Effects of missing an appointment Essay

There are a wide range of effects for a person missing an appointment. Missing an appointment effect the individual who missed the appointment, least of all. Regardless of reason, not showing up for a scheduled time is a great disrespect to all the people that might have benefited from the scheduled time. Missing an appointment punishes others that may have gained from that time slot. There are many solutions to not missing an appointment, and by following the steps to prevent from missing an appointment gives a common courtesy to others. People’s time is extremely valuable and by missing an appointment it shows an extreme amount of disrespect. The main people being affected by my inconsiderate decision were the physical therapists, the patients, and least of all I. The people who work for you are being thrown under the bus when an appointment is missed. In my case, the people at the physical therapy clinic who work tirelessly to provide care for others that are injured, to ge t them back in fighting shape. By missing the allotted time all of the preparation and care to make me better was essentially thrown down the drain. A substantial amount of time was wasted that could have been used to benefit me or another soldier. I cannot reiterate enough, the selfishness of missing an appointment. All that was needed was a simple call, a common courtesy, for the situation to be resolved. By missing my appointment I basically told the physical therapy clinic that my time is more valuable than yours, which is very disrespectful. The others that were affected by my decision to miss the appointment were all of the other patients seeking care. Being a soldier requires many physical demands which often incur injuries. It is extremely important for any soldier seeking care to be able to receive the proper treatment. By me missing my appointment it took time away from another soldier that could have received treatment. By calling ahead it could have potentially given someone else who needed that time with the physical therapy clinic, a chance to get seen and treated. I inadvertently placed myself before others by not calling ahead and cancelling, or rescheduling my allotted time with the physical therapy clinic. I briefly put aside some of my basic values of being a soldier when I missed the appointment. There are many solutions that could have been done to avoid the missed appointment, and will be done in the future. Something as easy as putting an alarm in my phone, could have helped me to not miss my appointment. I also could have  been more proactive with my leadership and let my chain of command know when and what time my appointment was. Certain safeguards in the future will be put in place to prevent this lack of respect for others, to not happen again. The more people I let know of my appointments will prevent me from missing any future appointments. I feel I can improve as a soldier from this incident and by me missing this appointment it will make me become more considerate for others and give me a better awareness of when and where my appointments are. On Friday I missed my physical therapy appointment and while I feel this was an outlier of events, I cannot and will not let this happen again. The only reason I can provide as to why my appointment was missed is that I work sick call at the Aid Station, and it ran later than normal that morning. As a medic I know first-hand the importance of holding true to a scheduled appointment. I know what it feels like being on the other end of the spectrum. When I screen patients and a patient misses an appointment it feels like someone has wasted my time. In other words it feels like a slap in the face, which makes me missing my appointment that much more inexcusable. Others that feel the effects of missing an appointment are the direct chain of command. The lack of respect by one person can reflect negatively on a whole organization. By missing an appointment others wonder if the unit as a whole treats appointments and others with that same lack of respect. In my case I have great NCO’s and a great support system that has done nothing but help me in my career and teach me the in’s and out’s of how to be a good soldier and an even better person. However, with my lapse in judgment my decision reflected very poorly on my leadership. That in itself is enough for me to understand the negative outcomes by missing my appointment. Overall the effects of one individual’s mistake can be felt by a pleth ora of different individuals and groups. From the Physical therapy clinic whose time could have been better spent helping other patients to me as an individual. I think something good that has come out of my mistake is that I now have a much better perspective of all the different people that my decision affected. Appointments are very easy to cancel ahead of time to give another person a chance to seek treatment. For so many people and organizations effected a simple phone call or preventative measure would have resolved the situations.

Cosmopolis: a World of Subjective Reality Essay

Cosmopolis, written in the spirit of post modernity, rejects the idea of an ordered universe with one objective reality. This novel asserts that reality is instead subjective, and as human beings while we all experience the same one world ,but we each perceive this experience differently, and therefore we all live in different worlds. In this paper using quotes from Cosmopolis, I will explain how Don DeLillo uses dialogue and the actions of characters to construct his argument for subjective reality, and how his theory of subjective reality relates to the real world. Before I begin quoting Cosmopolis, I will briefly explain the modern definition of subjective reality. The idea of subjective reality asserts that reality and of the â€Å"truths† in the universe changes between individuals. Meaning, although there may be objective truths in the universe, each person perceives these truths and experiences them differently, and because of everyone’s own unique perspective of the world, each lives in their own world existing in an altered state of objective reality. Cosmopolis is littered with dialogue where the characters are talking about subjective reality. You could almost randomly flip to any page in the novel and find that someone is talking about subjective reality. It was obvious to me that Don DeLillo purposefully wrote this dialogue adding an argument for the existence of subjective reality. Although one could argue I read the novel looking for people talking about subjective reality and that in reality it is all in my head, for the purposes of this paper I am going to assume Don DeLillo purposely wrote Cosmopolis as an argument for subjective reality. One of the first lines of dialogue which I encountered that got me to thinking about subjective reality is near the very beginning of the novel when Eric is in the limo talking with Shiner. Shiner asks Eric why they were in the car instead of the office to which Eric replies, â€Å"how do you know we’re in the car instead of the office† (15). This quote is a perfect example of one of the aspects of subjective reality: that a person can never truly be sure of where they are, and that no matter where they actually are, they can choose to be somewhere else. Eric is in a way challenging Shiner to prove both that they are in a car and that they are not in an office. However, these are impossible things to prove, because a person can chose to be wherever they want to be regardless of actual physical position. Ideal to subjective reality, Shiner doesn’t even attempt to answer Eric’s question, because he knows he can’t prove either arguments. Plus, the fact that Eric chooses to turn his limo into an office shows that even though Eric knows his car is not an office, he makes it into an office merely just by acting as if it is an office. Like Eric, Beeno Levin is another character in Cosmopolis who understands the nature of subjective reality. As he is writing he beings to talk about what he sees in other people and what that means, saying â€Å"it is what people think they see in another person that makes his reality. If they think he walks at a slant, then he walks at a slant, uncoordinated, because this is his role in the lives around him† (57). Beeno is making two assertions on the nature of people in reality. Firstly, Beeno is asserting that no matter what a person actually does, it is what you think they do that is reality. Meaning, in his example, whether a man walks with a slant or not, if you think he walks with a slant, then he walks with a slant. Secondly, when he says, about the man, that â€Å"this is his role in the lives around him†, he means that to him the man who walks with a slant is nothing but the man who walks with the slant. In Beeno’s life the role of the man is to do nothing but walk around with a slant. Whether the man does anything other than walking with a slant, such as being an accountant or having children, to Beeno he can never be any of those things, because he is merely the man who walks with a slant. The man can never be anything else unless Beeno chooses to see him that way. Near the end of Beeno’s monologue he also thinks that â€Å"world is supposed to mean something that’s self-contained. But nothing is self-contained. Everything enters something else. My small days spill into light years† (60). Here he is making another assertion on the nature of reality and how it relates to the world. When he says the world is self-contained he is challenging the idea that the â€Å"truths† in the world can be separated and neatly pushed into categories. He asserts that in reality the elements of the world cannot be separated and everything is melting into everything else. There are actually no boundaries because one can perceive the world and anything could be anything else, for example, a limo can be an office. Here in this next quote the characters actually start to directly discuss reality. At this point in the story Eric and one of his advisors, Kinski, are chatting in the limo during the protest. Kinski baits Eric, asking him what the flaw of human rationality is. When he asks what, she answers replying that â€Å"it pretends not to see the horror and death at the end of the schemes it builds† (91). Ironically, she is asserting that human rationality isn’t even concerned with being accurate to reality. Human rationality strives to create its own deluded reality outside of what might actually be happening, such as in this example the evils of capitalism. It is deluded, ignoring the facts and believing whatever it wants to believe, such as the disparity between the rich and poor in the United States. Although Kinski, in this context, is only commenting on humans as a whole, this idea can be applied to human rationality on an individual basis. An individual may delude themselves in the same way, for example Eric continues to lose money on the Yen even though all evidence is telling him he should cut his losses and pull out. He is deluded in ignoring the facts, rejecting what he sees, and formulating his own new reality where he doesn’t pull out and makes a lot of money off the Yen. Some of my favorite moments in Cosmopolis are during the last scene when Beeno shoots Eric. The two of them seem to understand each other, and even hold some of the same beliefs, such as the subjective nature of reality. At one point, Beeno is convinced that his penis is shrinking and receding into his body, while Eric tries to convince him that is not true. Beeno says, â€Å"whether I imagine a thing or not, it’s real to me† (192). Eric asks been to prove it is true by showing him, and Beeno refuses saying, â€Å"I don’t have to look. There are folk beliefs. There are epidemics that happen. Men in the thousands, in real fear and pain† (192). Beeno is asserting something new this time. He has already asserted that a person can look at something, such as the man with the slant, and see anything they want to see (a man walking with a slant), whether that is actually what they are looking at. But now, he is asserting a man can look at nothing and see something that isn’t even visibly there. This is even further into subjective reality, it is one thing to say something can be something that is not, but it is entirely different to say that nothing can be something. Beeno even tries to support his belief that his sex organ is receding into his body with two different arguments. The first is that other men have experienced it, and therefore it is a real thing. The second one is that thousands of other men also fear it, and that it is a â€Å"real† fear. This argument is based on the idea that the very fear itself of something happening is just as real as if it were actually happening. This is another element of subjective reality. Beeno fears that something is happening to his body, even though he knows he can’t see it, but this very fear itself makes it real to him whether or not it is actually happening. During the climax of the novel, Eric begins to belittle Beeno by telling him that he doesn’t even have a good, admirable reason to kill him, that Beeno is just another whack job killing someone just because; â€Å"No. Your crime had no conscience. You haven’t been driven to do it by some oppressive social force. How I hate to be reasonable. You’re not against the rich. Nobody’s against the rich. Everybody’s ten seconds from being rich. Or so everybody thought . No. Your crime is in your head† (196). Here Eric is trying to tear down Beeno’s righteous justification for killing Eric. Eric is saying that Beeno isn’t killing Eric for the greater good of society, getting rid of a bad power-driven rich person, Beeno is just killing Eric just because. Eric asserts Beeno’s own motives are all in his head, that Beeno is deluded and doesn’t actually know why he is killing Eric, he is just doing it. This is a very odd turn. At the beginning of this novel Eric has been a perfect spokesperson for subjective reality, but here he seems to be playing devil’s advocate by trying to tear down Beeno’s arguments. I wondered why Eric would make such a sudden change, but after finishing the book I believe it is clear Eric isn’t actually trying to tear down subjective reality, he is just saying whatever he can to buy time and possibly not die. One of my good friends from primary school used to say that when he died the world would end. His names is Martin, and he is a genius. I am not a genius, but I enjoyed a lot of philosophical conversations with Martin nevertheless. I was really surprised when I came across exactly the same thing in this novel. It is right at the beginning when Eric first gets up and is getting ready to leave. He is lamenting his insomnia and thinks â€Å"when he died he would not end, the world would end† (6). I believe this quote embodies the spirit of subjective reality. If reality exists on an individual basis, and is only inside the mind of every person, then logically it would follow that when that person dies their reality, their world would end too. Possibly the most perfect aspect of this novel is the way Don DeLillo parallels this quote with the structure of the story. When Eric is about to be shot, it is obvious that he is going to die, however the novel ends with just his thoughts right before Beeno kills him. Nothing follows, that is the end of the story. How perfect that the novel ends with the very last thought of Eric! It makes absolute sense that the novel would end when Eric dies, because as already stated he wouldn’t end when he died, the world would end. Postmodernism encourages experiment in literature, and Don DeLillo takes full advantage of this. As an American I was always taught there were rules and truths that ruled the Universe. That reality was always objective and one merely has to interpret it correctly. Objective reality is the idea crucial to the success of religious and political systems. Every religion claims to be the one true religion, and without the claim of objective reality these religions would fail. This is also very much true in political, ethnocentricity being a perfect example of the effects of people believing there is an objective reality to the universe. In conclusion, Don DeLillo argues for the existence of subjective reality in his novel Cosmopolis. He utilizes the dialogue and the actions of the main characters to debate this idea and highlight crucial elements of the theory. In this paper I have analyzed several quotations from different scenes in the novel, explaining how each quotation represents an aspect of subjective reality. Subjective reality may have sounded like a crazy idea in the past, but now as we live in post modernity, subjective reality is quickly gaining acceptance.

Marketing Plan for Tesco Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Marketing Plan for Tesco - Research Paper Example Tesco is the largest of the four leading London supermarkets, namely, Morrisons, Asda and Sainsbury’s. In addition to its food business, Tesco controls an important online business and non food business. Tesco is the third biggest food retailer in the UK, with manage of about 31% of that nation’s food retail market; Tesco had effectively thwarted an attempt by wal-mart to take hold of the largest share of the British market. Tesco had also already recognized process in a dozen countries in Asia and Europe and had completed that the U.S offered the maximum opportunity for sustained company development. Tesco’s rise has been comparatively recent. In history recognized in the UK as a conservative retailer with a â€Å"pile it high, sell it inexpensive† method to store image and marketing, the reformation of the company came regarding through a countless of innovations and strategies. These incorporated diversification into a broad range of nonfood goods and s ervices, the utilize of multiciple store arrangements, growth of a private tag or house store product for manifold products, and efficient marketing that assisted found its standing as a market manager. Tesco’s rise also contributed to what some analysts differentiated of markets and the organization of supply chains were retail- driven, while the US model of tended to be further produce driven, as a minimum until the early 1990s and the access of Wal-Mart and its control more than its own supply chains.

Asian American women before 1950 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Asian American women before 1950 - Essay Example Prior to this the community endured a century of hardships that mitigated their integration into mainstream American socio-culture. If racial prejudice was a sizeable challenge on its own, the issues were compounded for womenfolk. The rest of this essay is an overview of the Asian American experience prior to 1950. Sociological theories on ‘gender’ and ‘intersectionality’ were perused as were classic literary works and essays pertaining to the subject. It is instructive to look at theoretical perspectives that make lucid the Asian American women’s experience before 1950. During much of the evolution of sociology, studying history and society through the axis of gender was not common practice. Race, ethnicity, age, class and nation were the common definitive parameters for groups that were studied. Understanding socio-history from the perspective of gender was mainly an offshoot of feminist movements of mid-twentieth century. The second wave feminist m ovement was especially instrumental in introducing this approach. The relational identities of women of 19th century as either someone’s daughter, husband or mother is fully applicable to Asian American women. ... .the goal is to discover the range in sex roles and in sexual symbolism in different societies and periods, to find out what meaning they had and how they functioned to maintain the social order or to promote its change†. (Scott, 1986) Seen in the backdrop of this theoretical framework, it is fair to claim that Asian American women had a decidedly more arduous century prior to 1950 than their male counterparts. This is evident in the literary works of the time, especially that of Jade Snow Wong’s ‘Fifth Chinese Daughter’. The short novel is filled with real life events of the author as she lived through the transition from a native Chinese culture steeped in tradition and the more liberal outlook afforded in America. The book shows the patriarchal familial set up among the Chinese and how this can be a hindrance for immigrant women looking to avail of opportunities for personal and professional growth in the New World. ‘Intersectionality’ is ano ther useful theoretical basis for studying Asian American women’s experience, for it brings the core problems from different domains to the analysis. It helps the studied group to â€Å"invent and inhabit identities that register the effects of differentiated and uneven power, permitting them to envision and enact new social relations grounded in multiple axes of intersecting, situated knowledge.† (Chun, Lipsitz, and Shin, 2013) The theory is seen in action in Jew Law Ying’s ‘Coaching Book’ - a touching historical document that brings out the extent of Asian American women’s struggle for citizenship in the USA. The work is a translation of the ‘coaching book’ which the author’s father sent to her mother prior to the latter’s long voyage to America. The book

Marketing Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Marketing Strategy - Essay Example The customer has become very choosy and thus he relies more on the communication messages that are put up on the web and other media forms, rather than relying on the TV and newspaper advertising which are some aspects that are a thing of the past (Palser 2007). The customer becomes active nowadays when he realizes that the Internet is a potent force and anything that is put up on it will surely make a huge difference within his life. Also there have other forms of advertising which have literally changed the face of the conventional ways of reaching to the intended target audience. These include the transit advertising forms, the street and pole signs, the road branding techniques, the balloon advertising and so on and so forth (Ha 2003). What all these advertising methods have brought forward is the fact that the customer has become very educated and that he does not need to have a TV or a newspaper to access details about the brand or service which is being highlighted, from the domains of the client in essence. The customer now knows that if he has missed TV and newspaper advertising, he can most definitely go on the web and easily access the same. He can go outdoors and see the street signs and hoardings and thus be in line with whatever is being offered to him all this while. The death of TV and newspaper advertising has happened over a period of time, and not in an overnight fashion (Stoff 2008). This has meant that the TV and newspaper owners had started to understand that their respective mediums have lost the battle as compared to the newer media outlets and methodologies which were making serious mark on the consumers’ minds. What is even more interesting is the fact that the consumers have now realized that the power of the contemporary forms of advertising within their lives has become very significant and that they would rely on

5.1 Identify the interested parties and 5.2 Identify the need of the Essay

5.1 Identify the interested parties and 5.2 Identify the need of the interested parties - Essay Example The construction company will require the services of workers who will mostly come from Plymouth and its surroundings. With the availability of building materials and enough labour, the casino will be completed in time (Fewings 2013). The local community will play a critical role in the process of building the casino. Firstly, it is the local community that gives consent for the construction of the casino. The community must first know that the facility will help the local economy in order for it to get a go ahead. There is a lot of labour work that is involved in the construction of the facility. The local community will provide the much-needed labor skills for the completion of the casino. Once the casino is completed, a huge percentage of employees will come from the neighbourhood. The local community is the most interested party in the construction of the facility. Many people visit casinos for various purposes. Where, traditionally, there is entertainment, people will most often enjoy their favourite drinks and food. Food and drink suppliers will be a crucial party after the building of the casino. Depending on the population of the casino, at any given time, suppliers will have to supply food and drinks occasionally. Drinks such as soft drinks and beer will be much needed because the customers will enjoy them as they follow their favourite activities. Since a majority of the people will spend most of their time in the casino, a lot of food will be needed to keep them replenished instead of them going outside and look for food. Every business requires investors who can pump in financial resources. Several business activities can be carried out inside the casino and can contribute to additional revenue. Finances from investors are very much needed to ensure that the casino will live to its expectation and help all the interested parties. Investors help to employee the locals who may be unemployed, but having

Week 4 response papers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Week 4 response papers - Essay Example The disadvantage with such an approach is that businesses relax their CSR actions when they are not economically rewarding. This means that organisations no longer derive their motivation for CSR mainly from their negative environmental effects and need to protect the environment, but the need to have a good image and make profit. The avoidance of CSR may not be detrimental to the organisation but its effect cannot be ignored in a society where customers are becoming more cautious about environmental issues. Over the recent years, CSR has afforded organisations some social power and ignoring this because of economic or other reasons is bound lead to a gradual reduction of social power. Davis’s statement therefore holds some truth. As mentioned, businesses know the effects of their actions on the environment. In this case, they have an obligation to focus on environmental change whether voters and politicians are not pushing agendas that focus on environmental change. In opposition to Hussein’s (1999) statement that adopting such a position can be harmful to the organisation, CSR has turned into one of the biggest source of competitive advantage for businesses. Multinationals have also tapped into it as a risk management model. In addition, many governments respond positively to such actions by recognising and rewarding organisations which undertake good CSR activities in efforts to protect the environment. This has increased awareness of such organisations, their products and consequently, they have experienced a positive return on their sales (Bhattacharya et al, 2011). Customer/voter purchases are now influenced by CSR to the benefit of organisations that have good CSR reputations. Since the 1950s, many organisations have formulated their own CSR policies. However, if the decision to become responsible was totally left at their disposal, many would choose not to because CSR activities

Global economy Midterm Review Questions Assignment

Global economy Midterm Review Questions - Assignment Example phenomenon in which the business environment in a country is deregulated so as to attract investors, causing low wages, poor environmental protection and poor working conditions. Issues such as minimum wage, political autonomy and workers unions are foregone for the sake of creating a favorable working environment. This is considered to e a problem because countries with poor working conditions and low environmental protection standards are deemed best for investment. Causes of race to the bottom include the pollution problem, poor government policy influenced by MNCs and government instabilities. First, other than free trade, Rivoli argues that there is need to develop strong political policies and reforms to address political barriers. For example, in her book, she argues that having a good political framework to protect the industries in America against the sweatshops that pay their workers 50 cents an hour is a better alternative than the free trade agreement. Secondly, she says that there is need to reform the famous trade agreements that limit or inhibit exports and import. In the US for instance, there are a number of such agreements that in fact limit the importation of t-shirts. If these factors are addressed, fairness in global competition will be introduced. Manufacturers will be able to work and export their products in a fair manner. The apparel industry best captures the history of globalization by showing how a single commodity moves through various processes and markets, thereby highlighting the interconnections between markets. The industry highlights the basic concepts of globalization such as political and cultural process. Arms trade globalization occurs both in the production and consumption. Most countries spend considerable amounts for procurement of arms. This is linked to lower spending by governments on the other areas. In the context of globalization, the arms industry is escalating conflicts and the proliferation of arms has

The Slaves Trade in Africa Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Slaves Trade in Africa - Assignment Example Slaves were taken to do manual works; some were taken as wives and mistresses. Furthermore, slave owners acquired slaves to facilitate their position and status. Slaves were taken as captives; some were kept in homes while others were taken to distant places1. Slavery was not only a practice of acquiring armies for warfare, but it was also a means of acquiring wealth by local people. Not individuals, but the community did own land. Each family was allocated land in accordance with the size and its laborers. Therefore, families acquired more slaves in order to increase their rate of production. The slaves who survived had to create wealth to the community2. Slavery was a method of contributing wealth to the people3. Hence, to enable further creation of wealth, slavery was conducted by societies in distant places and village. Slavery involved children, women, and men. Women performed variety of activities ranging from farming and various tasks associated with agriculture, trading activ ities, yielding, and cotton spinning. Women did other house chores such as cleaning, cooking among others; moreover, many practiced herding and farming. This paper is a discussion on the slave trade in Africa. The Trans-Saharan and East Africa slave trade was initiated by the entry of Arabs, who practiced Islamic religion, in Africa. Before the foundation of the Islamic religion, Arabs had been practicing slave trading. As they conquered western parts of North Africa, their leaders took the locals into captivity whom they initiated into their armies4. The Arab Muslims spread religion to the camel herders located in the Sahara Desert. The camel herders who were in contact with the black Africans, did trade in black slaves on a small scale. The Arabs continued to buy and capture slaves in West Africa and crossing them to North Africa for sale. Thereafter, the slaves were taken to other countries in regions like; India, Arab, Persia. Transportation routes across the Sahara connected the

International Legal Transactions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

International Legal Transactions - Assignment Example There are two kinds of bribery, both of which are anathema to international law. Active bribery is the deliberate â€Å"promising, offering, or giving by any person, directly or indirectly, of an undue advantage to any of its public officials†¦ to act or refrain from acting in the exercise of his or functions, whether the undue advantage accrues to the official or to a third person†. On the other hand, passive bribery is the â€Å"request or receipt†¦or acceptance of an offer or promise of such an undue advantage by a public official (Deming 106). Definitely, international law provides the Anglian Ministry of Justice with legal bases for prosecuting LuxAuto and its officials for engaging in the active bribery of foreign public officials i.e. that of Maurya. primarily because of the leadership of the United States which in 1970 enacted RICO or the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act and then in 1977, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act(FCPA). Realizing the magnitude of the pernicious effects to the economy and the morality and the morale of the citizens by the bribery of public officials and the fact that judges and public offices were already available for a price, the USA via FCPA tirelessly and actively pursued the prosecution of US companies in American courts for the bribery of public officials even if the transactions occurred in foreign shores. Soon, 34 US companies were prosecuted for involvement in foreign bribery and 7 civil actions were successfully pursued (Bannon & Collier 305). Because the playing field was disadvantageous to US multinational companies which allegedly lost out against foreign MNCs, US lobbied hard to make an international law that was similar to FCPA but globally encompassing and enforceable with the International Court of Justice. The solution proved to be the convening of 29 members and 5 non-members of the OECD or Organization

Puppy Mills Essay Example for Free

Puppy Mills Essay Imagine walking into a pet store and having puppies give you the saddest looks with their great big teary eyes. Everybody is tempted to take these puppies home because they just appeal and hit every nerve in every way. By spending money on a puppy from a pet store, you support a really ugly industry. This industry is known as puppy mills. A puppy mill is a large-scale commercial dog breeding operation where profit is given priority over the well-being of the dogs (ASPCA). Puppy mills are easily distinguished by their inhumane conditions and the constant breeding of unhealthy and genetic defective dogs solely for profit (Prisoners of Greed). Puppy mills make dog’s live very tortured lives. All puppy mills should be banned because of their cruelty to these poor innocent animals. Puppy mills were established in the 1940’s after World War II. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) suggested breeding dogs as an alternative to wide spread crop failures in the Midwest. The farmers liked this idea because breeding dogs was cheaper and there was less physical labor involved than in growing crops. They also did not have to worry about the weather. The farmers took their chicken coops and rabbit hutches and repurposed them for dogs and the retail pet industry. The farmers had little knowledge of the puppy industry and often had very little money to start this venture. They did not know that puppies needed companionship and they also skipped veterinary care for the puppies. This led to the substandard condition of puppy mills. Retail pet outlets grew so the demand for puppies increased. Major retail stores such as Sears, purchased dogs for their pet departments and pet store chains were born (Wolf). The state of Missouri is the largest puppy mill state in the country . It is estimated that the value of the puppy mill industry to this state is 40 million dollars a year. The puppy brokers also needed a puppy supply store for the east coast, so they convinced the Pennsylvania farmers that puppies were the cash crop of the future. They gave seminars to teach the farmers how to operate their own breeding facilities. Lancaster county PA has earned the nickname of the puppy mill capital of the east (ASPCA). Puppy mills continue to thrive because they prey on consumers who are smitten by the puppies in pet stores or on fancy websites (Stop Puppy Mills). The reality of a puppy mill is that it raises dogs in cramped, crude, and filthy conditions. Puppy mills are distinguishable by their inhumane conditions. They also breed unhealthy and genetically defective dogs for profit only (prisoners of greed). Dogs are kept in either wood or wire mesh cages or simply tethered to a tree. One facility in Arkansas had cages hanging from the ceiling of an unheated cinder-block building (PETA). Wire cages are used to minimize waste cleanup. Many of the puppies lose their feet and legs because they are caught on the wire floor and they are cut off as the dog struggles to free itself. There is usually no heat or air conditioning in a puppy mill. The dogs will either die of heat stroke in the summer or freeze to death in the winter. Food that is fed to the dogs in the puppy mills is usually purchased from dog food companies by the truck load. The dog food contains sweepings from the floor. There is so little nutritional value that the dog’s teeth can rot at an early age (Prisoner of Greed). Dogs that are bred in puppy mills can experience a multitude of problems ranging from physical to mental due to the overcrowded and unsanitary conditions of the cages. Because the puppies are never allowed out of their cages, this can cause dogs to become mentally unstable. It is not uncommon to see dogs barking and running in circles. They have no social interaction with people. They are never given toys or treats. This also makes it difficult for the dogs to become a part of a family. Puppy mill owners fail to remove sick dogs from their breeding pools, which causes congenital and hereditary conditions. These can include diseases such as epilepsy and musculoskeletal disorders such as dysplasia, deafness and eye problems. The dogs also arrive at the stores with infirmities and diseases such as mange, heartworm, and distemper (ASPCA). Many dogs will get wounds from being bitten by other dogs and the breeders do not even take care of these wounds so they stay open allowing bacteria to enter the skin and cause infection. Life is particularly bad for the female dogs. The mothers spend loveless lives in tiny stacked cages, from which they are never released to eat, play or even defecate. These females receive little or no veterinary care (Stop Puppy Mills). By the age of five, most female dogs can no longer reproduce at the puppy mills. At this point, they no longer have any value to the owners and are killed by being bashed in the head with a rock or shot (Prisoner of Greed). The mom and dad of the puppies are unlikely to make it out of the mill alive. The result of all of this breeding is hundreds of thousands of puppies with behavior and or health problems (Stop Puppy Mills) In Riverside, Iowa an owner told USDA that he performed surgical procedures such as tail docking, ear cropping, and declawing the puppies. The owner used no anesthetic agents and he did not sterilize his tools. This owner was also not licensed to practice veterinary medicine or surgery in any state. All of the adult dogs and puppies had open lesions and damage to ears, legs, and or torsos. If the puppies are fortunate enough to survive the conditions of the puppy mills, they then have to face the dangerous journey across the country to the various pet stores. Hundreds of thousands of puppies are taken from their mothers and sold to brokers who pack puppies into crates and then ship them cross-country to be sold in pet shops. These puppies can travel hundreds of thousands of miles in pickup trucks, tractor trailers, and or/airplanes, often without adequate food, water, ventilation, or shelter. In Missouri, a trailer was stopped by the USDA. It had thirty three cages that contained sixty three puppies. They did not have adequate water or food. They were later arrested. (Stop Puppy Mills). Since running puppy mills is a business, the facility is designed for profit so they do not care at all about the well-being of these puppies. Some of the puppies are sold via newspaper classifieds or internet sites and are often accompanied by false claims saying â€Å"We would never sell puppies from a puppy mill. They will also say that the puppies are home raised, or raised with kids (Stop Puppy Mills). Many of these puppies being sent to pet stores have never or rarely received the kind of loving human contact that is essential for them to become suitable companions when puppies reach the pet stores, conditions do not even improve. They are still kept in small cages with wire on the bottom. They are still without exercise, love and human contact. They will develop undesirable behaviors and may bark excessively or become destructive and unsociable (PETA). Many consumers want to purchase purebred dogs even though they may not be educated about the breed or ready for the commitment that puppies require. Movies like 101 Dalmatians and Beethoven or commercials such as those for Taco Bell can cause a jump in popularity for certain breeds. This demand for a particular breed triggers an increase of breeding for that particular type of dog as the puppy mills try to meet the consumer’s demand. When a St. Bernard doesn’t act like â€Å"Beethoven† or the Dalmatians are high strung, rescue groups and animal shelters become flooded with these breeds. At puppy mills, puppies are bred for quantity, not quality so genetic defects and personality disorders are passed on from generation to generation (PETA). With all of these puppies being tortured many would assume that in today’s world there should be a law passed or that the government should have stepped in and saved these poor puppies. The Animal Welfare Act (AWA) is administered by the US Department of Agriculture. The act has several categories of businesses that handle dogs. One is pet dealers who import, buy, sell, trade or transport pets in wholesale channels. Another is pet breeders who breed for the wholesale trade, whether for selling animals to other breeders or selling to brokers or directly to pet stores or laboratories. The AWA however does not define puppy mill (Wolf). Under the federal AWA, commercial breeders selling directly to pet stores must be licensed by the USDA. The AWA does not regulate breeders that sell directly to the public. Since the AWA was passed in 1966 it was before the Internet boom and the lawmakers did not see that commercial breeders would have the ability to sell to consumers through the internet. This allows a loophole for mills to operate without a license and without fear of inspection. The mills are not accountable to anyone for their breeding and care standards (ASPCA). The AWA and many states have laws that purport to regulate puppy mills, but the fact is that those laws are rarely enforced (Prisoners of Greed). In May, 2008, the ASPCA and other welfare groups successfully fought for an amendment to Congress’s Farm Bill. This bill would prohibit the importation of puppies less than six months of age for the purpose of resale. In September 2008, a bill known as â€Å"Baby’s Bill† (in honor of Baby, a three legged rescued puppy mill survivor) was introduced in the House of Representatives. This legislation was to close the loophole that allowed commercial breeders to sell puppies online. It would also require all dogs to be let out of their cages and exercised daily. Unfortunately it did not pass The ASPCA will try again next year to get the bill passed. Certain states are now passing laws to help control the number of adult dogs a breeder may possess. Virginia and Louisiana were among the first states to pass these laws. As the voting public becomes more vocal in its objection to the puppy mills, legislator support should increase. There are ways that you can fight puppy mills. Start by refusing to patronize the stores and websites that sell their puppies. The biggest thing a person can do is not buy a puppy from a pet store. Another thing to do is not buy a puppy from any place that does not show you records of its entire facility. Ask to meet the mother dog. Consider becoming active and joining the ASPCA to pass legislation that ensures that all animals bred are raised in healthy conditions (ASPCA). When buying a puppy, consider adoption. By adopting instead of buying, it is a way to hurt puppy mills. Another suggestion is to find a responsible breeder and visit their premises. By visiting the home of a respectful breeder, you can check if the puppies have been provided with a loving and healthy environment (Stop Puppy Mills). Never send Western Union or money order payments. If a breeder or broker says there will be no refunds for a sick puppy, then the puppy is most likely coming from a puppy mill. When purchasing a puppy also pick it up. Do not have the puppy shipped or meet at a random location (PETA). Puppy mills have been going on since the late 1940’s and they need to end. Poor innocent puppies die every year from malnutrition, diseases, open wounds and broken bones that do not get to heal properly. Since puppy mills are a business, all the breeders care about is the profit they make. They neglect these poor puppies by not feeding them or even giving them love and care they deserve. In 2007, a man named Bob Baker joined the ASPCA as an undercover investigator. He raided a puppy mill in Buxton, MF, and seized more than 200 dogs. Baker released his findings to the papers. This increased the consumer’s awareness of the dangers of puppy mills. The PETA organization is a big advocate of getting information out about these mills. Many people have gone undercover with video cameras to witness and record these horrible acts. Celebrities are showing their support by making statements through PETA or doing television commercials to raise the consumer’s awareness. Puppy mills are a huge tragedy in this world today that needs to be stopped.

Fruit Processing Industry In Himachal Pradesh Commerce Essay

Fruit Processing Industry In Himachal Pradesh Commerce Essay The purpose of this paper is to study the fruit processing industry in Himachal Pradesh. This study focuses on three major functional areas of industry i.e. plant capacity utilisation, procurement and distribution system and marketing problems. The study finds that plant capacity is underutilised and there is significant association (X2 (1)=8.713,p Consumption of processed fruit products started since time immemorial. The production was mainly for private household consumption and commercial production started very late. The formal set up of fruit processing for commercial purpose started with the demand arising from defence forces. Dietary habits in the urban areas are rapidly undergoing changes because of the factors like lack of storage facility for fresh fruits at home, scarcity of time and ready availability of these products. The pattern of traditional social structure shows that women stay at home and men folk are at work, but with the emergence of nuclear families and increased number of working women, there is increased need for ready to eat or fast foods. Fruits are an important nutritional requirement of human beings, as these fruits not only meet physical needs to some extent but also supply vitamins and minerals which improve the quality of diet and maintain health. It is therefore, necessary to ensure their availa bility throughout the year in fresh, processed or preserved forms. World over there has been remarkable change in agri-food business during 1980s and 1990s. This was due to greater concentration in agricultural inputs and food distribution, the increasing importance of food quality and safety, and intensifying role of information and logistic technology. The total production of fruits in the world is around 370 million MT India ranks first in the production of fruits at 32 Million MT which is around 8 percent of world fruit production. The international trade of processed fruit products is around US$ 9200 million. The installed capacity of fruits and vegetables processing (FPO Licensed units) is 2.1 million tonnes (MOFPI) and the level of processing of fruit and vegetables in India is 2.02 percent. The low level of processing may be ascribed to lack of processable quality of fruits, seasonal nature of the fruits, and poor infrastructural and post harvest facilities. Fruits are processed into various products such as fruit juice and concentrates, canned fruits, dehydrated fruits, Jams, and Jellies etc. According to the Food and Agriculture organization (FAO, 2006) major fruit processing countries of the world are Brazil, USA, Italy, Spain, Mexico, France, Turkey and Philippines. The level of processing as percentage of total fruit production in the major fruit processing countries is as follows: UK (88%), Malaysia (80%), Philippines (78%), Brazil (70%), USA (60-70%), Israel (50%), Thailand (30%), and China (23%). The total area under fruit in Himachal Pradesh is about 2.07 Lac hectares with a production of about 5.00 Lac MTs of all kinds of fruits. Apple is the major fruit accounting for more than 40% of total area under fruits and about 88% of total fruit production. There are 36,845, micro, small, medium and large scale enterprises of which 444 are in medium and large scale registered with the Department of Industries Government of Himachal Pra desh with an investment of Rs. 10408.41 crore and employment of about 2.42 lakh persons. (Directorate of Industries Govt. Of HP) Himachal Pradesh experiences diverse agro-climatic conditions varying from sub-tropical to humid temperate and cold deserts. The topographical and latitudinal differences accompanied by fertile and well irrigated land makes it convenient to cultivate temperate to sub-tropical fruits. The state has been classified basically into two categories namely, Industrially developing areas and Industrially backward areas. The blocks of Poanta Sahib and Nahan in district Sirmour, Nalagarh and Dharmpur in district Solan, excluding backward panchayats as notified by the government of Himachal Pradesh from time to time fall in the category of industrially developing areas. The rest of the state including industrially backward panchayats and industrially developing areas referred above fall in the category of industrially backward areas. Tribal areas of the state, as notified from time to time have been treated as tax-free Industrial zone. In her effort in processing the huge production of fruits, Himachal Pradesh established its first experimental canning unit in Shimla in the year 1959-60, and its production capacity was enhanced in 1961-62 (Directorate of Horticulture, 2005, Rattan, et.al 2000, Parmar, 2002). The main objective was to utilize the unmarketable surplus of fruits in the state as also to: Standardize recipes for the preparation of products of horticulture production in the state, provide community canning service to the prospective entrepreneur, Educating and training in the preservation of fruit and vegetable at household level. In order to execute a project of world bank the state government incorporated, Himachal Pradesh Produce Marketing and Processing Corporation Limited (hpmc) in 1974 as a subsidiary of Himachal Pradesh Agro. Industries Corporation Limited. The project also helped in imparting training to the officials of hpmc and state Department of Horticulture in modern post-harvest handling system. Private participants in this industry are also producing fruit products at micro, small, medium and large scale. The total fruit and vegetable processing capacity in the state is 55, 000 tones/annum. (Economic Survey 2003-04, hpmc, Directorate of horticulture HP, 2005). The micro, small, and medium scale under micro, small and medium enterprises Act. 2006 (MSME Act 2006) classifies the enterprises in India as follows; Figure 1. Classification of enterprises Sr. no Classification of industrial enterprises Investment limit in plant and machinery of manufacturing enterprise Investment limit of equipments in service enterprises 1 Micro enterprises Up to Rs. 25 Lakh Up to Rs. 10 Lakh 2 Small enterprises Above Rs. 25 Lakh and up to Rs. 5 Crore Above Rs. 10 Lakh and up to Rs. Crore 3 Medium enterprises Above Rs. 5crore and up to Rs. 10 Crore Above Rs. 2 crore and up to Rs. 5 Crore 4 Large enterprises (not classified under MSME) More than Rs. 10 Crore More than Rs. 5 Crore Source: MSME Act. 2006 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY To study the status of plant capacity utilisation in fruit processing industry in HP, To examine the procurement system of fruits and distribution system of fruit products, and To study the problems faced by the industry in marketing its products. In order to fulfil the objectives following hypothesis has been formulated for testing. Hypothesis H01= there is no relationship between plant capacity utilisation and scale of operation of fruit processing industry. H01a= there is no relationship between plant capacity utilisation and type of technology employed. H02= Fruit procurement system is positively related to the fruit products distribution system. H03= there is no relationship between the marketing problems faced by the units and sale of the produce. METHODOLOGY Data Sources: The data has been collected from both primary and secondary sources. Primary data has been collected by administering a structured questionnaire for the producers of fruit products in Himachal Pradesh. Sources of secondary data are Directorate of Horticulture HP, Directorate of industries HP, National Horticulture Board, HPMC, NCAER and journal and magazines from different libraries. Sample: A sample of seventy fruit processing units has been selected from all over the state on convenient sampling basis. This sample comprises of 31 Micro scale, 15 Small scale, 11 Medium scale and 13 Large scale units. Questionnaire: A structured questionnaire has been developed to collect the information personally regarding, general information about producers, product they produce, plant capacity utilisation and the technology, procurement and distribution system and marketing problems. The reliability of the questionnaire ranges between Cronbach alpha .657 to .821. Analysis: Statistical techniques like Mean, Standard deviation, Percent, rank and Loglinear analysis has been used for the analysis. Rank has been calculated by assigning rank one for the most important variable and last for least important variable. The weights are also assigned as one to the most important and two to the second important variable and so on, thus finally variable with least final score shall be the most important variable. Loglinear analysis has been used to analyse three categorical variables i.e. scale of operation (four categories, Micro, Small, Medium and Large Scale units), Type of technology (two categories, Traditional technology and Modern technology) and plant capacity utilisation (two categories, Underutilised and Fully utilised). Those units that have not updated their technology for last ten years are put under the traditional technology category and units that have updated their technology within ten years are put under modern technology category. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Fruit Processing Industry Plant Capacity Utilisation and Type of Technology There are seventy fruit Processing Units out of which 44.3% are Micro Scale, 21.4 % Small Scale 15.7% Medium Scale and 18.6% are in large Scale. Table 1: Sample Characteristics, n=70 Figure 2. Type of unit N Percentage Micro Scale 31 44.3 Small Scale 15 21.4 Medium Scale 11 15.7 Large Scale 13 18.6 Total 70 100 Major products: The major products produced in the state are jam 85.7%, jelly 41.4%, candy 40%, sauce 63.8%, ketchup 62.9%, squash 77.1%, juice 82.9% and pickle 62.9%. Other products produced occasionally are Murabba, chutney and marmalade accounting for 8.6 % of the total produce. Working profile: It is necessary to know whether seasonal nature of the fruits affects the operations of producers. Data regarding number of busy/slack working months in a year, total working days in a month and total working hours a day show that 70 % of respondents have 1-4 busy working months in a year and rest 30 % have 4-8 busy working months in a year. During busy months 11.4% respondents work for 15-20 days in a month and 88.5% work between 20-25 days in a month. All the respondents work for 8-12 hours in busy working month. A majority of respondents (70%) face slack period for 4-8 months and 30% face slack period for 1-4 months. During slack period 82.9 % work for 15-20 days in a month and rest 17.1% work for 20-25 days in a month. 11.4% respondents work for 1-4 hours and 88.6% work for 4-8 hours during slack period. Table 2. Working profile of the fruit processing units in Himachal Pradesh Variables Busy working months Slack working Months N* Percentage N* Percentage Working months 1-4 49 70 21 30 5-8 21 30 49 70 9-12 Working days 15-20 8 11.4 58 82.9 21-25 62 88.9 12 17.1 26-31 Working hours 1-4 8 11.4 5-8 62 88.6 9-12 70 100 N*-Number of Respondents Table 3(a). Scale of Operation, Plant Capacity Utilisation and type of Technology (Data Information) N cases Valid 70 Out of rangea 0 Missing 0 Weighted Valid 70 Categories Scale of Operation 4 Plant Capacity Utilisation 2 Type of Technology 2 a. Cases rejected because of out of range factor value. Table 3(b). K-way and Higher-Order Effects K df Likelihood Ratio Pearson Number of Iterations Chi-Square Sig. Chi-Square Sig. K-way and higher order effectsa 1 15 64.349 .000 100.057 .000 0 2 10 14.801 .140 14.559 .149 2 3 3 3.174 .366 3.170 .366 3 K-way effectsb 1 5 49.548 .000 85.498 .000 0 2 7 11.626 .114 11.389 .123 0 3 3 3.174 .366 3.170 .366 0 a.Tests that K-way and higher order effects are zero. b.Tests that K-way effects are zero. The initial output from loglinear analysis shows that there are 70 cases and three categorical variables, the first variable has four categories (scale of operation) and other two variables have two categories each plant capacity utilisation and type of technology respectively) . In Table K-way and higher order effects Likelihood ratio and Pearson chi-square for K=1 are significant representing that removing this effect will significantly affect the fit of the model. However K=2 and 3 are not significant, therefore removing these effects will not affect the fit of the model. Table 3(c). Step Summary Stepa Effect Chi-Squarec df Sig. Number of iterations Generating Classb Capacity*Technology*Scale 6.794 9 .658 Deleted Effect 1 Capacity*Technology 8.006 1 .005 2 2 Scale 12.883 3 .008 2 a. At each step, the effect with the largest significance level for the Likelihood Ratio Change is deleted, provided the significance level is larger than .050. b. Statistics are displayed for the best model at each step after step 0. c. For Deleted Effect, this is the change in the Chi-Square after the effect is deleted from the model. Table 3(d). Partial Associations Effects df Partial Chi-square Sig. Number of Iterations Scale*Capacity 3 2.310 .511 2 Scale*Technology 3 1.152 .765 2 Capacity*Technology 1 7.848 .005 2 Scale 3 12.883 .005 2 Capacity 1 19.431 .000 2 Technology 1 17.234 .000 2 The K-way and higher order effects for K=2 shows combined two way effect (i.e. Scale*Technology, Scale*Capacity, Capacity*Technology) which is not significant, However Step summary and partial association analysis break down the combined effect into individual effects, which is significant for Capacity*technology. This is also supported by Z statistics as the important interaction. The effect size in loglinear analysis (Capacity*Technology) for Odds ratios is calculated as 5.5. This ratio indicates that odds for full plant capacity utilisation in units using modern technology are 5.5 times the odds for units using traditional technology. The one way interaction (the main effect) of scale, capacity and technology is also significant, indicating that one way interaction is important for this model. Therefore, the analysis seems to reveal fundamental difference between units using traditional and modern technology; units with traditional technology are more likely to face problem of und erutilisation than the modern technology. Table 3(e). Goodness of Fit tests Chi-Square df Sig. Likelihood Ratio 6.794 9 .569 Pearson 6.895 9 .648 Table 3(b). deals with the backward elimination. This indicates that deleting three way interaction (Capacity*Technology*Scale ) will not have significant effect on our model, however deleting two way interaction(Capacity*Technology), and one way interaction (Scale ) will have significant effect on our model. The non-significant value of likelihood ratio and Pearson Chi-Square statistics indicate that the expected values generated by the model are not significantly different from the observed data. In other words, the model is a good fit of data. Table 3(f). Chi-Square Tests Value df Asymp.Sig.(2-sided Exact Sig. (2-sided) Exact Sig. (1-sided) Point Probability Pearson Chi-Square 8.713a 1 .003 .005 .005 Continuity Correctionb 6.933 1 .008 Likelihood Ratio 8.006 1 .005 .008 .005 Fishers Exact Test .008 .005 Linear-by-Linear Association 8.589c 1 .003 .005 .005 .005 N of Valid Cases 70 a.1 cells (25.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 4.37. b. Computed only for a 22 table. c. The standardized statistic is 2.931. The reasons for underutilization of plant capacity are seasonal nature of fruits and lack of infrastructure facility 87.2%, low demand 84.3%, frequent power cuts 27.1%, working capital problem 10% and lack of trained and skilled labour 5.8 %. It has been found that when products are sold directly to the consumers, the returns are higher than when sold to commission agents, the returns are also fair when sold to government and co-operatives. Table 3(d). on partial associations reveals that the significance level of scale*capacity is >.05 indicating that scale of operation and plant capacity utilization are not associated significantly, supporting our null hypothesis (H01). Therefore the results show that under utilization or full utilisation of plant capacity is not related to the fact that the plant is in micro, small, medium or in large scale of operation. Pearson X2 (1)=8.713,p Procurement of Fruits and Distribution of Fruit Products The industry has to rely on multiple sources for procuring fruits. A few units are having contractual relationship with farmers for procuring fruits, however they have to offer finance to the farmers for maintaining the orchid and repayment is done at the time of harvesting. The selection of farmers and the produce is a challenging task for the processers. In most cases visual inspection of the fruits size, damage level and freshness determines whether to accept the delivery. The selection of farmer generally depends on the volume of produce and leadership. Government of Himachal Pradesh has introduced Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) for procuring fruits. Himachal Pradesh Horticultural Produce Marketing and Processing Corporation Ltd (HPMC a state government undertaking) and State department of Horticulture procure fruits which are not suitable for selling in the open market. The processing units may face problem of poor or no packaging, inadequate quality and quantity in the proces s of procurement. Majority of respondents want to acquire fruits from nearest sources. However if supply is inadequate, then they have to move to other places for getting their demand fulfilled. The findings reveal that eighty percent respondents get fruits at block level, 77.1 percent at tehsil level, 81.4 percent at district level, 55.7percent at state level and 10 percent (mostly in large scale) has to get fruits from outside the state. The growers get good price for their produce if producers directly approach them. The fruit procurement system of the industry shows that nearly 87 percent respondents get fruits directly from the growers. The respondents also use other procurement channels like commission agents 61.1 percent, contractors 68.5 percent and government 20 percent. Sale of Produce: All respondents sell their produce in the local market, besides this 86.6 percent sell in neighbouring districts, 70 percent in other states, 4.3 percent each for defence supply, tourism, airlines and for exports. The major reasons for undertaking fruit processing business are availability of fruits locally (57%), cheap labour (54.2%), high market demand (22.7 %) produce because their product is easily saleable and high returns of investment (67.1%) Table 4 (a). Relationship between procurement of fruits and distribution of fruit products Fruit Procurement System and fruit Products Distribution System Strong Fruit Products Distribution System(FPDS) Total Yes No Fruit Procurement System (FPS) FPS helps strengthen FPDS Count 24 25 49 Expected Count 27.3 21.7 49.0 % within FPS 49.0% 51.0% 100.0% % within FDPS 61.5% 80.6% 70.0% % of Total 34.3% 35.7% 70.0% Std. Residual -.6 .7 FPS does not helps strengthen FPDS Count 15 6 21 Expected Count 11.7 9.3 21.0 % within FPS 71.4% 28.6% 100.0% % within FDPS 38.5% 19.4% 30.0% % of Total 21.4% 8.6% 30.0% Std. Residual 1.0 -1.1 Total Count 39 31 70 Expected Count 39.0 31.0 70.0 % within FPS 55.7% 44.3% 100.0% % within FDPS 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% % of Total 55.7% 44.3% 100.0% Table 4 (b). Chi-Square tests (Fruit Procurement System and fruit Products Distribution System) Value df Asymp.Sig.(2-sided Exact Sig. (2-sided) Exact Sig. (1-sided) Point Probability Pearson Chi-Square 3.002a 1 .083 .116 .070 Continuity Correctionb 2.162 1 .142 Likelihood Ratio 3.089 1 .079 .116 .070 Fishers Exact Test .116 .070 Linear-by-Linear Association 2.960c 1 .085 .116 .070 .048 N of Valid Cases 70 a. 0 cells (.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 10.84. b. Computed only for a 22 table c. The standardized statistic is -1720 (X2 (1)=3.002,p The Pearson chi square statistics tests if the two variables are independent. The table 4(b) shows that Pearson chi square is not significant at .05 revealing that fruit procurement system is independent of fruit products distribution system (FDPS). Therefore accepting the null hypothesis (H02) that there is no significant relationship between fruit procurement system (FPS) and fruit products distribution system (FDPS). The results imply that a good raw material procurement system may not have effect on strengthening final product distribution system. Distribution Channels: Different types of Distribution channels are used by the fruit processing industry. All units sell directly to consumers and through retailers, 97 percent also sell through commission agents, 49 percent through wholesalers, and 53 percent through distributors. The factors considered while selecting distribution channels are, deep analysis of target market by 35.7 percent units, channels preferred by consumers 82.1 percent, potential good working of channel members 90 percent and all respondents consider credit worthiness of channel members before selecting them. The responses on storage and cold storage facility indicate that all the respondents need storage facility but only 24.3 percent have their own cold storage facility. The reasons given for not having cold storage facility are , plant located in the cold region 48.6 percent, immediate transportation available 35.7 percent, government cold storage facility available on hire, 8.6 percent , private cold storage facility available on hire 75.7 percent and lack of funds for 72.9 percent units. Marketing Problems of Fruit Processing Industry in Himachal Pradesh The marketing and other problems faced by the consumers are shown in table 5. The problems in order of their seriousness are, Poor roads, Poor quality of goods, Higher cost involved, Lack of market, Lack of transport facility, Lack of publicity, Lack of storage, Lack of cold storage, Lack of packaging material, Non availability of credit, Lack organised marketing system, Lack of procurement system, Perishable nature of products, Distance from roads, Only limited consumers, Distance from city/town, and Ignorance about market. Table 5. Marketing problems ranked on the basis of importance Sr. No. Variable Final Score Final Rank 1 Lack of transport facility 343 V 2 Lack of storage 506 VII 3 Lack of cold storage 533 VIII 4 Poor roads 119 I 5 Lack of market 294 IV 6 Ignorance about market 1119 XVII 7 Poor quality of raw material 203 II 8 High running cost involved 264 III 9 Lack of publicity 416 VI 10 Perishable nature of products 893 XIII 11 Limited consumers/Lack of demand 1079 XV 12 Lack organised marketing system 776 XI 13 Lack of packaging material 632 IX 14 Lack of procurement system 836 XII 15 Non availability of credit 689 X 16 Distance from roads 1067 XIV 17 Distance from city/town 1096 XVI All the respondents have acquired Food Products Order (FPO) as quality standard. And all units adhere to the norms of the standard. However during visit to these units the researcher observed that in some of the units raw material was not properly stored and semi finished products (like pulp, chopped fruits etc.) were lying uncovered, also utensils and flour was not clean. Table 5.1(a). Relationship of sale of produce with marketing problems Sale of Produce and Marketing Problems Face Marketing Problems Total Yes No Sale of Produce Increase in sale Count 8 15 23 Expected Count 12.2 10.8 23.0 % within Sale of Produce 34.8% 65.2% 100.0% % within Face Marketing Problems 21.6% 45.5% 32.9% % of Total 11.4% 21.4% 32.9% Std. Residual -1.2 1.3 Decrease in sale Count 29 18 47 Expected Count 24.8 22.2 47.0 % within Sale of Produce 61.7% 38.3% 100.0% % within Face Marketing Problems 78.4% 54.5% 67.1% % of Total 41.4% 25.7% 67.1% Std. Residual .8 -.9 Total Count 37 33 70 Expected Count 37.0 33.0 70.0 % within Sale of Produce 52.9% 47.1% 100.0% % within Face Marketing Problems 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% % of Total 52.9% 47.1% 100.0% Table 5.1(b). Chi-Square tests (Sale of Produce and Marketing Problems) Value df Asymp.Sig.(2-sided Exact Sig. (2-sided) Exact Sig. (1-sided) Point Probability Pearson Chi-Square 4.491a 1 .034 .043 .031 Continuity Correctionb 3.476 1 .062 Likelihood Ratio 4.534 1 .033 .043 .031 Fishers Exact Test .043 .031 Linear-by-Linear Association 4.427c 1 .0355 .043 .031 .022 N of Valid Cases 70 a. 0 cells (.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expect

Creative And Critical Thinking Among Students

Creative And Critical Thinking Among Students 7,987 straight As in SPM screamed the headlines of major newspapers when the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia results were announced on the 10th of March 2010. The fixation with academic achievements among Malaysians knew no bounds. Every year, excitement and joy, anxiety and disappointment, pervade among students, parents and teachers when the Ministry of Education and Malaysian Examination Board releases the results of public examinations, be it UPSR, PMR, SPM and STPM. The obsession with academic achievement is overshadowing all other aspects of a holistic education system in Malaysia. The Malaysian Education Philosophy clearly states that the role of the school curriculum is to ensure the holistic development of the individual mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally by imparting general knowledge and skills; cultivating, instilling and fostering healthy attitudes and accepted moral values. The curriculum aims to bring forth the Malaysian citizen who is a balanced and well-rounded individual, trained, skilful, and cherishes the national aspiration for unity. Why all the hype with students academic achievements? According to Professor Dr. Ray Wilks, Head of the School of Psychology, International Medical University, there is no evidence to show a positive correlation between academic achievement in examination and learning. Learning should not be about passing examinations. We should instead create more curiosity in childrens learning to nurture creativity and innovativeness, says Professor Dr. Ray Wilks. Indeed, the education systems in Malaysia aims to mould individuals to become better Malaysians with the right attitudes, and to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary in the twenty-first century to make Malaysia a developed nation by the year 2020. To meet the challenges of the twenty first-century and Vision 2020, teaching and learning practices and school management are constantly reviewed to develop individuals who are technologically literate and can contribute to a creative and innovative workforce. This transformation will entail changing the school culture, from one that is predominantly memory-based to one that stimulates thinking, creativity, and innovativeness. Yet the importance placed on academic achievement has seriously impacted on the ability and efficiency of the Malaysian education system in developing holistic individuals that are able to handle the challenges of life after formal schooling. In fact many a times, newspapers highlighted employers complaints that school leavers and even universitys graduates have problems conversing and communicating effectively, let alone to think critically and creatively. In addition the lack of critical and creative thinking abilities among Malaysians school leavers and university graduates has been pinpointed by the Minister of Human Resource, Datuk Dr. S Subramaniam, as one of the main problems contributing to their low marketability in the job market. The lack of thinking skills among the present and future workforce of the nation will hamper the nations efforts toward achieving a developed nation status by 2020. What are critical and creative thinking? Critical thinking is a type of thinking that converges on a single thought or entity. One must organize, analyze or evaluate information, which might also be broken into parts and taught explicitly. A cognitive process complimentary to, but different than critical thinking, is creative thinking. This thinking diverges from a single thought or entity. One must generate, synthesize, find alternatives, adapt, substitute, or elaborate. Critical and creative thinking are the building blocks that will make certain our students will have the required thinking skills to succeed in life and at work and ensure the attainment of Vision 2020. Detractors of efforts to emphasize critical and creative thinking in the curriculum have point to the possibility of poorer academic achievements as a consequence. However, research has shown that when students develop their thinking skills by looking beyond the obvious, making creative connections, developing strategies, making decisions, planning ahead and reflecting, they also improved their academic performance. Thus, emphasizing critical and creative thinking will augment academic achievement. How to encourage critical and creative thinking? One way is to reduce the emphasis on the use summative assessments such as UPSR, PMR and SPM. Summative assessments are used for categorizing students and stress the use of written examinations. The UPSR and PMR summative assessment have deviated from its original purpose of diagnosing learning problems with the intention of preparing remedial actions to improve students learning. They are now used to stream children into classes. In psychological terms, it is bad to label children. It is positive reinforcement for smart children, as defined by our assessment system, but not for the children who do not do well. The tools used in our public examinations are picking up all the rote learners. Professor Dr Ray Wilks says, From a psychological point of view, to label a child of 12 is a kind of life sentence. He further states that experiments have shown that if we tell teachers that a child is of certain achievement level, they will teach t o that point. The teachers will not raise their teaching to the next level for that child. Instead we should encourage more formative assessment in the learning environments. Formative assessment also called continuous assessment is a more reliable way to look at the learning process. School-based continuous assessment looks at broader education skills, such as communication, critical and creative thinking, and teamwork, rather than just textbook skills. These skills are assessed by teachers through activities like debates, dramas, analysing issues and project work. Formative assessments also provide diagnostic information to enable teachers to assist students with learning difficulties. Furthermore, when there are less public examinations, children can have more time to explore other interests such as music and arts that would help instil creativity in them. Ive always wanted my children to learn to play the piano, but they are always tired after schools and tuition, says one parent. With less examination, teachers will also have more time to organize field trips and excursions, which will allow students to be in contact with nature and discover new learning opportunities for critical and creative thinking that may not be present in the classroom. Given appropriate opportunities, children can engage in sophisticated cognitive processes. Research suggests that either too much or too little structure can prevent development of critical and creative thinking and in the process children are not equipped with active and strategic approaches to learning tasks. Thus, appropriate instructional approaches could results in students enhancing their critical and creative thinking skills. Three approaches are commonly used in the teaching of thinking skills: stand-alone approach, immersion approach and embedded approach. Stand-alone approach consists of teaching thinking skills separate from subject matter content. In this case a general set of thinking skills are identified and taught as a separate course or subject. Students are taught how to transfer the skills to various subjects and situations. However, thinking skills taught in isolation tend to results in students having problems transferring thinking skills to academic or real world problems. The immersion approach does not involve teaching thinking skills. Rather it allows good thinking to develop naturally as a result of students being fully engaged or immersed in content-related activities which calls for higher levels of thinking. Students are provided with repeated practices in complex cognitive activities with the assumption that they will eventually develop the necessary cognitive skills to successfully engage in high-level thinking. However, research has shown that simply immersing students in thinking activities is not an effective instructional approach. The embedded approach involves teaching thinking skills within a subject-matter context. Thinking skills are taught in science, social studies, language, arts, and some other subjects. Students than apply these skills directly to the particular subject being studied. This allows students to use the skills in a meaningful context and helps them learn the subject matter more deeply. An embedded approach is an effective way to teach thinking skills. Rather than an additional subject, thinking skills are used to enhance whatever curriculum currently being taught. Training teachers in specific instructional approaches means that schools must invest in teachers professional development. Instructional approaches that help teachers integrate a learning to think component into their curriculum empower students to take responsibility for improving their thinking and learning. Although cognitive development is only one part of a childs overall development, it is essential that teachers respond to the community demand for and the childs right to cognitive competence. Teacher training providers need to become aware of the benefits of certain instructional approaches on pupil performance and incorporate training in such approaches in their courses. Thus, in conclusion, Malaysia needs to ensure that its future generation does not only perform well academically but should possess the ability to think critically and creatively. All Malaysians should support the integration of critical and creative thinking in its educational curriculum. It should not only merely be stated in printed documents. Affirmative actions should be put in place to ensure that the teaching and learning of critical and creative thinking is actualized in the classroom context. Lest, Vision 2020 remains a dream and Malaysia will stutter in its ability to achieve the New Economic Model towards achieving 1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now. (1497 words)

SA Purge - June 1934 :: Ancient Rome Roman History

SA Purge - June 1934 The Nazi consolidation of power was a gradual process that took place in many steps and was due to many factors, although a great deal happened in the first few months of Hitler's rule. However, the purge of the SA in June 1934 was a major turning point as it tremendously increased Hitler's power over the state. By the time Adolf Hitler was elected as Chancellor of Germany in January 1933, the consolidation of power was not having the desired effect. Hitler immediately called another election, and using his newly acquired power, his first step was to ban all newspapers and political meetings, particularly those of the Communists (KPD). He also dissolved the Prussian parliament, which effectively gave Hermann Goring complete control of 60% of Germany's police force. The police support of the Nazi Party was the backing for a violent terror campaign against other political parties, again particularly against the KPD. This campaign of terror resulted in the Reichstag fire, blamed on the Communists. Some historians believe the fire was started by the Nazis, and was all a ruse to lose more Communist votes and exploit fears of a mass left-wing uprising. Whatever the case, Hitler claimed that the Communists were trying to intentianally thwart the Nazis' election campaign. He asked President Hindenburg for extra powers to deal with any potential hazards, prompting Hindenburg to issue the Decree for the Protection of People and State. This law allowed the government to arrest people at will and also take over provincial governments, and was the first step towards a totalitarian government. It allowed the Nazis to completely smash the Communist election campaign and gain more seats in the Reichstag. Despite this mass terror campaign, the nazi party still failed to win the majority of seats in the election, gaining under 44% of the votes. However, a majority was eventually gained by the Nazi's winning the support of the Nationalist Party, as well as continuing campaigns of intimidation and scare-mongering. In the March election the Nazi party claimed just over half of the seats in the Reichstag, making them the largrest political party in Germany. However, the Nazis were not voted for in many Catholic and working-class areas of Germany. This did not stop their drive for power - they simply took control of the state governments and persuaded the Reichstag to pass an Enabling Law, which would give Hitler national power for the next four years.

Creating own signature for use in web :: essays research papers

In this tutorial I will show you how to make a custom user bar. I will be making a Photshop CS user bar. 1) Make a new document with sizes widht: 350 height: 19 with a transparent background. 2) Make a suitable gradient and apply it. 3) Now get a logo, when I usually search for images i use Google Images, find your logo and open it up in Photoshop. 4) Now it's time to remove your logo from the background, get the polygonal lasso tool and carefully cut it out. 5) Now go to Edit > Copy, then open the user bar document (the one where you applied a gradient), then create a new layer and go to Edit > Paste. 6) Now with this layer selected go to Edit > Transform > Scale and resize your logo or reposition it if you wish. 7) Now right click on the layer and select Blending Options and give it a little outer glow with these settings: 8) Now make a new layer and get the Elliptical Marquee Tool and drag it from about point 1 to point 2. 9) Now get the Gradient Tool and use these settings: and now drag it vertical from point 1 to point 2: 10) And now you have a nice light effect, create a new layer and fill it with a 45 degree scanline with opacity from 10% - 15% if you don't have a 45 degree scanline make a new document with dimensions 3x3 with a transparent background and do a maximum zoom, now get the pen tool (make shure your color is set to black) and draw what I've done in this picture: When you are done go to Edit > Define Pattern and name it what you want and click ok. Now you can close this document because the pattern is permanently saved in Photoshop. Here is what you should have so far: 11) Now it's time to put some text, I will use font Visitor which you can get from this link: http://dafont.

Character Sketch of The Sniper :: Sniper

Character Sketch of The Sniper War. Death. Pain. Anger and remorse. None are pleasantries, but all are faced and handled every day. In Liam O'Flaherty's "The Sniper," all of these things are brought to an acute reality. To aid in his creation of such emotional conflict, O'Flaherty portrayed the sniper as a very controversial character. We can see this contrast in personality by looking at appearance, actions, and thoughts. "...the face of a student, thin and ascetic,...eyes had the cold gleam of the fanatic." And so the sniper is described in a physical sense. Upon looking at the meaning of the words, we find an unexpected conflict of definition. O'Flaherty writes that the sniper's face is "that of a student." We think young, and vibrant. However, to describe his meaning, he goes on to say that his face is both "thin and ascetic." Also, gaunt, and displaying self-discipline; both qualities carried more so in adults than students. Also, it is stated that the sniper had "the eyes of a man who is used to looking at death." One might imagine an older man, who has lived through many-a-war and seen lives lost. These three descriptions show that the sniper was older than his years in appearance, as well as emotionally. The snipers' actions also are cause to believe that he is more than meets the eye. In the story, the sniper considers lighting a cigarette. "It was dangerous...he decided to take the risk." One's knowledge that something is dangerous and then their persistence to carry out the action shows a true daredevil. A characteristic of the "student" in him mentioned earlier. Another, much different, action of the sniper's is the need to discover who he killed. After the remorse of the crime committed, the sniper proceeds to investigate his enemy's identity. "...felt a sudden curiosity as to the identity of the enemy sniper..." This shows that the sniper did, in fact, have a streak of humaneness and care in him. A very different mood from the daredevil. Lastly, the way the sniper thinks reveals much about his character. When he is considering means of escape, he comes up with a plan to trick the enemy sniper into believing he himself was dead.

Marijuana Exploratory

Jamal Mujaddidi English 205 Professor Jay 8 April 2010 Exploratory Essay Legalization: Good or Bad? As part of the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, Marijuana for all purposes was outlawed nationwide. Prior to this Act, over 30 states had prohibition laws towards Marijuana because farmers who employed mainly Hispanic workers complained that this drug would cause people to become â€Å"slow† or â€Å"lazy† and would also cause the users to become addicted. Besides the popularity among this crowd, marijuana was used as an intoxicant during the 1850’s through the 1930’s and was listed in the United States Pharmacopeia. The active ingredient in marijuana is THC, or delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, but this is only one of the 400 other chemicals that are in the plant (TheWELL). It was prescribed for conditions such as labor pain, nausea, arthritis, and rheumatism (DeLisle). It was only after individuals began committing crimes while under the influence of Marijuana that the U. S. Federal Bureau of Narcotics gave marijuana the image of a powerful, addicting, substance that would lead users into a more serious addiction. In the 1960s, it was mainly used by college students and â€Å"hippies,† and subsequently became a symbol of rebellion against authority. Marijuana use became a commonplace issue in congress which led to The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 which classified marijuana along with LSD and heroin as S1 drugs, otherwise known as substances which have the highest relative abuse potential and no form of medical use (DEA). Widespread eradication of marijuana and marijuana products began. The current opponents of marijuana legalization claim that marijuana does have addictive qualities and is an epidemic on America’s youth. This crowd presents that marijuana is a â€Å"silent-killer† due to a fungus and mold which can easily grow on the part which is smoked by users (PRNewswire). This fungus can cause lung cancer and they have deemed marijuana as bio-hazardous. The opposition also goes to say that marijuana can have adverse effects on the brain and can cause brain-cells to die. Some research suggests that use of marijuana during pregnancy can result in premature birth and low birth weights and can even cause temporary loss of fertility. Along with adverse effects on the reproductive system, the opposition claims that marijuana use during adolescence can be harmful to physical and sexual development. This side pushes for further prohibition of marijuana and stricter punishments due to their beliefs that the negatives outweigh the benefits. In the middle of this debate, stand the moderate marijuana use supporters. This side views marijuana use as a potential alternative to painkillers which are detrimental to vital organs. This crowd is mainly made up of physicians and health-care professionals, as wells as patients of chronic illnesses and pain. Doctors and nurses say that cannabis is a less toxic and less expensive medicine for diseases such as multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, migraines, cancers, and many other disorders which cause chronic symptoms and pain. This side also states that marijuana’s versatile nature allows patients to gain the pain relieving effects through ingestion, canceling out the negative effects of smoking. Besides all these benefits, this crowd pushes for a safe, reliable and quality-controlled source of marijuana which can only be achieved through legalization. It is believed that after this source is created, many adverse effects of â€Å"bad† marijuana will disperse. Another camp of this debate is the supporters of full legalization of marijuana use and growth for medicinal and recreational use. These supporters claim that marijuana should be allowed to be used in the way alcohol and cigarettes are used recreationally. They state these comparisons have worse long-term effects than THC and yet they are taxed and regulated. Another point they make is that marijuana would inject millions of dollars into the economy once government grown marijuana is taxed. Besides the smoking and ingesting of the drug, the plant can be used for its naturally produced fiber known as hemp. This can be cultivated from the stem of the plant and used commercially and industrially for paper, textiles, biodegradable products and medical purposes. Overall, they believe the claimed dangers of marijuana are exaggerated and not enough medical trials have been done to verify these claims. As a college level youth and the Legalization of marijuana use in California is on the ballot, I am interested in learning about this issue before I cast my vote. I have seen the benefits of medicinal marijuana in my family and can attest to the pain relieving effects. As for the recreational use, I believe that alcohol is a much more dangerous substance that can be detrimental to mental and physical health and cause irrational decisions while under the influence. Prohibition has shown to not be a viable solution in the past and I don’t think it can ever solve anything. Regulation on the other hand can prove to be effective because substances will not be bought and traded illegally. I think the legalization of marijuana will improve lives, decrease crimes, and slightly improve the economy. Works Cited DeLisle, Judi. _Medical Marijuana Research Guide. Valencia West Campus Library_. Web. 20 Mar. 2007. 7 Apr. 2010. â€Å"DEA, Controlled Substances Act. † Welcome to the United States Department of Justice. Web. 08 Apr. 2010. â€Å"The Marijuana Initiative Is a Silent Killed and It Should be Defeated – Los Angeles, March 25/PRNewswire/. †_PR Newswire: Press Release Distribution, Targeting, Monitoring and Marketing. _Web. 08 Apr. 2010. â€Å"Fact Sheet – Marijuana. † The WELL – The Birthplace of the Online Community Movement. Web. 08 Apr. 2010.

Establishing The Internet in Public Schools

Modems, e-mail, www's and .com's – are these phrases merely a part of a worldwide fad, or are they here to stay? And if they are, then what role should they play in the future of public education? Many times, new things come along, and we all jump on the big boat of opportunity so quickly that we forget to look at the long term merits of what we're boarding. The Internet is a good example of this, and we should all take a much closer look before we decide whether the Internet has a purpose and a place in the public schools of tomorrow. Education is merely preparing students for the future. But what is the future? No one can say with certainty. But by taking a quick look around us, we can guess that the Internet will play a prominent role in our future. If we look at the stock market, for example, we can see internet and technology stocks skyrocketing beginning their first day on the market. Or, turn on the television and one will surely hear a commercial telling everyone to check out their company's web site for more information on their product. Daily, we can see the Internet becoming more integrated in our lives and in the lives of our youth. Without the internet in our schools, how will teachers instruct students to take full advantage of what the internet has to offer? After establishing that the Internet is indeed a growing part of our society that will not likely disappear soon, schools and their administrators must decide if the Internet is a necessity or a luxury. The answer is simple; the Internet is a luxury. If it were a necessity for public schools' survival, then how have they made it this far without it? Though the Internet is a luxury, that does not mean it has no place in public schools. Imagine schools today without luxuries such as the light bulb, copy machine, or personal computer. Ten years ago, it would have been impossible to compose a letter, to send it, and have it received all in a matter of seconds. It is imperative that students are taught how to access these new opportunities so that when compared with other students anywhere in the world, they will not lag behind in Internet proficiency. Schools must begin to incorporate internet education into their regular curriculum in order for students to be successful in today's internet-savvy world. It is the responsibility of public schools to prepare our students for the future, and without the Internet in our schools, this would be impossible. By forbidding the internet to enter our schools, we would be condemning our students by sending them out into the age of the internet, being armed with nothing. Though the merit of the Internet itself will continue to be debated, it is obviously becoming an important part of our society and, therefore, must also become an important part of our schools, which are the future of our society. Had the youth of yesterday not been taught how to use computers, then they could not have created the internet of today. Therefore, if students of today are not taught how to use the Internet, then we are limiting the possibility of new discoveries tomorrow. It is important that we realize this: the education that is provided for our youth today will determine our future. In conclusion, schools and its communities must accept the inevitable and climb aboard the Internet ship of opportunity before it sets sail, leaving the future of our students, communities and nation behind. Where will this fateful journey end? Will it end in tragedy such as the Titanic, or will we be sailing on the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria to end at yet another beginning where something newer and more exciting awaits us? Only time can tell.

Characteristics of a Good Computer

CAVENDISH UNIVERSITY UGANDA STUDENT NAME: AKANKWASA JOHNSON ( 077/0702-978405) STUDENT ID:02/02615/124400 COURSEBEHS LECTURER: MR. MENYA SHAKIR MODULE: INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGY MODULE CODE: BIT 110 ASSIGNMENT NUMBER: 01 DATE ISSUED: 4TH /11/2012 DUE DATE: 11 /11/2012 ASSIGNMENT BRIEF: 1. Discuss the factors you would consider while buying a computer. 2. How has information networks solved the problems of an organization? GUIDE TO STUDENTS 1. Maximum 2 pages word processed excluding cover and reference pages. 2. Use Times New Roman 3. Font Size should be 12 4. 1. 5 Line Spacing . For referencing purposes, use the Harvard Author-Date System. Instructions to Students 1. This form must be attached to the front of your assignment. 2. The assignment must be handed in without fail by the due date. QUESTION. 1: Discuss factors you would consider while buying a computer. Solution According to Prof. More Manojkumar, (2009), various factors that would be considered when buying compute rs are discussed here bellow; 1. Processor Speed: A computer is a very fast device which can perform the amount of work that a human being can do in an entire year in few seconds.This therefore means that a good powerful computer should be capable of performing several billion arithmetic operations per second. The speed of a computer measure is in microseconds (10-6), Nanoseconds (10-9) and picoseconds (10-12). 2. Accuracy: The accuracy of a computer is principally highly considered; and the degree of accuracy of a particular computer depends upon its design however Errors can occur in a computer due to human rather than technological weaknesses. 3. Memory (Power of Remembering): A good Computer should have sound brain (Fast memory, 2 GB+) but unlike human (Man) beings.A computer can store data and information and recalled as long as one requires it for any numbers of years because of its secondary storage capability. This means data and information can be retrieved as long as desir ed by the user and can be recalled, as when required. The information recalled would be as accurate as on the day when it was fed to the computer. 4. Diligence: A good Computer should be diligent unlike human beings. This means that a computer should be free from dullness and lack of concentration.It can continuously work for hours without creating any error human beings in doing regular types of jobs, which requires great accuracy. Computer can perform the number of calculation with exactly the same accuracy and speed as the first one. 5. Versatility: Versatility is a most important characteristic which a good computer should have hence the capacity to perform completely different type of work. For example one may use a computer to prepare payroll slips where there is a lot of veracity, may be used for inventory management or to prepare electric bills.A good computer should therefore be capable of performing almost any task, if the task can be reduced to series of logical steps. 6. Automation: Good Computers should be automatic electronic machines however; computer being machines can not start themselves without human interventions. They cannot go out to find their own problems and solutions because they have to be instructed. Hence the automation eases the operation of the user. 7. Communication/ Connectivity: Most computers today have the capability of communicating with other computers. We can connect two or more computers by a communication device such as modem.These computers can share data, instructions, and information. The connected computer are called network. 8. No Feelings: Good Computers should have no feelings, no emotions like human heart and soul since they are machines. Computers cannot make such judgments on their own because their judgment is based on the instructions given to them in form of programs that are written by us. 9. Reliability; Most consumers are looking for a computer that are reliable, yet if the product is on the market then it is bound to have undergone and passed the numerous technological tests before release.In conclusion therefore; all computers should meet these characteristics but it just depends upon the efficiency of the users, their computer skills as to whether they remain satisfied with their purchase. 1 QESTION 2: How has information networks solved the problems of an organization? SOLUTION Network information systems link pockets of highly specialized data to provide efficient access. Computer-based information systems have been in widespread use since the 1990s in industry, non-profit organizations and government agencies.These systems have solved a number of problems in organizations in the following ways; 1. Provided fast access to databases of personnel information, reference reading, best practices and on-the-job training, and are easily customizable to meet an organization's needs. With the Internet and technology boom of the early 21st century, use of computer-based information netw orks is growing faster each year. 2. Ensured Data Centrality; Access to data via a computer network information system is central, providing a â€Å"one-stop† location to find and access pertinent computer data.Most large-scale businesses and organizations use some sort of central database to manage user information, manage advertisement lists, store product information and keep track of orders. Examples of central database solutions are MySQL, Postgre SQL or Microsoft SQL database solutions, coupled with custom software which provides user interfaces. 3. Improved Information Coverage; Information coverage is a huge advantage for any organization, because having vast amounts of useful data from every different department streamlines access and increases productivity. For users, having access to a networked nformation system is analogous to having a digital library of shared knowledge hence; Central information systems provide organizations with the advantages of having large amounts of data, covering many different fields, all accessible via an information access with larger databases of academic and professional research, such as Google Scholar, to provide even more information capability to personnel. 4. Ensured access to efficiency; Efficiency of access is a crucial advantage to networked information systems in organization over more traditional information management systems, such as paper cataloging and filing.Computer-based information systems catalog and file documents in a set logical way, making data access very efficient and fast. Data can be manually categorized, and filters created to automatically file documents that match certain patterns. This increases employee productivity time by allowing workers to focus more on the task at hand rather than filing paperwork. 5. Extensibility; Computer-based information systems are completely extensible and customizable to an organization's needs.Upon installation, customized computer information syste ms use configuration files that are tailor-made to an organization's needs to file and categorize data. Computer software engineers frequently design custom database interfaces and information storage/recovery systems for enterprise clients. As a company grows, modifications and additions to this filing configuration allow easy extensibility. Computer information systems are not limited in scale or possibility. They are uniquely designed for maximum organizational benefit for each customer.In conclusion therefore; Information net works have greatly helped organizations grow and efficiently deliver the services to achieve specific goals. 2 REFERENCES 1. http://www. ehow. com/list_6748808_advantages-computer_based-information-systems. html#ixzz2Bu35Ixvk 2. Ronald Golooba, (2012); Lecture Notes for year one students a cohort 15, Cavendish University Uganda. 3. en. kioskea. net/contents/pc/ordinateur-portable. php3 – Cached. 4. Prof. More Manojkumar, (2009), Characteristics of co mputer systems. 5. wiki. answers. com †º †¦ †º Operating Systems – Cached