Reflection on Today’s Society Essay

Online education has evolved over the last ten years as much as the cell phone. Given this, what have been some of the major improvements and changes in the digital classroom? Online education has come a very long way to where we were 10 years ago. Now you can achieve your whole degree online without ever going to a classroom. Online education now days let’s everyone work at their own pace. This is a very good system for the people that have a full-time job and have a family to take care of when they get off work. Once your able to get all your work and family time done you are able to sit in front of your computer and work as much as you want on your school work. Online education has helped so many people achieve their goal of receiving their degree that weren’t able to do it due to â€Å"not having time†. Cyber bullying is a serious issue in today’s schools and business. If everyone adopted and educated people on netiquette guidelines would this issue be solved? Explain. Cyber bullying is and has been an issue now days due to the technology and the fact that kids are more on computers in social website such as Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, etc. If more people were educated on cyber bullying and the effects that it has on the people being bullied, it would make a difference and there will be less cyber bullying. Too many people’s self-esteem are lowered and even lowered so much it will eventually lead to a suicide. It is sad that somebody could have an effect on somebody to drive them to take their own life. Cyber bullying needs to be educated to all people of all ages. It will make a big difference and make people open their eyes and realize how severe the situation can be. If I post a poem on my Facebook site and someone cuts and pastes it on their site is that a case for stealing my intellectual property? If you do post a poem or anything on Facebook that become visible to everyone out there. Even though you have created a poem that will not stop anybody from taking it and using it as their own. I can understand if you have copyrights to your work but if you do not than anybody is able to use it without any consequences. Granted it is morally wrong to use anybody else’s work without their permission or not giving them the credit they deserve. What that person did was wrong by taking somebody else’s work, but you at the same time need to be aware and safe about what you post on Facebook. To answer the question, Yes, it would be consider stealing intellectual property but like I said if  there are no copyright’s than there is nothing you can do about it.

Performance Appraisal Essay

Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is a dramatic play that epitomizes the sacrificial role of women, parental and filial obligations, and the unreliability of appearances. The play illustrates the story of the Helmers family, introducing the role and purpose of each character. Moreover the play shows the advantages and limitations of the dramatic form. First and foremost, Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House shows the different advantages of the dramatic forms. These advantages give appeal to its audience. One of these advantages is the use of social interaction skills. With dramatic plays, one an enhance his/ her ability to interact to others, the way he/ she talks, and the way he/ she deliver his/her lines or part. Another advantage is the language development. The vocabulary is more improved in most dramatic play. Script writers often use words that are easy to understand but in addition, they also include new words that maybe new to the audiences’ hearing. Vocabulary is not the only part that is improved; sentence structuring is as well developed. In dramatic forms, organization of words is highly different. The third advantage of dramatic forms is the use of symbols. In literature, symbolism is very important. Symbols make the story more understandable for the audience or readers. Symbols are the objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas and concepts. Lastly in dramatic forms, fantasy and reality are mixed together. Sometimes fantasy is being turned to reality and on the other hand reality is being turned to fantasy. However, A Doll’s House doesn’t only show the advantages of the dramatic forms, it also shows its limitations. These limitations sometimes let the audience want for more. Dramatic forms that are not detailed like Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House turn off the audiences’ ppetite. Oftentimes plays are being summarized, script writers do not include unnecessary details, and they only write what is needed and appropriate for the play. They do not give the audience the whole picture, hence they let the audience think of their own conclusion in some part. In addition, plays have limitations on time. Script writers avoid the audience to get bored, so they avoid long and repetitive scripts. Also plays like this are confusing, since script writers do not give the whole picture to the audience; confusion starts to arise in the middle of the play. Summing up, Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House shows the advantages and limitations of the dramatic forms. Advantages such as language development and use of symbols make dramatic forms more understandable and interesting. Therefore, these advantages help the audience to be more comfortable and attached to the story. On the other hand, the play also illustrates the limitation of dramatic forms.

Thorn Queen Chapter Twenty-Three

There is no real way to describe rape. Sex with Kiyo or Dorian, the men I loved†¦well, I could have described that for hours in exquisite detail. I could have elaborated on the way they stroked my hair or the way their lips touched my skin. Even with Dean-my cheating bastard ex-sex had still had its share of affection and joy, back when things had been good between us. There was none of that with Leith. Well, not on my part, at least. And I think that's what made it especially bad. For him, with his crazy infatuation, it really was an act of love. He visited me often over the next few days, and each time he took me against my will, he'd tell me he loved me and attempt some sort of gentleness and affection. The horrible part was, I couldn't even resist that. It barely required any force on his part to make me submit. Honestly, I wished it had been violent. I wished he'd been cruel and brutal. I'd spent my life in fights, dealing with pain and blows. There would have been something comfortingly familiar about that, like it was just another battle for me. The twisted love he showed for me during each act of rape, however†¦well, that made it harder to bear. In that time, I only saw Art once. Abigail checked on me a number of times, and I learned that it was she who mixed the nightshade, though Leith had taught her the recipe. Cariena was the one I saw the most. She seemed to have been installed as the live-in maid and occasional sex toy for visiting guys. When I arrived, there had been three other gentry girls, but Isanna-the one I'd heard mentioned that first day-left shortly. She was very pretty, and Abigail seemed particularly happy at the price she'd gotten for her. The other two were stunning as well, and they seemed to glumly accept that their time would come. They faced it without much emotion or protest, like condemned criminals going to the gallows. Mostly, their faces were like pieces of a dream. I was kept so heavily drugged that my moments of clarity were few-though the drugs never made me forget what Leith did. None of the other girls had to be drugged; the iron was enough for them. Cariena told me, however, that when other women had required the nightshade, they hadn't taken nearly as much as me. Art and Abigail were too afraid of me getting loose, so they gave it to me more frequently than usual. â€Å"When will you know?† Leith demanded one day. He had just arrived and stood outside my room, arguing with Abigail. The door was ajar. â€Å"I thought you people had the ability to tell this kind of thing.† â€Å"We can,† snapped Abigail. â€Å"But not this soon. You've probably got to wait at least two weeks. Besides, you don't seem to mind passing the time that much.† The sneer in her voice came through loud and clear. I made a mental note to choke the life out of that bitch. Leith, however, didn't sound so happy. â€Å"Two weeks is a long time. I need to bring her back pregnant before anyone finds her! They're looking for her. She has powerful allies. Her people are loyal, and both the Oak King and the Willow Queen have taken up the search.† Dorian's dedication didn't surprise me, and knowing he was working to find me gave me the first hope I'd had in a while. But Maiwenn, too? Had that been Kiyo's doing? Or truly her own kindness? â€Å"I don't care about your tree-based monarchs,† said Abigail impatiently. â€Å"Nobody would think to look for her here.† â€Å"She suspected before. She told others. Someone could scry for her.† â€Å"They won't find her. Scrying won't work. Not with the wards here. Now why don't you stop whining and just get in there and do your business so this won't be a problem. She's almost due for her next dose.† I decided wringing her neck wasn't slow and painful enough. Yet, their words had given me a lot to think about. There was a search on, enough of one that Leith feared discovery. Her mentioning the wards had reminded me of when I'd sent Volusian here. Volusian†¦there was an option I hadn't considered yet. I could summon Volusian to me and have him warn the others. The wards were a problem. He couldn't break them on his own, but if I was calling him, the ties that bound us would be enough to pull him through. If I could muster the energy to do it. The iron and nightshade affected the gentry part of my magic. My shamanic powers, the ones I'd used for years, were tied into my strength and will-which I didn't have a lot of lately. That being said, I felt more coherent now than I had in a while-which was still pretty addled. Abigail had said it was almost time for my next dose. I had to imagine the further from the dose I got, the more its effects would dim. Cariena had said most people didn't take as much, which probably meant the nightshade would still stay in my system awhile. But if I could reach a point when its effects were lessened†¦ My brainstorming was halted as Leith entered. Consternation from his argument with Abigail showed on his face, but it soon transformed to a smile when he saw me. â€Å"Eugenie†¦you look so pretty today.† Yes, yes, I'd heard it all before. I was so beautiful, so amazing, a jewel among women that he loved so much. His words irritated me as much as insults would have. I'd been put in an ivory damask dress today, which gave me sickening bridal associations. He looked me over, and his admiration again changed to a frown. I was lying on the bed, one hand cuffed to the headboard. â€Å"What's this?† he asked. â€Å"Why did they do that?† â€Å"I was a smartass to Abigail. This was her punishment.† His face darkened further as he sat on the bed. â€Å"I don't like that†¦don't like her doing that. But, Eugenie, you have to admit you bring it on yourself†¦.† Oh, Leith. He was so lucky I could barely lift my free arm, or I would have punched that pretty face of his. He peered at me intently. â€Å"You have to get pregnant soon.† â€Å"It's not something I can really control,† I said. Well, I could have controlled not getting pregnant if I was still on the pill. I hadn't taken it in†¦how many days? Three? Four? I wasn't sure how long I'd been here. I knew all the stats, though, about women who'd gotten pregnant from just missing one pill†¦. He sighed and began unlacing the bodice of my dress. â€Å"We'll just have to keep trying then. If we just wait a little while afterward, I can do it twice today.† Oh, how fucking lovely. I wanted to explain that it wouldn't matter how many times he did it, not if I wasn't ovulating. That kind of science was lost on him, I knew, alleged genius or no. As far as most gentry were concerned, sex equaled babies, end of story. â€Å"Once it's done, we can go home. We'll get married, and you won't have to be restrained like this anymore. You can move freely and use your magic.† I decided not to mention that if we did that, the first thing I'd do with my magic was make sure I was a widow. â€Å"Things'll be good then,† he said, moving his body over mine. â€Å"I promise. I love you so much†¦.† I didn't need any nightshade to make me feel numb after Leith left. He'd held good to his word to have sex twice, and I was slowly reaching that point where it just didn't matter. I couldn't feel anything. My body wasn't even attached to my consciousness. It was like my mind existed elsewhere, dreaming or, occasionally, plotting my revenge through the drugged haze. I thought of anything I could-anything that wasn't the violation of my body-while he was on top of me. Usually, I imagined it was happening to someone else and not me. That made it easier to bear until after he left, when the ache inside reminded me that it had indeed been me. Cariena and another girl arrived shortly thereafter to give me my next dose of nightshade. I couldn't recall the other girl's name, though not for lack of caring. It was just the way my brain worked lately. She was extremely pretty, with curly black hair and sky blue eyes that reminded me of Ysabel's. Abigail occasionally let the girls administer the nightshade, confident enough in her hold over them to do it. And her confidence was well-founded. I'd tried before to talk them out of it, but their fear of her was too great. This time, I merely attempted a delay. â€Å"Wait,† I said, as they leaned over. It looked like the black-haired girl was going to hold me down while Cariena poured. â€Å"Let me just talk to you for a minute.† Cariena immediately grew nervous. â€Å"Your majesty, we can't†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Sometimes I found her use of my title endearing. Other times, I thought it was a joke, considering my present situation. â€Å"Just a minute. That's all.† â€Å"Let her,† said the other girl. I flashed her a grateful smile. â€Å"What's your name again?† â€Å"Markelle.† It sounded familiar. Markelle. I would remember this time. I wanted to treat her as a person, not an object. â€Å"Look, I just want to know about the nightshade. How often do I take it?† â€Å"Every six hours,† said Cariena, still clearly worried about this delay. â€Å"That's twice as often as they usually give it,† added Markelle. And with those words, I saw the slightest flash of bitterness in her eyes, the first I'd seen in any girl. I wondered then if she was one of the other â€Å"difficult† ones that Cariena had described, one who had to be drugged as well and eventually subdued. â€Å"Is there any way†¦is there any way you guys could, like, dilute it?† There it was, the big question. Cariena gasped, but Markelle readily answered. â€Å"No, your majesty. Abigail makes it herself and makes sure we come straight here. There's no opportunity.† â€Å"Where? Where does she make it?† â€Å"In the kitchen. She has the ingredients set aside and makes a fresh batch every day.† â€Å"What else is in it? Aside from the nightshade?† Markelle looked at Cariena expectantly. Cariena gulped, and it took her several seconds to answer. She rattled off a list of herbs, some of which I knew, some of which were unfamiliar. They probably had different names in the Otherworld. â€Å"Do Abigail and Art ever eat here? Like, do they cook? Is their kitchen stocked?† Markelle nodded. â€Å"But we never prepare the food-it's always them.† She was quick-minded; she'd probably thought I was going to suggest poison. Not a bad idea, really. â€Å"Are there any ingredients in the nightshade mix that look like other herbs they might have in the kitchen?† Both girls looked confused. â€Å"I've seen no other herbs,† said Cariena. â€Å"You have freedom of the house.† I knew most girls stayed in the basement, though. â€Å"The next time they're not around, go through the cupboards. If their kitchen's stocked, they must have a spice rack.† A knock sounded at the door. â€Å"What's taking so long?† Abigail called. â€Å"See if any spices look like the ones in the potion,† I hissed as the doorknob turned. â€Å"Swap them.† Abigail entered just as Markelle held me down. Cariena poured while Abigail watched with a critical eye. â€Å"You're too slow,† snapped the shaman. â€Å"She needs this regularly.† Both girls groveled, bowing their heads deferentially. â€Å"Forgive us,† said Cariena. I knew her contrition wasn't faked. â€Å"It won't happen again.† Abigail rolled her eyes. â€Å"Stupid girls. I'll have to do it myself next time.† The instant effect that damned potion always had began to run through me. The familiar blackness swept over me, and I slept. Another day went by. Leith â€Å"visited,† and the girls apparently hadn't taken my advice on the nightshade because my six-hour cycle repeated as usual. Abigail usually came with one of the girls now, apparently not trusting them anymore. Art came once as well, and a few caustic comments from me earned me another cuffed hand. I began to understand the roles they played. Both participated in the brokering and sale of the girls. Art helped Leith's men catch the girls and offered his home-the one I'd once thought too large for a guy like him-as their prison. Abigail seemed to handle the day-to-day affairs of taking care of the girls, and it occurred to me one day that those handcuffs at her place hadn't been part of anything kinky. They'd been part of her arsenal for this hellhole, and I suspected the trip to see her â€Å"sister† that day had probably been to deliver some poor girl to her new owner. I cringed at what that car ride must have been like. For a gentry to be surrounded in all that metal and technology†¦it would have been awful for her. Leith was getting dressed after one of his conjugal visits one day. I was close enough to my next nightshade dose that I was able to shoot him looks of contempt-ones he didn't notice. He seemed particularly excited. â€Å"It's been a week,† he said. â€Å"One more week, and Abigail says we can test to see if you're carrying my child.† He pressed a kiss to my forehead. â€Å"I can feel it, Eugenie. I know we've done it.† There was no â€Å"we† in sexual assault, but again, I found it easier just to remain silent lately. It usually made him leave that much more quickly, which then left me alone with my thoughts and my aching body. Sometimes after he visited, my body would feel so violated and dirty that I'd hate it. Then I'd remember that none of this was the fault of my body or me. It was Leith. Shortly after his departure that day, Abigail and Markelle came in with my next dose. I'd heard talk that Markelle had a buyer. Her days really were numbered now, and I felt bad for her, this girl who'd once fought back against her captors. I was so used to the nightshade by now that they almost didn't need to hold me down anymore to force me to take it. It was a bit disheartening that I felt that way now and wondered if I too was on my way to that sad resignation everyone else had. The two of them left, and I lay there, waiting for the unconsciousness that always followed. It usually lasted an hour or so before I came to and lived in my fuzzy state until the next dose. Sure enough, I started to feel a little tingly†¦but no sleepiness followed. I lay there, scarcely daring to breathe. After falling drearily into a strict regimen, any sort of change was a shock to my system. I waited and waited. No unconsciousness. My blurry, addled state didn't disappear, but it didn't get any worse than when I was due for my next dose. Holy shit. One of them had done it. One of those girls had swapped out the nightshade tincture's ingredients. Who? I would have wagered money on Markelle over timid Cariena. Markelle occasionally had that rebellious spark in her eyes, despite her docile behavior, and her impending sale would be serious motivation. She was from the Thorn Land too-my subject. Sometimes I got the feeling that she truly believed her queen could get her out of this. But did I? I still didn't know if I could get myself out of this. My weapons were long since gone, and I didn't think I had the strength to launch a physical attack on Abigail or Art. My door was kept locked, so there was no prowling for me. Gingerly, I sat up. The world shifted as usual, but again, not like it normally would have post-potion. What to do with this freedom? I had no guarantees my next dose wouldn't be the usual stuff. That gave me six hours, and the further that time progressed, the better shape I'd be in. I would have given anything for a clock or even a glimpse of the sun. I needed to track the time, waiting until the last possible moment for my strength to be at its peak. It looked like I'd have to wing it and hope my guess was right. For a moment, panic washed over me. There seemed no obvious options, and I didn't know how fast the potion would let up. Anyone could walk right in at any time. Leith could come in. Leith†¦With some of that fuzziness gone from my head, the memories of what he'd done to me came through more sharply, and my fear grew- No! I swiftly ordered myself not to think about any of that. Not Leith. Not overwhelming odds. I needed to think only of escape, and for that, I needed to start with small details. I'd been good today-no bindings. And with the nightshade, no one felt the need to give me iron bracelets like the girls. That meant no blocking of my magic, short of the potion. Somehow, I doubted I'd have the power in six hours to blow this place up with a mini-hurricane. What did that leave me? Hopefully physical stamina†¦and with it†¦my shamanic powers? Now the countdown began. The minutes were agony, particularly since I had no way to count them. At first, I just attempted general counting in my head, but that grew tedious. I had nothing to do but wait and gauge my own body's recovery. And recover it did. Oh, I was a long way from being able to kick anyone's ass, but my wits grew a little clearer. Standing and moving didn't hurt much either. Finally, I decided it was now or never. I had to take my gamble. Maybe it was well before the six hours, but I couldn't risk going over. It would have been easier with my wand, candles, and other accoutrements. What I had to do wasn't impossible, though. I turned off the lights, plunging me into darkness, and sat on the bed cross-legged. â€Å"Volusian,† I said softly. â€Å"By the ties that bind, I summon you to come to me and obey my commands.† Weak as I was, I felt my will go out, stretching beyond the worlds to my minion. At first, I thought it was useless-then, I felt it. The slightest twitching of our bond. I gritted my teeth, drawing all the strength I could. â€Å"I summon you,† I growled. â€Å"Obey me and come.† For a moment, I thought I'd failed. Then, a coldness filled the room, and red eyes burned before me. Seeing them in the blackness was too scary, and I stumbled up to turn the lights back on. â€Å"My mistress returns,† he said. â€Å"Or rather, I return to my mistress.† I didn't need to see the slight curling of the spirit's lips to know my hold on him was tenuous. It was like a fragile string of silk, ready to snap at any moment. Bringing him here, through those worlds, had sapped more of me than I thought imaginable. I still held him, but for the first time in the years I'd enslaved him, the full realization of just how powerful-and dangerous-he was hit me. â€Å"I have tasks for you,† I said sternly. I could show no weakness. He took a few steps toward me. â€Å"My mistress is bold to say so. You can barely maintain the bond between us as it is.† â€Å"I can hold this bond until the end of time. Now, you will obey me.† And almost before I saw what was happening, his clawed hands were around my neck-cold, cold. So cold that they burned. â€Å"I have waited for this for so long,† he hissed. â€Å"So long for you to weaken so that I may finally kill you and make you suffer the way you have tormented me these years, enslaving me and sending me to do your menial errands.† I couldn't even manage a scream, not with the way his hands were cutting off my air. I could only manage something that was half-grunt and half-gasp. Desperately, desperately, I fought him mentally. I was one of the most powerful shamans in the world. I could control wayward spirits. I could enslave them easily. I'd once had a host of them. I could fight this. â€Å"You will feel pain like you have never dreamed possible,† he continued. â€Å"You will beg for death, beg for dismemberment†¦for even that would be easier than the agony I will inflict on you.† Everyone had warned me so many times about keeping Volusian. What if your control slips? they had all asked. Dorian had even offered to help banish him to the Underworld for good. I had laughed the worries off. I was strong. Even after a battle like I'd had with the fire demons, maintaining that link to Volusian was practically subconscious. But now†¦now, this was different. â€Å"You are losing it-the bonds are nearly broken. In a few heartbeats, your control will be gone†¦.† No! I couldn't speak a response, but the words in my mind burned. I would not lose this. I would not lose control of him. Wrenching up the last scraps of my strength was like ripping my own heart out. You will obey me! Back off! The world started to sparkle as my air grew less and less, and then-he did back off. His eyes blazed with malice. He'd been so, so close, and we both knew it. My control now was still a tenuous thing, and I had to hope I would recover my strength soon and solidify my grasp. â€Å"You will obey me,† I said in a thin voice. â€Å"You will not harm me.† â€Å"As my mistress commands.† But I could tell from his voice that he didn't believe this would last, that he was biding his time. Meanwhile, I was running out of time to decide what to do, not only because I didn't know if he'd break free again but also because Abigail could be here at any moment. My initial instinct was to tell him to simply get me out of here. But if that command took the last of my strength, he could easily kill me once we were out. And even if I made it out, what about the girls? I couldn't rescue them on my own. How long until Markelle disappeared? No, I needed to kick Volusian out of the house. If I didn't summon him back, those wards would keep me safe. I needed to send him for help, and that choice had to be a wise one. â€Å"Leave this house. Go to Dorian,† I said. I drew upon that fleeting strength of mine to enforce the order. â€Å"I command you. Go to Dorian and tell him where I'm at. Exactly where I'm at.† I could have sent him to Kiyo. Kiyo knew where this house was. But if the effort of these commands was enough to finally shatter my hold on Volusian, Dorian might be able to bind him back. It would be better than Volusian running loose. That, of course, depended on whether my order was strong enough to even get Volusian to Dorian to deliver the message. My first command had been to get Volusian out of the house and keep me behind the wards. If that was all I could manage, Volusian would no longer be bound to obey. He has to, I thought desperately. He has to get to Dorian†¦. â€Å"Go!† I ordered harshly. â€Å"As you command.† Volusian vanished, eyes narrowed, confident our bond was about to break. As soon as he was gone, I fell onto the bed, nearly ready to pass out. Would it work? Or had I just broken the last fragments of our bond? I was too afraid to reach out and test the link. I didn't have the strength. The door suddenly unlocked. Nightshade time. With a sickening thought, I realized that if it was the original kind, I would almost certainly lose that control of Volusian. If it was Markelle's decoy, I could hold onto my strength. Abigail entered, a cup in hand and Markelle in her wake. The gentry girl's eyes were down, her whole posture meek. I bit my lip at their approach, waiting to see what my future held.

Entertainment Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Entertainment Law - Essay Example The prime intention of the law concerning intellectual property is to defend the producers along with other creators involved in making intellectual based goods or services through providing them with certain time-restricted rights. The law relating to intellectual property aims at fostering fair trade which would in turn contribute towards making superior financial along with social advancements by a significant level (WIPO, n.d.). Discussion In order to determine the impact of intellectual property law upon the organisers, participants and spectators of festivals in the United Kingdom, it can be apparently observed that the aforesaid law supports the development of the UK in terms of encouraging innovation concerning the application of pioneering technologies in any business field. Furthermore, the law relating to IP in the UK tends to lessen the risks involved in inventing as well as generating new products or brands, stimulate innovation and most significantly facilitate greater financial growth at large. Thus, on a positive note, it can be affirmed that IP law plays a decisive role towards the development of the UK by a greater degree (Hargreaves, 2011). It is worth mentioning that IP law can be duly considered as one of the vital areas of business law which largely affects the organisers, participants and the spectators of the festivals in the UK. This can be justified with reference to the fact that there lays several issues related to IP that generally erupt while conducting festivals in the UK. In this regard, one of the crucial IP related issues can be demonstrated as the unofficial recording of any festival performance in the form of photography or sound recordings. From the viewpoint of the organisers relating to IP law, the protection of IP at any festival by adopting as well as executing effective IP tools comprising copyright, trademarks and performers’ rights can affect or impose extensive impact especially upon the organisers of festival s in the UK by a certain degree. In relation to the participants, the IP law can affect them in terms of providing warning to them and the media regarding the aspect that the traditional knowledge of the performances along with the displays of the participants are not adapted or copied without prior approval of the participants. In addition, it can be stated that apart from the organisers as well as the participants, the IP law also affects the spectators of festivals in the UK by a significant level. This can be justified with reference to the fact that the prohibition of taking the photographs of the participants who perform in the festivals might affect the spectators in the UK by a certain degree. As the spectators possess the desire to have a close view of their respective favourite participants in the form of performers, the restriction towards not providing such facility might eventually affect the spectators of festivals in the UK at large (Janke, 2009). Conclusion Thus, on the basis of the above discussion, it can be affirm

An investigation on consumer perception and trust in e-banking Literature review

An investigation on consumer perception and trust in e-banking transactions through mobile phone.The case of Lloyds TSB - Literature review Example E-banking is also known as internet banking which is an extension of personal computer banking (Stair & et. al., 2009). E-banking utilises internet as a medium for conducting several banking activities such as money transfer, bill payment, balance observation and purchase of financial products among others. E-banking is the outcome of explored opportunity to utilise internet applications in several fields of banking (Bak & Stair, 2011). According to Fonchamnyo (2012), e-banking has experienced rapid growth and changed the traditional banking practices of customers. This growth can lead to massive shift in banking practices leading to advanced business performance. In fact, e-banking has become a major trend for banks to sell their products and services and is perceived to be an inevitable component or ally for banks to remain profitable and successful. However, the acceptance of e-banking is not even particularly between developed and developing nations. It is believed that the diffe rent perceptions of customers about the use of e-banking result in trust and adoption of e-banking facilities (Scribd, 2013). Mobile banking is a subsection of e-banking which has gained growing popularity amongst numerous segments of society. Mobile banking denotes the provision of banking services with the aid of telecommunication devices (Sarlak & Hastiani, 2010). With the use of mobile technology, banks can provide several services to the customers such as money transfer whilst travelling, obtaining online updates or even conducting stock trading and financial transaction activities while being caught in traffic. Therefore, mobile banking provides convenient, simple and timeless banking experience (Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, 2013). The mobile e-banking phenomenon which can expressively influence banks’ operational efficiency and services, is gaining status in developed nations. However, irrespective of its several advantages, the use of mobile phone in banking ac tivities is still in the beginning phase, particularly in developing nations (Burri & Cottier, 2012). Following the technological developments, mobile phones are permeating in every aspect of life. The quick propagation of mobile phone not only has transformed the manner in which people live, but also has created a new channel for service delivery. The elevated penetration rate of mobile phone has resulted in increased use of mobile devices for the purpose of banking as it adds more value to the customers (Kumar, 2009; IBM Corporation, 2011). The prospect of mobile e-banking relies on customers’ perception. Customers are only willing to conduct mobile e-banking transaction, if they acquire value from it. From the perspective of customers, this value can be defined with respect to customer perception of using a new technology (Yang & Ma, 2012). 2.2 Consumer Perception Theory 2.2.1 Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) On the basis of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) model, the ov erall feeling or attitude towards the utilisation of technology oriented system is a key determinant of adoption of any

Sunset Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sunset - Essay Example The only sound one hears is the splash of water and the signing of birds. Birds are seen that are returning to their nests after struggling for one more day of their survival. One sees them live in present only and this makes an individual wonder how they have no knowledge of their tomorrow and yet they are happy and happier than an individual can ever. One realizes how far we have run from this present in our striving for a better tomorrow. And this sudden realization at a beach is enough to bring a smile on our face. While taking a short walk on the shore when the sun is setting below the horizon, one realizes how one more day of our life has gone by. One wonders what he was when the sun rose today, and what we are now when the sun is setting down. One wonders what have he has achieved and what is the purpose of an individual’s life because this train of thought leads one to the answer of what he wants to achieve. It is the sweet and beautiful moment that an individual actually achieves by visualizing this sunset. The joy of every moment doubles when one shares it with a loved one. There is no place better than a beach and no time better than the sunset to celebrate the mere existence of the significance of another person. It is a perfect time to express one’s feelings and let the other person know how valued they are. Away from the noise of the world, hearts meet right when the sun decides to settle down and the water decides to rise. One realizes how lonely and meaningless the world would be if it was not for our other half. Souls connect when you stand by the seaside, holding hands with your beloved and watching the sun go down. A sunset is not just a sunset. The setting sun, orange sky, signing birds, the sound of water, creates a perfect harmony that soothes an individual’s soul. It is where the relentless mind finds peace,

Handling a Virus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Handling a Virus - Essay Example B cells are also a part of the immune system but are produced in the bone marrow of the subject thus the letter B is used to denote them. Millions of variations of these cells are produced by humans and they circulate the body to produce antibodies once they are activated. A B cell has to come across its respective antigen and on the reception of a chemical signal from a T cell it can change itself to create an immune response. Knowing that HIV enters the body to inject macrophages and CD4+ T cells through glycoproteins on the surface to the receptors on other cells shows us that the Virus is attacking the very cells which could possibly envelop and destroy it (ADARC, 1999). Therefore, we would have to seek out ways in which certain T cells or B cells could be created which recognize what the virus actually is instead of simply attaching themselves to the virus to be destroyed. Since the creation of these T cells requires research on the virus itself, we would require live as well as dead samples of the virus that could be used on various mammals to see how their bodies respond to the virus and to see if any particular cells are generated by the subject which could lead to a cure for the virus in the shape of a vaccine. The surface point which would be a good target for the researchers could be the glycoprotein gp120 that normally connects to healthy cells in order to affect and infect them.

Recent cancer research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Recent cancer research - Essay Example Li C, Heidt DG, Dalerba P et .al (2007) has found that stem cells cause cancer in blood, breast, brain, prostate, ovary .The recent findings on the role of stem cells in causing cancer in pancreas also been stated in the study. In order to determine the mode of therapeutic intervention, it is quite critical to understand and define the specific stem cell where the cancer has originated. The study by Clarke, Michael F., Becker & Michael W (2008) has explained the potential of the stem cells in turning malignant and serves as the root of the cause of cancer. Further it has been stated that the stem cells promotes the growth of new cancer cells, and are considered as the origin of malignancy itself. In this regard these cells are termed as cancer stem cells. The study has also suggested the chances of these cells being normal stem cells at the origin or premature stage and they undergoing a malignant transformation in the growth stage. The authors urge the need for an accurate understanding on the transformation process in order to target the precise cancer stem cells in the process of cancer treatment or prevention. It is quite important to characterize and differentiate the normal human stem cells and the cancer initiating cells in order to have further knowledge on cancer therapy. A number of studies have evaluated the role of a number of antibodies on the Normal Stem Cells and the Malignant cells which is capable of Initiating Cancer. Donald J. Vander Griend, Wouter L. Karthaus, Susan Dalrymple, Alan Meeker, Angelo M. DeMarzo and John T. Isaacs have studied the role of the antibody CD 133 in Cancer. The study suggested that Androgen Receptor expressing prostate Cancer-Initiating Cells (CICs) is derived from malignantly transformed intermediate cells. (Donald J et. al, 2008). The importance of identification of stem cells has been asserted by Tuch, Bernard E. The study summarizes that the

Adolescent Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Adolescent - Essay Example The paper will also address some of the areas that a person working with an elderly person should consider. Moreover, the paper will elaborate why these areas can be considered as key issues while working with elderly persons. Lastly, the paper will address alarming issues about a situation whereby a parent neglects a girl aged two years. More specifically, the paper will look into deviations from normal development and the legal, ethical, and procedural responsibilities of a community worker in such a situation. Case Study Question 1 Introduction Teenage years signify the transition from childhood to adulthood; a teenager can be considered as a person who cannot be termed as either a child or an adult. Puberty, which normally starts at the age of 14 years, signals significant changes in physical, cognitive, psychological, social, and emotional aspects. A girl aged fourteen years encounters major hormonal changes, which have an impact on the self image of the teenager, affect moods, the relationship with other people, and the overall outlook that the teenager has about life. A girl aged fourteen years will undergo changes in the named aspects. These changes are as discussed below. Physical Changes According to Rathus (2007), some of the physical changes that can be experienced in a 14-year girl include the development and enlargement of breasts as well as the nipples. The size of breasts becomes larger, signifying the impact of hormones present in the body of the teenage girl. Another physical change that could be experienced in a girl at the age of fourteen years includes growing tall as their hips, legs and thighs become taller. The tone of the voice changes as the voice of the girl becomes high pitched, and the skin also becomes light in color. The girl would also start experiencing acne as the skin becomes oily, thus making the girl prone to having pimples. Another change that could signify deviation from normal growth in a 14-year-old girl includes conside rable weight gain experienced by the girl. The gain in weight for girls usually takes place after the girl experiences the first menstruation. Other changes, which would indicate deviation from the normal, include an increase in height whereby the girl becomes taller than other girls below her age. The girl would also experience physical growth in terms of broadening of shoulders. There would be changes seen in the lower portion of the head, which begins to grow since the nose grows in both length and width and the chin lengthens. Changes in the proportion of the face can also be experienced due to changes attributed to tissue distribution; in a girl aged fourteen years, the contours of both the body and face become round (Malina, Bouchard & Bar-Or, 2004). Psychological Changes As much as puberty contributes to the development of the body, it also impacts on the development of the mind. At the age of fourteen years, a girl may feel the burden of the world on them. The girl loses chi ldhood innocence, thus developing a mind that can process thoughts and concepts that tend to be abstract. Psychologically, the girl strives to find and establish some identity. Psychological changes that the girl will undergo include an increase in self-awareness and development of a feeling of self-consciousness. At fourteen years, the girl will develop the ability to question what happens in the world around her. As a result, they start seeing the bigger picture of life; as a result, they develop a sense of how they want to fit into the bigger picture (Rathus, 2007). Another psychological change that will be experienced in the girl includes feeling sensitive. This emanates from the fact that the girl’

Why did a world capitalist civilization emerge when it did Essay

Why did a world capitalist civilization emerge when it did - Essay Example 165) One word often used in connection with world capitalism in the twenty first century is â€Å"globalization† (Amin, 1997) Other ideologies like socialism or feudalism do exist in areas of the contemporary world but they find themselves surrounded by a network of other nations, states and large commercial organizations which largely dictates how resources are transferred from place to place, and ultimately steers the growth, decline or stability of large areas of the planet. There are local differences, of course, since each country develops out of one of a number of previous older and separate civilizations, but there is a sense in which they also join a coherent, single world-wide capitalist civilisation. Wallerstein describes this as capitalist civilisation as â€Å"universalism through particularism and particularism through universalism† (Wallerstein, 1984, p. 167). He sees its main characteristic as a continuous search for more and more profit to drive more and more growth. This paper traces the origins of modern capitalism civilisation back to its origins in the past. The question to be answered is when and where it originally emerged. One needs only to think of the hand-to-mouth existence of small, isolated and largely rural societies in the Middle Ages to realise what a significant change global capitalism has brought to the world: â€Å"Matters would change dramatically, however, with the violent remaking of the globe that commenced c. 1500 as the Spanish, Dutch, English, and French began seeking their fortunes far beyond their own national domains.† (Bryant: 2006, p. 407). The discovery of new lands full of untapped resources set off a chain reaction that led some two hundred and fifty years later to the industrial revolution. It is clear that capitalist civilisation must have begun after medieval times. Looking back through history it is generally agreed that origins of capitalism as a world civilisation are to be sought in W estern Europe in the period around the middle of the eighteenth century that has come to be called â€Å"The Enlightenment†. Other parts of the world, notably the Ottoman Empire, Persia and Japan were taking steps in the same direction, and some historians such as Pomeranz (2000) and Goody (2004) have argued that there were parallel moves in the direction of capitalism going on in non-European regions. The fact remains, however, that the scale and speed of European industrial expansion and commercial activity dwarfs anything that historians have been able to prove elsewhere. Vast quantities of goods were shipped to and from the colonies that Western Powers set up, specifically for the purpose of supplying industrial needs back home. Even more significant than that was the extent of the stimulus that occurred with the Enlightenment’s focus on science and technology: â€Å"And as economic historians have extensively documented, it was not the comparative cheapness of co lonial resources that provided Europeans with their decisive advantage, but the astounding productivity gains that came with mechanization and the factory organization of labour.† (Bryant: 2006, p. 434) An important first step was the invention of labour saving devices which increased food production in the small farms and fields. This in turn released labour to work in newly constructed factories who processed raw materials for local or European markets. By the middle of the eighteenth century the economies of scale that emerged were able to produce surpluses which were then reinvested to drive forward ever greater productivity. This cycle of development contains the germ of a capitalist culture and so we can conclude that the first stirrings of capitalist civilisation emerged in the mid eighteenth century

The Economic Impacts of Major Sporting Events Essay

The Economic Impacts of Major Sporting Events - Essay Example There are disagreements as well about the relevant economic factors that should be included in the measurements. This paper presents three extensively criticised, but widely used, models of economic impact analysis, namely, (1) social value, (2) economic multipliers, and (3) input-output paradigm. In order to explain the arguments more clearly the discussion includes research findings or case studies on previous sporting events, such as the World Cup and Olympics. Introduction Several economists observe sizeable economic gains from events occurring from the incentives they confer to businesses. State funding of sporting events, though they are unstable, is usually rationalised by the argument that the events generate economic gains for the areas, where in they are held, but that these gains are not completely supported by the economic feasibility of the event itself (Hall 1994). The financial evaluation of the effect of sporting events on the economy is at the root of contentious dis agreements among economists. According to Dwyer and colleagues (2005), arguments put emphasis at the same time on what should be assessed or calculated, and on the best technique for analysing the economic impacts of large-scale sporting events on the community that hosted it. It appears that there is frequently uncertainty between the economic productivity and economic effect of major sporting events. ... The Nature and Economy of Sporting Events Sporting event as a sector of the economy is huge. In the United States, sport was one of its biggest industries in 1995. Moreover, in 1996, the sport sector was measured to be around $100 billion annually, and forecasted to be worth $139 billion by 2000. In 1997, soccer was measured to be $10 billion in Europe (Forster & Pope 2004, 1). This appears likely to be a stark miscalculation when very few associations separately yield roughly $100 million yearly. In 1995, the British Sports Council calculated that it comprises 2.5% of global trade. This number comprises intangibles like royalties and revenues and physical commodities like facilities. There are additional statistics, all inherently incongruent (Forster & Pope 2004, 1). Sporting events yield roughly 1% of local ‘value-added’ and around 1 ?% of employment in the UK. The US Tennis Open in 2000 produced $699 million to the economy of New York (Forster & Pope 2004, 2). Howeve r, the dilemma is that these statistics merely provide peeks of different components of sport. According to Statistics Canada (Forster & Pope 2004, 2): ... the amount of sport data currently available is insufficient to provide a comprehensive profile of the nature, benefits and value of sport... the data that are available are difficult to compare due to conceptual and definitional differences. Sporting events are a branch of what is termed the ‘weightless economy’. For several grounds that are in conflict material physical production has dropped substantially as GDP percentage across the globe—thus the concept of ‘weightless economy’ (Shin 2010, 105). Alan Greenspan focused on the IT sector but a broad transition from

The Internet and the Human Society Essay Example for Free

The Internet and the Human Society Essay Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The growing developments that technology and communications have taken so far have been an essential part of the growing system of technological applications. Along with the technological advancements, the social living of humans also is further enhanced. Both economic and social lifestyles were advancing but there was no rest in incurring the best possible progress that the developers of technological systems wanted. With the introduction of computers to the society, the easier way of living and completing everyday tasks has become a trend for many industrial workers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   With the introduction of the computer technology to the human society during the 19th Century, the works or the tasks of people have been further created with ease. With the implementation of computer systems within the existing systems of completion for human tasks, the jobs of people, which can be merged with technological arrangements, were enhanced to becoming easily completed. Today, 95% of the whole population of man all around the world utilizes the computer systems for their everyday application. Even ordinary appliances are now compiled with complex operating systems based upon computer arrangements to be able to meet the best possible performance that they could render the human society. (Tanenbaum, 2006, 15)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Now, even more complex role is played by the application of operating systems in the daily dealings of people has been introduced. With the development of the communication systems such as the internet, learning from home, using top of the art facilities and technologies became possible for many students who cannot attend universities because of some unavoidable circumstances. Through the existence of the emerging technological innovation on communication and information transfer, everything became possible and available through the Internet. As of the present situation, there are still other innovations that have been affected by the developing Operating Systems. The world trade systems has become more easy for the traders since the Internet systems allow them to connect with others easily and effectively transact with their business partners abroad. (Tanenbaum, 2006, 19)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The introduction of the Internet systems to the world has been noted as one of the most successful breakthroughs that has been attempted, pursued and now fulfilled by the merging of science and technology in increasing the capability of human communication in connecting people together from a worldwide perspective. Years before the said introduction, people simply depended on snail mails and telephone calls to be able to communicate with their loved ones abroad. It could also be remembered that people who had lesser financial resource also have lesser chances of actually meeting foreign friends. Now, all those situations have already changed. The connection of people to people actually managed to step forward to the next level. Most likely enough, the situation of connecting humans from the different parts of the world has already been revolutionized through the development and continuous advancement of the Internet Systems.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Certainly, the entire human systems now mostly depend on the said global connection. Economic and political arrangements are now much more effectively done through the adaptation of the said systems with the arrangements of the Internet instituted within the said human engagements. Overall, seeing the said progress on the positive side would actually suggest the fact that internet arrangements have actually brought the whole human society into the new age of communication and information burst out.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, seeing the balance of the said technological and communication system, it could be noted that the other side of the coin suggests the opposite of the Internet’s positive effects on the human community. There exists several informations that are not necessary to be known by the human society yet they are much accessible for the society such as pornography and fraud. Primarily, fraud actually is noted as one of the most impacting disadvantage of the internet towards the human society. Certainly, there is a certainty that makes this particular act [fraud], a matter of attention among the different sectors of the society. The said fraudulent scams actually made the possibility that at least half of the population in the human community believe that there is a reason that internet systems may not be that advisable for constant and easy public access as some of its systems only victimize technology-fearful individuals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This is the very reason why it is important to understand how the said fraudulent scams actually affects the development of the people in the human communities. It is certain then that these scams should be identified and modified as well to be able to meet the needs of recognizing which kind of procedures are needed to be able to treat this particular disadvantage brought about by the said scams. Internet and the Human Community   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Humanity has always been in constant and insatiable quest for learning and scientific knowledge to use for the betterment and development of their present lives. All the scientific innovations that have been discovered in their quest are then applied in practical usage thus creating the technological advancement system in the humanity. Thus, this new trend of technological development has been created continuously improving the lifestyles and practical processes in the society in almost every aspects of living. However, one social dilemma has been encountered in the course of integrating computing technology in the common practices in the society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The digital divide is mainly the problem arising from the incorporation of computing technology to the society due to the unequal distribution of technology’s access in the public.   Because of this problem, some parts of the society are being left out causing social stratification, technological illiteracy, and unequally distribution of information. If the present society really desires to improve the lifestyles of the public as a whole, the problem of digital divide must be properly addressed thus ending the said division in the society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Since the problem of digital division brought about by unequal access to computing technology post threats to the progress and development of the society as a whole, government and other technological corporation have already started programs and projects to address this dilemma. From their studies and researches, they have determined that to make technology virtually accessible for the public in every level, they must create two major social movements. First, is that they must create community-oriented programs which will promote opportunities for easier access for the public. In addition, this design solution will make technology access truly inclusive by eliminating social and cultural diversity such as lack of education and media illiteracy. Second is that, community technology models must also be created to be use by local public groups to strengthen neighborhoods, educate youth, promote economic development, connect individuals to the social and economic life of the community, and increase participation in civil society (Ba, 2001).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, continuance of the application of these concepts is being hindered by great social and cultural obstacles. Some of these hindrances are the inadequate technology infrastructure in the society, which includes geographical problems regarding the coverage of the technology scope and the limited acquisition ability of the local public for the technology and hardware because of its cost. Another is the cultural barriers regarding the worldwide scope of computing technology thus limiting the access of some of the culture groups to the general technology network. Nevertheless, technology is flexible and adaptable thus it can be adjusted to better suit the needs of even the smallest social groups for technology to be made accustomed to their specific needs.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Thus, computing technology has many advantages and benefits many for the betterment and advancement of the lifestyles and practical processes in the society making it very much valuable for the public. For the public to benefit for this technology, it must be made generally accessible for every people who wish to incorporate the computing technology in his or her lives. The end the dilemma of digital division, technology must be made to be suitable adaptable for the society for it to be able to bridge the gap across the humanity. The Computer and Internet systems that affect the Commercial Developments Spamming in the electronic world is defined to be the abusive and detrimental use of the electronic messaging system. This malicious act has been considered at the present to be a form of violation and an illegal act because of its adverse effects to the electronic media mainly in the massive network in the internet. At the present, many nations have already passing bills and legislation to illegalize this electronic action and large software companies have been developing anti-spam programs to combat and prevent the surge of this unwanted action. However, the number of spammers around the globe is still increasing and the influences of their actions are still being felt in the internet world thus slowing down the efficiency of the electronic processes within the internet society. The problem of spam in the present has been greatly manifesting in the field of unwanted e-mails containing marketing and publication propagandas of profit-oriented business entity.   Flagrant abuse of electronic media is still widely surging thus, society must implement an iron-hand approach in dealing with spammers to halt down their business. Spamming has been an inexpedient act in the electronic world flagrantly using and hacking any available information in the web. This act is originally been created as a form of propagating business thus making it as a form of marketing for commercial entities. In the said aspect, the general theme of spam media is to communicate commercial advertisements and propagandas to attract consumers however, this ideal nature is being crafted away in the present.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Presently, spam now is becoming an obnoxious way of selling and pushing commercialism way to consumers in the electronic world. In ethical aspect, unsolicited or unwanted emails need not to be pushed through anymore however, abusive people still continues to strongly implement this approach thus harming already the electronic world of media in the internet. Large Internet Service Providers are already expressing resentment against this form of marketing because it is already abusive in its form and it is slowing down the information trafficking system in the web. Unwanted mails and solicitations should not be implemented anymore but it is still repetitively done by internet spammers thus wasting significant internet resources on the process.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another unethical aspect of internet spamming   is that the people who practice this approach results to illegal hacking for them to acquire the personal information of their victims.   Because of this, spammers worldwide have indeed questioned the security integrity and reliability in the internet. Another is that electronic spamming have also becomes a tool for the promotion illegal business transactions such as fraud businesses and money scams. With the use of the spamming network, practitioner of illegal acts have acquired significant electronic capabilities to enticed more victims   in the present. Because of these reasons, spamming has become an illegal and wrongful act affecting the world of electronic media in harmful manner thus, a strong response must be implemented to satisfactorily address this problem. Recently, Microsoft has apprehended the Scott Richter, the self-proclaimed spam king in the web for his illegal act of hacking people’s personal information and sending out unwanted and unsolicited emails of all nature to them continuously.   Because of this, it has been determined that the actions of Richter have wasted internet companies significant electronic resources and consumer’s money on fraudulent and fake businesses. Thus, to ensure a satisfactory solution for this problem, the electronic corporations have aimed removing the ability and resources of their apprehended spammers to halt their illegal activities. Indeed, the present electronic society has been implementing an iron-hand approach in dealing with internet spammers whose activities have affected the internet world in a negative aspect. Aside from spamming, there are also other systems of internet fraud that actually serve as a dilemma in the Internet servicing industries. The said systems of fraudulent scams include: (a)Pharming and Phishing These terms are based from the agricultural terms â€Å"farming† and Fishing†. However the process of the said internet computing actually involves an engineered system in redirecting the surfers into fraudulent sites that actually serve as swindling sites that make users pay or either their computer systems be infected by several computer viruses. (b)Vishing It is the technological process that makes it possible for hackers to attain personal informations of several internet surfers. This then results to identification stealing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   These major processes of internet fraudulent systems actually affect the views of the people with regards the developing systems of the communication technology hence resulting to other’s fear of the said internet progress in the human society. Many among the modern population are then hesitant to try the said modernized approach of technological communications. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   True, internet has revolutionized the different systems within the human society. The impact of the said worldwide connection has actually made it possible for humans to reconnect with each other through a simple click of a button. Certainly, many would agree that people and their lives have been advanced towards massive progress through the said technological and communication innovations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the other hand, the disadvantages of the said systems actually count as important as the advantages. Most of the time, the fraudulent systems that are presented to the society actually affects an amiable number of the human population in becoming fearful with the said innovative designs prompted by the internet. It should then be noted that these fraudulent systems simply brings about problems only when people have lesser acts towards the precautions that they know they have to take into consideration whenever they are using the internet. References: Deitel, Harvey M.; Deitel, Paul; Choffnes, David (2004). Operating Systems. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-182827-4. Silberschatz, Abraham; Galvin, Peter Baer; Gagne, Greg (2004). Operating System Concepts. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley Sons. ISBN 0-471-69466-5. Tanenbaum, Andrew S.; Woodhull, Albert S. (2006). Operating Systems. Design and Implementation. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-142938-8. Piazza, Peter. Filtering out problems: e-mail spam and scams often infuriate corporate computer users. A surprisingly easy and effective solution, however, is the e-mail clients filter feature. Security Management. American Society for Industrial Security. Volume 46, Issue 9, page 36. September 1, 2002. PlanetMagpie. Learn More About Spam. PlanetMagpie. 2006. http://www.planetmagpie.com/support/spam-info.aspx. December 8, 2006. Wikipedia. Spam (Electronic). Wikipedia Foundation, Inc. 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spam_%28electronic%29. December 8, 2006. Wilson, Jamie Johnson, Bobbie.   He sent 38 billion emails and called himself the Spam King. Then Bill Gates went after him. The Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited. August 11, 2005. http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,1546744,00.html. December 8, 2006. Ba, Harouna. What is the Digital Divide? The Digital Divide. Volume 1, Number 2. http://tcla.gseis.ucla.edu/divide/politics/ba.html. 2001. Reeves, Byron Nass, Clifford. The Media Equation: How People Treat Computers, Television, and New Media Like Real People and Places. Cambridge University Press. New York, NY, USA. 1996. Warschauer, Mark. Technology and Social Inclusion: Rethinking the Digital Divide. The MIT Press. 2004.

The performance of Coca Cola

The performance of Coca Cola The Coca Cola Company is considered to be one of the topmost beverage companies of the industry. It has its business all around the world. It engages in production, distribution, and marketing of non-alcoholic beverages in 200 countries worldwide. It produces almost 3300 beverages ranging from caffeinated beverages, fruit juices, water, milk-based beverages and energizers and has managed to capture the hearts of millions of people worldwide. Brand building, technological know-how as well as aggressive marketing skills are the core competencies of Coca Cola which help the company in gaining competitive advantage over other companies. Coca Colas brand is respectable and dependable and it took many years for the company to build this image. Not only is it a favourite among many individuals, but also has acquired a household name. Their brand and logo can never be mistaken, which is why consumers feel a sense of ease when the purchase the companys products. Coca-Cola is a cash cow in the soft drink industry. Due to its strong brand name, Coca Cola will remain profitable in the soft drink industry in the future too. The management of the company harmonizes the venture of human resources and organizes technology along with other core resources such as physical assets, marketing skills, financial resources, and skills and knowledge of employees in order to set up an effective and efficient internal organizational structure of business. The function of the organization focuses on division, coordination, and control of activities and tasks along with flow of information within the institution. Also, the managers allocate responsibility and authority to all people within the organization. The Coca Company focuses on acquiring and retaining highly skilled knowledgeable employees in its company in order to maintain the companys superior most position in the market. Coca Cola treats its resources as an asset. It provides such an environment for employment to its employees t hat the employees develop a sense of unity with the company and carry out their duties willingly and in the most effective and efficient manner. The company entertains it employees by providing a security of employment so that they are not carried away by uncertainties of their future. These objectives, strategies, and programs are already specified drawn in advance by the company which serves as a guideline to the management and unions when taking decisions. Also they concur with the organizations mission, objectives, strategies, policies and its internal and external environments. Since the organization concentrates mainly on marketing, human resource is an essential asset to the company. Without its knowledgeable employees along with their abilities and skills, The Coca Cola Company can never be successful. The ability to adjust and researching and finding out new markets have been of great help to Coca-Cola in becoming a symbol of the American culture. Since the companys affilia tion in 1892, a strong focus on growth and marketing has existed. There were also traditional advertisements in the local newspaper but apart from this, the companys founder Asa Candler distributed thousands of coupons for free glasses of Coca Cola so that many people would be forced to taste it. many tokens that showed the trademark of the company. This type of aggressive marketing is the foundation of The Coca-Cola Companys strategy and its culture. In the Coca-Cola Company, the divisional managers are responsible to run the operations in the general region. The functions of each vice president are divided into functions such as human resources, innovation/research/development, marketing, public affairs and communication. Marketing, innovation, research, and development are the functions which are of utmost importance to the company in gaining competitive advantages. Its mainly because the company is interested in keeping its brand name capitalized and so marketing plays a major r ole. It is the responsibility of the innovation, research, and development department that they come up with something new as demanded by marketing functions. Majority of the top level managers of the company have been exposed to different regions and different areas of the company. Many of them have worked for the bottling companies that partner with The Coca-Cola Company. Owing to the fact that these topmost members have well rounded backgrounds, they have an eye to look at problems from different angles. The current objective of the organization is to use its assets, which is namely its brand, financial strength, its unbeatable distribution system, research and a strong commitment by its management and employees worldwide in order to achieve a long-term sustainable growth. The core competences that helps the company in gaining its competitive advantage is its strong brand name and its widespread network with bottlers and distributors. Its marketing capabilities and broad portfoli o of products is unbeatable and very difficult to imitate. The strong brand name gives the company a strong bargaining power and leverage. The company also influences consumers tastes and trends. When the company launched Diet Coke, the company performed a blind taste test with consumers. The results was that the consumers preferred a glass labelled Diet Coke over a glass labelled Ta by 12 percent, even though the liquids in each glass was same (Plasketes, 2004). This is nothing but its strong brand name. In spite of all these core competences and its outstanding performance in the market, the company withstands a number of challenges, many of which arise from the fact that the company operates on such a large level. Different markets have different trends and styles. Consumes in some markets are found to be health conscious. In order to adapt to this trend, the company has created many diet and low-calorie drinks. The company always tries on bringing new ideas and innovations to ad just to the changing market trends. Due to the anti-carbohydrate trends introduced by the Atkins diet, Coca-Cola C2 was introduced. It is supposed to have the same taste as Coca-Cola but it contains half the carbohydrates. Also, The Coca-Cola Company faces a problem due to social and political differences of each market. Its mainly because different countries have different laws and so Coca Cola has to follows laws of each and every country where it operates but in spite of this, it faces strong criticism. The structure of the company has characteristics of both mechanistic and organic modes. It is more leaned towards centralized structure but now slowly and gradually it is moving towards decentralization. The stakeholders of the company are mainly shareowners who are its bottling partners, government, suppliers, retail customers, and local communities. Since each group of stakeholders have their individual goals, this gives rise to conflicts. The shareholders are interested only in profits, the local communities have concerns about environment issues and labour standards, the suppliers want to charge as much as they can in order to generate more revenue whereas the company wants to keep the lowest price to decrease its cost of production. The managers aim at keeping labour costs down whereas the employees aim at wage increase and increased benefits. There are at least 5 hierarchical levels at the corporate level. Due to its very big organizational structure, it experiences communication problems. One of the problems discovered was that the employees and the company did not have clear goals. This huge hierarchy structure has caused motivation problems and that is why the company is attempting to get employees more engaged. The increased use of companys intranet greatly resolves the communication gap and increases communication at every level of employees and allows the management at the topmost level to communicate more effectively to the front line employees. The company is moving towards decentralization which has resulted in a strategic structural change and has affected the company positively. Sales increased and the employees were much more satisfied. The company is trying to develop a more innovative culture by following the path of decentralization. The Coca-Cola Company is trying to compete to get the best employees. The production of beverages does not demand skilled employees but on the contrary, it has had problems finding the proper personnel in order to run the organization. In the year 2004, The Coca-Cola Companys top choices for the open CEO position decided not to join the company because they disliked the gestures of the board of directors. Due to the companys high creditability in the market, the company has the capability to raise funds at lower cost. This gives the company an opportunity to finance operations such as expansion. This is of much more importance to the company when the company wants to expand or if it de cides to enter into new markets or to purchase new brands. The company operates in a very charismatic environment and this type of environment is difficult to predict and control due to the global nature of the operations. The company faces a danger of reduced production or interruption in its distribution if any problem occurs in the market. There is also a possibility of workers going on strike or stoppage of work or distribution falls during bad economic times. Also the raw materials it uses are dependent on specific climates. Climate changes have a drastic affect on price of raw materials they require and so indirectly affects the production cost. The company has received plenty of criticism for its operations in India due to the fact that their bottling plants caused a great deal of pollution and have damaged local water supplies. The company believes in using different techniques in order to maintain good relationships with stakeholders, and strategic alliance is one of them. Nearly 100 percents of its revenue comes from strategic alliance. In 1999, the company signed a 10-year contract with Burger King as it was among the list of restaurants with being the only supplier of beverages. PepsiCo offered Wendys a much a better deal but still the restaurant signed a 10-year deal with The Coca-Cola Company. This really depicts the strong brand name of the Coca-Cola. The company has done a fabulous job by managing some aspects of the environment but done extremely poorly while managing other parts of the environment. The negative publicity it received in India has led to the boycotts of the Coca-Cola products at some places. This seems to be very bad for the company but the average customer is completely ignorant of these allegations. The company is doing a fair job of damage control but while the company has not had any problem with the suppliers, its future cannot be predicted. It does not seem like the company is not making sincere efforts in trying to secur e supplies and for this reason, vertical integration is most suitable. The company has a very strong bond with its distributors. The relationships between these two create collaborative interdependencies and so the victory of both creates a direct impact on each other. Differentiation is one of the business strategies of The Coca-Cola Company. This is clearly evident from the above example where the consumes preferred a drink with Coke as the brand name attached. The company succeeded in its strategy of differentiation because of its aggressive marketing skills. The company has been always known for its innovative marketing and its brand names and so it stands above its competitors. The Coca-Cola Company needs to improve its portfolio of brand names. To be very specific, the organization needs to start introducing new types of beverages as it enters the markets late. The company was late to enter the market of sports and energy drinks as well as coffee drink (Morris, 2006). Even if creates a new type of beverage, its always alone in the market and it can hardly force its competitors to react. The structure of the organization is hybrid in nature and it best suits its differentiation strategy. Its marketing and innovation functions have always remained centralized which allows the company to keep control over development, marketing, and production. It performs extensive researching and tries to find new ways to serve a new group of customers. The culture of The Coca-Cola organization is mission oriented and focuses on refreshing the mind and making a difference. The company means a lot to its customers and its employees. It provides a sense of pride to them and inspires new employees to act more positively which in turn have a positive impact on the world. The company tries to change its culture by giving liberty to its employees to shape and reform the goals of the company. The company provides a strong base to encourage its employees by becoming model citizen s and not just employees of the company. The output processes are the greatest source of uncertainty for the company. The company does not produce the final product. The distributors and bottlers mingle other ingredients and then sell the final product. Who bottles it does not matter and only the end product is important with Coca Cola as its brand name. So the company should make efforts by maintaining good relations with bottlers and distributors and try to pressurize them to maintain high quality final product, otherwise, it could have negative effect on the company and its brand. There appears to be very limited information about the production of companys syrup. At The World of Coca-Cola, a museum for the company, there is no mention as to how the syrup is produced. Based on some information available, the company has a moderately high level of complexity in relation to the fact that it uses mass production. Task variability in production is also low because it is extremely mec hanized and routine. As a result, task analyzability is high. When a problem occurs, it is not hard to find solutions. So, this shows that the typical structure of a manufacturing company that uses mass production is a mechanistic structure, in which efficient production is the desired end. The company has a mechanistic structure, in which efficient production is the desired end. The companys structure is that of organic type due to its focus being mainly on marketing and local appeal. If the structure mismatches, then the production may not be efficient but however, the benefits of the companys structure outweighs the consequences. The Coca-Cola Company has a high level of uncertainty when it comes to the raw materials it uses. For a few of the ingredients, the company only has one or two viable suppliers. This could create a problem for the company. The Coca-Cola Company has less bargaining power if there is little substitutability in suppliers. Another problem could arise if a su pplier experiences an event that economically smashes them. If a supplier experiences bankruptcy or some type of natural calamity then the company could suffer as well. The Coca-Cola Company can improve and secure relationships with suppliers using a few tactics such as minority ownership or strategic alliances. The most suitable solution would to be use backward vertical integration and purchase a supplier. As a result of this, the company can grab the profits that were earlier earned by the supplier, save the costs, and have a trustworthy source of supplies. The company knows that it needs to meet the ever changing requirements of its customers. The company so moved toward decentralization in the 90s. The company allows decision making at local level and so it can promptly respond to the changing market demands. Also, the higher-level management then direct their attention more on long-term planning. Some divisions of the company like finance, innovation, human resources, marketing, and strategy and planning are located centrally within the corporate division of the company. Some of the decisions are made at the lower levels in each regions of the company while majority of the decisions are taken at top hierarchy. The companys structure is of hybrid type which consists of both mechanistic as well as organic features. The focal point of the company is on responsiveness. The complex integrating mechanisms are the special features of the organic structure. The surveys and interviews used by the company allow information to flow from the bot tom-up, and the intranet allows for information to be exchanged laterally. The surveys have also forced The Coca-Cola Company to adapt simplification and standardization. Centralization and high standardization are associated with mechanistic structure. The mixture of both types of structures seems to be ideal for the organization. Flexibility is essential when trying to address such a big number of independent markets but high standardization is also necessary to remain efficient in production. The use of complex integrating mechanisms allows for easier coordination for the global company. Centralization keeps organizational choices in line with organizational goals. Since the information in the company is flowing in each and every direction, upper management will have access to information more quickly which adds to the organizations flexibility and responsiveness. This recent shift towards a more decentralized and organic structure corresponds with the uncertainty of the organiza tions environment. Every individual should acknowledge lifelong learning, and every successful organization in the same way like Coca Cola should become a permanently learning organization. Many successful organizations like Coca-Cola feel a sense of pride in describing themselves as a learning organization while other successful organizations have one of their strategic goals to become such an organization. The company appoints vice presidents for knowledge, learning and intellectual capital whose work is to develop knowledge management systems that enable them to quickly adapt development tendencies, influencing in that way the customers, competitors, distributors and suppliers like. For internal collaboration, The Coca-Cola Company has established its Innovation Framework. It is a system which combines project management and business intelligence capabilities to give operating units in 50 countries the chance to search for and reapply concepts which are utilized in developing and marketing over 2500 beverages produced by Coke. The company uses it to develop new soft drinks, design equipment such as vending machines and fountain dispensers that it leases or sells, and creates packaging concepts for new and its already existing products. The Innovation Frameworks helps Coke recognize duplicate product ideas and prioritize the best allocation of resources. For example, Coke Zeros expansion is the result of Innovation Framework. It was introduced in USA in 2005 and now it is sold in almost 100 countries. This is the outcome of knowledge flow between financial, legal, sales, marketing, and RD teams in different countries. This type of platform helps conquer the produ ct development insights, team members join their hands together in some regions and share them with teams in other countries. The formula, brand, and packaging already developed for one market can then be introduced to other markets. Learning is directly linked with business. Learning is a capability which requires skills and processes. It also requires leaders who can value it. Learning is a primary focus in The Coca Cola Company. The companys decision strategic planning process does not comply with its structure, mission, vision, and values. Its decision making process is centralized in nature and when it is compared with other things with the company, it totally mismatches. Coca Cola has an organic structure and the vision and values of the company focuses more on creativity and employee contribution. The company can improve their decision making process and work out on their organic structure by executing a strategy for organizational learning. They can bring amendments in a few things by alternating managers of different departments on a periodical basis. This will force the managers to think outside the box when making decisions. This will help in achieving organizational learning and set the organic structure into everyones mind frame. On doing this, the company will have the ability to solve many big problems promptly and become a stronger organization as a result. Also, the company should allow its emp loyees to interact with their managers and make suggestions if necessary. This will allow the managers to become aware of the problem at the very initial stage and help them to solve the problems when they are smaller ones before they become big problems in the future. So for this employee involvement is very necessary and an open door policy should be implemented become large ones. By changing their decision making process, the managers can become more used to their most recently approved vision, mission, and values. In this way, they can cultivate a sense of optimism in all stakeholders by making decisions in a timely manner. This will make the stakeholders pretty confident that the company has a better picture for the future because the problems will be less likely a hurdle for them in the future. The company by having more number of employees at lower level in their decision making process can promote leadership, inspire collaboration, and innovation.

Air Compressor Systems Introduction

Air Compressor Systems Introduction Air Compressor System provides high pressure compressed air with subsequent reduction in volume for a range of industrial and domestic applications. They have become imperative equipment in almost every industry. Due to its high efficiency, feasible operational parameters and diverse range of applications, they have gained widespread popularity and no industry is complete without a compact compressor system. The primary objective of this report is to understand the importance of air compressor systems. In addition, the report covers a wide spectrum of compressor applications and processes. The different types of compressors, along with their merits and demerits have been delineated. The important operational parameters have been defined along with their importance in the compression process. Air is free, whereas compressed high pressure air is not. True to the phrase, generating high pressure compressed air is not an economical and energy efficient process. High initial and maintenance costs can increase the overall compressor cost to a great extent. Proper and well maintained compressor systems can reduce energy consumption from 30-50%. Various steps to reduce energy consumption and increase overall efficiency have been detailed in the report. For a practical application of compressor acumen, a case study has been conducted on an ELGI Compressor which is under operation in Arabian Cement Industry. With the data collected from the study, certain operational parameters were calculated and corresponding inferences were drawn. At the end of the study, we are able to conclude the current state of the compressor and detail certain steps to improve efficiency and compressor performance. The future of air compressor systems has been a constant research topic among industrialists. The modern techniques of Heat Recovery Systems in air compressors and use of Variable Speed Drives have been briefly detailed to provide a view into a bright future of air compressor systems. CHAPTER 1 Introduction to Air Compressor Systems In most industrial applications, compressed air is considered as the fourth utility, preceded by the three essential utilities; water, electricity and natural gas. Typically, a simple air compressor is an industrial device that intakes ambient air and increases the pressurewith reduction in volume by doing work on the working fluid, namely air or gas. The primary objective of employing a compressor is to provide high pressure air using least possible power consumption. The compression can occur in any one of the three ways; adiabatic, isothermal or polytropic. For an Adiabatic compression process, there is assumed to be no heat loss or gain from the system. When the temperature of air at inlet equals temperature of compressed air at outlet, the compression process is Isothermal. Normally, a typical compression process involves Polytropic Compression. The pressure, temperature and volume of air it inlet and outlet vary with the respective conditions. The least possible work of compression is achieved in an adiabatic compression process as the net work done by the system is zero. [1] The adiabatic efficiency is the maximum possible compressor efficiency and compressors are designed with compressor efficiencies such that, there is little or no variation among the two. As mentioned earlier, compressed air is considered a utility because of their diverse applications in various industrial and metallurgical operations. The compressed air supply is clean, convenient, safe and flexible for use. Industrial uses can be attributed to when they are in connection with compressed air motors for functioning of pneumatic tools, raw material conveying through ducts, in connection with a reservoir for storage of compressed air for future applications. 1.2 Historical Background The earliest documented use of the compressor dates back to around 4th century B.C. In those times, the compressor was termed as a water organ. The water organ was invented by Ctesibius of Alexandria. The design comprised of a chamber filled with air and water, a water pump, collection of pipes of various dimensions and connecting tubes and valves. The mechanism of operation was relatively simple; by pumping water into the chamber, the air gets compressed. [2] With advancement of time and technology, various improvements and innovations were made to the water organ. In 1808, the Multi Stage Axial Compressor, designed by John Dumball, came into industrial application. However, this design did not achieve wide-spread popularity because the compressor comprised of moving blades without stationary blades to transfer the air flow into the successive compression stage. During the 19th century, the invention of the Roots Blower was a huge step leading to invention of modern air compressor systems. Philander and Francis Roots designed the Roots blower, while devising a suitable replacement for the water wheel at their woolen mill. The roots blower consisted of numerous impeller pairs rotating in opposite directions.[3] Dr. Franze Stolze designed the modern compressor in 1900; which comprised of a multi stage axial flow compressor with a combustion chamber, multi-stage axial turbine along with a regenerator to heat the discharged air utilizing exhaust waste gases. 1.3 Applications of Compressed Air High pressure compressed air is widely used for industrial and domestic applications due to their high efficiency and facile operational nature. The powering of pneumatic equipment is one of the major applications of compressed air. Pneumatic tools are lighter, deliver more power and not prone to overloading, unlike electric motor run equipment. Compressed air driven tools can achieve high overall torque and optimum speed in a short span of time. They are safer as compared to electric driven tools because of no spark conditions and less overheating. [4] Compressed air is also used for raw material transport, combustion processes; such as oxidation, thermodynamic operations; such as refrigeration and cryogenics. Filtration, aeration and dehydration processes are also driven by compressed air. Non-industrial applications of compressed air include transportation, mining and agriculture.[5] 1.4 Components of Air Compressor System Due to the diverse applications of compressed air, air compressor systems merit an intricate and complex design. Air compressor systems consist of a number of sub-systems and components, which include the air compressor, motor and drive unit, control systems, air inlet filters, air dryers, after-coolers and various other retrofitted components. During the operation of an air compressor system, the ambient air is taken into the system by air inlet filters. The motor and gear unit powers the compressor system to increase the pressure of air. The primary function of an integrated control system is to regulate the amount of air intake and air discharge from the system. Treatment equipment, such as an Air Dryer and Air Separator are used to remove contaminants and provide moisture and oil free pressurized air. The Outlet and Distribution systems play the pivotal role of transporting the compressed air to the various required sources. In typical industrial applications, the pressurized air is stored in an Air Reservoir or Storage Tank for future use. The major components of an air compressor are detailed below: Intake Air Filter: Ambient air enters the compressor via inlet air filters. Filtration elements in intake filters facilitate filtration of particulate matter present in air. This allows the entry of clean and dry air into the compressor. Compressor Cooling: A substantial amount of heat is generated during compressor process. As a result, cooling and lubrication of the system is mandatory for reducing wear and damage to the compressor spares; thereby increasing compressor efficiency. Compressors are normally cooled using air, water or oil (lubricant). [6] Inter-Stage Coolers: Inter coolers act as heat exchangers to lower the temperature of air before it enters into successive stages of compression.[7] This reduction of temperature is paramount to reduce the overall compression work and increase compressor efficiency. After-Coolers: After coolers are employed at the end of compression process to lower the discharge temperature of air. During this final stage of operation, as the temperature is lowered, moisture present in air condenses and separated from the discharge air. Air Separators: Separators act as an enhanced after-cooler. Theyare installed either after an inter-cooler or after-cooler to desiccate discharge air. Air-Dryers: Normally, after the compressed air has passed through all the above mentioned equipment, discharge air is passed into the air-dryer before storage in the reservoir. The air that reaches the dryer is saturated. If this saturated air enters the piping, it can lead to corrosion and damage to the transport equipment. The Relative Humidity (moisture content) in atmospheric air is relatively high. When this air is compressed at high pressure, it occupies a small volume and high temperature. At a specific temperature, all the moisture present in air condenses. This temperature is known as Dew Point. This process is cycled in an air-dryer to ensure that moisture-free air reaches the storage area.[8] Pressure Regulators/Flow Controller: PFCs are auxiliary equipmentthat minimizes pressure drops in the system by stabilizing system pressure. Lubrication: Lubrication is a paramount need for effective compressed air operation. A lubricator is employed to lubricate and cool the moving parts and prevent overheating. In some systems, the lubricator is retrofitted with a compressed filter and pressure flow regulator to fashion a system known as Filter Regulator Lubricant (FRL).[10] Air Receivers: The high pressure compressed air from the system is discharged to a storage tank or an air-receiver according to the demand. The capacity and type of air receiver varies depending on the demand of compressed air within the system. For spasmodic demand of compressed air, a large capacity reservoir is employed for a relatively small capacity compressor. Moreover, a receiver functions depending on demand, thereby reducing overwork and load on the compressor. Air Transport and Distribution System: The final stage in a compression process is the proper distribution of compressed air to the demand points. A common distribution system includes piping, valves and hoses. To minimize the pressure drop during distribution, it is imperative that the pipe length is kept minimum and diameter to maximum.