Thursday, October 31, 2019

CROWN BRIEF SYNOPSIS police foundations program english Essay

CROWN BRIEF SYNOPSIS police foundations program english - Essay Example It is imperative to notice that a broken beer bottle was found near the foot of the third injured male. As an investigative measure, the statements of four witnesses were taken. The four witnesses did show some variance in terms of their eye-witness accounts. The first witness said that the first male victim had been assaulted by the latter two, when he tried to assault them by using weapon, which was a small knife. The second witness sided the first one, almost echoing the same version. He also added that the first victim had provoked the other two victims who were drinking beer. The third witness said that he had seen t he first victim using his knife and cutting the knuckles of the latter two, while one of the other victims had broken the beer bottle on his head. The last witness, however, changed the story and said that he had not seen the first victim carrying any weapon or provoking the other victims. By assessing the common witness statements given, one can conclude that the first victim had indeed provoked the other two, who had, in a bid to safeguard their lives, assaulted the first victim.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Unit 2 - Business Resources, Unit 20 - Managing Physical Resources in Coursework

Unit 2 - Business Resources, Unit 20 - Managing Physical Resources in a Business Environment, Unit 16 - Human Resources management in Business - Coursework Example skills, attitude and formalities to work in the conerned company, physical and technological resources of the company and their associated management to improve upon the existing performance, the importance of emplyability, skills and staff retention, sources of external and internal finance and budgetary control, financial state and a discussion on the same and finally calculation and discussion of some important financial ratios along with their limitations. Virgin Atlantic (UK) requires an initial documentation of either a valid EU Passport, or a UK Birth certificate along with a valid NHS Insurance proof or a valid passport with the necessary permits to work in the UK. (Virgin Atlantic, 2012)These documents must be submitted to Virgin Atlantic (UK) even before the selection process has begun. (Virgin Atlantic, 2012)It has to be sent it along with the application for the relevant job opening a candidate is applying to. (Virgin Atlantic, 2012). The application involves attaching an updated CV along with a covering letter and the necessary document which validates a candidates eligibility to work in the UK (discussed above). Under no circumstances the person should have any criminal record or any pending criminal case (Virgin Atlantic, 2012) Virgin Atlantic employs approximately 9000 people all over the world in various countries, with roughly 4000 cabin crew and 700 Pilots. (Virgin Atlantic Airlines, 2014). The main requirements for working at Virgin Atlantic include: â€Å"intelligence, responsibility, initiative and support† (Virginia Airlines Ltd, n.d.)for a candidates fellow workers, this is irrespective of which field of work the candidate would apply to, whether it be Finance, Marketing, Human Resource or Operations. (Virgin Atlantic Airlines, 2014).These requirements enable Virgin Atlantic to identify key personnel and assign them strong roles in order to build on the â€Å"Virgin† brand. (Virgin Atlantic Airlines, 2014) Virgin requires all its

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Accessibility of Centres to the Road Networks: Lagos Island

Accessibility of Centres to the Road Networks: Lagos Island THE ACCESSIBILITY OF CENTRES TO THE ROAD NETWORKS: THE CASE OF LAGOS ISLAND, NIGERIA Mr. A. O. Atubi Prof. P.C Onokala Abstract Proper co-ordination of transport and public facilities provision is vital to any balanced regional development strategy. The central aim of this study therefore was to study the relationship between access to the transport networks and the provision of central facilities in Lagos Island. The results of the analysis of connectivity indices reveal the development of an increasing complex network, although the road network for 1997 remained the same as that of 1986. Using simple regression analysis, it was found that no strong relationship between road, accessibility and occurrence of facilities could be established. Rather population of centres was found to be more significant factor in the distribution of public facilities. Thus, recommendations capable of enhancing equitable transport development include; constructing new roads that will increase accessibility, save time and reduce cost to other centres and relocating some facilities too. Introduction In an urban area, there is a complex mix of land uses and all the major broad groupings of person movements (i.e.) journey to work, official trips, education trips by school children/students, shopping trips, journey made to get home, an miscellaneous journeys) in urban areas are made between them. Thus, while trip are made for a variety of purposes, they are made to and from various land use Onokala. (1995). Oyelegbin (1996), observed that traffic jams keep Lagos motorist on the roads for hours and that many motorists are blaming frequent traffic Jams of numerous deep pot-holes, blocked drainages and poor road network system. While the number of vehicles were increasing the road network infrastructure are not bet increased proportionately and even the existing ones degenerate in quality at increasing rate. The Lagos Island Local Government Area is the single most important local government in Lagos State due to the fact that most government establishments: private parastatals and public buildings are located here. It is essential to appreciate that the purpose of transport is to provide accessibility, or the ability to make a journey for a specific purpose. Transport is not timed for its own sake, but is merely a means to an end. The construction of transport infrastructure influences transport costs by is of a reduction of distances and/or a higher average speed. This will lead to changes in the choice of transport mode, route choice, time of departure (in the case ingested networks) and the generation or attraction of new movements per zone (Bruinsma, et al 1994). For example, within several European countries both the private sectors, as represented by mobile shops, and the public sector for example mobile library, have for many years provided services on-wheels for rural communities. Existing services could in future he coordinated to ensure that each community in turn became the focus of several of these services, so that the hinterland population need make only one journey into the centre to take advantage range of facilities (Brian and Rodney. 1995). Thus, in the U.S.A. accessibility studies in the late 1970’s and 1980’s centres on access to public facilities especially as observed by Lineberry (1977). Mladcnka 78), Mclafferty and Gosh (1982). In Nigeria several studies on accessibility tend to be related to urban centres or urban based activities. However, Onokerhoraye (1976) and Okafor (1982) sought to identify the major factors that influence distribution of post primary schools in Ilorin and lbadan respectively. They attributed the larger catchment areas to urban schools to travel distance to school and to population of urban centres. [Bardi (1982) also investigated the relationship between growth of road network and accessibility of urban centres in Bendel State, while Abumere (1982) tried to establish the nodal structure of Bendel State towns m the foregoing discussions of past studies in Nigeria we observed that the emphasis tends to be either on urban centres (Onokerhorave. 1976), postal services (Oherein, 1 985), banking (Soyode et al. 1975), bus transport services (Ali, 1997) and access to facilities in relation to road network (Atubi, 1998). There is however a need to take a total vie of transport in terms of the various activities for which the users demand mobility (Jansen, 1978). Methodology This research focused primarily on the study of road transport network system in Lagos Island Local Government Area especially as it relates to accessibility of centres Thus, structural characteristics and accessibility of major centres to the road network was considered at three points in time i.e. (1976, 1986 and 1997 periods). In developing the research design, areas that are accessible to the road network and with population of 1,000 and above at each period were taken as activity centres. Population of 1.000 was chosen as cut-off point to enable a substantial number of centres, especially those at the end of routes to appear as nodes especially as the network grows. The choice of nodes was therefore based on population size. Data Analysis and Discussions of Results In order to classify the major centres, data on six areas of central facility provision were collected namely: Medical, educational, market, postal services, banking and administrative headquarters. Data on these chosen facilities were collected both from published sources and through field survey. A list of registered health facilities in the study area by 1997 compiled by the Lagos State Ministry of Health, Alausa. Ikeja: list of primary schools in Lagos Island Local Government Area from the Lagos Island Local Education District Department, and monthly returns of postal facilities from post and Telecommunications (NIPOST) Marina, Lagos were used as the base data to collect the number of these facilities. More comparative data on the number and location of the services are collected from the General Post Office (G.P.O.) Marina. Lagos. The data on the distribution of banks in Lagos Island Local Government Area were collected from Central Bank of Nigeria, Lagos, while data on the distribution of markets were collected from the Department of marketing Lagos Island Local Government Secretariat. City Hall, Lagos. The accessibility of centres to the road network in Lagos Island Government Area was analyzed using the graph theory approach. It is used to handle properties to transportation networks in order to bring out their characteristics and structures. Other major techniques of analysis used include the homogenization of data etc. By 1976, we had 22 out of the 30 major centres directly connected by all season roads. Each direct connection forms a link. As an illustration by 1976, one could only move from race course to Cable Street (Net) before moving to C.M.S. (Old Marina). In this case we have 2 links along Race Course C.M.S. (Old Marina) road. In sum, 23 links or edges were identified by 1976 which connected 22 nodes. By 1986, the network became more complex as more nodes are connected through different routes. However, the same principles are applied. It has been observed that by 1986 the 30 nodes had become connected by 39 links. That means 7 extra centres had entered into the network systems. These are Leventis. C.M.S. New Marina), Force Road. Awolowo Road, Ilubirin, Ebute-Elefun and Anokantamo. By 1997, the network remained the same as that of 1986 but the major difference was the construction of Third Main Land Bridge that links Lagos inland Local Government Area to Lagos Island Local Government Area. This was that since 1986, no major work has been done on the road network in Lagos and Local Government Area, hence the road network remained the same. Although, the indices of connectivity indicate increasing complexity of network between 1976 and 1997, the indices of nodal accessibility, which explain the accessibility of one node to all others in the network, indicate the changing fortunes some centres. It is interesting to note that in terms of overall road distance, the most accessible centres in 1976 were Tinubu, Martins and Balogun, while the least accessible were Race Course. Epetedo and C.M.S. (Old Marina). By 1986, we observed that Odularni had become the most accessible centre, while Tinubu and Nnamdi Azikiwe had become the second and Third most accessible centres in the network. Again, it was noted that Epetedo (Okepopo Marina), Ebute-Elefun, Anokantamo and ldumagbo remained the least accessible centres. Other new centres connected to the network at this state include C.M.S. Maria road), Force Road, Awolowo Road, Ebute-Eletun, Anokantamo and Idumagho. Their entry into the network has the effect of increasing the accessibility for all the nodes. However, by 1997 it was observed that odulami remained the most accessible centre which corresponds with the nodal accessibility by 1986, while Tinubu and Nnamdi Azikiwe remained the second and third most accessible centres in the network which also corresponds with the nodal accessibility by 1986. Again, it was observed that Eptedo (Okepopo Marina), Ebute_Eleflm, Anokautamo and ldumagbo remain the least accessible centres. Also he Tinubu-Nnam di Azikiwe-Odulami-Bamgbose axis seems to have been enjoying high level of accessibility throughout the period. The more nodes are connected the greater the accessibility value for individual nodes. However, the entire network accessibility expands with increasing number of nodes brought into the network. Another observation is that there are some nodes (Awolowo Road, Ilubirin. Force Road, and C.M.S. (New marina Road) that were not connected in earlier times but they acquired quite high accessibility as soon as they were connected. It is observed further that there are some nodes, which declined in accessibility as more links were added. Thus Tinubu, Odulami. Olowogbowo, Balogun and Broad Street among others, declined in accessibility. The construction of Leventis C.M.S. (New Marina Road) meant that a shorter route to cable street (net) from Force Road than through Tinuhu had been created. Other routes constructed prior to 1997, which reduced the position of Tinuhu, include martins Street-ldumota, C.M.S. (Old marina-Odulami and Okepopo. In this analysis. the researchers used the simple regression. A possible relationship between accessibility and human activities has been suggested by Lachene (1965) and Chapman (1979) among others, while Keeble et al (1982) actually established a relationship between accessibility and economic activities among the countries of the E.E.C. within the country. Atuhi (1998) has in Lagos State suggested some relationship between accessibility and public facility index, while Ali (1997) suggested some relationship between accessibility and bus transport services in Enugu. For public facilities however, whose essential quality of their location is that they be as accessible to their users as possible one should expect to find a strong relationship between the two. Policy Implications The strategy of constructing new links to improve accessibility may involve heavier financial investment. Thus, a proper cost-benefit analysis is needed to determine the desirability of such investment. Still another strategy would he to provide those services which centres lack based on extensive surveys of what are available and what are needed. This centre based approach might prove more useful if the people are guided to choose out of their preference. Conclusion It is pertinent to note that the social benefit of constructing a road that increases accessibility saves time and reduces cost goes beyond the financial evaluation. This is because it touches on human value. References Abumere. SI, (1982) The nodal structure of Bendel State Nigeria Geographical Journal, vol. 25. Pp. 173-I 87. Ali, A.N. (1907) The Accessibility of major centres to the Transport Services in Enugu State, Nigeria. Unpublished M.Sc. Thesis, University of Nigeria. Nsukka. Atubi, A. 0. (1998) The Accessibility of Centres to the Road Network in Lagos Island Local Government Area Lagos State, Nigeria. Unpublished M.Sc. Thesis, University of Nigeria. Nsukka. Bardi, E.C. (1982) Development of road network and Accessibility of Urban centres within bendel State Nigeria 1967-1981: A Graph theory approach, Unpublished B.Sc. original Essay, Department of Geography, University of Nigeria. Nsukka. Brain, T. and Rodney. T. (1995) Rural Transport problems, policies and plans. Transport Systems, Policy and Planning: A Geographical Approach. Longman House, Burnt Mill. Hariow England, Pp. 231-260. Bruinsma. F.R. and Rietveld. P. (1994) Borders as harriers in the European road Network. A case study of the accessibility of Urban agglomerations in Nijkamp P. (Ed) New Borders and Old Barriers in Spatial Development, Pp. 139-52. Aveburv, Aldershot. Chapman. K. (1 979 People, Patien, and process an introduction to human Geography. Edward Arnold. London. Daly, MT. (1975) Measuring accessibility in a rural context. In white, P.R. (ed). Rural Transport Seminar, Transport Studies Group, Polytechnic of Central London, London Hoyle. B.S. and Knowles, R.D. (1992) Rural Areas: The Accessibility problem in modern Transport Geography. Longman House, Burnt in ill, Harlow England, Pp. 125-137. Ingram, D.R. (1971) The concept of accessibility: a Search for operational firm. Regional Studies, Vol. 5, Pp. 101-107 Jansen, H.O. (1978) The interaction between public transportation and other social activities: A System approach Transportation Research, Vol. 12 (2), Pp. 83- 89 Keeble, D. Owen. P.C. and Thomas. C. (1982) Regional Accessibility and Economic potential in the European Community Regional Studies, Vol. 10 (c). Pp. 4 9-432. Lachene. R. (1965) Networks and the locations of economic activities. Regional Science Association papers. Vol. XIV (24), Pp. 183-196. Lineberry, R. (1977) Equality and Urban Policy, Saga. Beverley Hills Mclafferty. S. and Gosh. A. (1982) Issues in measuring differential access to public Services. Urban Studies. Vol. 19, Pp. 383-389 Mitchell, C.C.B. and Town, SW. (1976) Accessibility of various social groups to different activities Transport and Road Research Laboratory, Crowthorness Berkshire. Mladenka, K. (1978) Organization rules, service equality and distributional decision in urban polities Social Science Quarterly, Vol. 89 (1). Pp. 192-201 Morril, B.L (1970) Spatial organization of Society. Duxbury Press, Belmont, California. Oherein, D.N. (1985) Accessibility to public facilities, a case study of postal service units in Owan Local Government Area, (Bendel State): Unpublished B.Sc. Thesis, Department of Geography, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Okafor, A.N. (1982) Service area of public facility in Ibadan Onokerhoraye, A.G. (1976) A conceptual framework for the location of public facilities in the urban areas of developing countries: The Nigerian Case. Socio-economic Planning Sciences, Vol. 10, Pp. 237-276. Onokala, P.C. (1995) The effect of landuse on road traffic accidents in Benin City, Nigeria. Journal of Transport Studies; Vol. 1, No. Pp. 34-44. Oyelegbin, R. (1996) Jams keep Lagos motorists on the road for hours. The Guardian, February 15, P. 9. Rich, R. (1979) Neglected issues in the study of urban services distribution: A research agenda Urban studies. Vol. 16, Pp. 121-136. Soyade, A. and Oyejide, T.A. (1975) Branch network and economic performance: A case study of Nigeria’s commercial banks. Nigerian Journal of Economic and Social studies, Vol. 17, No. 2, Pp. 119-131.

Friday, October 25, 2019

MTV :: essays research papers

Somewhat perversely, it might be expedient to begin by pointing out that this paper is not about the music video per se. There will be no close textual analysis of individual clips. Eminent pop philosopher Elvis Costello once said that "writing about music is like dancing about architecture. It's a really stupid thing to want to do" (quoted in Goodwin, 1993: 1). Conscious that 'accidents can happen", this paper is concerned with the institutional as opposed to the purely textual; with the processes of production and reception (although it should be noted that it is perhaps inevitable that such a consideration will touch upon the channel - if not the videos themselves - as "text" in its most socially-engaged sense). The focus here, then, is on those organisations which broadcast music videos, on Music Television (MTV) in particular, and on the possible impact of what has become a truly global phenomenon. There is a common perception that American products dominate the world's markets. Coke and Pepsi slug it out across continents. It would appear that there is no place on earth where one cannot purchase a Big Mac. In his book Superculture, Christopher Bigsby offers this assessment of America's global dominance: American corporations shape the physical and mental environment, influence the eating habits, define the leisure pursuits, produce TV programmes and movies: devise, in other words, the fact and fantasy of the late twentieth century (Bigsby, 1975: 4). The perceived threat of globalisation has prompted fears and resentments not dissimilar in temper and tone to those by-now familiar reactions to the threat of Americanisation. Globalisation is sometimes seen as a force that will erode or, worse still, dissolve cultural difference and variety. Yet, the presence and pervasiveness of American-made goods does not necessarily signal the death of the local, regional or national. As Frederic Jameson notes, late modern or postmodern capitalism has led to a more disorganised set of relationships between trading nations. Thus, it is one of the characteristics of the dreaded "P"-concept - postmodernism or, perhaps more accurately, postmodernity - that it leads to uncertainty and paradox, as opposed to certainty and confidence. As a kind of postmodern capitalism, globalisation reflects this. For with it, the act of cultural transfer becomes more problematic, the flow of goods and ideas so much more difficult to "police". Economically, globalisation refers to a shift in capitalist practice. Today's multi- nationals talk of "global marketing strategies" and securing a "global market share" - corporate- speak which alludes to a kind of capitalism sans frontieres. MTV :: essays research papers Somewhat perversely, it might be expedient to begin by pointing out that this paper is not about the music video per se. There will be no close textual analysis of individual clips. Eminent pop philosopher Elvis Costello once said that "writing about music is like dancing about architecture. It's a really stupid thing to want to do" (quoted in Goodwin, 1993: 1). Conscious that 'accidents can happen", this paper is concerned with the institutional as opposed to the purely textual; with the processes of production and reception (although it should be noted that it is perhaps inevitable that such a consideration will touch upon the channel - if not the videos themselves - as "text" in its most socially-engaged sense). The focus here, then, is on those organisations which broadcast music videos, on Music Television (MTV) in particular, and on the possible impact of what has become a truly global phenomenon. There is a common perception that American products dominate the world's markets. Coke and Pepsi slug it out across continents. It would appear that there is no place on earth where one cannot purchase a Big Mac. In his book Superculture, Christopher Bigsby offers this assessment of America's global dominance: American corporations shape the physical and mental environment, influence the eating habits, define the leisure pursuits, produce TV programmes and movies: devise, in other words, the fact and fantasy of the late twentieth century (Bigsby, 1975: 4). The perceived threat of globalisation has prompted fears and resentments not dissimilar in temper and tone to those by-now familiar reactions to the threat of Americanisation. Globalisation is sometimes seen as a force that will erode or, worse still, dissolve cultural difference and variety. Yet, the presence and pervasiveness of American-made goods does not necessarily signal the death of the local, regional or national. As Frederic Jameson notes, late modern or postmodern capitalism has led to a more disorganised set of relationships between trading nations. Thus, it is one of the characteristics of the dreaded "P"-concept - postmodernism or, perhaps more accurately, postmodernity - that it leads to uncertainty and paradox, as opposed to certainty and confidence. As a kind of postmodern capitalism, globalisation reflects this. For with it, the act of cultural transfer becomes more problematic, the flow of goods and ideas so much more difficult to "police". Economically, globalisation refers to a shift in capitalist practice. Today's multi- nationals talk of "global marketing strategies" and securing a "global market share" - corporate- speak which alludes to a kind of capitalism sans frontieres.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Outlook of Domestic and International Tourism in the Philippines

1. Outlook of Domestic and International Tourism in the Philippines: †¢According to the Philippine National Tourism Development Plan 2011-2016, DOT wanted the Philippines to be a must-experience destination in Asia. With that strategic vision, they established a general goal which is to develop an environmentally and socially responsible tourism that delivers more widely distributed income and employment opportunities as indicated by 6. 6 M international arrivals and 34. M domestic travellers generating PhP1,759 billion in total expenditure, contributing 6. 78% to GDP and employing 6. 5 million people by 2016. With that being said they created objectives to achieve the goal which is to improve market access and connectivity by rapidly expanding capacity of secondary international airports, expanding connectivity between Philippines and its key growth markets and implementing a strategic access infrastructure program between secondary international airports and strategic destinat ions.Developing and marketing competitive tourist destinations and products by implementing a sustainable tourism destination infrastructure program, developing diversified tourism products that engage local communities, implementing a PPP-based mandatory tourism enterprise accreditation system and facilitate tourism investment and lower cost of business safeguarding natural & cultural heritage and vulnerable groups PPP-based marketing strategy and action plan.Lastly, improving tourism institutional, governance and human resource capacities by institutionalizing roles and responsibilities of DOT and LGUs, developing a competent well motivated and productive tourism workforce and improving governance in the area of safety, security, and in dealing with tourists. (http://asiapacific. unwto. org/sites/all/files/pdf/philippines_5. pdf) †¢As of January 2013, DOT Secretary Ramon Jimenez, have missed the target of 5 million tourist arrivals by less than 300,000 (4. 6 Million), and is eyeing the 5 million by the end of 2013.He will do it by intensifying the marketing campaign overseas, increasing the number of hotels and room accommodations, and most importantly, improving the so-called one of the worst airports in the world which is NAIA. (http://www. abs-cbnnews. com/business/01/17/13/dot-misses-2012-tourist-arrival-target) 2. Interest of Air Asia and Tiger Airways in the Philippine Operation: †¢AirAsia has affiliates in Indonesia and Thailand, both of which could have an IPO later this year, as well as long-haul associate AirAsia X. It has also announced plans to start up an affiliate in the Philippines.Clark will be the 13th regional hub of the AirAsia group, in addition to its bases in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. Increasingly, however, AirAsia is finding that it has to share its turf with Singapore Airlines' associate Tiger, which has announced plans of its own for the Philippine and Thai market. Accoording to AirAsia’s chief executive Mari anne Hontiveros, â€Å"Our choice of Clark underlines the airline's commitment to developing transportation and tourism hubs outside Manila. This is part of our plan to contribute to the development of the country as a whole. Last February 2011, Tiger said it would buy a 32. 5% stake in Philippine low-cost carrier Seair, following a marketing partnership between the two airlines late 2010. Tiger's chief executive Tony Davis says that by taking a stake in Seair, his airline would be able to take a bigger share in â€Å"a major market opportunity for low cost airlines†. The move would also allow Seair to compete more effectively against local market leader Cebu Pacific, which had a successful IPO last year and is rapidly expanding both its fleet and network. (http://www. flightglobal. om/news/articles/low-cost-carriers-growth-expectations-355702/) †¢The year 2012 put the global spotlight on the Philippine aviation industry, largely due to the phenomenal performance of the low-cost carriers flying domestic and international routes. The share of budget carriers in the the Philippines in the first 9 months of 2012 has soared to an average of 60%, reflecting one of the highest in the world, according to business consultancy firm Innodata. Almost 80% of the domestic market's 15. 5 million passengers and about 30% of international's 12. 5 million flew budget airlines in January-to-September.Since budget flights were introduced to Filipinos in 2005, the number of passengers hopping from one of the archipelago's 7,100 islands to the next, or to Asian destinations less than 4 hours away, have been growing by leaps and bounds. The year 2012 saw the highest jumps. The promise of low fares and new destinations were key reasons for this exponential growth. Budget carriers, in turn, battled it out in this increasingly competitive playing field by acquiring fuel-efficient aircraft and testing new markets. Some beefed up their war chest by getting new owners or par tners with deeper pockets or wider reach. http://www. rappler. com/business/18371-low-cost-carriers-drive-aviation-growth) †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"Tiger Airways, however, said the long-term potential of the Indonesian and Philippines air travel market is promising. † (http://www. interaksyon. com/business/53511/tiger-airways-says-seair-unlikely-to-turn-in-a-profit-in-2013) †¢The resulting operational and cost efficiencies will ensure more low fare seats are available and contribute to the growth of SEAIR and the Clark gateway, benefiting customers in the Philippines and across the Asia Pacific region.Avelino Zapanta, SEAIR's President and CEO, said, â€Å"With this new collaboration with Tiger Airways, we will also be able to serve more international visitors to the Philippines by offering more destinations with great value, low fares. In addition, the introduction of these new jet services will create a welcome boost to the Philippines tourism industry and create more high calibr e local jobs. † Chin Sak Hin, Chief Financial Officer of Tiger Airways Holdings Limited, said, â€Å"We are very excited to be working with SEAIR as the first â€Å"Partner Airline† of tigerairways. com.Besides the cost advantages resulting from basing aircraft and crew in Clark, SEAIR's extensive experience and brand recognition will ensure that more customers in the Philippines and internationally can access the same low fares offered by Tiger Airways when using the leading regional travel portal â€Å"tigerairways. com†. Together with Tiger Airways' strong marketing and distribution platform in Singapore and across major markets in the region, it will be a powerful combination that offers unbeatable value and fares to even more travellers. (http://www. tigerairways. com/news/OA_20110224_Tiger_Airways_Plans_To_Purchase_Major_Stake_in_SEAir. df) †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"Our choice of Clark underlines the airline’s commitment to developing transportation and tourism hubs outside Manila. This is part of our plan to contribute to the development of the country as a whole. AirAsia, Inc. is excited to start contributing to the economy of Clark and the rest of the country by boosting tourism and offering job opportunities to Filipinos,† said Marianne B. Hontiveros, chief executive of AirAsia, Inc. † †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"We plan to make Clark the hub for flights to popular destinations including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Korea and Japan.Travel will become much easier and more affordable for tourists and overseas Filipino workers,† Hontiveros added. Hontiveros, Antonio O. Cojuangco Jr. and Michael L. Romero own 60% of AirAsia, Inc. in equal partnership. The remaining 40% is owned by AirAsia Berhad. 3. Relevance of the Philippine population in the regional LCC’s interest of operation According to the Pacific Asia Travel Association, as of 2011, there are 114 million online visitors who check out the internet for Airlines which are aged 15 and above and who have internet access in schools, works, homes, etc.In the Philippines, 11% of the total population has access to the internet and check out these sites for low-cost airfares. This study shows that the higher the population is the more online hits and the more famous the air carrier gets when it comes to low-cost fares. AirAsia has topped the list of most-visited websites with 3,380,000 visits and second is, Tiger Airways which increased 226% from 554,000 to 1,805,000. Low-cost airlines in Asia Pacific have already seen substantial growth, even just in the past year.With many of these carriers adopting highly web-centric models, it is significant that they attract more than their fair share of the young Internet users in the region. For these young travellers, low-cost airlines may be the first time that they have to book and buy their own travel, providing for many the portal into continued use of the web as an e-commerce channel. Signifi cant upside in the market remains as Internet penetration increases in the region, and people who could not afford to travel before can now take cheaper flights.The younger generation as well as the continued improvements in site usability and security will also begin to influence older Internet users to adopt the web as a channel for researching and booking travel. â€Å"PATA sees low-cost carriers as an increasingly important part of the travel ecosystem in Asia Pacific and this study has proven that,† remarks John Koldowski, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Head, Office of Strategy Management, PATA. â€Å"As consumers across demographic segments continue to turn to the web for their travel needs, it Outlook of Domestic and International Tourism in the Philippines 1. Outlook of Domestic and International Tourism in the Philippines: †¢According to the Philippine National Tourism Development Plan 2011-2016, DOT wanted the Philippines to be a must-experience destination in Asia. With that strategic vision, they established a general goal which is to develop an environmentally and socially responsible tourism that delivers more widely distributed income and employment opportunities as indicated by 6. 6 M international arrivals and 34. M domestic travellers generating PhP1,759 billion in total expenditure, contributing 6. 78% to GDP and employing 6. 5 million people by 2016. With that being said they created objectives to achieve the goal which is to improve market access and connectivity by rapidly expanding capacity of secondary international airports, expanding connectivity between Philippines and its key growth markets and implementing a strategic access infrastructure program between secondary international airports and strategic destinat ions.Developing and marketing competitive tourist destinations and products by implementing a sustainable tourism destination infrastructure program, developing diversified tourism products that engage local communities, implementing a PPP-based mandatory tourism enterprise accreditation system and facilitate tourism investment and lower cost of business safeguarding natural & cultural heritage and vulnerable groups PPP-based marketing strategy and action plan.Lastly, improving tourism institutional, governance and human resource capacities by institutionalizing roles and responsibilities of DOT and LGUs, developing a competent well motivated and productive tourism workforce and improving governance in the area of safety, security, and in dealing with tourists. (http://asiapacific. unwto. org/sites/all/files/pdf/philippines_5. pdf) †¢As of January 2013, DOT Secretary Ramon Jimenez, have missed the target of 5 million tourist arrivals by less than 300,000 (4. 6 Million), and is eyeing the 5 million by the end of 2013.He will do it by intensifying the marketing campaign overseas, increasing the number of hotels and room accommodations, and most importantly, improving the so-called one of the worst airports in the world which is NAIA. (http://www. abs-cbnnews. com/business/01/17/13/dot-misses-2012-tourist-arrival-target) 2. Interest of Air Asia and Tiger Airways in the Philippine Operation: †¢AirAsia has affiliates in Indonesia and Thailand, both of which could have an IPO later this year, as well as long-haul associate AirAsia X. It has also announced plans to start up an affiliate in the Philippines.Clark will be the 13th regional hub of the AirAsia group, in addition to its bases in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. Increasingly, however, AirAsia is finding that it has to share its turf with Singapore Airlines' associate Tiger, which has announced plans of its own for the Philippine and Thai market. Accoording to AirAsia’s chief executive Mari anne Hontiveros, â€Å"Our choice of Clark underlines the airline's commitment to developing transportation and tourism hubs outside Manila. This is part of our plan to contribute to the development of the country as a whole. Last February 2011, Tiger said it would buy a 32. 5% stake in Philippine low-cost carrier Seair, following a marketing partnership between the two airlines late 2010. Tiger's chief executive Tony Davis says that by taking a stake in Seair, his airline would be able to take a bigger share in â€Å"a major market opportunity for low cost airlines†. The move would also allow Seair to compete more effectively against local market leader Cebu Pacific, which had a successful IPO last year and is rapidly expanding both its fleet and network. (http://www. flightglobal. om/news/articles/low-cost-carriers-growth-expectations-355702/) †¢The year 2012 put the global spotlight on the Philippine aviation industry, largely due to the phenomenal performance of the low-cost carriers flying domestic and international routes. The share of budget carriers in the the Philippines in the first 9 months of 2012 has soared to an average of 60%, reflecting one of the highest in the world, according to business consultancy firm Innodata. Almost 80% of the domestic market's 15. 5 million passengers and about 30% of international's 12. 5 million flew budget airlines in January-to-September.Since budget flights were introduced to Filipinos in 2005, the number of passengers hopping from one of the archipelago's 7,100 islands to the next, or to Asian destinations less than 4 hours away, have been growing by leaps and bounds. The year 2012 saw the highest jumps. The promise of low fares and new destinations were key reasons for this exponential growth. Budget carriers, in turn, battled it out in this increasingly competitive playing field by acquiring fuel-efficient aircraft and testing new markets. Some beefed up their war chest by getting new owners or par tners with deeper pockets or wider reach. http://www. rappler. com/business/18371-low-cost-carriers-drive-aviation-growth) †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"Tiger Airways, however, said the long-term potential of the Indonesian and Philippines air travel market is promising. † (http://www. interaksyon. com/business/53511/tiger-airways-says-seair-unlikely-to-turn-in-a-profit-in-2013) †¢The resulting operational and cost efficiencies will ensure more low fare seats are available and contribute to the growth of SEAIR and the Clark gateway, benefiting customers in the Philippines and across the Asia Pacific region.Avelino Zapanta, SEAIR's President and CEO, said, â€Å"With this new collaboration with Tiger Airways, we will also be able to serve more international visitors to the Philippines by offering more destinations with great value, low fares. In addition, the introduction of these new jet services will create a welcome boost to the Philippines tourism industry and create more high calibr e local jobs. † Chin Sak Hin, Chief Financial Officer of Tiger Airways Holdings Limited, said, â€Å"We are very excited to be working with SEAIR as the first â€Å"Partner Airline† of tigerairways. com.Besides the cost advantages resulting from basing aircraft and crew in Clark, SEAIR's extensive experience and brand recognition will ensure that more customers in the Philippines and internationally can access the same low fares offered by Tiger Airways when using the leading regional travel portal â€Å"tigerairways. com†. Together with Tiger Airways' strong marketing and distribution platform in Singapore and across major markets in the region, it will be a powerful combination that offers unbeatable value and fares to even more travellers. (http://www. tigerairways. com/news/OA_20110224_Tiger_Airways_Plans_To_Purchase_Major_Stake_in_SEAir. df) †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"Our choice of Clark underlines the airline’s commitment to developing transportation and tourism hubs outside Manila. This is part of our plan to contribute to the development of the country as a whole. AirAsia, Inc. is excited to start contributing to the economy of Clark and the rest of the country by boosting tourism and offering job opportunities to Filipinos,† said Marianne B. Hontiveros, chief executive of AirAsia, Inc. † †¢Ã¢â‚¬Å"We plan to make Clark the hub for flights to popular destinations including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Korea and Japan.Travel will become much easier and more affordable for tourists and overseas Filipino workers,† Hontiveros added. Hontiveros, Antonio O. Cojuangco Jr. and Michael L. Romero own 60% of AirAsia, Inc. in equal partnership. The remaining 40% is owned by AirAsia Berhad. 3. Relevance of the Philippine population in the regional LCC’s interest of operation According to the Pacific Asia Travel Association, as of 2011, there are 114 million online visitors who check out the internet for Airlines which are aged 15 and above and who have internet access in schools, works, homes, etc.In the Philippines, 11% of the total population has access to the internet and check out these sites for low-cost airfares. This study shows that the higher the population is the more online hits and the more famous the air carrier gets when it comes to low-cost fares. AirAsia has topped the list of most-visited websites with 3,380,000 visits and second is, Tiger Airways which increased 226% from 554,000 to 1,805,000. Low-cost airlines in Asia Pacific have already seen substantial growth, even just in the past year.With many of these carriers adopting highly web-centric models, it is significant that they attract more than their fair share of the young Internet users in the region. For these young travellers, low-cost airlines may be the first time that they have to book and buy their own travel, providing for many the portal into continued use of the web as an e-commerce channel. Signifi cant upside in the market remains as Internet penetration increases in the region, and people who could not afford to travel before can now take cheaper flights.The younger generation as well as the continued improvements in site usability and security will also begin to influence older Internet users to adopt the web as a channel for researching and booking travel. â€Å"PATA sees low-cost carriers as an increasingly important part of the travel ecosystem in Asia Pacific and this study has proven that,† remarks John Koldowski, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Head, Office of Strategy Management, PATA. â€Å"As consumers across demographic segments continue to turn to the web for their travel needs, it

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

What Is Civil Religion and How Does It Affect Christians

Abstract: What is civil religion and how does it affect Christians? That is the question that this paper will examine. This paper identifies what civil religion is and how it has evolved over the years. In the Literature Review, this paper examines and summarizes the different sources’ opinions and definitions of civil religion. It also discusses how politicians do not actually use the term â€Å"civil religion,† but imply it in their speeches. This paper discusses the themes of civil religion and how various authors predict that this may become a universalized religion. Then it ill discuss all four authors’ different conclusions on civil religion and how they think that civil religion will affect America and religion. The paper concludes by looking into the future and explaining how civil religion does and might affect Christians. Introduction: Robert Bellah defines civil religion as â€Å"the public religious dimension that plays a crucial role in the developm ent of American institutions that is expressed in a set of beliefs, symbols, and rituals†(228). The term â€Å"civil religion† was first coined in the 8th chapter of Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s book The Social Contract (1762).For Rousseau, civil religion was simply a form of social cement, providing the state with sacred authority to help unify itself. Rousseau’s simple outline of the principles of civil religion is: (1) Deity, (2) life to come, (3) the reward of virtue and the punishment of vice, and (4) the exclusion of religious intolerance (252). Rousseau believed that this group of religious beliefs is universal and that the government has a right to sustain it. He also said that individuals’ religious opinions are outside the bounds of the government (252-253). History has made many different references to forms of civil religion, ut the main study done by Robert Bellah and Martin Marty took place in the 1960s and 1970s. They studied civil religio n as a cultural phenomenon in an attempt to identify the principles of civil religion. In the United States, civil religion is commonly referred to as â€Å"Judeo-Christian tradition,† intended to include several monotheisms that are practiced in the United States (Wikipedia). While looking into civil religion, we will see different scholarly arguments and the affect it may have on Christianity.Summaries: In researching civil religion, I found many books and essays that give definitions and iews on civil religion. Robert Bellah is the main voice of this movement and has written many articles on this topic. In the article â€Å"Civil Religion in America† by Robert Bellah, civil religion is defined as â€Å"the public religious dimension that plays a crucial role in the development of American institutions that is expressed in a set of beliefs, symbols, and rituals†(228). Bellah claims that civil religion has its own seriousness and integrity and that it requires the same care in understanding as any other religion does (225). In his article, Bellah tells us where the idea of ivil religion comes from. He claims that the Declaration of Independence has four references to God, and that the founding fathers’ words and acts are what shaped the form and tone of civil religion today (231-232). He continues with the description of civil religion today. Bellah argues that civil religion at its best is a genuine apprehension of universal and transcendent religious reality as seen through the experience of the American people (238).He predicts that American civil religion may become a part of a new civil religion of the world. The difference eing that instead of it being drawn from Biblical traditions, it would be drawn from religious, non-biblical traditions (245). Later Bellah wrote â€Å"American Civil Religion in the 1970s† in response to the criticism he had received from his previous article â€Å"Civil Religion in America. † He begins with claiming the rights to the term â€Å"civil religion†. He claims that although there are many references to â€Å"civil religion† in previous years, he is the one who coined the term (255). There is some disagreement on this claim. Some agree with Bellah, but others argue that Jean-Jacques Rousseau coined the erm in his book The Social Contract. Although Rousseau might have coined the term, Bellah’s and his definitions of civil religion have some differences. While Rouseau saw it as a form of social cement that provided the state with sacred authority to help unify itself, Bellah views it as a public religious element that is vital to the maturation of American institutions. Rousseaus’s definition is simpler, because the year in which he defined civil religion, allowed a simpler definition. Bellah says that the distinction between civil religion and public theology is a major ontribution to the discussion of civil religion (258). Bellah f urther claims that a variety of public theologies is a guarantee to the honesty of civil religion (259). He suggests that American civil religion is a current reality and one that we will probably grapple with in the future (264). Bellah does not think that American civil religion is dying, but it is rather pointing to the fact that some linkage between religion, morality, and politics seems to exist (270). He closes by stating that â€Å"the crisis in the civil religion is deepening even more rapidly than I had expected† (272).In â€Å"Civil Religion and America’s Inclusive Faith,† Barry Hankins seeks to give us a better understanding of what civil religion is, its evolution into what it is today, and its role in politics. Hankins claims that most American presidents â€Å"have integrated religion into their political speeches† and that scholars have labeled this integration â€Å"civil religion. † He defines civil religion as the blending of reli gion and patriotism to the point that it is impossible to separate them from another. Hankins says that this occurs when either politicians discuss eligion or when pastors discuss political or national affairs. He continues with how in a country like the United States, civil religion can potentially fail if it excludes too many people; therefore, it needs to be an inclusive faith. Hankins claims that in the evolution of American civil religion, it has employed five themes consistently: the first theme is the â€Å"chosen nation theme†, second is â€Å"civic millennialism†, third is the theme that there must be â€Å"a form of religious consensus or common thread that binds people together religiously†, fourth theme is a â€Å"fusion of iblical beliefs with a deistic notion of God that is very general†, and fifth is the theme of â€Å"historical authentication. †Hankins continues with the discussion on how different presidents have employed civil re ligion and its themes throughout the years. He ends with the claim that the form of civil religion that best fits the description in his essay is a priestly or pastoral civil religion (Hankins). Hankins and Bellah discuss the different presidents who have mentioned civil religion in passing. Though the presidents may not have used the term â€Å"civil religion,† these writers ssert that it was implied. They use quotes from these presidents for the benefit of their own argument. Those presidents are John F. Kennedy, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, George W. Bush, and Ronald Reagan. Bellah and Hankins claim that because of their attempt to integrate politics and religion, and their vague references to God, these men unconsciously advocated civil religion (Hankins). The interesting thing about Hankins is that he does not limit civil religion to politicians, but rather includes pastors in his discussion as well.Hankins tells us that th e definition of the integration of civil religion is when either politicians mention religion or when pastors mention political or national affairs (Hankins). The Pew Forum panel discussed the topic of â€Å"God Bless America: Reflections on Civil Religion after September 11. † There are seven participants in this discussion panel, who are: Peter Berkowitz, Derek Davis, Amber Khan, Richard John Neuhaus, Clarence Newsome, Manjit Singh, and Melissa Rogers. As the moderator of the panel, Melissa Rogers begins by giving us a brief overview of the term â€Å"civil religion. She says that most people identify the term â€Å"civil religion† with the work of Robert Bellah, who says that civil religion in America is an understanding of the American experience in light of ultimate or universal reality. The panel continues with the different participants’ views and thoughts on civil religion. Civil religion is described as a confused subject, with the confusion starting a t the very term itself and that, for the most part, it is all about meaning. The panel continues on to claim that civil religion becomes extremely broad and very generic in its expression.At the end of the discussion, the panel claimed that with civil religion â€Å"we are making a distinction between discovery of certain political values and systems as distinct from the moral justification (Pew Forum Panel). One may agree with this statement, while others may not. Those who don’t agree may argue that while there needs to be a separation between â€Å"church and state†, there also needs to be a connection. If we did not have a form of connection between the political and religious realm, we would not have the religious freedom that we enjoy today; because if the politicians did not elieve in God, they would not care if we had or did not have religious freedoms. In â€Å"Bellah’s Civil Religion,† Robert Stauffer begins by giving us a summary of Robert Bel lah’s essay â€Å"Civil religion in America†. Then Stauffer proceeds to discuss some of the problems that he sees in Bellah’s work. Stauffer does not cover Bellah’s historical rendition, but rather assumes that American historians will deal with it and leaves the task to them (392). He claims that Bellah’s work is styled in a Durkheimian perspective. Stauffer is also concerned with Bellah’s verdict of our current American condition.He says that Bellah moves too fast from the judgment of corporate hegemony, worry over the cult of success, and the disregard for those who are reduced to penury, to the presumption that America is portrayed by a widespread despair and sense of direction. Stauffer concludes by claiming that Bellah’s evolving opinions about civil religion serve as an inspiration to scholars of religion and society (393). Stauffer also states that while he is grateful to Bellah for his contribution in this area, he is worried that Bellah’s growing stature might prevent us from questioning and criticizing his assumptions, claims, and hopes 394). Literature Review: As civil religion has evolved over the years, there are different trends and themes in its patterns. We read Hankins’ claim that civil religion has employed five themes consistently through the years, and that he is worried that civil religion could potentially fail. He claims that this will happen if American civil religion excludes too many people. Hankins says that civil religion needs to be an all inclusive faith. In Bellah’s first article on this topic, he predicts American civil religion may become a part of a new civil religion of the world. Then a couple of ears later, Bellah wrote another article entitled â€Å"American Civil Religion in the 1970s. † In this article, he suggests that American civil religion is a current reality and one that we will continue to deal with in the future.Then Bellah decides that there is some linkage between religion, morality, and politics that exist and are needed. At this point, Stauffer steps into the scene. He finds irony in the fact that much of the criticism of civil religion, implicitly of Bellah’s work, has centered on the success of maintaining commitment to the social order, the success of utilitarian ulture in the United States, and the divisiveness that comes from the imposing new, holistic systems of belief. Stauffer argues that in a society with revolutionary origins, this problem of civil meaning will be both primary and repetitive. The Pew Forum panel concludes their discussion by stating that civil religion is a confused subject – the confusion starting at the very term itself – and by claiming that it becomes extremely broad and generic in its expression.Hankins claims that civil religion can come in the form of priestly or pastoral religion, because oliticians have used it to soothe and comfort American people in ti mes of distress. Bellah concludes both of his articles by mentioning what he calls the â€Å"third crisis†. The â€Å"third crisis† is the attainment of some kind of viable coherent world order that would ensue from the universalizing of civil religion. Looking towards the future of civil religion, we ask, â€Å"what does civil religion mean for Christians and how does it affect us? † Civil religion acknowledges that there is a God, but does not make any mention to Heaven. With civil religion, we realize that there is a God and that any different beliefs, symbols, and rituals go with each religion. But that is as far as it goes.There is no faith or spiritual things. Faith requires a belief in God and in Heaven. It requires us to put our trust fully in Christ and go beyond the term â€Å"religion† to a relationship with Him. The Bible says in Hebrews 11:6, â€Å"But without faith it is impossible to please him; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. † Faith is believing. Civil religion is not believing, but rather is admitting that there is a â€Å"higher power† ver us. While we need a form of civil religion to allow us to mingle with people of different religious beliefs, as Christians we need to be wary of civil religion. We need to be vigilant in our endeavors to not allow civil religion to become the â€Å"main stream† of religious beliefs.If it become the â€Å"main stream†, it will become the unified religion of the world and faith in Christ will be lost. Civil religion is unsustainable because it is trying to be pluralistic. This pluralism seeks to unify all religions (muslim, hindu, catholic, protestant, baptist, mormon, etc) into one, ut this is not possible without the different religions giving up their differences. In giving up these differences in the various religions, we would give up our faith in God, our belief in Heav en, and in everything that distinguishes us from other religions. This would be a negative affect on Christians, because we are to be the â€Å"light of the world† and the â€Å"salt of the earth† as God calls us to be. If we give these up for civil religion, we will no longer be what God has told us to be. Yes, we need to have some religious understandings amongst all religions, but we need to be cautious as Christians to not lose our faith in Christ.Future Directions: In the future, I believe that civil religion is going to begin posing major problems for Christians. As of now, not many Evangelicals have said anything on the topic of civil religion beyond identifying it, but soon they are going to need to. Beliefs and faith are beginning to be pushed out of the picture and the more universal civil religion is stepping in. We can see it happening throughout the country as more laws are being instituted that reduce our religious freedoms. Though the term â€Å"civil r eligion† is not usually used by lawmakers and the government, it is implied and is a danger to Christians.I believe that within a few years, civil religion is going to become the norm and we are going to lose our religious freedoms as a push to a universalized religion is made. I also believe that we are going see more articles on this topic, and that Evangelicals are going to become involved in trying to stop this â€Å"third crisis† in America. Works Cited Bellah, Robert. â€Å"Civil Religion in America. † D? dalus, Journal of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 96. 1 (1967): 1-21. Print. Berkowitz, Peter, et al. â€Å"God Bless America: Reflections on Civil Religion after September 11. † The Pew Forum .Washington, DC. 6 Feb. 2002. The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Web. 15 Apr. 2012. . â€Å"Civil Religion. † Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. , n. d. Web. 20 Feb. 2003. . Hankins, Barry. â€Å"Civil Religion and America’s I nclusive Faith. † Liberty Magazine Jan. 2004: n. pag. Liberty Magazine. Web. 15 Apr. 2012. . Rousseau, Jean Jacques. The Social Contract: And, the First and Second Discourses. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2002. Print. Stauffer, Robert E. â€Å"Bellah’s Civil Religion. † Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 14. 4 (1975): 390-395. JSTOR. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

US Trade Deficit essays

US Trade Deficit essays The U.S. trade deficit is the result of a net inflow of capital to the United States from the rest of the world. They have become a net importer of capital because Americans do not save enough to finance all the available investment opportunities in their economy. This inflow of capital from abroad allows the US to pay for imports over and above what they export. The US has been holding a trade surplus since the World War II, a war that harmed much of the most significant international competition for the US industry. Therefore before 1970, the US industry had much to gain from free trade. Nevertheless after 1970, the trade surplus turned into trade deficits, which increased considerably throughout the 80s and the 90s. During the 80s the percentage of GDP accounted by gross saving fell considerably, widening the gap between supply of saving and the demand for domestic investment. Throughout the early 1990s the trade deficit shrank as the economy growth slowed down but increased after the current expansion began in 1992 as the demand for private investment grew. In 1999, the U.S. trade deficit reached a record level. It has been increasing as a share of the economy's total output. The current account rose from 1.4 percent of GDP in 1990 to 3.7 percent in 1999. During 2003 the US registered a trade deficit record of $489.4 billion. The annual trade deficit, reported by the Commerce Department, was 17.1% larger than the previous record shortfall of $418 billion posted in 2002. However US exports made gains in 2002 totalling $1 trillion and a 4.6 %increase from 2002. Declining share of saving. This decline led to a shortage of funds for domestic investment, which caused real interest rates to rise higher, making the US an attractive target for investment. These large net capital inflows have been keeping the dollar strong, ...

Monday, October 21, 2019

organzation behavior Essay Example

organzation behavior Essay Example organzation behavior Essay organzation behavior Essay Organization behavior Name: Institution: Lecturer: Course: Date: Organization behavior Case 1 Some of the possible reasons for absenteeism in an insurance company are associated with internal and external factors. From the MAR’S model, four key factors determine the individual behaviors in a company. First, motivation determines the performance of workers. Thus, lack of motivation could have been one of the reasons for absenteeism. Another factor that negatively affects the company is ability. Ability for analyzing data is vital; thus, poor ability might affect the individual behaviors and performance. Factors such as role perception and situational factors can be the reasons for absenteeism. Therefore, poor communication within the company can discourage employees thus making many of them have poor role perception. Stress and lack of job satisfaction can be challenging to employees thus contributing to their absenteeism. This might be reduced through creating conducive working environment, which is stress free. Moreover, good communication, motivation of workers and g ood role model will reduce absenteeism. Case study 2.1 The captain is trying to displays the problems he is experiencing. Captain beliefs the cause of the problem was through hiring inexperienced people who do not have role perception or competence. Using MARS model, the possible causes of unacceptable behavior are varied. First, hiring of inexperienced young people who are not exposed to work before. This directly affected the performance level because of poor paperwork that was done. Secondly, insufficient training programs thus poor performance. The problem of hating paperwork could have not risen if training programs were carried out. This could enable the officers have better skills for the job. Thirdly, poor motivation that led to poor performance in paperwork. Captain did not motivate officers thus they became unaware of organizational goals. Lastly, poor role perception made the officers dislike paperwork. This is because there was no clear role perception and acknowledgment of the paperwork description. Moreover, they were not aware that the organization would suffer in case they could not perform paperwork. Lastly, the officers were hired to perform jobs, which are not matching with their job requirements. This contributed to poor performance in paperwork thus putting the company at risk. The captain has not identified all the possible solutions to the problems. This is because there are some problems a part from lack of motivation, determination and interests of officers towards the written crime description. There are some factors that captain did not mention thus, needs to evaluate and make adjustments for better organizational performance. First, evaluating the stressing environment and make sure that the working environment is stress free. Training workers is vital because it will enable them to have abilities to perform better paperwork. Motivation alone cannot be successful if workers do not posses the required abilities for a specific position. Comprehensive job descriptions can be done indicating clear expectations. This will aid the employees in understanding the role perception thus producing better results in paperwork. Furthermore, the captain should act a role model to employees. This is vital because he will make employees understand the ways through wh ich employees are supposed to play a part in the company. Additionally, captain can analyze the situation, redesign job, encourage competence and ensure that the working environment is conducive. He will communicate well in order to eliminate the problems that he is undergoing in the company. Therefore, by adopting the MARS model, the captain will enable employees to discover the driving force behind their action thus improving in paperwork.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Generating Unique Random Numbers Using Java

Generating Unique Random Numbers Using Java When you generate random numbers its often the case that each generated number number must be unique. A good example is picking lottery numbers. Each number picked randomly from a range (e.g., 1 to 40) must be unique, otherwise, the lottery draw would be invalid. Using a Collection The easiest way to pick unique random numbers is to put the range of numbers into a collection called an ArrayList. If youve not come across an ArrayList before, its a way of storing a set of elements that dont have a fixed number. The elements are objects that can be added to or removed from the list. For example, lets make the lottery number picker. It needs to pick unique numbers from a range of 1 to 40. First, put the numbers into an ArrayList using the add() method. It takes the object to be added as a parameter: import java.util.ArrayList;public class Lottery { public static void main(String[] args) { //define ArrayList to hold Integer objects ArrayList numbers new ArrayList(); for(int i 0; i 40; i) { numbers.add(i1); } System.out.println(numbers); }} Note that we are using the Integer wrapper class for the element type so that the ArrayList contains objects and not primitive data types. The output shows the range of numbers from 1 to 40 in order: [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40] Using the Collections Class A utility class called Collections offers different actions that can be performed on a collection like an ArrayList (e.g., search the elements, find the maximum or minimum element, reverse the order of elements, and so on). One of the actions it can perform is to shuffle the elements. The shuffle will randomly move each element to a different position in the list. It does this by using a Random object. This means its a deterministic randomness, but it will do in most situations. To shuffle the ArrayList, add the Collections import to the top of the program and then use the Shuffle static method. It takes the ArrayList to be shuffled as a parameter: import java.util.Collections;import java.util.ArrayList;public class Lottery {public static void main(String[] args) {//define ArrayList to hold Integer objectsArrayList numbers new ArrayList();for(int i 0; i 40; i){numbers.add(i1);}Collections.shuffle(numbers);System.out.println(numbers);}} Now the output will show the elements in the ArrayList in a random order: [24, 30, 20, 15, 25, 1, 8, 7, 37, 16, 21, 2, 12, 22, 34, 33, 14, 38, 39, 18, 36, 28, 17, 4, 32, 13, 40, 35, 6, 5, 11, 31, 26, 27, 23, 29, 19, 10, 3, 9] Picking the Unique Numbers To pick the unique random numbers simply read the ArrayList elements one by one by using the get() method. It takes the position of the element in the ArrayList as a parameter. For example, if the lottery program needs to pick six numbers from the range of 1 to 40: import java.util.Collections;import java.util.ArrayList;public class Lottery {public static void main(String[] args) {//define ArrayList to hold Integer objectsArrayList numbers new ArrayList();for(int i 0; i 40; i){numbers.add(i1);}Collections.shuffle(numbers);System.out.print(This weeks lottery numbers are: );for(int j 0; j 6; j){System.out.print(numbers.get(j) );}}} The output being: This weeks lottery numbers are: 6 38 7 36 1 18

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Energy as a Parameter in Politcs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Energy as a Parameter in Politcs - Essay Example It is true that Asia is the new ground zero for growth of energy consumption.it is also true that Asia will be responsible for 85% of the energy consumption growth on the planet in the next 20 years. This has seen Russia try to form ties with the east to establish a proper market for its hydrocarbon exports . The obvious deduction from this would be that Russia would wield more geopolitical power in the next few decades, which is not likely to be the case . The current technological advancements have enabled rapid expansion of the shale gas industry in the US. In a decade, the industry has grown dramatically with the product now in abundant supply,seeing drastic reduction in prices. The policy debate has snow shifted to how much of the nation’s energy resource should be exported.The strengthening of the US’ geopolitical strength due to the shift in paradigms of the global energy market has greatly hindered China’s attempt to be the global leader. The best way to counter this influence would be to weaken the alliances that the US has with states in the region. The result has been the heightening of maritime tensions in the region with the East China Sea conflict providing a good illustration . Both China and japan lay claim to a number of geographical features found in the sea. The features that comprise of a few islands and territorial waters could provide energy reserves and fishing grounds . However, this is not the only reason behind the conflict.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Post 9 11 America Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Post 9 11 America - Research Paper Example This could be divided into, A. Suspicion Prior to the terrorist attack, the interaction between various persons in the United States of America was smooth. This was very good at societal and national level. After the attack, a different perspective on things viewed innocently changed. The citizens were unaware of when the next attack could be conducted. As a result, they became more suspicious in everything they undertook (Tweedie 1). For the people with Arabic origin, they were perceived to be sympathizers of terrorism and thus were somehow alienated from the society. A good example is the removal of six Muslim imams from the plane due to them raising suspicion to other passages and the airline administration. B. Discrimination This followed from the risen suspicion of the American citizens towards people who were Arab, Muslim, Sikh, and south Asian (Gohil and Sidhu 91). This was mainly because they were either perceived to be directly or indirectly involved in the attacks. In some cases, vandalism was conducted. In the call for the construction of a mosque in USA, the citizens demonstrated in a bid to obstruct the implementation of the idea. This clearly indicated that people of Muslim and Arab origin were not accepted in USA. As time has been passing on, various transformations have been achieved in which the interaction has been building up. Since not all Arabs and Muslim are involved in terrorist attacks, various persons processing the same faith have declared their intentions in assisting in identifying people linked to terrorism (Smith 1). C. Department of Homeland Security The successful conduction of the terrorist attack on 9/11 indicated the limitation in capacity of the American security forces at the time. As a result, it was necessary to form a body that would entirely be mandated in looking into potential threats in USA and taking precaution in order to ensure that similar attacks were not conducted. This was implemented by the formation of depart ment of homeland security. It has since then been very useful even in cases of natural disasters. Its council conducts their control from the white house. Due to its importance in national security, it has continuously been transformed as the technology advances and currently it forms part of the top three cabinet departments in the US federal government. Thus despite the attack bringing pain and suffering, other merits such as formation of department of homeland security were reaped. D. Politics The attack led to numerous transformations in the US politics. At the time, both parties combined their effort and brought forth the necessity of implementation of foreign policies that clearly addressed the issue. A good example is the Patriot Act passed by the congress and signed by the president at the time, George W. Bush. The act reduced restriction initially imposed to the security officers. As a result, intensive search was conducted to persons at various locations in a bid to identi fy and prevent terrorist attacks (Drash 1). In addition, the officers were capable of looking into the personal details such as communication and finance. The secretary of treasury’s authority was empowered to regulate financial transactions especially those involving foreigners. After the attack, terrorist was modified to take into account domestic terrorism and many immigrants suspected

Objectives of Accounting Information System, Internal and External Essay

Objectives of Accounting Information System, Internal and External Transactions, Peachtree Exercise - Essay Example In the same manner, changes and improvement in accounting too, are continually being made, in the process of business information. "A systematic record of the daily (and hourly) events of a business leading to the presentation of a complete financial picture is known as accounting, in its elementary stage, as BOOK KEEPING." ----- M.C. Shukla. "Book-Keeping is the science of recording transactions in money or money's worth in such a manner that at any subsequent date, the nature and effect of each transaction, and the combined effect of all the transactions may be clearly understood, so that the accounts prepared at any time from the records thus kept, may show the owner of the books his true financial position"----- L.C. Cropper. Those who invest their capital and devote their efforts in business expect that they will receive a return in the form of profit. Moreover, they employ managers in the business it is the duty of the managers to maximize profit and to minimize losses. In order to maximize profits and to minimize losses there must be proper record of all events and transactions of the business so that at the end of a period, the owner of the business can have knowledge about:- Each and every transaction affects the basic of accounting equation. ... 2. To keep an eye on each and every tangible and intangible asset. 3. To ascertain the working results from the written records of transactions, i.e., whether profit or loss has incurred after a prescribed reasonable period. 4. To ascertain the financial position of the business on the last date or at the end of a period in terms of assets and liabilities. 5. The help and guide the management of the business enterprises to make decisions from the historical data of accounting of the past. 6. To help and guide the management of the business to determine their policies for the current period and for future, in short and long terms. NEED OF BUSINESS RECORDS Those who invest their capital and devote their efforts in business expect that they will receive a return in the form of profit. Moreover, they employ managers in the business it is the duty of the managers to maximize profit and to minimize losses. In order to maximize profits and to minimize losses there must be proper record of all events and transactions of the business so that at the end of a period, the owner of the business can have knowledge about:- 1. The gross profits on purchases and sales of merchandise. 2. The net profit or loss after checking of all paid or accrued expenses, usage of different assets. 3. The cost of assets in detail and total of all assets. 4. The liability of business including accrued. 5. The amount of investment at the end of the period. In a nut-shell the owner can see the report of his business after a certain period at a glance and can judge progress of his business. WHAT IS TRANSACTION Any exchange of values is called "transaction" such as a) Purchase of Merchandise, Land, Building, and Furniture on cash. b) Purchase of Merchandise, Plant, Furniture

Personal testimony Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Personal testimony - Term Paper Example I am now saved through faith. And this faith I have according to Ephesians 2:8, did not even come from me, it came from God. In retrospect, everything about my salvation, my decision to receive Jesus in my heart, my humility to repent and all that led me to this salvation I now enjoy, all came from God as a gift so I have nothing to boast about. Works are nothing when we do not have Jesus. They do not bring us to heaven as most people think it is the way things work so that they spend much money in doing good things for others. Looking at such a perspective, people who do so are like buying their own salvation, which of course is a futile endeavor. Works matter when Jesus is in a person’s life because works are the manifestations of the fruit of the Spirit of God in man, showing the love of God to all men who are the very reason why Jesus came to this earth. Salvation is a gift, however, a Christian also has the responsibility of working out his salvation as Paul encouraged hi s disciples in Philippi (Philippians 2:12). As a soldier enlists in the Army, he has a responsibility to carry out his duties to be worthy of his profession. No one enlists in the Army and runs away and does whatever he likes to do, otherwise he is not a true soldier. The same is true in Christianity, once a person receives Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, a contract is made which is sort of a marriage contract, sealed by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13). Enlisting in the Christian Army, one expects to be in the battlefield where Satan is the enemy (Matthew 13:39, Luke 10:19, Acts 13:10). The enemy’s job is to steal, kill and to destroy (John 10:10) thus, it is encouraged of the Christian to exercise his faith, waging war against evil and not giving in to it. When temptations come our way, Satan is there to steal our peace, destroy our relationship with God and kill our love to the Lord. The Christian fights by overcoming temptations, silencing the evil whispers of Satan and standing by the Word of God. My Testimony ‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢, this very popular verse found in the book of John 3:16 seemed to me like just another literary piece of work that Sunday school teachers teach to children to augment one’s appreciation to literature. Growing up in a Christian family; going to church, opening the Bible, singing in the choir and joining other church activities was not at all different to me than what we do in school. They all seemed to me a part of living, a responsibility that I needed to do without truly understanding. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, another well known verse on love, helped me understand the love of God. Of course it is easy to understand that when I think of God’s love because He is God, I know He is able to be so patient, kind, not keep records of wrongs, to always protect, always hope, always persevere and never fail. It is so easy to say ‘I love you’ to God because everyone in church says so and soon it becomes a fixture, one says the words without even thinking about it. Yet when it comes to my self, I find it so disappointing for me to be unable to love others as I should. 1 John 4:20 slapped me awake to the profound truth that I was a liar, saying I love God when in fact I do not love my fellow men according to the Bible’s definition of love. Getting into a relationship with God, I am able to relate with how I am supposed to live a Christian life through the life of Hosea. Reading the prophet’

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Environmental focus - The Rights of Nature Latin America Essay

Environmental focus - The Rights of Nature Latin America - Essay Example Sumak Kawsay is a Quechua language, which is being spoken by the South American people. Sumak Kawsay is a Latin term, wherein Sumak means good and Kawsay means living, hence together the word means good living. Environmental right concept has been introduced in the Bolivian Constitution along with the Sumak Kawsay conception with minor variation. However, the same constitution confers the right to the people to exploit the nature. Therefore, there lays tension amid the welfare affairs of state and the right of nature1. According to Eckersley, an Australian researcher, deciphered that environmental catastrophe is occurring in every count. In his research, he pointed out the conglomeration of political, environmental and ecological thoughts that bridge the gap persists amongst these and also outlines the green political viewpoint. He also pointed out that environmental calamity is a threat to human life, which is not regarded as a scientific trouble, but involves literary and trait structure. He further emphasised the need for trans-evaluation and undergoing through new eco-centrically based thoughts and assessment2. The Western world witnessed the need to protect the environment from varied catastrophes. Pesticides, nuclear control plants, noxious squander dumps and large size industrial contamination among others contribute into catastrophic destruction of the nature. In the present scenario, political and environmental theory are blended together to develop environment based consciousness amid the people. The environment concept is the basis of the current legislation made by distinct nations while legislating in any particular affair3. With this concern, the essay intends to make an environmental focus on the rights of the nature with special attention to Bolivia. Various significant aspects including depicting about the representativeness of the nature, factors promoted the constitutional change to include the rights of nature in

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

MKT DB2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

MKT DB2 - Essay Example This category is aligned with my interest since I am a very family oriented person that values intimacy, consensus, and stability over risk. The VALS analysis can help companies determine how consumers will react to different marketing and advertising campaigns. For instance achievers like prestige products. Auto companies that manufacture luxury cars such as BMW should target achievers as part of their marketing campaign. Achievers are also hard workers that are very attached to their work. Due to their rush lifestyle achievers are the type of people that like products and services that save them time. An example of a service that achievers will use more often than other types is the self-service window at fast food restaurants. In their work setting achievers seek recognition. The use of recognition at work serves as a basis to reward employees’ efforts (About, 2012). Overall the use of the VALS system can serve as a great tool for marketers to learn more about the desires of people which can be very beneficial in the product design process. About.com (2012). Employee Motivation, Morale, Recognition, Rewards, Retention. Retrieved August 27, 2012 from

Environmental focus - The Rights of Nature Latin America Essay

Environmental focus - The Rights of Nature Latin America - Essay Example Sumak Kawsay is a Quechua language, which is being spoken by the South American people. Sumak Kawsay is a Latin term, wherein Sumak means good and Kawsay means living, hence together the word means good living. Environmental right concept has been introduced in the Bolivian Constitution along with the Sumak Kawsay conception with minor variation. However, the same constitution confers the right to the people to exploit the nature. Therefore, there lays tension amid the welfare affairs of state and the right of nature1. According to Eckersley, an Australian researcher, deciphered that environmental catastrophe is occurring in every count. In his research, he pointed out the conglomeration of political, environmental and ecological thoughts that bridge the gap persists amongst these and also outlines the green political viewpoint. He also pointed out that environmental calamity is a threat to human life, which is not regarded as a scientific trouble, but involves literary and trait structure. He further emphasised the need for trans-evaluation and undergoing through new eco-centrically based thoughts and assessment2. The Western world witnessed the need to protect the environment from varied catastrophes. Pesticides, nuclear control plants, noxious squander dumps and large size industrial contamination among others contribute into catastrophic destruction of the nature. In the present scenario, political and environmental theory are blended together to develop environment based consciousness amid the people. The environment concept is the basis of the current legislation made by distinct nations while legislating in any particular affair3. With this concern, the essay intends to make an environmental focus on the rights of the nature with special attention to Bolivia. Various significant aspects including depicting about the representativeness of the nature, factors promoted the constitutional change to include the rights of nature in

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Capstone Project Essay Example for Free

Capstone Project Essay Introduction The use of network services is increasing the management amount of copper and fiber cabling. This results in an ever increasing workload that must be maintained or reconfigured; resulting in challenges to organizational profitability. One of the challenges that arises is how does an administrator maintain a complex work environment when increased profits, fewer capital and operating resources are limited. One might suggest growing a complex network infrastructure requires operation efficiency with a desire to manage and protect cables without interrupting the workflow for clients. However, given the challenges affecting wireless service providers; maintaining focus and quality are just the fundamentals. The administrator is limited to the organizations profitability and cost variance when determining the best approach. These factors play a role which will likely affect the infrastructure as a whole. It is interesting enough to point out that towards the perspective of a network administrator; an issue should remain dormant and should never happen when the proper implications are set in place. However, because we live in an intractable world the possibility for a scenario is plausible. Capstone Proposal Summary As a volunteer for a network security survey for Aon Corp; the following survey was designed to point out vulnerabilities within the organizational network servers specifically under the surety office location where class mates using workstations were experiencing frustrating issues pertaining to network instability. The survey was intended to identify on whether security implications were required so that an upgrade request may be delivered. A staff meeting was set in place where we  interviewed the client regarding their needs. It is always a good choice to understand the fundamental needs of the client prior to making any changes to the network. After spending several hours brainstorming the client’s demands a solution has been reached. The project setting has been laid out clearly. During my timeframe interviewing the client I have gained the necessary background knowledge to understand my client’s visions building a strong mutual connection. Understanding this connection has entitled me to diagnose the network accordingly. As a part of the survey Aon Corp has several requirements prior to jumping into the project. First it was mandatory to inspect the minimum system requirements of the client machines. In the past latency issues have derived primarily to out of date hardware or device drivers as opposed to a security breach. It is always a wise choice to update these configurations while running the appropriate operating system updates which may all be contributing factors. During the prerequisite stage of the survey the required information is gathered to develop an effective network survey which would alleviate resource constraint. Rational Systems Analysis It is always a wise choice to research similar case studies that may provide beneficial information relating to similar scenarios. I have done as such building my understanding of these scenarios which has a given me some background to my clients concerns. Several user friendly applications have offered me assistance analyzing security loop holes. They are the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (MBSA) and Windows Server Update Services (WSUS). With accordance to the Microsoft website; the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer is a user friendly tool emphasized for technicians with a focus on assisting medium sized businesses. The tool focuses on the security state of the network with accordance to Microsoft recommendations providing guidelines and support. The user may download Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (MBSA) from Microsoft.com as it is a well-known tool for all IT technicians. Once the tool has been successfully installed the administrator has the ability to scan multiple end users on the local network median. Upon completion of the scan the user is delivered a report highlighting potential threats along with missing updates. Some of these updates may include missing application patches, operations system  updates, and advised the user on whether a Windows firewall is running. MBSA has the ability to examine administrative accounts along with password policies. See Figure A for example. Figure A As technology advances, administrative technicians need to adjust to the challenges ahead. Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer is a great tool to maintain the integrity of your network infrastructure. Scott Lowe (2004), a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer, said the following regarding the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer: â€Å"Supporting a huge number of Microsoft applications, MBSA can serve you in two ways. First, it will help you keep your servers protected from problems; second, with powerful reporting capabilities, it can help you actually learn why you need to do the things that are suggested so you can make an educated decision as to whether something is an acceptable risk in your environment.† Project Goals and Objectives The objective towards the following project was to initiate a plan to upgrade Aon Corp network infrastructure alleviating latency issues better improving the efficiency and flow of data across the network median. A current unstable network prolonged business growth capacity making it difficult for end users to utilize resources effectively. Without the essential resources company growth was at a bottleneck. Breaking down the goals and objectives for the following project was essential in providing a remedy to the issue, they are as follows: Client must receive a current system image snapshot -Survey of a workstation must be documented -Survey of a server must be documented -Microsoft Baseline Security tool must be run saving each workstation along with the server A scheduled protocol plan must be provided articulating details for the client on overall performance and network stability. Client must be advised of a detailed schematic for preventative measures along with upkeep Client must be given an  instructional manual for managing updates related to the operating system and antivirus software Client must be given an estimate on productivity along with return of investment In order to present the deliverables to the client; a solid fundamental understanding of the clients requirements must be developed. Acquiring a background understanding is essential in order to understand the business process and what the client wants to achieve out of their network infrastructure. Without understanding the big picture the project would certainly fail. Pre-SurveyClientMeeting The goal and objective here was to initiate a meeting with the client to discuss the business orientation and the process relations to their workstations. The clients company being a training institution; certain software was required in order for the firm to achieve their business goals. The applications required minimum system specs in order to run efficiently. During the preliminary phase of the meeting the business model and goals were discussed. Operational hours were taken into consideration as a set schedule was established for performing the survey. As the meeting came to an end a survey schematic was brought to the client’s attention in order to calculate return on investment upon project completion (refer to Appendix 2). The success of the meeting was met and the first objective was complete. Upon the completion of the survey the client was provided with an executable plan laying out the details of the upgrade and preventative measures. However, the full execution will be help outside the Capstone; it will be the key highlight to the success of the business goals. Network Security Survey As a prerequisite to the survey several spreadsheets having been compiled for capturing images of data (refer to Appendix 3 along with Appendix 4). The first document entitles end user computers and second focuses on servers. As for the MBSA scans for each workstation; a thumb drive was used to save the results. Prior to beginning the survey an update was brought to my attention from the client that others may be working on these end-user machines as well. Because of my failure to follow through during the phone meeting advising of the time schedule, I needed to contact the  other administrators advising them of my presence. Fortunately, as I arrived at the designated project site there were many computers to survey. I began to survey the end-user machines not being surveyed. About 3 minutes elapsed for each workstation to survey; running Microsoft Baseline Security (MBSA) took about 11 minutes. Unfortunately, I have missed my goal of reaching the estimated number of computers being surveys as discussed in the preliminary meeting. The survey elapsed more time than I have predicted. On the other hand it was pleasant to know that the other administrators finished their portion of the project just in time before I got to them. Surveying the workstations went according to schedule, however, as I approached the servers several problems aroused. The list of passwords the client provided did not contain the correct characters as I attempted to log into the domain controller. The owner has left the building and was unable to achieve my goal with surveying the servers as planned thus leaving my network security survey incomplete. The following day the owner has been contacted and a scheduled return visit was planned. As the domain controller was surveyed; the security network part of the survey has been successfully completed. Despite the minor issues the survey went flawless; I would have followed through with the client more efficiently if the same scenario would have repeated itself. The desired goal has been achieved and a data image has been captured so the proposal upgrade can be finalized. Proposal Upgrade Preparation The upgrade proposal was designed to contain the following suggestions. Configuration of the Domain controller Configuration of the server Configuration of the workstation Suggestions for Malware/Antivirus Report for ROI Security guide for the end-user Timeline of Upgrade As assumptions defining the network configuration have been made. Unknowingly an assumption was made that the domain controller is established as the default gateway, DNS and DHCP server. I came to understand that their infrastructure was split into four subnets. ISA server was in between the  ISP acting as NAT, DNS, DHCP, and RRAS server. Logically understanding that their domain controller was their default gateway, DHCP, and DNS server; the services were contained on the internal network. Failing to understand the possibility of a network perimeter my assumptions were incorrect. Eventually I was able to complete each task item provided above; a presentation with the client would finalize this portion of the project. The task was completed, however, not within the desired timeframe. Presentation Proposal As the completion of the proposal has been achieved a client meeting has been scheduled. The agenda of the meeting is as follows: 1. Discussing survey results (network state) 2. Hardware discussion / software suggestions 3. Projected ROI and cost 4. Questions 5. Schedule implementation Despite the presentation lasting 2 hours it was a success. Proper planning along with a satisfying network survey were the predecessors leading to this success. The network survey went very smooth and efficient. The proposal was straight to the point and meaningful for the client. As the following goal completed and the deliverables presented to the client project completion has been achieved. Due to the clients satisfactions with the deliverables the project has moved forward to the next portion of the upgrade phase. Project Timeline The timeline of the project was compiled using a Gantt chart from the software Microsoft Office Project 2012. The project plan along with the details are listed in Figure B. As indicated in Figure B, the project time frame was expected to take 238 days.   Several areas took time constraint. First the network survey as previously indicated where I failed to follow through with the client after the preliminary phase of the meeting. This resulted in the client scheduling students on campus on the same timeframe as the survey. Fortunately, there  were enough end-user computers to perform the survey. In time the remainder of the students have left the building freeing up those workstations as well. Forgetting to get a confirmation of the amount of workstations at the preliminary meeting indivertibly resulted in my underestimation of the amount of time it would take to survey the total amount of workstations. The client password list for the domain controllers portrayed to be the only problem I have run into when performing the survey resulting in a setback. Because I have forgotten to request the following information from the client; the survey was setback from the estimated time for completion; resulting in a day setback. Compiling the proposal was another task that was miscalculated. Fortunately, I was able to finalize the project in one day thus keeping the project within the constraints of the timeline. Client satisfaction was the ultimate goal as they were very grateful. It is expected that situations as such will not always go accordingly to plan; however, without the clients support the project would not have gone as smooth. Planning a larger margin while taking a less aggressive attitude at the preliminary meeting would have avoided such issues. Project Development During the preliminary development of the following project, Aon Corps network infrastructure was heading in an unknown direction pertaining to its economic success. Instabilities in their security policy, workstations were exponentially getting slower each day. Students along with testers were losing hope in the integrity of the company. Their mindset was affecting performance along with business profit opportunities. The project I was assigned to revolve around building a business by updating their network infrastructure to a level of efficiency. The concentration of the project focused on performing an upgrade solution that would provide this efficiency to the client. Original snapshots of the network were based in the upgrade proposal plan which was used to optimize the network. The optimal goal of the project was to implement a network infrastructure that would be secure. Just like all problems issues aroused during the progression of the project. Students were scheduled to be in the building at the time of the survey; a work around was developed as I was able to hinder another classroom. Upon completion of the workstations I was able to come back to the student’s  classroom which was cleared. Rearranging the order of the computers that have been surveyed the issue was concealed. Another situation that derived during development happened when I discovered that the client has given me the incorrect domain controller password list which did not contain the server administrative passwords. The lack of the following information would have definitely resulted in the project failing. Rescheduling the visit with the owner has alleviated this scenario. Unfortunately, because of the rescheduling the timeline has been pushed back preventing me from completing the project within the completion period. Anticipating that the network domain controller would be a configured as a default gateway. Assumptions were proven wrong and the configuration process to longer than expected. Due to an ISA server on the network perimeter changes to the configurations proposal had to be made. Creating an ROI report was another unanticipated event that was requested upon the client. Determining the monetary cost was difficult when comparing the proposed and current network conditions. Consequently, changes had to be made to the customer question business survey to assist me in these calculations. Gracefully, the client was able to agree upon these terms. Actual and Potential Effects Majority of the following section will focus on potential effects due to the project being a proposal. The project effects can be conceived by indicating that the client had a clear perspective towards the network infrastructure and how in its previous state it has manipulated business continuity. The client experienced the previous state and was provided with a schematic to the current stable state. Empowering the client with the details providing them with a clear understanding influenced them to take action thus changing their network infrastructure to one that works efficiently. The potential positives to the following plan are as follows. Should the client comply with the proposal providing the solution to their network; they will be rewarded with a network that is optimally configured. This will result in network operating efficiency and business processes will maintain its integrity. Less classroom interruptions will arouse related to workstation issues. Students taking tests will be less frustrated due to server crashes along with workstations. Customer  confidence in Aon corp will increase. The potential of business growth will result from the following project. There will be an ease of urgency related to network related issues. The organization can now focus on its business model focusing on their clients. Conclusion The capstone portrayed to be exciting yet challenging providing to be rewarding as well. In terms of goals and objectives I believe that it was successful. Client satisfaction has been achieved as each goal and object has been delivered. The reason why it was so successful and effective is due to the methodical planning prior to the initiation of the project. The necessity of preparation along with the preliminary client meetings has given me the fundamental understand on how to start building the project. Building a plan has given me an effective tool to deliver the clients expectations. Attention to detail along with effective communication were advantage points that designed an effective proposal. The client was efficient in being proactive by understanding the problem at point and expressing their concerns. Together a proposed plan has been derived that would act as a roadmap to that optimal network infrastructure. Flexibility and client patience played an important role during the hiccup moments of the project. The ability to determine alternative routes in an event of hitting a wall is essential to the success of any project. As the project manager it was my pleasure to achieve the client’s deliverables along with the satisfaction that they truly deserve. References Keystone Strategy, Inc Study (2005). Why IT Matters in Midsized Firms. Retrieved January 31, 2007 from http://www.key inc.com/it_matters.shtml. Lowe, Scott (2004). Verify security settings on Windows XP using Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer 1.2. Retrieved June 23, 2007 from http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/5100-1035_11-5221961.html. Microsoft (2007). City of Stratford Brings Down the Curtain on its Legacy System with Server Upgrade. Retrieved June 23, 2007 from http://www.microsoft.com/canada/casestudies/cityofstratford.mspx. Microsoft (2007). Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer. Retrieved June 23, 2007 from http://www.microsoft.com/technet/Security/tools/mbsahome.mspx. Microsoft (2007). Windows Vista Capable and Premium Ready PCs. Retrieved January 31, 2007 from http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/buyorupgr ade/capable.mspx. Sherman, Erik (2007). Investing in IT for a Competitive Edge. Retrieved January 31, 2007, from http://www.microsoft.com/business/momentum/content/article.aspx?c Appendix 1: Capstone Competency Matrix The graduate responds appropriately to diversity issues in the workplace. Implements an intuitive understanding of cultural and religious backgrounds; open to opinions in an attempt to understand diverse perspectives within the organization. Upper Division Collegiate Level Reasoning and Problem Solving The graduate analyzes open-ended problems by learning about the problem and evaluating the accuracy and relevance of different Quality control is effective at determining common occurrences in issues; therefore, updating rules/protocols alleviate the issue at point. Upper Division Collegiate Level Reasoning and Problem Solving The graduate recognizes the value of critical thinking in identifying and understanding the underlying structures of disciplines and professions. Organizational issues are indifferent each day; critical thinking along with brainstorming are essential in order to research a resolution to problematic issues. Upper Division Collegiate Level Reasoning and Problem Solving The graduate demonstrates effective presentational communication strategies in a given context. Applies trial  and error to mimic the problem; then applies extensive research in reaching a solution to the issue. The research along with the problem is then logged as evidence for future claims. Language and Communication The graduate applies foundational elements of effective communication Communicates effectively in a stressful environment providing attention to detail. Language and Communication The graduate demonstrates effective presentational communication strategies in a given context. Evaluates graphical representation software to determine a flaw or an instability in performance/security of the organization. Security The graduate identifies and discusses basic concepts of security and security threats, and recommends security procedures. Implements a secure environment for each individual client PC; educating users on the importance of potential threats to network security. Security The graduate identifies security needs and recommends appropriate security practices for network infrastructure. Educates staff on the importance of implementing sufficient tools and policies in an attempt to protect the integrity of data crucial to the organization infrastructure.