Impact of Current Information Technology on Our Lives Essay

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT My deepest gratitude to my Ate Kristine and my parents who support and encourage me to pursue my chosen path, to concentrate to my studies, for all their kind and inspiring comments. My special thanks go to my grandma, who have given me great moral support in my studies and to our Almighty God, who have given me spiritual support to complete this term paper. I. INTRODUCTION Information technology (IT) ins probably one of the most significant developments in human history since the printing press. It has given rise to one of the most fascinating communications devices ever created, the Internet. It has come into our homes, our schools and our offices, tying us together in unprecedented ways. It is one of the most important developments in recent memory. Information technology (IT) is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications. The term in its modern sense first appeared in a 1958 article published in the Harvard Business Review, in which authors Leavitt and Whisler commented that â€Å"the new technology does not yet have a single established name. We shall call it information technology (IT).†. Some of the modern and emerging  fields of Information technology are next generation web technologies, bioinformatics, cloud computing, global information systems, large scale knowledge bases, etc. A. GENERAL INFORMATION IT is the area of managing technology and spans wide variety of areas that include computer software, information systems, computer hardware, programming languages but are not limited to things such as processes, , and data constructs. In short, anything that renders data, information or perceived knowledge in any visual format whatsoever, via any multimedia distribution mechanism, is considered part of the IT domain. IT provides businesses with four sets of core services to help execute the business strategy: business process automation, providing information, connecting with customers, and productivity tools. IT professionals perform a variety of functions (IT Disciplines/Competencies) that ranges from installing applications to designing complex computer networks and information databases. A few of the duties that IT professionals perform may include data management, networking, engineering computer hardware, database and software design, as well as management and administration of entire systems. Information technology is starting to spread further than the conventional personal computer and network technologies, and more into integrations of other technologies such as the use of cell phones, televisions, automobiles, and more, which is increasing the demand for such jobs. In the recent past, the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology and the Association for Computing Machinery have collaborated to form accreditation and curriculum standards for degrees in Information Technology as a distinct field of study as compared to Computer Science and Information Systems today. SIGITE (Special Interest Group for IT Education) is the ACM working group for defining these standards. The Worldwide IT services revenue totaled $763 billion in 2009. B. TECHNOLOGICAL CAPACITY AND GROWTH Hilbert and Lopez identify the exponential pace of technological change (a kind of Moore’s law): machines’ application-specific capacity to compute information per capita has roughly doubled every 14 months between 1986-2007; the per capita capacity of the world’s general-purpose computers has doubled every 18 months during the same two decades; the global  telecommunication capacity per capita doubled every 34 months; the world’s storage capacity per capita required roughly 40 months to double (every 3 years); and per capita broadcast information has doubled roughly every 12.3 years II. TRENDS IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY The wide range of information, data, and knowledge for problem solving and decision making are dealt with Information Technology. Before starting with the projects, students should be aware of authentication, and integrity features in their projects. Breaking of passwords and hacking can be avoided using these techniques. Anyhow, the various trends for projects are based on the emerging software technology. A. LATEST TRENDS a. Flash technology To add multiple types of external data to the given text, images, video, XML and to interact with web pages, Adobe Flash is used. It provides multimedia platform. The main purpose of this technology is to be used in advertisements and games. Both audio and video streams are supported by flash. One of the Object-oriented languages called ActionScript is the language used here by the developers. Flash player includes ActionScript Virtual Machine (AVM). The compiler, Just-In-Time (JIT), is used for MP3-based audio and bitmap graphics. Flash CS5 is the latest version of Adobe flash which was released on April 12, 2010. b. Microsoft Silverlight Microsoft Silverlight is developed on web framework and is similar to the functions of those in Adobe Flash. In addition, it also integrates multimedia graphics and interaction with a single runtime environment. Common Language Infrastructure (CLI) and its development tools are supported by Silverlight. The processor x86 with streaming SIMD Extensions (SSE) is  used by Silverlight. Also the other processors which support Silverlight include the Intel Pentium III and AMD Athlon XP. Any of the .Net Programming language is supported for Silverlight applications. The developing tools for the application can be used along with the .Net language but should be aware that they can target only the Silverlight core CLR for hosting the applications and not that of the .Net Framework CLR since both differs in their own functionalities. 4GDR1 (4.0.50524.0) is the latest version of Silverlight and was released on 03 June 2010. c. Open Source software Open source software is newly emerging trend which is one of the best options for the students. The source code can be modified by the students as per the objective of project. Hence Open source is much flexible than closed version software. Open source software is mainly developed on peer to peer production by collaboration of end product, source material. Open source software can be enhanced by anyone and if you join some open source developers community, you can learn a lot of things directly from the most knowledged persons in the developers community. Even the top companies like Google who are paymasters gives lots of importance to candidates who have worked in open source projects during the interviews. d. Cryptography Cryptography is the practice and study of hiding information. It also refers to confidentiality. It is often seen as a â€Å"black art†, which means something others don’t understand but you need to understand. Cryptography is one of the essential aspects for secure communication. There are many aspects of security and applications ranging from secure commerce to private communication and to protect passwords. Cryptography is necessary for secure communication but it is not sufficient by itself. Here, the text is encrypted first; i.e. the plain text is changed to inarticulate garbage. The end user does the reverse process i.e. decryption, where the original text  is retrieved. There are a lot of algorithms in this area which is used in real time for data protection in sectors like banks, Research, Password Protection and so on. e. Nanotechnology Nanotechnology is the study of controlling properties of an atom and molecules. As the name indicates, it deals with the study of structures sized between 1 and 100 nanometer. It is said that, nanotechnology has a tendency to create new materials and devices which can be used in future in a wide range of fields such as medicine, energy production, electronics and bio materials. As they are very small in size, nano structures have a tendency to change its state for transformation of energy. The two main approaches used in nanotechnology are Bottom-up and Top-down. In bottom-up approach, materials and devices are built from molecular, a component which later assemble themselves chemically and follows the principles of molecular recognition. In top-down approach, nano-objects are constructed from larger entities without any atomic level control. Biotechnology is the best example to show the use of nanotechnology in various fields. The upcoming trends mainly focus on security and hacking. Mobile application for iPhone and Android are great areas to explore with good revenue opportunities as well. If you want to stand out from others, instead of going for some courses, try to contribute for an open source project. B. BUSINESS TRENDS Just a few decades ago, businesses had little in the way of office machinery except typewriters. Fax machines were new; only Xerox made copiers, and the computer was a monster that took up an entire room. These behemoths were housed almost exclusively on college campuses or in government laboratories. With the development of the personal computer, the situation changed; it was so quick it sometimes seems like it was overnight. At first, businesses were happy to use computers because their word processing programs made typing projects much easier. But using a computer like a high-powered typewriter  defeats the purpose of having the machine in the first place. Companies soon discovered that their PCs could do a great deal more. Companies began to network offices together so that they could share files and work on the same projects from distant locations. They connected to the Internet and put out advertisements to draw new customers. And perhaps one of the most significant business developments to come with IT is the creation of the electronic marketplace. Companies that sell their products over the Internet greatly increase the number of potential consumers who see their offerings. Even if the company is not actively selling goods, a website is a tremendously helpful tool. A well-designed, easy to navigate site can stimulate interest so that a potential customer calls or writes for further information. Other business applications of IT include â€Å"data mining,† â€Å"knowledge management,† and â€Å"modeling and simulation.† (Kalil, PG). This last is particularly interesting, as it allows companies to build prototypes in the computer. These prototypes perform exactly the same way a three-dimensional model would, and yet are far less expensive than building the â€Å"real thing.† This way, if the prototype doesn’t work, there isn’t the strain on the company’s resources there would be if a real model (car, plane, truck, train) had been built. If it does work, it can be put into production quickly. C. FUTURE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS There’s no denying that we are in a worldwide downturn. Government are in debt; jobs are being cut; houses are being repossessed and people because it. However, there is a way to plan for the declining eminent and that is through IT guidance. If you are like most people, the last thing on your opinion is paying for tuition, especially in a specialty as baffling as information technology. However, IT education may be your label out of the slump and into a fulfilling and stable career. For most of us, our prospect is not set in pelt, especially with the downturn. There is no concrete way of aware that you will forever be in the site, or even with the visitors you are with now. However, IT guidance can organize for a potential in information technology at any sector. The  diligence needs IT technicians whether you work in television, marketing, communication, client check, etc. IT technology can open doors to more than just your own effective Future Information Technology Trends environment. You can take these skills and concern them to other sectors and industries as well. This will make the leap to another career in the upcoming much fewer overwhelming, if that time ever comes. Technology and Telecommunication: While many people are trailing their jobs in marketing, buyer ceremony, factual estate and construction, more and more people are verdict their mission via telecommunication. This is because, while the nation is gradually lessening, the â€Å"nation† is blossoming. Websites are in stable penury to IT help including webmasters, graphic designers and programmers. This Future Information Technology Trends trend will prolong as the internet is one of the best customs to join to the world and will only maintain to grow in the future. Technological trends in the future: According to the Bureau of Labour Statistics, the technology world will maintain to upsurge with jobs in IT increasing by 16% in the next ten existence. This is sooner than most other industries in the United States due to the many technological advances within many industries. IT Training for all Industries: even if you never want to dine in a career as an IT technician, information technology exercise can help prepare you for advancement in your own sector. Information technology exists everywhere and this is why it’s important to advantage the skills desirable to understand the information technological phase of your sector. IT is Universal: Another important touch of information technology is that, while some systems modify from troupe to troupe, and from country to country, they are all relatively the same. This means that, if you desire to do so, you can move and convey with career guidance in IT. Spend a year in Japan since the sights and running in IT on the section, or take your skills to Australia when the frost months get too cold. The possibilities Future Information Technology Trends for those with information technology training not only transport from trade to industry, but they also outdo continental boundaries as well. D. EMERGING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS Traditionally, hotels were mostly dependant on cards and paperwork at the front desk to keep in meet with old and current customers. They were chiefly at the mercy of the wishes of vacationers to succeed, and on their own pains and force to be inclined for budding surges or long droughts of tenancy. Luckily, such inconvenience and old-fashioned methods are long since ancient, gratitude to advances in information technology. The first question in which information technology became important regarded billing. Old-fashioned paper-based book-keeping time-consuming and inefficient, and was not able briefly to tell a lodge holder what the avow of their lodge was. Luckily, advances in modern proof keeping tolerate for a lodge holder to keep pathway of what they have on hand, how much of it they have, and how much it outlay. Accounting is complicated, but future software, especially that tailored to the sole needs of the hospitality activity, helps to permit lodge owners to make smart decisions. Services and harvest that are no longer worn can be instantly cut off to prelude money, while those who show want can be augmented in magnitude or bespoke to diminish the important tradition. Most hotels are recurring with booking quarters and reservations over the telephone, but information technology has prolonged well past that. Hotels can now work with different online trek companies and booking military to have Emerging Information Technology Trends their rooms booked online, with no indigence to employ classy force. This also allows a lodge to announce their open rooms and unusual deals promptly to people who would be most to grasp them, instead of killing much money advertising in an unfocused mode. High worth information technology hence allows for better arrangement and management of booking to tolerate a lodge to better maximize residence, and to know in proceed when large groups or prop period are approaching. This allows a lodge manager to make strategy about transient pole, good times to renovate or inflate, or other concerns, because he/she can decide the state of their hotel currently and for the next few months with only a few clicks on the laptop. The advances in information Emerging Information Technology Trends technology proffer well afar booking, however. The internet is  necessary for vacationers who fancy to associate those back home, and for those nomadic on topic to get in feel with the bureau. Therefore, wireless internet has become a very ordinary and very helpful tune for hotels to supply. Many interest minded persons even entail that an hotel tender internet army so that they can keep running while on the street. Luckily, such army are easy to supply, as all that is required is a wireless router and diverse plans to guarantee the whole hotel is filled with the practice. Modern advances in wireless internet also permit for the wireless internet provided for hotel visitors to be used to group the hotel itself. Security cameras, door stresses, and other policy basic to hotel sanctuary and shelter can be Emerging Information Trends wired into the interact, so that workforce are alerted when a door is propped open, a fire alarm goes off or suspicious activity occurs. Though the hotel guests are wholly unaware of it, this variety of added safety and guarantee keeps them careful, and in the occasion of a puzzle they will almost surely appreciate the benefits of such system. As difficult as it is, information technology in the hospitality activity is still going ahead. Intelligent booking systems enable hasty and helpful guest opinion, along with the ability to predict who is likely to use the hotel again and tell them via e-packages or passage letters when a good deals appear. Hotels with scope mass or other guest services can tender menus online, allowing for abrupt updates, high-class photos, and other behavior to allow guests to see and order services before they even arrive. There also advances in terms of payroll and list which make information technology Emerging Information Technology Trends an effective asset for reduction money and maximizing profits. The sole quality of the hospitality trade makes it a great place for new and emerging information technology, and farther-opinion hotel owners and managers are forever looking for smart tools and software to invest in. E. HEALTHCARE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS The utilization of technology in healthcare has opened the method for improvements in a limit of areas. One of the advantages and payback of fitness tending technology is the additional people are extant diseases like feeling and blight disease due to the fitness to identify them earlier than formerly skilled. With this ability comes the subsidy of being able to use a method that may be fewer extreme than one beloved as the disease grows. With a disease like Tuberculosis, as it metastasizes, the talent to struggle it and eliminate it gets harder and harder. Although, one more use of technology in healthcare has brought us newest drugs that can aim more precisely the particular scourge cells along with being more embattled in other areas. It has also brought us latest radiation Healthcare Information Technology Trends tools that can be far extra accurate and not have to use the shotgun manage to dig up to the tumor. The ray could even be bent about key body parts like glands and arteries so as not to injure them when focusing in that territory. One interesting and futuristic loan is the utilization of robots. You can now have a preset prostatectomy with an outcome that may be to the profit of the enduring. With the use of a robot in surgical procedure there is a slighter Healthcare Information Technology Trends opening and large incisions which is fewer torment for the tolerant, there is a smaller quantity of blood failure, an exclusive hazard of rigid cuts about delicate nerves and tendons which may allow the unwearied a pompous choice of not having poorer effects from the surgical procedure, and typically a shorter drape about in the hospice and a shorter recovery time. The accuracy of the robot is far more rigid than a surgeon using his/her hands lonesome. Robots are also programmed in such way that they can grip complicated situations. Another zone where robots are worn is in mandatory middle surgery. Again the accuracy and precision of the tools show the way to a bigger unplanned of a quicker recovery time and minus anguish to the patient. The finer incisions and the possibility of less blood harm are one advantage to using robots in a middle surgery. The dab Vinci Healthcare Information Technology Trends robot worn in the heart and growth surgeries and has the opportunity to be  worn in a range of areas where precision and accuracy are vital. III. EDUCATION Although computers are now common in the classroom that has not been the most significant step in their use as educational tools. I believe that distinction has to go to distance education. The concept is not all that new, because the idea of remote classrooms with a teacher appearing on television has been in place for decades. But the idea of conducting an entire class over the Internet is radically different. In distance education, the students may never set foot in a classroom at all. They will interact with the teacher and with their peers via email; they may participate in lectures via some sort of instant messaging service. The assignments are posted by the instructor, and the completed assignments are returned to him/her through email. Attending class by accessing the Internet does of course mean that the student cannot participate in a live exchange with his peers and the instructor, so in that sense the spontaneity of the classroom is missing. However, for students in very remote areas, or when classes are offered at one campus and not another, it is a viable solution, and it is made possible by IT. IV. PERSONAL USAGE Of course the single biggest item here is the personal computer. Having a computer at home has revolutionized life for millions of people around the globe. We tend to get our news from the computer; we may find ourselves in a discussion with someone on the other side of the planet; and we tour museums and shops in distant cities among many other uses. Many people now work from home (â€Å"telecommuting†) rather than physically going to the office. This saves road congestion and helps diminish pollution. Children and teens use the computer to help with their homework, and with the Internet, they have the entire world as a resource. V. CONCLUSION The impact of IT on society is hard to overestimate. Many of the developments, as I’ve indicated, have been positive, but there are some negatives as well, specifically a tendency to spent more time alone, or interacting only with the computer rather than with real people. Still, for most of us, IT has made a sizeable impact, and a positive one, on our lives. VI. REFERENCES http://www.cisp.org/imp/april_99/04_99kalil.htm http://www.wikipedia.com

Human Aggression Essay

This essay concerns one of the most influential works on human behavior today. The title of this article is â€Å"Human Aggression. † This research was conducted by Craig A. Anderson and Brad J. Bushman who are both connected with the Department of Psychology at the Iowa State University. Their research was published in the Annual Review Psychology Journal 2002, vol. 53 pages 27 to 51. Introduction We have heard or witnessed accounts of people victimized by violence. Last September 2001, several hijackers took control of several planes and made them crash through the twin towers of the World Trade Center. Barely several minutes after, another plane hit the Pentagon. In these events hundreds of people died while thousands more were seriously injured. It is true that historically we are all aware that humans are capable of violent behavior. â€Å"Human violence is not new. † (Arthur G. Miller, Ch 8 p. 169) Thus, the act of one person killing another should not come as a surprise for us. Yet in the past years, human behavior is getting more violent. These past events have triggered the scientists and psychologists to once again examine the root cause of violence in human behavior. One of the recent studies was made by Craig A. Anderson and Brad J. Bushman. This essay seeks to understand the General Aggression Model which is a theoretical model proposed by Anderson and Bushman. The objective is to analyze this model in relation to the previous researches on aggressive human behavior and to determine the essential differences of this research to the previous studies. An overview of how this research was conducted will also be explained. The General Aggression Model Anderson and Bushman acknowledged the works of the previous researchers before them. These previous researches have all immensely contributed to our present understanding of how violence is brought about. Some of these researches concluded that the accessibility of guns, global warming, violence against children in schools and widespread exposure to violent entertainment media are all contributing factors to increasing violence. Several theories have also been proposed on human aggression. These are the Cognitive Neo-association Theory, Social Learning Theory, Script Theory, and the Excitation Transfer Theory. Anderson and Bushman believe, however, that these researches on human aggression need a theoretical model that will integrate all these works into a complete whole. (Gerald Amada, 2005, p. 2) They quote a statement made by Jules Henri Poincare, to wit: â€Å"Science is built up with fact, as a house is with stone. But a collection of fact is no more a science than a heap of stones is a house. (Poincare) This theoretical model is known as the General Aggression Model. The General Aggression Model is primarily a theoretical model. There were no specific subjects used or laboratory experiments conducted. It simply incorporated the existing theories that have been published about human aggression. What makes it different from the other research on this topic is that it adds form and structure to the present theories about human aggression by unifying these mini-theories about aggressive behavior to form one complete model on Human Aggression. The General Aggression Model (GAM) examines the effect of certain variables interacting with the thoughts, mood and emotion and the arousal of an individual that may lead to the commission of violence. According to Anderson & Bushman, our thoughts, mood and emotion and our arousal not only interact with each other to determine whether a person will engage in aggressive behavior but they are influenced by two factors: a) the Situation Factors and b) the Person Factors. The Situation Factors pertain to the features of the particular situation that may increase or decrease the aggression. For example: insult, frustration, drugs, the presence of a gun, the presence of a religious leader or the presence of uncomfortable situation. This means that depending on the presence or absence of any of these variables there is a higher or lower probability that aggressive behavior will follow. The Person Factors pertain to the characteristics of a person that he brings to the particular situation. These Person Factors include: traits, beliefs, attitude, sex, values and long-term goals. This means that a person’s beliefs can serve as a powerful stimulus that may influence aggressive. For example, a person who has the tendency to feel that he has been unjustly treated by others is more likely to become suspicious of other people, and to harbor ill will against others. He is also more likely to engage in aggressive behavior. (Stephen Swartz, 2007, p. 2) Under the GAM, the Person Factors and the Situation Factors are only the first stage to the commission of human aggression. The second stage happens when there is an interaction between the Person Factors/Situation Factors with the three internal states: the cognition (hostile thoughts), affect (mood and emotion) and the arousal (physiological process). For example, when a child is exposed to a television show which exhibits violent scenes (Situation Factors) this has an effect on the cognitive in the sense that it gives access to the child’s hostile thoughts. Constant exposure therefore to these violent scenes means that access to hostile thoughts is increased making it more likely that the child will develop a script of his own and manifest aggressive behavior. (Thomas Brady, 2004 p. 3) The relationship between violent video games and human aggression is made clear using the GAM. This research warns us that adolescents’ exposure to video games increases the likelihood that he will behave aggressively. (Thomas A. Kooijmans, 2004, p. 1) Video games like Doom or mortal combat explicitly shows two characters attacking each other and trying to kill each other. (Situational Factor) This variable interacts with the Arousal or the physiological changes that are already happening to a child who is reaching puberty. The third stage is the appraisal and the decision making process. At this stage the individual evaluates and appraises all these variables that enter his brain. From then on he will either make a snap judgment (impulsive decision) or he may re-appraise the whole situation and come up with a more controlled and deliberate action. And then the last stage is the outcome. Evaluation of the General Aggression Model The GAM is unlike the previous theories of human behavior. It is more complex and at the same time it is more integrative. (â€Å"Psychology: An International Perspective†) It is more complex in the sense that it takes into account not only the character traits and the personality of the individual but it also includes his internal state such as his emotions and thoughts. It is more integrative because it successfully saw the connection among the past researches on human aggression and combined them under the GAM. The GAM is also more realistic compared to the other mini-theories on human aggression. Some of the other theories on human behavior even boldly claim that there is a direct relationship between some variables or factors such that the presence of these variables can help predict human behavior. On the other hand, the GAM only highlights how complex human behavior is. There are so many processes that must be taken into consideration before we could actually predict human behavior. As the Anderson and Bushman explained, the Situational Factors and the Person Factors are not the only variables to be considered in predicting future aggressive behavior. Any researcher must also take into account the person’s internal state such as his mental state, emotional state and the physical state. Before, I thought that engaging in aggressive behavior or performing an act that causes damage to another is always a conscious and deliberate product of the mind or the emotion. I thought that if a person commits violent behavior it is either because it is premeditated or it is because of heightened emotion. It is only now that I realized that the stimulus for aggression may also come from extrinsic factors that have no relation to the person engaging in aggressive behavior. For me, the most significant piece of information I found in this research paper is that certain Situational Factors such as the hot temperature or existing frustration may result to aggression. Conclusion The General Aggression Model is indeed one of the most comprehensive researches that deal with aggressive human behavior. As a theoretical model of human aggression, it is the first research to see the connection between the person’s characteristics, the particular situation he is in, his thoughts, his emotion and the physiological processes in his body. Though it provides a model for explaining how aggressive behavior is brought about, it admits that human behavior is unpredictable.

Innovation to Sustainability of Google Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Innovation to Sustainability of Google - Essay Example This discussion stresses that  the other innovation by Google is the sorting of junk from important material and organizes it to help you spotlight on the messages that matter. And it allows a user of Gmail through your computer's microphone and speakers to call anyone with a phone at the lowest costs. The news in the air is that Google will soon disclose its new innovation which is named as Nexus 7. It is a tablet of the price same as the Kindle Fire and it pretty much has the same capabilities. Google has planned not to stop innovating new products and in upcoming years more such mind bobbling gadgets will surely rule the minds of the people.This paper highlights that  Google is on the watch out for its third most important commercial hit after proper research and marketing. The main element of innovation is their far-reaching and forceful usage of data and testing for supporting thoughts. Google spotlight more on analytics and data goes far away from that of most business and still it is contained by contact of most organization for adopting an analytics driven advancement to assessing innovation. Google make use of prediction markets proposes that it has elevated place and significance on the intelligence and beliefs of employees. Google Inc. is an American international corporation which provides Internet associated products and services, together with internet search, cloud computing, software and marketing technologies. 2.4 People Google really value their people and appreciate them for their working. They hire individuals who are smart and focused. They always favour abilities of individuals as opposed to their experiences. The company is always in search of people from all walks of life. They support multicultural environment and favours multi languages reflecting the global audiences. They have maintained an open culture environment in which every person feels comfortable in sharing ideas and opinions. Their entire organizational culture supports and encourages interaction between Googlers within and across teams which endorses a culture of growing. 3. Process 3.1 Search Google Glass is one of the most revolutionary products of the current century. It is a major breakthrough in the modern technological world of today and is years ahead and far more advanced than smart phones. While using similar features that are used in most of the latest smart phones like the iPhone or Samsung S3, Google Glass is a pair of glasses that features a heads up display which has a 720p camera built into it along with a microphone and an earpiece. It is the next leap into the world of hands free communication. Thus with the Google Glass, Google brings the augmented fantasy from science fiction novels and

Urban economics Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Urban economics - Term Paper Example Urbanization indicates the economic development of a country. Sustainable development is the need of the hour in all types of activities. Although the path of sustainability is a difficult one, yet it is approachable if pursued in an appropriate way. Sustainable transportation system ensures building of a society that acts as backbone, which supports economic growth through assisting people access their jobs and services easily. If the city is well-planned and laid out properly, urbanization will lessen the overall pollution levels and will preserve the surrounding areas, but unfortunately, most the cities set an example of haphazard development that has led to environmental degradation.This paper aims to examine the detrimental effects of transportation in enhancing global warming and ways to reduce it. The process of speedy urbanization due to growing population levels and their concentration in outsized cities have led to the sprawl of cities, as called by us â€Å" urban sprawlà ¢â‚¬ . These mega cities mark the most significant change brought about by human creatures. Cities form a network of linkages that expand ahead of their own boundaries causing environmental damages and their impacts outside urban areas. One of the most significant changes in natural environment is due to the urban transportation system. Increasing number of cars have provided immense facility to the individuals to access their jobs, educational institutes, shopping malls or any other place easily and on their own, but the flip side of this facility is the environmental damage brought about by the unsustainable transportation patterns. ROLE OF AUTOMOBILES IN GLOBAL WARMING Now days, automobiles are an essential part of daily life. They have shaped our culture and landscape. The industries that build cars serve as key part of the economy of the country. The automobile is not without its faults, but they often are concealed by the styling, performance and other features that make toda y’s vehicles so desirable. Still, when a product is so widely used, its faults can add up to massive unwanted side effects like global warming. Global warming is the most current environmental issue in many countries of the world. Motor vehicles play a major part in what scientists call the most serious environmental problem the world faces. The automobile’s main contribution comes from the carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted as the engine burns fuel. The greenhouse gases are released from numerous sources that cause global warming. Any single contribution may seem small in proportion to the world total, but collectively it becomes a problem of vast scale. To address a problem of such vast scale requires international agreements and national policies. But making good on such commitments will require changes in how we manage every activity that contributes to the problem. The sources which contribute most to global warming should be identified in order to know that where and h ow much emission should be reduced. [1] The disproportionate impact of U.S. cars and light trucks An automobile which means personal motor vehicles, including light trucks such as pickups and vans emit roughly 10% of global (CO2) emissions from fossil fuels, which are the main form of greenhouse gas pollution. American automobiles have a disproportionate impact: U.S. cars are driven further each year and burn more fuel per mile than the international average. The United States has 5% of the world’s population and 30% of the world’s automobiles, but it contributes 45% of the world’s automotive (CO2) emissions. In 2004, U.S. cars and light trucks emitted 314 million metric tons of carbon-equivalent (MMTc). That equals the amount of carbon in a coal train 50,000 miles long—enough to stretch 17 times between New York and San Francisco. In fact, the amount of (CO2) emitted from oil used for transportation in the United States is similar to the amount from coal used to generate electricity. [1] SHIFTING FROM PRIVATE TO PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Contracting and Ethics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Contracting and Ethics - Assignment Example However, according to the records the individual was able to access non- public propriety information regarding the protester’s performance of the contract that was incumbent, thus appearing to be challenged procurement. Therefore AGPH should be excluded from the competitive bid as it used the services of a former government staff which is unethical with regard to government laws on contracts. With regard to protesting the bid, Government Accountability Office (GAO) will issue the decision arrived at regarding the protest within the hundred days after it has been filed. GAO considers protests that concerns awards of subcontracts by or sales of a federal agency, or of a federal agency, or procurements made by the government agencies other than the Federal agencies. According to Lebowitz (2009) asserted that If GAO finds out that the award is not in compliance with the regulations it may recommend the AGPH to pay the protester the costs of filing and pursuing the protest, and th e bid and proposal preparation. In addition, protests are dismissed on the basis of; contract administration; contracting officer’s affirmative responsibility; and procurement integrity. 2. Since TMA was in the Department of Defense (D.O.D) responsible for awarding and management of contracts. Through the issuance of an RFP the issuance of contracts was to undergo evaluation before being awarded. This includes using the technical approach, past performance and finally price/cost. By employing the services of a former employee of TMA it means the whole process is flawed as he had access to information not available to the public. Therefore, AGPH should have utilized the rating scheme for purpose of evaluating on technical merit. According to the Agency Report (AR) Tab 86, of the Source Selection Evaluation Guide (SSEG) at 11-12, a flaw in the proposal increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance. Also, TMA should evaluate each of the sub factors stemming from propos al risk. With regard to assessment of the ethics issue relevance rating is vital. In assessment and assignment of performance the following rating scheme is utilized; exceptional, satisfactory, marginal and not satisfactory. TMA is to receive time proposals from entities like AGHP for the contracts of the North Region. TMA’s is to commence evaluation and selection process with the establishment of three evaluation teams: firstly is the technical evaluation team (TET), which is to evaluate technical proposals; performance assessment group (PAG), which evaluates past performance information of offeror’s; and the price/cost unit, tasked with analyzing the price/cost proposals. The teams’ findings are then to be submitted to the chairperson of the Source Selection Evaluation Board (SSEB), who prepares best value award recommendation and evaluation report for consideration by source selection authority (SSA). The SSA following advice from the source selection advisor y council (SSAC) makes the final decision on best value award (G.A.O, 2009). 3. So as to avoid malpractices in the bidding and contracting processes integrity is paramount. The AGPH and TMA should set integrity mechanisms in their organizations. It is useful to conduct interviews including the very key individuals within the TMA who presumably would have wider direct knowledge of the activities of the former government employee. Also

Organizational Assessment of Human Impact Preparedness for Essay

Organizational Assessment of Human Impact Preparedness for Organizational Crisis - Essay Example History can be attributed to the acknowledgement of a fact that disasters and crises occur and the people possess a robust potential in neutralizing and overcoming them. The hazards and disasters be it natural or within an organizational structure by technical factors requires overcoming the situation as people’s lives are associated with it and human resource can be regarded as indispensible assets in the smooth functioning of the organizations in the society. The world has seen the tragic events of Bhopal gas tragedy and that of the Exxon Valdez oil spill which took away the lives of a large number of people and also represents the lack of proper emergency planning. The mutual cooperation among the organizations can be regarded as basic criteria for overcoming the aftermath of the disasters. The relationships should be developed on an ad-hoc basis through synchronized planning. There is a common prevalent proverb that, â€Å"When you hear the thunder, it’s too late t o build an ark† (Emergency Planning, 2005, p.8). The statement leads us to the formation of a notion that we should be always prepared for countering disaster and crisis situation. Possessing a formal and well formulated emergency plan will be directing towards the provision of several reactions from the side of an organization which will lead to the establishment of recovery and eliminating adversities. The emergency systems will have to inculcate with developed training components which will lead to the minimization in the loss of life, injury and that of property loses. The emergency systems possess the capacity of generating disruption defenses which helps an organization to adhere to its mission of optimally serving its clients within real time. The requirement of emergency planning is immense in that the planners involved in them will be guided by some basics for the proper execution. At the core, the

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Term Paper

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) - Term Paper Example The Congress noted that the activities of man had profound effects on the environment. These activities include: industrialization, high-density urbanization, resource exploitation and technological novelties. To top it off, there was the issue of population growth. The Congress set to the purpose of restoring and maintaining the environment because it in turn reflected on the prosperity of the human race. The intention was to achieve these goals with the partnership of the state, the private and public sectors and the support of local governments. The required support was to be in the form of financial and technical assistance. The Congress had the intention of preserving a future in which the environment and the human race were in harmony for their future generations, (Pub. L. 91-190, 42 U.S.C. 4321-4347, January 1, 1970). Being motivated by the notion of equal rights of each person to enjoy a healthy environment, the Congress set the Act into motion and outlined the responsibiliti es of the Federal Government. The government was required to use all resources at its disposal to ensure that Federal plans and functions related to environmental conservation processes are improved for the sake of the nation. It was in the 1950s and 1960s that the outcry of the public on matters concerning the state of the environment was heard and acted upon by the Congress. A series of congressional debates ensued soon after and a national environmental policy was the outcome. The policy targeted federal agencies which at the time were the main culprits in environmental pollution.

Eradicating Cheating in the Educational System Essay

Eradicating Cheating in the Educational System - Essay Example At a very young age, the students are exposed to adult problems like facing the necessity of putting food on the table and taking care of their younger siblings. They carry the burdens of problems supposedly faced by their parents; however, due to the fact that oftentimes a father is in jail or a mother is struggling with drug addiction, the children are oftentimes faced with the very real demand that they begin to find alternative ways to earn money of their own so that they can help supplement the meager earnings of their family. With such a kind of life, the students are exposed to hardships that pressure them to cheat in order to survive in an increasingly challenging educational environment. Furthermore, in order to examine and understand the factors that oftentimes leads students to cheat in the first place. By way of perception, educators and police often consider these youths to be a mere extension of their parents; i.e. drug dealers and cheaters who are threats to the peace and order of the traditional community. They know they are selling drugs and they are watched by the requisite authorities in similar ways as are adults. Sometimes, they are also made as assets when the opportunity arises. They know they are tough so that even if they are young, they play rough with them. The children’s parents look up to them to take responsibility in their families. For instance, Michael is expected to provide for the family’s needs and in the eighth episode of season 4, he even gives his mother money instead of the mother giving him what he needs (The Wire Season 8 Episode 4 [34:37]). The familial and environmental backgrounds of the children demand them to become tough as they are and lost interest in schoolwork. However, to the teachers, the children are still children and human beings. Although most of them are failing in their classes, teachers like Prezbo do their best to seek to  continue to impart knowledge to the children in their classrooms.  

(Optional) Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

(Optional) - Research Paper Example Despite the billions of dollars infused in federal stimulus bills such as the JOBS (Jumpstart our Business Startups) Act, the economy is still in fragile health; even the Federal Reserve Bank has employed all the monetary tools at its disposal to revive the economy, such as a continuing a low-interest rate regime and the use of quantitative easing programs to pump more money into the economic system. The American economy is one of the largest in the world but its main foreign market of Europe is in a financial and banking crisis itself. In other words, there is no hope for most American firms to export their way out of the recession, as the global economy is also weak. The United States of America is also facing various financial crises, such as in the retirement savings system which saw 401k savings accounts wiped out by the collapse of stock markets. Demand is also weak, as consumer spending is adversely affected by the loss of confidence. This paper examines a vital sector of the United States economy, the housing sector. It is a vital component of the construction industry, which is a major driver of the domestic economy. Construction, in particular residential housing is a substantial contributor to jobs, investments, and income levels as it employs a good number of workers. The housing sector is not fully recovered from the housing bubble, in which prices grew so fast but collapsed. Discussion America is an industrialized country, and so its economy is largely dependent on the many industries comprising its national economy. An example is the automobile industry that is a major component of the overall manufacturing sector. In this regard, the housing industry is also a major component of the construction industry. New housing construction is a closely-watched economic indicator because it reflects the health of the United States economy. Home building (private housing starts) is a good barometer of industrial domestic production. If people have stable an d well-paying jobs, and they also have confidence in the future, then it follows more people will invest and buy new homes to build their families. The housing sector had been one of the worst-hit in the recession which followed the bursting of the economic bubble in housing prices. As stated earlier, house prices rose fast in the past few years immediately preceding the crisis; the bubble was caused by speculation. The Federal Reserved Board and its economists missed the bubble, arguing it is very hard to detect as it is developing because it is no different from any ordinary economic growth. But in hindsight, there were many warning signs which were missed which could have triggered the corrective actions needed for a â€Å"soft landing† in which prices will go down gradually instead of a sudden bursting where the prices of residential homes deflated from pricey levels. A housing bubble occurs when the prices of homes diverge markedly from their basic or intrinsic values, t he price at which a house should be worth and not on its market price as it becomes subject to speculation. The housing sector has not recovered fully from this bubble as many home mortgages had been foreclosed and most house prices had fallen below their loan value. In other words, homeowners are mostly underwater, in the sense they now owe the banks a larger loan amount than what their houses are worth on the market. This has a bad dampening effect on housing demand, although there are now a few encouraging signs.

Gender Socialization in American Social Institutions Essay Example for Free

Gender Socialization in American Social Institutions Essay Socialization refers to how people learn different cultures and learn to live with the various aspects of the cultures. For an individual, socialization provides an opportunity to gain various habits and skills that are necessary for participating and acting at various levels within the society. For the wider society, socialization enables different people to exchange moral norms, values, attitudes, social roles, languages, motives and so forth, thereby attaining a form of social and cultural stability (Sapiro, 1990). Socialization is affected by many factors, which have contributed to factors such as social stratification with particular with reference to gender among various societies. Many social theories have suggested that gender is a core cause of social stratification in the American Society (Stone, 2001; Andersen Taylor, 2005; Levinson, Cookson Sadovnik, 2002; Giddens Griffiths, 2006). Social stratification with respect to gender has been noted in many areas such as place of worship, schools, workplaces, and many other areas that involve social interactions. According to Andersen and Taylor (2005), the various methods used in interaction in different institutions lead to stratification since males usually tend to dominate the social scene, thus creating a situation whereby females have to play a second role in socialization. This paper will evaluate the methods of socialization used by people in different American educational institutions with particular reference to the role of gender in the social scene. The format of the paper will involve a brief discussion of the various aspects of socialization in the American context followed by a discussion of the methods of gender socialization in American social educational institutions. Gender socialization among Americans According to Stone (2001), the American society places a lot of importance in the role of the family as the basic social unit of the society. In fact, the evidence for this is shown by the abundance in most libraries of published materials regarding marriage and family life in the United States. The interest in family life is instigated by the fact that there are various instances of gender interaction such as those involving children; between children and their parents; between parents; and between parents and their in-laws (Stone, 2001). An obvious gender interaction that is usually less mentioned is that between any parent and mother-in–law or father-in-law of the opposite sex. The aspect of mother in law in particular has been a problem to many couples in the American society. In this context, Stone (2001) quotes Eppie Lederer who commented on the persistent problem associated with mothers-in-law by asking the question â€Å"Must we outlaw the mother in law? † The products of family life, that is children, also socialise differently depending on where they are. Andersen and Taylor (2005) note that gender socialization among children is impacted upon by peers, parents, the media, schools, religious institutions and forth. It is at the child level that various paths of gender socialization are charted. For instance, in schools girls usually get involved in communal games and like getting into groups whereas boys tend to put interest in games that are individualistic (Andersen Taylor, 2005). The same authors also note that girls play more freely when they are involved in same sex groups. On the other hand, boys tend to wield power over girls when they play with them and have a tendency to create laws of play over girls. This is perhaps what leads to men’s dominance in scenes in later life (Andersen Taylor, 2005; Stone, 2001). Methods of gender socialization in American educational and religious institutions As is the case in all societies, socialization occurs at all stages of life, not just in childhood stages. The attributes displayed by children in their early days such as gender-typed forms of games are indicator of behavior that appear later during adult life. The aspects of competitive play displayed by boys prepare them for the kind socialization environment they encounter as adults. Giddens and Griffiths (2006) note that boys engage in more aggressive socialization activities because in future they get active in activities such as sports; and the large groups they socialize with also teach them to cooperate and compete when working together later in life. Among girls, there is a slightly different approach to socialization. Andersen and Taylor (2005) note that learn in the same way as girls but they don’t tend to value the attributes such as highly as boys or men even though these attributes are no less important to them. Thus, gender socialization in various American educational institutions is based on these attributes as discussed in the following sections. Gender socialization in schools Schools in have a distinct influence on gender socialization because of the considerable amount to time children spend them (Cookson, 1990). Teachers of either sex have different expectations for boys and girls. According to research findings, boys in American schools call out answers about eight times more than girls (Andersen Taylor, 2005). This makes boys get more attention from their teachers than girls. This point is emphasized by the fact that when teachers of either sex respond to the boys they increase the boys’ level of perceived importance. Another level of socialization in schools is the kind of books used in class. The kind of messages depicted in the books usually determine the kind of socialization that children have later in life or among themselves (Levinson, Cookson Sadovnik, 2002). If a person of a certain gender is used as a central figure and is portrayed to be powerful or a genius, a mentality is developed among children that people of that gender are powerful in all dimensions. Most of the characters depicted as such are men. Gender socialization and religion Religion is one of the aspects of gender socialization that is often overlooked in the American society. Different religious groups lay emphasis on different aspects of their culture such as gender differences. For instance, most Judeo-Christian religions found in the United States put much emphasis on gender, with a common perspective that men are superior to women. In religions that embrace Orthodox Judaism, men offer prayer to God thanking him for not having made a slave of woman for them. In addition, many other religions in the United States exclude women from leadership in religious functions to signify that women hold a lower position in the society (Levinson, Cookson Sadovnik, 2002). Aside from the religions that belittle gender, socialization in Christian and Muslim faiths encourages some form of gender equity (Cookson, 1990). Thus in both churches and mosques, women constantly use what they learn based on their faiths to question racist practices and other forms of unfair treatment by men. Along this line, protestant and evangelical churches in the United States campaign for shared household roles and equal job opportunities as part of socialization between men and women (Stone, 2001). Gender socialization and the media Different forms of media such as magazines, film, television, music and many others have a lot of influence on the kind of socialization in the United States. Communication through the various forms of media is facilitated through features such as cartoons, narrations, messages in music and so forth. Men and women play different roles in the media industry and this determines show they socialize at various levels. But a common tendency is that men are usually portrayed as more powerful figure in various media by their dominance in films, sports, and many other activities. This has changed how people view various forms of media and stratified the society (particularly learning institutions) in terms of popularity of some programs. Television in the United States has been criticized for portraying unrealistic images of women and men with respect to their appearance and age (Stone, 2001). There is a common opinion that women are usually portrayed provocatively on television in dresses such as underwear, nightwear, swimsuits and so forth. Media images in social scenes such as social halls, school halls, colleges and other institutions in the United States and so on are criticized for depicting white men as exercising higher authority than white women as well as black men and black women. Many advertisements in social settings also have the same tendency of depicting the male gender as being superior to the female gender (Stone, 2001). Gender socialization and employment in educational institutions Workplaces as schools are characterized by people of either gender playing different roles. The American system of job classification us characterized by hierarchical organizations which put men and women in different job capacities. For instance, most principals in schools and superintendents of colleges are men (Andersen Taylor, 2005). This therefore creates an ill-advised notion that leaders in social institutions are always men. Conclusion It is evident that various from of gender socialization in educational institutions such as schools, colleges, churches, social halls and so forth in the United States is greatly influenced by the kind of socialization that takes place in elementary levels of education such as junior schools. In addition, the kind of behavior that boys and girls are exposed to is carried into adult life. This is shown in many organizations that disseminate knowledge such as colleges, most of which portray men as being superior to women. References Andersen, M. L. and Taylor H. F. (2005). Sociology: understanding a diverse society. New York: Cengage Learning. Cookson, L. Gender equity, social institutions and the future of fertility. Journal of Population Research, 17(1):1-14 Giddens, A Griffiths, S. (2006). Sociology. New York: Polity Levinson, D. ; Cookson, P. W. Sadovnik , A. R. (2002). Education and sociology: an encyclopedia. New York: Taylor Francis. Sapiro, V. (1990) Women in American society: an introduction to womens studies. New York: Mayfield Pub. Co. Stone, L. (2001). New directions in anthropological kinship. New York: Rowman Littlefield.

Three Fundamental Functions Of Business Organizations Management Essay

Three Fundamental Functions Of Business Organizations Management Essay BMW stands for Bayerisch Motoren Werke AG established in 1916. The company was first known as a manufacturer of aircraft engines. In 1928, it started focusing on car manufacturing with the purchase of the Eisenach motor vehicle factory. The BMW 3/15 which was a version of the Austin Seven, from British automaker Austin was the companys first passenger car. It operated with a 15 horsepower engine and had a top speed of 45 miles per hour. BMW began to design and build its own cars in the 1930s. The company developed its own engine plant that allowed BMW to build both sports cars and sedans without using engines made by other companies. The 327, 328 and 335 models were advanced technologically that made BMW be recognized as a major European automaker. During WWII BMW was forced to produce motorcycles and engines for the German army. They had to stop car production until the 1950s. After WWII, BMW had to restart their car production from zero. In 1952, they began producing the large 501 luxury sedan. It was the first car to be mass-produced in the West Germany. The successful 501 was followed by the 502 sedan in 1954 and the popular 507 roadster in 1956. This series help the company regain the prominent position for sports and luxury cars. Today BMW cars is recognized as a worldwide luxury brand with a high reputation for quality and by their marketing slogan, The Ultimate Driving Machine. BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce are three of the strongest premium brands of BMW nowadays. BMWs car is a superior product in terms of aesthetic appeal, dynamic performance, technology and quality. It underlines the companys leading position in innovation and technology. BMW Group Production Network currently includes 29 production and assembly plants in 14 countries on four continents with a network of more than 12,000 suppliers all over the world. The integration of production and logistics systems within the individual BMW Group locations provides advantages for the customer. Higher efficiency in the supply of production materials helps accelerate the delivery of cars to customers. Each plant contributes to the smooth operation of the global production network. The main locations of BMW Group Production Network include: USA: Spartanburg, South Carolina. Germany: Dingolfing, Berlin, Eisenach, Landshut, Munich,  Regensburg and Wackersdorf Brasilia: Manaus. Italy:   Cassinetta India: Chennai Great Britain: Goodwood, Hams Hall Oxford Swindon Austria: Graz, Steyr. Indonesia: Jakarta Russia: Kaliningrad Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur Thailand:   Rayong South Africa:   Rosslyn China: Shenyang (Dadong) and Shenyang (Tiexi) (Adapted from www.bmwgroup.com; BMW group (2011); http://www.ehow.com/about_5145304_bmw-cars.html ) Operations management as a set of decision making 2.1. What resources will be needed and in what amount? 2.1.1. What resources will be needed? The production process is concerned with transforming a range of inputs into those outputs that are required by the market. This involves two main sets of resources the transforming resources, and the transformed resources. Transformed resources include those that are transformed in some way by the operation to produce the goods or services that are its outputs. Three types of resource that may be transformed in operations are: materials the physical inputs to the process (manufacturing) information that is being processed or used in the process customers the people who are transformed in some way (common in the service business) Transforming resources include those that are used to perform the transformation process. The two types of transforming resource are: staff the people involved directly in the transformation process or supporting it (labour) facilities land, buildings, machines and equipment (capital) (http://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-transformed-resources-and-vs-transforming-resources) In the case of BMW group, the resources necessary for their car production can be summarized in table1 Resources Types Notes Transformed Iron, Steel, Aluminum, Rubber etc Energy Car Body Paint Engine Other parts For the production of car body, bolt, rivet, wire, seat and other parts etc Transforming Land Engine production plants, body shops, paint shops and assembly plants Automated machines and other related machines Equipment and tools -Computers and supportive software Workers, managers, supervisors, inspectors -To build different types of car manufacturing plants 2.1.2. In what amounts? The amounts of resources required for car manufacturing largely depends on the demand of the product. The number of the goods/ services the company intends to produce and deliver to customers and the variety of products to be produced will determine the amounts of resources needed within a defined production system. To make decisions on the amounts of resources needed for manufacturing the product(s), operations managers should consider carefully two elements: selection of production process (operations strategy) and forecasting of demand of products/services. Selection of production process: There are three basic types of production methods or process: Make-to-stock (mass production): this method commonly goes along with line-flow strategy in which high volumes of products of relatively few standardized products are manufactured base upon relatively accurate anticipation of future demand for those products. This requires the firm to hold products in stock for immediate delivery. The competitive priorities of this method are stable quality and low cost. Since the demand for the products have been well anticipated so does the amounts of required resources (Krajewsky et al, 1999). Make-to-order: this method is commonly used by firms with flexible flow that produce low-volume, high-variety of goods/services according to customer specifications. In this direction, high level of customization is the major competitive priority of this method (http://www.web-books.com/eLibrary/NC/B0/B66/098MB66.html) Assemble-to-order (mass customization): this method is used to produce goods/services with many options from a relatively few number of assemblies and components in line with the customers specific order. Assemblies and components are held in stock until specific orders arrives. Then respective products will be assembled with appropriate assemblies and components. This method is relevant to high volume and relatively high variety of good/services (Krajewsky et al, 1999). Forecasting: In order to determine more accurately the amounts of resources needed for the product/service the organization is to offer to the market, it is vital to forecast the demand of this product/service. Demand forecast is usually developed by the marketing department and its accuracy will be the crucial element of the success of capacity management plans implemented by operations. Forecast provides a strong basis for determining the capital invested in the plants, machines and equipment, purchasing the right amount of materials and employing the right amount of labour (Albert Porter, 2010). Production methods and capacity planning of BMW group as means to define amounts of resources needed. In terms of production method, BMWs leading production principles includes horizontal and vertical integration of functions, team work organisation, visual management, built in quality processes, pull system of procurement and continuous improvement. This can be seen as a hybrid production system with a strong German element in product, production technologies and quality standards, a strong part of Japanese principles in process and work organisation and an American part of vertical management hierarchy. BMWs production approach is characterized with high quality, high productivity and high product flexibility which is closed to the mass customization model of production (Ludger Pries, 2002). With this production approach today BMW produces at least 80 percent of its vehicles to customer orders. (http://www.bmwgroup.com/e/nav/index.html?../0_0_www_bmwgroup_com/home/home.htmlsource=overview). With regards to capacity planning BMW develops a well-elaborated strategic-planning process where products and sales are forecast before production capacity planning. Derived from the results of market research, planners decide on the set of future products and estimated sales figures during their life cycle for different geographical markets with the necessary flexibility reserves (i.e. difference between expected demand and available capacity based on their experience). This serves as data for plant loading in which planners allocate the products to the plants and determine the required production capacities including future amount of resources needed and the way to procure them (Bernhard Fleischmann, 2006). 2.2. When will each resource be needed? When should the work be scheduled? When should materials and other supplies be ordered? When is corrective action needed? All those above questions are connected with materials management, scheduling and quality control the operations manager should carefully consider once the production process is put in place. Master Scheduling Plan and Work Scheduling Forecast of future demand of sales helps companies set up an overall production capacity plan which in turn tailored into Master Scheduling Plans (MSP) with an intermediate timeline where the quantity of specific end-products and the time to produce them are defined. It is the major control of all production activities. To create an MSP, it is important for managers to know where materials are located and how they flow at every step in the production process. For this purpose, they determine the routing of all materials-that is, the work flow of each item based on the sequence of operations in which it will be used (Anil Kumar et al, 2009). On the other hand, as it is necessary for managers to control the timing of all operations, they have to build work schedules for this purpose. Scheduling allocates resources over time to perform specific tasks (Krajewsky et al, 1999). Managers determine jobs to be performed during the production process, allocate tasks to work groups, set timetab les for the accomplishment of task and ensure that resources are to be adequately provided when and where they are in need. Two most popular techniques used in scheduling are Gantt and PERT charts (http://www.webbooks.com/eLibrary/NC/B0/B66/098MB66.html) Inventory control It is disastrous if a manufacturer runs out of the materials it needs for production. However, keeping large inventories of materials is wasting money because the firm has to pay for those materials in stock and find places to store them. Therefore, to remain competitive, firms have to manage inventories efficiently. They need to ensure the availability of materials for production and at the same time not to waste money due to large inventory. Achieving the balance between those two risks rests on the inventory management and control. There are three types of inventories including (i) raw materials; (ii) purchased goods and (iii) finished parts and components. The various types of inventory to maintain the continuity in the production process is illustrated in fig 1. Inventory Raw materials Process Inventory Parts + Purchased items Process Finished products Market Inventory Fig 1: Inventory of materials (www.newagepublishers.com/samplechapter/001386.pdf) There are two common inventory-control methods as follows: Just-in-Time It is seen as the modern concept of inventory planning where the materials should be purchased and brought in the stores just before it enters the production or sold out so that inventory cost is negligible. The zero inventories are the ideal planning because the costs of holding inventory are significantly cut. JIT, however, requires considerable communication and cooperation between the manufacturer and the supplier. The manufacturer has to know what it needs, and when. The supplier has to commit to supplying the right materials, of the right quality, at exactly the right time (Albert Porter, 2010). . Material Requirements Planning However, in the present situations in any of the organization particularly manufacturing organization, it is not absolutely possible to keep no inventory of materials required for production. Another inventory control method is commonly used called Material Requirements Planning (MRP). The MRP is a technique relies on a computerized program both to calculate the quantity of materials needed for production starting from the raw materials, finished parts, components, sub-assemblies and assemblies as per Bill of Materials (BOM) and to determine when they should be ordered or made to support a Master Production Schedule (MPS) (Krajewsky et al, 1999; Anil Kumar et al, 2009). The basic MRP focuses on material planning, but there is a more sophisticated system-called Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP II)manufacturing resource planning (MRP II)System for coordinating a firms material requirements planning activities with the activities of its other functional areas.-that goes beyond material planning to help monitor resources in all areas of the company. Such a program can, for instance, coordinate the production schedule with Human Resource managers forecasts for needed labor (www.newagepublishers.com/samplechapter/001386.pdf) Quality control Quality control of materials The quality of the product largely depends upon the quality of the materials used to produce that product. Therefore, it is a very important for the firm to purchase the right quality of materials. Quality control of materials aims at delivering product at higher quality with lower cost. It also helps decide the selection of suppliers and the relationship between buyers and suppliers. In quality control, the quality assurance is decided by inspection and checking. The various properties of materials are decided by the standards they should follow. (www.newagepublishers.com/samplechapter/001386.pdf) Total quality management Today, quality is an efficient weapon firms use to compete with their rivals in the market. Total Quality Management (TQM) or quality assurance includes all managerial steps that firms take to ensure that its goods or services are of high quality to adequately meet customers need). TQM encompasses the following three principles: Customer -driven definition of quality: firms encourage customers to tell them how to make the right product. Firms also track customers feedback about their products (via surveys and other methods) to know what they need to improve. Employee involvement: commitment of employee in ensuring quality of their tasks and in detecting and correcting quality problems is very important. Training and other tools will help employee be actively involved in quality assurance process. Continuous improvement: the commitment to making constant improvements in the design, production, and delivery of goods and services ((Krajewsky et al, 1999). A range of tools have been developed to control quality and indentify areas of improvement such as Statistical Process Control, Benchmarking and Taguchi`s Quality Lost Function method. In addition, a set of standards called ISO has been devised by the International Organization for Standardization to help companies comply with quality documentation standards and get recognition worldwide. There are a set of standards: ISO 9000 family for quality management and ISO 14000 for environmental management. (http://worldacademyonline.com/book/applied_operations_management_manufacturingand_services/). Materials Management and Quality Management at BMW BMW forecasts their new products and demand of sale for capacity planning and allocate the products to their plants worldwide. Each plant then develops the MSP based upon the new orders and demand of sales. The MSP determines explicitly the quantity and the time of the resources (materials and capacity) needed based on the sequence of operations. In terms of inventory management, since BMW adopts a hybrid production system, MRP is used to calculate the quantity of materials needed for production and to determine when they should be ordered or manufactured with the integration of JIT principle to reduce inventory. In each location, BMW manufacturing plant establishes a network of first tier suppliers located nearby, for instance the Spartanburg plant has 18 first tier suppliers that are located in the nearby industrial park and committed to provide ordered materials and components with high quality and right in time. E-orders and purchasing are used to communicate and do the transacti on with its suppliers. As a result, buffers between body shop and painting is18 units and between painting and assembly is120 units. The suppliers are forced to recompense the rigidity of the production system with their own and extensive buffer (Ludger Pries). This mixed inventory control method allows BMW to develop a mass customization production system characterised with high quality, high productivity but also high flexibility. Quality is the strongest competitive advantage of BMW cars. For BMW to achieve premium quality, it is important to recognize any defects/mistakes before production begins and to correct them. Therefore the company has adopted sophisticated computer-aid quality inspection technology to control the quality of purchased parts, engines and all the semi-products and components going from the press, body shop to the final assembly with start-of-the-art inspection device such as 3D CAD, mobile optical TRITOPCMM system (http://www.capture3d.com/file-capture3d-bmw-assemblyline.pdf). Computer-aided inspection systems contribute significantly to saving rework time, optimizing processes and thereby reducing production costs. BMW group also complies to ISO 9000 and IS014000 for quality and environmental management system ((Ludger Pries, 2002). 2.3. Where will the work be done? The selection of plant location or facility location is a key strategic decision for an organization. The location decision is costly and time consuming to change. This is because large investment is made to buy the land and to construct buildings. Companys competitiveness will be affected by its location since it will impact costs such as transportation and labour. Improper location of a plant may lead to loss of competitiveness, and eventually waste of all investments put in land, buildings and machinery. Therefore, before making decision for the selection of a plant location, long range forecast about the future demands should be made. The plant location should be based on the firms expansion plan and policy, diversification plan of products, changing market conditions, changing sources of raw materials and other resources and many other factors. The key following factors are seen important for location decision: Proximity to customers (extremely important in service business) Proximity to suppliers Proximity to labour Infrastructure and transportation availability (Albert Porter, 2010; Anil Kumar et al, 2009). BMW group and its worldwide plant locations Needless to say, BMW group has seen the development of its plant location worldwide network as a key strategic planning to enhance its competitiveness in the automobile global market. From their dominant position in Europe with their plants located in strategic countries such as Germany (its headquarter), Britain, Austria and Italia, the company spread their manufacturing to strategic countries of all over other continents (except Australia) for instance the US for North America, Brasilia for South America, South Africa for Africa, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thai for Southeast Asia, India for East Asia and recently China for North Asia. In each country, BMW has meticulously identified most suitable area for the location of their strategic manufacturing plant corresponding to their expansion plan and policy and the diversification of their products. Proximity to suppliers, labour and the land, infrastructure and labour availability are factors the group always considers when making plan loc ation decision.

Industrial Revolution Essay -- essays papers

Industrial Revolution â€Å"Industrial Revolution†, in my opinion, is not a correct term. It makes it sound as though the whole thing happened at once, which it did not. It was rather an industrial evolution, or better yet an industrial chain reaction. One event impacted others and these changes impacted yet others. There were many important inventions during this time period. These inventions all made life a little easier for the people living during this time. There was an increasing demand for new material for clothing. The invention of the spinning jenny and powered loom made this possible. Steam engines provided power for machines. The cotton gin was another important invention. The Cotton gin made it possible to make clothes out of cotton, instead of the scratchy wool that clothes had always been made out of. Railroads were a very important invention during this century. Before the railroad was invented, people who lived away from their families never saw them. There simply was no easy way for them to visit. By 1869, railroads could go coast to coast in six and a half days. This is one way that the Industrial Revolution impacted social aspects of people’s lives. The Industrial Revolution did not only provide positive changes. There were also many negative changes. However, when you’re dealing with something that is going to change people’s lives to this degree, some downfalls can be expected. The industrial r...

danger world :: essays research papers

I cannot significantly improve on the assertion that it simply is proper for us, as intelligent members of the universe, to try to look after our fellow creatures, and evil for us to do otherwise. -- Colin Tudge, 1992 Last Animals at the Zoo Endangerment is everyone's problem. This Expedition presents an ample cross-section of the conservation challenges we are facing. However, trying to understand how the natural world operates is never an easy task. The effort to do so has been compared to watching a celestial chess game, played by the gods. We are allowed to watch games in progress, but the gods haven't given us the rule book. All we can do is try to make sense of the play by following the fate of individual pieces and working out the rules from there. For example, experience suggests that a species that was formerly widespread, but is now limited to a few individuals living in isolated pockets, is very probably in crisis. Unless something radical is done, in all likelihood this species will shortly disappear. But what, exactly, do we need to do? Tremendous efforts have been mounted to stabilize declining populations of species believed to be in imminent danger of extinction. In some cases, intervention and careful management have brought species back from the brink of extinction (see Bald Eagle, and American Bison). In other cases, despite enormous investments of time, money, and expertise, the species remain perched on a razor's edge (see California Condor). I cannot significantly improve on the assertion that it simply is proper for us, as intelligent members of the universe, to try to look after our fellow creatures, and evil for us to do otherwise. -- Colin Tudge, 1992 Last Animals at the Zoo Endangerment is everyone's problem. This Expedition presents an ample cross-section of the conservation challenges we are facing. However, trying to understand how the natural world operates is never an easy task. The effort to do so has been compared to watching a celestial chess game, played by the gods. We are allowed to watch games in progress, but the gods haven't given us the rule book. All we can do is try to make sense of the play by following the fate of individual pieces and working out the rules from there. For example, experience suggests that a species that was formerly widespread, but is now limited to a few individuals living in isolated pockets, is very probably in crisis.

Ethical Enviromental Issues

â€Å"Ethics is the study of the choices people make regarding right and wrong† (Ruggiero, 2008). Environmental ethics, it is more of a study about moral relationships of human beings to, and also the value and moral status of, the environment and its nonhuman contents. Humans have been sharing our lives with nature for many of years; we have to make many ethical decisions with respect to the environment everyday. We have been concentrating on finding ways and ideas to make our lives easier. Over time we have forgotten to take in the immoral consideration of what we might be doing to our environment itself. In the past, future and even present, there have been many controversial issues on environmental ethics that need to be answered. There are environmental issues affecting our world today such as deforestation and pollution. These problems have even begun to affect us at a global scale and not only have we put ourselves in grave peril but we have also managed to endanger every other species that exist on earth. As noted by Yamamoto (2001), â€Å"In Buddhism, human life, and other forms of life are regarded as being of the same matter. Therefore, since they are always related to living things, Buddhism regards environmental problems as essentially an issue of ethics. † There are many environmental issues that need to be taken care of as soon as possible. One issue would have to be deforestation. For years we as humans have depended on trees as a resource to our everyday life. We have built homes, paper, and many other products from this precious resource. If the forest provided us with low cost homes and so many good resources, why is it an ethical issue or problem? This is a problem because deforestation destroys not only forests but also reduces the biodiversity, which means a reduction in the amount, as well as variation of, living things which can cause havoc on whole ecosystems. † â€Å"The cutting down of tropical rain forests is particularly detrimental to wildlife and other living things. â€Å" (Yamamoto, 2001) We have been so concern in finding different ways to make our lives easier. Pollut ion is another issue that is affecting our environment. Pollution is killing off our wild life each and everyday. We as humans must take control of this problem very quickly. With so much pollution we are killing plants, animals, polluting our water, and causing the depleting of the Ozone layer. I once had to do a project about the effects of The Morris J. Berman oils spill of the coast of the Escambron beach in the island of Puerto Rico. From the pictures that I saw, I can say that I had never seen a more horrendous sight. This beautiful blue beach whose waters had turned into a murky black and filled with dead fish covered in oil. The damage was vey overwhelming especially. I will never forget the awful pictures of so many animals suffocating with the poisonous oil. Luckily this problem has been dealt with by the government for many years and they have found many solutions to ensure that these disasters do not repeat themselves. This is a great example of how government involves itself in Environmental Ethics. It was evident to every one the damage and the horror that was inflicted on nature by this human mishap. It is a fact that the government had always prioritized the restoration of the ocean that was damaged by the barge when it crashed and destroyed the homes to a vast number of oceanic wildlife. Last year the government of Puerto Rico was compensated with $10 million for damages caused by the oil spill almost 14 years ago. These funds will be used to build an artificial coral reef and a shore line nature reserve (Michael Melia, FoxNews. com, 2007). Our rain forests and the tribes that live in there are being affected by this pollution and deforestation also. â€Å"The Kayapo are an indigenous group of Indians living in the rainforest of Brazil. The dominant ecosystems are tropical rainforest and grassland in which the Kayapo hunt, fish, and practice Sweden agriculture (slash and burn). (Goodale, 2004) Their way of life is being threatened by pollution, land grabs, and dams. There are many environmental ethics at stake. The first problem was the pollution from agricultural runoffs from acres of soybean and cattle just outside the boundaries of the Kayapo Indians. The pollution from the headwaters of the Xingu downriver flowed down to the Kayapo Indians, contaminating water supplies and food resources. The second issue was land invasion. â€Å"Parts of the east bank of the Middle Xingu called Kapotnhinore are being illegally invaded and sold. This is creating a hostile, dangerous environment and also blocking river travel. (Goodale, 2004) The last issue not only affects the Kayapo Indian but also affects the rainforest that they live in. According to Goodale (2004), the Brazilian government has revived plans for several hydroelectric dams along the Xingu River. â€Å"The proposed project would displace Kayapo from their homes, because a loss of sustenance for those living downstream, disturb fish populations, and damage terrestrial ecosystems† (Goodale, 2004). In a situation like this, there are many views from both sides. Some people believe that this is just wrong to disrupt a tribe’s natural way of life. If you take the river that they solely depend this will hurt their way of living. Some people think that proposed plan should go forward. Some believe that the dams will regulate the flow of water which will help prevent flooding and dry seasons and that the creation of the hydroelectric dams will create a clean source of electricity for millions. With an ever growing population, it does not make economic sense to have 28. 4 million acres set aside for only 5,000 people. When thinking about environmental ethics, there are many consequences that humans have to take in account. Some are good and some are bad. Weighing the consequences of the dam project, is it ethically right to proceed with the project? Personally, I do not think it is right. Although the dam can produce electricity for many people, many others are being displaced from their homes without any compensation. I think that there are many other alternatives in creating electricity without displacing the Kayapo Indians. This is not my decision to make. If these issues are not dealt with in time, they could lead to severe consequences such as the extinction of many species of both flora and fauna, and the dilapidated conditions of different habitats. Many people manage to go carefree through life; unconcerned of the harmful changes that are inflicting upon our environment. It is imperative that we come to the understanding that even if humans are the dominant species on the planet; the earth does not solely belong to us but to other life forms. Even though many of our ethical views on Environmental issues are Anthropocentric as mentioned by Andrew Brennan and Yeuk- Sze Lo (Environmental Ethics, January 3, 2008), we as the primary species have a responsibility not only towards the environment but we also have a moral commitment towards every other species that share our world with us. We are the only species capable of reasoning and reflection on ethical matters, thus giving all moral debate a definite â€Å"human-centeredness. † Personally I believe that perhaps it is exclusively up to us humans to deal with these issues immediately. The survival of all other species is imperative; especially when the truth is that we are the causes of many of the planet’s damages. Many of the social and ethical obligations we have towards the planet consist primarily of extending our moral standing beyond human centeredness. Humans must come to terms that we are just a fraction of living beings in this vast world and we must care for our planet and the respect the other living creatures that live on it also. Many people do genuinely feel that it is our moral duty to preserve every aspect of beauty in nature by treating wildlife of all species with a â€Å"Big brother complex. † I also believe that there are many human factors that are helping humans to become more aware of our duties towards helping the environment. We live in a time of great social turmoil and strife between nations. Many recognize an imminent doom to our species bordering a not so distant future. It is only logical that many humans are trying to get back in touch with nature, as if looking for a sense of innocence that one looses as a child. This is an innocence that was lost when man became careless with its potential to create and better his way of life. This mindset is becoming mixed and intertwined with the current growing consciousness that our world is changing and it might be too late to bring it back to the way it was. It is important that humans begin to take action by engaging ethical protocols that concern our environment. In my recent research, I have found that the existence of solid Environmental Ethics is vital for a shift in a social mindset towards awareness on the subject uphold. These rules of conduct and the values they signify must be maintained primarily by the people, the government, and the branches of science that study global and geological issues. Professor Alasdair Cochrane of the London School of Economics and Political Science writes, â€Å"First of all, environmental ethics needs to be and will be informed by changes in the political efforts to ameliorate environmental problems. Environmental ethics concerns formulating our moral obligations regarding the environment. While this enterprise can be, and often is, quite abstract, it is also meant to engage with the real world†¦ However, without the participation of so many large polluters, with the agreed reductions in greenhouse gas emissions so small, and with many countries looking like they may well miss their targets, many commentators already regard it as a failure. Ethicists need to respond not just by castigating those they blame for the failure. Rather they must propose alternative and better means of resolving the problems we face. † (Alasdair Cochrane, Environmental Ethics, 2007) Society of today has forgotten the importance and seriousness on environmental ethics. The consequences of our actions are affecting our future very rapidly. We humans are so consumed and focused on different ways that will make our lives so simple, that we ignore the fact of taking action in finding other methods in utilizing our resources better. Our children will be the ones affected and so will nature itself. Animals will be extinct in our children’s time and the world will gradually lose all its natural resources because we never thought to conserve source of electricity for millions. With an ever growing population, it does not make economic sense to have 28. 4 million acres set aside for only 5,000 people. Social involvement is also vital when addressing these environmental issues. It is important that environmental concerns are discussed in educational institutions as with the inclusion of dynamic exercises that can benefit both the student who is learning to tackle ecological concerns and nature itself. During my elementary school days, my school would organize supervised visits to beaches and other natural locations where we would engage in cleaning and picking up garbage left by campers and beach goers. This was very helpful towards our city. This type of dynamic disciplined helped us in knowing that even if we did not put this garbage there, we definitely have the power to preserve the beauty of this environment. I think that this is a very decent value that should be taught to kids who are currently developing an ability to question why things are as they are. It will not only teach them to preserve our planet, but it will also help them appreciate how very nourishing this world is to us. This may also help mold them into some very sanitary adults. It is very important that the scientific community should be concerned with environmental issues also. Scientific perspectives can not only help us to understand better what is happening to our environment, but it will also permit us to find better solutions to these problems. Professor Alasdair mentions in his work that, â€Å"Environmental ethics will of course be informed by our scientific understanding of the environment. Whether it is changes in our understanding of how ecosystems work, or changes in the evidence concerning the environmental crisis, it is clear that such change will inform and influence those thinkers writing on our environmental obligations. † (Alasdair Cochrane, Environmental Ethics, 2007) I honestly believe that we, as humans, are advancing towards a time of global awakening and consciousness. Due to the fact that we think that there is nothing seriously wrong with our environment due to the cruel treatment we have inflicted on it for the past hundred years. Still, we are not late in focusing on these problems by establishing new lines of thought on our ethical and moral obligation towards the environment. By exploring the options that are needed to prevent future damages to our environment, we will be able to save not only ourselves as a species, but also the many other forms of life that inhabit our fertile earth. It is also very important that we apply ethical and philosophical values to the way we interact with our planet. This is a requirement that men and women who are willing to become advocates of this cause, by thinking and analyzing what is the problem that if being faced, and what is must we resort to as a solution to that problem. Governments have begun to embrace this and so have many other corporate institutions and social groups. We hold the fate of our future in our hands. So it is up to us humans to choose in which direction to steer our fates and the fates of all living creatures on earth. In conclusion, I do believe that ethics plays a major part in the solving our environmental issues. When people are contemplating obligations towards the environment and making judgments on policies and procedures, ethics often come into the picture. When members of society are determining responsibility for future generations, morality is often a factor and ethics could be a component of the process. How do we answer the question; â€Å"What are the guidelines for farmers that use chemicals to fertilize their fields, when that water may eventually make its way to a water source? † Ethics are part of answering this question. Where things have not been solved, more issues are stacking on them day by day. Environmental Ethics is a very important field. It continues to supply humans with valuable information on current environmental issues to which society needs to react swiftly. These reactions will provide critical information to address the issues at hand. Societies need to make good decisions and those decisions will have ethics at their root. Personal thoughts and opinions, and ultimately decisions, will shape the environment for generations to come. We as people can make this world a better place to live.