Math in Basketball Essay

When I am upset, all I crave is bacon. It seems to bring out the good in everything. The sky is brighter when I eat bacon; the grass is greener; the glass is half full. Bacon just makes everything seem alright. I feel reenergized. Alert. Happy. Bacon is my substance of choice for mood-enhancement, as it optimally raises my dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine levels with no negative effects besides a little weight gain that is easily avoided by the addition of exercise. From an evolutionary stand point, bacon is the ideal food. Back in the day, before there were nutritionists and people ate to survive, cravings were responsible for encouraging the right balance of carbs to fats to proteins as well as the consumption of all necessary vitamins and minerals. Protein, which is found primarily in meat, proved to be one of the hardest nutrients for the ancient human being to find, since they would have to hunt animals in order to obtain it. Because of its importance to the human’s diet and its difficulty to obtain, the reward system for proteins tends to be much stronger than that for any other nutrient. Carbs may result in an increased level of serotonin, but proteins release tyrosine into the blood stream which causes the release of massive amounts of dopamine, the â€Å"feel-good† neurotransmitter. Bacon also has a great fat to protein ratio. Fats are another crucial nutrient because they are effectively concentrated, stored carbs which can be converted into ATP for energy on a cellular level. Containing nine Calories of energy per gram, one gram of fat is enough to sustain an average person in an inactive, waking state for ten minutes, though it may only last me a few seconds when I am riding my horse, Kaptain. This means that the average slice of bacon can sustain the average person for about one whole hour. Maybe twenty-four slices of bacon a day is not the most healthy diet, due to its lack of carbs, vitamins, and minerals, but on a sad, dreary, rainy day, that is pretty close to what I would eat. I would probably add some eggs, pastries, orange juice, and multi-vitamins to the mix in order to have a more balanced diet, but I would definitely feel pretty comforted and happy. Just thinking about a warm, crunchy, greasy, delicious plate of bacon with a side of steaming chocolate chip pancakes is triggering my lateral hypothalamus. My pituitary gland is already telling my mouth to water, my stomach to growl and prepare digestive enzymes, and releasing the hunger hormone ghrelin. Today may not be a sad, dreary, or rainy day, but I am still craving bacon’s crunchy goodness. Luckily, I can somewhat control my bacon cravings and I have a fast metabolism, or else I’m sure my horse would be suffering from intense back problems.

The Thoughtful Forecaster

Becoming a thoughtful forecaster is important to the development of any company today. Understanding the financial aspects of your company can be the deal-breaking point of whether your company is a successful one or not. In the case, â€Å"The Thoughtful Forecaster†, we learn that sometimes you are right and sometimes you are wrong, which is partially due to one’s bias. We also learn that being a thoughtful forecaster involves trial and era. It isn’t easy but throughout the processes you start to understand the financial relationships within your business.The financial statements provide information needed in order to make a proper analysis and provides you with the historical strengths and weaknesses of your business. The income statement, also known as the â€Å"profit-and-loss statement†, is utilized to measure the flow of cost, revenue, and profits over a period of time. The balance sheet gives an over view of business investments and the financing in a particular time. Together these two statements can give a thorough outlook of the business’s performance and a better understanding of the mechanics that make up the business operations.Interpreting and utilizing financial ratios is an important way to evolve into a successful financial forecaster. Examining a business’s performance includes: growth rates, margins, turnover, and return on investments. Growth rates capture the year-on-year change in percentage of a particular line item. It can be separated into two growth measures: unit growth and price growth. Unit growth is the growth of revenue due to an increase in units sold. Price growth is the growth revenue due to an increase in the price of each unit.Margin ratios are the percentages of revenue that has not been consumed by any business costs. Margins also measure the cost structure of the business which includes important definitions/ratios. These are: gross margin, operating margin, and net profit margin. Turnover ratios are used to measure productivity, or efficiency, of business assets. It is created by dividing a measure of volume from the income statement by a measure of investment from the balance sheet.There are several measures of turnover and they include: receivable turnover, inventory turnover, PPE turnover, asset turnover, total capital turnover, and payable turnover. An alternative form of measuring the asset productivity is in â€Å"days†, which takes the investment amount divided by the volume, which is then multiplied by 365 days. The resulting number is the average number of days in a year that an investment item is held by the business. Return on investments (ROI), is the profit generated per dollar of investment and the measure for calculating return on investments.This measure includes: pretax return on assets, return on capital (ROC), and return on equity (ROE). Financial ratios are useful in forecasting financial statements because they show the relationsh ips across financial-statement line items of the past. The financial models can be helpful in identifying the impact of assumptions on the forecast. Most financial models are composed in excel through a spreadsheet. By doing this it makes it easier to see the assumptions for the different forecast scenarios but it is also used to correct any of the assumptions that were inaccurately made.The forecasting process should go hand-in-hand with the constant economic changes and you should take into consideration the industry and economy wide pressures it endures. These pressures include: inflation, price-growth assumptions, and any economic recessions. Industry reality should also be taken into place and here you should consider business profitability and follow the guidelines that qualify a business to have higher or lower profitability. Having a high profitability does not always mean a high performance.It is important to recognize that the strategy of competitors do not stand still, an d your forecasting should be adjusted when needed according to aggressive competition. Two elements that become a problem in business forecasting are optimism bias and overconfidence bias. Optimism bias is stated as a systematic positive error in the expected value of an unknown quantity. Overconfidence bias is a systematic negative error in the expected variance of an unknown quantity. It is a difficult task but it is important to have an unbiased outlook for the forecast, which is done by having estimated high-side and a low-side scenarios.When forecasting the financial statements of the Maytag Corporation for the end of 2004, the company’s annual report provided me information from the income statement and the balance sheet from the previous two years. On there is calculations and a variety of ratios including the sales growth to return on assets. The ratio analysis gives us a sense of the trends in the business performance. Next it shows that a thoughtful forecaster would need to make assumptions into the future.Although these aren’t completely accurate, they can give us a clearer more centralized view of the analysis. With the qualitative/quantitative research and the historical data that was given we can assume the company will maintain its position in a declining industry. An increased entry of foreign competition will lead to zero sales growth for Maytag in 2004. Although all the events of 2004 cannot be predicted with the guidance and use of thoughtful analysis, we can conclude a reasonable and unbiased expectation of future performance has been represented.

Chewing and Sound Localization Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Chewing and Sound Localization - Research Paper Example Sound localization is the ability of a listener to identify the source or origin of a sound, in this paper we focus on the factors affecting sound localization, this study is performed to establishing whether chewing has an effect on sound localization. Chewing leads to head movements that may affect sound localization, according to previous studies undertaken head movements affect sound localization. This paper analysis response from ten participants whose sound localization errors were recorded while and while not chewing, data collected helped test the hypothesis whether chewing affected localization. The following is an analysis of research undertaken by scholars in the past and the results of the study. Many studies have been undertaken in the past regarding sound localization, however majority of this studies have been undertaken with immobilized heads and very few have been undertaken while respondents were chewing. A study by Wallach (1939) showed that head movements affected sound localization, in his study participants were allowed to rotate their head, tip their head and even pivoting. Results show that head movements affected sound localization by participants. However it was also evident that the sound moved with the head. Mangles and Runge (1967) sound localization study results showed that Monaural is as good as binaural when movements were allowed, participants were a... Hypothesis and prediction The hypothesis that was tested is whether chewing have any effect on ability to detect the direction of sound, the null hypothesis is that chewing has no effect on sound localization and the alternative hypothesis is that chewing increased the mean error score for localization. We test this hypothesis by performing a T test that will compare the two means from the two tests, we expect that we will reject the null hypothesis that the two means are equal and accept the alternative hypothesis that states that the two means are not equal. Null hypothesis: a = b where a is the mean error score for localization for test one and two are equal and alternative hypothesis a b or a Methods: In order to test our hypothesis a sample of ten individuals was randomly selected. The sample was further subdivided into two groups which included those would first chew and data collected and then data recorded with the absence of chewing. For the other group data was to be collected without chewing and then data would be collected while chewing. The experiment was carried out using MAT LB computer software, participants sat in front of a computer and given headphones, they were then asked to locate the source of sound 180 degrees in front. The condition was that the participants would chew and then stop chewing and then they were allowed five minutes where they would continue with the second condition which is no chewing and then chew. For each of these two conditions

Climate change Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Climate change - Research Paper Example 1). The current discourse hereby asserts that deforestation is a human activity that contributes immensely to climate change and; since it is within man’s control, it could be abated and mitigate the impact of climate change. In the article written by Docksai (2013), the author acknowledged that in the simplest means, climate change could be addressed by merely focusing on the need for more trees. From statistics provided on the top 10 countries with the highest deforestation, it was revealed that Brazil topped the list with 3,446,000 hectares of forest area that was allegedly cut. This was seconded by Indonesia with 1,447,800 hectares of forest area cut; followed by Russia (532,200 hectares) and Mexico (395,000 hectares). The United States is also included in the list with 215,200 hectares of forest area cut (Compare Infobase Ltd., 2013). Evidently, the extensive amount of forest area that had been cut through deforestation has significantly affected the world’s climat e. The reasons for cutting trees in forest areas have been identified to be diverse and mostly linked to financial pursuits. According to the National Geographic, the primary reason for deforestation is actually agriculture. Trees from forests were reportedly cut to provide greater land for purposes of planting crops; as well as grazing livestock (National Geographic Society, 2013). Other causes of deforestation were disclosed to either be intentional which include logging and making way for urbanization; or uninentional such as natural causes like wildfires. The effects of deforestation were mostly noted as skewing in the negative side: the destruction of natural habitat for living species; soil erosion leading to flash floods; and of course, climate change. Trees were noted to be agents of absorption for greenhouse gases. Likewise, trees were commonly known as serving as canopies that apparently block the rays of the sun from piercing through the land; and therefore keeps the fore st soil moist. At night, these trees were also revealed to hold the heat that was apparently preserved during the day and prevents the heat from entering the atmosphere (National Geographic Society, 2013). With a great amount of lost trees, the heat pierces through the land and dries it immensely; and also allows greater levels of greenhouse gases to be expelled to the atmosphere resulting to climate change. After having identified the causes and effects of deforestation, it is crucial to acknowledge that the solution is clear and identifiable; since man could control the rate of cutting of forest trees and could design policies to prevent further devastation. As asserted, the quickest solution to the dilemma is to prevent the cutting of forest trees at such an alarming rate. Likewise, another solution that was noted included the effective management of forest resources. This allegedly entails balancing the cutting of appropriately selected forest trees to be immediately replaced by new trees (National Geographic Society, 2013). It should be emphasized, however, that the number of replanted trees should significantly exceed the number of trees that were cut due to deforestation. This method had already been implemented by Brazil, the number one country to have been identified to have deforested their land (Compare Infobase Ltd., 2013). According to Docksai (2013), Brazil â€Å"hit a milestone in 2012: Forest loss that year, at 4,500

Building survey report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Building survey report - Essay Example This building survey and report has been prepared on behalf of the IKON Gallery paying every attention to the requirements and includes terms of engagement. It is a general report that has been done covering the external conditions of the IKON Gallery. The objective of this report is to provide a general survey of the condition of the IKON Gallery specifically on its exterior components and this will enable the client to make preparations on how they will maintain these exterior components in future. During the preparation of this report, there was no removal of structures so that there could be a detailed examination of the structure, there were no specialists that were employed but necessary recommendations were provided, and all the services that will be offered by the gallery were examined to satisfaction. Survey was based on what could be observed from ground level, ladders and from roofs where accessible. This restricted the survey to external features of the IKON Gallery. Located in the heart of Birmingham’s Brindley site development, Ikon Gallery is currently an internationally celebrated modern art venue offering a full range of services and facilities to both the nearby community and broader world. The building was constructed in 1877, and its designers were Martin and Chamberlain, who were Birmingham’s premier Victorian architects. The building was previously a school then converted into the new home for the IKON Gallery, which was put as an essential part of the Brindley Place Master plan, and was later opened to be used by the public in 1998. Through this building report, the client will be able to know the recommendations that have been made concerning the external conditions of the IKON Gallery and the cost of the repairs that will have to be expected to be used. The client will be aware of the financial condition that they will need to maintain the building. The survey

Course Reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Course Reflection - Essay Example s discussed in each weak indeed contributed towards acquiring rich understanding and knowledge about different aspects pertaining to strategic human resources planning. Human resource, finance and marketing and other related concepts and discussion covered in each week enhanced my knowledge base to be competent future managers. Moreover, from human resource I have gathered knowledge about organizational policies and programs and other functional activities such as forecasting, succession management, downsizing & restructuring, mergers & acquisitions, and outsourcing among others. Alongside, from marketing and finance studies I learnt about varied strategies and functional activities of management. The understanding derived in each week helped me to perform more effectively in my professional and personal life. More importantly, prior to attending the weekly session I have little knowledge about strategic human resource planning. However, the understanding that I acquired in each week together made the role of strategic human resource planning crystal-clear. Notably, with the help of human resource management, an individual can develop a positive attitude about cultural belief and value in the workplace. Therefore, I believed that human resource management helps an individual to maintain proper balance among personal and professional life. Reflecting upon the understanding and knowledge that I derived from the discussion facilitated an in-depth insights. Accordingly, f human resource management has been linked with marketing and finance. In general, sustainability of an organization in a market depends on productivity and labor force (Anderson & Nilsson, 2012). Moreover, it was learnt that human resource has helped managerial heads to perform better in market. Management functions include planning, organizing and motivating. With the help of human resource, managerial heads has implement strategy for enhancement of organizational growth. Besides, decision-making is

The Boeing 757-200 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Boeing 757-200 - Research Paper Example Changes included wing design and engines. Aim This essay will discuss the unique aerodynamic characteristics of the Boeing 757-200. Boeing 757-200 The Boeing 757-200 entered operational service in 1983 and featured numerous design enhancements in the areas of propulsion, aerodynamics, avionics and materials, aimed at meeting its medium haul clients requirements of increased fuel efficiency, decreased noise and increased operational performance (Boeing). The aircraft was available in passenger and freighter configurations, with a maximum takeoff weight of 255,000 pounds (lbs) providing increased payload or range (Boeing). To achieve these enhancements, modified or new design features included; Wing design, Engines, Improved light weight materials, and Modified flight station instrumentation. Wing Design The 757-200’s wing is swept at 250, has a longer span, higher upper surface camber and lower under surface camber, combined with sharper leading edges (Boeing). Relating these f eatures to the lift equation: Lift= CL x (? p V2) x wing area (s), where CL is the coefficient of lift and p (rho) is density, (Dole and Lewis, 2000), as the wing area has increased, this, along with the increase in camber (increasing CL), means that lift is improved. Additionally, as wingspan increases, wingtips are farther apart which reduces the impact of trailing vortices on the wing and decreases induced drag (aerospaceweb). The 757-200 wing shape is a supercritical airfoil (Figure 1) (aerospaceweb). This is commonly used on aircraft that cruise at transonic (less than Mach 1 (Dole and Lewis, 2000)) speeds and is designed to reduce drag through delaying the speed at which the compressibility effect becomes significant (Aerospaceweb). Compressibility effect is the increase in density at an aerofoil due to forward motion (FAA, 2001). Figure 1: Boeing 757 wing airfoil section The differences in pressure distribution over the supercritical airfoil can be seen in comparing between t he conventional and supercritical sections, as seen at Figures 2 and 3 (aerospaceweb). Figure 2: Pressure distribution over a conventional airfoil Figure 3: Pressure distribution over a supercritical airfoil Figure 4 (aerospaceweb) shows the coefficient of lift versus angle of attak for the 757-200 wing section. Figure 2: Boeing 757 wing airfoil section lift coefficient The aerodynamic benefits of a supercritical airfoil is related to critical Mach number. Accelerated airflow over an upper airfoil section due to wing camber can reach Mach 1 where the aircraft Mach number (speed) is lower. The speed at which the flow over the wing surface reaches Mach 1 is called the critical Mach number (FAA, 2001). As speed increases above the critical Mach number, areas of supersonic flow are created over the airfoil surfaces. This is accompanied by a shock wave which varies pressure and density. An adverse pressure gradient is created by slowed airflow, inducing higher pressure, which may result in a rapid separation of the airflow from the surface of the airfoil. This separation creates an area of turbulent wake resulting in rapid increases in drag. The Mach number at which this begins to occur is known as the drag divergence Mach number (FAA, 2001). The benefits of a super critical airfoil in combination with swept wings are that the critical Mach number is close to one thereby delaying and reducing the large increase in drag due to wave drag (aerospaceweb). In addition to the above, modified wing sweep enables the optimal combination between required cruising speed, CL and drag divergence (FAA, 2001), whilst the sharper leading edge reduces parasitic drag (Applied Aerodynamics, 2007). It is considered the sharper leadi

Accident Victim Interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Accident Victim Interview - Essay Example The accident victim is one of the 112 workers on the site when the accident happened. The explosion occurred in the center of the refinery, a place where bagging took place. In this place, a network of conveyer belts and elevators fed the storage facilities with the complete work. The explosion came from sugar dust explosion. He onlookers and witnesses of this fateful night explosion reported seeing flames of fire rise as high as the height of the nearby story buildings. The workers present in the building were going about their duty when the explosion occurred. Sugar dust was the explosive substance as identified by OSHA, who came into the site of the accident after two hours. The explosion weakened the entire structure especially the packaging area, which was completely dismantled by the explosion. After putting out fire, sugar that had now melted in the silos remained alight and required specialized equipment to smolder it to recover some bodies still missing. The company was shor tly shut down as heavy fines from OSHA were placed on the company because of safety violations. In addition, the company incurred heavy insurance costs and other medical bills. The accident victim sustained fatal injuries on the legs because of stepping on the molten sugar as he ran away from the explosion sight. Luckily, he fell into the river and was able to swim his way out of the river and get help quickly. His legs had to be operated on, which means that he was hospitalized for three months. After leaving the hospital, he stayed on a wheel chair for six months before he could walk again. It was only after two years that he could find a new job to do as the former company closed down. OSHA circulated some regulations to make workers aware of the risk associated with working in sugar refineries to protect them from dust explosions. Although he works at the same capacity, this victim is a changed person. He understands the regulations

Principles of Distillation Essay Example for Free

Principles of Distillation Essay What is distillation? Simply, distillation is the process in which a liquid is vaporized (turned to steam), recondensed (turned back into a liquid) and collected in a container. Nature uses a form of distillation to turn salt water (seawater) into fresh water (rain). Why do you use distillation to recycle waste solvents? Solvent-based waste contains volatile material (solvents) and non-volatile material (contaminants like paint, ink, grease, fiberglass, etc.). Many of the non-volatile contaminates are dissolved in the solvent (like salt dissolved in salt water) and cannot be filtered-out. Distillation is an ideal way to separate the two. Why is distillation an ideal way to separate the two? During the distillation process, the solvent-based waste is heated until it reaches the boiling point. It then evaporates (vaporizes) and passes through the condenser where heat is removed from the vapor and it turns back into a cool, clean reusable liquid (same process that causes dew to form). Fortunately, contaminates are typically not volatile (easily vaporized) and stay behind in the distillation tank. You say contaminates are typically not volatile, does this mean some are? Occasionally there are cases where a potential customer wishes to separate a volatile solvent from another volatile material. This is not the typical customer. Some cases include customers using an alcohol to remove water from parts to dry them or where they have solvent mixtures due to poor house keeping practices (they lump all waste solvents into one drum from different operations like painting and parts cleaning). To separate one volatile from another effectively requires fractional distillation; our process uses simple distillation. What are the differences between simple distillation and fractional distillation? Simply stated, in simple distillation, what you put in is what you get back, but it is free of non-volatile materials (it is clean!). Fractional distillation is much more complicated (and expensive). It is the base process where crude oil is turned into the many items that come from oil. Fractional distillation is not required for virtually all solvent recycling applica tions. What is vacuum distillation? Vacuum distillation is the distillation of a liquid under reduced pressure. The atmospheric pressure in the distillation tank is reduced making it possible to boil the liquid at a lower temperature. Liquids boil at lower temperatures under reduced pressure (the inverse is that a liquid boils at a higher temperature under pressure, which is why they use a pressure cap on an automobile radiator to increase the boiling point of the engine coolant to prevent boil-over). Why do you use vacuum distillation? Vacuum distillation is used to safely recover higher boiling point solvents. We limit the maximum temperature of the distillation unit’s heater. There is a temperature at which a flammable or combustible material can ignite by temperature only, this is called the autoignition temperature (this is discussed later). Some solvents boil at temperatures that exceed the temperature that the distillation heater can reach (392 º Fahrenheit). Vacuum distill ation lowers the boiling point to allow recovery within the heaters maximum setting. When do you use vacuum distillation? It is used to safely recover solvents with boiling points over 300 º Fahrenheit. Vacuum distillation should not be used on solvents with boiling points below 200 º Fahrenheit. If the maximum heater setting is 392 º Fahrenheit, why do I need to use vacuum distillation for solvents with boiling points over 300 º Fahrenheit, don’t you mean solvents with boiling points over 392 º Fahrenheit? No! When boiling a liquid, two factors come in to play. One is the requirement to have a â€Å"driving force† to force the liquid to boil and vaporize. This â€Å"driving force† is in the form of extra temperature to allow the solvent to develop a good rolling boil. The other factor is the role of the non-volatile residue. As you boil off solvent and the remaining mixture in the distillation tank becomes more concentrated in the nonvolatile material, the vapor pressure drops (Raoult’s Law) and most important, the boiling point goes up! So bottom line is that you need 50 to 100 degrees of extra temperature to do a good job of boiling the waste solvent. Also, the concentrated non-volatile material acts as an insulator towards the end of the process as it becomes more and more concentrated. So, as the percentage of non-volatiles in the contaminated solvent increases, the required heat to completely distill the mixture also increases. Sometimes solvents that have boiling points of 318 ºF (Xylene) may not require a vacuum if they are not highly contaminated but almost definitely would if the solid content was greater than, lets say 10%. Pulling a vacuum on such a mixture will reduce its boiling point and the overall time to process it. How is the vacuum created? The vacuum is generated using our JetVac technology. A stainless steel reservoir is primed once with clean solvent. A small stainless steel pump is immersed in the liquid and is attached to an explosionproof electric motor. When the motor is started, clean solvent is drawn into the pump and forced through a metal tube known as an aspirator. The aspirator looks like an open piece of pipe with a small orifice (hole) on one side. As the high velocity fluid is pumped across the face of the orifice, it creates suction (like a venturi on a carburetor). Air is pulled through the venturi from the distillation system and passes through a vent.

Hamlets Madness Essay Example for Free

Hamlets Madness Essay I do not believe that Hamlet is going mad nor insane. I think that he was just putting on an act of madness to convince people he was going insane in order to carry out his revenge on Claudius. If it wasnt for Hamlets feigned madness the Claudius would have obviously known that something was up and would have possibly had Hamlet killed. Hamlet only acted mad or insane around certain people. In his private conversations with Horatio there was no signs of insanity with the way he was talking to him. Hamlet tells Horatio How strange or odd soeer I bear myself, As I, perchance, hereafter shall think meet To put on an antic disposition on, That you, at such times seeing me, never shall, With arms encumberd thus. Or this headshake, Or by pronouncing of some doubtful phrase. (Ham. 2. 5. 170-175). In this phrase He is telling Horatio that he is going to feign madness, and that if he notices any strange behavior that he is putting on an act. This is proof that he is neither mad nor insane. He basically has stated he is going to act mad. As soon as someone appears, whom he wants to convince he is mad, he changes his behavior to put in his or her minds different explanations of his irrational behavior. He changes from rational speech to irrational conversations with those he wishes to convince he is mad. With Rosencrantz and Guildenstern he makes them believe that the reason for his behavior is frustrated ambition. In act 2 scene 2 Rosencrantz says Why, then, your ambition makes it one; tis too narrow for your mind. (Ham. 2. 2. 241-242). Then Hamlet says O God, I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a king of infinite space, were it not that I have bad dreams. (Ham 2. 2. 243-244) Then Guildenstern states Which dreams, indeed, are ambition; fro the very substance of the ambitious is merely the shadow of a dream. (Ham. 2. 2. 245-246). Hamlet wants to make the King and Queen believe that the death of his father and their marriage is the reason for his madness. The Queen states I doubt it is no other but the main, His fathers death and our o hasty marriage. (Ham. 2. 2. 56-57). Hamlet want s to make Polonius and Ophelia believe that it is his love for Ophelia that has driven him mad. This is revealed when Ophelia speaks with Polonius about Hamlets encounter with her (Ham. 2. 2 75-108). In the phrase I am but mad north by northwest, when the wind is southernly I know a hawk from a handsaw(Ham. 2. 2. 347-348) Hamlet is stating that North is normal and that North by Northwest means that he is only slightly insane. Once Claudius thought he was insane he was safe to carry out the rest of his plan. In the Soliloquy, To be or not to be (Ham. 3. 1. 56-90) Hamlet knew that he was being watched by the King while talking to Ophelia. This was his chance to convince the King that he was insane. I believe that Hamlet may have crossed the line into true madness a few times. For example when Hamlet slays Polonius he has no feelings of remorse. This is evidenced by Hamlets words Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell! I took thy fortune thou findst to be too busy in some danger(Ham. 3. 4. 32-34). After Hamlet kills Polonius he will not tell anyone where the body is. Instead he says not where he eats, but where he is eaten, a certain convocation of political worms a een at him(Ham 4. 3. 20-21). Hamlet also is aware of his dissolving insanity as he tells Laertes that he killed Polonius in a fit of madness(Ham. 5. 2. 236-250). In the scene where he is with his mother he also has a violent out burst. He is very cruel towards he and clenches her throat in anger. He sees his fathers ghost while with his mother. His mother does not see him. All of the other times someone has seen the ghost when it has appeared. This may be a sign that Hamlet experiencing true madness. On him, on him: Look O you how pale he glares! His form and cause conjoured, preaching to stones would make them capable (Ham. 3. 4. 126-128. In conclusion I believe that Hamlets madness or insanity throughout the play is being acted. However I do believe that in the end Hamlet drives himself over the edge when he kills Polonius and his true anger shows. Hamlet crossed that line into true madness a few times in this play. I believe that this was not a good way to go about getting revenge on Claudius. There was too much of a delay and in the end Hamlet lost by losing his life too.

Idea Initiation In A Young Company

Idea Initiation In A Young Company Making the business plan has been a great hands on experience to learning about small business development. We were not only required to study theories on how a business is created but actually do it ourselves. For me it has been a great learning experience as I had to make a decision to think like an entrepreneur and develop the qualities an entrepreneur has and incorporate the qualities of creativity, drive and a willingness to take risk. The aim of the below report is to summarize my contribution to this project as well as the key areas of idea initiation, teamwork, presentation experience, alternative scenarios and learning gained as well as other areas covered in the development of the business plan. Teamwork All three team members contributed to make this project successful and worked together to create an efficient team. Idea Initiation After several sessions of brainstorming the group decided on a Business and technology magazine under the guidance of Mrs Priti Punatar through the process of identifying opportunity by means of problem solving. Presentation Experience A learning experience about time management, public presentation and the importance of thoroughly understanding the business venture an individual wants to undertake as well as understanding the involvement of investors in the entrepreneurial process. Alternative Scenario Consideration of both best and worst case scenarios allows BT to prudently predict steady growth rate. Team Work A new venture team is defined as the group of founders, key employees and advisors that moves a new venture from an idea to a fully functioning firm and so with our team it was the case of bringing together people with different abilities and strengths to create a strong unified force to achieve the objective of making a successful business plan. Each individual brought their own individual set of skills and played a different role in the planning and execution of the business plan. Our team was formed keeping in mind the strengths of its members and tasks were delegated accordingly. Priyanka who is good with numbers did the financial plan as well as the marketing plan, Krupa who has the strongest organizational skills dealt with the organizational structure and risk analysis and I was delegated the task of Industry analysis due to my research skills as well as the operational plan. Initially our team consisted of four members; Priyanka, Krupa, myself and Joyce Issowe who later dropped out due to medical complications. Working efficiently in a team is a key success factor for anyone who wants to be a successful entrepreneur as he/she will be required to meet with and bring together a venture team to work with. We were very lucky in that, although our team involved the coming together of three highly opinionated individuals all were willing to listen and respect the others opinions which allowed us to come up with the best viable solutions in a dignified manner. In my opinion, each individual within the team worked efficiently to ensure the success of the team. The executive summary, the business and appendices were completed with hard work from all the three team members equally. All In all, every team member put in the required effort, all meetings were attended in time and all our planned goals were reached Process of Idea Initiation In this most fundamental process our first and basic concern was to come up with a firm that would be entrepreneurial in nature as opposed to being salary substitute or lifestyle oriented. The business had to be feasible, innovative and we needed to have both the passion and knowledge required for it. Initially through the process of brainstorming our group had a number of business concepts to go with. Joyce had suggested a dairy farm, Krupa suggested a school for performance arts, Priyanka suggested an engineering consultancy and my own suggestion was a web based real estate firm. By the process of elimination using our checklist we realized that a dairy farm wasnt innovative enough, we didnt have the expertise required for an engineering consultancy and the market wasnt ready yet for a web based real estate venture or a school for performing arts. As the foundation of any successful business lies in recognizing opportunity, we decided to speak with a few people, in our social network, involved in different industries whilst researching the trends in various fields and industries. Finally under the supervision of Mrs. Punatar, we decided to work on a business and technology magazine that would be the first of its kind to be produced in Tanzania. Due to the growth in the economy and changing social factors such as more graduates entering the labour market and increasing diversity the need for information had arisen and there was a lack of a locally produced business magazine. We realized the window of opportunity was wide open and circumstances were just right. Therefore our business concept came about; A business and technology magazine for Tanzanians, by Tanzanians. Through this process I learnt that opportunity needs to be defined, timely, attractive and of value to the end user. I learnt also to identify opportunity through observing trends, finding a gap in the marketplace and solving a problem. Apart from this I saw how economic and social factors account for the creation of opportunities and how different characteristics such as prior experience, creativity and social networks help entrepreneurs and finally I learnt to apply the 5 steps of generating creative ideas as well as the different techniques involved such as brainstorming and surveys. Presentation Experience Important factors considered by investors in their decision making process include determining that the company has focus, specific solutions for the needs of the market, that customers are willing to buy the product and that the dynamics of the company are strong. They need to know that the company is run by smart people who can control expenses and make a profit. If expected to invest, they in turn need to trust the management team running the business in terms of their experience, maturity, reputation as well as a track record of success and personal interaction therefore is a must. Also investors cannot be expected to have the time to sit down and go through lengthy documents, they want to get instant answers for any concerns or queries. The process of crafting the slides to be presented, and ensuring the presentation would cover all essential areas whilst summarizing the entire business concept, was a challenging one that taught me about time management, extraction of essential information from available data and the involvement of visuals to convey essential points. All three members of the group presented the plan in parts with me introducing the business, the problem we aimed to solve and our business model. Krupa then took over and covered management team, industry analysis and competition leaving Priyanka to finish the financial overview including; share offering, payback, profitability, break even analysis and current status and projected use of funds ending with exit strategy for investors. Crucial lessons were learnt during this presentation about capturing and retaining the interest and attention of our potential investors, maintaining the set time limit as well as the importance of confidence and a deep understanding of the business venture. Alternative Scenario The success of any business is dependent on external as well as internal conditions. Internal factors are easier to control and predict relative to the external factors. With regards to external conditions, there is always some degree of uncertainty. In order to be prudent all figures taken within the business plan have reflected a pessimistic view of the worst case scenario. In order to achieve this and to reflect alternative scenarios that may arise due to unpredictable factors the revenue included in the business plan is less than that actually expected by investors. Due to the unpredictability of Macro-environmental factors the number of subscriptions has been kept at minimum and the advertising revenue included is less than what the firm will target to achieve. Another relevant point concerns the break even analysis. To keep alternative scenarios in mind, both best and worst case of total revenue have been considered whilst the figure taken for cost has been kept at maximum in line with the accounting principle of prudence. This allows investors to be comfortable to know that the minimum success will be as presented in the business plan with an additional potential for greater growth. Business partnerships have also been taken into account in order reflect alternate means to achieve a target. This can be seen as in the outsourcing of printing to keep costs low as well as the establishment of a network of free lance contributors. Figures for costs and budget in the analysis of the financial statements have also been calculated after the consideration of the alternative growth scenarios and B%T therefore is expected to have steady growth as a worst case scenario where the best case reflects a quicker point of break even and higher profitability. Learning and Usefulness of the Business Plan The experience of coming up with a business plan opened up my eyes on the many aspects that are necessary to be considered whilst starting up a business. Extensive research is required together with knowledge of the industry. I have realized that an entrepreneur must have a clear vision on how exactly his company will work and perform. Before making a business plan myself I had no idea of how important it is. This document includes all research and analysis showing feasibility of a new venture and how all the different resources needed may be brought together synergetically. In developing a business plan it becomes necessary to look at every single aspect of the business and it therefore provides a clear picture of whether a new venture is likely to succeed or fail. The business plan analyses the potential of turning an idea into a source of revenue and in so doing answers the question of viability, industry attractiveness and growth, size and buying power of target market, attractiveness and uniqueness of the business model, availability of skilled labour, completion, ROI, legality and critical risks. It can be stated therefore that it is a critical document providing answers to investors for them to make an informed decision on whether or not to turn a particular idea into a business venture. This process has taught me a lot. I learnt to apply Porters 5 forces model in considering substitutes, new entrants, existing rivalry, bargaining power of buyers and suppliers as this was necessary in order to determine the attractiveness and profitability of the industry and position our firm where we could make maximum profit. In carrying out competitor analysis I understood the type of competitors BT would face and was therefore able to develop strategies to allow the firm to compete successfully for example, establishment of BTs brand before the emergence of future competitors. Through the next step of developing a business model we had to apply what we learnt in class to create an effective model for BT as was the case with applying knowledge on financial analysis and the value of pro forma statements, forecasts and budgets to determining success of the new venture. I also learnt how to develop a successful marketing mix through looking at the issue of core product versus actual product. All in all this process has shown me that a business plan is the most important tool needed in the entrepreneurial process as is incorporates within it everything any stakeholder would need to know about the viability of the idea and its conversion to a business venture.

The Shinto Creation Story and Genesis Essay -- Scripture Analysis

â€Å"And God said let there be light, and there was light†¦Ã¢â‚¬  according to the Genesis story, an entity which bears no tangible face or bodily structure created the world with nothing more than a swift tongue. It bore the shape of the earth, the plentiful bounty of the soil, the beauty of animals, and the wonder known as humanity all within the timespan of seven days. It created the notion of societal law, moral principle, and a reverence for a deity by loyal subjects. And it instituted a harsh rule of law which instigated the idea that if any part of you, mind or body, were to disobey it, you would be punished in the now and in the after. Nonetheless, the Christian telling of how our world came to be, although following a path negligent of the idea of a multilateral approach to understanding God, seems to carry some similarities to that of Shintoism. Or differences? The Shinto creation story is a work of art in and of itself, not to mention it takes on the idea that mult iple humanoid deities, not an unidentified mass of spiritual benevolence, created this world. In addition, we take on a different approach to creation, in which rather than things being born out of spoken word, our world was actually artistically created by two master creators of land and sea, Izanagi no Mikoto and Izanami no Mikoto . First, let us analyze the particulars of the Christian Genesis story as to begin formulating the basis of comparison and contrast. We shall look at the two parts of Genesis, the first discussing the formulation of earth and its inner particulars, in concert with the first few verses associated with the second part of Genesis, which touches on the creation of the first man and woman: â€Å"Light is commanded to appear†¦ the light is divided f... ...ted human existence as the result of God’s benevolence, and his want to create a universe inhabited by beings of his own image and his perfection, not the other way around. However, both serve the purpose of representing their respective cultures, in the case of Japanese, who are proud of their unified state under the watch of Kami and his sub-deities, and the case of the world of Christians, who view God as a supreme being bound to a code of law which serves to protect their interests and ensure that their life is respected and continued. Works Cited http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/shinto/ http://crab.rutgers.edu/~goertzel/genesis.htm Shimazono, Susumu. 2005. "State Shinto and the Religious Structure of Modern Japan." Journal Of The American Academy Of Religion 73, no. 4: 1077-1098. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed April 23, 2012).

Tim Paterson :: essays research papers

Tim Paterson, also known as the "Father of Dos" is the computer programmer who created the world's most widely used computer program: DOS. Creating DOS at age 24, Paterson claims, "it is an accomplishment that probably can't be repeated by anyone ever." After Paterson graduated from University of Washington in Seattle with a bachelors of science degree, he tried going to graduate school but lost interest. "I thought they were too oriented towards theory and not what I needed." Although he received a good education at U of W, Paterson did not learn the majority of his computer skills from text books. "I learned it by reading and playing with it. I got a lot of exposure to electronics stuff at home." Throughout his education and experience with computers, Tim Paterson as become one of the most genius computer programmers of our time. After college, Paterson landed a job as a computer technician at a Seattle area retail computer store. Because of his experience with computers, Paterson stared designing his own peripheral boards on the side. Through his job and his computer experience, Paterson was hired into a better job. "I got to know Rod Brock of Seattle Computer when he came into the store periodically. We were selling his boards. Eventually he asked me to consult for Seattle Computer." After helping the company fix there memory boards at fifty dollars a day, they offered him a full time position and Paterson quit his job at the retail store. The first major task Seattle Computer threw at Paterson was building an operation system for their new computer; the CP/M. Paterson was a little hesitant at first in creating such a program but he put up to the challenge. "I had always wanted to write my own operating system. I’ve always hated CP/M and thought I could do it a lot better." Little did he know before he started the project that he was about to create the "the world's most widely used computer program." By the spring of 1980, Paterson had created a program called QDOS.10 (stands for Quick and Dirty). After finding bugs in the program, he fixed the problem and named it QDOS.11. By the end of August 1980, the program was working well and being shipped. Not knowing the great potential of his new program, Paterson was not expecting much from it. "I was aghast," says Paterson, "When I heard that IBM was using it (QDOS.

Final Team Case Essay

Case Background Co-Founders Dave Packard and Bill Hewlett started Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 1939 inside a small one car garage behind Packard’s house. The two finished their studies as electrical engineers at Stanford University in 1934 and became close friends. They decided to start their own business â€Å"and make a run for it†, formalizing their partnership January 1, 1939. (The HP Way). They decide the company’s name with a coin toss that one car garage became the office of Hewlett-Packard. At the time it was started HP had $538 in working capital and little more than a couple hundred dollars worth of assets. It was in that garage that HP’s legacy was born, when Bill and Dave created the first HP product – the Audio Oscillator HP200A. Following the invention of their first product, the pair moved into a small building down the street from their famed garage and hired their first employees. â€Å"Walt Disney Studios placed an order for eight HP 200B audio oscill ators for the movie Fantasia—HP’s first big sale.† (High Tech: Winning Success In Silicon Valley). Another milestone was reached in 1940 when HP sent out its first ever Christmas bonus in the amount of $5. This Christmas bonus set the tone for all bonuses to come, as it quickly turned into a production bonus and soon helped to shape the company wide profit sharing plan that HP adapts. In 1942 HP builds its first ever company owned building, and in order to protect themselves build it so that it can be easily converted to a convenience store should the electronics industry fail. One of the most important milestones for the company was reached in 1947, as HP became a true Corporation. HP also caught attention for their Management by Walking Around and Open Door Policy programs. In 1957 HP had its initial public offering of stock and wrote their first set of corporate objectives, which set the tone for their management style as a company. In 1958 HP made its first â€Å"sizeable acquisition when they purchased F.L. Moseley Company†, which further expanded their product line. ( Maddox). The late 50’s and 60’s were an extremely important time for HP as a company as it was during this time that they became a global company by building a manufacturing plant in Germany. It was also during this time that they created their Division Separation structure where they separated profit and loss accountability  between divisions. This division was thought to help keep employees nimble while fostering motivation and creativity. During the 60’s HP further developed itself by entering into the medical field with the purchase of Sanborn Company. They also had their stock listed on the New York and Pacific Stock exchanges and were listed in Fortune 500’s top companies at 460. It was also during the 60’s that HP created its first computer, which was used in house to control company tests. HP also creates their first scientific calculator around this time, which also gained critical success. Further helping promote HP products Dave Packard was appo inted U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense in 1969. In 1977 John Young became president of HP replacing Bill Hewlett. In the early 80’s HP took much more interest in the personal computing industry as it was during this time that they create the first mass marketed personal computer. They also enter into creating printers for use with their personal computers, the printers HP manufactured during this time set the standard for the direction in which printers would evolve. In 1987 Bill Hewlett retired as vice chairman of the board of directors, his son Walter Hewlett and David W Packard (son of Dave Packard) step up to take his place. In 1992 Lew Platt became HP president and CEO who was the first president and CEO of HP to not be a member of the Hewlett or Packard family. In 1993 Dave Packard relinquishes his chair of the board of director’s position to Lew Platt. Possibly one of the most damaging events hits HP in 1996 when Dave Packard one of the original founders dies. In 1999 Carly Fiorina becomes President and CEO of HP. In 2002 HP merged with Compaq Computer. This merger created an â€Å"$87 billion entity† which operates in more than 160 countries and has almost 150,000 employees. (Dykman, Davis, & Lamb). â€Å"Quite a change from a company which 70 years ago started in a 1 car garage shack with 2 college kids who had $500 to work with!† (Hewlett Packard Company) Today, HP provides consumers a wide range of products and services from digital photography to digital entertainment and from computing to home printing. This comprehensive portfolio helps the company match the right products, services, and solutions to their customers’ specific needs. Hewlett-Packard’s Vision Statement We strive to improve the environmental performance of our customers, our supply chain, and our own operations. We give people the tools and solutions  to build a better today while preparing to address the challenges of tomorrow. Motto: Purpose Statement To lead in the marketplace by developing and delivering useful and innovative products, services and solutions. Mission Statement Committed to global responsibility by being economic, intellectual and a social asset, demonstrate commitment to our employees by promoting creative work that reflects our values, and earn customer respect and loyalty by consistently providing the highest quality and value while achieving finance growth. Values Statement HP’s values embody the qualities, beliefs, and principles that will ensure organizational success. â€Å"It is necessary that people work together in unison toward common objectives and avoid working at cross purposes at all levels if the ultimate in efficiency and achievement is to be obtained.†-Dave Packard Trust and respect for individuals We work together to create a culture of inclusion built on trust, respect and dignity for all. Achievement and contribution We strive for excellence in all we do; each person’s contribution is critical to our success. Results through teamwork We effectively collaborate, always looking for more efficient ways to serve our customers. Meaningful innovation We are the technology company that invents the useful and the significant. Uncompromising integrity We are open, honest and direct in our dealings. Issue Statement In order for the company to remain one of the world’s leading producers of the latest technological advances, HP must face the following issues head-on: 1. Their ability to remain a top tier leader in the technology industry through innovative products 2. Strive in meeting the continued needs of various shareholders by increasing HP shares 3. Maintain customer loyalty by producing quality yet reasonable prices and exemplarily  customer service 4. Finding ways to reduce our global footprint worldwide through advances in green solutions Management Question: What does CEO, Meg Whitman, need to do to retain and recommit HP to the PC business and reintroduce products her predecessor discarded? Stakeholder Analysis * Communities * Customers * Employees * Investors * Legislators and regulators * Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) * Suppliers * Universities Stakeholder Expectations and Expectation (See Exhibit 1.1) Stakeholders Key Issues With the unwavering success of new entrants into the market HPs stakeholder’s main issue is their ability to be innovative and competitive in the market. Competitors such as Apple has gained a significant competitive advantage in the technology industry forcing HP to evaluate how they do business. SWOTS Strengths * Hewlett-Packard (HP) is a global provider of personal systems, imaging and printing products, and technology solutions. * It is the largest player in the inkjet and laser printer market. * HP is also one of the market leaders in the global PC market. * HP has a very strong distribution Hewlett-Packard’s primary strength is its business position. The enterprise has a large amount of cash in hand about $10 billion. * Hewlett-Packard is a global enterprise and especially after its merger with Compaq, the company became world’s biggest computer hardware and peripherals  consort in the world and has ranked 20th in the Fortune 500 list. * Hewlett Packard is operating in more than 170 countries including both developed as well as under-developed. * Being a global dealer of computer hardware, it gives HP many advantages like dominating printers market, both laser and inkjet. The company attracts and focuses on consumers from even newly found markets all around the world, multinational corporations, non-governmental organizations etc. * The company competes both at local and international level. * It has increased its competitiveness through policies and strategies that supports free-market economies. * HP is a leading supplier in the growing IT markets. Weaknesses * HP uses the Windows platform in all its I-PAQ phones. Incidentally, I-PAQ phones have been much criticized for not being very Windows friendly in a lot of user forums. * The inability to react quickly to changing market conditions and demands is a weakness of HP. * The company was in a long term debt for many years which kept it from investing in different growth opportunities. * The touch pads of the notebooks of Hewlett Packard like the dv series, dm3, and Envy lines needs improvement. These touch pads are either finicky, unreliable, or are difficult to use because of friction. * The mouse buttons on various HP supplied machines are said to be clumsy to use, too. * Poor shelling life of HP products plagued some mainstream systems and net books. * The past acquisition of Peregrine made the HP’s portfolio even more diverse and complete but HP Open View’s lack of mainframe management capabilities created several problems. * Another weakness was that it did not yet hit a CMDB product that includes discovery and mapping. This cause many customers to switch the brand. Opportunities * Expansion in alternative client computing architectures and other emerging mobile computing devices gives a good opportunity for HP. * The mobile phone market is forecasted to grow tremendously. * The recent acquisition of EDS puts HP at a strong position in the computer market and makes it portfolio more impressive. * Hewlett-Packard was able to generate large number of revenues and profits from its different deals and  raised more than six billion which it can use to pay off its debts as well as invest in different research and development activities. * If the products by the company are supplied at reasonable prices, there will be more chances of growth as the demand would increase. * The company has formed Customer Solutions Group that helps in selling the complete IT solutions, products and services by HP. Threats * Hyper-competitive environment – Companies such as Dell, Toshiba, Lenova Group and Acer are formidable competitors for HP. * It competes in terms of price, brand, quality, technology, distribution and range of products, among other factors. * Other mobile operating systems such as Symbian, iPhone, and Linux are on the rise and they too pose a threat to HP. * Operating in global market means many competitors and therefore, the company has to be at the forefront of changing technologies as well as addressing the changing customer demands and needs. * The global economic recession is also a threat for the company’s sales and profits. The prices have also fallen as the stock markets are at historic low positions. * Many other competitors including Dell are entering the printer business whereas IBM has become a market leader. 3. Organizational Design Analysis Division of Labor in the Ambidextrous Orgainzation: Organic characteristics such as decentralization and employee freedom are excellent for initiating ideas, but these same conditions often make it hard to implement a change because employees are less likely to comply. Employees can ignore the innovation because of decentralization and generally loose structure. HP has such problem and it is necessary to overlay the ambidextrous approach, which speaks to incorporate structure and management process that are appropriate to both creation and the implementation of innovation. The ambidextrous approach looks at HP’s design elements that are important for exploring new ideas versus the design elements that are most suitable for exploiting HP’s current capabilities. Exploration means encouraging creativity and developing new ideas, whereas exploitation means implementing those ideas to produce routine products. HP can be designed to behave in an organic way for exploring new ideas and in a  mechanistic way to exploit and use the ideas. Research under HP could use an ambidextrous approach by designing for both exploration and exploitation perform better and are significantly more successful in launching innovative new products or services. Through research, using this model as an overlay, HP’s creative department should use the organic structure to expand its capabilities such as reducing their global worldwide footprint through advances in green solutions. The economy of China has been growing at a robust rate since last few years. China’s recently released five-year plan signifies a new phase of growth through the expansion of domestic consumption, driving a low-carbon economy, fostering innovation and achieving balanced social and economic growth (Datamonitor PLC, 2012). The growth of HP’s mobile tablet PC market, entry into the smartphone market expects to grow strongly in the coming years. The growth is expected to be driven by the demand from the US and Asia Pacific regions. In 2010, the market was led by the North American region with approximately 35% market share. By 2014, Asia Pacific region including China expects to lead the tablet PC market (Datamonitor, 2011). In February 2011, HP launched the HP TouchPad, a 9.7-inch tablet PC that runs on webOS 3.0. The company plans to make available this product in the coming months. The company’s increased focus on the tablet PC segment will enable it to benefit from the growing market (Datamonitor, 2011). HP entered the smartphone market with the acquisition of Palm, a provider of smartphones powered by the Palm WebOS mobile operating system, in July 2010. The launch of new smartphones with an updated version of WebOS will enable the company to effectively compete with each other players in the market, including Apple and Google (Datamonitor, 2011). In addition, provide the healthcare markets with products beyond the capabilities of their competitors. HP has been focusing on providing healthcare solutions in recent times. In January 2010, the company and McKesson collaborated to work on electric health record (EHR) adoption at independent physician practices. HP’s solutions targeting healthcare sector will enable it to increase its revenues in the company years (Datamonitor, 2011). The creative department could use an organic structure to explore and  develop new ideas to face intense competition from Apple, RIM, and Nokia. Under an organic structure, HP will be able to react quickly to those competitors having a positive effect on revenues and profitability of the company in the long run. Looking at the mechanistic structure HP could exploit capabilities and apply routine implementation of innovations. An example of this looks at HP leading market position in the global printers market. HP ships more than one millions printer per week. Strong market position in various market segments provides economies of scale for the company, including increasing their customer base (Datamonitor, 2011). The Four Types of Change Provide a Strategic Competitive Wedge: Managers can focus on four types of change within organizations to achieve strategic advantage. These four types of change are technology, products and services, strategy and structure, and culture. These factors provide an overall context within which the four types of change serve as a competitive wedge to achieve an advantage in the international environment. HP has an unique configuration of products and services, strategy and structure, culture, and technologies that can be focused for maximum impact upon the its c hosen markets. Technology changes are changes in an organization’s production process, including its knowledge and skill base, that enable distinctive competence. These changes are designed to make production more efficient or to produce greater volume. Changes in technology involve the techniques for making products or services. They include work methods, equipment, and workflow. In the case of HP, the competitive-intelligence (CI) chief of HP has focused his intention to offer free shipping for printer cartridges, its development of â€Å"print status monitor software which will prompt customers to purchase replacement cartridges,† and numerous technical specifications. Only but a few minor errors, the CI team had nailed everything: prices, specs, software details (Varchaver & Burke, 2007). Products and services changes pertain to the product or service outputs of HP. New products and services are normally designed to increase the market share or to develop new markets, customers, or clients. If correctly  applied, HP can bring together existing technologies in a new way to serve a new market. HP has a broad product portfolio. HP’s services segment offers consulting, outsourcing and technology services across infrastructure, applications and business process domains. Its services encompass the data center and the workplace (desktop); network and communications; and security, compliance; business continuity; warranty support; technology consulting and systems integration solutions (Datamonitor, 2012). Strategy and structure changes pertain to the administrative domain in an organization. The administrative domain involves the supervision and management of management, policies, rewards systems, labor relations, coordination devices, management information and control systems, and accounting and budgeting systems. Strategy, structure, and systems changes are usually top-down–that is, mandated by top management–whereas product and technology changes often come from the bottom up. To make the strategy successful, they identified a new set of key performance metrics to track how effectively the company was meeting goals of competitive costs, high quality, and great service. This change also proved to be successful in the long run. A culture change refers to changes in the values, attitudes, expectations, beliefs, abilities, and behavior of employees. Culture change pertains to changes in how employees think; these are changes in mindset rather than technology, structure, or products. Culture change can be particularly difficult because people don’t think their attitudes and beliefs easily. The four types of change are interdependent– a change in one often means a change in another. The structural change was an outgrowth of the technology change. HP is an independent system, and changing one part often has implications for other parts of HP. Porter’s Competitive Strategies- Michael E. Porter studied a number of business organizations and proposed mangers can make the orgainzation more profitable and less vulnerable by adopting either a differentiation strategy or a low-cost strategy. Appling a low-cost leadership strategy means managers choose to compete through lower  costs, whereas with a differentiation strategy the orgainzation compete through the ability to offer unique or distinctive products and services that command a premium price. Each strategy can vary in scope from broad to narrow. That is, an organization can choose to compete in many market and customer segments or to focus on a specific market or buying group. Appling this model to HP revels the organizations focuses on low-cost leadership strategy with a broad scope where HP provides goods and services to customers at cheaper prices. HP uses the low-cost strategy with their printer / copier product line where tight controls to produce products more efficiently than its competitors. Low-cost leadership strategy using a broad scope is concerned primarily with stability rather than taking risks or seeking new opportunities for innovation and growth. For HP, this means it can achieve higher profits than competitors because of it can efficiency and lower operation costs. Also, this strategy puts HP in a better position to prevent loss of market share. 4. Identification and Evaluation of Alternatives 1. Encourage technology change by using skunkworks Pros: Focuses on breakthrough ideas for HP Give highly talented employees time and freedom to keep HP on the cutting edge This group could be highly autonomous and secretive while creating Cons: May create a subculture under HP’s vision Risk of skunkworks wasting resources and come away with nothing to show Ideas may be behind competitor’s organization’s skunkworks teams 2. Empower employees through the bottom-up approach Pros: Employees are motivated to figure out the best ways to get their jobs done Supports the right culture that drive high performance Employees at all levels feel part of the vision / change or the organization Cons: Employees ideas could go nowhere Ideas could get lost between the layers of management Employees may become focused on â€Å"looking for shortcuts† in the process 3. Discover a distinct pattern of tailoring innovations to customer needs by using the Horizontal Coordination Model Pros: Increases the amount of new product development Improves the different possible developed products Gives HP the edge in meeting customer needs and circumventing manufacturing / marketing ideas Cons: If not properly applied, the connections is lost between employees and customers If not properly applies, the coordination between departments are not shared Must be driven by top managers to function well 5. Recommended Alternatives- Based on the models and discussed alternatives, I recommend HP will be best able to adapt to the changing external environment by proceeding with the Horizontal Coordination. This means HP’s technical, marketing, and production employees share ideas and information. All departments would have a say if / when a product gets introduced in the market. Specialization means every department are highly competent at their own tasks. Boundary spanning means each department under HP vision will be linked with involvement on new products and has an excellent linkage with relevant sectors in the external environment. Under boundary spanning, employees are aware of recent scientific developments and personnel are closely linked to customer needs. Horizontal coordination stresses the importance of sharing ideas between technical, marketing, and production. I would not recommend using skunkworks or the bottom-up approach. Skunkworks has a great possibility of developing a subculture that may not support HP’s overall vision. Using the bottom-up approach may go dry after employees discover their ideas are going unnoticed or getting lost while traveling through the layers of management. 6. Implementation and Conclusion Elements for Successful Change- Regardless of the type or scope of change, there are identifiable stages of innovation, which generally occur as a sequence of events, through innovation stages may overlap. For a change to be successful implemented, HP’s mangers must make sure each element occurs in the organization. If one of the elements is missing, the change process  will fail. 1. Ideas. Change is an outward expression of ideas. Ideas can come from within or from outside the organization, 2. Need. Ideas are generally not seriously considered unless there is a perceived need for change. A perceived need for change occurs when managers see a gap between actual performance and desired performance in the organization. 3. Decision to adopt. The decision to adopt occurs when managers or other decision makers choose to go ahead with a proposed idea at HP. 4. Implementation. Implementation occurs when HP’s members actually use a new idea, technique, or behavior. Materials and equipment may have to be acquired, and workers may have to be trained to use the new idea. This is the most difficult part for HP. Until people use the new idea, no change has actually taken place. 5. Resources. Change does not happen on its own; it requires time and resources, for both creating and implementing a new idea. Employees at HP must provide energy to see both the need and the idea to meet that need. In conclusion, strong market position in various markets segments provides economies of scale for the company, besides increasing its chance of winning customers. However, intense competition will adversely affect the revenues and profitability of the company in ling term (Datamonitor, 2011). Works Cited 1. Daft, R. (2010). Organization Theory & Design. (11th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western, Cengage Learning. 2. Datamonitor. (2011). Hewlett-Packard Company 3. HEWLETT-PACKARD COMPANY Palo Alto, California. (2008). Microwave Journal, 51(7), 120-126. 4. Hewlett Packard Company. 2007 November 19. 30 March 2008 . 5. High Tech: Winning Success In Silicon Valley. (1984). Ebony, 40(1), 37 6. (n.d.). Retrieved from www.hp.com/go/history

SCE&G: Relevant and Non-Relevant Costs

South Carolina Electric and Gas (SCE&G), a principal subsidiary of SCANA Corporation, makes life convenient by bringing electricity and natural gas to homes and businesses. The company also provides residential, commercial, and industrial builder service firms the energy they need for construction (www.sceg.com). The company also has telecommunications services and other businesses which involve non-regulated energy. To supply electricity and natural gas, SCE&G operates 22 various plants, most of which are coal plants. Today, SCE&G serves nearly 1 million customers in South Carolina (â€Å"SCE&G Quick Facts†).The coal plants of SCE&G emit nitrogen oxide. Also known as NOx, this is one of the compounds that form smog in the atmosphere. Thus, the company has been making efforts to lower the emission of NOx. Just recently, SCE&G has installed the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) equipment on Wateree Station and Williams Station, the two largest plants of the company to reduce NOx emission. This has cost them $138 million (www.sceg.com). The company has also invested 80 million dollars on equipment for emission and pollution control (Zaleski, 2007).In 2008, the firm has decided to install the SCR equipment on the Cope Station as well. The project, which started on the summer of 2007 and will end on the fall of 2008, will cost the company 69 million dollars (Zaleski, 2007). This amount includes relevant costs (i.e., costs that are significant to a specific decision) such as the cost of the equipment and the cost of installation (CITATION).The previously mentioned expenditures prior to the Cope Station project–the investment on SCR equipment and on the emission and pollution control equipment—are considered sunk costs. Whether SCE&G would push through with the Cope project or not, the costs of these equipments have already been incurred. Hence, they are irrelevant to the project.SCE&G reported in its statement of projected expenditure that the budget for the Cope Station project was $ 26 million (â€Å"SCANA Corp. 2007-2009 Projection Expenditure,† 2007). Since the investment would cost $ 69 million, it would result in a budget deficit of $ 43 million. This implies that the company had to make budget adjustments in order to fund the said project.When the project is complete, it would surely result in â€Å"clean, safe, and reliable power source for [the] citizens and industries† (Zaleski, 2007). Although it would not bring the company explicit financial benefits, by making the plant environment-friendly, the project can further contribute to the healthy relationship of SCE&G with its neighboring communities. Moreover, this may â€Å"attract new industries [to invest] in [the] area† as the environment becomes free of the polluting NOx (Zaleski, 2007).ReferenceAbout SE&G.. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2008 from http://www.sceg.com/en/about-sceg/Builder services. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2008 from http://www.sceg.com/en/builder servicesNitrogen oxides. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2008 fromhttp://www.sceg.com/en/my-community/environment/air/nitrogen-oxides/Residential services. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2008 fromhttp://www.sceg.com/en/residential-services/SCANA Corporation 2007-2009 projections for capital expenditures and cash flows. (9February 2007). Retrieved January 26, 2008 fromhttp://www.secinfo.com/dN11u.u3.c.htmSCE&G quickfacts. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2008Zaleski, G.. (6 November 2007). SCE&G investing $69 million in Cope plan to reduceemissions. The Times and Democrat. Retrieved January 26, 2008 fromhttp://www.thetandd.com/articles/2007/11/06/news/12812156.txt

Kompyuter Adiksyon

E. Competition In the Tagaytay City we have several competitors in the terms of Shawarma product and there are also a lot of food charts that place in the different area of Tagaytay City because it is the tourist spot in the Philippines. The main targets of this food chart are the lower middle to upper middle class and some are tourist international and local. Our indirect competitors are Mr. Mappy pizza, Potato Chips, Siomai, Angel’s Burger and etc. Our direct competitors in the area Turks (Olivarez) and Alibaba Shawarma (magallenes branch and robinson tagaytay). Market Shares:Turk’s Shawarma (Olivarez Plaza) is the number one in market shares because of its place and the volume of people go in Olivarez Plaza while Alibaba Shawarma (Robinson Tagaytay Branch) is the number two on the spot because of its place but theres a lot of competitors in the place like restaurant and fast food chains and Alibaba Shawarma (magallenes square Branch) it is the last spots because in t he that place only workers of different establishment are the customer because that place have different restaurant and food chains to choose from like Leslies, Max restaurant, Yellow Cab and many more.Resources: Since, this establishment is food stall type and there is a Franchisee and Franchisor. The resources of the business are comes from the Franchisor all the thing that will be needed in the business comes from franchisor. Product and Market Focus The product is shawarma product it is meat preparation, where  lamb,  chicken,  turkey,  beef,  veal, or mixed meats are placed on a  spit  (commonly a vertical spit in  restaurants), and may be grilled for as long as a day. Shavings are cut off the block of meat for serving, and the remainder of the block of meat is kept heated on the rotating spit.There market focuses to sell the product on their target market they only focus on selling the product they not create new idea about the product. Goals They goal is to se ll a delicious shawarma to their customer and serve the best shawarma on the place. Strategies This food stall only focuses in selling the product to their customer they not focus on how their establishment continues to operate. Their also dependent on their franchisor all planning and strategies comes from their franchisor. Strengths and WeaknessesAll establishments has a nice place but the product they offer is only limited in terms of sizes and different variety of flavor. Key Barriers to Entry There no vacant place to rent There are so many stalls in the place There are no yet crews for the business There is no yet a stall for the business Our product is unique from the other shawarma product because our product is a kind of street food that is of the same concept as Shawarma which is thinly sliced meat mixed with chopped vegetables and is rolled into a large piece of steamed bread. The difference from our product and the traditional shawarma is that we modified the fillings.We will not fill the bread with the usual meat and vegetables. Instead, we will add new flavors to the traditional shawarma. Examples are Spaghetti, Pizza and California maki flavored shawarma. We will address our product as shawarma because the idea of filipino consumers of shawarma is filled flatbread which is applied in our new product. This new product will be named â€Å"Shawarmalaya†. Shawarmalaya came from the words â€Å"Shawarma† and â€Å"Malaya. Shawarma because the concept of this food is derived from the traditional shawarma and Malaya because customers can freely choose from the new flavors of shawarma.The idea of this product is mostly derived from the traditional shawarma so the preparation of this product will be quite the same. The facilities to be used will also be the same except for the vertical grill used in cooking the traditional shawarma meat. We will also be needing an oven and steamers for the baking and steaming of the bread. Usual kitchen ute nsils will also be used for cooking and preparing the fillings. The processes and technology to be used in the preparation of this product will not be as high-tech as used in making the traditional shawarma.Since we are short on facility and capital, we have decided to use alternatives to make the product. The use of old processes of making food will also mean less cost and expenses which will be good for the group/company. The usual shawarma meat is cooked in a vertical grill, in our case; we will just grill meat in an old fashioned way which will make the meat tastier and cost less. On the other hand, the preparation of the bread will be the same as the traditional shawarma which is baked and steamed then rolled with the fillings.This idea is innovative in a way. We managed to add a twist and modify an already existing product. We didn’t change the form of the product but its approach. We are trying to make a new perception of shawarma on the minds of the consumers. We also want the consumers to enjoy the food they like in a new more flavorful way. Our product is difficult to copy because we have secret ingredient to put up to the product and we have the best suppliers that will supply best ingredients that will be needed.Our competitors will be surprise because we have different approach to our customer because they have the free will to choose what the flavor will be put to their shawarmalaya. Our competitors will be surprise because we have different variety to choose from we have different flavors that is new to the eyes and taste of the consumer. When we launch our product we will do first 100 customers is free to taste our product and first one week of our product is by one take one. In takes a lot of time to copy our product because it is unique and it has different ingredients to find.

Federal Mandates Essay

Through out the 1930’s, Federalism began to grow along with an increased power towards federal grants and mandates due to the effects of the Depression. During the New Deal the Supreme Court ruled that national spending was not limited to just specific grants any more. The national government now had the power to grant, fund, and mandate money to any state under what conditions they choose. Currently Congress can imply considerable control over the states by placing federal money to particular federal mandates. Over the past 25 years Federalism has dramatically changed as a result of an increase in federal mandates. Starting with Jimmy Carter trying to return the government to Creative Federalism, he wanted to give federal aid to poor communities and to use public funds to promote private investment for certain problems while trying to create a partnership between state and national government. On the other hand, Ronald Reagan reigned against big government during his four-year term from 1981-1988. In the end he decreased national spending towards states, which made many American citizens very unhappy. President George Bush stepped into to office next with a plan to continue with Reagan’s downsizing of government. While trying to carry out this goal, Bush lowered welfare spending, increased education programs and environmental protection, while increases in the cost of Medicaid rose, leading to a national grant increase. Bill Clinton reversed the system when he signed the Executive Order 13803, which allows for federal intervention in policy matters with state and local government. Many agreed that this order seriously eroded federalism. Through out the past 25 years, the ideas of government  grants and mandates have varied almost from each president. With Clinton in office he increased under-funded federal mandates to states. These changes have caused Federalism t o change as well, with the age-old question still pondering in the minds of Americans, who actually has the most power, the states or national government? In 1990 a federal mandate was passed called the Americans with Disability Act The Federal Law makes it illegal for employers to discriminate on the basis of a disability. It makes it illegal for an employer to discriminate against a qualified individual with a disability in job application process, hiring, discharge of employee, job training, and other terms. Also all businesses must make accommodation for employees with a disability. In addition, it is unlawful to discriminate against a person who is perceived to have a disability, that is if the employer believes one is disabled, even though he is not, and still discriminates against him. The Federal Government issued this mandate in order to ensure that all American citizens have the same advantages. Although a citizen might be disabled, it does not mean that he or she is in capable of working. It is unfair to discriminate against a person with a disability when our country was founded on treating all citizens with equality and ensuring uniform rights for all. Enforcing this act would reduce the number of citizens needing welfare and decrease the unemployment rate. Many mandates affect both the state and local government budgets. Several mandates are associated with federal grant-in-aid programs, where money is paid to state and local governments for programs or activities the federal government wants to promote. While participation in these programs is â€Å"voluntary†, the offer of federal money often is too tempting for states to refuse. For example, the federal government pays about $250 million annually for Minnesota highways. However, the money comes with requirements, such as lane width and pavement thickness. Other mandates apply to both government and the private sector these include the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Americans With Disabilities Act. These two mandates are costly and come with no financial assistance. Private sectors include small business; such as my father’s very own physical therapy clinics. In 1990 when the law was past, he had to make accommodations for disabled citizens. Although my father does treat many disable citizens already, he had to make further modification to his clinics such as; even larger bathrooms, special equipment, and wheelchair ramps to meet the federal mandate standards while funding the project by himself. If the government were to remove this federal mandate, the Americans with Disability Act, many consequences would follow. This act enables all  citizens a chance to earn a job. With this mandate the government is ensuring the same equal rights to all Americans. Also with the mandate doctors are not allowed to â€Å"say† if a patient is able to return to work or not after being disabled . The doctors are now only authorized to state the patient’s limitations, it is up to the employer to claim if the patient is unable to work. This one factor allows more citizens with disabilities to work. If the mandate were removed then fewer citizens would return to work, due to the fact that doctors would have to title all patients â€Å"disabled† if they had any sort of limitation. The increase of federal mandates does show that the national governments are taking control over the states governments, which defeats the idea of Federalism. When using a federal system of government, both the state and the national government are suppose to SHARE power. Federal mandates work against the definition of true Federalism. Mandates do not contribute to the sharing of powers. Federal mandates control states. The states do not have a chose to participate in the mandate or not. Therefore, federal mandates drive our country away from the ideas of Federalism.

ndividual Assignment Ethics Reflection Paper Essay

Business Ethics and Social Responsibility Resources: Ethics Awareness Inventory and Ethical Choices in the Workplace assessments Use the Ethics Awareness Inventory and Ethical Choices in the Workplace assessments to revisityour personal and professional values. Write a paper of no more than 1,050-words in which you do the following: †¢ Explain the role of ethics and social responsibility in developing a strategic plan,considering stakeholder needs. †¢ Explain how your ethical perspective has evolved throughout the program. Format your paper according to APA standards. General Questions – General General Questions Take the Ethics Awareness Inventory and Ethical Choices in the Workplace assessments to assess your values. Write a paper between 600 to 700 words in which you do the following: Explain the role of ethics and social responsibility in developing a strategic plan, considering stakeholder needs. Explain how your ethical perspective has evolved throughout the program. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. Click the Assignment Files tab to submit your assignment. If you can’t settle on a major in your first year, then take a couple core classes for any major you are considering. You’ll learn about each field thoroughly this way. When you are ready to choose, you’ll have the credits you need for that major, plus the minors as well. This file of STR 581 Week 1 Individual Assignment Ethics Reflection Paper comprises: Business Ethics and Social Responsibility Resources: Ethics Awareness Inventory and Ethical Choices in the Workplace assessments Use the Ethics Awareness Inventory and Ethical Choices in the Workplace a†¦ Follow the link to get tutorial – https://bitly.com/1wyRSFq If you can’t settle on a major in your first year, then take a couple core classes for any major you are considering. You’ll learn about each field thoroughly this way. When you are ready to choose, you’ll have the credits you need for that major, plus the minors as well. General Questions – General General Questions Take the Ethics Awareness Inventory and Ethical Choices in the Workplace assessments to assess your values. Write a paper between 600 to 700 words in which you do the following: Explain the role of ethics and social responsibility in developing a strategic plan, considering stakeholder needs. Explain how your ethical perspective has evolved throughout the program. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. Click the Assignment Files tab to submit your assignment.

Education in Online Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Education in Online Environment - Essay Example The main consideration for posing the question under discussion is that if online learning through virtual classrooms and its other auxiliary function are capable of delivering an equally rigorous, high-quality education, then why not substitute the traditional brick and mortar classroom with the online classroom? The first and most important reservation and consideration against collegiate education which is quality has already been responded in the affirmative and it now becomes high time to make classrooms virtual to benefit of the many advantages of a technology-based education using the internet as a platform instead of the traditional classroom. Many if not most academicians agreed that the learning outcome for their students such as incorporating active learning techniques such as working collaboratively on assignments, participating in small-group discussions and projects, reading and responding to case studies, role-playing, and using simulations can now also be done online (Paliof and Pratt). Its many benefits include financial pragmatism which is very important today because are still in the process of recovering from the financial crisis. Online classrooms will save the student a huge amount of time and money and these saved time and money can be channeled to other things that are productive thus optimizing the time and resource of students. Students are able to save time in an exclusive online classroom in attending college because he or she no longer has to commute beginning in enrollment, going to class and attending to school documentary requirements. The saved time and opportunity cost saved are huge that the students can either used it to engage in other productive endeavors such as engaging in interesting hobbies or getting a job to help finance college. Speaking of finance, along with the saved time is also money. Commuting to and from college costs money and it is increasingly getting expensive due to the perpetual increase in the price of petrol. It would also save the student clothing expenses because he or she no longer has to purchase additional clothing that is suitable for going to class. If the student has to board near the school, the online classroom will no longer require that. Instead of paying board and lodging just to be near the school, the student can stay in the comfort of his or her house without the added cost of board and lodging. He or she has to pay only for the utility bills which are very minimal compared to paying room and board inside or near the university. It is also safer because students no longer have to leave the house and expose too many elements outside the house that could pose danger to the student. Danger such as road accident, mugging or being shot by a distraught student who has gone amuck is virtually absent if the student stays in the house to attend class.

How did the target market change for Holiday Inn Hotels after the Literature review

How did the target market change for Holiday Inn Hotels after the financial crisis amongst hotels in England & Bosnia - Literature review Example Different types of relevant literatures are reviewed for the purpose of attaining some conceptual findings regarding research work. From the perspective of impact of financial crisis in late 2008, Platt, Carper, and McCool (2010) have presented their views. As per the findings of the author, it can analyzed critically that recent financial crisis have been proved quite critical for business organizations operating across the world. The failure of some of the major business organizations has induced different domestic as well as multinational business organizations to change the norms of their business practices and strategies for the purpose of minimizing risks in their business operations2. Kotler, Bowen, and Makens (2011) have presented the theory of strategic change in the market. As per the theory, external environmental factors can be responsible factors for changes in the market place. As per the theory, although the major impact of recession have been seen in the operations of finance sectors organizations, yet still there are some other sectors such as hospitality, manufacturing, and automobile, that hav e been affected quite significantly after the occurrence of this financial slump across the globe 3 In contrast to such findings, Corgel, and Woodworth (2012) have explained the impact of recession over hospitality sector. Authors have argued quite critically that hotel industry is one of the industries which directly relates with other business industries. The recession has affected the patterns and trends followed by different hotel organizations4. In the support of this Shi, White, Zou, and Cavusgil (2010) has elaborated that such crucial differences can be observed in the context of product and service offerings, internal administration, operations, and marketing strategies. Due to shortage of financial resources during the time of recession, hotel organizations have started to be more concerned about refining their