Sunday, November 24, 2019

For Fords Sake essays

For Ford's Sake essays Henry Ford is God. Todays definition of promiscuity is tomorrows definition of everyday life. Advancement in science takes precedent to advancement in human emotion. Morality is the antithesis of Aldous Huxleys Brave New World-our present societys unwritten rules regarding brotherly love and modesty are simply unheard of. Many novels parallel the likeness of such an environment. The Philip K. Dick novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? aims at providing its reader with a gloomy, excessively scientific future. Dick demonstrates a world in which synthetic clones of humans, called androids, are invented in order to perform work for the humans but end up rebelling and nearly outsmarting their masters. Additionally, living animals are a commodity and traded on the black market because they have become endangered due to lack of care from humans and one religious leader takes grasp of the entire Earth. George Orwells 1984 presents Earth as being on constant watch by the governm ent, called big brother. Huxley gives us this stone-cold forecast of the future through imagery that presents a pale and rather lifeless atmosphere, through symbolism where historical people, events or discoveries represent major elements of the Brave New Worlds simplistic system of human existence, and through irony in which our current beliefs and basic ethics are utterly ridiculous. First, Huxleys knack for creating dull, comatose imagery provides the reader with a connection between the warm reality of our current world and the cold dystopia of the brave new world. Since Huxley is trying to communicate that this new world is unfulfilling and worthless, it is necessary that he use such a literary tool. For instance, the first sentence of the second paragraph describes an enormous room... Cold for all the summer beyond the panes, for all the tropical heat of the room itself, a ...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Community of Practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Community of Practice - Essay Example panics lack access to health care services because of low personal income, poor geographic access to health providers and cultural factors that focuses on traditional methods in terms of healthcare. In terms of using family and community resources there is a great link between schools and Hispanic families and the community in terms of using the available resources of computers in accessing various health information (Koton, 2001). Religion is considered as the most outstanding aspect of the Jewish community. Hypertension is most prevalent in the Jewish society. Religion is regarded as a major community and family stressors in the access of healthcare services in dealing with such disease such as diabetes that is common in the Jewish society. Despite the Jewish territory being endowed with various natural resources, the constant conflicts within the region has contributed to low level of access of health services. In addition, the conflicts have further led to lack of employment for the population resulting into poverty (Green,

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Quantitative Analysis for Business....Data Collection Essay

Quantitative Analysis for Business....Data Collection - Essay Example With quantitative research, the data collection process works with a stated hypothesis that works with a stated theory. In the case of BIMS, data collection is acquired from patients exposed to different medications and other measures. The various methods that fall under the quantitative include experiments, observation, using management systems to acquire information and conducting surveys (University of Pheonix, n.d.). The major merits associated with these methodologies are that they produce relevant results, as detailed results are obtained from the experiments. The researchers work with real time experiences hence are able to record details that may be used as constrains. The main disadvantage of quantitative is that they are time consuming as massive data entry takes place in the continuity of the process. The method is also prone to error as many data entry of the information is done by individuals, who might key in incorrect information. Quantitative methods of collecting data are expensive, as the researchers might require incentives to lure potential information givers. Also, travelling from one location to another includes miscellaneous expenses (University of Pheonix,

Sunday, November 17, 2019

European Financial Crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

European Financial Crisis - Essay Example It did this for years and no country raised a hand to punish Germany. The financial crisis started back in 2007 characterized by a long phase of quick credit growth, low risk premiums, profuse liquidity and the growth of real estate bubbles. Overstretched leveraging made financial institutions susceptible to corrections in asset markets, according to Kolb (113). The parties that carry the most responsibility for the European economic crisis in the financial sector were banks. Banks in Europe had invested heavily in extremely complex, opaque and highly priced financial products (Van Den Noord 12). Many banks became uncertain of the credit worthiness of their counterparts who had engaged in such investments. This virtually resulted in the closure of the interbank market with risk premiums soaring on interbank loans. As a consequence, the banks faced grave challenges in rolling over their short term debt. In Ireland, for example, the banking system achieved exceptional growth thereby creating external debts far beyond the country’s gross domestic product. In the government sector, the structure of the Eurozone was widely to blame for the economic crisis. The zone uses one currency, and in the absence of fiscal union, the ability of leaders to respond adequately remained quite limited (Van Den Noord 23). Different countries failed to abide by the fiscal paths or requirements of the union. Governments are also to be blamed for the crisis considering that they did not deal with their over expenditure before the situation got out of control. In Greece, for instance, the government made great commitments to its public workers and gave them huge pension benefits and wages. Governments also borrowed so much from banks. The Eurozone financial problem is a detachment of a global problem. The global problem is all about lack of equilibrium between the private sector

Friday, November 15, 2019

Cracks Detection using Digital Image Processing

Cracks Detection using Digital Image Processing Cracks detection using digital image processing   in MATLAB Usually visual investigation methods have been used for inspection and monitoring of concrete infrastructures. Huge and tall structure such as cables bridges, high rising towers, dams and industrial power plant are known to have an inaccessible area and limitations in inspection field due to its geometry structure which is often dangerous , labor -intensive and involves lot of risks. So, with rapid development in technology and its uses, researcher   are trying to overcome these problem. Every now and then some research is going regarding these problem and trying to overcome it. So, I also have come with the idea of using digital Image processing   in mat lab to detect the cracks in such structure. Literature   Review:- As   of todays world, digital Image processing is getting better and better   and used in all areas of science. With   the help of digital image processing tools, various image processing can be applied to detects the cracks in structure. Not only in structures but also for   bridges, towers, power plant and also in structure   like steel ,roads, fatigues and sewer pipes. A number of research studies have been conducted regarding   detection of cracks by using Digital   image processing .(1)The author of Korea Institute   combines UAV technology in the process of recent breakthroughs and digital image analysis techniques   to detect cracks in structure. In this study, the crack detection program with digital image analysis techniques was developed in order to the crack and width of the structure automatically. The developed program attempted to perform the image analysis for crack detection with Morphology method based morphological hydraulics and specially designed Morphological link for crack(Morph link-C)algorithm for S/W development was applied to the program. The digital image was acquired in order to evaluate UAV applicability and performance and field application of the crack detecting program after targeting the bridges in common use. Comparing with the measured values in order to verify reliability of the new structural inspecting system for application in this study, it is verified that the accuracy above a certain level is secured. Also, The below three core technologies shall be considered to develop the technology possible to detect cracks and calculate crack width of large structure through the digital image analysis and to put this technology to practical use. Optimal digital image acquisition and filming equipment configuration Crack analysis technique of a number of mass digital images Combining technique of multiple images that different positions are captured And also the author from china(2)  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   proposed   inspection system for measuring cracks in concrete structure and providing objective crack data to be used in safety assessment. The system consists of the mobile robot system and crack detecting system. The mobile robot system is controlled to keep a constant distance from the wall to acquire image data with a CCD camera on scanning along the wall. The crack detecting system extracts crack information from the acquired image using image processing. To improve accuracy of crack recognition, the geometric properties and patterns of cracks in a structure were applied to image processing. Also,   an inspection system using an image process, which can be a solution to the problems of crack detection in concrete structure, slow rate, subjectivity, and the inefficiency in managing data. Also, the system ensures the validity and possibility based on the experiment in the indoor structure, road tunnel, and subway tunnel. However, an erroneous recognition of a crack as non-crack and vice versa prevails. Therefore, the system is semi automated to get rid of wrong recognition of non crack as crack, and to identify crack by a graph search method using the user-based input of the start point and end-point of crack. In order for a crack inspection system to develop into an expert system, there needs to be further study of the characteristics of cracks and the algorithm must move towards complete automation. Similarly,(3) The Komatsu Engineering Company has developed and commercialized an image acquisition system that can acquire the images of road and tunnel lining by using a laser-scanning device .(4) The Railway Technical Research Institute in Japan developed an image acquisition system of railway tunnel lining by using line CCD cameras. (5)Road ware Group Inc., Canada commercialized a system that acquires an image of the road with a CCD camera, an ultrasonic sensor, and a gyro-sensor with a speed of80km/h and a resolution of 3~4cm [7]. Those systems are useful to collect data of cracks, leakage, scale, and spall but only by using the image acquisition, and not through automatic defect detection. The algorithm for crack detection and measurement is required for fully automatic inspection system. It is necessary, therefore, to develop the automatic crack detection and measurement algorithm to obtain both fast inspection and objective crack data. From the author of University of central Florida , paper describes the mechanism of non-destructive bridge inspection methods using HRDI and HDV digital crack detection and IR thermograph   technology and the benefits of the combination thereof. The feasibility of applying these technologies for in-service bridge inspections are demonstrated and evaluated in the State of Florida under  the university-government-industry collaboration research program. The purpose of the joint research effort is to utilize the innovative technology for more efficient bridge inspection programs and bridge management in Florida by developing a new quantitative performance measure for long term bridge monitoring, such as crack ratio and delaminated area, and the use of objective data resulting in more efficient and scientific bridge inspection database and management system. With the quantity of roadway structure assets increasing annually, coupled with concurrent increasing rates of deteriorati on being experienced by many of the existing structures, bridge owners need to find new and creative ways to ensure the structural safety of their bridges while they all too often face problems of reduced budgets and dedicated bridge inspection resources. Currently, the determination of bridge condition ratings in  many countries is generally subjective depending on individual inspectors knowledge and experience, as well as varying field conditions. For the evaluation and documentation of concrete deterioration (cracks, efflorescence, delaminating, spalls, etc.) and changes overtime, the current practice of visual inspections can be lacking in accuracy and completeness, as well as time consuming and costly if road closures and access equipment  are required for the inspection. Using the proposed new non-destructive technologies, bridge engineers can quickly and efficiently obtain objective current bridge condition information that has traditionally been obtained by more time con suming and more subjective close-up visual inspections and sounding tests. The digital output of these NDE inspection techniques improves on-site inspection safety and objectivity and contributes to improved inspector efficiency by significantly reducing the amount of inspection time in the field. However, it must be noted that while most of the NDE or sensor technologies do offer new efficiencies and/or additional objective assessment results to the bridge inspection process, they are not a substitute for inspectors conducting on-site specific follow-up and detailed structure investigations. While improved efficiencies in bridge inspection methods resulting from the application of the above NDE technologies bring significant benefits to the overall bridge inspection process, they are not a substitute for the continued need for sound and experienced engineering judgment. The authors believe that by offering new and improved inspection technologies to experienced bridge engineers and inspectors, bridge inspection programs will be strengthened through enhanced inspection data and will be more objective, consistent, scientific, and efficient. Based on the nature of calculation   and development of technology approach to process image, Image Processing Technique for crack detection can be divided into several categories. Each image consists of pixel which are represented by its integer values from 0 to 255. Based on these pixel values Operation technique conducted is accomplished in the spatial domain. However , desirable outcome cannot be obtained in spatial domain. So in this case ,usually Fourier or wavelet transformation is performed on the image. Again, the outcome image is processed in frequency domain. After wise, to reconstruct the image in spatial domain   an inverse transformation is applied. Another procedure to detect cracks using image is based on the training algorithm to solve a problem. In this process ,some technique directly deal with image without any training while other first construct   a database which is divided into two subsets, the subset with crack image and subset with un-cracked images. For each subset ,a decision line is defined to represent the characteristics index, such as shape factor. With the help of these image , a program is used which is capable of comparing new images with decision line and assign it to the subset where it belongs. Especially Neural network and clustering   method are widely used among the popular training techniques to learn the decision line. Basically, two approaches have been applied to detect cracks from the images.   Using dye solution and the other is without using dye solution to the surface material. Usually ,In this dye based detection process, a particular dye solution such as fluorescent is injected on the surface of concrete or other material. Depending on the solution type   and color special or ordinary cameras are used to scan the surface of the material. These dye based method were used in past for detection of mini or micro cracks in different types of material like concrete ,ceramics tiles etc and also any kind of structure. The other approach for finding crack   is based on the color image without using dye solution. Since these method is less costly and less time consuming it is currently more popular. A number of research studies have been conducted regarding the surface   crack detection technique in different material. One of these attempts can be seen in work of Kittler at al. They proposed an idea of training based algorithm to get samples of the region, which are void of defects in the spatial domain. In this process, the new pictures were analyzed for the presence of any defects and also to find the location of the defects. In this method, clustering technique and morphological operation were performed to analyze the images. The experimental output of this method is shown in the figure below.   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Figure . Crack detection on ceramic tiles (Kittler, Marik, et al. 1994) Image processing technique has been used for inspection of cement based materials for micro cracks and other micro defects (Ammouchea at al 2000). In this process, a red dye solution is used with the surface. So the dye solution can penetrate the porous region of the surface while the excessive solution are   removed by polishing the sample surface. Once the dye solution is injected, a color image of 256 x 265 was taken from camera of the surface. The following operation is carried out on the taken image. O(x,y) = max { R(x,y)0 G(x,y) } Where, O(x,y) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Intensity of the output gray level image at (x,y) co-ordinates R(x,y) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Intensity of the original image at (x,y) co-ordinate in red region. G(x,y) à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Intensity of the original image at (x,y) co-ordinate in gray region. Afterward, using a thresholding value, the gray level   image is converted to the binary image. Then, using entropy maximization method value of the thresholding is evaluated. This method is based on maximization of the entropy function à ¡Ã‚ ´Ã¢â‚¬Å" of gray level pixel. à ¡Ã‚ ´Ã¢â‚¬Å"(k)=   [  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   ] where, Pà ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ¢ is the probability of a given pixel to have an intensity of i (Pà ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ¢=Nà ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ¢/N)   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Ni Number of pixel having i intensity   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   N Total no of pixel   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Wà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ W1 Lower and upper bound of the probability to find pixel intensity And also computed as:-   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   k Based on the threshold to obtain binary image, a lower bound thresholding operation is performed. Then , using two morphological operations of eroding and rebuilding the binary image is post processed. This operation is conducted to eliminate noisy and small objects (i.e. Less than 10 pixel) from the image. However, second series of operation are needed to obtain the shape factors which are used to decide whether the pixels in a binary image are associated with cracks or other defects. To do so, a dimensionless packing density index Fc is defined. Fc = (2-4) Where, Aab=Object area Aac= Area of its circumscribed circle The value of Fc is equal to 1 for a circle and tends towards 0 for a very elongated object.Fig below shows results obtained in this method Fig. Also, Abdel-Ghader (_Abdel,Osama and kelly 2003) proposed an idea to find cracks on concrete surface using image processing technique .In this work, they implemented   and compared 4 cracks detection method   which include Fast   Haar Transform( FHT), Fast Fourier Transform( FFT),Sobel edge detector   and canny edge detection. They used 50   concrete image from a bridge deck of which 25 pictures with cracks and 25 pictures without cracks for   their research .From their research ,they concluded that FHT was more efficient and effective method rather than other 3 method. Basically, FHT, a simplified   Wavelet transformation decomposes the image into low and high frequency components, the mother Wavelet à ¡Ã‚ ´Ã‚ ª(t) of Haar function and scaling à ¡Ã‚ ´Ã¢â‚¬Å"(t) are defined as: à ¡Ã‚ ´Ã‚ ª(t) =   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Relationship between Haar wavelet and scaling function and scaling function with itself is shown below   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   à ¡Ã‚ ´Ã‚ ª(t)=)   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   (t)=) In this process, to detect crack the three quadrants of the first level transformation i.e. 2,34 are passed through a high pass filter to reduce nose and   combined together to get magnitude of images. To decide whether crack exists or not, an empirical thresholding value is used. Fast   Fourier transfer motion (FFT) are used to derive the frequency component of the image intensity. The transformation and   the inverse transformation were carried out using: F(u, v)= F(x, y)= The canny edge detection is a convolution filter to detect filter noise from the image while processing. In addition, thresholding value is defined to see if a pixel belongs to an edge region or not. The   Sobel edge detection is also a convolution filter defined for vertical and horizontal edges in images. This edge detection technique helps to detect the change in the image intensity in neighboring pixels. Filtering was done using convolution operation for each filter separated. Then, two filtered images is combined together at each location and result is a gray level image with enhanced edges. G x =   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   G y= Default value of thresholding is defined as  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   where Another attempt to detect cracks in concrete specimen using optical fluorescent microscopy can be found in   this research( Litorowicz   2006). To continue these processes, a fluorescent dye solution   was used. The specimens were then light using Nikon optical microscope at a magnification of 10 times. The images were captured using a Sony DXC 350 P video camera. Then, image pro Plus analysis software was introduced to perform the image processing operation. Then, using segmentation method, the RGB images is connected into a binary image. The threshold level was calculated based on the effect of the dye solution to the surface. To distinguish cracks pattern, several parameters were introduced: Angle between the vertical axis and the major axis of the ellipse covering   the connected component Area of each connected component Dendritic   length, which is the total length of all the one-pixel thick branches.   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   4. Area ratio (i.e. of the area of the counted object and the entire area of the active image.)   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   5.Radius ratio (i.e. The ratio of maximum radius and minimum radius for each connected component)   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   6. Roundness using perimeter 2/4à Ã¢â€š ¬2 x Area. Intelligent crack detection on the concrete crack image using neural network was proposed in Moon and Kim paper (2011). This research was conducted to develop an automatic detection system that analyze the concrete surface and visualize the crack more effectively and efficiently. Basically this research consists of two parts: Image processing and image classification. First stage include image processing tools like filtering, subtraction and morphological operation in order to extract cracks from the background image (i.e. data such as the number of pixel and the ratio of major axis to minor axis for pixel area. While in second step, existences of cracks are identified using neural network to automate the image classification. In this process, 105 images (cracked and non-cracked) of concrete were used as a trained image including every kind of cracks. Following steps were carried out for image processing : Fig. Image processing steps   to detect cracks First step in image processing is to convert RGB image into gray level intensity image followed by a subtraction transformation as follows: à °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚  (à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ- ) = à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ… ¡Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ… ½Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥ {à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ… ¡Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ¢â‚¬â„¢Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ¢â‚¬ËœÃƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ-à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ… ½Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ¢â‚¬ ºÃƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ-à °Ã‚ Ã…“-à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ¢â‚¬ ¦Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ- [à °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼(à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ- ) à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ à °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼(à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ- )], 0} Where ,I(xi)   and I(xj) are   the intensity pixel of xi and X j respectively.   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Ri Neighborhood of that pixel xà ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ¢ . When the subtraction is negative number, it is represented as zero. Once improved subtraction method is used, threshold value is defined to detect cracks more effectively. The thresholding operation is given as: à °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚  (à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥, à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¦) = {2 ÃÆ'- à °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚  (à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥, à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¦) à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ-à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ¢â‚¬Å" à °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚   > à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ¢â‚¬ ¡   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   à °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚  (à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¥, à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¦)  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ-à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ¢â‚¬Å" à °Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ ¼Ãƒ °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚   à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤ à °Ã‚ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ¢â‚¬ ¡ To further smooth the image, a Gaussian law pass filter was applied. Then, an input gray level image is converted to a binary image where the values are represented as 0 or 1. Using Otsus   method or valley emphasis method, the threshold value was selected. Morphological image processing including closing and   labeling were applied to the image to extract image component such as shape of crack. The optimal parameters and their level associated with above operation are   mentioned below:   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Fig. Parameters and their levels Using Artificial Neural Network (ANN) crack images were distinguished from non-cracked images. Also images were automatically identified as the crack or non-cracked images using ANN. The output value was represented either cracked (value 1) or non-cracked (value 2). Another example of tracing based image processing technique can be found on Nishikawa research paper (2012). A robust automated image processing method was applied to crack detection on concrete surface. This method consists of two parts: First part consists of automatic construction of a filter for crack detection while the other part consists of noise removal and determination of indistinct cracks using iterative process. Using generic algorithm the part is conducted, where genetic individuals was represented as a tree structure. Using a trained   program, a large number of images were combined and several images filtered were converted into a tree structure. An illustration of tree structure concept is shown below.   Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚   Fig. Construction of Tree structure   with multiple filters(Aoki and Nagao 1999) A combination of generic program was computed to train the program and results were compared to the target image (i.e. image generated by visual inspection. The comparison was between the distinct distributions of brightness between the images. To measure the filter performance the following formula was used. E= Where,    N- No of training images in database K-th target image -Output image -weighted image . -   Brightness of the weighted image in crack region )- brightness of k-th target image at position (i,j) To reduce the false negative result, a superimposition operation using low resolution image was implemented. Figure below shows the algorithm used in above algorithm. { algorithm}

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

How the Sun Affects the Weather

ASTR 1020 August 31, 2011 â€Å"How the Sun Affects the Weather† Our sun is a massive nuclear fusion reactor that generates astonishing amounts of energy. The sun is the largest body in our solar system. It has a gravitational pull causing all other objects in the solar system to orbit it. Since the sun is in the neighborhood of the earth this gives the results of a greater gravitational effect on earth. â€Å"Warmth for the planet is provided primarily by the sun’s energy. The rate of energy coming from the sun changes from day to day.At an average distance from the sun 93 million miles† (Ahrens 4). The energy from the sun affects many things here on earth. One of the main things the sun does is warm our planet, including the atmosphere. This energy drives our weather we see daily. Temperature fluctuation the sun generates can be associated to every weather phenomenon on earth and can be traced back to the sun. All planets have an atmosphere, a layer of gases th at surrounds them. The Sun's atmosphere is made up of hydrogen, while Earth's is made up primarily of nitrogen and oxygen.Carbon dioxide, ozone, and other gases are also present. These gases keep our planet warm and protect us from the direct effects of the Sun's radiation. Without this regulation, Earth could not sustain life. To understand the weather you need to understand the layers of the atmosphere. The layers of the atmosphere from the surface rising upward are troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. We live in the troposphere layer, this is where the air temperature normally decreases with height, and contains all of the weather we are familiar with.Most of the clouds you see in the sky are found in the troposphere, and this is the layer of the atmosphere we associate with weather. Extending up to 10 miles above Earth's surface, the troposphere contains a variety of gases: water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and others. These gase s help retain heat, a portion of which is then radiated back to warm the surface of Earth. In the stratosphere is where most of the gas ozone is found. The coldest layer in the atmosphere is the mesosphere and the warmest atmospheric layer is the thermosphere.Then we get to the region where atoms and molecules shoot off into space in the exosphere, which signify the upper limits of our atmosphere. A greenhouse gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation withing the thermal infrared range. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. Greenhouse gases greatly affect the temperature of the Earth; within them, Earth's surface would be on average of about 33 degrees Celsius or 59 degrees Fahrenheit colder than present temperature.The earth being tilted at 23. 5 degrees on its axis and revolving around the sun makes the earth’s heat unevenly giving us different climate and weather. â€Å"The ti lt causes annual variation in the amount of sunlight that strikes the surface as well as variations in the length of time the sun shines at each latitude† (Ahrens 73). The sun heats up the equatorial regions more than the poles, so the earth has to develop circulations to distribute the heat. This keeps the equator from getting hotter and the poles from getting colder.This is the way the earth balances out its unequal distribution of heat. With the earth’s rotation this causes the wind pattern to form east -to-west. Weather as a whole comes down to the universal circulation of cold and hot air. The sun has the greatest impact on the lower stratosphere with the impact of ultraviolet light from the sun assist in changing temperature. â€Å"Lower to mid stratosphere is heated greatly due to the ozone layer†¦ ozone absorbing large quantities of dangerous solar energy†¦ he absorption causes the warmup from 20km to 50k. The middle and upper troposphere is indeed ve ry important for stability processes. The hotter the surface temps and the colder the mid and upper tropospheric temps†¦ the more instability†¦ and the stronger updrafts and stronger storms† (Haywood). Here are several examples: The sun warms up air, the area encompassing this warm air creating a warm front. Many weather developments will occur when a warm front meets up with a cold front.Ocean’s, lakes, and soil surfaces are warmed by the sun causing warm air to rise in the atmosphere. The warm air meets up with colder air causing it to condense and produce clouds that could create hail, snow, or rain. Sun warm up air over the sea near the equator and this warm air will rise creating a cloud. Cold air will then replace the warm air that has lifted and collides creating spiraling turbulence known as a hurricanes. Sun produces warm air then it abruptly turns cold; this creates pressure and uproar which whips up a tornado.Sun warms up the earth’s surface and this warm air will expand and rise, as it rises the air will then cool and descend. This up and down cycle of rising warm air and descending cool air will generate wind. There are many factors when it comes to weather but the main key to the weather equation is the heating from the sun for weather to occur. The sun plays a vital role in our daily lives and weather. Works Cited Ahrens, C. Donald. Meterology Today. Belmont: Brooks/Cole, 2009. 9th ed. Haywood, Lee. Meterologist with WSAV/Instructor ASSU.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Collective security during the interwar period Essay

The term ‘collective security’ can be defined as a security agreement in which all states cooperate directly, collectively, and and every state accepts that the security of one is in the concern of all. In other words, when one of the states part of this agreement violates the rights to freedom of other nations, all other member states will have to join forces to restore peace, penalizing the aggressor state. This model is based on participation and compulsoriness. An agressor state is about to meet a united opposition of the entire world community. The concept of collective security is based on the consent of all or the majority of states to act against any state that unlawfully violates peace. The main idea of collective security is the assumption that no state will want to change the power and order of world community, and if so, all other states will act together against the aggressor state in order to reestablish the global equilibrium. An ideal collective security organization assumes a very high degree of congruent interest among its members. 1 Interstate rivalry and power politics and effectively elliminated.2 As a legal form of states’ cooperation, a collective security system differs from any traditional alliance. The alliance is the way in which a state gets benefits in the event of a conflict after an agreement with another state or several states involved to a predetermined level to maintain their common interest. Alliances form because weak states band together against great powers in order to survive in an anarchic international system.3 The alliance pattern involves the decision to change or maintain the balance of power at local, regional or global level. In general, an alliance has on the other side another alliance with opposite purposes. It is, therefore, a structure of bloc against bloc. Arising from the need to find a way to avoid the outbreak of a new world war, collective security represented, in the interwar period, at least for some countries in Europe, almost the only option of foreign  policy that seemed viable to defend the national interests. The term ‘League of Nations’ (Society of Nations) existed since 1908, when Là ©on Bourgeois4 proposed a new system of organizing international relations. The idea was taken up and supported by groups and associations in France, Great Britain and United States of America, where presidents Roosevelt and Taft supported the formula of a security system in which aggressors automatically received economic and military sanctions from the international community. In June 1915, a League for strengthening peace, supported by Taft, was in favour for a Society of Nations based on collective security and strengthening international law. President Woodrow Wilson is the one who, on 27th of May 1916 marked for the first time, in concrete, institutional terms, the project of such an organization. In 1920, the League of Nations formally established, with the entry into force of the Covenant of the League of Nations, ratified by 42 states in 1919. The organization was meant to include all countries and to resist aggression in all parts of the globe.5 While all members participated in the General Assembly, the League Council was established to guide the operation of the organization. 6 The authority of the League was never seriously questioned, until the early 1930s, when a series of events proved its ineffectiveness. The League of Nations was concieved as a tool for maintaining international peace and security and for promoting interstate cooperation. The main mean by which the League was to ensure peacekeeping was a collective security system, at least in Europe, based on the principle ‘all for one’. According to this principle, all states should have been engaged in mutual guarantee of international peace and security. This concept was included in both League of Nations Covenant and peace treaties. The problem of creating a collective security system specifically concerned the small and medium states. With no ability of defending themselves in the face of possible aggression coming from great powers, the system of collective security was the only defending solution. Hence, the small and medium states were the most active in terms of supporting the Society of Nations’ efforts of peacekkeping. Their position towards this problem proved to be crucial both on the prospects of the forum in Geneva , as in peace prospects. The League of Nations represented a start in the process of democratization and evolution of international life, in the direction of establishing a new system in which  all states can find a place and role, a tribune for expressing their positions, under the aegis of general principles of international law. There were obtained achievements in different fields, of interstate cooperation, there were tested some mechanisms of peacekeeping, there were made efforts for promoting economic development in the spirit of interdependence, which was more and more obvious at an international level. Contrary to all these positive elements, the League of Nations was ultimately a failure and couldn’t fulfill its key objectives: prevent another war by creating a security system based on collective guarantees, resolving conflicts by peaceful means and eliminating economic crises by promoting openness in international trade relations, according to the requirements of globalization. The general crisis in 1929 – 1923 which had devastating effects on the economic, political and moral field and the rise of the totalitarian regimes opened the door for the World War II, which ended, at the same time, the attempt of a League of Nations in building a world of peace, security and prosperity. The League of Nations ceased to function with the beginning of World War II, although the formal decision to dissolve the League was adopted after the entry into force of the UN Charter on April 18, 1946. The United Nations, like the League, emerged in the wake of a devastating war.7 Romania in the League of Nations In order to better understand how the system of collective security works, I chose to talk about what meant to Romania the membership in the League of Nations and the benefits it enjoyed through this status. Romania, one of the 32 founding members of the League of Nations, contributed, under the aegis of this organization, at creating a general security system throughout Europe and especially in South Eastern Europe. Romania’s main purpose was keeping the territorial status-quo, which implicitly meant the integration of Greater Romania. Regarding the benefits of being part of the League, an advantage would be the prestige of being a member, as Nicolae Titulescu said: â€Å"Allow me to express my deep gratitude for the great honor you have done to my country and to me, personally, by handing, through your votes, the great dignity of being President of the 11th Assembly of League of  Nations†.8 The benefits arose from correlating the membership with the fact that Romani a had emerged victorious from the Great War, won enough territories to unite Romanians under one state and needed protection because these territories were an inportant target for the neighbours also. Aditionally, the League united the world’s most influential states and declared a forum for discussion in the spirit of arbitration, consensus and justice. Therefore, the member states were seen from the outside as being driven by the same values. Accepting Romania in the League of Nations meant the acknowledgement that it agreed with the principles of the organization. The League of Nation’s main goal was ensuring peace. From my point of view, all nations that were members of the League, believed in democracy and freedom, but the political leadership had not always reflected these ideals. When the political leadership tended to war, the only barriers were those related to methods and not to ideals. The benefit that Romania had being a member of League of Nations was one of prestige, because joining the organization meant a statement of principles that corresponded to those of the civilized world. Therefore, being a member of the League indicated that the state was inte grated in the world’s civilized nations and that’s what Romania wanted. Joining the League of Nations meant for the Romanian people the end of the period in which was threatened by the Great Powers and could not develop because of that. Once it joined the Society of Nations, Romania acceeded all the international organisms related to the League. Among these, the one that brought the most benefits to Romania was International Labour Organization. A very good study of that time’s ideas regarding the International Labour Organization was made by Grigore Trancu-IaÅŸi9, in a conference form, shown in ‘Romania’s foreign policy, 19 public lectures organized by the Romanian Social Institute’. The author identified the principles of this organization as needed to be urgently implemented by its members. The principles could be regarded as ‘left’, but were more like ideas that approached the society to social justice. The League recognized the idea that its supreme ideal was that peace cannot happen where there is no social justice. The International Labour Organization ensured bringing social justice through the prospect of working conditions. Romania, as a member of the Organization, registerd benefits in the social justice and had the right of decision over these measures. This paper aims to analyze what  collective security meant for the society in the inter-war period and, particularly, what meant to Romania and the effects of being in a collective security organization. Romania had multiple benefits generated by its membership in the League of Nations, even though this organization failed on its supreme mission. Romania’s benefits from being a member of the League related to international prestige, good relations with the neighbours, social justice and the most important, international power increase. Bibliography: MORGENTHAU, Hans J., International Affairs: The Ressurection of Neutrality in Europe†, The American Political Science Review, vol. 33, nr. 3; Politica ExternÄÆ' a Romà ¢niei – 19 prelegeri publice organizate de Institutul Social Romà ¢n, Institutul Social Romà ¢n, BucureÅŸti, 1926; SCUTARU, Ioan, Romà ¢nia ÅŸi Marile Puteri, editura FundaÃ… £iei „Romà ¢nia de Mà ¢ine†, Bucuresti, 1999; KUPCHAN, Charles A. and KUPCHAN Clifford A., Concerts, Collective Security and the Future of Europe, International Security, Vol. 16, No.1, Summer 1991; RISSE-KAPPEN, Thomas, Collective Identity in a Democratic Community: The case of NATO, 1996. MIROIU, Andrei, BalanÃ… £Ã„Æ' ÅŸi Hegemonie: Romà ¢nia à ®n politica mondialÄÆ', 1913 – 1989, Editura Tritonic, BucureÅŸti, 2005.

Friday, November 8, 2019

Good TOEFL Scores for Top Universities

Good TOEFL Scores for Top Universities The TOEFL, or Test of English as a Foreign Language, is designed to measure the English proficiency of non-English speaking people. Many universities require this test for admittance for people who typically speak a language other than English. Although the test isnt necessarily a competitive exam (college admissions officers arent using the scores like they would the GRE or SAT), it is an incredibly important  exam because a good TOEFL score is not subjective.  Among the 8,500 universities that accept TOEFL scores, each university to which you submit your TOEFL score has a published minimum score they accept. There are no, Is my score good enough? worries because universities and colleges publish the absolute minimum scores they will accept on this exam. The TOEFL process is pretty straight-forward. The only reason youd need to retake the test is if you did not make the minimum score requirement of the university or college to which you are thinking of applying.   To find out the minimum TOEFL score requirement for the school to which youre interested in applying, contact the universitys admissions office or check out the website. Each school typically publishes their minimum TOEFL requirements.   Here are a few examples of good TOEFL scores, based on the best universities in the United States. Good TOEFL Scores for Top Public Universities University of California - Berkeley TOEFL iBT: 68TOEFL Paper:570 University of California - Los Angeles TOEFL iBT: 87TOEFL Paper:560 University of Virginia TOEFL iBT: 80TOEFL Paper:550 University of Michigan - Ann Arbor TOEFL iBT: 88 - 106TOEFL Paper: 570 - 610 University of California - Berkeley TOEFL iBT: 79TOEFL Paper:550 Good TOEFL Scores for Top Private Universities Princeton University TOEFL iBT: 108TOEFL Paper: does not typically accept Harvard University TOEFL iBT: 100TOEFL Paper: 600 Yale University TOEFL iBT: 100TOEFL Paper:600 Columbia University TOEFL iBT: 100TOEFL Paper:600 Stanford University TOEFL iBT: 100TOEFL Paper:600 TOEFL Score Info for the Internet-Based Test As you can see from the numbers above, the TOEFL iBT is scored much differently from the paper-based test. Below, you can see the ranges for high, intermediate and low TOEFL scores for the test taken online.   Reading Skills: High: 22-30 points; Intermediate: 15-21 points; Low: 0-14 pointsListening Skills: High: 22-30 points; Intermediate: 14-21 points; Low: 0-13 pointsSpeaking Skills: Good: 3.5-4.0; Fair: 2.5-3.0; Limited: 1.5-2.0; Weak: 0-1.0Writing Skills: Good: 4.0-5.0; Fair: 2.0-3.0; Limited: 1.0-2.0 The Speaking and Writing sections are converted to a 0-30 scale like the Reading and Listening sections. If you add them all together, which is how the scores are tabulated, the highest total score possible you could receive is a 120 on the TOEFL IBT.   TOEFL Score Info for the Paper-Based Test The TOEFL paper test is quite different. Here, scores range from from 31 on the low end to 68 on the highest end of three separate sections. Hence, the highest total score you can hope to achieve is a 677 on the paper-based test.   Listening Comprehension: Score range: 31 (low) - 68 (high)Structure/Written Expression:Score range: 31 (low) - 68 (high)Reading Comprehension: Score range: 31 (low) - 67 (high)Total Score:  Score range: 310 (low) - 677 (high) Boosting Your TOEFL Score If you are on the fringe of getting the TOEFL score you would like, but have taken the test or numerous practice tests, and just arent quite getting to that minimum, then consider using some of these test prep options to help you out. First, figure out which method of test prep suits you best - an app, a book, a tutor, a test prep course or a combination. Then, use the TOEFL Go Anywhere free prep offered by ETS to get started on preparing for this exam the right way.

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Strategic and Organisational Learning The WritePass Journal

Strategic and Organisational Learning Definition of strategy: Strategic and Organisational Learning Definition of strategy:Meaning of strategy:Definition of strategy as practiceStrategy as practiceRecursivenessAdaptationStrategy as practice in useWrong strategies could lead to   disastersProduct, pricing and geographical focusBad strategies and its problemsConclusionReferencesRelated Definition of strategy: â€Å"A  strategy  is a way through a difficulty, an approach to overcoming an obstacle, a response to a challenge.†(Rumelt, 2011) Meaning of strategy: Strategy is basically a plan that is formulated by businesses and mostly top level managers that sets limitations and boundaries which organisations comply with in order to reach a particular goal. Strategy directly or indirectly is a means to achieving an organisations goals more effectively. It includes every organisational and managerial function such as planning, organising, goal setting, organisational structuring and adaptation to the everchanging environments. Therfore strategy is a vital part of every organisation and without a basic strategy or plan of action, every organisation will fail to survive in the ever competitive present business environment. Strategy is a very general term. There are many kinds of strategies that deal with every minor detail of organisational functioning. One of the more refined forms of strategy is a fairly new concept known as strategy as practice. Strategy as practice is a more practical managerial science that describes strategy as something that is practised within the organisation and functions that managers perform. Functions like strategy formulating and also the carrying out of these strategies .The definition below will help us have a better understanding of this subject. Definition of strategy as practice â€Å"Strategy a situated, socially accomplished activitystrategizing comprises those actions interactions and negotiations of multiple actors and the situated practices they draw on in accomplishing that activity† (Jarzabkowski, 2007) Strategy as practice For many years now the dominant academic perspective on strategic management has looked at strategy as something that organisations have. The strategy as practice perspective, on the other hand, looks at strategy as something people do.   It is concerned with the practice of strategising, encompassing both the formulation of strategy and how strategies are put into action to deliver strategic renewal and change. It therefore asks questions such as: what do people do to develop strategies in organisations; how do they translate their strategies into strategic action and change in organisations; what competences are required for this; how do they actually use the concepts and tools that are advocated for strategic management; what is good practice in managing strategy?(www.lums.lanc.ac.uk) As the statement above mentions that strategy as practice is a relatively new branch of strategic management, and is therefore still growing as a management science that people and organisations are slowly looking to for better solutions for strategising. This is because strategy has a direct effect on the performance of the organisation. Strategic concepts change as time passes and the business environment constantly changes, therefore strategy as practice is a new concept that holds new promises for the business world. â€Å"Strategy as practice is a new measure to revitalise strategic theory and bring about change from the conventional strategic thinking to addressing various important questions on the functioning of an organisation and how the functioning differs from organisation to organisation. However strategy as practice is a more cautious approach as there are already a number of approaches to strategic thinking for every minute detail of firm positioning and managerial cognition.It is widely believed that there is more to learn from the day to day practices of the firm than the formulation of theories and principles that govern conventional strategy. Observations made on the functioning of the firm help us relate between different theories.†Ã‚  (Jarzabkowski, 2002) According to Jarzabkowski strategy as practice has 3 core elements. They are Recursiveness, Adaptation and Strategy practice –in use. Recursiveness These theories   are better explained by Jarzabkowski   with the theories of structuration. Where   the external environment which is a macro factor is used as a structure   in which a lot of actors(managers) perform their day to day functions.   And the interaction on a daily basis of actors with their environment on a daily basis   as a practise is described as   recursiveness of practice. Recursiveness is nothing but   the daily   routine   of tasks and functions   performed   by   managers. Recursiveness only occurs for tasks that are repetitive in nature i.e. tasks that have to be done repeatedly in order to gain recursiveness. Recursiveness is present at 3 levels- the actor, the organisation and the social institution. (Jarzabkowski, 2002) Adaptation Adaptation is a measure that has to be taken up by every organisation in order to adapt perfectly with its current environments in order to survive the constant   changes of the environments in which the organisations function.   Adaptation is a very important measure of strategic excellence. It show s to what extent an organisation or its manager are willing to go to keep the organisation afloat   in the ever-changing   macro environment. Adaptation is not only seen at a macro level but even at a micro level of the firm. Adaptive organisational structures, adaptive managerial tasks, adaptive functioning to the changing needs of a firm etc are also considered adaptation. .(Jarzabkowski, 2002) Strategy as practice in use Managers or professionals who are strategic   practitioners   are said to be knowledgeable, purposive and reflexive   in nature. Therefore when they practice they have the ample knowledge to go about their functions, they are full of intent which helps them adhere to the strategic principles of goal seeking.   Strategic actors   who practice strategy are the ones who usually take the recursive and adaptive route to strategy and succeed in doing it the right way. Strategy as practice as they say is the correct way of looking at strategic theory   cause its a more practical hands on approach that could save the organisations from strategizing wrongly. .(Jarzabkowski, 2002) Wrong strategies could lead to   disasters Wrong strategies could lead to disasters. This statement is   very valid one once we ve seen how many firms fail in the present market conditions. They fail because they are not able to keep in tune with the market requirements and adapt constantly. All this may only occur when a firm has its priorities wrong. Every company   has its own strategies   and these strategies are formulated and followed up in order to reach the firm’s long term and short term goals. When the strategy fails to take into consideration one of the vital elements from both the micro and macro factors , the firm may have a troubled future. Strategies should be formulated in such a way that they are flexible to change through time, they should be simplistic and goal oriented and should be for the better functioning of the firm and not to compete with other firms. As Michael porter has said â€Å" Bad strategy often stems from the way managers think about competition. Many companies set out to be th e best in their industry, and then the best in every aspect of business, from marketing to supply chain to product development. The problem with that way of thinking is there is no best company in any industry.† ( Porter, 2006). Porter called this sort of competition â€Å"destructive competition†. It is when companies and managers try to outshine other companies through cut throat competition and instead of trying to increase the performance and better functioning standards of their firm they instead work on putting other companies down. This is because such managers believe that there is only one best company amongst several. But as porter has pointed out that there is no one best company. It depends on people s perspectives, choices, different situations, budgets, and needs. Therefore he says concentrating on strategies that   increase the performance and output and organisational integrity of a firm may actually help instead of opting for the former. ( Porter, 2006). Although for this sort of strategizing. Managers have to look into their own firms and their own human resources and the strengths and weaknesses of the Strategy is a word that gets used in so many ways with so many meanings that it can end up being meaningless. Often corporate executives will confuse strategy with aspiration.† (Porter ,2006). He also says that managers and firms confuse their strategies with the firm’s visions and firm’s missions, which quite frankly is the wrong approach to motivating their workers. When you confuse the company’s visions and strategies you are bound to end up no where. Because Strategising necessarily doesn’t involve motivationg and envisioning. It simply just helps the firm find a pathway to success if anything. Product, pricing and geographical focus It is also said that strategies should help a firm decide on what products and services its going to sell in the market, what pricing its going to adopt, who it is going to compete with and most importantly its geographical area of focus for business is to be determined. All these minor details play a major role in organisational success. The art of doing all this together is what porter says, leads to successful strategizing. Doing several of these key functions simultaneously is very important to larger firms.(Porter,2006) Bad strategies and its problems â€Å"Bad  strategy  abounds†, says UCLA management professor Richard Rumelt.  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Senior executives who can spot it stand a much better chance of creating good  strategies.†(Rumelt,2011). Bad strategies are something that are very common. Managers think they have a strategy that will succeed but infact they don’t. They just make functioning a very difficult task for the firms due to listing down of some very demanding strategies that take more from the firm than they give. These strategies create a negative effect on the functioning of the firm. Because the goals seem very demanding and the managers and workforce are too stressed out to carry out the tasks asked of them.These strategies fail to solve the problem that the firms are actually facing. It is not based on realistic problems but based more on forecasted problems which could be wrong. A firm,s strategies should always be such that it helps solve the problems of the present as well as the future. Assuring an overall smooth ride. But not all strategies are like this. The one’s that fail miserably are   coined as a bad strategy. These bad strategies can be a big negative effect on the firm. (Rume lt, 2011) There are   strategies that mistake goals for strategies whereas the strategies themselves are only a means of achieving those very goals. Some strategies also have an absence of thought. They put in very sophisticated fancy words but lack any sense of thought or motive for the strategy basically making those strategies soul less. These are all bad strategies. While this may sound bad enough, there are strategies with no clear objectives or mission. These strategies as mentioned before have their priorites wrong. They are unsuccessful strategies from the very beginning. Conclusion Strategy as practice is a fairly new practice. Hence organisations and managers still don’t trust this method of strategising all that much. Many organisations still use the conventional method of goal-setting strategizing. Which basically is a prescribed way of going about various functions in order to reach its goals. While this may still be in fashion in most parts of the world and most of the organisations. The   ever changing conditions of the market environments are asking for a change in the way organisations do business. For now it may be called the unconventional method of strategizing. But in a few years on, when its success catches on, businesses will see this as an option they may most certainly have to choose. This is because this method is a very flexible one, it keeps in mind both macro and micro influencing factors, It is also adaptive in nature and adapts to every situation that the organisation may be put in. As this strategy is not only set but is practise d at the same time, it is easy for managers to make corrections along the way and not have problems in the strategy being too rigid and unchangeable. Even if the organisations are choosing the conventional methods of strategising, they must always keep in mind the objectives and goals set for the firm which must be achieved through its strategies and also to make sure that they keep the strategies simple and easy to understand and not to confuse it with its goals and visions. When the strategies are void of any of these commonalities is when we can say that we have a near perfect strategy. References Websites 1)  Ã‚   lums.lancs.ac.uk/research/centres/strategy/strategy-as-practice/,(www.lums.lancs.ac.uk) accessed on 18th may 2011 2)  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1594 porter, Michael.† Why do Good Managers set Bad Strategies†. Nov 1st 2006, accessed on 18th May 2011 3)  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://cosmic.rrz.uni-hamburg.de/webcat/hwwa/edok03/f10201g/RP0212.pdf   Jarzabkowski, Paula. â€Å"Strategy as Practice Recursiveness, Adaptation and Strategic Practices-in-use†.   July 2002 http://ehis.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liv.ac.uk/eds/detail?vid=3hid=102sid=b40003d9-0cad-412c-b5cb-89cd40fea720%40sessionmgr110bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmUmc2NvcGU9c2l0ZQ%3d%3d#db=buhAN=58572247. Rumelt, Richard, McKinsey Quarterly,†The perils of bad strategy†, 2011 Issue 1. Accessed from business source premier on the 19th May 2011

Sunday, November 3, 2019

IT INFRASTRUCTURE Mayed Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

IT INFRASTRUCTURE Mayed - Essay Example A Dow 30 corporation with over $120 billion within 2013 proceeds, Verizon makes use of a diverse labor force of 176,800. The system that has been studied is Green Computing at Verizon Wireless. The organization is faced by increased energy utilization, decreased effectiveness of its data centers, and reduced money saving. The transformation began within 2009 while measurements established that equipment utilized to power the company’s network took account of a noteworthy section of Verizon’s energy utilization. The workforce charged with examining the situation distinguished the prospective for huge savings in energy, as well as dollars. Then, there were no production benchmarks concerning the energy used by system equipment. There was a lot of talk within the communications industry, but nothing took place within most companies (Feng 2014:180). However, Verizon on this matter one of two workers charged with discovering the state of affairs and decided to make a change through green computing. Verizon stood out by making sure that suppliers augmented the effectiveness of their goods by twenty percent. The company was sufficiently big to manipulate the marketp lace and did not have to hang around for industry accord. Efficiently managing an information hub has been a predicament for some time for Verizon; on the other hand, the problem augments with the utilization of physical, as well as virtual machines within diverse environments. Verizon had to make use of green computing through server virtualization. This launches a completely novel globe of reserve mobility and development. Data center managing software is required to scale to decrease the complexity connected with virtualization-stimulated server slouch and allow the computerized, dynamic information center. In this line, Verizon Wireless is faced by key challenges, for instance, lack of skill, difficulty running

Friday, November 1, 2019

Using Borrowed Material Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Using Borrowed Material - Essay Example Copyright material provides some rights to the person acquiring the licence under copyright laws. The material that is authorized to the person who owns it has the authority to permit or stop others from using it. It is an intellectual property of the original owner and permission must be obtained before using that material for any purpose regardless of the issues relating to its use e.g. urgency, relevance or compulsion. The case in question relates to the use of copyrighted pictures without prior permission and provides an evaluation of alternative choice that was available and more appropriate. In the scenario in question, there are a few facts that are relevant to the act done by Sam Jones. The decision of Sam Jones to use copyrighted material was not an independent factor for using it. Time constraints also led him to use the material without ‘prior’ permission. Time limitation was the greatest fact that led to such a step. In addition, the scenario clearly explains the pressure and compulsion on him to do this unethical and undesirable activity of using copyrighted material without prior permission of the original owner of the photos. Copyrighted material is basically an intellectual property of the original owner of the material published. The copyright laws are connected to the copyrighted material and require every person to take permission before anyone uses the copyrighted material. ‘Prior’ permission to use the copyrighted material is mandatory or else the use of such material will be held liable for infringement (Zimberoff, 2002 p. 188-192). The problem in the above scenario is hence the credibility of the action done by Sam Jones. Was it reasonable and fair to use the material without obtaining permission beforehand? Was it a nice idea to contact the owner of the copyrighted material after using the material?