Busniess Information system Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Busniess Information system - Case Study Example uding Wal-Mart, Safeway, Kroger and Target; in so doing, K-C has managed to collaborate and share best practices and information on new product development, thus, strengthening relationships with key retail partners (387). K-C’s CIO, Ramon Baez realized the importance of integrating IT in marketing and R&D departments so as to foster ongoing innovation and creation of business ideas; and improve K-C’s relationship with retailers. Additionally, it realized that data collection, analysis, effectiveness and efficiency can be improved through IT. For instance, the Innovation Design Studio K-C opened in Neenah, 2007, which included 3-D virtual reality IT system assisted K-C in collecting and analyzing data on consumers shopping experiences that is important for decision making on innovations and new product concepts. The virtual reality system helped in simulating the looks of real retail store, such as Target and consumers shopping experience, behaviors, reactions, level of engagement, and factors influencing consumer’s purchase decisions; this helps K-C in gathering insights with regards to developing new product designs, in-store design and merchandising. In turn, K-C is able to red uce time required for marketing while at the same time ensuring that their retail customers are able to create display designs that are effective, thus, sell more K-C products. Additional benefits to K-C include, K-C being seen by retailers as a technology-innovator in image building, giving retailers the urge to look to collaborate with K-C in initiatives that are IT intensive (Turban and Volonino 387). This case is about a publicly held company, an aftermarket service and retail chain, Pep Boys that is worth $2 billion and has the capability of offering replacement of tires, do-it-for-me, do-it-yourself, and buy-for-resale services. The company having more than 500 stores in over 35 states depended on Excel spreadsheets to for its budget needs; it carried budget information which

Business Communication Trends Essay Example for Free

Business Communication Trends Essay Business communication plays a big role in our daily work activities as individuals we must manage our daily activities depending on the trends and needs of our current workplace. There are ten Business communication trends the one that I will be discussing is on Quality and customer needs. Business Communication Trends Business communication is very important in my daily work environment. It is so important because we use this to communicate efficiently with our Managers to our customers. I work for The City of Indio in water department. My duties vary from customer service to Engineering administrative assistant. Business communication does play a big role in my day-to-day duties, because we have to be able to have great communication skills orally, and also we must use other communication technology efficiently like emails, letters, memos and phone or teleconferencing. In order to be a good representative we must be able to communicate effectively with our customers. The reason I say this is because we are responsible in making sure that we listen to what the customers needs are and that we are able to satisfactory resolve any issue that the customer might have. Many times when customers have a valid complain we must inform our supervisor via E-mail, depending on the level of urgency regarding the customers complains. I generally prefer to communicate this way because it creates a paper trail and it also protects me. Through these emails we must be able to communicate to our supervisor, what the issue is and what are the solutions that we can offer the customer. Then my supervisors will respond with either an approval or rejection. Then we can communicate with the customer and inform them what the end result is of their complaint. I have found that communicating with my supervisors via e-mail helps keep track of records, and if that same issue were to ever come up again we would have an e-mail that would be proof that particular issue was addressed and brought to our supervisors attention. If the issue is not resolved to the customer satisfaction it would be because there wasn’t a follow-up with the customer and we did not communicate in a professional manner. Business Communication Trends Working in a utility division comes with many challenges. When creating utility statement, wording has be to address in a manner where we are targeting an audience that can read and understand exactly what is being said in a normal monthly water utility bill . For example, what amount is due and when is it due. Many of our customers misinterpret or don’t understand the wording on the utility bills. This causes confusion, and can even cause customers to have the utility services interrupted, because they misinterpret their bill and did not know how to read it correctly. We all have spent countless hours rewording our statements and every time there is that one customer that is looking for a loop in the system to get away out of paying a payment or late fees. Our role as representatives is to ensure that are customer satisfaction is meet, and if there is an error where it might misguide our customers, we want to make sure that we correct the problem before it becomes a problem.

Implementation of solution :: Computer Science

Implementation of solution Resources The hardware and the software are the main resource which I have used, in which is essential because one can’t work without the other working. Hardware is the actual pieces of equipment in an information processing system that we can touch and see. Examples are: - Keyboard - Mouse - Printer Software are the programs which are written to assist computer users, they cannot be touched. Examples are: - Data - Memory - Programmes The hardware that I used Pentium three was the system I have used, which has the speed of 1 Giga hertz 512 mega bytes ram (random access memory), 39 Giga bytes hard drive. It also has a sound card, graphic card and network card. A 17 inch monitor, standard floppy drive, a 52x speed CD-ROM and access to the internet. The printer I have used were the colour inkjet X7100 (Lexmark),The mouse and then keyboard input all the information. Here are the peripherals I used: - Keyboard- it is a device, which each and every computer has, which enables the input of data by pressing the precise keys on the keyboard. - Mouse- It is also an input device designed to fit under the palm of a hand while it is being moved around on a table or mat. It is around the size of a human palm and very easy to use. Moving the mouse produces movements of a cursor or a pointer on the monitor screen. It is provided with one, two or three buttons. - Monitor- it is in other words called a screen, in which allows us to see the processed data and it is an input device as well as an output device. For the use of a computer a monitor is needed, so the monitor is a vital part of a computer. - Printer- this is another peripheral device, which produces the hard copy of the document, which I chose on the screen. - Central processing unit (CPU) - of a computer is the main part of the computer. It contains the processor, the main store and various circuits needed to communicate with devices outside it. It is the part, which will process all my data and without this their would be no computer. - Disc drive- this is the part of the computer that allowed me to read the data, which I stored and saved on the floppy disc. - Floppy discs- it is a light, flexible magnetic disc held in a protective jacket, which is easily transportable unlike the hard drive that cannot be moved from one place to another. This is a form of backing up data and allows me to save data, which I find very

Hydrogen Peroxide Essay

The same reaction is catalysed by the  enzyme  catalase, found in the  liver, whose main function in the body is the removal of toxic byproducts ofmetabolism  and the reduction of  oxidative stress. The decomposition occurs more rapidly in  alkali, so  acid  is often added as a stabilizer. The liberation of oxygen and energy in the decomposition has dangerous side-effects. Spilling high concentrations of hydrogen peroxide on a flammable substance can cause an immediate fire, which is further fueled by the oxygen released by the decomposing hydrogen peroxide. High test peroxide, or HTP (also called high-strength peroxide) must be stored in a suitable, vented container to prevent the buildup of oxygen gas, which would otherwise lead to the eventual rupture of the container. In the presence of certain catalysts, such as  Fe2+  or  Ti3+, the decomposition may take a different path, with  free radicals  such as HO · (hydroxyl) and HOO · (hydroperoxyl) being formed. A combination of  H2O2  and  Fe2+  is known as  Fenton’s reagent. A common concentration for hydrogen peroxide is  20-volume, which means that, when 1 volume of hydrogen eroxide is decomposed, it produces 20 volumes of oxygen. A  20-volumeconcentration of hydrogen peroxide is equivalent to 1. 667  mol/dm3  (Molar solution) or about 6%. Redox reactions In acidic solutions,  H2O2  is one of the most powerful oxidizers known—stronger than  chlorine,  chlorine dioxide, and  potassium permanganate. Also, through catalysis,  H2O2  can be converted intohydroxyl radicals  (†¢OH), which are highly reactive. Oxidant/Reduced product| Oxidation  potential, V| Fluorine/Hydrogen fluoride| 3. 0| Ozone/Oxygen| 2. 1| Hydrogen peroxide/Water| 1. 8| Potassium permanganate/Manganese dioxide. Chlorine dioxide/HClO| 1. 5| Chlorine/Chloride| 1. 4| In aqueous solutions, hydrogen peroxide can oxidize or reduce a variety of inorganic ions. When it acts as a reducing agent,  oxygen  gas is also produced. In  acidic  solutions  Fe2+  is oxidized to  Fe3+  (hydrogen peroxide acting as an oxidizing agent), 2  Fe2+(aq) +  H2O2  + 2  H+(aq) ; 2  Fe3+(aq) + 2H2O(l) and  sulfite  (SO2? 3) is oxidized to  sulfate  (SO2? 4). However,  potassium permanganate  is reduced to  Mn2+  by acidic  H2O2. Under  alkaline  conditions, however, some of these reactions reverse; for example,  Mn2+  is oxidized to  Mn4+  (as  MnO2). Other examples of hydrogen peroxide’s action as a reducing agent are reaction with  sodium hypochlorite  or  potassium permanganate, which is a convenient method for preparing  oxygen  in the laboratory. NaOCl +  H2O2  >  O2  + NaCl +  H2O 2  KMnO4  + 3  H2O2  > 2  MnO2  + 2 KOH + 2  H2O  + 3  O2 Hydrogen peroxide is frequently used as an  oxidizing agent  in organic chemistry. One application is for the oxidation of  thioethers  to  sulfoxides. For example,  methyl phenyl sulfidecan be readily oxidized in high yield to  methyl phenyl sulfoxide: Ph? S? CH3  +  H2O2  > Ph? S(O)? CH3  +  H2O Alkaline hydrogen peroxide is used for  epoxidation  of electron-deficient alkenes such as  acrylic acids, and also for oxidation of  alkylboranes  to  alcohols, the second step of  hydroboration-oxidation. Formation of peroxide compounds Hydrogen peroxide is a weak acid, and it can form  hydroperoxide  or  peroxide  salts  or derivatives of many metals. For example, on addition to an aqueous solution of  chromic acid  (CrO3) or acidic solutions of dichromate salts, it will form an unstable blue peroxide CrO(O2)2. In aqueous solution it rapidly decomposes to form oxygen gas and chromium salts. It can also produce peroxoanions by reaction with  anions; for example, reaction with  borax  leads to  sodium perborate, a bleach used in laundry detergents: Na2B4O7  + 4  H2O2  + 2 NaOH > 2  Na2B2O4(OH)4  +  H2O H2O2  converts  carboxylic acids  (RCOOH) into peroxy acids (RCOOOH), which are themselves used as oxidizing agents. Hydrogen peroxide reacts with  acetone  to form  acetone peroxide, and it interacts with  ozone  to form  hydrogen trioxide, also known as  trioxidane. Reaction with  urea  produces  carbamide peroxide, used for whitening teeth. An acid-base adduct with  triphenylphosphine oxide  is a useful â€Å"carrier† for  H2O2  in some reactions. Alkalinity Hydrogen peroxide can still form adducts with very strong acids. The  superacid  HF/SbF5  forms unstable compounds containing the  [H3O2]+  ion. Domestic uses * Diluted  H2O2  (between 3% and 8%) is used to bleach human  hair  when mixed with  ammonium hydroxide, hence the phrase â€Å"peroxide blonde†. * It is absorbed by  skin  upon contact and creates a local skin  capillary  embolism  that appears as a temporary whitening of the skin. * It is used to whiten  bones  that are to be put on display. 3%  H2O2  is effective at treating fresh (red) blood-stains in clothing and on other items. It must be applied to clothing before blood stains can be accidentally â€Å"set† with heated water. Cold water and soap are then used to remove the peroxide treated  blood. Some horticulturalists and users of  hydroponics  advocate the use of weak hydrogen peroxide solution in watering solutions. Its spontaneous decomposition releases oxygen that enhances a plant’s root development and helps to treat  root rot  (cellular root death due to lack of oxygen) and a variety of other pests. Laboratory tests conducted by fish culturists in recent years have demonstrated that common household hydrogen peroxide can be used safely to provide oxygen for small fish. Hydrogen peroxide releases oxygen by decomposition when it is exposed to  catalysts  such as  manganese dioxide. * Hydrogen peroxide is a strong oxidizer effective in controlling sulfide and organic-related odors in wastewater collection and treatment systems. It is typically applied to a wastewater system where there is a retention time of 30 minutes to 5 hours before hydrogen sulfide is released.

Communication of Values and Ethics in Strategic Organizational Communication Essay

Starbucks organizational structure has been rearranged to better accommodate customer satisfaction. Schultz, CEO of Starbucks announced the expansion of their matrix organization structure. They will operate under four U. S. divisions: Western/Pacific, Southeast/Plains, Northeast/Atlantic and Northwest/Mountain (Schultz, 2008). There are some major advantages for this kind of organizational structure which include maximized communication channels. Once the appropriate adjustments are made, Schultz believes that Starbucks will be able to develop products specifically to market appeal. The continual support in the Starbucks organizational structure support functions operating being their own department and supporting shared visions and goals for each of the U. S. divisions and the international circuit (Schultz, 2008). In 1995, Starbucks opened its first coffee house internationally in Tokyo, Japan (Starbucks, 2008). Successful partnership allowed the company its footing inside foreign country. The large population and high disposable income from the consumers is what initially drawn the company and its executives to Japanese market. In adapting Japanese culture, extensive researches motivated Starbucks in changing their business model by catering to 40 year old businessmen and provide a smoking environment to enjoy their coffee. The Japanese locations included U. S. menus which the founder of the international segment for Starbucks ignored the advice stated previously. The complication of working in the East and West was understood by a Starbucks business partner, Sazaby. Japans’ attraction towards the kinds of products contributed to the understanding of the global market and leading Starbucks a success (Japan External Trade Organization, 2006). Unilever has another common organizational structure; the hybrid form. It operates with three divisional regions, two product segments, and five functional segments. It developed and implemented this organizational structure for their company to improve communication and to take advantage of resources that are available to them. This structure is typically organized in a top-down manner. It flows down to management once the executive level is satisfied with the structure. It is not always visible, however judging by actions and specified reporting protocol this structure is intact and in use. In equity based modes of entry involves managements decision to make foreign investments. This would require a partnership, collaboration, or alliance be made with another company or a distributor for a better grasp on the concept of the economy, culture, and climate in the new area. Exporting, subcontracting, and franchising could be with minimal cost to the company. Starbucks continues to stand behind their mission statement in all odds of the economy and publicly through public awareness. I read a story about Starbucks charging and not responding to sending the troops in Iraq coffee without charging them. Not every company can help everyone in need and there are times when they do have to say no for other obligations. Most companies already commit to donations to specific groups/organizations and have implemented that cost into their yearly/monthly/quarterly budget. However, there are some exceptions when it does exceed their denomination term. Starbucks Customer Relations organization handles these types of comments as best as they can satisfying all parties involved. The company retracted its answer in a formal public letter, (viewable for public) stating that â€Å"Starbucks has provided over 220,000 3-packs of Starbucks VIA to the USO for their care package program. † (Starbucks Newsroom) Starbucks are partnered with the American Red Cross and the United Service Organizations (USO) to provide coffee in efforts to relieve times of conflict, donating more than 141,000 lbs of coffee. Public relations are exceptional with the Starbucks Coffee Company. They have several outlets in communicating to them any questions or concerns and a hotline phone number to be contacted. The company responds within 24 hours most times and they answer all comments no matter how small or large and resolves conflicts as quickly as possible. Starbucks Mission: Our mission: to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.

Operation of an efficient market and causes of market inefficiencies

Operation of an efficient market and causes of market inefficiencies Introduction Market efficiency can be defined as the degree to which the prices reflect all the available information in the market. In other words, market efficiency is a condition where the market prices display the prevailing conditions.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Operation of an efficient market and causes of market inefficiencies specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In some cases, the market prices may not reflect the prevailing market conditions based on the available information. In this case, the market is said to be inefficient. Market inefficiencies occur in rare cases. When this occurs, the market is interrupted from the normal arrangements and this lead to complications. Explanation for an Efficient Market and How It Operates As already seen, market efficiency can be defined as the situation where the prices charged in the market reflects all the information available to the participants. In order for th e market to function effectively, it is always necessary to have enough participants willing to sell or buy goods (Kirschen and Strbac, 2004). The price determination process is of great significance in the market. However, this is based on the information available in the market. The information available to buyers and sellers should be unbiased in order to come up with reliable and sustainable prices. The market where all these conditions are satisfied is referred to as an efficient market. Therefore, under the efficient market conditions for instance, buying or selling of the stock reflects fair returns after deducting the costs incurred through a transaction. In many cases, when people puts money in the stock market their main goal is generation of returns. In some cases, many investors even aim at getting more than necessary returns by surpassing the market (Heakal, 2011). However, the prices of a particular stock reflect all the information available about the stock. This impl ies that there is no investor who can have an advantage of forecasting on the returns of a stock because all the players have access to all available information. Such kind of a market is efficient. Decisions are made with reference to the information available (Investo 2011). All investors have similar knowledge about a certain stock. In this case, all investors are assumed to be rational.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Consequently, they will most likely have similar choices. In other words, investors are assumed to behave in a certain way. Mankiw (2008, Essentials of Economics), observed that the prices only respond to the information available in the market. Therefore, since every person in the market has equal access to the same information, then no one has the ability to make more profit than the other. In a perfect market, it is assumed that there are a lar ge number of buyers and sellers and a homogenous product and full information (Evans 2004). Therefore, a perfect market is efficient since the participants make informed decisions. Example of an efficient market; Market for polythene bags In the illustration above, the supply curve reflects the costs of the sellers where in this case are the polythene bag sellers. On the other hand, the demand curve reflects the value of the buyers. In this case, both the consumer and producer surplus is maximised. Therefore, this leads to an efficient market. In other words, the equilibrium market price leads to an efficient market. Explanation for Market Inefficiency and Its Causes In an inefficient market, the prices become random rather than predictable. Even with access to all the available information about the market, the participants’ prediction is rarely reflected in the prices (Barnes, 2009). In this case, the prices become random. When there are market inefficiencies, the prices m ay be set in such a way that they don’t reflect the market value. This difference is what is referred to as the market inefficiency. The prices are determined by external forces rather than the market forces. Market inefficiency is regarded as one of the market failure.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Operation of an efficient market and causes of market inefficiencies specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Externalities are the main causes of the market inefficiencies. Externalities lead to an inefficient allocation of resources (Mankiw, 2008, principles of economics). This is the main reason why externalities cause inefficiency in the market. One of the common causes of these inefficiencies through externalities is the government intervention. For instance, the government may intervene in the market fort the polythene bags due to its contribution in environmental pollution. In the absence of the government interv ention, the equilibrium price will be reflecting what the consumers are willing to pay for the product given the prices in the market (Boyes and Melvin, 2006). This is determined by the information available to both sellers and buyers in the market. Therefore when there is no government intervention, the prices will adjust to balance the supply and demand of the polyphone bags in this case. In this case, both consumers and sellers are able to maximize their surplus. In other words, this allocation leads to maximization of the total value to the consumers who purchase the polythene bags less the costs incurred in its production (Dimson and Mussavian, 2000). In this case, the supply curve reflects the costs of the sellers where in this case are the polythene bag sellers. On the other hand, the demand curve reflects the value of the buyers. In this case, both the consumer and producer surplus is maximised. Therefore, this leads to an efficient market. The case of government interventi onAdvertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In this case, the government intervention in effort to reduce the level of pollution has led to a drop in the quantity provided in the market below the equilibrium level. The government intervention interferes with the equilibrium level of prices. This shifts the equilibrium level from the original position to another. This will lead to shortage in polythene bags which will induce the suppliers to increase their prices. This will lead to a decrease in consumer surplus. The prices charged will also not reflect the equilibrium price. This will lead to inefficiency in the market. In other words, any intervention in the market will lead to the market inefficiency. Similarly, taxation will also act by increasing the prices above the equilibrium level. Consequently, this will result into market inefficiency. This is because the prices will not reflect the equilibrium, market prices. Other government interventions will lead into similar results. Conclusion In conclusion, this discussion h as given a clear understanding of an efficient market and inefficient market. The study has clearly shown that in an efficient market, all the participants have equal access to the available information. The market price in a particular time is reflected by the information available in the market (Crosier, 2004). On the other hand, an inefficient market is characterised by random prices. In this case, the prices are not predictable. From the discussion, it can be seen that the markets cannot be absolutely efficient all absolutely inefficient. In most cases, the market reflects all these aspects of the market. Based on this information, it is advisable for all participants to refer to all the information available in the market in order to come up with the most feasible decisions. To those investors seeking to invest on shares, they are advised to find out all information necessary about the company in question. This will enable the company. This will enable the investor to determine whether the prices set for shares are reasonable before making their final decisions to buy. Reference List Barnes, P., 2009. Stock Market Efficiency, Insider Dealing and Market Abuse. England, Gower Publishing, Ltd. Boyes, W. and Melvin, M., 2006. Economics. U.S.A., Cengage Learning. Crosier, L., 2004. Selling Your Business: The Transition from Entrepreneur to Investor. New Jersey, John Wiley and Sons. Dimson, E. and Mussavian, M., 2000. â€Å"Market Efficiency.† Spellbound Publications, 2000. Vol.3, Pp. 959-970. Evans, A. 2004. Economics, Real Estate and the Supply of Land. Wiley-Blackwell. Heakal, R., 2011. What Is Market Efficiency? [Online] Available at:  https://www.investopedia.com/insights/what-is-market-efficiency/ . Investo, 2011. What Is an Efficient Market and How Does It Affect Individual Investors? [Online] Available at:  https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/05/marketefficiency.asp . Kirschen, D. and Strbac, G., 2004. West Sussex: Fundamentals of power system economics. New York, John Wiley and Sons. Mankiw, N., 2008. Essentials of Economics. Mason, OH, Cengage Learning. Mankiw, N., 2008. Principles of Economics. Mason, OH, Cengage Learning.

Definition and Examples of Aspect in English Grammar

Definition and Examples of Aspect in English Grammar In English grammar, aspect is a verb form (or category) that indicates time-related characteristics, such as the completion, duration, or repetition of an action. (Compare and contrast with tense.) When used as an adjective, its  aspectual. The word comes from Latin, meaning how [something] looks The two primary aspects in English are the perfect (sometimes called perfective) and the progressive (also known as the continuous form). As illustrated below, these two aspects may be combined to form the perfect progressive. In English, aspect is expressed by means of particles, separate verbs, and verb phrases. Examples and Observations Perfect AspectThe perfect aspect describes events occurring in the past but linked to a later time, usually the present. The perfect aspect is formed with has, have, or had the past participle. It occurs in two forms:​ Perfect Aspect, Present Tense:History has remembered the kings and warriors, because they destroyed; art has remembered the people, because they created.(William Morris, The Water of the Wondrous Isles, 1897)​ Perfect Aspect, Past Tense:At fifteen life had taught me undeniably that surrender, in its place, was as honorable as resistance, especially if one had no choice. (Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, 1969) Progressive AspectThe progressive aspect usually describes an event that takes place during a limited time period. The progressive aspect is made up of a form of be the -ing form of the main verb.​ Progressive Aspect, Present Tense:Shes loyal and is trying to wear her thin flippy hair in cornrows.(Carolyn Ferrell, Proper Library, 1994) Progressive Aspect, Past Tense:I was reading the dictionary. I thought it was a poem about everything. (Steven Wright) The Difference Between Tense and AspectTraditionally . . . both aspects [perfect and progressive] are treated as part of the tense system in English, and mention is made of tenses such as the present progressive (e.g. We are waiting), the present perfect progressive (e.g. We have been waiting), and the past perfect progressive (e.g. We had been waiting), with the latter two combining two aspects. There is a distinction to be made, however, between tense and aspect. Tense is concerned with how time is encoded in the grammar of English, and is often based on morphological form (e.g. write, writes, wrote); aspect is concerned with the unfolding of a situation, and in English is a matter of syntax, using the verb be to form the progressive, and the verb have to form the perfect. For this reason combinations like those above are nowadays referred to as constructions (e.g. the progressive construction, the present perfect progressive construction). (Bas Aarts, Sylvia Chalker, and Edmund Weiner, Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar, 2nd ed. Oxford University Press, 2014) present perfect progressive: God knows how long Ive been doing it. Have I been talking out loud? past perfect progressive: He had been keeping it in a safety deposit box at the Bank of America. For months she had been waiting for that particular corner location. Present Perfect Progressive and Past Perfect ProgressiveThe perfect aspect most often describes events or states taking place during a preceding time. The progressive aspect describes an event or state of affairs in progress or continuing. Perfect and progressive aspect can be combined with either present or past tense...Verb phrases can be marked for both aspects (perfect and progressive) at the same time: The perfect progressive aspect is rare, occurring usually in the past tense in fiction. It combines the meaning of the perfect and the progressive, referring to a past situation or activity that was in progress for a period of time. (Douglas Biber, Susan Conrad, and Geoffrey Leech, Longman Student Grammar of Spoken and Written English. Longman, 2002)

About Medical Residency and Training After Medical School

About Medical Residency and Training After Medical School Many applicants to medical school dont realize that becoming a doctor is not just a matter of graduating from medical school. A great deal of training occurs after graduation, during residency.   Residency typically lasts three years. It is during residency that you will specialize in a particular field of medicine. Residency by the Year The first year of residency is also known as an internship or first year residency (PGY-1 for post graduate year 1, the first year out of medical school). Interns generally rotate among specialties. During PGY-2, the second year of residency, the doctor continues to learn the field, focusing on a specialty area. Fellowship, PGY-3, is when the doctor trains in a sub-specialty.   Daily Tasks Residents are expected to fulfill several tasks daily. Responsibilities of a resident can include: Rounds (talk to each patient about their care).Rounds with the team: teams include several interns, an upper-level supervising resident, and an attending or teaching physician taking care of certain patients. Students are often questioned/drilled about diseases and treatment techniques. Students are able to speak with each patient about their needs and make suggestions for further diagnostic tests and treatments.Students check in with some patients again and delve deeper into their treatments.Residents leave notes or instructions on each patient including possible problems that may arise for the next shift resident.Attend various lectures and conferences.Study at home and work. Students may admit new patients and are expected to: Prepare a history of the patients medical past.Perform a physical examination.Write their admitting orders, which include instructions for tests and medications. All of this work is accompanied by an average annual salary of   $40,000 to $50,000.

Socialization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Socialization - Essay Example Symbolic meanings in symbolic interactionism refer to the way social interactions are interpreted within a given context. Roles are defined by each relationship within the context of the participants in that relationship. Therefore, the role of husband or wife may not necessarily be literally gender oriented as much as role specific. In this, way, relationships need not conform to traditional constructs; therefore there is no need for the traditional approach to marriage to ensure its success. A healthy marriage is dependent upon the extension of â€Å"me† in the role of â€Å"I†. In order for a person to make a healthy choice for marriage, four important concepts must be well defined within the individual: 1) the concept of knowing the self well, â€Å"me† - who I am, 2) the concept of what â€Å"me† means to the world around me, how â€Å"I† perform my roles, 3) knowing what I have to offer of myself to another individual, â€Å"I†, and 4) what I need to receive from another individual with regards to their performance of â€Å"me†, in order to feel accepted, connected, and valued in that relationship. ... This is the first step in preparation for choosing a marriage partner. Our socialization through the life cycle offers abundant feedback regarding who others perceive us to be. If we agree with that perception, then we continue in those roles; if we don’t agree, then we begin to investigate ways to change that might influence other’s perception of us. This kind of fine tuning takes on a heightened awareness as we move toward adulthood. Young people try on many roles before finding what’s comfortable for them. When we have arrived at a comfort level in whom we are as perceived by the world around us, then our roles are more established; from this springboard, we begin to search for fulfillment. The next step is in looking around to find another person with whom we can begin to relate on a close and personal level. The satisfaction of this basic need is not necessarily equally important for all individuals; however most find it a driving force in adulthood. Sociali zation in adulthood is largely defined by the interactions between associates in the workplace, peers, and significant others, comprising our continued growth and development along the human journey. The roles we assume in each area give us a chance to further define who â€Å"me† is. When â€Å"I† perform the role of â€Å"me†, then I am either attracted to or repelled by others. Often in relationships there is conflict between who â€Å"me† is because â€Å"I† am acting in a role where there is role strain and a sense of discomfort. Such conflicts usually surface in a negative way to also strain the relationships. It is only through careful communication and acceptance of that role by the significant other that the relationship can be saved while the relationship is in

Japanese Tea House Architecture Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Japanese Tea House Architecture - Research Paper Example One would think that, with the profound implication of the tea ceremonies, that the tea houses would be elaborate. Actually, just the opposite is true – the houses are austere, simple. The features of the houses afford a way for the guests to hide from the outside world. This is because, as the opening sentence stated, they house another world, another reality. After all, the participants in the house, noblemen, peasant, warrior alike, are all equal. This is indicative of an alternate reality. Also, the ceremonies are a way for the people to leave their real life behind, and concentrate only on the moment. The tea house thus serves the same function as the tea ceremonies themselves – they are a way, if only for a few hours, to destroy class structure and the real world. Tea ceremonies came about through the practice of Buddhist Monks who needed to stay awake during their meditations, and later became a part of Zen rituals in honor of Bodhidharma, the Zen monks first patriarch.1 From this, the tea ceremonies became a place where friends gathered to discuss certain objects and their artistic merits, such as various paintings and calligraphy, flower arrangements and the utensils used for these ceremonies. 2 The tea host himself had to be adept at certain knowledge, such as what scrolls to hang during the ceremony, and the meaning of these scrolls, which presumed knowledge of classical literature.3 He also must have been conversant about the articles that are either displayed or used in the tea ceremony: utensils, the flowers, the distinction of the burning incense, the incense burner itself, the dipping ladle, the water heater vessel and the tea container. 4 He must have known the protocol of the ceremony – greeting and conversing with guests p roperly and the manners and courtesies that must be observed. In short, the tea host, or tea master, must have been cognizant of Japanese culture, as these ceremonies

Traditional vs Modern Architecture design in Shanghai, China Essay

Traditional vs Modern Architecture design in Shanghai, China - Essay Example which would help China connecting with the world. In the 1930s and 1940s there were only a few buildings being built in Shanghai. During 1970s due to the political unsettlement even those building that had a high traditional value were taken over by the government and given to those people who were in need of houses to live in. (Wong) In Shanghai there are two main types of traditional buildings. The first one is of government buildings or properties owned by corporate workers for example government headquarters, consulate buildings, banks, hotels etc. The other type is of residential buildings. The architecture and structure of these types of buildings were simply based on western concepts with a well-built neo-classical design which was usually found in Europe or the United States. In the old city regions residential houses were spread all over the area, this spots another type of architecture in Shanghai. Under this there were two types. The first were luxurious houses with gardens which were made for the rich, the other was small houses made for common people. High rise apartment buildings started to come into sight in Shanghai in the late 1920s as technology improved. These building usually rose to 15 storeys and had escalators for the convenience of people. (Wong) Shanghai consists of many buildings and structures of many different architectural styles. On the bank of the Huangpa River is The Bund, it contains a rich compilation of early 20th century architecture, which ranges in technique from neo-classical HSBC building to Sassoon House which is based on the theme of art deco. The French Concession which is a previous foreign concession is also well preserved. Even though there is extensive development the old city of Shanghai still holds on to buildings which are of heritage value , for example the Yuyuan Garden, a highly structured garden in the Jiangnan style. The city also consists of

Financial Future Of British Petroleum Term Paper

Financial Future Of British Petroleum - Term Paper Example The U.S. completed negotiations with BP Plc to establish the $20 billion fund that will compensate victims of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill† (Blum & Snyder). 20 billion dollar is a huge amount for BP and such a huge amount given as compensation caused severe financial problems in BP and the company is currently on the verge of bankruptcy. BP forced to appoint a new CEO in their last-minute effort for survival. This paper is trying to answer the questions like; where BP stands on the market now, where it is going and where it might end up. BP plans to sell assets for up to $30 billion over the next 18 months, primarily in the upstream business and selected on the basis that they are worth more to other companies than to BP. This portfolio high grading will leave the company with a smaller but higher quality Exploration & Production business. The company said it was taking a prudent approach to manage the balance sheet and its financial liquidity, in order to ensure that BP has the flexibility to meet all of its future financial obligations. As a result, it plans to reduce its net debt level down to a range of $10-$15 billion within the next 18 months, compared to net debt of $23 billion at the end of June (BP Sets Out Gulf of Mexico Costs, Further Asset Sales and Strong Operating Performance) BP is currently doing everything possible to stay in the market. It is not in a position to utilize some of its projects effectively because of their weak financial abilities at present. BP has realized that some of these projects can be managed more effectively by others and the market value of these projects are more than what BP would be able to derive out of it.

Learning Vocabulary for Saudi Arabian Students Research Proposal

Learning Vocabulary for Saudi Arabian Students - Research Proposal Example Focusing on the methods of teaching the English language, vocabulary was disregarded and reduced, while grammar and pronunciation were given more emphasis (Al-Jabri, 2005). According to Harmer (2007), teachers are very unsure of how to determine a suitable method of teaching English because of the variety of different approaches and methods available. They can gradually, with experience, create their own method of teaching. This could be the most appropriate method they can use according to the context they teach in (Scrivener, 2005). Students usually choose a low-effort strategy when they are required to do a task (Krashen, 1987). They seem to prefer translation of new vocabulary rather than getting their meanings from the contexts or from doing pair-works (Prince, 1996). It is significant to shed light on the effectiveness of the English teaching methodologies in order to increase the awareness of English teachers to re-evaluate their teaching methods, considering the applicability of these methods on the social and cultural situations. Based on my teaching experience, therefore, I propose to investigate whether the Grammar- Translation method is more effective than CLT approach at the vocabulary level. Much has been said and talked about the traditional ways of teaching. One of the ways is the Grammar Translation Method which dates back to the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries when foreign language learning was associated with the learning of Latin and Greek. In the process of teaching and learning English, translation is used in the Grammar Translation Method. According to Boey (1970) the student is first required to learn the vocabulary lists consisting of L2 words and its equivalent L1 words. L1 is used to teach the grammatical rules of L2. Thereafter, practice exercises are given to students where they have to translate the L1 sentences into L2 sentences by applying the grammatical rules to the vocabulary learnt. On the other hand, the main aim of the Communicative Language Approach (CLT) is to produce churn out students who are communicatively competent. In this method, the teacher first gives a presentation and thereafter, students are made to use the language through activities, such as games, role plays and problem solving tasks. (Larsen, 1987) According to Maleki (2005), the main purpose of these two languages - GTM and CLT was to promote the intellectual skills of its speakers. Therefore, it was extremely important to focus on sentence structure, grammatical rules, learning of vocabulary and translation of literary texts. The other method which is now more prevalent for teaching is the Communicative Language Approach. Wen Wu (2008) stated that Communicative Language Approach is mainly based on the idea that the primary function of language use is communication. According to Al-Shabbi (1994), due to its emphasis on fluency over accuracy approach, the Communicative Language Method has not paid much attention to spelling in the EFL (English as a Foreign Language) classroom. Even the great appeal of Communicative Language Teaching has not been able to overcome the psychological barriers which becomes a hindrance in the learning process. Though it's unfortunate, that CLT is quite in use,

Financial Future Of British Petroleum Term Paper

Financial Future Of British Petroleum - Term Paper Example The U.S. completed negotiations with BP Plc to establish the $20 billion fund that will compensate victims of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill† (Blum & Snyder). 20 billion dollar is a huge amount for BP and such a huge amount given as compensation caused severe financial problems in BP and the company is currently on the verge of bankruptcy. BP forced to appoint a new CEO in their last-minute effort for survival. This paper is trying to answer the questions like; where BP stands on the market now, where it is going and where it might end up. BP plans to sell assets for up to $30 billion over the next 18 months, primarily in the upstream business and selected on the basis that they are worth more to other companies than to BP. This portfolio high grading will leave the company with a smaller but higher quality Exploration & Production business. The company said it was taking a prudent approach to manage the balance sheet and its financial liquidity, in order to ensure that BP has the flexibility to meet all of its future financial obligations. As a result, it plans to reduce its net debt level down to a range of $10-$15 billion within the next 18 months, compared to net debt of $23 billion at the end of June (BP Sets Out Gulf of Mexico Costs, Further Asset Sales and Strong Operating Performance) BP is currently doing everything possible to stay in the market. It is not in a position to utilize some of its projects effectively because of their weak financial abilities at present. BP has realized that some of these projects can be managed more effectively by others and the market value of these projects are more than what BP would be able to derive out of it.

Purpose of Business Research and Business Research Proposal

Purpose of Business and Business - Research Proposal Example ging from a historically economic role, the business organization has evolved in response to social and political mandate of national public policy, rapid technology growth and revolution in global communication. The authors cited above have identified the following factors which characterize the complex business decision making environment. Moreover increasing concerns of general public about environment and changing geo-political scenario of the world are continuously exerting pressure on world economy. Consequently the managers have to make decisions in more complex environment Emory C. William (1985) has cautioned that the risks associated with decision making environment have been substantially increased. The complexity of decision making environment warn that decision makers making decisions without sound a priori justification based on research are treading on dangerous grounds. To do well in such an environment, we will need to understand how to identify quality information and to recognize solid research on which high risk decisions can be based. Managers will also need to know how to conduct research. Developing these skills requires understanding the scientific method as it applies to managerial decision making environment. Recent years have seen emergence of research concerned with the human relations aspects of business. Morals and attitude studies have been conducted for many years. Cooper Donald R. and Schindler Pamela S. and Emory C William have attempted to make clear demarcation between Applied and Pure research. They have categorically mentioned that Applied research has a practical problem-solving emphasis whereas pure research is conducted for the advancement of theories and knowledge. The demarcation remains no longer clear when we have to consider psychological, social and behavioral aspects in business research. In seeking insight from business research there are two main requirements of the analysis. First, to identify the various

Notes on History of Dhammapada Essay Example for Free

Notes on History of Dhammapada Essay According to Wikipedia, Dhammapada is the most famous book of the Tipitakas. It is also the book that has been translated into English and other languages more times than any other book in Buddhist literature. According to Ven. K Sri Dhammananda (1988), the founder of Sudharma Buddhist Institute, Dhammapada (literally meaning The Words of Truth or The Path of Noble Truth) consists of 423 verses in Pali uttered by the Buddha on some 305 occasions for the benefit of a wide range of human beings. These sayings were selected and compiled into one book as being worthy of special note on account of their beauty and relevance for molding the lives of future generations of Buddhists. It is also surprising that according to Britannica Encyclopedia, Dhammapada is accepted both in Theravada Buddhism and in Mahayana Buddhism although there is a difference in the number of verses in the two versions. However, according to Encarta Encyclopedia, the most translated version is that of Theravada. The history of Dhammapada is also not so different in both branches of Buddhism. The Lord Buddha historically had to go round the northern India and Nepal preaching his Dhamma, meeting many people. According to the prescribed text book (Module no. A -Ya 2004) of the second year university students specializing Oriental Studies in Myanmar ), the Lord Buddha preached his Dhamma ( guides and sermons for the cessation of all the sufferings) both in the form of speech called cunniya and occasionally in poetically versed form called gatha. According to Ohn Myint , Daw (2004), the verses uttered by the Lord Buddha had been compiled by 500 Buddhist Senior Arahants in Rajaghyo, India, in the First Dhamma Council (Pathama Sangayana) in 483 BC. Venerable Buddhagosa, the most famous commentary author in Theravada Buddhism, wrote the commentary of Dhammapada named Dhammapada Atthakatha in Sri Lanka. In his commentary book, Ven. Buddha Gosa, studying thoroughly from the elderly monks and old canons, noted the historical backgrounds of the verses in Pali Language. In this book, he told the story of each verses including whom theses verses were uttered by Buddha for, where, how, when and why these verses were uttered by Lord Buddha and so on. According to Subhodha Lankara, a famous Buddhist Literary Guide throughout the history of Buddhism, the verses in Dhammapada and Buddhist Literature are composed and uttered by systematic rules of rhythm, rhyme and meter. Moreover, Thanissaro Bhikkhu (1997) writes as follows: As the Buddha himself is quoted as saying, Meter is the structural framework of verses. According to Goinka S. N, the founder of Vissapana Research Institute in India, verses in Dhammapada were just orally handed down at first before the fourth Dhamma Council held in Tambapai [Sri Lanka] in 29 B. C in which all of the Buddhist Scriptures were recorded on written forms on palm leaves. According to the Commentary of Dhammapada by Ven Buddhagosa, these verses are intentionally uttered in accordance with the listeners background knowledge, their social backgrounds, and the situations in order to enlighten their mind. As soon as the Lord uttered the verses, Ananda, the chosen attendant and constant companion of the Buddha during the last twenty-five years of his life. memorized it and handed down again to the other monks and people. According to Mahaparinibana Sutta in the first book of Suttanna Pitaka named Mahavagga, after the Lord passed into the nirvana ( His death), the senior Buddhist monks met together and held the First Buddhist Council in order to preserve the holy teachings of the Lord Buddha. In the council, all of the Buddhas teachings were divided into three parts. According to Goenka, S,N (1999), the founder of Vipassana Research Institute in India , the first part is known as the Vinaya Pitaka and it contains all the rules which Buddha laid down for monks and nuns.. The second part is called the Suttanna Pitaka and it contains the Discourses. The third part is known as the Abhidhamma Pitaka and comprises the psycho-ethical teachings of the Buddha. The first pitaka is Suttanna pitaka and it is divided into five parts according to the length and form of the discourses. The poetical verses that the Lord uttered were compiled into a book named Dhammapada. Dhammapada is included in the first part of Suttanna Pitaka named Khuddhakanikaya ( Short Discourses). According to Daw Ohn Myint, Professor of the Department of Oriental Studies, Yangon University of Distance Education ( 2004), throughout the history of Buddhism, Dhammapada has been studied and memorized by Buddhist monks. Even nowadays in Sri Lanka, the novices who want to be transformed into monkhood have to memorize all the verses in Dhammapada as a compulsory skill.

Literature Review on Risk Management

Literature Review on Risk Management Software Project Management (CI6113) Title: Reviewing the Past Research Papers on Risk Management Abstract Risk Management is nowadays the important research topic in the many critical business areas and industrial areas. Project teams do not achieve their projects goals of reducing cost and gaining much profit without assessing risks and managing risks. This term paper analyzes research papers done by many researches in the field of the Risk Management within 2000 and 2007 and describes the results of the analysis of those research papers. Our goal of this paper is to inference and to justify the trend of the Risk management in research areas and business areas. There are many topics in the Risk Management such as Risk Analysis, Risk Assessment, Risk Control and others. This paper’s analysis path is starting from the project risk identification and end with the risk control topic. This paper provides the results what the gaps between researches are. Furthermore, this paper learns briefly what the problems and trends before year 2000 are. Introduction This paper examines the results of the past research papers published from 2000 through 2007. We focus on Risk Management and their related topics. In addition, we also examine the trends of the Risk Management within this period. We analyze which topic had been researched most in a particular year and which methods were used in that year. This paper learns publications issued by year by year and group them in each year. In addition, we analyze the topics which are relating to the specified topic. We found trends of the research in a year while we were learning them. According to the past results came from publications, we can make sense of mind for future of the Risk Management. This paper examines the situation which can become in future according to the study. Background Many project managers and strategic management are concerning about risks in long term strategic basic. So, we need to learn the risks. Risk is the uncertainty in the life cycle of the project. In 2003, Webster’s New Explorer College Dictionary defines the risk as â€Å"the possibility of danger and sufferance of harm or injury†. Risk cannot be seen without any emphasize upon it. In addition, risks can also give hopes to the successful project. So, if risks which cannot be seen before could be found and assessed then the proposed project will be successful. But risks found and assessed can never be avoided. It can be reduced by using the some techniques or adjustments. Some risks can be ignored without any executing. Risk may terrify to some persons related to the project because if it could not be uncovered, the team may incompetent in managing the project. According to the problems, risk management was critical issue of the project management. Researchers were doing researches to reduce and manage the risks which can be encountered in a project. People in the business areas were also finding the ways how to ignore the encountered risks. Some are finding how to control the risks. In addition, they were finding what risks can violate the project management unless they did not control the risks encountered. A risk which encounters in a year is not the same as the problem in another year. Because of the nature of project which depends on the World’s business. As changing the nature of the business, the nature of the risks is becoming change. Furthermore, research area is also changing according to the nature of the risk. So, the research trend for a year may not same as the trend of another year. To learn the research trend turmoil, we need to learn publications issued from 2000 through 2007. The next section will explain the importance of our paper. Situation of the paper There are many researches for the project management. Past research (Timothy Warrren, 2002) had done a research for the whole project management. It covered research published in English from 1960 through 1999. This paper covered within the period of 2000 and 2007 learned the topics of the risk management. We separated the research areas according to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK). These are Risk Identification and Assessment, Risk Qualification, Risk Response Development and Risk Control. Objectives of the paper The objective of this paper is to learn the trend of the Risk Management in past research publication. We restricted the period to be learned for each topic. This paper is intended to learn that how the risks emerged during the project time, is handled using which tools and methods. This paper intended to find the gaps between researches in each year and whole period of year 2000 and 2007. The paper learned only risk management out of topics of project management for the period. So, the other topics can be learned like our paper. These are Communication, Cost, Procurement, Human Resource, Outsourcing, Integration, Quality, Scope and Time Management. Literature review In this era, many companies conduct a great portion of their jobs in project form. Traditionally projects were mainly found in the construction industry and sections of the military, but the competitiveness of the markets of today with fast-changing technology encourages almost all companies to adopt project management (Burke 2003). Project management is the application of knowledge, skill, tools and techniques to project activities to meet project requirement. Project management is accomplished through the use of the processes such as: initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and closing (PMBOK guide 2000). Because of global economical pressures, turbulence in the corporate environment and market forces leading to the increasing demands and tougher competition projects have to be implemented at lesser time, cost and with better functionalities. This causes growing demands on the management’s ability to forecast and react to unforeseeable events- risks. Risk is an abstract concept whose measurement is very difficult (Raftery, 1994). The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary – 5th Edition defines risk as â€Å"The possibility or chance of meeting danger, suffering loss or injury†. The British Standard BS 4778 defines risk as â€Å"A combination of the probability, or frequency, of occurrence of a defined hazard and the magnitude of the consequences of the occurrence†. Risk may be expressed in a mathematical form as follows: Risk = (Probability of the occurrence of a defined event) x (Consequences of the occurrence of that event) Therefore, risk management is nowadays a critical factor to successful project management. Overview of Risk Management Project risk management is the art and science of identifying, analyzing, and responding to risk throughout the life of a project and in the best interests of meeting project objectives. (Schwalbe, 2006) Risk management has been practiced informally by everyone, with or without conscious of it, since the dawn of time. Modern risk management, which had become a widely accepted management function during the period from 1955-1964 (Snider, 1991) has its roots in insurance to which it has been closely aligned for more than three centuries (Ibid). The story of risk management has not all been positive and supports the argument that it is currently ineffective at managing surprise. In the 1960’s project management was under heavy criticism for project failures due to technical uncertainty, contact strategy, community opposition and project environmental impacts (Morris, 1997). A project manager may still today argue that the last two are external project factors and outside the immediate project environment under their control (Ibid) and it may be often assumed that these will be passed up the line to higher management levels (Chapman Ward, 1997). The main objectives of risk management include (Yee et al., 2001): To enable decision-making to be more systematic and less subjective. To provide an improved understanding of the risks facing a project by identifying risks and response scenarios. To assist in deciding which risks require urgent attention and which can be addressed later. To force management to realize that there are many possible outcomes for a project, and appropriate measures should be planned for any adverse consequences. Flanagan and Norman (1993) proposed a risk management framework as shown in Fig.3.1 which depicts the elements of the risk management system – risk identification, risk classification, risk analysis, risk attitude and risk response. Risk Identification Risk Classification Risk Analysis Risk Response Risk Attitude Figure 2.1 Risk management Framework (Source: Flanagan Norman, 1993) According to (PMBOK, PMI 2000) and (Schwalbe 2006), Project Risk Management has following processes Risk Management Planning Risk Identification Qualitative Risk Analysis Quantitative Risk Analysis Risk Response Planning Risk Monitoring and Control The following Fig.3.2 depicts how risk management processes involved in each of the project management process Initiation Planning Executing Controlling Closing Risk Identification Risk Identification Risk Response Control Risk Quantification Risk Response Development Fig 2.2 Risk Management Processes in each Project Management Process (Source: Dan Brandon, 2006) Risk management will not eradicate all the risks. It will enable decision to be made explicitly which will reduce the potential effect of certain risks. It will also assist in rational, defensible decisions regarding the allocation of risk among the parties to the project. Risk analysis is not a substitute for professional judgments and experience. On the other hand, it helps professionals to make use of the full extent of their experience and knowledge by liberating them from the necessity of making simplifying assumptions in order to produce deterministic plans and forecasts. Risk analysis is supplement to, not a substitute for professional judgments. Recent Approaches to Risk Management Project risk management is a topic of major current interest. It is being actively addressed by many government agencies and most of the professional project management associations around the world, and many relevant standards are extant or being developed. Some examples from the many approaches in use include: (Cooper D., Grey S., Raymond G., Walker P., 2005) Project Management Institute (PMI), USA (2003), Project Management Body of Knowledge, Chapter 11 on risk management; Association for Project Management, UK (1997), PRAM Guide; AS/NZS 4360 (2004), Risk Management, Standards Association of Australia; IEC 62198 (2001), Project Risk Management—Application Guidelines; Office of Government Commerce (OGC), UK (2002), Management of Risk; and Treasury Board of Canada (2001), Integrated Risk Management Framework We fill the research gap in risk management field from year 2000 to 2007. Methodology We conduct a quantitative bibliographic study on pass papers published from year 2000 to 2007. We collected papers and journals from electronic databases– ACM, IEEE and ProQuest. Our objective of this paper is to find the current research trend on Risk Management by analyzing and categorizing those research papers. Project Risk Management Research It is the process of finding what current researchers are emphasizing in. It includes defining the current works on project management, particularly on Risk Management articles and papers. Then make generalized conclusion based on collected and analyzed works. This conclusion or judgment is made based on project risk management processes– risk management planning, risk identification, qualitative risk analysis, quantitative risk analysis, risk response planning, risk monitoring and control (PMBOK 2000, Schwalbe 2006). Sources of data We collected articles and papers published in years 2000 to 2007 from these databases which are known to be rich information about project management. ACM Digital Library ACM digital library includes magazines, journals, transactions, publications by affiliated Organizations, SIG news letters, Conference Proceeding Series. ACM digital library provides service for individual, universities, libraries and corporations. We find that risk management is one of the research fields in many businesses and industries. ACM includes diversity of business and industrial processes which enables us to inference the future trend in different fields. IEEE Explore To support our conclusion and get strong analytical results, we also collect articles and papers from IEEE explore which has more technical articles and papers than ACM digital library. It includes 1,682,970 online documents to be referenced. ProQuest Another supporting database which we extracted articles and papers is ProQuest. That includes ABI/INFORM databases, dissertation and theses, etc. Data analysis from that database will be icy on our research cake Data selection from the databases We conduct full text search in above databases using author, title, keywords based on year. Then tasks are separated among us based on years and combined later. Papers and articles are found based on the following criteria: Keywords: Risk Management, Risk Identification, Risk Analysis, Risk Transfer, Risk Control, Risk Response Years: 2000 to 2007 Output format and research data representation Output format will be as the following: Researchers Title Database Risk Category Year Business Category Sub Category Method The papers and articles are attached in the appendix B. We classified each paper into specific risk management processes (PMBOK 2000, Schwalbe 2006). We also analyzed which business category that each paper falls into and which specific method do they use in conducting the specified risk management Process. To get the consistent taxonomy in risk management, we identified the papers and articles into the categories guided by (PMBOK 2000, Schwalbe 2006). They are: Risk Management Planning: This is how businesses and industries plan and handle for risk. Risk Identification: This is how businesses and industries emphasize on identification of risk throughout their organizational processes. Risk Analysis: This involves how organizations conduct quantitative and qualitative risk analysis based on sampling and probability/impact matrixes. Risk Response Planning: This shows how organizations develop risk response strategies like how to avoid, how to have tolerance, how to mitigate risk, how to transfer risk etc. Risk Monitoring and Control: This involves how organizations monitor the identified risks, new risks through out the execution of the projects. Business and industrial categories are identified as follow: Construction Education Finance Healthcare Insurance Information Technology Disaster E-commerce E-banking Internet Business Information Security Software development Maritime Marketing Organizational Process Pure General Research Terrorism We also found that information technology risk management plays a great role in modern businesses and industries because of wider usage of internet and web technologies. Our analyzed data will be represented in pie chart, bar chart and line chart by comparing different categories, different risk manage processes, different years etc. Data Collection and Analysis Data Collection We used digital databases web site – ACM, IEEE and ProQuest for scholar paper and articles and the existing search engines – google and yahoo. But we are not unable to get some papers from the search engines. So, we used these to get only information which papers are located in which databases. Using information returned from the search engines, we search the desired papers in the databases. The following chart, Fig 1 shows the state of the materials found in the three sources – ACM, IEEE and ProQuest. Figure 1 Distribution of papers There are 113 papers found in those databases. We summarized the papers found in the three sources. We categorized by the papers by using PMBOK guide. We provided the Risk Analysis, Risk Assessment, Risk Control, Risk Response and Risk Identification. The following diagrams show the results. We learned that ACM database has more papers related to the risk management as in Fig 2. Other two databases have papers. But some papers are general for risk management. So, we discarded the papers and then we collected the more specified papers which are related to the above titles. We prepared the results with some charts as shown in below figures. Figure 2 Research papers found in ACM database by category Figure 3 Research papers found in IEEE database by category Figure 4 Research papers found in ProQuest database by category The above figures, Fig 2, Fig 3, Fig 4 show that the papers found in the ACM, IEEE, ProQuest database are shown by categories. Risk analysis is mostly conducted by majority of researchers. It was conducted mostly in year 2005 and 2006. Risk assessment and risk response research areas are fewer than other risk management process areas. Research for risk response is very rare, not fairly distributed and found in certain year. Data Analysis The trends of the risk analysis for the year 2000-2007 are shown in graph, Fig 5. We learned that IT project management was highest in recent 7 years. Figure 5 Trends in different business and industries within year 2000-2007 Information Technology We learned that there are varieties of IT projects. We categorized it as follow. Software Development E-Banking Disaster Information Security E-Commerce Internet Business When we categorized these topics, we found that some fields are ambiguous to group them. Some fields are software performance testing and fields emerged after the development phase. We grouped these fields were in the Software Development part. We grouped Networking security and other Internet security fields into the Information Security part. We formed a group for the Internet Banking as a E-Banking. In the Disaster group, we put the some disasters in the Disaster parts. These disasters sometime can be seen when processing some tasks in IT such as software error, hardware crash, and wrong information usages. We collected the potential security risks and group them into the Information Security group. Internet Business can be confused with E-Commerce and E-Banking. We intended the Internet Business to group the fields of the some businesses which are using Internet and make transactions via internet such as Online Registration. We found that Software Development risk analysis is most famous. In 2006, Software Development trend is the more than year 2005 and 2007. But year 2007 is not ended. So we can’t make any decision for that year. Figure 6 Risk management processes in different information technology fields Internet Business is the second thing to be learned. But Information security is down in 2006. Internet Business is coming up. Construction Construction group has the fields of which are architectural fields and construction works. We learned that in 2000 and 2001, there are some interests upon that field. In 2001, the construction field can be seen as a hottest field. Education We grouped the some fields in to Education group that fields are Education fields, learning methods in Education. The research related with the Education can be seen in the year 2004 only. Finance Finance group is wide. We formed the Finance group for some fields that are Cost Estimation, Accounting, Management Accounting and Banking. The finance is most famous in 2004. In the subsequence year, trend for the finance is running down to bottom. Healthcare We collected the data for the healthcare. But it is difficult to collect for the healthcare. We learned that in 2005, healthcare was appropriate level. But later, we cannot see it until 2007. Marketing In 2002 and 2005, marketing was in regular level. In 2003 and 2006, it was high up to 2. So, we learned that marketing was the regular level. Organization In the organization group, we combine the Oil Field, NASA, and some other organization-oriented fields. There are some researches for the organization in every year. There are some researches in the organization group within 2002 and 2006. Terrorism Terrorism was the new emerging fields after 9/11 problem. But later, we were not available for that field later years. This group is an exception for the risk management. But it is one thing to be considered later. Maritime Maritime was the individual fields. We did not combine any fields to that group. This category can be seen in only 2001. Insurance Insurance is the same as the Maritime. We learned that that group is only one field. We learned that the field was in the 2004 and 2005. But Insurance can become an interesting topic in future. General In General group, we combine other fields such as some theory approves and lecture views. Before conclusion section, we intended to present the findings as summary of data collection and analysis. Risk management is the sub-set of Project management. In academic field, risk management researches are becoming increasingly. According to our analysis, risk management researches related to Information Technology are highest topic of the research filed. But one of our exceptional cases is that we need to learn many research papers from many databases. We studied only three databases and 113 research papers. If we learned more papers, we can get more perfect result. In this paper, we categorized only 11 fields. It is general for the risk management. To get the better result, we also need to categorize the exact fields out of many fields. We can also categorize the risk management fields more according to the PMBOK guide. Conclusion and recommendation Business organization and industries suffer from lost and harm because of poor handling in risk management. They have been enduring the agonizing outcomes of failure in the form of unusual delays in project completion, with cost surpassing the budgeted cost and sometimes failed to meet quality standards and functional requirements. Competition among rivals makes the companies to deliver projects in less time and cost with better functionality. Risk management is a predefined and structured approach for identifying and analyzing potential risks associated with a project so that effective risk treatment can be done at the lowest cost. It is not impossible to eliminate all risk and costly to overdo risk management, but it is also unwise to think of eliminating risk. There will be, sometimes, positive risks those will lead to profit if properly analyzed and identified. Our term paper provides an analysis on papers and articles and conduct bibliographic study by particular risk management process and business category. Risk management researches are mostly done in mission critical environments and risky projects. As internet booms, information security and e-business issues are associated with a lot of risks. We found that majority of research papers are related to information technology in last decade. Risk in credit portfolio management, supply chain, pricing and insurance fields are also researched as they are related to financial lost and harm. Though risk management can offer significant benefits to a project in order to reduce nasty surprises and identify and act upon opportunities, it is, however, not a ‘panacea’ for the problems and surprises which befall many projects and should not be seen as the ‘silver bullet of project management’ (Pavyer, 2004) as Murphy’s Law is the governing law of project management: if something can go wrong, will go wrong. As we collected from three databases, mainly from ACM, our result can be a little affected by other finding and papers. Results will be slightly different as we go though several databases. Even thought we titled to 2007, we believe that other findings and papers will come out during this year. But based on our analysis, some inferences and emerging trends can be seen. Recommendations As people and management are aware of the importance of risk management processes, it would be more affective and appropriate to put more emphasis on formal and or informal education and training to further enhance their awareness of risk management. Formal education could be graduate studies in financial project management, software project management and construction project management etc. Informal education and training could be in the form of career development programs or workshops within organization or organized by academic institutions or professional seminars. Each organization should have own risk management plan, risk response plan, and human risk factors plan. Risk management team should be formed according to project manager’s guidelines and organizational goals. Project manager must aware of current risk management trends and technological trends for long term strategic planning. Researchers on risk management should cooperate and conduct on research areas which have been done less like autonomous agent systems, spacecraft systems, information security management. Appendix A. Reference Burke, R. (2003). â€Å"Product Management.† Biddles Ltd, Guildford. Brandon, D. (2006) â€Å"Project Management for Modern Information Systems† IRM Press Cooper D., Grey S., Raymond G., Walker P., (2005) Managing Risk in Large Projects and Complex Procurements. Chapman, R. J., and Ward, S. (1997). â€Å"Project Risk Management Processes, Techniques and Insights† John Wiley Sons, Chichester, UK. Flanagan, R., and Norman, G. (1993). Risk Management and Construction, Blackwell, Oxford, UK. Pavyer, E. (2004). â€Å"Evaluating Project Risk.† Strategic Risk Management, Auguest 2004, 24-25 Project management institute (2000). â€Å"A Gide to Project Management Body of Knowledge† Project management institute, 6 Raftery, J. (1994). Risk Analysis in Project Management, E FN SPON, London, UK. Snider, H. W. (1991). â€Å"Risk Management: A Retrospective View.† Risk Management April, 47-54 Schwalbe, K. (2006). â€Å"Information Technology Project Management.† Thomson Course Technology, 425 Yee, C. W., Chan, P., and Hu, G. (2001). Construction Insurance and Risk Management- A Practical Guide for Construction Professionals, The Singapore Contractors Association Ltd., Singapore. Appendix B. List of papers Researchers Title Database Risk Category Year Business Category Sub Category Steven L. Cornford, Martin S. Feather,John C. Kelly, Timothy W. Larson, Burton Sigal,James D. Kiper Design and Development Assessment ACM Risk Assessment 2000 IT Mary Sumner Enterprise Wide Information Man

Djuna Barness The Diary of a Dangerous Child :: Djuna Barnes Diary Dangerous Child Essays

Djuna Barnes's The Diary of a Dangerous Child "By this I mean that I am debating with myself whether I shall place myself in some good man's hands and become a mother, or if I shall become wanton and go out in the world and make a place for myself." -Olga, "The Diary of a Dangerous Child" In Djuna Barnes's short story "The Diary of a Dangerous Child" (1922), the narrator, an adolescent girl named Olga, ponders her destiny on the occasion of her fourteenth birthday: should she marry, settle down, and have children or become a "wanton," independent woman? During the rest of the story, however, the same young girl seduces her sister's fiancà ©, plans to dominate him using a whip, yet has her plan spoiled when her mother disguises herself as the fiancà © and arrives at the proposed midnight rendezvous. The youth consequently decides to become neither a maternal wife nor an independent tramp; instead, Olga decides "to run away and become a boy" ("Diary" 94). Like many of her early writings, this Barnes story ultimately problematizes the unrelenting sexuality and corresponding apathy of the child vampire Olga and the "traditional" view that women have only two mutually exclusive lots in life: that of the domestic and that of the worldly. What differentiates this female va mpire from other literary examples of her type is her age and the issues pursuant to it. Although disciplined in the end by her mother, Olga is but a child herself yet comes close to luring the unsuspecting fiancà © into her game of sexual supremacy. Because literature and criticism lack a solid tradition concerning vampires and children, particularly a mixture of the two, one must pursue other sources as contextual avenues into this figure in Barnes's early works. In its mixture of the domestic (baby/child/adolescent) and the sensual (vampire) and the dangerous appeal that fusion entails, the child vampire in Barnes's writings and illustrations symbolizes the ambivalence that American society of the Modernist period had about newly acquired freedoms for women. This paper explores a kind of perilous yet unwavering attraction that the child vampire epitomizes. In pursuing a contextual, interpretive framework that provides a path into Barnes's use of the child vampire, I turn to visual culture of the period, focusing upon the tradition of the screen vamp and the use of children in early American cinema as initial sources of these conflicting feelings.

Major Crime

†¢What is the purpose of major crime-reporting programs? What makes a successful crime-reporting program in the United States? The purpose for major crime-reporting programs is to try to improve the methology and to publish the collective data. So by having major crime-reporting programs the law enforcement agencies are able to get information and also collect data to figure out the crime patterns of the nation instead of just one spot. This is hard though because not all of the crimes that end up happening get reported. So by this being said not everything can go into the crime-reporting programs.I think the government needs to try to find another way to get these â€Å"smaller† none reported crimes to be reported. What makes a successful crime reporting program in the United States is that most of the crimes do get reported the way that they should, and that the police officers are doing their job to the best of their abilities. I think it could be stepped up a notch an d maybe put camaras in the cruisers so the crimes that do not get reported at least have a sign to get reported. †¢How do crime rates relate to arrest rates and clearance rates?Is there a way to improve the correlation between crime rates, arrest rates, and clearance rates in the effort to combat criminal activity? Crime rates are when the number is divided by the total number of crimes that are what they called â€Å"cleared. † This is when the crime is closed, finished or they found the criminal in whatever was going on with the crime. To combat criminal activity the police can gather the information from the UCR (uniform crime report). From what I was reading â€Å" clearance rates is the percentage of crimes that have been closed by arrest, exceptional means, etc. So in my opinion to help improve the correlation between crime rates, arrest rates and clearance rates, is to get all the facts straight. Do not jump from one to the other. Gather all the information that you can, and see what is going on, get cases closed or any old cases if they were closed because in significant evidence see if there is anything that you can do to change the out come and re-open the close case to get it closed the right way and find out what really happened. http://en. allexperts. com/q/Criminal-Law-916/2010/10/crime-rates. htm

Analysis of a Print Advertisement and a Television Commercial

Print advertisements are used by marketers to make advertising appeals with an aim of influencing the manner in which consumers or buyers view themselves. This creates a psychological appeal whereby buyers view buying of certain products as beneficial to them. Print advertisements greatly influence the buying decisions of the consumers. The Tripwire Magazine contains car advertisements that capture the attention of the reader and arouses emotions that make them desire to get more about the cars.The psychological and socials needs of an individual are elicited by an emotional appeal that motivates consumers to make certain purchases (Betonio, 2011). Therefore, advertisers capitalize on the emotional appeal supported with logic in print advertisements to ensure consumers personal and social needs are captured the advertisements influencing the buyers purchase behaviors.The Samsung 46† digital TV LCD (LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY) display appeared in a TV commercial with an emphasis on product features such as the advanced cooling, longer operation, the high, gloss piano black finish, and the quality display resolution capturing consumers emotions through its emotional appeal. The advertisement used a colorful sculpture to show the commercial grade television and its other distinguishing features.In my opinion, they used this colorful art to attract the attention of the costumers and make them believe that they are buying something more than a simple Television; that’s why they mentioned at the end of the advertisement â€Å"is it art or television? † The ad also thrills the consumer when it illustrates how the Samsung 46† digital TV LCD captivates its viewers with professional displays that give a flexible, engaging and an interactive way to channel a message across.In conclusion, print advertisements or TV commercials are powerful advertising tools and are aimed at making a psychological appeal to consumers by attracting, holding as well as m aking them focus their attention on the product arousing an interest to possess it. This creates a positive image to those who purchase the product increasing the need to own one.

Marriage vs. Living Together

According to the statistics, the number of cohabitating couples in our country firmly increases: in 1960 there were only 439,000 of unmarried cohabitants, and in 2000 this number came to 4,736,000 people. Currently, 60-75% of first marriages and 80-85% of re-marriages take place after some period of living together (School Health and Safety). This work is an attempt to examine and discuss the differences between marriage and cohabitation as two most popular forms of interpersonal relationship in our modern society. The first difference is formal procedures and requirements to enter or stop one or another type of relationship. There are no official requirements for people, who want to start or stop living together. However, entering a marriage requires such formalities (depending on the state laws) as a waiting period, medical tests, minimal ages, an official ceremony, receiving marriage certificate, etc. The same can be said about ending a marriage, which has to be formalized with a long and exhausting procedure of legal divorce. Another legal difference is connected with property relations between people who are officially married or just live together. A married couple is supposed to possess their property together and apply legal methods to divide their property in case of a separation. Since cohabitation is not a legal union, there are no legally prescribed procedures for dividing the property between cohabiting partners in case of a breakup. Finally, there’s a difference in legal responsibilities and obligations of those married or cohabiting couples who have children. The offspring born to a married couple become official children of the husband and wife. In such case both parents are obliged to support their children financially till the children reach some certain age. However, in the case of cohabitation the male partner has neither legal rights for parenting nor a legal obligation to support the offspring. There is another group of differences, which is connected with social consequences of marriage and cohabitation. Empirical researches show that cohabiting partners have higher tendency to separate (Ward). Also, married people usually have better opportunities for professional development. But, certainly, a key difference is the absence of commitments in cohabiting relationship, which often brings to various negative outcomes. Some differences are reflecting economic sides of the issue. Specialists found out that married couples usually have better financial situation (Ward). On the other hand, male partners in cohabiting relationships are less stimulated to find some sources of extra income, to earn more money and to make savings or investments. Correspondently, children of unmarried couples are usually supported with poorer financial resources. Finally, there are a number of differences connected with health effects and psychological conditions of married and cohabiting couples. Specialists report that married people express more satisfaction with their relationship and have lower tendency to feel disappointed, depressed, angry, suicidal, etc. At the same time, cohabiting partners are reported to be under much higher risks of alcohol and drug abuse, as well as other mental or emotional abuse (Ward). Undoubtedly, by some reasons marriage may not be a preferable decision for a contemporary couple, and, therefore, the two people can rather opt to live together and give up all the benefits of legal marriage. Nevertheless, when making a choice between marriage and cohabitation it is crucial to consider all important advantages and disadvantages of both types of union, as well as to find out what human values are involved in the relationship between two individuals. Bibliography: â€Å"Cohabitation vs. Marriage.† Georgia State University. School Health and Safety. Ed. Sandra Owen. 30 May 2007 . â€Å"Marriage vs. Cohabitation.† Find Law for the Public. Thomson FindLaw Internet Resource. 30 May 2007 . Ward, Nathaniel. â€Å"Marriage vs. Cohabitation.† My Heritage. Heritage Foundation. 13 Feb. 2007. 30 May 2007 .

Taxation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Taxation - Essay Example 28). Therefore, from this claim the people who own many assets or earn some good salaries pay more to the government trough taxation. Taxation is, therefore, necessary in order to meet the cost of expenses and in the running of day-to-day government affairs. â€Å"It is the sole responsibility of the government to collect taxes and ensure that it is carefully spent for the benefit of the citizens† (Mirrlees & Adam, 2011 p. 39). Taxation is the main means through which governments raise the required money to pay for commodities and services that they provide for the people. In fact, most governments depend on taxes to pay for the major portion of their spending since it is their major source of revenue. â€Å"It is important to note that, governments are always under pressure from citizens demanding quality education, health care, security and infrastructure† (Lymer & Hasseldine, 2002 p. 17). Taxes at the local level are necessary for construction of classrooms, public l ibraries, security service stations, sport facilities, as well as for the payment of municipal employees and county directors government revenues (obtained from taxes) are essential. The government to run the budget without borrowing grants from other countries uses taxes (Ahmad, 1999 p. 82). However, taxation is not the only way governments use to collect money for their spending. â€Å"Government’s cannas well levy a variety of users to pay for bridges, parks, and sports stadiums among other services to get revenue from users rather than the taxpayers† (Barro & Boskin, 1978 p. 125). â€Å"In addition, Governments also borrow funds to support their tax revenues whenever they run short of target in budget† (Claus, 2010). The standard of living of the modern society demands taxation by all means, this is because the government must collect taxes in order to meet the needs, wants and demands of its citizenry. No government can exist without taxation, though taxati on can never exist without the government, as well. â€Å"One could, therefore, argue that taxation is a necessity for the governments to run all the activities aimed at improving the living standards of the citizens all over the world† (Keen & Smith, 2000 p 40). â€Å"The value added tax is a form of consumption tax. This is the tax imposed on to the buyer when purchasing goods from any dealer whereas on the prospect of the seller, it is the tax imposed on the product, service or the material from an accounting point of view from the producer† (James, 2009 p 13). The final consumer is taxed in this way and; hence, the total tax levied at each stage is what makes continuous chain of supply; thus, collection of VAT is borne by the business but not the state. Tax merits The collection of VAT in the UK has a number of merits for instance; it enables the government to create a stronger incentive to collect revenues even through the sales tax are low. This is because the fi nal consumer of the product cannot easily evade payment unlike trough the previous method and does not give the seller the legality to collect it. â€Å"The UK government has been able to balance the amount of taxes collected per year through VAT since the seller is the motivator of the buyer but has no direct economic incentive to collect it† (Bird, 1999 p 25). It has also been able to balance the application of equal taxes to each member of the production chain without much care on the position in it and

Fashion and media - TRLG Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Fashion and media - TRLG - Essay Example The essay "Fashion and media - TRLG" explores the TRLG. fashion and media. According to Rahman, Osmud, Yan Jiang, and Wing-sun Liu (291-311) True religion (TRLG) has established itself through high-quality products in clothing category over the years and successful brands that have been appreciated by many worldwide; this has proven enough financial resilience, consistency growth together with stable expansion out leading to high probability of merger acquisition. The high-end denim both includes regular jeans, for instance, Lucky, True Religion Jeans and Levis which is recognized by its fabric quality and good seam dimensions. The brand and quality attracts celebrities to wear them; these include; David Beckham, Colin Farrell, Beyonce, Megan Fox, Jessica Alba, and more. The jeans among other products are flashy and distinctive flair for those who cherish the modest lifestyle and less flashy versions especially for consumers who would just want to feel the comfort brands of TRLG bran d jeans. The idea of creating different variations and at the same time high-quality products has made the company stand the taste of time with its consumers as they maintain the forces within the market. Despite other jeans being available in the market that could act as the substitute, buyers consistently keep TRLG brand jeans because of the quality issues portrayed by other brands. Although, there are always possible threats of customers turning back for other substitute products or jeans from other competitors.

Personal statement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Personal statement - Essay Example To be specific, my father is the president of a local bank in China. My father and mother have always been interested in their jobs, and they frequently used to discuss financial problems and solutions. In addition, when I was a high school student, I used to look through books beyond my textbooks. For instance, I used to read my parents’ books related to management and business law. Obviously, these books were useful to them as bank employees, and they were stimulating to me as a person developing an increasingly deeper interest in economics. Gradually, I came to realize that learning economics could help me to have a secure life in the future. My work experience and internship include some basic work in a local bank in China. For example, during last summer vacation, I worked as a teller. This helped me to have practical experience in dealing with customers. Moreover, this internship helped me to acquire the basic skills that are essential to a bank employee. Now, I realize that work experience and internship are most helpful for an individual who is aiming to be a bank employee. So, I gained the basic skills in customer care, especially the skill to deal with short-tempered customers. My core courses at City College have included macro-economics, micro-economics, Statistics, Calculus- Biology, Social Science and Business. These courses have helped to develop my interest in the major. For instance, all these courses, except Social Science, are related to the theoretical area of banking. On the other side, Social Science relates to the practical matter of customer relations. The course subjects like macro-economics, micro-economics, Statistics, Calculus at City College and major requirements at the University of California are same. Besides, I am particularly interested in macro-economics and micro-economics, especially the theories like Classical Economics and New Classical Economics and theory of Demand. The classes at City College sparked my curiosit y in the subject in part because macro-economics was familiar to me. Later, I discussed this matter with my parents and they encouraged me in my habit of reading books. The lecture classes at City College have also helped me to grasp new concepts and even to develop some ability to predict the ups and downs in the banking sector. Prompt #2 In China, one’s family is the most influential factor in one’s individual growth and development. As far as I am concerned, my family is clearly the most important motivation behind my personal growth. However, when I immigrated to the United States of America, I discovered the amalgamative power of American culture. For instance, it would seem that an individual who is so close to his or her family might face a number of problems on his own in a different culture. In America, however, I did not feel any difficulties because it is a multicultural society. Larry L Naylor opined that â€Å"In fact, many Americans believe that culture does come from their families where they learned their family traditions and their heritage† (1). I was aware of the fact that I needed to let myself be absorbed into the core of the American society. To be specific, personal qualities like receptiveness and open-mindedness can be helpful for an individual to accept a different culture. As an open minded individual, I was able to gain a number of friends at the College. Besides, the multicultural atmosphere of the College campus helped me to be open-minded and receptive towards others who are from