Organizational Change †Challenger Disaster

Organizational Change – Challenger Disaster Free Online Research Papers A review of the external and internal threats will help determine the weakness of the problem analysis related to the launching of space shuttle Challenger. At the time of the accident, the country was experiencing an economic slowdown. Considering the economic climate, Congress wanted to know if the American people still support the huge requirements of the program. The government ruled out increase in taxes being an election year. Simultaneous to the congressional investigation was a launch of space shuttle Challenger. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) wanted a successful launch. A no-launch situation might convince Congress to slash the program’s budget. Furthermore, Americans were anticipating the first female astronaut-teacher crewmember. Internally, NASA undertook cost-cutting measures and approved the use of materials approved by sister industries. At the time of the launch, engineers expressed concern over two factors: a) The o-ring which is not designed to operate at the existing temperature of -32 degrees Fahrenheit; b) There was a question on the stability and predictability of engine propulsion. Given the above problem considerations, NASA formulated two alternative decisions: launch now or wait for better weather conditions. NASA was faced with decision traps, the framing trap and the confirming evidence trap (Langlois, H, 2007). Unfortunately, it was not able to identify and cope with them. NASA management argued a successful launch would guarantee congressional budget approval (framing trap). There was a presumption the launch will be successful, as previous launches before. This line of thinking blocked the consideration of safety factors. It only considered the external threats. In this case, the reframing trap would have been resolved if the framing option considered the internal technical weaknesses related to the planned launch. Other possible outcomes could have surfaced with the reframing of the problem. At this point, it is not important if ultimate problem was one of the possible outcomes. What is valuable to NASA is that there is free flow of communication among its employees who are receptive to ideas due to the logic of any proposed outcome. The group of administrators led by Dr. Loyal downplayed the technical considerations and believed launch should proceed. It got support from smaller groups involved in the lobbying efforts – who naturally would like the launch to proceed as scheduled (confirming evidence trap). Getting the support was a selfish move since the outcome would definitely be in Dr. Loyal’s favor. The internal goals of each group should have been considered in the decision. The administrative group anted a launch while the engineering group wanted a postponement. Are they the only groups a giant organization NASA has? Truly, other groups in NASA, with their respective interest, exist and who may help add to the factors for consideration. On these bases, alternatives generation can improve. Two questions that may have cropped up: Will a launch postponement result in a budget slash? Will a launch problem endanger the very existence of the space shuttle program? Some theories in organizational behavior stress the importance of organizational resiliency and learning. Caralli (2006) said that the success of an organization relies on its resiliency and ability to adapt to changes in its environments. They define resiliency as the organization’s capability to change business processes, tactics and strategies as called for by its environments. The procedures in the previous successful launches were obviously not followed. It is surprising that NASA administration disregarded available competent technical information prior to the launch. Politics predominated the internal technical launch processes and this partly explains the failure. The organization’s reaction was focused on budgetary concerns. Budget is a valid concern, but it disregarded the success of its main function and that is to launch the space shuttle into outer space safely. McShane and Von Glinow (2005) define organizational learning as the internal corporate business process that facilitates the acquisition, sharing and use of knowledge within the whole organization. By doing so, the organization is able to achieve its tasks and mission. Technical people are also at fault. How did faulty o-rings get installed in the space shuttle? Why was engine propulsion unreliable even at the last moment, when the whole launch process is dependent on this factor? With all its technical capabilities, it seems the NASA organization has a problem in managing the flow of internal technical information. Problem Framing and Decision Making The external threat of a budgetary slash was capably handled by the groups assigned. The same group will be assigned to explain the highly technical processes of the space shuttle program to the congressional committees concerned. They have to explain in laymen’s language that the level of technicality requires that all the millions of parts of the shuttle has to function effectively and efficiently. These include small parts such as nuts and bolts and o-rings. Any question on the integrity of any of its parts requires the postponement of launch. The ability to monitor and trace each of these parts explains why the budgetary requirement of NASA is so huge. Any cut in the budgetary level endangers the safety of the technical crew and the astronauts, themselves. Remember one of them was a chosen schoolteacher whose participation in that planned space journey was highly anticipated by the American people. With this reasoning, the congressional committees involved will mos t likely leave the proposed budget untouched. The same group can explain further that even with such a huge budget, NASA has undertaken cost-cutting measures in order to maximize the use of the people’s money in the program. The cost-cutting measures should initiate the search for cheaper alternatives. By setting acceptable quality standards, all proposed replacement parts shall be subject to tests. Due to the highly technical requirements of the space shuttle, all possible replacement parts will be tested without exception. The performance of parts which pass the tests will be compared to that of the original parts. In this manner, the performance data of the new part is anchored on the performance data of the old part. Resulting problems will be exhaustively discussed along the organizational hierarchy in order to extract all possible points of view within the organization. After this process, the problem will be framed and defined accordingly. To solve the problem, all alternatives will be considered and decisions formulated. As part of NASA leadership, the cultural and power structure of the organization shall be taken into consideration when assessing the various points of view of the individuals and groups in the organization. This practice provides a safety net from heuristic traps that tends to block or limit the ideas coming from the men and women of NASA. An organization composed of one of the brightest minds in America. The leadership’s responsibility is to guide the NASA organization in the achievement of its mission and vision. The existence of NASA or any of its projects is not the decision of NASA itself. The fact that it is funded by the government means that the American people decide on these matters. Therefore, the leadership can only follow what the people say and this is voiced through its various branches: executive, legislative and judiciary. The fact that the administrative group within NASA was able to influence the launch decision deserves a review of the power structure of the organization. People with expertise in administration and finance should not be involved in the launch decision. Leadership should be able to establish a system where the integrity of the decision made is based on the right parties. By maintaining this policy, corporate politics will not interfere with the professional work of each group. The technicians and engineers will also be limited to their area of expertise. The leadership should also see to it that information is handled objectively. New knowledge will be absorbed through a systematic process that is anchored on old knowledge. The objective for NASA is actually to transform it into a truly a learning organization. In this way, errors of the past can be avoided. As modernization moves fast forward, information will play a key part in the survival of organizations. It is essential that organizations have the capacity to learn as an organization so that new knowledge can be acquired, adopted and used. Reference CARALLI, R. 2006. Sustaining operational resiliency: A process improvement approach to security management. Networked systems survivability program, CERT coordination center. Available: cert.org/archive/pdf/sustainoperresil0604.pdf [7 January 2008]. LANGLOIS, H. 2007. The challenge of changing, part II. Massachusetts: Cambridge [Course notes.] Available: http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/docs/icb.topic203996.files/Challenge_in_Changing092507B.ppt [January 8, 2008]. MCSHANE, S.L., VON GLINOW, M.A. 2005. Organizational behavior: Emerging realities for the workplace revolution, 3rd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill Education (Asia). Research Papers on Organizational Change - Challenger DisasterResearch Process Part OneIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalOpen Architechture a white paperThe Project Managment Office SystemAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaPETSTEL analysis of IndiaMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UseInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married Males

The Invention of Fire Sprinkler Systems

The Invention of Fire Sprinkler Systems The world’s first sprinkler system was installed in the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in the United Kingdom in 1812. The systems consisted of a cylindrical airtight reservoir of 400 hogsheads (95,000 liters) fed by a 10in (250mm) water main which branched to all parts of the theatre. A series of smaller pipes fed from the distribution pipe were pierced with a series of 1/2 (15mm) holes which poured water in the event of a fire. Perforated Pipe Sprinkler Systems From 1852 to 1885, perforated pipe systems were used in textile mills throughout New England as a means of fire protection. However, they were not automatic systems, they did not turn on by themselves. Inventors first began experimenting with automatic sprinklers around 1860. The first automatic sprinkler system was patented by Philip W. Pratt of Abington, Massachusetts in 1872. Automatic Sprinkler Systems Henry S. Parmalee of New Haven, Connecticut, is considered the inventor of the first practical automatic sprinkler head. Parmalee improved upon the Pratt patent and created a better sprinkler system. In 1874, he installed his fire sprinkler system into the piano factory that he owned. In an automatic sprinkler system, a sprinkler head will spray water into the room if sufficient heat reaches the bulb and causes it to shatter. Sprinkler heads operate individually. Sprinklers in Commercial Buildings Until the 1940s, sprinklers were installed almost exclusively for the protection of commercial buildings, whose owners were generally able to recoup their expenses with savings in insurance costs. Over the years, fire sprinklers have become mandatory safety equipment  and are required by building codes to be placed in hospitals, schools, hotels and other public buildings. Sprinkler Systems Are Mandatory- But Not Everywhere ​In the United States, sprinklers are required in all new high-rise and underground buildings generally 75 feet above or below fire department access, where the ability of firefighters to provide adequate hose streams to fires is limited. Fire sprinklers are also  mandatory safety equipment North America in certain types of buildings, including, but not limited to newly constructed hospitals, schools, hotels and other public buildings, subject to the local building codes and enforcement. However, outside of the US and Canada, sprinklers are not always mandated by building codes for normal hazard buildings  which do not have large numbers of occupants (e.g. factories, process lines, retail outlets, petrol stations, etc).

Imagine you are writing a textbook chapter for criminology students, Essay

Imagine you are writing a textbook chapter for criminology students, where you are explaining one specific crime( choose between drink driving, mobile theft or - Essay Example However, as Siegel (2005) argues that there maybe concern regarding potential costs, insularity being one of them. A potential kind of insularity that specialised criminology studies can face is isolation from other areas of study from which it originated. Twenty years ago almost every criminologist had a Ph.D. level education in traditional areas such as sociology, psychology, political science or economics. Current breed of crime experts however, have doctorates in departments that are solely dedicated to crime and justice. Although this provides good grounds for specialised training in criminology yet it may not be a place to learn about anything besides it. In order to avoid this potential isolation, we need to maintain a steady flow of ideas to and from other disciplines. One way of doing that is through involvement of criminologists in those disciplines (Siegel, 2005). In order to understand perspectives of different disciplines, various aspects of criminal theories are evaluated against an example of some prevalent crime. These theories were developed on the basis of human nature consisting of classical and positive school. Moreover, increased maturity in criminology has sprung on sociological theories on formative and social development platforms. Bierne & Messerschmidt (1994) argue that examining a specific crime can help us understand the theories and adapt them in a way to help us recognize the nature of crimes. Hence, we can analyse a common crime of cell phone theft in our society to help us combine these theories. Experts present many causes as reasons for people to show criminal behaviour. Misguided arguments like criminal behaviour is a matter of choices and that people commit crimes because that is what the want to do has serious impact upon crime control measures. Direct intrusion techniques have been the classical approach towards crime control strategies. Since Bierne & Messerschmidt (1994) suggest

Assuming we are planning to open a netball shop in Cardiff Essay

Assuming we are planning to open a netball shop in Cardiff - Essay Example dge of the staff about sports and their equipments will not only promote confidence for the business but will also provide an excellent customer service atmosphere and distinct advantage over competition who are merely reselling popular sports equipment brands. Cardiff Netball shop will be opened in Capitol, a shopping mall located at Cardiff downtown on the Queen Street. Queen Street is an ideal location to sell sport equipment and apparel business because a lot of people frequent the downtown to do their shopping. The traffic of the shoppers and the popularity of the place to shop for equipment and apparel make the Capitol an ideal location for the business. It is expected that the business will yield a healthy rate of return given the marketing strategy that will used. It is expected that in the first year of operation, Cardiff Netball Shop will have an after tax net profit of  £65,033, in the second year  £106,210 and 106,275 in the third year respectively. Cardiff Netball Shop will be retailing the most dependable athletic brands such as Adidas, Nike, Reebok, Mzuno, Wilson, Worth etch. The business however will differentiate itself from the competition by having staffs who are very knowledgeable of the products because they are sport enthusiasts themselves. Thus, customers will not only be assisted in terms of size, fit, style and design but also can be given what specific gear, equipment or apparell do they need according to their level fitness and discipline. Cardiff community will be the market of Cardiff Netball shop. Cardiff boast itself as a fit and health conscious community making it an ideal market for the business. Sports and athletic is robust in the area especially with the presence of Cardiff University where athletes and enthusiasts abound who have significant disposable income to spend on sports gear and apparel. Cardiff Netball has one direct competitor in the Cardiff community which is DW sport reselling popular athletic brands.

Construction resources Essay Example for Free

Construction resources Essay Construction resources make use of physics in many of their products. Two that I have picked are solar collectors and their use of insutation. Insulators have the purpose of preventing conduction, convection and radiation to unwanted areas. There are a wide range of techniques and materials used in doing this and I am going to look in depth at this idea. The company uses solar collectors in many different ways, their main purpose is to collect solar energy and heat energy. They can be used to heat and power many different appliances. Photovoltaic cells: Photovoltaic cells transfer the energy carried by the electromagnetic waves that make up sunlight directly to an electrical circuit in order to make a current flow. Light excites electrons to move from one layer to another through semi conductive silicon materials. Only a fraction of a volt is produced so a large array is needed to produce appreciable currents, usually about 20W to 100W. The Photovoltaic cells produce DC current so if alternate current AC is desired then an inverter is required. AC form is commonly available from the mains. Solar cells: Sunlight may also be used to heat water directly. This can be done in two ways, water can be circulated through pipes which run through the back of the solar cells, producing water at around 60oC suitable for household use. The other method is to focus sunlight from a large are to a small spot using an array of mirrors, this can produce temperatures of up to 4000oC and its quite feasible to produce power stations from this, however it has not been implemented yet. Here is on way in which the hot water can be used, this is quite economical and environmentally friendly. Solar panels are quite versatile and can be put on many roofs of simply in the garden, which makes them popular when it comes to heating swimming pools of hot water for showers. Any material that is a poor conductor of heat and electricity can be used as an insulator. Thermal insulating materials reduce the flow of heat between hot and cold regions. Thermal insulation may have to fulfill one or more of three functions: to reduce thermal conduction in the material, in which heat is transferred by electrons; to reduce thermal convection currents, which can be set up in air- or liquid-filled spaces; and to reduce radiation heat transfer, in which thermal energy is transported by electromagnetic waves. These are three ways in which heat energy can be transferred. Conduction, where heat energy is transferred through solid materials, metals are normally the best conductors. There are a number of factors that affect thermal conductivity. Increasing the area of the cross-section of the solid through which hear flows increases the rate of flow, however increasing the thickness of the wall decreases the flow of heat. Provided that a steady state has been reached (where the temperature of any point is not changing through time) then the rate of flow of heat ? Q/? t is given by: ?Q/? t A ? T/? x Besides the physical dimensions of the materials, another factor affecting rate of flow is the properties of the material, the Thermal Conductivity of the materials ? through which the heat energy is travelling is the constant of proportionality in this relationship, so:?Q/? t = -? A ? T/? x The units for thermal conductivity are watts per metre per kelvin. The Quantity ? Q/? t is called the temperature gradient. On my visit to Construction resources I noticed that they have used these Physical conclusions in there insulation. One in particular is Homatherm a wall and roof insulator. The slabs are thick which means less flow of heat, and have a thermal conductivity is only 0. 04 W/mK. Conduction in terms of particles: The particles in metals and non-metals are arranged differently, which gives them their different characteristics. In a non-metal the particles have forces between them that can be described like springs. When heat is delivered to the solid the oscillations of the particles being heated will increase in amplitude. For heat to be conducted the neighboring particles must also receive the extra energy, as particles oscillations increase in frequency the neighboring particles also gradually increase in frequency as heat is transferred to them. This is a very slow process. In a metal the arrangement is different, metallic boding occurs between metal atoms where a sea of delocalized electrons hold the positive metal ions together in a lattice. It is these free electrons that are responsible for the high conductivity character of metals. When a metal is heated the metals ions vibrate with an increase frequency. When an electron hits these ions with extra energy, they receive this extra energy and move faster. This electron can then travel to another parts of the lattice, to an ion that hasnt received any of this heat energy and collide with it, transferring its energy to this ion. Now that ion has extra energy and vibrates with a greater frequency. This process is a lot faster as there are many electrons in a metal lattice. U-Values: Architects and heating engineers use U-Values to calculate the flow of heat energy through building materials. The U-Values is quoted for a given thickness of a particular material, and is based on actual measurements made using the material. The U-Value is defined as: U-value = Rate of energy flow Area X Temperature difference Construction resources uses this knowledge of U-Values when designing building materials to reduce the energy wasted in the form of heat going out of the build and to achieve the ultimate goal of reducing CO2 emissions. But there are obvious limitations with reducing thermal conductivity, you can only reduce it to a certain amount, 0. 025 in air, so there will always be heat loss. Also too much insulation in the house will lead to what construction resources refers to as internal pollution. This has lead to construction resources researching in trying to lower the energy that is used to build and transport he construction materials. Bibliography: Microsoft Encarta Heinemann Advanced Science Salters Horners AS Advanced Physics Strengths and Limitations of Photovoltaic cells: Since one photovoltaic cell only produces a small fraction of a volt, large arrays are required to produce appreciable voltages. This requires a lot of space and the cells need to be in a place where no shadows will be cast on them. This limits what they can be used for. Also the amount of power produced by the photovoltaic cells directly depends on the amount of sunlight, so they cannot be relied on to produce power for something that constantly needs it. The only way this can be overcome is if some power was stored for a rainy day. But this again would take up space. Also an array of solar collector will be expensive and have a long pay back time. However it is environmentally friendly and after the pay back time, savings can be made. Also photovoltaic cells can be made look attractive depending on where they are placed. Strengths and Limitations of solar cells: The solar cells have similar limitations to the photovoltaic cells in regards to positioning and cost but a small array is only required to produce enough hot water for something like residential showers or central heating. This is economical and environmentally friendly and solar cells are quite versatile.

Human Rights Violations in the War on Terrorism Essay -- Terrorists Te

Following the September 11th terrorist attacks in which at least 3,000 people were killed, the United States has pursued policies that violate human rights in order to wage the war on terrorism. These policies include the adoption of new security measures, the poor treatment of captured fighters at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba, and the willingness of the Bush administration to overlook human rights violations in other countries in return for their support in the war on terrorism. When the enemy is faceless, as it is in the United States' fight against terror, there is a tendency to violate human rights in order to identify the perpetrators and anticipate further atrocities. Violations include detaining suspects without sufficient evidence or cause, denial of access to lawyer, and unfair trials. In addition to these violations, the United States has passed legislation that allows for the indefinite detention of non-US nationals facing deportation on national security grounds. This is currently the case with Mazen Al-Najjar, a Muslim academic who came to the United States in 1981 as student and later became a university professor. In 1997, Al-Najjar was detained for three years after government lawyers claimed that he had raised funds for a terrorist organization. A judge later ruled that there were insufficient reasons for concluding that he posed a threat to national security and he was released. However, he was placed back into custody in November 2001 when immigration agents claimed that he "had established ties to terrorist organizations." According to Amnesty International, no new evidence was presented to support this claim and he is currently being held in solitary confinement for twenty-three hours a day in a ... ...ver, the United States has established military bases there, and is thus willing to overlook several violations in exchange for cooperation against terrorists. While the threat of terrorism does require the adoption of specific security measures and policies, a grave danger exists in that human rights may be sacrificed in the name of security. The United States and its allies must do all that they can to ensure that human rights and freedoms are preserved. As a supporter of international law, the United States should be expected to adhere to a higher standard when it comes to the application and enforcement of these basic rights. Therefore, the United States must not use or condone the use of terrorism as an excuse to curb human rights. Human rights must govern how states treat people at all times. It is only then when states will truly be able to sustain peace.

Ceremony- Rewrite Essay

Tradition is the illusion of permanence. It defines who people are and gives them a place in their community; it is an expression of belonging and individuality at the same time. In Ceremony, Leslie Marmon Silko exposes throughout the novel many Native American characters. Some follow the traditions and others are ashamed of them. Silko expresses that only the ones that follow them are the ones that find themselves. They know who they are and are stronger and wiser. Because of this, they are the ones that will survive in this horrible modern world. Tayo is a boy that is proud of his origins and follows the traditions of his tribe. Rocky, on the contrary, tries to avoid the traditions and follow the white ways. Consequently, he thinks it will give him an advantage. He considers that white people are better. Both boys are influenced by their family and events that occur during their childhood. Both Rocky’s parents are Native Americans. Auntie, his mother, is one of the most negative characters in the novel. She does not follow the morals of the Native Americans; she is instead Christian and is close-minded. She influences Rocky to the white ways; she is the one that tries to make everything possible for Rocky’s success as a white. She even takes him to white school. â€Å"You drink like an Indian, and you’re crazy like one too—but you aren ´t shit, white trash. You love the Japs the way your mother loved to screw white men.† Tayo is the child of a Native American woman and an uncertain white f ather. Tayo is bullied by this all the time since he was young. In school, he said â€Å"Mexican eyes, the other kids used to tease me.† Tayo’s mother name is Laura. Laura was confused with the mixing of both cultures and ends up being ashamed of both. In addition she becomes an alcoholic and abandons Tayo. People assault Tayo for looking different. They accuse him of thinking he is better because he is half- white. In contrast, he tries to fit in and be accepted in his community. He feels rejected. Native Americans live together, all with their brothers and sisters. Auntie is bother when Tayo shows up in her house. Grandma and Josiah do not because they are accustomed to live all together. Auntie raises Rocky and makes him her own way. On the other hand, Tayo is raise by Josiah and Grandma. They teach him the traditions and storytelling. The key is there, that makes Tayo and Rocky different: the way they are raise. It develops their feelings for their origins and makes them proud or ashamed of where they belong and who they are. Also, when Tayo and Auntie are alone she makes it clear that he is different in a wrong way. Auntie wants no success for Tayo, only for Rocky. This makes Tayo feels like an outsider in the family and gives the sentiment of not belonging anywhere, but he never loses faith. Yet, family motivates Rocky to act white. Tayo has to make an effort to be noticed in the family; he has to take care of the cattle and even decides to join Rocky in the army. While Rocky has to do nothing and family members support him the most. Going to war is something that Tayo does for belonging. It has some success; Rocky calls him â€Å"brother† and not â€Å"cousin†. In white school, teachers teach them that storytelling is pure superstition; it which is science they have to believe in. Tayo and Rocky are taught the same, Rocky succeeds and Tayo does not. Despite the fact that the teachers tell Tayo that traditions and storytelling are nonsenses he stills believes. Nevertheless, Rocky, â€Å"After their first year of boarding school in Albuquerque, Tayo saw how Rocky deliberately avoided the old-time ways. Old Grandma shook her head at him, but he called it superstition, and he opened his books to show her.† Rocky through Auntie’s previous influence, gets easily motivated by the white teachers. The teachers’ goal is to eliminate their beliefs, so Native Americans would start thinking â€Å"white†. Watching Rocky’s success in school â€Å"he listened to his teachers, and he listened to his coach†¦They told him, â€Å"Nothing can stop you now except one thing: don’t let the people at home hold you back†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Auntie†¦wanted him to be a success. She could see what white people wanted in an Indian, and she believed this way was his only chance.† Rocky now thinks as a white man, but Tayo is still loyal to his Native American beliefs. Rocky’s decision to go to the war is driven by the goal of being as a white man and â€Å"belonging in America†. Rocky dies in war. Tayo and friends that attended white school together come back. All of them are suffering from an internal conflict, post traumatic effect. Tayo wants to cure himself and starts a traditional ceremony. The other men are like Rocky, they want to be white and reject their own culture. â€Å"So they tried to sink the loss in booze, and silence their grief with war stories about their courage, defending the land they had already lost.† The ones that are like Rocky, consequently, automedicate themselves with alcohol because they believe in nothing else. If Rocky had returned from the war he would have found in the same situation. In war they triumph, they are equally important as white men. â€Å"She looked at these Laguna guys. They had been treated first class once, with their uniforms. As long as there had been a war and the white people were afraid of the Japs and Hitler.† Without their uniforms, without being recognized as American soldiers, the Native Americans are again found discrimination. So they drink even more to remember that belonging â€Å"Here they are, trying to bring back that old feeling, that feeling they belonged to America the way they felt during war†¦ Belonging was drinking and laughing with the platoon, dancing with blond women, buying drinks†¦ They repeated the stories about good time like long medicine chants† . They are killing themselves with alcohol, the same way Rocky would do if he had back from the war. Because they prefer alcohol over medicine plants, or anything that is from their own culture. They already feel white and they like it more. In spite of this, Tayo cures himself and starts even a better life, the ceremony makes him a survivor. Leslie Marmon Silko between Tayo and Rocky shows the reader, even when Rocky is dead, how traditions can save the souls of who believe. Rocky and the other men modernize everything and eliminate their own origins. The people that they really are inside. Tayo, instead, combines the traditions and creates a new ceremony that includes white culture, but preserves the origins of the Native Americans. The other men are dead alive. Tayo is like that after the war, but ceremonies save him and make him a true survivor. Also, he has the function of a connection between the older and younger generations of Native Americans. The author concludes that in this modern and horrible world, only the ones that adapt and accept the change positively will survive and be happy. People should never forget their roots because that is what they purely are.

Domain Names as Internet Properties Essay

What are your long term plans for your domain name? Do you expect to convey the name and the goodwill associated with it to an interested buyer or bequeath it your heirs? Perhaps you intend to use the domain name to secure a loan for a business expansion or for your child’s college tuition. You may be in for a surprise. The intellectual property community asserts that domain names, as source indicators, are akin to trademarks. However, trademark law cannot be effectively grafted on to domain names because of the discrepancies over geographical boundaries and context-sensitive use. In order for a trademark registration to issue, the mark must be used in interstate commerce to identify the source of a class of goods or services. Identical trademarks can co-exist so long as they are associated with non-competing types of goods or services or are used in different geographic areas. Domain names are registered on a first-come, first-served basis. The first individual or company to complete the registration template for an available name gets the sole right to be associated with it. For a reasonable fee, currently hovering at $10 a year, the registrant can brand and propagate the name in a worldwide marketplace. The registrant receives the exclusive right to use that name for a website presence, global e-mail, and network file transfers. But every domain name must be unique, and it is this technical requirement that makes domain names potentially valuable resources which are substantively different from trademarks. Compaq Computer Corp paid $3. 35 million in July 1998 for rights to ALTAVISTA. COM, purchased from a California start-up called Alta Vista Technology. The transaction included existing traffic of a half million visitors a day who were already expecting to find the Alta Vista search engine at that domain name. As the price bar for domain names rises, NSI’s customers may resist being subject to the vagaries of the registrar’s feudal regime. Simple and unencumbered ownership endows the registrant with a type of predictable, if limited, sovereignty. Through legislation and judicial acknowledgment, registrants who meet certain individual responsibilities should be allowed a perpetually renewable and assignable right to enjoy this new source of wealth. Many domain names have become the cornerstone of multimillion-dollar business plans. In the fall of 1999, VirtualVineyard of Palo Alto, California, acquired Wine. Com of Napa, primarily for its domain name. While the $3. 3M-plus acquisition included an operating business, the CEO of Wine. Com estimated that about 70 percent of his company’s value was its name. The current controversies over domain names highlight the interplay of technology, law, economics and politics. Court opinions trail society’s changes and conundrums resulting from technology of recent vintage. Yet, nearly everyone agrees on one point: domain names are caught in a legal thicket. If domain names are property, then existing contracts such as NSI’s harsh Service Agreement must be rewritten. Although the implications of the Umbro decision are yet to be fully assessed, and NSI’s appeal remains to be heard, the magistrate recognized that each knotty domain name dispute before the court may be breaking new legal ground. References Unknown (1999). ‘Mortgages’ for domain names. BBC Sci/Tech News. Retrieved November 26, 2006 from http://news. bbc. co. uk/2/hi/science/nature/533455. stm Oppedahl, C. (1997). Remedies in Domain Name Lawsuits: How is a domain name like a cow? Patents. com. Retrieved November 26, 2006 from http://www. patents. com/pubs/jmls. htm

Torture is not Morally Permissible

Torture is not Morally Permissible Introduction To understand this statement we need to define the term torture. According to United Nations Convention against Torture, torture is an act of severe infliction of pain or suffering; be it mental or physical. There are three reasons that lead to torture namely to gather information, for punishment purpose and crimes of hate.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Torture is not Morally Permissible specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Torture is outlawed in most countries, and is considered anti-Christian by such denominations as The Roman Catholic. Torture does not work. Most people therefore say it is not permissible and only shows lack of moral authority in a society that practices it. It demeans a person’s human rights, shows lack of respect to his ego and results into hatred from the tortured. Arguments against torture Some philosophers argue for torture. For example, Miller states that a thief who steals a car with a child inside. The police get hold of him and have to torture him to release information on whereabouts of the vehicle, failure to which the child may die of heat stroke if not found within twenty minutes. Miller’s other example is that of a terrorist who hides a nuclear time bomb in a city. The police must find this time bomb early enough, failure to which it will kill crowds of people. In both cases, Miller argues that torture is acceptable. Miller states that torturing the thief and the terrorist will make them furnish the police with the required information. Miller further argues that the thief is considered derisive, pugnacious and rebellious. Miller concludes that upon beating, the thief will realize the beatings will go on until he releases the necessary information of the whereabouts of the child. However, beating the thief is more or less likely to make the thief defiant and angry rather than repentant. He feels oppressed and hated. Other approaches to the matter would be more operative. For example, offering a gift if the thief releases the car and the child, asking the mother to plead with the thief to have mercy upon the child or opting to withdraw the charges completely. The thief is just interested in the car and he is not after killing the child. The beatings will go on until the twentieth minute, after which this will be no more important for the sake of the child. It will only be a punishment. In reality, the thief will decline to offer the information after the twenty minutes elapse as he will be accused of murder.Advertising Looking for essay on ethics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In the terrorists’ scenario, torture is unlikely to be effective too. The terrorist is committed to his cause and is willing to die for the act. Often, some terrorists even go to an extent of bombing themselves. Torture will only make terrorist more reluctant to relea se the information1. Terrorists may even send the police into various likely locations which may end up being fruitless searches until the bomb is detonated. This way, a terrorist escapes torture and the plan is executed. The terrorist’s community or family members may forward the information to save their relative’ hence, hindering the mission. In both cases torture is not permissible. In the thief’s scenario, it involves subjecting one person to pain to save another. Both are human beings and need recognition. Hence, the two scenarios just show how torture works but are naà ¯ve to bring out its effects as well as the moral implications. The philosophers who propose torture fail to display how torture works and do not show evidence of its effectiveness. Torture is not permissible as the culprit may be innocent. In some instances, innocent people are charged with holding of important information which poses a risk to the lives of people. These individuals are i n most instances, unaware of what is happening. Items are stolen from a shop, but a shop attendant is accused of the offence. Robbers hijack a bus, a passer-by is accused. Bomb attacks occur; innocent citizens are hostage of the attacks. These are some of the instances, where innocent individuals are tortured innocently. They lose their liberty, identity and their dignity. For example, a report released by wikileaks in December 2010, stated that Khaled EL-Masri who was a Germany citizen was arrested by mistake and taken to Afghanistan. His arrest was simply because his name resembled that of a real terror suspect whose name was Khalid Al-Masri. Worse still he was dumped in Albania when CIA realized he was innocent. Torture may sometimes make people look guilty even when they are not. For example, an innocent individual is held captive of an offence, upon torture he pleads guilty to escape the injustice. In other instances, the expression of pain by the tortured convinces the witness es and the torturer of his guilt. There is also the need to protect life. An individual should not be tortured to death for claims of committing crime2. The tortured also have a right to sanctity of life and Kant states that it is our duty to allow this sanctity to thrive. Some individuals are however to release information they do not have a clue. An example is a terrorist’s wife who will be tortured to tell the whereabouts of her husband. A thief’s son may be exposed to torture to give information about the hidings of his father. Torturing these individuals is not permissible as they are neither involved in the criminal act itself nor the reason behind the crime.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Torture is not Morally Permissible specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Torturing innocent people is usually referred to as using persons as a means to an end. In other words, the torturers are willing to end crim e by spilling innocent blood. One is left to wonder if prevention is really better than cure. Hence torturing innocent people is less tolerable than failing to prevent the danger that occurs to other people by not being vigilant. Torturing an innocent person is far too huge a cost for any intended purpose. There are times when the innocent are tortured to death. This is done as a form of punishment so that others may learn from the scenario. This is wrong as life deserves preservation irrespective of conditions or results. There is a responsibility involved in killing as compared to letting a person die which does not. While killing is terrible, letting a person is merely out of negligence. When torturing one individual to save thousands of people, the importance of torture must be made in no indefinite terms3. We are therefore required to stimulate the circumstances necessary for survival of human beings and provisionally to uphold the ends or contentment of these people. We are mo rally impermissible to kill our morally innocent. We should therefore make a huge sacrifice to preserve the greater innocence of individuals. Where the individual is innocent of an offence, torture is not permissible either. This is because it is morally condemnatory and does not regard the victim. For example when we kill a terrorist, we violate his negative right of not receiving any harm although we have a duty towards the citizens to protect them. Torture ethically tints our society. It leads to corrosion of a state’s character. As stated earlier, it is an evil that receives much condemnation from all over the world. A society that tortures its people is considered as one that lacks morals and does not uphold the rights of human beings. Christians particularly condemn the act of torturing others, quoting Jesus’ words when He forbade His disciples from giving an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Christians further claim that Jesus was tortured on the cross for our sake and fled us from the bondage of sins. Torture harms the victim, the torturer and eventually the entire society. Torture is too much an evil to be considered a means towards an end. It is considered a means through which sadists meet their satisfaction. Torture thus imparts a spirit of revenge. Tortured individuals develop a feeling of revenge and will want to inflict the same pain and suffering upon the torturer4. For example, bombing of terrorists hiding venues makes the terrorists react angrily by bombing the attackers too. It is rarely appealing. Tolerance of torture perverts the societal morals. It shows moral decay in a society. Individuals who are subjected to torture may become rebellious after the exercise.Advertising Looking for essay on ethics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In fact, the rebellion might be practiced in form of a coup d’à ©tat in some countries. They may lose a sense of living and become demoralized. In an organization, employees who are subjected to torture, may become demotivated and perform poorly. This in turn may translate into low profits for the organization. A tortured victim lacks defense. In a scenario where an individual is being tortured to reveal crucial information, his only defense is the information he is withholding. Hence when we torture individuals we deny them the peace and joy whereby individuals are furnished with the means to accomplish needs, live with a purpose and delight in pleasure with lack of pain. We therefore ought to view people as ends not means. Torturing individuals is not a means to end unfairness or to clean the world. In fact torturing a wicked person does not add any peace. Conclusion In conclusion therefore, torturing the innocent does not reduce peace in the world. Neither is it a means t o acquire justice. Torturing people to death is inherently wrong as there is something sacred and special about sentient rational life which deserves preservation. If torture is used as an extraordinary measure for resolving our problems, its use will be normalized. Individuals henceforth be treated with a lot of brutality whenever need arises. There will be loss of integrity and respect for human rights will be no longer upheld. In a nutshell, torture is morally disgraceful. It yields lies and hatred and demeans the torturers along with the tortured. It is a vice which we should all fight against. Footnotes 1 The terrorist is committed to his cause and is willing to die for the act. Often, some terrorists even go to an extent of bombing themselves. Torture will only make terrorist more reluctant to release the information 2 There is also the need to protect life. An individual should not be tortured to death for claims of committing crime. 3 When torturing one individual to save th ousands of people, the importance of torture must be made in no indefinite terms 4 Tortured individuals develop a feeling of revenge and will want to inflict the same pain and suffering upon the torturer

Points About Bullet (and Other) Lists

Points About Bullet (and Other) Lists Points About Bullet (and Other) Lists Points About Bullet (and Other) Lists By Mark Nichol When constructing vertical lists- sets of words, phrases, or sentences that are formatted vertically below an introductory phrase rather than included within a sentence (the latter is called an in-line list)- take care that the syntactical and grammatical structure of the list is consistent. In the following list, for example, notice the difference in the syntactical structure of the first two items and the third item; the first two are phrases, and the third is a complete sentence: When establishing an effective awareness program, senior management should consider the following: Reinforcing the message through regular training Repetition of themes, ideas, and structure in order to drive cultural change The message and its content must be relevant to the audience with whom the company is trying to communicate. To be consistent, all items in a list should have the same structure (complete sentences or phrases). But note, too, that the grammatical form of the first two items differs: The first word in the first item is a verb, and the first word in the second item is a noun. All three items should be grammatically consistent as well. The following revision addresses both problems: When establishing an effective awareness program, senior management should consider the following: Reinforcement of the message through regular training Repetition of themes, ideas, and structure in order to drive cultural change Relevance of the message and its content to the audience with whom the company is trying to communicate. To better illustrate the problems this revision solves, here’s the vertical list formatted as an in-line list: â€Å"When establishing an effective awareness program, senior management should consider the following: reinforcing the message through regular training; repetition of themes, ideas, and structure in order to drive cultural change; the message and its content must be relevant to the audience with whom the company is trying to communicate.† Clearly, something is amiss. In addition to possessing syntactical and grammatical consistency, the text that introduces the list and the list itself should be grammatically integrated. In the original and revised versions above, the introduction is a complete sentence, and thus correctly ends with a colon. In the revision below, note the alternative format for the introduction: It ends abruptly mid-sentence, but each (slightly revised) list item independently finishes the statement. Because of this seamlessness, no colon is required, and the first word of each list item should not be capitalized: When establishing an effective awareness program, senior management should reinforce the message through regular training repeat themes, ideas, and structure in order to drive cultural change communicate the relevance of the message and its content to the audience with whom the company is trying to communicate. In each variation, because the vertical list is replicating an in-line list, only the last item is punctuated. Note that if the list items are all complete sentences, each one should be punctuated, as in the revision below: When establishing an effective awareness program, senior management should consider the following: Senior management should reinforce the message through regular training. Senior management should repeat themes, ideas, and structure in order to drive cultural change. Senior management should communicate the relevance of the message and its content to the audience with whom the company is trying to communicate. Note that in illustrating this point, these list items are unnecessarily redundant to the last part of the introduction, as well as repetitive. If all items in a list begin with the same word or phrase (or can easily be revised to do so), incorporate that word or phrase into the introduction and start each list item with the first distinct word in the phrase, as shown in the original revision. If the items in a list consist of single words or short phrases, no punctuation at all is required after the items, as shown here: When establishing an effective awareness program, senior management should consider the following factors: reinforcement repetition relevance 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 Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Compared "to" or Compared "with"?40 Fish Idioms7 Other Types of Pronouns

What Happened to the Mayan Civilization The Mistery of A Great Essay

What Happened to the Mayan Civilization The Mistery of A Great Civilization - Essay Example The most famous theories of the collapse of the Mayan civilization are as under however there is no consensus of opinion among the researchers: 1. The Disaster Theory: The researchers of Maya civilization believed that there was surely a catastrophic event which doomed the Mayans. The event may be an earthquake, an epidemic disease, flood or the volcanic eruption. Such a disastrous event can be the only explanation behind the immediate downfall of civilizations. It is reasonable that a large number of people can be killed or displaced only if a sudden hazard takes place. It can at once kill people and destroy cities. The theory is widely celebrated for the reason of the fall of the Mayan civilization (Thompson, p96). The theory matches with religious explanations of the causes of the falls of the nations. This theory as regards the Mayan civilization was however rejected because the history shows that Mayan civilization took about 200 years for its downfall; it was not sudden. Some o f the cities declined while many flourished for quite a reasonable part of the time. Had there been an earthquake, flood, disease or volcanic eruption, each and everything would have simultaneously been removed of the surface of the earth. As this was not the situation, the theory was rejected by a large faction of researchers. 2. The Warfare Theory: The Mayans were a peaceful civilization. But their later history reveals that they were a warring people always busy in wars among in between and against others. Their historical record tells of the fact that they always discovered newer methods of warfare. The stone-carvings deciphered recently openly tell that Mayans fought frequently among themselves. Cities went to battles quite often worth mentioning of which are Tikal, Copan and Dos Pilas. In 760 A.D, Dos Piloas was destroyed after ruthless invasion. The theory is quite an interesting and reasonable explanation of the causes of the downfall of the Mayan civilization. History has a lways told that mutual war-fares and misunderstandings have caused the nations to drown in the seas of obscurity. The researchers have only one query here; whether they fought enough to bring their downfall? This is quite reasonable that war brings with it human sufferings, financial crisis and collateral damage. They warred with each other and the cities of the Mayan civilization caught the fire of distrust and discontent sufficient enough to disbelieve them their culture (Miller, p18). 3. The Famine Theory: In the periods of history between 1000 B.C. and 300 A.D, the basic occupation of the Mayans remained the Agriculture. They practiced in it and earned their livelihood. Agriculture was so largely practiced that even small family-plots were not left uncultivated. Corns, beans and squash were their main plantations. On seas and riversides as well as in lakes, they carried out fishing for their food needs. With their advancement in many fields, the cities grew and their population increased. Their progress attracted people from other civilizations as well. They came and penetrated them. A moment came when their population grew to the extent their resources could not bear any more. The local production was far less than their required limits. They were however an advanced civilization and learnt to upgrade their resources. They improved their agricultural procedures and equipments. They improved their trade. However the penetration of the outsiders and the increase in local population were the issues which

Contemporary Issues in Strategic Management Assignment

Contemporary Issues in Strategic Management - Assignment Example Vodafone reached this enviable position through a series of alliances, joint ventures and acquisitions. Section 2 of this paper analyzes Vodafone’s value chain and elucidates its capabilities and core competencies. The Porter’s generic strategies have been discussed and an explanation of which type of strategy Vodafone pursued has been detailed in Section 3 of the paper. Section 4 of the paper discusses in depth the acquisition strategies of Vodafone. An in-depth analysis of pre-acquisition rationale and steps involved therein like analysis of strategic fit, valuation methods and due diligence has been done. The post integration efforts have also been detailed in this section. An attempt has been made to apply the Haspeslagh and Jemison Framework in the post integration efforts. The discussion in this section extends to gauging the overall effectiveness of the acquisition strategy. Any organization with a global footprint can pursue a global strategy, a multi-domestic strategy or a transnational strategy. Vodafone’s choice of International strategy has been discussed in Section 5 of this paper. An organization is able to compete successfully in the marketplace if it can deliver superior value to its customer vis-Ã  -vis the rival firms. The creation of this value entails a series of activities which have been referred to as the value chain by Michael Porter. The arrangement and completion of various activities and their linkages determine whether the firm will be able to manufacture a product for which the customer is willing to pay a price that is higher than the cost of producing the product. The activities in the value chain are divided into two broad categories namely primary activities and support activities (Grant, 2010, Pg 111) . The primary activities enable the manufacturing of the product that the organization intends to sell in the market. This offering may be goods (tangible products) like