Predjudice and Discrimination as a Part of Our Cognitive...

Predjudice and Discrimination as a Part of Our Cognitive Social Being Prejudice and Discrimination are an all to common part of our cognitive social being, but many social psychologists believe that it can be stopped, but only with the help of social conditioning. In this writing I hope to explain and point out some key terms and points made in my assigned chapter. Prejudice refers to a special type of attitude, usually something negative toward any group or ethnicity that is not of ones own social class. Attitude plays a very important role in ones cognitive framework, in that it forces our minds to process information on certain social groups differently making a cognitive earmark for that individual group†¦show more content†¦Everything in our society was segregated, every group had their own facilities and were not to be used by members of a different group. At this time people felt less remorse for expressing openly racist views. They would state that they were against school desegregation , that they viewed minority groups as inferior in various ways , and that they would consider moving away if persons belonging to these groups took up residence in their neighborhood(Ch.6 Pp.215, Sears 1988). These days many people wouldnt dare express these views because of the way social conditioning has made it so that the person would be looked down upon by his peers. New racism opposed to the old fashion kind is far more subtle these days because of the enlightenment of our time, yet it still exists. Some examples of this modern racism are that of Tokenism and reverse discrimination. Tokenism is the performance of trivial or small scale positive actions for people who are the target of prejudice (Ch.6 Pp.216) These are just ideological terms used today to explain social differences. One of the oldest explanations for prejudice in our society is that of the realistic conflict theory. According to this view, prejudice stems from competition among social groups over valued commodities or opportunities. In short, prejudice develops out of the struggle over jobs, adequate housing , good schools, and other desirable out comes

The Frontier Of American History - 1116 Words

In the Significance of the Frontier in American History, Frederick Jackson Turner discusses the understanding of the West as a concept. Turner’s claims included that the expansion into the frontier fueled individualism, stimulated democracy and nationalism, and widened the opportunity of advancement. In the census of 1890, the frontier no longer had a place in the report because the previously unsettled areas had been broken into areas of settlement. Turner uses the definition of two people per square mile of land as the frontier’s official closing, and no longer a point of historical relevance. In the essay, Turner points out the differences in America’s expansion with other nations. Other nations developed in a confined area, then†¦show more content†¦The problem developed from excess credit of one of the field’s founders, Frederick Jackson Turner. Although Turner’s writings left out large groups of people, many Americans viewed Turnerâ⠂¬â„¢s thesis as Western history. When Turner’s ideas began to be criticized, that something had gone wrong in Western history, not Turner’s thesis. The view of Western history slowly began to change. Turner recognized the national significance of the frontier, so abandoning him would threaten the place of the West in American history (Limerick). In 1984, American historian Patricia Limerick attended a history conference. All of the focus of the history of America was on the revolutionary war in the East. This inspired her to write Legacy of Conquest. Limerick wanted to reclaim what other historians have said, critique Turner, but not throw the idea of the west away. Her thesis argues the West as a place of property and cultural dominance. Limerick defines the West as a place of conquest and diversity. Limerick stresses the West as a place rather than a process, but didn’t draw exact borders of the region. Limerick deemphasizes the â€Å"end† of the frontier; she argues that the West was an important meeting ground for a diversity of languages, cultures, and religions, including minorities Turner left out. This blending of diversity in the West is anShow MoreRelatedThe Frontier Of American History1567 Words   |  7 PagesThe Frontier in American History was one of the most famous essays by Frederick Turner in the nineteenth century. In this essay, Turner expressed his thoughts about how the frontier set up and created unique American characteristics. He explained the idea of American exceptionalism, which states that America is different than other nations in the world. The development of America included many significant events, and our nation s identity was made up by many factors, not just only the frontierRead MoreThe Significance of the Frontier in American History1439 Words   |  6 Pagesalong the American frontier? What Turner wants to point out here is that the American West is the most important feature of American history, and of the development of its society. He refers several times to a process of â€Å"Americanization† and we will see that the definition he gives of it is a very peculiar one. He gives a definition of the frontier: â€Å"it lies at the hither edge of free land†, meaning that he considers the Indian territory to be free land. According to him the frontier is the â€Å"meetingRead MoreResponse to Turners Essay on The Significance of the Frontier in American History501 Words   |  3 PagesSignificance of the Frontier in American History Turners The Significance of the Frontier in American History essay presents the primary model for comprehending American history. Turner developed his notions on the uncovering of the 1890 census that the frontier was coming to an end, that the nation had occupied its continental borders. As Turner discusses in his essay, an extensive era of American development approached an ending, but left enduring marks on American societyRead MoreThe Frontiers of American History in Last Child of the Woods by Richard Louv 581 Words   |  3 PagesIn the second chapter of Last Child of the Woods, Richard Louv makes the claim that there have been three frontiers in the course of American history. The first phase was the original frontier, before the Industrial Revolution. This was the time of the prairie schooner, the cowboy, the herds of bison that were thousands strong. This was a rough, hard time, when man and nature were constantly thrown together. There was wilderness to spare, and people were willing to move West to get to it. Read MoreHistory Of The American Western Frontier Through Narratives, Testimonies, And Primary Documents1350 Words   |  6 Pageshistorical books, this book offers a different angle on viewing the history of the American western frontier—through narratives, testimonies, and primary documents that capture the true voices of the Native Americans. Spanning across the 1860s to the 1890s, Dee Brown tells the plight of the Native Americans after their contact with the American settlers and the United States government. The repetitive stories of the Native American groups during the second half of the nineteenth century— the welcomingRead MoreThe Significance Of The Frontier By Frederick Jackson Turner869 Words   |  4 Pages Frederick Jackson Turner s â€Å"The Significance of the Frontier† is, in his eyes, an accurate depiction of America s development since the Colonial Period. However, Turner s Frontier Thesis fails to discuss the involvement of two very specifi c groups of people, groups that certainly had too much of an effect on the progression of the country for him to safely leave out. Native Americans have a pivotal role in America s history, yet Turner s mentions of them in his thesis are extremely limitedRead MoreRediscovering The American Frontier Of The United States882 Words   |  4 PagesRediscovering the American Frontier Humans have always had a sense of curiosity for the unknown and a greedy fascination for individual growth without seeing the repercussions on others. The United States culminates these qualities not only as a first-world country but it can also be seen from the very beginnings of the nation’s history. The philosophies’ of early settlers in the United States was to have equality between the people, however Americans failed to incorporate this ideology of equalityRead MoreFrederick Turner Jackson: Frontier Thesis1136 Words   |  5 Pagesaround him, Turner chose to become a history professor, devoting his entire life to studying American culture/society while teaching at the University of Wisconsin and Harvard. Constantly having the opportunity to study and observe the development of the â€Å"American†, Turner wrote extensively, about which attributes composed and influenced American democracy, societal values, and image. He published an essay, â€Å"The Signi ficance of the Frontier in American History† about these topics in 1893, and presentedRead MoreEssay On Wilderness And The Frontier1421 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"wilderness† and the â€Å"frontier.† Concepts of wilderness and the frontier have greatly shaped the perception of the West. Perceptions of the frontier and wilderness have changed over time; first, Turner’s frontier thesis described the frontier and wilderness an uninhabited land of opportunity; second, new historians challenged Turner and claimed wilderness and the frontier were merely constructs of society; lastly, concepts of the frontier and wilderness expanded past the American West—into space andRead MoreEssay about Turner Thesis Summary653 Words   |  3 PagesTurner Thesis Summary Throughout history society has to go through many changes that not only affect many of the people but also the areas around the transformation. The main point of Fredrick Jackson Turner’s thesis is what the real essence of America is, and how we’re all influenced by the many changes we have to go through. He believes that American history should not be focused on the extension of European enterprise. The society will have to realize that America will have to be emancipated

Animal Rights vs. Human Health †Comparative Essay Free Essays

Jackie Dansky English 1A – 69 David Banuelos March 10, 2011 Animal Rights vs. Human Health Developments of cures, vaccines and treatments for human illnesses have been done through animal testing. Over 25 million animals are tested each year in the United States (Stephanie Ernst, 2008): â€Å"It’s impossible to know exactly how many animals are being used in research because U. We will write a custom essay sample on Animal Rights vs. Human Health – Comparative Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now S. laws do not require scientists to report how many mice, rats, or birds they use† (ASPCA). Animals are used to interpret what medicine effects will do to the human body; they will give the closest results. The real question when it comes to animal experimentation is not if it is wrong or right, but if it is for the better. Kristina Cook poses that animal testing has benefited medicine, while Natasha Bantwal presents that more harm is done than helped. Kristina Cook is an Oxford student in the department of chemistry, and wrote â€Å"Pro-Test: supporting animal testing,† arguments sustaining animal testing for medical uses. Natasha Bantwal is a basic writer and wrote â€Å"Arguments Against Animal Testing,† arguments opposing the usage of animals for experimentation. A very common argument is that animals are being ‘tortured’ when they are being tested on. Cook approaches the issue quickly stating that â€Å"animal rights activists often demonise scientists, pretending that they are sadists who enjoy torturing animals just for the sake of it. There are countless examples of the lengths to which scientists go to minimize the suffering of animals. But the simple point is that scientists are not sadists: they act in the way that they see fit. † (Cook, 2006) However, the arguments are beyond that. They share two common grounds: animal testing has helped scientifically and medically, and that animal testing has been erroneous. Although Cook and Bantwal agree that animal testing has been helpful, they have different approaches and viewpoints on how helpful it really has been. Cook declares that â€Å"vaccines, antibiotics, transplant surgeries, medical devices†¦ and other developments would not be here today if animal testing ad not been used. † (Cook, 2006) As a counterargument, Bantwal asserts â€Å"the most commonly help perception (or rather misconception) of animal testing is that it is necessary for the development of cures, vaccines, and other treatments for human illness. † (Bantwal) Animal rights activists are attempting to discontinue all animal testings. There have been alternatives reported, bu t none can match as much accuracy and precision as animals would. Bantwal uses cancer as an example of ridding animal testing: â€Å"with countless innocent animals, billions of dollars and more than 30 to 40 years being spent on the war against cancer, one would expect concrete results show up if animal experimentation was actually as effective as it is made out to be†¦ Many cancer funds and organizations have claimed that we are now losing the war against cancer because this animal-based cancer research is failing, and it just downright stinks. † (Bantwal) She implies that animals don’t need to be tested on if they can’t even help to find the cure of big illnesses. Cook, unlike Bantwal, looks at the glass half full. She considers all the drugs that have been animal tested in the past that have been successful, and looks forward to the more cures that will be discovered through this type of experimentation. All cures and vaccines are tested on animals, but are animals a reliable source when it comes to vaccines? Bantwal discusses about the undependable basis of animals’ effect on a particular drug compared to a human’s effect. For example, she pronounces that there has been no progress in the cure for AIDS because animals are incapable of getting the AIDS disease. Cook affirms that testing drugs in animal help researchers find the potential dangers and faults it will achieve, and to understand â€Å"the metabolism of drug compounds and consequent effects seen throughout the body. † (Cook, 2006) She states that the alternatives of animal testing, such as a computer generator, won’t be as sufficient. Bantwal states â€Å"[Pro-Animal Testing] believe that if animal experimentation is stopped, then it will be at the expense of life and the human health. (Bantwal) She tries to compensate that obliterating any and all animal testing will not have a big changed impact in the medical field. She then argues that â€Å"it is dangerous and fraudulent to apply data retrieved from one species to another entirely different species. † (Bantwal) Cook does admit that there have been errors in the field. Both Cook and Bantwal use the Thalidomide as an example of rebuttal. It came out in 1956 as a sedative for pregnant mothers to overcome m orning sickness. It was successful in animal testing, and spread around the world in a few years. Unfortunately, it caused birth defects in the womb. Bantwal quotes ‘safety testing’ and states, â€Å"tens of thousands of children who’s mothers had used this drug were born with severe deformities. † (Bantwal) Cook argues that if they had done more testings on animals, that the birth defect would have been detected. She understands that the scientists messed up because they forgot to test prenatal animals. She attacks the animal rights group with: â€Å"animal rights groups confuse an error resulting from an absence of testing with one resulting from conducting tests on animals. (Cook, 2006) Cook believes that they don’t understand what they are arguing. Their example of the Thalidomide is really suggesting to do more animal testing so then it will be more accurate and precise: â€Å"a few more animals, and countless human lives would have been saved. † (Cook, 2006) Overall, animals are continued being used as experiments for all humansâ₠¬â„¢ health. Whether for or against animal testing, everybody has to be appreciative and acknowledge the benefits scientists and animals have brought. It’s like a competition between animals and humans: which race should be protected more? Both Kristina Cook and Natasha Bantwal share their perspectives and only agree upon one thing: animal testing has helped scientists and the medical field. Now, which is more important to you: animal rights or human health? Work Cited: Bantwal, Natasha. â€Å"Arguments Against Animal Testing. † Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web. Web. 06 Mar. 2011. ;http://www. buzzle. com/articles/argument-against-animal-testing. html;. Cook, Kristina. â€Å"Spiked-science | Article | Pro-Test: Supporting Animal Testing. † Spiked: Humanity Is Underrated. 23 Feb. 2006. Web. 06 Mar. 2011. ;http://www. spiked-online. om/articles/0000000CAF94. htm;. Ernst, Stephanie. â€Å"Animal Use and Abuse Statistics: The Shocking Numbers. † Change. org News. 5 Oct. 2008. Web. 05 Mar. 2011. ;http://news. change. org/stories/animal-use-and-abuse-statistics-the-shocking-numbers;. â€Å"11 Facts about Animal Testing | Do Something. † Volunteer | Do Something. ASPCA. Web. 05 Mar. 2 011. ;http://www. dosomething. org/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-animal-testing;. Long, Tony. â€Å"Oct. 1, 1957: Thalidomide Cures Morning Sickness, But †¦ † Wired. com. 01 Oct. 2008. Web. 06 Mar. 2011. ;http://www. wired. com/science/discoveries/news/2008/09/dayintech_1001;. How to cite Animal Rights vs. Human Health – Comparative Essay, Essays

Gender Norm Violation free essay sample

Men have. For example, before receiving my pedicure I called a few friends and family member so, I could obtain their thoughts and views on the subject. I was shocked by the amount of negative criticism that I acquired. I was ridiculed by my closest friends whom I thought would be more accepting. The way that they tried to restore gender role normalcy was by asking if my girl friend was forcing me to attend. After denying the involvement of a woman I was back to square one trying to defend my sexuality. I preached that pedicures were more than Just listening to girl talk your bout what shade of pink to color their toe nails. I even informed, too my narrow minded friends, that pedicures releases stress, makes overall appearance look better, and adds softness to your feet. But the fact was I was fghting a battle that I could not win. We will write a custom essay sample on Gender Norm Violation or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This culture of ours has such an influence on individuals that its tough to construct gender roles that are outside of normalcy. Besides all the criticisms and being called a fag the overall experience was very enjoyable. I did this gender role violation experiment at the nail salon that is located in the Cherry Valley mall. When I as at the nail salon I did not feel as if I was violating any gender role as a man. The employees treated me with a professional attitude that didnt seem to change when confronted by different sexes. While waiting for the cosmetologist to prepare the massage chair and adjust the water temperature. I was able to view the large variety of different colors of nail polish. At this point in time I started to feel uncomfortable about painting my toes any shade of pink. T hats when it hit me, consciously I was aware that I was doing this experiment, basically for a grade. But something inside e said there is no way in hell Im going to walk out of here wearing bitch flops with pink toes. That voice that came deep within me was not a natural instinct. I was not born with this idea that pink toes should only be on the foot of a women. This idea was socially constructed so we can have a fine line between men and women. I believe men and women are more comfortable interacting with each other when this distinction is clearer. In the end, that socially constructed male dominate voice talked me out of the pink and poke-a-doted design and went with a standard clear coat; that nly added a mere shine to my nail. To wrap the pedicure up she ended with a very nice massage that even the manly-est. man would enjoy. To conclude my pedicure, as with most services, was at the cash register. To my knowledge a pedicure was twenty five dollars. Which was the same price listed on the sign behind the register. Come to find out that pedicures for men were five dollars more than for a woman. Struggling to understand what this little Chinese women, which barely spoke any English, was try to explain. What I comprehended was that a mans foot demands more labor then he average female. This was very shocking to me. The fact being, that the only reason I was there was to better understand stereotypes against gender. When I was being victimized by these same sexist stereotypes. In conclusion I believe people need to get past this idea of gender roles giving to us by society. In my opinion people need to develop their own gender identity depending on how they feel not anyone else. Adaption to this idea wont be easy, but I believe that its now In progress. In the past homosexuality wasnt as acceptable as it is today.

Fraud Detection in Banking Transactions free essay sample

The purpose of this document is to detail the description of the Real Time (Active) Fraud Detection in Banking Transactions (FDBT) Project. This document is a key project artifact and is used during the design, construction, and rollout phases. Scope The objective of this project report is to capture the functional and non-functional requirements for the Real Time FDBT project. This report lists out the complete system requirements and design architecture of the project. The requirements contained herein will include, but not be limited to: Capabilities or system functionality – What a system does, to include, but not be limited to: Interfaces (internal and external hardware) Business Rules Data source and destination Exact sequence of operations and the algorithms used in those operations Triggers or stimuli to initiate operations or to force a change in state Error handling, recovery and responses to abnormal situations Validity checks Input/output sequences and conversion algorithms Frequency of use and update Constraints- Limitation imposed on the solution by circumstance, force or compulsion to include, but not be limited to: Design constraints based on TrinucInc IT Standards Control and Governance constraints (internal and external) Non-functional requirements to include, but not be limited to: Performance Requirements, Usability Quality Requirements (audibility, reliability, maintainability, etc. We will write a custom essay sample on Fraud Detection in Banking Transactions or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page ) Business Continuity, Operational Support Security and Control and Training Introduction Background According to the National Check Fraud Center in Charleston, South Carolina, bank fraud alone is a $10 billion a year problem. This is nearly 15 times the $65 million taken in bank robberies annually. The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines fraud as ‘criminal deception; the use of false representations to gain an unjust advantage. Fraud is as old as humanity itself, and can take an unlimited variety of different forms. However, in recent years, the development of new technologies (which have made it easier for us to communicate and helped increase our spending power) has also provided yet further ways in which criminals may commit fraud. As fraud attempts grow in both number and variety, financial institutions are challenged with the need for comprehensive, yet cost effective, risk management solutions. It is our belief that these fraudulent or suspicious financial transactions can be identified, characterized and red-flagged in real-time providing vital information to reduce their occurrences. For e. g. a check deposit followed almost immediately by a cash withdrawal would be a suspicious activity and warrant a red flag to check the customer’s motives. Banking databases with all the transaction information is readily available. We use this information coupled with our business logic to detect fraud and to develop the real time fault detector. Types of bank/financial frauds Check fraud New Account fraud Identity fraud Credit/Debit card fraud ATM transaction fraud Wire fraud Loan fraud Research The research regarding the project was done two fold – Business Issues and Technical research. First step was to identify the various ways in which bank fraud occurs and come up with common sense solutions to them based on our technical knowledge base. Next was to come up with the software architecture with technical decisions on choice of RDBMS, ETL tool and OLAP tool. Business Issues Detailed list of ways fraud occurs and activities that could red flag the transaction as suspicious are (Note: Activities generally pertain to personal banking and not corporate accounts): If check deposit is closely followed by cash withdrawal within say 10 hrs. If transaction type is above a specified number in 48 hours. If active more than one session at the same time. If trying to withdraw more money than the limit in credit. If trying to withdraw more money than the amount in debit. If trying to log on for more than 3 times at once. If any transaction is more than 80% credit limit in 48 hours (one transaction or sum or transactions in the 48 hour period). Deposit activity out of the normal range for any account Invalid Routing Transit numbers Excessive numbers of deposited items Total deposit amounts greater than average Large deposited items masked by smaller deposit transactions The amount xceeds the historical average deposit amount by more than a specified percentage A duplicate deposit is detected Deposited checks contain invalid routing or transit numbers The level of risk can be managed based on the age of the account (closed account getting lot of transactions suddenly). The number of deposits exceed the normal activity by the customer Consider the proximity of the customer’s residence or place of business Wire transfers, letters o f credit, and non-customer transactions, such as funds transfers, should be compared with the OFAC lists before being conducted. A customer’s home/business telephone is disconnected. A customer makes frequent or large transactions and has no record of past or present employment experience. A customer uses the automated teller machine to make several bank deposits below a specified threshold. Wire transfer activity to/from a financial secrecy haven, or high-risk geographic location without an apparent business reason, or when it is inconsistent with the customer’s business or history. Many small, incoming wire transfers of funds received, or deposits made using checks and money orders. Almost immediately, all or most are wired to another city or country in a manner inconsistent with the customer’s business or history. Large incoming wire transfers on behalf of a foreign client with little or no explicit reason. Wire activity that is unexplained, repetitive, or shows unusual patterns. Payments or receipts with no apparent links to legitimate contracts, goods, or services. A customer who purchases a number of cashier’s checks, money orders, or traveler’s checks for large amounts under a specified threshold. Money orders deposited by mail, which are numbered sequentially or have unusual symbols or stamps on them. Suspicious movements of funds from one bank into another, then back into the first bank: 1) purchasing cashier’s checks from bank A; 2) opening up a checking account at bank B; 3) depositing the cashier’s checks into a checking account at bank B; and, 4) wire transferring the funds from the checking account at bank B into an account at bank A. A rapid increase in the size and frequency of cash deposits with no corresponding increase in non-cash deposits Significant turnover in large denomination bills that would appear uncharacteristic given the bank’s location Different banks take different actions when confronted by a fraudulent transaction. The following table describes some of the actions taken by the bank and an ID no. is assigned to each: Bank Action Identification Number Freeze Account – No future transactions 8 Deny transaction 7 Teller warning – confirmed fraud, call security e. g. blacklisted check 6 Teller warning – double check ID, customer has bad history 5 Teller warning – call person from whom check originated. (Large check amt. †¦) 4 Deny ATM/online banking access 3 Reduce line of credit 2 Report to collection agency 1 We further generate a table to assign risk ranks for the various fraud detection rules along with the various dependant transaction parameters: Fraud Activity Description Dependant Parameters Business/Detection Rule Activity scale No. If any transaction(s) is more than 80% credit limit in 48 hours Old amount, requested amount(sum of amounts) Requested amount ? 0. 8 old amount 4 If transaction type is more than †¦types in 48 hours Type of transaction Count of number of similar transaction in specified time span 4 If active more than one session at the same time Transaction time Same transaction times 6 If trying to withdraw more money than the limit in credit Line of credit, requested amount Difference of LOC – Requested amt ? 0 7 If trying to log on for more than 3 times at once. Transaction time Same transaction times 6 Check deposit closely followed by cash withdrawal Transaction time, transaction type Transaction times of deposit and withdrawal ? 10 hrs 6 . . . This transaction data provided by Teradata acts the input to Ab-Initio where we apply our business rules in the transformation stage and obtain our output, which here would be to red flag the fraudulent transactions. Technical Research Relational Data Base Management System TERADATA Teradata data warehouse brings together all of the obtained data into a single repository for a completely integrated, 360-degree view of the truth. The Teradata Warehouse is a powerful, complete solution that combines Teradatas high-performance parallel database technology, a full suite of data access and management tools, and robust data mining capabilities, world-class scalable hardware, and the most experienced data warehousing consultants. With the Teradata RDBMS, you can access, store, and operate on data using Teradata Structured Query Language (Teradata SQL). Teradata SQL is broadly compatible with IBM and ANSI SQL. The Teradata RDBMS provides†¦ Capacity to hold Terabytes of data. Parallel processing which makes it faster than other relational DB. Parallel Data Extensions (PDE) a software interface layer on top of the operating system that enables RDBMS to operate in parallel env) Single data store and can be accessed from anywhere else. Fault tolerance – automatically detects and corrects any hardware failures. Data integrity –completes the transaction or rolls back to a stable state if a fault occurs. The architecture includes both Symmetric Multi-Processing (SMP) and Massively Parallel Processing (MPP) systems. They communicate thru fast interconnect. BYNET for MPP systems and board less BYNET (Virtual ByNet) for SMP systems. Users of the client system send requests to the Teradata RDBMS through a choice of various supported utilities and interfaces, which are listed below: BTEQ, Teradata SQL Assistant, Teradata WinDDI, Teradata MultiTool, FastExport, FastLoad, MultiLoad, Tpump, Teradata Visual Explain. These benefits have resulted in many Oracle Customers shifting their data warehouses from Oracle to Teradata in the past 3 years. Added to this Teradata provides the ability to Establish a single, centralized data warehouse with direct access by hundreds or even thousands of users across the organization. Integrate data from multiple sources and functional areas using one data model. Handle large and growing data volumes, complexity and number of users without any restructuring and reorganizations. Allow ad hoc, complex queries at any time with no scheduling necessary. The technical prowess has won Teradata, a division of NCR, a customer list of about 650 large companies and government agencies, including Albertsons, FedEx, Ford, the U. S. Postal Service and Wal-Mart. Characteristics of Teradata RDBMS that endeared us to use it in our project are: Extensive customer references. Time to solution is enhanced by Teradata’s flexibility that can be used for rapid initial implementation and ongoing extensions. Teradata can significantly lower total cost of ownership. Teradata Database is supported by an infrastructure of support 24/7/365. As data volume grows so will the system, but the growth is relatively effortless from a hardware and software point of view. More and more users will need access to the data warehouse, but adding them will not impact performance. Teradata’s performance with complex and ad hoc queries is unequaled. Loading and reloading the database is fast and fail safe with Teradata. If the warehouse needs to interface with the mainframe, Teradata offers seamless interoperability. Teradata Database is a mature product first released in 1984 Extraction, Transformation and Loading tool Ab Initio software is an ETL tool for enterprise class, mission critical applications such as data warehousing, batch processing, data movement, data analysis and analytics. Ab Initio helps to build large-scale data processing applications and run them in parallel environments. Ab Initio software consists of two main programs: Co-Operating System, which the system administrator installs on a host UNIX or Windows NT Server, as well as on processing nodes. (The host is also referred to as the control node. ) Graphical Development Environment (GDE) uses graphical components to build applications that transform large amounts of data. Business rules are applied to the datasets in the data transformation step by using the filter by expression component. Characteristics of Ab Initio ETL tool needed for the project are: Parallel data cleansing and validation. Parallel data transformation and filtering. Real time, parallel data capture. High performance analytics. Integration with Teradata RDBMS Integration and parallel execution of fraud detection custom codes. Has volume of 30 terabytes of data. Online Application Processing Tool Erwin is used in the design, generation and maintenance of high-quality, high-performance databases, data warehouses and final reports and graphs. From a logical model of the information requirements and business rules that define the database to a physical model optimized for the specific characteristics of your target database, Erwin helps to visually determine the proper structure, key elements and optimal design for the database. Its breakthrough Complete-Compare technology allows iterative development—keeping the model synchronized with the database at all times. Erwin Data Modeler scales across the enterprise by seamlessly integrating with CA’s Model Manager. This powerful model management system provides an important solution to the security management requirement. By dividing, sharing and reusing designs across different development efforts, modeling productivity can be maximized and corporate standards can be easily established and enforced. System Design and Architecture The data warehouse functional architecture as well as the technical architecture serves as a blueprint for the data warehousing effort. Throughout the project along with the architectural details various issues of fraud detection and some solutions to them with technical details have been discussed. The functional requirements express how the system behaves, focusing on the inputs, outputs and processing details of the system. The technical architecture centralizes the information and proposes how to integrate it. The technical architecture model depicts the overall framework and displays physical and logical interconnections. The technical architecture plan provides further insight on details dictated by the model, some of which were not apparent during previous project phases. The plan shows not only what has to be done, but also gives some indication as to why by its placement in the overall architecture model. The technical architecture model and plan provide two key benefits to the data warehouse project: improved communications and enhanced adaptability. Furthermore, by keeping these documentation items synchronized with project modifications, one has a ready, reliable data warehouse reference source. The data obtained by different financial institutions may vary in their formats and information provided. For the sake of generality and flexibility we use data generated according to the official data architecture standards as presented in the Center for Information Management website. (www. cimu. gov. mt) We will start the description of system design by showing the steps involved in the creation of datasets in Teradata. In our project we use the 6. 1 demo version of Teradata. 1. Start the Teradata Instance from the Windows START menu and selecting the Teradata Service Control icon. Minimize the screen after it says â€Å" Teradata Running† 2. Now Start Teradata SQL Assistant also from the Windows START menu. The above screen pops up. It has Query and History windows that pop up by default. In Query Window, we can write all the queries that we want to run. History Window keeps track of all the queries that we run. 3. Click on the top left most Connect button to connect to an old or create a new database. Fig. 1 Selection of database menu. Here financial database is being selected. We can click on the new button and create a new database too. Fig. The above screen shot is an instance of retrieving the Teradata database. Database specifications are entered. It will then ask for the names of database to be filled and some fields where we can specify the username and password for that particular database that we are about to create. Thus a Teradata database is created. 4. The next step would be to create some tables into this database. We can write a query in the Query Window to create a table. Click on the execute button to run any query. Fig. 3 This screen shot shows how a test table is created with two columns. 5. To see the newly created table click on the top left disconnect button and click the connect button again. Similarly, data can be inserted into in using insert query. Note: If we do right click on the query window, we can see Query Builder. We can use the Query Builder to build all sorts of Queries. Query Builder can be used to extract information from the table. The tables created for this project. They are: customer (customer details) cc_acct (Credit Card Account Details) credit_tran (Credit Card Transaction Details) checking_acct (Checking’s Account Details) checking_tran (Checking’s Transaction Details) avings_acct (Savings Account Details) savings_tran (Savings Transaction Details) accts (Account Types) These tables with the columns are listed below: Fig. 4 Customer details table Fig. 5 Credit card account details table Fig. 6 Credit card transaction details table Fig. 7 Checking account details table Fig. 8 Checking account transaction details table Fig. 9 Savings account details table Fig. 10 Savings account transaction details table Fig. 11 Account details table . . Teradata is also used to further provide the following data (but we do not show their creation or use in this project report): Customer information such as full name, address, SSN, number and types of accounts, credit limit, contact phone numbers etc†¦ Bank information such as bank branches, branch locations, sales representatives etc†¦ 6. Our table creation process in Teradata is now over. We now use the ETL tool Ab-Initio to create the graph implementing our business rules. For the sake of presentation simplicity and project confidentiality, we concentrate only on the following fraud detection rules: Customer transaction is not part of the bank (fake transaction). Customer withdrawals are more than 80% of his balance in the span of 24 hrs. There are basically three components for the creation of graphs in Ab-Initio: Input Component Transform Component Output Component. The next step involves specifying the input component in Ab-Initio. We do this by double clicking the input component and entering the URL path of the input file location and also the record format of the file. Fig. 12 Screen shot of the input component step of the graph creation process. Fig. 13 Screen shot with the view of the record format step. The file what we have used in this example is of size 9,649 KB. 8. We can view the data of the input file by right clicking on the component and selecting the view data option. There are almost 112000 records in this file but for simplicity only 100 records are being viewed. Fig. 14 View of our inputted table 9. Now, we join the input port to the reformat component and the output port of the reformat component to the output port. We can now apply transform on the input file by either selecting the transform option in the parameters tab of the reformat component or by entering the record format in the output component. Fig. 15 Reformatting of input components Fig. 6 Applying transform option in the reformat component In this example the tran_time, channel, tran_code has not been provided to the output port. As a result, the output file won’t have these fields in it after the graph is executed. 10. The next step is to build the graph. Fig. 17 Screen shot of the graph building process 11. Upon successful completion of the graph building process, we can view our output file by opening it in any editor like the Note Pad. Fig. 18 The output file of the Ab-Initio Graph as viewed in Note Pad Fig. 19 Full view of all the datasets in the output file The output file is 8,650 KB. 2. Similarly, a Flat file (any database table) can be read and written or loaded into a Teradata table by following the above-mentioned steps. The config dbc file and the path of the output with the file name is specified. Fig. 20 Transforming of flat file data Thus, data can be loaded to any database table using Ab-Initio. 13. The next step would be to sort the data obtained in the order we want and according to the variable we want and storing them as flat files. This step is basic in most data warehousing steps. We then apply our business rules to the data and obtain our output, which here are the red flags. A detailed description of the steps involved is as follows: F E D C B A Fig. 14: This figure shows how a red flag can be triggered if any customer crosses 80% of its limit in any type of account. Ab-Initio Component to sort the input data on the basis of Cust_ID. This join component joins the sorted inputs of the customer details and it’s account types that he/she has according to the Cust_ID. The customer_details_summary is taken as the normal output from the output port and the unmatched_customer_details and the unmatched_customer_accounts are outputted from the first and second output port. This join function takes care of the business rule to check if the customer really exists or not. This join component has three input ports. The number of input ports can be specified in the count of the parameter tab in the join component. FD file used is a lookup file. IT has weight specified for fraud. With the help of this component, the customer_detailed_summary, unmatched_customer_accounts and the fd file are joined on the basis of Cust_ID. It is a reformat component, which is one of the forms of, transform component. The business rule of putting a red flag for the customers who have crossed their account limit with more than 80% is applied here in the transform function. In this example total of 16 records. The one with flagged is given a weight of 1 and the one without flag as 0. The details of the customers with the fraud detection. FD file is a lookup file that has a column with 1 and 0 which when combined with the customer_detailed_summary on the basis of cust_id helps flagging the customer who crosses more than 80% of their limit. 14. New graph with intention to apply a second business rule: 4 3 1 Fig. 15 This graph shows how the detailed checking transactions of a customer performed within 24 hours can be found out Ab-Initio Component to sort the input data on the basis of Cust_ID. The join component joins the sorted checking_account of customers with the sorted_checking_transactions on the basis of cust_id to get the checking_account_transactions in the normal output port, unused checking_ accounts in the first unused port and the unused_checking_transactions in the second unused port. This join function takes care of the business rule to check if the customer is valid or not. It sorts the output on the basis of the customer_id which is then, Rolled up on the basis of the day to get the transactions performed within 24hours. The reject_rollup_checking is also sent to a reject output port. Thus, all the checking transactions of a customer within 24 hours are calculated. Logical Model – 1 (Erwin) Conclusion In this project we have concentrated on the financial fraud detection in banking transactions. But the generic nature of the project architecture would enable us to use the same software with minor changes to input data, business rules etc. o satisfy the fraud detection in other areas such as company financial bookkeeping, telemarketing, pay-per-calls scam etc. Also in there is a wealth of information that can be inferred form the output of our project. The following are some points for the further scope of our project: How this architecture could be used not only to detect fraud but also to identify target customer groups for marketing. We can als o provide monthly or weekly reports of sensitive and high-risk customers and even ATM and banking locations, which are fraud prone. Improve the overall security standards of the company. Develop a progress report for individual bank branches and identify their individual areas of improvement. References Kimball, R. , Reeves, L. , Ross, M. and Thornthwaite, W. (1998). The Data Warehouse Lifecycle Toolkit, John Wiley Sons, Inc. Silverston, L. , Inmon, W. H. and Graziano, K. (1997). The Data Model Resource Book, John Wiley Sons, Inc. www. teradata. com www. abinitio. com www. ca. com/db www. fraud. org http://teradata. uark. edu/research/

Sample Query Letters

Sample Query Letters Sample Query Letters Sample Query Letters By Maeve Maddox Reader Blaine asks Does anyone out there know of a website or a book with a lot of sample query letters? The question comes just as Im studying this guide to marketing a novel: The Sell Your Novel Tool Kit: Everything You Need to Know About Queries, Synopses, Marketing, and Breaking In by Elizabeth Lyon. The book was recommended to me by a colleague for the very reason that it contains numerous sample fiction queries. Chapter Six defines the query and offers step-by-step instructions for writing one: Queries Defined Lead Model Query Letter Body Closing Style Types and Uses Chapter Seven provides 15 examples of actual letters. Several genres are represented, including Literary Historical Christian Adventure Mystery Suspense Fantasy Romance Childrens 9-12 So far Im finding Lyons book extremely helpful as I prepare to market a mystery novel of my own. When Im ready to do something with one of my non-fiction projects, Ill have a look at her other guide: Nonfiction Book Proposals Anybody Can Write. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Freelance Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Farther vs. FurtherBetween vs. In BetweenDozen: Singular or Plural?

RyanAir Strategic Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

RyanAir Strategic Management - Assignment Example After the September 11th (9-11) terrorists' attacks on the world trade centre the airline industry has been trying to draw back its customer base. It has slowly regained its pre 9-11 customer levels. Some airlines are recovering from bankruptcies and lay offs within the industry. The airline industry has regained its consideration as the main way of travel for the tourism and business industries. Economic recovery in other industries such as tourism and conference hosting could benefit the airline industry if the industry responds with a marketing campaign promoting air travel to destinations that are popular for tourism and business industries. Post 9-11 the American airline industries recovery was assisted by special payments (bail-outs) from the U.S. government. This greatly affected European Union (EU) airlines. The lowering of ticket prices by the American carriers also affected the EU airline industry. A trans-Atlantic airline pricing agreement helped keep the EU airlines in business. In addition the EU agreed to allow European governments to provide payouts to their airlines (much as the American government did) to help them recover from the 9-11 related industry slowdown (World Airline News, 1). Although the airline industry may have recovered from its 9-11 reaction to the World Trade Centre attacks it is still affected by the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Security within the industry is much higher than pre 9-11 but there still remains the possible threat of another attack using the airlines as a target or tool of the attack. European Union airlines continue to compete with trans-Atlantic airlines from the United States and other North and South American airlines. Tourists are choosing to visit countries they believe "safe" such as England and Ireland rather than Middle Eastern or South West Asian countries. This is good for EU air carriers who benefit greatly by the increase in business. RyanAir's Development (History). Ryanair is an airline that continues to exploit the low cost air industry by providing some of the lowest fares in the industry. Ryanair is purposely modelled after the American airline South West Airlines and uses the no frills approach to providing air transportation. This means no in flight meals or snacks or such (for free). The airline provides basically a seat (or ride) only. Ryanair is headquartered in Dublin Ireland at the Dublin airport. It's only Irish competitor is Aer Lingus which is Ireland's national airline. Ryanair holds a 25% stake in Aer Lingus and makes no secrets about its interest in acquiring Aer Lingus. Ryanair currently has 232 low cost routes across 24 countries. Its reputation in the European Union is as the EU's first

Scotland, the Stateless Nation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Scotland, the Stateless Nation - Essay Example Many attempted to settle in Central America through the Scottish sponsored Darien project with a hope of establishing the same success as the English. There they were fated to die, abandoned by both the Scottish and English government. The Scottish government and investors lost huge amounts of capital that contributed to the later depression of the 17th Century3. Large numbers of Scotsmen and their lassies relocated to Canada, North American Colonies as well as Australia and New Zealand. The motivation for leaving their homeland varied over the 18th, 19th and first decades of the 20th Century. However, the main causes of this startling Diaspora arose from the blunt fact that Scotland as a nation had lost as a rival to England. This process began much earlier than the era of colonization at least six hundred years earlier. England, the poor leadership from the aristocracy of both lands, the European wars of the 18th Century and the Imperial expansion of Great Britain in the 19th proved the death of the nation of Scotland. The conquest of England by the Normans brought about a six hundred year war between England’s’ new masters and Scotland, which culminated in 1688. Malcolm Canmore, Malcolm III, and William the conqueror hated each other at first sight. However, William the Conqueror forced Malcolm III by the Treaty of Abernathy in 1072 to surrender his son Duncan to the Norman court as a hostage. Malcolm III received in exchange for this fealty land in England4. The very use of hostages was a weakening stratagem because it influenced indirectly and directly the youthful heirs of one’s opponents, in a positive manner, towards the ways of their captor (host). Herein, the English turned the Scottish laird and chieftain to their purposes and ultimately through them destroyed the Scott ish nation. The Normans and the Scots continued in a never-ending battle between each other until after the middle of the 18th century.  

Push and Pull Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Push and Pull Marketing - Essay Example Since consumers’ attention is the main aim of communication mediums, communication strategy can be either pull strategy or push strategy. Both approaches are distinct from each other and every organization has to ensure that it plans and executes that strategy which will work for its offering (Hegel III & Brown, 2008). The main difference between push and pull marketing is that pull marketing induces end consumers to create demand, while in push marketing, marketers entice trade buyers to purchase and carry out the products that allows them to reap profit potential benefits (Steglin, 2012). Push Marketing Strategy In push strategy, the primary aim of marketers is to design marketing strategy in a way that will push products onto the consumers. It basically means offering attractive incentives to employees and sales representatives for pushing the product on specific points or places where there are more chances of customers buying products impulsively. In other words, in busin ess to business marketing, it means using marketing mediums to get attention of businesses to buy the supplier’s materials and products and sell it to end consumer. The main forms of communication mediums used are price inducements, promotions, trade shows, trade promotions, sponsorships and many more that will get the attention of retailers, wholesalers and other businesses to purchase the company’s products or services (Segal, 2012). For instance, push marketing strategy is commonly found among energy drinks companies as they try to get the attention of end consumers by organizing various events such as trade shows and promotional incentives. British Petroleum uses push strategy by attracting its customers who are the processors of their products that supply refined products to the end consumers. The company offers various perks, price breaks and discount offers so that it can get the attention of its business consumers. Unilever uses push strategy for its distributo rs, wholesalers and retailers so that it can get good placement for its products in their stores. Pull Marketing Strategy In pull marketing strategy, marketers try to inspire consumers to demand the company’s products or services. In this technique, a lot of money is spent as the tools used to grab customers’ attention are very expensive. The marketers need to incorporate strategies that will help in creating relations with target market and getting them engaged with their offerings. Some of the commonly used marketing mediums for pull strategy are word of mouth, sponsorships, product placement and advertisement in newspapers, on radio and Television (Segal, 2012). For instance, Apple uses pull strategy to attract its target market; it relies heavily on placement of products, Public Relations efforts and advertisements that are innovative and attractive which will help in creating more demand for its products. The company’s advertisements about its computers end with quotes like â€Å"available at specific places† or â€Å"Buy now†. Almost all the advertisements of the company has message that pulls consumers towards it as information about product with complete details are provided. Red Bull also focuses on pull strategy as it sponsors various events round the year such as Formula 1, soap box derby and concerts. With all these communication med

Durkheims Approach to Sociological Analysis

Durkheims Approach to Sociological Analysis Outline the main features of Durkheims approach to sociological analysis, and discuss how this may be used to understand suicide rate. Durkheim was a French positivist, with an emphasis on functionalism, which revolves around a biological analogy where in society, is seen as an organic whole with each component working to maintain the others, similar to the human body. Its main interest is seeing how these parts create a stable whole. One of the main areas of Durkheims approach is the focus on social facts, these are social phenomena and ways of thinking and behaving that restrain individuals in some manner or other and can include institutions such as the state and education. They appear from collectively formed rules and practices, be they religious or secular and are beyond our control as individuals. Because of these social facts individuals have littler or no control over their own actions, rather than constructing their own world they are directed by the system as society needs certain social behaviours and phenomena to survive. These social facts are passed on from generation to generation and shared among the individuals. From this perspective it is not individual will that drives behaviours but rather the common norms and values of society that shape ones consciousness. Not only are these types of behaviour and thinking external to the individual, but they are endued with a compelling and coercive power b y virtue of which, whether he wishes it or not, they impose themselves upon him (Durkheim, 1895 pp50). These social facts form the basis of a collective consciousness, which Durkheim sees as the body of beliefs and sentiments common to the average members of a society (Durkheim, 1893). This collective consciousness promotes solidarity, forging a common bond between individuals in a society, creating a form of order and stability. Without a form of moral consensus there would be conflict and disorder From where interest is the only ruling for each individual finds himself in a state of was with every other (Durkheim, 1973, p89) Since the collective consciousness is a social fact it too constrains individuals to act in terms of the greater good and for the good of the society and is deeply imprinted on the individual as without it there would be no society as we know it. These social facts can have problems if they regulate too much or not enough, without enough control the individual would give in to their own wants and desires, with too much they would feel repressed, inevitably both will lead to deviance, that being going against the norms and values of society. From a collective consciousness come two forms of solidarity, organic and mechanical. Organic solidarity is based upon a dependence that individuals in an advanced society place on each other. It is common among societies where the division of labor is high. Though individuals perform different tasks and often have different values and interests, the order and survival of society depends on their reliance on each other to perform their specific tasks. Mechanical solidarity on the other hand is based upon the similarities among individuals in a society, within it people feel connected through similar work, education and religious practices. It primarily exists in societies that possess a low division of labour where this is little interdependence between individuals and where there is a basic or lack of organisation and compared to societies with organic solidarity there is more value placed on religion, society and its interests and there is a greater collective consciousness and les s emphasise placed on individualism, that being where you count yourself as an individual rather than part of a group, putting yourself first etc (Haralambos 2004 pp). From organic solidarity and individualism can come anomie, this is a sense of normlessness, where norms themselves are unclear, broken down or unregulated If the rules of the conjugal morality lose their authority, and the mutual obligations of husband and wife become less respected, the emotions and appetites ruled by this sector of morality will become unrestricted and uncontained, and accentuated by this very release; powerless to fulfil themselves because they have been freed from all limitations, these emotions will produce a disillusionment which manifests itself visibly(Durkheim, 1972, p. 173) He noted that it was common in societies that possessed a less defined collective consciousness and a higher amount of individualismThe state of anomie is impossible whenever interdependent organs are sufficiently in cont act and sufficiently extensive. If they are close to each other, they are readily aware, in every situation, of the need which they have of one-another, and consequently they have an active and permanent feeling of mutual dependence.(Durkheim, 1895, p184) Imbalances in the amount of regulation caused by social facts and the amount of integration from solidarity are one of the main factors within suicide, less advanced societies having too much integration and regulation and industrial societies have too littler of either. Durkheim said that suicide was a social act, not entirely an individual one revolving around the relationships between the individual and society. He found that there was a correlation between the suicide rate and various social facts. For example he found that suicide rates were higher in protestant countries than catholic ones, he also found that there was a low rate during times of social and political upheaval due to the amount of solidarity that such events creates (Durkheim in Marsh, pp66-69). He laid out four types of suicide, depending on the degree that individuals were involved in society and on the degree that their behaviour was regulated. The four types being egoistic, anomic, altruistic and fatalistic. Egoistic suicide is common in industrial societies with high amounts of division of labour and comes from a high amount of individualism, which stems from a low amount of integration due to a weak collective consciousness from the social groups from which they originally belonged; in effect society allows the individual to escape it In this case the bond attaching man to life relaxes because that attaching himself to society is itself slack (Durkheim in Marsh pp67). This sort of suicide Durkheim said accounted for the differences of suicide rates between Protestants and Catholics, with Catholicisms demanding a higher amount of conformity, in comparison to the Protestant church that encouraged the individual to interpret the religious texts in their own way without stigma. Another type of suicide common in industrial societies is anomic which results from a low amount of regulation. It occurs when norms and values are disrupted by social change, procuring feelings of uncertainty with in the individual. Whenever serious readjustments take place in the social order, whether or not due to a sudden growth or to an unexpected catastrophe, men are more inclined to self destruction (Durkheim in K. Thompson, 1971, pp109) Durkheim found that suicide rates rose during positive as well as negative directions of social change. He noted that there was a rise after the crash of the Paris stock exchange in 1882 and the conquest of Rome in 1870 by Victor-Emmanuel which resulted in rising salaries and living standards but also a rise in the suicide rate. On the opposite side of the spectrum is altruistic suicide that comes from a high amount of integration and strong feeling of society and solid collective consciousness. This form of suicide is mostly present in pre-industrial societies who possess mechanical solidarity. This was seen as a self sacrifice for the good of the group This sacrifice then is imposed by society for social ends (Durkheim in Marsh, pp68). It is not done because it seen as the best option but more out of a sense of duty to said group. For someone to do such an act out of duty then they must have little self worth, the individual being fully submerged into a group and feeling like just a part of a greater thing, thus highly integrated. For society to be able to compel some of its members to kill themselves, the individual personality can have little value. For as soon as the latter begins to form, the right to existence is the first conceded (Ibid, pp68) Various examples of this can be seen throughout history, Vikings considers it dishonourable to die of old age or sickness and so ended their own lives to avoid social disgrace. Durkheim placed no importance on fatalistic suicide, saying that it had more place in history than in modern societies. It occurred when society restricted an individual so much that they were repressed, feeling that they had no futures or dreams. One of the major criticisms of Durkheims analysis is his concepts of integration and regulation. Durkheim gives no hint as to how one would measure integration or regulation for example he simply asks us to assume that such underlying concepts are significant in relation to the explanation of suicide. He assumes that suicidal behavior results from a deviation from normal levels of integration and regulation. We are given no idea what exactly is a normal level, so we cannot say what amount of regulation and integration is normal or abnormal (Web ref 1). However with some work, it could be possible to come up with various test relating to theses concepts, so that we could measure them among different groups in society. A second criticism is that his work on suicide is based upon official statistics from the 19th century He gives us little idea about the reliability of the source of the statistics and the methods used in recording them could not be up to scratch, some could be wrong, s ince they were hand written things could be misread and so on. Another factor is that the determination of suicide involves is process of interpretation by numerous people such as policemen, doctors, coroners etc (Ibid). In this respect, we have no real way of determining either the reliability or validity of suicide statistics. The coroner is the one who decides whether death was due to suicide or not and various factors can sway his judgment towards it not being so. The individuals verdict depends on their outlook on their work and on their outlook on suicide. Some would be thorough in the investigation whilst others would be concerned about not intruding upon the rights and feelings of the surviving relatives. For example if the victim was Catholic, since traditionally the Catholic Church view suicide as a sin, the coroner may well make his decision based on the effect that the stigma that a suicide verdict carries may have on the relatives. It is known that coroners in Catholic countries such as Italy and Mexico are more-reluctant to classify a suspicious death as suicide than coroners in non-Catholic countries. Another fact is that some countries suicide is classified as a crime, in such countries, coroners tend to be more-reluctant to classify a death as suicide than in countries where such a law does not apply, for example when suicide was illegal in Britain the punishment was that deceased property would be ceased by the state, so it would be justifiable to deem a suicide as something else to avert any more tragedy. Also where the victim was insured against death, coroners tend to be less likely to classify death as suicide than in instances where there is none, as such an act can void the coverage. One final criticism is that he does not take into look into individual action as a cause; however he does briefly acknowledge it but claims that it has no part in sociology (Ibid) Bibliography Durkheim, E (1973). Moral Education. Macmillan USA Durkheim, E (1975). On Morality and Society. revised ed. Chicago: Chicago University Press Durkheim, E (1982). The Rules of the Sociological Method. revised ed. London: The Free Press. Durkheim, E (1997). The Division of Labour in Society. revised ed. London: The Free Press Haralambos and Holborn (2004). Sociology themes and perspectives. 6th ed. London: Collin Marsh.I (1998). Classic and Contemporary Readings in Sociology. London: Pretince Hall. Thompson.K and Tunstall.J (1983). Sociological Perspectives. 9th ed. London: Penguin Books

Michael Jordan :: Free Essays

Michael Jordan Michael Jordan is an American Professional Basketball Player . I picked Michael for my biography because I consider him to be the best basketball player in the NBA . Michael is recognized for his spectacular ball handling skills and for his outrageous dunks . He is also the leading scorer in the NBA , and a winner of three NBA most valuable player award in 1988,1991, and 1992 . Jordan was born in Brooklyn , New York , and raised in Wilmington , North Carolina . He accepted a basketball scholarship at the University of North Carolina and as a freshman he scored the winning shot in the 1982 NCAA championship game .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1984 Jordan led the U.S. basketball team to victory in the Olympics . After that he left college to play for the Chicago Bulls . Jordan was successful as a professional from his first season , Leading the NBA in the 1984-85 season in points scored . He also was named rookie of the year and started in the All Star game .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the 1986-87 season Jordan became the second player ever to score 3000 points in one season . In the following six seasons he led the NBA in scoring averaging more than 30 points per game . Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to their first NBA championship tittle in 1991, and did it again in 1992 and in 1993 . Jordan retired from basketball in 1994 to play baseball . He only played for about one year but he didn't have what it took to be a baseball player . He came back to play basketball in the middle of the 1995 season to lead the Bulls into the first round of the playoffs where they where beat .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jordan was the NBA's most valuable player for the 1987- 88 season and again for the 1990-91 and the 1991-92 season . This is the first time a NBA player won for two consecutive seasons .

Richard III: Power of Language and Own Villainy

Deformed in body and twisted in mind, Richard is in every way the dominant character of the play, to the extent that he is both the play’s protagonist and major villain. He is selfish, evil, corrupt, sadistic, and manipulative. His intelligence, political brilliance, and dazzling use of language keeps the audience fascinated and his subjects and rivals under his control. At the beginning of the play, it is made clear to the audience that Richard has no justification for seizing the throne. This is because England is obviously not oppressed or subject to tyranny as the lengthy civil war has just ended, and Richard’s oldest brother, King Edward IV, now sits on the throne. Richard himself, states that ‘All the clouds that loured upon our house’ (1. 1, 3), the house of York, has been dispelled by the ‘son of York’ (1. 1, 2), King Edward IV. However, Richard intends to upset the kingdom by seizing power for himself. He says that ‘since I cannot prove a lover to entertain these fair well-spoken days, I am determined to prove a villain’ (1. , 28). This simply means that since Richard was not made to be a lover, he has no use for peace, and will happily destroy peace with his crimes. This shows Richard’s unabashed enjoyment of his own villainy as he can so blithely toss aside all of the things that the rest of humanity cherishes. Richard III is an intense exploration of the psychology of evil, and that exploration is centred on the workings of Richard’s mind and the methods he uses to manipulate, control, and injure others for his own gain. Perhaps more than any other play by Shakespeare, the audience of Richard III experiences a complex, indefinite, and highly erratic relationship with the main character. Richard is clearly a villain as he declares outright in his very first speech that he intends to stop at nothing to achieve his ultimate goal of becoming king. However, despite his open allegiance to evil, he has such a charismatic and fascinating personality that, for much of the play, we are likely to sympathize with him, or are at least impressed by him. In this way, our relationship with Richard reflects the other characters’ relationships with him, conveying a powerful sense of the force of his personality. Even characters such as Lady Anne, who have an explicit knowledge of his wickedness, overlook his dishonesty and violent behaviour and allow themselves to be seduced by his brilliant wordplay, his skilful argumentation, and his relentless pursuit of his selfish desires. Richard’s long, fascinating soliloquys, in which he outlines his plans and gleefully confesses all his evil thoughts, are central to the audience’s experience of Richard. Shakespeare uses these soliloquys brilliantly to control the audience’s impression of Richard, enabling this manipulative protagonist to work his charm on the audience. In Act I, scene i, for example, Richard offers a pretext for his villainy towards others by pointing out that he is unloved, and that he is unloved because of his physical deformity. Richard himself is brutally honest about his appearance. He admits to being imperfectly shaped and blames premature birth for his condition. He knows that he is ‘not shaped for sportive tricks’ (1. 1, 14) and while others delight in ‘an amorous looking glass’ (1. , 14), his misshapen body creates a ‘shadow in the sun’ (1. 1, 26) that alienates him from others. Hence, Lady Anne calls Richard a ‘lump of foul deformity’ (1. 2, 57) in Act I, scene ii. This proves that Richard’s claim not only makes the other characters of the play seem like the villains for punishing him for his appearance, but also makes it easy for the audience to sympathize with Richard during the first scenes of the play and even hope that he will succeed despite his obvious villainy. It quickly becomes apparent, however, that Richard simply uses his deformity as a tool to gain the sympathy of others, including the audience. This is already noticeable in his very first speech as Richard seems to take a deliberate perverse delight in his outward shape. He chooses words such as, ‘cheated’, ‘deformed’, ‘unfinished’, ‘half made up’, ‘dogs bark’ at him as he passes by because of his ‘deformity’ to describe himself. Richard’s unabashed villainy is a much more natural part of his character than simple bitterness about his ugly body. Nevertheless, he still manages to use speech to win our trust, and he repeats this throughout his struggle to be crowned king. An interesting secondary theme of Richard III is the power of language, or the importance of language in achieving political power. Language may not always be a necessary instrument of power, but for Richard, it is a crucial weapon. As we have seen, it is with his extraordinary skills with words that allows him to ridicule, insult, taunt and deceive all who stand in his way to power. Richard’s skill with language and argument is what enables him to woo Lady Anne, have Clarence thrown in prison and blame the king for Clarence’s death, all at very little risk to himself. In conclusion, I feel Richard III’s unabashed enjoyment of both the power of language and his own villainy makes him a character worthy of both respect and admiration, and therefore I completely agree with this statement. This is because Richard’s unabashed power of language shows off the ingenious wit and intellectual cleverness of the character, actor and playwright, while his own villainy makes the play all the more fascinating and entertaining as his heinous acts become more chilling.

Cell Membrane essays

Cell Membrane essays Cell Membrane/ Electron Transport Chain Biochemical Pathway 1. The cell membrane structure is vital to the life of the cell. The cell membrane is shaped as having a phosphate head at the very outer surface, and two fatty acid tails hanging from it. The membrane is double, so at the tip of the fatty acid tails, there are two more fatty acid tails attached to another phosphate head. This is what it looks like: The reason the cell membrane is shaped like this is mainly to control the water flow in and out of the cell. Water is very important to the cell: if too much water enters the cell, the cell will explode, and if too much water leaves the cell, the cell will shrivel up and die. This is how the cell membrane controls water flow: the phosphate heads are polar, and slightly attract water. However, the fatty acid tails in between are non polar, and repel water, so the fatty acid tails prevent too much water from entering or leaving the cell. With this tough membrane, there has to be a way for things to enter the cell. This is where the channel proteins come in. They act as gateways to the cell. There are many ways to enter the cell. Some ways require energy, while others dont. The ways that require energy are put into a category called active transport, while the ways that dont require energy are put into a category called passive transport. An example of active transp! ort is the proton pump. The proton pump is an integral part of chemiosmosis, and it pumps protons from an area of low concentration to an area of high concentration. This requires energy since things like to move from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration. An example of passive transport is facilitated diffusion. This is very easy since the particle is moving from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration and through a channel protein made exactly for its size and shape. 2. These membranes are very importan...

Essay on Christian Propaganda

Essay on Christian Propaganda Essay on Christian Propaganda This is a free example essay on Christian Propaganda: Throughout history, the Christian community has used various ploys in order to gain members. In the Ninth Century AD, monks, in England, recorded the folklore of their â€Å"heathen† neighbors in their own language. In the 11th through 18th centuries, in various areas, Catholics used raw torture and death to force conversion. And even today television stations such as PAX â€Å"family programming† is little more than tele-evangelists and trumped up â€Å"miracles.† Two prime examples of the texts written and some what enriched by the monks of England are, of course Beowulf and Judith. While it remains unclear as to exactly who wrote the original manuscripts, it is believed that it was a monk or priest, and it has been widely accepted that these stories were handed down, generation to generation, by oral tradition. The epic poem Beowulf directly precedes Judith in the same manuscript, leading us to believe they were recorded by the same persons, with the same motives. In Beowulf we read of a hero that destroys the enemy of his brethren, Grendel (and Grendel’s mother), believed by some to be the descendant of the biblical Cain, thus ending his lineage; a lineage that has been that of pure evil from the time of Cain’s brother Abel’s murder. Beowulf then leads his people into battle with the dragon, killing both the dragon and himself, much like St. George. In Judith we read of a heroine (interestingly an Israelite) oppressed b y a tyrant, Holofernes. Eventually Judith can take no more, and rises up and smites her oppressor, with, ironically, his own sword. Much as the Hebrews did in Exodus. We then must look at instances such as the various Inquisitions instituted by the Catholic Church for nearly eight centuries, the most commonly known being the Spanish Inquisition. Starting in the mid- 15th century (1478), the Spanish Inquisition was not suppressed until 1834. Over these 356 years hundreds of thousands of heretics, heathens and other â€Å"sacrilegious† persons were tortured and killed by some of the most horrible means possible; all for what they believed, or did not believe, as the case may be. People were hanged, burned at the stake, boiled alive, or worse, for no â€Å"good† reason except they were not Catholic. They were told if they renounced their faith, they would be spared, but as those who did found out, more often than not, they were lied to. As anyone would guess, word of these events traveled rather quickly, and the Catholic population in Spain grew rapidly. So we ask. why did the Inquisition last 356 years? The answer is it did not, at lea st not in practice. Granted there were the fanatics that continued to torture those accused of heresy, but as a whole the practice was discontinued after a relatively short period of time. The institution, however, was not officially suppressed by the Pope until July 15, 1834. If a person were to look at local television listings, the majority of what they would find would pertain to what the American public watches most, drugs, sex, and violence. However, there are a few networks, such as PAX that offer what they call family programming; what I call Propaganda. Over half of their programming consists of tele-evangelists. The network executives, rope in young parents with inoffensive material, hoping that they will watch their network almost exclusively. Before long, the children of these young parents are asking Mom and Dad, why they never go to church. Have they ever seen a miracle? And before you know it, this entire family is going to not only a Sunday worship, but Wednesday evening as well, not to mention the Tuesday-Thursday Bible Study; thus completing this vicious cycle. We have in this country, what is called Separation of Church and State, and freedom of speech. This is why we can turn on our television at five o’clock in the morning and s ee The Reverend Brother What’s his Face. But where does it stop? Will the church ever stop trying to brain wash us â€Å"heathens† into belief? ______________ is a professional essay writing service which can provide high school, college and university students with 100% original custom written essays, research papers, term papers, dissertations, courseworks, homeworks, book reviews, book reports, lab reports, projects, presentations and other assignments of top quality. More than 700 professional Ph.D. and Master’s academic writers. Feel free to order a custom written essay on Christian Propaganda from our professional essay writing service.

Annotated Bibliography. Generation Challenges in the future of nursing Essay

Annotated Bibliography. Generation Challenges in the future of nursing informatics - Essay Example Moreover, the article indicates that they are expected to make a reasonable effort in addressing rising demand for the nursing care services, which are focused on increasing supply of nurses. In this case, the nurses can increase their efficiency in the provision of care through the use of health Information Technology that has been considered a crucial issue through numerous discussions. The article covers issues related to the effect of the health IT and health informatics through an outlook of the nursing profession. In addition, the vendors across the health IT field are urged to facilitate understanding of the nursing profession through gearing them to meet challenges for reforming new era attributed to collaboration in offering health care services. Ball, M.J. (1995). Nursing Informatics: Where caring and technology meet. New York: Spinger-Verlag The book focuses on markets in health care practice and education settings, whereby it aims to address the issues relating to nursing practice and students; in fact, issues discussed relates to nursing leadership, nursing faculty and nursing informatics specialists. Moreover, this book is designed meet the needs of professionals in the health care fields such are quality officers, administrators, health IT professions, who are in the health care facilities. ... /journal_of_nursing/challenges_in_nursing_informatics.htm> The article discusses challenges faced by nurses due to constrains associated with innovation technology. It also seeks to explore ways through which these challenges can be overcome. The article offers nursing documentation, thereby explaining dynamics and complexity of the processes. Moreover, the article focuses on bridging the gaps that are present in the nursing documentation to the electronic record. In addition, there are abilities of nursing students discussed in the article, thereby allowing them to understand challenges, which are involving the constants evolutions of technology. In this case, the article offers relevant issues related to nursing practice in relation to challenges. Kaminski, (2011). Organizational management and generation X. Nursing Informatics. Retrieved on 2 Feb 2012 from The article takes into consideration the challenges and threats that are faced by managers in organizations, whereby this mana ger are classified into echelon of Baby Boomer and senior Silent Generation managers. These challenges are attributed to the emergence of the work force referred to Generation X, who are considered to be offering dynamic solutions to meet the needs of the workforce. The article covers issues related to technological knowledge, thereby facilitating the adaptability to change and diversity. There are other issues discussed in the article relating to sharing of time and downsizing, which have become a challenge to the organization. In this case, the unique brands of workers that are acquiescent to the needs are reflected in various scenes, in the workplace. Ericksen, A. (2009). Informatics: the future of nursing. RN journal. Retrieved on 2

How SOX (SarbanesOxley Act of 2002) affects corporate governance and Research Paper

How SOX (SarbanesOxley Act of 2002) affects corporate governance and what additional improvements need to be added to SOX to improve corporate governance - Research Paper Example Oxley, thus the act’s nomenclature, and enacted on July 30, the act aimed to regulate and control the corporate and accounting sectors, particularly in the public company boards of management, and the management and public accounting companies (Shakespeare 333). The act goes by several names, considering its purpose. The act was referred to as the Corporate and Auditing Accountability and Responsibility Act when in the house, whereas in the Senate is as per the Public Company Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act. The SOX (also Sabox) was proposed as an act that would protect investors by ensuring improvements in the corporate disclosures precision and trustworthiness for among other purposes pursuing the securities market and laws. The outcome of the act is sections that dictate the responsibilities expected of a public corporation board of directors, the criminal consequences to various misconduct, and creation of regulations by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) on the compliance of public corporations to the act’s laws. The laws of the act are encased in eleven titles under the elements which include the Corporate Responsibility, Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), Corporate and Criminal Fraud Account ability, Auditor Independence, White Collar Crime Penalty Enhancement, Enhanced Financial Disclosures, Studies and Reports, Analyst Conflicts of Interest, Commission Resources and Authority, Corporate Tax Returns, and Corporate Fraud Accountability. The section covers the legal provisions which include disclosure controls (302), Improper influence on conduct of audits (303), disclosures in periodic reports also termed as Off-balance sheet items (401), Smaller public companies (404), criminal penalties for influencing US Agency investigation/proper administration (802), criminal Penalties for CEO/CFO financial statement certification (906), and criminal penalties for retaliation against

The Divergence of U.S. and UK Takeover Regulation Essay - 1

The Divergence of U.S. and UK Takeover Regulation - Essay Example who decides the rules of takeover in both countries. Rules of takeover in the UK are the outcome of the self regulation where interests of institutional investors play an important role while on the other hand the US judicial setup holds the responsibility of takeover rules and thus, limiting the influence of shareholders over making of rules. In the UK, shareholders’ perspectives play an important role in deciding about takeover bids and thus, takeover regime is â€Å"privatized†. Easterbook and Fischel proposed limited capability of managers to defend takeovers which did not become part of practice in the US after its dismissal by the Delaware Court and takeover decisions are still based on decisions made by those who manage businesses and they are allow to undertake several types of defense actions such as the â€Å"poison pill† or shareholder rights plan to undermine bidder’s stake. These tactics are prohibited in the UK and without the consent of shar eholders managers cannot maneuver any tactic in defense. However, in the UK managers are allowed to make use of â€Å"embedded defenses† which may involve issuance of dual-class voting stock or several other ways to take action before any bidder takes an offensive position (Armour and Skeel). Takeovers do not always result in higher returns for shareholders therefore it seems more appropriate to leave the decision in case of takeover to shareholders as in the UK. However, it is noted that the number of takeovers in the US has been greater than the UK. There could be several reasons including the veto power of directors who may feel that they are not entitled to sufficient incentives from the shareholders. In the UK, bidder can lodge a protest against managers’ actions to the Takeover Panel comprising of representatives from LSE, BOE, major banks and institutional investors. There is a greater flexibility in dealing of this Panel and limited

Wegmans Essay Example for Free

Wegmans Essay Core competencies are the things that give a company one or more competitive advantages, in creating and delivering value to its customers in its chosen field. Also called core capabilities or distinctive competencies. It can be composed of different elements such as superior quality, customer services, innovation, team building, flexibility and responsiveness, etc. Firstly, Wegmans has a better customer service. Wegmans focus on customer service, their goal is to build an emotional connection with their customer. Wegmans give a college scholarship for both its full and part-time employees to locations around the world to learn about or to locate new and unique sources of foods. Wegmans employees have a rich knowledge can give a better support for their customer. Secondly, Wegmans has a good team building. Wegmans instituted a host of employees-friendly benefits such as profit-sharing and full medical coverage. Also, Wegmans’ annual salaries for full-time workers and hourly wages for part-time workers are among the highest in the industry. The result is Wegmans generous pay scale and its consistent listing as one of the 100 best companies to work for also attracts quality workers. Those strategies can build a sense of belonging of the employees. Thirdly, Wegmans has an innovation idea. For example, Wegmans built a 300-seat cafà © in their first store in Rochester, New York, a concept that was unheard of in 1930. Fourthly, Wegmans can provide a high quality product to customer. Because of Wegman employees have a rich knowledge of the food, they can locate a high quality supplier to Wegmans and provide some better product to customer. Finally, Wegmans has a good flexibility and responsiveness. For example, Wegmans employees can explain 500 varieties of cheese to customer, which types of crackers to serve them on, and which wines go best with them. Wegmans employees can give different suggestion to customer depend on what the customers needs.

Understanding Inventory Management And Its Theories

Understanding Inventory Management And Its Theories Inventory management or inventory control is an attempt to balance inventory needs and requirements with the need to minimize costs resulting from obtaining and holding inventory. There are several schools of thought that view inventory and its function differently. These will be addressed later but first we present a foundation to facilitate the readers understanding of inventory and its function. Inventory Definition Inventory is a quantity or store of goods that is held for some purpose or use (the term may also be used as a verb meaning to take inventory or to count all goods held in inventory). Inventory may be kept in house meaning on the premises or nearby for immediate use or it may be held in a distant warehouse or distribution center for future use. With the exception of firms utilizing just in time methods more often than not the term inventory implies a stored quantity of goods that exceeds what is needed for the firm to function at the current time (e.g., within the next few hours). Why we should keep inventory Why would a firm hold more inventory than is currently necessary to ensure the firms operation? The following is a list of reasons for maintaining what would appear to be excess inventory. MEET DEMAND. In order for a retailer to stay in business it must have the products that the customer wants on hand when the customer wants them? If not the retailer will have to back order the product. If the customer can get the good from some other source he or she may choose to do so rather than electing to allow the original retailer to meet demand later (through back order). Hence, in many instances if a good is not in inventory a sale is lost forever. KEEP OPERATIONS RUNNING. A manufacturer must have certain purchased items (raw materials components or subassemblies) in order to manufacture its product. Running out of only one item can prevent a manufacturer from completing the production of its finished goods. Inventory between successive dependent operations also serves to decouple the dependency of the operations. A machine or work center is often dependent upon the previous operation to provide it with parts to work on. If work ceases at a work center then all subsequent centers will shut down for lack of work. If a supply of work in process inventory is kept between each work center then each machine can maintain its operations for a limited time hopefully until operations resume the original center. LEAD TIME. Lead time is the time that elapses between the placing of an order (either a purchase order or a production order issued to the shop or the factory floor) and actually receiving the goods ordered. If a supplier (an external firm or an internal department or plant) cannot supply the required goods on demand then the client firm must keep an inventory of the needed goods. The longer the lead time the larger the quantity of goods the firm must carry in inventory. A just in time (JIT) manufacturing firm such as Nissan in Smyrna Tennessee can maintain extremely low levels of inventory. Nissan takes delivery on truck seats as many as 18 times per day. However steel mills may have a lead time of up to three months. That means that a firm that uses steel produced at the mill must place orders at least three months in advance of their need. In order to keep their operations running in the meantime an on hand inventory of three months steel requirements would be necessary. HEDGE. Inventory can also be used as a hedge against price increases and inflation. Salesmen routinely call purchasing agents shortly before a price increase goes into effect. This gives the buyer a chance to purchase material in excess of current need at a price that is lower than it would be if the buyer waited until after the price increase occurs. QUANTITY DISCOUNT. Often firms are given a price discount when purchasing large quantities of a good. This also frequently results in inventory in excess of what is currently needed to meet demand. However if the discount is sufficient to offset the extra holding cost incurred as a result of the excess inventory the decision to buy the large quantity is justified. SMOOTHING REQUIREMENTS. Sometimes inventory is used to smooth demand requirements in a market where demand is somewhat erratic. Consider the demand forecast and production schedule outlined in Table 1. Notice how the use of inventory has allowed the firm to maintain a steady rate of output thus avoiding the cost of hiring and training new personnel while building up inventory in anticipation of an increase in demand. In fact this is often called anticipation inventory. In essence the use of inventory has allowed the firm to move demand requirements to earlier periods thus smoothing the demand. Controlling Inventory Firms that carry hundreds or even thousands of different part numbers can be faced with the impossible task of monitoring the inventory levels of each part number. In order to facilitate this many firms use an ABC approach. ABC analysis is based on Pareto Analysis also known as the 80/20 rule. The 80/20 comes from Paretos finding that 20 percent of the populace possessed 80 percent of the wealth. From an inventory perspective it can restated thusly: approximately 20 percent of all inventory items represent 80 percent of inventory costs. Therefore a firm can control 80 percent of its inventory costs by monitoring and controlling 20 percent of its inventory. But it has to be the correct 20 percent. The top 20 percent of the firms most costly items are termed An items (this should approximately represent 80 percent of total inventory costs). Items that are extremely inexpensive or have low demand are termed C items with B items falling in between A and C items. The percentages may vary with each firm but B items usually represent about 30 percent of the total inventory items and 15 percent of the costs. C items generally constitute 50 percent of all inventory items but only around 5 percent of the c By classifying each inventory item as an A B or C the firm can determine the resources (time effort and money) to dedicate to each item. Usually this means that the firm monitors A items very closely but can check on B and C items on a periodic basis (for example monthly for B items and quarterly for C items). Another control method related to the ABC concept is cycle counting. Cycle counting is used instead of the traditional once a year inventory count where firms shut down for a short period of time and physically count all inventory assets in an attempt to reconcile any possible discrepancies in their inventory records. When cycle counting is used the firm is continually taking a physical count but not of total inventory. A firm may physically count a certain section of the plant or warehouse moving on to other sections upon completion until the entire facility is counted. Then the process starts all over again. The firm may also choose to count all the A items then the B items and finally the C items. Certainly the counting frequency will vary with the classification of each item. In other words an item may be counted monthly B items quarterly and C items yearly. In addition the required accuracy of inventory records may vary according to classification with A items requiring the most accurate record keeping. Balancing Inventory and Cost As stated earlier inventory management is an attempt to maintain an adequate supply of goods while minimizing inventory costs. We saw a variety of reasons companies hold inventory and these reasons dictate what is deemed to be an adequate supply of inventory. Now how do we balance this supply with its costs? First lets look at what kind of costs we are talking about. There are three types of costs that together constitute total inventory costs: holding costs set up costs and purchasing costs. Holding Costs. Holding costs also called carrying costs are the costs that result from maintaining the inventory. Inventory in excess of current demand frequently means that its holder must provide a place for its storage when not in use. This could range from a small storage area near the production line to a huge warehouse or distribution center. A storage facility requires personnel to move the inventory when needed and to keep track of what is stored and where it is stored. If the inventory is heavy or bulky forklifts may be necessary to move it around. Storage facilities also require heating cooling, lighting and water. The firm must pay taxes on the inventory and opportunity costs occur from the lost use of the funds that were spent on the inventory. Also obsolescence pilferage (theft) and shrinkage are problems. All of these things add cost to holding or carrying inventory. If the firm can determine the cost of holding one unit of inventory for one year (H) it can determine its annual holding cost by multiplying the cost of holding one unit by the average inventory held for a one year period. Average inventory can be computed by dividing the amount of goods that are ordered every time an order is placed (Q) by two. Thus average inventory is expressed asQ/2. Annual holding cost then can be expressed asH(Q/2). Set Up Cost Set up costs are the costs incurred from getting a machine ready to produce the desired good. In a manufacturing setting this would require the use of a skilled technician (a cost) who disassembles the tooling that is currently in use on the machine. The disassembled tooling is then taken to a tool room or tool shop for maintenance or possible repair (another cost). The technician then takes the currently needed tooling from the tool room (where it has been maintained another cost) and brings it to the machine in question. There the technician has to assemble the tooling on the machine in the manner required for the good to be produced (this is known as a set up). Then the technician has to calibrate the machine and probably will run a number of parts that will have to be scrapped (a cost) in order to get the machine correctly calibrated and running. All the while the machine has been idle and not producing any parts (opportunity cost). As one can see there is considerable cost involved in set up. If the firm purchases the part or raw material then an order cost rather than a set up cost is incurred. Ordering costs include the purchasing agents salary and travel entertainment budget administrative and secretarial support office space copiers and office supplies forms and documents long distance telephone bills and computer systems and support. Also some firms include the cost of shipping the purchased goods in the order cost. If the firm can determine the cost of one set up (S) or one order it can determine its annual setup order cost by multiplying the cost of one set up by the number of set ups made or orders placed annually. Suppose a firm has an annual demand (D) of 1,000 units. If the firm orders 100 units (Q) every time it places and order the firm will obviously place 10 orders per year (D/Q). Hence, annual set up order cost can be expressed asS (D/Q). Purchasing Cost Purchasing cost is simply the cost of the purchased item itself. If the firm purchases a part that goes into its finished product the firm can determine its annual purchasing cost by multiplying the cost of one purchased unit (P) by the number of finished products demanded in a year (D). Hence, purchasing cost is expressed asPD. Now total inventory cost can be expressed as: Total = Holding cost + Set-up/Order cost + Purchasing cost or Total =H(Q/2) +S(D/Q) +PD If holding costs and set-up costs were plotted as lines on a graph the point at which they intersect (that is the point at which they are equal) would indicate the lowest total inventory cost. Therefore if we want to minimize total inventory cost every time we place an order, we should order the quantity (Q) that corresponds to the point where the two values are equal. If we set the two costs equal and solve forQwe get: H(Q/2) =S(D/Q) Q= 2DS/H The quantity is known as the economic order quantity (EOQ). In order to minimize total inventory cost, the firm will order every time it places an order. For example, a firm with an annual demand of 12,000 units (at a purchase price of $25 each), annual holding cost of $10 per unit and an order cost of $150 per order (with orders placed once a month) could save $800 annually by utilizing the EOQ. First, we determine the total costs without using the EOQ method: Q= $10(1000/2) + $150(12,000/1000) + $25(12,000) = $306,800 Then we calculate EOQ: EOQ = 2(12,000)($150)/$10= 600 And we calculate total costs at the EOQ of 600: Q= $10(600/2) + $150(12,000/600) + $25(12,000) = $306,000 Finally, we subtract the total cost ofQfromQto determine the savings: $306,800 à ¢Ãƒâ€¹Ã¢â‚¬   306,000 = $800 Notice that if you remove purchasing cost from the equation the savings is still $800. We might assume this means that purchasing cost is not relevant to our order decision and can be eliminated from the equation. It must be noted that this is true only as long as no quantity discount exists. If a quantity discount is available the firm must determine whether the savings of the quantity discount are sufficient to offset the loss of the savings resulting from the use of the EOQ. There are a number of assumptions that must be made with the use of the EOQ. These include: Only one product is involved. Deterministic demand (demand is known with certainty). Constant demand (demand is stable through-out the year). No quantity discounts. Constant costs (no price increases or inflation) While these assumptions would seem to make EOQ irrelevant for use in a realistic situation it is relevant for items that have independent demand. This means that the demand for the item is not derived from the demand for something else usually a parent item for which the unit in question is a component. For example the demand for steering wheels would be derived from the demand for automobiles dependent demand but the demand for purses is not derived from anything else purses have independent demand. Other Lot Sizing Techniques There are a number of other lot sizing techniques available in addition to EOQ. These include the fixed order quantity fixed order interval model the single period model and part period balancing. Fixed Order Quantity Model EOQ is an example of the fixed order quantity model since the same quantity is ordered every time an order is placed. A firm might also use a fixed order quantity when it is captive to packaging situations. If you were to walk into an office supply store and ask to buy 22 paper clips chances are you would walk out with 100 paper clips. You were captive to the packaging requirements of paper clips i.e. they come 100 to a box and you cannot purchase a partial box. It works the same way for other purchasing situations. A supplier may package their goods in certain quantities so that their customers must buy that quantity or a multiple of that quantity. FIXED ORDER INTERVAL MODEL. The fixed order interval model is used when orders have to be placed at fixed time intervals such as weekly biweekly or monthly. The lot size is dependent upon how much inventory is needed from the time of order until the next order must be placed order cycle. This system requires periodic checks of inventory levels and is used by many retail firms such as drug stores and small grocery stores. SINGLE-PERIOD MODEL. The single period model is used in ordering perishables such as food and flowers and items with a limited life such as newspapers. Unsold or unused goods are not typically carried over from one period to another and there may even be some disposal costs involved. This model tries to balance the cost of lost customer goodwill and opportunity cost that is incurred from not having enough inventory with the cost of having excess inventory left at the end of a period. PART-PERIOD BALANCING. Part period balancing attempts to select the number of periods covered by the inventory order that will make total carrying costs as close as possible to the set up order cost. When a proper lot size has been determined utilizing one of the above techniques the reorder point or point at which an order should be placed can be determined by the rate of demand and the lead time. If safety stock is necessary it would be added to the reorder point quantity. Reorder point =Expected demand during lead time + Safety stock Thus an inventory item with a demand of 100 per month a two month lead time and a desired safety stock of two weeks would have reorder point of 250. In other words an order would be placed whenever the inventory level for that good reached 250 units. Reorder point =100/month ÃÆ'- 2 months + 2 weeks safety stock = 250 Other thoughts in Inventory Management There are a number of techniques and philosophies that view inventory management from different perspectives. MRP AND MRP II. MRP and MRP II are computer based resource management systems designed for items that have dependent demand. MRP and MRP II look at order quantities period by period and as such allow discrete ordering only what is currently needed. In this way inventory levels can be kept at a very low level a necessity for a complex item with dependent demand. JUST-IN-TIME (JIT). Just in time (JIT) is a philosophy that advocates the lowest possible levels of inventory. JIT espouses that firms need only keep inventory in the right quantity at the right time with the right quality. The ideal lot size for JIT is one even though one hears the term zero inventory used. Theory of Constraints Theory of constraints (TOC) is a philosophy which emphasizes that all management actions should center about the firms constraints. While it agrees with JIT that inventory should be at the lowest level possible in most instances it advocates that there be some buffer inventory around any capacity constraint e.g. the slowest machine and before finished goods. Future of Inventory Management The advent through altruism or legislation of environmental management has added a new dimension to inventory management reverse supply chain logistics. Environmental management has expanded the number of inventory types that firms have to coordinate. In addition to raw materials work in process finished goods and MRO goods firms now have to deal with post consumer items such as scrap returned goods reusable or recyclable containers and any number of items that require repair reuse recycling or secondary use in another product. Retailers have the same type problems dealing with inventory that has been returned due to defective material or manufacture poor fit finish or color or outright I changed my mind responses from customers. Finally supply chain management has had a considerable impact on inventory management. Instead of managing ones inventory to maximize profit and minimize cost for the individual firm todays firm has to make inventory decisions that benefit the entire supply chain.