Evaluating a Company’s Budget Procedures Essay

Springfield Corporation operates on a calendar-year basis. It begins the annual budgeting process in late August, when the president establishes targets for the total dollar sales and the net income before taxes for the next year. The sales target is given to the Marketing Department, where the marketing manager formulates a sales budget by product line in both units and dollars. From this budget, sales quotas by product line in units and dollars are established for each of the corporation’s sales districts. The marketing manager also estimates the cost of the marketing activities required to support the target sales volume and prepares a tentative marketing expense budget. The executive vice president uses the sales and profit targets, the sales budget by product line, and the tentative marketing expense budget to determine the dollar amount that can be devoted to manufacturing and corporate expenses, and then forwards to the Production Department the product-line sales budget in units and the total dollar amount that can be devoted to manufacturing. The production manager meets with the factory managers to develop a manufacturing plan that will produce the required units when needed within the cost constraints set by the executive vice president. The budgeting process usually comes to a halt at this point because the Production Department does not consider the financial resources allocated to be adequate. When this standstill occurs, the vice president of finance, the executive vice president, the marketing manager, and the production manager meet to determine the final budgets for each of the areas. This normally results in a modest increase in the total amount available for manufacturing costs, while the marketing expense and corporate office expense budgets are cut. The total sales and net income figures proposed by the president are seldom changed. Although the participants are seldom pleased with the compromise, these budgets are final. Each executive then develops a new detailed budget for the operations in his or her area. None of the areas has achieved its budget in recent years. Sales often run below the target. When budgeted sales are not achieved, each area is expected to cut costs so that the president’s profit target can still be met. However, the profit target is seldom met because costs are not cut enough. In fact, costs often run above the original budget in all functional areas. The president is disturbed that Springfield has not been able to meet the sales and profit targets. He hired a consultant with considerable experience with companies in Springfield’s industry. The consultant reviewed the budgets for the past four years. He concluded that the product-line sales budgets were reasonable and that the cost and expense budgets were adequate for the budgeted sales and production levels.

Developing Teams in Business Assignment Essay

What is a Team? A team is individuals whom are moulded into a group who work together to achieve an objective or task. Benefits of a team Being in a team is very beneficial as every individual has their own opinions and views , a whole team can manage to gather information and materials much easier than an individual , also within a team there is more creativity which is a benefit as there isn’t only one brain but more than one. Furthermore being in a team enables individuals to gain skills such as communication skills, listening skills and being able to be open willingly and share opinions. Team Recruitment Recruiting the right team members is the key to the success of your team. When the leaders of any group recruit new members, there are a number of skills, qualities needed as well as a process that each member has to go through in order for them to be an successful addition to the team. This process is called job analysis from where a person specification is drawn up and following all the qualifications and qualities that a new team member would be expected to have. There are different types of teams which consist of: Formal Informal Different size teams Temporary Permanent What is a formal team? A formal team is a team where individuals are put together for a specific  reason, each individual within the team is given a specific role. Formal teams are mostly permanent teams, for example within the supermarket Tesco they would have different formal teams likes, customer services team, marketing team, human resources these teams also have sub teams such as groceries and the butchery. All these teams work effectively to reach their objective What is an informal team? An informal team is a team which is less structured compared to a formal team, theses times are about the individuals within the team, the team its self has minimal rules and expectations compared to a formal team. This type of team would hold social events , have irregular meeting maybe at break times the team does not have a specific leader all team members are equal and take on the same role therefore there is no co-ordination. What is a different size team? A different size team is basically what the name of the team is, it is a team that has different sizes of team members. The size of team varies on the task that needs to be completed. Temporary teams A temporary team is a team that is set up for a short period of team, the team is not long lasting, the team would come together for their objective and as soon as their objective is completed they would split up. Permanent teams A permanent team is a team that works together continuously, the team is long term and work is reoccurring. What type of teams would Tesco use? As Tesco is a large company they would use all the above types of teams such as: Formal team: E.g.: The customer service team at Tesco represent  customers this team may consist of over 5 member it also may most likely be a mixed gender team. The team members would have all the same skills such as communication skills, attentiveness, positivity, the ability to read customers and a calming presence. Together the team should form a well-rounded team as individual has the skills for the position they are given. Informal team: E.g. A team of trainees at Tesco may hold informal sessions to track their progress within the company and their development within the company these meetings may not be compulsory and may not be happen all the time all the members in the team would be on the same level so in this case they would all be trainees within the company. Within the team they may talk to each other about their progress and what they think they could do better, but it wouldn’t be a case where the team would have a manager sit them down and speak to them. Different size team: E.g. Tesco could have a team of HR that could consist of 3 members but then they could also have a team of customer service employees that team could consist of 6 members. Initially in a team 5 is the magic number even though 5 is an odd number it is a good size for a team as the team is also small enough to involve all members in addition to that if a decision needs to be made having an odd team helps. Temporary teams: E.g. Within Tesco 8 different employees may be put together for a project for example to market a new product coming out within the company , therefore the members would all work together to put I’m ideas to market the product , after the product is published the team will disperse. Permanent teams: E.g. The administration team for Tesco would be a permanent team as that team helps the business function, this team would classify as a permanent team as it is a team that the business needs in order for it to function well. What is a leadership? A leader is a person who leads a group of people, an organisation or a team, being a. Leader doesn’t necessarily mean you do this but also being able to be a leader is a trait of leadership. A leader is being able to think on behalf of your group, being able to fix a crisis if one rises without hesitation, a leader is someone inspirational, confident, and assertive. Being a leader is not taught. Whereas being a mange can be taught. A leader  knows it’s members strengths and weaknesses for example a manager at Tesco could know that one of his/she’s employee is not as confident on tills but is good speaking to customers the leader would know to not put that employee on the sales team but with customer services where the employee feels comfortable. Leadership styles 1.Autocratic leaders : These leaders make decisions without consulting their team members, even if their input would be useful. Although these leaders do not consult their members this type of leadership can also be advantage for example when a decision needs to be made quickly/instantly the leader can make the decision without the input of members. On the other hand this role can also be demoralizing 2.Democratic leaders: These leaders are the ones who make the final decisions, but they would consult their team members and include their opinions in the decision-making process. They encourage creativity, and people are often highly engaged in projects and decisions. As a result, team members tend to have high job satisfaction and high productivity. This is not always an effective style to use, though, when you need to make a quick decision. 3.Participative leadership: This is a way leadership in which it involves subordinates in the goal setting with the problem solving team building. As well as retail the final decision making authority 4.Laissez-faire: These types of leaders give their team members a lot of input in how they do their task and how they set their deadlines. These type of leaders do not get involved but do support their team and offer advice if the team needs it. This type of leadership can damage a team as they do not have a lot of guidance as some members may lack time management, knowledge, skills or self motivation. Leadership skills and attributes What skills and attributes are needed to be a good / effective leader? A good leader must have the skills applicable to lead a team, these characteristics encourage members to follow the team leader. Within Tesco  the leader of sales has to have the right attributes and skills to control their team if they didn’t the team would not functional properly these skills consists of: Communication Effective team leaders communicate clearly. Quality verbal and written communication skills allow leaders to present expectations to team members in a way workers can understand. Effective communication skills also allow team leaders to listen to the input of others. Organization Effective team leaders possess exceptional organizational skills. Organizational skills help team leaders plan objectives and strategies, which allow team members to perform optimally. Organized team leaders put systems in place that maintain order and guide team members toward meeting company goals and objectives. Confidence An effective team leader is confident in his abilities, as well as confident in the abilities of his team members. A confident leader is secure in the decisions he makes that affect his team. A self-confident team leader also reassures team members of his authority within the organization. Respectful A quality team leader is respectful of his team members. A respectful leader empowers employees by encouraging them to offer ideas about decisions that affect them. This lets team members know that the leader respects their input and opinions. Fair A quality team leader treats team members fairly. He is consistent with rewards and recognition, as well as disciplinary action. A fair leader ensures all employees receive the same treatment. Integrity An effective team leader is honest and open with his team members. Leaders who possess integrity gain the trust of team members because he does what he says he will do and treats others the same way he wants to be treated. Influential Influential leaders help inspire the commitment of team members to meet  company goals and objectives. Influential leaders also help manage change in the workplace by gaining the confidence of workers through effective decision making and communication. Delegation Effective team leaders know how to share leadership through delegation. Delegating certain tasks to trustworthy team members allows the leader to focus on improving workplace functions and production. Facilitator Effective team leaders are powerful facilitators. As a facilitator, team leaders help workers understand their goals. They also help organize an action plan to ensure team members meet their goals and objectives more efficiently. Negotiation Team leaders utilize negotiation skills to achieve results and reach an understanding in the event of a workplace conflict. Team leaders who negotiate effectively streamline the decision-making process, as well as solve problems for the best interest of everyone involved. (http://smallbusiness.chron.com/10-effective-qualities-team-leader-23281.html

Understanding Dota Gamers

DotA is an abbreviation of Defense of the Ancients which is a map modification from Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos and Frozen Throne based on the map of â€Å"Aeon Strife† of Starcraft, a team game focusing on hero combat. DotA is a five versus five game with two sides which are sentinel and scourge. The map is divided into three lanes where creeps automatically spawn. The objective of the game is to destroy the opponent’s Ancient that is heavily guarded by several defensive towers which attacks hostile creatures. The map was developed with the World Editor of Reign of Chaos.The first DotA map was developed by anonymous modder known as Eul. He released DotA even before the Frozen Throne came out. Then another anonymous modder, Guinsoo, took over and converted DotA for the Frozen Throne, but he later stopped developing maps. Icefrog then took his place and is the current DotA developer. Game is commonly played with teams. Each team creates strategy to win the game. First, they pick hero, one hero for every player. Next, player buys item for the hero to make it strong. And proceed into one lane for defense and offense mode.Hero gains one gold, currency of the game, every second and forty for creeps and two hundred plus for hero kills. Player collects gold by farming, microing, and hostile hero killing to buy recipe items to be synthesized for an upgraded weapon. Also, hero gains level experience, up to level twenty five, every time they kill a creeps and heroes. Every hero has their own unique balance skill. Proper timing and usage of skill is one aspect that a DotA player needs to learn. Ever since the DotA was developed, the game had undergone many changes.Game bugs and glitch do appear and are reported by testers and players. It gives a thought that a modder is not the only developer of the game. The DotA community has their own share. â€Å"But despite all of the community’s help, it is still Icefrog, a man who may be named Jeremy, who may be from Boston and who may study at UCLA, which makes the final changes. The masses may be the power of the movement, but the figurehead and initiator of all that changes is still focused on a mysterious, almost spiritual figurehead. †1 The popularity of DotA has increased over time.The game can be played around local area network or online through battle. net. Battle. net allows one player to connect with other players in the internet. Garena provides interconnection of players for every game, in this case DotA. It has several rooms created by a host player inviting another player to join in. DotA was once featured in the magazine Computer Gaming World. Different tournaments were done and one of the famous is Electronic Sports World Cup in 2008. LAN tournaments are a major part of worldwide play. From game addiction to game creation, the League of Legends was released.It has the same environment with Defense of the Ancients, but an enhanced and improved graphics and animatio n and different characters, items and skills. Same goes with DOTA 2, the improvised DotA. Everything was remained. DOTA 2 is a whole new game. Even with DOTA 2 released, there are still player of the DotA. Pre-gamers think whether they will try the game or not. They are curious about the game. Things that in their mind are bad pictures like they will be bullied, will be laughed of, or will become attached to the game. They question themselves: why are existing players play DotA? How much fun can they get?How to play the game? With these questions in their mind, they are influence by their curiosity to start and play the game and find the answers themselves. They will seek assistance first, and then remember the basic controls and movements of the character for their next play. In other cases, curiosity is not the reason why someone starts to play DotA. It is the influence of their peers inviting the pre-gamer to join the club – DotA gamers. The friendship does not want to be broken. The known reputation of DotA being one of the most addictive games pushes the pre-gamer to decline playing.Some succeed in declining and others did not. It is because they are convinced by their friends to play DotA. Girlfriend of an existing DotA gamer is the common relationship status of girl players. They want to get the attention of their boyfriend. So, girlfriend asks her boyfriend to teach her and learn it herself so they can play and have fun together. Once they have tried the game, it will leave them impressions. The common impression is that it is not good because of the low quality graphical representation and the controls are hard to remember at first.It is also hard to kill an artificial intelligence character that a beginner will think the game is impossible, but this will change later. Another one impression is ‘disappointed’ because their first play could not meet their expectation and will not be satisfied with the result. Some quit at once while other continues. After getting the game’s information, a beginner will start to change his view towards the game. He/she will discover that the game is exciting, thrilling, and fun. He will practice playing to kill an AI character. This will lead to continuous playing and eventually improve his/her skills and strategies.When that happens, he/she will kill an AI and be ready to compete with other players. At middle time of a gamer, he/she finds DotA as a place of recreation and entertainment. His/her addiction of the game is showing. A gamer spends most of their free time playing the game solo or with friends. Other gamers still play sports and socialize with friends and play DotA afterwards. This case is a proof of attachment with the game. Some gamers treat DotA as a hobby. They only play for pastime or to entertain their self. They are not considered as addicted.On the other hand, a gamer is considered addict when he/she plays more than an hour, spends money to heat up the game, and chooses the game instead of socializing with others. There are other reasons or symptoms that based a gamer addicted. As time goes by, for existing gamers, they turn out to become advance game player. The game is as familiar as their house. Strategies are like rock, scissor, and paper game. They can switch to new strategy for whenever they want. In-game characters are like dolls they control as they command. â€Å"Change is the only constant†, said Heraclitus (535-375 BC).Changes show in the later time of the gamer. There are changes in gamers’ physical appearance, thinking capacity, socialization, and studies. These changes affect the player’s daily life. The gamer is different from his/her past self. If he/she attends a reunion, his/her relatives would think of him for another person. â€Å"Physical consequences of gaming addiction include carpal tunnel, migraines, sleep disturbances, backaches, eating irregularities, and poor personal hygiene. Car pal tunnel syndrome has long been associated with computer use, so it's no surprise that it's a physical symptom of gaming addiction.Carpal tunnel syndrome is caused when the main nerve between the forearm and hand is squeezed or pressed. This occurs when the carpal tunnel – the area of the wrist that houses the main nerve and tendons – becomes irritated or swollen. Overuse of a computer mouse can cause such irritation and swelling, as can excessive use of a video game controller. Migraine headaches typically start in one spot and slowly spread, getting more painful as they progress. In severe cases, the pain can be so extreme that it causes the sufferer to vomit. Light and noise can cause excruciating pain.Someone who plays video games for extended periods of time is more prone to migraines because of the intense concentration required and the strain put on the eyes. The term â€Å"sleep disturbances† covers several sleep-related disorders, including insomnia, narcolepsy, sleep apnea, nocturnal myoclonus (periodic leg or arms jerks during sleep), and parasomnia (i. e. , night terrors, sleepwalking or talking, and nightmares). Sleep disturbances are caused, in part, by overstimulation of the brain. However, some people can't get a good night's sleep simply because they think obsessively about the game they're playing.Backaches are a common physical symptom of gaming addiction because most gamers stay seated in the same position for hours on end. The lack of movement causes stiffness and soreness, but could deteriorate into chronic back problems. Eating irregularities are caused by gaming addiction simply because most addicted gamers don't want to take the time to eat properly. Rather than eating healthy, balanced meals, they eat food that is quick and usually unhealthy. In extreme cases, the gamer may choose not to eat at all. An addicted gamer is not going to take the time to properly care for himself.Showers, face-washing, and brushing h air and teeth all get put on the back burner. It simply becomes less of a priority, if it's a priority at all. These physical consequences will occur in varying degrees from one gamer to another. Though the severity of physical consequences is often tied to the severity of the addiction, this is not always the case. A gamer that is already in poor physical condition will be more susceptible to these effects early on. †2 Video game is also a cause of obesity particularly with kids. They eat while their character is dead and wait until it respawn.Gamer mostly eats unhealthy or foods with imbalance nutrients. They do not exercise even sometimes which results to gaining weight, and back and wrist pains. This case majority happens to addicted players. A game player’s intellectual capabilities varies depend on his/her attitude or personalities. It also depends on their way of thinking and past knowledge. Gamers with strong and sharp mind usually win a session game in DotA. Ga mers’ mind thinks fast that is to establish game strategy and to take up the lead. This factor is a good effect of video game.He/she can make decisions fast but careful because he/she thinks as if he/she is still playing. He/she does not want to screw his game play and strategic plan. â€Å"Playing a game which requires very fast deployment of visual attention and motor movement could prime a strategy of speed over accuracy,† explained Nelson, â€Å"while playing a game which emphasizes a slower, more thoughtful pace could prime the opposite pattern. The main point is that different kinds of video games engage different cognitive and perceptual skills, and there are measurable differences in their effects, even in the short term. Similar results have been noted in previous research by Daphne Bavelier, of the University of Rochester in New York. She co-authored a study that showed video game players have improved hand-to-eye coordination, increased visual processing, s tronger mental rotation skills and enhanced visuo-spatial memory. †3 Defense of the Ancients is not as addictive as massive multi-online role playing game (MMORPG), where a player maintains and upgrades level and strength of his character and does not restart the character information after logging off.Meanwhile, DotA characters start at level one every session of game. DotA is more fun to play with peers than playing alone. The average length of a game session with user opponent is sixty minutes. Thus, it gives the player to interact with his teammate and opponents for an hour. It is virtual socialization, where a player speaks through the chat bar and dialog box, and interact with other player with his game character. Socialization in real life comes after a session. Gamers snacks together and talks about their finished game and criticize the player who cause the win or loss.It creates bonds and trusts for playmate. Gamers that play in computer shop increase their peers who they met and play the game with. Too much attachment to the game DotA affects relationships with family, relatives, friends and other people. A gamer that chooses to spend all of his free time and sleep for playing neglects his social interaction with relatives and in school. He only interacts with the player or peer he is playing with. And since he lacks sleep, there is a chance that he will fall asleep in class and affects his school performance. Peers changes the gamer’s way of socializing.The gamer absorbs the negative treatment onto him and do it himself onto other game player. He tries to bully weaker player – easy kill, easy money. And his way of speaking changes. Polite becomes impolite and occasionally turns to being rude. Some of his words are swap with words from the game, ixempli gratia, godlike and ‘imba’, which only a DotA game player understands. Most of his expression is about the game. He loves to talk all things about DotA only with other DotA player. He will not try to talk about it with non-gamer for they would not understand.Some gamers who are attached to the game do not fail in class. He manages his time carefully and controls his self with his decision to not set aside studies for computer game. Unfortunately, other gamers fall behind lectures. The common reason is lack of sleep. Gamer often yawn in class and inevitably fall asleep. Some gamers do not attend their first class and later drop the subject. There are gamer that do not spend their money allowance for snacks instead spend it for computer rental, if the gamer do not have computer at home or he just want to play DotA with other player.Other gamers decrease their time for study and spend it for socialization with peers through DotA. DotA had different tournaments. There are Local Area Network (LAN) tournament, online tournament, international tournaments and other tournaments. Advance players grab this opportunity to challenge their skills and to compe te with other strong players, but the common reason for joining is the prize especially the cash. Winners gain reputation. Losers gain rivals. The population of DotA gamers consists mostly of students. Their allowance usually goes to computer rental. Other gamers are nonstudent, with occupation and bystander.Bystanders have more free time to play though they have insufficient fund for renting computer though they can only play alone at home through internet if they have computer. Those advance gamers with jobs are the ones who usually place bets to heat up their game. This is a form of gambling. They even place bets though they are only watching. Gamers make money through winning bets and tournaments. Experience is knowledge. We gain lessons in every experience. Experience sharpens our personality. Our mistake is a lesson to avoid and improve the right one. Gamers experience the changes which were discussed in the last topic.While playing DotA, gamers experience different feelings a nd emotions like hunger, fun, excitement, and thrill. These emotions are triggered by neurotransmitters such as endorphins and dopamine. These brain chemicals are responsible for animals’ sense of pleasure. The brain secretes these chemicals when the body feels excitement, joy, or pain. Even a fake smile can cause pleasure and trick the body that it is happy. â€Å"Then, there's the excitement. A good game will get your pulse racing and your adrenaline pumping, even if you're just sitting on the couch holding a controller.Games with a time component amplify this excitement, even in simple games like Jewel Quest where you're down to one second before everything blows up because you didn't find the three matching gems. †4 During the game session, the hand-to-eye coordination is used. Most of the time, hands and eyeballs are the only part of the body that moves. They seldom stretch their hand, legs, and neck. Parts of the body that is not use become weak. DotA gamers expe rience lack of sleep because of playing. The gamers do not care of time during the session. His focus and attention are in the game only.They ignore other matter even emergency calls and text messages are ignored. Reply is given upon the end of the game session. These are reasons why parents and girlfriend/boyfriend, if there is any, get upset. Based on the observation of the researcher, gamers , particularly on weekend, start to play at nine in the morning and finish at about four the next morning, then get some rest and come back playing. They said, they only eat, take small amount of time to sleep, wake up, eat again, take a bath, then go to internet shop to resume his play. For students, they usually play after class hours.They are sometimes distracted by the thoughts of DotA while in the class. They are excited for class dismissal. They come home late and make their parents anxious. Some of these students are being fetched by their parent. Some act shy, on the other hand, some act tough and proud. In Internet shop, gamers are happy, and noisy. During the session, they shout and trash-talk each side even the watchers shout. Harsh and mean words are trash-talk like ‘weak’, ‘lousy’, ‘slow’, and ‘gay’. The competition each game is intense. Gamers who lose often get bullied and easily angered.Later, this bullied player, sometime, cause trouble and brawl. Losers feel sad, depression, and shame, and think for a new strategy to win the next game. They gain rivals to overcome, putting more time for practice game to improve tactics. On the other hand, winners celebrate, feels fun, and gain challengers. Some gamers quit, but there are new players who replace them. The reasons of new players are curiosity towards the game, seek of fun, peer pressure, and friendship. People find ways to eradicate pressure and boredom. One of it is playing DotA.The game DotA has effects depends on the physical and mental capacity of t he gamer. Weak-willed mind and poor health are more susceptible to game addiction and negative changes in their personality and body. Playing the game reduces time for socialization and study. Game players must learn how to control their selves to refuse from overuse of time and money for playing. Parents must watch their kids. It is hard to forbid kids from playing video game. This action can cause the kids to rebel. So, give them outdoor activity like sports to balance their mind and body. Definition of termsBugs are small insect. Bugs, in computer program, is an error, flaws, or mistake in a computer program that produces an incorrect or unexpected result, or causes it to behave in unintended ways. Farming ,in agriculture, it is an activity of growing crops and raising livestock. Farming, in DotA, is an act of collecting gold. figurehead is a person given a position of nominal leadership but having no actual authority. Glitch is a minor malfunction, or technical problem. Godlike means resembling or having the qualities of God or a god. In DotA, it is a call for having nine consecutive player kills.Imba is an abbreviation for â€Å"imbalanced†. Imba can be applied to a subject in gaming (Weapon, army, race, role or job) which can be either too strong (Overpowered, or OP) or too weak (Underpowered, or UP). Insomnia is a specific kind of sleep disorder in which the patient is not able to get into sleep or the patient is not able to remain asleep for an adequate period of time Jerk is a single quick motion of short duration. Micro is a word comes from the Greek word micros meaning small. Micro (microing),in DotA, is an act of last hitting creeps.Narcolepsy is a condition characterized by an extreme tendency to fall asleep whenever in relaxing surroundings. Parasomnia, from the Latin meaning â€Å"around sleep,† is a sleep disorder characterized by abnormal sleep behaviors. Parasomnias involve unconscious complex, semi-purposeful, and goal-directed behaviors that have meaning or importance to the individual. These can include night terrors, sleepwalking, sleep eating, sleep sex, rapid eye movement (REM) behavior disorder, or any number of potential behaviors that occur while the person remains asleep. re-gamers means a potential game player that is not yet a game player. Respawn Also known as spawn, respawn is a gaming term used to describe the action of a computer player or human player coming back to life after being killed. Restless leg syndrome (Nocturnal myoclonus) is a disorder in which there is an urge or need to move the legs to stop unpleasant sensations. Screw is a metal fastener having a tapered shank with a helical thread, and topped with a slotted head, driven in to wood or the like by rotating, especially by means of a screwdriver.Screw means to mess something up, turn things for the worse. Sleep apnea is the temporary stoppage of breathing during sleep, often resulting in daytime sleepiness. Apnea is a Greek wo rd that means â€Å"want of breath. † Spatial memory is the part of memory responsible for recording information about one's environment and its spatial orientation. Trash-talk is a form of boast or insult commonly heard in competitive situations. Visuospatial is pertaining to perception of the spatial relationships among objects within the field of vision.

Reality Television and the Youth Essay

Reality television has evolved over the past sixty years. They have gone from clean practical jokes to a portrayal of an American family to how to party, lie and deceive. The more the focus is on partying, drugs, sex, vulgarerness, the more our young people will portray these traits. There needs to be more focus on good wholesome clean fun, which keeps the youth safe and healthy. The way to change the way our society is headed is to stop the programing that is hurting all of us. Reality shows of today teaches the youth that it’s alright to disobey their parents, its alright to party, do drugs, have sex with multiple people, get pregnant, and that the guys that don’t have to stay around or take care of the situation they helped put the girl in. The cause and effects of today’s reality shows far outweigh the advantages they have. It’s hard to believe that reality shows have been around for almost sixty years. The very first reality show was produced and aired in 1954, the show is Candid Camera. It was innocent practical jokes on unsuspecting strangers on the streets. The reactions were funny and the jokes were tasteful and clean. The next show is where our reality shows stem from. Its was produced and aired in 1973. An American Family, only had twelve episodes and during this time there were two reasons it became infamous. The two reasons were the demanded divorce from wife Pat and that their son Lance came out and openly announced he was gay, he was the first openly gay person. This is where our reality television stems from. An American Family show really opened up the airways for the nastiness that is called reality television. ttp://usatoday30. usatoday. com/life/columnist/popcandy/2003-01-08-candy. htm Reality television is on just about every channel now days, there is no way to get away from some type of reality show. The main type of reality show is one that is based on nakedness, deceitfulness, and selfishness. These shows teach our young girls that they need to look a certain way, act mean, and do whatever they can to get as many guys as possible. There are so many diets out to keep all women thinking they all need to be skinny like the models or actresses. There are many different types of women, and there is no way we can all be a size 2. Women and girls do not need to be mean to one another; we can all get along and be friends. There is nothing wrong with being with one man. It’s actually healthier to have less sexual partners that to sleep with every man possible. Reality shows teach guys that it’s alright to have sex with as many women as possible to show how masculine they are. They teach guys/men that it’s alright to treat women like a fast food meal, once they are done with them, they can just throw them away. Reality shows do not show how a man should treat a woman with respect, and kindness. Gentlemen are hard to find these days, because the men of the house is either not there or don’t care what his son is doing. It’s nice to see a young man hold the door open for women of all ages. http://healthland. time. com/2011/10/18/what-reality-tv-teaches-teen-girls/ Children are like little dry sponges, the cleaner, good, interesting fun water you put in them that’s the type of person they will be. But if you pump them full of nasty and filthy water that’s the kind of person they will be. I want to have a society of clean, mature, and independent teens with morals and standards. As parents we take care of our children when they are toddlers, but as soon as they are in their adolescents parents start to drift away from the kids, most of the time kids are pushed away and they end up watching whatever they can find. Reality television shows are a biggest part of the way young people act the way they do, but quite a few of the cartoons that are on the airways are just as bad as the reality shows. Here’s want needs to happen, is parents need to change before the children can change. There needs to be more reality shows with morals, standards, and how to have respect for those around us. We need to get away from all this junk that is on the air now. If we had some better shows on the air and show how families should be, our country would be able to turn around. I think there should be a class that teaches respect and morals, instead of sex education, teach the girls to respect themselves and the guys to respect the girls as well as themselves. There would be less and less unwanted teen pregnancies. It would also make for a better home life and easier relationships between parents and kids. These classes should be mandatory for the kids and if parents have any problems with that, than they to need to be able to sit in on a class or two. As mentioned before, this is the type of programing that most of the young people that are still impressionable watch, not to mention the parents. If you are a parent and you have young kids in your home the last thing you should want to do is let them watch these type shows. We have to change something and it needs to start at home. Family’s need to change the way they watch TV, because we need to make the right choices for our kids and give them a good, clean, moral start. If they chose to watch these type shows later in life it was their choice. We need to talk to our kids about true reality and what will happen if they make certain choices. If they chose to have sex then there is a high possibility that they will get pregnant or get someone pregnant. Tell them that there is nothing 100% other than not doing it. Plus it shows that they respect themselves, and if the other person respects them than everything will be as it should be. Our kids have known from the time they were little and they started asking questions we told them the truth that they could understand at that age. Now that they are teens we answer as we would an adult. They have to right to know the truth and the whole truth. We don’t believe you are helping them if you hold stuff back that will help them make the right decisions. If it’s alright to disobey your parents, or to lie, cheat, steal, have big parties, drink and use drugs, have sex and get pregnant, and have guys just want you for what you look like and not what you think, than we don’t need to change anything, but if you don’t believe all of that then we need to change what it is our children and even ourselves watch. The only way we can change all of this is to make changes in our homes first, then in our schools, because if we change these first the media will change afterward, because they will not have the ratings to keep all that junk on the air. I believe if we would change than everything else would change, but we have to start with ourselves and our children. Then work with the school systems. Once we get these areas in control then we can work with what kind of shows we get to watch, but to make it all work we have to be willing to get out of the thinking you have your life and I have mine. That is one reason our country is in the shape it’s in. The more we work close to home the more it will spread for the good of everybody work with the school systems. Once we get these areas in control then we can work with what kind of shows we get to watch, but to make it all work we have to be willing to get out of the thinking you have your life and I have mine. That is one reason our country is in the shape it’s in. The more we work close to home the more it will spread for the good of everybody.

Radio Frequency Identification Technology Essay

Radio Frequency Identification Technology - Essay Example But there is a big difference in both the technologies; the bar code identification technology uses line of sight reading for scanning. Whereas, the RFID technology does not depend on this line of sight reading. RFID can read the tags that are some meters away and also can read the tags that are not in the line of sight of the reader. RFID has made significant improvements in the inventory tracking and management processes. The RFID is a technology that is needed and is being used in almost every field that needs a unique identification and tracking system. The RFID tags can hold any kind of information whether simple or complex one. The RFID tags can hold almost 2000 bytes of data. RFID technology has no doubt replaced the bar code detection system and is considered to be the enhanced technology. The RFID is capable of tracking and identifying a great number of items simultaneously. This feature definitely saves a great amount of time and money that is spent on monitoring individual items. Due to many enhancements this technology is being widely used in almost every field. (Discover RFID, 1, n.d) Generally, the technology of Radio Frequency Identification evolved from the roots of the radar systems which have now become one of the hottest supply chain technologies. Most of the Europeans were at that time using radar systems which came into existence in 1935 by a physicist from Scotland, Sir Robert Alexander Watson Watt, which helped them caution against planes which were approaching them even when they are miles away. The problem which the countries faced due to radar system was that they could not identify the planes approaching them, whether it was an enemy's plane or country's own pilot. At that time Germans invented a method following which the base could alert them which aircraft is a German one and which is the Allied aircraft, which was that the German pilots if roll their planes while returning to base that would enable the base and ground crew that the approaching aircraft is a German plane. We can say that this was crude method was the first RFID system. After this method the Scottish physicist helped British developed an IFF system, known as Identify Friend or Foe. The British installed a transmitter on each of their aircrafts, which when received signals from the radar systems from the ground would send the signal back enabling the base to identify their aircrafts. This concept then became the evolution of the RFID systems and was just the same as RFID, which sent signals to a transponder which then reflects the signal back to where it received the signals or even broadcast an active system back to its source. Different advancements were made in radar and RF systems through 1950's and 1960's. (The History of RFID Technology, 1, n.d) Functionality of RFID RFID works has three different parts of the system which includes a scanning antenna, a transceiver which is used to interpret the data by the help of a decoder and a transponder which has been programmed with all the information. Scanning antenna is used to transmit signals at a short range by sending radio frequency signals.

Medieval mysticism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Medieval mysticism - Essay Example Christian mysticism had something to do with direct experience with the divine in form of a vision of, or sense of union with God. Meditation, prayer or ascetic discipline usually accompanies it. In general, mysticism is a direct and immediate experience of the sacred, or the knowledge derived from such an experience. The experience is immediate and overwhelming, detached from the common experience of reality and is self-validating, without need of further evidence or justification. Outside the experience itself, one is incapable of expressing or understanding its essence. It is important to note that mysticism is not the same as magic, clairvoyance, parapsychology or occultism. Mystics are people who practice or believe in mysticism. They usually see their mystical experience as part of a larger task meant to bring human transformation and not as the terminus of their efforts. In Europe, mysticism flourished especially in Germany, Italy, the Low Countries and England from mid 13th to mid 15th century. Such mysticisms of that time are the ones referred to as medieval mysticisms. However, there is variation in the dating of the edges of these periods depending on different scholars. One of the most important sources of medieval mysticism is Saint Augustine of Hippo. He was born in the city of Thagaste, Algeria, to a Catholic mother named Monica and he has contributed to the western philosophy by promoting argument by analogy. He is also the most important figure in the ancient western church that produced works of high spiritual quality. In Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion, he is a doctor of the church known for his Christian mystical sermons and the patron of the Augustinian religious order. His ideas also influenced philosophers like Immanuel Kant and Blaise Pascal, and the reformation leaders such as Martin

Case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Case Study Example ?University (SSU) is a comprehensive teaching institution with 14,200 undergraduate and 3500 graduate students accompanied with 400 faculty and staff. SSU is situated in an attractive and relatively isolated setting in Lubbock, Texas. In the recent years, SSU has faced numerous challenges and difficulties. There has been considerable increase in the annual tuition fees but resources to meet the new initiatives have been limited. Although SSU has a few resources in order to meet capital improvement or for the commencement of new programs and initiative but these resources are not adequate. In the recent times, SSU has been able to provide only 1 percent rise across the board faculty and staff salary cost of living and standard promotion adjustment but it has witnessed no major increase in the number of staff for several years. Two programs namely a Staff  Performance  Excellence  Program  (SPEP) and a Faculty  Distinction program was initiated in the year 2000 and 2001 respe ctively which were framed to recognize and motivate outstanding  performance. However, since 2005 neither program was funded. The performance documentation and employee-supervisor discussion committee of the SPEP occupied a key role in deciding the eligibility and levels of merit based salary increase. SPEP was not tied with in any manner with the compensation rather it was totally an academic exercise. Besides, staffs within SSU have also not taken this program seriously as they believe that the program will have no significant impact on their promotion. At the same time, Faculty Distinction program has been paused for many years (Ruben & Jurow, 2012). There was no rigid plan to resolve this ongoing problem faced by the university and the faculty members in the university. As a consequence of this, faculty members in SSU felt increasing level of stress and they deemed to remain strapped for time to teach. Faculty members in SSU who are economically vulnerable remain disheartened about their