Monday, September 30, 2019

Native American beliefs are deeply rooted in their culture Essay

They didn’t have one single religion, but they did have many beliefs. They believed in a mysterious force in nature and in spirits that were higher than human beings and influenced their lives. People depended on them when they searched for food or when people were ill. They believed EVERYTHING is sacred from the largest mountain to the smallest plant and animal. A lesson can be found in all things and experiences and everything has its own purpose. Native Spirituality; is about honor, love, and respect. Not only do they love, honor, and respect our Creator and Mother Earth, but also every living thing. They are in touch with themselves and everything around them. It is about knowing and understanding that they were a part of everything, and everything is a part of them. Native Americans valued many things like animals; buffalo, deer, and small rabbits. Meat could be cooked fresh or smoked, and stored for long journeys or winter months. They also ate vegetables and plants; berries, squash and fruits. They valued God because he created everything. Some tribes believed in one or many gods whom more powerful than others. Shamans were religious people who had close contacts with spirits. They were often medicine men and treated sick people . There is no power greater than the Natural Laws. These powers were set up by the Great Spirit in a way that the human being has no access to it, except by obeying. If they choose not to follow the Natural Laws, their life will be filled with confusion, tension, anxiety and stress. If they were to poison the Earth, they would poison themselves. If they were to poison the Water of the Earth, they were to poison themselves. What they would do to Earth, would happen to them and their children, even the children that were unborn.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Biology Properties of water lab Essay

Procedure The independent variables for this experiment are the types of water solutions used. The dependent variable is the boiling temperature of the water which will be measured by a thermometer. The control group is the water. The constants are the Stove top and amount of water used in each solution the starting temperature of the water and the Pot. 1. Pour 2 cups of water in the pot add 1 tablespoon of sugar then stir it up until all sugar is dissolved. 2. Turn on the stove, set the stove to it’s highest setting, place the pot on and time it with a stopwatch. Record the  time and temperature of the solution as soon as it begins to boil. Record the data on your table. 3. Rinse pot vigorously to remove impurities, and allow the stovetop to cool. 4. Pour 2 cups of water in the pot add 1 tablespoon of salt and stir. Repeat steps 2 and 3. 5. Pour 2 cups of water in the pot then add 1 tablespoon of water. Repeat step 2. Observations When boiling the water it was quite pure and clear. There was no smell to it0 when boiling the salt water it was cloudy and the bottom of the pot was coated with salt. When boiling the sugar water it was cloudy but no residue was left in the pot. Conclusion Based on the graphs water has the highest boiling point over both salt and sugar water. The sugar water took the most energy to begin to boil and the salt water took the least as the heat evaporated some of the salt, which was left coating the pan. I don’t think we changed the waters boiling point by adding a new substance but we did change how fast it would come to a boil by making it more or less dense.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Microsoft Vdi

Microsoft VDI Technical Proposal CYQUENT Ref: DXB-ATG-12004-SOW 5/20/2012 Prepared for Al Tayer Group Prepared by Lakmal Perera * Contents 1Introduction3 2Section 1 – Solution Overview4 2. 1Areas within Scope4 2. 2Areas Out of Scope4 2. 3Summarized Bill of Materials5 2. 3. 1Server and Software5 3CYQUENT Profile6 3. 1Our Vision6 3. 2Our Mission6 3. 3About Us6 3. 4Cyquent Competency Levels6 3. 5Core Offerings7 . 6Project Organization and Staffing7 4Implementation, Project Approach, Timeline and Service Deliverables8 4. 1Project Approach8 4. 1. 1Microsoft Solutions Framework8 4. 1. 2The IT Service Lifecycle9 4. 1. 3The Lifecycle Phases9 4. 2Timeline10 4. 2. 1Key Service Deliverables and Acceptance Process10 4. 3Service Deliverable Acceptance Process10 4. 4Project Completion11 5General Customer Responsibilities and Project Assumptions12 5. 1General Customer Responsibilities12 5. 2Project Assumptions12 IntroductionThe Statement of Work (SOW) and any exhibits, appendices, schedules and attachments describe the technical scope of work of project only. This SOW represents the complete baseline for scope, services, service deliverables, and acceptance applicable to this project. All changes to this document will be managed in accordance with the Change Management Process defined below. The Al Tayer Group IT has requested CYQUENT Technology Consultants to help them design and implement the following initiatives: * Microsoft VDI High Availability : Installation of Remote Desktop Connection Broker * Installation of Remote Desktop Session Host * Installation of Remote Desktop Virtualization Host * System Center Virtual Machine Manager CYQUENT Technology Consultants hereby indicate full interest in engaging with ATG on the said project and this Statement of work provides all details to that effect. Proposal Highlights I. Detailed Statement of Project Scope – Areas in Scope and Out of Scope II. Project Methodology: a.Cyquent Consultants will follow Microsoft So lutions Framework and ITIL methodology to implement a project. The implementation methodology is broken into five high level phases. The phases are designed to be run in sequence as the outputs from one phase are required inputs into the next phase. i. Envision ii. Plan iii. Design iv. Deploy v. Manage III. Project Timeline: The Project is estimated to take 1 Calendar Month days of duration. IV. Bill of Materials: Listing of Hardware & Software required to uccessfully complete the project based on details provided by ATG IT Team V. Cyquent Experience: Cyquent has successfully delivered many Microsoft Infrastructure Projects in different organizations; therefore Cyquent consultants are familiar with the intricacies involved in the successful deployment of Microsoft technologies. By choosing Cyquent, Al Tayer Group will be mitigating the risks involved in undertaking such a Project because of Cyquent best design practices and knowledge base drawn from our earlier engagements.Section 1 – Solution Overview Areas within Scope 1. Envisioning 2. 1. Planning / Design Workshop for fine tune approach and discuss risk areas for ATG. 2. Planning 3. 2. Update / fine tune project plan 3. 3. Develop Design & Build Documentation for Solution 3. 4. Review and Acceptance. 3. Stabilization 4. 5. Update / fine tune project plan 4. 6. Verify hardware, software and network infrastructure pre-requisites in place and operational 4. 7. Update go-to-production plan 4. Deployment 5. 8. Microsoft VDI 5. 9. 1.Installation of Remote Desktop Connection Broker 5. 9. 2. Installation of Remote Desktop Session Host 5. 9. 3. Installation of Remote Desktop Virtualization Host and HyperV 5. 9. 4. 1. Create Virtual Machines 5. 9. Installation of System Center Virtual Machine Manager 5. 10. Deployment Review and Acceptance. 5. General Troubleshooting , Basic Operations Training and hand over Areas Out of Scope 1. Anything else not included in this section and any activity other than what is d etailed in the â€Å"Areas within Scope† section above. . All products listed for deployment and configuration will be based on out of the box functionality 3. Acquiring any third party applications and hardware devices is ‘out-of-scope’. 4. Any deployment or configuration on client desktops other than the items listed in the section above. 5. No connectivity to any legacy system. Any connectivity / migration requirements to legacy systems will be treated as separate engagement. 6. Any deployment or configuration in the following areas to be done on advisory basis only * SAN replication. Network layer configuration (This includes firewall / UMT level public IP NAT, SSL offloading, core switch configuration and network configuration for traffic to terminate on servers. ) * Disaster Recovery site. Summarized Bill of Materials Server and Software The table below is an aggregation of all the server hardware and software required based on initial discussions with Al T ayer Group: Note: RD Virtualization Host can host up to 40 VDI desktop per server as per below Configuration, with total of 80 VDI’s on 2 servers. Server| Memory| CPUCores *| Local Disks| SAN Access| Network Cards| Software| | | | | | | | x Windows 2008 R21x Windows 2008 R22x Windows 2008 R21x Windows 2008 R2| 6GB6GB64GB6GB| 2 Core x642 CoreX6416 CoreX644 CoreX64| 2x75GB2x 75 GB1x 75gb1x 1000GB2x 75 GB| NoNoYesNo| 2222| * Windows 2008 STD x64 * Remote Desktop Connection Broker * Remote Desktop Session Host * Windows 2008 STD x64 * Remote Desktop Connection Broker * Remote Desktop Session Host * Windows 2008 ENT x64 * RD Virtualization Host, Hyper-V * Windows 2008 STD x64 * System Center Virtual Machine Manager| * – The CPU column specifies number of cores required rather than physical processors. CYQUENT Profile Our VisionTo be the most business friendly and cost effective IT consulting company by choice in the gulf Our Mission Consistently provide dependable IT Consul ting solutions that best satisfy customer’s business needs About Us CYQUENT is a strong Microsoft Gold Certified Partner in the Gulf managed by Ex-Microsoft Services Manager. CYQUENT is actively engaged in several projects with the local Microsoft team for customers in different verticals/Industries. Finding the right partner is an equally important task as identifying the right solution for your business needs. We at CYQUENT work and build solutions that are â€Å"Customer Centric†.We understand customer needs and align our approach to provide them with tailor made solutions to reach their business goals without compromising on the best Practices. Cyquent Competency Levels * Core Offerings * Technical Consulting – Design , Deployment, Project Management: * Information Worker (SharePoint/SQL/CRM) * Infrastructure * Security * Support (Premier Support) * Outsourcing :- * Managed Services * Staff Augmentation * Helpdesk Project Organization and Staffing Resource T ypes Allocated to the Engagement: 1. Cyquent Engagement Manager 2. VDI- Architect (On/Off-site) 3. Cyquent Consultants 4.Cyquent Server Engineer Implementation, Project Approach, Timeline and Service Deliverables Project Approach Microsoft Solutions Framework We will leverage the Microsoft Solutions Framework (MSF) to execute this SOW. MSF represents an industry-proven solution development approach that provides for well-defined phases that take into account development of requirements, architectural design, detailed software design, software development, system testing, and managed release cycles. MSF Process Model Phases and Milestones MSF organizes the solution approach into five distinct phases during the project lifecycle. Envisioning: Envisioning involves creating a business vision and defining the scope of work necessary to bring the vision to reality (e. g. , business case justification, business studies, etc. ). * Planning: Planning continues through the development of deta iled functional requirements, system and application architectures, the user interface prototype, and a detailed project plan for the remainder of the project. * Development: The Development phase begins with the first iteration of development and culminates with the â€Å"functionality complete† milestone (or Beta release). Stabilization: The Stabilization phase involves testing and acceptance. * Deployment: The Deployment phase includes deployment of the core technology and site components, transitioning of the project to operations and support, and obtaining final Customer approval of the project * Change and Release Management CYQUENT will follow ITIL best practice guidance drawn from the public and private sectors across the world for the Change and Release Management processes to deploy this solution in your production environment. The IT Service LifecycleThe IT service lifecycle describes the life of an IT service, from planning and optimizing the IT service to align w ith the business strategy, through the design and delivery of the IT service, to its ongoing operation and support. Underlying all of this is a foundation of IT governance, risk management, compliance, team organization, and change management. The Lifecycle Phases The IT service lifecycle is composed of three ongoing phases and one foundational layer that operates throughout all of the other phases. They are: * The Plan Phase. * The Deliver Phase. The Operate Phase. * The Manage Layer. IT service lifecycle Timeline The Project is estimated to take 1 Calendar Month for completion subject to the following pre-requisites being fully completed: * Work Order Signed * Software & Hardware completely ready * Al Tayer Staff allocated for the project Key Service Deliverables and Acceptance Process Key Project Service Deliverables The following is a list of the key project service deliverables that will be delivered within this SOW which must be formally reviewed and accepted. Project Phase| S ervice Deliverable Name |Planning| * Planning Workshops * Design & Build Documentation for Solution * Project Plan| Deployment| * Installation of Remote Desktop Connection Broker * Installation of Remote Desktop Session Host * Installation of Remote Desktop Virtualization Host and HyperV * Create Virtual Machines * Installation of System Center Virtual Machine Manager| Training| * Training workshop for IT operations handover | Service Deliverable Acceptance Process At specified milestones throughout the project, we will deliver completed project service deliverables for review and approval.Service deliverables shall be reviewed within 4 consecutive business days from the time of submittal for acceptance. Service deliverables shall be deemed accepted in the absence of review or response of acceptance within this specified time. The use or partial use of any service deliverable constitutes acceptance of that service deliverable. Feedback supplied after the review period will be evalua ted as a potential change of scope and shall follow the Change Management Process outlined in this SOW. The Service Deliverable Acceptance Process is described below. * Submission of Service deliverablesThe CYQUENT Project Manager, or his designee, will prepare a Project Status report and forward with the respective service deliverable to the Customer Project Manager, or Customer designee, for consideration. * Assessment of Service Deliverables: The Customer representative will determine whether the service deliverable meets the requirements as defined in this SOW and that the service deliverable is complete. Additional work on, or changes to, an accepted service deliverable that are requested by the Customer will managed through the Change Management Process. Acceptance / Rejection: After reviewing, the Customer will either accept the service deliverable (by signing and dating the Service Deliverable Acceptance Form) or will provide a written reason for rejecting it and will return the Service Deliverable Acceptance Form to the CYQUENT team. * Correction of Service Deliverables: CYQUENT will correct in-scope problems found with the service deliverable and will address the correction of out-of-scope changes according to the Change Management Process.CYQUENT will submit a schedule for making changes to the service deliverable within two (2) business days of receiving a rejected Service Deliverable Acceptance Form. Once CYQUENT corrects all previously identified in-scope problems, the service deliverable will be deemed accepted. * Monitoring and Reporting: The CYQUENT project team will track service deliverable acceptance. Updates on service deliverable acceptance will be included in the status report and discussed in the status meeting. Service deliverable acceptance issues that cannot be resolved will be elevated to the Project Steering Committee.Project Completion The project will be considered complete, when any of the following are met: a. All of the servic e deliverables identified within this SOW have been completed, delivered and accepted or deemed accepted, including approved Change Request Forms b. The fee provisions of the Work Order have been met or c. This agreement is terminated pursuant to the provisions of the agreement. General Customer Responsibilities and Project Assumptions General Customer ResponsibilitiesOur delivery of the services are dependent on your involvement in all aspects of the services, your ability to provide accurate and complete information as needed, your timely and effective completion of the responsibilities as identified herein, the accuracy and completeness of the Assumptions, and timely decisions and approvals by your management. In performing our services under this SOW and the applicable WO, we will rely upon any instructions, authorizations, approvals or other information provided to us by your project Manager or by any other personnel identified by your Project Manager.Project Assumptions The Se rvices, fees and delivery schedule for this project are based upon the following assumptions. * All pre-requisites like :- * Hardware, Software, Resources and Networking Infrastructure (LAN or WAN) will be ready before CYQUENT Team starts Software deployment * Although CYQUENT can assist with troubleshooting procedures that pertain to environmental causes, specific issues maybe uncovered that require escalation to product support services for Microsoft or other products. These will be initiated using the customer’s existing support contracts with Microsoft and / or other vendors. Office facilities: Suitable office facilities at the project premises for our consultants during this engagement – with desk space, telephone (for internal and external calls), power, network connectivity (for printing documents, accessing project resources and storing project information), and Internet connectivity * Access: Timely access for our consultants to the facilities, IT infrastructu re, applications, data, documentation and staff necessary for us to carry out this engagement. * IT facilities and equipment: All computer facilities, hardware and system software needed for this project. Staff: Commitment of key stakeholders and suitably skilled staff to work with Cyquent Services consultants on this project as and when needed – particularly to clarify requirements and context during the project and to take ownership of the outputs of this engagement going forward, including: * Senior experienced Technical resources from application, systems and infrastructure teams. * Business management staff * Timely response: All necessary project decisions, feedback to queries and review of project deliverables in a timely manner, so as not to delay the project.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Answer three questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Answer three questions - Essay Example The first technological change involved for example movement from use of the keypad to development of touchpad in mobile phones for examples, to ultra-modern laptops that are easy to carry. The second type of technological change that is radical innovation can be associated with the development of high speed magnetic levitation trains. The third technological change of changes in a technological system is more focused on research in science more so on genetics, mostly by pharmaceuticals while the fourth type of technological change of techno-economic paradigm can be associated with advancement in items such as steam power, electricity and ICT (Sassen, 2012). ICT mainly belong to the fourth type of technological change of techno-economic paradigm majorly because changes in ICT have brought about tremendous changes on how economic activities are conducted, changing the face of doing business on domestic Markets by introducing a paradigm shift to global oriented business operations (Sas sen, 2012). (B) Critically Discuss The Argument That ICTs Shrink Time And Space Across The Globe. Bring Examples to Support Your Answer ICT has reduced the time and space in the globe in terms of providing a means of communication between buyers and sellers located in different parts of the globe. Jobs can be outsourced and products exported to foreign markets at short notice (Loebis & Schmitz, 2005). ICT provides input and output in the form of information on the market operating conditions, expectations from market players as well as negotiations. ICT has led to shrinking of time and space by providing the back bone of a 24 –hour global economy in which financial services across different markets worldwide are instantaneous. The financial services in a global perspective are not tied down to a physical location as information forms the main input and output (Loebis & Schmitz, 2005). ICTs have shrunk time and space across the globe by providing technologies that are digital and advanced and make communication between individuals in different parts of the globe instantaneous and seamless (Sassen, 2012). An example of this technology is voice over the internet protocols such as Skype. Computerization of financial services makes geographical location of financial capital less important. ICT continues to form the basis for business process outsourcing (BPO) as it provides the foundation for transfer of business functions such as call center management as well as payroll preparation (Loebis, & Schmitz,2005). Question 2 (a). Can Outsourcing Be The Basis Of Development And Growth For Countries Which Lie Outside The Established Global Processes Of Production? Outsourcing involves contracting of various forms of business functions to external vendors. This is necessary where a firm aims at cutting down on costs such as labor. Examples of business functions that can be outsourced include payroll preparation, billing, call center services and data entry among oth ers. Global players in the outsourcing business include India, Israel and Ireland while countries such as china and Russia have exhibited signs potential growth in the outsourcing business (Linden, Kraeer & Dedrick, 2009). Whether outsourcing can be a foundation of development and growth for countries that lie outside the established global process of production, is hugely dependent on various factors such as the government's vision and policy, the

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Popular Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Popular Culture - Essay Example This paper outlines that the popular culture is usually observable in such area including clothing, cooking, sports and recreation and also consumption and entertainment. On recreation we can view golf playing as a popular culture practiced by the rich in the society. Today cultural activities are segregated and there exist restrictions that are formal and also informal. Restrictions apply to those that are not part of that culture and may be tempted to join that culture. This paper highlights that some cultural activities are highly restricted by the laws of the society, an example is beer drinking, beer drinking for example is prohibited in Saudi Arabia and there exist a law that will prosecute those found drinking beer. The drinking of beer therefore is a popular culture among the masses of many societies and this culture is proposed by the mass media through advertisements of these brands, the culture is restricted in some societies like Saudi Arabia formally. There also exist informal restrictions to cultural practices, these informal restrictions are those restrictions that do not exist in writing but are termed as norms in the society, and they do not exist in writing but are termed as rules governing behavior. These informal restrictions include the expected reaction by the society, the society has informal ways in which to discourage behavior example a person doing wrong may be isolated by the society, for example the case where people have tattoos all over their body, this is a popular culture among the young but in some society the making of such decorations on the skin may lead to one being isolated and disowned by the society. This is an informal way in which this popular culture is restricted by this society and it is helpful in restricting such cultures.

Critical review of classmates' reports Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Critical review of classmates' reports - Essay Example There are two types of compassion that Dalai Lama discusses. One type of compassion is concerned with a sense of concern for other which only involves the sense of sentiments or feeling of concern. The other type of compassion is concerned with not only the sense of sentiment but also the responsibility to do something. The two types of compassion can be explained through an example of a businessman who has lost all his fortune through fraud. In the first type of compassion, a person only sympathizes with the businessman but in the second type of compassion, a compassionate person would help that person get back on productive business by giving him advice or material help. The second type of compassion should be included in virtue, deontological or utilitarian ethics as it promotes productive compassion. There are two types of competition discussed by Dalai Lama. The first type of competition is the one where a person competes in order to progress and reach the top level. This type of competition is positive. Another type of competition is negative where a person competes in order to become top be creating obstacle to the other people involved. For example, an employee can work hard and learn the loopholes of the company so that he is able to strategically work to deliver high quality results which will result in his promotion. This is positive competition. On the other hand, another employee may use schemes such as bad-mouthing and corruption in order to be promoted. It is very true that one is able to be very busy on one level and at the same time, on deeper level, be in a state "of composure and calmness." This is because the cognitive level can be very engaged in deep state of mind while the emotional state of mind remains very calm and composed. For example, I have experienced this state of composure and calmness in a working environment with

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Change management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Change management - Essay Example Change management has received increasing attention especially in the nursing practice. A notable area to change is the handover system in order to improved efficiency and save both time and resources.Change is difficult for stakeholders and it takes a dedicated leadership to ensure that it happens successfully. The best model of change for this case is the Three Step Lewin’s Model. Change goes through three basic steps namely: freezing, moving and unfreezing. For change to successfully occur, the leadership should be visionary and motivate its employees towards the required direction. Principles in the practice are based on the stipulations of the NHS and other governing bodies. This paper aims to discuss change management using the Lewin’s model, improvement of the handover system in the given case as well as different types of leadership and policies affecting the practice in the UK. Transforming the bedside handover system has emerged as a means of improving neonata l care in hospitals as explained by Marshall and Coughlin (2010). The current bedside system in the hospital is bedside handover but some modifications can be made to improve efficiency. The new changes are to be based on safety of the infants, patient centred care, value added processes and team vitality. These aspects are the foundation of the change process to be used in the hospital by using the Three Step Lewin’s Model. ... Mullins (2002): Higgs and Rowland (2000) assert that leadership varies according to situations and organizations. Burdett Trust for Nursing (2006) stresses on the importance on leadership in nursing, it should be done in accordance to the set rules and regulations in the field. Royal Nursing College (2008); RCN (2003); Department of Health (2011) and Department of Health (2009) state the policies that have been made over the years to introduce change in nursing. Studies done on the bedside handover system One of the studies concerning bedside handover was conducted in Queensland hospital in 2009. This study was done on only ten patients to find out their perspective on bedside handover. The study observed the patients’ approach to the bedside handover system (Murray et al. 2011). The participants were questioned on the advantages and disadvantages. Their current role in the system and the role played by family members and other members of the medical team. The issues arising f rom this study were: most patients supported the inclusive handover system, others appreciated passive engagement and others viewed it as an opportunity to correct the information being passed. From this study, we can conclude that effective bedside handover provides patients to participate in their care. Another study was conducted in Ipswich hospital where the practice had been in place for over two years. The study was conducted in three wards in a total of thirty days, thirty four nurses were interviewed. The bedside handover had worked efficiently in the hospital. The staff members interviewed had positive feelings about the system since it was introduced. This study demonstrates on the efficiency of bedside handover and

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Would Odysseus be considered a hero today Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Would Odysseus be considered a hero today - Essay Example Odysseus can be considered as a modern day hero because he has all the qualities of a hero and even though the values have changed over the time, he has a heroic character which is inspiring. The most common trait of a hero is bravery and courage which is present in Odysseus greatly (Homer 32). He is on a long trip where he is stuck on an island, and battles it out to get back to his wife and son. He has battled and fought against many witches and sea monsters. He goes through a lot but never seems scared or frightened and tends to portray bravery in every gesture (Morden 26). A hero like Odysseus is put in many troubles by the people who are jealous or lower to him, but he manages to overcome all troubles using his witty mind and bravery (Barnouw 16). The second characteristic of Odysseus was his love for his people; his friends and family (Bittlestone 65). He was trapped but carried out the journey and overcame all hurdles just to get back to his family. He also fought for his wife at the end of the story showing how much he loved her. This is a heroic quality which is needed and admired in every culture in every era (Beye 55). The third characteristic is his fine nature and noble qualities. This can be seen when in the end he fights the suitors of his wife and orders to take care of the women’s doorway, and lock it so that no one shall see the woman’s face (Montiglio 25). This shows his honourable character and his respect for women. This is the characteristic because of which he is a hero and is admired by all. This reveals the soft spot and gentle side of his character (Connolly 32). Odysseus’ story is mostly about his fighting and battles with monsters and other people to save himself and his family. However, these traits are not seen in heroes of today as open wars are not anymore common (Nortwick 31). Heroes have to use their intellect and imagination to

Monday, September 23, 2019

Video Project Reflection Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Video Project Reflection Paper - Essay Example In our case, the whole concept of professionalism boarded on respect, both for other members as well as for oneself. The task and the entire project were daunting, and it took a toll on everyone’s schedules; without self-respect, we would not manage to get everything going within the stipulated timeframe. Fortunately, most of us were extremely focused and aligned with the project’s requirements. As such, we exhibited a great deal of professionalism with respect to the expedition. However, a little lack of professionalism still surfaced, at some point some would not complete their duties in time, but with the help of others, they were successful in the end. On the same note, members were highly respectful and patience with regards to the opinions of other members. Each opinion, regardless of how wrong it may seem, was accepted and later isolated with facts, and in a way that left everyone satisfied. In any situation where more than one person is involved, conflicts of interest are bound to arise. Likewise, our team had to struggle with conflicts resulting from different points of view. Working in a team is never an easy task; everyone has their opinions, all which have to be harmonized and integrated with the overall objective of the project (Schon 9). On this note I found myself in a tight corner- most of the time having to deal with a mixture of feelings. From the onset of the project, I felt somewhat awkward; some members seemed to dislike the tasks they were allocated. Furthermore, the team had to evaluate all the different opinions given by the members. As is not enough, the introverted team members who rarely contributed to the discussions felt out of place, and somehow unrecognized. To contain the conflict that could probably blow out of proportion, everyone was required to contribute each time a motion popped up. The collectively, each proposal was evaluated in a more c omprehensive and inclusive

Sunday, September 22, 2019

All of our Choices are Predetermined Essay Example for Free

All of our Choices are Predetermined Essay The Universe appears to be governed entirely by laws, studies of physics seem to show that atoms follow an extremely predictable pattern of cause and effect. This presents a difficult problem for philosophy; if all physical matter is governed by the laws of cause and effect, and we ourselves are comprised of physical matter, how could it be so that any choices we make could be seen to be free? The suggestion that our choices are set out by cause and effect is known as Determinism. Philosophers such as Ted Honderich have argued for determinism and for the consequences that it cancels out free will. It seems insensible to argue that we are not in the least bit determined, and almost all people know from personal experience that people act in a relatively stable and predictable way. For example, if I were to ask my father if he wanted tea or coffee, I would know that he would want coffee based on his love of coffee, and hatred for tea. This preference could not be argued in any way to be a choice made by him, we do not choose what we like, but simply do. Whether our preferences are based on nature or nurture is an ongoing debate, but regardless of the final conclusion, as long as our opinions are based on either of the two options, we would be seen to be determined. Nature is not in our control, neither on the other hand, is nurture. If our personalities are based on environmental or genetic factors and nothing else then our actions are surely determined. This position is extremely convincing and was famously used by Clarence Darrow to prevent two murderers from receiving the death penalty, he argued that they where a product of their upbringing and as such could not be held morally responsible for their actions. This meant, while they could be jailed to prevent threat to society, they could not be punished with the death penalty. The viewpoint of Determinism, while convincing, is by no means universally accepted. The argument seems to go against our intuitions that we are free -although it is notable at this point that our intuitions themselves are philosophically worthless, we cannot argue for an element of truth on the grounds that we feel it is true- and is seemingly incompatible with the view of a God who punishes and rewards his creations with heaven and hell. If our actions are predetermined, then it seems that punishment in hell would be arbitrary. God would simply be creating people in a flawed way, and then punishing them for his poor skills of creation. Needless to say, this viewpoint is not accepted by many Christians and so there have been many arguments for a lack of determinism in philosophy. The belief of Libertarianism, is that we are completely free; in the words of Jean-Paul Sartre I am not free not to be free. Though Sartres beliefs on free will were more assertions than arguments of proofs, he summarises the Libertarian view point perfectly. All our actions are completely freely chosen, our only confinement is that we cannot be confined. Libertarianism has the difficult task of explaining how it is possible to defend non-determined choices in an environment where all things seem to be determined by cause and effect. As already stated, if our personality is held to be nothing but a result of nature of nurture, then determinism must be accepted as a matter of logical consistency. From this, many Libertarians would stipulate the existence of a super-natural element to our personality. For example, if one were to believe in a soul, then it is possible to argue the physical laws of cause and effect have no bearing on our actions. This does seem to contradict fairly obvious observable evidence. Psychology has frequently found causes for human behaviour, and it is difficult to explain the consistency and successes of this particular scientific discipline if we do not accept that our choices are determined in some way. One of the more successful attempts of Libertarianism to discredit Determinism is the pointing to laws of physics that do not seem to obey causality. Heisenbergs Uncertainty Principle shows distinct examples of elements of nature acting randomly, and not due to cause and effect. There are two main criticisms that can be made of this argument; One, that this principle only functions on an minute level, while actual objects such as people still obey determined laws of physics (although science has proven the principle can be amplified to affect people), and; Two, that even where actions random, there would still not be free will, while we would not live in a predetermined environment, we would still live in a (randomly) determined environment. If one was to roll a dice in order to decide the actions a prisoner should take, they would not be considered free by any means. The fundamental flaw of Libertarianism, is that when we examine how it would work, it seems to collapse. As all choices are made according to our personality, a serial killer, is only so because he has a serial killers personality. This statement would suggest determinism and could only be argued against in two ways: Firstly, we could state that the serial killer has no personality, this however, seems nearly impossible to uphold. Without personality, we would have no preferences and without preferences we could not make any choice at all. Asking someone who has no preference of good over evil, or pleasure over pain, to make a moral decision would be rather like asking someone whether they prefer white to white. Without personality, we would not be able to make any choice at all, as no options would appeal to us over others. It could be argued, that decisions can still be made according to rationalism, but as rationalism and logic are consistent discipline this would make our actions even more predictable and un-chosen than determinism suggests. So this argument cannot be used to defend Libertarianism. Secondly, we could suggest that the Serial-Killer was in some way in control of his personality. That he chose his preference of evil over good. This again fails. As we have already stated, choices cannot be made without personality, so to choose a personality we would require a personality for us to choose, this initial personality would determine the personality we chose. We could attempt to argue that this initial personality was chosen, but very soon we would have to give way to infinite regression. With this in mind, Libertarianism and the suggestion that our choices are anything but pre-determined or random, is not only completely incompatible with the current model of physics and psychology, but more importantly is incompatible with choice itself (as choice requires preference, preference designates personality which in turn suggests determinism). Libertarianism is a self defeating system in that it requires an absence of will to prove free will, which would be rendered useless without will. There is also a logical argument against Libertarianism. J.J.C Smart points out that there are two possible states of things, i.e. determinism or indeterminism. Either determinism is true, or indeterminism is true, these exhaust all possible philosophical options. Determinism would prevent a Libertarian view as our choices are predetermined, indeterminism would seem to prevent Libertarian view also, as our choices are random and thus not controlled or free. From this argument, we can see that a Libertarian argument for free will is impossible. It seems undeniable therefore, that all our choices are pre-determined -or in the least part random, whether our choices are in fact pre-determined or random is largely down to physicists to discover, currently it seems to be that we are in fact pre-determined, but this cannot be assured without knowledge of all physics. Even if our choices are not predetermined, what they are not -as has been argued in the course of this essay- is freely chosen, at least according to the viewpoint of free will presented by libertarianism. But what would the effects of this be? Hard determinism would argue that we cannot claim to possess free will in a deterministic environment. The problem with this position seems to be that we have defined free will incorrectly. The view of free-will as indifference, has in the course of this essay been demonstrated as problematic, and if we adopt this view of free-will then hard determinism would seem an agreeable viewpoint, the problem is, that this seems an utterly meaningless way of discussing free will. Free will does not appear to refer to the ability of will to change itself, when we refer to a free lion, we do not mean it is free to change to a tiger or a bird, we simply mean it is free to act according to its nature. It would therefore seem to be more useful to discuss free will in the sense of a will being able to act itself out, we are free if we could have chosen otherwise HAD our will been different. This Compatibilist approach adopted by David Hume seems to allow us to discuss free will in a meaningful way, within what seems to be a predetermined environment.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Managerial development and strategies for Tata Steel Group

Managerial development and strategies for Tata Steel Group Introduction Tata communications formally known as VSNL is one of the chief telecom player in the world of communications, the company has a strong position in the world market. Formed 1985, after taking over VSNL in 2002, the company has overtaken many midsized organizations such as Neotel in south Africa , Teleglobe in Canada United telecom in Nepal. Many of the fortune 1000 companies, service provider and the consumers depend upon the network provided by the Tata communication, encompassing one of the most advanced and largest submarine cable networks, a tier 1 IP network, and connectivity to more than 200 countries across 300 PoPs. TATA Communications serves its customers from offices in 80 cities across 40 countries, reflecting the diversity of the customers and markets we live in and serve. TATA Communications Ltd. is part of the $29 billion TATA group; it is listed on the Bombay stock exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India and its ADRs are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:TCL). I chose this company for my leadership assignment because it is a classic example to true leadership where different cultures are involved and the industry is very dynamic in nature . 1 (a) Leadership: The study of leadership is very important and crucial in the field of any organizational behaviour. Leadership is the ability of a superior to influence the behavior of a subordinate or group and persuade them to follow a particular course of action. Chester Bernard. Qualities of an effective leader: Although there is no set of qualities/traits defined for a real leader but still at TATA comm. A leader is defined who has the following characteristics: Takes initiative. High on ambition. have desire to lead. Is self-confident. Poses analytical abilities. Have knowledge of the process, technology and the industry. High creativity level. Flexible in teaching and learning ways. Theories and models defined for leadership in TATA comm.: There are 3 global theories defined and applied in the co. I worked. 1) Personality Trait theory: As per this theory, leaders stand apart from non-leaders in terms of some personality traits which are unique. One of the traditional old age theory under this was Great person theory which said that leaders might not born with the required leadership attributes but it can be acquired gradually by learning and experience. There is one model and theory under this, which explains this trait theory in more detail. This theory is called Theory X and Theory Y. T.McGregor was in an opinion that managers/leaders tend to make certain assumptions about human nature. These assumptions/views were explained in the theory X and theory Y. As per McGregors Theory X of trait theory the managers are those persons who displays control associated and direction with the exercise of authority, where as Theory Y managers normally display facilitation and integration activity. This theory was very impactful in the management world, even today in TATA Comm. managers are referred as X and Y managers. Model: Leadership Continuum and Theory X and Theory Y 2) Behaviour Theories: The behaviour theories explained the aspects related to the behaviors found in the leaders which take them to effective leadership. There are 4 theories under this. Out of this the managerial Grid is the most applicable to TATA comm. The Ohio States studies. Universities of Michigan studies. The Managerial Grid. Scandinavian studies. The Managerial Grid: This model was developed by Robert Blake and Jane Mouton. This is also called The Leadership Grid which majorly focuses on the parts missed in the early theories. This revolves around production/relationship orientations. The grid is based on the Leaders concern for people (relationships) and production (tasks). As per this the best way to lead and manage people the 9,9 way. The Tri-dimensional Grid: This is one of the approaches of behavioural theories of leadership defined. This talks about 2 main dimensions of the style i.e.: Tasks Orientation: This describes the main effect on the efficiency of the leaders work. Relationship Orientation: This talks about the human relations and the resources in TATA Comm. Change / Effectiveness: This aspect of the theory tells about how effectively the leader can adapt in the changing scenario. 3) Contingency Theories: Also called situational theory. As per this theory the leadership style is not same to all situations. Every leader is expected to analyse the situation and then adapt or apply a style that is best suited for the situation. There are 5 contingency models under this leadership style: Fiedlers contingency model. Hersey and Blanchards situational theory. Leader-member exchange theory. Leadership-participation model. Path goal theory. In TATA Comm.s managerial environment 2 contingency models apply i.e. (a) and (e). Fiedlers contingency model: in this approach a leadership style is apt to the situation as described by the 3 principles below: Leader-member relation: how much is the leader accepted and supported by the group members. Personalities of the leader and subordinates play an important role in this principle. Task Structure: under this it is examined that how the task is structured for the subordinate. To what extent the freedom is given to the group member to accomplish the tasks. Position Power: Its the ability and power of the leader as to how much his power and he himself is accepted in the group. e) Path Goal theory: this theory was coined by Robert House. Under this theory the leader is expected to provide a complete guidelines/coaching to the team members to achieve the objectives of the TATA comm.s goal. The leader defines the goals of the individual and supports them to achieve them in a better an efficient way. Below model describes the entire path goal theory followed at TATA comm. The Path-Goal Model Types of leadership:- Directive leadership Supportive leadership Participative leadership Achievement-oriented leadership Leader effectiveness in influencing subordinates Are matched against To Produce Situational Factors: Æ’Â  Subordinate Characteristics Ability Perceived control of destiny. Æ’Â  Nature of the task Ambiguous Routine Emotional Intelligence: A persons self-awareness, self-confidence, self-control, commitment and integrity, and a persons ability to communicate, influence, initiate change and accept change. (Source: Coleman) Self awareness: A leader needs to do a self assessment in terms of self confidence. Self-regulation: control over self emotions is very necessary for a leader to lead his team. He needs to take responsibility for performance, should be approachable and adaptable to change. Motivation: Self motivated leader is the one who can lead the team and take them to the position where required. Empathy: Its quality of understanding others by being noticed about their feelings, needs and concerns. Social Skills: Handling the situation diplomatically, be an open ear and offer convincing messages, inspire and motivate others to achieve the shared goals. 1 (b) Impact of a range of leadership styles on TATA Comm.s various important functions: The important functions in TATA Comm. are: Product management: This team is responsible introducing new products in the market based on the research done analyzing the completion. The major challenges are faced in terms of pricing the product. A combination of leadership styles fits in this functions is in following ways: The leader here motivates the team by both means i.e. monetary and non-monetary rewards. The outcome of the product team is judged by the revenue generated out of their product. Sales and marketing: This team is responsible for selling the products in the market in the most profitable way. The issue which is faced by this team is the extensive pressure for the numbers. The leaders play an important and crucial role in this function by:- Always being in an energetic style which is contagious to the team. Giving directions to the sales people. Rewarding and recognizing their performance on regular intervals by giving the employee of the month award. Back office for sales: This function is responsible for the entire back office job done after sales. Includes from order login to making reports for performance done by sales team from various regions in the company. The job of this function is very monotonous and thus requires and high level of leadership and motivation. The leaders face a very challenging role in this function. They apply contingency theory to a large extent as to acting differently in differently in different situations. Keep the employees motivated. Keep the employees guided and coshed regularly. CSO (customer service operations): This function is responsible for after service delivery to the customers. They need to function as per the customer issues faced on day to day basis. In telecom industry the main service/product offered are leased lines and voice services. Being so dynamic in nature these services need immediate fix from providers side. Leadership qualities displayed in TATA comm.s CSO function are as below: Path goal theory is used as providing the final goal to be achieved in terms of fixing the circuit for the customer. Team management of the leadership grid 9,9 style impacts by keeping the team in harmony and fixing the circuit or fixing the network laid for the customer. Finance: This function is responsible for all MIS related activities in terms of revenue reporting, fund raising, preparing balance sheet, performance reporting of various LoBs (line of business), etc. Traits theory plays a major role in this function. Leaders find the type x and type y kind of members in the team s defined by the theory X and theory Y. After identifying the types, the leader takes contingency approach to deal to deal with situation and people. 2 (a) Current leadership and managerial requirements at TATA Communications: As leaders and managers at TATA comm. they have a key leadership role in influencing others to achieve success. As an organization and as individuals it is necessary to be able to provide the appropriate balance between leadership and management. The leadership requirements are defined as below: Leaders are required to set and communicate the vision of the organization, department, or group. Leaders need to align the organization to the vision-leaders at TATA Comm. are exceptional who not only create the vision of where they are going but also make sure other see it can help get there. They motivate and inspire others to succeed-they inspire greatness in others. They not only effectively manage change but also are the drivers of change. The Managerial requirements are defined as below: The managers help people cope with everyday- they remove barriers to getting things done and help people solve problems. They need to provide the consistent expectation that need to be achieved and prove stability. They need to monitor work and report on success. They are more of problem solvers and help others focus on the details. They are more tactical- focused on short term planning and everyday business function such as budgeting. Achieving the balance: At TATA Comm. the leadership and management expectations are covered in the following matrix called achieving the balance. All are managers and leaders. They have to focus on the work and focus on the future. It is not one or the other but how they balance their manager hat with that of being a leader. Able to meet todays needs and to predict, respond and often drive the future. Great ideas, energy, innovative. Execution is the challenge. High Leadership Delivers well in stable environment. Slow in adapting to change. In Trouble. Low Low High Management 2 (b): Future requirements of leadership at TATA Comm.: Before we analyze future requirements of leadership I would like to identify some future challenges which are/will be faced in todays generic environment. Information age Changing technology Virtual Organizations Diversity New careers-generation X New psychological contracts Globalization rapid changes in the market places Overtaking of strategies Rapid changes in workplace culture and ways of working Delegation Focusing on Strategic Vs operational activities. Mergers and acquisitions Increasing accountability and regulation The leaders are faced with these challenges on day to day life at work. The leaders need to adapt to these changing conditions both internally and externally. A t TATA Comm. this is done by leaders accepting these changes and adapting different leadership styles to overcome these challenges. For this the conditional leadership style is mostly suited to change roles as per the situation and take the lead. Managers role is generally to stick to the goals set by the leaders to achieve the target and help the team to reach there. They need to cultivate winning relationships with the rest of the functions as well: Boss Other Leaders Boss Peers YOU Peer Peers Team Customer Other teams Your team 3 (a) Proposals for development of leadership: Here i have identified different methods of developing leaders and managers which are followed and implemented in TATA Comm.: Training Courses: At TATA Comm. various trainings are organised round the year to develop and enhance the leadership and managerial qualities in the employees. These training are generally related to enhancing leadership skills. These are organised by the external trainers who are professional in this field. Coaching: Great leaders as coaches, encourage employees to take risk and let them make mistakes and learn from them. They get the most out of every employee and recognise the difference between adding workload and offer growth opportunities. At TATA Comm. the following model is used to decide whom to coach and how much time to devote: Coaching for values and results model Employee B Employee A High Results Employee D Employee C Low Low High Values Mentoring: Mentoring is done on one to one basis in TATA Comm. by the respective managers who play a leaders role at this time. Companies own universities: TATA Comm. have their in-house training centre called as TMTC (TATA management and training centre). This is separate entity in TATA group responsible for various training and development programs for TATA employees. Time management and delegation: Mangers do a proper time management and delegation of work to the subordinate employees as they grow in their leadership ladder. They do take care of the transition traps. 3 (b,c). The methods used and described above result in the 3 main/core expectations from leaders at TATA Comm.: Leading the business Leading the results. Leading the People. Leadership of results: Drive for results: High energy professionals who play to win. Institutionalize stretch as a way of life. Laser sharp focus on execution. Constantly evolves and applies appropriates benchmarks and dashboard to calibrate results. Customer Focus: Lives customer centricity in judgement and behavior. Collaborates with customers to add value. Strives to achieve leadership for TCL in its targeted segments by developing compelling and sustainable value propositions. Timely decision making: Demonstrates the ability to ensure that decision making is clear, timely and taken at the appropriate level. Innovation management: Demonstrates ingenuity and creativity. Champions and steers business innovations. Leadership of Business: Managing Vision and purpose: Displays the ability to think through the future creating a vision factoring in opportunities and threats in terms of technology, competitors, regulations, suppliers, partners and customer buying behaviour. Ability to effectively communicate and get shared ownership on the vision to motivate stakeholders. Dealing with ambiguity: Is able to juggle multiple conflicting priorities. Is comfortable living, leading and managing in an environment of constant and rapid change. Communicates effectively to address ambiguity. Strategic capability: Capability to identify opportunities globally with internal and external constituents. Is able to align short term with long term strategy. Plans contingencies. Factors in CSR appropriately. Business Acumen: Displays financial acumen and bottom line centricity. Ability to steer business proactively anticipating market developments. Optimizes resources and creates sustainable value. Leadership of people: Interpersonal effectiveness: Ability to work vertically, horizontally and diagonally. Fosters a network of collaborators. Ability to factor in ones own work style while working with others. Is able to inspire and manage knowledge workers. Building effective teams: Is effective in a cross cultural and multi functional environment. Enables and empowers others by creating context and an environment of shared ownership of vision. Displays ability to zoom in and out at need. Inspires performance People Development: Grows and develops others. Stimulates and supports a learning culture. Reviews organizational capability and fosters talent. Build future capability. Withstanding pressure: Handles demands of operational conflict and complex systems. Is able to optimize stretch with work life balance and human element at the work place. Uses motivational techniques to deliver enhanced performance.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Child Abuse: Social Problem Definition and Analysis Essay -- Child Abus

Social Problem Definition and Analysis INTRO: Child abuse and neglect are a serious problem in the United States. Every day, many children’s well-being and safety are harmed by the physical, sexual, and emotional abuse and neglect that their parents and caregivers inflict upon them. DEFINITION: There have been and currently are numerous definitions of what constitutes child abuse and neglect and they vary across time and space. Up until the 1880’s, children were the property of their families and, as such, it was only up to the families to decide how to care for them and whether they would live or die. Today, although it is recognized that parents and caregivers have the right to raise their children according to their own views and beliefs, when those views and beliefs come in conflict with the protection of children from harm or access to basic needs, society has the right to intervene for the welfare of the minors. In the United States, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) provides the most basic and universal definition of child abuse and neglect. Under this definition, abuse is â€Å"any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker that results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or exploitation† and neglect is â€Å"an act or failure to act that presents an imminent risk or serious harm†. Under this definition, a child is anyone under eighteen years old who is not emancipated. Although there is a main federal definition of child abuse and neglect, other more in-depth definitions exist within states that, while having variation within them, also share some commonalities. Within these commonalities, child abuse and maltreatment is separated into 4 categories: physic... ...Child Abuse and Neglect. (2008, April). . Child Welfare Information Gateway. National Child Abuse Statistics | Childhelp. (n.d.). Web. 21 March 2015. http://www.childhelp.org/pages/statistics National Network to End Domestic Violence | Family Violence Prevention & Services Act. (n.d.). Web. 18 March 2015. http://www.nnedv.org/policy/issues/fvpsa.html PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT: POLICY DIRECTIONS FOR THE FUTURE. (2001). . Washington, DC: U.S. Government. PROTECTING CHILDREN, STRENGTHENING FAMILIES: REAUTHORIZING CAPTA. (2008). . Washington, DC: U.S. Government. Summary of Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003 (CAPTA Reauthorization). (n.d.). Web. 12 March 2015. http://www.naswdc.org/advocacy/issues/letters/070103_abuse.asp The Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003. (2003, June 25). . Children's Bureau.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Parallels between The Movie, The Matrix and Platos Allegory Of The Cav

Parallels between The Movie, "The Matrix" and Plato's Allegory Of The Cave In Book VII of The Republic, Plato tells a story entitled "The Allegory Of The Cave." He begins the story by describing a dark underground cave where a group of people are sitting in one long row with their backs to the cave's entrance. Chained to their chairs from an early age, all the humans can see is the distant cave wall in from of them. Their view of reality is soley based upon this limited view of the cave which but is a poor copy of the real world. In addition to the chained people, there are other people in the cave. Plato refers to them as the puppet-handlers and they are the ones holding those in the cave captive. (It is important to realize that the prisoners do not realize this--in fact, the prisoners do not even realize that they are being held captive since this existence is all they have ever known.) Walking behind the prisoners, the puppet-handlers hold up various objects found in the real world. Due to a fire that is burning the mouth of the cave, the prisoners are able to see the objects and each other only as distorted, flickering shadows on the cavern wall in front of them. Unfortunately, the prisoners can not see the actual objects or the puppet-makers because they are unable to turn their heads. From childhood, "...their legs and necks [have been] in bonds so that they are fixed, seeing only [what is] in front of them.... As Plato goes on to later explain, "the truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images." The movie, "The Matrix," parallels Platos's Allegory Of The Cave in a number of ways. Similar to the prisoners of the cave, the humans trapped in the matrix (the cave) only see what the machines (the modern day puppet-handlers) want them to see. They are tricked into believing that what they hear in the cave and see before them is the true reality that exists. Furthermore, they accept what their senses are telling them and they believe that what they are experiencing is all that really exists--nothing more. However, Neo is forced to face a painful truth when he is removed from the pod that has kept him trapped in the virtual reality of the matrix. Neo discovers that what he has been presented with his entire life is only reflections, or merely shadows of the truth. This theme is carried throughout the movie as we see ... ...yone to take them out of the cave. They would fight to stay in the cave because it is the only world they have ever known and it is where they feel safe. In "The Matrix," Cypher kills several people in his quest to go back to the matrix (the cave). Morpheus tells Neo the same thing in regard to the humans still plugged or trapped in the world of the matrix. "You have to understand, most of these people are not ready to be unplugged [forced out of the matrix--the cave]. And many of them are so inert, so hopelessly dependent on the system that they will fight to protect it." Society's Role In Our Lives In conclusion, Plato's story of the cave brings up many philosophical points and most importantly, addresses the issue of society's role in our lives. To some degree, we are all influenced by the thoughts and actions of others; however, at the same time, we have the ability to question, draw our own conclusions, and ultimately make our own choices. As Trinity tell Neo, "The Matrix can not tell you who you are." By being courageous enough to turn around and take the red pill, we, just like Neo and the Freed Man, are making the first step towards personal independence.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Banking Concept of Education and The Achievement of Desire Essay

The Banking Concept of Education and The Achievement of Desire Education is a topic that can be explored in many ways. Education is looked at in depth by both Richard Rodriguez in his essay, â€Å"The Achievement of Desire†, and by Paulo Freire in his essay, â€Å"The ‘Banking’ Concept of Education.† After reading both essays, one can make some assumptions about different methods of education and exactly by which method Rodriguez was taught. The types of relationships Rodriguez had with his teachers, family and in life were affected by specific styles of education. Based on Freire’s essay, â€Å"The ‘Banking’ Concept of Education†, there are two types of education styles. We will use these educational styles to look at how they affected Rodriguez’s relationships. The first type is referred to as a â€Å"banking† education. In this type of education, information is â€Å"deposited† into students by their teachers. â€Å"Education thus becomes an act of depositing, in which the students are the depositories and the teacher is the depositor. Instead of communicating, the teacher issues communiquà ©s and makes deposits which the students patiently receive, memorize, and repeat† (Freire 213). In this method of education, according to Freire, students never think critically or develop ideas. The second type of education is labeled â€Å"problem-posing†. Freire makes it very clear that he is an advocate of the â€Å"problem-posing† method of education. He believes in encourages communication and better comprehension of what the students are learning. â€Å"Yet only through communication can human life hold meaning†¦the teacher cannot think for his students, nor can he impose his thought on them† (Freire 216). Freire argues that the only real form of educatio... ... that a â€Å"banking† education is not the better choice for obtaining an education. He does not present both options and allow or encourage the reader to form their own opinions. The style of his writing is direct and straightforward as opposed to analytical. By analyzing Freire’s essay, one can assume that Freire received a â€Å"banking† education based on the way he has written his essay. This is another example of how the style of education you receive affects your life and relationships. Bibliography: Works Cited Freire, Paulo. â€Å"The ‘Banking’ Concept of Education.† Ways of Reading. Ed. David Bartholomae and Anthony Petrosky. 4th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 1996 211-223. Rodriguez, Richard. â€Å"The Achievement of Desire.† Ways of Reading. Ed. David Bartholomae and Anthony Petrosky. 4th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 1996. 566-585.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Autonomous Jumping-Microrobots Essay

1.1 Background of the study Despite their relative simplicity, modern day mobile robots capture the imagination by offering mobility in robust and controllable packages. Each of these robots is relatively large and works alone or requires a human operator. Science fiction novels have long imagined very small robots working by themselves or in groups to do the same tasks of a larger robot, or even accomplishing jobs much larger robots would find impossible. In The Diamond Age, Neal Stephenson describes microscopic robots used for surveillance and inherent in everyday life. A great deal of progress has been made in the decades since Feynman’s speech, but microrobots still have a long way to go to reach the fantastic capabilities attributed to them in fictional works and Feynman’s imagination. Even the term ‘microrobot’ is not well defined. The autonomous mobile microrobots in this dissertation are defined as robots with dimensions on the order of millimeters and feature sizes on the order of microns. They carry power and control on-board for autonomy and their mobility allows them to move through a specified (and preferably arbitrary) environment. At this size, even mobility proves difficult. Ants and other insects can easily crawl over obstacles, but it is much more difficult for robots to do so, even at larger size scales. To overcome the limitation of leg length, the microrobots of this dissertation are designed to jump over obstacles instead.

Monday, September 16, 2019

The Need for Information Security Management to Medium Size

The Need for Information Security Management for Small to Medium Size Enterprises ICT 357 Information Security Management Leong Yuan Zhang 31741147 Trimester 1 Murdoch University Contents Abstract2 Introduction2 Justifying The Need for Sound Information Security in Any Organisation2 Linking Business Objectives with Security3 Incident Response Management and Disaster Recovery4 Mobile Device Security Managment5 Biometric Security Devices and Their Use6 Ethical Issues in Information Security Management7 Security Training and Education7Defending Against Internet-Based Attacks8 Industrial Espionage and Business Intelligence Gathering9 Personnel Issues in Information Security9 Physical Security Issues in Information Security10 Cyber Forensic Incident Response10 Conclusion11 References11 Abstract Small to Medium Size Enterprises (SMEs) contribute greatly to the economy in many countries despite the many challenges that they face. Lesser budgeting, resource planning and time management are j ust some of the limitations that they might encounter.Comparing this to a larger enterprise or government body, SMEs seems to have different approaches with regards to information security, sometimes understating the importance due to the constraint mentioned. This paper aims to study the issues relating to introduction and implementation of info security regimes in SMEs compared to larger organisations. Introduction Small and medium enterprise are defined by the number of personnel working for the company, around the upper limit of 250 to the lower of 50. They usually lack resources, competencies and management to implement strategies externally and internally for their operations.This paper will focus on the implementation of information security regimes of SMEs and provide a comparison to large enterprises. The paper explores the multiple categories of information security, attempt to list the disadvantages faced by SMEs and how sometime large enterprises are unable to match a SM E in the capability to respond to security threats Justifying The Need for Sound Information Security in Any Organisation The internet age brought upon new challenges to the business world, both SMEs and large organisation are continuously investing substantial resources to secure their presence on the internet.With increasingly virtualized business networks and expanding corporate ecosystem, more information have been created or converted into digital format. Digitalized information can be saved in different storage devices and transmitted over a plethora of interconnected network both internally and externally (Radding, 2012). Understandably, crime and security threats to information are becoming more commonplace as the reliance on Internet in business activities increase .Threats such as hackers, business competitors or even foreign governments can employ a host of different methods to obtain information from any organisation (Symantec). Yet no effective business would totally is olate themselves from using digitalized info to prevent such incidents; competitiveness or success of these organisations is linked to right information delivered on time. At its worst erroneous info may result in serious loss of potential earnings and damage to the organisation's â€Å"brand†(Juhani Anttila, 2005).A significant element of information security are the cost and personnel expertise required with the designing, development and implementation of an effective security system. There is a need for major investment to be invested to build and maintain reliable, trustworthy and responsive security system (Anderson, 2001). Since most SMEs tend to have to operate under tight budgeting, extreme limited manpower and many different needs competing for limited supply of resources, thus placing information security down the priorities list (Tawileh, Hilton, ; Stephen, 2007).Additionally, the lack of awareness to the negative consequences of info security issues and threats a nd the perception of less strict regulatory compliance requirements, information and communications infrastructure within these SMEs remain highly unsecured. Despite that, most organisations do at least have some form of basic security in the form of anti-virus softwares. Other types of security software like firewall or authentication software/hardware are considerably less popular; perhaps due to the additional complexity of having to install and configure them for the organisation usage (ABS, 2003).Linking Business Objectives with Security Security can impact a company's profitability in both positive or negative ways. It fully depends on how it is being controlled, too little will not be enough while too much may cause bottlenecks within the company internal processes. One example would be background checks on possible new employees. At times, the duration of the check may take longer than the period of employment, especially when hiring temp staff to cover short term. In their book, Christian Byrnes and Paul E.Proctor argues that to eliminate the last 20% of risk that might occur would inversely required 80% more money to implement which can be seen in Figure 1. Figure 1 It is common practice in large organisations to organise computer security around technologies, with a dedicated department running the show alongside the IT department. However computer security should be more business oriented as it is easier to achieve the security targets if good business practices are being followed. For SMEs, it is also far easier to utilise xisting employees who specialize in specific business roles to take up security positions. In the same book, Christian Byrnes and Paul E. Proctor also provided a table which list down the common security roles and the ideal personnel to handle it: Table 1 Linking security with business visions is also important as it would allow for better persuasion to the top managements to approve or push through with security purchases, mast er plans or policy changes. To achieve this, the motion put forth must undergo a 5 step structured framework – assess, analyse, strategize, align and communicate.Assess the company's current and future security role so as to achieve a good understanding of the current security model. Details on the security capabilities within the employees, processes and current technologies should be documented properly for the next step to be carried out with more accuracy. After collecting the raw data, using analytical tools and method to conduct a security gap analysis will show the differences between the current security model and the preempted requirements. With a clear overview of what needs to be do, next phase planning can be done to piece together to form a viable and strong strategy.Executives and managers at all levels must understand the new steps that are to be undertaken for the new strategy. Such communications may be more effective in SMEs than larger organisations as the members of the security planning may be key personnel that are required to participate rather than a separate IT security team (PricewaterhouseCooper). Incident Response Management and Disaster Recovery Incident response management is the process of managing and responding to security incidents. As organisations may encounter plenty of incidents throughout the day, it is important that incident responses are carefully anaged to reduce wastage of manpower and resources. The most appropriate level of response should be assigned to on any security incident to maximize efficiency; there is no merit in involving senior management in a response to an incident that has minimal impact on business (BH Consulting, 2006) Disaster recovery is the process used to recover access to an organisation's software, data and hardware that are required to resume the performance of normal, critical business functions. Typically this will happen after either a natural disaster or manmade disaster. (Disaste r Recovery)Incident response management used to be separated into different entities, natural disasters , security breaches and privacy breaches were handled by risk management, information security department and legal department. This increased the cost of incident management and reduce utilization of existing resources and capabilities. By merging the 3 into one overarching incident management methodology specified with an incident response team and a charter, reduced cost and efficient usage of resource can be achieved (Miora, 2010) In larger organizations, incident response team may contain both employees and third party observers from vendors.External vendors may provide the expertise to manage an incident that could be overwhelming to the current employees. This however may not be feasible for SMEs due the financial constraints. Most likely, the incident response management team would be formed using current employees and a senior management personnel would lead the team. The response team would be the ones who do the planning scenario for each different types of incident and the type of responses required, ensure that clear processes and procedures are in place so that responses to incident are coherent.Communications between members are typically standardized be it for large organisations or SMEs; method of contact such as emails and non-email like phone calls or messages are used to inform team members (BH Consulting, 2006). Disaster recovery extremely important as well, more so for SMEs. A survey from US Department of Labor provided an estimation that around 40% of business never reopen after a disaster and of the remaining around 25% will close down within 2 years (Zahorsky). Unfortunately, not many SMEs have a disaster recovery plan in place to protect themselves.This is due to the idea that disaster recovery is costly and requires alot of resources and expertise to put in place one. This is true to a certain extend as large organisations normally spend amounts to put in place backup servers and remote hot recovery sites. However with increasing cloud-based technologies and availability of server virtualization, disaster recovery can become affordable even for SMEs. Up and coming cloud solution and renting space in secure data center via colocation are some of the solutions that SMEs can consider.Even without any or little IT staff, by paying the colocation provider they can assist to manage the setup and maintenance services (Blackwell, 2010). Mobile Device Security Managment The increasing sophisticated mobile devices together with high bandwidth network is creating a tremendous security management challenge for CIOs and other IT professionals. Proprietary and confidential data can now be moved outside of the secure perimeter of the enterprise and onto mobile devices that can be brought anywhere in the world by employees.These devices have a variety of data communication and storage technologies, such as email/PIM synchron ization software, infrared data transmission, Bluetooth ® and removable data storage. As a result, it is easy for mobile devices to become strongholds of enterprise information (Good Technology, 2009). Of course with that brings additional threats to an organisation as mobile devices are susceptible to attacks as well. In both SMEs and large organisations, there is a definite need to regulate the use of mobile devices to prevent information leakage.As they can used in a variety of locations outside the organization’s control, such as employees’ homes, coffee shops, hotels, and conferences, this makes them much more likely to be lost or stolen than other devices, so their data is at increased risk of compromise (Souppaya & Scarfone, 2012). The most extreme application of mobile device management can be see within government bodies, specifically in the defense sector where secondary functions of such devices such as cameras are to be disable. However, this method would not be easily applied to SMEs as employees may find it to be too restrictive.Rather, having a clear policy on the usage of mobile devices and prohibiting employees from attaching their devices to the workstations would be a better option to enforce. Biometric Security Devices and Their Use Biometric devices identifies an individual through physical or behavioral characteristics such as fingerprints, palm geometry or retina. It is extremely secure as it cannot be borrowed, stolen or forgotten (Liu & Silverman, 2001). The table below shows the various type of biometric devices and their advantages/disadvantages:The table, as seen in the report from Dell explains clearly some of the limitations of biometric devices. Size for example must be taken into consideration as well, hand geometry scanning devices are bulky and therefore not suited for say unlocking your workstation as compared to using it to unlock a door. However, not many organisations are adopting biometric as part of their security plan. Those that do use biometric are mostly geared towards physical security of secure areas where access are to be restricted.Conventional authentication methods are still much preferred with regards to virtual access like emails, workstations and applications. The higher cost of using biometric devices as a security solution is also another concern for SMEs that wishes to utilise them. They would need to evaluate their nature of business, how and where biometric would fit in to maximize value for money. Ultimately, aligning the need for biometric security devices as a security solution to business objectives is a must, else cheaper alternatives would have to be examine and evaluated instead.Ethical Issues in Information Security Management Some professions such as law and medicine have in place a codified set of ethics that its practitioners are required to honor to protect the privacy of their clients. Violations are dealt with in the harshest possible terms, and even minor lapses can result in significant penalties. For IT however, there are no such codification. Technology professionals generally abide by personal codes of conduct and are essentially self-policing. Additionally, technology raises complexities that go beyond typical questions of what’s right or what’s fair.Areas such as data access and capture, processing speed, tracking and monitoring, and job redesign are just a few examples of IT capabilities with ethical considerations. (Relkin, 2006) Both SMEs and large organisations have to be able to cope with ethical issues such as privacy of personal information, intellectual property and cyber crime. In an effort to safeguard company secrets, many employees can be exposed to electronic or other forms of surveillance. Email screenings and monitoring internet usages are just some of the methods that can be employed.There is a need to clearly define policies that involve such practices and the boundary must be draw and commu nicated to all employees so as to safeguard the organisation from breaching privacy laws and from being sued by employees. (Tiwary, 2011) Security Training and Education Security training and education is becoming increasing important for employees due to emergence of end-user computing as an critical component of information security. A typical end-user has access to most vital information that an organisation has in its possession.They have knowledge of how protection systems put in place to secure information work and a small amount of more ingenious users may even know how to circumvent those systems. Most users however lack the knowledge that is required to help protect the organisation information and it is in this area that they should be educated in order to make better decisions when facing with threats and vulnerabilities that can be discovered during the course of work. (Hight, 2005) Security Education, Training and Awareness program otherwise known as SETA is designed to set the security tone to the employees of an organisation.Making it part of a new employee's orientation will ensure that all employees know and understand the reasons of the security policies that are in place at any organisation. Implementation of such a program can be done at any organisation, requiring only properly written security policies and outlining guidelines that have to be followed. A good security program ensures that end user mistakes can be reduced and that employees understand the consequences of their actions when using their work stations or insert unauthorised USB devices into them. Defending Against Internet-Based AttacksWith an increasing reliant upon the internet, internet based attacks have been slowly increasing. Organsations that has a presence over the internet or utilizes web based technologies are more prone to such as attacks. Internet worms, viruses, malware and distributed denial of service are just some of the types of threats that could occur. Orga nisations should look to prevent such incidents from occurring by securing applications that are made available over the internet and securing organisation infrastructures exposed over the internet (Klein, 1999).To carry out an attack, the attacker must first obtain sufficient control over a target system. They would most likely do some reconnaissance on the target, performing a number of scans to looked for weaknesses. Areas like remote accessible network services in default OS configurations, sendmail, sshd, RPC and Windows file sharing are some of the services exploited. Ports that are unsecured, memory handling, targeting applications like web browsers and plug ins are also some of the methods that attackers can use.The web browsers in particular are seeing a rising trend of being targeted as browsers are extremely prone to having exploitable vulnerabilities. The internet distribution model also allows attackers to attack a user's web browser without even directly connecting to the cilent; planting malicious coding at specific websites where the user normally visits will achieve the aim as well (Moshchuk, 2000). Prevention of such attacks are extremely important, firewall and anti viruses are just the tip of an iceberg when it comes to methods that can protect an organisation's information.Many firewalls being sold today are considered application aware and can understand protocols and commands that are being used. This allows them to determine whether or not incoming traffic to any applications or network services are malicious or not. Properly configured application aware firewall would be able to prevent common attacks thru telnet, SSH, HTTP, FTP, SMTP, SIP and applications which can be vulnerable. Additionally Intrusion Detection systems (IDS) and Intrusion Prevention systems (IPS) can also be used against application or network based attacks.When paired together with an application aware firewall, some intrusion detection systems have the ability to t hwart off attackers by talking directly to the firewall to block the source IP address. There are no right or wrong solutions to defending an organisation's network, it all boils down to which products would be suited to the organisation's needs. SMEs typically would use more of off the shelf type of applications and intrusion detection prevention system (IDP) would be a better fit for such applications.Off the shelves applications uses alot of common protocols such as FTP, HTTP etc that should adhere to RFC standards and IDP is configured to block malicious or traffic that does not comply with RFC standards automatically. For larger organisations, they tend to have third party or home grown applications which developers may or may not have complied with RFC standards, IDP solutions may not have much of an effect for them. Industrial Espionage and Business Intelligence GatheringEvery organisation in the world will have collected some form of information regarding their competitors, through market scanning, industrial profiling or even direct hire of employees from their competitors. Such intelligence gathering are definitely part and parcel activities used for market research and benchmarking. However, there are uncertain boundaries separating competitive intelligence gathering and industrial espionage. The laws in place at times are unable to set such limits and it would seem reasonable to define industrial espionage as intelligence practices of questionable ethics instead (Crane, 2005).Be that as it may, industrial espionage is a very critical threat against SMEs. A succesfully SME breaking in saturated markets would have attained some form of breakthrough in order to stand out. Regardless of whether it is a formulae or business process, competitors would wish to obtain such knowledge in order to raise their own profiles. To safeguard their secrets, SMEs would have to ensure that their security system in place are adequate and their employees educated on the topic. SMEs have to identify that information that would critically harm the company and the value of such information to the company and its competitors.Access to such â€Å"crown jewels† must be controlled and employees must be educated on security awareness programs. Despite that, employees are still the strongest and weakest link. Humans tend to react better to carrots than sticks and most of the time competitors would aim for that. Hiring professionals to perform social engineering, blackmailing, lure of monetary gains are hard to prevent. (Podszywalow, 2011) Personnel Issues in Information Security Human related security issues are extremely problematic and complex in organizations.They involve all the individuals who make up the organization, from top-level managers to clerical staff. It is crucial that the top management recognize that for security management to ultimately succeed, not only the technical dimension must be taken into account, the human aspect of secur ity must not be ignored as well. People issues within an organisation can have an impact on it's ability to effectively manage security. Uncommitted and uninvolved senior managers; unqualified, untrained and careless employees; former disgruntled employees and organizational members’ resistance to change are just some of the potential issues ertaining to human resource that might occur. Hence, to achieve security effectiveness, these issues must be addressed as a whole (Goh, 2003) For SMEs, when hiring an new employee, the employment contract should expressly emphasize the employee's duty to keep certain types of information confidential both during and after the employee's tenure. The language and structure of the contract should be made clear so as to prevent any potential misunderstanding or any loopholes that can be exploited. The employee must sign the agreement before he or she begins to work.The contract can also be included with an employee's personal file to keep tra ck. Even when exiting, care must be taken to ensure that documents, records and other information concerning the company proprietary assets in the possession of the leaver must be surrendered and returned to the company. Conducting a exit interview will help to refresh the terms of employment agreement and trade secret law with the leaver. The employee should be acknowledge in writing that he or she is aware of the obligations and will not disclose any trade secrets of the former employer.Physical Security Issues in Information Security Physical security breaches can sometimes be more devastating than technical breaches like worm attacks. The loss of data, loss of availability either from systems being shut down or by bomb or arson must be considered when dealing with physical security. With the invention of easily concealable USB drives or bombs, coupled with unauthorized access is makes physical security becoming more important. Data transfer speeds have increased as when, allowin g for transferring of a large amount of data in a relativity short period of time.As with any other security planning, physical security must be included to ensure that the risk of above mentioned are reduced. Access to areas such as server rooms or routers or where documents are kept and archived must be control, just locking the doors doesn't seems to be enough now. Access control cards, biometrics system can ensure that only authorised personnel be allowed in. Securing the personal computer of employees, especially if they are using laptop is equally important. Laptop locks and OS hardening to prevent unauthorized usage of USB devices are not allow (Giannoulis & Northcutt, 2007).Cyber Forensic Incident Response Computer forensics is the science of acquiring, retrieving, preserving, and presenting data that has been processed electronically and stored on computer media. When paired with incident response, their job becomes more challenging. They would have to find where a breach o ccurred, plug the hole, then proceed to get the affected server or servers back into service, and then if possible, gather evidence on the intruder for further action and analysis (Daniel & Daniel, 2009)SMEs unfortunately with their limited resources may have to compromise. instead of having a dedicated team to deal with incident response, they might consider getting current employees involved within IT such as server, networking or on site support engineers to carry out such a role. If they have extra budget however, it would work to their benefit if they send their resposne team for courses pertainning to cyber forensic. The additional knowledge will allow the response team to perform more effectively should a threat occur ConclusionSmall and medium enterprises typically faces the same the type of threats that will happen to larger organisations, however their approach and response to the same threat may differ greatly due to the limited resources; human, technical, physical avail able to them. SMEs will have to sometimes think out of the box and be very careful in planning resources for security within the company. The type of hardware, software used for security may be similar to larger organisations however, the setup and configuration may be miles apart as well. SMEs, will have be extra vigilant against information security threats.References (n. d. ). 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