies. ROI is also a useful medium to communicate the ROI to those who have varying degrees of financial knowledge. The ROI concept allows managers to speak the same language when handle project goals in financial terms across several departments in a corporation as well Information Technology (IT) vendors use ROI as a sales tool to easily convey the economic value of their products. The residual income (RI) Residual income overcomes the dysfunctional aspect of ROI. It is because the use of ROI as a performance measurement can lead to under-investment. For example a manager currently achieving a high rate of return( say 30 percen) may not wish to pursue a project yielding a lower rate of return ( say 20 percen) even thought such as a project may be desirable to a company which can raise capital at an even lower rate ( say 15 percent) (David Otley, n.d). Thus, used RI is better than ROI. The purpose of evaluating the performance of divisional managers, RI is defined as controllable contribution less a cost of capital charge on the investment controllable by the divisional manager. For evaluating the economic performance of the division RI can be defined as divisional contribution less a cost of capital charge on the total investment in assets employed by the division. Besides, RI is favour than ROI and it more flexible because different cost of capital percentage rates can be applied to investments that have different levels of risk. There is not only will the cost of capital of divisions that have different levels of risk differ so may the risk and cost of capital of assets within the same division. The RI measure enables to calculate the different risk-adjusted in capital cost while ROI cannot incorporate these differences. The economic value added ROI and RI cannot stand alone as a financial measure of divisional performance. One of the factors contribute to a companys long-run objectives is short-run profit ability. ROI and RI are short-run concepts that deal only with the current reporting period whereas managerial performance measures should focus on future results that can be expected because of present actions. RI has been refined and re-named as economic value added (EVA) by the Stern Stewart Co. EVA is a financial performance measure based on operating income after taxes, the investment in assets required to generate that income and the cost of the investment in assets (or, weighted average cost of capital). The objective of EVA is to develop a performance measure that find the ways in which company value can be added or lost. The EVA concept extends the traditional residual income measure by incorporating adjustments to the divisional financial performance measure for distortions introduced by GAAP. Thus, by linking divisional performance to EVA, managers are motivated to focus on increasing shareholder value. The objective of developed EVA is producing an overall financial measure that encourages senior managers to focus on the delivery of shareholder value. According to Stern Stewart Co. the aim of companies managers whose shares are traded in the stock market should be to maximize shareholder value. Therefore, financial measurement is an important key used to measure divisional or company performance should be congruent with shareholder value. They claim that compared with other financial measures, EVA is more likely to meet this requirement and also to reduce dysfunctional behaviour. EVA is not just a performance measure but can be the major part of an integrated financial management system leading to decentralised decision making. . It leads the each different department managers to make the best decision lies to the companys goals. Thus adoption of EVA should indirectly bring changes in management which in turn can enhance company value (Stern, Stewart and Chew, 1991). It can be proved by an article in an issue of Fortune magazine (1993) described the apparent success that many companies had derived from using EVA to motivate and evaluate corporate and divisional managers. In fact, companies which have adopted EVA as the basis of management performance measurement have experienced a significant increase in their shareholders wealth. Limitations of financial performance measures Financial performance measures are generally based on short-term measurement periods and this can encourage managers to become short-term oriented. For example, relying on short-term measurement periods may encourage managers to reject positive NPV investments that have an initial adverse impact on the divisional performance measure but have high payoffs in later periods. Financial performance measures are as lagging indicators (Eccles and Pyburn, 1992) by time lag between actions and results. They state the outcomes of managements actions after a period of time, produce too late to influence current decisions. Therefore, its hard to understand or know what the manager did caused what to happen. Hard to know, what the manager did that makes the thing going well or bad as well. Financial performance measures are limited to current reporting period only and it needs to be supplemented by non financial information such as customer satisfaction and quality while Managerial performance measures focus and expect what will be the future result. The major problem is obtaining profit measures are based on the historical cost concept and thus tend to be poor estimates of economic performance. Companies tend to rely on financial accounting-based information for internal performance measurement (Johnson and Kaplan, 1987). This information may be appropriate for external reporting but it is doubtful for internal performance measurement and evaluation. In particular, using GAAP requires that discretionary expenses are treated as period costs, resulting in managers having to bear the full cost in the period in which they are incurred. Many traditional measurement and evaluation methods such as ROI, EVA, ROCE and so on have failed to yield an appropriate estimate of the pay back from these complex systems (Barua et al., 1996). Some claim these performance indicators have a high reliance on financial perspectives and thus portrait only one facet of the organisation. Balance scorecard (BSC) BSC was introduced by Kaplan and Norton (1992) to overcome the shortcomings of traditional management accounting and control which fails to signal changes in the companys economic value as an organization makes substantial investments or depletes past investments in intangible assets. The scorecard contains four different perspective which is financial performance, customers, internal business processes, and learning and growth. These perspectives reflect the interests of the key stakeholders of companies involving shareholders, customers and employees (Mooraj et al., 1999). There are several benefits of adoption the balanced scorecard highlight by Kaplan and Norton 1992. One of the benefits is focusing the entire company on the few key things needed to create breakthrough performance. A balanced scorecard might show that an organisation is only weak in a couple of areas but that these areas are impeding its overall success. By focusing everyone in the organisation on improving those areas, overall performance gets better. Next, it assists to integrate different company activities such as quality and customer service. By looking at different organisational programmes or units from different perspectives can be a way of getting everyone singing from the same song sheet. If the balanced scorecard shows customer service to be weak, focusing on everybodys customer service performance behaviours will lead to small improvements in each department or unit; the overall effect will be a bigger improvement in the organisations customer service performance across the board. Lastly, managers and employees both know what is required to achieve excellent overall performance by breaking down strategic measures to lower levels of the organisation. For example, an organisation might have overall goals to increase productivity by 5 per cent. By breaking down its productivity measures to granular levels of the organisation as part of a balanced scorecard, every member of the organisation will have clear targets that achieve their overall goals. Performance Prism The Performance Prism was developed by (Andy Neely and Adams, 2000) takes a drastically different look at performance measurement and sets out clearly to recognize how managers can use measurement data to improve business performance. It has a much more comprehensive view of different stakeholders for example investors, customers, employees, regulators and suppliers than other frameworks. It must be considering the wants and needs of stakeholders first before the strategies can be formulated (Neely et al., 2001). Thus, the stakeholders and their needs have been clearly identified, if not, it is impossible to form a proper strategy for company. According to Andy Neely, now lots of measurement frameworks for example like the balanced scorecard tends to take a fairly narrow view of stakeholders which refer to shareholders and customers. However, it ignores employees, suppliers, regulators and in todays society organisations cant afford to ignore those different pressure groups. Those di fferent groups of stakeholders that might be interested in the business. The strength of this conceptual framework is that it first questions the companys existing strategy before the process of selecting measures is started. In this way, the framework ensures that the performance measures have a strong foundation. The performance prism also considers new stakeholders (such as employees, suppliers, alliance partners or intermediaries) who are usually neglected when forming performance measures. It is structured to throw light on the complexity of an organisations relationships with its multiple stakeholders within the context of its particular operating environment. It provides an innovative and holistic framework that directs management attention to what is important for long term success and viability and helps organisations to design, build, operate and refresh their performance measurement systems in a way that is relevant to the specific conditions of their operating environment. (Andy Neely, Chris Adams, Mike Kennerley, 2002). Lastly, the performance Prism has considered the stakeholder satisfaction and stakeholder contribution compare to other performance measurement dont consider it. Now a way of thinking about this is that as a stakeholder in an organisation as a customer of an organisation, there are certain things I want from the organisation. Conclusion Divisional performance measurement should be based on a combination of financial and non-financial measures. Financial performance measures cannot stand alone as a measure of divisional performance. Profitability is only one of the factors contributing to a companys objectives. An incorporation of non-financial measures, such as competitiveness, product leadership, productivity, quality, innovation and flexibility in responding to changes in demand, creates the need to link financial and non-financial measures of performance.

Pauls Case :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The film Pauls Case is by Lemont Johnson but is written by Willa Cather. Its about Paul, a sensitive high school student, felt very frustrated with his home life and his family's expectations that he would grow up to work in a factory or the steel mills as his father and most of his neighbors did. He was not close to anyone in his family and had no neighborhood or school friends. Instead, he spent his evenings ushering at the symphony hall or backstage at a local theater. Paul dreamed of living the life of the performers he saw. He was without discipline and without direction. He had problems at school and was surly when called before a school committee. Eventually he was pulled out of school and sent to work by his father. He devised a scheme to steal money from his employer and then ran away to New York City where he stayed at the Waldorf Astoria, living for a few days the life of his dreams. When he realized that he would have to return home and accept his puni shment he killed himself. Paul felt like his father, his uncaring teachers and classmates weren’t worthy of his company.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Paul has entered the theater through the backstage door and the actors are coming off stage and walking up the steps to the dressing rooms. The first shot is of Paul looking up at the actors and talking to them. The camera shot is a bird eye view of Paul looking up at the actors. He looks up to the actors and feels they are better then everyone. They are the best of the best and Paul wants to be like them. Then the scene switches to an ants view of the actors. This symbolizes the fact, that they are high class and they are looking down at Paul. The next scene is again a bird’s eye view of Paul looking up at the actors and then another ant’s view of the actors looking down at Paul. This shows how Paul viewed the actors, he thought they were the highest class and he wanted to be just like them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In this scene Paul has just entered the hotel after stealing the money and running away to New York. There is a long shot of the inside of the hotel and Paul has just walked through the door and is walking closer to the camera.

spanning tree protocol :: essays research papers

Spanning Tree Protocol Spanning tree protocol is a protocol that prevents loops that are not wanted in a network. In order for a network to work properly it has to have only one active path between two network stations. If there are multiple active paths between stations loops can and will occur. When loops occur, there can sometimes be duplicate messages in the network. The loops are created by the network and if the devices that connect the network segments are all configured to forward, they will continuously forward frames into an endless network loop. If there are enough loops going then a frame will not reach its destination. The reason duplicate messages occur is because sometimes switches will see situations appear on both sides of it. When this occurs that is when spanning tree protocol comes in. In order to shut down the loops bridges and switches exchange BPDU messages with other bridges and switches to detect loops and then remove them by shutting down selected bridge interfaces. BPDU is short for bridge protocol data unit. Bridge protocol data units are part of the spanning tree protocol and they help describe and identify the parts of a switch port. The bridge protocol data unit allows switches to obtain information about each other. All the switches gather information from each other by exchanging data messages. In order for them to exchange messages they have to elect a root switch for the topology. The root switch has to be unique. The way they elect they have to have a unique switch for every local area network segment. To exchange messages they have to remove all loops by putting them in a backup state. Now to talk about states there is 5 different states. Two of the five states do not participate in frame forwarding. Frame forwarding is what the three main states do. The three main states are listening, learning, and forwarding. The other 2 are blocking state and disabled state. When you enable the spanning tree protocol the network goes through the blocking state and then the listening state and learning state are enabled after being turned on. If the protocol is properly configured the ports are stabilized to the forwarding or blocking state. The blocking state does not participate in the frame forwarding. It removes frames that are received from the attached segment. It also discards frames from another port for forwarding.

Rome :: Roman Culture Rome Military History Essays

Rome The Greeks, after their country had been reduced into a province, imputed the triumphs of Rome, not to the merit, but to the FORTUNE, of the republic. The inconstant goddess, who so blindly distributes and resumes her favours, had now consented (such was the language of envious flattery) to resign her wings, to descend from her globe, and to fix her firm and immutable throne on the banks of the Tiber.[1] A wiser Greek, who has composed, with a philosophic spirit, the memorable history of his own times, deprived his countrymen of this vain and delusive comfort by opening to their view the deep foundations of the greatness of Rome.[2] The fidelity of the citizens to each other, and to the state, was confirmed by the habits of education and the prejudices of religion. Honour, as well as virtue, was the principle of the republic; the ambitious citizens laboured to deserve the solemn glories of a triumph; and the ardour of the Roman youth was kindled into active emulation, as often as the y beheld the domestic images of their ancestors.[3] The temperate struggles of the patricians and plebeians had finally established the firm and equal balance of the constitution; which united the freedom of popular assemblies with the authority and wisdom of a senate-and the executive powers of a regal magistrate. When the consul displayed the standard of the republic, each citizen bound himself, by the obligation of an oath, to draw his sword in the cause of his country, till he had discharged the sacred duty by a military service of ten years. This wise institution continually poured into the field the rising generations of freemen and soldiers; and their numbers were reinforced by the warlike and populous states of Italy, who, after a brave resistance, had yielded to the valour, and embraced the alliance, of the Romans. The sage historian, who excited the virtue of the younger Scipio and beheld the ruin of Carthage,[4] has accurately described their military system; their levies , arms, exercises, subordination, marches, encampments; and the invincible legion, superior in active strength to the Macedonian phalanx of Philip and Alexander. From these institutions of peace and war, Polybius has deduced the spirit and success of a people incapable of fear and impatient of repose. The ambitious design of conquest, which might have been defeated by the seasonable conspiracy of mankind, was attempted and achieved; and the perpetual violation of justice was maintained by the political virtues of prudence and courage.

Google vs Microsoft

In today’s society many people are using the internet more and more to shop online, handle business transactions and surf the web for what interests them. Microsoft and Google are known to many people as internet giants. The two companies compete for business in the internet world by offering similar online business services. Microsoft also offers an array of computer products to consumers and businesses such as Windows 7, Microsoft office and MSN. Google’s main focus of business is its search engine that many people use today to surf the internet. This paper will compare and contrast Microsoft’s and Google’s business model, financial management system and explain which company could better withstand a major recession and at the same time, compare their financial ratios and decide which two companies that would be better to invest in. Microsoft was started in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen who developed an interpreter for basics programming language systems that has contributed to Microsoft’s being so successful. Microsoft is one of the largest technology companies in the world which specializes in developing and licensing computer software products such as Windows 7, Microsoft office, MSN and Bing. Microsoft’s management team is led by chief executive officer Steve Ballmer who also serves on the executive board, chairman Bill Gates, seven directors, and one chief financial officer which are all non-executive board members. The company has been known for its leadership style through its founder Bill Gates for donating money to many charities and helping the poor. Microsoft is also said to be an innovator for the new-age workplace where work is made to be comfortable, fun and inspiring so that all employees can enjoy doing their work and like to spend their time there as well. Bill Gates did not even finish college but his work ethics are being taught in schools through the world. Microsoft has an excellent track record for innovation because it keep coming up with new technology and devices every year (Datamonitor, a, 2011). On the other hand, Microsoft is in competition with Google and other internet companies over the use of internet search engines. Google was founded in 1998 by two Stanford University graduate students, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Google is an international technology firm that is concentrated on improving the way people get their information from the internet. Google has three core businesses search, advertisements, and applications. The search engine powered by Google provides information for millions of users every day. It must be determined that information reported to the Google search engine is beneficial to the user; a set of criteria has been developed to serve this purpose. A common method of determining the usefulness of the page for the user is searching the document for keywords. Keywords must be entered to search on Google, and the documents are scanned to determine how often they appear. The more keywords a document has tends to indicate its usefulness to the user. Another evaluating principle for reporting useful pages is the ranking for the page and quality of the site. Websites receive rankings which reflect quality, relevance, and accuracy. Websites who have high rankings and numerous keywords are reported to the user first. This method of obtaining information allows the user to access vital information in a matter of seconds. Search advertisements are used to further assist users, and to offer Google’s main products and services and provide valuable and relevant information for people who use the search engines for answers they seek. Google search engine is like Microsoft’s Bing search engine. Google also sells their product and services in more than 100 languages throughout the world. Google’s management team is led by a chairman Eric Schmidt, a chief executive Larry Page, a director of special projects Sergey Brin which are all executive board members. They also have six directors that are non-executive board members. The company is a leader in that they provide people with valuable information. At the same time, however, Google is a slow innovator in its search engine technology. For example, its search engine has not shown major innovation despite the quality of Google’s searching technology that is absolutely dominating. However, as search engine technology advanced in the past decade the technological gap between Google and Microsoft has decreased more and more as we see with Bing (Datamonitor, b, 2011). On the other hand, by using the financial ratio I believe that Microsoft would benefit more and be able to survive a major economic recession. Microsoft has five divisions within their organization such as Windows & Windows 7, Microsoft business, online services, server and tools, entertainment and devices. According to Datamonitor, a , â€Å"The company’s product under this division include Microsoft Office, Microsoft SharePoint; Microsoft Exchange Server; and Microsoft Dynamics ERP and CRM as well as Microsoft Office Web Apps, which are the online companions to Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote† (2011, p. ). This shows that Microsoft has many divisions and products that they can offer to consumers, businesses and investors. This also shows that Microsoft would be better suited to withstand a major recession due to the many products they have to offer unlike Google which only has search engines and advertising to depend on. Therefore as seen in the financia l ratio Google has not made any money nor did it lose any money. Microsoft on the other hand, has made money due to the many products it has to offer. Subsequently, the profitability ratio can tell us a lot about Microsoft and Google performance. The profitability ratio can tell us what each company’s revenue and losses were for the year. It can also tell us about both companies operating budget, debts, stocks, and investments. According to Microsoft’s annual report, â€Å"Windows Division revenue reflected relative performance in PC market segments. We estimated that sales of PC’s to businesses grew approximately 11% this year and sales of PC’s to consumers declined approximately 1%† (2011, p. 50). This demonstrates that by using the profitability ratio Microsoft was able to calculate their gains and losses for the year in the sale of PC’s. This also shows that by using the profitability ratio Microsoft was able to project their sales of PC’s to other businesses. Therefore if someone wanted to invest company like Microsoft they should use the profitability ratio to determine a company’s return on assets and equity to see if it is a good investment. As we can see PC’s sales to businesses grew 11% while consumers PC’s sales weakened by 1% so an investor should put their money in business PC’s. After seeing the profitability ratio of both companies Microsoft would be the company to invest in because they payout more money and make more money per share and to each stockholder. One can agree that Microsoft has done well over the years by them recognizing and using the knowledge base and technological base has been an asset for the company. Microsoft is one of the best companies when it comes to software and programming. Microsoft over the years has realized that their competitors can have an impact on market changes and with this knowledge it has allowed Microsoft to make the required decisions in the market place. The issues and concerns that Microsoft and other organizations face are technology changes and competition. Technology today has surpassed the technology of yesterday. Yet, Microsoft has shown that they can meet these challenges in various areas by meeting these issues and concerns head on. Microsoft oftentimes has restructured some of their well-known operating systems, programs and software to keep up with the changing times. Recently, they have launched Bing and Windows 7. According to Microsoft annual report: Online Services Division (OSD) develops and markets information and content designed to help people simplify tasks and make more informed decisions online, and that help advertisers connect with audiences. OSD offerings include Bing, MSN ad Center, and advertiser tools. Bing and MSN generate revenue through the sale of search and display advertising generally accounts for nearly all of OSD’s annual revenue. (2011, p. 54) This demonstrates that Microsoft would be a great company to invest in because they offer many different products that makes a lot of money. This also demonstrates that Microsoft has seen an increase in revenue due to the fact that they invested in Bing and MSN. Therefore one should also consider the return on current ratio and the dividend payout ratio before making a decision on investing in the company. On the other hand one should also look at the investment valuation before making an investment decision. Investors need to be aware that before they invest in a company such as Microsoft that the likelihood of the problems when it comes to investing occur with large corporations where there is a higher degree of the separation of ownership and management, and thus perhaps an occurrence of a conflict of the goals of the managers and the goals of the shareholders. Aside from doing research on the company itself, doing an evaluation of stock can also prove to be useful. Knowing if stock is overpriced can tip you off, in that you then need to find out why it is overpriced. For example, is the stock overpriced because investors sincerely believe that the stock is good and has potential, or is the stock price high because of current economic conditions. Knowing the answer to such questions will help individuals as investors make better and more informed decisions. According to Google’s annual report: Strategic, financial and execution isks and exposures associated with our business strategy, product innovation and sales road map policy matters, significant litigation and regulatory exposures, and other current matters that may present material risk to our financial performance, operations, infrastructure, plans, prospects or reputation, acquisition and divestitures. (2011, p. 16) This explains that investing in large corporations can be ris ky and, this also explains that you should look, at a company’s investment valuation before investing. The reason why this is so important is because people can lose their money and if they did their homework by using the investment valuation they would see where their money is going and if they are making a wise decision when they invest into a company. In conclusion, Google and Microsoft’s are the world’s most powerful technology organizations that have proven it is possible to excel in the corporate world. The software and programming that Microsoft’s sells is the same product that has proven to be a useful tool for the company. Allocating costs and investing in new technology and recognizing competition including recognizing revenues gain and loss has also proven to be an asset for Microsoft. Google and Microsoft recognize and realize the potential of technology in the ever changing world of business. Google and Microsoft have met the challenges and changes of today’s society. As for Microsoft achieving its goals, the belief is that it has surpassed those goals and is constantly revising technology and products to meet them and new ones in a timely manner. Therefore, making it a company that investors want to invest in. Microsoft, financial aspects has allowed me to decide that it is one of the best companies, to invest in today. While Google on the other hand, must find better innovative techniques so it can gain more capital so that investors want to invest in the company. At the same time Google must keep up with other competitors such as Microsoft so that the company does not be left behind in the future from other competitors stealing their clients. References Datamonitor: (2011 a). Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved from Business Source Complete. Datamonitor: (2011 b). Google Inc. Retrieved from Business Source Complete. Google Annual Report (2011). Retrieved from http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1htm Microsoft Annual Report (2011). Retrieved from www.microsoft.com/investor Appendix

Health and Safety Problems in Rio de Janeiro

There are many health and safety problems that people in Rio de Janeiro are currently facing today. Probably one of the main problems that Rio has is its large crime rate. Rio de Janeiro has been known for its high crime rate by the State Department for the past 25 years. Crime statistics continues to be critically high and rising levels of crimes in the city of Rio de Janeiro are indicative of organized crime units. They are dealing with categories of rape, theft, gangs, drug abuses and kidnapping.Many different kinds of robberies are held in the city, especially street robberies and even robbery in your vehicle during the night. It is even difficult for tourists to come visit Rio de Janeiro because of the high crimes rates. Many tourists have experienced or seen both robbery and fraud in the city. Some even experienced rape. On April 3rd , 2012 an American woman visiting Brazil with her boyfriend was raped and beaten by 3 men onboard a bus. There should be a stricter system of law r rather have the government pass a new law regarding the issues of these crimes.That would help the city of Rio to reduce the crimes happening there. Rio de Janeiro has been known for having many slums in the city, and these areas are called favelas. Rios favelas have been statistically the center of high crimes rates. Since the 1980s, nearly every Rio favela was controlled by violent drug gangs or criminal organizations. Rio de Janeiro has over 1,000 favelas. At one point, the favelas were the home of the most wanted man in the city of Rio de Janeiro.There were many drug gangs and many people walking in the streets armed with weapons, fearing neither the police nor the government. Innocent people living in the area were afraid of the gangs. There were also many robberies and rape in the slums. In order to take care of the crime problem in their slums they established what is known as the Favela Pacification Program (FPP) first introduced in November 2008. It recruited thousands of police to secure and watch over almost every part of Rio's favelas.They established permanent presence called Unidade de Policia Pacificadora (UPP). Police took care and arrested violent drug gangs and even had the most known gangs in the slums in their custody. Because of this they were able to reduce the crime rates drastically in Rio de Janeiro. Another result of the UPPS formation is the decline of homicide rates in the city. Since 2005, homicides in the state and city of Rio de Janeiro have declined over 50 percent in real numbers and in the homicide rate.The homicide rate in the ity of Rio de Janeiro has dropped dramatically from 42 homicides per 100,000 in 2005 to 24 homicides per 100,000 in 2012. Another health issue in Rio de Janeiro is the infant mortality rate. In Rio de Janeiro the rate varies greatly from region to region. In 2008, the citys overall average was 19 deaths for every 1,000 live births until 12 months old. Barra da TiJuca, a richer neighborhood in Rio reco rded 6 deaths per 1,000 live births while another town in Rio has a rate of 21 deaths per 1,000 births. This shows the difference between the rich and the poor areas of Rio.As for prenatal care for pregnant women in Rio, only 32% of women met the target of seven visits during pregnancy. The lack of prenatal care reflects the high percentage of infant mortality. To help with the issues of infant mortality rate, Rio should issue more health centers for women or people in need of health care, especially in the slums ot Rio. Not many people can attord medical care so it would help the people to have mini health centers around their neighborhood. Women would better be able to come for checkups during pregnancy.

Dominican and Italian

Jonathan D. Iulo October 27, 2010 Topic: Comparison Essays My Italian and Dominican families English 105 I come from two different backgrounds which are very similar but different. I chose to write my comparison essay about the Dominican culture which comes from my mother’s side and the Italian culture which is my father’s. Comparing and showing the similarities of both cultures is very interesting since I grew up with both in the house. Both cultures try to keep most of their homeland tradition here in the United States.These include religion, morals and values, customs, language, music, and food. The Italians and the Dominicans are family oriented. The male role such as the father is being the care taker financially and plays an important role in decision making in the house. The men in both cultures are the protectors. Many men in both cultures are said to be jealous, which probably comes from being over protective. They tend to be overprotective of their wifeâ€℠¢s and their daughters. The men is perceived to be the† Macho† in the family and the women are more of a â€Å"delicate† symbol.In both cultures, it is more acceptable for a man to have more than one girlfriend than for a woman. The female role such as the mother is the care giver, the one that soothes you when you are in need and the one that cooks. Women are the ones that hold the family together specially the mother and grandmother. Everyone comes to them for guidance. Women are supposed to preserve themselves for one man, although that is changing. The family always gets together on weekends and holidays. The family is very important and both love to eat.Even though Italians love pasta and Dominicans love their rice and beans; they have the coffee in common. They can drink coffee at breakfast, lunch, and dinner and it’s usually espresso. Both cultures also enjoy bread. They eat bread with coffee, chocolate milk, and food in general. Italians and Dominic ans love gardening. Italians like to produce their own fresh vegetables like zucchini, eggplants, and tomatoes. Dominicans like to plant flowers of many kinds, as well as peppers and cilantro, like my mom.There is a great respect for the mother and the elders. The mothers are the ones that mainly guide you spiritually and you need their approval when it comes to relationships. They both want their children to have an Italian or a Dominican as a future wife or husband. The elders are the keepers of history memories and are the root of the family. The grandparents are usually the ones teaching you the native language, in this case Spanish and Italian. Most Italians and Dominicans are catholic and religion plays an important part in their lives.The special religious events, seasons, and the church in the community are part of the cultural traditions. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter traditions are very special events to both Dominicans and Italians. During these religious holidays t he immediate and extended families get together for church and home festivities. The families enjoy the prayers, food, and music together. Both cultures are very similar and I believe this is one of the reasons my parents and the family get along well and I enjoy being part of both worlds.

Fashion Fundamentals Test Review

The designer who creates designs for several manufacturers, is called a High fashion or name designer Stylist- designer Freelance designer The secondary level of the fashion industry is composed of: Is composed of growers and producers of the raw materials of fashion Ђ Is the ultimate distribution level Is the retailer Is composed of manufacturers and contractors of finished apparel Is the level that functions with all other levels simultaneously The primary level of the fashion industry is composed of: 5. True or False Licensing is a legal arrangement whereby firms are given permission to produce and market merchandise in the name of the licensor for a specific per 6. True or False Lines encompass an entire seasons production from a designer 7. True or False odd of time.There is no difference in price point or market location between a line and a election. 8. True or False A knock off is a copy of an original designer garment. 9. True or False An anchor piece for a collection is a piece that sold well at retail therefore it is re cut/ remade in new fabric for the current season. 10. Spring I is shown (circle one) October and November January February March None of the above 11. Resort is shown (circle one) 12. True or False Merchandisers are the links that hold the entire product development process together. They are the link between the design staff, production facilities and the sales staff. True or False The manufacturer does it all from sales, product development to shipping product. He final In stage four of the production process garments are shown to retailers Cutting involves (circle 3 of the below) Making a marker Grading a pattern Spreading the fabric on a cutting room table Bundling the pattern pieces Finishing involves (circle 3 of the below) Sewing on buttons Dyeing Attaching labels Washing to prevent shrinkage Floor ready procedures include (circle 3 of the below) Labeling cartons Adding sales tickets / bar codes to garments Completion of sh ipping documents Packing properly with correct hangers Private labels are owned by a retailer and only found in their stores. Specification buying is when the retailer tells the manufacturer their standards before they place an order. Offshore production is the practice of producing goods within the country of origin. Manufacturers/ designers produce product only within their category. (For example: a coat manufacturer only produces coats/ outerwear) Designer price zones are considered: The highest price point Bridge price pointModerate price point Budget price point Please select the price point for product that is sold in the moderate market (Guess, Esprit, Levi Strauss is examples) The major market centers are: (circle 2) New York Houston Dallas Chicago Marts consist of exhibition spaces that house wholesale markets Haute Couture losses money itself but creates profitability through licenses, pr ©t a porter lines and franchising. Pr ©t a Porter is fashion that is â€Å"custo m made or made to measure† Semi Annual â€Å"Prà ªt† shows are held in the below capitals: (circle 3) Paris Milan London Geneva Rome Which European fashion market city is known and respected for its luxury textiles, handwork, leather goods and accessories. 30. Compare and contrast the roles of the designer versus the merchandiser? They both research trends, colors, and fabrics using forecasters. Designers sketch the piece while the merchandisers figure out the right prices, places, quantity, etc. 31 . How does a Jobber differ from a manufacturer?The Jobber handles the designing, planning, cutting, selling, and shipping, but not the sewing 33. What is a chargeable? Retailers way of financially penalizing the manufacturer for late, incomplete, mistaken, or wrong ticketing issues on garments 34. What role do factors play in the fashion industry? Fund the deals by purchasing accounts receivable or lending money 35. What are the six stages of the product development process ? 1 . Plan line 2. Create design concept 3. Develop design 4. Plan production 5. Produce 6. Distribute 36. Name the major market centers in the USA. Miami, New York, Dallas, Los Angels, Chicago 37. Name the major market centers in Europe. London, Paris, Milan

Who participates in movement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Who participates in movement - Essay Example McAdam disregards strict definitions of recruitment, movement, and activism, and instead focuses on the process of an individual’s participation in activism. Risk and cost assessment gives his theories a good base. Risks taken on the part of the activist cost him something (positive or negative cost). As an example, signing a petition is a low risk, low cost activity; organizing homeless people is a high risk, high cost activity. Individuals do a conscious or subconscious risk/cost assessment before they participate in activism activities. An individual may verbally support an idea yet not physically participate in higher cost activities such as rallies or writing letters to Congress. Individuals may choose to participate in higher risk/cost activities, if those risks/costs are acceptable to him. These individuals typically â€Å"(a) have a history of activism, (b) [are] deeply committed to the ideology and goals of the movement, (c) [are] integrated into activist networks, and (d) [are] relatively free of personal constraints that would make participation especially risky† (71). By contrast, Polletta states that people join high risk/cost movements â€Å"because it is fun; because their sense of solidarity with people they know who are already in the movement demands it; because if they don’t, no one else will; because they are morally shocked and compelled by an injustice† (35). She refers to McAdam’s works and expands on the â€Å"narrative† component of recruitment. Protesters and activists, whether their actions are believed to be spontaneous or are the result of long-standing commitment to the movement, tell a powerful story that inspires others to agree and perhaps join in. Participating in protest and activism is a somewhat organic process from the individual’s point of view; people are inspired when the movement’s ideology rings true with their own ideology, and find themselves participating without really understanding how they got

Strategic decision making mechanisms available to deal with airport Essay

Strategic decision making mechanisms available to deal with airport development at the national and local levels - Essay Example It seems that in the area of strategic planning, the British airline industry needs several alterations and improvements in order to meet the challenges set within the global market. The delays in the application of the relevant projects as described above could affect the performance of the industry towards its competitors and for this reason appropriate plans of action should be designed in order to support the improvement of the particular industry in the long term. Current paper refers to the strategic decision making options/ methods that can be used in the airport development in Britain. Towards this direction, general principles and schemes of strategic decision making procedure will be presented while the current trends that characterize airport development in Britain are also going to be analyzed. On the other hand, a comparison with the conditions that apply in the relevant sector of Ireland has been considered to be necessary in order to understand the elements of airport development and their role within different markets. In this way, any possible differentiation among the British and the Irish market regarding the airport development will be revealed offering valuable information on the formulation and application of strategic decision making mechanisms in both the above countries. The main aspects of the airport development in Britain are presented in the White Paper â€Å"The Future of Air Transport† which published by the British government in December 2003. In accordance with this paper, current efforts in UK regarding the airport development in the various regions across the country focus on the following issues: ‘a) A new runway at Stansted, to be operational by 2011/12; b) A third runway at Heathrow, as long as legal air quality limits are not breached. If this is not possible, Gatwick will have the runway instead, to be operational by 2020; c) A new runway in Birmingham; d) Also, existing airports

Monetary Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Monetary Economics - Essay Example Monetary Economic growth is generally thought of as one-dimensional and is measured by increase in income. Monetary Economic development involves structural and functional changes and appropriate system of money supply. In the absence of effective measures of the latter however, states of development are estimated by the growth of income. Ordinarily, levels of income and rates of increase are given on a per capita basis, to approximate measures of efficiency and welfare (Shin, 2005, 1117). There are broadly three periods in the early history of monetary economic thought. The first is the period of early industrialisation in Europe, the second is the period of industrial revolution in England, i.e. the period from about 1775 to 1832, and the third period falls in the third quarter of the nineteenth century when other countries like Germany and the United States began to catch up with Britain and finally overtook it as the leading industrial power of the world. But monetary economic development as a discipline comprising systematic and scientific study may be said to have developed over the last few decades (Hahn, 2001). According to Malthus, as long as the wage level is above a certain minimum w0/ population tend to grow very rapidly. Since the actual w never rises above w0/ any short-run increase of the wage is sufficient to provoke a large enough upsurge in population to bring the wage down to a minimum level. Thus, if once the whole world were inhabited, population would increase in an arithmetic ratio as resources do, and not show a tendency of increasing in a geometric ratio, and then there would be progress. But this progress would consist of a proportional increase in the total quantity of capital and the total number of workers. There would be no increase in the standard of living since by hypothesis, every increase in the living standards, i.e.

Construction and Maintenance of Building Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Construction and Maintenance of Building - Essay Example In addition, the primary source of energy for the building will be generated from a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) unit. Combined power and heat integrates the production of usable heat and power (electricity), in one single, cost effective and highly efficient process. The CHP system is sustainable, clean and renewable. CHP generates electricity while also capturing usable heat that is produced in this process its efficiency is greatly increased. This is unusual contrasts with conventional ways of generating electricity where heat is simply wasted and in the process impacting negatively on efficiency. In today’s coal and gas-fired power stations, up to two-thirds of the entire energy consumed get lost in such a way, frequently witnessed as a cloud of smoke rising from the cooling turrets, the process is very environmentally unfriendly. This will be a very eco-friendly aspect of construction as it is very efficient in its purpose and design. Sub-structure or Foundation- is the lower section of the building, located below the ground level and the damp proof course. A foundation is part of the structure that is in direct contact with the ground to which the loads are equally transmitted to the supporting surrounding soil. Shrinkable soils are those types whose contents are made up of more than 35% have a modified plasticity index greater or equal to 10% and of fine particles. The fine soil particles are having nominal diameters of 60 Â µm. Plastic index of a given soil is its measure of the change in volume potential that is determined by Atterberg Limits test. Soil particles whose nominal diameters after the test are greater than 425 Â µm are eliminated through sieving in advance. Particles with diameters smaller than 425 Â µm are promptly reported for Atterberg Limits test. The Plasticity index of the soil multiplied by the real percentage of particles with contents less than 425

Global Human Resources Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Global Human Resources Management - Essay Example This task requires a human resource department or function that can identify the right people at the right moment in time and come up with working strategies to keep and attract talent to the organization. The coca-Cola company is known to be the world's largest beverage manufacturer, marketer, distributor marketer and company. The company which is also one of the largest companies in the United States of America also deals in non-alcoholic concentrates and syrups. Incorporated in 1892, the Coca-Cola organization is best known for its main product - Coca-Cola although it currently offers almost 400 brands in well over 200 countries. The company serves a wide client base with an approximate serving of 1.5 billion clients daily. This figure translates to over 10,450 beverages per second, and 800 million in the USA per year. In 2003 alone, the company achieved earnings in excess of 4.347 billion US dollars. The Coca-Cola Company and its subsidiaries only produce syrup concentrates which are sold to bottling companies who hold Coca-Cola franchise throughout the world. The company has several competitors across the different countries some of which make alcoholic drinks. The Coca-Cola Company has a franchised distribution network that dates from 1889. It makes concentrate which is later sold to various bottling companies with exclusive territories throughout the world. ... Coca-Cola has used catching themes such as "Drink Coca-Cola" and many other promotional strategies to market its products coupled with a strong, aggressive and effective marketing and distribution network. The company's mission is to refresh and benefit everyone touched by the business. The company mission is simplicity, solidness and timelessness in doing business. The coca-cola Company applies several strategies in order to stay ahead of competition. Differentiation strategies applied help to ensure that clients have a clear distinction between the company's products, trademarks and brands and those of its competitors. Before venturing into a market, the company engages its machinery in conducting vigorous market research. The company has policies that ensure its activities are globally standardized and meet all legal requirements. What this means is that more or less the same quality of product is ensured universally. Further, the company is renowned for recruiting and employing a well trained human resource that ensures its activities are performed satisfactorily. Human Resource Strategies and Programs Throughout the business world, human resource functions are faced with a number of challenges as a result or rapid evolutions in the corporate world. This calls for the adoption of strategies that will help in overcoming problems faced by human resource managers. Firms that do not emphasize on attracting and retaining talent often face dire consequences as competitors seize the opportunity to strategically employ a better human resource (Rohmetra, 2005). The organization must become more resilient, adaptable, customer-focused and agile in order to succeed. The human resource function of the company must hence