Motivation and Organizational Culture Essay

A psychologically safe and healthy workplace is one that promotes the well-being of an individual. It is creating an environment that is enjoyable and respectful of all people, regardless of cultural or ethical differences. Japanese immigrant, Ayame Nakamura, is employed as a pharmaceutical project manager in California. The confrontational management style interferes with Ayame’s cultural background. Workplace motivation can affect areas such as productivity and influence organizational culture. Management Roles The main goal of management and workplace psychology is to create an environment that is conducive to allowing employees to perform at their highest potential. Management’s role in workplace psychology is a large component of overall satisfaction. Initially, there responsibility is to provide a workspace that is fair and diverse. This provides employees the opportunity to learn and grow within the company by giving them a chance for personal development. Psychologically, management should state clearly their expectations. Their role should be to support, promote flexibility, provide advancement opportunities, and offer praise when it’s due. Employees are more likely to put forth great effort with the knowledge that those efforts will be noticed and reviewed. The energy that management puts into their employees is paramount to creating growth both in the individual and the company. (Robbins, et al, 2011) Cultural Background and Feedback Language and actions are used to express ourselves or to get our ideas across to another. Verbal, nonverbal, and visual clues are all various methods using to establish, maintain, and modify relationships. Effective communication, regardless of culture, has the ability to help or harm any potential business relationship. Culture can be defined as the  characteristics of a particular group of people that may be defined by language, religion, social habits, or music. In the case of Ayame, a Japanese immigrant, her culture places a high emphasis on collectivism. Ayame’s culture places a high emphasis on giving the business aspect priority over placing emphasis on each individual in it. The pharmaceutical company she works for has a confrontational style that conflicts with her cultural background. Firm, consistent feedback that done in a gentler manner would encourage Ayame and keep her motivated and keep in line with her cultural beliefs. Ayame’s background encourages f ace to face communication that is a consensus of both herself and management. I would encourage the pharmaceutical company’s management team to review their communication strategies and have a meeting with Ayame to ensure that all parties are satisfied with the terms of employment. (Robbins, et al, 2011) Motivation Techniques Ayame’s motivation is lacking due to cultural issues in management’s confrontational management style. This confrontational style makes it difficult for her to receive and process feedback and is affecting her motivation. The pharmaceutical company needs to identify what motivates people and what does not. People tend to do their best work when they are in an environment in which they feel valued. Simple changes such as â€Å"thank you,† or â€Å"great job!,† can encourage an employee to go the extra mile. These simple changes could encourage Ayame and motivate her to put her best foot forward. According to Hackman and Olman (2011), â€Å"any job can be described in terms of the following five core job dimensions: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback. (pg 273). Ayame is likely motivated to do her job well, is able to complete the tasks, and can do so in an effective manner. She does, however, struggle in the final dimension. Management should support Ayame in the top three job dimensions. By guiding her through their expectations, they are giving Ayame a chance to show her skillset and they are supporting her in that position. Employees who are supported and feel valued are more productive. Areas such as job design, delegation of duties, and recognizing the manner in which Ayame processes and receives information are all methods of increasing her motivation. (Robbins, et al, 2011) The manner in which the world perceives  us and how we are perceived comes down to our actions. Motivation is the force that drives us to act, work harder, and that pushes us to succeed. There are several types of motivation with each type influencing how we respond in a different matter. Being mindful of each other cultural and ethical belief can affect the performance of all employees. Each person adds something to the melting pot that is the United States of America. In order to effectively motivate and go forward, each person needs to be mindful of the next. References Robbins, S., Decenzo, D., & Coulter, M. (2011) Fundamentals of management: Essential concepts and applications (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Prentice Hall. Sarafino, E.P. (2011). Health psychology: Biopsychosocial interactions (7th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: J John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Essential Journal One

This paper will also validate what I have learnt by providing examples of personal or professional experiences as it relates to essentials I and II. Lastly this paper will describe future learning needs necessary to achieve each essential. Annihilation of Learning The past 1 7 months at Nova Southeastern has molded me in understanding why a BBS degree was/is the standard for entry into the nursing practice.An associate degree in nursing (DAN) and diploma nurses came about due to the massive shortage that the nursing profession was facing. According to Alton (201 1) â€Å"one rational for the push for BBS nurses is because recent studies have indicated that there is decreased morbidity, mortality, and failure-to-rescue rates in hospitals that employ larger percentages of baccalaureate prepared nurse† (p. 257). Essential I Essential I talked about the liberal education for baccalaureate generalist nursing practice.According to the (American Association of College of Nursing CAN] , (2008) â€Å"nursing graduates with a liberal education exercises clinical judgment, understanding the reasoning behind policies and standards, and respect responsibility for continued development of self and the discipline of nursing† (p. 1 1). Obtaining my BBS has shaped the way I View patient care especially in terms of the many theory developed by nursing theorist.Evidence base practice has given me the insight into better and safer patient care while being able to teach others about what I've learnt. Essential II Essential II talks about the basic organizational and systems leadership for quality care and patient safety. Courses taken like leadership, budget and pathologically has equipped us to be better leaders, given us a greater understanding of disease processes, organizational skills needed to manage units, and lastly explore the many ways to improve quality of care and patient safety.The CAN (2008) states that a â€Å"baccalaureate nursing graduates are disting uished by their abilities to identify, assess, and evaluate practice in care delivery models that are based in contemporary nursing science and are feasible within current culture, economic, organizational, and political prospective† (p. 13). Validation of Learning As patient acuity increases along with technological advances in healthcare, we as nurses need to be more educated in order to provide the best care possible to our patients. It is a disservice to our patients for nurses to be comfortable with a two year degree without thought of advancement.Yes a nurse is a nurse, but being well rounded with the educational knowledge needed to better solve complex problems, provide better leadership qualities, and understand evidence base practice is all part of the critical liberal education a BBS degree provides. Essential Example One of the most influential class think was my budget class. The number en reason for this was due to the lack of knowledge about the topic. After comp leting the course it has help me to realize just how integral each and every one of us are to the budget process.Understanding that healthcare is a business and every item that is used has a cost associated with it gives us the nurse a better awareness. Essential II Example Being able to differentiate between a good leader and a good manager, and learning what it takes to be both are some Of the things I have taken from my adhering class. Throughout my BBS journey Vive learned the reason why core measures were being done on my previous unit for each Congestive earth failure (CHEF) and Myocardial Infarction (MI) admission.Evidence base practice has help me to bridge the gap between nurse patient ratios and medication errors which as a AND nurse could not be conceptualized. Future Learning Needs As navigate through my last 3 course to becoming a Bachelor prepared nurse, believe these courses will provide me with the skills needed to easily adapt to any future learning need that will a rise. Being a nurse requires a commitment to lifelong learning. Most if not all of the potential learning outcomes outlined in essential I and II have been reach or is in the process of Ewing reached, from each class I have taken at Nova Southeastern.Conclusion In the ever-changing world of healthcare, nurses need to be able to adapt and conform in order to keep up to the pace. According to Mugginess (2008) â€Å"research links BBS-educated Urns with improved patient outcomes† (p. 47). Research has shown that a BBS prepared nurse possess greater critical thinking skills thus better decision making which leads to a decrease risk of patient deaths and failure to rescue. Personally, having taken on the challenge to further my education has open many doors, along with awarding e greater insight to many processes involved in the ever changing healthcare arena.

Genetics and hybrid animal technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Genetics and hybrid animal technology - Essay Example Genetic and hybrid animal technology describes a group of techniques that are applied to modify or manipulate the genetic make-up of organisms using recombinant DNA. According to Montaldo (2006), the technique allows for identification, replication, modification and the transfer of cells or tissues and, in some cases the complete organism. On a wider perspective, the technology, which entails the incorporation of DNA markers for selection, aims at improving the quality of breeding and the subsequent offspring. The technology relies on genetic information of animals in order to effect the improvement. Animal selection is usually done by understanding the effect the genes to be transferred will have the same. According to Montaldo (2006), the transfer of a particular gene depends on the expected advantages it is likely to proffer to the animal. The following techniques are used in genetic and hybrid animal technology. Transgenics: This is the most common technique applied in hybrid animal technology. Also referred to as recombinant DNA, the technique involves the transfer of a particular trait from one organism to the other (Bioscience, 2015). In transgenic, the gene splicing method facilitates the introduction of a gene for a required trait from one organism to the other. Upon the successful transfer, new DNA is integrated into the second animal’s genetic material, and this leads to the creation of a transgenic animal (Montaldo, 2006). The transgenic animal acquires new characteristics following the alteration of its protein makeup. Cloning: In this technique, nucleus of differentiated adult cells is moved to an oocyte without of nucleus (Bioscience, 2015). The result is the production of several copies of almost the same animals (Bioscience, 2015). According to Bioscience (2015), this technique is used in producing copies of animals with superior traits such as high milk production and wool

Information systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Information systems - Essay Example (Joseph, 2008) define an information system as â€Å"the study of complementary networks of hardware and software that people and organizations use to collect, filter, process, create, and distribute data† (p416). Even though there are many definitions as to what an Information system is, the definitions all agree on the fact that it is all about how humans relate with technology Figure 1: components of an IS 1. Hardware Hardware refers to all the machinery that will be used by the firm in the information system. The most important hardware in the information system is the computer. The computer has its own important hardware parts like the storage, the control unit, the processors and many others. Some people refer to the hardware part of the information system as the central processing unit because this is actually where all the data processing for the system is done. The hardware of the computer must have five important parts for it to function optimally (O'Brien, 2003) Inp ut This is the means by which the computer accepts data that is fed into it via the input devices. The most commonly used input device is the keyboard where the user types instructions that the computer processes. Other input devices include microphones for sound input, scanners for digital input and mice. Process Once the computer has accepted input, it must have a means by which it will process data. Every computer usually has a part that is used for the process of the data that it receives from the input devices Control There are many processes that the computer usually performs and it is important to have a means of controlling the different operations for optimum results. The Arithmetic and Logic Unit is used to control the different arithmetic and logical operations that the computer is working on. Storage Computers must have a means of retaining the data that is input into the system. This is usually done on the main hard drive of the computer or any auxiliary storage devices like memory sticks, external hard drives, DVDs and many others. Output After data has been input into the computer and all the processing of the data has been completed, the computer must then have a way of generating feedback for the benefit of the user. This is achieved through the output devices. There are two types of output devices. There are those that give soft output like the monitors and the speakers and there are those that give hard output like the printers and the plotters. 2. Software This term refers to any computer application and all the manuals that come with these applications. To put it simply, software is a set of computer or machine readable instructions that tell the computer exactly how to manipulate the data that is fed to it by the user. The software is very important in the information system since it is the one that has instructions on how to manipulate the data thereby giving the necessary output which management can use for decision making. Software usu ally comes stored on DVDs and other auxiliary storage devices like flash disks but it has to be installed onto the computer system for it to be used. Most of the software is usually for sale although there are some that are given under the General Public User license agreement. The computer system will be totally useless without the relevant software (O'Brien, 2003) 3. Data This

The Matrix Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

The Matrix - Movie Review Example The Matrix depicts that human intelligence is a strong force which cannot be repeated or mechanically restored. The movie portrays human intelligence is based on such issues as reasoning, thinking, and problem solving. People differ in their ability to reason effectively. However, the cognitive processes responsible for human actions and performance cannot be repeated by machines. The movie portrays that most people live in quite large social groups, and their intelligence evolved to cope with the demands of social life, the need to learn one's place in a social hierarchy, how to interact with one's social superiors and inferiors, how to co-operate with others, and how, sometimes, to outwit them. In the article, Lazar underlines that: â€Å"power in itself is deceptive as it is based on a paradox: it allows the taste of truth/knowledge but causes its own end (and arguably the end of truth/knowledge)† Using such characters as Neo, Morpheus and Trinity, the movie portrays that o nly human beings have the ability to think and apply decision-making to complex situations. Machines are unable to think flexibly. The Matrix shows that people go one step further by attributing, the possession of a 'theory of mind' which, they proposed, underlay the machines ability to understand, control, or predict the behavior of others. The idea has been taken up by numerous fiction writers, some of whom have argued that we possess a domain-specific 'theory of mind module'.

Marketing Concepts and Planning-- Apple IPods Assignment

Marketing Concepts and Planning-- Apple IPods - Assignment Example Features and benefits have long been the idea of improving sales and through promotional materials, however in today’s market pricing should be given much more emphasis by making it much more transparent to consumers in a variety of ways. This report identifies these proposed changes. The company’s mission is simple: Apple â€Å"recognizes that by integrating sound environmental health and safety management practices into all aspects of our business, we can offer innovative technological products and services while conserving and enhancing resources for future generations† (Lee, 2008, p.5). The objectives are to improve sales volumes through creative promotion, effective distribution, and to build consumer interest in mass market groups. The strengths of the iPod are in areas of innovation by remaining a step ahead of competition by updating features, memory and other important benefits for consumers. Research and development talent is an internal strength. Fortunately for Apple, competition is considerably weak and this is a major strength for the business! Weaknesses include, though not a fault of Apple, weakened economic conditions both domestically and internationally, posing a potential risk for future iPod (and iPad) sales. Additionally, minimal television advertising, despite the potential cost and time investment, is another weakness in regards to reaching more mass market customers. Threats to the iPod include the sudden resurgence of consumer use of auction websites such as eBay, creating a form of self-competition for budget-minded, mass market buyers as well as failure of retail partners to be more interactive in the sales/promotion process. These are external failures, however they definitely impact sales volume in certain market territories. As identified, segmentation for the iPod begins with identifying specific groups with

FGR Bond Investment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

FGR Bond Investment - Essay Example The bond that is a tax-free with a high credit rating and a 4.7% taxable equivalent yield is much safer investment than that taxable bond that pays 5 % with a low credit rating. As a result, advisable that one does not need to buy tax-exempt bonds for him just to get the tax-free income if he is in a lower tax bracket. With the DES corporate bond, the yield that the investor receives is taxable at 30%.With the FGR municipal bond, the yield is tax-free. As a result, in order to compare the two options, one has to figure out the taxable-equivalent yield of municipal bond. First, one has to find out what he keeps from taxable investments, which, in this case, is 70% or .70 of the taxable yield. Since the investor pays 30% of every dollar in taxes, he gets to keep 70%. 12.9% (rounded up from 12.8571) is the taxable-equivalent yield of 9% corporate bond if you are in the 30% tax bracket. It is, as a result, obvious that this is more than the FGR’s municipal bond taxable rate of 7%. That is; one can conclude that if you were to earn 12.9% and pay 30% on the interest, one would end up with 9% after-tax yield. As a result, Beth who is an investor in this case in the 30% tax bracket would choose Options 1 for it is because the higher taxable-equivalent yield would give the most appealing income stream. The importance of municipal bonds is that, the interest received from it is free from federal income taxes thus making it free from state income taxes. As with municipal bonds, everything comes down to taxes. If one is not benefiting from tax-exemption, he will earn more with taxable bonds. However, based on one’s tax bracket, the tax-free municipal bond that has a lower yield may offer a higher after-tax return compared to the higher-yielding taxable Treasury

Corporate law Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Corporate law - Case Study Example The exception to this is that the reserve may be applied by the company in paying up its unissued shares which are to be allotted to company members as fully paid bonus shares. Further, if the permissible capital payment exceeds the nominal amount of the shares redeemed or purchased, the amount of any capital redemption reserve, share premium account or fully paid share capital of the company, and any amount representing unrealised profits of the company for the time being standing to the credit of any revaluation reserve, may be reduced by a sum not exceeding, or by sums not in the aggregate exceeding, the amount by which the permissible capital payment exceeds the nominal value of the shares.4 Where, however, the proceeds of a fresh issue are applied by a company in making any redemption or purchase of its own shares in addition to a payment from its capital under these provisions, the references to the permissible capital payment are to be read as referring to the total amount of that payment and those proceeds. The CRR is mainly used to ens... The CRR is mainly used to ensure that the company's capital is not reduced by the redemption of its shares. If the company was to redeem its shares, and the CRR was not used, then there would be a reduction in the company's capital in line with the reduction of the amount of shares redeemed. Although the CRR cannot be distributed out to shareholders by way of dividend in the same way that profits would be utilised, they would be available for issuing bonus issues of share capital should such a scenario arise. Accordingly, the CRR plays an important role in maintaining the value of the company, by both keeping shareholders of redeemable preference shares happy in allowing them to redeem their shares, while also keeping the other shareholders content as the value of the share capital in the company is maintained. This means that there shareholding will be in no way diminished as a result of the redemption. Revaluation Reserves Revaluation reserves arise when the value of an asset becomes greater than the value at which it was previously carried on the balance sheet, increasing shareholders funds.5 Not every increase in value is added to the revaluation reserve, and the exact treatment depends on the history of the asset. Revaluations are carried out when there is a material difference between the current market value of an asset and the value at which it is carried on the balance sheet. Revaluation reserves are not distributable, but may be used for scrip issues, where there is an issue of new shares to existing shareholders at no charge, pro rata to their existing shareholdings. A scrip issue is essentially when one shareholder moves their money from one account to another account belonging to the

Analyzing the series of events that occurred, involving Karemore Best Essay

Analyzing the series of events that occurred, involving Karemore Best Health NHS Trust and St. Patchup Hospital NHS Trust - Essay Example It follows with a series of recommendations for change to avoid such mishap from recurring at the two hospitals. This would also serve as a reminder towards other health care institutions towards strict compliance of standard procedures, and a guide to prevent such accident to occur in their organization. As requested by the Chief Executives of both Karemore and St. Patchup Hospitals, the author of the present report is a Radiology Services Manager of a hospital outside Prosperham City. Summary The persons directly involved in the unfortunate circumstance are: (1) Mrs. Wanda Doff, the patient, (2) Di Gital, a radiographer employed at St. Patchup from an agency, (3) Karl Amity, a radiographer at Karemore who took the patient’s radiology exams, and (4) Dr. Penny Drops, anesthetist at Karemore involved in Mrs. Doff’s operation. Mrs. Doff died of respiratory and cardiac arrests in the middle of a hip replacement operation at Karemore Hospital. Due to complaints of right hip pain approximately 6 months before the operation, Mrs. Doff underwent a chest radiograph antero-posterior (AP) position at St. Patchup Hospital, which was conducted by Di Gital.... That same evening, Karl Amity once again conducted the examination but mixed up results of the said patient with another. Seeing that the results were normal, Dr. Drops agreed that Mrs. Doff could go into the theatre and proceeded with the operation. Complications aroused, however, leading the patient into respiratory and cardiac arrests where practitioners were not able to resuscitate her. Range of Incidences and Mistakes Upon investigating the incident, it can be traced that lapses started with the imaging departments of both Karemore and St. Patchup Hospitals. Initially looking at St. Patchup Hospital, the lack of supplies - in this case batteries for the hoist - triggered the sole personnel left in the room, Di Gital, to aid Mrs. Doff. This, however, is not an excuse since patient safety is always a priority, and Di Gital should have realized the risk placed upon the patient in the process of lifting her alone. Furthermore, several other lapses are perceived from Karemore Hospita l. Taking into consideration that Karl Amity has been a qualified radiographer for several years, it is expected that he knows how to conduct the procedures adequately and follow given protocols. However, the patient was exposed to excessive radiation dose because of Mr. Amity’s mistakes with centring and lateral hip projection. Dr. Drops also committed a mistake in the act of ordering another chest x-ray without reviewing the patient’s records which could have revealed all the previous examinations she has undergone. Additionally, Karl did not question the doctor’s order for another x-ray even in the knowledge that he has met the patient earlier that morning. To make matters worse, he interchanged the results of the patient with another woman’s, thereby giving wrong results

Apple Customer Based Analysis Essay Example for Free

Apple Customer Based Analysis Essay Apple’s brand name has a very highly valued name in society. As an American, it is common for people of all ages and demographics to be a customer of Apple. It is prestigious yet also almost considered the normal in today’s society to have an Apple iPhone, Apple iPad, Apple iPod, or Apple Macbook. Society values Apple as having a high quality product that consumers can rely on but this also comes at a price. Most customers of Apple are just below the baby boomer generation with users as young as toddlers. Some parents may allow their toddler’s to use applications on their Ipads for their toddlers to learn and play games. Other demographics include all different races and both males and females. Apple prides themselves with easy to user consumer friendly technological products that people of all ages can use. Normally electronic products are focused towards the males however the Apple products have a significant female customer base as well. Apple products are normally sold in high income countries due to the high cost of the products. Apple products are not necessity products by any means and therefore apple customers have discretionary income to buy luxury goods such as the products that Apple offers. However, a music and video system such as Itunes may be more affordable for some consumers that use computers, phones, and tablets from other companies yet they can still download media from the Apple Itunes company. Middle class families in the U.S. can own Apple products but it may be a luxury item that the household saves for. Apple, as a technology based company naturally attracts customers that are looking for high quality up to date products that fit in with society yet are customizable and satisfy all of their customers’ needs. Apple’s Itune’s has legal rights to protect their media through patents and other legal rights that protect their electronic products. There is a current lawsuit between Samsung and Apple in which Apple claims that â€Å"the Galaxy S4, Samsung’s flagship smartphone violates five of its patents† (Zeman 2013). Therefore, this shows that Apple takes their patent and products very seriously and will follow up with a lawsuit if any of their competitors take any of their legal rights. Apple collaborates with many different companies in order to optimize their services and products including Microsoft. An Apple employee noted that â€Å"the company will now be organized by function- marketing, legal, business development etc.—with more collaboration across divisions† regarding Microsoft (Shaer, 2013). Apple also works with companies regarding the development of applications for their Iphone and Ipad products. There are many competitors of Apple such as manufacturers of PCs, tablets, cell phones, computer monitors, TVs, and many other types of electronics. These companies may consider Apple their largest competition but the one disadvantage that Apple has over other products is their higher price for their premium products. Due to the amount of competition it is very important that Apple continues update their products and marketing in order to remain in the market. Apple products can be purchased directly through Apple through the telephone, internet, or in anyone of their own Apple retail stores that are commonly found in shopping malls. The most popular products are also found in department stores, electronic stores, and even certain Apple vending machines. Due to all of the supplier locations, Apple has made it easy and convenient for their customers to access their products, services, and assistance. Stakeholders of the company include the employees, stockholders, and customers. If there is any major change or re-organization of the company the employees will be impacted and this may potential affect the stock prices which will affect the stockholders whom are essentially the owners of the company. The Apple stock at the time this paper is being written is at $502.36 a share which is very high and this truly shows that value that shareholders have for this company. The customers are stakeholders in the company because all of the managerial decisions will trickle down to the product and price. As of January 2013, there were executive changes at Apple that created drama for people in the tech press field. â€Å"The man responsible for much of Apple’s hardware design since 1996, Jonathan Ive is now in charge of design of both software and hardware† stated Dan Moren, 2013. The late Steve Jobs was Apple’s chief executive officer that had a major influence on the startup of the company and the success of the company. This became the molding for the company’s culture today which has been influencing our pop culture for more than a decade. The company continues their innovation and delivers their premium products and assistance to their customers regardless of the organizational changes that have been taking place within the company. References: Zeman, E. (2013). Apple adds samsungs galaxy S4 to lawsuit. Informationweek Online, Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxylocal.library.nova.edu/docview/1353775900?accountid=6579 Shaer, M. (2013, Jul 11). With one microsoft, CEO ballmer sees sweeping reorganization of microsoft ranks. The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxylocal.library.nova.edu/docview/1399442335?accountid=6579 Moren, D. (2013, 01). Changes at the top. Macworld, 30, 5. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxylocal.library.nova.edu/docview/1270547861?accountid=6579

Adsorption of Volatile Organic Compounds

Adsorption of Volatile Organic Compounds ADSORPTION OF VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS ON DIFFERENT TIMBER SPECIES Marco Vasconcelos1, Nereida Cordeiro1,2* ABSTRACT Due to the health issues associated to VOC, this work aims to study the adsorption of these compounds onto timbers, in order to improve air quality. For this task, inverse gas chromatography (IGC) was used to characterize surface properties (surface energy, specific free energy and enthalpy of adsorption). Dispersive component of the surface energy (ÃŽ ³SD) ranged from 39.95 to 43.81 mJ/m2, corresponding to Amburana and Courbaril respectively. Yellow Pine shows higher values of the specific free energy of adsorption (à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs), indicating a higher number/energy of polar active sites. On the other hand, the enthalpy of adsorption values (à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs) don’t go in agreement with à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs, probably due to its temperature-dependence. That said, the à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs values indicate a basic surface and Amburana establishes stronger interactions with polar probes while Yellow Pine establishes stronger interactions with cyclohexane. Additionally, the â€Å"thermodynamic compensation effect† was evaluated on these samples, being observed linearity in Yellow Pine, Grapia and Brazilian Mahogany. The slope was similar between the different species, indicating a similar adsorption mechanism. Keywords: Inverse Gas Chromatography, Surface Properties, Wood Fibers, Volatile Organic Compounds, thermodynamic compensation effect 1. INTRODUCTION Volatile organic compounds (VOC) are organic compounds produced in industries, motor vehicles, power plants, etc. They are usually distinguished by boiling temperatures under 250 ºC, at standard atmospheric pressure (1 atm), and with high vapor pressures, surpassing 0.5 kPa at 25 ºC (Dobre, Pà ¢rvulescu, Iavorschi, Stroescu, Stoica, 2014). The aforementioned compounds have harmful impact on human health, such as eye and throat irritation, damage to the liver, central nervous system and carcinogenic effects, due to prolonged exposure (Das, Gaur, Verma, 2004). Therefore, reducing the VOC concentration on the atmosphere is an important task in order to improve air quality and avoid health issues. Wood fibers consist in both dead and living cells, being at a macroscopic level organized within a layer of xylene, in the wood. From the chemical point of view, consists mostly in cellulose, followed by hemicellulose and lignin. Due to the hydrogen bonds established by the hydroxyl groups of cellulose of the surface, it affects strongly on the properties of the material, such as hydrophobicity and therefore its reactivity (Hodzic, Shanks, 2014). About 80.5% of the wood fibers are used in the paper industry and around 17% for wood fibers modification (composites: Kazayawoko, Balatinecz, Romansky, 1997; Adusumali, Reifferscheid, Weber, Roeder, Sixta, Gindl, 2006; Cao, Hu, Liu, 2008). In this work, Inverse gas Chromatography (IGC) was used to characterize the surface properties (surface energy, specific free energy and enthalpy of adsorption) of Amburana, Yellow Pine, Grapia, Courbaril and Brazilian Mahogany to evaluate the adsorption of some VOC (Chloroform, cyclohexane, ethyl acetate, benzene and toluene). Additionally, the â€Å"thermodynamic compensation effect† was studied to investigate the mechanism of thermodynamic adsorption on the different samples analyzed. 2. MATERIALS AND METHODS 2.1 Materials Methane (>99.99% purity) was used an inert reference probe and the carrier gas utilized was helium (>99.99% purity), both supplied by Air Liquide Company. The probe molecules were supplied by Sigma–Aldrich with GC grade (>99% purity). 2.2 iGC analysis iGC measurements were carried out, at least, in duplicate, on a commercial inverse gas chromatograph (Surface Measurements Systems, London, UK) equipped with a flame ionization (FID), thermal conductivity (TCD) and mass spectrometer (MS) detectors. Standard glass silanized (dymethyldichlorosilane; Repelcote BDH, UK) columns with 0.4 cm ID and 30 cm in length were used. About 1.5 g of timber sawdust mesh 40-60 was packed by vertical tapping for 10 min. The columns, with the samples, were pre-treated for 2h at 343 K and 10 ml/min of flow rate, to remove the impurities adsorbed on the surface and 2h at the measurement conditions. After pre-treatment, pulse injections were carried out with a 0.25 à ¯Ã‚ Ã‚ ­l gas loop. The iGC system was fully automated with purpose written control software (SMS iGC Controller v1.3) and data were analyzed using iGC Standard v1.3 and Advanced Analysis Software v1.21. The presented results are the average of the values obtained for each sample with a standard deviation minor than 5%. Measurements of the dispersive interaction were made with n-alkanes (n-decane, n-nonane, n-octane, n-heptane and n-hexane) at 298 K, at 0% RH. The carrier gas (Helium) flow rate was 10 ml/min. To acid-base studies cyclohexane, benzene, chloroform, toluene and ethyl acetate were used at 0% RH. Heat of sorption measurements were done with the polar probes at 298 K, 0% RH, and 10 ml/min flow rate. 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 3.1 Dispersive component of the surface tension The solvent–sorption properties of the timbers were studied at infinite dilution condition in order to remove the interactions between the probe molecules adsorbed at the surface of the samples. The methane injection allows the calculation of the dead time and subtracts it to the retention time in order to obtain the retention volume (Thielmann, 2004). The corrected net retention volume VN is given by: where Vd is the mobile phase hold-up volume (called dead volume), and VR the measured retention volume. The 0 superscript indicates a correction for the column pressure drop given by j: where where T is the column temperature, F is the exit flow rate at 1 atm and 273.15K, tR is the retention time and t0 is the mobile phase hold-up time. The dispersive component of the surface energy, as well as the specific free energy of sorption, was measured with dispersive and acid-base probe molecules. The relation between the retention volume and free energy of sorption à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  G ºS is given by the following equation: à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  G0S = RTln VR0 + K where R is the gas constant and K is the De Boer or Kemball/Rideal constant depending on the chosen reference state (De Boer, 1953; Kemball Rideal, 1946). Moreover, à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  G0S is related to the energy of adhesion WA (between probe molecule and solid) by the equation: à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  G0S = NAaWA where a is the cross sectional area of the adsorbate and NA the Avogadro constant. According to Fowkes (1964), the dispersive contribution of the work of adhesion WA is given by: WA = 2(ÃŽ ³SDÃŽ ³LD)1/2 with ÃŽ ³SD and ÃŽ ³LD as the surface tension of the adsorbent and the adsorbate respectively. Combining the equations above: Thus, the dispersive component of the surface tension (ÃŽ ³SD) values could be calculated based on the plots of RT lnV0R vs a(ÃŽ ³LD)1/2 for the adsorption of n-alkane probes, as illustrated in Figure 1. Good linear correlations (0.9991-0.9996) were obtained for the n-alkane series for all samples analyzed. The calculated ÃŽ ³SD values are given in Table 1 and show very similar results between the different timber species. The surface energy ranged from 39.95 to 43.81 mJ/m2, corresponding to Amburana and Courbaril respectively. These values are similar to those reported by Kazayawoko, Balatinecz, Romansky (1997) and Shu, Xu, JinWei, BaoLi (2007) for wood flour (35.6 mJ/m2 at 323K) and ashtree wood meal (36.52 mJ/ m2 at 323K) respectively. Gouveia, Cordeiro and John (2011) reported various lignocellulosic fibres (flax, hemp, kenaf, agave, agave hybrid pineapple, and sisal), with ÃŽ ³SD values ranged from 37.17 to 51.37 mJ/ m2 (at 298K). In the same article aforementioned, it’s also explained that variations in the ÃŽ ³SD values can be due to the different composition, growing conditions of the fibers and method of extraction. The latter is justified due to the fibers being usually covered by a layer of wax, and may interfere with elutant-fiber interactions. When removed during the method of extraction it’s expected to change drastically the surface energy. 3.2 Polar probes sorption studies A widespread approaching to the Lewis acid/base surface interactions can provide better perceptive of the chemical-physical properties of the timber surfaces. The presence of acid and base active sites on the surfaces increases the possibility of specific intermolecular interactions with solvents and others compounds. The specific free energy of sorption, à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs was determined by the distance between the alkane line and the points corresponding to the ΔG ºs value of polar probes (Gamble, Leane, Olusanmi, Tobyn, Supuk, 2012). à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs = RTln(VN) – RTln(VNref) The à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs values are given in Table 2 and represented in Figure 2. Chloroform was used as an acid probe on this work. The values ranged from 0.53 to 2.50 kJ/mol, corresponding to Brazilian Mahogany and Yellow Pine respectively. Based on the results obtained, the à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs values of Chloroform decrease in the following order Pine > Grapia > Courbaril > Amburana > Mahogany. This observation indicates that Yellow Pine may have a higher quantity/energy of active sites with basic character compared to the other fibers. A similar order was observed on Cyclohexane, indicating that Yellow Pine might also have a higher quantity/energy of active sites with apolar character. Although, the same order is not observed in ÃŽ ³SD, since that for the surface energy were used n-alkanes and due to the shape of cyclohexane and consequent different steric hindrance, it will have different interactions with the surface. On the other hand, Brazilian Mahogany shows the lowest à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs values for the overall probes, indicating a lower quantity/energy of active sites. Ethyl acetate was used as a basic probe in Amburana, Yellow Pine and Courbaril. The interaction of this probe, alongside chloroform, with the timber surface indicates the presence of both acidic and basic sites on the solid surface. 3.3 Heat of sorption measurements In the infinite dilution region, where the isotherm is linear, VN should be measured at a range of column temperatures and ln(VN/T) plotted vs. 1/T, which yields the heat of sorption à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs according to (Conder Young, 1979): To determine the enthalpies of sorption (à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾HS) of the VOC’s in the timber species, the specific retention volume (VN) was measured at different temperatures (293 to 298K) and the retention diagrams ln VN vs 1/T were plotted (Fig. 3-7). Some of VOC ´s couldn’t be used in some of the timber species because the retention time was too low to make accurate calculations due to the peak overlap. The à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs values are given in Table 3, determined at three different temperatures. Good linear correlations (>0.99) were obtained for the probes used, as shown in Figures 3-7. In this work, the à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs values for the basic probes (Ethyl acetate; Higher DN/AN*) were lower than the à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs values for the acid probes (Chloroform; Lower DN/AN*), indicating a basic character of the solid surface. Cordeiro, Mendonà §a, Pothan and Varma (2012) and Gouveia, Cordeiro and John (2011) observed the same basic character in macro and nanobanana fibers, flax, hemp, kenaf, agave, agave hybrid pineapple, and sisal. For chloroform, the à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs values decreased in the following order: Amburana > Brazilian Mahogany > Grapia > Courbaril > Yellow Pine. At first sight it indicates that Amburana establishes stronger interactions with the surface, compared with the other timbers. On the other hand, Yellow Pine establishes the weakest interactions with chloroform. A similar order was also observed for cyclohexane, for the exception of Yellow Pine, that shows the highest à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs value for this probe. The results don’t go in agreement with the ones obtained from the specific free energy of adsorption study, probably due to the fact that the temperature might influence the à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs values and therefore it might mislead to incorrect conclusions. Thus, the à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs values will give a better insight of which timber is advised (or not) to remove VOC from the atmosphere since it already have in account the temperature. Being said, the results indicate that for polar probes Amburana have stronger interactions while for apolar probes Yellow Pine have stronger interactions. 3.4 Entropy of Sorption calculation The linear dependence between ΔHS and ΔSS is called â€Å"Thermodynamic Compensation Effect†. Normally, stronger intermolecular interactions (related to ΔHS) result in less degrees of freedom of the elutant, leading into a greater order of the system, decreasing the entropy of the system (Liu L., Guo Q-X., 2001). The entropy of sorption was directly calculated according to: Figure 8 represents the entropy-enthalpy correlation, being only observed on Yellow Pine, Grapia and Brazilian Mahogany. All three dependences are linear and almost parallel, with a slope between 2.7910-3 and 3.7310-3 K-1. Therefore, these three samples follow the previous equation. According to Korolev A. et al., (2011), a similar slope indicates similar adsorption mechanism on the samples studied on this work. Since all the samples have similar composition, it was expected the same adsorption mechanism between them. 4. CONCLUSION IGC was used to evaluate different surface properties, namely surface energy, specific free energy and enthalpy of adsorption. The ÃŽ ³SD values were measured at 298K and ranged from 39.95 to 43.81 mJ/m2. These variations between results are due to different composition, growing conditions and method of extraction. The results don’t go in agreement between enthalpy of adsorption and the specific free energy of adsorption probably due to the influence of the temperature on the à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs. In Yellow Pine were observed higher à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs values for chloroform and cyclohexane compared to the other fibers, indicating a higher quantity/energy of active sites with basic and apolar character. In Amburana, Yellow Pine and Courbaril, the basic probes showed lower à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs values compared to acid à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  Hs values, indicating a basic character. The same was observed on other fibers found in literature. Amburana establishes stronger interactions with Chloroform while Yellow Pine establishes stronger interaction with cyclohexane, compared to the other timber species. The â€Å"Thermodynamic Compensation Effect† was only observed in Yellow Pine, Grapia and Brazilian Mahogany, with linear fits almost parallel. The slope ranged between 2.7910-3 and 3.7310-3 K-1. Similar slopes indicate similar adsorption mechanism, which makes sense due to similar composition. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT References Adusumali R-B, Reifferscheid M, Weber H, Roeder T, Sixta H, Gindl W. Mechanical properties of regenerated cellulose fibres for composites. Macromolecular Symposia 2006, 244: 119–25. Cao S., Hu B., Liu H. Synthesis of pH-responsive crosslinked poly[styrene-co-(maleic sodium anhydride)] and cellulose composite hydrogel nanofibers by electrospinning. Polymer International 2009, 58: 545–551. Cordeiro N., Gouveia C., John M. J. Investigation of surface properties of physico-chemically modified natural fibers using inverse gas chromatography. Industrial Crops and Products 2011, 33: 108–115. Cordeiro, N., Mendonà §a, C., Pothan, L. A., Varma, A. Monitoring surface properties evolution of thermochemically modified cellulose nanofibres from banana pseudo-stem. Carbohydrate Polymers 2012, 88, 125–131. De Boer, J.H., 1953. The Dynamic Character of Chemisorption, 2nd Ed., Clarendon Press, Oxford. Gamble J., Leane M., Olusanmi D., Tobyn M., Supuk E., Khoo J., Naderi M., 2012, Surface energy analysis as a tool to probe the surface energy characteristics of micronized materials A comparison with inverse gas chromatography; International Journal of Pharmaceutics; 422: 238-244 Kemball C., Rideal, E.K. The Adsorption of Vapours on Mercury. I. Non-Polar Substances. Proceedings of the Royal Society A 1946, 187: 53–73. Korolev A., Shiryaeva V., Popova T., Kurganov A. Enthalpy–entropy compensation effect on adsorption of light hydrocarbons on monolithic stationary phases, Journal of Separation Science 2011, 34, 2362-2369. Liu L., Guo Q.-X. Isokinetic relationship, isoequilibrium relationship, and enthalpy–entropy compensation. Chemical Reviews 2001, 101: 673–695. M. Kazayawoko, J. Balatinecz, M. Romansky. Thermodynamics of adsorption of n-alkanes on maleated wood fibers by inverse gas chromatography. Journal of Colloid Interface Science 1997, 190: 408-415. Thielmann F, 2004, Introduction into the characterization of porous materials by Inverse Gas Chromatography, Journal of Chromatography A, 1037: 115–123. Zhao S., Lin X., Song J. Shi B.. Surface characterization of ashtree wood meal by inverse gas chromatography. Chinese Science Bulletin 2007, 52: 1178-1181. Conder, J., Young, C. (1979). Physicochemical measurement by Gas Chromatography. Chichester: John Wiley Sons Ltd. TABLE CAPTIONS Table 1 – Dispersive component of the surface tension (ÃŽ ³SD). Table 2 – Specific free energy of sorption (à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºS). Table 3 – Enthalpy of sorption (à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾HS). Table 4 – Entropy of sorption (ΔSS). Table 1 Table 2 Table 3 Table 4 FIGURE CAPTIONS Figure 1 Energy of adsorption vs a(à ¯Ã‚ Ã‚ §DL)1/2 for n-alkanes on the timbers (Amburana, Grapia, Courbaril, Brazilian Mahogany and Yellow Pine) surface at 298K and 0%RH. Figure 2 – Specific free energy of the adsorption (à ¯Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Å¾G ºs) of Chloroform and Cyclohexane onto samples analyzed at 298K. Figure 3 – Enthalpy of sorption plot and linear fits for cyclohexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate measurement on Amburana timber surface 293-298K, at 0 % RH and 10ml/min. Figure 4 – Enthalpy of sorption plot and linear fits for cyclohexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate measurement on Yellow Pine timber surface 293-298K, at 0 % RH and 10ml/min. Figure 5 – Enthalpy of sorption plot and linear fits for cyclohexane, chloroform and benzene measurement on Grapia timber surface 293-298K, at 0 % RH and 10ml/min. Figure 6 – Enthalpy of sorption plot and linear fits for cyclohexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate measurement on Courbaril timber surface 293-298K, at 0 % RH and 10ml/min. Figure 7 – Enthalpy of sorption plot and linear fits for cyclohexane, chloroform and toluene measurement on Brazilian Mahogany timber surface 293-298K, at 0 % RH and 10ml/min. Figure 8 – Entropy-enthalpy compensation effect on Yellow Pine, Grapia and Brazilian Mahogany. Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 7 Figure 8

What Exactly Can Picture Books Teach Our Children? Essay -- Learning T

What Exactly Can Picture Books Teach Our Children? I chose to read and comment on Barbara Kiefer’s â€Å"Envisioning Experience: The Potential of Picture Books.† Kiefer’s main point in writing this essay was to get the message across that children enjoy picture books that allow them to identify and make connections with the characters or the plots, and that while reading and analyzing the pictures, they gain a better sense of aesthetics and how to interpret them. I agree whole-heartedly with the conclusions that she drew from her observations. It is very hard to get the whole â€Å"picture† from a children’s storybook that has no pictures. The children find it harder to identify with the characters and often find these books boring. Being able to see the pictures helps them to make connections with either the characters or with their personal experiences. For example, all small children can identify with the little monkey, George, in Rey’s Curious George. On page 27 of the book, we see George smoking a pipe because he saw the man in the yellow hat smoking it. At some point in every child’s life, he has seen an adult doing something unfamiliar and wanted to try it, just like George did. This would be a good point at which the child could articulate one of his experiences to a class or friend, helping him to become more comfortable with speaking about and sharing his thoughts. Kiefer points out in her essay that when children vocalize what they think about a story and the pictures, it helps them to become more cognitive thinkers. She also stated that â€Å"the children I observed seemed to be intent on making meaning regarding the picture books †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Kiefer 66). I, too, can see this when I am ... ...s and classrooms should have a wide variety of books available with varying styles of writing and art work. In addition to the books, the children should be given a variety of ways in which to express their thoughts and feelings about these books, either through discussion, writing, or their own art work. I agree because this could only allow children to enjoy reading more and lets them feel like their opinions matter and are appreciated. Having books readily available only increases a child’s desire to read and creates in him or her a love for books that, hopefully, never goes away. Works Cited Kiefer, Barbara. â€Å"Envisioning Experience: The Potential of Picture Books.† Publishing Research Quarterly 7.2 (1991): 63-75. Rey, H. A. Curious George. Twentieth Century Children’s Book Treasury. Selected by Janet Schulman. New York: Knopf, 1998. 88-95.

What is Social Science Essay -- Sociology, Social Status, Social Inter

What is the job of social science? Social science focuses its attention on the social aspects of human nature; its job is to study how individuals can relate with and communicate with each other. â€Å"Social scientists study the social environment in which we live in an attempt to understand human society and to predict how people will interact in a given set of circumstances (Mack, 2004, p584). In this essay, I discuss the role of social science for societies and individuals, how individuals relate to societies and the function of rules in societies as a main concern of social science. Social science’s duty is to train human being how to deal with social status. As we were born, we were part of a society; we were a member of a family; families are the first breaks of societies. So, all of us were coping with social groups since we were born: families, schools, peer groups and even media shape our social environment. Mack (2004) noticed in his data, â€Å"All human beings are social. People have to interact with other people in order to survive. Since all human beings live in a society, which is to say that every person is a member of some human group, it is just reasonable to speak of a social environment† (p584). Social science teaches us, as members of society, how to deal and interact with social environment. The question is why do people need to learn that knowledge? The answer is that human being are social creatures, hence they need social science to improve their social abilities. It is hard for a human being to live by himself out of a society. Even thought it is possible for a human being to survive in solitude, without any kind of social connection, not all of his talent could flourish in isolation. Skills like communicati... ...ience knowledge is a powerful resource for understanding and coping with the growing complexities, uncertainties and risks in our world† (Kazancigil, 2003, p379). Individuals are the parts which form societies as a whole. Individuals have a mutual relationship with societies. Both of them are under the control of social science; social science’s tool for overseeing them is legislation. Various rules shape diverse societies where individuals interact differently. It is not an option to be a part of society or not, since we were born we became a part of society. So, as long as we relate to societies, we should care and learn about social science. Through social science we learn the reasons of our actions and our manners. If we required modifying our behaviours in order to mature and boom our talents, social science is here to help us and show us the ways. What is Social Science Essay -- Sociology, Social Status, Social Inter What is the job of social science? Social science focuses its attention on the social aspects of human nature; its job is to study how individuals can relate with and communicate with each other. â€Å"Social scientists study the social environment in which we live in an attempt to understand human society and to predict how people will interact in a given set of circumstances (Mack, 2004, p584). In this essay, I discuss the role of social science for societies and individuals, how individuals relate to societies and the function of rules in societies as a main concern of social science. Social science’s duty is to train human being how to deal with social status. As we were born, we were part of a society; we were a member of a family; families are the first breaks of societies. So, all of us were coping with social groups since we were born: families, schools, peer groups and even media shape our social environment. Mack (2004) noticed in his data, â€Å"All human beings are social. People have to interact with other people in order to survive. Since all human beings live in a society, which is to say that every person is a member of some human group, it is just reasonable to speak of a social environment† (p584). Social science teaches us, as members of society, how to deal and interact with social environment. The question is why do people need to learn that knowledge? The answer is that human being are social creatures, hence they need social science to improve their social abilities. It is hard for a human being to live by himself out of a society. Even thought it is possible for a human being to survive in solitude, without any kind of social connection, not all of his talent could flourish in isolation. Skills like communicati... ...ience knowledge is a powerful resource for understanding and coping with the growing complexities, uncertainties and risks in our world† (Kazancigil, 2003, p379). Individuals are the parts which form societies as a whole. Individuals have a mutual relationship with societies. Both of them are under the control of social science; social science’s tool for overseeing them is legislation. Various rules shape diverse societies where individuals interact differently. It is not an option to be a part of society or not, since we were born we became a part of society. So, as long as we relate to societies, we should care and learn about social science. Through social science we learn the reasons of our actions and our manners. If we required modifying our behaviours in order to mature and boom our talents, social science is here to help us and show us the ways.

Balance Sheet and Cookie Creations Essay

CCC1Natalie Koebel spent much of her childhood learning the art of cookie-making from her grandmother. They passed many happy hours mastering every type of cookie imaginable and later creating new recipes that were both healthy and delicious. Now at the start of her second year in college, Natalie is investigating various possibilities for starting her own business as part of the requirements of the entrepreneurship program in which she is enrolled. A long-time friend insists that Natalie has to somehow include cookies in her business plan. After a series of brainstorming sessions, Natalie settles on the idea of operating a cookie-making school. She will start on a part-time basis and offer her services in people’s homes. Now that she has started thinking about it, the possibilities seem endless. During the fall, she will concentrate on holiday cookies. She will offer individual lessons and group sessions (which will probably be more entertainment than education for the participants). Natalie also decides to include children in her target market. The first difficult decision is coming up with the perfect name for her business. In the end, she settles on â€Å"Cookie Creations† and then moves on to more important issues. Instructions (a)What form of business organization—proprietorship, partnership, or corporation— do you recommend that Natalie use for her business? Discuss the benefits and weaknesses of each form and give the reasons for your choice. (b)Will Natalie need accounting information? If yes, what information will she need and why? How often will she need this information? (c)Identify specific asset, liability, and equity accounts that Cookie Creations will likely use to record its business transactions. (d)Should Natalie open a separate bank account for the business? Why or why not? CCC2After researching the different forms of business organization, Natalie Koebel decides to operate â€Å"Cookie Creations† as a corporation. She then starts the process of getting the business running. In November 2014, the following activities take place. Nov.8Natalie cashes her government bonds and receives $520, which she deposits in her personal bank account. 8She opens a bank account under the name â€Å"Cookie Creations† and transfers $500 from her personal account to the new account in exchange for ordinary shares. 11Natalie pays $65 to have advertising brochures and posters printed. She plans to distribute these as opportunities arise. (Hint: Use Advertising Expense.) 13She buys baking supplies, such as flour, sugar, butter, and chocolate chips, for $125 cash. 14Natalie starts to gather some baking equipment to take with her when teaching the cookie classes. She has an excellent top-of-the-line food processor and mixer that originally cost her $750. Natalie decides to start using it only in her new business. She estimates that the equipment is currently worth $300. She invests the equipment in the business in exchange for ordinary shares. 16Natalie realizes that her initial cash investment is not enough. Her grandmother lends her $2,000 cash, for which Natalie signs a note payable in the name of the business. Natalie deposits the money in the business bank account. (Hint: The note does not have to be repaid for 24 months. As a result, the notes payable should be reported in the accounts as the last liability and also on the statement of financial position as a non-current liability.) 17She buys more baking equipment for $900 cash. 20She teaches her first class and collects $125 cash. 25Natalie books a second class for December 4 for $150. She receives $30 cash in advance as a down payment. 30Natalie pays $1,320 for a one-year insurance policy that will expire on December 1, 2015. Instructions (a)Prepare journal entries to record the November transactions. (b)Post the journal entries to general ledger accounts. (c)Prepare a trial balance at November 30. CCC3It is the end of November and Natalie has been in touch with her grandmother. Her grandmother asked Natalie how well things went in her first month of business. Natalie, too, would like to know if the company has been profitable or not during November. Natalie realizes that in order to determine Cookie Creations’ income, she must first make adjustments. Natalie puts together the following additional information. 1.A count reveals that $35 of baking supplies were used during November. 2.Natalie estimates that all of her baking equipment will have a useful life of 5 years or 60 months and no salvage value. (Assume Natalie decides to record a full month’s worth of depreciation, regardless of when the equipment was obtained by the business.) 3.Natalie’s grandmother has decided to charge interest of 6% on the note payable extended on November 16. The loan plus interest is to be repaid in 24 months. (Assume that half a month of interest accrued during November.) 4.On November 30, a friend of Natalie’s asks her to teach a class at the neighborhood school. Natalie agrees and teaches a group of 35 first-grade students how to make Santa Claus cookies. The next day, Natalie prepares an invoice for $300 and leaves it with the school principal. The principal says that he will pass the invoice along to the head office, and it will be paid sometime in December. 5.Natalie receives a utilities bill for $45. The bill is for utilities consumed by Natalie’s business during November and is due December 15. Instructions Using the information that you have gathered through Chapter 2, and based on the new information above, do the following. (a)Prepare and post the adjusting journal entries. (b)Prepare an adjusted trial balance. (c)Using the adjusted trial balance, calculate Cookie Creations’ net income or net loss for the month of November. Do not prepare an income statement. CCC4Natalie had a very busy December. At the end of the month, after journalizing and posting the December transactions and adjusting entries, Natalie prepared the following adjusted trial balance.

Did the Church Help or Hinder the Progress of Medicine in the Middle Ages?Did the Church Help or Hinder the Progress of Medicine in the Middle Ages?

Did the church help or hinder the progress of medicine in the middle Ages? In this essay I will be looking at the different aspects of medicine in the Middle Ages and accessing how the church helped or hindered their development. As there was a lot of unrest at the start of the middle Ages the church is important because it preserved a lot of things. It also provided a way of life, so it was very influential. The Church did not encourage the development of new medical ideas, it was not in their interest.When Roger Bacon (a thirteenth century priest) he suggested that a new approach to medicine was needed he said that doctors should their own original research instead of learning from the books of ancient writers such as Galen. Church leaders put him in prison for heresy there is an engraving showing him smuggling his work out of prison. The church banned dissection for a time, however from 1492 the pope allowed dissection as long as the body was that of a criminal. The first medical school was set up in Salerno in 900 AD by the church.By the Montpellier in France was the most famous but there was a number of others at these school students listened to lectures where the teachers read out passages from the work of Galen and other ancient writers. The church did provide some training for doctors as they gave money to the universities. Without this money, the universities would not have been able to survive. Students would be able to listen to a lecturer talk about the work of Galen. In France, the church allowed the students to dissect one body a year for research.However, the doctor would only watch as the dissection was done. The church taught that Galen’s ideas were correct so that idea that dissection could be used to check his ideas did not cross anyone’s mind. Dissection was used to illustrate Galen’s ideas about the body. The church had taught different types of cure for illness. Thousands of people flocked to Canterbury because it was said that Becket’s blood could cure blindness, leprosy and deafness. The church taught that prayer could cure illness. Holy oil and water were used to treat people.Many people carried parchments from the bible to warn off disease. The church paid for hospitals to be built. It taught that it was your Christian duty to look after the sick. In the 13th century over 160 hospitals were built. The monasteries had libraries. However, only monks had access to the books. The church could ban books that it did not like. The monks would teach children to read. Some religious houses had very strict rules because the most seriously ill people would need a lot of looking after. No lepers or lunatics, or person having the falling sickness or contagious disease. No pregnant women, or suckling infants, no intolerable persons even if they are infirm should be allowed in the house. † From the rules of a religious hospital in 1219. A cure for toothache in the 1300’s recommended by John of Gaddesden a leading English doctor â€Å"Write these words on the jaw of the patient. â€Å"In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, Amen. † The pain will then cease at once. Monasteries were used to care for the sick.Many had running water and provided fresh food and rest to the poorest people. â€Å"Care for the sick stands before you all. You must help them as Christ would. Let it be the chief concern of the Abbot that the care of the sick be his main concern. â€Å"From the rules of Benedictine monasteries. The monks were not trained doctors and were more likely to pray for you than give you effective treatment. The church had also taught that kings had a link to God that gave them the power to heal. Alms-houses gave shelter to the poor, the elderly, widows, young children and pregnant women.They were run by priests but no real medical help was given. Many monasteries had herb gardens. The monks used their knowledge of medicine from the books in their lib raries to make herbal remedies. However, there is little evidence of them being able to make new cures for disease. Because of the church, doctors had to have a licence to practice medicine. This is the beginning of qualifications for doctors. After the 13th century it was illegal for a person to call themselves a doctor without having formal training.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Government Systems Essay

Around the world, each country has their own way of running things and their own government system. In this essay I will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of 3 government systems; unitary, confederate, and federal. Although some government systems might have similarities with the others, they are all very different and have different problems. A unitary state is sovereign and governed as a single unit where the central government is supreme and any administrative divisions only have the power that the central government allows them to have. One advantage of the unitary form of government is it’s a small government with less people so less tax dollars are used to pay government workers and more tax dollars go to the government. Another advantage is there is fewer conflicts between national and local governments. Some disadvantages of a unitary form of government are; there is slow government response because of being such a small government and having so little resources and people. Another is again related to the size of the government, since it’s so small, all the people work together on issues in the state being governed so it’s easy for them to lose track of smaller, local issues. A confederate government is a form of government where a union of free states creates a central government with limited power. The members of these states have supreme influence over all problems except those few that have been specifically delegated to the central government. An advantage of a confederate form of government is local governments are better suited to help citizens and government response is rather quick on a small scale. Another advantage is confederacies minimize the growth of a central government, which makes it much easier to focus on local issues, and the citizens needs. A disadvantage of a confederate government is the national government is weak and they often have trouble fighting wars or keeping a stable economy. Another disadvantage of this form of government is there is a lack of unity and common laws leading to misunderstandings and unrest. A federal government is a government in which powers and responsibilities are divided into national levels to address national and regional needs.  Power is shared by a strong central government and states that are given significant self-rule. An advantage of a federal government system is federal unity. Local governments handle their local problems and the national government handles national problems. Also, there are many opportunities for citizens to participate in decision making relating to government choices. Some disadvantages are citizens living in different parts of the country could be treated differently in the area of law enforcement pertaining to different laws punishments in different states and programs such as welfare where individuals could make more or less depending on certain expenses in their area. It is important that we have an equal understanding of our government policies and the way our government is run. We should know how much voice we have when it comes to government decisions and formations of laws and such. Know the differences in government systems so you’re not left out when it comes to certain matters.

Porter’s Five Forces Analysis done on Harley Davidson Essay

Harley Davidson remains as a dominant force in the heavy weight motorcycle industry; upholding 50% share in the heavy weight motorcycles. This year they celebrate their 110th Anniversary proudly as the only major motorcycle manufacturer to completely focus on motorcycles. (Melief, Bundgaard & Hathaway, 2006) Other major players in the Motorcycle Industry are, Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki that also have their other major product lines inclusive of cars, watercraft, musical equipment and etc. Assessment of Strengths and Weaknesses of Current and Potential Competitors Porters Five Forces Analysis Source: Vector (2012) Internal Rivalry The heavyweight motorcycle market is justly concentrated with four major companies manufacturing these vehicles. Harley Davidson being one of the most experienced within the industry, Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha are the competitors that are all from Japan. Over the past few years many market for heavyweight motorcycles has increased annually, but experts are predicting even though the market is growing it will slow down in the years to come. (Melief, Bundgaard & Hathaway, 2006) The Competitive challenge is high in motorcycle industry. Most of the time motorbikes are counted as a luxury product and pricing the products can be complex. (Oxbridge Writers, 2012) Harley Davidson offers spare parts, extended warranties, and innovative and environmental friendly motorbikes for their customers, this singularizes them from their competitors. Japan’s companies have marked their success by establishing a strong competitive place in the market using cheap prices as their strategy. This affects customers perception on Harley Davidson’s place in the market and their prices. However, those having a predominant place in this sport do have conflicting interests, i. e. Yamaha and Honda have diversified into musical instrument and other motor vehicles. . (Oxbridge Writers, 2012) This results Harley-Davidson in differentiating themselves as a loyal, specialized Motorbike Company and getting more customers. Harley Davidson has traditionally been the prevailing competitor in this market with taking over 50% of the market share. With time it has fallen to below 50 % due to other companies expanding their heavyweight motorcycle production and growing in the market, focusing on American Consumers. (Melief, Bundgaard & Hathaway, 2006) This is because other products from competitors are becoming less distinguished and is similar to Harley Davidson Products. Recalling, back to the past it was easier to acknowledge Harley Davidson motorbikes for their unique style, but currently Japanese Manufacturers are merging popular designs to their products. As a result motorbikes from manufacturers are becoming more similar over time. This forces Harley-Davidson to focus more on their branding to maintain the customers. This can be an advantage to them, since Harley is known internationally for their brand, many people would prefer a Harley over a Honda or Suzuki. But can also be a downfall since Japanese companies has been improving their products with time. Threat of New Entrants This industry has a very high entry barrier, as it requires high capital to enter to the market. Similar to most manufacturing industries there are significant economies involved in building motorbikes. (NCCU, 2012) The manufacturing price of a similar product is extremely high in this industry even for a small scale. This is basically one of the main reasons there are only four major players in the industry. There are some small-scale motorcycle creators whose business s fully focused on reputation and appeal to motorcycle devotees, to build utterly customized bikes. They do not produce enough motorbikes to threaten the major players in the industry. They do not affect the position of Harley Davidson in the market but can be an added advantage since it increases interest of motorbikes in the public. Threat of Substitutes and Complements Heavyweight motorcycles are a luxury item for the majority of consumers, so there are very less similar substitutes for heavyweight motorbikes that could seriously affect the market and consumers. (Melief, Bundgaard & Hathaway, 2006) The Japanese manufacturers focus their designs more on smaller, quicker motorbikes that is the closest substitute followed by cars and scooters. Heavyweight bikes portray a certain persona, which is a part of the buyer’s influences on choosing a motorbike. Smaller bikes are for different riding styles and purposes. They are designed for a different seating position unlike the heavyweight motorbikes. Passenger cars can be a substitute for heavyweight motorbikes but it is a weak substitute. (NCCU, 2012) Motorbike consumers rarely purchase Harley’s to fulfill transportation wants. Harley Davidson bikes are more of a luxury item than a necessity to travel. Motorbikes maybe easy to travel in heavy traffic and consume less gasoline compared to a car. If a consumer choses a motorbike for the above mentioned reasons, it would be more reasonable to buy a lighter motorbike, which would be easier to handle and fuel efficient than a heavyweight motorcycle. The most profound complement for a heavyweight motorbike is gasoline/petrol. If fuel prices were higher consumers would not consider purchasing a heavyweight bike, because most journeys taken by the bike on such a bike is highly discretionary and will be used for pleasure rather than for transport necessities. Nevertheless, most of the heavyweight bike consumers are willing to pay between $8000 and $30,000 for this luxury vehicle, they would not mind paying just a little extra for fuel. Bargaining Power of Suppliers According to Melief, Bundgaard & Hathaway (2006), â€Å"Harley Davidson operates nearly every stage of the production of a motorcycle, taking raw materials such as steel and basic electrical components and shipping completed motorcycles to its extensive independent dealership network. Because there are many suppliers of all inputs that Harley Davidson requires for its manufacturing operations there is very little that any single supplier can do the exact rents from Harley. † This phrase proves that even if one supplier tries to escalate its profits/prices it would not be much of a deal for Harley to switch suppliers without interruption in production. â€Å"Preferred suppliers† approach reduced the number of suppliers Harley Davidson worked with and improved the quality of the suppliers as well; these long-term contracts and relationship protected Harley Davidson from supplier price increase. (NCCU, 2012) This also grew trust between the suppliers and Harley and their suppliers gained more profit as Harley improved their business. Bargaining Power of Consumers Similar to the Suppliers, Harley Davidson’s customers are of large population of individual consumers, making it difficult to badly affect Harley Davidson’s financial situation by refusing to corporate. (Melief, Bundgaard & Hathaway 2006) Even though Harley’s dealerships are individually owned and operated the companies’ customers are officially their licensed dealers. But the sheer number of dealers that Harley has all over the world makes situation for dealers not much better than individual riders. Harley needs their customers to buy the product in order to gain profit; since Harley is aging they also need to gain more new loyal riders. Each Harley Davidson purchase is by an individual; even though one person would not drastically affect the financial earnings of the company it is essential to sell the individual experience to each customer to reach more Markets and combine these sales to improve financial strength. (NCCU, 2012).

Henry Howard Holmes, One of Americas first Serial Killers

I researched who is to be believed as the one of america’s First Serial Killers, Herman Webster Mudgett aka Dr. Henry Howard Holmes. He had confessed to 27 murders, but only 9 could actually be proven. He had several victims during his time and choose what he felt was the perfect place for these murders. Herman was born on May 16th, 1861 in Gilmanton, New Hampshire to Levi Horton Mudgett and Theodate Page Price, both of whom were descended from the first settlers in the area. His father was a very violent alcoholic and his mother was a Methodist who would often read the bible to her son. Holmes had a privileged childhood. It has been said that he appeared to be unusually intelligent at an early age. Still there were haunting signs of what was to come. He expressed an interest in medicine, which reportedly led him to practice surgery on animals. Some accounts indicate that he may have been responsible for the death of a friend. As a child Herman was scared of the local doctor and when this got out bullies at his school forced him to view and touch a human skeleton. It turns out that this fascinated Herman so much that he actually scared the bullies who forced him into very badly. During much of his life he was considered a loner and very shady. Herman would later graduate from the University of Michigan Medical School in 1884, but while he was enrolled there he began to explore a new area or hobby. He would steal bodies from the lab disfigured the bodies, and claimed that the people were killed accidentally in order to collect insurance money from policies he took out on each deceased person he had stolen. After Graduation he began to dabble in more shady work such as pharmaceuticals, real estate and promotional deals under his created alias H.  H. Holmes. On July 4th 1878, Holmes married Clara Lovering in Alton, New Hampshire; their son, Robert Lovering Mudgett, was born on February 3rd 1880 in Loudon, New Hampshire (in adult life Robert was to become a Certified Public Accountant, and served as City Manager of Orlando, Florida). On January 28th 1887, while he was still married to Clara, Holmes married Myrta Belknap in Minneapolis, Minnesota; their daughter, Lucy Theodate Holmes, was born on July 4th 1889 in Englewood, Illinois. (in adult life Lucy was to become a public schoolteacher). Holmes lived with Myrta and Lucy in Wilmette, Illinois, and spent most of his time in Chicago tending to business. He filed for divorce from Clara after marrying Myrta, but the divorce was never finalized. He married Georgiana Yoke on January 9th 1894 in Denver, Colorado while still married to Clara and Myrta. He also had a relationship with Julia Smythe, the wife of one of his former employees; Julia later became one of Holmes's victims. While in Chicago, Holmes had started to grow even more shady and criminal. Holmes took a job in a drugstore which he would buy and promise to let the current store owner live even after her husband died. When her husband died however she simply disappeared and as people began to question where she was Holmes lied and told them she went to California and liked it there so much that she decided she would stay there. These people would actually turn out to be his first victims in his long murder spree and it is unknown how and when he murdered them. Holmes purchased a lot across from the drugstore and built what would be later known as his Murder Castle (which is where it is believed that he hid the bodies of Dr.  E. S. Holton and his wife). Holmes would open it up as a hotel for the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893, with part of the structure used as commercial space. The ground floor of the Castle contained Holmes's own relocated drugstore and various shops, while the upper two floors contained his personal office and a maze of over one hundred windowless rooms with doorways opening to brick walls, oddly angled hallways, stairways to nowhere, doors opened only from the outside, and a host of other strange and labyrinthine constructions. Holmes repeatedly changed builders during the construction of the Castle, so only he fully understood the design of the house, thus decreasing the chance of being reported to the police. Holmes selected mostly female victims from among his employees (many of which were required as a condition of employment to take out life insurance policies for which Holmes would pay the premiums but also be the beneficiary), as well as his lovers and hotel guests. He tortured and killed them in some of the worst possible ways you could imagine. Some were locked in soundproof bedrooms fitted with gas lines that let him asphyxiate them at any time and some were locked in a huge soundproof bank vault near his office where they were left to suffocate. He would then take the victims' bodies and drop by secret chute to the basement where some were meticulously dissected, stripped of flesh, crafted into skeleton models, and then sold to medical schools. Holmes also cremated some of the bodies or placed them in lime pits for destruction. Holmes had two giant furnaces as well as pits of acid, bottles of various poisons, and even a stretching rack which he would use to help dispose of the bodies and any evidence. Through the connections he had gained in medical school, he sold skeletons and organs with little difficulty and therefore was able to get rid of even more evidence. He had some of the best methods for disposing of all of his victims and the evidence that anything had ever even happened which is why it is so difficult to determine just how many victims he actually had and who they were. There were also trapdoors and chutes so that he could move the bodies down to the basement where he could burn his victims’ remains in a kiln there or dispose of them in other ways. All the while, Holmes continued to work insurance scams and it was one of these scams that led to his undoing. He joined forces with Benjamin Pitezel to collect $10,000 from a life insurance company. Holmes would leave Chicago due to the economy and move down to Fort Worth, Texas, to a property that he inherited from two sisters he promised to marry and later murdered. He had planned to build another castle, but would abandon that idea and move about the US as well as Canada and he was believed to have killed several more victims on his travels, but no evidence of this could be found. Holmes's murder spree finally ended when he was arrested in Boston on November 17, 1894, after being tracked there from Philadelphia by the Pinkertons(a national detective agency). He was held on an outstanding warrant for horse theft in Texas, as the police had little more than suspicions at this point and Holmes appeared ready to leave the country, with his unsuspecting third wife. After the custodian for the Castle informed police that he was never allowed to clean the upper floors, police began a thorough investigation over the course of the next month, uncovering Holmes's efficient methods of committing murders and then disposing of the corpses. While Holmes sat in prison in Philadelphia, not only did the Chicago police investigate his operations in that city, but the Philadelphia police began to try to unravel the Pitezel situation, the fate of the three missing children. Philadelphia detective Frank Geyer was given the task of finding out and his quest for the children, like the search of Holmes's Castle, received wide publicity. He would eventually discover their remains essentially sealed Holmes's fate, at least in the public mind. Holmes was put on trial for the murder of Pitezel and confessed, following his conviction, to 27 murders in Chicago, Indianapolis and Toronto, and six attempted murders. Holmes was paid $7,500 ($197,340 in today's dollars) by the Hearst Newspapers in exchange for this confession. He gave various contradictory accounts of his life, claiming initially innocence and later that he was possessed by Satan. His faculty for lying has made it difficult for researchers to ascertain any truth on the basis of his statements. On May 7, 1896, H. H. Holmes went to the hangman's noose. His last meal was boiled eggs, dry toast, and coffee. Even at the noose, he changed his story. He claimed to have killed only two people, and tried to say more but at 10:13 the trapdoor opened and he was hanged, it took him fully 15 minutes to strangle to death on the gallows. Afraid of body-snatchers who might capitalize on his corpse, Holmes had made a request: He wanted no autopsy and he instructed his attorneys to see that he was buried in a coffin filled with cement. This was taken to Holy Cross Cemetery south of Philadelphia and two Pinkerton guards stood over the grave during the night before the body was finally interred in a double grave also filled with cement. No stone was erected to mark it, Larson states, although its presence is recorded on a cemetery registry. Holmes attorneys had turned down an offer of $5,000 for his body, and even refused his brain to Philadelphias Wistar Institute, which hoped to have its experts analyze the organ for better understanding of the criminal mind. Larson recounts a series of strange events afterward that gave credence to the rumors that Holmes was satanic, including several weird deaths and a fire at the D. A. s office that destroyed everything there save a photograph of Holmes. During this case, another American phenomenon arose from society's fascination with sensational crime. Thousands of people lined up to see the Chicago murder site, so a former police officer remodeled the infamous building as â€Å"Holmes's Horror Castle,† an attraction that offered guided tours to the suffocation chambers and torture rooms. But before it opened it mysteriously burned to the ground. So many people who'd rented rooms from Holmes during the fair had actually gone missing that sensational estimates of his victims reached around 200, and some people perpetuated this unsubstantiated toll even today. Its likely that Holmes own figure from his recanted confession is low, but there is no way to know just how many he actually killed. In the end he was so worried that someone would want to do to him what he had done to so many others that he felt the only way he could rest in peace was to be encased in concrete. He was one of the first ever serial killers and one of the worst. It was horrible what he did and all of the lives lost because of this man. In my opinion his request for a protected grave was one of the things that show you how crazy this man really was and how smart he was all at the same time. In my opinion the starting point in H. H. Holmes spiral to murder would be that as a child, schoolmates forced him to view and touch a human skeleton after discovering his fear of the local doctor. The bullies initially brought him there to scare him, but instead he was utterly fascinated, and he soon became obsessed with death. He started by stealing bodies from the morgue, would disfigure them and then claim they were accidentally killed so he could collect on an insurance policy he would take out on each person. Some of his fellow students became scared of him while trying to bully him, he was a bigamist, some felt he was charming, he was manipulative, and many of those around him viewed him as suspicious and shady. H. H. Holmes seemed to have the perfect idea on how to get rich and how to get away with murder and in fact he did for a long time. He was a very smart man and that is the reason that I believe he was able to go so long without getting caught. On New Year's Eve, 1910, Marion Hedgepeth, who had been pardoned for informing on Holmes, was shot and killed by a police officer during a holdup at a Chicago saloon. Then, on March 7, 1914, the Chicago Tribune reported that, with the death of the former caretaker of the Murder Castle, Pat Quinlan, â€Å"the mysteries of Holmes' Castle† would remain unexplained. Quinlan had committed suicide by taking strychnine. Quinlan's surviving relatives claimed Quinlan had been â€Å"haunted† for several months before his death and could not sleep.

Services Project Management Four Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Services Project Management Four - Essay Example ful completion of any project, and ties together various participating components of the project on the basis of deliverables over a planned time frame. Although a contract maybe written or oral, the former is overwhelmingly more popular due to its comparative permanence strength and verifiability. Relationships in any project are defined by a series of contacts between the owner, the consultants, contractors, sub-contractors and vendors. There are other legally binding documents that may take the form of MoUs (Memorandum of Understanding), agreements or LoIs (Letter of Intent), used between the owners and others contributing through goods or services during and after the project. In a civil engineering and construction scenario, a contract between the client and any contractor implies stage-wise payment against a defined series of chronologically spaced deliverables from the client where the process as well as the product meets contractually defined standards. Each of these contract sub-types have different advantages and have a different degree of risk exposure to the client and the contractor. It is in the interest of the project for the correct type of contract to be formulized in order to avoid the 3 reasons for failure of contract discharge. We shall discuss below each type of contract, the problems faced during the execution of such a contract and methods by which these problems can be dealt with so as to minimize friction during project execution. It is an agreement creating an obligation on the contractor to complete works as shown and specified by drawings and documents, subject to incidental and pre-mapped variations, supplying of all labour, materials and equipment so as to complete the contracted for work for a fixed amount subject to adjustments and payable by the owner as a reciprocal obligation either as a single payment or as a series of payments triggered by intermediate goals during the project. Indivisibility: A fixed price contract is

Manage change task 2 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Manage change task 2 - Research Paper Example In most cases, organizational change tends to be radical and can lead to reorientation of the business. Organisational change tends to be deep seated, thereby impacting the stakeholders of the company as well (Smith, Vasudevan and Tanniru). Organisational change is based on external factors and these factors impact the organisation and also act as driving forces in a number of times. Benefits of Change Specialists: Change in an organisation means an impact on the processes of an organisation. This impact can be very wide spread or simply concentrated on one aspect of the business; however it does create major ripples in the organisation. Consulting or hiring a change consultant is crucial for a business attempting change and the benefits of hiring a change consultant is very high (Hiatt and Creasey). Firstly, change management consultants are experienced and well versed with the various aspects and change and have clear resources as well as methods of dealing with change. Also, chang e management consultants have the expertise to manage communication within the organisation, which is crucial. Change is not well accepted in most organisations and having a change consultant, who can communicate the change details effectively, makes the process smoother and more effective (Nelson and Aaron). Consultants of change also design the communication plans, training and development plans, documentation, improvements of the organisation, career development plans, and also the designing, developing of plans to bring about the improvements within the organisation. Also, consultants work with the clients and learn their requirements, make the project plans and also work on the tasks and value added solution. Change management is a professional job and it is best left to individuals with the expertise for it. Need for Change: Strategic change involves a number of changes to the organisation as a whole. Hence before an organisation decides to make a strategic change to itself, a few questions and areas need to be considered. These include the following: Firstly, is the organization a start up business? If yes, then implementing a strategic change is crucial and is a necessity rather than a luxury. The strategic change plan helps identify the business plan and also helps in linking all other elements like marketing plan, financial plans, management plans and also communication plans together (Smith, Vasudevan and Tanniru). Secondly, the next question that the company needs to ask itself is, Are we planning for a new major venture? Here if the company is opting for a major venture like product expansion or brand extensions, new department or division etc, then it is crucial for the businesses to implement strategic change. Is the company due for the annual strategic plan update? If so, it is crucial that the company has the strategic change plan developed and set as well. Companies need to focus on the various performance meters within the organisation and k eep a tab on the trends. This will help the company determine whether or not a change management is necessary or not. Strategic Objectives: The rationale and objectives for any change management program are important aspects. Objectives are in most cases specific and achievable and in most cases these objectives are the most

Effects of Technology in Administrative Office Systems Essay

Effects of Technology in Administrative Office Systems - Essay Example Technology has been a source of ease and comfort for man but along with innumerable advantages, it has bought with it certain drawbacks as well. Excessive dependence upon technology and its practically implemented turnaround such as Smartphone, the Internet and tablet PCs has shown signs of certain disadvantages that may have long-lasting effects if not addressed timely. Since connectivity to the internet is not an issue anymore it is possible to access both personal and office related work via the internet just about any time during the day. All one needs to do is to log into the internet and begin to access your work while even sitting at your home.For some people this may seem like a precious facility but the fact is that excessive usage of this facility is leading to personality disorders among individuals. Writing in the New York Times author Tara Parker-Pope maintains that," Typically, the concern about our dependence on technology is that it detracts from our time with family and friends in the real world. ... It may be that the immediacy of the Internet, the efficiency of the iPhone ..."It is vital to state here that though it is important to make use of technology throughout the day this usage should be constrained and should not affect the personal responsibilities of an individual. Tara Parker-Pope also emphasizes in her article that excessive dependence upon technology emerges like a disease that needs to be treated just like any other psychological disorder. Not only does this dependence make a person negligent of his responsibilities towards himself and his family he may even turn out to become beholders of virtual personalities which are entirely different from their own individual existence. This war of an individual with his own self is mainly overcome by the virtual self leading to devastating effects in the days to come. While technology has begun to have adverse affects upon the personalities of individuals, the core advantages that it has bought to the human society greatly outweigh drawbacks associated with it. Administrative Offices have many organizational and managerial tasks at hand. It is imperative that their details be discussed in order to narrate the changes that would be bought with the fusion of technology in them. For a conventional office system administrative tasks may merely be as simple as the maintenance of records of the employees working for an organization and the maintenance and generation of their payroll, regularly, on a monthly basis to the strategic tasks as those involving major business decision making. A number of tasks that may be assisted greatly by the infusion of technology are: Recording and Managing of Organizational data. Maintenance of records of purchases, products and merchandise. Business related human interactions. Accounting. Communications in business. Organization in business. Correspondence and Collaboration. Strategic Decision Making. Managing of administrative knowledge, in a knowledgeable manner is the key to betterment in the implementation of these processes. Shannak (2010) researched the effect of managing knowledge upon administrative decision making and quotes the following as part of his research, "Knowledge Management is a technique that seeks to improve the performance of individuals and organizations by making use of the present and future value of knowledge assets. It is presumed that the performance will be improved by