Law enforcement and counter-terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Law enforcement and counter-terrorism - Essay Example Knowing what terrorists' aims and objectives will enable Americans to be prepared of possible future targets of terror especially in New York City. By using various research already done on the nature of terrorism and their targets, this paper intends to examine probable future targets of terrorism in New York City. This paper will first investigate why the terrorist attacked the WTC, why they like to attack New York City, Their aims and objectives, and possible next targets. It all started with an explosion that occurred on Friday, February 26, 1993 which devastated the public parking area of the World Trade Center located in New York City. The resulting blast killed 6 persons and dealt injury to not more than 1,000 others. This was considered by the N.Y.P.D. as one of the biggest crime scene they have ever encountered and the estimated damage was estimated at over half a billion dollars. Law enforcement agencies in and out of New York dubbed this as "the case of the century". This put N.Y. City in a grip of fear and panics ("The World Trade Center Bombing", 2006). This incident sparked a brand new trend in terrorism, one that involves the random and haphazard killing of civilians Dwyer et al, 1994; Myroie, 1996). 1, 042 people were reported to be injured in a more accurate account, and crime analysis has speculated that the terrorists aimed to kill more than 6 people at that time. It is also believed that the terrorist encountered several complications in the execution of the plan, and the damage could have been much worse if the circumstances were right (Parachini, 1993).The terror did not stop from that incident. History repeated itself on September 11, 2003 (now referred to as "9/11") when 2 large passenger aircraft were hi-jacked and collided with the Twin Towers again located in New York. The collision resulted in a massive fire and heavy collateral damage to the Twin Towers and other structures in the surroundings. Four of the nearby buildings in the WTC compound suffered irreparable damage and were eventually demolished. The next 8 and half months were spent on 24-hour cleanup involving thousands of voluntary workers. The effects of 9/11 is still being felt up to today, as a matter of fact as of 2005 a total of 2,749 death certificates related to 9/11 had been filed. The following statistics showed the grim and horrible results of 9/11: There were 13 survivors of 9/11, but they eventually succumbed to their injuries. The o ther attacks made on the Pentagon and Shanksville, Pennsylvania resulted in 3 more deaths in different States, one death each for Massachusetts, Missouri, and New Jersey. A total of 2, 749 people died due to 9/11, 77% were males (2,117) and 23% were females (632). Around 1,588 (58% of the casualties) of corpses examined were identified based on dental records, jewelry and other identification methods. The average age for the victims is 39 years old based on data that the average age was 38 years for females (range: 2-81 years) and 39 years for males (range: 3-85 years). Three victims were under the age of 5 while 3 others were over the age of 80 years old ("World Trade Center", 2006). This goes to show that terrorist will go to any length to sow terror in men's heart.

Discusion board Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discusion board - Assignment Example The applications also enable management identify and correct any unforeseen challenges that may arise. Business processes are sources of competitive advantage. Business processes need to be unique and strategic to offer a competitive advantage. For instance, a business with processes focused on the creation of innovative products and services or those that portray a high sensitivity to customer queries and concerns tend to create a competitive advantage over their rivals. 2-How does Porters five forces shape industry competition and strategy? What are the implications? Do you agree with these five forces? Is there any other force that affects competition and strategy? What is the role of MIS in this framework? Understanding one’s business, specifically the strengths and weaknesses, is very important in facing rival competition. This is the basis in Porter’s five forces that shape industry competition and strategy. According to Porter, these five are; supplier power, buyer power, competitive rivalry, threat of substitution and threat of new entry. The five are centered in understanding the power that lies in a business and very useful in the analysis of the current positioning of a business, from a competitive point of view. Understanding this power, according to Porter, enables one to gain an advantage position by capitalizing on the strengths and improving weaknesses. For instance, in threat of new entry, the knowledge that competitors can easily penetrate the market and bring competition enables a business create barriers strong enough to keep off competitors thus maintain a competitive position. These forces shape the markets and industries businesses operate in. For inst ance, in competitive rivalry, having very few or no competitors at all offers a business competitive advantage in the industry it operates in. I agree with these five

Prefabricated Buildings: Advantages and Disadvantages

Prefabricated Buildings: Advantages and Disadvantages There are many different types of construction  buildings  such as residential, commercial or industrial.  Industrial  buildings  are mainly used for manufacture warehousing, offices, showrooms, sport, retailing, agricultural and horticultural  buildings, recreation leisure, swimming pool enclosures as well as many other aspects. If your business is in need of extra space; whether it is for storage or to conduct aspects of business, an  industrial  building, such as a warehouse may be the answer that your business is looking for. Industrial  buildings, such as the ones named above are available from many different building contractor teams and they are often available as both a permanent or temporary business solution. You may need the use of an  industrial  building as a way of housing certain equipment and supplies as well as providing you with a space that can be dedicated for you to undertake aspects of business. Depending on what you need the  industrial  building for depends on what type of building you have constructed. If you need the extra space as a place where people can do business then a more permanent structure may be in order. Also if you are planning on using your  industrial  building as an added work space then it is important that you ensure the building is insulated and that your employees are protected. Many of the  industrial  buildings  that are open to you to use for your business provide you with a comfortable working environment and in many cases reduce energy through the quality and reliability which can be achieved with high performance insulation solutions. Also by choosing a reliable building contractor team to install your  industrial  building you will be getting a workspace which creates a clean environment for all of your production, storage, material handling and infrastructure needs. Many building contractor teams will design your  industrial  buildings  using cladding and lining and will incorporate windows and doors that in some cases are double glazed as well as being tough when it comes to security. You will be able to decide what features are and arent included on your  industrial  building, meaning from the start you will know exactly what you are buying. When you are deciding on including an  industrial  building into your workplace you need to ensure that the execution of the project is successful. One way of making sure that this happens is by conducting effective planning as this is essential to ensure that you get what you want from your  industrial  building. During your planning for your  industrial  building you should consider aspects such as the environmental impact of the job, the success of the scheduling, budgeting and site safety as well as the availability of materials, logistics and the inconvenience to the public caused by construction delays, preparing tender documents, etc. If you are hoping to gain the extra help from the use of an  industrial  building then it is highly important that you gain the help of a professional building contractor team to construct your industrial  building. Identify the Differences of the Prefabricated and Pre Engineered Buildings. Prefabricated building is a type of building that consists that of several factory built components or units that are assembled on site to complete the unit. Its Prefabricated / Pre-engineered components away from the site and bringing them to site and assembling. These methods reduce construction time at the site, facilitate better quality control and reduce labour component which involves in the site. Prefabricated Buildings. The term prefabricated may refer to buildings built in components (e.g. panels), modules (modular homes) or transportable sections (manufactured homes), and may also be used to refer to mobile homes, i.e. houses on wheels. Although similar in nature, the methods and design of the three can vary wildly. There are two-level home plans, as well as custom home plans. There are also large differences in the construction types. Mobile and manufactured houses are constructed in accordance with the HUD building codes in the U.S. while modular houses are constructed in accordance with the IBC (International Building Code). Modular homes are homes that are created in sections, and then transported to the home site for construction and installation. These are typically installed and treated like a regular house, for financing, appraisal and construction purposes, and are usually the most expensive of the three. Although the sections of the house are prefabricated, the sections, or modules, are put together at the construction much like a typical home. Manufactured and mobile houses are rated as personal property and depreciate over time. Manufactured homes refer to homes that are built onto steel beams, and are transported in complete sections to the home site, where they are assembled. Mobile homes are homes built on wheels, which are able to be moved from place to place. Mobile homes and manufactured homes can be placed in mobile home parks, and manufactured homes can also be placed on private land, providing the land is appropriately zoned for manufactured homes. As far as getting set up, prefabricated buildings can be erected rather quickly some in as little as 45 days. Companies can start concentrating on making money rather than concerning themselves with when their building will be finished. Prefabricated buildings can be constructed at almost half the cost of a traditional building. For a basic structure such as a portable office or classroom, expect to pay about $35 per square foot. More complex prefabricated buildings medical clinics and retail facilities will cost you close to $200 per square foot. While not exactly a drop in the bucket, its still more affordable than traditional construction, particularly if the prefabricated buildings are only going to be used for a fixed period of time. For those companies who look beyond price and convenience, prefabricated buildings do have a few downsides. The most obvious is the look and feel. At their most basic, prefabricated buildings are meant to be quick, affordable solutions so they arent the prettiest structures in the world. Elevated entrances and shorter ceilings dont really add to the dà ©cor, but if you are willing to spend a bit more, you can upgrade your prefabricated buildings to have more stylish designs. The types of materials used for prefabricated buildings are usually aluminum,  wood, steel, fiberglass, and concrete. The steel used in these structures is specially treated to resist corrosion, rust, and fire. The use of plastics and other composite materials offer a less expensive option for surface materials without sacrificing durability or quality. The construction of the components of the prefabricated building is accomplished inside the factory where the plumbing and electrical systems are tested before they are exported to their destinations. The wall finishes and  countertops  are also installed inside the factory. Although customization is available, prefabrication businesses are able to buy much of their material in bulk and thus are able to pass on the savings to their buyers.   Pre-engineered Buildings In  structural engineering, a  pre-engineered building  (PEB) is designed by a manufacturer to be fabricated using a pre-determined inventory of raw materials and manufacturing methods that can efficiently satisfy a wide range of structural and aesthetic design requirements. Within some geographic industry sectors these buildings are also called Pre-Engineered Metal Buildings (PEMB) or, as is becoming increasingly common due to the reduced amount of pre-engineering involved in custom computer aided designs, simply, Engineered Metal Buildings (EMB). Historically, the primary framing structure of a pre-engineered building is an assembly of I shaped members, often referred as  I beams. In pre-engineered buildings, the I beams used are usually formed by welding together steel plates to form the I section. The I beams are then field-assembled (e.g. bolted connections) to form the entire frame of the pre-engineered building. Some manufacturers taper the framing members (varying in web depth) according to the local loading effects. Larger plate dimensions are used in areas of higher load effects. Other forms of primary framing can include trusses, mill sections rather than 3-plate welded, castellated beams, etc. The choice of economic form can vary depending on factors such as local capabilities (e.g. manufacturing, transportation, construction) and variations in material vs. labour costs. Typically, primary frames are 2D type frames (i.e. may be analyzed using 2-Dimensional techniques). Advances in computer aided design technology, materials and manufacturing capabilities have assisted a growth in alternate forms of Pre-engineered building such as the Tension fabric building  and more sophisticated analysis (e.g. 3-Dimensional) as is required by some building codes. Cold formed Z and C-shaped members may be used as secondary structural elements to fasten and support the external cladding. Roll-formed profiled steel sheet, wood, tensioned fabric, precast concrete, masonry block, glass curtain wall or other materials may be used for the external cladding of the building. In order to accurately design a pre-engineered building, engineers consider the clear span between bearing points, bay spacing, roof slope, live loads, dead loads, collateral loads, wind uplift, deflection criteria, internal crane system and maximum practical size and weight of fabricated members. Historically, pre-engineered building manufacturers have developed pre-calculated tables for different structural elements in order to allow designers to select the most efficient I beams size for their projects. However, the table selection procedures are becoming rare with the evolution in computer aided custom designs. While pre-engineered buildings can be adapted to suit a wide variety of structural applications, the greatest economy will be realized when utilizing standard details. An efficiently designed pre-engineered building can be lighter than the conventional steel buildings by up to 30%. Lighter weight equates to less steel and a potential price savings in structural framework. Applications of Pre Engineered Buildings (PEB) Warehouses Factories Workshops Offices Gas stations Vehicle parking sheds Showrooms Aircraft hangars Metro stations Schools Recreational Indoor stadium roofs Outdoor stadium canopies Bridges Railway platform shelters Advantages of Pre Engineered Buildings Reduced construction time: Buildings are typically delivered in just a few weeks after approval of drawings. Foundation and anchor bolts are cast parallel with finished, ready for the site bolting. Our study shows that in India the use of PEB will reduce total construction time of the project by at least 50%. This also allows faster occupancy and earlier realization of revenue. Lower cost: Due to the systems approach, there is a significant saving in design, manufacturing and on site erection cost. The secondary members and cladding nest together reducing transportation cost. Flexibility of expansion: Buildings can be easily expanded in length by adding additional bays. Also expansion in width and height is possible by pre designing for future expansion. Large clear spans: Buildings can be supplied to around 80M clear spans. Quality control: As buildings are manufactured completely in the factory under controlled conditions the quality is assured. Low maintenance: Buildings are supplied with high quality paint systems for cladding and steel to suit ambient conditions at the site, which results in long durability and low maintenance coats. Energy efficient roofing and wall systems:   Buildings can be supplied with polyurethane insulated panels or fiberglass blankets insulation to achieve required U values. Architectural versatility:   Building can be supplied with various types of fascias, canopies, and curved eaves and are designed to receive pre cast concrete wall panels, curtain walls, block walls and other wall systems. Single source responsibility: As the complete building package is supplied by a single vendor, compatibility of all the building components and accessories is assured. This is one of the major benefits of the pre engineered building systems. Investigate various types of materials, which can be used for the factory and residential Buildings in this project. Materials used for pre-fabricated buildings Prefabricated building materials are used for buildings that are manufactured off site and shipped later to assemble at the final location. Some of the commonly used prefabricated building materials are aluminum, steel, wood, fiberglass and concrete. Prefabricated metal buildings use galvanized steel and galvalume as the chief materials for building. Galvalume is a form of steel coated with aluminum-zinc. This is to protect the building against corrosion, rust and fire. It also provides a sturdy and protective covering to the prefabricated building. Almost all the components of a metal building such as beams, frames, columns, walls and roofs, are made of steel. Most prefabricated military buildings use steel or aluminum frames. Synthetic materials are used for the walls and roofs. To provide enhanced security, a combination of both metal and cloth materials are used. Plastic flooring materials can be quickly assembled and are very durable. Prefabricated building materials used for small prefabricated buildings are steel, wood, fiberglass, plastic or aluminum materials. These materials are cheaper than regular brick and concrete buildings. Materials like steel, fiberglass, wood and aluminum are used as prefabricated building materials for sports buildings. These materials provide flexibility and are preferred for making structures and accessories like stands and seats for stadium and gyms. For making low cost houses, prefabricated materials like straw bale, Ferro cement, Calcium silicate products, composites and other cheap wood based materials are currently being used. Calcium silicate bricks are strong and durable. Ferro cement consists of a cement matrix reinforced with a mesh of closely-spaced iron rods or wires. In this type of construction, the techniques used are simple and quick. Using prefabricated materials one can make durable, water and fire resistant and cheap prefabricated buildings. Most of the prefabricated building materials are eco-friendly and affordable. Steel Aluminum Wood Fiberglass Materials used for pre-engineered buildings Steel / Stainless steel Galvalume roof sheeting Stainless steel capped fasteners Silicon zed polyester baked-on enamel paint Various types of materials Steel For prefabricated buildings, steel and galvalume materials are used. Galvalume is a form of steel coated with aluminum-zinc. This is to protect the building against corrosion, rust and fire. It also provides a sturdy and protective covering to the prefabricated building. Most of components are built in steel in prefabrication buildings such as beams, frames, columns, walls and roofs, are made of steel. Aluminum Most prefabricated buildings use aluminum as a material for frames. It can be widow frames or door frames. Because of its light weight it is very useful for prefabrication building production. Wood These materials provide flexibility and are preferred for making structures and accessories like stands and seats for stadium and gyms. And wood use for prefabricated buildings for some of the components. It is not a most probably used material. This material is used for making of law cost prefabricated homes. Fiberglass The fiberglass material is used for the partition walls in the buildings. And its light weight is useful for constructing prefabricated buildings. And for doors and window frames, doors fiberglass is used. Advantages of Per Fabricated Buildings Prefabricated homes can be ordered and transported straight to your block.  You can organize the stumping and plumbing and electrical connections or have it pre ordered into the overall package. Prefabricated homes cause less damage to the environment than conventional brick homes.  They can be mass produced or fabricated to your design and are quick to build so it will save you rent as brick homes tend to be dragged out with different contractors being involved. They will cost a lot less, than a double brick home by far.  They can be insulated to reduce the cost of heating and cooling. Not only that they are environmentally friendly. The real  beauty  of one of these is if you have a real bad neighbor you can up and take your home and chattels to another town without any problems. As it saves time It saves money and labour Enables money and standardization. Enhances aesthetic appeal. It is lightweight and easy to transport. Easy to installing and maintaining: i.e. rust, fire, and pest retardant and insulated. It is re-locatable and eco-friendly. The disadvantages of prefabricated homes The cost of your prefabricated home will depend on the site your home will be put on.  Site costs will vary from block to block. If you are doing the stumping etc yourself then that is not a problem.  If they need to factor that into the price they will need to make varying changes to prices due to level and position of the block where the prefabricated home will be built. Your choice of prefabricated home will be affected by your particular budget.  Low cost designs may suit those on a tight budget.  Then if you can afford the better styles, then price may not affect your decision. The better high quality designs are made for the higher income families and could be out of your price range. Prefabricated homes are improving like other forms of buildings and the main advantage of a prefabricated home is the potential to reduce the harmful impact on our environment.  This is one of the worlds biggest concerns these days. Materials used for pre-engineered buildings Steel / Stainless steel Galvalume roof sheeting Stainless steel capped fasteners Silicon zed polyester baked-on enamel paint The Advantages of pre-engineered buildings Fast erection Low cost if choosing manufacturers standard package/inventory and no add on Open clear span Can be easily expanded to grow with needs The disadvantages of pre-engineered buildings Marginal design, material and construction Not energy efficient Higher lifetime maintenance Not durable for long term use, generally last 10 to 15 years May not include all construction/fit-up needed for the building to serve the intended purpose. No secondary roof membrane Usually no internal finished walls Pre-engineered steel fabric buildings vs. Conventional steel buildings Steel Fabric Structures Conventional Steel Buildings Overall Price Price per square foot is about 30% lower than conventional steel More expensive than a pre-engineered steel fabric building Maintenance Costs The building and fabric cover is virtually maintenance free. The fabric will not attract or hold dirt contaminants and proves to be self-cleaning Shingling or painting may be necessary to maintain the outside of the building Interior Clear span throughout building does not interfere with any operations Columns or posts may need to be in place to maintain structural integrity of the building Corrosion Our buildings are made with hot dipped galvanized steel and are corrosion resistant Due to the exterior of the building being exposed in all weather conditions, corrosion may become an issue Temperature Control Our membrane fabric cover had non-conductive qualities keeping buildings cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter Steel buildings are conductive of heat, creating a virtual oven in hot weather conditions Operational Costs Lower costs for lighting, heat, and A/C due to non-conductive translucent cover Operational costs are higher for lighting, heat, and A/C Future Expansions Our buildings are easily expandable and reloadable. Can be used as a temporary and permanent structure. Steel buildings are permanent and cannot be relocated. Expansion will be timely and costly, if possible. Foundation Foundation can be as little as Footings at truss and end column base plate locations. Foundation requirements are typically a fraction of that of similar conventional buildings. Extensive, heavy foundation required Installation and delivery Depending on the size of the Structure installation takes an average of 7-10 days. Delivery after order takes about 6-12 weeks. Delivery of material averages From 20 to 26 weeks. Installation Time is more than double that of a steel fabric structure. Noise Sound absorbing covers keep building quiet even during adverse weather conditions Buildings are loud during rain and hail storms creating unpleasant working conditions Condensation Our membrane fabric design allows natural light to filter through the building while keeping out moisture and condensation Condensation is a known problem in steel buildings and can damage the building and its contents Structure weight Pre engineered buildings are on the average 30% lighter because of the efficient use of steel. Primary framing members are tapered built up section. With the large depths in areas of higher stress. Secondary members are light weight roll formed Z or C shaped members. Primary steel members are selected hot rolled T sections. Which are, in many segments of the members heavier than what is actually required by design? Members have constant cross section regardless of the varying magnitude of the local stresses  along the member length Secondary members are selected from standard hot rolled sections which are much heavier. Design Quick and efficient: since PEBs are mainly formed by standard sections and connections design, time is significantly reduced. Basic design based on international design codes are used over and over. Specialized computer analysis design programs optimize material required. Drafting is also computerized using standard detail that minimizes the use of project custom details. Design shop detail sketches and erection drawings are supplied free of cost by the manufacturer. Approval drawing is usually prepared within in 2 weeks. PEB designers design and detail PEB buildings almost every day of the year resulting in improving the quality of designs every time they work Each conventional steel structure is designed from scratch with fewer design aids available to the engineer. Substantial engineering and detailing work is required from the very basic is required by the consultant with fewer design aids. Extensive amount of consultant time is devoted to the alterations that have to be done. As each project is a new project engineers need more time to develop the designs and details of the unique structure. Erection simplicity Since the connection of compounds is standard the learning curve of erection for each subsequent project is faster. Periodic free of charge erection is provided at the site by the manufacturer. The connections are normally complicated and differ from project to project resulting tin increasing the time for erection of the buildings. There has to be separate allocation of labour for the purpose of erection. Erection cost and time Both costs and time of erection are accurately known based upon extensive experience with similar buildings. The erection process is faster and much easier with very less requirement for equipment. Typically, conventional steel buildings are 20% more expensive than PEB in most of the cases, the erection costs and time are not estimated accurately. Erection process is slow and extensive field labors required. Heavy equipment is also needed. Architecture Outstanding architectural design can be achieved at low cost using standard architectural details and interfaces. Special architectural design and features must be developed for each project which often requires research and thus resulting in higher cost. Sourcing and coordination Building is supplied complete with all accessories including erection for a single ONE STOP SOURCE. Many sources of supply are there so it becomes difficult to co ordinate and handle the things. Building accessories Designed to fit the system with standardized and inter changeable parts. Including pre designed flashing and trims. Building accessories are mass produced for economy and are available with the building. Every project requires different and special design for accessories and special sourcing for each item. Flashing and trims must be uniquely designed and fabricated. Future expansions All project records are safely and orderly kept in electronic format which makes it easy for the owner to obtain a copy of his building record at any time. Future expansion is very easy and simple. It would be difficult to obtain project records after a long period of time. It is required to contact more than one number of parties. Future expansion is most tedious and more costly. Safety and responsibility Single source of responsibility is there because the entire job is being done by one supplier. Multiple responsibilities can result in question of who is responsible when the components do not fit in properly, insufficient material is supplied or parts fail to perform particularly at the supplier/contractor interface. Performance All components have been specified and designed specially to act together as a system for maximum efficiency, precise fir and peak performance in the field. Experience with similar buildings, in actual field conditions worldwide, has resulted in design improvements over time, which allows dependable prediction of performance. Components are custom designed for a specific application on a specific job. Design and detailing errors are possible when assembling the diverse components into unique buildings. Each building design is unique, so predication, of how components will perform together is uncertain. Materials which have performed well in some climates may not do well in other conditions. Explain the appropriateness, advantages and disadvantages of using prefabricated buildings in the project The advantages of having prefabricated buildings in this project Prefabricated buildings can be ordered and transported straight to your block.  Client can organize the stumping and plumbing and electrical connections or have it pre ordered into the overall package. Prefabricated buildings cause less damage to the environment than conventional brick buildings.  They can be mass produced or fabricated to the design and are quick to build so it will save you rent as brick buildings tend to be dragged out with different contractors being involved. They will cost a lot less, than a double brick building by far.  They can be insulated to reduce the cost of heating and cooling. Not only that they are environmentally friendly. The disadvantages of having prefabricated buildings in this project The cost of your prefabricated building will depend on the site your home will be put on.  Site costs will vary from block to block. If you are doing the stumping etc yourself then that is not a problem.  If they need to factor that into the price they will need to make varying changes to prices due to level and position of the block where the prefabricated home will be built. The choice of prefabricated building will be affected by your particular budget.  Low cost designs may suit those on a tight budget.  Then if you can afford the better styles, then price may not affect your decision. Prefabricated homes are improving like other forms of buildings and the main advantage of a prefabricated home is the potential to reduce the harmful impact on our environment.  This is one of the worlds biggest concerns these days. The advantages of having a prefabricated steel building Steel is a remarkable material that has been steadily increasing in popularity for construction. It is 66% recyclable, which offers both environmental and financial benefits, and is especially strong and durable. There are a number of options available for building with steel, and one of the most innovative of those options are pre-engineered steel buildings. They are planned, designed and almost pre-built at the factory itself. They just have to be assembled after they reach the building site. They are pre-drilled, pre-cut and pre-welded and just need to be bolted together. This can often be done quickly and with a minimum of professional assistance, and sometimes with none at all. They are quicker, easier and almost 50% less expensive than conventional buildings. Besides, they can be designed as per exact specifications. Elements of the site, other buildings in the area, proposed purpose, and other elements can be taken into consideration. This is the reason for the increasing use of pre-engineered steel buildings for schools, offices, houses, stores, churches and recreational places. Pre-engineered steel buildings, which have no support columns, are known as clear-span buildings. Though they maximize floor space, they cannot be expanded in width. On the other hand, multi-span buildings have unlimited scope for expansion and are thus are often a popular choice for offices and residential buildings. Pre-engineered steel homes have also become very popular in recent years. They offer affordability and flexibility, among many other benefits. There are two kinds of pre-engineered steel buildings: modular and manufactured homes. The only difference is that manufactured homes need not be built as per the building codes, unlike modular homes. For this reason, modular homes are often considered to be more sturdy and reliable. Whether youre creating a manufactured home, modular home, or even a new office, pre-engineered steel buildings offer a vast array of affordable and durable options. Specification for a Pre-fabricated building Panels for a Pre-fabricated building < Curriculum | Definition and Analysis Curriculum | Definition and Analysis CURRICULUM Definition of Curriculum â€Å"A curriculum is more than a list of topics to be covered by an educational programme, for which the more commonly accepted word is a ‘syllabus. A curriculum is first of all a policy statement about a piece of education, and secondly an indication as to the ways in which that policy is to be realised through a programme of action. In practice, though, a curriculum is more than even this; it is useful to think of it as being much wider. As a working definition of a curriculum I would say that it is the sum of all the activities, experiences and learning opportunities for which an institution (such as the Society) or a teacher (such as a faculty member) takes responsibility either deliberately or by default. This includes in such a broad concept of curriculum the formal and the informal, the overt and the covert, the recognised and the overlooked, the intentional and the unintentional. A curriculum is determined as much by what is not offered, and what has been rejected, a s it is by positive actions. And very importantly the curriculum that actually happens that is what is realised in practice includes informal contact between teachers and learners as well as between the learners themselves, and this has been termed ‘the hidden curriculum which often has as much influence on what is learnt as the formal curriculum that is written down as a set of intentions. And it includes what you decide to do on the spur of the moment. So in fact it is useful to think of there being three faces to a curriculum: the curriculum on paper; the curriculum in action; and the curriculum that participants actually learn.† Coles C (2003) Product, Process or Praxis. That is the question. Which curriculum model relates to my own teaching? Firstly I should identify the main theories that are associated with the curriculum and the learning process, as I understand them. The main ones that come to mind are: n Curriculum as product n Curriculum as process n Curriculum as praxis n Curriculum as context There are other theories but the above seem to have the express the basics of the curriculum and how we learn, each has its own supporters. Curriculum as Product What is the dictionary definition of product? Product, (noun) thing that which is produced by effort or labour, or that produced as a result of an act or process, from the Latin prodoceo, to lead or bring forth. What is the relevance to the curriculum? The process of learning is likened to that of producing a product, or something tangible, Bobbitt wrote The central theory [of curriculum] is simple. Human life, however varied, consists in the performance of specific activities. Education that prepares for life is one that prepares definitely and adequately for these specific activities. However numerous and diverse they may be for any social class they can be discovered. This requires only that one go out into the world of affairs and discover the particulars of which their affairs consist. These will show the abilities, attitudes, habits, appreciations and forms of knowledge that men need. These will be the objectives of the curriculum. They will be numerous, definite and particularized. The curriculum will then be that series of experiences which children and youth must have by way of obtaining those objectives. F Bobbitt (1918) We start by knowing nothing; we learn and apply our learning to our actions. It is like a manufacturing process in the way that it progresses, starting with the idea and through a series of logical step and sequences we arrive at the product or outcome. Step 1: Diagnosis of need Step 2: Formulation of objectives Step 3: Selection of content Step 4: Organization of content Step 5: Selection of learning experiences Step 6: Organization of learning experiences Step 7: Determination of what to evaluate and of the ways and means of doing it.(Taba 1962) With the Product model it makes for more precise assessment, provides structure and content, makes teachers more aware of differing types and levels, avoids vague general statements, everything is clearly laid out, learners know what is required of them to achieve, and teachers to be able to direct the learners in the correct pathway. It is very much a teacher orientated model, where the learner is very much a secondary entity; it is about how the information is given. The product model is linked closely with behaviourism also called learning perspectives, where the physical action is behaviour. Studies in this area have been undertaken by Skinner and Gestalt, following upon the work undertaken by Pavlov. Curriculum as a Process The focus of this model is on the teaching activities and the teachers role, with the learners activities having the biggest impact. The focus is on interactions. This can mean that attention shifts from teaching to learning. This is where learning takes place. The emphasis in this model is â€Å"the means† rather than â€Å"the end†. In the process model the curriculum is not a physical thing but rather the interaction between the teacher, the learner and the knowledge. The curriculum is what actually happens in the classroom, and what we do to prepare and evaluate. Each element is constantly interacting. It is an active process, and links back to Aristotle. The focus is on learning and the fact that the learner has a voice in the way the lesson proceeds and the nature of the learning activities. There is an emphasis on the active roles of the teachers and the learners, with the emphasis being on learning rather than teaching. There is a more rounded approach in this model as it looks at learning for life rather than specific functions. L Stenhouse (1975) likened it to: A curriculum is an attempt to communicate the essential principles and features of an educational proposal in such a form that it is open to critical scrutiny and capable of effective translation into practice. Curriculum as Praxis â€Å"Curriculum as praxis is, in many respects, a development of the process model. While the process model is driven by general principles and places an emphasis on judgment and meaning making, it does not make explicit statements about the interests it serves. It may, for example, be used in such a way that does not make continual reference to collective human well-being and to the emancipation of the human spirit. The praxis model of curriculum theory and practice brings these to the centre of the process and makes an explicit commitment to emancipation. Thus action is not simply informed, it is also committed. It is praxis.† (Wikipedia) Not very clear to the layperson. What do we/I understand by the term â€Å"Praxis†. The dictionary definition reads: 1. Practical application or exercise of a branch of learning. 2. Habitual or established practice; custom. (The Free Dictionary) Going one step further:  · translating an idea into action; a hard theory to put into practice; differences between theory and praxis of communism (The Free Dictionary) In short, thinking about what I do, and the way that I do it, not because I am told to do it, because I have my own values about the way it should be done, this influences the way that I do things. This model takes into account the experiences of both the learner and the teacher, and through discussion and negotiations, recognises there may be problems. There may be common ground but this will only come about through mutual self-respect. That is, the curriculum is not simply a set of plans to be implemented, but rather is constituted through an active process in which planning, acting and evaluating are all reciprocally related and integrated into the process (Grundy 1987: 115) Curriculum as Content Broadly speaking the curriculum is the same as the syllabus, and the topics that are to be taught. This is the content in which the curriculum is set. It is the examinations that shape the curriculum, the setting within society, the demands and aspirations of industry. The relationship between learner and teacher, the organisation of classes the tracking of progress. Back to the opening question, which model influences the curriculum in my own teaching? It would have to be the Product model, with occasional use of the Process model. I am taking learners who have little or no knowledge. I am teaching them the application, and they are in turn applying this knowledge to meet required assessment criteria. There are clear aims and objectives. Learning is structured, by me to meet the specified outcomes. There are no general statements of intent. The learners know from the outset what is required of them to achieve the goal at the end; I am there to facilitate their learning. Is this model too rigid? Would I change it? The curriculum lends itself to this model. The final assessment is a formal examination to assess the learners ability to perform specific tasks. These tasks are those that would be required to be undertaken within the work-place. The learner, upon completion of the course and having successfully completed the summative assessment, will be competent to take their place within the workplace, able to meet the demands of industry. They started with nothing and have achieved their goal. What is a meant by or understood by the term curriculum? The dictionary definition reads as follows: 1. All the courses of study offered by an educational institution. 2. A group of related courses, often in a special field of study: e.g. the engineering curriculum. (Wikipedia) If that is so what is a syllabus? * An outline or a summary of the main points of a text, lecture, or course of study. (Wikipedia) It is not very clear, to either a professional or a layperson. We have the educational curricula, simplified, that which is taught in educational establishments, in short the syllabus. Then we have the total curriculum including the informal curriculum, this could be regarded as the sum total of the subjects that the learner is learning. We then have the hidden curriculum, â€Å"the hidden curriculum is taught by the school, not by any teachersomething is coming across to the pupils which may never be spoken in the English lesson or prayed about in assembly. They are picking-up an approach to living and an attitude to learning.† Meighan (1981). And so it goes on, the planned curriculum, the received curriculum, the formal curriculum, the informal curriculum, Kelly A V, (2004) According to Alan Rogers (2002), methods and content together make up the curriculum. There is relatively very little material related to curriculum in adult or lifelong education; most of the work on curriculum has been done in schools, Griffins (1983) concentrates on philosophical concepts of the adult curriculum and tends to neglect more practical aspects of the curriculum. Curriculum is seen as a body of knowledge, the content of education to which the students need to be exposed. It is not what you say, but how you say it! The Lifelong Learning Sector My Curriculum area I am employed within the adult/lifelong learning sector, supporting learners in ICT. This is over a variety of disciplines and software applications, Secretarial disciplines using Microsoft applications, text and word processing, using MS Word, presentations using MS PowerPoint, data management using MS Access and financial and mathematical work using MS Excel. There are a number of qualifications and routes for the learner to follow. I am also supporting learners through computerised accountancy and payroll applications, using Sage to progress within this sector of industry. The majority of learners that I come into contact with are in the process of up-skilling, looking at new career opportunities and openings, looking at updating their own personal skills, and adding to their CV. The use of IT within the workplace has doubled to 77%, with an estimated 22m4 using technology at work. ICT is now a part of everyday life, and no matter what position you are employed in there will be the need to have some knowledge of what a computer can do, how they are used. However there has been a 50% reduction in the number of adults taking up funded ICT provision since 2004/5, largely as a result of shorter courses being displaced by longer qualification-bearing provision. The complexity of the current system of different learning providers, funding routes and qualification outcomes make it harder to access the skills that adults need to get on line.1 Government does not make it easy for adults to access the training that they need, as detailed above. The number who lack basic skills has reduced, there is still a significant percentage who lack the basic skills to access ICT, not only skills but financial support. Digital Life Skills are essential to all adults as they will benefit from: Social Inclusion Equality to access Information and Services Employability Business Productivity Learning and Skills This is a need identified by Government as an area that needs addressing: n an estimated 22m people use technology at work 77% of the working population. (ICT User Skills Report) n a lack of basic ICT skills will be a disadvantage in both finding and securing a new job?(ICT User Skills Report) Are there other factors that affect adult learners? Industry has an impact on what the learners need to study, what is required as a benchmark for employability. It is our job to ensure that we meet the criteria that is laid down to meet the needs of industry, whilst ensuring that we meet the syllabus required by the Examining Board, occasionally the two do not agree. The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) is responsible for funding all adult skills provision. Since 2004/05, although the overall budget has increased, there has been a 23% decline in enrolments on LSC funded programmes as funding has been focused on longer, qualification-bearing courses. (ICT User Skills Report) A large proportion of this decline has been in ICT programmes. Data provided by the LSC Data Service suggests that over the same period there has been a 54% reduction in enrolments on ICT courses to just under 700,000 in 2007/08, and a 50% reduction in learners to 485,000 learners in 2007/08. (ICT User Skills report) There is the legacy of what adults did not learn in their formative years in the education system. Their lack of basic skills can affect all future learning, they may be turned off by the thought of learning in adulthood, having fears of the classroom, as they remember it. Not a pleasant experience and one not to be repeated. The prioritisation of courses leading to literacy, numeracy and full Level 2 appears to have displaced ICT provision of less than 50 hours at Entry and Level 1 in FE. The majority of this provision (75%) was accredited. Another area that affects adult learners undertaking training is that of a financial nature. Is training to expensive? Who will pay? Equipment is expensive? Is help available? Will my benefits be affected? To some, the benefits of training are outweighed by the problems of everyday living, and until these concerns are addressed they continue as they are. What is Evaluation? Evaluation is systematic determination of merit, worth, and significance of something or someone using criteria against a set of standards. Evaluation often is used to characterise and appraise subjects of interest in a wide range of human enterprises. (Wikipedia) What is Assessment? Educational assessment is the process of documenting, usually in measurable terms, knowledge, skills, attitudes and beliefs. Assessment can focus on the individual learner, the learning community (class, workshop, or other organized group of learners), the institution, or the educational system as a whole. (Wikipedia) In my role as a teacher do I assess or do I evaluate? As a reflective practitioner do I assess or evaluate? In my role in the classroom it is important that I spend my time with the learner. The learner should be the main focus of my attention. I should ensure that they are engaged in the learning process. I start out with a plan of what we will be doing (lesson plan) throughout the session, they as learners or the group, me as the teacher, what they will be doing and what I will be doing to support them. I will be engaging with learners throughout the session, advising, supporting, encouraging, and providing feedback. All the learners that I come into contact with receive formative feedback through the use of QA, tutorials, one to ones, practice examination papers and general support. They finally have summative feedback through a formal examination process. These forms of summative assessment are laid down by the qualification bodies, as they do with the syllabus that is to be studied. It is my responsibility, along with my colleagues and peers adapt the curriculum to ensure that we meet all of the criteria required. I would therefore consider that in the classroom I undertake the role of an assessor. It would be wrong to say that I am not evaluating, I consider the evaluation process to be an ongoing process. The assessment process is â€Å"here and now†, I am assessing a learners ability to undertake specific tasks, to achieve a specific goal, which is measureable, and meets the required standards as determined by outside bodies. Evaluation is undertaken as an ongoing process from the time I am advised that a class or programme of learning is to be undertaken. This process has two differing facets to it, that of QI (Quality Improvement) and QA (Quality Assurance). Do we undertake one or both of these roles? Immediate reaction is to say â€Å"yes†, but after consideration the truthful answer may be â€Å"no†. We may aspire to the former but that is all. We as teachers are more concerned with the learners and statistics, retention and achievement, s by which we are measured, and which our employers rely upon. Poor achievement and retention leads to reduced funding, a course which is not viable, and therefore it will not run! Quality assurance is the bigger picture, that which we as front line staff strive to achieve but attain infrequently, and which we rely on our managers, employers and senior staff members to take on board on our behalf. The external agencies that monitor our teaching and all aspects of all that we undertake the examining bodies, LSC, Ofsted and all Government regulatory bodies, together with our internal monitoring and recording strategies, observations, SARs, internal verifiers. Do we have the time to participate? Do we have the time to look at the bigger picture? It would be nice to be able to look at the curriculum from a number of differing prospectives, management, teacher and learners. Look at the syllabus, how does it fit into the curriculum. Are there sufficient resources available to meet the needs of learners, are they the right resources? Does the course meet the needs of industry? So many questions, we may aspire to do many things but realistically there are so many outside influences that affect the curriculum that our teaching takes priority, we think others will pick up the QI that we are not able to address. My curriculum, is there room for improvement? Is there need for change? Evidence used in the completing of this document has been taken from end of course reviews submitted by learners, past and present. Hard data in the form of registers and external examination board summative feedback, together with verbal feedback from learners past and present. Teaching ICT in the Lifelong Learning sector brings me into contact with adult learners, looking to raise their skills base through ICT, studying for pleasure, greater use of ICT within the home environment using the Internet and Email, retraining to enter or re-enter the job market. Funding issues have seen a decline within this area and the number of adult learners has dropped. Employers are aware of the need to up skill their staff, and are know taking the necessary steps to enable their staff to review their training needs. The courses that I support are fairly well subscribed to, those that run for a longer period tend to have significantly lower retention and achievement rates, even when fees are being paid. Is this due to the structure of the course and qualification, the times that the sessions are scheduled, the resources that the learners are supplied with? We offer a range of sessions to accommodate learners at different times. Location can be viewed as an issue, being out of town restricts access to a degree. Learners who are unemployed are offered assistance with transport costs. Equipment could be highlighted as a possible issue; if learners had computers/laptops in their own environment would they study there, if we were able to support them? Adults are more likely to be self motivated to complete a course of study. If they drop out what are the reasons for doing so, should we check and compile meaningful data to promote a better culture of learning. Should we look at differing learning styles, and have different approaches to make the learning process more user friendly and less regimented? The majority of the classes that I support are held in the evening, and the majority of learners work during the day time. This is the time that suits them best. However, such long hours are not conducive to the learning process. Learners become tired and make mistakes. This is not born out in the latest set of results and achievement. Are learners building themselves up for the final summative assessment, the exam? Would they be better working at home if the had access to the specialist applications? They are not able to practice in the work-place. In an ideal world all learners would have access to the necessary equipment and applications. Learners would be accommodated in the classroom or in their own location, with support at specified times. There would be a range of resources to accommodate individual learners. Formative assessment would be undertaken on a regular basis, both on a face to face basis, and using email following marked work. Summative assessments would only be undertaken in the classroom. Nothing is perfect, these are suggestions, and everything ultimately revolves around finance. Conclusion The curriculum is a constantly changing and evolving entity or process. It can be affected by many outside influences. Social, governmental and financial, to name but a few, all have an impact of the way the curriculum is evolving. We, as reflective practitioners, have a responsibility to reflect these changes in our teaching, to ensure that our learners have a rounded knowledge and well-being of the changes within our society. References AV Kelly (1999) The Curriculum, Theory and Practice, 5th Edition (Sage) Coles, C., (2003) Second Spine Course of the Spine Society of Europe Barcelona 16th 19th September 2003 Bobbitt, F. (1928) How to Make a Curriculum, Boston: (Houghton) Taba, H. (1962) Curriculum Development: Theory and practice, New York: (Harcourt Brace and World). Bloom B. S. (1956).Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Handbook I: The Cognitive Domain. New York: David McKay Co Inc. Stenhouse, L (1975) An introduction to Curriculum Research and Development, London http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curriculum_and_instruction#Curriculum_as_praxis [Accessed 09 December2009] http://www.thefreedictionary.com/praxis [Accessed 12 December 2009] Grundy, S. (1987) Curriculum: Product or Praxis, Lewes: Falmer Alan Rogers (2002) Teaching Adults 2nd Edition OUP HM Government (2009) Independent Review of ICT User Skills Report Baroness Estelle Morris 230-09-SK-b

Essay --

Every business can operate because of five essential parts; Product creation, Marketing, Sales, Finance, and Delivery of your Product. Throughout this essay we will be juxtaposing the different aspects of the parts above and showing how each of them relate to capitalism and communism and how each of the essential parts can be shown differently through both capitalism and communism. Business varies extremely when in different environments and these two environments are drastically different and the most different environments that are possible. This essay will help understand how drastic the differences really are between the two markets. Communism Communism is a political theory derived from Karl Marx, advocating class war and leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs. Capitalism Capitalism is an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state Product Creation Product creation is an extremely important part in business operations. This is how business stay in the competition and come up with the best products. All business have a product creation department so they can always have new products coming out and have a reliable source to make these products. Communism and Capitalism can influence this department of business operations immensely. The Communist standpoint of product creation would cause businesses to create few products and the need for new products in a quick and timely manner would slowly decrease to a low steady rate of product creation. The Communist standpoint of product creation would also have an extremely large impact on the prod... ...ry of the products to be essential. would differ greatly between the two types of markets, however the markets are similar in a few ways. Communism and capitalism both have to deliver their products in a timely manner to their consumers and stay organized so they can profit from the deliveries. Businesses would differ extremely due to the fact that communism and capitalism are very different forms of government. These five essential parts (Product creation, Marketing, Sales, Finance, and Delivery of your Product) are the key factors in business and these two markets cause these factors to differentiate between the two types of markets. These two environments caused businesses to re evaluate their ways of marketing and getting consumers to get the products. Capitalism is the most fluent system of marketing, but communism has some valid ways of marketing as well.

Urban Poor

The squatters in the Philippines have wreaked havoc in the country and they are out of control. The problem is quite obvious and the solution is staring everyone in the face; there are just not enough public servants with enough guts to address the issue. But someone has to put an end to the vicious cycle of squatting particularly in Metro Manila where most poor Filipinos from the provinces seem to converge. Arrogant Filipino squatters The squatters or illegal settlers need to move out of wherever they have been squatting for years or even decades because they simply do not belong there. They have long enjoyed their stay, living on abandoned or unoccupied areas of land without being asked to move out. Some of them clog the rivers not just with their garbage, but also with their human waste, which eventually result in the flooding of the streets and residential areas of the cities specially in times of heavy rain. As long as the squatters remain where they are and are allowed to flourish, the Philippines will not reach its full potential as a business hub that finds favor in the eyes of foreign investors. Squatters indiscriminately dump waste onto Manila’s waterways. In other words, the activities of the people squatting are foul. They have no concern or respect for the rights or property of others and have total disregard for the environment and welfare of other people. Some squatters can also be quite arrogant, defiant and selfish when law enforcement agencies finally clamp down on their illegal activities. One video shows illegal settlers berating the court sheriffand demanding to know when and if they are going to be paid by cash or check before they agree to being relocated. Some even joked that the check better not bounce. They appeared to be enjoying their few minutes of fame in front of the camera relating their tales of woes. One wonders why the news crew tends to focus only on their plight and not the story behind why they were allowed to stay there for so long. There is a lot to be said about why they were allowed to stay squatting to begin with. The squatter problem in the Philippines has been made complicated by misguided Filipinos who think that it is the Philippine government’s sole responsibility to provide housing, education and health for them. Not only is this notion unsustainable, it is an unfair burden on taxpayers. Retired Chief Justice Reynato Puno recently said that â€Å"Filipinos must be able to demand from their government their right to housing, education and health, or these socioeconomic rights would remain mere words on paper. † While Puno’s sentiments seem noble, Filipino taxpayers simply cannot afford to fund the growing number of Filipinos living below the poverty line. Some of these squatters, despite living in tiny quarters no bigger than a box, have no qualms about multiplying at a fast rate. Perhaps they have been led to believe that their children can be used to gain access to hand outs from the government. Filipino politicians do not help solve the problem of squatters at all. If anything, they actually contribute to their proliferation. The root cause of the squatter problem seems to be the lack of urban planning from each Barangay and weak enforcement of the law by members of various agencies who are not doing their jobs properly. Obviously, they did not nip the problem in the bud. Had they been doing their jobs, they could have easily evicted the first squatter before they multiplied and became the enormous problem they are today. Apparently, there are times when the law enforcement agencies that include the police and the court sheriff are helpless in certain situations. They are supposed to act independently from elected officials but are unable to do their jobs until they get instructions from city Mayors who hold off on evicting squatters during election season or when their popularity is waning. This was evident when Davao Mayor Sara Duterte assaulted a court sheriff 2011 because the latter initiated the demolition of shanties in Davao’s Agdao district without her go signal. She said that she felt compelled to punch the sheriff to prevent violence from ensuing. The irony in justifying the Mayor’s actions escaped her and a lot of people who supported her when she attracted criticism. Duterte’s actions probably made a lot of squatters think they need to be handled with kids’ gloves. These politicians have emboldened squatters who are now quick to throw a tantrum and use violence whenever they are dissatisfied with the government’s approaches and arrangements to relocate them. Bianca Gonzalez: the long-awaited messiah of anti-squatter activism! Lately, the squatters’ sense of entitlement and tough stance have finally caught the attention of some of the members of the upper and middle class who are fed up with the troubles they are causing. A celebrity and social media activist, Bianca Gonzalez have spoken out against the way the Philippine government treats squatters like â€Å"babies†. She is getting a lot of kudos for her unwavering stand against the lack of fairness in how the issue is being handled. She highlighted that law-abiding citizens work hard to save money to be able to buy property legally but still get taxed for it while squatters don’t even pay anything to stay in illegally occupied lands. It’s been noted that a lot of the squatters show their arrogance while demanding compensation from the taxpayers. Speaking of babies for that matter, some people who can’t afford to feed themselves shouldn’t have more babies. It has come to the attention of many Filipinos too that a convoluted law on squatters introduced in 1997 has made it difficult for the government to evict squatters. Republic Act 7279 merely punishes the â€Å"professional squatters†. They are defined by law as those who can afford to pay for legitimate housing or those who have received housing units from the government but have sold or leased it to others so they themselves can settle illegally again in another urban area in order to deceive the system by asking for more compensation. In other words, most squatters don’t even get penalized anymore for their illegal activities. They even get rewarded for wreaking havoc in the community. No wonder a lot of Filipinos would rather stay as squatters and have adopted a squatter mentality. Who can solve the squatter problem in the Philippines? Certainly, the incumbent President Benigno Simeon â€Å"BS† Aquino cannot solve it. Someone even said that the Aquino-Conjuangco clans also act like squatters who have occupied Hacienda Luisita for decades. Violence and intimidation were key to helping them keep the lands that were meant for the poor farmers. BS Aquino seems more preoccupied with his popularity than providing a permanent solution to the country’s long-standing issues. He will not risk the wrath of the squatters because the Liberal Party still needs to get their votes in the next Presidential election. The President could even increase the number of recipients of the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) or dole outs to the poor as a way distracting them from the lack of progress during his term. The reaction of the members of the thinking class is long overdue. They need to step up and call out what the government is doing, which is simply coddling the squatters. Philippine politicians need to quit being overprotective of people who abuse the system just to get the votes in the next election. This abusive behavior from both the public officials who buy off votes using tax payer’s money and squatters who take advantage of the situation need to end lest every corner of the country get run over by squatters. [Photos courtesy Australia News Network, Lucy Who, and Asia Society. ] Related Posts: * A sustainable solution to the squatter problem in the†¦ * The problem of squatters in the Philippines cannot be solved * Land ownership Hell: The Philippines is Squatter Central†¦ * Party-List politicians seek audience with Anti-Squatter†¦ * Bianca Gonzalez’s Tweet Reveals The Pinoy Middle Class n

Television Viewing Habits of Youngsters in India

INTRODUCTION: The latter part of the 20th century is known as the â€Å"Electronic age’’. It is estimated that 97%of the homes have atleast one television set. Children who come from homes without television are likely to view programs in schools, at friends house and in stores. Almost every youngster is exposed to television. Television has had a tremendous impact on the lives of the youngsters as it provides them with entertainment, information as and companionship. One of our television actors has said ‘that shows for youngsters are limited because there are not many takers for these programs . nd family oriented soaps are getting more TRPs. He says that he himself being a youngster prefers to watch shows like friends, music based reality shows, films, etc. and not family oriented soaps. When youngsters watch television with their parents their choice always differs. Because youngsters prefer to watch channels like Mtv, Channel V and more of reality and entert ainment show. While parents usually watch daily soaps and news, which most of the youngsters do not prefer to watch. There is hardly anything left for the youngsters to watch today because nowadays many daily soaps have been increasing. But there are a couple of channels catering to young audiences between the age group of 18-25 years. SURVEY ANALYSIS: The survey which was conducted to find out the television viewing habits among the youth gave us a lot of information as to what exactly the youngsters prefer to watch on television. And what changes they would like to have on television in future. Mostly all the youngsters watch reality shows. Like roadies stunt mania Khatro Ke Khiladi, Indian idol, Big Boss, Dance Reality shows, etc. Many of them watch shows on Sab Tv like Tarak Mehta ka Oolta Cashma , Comedy circus ,etc. They say that these shows give them entertainment and refreshment from studies. Some of them also watch Star Movies, HBO , and other movie channels. A few of them watch discovery, travel and living ,cookery shows ,programmes on NDTV Goodtimes ,and different news channels which give them a lot of information about the outside world . A very few youngsters watch daily soaps. A large no of youngsters yet watch cartoon because it entertains them. And cartoons help them to forget their problems for a little while. Many of them want changes in television in the future; mostly all of them are against the daily soaps on Colours, star plus and Zee Tv. They say that such daily soaps have a bad impact on people. And it can really spoil the children if they watch this entire daily. They expect more of those programmes which give them information which is real and which can help them in their life. Unlike the daily soaps which are fake and they show things which can never happen in our daily lives. IMPACT OF TV VIEWING HABITS OF YOUNGSTERS ON BEHAVIOR NDTV and Aaj Tak: The youngsters watch different channels on television to get knowledge from all the different fields. But they watch more of reality based programmes ,on channels like mtv ,channelv, zoom, bindas, etc. The news channels are usually preferred by senior citizens. but even the youngsters watch news channels. The main news channels are Aaj Tak and NDTV. They watch news channels to be aware of the happenings in our and other countries. But t he very less youngsters watch news. * Cartoon Network: Some of them also watch cartoons. But mainly children watch it. But sometimes for refreshment or entertainment many youngsters prefer to watch cartoons. The most demanded cartoon which is watched by all the ages is Jom &Jerry. There are many cartoons which can have a bad effect on the youngsters as well as the children, which should be banned. * ESPN: Almost all the youngsters like sports. And many of them only watch sports channel. The most demanded sports channel is ESPN. T his channel shows all the different types of sports. Many of the youths have a lot of interest in different sports. There are many other sports channels like neo sport, D. D sports, etc. * MTV and UTV Bindaas: Mtv and Bindas are the channels which are demanded by all the youngsters. These channels show programs which are highly demanded by today’s youth. These channels show reality shows, reality dance shows. singing shows, MTV shows the most demanded program ROADIES and SPLITSVILLA. These shows give entertainment that’s why mostly all the youths watch it. They also show different types of music and songs. The other channels which are demanded by the youths are Channel V, VH1, ZOOM, B4U, etc. Colors and Star Plus: Star Plus and Colors are the channels which show all the daily soaps, which is mostly watched by the middle aged people. The youth does not prefer to watch such channels which do not give them any entertainment. But there are some youngsters who watch these daily soaps. But most of them find these channels and these programs boring. * Doordarshan: D. D (doordarshan) is one of the oldest channels. None of the youths watch this channel or the programs in it. It is only preferred by the old people. * SAB TV: Sab TV is a channel which is demanded by all the age groups. It mainly contains programs which are entertaining unlike the daily soaps. They have all comedy serials which is preferred by everyone. Even large no of youths watch this channel. CONCLUSION: Thus we can conclude that the overall survey has helped us to know what exactly the young generation prefers to watch on television. And also the changes they expect in the near future. It has also helped us to know their views about different shows on television. This survey has really helped us to know the television viewing habits among the youngsters.

Nikita Krushchev essays

Nikita Krushchev essays Nikita Khrushchev is undoubtedly one of the most important and interesting political figures of the twentieth century. Rising from a background of extreme poverty, he became an early supporter of the November 1917 bolshevik revolution. During the inter war years he joined the Communist Party, and rose steadily through its ranks; by the outbreak of World War II, he was firmly entrenched as one of the most important Soviet politicians and statesmen. He continued on in this capacity throughout the war years, and rose to power following the death of Stalin in 1953. Khrushchev then initiated a series of great reforms, which completely changed the face of politics and indeed life in general in the Soviet Union. Ultimately however, many of these reforms failed to achieve of their primary goals, and these failures led not only to Khrushchevs personal political downfall, but also to major changes in the global political climate. Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev was born on 17 April 1894 in Kalinovka, a small village in the province of Kursk, which lies just on the Russian side of the border with the Ukraine. Sergi Nikanorovich Khrushev, his father, was an average poor peasant who left the family each winter to work in the coalfields of the Donets Basin. Khrushevs family lived in an area cursed with overpopulation; many people lived there because of the fertile soil, which they hoped to use to feed their families. The overpopulated, malnourished villages were centers for disease; diphtheria, typhus, and syphilis was widespread. This poverty was to dominate Khrushchevs memories of peasant life. Like most peasant boys, Khrushchev started work at an early age. His first job was guarding the village animals. Later he worked as a herdsboy for the local land owner. Khrushchev attended the village school for approximately two years between the ages of seven and twelve. In a land of general illiteracy, even two ye...

Role of the State Essays

Role of the State Essays Role of the State Essay Role of the State Essay This paper is being submitted on August 22, 2013 Role of the State Plato’s thought represents an essential aspect of Modern Europe’s classical heritage. His complex and changing notions of identity and difference, his views of the connection between body and soul, passion and reason, and his own varying assessment of the theory of Forms, as refracted through Aristotle’s critique of all these concepts, have laid the groundwork of Western logic, metaphysics and political theory until modern times.Yet, in assessing what modern European owes to its classical heritage, we need to confront the fact that Plato and Aristotle stood opposed to both the major philosophical and political tendencies of modern liberalism and the more recent theoretical attempts such as deconstruction, Marxism and Feminism to undermine those liberal beliefs. The positions of Plato and Aristotle on nearly all of these issues are concentrated in their respective critiques of democracy.Both Plato and Aristotle based their theories on four widely accepted beliefs of the time; knowledge must be of what is real, the world experienced via the senses is what is real, knowledge must be of what is fixed and unchanging, the world experienced via the senses is not fixed and unchanging. These points led to a skeptic point of view which both philosophers wished to target as both agreed knowledge is possible. In order to overcome this contradiction in the argument it became necessary that each philosopher choose a point to disregard and prove to be unnecessary.Plato chose to reject the claim that the world experienced through the senses is what is real; while Aristotle rejected the claim that knowledge must be of what is fixed and unchanging. This presented problems to be overcome by each philosopher: Plato had to give an account of where knowledge could be found while Aristotle had to account for how to have knowledge of that which is undergoing change. This is what leads to the philosophers’ overwhelming differences (Comparison between Plato and Aristotle; Similarities andDifferences, 2013). If Plato was pre-eminently a radical-thinker, Aristotle was decidedly conservative in his political speculation. While Plato is a deductive thinker, Aristotle follows the inductive method. This is clear if we compare the methods of the two. Plato started with abstract notions of justice and virtue and on the basis of this setup an ideal state. Aristotle reasoned inductively by comparing the working institutions of a large number of city-states actually existing in his own time.The intellectual make-up and reasoning, process of the two was different. Plato proceeded from the Universal or the Ideal to the particular, while Aristotle’s process was from the particular and concrete to the universal, Plato believed that reality laid in the ideal i. e. the idea of a thing while Aristotle held that it lay in the concrete manifestation of a thing. Aristotle regarded himself more as an organizer of already-existing knowledge than as a profounder of new philosophy.The reasoning of Aristotle is less imaginative and more logical and scientific than that of Plato and his speculations and judgments are sounder than those of his master. With him, ethics and politics are not so inextricably intertwined as with Plato. If Plato subordinated politics to ethics, Aristotle gave the pride of place to politics. I believe it safe to say that practical political philosophy in the West began with Aristotle. While Plato aimed at the ideal, Aristotle’s objective was not the ideally best but the best attainable.By his keen and practical political insight and systematic treatment of the subject Aristotle laid the foundations of real political science Politics, with him, assumed the character of an independent science. Plato also combined the ethical and the political but Aristotle gave pride of place to the political. He was more individualistic than Plato as Plato dealt with both ethics and politics in one treatise, and Aristotle dealt with the two in two separate treatises i. . the Politics and the Ethics. The Politics of Aristotle still remains one of the greatest classics on political science because it contains much of universal validity.

Free sample - A vivid experience on explosion. translation missing

A vivid experience on explosion. A vivid experience on explosionThe December festive season is almost here with us again. This is the time where each and every shopping mall is a bee hive of activities. The last two days towards this big day are extremely busy. Majority of the people are found in the last minute rush moving from one stall to the next buying new clad and gifts for friends and family. Unfortunately, my mother and I were also finishing our selection on the last Sunday, a day before this wonderful day. A lot of people were in the supermarket. The parking was fully loaded. We were lucky enough to arrive early to find a place to park. Some minutes to noon we got into a jewelry stall when out of nowhere there was a big explosion. What struck my mind first was that an earthquake had ensued. I immediately started sweating trembling like a leave on cold weather. On looking back, I was met with people lying down swimming in blood. Women and children were screaming and pieces of glass were lying all over. Some people were running out of the shopping mall and the place resembled hell. Within a blink of an eye, the police arrived at the scene accompanied by two ambulances for offering first aid to the injured people. It then dawned on me that the explosion had been caused by a bomb which had been planted in one of the stall. After several questions from the police, we excused ourselves and left for home. Although my mother and I managed to escape unhurt, I could not help but to shed tears because we escaped narrowly. Later in the news that evening, it was confirmed that three people had lost their lives as a result of that explosion while a good number were still nursing injuries. It was a horrible experience. Since that day, the bloody images of injured people still occur in most of my dreams and I even sometimes scream late at night. This has affected me psychologically and I have been visiting a psychiatrist quite often to help me overcome this. My life was completely changed since that day although am trying very hard to get over this.

Should managers try to eliminate or to encourage the expression of Essay

Should managers try to eliminate or to encourage the expression of organisational conflict Explore your reasons - Essay Example A clever manager will encourage organisational conflict only if it is in the shape of a disagreement. A disagreement is a difference in opinion among two or more persons. It arises as a result of differing personal view points. Disagreements occur frequently between workers within an organisation, and as they do not affect organisational effectiveness, they are looked upon as healthy outlets of workers’ personal beliefs and opinions. Disagreements usually end up amicably, without needing intervention by third parties. The intelligent manager should monitor the progress of a disagreement carefully to ensure that it does not worsen to have direct effects on the workers’ behaviour and their capacity and zeal to work properly (Cram et al.). A shrewd manager should try and eliminate, or when not possible, address and resolve organisational conflicts quickly. If this is not done, the organisation stands to face many bad consequences. The first bad consequence is higher employee turnover. One of the disputing workers could resign, which will need the organisation pay termination costs, and also incur expenses to find and train a new replacement worker. The second bad consequence is that the organization’s working environment becomes tense and heavy with stress. Since the conflict matter is not discussed (let alone solved), an atmosphere heavy with lack of trust, anxiety and apprehension is created. Such an unpleasant atmosphere acts adversely on workers, causing them to develop passive-aggressive behaviour patterns. In addition, the manager who cannot solve conflicts swiftly and effectively fails to inspire trust and confidence in workers. Such a set of circumstances badly hits the reputation of the organisation, c ausing it to face business losses, and making it very hard to recruit new employees and prevent existing employees from leaving. The third and most serious consequence is a distinct loss

Executive Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 12

Executive Summary - Essay Example Friedman presents three phases of globalization: globalization 1.0 presents countries globalizing, globalization 2.0 presents companies globalizing and globalization 3.0 entails individuals and small groups globalizing. Fried’s argument is based on two major tenets: the ten flatteners of 1990s and the triple convergence in 2000. Friedman presents the collapse of Berlin wall, netscape, workflow software, open sourcing, outsourcing, offshoring, supply chaining, insourcing, and in-forming and the steroids as the ten forces that flattened the world. Friedman further argues that when the ten forces converged in 200, the product was a flat world. Similarly, in Hans Rosling’s lecture â€Å"Hans Roslings 200 Countries, 200 Years, 4 Minutes - The Joy of Stats,† he explores the development of the world in the past present as well as the future using massive quantities of public data. Rosling presents to his audience the tale of the world focusing on 200 countries in a period of 200 years by use of 120,000 numbers within 4 minutes. Rosling also conveys the concept of technological advancement spurring globalization where he issues an example of a technology in San Francisco that keeps the entire city under police watch and help curb crime. He asserts that statistics is the basis through which human confusion is eliminated and brings out a vivid picture of how the world was, is and will be. A flat world impacts international businesses in various ways. First, it leads to increased level of competition because firms can easily get access to new markets across the flat world. Second, it leads to increase in business opportunities. Finally, it gives rise to multi-national and cross-cultural management, which is a big challenge to managers. Both Rosling and Friedman present how globalization has flattened then world over time. The world has become one leveled playing field for multinational

Irony in Oedipus Rex Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Irony in Oedipus Rex - Essay Example For instance, Oedipus commits to locate and penalize the one found guilty irrespective of where he/she belonged as his words may show, â€Å"but as if from myself I shall dispel the stain† (Sophocles 16, line 22). While he makes this commitment with the audience, the audience knows that the murderer of Laius is Oedipus, which makes it an example of dramatic irony in the novel. Later in the novel, that guilty person turns out to be Oedipus himself. Oedipus goes on to say that his own life is also at stake as long as that murderer is free, â€Å"For whoever he was who killed that man would as soon kill me with that same violent hand† (Sophocles 16). This is an example of double irony in the play. A dialogue can be identified as double irony if the original statement seems to be irony, but turns out to be true, thus, making it the irony’s ironical use. Although Oedipus does not know that he is the killer himself, yet he does take his own life later in the story when he comes to realize that the murderer of Laius was nobody else but

Professional Knowledge and Abilities Research Paper

Professional Knowledge and Abilities - Research Paper Example The association promotes professionalism in education through the provision of classroom mini-grants and scholarships designed specifically to help advance continuing education and student achievement. All members are eligible to apply for these grants and scholarships. Through the association newsletter, Education Matters, an easy-to-read and straight-to-the-point letter, members are updated with key issues in the education career. Indeed, featured articles with refreshing perspective in recent editions include â€Å"A Charter School Success Story in the Making†, â€Å"Reinventing Special Education†, Empowering Teachers to do Assessment† and â€Å"The Three Reasons We Must Teach History†. Furthermore, through the Individual Liability Insurance policy, the association guarantees $2,000,000 protection per occurrence, per member. In addition, the association’s Legal Protection benefits ensure that members have access to legal counsel at the onset of wo rkplace issues and Defense costs. The legal coverage takes care of legal action arising from out of duties.

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

Technology - Research Paper Example There are various benefits that have been offered by different technological advancements, but these advancements have been severally criticized by the opponents of the debate of technology being beneficial or harmful to the society and its members. The opponents as well as the proponents of the debate use various researches in order to support their claims. The benefits of technological advancements have been well documented but at the same time the negative effects of technological advancements have even been well researched and these negative effects have been as severe as being the cause of death amongst the members of the society. As new technological advancements enter the society the concern of how negatively these advancements are impacting human beings has increased within stakeholders and policy makers. Technological advancements may have several benefits to offer but it is severally damaging the educational, social, physical and psychological life of human beings. The use of technological devices has increased quite steadily and these advancements are being used by people of all ages including teenagers, young adults, older adults as well as seniors. Steinberg in his article has cited various studies that have been conducted in order to provide insight regarding the benefits of video game technology and in these researches the populations that were survey and observed included children ageing 4 to 6 years old, children who were in the middle years of the school life, individuals who were working as adults and various others (Steinberg 1). Similarly, Winteman focuses on the use of technology of internet amongst the population of teenagers while discussing the impact of technology on members of society (Winteman 1). Technological advancements have severally damaged the psychological wellbeing of its users. The proponents of technology argue that technological developments have impacted the psychological development of the members of the

Triad Problematic of Youth Entrepreneurship Research Proposal - 4

Triad Problematic of Youth Entrepreneurship - Research Proposal Example I am considering to replace my used car with another one with a budget I can afford. My net worth in cash does not exceed  £5,000. I will need to finance the rest of the budget via the sale of my old car. The car I currently own has high mileage and can only be sold at the lowest minimum price of 7,266. I decided to vend my automobile to the broker from whom I will get the new car. Even with the finance that I may get from the sale of my motor vehicle, I will not be able to get to the price if the new car that is being sold for 17,293 as the lowest price. The sales representative is allowed to make a sale at this price or higher than that. He is looking to make a deal before closing the business for the weekend. The deal is to be completed on the third day of the following week. Since I cannot afford the car with my total budget from the cash I have and the cash I get from the sale of the car, I need to get extra funds. The total funds that I can afford just exceed 12,000. In this case, I may request for a loan worth 5,000 in order to complete my purchases. In my course of negotiation, I came to realize that I will be able to get a loan from the car dealers. There are some rates that are offered, and the salesperson has to meet. The rules that guide the sales representative are vital in business operations (Jones, Chin, & Aiken, 2014, p. 91). The boss will need to see if the salesman utilizes the skills that he had gotten from the college level in carrying out the business. The skills also entail making a higher bid for the loans. I came to realizes that the higher loan the salesman makes with the client, the higher the special bonus.  

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

Technology - Research Paper Example There are various benefits that have been offered by different technological advancements, but these advancements have been severally criticized by the opponents of the debate of technology being beneficial or harmful to the society and its members. The opponents as well as the proponents of the debate use various researches in order to support their claims. The benefits of technological advancements have been well documented but at the same time the negative effects of technological advancements have even been well researched and these negative effects have been as severe as being the cause of death amongst the members of the society. As new technological advancements enter the society the concern of how negatively these advancements are impacting human beings has increased within stakeholders and policy makers. Technological advancements may have several benefits to offer but it is severally damaging the educational, social, physical and psychological life of human beings. The use of technological devices has increased quite steadily and these advancements are being used by people of all ages including teenagers, young adults, older adults as well as seniors. Steinberg in his article has cited various studies that have been conducted in order to provide insight regarding the benefits of video game technology and in these researches the populations that were survey and observed included children ageing 4 to 6 years old, children who were in the middle years of the school life, individuals who were working as adults and various others (Steinberg 1). Similarly, Winteman focuses on the use of technology of internet amongst the population of teenagers while discussing the impact of technology on members of society (Winteman 1). Technological advancements have severally damaged the psychological wellbeing of its users. The proponents of technology argue that technological developments have impacted the psychological development of the members of the

Johnson & Johnson Diversity Plan Essay Example for Free

Johnson Johnson Diversity Plan Essay Johnson Johnson was formed in 1885 in Brunswick, New Jersey, after two brothers, James Wood and Edward Mead Johnson saw a need to develop sterile supplies for surgical procedures. During that time, doctors operated without gloves, sterile equipment and used unclean cotton from textile mills to pack the wounds so the mortality rate for surgical patients was very high. One of the first products Johnson Johnson developed was ready to use surgical dressings which to led to large reduction in surgical mortality rates. Johnson Johnson continued developing and expanding their product line and their company. In 1919, Johnson Johnson began their first international expansion. The brothers first expanded into Canada and after an around the world trip in 1923 began to develop business in many more countries. They expanded into Australia in 1931, Sweden in 1956 and Japan in 1961 (Johnson Johnson, 1997-2007). Over the next 60 years, Johnson Johnson had established companies in over 50 countries. During their international expansion, Johnson Johnson also diversified their product line. They eventually organized their operations into three main divisions; pharmaceutical, medical devices and diagnostics, and consumer products (Answers Corporation, 2007). They became well known for the talcum powder, band-aids and the pain reliever, Tylenol. In 1932, Robert Wood Johnson II, known as General Johnson succeeded his uncle to take over running Johnson Johnson. The General believed strongly in decentralization within the entire organization and all the divisions both in the United States and internationally were given authority to make their own decisions. The General was also responsible for developing the Johnson Johnson credo in 1943 and it is still in force today. The credo is defines the four primary responsibilities of the organization in their order of their importance. Johnson Johnsons first responsibility is to its customers, then to its employees, then to the community, and finally to its shareholders (Lukas, 2003). Believing and enforcing in this credo is what has made this organization what it is today and helped Johnson Johnson overcome one of the most critical times in its history when it dealt with  the Tylenol poisonings. The first priority of Johnson Johnson was then and is still today the safety of its consumers. Johnson Johnson believes in diversity of its organization, its product line and its vendors. The organization has both an Office of Global Diversity as well as a supplier diversity program (Johnson Johnson, 1997-2007). They believe encouraging diversity increases both their economic prosperity as well as benefiting each social community where they are located. By encouraging diversity throughout its entire organization, Johnson Johnson has become one of the largest global health care leaders in the world. William C. Weldon, Chairman, Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer for Johnson and Johnson sets a clear course for the diversity action plan for the company. He states in his Chairmans Message on the JJ website, how the company interacts with a diverse group of stakeholders daily and how both internal and external partnerships allow the company to more than it could on its own. With that in mind the company must create a Diversity Action Plan that allows employees to grow, develop and assume more responsibility, creating extraordinary leaders in the business sectors around the world (JJ.com). Cultural NormsJJ is committed to having its own operating companies purchase goods and services from a diverse supplier base that contributes to the economic vitality of the communities in which we live and work. To achieve this goal JJ has created a Supplier Diversity Program in 1998. The intent of this program is to provide value to the company and to enhance the companys role as a health care leader throughout the world. The included in the program are: †¢Certified minority-owned businesses, small and large †¢Certified woman-owned businesses, small and large†¢Certified Small Disadvantaged Businesses†¢Small veteran-owned and service disabled veteran-owned businesses†¢Small, certified HUBZone businessesThe HUBZone Empowerment Contracting program provides federal contracting opportunities for qualified small businesses located in distressed areas. Fostering the growth of these federal contractors as viable businesses, for the long term, helps to empower communities, create jobs, and attract private investment  (SBA.gov). Another area the company attempts to enhance its image both in the US and around the world is through the development of Standards for Responsible External Manufacturing. These were developed to ensure the companies who do business with the company meet the same high standards of ethical behavior, product quality, and social responsibility practiced by JJ. There has to be common commitment to:†¢comply with applicable legal requirements,†¢behave ethically and with integrity,†¢integrate quality into business processes,†¢treat people with dignity and respect,†¢promote the safety, health and well-being of employees,†¢operate in an environmentally responsible manner, and†¢implement management systems to ensure ongoing performance and continual improvement (JJ, 2006) These values and practices are determined through a vigorous benchmarking process for which any potential manufacturing partner must meet before becoming associated with the JJ Family of Companies. There is a two-fold advantage to this process. The first is it allows potential partners the opportunity to understand the values that drive the organization as well as providing them with a template for the sustainability the JJ Company has demonstrated. In addition, the high standards set by the company are not compromised by external manufacturing partners that could damage the JJ image. To maximize their diverse workforce, the company has a vision statement in place that allows the company to maximize the benefits. The following is the companys vision statement:The Johnson Johnson Family of Companies will realize this vision by:†¢Fostering inclusive cultures that embrace our differences and drive innovation to accelerate growth;†¢Achieving skilled, high performance workforces that are reflective of the diverse global marketplace;†¢Working with business leaders to identify and establish targeted market opportunities for consumers across diverse demographic segments; and†¢Cultivating external relationships with professional, patient and civic groups to support business priorities. The statement allows the diverse workforce by utilizing the vision statement by including the companys belief (Credo). The credo, Latin for I believe,  guides the company to the responsibilities as they relate to customers, employees, community and shareholders. The responsibilities are as follows:To our customers: we will embrace diversity in order to respect, understand and meet their varying health care needs. To our employees: we will ensure a diverse and inclusive workplace, offer merit-based opportunities for employment and advancement and provide the necessary resources to develop our next generation of leaders. To our communities: we will recognize opportunities to improve economic and human health care in the areas in which we live and work. To our shareholders: we will oppose acts of intolerance and be mindful of the positive impact that diversity and inclusion have on our businesses. JJ over the years has continuously looked toward technology to play key role in JJs strategic initiatives. The different approaches to productivity have varied throughout the years. Many factors contribute to the productivity and success of the JJ Company. Technology has played an important role in JJs ability to remain competitive and to continuously innovate. It is through technology that JJs management team is able to refine processes, collaborate, innovate, and increase the productivity of the organization in todays dynamic business environment that is changing continuously. The success of these companies is attributed to all the successful mergers and acquisitions that have taken place throughout JJ history. Many of these companies were opened due to successful mergers that allowed JJ to develop new products and offer them in different markets throughout the world. The successful organization of the products JJ offers allows JJ to successfully merge with other companies to gain additional control over the industry. The result of this Credo is a healthy bottom line that is socially responsible. JJ history of philanthropy through partnering with other  companies from around the world has created programs dedicated to providing needed services over the long term. JJ does not have a mission statement because the ethical principals listed in the Credo drive the company. The customer first philosophy insures the needs of the customer are met. Another principal outlined in the Credo is the dedication to producing a high quality product. Through this set of values the company has developed a trust with the consumers of their products. Trust develops into a reputation of integrity that in turn provides the company with a basis for business strategies. This ethical high road approach is a proven winner in this function. Problem solving involves many departments and many steps. Technology plays an integral part in JJs ability to innovate, perform research and development, and manage the logistics associated with the distribution of a product during the products lifecycle. JJ defines diversity as a variety of similar and different characteristics among people, including age, gender, race, religion, national origin, physical ability, sexual orientation, thinking style, background and all other attributes that make each person unique. Although some differences may not be obvious as others, Johnson Johnson strives to understand and remove barriers that one may face due to these differences. Johnson Johnson utilizes these differences to create a working environment where their employees can thrive. JJ believes that diversity helps the interaction between people as well as inspiring innovation. JJ is committed to the practice of their global diversity vision which they use to identify their key, future objectives while guiding the fulfillment of their commitments to their customers, employees, the global community and their shareholders. Johnson Johnson supports various educational opportunities such as Diversity University and Affinity Groups. JJs Diversity University provides an internal, full range of Diversity e-learning courses, diversity best practice information, and is a comprehensive diversity resource and database for employees. Affinity Groups are voluntary, employee-driven groups that are organized around a particular  shared interest or dimension. These groups have been initiated by employees and usually focus on a shared interest or characteristic, such as race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation. Each groups main intent is to create an open forum for idea exchange and to strengthen the linkage to and within diverse communities. The successful leadership of the workers and the quick safety decisions that have had to be made, for example the recall of 264,000 bottles of Tylenol in 1982 and then a second recall in 1986, have made JJ a reputable name that many have grown to know and trust. References Answers Corporations. 2007. Johnson Johnson. Retrieved June 27, 2007 from http://www.answers.com/topic/johnson-johnson?cat=biz-finJohnson Johnson. Global Diversity Its All of Us. Retrieved June 30, 2007 fromhttp://www.jnj.com/our_company/diversity/index.htm;jsessionid=EGT3V0ZLGAFE0CQPCCFWU2YKB2IIWTT1Johnson Johnson (2007). Supplier Diversity Program. Retrieved July 2, 2007 from http:www.jnj.comJohnson Johnson (2006). Sustainability Report. Retrieved July 4, 2007 from http:www.jnj.comJohnson Johnson. 1997-2007. Our Company. Retrieved June 26, 2007 fromhttp://www.jnj.com/our_company/index.htmLeading with Diversity The New York Times. Retrieved June 29, 2007 fromwww.nytimes.com/marketing/jobmarket/diversity/jandj.htmlLukas, P. (2003, April). Johnson Johnson. FSB: Fortune Small Business. Vol.13, Iss. 3; pg. 91. Retrieved June 26, 2007 from ProQuest database. SBA.gov (2007). HUBZone Empowerment Contracting program. Retrieved July 5, 2007 from https://eweb1.sba.gov/hubzone/internet/general/whoweare.cfm#3The Diversity Vision Statement, Retrieved 06/29/07 fromhttp://www.jnj.com/our_company/diversity/diversity_vision/index.htmThe company Credo, Retrieved on 06/29/07 fromhttp://www.jnj.com/our_company/diversity/credo/index.htm