Aircraft Icing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Aircraft Icing - Research Paper Example Icing does not spare any type of aviation. In extreme cold conditions, ice forms naturally. An aircraft, despite its size and shape, has no control over formation of ice over its surface. Deicing and anti-icing treatment helps ward off icing on aircraft surface. But even with these treatments, it is necessary to be on the lookout for sneaky icing to happen unobtrusively. No region in the world can boast of ice-free aviation condition. Icing is not known as the silent killer for nothing. It has taken heavy toll arising from complacency and lack of vigilance. Early in the 1940s when the problem of icing began to get noticed, people in the aviation industry did not view it very seriously. Aviation was not a huge industry then. However, when the industry began to grow in leaps and bounds in the late 1970s, icing problem began to get noticed. Customer base grew. It became a demanding market. It became necessary for flights to be frequent and time adherent. It was then that problems such as icing began to get noticed in the way it should. On 13 January 1982, the Air Florida flight 90 accident at Washington National Airport sounded alarm bells to the lethal hazards of ground icing (William M. Leary). The clear and smooth ice with air pockets that has the lumpy and translucent appearance. The more the accretion, the less the glazed ice takes the form of the wing. This ice is clear and hard to break and is more transparent. Mixed ice Rime ice and clear ice together form the mixed ice. Conditions that cause icing High humidity and the low winter freezing levels are the main causes of icing. The airframe icing are caused when planes are flying through visible cloud, rain and drizzle and the temperature reaches at a point zero or sub zero. The aerodynamic danger The weight of ice on the body of the plane causes accretion; the accretion occurred is asymmetrical that causes higher uncontrollability to the plane and aircraft movements. The visibility in front of the plane is also lost because of the ice. The propeller blades of the plane if iced causes reduction in thrust and may result in danger by causing imbalance to the movements of the plane; surface movement may be cut down because control of the plane may be lost, causing flutter. The antennae of the plane that helps in bridging communication may render ineffective. The speed of the plane may be stalled because its flaps may be extended. Technology of icing detection Anti icing technology The technology is used at a pre icing stage, to avoid ice to shape form on the body of the plane. Various areas of plane are heat up including carburetor heating, prop heating, pilot heating, fuel vent heating, and wind shield heating, etc. Deicing This procedure is used after the icing conditions have engulfed the plane. Surface deicing equipment is to prevent any ice from inhibiting the

Domestic Violence Case Study Analysis Social Work Essay

Domestic Violence Case Study Analysis Social Work Essay Mrs. Chan lives with her husband and two children. The son and the daughter are aged 11 and 8 respectively. The couple has been married for 20 years. Mr. Chan runs a grocery store, and is the breadwinner of the whole family. Mrs. Chan is a housewife and responsible for taking care of the two children and housework. Both are in their mid-forties Summary of the information gathered Presenting problem and the aim of assessment Mrs. Chan came to sought help because of the alienation relationship between her husband and son. Furthermore, the domestic violent also be another issue because Mr. Chan abused the client frequently. The social worker carried out two interviews to gather specific information about the family. The aim was to realize the situation and raise an intervention plan to facilitate positive relationships of all family members. Problem assessment Clients perception of the problems During the several contacts with Mrs. Chan, she conveyed her view on the issues which exists in their family. The client expressed that she has two major concerns. One is she felt helpless when facing the domestic violence. The other is that she worried about her son would be negative influenced by her father and be hurt during family violence. She told the worker that she had been abused by her husband for several months starting from last year and tolerated the unfairness mistreatment for a long time. Sometimes, he even did the violent behavior in front of their children. And her husband ever threatened her with a knife. Mrs. Chan admitted that she felt feared. For her children, she decides to leave their family temporarily. The client mentioned that the reciprocal conversation between her husband and son is seldom. Even when they stay together there is rare communication. She did not know how to improve their relationship and was anxious to seek solutions to remedy this situation. She said to worker she has ever hear her son murmuring that he has hidden some weapons and may use them to attack his father. Besides, her sons performance in school is not as well as before. Therefore, she was solicitous about the conflict between two of them will more and more worsening which will bring about more negative effect on her son. Workers perception of the problems During the interviews with Mrs. Chan, the worker observed that the family functioning is unbalanced because of domestic violence. Domestic violence Family system theory focus on the interaction patterns within a family. It stressed that in each family, there exists a rule to confine each family members behavior. And the boundaries and communication patterns of each members are defined. (McCue, 1995). By adopting the theory, the worker found that Mr. Chan seems to view himself as the dominant role and authority in their family, once some family members do not obey his rules they will achieve punishment. And Mr. Chan use violence as a mean to restore Mrs. Chans position within the family. father-son relationship The worker found that the alienated relationship between the father and son mainly result from domestic violence. In this case, the boys father is the perpetrating party and his mother is a victim. The boy presented resentment and fear to his father, what his behavior, such as indifference and alienation represent his emotion. 3) Family communication As a result of domestic violence, the spousal relationship and parent-children relationship were both damaged. The mere family communication lead to family system lacks basic understanding and support. During the interview, the worker found that the distorted communication pattern and alienated relationships between family members are results of domestic violence. To Mrs. Chans son, his academic performance and mental health were both negative influenced by domestic violence. Agreed view of the client and the worker Mrs. Chan and the worker agreed that the foremost thing is to guarantee the safety of her and her two children. Staying in hostel can provide an opportunity to her calm down and make a decision whether leave or not. Based on the premise, a sound family relationship and a harmonious atmosphere would be constructed in the long run. Priorities of problems domestic violence and spousal relationship relationship between Mr. Chan and his son family communication and relationship among all family members Intervention phase Objectives Short -term: To alleviate the domestic violence in Mrs. Chans family and improve the relationship between the couple. To improve the relationship between Mr. Chan and his son Long-term: 1. To facilitate positive interaction pattern and create harmonious family atmosphere. Strategies and rationales shelter program Shelters have been gradually became a critical strategies for women and children who are preparing to escape violence. The shelter program can help abused women deal with current crisis and prepare to control their lives. ( McCue, 1995). At present, the foremost concern is the safety of Mrs. Chan and her children. Through shelter program, Mrs. Chan can calm down to consider the arrangements afterwards and make a rational decision for their future lives. Cognitive-behavioral approach The worker believes that a cognitive-behavioral approach for Mr. Chan would be effective to solve the whole family problem. The cognitive -behavior model stated that behavior is influenced by cognition: behavior will be modified by cognition. (Bonnet Williams, 2001). By cognitive-behavioral approach, Mr. Chan can indentify the situation which trigger his anger and learn how to control aggressive emotion with adaptive behavior. Mutual communication workshop Family members use verbal and nonverbal channels to convey messages. And the interaction and communication patterns play an important role in family relationship. (Hepworth, R. Rooney, G. Rooney, Strom-Gottfried, Larsen, 2010). For the purpose of improving the family relationship and ameliorating the communication pattern, some relevant activities would be arranged for them. The workshop includes organizing some domestic activities to alleviate the misunderstandings and facilitate reciprocal communication among family members. By this method, the family relationship will be more stable and harmonious. Parental skills training Marital conflict always related with ineffectiveness parenting, and children who suffer parental discord and uncaring parenting are prone to represent internalizing behaviors include anxiety, depression and externalizing behavior include aggressive and disobedience. (Papalia, Olds, Feldman, 2009). Through the training, the parental pattern of the couple can be improved, and their sons emotional and mental issues can be alleviated and be more preoccupation with schooling. Regular meeting with children Since the domestic violence impose a negative influence on the boy, a regular meeting with the child is compulsory. By the regularly meeting, workers can give out specific and pertinent suggestions and projects to help the child rebuild his confidence and expectation to the family, community as well as the society.

Computer Crime :: essays research papers

Computer Crime I Ever since I got my first computer. I have enjoyed working on them. I have learned a tremendous amount of trouble shooting. With my recent computer I have come across computer crime. I got interested in hacking, prhreaking, and salami slicing. But before I go to far, I need to learn more about it like the consequences? One question in mind is what crimes are their and what kind of things you can do with them? I would like to find out why people do thesis things? I would also like to learn the laws against all computer crime? II Today's computer society has brought a new form of crime. There are those "hackers" who break their way into computers to learn the system or get information. I found out in the book Computer Crime written by Judson, Karen: That "Salami Slicers" steal small amounts of money from many bank customers this adding up to a great deal of money. I also read about phone phreaks more known as "Phreakers." They steal long distance phone services. Phreakers commit many other crimes against phone companies. In the book Computer Crime it states, most people commit thesis crimes, because they where carious and wanted to explore the system. All they want to do is exploit systems not destroy it. It is purely intellectual. I know one reason is that is can be very rewarding. Hackers are drawn to computers for the aninymity they allow. They feel powerful and can do anything. Hackers can be there own person out side the real world. I found out Arizona was the first state to pass a law against computer crime, in 1979. In 1980 the U.S. copyright act was amended to include soft ware. I found out that in 1986 a computer farad abuse act was passed. This act was made to cover over any crime or computer scheme that was missed with any former laws. Violations to any of thesis laws are a maxim of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. III With my computer I can do lots of these things but choose not to. Because I know that if you know computers you can do much more like carious wise.

Approaches to Decision Making Essay

There are two common ways to make decisions regarding changes in an organization, especially when others are involved in the end result. The two ways would be to make decisions individually, making the decision by yourself or by creating a committee, getting others involved in the process. Knowing that something needs to change, means that there has been a problem identified, evaluating alternatives and then selecting the solution. Depending on the problem and the criteria that will be evaluated in making the final decision, this will play an important factor on whether individually making the decision is better than a group decision. When making decisions and changes that are going to effect many, it typically is better to make group decisions. For larger companies, it is typical that a committee or a team would be created. Bringing together individuals of the organization that would be effected by these changes. Having a committee involved in the decision brings more views, thoughts, past experiences and suggestions to the table to be evaluated for optimal solutions. Advantages of a group decision is there are more options contributed, the better chances that decisions made would be accepted by those involved in the decision as well. â€Å"Quantities and diversity of information are greatest when group members represent different specialities†. (Robbins, DeCenzo, & Coulter, 2011, p. 71). Finding a suitable solution is half of the battle, the next half would be implementation. By having a group decision enforced, will increase the success of changes since they were a part of it and will encourage change. In the example provided about budgetary concerns, it would be suggested that a committee be created with upper management from finance, human resources, and department managers to discuss how overhead such as employees, supplies and other capital costs are effecting our business. Before having the initial meeting it would be suggested for each manager to evaluate their department and be ready to give suggestion of where they would be able to make individual changes without sacrificing the well being of the patients care. Once all contributions are made from each department, hearing the options of solutions would allow the committee members to discuss the  changes and place value on which options could be most beneficial. Options like reducing employee head count or hours, re-evaluating vendors where supplies are purchased from, eliminating overtime costs by having back up staff available or changing processes by reducing paper trails and going electronic. Each of these will need to be analyzed on immediate consequences or benefits and what the longer term effects will be. The disadvantage of working with a committee is that there will prolong the process of making a decision, more meetings, more time and there could be more resistant from individuals that will need to be â€Å"talked into† this decision. In the example about making budget cuts, one could make the decision alone and not consult with any other departments. The individual making decisions to cut staff, supplies or capital costs would need to have a comprehensive understanding of all costs associated with the organization and what implications could be by reducing budgets. Even though it is just one person making the decision, it is very important to still do a thorough evaluation of what the problems are, evaluate multiple solutions and weigh the benefits or consequences of these changes. It would be very important to obtaining financial monthly statements/costs that are associated with each department. The benefit of making decisions solely is that multiple meetings would be eliminated, do not need to â€Å"sell† your idea or solution to others, and a decision could be made quicker which will save time and money for the organization. The disadvantages of making a decision like this where it effects a group, out weigh the benefits. You do not have access to others input and past experiences who have dealt with similar situations or hearing what concerns your management will have. By not including others, you have a higher chance of the decision not being welcomed by all and having resistant to the change and implementation. References: Robbins, S., DeCenzo, D., & Coulter, M. (2011). Fundamentals of Management: Essential Concepts and Applications (7th ed.).

Eco Study Question

The affordable bundle that yields the greatest satisfaction to the consumer is: Answer | | the maximum bundle. | | | the equilibrium consumption bundle. | | | the allowable purchasing bundle. | | | the most popular bundle. | Given that income is $500 and PX = $20 and PY = $5, what is the market rate of substitution between goods X and Y? Answer | | 100. | | | 4. | | | -20. | | | 25. | The budget set defines the combinations of good X and Y that Answer | | are desirable to the consumer. | | | are affordable to the consumer. | | | maximizes consumer's utility. | | | maximizes supplier's profit. |The difference between a price decrease and an increase in income is that Answer | | A price decrease does not affect the consumption of other goods while an increase in income does. | | | An increase in income does not affect the slope of the budget line while a decrease in price does change the slope. | | | A price decrease decreases real income while an increase in income increases real inco me. | | | A price decrease leaves real income unchanged while an increase in income increases real income. | All else held constant, as additional firms enter an industry Answer | | more output is available at each given price. | | less output is available at each given price. | | | the same output is available at each given price. | | | output could increase or decrease at each given price. | | | | The law of demand states that, holding all else constant: Answer | | as price falls, demand will fall also. | | | as price rises, demand will also rise. | | | price has no effect on quantity demanded. | | | as price falls, quantity demanded rises. | The economic principle that producers are willing to produce more output when price is high is depicted by the: Answer | | upward slope of the supply curve. | | | extreme steepness of the supply curve. | | downward slope of the supply curve. | | | interaction of the supply and demand curves. | Good X is a normal good if an increase in income leads to Answer | | an increase in the supply for good X. | | | an increase in the demand for good X. | | | a decrease in the demand for good X. | | | a decrease in the supply for good X. | If there are few close substitutes for a good, demand tends to be relatively Answer | | elastic. | | | inelastic. | | | unitary elastic. | | | neither elastic, inelastic nor unitary elastic. | Which of the following is used to determine the statistical significance of a regression coefficient?Answer | | t-statistic. | | | F-statistic. | | | R-square. | | | adjusted R-square. | Assume that the price elasticity of demand is -0. 75 for a certain firm's product. If the firm lowers price, the firm's managers can expect total revenue to Answer (lower than 1 so its inelastic) | | decrease| | | increase| | | remain constant| | | either increase or remain constant depending upon the size of the price decrease. | Assume that the price elasticity of demand is -2 for a certain firm's product. If the firm rai ses price, the firm's managers can expect total revenue to: Answer | | Decrease| | | Increase| | Remain constant| | | Either increase or remain constant depending upon the size of the price increase. | What is the marginal cost of producing the fifth unit? Answer | | 270. | | | 110. | | | 50. | | | 0. | Scarce resources are ultimately allocated toward the production of goods most wanted by society because: Answer | | firms attempt to maximize profits. | | | they are most efficiently utilized in these areas. | | | consumers demand inexpensive goods and services. | | | managers are benevolent. | The additional cost incurred by using an additional unit of the managerial control variable is defined as the: Answer | total cost. | | | net cost. | | | net benefit. | | | marginal cost. | Which is the correct statement about the relationship between government and the market? Answer | | Government should intervene on the consumers' behalf. | | | Government should intervene on the producers' behalf. | | | Government should not intervene on any party's behalf. | | | Government often plays a role in disciplining the market process. | Suppose the long-run average cost curve is U-shaped. When LRAC is in the increasing stage, there exist Answer | | economies of scope. | | | diseconomies of scope. | | economies of scale. | | | diseconomies of scale. | Fixed costs exist only in: Answer | | The long run. | | | Capital intensive markets. | | | The short run. | | | Labor intensive markets. | If the marginal product per dollar spent on capital is less than the marginal product per dollar spent on labor, then in order to minimize costs the firm should use Answer | | less capital and more labor. | | | less labor and more capital. | | | less labor and less capital. | | | more labor and more capital. | Suppose the marginal product of labor is 10 and the marginal product of capital is 8.If the wage rate is $5 and the price of capital is $2, then in order to minimize costs the firm shou ld use Answer | | more capital and less labor. | | | more labor and less capital. | | | equal amounts of labor and capital. | | | none of the statements associated with this question are correct. | A price decrease causes a consumer's â€Å"real† income to: Answer | | increase. | | | decrease. | | | remain unchanged. | | | decrease or increase depending on the size of the price change. | The idea that a consumer is limited to selecting a bundle of goods that is affordable is captured by the: Answer | budget constraint. | | | indifference curve. | | | consumer equilibrium. | | | price changes. | Suppose market demand and supply are given by Qd = 100 – 2P and QS = 5 + 3P. If a price ceiling of $15 is imposed, Answer | | there will be a surplus of 40 units. | | | there will be neither a surplus or shortage. | | | there will be a shortage of 40 units. | | | there will be a shortage of 20 units. | The minimum legal price that can be charged in a market is: Answer | | a pric e floor. | | | a price ceiling. | | | non-pecuniary price. | | | full economic price. | Suppose that good X is a substitute for good Y.Then an increase in the price of good Y leads to Answer | | an increase in the demand of good X. | | | a decrease in the demand of good X. | | | a decrease in the supply of good X. | | | an increase in the supply of good X. | In a competitive market, the market demand is Qd = 60 – 6P and the market supply is Qs = 4P. A price ceiling of $3 will result in a Answer | | shortage of 30 units. | | | shortage of 15 units. | | | surplus of 30 units. | | | surplus of 12 units| As the usage of an input increases, marginal product Answer | | initially increases then begins to decline. | | initially decreases then begins to increase. | | | consistently decreases. | | | consistently increases. | Costs that are forever lost after they have been paid are: Answer | | Production costs. | | | Fixed costs. | | | Sunk costs. | | | Variable costs. | The maximum am ount of output that can be produced with K units of capital and L units of labor is the: Answer | | Production function. | | | Technological constraint. | | | Research and development schedule. | | | Total product. | An isocost line Answer | | represents the combinations of w and K that cost the firm the same amount of money. | | represents the combinations of K and L that cost the firm the same amount of money. | | | represents the combinations of r and w that cost the firm the same amount of money. | | | has a convex shape. | Demand is more inelastic in the short-term because consumers: Answer | | are impatient. | | | have no time to find available substitutes. | | | are present-oriented. | | | are neither impatient, have no time to find available substitutes nor are present-oriented. | Which of the following factors would not affect the own-price elasticity of a good? Answer | | Time. | | | Price of an input. | | Available substitutes. | | | Expenditure share. | Use the figure ab ove to calculate the income elasticity of demand when income increases from $25,000 to $30,000. Answer | | -0. 10 | | | -1. 10 | | | 0. 1818 | | | 0. 20 | | | 1. 10| ? As a rule-of-thumb, a parameter estimate is statistically different from zero when the absolute value of the t-statistic is: Answer | | zero. | | | less than one. | | | greater than or equal to one. | | | greater than or equal to two. | In order to maximize net benefits, firms should produce where: Answer | | total benefits equal total costs. | | | profits are zero. | | marginal cost is minimized. | | | marginal benefits equal marginal costs| | | | Scarce resources are ultimately allocated toward the production of goods most wanted by society because: Answer | | firms attempt to maximize profits. | | | they are most efficiently utilized in these areas. | | | consumers demand inexpensive goods and services. | | | managers are benevolent. | Generally when calculating profits as total revenue minus total costs, accountin g profits are larger than economic profits because economists take into account Answer | | only explicit costs. | | | only implicit costs. | | both explicit and implicit costs. | | | both types of profits are always equal because they account for the same costs. | | | | To an economist, maximizing profit is: Answer | | maximizing the value of the firm. | | | maximizing the current year's profits. | | | minimizing the permanent total costs. | | | minimizing the future risks| At the point of consumer equilibrium the slope of the budget line is equal to the: Answer | | market rate of substitution. | | | indifference curve. | | | marginal rate of substitution. | | | consumer preference. | If the price of good X increases, what will happen to the budget line?Answer | | It will have a parallel shift inward. | | | It will have a parallel shift outward. | | | It will become steeper. | | | It will become flatter. | The possible goods and services a consumer can afford to consume represents t he: Answer | | consumer behavior. | | | consumer preferences. | | | consumer status. | | | consumer opportunities. | | | | | | | At what level of output does marginal cost equal marginal revenue? Answer | | 1. | | | 2. | | | 3. | | | 4. | If marginal benefits exceed marginal costs, it is profitable to: Answer | | increase Q. | | | decrease Q. | | | stay at that level of Q. | | all of the statements associated with this question are correct| The change in total output attributable to the last unit of an input is the: Answer | | Total product. | | | Average product. | | | Marginal product. | | | Marginal return. | The combinations of inputs that produce a given level of output are depicted by: Answer | | Indifference curves. | | | Budget lines. | | | Isocost curves. | | | Isoquants. | ? Suppose the demand for good X is given by Qdx = 20 – 4Px + 2Py + M. The price of good X is $5, the price of good Y is $15, and income is $150. Given these prices and income, how much of good X w ill be purchased?Answer | | 160. | | | 180. | | | 220. | | | None of the statements associated with this question are correct. | Which of the following pairs of goods are probably complements? Answer | | televisions and roller skates. | | | frozen yogurt and ice cream. | | | steak and chicken. | | | hamburgers and ketchup. | A change in income will not lead to: Answer | | a movement along the demand curve. | | | a leftward shift of the demand curve. | | | a rightward shift of the demand curve. | | | all of the statements associated with the question are correct. | Suppose market demand and supply are given by Qd = 100 – 2P and QS = 5 + 3P.The equilibrium price is: Answer | | $15. | | | $19. | | | $17. | | | $20. | The quantity consumed of a good is relatively unresponsive to changes in price whenever demand is: Answer | | elastic. | | | unitary. | | | falling. | | | inelastic. | In the figure above, what is the point price elasticity of demand when price is $60? Answer | | -0 . 50 | | | -0. 75 | | | -1. 00 | | | -1. 60 | | | -2. 00| Demand is perfectly elastic when the absolute value of the own price elasticity of demand is: Answer | | zero. | | | one. | | | infinite. | | | unknown. | Which of the following provides a measure of the overall fit of a regression?Answer | | t-statistic. | | | F-statistic and R-Square. | | | p-value. | | | the t-statistic and the p-value. | | | | When marginal revenue is positive, demand is Answer Selected Answer: elastic. The short run response of quantity demanded to a change in price is usually: Answer Selected Answer: Less than the long run response. Suppose demand is given by Q xd = 50 – 4Px + 6Py + Ax, where Px = $4, Py = $2, and Ax = $50. What is the quantity demanded of good x? Answer Selected Answer: 96. A price elasticity of zero corresponds to a demand curve that is: Answer Selected Answer: VerticalEconomics Answer Selected Answer: exists because of the scarcity. Good A is an inferior good, an increase in i ncome leads to: Answer Selected Answer: a decrease in the demand for good A. A price ceiling is Answer Selected Answer: the maximum legal price that can be charged in a market. A floor price is Answer Selected Answer: the minimum legal price that can be charged in a market. Suppose the demand for X is given by Qxd = 100 – 2PX + 4PY + 10M + 2A, where PX represents the price of good X, PY is the price of good Y, M is income and A is the amount of advertising on good X.Based on this information, we know that good X is a Answer Selected Answer: substitute for good Y and a normal good. The law of supply states that, holding all else constant, as the price of a good falls: Answer Selected Answer: quantity supplied falls. If the marginal product per dollar spent on capital is less than the marginal product per dollar spent on labor, then in order to minimize costs the firm should use Answer Selected Answer: less labor and more capital. Which of the following â€Å"costs† coul d a firm that wants to remain in business avoid if it halted current production? Answer Selected Answer:Variable costs. The marginal rate of technical substitution Answer Selected Answer: is the absolute value of the slope of the isoquant. Accounting profits are: Answer Selected Answer: total revenue minus total cost. Which of the following is an implicit cost to a firm that produces a good or service? Answer Selected Answer: foregone profits of producing a different good or service. The elasticity that measures the responsiveness of consumer demand to changes in income is the: Answer Selected Answer: income elasticity. Demand tends to be Answer Selected Answer: more inelastic in the short-term than in the long-term.What is/are the important things that must be developed when characterizing consumer behavior? Answer Selected Answer: Consumer preferences and consumer opportunities. When quantity demanded exceeds quantity supplied Answer Selected Answer: the price is below the equilib rium price. Graphically, an increase in the number of vegetarians will cause the demand curve for Tofu (a meat substitute) to Answer Selected Answer: shift rightward. Which of the following can explain an increase in the demand for housing in retirement communities? Answer Selected Answer: An increase in the population of the elderly.Demand shifters do not include Answer Selected Answer: the price of the good. If the price of an input rises, producers are willing to produce Answer Selected Answer: less output at each given price. If marginal costs exceed marginal benefits, then: Answer Selected Answer: the firm should decrease its production level. The optimal amount of studying is determined by comparing: Answer Selected Answer: marginal benefit and the marginal cost of studying. Each week Bill buys exactly 7 bottles of cola regardless of its price. Bill's own price elasticity of demand for cola in absolute value is: AnswerSelected Answer: less than one. The long-run is defined as Answer Selected Answer: the horizon in which the manager can adjust all factors of production. Economies of scale exist whenever long-run average costs Answer Selected Answer: decrease as output is increased. Constant returns to scale exist when long-run average costs Answer Selected Answer: remain constant as output is increased. Consumers adjust their purchasing behavior so that: Answer Selected Answer: the ratio of prices they pay equals their marginal rate of substitution. The demand curve for a good is horizontal when it is: Answer Selected Answer: perfectly elastic good. The cross price elasticity of demand between goods X and Y is -3. 5. If the price of X decreases by 7%, the quantity demanded of Y will: Answer Selected Answer: decrease by 24. 5%. If the absolute value of the own price elasticity of demand is greater than one, then demand is said to be Answer Selected Answer: elastic. If consumers expect future prices to be higher Answer Selected Answer: stockpiling will happ en when products are durable in nature. The market supply curve indicates the total quantity all producers in a competitive market would produce at each price, AnswerSelected Answer: allowing input price to vary. Technological advances will cause the supply curve to: Answer Selected Answer: shift to the right. The demand curve for a good is horizontal when it is: Answer Selected Answer: a perfectly elastic good. The market supply curve indicates the total quantity all producers in a competitive market would produce at each price, Answer Selected Answer: holding all supply shifters fixed. When government imposes a price floor above the market price, the result will be that Answer Selected Answer: surpluses occur. If income increases, the budget lineAnswer Selected Answer: shifts to the right. The value of marginal product of an input is the value of the Answer Selected Answer: output produced by the last unit of an input. Which of the following conditions is true when a producer mini mizes the cost of producing a given level of output? Answer Selected Answer: The marginal product per dollar spent on all inputs is equal and the MRTS is equal to the ratio of the quantity of inputs. Since most consumers spend very little on salt, a small increase in the price of salt will Answer Selected Answer: not reduce quantity demanded by very much.The elasticity which shows the responsiveness of the demand for a good due to changes in the price of a related good is the: Answer Selected Answer: cross-price elasticity. Good X is a normal good if an increase in income leads to Answer Selected Answer: an increase in the demand for good X. If A and B are complements, an increase in the price of good A would: Answer Selected Answer: lead to a decrease in demand for B. For a wood furniture manufacturer, an increase in the cost of lumber will cause the supply curve to:Answer Selected Answer: shift to the left.Which of the following conditions is true when a producer minimizes the cos t of producing a given level of output? Answer Selected Answer: The marginal product per dollar spent on all inputs is equal. The long-run is defined as Answer Selected Answer: the horizon in which the manager can adjust all factors of production. What is the horizontal intercept of the budget line, given that M = $1,000, PX = $50, and PY = $40? Answer Selected Answer: 20. 0. Given that income is $750 and PX = $32 and PY = $8, what is the market rate of substitution between goods X and Y? Answer Selected Answer: 4

Analysis of semco and pixar animated studio as an example of innovative organizations The WritePass Journal

Analysis of semco and pixar animated studio as an example of innovative organizations INTRODUCTION Analysis of semco and pixar animated studio as an example of innovative organizations INTRODUCTIONSEMCOPIXARTHEORIES OF INNOVATION USING EVIDENCE FROM SEMCO AND PIXARFEATURES OF INNOVATIVE ORGANISATIONS OR MANAGEMENT ACTIONSSUMARY AND CONCLUSIONREFERENCEBIBLIOGRAPHYRelated INTRODUCTION Innovation is essential for the success of an organisation as an organisation that wants to be a market leader in today chaotic and complex business world must be receptive to new ideas and continue to be innovative. .However, many organisations fail to realise the significance of innovation leading to the eventual loss of market share just like Nokia, one timed market leader in mobile industry which lost mobile markets to Apple. Companies like Semco, Gore and Associate, 3M and Pixar have made a reputation for themselves due to their emphasis on creativity. Innovation is a product of collaborative learning, idea generation, sharing and idea realization practices of workers in an organization (Dovey, 2009, p.311). For innovation to occur an organisation must foster an environment and culture that give room for creativity which is what Semco and Pixar have achieved. To this end, this report will analyse Semco and Pixar as an exemplar of innovative companies and the relationship that ex ist between them using some key theories of innovation and the defining features and managerial actions that set them apart as innovative organisations. SEMCO Semco is a loose organisation that encourages innovation and self organisation leading to trust, collaboration and cooperation. Semco was a small family engineering company originally called Semler and Company established in 1952 in Sao Paulo, Brazil by Antonio Curt Semler and renamed Semco after Ricardo Semler, the 24 year old son of the owner resumed office as the new chief executive officer in 1984, firing more than half of the top managers on his first day of resuming office as chief executive officer and eliminated all secretarial positions (CNN, 2004). The company prior to Ricardo taking over was characterised with autocratic style of management with control and rules being the order of the day and operating at the edge of collapse. Ricardo Semler favours a participating style of management, profit sharing and free flow of information. The company product range includes dishwashers, pumps, mixers, cooling units for air condition, biscuits factories among others (Semler 1999, p. 1). It is one of the most innovative companies in the world and has become the subject of study for most business schools all around the world due to its peculiar management style. There is no organisation structure that feeds managers ego, subordinates choose their own bosses, employees set their salaries, production targets and achieve them at their own time, and are encouraged to participate, share ideas and also share in the profit (Semler 1999, pp.1-7, 130 131). PIXAR Pixar animated studio was established in 1986 after Steve Jobs purchased the computer graphics division of Lucas films for $10 million with Ed Catmull being named co-founder and Chief technical officer, Smith as vice president alongside Steve Jobs (Price, 2008, p.74 85-197). In 2001, Ed Catmull was named Pixar’s president. The company originally manufactures and sell hardware and software that enable computer graphics to develop animations. In 1987, the company began the making of short films with its first computer generated movie, Toy Story being released in 1995. The company which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Walt Disney acquired 2006 at $7.4 billion and located in Emeryville, California (Paik, 2007). The acquisition will help Pixar gain economies of scale and access to new technologies.   Pixar has a range of films under its belt that has surpassed box office expectations from Rango, Hop, Toy Story 3, finding Nemo, the incredible and many others (Emerald Group Review , 2011). Its target audience cuts across all ages and nationalities and include families and children and its product range include short films in DVDs, soundtrack CDs, animated films among others (Price, 2008, pp.3-7). It fosters an environment that gives room for mistakes and encourages collaborations among teams and departments and devoid of micro management by executives to ensure creativity and innovation (YouTube-imperial college, 2009). THEORIES OF INNOVATION USING EVIDENCE FROM SEMCO AND PIXAR What makes Ricardo Semler and Ed Catmull exceptional in the way they run their companies? Could it be that they were born to innovation, an act of God, divine intervention, grace, or years of experience and acquisition of knowledge and education? Analysts and business tycoons have called these men genius. Some critics of Semler and Pixar would have called the transformation at these companies as a gift from the gods. However, it is worthy of note that Semco was a company already in operation prior to Ricardo taking over and Pixar had several failed attempts before its major breakthrough in 1995 with Toy Story. Emerald group, 2011 quoted Ed Catmull in Harvard Business Review ‘I don’t think our success is largely luck. Rather, I believe our adherence to a set of principles and practices for managing creative talent and risk is responsible.’ Was grace far from the transformation in these companies? Ricardo was one of the youngest graduates at Harvard Business School who would have learnt some of the traditional management theories in school but choose to manage in a uniquely different way that suite his life and believes suite those of his employees. Moreover, having had an encounter with a doctor who told him to change his work style, he decided to change his way of management, a factor that has led to the key changes at Semco today. Thus innovation at Semco may be a combination of association having graduated from Harvard, accident-a chance meeting with the doctor, personality-considering that while at high school he raised some money for the school vacation program which he reinvested to yield a return before the vacation, feature of life and a bit of cognitive considering the fact that innovation at Semco had evolved over time. It is far from being grace or act of gods. Several forms of innovation can be said to have taken placed at these organisations. They are: Organisational innovation: An organisational innovation is one that entails the implementation of a new organisational method in the firm’s business practices, workplace or external relations (Stoneman, 2010, p.17; OECD, 2006). It is often intended to increase a company’s performance through improvement in workplace satisfaction and labour productivity and access to knowledge. It entails an adoption of an organisational method such as flatter organisation structures, employees’ participation among others that have not being used before in an organisation and often results from strategic decisions taken by management (Stoneman, 2010, p.18). Semco and Pixar posses a great deal of organisational innovation. Semco had implemented theories that have never being tried before such as the satellites programs that allow ex-employees to open their own companies with financial help and resources and become partners with Semco and employees cutting their wages by 30% to Semc o at difficult times to get a higher returns when trading conditions get better. What drive such innovation are the organisational culture, structure and learning. Social innovation: This is the innovation that supports and it is beneficial to the society. Pixar is an example of such innovation whose films though animated have a lot of influence on the society both young and small. Its latest film, hop for instance gives social lessons about the role of adult and children in society. Semco has also contributed to the Brazilian society through employment and a reduction in job cuts. Traditional innovation: This is technological innovation and is measured in different ways such as through patents, expenditure and development among others. Semco and Pixar have shown a lot of innovation and creativity in technology with Pixar having a lot of patents. All these types of innovation create social capital which will be discussed later in this report. FEATURES OF INNOVATIVE ORGANISATIONS OR MANAGEMENT ACTIONS SEMCO and Pixar’s success is built on a lattice or flatter organisational structure devoid of control culture that has gone through series of transformation through the years which has enhanced their innovative ability. An organisational culture devoid of control fosters innovation as individuals are giving the freedom to self organise and make their own decisions just like Semco where employees set their salaries and take decisions on production targets and the time they meet such targets (Semler, 1999,   p.1). These companies have been able to manage innovation in the following ways: Structure and culture: Organisational design is crucial to the continuous innovation of an enterprise. As the business environment becomes complex and uncertain, so is the organisational design changing to meet up with customers’ demands for value maximising products. Traditional management scientists like Max Weber emphasised formal structure which is a top-down approach characterised with command, control, rules, position power and neglect social and psychological influences on behaviours of employees and teams (Burnes 2000, p.45). Employees are likely to respond to a good leader who they trust and respect than being managed in a bureaucratic way as argued by Adair 1986:54. Semco operates a lattice structure and considers all workers as equal and has reduced bureaucracy from twelve layers of management to three (Semler 1999, p.7). Reduced hierarchies and high involvement will lead to faster decision making and idea generation and information sharing, leading to innovation. F ormal organisational structure stifles individual creativity. In the words of Semler, authoritarianism diminishes productivity and as such no privileges or rules that discourages flexibility (Semler, 1999, p. 4). At Semco, People are made to enjoy their job and feel good about themselves, not just to survive. Business strategy in the company is determined without interference from the top. Similarly, Pixar is free from the thick layers of formal management and executives are not involved in the day to day running of the organisation. All employees are equally important and all work together for the success of a story. Both companies are devoid of micro-management which ensures creativity and innovation. To have these kind of organisations require a conducive organisational culture that is devoid of control. In the words of Ed Catmull, ‘Management really doesn’t tell people what to do.’   Thus both companies give employees freedom to take risk and there is refle ction, learning and feedback. However , not everyone can work in an environment with such a structure as some people like being told what to do, also, people wants to know what their responsibilities are and who they are report to while others do not like responsibility. It means that such environment will attract liked minded individuals. Trust and Freedom: Due to the flexible organisational structure and lack of formal reporting structures, employees can be trusted to carry out their roles. However, there is a tendency for employees to abuse the system giving the few reporting structures. Semco has absolute trust in her employees and encourages them to be self managing and governing and have made partners with them. There is so much trust that Semco made entrepreneurs out of its workers through assistance with setting up their own company through its satellite programs, buy from them and encourage them to sell to its competitors. One will assume trust will not be a possibility giving the large number of employees of over 3000. Semco has defiled business school expectations and has gone as far as allowing workers to participate in managerial decision making from deciding how much they get paid, to unlimited access to financial information and freedom to work whenever and wherever they choose and meet targets at their own set time and set their salaries which has resulted in impressive growth, long term loyalty and increase and better productivity. To Semler, his interest is in the final result not where, how and hours worked (Easen, 2004). Freedom drives performance and encourages innovation. Staff can work better if given more independence (Handy, 2004). Semco adopts a participating or democratic management style that create an atmosphere where both bosses and subordinates ( partners and associate) interact regardless of jobs and position and all are involved in decision making (Semler, 1999.pp.6 81). In the words of Semler (1999, p. 6), ‘We don’t have as many bosses as we used to. As workers began to exercise more control over their jobs and assume more voices in our policies, the need for supervisors diminished.’ Having trust in individual will give them a sense of belonging and being wanted and encourage new ideas and sharing of ideas among one another. Semco and Pixar re alised that the most powerful resources at their disposal are the people who make things happen in their organisations and have learnt to trust, believe in them and give them the freedom to express their innovative capabilities and drive production forward. Trust is seen as an outcome of social capital and shared values (Cote and Healy, 2001). However, the problem with freedom is that not everyone like being free. Some people want to be controlled and directed to get their job done. Some see control as a motivator. Moreover, some top managers may resist the need for reduced hierarchies for fear of losing control and power. Social capital and Collaboration: At Semco and Pixar, there is collaboration and teamwork as people work together for common and shared values and not get in each others’ way but are committed to the achievement of the common goal of the company. At Semco, employees participate in managerial decision not just relating to their jobs but the business as a whole. They are included in decisions that pertain to choosing who their boss becomes (Easen, 2004). Before people are hired or promoted to leadership positions, they are interviewed and approved by all who will be working for them, and every six months managers are evaluated by their subordinates.   Semco has autonomous business units established by ex- employees who open their own business with help from Semco and have become partners, associate and collaborators and has made Semco a leaner and agile organisation (Semler, 1999 P.7). Also different departments and business units and teams work collectively to drive innovatio n forward at Semco and Pixar. Easen, 2004 reported Semler as saying that ‘Growth and profit are a product of how people work together.’ There is a balanced collaboration at Pixar as artist and technologists are paired together. Every offer or idea is accepted and then people get the chance to plus it (Nelsen, 2008). A term Nelsen called ‘plussing’- taking an idea or a piece of work and find a way to add or improve upon it without judging it. At Pixar, collaboration means amplification whereby employees who are listening and interested in each other are joined together to work and bring separate depth to the problems and breadth that gives them interest in the solution as well as allow teams to communicate at different levels. The brain trust at Pixar is a framework or forum that gives an opportunity for some of the best brains to use their expertise and experience to share their understanding and knowledge with others and to get feedback. The Organisation f or Economic Development and Cooperation, OECD defines social capital as ‘networks together with shared norms, values and understandings that facilitate cooperation within or among groups’ (ONS, 2001; Cote and Healy, 2001:41). It is the glue that holds organisations together and enables employees to join forces more effectively and pursue shared objectives. In a culture of continual change and uncertainty, sustainable communities are those who are collaborative and always growing with and towards each other in the formation, sharing and adaptation to new knowledge (Smith and Paquette, 2010). Some of the outcomes of social capital are social relations, trust, collaboration, mutually enforceable agreement, general reciprocity and innovation (ONS, 2001). In Semco there is mutually enforceable agreement resulting from profit sharing. In the past, Pixar had used stock to motivate employees and encourage them to stay. Also, the need to produce quality output at Pixar could be a form of mutually enforceable agreement (Price 2008, p. 114). Pay recognition: Motivation such as adequate pay, interpersonal relations and work and group dynamics are some factors that increase productivity and workers satisfaction (Mullins, 2007, p.53). Employees will be committed to work if they are being paid fairly and feel that their contribution is appreciated in the organisation. Semco’s employees set their salaries and share in the profits. As Semler (1999, P. 4) says, ‘Profit-sharing is democratic. We negotiate with our workers over the basic percentage to be distributed- about a quarter of our corporate profit.’ This has worked so well at Semco as there is very low labour turnover and when the need arises, those laid off are assisted to form their own company. Reward systems and benefits retain people and lead to workers’ satisfaction, commitment and loyalty (Chiu et al, 2002). There were times when workers salary proposal were rejected in instances of over- statement. Contrary to this is the argument that financial rewards are not enough to motivate people and that group pressure has more influence on employees than financial rewards (Mullins, 2007, p.301). In addition, people also have intrinsic motivation derives from within the individual which propels them towards the need for self actualisation and fulfilment. Learning and feedback/ Gives room for mistakes/Risk taking: Learning within projects teams depends heavily on the inflow and transfer of knowledgeable among them. Semco and Pixar are learning organisations. Such organisations give room for failure and learning from mistakes and encourage risk taking and have a wide tolerance for new ideas and do not punish mistakes. A learning organisation was defined by Johnson et al (2008) as, ‘One capable of continual regeneration from the variety of knowledge, experience and skills of individuals that encourage mutual questioning and challenge around a shared purpose or vision.’ Semler pointed out that mistake is welcome and a sign that the employee is taking enough risk. Without mistakes, there will not be learning and consequently, innovation will be stifled. Likewise at Pixar, continuous innovation requires that executives resist the natural tendencies to minimise risks and accept uncertainty to ensure originality and ability to r ecover from failures resulting from taking risks. It encourages creativity by allowing people to experiment with new ideas and mistakes genuinely made are treated as part of the learning process Emerald Group review, 2011). Mistake are not punished at Pixar but seen as building block for new ideas and innovation just like 3M. Pixar endorses and encourages   a creative by rejecting hierarchical and controlled system, instead the taking of risks and recognizes the importance of serendipity in the creative process (Smith and Paquette, 2010) It has been argued that employees’ collective knowledge exceeds those of the organisation and its capabilities and managers should aim at encouraging processes that unlock employees’ knowledge and encourage information, knowledge and idea sharing which is the sort of environment both companies have created for their employees. As a narrator said, each movies produced by Pixar contains a combination of tens of thousands of ideas arisi ng from risk taking, failure and learning. Ed Catmull said that ‘Innovative people are failure recovered not failure avoider.’ Both companies give room for reflection, learning and feedback. The benefits of learning cannot be over emphasis. Learning increases employees’ commitment, improve quality as mistakes are identified. Senge 1999 reiterated that organisational learning leads to organisational performance. Commitment: At Semco, everyone is committed to the achievement of the organisation’s objectives as they all feel a sense of belonging and part ownership of the company arising partly from the profit sharing. Employees are seen as being importance and valued. A worker in an interview said if an employee is idle, another worker will often ask why he or she is not working, reminding him or her that failure to work will reduce their profits and subsequently reduction in money for their pockets. So there is peer pressure. If employees feel that they are being trusted to take decision on their own and self manage, they will be committed. Semco operates an egalitarian company where there is no preferential treatment. Parking lots are for first come basis and all employees eat on the same canteen. Meetings are held based on the first two employees to be present. This makes employees feel as being a part of the team and big family and give them a sense of being wanted by the company. B y removing privileges of ranks, employees will see themselves as a wider community, thus feel comfortable voicing their opinion, leading to generation of new ideas. Dynamism:   Semco is a highly flexible company with no boundaries to the type of business and products, making it difficult to say exactly what kind of business the company is in. There is no fixed business and it is open to any form of business that comes their way. It is also characterised with the absence of business plans and company strategy. In the words of Semler (2003, p.4), ‘ Once you say what business you are in, you create boundaries for you employees, you restrict their thinking and give them a reason to ignore new opportunities as they will say we are not in that business.’ Semco is so dynamic in its operations and processes that employees must not use one desk two days in a row. This is to make them difficult to track and are free to move and work anywhere that appeals to them be it home office. There is time flexibility as they are not concerned about when the employees arrive at work. However, contracts are negotiated on the basis of what to be achieved at a set period and what it stands to gain for paid value and what the employees get in return. It is a mutually enforceable agreement as both parties- employees and Semco benefit. Pixar, though in a core line of business of animated films, it is not to say it is not a dynamic company as different forms of films that benefits both adult and children have being produced over the years. There is effective communication at both companies due to the organisational culture and flatter structure devoid of control. There is information, idea and knowledge sharing. At Pixar, technologists communicate with the artists. SUMARY AND CONCLUSION Semco and Pixar are said to be innovative even though the companies are different in what they do and how they approach innovation. Nevertheless, some common factors in both companies is the delegation of a large amount of control to their employees and absolute freedom to take risk and give room for mistakes and failure, giving them freedom to generate new ideas and thus take a more active role and commitment. Both companies have decentralised the management structures to get employees more involved in decision making and give them a sense of belonging. They have created a culture that gives room for mistakes, failures, sharing of information, and ideas. There is also collaboration between employees, teams, departments, business units and partners, trust, social capital, communication, lack of micro-management and similar organisational culture and structure which encourages innovation. However, both companies differ in a number of ways such as absence of profit sharing at Pixar, la nguages, products, country of location and time scales. Having carried out a detailed analysis of Semco and Pixar, it is possible that what works at these companies can be applicable to other companies. However, some disadvantages will be accrued if these features are applied in another company characterised with hierarchical control culture and structure such as resistance from top management who are control freaks and unwilling to relinquish power. Moreover, not everyone will be able to self manage as some people like being controlled and told what to do. In addition, that trust and freedom work well in these organisations does not mean it can be implemented in other organisations as differences in culture and environment will play a role in determining its effectiveness in another company with different organisational culture and business environment. Having said this, nothing is worth not trying, so these managerial actions that have worked so well in these organisations can be applied to other organisations. The reward may not be see n immediately, but in the long run, it will pay off. REFERENCE ADAIR, J. 1986. Effective Team Building: How to make a Winning Team. London: Gower Publishing Co Ltd.BURNES, B. 2000. Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational Dynamics. 3rd edn. England: Pearson Education Ltd. CHIU, R. K, LUK, W.V AND TANG, T.L (2002) Retaining and motivating employees: Compensation preferences in Hong Kong and China. Personnel Review [Online journal], 31 (4), pp.402-431. Available from Emerald at emeraldinsight.com/search.htm?st1=Retaining+and+motivating+employees%3A+Compensation+preferences+in+Hong+Kong+and+Chinact=allec=1bf=1 . (April 19 2011). COTE, S AND HEALY, T. (2001) The Well-being of Nations. The role of human and social capital. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris. 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Contemporary Issues in American Society - Essay Example If Americanization really is a feature of the new global community, what are the ramifications of the Americanization of the world? From a historical standpoint, what explains the Americanization of the world and is this beneficial to the global community? Accordingly, what are the benefits to the United States of a globalized world in which US cultural hegemony reigns supreme? Aiming to address these questions and many more as they relate to the globalization phenomenon in the 21st century, the following will explore how globalization affects the United States of America. According to scholars Kelly and Prokhovnik, globalization is a complex phenomenon which is difficult to understand. Accordingly, â€Å"although the globalization of culture seems in some ways obvious in our daily lives, it is not an entirely straightforward matter. Culture is a complicated and pervasive phenomenon, taking many forms.† (48) Seeking to address the issues surrounding the Americanization of the world and the role of the United States has played in creating a mass market â€Å"world culture†, the following aims to provide a concise overview the charges leveled against the United States as an cultural, economic and political hegemon. This exploration will seek to explore American culture on a global scale while looking at such issues as the spread of American youth culture, globalization as an American-inspired economic force and the global spread of American democratic governance. In the post-World War Two period, the globalization of American values began in earnest following the near total physical, economic and social devastation of the European continent. Post WW-II, a social revolution paved the way for the international export of American values and ideas throughout the globe. For the United States, the social revolution of the nineteen-sixties was importantly also a cultural revolution. In fact, the â€Å"rise of a specific, and extraordinarily

Ted Kaczynski Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ted Kaczynski - Essay Example The terrorist acts committed by the terrorist known as the Unabomber were exclusively bombs that were very specifically targeted. The bombs were delivered in the form of letters or packages that were designed to detonate upon opening. His targets usually had some connection to technology, and many of them were connected to a university. The Unabomber is blamed for 16 separate incidents that spanned 17 years and included three fatalities. The Unabomber's knowledge of technology, and his activity as a loner, made his identification and capture more difficult. In fact, he was not identified until the FBI gained the cooperation of his brother David Kaczynski (Chase, 2003, p.21). Kaczynski had been a child that was prone to violence, and refused to play with other children, and had significant mental disorders prior to arriving at Harvard. He had an exceptional IQ and was accepted at Harvard at the age of sixteen. At Harvard he was introduced to radical ideas about the evils of technology, the dualistic nature of good and evil, and a belief that he "could find absolute truth through the application of his own reason" (Chase, 2003, p.19). In addition, he would be introduced to radical thinkers and philosophers that would help him focus on his fantasies of revenge. He was also the subject of a lengthy, and controversial, psychological experiment, which may have exacerbated Kaczynski's emotional problems. A psychological experiment by Henry A. Murray tested Kaczynski's psychological response while subjected to extreme stress and abuse. While little is known about the depth of these experiments, Chase (2003) feels that it may have contributed to Kaczynski's ment al problems. 4.) What are the views of Jacques Ellul and how did they influence Kaczynski Jacques Ellul was a French protestant philosopher and lay theologian that had written a book titled The Technological Society (Chase, 2003, p.92). Ellul was a Luddite, who believed that technology was evil and that citizens should actively attempt to eliminate it from society. Kaczynski regularly communicated with Ellul and would adopt several ideas from Ellul's book. He would later incorporate several of Ellul's radical concepts into the Unabomber Manifesto. The Technological Society advocated the "efficacy of revolution" and that "technology and the state were coeval and mutually dependent" (Chase, 2003, p.92-93). While Ellul would renounce much of The Technological Society in his later writings, Kaczynski would cling to them until the end. 5.) Summarize Kaczynski's time as a UC Berkeley professor To what degree did Kaczynski identify with the political leftists on campus Why did Kaczynski leave his position at Berkeley In 1967, Kaczynski joined the faculty at UC Berkeley and at about the same time he became more alienated and isolated. It was during this period that he moved to the Northwest, fled academia, and began building

Managed health care future for the disabled and poor Essay

Managed health care future for the disabled and poor - Essay Example Center of discussion in this paper is managed health care as delivering health care in an integrated system and in an organized manner. The main goals of managed health care are to enhance the clinical quality of the medical services, to enhance the client and social service element of health care, and to minimize the costs of distributing quality health care. Managed care is a structured approach to purchasing and getting the right service for a particular health need. Health maintenance organizations (HMOs), preferred provider organizations (PPOs), and physician hospital organizations (PHOs) are forms of managed care. Managed care and in particular, the health maintenance organizations became popular as a way of enhancing care and minimizing unnecessary services. However, towards the end of 1990s, the consumer backlash resulted in the abandonment of the firmly controlled care management systems. Quality is â€Å"now the watchword for 21st century healthcare as the institutions and individuals who pay for services begin to focus on what they are getting for their money†. In other words, individuals demand for quality health care because they are paying for it. There is still no consensus as to who should be accountable for the provision and financing of the health care services in the United States. This has resulted in a patchwork system in which the individuals, employers, and the government all assist in covering up the expenses. For a while, the government has assumed the mandate of providing health insurance to particular deserving populations (such as some poor people, children, disabled, and other older persons) but it has generally shunned financing care for the working adults (Earp, French, and Gilkey, 2008). Instead, majority of the working adults get insurance either through buying coverage on their own or through their employers, or they go without the cover. It is important to note that there is no single unifying system offering the system s. The health services are offered directly by private providers, organizations supported by state or federal funding, and governmental organizations (like the public health). Health care services are provided by both not-for-profit and for-profit organizations (Earp, French, and Gilkey, 2008). Managed care imposes quality measurement, accountability, controls, and organization in the delivery of health care to attain the buyer’s aims for access to cost of care, effectiveness of care, care, and quality of care. The introduction and growth of managed care strategies have influenced the general health care organization. They have begun to alter the delivery of publicly and privately health care (National Research Council, 1997). Provider Contracting The aim of a managed care organization is to offer or organize for the health care services provision. Majority of the managed care organizations like the preferred provider organizations (PPOs) and the health maintenance organizati ons (HMOs) offer their services through agreements with medical groups, individual physicians, hospitals, individual practice associations (IPAs) and other kinds of health care facilities and

Econamy report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Econamy report - Essay Example The lack of coordination and differences in structure has caused some expensive problems over the years. Therefore a need arises for an organization which can improve this coordination between these partnerships. As mentioned this is a complex task of bringing two very different systems together in an efficient manner (Quiggin, 1996). That is why it is imperative that such an organization should be a PPP itself, so it could understand the delicacies of issues arising from such partnerships. Partnership UK is such an organization which has the sole purpose of making these PPP more successful. Being a PPP itself it can better understand the issues involved in Private Public partnerships. Private public partnerships have been given many names over the years and similarly their functions have varied across geography and time. These ventures can be called PPP or P3 etc. In essence private public partnerships are joint venture between government organizations and private bodies. These bodies are funded jointly by these two sectors. Usually these joint ventures take shapes of contracts between private parties and public sector organizations (Quiggin, 1996). Private parties provide services for the public sector and assume substantial financial operational and technical risk for the project. These contracts can be many forms, shapes and sizes. In some contracts service costs are not borne by the government and users are liable to pay for service use (Quiggin, 1996). In other agreements the government is liable to provide most or all of the cost being spent on a project. In other PPP projects private sectors makes the initial capital investment but the government or public sector is bound by contract to purchase services from the private sector. Another notable aspect of these projects is grants or subsidies given by the public sector to the private sector. These can be one time grants where a lump-sum amount is paid

Recommendation Report for Debenhams Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Recommendation Report for Debenhams - Assignment Example This report is useful to the extent that it provides information about the position of the company and about its management structure which might have future implications for its strategic decisions. By looking at the dividend policy, key stake can understand the expected returns from the company or its future growth plans. This report highlights the activities that the company is doing for the community as a whole. This includes imbibing â€Å"green† operations which do not have negative impact on the environment, following ethical practices which means that the company does not indulge in activities that immoral, being employee focused and ensuring their professional and personal growth, being customer centric by understanding their requirements and being useful to the society as a whole by donating to the needy or starting projects that help in improving the quality of life of individuals (media.corporate-ir.net). Consistent fall in consumer spending is a very significant risk for the company especially at the time when the world has still not come out of the economic crisis of 2008. Most of the company’s business is in UK and Ireland with only 2.7% of the total transactions being contributed by international business (media.corporate-ir.net). This can cause a major slowdown of the company owing to the fact that UK is going for major fiscal tightening measures and Ireland is also not showing much economic recovery. The company is trying to mitigate this risk with increasing its reach in international markets. Failure to roll out new stores can reduce sales. This has been accounted for by appropriate mitigating steps. This arises on account of failure of the company to understand consumer expectations and also on account of competition. The company claims to counter these risks by maintaining good customer as well as supplier relations. The company

Polyurethane heart valves - current development and technical Essay

Polyurethane heart valves - current development and technical challenges - Essay Example Recently, a polyurethane tri-leaflet valve has been developed. This valve has three, thin polyurethane leaflets of approximately 100 µm thickness, which are suspended from the inside of a flexible polyurethane frame. In the closed position, the valve is elliptical in the radial direction and hyperbolic in the circumferential direction. Hydrodynamic tests have shown that the polyurethane valve exhibits pressure gradients similar to those for a bioprosthetic valve, and lesser regurgitation and leakage than a bileaflet mechanical valve or the bioprosthetic valve. Accelerated fatigue tests have shown six consecutively manufactured polyurethane valves to have exceeded the equivalent of 10 years function without failure, and three valves have reached 527 million cycles (approximately 13 years equivalent). The only failure occurred after the equivalent of approximately 12 years cycling (Gonzà ¡lez, et al., 2003). A new family of polymers, called the segmented polyurethane elastomers display high flexure endurance, strength, and inherent non-thrombogenic characteristics (Gonzà ¡lez, et al., 2003). polyurethanes, EV3.34 and EV3.35, to manufacture a flexible trileaflet heart valve. This valve was implanted in 12 young adult (18 month) sheep in the mitral position. At 6 months, six valves were electively explanted while the remaining six valves were explanted at 9 months follow-up. Surface Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (ATR/FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to examine the leaflet material. The leaflet was also put through cyclic mechanical testing and was compared with non-implanted control material, to see if there was any change in mechanical properties during implantation. There was no degradation of functional groups. The study also observed that EV3.35 might have superior long-term fatigue properties. It has a two-phase microstructure of hard

Recommendation Report for Debenhams Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Recommendation Report for Debenhams - Assignment Example This report is useful to the extent that it provides information about the position of the company and about its management structure which might have future implications for its strategic decisions. By looking at the dividend policy, key stake can understand the expected returns from the company or its future growth plans. This report highlights the activities that the company is doing for the community as a whole. This includes imbibing â€Å"green† operations which do not have negative impact on the environment, following ethical practices which means that the company does not indulge in activities that immoral, being employee focused and ensuring their professional and personal growth, being customer centric by understanding their requirements and being useful to the society as a whole by donating to the needy or starting projects that help in improving the quality of life of individuals (media.corporate-ir.net). Consistent fall in consumer spending is a very significant risk for the company especially at the time when the world has still not come out of the economic crisis of 2008. Most of the company’s business is in UK and Ireland with only 2.7% of the total transactions being contributed by international business (media.corporate-ir.net). This can cause a major slowdown of the company owing to the fact that UK is going for major fiscal tightening measures and Ireland is also not showing much economic recovery. The company is trying to mitigate this risk with increasing its reach in international markets. Failure to roll out new stores can reduce sales. This has been accounted for by appropriate mitigating steps. This arises on account of failure of the company to understand consumer expectations and also on account of competition. The company claims to counter these risks by maintaining good customer as well as supplier relations. The company

Web Site Plan For Charity Organization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Web Site Plan For Charity Organization - Essay Example Charity website is the center for those people who seek the money available there. Stories of different people who work for a Charity home are available. Comments of those people who benefit from the Charity homes are also shown there. Donation sent report is also displayed weekly, monthly or annually there. (Stanger et al., 2012)  Stakeholders are the person or group or organization that makes affect or can be affected by organizations’ actions. All people have any type of relationship with the website come under the definition of the stakeholder. Some of them are primary stakeholders, who are directly linked to website basic work. For example, web development team, management of the organization, the people providing funds, etc. Some are secondary like the affected people who use the funds, the people providing services to affected people (doctors, nurses, etc). Another type of stakeholder is the legal stakeholder, who is involved in terms of money, document or property. C ommon types of stakeholders include the community interest, corporate stakeholders, website development team, affected people and funds provides. (Stanger et al., 2012)  Copyright issue: The legal right on any self made thing is known as copyright. In the website, copyright is very important issue. The content or material available on the website must be original in nature.  Data Protection: The privacy policy is also legal issue concerning the website. Information provided should be according to the data protection act. Information provided by the visitors of a website must be presented appropriately.  Additional information for the improvement of website is as follow: Website with graphics is not heavier. Using the dynamic pages will also aid performance improvement in the website.  

Study of recruitment process outsourcing

Study of recruitment process outsourcing Is the process where an employer outsources or transfers all or part of its recruitment activities to expert services of a third party (generally professional consultants). The Recruitment Process Outsourcing Association defines RPO as follows: when a provider acts as a companys internal recruitment function for a portion or all of its jobs. RPO providers manage the entire recruitment/hiring process from job profiling through the  on-boarding  of the new hire, including staff, technology, method and reporting. RPO and other types of occasional recruitment support, contingency and executive search services differ majorly in the  Process. The service provider assumes ownership of the process in RPO, while in other types of staffing services the service provider is only a part of the process controlled by the organization buying their services. History of RPO Temporary, contingency and executive search firms have provided staffing services for many decades, but the concept of an employer outsourcing the management and ownership of part or whole of the recruitment process was first realized during the 1970s in the highly competitive high tech labour market of Silicon Valley. Being hard-pressed to find and hire technical specialists these companies had to pay large fees to specialized external recruiters for staffing their projects. In order to reduce the growing expenses of recruitment fees these companies began examining the various stages in the recruitment process that could be outsourced. The initial RPO programs typically consisted of purchasing lists of potential candidates from RPO vendors. Over the years, the concept of outsourcing was accepted by businesses more and more. RPO too gained favour among Human Resource management. RPO reduced overhead costs from their budgets and also helped improve the companys competitive advantage in the labour market. With labour markets becoming more and more competitive, RPO became more of an acceptable option. In the early 2000s more companies began considering the outsourcing of recruitment for major portions of their recruiting need. The fundamental changes in the World labour market have reinforced the use of RPO. The labour market today is highly dynamic: workers are changing employers more often than in the previous generations. De-regulation of labour markets has created a shift towards contract and part-time labour and shorter work tenures. These trends have increased the recruitment activity and encouraged the use of RPO. Even in slower economic times or higher unemployment, RPO is considered by companies to assist in an increasing need to screen through a larger pool of candidates Benefits Recruitment  is seen as a cost incurring process in an organization.  RPO  has helped the HR professionals of an organisation to concentrate on the strategic functions and processes of human resource management instead of wasting their efforts, time and money on the routine work. Outsourcing of the  recruitment process helps cut the recruitment costs to around 20 % and provides economies of scale to a large sized organization. Outsourcing  has become beneficial for both the corporate organisations that use outsourcing services as well as the consultancies that provide the service. Apart from increasing their revenues,  outsourcing Process  also provides business opportunities to the service providers, enhances the skill set of the service providers and exposure to different corporate experiences thereby increasing their expertise. Time/Speed: Hiring of a recruitment company to do the recruitment process for a new project saves precious time. The recruitment agency already has the database of prospects classified according to their skills, knowledge and experience. Once the requirements are provided by the organisation and the service provider provides the organisation with a list of candidates that would be ready to be interviewed. Money/Costs: In traditional recruitment process the HR professionals have to stop their current work and concentrate on the recruitment process. This is a problem for the small and middle sized companies, the big corporations have their own recruitment departments. By outsourcing the whole of the recruitment process these companies save costs incurred in the recruitment process. The HR professionals can focus on their current work without worrying about recruitment process. These days even the big companies are outsourcing their recruitment processes to reduce costs. Quality: It is considered that the recruitment needs of a company are better realised by the owner or someone working for it. But while recruiting new personnel for a specific job or project this can be very challenging. Specialised recruitment agencies have an extensive database of resumes and the networking to source the right type of candidate. Risks Though RPO has benefits, it has its own sets of limitations/risks. RPO will be successful in the context of a well-defined corporate and staffing strategy. A company must manage its RPO activities, providing initial direction and continued monitoring to get the desired results. Loose Definition of RPO: As RPO is a commercial concept rather than a specific definition, there is little regulation to RPO providers. As such, a recruitment agency can brand their services as RPO without actually structuring them in a way that will provide the most benefit to their clients. Cost: Though RPO engagement is considered as cost saving method, the  cost  of engaging an RPO provider can be more than the cost of the internal recruitment department, as an RPO provider is likely to have higher  business overheads. Effectiveness: If an RPO provider does not understand or seek to understand the recruitment solution that they will be providing, it will lead to an improperly implemented RPO. This would reduce the effectiveness of recruitment. Failure to Deliver: When finding candidates in industry sectors where there are staff shortages, RPO service providers may fail to provide the quality or volume of staff required by their clients. Pre-Existing Issues: If the companys existing recruitment processes are not effective or if the service provider lacks appropriate recruitment processes/procedures to work with the client the RPO solution may not work. In such a situation, it is better for the company to undergo a recruitment  optimisation programme. Engagement: Many RPO organisations perform their staffing functions and service  offsite  or  offshore. This disconnects the provider from the client companys growth and recruiting strategy. Though this effect can be mitigated by strong relationship management, some of the momentum and energy associated with the rapid up scaling of a workforce through recruitment may dissipate. Social Media/Networking in Recruitment Social media recruitment is the next big thing on the cards. A lot of companies have started using Web 2.0 application for recruitment purposes. Web 2.0 is the second generation Internet-based services which is different from the first generation static Web sites with little interaction. Popular Web 2.0 applications include the social media/networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, Orkut, LinkedIn, MySpace), blogs, podcasts (Podcast Alley, iTunes), video sharing sites (YouTube, FlickR), mobile apps, etc. Today LinkedIn and Facebook has become a powerful tool in recruitment. LinkedIn is a social networking website meant specifically for networking amongst working professionals. Social media recruitment widens reach and helps segmentation, targeting and positioning of potential jobseekers. They also increase the accuracy of profile searches.  Instead of simply recruiting the person with the best-looking CV, social media can ensure that that person is also the best fit for the company. Companies like Accenture, Cognizant, Mindtree, HP-Mphasis and Wipro are planning to hire workers from social networking sites such as LinkedIn. Linkedln is becoming a hot spot  for Companies looking out to hire workers. Recruitment done through the social networking site Linkedln comes with references and are cost effective as they are free. Companies go through the relevant profiles, and can take a look at the recommendations provided by acquaintances of potential candidates before hiring workers. Mphasis used Facebook along with LinkedIn to recruit new workers by creating a page on Facebook. Benefits Recruitment through Social media/networking websites has its own benefits which are not available in other methods of recruitment. Higher accuracy: As social media/networking websites have no physical boundaries job candidates can be searched geographically and found with higher accuracy than before, narrowing the number of candidates and adding to recruiting effectiveness. Fast: As more and more people today use these websites, the available jobs can get filled quicker, lowering vacancy rates because of social medias high usage rate and immediate response time. This helps in a companys ability to attract talent versus competitors. Cost: Social media recruitment has a low cost with high ROI. In most of the cases it is almost free as most websites are free to register and use. Attracting fresh talent: A large number of social media users are college students, and they are fresh talent for entry level positions. Using social media an organization can easily attract this talent pool. Brand visibility: Using social media/networking for recruitment Increases the employers brand visibility online and establishes a leading-edge image for the brand. Risks Social media/networking offers benefits vis-a-vis other methods of recruitment, but it also has its own share of risks. Effectiveness yet to be proven: While social networks are undoubtedly here to stay, whether they become a more central part to the hiring process or not is yet to proved. The amount of recruitment done through this mode is still very low as it is in initial stages. Demographics of representation: Social media as the labour pool does not fully represent the demographics of the general public. There could be more race and age claims over the coming years due to sourcing through social networking sites. Discrimination: There could be discrimination in recruitment due to a persons country of origin, religious preference, disability, age or sexual orientation etc. Lack of clear recruitment standards and process: Recruitment through social media does not involve clear standards of recruitment. Hence any rejections based on softer criteria can lead to discrimination lawsuits being filed by the rejected candidates.

Through Trials and Tears :: English Literature Essays

Through Trials and Tears What is America? A young girl in a distant land asked her mother this question in a whisper as they were hiding among produce and goods on the docks trying to find a way our of their county. A way out of their life of poverty, persecution and even death. Looking for a new life in a new world, America. Some Americans don’t fell the meaning of this life, a life of freedom, a life of peace. To those in other countries like this family, it is something nearly impossible to reach, something only reached in a dream. Many Americans don’t feel the depth of America; they see problems in the government, problems in their jobs, and problems in their lives. But for those outside our borders, it is a life of perfection. Two of the most important parts of our nation are the patriotism we share and the rights our forefathers have granted us. Words cannot express the love and appreciation I have for this land and the people and thoughts that make it truly divine. Although there are fifty states with thousands of cities in America. It is all one nation. The United Stated of America reminds me of a great patchwork quilt, a quilt that has been sewn by the people who came to this land from all corners of the world, bringing with them many cultures, traditions, and many languages. All of those customs, ideas and people come together in a unique way that makes our country like no other. One of the most important parts of our nation is our patriotism. If we didn’t have patriotism in the early days of our country, then it most likely wouldn’t have survived. The word patriotism comes from the term used for the people fighting against Great Britain in the Revolutionary War called patriots. These men and women risked their lives to give us what we have now, freedom. Patriotism continued throughout history. In World War II women showed patriotism with Rosie the Riveter. This symbolizes women’s role in keeping the United States strong during the war. Even years later our country proves strong and united after the devastating attacks of September eleventh. After these attacks our patriotism came through in full force. Everywhere I looked I could see flags and symbols of gratitude for our country. Historians have concluded that Ancient Rome was so powerful and successful because of the patriotism of their Citizens and the fall of Rome was partly because of the loss of that support and love for their country.