Crimes Against Information Systems Analysis Essay

Crimes Against Information Systems Analysis - Essay Example Cyber-terrorism is the new crime preference to inflict havoc on the masses of society. Watson (2002) defines cyber-terrorism as "the use of cyber tools to shut down critical national infrastructures (such as energy, transportation, or government operations) for the purpose of coercing or intimidating a government or civilian population." (p.8) Over the years, the level of cyber-terrorism has evolved. Years ago, hackers attained satisfaction by simply breaking into a system (Wilmot, 2004). However, Littleton (1995) still regards hackers as dangerous and further implies imminent danger by questioning the ability of a hacker to become a cyber-terrorist. Wilmot (2004) contends that hackers' abilities to "crack passwords or find a back door route through a security firewall" shows that hackers can easily use a simple act to corrupt data in high technology. (p. 287). Though hackers implement a more simplistic form of cyber-terrorism, and their trespassing is not as harmful as modern day cr ackers-those who seek to disable networks or systems-both hackers and crackers pose danger to the world that holds critical information. However, the sophistication of cyber-terrorists' methods correlates with the degree of their motives. An intent Motives and Methods of Cyber-Terrorists An intent of cyber-terrorist includes causing a devastating amount of damage, while remaining elusive. To illustrate the elusiveness of a cyber-terrorist, Littleton (1995) uses two examples from the late 1980's. The identification, trial, and conviction of Robert T. Morris transpired only because he spoke of his creation, the 1988 Internet Worm, to several people. Rather, the author of the famous Michelangelo virus remains unidentified and escaped consequences altogether. The low risk of being captured coupled with the benefit of easily gaining access to restricted areas makes the crime of cyber-terrorism more appealing to criminals. Motives of cyber-terrorists range from mischief to malice. Today's juveniles have joined the cyber-terrorist realm by defacing Web sites. However, Watson (2002) regards the less serious crimes as highly consequential. When a site is defaced, its information is altered. Misleading information ultimately deceives viewers of the site and result in decrease of confidence and capital for owners of the site. Both hackers and crackers gain access to exclusive information by deciphering protective codes (Wilmot, 2004), which Littleton (1995) claims is not hard to do. A mischievous hacker seeks to only occupy an area considered off limits. On the other hand, a malicious cracker not only breaks codes to enter off-limits areas, but he or she seeks to vandalize or defile the area by causing immediate damage or planting viruses which slowly infiltrate and destroy systems that operate as critical infrastructures (Morris; Wilmot, 2004). Impact of Cyber-Terrorism According to Wilmot (2004), citizens cannot function without the critical infrastructures of their communities. One part of the critical infrastructure extremely vulnerable to cyber-terrorism is the public safety system. Branches of the public safety

Four Functions of Business: Case Study of Asda and Kwik-Fit

Four Functions of Business: Case Study of Asda and Kwik-Fit Functional areas of business operation Introduction This paper studies four distinct functions of business and how they interrelate. The chosen areas are human resources, distribution, marketing and customer services. Human Resources The function of human resources is to provide a focus and strategy for the efficient management of business employees. Employee management is a primary task of modern corporations. If not dealt with appropriately, employees can have an adverse effect upon the success of the business (Alan Price 2003). Employee satisfaction affects all areas of the business. For example, if an employee is happy at work it will show in the customer service they provide. It also helps promote the business, justify the marketing and promotion message and ensure the smooth running of the distribution function. Distribution Distribution is the function by which the product or service is moved from the manufacturer to the end user (P. Kolter 1991), ultimately the consumer. This can be represented by physical methods, such as transportation and storage or, in a service industry, the method by which that service is packaged and delivered. A breakdown in the distribution process affects customer services, as the business may not be able to deliver the product or service required. The marketing function would be undermined, as promises made cannot be kept. Ultimately, this situation would de-motivate employees, as they are the ones receiving consumer complaints. Marketing Effective marketing and promotion is essential as a method of ensuring the message regarding products or services attracts the attention of the consumer. (George Belch 2004). The marketing function is to deliver a message that is seen, believed and remembered. A successful marketing campaign is heavily reliant upon the efficiency of other business functions. If the business cannot deliver the goods, customers will stop listening to the promotional message. Similarly, if the employees have not received training in customer care, a marketing campaign suggesting consumer care is paramount will not be believed. Customer Services Delivery of customer services is probably the most crucial function. The consumer adds value to the success of the business by purchasing their product or service (Sean Kelly 2005). Therefore, every business has to build and maintain a close relationship with consumers. They have to deliver what the customer needs at a quality and price that meets their requirements. In a competitive marketplace, the correct level of customer service is essential if a business is to achieve a growth in market share. Two organisations, Asda Plc., and Kwik-Fit Insurance Services have been chosen to demonstrate how these functions work in practice. Asda The Asda supermarket chain is a subsidiary of the American Wal-Mart retailer, one of the UK’s leading supermarket chains, with over 150,000 employees. Human Resources Asda’s HR strategy is built on the basis that every employee (All about Asda, 2006) â€Å"plays a part in making the business a success.† To achieve employee satisfaction, retention and succession, Asda runs a programme that provides training covering every area of the business, including in-store and external processes, as well as company policy and customer care. The business is committed to achieving in house succession and to promote this aim, it includes management training as part of its HR programme (See Asda Website Training page). Understanding the need for employees to feel an affinity with the business, Asda encourages staff to take an active part in work meetings, which take place in-store, regionally and nationally, where views can be expressed and discussed. The core of its HR function is to gain the best from employees by encouraging involvement with the business at all levels. Distribution Asda works closely with suppliers to maintain efficient distribution services. This ensures levels of goods required are fed through warehousing centres and to individual stores in a manner that maintains consistent product availability for customers. To allow for regional variances, the business delegates an element of the distribution decision-making process to local store management. Marketing Faced with changing consumer demands (Sean Kelly 2005), Asda now focuses its marketing and promotion on the dual aspect of quality at the right price. This has enabled the business to achieve second position within the grocery industry. Customer Services Asda has consistently sought to improve its customer services. In addition to staff customer care training Asda has expanded the product range throughout its stores. Internet shopping and expansion of till services, including self-service options, are other areas of the business where customer service improvements have been introduced. Kwik-Fit Insurance Services KFIS is an insurance call centre based in Glasgow. Although it was founded with the view to concentrating on the motor industry insurance, the business has expanded into more general areas of insurance. Human Resources To compete with other local call-centre operations, KFIS had to completely revise its HR strategy. This was partially achieved through improving the working environment. Like Asda it introduced training programmes to improve employee standards and encourage involvement. In addition, KFIS operates a â€Å"guardian angel† scheme (Jill Boulton, 2004), where existing staff act as mentors to new recruits. It also appointed a â€Å"minister of fun,† to organise staff social activities. The success of these measures has been reflected in business results. Distribution Unlike Asda, KFIS does not have a need for a physical distribution function. The distribution element here is to ensure the insurance products offered are designed to match consumer requirements. As the service KFIS offers is distributed through call centre operators, the importance of staff and producer knowledge levels is essential in distributing the correct range of products to the end user. Marketing Whilst much of its marketing is directed through Kwik-Fit auto centres, and dependent upon the quality of their service, a significant proportion of promotion is undertaken through advertising and the call centre operators. For example, when engaging with a customer an operator may attract them to other insurance products. In this business the interaction between employee and customer is an integral part of the marketing process (George Belch 2004). Customer Services The customer service aspect of KFIS is more directly linked to the reaction of the employee than with Asda. In a call centre situation consumers instantly judge the services they are receiving by their perception of the operator. The operator’s reaction, explanation and provision of the most appropriate product, and efficiency of service, will determine whether the customer is satisfied and will remain loyal to the business. HR director (Keren Edwards 2006) believes that the strategy in place in the business is contributing to the success in terms of customer retention. Conclusion From the information within this paper it is clear that every function described is dependent upon, and influenced either positively or adversely by the others. If one function, for instance, customer services, does not perform at its most efficient, the result will affect the other functions. Customers will stop believing the marketing, resulting in fewer products sold, parts of the distribution function becoming redundant and a reduction in employee moral and efficiency. References All about Asda (2006). Asda People. Asda Plc. Retreived 19 January from http://asdacares.gpalm.co.uk/people/people_load.html Armstrong, Michael (2006). A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. Kogan Page. UK. Price, Alan (2003). Human Resource Management in a Business Context. Thomson Learning, UK. Kotler, P. (1991). Marketing Management. FT Prentice Hall, 7th Ed. UK Belch, George. E (2004) Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective. McGraw-Hill Inc. U.S. Kelly, Sean. (2005) Customer intelligence From Data to Dialogue. John Wiley Sons Ltd., UK Boulton, Jill (2004). Kwik-Fit hires fun guy to keep staff smiling. The Scotsman, Friday 21 May 2004. Edwards, Keren (2006). Keep Fit Scheme. People Management Scheme. UK. 6th April 2006. Caffà ¨ Nero: Strategy and Balanced Scorecard Caffà ¨ Nero: Strategy and Balanced Scorecard Introduction The aim of this essay is to design a strategy and two balanced scorecards for a coffee shop company called Caffà © Nero to compliment their mission statement. This will be done after conducting extensive secondary research to gain a clear insight into what a balanced scorecard involves as well as looking into how Caffà © Nero operates. This will hopefully provide knowledge of potential benefits and difficulties to consider when attempting to successfully implement scorecards for both Headquarter and Store Levels for Caffà © Nero. In addition to this, for each scorecard, a strategy map is used to demonstrate how each key performance indicator (KPI) contributes to the overall vision of the company. Finally both levels are then assessed on its contributions to Cafà © Neros strategy and a conclusion is drawn on the main points outlined throughout the essay. What is the Balanced Scorecard? Kaplan introduced the balanced scorecard in 1992 with the aim to translate strategy into action, he stated, The balanced scorecard translates an organisations mission into a comprehensive set of performance measures that provides the framework for implementing its strategy. (Kaplan Norton, 1996: p88). Having understood an organisations vision and strategy, the balanced scorecard aids to develop creative objectives to help measure performance. These objectives can be split into four main perspectives: Financial, Customer, Internal Business Process and Learning and Growth all of which link together to form a strategy map. Implementation of the Balanced Scorecard Benefits and difficulties Bourne Bourne (2007) presents reasons to why once implemented the balanced scorecard can fail. It is beneficial for Caffà © Nero to be conscious of potential problems that may arise in the near future when implementing their balanced scorecards. Looking at the difficulties and problems portrayed by theorists and other organisations experiences should present Caffà © Nero with a competitive advantage. The opportunity of being able to use other organisations failures and theorists advice to overcome the issues presented is valuable. It is particularly important as large amounts of time and money from the company are being invested into this performance management tool. One potential problem is the complexity of the system, resulting in unachieved objectives which will affect the overall vision and strategy of Caffà © Nero. Organisations are faced with de-motivated staff as they steer away from the main objectives that are originally assigned. Although, this is a common problem for the majority of companies when introducing the scorecards, Caffà © Nero is aware of this problem and can therefore take this into consideration throughout the design stage. In particular consideration would be beneficial, in terms of the strategy map when linking the objectives together, so that they are easy to follow and comprehensive for the whole company. As for overcoming the complexity issue, Caffà © Nero can focus on their employees with training, conferences, group and one to one meetings to ensure that every employee within the organisation fully understands what a balanced scorecard is. Their objectives and how they are being measured as well as how each pers pective interlinks in achieving Caffà © Neros strategy. Drury (2004) suggests another difficulty with the scorecard, he identifies that the assumptions of the cause and effect relationships are being excessively vague as well as lacking empirical support. Further research has concluded that is it difficult to link non financial data with future financial performance if at all. Caffà © Nero needs to consider this, as their main objective is to achieve future revenue growth both within the UK and internationally. So perhaps with measures and objectives that are assigned, should be more focused around revenue and financial aspects where possible. An additional difficulty concerning the perspectives shown within the management tool is that it does not factor in other aspects of the business to incorporate customers, employees, suppliers and other environment perspectives. Although Caffà © Nero is not restricted to adding additional perspectives, it could complicate the scorecard further making it difficult to achieve all objectives assigned and some may overlap with existing objectives. Traditionally, when implementing a scorecard the assumption is, the decisions sit with the senior management throughout the design stage as they fully understand the ins and outs of the organisation. Although this may be the case, it is not always in the best interest of the organisation to design a scorecard that only looks at all levels of the business from a top heavy approach. To overcome this Caffà © Nero can be smart and ensure that all functional representatives of their hierarchy from store-level to headquarter level are included within the design. This in turn will show teamwork in working together to understand where each individual fits in to the overall strategy in order to meet the companys objectives. Although the scorecard demonstrates various difficulties that Caffà © Nero should be aware of. Not all is bad; the on-going popularity of the balanced scorecard from other organisations makes it extremely hard to not notice some of the benefits of this management tool. One important trait of the scorecard is its use of effectively combining all the separate elements of the company into one simple model, with help from the strategy map. The tool is also able to help employees and the company to understand how everything interlinks and contributes to the overall strategy. For example, looking at how employees from Caffà © Nero store-level are able to contribute and work with headquarters objectives by improving customer service at store-level in aid to reduce customer complaints for headquarter level at the other end. This management tool is also enabling managers to consider all objectives and measures together as a whole by looking at the bigger picture. Therefore Caffà © Nero can take advantage of these benefits and make necessary improvements to the costs of the company with cost reductions at headquarter level. Lynch (2009) comments that the real benefit of the scorecard is the linkage between strategy and implementation. Most theorists argue that the main goal of the majority of organisations is a form of shareholder value added. Caffà © Nero should consider this when implementing both scorecards. By looking into both quantitative and qualitative measures within the strategy, they should hopefully determine the expectations of their shareholders within performance measures in their strategy and scorecards to achieve growth in shareholder value. Caffà © Nero Strategy Grant (2008) outlines various strategies an organisation can adopt when trying to achieve growth. Having viewed this, Caffà © Nero is more geared towards a business strategy, as it concerns the company with competing within a particular coffee shop market. To prosper within this market it is important to concentrate on establishing a competitive advantage over rivals. To support this Caffà © Nero should base their strategy around product differentiation, by providing customers with quality ranges of espresso that is exclusive to Caffà © Nero stores, will only contribute to concreting a competitive advantage for the company. It also works on shielding Caffà © Nero from their prices being levelled down to the bottom part of the price spectrum, due to potential competitive price wars of the same product between their competitors. This is an important strategy to implement as due to the increase of popularity of coffee shops it is likely for these price wars to occur. As a result, Caffà © Nero can look to improve further, with the quality of their products as well as launching new products in the future as part of their strategy. This can be achieved with product innovation to cater to larger consumer base within the market, hopefully contributing to the growth in both revenue and size within the UK and internationally. Cafà © Nero is well known for its acquisition of Aroma which increased the amount of sites they owned to 106 by 2002; this made them the largest independent owned coffee shop. The company now has 400 stores operating in various locations within the UK, Turkey and the Middle East. Caffà © Nero should now look towards the future of the company, by expanding the number of sites owned. Therefore it is important that part of the strategy should reflect in achieving expansion both internationally and UK based. Caffà © Nero will incorporate this in the scorecard within the financial perspective at headquarter level, as Kaplan and Norton (1996) states that the designing of the strategy of the company is combined with the process of the balanced scorecard. However Caffà © Nero may be faced with great difficulty with trying to implement their strategy due to the diversity of locations they operate in. As it is harder to standardise a scorecard for all site levels throughout the business internationally, as culture and expectations of customers and employees may be different throughout locations. This can be said the same about different locations within the UK. For example Londons objectives may incorporate a faster pace of service to compliment their busy, on the go customers in comparison to another site in a quieter location that may prefer much more of a mellow approach, at a slower pace and friendlier atmosphere where everyone is a community. Caffà © Nero tries to incorporate all of these elements within the overall strategy. Balanced Scorecard Strategy Map The following models demonstrate Caffà © Neros scorecards for both headquarter level and store-level. As well as strategy maps to illustrate how each objective will link together. It is important to note that although the scorecards produced are for the same company, they may differ in objectives for each level, to incorporate all personnel throughout the company. Objectives of headquarter level will focus more on the overall performance of the company, in terms of how they can grow in revenue, size and customers. The model will also focus on innovating products and retention rates of employees and customers. Where as, with the store-level objectives will be more centred around individual stores in terms of customer service, delivery times and empowering and motivating staff with training and incentive programmes. Once the following scorecards have been implemented for Caffà © Nero, it is then important to ensure that everyone throughout the company understands the balanced scoreca rd and where they are contributing to achieving Caffà © Neros vision. As well as considering how all of the objectives from each level will interlink between the two scorecards. This can be done through training centres, conferences and meetings. Scorecard Evaluation Having designed both scorecards (Figure 1 and 2) an evaluation will be conducted to explore both the similarities and differences presented within each models. Additional to this, supporting evidence will add weight to justify reasons for selecting objectives and indicator to contribute to Caffà © Neros overall strategy. Financial Perspective The first objective shown in the financial perspective (figure 1 2) is revenue growth this relates to achieving an increase in growth in some form or another. To drive revenue growth Caffà © Nero objectives concentrate on diversifying into new markets internationally and within UK. As well as branching out into new customer markets and increasing the number of stores owned by Caffà © Nero. Each of these objectives chosen all tie in with Caffà © Neros overall strategy of expansion of the business in the near future. The key performance indicators incorporated into this perspective help to measure each objective for the company. The main similar measure here is (F1 F4) percentage of increase in revenue growth in the overall company and individual store-level (F5). To achieve these objectives they would have to be based upon implementing bonus and incentive schemes for employees so that they are motivated to achieve targets set. They would also need to target larger segments of new customer markets by advertising in new locations such as near to universities to appeal to students or offices to appeal to the working customers. However a drawback of this measure is due to the population suffering from the effects of the recession and the economy resulting to a decrease in disposal income. Meaning growth in revenue for Caffà © Nero will be delicate as new potential customers may not be as opened to trying new coffee shops then their norm as well as lifestyle changes that will affect the amount of r evenue that each store generates. This is why a mark up % was not included in aid to limit other problems such as the affect on shareholder value, as incorporating percentages would put further pressure on the company in case they were unable to achieve resulting to shareholders expectations to decline. Another important objective within the financial section is (F6) improve operational efficiency, which is reducing wastage costs for the business. It is important to achieve this objective as it saves the company money and better for the environment. This can be done by providing more awareness of how to reduce wastage i.e. not leaving taps of water on just for the convenience element for coffee shops. Being aware of waste problems presents benefits as in turn this will maintain the companies overall brand image, which links in will the customer perspective (C3 figure 1) of maintaining brand image. Customer Perspective It is important to measure this objective (C3), as it involves the public with collating feedback and results in reference to how the general public perceive Caffà © Nero as a company. This objective also gives the company an opportunity with participating in charity and environmental work that will help several organisations as well as portraying a better image for the company. This is with the intention to increase in revenue and customer satisfaction, as customers like to be involved in supporting good causes. This is why it was important to incorporate this within the headquarter scorecard. Figure 2 also looks at customer retention (C5), customer satisfaction (C6) and customer profitability (C4) as main objectives to achieve. Each of these objectives link with each other, for example if the customers are satisfied with the service and products offered by staff then they are likely to come back time after time. Creating customer loyal will result in increasing customer retention rates hopefully leading to customer profitability. Therefore ensuring customers are provided with great customer service and high standards of quality products will cement this relationship with customers and employees. Where the employees are concerned this is incorporated into the internal process and learning and growth perspectives. It is significant to note that both levels differ in objectives as the store-level is more involved with direct customer improvement as they adopt a more personal approach with more of a face to face relationship. Therefore objectives will be focused around the service element. In comparison to the headquarters that will look more to indirectly improving service by site quality, reducing complaints and activities involving improving brand image. However one similarity between them is that they are measured by customer feedback in one form or another. Internal Business Processes Perspective The first objective presented in figure 1 is (IP1) innovating products involved, this objective is important for businesses to maintain as their strategy and brand image pride themselves on producing unique high quality products in espresso and food. Therefore it is important for Caffà © Nero to innovate new products in order to compete within such a popular market. To measure this objective Caffà © Nero will look at increase in sales from new products in order to measure if they are successful or not. For that reason employee should be aware of the new products that are available by offering them at pay out areas in order to advertise new products, which links into objective (IP4) developing internal product knowledge. This will be achieved by daily staff meeting and work booklets to test staffs knowledge. Again, this perspective demonstrates some similarities between figures 1 2. Objectives are set to improve on delivery times for customers (IP2 IP5), this is aid of achieving h igh quality of service to link to customer satisfaction (C6), retention (IP3) and profitability (C4). If customers are dissatisfied they will go elsewhere which will affect growth in revenue (F1). To measure delivery times, focus as obtain comparing where Caffà © Nero are in terms of the market, as customers will have a certain level of expectations. However if Caffà © Nero are able to excel over this, it will create customer satisfaction which in theory will lead to more business from that customer. Also by ensuring there is a balanced customer to employee ratio in each site helps to improve delivery and customer service for customers as waiting times will decrease. Learning and Growth Perspective This area focuses on employees in terms of creating objectives to maintain training, in aid of retaining employee loyalty (LG1), improving both job and employee satisfaction (LG2), increasing employees capabilities in skills (LG4) as well as motivating and empowering employees (LG5). In theory these objectives should participate to maintaining a customer centric focus (LG3). Within this perspective, there are many differences between the scorecards as store-level focus on individual needs of employees to drive employee satisfaction. In comparison to headquarters which looks at overall achieving programmes to assist employee satisfaction, presenting a common objective in both scorecards. To measure these objectives appraisal and one to one meetings are used to assess their performance and how to improve in growth in revenue for the business. Each level is assessed by individual employees at store-level and individuals stores for headquarter level. Olve (2003) looked into how incentive and reward programmes can be aligned with scorecards in order to promote realization of intended strategy. This has been incorporated into the learning and growth stage of the scorecards. In aid to attract employees attention, to perform well at store level, contributing to the overall objective of increasing revenue growth for the company. Although there are many differences between the models as each scorecard targets a different audience, it is important to note that they both interlink to together to achieve Cafà © Neros objectives. As store-level focuses on direct customer service it is important that they get it right to achieve sales, retention as well as maintain a happy working environment for staff as getting these objective help to achieve objectives set for headquarter level. In terms of employee retention, training programmes, customer profitability and satisfaction as well as product innovation Conclusion To summarise the main points of this essay, it is essential to consider the information available in order to successfully design and implement a scorecard for a company. As statics show that 70% of balanced scorecards fail due to lack of research within their own individual company and the scorecard. The second point was to fully understand what Caffà © Nero wanted to achieve in regards to their strategy, as it is vital to not incorporate everything as this will only present more problems then benefits. Thirdly, when designing the scorecards for Caffà © Nero, it was crucial to ensure that they were easy to follow for all members of the organisation, as every objective interlinks and filters up the model in a form of a chain. If one objective is not met then this will affect the rest of the model creating a cause and affect relationship throughout the scorecard. For example consequences may lead to losing customers due to bad customer service, lack of high quality products and product knowledge due to limited training. As to measurements within the scorecards Caffà © Nero tried to be realistic so that they are able achieve their strategy as unrealistic measurements can disadvantage a business, as the costs of implementing balanced scorecards is a large investment to make as large amounts of money and time is needed. It is also important that Caffà © Nero adopted a trial and error approach so they could keep reviewing their scorecards to ensure they were aligned with their strategy. Overall a balanced scorecard is an affective management tool to translate strategy into a vision. Word Count: 3299

Essay --

Police Canine Training I’ve always felt that animals are the purest spirits in the world. They don’t fake or hide their feelings, and they are the most loyal creatures on Earth and somehow we humans think we’re smarter. I chose this topic about the canine because, some of these canines risk their life’s to protect dog’s best friend. What is Canine? The canine (K-9) is referred to as a police dog. There are different certain breeds of k-9’s used, for example ,German Shepard’s (protection, attack dog, ground based tracking and air based tracking, locating human remains, locating drugs, locating IEDs, locating evidence), Rottweiler’s , Doberman Pinner’s, Labrador Retriever’s (locating bombs, drugs ) and Belgian Malinois’s (protection, attack dog, locating IEDs, locating evidence, locating drugs, prisoner transport, human tracking) . The k-9 have specialized talents such as search and rescue, cadaver dogs, enforcing public order, detection dogs, and arson dogs says officer olive. The K-9 handler will be tested on with their k-9 abilities to demonstrate their physical ability to control ...

Science Is a Threat to Humanity

SCIENCE IS A THREAT TO HUMANITY 1ST – OPPOSITION Thank you my dear madam speaker. Assalamualaikum and a very good day to the wise and honourable adjudicators, the alert and punctual time keeper, my fellow teammates, the misleading government team and MOTH. Before i start, i would like to refute the definition given by the government team. Now, it is my duty to define the key words of today’s motion.According to Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, science means knowledge about the world, especially based on examination and testing, and on facts that can be proved. Threat means someone or something that is regarded as a possible danger. Lastly, humanity means the state of being human and having qualities and rights that all people have.So, the full definition of today’s motion is knowledge about the world, especially based on examination and testing and on facts that can be proved is a possible danger to qualities and rights of all people. Now, please allow me to rebut the point given by the Prime Minister. He/She claims said that ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ But that is not true because ______________________________________________________________________________________________________Before i go on with my arguments, i would like to stress that my team mates and i are totally disagree with the motion today that says ‘Science is a threat to Humanity’ and would like to switch this motion to ‘Science is a bless to humanity’ which means knowledge about the world, especially based on examination and testing and on facts that can be proved makes people happy and satisfied in terms of qualities and rights of all people. Now, please allow me to introduce my team mates.I as the first speaker will talk about Science gives major health benefits while my second speaker will further strengthen our team’s stand on this motion by talking ab out Science helps in improving qualities of life and Science improve communication. Last but not least, my third speaker will rebut all misleading points raised by the government team. MOTH, In today’s world, Science is vital in ensuring we live a healthy life. It has major health benefits because as we have the knowledge about the treatments of certain illness and cures are discovered, many lives can be saved.MOTH, If we support Science, we can get the benefits from it. Our lives will be much better because we will be able to find the cures and preventions to diseases. We need to have the knowledge in medical aspect so that all fatal diseases can be cured and prevented. Not only that, by supporting science, we will be able to create better health and medical facilities. We will be able to use drugs that prevent diseases rather than merely treating symptoms and we will have body monitors that warn of impending trouble. MOTH,Can you bear the pain of suffering from diseases suc h as cancer and heart attack all your lives just because you oppose to Science? Through science, we can have modern medicine to relieve suffering even for babies. With science also we can detect diseases in early stage even during pregnancies. In genetic screening, for example, we can monitor the development of embryos to get high quality and healthy babies. If there is any disability or defects, it can be treated in early stage. As we know, embryos might have disabilities that would kill them as newborn babies. If properly treated these people may well live to enjoy healthy lives.If we oppose science, we are actually not helping the babies to be better adults in terms of their health. Not only that. Science helps in improving health condition of human beings because of any accidents or tragedy. With science, we are able to help people who are blind to see the lights and all wonderful things on earth and people who cannot walk to be able to walk again. Isn’t it a miracle? Do you think we will be able to do so without the help of science? I don’t think so my dear government team. MOTH, I am sure i have said enough to convince you that science is not a threat but is actually a bless to humanity.The health benefits that we receive from them are so great that we are able to enjoy life to the fullest and no more worries of critical diseases. So MOTH, once again i restate our stand that we totally disagree with the motion today that says â€Å"Science is a threat to humanity’ as it should be ‘Science is a bless to humanity’. With that i beg to differ. Thank you. SCIENCE IS A THREAT TO HUMANITY 2ND- OPPOSITION Thank you madam speaker. Assalamualaikum and a very good morning to the wise and honourable adjudicators, the punctual timekeeper, my fellow teammates, not forgetting the misleading government team and members of the house.As the second speaker, it is my duty to rebut the arguments given by the second minister of the governmen t team. Her/His argument was _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ But i disagree because ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Then he/she also claimed that ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Then, the Prime Minister claims that ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Which i don’t agree because ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ MOTH, My first argument is about how science helps in improving the quality of life. As humans, we cannot deny that we need science – the knowledge to make our lives easier. You must remember, without science, you will not know how to get clothes, to build a house or to cook food. The contribution of science can be seen in our everyday lives.Can we think about a life without electricity, cars, telephone, internet, television and thousands of scientific inventions that make our life comfortable? The application of science is indeed a great help in people’s every day routine. For example, people use their refrigerator to keep their food chilled and fresh longer. People use cars, buses and other vehicles the transport themselves from one place to another. They use air conditioners and heaters to help maintain temperature. As we can see, every aspect of life is dependent on science and its application to improve the quality of life.MOTH, We cannot say no to science for all the contributions it brings. With science, we can get latest knowledge and find more discoveries to improve our quality of life. With science also we can get new technology to develop our nation and boost our economy. When our country is developed, only then we can compete with other countries or at least be equal with other countries in terms of social, politics and economy. If we are against science, of course we will be left behind. MOTH, The discoveries in genetically modified food have helped to reduce famine and hunger.In agriculture, the genetics of food are improved to produce bigger fruits which provide more nutrients to all people. This is certainly a great achievement in the field of science where it as able to help the poor countries to fight the problem of hunger among their people. MOTH, Now let’s move on to my second argument that is Science helps to improve communication. Years after years we can see advancement in the communication sector where people on opposite sides of the world are able to stay in touch where before, they would have no possible way to do so, thanks to Science and its application.Today, distance will not be an issue because we can communicate and exchange ideas with people around the wor ld in just a moment. This helps to strengthen the relationship among people. As we all know, the internet keeps us connected. We even can change our ways in solving problems easier and faster through the internet. It also makes our job run fast and more effective. Even entrepreneurs use this medium to do their transactions. The development in many industries right now also is actually because of science and the application of science.There is no barrier to market products and we can compete with other develop countries, thanks again to the miracle of science. MOTH, Do you still remember the 6th Challenge of our Vision 2020? , the challenge of establishing a scientific and progressive society, a society that is innovative and forward looking, one that is not only a consumer of technology but also a contributor to the scientific and technological civilization of the future. Our vision 2020 will not be a reality if we say no to Science. MOTH,

Crossing the Threshold

The Courage of Scott Carded It is difficult to know what one will do when faced with a life or death decision. Many do not even encounter such choices. What is thought in that spit second moment? You could save yourself or possibly save another; you could also die trying. Could you put all self-regarding values aside and complete an absolute act of courage? This is a man who did. Scott Carded had the courage to risk his own life for another's.It was Coot's third deployment. He is Infantry. He and his men walk directly into an enemy ruse. Gunfire and grenades threaten their very existence. Staff Sergeant screams to take cover, but it is too late for one man. He is down, lying vulnerably in the open. Between shots and explosions, Scott can hear the agonizing screams. He has no time to hesitate, enemy fire is closing in. Stay behind cover in safety or aide his brother in arms. No man left behind he shouts at his commanding officer.Scott tears through the sand toward the screaming, towar d the danger, toward his possible death. As he reaches his destination, he is shot through his hand by an enemy's rifle. Does he flee? No. He drags the man who has been shot through his stomach the 500 Ft. To cover with his other hand. Scott hears an all too familiar screech. He will not lose this man, not now; he knows what to do. He lies on top of him to absorb the airborne shrapnel from the grenade. The metal pierces his back and side.That man is alive today because Scott risked his life for him. Scott crossed the threshold when he stepped out of cover to retrieve a friend. He overcame fear of death and fear of failure. Courage is not absence of fear, but making the choice to overcome it, facing it head-on. Scott Carded was awarded a bronze star and multiple purple hearts in reward of his single act of courage. He did not give up. He was determined. Do not give up on your objective; you may even save a life.

Suicide and its relativity to Stephen King8217s Suffer the Little Children essays

Suicide and its relativity to Stephen King8217s Suffer the Little Children essays Suicide and its relativity to Stephen Kings Suffer the Little Children Suicide is defined as an intentional, self-inflicted death that occurs in all cultures and usually is executed by people who are suffering from some sort of extreme emotional pain and feel unable to cope with their problems (Shneidman 6). Suicide is seen in our culture to be something that happens to only the crazy people. But the reality is that normal, everyday people commit suicide as well. Since suicidology is a fairly new field of scientific study there is still much to learn about it. Some theories and other scientific information have been discovered and are very interesting. In Stephen Kings Suffer the Little Children a teacher suffers from fear, anxiety, defeat, and delusional attributes and the end result was twelve students murdered the suicide of herself. These symptoms of suicide are explained later in the research paper. Suicide began being studied scientifically a little over one century ago by a man named Emile Durkheim. But the specialized study of the causes associated with suicide and suicidal behaviors, as well the assessment, treatment, management, and prevention of such behaviors, has only been recorded in the last half of this century (Maris 1). Why do humans kill themselves? Each day people go out into the workplace, school, or some sort of other activity and experience the threat of failure; what degree that possible threat my affect is a whole different story. We all know that life is sometimes enjoyable, usually routine, and almost always difficult. We experience happiness and joy along with contentment and love. Much of our life is also taken up by the routine, everyday, and emotionally neutral actions of life. Then on the flip side there are the negative emotions that we feel like sorrow, shame, humiliation, fear, dread, defeat, and anxiety. When we digest these negative emotions psych...

In response to hijackings and terrorists attacks essays

In response to hijackings and terrorists attacks essays The democratic values involved here are, liberty in the fact that your privacy is stripped from you every time your baggage is x-rayed. Equality comes to mind when they do random searches, they have to use some kind of profiling to pick the people to search. Although these civil rights are violated they keep the participation fairly equal as everybody has to walk through the metal detectors and nobody flies with out doing so. liberty had been the single most important value in American history. America was founded on the fact that we would have liberty and be free do as we please. We need freedom for us to prosper and grow. all men are created equal This right here says it all, we need equality to evolve into better citizens to be all we can be. When some one is not treated equal that brings them down and stifles there opportunity to grow. The amount of liberty we have at the airports is so limited that nothing is sacred anymore. When I say this I mean you cant hide anything personal from airport security. Your personal privacy is traded off for your security. I would rather have security that freedom. When you have more freedom, you have more responsibilities. So in the airport if you had a lot of freedom you would also have to worry about getting mugged, the plane your riding getting hijacked, what the guy next to you really has in his pockets , etc.. The most involved democratic values used her is equality. When I go through a security checkpoint in a airport I feel violated when I am randomly asked to take off my shoes and belongings out of my pockets. I dont believe its fair that since Im a teenager I should be checked more than anyone else. That goes for racial profiling with Arabic people, I bet they get searched twice as much as I do. My view on this is that there should be full equality, either everybody gets thoroughly searched, or nobody gets searc...

Herbicides Used to Control or Kill Woody Stemmed Plants

Herbicides Used to Control or Kill Woody Stemmed Plants The United States Department of Agriculture takes herbicide application practices very seriously. You have to have a state pesticide handlers license to apply many of these chemicals or even to purchase them. I have developed this list of chemicals as a general overview of herbicides used to control of woody stemmed pests. Ways to apply an herbicide are numerous. They can  be applied to foliage or soil, they can be injected into the bark or sprayed on stumps. It all depends on the specific chemical formulation you are using.  Here are some application methods for these chemicals which should be used according to labeling instructions. Woody-stemmed Herbicides and How They are Applied These chemicals are listed by generic name, brand name and application method. Some of these herbicides may now be out of favor or have been added to a restricted list so use this list only as a starting guide. All links are to Cornell Universitys Pesticide Management Education Program. This is not an all-inclusive listing and is intended to give an overall view of available woody stem control chemicals and how they are applied: Amitrole (Amitrol-T) - foliar spray Bromacil (Hyvar) - broadcast treatment 2,4-D (several trade names) - foliar spray Dichlorprop (2,4-DP, Weedone 2,4-DP) - foliar spray Dicamba (Banvel) - cut surface Fosamine (Krenite) - foliage treatment Glyphosate (Roundup) - foliar spray Hexazinone (Velpar) - soil uptake Imazapyr (Arsenal) - foliar, frill, stump treatment Metsulfuron (Escort) - foliar spray Picloram (Tordon) - broadcast, foliar, frill treatment Tebuthiuron (Spike) - broadcast treatment Triclopyr (Garlon) - spray This listing is intended to be used as a general guide only. Before using any herbicide consult the label before using. Remember that labels change frequently and often contain special restrictions reguarding specific use of the chemical. How to Kill a Tree Using HerbicidesHow to Kill a Tree Without ChemicalsList of Approved Tree Control Chemicals

Networks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Networks - Essay Example It is this type of network that enables the various business entities that are there in a city to be in communication with each other. Finally there is the Wide Area Network. This is the network type that is of primary importance all over the world as it is the one that enables communication between almost all networked computer entities in the world. In IP addressing it is seen that what is commonly used is decimal numbers as compared to binary notation. The primary reason for this is because the decimal numbers are easier to remember in comparison to their binary equivalent. In the case of comparing the bit signal used, the company should opt to stick to the 24-bit digital audio technology as compared to developing one that makes use of the 28-bit. This is because the technology that is there supports the 24-bit and in the event that the 28-bit is implemented there may be loss of the four additional bits. In networking in a building, there are various reasons why a network may be established. One of the reasons may be for the purpose of communication and also there may be the aspect of resource sharing. In order to achieve this there are various components such as routers, gateway among others. All these are the devises that aid in the networking

Isaiah verse 1.1-2.1 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Isaiah verse 1.1-2.1 - Research Paper Example The book and the verses even depicts about the different displays of cruelty and wickedness practiced by the kings on the Jewish followers. The different developments of the books hence reflect on the political and social developments that have been evident within the kingship of Jerusalem. Furthermore, the book develops and provides a better insight towards the fact that â€Å"Lord† is for the overall universe and is not secluded for a particular class or race. Commendably, in the book the prophet develops a better understanding towards the sins that may be bestowed on the evildoers or the cruel people of the earth (Broyles & Evans, 1997). With this emphasis, the research provides an in depth understanding of the different approaches and diverse statements provided by the prophet are developing a better understanding of the wickedness of the people that has been prominent within the society. The diverse needs of the research attempt developing an effective understanding towards the wrath of God that may fall upon people owing to their improper practices according to the verses in Isaiah 1.1-1.2. In the first verse, Isaiah depicts his views towards the different types of wicked approaches adopted by mankind for developing their lifestyle on the earth. The wicked approaches of mankind, with the political intention towards developing a hold on the society has been creating a strong negative impact on the social progression and a diverse impact on the social lifestyle of people. The prophet proclaims that this type of attributes will never be acceptable by God and would be dealt severely for such occurrences (Calvin & Calvin, 2000). Over the recent decades and centuries, human kind has always been indulged into some or the other kind of punishable offences that has been creating a degree of distress within the social system. This practices that were prominent within the Jewish society in Israel and Judah has been noted to be

Problem Solving Retail Industry Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Problem Solving Retail Industry - Case Study Example These lift good market forces are enhanced. Though retailing considered profitable, there are very many challenges that attached to it. Some of these challenges are based on the employee-customer relation. Quality of the products is also vital in retailing being that there is a lot of competition. Clients will only search for companies or businesses that offer quality services. This paper focuses a retail business that tends to face challenges in marketing their produce. The name of the company is ‘Lambton Road Cash and Carry’. Various problems need to be sorted in this franchise retail store for it to conform and achieve good performance in the market. The problem facing this business is based on gross income and cost of the advertisement. ‘Lambton Road Cash and Carry’ is one of the retail business situated in Sarnia, Ontario. Mr. Don Barlow as the manager heads this organization. He has conducted enough research on the business profitability strategy, therefore, wanted to build a Beaver outlet (Nystrom, 33). This was to ensure that all the business finances were well spent. Being that the Lambton road retail business was established in the year 1972, and since then, it has succeeded through all kinds of challenges to date. This was due to good management practice. Dorn Barlow as the manager changed the Lambton’s type of business activity to meet some of their long-term goals in the year 1991. ‘Lambton Road Cash’ started offering outlet services to obtain good market forces and increase trading profit. This also created space for diversification and relieved customers of the tedious process of service or stock purchase. Previously before the change, the business faced one big challenge when it came to goods order and delivery process. Some customers were used to ordering small commodities hence subjecting the company to partial lose.

Dox Thrash - Making Prints of His Real Life Research Paper

Dox Thrash - Making Prints of His Real Life - Research Paper Example Since the art was funded by the government, the art could be used for government purposes. One such artist is Dox Thrash. Defence Worker is one print created by Thrash which will be examined as a relative piece of art of the Depression Era. Another print from Thrash is Boats at Night which is also inspired by social realism will also be looked at. While Thrash was making prints of his real life, the U.S. government took these prints and used them for their own purposes. Defence Worker and Boats at Night by Dox Thrash will be examined in relation to social realism inspired art being used for United States government propaganda. Dox Thrash created both of these prints using a pioneering technique. Thrash had created a new printing technique called carborundum mezzotint.1 Both prints were commissioned by the WPA during the depression. The subjects of these prints were influenced by social realism. The Depression Era made many artists, including Thrash, rethink their perspectives on life and art. Artists begin to think capitalism might not be the best form of government. Kathe Kollwitz was a German artist that dealt with the same issues as Thrash. One of her paintings will be compared to Thrash in order to show how different countries reacted to the situation after World War I. The artists sketched, painted, or carved art reflecting their new views. An analysis of these two works will be undertaken along with a comparison to Kollwitz’s work. Dox Thrash has created two incomparable prints that illustrated the Depression Era, but his art was used as government propaganda in the end. Dox Thrash’s Defense Worker is a male worker. Thrash completed this piece in 1942.2 The worker is using a jackhammer, power sweeper, or some other piece of equipment. The huge male is a worker. This can be determined by the clothes, boots, and helmet the man wears in this print. There is a white billow of steam behind the figure.     Ã‚  

Different Difficulties in Learning Children Essay

Different Difficulties in Learning Children - Essay Example In fact, he elaborates that such children need help in learning to do their own chores or paying closer attention to something important. Gates (2008) provides a more practical explanation of learning disability by saying that children with such difficulties cannot understand, learn, and communicate in comparison to other children. The normal procedure in which our brain processes information is extremely complex. In situations such as viewing an image or speaking, the brain has to process several tasks including retrieving information from memory, recognizing the data to transmit and processing the information to either store in memory or invoke the auditory parts for communication. Most of these activities occur at various locations in the brain, sometimes in a simultaneous fashion. The task of linking up and associating these various segments is the responsibility of our brain. In the case of people with learning disabilities, the only difference is with regards to the different m anner in which their brains process information unlike the case with other individuals. Thomas (2003) says that people with learning disabilities are not handicapped or lazy. Instead, he contends that they tend to have at least an average level of intelligence. Their difficulties simply arise from the different ways in which their brains process information. A broader scientific explanation to this phenomenon is explained by the four stages of information processing (Input, Integration, Storage and Output) under which learning disabilities are categorized. While people with input disabilities have problems with visual and auditory perception, individuals with integration difficulties are unable to categorize and interpret information from the input stage based on previous learning. Some learning difficulties occur in the later stages due to issues in retaining long-term memory.  Several cases of learning disability occur much later during the information-processing scenario due to factors like muscle inhibition and lack of necessary motor skills.

Argument against Execution of Capital Punishment Essay

Argument against Execution of Capital Punishment - Essay Example Utilitarian believe that it is not morally permissible to punish criminals in order to give them what they deserve by exacting retribution on them. They have a problem with retribution in as it advocates the infliction of suffering without any compensating gain for happiness. This paper is going to analyze the utilitarian’s support for capital punishment and then argue against that support.They are of the view that if the death penalty can deter, then there is an auxiliary argument for its use. The statistical evidence is inconclusive. According to common sense, there are reasons for believing that the death penalty deters some would-be murderers from murdering. Van den Haag’s is the best proponent of this view terming it as the ‘Best Bet’ argument. He said that, â€Å"If we value the saving of innocent lives more highly than the loss of the guilty, then to bet on a policy of capital punishment turns out to be rational.† By doing an effective cost be nefit analysis of capital punishment, we find that it has more disadvantages than advantages. To begin with, just by looking at the fact that those condemned to death do everything in their power to postpone it and to get their sentences reduced to long-term prison sentences, we are able to deduce that the death penalty is feared as an evil to be avoided. The society condemns murder as a serious offense. . Capital punishment is in itself murder as it involves killing. We can therefore deduce that capital punishment is murder, and therefore it is wrong.

Different Difficulties in Learning Children Essay

Different Difficulties in Learning Children - Essay Example In fact, he elaborates that such children need help in learning to do their own chores or paying closer attention to something important. Gates (2008) provides a more practical explanation of learning disability by saying that children with such difficulties cannot understand, learn, and communicate in comparison to other children. The normal procedure in which our brain processes information is extremely complex. In situations such as viewing an image or speaking, the brain has to process several tasks including retrieving information from memory, recognizing the data to transmit and processing the information to either store in memory or invoke the auditory parts for communication. Most of these activities occur at various locations in the brain, sometimes in a simultaneous fashion. The task of linking up and associating these various segments is the responsibility of our brain. In the case of people with learning disabilities, the only difference is with regards to the different m anner in which their brains process information unlike the case with other individuals. Thomas (2003) says that people with learning disabilities are not handicapped or lazy. Instead, he contends that they tend to have at least an average level of intelligence. Their difficulties simply arise from the different ways in which their brains process information. A broader scientific explanation to this phenomenon is explained by the four stages of information processing (Input, Integration, Storage and Output) under which learning disabilities are categorized. While people with input disabilities have problems with visual and auditory perception, individuals with integration difficulties are unable to categorize and interpret information from the input stage based on previous learning. Some learning difficulties occur in the later stages due to issues in retaining long-term memory.  Several cases of learning disability occur much later during the information-processing scenario due to factors like muscle inhibition and lack of necessary motor skills.

Models of Segregation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Models of Segregation - Essay Example That is, he observes the happenings in the human habitations and forms an idea about it, in his mind. And from the mind only, the idea flows out and transcribes into the written script. And, this paper will review one of the written scripts of Thomas C. Schelling called Model of Segregation. The main thesis of the paper as the title itself suggests is segregation, or if a simple word is used, separation. Both the words give wide range of meanings, which can be used on various occasions. But, segregation and separation will be normally used or set into motion, when a set of visible and invisible factors push an individual or a group to leave their current locations, where they were minority. That is, these factor, which pushes the individual from his/her place, is the same in most places, with little variation according to the situations. â€Å"There is segregation by sex, age, income, language, color, taste, comparative advantage and the accidents of historical location.† (Schelling 488). So, in the first page itself, the author sets the agenda of the paper by concentrating on one of the factors that is causing segregation. According to Schelling, the main issues which cause the movement of individual or groups from one set up to another, through the mode of segregation is the individual‘s personal behavior and choices. That is, each person will have a thought process which will be unique to him/her, and which might have got evolved in different settings. So, based mainly on that thought process, an individual will decide his/her racial leanings. But the problem will arise when that individual would form an opinion and, in some cases it could in a discriminatory form. Discriminatory in the sense some individuals would form an opinion and judge other individuals only on the basis of religion, status, education, race etc. This is a very undesirable thing to do and is fraught with danger. The transposition of individuals could not be stopped and the

Semantic Change Of The Word Gay

Semantic Change Of The Word Gay Language investigation into the ongoing semantic change of the word gay Introduction The meaning of the word â€Å"gay† has changed over time with its current; most commonly accepted use being to describe someone’s sexual orientation. This wasn’t always the case and at the moment is already changing to define something as being â€Å"rubbish or â€Å"unimpressive†. Such a big change as of this has led to me being interested into investigating the word and how over time specifically it has changed. The word gay also interests me language wise because of its importance in referring to someone’s sexuality, it provides a personal connection to some people’s lives as it describes them and who they are, so however the definition changes so will the effect to anyone who is gay. To investigate the semantic change I wanted to get the widest range of results for my investigation on the word gay. I went about choosing a wide range of people to give me the greatest range of views and opinions on the word and its definitions. To get this I asked elderly people who come from a generation where the word was completely different. I also asked people such as my parents who have come from another different generation and then finally today’s generation. I would aim to find a large difference between definitions between the elderly who would have grown up around the 1960s and any teenager I ask today who is currently in a completely different generation. Methodology Data collection: Going about my Investigation I decided the best way to get the most and best results was to produce a number of definitions and let the people who fill out the questionnaire pick one or two. I then would produce some follow up questions around the word ‘gay’ in a questionnaire style layout. I decided that a questionnaire style layout would best suit this investigation because it would be familiar with all the ages I am planning to ask to fill. Anything to complicated could potentially confuse an older person so the results wouldn’t be as reliable. For the first most important question I decided on using the four definitions used by the British Oxford Dictionary and found that gay has four meanings: (A) ‘light-hearted and carefree’ (B) ‘brightly coloured, showy’ (C) ‘homosexual, especially a man’ (D) ‘foolish, stupid or unimpressive’ Giving each of these definitions a letter I would ask the people I was giving my questionnaire to, to choose the letter they thought gay meant. I’d do this in the aim of testing one of the hypothesis that only older people will use gay with the first and second meanings, and only younger people will use gay with the fourth and fifth, most recent meanings. The earliest meaning is letter (B). Dictionaries usually give letter (D) as the most recent meaning. Analysis First Analysis As I expected the results from my questionnaires matched my hypothesis, that the older generation would answer giving the definition of the word gay as light-hearted or colourful where as the generation of today (15-21) defining it as something being rubbish or a homosexual man. Even with this result that the homosexual man definition is still in common use, more 15-21 year olds answered that it meant something being rubbish rather than a homosexual man. The new definition is starting to over shadow the older one. Surprisingly in my results some even went to say they used the word gay not even thinking about the older definition of a homosexual man. Therefore showing the semantic change of the word has changed so greatly that it’s other definitions are starting to be forgotten about and people are using the new definition almost unconsciously as this new definition becomes more common. Though my hypothesis was correct there were some abnormalities with two elderly people who f illed in my questionnaire saying they had picked up on the change of the word gay through their grandchildren and had stopped using it because of the possibilities that the word could offend someone. I also found that the elderly people who were grandparents that had completed my questionnaire talked about experiences where they had use the word to describe something and had been laughed at because of the different meanings that the Grandparents and Grandkids shared. When being asked if they commonly used the word gay, the younger generation used it extremely more with it almost being a day to day phase. The older generation were not the same with all but one of the people I asked not using it at all. Semantic Change Through back up questions I learnt that such semantic change was becoming more popular through the school; people see that if homosexuality has become more accepted into today’s society they have no need to put a label on homosexuality. Therefore the word gay is losing its original meaning and connection to the word homosexuality. School also plays another part in this because it is teenagers (school pupils) who have changed the meaning of the word gay, it was first seen as an insult. But the word has been so overused that it has lost its original meaning. In the majority of schools where pupils aged 15-18 and possibly even younger call each other gay it was here that the word gay was popularised with students first using it as an insult. Being gay was seen as being bad, so it picked up this derogative term but as time processed and the semantic change also, it transformed into having an overall meaning that something is stupid. An example of this would be that in my questionn aire I was given â€Å"school† as something which is gay. If we used the definition of a homosexual man this would make no sense but because of the semantic change this definition has completely changed meaning anything this person didn’t like could be gay. It is not just in school that the word gay had been used. Radio and television shows although rarely are using the word gay to define something which is lame or rubbish. One example is Chris Moyles, a former DJ on BBC Radio 1, he received complaints from listeners after he used the word gay to describe a ringtone that he didn‘t like. The BBC released a statement after the incident saying that the word gay may now mean rubbish.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬- The BBC said that the DJ was just keeping up with developments in English usage. Chris Moyles show was one the most popular at the time, his and the BBC statement about the incident would have given many people a new way to define the word gay and the fact a DJ such as Chris Moyles could use it in this way would have led to many people using it also While finding out that gay meant something as being stupid through the eyes of 15-18 year olds, I asked these people whether or not they saw gay meaning this because of the fact that being gay has been seen as a bad thing for many years and is only now being understood and more regularly accepted. I wanted to see if at the beginning of ‘gay’ starting to change semantically, it took on a negative connotation since many opposed homosexuality especially in schools and whether or not this had an effect on the semantic change, almost trying to understand that if being gay was never seen as being bad would the word gay had even changed semantically at all? In conclusion into this secondary research I found that many people in the 15-18 year old category were honest and admitted that at the start the semantic change could have been put down to the fact it carried a derogatory meaning. But now is seen more as ‘play ground speak’ and the increase with this new meanin g is led by the youth culture with many 15-18 year olds using the word because others do and may not even have a bad view on gay people. This semantic change In which I questioned was also being devolved through media and social networking sites like Twitter or Facebook where some of the 15-18 year olds would commonly use the word gay to describe something being stupid, as with schools people copy what everyone else does and this is maximised with the huge number of young people who have social networking sites. Along with this my research found that films such as ‘The Hangover’ where the term gay is used as a joke by an actor. In this film it is used as an insult, this could promote the semantic change. As that film was hugely popular a lot of people saw the scene and saw the new definition in which this word was used. The scene and the words the actor used in this joke have been copied many times and just show how films have an effect on semantic change because of the huge influential value on society. Patterns in the Language The word gay like all words are not set elements of language and are changing all the time. The word gay has been put as starting from the 14th century, when the definition was â€Å"stately and beautiful splendid and showily dressed. Through the late 14thcentury, it changed to define â€Å"full of joy, merry, light-hearted, carefree† this meaning was one of the definitions I gave in my questionnaire and the one I found was mostly used by the older people who answered my questionnaire. During the 19th century the word gay came to describe a woman who was a prostitute or a man who slept with prostitutes. This definition is obviously not used at all today and shows how one word can change so much based whether or not people use it. In the 1920’s the first use of it for referring to a man who slept with another man came about and this use has stuck till today. Although the definition started then, it was not used commonly until the 1980’s when this definition over shadowed all others. Until 2006, the word gay was still defined as a homosexual male until the definition changed meaning something is stupid. As with my research, the new definition describes having nothing to do with the previous definition and perhaps no offence is intended when using it to describe something as rubbish. This trait in changing words is also seen in the word â€Å"sick† which is changing from defining as being ill to something being cool. These words that are changing are most commonly used by the youth culture, this shows the great power that the younger generations have over the English language and what a word means. It seems to be very rare that an older generation define what a word is defined as. Alongside my research I read into Emily Jelsomeno’s â€Å"Bitch,Nigger and Gay: Exclusive Language? The semantic shift of Pejorative Words and Reclamation† and this gave me the view that the pattern in which the word ‘gay’ changes grammatical category and is used seems to go from â€Å"positive to negative† and is now currently negative. With its newest meaning, something being stupid, it gives me the idea that this is a negative. With being able to see this shift, it enables me to make the assumption that there are at least three kinds of semantic change ‘gay’ has gone through. These being degeneration, elevation and taboo. With the degeneration I refer to gay becoming a word to describe something as being stupid, the most recent definition. It means gay is known as being negative. With elevation I refer to the improvement of the meaning. This improvement came from it meaning ‘men who had sex with other men’ to ‘homos exual males’. The second meaning is more favourable because it removes the element of sex from the definition. Sex between two males for some people is wrong and looked down upon strongly, whether it is for religious reasons or personal views. Removing the sex from the definition evaluates the word gay because it makes it more acceptable in some people’s eyes. It makes being homosexual not necessarily about having sex with someone of the same gender, but someone who is different from the norms of what being a male is. Lastly with the word gay I’d refer it to being a taboo for the term ‘homosexual male’ as the word ‘homosexual’ can still be considered a offensive term when referring to a gay man. Changes in Grammatical category Using my research and some background reading, I can come to the conclusion that gay has changed in grammatical categories. The first definition of the word â€Å"stately and beautiful splendid and showily dressed† would define gay as an adjective. During the 19th century, it shifted categories and became a noun; â€Å"a women who was a prostitute† and then acted at the same time as a verb. The phrase gay meant â€Å"to have sex†. Up to the 21st century gay was both an adjective (e.g. gay marriage) and a noun (i.e. gay being connected to being a homosexual). The most recent and latest category change makes gay an adjective once again by using it to insult something or someone, an example of this most recent category change from my investigation would be someone saying â€Å"you’re gay†. Conclusion Finishing up my investigation and concluding it I can see a quite clear semantic change of the word gay which answers my initial investigation question. Though I set out almost knowing what the answer was going to be, I was still surprised along the way with some of the information I gained from my investigation. I was not expecting the amount to which people use the word gay daily and how common it now is. Through my investigation I was pleasantly surprised how most (if not all the people I asked) actually used the word gay unconsciously with no thought in mind of offending anyone who is actually homosexual. With my evidence from the investigation I can make the conclusion that the amount that the word ‘gay’ is actually used has helped steer it away from being used to cause offence and this is obviously a positive sign. The only thing I would change about my investigation is that I would have given more open questions. This would mean the questionnaire would get into mo re depth about the people who were filling it in opinions, giving me more detailed results. Apart from that I feel my investigation was a success.  Ã‚   By taking part in this questionnaire you agree to this information being used for research purposes (Please tick if you agree) Please fill in this questionnaire: How old are you? 15-24 24-34 34-4444-54 54+ What does the word Gay mean to you? (A) ‘light-hearted and carefree’ (B) ‘brightly coloured, showy’ (C) ‘homosexual, especially a man’ (D) ‘foolish, stupid or unimpressive How would use ‘Gay’ in a sentence? Any other comments? Thank you for taking part Thank you for taking part Bibliography http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/words-literally-changed-meaning-through-2173079 17/04/2014 http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/brendanoneill2/100246515/gay-now-means-rubbish-get-over-it/ 17/04/2014 http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2010/02/how-gay-came-to-mean-homosexual/ 20/01/2014 Bitch, Nigger and Gay: Exclusive language? The semantic shift of pejorative words and reclamation -20/01/2014 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/7289390.stm -21/01/2014

Nikola Tesla Essay -- biographies bio

Born in 1856 the son of an Orthodox priest in Smiljan, Croatia, Nikola Tesla had an early exposure to inventing. His mother, although unschooled, was a very intelligent woman who often created appliances that helped with home and farm responsibilities, such as a mechanical eggbeater. Young Nikola was schooled at home during his early years and later attended a school in Carlstadt, Croatia. He soon developed advanced skills such as doing calculus integrals in his head. He very deeply wanted to attend college and become an engineer, but his father wanted him to join the priesthood. When Nikola was seventeen, he caught cholera and made his father to promise that if he survived the illness that he would be allowed to go to college. Obviously, Nikola lived. At the Austrian Polytechnic School at Graz Tesla studied mechanical and electrical engineering. One day, one of his professors showed him a Gramme Dynamo that could be used as a motor and generator. Tesla looked at it and asked if the Dynamo could do away with its sparking communicators. The professor replied that it would be similar to building a perpetual motion machine. The idea of such a machine tantalized Tesla for years until one day at the age of 24 when he was living in Budapest working for the Central Telephone Exchange he had an epiphany and began making sketches that would soon develop into the world's first induction motor. After several unsuccessful jobs with German and French electrical power companies where he tried to improve their DC generators, 29-year-old Tesla came to New York City with four cents in his pocket. Nikola went to Thomas Edison with a letter of recommendation from a business associate of Edison's that read, "My Dear Edison: I k... ...aimed that he had perfected his "death beam". He died shortly after in the Hotel New Yorker, where he had been living. The next morning after Tesla died, when his nephew came to his uncle's room at the hotel, the body was gone and many of his papers were missing. Naturally, if Tesla indeed had invented anything that had to do with weaponry, the FBI would be interested. Thus, all the way up until 1952, Tesla's papers which were held on to by the government eventually made it back to his family. However, the papers having to do with the beams are still missing. Some people today believe that Tesla took that knowledge to the grave with him. Bibliography Text Sources all accessed April 2003: http://www.mall-usa.com/BPCS/grant_tesla.html http://www.pbs.org/tesla/ http://www.neuronet.pitt.edu/~bogdan/tesla/bio.htm http://www.apc.net/bturner/tesla.htm

Essay: Analysis of Sonnet 95 :: Sonnet essays

Analysis of Sonnet 95 How sweet and lovely dost thou make the shame Which, like a canker in the fragrant rose, Doth spot the beauty of thy budding name! Oh, in what sweets dost thou thy sins enclose! That tongue that tells the story of thy days, Making lascivious comments on thy sport, Cannot dispraise but in a kind of praise. Naming thy name , blesses an ill report. Oh what a mansion have those vices got Which for thy habitation chose out thee, Where beauty's veil doth cover every blot And all things turns to fair that eyes can see! Take heed, dear heart, of this large privelege: The hardest knife ill used doth lose his edge. First Quatrain First of all, spot can mean two things: 'to discover' and also 'to stain'; therefore, the shame that "you" make can both (at the same time) point out the beauty of your name, that is possibly increasing in popularity; also 'to stain' the beauty of "your" name. Knowing this, we must read the poem twice, one for each possible reading (also notice the floral theme in the first stanza as well). Since he describeds "name" as budding, (and the fragrance of a rose as sweet), "in what sweets" can refer to the "name", and then of course, the person themself. Now, question: [first the analogy of canker being the sins; thus, as the canker destroys the rose, this person's sins destroy his name (and remember! only "name" at this point)] which one? Second Quatrain "Naming thy name": naming from the stories that have been told about this person, such as rumors. (For instance, not too far from this example, somebody you have never met, but the name is known by you, is regarded as a whore. Whether this rumor is true or not, this idea will be attached to the person who has this name. Same idea here). Line 8, depending on punctuation, can be read one of two ways (more duality!): if there is not punctuation, only a period, then "blesses" is a verb, "naming" is the action of the tongue; therefore, we can read "Naming thy name blesses and ill report" as 'the tongue that names you (rumors, or puts a background to this "name") gives blessings to "an ill report"; (of course, the comments of dispraise against your name).

Discussion of Ias 17 Leases

Advanced Accounting Theory & Practice Assignment: Discussion of IAS 17 Leases Huixuan HUANG Student ID: 500284151 Module Organizer: Colin Bradley Words Count: 1964 words Date of Submission: 17th April, 2012 Discussion of IAS 17 Leases Introduction Accounting for leasing is always being a hot topic. The standard setters of IAS 17 encountered much controversy when they tried to stop charging all lease payments to the income statement.In this essay, firstly, I will point out the key features of the current IAS 17 with its effect on General Electric Company for illustrative example. Then I will analyst the development of IAS 17 and its underling rationale. Finally, the criticisms of the standard will mainly be discussed, followed by the brief debate of proposed new leasing standard. Key features with example IAS 17 aims to prescribe the appropriate accounting treatment and disclosure to apply in leased items such as property, plant and equipment for both lessees (the user) and lessor s (the supplier).First of all, IAS 17 defines a lease as â€Å"an agreement whereby the lessor conveys to the lessee in return for a payment or series of payments the right to use an asset for an agreed period of time† (IAS 17) and then the standard classified a lease as finance lease if â€Å"a lease that transfer substantially all the risks and rewards incidental to ownership of an asset† (IAS 17). All other leases are distinguished as operating leases. It is the most prominent feature of IAS 17.Clearly, the classification of a lease, ignoring the legal form of arrangement, depends on the substance of the transaction instead, which means it concentrate on the â€Å"risks and rewards† linked with ownership rest with either the lessee or the lessor. IAS 17 provides five primary situations in detail as indicators which would normally be viewed as a finance lease. Additionally, the land element and the buildings element should be normally considered separately whe n distinguishing a lease. The minimum lease payments are allocated between the elements of the lease proportional to their relative fair values at the incipiency of the lease.Of course, IAS 17 requires different accounting for operating leases and finance leases. In the case of operating leases, as the lessee does not shoulder the risks and rewards of ownership, the annual leases payment are only recognizes on a straight-line basis over the lease term as an expense through the income statement. However, for finance leases, lessees are required to list leased items as an asset in their financial statements along with a related obligation for future payments to the lessor. It means it is not allowed to leave the leased asset and lease obligation out of the balance sheet.Finance leases must be capitalized in the lessee’s accounts. Take General Electric Company for example. As a lessee in operating leases, GE recognizes the lease payment as an expense on a straight-line basis ove r the lease term. Their rental expense under operating leases is shown as following. Cited from GE Annual report 2011 At December 31, 2011, minimum rental under operating leases for GE and GECS aggregated $2,387 million and$2,119 million, respectively. Amounts payable in the next five years follow. Cited from GE Annual report 2011As a lessor in operating leases, it presents these assets in statements of financial position according to the nature of the asset. The depreciation policy for leased assets is consistent with GE’s normal depreciation policy for similar assets. Lease revenue from operating leases is recognised in income on a straight-line basis over the lease term. GECS revenues from equipment leased to others were $11,343 million in 2011 and$11,116 million in 2010. As IAS 17 requires, under finance leases, GECS recognize assets in balance sheet and present them as financing receivables at an amount equal to the net investment in lease.Its investment in finance lease s includes direct financing and leveraged leases of aircraft, railroad rolling stock, transportation equipment, medical equipment, commercial real estate, commercial equipment and facilities, etc. Net investment in financing leases is following: Cited from GE Annual report 2011 According to IAS 17, many large companied such as GE have to convert their operating leases to finance leases. Such a conversion results in increasing on both current liabilities and total liabilities.These increases might have significant implication for financial analysis. Development of IAS 17 and its underlying rationale The growth in the leasing industry became massive in 1970s, which means leasing had been a significant economic resource. However, accompanied with the growth in off balance sheet financing, leasing in popularity led to a problem that companies’ financial statements were seemed to be distorted by the accounting treatment of leasing transaction. Thus, they did not show a true and fa ir view about their business activities by financial reports.Like many other standards, urgent action was needed as there was no uniformity in treating and disclosing the lease transactions to prevent manipulated accounting message occurring. IAS 17 proved to be very controversial accounting standards. Time witnessed the extent of the controversy. Originally, IAS 17 was published in September 1982 by the IASC and revised in December 1997. In December 2003, it was revised again and issued by the IASB. In April 2009, an amendment about the classification if land leases as a part of the Annual Improvements to IFRSs as made to IAS. Then the revised IAS 17 remains effect to now. The ASC in the UK expressed a concern that the standard might lead to undesirable economic consequences by reducing the quantity of leasing and that the lessee firm’s gearing might be affected disadvantageously by the inclusion of the lease responsibility. Nevertheless, â€Å"in the event, the commercial reasons for leasing and the capacity of the leasing industry to structure lease agreements to circumvent the standard prevented a reduction in lease activity.Evidence of lessors varying the term of the lease agreements to ensure that they remained off balance sheet is supported by Cranfield and by Abdel-Khalik et al. †(2008, Elliott, B. and Elliott, J. ) In current IAS 17, the leased items that substantially transferred the risks and reward to the lessee should be reported in the financial statements. The standard requires finance leases to be capitalized. The asset and liability should be brought onto the statement of financial position. Criticisms of IAS 17Unfortunately, there are strong criticisms raised in relation to the existing IAS 17S by securities regulators, professional accountants and other interested parties. The main criticisms focus on the failure of the existing accounting model to meet the needs of financial analysis for users of financial statement. Commonly, investors and other users of financial statements believe operating leases produce assets and liabilities so they routinely adjust the recognized amounts to recognize the assets and liabilities so as to make comment the effect of lease contracts in profit or loss.However, there are deficiencies in the information on leasing accounting in the current IAS 17. It cannot provide a complete picture of a company’s leasing activities and is difficult to compare entities each other. Equally importantly, existing IAS 17 could provide opportunities to structure leasing transactions whereby lease contracts can be built in a particular way in order to achieve a particular lease classification and lead to a particular outcome. For instance, a lease contract could be fabricated in such a way that it is not in accord with any bright-line indicators of IAS 17.Consequently, it is classified as an operating lease in order to obtain an economic source of unrecognized financing and thereby achi eves a particular capital structure. Moreover, the two different accounting models for leases might lead to very different accounting treatment for similar transactions. This also reduces comparability for users of financial statements. Some critics of IAS 17 have pointed out another problem that the existing accounting model is conceptually deficient. IAS 17 only identifies as liabilities obligations due under finance leases, not those under operating leases.Specifically, arriving at a lease contract, the lessee obtains the right to use the leased equipment, which fulfills the board’s definition of an asset. Similarly, the obligation of the lessee to pay rentals also meets the definition of a liability. However, the right and obligation are not recognized if we identify the lease as an operating lease. In addition, accounting model for leases growingly differs from other contractual arrangements, which gives rise to inconsistent accounting between lease arrangements and simi lar arrangements that are not defined as lease arrangements.Besides, managers and auditors have complained about complexity of the existing accounting model. Especially, it is difficult to define a distinction line between finance leases and operating leases in theoretical way. As a result, the standards employ bright-line tests and a mixture of subjective judgment, which is hard to implement. Future of IAS 17——Draft ED/2010/09 In March 2009, a joint discussion paper on leases issued by the IASB and the FASB. The objective of this project is to correct and improve those deficiencies in IAS 17.On 17 August 2010, the exposure draft, Draft ED/2010/09, was published to set out a proposal for a new IFRS on leases. There are more than seven hundred comment letters received on it. A re-exposure is expected in the second quarter in 2012. The board plan to issue the new standard after 1 January 2013. The ED would correct the apparent weaknesses in the current standard and the p roposal would lead to a significant improvement. The distinction between finance leases and operating leases would be eliminated. It would set out new accounting methods on leasing for both lessees and lessors.Within the scope of the proposal, lessees would be no longer permitted to treat leasing as off-balance sheet financing in the right-of-use model but would be reflected as assets and liabilities, regardless of the form structure, if they meet the definitions in the Conceptual Framework. Furthermore, ED/2010/6 would help to show a more accurate measure of a company’s gearing or capital structure and enhance the comparability characteristic of financial reports. However, new issues emerge that need further consideration. For the proposed revenue standards, further clarification is needed on the â€Å"continuous transfer of control† criterion.The proposal might give rise to diverse explanation for certain types of contracts. Secondly, although the lessons’ acc ounting in proposal is conceptually sound, the lessors’ accounting lacks theoretical virtue. Employing a hybrid model is contrary to the single right-of-use model. The performance obligation method recognizes the underlying assets, lease receivables and two income streams, interest income and lease income as well. It is conceptually weak because, in reality, there is only one underlying asset and one income stream from lease payments.Although this approach brings about significant economic benefits, side-effect could also occur when testing impairment of underlying assets and lease receivables. Turning to derecognition approach, although it more closely consists with the single right-of-use model and has more theoretical merits, its new concept of residual asset requires further deliberation. For instance, whether it meets the definition of an asset? If it is so, is it a tangible asset or an intangible asset? Conclusion Although the current IAS 17 encountered many comments, t he joint leases roject is still under development and the explained provisions are not final. There is no doubt that the proposed new leasing standard provides a more accurate representation of the economic transaction in the leasing field. The users of financial statements will make better decision with more complete information. But to some extent, it is more onerous than the existing accounting rules so that probably, some small entities daunt their progress faced with the increasing complexity rules and investors will have to calculate by themselves on the implications of this new information.So IAS  17 still works. Hopefully, the final standard is expected to be issued later in 2012 and to become effective in late 2013 or early 2014. In short, it cannot be disputed that it is crucial for anyone to clearly understand the new standard that is keen to interpret financial statements accurately.Reference [1] Billenness, L. (2010), ‘The Future of Lessee Accounting: Everything You Wish You Never Had to Know About the New Lease Accounting Standards’, EMEA ViewPiont, December 2010 [2] Byrnes, N. 2006), ‘You May Be Liable for That Lease: FASB’s Review of Lease Accounting Standards Could Really Hammer Retailers’, Business Week, June 5 2006 [3] Deloitte’s IFRS Global Office, (2010), ‘IFRS in Focus——IASB issues Exposure Draft on Lease Accounting’, [Online] Available at: http://www. iasplus. com/en/publications/ifrs-in-focus/2010/ifrs-in-focus-2014-iasb-issues-exposure-daft-on-lease-accounting-august-2010/file [Accessed 4 April 2012] [4] Elliott, B. and Elliott, J. (2008), ‘Financial Accounting and Reporting’, 12th edition, London: Pearson Education Limited, pp433-448 [5] Grossman, A.M. and Grossman, S. D. (2010), ‘Capitalizing Lease Payments: Potential Effects of the FASB/IASB Plan’, CPA Journal, May 2010 [6] IASB (2010), ‘Snapshot: Leases’, [Online] Available a t: http://www. ifrs. org/NR/rdonlyres/FBE30248-225B-48AF-AAE5-96494D83A978/0/LeasesSnapShot0810. pdf [Accessed 16 April 2012] [7] IASC Foundation staff, ‘Technical Summary: IAS 17 Leases’, [Online] Available at:http://www. iasb. org/NR/rdonlyres/B8ABE9AA-8F5B-4301-866E-ED2D423504E7/0/ias17sum. pdf [Accessed 4 April 2012] [8] IAS 17 [Online] Available at: