Regulation in Mass Media Essay

The responsibility of the FCC and their regulations are often questioned if they are necessary or not. By examining Horwitz’s â€Å"The Evolution of the American Telecommunication System and the Origin of Communication Regulation. ,† one could take the side that the regulation of media is necessary. Regulation of media is necessary to prevent a monopoly– which is one company controlling the entire market. If there was a monopoly on media then the company could charge and price whatever they want and only give service to those they wanted to. By having media regulations this is not able to happen. Natural monopolies in wired carriers, which are monopolies approved by the FCC, keep costs down and prevent a cluttering of wiring in the air or ripping up streets to install underground wiring. The first sign of natural monopoly was with AT&T and the telephone. According to Horowitz, it states: â€Å"Under the leadership of Theodor Vail, AT&T maintain the telephony constitution a natural monopoly. One policy, one system, and universal service’ was Vail’s ot-reapted slogan. † (Horowitz, Page 99) Vail argued that by having more then one provider there would be a waste of resources and if there was one provider pooling its resources they would be able to provide a better service to the customer. Though this might be true, unless there is regulation by the government this idea of natural monopoly would be horrible. Now the FCC regulates any kind of natural monopoly that exists within universal carriers of a med ia. The beginning of regulation began with the start of large scale communication, other then print, in 1835 when Samuel Morse proved a signal that could transmitted a message by wire. Morse used pulses of current to provide a written code on a strip of paper. This code became known as the Morse Code. Morse gave a public demonstration in 1838 to congress, but it took congress over five years to fund Morse’s experiment of the telegraph. Congress funded Morse $30,000 to construct a 40 mile experiment from Washington to Baltimore, using telegraph wire. It took six years before a message was sent and received over the telegraph wire. This was the first time a message had been transferred other then print or word of mouth. Western Union became the main provider of the telegraph service, and became a monopoly in 1867. The telegraph created the umbrella of commerce, which was the first time the government intervened with communications. According to Horwitz, a common carrier obligation was established for all carriers that provided service for the telegraph. Telegraph companies resemble railroad companies and other common carries, in that they are instruments of commerce and in that they exercise a public employment and are therefore bound to serve all customers alike without discriminations, they have doubtless a duty to the public to receive to the extent of there capacity all messages clearly and intelligible written and to transmit them upon reasonable terms but they are not common carriers, there duties are different and are perfo rmed in different ways and they are not subject the same liabilities. (Horowitz, Page 95, 96) What this law meant was that there could be no discrimination in who the provider wanted to extend service to. In 1895 the first radio message was transmitted by Marconi. Radio area waves were open to who ever could make a device to transmit messages to other people with the same device. Broadcasting became more and more popular. According to Horwitz, â€Å"broadcasting-the dissemination of electrical messages through the airwaves to an undifferentiated audience-may not have been contemplated, but it was inherited in the technology of radio. (Horowitz, Page 112) Radio became more and more popular and the government stepped in like they did with the telegraph and telephone and began regulating radio. The first major regulation was the Radio Act of 1912. Before this, radio waves were open to the public. The airwaves started to become too crowded and the U. S. government decided to take actio n. The Radio Act of 1912 established government control over the airwaves and created guidelines for issuing licenses and distributing radio airwaves. The Radio Act of 1927 was the second major act that was established to regulate the media industry. This act created the Federal Radio Communications (FRC), which was responsible for giving licenses to broadcasters. This act also made it so that the radio airwaves were a public resource. As a result, broadcasters were required to serve the public interest. The regulations of broadcasted media and the regulation of print media are different. The regulation of print deals with copyright laws. Anyone could publish anything they want but if some one uses someone else’s words without proper notation they could be sued. Print is regulated more when dealing with news print; for example the newspaper. Most print media would not use profanity or any kind of naked pictures. Print media is mostly written based on ethics. The writer tries not to take sides or out right seem bias towards one particular side. Broadcast media like radio have different kinds of regulations. In order to have air time on the radio one needs to have a license. Radio also must provide a public service toward the listener. Radio just like print media tends to stay away from profanity and over sexual connotations. Print media usually has a fee, whereas, radio is free to the public. Both of these media’s have regulations but have different kinds of regulations from the FCC. Overall, the world of mass media has many regulations that exist. These regulations are decided by the FCC, which is an independent government agency created under the Communications Act of 1934. At the beginning the FCC was responsible for regulating broadcast, telegraph, and telephone. Now the FCC has expanded its regulations to include new communication technologies such as: the satellite, microwave, cellular telephones, PCS service and private radio communications. As one could see, the responsibilities of the FCC are necessary in monitoring both the delivery system and the actual media itself. Overall, by using Horwitz’s â€Å"The Evolution of the American Telecommunication System and the Origin of Communication Regulation. ,† one could tell the history of regulation and how important it really is to the people.

In the Light of the Energy Systems Used During Prolonged

Coursework 2 Name: Mohamed Abdulwahab Exercise metabolism Title: In the light of the energy systems used during prolonged endurance events, critically analyse the nutritional strategies that a marathon runner should adopt before and whilst running a marathon in temperate environmental conditions (16-18oC). 1. Introduction: 1. 1 Energy intake: 1. 2 Fluid intake: 1. 3 Carbohydrate intake: 2. Building energy and fluid: 1. Before competition: 2. During competition: 3. Nutritional recommendation: 3. 0 Summary: 4. 0 Reference: 1. 0 Introduction:The term energy system refers to the body’s ability, or power, to do physical work. The energy system requires to do body work that takes several different forms: mechanical, electrical, light, radiant, and heat (Economos, 1993). Energy system is like matter, which can neither be created nor destroyed (Bortz, 1993). It can only be changed into another form; therefore energy is constant cycle in the body and environment (Nelson, 1993). Potenti al energy is stored energy which is ready to be used. Kinetics energy is active energy which can be used to do work (Burke, 1991). Energy balance n a physical activity requires a base of sound nutrition to supply the substrate fuels, which along with oxygen (O2) and water (H2O) meet widely varying levels of energy demand for body action (Gollan, 1991). Fuel sources are the basic energy nutrition in the diet, primarily carbohydrate and some fat (Read, 1991). Their metabolic products-glucose, glycogen, and fatty acids-provide ready fuel sourced for the chemical energy reactions within cells (Murray, 1998). The main energy compound of the body cells is needed during a marathon run is aerobic system (Horswill, 1998).It has rightly a form of energy currency of the cell. A long-term energy system, when exercising more than 2 minutes is required O2 dependant, or aerobic energy system (Pate, 1992). A constant supply of O2 in the blood is necessary for continued exercise (Branch, 1992). Espe cially cells organelles, the mitochondria are located within each cell, produce large amounts of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) (Hargreaves, 1996). The ATP is produced mainly from glucose and fatty acids and supplies the continued energy needs of the body (Dillo, 1996).When the fuel nutrition becomes depleted during exercise, as an energy demands increase the body burns blood glucose and muscle glycogen as well as reserves from fatty acids to provide energy (Angus, 1996). With prolonged exercise levels of these nutrition fail too low to sustain the body continued demands, fatigue followed and exhaustion threatens (Fabbriao, 1996). A marathon runner, energy system is defined as aerobic capacity, which depends on the body’s ability to deliver and the use of O2 in sufficient quantities to meet the demands of increased level of exercise (Coyle, 1986).O2 uptake increases with exercise intensity until either the demand is net or the ability to supply it is exceeded (Hammert, 1986). T he maximum rate that the body can take in O2, or aerobic capacity is called the Vo2max the maximum uptake volume of O2 (Ivy, 1986). This capacity determines the intensity and duration of exercise that an athlete can perform (Coyle, 1986). A long-distance race requires the sustained production of high rates of energy production, with the typical contribution of aerobic energy system varying according to the duration of the race (Costill, 1985).Aerobic metabolism accounts for the greater majority of the energy cost of long-distance events, especially half-marathon and marathon races (William, 1996). The elite level of long-distance running, particularly in males, is dominated by African runners, are outstanding competitor in half-marathon and marathon events (Wilson, 1996). 1. 1 Energy intake: Endurance athletes are involved in events where there is continuous movement for longer than 30 minutes (Burrin, 1996).Some endurance sports combine periods of slow, continuous movement with per iods of fast, quick burst of movement, and other endurance sports require continuous movement overlong-distances or time periods (Tsintzas, 1995). In the types of activity there is a premium on supplying sufficient energy and fluid to assure that the athlete does not become exhausted or over-heated from the continuous energy burn (Williams, 1995). A failure to supply sufficient energy of the right type will lead to early fatigue and poor athletic performance (Williams, 1995).The goal for the endurance athlete is therefore to establish a workable strategy for supplying sufficient energy and fluids (Williams, 1995). Before and during practice and competition to sustain muscular work for a long-duration and at the highest possible intensity (Wilson, 1995). Aerobic metabolism is the energy system of greatest importance for endurance athletes. In this energy pathway oxygen is used to help transfer phosphorus into new ATP molecules (Burrin, 1995). Aerobic metabolism occurs in the mitochon dria of the cells, where the vast majority of all ATP is produced from the entering acetyl-CoA, (Burrin, 1995).Fast can be converted to acetyl-CoA through a process called beta-oxidative metabolism pathway (Burrin, 1995). This pathway is very oxygen dependant which means that fast can only be burned aerobically (Wilson, 1995). The ability of an athlete to achieve a steady state of oxygen uptake into the cells is a function of how well an athlete is aerobically conditioned (Coggan, 1992). An athlete that frequently trains aerobically is likely to reach a steady state faster than one does not train aerobically (Coggan, 1992).In theory once an athlete reaches a level of oxygen uptake that matches oxygen requirement for the given level of exertion (Coggan, 1992). The exercise could go on for as long as the body’s carbohydrate level and fluid did not reach a critical state (Sherman, 1996). For instance a long-distance runner is in a steady state could continue running provided the runner replaced the carbohydrate and fluid that are used in the activity (Sherman, 1995). Therefore, endurance is enhanced with a periodic intake of carbohydrates and fluid during the activity (Swanson, 1992).Athletes with different levels of conditioning are likely to achieve steady state at different levels of exercise intensity (Sherman, 1995). When athletes are being well-conditioned they might be able to maintain a steady state at a high enough level of exercise intensity to easily win a race (Williams, 1995. In other words, they can go really at a fast paced but still provide enough oxygen to your cell to satisfy your aerobic needs (Swanson, 1992). 1. 2 Fluid: As athletes exercise there is an inevitable loss of body water through sweat (Economos, 1993).The cooling system plus the normal urinary water loss may amount cover 10 litres of daily water loss when exercising in a warm environment (Borts, 1993). In a hot or humid environment water losses may exceed three litres per ho ur, but may be less than 0. 5 litres per hour cool dry environment (Nelson, 1993). Despite the high rates of sweat losses experienced by athletes, most athletes replace on fifty percent of the water that is lost, a behaviour that inevitably leads to progressive dehydration and a decline in performance (Nelson, 1993).Researches have clearly demonstrated that even a slight dehydration of two percent of body weight causes a measureable decrease in athletic performance (Borts, 1993). Therefore, when athletes take steps to satisfy fluid requirements, they are helping to guarantee optimal athletic performance (Economos, 1993). 1. 3 Carbohydrate: Athletes require carbohydrate during both low and high intensity activities (Burke, 1991). When carbohydrate stores are depleted the athlete quickly becomes fatigued and performance drops dramatically (Gollan, 1991).However, since the storage level of carbohydrate is relatively low gen compared fat stores; athletes must make a conscious effort to replace carbohydrate at every opportunity (Read, 1991). When having high levels of stored carbohydrate (glycogen) and consuming carbohydrates during exercise that last up to an hour or more are well-established techniques for optimizing athletic endurance (Murray, 1998). Consuming carbohydrate during exercise helps to maintain blood sugar (glucose) and insulin, which encourages sugar uptake by working muscles (Horswill, 1998).This helps to increase the muscular metabolism of carbohydrates and also helps to assure that carbohydrates are not depleted during exercise (Horswill, 1998). The concentration of carbohydrate consumed early during endurance running may influence the degree to which the athlete gets gastrointestinal (GI), discomfort (Murray, 1998). It was found that a 5. 5 percent (13 gram of carbohydrate per 8 ounces of fluid), carbohydrate solution produced the same level (relative low) of GI distress as plain water (Pate, 1992). A 6. percent (18 gram of carbohydrate per 8 ou nces of fluid), solution, on the other hand, doubled the incident of distress when athletes were asked to perform the same exercise (Branch, 1992). In addition, only the 5. 5 percent carbohydrate solution imparted a significant improvement in performance (Branch, 1992). In a study of marathon running performance, that are running over 26 miles, were asked to consume either water, a 5. 5 percent carbohydrate solution or a 6. 9 percent carbohydrate solution on three occasions (Pate, 1992).The fastest times were recorded when they consumed the 5. 5percent carbohydrate solution, while consuming the 6. 9 percent solution resulted in times that were similar to consuming plain water (Hargreaves, 1996). Although, athletes have a tremendous need for carbohydrate, trying to provide too much too fast causes difficulties and may detract from performance (Dillo, 1996). Therefore, it appears clear that having a carbohydrate containing beverages during exercise is a very good thing to do (Angus, 1 996).Resynthesis of glycogen following activity is also important, since glycogen reserves are severely depleted following activity lasting an hour or longer (Fabbrioa, 1996). The efficiency of glycogen resynthesis is dependent on several factors, including: (1) the timing of carbohydrate intake, (2) the amount of carbohydrate consumed, (3) the type of carbohydrate consumed, and (4), the degree to which muscles has been damaged during the exercise (Fabbrioa, 1996). 2. 0 Building energy and fluid: The importance of building and maintaining energy reserves to support endurance exercise is well-established (Angus, 1996).It is very clear that endurance athlete who begins competing with more stored carbohydrates have more available at the end of the competition (Coyle, 1996). This difference alone may be enough to determine the winner. In addition, athletes who are better hydrates during competition perform better than those who are less well-hydrated (Coyle, 1996). Having optimal carboh ydrates and fluid intake does not happen automatically. It is something that must occur with foresight and planning (Angus, 1996). 2. 1 Before competition: When consuming carbohydrates prior to exercise, there is improved performance.The general recommendation is for athletes to consume between 800 to 1200 calories during the hours that precede competition (Costill, 1985). Foods consumed prior to competition should be foods that have been consumed without difficult prior to training (Costill, 1985). Trying to improve carbohydrate status before a competition by trying out new foods, like gels or sports drinks is an almost guaranteed formula for competitive disaster (Costill, 1985). Consumption of fluids prior to competition is also important and since glycogen storage requires additional fluids carbohydrate consumption should lways take place with substantial fluid intake (William, 1996). Since it is common for athletes to drink only when thirsty a conscious effort should be make to consume fluids even when not thirsty (William, 1996). Getting and staying well-hydrated may be the single most important thing athlete can do to assure good athletic performance (Wilson, 1996). Since it is almost impossible to adequately replace all fluids lost during training or competition it is useful for athletes to enter the exercise in a well-hydrated state (Burrin, 1996).It is impossible to become well-hydrated during exercise if athlete enters the exercise poorly hydrated to begin with (Burrin, 1996). Assuming that ample fluids have been consumed during the day leading up to the re-competition or practice athletes should consume an additional 10 to 13 gram of fluid approximately two hours before the exercise begins (Wilson, 1996). After this fluids should be consumed every 15 to 30 minutes to maintain prior to exercise (William, 1996). The athlete will know if you’ve adequately hydrated yourself by checking on the colour of the athlete urine (Tsintzas, 1995).Dark urin e suggests that athlete is not well-hydrated, while clear urine suggests that athlete is well-hydrated (Stanzas, 1995). Using sports beverages (lucazad) prior to exercise is useful because they provide the two things athletes need the most: carbohydrates and fluids (William, 1995). Since carbohydrate is typically the limiting energy substance (that will run out before fat or protein runs out) in exercise (William, 1995). When starting exercise with more of it is in the tissues should aid exercise endurance (William, 1995).In low-intensity but long-duration exercise, fat may be the primarily fuel, but fat requires carbohydrates to burn completely (Singh, 1995). In either case, when carbohydrates (glycogen stores and blood glucose) are depleted, exercise performance is dramatically reduced (Wilson, 1995). This basis behind carbohydrate loading is to put as much carbohydrate in the tissue as they can hold (Wilson, 1995). 2. During competition: A marathon race where fluid are available at regular intervals, the athlete should take full advantage of each fluid station and consume fluid (Burrin, 1995).Since water is constantly being lost, frequent and regular consumption of fluid helps to maintain the body water level (Burrin, 1995). To understand how much fluid an athlete needs to consume during practice or competition, a log should be maintained with the amount of fluid consumed and the beginning and ending weight of the athletes (Sherman, 1995). If an athlete consumes 26 gram during practice and weighs 26 gram less at the end of practice than at the beginning this athletes should learn to consume an additional 26 gram of fluid during practice or competition (Sherman, 1995).Consumption of fluids that contain carbohydrates is important during exercise or competition and properly designed sport beverages can benefit in providing both fluid and carbohydrates quickly (Coggan, 1992). Carbohydrate solution of between 5 and 6 percent delivers both the carbohydrate and th e fluid quickly (Swanson, 1992). A higher carbohydrate concentration slows delivery to the muscles by delaying gastric emptying and may increase the risk of gut upset (Swanson, 1992). A small amount of sodium helps drive the desire to drink and in so doing helps to assure that the athlete stays better hydrated (Coggan, 1992).Sodium may also benefit in getting the water and carbohydrate absorbed more quickly as well as helps to maintain blood volume (Economos, 1993). Maintaining of blood volume is an important predictor of athletic performance (Economos, 1993). There is some evidence that hyponatremia (low level of blood sodium), which results from large losses of sodium in sweat that goes unreplaced, occurs endurance and ultra-endurance events (Borts, 1993). This is a rare but a serious condition that may result in comas, or death (Nelson, 1993). The beverage should be taste good to the athlete.The taste sensation may be altered during exercise so there is no guarantee that a fluid, athlete enjoys drinking while exercising. Make sure that an athlete tries different flavours during exercise to determine what is best liked. The carbohydrate should be from a combination of glucose and sucrose. Beverages containing predominantly fructose increase the risk of creating gut upset. 2. 3 Nutritional recommendation: There are several rules of nutrition that apply here. Among them is the idea of the need to consume a wide range of variety of foods to assure that the body is exposed to all of the essential nutrients (Burke, 1991).On the backside of this rule, there is another benefit. By consuming a wide range of variety of foods, athletes can avoid being exposed to any potentially toxic substances that are more prevalent in some foods (Gollan, 1991). Therefore, eating a wide range of variety of foods is a good nutritional rule to live by (Read, 1991). Another rule is the idea that it is possible to eat too much of something, even if athletes think it’s good for th em (Read, 1991). Learning to balance the diet through variety will help ensure the body of both proper maintenance and adequate nutrient intake (Gollan, 1991). 3. Summary: In general, athletes with long training schedules should focus on the consumption of diets that are high in carbohydrate and should develop a drinking habit that frequently delivers fluids to the body. While fats, constitute a major proportion of burned energy for endurance (aerobic) activities the storage capacity for fat is relatively high for even the leanest athletes. The storage capacity for carbohydrate, however, is limited. Since fats require some carbohydrate to be completely burned, the limited storage capacity for carbohydrate cam limit the body ability to burn fat during exercise.To overcome this limitation athlete should be constantly vigilant to keep body stored of carbohydrate at maximal levels before activity begins and should replace carbohydrate during activity throughout whatever means are availa ble. A failure to supply suffienct carbohydrate before and during endurance activity will significantly reduce athletic performance. 4. 0 Reference: †¢ Economos, D. , Borts, Z. , and Nelson, R. 1993. Nutritional practices of elite athletes. Sports. Med. 16:383. †¢ Burke, L. , Gollan, R. , and Read, R. 1991. Dietary intake and food use of groups of elite Australian male athletes. Int. J. Sports Nutr. 1:378. †¢ Murray, R. and Horswill, A. , 1998. Nutrition requirements for competitive sports. In nutrition in exercise and sport, 3ed. 521-558. †¢ Pate, R. , and Branch, D. 1992. Training for endurance sport. Med. Sci. Sports Exer. 24:S340. †¢ Hargreaves, M. , Dillo, P. , Angus, D. , and Fabbraio, M. 1996. Effect of fluid ingestion on muscle metabolism during pro-longed exercise. J. Appl. Physiol. 80:363-6. †¢ Coyle, E. , Coggan, A. , Hammert, M. , and Ivy, L. 1986. Muscle glycogen utilization during pro-longed strenuous exercise when fed carbohydrate. J. App l. Physiol. 61:165-172. †¢ Costill, D. 1985. Carbohydrate nutrition before, during, and after exercise.Fed. Proc. 44:364. †¢ William, C. , Wilson, W. , and Burrin, J. 1996. Influence of carbohydrate supplementation early in exercise on endurance running capacity. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 28:1373-1379. †¢ Tsintzas, O. , Williams, C. , Singh, R. , Wilson, W. , and Burrin, J. 1995. Influence of carbohydrate-electrolyte drink on marathon running performance. Eur. J. Appl. Physiol. 70: 154-6. †¢ Sherman, M. 1995. Metabolism of sugars and physical performance. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 62:228S. †¢ Coggan, A. , and Swanson, S. , 1992. Nutritional manipulations before and during endurance exercise: effects on performance. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 24:S331.

Information Security Essay

†¢What is the difference between a threat agent and a threat? Threat and Threat agent is on page 11. †¢What is the difference between vulnerability and exposure? Exposure page 10. Vunerability page 11. †¢How has the definition of â€Å"hack† evolved over the last 30 years? †¢What type of security was dominant in the early years of computing? Secure physical locations, hardware, and software from threats. Means of badges, keys, and facial recognition by security guards. †¢What are the three components of the C.I.A. triangle? What are they used for? Confidentiality, integrity, availability. Confidentiality page 13. Integrity page 13(bottom) and 14. Availability page 12. †¢Among the five components of an information systems, which are most directly affected by the study of computer security? People I believe †¢What paper is the foundation of all subsequent studies of computer security? It began with Rand Report R-609, sponsored by the Department of Defense, which attempted to define multiple controls and mechanisms necessary for the protection of a multilevel computer system. Page 5 and 6 for more on rand. †¢Who is involved in the security development life cycle? Who leads the process? Senior executive: Champion leads the process. Page 30 shows all of them. †¢Who is ultimately responsible for the security of information in the organization? Chief information security officer page 29 at bottom †¢What is the relationship between the MULTICS project and early development of computer security? †¢What was important about Rand Report R-609? †¢Who decides how and when data in an organization will be used or controlled? Who is responsible for seeing these wishes are carried out? †¢Who should lead a security team? Should the approach to security be more managerial or technical?

Financial Statements CW Report Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Financial Statements CW Report - Coursework Example Burke plc is a renowned name in the mid-priced dining restaurant industry. The company, since its inception, has flourished by leaps and bounds and has been able to establish a chain of restaurants operating in various towns all across the UK. The company had been enjoying strengthen financial outlook in the prior years, but due to the increased competition and repercussions of the recession, the management is of the view that the company requires substantial funds in order to reform its operational strategy and further increase its market share. The management plans to refurbish few old restaurants in order to attract new customers and restore its profitability. With the availability of funds, Burke plc would also be able to manage its working capital requirement in the most appropriate manner. The company can hire new workforce, acquire state of the art machine and open up new restaurants in order to enhance its market share in the industry. The closest competitor of the company is Hare plc which also holds a substantial market share of the industry. In order to acquire competitive advantage, Burke plc can utilize the funds in countering the forces of competition which are the bargaining power of customer and supplier, threats of new entrants and substitute and the rivalry among the companies. With the sanctioned loan, the company can implement and align Information Systems into its overall corporate strategy, which is likely to give an edge over the other players in the market. In addition, product and service differentiation can also be created when a company has substantial pool of funds available. Promotion is considered to be the corner stone in the marketing mix of any organization, and it is an established fact that a company always requires a substantial amount of capital in order to finance the promotional activities. Company Analysis Ratio analysis is a very accurate and reliable tool when it comes to analyzing the financial outlook of an entity. Th e primary reason to conduct a ratio analysis is to quantify the results of the operations of a company and compare them with that of the prior year(s) in order to assess different aspects of the financial feasibility. The ratios can be divided into various categories such as profitability, gearing and liquidity, each focusing on a different area of the financial outlook of the organization and highlighting the company’s performance. These analyses form an integral part of the financial statement analysis, especially from the investors point of view, who always strive to invest in companies having strengthen and stabilizing financial ratios and representing an upward trend. It is of great significance that the ratios must be benchmarked against a standard in order for them to possess a meaning. Keeping that into account, the comparison is usually conducted between companies portraying same business and financial risks, between industries and between different time periods of t he same company. The analysis is divided into three main categorize namely Profitability, Liquidity and Gearing. Profitability ratios identify how efficiently and effectively a company is utilizing its resources and how successful it has been in generating a desired rate of return for its shareholders and investors. Liquidity

Transition to Democracy in Africa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Transition to Democracy in Africa - Essay Example The first part analyzes the decisive transition to democracy by South Africa and the policies adopted by the country, and the second part examines the difficulties and challenges that hinder the transition to democracy for many African nations. Part 1 The decisive democratic transformation by South Africa has been a source of inspiration for civilization across the world. Only a few analysts predicted such radical progress, considering the bloody and long history of the country against apartheid. Indeed, majority of the experts expected the country to succumb to ethnic violence common in many African nations when repression begins to transform to revolution. Today, many parts of the African continent and across the world are experiencing civil wars, with international terrorism plugging both developing and developed world into a state of anarchy. There is need to design democratic preventive and resolution methods to create a peaceful world free from hatred, bitterness, wars, enmity, and oppression (Donaldson and Marais, 2002). The experiences by South Africa may provide some invaluable insights for transition to democracy for other countries. The apartheid regime responsible for the reign of terror for more than four decades and the subsequent incarceration of thousand of people is among the most ruthless and heartless regimes to ever occur since Hitler’s reign in Germany. This is why the peaceful transition to democracy by South Africa remains one of the most significant democratic transitions in the world. The racial prejudice and discrimination against the natives of the country began in 1652 with the first Europeans from Holland. The intensity of racial discrimination against the indigenous people, particularly the San and the Khoikhoi increased during the subsequent domination by the British and Dutch in Cape Colony. However, the Dutch established inland colonies, resulting to clashes with the British coastal colonies, and ultimately culminated to the Boer war between 1899 and 1902. Nevertheless, there was some power sharing between the British and the Dutch (now refereeing to themselves Afrikaners) until in 1940s when the Afrikaner National Party gained a stronger majority (Nathan, 2004). The African National Party institutionalized discrimination after coming into power in 1948. The strategists in the party invented apartheid to enable them cement their control over the social and economic system. The concept of apartheid was to ensure white dominance and extending racial separation. Thus, the â€Å"Grand Apartheid† plan was set in motion in the 1960s, focusing on police regression and territorial separation. The party enacted apartheid laws touching all aspects of life. With the assistance of the European Community and the United States, the pressure began on the South African President Botha to dismantle apartheid in 1980s. The end of 1991 saw the revoke of the legal apartheid framework. However, internal violence continued, but Nelson Mandela and F. W. de Klerk reached an agreement for the implementation of majority rule in 1993. Mandela was able to convince the United Nation to lift the remaining sanctions on the country.

Online learning vs. traditional in class learning Essay

Online learning vs. traditional in class learning - Essay Example tudents the needed skills and knowledge for a good career or better future, the methods are different in such a way that they adopt different teaching styles. With online learning, you don’t have a physical classroom. Your classroom is in cyberspace, in forums and in chats. Your classroom is the website and your account where you can download all the lessons and the exams that your teacher gives you. Sometimes, you don’t even know what your teacher looks like. Although yearly, there are upgrades in online learning as the technology improves website interaction, through web-based videos and streaming, there are also improvements on the methods used by the online educators (Rudestam). When compared with the traditional classroom learning, having a classroom in cyberspace looks more appealing, especially when the student does not need to spend a dime travelling from his home to his school. With a click of a button, you are transferred from one classroom to another unlike in the traditional classroom setting where you would need to walk from classroom to classroom or even building to building, which can be a reason for tardiness . In online learning, there is no excuse to be late in class. Online learning has a more personalized approach compared to the traditional classroom learning (Rudestam; Joyes). Although both learning methods group students together within a class, online learning has the tendency to be more personalized. Online educators would have the opportunity to do one on one session with their students more than a traditional professor would have. Because of the many tasks and the number of students they are handling, traditional classroom educators have the tendency to teach in route, or based on the yearly lesson plan they have to the entire class. Although online learning also has the same tendency when the lessons are not customized but are given with predetermined mode and route (Pan & Hawryszkiewzyc). Since online educators have the capability

Segregation's Lingering Legacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Segregation's Lingering Legacy - Essay Example It is highly beneficial for children to learn what makes them different aside from the color of skin. Whether African-American, Asian, Native American and so on, each race and ethnicity has so much to offer and share with their communities that people of other races simply cannot understand without being taught. Institutional racism is ultimately causing widespread neglect of cultural differences that are important to learn. I think our educational system still has a large amount of segregation because they allow it to happen. Teachers, principals and parents are all too afraid of hurting someone’s feelings or being touted as a bigot if they open their mouth and say something. Our country is so absorbed with â€Å"what will they think of me?† that society is ceasing to function. The fear of a legal claim of racism, the NAACP, the ACLU or another organization’s intervention is likely a great fear for many, so they have no desire to change the segregation. Blacks a re no better than whites, Asians, or any other race and vice versa. Our children need to be taught by their elders both in the home and in school the differences in race, culture and communities so that they can grow, learn and be steadier, well-rounded adults.

Marketing Communication College Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Marketing Communication College - Case Study Example As a member of the skin care and hygiene product market, Dermacare experiences rigid competition from other industry leaders including Proctor and Gamble, Johnson and Johnson, and Revlon. What has been our P/Cost ratio Are we enjoying market growth Why or why not L'OREAL, the world's largest cosmetics company, is jointly owned by Gasparal (France) (51 per cent) and Nestle (Switzerland) (49 per cent). It markets Ambre Solaire through its Laboratories Garnier division. L'OREAL has interests in most sectors of the global cosmetics and toiletries markets. In addition to its Garnier Division, L'OREAL operates through three divisions in the UK: Salon, Perfume and Beauty (e.g. Cacharel, Armani, and Helena Rubinstein) and Active Cosmetics (e.g. Vichy). Ambre Solaire had previously been associated with oil formulations (as opposed to creams and gels) for deep tanning and self-tanning products. L'OREAL is very active in research and development and is perceived by customers as inventive and at the forefront of technology. Boots is one of Britain's major high street retailers and has interests in both the retailing and manufacturing of sun care products. In 2008, Boots was by far the largest retailer of sun care and other toiletry products. Its Soltan brand accounted for about 40 per cent value share in its 1,100 outlets. Soltan benefited from Boots' skin care and pharmacy heritage, and was especially strong in the after-sun sector, with roughly a one-quarter share by value. The strength of Boots was highlighted in March 2006 when it introduced a star-rating system that indicated how much protection a product provided against UVA rays in proportion to the amount of UVB protection offered. While its introduction created some uncertainty in the industry, virtually all manufacturers accepted the new system. Avon Cosmetics Ltd A subsidiary of Avon Products, Inc., Avon Cosmetics is the oldest beauty company in the USA and one of the world's four largest cosmetics companies. It entered the UK market in 1957. Avon sells its cosmetics, toiletries and fragrances to individual consumers. The bulk of its business comes from its sales representatives ('Avon Ladies') selling to women in their homes and workplaces. Avon employs some 100,000 representatives in the UK alone. In the 1980s it increased its market share in line with the growth of home shopping; however, its sales in the early first decade of the new millennium have been sluggish owing to its inability to match retailers' product-ranges and prices. Nevertheless, Avon accounts for around 11 per cent of all sun care sales. Nivea A well-established global brand developed by the German manufacturer Beiersdorf in the early nineteenth century. The company had developed a number of line extensions across its range of skincare products that competed directly with Dermacare in a number of sub-categories. While its traditional market strength was in continental Europe the company's products enjoyed a high degree of loyalty and recognition in the UK market. Ciba Consumer Products Ciba Consumer Products is a subsidiary of the Swiss chemicals giant Ciba-Geigy. Ciba's core consumer business was in over-the-counter (OTC) health care. In the UK toiletry sector, its main product was Piz Buin, the number five sun care brand. Warner-Lambert Warner -Lambert's Hawaiian Tropic

Writer's choice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 4

Writer's choice - Essay Example Toyota is an example of a company that uses operations management in order to have an edge over its competitors. This paper will examine how Toyota has, over the years, implemented exceptional management skills to increase their competitive advantage, and how this has helped them expand their global reach. Toyota is a brand recognized worldwide by most individuals. This advantage is brought on by the fact that their products are cheaper as compared to others, and at the same time, the company provides products that everyone is comfortable with in terms of desires and needs. At the outset, Toyota and its success can be attributed to the fact that they continuously improve on their products and services. This is while also catering to the aspect of time. These two highly crucial aspects of operations can only be possible if there is involvement on the part of employees and consumers. There is a high level of employee participation in the company, which allows all parties to get involved in the creation of new and improved products and services for their consumers (Williams, 2011). Through their production and just-in-time production systems, Toyota places emphasis on high quality products at all possible low costs. For effective management operations, Toyota incorporates consumer services, which allow Toyota to start projects that their consumers want or desire. These services aid Toyota in solving some of its problems. Feedback from their consumers creates an avenue for Toyota to evaluate any and all issues that come up with regards to their automobiles, hence; addressing any future problems based on past experience. In the highly competitive automobile industry, it is vital for companies to improve customer relations, which endears most of their consumers to their brands. Toyota’s approach to effective operations management has

Liesel's overcoming abandonment and loss in Markus Zusak's The Book Essay

Liesel's overcoming abandonment and loss in Markus Zusak's The Book Thief - Essay Example In the beginning of the story Liesel, her mother, and brother are travelling to Molching, Germany on a train. Liesel’s brother dies on route causing the family to stop and bury her younger sibling. Liesel must have felt abandoned by her younger brother. Despite his leaving in death, her brother left her. In order to cope with his death Liesel takes a book dropped by the gravedigger. The Gravedigger’s Handbook was picked up at her brother’s grave. It was a memento of the event. She could not read at the time, but Liesel had something tangible to touch that reminded her of the brother’s death. Liesel’s father had left the family unit before the narrative in the graveyard. She must have felt abandoned by him as well. After her mother left Liesel with foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, Liesel was left without any biological family. She had emotional issues that were displayed through stealing books. At a book burning, Liesel stole a book. After th e mayor’s wife, Ilsa Hermann, gave Liesel permission to take any book in her library, Liesel preferred to steal the books. While in the mayor’s house Liesel and Rudy, her friend, would also steal food as well. The compulsion to steal what is given shows that Liesel has serious emotional problems. The act of taking is more enthralling than the actual possession of something necessary or new. The act of taking books is also symbolic. Words created the world Liesel lived in. Hitler’s speeches and the Nazi rhetoric allowed the violence and abandonment that was Liesel’s world. The theft of words would be impossible, but the closest thing would be stealing books. Liesel’s theft of books from one of the richest people in town, the mayor and his wife, was also symbolic. If Liesel could steal the words from influential people, maybe she could change the world. Words changed the world, thus the theft of words might change the world. While this might not make logical sense; to Liesel it made perfect emotional sense. Liesel also used words to soothe others. She would read stories in the bomb shelters. Her voice calmed the panicked bomb shelter residents. After hearing her read in the bomb shelter Frau Holtzapfel, a neighbor, asks Liesel to read to her. Frau Holtzapfel would not go to the shelter due to her depression over her son’s death. Liesel persuades her to come to the shelter by threatening never to read to her again. The words written by others soothed Liesel and the others. Max Vandenburg, a Jew hidden by Liesel’s foster family, teaches Liesel how to express herself though writing. He writes Liesel two books. Max felt a fondness for Liesel due to the fact she stayed by his bedside when he was sick. She brought him gifts and laid them next to him. Liesel was like his guardian angel. The first story Max wrote was The Standover Man. This story was about people that stand over others watching out for them. Liesel had be en Max’s ‘stand over man’ during his sickness. Liesel slowly realizes that stand over men can be as important as family. Even if her family, foster family, or friends leave, Liesel will always have someone that cares. She learned how everyone has a person to look out for them. It did not necessarily have to be family. This helps alleviate a little of the pain. The book had a positive impact on Liesel. The second story was The Word Shaker. This book showed how the power of words could cause a situation like Nazi

Illegal Immigration Essay Example for Free

Illegal Immigration Essay One of the reasons of implementing the US immigration policy is to control and protect America’s national borders. The US border patrol controls and protects international state lines in the effort to arrest any individuals making attempts to enter the US illegally. Illegal immigration attempts are predominant on the border between the US and Mexico. In the past 20 years, economic recession in Mexico has contributed to increase illegal entries or attempts to the same by the Mexicans. Consequently, political sensitivity about illegal immigration that has been brought by Mexico’s poor economic performance has made the US government to dramatically improve the efforts aimed at increasing security at the US- Mexico border. Most illegal immigrants are seen to move from Mexican border cities to US Border States as their final destination. According to Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo, border patrol officers have had to spend more hours policing the Mexican border with an increase of up to 5. million hours in 1997 from 1. 8 million hours in 1977 (2002). Border regions are mostly affected by situations caused by illegal immigration. For example, illegal immigration has the likelihood of affecting border markets. Such markets include Southern California, Mexican cities on the US-Mexico borders and South Western Texas (Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo, 2002). Illegal immigration has both negative and positive results to the socio-economic status of the US. Effects of Illegal Immigration Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo claim that immigration leads to the reduction of wages of US workers. The rise in immigration cases has resulted in low skilled immigrants and low skilled US workers competing for jobs. Moreover, immigrants are ready to take up any jobs leaving the low skilled US workers to settle for the remaining jobs (Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo, 2002). Findings by Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo indicate that border enforcement deters illegal immigrants whose entry has impacts on the labor markets in the US border areas. According to these findings, border regions can minimize illegal immigration without necessarily changing the native wages or even moving the natives from border regions or discouraging them to move to the border areas (Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo, 2002). Border economies may also be forced to shift to industries that are dependent on the skills of arriving immigrants so that low skilled labor can be secured for both US natives and immigrants (2002). Illegal immigrants are seen to add to the problem of public health that is already an issue that needs attention and review in the US. Attention is focused on the recent developments that allow immigrants to use public programs such as heath insurance. As per the 2000 census, 1 in every 5 children is an immigrant family member in the largely dispersed immigrant families in America. The immigration statuses of parents and children may also differ with up to 10% of immigrant children living in families of mixed status hence creating complexity. There are non-citizen parents who live with citizen children as their main caregivers. The citizen children may be denied health insurance due to their parents’ citizenship and this may affect the health of both parents and children despite them being Americans (Paiti and Danagoulian, 2008). It is important to note that poor health of immigrants’ children will eventually have a significant effect on the socio-economic future of every American. According to Paiti and Danagoulian, foreign born children in the US do not depend on public health insurance schemes compared to those born in the US despite the reverse of the rule on public charge. The increased likelihood of foreign born children to be uninsured, to live in poverty and to have parents who have less than high school formal education is a contributing factor to the poor living conditions. The parents’ poor economic abilities create future projections of low abilities of immigrant children to be economically productive members of the labor force in America (Paiti Danagoulian, 2008). Today, USA claims that about 7 million illegal immigrants do not have medical insurance due to legal restrictions. In addition, 366,000 of the immigrants buy insurance policies from private companies. A publication on USA today named â€Å"Everyone Benefits if Illegal Immigrants are insured† claimed that just as in automobile insurance, the US public would benefit from premiums paid by illegal immigrants by collecting the surplus using it to provide better health care to the US citizens (USA Today, 2009). Illegal immigration is wrong and it should be stopped, but in the meantime, the country should benefit from having illegal aliens around before inventing ways of stopping the practice in order to create a win-win in the situation. In addition to border patrols and the deportation of captured aliens, the introduction of an Immigration and Control Act in 1986 helped in controlling illegal immigration (Pearce and Hill, 1990). According to Pearce Hill, â€Å"immigration law will reduce employment of illegal aliens in some parts of the economy but not in others†. However, limitations in the US budget will force authorities â€Å"to focus their enforcement efforts on industries with a large concentration of illegals at an individual business establishment† (1990, pp. 43). Prior to the act, employers hired illegal immigrants knowingly as they would face no penalty. Since this law, there has been a registered decline in border crossings in most entry points and more illegal immigrants finding it hard to get jobs. Although the reform process is done by high skilled professionals, sanctions will improve the standard of living of low skill laborers even though to a small extent. Pearce and Hill suggest that substantial improvement in the real wages of legal and less skilled laborers will occur if sanctions are fully executed. In addition, legal and illegal low skill labor should be subject to substitution. The law must also be accurately applied to achieve benefits of sanctions (Pearce Hill, 1990). The Economist reports that critics fear the influx of Hispanic immigrants, who enter the US illegally, take up jobs and move into different parts of the country, are able to create two nations (2005). The illegal Latino immigrants take up common jobs in construction, distribution and food industry that is well needed for economic growth of the cities they occupy. Immigrants are seen to be assimilated into the US by almost becoming like everyone else in the US. They now become citizens, pay taxes, enlist in the army, participate in politics and even speak English (The Economist, 2005). Despite fears of critiques of the negative effects of immigration, positive outcomes have also been observed from the same which is an important input to America. Conclusion Immigrants to the US have been seen to continue gaining access illegally despite the introduction of more sophisticated patrols at entry points. The introduction of labor laws that protect legal workforce in the US continues to protect low skilled laborers. However, better laws ought to be formulated to ensure that workers do not receive wages that are beneath their ability to sustain a comfortable life. In addition, illegal immigrant families should be assisted to take care of their offspring who are American citizens by acquiring medical insurance and other facilities as it has proven to be beneficial to the American populace. Socio-economic benefits accrued from the inclusion of immigrants in the social programs of America should also be observed as a positive contribution to the society.

Multi-Cultural Paper Essay Example for Free

Multi-Cultural Paper Essay Introduction Finding a â€Å"multicultural† experience that brings me out of my comfort zone is something I found difficult. I moved to the city but am a small town girl at heart. I grew up riding a dirt bike, partying in fields, listening to country music, and hosting birthday parties that my friends and I built tree forts at. My first vehicle was a rear-wheel drive manual Chevrolet pick-up truck that I had to put weight in during the winter so I would not slide across the road. I lived on 140 acres of land, and the closest town was 15 minutes away. Since then, I have moved to the city and began, enjoying the convenience of everything like, bringing clothes to the dry cleaners, riding my bike to work, and preferring to lounge by the pool on a summer day, rather than explore like I used to. In college, I studied abroad in Scotland for a semester and had the opportunity to travel around Europe to England, Switzerland, Spain, and France. This experience exposed me to a number of different cultures, currencies, and experiences. It was the highlight of my college experience, but I became extremely homesick after a month and a half and, since then, have had no desire to visit anywhere abroad for longer than a couple of weeks. In addition to being familiar with both the small town and city lifestyles,not many things turn me off or make me uncomfortable. On the other hand, because I come from a small town, there are a few things I am unfamiliar with. I am not as familiar with different races or cultures, the wealth and fashion that comes with living near city suburbs, or the religion of anyone who isn’t Catholic. This is excluding the Europe experience, when I spent most my time in English speaking Scotland. Because of this, I chose three events that would expose me to new things in each one of those categories. Event #1: A Brazilian Carnival The first event took place at the Fine Line Music Cafà © in downtown Minneapolis. Classmate, Sarah Holman and I went to a Brazilian Carnival. I was interested in this sort of event because, in college, I worked at Afton Alps Ski and Snowboard, where they had a Brazilian exchange program and brought a number of Brazilians up for the winter to work. They became the best part of working there most years because they were so much fun and lived life to the fullest during their time in the United States. The event was fun, colorful, active, and something I had never been to before. There were dancers, drummers, people dressed up in costumes, and a band. After the introduction of drummers and dancers, a band began to play. Since we chose to attend on a Sunday afternoon, it was more of a family function but, if we had decided to attend on the Friday or Saturday evening before, I imagine the setting would have become a little wild after a few drinks because the music was so much fun. Instead, kids, parents, and couples were out on the dance floor dancing away innocently. When looking at what I know personally about Brazilians and comparing it to the event, it is clear that they typically like to have a good time. Their music is good, the people are often good looking, and they are extremely passionate about where they come from and their culture. My behaviors will not change in the workplace because of this event but the carnival did confirm the impression I had of Brazilian culture. Event #2: Omaha Fashion Week The second event took place in Omaha, Nebraska, where my youngest sister now lives. Once we found out that she would be walking in two of the shows, on both Friday and Saturday night, my mom, sister, her husband, and my boyfriend and I began planning our trip right away. When planning for the shows, I had no idea what to expect. I have never been to a fashion show, know nothing about fashion and, most importantly, I had no idea what to wear! Going into the first night we had been traveling all day, were hungry, and the guys weren’t around yet to stay at the hotel and babysit so we had to bring my two-year old nephew. One of the things that I am most insecure about is not knowing what to do and, worse, looking like I do not know what to do, in any given situation. To explain, I am always tentative to try new restaurants because I know that each one has a different culture that I may not fit in with. The way they do things, like the way one orders, dresses, and acts, are always altered. This doesn’t mean I avoid the experience but, when deciding to go somewhere new, I always get a nervous feeling with some immediate regret, wishing I had chosen to go somewhere familiar. This is something I am working on because, every time the experience is done, I’m glad it happened and always want to try something else new as soon as possible. This is how I felt going into Omaha Fashion Week. This time, I was more excited to see my sister but, since I was with my mom, sister and a two-year old at an adult event, and since they also had no clue what was going on, I was mortified. The first night felt like a warm-up, and I began to understand the scenery, people, what was happening, and everything else that was going on. There were individuals who were much more casual looking than me, but there also many who were more dressed up. By the end of the night I felt like I could pick out the more important faces by just looking around the crowd. My method probably wasn’t very accurate, but it led to some excellent people watching. The second night was a girl’s night, consisting of my mom, sister, and me. We were able to leave the boys and nephew at the hotel for the evening. Learning from the first night, we showed up right when the event was supposed to begin, which means that we only had to wait half an hour for the show to start, instead of an hour, like the night before. We made sure to get some pictures on the red carpet and relax while enjoying a couple drinks in advance. The challenge for me going into this event was having to go somewhere new, where I had no idea what the culture was going to be like. When looking at the event in a professional context, I was intimidated, going in, by those whom I thought were â€Å"better† than me. Meaning, those who know fashion, have money, status, and the wealthy (not so nice) personalities you see on teenage television shows. I did not encounter any of these stereotypes when at the event. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves and not judging, as I would have thought. This makes me think of those who are more successful and intimidating than I in a professional environment. As I have always been taught, treat others as you would like to be treated. This is something I will remember in the workplace for future reference. If I go in treating someone with the respect I would like to get in return, chances are they will treat me with the same respect. I feel that going to this fashion show cemented this lesson for me. I need to not concentrate on my insecurities as much, and, instead focus on treating everyone the same. This event did not confirm the stereotypes I had imagined like everyone being snobby, rich, and over the top. Looking back on the weekend, I think of it as one of the best times I’ve had yet for year 2013, all because I stepped out of my comfort zone. Interview #1 In attempt to deepen the Omaha Fashion Week experience, I interviewed a friend’s sister, Michelle Olson, who is an extremely successful plus size model, living in New York City. Michelle has experienced a much different lifestyle that is very foreign to me; one that I can relate to class and to the multi-cultural experience above. I was able to ask the questions and get the answers below: Michelle Olson Interviewee #1 Michelle Olson Interviewee #1 Q: In class we talked a lot about one’s personal brand. As a model, I assume your personal brand is extremely important and somewhat determines your reputation in the industry. Is this true? Do you have any examples of this you can expand on? A: Personal brand is important in modeling because we have to show our personality somehow with only a few minutes. So its important to just be yourself and wear what you like. A lot of clients are particular about a models personality because they want to show their brand a certain way and target a certain customer. We also cant be too eccentric or too trendy because some clients are just looking for a blank canvas and one that they know their clothes will look good on without being too distracted by the person and their own style. Q: In the business environment one usually has to work hard to advance or know someone to get ahead. Is this true in modeling as well? How do you climb in your industry? A: Eventually a model can [achieve this ] by booking big clients and then having them like you enough to re-book you again. People and clients also tend to take notice, usually if a model books editorials in big magazines. Q: Is it difficult to keep your values in this industry? Is it difficult while keeping a positive image for yourself amongst peers? A: I have been lucky so far in my career in that I have only had good experiences as far as boundaries and my personal values go. Everyone I have worked for have been very respectful and professional. Its important to have an agent that cares about you and will only send you out to legit, professional companies. Q: We also discussed virtual groups/communication in class. Is this a common form of communication in this industry or is it usually easier to do things in person? A: Email is a very important communication tool in my industry. Most of my communication with my agents is by email. All my job details are always emailed to me before the job. When I am in New York, I usually have to actually go in and see and talk to the agents in person at least once a week, sometimes more. Castings however are always in person. They are usually just quick little interview type things where you go and meet the client, have them look at your portfolio, and sometimes maybe take a couple pictures and try on some clothes. If you are unable to see them in person then our agents usually just send our portfolio for them to look at. Q: With the perspective of models being stick thin, does this pressure you to be this way? A: Working as a plus size model is another world than working as a straight size (0-6) model. Plus size is usually like a size 12, so we still have to stay around that size. We still eat very healthy and exercise so that we have good skin and feel good, etc. However, most of us are at our natural size, and therefore theres a lot less stress about size. Its great! Q: Are there â€Å"leaders† in your industry? Or are they always changing because your jobs are always changing? What is that like? A: Our agents are like our bosses. They get us our job so its important to have good relationships with them. We have three of them, and they are all cool and friendly so its quite nice! Obtaining this information from Michelle has provided me with interesting insight on a completely different business environment, than of the corporate life I am used to. Event #3: Scientology Church Tour My third event was a tour and question and answer period at the Saint Paul Church of Scientology. I went to this with three classmates, Sarah, Cody, and Andrea. As mentioned at the beginning of this paper, I am not familiar with many different kinds of religion, beside Catholicism. Through Tom Cruise, I have heard a lot of wonderful things about Scientology. I have also heard the opposite about the religion from his ex-wives. From what I was told, saw, and learned, the experience had a positive impact that made me curious and left me wanting to learn more about the religion. The interesting part about the church is that it focuses on the here and now, versus the Christian religion where their beliefs are based on the Bible, which is many centuries old. The self-guided tour consisted of watching videos to obtain information about the religion. There were different categories, so we could watch the topics we were most interested in. After watching a couple of videos, we felt it would be most beneficial to speak to the tour guide and ask questions about her experiences. From her answers, I gathered that Scientologists like to help people. If you are having troubles in your marriage or need help finding where to go in life, you can join counseling groups. If there is a natural disaster in the world, Scientologists will travel to the location and help out where they can. The part that interested me most is their passion to help individuals with any issues that individual might be having. In a book recommended by Andrea that provided an opposite perspective of Scientology, Jenna Miscavige Hill writes about her â€Å"secret life inside scientology and her harrowing escape† (Beyond Belief, Cover). This is something I wish I would have known about before going into the tour because I would have asked questions in regards to this book. In the book, Jenna explains about her life as a member of the Sea Org, the church’s most devoted core group of Scientology. She describes how she was sent away as a child to receive an education in Scientology, the manual labor she was forced to perform, and the coercion she faced from officials. Nothing about children being sent away to Scientology school was brought up or asked about throughout our time at the Church. After reading the 10 Juiciest Bits about Scientology from Jenna’s book, it made me think twice about what I found out while at the church. Hearing both the positive and negative sides of Scientology will not change the way I act in a professional environment because, knowing both sides of the religion will not diminish the respect I have for other’s personal religious choices. I think the main challenge for the Church of Scientology is the extreme difference in viewpoints you can have on the religion. Those who are Scientologist think it’s the most wonderful thing, but those who know about it and have gotten out have nothing good to say about it. Interview #2 The second interview I conducted did not relate to any of my multicultural experiences, but was instead with a coworker, Violet. Violet is from Uganda, Africa, and came to the United States in January 2000 to attend school at the University of Minnesota. Violet’s experience relates to the â€Å"Chimamanda Adichie: The Danger of a Single Story† video watched in class. Violet Interviewee #2 Violet Interviewee #2 Since this was an in person interview, not many structured questions were asked. Instead, there was a lot of back and forth conversation, unlike the interview with Michelle. When explaining her experiences growing up, Violet made a point on how the way she was raised and lived is only one view, and not everyone was able to live the way she did. Violet comes from a very successful family. She explained how she lived a very privileged life, in Uganda, and does not know what poverty is when asked about it. When her family came to Minnesota, they brought their maid with them, which is not common for many when traveling to the States. Violet came on a student visa. Due to the fact that she was from out of the country, she had to pay almost three times more per semester than most students attending the university. This is something her father paid for so, unlike me and many others, she graduated with no student loans. I asked Violet about the manifestation of personal brand of Africa and she explained that it is very different. One in Africa is unable to choose their personal brand. When interviewing for positions, the question is always, â€Å"Whose son or daughter is that?† not â€Å"How smart or qualified are they?† In Uganda, there is a strong British influence, so class and tribal system is what makes you who are you. It is all about whom you know or who you are related to. Violet never professionally worked in Africa, but states that one’s choices are limited regarding what they can decide to grow up to be. You either plan to be a doctor, lawyer, dentist, or anything else with a designate d path. There are few opportunities and many talents are wasted. Marketing or human resource careers aren’t options or even thought about in Africa when choosing an education path. When Violet came to Minnesota to begin school, she had it in her mind that she was going to become a lawyer. Not until she was almost done with her Bachelor’s degree did she begin to realize that becoming a lawyer was maybe something she didn’t actually want to do. She went on to complete her MBA, with the mind set of beginning to work toward a law degree. She is now a Senior Human Resources Recruiter, and sometimes wishes she had received her Bachelor’s degree in Marketing or Communications, instead of Business, realizing that she was still living in the African career mentality when choosing her education. While people in the US think that an 8% unemployment rate is high, Africa has over 50% unemployment. This is partially because there are not enough businesses to employ everyone. Unlike in the US, there are no government services to help the poor. There is also not as much access to goods like in the US. Not everyone has the convenience to go to stores like Target or Wal-Mart. Lastly, when asked if people treat her different based on what the average American knows about Africans – that they are poor – she admitted that people sometimes do. Some are surprised to learn that she speaks English very well, others reject her when they realize that she is not a suffering African, and the black community does not always accept her as black. She has wondered if she had come over as an African refuge; how things might be different in the way people treat her. The interview with Violet was a further look into what I don’t know about Africa. It gave me knowledge and taught me never to judge based what I see on television or read in books. As Violet made clear at the beginning of our interview, she has only one view point regarding Africa, and not everyone was raised like her. This reminds me to never judge when only hearing one side of the story. This is a lesson that can be brought into the workplace every single day. The two interviews and three multi-cultural experiences opened my eyes to things I would never have known about. I learned about what it was like to attend a fashion show, a different culture, and religion. These experiences changed the way I look at life and the way I approach professional environments. Due to this project, I will search for new experiences that will bring be out of my comfort zone, just like the activities above. References Adichie, Chimamanda, perf. Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story. 2009. Film. March 2013. http://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story.html. Fallon, Kevin. 10 Juiciest Bits From Ex-Scientologist’s Tell-All ‘Beyond Belief’. (2013): n. page. Web. 22 Apr. 2013. Miscavige Hill, Jenna. Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape. 1. 1. Harpercollins, 2013. 404. Print. Nassalo , Violet. Personal Interview. 9 Apr 2013. Olson, Michelle. E-mail Interview. 4 Apr 2013.

Reflective Account Examples Childcare

Reflective Account Examples Childcare Reflective account- Conferencing In taking part of the conferencing it has improved my academic skills and has broadened my knowledge and understanding of different aspects of life. When we first got given the task and were told to start posting comments and forming discussions I didnt see a big discussion going on within my group but once people were getting the hang of it, then more discussions were made. At first I found it very challenging and I was thinking that people in my group will judge me for what I say and go against everything that I posted. I started to build up my confidence in posting my first comment under social class where I talked about the different social classes that me and my family lived amongst. Also making reference back to some reading and research that I made. Looking back at my childhood I was aware of all the different stages of social class from a very young age and this does not only apply to what my family was going though but others around us as well. This is because there were times where I get everything I desired from my father and times were I couldnt have anything. And as a child this had a big effective on me as it would for other children in not getting what they want. I still think that social class is affecting me and my family in having a lot of financial crisis to overcome. Therefore this makes me became less sociable, in going out with my friends and started to keep my self to my self. Both of my parents do not work for medical reasons and are on income support therefore at times I feel like I am not getting everything that others are but having traveled aboard and seeing how people were living in absolute poverty it makes me come back and realise how thankful I should be as people are not getting half of what am getting. According to Julian Glover she states that â€Å"the poorest people in society are most aware of its impact; with 55% of them saying class, not ability, greatly affects the way they are seen.† This is a clear statement that in todays society people are judging each other according to their social class/ wealth and not according to a person as an individual. Being in a low social class can have a great impact within the family. By this I mean the parents can have bad tempers most of the times and can take this out on their children and abuse them, also can cause the parents to have suffer depression. What we see is the lower class areas have been most affected by drugs and crime and it is those aspects that seem to be given more focus than education also this has an impact on the family unit. The family is pivotal in the upbringing of children and if the family unit is unstable then that will no doubt have a domino effect on the children and their future. Also the children may suffer from this be not getting fed healthy, in order for them to have a strong immune system so they dont become ill and they continue to grow. In my childhood in Saudi Arabia I was aware of different ethnicities according to different races and cultures but not religions. This is because we had a maid in our house to help my mother with the house work and to look after me, my sister and my brother. She was from Malaysia but has the same religion as us which is Islam. But once I came into the Untied Kingdom I was more aware of different cultures, races and beliefs and especially in the city of Sheffield where it is a multicultural society and a large number of Muslims, Christians, Hindus and many other beliefs. When I started attending my first primary school I found children from all different ethnic minorities. This was something different to what I was used to seeing in Saudi Arabia as everyone there were from the same race and had the same culture and belief. Once I got into secondary school I started having lessons on religious education in these lessons we covered all different cultures and beliefs. I found it really interesting to learn about other cultures then my own such as Indian, Chinese, Catholic and many more. We were also being able to compare the similarities and differences in marriage ceremonies etc within the different cultures. I decided to take it as a chosen subject in my GCSEs. This then made me become more aware of ethnicity. During my childhood I never wearied a head scarf as it is apart of the Islamic religion that a woman should wear it to cover to from any strange men. I wasnt forced my parents to wear it but in secondary school I had a lot of friends that did wear the head scarf. Is was in year 10 when my friends persuaded me to wear the scarf and I found it as a big step to take but I agreed at the end and started wearing it and never took it off. I felt like I had to overcome a lot of racism because I had chosen to wear the scarf. I was getting racist comments from the boys in my school who were black and used to talk to me before and didnt like the fact that I covered my hair. Even though my secondary school had 75% of children who were Muslims from different ethnic minorities. Not all the racist comments that I was getting from school but I was getting them from the public as well for example bus drivers just drive past me as am standing in the bus stop with my hand out and the bus is not even fu ll. At first I used to let these things get to me but I realised that some people are not aware of other religions and cultures so therefore they decided to be racist because they went everyone to follow their beliefs. I felt that it was vital that children should be introduced to different ethnic minorities; they should be taught that every religion and belief should be respected. As I was growing up I was aware of different genders within my family. I have a brother that is seven years older than me and a sister that is three years older than me. When we were young in Saudi Arabia we all shared one big room. I used to see what different roles we got by our parents. For example my brother would be asked to go to the shop and get things that are missing for the house and my sister and I were just ask to tidy our rooms up and little jobs as such. As part of the Islamic religion a womens role in life is to care for her family and mens must take on the role of supporter, protector, provider, custodian and servant to the family. This does not mean that a woman should be forced to clean, cook and stay at home no thats part of their care for their family put a man should no aspect a woman to be doing that all the time. If a woman shows to carry on with her education to gain more knowledge then there is nothing that can stop her from doing so. But this as well goes ba ck to the time where woman were seen to be as house wifes and cant even vote etc. I have come across in many placements that I have worked in children having a firm understanding of gender for example in the games in which girls can play but boys cant and the opposite. This now where woman and man seem to be equal and settings do tend to follow the anti- discrimination and anti- bias set policies and proceeds. When I was in Saudi Arabia the schools dont allow to have mixed genders. Therefore when my sister and I went to school it was girls only. We both enjoyed that and the way that we are all girls and have the same mentality and were able to discuses issues freely. The final dimension that we had to discuss in our conferencing was disability. In my childhood I was aware of disabled people by seeing them in the media. My siblings and I were looked after by aunty sometimes and she has a speech and language disorders where she couldnt speak fluently. Another thing was that she would have tantrums and knowing that she is having them. I have also realised that she has the mentality of a child thats like ten years old even though she is a lot older. Starting my secondary school I was finding my reading and writing to be very poor. Therefore I seemed to be struggling in my studies but I was fighting myself to do well all the time and to let it but me down. I got to college and during my final year I felt like I was under a lot of pressure and left like I might have a learning difficulty. So I went to the learning support base in college and I asked if I can have a test taken and so I did. The results showed that I was dyslexic and I so therefore I was given extra time in handing my coursework and for my exams. As I started university I tried to apply for disabled students allowance and I sent my college report but the said they dont accept it. So they offered me to take a test with the university it self so I did and the results turned out to be that am not dyslexic and that I wasnt eligible to any extra support. Therefore am finding it hard being at university and trying to cope with all the assignments that are been given to me without any additional support.

Princess Diana- Media Victim or Media Manipulator :: essays research papers fc

Princess Diana "Lady Diana was born into a privileged family as the daughter of the 8th Earl Spencer and Lady Frances Althorp in Norfolk, England. Princess Diana was raised by nannies, separated from her parents by divorce and isolated from her sisters and brother when sent to boarding schools. Her life was filled with activities, friends and social events that 'bred' her for royal status and community involvement". At first glance we can easily assume that such a person would easily be one who knew how to handle themselves in front of a camera, being that royalty were never left alone by the media. When she first married the prince the world of the media was rather new to her, and not necessarily unappreciated or ignored in the sense that it could give her a bad name. Considering that she was raised in royalty to some degree, it was only natural that she takes advantage of the media, once she knew how. Yet, at the same time Diana seemed destined to work for others through her status as royalty, which may have been manipulation, but seemed far more sincere than that. In an interesting spiritual judgment of her personality: "Diana's first trait determined how she made choices. In balance, this trait gave her a strong desire to stabilize all aspects of her life. Because of that pull, Diana's goals focused on the equilibrium between motherhood, attention to her nation, charity work and responsibility to her husband. Without effort to achieve balance in one's life, those with this trait in excess can become lifeless--at times lacking the desire to work towards stability and only existing. Through Diana's much publicized life, depression and immobilizing mental turmoil threatened at times her very existence" (Anonymous Diana Frances Spencer George diana.html). She married into royalty and though, at times, got caught up her status and her appearance, slowly changed her focus to people in need, which caused her conflict in relationship to here station in life, which caused her turmoil and misery. Yet, she pursued these events at whatever the cost. Before her death she had become known as a powerful force for good in the world as she "embraced all those requiring care, even breaking the barriers associated with AIDS, leprosy, and those maimed from land mines. She had such a deep concern for each individual taught the world for which we will be forever blessed" (Anonymous Diana Frances Spencer George diana. Princess Diana- Media Victim or Media Manipulator :: essays research papers fc Princess Diana "Lady Diana was born into a privileged family as the daughter of the 8th Earl Spencer and Lady Frances Althorp in Norfolk, England. Princess Diana was raised by nannies, separated from her parents by divorce and isolated from her sisters and brother when sent to boarding schools. Her life was filled with activities, friends and social events that 'bred' her for royal status and community involvement". At first glance we can easily assume that such a person would easily be one who knew how to handle themselves in front of a camera, being that royalty were never left alone by the media. When she first married the prince the world of the media was rather new to her, and not necessarily unappreciated or ignored in the sense that it could give her a bad name. Considering that she was raised in royalty to some degree, it was only natural that she takes advantage of the media, once she knew how. Yet, at the same time Diana seemed destined to work for others through her status as royalty, which may have been manipulation, but seemed far more sincere than that. In an interesting spiritual judgment of her personality: "Diana's first trait determined how she made choices. In balance, this trait gave her a strong desire to stabilize all aspects of her life. Because of that pull, Diana's goals focused on the equilibrium between motherhood, attention to her nation, charity work and responsibility to her husband. Without effort to achieve balance in one's life, those with this trait in excess can become lifeless--at times lacking the desire to work towards stability and only existing. Through Diana's much publicized life, depression and immobilizing mental turmoil threatened at times her very existence" (Anonymous Diana Frances Spencer George diana.html). She married into royalty and though, at times, got caught up her status and her appearance, slowly changed her focus to people in need, which caused her conflict in relationship to here station in life, which caused her turmoil and misery. Yet, she pursued these events at whatever the cost. Before her death she had become known as a powerful force for good in the world as she "embraced all those requiring care, even breaking the barriers associated with AIDS, leprosy, and those maimed from land mines. She had such a deep concern for each individual taught the world for which we will be forever blessed" (Anonymous Diana Frances Spencer George diana.

Repressed Memory Essay -- Psychology Essays Memory Neurology

Repressed Memory If someone asks me, "Where were you on September 11, 2001?" I would be able to give that person an accurate answer. It seems impossible to ever forget the events of that day. How could one forget such a traumatic day? It seems like life changing events would stay with a person forever. However, there are many victims of, let's say, child abuse that cannot remember the actual abuse. The memories of such horrors have been erased so there is no recollection of the events. Being a skeptic, I am not sure if I would be able to forget such horrific events. Repressed memories can also be recovered, through therapeutic treatment. It seems odd how people can forget certain traumas, but still able to remember others. How does memory actually work, and how can one selectively repress certain memories? Memory and the I-function seem to be closely related. Memory allows individuals to store and retrieve information gained from previous experience. It can then be used to predict human response to certain stimuli. Optic neurons often "make things up as it goes along". The I-function relies on memory in order to do this. Memory is used to perform tasks such as comprehension and production of language, reasoning, and recognition of declarative. Memory is also necessary for skill acquisition. Different models of memory have been proposed. One is that there is a limited capacity for the amount of information that can be stored. Memory can decay, and the longer a memory has been stored and not used, the less available it will be. As new information enters the memory, it may be harder to access other information and cognitive system seems to be less efficient (2). Memory consists of three basic functions: enco... ...althier than repressing them. I do not quite fully understand why the brain would repress memories in order to protect the person. The mind is a web of mysteries, and memory repression is just on thread of the web. References 1)Elizabeth Loftus, http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro02/web3/www.muskingum.edu/psychology/psyweb/history/loftus.htm 2)About Memory, http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro02/web3/www.acm.org/sigchi/chi96/proceedings/doctoral/Bryne/mbd_txt.htm 3)Mechanim of Memory http://www.wm.edu/psych/psy201efr/intro_72.htm 4)Encoding memory, http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro02/web3/www.brainchannel.com/Memory/encoding/encoding.html 5)Skeptic's Dictionary, http://skepdic.com/repressedmemory.html 6)Process Healing, http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro02/web3/www.process-healing.com/description.htm

I Saw Louisiana in a Live-Oak Growing Essay -- essays papers

I Saw Louisiana in a Live-Oak Growing Walt Whitman is considered one of the most important writers in the history of American Literature. The people of his own time called him a radical, a madman, and a pornographer. These days he is greatly appreciated and entitled as a fearless prophet of a new stage of human development. Sometimes Whitman would be in a slump and he felt that he needed to deflect the people who inquired too directly. This even meant using examples of homosexual elements in his work, as well as unbelievable stories of him having affairs with numerous women and fathering many children, unknown to him. Throughout these sorts of times W. Whitman has gone through both resentment and flattery, nevertheless showing us his best work. I Saw in Louisiana a Live-Oak Growing, is a great example. An older man comes across an oak tree in Louisiana. He begins to compare his life and friendship with this Live-Oak growing as a symbol of this. The word Live-Oak is a form of metonymy standing for the old manà ­s friendship. He describes this tree as it stands there alo...

Business Information Systems

Business Information Systems HA(IT) My questions: 1. Define the concept information system and its constitutive elements; describe the broad categories of computer-based information systems, providing relevant business examples for each category identified; explain how computer-based information systems can support managers at each level of an organisation. 2.Explain the main elements and steps of the project management process and, considering your essay writing as a project, provide a concrete description including numbers for that project; relate the main project management steps to the main phases of the systems development life cycle model; how are the life cycle phases handled in the V-model and the spiral model? 3. What is the Information Systems and Information Technology Function in an organization; what needs to be managed; how can the IS/IT function be organized; what does outsourcing mean and which role does it play in this context?Characters (with spaces) and 1 figure: 2 2645 Question 1 Information Systems To understand and define an Information System (IS) thoroughly, it’s important to separate the two words and understand them separately. Information is produced by processing data so that it is meaningful which can be not only understood by the recipient but also used to meet a specific goal or requirement. To understand information, data needs to be understood as well. Data are raw facts like a specific date or measurement. Data needs to be processed and transformed into information; this process is called the transformation process. E. . data regarding sales of a firm is useless unless putting it in the correct context. But if you sort the sales after type of product, you will be able to see what product has been sold the most. By using data to gain relevant information, it’s possible to reduce the uncertainty of different questions and thereby improve the decision making. A system can be found in every part of the world. A system is a set of interrelated components that work together towards a common goal. The solar system might not a have an obvious goal while a firm might have several goals like gaining profit or making the best product possible.To achieve these specific goals the system will need to obtain inputs and transform these into outputs, like described in the transformation process, data is seen as the input and information as the output. But to transform input into output isn’t enough. The output needs to be relevant compared to the objective(s) of the firm. For systems to be more effective the system can contain a feedback and control stage as well. By using the information we have just gathered it’s possible to define IS. IS is defined as the way people and organizations are gathering, storing and processing information.In a business the IS will contribute to making the correct decisions. But IS isn’t solely used for managers and workers’ decision making it can als o be used in other ways, like feedback for an organization’s quality. Computer-based information systems Today most IS involve Information Technology (IT) to create management information also called computer-based information systems. This is because of the many disadvantages it gives not having a computer-based information system. An IS can be divided into two categories called Operations Information Systems (OIS) and Management Information System (MIS).OIS contains 3 sub-systems each contributing in the daily running of a business. The 3 sub-systems of the OIS are: The Transaction Processing System (TPS), Office Automation Systems (OAS) and the Process Control Systems. The TPS is managing the many transactions occurring on daily basis on the operational level of an organization like withdrawal of money from an ATM, or orders and payments for goods and services. Even though the TPS is marked by a lot of repetitive tasks and routine, the function of it is essential and missi on-critical to an organization. A TPS will e. g. secure that an ATM is running correctly.If a person wants to withdraw money from his account via an ATM, the TPS will make sure that there’s enough money on the customer’s account so that the money can be withdrawn. The transaction will only take place if all tasks in the process can be completed. OAS is a common system within the OIS. OAS refers to the way that basic tasks in an office have been computerized. Before creating, storing and managing information was done physically, but by computerizing the office the time taking to create documents or arrange meetings is done faster, giving more time for the organization to take care of other tasks.The OAS helps making the office more than just an area for typing but an area for exchanging important knowledge about the organization by still reducing costs as well. If a manager wants to set up a meeting instead of giving a paper to each participant, he can choose to send an e-mail to all the participants even though they aren’t at the same location. The process control system deals with large amounts of data created by production processes.The process control system is used to control and support the different manufacturing processes of an organization. The process control system will automatically control the flow of the manufacturing process by a specific limit set by the user, and might e. g. support the production of a standard product like the Model T Ford car. The MIS contains three sub-systems. All three systems are supporting decision-making in a business and are called: Decision Support Systems (DSS), Information Reporting Systems (IRS) and the Executive Information Systems(EIS).DSS uses raw data along with different business models to provide useful information for the manager which he can use for making tactical and strategic decisions, being especially semi-structured or unstructured. The DSS is often created by end-users, because t hey often have the much needed knowledge about the organization compared to a bespoke or on-the-shelf package developed by a third party. An example is the expert system which contains the knowledge and decision making skills of specialists, giving none-specialists enough knowledge to make decisions.In the world of medicine, it’s possible for a nurse to enter the symptoms of a patient. The system will then compare the entered symptoms with all the different symptoms of different diseases already stored in a knowledge base and provide a diagnosis. A problem with the DSS is that the more options the system has the more complex it gets. IRS uses information to produce predefined reports for the day-to-day decision-making. There are two commonly known reports used by the IRS being the periodic and exception reports. The periodic reports is required by decision makers at regular intervals, it can e. . provide a report showing the sales of a product from day-to-day. The exception r eport is only being produced when needed; it might be produced automatically if a performance measure moves outside a predefined range. EIS is mostly used for the strategic decision making by senior managers to monitor, compare and analyze and thereby support the decision-making process of the senior manager. EIS could e. g. notify the senior manager with specific information about a facility anywhere in the world underperforming, giving him enough information to make a decision about the future of the facility.The different IS just described are each used at different levels of an organization. The top leaders of an organization are all placed in the strategic level, where unstructured decisions are a big part of the management. They mainly use EIS to support their decisions but it’s important to notice that their decisions tend to rely on their own knowledge and experience as well. At the tactical level of an organization the expert and decision support systems are used to support the semi-structured decisions being made at this level.The operational level of an organization makes a lot of structured decisions because of their little authority; therefore the TPS is used by the workers at this level on a day-to-day basis. The higher up we come in the organization the more unstructured the decisions are because of the level of authority rises. But this isn’t always true; it is possible to make unstructured decisions at the operational level as well as structured decisions at the strategic level. E. g. in a hospital the doctors (who work at the operational level) often have the authority to make important and less structured decisions.Question 2 The project management process There are three key elements of the project management process being time, cost and quality. BIS (Business Information Systems) projects are likely to consume a lot of time and money and involve many parts of the specific organization; the project manager therefore has a big responsibility for the failure or success of a project and whether or not the project is following the time, cost and quality requirements given. The use of a well-structured project management process has the ability to highly reduce the chance of a BIS projects failure.The project management process has four steps being: Estimation, schedule/plan, monitoring and control, documentation. The estimation step gives the project manager time to plan how much time and effort the project will take to fulfill the given requirements. The overall project requirements will be compared to the available resources. In the early stages of the project it’s often hard for the project manager to give precise estimations because of the great amount of uncertainty, but the project will often be constrained by a deadline or the type of people and hardware available.Effort time and elapsed time is two important terms used to explain the amount of work different tasks will take. Effort time explai ns the total amount of work needed to complete a task while the elapsed time indicates how many calendar days the task will take. A project’s estimation will often change a lot from the start and to the end of a project because of the many constraints and changes that can occur. The requirements might change or hardware might break down, but a good estimation is essential to the success or failure of a project.The schedule/planning step is about determining when a project should be executed; the finished schedule is then called the plan. There are two main terms important to notice called the serial and parallel relationship. The serial relationship describes how some activities have to be completed before another activity can start. The parallel relationship explains how some activities can be totally independent, but that four activities might need to run in parallel before an implementation can occur. Monitoring and control is a very important step which ensures that the t asks of a project are meeting the requirements.This is done by monitoring the different tasks; if the project isn’t running as planned and is deviating from the given requirements, controls might need to be made for the project not to fail. To disseminate the information provided during project execution an essential step is documentation. It’s the project manager’s task to make sure that good documentation is provided from the different parts of the project. With poor documentation or without any information at all, the project might not deliver on time and the expenses of maintenance will most likely increase.It’s also important that the documentation provided is acceptable and understandable. My project: To support my project planning a Gantt chart was made to show an overview of the activities. Project startup describes my first day of the project; I chose my questions and estimated the overall process of the project. I wanted to use three days on eac h question, all though I have to use four days on question 2 because of other homework. My writing will compared to my estimation be finished on the 30-okt and I will thereafter be editing the project. The product has to be finished and delivered on the 2-Nov.If the project isn’t delivered on the 2-Nov the project will fail. The different tasks being question 1, 2 and 3 are in this project all independent but I chose to run them in a parallel relationship with the editing task so that before the editing task can occur, the three questions have to be answered. This gives me an overview of the size of my project and whether or not the project has to be shorter. I have been executing the project as planned so far regarding time (today 22-okt), but looking at the size of my project so far, I’m going need more time than estimated on cutting the project in the editing phase.Relation between the project management steps and the SDLC The main phases of the System Development L ife Cycle (SDLC) are by order: Initiation, feasibility study, requirement analysis, system design, build, implement, maintain and kill. The estimation step is used in almost all of the SDLC stages, and will be used more frequently in some stages depending on the type of project. In the initiation stage of the project the project manager will use estimation to make an overview of the project, estimating the different resources that are required to carry out the project, but the estimation isn’t detailed yet.A detailed estimation will be produced when the project has been determined feasible and is under or close to production. The leader will estimate whether or not the project is feasible at the feasibility stage by using the information granted through interviews and reports. In the analysis stage the requirements for the new system will be specified. After the requirements have been established it’s possible to make a detailed estimation of especially the work requir ed at the design and build phase.The estimations will often be much more precise if timings from the previous projects are available. The scheduling and planning step runs alongside the estimation step. By knowing how much time and effort is needed for the project, it’s possible to make a more precise schedule of the process of the project. It’s important to always have a schedule of the plan for the project, but the most effective schedule will be made after the detailed estimation has been produced at the analysis phase (it can be produced at other steps depending on the project).Once the schedule has been produced, the monitoring and control step will monitor the performance at all of the SDLC stages and ensure that the project is following the schedule/plan and fulfilling the requirements. It’s essential to monitor all of the SDLC stages since deviating from the plan can result in a project failure. Documentation is important during the whole project but esp ecially essential at the development and maintenance phases. This is because most projects are based on team efforts.Not only does the documentation allow monitoring and controlling, but it allows the different members of a development team to disseminate their design information between each other, making their work more effective. The V- and spiral model The V-model’s V describes the graphical overview of the relationship between the different tests and SDLC phases, but the V is also a synonym for verification and validation. The verification will check if there is any better solution to the design of the product, and that the design we are building is without errors or bugs.The validation is used to test the design of the product and check whether the design is fulfilling the requirements. Validation and verification forms the basis for producing tests. The tests shown in the V-model are used during implementation which is why the model has the V-shape. But it’s i mportant to notice that the life cycle phases on the left side have to occur, before the tests on the right side of the model can occur. A concern about the V-model is that it has no maintenance phase, meaning that it’s possible to believe that the product is finished and bug-free when signed off.The SDLC can also be used via the spiral model. The spiral model is an iterative system. The three stages of analyzing, design and coding often tend to be repeated as a part of the prototyping process, and this is why the spiral model was made. The spiral model consists of four main activities: Planning, risk analysis, engineering and customer relation. The model contains all of the elements of the SDLC but it also contains risk assessment. By being able to make several iterations it’s possible to make a more detailed production and to add in new elements to the production because of the repetition. Question 3 The IS/IT functionThe goal of using IS/IT is the hope that it will generate more benefit than the costs used on it. The function of IS in an organization, is to make the management process effective and support it. IT is the tools like hardware and software that the organization uses so IS can run and be built. Managing the IS/IT functions When managing IS there are different areas that need to be managed. It’s important to manage the development of the different business systems. When migrating from one system to another it’s important to have a project leader, as well as to manage and make sure that the migration is going as planned.When inventing end-user applications, it’s important to have management to make sure that the software being produced isn’t full of bugs, and isn’t a reinvention. Other important areas that needs to be managed is the database administration, user support and training, shared services and the IS/IT staffing. It’s also important to manage different areas of IT. Some of the areas that need to be managed are which hardware platforms to use in the organization, the manager might choose to only use the client/server environment.Good network architecture is also vital to an organizations sharing of information, and therefore it’s important that this area is managed. Many organizations use a lot of money on IT, and many big organizations have large amounts of IT including development tools. If this area isn’t managed, new tools being bought might not be compatible with the chosen database management systems or the selected hardware platforms. If an organization is using legacy systems, these needs to be managed so that it can still operate with newer systems (this might be an IS area as well).A final important area to manage is the operations management which contains hardware management, capacity planning, security, technical support, telecommunications and network management. Organizing the IS/IT functions To organize the different functions of I S/IT isn’t easy, but an essential part of making IS/IT more effective in a business. It’s possible to ether centralize or decentralize when organizing the IS/IT function in a business. When centralizing, the IS/IT management will be placed in one specific spot in the organization from where all of the functions of IS/IT will be managed.This could for example be the MIS, which will then be reporting to an IT director or another head of the department. Decentralization is the opposite of centralizing and means that the IS/IT functions will be spread out across the organization by having small IS/IT groups stored in different parts of the organization. It’s hard for organizations to be 100 % centralized or decentralized all though many organizations tend to focus on one of them. Outsourcing Outsourcing is a term used when a company chooses to subcontract a service to a third party. This service can be catering, cleaning, public relations and IS.Outsourcing of IS ma nagement has become a major term in many companies in the world today because of its many benefits and uses. Some of these are cost reduction, quality improvement, risk reduction and to enable a focus on the core business. In a 2009 IBM survey of 2500 CIO’s worldwide 76% of the respondents anticipate to have a strongly centralized infrastructure in five years. A highly centralized IS/IT function does as mentioned before contribute to cost reduction, and having the function in one place makes it easier for companies to take advantage of developments like outsourcing.By seeing more companies outsourcing and more companies wanting to centralize which both contribute to a lower cost might not be a coincidence, and can be a way of saying that IT is more than just a support capacity for the outsourcing/centralizing organizations. Outsourcing plays a huge role in the management process as well. The problem with outsourcing and its relationship with the management process is the impo rtance of making outsourcing work. Outsourcing might be a huge trend, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s going to work.Many company’s outsourcing projects tend to fail because of bad management and contracts with the third-party. The failure of many outsourcing projects can have a connection between the management and organizing of the IS/IT functions. If the management and organizing of the IS/IT functions isn’t managed well or if the company isn’t seeing IS/IT as an important part of the company’s strategy, outsourcing has a bigger chance of failing. Litteraturliste * Business Information Systems, fourth edition, Paul Bocij Andrew Greasley Simon Hickie, 2008 * http://www. omputerworld. com/s/article/347073/Swinging_Toward_Centralization (29-10-2011, klokken 13:10) ——————————————– [ 1 ]. 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