Dmci Homes Application of Pert Essays

Dmci Homes Application of Pert Essays Dmci Homes Application of Pert Essay Dmci Homes Application of Pert Essay information on units and important areas within the vicinity. Assistance on transactions concerning the developer, including following up documents * Community events  such as sports fests, family day, Halloween treats, Christmas party, etc. You are also able to enjoy the perks of living in a DMCI Homes community. Modern-day facilities that are standard features in the developments and which contribute to a more convenient lifestyle include: * 24-hour security service * Gated entrance and perimeter fence * Overhead water tank, deep well, and underground cistern * Covered bridge way connecting the residential building to the car park * Individual drying area at the roof deck Provision for CATV and telephone lines QUALITY WORKMANSHIP Expect efficient floor plans and high-quality structures with first-rate construction techniques in the development of all DMCI Homes projects, owing to its mother company DMCI’s 50-year c ommendable track record in the construction industry. DMCI Homes also provides one (1) year quality warranty that covers repairs, free of charge, on any workmanship defects of the unit. Fast and reliable, the companys construction of the residential buildings and turnover of units are within 6 to 12 months only. READY FOR OCCUPANCY AND MOVE-IN POLICY For as low as 20% down payment for mid-rise or 30% down payment for high-rise, a homebuyer may immediately move into his or her unit and enjoy the privileges of living in a DMCI Homes residential community, provided his or her unit is completed. Without the long wait, take pleasure in a resort living ambience right within your own backyard, or realize your condo unit’s earning potential sooner than you expected. II. Literature Review A BRIEF HISTORY OF SCHEDULING BACK TO THE FUTURE Presented at 4 6 April 2006 Hyatt, Canberra. Patrick Weaver FAICD, FCIOB, PMP. Director, Mosaic Project Services Pty Ltd Introduction The science of ‘scheduling’ as defined by Critical Path Analysis (CPA) will celebrate its 50th Anniversary in 2007. In 1956/57 Kelly and Walker started developing the algorithms that became the ‘Activity-on-Arrow’ or ADM scheduling methodology for DuPont. The program they developed was trialed on plant shutdowns in 1957 and their first paper on critical path scheduling was published in March 1959. The PERT system was developed at around the same time but lagged CPM by 6 to 12 months (although the term ‘critical path’ was invented by the PERT team). Later the Precedence (PDM) methodology was developed by Dr. John Fondahl in 1977 as a ‘noncomputer’ alternative to CPM. Arguably, the evolution of modern project management is a direct consequence of the need to make effective use of the data generated by the schedulers in an attempt to manage and control the critical path1. The evolution of scheduling closely tracked the development of computers. The initial systems were complex mainframe behemoths, typically taking a new scheduler many months to learn to use. These systems migrated to the ‘mini computers’ of the 1970s and 80s but remained expensive, encouraging the widespread use of manual scheduling techniques, with only the larger (or more sophisticated) organizations being able to afford a central scheduling office and the supporting computer systems. The advent of the ‘micro computer’ (ie, personal computer, or PC) changed scheduling forever. The evolution of PC based scheduling move project controls from an environment where a skilled cadre of schedulers operating expensive systems made sure the scheduling was ‘right’ (and the organization ‘owned’ the data) to a ituation where anyone could learn to drive a scheduling software package, schedules became ‘islands of data’ sitting on peoples’ desktops and the overall quality of scheduling plummeted. Current trends back to ‘Enterprise’ systems supported by PMOs seem to be redressing the balanceand offerin g the best of both worlds. From the technology perspective, information is managed centrally, but is easily available on anyone’s desktop via web enabled and networked systems. From the skills perspective PMOs are re-developing career paths for schedulers and supporting the development of scheduling standards within organizations. This paper tracks the development of scheduling (with a particular focus on Micro Planner and Primavera) and looks at the way the evolving technology has changed the way projects are scheduled and managed. In the Beginning Pre 1956 The concept of ‘scheduling’ is not new; Sun Tzu wrote about scheduling and strategy 5000 years ago from a military perspective, the pyramids are over 3000 years old, transcontinental railways have been being built for some 200 years, etc. None of these activities could have been accomplished without some form of schedule; ie, the understanding of activities and sequencing. However, whilst the managers, priests and military leaders controlling the organizations responsible for accomplishing the ‘works’ must have an appreciation of ‘scheduling’ (or at least the successful ones would have) there is little evidence of any formal processes until the 20th Centenary. Henry L. Gantt, an American engineer and social scientist is credited with the developed the bar chart (Gantt Chart) in 1917 as a production control tool. In its pure form, the bar chart correlates activities and time in a graphical display allowing the timing of work to be determined but not interdependencies. Sequencing is inferred rather then shown and as a ‘hand drawn’ diagram, the early charts were a static representation of the schedule. Fig. 1 A typical Gantt chart. Milestone charts were also in regular use by the 1950s2. Major contracts were subdivided into sections with target dates set for accomplishing the work required to achieve each ‘milestone’. However, as with Gantt Charts, all of the dates and durations shown in these charts were based on heuristics (rules of thumb) and/or experience. It was possible to identify slippage but any assessment of the impact of a delay was based on a personal view of the data rather than analysis. As a consequence when schedule slippage became apparent on major contracts, the tendency was to flood the work with labor and ‘buy time’ frequently at a very high premium. Independent of the development of schedule control processes based on bar charts and milestones, work on linear programming had been going on for a number of years. This branch of mathematics looked at the cause and effect of actions on each other in situations such as the flow of traffic along a freeway. One of the mathematicians involved in this work was James E. Kelley. CPM and Kelly and Walker3 The origin of CPM can be traced back to mid 1956. E. I. du Pont de Numours (Du Pont) was looking for useful things to do with its ‘UNIVAC1’ computer (this was one of the very first computers installed in a commercial business anywhere and only the third UNIVAC machine built). Fig. 2 – An early UNIVAC Computer Du Pont’s management felt that ‘planning, estimating and scheduling’ seemed like a good use of the computer! Morgan Walker was given the job of discovering if a computer could be programmed to help. Others had started studying the problem, including other researchers within Du Pont but no one had achieved a commercially viable outcome. In the period from late 1956 through to April 1957, Walker assisted by Kelly and others had scoped a viable project. Their challenge was to solve the time-cost conundrum. They could demonstrate that in preference to flooding a project with labor to recover lost time, focusing effort on the ‘right’ tasks can reduce time without significantly increasing cost. The problem was identifying the ‘right’ tasks! Fig. 3 – The Time / Cost Curve On the 7th May 1957, a meeting in Newark Delaware committed US$226,400 to a project to develop CPM; Du Pont’s share was $167,700, Remington Rand Univac contributed $58,700. Univac had decided to help ‘to keep IBM at bay’; competition can be useful†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ but more important than the money was the people brought to the project by Univac. The Du Pont team was lead by Morgan R. Walker, key players from Univac were James E. Kelley and John Mauchly. Kelley was the mathematician and computer expert nominated by Mauchly to ‘solve the problem’ for Walker. The solution adopted by Kelley borrowed from ‘linear programming’ and used the i-j notation to describe the relationship between activities. This constrained the sequencing and made the calculations feasible (remembering the challenge was still to resolve the ‘time-cost’ trade off). This solution created a couple of significant challenges. One was gathering the data needed toload the computer model. Engineers were not used to describing work in terms of activities (tasks) with resource requirements and different costs depending on the resources deployed for a ‘normal’ duration and a ‘crashed’ duration. Gathering the data for the first CPM model took Walker over three months. The other problem was that unless you were a mathematician the concept of i-j was virtually meaningless! The ‘Activity-on-Arrow’ diagram was developed to explain the mathematics to management. Despite all of the problems, by 24th July 1957 the first analysis of the George Fischer Works schedule had been completed and the concept proven. The schedule included 61 activities, 8 timing restraints and 16 dummies. Fig. 4 A section of the George Fisher Works CPM schedule The major challenge then became reducing the number of calculations and variables to a level that could be processed in a reasonable timeframe. The estimate of the time needed to update a schedule of 150 to 300 arrows was some 350 hours of computer time per month. Some of the challenges were as basic as accessing the right computer; magnetic tapes storing the schedule data were prepared on the DuPont computers and then flown across the USA to be run on machines capable of analyzing the data. Development continued through 1958 and in March 1959 Kelley and Walker jointly presented CPM to the public at large at the Eastern Joint Computer Conference in a paper entitled ‘Critical Path Planning and Scheduling’. As with many innovations though, CPM nearly died as a concept. CPM saved DuPont 25% on their shutdowns, but they dropped the system shortly after the management team responsible for its development changed in 1959. Similarly, RemRand could see little future in the system and abandoned it! CPM as a technique was ‘saved’ by Mauchly ; Associates (including John Mauchly and Jim Kelley). Starting in 1959, they commercialized CPM, simplified the process to focus on schedule (rather than cost), organized training courses and developed an entire new way of ‘doing business’. CPM was popular but expensive – solving scheduling problems (eg loops) could cost the price of a small car! PERT and Other Systems PERT was developed independently by the US Navy Special Projects Office, Bureau of Ordnance (SP). A team comprising members of SP and consulting firm Booz, Allen and Hamilton was established in 1957 and produced its first report in July, 1958. Apart from introducing uncertainty into schedule durations, the lasting contribution the PERT teams have made to the business of scheduling was the invention of the ‘critical path’. Kelly and Walker used the name ‘main chain’ for the longest path through their schedule. By 1961, a multitude of PERT like systems had been developed including MAPS, SCANS, TOPS,PEP, TRACE, LESS and PAR. These systems were all network based and had distinguishing features of their own. PEP is particularly interesting as it was essentially ‘a connected bar chart; ie, a set of bars with links connecting the ends of related bars’5. A concept that has re-surfaced in a range of computerized scheduling tools in recent years. By 1968 PERT and CPM had emerged as the standard nomenclatures and dominant systems. Precedence Diagramming Method In 1961 John Fondahl published a report entitled ‘A Non-computer Approach to Critical Path Methods for the Construction Industry’6. This paper described the PDM system of scheduling and was offered as effective manual process to bypass the expensive computer based CPM system. The irony being PDM is now used by every computer based scheduling system, PERT has dies out completely and CPM is rarely seen and is generally only found in academic papers where the calculations are performed manually! Mainframe days†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Through to the early 1980s, to create a project schedule you either used a mini or mainframe computer system. Or drew and calculated schedules manually. Or did both; manual calculations first (to sort out problems) then pload the corrected and checked schedule to the computer. The run-time on the computer cost too much for errors! Schedulers were trained through a process of apprenticeships and mentoring; it cost too much and took too long to fix problems caused by inexperience! The consequence was the evolution of a group of project schedulers skilled in both the art and science of scheduling. H owever, as Kelley noted from the very earliest CPM training courses, there was a significant variability in the outcome for scheduling exercises caused by differing skill levels and perceptions on the trainees. The existence of scheduling departments meant the scheduling processes were standardized and the schedule data was largely ‘owned’ by the organization. Additionally, the desire of professional schedulers to exchange information and develop their skills would appear to have been the foundation for the evolution of ‘modern project management. PC systems Micro Planner Micro computers emerged in the late 1970s, machines like the Commodore and Atari were initially aimed at the enthusiast. However, by the end of the 1970s micro computers were starting to make their presence felt in the business world. One of the leaders in the business market was Apple Computer with its first ‘commercial’ PC, the Apple II being launched in 1979. The first commercial scheduling software for this class of computer was developed by Micro Planning Services in the UK. Running on the Apple II Micro Planner v1. 0 was released in 1980 after 14 months development, based on the ICL PERT mainframe system. The first IBM PC was launched in 1981; although the definitive IBM XT was not launched until 1983. In 1982, ‘The Planner’ is released for the 256K IBM PC and the Sirius/Victor. Windows’ type operating systems became available in 1984 (Apple Macintosh) with Microsoft’s ‘Windows v1. 0’ being launched in November ‘85. Micro Planner maintained their association with the Apple system launching graphical scheduling systems for the Apple Macintosh in 1986 and Windows in 1988; followed by the first true GUIb scheduling tool Micro Planner X-Pert in 1989. The author managed the Australian arm of the Micro Planner group from 1986 through to 1998 over this period the total annual sales of the business grew to more than $1 million. Primavera Primavera was founded in May 1983 by: Dick Faris, Joel Koppelman and Les Seskin (who owned a batch entry mainframe scheduling system). Today Primavera is arguably the dominant ‘high end’ project scheduling tool worldwide. But where did the name come from? Focusing on the then ‘mainstream’ DOS operating system, Primavera shot to prominence with the release of a 10,000 activity capable system in the late 1980s and has maintained its position as ‘market leader’ with a steady flow of innovative developments. The Changing Industry During the 1970s, the arrival of powerful project scheduling systems running on ‘Mini Computers’ caused the first major change. The lower operating cost of systems such as MAPPS on Wang and Artemis on HP and DEC hardware caused the rapid demise of mainframe scheduling systems. Apart from a few legacy systems the era of the mainframe was over by the mid 1980s. The ‘mini systems’ retained many of the characteristics of the mainframes though and required skilled schedulers to make efficient use of them. From the perspective of the people working as schedulers all that changed was the hardware and maybe the software vendor. The rapid spread of relatively cheap, easy-to-use’ PCs in the latter half of the 1980s spawned dozens (if not hundreds) of PC based scheduling systems including TimeLine and CA Super project at the ‘low end’, and Open Plan and Primavera at the ‘high end’ of PC capability. The ‘low end’ tools spread the availability of scheduling systems to a very wide audience and allowed everyone access to cheap computer based scheduling. This had two impacts, by the early 1990s no one was doing manual scheduling (apart maybe from a few ‘old timers’) and the number of people creating schedules on a part time, untrained basis exploded. At the same time, the increasing capability of the ‘high end’ systems annihilated the significantly more expensive mini systems. Scheduling had become a desk top PC based process. The last of the significant changes in the industry started in latter part of the 1980s and has continued through to the present time. Despite the ever increasing number of people using PC based scheduling tools; the competition in the market has driven prices down and caused a major consolidation of the industry. For many years, Microsoft Project could be bought for less than $100 per set. This decimated the ‘low end’ market. Similarly the cost of developing GUI interfaces and staying competitive in the features arms race at the ‘high end’ caused most of the system developers to move to greener pastures or simply close up shop. It is only since the start of the 21st century has this trend begun to change. The increase in the sophistication of Microsoft Project and the rise in its base cost to around $1000 has opened up the market to a number of low cost entry level tools based primarily on bar charts. There has also been an increase in the number of generally available niche systems offering enhanced; risk (eg Pertmaster), time/location and line of balance capabilities (eg DynaProjectâ„ ¢ and LinearPlus) and other functionality, that can operate stand alone or use data from and interact with the dominant systems such as Microsoft Project and Primavera. One very interesting development is a Russian tool called SPIDER. This software dynamically links time and cost (the original Kelley and Walker objective) within a managed risk profile. The loss of skills and control Prior to the 1980s Scheduling was a serious business; it used very expensive assets, required significant training and skill and was largely centralized and ‘visible’. Where manual scheduling was used, the saving in system costs was offset by the tedium of lengthy manual calculations. It simply did not pay to make mistakes! The arrival of ‘easy to use’ scheduling tools with a graphical interface radically changed the industry. Scheduling migrated to the desktop and the myth that ‘anyone’ can schedule (provided they knew how to switch on a PC) emerged. Many people learned ‘scheduling’ from using tools like Microsoft Project. There was no training or oversight and as a consequence, the average schedule is littered with ‘fixes’ allowed or encouraged by the tool. The trend has been towards a focus on computer processes and getting a schedule ‘looking right’ rather than analyzing a project to determine the appropriate duration based on appropriate resources and designing the schedule to be an effective management tool in the context of each specific project. As a direct consequence of this loss of skills, the importance of scheduling has dropped in most organizations and most projects run late! But the tide is turning†¦.. Current trends back to the future The requirement for effective ‘corporate governance’ is focusing management’s attention on project controls. The requirement for visibility, predictability and accountability of project performance can only be achieved by the introduction of effective corporate tools supported by skilled project schedulers7. The drive for visibility has been met by the arrival of powerful ‘Enterprise’ tools such as Primavera Enterprise and the suite of programs from WST including Open Plan and WelcomeHome. These integrated tools with effective data management and security ‘built in’ deliver the visibility and control needed for effective corporate governance (provided the tools are adequately supported). Additionally, the integrated nature of the tools makes project data visible and this visibility encourages enhanced quality. The drive for quality is creating a demand for skilled schedulers. This skills shortage is being helped by the spread of PMOsd and a renewed interest in scheduling training8. Many PMOs are also starting to recognize the need for, and develop skills in the ‘art’ of effective scheduling, as well as providing a home and career path for schedulers. The trend back towards a corporate view of schedule information and the requirement for skilled schedulers to operate the tools and provide effective support to project managers is being supported by the development of new standards. PMI will launch its ‘Scheduling Practice Standard’ in 2006, to augment the information in the PMBOK Guide. A longer term initiative is the work being undertaken by PMI’s College of Scheduling to develop and publish its ‘Scheduling Excellence Initiative’9. SEI is planned to develop and publish a comprehensive set of industry accepted best practices and guidelines for every aspect of project management ‘that touches a schedule, or that a schedule touches’. The consequence of these trends is that schedulers are once again in great demand around the world. The role of the scheduler is back! Conclusions The evolution of scheduling has been a fascinating journey: Kelley and Walker set out to solve the time-cost conundrum and invented CPM. For most organizations the resolution of time-cost issues is still in the ‘too hard’ basket (although SPIDER offers an interesting solution)! The PERT project invented the name ‘Critical Path’, and everyone else borrowed it. Fondahl invented a non-computer methodology for scheduling that is now used by every computer package worldwide! Whilst Kelley and Walkers CPM system was developed for computers and is now only seen as a manual technique. The changing role of the scheduler has been almost as interesting: The mainframe era saw scheduling as: o A skilled profession o Central to the success of projects The new ‘enterprise’ era sees scheduling as o A skilled profession o Central to the success of projects We have gone back to the future! III. Data and Analysis -Data Activity| Description| Predecessor| ABCDEFGHIJKLMN| Civil and StructuralFire Protection WorksMechanical WorksElectrical WorksPlumbing WorksAuxilliaryMasonry/WetworksMiscellaneous Walls ; FinishesMiscellaneousPainting WorksCeiling WorksFloor FinishesMechanical EquipmentElectrical EquipmentFire Protection EquipmentPlumbing Equipment| D, EB, C, EAAHH, IGFK, L, M| This Table shows the flow of activities in building basement 3. We were able to determine the activities by the given data. * CPM Network Crash Completion Time 9 months Crash Cost: Php 6, 197, 600. 00 Critical Path: B – G – L M IV. Conclusion This study investigates on the feasibility of project development thru the use of PERT and CPM techniques. Both aided the researchers in getting the critical path, optimum project completion time, and minimum project cost incurred after the optimum crash completion time. The critical path is the longest path of the project where it indicates the amount of time needed for the completion of the project. Thus the activities along this path must be accelerated in order to catalyze the project, On the other hand, when delays happen in these activities would cause a chain reaction of delays throughout the scheduling, etc for the rest of the project. Obtaining the optimum project completion time is done by crashing the network. Crashing the network refers to crashing a number of activities in order to reduce the duration of the project below its normal value. Based on the data obtained, this project accomplished in 13 months with a total cost Php 4, 596,400. 0. However if the project is crashed the soonest possible time is 9 months with a cost of Php 6, 197, 600. 00. V. Recommendation Though PERT and CPM considers the cost and completion time available it doesn’t really reflect how the real scheduling of a construction project is. It is only an ideal flow of activities. In current construction project activities usually starts simultaneously e. g. As soon as this first floor floor ing is done, they begin with the next floor not observing anymore the other activities to be done on first floor. Therefore the use of PERT CPM should be of initial study and not as a basis of overall scheduling of construction. VI. References Hillier and Lieberman. â€Å"Introduction to Operations Research†, Chapter 10 Project Management with PERT/CPM, 7th Edition Weaver, P. (2006) â€Å"A Brief History of Scheduling†, ; pmforum. org/library/papers/2006/A_Brief_History_of_Scheduling. pdf;. â€Å"PERT/CPM for Project Scheduling ; Management†, ;interventions. org/pertcpm. html;. â€Å"Pert Diagram and CPM†,

Acute Health Effect Definition

Acute Health Effect Definition An acute health effect is the effect caused by the initial exposure of a hazardous chemical on a human or animal body. When a hazardous materials acute health effect is listed, the effects are generally severe and dangerous adverse effects, but subside after the exposure stops. In contrast, chronic health effects persist following exposure, even if the exposure stops. Acute health effects typically appear immediately or shortly after exposure and occur after relatively high exposure to a hazardous substance. Examples of Acute Health Effects Common examples of acute health effects include: Allergic reactions (including anaphylactic shock)IrritationRashes or dry skinBurnsDermatitisMetal fume feverLethal Concentration (LC)LC50Hearing loss Note dermatitis may also occur as a chronic health effect. Lethal concentration is the amount of a substance that is immediately dangerous to life and may cause death. LC50 is the concentration of a substance that causes death to one half or 50% of test subjects.

Personality Theorist Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Personality Theorist Paper - Essay Example Of these approaches, the psychoanalysis was captures the interest of many psychologists and ordinary people because of its startling applications and implications to human behavior (Jung, 1976). The psychoanalytic school of psychology was founded by Austrian physician Sigmund Freud. The central theory of the school that unconscious motivation and desires direct human behavior. The psychoanalytic model identified three key subsystems within an individual's personality: the ego, superego and id. The interaction of these three subsystems shapes observable behavior (Atkinson, 1993, p. 534). This school of thought assumes that a person's problems cannot be fully solved without understanding the unconscious influences in a person's early relationships may have contributed to the current problem of the person (p. 674). Psychoanalysis also gave birth to new outlooks on human behavior and installed Freud as one of the most recognizable names in the field of psychology. However Freud's apparent contracted and inflexible view of libido and other human behavioral motivations, which he basically viewed as sexual in context, left some of the dissatisfied and prompted them to diverge from the Freud (Booere, 2006). Carl Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and founder of analytical psychology. He used his background on Freudian theories to explore the "inner space" of the human psyche. He involved mythology, religion, and philosophy into his studies and became an expert in mystic symbolism. He concentrated on the study of dreams and their importation and devoted himself significantly to the study and correlation of Western and Eastern philosophical beliefs (Carl Jung, 2004). Carl Gustav Jung and Analytic Psychology According to Carl Jung, "As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being." (Memories, Dreams, Reflections, 1989). Carl Jung tried to find the explanation to human behavior through exploring dreams, philosophy, religion and literature (Booere, 2006). His work provided archetypes of personality and behavioral theories that is still being used today by psychologist and has influenced other fields such as humanities, mythology and theology (Carl Jung, 2004). Jung's research created the idea of the complex, or cluster of emotionally charged associations. He disagrees with Freudian theory of the pervasiveness of a sexual basis for neuroses and the pessimism on human nature and motivation (Carl Jung, 2004). Jung established analytic psychology and brought forward the concepts of the introvert and extravert personality, archetypes, and the collective unconscious. He also created new method for psychotherapeutic that allowed a person to know his unique "myth" or place in the collective unconscious. His work is dominated by his study of dreams, their meaning and imagination (Carl Jung, 2006). The Archetypes Jung theorized that humans have a "preconscious psychic disposition" explains why a person reacts in a specific human manner (Jung, 1966). Jung worked on the reconciliation of the individual with supra-personal archetypes and linked the archetypes to heredity and instinct. Archetype had no form of its own and functioned more as an "organizing principle" or a structural notion of psychological existence (Booere, 2006). Jung's archetypes were as

Different type of market in oil & gas industry Essay

Different type of market in oil & gas industry - Essay Example The oil price dynamics in the global market are more likely to influence by a number of key factors ranging from balance amongst supply and demand; geopolitical and macroeconomic conditions; to the transitions in exchange rates of the dominant economies across the world. In this regard, changing conditions of the global financial markets has also been witnessed to have major influence on the oil and gas industry (Levy & Kolk, 2002). Although the continuous technological breakthrough has made the international producers and suppliers to effectively deal with the issues, but the oil and gas industry underpins major concerns for the nations in order to eliminate the prevailing challenges. This is owing to the fact that the industry is centrally driven by the wave of changing supply and demand along with the unabated financial challenges of the global nations (Sadorsky, 2001). The study emphasises on the key challenges and increasing numbers of threats from the different market challenges. In this context, the study aims to conduct a critical evaluation of the current oil and gas industry of China to determine whether the industry is monopolised by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), which is one of the leading and dominant oil and gas corporations in the nation. In this essay, the discussion mainly focuses on developing relevant arguments or positions in relation to the literatures used in the previously developed articles. In order to claim appropriateness as well as validity of the research works, this essay tends to include a real example by elucidating the dominant performance of CNPC in the current oil and gas industry of China. In order to explore the market trends of the current oil and gas industry in China, the discussion critically addresses the present trend in microeconomic factors including the fashion of demand and supply in China. In addition to determine the current performance of CNPC, the discussion also incorporates a clear

Amazing 7 Wonders of the World Essay Example for Free

Amazing 7 Wonders of the World Essay My name is Bshair, and I would like to tell you about one of the most amazing 7 wonders of the world I was given the opportunity to write about it. Not only because of the magnificent landmarks, but also because it has great history behind it, and it shows the roots of one of the most powerful empires the Incan Empire. Machu Picchu is the greatest Inca masterpiece. Incredibly daring and inventive, it was built on the most difficult, wild and inaccessible mountain area available. It is known world-wide not only for its impressive and unique ruins, but also for its unusual location on the edge of an abyss, from which one can appreciate the vigorous waters of the Urubamba river. I wonder how the Incas were able to carry the huge blocks of stone to the top of the mountain, we have no evidence that they used the wheel and build such a spectacular exponent of their wisdom and culture remains a mystery to this day. Of religious and military origin, the sacred city of Machu Picchu was enclosed by a wide wall. According to the archaeologist Alfredo, Machu Picchu can be divided into two major sections (the urban and the agricultural). Each part encloses two sub sections (the western and eastern) which are defined in relation to their topographic location. The agricultural section is divided into higher and lower ground. The high ground consists of five premises, the shrine of pile of stones marking a holy site and over 40 platforms. The low ground, meanwhile, comprises seven premises, four open areas and approximately 80 platforms. Some of the numerous agricultural terraces, which are placed in succession, are connected by stone stairways fitted in the walls, while others are linked by various set of steps forming corridors. The layout of the terraces and platforms is in perfect harmony with the mountains surrounding the site. Thus, the hillsides seem to be sculpted to harmonize with nature. There are 3 primary buildings in Machu Picchu they are the Intihuatana, the temple of the sun, and the room of the three windows. All the three rooms together are called the scared district of Machu Picchu. Legend tells that when a sensitive person touches their forehead to the Intihuatana stone it opens their vision in the spirit world. Finally, I Recommend people to visit this amazing place, I’m sure that they will be amazed and they will like what they see there, i would like to visit this amazing place my self some day, because it’s Something not to be missed.

To Kill A Mockingbird Essay :: Kill Mockingbird essays

Modes of Communication in To Kill a Mockingbird      Effective communication is a result of the utilization of different techniques to convey a particular idea or perspective. Different methods used to express a person's feelings are found throughout society and aid in creating a learned individual, family, and community. In the novel To Kill a Mocking Bird, Harper Lee uses several modes of communication to display her feelings on moral, political, and social issues. Lee's tactics parallel those used by one character in her novel, Atticus Finch. In order to express his feelings to his children, Atticus uses three simple teaching devices; the use of examples, verbal statements, and learning through experience. Although Atticus uses these techniques to develop his children into positive members of society, Lee uses them to create an image for the reader that will ultimately constitute a general understanding of growing up in the south in the mid-nineteen thirties.    One of the methods of communication that Atticus Finch uses is that of an example. By providing his children with a realistic and visual model, Atticus establishes an exemplary learning environment. The most prevalent display of Atticus' utilization of examples is the one he sets himself. He makes it a common practice to live his life as he would like his children to live theirs, and thus displays the attributes of an honest, respectable, and kind man. Atticus demonstrates his character by defending Tom Robinson, a black man on trial for the rape of a white woman. Throughout the trial process, Atticus shows Jem and Scout that true courage is standing up for what you believe in and that all worthy human beings, despite their race, deserve respect. Atticus also tries to be a perfect southern gentleman, teaching Jem and Scout to have grace and compassion for all people. His treatment of Mrs. Dubose proves this characteristic. Even though Mrs. Dubose makes vicious comments and criticisms of Atticus and his children, he still manages to treat her in the kindest manner; complimenting her appearance and helping her into her chair. Atticus sets examples to teach Jem and Scout some values a good person should have. Harper Lee, however, uses examples of life in her novel to give a broader view of humankind.    In order to depict the values, attitudes, and class structures of a small southern town in the mid-nineteen thirties, Harper Lee created various examples.

Museum Of Fine Arts Boston Essay

A flaw inherent to many business models is that the business/organization relies on a generic analysis of their resources instead of taking into account their specific product/market combination. The MFA is a museum, a school, a publisher, a retailer, a restaurateur, a film-theater, and more. Each demands unique research and analysis. A fusion of information would enable the MFA to establish an ongoing and effective strategic plan. Identification and discussion of three types of resources the MFA possesses with reference to the advantages of those resources. Three core resources (collections, audience, and exhibitions) and three supporting resources (facilities, financial, and organization) make the achievement of their strategic plan possible. Collections established a continued need to improve the quality of the collection, its management and care and provide electronic access to the collection. Audience included the need to engage, educate, and delight visitors as well as retain and expand the audience by better understanding the needs of their highly segmented target market. Special exhibitions entailed the creation of an exhibition schedule that met a variety of goals including an intellectual contribution, the attraction of visitors and revenue generation. Special-exhibition attendance is unpredictable and requires research to make reliable revenue forecasts. The supporting resources: Facilities focused specifically on enlarging and improving the museum. Financial reiterated the need for fiscal stability and fund-raising that would support facility expansion as well as other identified strategic needs. The MFA needs to maintain a balanced budget. Due to the American system of funding arts the MFA relies almost exclusively on private funding and its revenues come from memberships, admissions, sales of merchandise, restaurant food sales, school tuition, contributions, gifts and grants, and investments. The external relations group competes with other New England institutions for donations as well as educational institutions (Harvard) and area hospitals. Organization focuses on the adoption of an audience-aware, results-oriented, experimental attitude and realignment of the divisions within the MFA in order to support the strategic focus. This includes the MFA’s relationships with its customers, employees, donors and outside organizations; branding (which is directly related to mission and must be clear, specific, and not to be interpreted as a routine promise). The MFA needs to differentiate their purpose [other than to educate] from that of other museums. Their brand needs to be credible, meaningful and dependent upon a realistic mission statement. One type of resource that the organization needs to improve A significant issue for the museum is how to increase the visitor-experience in the museum. Research has revealed some key deficiencies in the visitor’s experience in the museum. Unique brand awareness challenges face the MFA because they are a non-profit multi-dimensional art institution with a highly segmented target market. The museum put together a cross-functional team that focused on initiatives related to orientation, customer service, on-site communications, and team undertook numerous initiatives to enhance the overall visitor experience of the MFA. Conclusion: why attendance is an important resource on which the MFA should focus. The museum’s will undoubtedly get focus and attract renewed attention in 2010 when the new wing opens but a continued strategy to improve core attendance is an ongoing priority. Critical questions remain: How does the MFA ensure continued, satisfactory visitor attendance? Continued education of their market, delivery on their mission and quality visitor experience. References Rangan, V. K. , Bell, M. (2005). Case 16. Museum of Fine Arts Boston. (pp. 530-557). Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing. Chiagouris, L. (2005). Article 13. Nonprofits can take Cues from the Biz World. Branding Roadmap Takes Shape. In Marketing Management Magazine. (September/October 2005, pp. 52-54). New York: Pace University’s Lubin School of Business. Developing Competitive Advantage and Strategic Focus. In Chapter 5 Lecture Notes. (2008). Thomson Learning Inc.

Euroland Foods SA Case Analysis

I. Introduction Euroland Foods Company was a publicly traded company since 1979. Theo Verdin founded the company in 1924 as a result in developing his dairy business. Euroland Foods Company saw itself as a multinational producer. The four products were high-quality ice cream, yogurt, bottled water, and fruit juices. Each product accounted for 60%, 20%, 10%, and 10% of the company’s revenue respectively. The company’s headquarters was in Brussels, Belgium. Since the day the company was founded, it has experienced steadily development. II. Background of Firm The board of directors of Euroland Foods Company had 12members. Three of them were the Verdin family, four of them were from the management, and the left five members came from outside. The combined Verdin family, the combined company executive, Venus Asset Management, and Banque du Bruges et des Pays Bas were the four biggest stockholders. Each had 20%, 10%, 12%, and 9% of the company’s shares outstanding respectively. Senior Management Committee was responsible for the capital budgeting and presenting it to the board of directors every year. Seven members, including five managing directors, one PDG, and one finance director, were on the committee. III. Statement of Situation Euroland Foods Company had two major problems comparing with its peers. One was the high debt-to-equity ratio, another one was the low price-to-earnings ratio. The debt-to-equity ratio was 125%, which made the Banque du Bruges, Euroland’s bank, could not keep silence. Banque du Bruges strongly pushed a debt reduction program to Euroland. No project could be financed if the leverage level was beyond the current debt-to-equity ratio. The lower the price-to-earnings ratio, the lower the stock price was. In this case, the Euroland’s stock price was lower than average of peers. At the current ratio 14, Euroland’s market value was below its book value. Euroland Foods Company failed in the trying of new product introduction. Its sales had been stopped since 1998. The creditor, Banque du Bruges, was worrying about the Euroland’s ability to pay its debt back. The one of the biggest stockholder, Venus Asset Management, was worrying about cutting off the dividends. IV. Constraints on Solution Due to the high debt-to-equity ratio, the board of directors decided to limit capital spending to EUR 120 million. There were eleven projects on the table, and up to total EUR 316 million. There was estimated minimum acceptable IRR and maximum acceptable payback years. (Table 1) V. Possible Solutions In order to increase the sales, Euroland Company has to choose projects wisely under the EUR 120 million budget limitation, minimum IRR limitation, and maximum payback period limitation. Net present value, internal rate of return, and payback period are the main measures Euroland Company used to analyze each project. According to Exhibit 3, project 1 replacement and expansion of the truck fleet, project 2 a new plant, project 3 expansion of a plant, project 4 development and roll-out of snack foods, and project 5plant automation and conveyor systems are eliminated for the over maximum acceptable payback period. The left projects are all considerable. The special project in this case is the effluent-water treatment at four plants. Because it belongs to the safety or environments category, there is no measurement yet. Euroland Company could see it as a future expenditure, and if Leyden was right, we can spend EUR 6 million today instead of EUR 15 million four year later. This project will save Euroland a lot in the future. (the saving amount equals to the net present value of EUR 15 million minus EUR 6 million) The project is going to be mandatory four year later. VI. Recommended Solution If I was on the board of directors, I would approve project 11, Acquisition of a leading schnapps brand and associated facilities, which is analyzed as project 10 on the Exhibit 3; project 7, Market expansion southward, which is analyzed as project 6 on the exhibit 3; and project 9, Development and introduction of new artificially sweetened yogurt and ice cream, which is analyzed as project 8 on the exhibit 3. The capital budget for the three projects are EUR 60 million, EUR 30 million, and EUR 27 million respectively, which give us the total EUR 117 million. We still have EUR 3 million can use, and I will propose to use it in the effluent-water treatment at four plants project. Although the project estimated cost is EUR 6 million, companies barely pay such a huge amount in one day. We can negotiate with the seller to come up a payment plan; in addition we need to make a deal which the first payment is not greater than EUR 3 million. Project 7 market expansions southward and project 8 market expansions eastward are similar, but I decided to approve project market expansions southward instead. Besides the higher net present value and internal of rate of return, the purchasing power is stronger and competition is less intense.

the American constitution essays

the American constitution essays The Federalist No. 10 by James Madison and The Tyranny of the Majority by Alexis de Tocqueville are two political papers which analyze some parts of the American constitution. Each of the authors have their own distinct thoughts on the constitution and they agree in some areas, and, differ drastically in others. To start, a topic that is touched upon in both of these documents was the fact that although it may not be in the best interest of the general public, the needs of the many will outweigh the needs of the few. This is also know as the concept of majority. Although Madison was trying to prove the constitution was a worthy government plan, he yet was honest in his Federalist No. 10. He knew that there would be drawbacks to the factions that were beginning to form. Yet, he was sure to sate the brighter side of the picture about the factions and how the government planned to limit the number of parties to prevent a non-majority. He also came to the conclusion that when a majority has been reached it has two options. First, the majority can continue being the winning argument and virtually control the minority. Or, if the majority sees fit, it can surrender it position of control and give the power to the minority therefore limiting the absolute power of the minority. Tocqueville on the other stated his views on the factions from the view of an unlimited faction republic. He wrote that majority was impossible with unlimited factions due to that they would be so numerous and inadequate in size for there to even be a chance for a majority. Another thing that Tocqueville had theorized was that if a government ran simply upon majority rule, there would be a great upset in the balance of law. There would be this upset due to that the majority would vote one way and there would be no other option on the subject. For example, a man killed an attempted murderer in self defense. Giving the majority the benefit of th...

Homeschool Stress

Homeschool Stress Homeschooling is a big responsibility and commitment. It can be stressful, but far too often we homeschooling parents make it more stressful than it has to be.   Are you guilty of stressing out yourself or your kids unnecessarily with any of the following? Expecting Perfection Expecting perfection in yourself or your children is certain to put unnecessary stress on your family. If you’re  transitioning from public school to homeschool, it’s important to remember that it takes time to adjust to your new roles. Even if your children have never  attended a traditional school, transitioning to  formal learning  with young children  requires a period of adjustment. Most veteran homeschooling parents would agree that this period of adjustment can  take 2-4 years. Don’t  expect perfection right out of the gate. You may be caught in the trap of  expecting academic perfection. is a  popular phrase among homeschooling parents. The idea is that you’ll stick with a topic, skill, or concept until it is completely mastered. You may hear homeschooling parents state that their children get straight A’s because they don’t move on until the skill is mastered. There is nothing wrong with that concept  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ in fact, being able to work on a concept until a child fully understands it is one of the benefits of homeschooling. However, expecting 100% from your child all of the time can be frustrating for you both. It doesn’t allow for simple mistakes or an off day. Instead, you may wish to decide on a percentage goal. For example, if your child scores 80% on his paper, he clearly understands the concept and can move on. If there is a certain type of problem that caused a grade less than 100%, spend some time going back over that concept. Otherwise, give yourself and your child the freedom to move on. Trying to Finish All the Books We homeschooling parents are also often guilty of operating under the assumption that we have to complete every single page of every piece of curriculum that we use. Most homeschool curricula contain enough material for a typical 36-week school year, assuming a 5-day school week. This doesn’t account for field trips, co-op, alternative schedules, illness, or a myriad of other factors that could result in not completing the entire book. It’s okay to finish most of the book. If the subject is one that is built on previously-learned concepts, such as math, chances are that the first several lessons of the next level are going to be review. In fact, that’s often one of my kids’ favorite aspects of starting a new math book  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ it seems easy at first because it’s material they’ve already learned. If it’s not a concept-based subject  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ history, for example -  chances are, you’ll come back around to the material again before your kids graduate. If there is material that you feel you simply must cover and you’re clearly not going to have time, you may want to consider skipping around in the book, dropping some of the activities, or covering the material in a different way, such as listening to an audiobook on the topic while running errands or watching an engaging documentary during lunch.​ Homeschooling parents may also be guilty of expecting their child to complete every problem on every page. Most of us can probably remember how happy we were when one of our teachers told us to complete only the odd-numbered problems on the page. We can do that with our children. Comparing Whether you’re comparing your homeschool to your friend’s homeschool (or to the local public school) or your kids to someone else’s kids, the comparison trap puts everyone under unnecessary stress. The problem with comparison is that we tend to compare our worst to someone else’s best. That causes self-doubt as we focus on all the ways we don’t measure up rather than capitalizing on what we’re going well. If we want to produce cookie-cutter kids, what’s the point of homeschooling? We can’t tout individualized instruction as a homeschool benefit, then get upset when our kids aren’t learning exactly what someone else’s kids are learning. When you’re tempted to compare, it helps to look at the comparison objectively. Is this something your child should probably know or be doing?Is it something that would benefit your homeschool?Is it a good fit for your family?Is your child physically, emotionally, or developmentally capable of performing this task or accomplishing this skill? Sometimes, comparing helps us identify skills, concepts, or activities that we would like to incorporate in our homeschools, but if it’s something that doesn’t benefit your family or your student, move on. Don’t let unfair comparisons add stress to your home and school. Not Allowing Your Homeschool to Evolve We may start out as staunchly school-at-home parents, but later learn that  our  educational philosophy is more  in line with Charlotte Mason. We  may  begin  as radical unschoolers  only to discover that our children prefer textbooks. It is not uncommon for a family’s homeschooling style to change over time, becoming more relaxed as they get more comfortable with homeschooling or becoming more structured as their  children grow older. Allowing your homeschool to evolve is normal and positive. Trying to hold on to methods, curricula, or schedules that no longer make sense for your family will likely put undue stress on you all. Homeschooling comes with its own set of stress-inducers. Theres no need to add more to it. Let go of unrealistic expectations and unfair comparisons, and let your homeschool adapt as your family grows and changes.

The Dormant Roots and the Open Faces of Crime Essay

The Dormant Roots and the Open Faces of Crime - Essay Example This has resulted in a plethora of theories, which has been relegated as obsolete information. Christian thought stressed the personal responsibility in wrongdoing and the gateway to return from the path of wrong is repentance, the aim of which is the ultimate salvation of the individual soul. Till the end of the eighteenth century the study of criminal interest was the domain, chiefly of reformers. 19th century witnessed more attempts to study crime as a science, which has to be studied with the tools of experimentation and statistical evidence to arrive at objective scientific conclusions. The early flowering of the study of crime took many directions in a somewhat phased manner over the course of time finally in the past two decades blossomed in to overabundance of theories due to a host of divergent and complementary movements. Today's world is postmodern, multicultural, post -Marxian, post-feminist and post-structural. After the death-knell of many movements that appeared on the social life of modern societies with great fanfare, people have discarded simplistic notions of life and are more prepared to appreciate the reality of the complexities of social behaviour. The traditional one-dimensional explanations of crime and its prevention, which visualized human beings and societies in to watertight compartments is hardly convincing today. While the old school had glimpses of truth, the analysis and conclusions are inadequate and do not consider some of the essential factors before pronouncing their verdicts on the roots of crime and its expressions. The present day scholarship across the world is demanding a more integrated approach to the study of criminal behaviour and its reduction. A significant work of early days of criminology, The Criminal Man, 1876, by the Italian scholar Lombroso asserted that criminals are separate physical and biological type. His over simplistic identification of the criminal type are based on physical traits, like a long lower jaw, asymmetric cranium and a few other external detectable conditions. These traits according to him indicated an inherent propensity to crime. He taught that the propensity toward crime was due to a primitive level of human development, which asserts atavistic tendencies. Lombroso's theories now enjoys only the value of a historic curiosity as their formulation have not been accompanied enough research and statistical data analysis so as to be recognized as theories of universal applicability. The study was conducted in a limited geographic frame. The study was conducted on people who get convicted, comparing them with people who are free. Even in the modern days of sophisticated crime tracking the number of people who get arrested are very few and among them most of them are acquitted due to the loopholes of law. Gault quotes Garofalo who says: The fact is well known that not the half of those guilty of established crimes are brought to justice (94). So one may be weighing against criminals and non-criminals, with criminals, or criminals in jail with unapprehended criminals. Gault while admiring Lombroso, as a trailer blazer in the infancy of criminology, derides his simplistic conclusions in a most complex behaviour of humans. Lombroso's was a too s imple formulation of an extraordinarily complex problem (94). Lombros's theories were accepted also by

Women's Health. Health Care Disparity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Women's Health. Health Care Disparity - Essay Example Healthcare disparities exist in both public and private sectors. Various kinds of socio-economic factors contribute to the existence of healthcare disparities like inadequate access to care to some group of people, poor quality of care to some individuals, etc. Community features and behaviors at personal level also contribute to these disparities. It is generally found that people who belong to ethnic or racial minority groups, or individuals with mental or physical impairment or disabilities, or women may face health care disparities. Very often healthcare disparities exist between rural and urban areas. (Mead, 2008) Part B) Explain why some women (in general) may face barriers to health care. Of course, over the decades significant progress have been made in women’s health. However, still health status of women on average is not as good as of men. Not only that, but healthcare disparities exists among women as well. Different sub-groups of women get different types of acces s to care and quality of care also varies across different subgroups of women. (Mead, 2008) There are a number of reason for which some women face healthcare disparities compared to men and other groups of women as well.