Law for Accounting coursework question Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Law for Accounting coursework question - Essay Example Moreover, Serena’s offer had indicated that only bids over ?20,000 would be accepted. The first issue is whether there was an offer and acceptance. Serena made the offer, however, Eric, by stating that he would buy the Galileo at ?19,500 instead of the ?20,000 that Serena was asking for, effectively made a counteroffer.1 The reason for this is the â€Å"mirror image rule.† This rule states that an unequivocal acceptance must mirror the offer exactly – any deviation made by the offeree to the offeror would therefore be considered to be a counteroffer. At this point, therefore, it was up to Serena to accept Eric’s offer, as Eric did not offer an unequivocal, mirror image acceptance of Serena’s terms. However, one can state that Serena was not really making a valid offer with her advertisement, as she indicated that she would consider all offers higher than ?20,000. She did not state that the highest bid would be the winner, so to speak, but, rather, o nly indicated that she would consider any and all bids above the threshold number. The courts would state that this was not really an offer at all, but an invitation to treat. An invitation to treat is an invitation for bids. This is similar to the case of Spencer v. Harding (1870) LR 5 CP 561. This case involved the following offer: â€Å"28, King Street, Cheapside, May 17th, 1869. ... Milk Street, up to Thursday, the 20th instant, on which day, at 12 o'clock at noon precisely, the tenders will be received and opened at our offices. Should you tender and not attend the sale, please address to us sealed and inclosed, 'Tender for Eilbeck's stock.' Stock-books may be had at our offices on Tuesday morning. Honey, Humphreys, & Co.†2 The court held that this was not a valid offer, but, rather, an invitation for bids. The wording in the offer in Spencer is similar to the wording in the case at bar, therefore, there probably was not a valid offer made by Serena for the Galileo. That said, when Eric made his statement on the answering machine, this would be an offer. As indicated above, when Eric made his statement on the answering machine, the ball was effectively in Serena’s court, and she could either accept Eric’s offer or not. The question is whether Serena did accept the offer. She finally called Eric in January, after having made the original offe r in December, and Eric had made the counteroffer in that same month. Both parties knew that Eric wanted the dress for his girlfriend’s birthday. Serena might have known when Eric’s girlfriend’s birthday was, as Eric is her brother. Regardless, when Eric’s girlfriend’s birthday came and went, the doctrine of frustration of purpose might apply here. Frustration of purpose is â€Å"Where, after a contract is made, a party's principal purpose is substantially frustrated without his fault by the occurrence of an event the non-occurrence of which was a basic assumption on which the contract was made, his remaining duties to render performance are discharged, unless the language or circumstances [of the contract] indicate the contrary.†3 The leading case in English law is that of Krell v Henry [1903]

Prostitutes: Victims Or Offenders?

Prostitutes: Victims Or Offenders? The profession of prostitution has existed since times immemorial, with some people even claiming that it is one of the oldest professions in the world. However, till today sex work remains a highly stigmatized and taboo topic in most states and regions of the world. Most people tend to look down upon those who pursue it and perceive prostitutes to be despicable, sex-loving and morally corrupt criminals. Others sympathize with their predicament and consider them oppressed victims of circumstances in which they had no agency. It appears that in most cases, acceptance to be subjected to degradation in the form of sex work is a direct result of poverty and lack of opportunities and hence, is a coerced choice rather than an independent one. In many countries, the profession has been given legal standing though it continues to be illegal in the United States (with the exception of ten counties in the state of Nevada), Argentina, India and a number of Muslim and Communist countries. In England and Wales, current legislations on sex-work are far from straight-forward and leave room for much ambiguity and controversy. The Sexual Offences Act 2003 defines a prostitute as a person who on at least one occasion and whether or not compelled to do so, offers or provides sexual services to another person in return for payment or a promise of payment. Strictly speaking, prostitution is and has always been legal in the United Kingdom though a number of laws criminalize certain activities directly connecting to it. The Sexual Offences Act, 1956 makes it an offence to keep a brothel for the use of prostitution and the 2003 Act bans causing/inciting prostitution or controlling it for personal gains. Moreover, loitering or soliciting sex on the streets, pimping, pandering and kerb-crawling (the act of driving slowly against a pavement to entice somebody for sexual purposes) are all against the law. Since 2001, adverts placed in phone booths have been banned. Human trafficking, which arguably fuels the market for prostitution, has also been addressed under the law. There are several general laws in place for indecency and public nuisance which can be said to target the sex trade industry. In 2009, Section 14 of the Policing and Crime Act rendered it a strict liability offence to pay for the sexual services of a prostitute who has been subjected to force, threat, coercion or exploited in some way by a third party and ignorance of the circumstances will be no defence. The UK government had high hopes the creation of this new offence would reduce demand for sexual services and thereby tackle the rampant issue of sex trafficking and exploitation. Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which has been ratified by the Council of Europe and incorporated into domestic legislation through the Human Rights Act 1998, states All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. Moreover, the UDHR prohibits slavery and servitude and states no one shall be subjected to cruel, degrading or inhuman treatment. At the very essence of the Act, lies the notion that the right to equality and liberty is every living persons birthright and cannot be alienated. Radical feminist Catherine Mackinnon  [1]  argues that women in prostitution are denied all imaginable human rights as they are prostituted precisely in order to be degraded and subjected to cruel and brutal treatment without human limits; it is the opportunity to do this that is exchanged when women are bought and sold for sex. She reflects The gap between the promise of civil rights and the real lives of prostitutes is an abyss which swallows up prostituted women. To speak of prostitution and civil rights in one breath moves the two into one world, at once exposing and narrowing the distance between them. In a similar vein as Mackinnon, American radical feminist and one-time prostitute Andrea Dworkin likens a prostitute to a gang rape victim, asserting the two experience the same trauma and suffering. Oh, you say, gang rape is completely different. An innocent woman is walking down the street and she is taken by surprise. Every woman is that same innocent woman. Every woman is taken by surprise. In a prostitutes life, she is taken by surprise over and over and over again. The gang rape is punctuated by a money exchangeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Thats the only difference. In Dworkins opinion, women are generally considered to be dirty and a prostitute is not a metaphor of the dirt but in fact, a literal manifestation of scum and filth. Prostituted women are being killed every single day, and we dont think were facing anything resembling an emergency. Why should we? Theyre no one. When a man kills a prostitute, he feels righteous. It is a righteous kill. He has just gotten rid of a piece of dirt, and the society tells him he is right. Prostitution is hardly a victimless crime it dehumanizes and commodifies women, rendering them mere objects of fetish and lust. By its very nature, it tends to be degrading for women and involves risk of violence in the face of both physical and sexual attacks. Perpetrators of such offences vary from pimps, abusive clients and violent bystanders waiting to catch a free ride. Women who have been involved in the profession often describe it as paid rape and voluntary slavery. In a research conducted by PhD of Prostitution Research Education, Melissa Farley entitled Prostitution: Fact sheet on Human Rights Violations, Farley asserts that prostitution is sexual harassment, rape, battering, verbal abuse, domestic violence, a racist practice, a violation of human rights, childhood sexual abuse, a consequence of as well as a means of maintaining male domination over women. She writes: All prostitution causes harm to women, whether it is being sold by ones family to a brothel, or whether it is being sexually abused in ones family, running away from home, and then being pimped by ones boyfriend, or whether one is in college and needs to pay for next semesters tuition and one works at a strip club behind glass where men never actually touch you all these forms of prostitution hurt the women in it. Farley and a team of researchers drafted a report titled Prostitution and trafficking in nine countries: An update on violence and Posttraumatic stress disorder where they interviewed 854 current/recent prostitutes in 9 countries (Canada, Columbia, Mexico, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, United States and Zambia) inquiring about sexual and physical violence. The results were astounding. Farley discovered that prostitution is multi-traumatic: 71% of the respondents were physically assaulted, 63% were raped, 89% wanted to escape prostitution but had no other career options available and 68% met the criteria for PTSD. According to a study conducted in Exeter University in the UK, at any given time, one in four hundred women is a sex worker. The global economic crisis and recession has driven young girls into the profession of prostitution, against their will. They enter the profession, young, gullible and vulnerable, only to be exploited by pimps and those who pay for their services. Disillusioned and exhausted, they resort to drugs as a means of momentarily relieving themselves of their misery and pathetic state. Call girls or escorts as they are colloquially referred to, are an easy target for men who use them to get sexual favours and ruthlessly beat them up if they dare ask for money. Statistics show crimes committed against prostitutes usually go unreported and the few that are reported with the authorities, tend to go unpunished. There seems to be tacit acceptance of this form of violence that is prevalent in society as very few people question the status quo and the deplorable state of affairs of sex workers. This moral disdain is mirrored on the judicial level where prostitutes bear the brunt of the criminal justice system and their male counterparts, namely the pimps and clients, get off relatively lightly. The violence and abuse, prostitutes face is illustrated by the Ipswich Serial Murders. In the winter of 2006, naked dead bodies of five prostitutes at different locations were discovered in and around Ipswich, Suffolk in England. In 2008, forty-nine year old Steve Wright, pleading guilty, was convicted for murdering all five of them. A forensic scientist informed the court that Wright had had prolonged physical contact with three of the women he later killed and had left behind extensive samples of his DNA. During the courts proceedings, Wright admitted that he had been paying for sex for the last 25 years since he had been working as a steward on cruise ships. In response to the murders, Suffolk Police launched a strategy to effectively eliminate all street prostitution in the town. But the Ipswich case is not a one off instance. Neither will ending prostitution be a long-term solution. In 2001, twenty-one year old Vicky Glass had been missing for two months before her naked and decomposed body was discovered dumped in a stream near Damby, North Yorkshire. Similarly, thirty-three year old Julia Dorsett went missing in 2002. Six years later, her upper torso skeleton, wrapped in a duvet was found dumped in Walthamstow. In recent times, forty year old Stephen Shaun Griffiths has been charged and convicted for murdering three prostitutes in Bradford. Soon after the Ipswich Serial Murders, an extremely pertinent and contentious issue was widely debated as to what kind of legislative measures could change the prevailing conditions of prostitutes. One of the measures proposed by the current Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill was the mandatory rehabilitation of women involved in the profession of sex-work. As per the Bill, street prostitutes would be obliged to attend three counseling sessions with support workers. In the case of absence, they can be held up in custody for up to three days. It is argued that rather than solving the problem, such measures will exacerbate it. Probation officers enforcing mandatory rehabilitation orders are as it is over-stretched and lack the relevant resources required to deal with the issues prostitutes and sex-workers face. Support services for prostitutes lack the capacity to address specific troubles of the latter such as client violence. For example, 15 London boroughs have no sexual health ou treach provision for women in the sex industry. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) was adopted by the United Nations in 1979 and provides for an international standard for the protection and promotion of womens human rights. The CEDAW committee, which monitors compliance with the commission, incessantly opposes forced prostitution, trafficking of women and young girls and exploitation of prostitution. Though it does not legalize prostitution, CEDAW has in the past, urged certain countries such as China to decriminalize the trade so that women can come out in the open without fear of being labeled consensual criminals and insofar as reducing instances of HIV/AIDS, trafficking and violence against women. India, a country where an alarming number or rape incidents take place every year, suggested the legalization of the trade in 2002. Khushwant Singh, columnist and novelist wrote in an article titled How a rapist should be punished: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦[A] necessary step [to prevent rape] is to legalise prostitution carried out in brothels or by call-girls provided the sex workers are adults and have not been forced into the trade. The more you try to put down prostitution, the higher will be the incidence of crime against innocent women. You may find the idea repulsive but ponder over it and you will realise there is substance in the argument. The United Kingdom has a number of sex workers rights groups who argue that the only way to prevent gross human rights violations being committed against prostitutes is by completely legalizing the sex trade. They claim legislation will resolve many issues and have a positive impact on society. Not only will it allow law enforcement agencies to respond to more important crimes but it will also relieve the justice system from nuisance cases and allegedly trivial litigation as well as freeing women who are caught by the shackles of prostitution and preventing teenagers from being ensnared into the profession. Over the years, the authorities have adopted an ostrich-like approach towards the predicament of prostitutes; legalizing the worlds oldest profession will allow the trade to be regulated and managed. Health care safety measures can be planned which will significantly reduce instances of sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV and herpes simplex virus. Pimps and traffickers will be prevented from treating prostitutes on sub-human levels. Moreover, studies have found that when brothels are closed, incidents of rape tend to increase significantly. Countries where prostitution is legal, report less cases of murder, rape, and HIV/AIDS. Suicide rates have also been found to be lower along with divorce rates. On the other hand, a research conducted by the London School of Economics, German Institute for Economic Research and Heidelberg University revealed that out of the 116 countries sampled, those where prostitution was legal displayed a higher inflow of trafficking as compared to those countries where the trade was illegal. Furthermore, legislation will not remove the stigma attached to sex work and neither will it improve the economic conditions of those who resort to this profession. In 2000 the Home Office published Setting the Boundaries which was a thorough and detailed analysis of the law governing sexual offences. The report led to the milestone metamorphosis of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. In 2004, yet another strategy report was introduced, titled Paying the Price: a consultation paper on prostitution. This report sought to set a realistic and coherent framework to tackle the issue of sex work. It asserted that to address the issue of social exclusion and to achieve a reduction in anti-social behaviour and violence against women, an in-depth debate on prostitution is imperative. Organised criminality, including trafficking and substantial drug misuse, and sexually and drug transmitted infection, are all part of the problem. Systematic abuse, violence and exploitation are endemic. The strategy included prevention, tackling demand, developing routes out, ensuring justice and dealing with street prostitution. As per the Home Office, in the UK as many as 60 women involved in prostitution have been murdered in the last 10 years; 80,000 women work in on-street prostitution and the average age women become involved is a meager 12 years. Though the arguments against legalizing prostitution are plentiful and relevant, in my opinion the trade should be decriminalized insofar as it reduces exploitation of women and children. Women involved in sex-work are treated as consensual criminals and offenders of the law but are, in fact the victims of a lawless and brutal profession that strips them of their self esteem and individuality. Putting our ethical and moral views aside, if legislation can in any way improve the existing deplorable conditions of sex workers, it should be seriously considered and accordingly reforms should be recommended by the Law Commission. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2007/jun/27/ukcrime.prisonsandprobation http://revdlesley.blogspot.com/2010/10/impact-of-prostitution.html# http://prostitution.procon.org/sourcefiles/paying_the_price.pdf http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/social-care-and-health/childrens-social-care/protecting-children-from-harm/protecting-and-safeguarding-children/protecting-and-safeguarding-children-publications/home-office-prostitution-strategy-report http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/168614/SSCB-Prostitution-Strategy.pdf http://www.idppcenter.com/CEDAW_Comm_Pressures_Nations_on_Prostitution.pdf http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/cedaw_fact_sheet.pdf http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/feb/22/stopcriminalisingthevictims

Poetry Throughout the Ages :: essays research papers

This anthology is a published collection of poetry throughout the five major periods including- the Pre Elizabethan period, Elizabethan Period, Metaphysical Period, Romantic Period and the Victorian Period. The Pre Elizabethan Period was first in Old English and then in Middle English. Old English was used after the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th and 6th centuries. The invaders from Germany who settled in England were called the Angles, the Saxon, and the Jutes. The names of these tribes come from the term Anglo Saxon. The most famous poetry from this period is Beowulf. Beowulf was written around 1000AD and be called a saga. At the time poems were performed and sung to audiences than were written or read out. This poem is about strange people and creatures with special powers. It tells a story of a hero and his adventures, noblemen and kings. The Elizabethan Period began when Queen Elizabeth I became Queen of England. She had the throne for 45-years, which ended with her death in 1603. The Queen's tastes in fashion were high classed. Her love of music, drama, and poetry gave motivation and financial support to the England's greatest writers. When his father died when he was 18, and being the youngest son this left him penniless. He turned to the law and at 23 he was already in the House of Commons. Bacon saw himself as the inventor of a method which would encourage a light in nature. The Metaphysical period began after James I took the throne. This period found many new developments in science including- optics, astronomy, sailing and navigation. Notable scientists like Newton and Galileo finding most of these scientific discoveries. Poets from this time used their knowledge of science to explain things they experience. One of the major poets is John Donne. He was born in London to a wealthy family. He was against the Catholic Church but allied with James I and his son Charles I with the Anglicans. He entered the priesthood life later and from then his poetry became more religious in nature. The Metaphysical period refers to things that are abstract like God, hatred, love, death. Poets from this time tried to explain the unexplainable by using scientific metaphors known as conceits. Donne is interesting because his poetry was first to do with love and then became about God as he got older. Romantic poetry used simple language which described their everyday aspects of life and nature.

Leadership and Culture

Leadership and Culture Virginia Armstrong University of Hawaii: West Oahu Abstract Effective leadership requires a delicate utilization of power and authority. Although they possess unique attitudes, traits and styles, successful leaders strive to promote their organization’s vision and culture and motivate others to embrace it as well. Studies have attempted to define one superior leadership model but have failed due to individual and circumstantial elements.Keywords: leadership, corporate culture, power, authority Chapter Overview Leadership is the ability to influence others to follow direction and support decisions. Though leadership and management often coincide, leadership is more focused on the long-term visions of the organization and how to motivate and encourage the implementation of these visions. The success of leaders depends largely on their own attitudes, expectations, traits and leadership style they embrace.Whether a manager’s leadership style is autocr atic, laissez-faire or democratic, the emphasis they place on production and people bears the most importance. Studies conducted by Ohio State and University of Michigan have proven that successful leaders show concern, initiate structure, participate and maintain a general (rather than close) level of supervision. In a situational setting, the contingency approach is the most effective. The Managerial Grid is a graphical tool for managers to identify their management style and set goals towards improvement. Corporate Culture: Harmonize, Don’t Homogenize† In this article, Kuenne (2011) emphasizes the importance of attaining a strong corporate culture by unifying individuals and their talents as well as instilling a cooperative initiative on all levels to achieve one goal or vision. Kuenne (2011) calls his approach the infinity loop designed â€Å"to create a harmonized culture with the emphasis on being complementary, rather than striving for conformity† (Kuenne, 2011, para. 6).The most important elements of Kuenne’s approach are individual skills, shared values, departmental cohesiveness, a unified understanding of the corporate identity, cultivating personal development and the drive to inspire others. Essentially, thriving corporations instill a strong mission, vision and the inspiration to cooperatively make the visions a reality. Relation to chapter The article relates to the chapter by discussing the importance of creating a strong and diverse corporate culture.As mentioned in the chapter, â€Å"A strong corporate culture is clearly defined, reinforces a common understanding about what is important, and has the support of management and employees† (Ghyllier, 2012. p. 213). An important component of a corporation’s culture is the individuals it is comprised of in the business. A good manager will recognize their talents, how to best utilize them and foster an environment in which they feel motivated and satisfied t o work towards the common goal of the organization. In the chapter, these characteristics embody a strong corporate culture. Five Leadership Lessons to Unlearn† In this article, â€Å"Five Leadership Lessons to Unlearn† written by Stephen Wiehe, Wiehe (2010) describes how he changed the destructive leadership methods of a failing dot-com business in order to create a thriving business model. First, he emphasized that leadership is a behavior. Others judge your actions, not words or promises. He also pointed out that leaders don’t necessarily need all the answers but rather questions. He continues to explain that the most productive ideas are generated by numerous people during open and constructive discussions.Another important point Wiehe (2010) makes is that leaders need to share power and authority. Lastly, he believes that rather than forcing or demanding change, it is better to ask for change and using methods such as positive reinforcement. Relation to chap ter I thought Weihe’s theory on sharing power and authority were very closely related to the chapter discussion of power, leadership and authority. Weihe (2010) suggests that leaders â€Å"give power and authority away everyday†. This closely relates to the chapter reading in that it emphasizes the separation of leadership from power and authority.Instead, leadership requires a skillful utilization of the two in order to lead effectively. According to the text; â€Å"Leadership is the ability to influence people to willingly follow one’s guidance or adhere to one’s decisions† (Ghyllyer, 2012. p. 200). If power and authority are employed correctly, they will aid in a leader’s following. However, when abused, employees may resist cooperation with not only the leader but the goals of the organization as well. I agree that when power and authority are shared, people gain a sense of belonging and self worth. Chapter and Article LearningThis resea rch assignment helped me to really take the time to understand just how diverse and important conscious leadership is. I also learned how complicated it is to truly study leadership as every individual and situation is unique. I found the articles very interesting, as they clearly illustrated what types of leadership techniques were not effective and how to improve and change them. Chapter Learning I found it very interesting to learn about how much a leader’s personality and style can affect their ability to effectively gain following. Throughout my years of work, I have encountered many different eaders whom I can now better understand after reading this chapter. As I continue to work and be involved in social groups, I will now have the ability to identify different types of leaders and perhaps how I can be a better leader myself. Article Learning I think the most important key point from the first article is that people are unique individuals with unique talents, methods of learning and communication. Though employees may have little in common, finding productive ways for them to work together and communicate is critical in order to achieve goals.Corporate managers must recognize that people need to feel not only accepted and valued as employees but also be incorporated as important components of the organization’s plan or vision. When everyone is working toward a clear goal together, the odds of success are far greater. Another key point Kuenne (2011) makes is the importance of recognizing people’s talents and utilizing them to their fullest extent. Creating a culture that fosters free thought and the expansion of knowledge fosters higher quality work and a better potential for innovative thoughts and ideas. The right culture change can—without question—improve results,† says John Kotter, co-author of the book â€Å"Corporate Culture and Performance† (Lublin, 2013, para. 7). I think the most important key po int from the second article is to avoid leading behind closed doors. It makes a big impact when leaders demonstrate their willingness to put forth effort in order to reach the goals of the organization. Often CEO’s lead by giving orders; which often makes people feel inferior and unmotivated.Wiehe (2010) suggests finding opportunities to open the lines of communication by requesting feedback. He notes, â€Å"Great ideas form from open, constructive, and positive discussion driven by questions. Everyone contributes and therefore buys into the idea† (Wiehe, 2010, para. 5). Not only do employees feel important by contributing their ideas, but also must take partial responsibility for the outcome. Another key point Weihe (2010) makes is to avoid counterproductive elements such as conflict and negativity. He suggests holding casual ompany gatherings in which dialogue can occur in a relaxed environment where people have a sense of belonging and higher comfort level. I know w hen my company hosts work team building parties we gain a much better sense of camaraderie and generate good ideas for the business. Other tools managers can use to improve morale and production are sales rewards and bonuses. References Ghillyer, D. A. (2012). Management Now. New York: McGraw-Hill. Kuenne, C. (2011). Corporate Culture: Harmonize, Don’t Homogenize. Retrieved from http://www. businessweek. om/managing/content/may2011/ca20110516_966904. htm Lublin, J. (2013). Can a New Culture Fix Troubled Companies. Retrieved from http://online. wsj. com/article/SB10001424127887324096404578356351608725098. html? KEYWORDS=corporate+culture Wiehe, S. (2010). Five Leadership Lessons to Unlearn. Retrieved from http://www. businessweek. com/smallbiz/tips/archives/2010/07/five_leadership_lessons_to_unlearn. html http://www. businessweek. com/managing/content/may2011/ca20110516_966904. htm http://www. businessweek. com/smallbiz/tips/archives/2010/07/five_leadership_lessons_to_unlearn. html

Equirements for the Corporate Computing Function Essay

From Table 3. 1, speculate why the fifth point, â€Å"Meet information requirements of management†, is in the CIO’s list of nine (9) points: Meeting information requirements of management is a key focus for many organizations. Companies are constantly looking for ways to improve how they manage information. Information is essential for any decision making process and day-to-day operation. Therefore, it is important that information is managed and disseminated properly throughout the organization. Management use information to establish policy and strategic planning. It is extremely important that organizations meet their information requirements of management. Ian Linton (2013) suggests that managers need rapid access to information to solve strategic, financial, marketing, and operational issues. Therefore, it is paramount that organizations evaluate their informational needs of management. The operating environment of today’s organizations demands timely, efficient and effective management of information to make informed and up to date decisions. Consequently, requires readily accessible information at their disposal in order to be effective managers. If an organization is to be successful, it must be an excellent steward of data. On the other hand, technology is constantly on the rise. As it produces higher efficiency, access, and integrity with improved ways to organize and manage information. At the same time, the IT staff maintains the responsibility of confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the organization’s intellectual property. To meet these needs, organizations must increase their awareness of the available criteria for evaluation of management informational needs. Information is power and must be managed properly. Organizations need to consider the latest relevant technological advancements for their business to stay competitive and gain competitive advantage (Nichelson, 2013). Managers are critical elements of an organization; thereby, demanding quality, accuracy, and efficiency to move their business forward. The decision making process is greatly influenced by the relevance and quality of the information available to its management. Imagine only three (3) points are to be rolled out in the first phase. Evaluate each point to determine the most important three (3) for the initial rollout phase: Although, all are key points. After ample consideration, the initial rollout phase should consist of the following: 1) Provide computing capability to all organizational units that legitimately require it. 2) Meet information requirements of management. 3) Provide computing services in a reliable, professional, and technically competent manner. I believe the three (3) points chosen are high valued and critical to the organization. All departments must have readily accessible information to perform their jobs to be productive. By means of distributed computing of low cost servers, workstations, and personal computers will provide the widespread use of small computers to provide highly individualistic service to all departments. At the same time, allow users to establish and maintain autonomy in their day-to-day operations while improving departmental productivity (Stallings, 2009). In this instance, deploying inexpensive systems make it possible for organizations to disperse their computing capabilities. Thus, no longer relying on centralized infrastructure to provide services. Obviously, it make sense as a first measure to acquire information from all departments, thus meeting the requirements for the corporate computing function and the information needs of management. Recommend one (1) additional point the CIO should include in order to ensure the topic of security is addressed in the mission statement. Explain your rationale for the inclusion: Information security enabled by technology must include the means of lowering the impact of intentional and unintentional errors entering the system and to prevent unauthorized internally or externally accessing the system ? actions to reduce risk data validation, pre-numbered forms, and reviews for duplications. It is crucial that the mission plan include the provision of a disaster recovery and business continuity plan. On the other hand, there is much more intrusion activity today than ever before. Obviously, there is an increased concern for attacks through companies’ network in an effort to either commit malice or affect the integrity of an organization’s most valuable resource. Therefore, it is important that companies do not get complacent in their IT infrastructure security. The fact of the matter, there is no perfect system; however, it behooves organizations to protect their information by way of reducing threats and vulnerabilities. Moreover, Whitman and Mattord (2010) said it best, â€Å"because of businesses and technology have become more fluid, the concept of computer security has been replaced by the concept of information security. Companies must realize the importance of information security and are allocating separate budget and human resources for it. It has matured into a separate business enabler function in many organizations. Organizations now face myriad regulatory requirements and the need to manage risk and information theft. Therefore, it is important for organizations to staff people with specific skills so that information assets are safe and the continued integrity of information is assured (Whitman & Mattord, 2010). Finally, many businesses today are not adequately prepared for an interruption of services. Therefore, it becomes necessary to establish both business disaster recovery and continuity plans to protect the organizations from complete devastation. According to Whitman & Mattord (2010), â€Å"the mission statement is the follow- up to the vision statement. If the vision statement states where we want to go, the mission statement describes how we want to get there. References Linton, I. (2013). The Role of Management Information Systems in Decision Making. Retrieved from http://yourbusiness. azcentral. com/role-management-information-systems-decision-making-1826. html Nichelson, B. J. , Ph. D. (2013). Keeping Up With Technology. Retrieved from http://entrepreneurs. about. com/cs/beyondstartup/a/keepinguptech. htm Stallings, W. (2009). Business Data Communications, Sixth Edition (Custom Edition). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall Whitman, M. E. , & Mattord, H. J. (2010). Management of Information Security (3rd ed. ). Boston: Course Technology-Cengage.

Immigrants Will Separate from Families For Less Time

Immigrants Will Separate from Families For Less Time One of the first actions of the Obama administration in 2012 was an important rule change to immigration policy that reduced the time that spouses and children of undocumented immigrants were separated from their citizen relatives while applying for legal status. Latino and Hispanic groups, immigration lawyers and immigrant advocates praised the move. Conservatives on Capitol Hill criticized the rule change. Because the administration changed an administrative rule and not U.S. law, the move did not require the approval of Congress. Based on census data and anecdotal evidence, hundreds of thousands of U.S. citizens are married to undocumented immigrants, many of them Mexican and Latin American. What is the Rule Change? The hardship waiver eliminated the requirement that illegal immigrants leave the United States for long periods before they could ask the government to waive its ban on legally re-entering the U.S. The ban typically lasted three to 10 years depending on how long the undocumented immigrant had been in the United States without the government’s permission. The rule allowed family members of U.S. citizens to petition the government for the so-called hardship waiver before the undocumented immigrant returns home to formally apply for a U.S. visa. Once waivers were approved, immigrants could apply for green cards. The net effect of the change was that families would not endure long separations while immigration officials were reviewing their cases. Separations that had lasted years were reduced to weeks or less. Only immigrants without criminal records were eligible to apply for the waiver. Before the change, applications for hardship waivers would take as long as six months to process. Under former rules, the government had received about 23,000 hardship applications in 2011 from families that faced separations; about 70 percent were granted. Praise for the Rule Change At the time, Alejandro Mayorkas, U.S. Citizenship, and Immigration Services director, said the move underscores â€Å"the Obama Administration’s commitment to family unity and administrative efficiency† and will save taxpayers money. He said the change would increase the â€Å"predictability and consistency of the application process.† The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) applauded the change and said it â€Å"will give countless American families a chance to stay together safely and legally.† â€Å"Although this is just a small part of dealing with the dysfunction of our immigration system, it represents a significant change in the process for many individuals,† said Eleanor Pelta, the AILA president. â€Å"It’s a move that will be less destructive to families and bring about a fairer and more streamlined waiver process.† Before the rule change, Pelta said she knew of applicants who have been killed while waiting for approval in dangerous Mexican border cities that are riddled with violence. â€Å"The adjustment to the rule is important because it literally saves lives,† she said. The National Council of La Raza, one of the nation’s most prominent Latino civil rights groups, praised the change, calling it â€Å"sensible and compassionate.† Criticism of the Hardship Waiver At the same time, Republicans criticized the rule change as politically motivated and a further weakening of U.S. law. Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said the president had â€Å"granted back-door amnesty† to potentially millions of illegal immigrants. Political Motivation for Immigration Reform In 2008, Obama had won two-thirds of the Latino/Hispanic vote, one the country’s fastest-growing voting blocs. Obama had campaigned on implementing a comprehensive immigration reform plan during his first term. But he said problems with the worsening U.S. economy and stormy relations with Congress forced him to postpone plans for immigration reform. Latino and Hispanic groups had criticized the Obama administration for aggressively pursuing deportations during his first presidential term. In the 2011 general presidential election, a solid majority of Hispanic and Latino voters still favored Obama while expressing in independent polls a disapproval of his deportation policies. At the time, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano had said the administration would use more discretion before deporting undocumented immigrants. The aim of their deportation plans was to concentrate on immigrants will criminal records rather than those who have violated only immigration laws.

Biography of Enrico Dandolo, Doge of Venice

Biography of Enrico Dandolo, Doge of Venice Enrico Dandolo was known for funding, organizing, and leading the forces of the Fourth Crusade, who never reached the Holy Land but instead captured Constantinople. He is also famous for taking the title of Doge at a very advanced age. Occupations DogeMilitary Leader Places of Residence and Influence Venice, ItalyByzantium (Eastern Roman Empire) Important Dates Born: c. 1107Elected Doge: June 1, 1192Died: 1205 About Enrico Dandolo The Dandolo family was wealthy and powerful, and Enricos father, Vitale, had held several high administrative positions in Venice. Because he was a member of this influential clan, Enrico was able to secure a position in the government himself with little difficulty, and eventually, he was entrusted with many important missions for Venice. This included a trip to Constantinople in 1171 with the doge at that time, Vitale II Michiel, and another a year later with the Byzantine ambassador. On the latter expedition, so diligently did Enrico protect the interests of the Venetians that it was rumored the Byzantine emperor, Manuel I Comnenus, had him blinded. However, although Enrico suffered from poor vision, the chronicler Geoffroi de Villehardouin, who knew Dandolo personally, attributes this condition to a blow to the head. Enrico Dandolo also served as Venices ambassador to the King of Sicily in 1174 and to Ferrara in 1191. With such prestigious accomplishments in his career, Dandolo was considered an excellent candidate as the next doge even though he was quite elderly. When Orio Mastropiero stepped down in order to retire to a monastery, Enrico Dandolo was elected Doge of Venice on June 1, 1192. He was believed to be at least 84 years of age at the time. Enrico Dandolo Rules Venice As doge, Dandolo worked tirelessly to increase the prestige and influence of Venice. He negotiated treaties with Verona, Treviso, the Byzantine Empire, the Patriarch of Aquileia, the King of Armenia and the Holy Roman Emperor, Philip of Swabia. He fought a war against the Pisans and won. He also reorganized Venices currency, issuing a new, large silver coin known as the grosso or matapan that bore his own image. His changes to the monetary system were the beginning of an extensive economic policy designed to increase trade, most especially with lands to the east. Dandolo also took a keen interest in the Venetian legal system. In one of his earliest official acts as ruler of Venice, he swore the â€Å"ducal promise,† an oath that specifically laid out all of the duties of the doge, as well as his rights. The grosso coin depicts him holding this promise. Dandolo also published Venices first collection of civil statutes and revised the penal code. These achievements alone would have earned Enrico Dandolo an honorable place in the history of Venice, but he would earn fame or infamy from one of the strangest episodes in Venetian history. Enrico Dandolo and the Fourth Crusade The idea of sending troops to the Eastern Roman Empire instead of to the Holy Land did not originate in Venice, but it is fair to say that the Fourth Crusade would not have turned out as it did were it not for the efforts of Enrico Dandolo. The organization of transportation for the French troops, the funding of the expedition in exchange for their help in taking Zara, and the persuading of the crusaders in helping the Venetians take Constantinople all of this was Dandolos work. He was also physically in the forefront of events, standing armed and armored in the bow of his galley, encouraging the attackers as they made their landing at Constantinople. He was well past 90 years old. After Dandolo and his forces succeeded in capturing Constantinople, he took the title lord of the fourth part and a half of the whole empire of Romania for himself and for all the doges of Venice thereafter. The title corresponded to how the spoils of the Eastern Roman Empire (Romania) were then divided as a consequence of the conquest. The doge remained in the capital city of the empire to oversee the new Latin government and to look out for Venetian interests. In 1205, Enrico Dandolo died in Constantinople at the age of 98. He was entombed in the Hagia Sophia. Resources and Further Reading Madden, Thomas F.  Enrico Dandolo the Rise of Venice. Baltimore, Md: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 2011.Brà ©hier, Louis.  Enrico Dandolo.  The Catholic Encyclopedia.  Vol. 4.  New York: Robert Appleton Company,  1908.

8 Reasons No One Will Hire You

8 Reasons No One Will Hire You You’re still searching, still unemployed, and getting more and more frustrated by the day. Everybody tells you it’s a numbers game, a waiting game, and that as long as you are doing all the things you know you’re meant to be doing to get a job, that you’ll eventually get hired. There are, however, a few sneaky reasons why you just aren’t hirable. Perhaps there are a few things you are doing, unwittingly, that are compromising your prospects and sabotaging your search.Take a look at the following what-not-to-dos and make sure you aren’t guilty of any of them before you start blaming fate or the bad economy for your continued joblessness.1. You’re a little messy.It sounds sort of silly and, I don’t know, last century, but personal presentation actually can have a huge amount to do with the impression you make and your hirability. Are you clean? Smell nice? Wearing clean, pressed, well-fitting clothes? Great. Are you pierced or spo rting lots of visible tattoos? This, unfortunately (and yes, somewhat unfairly), can impact your chances- same with showing up unshaved.2.  You don’t prep well.If you’re not walking into every interview having done your homework- reading up on the company, your interviewer, and your industry- then you should be ashamed of yourself. Highly prepared candidates are going to be mopping the floor with you at every turn. If you find the whole process a little daunting, hire a career coach!3. You bombed the interview.Giving a good interview means showing up presentable, prepared, and having something to say. If you’re apathetic, unresponsive, monosyllabic, depressed, aggressive, apathetic, or show a bad attitude of any kind, you just will not get hired.Make sure your interviewer doesn’t have to pry answers out of you. Be prepared to answer truthfully and candidly- and without having to be coaxed. But also make sure not to talk too much, as that can swing you i n the opposite direction of bad interviewees. Remember, you’re being graded here on your communication skills- which are crucial! Prove that you have some. Ask a friend to mock interview you and diagnose your situation.5. You didn’t follow directions.Job postings are often very specific. If yours asks for a very specific task, say a one-page statement about something specific, or a particular piece of the application, don’t think you can disregard this and see what happens if and when you move forward. Failing to follow your first basic direction doesn’t bode well for a candidate and you likely will not make the first cut.6. You’re using an archaic job title.Your job title has been rendered obsolete- or is on the off in your industry. Whether your job is being phased out, or replaced by robots, or your industry is simply stagnating, you might want to consider switching tacks- or switching fields.7. You’re over- or under-qualified.You either applied as a shot in the dark or even you know that you’re hideously overqualified. Even if you’re desperate for a job, hiring managers are going to see your impressive resume and assume you’ll leave them for a better job at the earliest opportunity. Consult or lash out on your own- or wait for a job opening that more matches your skills. On the other hand, if you don’t meet at least 60% of the qualifications listed in a posting: don’t bother applying. You’re just wasting everybody’s time (including your own).8. You’re asking for too much money.Everyone is tightening their belts. Salaries are taking a bit of a dip across the board. So if you’re asking anything in the tens of thousands above the stated salary range, you might as well be shouting at the hiring manager not to take you seriously.10. You’re making it all about you.A little secret: the hiring process isn’t about you and your perfect elevator pitc h and your list of skills and experience. It’s about the company: a gap they need to fill, a problem they need to solve. Start thinking how you might help them rather than how they might help you by hiring you. And if you aren’t tailoring your materials for each individual job, then you’re never going to get anywhere- promise.

The Automobile industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Automobile industry - Essay Example The automobile industry is a textbook example of an industry where economies of scale pay a very important role. While there may be dozens of players around the world who produce, support and work with the industry, there are only a few producers who can claim to have a significant share of the market. Similarly, even though cars are produced in almost every developing and developed nation, only a few countries contribute in a significant manner to the global car production and consumption statistics. This can be attributed to the fact that the first automobiles were produced and developed soon after the industrial revolution by countries that had the required infrastructure and engineering skills. For example, the first steam powered three wheeler was built in France in 1769 and the first internal combustion engine was built in Belgium while the Germans made the predecessor of the modern car in 1885. Ford started his assembly line plans in 1896 and the mass production of motor vehicles was created as an established industry (Baki, 2004). In the modern world, there are just a few companies who define the overall structure of the automobile industry. They are: GM, Ford, Daimler-Chrysler, BMW, VW, Volvo, Toyota, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Nissan. These companies also formed an industry alliance which is called the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. In the last two decades, the industry has seen a spike in mergers and acquisitions which has consolidated many different brands of cars under the same company (Raisch and Zimmerman, 2006). Very recently, technology and innovation has come to the forefront of car manufacturing since the pervasive nature of technology has motivated car producers to accept it as a given focus. For the present companies in the automobile industry, there are several different challenges which must be addressed. The first and most important

Literature, Business, and Social Change Paper Essay

Literature, Business, and Social Change Paper - Essay Example In contrast to the typical buyer whose main considerations are price and product quality, customers are now keen on the externalities which a manufacturer makes in a society where it operates. Social changes bring about this change in consumer attitude which companies take advantage by launching their own corporate social responsibility programs. For example, the giant retailer Target documents how it contributes 5% of its annual income to education, arts, and social services to specific localities (Target 2008). The company constantly supports projects which uplift the quality of living and improve the condition of the lower income strata. Literature plays a huge role in documenting these efforts made by business organizations in order to communicate these to the public and earn their support. It should be noted that most companies now distribute their annual corporate social responsibility report aside from their annual reports. The company also publicizes these programs through the use of leaflets, flyers, television advertisement, and even in its online website.

Tax Advice Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Tax Advice Assignment - Essay Example Retaining GBP 30,000 per year in business Moving on to the first aspect, what are the major tax codes implied by the UK government. As with usual government practices across the globe, here too there is a (1) Corporation tax, (2) VAT, (3) PAYE (Pay As You Earn), (4) Self Assessment Tax, (5) Business rates tax, (6) Capital Gains Tax, (7) Stamp and Excise duties and (8) Industry specific tax. Before getting into these taxes, we need to understand the records to be maintained for an ongoing business concern or a proprietorship concern for that matter getting converted to a company format. These include: Business income records (record of sales) Business expenditure records (record of purchases and expenses) Financial and accounting records Employer records (payment to employees, benefits, IT , NIC) VAT records Formation of a company has major benefits in terms of liability of partners or shareholders as the business is treated as separate entity and hence there is no personal liability of any partner / shareholder towards creditors of the company. Corporate profits will be taxed at corporate tax rate of 28% and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is responsible for Corporation Tax aspects. Upon intimation to Companies House, the same shall be provided to HMRC who in turn provides an introductory pack within six weeks containing CT 41G forms. Upon filling this form, the same has to be submitted to the CT Office and this information is used by HMRC to calculate CT and deadlines (Business Link, 2011). The corporation tax for small profit companies has been pegged at 20% as of 2011 (Business Link, 2011). VAT meaning Value Added Tax is charged by business houses on the goods and services provided. A VAT rate varies between 0-20percent in UK. The UK taxation laws provide options to reclaim VAT based on purchases made on goods and services, reclaiming VAT on Bad debts etc. (Business Link, 2011) a company/ partnership has to register for VAT if their taxable income is GBP ,64,0 00 a year . Some of the major benefits by incorporating a company will be : Company makes pension contributions promptly Claiming maximum possible expenses involved related to business as per UK legislation Capital allowances can be claimed if there is a capital expenditure incurred for the business. Ensuring benefits paid out in terms of medical and HRA if salary is less than GBP 26,000 per year. Surplus cash can be used as loan provided to business, on which interest can be earned and only needs to pay 10% tax on first GBP 10,000 taxable profits. If the same cash is maintained in personal account, then 40% tax on interest has to be paid. Hence, here there is a clear demarcation of 30% interest savings. There are options where no tax can be paid on certain income derived – expenses allocating to a particular income stream, eg: A Partner’s salary allocating to interest income, in such a way no tax need be required to be paid on the income generated. GBP 7500 capital ga ins tax free allowance. The firm need not pay National Insurance and is only liable to pay Corporation Tax at 10% on its profit slab upto GBP 10,000 and 20% on next slab level between GBP 50,000 – 300,000 after deducting all expenses including Director’s remuneration. By developing Company Pension Scheme and payment of dividend to its shareholders, the Corporation Tax can be reduced a great extent. (Form A Company, Worldwide Incorporations, 2011).at times, the management by taking a small pie as salary reap a major portion of

United States v. Salerno and Brady v. U.S. 397 U.S. 742 Case Study

United States v. Salerno and Brady v. U.S. 397 U.S. 742 - Case Study Example Salerno, 1987). His denying of liberty together with another man in this case, was in pursuant to Bail Reform Act (1984) after a meticulous determination of being the La Cosa Nostra (LCN) â€Å"boss† that had then infringed RICO’s Act (United States v. Salerno, 1987). Conversely, Court of appeals overturned the verdict citing to be undemocratic and did not give chance to due process. Rationale issued in this case asserted it was appropriate for imposition of such a restraining. For besides ensuring the arrestee was not threat to the society or other involved parties, he or she will not escape before culmination of the trial (United States v. Salerno, 1987). This is according to the criminal law that holds an individual liable to his or her deeds. In addition, in this situation the case held that Bail Reform Act (1984) ensured adequate balance of the Federal’s rule that prefers safeguarding interests of the public by restraining the defendant (United States v. Salerno, 1987). Its significance encompasses supporting pre-trial restraining of the defendant(s) that may end up using loopholes in the law and regain their liberty. This is especially when they are a threat to the public and other parties critical in determination of the pending case whereby in the process might tamper with it. After infringing 18 U.S.C. Sect. 1201(a) that disallows abduction, petitioner in this case represented by an extremely competent counsel decided to change from claiming not blameworthy to being accountable (Brady v. United States, 1970). His reason was he had no alternative under impermissible coercion from the counsel to receive a fairer verdict other than death one. This is after learning his co-defendant in the case had already pleaded guilty whereby he will in turn witness again him (Brady v. United States, 1970). This is because not all guilty pleas whose determination ought to end in

Organization change Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Organization change - Assignment Example Employees will follow the guidance of a leader they believe in. Getting the respect of the employees is important in order to gain their trust. A leader must have superb communication skills to facilitate the change process in an organization. Often change requires that the employees gain new skills and capabilities to be able to handle the work challenges. The manager of a company can facilitate change by providing the employees of the firm with training and development opportunities. The use of training and development can help the employees accept change because the employees become better prepared. A technique that can be used to implement training and development faster at a lower cost is online training. Another technique that can be utilized to facilitate change at an organization is the use of intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. To motivate the employees to achieve greater production the company can offer financial rewards to the employees. It is important to demonstrate to the employees that the company cares about their work-life balance. The use of flexible time is a way to change the operations of an enterprise to allow the employees to be able to better meet their family responsibilities. Change can also be enha nced at a company through the implementation of teamwork. Teamwork enhances the leadership and communication abilities of the employees and it offers the workers a new dynamic work environment. Teamwork has become a critical success factor in the work environment of the 21st century. The employees of a company can also get involved in the change process of the organization. The managers must keep the lines of communication open with the employees at all times. A way for the workers to get involved in the change process is through the implementation of a feedback system. Sometimes the employees are intimidated by the managers and they do not feel comfortable giving feedback. Implementing

Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 227

Assignment Example Biodiversity and abundance in the same water is also average, relatively lower than site three because of less favorable habitats in agricultural lands. Site two, on the other hand, is an urban area. The Institute for Natural Resources, nd, paragraph 4 describes water from such sites to have the lowest biodiversity and abundance due to less favorable habitats, high concentration of dissolved heavy metals like Lead and Copper from industries as is the case here. The water also has the lowest pH as a result of dissolved acidic gases from the atmosphere, highest conductivity due to high concentrations of dissolved salts picked up by run-off. Furthermore, it has high Biological Oxygen Demand due to high temperatures from rooftops and pavements. Site three is open woodland. Water from this site has the highest biodiversity and abundance due to favorable habitats, low Biological Oxygen Demand because of low temperatures, lowest conductivity due to low concentrations of dissolved salts. In addition, fecal bacteria are high due to uncontrolled wastes. The same has lowest concentrations of nitrates, phosphates, Copper, Lead and dissolves salts due to absence of pollutants (Institute for Natural Resources, nd, par

Organization change Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Organization change - Assignment Example Employees will follow the guidance of a leader they believe in. Getting the respect of the employees is important in order to gain their trust. A leader must have superb communication skills to facilitate the change process in an organization. Often change requires that the employees gain new skills and capabilities to be able to handle the work challenges. The manager of a company can facilitate change by providing the employees of the firm with training and development opportunities. The use of training and development can help the employees accept change because the employees become better prepared. A technique that can be used to implement training and development faster at a lower cost is online training. Another technique that can be utilized to facilitate change at an organization is the use of intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. To motivate the employees to achieve greater production the company can offer financial rewards to the employees. It is important to demonstrate to the employees that the company cares about their work-life balance. The use of flexible time is a way to change the operations of an enterprise to allow the employees to be able to better meet their family responsibilities. Change can also be enha nced at a company through the implementation of teamwork. Teamwork enhances the leadership and communication abilities of the employees and it offers the workers a new dynamic work environment. Teamwork has become a critical success factor in the work environment of the 21st century. The employees of a company can also get involved in the change process of the organization. The managers must keep the lines of communication open with the employees at all times. A way for the workers to get involved in the change process is through the implementation of a feedback system. Sometimes the employees are intimidated by the managers and they do not feel comfortable giving feedback. Implementing

Cigna Corporation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Cigna Corporation - Essay Example CIGNA Corporation has several opportunities in its external environment, including market exchange rates, which, by being an International Corporation, it can take advantage of by getting higher earnings from regions with high exchange rates. There is also increased demand for healthcare, increased disposable income that would benefit CIGNA, ethical growth from an expanding population, and a growth in retirees who require increased levels of health care. The various threats that face CIGNA include the reduction of premiums due to decreased disposable income after the financial crisis, health care reform regulation that directs them to insure patients through using pre-existing conditions, and the global recession that has seen unemployment levels go up thus plummeting a number of premiums to be paid. The paper also evaluates internal factors that affect the operations of CIGNA Corporation, i.e. strengths and weaknesses. The strengths that are inherent in CIGNA Corporation include a s trong national network that helps build credibility, a comprehensive offering that attracts a large customer base, growing global operations that ensure less reliance on the local market, and a well-coordinated workforce that helps realize the potential of its employees. The weaknesses that CIGNA Corporation possesses includes unstable earnings in the healthcare industry, lower market share in Medicare products, a maturing/mature industry, increased competition in the industry, and uncertainty facing the industry.... The paper also evaluates internal factors that affect the operations of CIGNA Corporation, i.e. strengths and weaknesses. The strengths that are inherent in CIGNA Corporation include a strong national network that helps build credibility, a comprehensive offering that attracts a large customer base, growing global operations that ensure less reliance on the local market, and a well-coordinated workforce that helps realize the potential of its employees. The weaknesses that CIGNA Corporation possesses includes unstable earnings in the health care industry, lower market share in Medicare products, a maturing/mature industry, increased competition in the industry, and uncertainty facing the industry. The paper then performs a TOWS analysis that seeks to analyze how the corporation can leverage strengths to take opportunities, how it can use opportunities to improve weaknesses, how it can use strengths to stave off threats, and finally how they can defend themselves from threats that cou ld take advantage of their weaknesses. Four major strategies came out of this TOWS analysis including: Leveraging their market visibility to take advantage of increased demand for health care, Use ethnic growth and retiree growth to counter the lower market share in Medicare products, Use its growing international market to counter the economic slowdown in the US, Come up with strategies to retain and increase market share especially with advent of health care reform. CIGNA Corporation Business Strategy Cigna Corporation (Cigna) is a global health service company. The company offers variant insurance products under medical and accident cover throughout United States.  These services are sold through the company employees and selected groups.  Beyond, United States, the

Effects of Employee Empowerment on Project Success

Effects of Employee Empowerment on Project Success Introduction: Employee empowerment is not a new innovative word its being used from many decades but employee empowerment has now become a buzz word in recent management treads in both private and public sectors (pits 2005). Employee empowerment received a wide recognition as an important subject in management circles mainly because it seen as one of the fundamental elements of managerial and organisational effectiveness that increases when power and control are shared in organization (serenely et al 2007). thus employee empowerment hailed as management technique which can be applied universally across all organisations a means of dealing with the modern global business(demitrades 2005) . Generally employee empowerment comprises of an innovative approach with people and a shift of power from the top management to lower level of an organization (tzafrir et al 2005). researches and leaders worldwide aver advocated for empowerment of employees to ell organisations compete successfully in highly compe titive market place (tjosvold and sun 2005). Therefore org that are committed to employee empowerment are in a position to motivate and retain their employees (angora 2007). Employee empower mint is seen as motivational technique if designed and nurtured properly in organisations. Thus employee empowerment leads to improvement of performance of the org through increased level of employee participation and self determination (greasily et al 200). Tzafrir (2004) says basically employee empowerment is mainly y concerned with trust, motivation, decision making and breaking he inner boundaries between management and employees. Literature review: Definitions: Employee participation is defined as ‘a process of employee involvement designed to provide employees with the opportunity to influence and where appropriate, take part in decision making on matters which affect them. According to Farnham (1997) Employee Participation is one of four policy choices for managing the employment relationship. Cited in Rose (2001, p380) Farnham states:‘†¦an employee has the right to question and influence organization decision making and ‘†¦. this may involve representative workplace democracy. The common dictionary definition of empowerment, to give official authority to: delegate legal power to: commission, authorize (Grove, 1971, p. 744) is the one most understood by most people. As an example, Gandz (1990) writes, Empowerment means that management vests decision-making or approval authority in employees where, traditionally, such authority was a managerial prerogative. (p. 75) However, this is not the definition of what is usually called employee empowerment. One author notes empowerment is, easy to define in its absence—alienation, powerless, helplessness—but difficult to define positively because it takes on a different form in different people and contexts' (Zimmerman, 1990, p.169) Employee empowerment is a process whereby: a culture of empowerment is developed; information in the form of a shared vision, clear goals, boundaries for decision making, and the results of efforts and their impact on the whole is shared; competency in the form of training and experience is developed; resources, or the competency to obtain them when needed to be effective in their jobs, are provided; and support in the form of mentoring, cultural support, and encouragement of risk-taking is provided Current research in employee empowerment: There is lot of research going on empowerment with respect to different entities of business like empowerment and total quality management, empowerment and sales, empowerment and customer satisfaction in tourism industry. Most of the research is concentrated on the relation between empowerment and employee motivation. Even though there is a vast literature review on my topic of interest .I am mentioning very few concepts here. In the most comprehensive, long-term study of empowerment-oriented practices, (Lawler, Mohr man, Benson, 2001) has empirically demonstrated the positive growth of empowerment practices in the last 15 years. Today, more than 70 percent of organizations surveyed have adopted some kind of empowerment initiative for some portion of their workforce. Why the tremendous growth in employee empowerment? Faced with competitive demands for lower costs, higher performance, and more flexibility, organizations have increasingly turned to employee empowerment to enhance their performance. Empowerment practices are often implemented with the hopes of overcoming worker dissatisfaction and reducing the costs of absenteeism, turnover, poor quality work, and sabotage (Klein, Ralls, Smith-Major, Douglas, 1998). Their focus is aimed at overcoming the debilitating psychological effects of traditional bureaucracies through the creation of high-involvement organizations. Empowerment enables employees to participate in decision making, helping them to break out of stagnant mindsets to take a risk and try something new. Empowering practices allow employees to decide on their own how they will recover from a service problem and surprise-and-delight customers by exceeding their expectations rather than waiting for approval from a supervisor (Bowen La wler, 1995). And perhaps most importantly, empowerment is viewed as critical in the process of organizational change. Rather than forcing or pushing people to change, empowerment provides a way of attracting them to want to change because they have ownership in the change process. Yet, in spite of this positive growth, more than 25% of the surveyed companies in Lawler et al.s (2001) study still report no significant empowerment-oriented practices anywhere in their organizations. And even those that do introduce empowerment practices often find it difficult to build genuine employee empowerment (Spreitzer Quinn, 2001). Some dont have the courage In order to understand the aims and implications of empowerment, it is necessary to understand the origins of the concept within the intellectual and political history of the West. While its modern form was derived principally from the civil and womens rights social movements of the 1960s, its philosophical lineage can be traced to the beginnings of modern political philosophy. While often regarded as a revolutionary development in thinking even in contemporary times, empowerments theoretical roots point to a longer progression than is commonly assumed. In myriad ways, empowerment theory is principally concerned with elucidating and applying the answers to the timeless questions of political philosophy itself namely the nature of power, the role of the citizen in the polis, and the achievement of justice in civic life. From this vantage point, empowerment is a continuation of this theoretical search for elusive, but critical, answers to timeless human questions. Sir Francis Bacon, b est known for his work new Atlantis, is intrinsically bound to the study of empowerment due to his crucial contribution to the development of the Western democratic system (White, 1987). According to Bacon, humanitys existence in a world of scarcity will continually result in human deprivation and hostility without the conquest of nature. He argued that only by the ‘release of mans estate, namely the rational and scientific generation of greater goods from nature, could this cycle of constant political animosity and privation be ended. Freedom, enfranchisement, and harmony among citizens cannot be achieved without overcoming the aggression that is inherent to scarcity and issues of survival. By uniting people behind the common goal of creating better lives via reason and human invention, the common good is finally able to triumph over sectarian divisions. At the most fundamental level, liberal democracy and the concept of constant progress require the emancipation of workers a nd their empowerment. Without empowerment, the manual labourer (or serf or slave) is utilized to provide the inputs that political life necessitates, and the stratification of power is perpetuated. Although Bacon helped to form the foundations of the modern commercial republic, he could not have foreseen many of the developments that this polity engendered. One only has to peruse the works of Dickens, Marx, or Sinclair to be made aware of some of the obstacles of this political order. The sublimation of economic efficiency and science may liberate humankind from the bounds of scarcity, but it also can transform man into a servant of power. Moreover, it often leads to a form of consumerism that seems ill suited for providing citizens with meaning outside the bounds of the acquisition of material possessions, as well as elevates labour itself into the focal point for personal significance. From this perspective, our economic and political order may be required to bear more weight and significance than it can bear. Modern empowerment literature, with its emphases on theory, results, and meaning is focused upon improving this state of affairs through a variety of different approaches and applications. As a discipline, it embraces modern methodologies in order to answer ancient and familiar questions with the intention of elevating both the individual and the organization (political or otherwise) simultaneously. During recent years, workplace empowerment has increasingly become part and parcel of the lexicon of organizational research and practice. The meaning of the term empowerment has evolved over the years from its more radical beginnings in the civil and womens rights movements to its current manifestations focused on organizational performance (Bartunek Spreitzer, 1999). In this section of the chapter, we look across the most recent decades of writing on empowerment and highlight three contemporary theoretical perspectives. Research purpose: TO EVALUATE THE ROLE OF Employee Empowerment IN PROJECT SUCCESS. I want to know to what extent the empowerment is being employed in the projects. If so, to what extent the empowerment aids in success of the project. Research objectives Question 1 .TO WHAT EXTENT Employee Empowerment IS BEING EMPLOYED IN PROJECTS AT MANGERIAL AND TEAM LEADER LEVEL Question 2. TO WHAT EXTENT Employee Empowerment CONTRUBUTES TO PROJECT SUCCESS Research rationale: Research mainly has economical and social benefits My research will find the cause and effect of empowerment and project success at two different hierarchal levels of project , i.e. managerial and team leader. I believe that my research will provide a new perspective of empowerment in projects. Research scope: Scope of my research is restricted to a Construction Company. I am doing a case study on ksheeraabd constructions private ltd (KPCL), Hyderabad, India I will take 8 to 10 interviews and will also distribute Questionnaires among 20 people. I will consider both employee and employer perspective. In depth interviews will be taken from the project managers and lower level team leaders Research methodology: The analysis of the research will be largely quantitative, however qualitative analysis will be used to highlight patterns and make the analysis more robust. The findings will be compared to theory in context in order to describe the patterns which exist. An deductive approach will be used in order to evaluate a theory as a result of the research findings .The research strategy will be case study of a construction company( KCPL ,Hyderabad India) for which I have already gained access . The company chosen is a construction company which is at present working on a road construction project at a place called Madurai in India. In the case study the interviews will be conducted for project manager level and questionnaires will be given for team leader level employees The aim is to evaluate the effects of employee empowerment in an organisation. The questionnaire will have structured questions with set responses in order to quantify the empowerment employed in the organisation. There will also be open questions for participants to make comments on the various aspects empowerment in their organisation. I will do cross sectional study as I will collect all the data at same time Sampling procedures: My research involves data collection from two different levels of organisation like project managers and from team leader level. As the project managers are very few we wanted to consider the entire sample and for the team leaders I will use simple random sampling. Data collection and analysis: I will take interviews from the project managers. I will take ablest 8 to almost 10 interviews. I will distribute the questioners to the team leaders who are selected by simple random sampling. I will make sure that at least 20 employee from team leader level will participate in this procedure. Using the deductive approach, the analysis of the interviews will be mostly quantitative I will ask questions that have rating of the responses ranging from 0 to 5. The main purpose of the interviews is to avoid any bias of information from the questionnaires. The questioners are designed in such a way that each response is quantified like the interviews. By this method I can make quantitative analysis of both types of information. Validity and reliability Internal validity Increased through use of multiple sources of evidence, structured interviews and questionnaires (both closed and open questions). The design of questions and survey will be based on understanding of the theory from the literature and pilot testing of the interview and questionnaire will be used to make sure questions are understood as intended. External validity Multiple cases considered to examine whether findings can be generalised over a number of organisations. There is no requirement to make a statistical analysis of the results for generalisation here as the approach chosen examines practices and their effectiveness. The aim is to explain the findings and explore generalisability through a comparison of findings with theory. Reliability Structured interviews with questions derived from literature in order to examine cases in same way. Surveys to back up the interviews and obtain views from a wider group. Questionnaires all administered at the same time and in controlled manner, explanation to ensure participants all understand research in same way. Instrumentation : I am planning to collect information through questionnaires in single batch . Which will not pose any validity problems with respect to instrumentation? Mortality: with respect to this threat I ill make sure that there will be no dropouts of participants at the time of data collection Access to the company (consent): I have already spoken with the subject of interest (KCPL pvt ltd, Hyderabad) and gained access to the company. I have explained the total procedure and outcome of the dissertation. I have promised them that the information collected will be kept confidential so finally the company has given access to obtain information from their employees. The organisation is also looking forward to help me in this research. They felt grateful to me for taking their company as a case study. For reference I am enclosing a copy of the access grant letter

Surgical Treatment For Morbid Obesity Essay -- Overweight Obese Resear

According to the World Health Organization, globally there are now more than 1 billion overweight adults, and at least 300 million of them are obese. During the last 40 years, obesity has reached epidemic proportions. There are more obese people each year, and the severity is increasing. In the United States alone, 300,000 deaths are associated with obesity. Thesis: Many obese people fail diet after diet. For them, bariatric surgery is an option even though risks are involved (Flancbaum, et al. 7; Goodman par 3; â€Å"The Weight† par 2). Overview   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Obesity is climbing the charts as being a major killer of our population. This paper informs the reader on how bariatric surgery treats the severely obese. Focus is given on who should have bariatric surgery, how the surgery works, risks of bariatric surgery, and what the patient can expect. Bariatric surgery is reserved for people who have been unable to lose weight on professionally managed weight-loss programs and those with obesity-related conditions such as diabetes, or the risk of them. When surgery is an option for weight loss   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The best candidates for bariatric surgery are patients who have a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or greater, or 35 or greater and associated obesity-related conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and sleep apnea (see figure 1.1, pg 8 & table 1, pg 6). In terms of pounds, qualifying for surgery estimates to being 100 pounds above ideal body weight. A patient must have also gone through some sort of organized weight loss program in the past, and failed to maintain weight loss (Flancbaum, et al.15). How surgery promotes weight loss Gastrointestinal surgery for obesity, also called bariatric surgery, alters the digestive process. The operations promote weight loss by closing off parts of the stomach to make it smaller. These procedures are referred to as restrictive procedures because they cut down on the amount of food the stomach can hold. These types of procedures are less common due to the complications involved (Flancbaum, et al. 27, 52). The most popular operations combine stomach restriction with a partial bypass of the small intestine. These procedures create a direct connection from the stomach to the lower segment of the small intestine, literally bypassing portions of the digestive tract that absorb calories and nutrients. These are known as malabsorp... ... relation to BMI* BMI  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Obesity Category  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Health Risks Without Medical Problems  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Health Risks With Medical Problems Below 19  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Underweight  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Slight  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Minimal 19-24  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Normal  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  None  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Minimal 25-29  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Overweight  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Minimal  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Moderate 30-34  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Obese  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Moderate  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  High 35-39  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Severely Obese  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  High  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Very High 40-49  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Morbidly Obese  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Very High  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Extreme 50+  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Super Obese  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Extreme  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Very Extreme * Classification based upon World Health Organization; see The Doctor’s Guide to Weight loss Surgery. Table 2: Weight Loss Surgery on Obesity-Related Conditions Condition  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Improved  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Completely Resolved Type II diabetes  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  93 percent  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  89 percent Hypertension  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  90 percent  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  66 percent Abnormal blood lipids  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  85 percent  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  70 percent Sleep apnea  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  72 percent  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  40 percent See The Doctor’s Guide to Weight Loss Surgery. Table 3: Complications after Weight Loss Surgery   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  RYGB  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  VBG Protein-calorie malnutrition  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  0  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  0 Micronutrient & vitamin deficiency  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  10-20 percent  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Flancbaum L, Belsley S, Drake V, Colarusso T, Tayler E J Gastrointest Surg. 2006 Jul-Aug; 10(7):1033-7.

Education: Empiricists vs Rationalists Essay example -- philosophy of

The importance of experience in education has always been the subject of philosophical debates. These debates between empiricists and rationalists have been going on for quite some time. Rationalists are of the view that knowledge acquired through senses is unreliable and learning can only be done through reasoning. On the other hand, empiricists believe knowledge is acquired through empirical impressions and concepts that cannot be learnt without being experienced (Evans, 1992, p. 35). This debate was however resolved by Kant who argues that both experience and rationality are necessary in learning. John Dewey was an American philosopher of the twentieth century and he also contributed to the debate on the learning process. In his book Experience and Education, Dewey (1938), he stated, â€Å"the belief that all genuine education comes about through experience does not mean that all experiences are genuinely or equally educative† (p. 25). This famous quote has been evaluated a nd referred to regularly in the debate on learning through experience. According to Dewey (1938) experiences can only be termed as educative if they lead to further intellectual and moral growth. In order for experience to be termed as educative, both the community and the individual have to benefit from the said experience. The experience has to contribute to growth in curiosity, sense of purpose, and initiative in the learner. He was of the view that traditional education was hierarchical and therefore undemocratic in nature. According to him, in order to produce well informed, thoughtful and democratic students, learners need to participate in all aspects of the school program and gain the experience. Eventually, a learner has to reflect on the experience ... ...work became widely accepted. However, his philosophy will continue to earn critical acclaim even in the coming days. Works Cited Boud, D., Keogh, R., & Walker, D. (1985). Reflection: Turning experience into learning. New York, NY: Kogan Page. Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. New York, NY: Macmillan. Evans, N. (1992). Experiential learning: Assessment and accreditation. New York, NY: Routledge. Ewert, A. (1989). Outdoor adventure pursuits: Foundations, models, and theories. Columbus, OH: Publishing Horizons. Goodlad, J. (1984). A place called school: Prospects for the future. New York, NY: McGraw- Hill. Kolb, A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Lewin, K. (1952). Field theory in the social sciences: Selected theoretical papers. London: Tavistock.

Database Slides on Normalization

Chapter 11 Relational Database Design Algorithms and Further Dependencies Chapter Outline ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 0. Designing a Set of Relations 1. Properties of Relational Decompositions 2. Algorithms for Relational Database Schema 3. Multivalued Dependencies and Fourth Normal Form 4. Join Dependencies and Fifth Normal Form 5. Inclusion Dependencies 6. Other Dependencies and Normal Forms DESIGNING A SET OF RELATIONS ? Goals: ? Lossless join property (a must) ? Algorithm 11. 1 tests for general losslessness. Algorithm 11. decomposes a relation into BCNF components by sacrificing the dependency preservation. 4NF (based on multi-valued dependencies) 5NF (based on join dependencies) ? Dependency preservation property ? ? Additional normal forms ? ? 1. Properties of Relational Decompositions ? Relation Decomposition and Insufficiency of Normal Forms: ? Universal Relation Schema: ? A relation schema R = {A1, A2, †¦, An} that includes all the attributes of the database. Every attribute name is unique. ? Universal relation assumption: ? (Cont) ? Decomposition: ? ? Attribute preservation condition: ?The process of decomposing the universal relation schema R into a set of relation schemas D = {R1,R2, †¦, Rm} that will become the relational database schema by using the functional dependencies. Each attribute in R will appear in at least one relation schema Ri in the decomposition so that no attributes are â€Å"lost†. (Cont) ? ? Another goal of decomposition is to have each individual relation Ri in the decomposition D be in BCNF or 3NF. Additional properties of decomposition are needed to prevent from generating spurious tuples (Cont) ? Dependency Preservation Property of a Decomposition: ? Definition: Given a set of dependencies F on R, the projection of F on Ri, denoted by pRi(F) where Ri is a subset of R, is the set of dependencies X > Y in F+ such that the attributes in X U Y are all contained in Ri. Hence, the projection of F on each relation schema Ri in t he decomposition D is the set of functional dependencies in F+, the closure of F, such that all their left- and right-hand-side attributes are in Ri. (Cont. ) ? Dependency Preservation Property of a Decomposition (cont. ): ? Dependency Preservation Property: ? ? A decomposition D = {R1, R2, †¦ Rm} of R is dependency-preserving with respect to F if the union of the projections of F on each Ri in D is equivalent to F; that is ((? R1(F)) U . . . U (? Rm(F)))+ = F+ (See examples in Fig 10. 12a and Fig 10. 11) ? Claim 1: ? It is always possible to find a dependency-preserving decomposition D with respect to F such that each relation Ri in D is in 3NF. Projection of F on Ri Given a set of dependencies F on R, the projection of F on Ri, denoted by ? Ri(F) where Ri is a subset of R, is the set of dependencies X > Y in F+ such that the attributes in X ?Y are all contained in Ri. Dependency Preservation Condition Given R(A, B, C, D) and F = { A > B, B > C, C > D}    Let D1={R1(A,B), R2 (B,C), R3(C,D)} ? R1(F)={A > B} ? R2(F)={B > C} ? R3(F)={C > D} FDs are preserved. (Cont. ) ? Lossless (Non-additive) Join Property of a Decomposition: ? Definition: Lossless join property: a decomposition D = {R1, R2, †¦ , Rm} of R has the lossless (nonadditive) join property with respect to the set of dependencies F on R if, for every relation state r of R that satisfies F, the following holds, where * is the natural join of all the relations in D: (? R1(r), †¦ , ? Rm(r)) = r ? Note: The word loss in lossless refers to loss of information, not to loss of tuples. In fact, for â€Å"loss of information† a better term is â€Å"addition of spurious information† Example S s1 s2 s3 P p1 p2 p1 D d1 d2 d3 = S s1 s2 s3 P p1 p2 p1 * P p1 p2 p1 D d1 d2 d3 Lossless Join Decomposition NO (Cont. ) Lossless (Non-additive) Join Property of a Decomposition (cont. ): Algorithm 11. 1: Testing for Lossless Join Property Input: A universal relation R, a decomposition D = {R1, R2, †¦ , Rm} of R,and a set F of functional dependencies. 1.Create an initial matrix S with one row i for each relation Ri in D, and one column j for each attribute Aj in R. 2. Set S(i,j):=bij for all matrix entries. (/* each bij is a distinct symbol associated with indices (i,j) */). 3. For each row i representing relation schema Ri {for each column j representing attribute Aj {if (relation Ri includes attribute Aj) then set S(i,j):= aj;};}; ? (/* each aj is a distinct symbol associated with index (j) */) ? CONTINUED on NEXT SLIDE (Cont. ) 4. Repeat the following loop until a complete loop execution results in no changes to S {for each functional dependency X >?Y in F {for all rows in S which have the same symbols in the columns corresponding to attributes in X {make the symbols in each column that correspond to an attribute in Y be the same in all these rows as follows: If any of the rows has an â€Å"a† symbol for the column, set the other rows to that same â€Å"aâ €  symbol in the column. If no â€Å"a† symbol exists for the attribute in any of the rows, choose one of the â€Å"b† symbols that appear in one of the rows for the attribute and set the other rows to that same â€Å"b† symbol in the column ;}; }; }; 5.If a row is made up entirely of â€Å"a† symbols, then the decomposition has the lossless join property; otherwise it does not. (Cont. ) Lossless (nonadditive) join test for n-ary decompositions. (a) Case 1: Decomposition of EMP_PROJ into EMP_PROJ1 and EMP_LOCS fails test. (b) A decomposition of EMP_PROJ that has the lossless join property. (Cont. ) Lossless (nonadditive) join test for n-ary decompositions. (c) Case 2: Decomposition of EMP_PROJ into EMP, PROJECT, and WORKS_ON satisfies test. (Cont. ) ? Testing Binary Decompositions for Lossless Join Property ? ?Binary Decomposition: Decomposition of a relation R into two relations. PROPERTY LJ1 (lossless join test for binary decompositions): A decomposi tion D = {R1, R2} of R has the lossless join property with respect to a set of functional dependencies F on R if and only if either ? ? The FD ((R1 ? R2) >? (R1- R2)) is in F+, or The FD ((R1 ? R2) >? (R2 – R1)) is in F+. 2. Algorithms for Relational Database Schema Design Algorithm 11. 3: Relational Decomposition into BCNF with Lossless (non-additive) join property Input: A universal relation R and a set of functional dependencies F on the attributes of R. 1. Set D := {R}; 2.While there is a relation schema Q in D that is not in BCNF do { choose a relation schema Q in D that is not in BCNF; find a functional dependency X > Y in Q that violates BCNF; replace Q in D by two relation schemas (Q – Y) and (X U Y); }; Assumption: No null values are allowed for the join attributes. Algorithms for Relational Database Schema Design Algorithm 11. 4 Relational Synthesis into 3NF with Dependency Preservation and Lossless (Non-Additive) Join Property Input: A universal relation R a nd a set of functional dependencies F on the attributes of R. 1. Find a minimal cover G for F (Use Algorithm 10. ). 2. For each left-hand-side X of a functional dependency that appears in G, create a relation schema in D with attributes {X U {A1} U {A2} †¦ U {Ak}}, where X >? A1, X >? A2, †¦ , X > Ak are the only dependencies in G with X as left-hand-side (X is the key of this relation). 3. If none of the relation schemas in D contains a key of R, then create one more relation schema in D that contains attributes that form a key of R. (Use Algorithm 11. 4a to find the key of R) 4. Eliminate redundant relations from the result. A relation R is considered redundant if R is a projection of another relation SAlgorithms for Relational Database Schema Design Algorithm 11. 4a Finding a Key K for R Given a set F of Functional Dependencies Input: A universal relation R and a set of functional dependencies F on the attributes of R. 1. Set K := R; 2. For each attribute A in K { Compu te (K – A)+ with respect to F; If (K – A)+ contains all the attributes in R, then set K := K – {A}; } (Cont. ) 3. Multivalued Dependencies and Fourth Normal Form (a) The EMP relation with two MVDs: ENAME —>> PNAME and ENAME —>> DNAME. (b) Decomposing the EMP relation into two 4NF relations EMP_PROJECTS and EMP_DEPENDENTS. (Cont. ) c) The relation SUPPLY with no MVDs is in 4NF but not in 5NF if it has the JD(R1, R2, R3). (d) Decomposing the relation SUPPLY into the 5NF relations R1, R2, and R3. (Cont. ) Definition: ? A multivalued dependency (MVD) X —>> Y specified on relation schema R, where X and Y are both subsets of R, specifies the following constraint on any relation state r of R: If two tuples t1 and t2 exist in r such that t1[X] = t2[X], then two tuples t3 and t4 should also exist in r with the following properties, where we use Z to denote (R -(X U Y)): ? t3[X] = t4[X] = t1[X] = t2[X]. t3[Y] = t1[Y] and t4[Y] = t2[Y]. t3[Z] = t2[Z] a nd t4[Z] = t1[Z].An MVD X —>> Y in R is called a trivial MVD if (a) Y is a subset of X, or (b) X U Y = R. ? ? ? Multivalued Dependencies and Fourth Normal Form Definition: ? A relation schema R is in 4NF with respect to a set of dependencies F (that includes functional dependencies and multivalued dependencies) if, for every nontrivial multivalued dependency X —>> Y in F+, X is a superkey for R. ? Informally, whenever 2 tuples that have different Y values but same X values, exists, then if these Y values get repeated in separate tuples with every distinct values of Z {Z = R – (X U Y)} that occurs with the same X value. Cont. ) (Cont. ) Lossless (Non-additive) Join Decomposition into 4NF Relations: ? PROPERTY LJ1’ ? The relation schemas R1 and R2 form a lossless (non-additive) join decomposition of R with respect to a set F of functional and multivalued dependencies if and only if ? (R1 ? R2) —>> (R1 – R2) (R1 ? R2) —>> (R2 – R1 )). ? or ? (Cont. ) Algorithm 11. 5: Relational decomposition into 4NF relations with non-additive join property ? Input: A universal relation R and a set of functional and multivalued dependencies F.Set D := { R }; While there is a relation schema Q in D that is not in 4NF do { choose a relation schema Q in D that is not in 4NF; find a nontrivial MVD X —>> Y in Q that violates 4NF; replace Q in D by two relation schemas (Q – Y) and (X U Y); }; 1. 2. 4. Join Dependencies and Fifth Normal Form Definition: ? A join dependency (JD), denoted by JD(R1, R2, †¦ , Rn), specified on relation schema R, specifies a constraint on the states r of R. ? ? The constraint states that every legal state r of R should have a non-additive join decomposition into R1, R2, †¦ Rn; that is, for every such r we have * (? R1(r), ? R2(r), †¦ , ? Rn(r)) = r (Cont. ) Definition: ? A relation schema R is in fifth normal form (5NF) (or Project-Join Normal Form (PJNF)) with respect to a set F of functional, multivalued, and join dependencies if, ? for every nontrivial join dependency JD(R1, R2, †¦ , Rn) in F+ (that is, implied by F), ? every Ri is a superkey of R. Recap ? ? ? ? ? Designing a Set of Relations Properties of Relational Decompositions Algorithms for Relational Database Schema Multivalued Dependencies and Fourth Normal Form Join Dependencies and Fifth Normal FormTutorial/Quiz 4 Q1) Consider a relation R with 5 attributes ABCDE, You are given the following dependencies: A > B, BC > E, ED > A a) List all the keys, b) Is R in 3 NF c) Is R in BCNF Q2) Consider the following decomposition for the relation schema R = {A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J} and the set of functional dependencies F = { {A, B} > {C}, {A} > {D, E}, {B} > {F}, {F} > {G, H}, {D} -> {I, J} }. Preserves Lossless Join and Dependencies? a) D1 = {R1, R2, R3, R4, R5}, R1={A,B,C} R2={A,D,E}, R3={B,F}, R4 = {F,G,H}, R5 = {D,I,J} b) D2 = {R1, R2, R3} R1 = {A,B,C,D,E} R2 = {B,F,G,H}, R3 = {D,I,J }