Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Leaders Make a Real Difference in an Organisation’s Performance Essay

Within these qualities over history great leaders have developed detailed theories that are constantly being utilized within successful corporations today. Amongst these are Trait theory, Behavioural theories and also the Situational contingency theories that were used to represent successful leadership qualities. Great leaders become highlighted in times of oppression, utilizing their talents to move forward and have solid control of their organisations, in turn developing positive organisational performance. Through past generations leadership had developed to the ultimate success it is today. Through multiple theories, leadership has moved to the point where it now has a factual impact on organisations performance. The contemporary management theories are used in numerous ways of motivating, creating opportunity providing inspiration and resulting in a definite increase in organisational performance. This is evident in today’s society, through a minimal view of coaching sporting teams to the operations of large corporate groups such as Wesfarmers. Creating opportunity, Throughout history, it has been clearly evident that a great leader’s input shall reflect with a great performance output, thus developing opportunities for individuals to accomplish their maximum potential. â€Å"Leaders create opportunity for individuals within their sphere of influence† (urbanfoot. ca, 2009), opportunity being a set of circumstances that makes it potentially possible to achieve anything from extrinsic to intrinsic rewards. This creation of opportunity manifests itself across the globe in large and small organisations. In contemporary society it is shown by leaders within sporting clubs, the success of the best AFL clubs are built on a hierarchy of leaders, club captains, coaches, and trainers. They are all striving to create opportunity for young potential players. Essendon football club’s great success over the past numerous decades have been because of the major influential leadership role James Hird has played within the club. James Hird leading his club by being captain through two premierships and is now today still leading the club by coaching. His career of captain assisted with the creation the opportunity for the club leaders today and now he is continuing his leadership role by coaching the team, it is evident with his club involvement there is a definite outcome of organisational performance. As well as leading through creating opportunity, great leaders strive to inspire others within their environment. Inspiration, Leaders aim to inspire individuals within their vicinity to pursue the outcome of organisational performance. This constant attempt to provide inspiration is strongly shown by our world’s best leaders that are driving the powerhouse of our world’s economy. Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, Phil Knight, founder of Nike and Richard Branson founder of Virgin Group, these individuals are amongst many others that are part of the world’s most inspirational leaders. These people have founded some of the world’s biggest corporations by their profound ability inspire. Richard Branson went from developing a school newspaper called Student to operating one of the world’s most complex conglomerates know as Virgin Group. Branson’s life motto is to ‘have fun’ this is reason to his positive eccentric personality that reflects to inspire others around him. Lead by example† this phrase is used throughout human life to portray inspiration on others, through creating an inspiration on others leaders are assisting to motivate. Motivation, Motivation is a key part of a great leader’s success in achieving organisational performance. Motivation is referred to as â€Å"the forces within an individual that account for the level, direction and persistence of effort expended at work† (Wood, J. et al, 2010). Motivation on individuals is reflected by successful leaders, through multiple different theories. Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory identifies high order needs and low order needs† (Wood, J. et al, 2010) this details a pyramid that highlights the work motivational needs of individuals, including psychological, safety, social, esteem and self-actualisation. This research has contributed to the success of leaders in motivating and achieving ultimate organisational performance across large contemporary organisations. In many of today’s organisations leaders commonly motivate employees through the use of offering extrinsic rewards, â€Å"positively valued work outcomes† (Wood, J. t al, 2010), this may range from Christmas bonuses to simply allowing the use of a company car. Through the use of extrinsic rewards individuals are motivated to produc e their maximum performance. It is evident in KPMG, one of the world’s largest consulting firms; the use of leaders providing employees with extrinsic rewards motivates employees to achieve their full potential. KPMG provides employees with an annual bonus fluctuating on the employees yearly work effort. In doing so employees are determined to work to achieve a high constant overall organisational performance. Individuals that utilize the use of their leadership talents; creating opportunity, inspiring and motivating individuals will evidently result in reaching an optimum level of organisational performance productivity. Throughout history within these abilities leaders have developed several theories to manage the way it is put into practice. Through the past centuries leaders have always played a pivotal role in the triumph of groups, from the times of Genghis Khan, Napoleon and even Hitler, their efforts have exemplified how great leaders can make a major difference to organisations. All leaders tend to have different styles when it comes to commanding their subordinates and as time has progressed they have been categorized into different approaches and theories. The first theory to be thought up was known as the trait theory, and as the years moved on different studies and research was conducted to the point where different types of leadership are studied. Trait Theory, The trait theory which identifies different traits between leaders and followers, and assumes that leaders are born not developed. The trait theory takes into account physical and mental attributes of people that appeared to be more successful leaders. This theory took into account things such as height, weight and personality, and rather than study each of those in detail, these characteristics were recognised in effective and ineffective leaders. Therefore people could be able to predict if a person was a worthy or unworthy leader, although due to the studies being conducted as early as 1900 there was never any real recording s of evidence. Also there were never any real set of traits that defined a good leader, in other words there was no benchmark, which made it difficult for people to understand the theory as there were great leaders that had different characteristics. For example Hitler had different traits and characteristics to Nelson Mandela, Hitler was considered hard and persistent whereas Mandela was a visionary. Although it is certain that the trait theory set the trend for years to come. Behavioural Theories, The trait theory laid the foundations for what was later known as the behavioural theories; this included the Michigan and Ohio State studies. The behavioural theories compliments the flaws of the trait theory as it is more action based rather than only taking natural aspects into consideration. The Michigan studies showed that there are two types of leaders, employee-centred supervisors and production-centred supervisors. Employee-centred supervisors are leaders who look out for their workers and try to keep them emotionally happy by showing genuine interest in the wellbeing. Whereas production-centred employees are mostly concerned about getting the work done and meeting figures, rather than looking out for the welfare of their workers. Research has shown that employee-centred managers were found to have more efficient and effective groups than production-centred supervisors. The Ohio State studies which are very similar to the Michigan studies showed that leaders had two main dimensions, consideration and initiating structure, which can be related to employee-centres supervisors and production-centred supervisors respectively. Although the results from this study showed different results as the supervisors who received the best output from their employees showed a high amount of consideration and initiating structure. Situational contingency theories, The next sets of theories to be developed were the situational contingency theories, which came about in the 1960’s. These theories involve leaders that can adapt to the situation they are place in, for example Fiedler’s theory predicts work group effectiveness and how it depends on a match between the leader’s technique and the difficulties of the situation. Fiedler also considered the amount of situational control a leader has, which is how well a leader can determine the result of a groups actions and the course the will take on the way. Of course Fiedler was not the only person to come up with situational theories, there was also; Robert House, Paul Hersey, Kenneth Blanchard, Steve Kerr and Jonathon Jermier, but for the purpose of not repeating similar information they will not be discussed. It is fair to say that over the years leadership theories have changed with the times. The trait theory was effective for organisational performance as it helped identify leaders before they even took on a leading role, and although today that might seem politically incorrect, it’s what was suitable for the times. The behavioural theories in the late 1940’s had a great effect on organisational performance because people started to take into account the actions of their leaders and the different effect that certain actions would obtain. The Situational theories took another step into understanding the effect that good leaders can have on organisational behaviour by interpreting the how leaders manage the situation and whether or not they can mould to new and different challenges. As leadership theories have evolved, only the strong have survived, and the recent global financial crisis has provided great challenges for leaders to portray their successful qualities. Leadership is a quality that has grown in human culture over thousands of years and within the past century economies have taken significant falls highlighting the choices great leaders have made to sustain organisational performance through this time. Two significant downturns in history shook the world economy, the great depression of the 1930’s, Franklin D Roosevelt’s leadership qualities particularly exceled through this period and the global financial crisis saw absurd leadership talents ChemChina. These flairs in leadership talent depicted the difference it can asset on organisational performance. Global Financial Crisis – ChemChina In 2007 the world economy fell into the deepest trough in decades, this is known as the global financial crisis, it was considered the worst financial crisis since the great depression in the 1930’s. The global financial crisis saw the collapse of multiple investment banks across the United States of America and developed a ripple effect that was felt by economies across the globe. Great leaders stood out through this period powering their companies without feeling the effect of the economic down turn. One company in particular that continued a sustainable growth in organisational performance is ChemChina. While millions of companies were collapsing and on the verge of insolvency ChemChina’s prime operating income multiplied seven times, total assets increased by 133. 4 billion Yuan and total profits escalated an increased 12 times over, Ren Jianxin the president of ChemChina’s outstanding leadership qualities were the main motive behind the relentless accomplishment. The massive operational increases in production were due to major â€Å"innovations in organisation, institutions and technologies involving changes in their way of thinking, philosophies and producti on technologies and processes†. (Ren Jianxin, 2009) All this required an overall development in their way of leadership, in turn a successful corporate transformation thus organisational performance. 930’s Great Depression – Franklin D Roosevelt The great depression which hit the world through the 1930’s affected the world on a scale that had never been seen before. The depression started in America when stock prices started to fall, and on October 29, 1929 the stock market crashed and the effect spread globally. The effect this had on the world was far worse than anyone could have ever imagined causing people to commit suicide, die of starvation and start their lives over in a new world. Out of this came one of the world’s greatest ever leaders, Franklin D. Roosevelt, who dragged America and the rest of the world out of the depression. Roosevelt took over as president in March of 1933 and re instilled hope back into the American people by promising action and in his first address to the people he said one of today most famous quotes, â€Å"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself†. Roosevelt decided that to get the country out of the position they were in he had to adopt policies that were frowned upon, such as creating deficit budgets, which for the times were unheard of. When Roosevelt pulled the American economy back to its feet he was rewarded by being elected for four successive terms. Roosevelt proved how one great leader can have a major effect on a group of people and that it is not impossible to come back from the dead. Financial crisis’s at any time cause a great amount of angst in the around the world, and it takes very special people to lead corporations, governments or even countries out of these fatal situations. ChemChina and Roosevelt were both innovative in their styles and led their respective organisations either to new great heights or just simply out of a great depression. Throughout the times Leaders have always come under scrutiny from their critics, although one does not attain criticism without achieving. Without Leaders providing their qualities to inspire, create opportunity and motivate, organisations would have a lack of soul and would be forever falling in a negative style.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Library Ethics

Given the scenario where in the year 2020, the information highway is under total control of the U.S. Government. It is mandatory to filter the information that can be accessed on public libraries. The issue of having the limited access to such information can be very controversial. This can imply other issues that concern the seclusion of information. This is unethical for the following arguments. The suppression of the free access via internet is an act of depriving the freedom of expression is considered this to be unethical and a violation of right. One of our basic rights of expressing our thoughts is protected by the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights, which is Freedom of speech. Speech, as in the text implies, pertains to the visual, verbal, non-verbal and symbolic representation of one's expression (Kilman, 2000). Whenever an issue is raised to be concerning this right, it is subjected to the Court whether it violated the First Amendment. Courts make exceptions to speech which causes substantial harm to the public. If the government has a full control on what can be available on public, then some expression of people can be filtered out. Whenever there is an article or discussion of sensitive issues in the internet, the government has the power to hide this information. The government has a control on what they want to show the people and eliminate important facts that can destroy their reputation. In contrary, the issue of government regulatory on libraries can be ethically correct. The improper use and abuse in the use of internet is main issue why the government wants to implement this policy. Some internet users do not cite their reference which violates the original author's copyright. The idea of the author is exploited and is not credited. Under the United States copyright law, the authors and inventors have the exclusive right for their respective writings or discoveries (RA 1476, 1976). This protects them from the illegal use of their property. Also, to some abusers, it became a medium of violence and sexual exploitation like pornography. There are now several websites that are open to the public which can be very dangerous when exposed to young minds. With the help of implementing filter of accessibility on public libraries as mandatory, the government intends to resolve this issue. This mandatory to Libraries will have positive and negative effects to libraries and patrons. For libraries, strict implementation will be the challenge to them. They should familiar on the new system that the government wants. Patrons will only have limited resource. Although their research will still be adequate, it is a fact that there are things that are not shown to them. On the positive side, parents of young patrons can assure that their children are safe from the exposure of adult materials. To mediate this issue, an effective new way of implementing strict policies on libraries with the use of library computers can help. Appropriate policies set by the libraries must be observed. It is the role of a Library to provide materials of information but visitors must always follow the Library's policies. The library supposed to take responsibility for the information provided on its web site (Shih, 2004). There should always be balance between rights and responsibility. Library computers are open to the public for those who are in need of resources and must be responsible users. We are all given the right to express ourselves freely but not forgetting the message that underlie it. No right can be violated if one is always responsible in his actions. REFERENCES Kilman, J. C., G. (2000). The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation. (1976). Republic Act No. 1476 .94 th Congress. 2nd Session. Shih, Susan. Policy for Public Use of the Internet. 2004 Â  

Computer Hacking is Ethical

Austin Areas English Ill Honors Mrs.. Mills 14 December 2012 Computer Hacking is Ethical Computer hacking is a term that most everyone in today's society is familiar with. When the average person hears news about computer hacking, most likely they think about cyber-crimes, website defacement's, or knocking various websites offline. This inaccurate description is Just the image that today's media creates. In reality, true hackers are much different. Computer hacking is not the only type of hacking in today's society.Hacking actually originated from partaking, which is the art of racking a telephone network (â€Å"A Brief History of Computer Hacking†). Hacking is seen as being blackball, or wrong, when hacking can also be beneficial to the world. There are different types of computer hackers: â€Å"Hastiest,† ones who hack to express a political opinion, â€Å"Hobbyist† hackers, those who hack for enjoyment, and â€Å"Research hackers,† those who hack to lea rn about security and fix vulnerabilities (â€Å"License to hack? Ethical hacking†). As mentioned before, the first computer hackers were not people who were hacking to earn some quick cash. In 1878, two years after the telephone was invented y Alexander Graham Bell, a group of teenagers who worked to maintain the New York switchboard were fired because they were interested in seeing how the phone connections were made and how the calls were distributed to specific locations. Their actions were essentially the equivalent of early computer hackers.These boys were trying to break into the telephone system to understand and see how the switchboard worked (â€Å"Timeline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†). Computers were not always in the easy to use, graphical interface they are today. Along the time period of the ass, mainframe computers were very popular. Most universities and companies would have rooms dedicated to containing these mainframe computers, which were essentia lly a large chunk of metal locked away in a controlled environment. Due to the prices and exclusivity, users had to fight for time to obtain access to these slow- moving machines.Since these mainframe computers were so expensive and resource intensive, meaning they required time, knowledge, electricity, and money, computer programmers went out on a ledge to learn and create ways to speed up processes and modify hardware to increase performance speed (â€Å"Computer hacking: Where did it begin and how did it grow? ). In return, the machine would be able to complete more tasks and operations in a shorter time period. Hiring a hacker to modify one's machine in the ass and ass would definitely increase business functionality (Parks).The term â€Å"Hacker† did not earn the definition it has in today's world until the sass. Users discovered that they could apply their knowledge of the inner workings of a computer for their own gain. This was the time period when viruses, mallard, and other nasty cyber infections were created to earn their coder or hacker money (â€Å"Timeline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†). In the early sass, a man named John Draper discovered that he could recreate the pitch a telephone used by using a whistle obtained from a box of cereal.By using this whistle, Draper could recreate the 2600-hertz audio tone and score some free long-distance calls. Draper's actions were one of the first illegal actions committed by a hacker, which earned him the nickname â€Å"Captain Crunch. † Later in the sass, devices called â€Å"Blue Boxes† were invented by a computer club in California. These boxes were used to help change a tone to match the tone created by a telephone, thus making telephone tampering easier to use. These boys went by the names of Steve Jobs and Steve Woozier, the creators of Apple Inc. â€Å"Timeline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†). Attention towards partaking was created during this decade, resulting i n a few computer and telephone hacking magazines being created. These magazines would benefit those who wanted to become partakers and computer hackers, by teaching them techniques, and giving access to those who had already accomplished these illegal acts (â€Å"Timeline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†). Another effect from the huge amounts of attention towards hackers was a new law being passed, called The ComprehensiveCrime Control Act, giving the Secret Service Jurisdiction over cases including credit card and computer fraud (â€Å"INCURS Abstract†). Later in 1987, a seventeen-year-old hacks into AT's computer network, which led to his arrest. This boy was caught because he did want most teenage boys do, he bragged on an online bulletin board about it. Federal authority says he committed the hacking from his bedroom, and was one step away from breaching into AT&T's switching system, the system that controlled most of the nation's communication access fine (â€Å"Ti meline: A 40-Year History of Hacking†).In the year 1988 the first self-replicating virus was created by a twenty-two year old graduate named Robert Morris from Cornell University that was designed to take advantage of an exploit in UNIX-based systems. The Morris-worm, named after the creator, infected nearly one tenth of machines connected to the internet. Morris was arrested for releasing the virus and was sentenced to three years of probation, 400 hours of community service, and a $10,000 fine (â€Å"Zen and the Art of the Internet†).No other major hacks occurred until the mid to late ass, when two hackers known as Data Stream hacked into computers and systems owned by institutions such as NASA and Korean Atomic Research Institute. One of the two was caught by detectives form Scotland Yard and was discovered to be sixteen years old (â€Å"The Case Study: Rome Laboratory, Griffins Air Force Base, and NY Intrusion†). The year after, Vladimir Levin allegedly used his laptop to transfer funds from Citibank's computer network to various accounts across the world. Eventually Levin was extradited to the US, sentenced to three years in prison, and ordered to pay Citibank $240,000.The exact amount of money stolen is unknown, but is estimated to be around $3. -$10 million, not all of which has been recovered (â€Å"How To Hack A Bank†). Later that year legendary computer hacker Kevin Nitpick was arrested in Raleigh, North Carolina, and accused of breaking security violations, such as copying computer software, breaking into various networks and stealing information, including close to 20,000 credit cards. He spent four years in Jail without trial and was released in early 2000. Nitpick was accused of crimes dating back to the mid-sass (â€Å"Timeline: A 40-year history of hacking†).After the year 2000, many to most cyber- attacks or hacks have been caused by mallard users unknowingly downloading them onto their PC. Most newly created enamelware bypasses anti-virus scans, which means no one is ever one hundred percent safe on the internet. The graph below displays the type of virus or mallard threats received on various US computers (â€Å"Microsoft Security Intelligence Report†). Every computer hacker is powered by a motive or several motives. Usually malicious hackers are motivated from self-gain, either money or fame.Malicious programmers create mallard programs to do their bidding; such software can log every key one presses, steal sensitive data such as passwords for personal and banking websites, r add one's computer to a ring of infected computers that can be used to Dos websites (â€Å"Ethics in Computing†). A Dos attack is when packets of data are sent to a Webster that eventually overload the server with data to the point where the server crashes, therefore knocking the website offline. More recently, Anonymous has taken credit for Dosing major banking websites offline (â€Å"Bank of Amer ica Hit By Anonymous Dos Attack†).There are many different types of Dos attacks; the most common is a JODI Flood, which sends a JODI packet to random ports on a server. When a packet is sent to a port where there is no application listening on that port, the server replies with a Destination Unreachable packet, so the server has to respond to every single JODI Packet with an Unreachable; the part that crashes the server is when the Unreachable Packet is sent (â€Å"UDP Flood Attack†). Hackers sometimes will sell their bootee, which is the term that describes a ring of infected computers.When a hacker sells or rents his bootee, the infected PC's are transferred over to the buyer for their use, which is usually for more illegal Dos attacks. There is extremely easy money when it comes to selling information attained from hacking, whether it is selling hacked website accounts for popular websites like Youth or websites that require a monthly subscription. Most of the transa ctions are made online and are close to untraceable. Finding a competent hacker on the internet is the equivalent of going to Iraq and looking for AY Quad.Hackers know how to hide, where to hide, and how to stay safe (â€Å"Hackers Selling Cheap BOOTEES and DOS on Forums†). Even though hackers know how to hide, that does not mean they cannot get caught. Hacker Jon Paul Soon illegally hacked into his previous employer's network with malicious intent. This network was a medical network that contained health records, names, addresses, and provided services to seventeen different clinics in San Diego. Soon was punished with five years in prison and a combined fine of over four hundred thousand dollars, along with a ban from using a computer (â€Å"Hackers: Crimes and punishments†).Teenage hackers usually get off easier, with punishments like time in a Juvenile center, a ban from computers, community service, or very light prison sentences depending on age. FBI informant Ma x Butler was a hacker who was charged in 2001 with possession of stolen passwords, computer intrusion, and thirteen other counts. He risked going to prison for forty years because he decided to stop helping the FBI catch other hackers. These are Just a few cases of the risks hackers take for the thrill or self-gain from hacking (â€Å"5 Of the World's Most Famous Hackers & What Happened to Them†).With such strong consequences, one might wonder why an individual would want to become a computer hacker. Internet users become hackers because they know how to work the system; they know how to yap's the law and do close to anything they want (â€Å"The Hacker Work Ethic†). Hackers are purely cyber thieves who terrorize innocent users using their superior knowledge of how computers and the internet work. There are indeed an abundance of hackers who have malicious intent, but there are those who hack for a higher purpose (Roberts).Identifying what type of hacker one is dealing with is extremely easy; all one must do is look at the end product and ask a few questions. Is this hacker trying to steal information? Is the hacker trying to infect systems? If so, then that hacker is malicious. Other hackers hack for the learning experience. They want to learn more about computers and how systems change when modifying specifications. Hacker Sarah Flannels describes the work she put into her encryption algorithm as, â€Å"l had a great feeling of excitement †¦ Worked constantly for whole days on end, and it was exhilarating.There were times when I never wanted to stop. † Pursuing knowledge has been the fuel for many computer users since the first computers were created in the sass. These people live by the idea that the best way to learn is to take a hands on approach (â€Å"Types of computer hackers†). Contrary to black hat hackers, a type of hacker exists known as the white hat hacker. White hat hackers are the people who help infected users on the web. Many black hat hackers such as Kevin Nitpick, Kevin Paulsen, and Mark Been have turned white hat after serving time in prison or on probation (â€Å"12 â€Å"White Hat† hackers you should know').Not only to white hat hackers try to reverse the effects of black hats, but they also hack websites. Many businesses hire penetration testers, A. K. A. White hat hackers to try to penetrate the businesses' servers or databases to test how protected the businesses' websites are. Penetration testers, commonly referred to as Pen Testers, report back any exploits they have covered while hacking their employer's website or database, and then they patch the exploit, thus making a safer internet.Companies believe that if a white hat hacker can penetrate their security, then so can a mischievous black hat hacker (â€Å"tithe hat' hackers in demand†). An example of a famous white hat hacker is computer analyst and expert Touts Samurai, who police used to track down and appr ehend Kevin Nitpick in 1995 after Nitpick had evaded the FBI for years, and caused well over $100,000 in damage to systems belonging to Motorola, Monika, Sun Microsystems, and NECK (â€Å"The trials of Kevin MitoticThis is Just one example of a hacker being caught by another hacker. Police computer security analysts and hackers to look decipher cyber evidence that is related to crimes under investigation, along with cyber-forensics to break down crimes and solve them quickly (â€Å"The Kevin Nitpick/ Touts Samurai affair†). Hollywood has also tried to portray computer hacking in movies such as Hackers, from 1995, and War Games from 1983.The movie Hackers is about two computer hackers named Crash Override and Acid Burn, who seemingly fight each other with silly fonts and awful homepage graphics. Later on in the movie, he US Secret Service is involved when another associate of Overrides hacks into a school's mainframe and downloads a garbage file. This file actually contained a computer virus that could apparently capsize the company's oil tanker fleet. After a few other friends are arrested, everyone is cleared of their charges and the movie ends happily.In reality, all of these hackers would have been in prison, and would not had their charges dropped, not to mention the fact that a company had the code to a computer virus that could control their entire oil tanker fleet on a garbage file in their easily hackle mainframe (â€Å"Hackers†). Legitimate hackers later defaced the movie Hacker's website to express how they felt about the silliness in this movie (â€Å"Hacked Movie Site†). Nothing really big happened, only some text was changed and a few pictures were defaced with satirical pictures drawn over them.The website still has the hacked version of their website mirrored, meaning it is still accessible to the web. Included in the text of the defaced website were lines describing how Hollywood misunderstands technology and will never be able to comprehend the hard work and time needed to perform some of the acts that hackers accomplish. No en can tap a few keys on a keyboard and hack into a company's mainframe, website, or database.Hackers included a scene where someone managed to access a supercomputer with Just the password â€Å"GOD† and has the UNIX operating system replaced with some other three dimensional interface does not represent the real world in any manner (â€Å"Episode – Hackers†). The movie Live Free or Die Hard also butchers computer hacking in the sense that the computer hacks in it are so good at hacking that they can control entire cities, including quotes like â€Å"Okay, I want you to hack into that traffic light and make it red.Almost all of the incredible feats provided by Hollywood in movies is practically impossible, or would require months of research to perform. Many hackers believe that Hollywood will never portray legitimate hackers correctly (â€Å"Hollywood Ha cking – Television Tropes & Idioms†). Computer fanatics are compelled by the mystery of the machine. When Mr.. Hake, the Computer Applications teacher from Erwin High was asked why he was so fascinated by computers when he first had access to them, he replied with, â€Å"They were new and exciting; no one really knew where we were going to go with amputees, but everyone seemed to want to use them. † Mr..Hake described that people were compelled to study computers due to their mysteriousness and interesting possibilities (Hake). Switching from being a computer fanatic to being a computer hacker can happen really quickly when one may see how easy earning, or stealing money actually is on the internet. Or maybe the thrill of breaking past security will push the moderately to advanced computer user to turn to the dark side of computer hacking. Malicious hackers will always have a hard time as long as the be is full of white hat hackers to make their Job, or hobby mor e difficult (â€Å"Meaning of Hacking and the Different Kinds of Hackers†).In conclusion, not every person who knows their way around a computer's boundaries is unethical. While there are many intelligent and malevolent hackers loose on the web, it is still a safe place. Today's media does not accurately portray hackers or the hacker's philosophy, and neither do cut-rate Hollywood movies. Media websites control how civilians see cyber criminals, due to that factor, most innocents see hackers has people who are out to no good. The white knights of the internet are never given the appreciation they deserve, because of them we are as safe as we are now.White hat hackers have patched countless exploits caused by bad-natured hackers. Governments can Jail as many hackers as they want, but they can never Jail a philosophy. Hackers will always exist; they will always be out to gain something out of their exploits. Society needs to understand that hackers also hack to prevent collater al damage, or to catch the worst of the worst hackers. There are good hackers and bad hackers, Just as there are good people and bad people; not all hackers are unethical.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Report Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 9

Report - Coursework Example The difference between maximum and minimum heights for The Giant roller coaster is 132.868 metres. The maximum possible area of the rectangular enclosure found to be 2601 square metres when the width is 51 metres. The dimensions of the snack box that would give the maximum volume found to be 6.67 cm x 13.33 cm x 26.67 cm. The maximum volume of the snack box found to be 2370.37 cubic cm. Mathematical modelling is a method for solving problems mathematically. A mathematical model is a mathematical representation of the relationship between two or more variables relevant to a given situation or problem. Mathematical modelling is used to investigate important questions about the observed world, to describe real-world incident, to explain real-world incident, to test ideas and to make predictions about the real-world. In this report, mathematical modelling will be used to answer the real-world questions. The formulation, analysis (using differentiation, maxima and minima), interpretation and test will be done to answer the real-world questions. The mathematical modelling will be used to find the difference between maximum and minimum height for the Feel the Fear and The Giant roller coasters. It will be also used for finding maximum possible area of fixed fence enclosure and the dimensions of a snack box that would give the maximum volume. The maximum height of the Feel the Fear roller coaster is 36 meters and the minimum height is about -14.815 metres (14.815 below ground level). Therefore, the difference between maximum and minimum heights for the Feel the Fear roller coaster is about 50.815 metres. The maximum height of The Giant roller coaster is about 36.434 meters and the minimum height is about -96.434 metres (96.434 below ground level). Therefore, the difference between maximum and minimum heights for The Giant roller coaster is about 132.868 metres. The snacks

Sunday, July 28, 2019

What factors do designers and programmers need to take into account in Essay

What factors do designers and programmers need to take into account in other to make web pages as user friendly as possible Examine ways that we page designers can ease decisions making by users - Essay Example Other than getting business exposure and attracting customers, a professional website also provides a lot of other valuable benefits to any business or a company. Some of these benefits include increased business credibility, increased volume of sales through attracting more customers, enabling a business to reach international market, improved and efficient customer service through online forums, and reduced business activity’s operating cost. Talking about websites and their importance in the world of businesses, let’s get to know why user-friendly websites are more popular among users and the customers and how do they prove to be beneficial for the companies. The main reason for developing user-friendly websites is ease of interaction between the website and its users. If a company makes a website which is very heavy or complex in nature, it will not only waste precious time of the users but will also result in less productivity for the company. It is because customers are the main source of productivity for any company and if the customers do not get attracted towards a company, it can never achieve its desired goals and objectives. So it is very important for a company to be customer oriented. If a company does an online business, it should create such a website for product marketing which should be able to attract customers. And this goal can only be achieved through creating a user-friendly website. There are a lot of factors and issues which should be considered while planning to create a user-friendly website. These factors include appearance of a website, navigation and controls, access to pages, layout and design, and download speed. If anyone of these factors is sidelined during the process of website development, the basic goal of creating a user-friendly website can never be achieved. Appearance is one of the most important factors to be considered while

Saturday, July 27, 2019

The Legalization Of Genetically Choosing The Feature of Child Research Paper

The Legalization Of Genetically Choosing The Feature of Child - Research Paper Example It is therefore not a new striking issue to finally end up with concern about the legalization of genetically choosing the feature of one’s own child. This is due to the fact that humans aim at improving ways in order to eliminate various negative health concerns of the humanity. One substantial proof is the ongoing studies or research and implementation of stem cells technology which at some point is aimed at trying to combat various hereditary defects and even future diseases in humans. Genetically choosing the feature of a child would make sense after all. These studies in addressing human health concerns are essentials for the human survival, but the actual implementation of their results may probably pose significant challenges and disadvantages that at some point may only be beneficial for the powerful few. At this point, I will state the promises or advantages of genetically choosing the feature of a child based on the results of genetic modifications in various animals , plants, and organisms (Reuter et al. 989; Kim et al. 534; Jang et al. 2011; Kilic and Akay 1164). The study of Reuter et al is about identifying the importance of herbicide resistant plant which the bottom line has a significant implication on protecting the environment in a wide scale. Kim et al’s research aims at understanding the therapeutic effects of genetically modified neural stem cells which found remarkable evidence of future advantage. The investigation of Jang et al has positive implications on the advantages of genetic modification on mass production of agricultural products. Finally, Kilic and Akay investigated the potential effect of transgenic crop (Bt corn) on health, but found no substantial evidence on rats. Based on the above evidences and results of different mentioned studies, there is a remarkable reason to believe that genetic modification of child’s character would also lead to success and substantial benefits especially in eradicating those h armful features causing negative impacts on human health and survival in general. I plan to point out that although there are remarkable advantages in genetic modification, its main application should only be confined and limited to plants, animals and organisms but not on humans. SUBCLAIMS: The issue about genetic modification is so complex that it is not only confined in purely scientific concerns but it involves the whole aspects of humanity. Thus, among the most important issues that are integrated in genetic modifications are social, political and economic. 1. Choosing a feature of a child via genetic modification is a great social concern. a. In here, I would include studies claiming that genetic modifications have significant benefits for the humanity which leads to positive acceptance of it. b. Particularly, I would employ the study of Guehlstorf and Hallstrom on â€Å"The role of culture in risk regulations: a comparative case study of genetically modified corn in the Unit ed States of America and European Union.†. This specifically points out the different stand of the US and European nations on genetic modification. For example, the stand of Germany on genetic modification (Christoph, Bruhn and Roosen, â€Å"Knowledge, attitudes towards and acceptability of genetic modification in Germany.†). c. I would specifically point out that the varying stand on genetic modification is a bottom line issue in line with social concern. In here, I would emphasize that due to different perspectives in looking at genetic

Friday, July 26, 2019

How can retail banks in UK restore customer confidence and improve Dissertation

How can retail banks in UK restore customer confidence and improve customer satisfaction after the financial cri - Dissertation Example action and customer confidence. It gathers the multiple determinants of such problems based on several surveys involving about 10,000 respondents made of mostly customers of banks or households, some bank Branch Managers, and some bank employees. What will provide a way to improve customer satisfaction and customer confidence must be the creative initiative of all the UK Retail Banks. Since, it has been recovering from the economic crisis (in terms of profitability) while its customers do not enjoy the results of that recovery, the UK Retail Banks should identify the specific needs of customers, comply with FSA regulations, and offer customers a way to be a part of the economic recovery. That is aside from doing their services properly. After all, it was discovered that the customers were not the cause of decline in the economic variables. Speculations and lack of knowledge concerning the risks involved in the Capital Market were found to be the root cause of the most recent recessio n. Unfortunately, it appeared that the customers were the people castigated for the economic decline, while the banks that speculated were bailed out by government funds. Credit became hard to find for customers of banks. Terms and conditions became difficult to accept. Now the banks are recovering while the general public are still struggling to be treated fairly by the banks. How to revive customer satisfaction can be answered by the provision of the needed products and services for customers who need them in order to grow or be revived economically. There are many determinants of customer satisfaction. All of them point to one thing. Be concerned with the peoples’ needs and supply their needs properly. Chapter I Introduction In order to revive the UK economy during the recession period in 2008, the Bank of England implemented Quantitative Easing for its monetary policy effective 2009. In the month of March 2009, ?75 billion was added to the money supply when BoE printed ca sh to purchase Gilts (government bonds). This was followed by ?50 billion in May 2009; another ?50 billion in August 2009; and the final ?23 billion in November 2009. These amounts were anticipated to reach the households eventually so that the consumer spending would increase and the market was supposed to be revived. (BoE, 2009) Unfortunately, the money got stuck in the banks (Inmam, P. 2011). The appended Figure 1 shows how the velocity of transfer from banks to the corporations, SMEs, and households turned out to be very slow. When BoE researched for the reason why, it was reported that the banks had to rebuild its liquidity first with the total of ?200 billion released.

Thursday, July 25, 2019

How global issues have affected the people from different walks of Essay

How global issues have affected the people from different walks of life - Essay Example The paper tells that the world of today is plagued with a number of issues. These come in all shapes and sizes. They have a very drastic effect on the global populace and the problems seem to increase with each passing day. These global issues need to be taken care of because these break the basis of sanity within the day to day affairs of the people. It also makes the point apparent that suggests these global issues are becoming bigger than these used to be in the past. With changing time dimensions, the problems have started to become bigger and the effects have magnanimously increased which is a cause of concern. Some of these global issues comprise of the challenges that face businesses and multinational companies, the environmental problems, the child labor debate, the role of capitalism in the wake of business regimes, the cultural angle within the governments, improper educational quarters around the world, failing healthcare standards, the rise of terrorism, growing poverty, and the inadequate role of the world’s leading organizations like United Nations, World Bank, etc. These global issues therefore take their basis from the above-mentioned pointers. The reason for this has been discussed by the people who want to bring about a change within the business and societal domains on a proactive basis, but then again it is not this easy to undertake in the first place. What remains significant is the basis of comprehending how these issues have created problems for the people at large and the society in more ways than one. ... It has also been depicted through the role of the respective governmental domains as to how value is at times missing from the organizational levels (Edwards, 2012). This is something that takes a lot of flak at the hands of the top management entities which are working in an organization and which have a fair enough say in making up the organizational dynamics in essence. The multinational corporations are similarly facing the same problems on a regular basis. They are being at the receiving end of a number of steps that have been taken by the government at large and which focus on the premise of creating rifts with the relevant public domains and stakeholders that are varied and widespread in different cross-sections of the society. What is quintessential to take note of here is the ideology that these stakeholders need to be taken in the loop, without which success cannot be realized in the most basic sense. These issues are therefore taking up a lot of time for these business hub s which have planned to make it big within the global quarters yet face hurdles every now and often due to lingering and pressing concerns, raised by varied individuals and other corporations and companies. The need is to allocate proper resources under such realms to make sure that success comes about in full circle as far as the challenges for the business organizations and corporations are concerned. Addressing them would actually be seen as the first step towards solving such issues without a doubt. Issue of Environment Another global issue is of the environmental pollution that has played havoc with the lives of the people. It is this subject that has been much debated and hence given attention for all the right reasons. The global warming discussion is

Should the EU focus on acting as a civilian, normative or military Essay

Should the EU focus on acting as a civilian, normative or military power - Essay Example Before answering the question whether the EU should focus on being a civilian, normative, or military power, it is important to establish how these different forms of power have historically manifested in the EU's policies and activities. Conceptualising the terms 'civilian', 'normative', and 'military' is important in any analysis where these terms are used to describe the activities of EU's. Maull's (1990) view of a civilian power includes the employment of "solidarity with other societies, and a sense of responsibility for the future of the world - and particularly the global environment". (p.106) It is important to note that Maull's analysis of the exercise of civilian power is quite restrictive as it relates to the state or the exercise of national civilian power. Thus using a 'statist' perspective of the exercise of civilian power in the context of a supranational EU, would have its possible limitations. Vital lessons can, however, be drawn from his analysis and can be transpos ed into the EU's experience. Manner's (2002) conception of the EU as a civilian power is interpreted primarily in economic terms. Simply put, civilian power can be said to be the exercise of non-military power and would include "economic, diplomatic and cultural policy instruments." (Smith, n.d. p.1) Smith's conception of civilian power would thus exclude any use of the military, even if the military were used in situations of peace-keeping, whether armed or unarmed. To Smith (n.d.) even though the military can be used in unarmed peace-keeping situations, they have also been trained to kill and thus such an activity cannot be said to be civilian. Smith (n.d.) further identifies four core elements in the exercise of civilian power - "means; ends; use of persuasion; and civilian control over foreign (and defence) policymaking". (p.2) Consequently, in employing civilian policies, the means and the ends of those policies must be non-military, with persuasion (and not coercion) being the main instruments of achieving policy objectives. Based on the above conception of civilian power, Smith (n.d.) has argued in relation to the EU that: " clinging to the notion of civilian power EU not only stretches the term 'civilian' past its breaking point, but also tends to induce excessively rosy-eyed views of the EU as an international actor. 'Civilian' often means 'good', and deploying the 'civilian power EU' argument can close down critical analysis of actual EU foreign policy activities". (p.1) With regards to concepts of normative power, Manners (2002) views the EU's normative power as its capacity to mould or influence notions of what constitutes 'normal' in politics at the international arena. This exercise of normative power is very evident in the EU's relationship with Africa. The Council of the European Union has for instance stated that "Europe has a strong interest in a peaceful, prosperous and democratic Africa. Our strategy is intended to help Africa achieve this. "Â  

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

The CEO of WRSX Has Asked You to Write a Short Educational Piece That Essay

The CEO of WRSX Has Asked You to Write a Short Educational Piece That Will Be Given to the Board Of Directors - Essay Example They operate in United States, Europe as well as in Asia pacific. In a survey conducted on the marketing communications and advertising industry the score of the company was below average. Though the customer retention and attraction capability of the company is pretty good, but in other areas of business the performance of the company is not attractive for the investors. This report is an attempt to analyze the reasons of underperforming of the shares of WRSX group and recommend about the changes that may be undertaken by the company management to gain more market shares. The researcher will conduct internal analysis of the company and describe the benefits of internal analysis to the board of directors of the company. Internal Analysis For conducting the internal analysis of the company the researcher will use the SWOT analysis tool and the resource based view analysis (Snell and Bohlander, 2012, pp.53-54). Resource Based View The resource based view analysis of a company is conduc ted to analyze the resources available to the company which can be profitable when it is used strategically. For analyzing this, VRIN framework has been made by the researchers. This framework identifies the valuable, rare, in-imitable and non substitutable resources of the company (helfat, 2007, p.45). For the resource based view analysis the VRIO framework is used to identify the valuable resources and utilized them at their best (Peng, 2008, p.71). The analysis of WRSX using the VRIN framework is as follows. Valuable: The valuable asset of the company is the capability of the team to perform locally. They understand the local customer needs more. Rare: The capability of the company to attract the customers and retain them is the best in the concerned industry (Sanchez, 2008, p.34). This capability will provide them above average return if they use the resources strategically. In-imitable: There are no such in-imitable resources of the company. Other companies in the industry can imitate these resources available to them (McKinney, 2008, p.2). As the advertising and marketing communications is a fast moving industry, so there is enough chance for the company management to develop such resources. Non-Substitutable: The non-substitutable nature of the asset of a company means that the company owns such asset that cannot be imitated by the competitors by any means, and meet the customer needs (Carter, Clegg and Kornberger, 2011, p.87). WRSX doesn’t have such assets which can be substituted by some other asset. Though the company has some valuable resources but they are not using those strategically at present. SWOT Analysis The SWOT analysis of the company is a popular tool for the analysts as it describes the strength, weakness, opportunities and threat of the company (Handlechner, 2008, p.10). Using this tool the management of the company can improve in the areas of their weaknesses, use the opportunities and can take effective steps for facing the thr eats for the company (Mello, 2003, p.43). The SWOT analysis of the company is as follows Strength: The Company prefers to provide service locally. They followed the ‘

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Executive Compensation - How much is too Much Research Paper

Executive Compensation - How much is too Much - Research Paper Example The debate about high executive compensation has been in the spotlight in United States since industrial revolution. However, it was during the great depression that this news and discussion made the headlines. Since then, this debate has always received widespread during all economic recessions. Following the pattern, as the financial crunch and economic recession hit the United States in 2006-07, this debate again reached its peak because the masses started questioning the perceived wide gap between the salaries of an average employee and the executives. Critics of high compensation believe that this is one of prime reasons of increasing inefficiencies, recession, and increasing income inequality in United States. On the other hand, proponents of high compensation believe that these pay levels are a result of market and competitive forces and external forces such as the government, watchdogs and others should have no right to interfere in how much the boards of willing to pay their executives. The thesis statement around which this paper that revolve is that â€Å"executives pay is sky rocketing and there is no rational and logical thought to allow these pay levels to increase further if we want a way out of this recession and prevent future recessions† (Mishra, McConaughy & Gobeli, 2000). ... They compare the pay of CEOs with investment bankers, hedge fund managers, equity investors, lawyers, and others. Since 1990s, there has been steady increase in the salaries of above-mentioned professionals but the pays of CEOs and other executives has not risen with the same percentage. Furthermore, out of the top 0.1 percent people in the United States arranged according to the gross income, only 3 percent of them were CEOs and executives of companies. Furthermore, in the year 2007, â€Å"top 20 hedge fund manager bagged more than three times the pay earned by the salaries of all S&P 500 combined† (Hayes & Schaefer, 2009). Proponents of this school of thought strongly believe that companies will have to take bold steps in order to retain their executives because many smart CEOs have already started shifting to Wall Street to take positions at private equity firms (Hayes & Schaefer, 2009). In order to defend the position of CEOs being overpaid, other experts have gone on to a ccept that executives and specifically, CEOs are overpaid but it is not because of the work that they do but because their job is to inspire people. The reason behind providing CEOs with the fattest checks is to ensure that it keeps other people in the company motivated (Kay & Putten, 2007). Everyone dreams to become a CEO or an executive some day and people dream about the same because they know the compensation levels. People look at executives, their cars, houses, clubs, salaries, benefits, lifestyles and that is what keeps them motivated to stay with a company and put in their best effort into their jobs hoping that within a decade or so, they would also be able to reach that dream position. Economists call this, as

Monday, July 22, 2019

Breakdown the misconception of toys Essay Example for Free

Breakdown the misconception of toys Essay Is toy world totally belongs to boy and girl world? Adults probably have their own toys but they are just borrowing from the world which is not belongs to them. The only connoisseurs of toy are children? Toys is any object that can be use to play. And it is majority associated with kids. Toys play a very important role in our growing stage and it related to everyones childhood memories. However when we grow up, we have to draw a line towards toys, because toy represent childish inside the world of an adult. We shouldnt let peoples point of views stopping us from playing toys. Whatever age we are, inside our heart toys will always be a part of us. According to the book written by Woodrow Phoenix (2006), â€Å"the power of toys is not about a return or a childish behaviour. It is the recognition of possibility.† Toys are not childish, toys are symbols that have a metaphorical power to express thoughts and emotions that may have their origins in childhood. We can know parts of ourselves, our secret, our wish, our desire in toys world. A toy can touch our inner part, which is our unexpressed and dreaming self. Toy assimilates and act out secrets, wishes, and desires, it becomes an extremely important part of the owner, toy holds of a relation with owner and gives an extraordinary personal experience to the owner. Toy has built a memory palace in our heart. We can see this clearly in the attachment of people with their toys. As companions on the emotional voyage from childhood to adulthood, toys have for their owner an emotional value that is far greater than anything. This prove that toys hold a very important place in everyone childhood, therefore we should breakdown the misconceptions about toys, and let our inner child run wild again.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Thin Layer Chromatography for Composition of Analgesics

Thin Layer Chromatography for Composition of Analgesics THIN LAYER CHROMATOGRAPHY HALILI, Johanna Bernadette C. ABSTRACT In this experiment, a thin-layer chromatography (TLC) was used to determine the composition of different analgesic drugs which were Aspirin, Ibuprofen, Caffeine, Paracetamol, tea sample and an unknown substance. Chromatography takes advantage of the fact that different substances are partitioned between two phases. TLC is used to identify individual components in a mixture. These chromatography techniques focused on the fact that components of a mixture tend to move at different speeds along the flat surface from the paper used to separate from each other. The results obtained by comparing the spots and after performing the experiment, the unknown was identified to be Aspirin. INTRODUCTION Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) is one of the most important techniques in organic chemistry and is used for the rapid separation and qualitative analysis of different substances (Pavia, et. al., 2010). This separation technique is accomplished by the combination of the mixture between two phases: the stationary and the mobile phase. The stationary phase or the absorbent, which is usually silica or alumina, is coated on a supporting material which is either a glass or plastic. The sample is applied to the layer of the adsorbent coated sheet or TLC plate. The mobile phase, or the solvent called the eluant, travels up the absorbent by capillary action (Ault, 1998; Miller, 2005). As the solvent passes through the sample or spot, it shows the effects of separation of the material in the spot. This separation technique is also used to identify if substances are pure and to compare it with other samples. Unknown substances can be also determined by comparing an unknown compound’s be havior with the other known substances. In this experiment, thin-layer chromatography is used to determine the qualitative compositions of over-the-counter analgesic drugs. The objectives for the experiment are to observe the different analgesic drugs, to perform thin-layer chromatography and calculate Rf values and to use thin-layer chromatography to identify the analgesic compound present in an unknown sample. METHODOLOGY The group prepared a chamber for the experiment of thin layer chromatography for analgesic drugs. The chamber consists of a filter paper wrapped around the 50 ml beaker with a small opening left for viewing. A 3 ml solvent mixture (25 parts ethyl acetate, 1 part ethanol, and 1 part acetic acid) was added to the chamber and was later covered using a watch glass to provide an atmosphere saturated with solvent inside the container. The filter paper was moistened for the solvent to rise equally. While the chamber was set aside, a silica gel coated TLC plate was obtained and using a pencil, a very light line was drawn across the sheet, about 10 mm from one end Seven small light marks were made along the line and labelled A to G. Each letter correspond to seven analgesic drugs which are aspirin, ibuprofen, caffeine, paracetamol, sample tea extract collected from one previous experiment, an unknown substance and co-spot respectively. Using a capillary tube, small spots of each sample was placed exactly in the intersection of the horizontal line and the tick marks for each letter to make sure it will not mix with the other samples. The capillary tube was cleaned by using Dichloromethane and it was done three times. For the sample E or the tea extract from the experiment â€Å"Isolation of caffeine from tea leaves†, the filter paper that contained the caffeine extracts was rinsed with dichloromethane to be able to place a spot to the TLC. The spots on the TLC plate were al lowed to dry for 1-2 minutes. As soon as the spots were dry, the TLC plate was dropped vertically to an upright position making sure that the chamber is on a stationary place and was covered again using a watch glass. The liquid slowly moved up the TLC sheet. When 80-90% of the solvent had already gone up of the TLC plate, the TLC plate was immediately removed taking note of where the solvent was last seen. Immediately, the TLC plate was marked where the solvent was last seen. The plate was air-dried and it was observed under UV light to point out where the spots are. While observing under the UV lamp, a light pencil mark was marked around each spot in the TLC plate. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Results Figure 1. Silica Gel coated TLC plate results. Figure 2. Silica Gel coated TLC plate results under UV light. Table 1. Measurement of the distances of the spots in the TLC plate and computed Rf values. Distance travelled by the solvent: 30.0 mm Discussion The objective of this experiment was to perform thin layer chromatography to test a certain substance of its purity or impurity and also to know the analgesic present in an unknown substance. The results shows that 5 out of 7 analgesics had 2 or more spots which indicates that are impurities or there are different compounds in those analgesic drugs. The different analgesic drugs that were observed to have 2 or more spots were Aspirin, Ibuprofen, Paracetamol, the unknown substance and the co-spot. Rf values were also computed by the distance (in mm) travelled by the solvent was measured exactly from the horizontal line drawn up to where it was last seen when it moved up. The spots were also measured and for those samples that had 2 or more spots, each spots were measured individually. The equation used for solving the Rf value is: For accuracy, the distance travelled by the spot was measured from the horizontal line up to the center of the spot. Rf values were used to compare the substances and identify the analgesic compound present in an unknown sample. Similarities was observed between Aspirin and the unknown analgesic drug F since their spots are very similar and their Rf values are very close to each other with only a 0.004 mm difference. Also, the results show that the caffeine extracted from the experiment â€Å"Isolation of caffeine from tea leaves† is indeed caffeine since spot C or pure caffeine is very similar because the spot produced by the tea extract and this is evident since it is indicated in their Rf values that they are very similar to each other. In comparing compounds used in the experiment run, the group observed that compounds with the larger Rf are less polar because it interacts less strongly with the polar adsorbent on the TLC plate (Ault, 1998). The experiment went as expected with no unusual events that would have introduced error. The group was able to perform the thin-layer chromatography and to compute for the different Rf values. CONCLUSION Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) was the technique used to determine the composition of various over-the-counter analgesics and the purity of the different substances which were Aspirin, Ibuprofen, Caffeine, Paracetamol, tea sample from one of our previous experiment and an unknown sample. With thin-layer chromatography, it was identified that compounds with the larger Rf are less polar because it interacts less strongly with the polar adsorbent on the TLC plate, and compounds with a smaller Rf values are more polar. It was also observed that the tea sample gathered from one of our previous experiment was indeed pure caffeine because of the similarities of the spots and Rf values of the spot C and pure caffeine. The different analgesic drugs that were observed to have 2 or more spots were Aspirin, Ibuprofen, Paracetamol, the unknown substance and the co-spot. Two or more spots were observed because of impurities or it contains different substances. Lastly, the unknown sample in the TL C plate was observed to be Aspirin because of the similarities of the measurement of the spot and Rf values which only had a difference of 0.004 mm. RECOMMENDATIONS To obtain a better result of the experiment, the different techniques can be done. One technique that can be done is a volatile solvent like 25 parts ethyl acetate, 1 part ethanol, and 1 part acetic acid. The TLC plate is very sensitive to different materials or compounds and it is important not to touch the TLC plate to avoid contamination of oil from the hands. In collecting different sample, one should remember to wash capillary tube with dichloromethane not less than three times to avoid contamination. To place appropriate size of each spot so it won’t mix with the other spots. For light/dull colored samples, it is recommended to place spots up to three times for it to be visible. In preparing the chamber, one should moisten properly the filter paper to have equal rising of the solvent and cover all the times the chamber since the solvent is volatile. Lastly, drop properly making sure it falls in an upright postion or the TLC plate should lean to the filter paper and remem ber not move the chamber in any way to avoid unequal rising of the solvent to the TLC plate. REFERENCES Ault, A. Techniques and Experiments for Organic Chemistry, 6th ed.; University Science Books, California, 1998. Miller, J. Chromatography: Concepts and Contrasts, 2nd ed.; John Wiley Sons, Inc. Publication, 2005. Pavia, D., Lampman, G., Kriz, G., Engel, R. A Small Scale Approach to Organic Laboratory Techniques, 3rd ed.; Cengage Learning, United States of America, 2010.

Economic Situation Malaysians Attitudes Towards Private Label Brands Marketing Essay

Economic Situation Malaysians Attitudes Towards Private Label Brands Marketing Essay The term of Globalisation is a very common word in business world. Many businessmen are trying hard to market their product to other countries. Globalisation becomes an important issue in the world today and eventually it leads to the increasing number of competitors among retailers by doing trade globally. In order to become an outstanding firm from other retailers, established a competitive advantage is an important criterion for any competitive strategy (Walsh and Mitchell, 2010). Retailers use different methods to achieve competitive advantage. The most important elements of retails branding is private label brands (Glynn and Chen, 2009). According to Levy (2009), it is easy to find out that private label brands available in almost every retail product category and it is one of the competitive strategies that retailers used to achieve competitive advantage. Private label brands have reached another level in the appearance of many products categories such as grocery, household che micals, clothing and cosmetics (Veloutsou et al., 2004). Private label brands can be a crucial component of competitive advantage especially in an economic recession (Walsh and Mitchell, 2010). Economic downturn will lead to the changes in shopping patterns. Private label brands are products that are produced by retailers and sold under the retailers own name through their own retail outlets (Baltas, 1997). Private label brands have grown in many countries and product categories in the last few decades (Connor et al., 1996). According to Lupton et al. (2010), private label brands have established their market in the United Stated and Europe in the past few decades. The consumers tend to perceive private label brands as a substitute or choices to the national brands (Lupton et al., 2010). Private label brands have built their own markets and becoming more popular among the consumers in the world (AC Nielsen, 2006). According to Morris (2002), the most successful retailer has more private label branding strategies and the retailer is normally the stronger firm. Retailers with strong private label brands will have better financial results (Morris, 2002). Malaysia, as a middle income country and one of the most developed in the developing countries, has transformed itself from a producer of raw materials into a multi-sector economy (Economy Watch, 2011). According to Economy Watch (2011), the population of Malaysia is 28.713 Million. In the following year, 2012, population of Malaysia will be 29.20 Million, which is more than the figure in year 2011 (Economy Watch, 2011). The increasing of population in Malaysia will encourage the development of retailing and will boost up the purchasing power of goods. Yelkur (2000) found that the success of private label brands is varied from different nations, such as in the United Kingdom, private label brands have successfully gain a large portion of grocery sales, but in the United States the proportion of purchasing private label brands is relatively low if compare to branded products. Developing countries are being exposed to private label brands and are becoming more aware of their benefits ( Collins and Bone, 2008). According to Collins and Bone (2008), the growth of private label brands in developing countries, such as Malaysia, is still remaining low. Private label brands continue to steadily increase their share in the marketplace. According to A.C. Nielsen (2005), the private label share of refrigerated food is 32%, paper plastic is 31%, frozen food is 25%, cosmetics is 23%, pet food is 21%, health care is 14%, non-Alcoholic beverages is 12%, snack is 9%, personal care is 3% and others. There are few hypermarkets in Malaysia selling their private label product, such as Giant, Carrefour, Tesco and Tesco Extra (A.C. Nielsen, 2010). These hypermarkets provide their private label brands in many product categories. For example, Tesco offers Tesco Finest as their private label brands (Morris, 2004). This Tesco Finest private label brands has include the product category of non-Alcoholic beverages. Morris (2004) mentioned that the strong private label brands in Tesco have became the key elements of Tescos success. Tescos private label brands generate 55% of the total sales in year 2004 (Morris, 2004). Apart than that, even though there is an amount of studies on private label brands, there is no specific research based on the Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. Nowadays, retailers own brand becomes an alternative of consumers. According to Veloutsou et al. (2004), consumers have their own perception on different brand of products, each of the products has its special features or characteristics and it will affect the purchasing behaviour of consumers. Retailers need to understand what are the main factors affecting Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands in order to attract and convince more customers stick to the own brands (Goldsmith et al., 2010). The factors affecting Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands include consumers perceived benefits (Chaniotakis, 2010), price (Walsh and Mitchell, 2010), social influences (Nelson and McLeod, 2005) and economic situation (Chaniotakis, 2010). In a recent study of private label brands (Richardson et al., 1996), some influences such as economic and psychological factors bring the effect to the purchasing rate of private label brands. Malaysian is a country comprises of many races. The three major races in Malaysia are Malay, Chinese, and Indian. Different culture will cause different people have different perception towards private label brands. This research is focusing on the factors affecting Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. The factors that will be look into are consumers perceived benefits, price, social influences and economic situation. Last but not least, it can lead us to have a better understanding toward the issue of private label brands in Malaysia. The Background of Study There are a few previous studies that focusing on the topic of private label brands in many countries, such as a scale for measuring attitude towards private label products and examination of its psychological and behavioural correlates (Burton et al., 1998), an investigation of the new generic consumer (Herstein and Tifferet, 2007), consumer behaviour towards own label monitoring the Greek experience (Boutsouki et al., 2008) and consumers perception of generic products a Mexican study (Yelkur, 2000). The definition of attitudes towards private label brands is a predisposition to respond in a positive way to private label brands and the consumer will purchase the private label brands in a more favourable way. (Burton et al., 1998) The Theory of Planned Behaviour (Ajzen, 1991) which focusing on the research of attitude-behaviour consistency can explain the positive attitude of consumers who has good perception towards the brands when they are making their decision on purchase. The rate of adoption of private label brands is not the same in all the nations (Veloutsou et al., 2004). According to A.C. Nielsen (2010), the private label brands are still not famous in all Asian markets, but only Hong Kong having a share above 5%. Private label brands of sales increased in a few countries in year 2009 compared to year 2008, but it still remains less than 5%, except of Hong Kong (A.C. Nielsen, 2010). In a recent study of retail and shopper trends, A.C. Nielsen (2010) mentioned that Malaysia has only a share of 2.3% in private label brands, Singapore has only a share of 2.8% and Thailand has a share of 1.8%. The growing of private label brands in Asian markets has to depend on how much the retailers are willing to invest in the private label brands. Retailers have to focus on the development of products and also the quality of products in order to gain a better position in the current market (A.C. Nielsen, 2010). According to the Private Label Manufacturers Association (2010), it showed that 91% of the respondents will still buying private label brands after the economic downturn and they believe that the private label brands are just good and same quality with the branded products. The promotion and packaging of the private label brands is often similar to the branded products (Putsis and Dhar, 2001). Problem Statement According to Hernon and Metoyer-Duran (1993), problem statement must be precise and it contains the need for the study. The problem statement for this research is the factor that will affect Malaysians attitudes on buying branded products or private label brands. There are some researches being conducted to find out the factors that affect the consumers intention to buy private label brands (Walsh and Mitchell, 2010), the attribute that affect the consumers intentions of buying own-label premium food products (Chaniotakis et al., 2010) and consumer attitudes and loyalty towards private brands ( Goldsmith et al., 2010). The globalization of business creates a lot of opportunities to the retailers and it also brings a lot of competitors to them. In this emerging world, establishing a competitive advantage is the main purpose of every competitive strategy while doing the business globally (Walsh and Mitchell, 2010). Some retailers have low store-operating cost, some have efficient supply chain management and some have a large number of loyal customers (Walsh and Mitchell, 2010). Therefore, hypermarkets tend to make some changes in order to attract new customers or to meet their existing customers needs. To become outstanding among all the other competitors, retailers must have some unique products or services to attract more customers. Furthermore, the technology advancement has altered the media habits from the traditional advertising method, such as billboard, to some new advertising techniques, such as product placement, in order to reach younger generation (Nelson and McLeod, 2005). Those hypermarkets required to catch up with all these changes on media habits in order to attract more customers. Besides, due to the advance technologies, people prefer to go online shopping rather than shopping in the hypermarkets. They can purchase anything online through some website, such as amazon.com. This research not only expects that the price will be the major factor that affect Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands, but also some other factors that will bring effect on the attitudes of consumer in Malaysia towards private label brands. Some of the consumers are willing to pay more for a branded product in order to obtain higher quality than paying a less money for a private label brand (Tse, 2001). So, it is very important for this study to find out what are the major factors that determine the attitudes of Malaysian towards private label brands. Objectives of Study The objectives of the research are: To examine the relationship between consumers perceived benefits and Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. To identify the relationship between price and Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. To examine the relationship between social influences and Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. To identify the relationship between economic situation and Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. The Scope of Study In every research, there are independent variables and dependent variable. The dependent variable in this research is Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. The attitude of Malaysian is important as they are contributing the response in this research. The independent variables in this study are consumers perceived benefits, price, social influences and economic situation. The coverage of this research is on Malaysian. This is because there already have a few studies that focusing on other nations but there are no research are doing based on the Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. Besides, Malaysian seems to be likely increased their purchasing rate of private label brands in hypermarkets in these few years. Grocery sales in private label brands in Malaysia are rising. The respondents who participate in this survey are those who used or bought any private label brands before. Only 150 Malaysian will be selected to contribute their response to this research. The author will develop a questionnaire with the different types and forms of questions, such as closed questions and negatively worded questions. By using the method of questionnaires, the attitude of the respondents will be shown. Hence, after finding out the relationship between the major factors and Malaysians attitude towards private label brands, it will give us a better understanding about the current consumer trend of buying private label brands in Malaysia. It helps the retailers to know which of the factor has the major influence on the peoples intentions of purchasing private label brands. Furthermore, the retailers can help them to find out what factors affecting them from losing their market share, so that they can do some analysis based on the results and make some improvement and changes. Respondents can also benefits from this research too. They can broaden their knowledge toward the topic of private label brands. They can also know better about the current market trends and the main factor that determines their attitude towards private label brands. Then, by knowing the factors that affecting Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands, the government can earn more income due to the increasing sell of private label brands. Besides, the government should implement some policy to help the private label brands in order to protect them from the competition of branded and national products. Lastly, it will make contribution to the Malaysias economy because it will help the local retailers to know which factors affecting their customer on choosing private label brands, therefore, they can make slightly changes and it will lead to the increasing number of sales. By the increasing number of sales, it will definitely lead to a rise in GDP. Definition for the Key Terms Attributes Definition Sources Private Label Brands Products that are produced by retailers and sold under the retailers own name through their own retail outlets Baltas (1997) Perceived benefits The degree to which a fulfilment of expectations when choosing private label brands. Veloutsou, Gioulistanis and Moutinho (2004) Price A monetary value when the consumer wants to exchange it with the goods or services provided by the sellers or producers. Nagle and Holden (2002) Social Influences The degree to which learning the skills, knowledge and attitudes relevant for consumption from media, parents and peers. Nelson and Mcleod (2005) Economic Situation The economic conditions that will lead the retailers to enrich the range of private label offerings. Chaniotakis, Lymperopoulos and Soureli (2010) Organization Structure There are total five chapters in this research. The structure of the study is organized as following. Chapter 1 is about the introduction, the author will start by the background of this study. Besides, the author will briefly explain why this research is important, what factors will affect the Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands, history of private label brands, rules and regulations towards private label brands in Malaysia, problem statements, research objectives and contribution of this study. This part will have an overview of the research. Chapter 2 is literature review that discusses the factors that affect the attitudes of Malaysian towards private label brands. In the beginning, the definition of the theory and interest of study are introduces. Then, the author will explain each of the variables that affecting Malaysians attitudes towards private label brands. The author was reviewed the previous study to make the analysis of each variables. Chapter 3 is research methodology. In this part, it describes how the author collects information and finalizes the data. It will also explain what method will be used to conduct this research. The author defines the research framework, develops hypothesis, develops questionnaires, explain how the author undergo pilot study, chooses convenient sampling as the sampling method, and introduces the target size. Furthermore, data collection method and data analysis will be presented. Conclusion This chapter will give us some briefing about this research. Let us know about why this research is important and why this research is needed to be conducted. One of the reasons is that we can know the consumer purchasing trend in the current market after the completion of this research. Then, this study will make a huge contribution to the retailer who are selling or planning to sell private label brands. They can further know about how the consumers think and their attitudes towards private label brands in Malaysia. We can also know which variable has more powerful to affect the Malaysians intention to buy private label brands. This will have an impact on the economy of Malaysia too. Last but not least, we can also have better understanding towards the key terms that affect the Malaysians attitudes on private label brands. Besides, it will give us a clear picture for the structure of this research.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

William Shakespeare :: essays research papers

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare, the most famous of all English writers, has written many works. One such work is Much Ado About Nothing, a comedy that includes humor, love, and deceit. Several incidents in the life of the author influenced him to write this play in the fashion that he did. These events come from his life and the point in history in which he lived, thus producing Much Ado About nothing. Shakespeare's life has very much to do with the style of his writing as his stories are from his past experiences. Shakespeare had a life that involved both the good and bad aspects of love. He was married for a short while, however, the marriage was suspected to be an unhappy one because he spent much of his later life away from his family. Shakespeare's misfortune in love is shown in Much Ado About Nothing when it is said, "Speak low if you speak love." (Shakespeare). Contrary to this, the positive side of love is apparent: "Friendship is constant in all other things Save in the office and affairs of love: Therefore all hearts in love use their own tongues; Let every eye negotiate itself And trust no agent." (Shakespeare) So let it be known, Shakespeare obviously learned a great deal about love throughout the course of his life. He learned not only the good, but also the bad, and in this, love plays a major role in Much Ado About Nothing (Wright 10- 13). Another element used in Much Ado About Nothing is deceit. This deceit involves a conflict between two brothers in which one wants to keep the other unhappy and unwed. This conflict is present as it is said, "There's a skirmish of wit between them." (Shakespeare). Shakespeare, in his life, had some deceitful things forced upon him where he was cheated out of something. He was forced out of school at an early age of fifteen to help his father financially. Furthermore, he was forced into marrying a women that was eight years older than himself because she was three months pregnant. In result of his unsuccessful marriage, it is reason enough for him involving love and deceit as one in this play. So Shakespeare also understands deceit as he incorporated it into Much Ado About Nothing ("Shakespeare, William"). Contrary to love and deceit, Shakespeare uses comedy as the third and final element of the play. Comedy is what gives Much Ado About Nothing it's cheerful happiness and wit that gives this play it's recognition. Shakespeare had many happy experiences in his life due to his great success in being a

Friday, July 19, 2019

Chasing Amy: A Disregard for Societal Norm Essays -- Chasing Amy Essa

You know, I didn't just heed what I was taught, men and women should be together, it's the natural way, that kind of thing. I'm not with you because of what family, society, life tried to instill in me from day one. The way the world is, how seldom it is that you meet that one person who just gets you - it's so rare. My parents didn't really have it. There were no examples set for me in the world of male-female relationships. And to cut oneself off from finding that person, to immediately halve your options by eliminating the possibility of finding that one person within your own gender, that just seemed stupid to me. Alyssa Jones, the heroine of Chasing Amy, calmly explains this in order to reaffirm her love for her boyfriend, Holden. In this quote, Alyssa exudes that she has always felt that individuals mustn’t falter to societal heteronormativity. In society, there is an accepted standard, and that standard is heterosexuality; anything that falls outside of that social norm is seen as wrong. Alyssa was adamant about not allowing herself to fall under the ideal that a male partner was the only acceptable end goal in life. The particular agenda that Alyssa set for herself, along with other characters dealing with promiscuity, homosexuality, and homophobia are the reason that I have chosen to analyze Kevin Smith’s film, Chasing Amy. In this essay, I aim to establish that Chasing Amy serves as a positive stride for gays and lesbians within a heteronormative culture. Chasing Amy centers around two freelance comic book writers/best friends, Holden and Banky. A homosexual acquaintance, Hooper, introduces Holden to a fellow comic book writer, Alyssa. Holden immediately falls for Alyssa and strikes up a close relationship with ... ...iewers from making the same sort of mistakes. Chasing Amy serves as a milestone for all those who choose to work against what they are taught as being socially acceptable and opens the door to social change. WORKS CITED Â ¨ Pharr, Suzanne. "Homophobia and Sexism." The Differences Among Us: Division and Connections (1988): 416. Â ¨ Ochs, Robyn. "Bisexuality, Feminism, Men and Me." Sexuality and Relationships (1992): 165. Â ¨ Zimmerman, Bonnie. "What Has Never Been: An Overview of Lesbian Feminist." Making a Difference: Feminist Literary Criticism 179. Â ¨ Kehoe, Monica. "Historical, Literary, and Erotic Aspects of Lesbianism." Journals of Homosexuality 1. Â ¨ Rust, Paula C. Rodriguez, Paula C. Rust, and "Bisexuality in the United States: A Social Science Reader." Criticisms of the Scholarly Literature on Sexuality for its Neglects of Bisexuality 1. Chasing Amy: A Disregard for Societal Norm Essays -- Chasing Amy Essa You know, I didn't just heed what I was taught, men and women should be together, it's the natural way, that kind of thing. I'm not with you because of what family, society, life tried to instill in me from day one. The way the world is, how seldom it is that you meet that one person who just gets you - it's so rare. My parents didn't really have it. There were no examples set for me in the world of male-female relationships. And to cut oneself off from finding that person, to immediately halve your options by eliminating the possibility of finding that one person within your own gender, that just seemed stupid to me. Alyssa Jones, the heroine of Chasing Amy, calmly explains this in order to reaffirm her love for her boyfriend, Holden. In this quote, Alyssa exudes that she has always felt that individuals mustn’t falter to societal heteronormativity. In society, there is an accepted standard, and that standard is heterosexuality; anything that falls outside of that social norm is seen as wrong. Alyssa was adamant about not allowing herself to fall under the ideal that a male partner was the only acceptable end goal in life. The particular agenda that Alyssa set for herself, along with other characters dealing with promiscuity, homosexuality, and homophobia are the reason that I have chosen to analyze Kevin Smith’s film, Chasing Amy. In this essay, I aim to establish that Chasing Amy serves as a positive stride for gays and lesbians within a heteronormative culture. Chasing Amy centers around two freelance comic book writers/best friends, Holden and Banky. A homosexual acquaintance, Hooper, introduces Holden to a fellow comic book writer, Alyssa. Holden immediately falls for Alyssa and strikes up a close relationship with ... ...iewers from making the same sort of mistakes. Chasing Amy serves as a milestone for all those who choose to work against what they are taught as being socially acceptable and opens the door to social change. WORKS CITED Â ¨ Pharr, Suzanne. "Homophobia and Sexism." The Differences Among Us: Division and Connections (1988): 416. Â ¨ Ochs, Robyn. "Bisexuality, Feminism, Men and Me." Sexuality and Relationships (1992): 165. Â ¨ Zimmerman, Bonnie. "What Has Never Been: An Overview of Lesbian Feminist." Making a Difference: Feminist Literary Criticism 179. Â ¨ Kehoe, Monica. "Historical, Literary, and Erotic Aspects of Lesbianism." Journals of Homosexuality 1. Â ¨ Rust, Paula C. Rodriguez, Paula C. Rust, and "Bisexuality in the United States: A Social Science Reader." Criticisms of the Scholarly Literature on Sexuality for its Neglects of Bisexuality 1.

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Prejudice and Racism in Heart of Darkness? Essay -- HOD Joseph Conrad

Heart of Darkness: Racist or not? Â   Many critics, including Chinua Achebe in his essay "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness", have made the claim that Joseph Conrad's novel Heart of Darkness, despite the insights which it offers into the human condition, ought to be removed from the canon of Western literature. This claim is based on the supposition that the novel is racist, more so than other novels of its time. While it can be read in this way, it is possible to look under the surface and create an interpretation of Conrad's novel that does not require the supposition of extreme racism on the part of Conrad. Furthermore, we must keep in mind that Conrad was a product of a rather racist period in history, and it seems unfair to penalize him for not being able to transcend his contemporaries in this respect. Â   This novel, it seems, must be read in a symbolic manner. Objects and characters are not so simple as they seem. Achebe tells us: "Quite simply it is the desire... in Western psychology to set Africa up as a foil to Europe, as a place of negations at once remote and vaguely familiar, in comparison with which Europe's own state of spiritual grace will be manifest" (251-252). If Africa is a foil to Europe, as stated here, then perhaps Conrad only uses the continent of Africa symbolically, without regard to its people - as Achebe himself states, descriptions of Africans as anything more than vague limbs in the darkness are few and far between in the novel. The opposition between light and darkness in the novel, far from being Conrad's own, is traditional in Western literature. Conrad simply uses the most familiar of symbols for the dichotomy between good and evil to enhance his novel's psycho... .... One might also argue that while Marlow is racist, Conrad is not - something like the scenario in another famous river novel, Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. However, I reject this claim - Marlow does the vast majority of the speaking in this novel, and so the reader identifies him as the novel's narrative voice even though there is, strictly speaking, a frame story outside of this. Â   Finally, even if Conrad was more racist than other authors of his time, why is this so significant? The novel is still valuable as an object of art, for the psychological insights it offers both into the human condition at large and into the motivations of European imperialism and colonization. A novel such as this should not be removed from the canon on the simple basis of its offensive potential. All great literature must have at least the potential to offend.