Angels Essays (1321 words) - Angels, Dramatism, Sarah McLachlan

Angels Angels When hearing the word angel, there is a wide choice of common images one can think of. One might think of a loved friend, a beautiful woman, or even a holiday. The image in which I plan to discuss in is that of a guardian. Musician Sarah Mclachlan recently released a new hit song entitled, angel. This song represents individuals who have a sense of loneliness and suffer from various types of depression. Whether regarding a job, schoolwork, parenting, etc., I believe that anyone, in some shape or form, can relate to this song personally. In order to provide a thorough rhetorical criticism, I find it necessary to perform Kenneth Burke's dramatistic pentad. Burke states, the job of communication is to help bring people together (Burke, 177). I believe that songs help people come together and give a better understanding of themselves as individuals. Songs also provide a sense of relaxation, which helps individuals open their minds to new ideas. Scene: a hotel room Agent: an angel Act: memories/life Agency: an act of comforting Purpose: to overcome your fears Depression plays a major role throughout the lyrics of this song. The scene takes place in a hotel room where an individual, or the songwriter, is in a moment in time where life is difficult and incomprehensible. They are taking a moment to glance at their previous memories and attempt to grasp their meaning of life. This is evident through the act portrayed in the lyrics: I need some distraction or a beautiful release memories seep from my veins they may be empty or their weightless and maybe I'll find some peace tonight (Mclachlan). Depressed individuals generally regard their condition as irreversible (Abnormal Psychology, 233). The individual personified in this song is alone, restless, and unfaithful. It is in this sense that the agent and agency are evident. Mclachlan sings of an angel in order to help the individual through suffering and anxiety. The fact that the scene takes place in a hotel room indicates that the territory in which the individual is physically confronted with is unfamiliar and impersonal. The individual is confronting a territory mentally that may be familiar to many people. Memories and aspects of life seem to be fading into the night until the chorus begins with comforting lyrics provided by an angel: You're in the arms of an angel may you find, some comfort here (Mclachlan). Upon thinking about angels, why and where did they come from? The Greek word angelos means messenger. Angels serve as messengers from God to man (Angels and Us, 11). This was the way that God obtained the ability to talk to humans, according to the Bible. It don't make no difference escaping one last time it's easier to believe (Mclachlan). Angels are also used and identified through persuasion. They ensure individuals that life can get better by helping them to see their problem as it lies with the intention of working them out intelligently, wisely, and safely. This is possible simply by taking a step out of life for a moment and looking at what the world has to offer. If more humans took the time to realize what they possess instead on dwelling on what they lack, society would be different in many aspects. It seems as though the song is relaying a distinctive and persuasive message to its listener. As long as one believes, then they will be comforted. Whether it is by God, an angel, a friend, or oneself, believing seems to be the answer to the coping of life. Plato and Aristotle agreed on the priority of mind over matter, on a realm of reality which stands behind or above the appearances of the world (Unseen World, 2,3). The alleged purpose of this song is to give the listener a sense of hope and belief in order to overcome their fears. The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance, when he knows that it is but the strange work of infinite and victorious Love (A Book of Angels, 227). If believing that one is there to comfort, then one withholds the ability of overcoming anything. In this sweet madness or this glorious sadness it brings me to my knees (Mclachlan). In conclusion, music heard on the radio everyday may hold significant meaning to

buy custom Computer Manufacturing Companies essay

buy custom Computer Manufacturing Companies essay Fears that CPUs mighty disappear and be replaced with more efficient faster and smaller machines are well founded. With the names like APUS and GPUs coming up, one is left wondering what the fete of CPUs might be. But as research shows, the computer engineers are just coming up with improved and smaller CPUs. Computer manufacturing companies are putting a lot of resources into improving whatever they have so as not to be left behind in the computer technology (Lemon 2007) AMD has outlined plans for the future of its processors. It plans to scale past the current multi-core models, whereas Intel aims at processors which have thousands of cores, something that AMD disputes saying that the best way is to have accelerated processing units rather than just adding more cores. If AMDs idea comes to fruition, then in future we might have what we call APUs or Accelerated Processing Units that have multi-core chips consisting of a mix of processor cores and any other dedicated processor. So when you consider all these, one can picture the future of CPUs as having multiple processors with wide pipelines of execution, a future with smarter and larger caches. People should be prepared to learn how to handle tasks that are more specialized as the execution hardware will be bigger and more complicated ( Andrews, 2006). Tracing the history of microprocessors right from the 1970s to the present shows that they come along way indeed. Intel 4004 was the mother of all of them, introduced in 1970, with its four bit chunks in which it handled its data. This proved to be too little space as people sort to use more memory space. This paved way for Intel 8008 with a slightly larger memory space and this became the trend, increasing capacity little by little as demand dictated. This went on up to the 1980s famously referred to as the digital age that saw the birth of many chips that are in use up to now. Clones of the Intel CPUs also emerged during this time as engineers sort to introduce faster and efficient CPUs. They also came up with many other CPUs during this period. The nineties was the period that many people started using computers, they become common among the people and therefore more in terms of capacity was needed. This led to the introduction of faster CPUs wither larger memories to meet these demands. Introduction of Pentium 2 and 3, the K6 versions that had improved multimedia function speeds and also made available new clock rates, were some of the improvements of the nineties. The twenty first century saw the perfection of these efforts and coming up of even better innovations never imagined before. This has not stopped as engineers are still deeply researching on more and more efficient computers, a clear indication that CPUs are and will continue to be in use for more years to come. It should be noted that CPUs in the future are most likely to dominate in carrying out most functions. It should be noted technology is tending to a situation where nothing will proceed without the use of CPUs (Krazit 2006). Buy custom Computer Manufacturing Companies essay

SWOT analysis for the company LIDDUP Term Paper

SWOT analysis for the company LIDDUP - Term Paper Example Innovation can lead a business towards a successful path but only when it is done keeping in mind the real problems faced by the consumers. Each & every product we use today is the result of an innovation. The purpose of the innovation is very important & also its acceptance by the society is also important. The people who developed mobile phones, first of all put due weight age on the necessity of talking while moving. Otherwise fixed phones were enough for communication. Therefore it’s necessary for the innovators to keep a constant touch with the intended market. This helps them in getting better ideas & better inputs for the product they are going to launch. Innovation also has a direct link with creativity. Creativity is the inborn trait of an entrepreneur who effortlessly succeeds in his work & can work with a team by providing them proper guidance & leadership. Creativity is the inborn talent of a person which can be nurtured with the help of proper research, in order t o make a unique product. Again the term Invention is just an idea. Until & unless the product becomes commercially viable, it can’t be called an Innovation. Innovation requires a lot of development & design work. Both innovation & creativity, together paves the way for wealth creation only if the new product is accepted by the market. (Swann, 2009, p.23) Strategy The term â€Å"strategy† was initially used in wars for developing tactics to win over the enemy. Business is also a kind of war, where the rival firms are considered as enemies & everyone fight with each other to achieve the maximum market share & maximum sales. In this war the weapon is strategy. A strategy is a tool used for managing the organization’s resources in order to mitigate risks & optimize resources. This is the simplest definition of the term strategy. However in real life, the organization faces a lot of complexity to form & maintain a strategy. The anticipation of the future risks & bene fits is termed as SWOT analysis in the language of management. It helps in getting knowledge about the past & thinking about probable solutions to an existing or potential problem. The method involves detailed study of the market, the company & competitors. The analysis includes two parts; the internal environment includes the strength & weaknesses of the company which is controllable by the company itself. The external environment consists of the threats & opportunities which are completely controlled by the outside sources like market & competitors. (U.S. Department of Agriculture, Risk Management Agency, 2008, p.1) The focal point of our discussion would be a new product, which is a cooler that comes with built-in LED lighting, developed by a company named LiddUp. Here we will consider the features of the product, SWOT analysis of the product, evaluation of the current strategic plan of the firm & formation of our own strategies to improve the business. The Product LiddUp cooler is the brain child of Jayson Sandberg of Las Vegas who has 27 years of sales & customer service experience. He was assisted by Taylor Gwiazdon who graduated from Brentwood High School in 2004 with an engineering degree & presently, he is the national marketing director of Aria Resort & Casino, Las Vegas. Both of them have gone through around 200 prototypes before finally developing this product. The product is a portable beverage cooler with a

Critically examine the contribution made by the trust to the following Essay

Critically examine the contribution made by the trust to the following areas of law Charities. (be aware if you chose this topic of the Charities Act 2006.) - Essay Example If ever a piece f legislation should have been an exemplar f parliamentary best practice it is this. There was the equivalent f a White Paper (a strategy unit report); this was then subject to extensive consultation before a Bill was considered by the Joint Scrutiny Committee f the Lords and Commons. The Government responded and issued an amended Bill that was discussed at length in the Lords. After the last election this Bill was reintroduced and subject to further scrutiny in the Lords and then the Commons. (Jobome 2006, 43-59) After all this do we have a magnificent piece f legislation Hardly. It is a useful technical Bill that introduces reforms, making the Charity Commission a body corporate with a larger board and an independent chairman; a charity tribunal to enable the commission's decisions to be more easily challenged; a range f innovations to facilitate greater accountability f charities; easing restrictions on mergers as well as updating old-fashioned constitutions and a long-overdue overhaul f the law relating to public charitable collections. The real innovation is the definition f charity. Since 1601 the meaning has developed through case law. Those established that charities have to relieve poverty, advance religion, advance education or other purposes beneficial to the community. This last category was a catch-all that allowed flexible development f the law. Hence it encompassed organisations concerned with health, the environment, human rights, the arts and a variety f other causes. This portmanteau has been unpicked and there are now 13 charitable purposes listed: the original four plus nine others, some f which, such as the advancement f amateur sport, are slightly different from the past. The big change was supposed to be about public benefit. For religious, poverty and educational charities it has been assumed that they delivered public benefit unless the contrary was proven. Hence this covered independent schools and hospitals and all religious groups from churches to sects. Only charities with purposes beneficial to the community had to prove that they delivered public benefit. The Act changes this. It requires all charities to demonstrate that they deliver public benefit. Yet having gone so far the Government bottled out. It refused to define what public benefit means. It has left it to the Charity Commission2 to do this, based on the existing case law. That case law is, to put it mildly, problematic. The leading case endorses the status quo, where a school or hospital can claim charitable status if it saves the taxpayer money or provides extra facilities unavailable in the state sector. The Charity Commission has announced that there will be public consultation about what public benefit means, and this will be guided by a group chaired by Professor Albert Weale3, f Essex University. This saga demonstrates the constitutional crises affecting the UK Parliament and, in particular, dilution f the doctrine f separation f powers by this and previous governments. Here is a key topic -public benefit -with wide social ramifications that the

Management consulting report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Management consulting report - Essay Example Hence, it is important that management effectively manage the workplace and ensure that employees do not fear or resist both challenges and changes. An effective workplace management would strategically empower management and employees with the necessary skills that effectively manage life changes. Regardless of what changes they might face, managers and employees are drawn towards strategically preparing themselves towards the change process. Some of the work situations often encountered are: being criticized by others for one’s work, lack of job security, lack of recognition or appreciation for a good work, destructive conflicts between and among departments, poor supervision, small opportunities for growth and advancement, a too-high or a too-low stress level, departments that are constantly reorganized, a high fear of change, poor job fits, and poor working conditions (Topchick 2001). Given the mentioned situations, an employee is certainly not expected to be satisfied wit h his job and may probably contemplate about leaving his current post and find one that he perceives complying with his expectations of a good job. The firm will certainly fall into an unsecured environment in which goals and tasks are often unmet. This scenario only proves that giving specific attention to people resource is an important pursuit and a step towards this undertaking is how to make them feel empowered, secure, challenged, and nurtured through an effective conflict management of a workplace situation. Congruent to the work situation is giving due attention to effects of growth needs, management style, and job structure on job-related satisfactions, which the management must pay due relevance. As important facets of human resources, the work setting should also give appropriate focus and credit to these aspects. Studies show that there are interactive effects of individual growth needs, job richness, and

Information Technology and Animation

Information Technology and Animation Introduction: Information technology (IT) plays a key role in creating knowledge [1] and supporting management towards decision making[2] and Visualization tools are computer applications that produce graphical representations that aid decision making. Visualization tools are used in IT based decision support systems (DSS) like the simple spreadsheets to complex computer-based systems like business intelligence system, enterprise resource management and reporting system, knowledge management systems, and expert systems; to help decision makers to solve structured ,unstructured and semi structured problems. In the digital era, decision makers have access to large amount of digital data which can be used by visual analytics software to support decision making. Well structured problem has clear path to solution but for solving ill structured problem, external representation of the data and the problem can reduce the effort in reaching an accurate solution[3]. Chief economist of Google Inc predicts th at need for data visualization will be growing rapidly in the next few years. He writes. â€Å"the ability to take data—to be able to understand it, to process it, to extract value from it, to visualize it, to communicate it—that’s going to be a hugely important skill in the next decade. because now we really do have essentially free and ubiquitous data. So the complimentary scarce factor is the ability to understand that data and extract value from it†¦ Managers need to be able to access and understand the data themselves [4]. Independent researchers have predicted high future demand for visualization tools. Gartners research reports that in spite of global recession businesses are interested in investing in business intelligence (BI) platforms that are expanding their capabilities towards advanced data visualization, scorecards and interactive dashboards. It predicts BI market’s compound annual growth rate (CAGR) through 2012 to be 7.0% for stand-alone BI platforms ([5]. Review of the literature on computer graphics as decision aid reports that the format in which data is presented to decision makers is critical to provide information for making decision[6]. As per the dual coding theory, cognition consists of two sub systems: Visual and Verbal[7-9]. The theory specifies that when information is represented visually, the recall is easier and the human brain can process changes in shape, color and motion parallely. As per the Central Capacity theory humans have limited working memory [10] and visualization of data (e.g. chart, diagram, graph) activates the visual component of the short-term working memory (visual working memory) to hold the visual objects for immediate attention. Both the theory recommend visual data representation to provide information to the users for making decisions as visual information is easier to store and recall. Visualization aids in perceptual information processing to identify exceptions, trends, patterns, relationship in the data (clusters, associations, causality etc), detect outliers and to summarize data perceptually [11]. Many complex business decision making need insight and insight is a sudden discovery of a solution to a problem which results in a subjectively catastrophic experience[12]. As competition in the knowledge economy gets fiercer, organizations are constantly trying to get new insights to gain competitive advantage. Effective visualization tools acts as external aids that supports thinking and building insight by providing graphs that represent information primarily through position, shape, color, size, location, movement and symbols, and that viewers decode that information by taking it in, organizing it, analyzing it and detecting patterns and structures perceptually[13]. Human brain is a powerful pattern-finding engine and effective graph make behavioral patterns, tem poral trends, correlations, clusters, gaps, and outliers visible in seconds and data graphics should amplify cognition and complement what humans do well[14]. Effective visualization tools are of great importance in supporting decision making as it amplifies cognition, perceptual information processing and facilitates knowledge generation. When visualization tools are inadequate decision making performance is impaired. A review of literature on computer graphics as decision aids has demonstrated that decision performance is effected by information presentation format[6]. Compared to static graph (SG) , Dynamic Graph (DG) facilitates in faster retrieval and recall of information [15, 16], information comprehension [16] required for decision making. One author writes â€Å"If learners are in control of the speed of animation and can view and review, stop and start, zoom in and out, and change orientation of parts and wholes of the animation at will, then the problems of veridical perception can be alleviated† [17]. However the use of dynamic interactive graph has increased in business decision making, its impact on decision making has not been explored extensively in the IS field. Both the IS literature and Accounting literature has emphasized the need for studying the role of presentation format in the efficiency and effectiveness of decision-makers’ decision quality in order to provid e empirical evidence on the effect of presentation format on decision quality [18] [19]. Previous research so far in the IS domain has extensively studied 2D, 3D graph, combining 2D-3D graph and animation with low data volume that are easily comprehensible in tables or graph. Gaining insight from high volume of business data can be challenging because the high density of the data makes it difficult to view all the data at once. On a typical computer screen the high volume data cannot be seen at once, the data has to be sliced to visually represent it on screen. A study done on functional mechanisms of online product presentation and its effect on online shopping reported that interactivity of product presentations is a design feature that influence (1) the efficacy of the presentations; (2) consumers’ perceptions of the diagnosticity of websites, their perceptions of the compatibility between online shopping and physical shopping, and their shopping enjoyment derived from a particular online shopping experience jointly influence consumers’ attitudes toward shopping at a website; and (3) both consumers’ attitudes toward products and their attitudes toward shopping at a website contribute to their intentions to purchase the products displayed on the website[20].Thus Interactive display has a positive influence on decision making thus the first objective of this study is extend the work done in the past by studying whether the use of display which has bother interactivity and is dynamic impacts decision making, including reducing information overload when dealing with high volume of data. While indicating a positive l effect from the use of DID, on the basis of the theory of Cognitive Fit, which identifies that better performance results when the external representation corresponds to the nature of the task to be accomplished [21] this study argues that it is most effective when the qualities of the display corresponds to the salient features of the task. On Time is also an important component of information load[21] where informa tion load is the volume of the data to be processed over the unit of time available for the task. The second objective of this study is to examine weather and how the effect of visualization tools on decision taking may be contingent on the time constraints- available time available for information processing. A prior study on 2D graph Vs table to examine the joints effects of presentation format and color on decision accuracy and efficiency under different time constraints [22] concluded that under low time constraints (15 min), tabular reports are better for accurate decision making and 2D graphs are better for faster processing. The combination of Table and graph were better than graph alone for decision accuracy. Under High time constraint (5 min)s color coding led to improved decision making. Decision makers are sometimes pressed for time which can result in information overload, which is the point at which information processing demands exceed the information processing capacity of the individual. This study investigates the moderating effect of time constraints on DID effe ctiveness on decision making in terms of the quality of the decision that the decision makers are able to make. This study uses the term High Time constraint (HTC) task to characterize the task that needs to completed in an environment when the decision makers are under time pressure and to distinguish it from Low time constraint (LTC) task where the decision makers are not under any time pressure to complete the decision making task. Next section contains the review of past work on DID and decision making done to arrive at the hypothesis on the overall impact of DID on decision making. The subsequent section presents a review of the previous litreature on the theory of Cognitive Fit which provides the foundation for our theories on the relationship between different task types and DID. Then the different task types with time constraints is explained along with the prediction about the moderating effects of task type on decision making. The research method for the proposed research is explained including the measurement of independent and dependent variables and the experimental design. Finally this paper concludes with the significance of this proposed study to both researchers and practioners. Theory and Hypothesis. The research model developed for this proposed study is shown in figure 1. The figure illustrates that DID enhances decision making. The effect of DID is more pronounced when the task is less time critical where the decision makers are not pressed for time and the effect of DID is limited when the task is time critical. The hypotheses supported by theory are developed below. Dynamic Interactive Display Businesses today are commonly using Dashboards, which is a combination of visualization tools that provide summarized and details reports of current status and alerts and creates situational awareness. The array of visualization tools that available today includes Tree Maps, [23], Node-Link diagram /Network diagram[24], Parallel coordinate Graph [25], Spark lines- Integrates text, and chart [26],Motion chart[27]. The present study focuses on visualization tools that provide dynamic and interactive display (DID) because in the recent time there has been staggering advances in visualization tools that are interactive and dynamic to support taking decisions and solving information-intensive problems in business. The DID chosen for this study is Google’s Motion Chart, which is a flash based visualization tool that delivers dynamic chart with high level of interactivity for multidimensional data[28]. Motion charts are dynamic. The graph is said to dynamic when the graph consists of series of single frames, each showing incremental changes in the position, brightness, shape, color of the variables; shown in a sequence which give the illusion of movement[29, 30]. Graph Dynamism consist of two types of change : position or form [31, 32]. Translation change refers to change in position (from one location to another) and transformation change refers to the change in form ( in size, shape, color, brightness)[33]. Motion chart reflect both translation change and transformation change. It is dynamic as it has several indicators which show incremental change in color, location and shape over time. Graphical excellence consists of complex ideas communicated with clarity, precision and efficiency and are accurately perceived [14]. Animations are often not clear and complex or efficient ( too fast) to be accurately perceived and judicious use of interactivity may overcome this disadvantage [17]. Motion Chart provide high level of interactivity (i.e., the extent to which users can manipulate and transform the form and content of the graph in real time[34]. Interactivity is achieved when the users can control the speed of animation and can view and review, stop and start, can transform (change the way representation is rendered, such as zooming, panning or resizing), or manipulate (control the parameters during the process of image generation, i.e. filtering, visually encoding the variables based on color, shape). Decision Making Previous study on online shopping website has indicated that dynamic , interactive presentation of information has a positive effect on the shopping decisions ( intend to purchase, revisit the shopping website) of the consumers [20]. Decision making includes problem solving[2]. Problem solving involves mentally working to overcome obstacles that stand in reaching a goal and arriving at the solution to the problem involves identifying the problem, defining and representing the problem, formulating the strategy , organizing and reorganizing information, allocating resources, monitoring and evaluation[3]. Prior research has indicated that (1) task type, (2) individual characteristics, and (3) information presentation format have effects on cognitive processing for making decisions [6]. Decision accuracy, problem comprehension and satisfaction will be used to measure decision making performance. Decision accuracy is probably the most commonly used criterion for measuring decision making performance [22, 35-48]. It is suggested that compared to DG, Dynamic Interactive Graph should facilitate performance [49]. Therefore, this study proposes that DID can enable decision makers to be more accurate when evaluating high volume of data than Dynamic Display. H1. Compared to Dynamic Display, DID increases users Decision Accuracy Research in the Management field has not examined different types of visuals and its effect on graph comprehension in detail[6]. The effect of x-y and y-z relationship encoding on the time to comprehend information was studied with respect to2D and 3D line graph [50]. As per Pinker’s theory of Graph Comprehension[51], different types of display are suited for extracting different classes of information, primarily because of two contrasting types of encoding mechanisms governing the graph comprehension process: (1) automatic conceptual message lookup processes and bottom up processing, and (2) inferential and top-down encoding processes. Simplified Flow diagram of the graph comprehension process is shown in Figure 2. Automatic conceptual message lookup is the acquisition of information using the bottom-up encoding processes where the required information is obtained from the graph easily from the graph by means of salient cues. For example the theory indicated that that trend in a line graph is encoded via the bottom-up encoding processes because the human eye can automatically extract the change perceptually. On the contrary, information that are encoded via the inferential and top-down encoding process , needs execution of deliberate and capacity-limited computations that requires effort and use of both short-term and long-term memory processing. Fulfilling comprehension tasks, such as making inferences and drawing conclusions about the data in the graph and selecting and organizing the information from the graph, requires integration of the retrieved and encoded new information. This study proposes that more scan and search operations are needed to visually locate and organize the new informa tion represented in the dynamic graph for both conceptual message lookup process and inferential process. The DID possesses interactivity and hence retrieving the information from the graph will be easier for the users by manipulating the data using overview, zoom, filter features of the display. Therefore, in response to the comprehension task, DID will be better than dynamic display. H2a. Compared to Dynamic Display, DID increases users graph comprehension for automatic conceptual message lookup process H2b Compared to Dynamic Display, DID increases users graph comprehension for inferential and top-down encoding process Next from the perspective of affective dimension, users form positive, neutral or negative attitude towards the perceived usefulness of the visualization tool in decision making. The study predicts that DID with interactivity and dynamic display of the multi dimensional data affects decision maker’s attitude regarding perceived usefulness of the tool more significantly in favor of the tool than dynamic graph. H3 Users attitude towards the perceived usefulness of the DID display differ from their attitude towards the perceived usefulness of the dynamic display. Theory of Cognitive Fit and Time constraints The theory of Cognitive Fit suggest that a match between External representation and users’ tasks is important for the realization of positive results from the display format [52]. While DID generally influences decision making, the degree to which DID affects decision making varies contingent upon the task types being examined. Decision makers may be faced with different types of tasks. Tasks for Problem solving can be retrieval, Communication of facts, Comparison of alternatives, Trend analysis, Recognition and recall, Problem finding, Problem comprehension and Problem solving[36]. When time in money decision makers have to make decisions fast and thus decision task can be time critical. In prior studies terms ‘‘time pressure’’ and ‘‘time constraint’’ are most commonly used interchangeably [53]. Prior research so far has not investigated the time-constraint tasks that are best supported by DID. For this study High Time Cons traint (HTC) tasks are those that force the decision makers to perform under high time pressure. It is different from Low time-constraint (LTC) task for which the decision makers are not under any time pressure to perform. These types of task types moderate the degree to which DDI affects decision making. Research suggests for HTC task , decision makers accelerated their processing, are more selective in processing and instead of evaluating one alternative at a time (depth based) the decision makers concentrate on attribute based ( breadth wide) pattern of processing[54]. Dynamic Interactive display (DID) have features that lets the users manipulate the data and retrieve details on demand but DID are complex because it provides access to several layers of data which the users can slice and dice. Therefore when DID is used with HTC task , decision makers are unable to accelerate processing as the complexity of the graph makes the users experience information overload , which affects their performance negatively. However when DID is applied to LTC task, then the interactivity is useful because access to several layers of information and availability of time lets the decision makers process information in depth. Thus DID for HTC task does not contribute as much to decision making accuracy, problem comprehension and perceived usefulness as it does for LTC task. H4. Increases in Decision accuracy, effected by DID, are more significant for LTC task than HTC task. H5a. Increases in users graph comprehension for automatic conceptual message lookup process, effected by DID, are more significant for LTC task than HTC task. H5b. Increases in graph comprehension for inferential and top-down encoding process, effected by DID, are more significant for LTC task than HTC task. H6. The impacts of DID on perceived usefulness towards decision making are more significant for LTC task than HTC task. Research Method The proposed study will employ a controlled laboratory experiment to empirically test the effects of DID on Decision making and the moderating effect of time-dependent task types to achieve a high degree of internal validity [55]. To simulate experimental display close to real experiences and to increase the generalizability of the findings, instead of developing a prototype of DID , we selected Motion Chart owned by Google Inc for the visualization tool to produce DID . Motion chart is a commercial product used in business. Experimental Design For this proposed study a within-subject factor along with a between-subject factor, 2X2 factorial design will be used. The within-subject factor, Display format, will have two levels: DID and Dynamic Graph. The between-subject factor, Task Type will have two levels: HTC and LTC (Refer fig 2). The within-subject design for the presentation format will enable control over individual differences like spatial ability[56], cognitive style, comprehension abilities, which could confound the results [6] and also economize on the number of participants required for this study. Fig 2 2X2 Factorial Design Because display format was a within-subject factor, different task type were employed for each display format. The different task will have the same difficulty level so that this study can control for difference in task difficulty to have an effect on decision performance. Different task will control for the learning effect that could happen by repeatedly making the same type of decision with same task using different display format under different time dependent task. The participants might not use the interactive features provided in the DID even though it is provided to them. To control for that, the task assigned to DID will require manipulation of the data to arrive at the correct solution and the participants with the correct result will be rewarded with Bonus gift certificate to motivate them to use the interactive features of DID to arrive at the optimum result. Prior use and practice with a display format has an effect on performance [57] hence to control for that this study will allow participants to have experience with the visualization tool by giving them a brief 15 mins hands on training with the product. As discussed earlier this study uses the term First, the pretest will be conducted with a pilot group that will be demographically similar to the experiment participants to determine the average time required by the subject to reach the optimum solution. Based on this average time the two limits will be chosen to arrive at the High time constraint and low time constraint condition. HTC task is a financial decision making task that will be given to the subjects which involve both bottom up encoding and inferential processing under the High Time constraint in an environment when the decision makers are under time pressure. When there is insufficient time to complete a task, decision performance becomes unpredictable[58] and to control for that the subjects in the HTC treatment will be given a time limit which will be close to the average time required to reach the optimum solution so that they get sufficient time. Low time constraint (LTC) task is a different financial decision making task that will be given to the subjects which involves both bottom up encoding and inferential processing where the decision makers are not under any time pressure to complete the decision making task. Half of the participants were assigned to Dynamic graph with HCT task and DID with LCT task and the other half in reverse order. Participants were assigned randomly to each condition to reduce potential extraneous effects in the experiment. Participants For the main experiment the participation will be voluntary and the subjects will be selected from the pool of graduate and undergraduate students taking courses in finance, economics or business in a large university. To motivate the subjects to participate in this study they will be offered gift certificates. to encourage their participation in the experiment. The participants will have to fill out a standard form about their demographics, if they have experience with Motion charts, number of years at the university. For the results to have external validity, this study proposes to conduct the experiment with handful of executives from the industry who are entrusted with the task of decision making to increase the generalizability of results. Measurements The study will use the decision accuracy to measure the decision quality of the decision making performance. As discussed earlier this is a common measure used to measure decision making performance. To measure the problem comprehension this study will employ a validated comprehension study which has been used in prior studies on effects of information formats [59, 60]. To measure perceived usefulness of the display this study will use the validated survey used in prior studies to predict system usage [61]. Data Analysis Cronbach’s Alpha will be used to assess the reliability of the constructs. A repeated measure ANOVA will be run to analyze the effects of information display on decision making. Separate t-test will be conducted to compare the mean difference between DID and dynamic display for each of the task type to examine the nature of interaction effects. Significance of this Research The proposed study can contribute to both theory and practice. By a controlled laboratory experiment , it will empirically test the impact of Dynamic Interactive Display (DID) in decision making performance for high volume of data. Although DID today are available in a number of areas like accounting and finance (Electronic financial statements using XBRL eXtensible Business Reporting Language), geography (E.g. Active Maps), education (E.g. web based active textbook with animated interactive figures), medicine (E.g. Medical imaging), architecture (Floor plan, building plan) but the review of the literature suggests that the impact of DID has not been explored intensively in the IS field. This proposed study aims to provide empirical test of the theory of Cognitive Fit, in supporting that the impact of IT is limited which is contingent on whether a particular IT application, such as DID, is a good match with the requirement of processing high volume of data to complete a given task. The current study provides useful guidelines for design and use of dense, interactive visualizations towards effective business decision making. If Business want to want to improve decision making performance with high volume of data they can do it with DID. However, because there are so many visualization tools available for use that it is difficult to select the one that is useful for decision making under different time pressure. This proposed study will provide guideline for the usefulness of use DID for HTC and LTC task. These suggestions might help the decision makers and Visualization tool to enjoy the benefits of DID for the appropriate time-dependent task. The proposed study in crucial to understand whether DID has positive effects on decision making and if yes then under what conditions. Interaction can becomes become a powerful tool where users need to filter and zoom on subset of data. There might be information overload and the users might feel lost in the data. There can be added cost in giving access to several levels of data. We also need to understand if providing interactive display is appropriate for tasks which need to be completed under high time pressure and requires processing of high volume of data. This proposed study attempts to imply that DID might not be usable for all decision making context and it is important to understand when it is the most appropriate and use it accordingly to support decision making. References: 1. Shneiderman, B., Creating creativity: user interfaces for supporting innovation. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), 2000. 7(1): p. 114-138. 2. Todd, P. and I. Benbasat, The impact of information technology on decision making: A cognitive perspective. Framing the domains of IT management—Projecting the future through the past, 2000. 3. Yahaya, A., Problem Solving. unspecified. 4. DeSanctis, G., COMPUTER GRAPHICS AS DECISION AIDS: DIRECTIONS FOR RESEARCH*. Decision Sciences, 1984. 15(4): p. 463-487. 5. Paivio, A., Dual coding theory: Retrospect and current status. Canadian Journal of psychology, 1991. 45(3): p. 255-287. 6. Sadoski, M. and A. Paivio, Imagery and text: A dual coding theory of reading and writing. 2001: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 7. Paivio, A., Mental representations. 1986: Clarendon Press Oxford [Oxfordshire. 8. Kahneman, D., Attention and effort. 1973: Prentice-Hall Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 9. Carpenter, P. and P. Shah, A model of the perce ptual and conceptual processes in graph comprehension. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY APPLIED, 1998. 4: p. 75-100. 10. Weisberg, R., Metacognition and insight during problem solving: Comment on Metcalfe. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 1992. 18(2): p. 426-431. 11. Cleveland, W. and R. McGill, Graphical perception: Theory, experimentation, and application to the development of graphical methods. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 1984: p. 531-554. 12. Tufte, E., The visual display of quantitative information. 1983. Envisioning information, 1990. 13. Rieber, L. and M. Boyce, The effects of computer animation on adult learning and retrieval tasks. Journal of Computer Based Instruction, 1990. 17(2): p. 46-52. 14. Morrison, J. and D. Vogel, The impacts of presentation visuals on persuasion. Information Management, 1998. 33(3): p. 125-135. 15. Tversky, B., J. Morrison, and M. Betrancourt, Animation: can it facilitate? International J ournal of Human Computer Studies, 2002. 57(4): p. 247-262. 16. Abdolmohammadi, M., J. Harris, and K. Smith, Government financial reporting on the Internet: The potential revolutionary effects of XBRL. Journal of Government Financial Management, 2002. 51(2): p. 24-31. 17. Debreceny, R. and G. Gray, The production and use of semantically rich accounting reports on the Internet: XML and XBRL. International Journal of Accounting Information Systems, 2001. 2(1): p. 47-74. 18. Vessey, I. and D. Galletta, Cognitive fit: An empirical study of information acquisition. Information Systems Research, 1991. 2(1): p. 63. 19. Eppler, M. and J. Mengis, The concept of information overload: A review of literature from organization science, accounting, marketing, MIS, and related disciplines. The Information Society, 2004. 20(5): p. 325-344. 20. Shneiderman, B., Tree visualization with tree-maps: 2-d space-filling approach. ACM Transactions on graphics (TOG), 1992. 11(1): p. 92-99. 21. Atallah, G., et al., Next Generation Network Management Technology. 1994. 22. Inselberg, A., et al. Parallel coordinates: a tool for visualizing multi-dimensionalgeometry. 1990. 23. Tufte, E., Sparklines: Intense, Simple, Word-sized Graphics. 2004, May. 24. Rosling, H., A. Rosling-Ronnlund, and O. Rosling. New software brings statistics beyond the eye. 25. Roncarelli, R., The Computer animation dictionary. 1989: Springer New York. 26. Sundberg, P., Animation in CALL: Learning to think in the fourth dimension. Paper Presentation CALICO, 1998. 98. 27. Lowe, R., Selectivity in diagrams: Reading beyond the lines. Educational Psychology, 1994. 14(4): p. 467-491. 28. Lowe, R., Animation and learning: selective processing of information in dynamic graphics. Learning and Instruction, 2003. 13(2): p. 157-176. 29. Lowe, R., Extracting information from an animation during complex visual processing. European Journal of the Psychology of Education, 1999. 14: p. 225-244. 30. Kiousis, S., Interactivity: A concep t explication. new media society, 2002. 4(3): p. 355. 31. Jiang, Z. and I. Benbasat, Research Note Investigating the Influence of the Functional Mechanisms of Online Product Presentations. Information Systems Research, 2007. 18(4): p. 454. 32. Remus, W., An empirical investigation of the impact of graphical and tabular data presentations on decision making. Management Science, 1984: p. 533-542. 33. Benbasat, I. and A. Dexter, An experimental evaluation of graphical and color-enhanced information prese

Actions of Goneril in Shakespeares King Lear Essay example -- Shakesp

Actions of Goneril in Shakespeare's King Lear Whenever the issue of power allocation arises, there usually emerge a few individuals who, given only a moderate amount of authority, overstep their bounds to exert more dominance than they rightfully own; such is the case with Goneril. Yet, although Goneril certainly errs in betraying the very father that bestowed a large dominion upon her, King Lear deserves much of the blame for Goneril's haughtiness. After grossly misinterpreting the reticence of his heretofore prized daughter Cordelia, Lear divides his kingdom between the mendacious Goneril and the scheming Regan, thereby leaving the fate of the land at their unskilled mercies. Naturally, Goneril relishes her newfound control, so when Lear comes to visit her with all of his knights in tow, she perceives him as encroaching upon the power that he has since relinquished. Additionally, Goneril notes (albeit in an exaggerated manner) the inconvenience that she incurs by housing these hundred men. Despite the outrage that one mig ht feel at the thought of a daughter mistreating h...

Business Leader Essay

Business leaders have the ability to create opportunities, build products and systems, and inspire others to action. Please describe a time you created an opportunity, built a new product or system, or inspired others to act. The example you provide and elaborate upon may come from your professional endeavors, academic pursuits or civic engagements. I had my first taste of business activity when I just finished my high school. In that summer break, I was invited by three best friends to run a small business with a night market stall in a college zone nearby. We were so excited to take a tiny adventure independently as young adults. In the first several days, we tried our best with zealous cries of selling and lavish hospitality. However, due to the bleak business, the team was overcome by big frustration when we burned out our impulsive passion. Honestly speaking, the idea of giving up kept running in our mind. When the team sat down and started to talk about how to finish this littl e adventure properly, the sadness on our faces suddenly triggered my fighting spirit. As a future freshman at business school in xxx University, I didn’t feel resigned to terminate my first business trial without any hard effort yet. Meanwhile, I felt responsible for cheering them up as a good friend. Thus, I made a proposal and convinced them to have another try together. Firstly, we called off our regular attendance as venders, and took field observation for several days instead. We went to the night market respectively and talked to different venders every evening. Through communication with various venders, we learned some practical knowledge and skills, and further figured out our weaknesses and relevant solutions. Secondly, after taking personal conversations with some college students about their demands, I found out that our goods couldn’t meet their needs. Therefore, I optimized our purchase list and volunteered myself to take the duty of purchasing new goods. After several days of teamwork, we surprisingly noticed that our team spirit, confidence and passion had been revitalized, and restarted our business. As a result, our business began to make profit gradually. A month later, we not only sold out all of our goods, but also made a good profit, which was much mor e than our previous loss. Although it was a tiny business trial for about a month, I valued it as an opening show of my personal business world.

HR, Culture, and Business results

HR, Culture, and Business results Surveys show that Human Resources (HR) can add value and affect firms’ performances in other organizations than in others. HR may help a firm in several ways depending on changes in economic activities, employees’ challenges, employees, and other factors.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on HR, Culture, and Business results specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More According to Evans, and Pucik, HR has three faces in enhancing an organization culture and performance (Evans and Pucik, 2002). HR has the face of a builder. HR has to get the basics of managing human resources right and at the same time, ensure internal coherence. HR also serves the function of realignment. This ensures that the firm meets the demands of dynamic external environment. Changes in market activities, competition, or technological innovation require strategic realignment in an organization. In this regard, attention shifts to HR so as to adjust to the new techniques and strategies. This requires partnership with various departments. HRs third role is navigation or steering an organization. HR must focus on developing the capabilities of the firm and its workforce in order to excel in a dynamic business environment. This is a crucial and delicate role. HR must manage competitive forces of an organization in relation to long-term and short-term results, global realignment, and local changes. Mathis and Jackson note that HR must be at the center of enhancing a firm’s culture (Mathis and Jackson, 2011). Firms have the ability to use their employees as their core competency depending on the organizational culture. Employees must share values and beliefs that enhance meaning and behavior so as to promote the organizational culture. We can notice a firm’s culture in its values, behavior, ideologies, and symbols. Culture of an organization takes time to evolve and stabilize.Advertising Looking for cas e study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More There are HR values and cultures of an organization that are present in ways an organization treats it members both inside and outside the firm. These values and culture must exist among the senior executives of an organization. The firm may use its values to define business strategies, opportunities and focus on operational issues. Organizational culture becomes stable over time. Employees learn these cultures from senior management. We must note that values and cultures of an organization may or may not promote business results, and at the same time, may affect employees’ morale and performance, particularly in resolving conflicts. Organizational culture must enhance competitive advantage of the organization. Employees, executive and firm’s external customers must experience the culture of an organization. Organizational culture affects its servi ces, quality, productivity and business results (financial). Employees view culture of an organization as a factor that may influence attraction and retention of employees. In this regard, HR must align the organizational culture and its performance in the selection and retention of competent workers. Most organizations thrive on a culture of creativity and innovation as indicated by Google, UPS and Scripps Networks. Innovation and creativity can enhance an organizational culture. Organization should develop new products, acquire new businesses and strive to achieve globe presence with its competitive advantage. Google, Scripps Networks and UPS all have cultures of productivity. HR plays the essential roles in creating a culture that focuses on productivity and effectiveness. Organizations must reduce the cost of producing it services and products through effective processes. This way, productivity becomes a competitive advantage by enhancing business revenue growth. HR must recogni ze that productivity does not depend on a reduced number of employees. However, HR must look at productivity in terms of unit labor cost i.e. â€Å"dividing the average cost of workers by their average levels of output† (Mathis and Jackson, 2011).Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on HR, Culture, and Business results specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This helps the HR notice that relatively high wages still can make a firm economically competitive provided that the firm maintains high productivity levels. In order to create competitive advantage and business growth through productivity, HR should focus on a strategy of low unit labor cost. Firms with the regional and global presence like Google, UPS, and Scripps must evaluate their productivity and unit labor costs in all levels i.e. individual, departmental, organizational, country and global levels using HR metrics or key performance indicators. Google Lazio Bock, Google HR insists on enhancing business objectives through its works and creativity. Google HR focuses on the company’s organizational culture and business objectives. Google enables its employees to focus on productivity by being flexible to allow them work on various jobs. The company considers every employee a contributor. Google HR has innovative strategies that enhance the performance of the HR department by eliminating errors, and encouraging communication. Google encourages open innovation by encouraging every employee to be open and share ideas and opinions. Open innovation comes from the company culture of encouraging open communication. HR at Google encourages ability over experience in the selection and recruiting employees. The global presence also forces the company to focus on selecting a team that reflects global customers of the company. HR insists on selecting a team that aims at creating perfection. Google also encourages leisure activities when emplo yees are not at work. Google HR communicates organizational strategies, business results, and information of benefits to the employees regularly. Most of the company’s employees are also shareholders.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Therefore, they continuously want to know the company’s business results. Google’s HR shows how aligning the company’s objectives and strategies with the organizational culture can enhance performance and business growth. Scripps Networks This firm has a strong HR culture. The HR is responsible for creating the firm’s strategic goals and business efforts. HR of Scripps Network, Christopher Powell says that the company culture is â€Å"very inclusive, collaborative work place, with core values that include diversity, openness and shared responsibility†. In addition, Powell adds that â€Å"we pride ourselves on fostering an entrepreneurial environment. We work closely with leaders across the company to create opportunities for new approaches and new ideas to surface, including providing financial rewards to employees who offer creative solutions to problems or initiate new ideas that pay off†. The company also insists on enhancing leadership a t all levels. At the same time, the company strives to inculcate work-life balance by using technology and flexible schedules. UPS UPS focuses on customer service and attention to details. Mathis and Jackson notes that the company has corporate integrity, culture combined with the HR and employees. UPS strives to link its business objectives with the HR. the company has enhanced its communication by intranet to keep employees informed art all time. The company has a trend of creating a well-rounded management team, maintain its culture, and its customer service. The HR culture ensures that the employees review code of conduct relating to ethical difficulties and how they may respond in such circumstances. The three firms have different approaches in of using HR effectively to enhance business productivity. However, they also share aspects of innovation and creativity in enhancing productivity and business results. These firms also demonstrate how HR department is increasingly becomi ng vital for a success of an organization. References Evans, P. and Pucik, V. (2002). The Global Challenge: Frameworks for International Human Resource Management. New York: McGraw-Hill. Mathis, L. R. and Jackson, H. J. (2011). Human Resource Management, 13th ed. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.

Cri-du-chat Syndrome

Cri-du-chat Syndrome Free Online Research Papers CRI-DU-CHAT SYNDROME Cri-Du-Chat means â€Å"Cry of the cat† in French. It gets its name from its most characteristic hallmark feature in newborns were they comprise a very distinctive high-pitched, weak, mewing cat like cry during infancy caused by an abnormal development of the larynx that is usually diagnostic for the syndrome. This syndrome has many names to it as the Chromosome 5p- syndrome, Deletion 5p- syndrome, 5p minus syndrome, Cat cry syndrome, and Monosomy 5p but most commonly known as the Cri-Du-Chat Syndrome. Incidences of this disorder vary between 1 in every 20,000 50,000 live births worldwide and according to the 5p minus Society, approximately 50 to 60 children are born with cri du chat in the United States each year. Dr. Jerome Lejeune in 1963 described the disorder as a hereditary congenital syndrome linked to a partial deletion of the short arm, or p region in chromosome 5 but in %90 of patients the deletion is sporadic which means it could occur randomly and for it being j ust hereditary is just not the case. In 10% of patients with cri du chat, there is a hereditary chromosomal rearrangement that causes the deletion. Cri-Du-Chat Syndrome occurs when a deletion of chromosomal material takes place within a particular area of the p region on chromosome 5. This deleted genetic material contains many genes which are vital for normal development and the absence of the material results in the larynx, brain, and other parts of the body to not develop as expected resulting in the features associated with cri du chat syndrome. The deletions can differ in size from extremely small and involving only band 5p15.2 to the entire short arm. Majority of the deletions arise as new mutations, approximately 12% result from unbalanced segregation of translocations or recombination involving a per centric inversion in one of the parents. What genes and chromosomal disorders are linked to Cri-Du-Chat Syndrome? Cri-Du-Chat Syndrome is neither dominant nor recessive. The disorder is linked to Chromosome 5, where deletion of genetic materials occurs on the short or â€Å"p† arm of chromosome 5. The piece of chromosomal material deleted comprises of many vital genes necessary for proper normal development. When the missing genes are not presented the larynx, brain, and other part of the body do not develop well or as expected compared to the average newborn. The cri-du-chat syndrome appears to be the most common human deletion disorder. Estimations of the disorder occurrence vary between in an average of 1 in every 20,000 to 50,000 live births world wide on yearly bases. According to the 5p minus Society, approximately 50 to 60 children are born with cri du chat in the United States each year. Cri-du-chat Syndrome is obtained through birth so all cases of cri du chat are newborns. The frequency in populations of profoundly retarded patients (IQ less than 20) is approximately 1%. It can occur in all races and sexes but it has been discovered that females are affected more than males. The survival rate is estimated to be anywhere from %92-94% in overall human population. At birth, newborns comprise a very unusual distinctive high-pitched, weak, mewing cat like cry during infancy caused by an abnormal development of the larynx which is the disorders most characteristic hallmark feature that is usually diagnostic for the syndrome. As children that have the disorder get older, the cat-like cry becomes less noticeable. This can make diagnostics more difficult for older patients if the disorder was not detected at birth. Failure to thrive and mental impairment with an IQ rarely above 35 are practically always present. 85% of patients have a short stature and up to %50 of patients older than the age of 10 can communicate verbally. Cri-du-chat syndrome is characterized in young children by microcephaly (small head size), round face, hypertelorism, micrognathia, epicanthal folds, low-set ears, hypotonia which is reduced or diminished muscle tone, and severe psychomotor and mental retardation. Unusual facial features can be quite common from very subtle to v ery obvious features. During infancy, cri du chat patients do not gain weight or grow normally. Approximately %30 of infants with cri du chat comprises a congenital heart defect. Hypotonia also known as having poor muscle tone is also common, resulting in problems with eating and slow development. Metal retardation is present in all cases of patients with cri du chat but the degree of mental retardation varies between patients. During infancy, diagnostics is strongly suggested if a newborn comprises a very distinctive high-pitched, weak, mewing cat like cry during infancy caused by an abnormal development of the larynx that is usually diagnostic for the syndrome. If the unusual cat-like cry is present or other features of cri du chat syndrome is suspected a chromosome test should be performed. This test is conducted by taking a blood sample form the newborn for chromosome analysis which is also called â€Å"karyotyping†, involves staining the chromosomes and examining them under a microscope . There after, some cases the deletion of material from chromosome 5 can be easily detected but in other case further testing must take place. FISH (fluorescence in-situ hybridization) is a special technique that can detect very small deletions and the majority of the deletions that cause cri du chat can be detected performing this method. Cri du chat syndrome can be detected before birth if the mother allows permission to undergo amniocentesis testing or onic villus smapling (CVS). The testing method would be recommend if either parent is known to have chromosome rearrangement, or if they have a child with cri du chat syndrome. There is currently no treatment for the underlying disorder. Only therapies can be recommended to help stabilize and improve the disorder conditions. Treatments consist of supportive and developmental therapy. Medical problems can be improved by the following: Physiotherapy, Speech therapy, Occupational therapy, and behavioral management if necessary. Even after so many previous studies with cri du chat throughout the years, we still have yet to fulfill a treatment or prevention medications. Research Papers on Cri-du-chat SyndromePersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyGenetic EngineeringRiordan Manufacturing Production PlanThe Fifth HorsemanNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This Nice19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraQuebec and CanadaArguments for Physician-Assisted Suicide (PAS)The Effects of Illegal ImmigrationInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married Males

Apply the Learning Curve Theory Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Apply the Learning Curve Theory - Assignment Example Conversely, the third concept states that the interval of progress is predictable over a given time (Ninio, 2002). There has been an increase in the practice of performance in a manner in which the number of units of production increases in a compact span of time, ideally, after the particular time of implementation. This can categorically be defined as the interval of learning where persistent proportion of diminution in time is considered. In the same context, the slope of the learning curve is measured by the difference between the interval of learning and arithmetical rate of one hundred (James, 2005). For instance, if the timing between the increasing of units are decreased by 20 percent, then it will be represented as 80 percent learning curve. It is also worth to note that learning curves are used by individuals in preparing corporate strategy including setting prices, capital investment, and operative costs amid other things. I spent the first two weeks examining the operatio ns at Becks. For the last week, the tables had high utilization of 95 percent. The waiting time, I jotted down, ranged between 10 to 11 minutes. I noticed that some customers left without eating. The upper tolerance level was seven minutes for the customers to be awaited. The customers arrived in pair or two at the restaurant. Utilizing the peak performance would be very profitable to the restaurant. During the peak hours from 5 p.m. to 9p.m., I noticed, could have a turnover of two tables every 45 minutes. The restaurant had the capacity of 5 tables that could sit 16 people each. Come to think of it, the goal objective of the restaurant is to maximize profits, and stay under the upper tolerance of seven minutes. During peaks times, I noted that the entire process the customer walked into the restaurant to the time they left took them 45 minutes. The ten minutes were consumed just to be seated at an empty table. Another 15 minutes were consumed back in the kitchen doling out the ord er. This efficiency is below average going by the long waits and the number of customers who goo with being served. The reason that could be attributed to this may be because there was no computerized order process system. If this was in place, it could have speeded up the order process by four minutes. The restaurant also lacked automatic ovens which could have speeded up the process of preparing a pizza. The only solution to reducing the process time is to replace the manual ovens, and replace them with an automated order process. The crucial thing to do is to change the seating at the restaurant. At the start, the tables for four showed the highest utilization of 95 percent and 35 groups left the restaurant without being served. To solve this problem, the restaurant I concluded needed to change the distribution of tables, and hence establish a precedence rule. This would be a good decision. If the restaurant could make this decision, the utilization for four could significantly c hange to 93.67 percent, and tables for two could also change to 90 percent. Ten groups of four and three groups of two walked out without being served. The average waiting time could change to 4.68 minutes and the average waiting queue length would change to 3.50. The restaurant could earn an estimated profit of $1260, loss sales worth $358. Nevertheless, this would not be an optimal solution as the kitchen staff and waiting staff are underutilized. There are lost sales worth $358. Therefore making

Whole Foods Market Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Whole Foods Market - Essay Example The US and Germany constitute the top markets for this industry segment. Some of the other industry trends include emergence of private label brands, as well as a growing demand in the developing economies. The report also shows the market to grow by about 4.2 percent in the present year. It also shows large scale consolidation and foray of major brands into this segment (Sahota, 2010, p.1-11). USA the major market for Whole Foods is the most growing market for the industry with trade values in the industry segment being pegged at 28.6 billion US dollars in 2010 representing a growth of almost 11.8 percent annually. The growth trends of the organic foods also outperformed the sales growth in the entire food category segment reflecting a major shift in consumption patterns of individuals with a shift towards the organic food category (Organic Trade Association, 2011, p.1). These aspects are highly encouraging for a market player like Whole foods whose core product offering happens to be organic foods. Competitive Environment Analysis Porter’s Five Forces Model The competitive environment of any organization can be analyzed using the framework of the five force model proposed by Michael Porter. The five forces and their effect on Whole Foods are stated below: Bargaining Power of Buyers Considering the fact that a large number of retailers including supermarket chains are stocking organic food items, customers are flooded with choices, however with very few specialized organic food stores the bargaining power of consumers is medium. Bargaining Power of Suppliers Suppliers for organic foods normally include farmers, and other small and marginal players that are present in considerable numbers, moreover with specialized training for farming being provided by corporate the bargaining power of suppliers is considerably low. Threat of New Entrants It is quite difficult for a new player to establish in the market considering the cost of operations and access to s uppliers, however exiting supermarket chains can pose a threat if they chose to make a foray in this sector, hence the bargaining power of new entrants is medium. Threat of Substitutes Substitutes for organic food include food items that are being preserved or created artificially. In spite of the awareness among consumers with regards to the benefits of organic food, synthetic food items still have an edge over the aspect of lower cost. This makes the threat of substitutes high for the industry. Competition among Existing Players The competition among the players are extremely high with major supermarkets like Wal-Mart and Kroger selling organic food items, although the number of specialized organic food stores is quite less and they are not present in a big way that makes the threat of this force high. The most significant threa