Y2k Computer Problem Essays - Calendars, Software Bugs, COBOL

Y2k Computer Problem The year 2000 is just around the corner. As some people look forward to a new and brighter millenium, others prophesize about the Second Coming, or the apocalypse. While these prophecies may be ignored by many, they might not be too far off base. The year 2000 may not bring an end to the physical world; however, it may cause great havoc to the worlds computing industry. The year 2000 problem (or Y2K as it is often referred to) is not really a bug or virus, but is a computer industry mistake. Personal computers (PCs), mainframes, and software are not designed or programmed to compute a future year ending in double zeros (00). This is going to be a costly fix for the industry to absorb. In fact, Mike Elgan, editor of Windows Magazine, says, . . . the problem could cost businesses a total of $600 billion to remedy(Experts Elgan). Y2K has become a two-part problem. One is the inability of the computer to adapt to the MM/DD/YY issue, while the second problem is the unwillingness of many people to see the impact it will have. Most IS (information system) specialists are either unconcerned or unprepared. In order to fix the year 2000 computer problem and its impact, one must fully understand what this problem is. Back in the 1960s, programmers decided to store the year of dates as two digits instead of four in order to save much needed space and cut costs. So the year 1998 would be stored as 98 and 2000 will be stored as 00. These two-digit dates will be on millions of files used as input for millions of applications. This two-digit date affects data manipulation, mainly subtractions and comparisons (Doomsday Jager). For instance, Joe was born in 1957. If the computer was asked to calculate how old Joe is today, it subtracts 57 from 98 and reports that he is 41. This calculation is correct. In the year 2000 however, the computer will subtract 57 from 00 and say that he is -57 years old. Many owners of home computers feel this bug wont affect their personal computer but its expected that up to 80% of all personal PCs will fail when the year 2000 arrives. More than 80,000,000 PCs will be shut down December 31, 1999 with no problems as workers leave their office for the weekend. However, on January 1, 2000, some 80,000,000 PCs will fail as systems are turned on and booted up (Believe Jager). Fixing the problem seems to be difficult a difficult task, as all applications from spreadsheets to email will be affected. Should an individual replace his current computer with one that is Year 2000 compatible or simply replace the RTC (Real Time Clock), the BIOS, or the OS? Even if the hardware problem is fixed is all the software used may not be adequate to make the transition. The answers to these questions and others like these cannot be answered with a simple yes or no. For one thing, the leading experts in the computer world cannot agree that there is even a problem, let alone discuss the extent to which it will impact society and the business world. CNN correspondent Jed Duvall illustrates another possible problem scenario. Suppose someone on the East Coast, at 2 minutes after midnight in New York City on January 1, 2000 decides to make a call to a friend in California, where it is still 1999 because of the time zone difference. With the current configurations in the phone companys computers, the New Yorker will be billed from 00 to 99, a phone call lasting for 99 years (Duvall). Say a deposit of $100 was made into a savings account that pays 5% interest annually. The following year the depositor decides to close the account. The bank computer figures the $100 was there for one year at 5% interest, yielding $105, simple enough. What happens though, if the money is not withdrawn before the year 2000? The computer will re-do the calculation exactly the same way. The money was in the bank from '95 to '00. That's '00 minus '95, which equals a negative 95 (-95). That's -95 years at 5% interest. That is

6 Functions of Behavior and How to Identifying Them

6 Functions of Behavior and How to Identifying Them Behavior is what humans do, and its observable and measurable. Whether it is to walk from one place to another or to crack ones knuckles, behavior serves some type of function. In the research-based approach to modifying behavior, called  Applied Behavior Analysis, the function  of an inappropriate behavior is sought out, in  order to find a replacement behavior to substitute it. Every behavior serves a function and provides  a consequence or  reinforcement  for the behavior. Spotting the Function of a Behavior When one successfully identifies the function of the behavior, one can reinforce an alternate, acceptable behavior that will replace it. When a student has a particular need or function fulfilled by an alternate means, the mal-adaptive or unacceptable behavior is less likely to reappear. For example, if a child needs attention, and one gives them attention in an appropriate way because of appropriate behavior, humans tend to cement the appropriate behavior and make the inappropriate or unwanted behavior less likely to appear. The Six Most Common Functions for Behaviors To obtain a preferred item or activity.Escape or avoidance. The behavior helps the child to escape from a setting or activity that he or she doesnt want.To get attention, either from significant adults or peers.To communicate. This is especially true with children with disabilities that limit their ability to communicate.Self-stimulation, when the behavior itself provides reinforcement.Control or power. Some students feel particularly powerless and a problematic behavior may give them a sense of power or control. Identifying the Function ABA uses a simple acronym, while  ABC  (Antecedent-Behavior-Consequence) defines the three pivotal parts of behavior. The definitions are as follows: Antecedent:  The environment in which the behavior occurs and the circumstances that surround the occurrence of the behavior or people in the environment when the behavior occurs.Behavior: The behavior, what the student actually does, that needs to be defined.Consequence:  Everything that happens after the behavior, including how people respond to the behavior and what happens to the rest of the students educational program. The clearest evidence of how a behavior functions for a child is seen in the antecedent (A) and the consequence (C.) The Antecedent In the antecedent,  everything happens immediately before the behavior occurs. It is sometimes also referred to as the setting event, but a setting event may be part of the antecedent and not the whole. The teacher or ABA practitioner needs to ask if something is in the environment that may lead to the behavior, such as escaping loud noises, a person who always presents a demand or a change in routine that might seem frightening to a child. There also may be something that happens in that environment that seems to have a causal relationship, like the entrance of a pretty girl which can draw attention. The Consequence In ABA, the term consequence has a very specific meaning, which at the same time is broader than the use of consequence, as it usually is, to mean punishment. The consequence is what happens as the result of the behavior. That consequence is usually the reward or reinforcement for the behavior. Consider consequences like the child being removed from the room or the teacher backing off and giving the child something easier or fun to do. Another consequence may include the teacher getting really angry and starting to scream. It is usually in how the consequence interacts with the antecedent that one can find the function of the behavior.   Examples of the Pivotal Parts of Behavior Example 1: Jeremy has been taking his clothes off in the classroom. During a structured observation, the therapist noticed that when the time for art approaches, Jeremy gets really agitated. When the teacher announces, Time to clean up to go to art, Jeremy will throw himself on the floor and start pulling his shirt off. It has now gotten to the point where he quickly pulls his socks and pants off, as well, so the office will call his mother to take him home. The function here is to  escape. Jeremy doesnt have to go to art class. The teachers need to figure out what it is that Jeremy wants to escape from art. The teacher may start taking his favorite toy to art and not putting any demands on him, or he/she may want to put headsets on Jeremy (the room may be too loud, or the teachers voice may be too high pitched.) Example 2: The moment that Hilary is given a demand after group, she begins to tantrum. She clears her desk with a sweep, knocks it over, and throws herself to the floor. Recently she has added biting. It has taken as much as a half hour to calm her down, but after attacking the other students, the principal has been sending her home with Mom, who she has to herself for the rest of the day. This is another function of escape, though because of the consequence, one might say it is also indirectly attention since she gets the undivided attention of Mom when she gets home. The teacher needs to work on slowly shaping the academic behavior, giving her preferred activities at her desk, and making sure there is a home note that helps Mom give Hilary extra attention, away from her typical siblings, when she has a great day. Example 3: Carlos is a  seventh grader with low functioning autism. He has been hitting girls when he goes to lunch or gym, though not hard. They are affectionately referred to as love pats. He occasionally hits a boy with long hair, but his focus is usually girls. He usually grins after he has done it. Here, the function is attention. Carlos is an adolescent boy, and he wants the attention of pretty girls. He needs to learn to greet girls appropriately to get their attention.

Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Business - Essay Example An individual who does not find the above issues aligned to the organizational objectives would thus suffer from lack of performance, at least to what the organizations consider necessary. (Matthews, Zeidner, and Roberts, 2004, 9). Is this therefore a direct cause effect relationship to the emotional intelligence of a human being? Emotional Intelligence – the concept Individuals who do not perceive well and are incapable of understanding and managing emotions are expected to perform lesser in organizations. Issue such as co ordination and group conflicts become more. Such can be harmful in cases where the organization is closely knit and works in small or medium capacity.   Similarly individuals who have the trait of being averse to power and control are also less likely to do well in a highly hierarchical organization. Their performances are more likely to increase in situations of autonomic groups and teams who are given the liberty of taking their own decisions. The asses sments of individual’s emotional intelligence can also be helpful for organizing methods of employee empowerment and training curriculum. Although traits of individuals are difficult to change, the abilities can be worked upon. These abilities are often a reflection of the emotional intelligence of people and hence assessing these factors of emotional intelligence will help organizations to develop the abilities of its employees, which in turn would result in better performance of individuals. (Hersen, 2004, 203) Critical Literature Review In the 1940s, David Wechsler was the first to suggest that associated components of intelligence could play a crucial role in the success of a life of an individual. Later in 1985, Wayne Payne introduced the word emotional intelligence as a concept in his doctoral thesis. Since then it has become a subject matter of many researchers with respect to their quantification as well as the various effects they may have in different aspects of hum an life. However to understand the co relation between Emotional Intelligence and Employee Performance, it is necessary to understand the concept of performance for an employee both from his point of view as well as the organizations’. The study of performance has derived from an organizational need to manage activities to ensure that goals and objectives are met effectively and efficiently. Various motivational theories have also stated the importance of motivation in enhancing the performance levels and efficiency of an individual. Studies on organizational behavior also indicate the importance of social and mental structure of an individual in understanding how the person will adapt, align and perform under the organizational framework. High emphasis is put on perception, values and ethics of an individual. Thus is it very clear that an individual’s emotional quotient is a factor as to how the individuals respond to situations and whether they can perform. In such s cenario therefore measuring the emotional intelligence can be a critical reflective as to the overall performance of an employee. (Shields, 2007, 180) Three main models currently used to calculate the emotional intelligence: Ability Models: Claims Emotional Intelligence includes four types of abilities such as Perceiving Emotions, Using Emotions, Understanding Emotions and Managing Emotions. Each of the above factors represents the emotional outlook of an individual towards his/her performance. An individual who can perceive

Child Development Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Child Development - Article Example According to the research findings cognitive development involves the change in a child’s intelligence, language, thought skills, and patterns, a well as problem solving, while social emotional factors involve the relationship of the child with others, emotional changes, and personalities among others. Biological factors involve the change in a baby’s body such as the brain, weight, and height, which are based on genetic inheritance. The early years of a child are the most important. Generally, healthy development fosters child’s abilities; however, children tend to develop at their own pace, although their development should be closely monitored. From the infancy stage to three years, a child highly depends on his/her parents or caregivers; the child’s biological development is based on genetic inheritance. The brain development of a child enables it to crawl, eat, laugh, or speak; however, this development is based on the parent’s interaction with the child or the genetic inheritance. Genes are transferred form the parents to a child, and therefore, there are similarities between the child and his parents or relatives. This is evident in appearance, talents, and personalities developed as they grow. Each child must inherit gene from his parents, as infant development genetic characteristics are noticeable; for instance, their height, weight, hair color, or eye color may resemble their parents. The quick growth of a child may also be compared to his relatives’ genetics. ... For example, some children can construct a full sentence by the age of three, while others cannot. Cognitive Factors Cognitive factors mainly involve changes in a child’s intelligence, language, and thinking; children are capable of incorporating information into existing knowledge as they develop. An infant may learn how to explore the surrounding environment with his hands or eyes; from birth, infants begin their learning process. They gather, sort, and process information, and as a result, they are capable of understanding their world. In early childhood, a child’s intelligence develops such that their language and imagination mature. The infants begin to learn through focusing on an object, volume of sound, colors and so on. At three months, these infants are capable of imitating facial expressions such as, smiling or frowning. At six months, babies can recognize their parents and their names as well. By the age of three years, a child can begin to be independent by playing with different kind of instruments, without assistance. The child also understands simple words like than you, please and sorry, depending on the parent’s upbringing. When an infant is one year old, he is capable of making different sound such as bubbling. At three years, he can speak orderly words; this development results from learning from the infant’s caregivers. Cognitive development fosters curiosity, problem solving, memory, and attention in 1-3 year old infants. Their surroundings assist them in learning new skills. Parents contribute to cognitive development in numerous ways, expanding the attention time for their children, and therefore, the children are able to explore and learn. Parental listening skills are vital in this

Race and your Community Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Race and your Community - Essay Example In short they came in search of a better and more profound life both for themselves as well as their children. They came looking for a life style more enhanced and improved than they had previously been living in their original country of heritage. With the passage of time, my ancestors came to settle in St. Louis, Mo. Whenever one discusses the notion of race, it is essential to discuss the concept of community as well. One cannot exist without the other and both are essential for the survival of any society. Therefore, in the same dictionary, the definition of community is given as, "a group of people living together in one place such that they have the same religion, race etc.; and the people of an area or country considered as a group." It is true that communities originally started off with people of a certain background, a specific guild living together such that they either had their professions, color or ethnicity as a common denominator. Such communities have existed in most parts of USA, until recently. With the advent of globalization, immigration of people to the New World from all over the planet and enhanced awareness of other cultures among the local population, all communities have had to undergo drastic changes. My community is also a part of this modern global society. It is dive rse from the past ones in the sense that people of all racial backgrounds coexist in it. However, it is not to say that communities no longer exist and that groups of people no longer tend to segregate together. They do but in a very different set-up. This is because the common denominators that previously made-up a community, have changed. In my opinion the two basic factors that makes up a community now a days is the monetary resources as well as the age group of people. People with high-income levels usually tend to segregate in a certain area of a city whereas those with less income tend to live in separate neighborhoods or areas of their own. The same may be said for people of different ages groups. The elderly of course live in retirement homes or neighborhoods specifically designed for them. Whereas the young people prefer to live in an area with hip nightclubs and a lot of hustle n' bustle, families with small children will instead try to find a safe and peaceful neighborhoo d with low crime rates. Thus communities still exist but they have taken on a new face that is quite different from any previous one. For a moment, picture the community that I live in. Around where I live there are five churches; each belongs to a different Christian denomination, two synagogues, a Muslim mosque and a Hindu temple. The Buddhists of the area gather together at a member's house to pray. This sufficiently shows that people of all religions have come to dwell and live together in a single community and that religion is no longer a denominator for a community. I personally have friends from all of the aforementioned religious groups. Consider the various ceremonies that these different groups follow, "decorating the hands of the bride with Hennna (Arabian), spreading of rose petals (English), jumping the broom (African), bride wearing numerous robes (Japanese), Bride carrying lump of sugar to signify sweet life (Greek) etc. (http://www.slpl.org/slpl/interests/article240109217.asp) Thus, when one goes to a wedding in our community you can be

Optical Sensing of Molecular Oxygen

Optical Sensing of Molecular Oxygen Optical sensing of molecular oxygen is gaining approval in many areas, such as biological research,1 clinical and medical applications,2 process control in the chemical industry3 and in food4 and pharmaceutical5 packaging, to name just a few. The best sensor should be stable, robust, easy-to-use and not prone to electrical interferences.6, 7 Quenched-luminescence oxygen sensing has attracted a great deal of attention and scientific endeavor in recent years. In particular, solid-state sensors holds many advantages over traditional oxygen sensing techniques like Clarke-type electrodes8 as they fulfil the above requirements and additionally have a reversible response to oxygen and can measure oxygen non-invasively without being put in contact with the sample.9 Solid-state sensors usually consist of an indicator dye encapsulated within an oxygen permeable polymer matrix.6, 10 The properties of the encapsulation matrix used, for instance its dye compatibility, oxygen permeability, wettability and mechanical properties, determine the final sensor operating parameters such as sensitivity and response time.6 The selectivity of the sensor is dependent on the indicating dye used. Compounds such as ruthenium and iridium compounds have been investigated,11, 12 however oxygen sensors based on platinum13 and palladium14, 15 metallopor phyrins has been the main focus of many research groups in the past.13 Polymers with high and moderate oxygen permeability have been used as encapsulation matrices, for instance, polystyrene, placticized polyvinylchloride, polydimethylsiloxane and fluorinated polymers.6 Many sensors require an additional support material due to the thin-film nature of many dye encapsulation matrices. The support material improves the mechanical properties of the sensor and aids handling and optical measurements.16 These oxygen sensors are usually produced by solution-based techniques by which the polymer is dried from an organic solvent cocktail,17 or by polymerization or curing of liquid precursors.18 Other dye incorporation methods include adsorption,19 covalent binding,20 solvent crazing,21 and polymer swelling methods (REF US). However, as previously shown in a study (REF US), some microporous membranes materials can be used as stand-alone sensor materials as they have sufficient thickness and light-scattering properties in addition to good mechanical properties and reasonably fast response times to oxygen in the gas phase. Although used in many applications (see above), many current sensor materials, fabrication techniques and polymeric matrixes are unsuited to large-scale applications such as packaging. A sensor for packaging should exhibit high robustness and reproducibility between batches, low cost (less than 1c per cm3)6 and be easily incorporated into existing packaging processes. Care should be taken when developing such sensors to limit the number of ingredients in order to limit their overall production costs.22 To be suitable for food and pharmaceutical packaging applications specifically, the sensor should be non-toxic,23 easily incorporated into the packaging and provide an adequate shelf-life for the required application.9 The sensors must also be capable of being mass produced in a continuous basis. Polyolefins such as polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE) are common polymers which represent over half the total polymers produced in the world.24 Although the mechanical and gas-permeability properties of PP and PE are capable of oxygen sensing,25 there are obstacles regarding insolubility in common organic solvents and incompatibility with many oxygen sensing dyes. However, some PE and PP-based oxygen sensors have been created by solvent-crazing,25 hot polymer extrusion26 and swelling methods (REF US) that show potential for packaging applications. Of late, non-woven polyolefin materials have been developed for a range of industrial applications including textiles, membranes, filtration systems27 and charge separators in Li-ion batteries.28 These materials are cost-effective, have suitable chemical and thermal stability, gas permeability, uniformity and thicknesses between 20-150 microns.27, 29 In addition, they are micro-porous, light-scattering and have a large surface area.28-31 These membranes can also be modified to improve wettability by grafting the surface of the polymer with hydrophilic monofibres.32, 33 In this study, we evaluated two types of grafted PP as a matrix for fabrication of O2 sensors. The polymer membranes selected for this study consists of PP monofibres bound together by the wetlaid and spunbond method into flat flexible sheets. They possess a high surface area, good mechanical and chemical resistance and light-scattering properties. In addition the membranes have been grafted with a hydrophilic surface in order to improve wettability which is beneficial for opto-chemical sensing applications. Therefore, a simple spotting method can be used to incorporate the dye into the membrane. The advantage of this is the membrane doesn’t need an extra support matrix and the spotting method can be carried out with readily available commercial equipment when it progresses to upscaling. In addition, due to the size of the discrete spots, consumption of solvents and substrate material is kept to a minimum which lowers production cost. 1.D. B. Papkovsky and R. I. Dmitriev, Chemical Society Reviews, 2013. 2.D.-F. Lee, H.-P. Kuo, M. Liu, C.-K. Chou, W. Xia, Y. Du, J. Shen, C.-T. Chen, L. Huo, M.-C. Hsu, C.-W. Li, Q. Ding, T.-L. Liao, C.-C. Lai, A.-C. Lin, Y.-H. Chang, S.-F. Tsai, L.-Y. Li and M.-C. Hung, Molecular Cell, 2009, 36, 131-140. 3.T. Hyakutake, H. Taguchi, H. Sakaue and H. Nishide, Polymers for Advanced Technologies, 2008, 19, 1262-1269. 4.A. Hempel, #039, M. Sullivan, D. Papkovsky and J. Kerry, Foods, 2013, 2, 213-224. 5.T. Lenarczuk, S. GłĆ¦b and R. Koncki, Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis, 2001, 26, 163-169. 6.Y. Amao, Microchim. Acta, 2003, 143, 1-12. 7.A. Mills, Platinum Metals Rev, 1997, 41, 115-127. 8.M. Quaranta, S. M. Borisov and I. Klimant, Bioanalytical reviews, 2012, 4, 115-157. 9.A. Mills, Chemical Society Reviews, 2005, 34, 1003-1011. 10.S. M. Borisov, T. Mayr and I. Klimant, Analytical chemistry, 2008, 80, 573-582. 11.C.-S. Chu, Appl. Opt., 2011, 50, E145-E151. 12.Z. Wei, U. Paul and M. Mary-Ann, Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, 2003, 36, 1689. 13.T.-S. Yeh, C.-S. Chu and Y.-L. Lo, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 2006, 119, 701-707. 14.C.-S. Chu, Journal of Luminescence, 2013, 135, 5-9. 15.D. Badocco, A. Mondin and P. Pastore, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 2011, 158, 54-61. 16.D. B. Papkovsky, A. N. Ovchinnikov, V. I. Ogurtsov, G. V. Ponomarev and T. Korpela, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 1998, 51, 137-145. 17.K. Koren, S. M. Borisov, R. Saf and I. Klimant, European journal of inorganic chemistry, 2011, 2011, 1531-1534. 18.C. von Bultzingslowen, A. K. McEvoy, C. McDonagh, B. D. MacCraith, I. Klimant, C. Krause and O. S. Wolfbeis, The Analyst, 2002, 127, 1478-1483. 19.M. Kameda, H. Seki, T. Makoshi, Y. Amao and K. Nakakita, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 2012, 171-172, 343-349. 20.Y. Tian, B. R. Shumway and D. R. Meldrum, Chemistry of Materials, 2010, 22, 2069-2078. 21.A. V. Volkov, A. A. Tunyan, M. A. Moskvina, A. L. Volynskii, A. I. Dement’ev and N. F. Bakeev, Polymer Science Series A, 2009, 51, 563-570. 22.N. B. Borchert, G. V. Ponomarev, J. P. Kerry and D. B. Papkovsky, Analytical chemistry, 2010, 83, 18-22. 23.P. Marek, J. J. Velasco-Velà ©z, T. Haas, T. Doll and G. Sadowski, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 2013, 178, 254-262. 24.T. C. M. Chung, Macromolecules, 2013, 46, 6671-6698. 25.R. N. Gillanders, O. V. Arzhakova, A. Hempel, A. Dolgova, J. P. Kerry, L. M. Yarysheva, N. F. Bakeev, A. L. Volynskii and D. B. Papkovsky, Analytical chemistry, 2009, 82, 466-468. 26.A. Mills and A. Graham, The Analyst, 2013, 138, 6488-6493. 27.L.-S. Wan, Z.-M. Liu and Z.-K. Xu, Soft Matter, 2009, 5, 1775-1785. 28.Q. Xu, J. Yang, J. Dai, Y. Yang, X. Chen and Y. Wang, Journal of Membrane Science, 2013, 448, 215-222. 29.H. Boukehili and P. Nguyen-Tri, Journal of Reinforced Plastics and Composites, 2012, 31, 1638-1651. 30.Z.-P. Zhao, M.-S. Li, N. Li, M.-X. Wang and Y. Zhang, Journal of Membrane Science, 2013, 440, 9-19. 31.T.-H. Cho, M. Tanaka, H. Ohnishi, Y. Kondo, M. Yoshikazu, T. Nakamura and T. Sakai, Journal of Power Sources, 2010, 195, 4272-4277. 32.R. van Reis and A. Zydney, Journal of Membrane Science, 2007, 297, 16-50. 33.H.-y. Guan, F. Lian, Y. Ren, Y. Wen, X.-r. Pan and J.-l. Sun, Int J Miner Metall Mater, 2013, 20, 598-603.

Product Life Cycle: iPod Essay -- Apple Ipod Product Essays Papers

Product Life Cycle: iPod Development of the iPod: The iPod is a portable digital music player that holds up to ten thousand songs in a small, hand-held device that is lighter and thinner than two CD cases. iPod features a touch-sensitive navigational wheel and buttons, and an intuitive interface designed for one-handed operation. Songs are stored in several digital audio formats, delivering the highest sound quality. The iPod was born out of the idea dreamed up by Tony Fadell, an independent contractor and hardware expert, to take an MP3 player, build a Napster music sale service to complement it, and build a company around it. Fadell shopped the idea around to several companies and was turned away by all of them, except Apple. Apple hired Fadell in early 2001 and assigned him a team of about 30 people to develop the iPod. Fadell predicted that the iPod would remold Apple and that 10 years from now it would be a music business, rather than a computer business. Introduction of the iPod: The iPod was introduced into the market just in time for Christmas, 2001. The first iPod was priced at $399. Apple relied on a hard disk for storage instead of flash memory or interchangeable CD-Roms and focused on promoting the uniqueness of the small size, power, and ease of use of the device. This first iPod had a 5 GB storage capacity—which is enough to hold over 1,000 songs—and it worked only on Macs, using iTunes as a music organization and CD-to-iPod conversion tool. iTunes, digital jukebox software that let Mac users import songs from CDs by converting audio files to the MP3 format and storing them on the computer’s hard drive, was introduced in January of 2001. Along with the iPod, Apple announced an enhanced version of iTunes that included a 10-band equalizer with presets, as well as a cross fading feature for smoother transitions from one song to another. An Auto Sync capability facilitated the downloading of music from a Mac to the new portable media device. Once the music was downloaded, Apple promised 10 hours of continuous play from the iPod’s rechargeable lithium battery. The device supported MP3, with bit rates of up to 320kbits/s, as well as AIFF and WAV file formats. Its amplifier could deliver 20-20,000-Hz frequency response. Apple sold 125,000 iPods by the end of December 2001. During this introduction stage, the quality level of the iPod was ... ...arly 2.5 years, iPod shipments are approximately 1 million units ahead of the Walkman’s pace after being on the market for the same period of time. During the 80s-90s, Sony sold over 300 million Walkmans. Given this information, it appears that iPod is showing no signs of being close to the decline stage in the near future. In summary, I believe that the iPod is still in the growth stage of its life cycle. According to Roger Kay, IDC analyst, Apple is very good at releasing its iPod generations with incremental features which lure in new users and tempt other users to upgrade. Because of this, some iPod users have several generations of the player, and it is probable that mini owners also could follow that course. Apple now has a full product family that capitalizes on the original iPod’s success. Looking at the entire iPod line, the iPod is becoming a platform in of itself within Apple, as essentially a subsidiary within Apple. Based on the information I have read, Apple has many avenues that it could take with future development of the iPod and similar capabilities. The indicators show that the iPod will continue to have substantial success for a significant period of time.

The Rapid Growth Of The World Populations Environmental Sciences Essay

The rapid growing of the universe population leads to energy demand on a rise particularly in developing states. In add-on, due to the limited ability to provide of non-renewable there are a figure of immense challenges that are posed to the population of the universe. This state of affairs leads to the hazard of depletion of inexpensive dodo energy and environmental pollution every bit good as clime alteration. Harmonizing to Loir, there will likely be sufficient oil and gas for this century, and coal for 2 or more ( Loir.N 2007, p.843 ) . Or Edwin Cartlidge reports â€Å" the one-year entire ingestion of energy beginnings by the universe population is about 1.4Ãâ€"1017 kWh, of which the proportion of the dodo energy has accounted for 90 % of the energy beginnings used † ( Physics World 7/2007 ) . Therefore, research workers around the universe have been invariably seeking to happen solutions to diversify energy beginnings and cut down harmful emanations and nursery emanatio ns into the environment and renewable energy beginnings have taken the limelight. Therefore, what is the renewable energy? The Oxford Dictionary ( ) defines renewable energy as natural energy that can be used once more and once more and will ne'er run out. There are four major types of renewable energy: solar, hydro, air current and geothermic energy. This paper will discourse advantages and disadvantages that renewable energy resource ( RES ) brings, every bit good as analysis the importance of RES to the universe ‘s hereafter.2. Discussion of findings2.1 Advantages of renewable energy resources ( RES )The usage of renewable energy has many possible benefits, including human existences and environment. First, one of the most importantA advantages of renewable energyA is that it is renewable. Kernel of RES is derivation from natural procedures so the energy is sustainable and ne'er run out. Truly, renewable energy is truly of import and necessary to human existences when dodo fuels are more and more dog-tired. With the ceaseless supply of renewables, we would experience secure when holding abundant supply of energy to last our planet, our human race and our economic systems, for coevalss and of all time. Khemani ( 2011 ) says: â€Å" Equally long as human life is at that place, there will be earth, Sun, air current and H2O, and the energy from these beginnings will besides be available every bit long as they are at that place † . With the copiousness from many renewable resources and development of scientific discipline and engineering, he strongly believes that renewable energy can run into the universe ‘s energy demands today and tomorrow. Second, another benefit of renewable energy engineerings is that ability of supplying a step of confidence of continued electricity supply at times when it otherwise might be threatened. In some fortunes, renewable energy engineerings can be more dependable than other signifiers of electricity. For illustration, solar electricity systems can be used after storms for response and recovery. Renewable energy engineerings such as generators powered by photovoltaics ( PV ) can provide electricity if the grid fails. Often the Sun comes out in the immediate wake of a annihilating storm. It can take hebdomads to mend the electricity grid and reconstruct power to all clients. If battery storage is added to the system, it can provide electricity even after the Sun goes down or through several cloudy or stormy yearss. Energy is needed to supply lighting, warming, air conditioning, cookery, conveyance and toA powerA all the engineerings in the household place or concern premises ( Parker 2010 ) Furthermore, renewable energy non merely is regarded as an limitless resource but besides plays an of import function to regional development. Renewable energy and energy efficiency can assist regenerate rural communities. For illustration, Wind turbines and solar panel systems can supply energy and supply rural communities with new revenue enhancement gross. Farmers on blowy lands can rent infinite to weave developers, gaining 1000s of dollars for each turbine every twelvemonth. One of the greatest alternate energy benefits is that it is so much better for environment than the usage ofA dodo fuels that contribute to a great extent to issues such as acerb rain, smog and planetary heating. On the contrary, renewable energy has little or no waste merchandises such as C dioxide or other chemical pollutants. Renewable energy systems produce much lower C dioxide emanations as opposed to carbon-intensive fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas while they are being used merely a little sum of fuel during the fabrication of equipment ( Walser 2012 ) . With renewable energies, energy is normally converted from one signifier to another without the creative activity of pollutants. Chandler ( 2006 ) takes solar energy as illustration, light energy from the Sun can be converted straight to electricity utilizing photovoltaic without the production of any pollutants like C dioxide or other nursery gasses. Similarly, air current power energy relies on traveling air an d converts it into electricity without fouling the environment. Therefore, it is obvious that the non-pollution or minimum impacts on environment are the positive advantages of renewable energy.2.2 Disadvantages of renewable energy resources ( RES )Although it is obvious to acknowledge the homo every bit good as environmental advantages of using renewable signifiers of energy, we must besides see some restricting sides from the energy. The biggest disadvantage of renewable energy is that the cost of the energy is comparatively higher than non-renewable energy. The initial costs of renewable energy still do many people ignore it wholly when comparing it with fossil fuel on two facets: entire cost and over the same clip period. For illustration, installing of solar energy H2O warmer costs many times in comparing with a warmer, so they decided to purchase warmers for hot H2O solution. Harmonizing Global Wind Energy Council ( GWEC ) ( 2008 ) reported that turbine installing costs $ 47.5 billion ; by contrast, we merely have to pass a much smaller sum of money to construct thermic power station about $ 2,25 billion ( Shah 2011 ) . He besides pointed that other incidental costs such as care costs and production costs cause monetary value increasing. By and large, it is monetary value that the ground has prevented approaching and utilizing clean energy as compared to the dodo fuel beginnings of energy. Another distinguishable disadvantage is trusting excessively much on conditions conditions and geographic locations to make energy ( Sinclair 2011 ) . Each types of renewable beginnings is merely better suited to some topographic points. This means that you can non utilize each of these renewable beginnings in all locations. For case, when utilizing geo-thermal energy, you must be in a location that provides the environment for geo-thermal energy to be produced. Likewise, we can non bring forth hydro-electric power without holding a fast-flowing H2O beginning, such as a river or waterfall. In add-on, the energy besides brings some inconvenient jobs. Take solar energy H2O warmer as an illustration, it is inefficient because in summer ambient temperature are high and the usage of hot H2O is non needed ; nevertheless, in the winter we could non hold hot H2O due to low visible radiation of the Sun. Shah ( 2011 ) claimed that â€Å" despite the fact that most renewable energy beginnings are more environmentally friendly they may still hold a negative impact on the environment † . He stated that hydroelectricity undertakings can do a dramatic alteration in the development of wildlife and ecosystem along the river and inundation hazards.2.3 Can renewable energy supply the World ‘s energy demands?With the important benefits from renewable energy, we ca n't deny that functions of it are more and more of import. Harmonizing to Pulsinelli ( 2012 ) , despite the universe economic crisis, China spent $ 52 billion on renewable energy in 2011 and the United States was close behind with investings of $ 51 billion. At present, renewable energy contributes about 20 % in electricity consumed worldwide ( Perkowski 2012 ) . It is apparent that the two states, which took the caput in renewable energy investing, have known exhaustively out the importance of renewable energy. Presents , by progresss and accomplishments of scientific discipline and engineering scientists are holding every assurance in bright hereafter of renewable energy. Harmonizing to the study of TheA Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC ) in 2011, renewable beginnings occupied about 13 per centum of the universe ‘s energy in 2008 and the proportion probably to hold risen. The study besides indicate out that within four decennaries renewable energyA could account for about 80 % of the world'sA energy supply. The statistics are wholly appeared in the close hereafter if we combine four chief alternate resources and utilize hydroelectric to make full in spreads, which makes easier to fit demand. â€Å" The most of import thing is to unite renewable energy beginnings into a package † ( cited in BERGERON 2011 ) . Particularly, in research ( Edenhofer et al. 2011 ) shows that by 2050, geothermic energy could run into more than 3 per centum of planetary electricity demand and about 5 per centum of the planetary heat demand, hydropower will lend about 30 per centum of world-wide electricity supply, air current power will turn to more than 20 per centum and solar energy becomes one of the major beginnings of energy supply with about 15 per centum.3. DecisionFrom all determination above, it is clear that renewable energy plays a function more of import with every passing twenty-four hours to both human existences and environment. By copiousness renewable energy is going an of import solution to the universe ‘s energy demand. Besides, renewable energy besides brings many positive impacts to protecting environment, decreasing effects of planetary heating or pollutions. Despite some drawbacks of the energy, there are besides grounds to believe the jobs will be solved shortly thanks to strong in vesting of authorities and attempts ‘ scientists. The exploiting and change overing from traditional beginnings into renewable energy resources is a favourable turning-point to us. ( Word count: 1560 )

NDP

NDP Current Events "Ujjal bags free ads"ÂÆ'‚‚  - Vancouver Province 02/18/01, A6 ÂÆ'‚‚ ÂÆ'‚‚ ÂÆ'‚‚ ÂÆ'‚‚ ÂÆ'‚‚ ÂÆ'‚‚ ÂÆ'‚‚ ÂÆ'‚‚ This article talks about the NDP's decision to put a hold on the hunting of grizzly bears in B.C. and possible reasons and consequences for the recent agreement. Reporter Michael Smyth states the possible motives behind Premier Dosanhj's agreement to stop the hunt and how it comes into effect with the NDP's future. Smyth suggests that the agreement is nothing more than free advertisement for the Premier, who is in need of major damage control for his party, in a hope to increase there vote count among environmentalists and citizens for a possible future election. He also suggests the NDP was involved in the creation of a billboard that thanks the Premier since it was created by the same company, Strategic Communications Inc., that was part of last year's leadership campaign. Thi s made Liberal critic Richard Neufeld wondered if it was an NDP attempt for more votes.After the agreement was made the Liberal party stated if they were elected they would immediately restore grizzly-bear hunting in B.C. Environmental and animal-rights groups have then stated that would fight to uphold the agreement and convince the Liberal party to do so. The article then proceeds to give examples of the overwhelming power of persuasion of environmental groups where they forced Ontario's Premier to ban the spring black bear hunt in Ontario.

Fredrick Douglass essays

Fredrick Douglass essays He devoted his life to the abolition of slavery; this man was Frederick Douglass. Douglass was born in 1818 in Tuckahoe, Maryland. He was born into slavery and named Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey. Fredericks mother, Harriet Bailey, was also a slave, who worked in the cotton fields all day long. His old grandmother mainly raised him. Lets take a closer look into a great mans life in the 1800s. Frederick Douglass was best known for his non-violent struggle for blacks freedom and rights. Douglass was a brilliant speaker. He spoke all over northern America about the abolition of slavery. After escaping slavery and moving to Rochester, New York he started the first of his two newspapers: The North Star. This was a very popular antislavery newspaper. He also had many conferences about slavery. Some conferences included talks with President Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln and Douglass shared many of the same views on slavery and black rights. During the Civil War, Douglass served as an adviser to President Lincoln. He also fought for the adoption of constitutional amendments such as the guaranteed civil liberties, and voting rights for blacks. During the Civil War, Douglass served as a major stationmaster for the Underground Railroad. He helped hundreds of runaway slaves escape to upstate New York and Quebec Canada. In Douglass later years he was involved in many governme nt services throughout the United States. In 1872, Douglass moved to the District of Columbia where he served as publisher of the New National Era. This was intended to carry out the work of elevating the position of black African Americans. Later he served briefly as U.S. Marshal for the District of Columbia and held diplomatic positions in Haiti and Dominican Republic. Douglass unfortunately had many negative influences in his life about slavery. As a slave for his first twenty years of life he saw how p...

Emotional Abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Emotional Abuse - Essay Example Furthermore, McDonald et al. assert that seven million American children reside in families in which domestic violence is very rampant. Research findings also indicate that domestic violence in more prevalent among couples who have children compared to those who do not have children (Letourneau et al, 2013; Kohl et al., 2005). Increasing interest in domestic violence is based on the realization that domestic violence causes long-term effects on children and children will continue being at risk even after the separation of their parents (Kohl et al., 2005). Childhood represents a crucial period of growth and development, requiring special care and protection. In view of this, a nurturing and secure environment is vital during child development in order to achieve positive emotional, cognitive and psychological developmental outcomes (Swopes et al., 2013; McDonald et al., 2006). Growing environments riddled with fear and violence stymies optimal growth and development, and are likely to result in adverse effects among affected children (Kohl et al, 2005). Within this context, the detrimental impacts of domestic violence on children can be ameliorated if these effects are appropriately identified and addressed. Domestic violence refers to the abuse behaviour that one intimate partner uses to dominate and/or control the other partner (McDonald et al., 2006). On the other hand, child abuse refers to psychological, physical, emotional, social and sexual exploitation of children (Kohl et al., 2005). Domestic violence threatens children’s need for consistency and predictability in the sense that it disrupts normal routines. Children living with domestic violence also experience the distress being experienced by abused parent. Accordingly, these children experience psychological and emotional distress that is detrimental to their normal growth (Howell, Miller & Graham-Bermann, 2012). A review of literature has revealed the following as cross-cutting effects

H.R.M Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

H.R.M - Essay Example â€Å"Thus, the HRM function positions itself in two ways: as the architect of new organizational structures and work systems, and as coach in management development processes and companion of employees in turnaround processes† (Van Marrewijk & Timmers, 2003, p.174) Organizational systems go through various changes over the years. A lot of factors trigger organizational leaders to come up with innovative strategies to keep their companies afloat especially in a sea of competition with others. Currently, the global financial crisis forces companies to re-think their operational systems as cost-cutting measures are being implemented for businesses to go on. As of yet, millions have been retrenched as unemployment rates continue to stagger. The once dynamic buzz in most offices has been replaced by occasional movement noises, frequent phone rings or for some, deadening silence. However, in some organizations, such is not the case. In an effort to save workers’ jobs, companies have come up with work alternatives that would cut costs while keeping their employees. Mostly it is the HR department that handles the job designs of employees. Instead of fully cutting the ties to employment, some workers have gone to work part time, flexitime, work from home or get into job sharing with some co-workers. These alternatives save the companies a lot of money on compensation and benefit expenses. Aside from that, many companies have adopted the â€Å"Hotdesking† arrangement which also cuts expenses for office space. Hotdesking has emerged as a new term for a work practice that started in the nineties. The term originated from old naval practices of â€Å"Hot bunking† where shifts of sailors share limited bunk space. It is also known as location independent working because workers are not assigned their own permanent work spaces and are just provided one as needed for the day (Gordano Knowledge Base, 2009). Hence, staff share work spaces on