Sunday, December 29, 2019

Family Dermestidae and Dermestid Beetles

The family Dermestidae includes skin or hide beetles, carpet beetles, and larder beetles, some of which can be serious pests of closets and pantries. The name dermestid comes from the Latin derma, for skin, and este, meaning to consume. Description Museum curators know dermestid beetles all too well. These scavengers have a reputation for devouring museum specimens. Dermestid beetles protein-eating habits make them equally valuable in museum settings, however, as colonies of dermestids can be used to clean the flesh and hair from bones and skulls. Many entomology students have encountered dermestids as pests, too, as theyre known for their rather bad habit of feeding on preserved insect specimens. Forensic entomologists look for dermestid beetles at crimes scenes when trying to determine the time of the death of a cadaver. Dermestids typically appear late in the decomposition process, when the corpse begins to dry out. Dermestid adults are quite small, ranging from just 2 mm to 12 mm in length. Their bodies are oval and convex in shape, and sometimes elongated. Dermestid beetles are covered in hair or scales, and bear clubbed antennae. Dermestids have chewing mouthparts. Dermestid beetle larvae are worm-like, and range in color from pale yellowish brown to light chestnut. Like the adult dermestids, the larvae are hairy, most noticeably near the hind end. The larvae of some species are oval, while others are tapered. Classification Kingdom – AnimaliaPhylum – ArthropodaClass – InsectaOrder – ColeopteraFamily - Dermestidae Diet Dermestid larvae can digest keratin, the structural proteins in the skin, hair, and other animal and human remains. Most feed on animal products, including leather, fur, hair, skin, wool, and even dairy products Some dermestid larvae prefer plant proteins and feed instead on nuts and seeds, or even silk and cotton. Most adult dermestid beetles feed on pollen. Because they can digest wool and silk, as well as plant products like cotton, dermestids can be a real nuisance in the home, where they may chew holes in sweaters and blankets. Life Cycle Like all beetles, dermestids undergo complete metamorphosis with four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Dermestids vary greatly in the length of their life cycles, with some species going from egg to adult in 6 weeks, and others taking as long as a year or more to complete development. Females usually lay eggs in a dark crevice or other well-hidden location. Larvae molt through as many as 16 instars, feeding throughout the larval stage. After pupation, the adults emerge, ready to mate. Range and Distribution The cosmopolitan dermestid beetles live in varied habitats, provided theres a carcass or other food source available. Worldwide, scientists have described 1,000 species, with just over 120 known in North America. Sources: Borror and DeLongs Introduction to the Study of Insects, 7th Edition, by Charles A. Triplehown and Norman F. JohnsonKaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America, by Eric R. Eaton and Kenn KaufmanFamily Dermestidae, Bugguide.net, accessed November 25, 2011Dermestid Beetle, Texas AM AgriLife Extension, accessed November 25, 2011Dermestids, Utah State University Extension fact sheet

Saturday, December 21, 2019

Essay On School-Wide Data Analysis - 1068 Words

School-Wide Data Analysis Overview I gathered and analyzed the MAP results for students who took Math, Reading, Science tests in grades k-9 in order to identify percentage of Students who met or exceeded their projected RIT (Rasch Unit) in 2016-2017 school year. I also analyzed the results by classroom, subject, and teacher. I used the MAP winter 2016 results, I prepared a projected proficiency summary report for the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortia (SBAC) and ACT tests in spring 2017. Currently, I am helping the admin team to develop a plan for low performing teachers and students in order to increase student achievement in the area of concern. Theme The program assessment activity is aligned with â€Å"Standard 4. Curriculum,†¦show more content†¦I started my activity by gathering the math results in the fall 2016 term. The results shows â€Å"Norms Reference Data†, student’s RIT score, Projected RIT score and percentile in Math. I did the same method for gathering the data for reading, and science. At the end of the MAP fall test, I shared the test results with the classroom teachers and admin. The admin team also had one on one meeting with some of the teachers to talk about the projected goals and how we can help them to achieve these goals. After the spring test, I gathered the results in order to compare the growth between fall term and spring term in 2016-2017 school year. The tests results clearly show that 2nd and 4th grade students struggled with both subjects reading and math. 3rd grade and 6th grade students did not have a good year in Math. Overall all students in 3-8 grades did well in science except K-2 and 9 grade students because they did not take the test (see Appendix A for more information on The Percentage of Students who Met or Exceeded their Projected RIT). I combined all of the test results by teacher, classroom in order to have a deeper understanding of the results in teacher and classroom level. I took the average of The Percentage of Students who met or Exceeded their Projected RIT for each teacher. I sorted teachers by their performance and presented it to the admin team (see Appendix B for more information on the teacher performance). I also prepared projected proficiency reportShow MoreRelatedTax Pensions : A Solution To The Public Pension Crisis1407 Words   |  6 Pagesretirement from the state, the overall state retirement system would no doubt see a gain in revenue. The effects of the dual retirement restrictions may not be felt immediately, but will certainly offer a long-term benefit. The impact of the state-wide tax increase will be felt within one year of being implemented. Senator Chris McDaniel states in Tom Loftus, (2017) article that, â€Å"it’s going to be about 10 percent tax increase for all Kentuckians . . . † (pg. 2) which would pay off the current deficitRead MoreCurrent Conditions And Desired Conditions1421 Words   |  6 Pages Table of Contents Discussion of Instructional Problem 3 Current Conditions and Desired Conditions 3 Data Collection Process 4 Discussion of Data Collection Instruments Used 4 Discussion of Sources of Data 5 Data Gathered Through Other Sources 6 Results of Data Analysis 6 Data Analysis Techniques Used 6 Results of Analysis 7 Table 1 7 Table 2 8 Table 3 9 Findings of Needs Analysis 10 Need for Instruction 10 Goal of Instruction 11 Appendix A: Student Pre-Assessment 13 Appendix B: Teacher SurveyRead MoreElementary s Writing Workshop : Four Square Model1030 Words   |  5 Pageswell-written stories, essays, and descriptions. 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Finally this essay will consider the rolesRead MoreCompare and Contrast Qualitative and Quantitaitve Research Methods1403 Words   |  6 PagesCompare and contrast Qualitative and Quantitative research methods Monique Gowans Charles Stuart University Compare and Contrast Qualitative and Quantitative Research Methods Qualitative research methods are complex meaningful analysis characterised by processes and meanings that are not experimentally examined or measured in terms of mathematical measurements (Lincoln, 2003; Sarantakos, 2005). Quantitative research however, relies and builds on mathematical procedures and methods, suchRead MoreEssay about The Demands of Middle School Writing1471 Words   |  6 PagesAll middle school students, grades 6-8, are required to develop well-written compositions. According to the Louisiana Depart of Education (2008), to meet the demands of the comprehensive curriculum, these students are required to write complex multi-paragraph compositions with a clearly focused main idea and developed with relevant ideas, organization patterns, and structure that communicates clearly to the reader. The grade-level expectation also states that the students are required to use a varietyRead MoreThe Examination And Arrangement Estimation Of Student Performance Data That Originate From Testing The Psychological Abilities Of Students1519 Words   |  7 Pagescountries of the world today understand the examination and arrangement estimation of student performance data that originate from testing the psychological abilities of students. While there is wide variety crosswise over countries in testing - contrasting by topic, grade level, reason, and nature of testing - surveying, what students know instead of to what extent they have been in school has diffused the world over, to a limited extent at the incitement of worldwide advancement. To some degreeRead MoreThe Effects of Different Parenting Styles1075 Words   |  4 Pagesa sense of loss (Donnellan Firth, 2010). Hence this essay aims to prove how different parenting style affects the upbringing of a child, with the authoritative style being the most successful. This essay will first present an overview of the 3 most common parenting styles in the UK, followed by a detailed analysis on how paren ting styles affect the development of a child. This will be done by providing a comparison parenting styles on a wide range of youth outcomes, including well-being and self-esteemRead MoreCurriculum Guide For Spoken Language And Word Recognition1110 Words   |  5 PagesAlandou February 18, 2016 When quality practices are a part of a teacher’s daily arsenic instruction one will be able to identify evidence based strategies that would supply successful academic results despite a students’ disability. In this essay we will look at the challenges of teaching students with LD from the viewpoint of utilizing a Curriculum Guide; the strategies we will use with regard to ..............challenges we ran into to provide those services to students with LD. An attempt

Thursday, December 12, 2019

Construction Management for Bill of Quantities †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Construction Management for Bill of Quantities. Answer: Introduction The report is based on Bill of Quantities (BOQ) for a new two storey brick building with concrete tiled roof consists of two apartments. The location of the construction of the building is at 52 box road, East Hills. The type of contract is basically based on Australian General Conditions of Contract. BOQ consists of bid process of entire project comprised of estimation of cost, tendering, opening of tender for the project as well as award of contract (Cunningham 2016). Proper cost estimation helps to determine feasibility study of given project and facility for procurement procedure of the project work. It helps to plan the finances needed for successful project completion. From the perspective of the contractors, proper cost estimation helps to prepare a bid for work and facilitate resource arrangements for evaluation as well as execution of the work. This particular report summarizes the importance of identification and pricing of cost significant preliminaries in order to increase chances of winning the tender of the East Hills project. It also analyzes the priced preliminaries bill for the cost significant preliminaries items for the provided project. From the tendering review, importances of the description of BOQ and in addition to its effects are highlighted throughout the project example. Project preliminaries costs Importance of accurately identifying and pricing cost-significant preliminaries to maximise chances of winning a tender Jayaraman and Jayaraman (2016) stated that the employer are selected the contractor based on lowest bid criteria. A lowest tendering price is a key significant way to win a tender. Seymour (2017) analysed that selection of lowest bid is not required to reflect true cost of the project work. Tender pricing is a major part to prepare of BOQ. In the given project, cost estimation is done for experienced workers such as sub-contractor those are specialized into building construction. The pricing cost significant preliminaries are done to have cost information based on interaction with the suppliers (Cunningham 2015). Tender price is taking price information throughout quotation for the suppliers as well as sub contractors. This particular project is a government project which provides higher quality and specializes into type of construction they go for quotations (Fichtner and Michel 2016). The success of contractor for obtaining of contract is based on quality of the quotations received for the materials and items to subcontract. It is also required to have competitive prices at the time to prepare the estimation of cost. Standard procedures are being established to the responsibilities of the person those are to carry out the bid functions as well as negotiations that rose (Abas 2017). The list of the items for which there is requirement of quotations is being established with comprehensive assessment of the contracted documents. The contractor submits a tender for the project which sets out experience of the organization to undertake the building construction project, their proposed approach and estimation of cost to undertake the project (Larson and Gray 2013). In order to win a contract, a proper tender documentation is required for the project. Into the construction environment, the contractors are tendered low for the elements like preliminaries as well as earthworks to win of the contracts. However, prediction of low bid is a difficult task for the given project. Into the project, lower bid is awarded the contract, then it is suggested that predictions of lower bid is proper for winning the tender. Peng, Ding and Yu (2016) mentioned that bidding performance is analysed by design estimators. The quality of advice offered to the client is improved if the consultant can see the design cost from the bidding results. Then, the contractor can able to relate its ability in order to win the contracts (Abas et a l. 2017). The contractors are submitted lower prices for the project elements in order to win contracts of the tender. Project overhead estimation is required to improve the accuracy of the tender pricing. Efforts are provided to improve the methods to estimate the indirect cost. The contractor gains a competitive edge by adjusting the preliminaries such as project overhead. Goh and Hall (2013) forwarded the project scenario and concluded that quotations are obtained among the supplier and subcontractor. Therefore, proper project pricing for the project overheads are required to get success into the project bid (Wang and Wei 2014). Into the construction industry, preliminaries are subjective as well as most of the times it is difficult to price the system work. The first section of work is bill of quantities which consist of the financial matters those are related to the contract (Azam, Sabrina and Mohyin 2016).The contractor has responsibility to price the preliminaries items into the tender based on project requirements. Anifowose et al. (2013) explained that preliminaries section of the bill of quantities contains of two distinct types of items. The items those are not specific but have identifiable cost considered for the purpose of tendering such as contractual necessity for insurances, site ability for the employer as well as payment towards the local authority (Kang et al. 2013). Items those are fixed as well as associated cost which derives from the contractors predictable method to bring out the project work. The works are associated to bring of plant from the site and provided that of temporary works (Jayaraman and Jayaraman 2016). The time associated subdivision is provided for the preliminaries items which allow the tenderers to cost the items individually. The tenderer has the capability to expand the time related cost items to outfit particular methods of building construction. The achievement of contractor for gaining of contract is based on superiority of the quotations established for the materials in addition to items to contract out (Brook 2016). Therefore, pricing the preliminaries items are significantly required to maximise chances of winning the tender for the project. Priced preliminaries bill for the identified cost-significant preliminaries items for the given project Preliminaries Bill Item Description Amount ($) Pricing approach with justification 1 Establishment of the site 1.1 Site clearance for construction of new two storey brick building 14,000 The area of the site consists of 400m2 for a cost of $35 per m2, therefore the site clearance cost is (400*35) = $14,000. 1.2 Scaffold, plant and equipments, lifts as well as cranes 20,000 The total of space is 500m2 for cost of $40 per m2, therefore the cost is (500*40) = $ 20,000. 1.3 Testing of the soil 20,000 The total area for building the two storeys is 400m2, where the cost for testing the soil is $50; hence the cost is $20000. 1.4 Authority charges 840 Authority charges $30 for the project with working day of total 28 days. 2 Groundwork 2.1 Filling to the garden beds 740 The garden bed is cultivated to 100 deep with area of 37m2, the estimated cost is $20; hence the total cost is (37*20) = $740. The top soil mixture of the garden beds comprise of three parts with imported topsoil and one part is compost. 2.2 Organic fertilizer 2590 The organic fertilizer is being specified applied at rate of 3kg per 10m2, includes of cultivation to depth of 200 and ranks to surface level with adjacent surfaces. The area is 37m2 with cost of $70; hence the cost is (37*70) = $2590. 2.3 Planting and association of excavation as well as filling of the work 300 There is supply of 140 dia pots and plant into the beds are specified as ceria turbinate with total number of 10, and cost of $30; hence the total cost is (10*30) = $300. 2.4 Excavation and beds for the paths 208 There is excavation of the materials commerce of 16m3 at reduced level not exceed 1.0m of total depth of strip footings. It costs of $13 per m3, hence the total cost is (16*13) = $208. 2.5 Excavation for the electrical and drainage services 6800 4*25mm2 PVC cables into trenches (minimum 600m cover) as well as it are drawn into conduits. It includes for excavation, maintenance faces of excavation, backfilling, warning tape with disposal of surplus spoil. The total area is 34m with cost of $200; hence the cost is $6800. 2.6 Excavation from rain and percolating water by way of pumping out 200 15 diameter pipe works into chases in brickwork is 10m, with cost of $20; hence the cost is $200. 2.7 Maintenance faces to side of excavation not to exceed 1.0m total depth for the strip footings 2120 The area of the excavation for the strip footings is 53m3 with cost of $40 per m3; hence the price is $2120. 3 Windows and doors 3.1 Aluminium framed window 3000 There are two anodised aluminium framed sliding window units inclusive of factory glazing, fixings, furniture as well as trims. It suits of opening 1210 wide* 1029 high with includes of building into brick cavity wall. Each of the windows is cost of $1500. Therefore, the costs of the windows are (2*1500) = $3000. 3.2 Metal door frames 6000 There are six metal door frames to suit 2040*820*35 thick single leaf doors, complete with pair of steel butt hingers, latch keep, striking plate includes for the building 110 thick brick partition walls. Each of the windows is cost of $1000. Therefore, the costs of the windows are (6*1000) = $6000. 3.3 External timber doors 10,000 It is 1 half glazed single door, 2040*820*40 (timber frame measured). 1 glazed single entry door in door and sidelight assembly to suit overall opening size 1280 wide x 2067 high (door only: timber frame complete with sidelight). The total cost estimated as $10,000. 3.4 Internal timber door 2000 There is total of 1 single door of 2040*720*35 thick, 4 sliding door of 2040*820*35 thick and 6 single door of 2040*820*35 thick. Cost is $2000. 3.5 Security viewers 300 There are 2 security viewers which are fixed into the entry door to the apartments. The total cost is $300. 4 Finishes 4.1 Concrete stair landing $80 Preparing of concrete stair landing used to receive cement render by coating with PVA bonding agent with area of 4m2, and cost of $20, hence (4*20) = $80. 4.2 Concrete stair flights It consists of area of 5m2 with cost of $10, hence (5*10) = $50. 4.3 Concrete stair strings and floor slaps 30,000 The concrete stair strings consists of width of 130-280mm with floor slaps into wall area of 0-250mm high. Both are cost of $60, hence the total cost is (250mm*60+250mm*50) = $30,000 4.4 Door stops 3000 Wall mounted door stop, approximately 75 long overall, comprising screw fixed nylon, cast brass or diecast base plate and a close wound spiral wire with plastic tip. The cost of the door stops are $3000. Conclusion It is concluded that this particular report is based on estimation of preliminary cost of the items in the project which is conducted for construction of two storey building. Estimation of the price is focused on tender pricing and building up rates for the selected activities from BOQ. The project parties participate into involvement into pricing for this particular project and factors are considered when tender pricing is identified. It is analysed that the tender pricing process consists of receipt of invitation to the tender, decision to the tender, collection of tender documents, examination of the tender documents, collection of tender documents, tender adjudication as well as submission of the tender documents. At the time of pricing the preliminaries items, availability of the project resources, materials, plant and technology are to be considered at pricing time. Pricing of the tender is considered as the major part to prepare the BOQ. This particular procedure is to be done with use of various cost information. In order to do the lower bid, it is considered as difficult task for the given project. Into the project work, there is lower bid that is awarded the contract, and then it is recommended that forecasting of lower bid is appropriate for winning the tender of this particular project work. References Abas, A.A., Ismail, Z., Ismail, F. and Arshad, R.A., 2017. Cost of Preliminaries of Construction Projects for Civil Infrastructure Works in Malaysia.Sains Humanika,9(2). Anifowose, M.O., Ola-awo, W.A. and Mohammed, T.U., 2013. Assessment of Cost Management Functions of Quantity Surveyors with Lean Methodology.International Journal of Sustainable Construction Engineering and Technology,4(2), pp.67-81. Azam, N., Sabrina, Z. and Mohyin, N.A., 2016. Review on costs management in construction. InIIUM Journal of Educational Studies(pp. 30-52). IIUM Press. Brook, M., 2016.Estimating and tendering for construction work. Taylor Francis. Cunningham, T., 2015. ARM4-A Working Guide-Section B-Preliminaries. Cunningham, T., 2016. The Function and Format of Bills of Quantities: an Irish Context. Cunningham, T., 2017. Cost Control during The Construction Phase of the Building Project:-The Consultant Quantity Surveyors Perspective. Fichtner, J.J. and Michel, A.N., 2016. The OECDs Conquest of the United States: Understanding the Costs and Consequences of the BEPS Project and Tax Harmonization.Mercatus Research, Mercatus Center at George Mason University, Arlington, VA. Goh, J. and Hall, N.G., 2013. Total cost control inproject management via satisficing.Management Science,59(6), pp.1354-1372. Jayaraman, R. and Jayaraman, R., 2016. Project cost control: a new method to plan and control costs in large projects.Business Process Management Journal,22(6), pp.1247-1268. Kang, Y., O'Brien, W.J. and Mulva, S.P., 2013. Value of IT: Indirect impact of IT on construction project performance via Best Practices.Automation in Construction,35, pp.383-396. Larson, E.W. and Gray, C., 2013. Project Management: The Managerial Process with MS Project. McGraw-Hill. Peng, Y., Ding, Y. and Yu, Y., 2016. Grid Project Cost Control Research Based on Data Mining. Seymour, B., 2017. Preliminary round.Electrical Connection, (Winter 2017), p.46. Wang, C. and Wei, N., 2014, May. Analysis of Project Cost Control Based on Information Entropy and Gray Correlation. InInternational Conference on Logistics Engineering, Management and Computer Science (LEMCS 2014). Atlantis Press.

Thursday, December 5, 2019

Developing and maintaining free essay sample

Developing and maintaining good relationships is central to improving outcomes for individuals, their carers and their families none the less it is imperative to continue establishing and maintain positive working relationships with all involved in the care of service users to provide an all-round quality service which can be achieved by having good procedures and working in a warm, friendly, accountable and professional way.Carers:Working with carers for the benefit of care professionals, service users and carers themselves play an important role in many service users lives they are often the people who know the service user best and can be an invaluable source of information and support. Carers might be best positioned to provide the help needed to achieve the best possible outcomes for the service user. They assist with personal care, administration of medication, domestic tasks and monitor service users well – being as well as advocate for the individuals. We will write a custom essay sample on Developing and maintaining or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Carers involvement play a vital role to positive outcomes. They are more likely to have first handed information and knowledge of day to day events of a service users life, they get to read the signs of relapse or any relevant behavioural changes.†¢ Improved outcomes for service usersIncreasing the knowledge, confidence and understanding of significant others in dealing with the service users problems and their own feelings and anxieties regarding the situation can aid service users recovery.Information sharing can work two ways – not only do carers require information from the service provider, the service provider can also learn from family and friends experience and knowledge. It is worth emphasising that listening to carers or accepting information from them does not constitute a breach of confidentiality.Families:Families contribute a lot to the care and support of individuals in care in many ways. In the first place, it is the family that is the first port of call in terms of care in the sense that it is the family that acknowledges that a member of their family requires professional care and takes the matter to body responsible. It is the family that provides the critical information on the condition of the individual before the experts begin their assessments. When an individual has been admitted into care or wants to remain living independently at home the family provides stability by constant visits and encouragement as well as in times of crisis the family can provide calm and understanding as they know the individual better than anyone. The family can also provide financial management if requested to do so. Overall the family provides stability, comfort, support and love and affection unconditionally whilst needed. There are some factors that may affect the level of involvement of family members in care or support such as different work commitments of family members if they are all in full time employment, distance, willingness to travel or restriction on time available, ability to travel or drive, as well as a good or poor relationship with the individual, all these can have an effect on the level of family involvement.In my role as a manager, I strive to create an environment in which individual feel their needs are being heard and understood and this requires integrity, honesty and skill. My team and I deliver our services with a problem solving and can do approach by working collaboratively in overcoming issues and meeting the needs of individuals

Thursday, November 28, 2019

Ben Franklin BiographyCritique essays

Ben Franklin BiographyCritique essays In his many careers as a printer, moralist, essayist, civic leader, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, and philosopher, for later generations of Americans he became both a spokesman and a model for the national character. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts on Jan. 17, 1706, into a religious Puritan household. His father, Josiah, was a candlemaker and a skillful mechanic. His mother, Abiah Bens parents raised thirteen childrenthe survivors of Josiahs seventeen children by two wives (#1). Franklin left school at ten years old when he was pressed into his father's trade. At twelve Ben was apprenticed to his half brother James, a printer of The New England Courant. He generally absorbed the values and philosophy of the English Enlightenment. At the age of 16, Franklin wrote some pieces for the Courant signed "Silence Dogood," in which he parodied the Boston authorities and society (#3). At one point James Franklin was imprisoned for his liberal statements, and Benjamin carried on the paper himself. Having thus learned to resist oppression, Benjamin refused to suffer his brother's own domineering qualities and in 1723 ran away to Philadelphia (#1). Soon Franklin found a job as a printer. After a year he went to England, where he became a master printer, sowed some wild oats, amazed the locals with his swimming feats, and lived among inspiring writers of London. By 1726 Franklin was tiring of London (#1). He considered becoming an itinerant teacher of swimming, but when a Quaker merchant by the name of Thomas Denham offered him a clerkship in his store in Philadelphia, he decided to return home (#5). Returning to Philadelphia in 1726, he soon owned a newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette, and began to print Poor Richard's Almanac. In the Pennsylvania Gazette, a citizen asked editor Franklin the following question: "If A found out that his neighbor B was sleeping with his wife, was he justified in telling B's w...

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Zora essays

Zora essays Zora Hurston writes a fascinating piece called "How it feels to be Colored Me". In this piece she tells of the days before and after she became colored. In the days before she knew of only one difference between white and blacks. She never paid much mind to the fact that the rest of the community reacted differently, she did what she wanted. It is the same for most kids at her age. They never really understand what is happening in the world around them until the world around them believes they're old enough to hear the When Hourston turned thirteen she was sent to a school in Jacksonville. She left her home as Hourston and enter Jacksonville as a little colored girl. Hourston made the point that she didn't mind the label the whites put on her. She wouldn't get depressed or let it bother her like the other blacks did. She made the comment "I do not belong to the sobbing school of Negrohood who hold that nature somehow has given them a lowdown dirty deal and whose feelings are all hurt about it." She makes a very good point here that African Americans tend to have the attitude that they were ripped-off. They blame everything bad that happens to them on the color of their skin. The world has changed but to this day some will sit back and ponder your last response wondering if that was a subtle insult brought upon by the color of their skin. In the piece "How it Feels to be Colored Me" Hourston also describes an experience she had with a white person that made her feel the true color of her skin. She talks about the music making her feel as if she's in a jungle. "My face is painted red and yellow and my body is painted blue. My pulse is throbbing like a war drum." She is feeling so many different emotions from the music yet these emotions are not shared with the white man sitting next to her. "He is so pale with his whiteness then and I am so colored." She feels the color of their skin makes th...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Ecological Modernisation as an approach for solving of Environmental Coursework

Ecological Modernisation as an approach for solving of Environmental problems - Coursework Example This study looks into the concept of ecological modernisation started to gain attention in the 1990s. This concept evolved in the industrialised democratic states as a dominant way of addressing environmental policies. It was also aimed at identifying the root causes of these environmental problems and to suggest possible policies or solutions. These environmental problems include global pollution, global warming, Ozone depletion, soil erosion, overpopulation, natural resources’ exploitation, destruction and fragmentation of natural habitats, water crisis, loss of biodiversities etc. These environmental problems are creating adverse effects on health and well-being of human beings. Ecological modernisation has been developed in order to fight against these environmental problems at large. It was also developed to ensure sustainability of natural resources and natural well-being, maintaining environmental justice and preserving the rights and beauty of the nature. The concept o f sustainability or sustainable development considers that the present generation must consume goods and services in such a way that the consumption of these goods and services by the future generation is not hampered. The notion of sustainable development has been used to preserve and conserve natural and environmental resources, mainly non-renewable resources like coal, petroleum etc. Sustainable use of these resources by the present generation can help future generations to acquire benefits from these resources. According to Brundtland Commission, it means ‘meeting the needs of the present without bargaining the capability of future generations to meet their needs (Berger et al., 2001, p.57). The concept of environmental justice deals with the preservation of the nature and natural resources. This paper is aimed at critically assess the importance of ecological modernisation as an appropriate approach for solving environmental problems. Brief history of the concept of ecolo gical modernisation: Since a long time, a conflicting relationship exists between economic development and environmental sustainability. There are conflicting opinions regarding the relationship between economic growth and environmental policies as well. Those people in favour of rapid economic growth and development argue that the policies aimed to act in favour of the environmental protections are creating obstacles against the economic growth of industrialised nations of the world. They have argued that environmental policies like reducing environmental pollution create larger problems for producers to produce goods and services at lowest possible costs and hence, hamper the process of economic development of countries by reducing their national output and national income (Berger et al., 2001, p.56). But the opposite side argues that without proper environmental protection it will be difficult for these industrialised countries to achieve their desired pace of economic growth. Th ey also argue that in the presence of sustained ecological society the pace of economic growth gets accelerated. The need for environmental awareness started at the end of the 1980s and at the beginning of the 1990s, mainly in the industrialised nations of the world. In this time the concept of environmental protection and environmental awareness was seen differently from previous periods. Before this time environmental problems were largely seen as natural phenomena which were beyond the control of human beings. But in this time people started to believe that those environmental problems are largely dependent upon human activities. People also realised that controlled and protected human activities can easily reduce the prevalence of those environmental problems. The main reason for the conceptualized difference was the emergence of a new concept called

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Employment Laws and HRM Strategy Research Paper

Employment Laws and HRM Strategy - Research Paper Example Small, medium and large organizations all have diverse employees who should be treated with respect and appreciated according to their differences (Cihon, & Castagnera, 2010). Globalization in the world has resulted in diversity in all regions of the world. The diversity is reflected in all areas of the workforce such as when hiring and recruiting employees. The law is very strict in the protection of employee rights as specified in the different labor laws of different states. Nowadays, most organizations also ensure that they give employees from either gender an equal chance in employment for all available positions. The needs of both groups need to be taken into consideration since both are different in their own ways (Armstrong, 2011). The state of Texas is no exception and requires all employers to refrain from discriminating from individuals based on their race, gender or any physical features (Texas Employment Law, 2012). Individuals from different backgrounds have different b eliefs, values, and traditions. Some of these values might be reflected in the way that they work hence affect the workplace. However, no employee at the workplace should be treated differently just because they have different values, beliefs or traditions from other employees. Diversity in the workplace improves the image of an organization in the eyes of the customers. With the growth of information sharing in the world, target clients of an organization can easily rate an organization in terms of employee treatment (Cihon, & Castagnera, 2010). Customer awareness groups are likely to boycott the products or services of an organization that does not promote diversity. Many human resources management gurus have also cited that diversity in the workplace encourages innovation and creativity among employees. HRM Plan to manage the HRM situation within the confines of the law The human resources management department of the organization should develop relevant classes for their supervi sors on current issues in the workplace. The classes should be interactive to ensure that there is the complete understanding of relevant issues. The human resources department should also conduct periodic demographic monitoring to ensure that the workforce is balanced. The workforce should have diversity in terms of gender, ethnicity and physical traits (Cihon, & Castagnera, 2010). The disciplinary action that is taken by the supervisors on the employees should be uniform among all existing employees in the organization. Such an action sends a message of equality even in diversity. The human resources department should also communicate the importance that it attaches to equal opportunities and diversity in its workforce. Current and potential employees of the organization should have access to the opportunities that are available in the organization. The human resource management part of the organization should use modern methods of managing the employees. The top management and ex ecutives’ should be close to employees to encourage them to achieve the set objectives in the organization. To ensure inclusion of the diverse group of employees, the human resources management department can come up with a culture day. The culture day should be held regularly such as on Fridays.  Ã‚  

Monday, November 18, 2019

Business law (Downey v. Bobs Discount Furniture Holdings, Inc.) Assignment

Business law (Downey v. Bobs Discount Furniture Holdings, Inc.) - Assignment Example The exterminator compiled a report regarding the issues and sent s copy to the defendant explaining his findings (Clarkson, Miller, and Cross 65) The defendant only retrieved the infested bed that he had supplied and was unwilling to cover the cost of extermination. Downey paid for the extermination cost. After sometimes, Downey filed a case against the defendant because of his breach of contract in failing to cover the extermination cost. In addition, she claimed that the bed supplied by the defendant was the source of the bed bugs. The case was presented before a district court. Downey was requested to identify an expert of extermination and submit a written report of what the expert had to say. She did not conform to these demands. The district court ruled in favor of the defendant that there was no evidence to indicate that the bed bugs had come with the bed. However, Downey decided to appeal (66). The rationale of the ruling was in accordance to rule 26 (a) (2) (B), which makes it clear that experts may testify as witnesses and also provide a testimony based on their expertise and are exempted from the report requirement. This is the reason why the court of appeal ordered a new trial in the case

Friday, November 15, 2019

Explanation of the Gantt Chart

Explanation of the Gantt Chart Its use a simple logic calculations to identify the critical path, it does include: A sequence of activities has a timing duration. Adding the timing durations from the start till the end (forward pass), it helps to determine the early and late start. Deduct the timing durations from the end to the start (backward pass), it help to determine the late and early finish. Deduct the early finish from the late finish, by that we found the total float. The early start for activity A is 0, while the late finish for activity R is equal to its late start. The critical path is the longest serious of activities in the diagram with no flexibility, linked to each other without interruption. In other word its the path has activities with total float equal zero.While the duration of the project determine by the earliest and late finish of the last activity in the project. Gantt chart is useful tool to project manager, in this chart there is a calendar time scale enable to determine the project duration including , not only the working days, but also holydays and weekend. If the project starts on 11 January 2010 in 5 day working week, assuming there is no holidays the earliest day the project will completed is 2 April 2010. (See end of the document). a. As activity P is a critical activity in a critical path a one day delay will create a delay in activities Q and R, which delay the project end for one day. Also it could generate an increase in project cost. The project manager should be able to predict this before its occurred, therefore he should analyses the network diagram and looking for maneuver margin. b. If activity N completed 1 day earlier, it could give other activities in the path such as O, P, Q, and R one day flexibility. However it doesnt mean that the project will finish earlier because other activity recourses were schedule and it could be not available at that time, but still there is possibility to the project to finish 1 day before than schedule. c. Activity I is not critical activity, thats mean it has a float or slack which is in this activity is 6 days. There for a delay for 2 days in this activity will not create a delay in whole project, however there a possibility to generate increase in cost than the estimated before. In the network diagram all the project activities are represented accordance with the relations that exist between them, the activities represented by nodes (boxes), these mentioned the beginning and the end of each activity The benefits for the diagram are: Obtain a schematic representation of the project. predict the required time to complete the project. distinguish between critical and non critical activity in the project, and thus determine the possible maneuver margin for each task, which can be by moving some resources from non-critical tasks and focus on critical activity, which contributes to reduce the time of the project with a fixed cost. Implementing the network diagram is summarized in these steps: know all the activities for the project their is a list of all tasks (activities) often included in the outset project based on Work Breakdown Structure Identify the relations between these tasks there are tasks that can be implemented in parallel, or may depend on the end of the other tasks (sequence), in this step is a list of all the project tasks and its relations with other tasks. Setting the network diagram after knowing the tasks, and the relations with other activities, the project activities are drawn as Node network diagram. Estimate the required time an estimate of required time to complete each activity passed on past experiences, or by using intuition and logic, the estimate may not be free of error. identifying the critical activity and critical path of the project critical activity is an activity which, if the delay occurred during the implementation, it could delay the whole project with the same amount, the critical path is the path that connects critical activities and it starts from the beginning of the project and finished at the end of the project, it is the longest path in terms of length in the network diagram. On this path there is no margin time to maneuver in the implementation of any task because of the lack of flexibility time in any task on this path. Update the network diagram on a regular basis during the implementation of the project, real-time registration is taken for each activity, and in the meantime, critical path may appear to show new activities were not taken into account.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Creative Management Essays -- essays research papers

Creative Management gives creative ideas of how a manger should present himself and how to approach different situations. Creative Management written by Shiegru Kobanashi, focuses mainly on the importance of teamwork, and on group management. How can we transform our present methods of production, under which we become slaves to machines, and regulations for the temporary increase in productivity, into one in which we are the masters of our work? How can we establish a system, which will make people work voluntarily and feel good about doing it. The book starts with waking up make sure you have proper hygiene. Wear simple clothes. Not close that stand out. A fussy dresser doesn’t impress people, but it gives a false impression of the person wearing the clothes you should wear clean, pleasing clothes that match your personality. A manager should always meet someone with a smile. It will lighten the mood and there is no better way to show your personality them by your smile. â€Å"Face every day with a smile, and you will lead a pleasant life everyday.†(Page 86) It expresses the importance of saying the simple words good morning and good night. When talking to employees you should speaking sincerely and low toned which will make others understand your thinking or feeling. Speaking forcefully and loud with raw emotion can affect other people as well as yourself. The book also emphasizes the importance of a manager to use empathy when dealing with fellow employees. Always put yourself in other people’s position. If you base all decisions and give information to workers solely on how you feel chances are the advice you give will not be what the person coming to you needed. Everyone is different and everyone’s lives are different. A good manager should get to know his employees as best as possible. Giving the manager a little incite into each of their lives. The more you know about your fellow workers the easier it will be to put yourself in there shoes and give the correct advice. .  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The world is filled with all types of temptations, and sometimes a manager is put into a situation where he has the opportunity to make some extra cash or maybe get something from some one for doing a not so legal favor. When these situations occur you should stop think things through. You have a mind and are used to doing your own thinking, but you a... ...wth are discussed. This type of meeting takes place every six months. Each department manager or team leader becomes familiar with other functions and groups, learns from hearing their work revised, and participates in policymaking. They learn the significance of his department’s activities in relation to the whole company. They discuss policy making ideas, review appraisals, and set goals. Teams don’t function on order from above, rather it functions on it’s own ideas. The same thing can be said about the individuals who make team, and revise goals that are also handled by team. In other words they work as a unit. A manager should hold himself as a person of power who is still an equal of his work force. The job of the manager is not to order people around and push his ideas. A manager's job is to keep the work force unified and keep it working as a team. Most people in today’s society are power hungry and are only in it for them selves. They don’t realize that if everyone is successful you will be successful they will be to. So remember . there is no â€Å"I† in team. Working to getter and putting minds together is much more efficient then one person how thinks they know everything

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Horniman Horticulture Essay

Horniman Horticulture is a whole-sale nursery business that has been owned by Maggie and Bob for three years. They have seen an increase in business and number of plants grown at the nursery and are expecting demand to continue to grow. In 2005, the business’s profit margin was expected to grow to 5. 8% up from 3. 1% in 2003. This projected growth seems accurate considering Maggie’s conservative approach with the companies cash balance. Handling the finances, Maggie dislikes debt financing because of her fear of holding too much inventory and thus not being able to make interest payments. Since the business relies on good weather conditions with some mature plants taking years to grow, severe weather can destroy this inventory. The family has high hopes for the future, since changing their business strategy; they now are acquiring more mature plants in response to the demand for â€Å"instant landscape† customers and are seeing positive signs of economic strength. Because of Maggie’s accounting policies, the business has started to see a decrease in cash balance which falls below their target of comfort. Projection for 2006 Looking at Exhibit A, we have given the projection for 2006. Due to the local economy growing, demand is also going to continue to grow in their business. Most of their inventory will be ready for customers, since it has been maturing over the last 2 to 5 years resulting in their revenue growth to be estimated 30% higher in 2006 to $1,360,000. In order to have opportunities for growth, Maggie and Bob want to buy the neighboring 12 acres of farmland. Because of this plan to buy the parcel of land, their capital expenditures are estimated to be $75,000 which they do not plan to finance. Case Issue Revenue growth over the past 3 years has surpassed the industries benchmark and could indicate that Horniman can take an aggressive competitive advantage early on. Some financial ratios prove the company is performing above industry norms solely due to the fact of their decision to not pay interest on debt, causing few additional expenses. An issue that this company may see due to their determination in paying suppliers under 10 days which can be seen in the Payable Days ratio (Exhibit C). They do benefit rom a small discount of making payments early, but comparing this to the benchmark; Horniman takes an average of 50 days to collect from outside customers and vendors. This indicates that they are making payments five times faster than they are receiving them, which poses the question of whether the small discount is truly beneficial to their company. This exhibit also points out the fact that inventory are not being turned over as often and has actually continued to increase since the start of the business. In addition in 2005, they didn’t reach their target balance of 8% cash balance of total revenue; they fell to a low of . %. In summary, they are very good at driving revenue up and exceeding profits higher than the industries average, but are experiencing a cash flow problem because of the way they are running their business. If it is not dealt with now, there is potential for bankruptcy in the future, especially with their future acquisition of land for $75,000 which they do not plan to finance. Financial Statement Analysis When analyzing the financial statements, in Exhibit A we can see that Horniman has done a decent job by increasing their revenues. They increased their revenues by 33% in 2002 being at $788,500 to 2005 at $1,048,800. They have stabilized their depreciation as it only rose 20% from 2002 to 2005 ($34,200 to $40,900). Also, their tax expense did not increase dramatically by staying around 34 to 39%. After looking at the free cash flows in Exhibit D you can see that increases in net working capital is a problem with the business. In the first year their net working capital was $44,800 which is 1. 4x the net income of $32,600. In 2004, there was an improvement in net working capital but on the other hand there was a big capital expenditure of $88,100 which reduced their cash. Past 2004, net working capital in 2005 was $97,200 which is 1. 6x the net income of $60,800. If they continue to increase their net working capital like they have in the past, the projected net working capital for 2006 would be -$235,900 which would cause them a negative cash balance of -193,000. When you look at the balance sheet in Exhibit B we can see that the current assets have increased 19% and total assets increased 14. 4%. This is due primarily to the increase in inventory and accounts receivable. In the four years from 2002 to 2005 inventory has increased 8. % and accounts receivable has increased 16. 4%. Due to this, the cash balance has decreased from $120,100 all the way down to $9,400. In addition in 2005, the cash balance went below their comfort level of $10,000 down to $9,400. This is not meeting their expectation of their 8% minimum of total revenue target. Financial Ratio Analysis Even though their business was growing significantly, and they were experiencing a steady increase in revenues, they were seeing a huge decrease in their cash. The reason for this is because of their recent change to an increase in business from small nurseries. By looking at the financial ratios, even though they are increasing in sales, you can tell that they are relaxed on their accounts receivable and credit terms. Each year it takes them longer to collect their money. This is due to the fact that the carrying cost of inventory is harder for the smaller customers to endure. To add to this, Bob has to put a bigger investment in his inventory because of the more mature plants that take 2 to 5 years to grow, because of the increased demand for instant landscape. Finally, they are paying out cash significantly faster at 9 days than the benchmark of 27 days in order to receive their 2% discount. To summarize it, they are holding their inventory longer, collecting on payments slower, and paying out cash faster which in essence is destroying their cash balance. By looking at the ratios in Exhibit C, you can see the evidence of this in Receivable Days increasing from 41. 2 to 50. 9, and the Inventory Days ratio increasing from 424. 2 to 476. 3. Due to the way their business is being run, the consequences are shown in the liquidity ratios in Exhibit E for 2002 to 2005 and the projected ratios for 2006, all of their liquidity is diminishing. You can see that every ratio is steadily declining throughout the years. Analyzing them all, their cash has significantly decreased the most, diminishing an astonishing 70% from years 2002 to 2005. Compensating for Growth With larger growth coming in 2006, Maggie and Bob need to look at their cash balance and figure out what they will need for financing to avoid a negative cash balance which could put them into bankruptcy. With Revenues increasing every year, and dramatically increasing from 2005 to 2006 by 30%, they need a compensating cash balance. Since they do not pay out any cash dividends, their rate of growth is the ROC ratio. In Exhibit A, the return of capital has been an average of 4. 0% in the four years. The un-proportional increase in revenue from 15% to 30% will most likely not be supported for much longer. The need for financing, to counterbalance this significant growth is needed to avoid bankruptcy. Accounts Payable Analysis In 2002, Horniman’s cash balance was a respectable $120,100, a number which represented 11. 64% of total assets for that year. As shown in Exhibit F, a common-size cash balance of 11. 64% hardly poses any threats of short-term liquidity risk. However, the following years tell a different story where Horniman’s cash balance steadily decreases. In 2005, just 0. 80% of Horniman’s total assets were held in cash—a drop of $110,700 in just three years! Keep in mind, Horniman has displayed positive revenue growth through each of these periods negating the idea that these declining cash balances are represented by lack of growth (Exhibit C). In the case write up it was mentioned that Maggie (who controlled the financials) avoided borrowing at all costs, and would take any trade discount her suppliers would offer. To an ordinary individual this would sound like a financially responsible plan, but taking a trade discount isn’t always the best decision to make. When taking a discount, certain factors should be looked at to determine whether or not it is worth it. In Horniman’s case, Maggie accepts the discount from her supplier every time it is offered. The footnotes state that most of Horniman’s suppliers provide 30-day payment terms, with a 2% discount for payments made within ten days (2/10 net 30). This is a fairly common discount offered by suppliers to entice the buyer to make timely payments. Horniman has always had the cash on hand to make these payments within the terms of the discount, but in the long run it is hurting them. The most important factor to look at when making this decision is the current interest rate. Interest rates will help to determine whether it is practical to take the discount or to delay payment till the final day it’s due. The rule is simple: if the borrowing rate offered by a bank is greater than the annualized rate earned by taking a discount, then pass on the discount and delay your payment until it’s due in full. The rule remains true if the scenario is reversed. Maggie’s overall issue is she isn’t timing her cash inflows with outflows. Her outflows are made within 10 days of receiving the invoice, but she isn’t collecting from customers every ten days which is creating a short-term liquidity issue. Our Recommendations As you can see the business as a whole is running pretty strongly and their main problem is just the diminishing cash flow. There are quite a few ways that Bob and Maggie could attempt to raise the amount of cash that they have on hand and even stop this problem all together. In the case it says that Maggie doesn’t want to use much if any debt financing for their business because if they were to have a dramatic loss (i. e. drought, frost, etc†¦ ) they could find themselves struggling to keep up with the interest payments on the debt loans that they would have taken out, but using just equity financing can put an unnecessary strain on your business. By simply using equity financing Bob and Maggie are reducing the amount of cash that they could possibly have on hand dramatically. If Maggie were to try and find a happy medium between equity and debt financing, an amount of loans that couldn’t bankrupt them if they had a catastrophic loss of inventory but an amount that would help them with their cash inflow problem then they could see a reduction of the large negative free cash flow that they are seeing now. In reference to their huge capital expenditure they are planning on acquiring the next year, they should think about taking out a mortgage loan on it for the 6. 5%. If they took out a 30 year mortgage loan to finance the $75,000 acquisition, the payment would be $474 monthly, which would save them a huge amount of savings in 2006 instead of paying it with cash that they don’t have. Another option is for them to not always pay their suppliers in the 10 days to obtain the 2% savings. As stated earlier in the paper the 2% savings looks and sounds good to the normal person but when a business is having cash problems like Horniman Horticulture is at this time it isn’t always the smartest thing to do. Their biggest problem is that their cash outflows are being paid 5 times faster than their cash inflows are coming into their company. If they were to figure out a system to find a way to occasionally get the 2% discount offered to them by their suppliers to save some money but also hold on to their money some of the time and pay at the 30 day due date they could see a massive change in their short term liquidity problems that they are seeing and that could really help reduce their cash on hand problem. They could also adopt some form of payment reward plan like their suppliers have for customers that buy rather large quantities of inventory and take a percentage off of the amount owed for payments that are before a certain date. Another option would be to have a preferred customer policy for customers that either have large orders consistently throughout the year or for customers that always pay early on the amount that they owe. For instance they could either chop off a percentage of the price for early payments as stated before or they could offer some of their more unique plants to the preferred customers before they let anyone else have the opportunity to buy them. The final option that we discussed that could help them with their cash problem is to stray away from their new business strategy, and simply calm down on their mature plant inventory since they take so long to be able to sell and actually bring in any profit on them. From the case it sounds like this could be a profitable business but with the way that they are getting payments in and the possibility of a complete loss if the worst happened to their inventory it seems like it is somewhat of a risky move for them. This could be a much better idea once they figured out their cash problems and fixed their accounts receivable turnover so that they are closer to the 8% that Maggie feels comfortable with having as an emergency fund.

Friday, November 8, 2019

Free Essays on Knowledge Management

Introduction In my line of work I routinely encounter managers who come to me in search of help to find the best approach to managing their resources. Invariably I am asked what the best tool, approach, method is, and you can fill in the blank here. This is what I have labeled the â€Å"what’s best† question. In answering this type of question I must determine the requestor’s requirements. Therein lies the answer to the initial question, what do you want to accomplish. The purpose of this paper is to compare two approaches to knowledge management. In so doing, we will examine concept definition and the selected solutions, problems faced and the effectiveness of each method. Concept Definition and Solutions The two consulting agencies shared the same concept of knowledge management. Their overall idea was to capture specific organizational knowledge an organize it and make it available to those who need access. The difference between the two projects came in the concept of the delivery system. Step Two Designs delivery concept was to capture the information contained in RTA’s employee’s minds as shown in the following excerpt:1 Much of this work involved converting tacit (undocumented) knowledge to explicit (documented) knowledge, as neither F1 help or the FAQs had previously been created within the RTA. We were lucky to have two of the most knowledgeable people in the RTA to act as subject matter experts, and much of the information came directly out of their heads. RTA’s newly captured knowledge was then loaded into a standalone database based on an XML-based publishing system. This database was then made available to the Newcastle call center employees. On the other hand, Navigator Systems knowledge delivery method was in the form of a web portal. The Frito-Lay portal basically links various corporate data information systems into a single front-end. Problems Faced and Effectiveness Frito-Lay had three ... Free Essays on Knowledge Management Free Essays on Knowledge Management Introduction In my line of work I routinely encounter managers who come to me in search of help to find the best approach to managing their resources. Invariably I am asked what the best tool, approach, method is, and you can fill in the blank here. This is what I have labeled the â€Å"what’s best† question. In answering this type of question I must determine the requestor’s requirements. Therein lies the answer to the initial question, what do you want to accomplish. The purpose of this paper is to compare two approaches to knowledge management. In so doing, we will examine concept definition and the selected solutions, problems faced and the effectiveness of each method. Concept Definition and Solutions The two consulting agencies shared the same concept of knowledge management. Their overall idea was to capture specific organizational knowledge an organize it and make it available to those who need access. The difference between the two projects came in the concept of the delivery system. Step Two Designs delivery concept was to capture the information contained in RTA’s employee’s minds as shown in the following excerpt:1 Much of this work involved converting tacit (undocumented) knowledge to explicit (documented) knowledge, as neither F1 help or the FAQs had previously been created within the RTA. We were lucky to have two of the most knowledgeable people in the RTA to act as subject matter experts, and much of the information came directly out of their heads. RTA’s newly captured knowledge was then loaded into a standalone database based on an XML-based publishing system. This database was then made available to the Newcastle call center employees. On the other hand, Navigator Systems knowledge delivery method was in the form of a web portal. The Frito-Lay portal basically links various corporate data information systems into a single front-end. Problems Faced and Effectiveness Frito-Lay had three ...

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Free Essays on War On Vieques

The movie â€Å"War on Vieques† opened my eyes to a part of Puerto Rico in which I was unaware. I am glad I had the opportunity to view this movie in class as it opened my eyes to something I was wholly unaware. The developments over there came to me as shocking revelations, for it seems almost as if it were a scandal. First off, the island of Vieques is located in the Caribbean Ocean. It is located on the Eastern side of Puerto Rico. Since the early 1900’s, our very own U.S Navy has been occupying much of the island of Vieques. The U.S navy occupies this territory for their own selfish reasons, and it continues to be a problem. Technically the U.S is allowed to be in that territory as they do have the right with Puerto Rico being a U.S colony. However, the land is misused and it is felt that the U.S is abusing their power. The U.S has been occupying the island for military purposes that date back quite a few years. The U.S rather bullied there way in, forcing the natives out of there land in some ways. The natives were forced to live wherever the U.S would let them, and they had to accept it. The years of military testing have taken there toll on the island. The land has been noticeably affected. There have been serious contaminations deposited throughout the land due to all the toxic weapons the U.S have practiced with. This is seriously leading to the deterioration of the land. There are many reports of chemicals, dust particles and residues.... Free Essays on War On Vieques Free Essays on War On Vieques The movie â€Å"War on Vieques† opened my eyes to a part of Puerto Rico in which I was unaware. I am glad I had the opportunity to view this movie in class as it opened my eyes to something I was wholly unaware. The developments over there came to me as shocking revelations, for it seems almost as if it were a scandal. First off, the island of Vieques is located in the Caribbean Ocean. It is located on the Eastern side of Puerto Rico. Since the early 1900’s, our very own U.S Navy has been occupying much of the island of Vieques. The U.S navy occupies this territory for their own selfish reasons, and it continues to be a problem. Technically the U.S is allowed to be in that territory as they do have the right with Puerto Rico being a U.S colony. However, the land is misused and it is felt that the U.S is abusing their power. The U.S has been occupying the island for military purposes that date back quite a few years. The U.S rather bullied there way in, forcing the natives out of there land in some ways. The natives were forced to live wherever the U.S would let them, and they had to accept it. The years of military testing have taken there toll on the island. The land has been noticeably affected. There have been serious contaminations deposited throughout the land due to all the toxic weapons the U.S have practiced with. This is seriously leading to the deterioration of the land. There are many reports of chemicals, dust particles and residues....

Monday, November 4, 2019

Entrepreneurial Approach to Profit and Social Responsibility Research Paper

Entrepreneurial Approach to Profit and Social Responsibility - Research Paper Example Entrepreneurship is about risk taking, seen an opportunity where others are not able to see it and taking advantage of the opportunity. Adi Saravanan and Rich Gorman are such leading and successful entrepreneurs who saw an opportunity where other people around them were not able to see. They took all the risks involved in the business and financial undertakings to venture and later emerged successful and became millionaires as a result of good entrepreneurship. Adi Saravanan Adi Saravanan, an engineer by profession, graduated from the University of Bharathiyar, developed interest in being a successful entrepreneur as a result of the opportunities’ he saw in the business world when working in the financial department of Samar Financial Limited. Adi Saravanan also holds a degree in Business and Financial Management from the University of Periyar and Masters form the same university. His hard work made him get a promotion to market the products of the company. He later got another job at Ashok Leyland finance limited where he worked within the financial and treasury departments. He had a lot of interest in finance and information technology that made him co-find a company named Allsec Technologies where he is the Chief Executive officer. This company offers Business Process Outsourcing services ranging from payroll to web solutions and retail healthcare services to various industries in India and Philippines. Adi Saravanan’s Leadership Style Leadership styles are the skills, traits and behaviors that a leader exhibits as he or she interacts with his workers. Adi Saravanan as the president of Allsec Technologies is portrayed as a democratic leader.... Adi Saravanan’s Leadership Style Leadership styles are the skills, traits and behaviors that a leader exhibits as he or she interacts with his workers. Adi Saravanan as the president of Allsec Technologies is portrayed as a democratic leader. As such, he uses a democratic leadership approach to manage the company’s activities. This is because he encourages participation of all his workers and staff in decision makings. He also ensures that workers are consulted on what is supposed to be done for the benefit of the company as a whole (Northouse, 2009). His democratic leadership style is also seen in that he does not closely supervise his employees but instead gives instruction and trusts that his instructions are to be followed since all decisions made are done in consultation. Adi Saravanan’s Approach to Profit making Adi Saravanan developed various strategies to ensure that his company became profitable. The first thing he did was to ensure that costs are kept l ow by eliminating unnecessary expenditures. He also ensured that the focus of the company was to improve shift utilization by getting more clients. He ensured that the services provided are customer focused and that they met customer expectations. This is in terms of both quality and quantity. This way, he maintained the loyalty of his clients and customers. He also makes sure that the staff he hires as are professionals to ensure that quality services are delivered to the clients. This was demonstrated by the quality of payroll services and BPO services offered by Allsec Technologies (Drucker, 2006). Adi Saravanan’s Strategies to Social Responsibilities A company is supposed to give back to the society through corporate social responsibility. This is because the society is normally impacted in various

Friday, November 1, 2019

Exam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 2

Exam - Essay Example Employers are also required to report any workplace accident to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), particularly those that involve death of an employee or hospitalization of five or more employees. Another requirement is for the employers to provide safe and healthy working conditions for the workers and the contractors. Such conditions include safe machinery and equipment, ensuring that the work place is safe through activities such as installing fire exits and emergency equipment. The employer is also supposed to provide adequate facilities for employees to ensure they are free from accidents and their health and safety is not compromised. Moreover, employers are supposed to ensure that the employees are informed and understand the instructions for them to operate in a safe and healthy manner. Additionally, the employer should ensure that the employees are aware of any possible negative effects that could be associated with their work. Additionally, employers are liable for any forms of injuries that the employers may incur when employees are performing activities especially the hazardous ones. This applies even when the person who causes the injury is a contractor. The McWane a major manufacturer of iron pipes for water piping and sewers has had several health and safety violations, which have resulted in numerous injuries and some death cases. After investigating, the working conditions at McWane, OSHA confirmed that the company had consistently flouts most of the work place safety rules. McWane was listed as one of the companies with the worst workplace safety records within America. Since 1995, the company has violated more than 400 safety measures. The violation result in serious accidents an example being crushing of one of the employees by a truck, which resulted in amputation of both legs. Such violations include the unsafe systems such as machineries and equipment of which were

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Comparing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Comparing - Essay Example The rules therefore appeared restrictive to the older population leading to protests. Freedom that college students experienced, including interactions outside campuses that strengthened comradeship bonds, also motivated students into protests. College administrators were also strict in implementing rules, in punishments, and this led to protests in reaction (Conlin 275). In addition, ethnic based concerns, especially in the United States, such as discrimination, and governments’ arbitrary decisions over students, such as involvement in national services caused the protests (Kennedy & Null 1). The ten points were significant in defining the change that the black community desired in the United States and beyond. The points followed the war for equality that shifted from civil rights to black power that the Black Panther Party championed. Achieving objective of the ten points would identify a revolution, a factor that also identifies significance of the demand. There would be a change to autonomy among blacks, eradicated unemployment, and abolition of slavery, access to education, and exemption from military service. Other desired changes were abolition of police brutality, freedom for black convicts, and jury composition of black juries for black cases. Success in realization of the points, even if not immediate, also establishes the significance because the points offered a blueprint for change. Adherents of the Black Panther Party platform would make such demands because of the oppressions that Blacks experienced in the American society. Factors such as slavery, unemplo yment that meant poverty and poor quality of health, and discriminatory treatments in various places are examples of the experiences that would motivate the adherents into the demands (Pinkney 103, 104). Significance of students’ power in the movement and factors into the protests were some of the major themes in the article. The author notes continued expansion

Monday, October 28, 2019

The Lack of Evolution in the Detective Genre Essay Example for Free

The Lack of Evolution in the Detective Genre Essay Sherlock Holmes is probably the most famous detective in literary history. Therefore, it is not surprising that many authors in the 20th century have followed Sir Arthur Conan Doyles template when writing detective stories. For example, Agatha Christies character Hercule Poirot is nearly identical to Holmes. In this essay, I will compare The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Hercule Poirots Christmas by Agatha Christie, two basically similar novels, which are clear examples of the detective genre. In doing so, I hope to prove that the basic elements of detective stories, such as the detective, his methods and the feeling of suspense, have remained unchanged over the years. Firstly, the most obvious point of comparison lies in the many similarities between the two main characters, the detectives, Holmes and Poirot. Both of them are quite vain and self-obsessed. Near the beginning, they are constantly taunting or bragging to their companions. For example, when Holmes proves that one of Watsons theories is incorrect, he says No mention of that local hunt, Watson with a mischievous smile, gently mocking him. Earlier on, he also says in noting your fallacies, I was occasionally guided towards the truth. Although this might be interpreted as a compliment, I believe that this is a very pretentious remark, which reflects Holmes vain and egotistical nature. Poirot on the other hand, does not taunt Colonel Johnson as Holmes taunts Watson. However, he does have a very high opinion of himself, and is just as arrogant as Holmes if not more so. When Colonel Johnson says that they ought to be safe enough (from murder cases) during your (Poirots) visit, Poirot begins to reply My reputation- before he is interrupted by Johnson mentioning Christmas time, peace, goodwill-and all that kind of thing. Poirot clearly believes that it is his reputation which will prevent any murders from being committed, when Johnson actually means that the goodwill of the people is what will prevent them. This is an interesting contrast in the depiction of the two detectives vanity. Doyle, through Watsons eyes, shows his idol, Holmes to be infallible, but shows Holmes vanity in his criticism of Watson. Christie on the other hand, shows Poirots vanity by creating a situation where he almost makes a fool of himself. Johnson however, does not respond to Poirots comment. Clearly, Christie does not want to openly humiliate Poirot.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

A.I. - Complex and Rich :: Movie Film comparison compare contrast

A.I. the Movie - Complex and Rich      Ã‚  Ã‚   The pastime of viewing films has enraptured me for all of my memorable life. No director has provoked my attention and incisively touched me at the most extreme and deep levels as Stanley Kubrick. To call Kubrick my favorite filmmaker would be an understatement. In 1994 Stanley Kubrick called up his longtime friend Steven Spielberg and asked him to come over to his home, just outside London, as he had something important to discuss with him. Spielberg flew out that night. The following day Kubrick told Spielberg he wanted him to direct A.I. as a Stanley Kubrick Production with Kubrick producing. Kubrick provided Spielberg with the reasoning that the film would be better suited to his directing style and his computer special effects fluency (Stanley Kubrick: LIP). As Kubrick had been working on A.I. since the 1980s he had difficulties in several areas with the project. He never found a writer to his satisfaction that he could collaborate with and form a screenplay. Kubrick also could not solve certain issues with the film such as the portrayal of Gigolo Joe and other core elements of the story (Daly, Harlan). Additionally Kubrick was not satisfied with the state of technology and computer graphics and he knew that if he waited just a few years, making a much better film would be possible. A.I. remained a work in progress and Spielberg went on to other endeavors as he "opted not to" direct A.I. a few months later (Daly 28). Nevertheless Kubrick still consulted with Spielberg on A.I. and shelved it for a bit so he could make the interim film, Eyes Wide Shut. Kubrick died shortly thereafter. A.I. was passed down in a sense, and Spielberg picked it back up and attempted to do in two years what Kubrick was struggling to do for a good decade and a half. There is a lot to like about the finished product of A.I. I choose to not be bothered by the parts of the film that I feel are 'glossy'. I found watching it to be a captivating experience. Let no mistake be made, A.I. is a Steven Spielberg film. Sure, Spielberg utilized the numerous conversations he had with Kubrick as well as "Kubrick's copious but scattershot preparatory outlines, notes, and drawings" but I can only imagine what A.I. would have been had Kubrick made the picture (Daly 30).

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Essay --

Service delivery is one of the most challenging tasks that face many organizations today. This is even worse in cases where factors such modality of fulfillment of a given service, challenges inherent in it and productivity measurements are not properly understood. My company deals with a complaint resolution service. This is a service product that is delivered directly to clients who depend on it for the purpose of redress concerning misunderstanding or disagreements as far as the company’s products are concerned. Customer dissatisfaction is highly dangerous for the existence and prosperity of any given business as it may make the business to collapse so easily. It is upon this concept that the company operates with a view to ensuring that all customer related misunderstandings are dealt with swiftly and compassionately so that clients do not feel neglected or misunderstood. Complaint resolution, as hard as it is, is a very delicate interaction between the client and the company agents. This means that it should be handled carefully by taking into account the key requirements that it deserves. The requirements for complaint resolution are many and generic. They include patient and credence, feedback and time, customer inclusion and respect, record and documentation among others. First, and most obviously, patient of the highest level is needed. This is recommended in the cases where an agent is involved in a complicated case that may need more time to handle in one hand, and urgency on the other. In addition, any company agent is required to be patient with controversial clients who may not give room for explanations as to what could be the remedy of a given misunderstanding. Patient is also recommended as the best way of... ...ining and continual financial support. Even though it is difficult to measure the productivity of this service product, customer complaint resolution, parameters like increase and decline in customer-related claims is a perfect gauge of its performance. Concisely, it is suffice to say that customer complaint resolution is highly necessary for any business. This is because any customer dissatisfaction may of consequences to the survival and prosperity of the company. As a result, all customer-related complaints should be dealt with swiftly and compassionately by taking into account all the key requirements that underpin the exercise lest any deviation cost the company dearly. On the same note, this service should be carried procedurally by taking into account all the recommended steps involved in order to ensure quality customer service delivery in the company.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

French Cinema

French Cinema Scene analysis The scene from the movie Rules of The Game by Jean Renoir shows many camera techniques and uses the camera to clench the true meaning of the screen. I will be discussing and analyzing the scene. The film beautifully demonstrates the use of precise shots and perfectly executed scenes. Throughout the scene of The Rules of the Game the camera is like another person in the room. It is invisible and wanders throughout the building almost like it is someone following what is happening.This makes for an interesting and new perception never seen before by film viewers. At one point in the scene the camera gets trapped and has to zoom out as though it is being caught. Along with the presence of the camera you can notice rack focusing, the lighting is obviously controlled. The scene begins with a near foreground and pans out to far background as they move throughout the building. One of the greatest aspects of the scene and the film is the incredibly long takes and long shots.This allowed us to be able to grasp whatever we wanted to see in every shot. Jean Renoir used montage editing; this gave the audience the freedom to choose what they wanted to see within the scene. The viewers are able to edit their own idea of the shot. As the scene progresses the camera moves weightlessly with the focus on the foreground while the two in the background escape through a door. The use of separation from the hallway to the main room acts as a sort of barrier between shots.Although on take it feels as though it is separated into two. The primary focus of this shot is to establish the idea that Schumacher is looking for Saint-Aubin. The concept is that the viewer needs to choose who to look at. It forces the viewer to be crossed between the main focus and the deep focus. There is no cut of the camera which would cause all prior viewer attention to be diminished. Because of the fluid camera movement it makes for a realization of what is going on in the backg round. The final concept is the montage that Jean Renoir uses.The faint light hearted piano music adds to an overall mood and feeling of the shot. For the most part the movie could be seen as dreary but this scene adds an almost lighthearted tone as they move from the conversation in the hallway to the bigger room. Overall the film scene is a masterpiece in that the camera moves in such a way that allows the viewer to feel like you are right in the action. With All the techniques put into this particular shot you can clearly see that this is one of the greatest films ever made.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Should recruiters know your salary history

Should recruiters know your salary history Throughout your professional life, you’ll likely go on a wide array of job interviews, and each one will be a different and unique experience. But if there’s one common element of all job hunting processes, it’s that they eventually must include a salary discussion. If you make it to the finish line and reach the point where a job offer is made, congratulations- but the process isn’t over yet. After you learn the position is yours, you’ll likely be given all of the key details regarding the position, including the salary. At this point you may be wondering, â€Å"Do they need to know my salary history in order to make a fair and accurate offer?† Great question- let’s take a closer look.It’s fine to offer it if asked at the start†¦The decision of whether or not to disclose your salary history might come up at the very beginning of the process, when you’re crafting your targeted cover letter and resume for a specific j ob opening. Current conventional wisdom holds that you shouldn’t detail your salary history unless requested to do so by a prospective employer. And if you are, you should always be honest- remember, if they do a thorough background check they may find out the truth, and it won’t look good if what you told them doesn’t add up.†¦but it’s not absolutely necessary.Okay, so if conventional wisdom holds that you shouldn’t disclose your salary history unless asked to do so, how do you know if you’re going to be presented with a fair offer if you make it through the hiring process and have not given them a sense of what you’re worth? The truth is, effective recruiters and hiring managers have thoroughly researched competitive salaries for any and all positions they’re hiring for in their given geographical area. Remember, they’re competing against other companies for talent, so it’s in their best interest to make sa lary offers that will attract the best and brightest talent.They already have a final number in mind.Furthermore, recruiters and hiring managers don’t need to know your salary history because most companies have a pre-determined salary range for any given position they’re hiring for. This predetermined range can be based on a variety of factors, including a company’s budget and industry trends.This range typically means that there’s some room for you to negotiate if and when an offer is made. If you’re presented with a job offer and salary that meets your expectations, then great- congratulations on your new job! However, if you receive an offer that’s lower than what you’re looking for you can use your salary history as a negotiating point, but be sure to handle this delicate situation carefully.Now you know the facts- good recruiters don’t need to know your salary history in order to hire for a position and make an offer, and you shouldn’t feel obligated to provide it unless asked specifically to do so. However, you can always use this information during the negotiating process, if you make it that far, in an effort to get a new position that meets your needs.

Monday, October 21, 2019

rainbow essays

rainbow essays Rainbows A rainbow is one of our atmospheres most exquisite and marvelous creations; "one of the most spectacular light shows observed on earth" (Ahrens, 1998). When a person views a rainbow, they are getting a personal light show that no other person can see as they do. Humphreys points out that: "Since the rainbow is a special distribution of colors (produced in a particular way) with reference to a definite point - the eye of the observer - and as no single distribution can be the same for two separate points, it follows that two observers do not, and cannot, see the same rainbow." (Humphreys, 1929). Of course, a camera lens will record an image of a rainbow which can then be seen my many people (Lynds, 1995). A rainbow is essentially made up of seven brilliant colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet; moreover, it is comprised of many coloration that the eyes cannot see. No painter can manufacture the colors of the rainbow, for they create color by mixing, but no mixing will give red, green, or purple. These are the colors of the rainbow, though between the red and the green an orange color is often seen (Aristotle, 350 BC). To understand how the awesome production of a rainbow occurs is a feat of physics and mathematics. The two most important ingredients are light and drops of water. The manner and position in which the light and water droplets transverse, and the reactions between the two, are complex formulas of nature. Additionally, certain circumstances make it possible for a rainbow to occur. You cannot have a rainbow without some source of light. It is possible to create an artificial rainbow utilizing artificial light, but for this paper, I will only use instances and circumstances of naturally occurring light which produce naturally occurring rainbows. The sun is natures primary source of rainbow creating light; however, occasionally, the light of the moon can produce a rainbow. For a lunar...

Sunday, October 20, 2019

The Integrity of Oscar essays

The Integrity of Oscar essays Academy Awards: The Integrity of Oscar The envelope please, along with and the Oscar goes to... are phrases that have become staples of American society due to the intent interest in the annual award show in which members of the film industry are recognized for excellent work. According to their own web site, the Academy Awards, or Oscars, have been given out since 1927, when a non-profit organization the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) was formed. The 5,607 voting members of the Academy select their peers to be recognized for achievement in filmmaking. The Academy is made up of professionals from every aspect of film production, from actors and directors to sound technicians. This is the voting process according to the Academy web site. Academy members are separated by profession, and are allowed to chose from a large list of eligible films to select who they feel should be nominated for awards in their respective field. Actors and actors alone decide who is nominated for acting awards. After the nominees have been selected, a second ballot is mailed out to all voters. This ballot has the nominees for every category on it, not just the area in which the voter is trained. After selecting one choice in each category, the voters then mail their ballot back to the academy. The voting is done in an informal manor, and ballots are usually mailed to and from the home of the voter. However, the tallying process is much more tedious. Each year the accounting firm Pricewaterhouse Cooper secures and counts the votes. They insure every count is correct, and that the results remain a secret up until the envelope is opened on national television. There has never been any question that voting procedure is fool proof, and that the vote count is accurate. But there has been much dispute over whether or not the voters are knowledgeable of the films they are voting on, or the areas i ...

Saturday, October 19, 2019

CASE STUDY Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 9

Case Study Example The employees of AIG believed that the company had an obligation to pay them their bonuses, while the public thought that the bonuses were unethical as the money had come from federal reserves. Companies should have well-detailed contracts with employees clearly showing when bonuses should be paid and cases when the company may fail to issue the bonuses, to prevent such scenarios in the future. External regulations ensure that firms and individuals act ethically towards the general public. They are very efficient as in the AIG case where a 90% tax was imposed on the bonuses thereby protecting the general public. The company had an obligation to pay the employees their bonuses while at the same time had an obligation to the public to use the bailout money prudently. To ensure that both requirements were met the company needed to pay the bonuses in installments depending on future profits that the company made. The company should have used the bailout out money first to get back to profit ways and later pay the bonuses to deserving employees. eBay pursued international growth through their three main components; products, sense of community and aggressive expansion. It had a broad range of product categories and trading platforms that offered a wide variety of pricing formats allowing it to compete directly with major competitors such as amazon.com and to penetrate new markets. eBay created trust between buyers and sellers and enlarged their market ventures through the creation of more localized sites. The greatest source of competitive advantage for eBay at the moment is its broad capital base. With an average net income of about $2 billion yearly, eBay has a large capital base that allows it to deal with competitors through acquisitions and strategic partnerships. Through acquisitions, eBay has attempted to acquire a stake in the

Friday, October 18, 2019

Amazon Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Amazon - Case Study Example The operating cash flow for amazon increase to 31% to record $5.47 billion in the financial year ended December 2013 compared to $4.18 billion in the year 2012. For the net sales for the fourth quarter in year ended 2013, the company recorded a 20% increase that is equivalent to $25.59 billion compared to $21.27 billion in the financial year 2012 fourth quarter. The company in overall accrued a net sales of $74.45 billion in the financial year 2013 which was a 22% increase compared to $61.09 billion in the year 2012 ("Why Amazon Is A Lousy Business"). The company is divided into two segments that include; the North American segment and the international segment. The North American segment is involved in export sales from the www.amazon.ca and www.amazon.com, all of which are based in U.S. The international segment is involved in international websites that are involved in export sales to customers in Canada and U.S. from abroad (Amazon.com, Inc.). Jeff Bezos is an American entrepreneur and the founder of amazon.com and acts as the company’s chief executive. He was born in 1964 January 12th in Albuquerque in New Mexico. He studied in Princeton University where he was awarded a computer science and electrical engineering bachelor’s degree in 1986. He worked in several firms in Wall Street that included Bankers Trust, Fitel and lastly in D.E. Shaw investment firm where he was acknowledged as the youngest vice president in the year 1990. He later quit the job in 1994 to go to Seattle where he had seen an opportunity in internet market which by then was untapped market. Despite the successes that Bezos achieved after founding amazon.com, he was first faced with the challenge of marketing budget. He had to use word of mouth to make the business succeed and be recognized by many people. Another challenge he faced in his first years is the skepticism that people had about him. They saw him as a failure, someone who left a good job to start something