How to Make a Benzoic Acid Snow Globe

Its fun and easy to make your own snow globe using water and snow made from glitter or crushed egg shells, but you can use chemistry to make crystal snow that looks a lot more like the real thing. Snow is made from crystals of water. In this project, you precipitate crystals of benzoic acid, which has the advantage of not melting at room temperature. Heres how you make the snow globe: Snow Globe Materials baby food jar or ointment jar (~4 oz)1 g benzoic acidwaterbeaker or pyrex measuring cuphot plate or microwave or coffee makerstirring rod or spoonhot glue gundecoration to glue to the bottom of the snow globe, like a small plastic toyforceps or tweezerselectrical tape (optional) Assemble the Snow Globe There are a couple of ways to do this. There is my do-it-at-home method and then what you might want to do in a lab. Lets start with the lab instructions...In a 250 ml flask, stir 1 g benzoic acid into 75 ml of water.Heat the solution to dissolve the benzoic acid. You do not need to boil the water.Alternatively, you can measure 75 ml (5 tablespoons) of water that you heated in a microwave or coffee maker. Dissolve the benzoic acid in the hot water.Put down a bead of hot glue on the inside of the jar lid (or you can put it on the bottom of a clean, dry jar if you dont plan to invert the sealed jar).Use tweezers or forceps to position your decoration in the glue.While the glue is cooling, take a look at your benzoic acid solution. As it approaches room temperature, the benzoic acid will precipitate out of solution to form snow. The rate of cooling affects the snow. Slow cooling produces fine crystals. Quick cooling produces something more like snowballs than snowflakes.Pour the room-te mperature benzoic acid solution into the glass jar.Fill the jar as full as possible with water. Air pockets will cause the benzoic acid to form clumps.Put the lid on the jar. If desired, seal the jar with hot glue or electrical tape.Gently shake the jar to see the pretty snow! How the Snow Works Benzoic acid doesnt readily dissolve in room temperature water, but if you heat the water the solubility of the molecule is increased (similar to dissolving sugar in water to make rock candy). Cooling the solution causes the benzoic acid to precipitate back into solid form. Slow cooling of the solution allows the benzoic acid to form prettier, more snow-like flakes than if you had simply mixed benzoic acid powder with water. The cooling rate of water into ice affects how real snow appears, too. Safety Tips Benzoic acid is used as a preservative in food, so as chemicals go it is pretty safe. However, pure benzoic acid can be very irritating to skin and mucous membranes (heres an MSDS for you). Also, it can be toxic if large quantities are ingested. So... wear gloves and eye protection when preparing your solution. Excess solution can be washed down the drain (can neutralize it with baking soda first if you like). I wouldnt recommend this project for very young children. It should be fine for grade school kids with adult supervision. Its mainly intended as a fun project for teens and adults. The snow globe is not a toy—you dont want young children taking it apart and drinking the solution.

Internet Security Breaches Free Essays

string(74) " bases and financial documents pose a threat to the company’s security\." The world has been undergoing persistent transformation which some have been attributed to the changing developments in science and technology. In particular, information and communication technology is one of the most celebrated developments. Indeed, information technology has changed the lives of people across the globe. We will write a custom essay sample on Internet Security Breaches or any similar topic only for you Order Now Information technology has reduced the world to a global village through fostering advanced communicationforms. However, with the advancements in information technology, especially the internet, insecurity issues have emerged. Insecurity issues have, in turn, sparked far reaching implications to the users. The most rampant security breaches that have been evidenced within the last six months include cyber bullying, network intrusion, cyber fraud, virus launching and data breaches. Cyber Fraud Cyber fraud can be defined as the use of software or internet services to defraud victims or taking advantage of them. This includes stealing information that is considered personal, in what constitutes identity theft. One of the most common forms of internet fraud entails distributing rogue security software. Internet technology has created the allowance for criminals to carry out fraudulent transactions, as well as transmit the proceeds of the frauds to other institutions. Cyber frauds occur in message boards, websites, emails and even chat rooms (Messner, 2012). Purchase fraud is an example of cyber fraud and occurs when a perpetrator proposes a business transaction to a merchant, only to use fraudulent mechanisms, such as a fake or stolen credit card, to pay for it. The eventuality is that the merchant does not receive the payment and may even be charged back for accepting credit cards. Another example of fraud is whereby theperpetrators post information about goods that they intend to sell. Interested buyers are asked to make payments for the purchase and delivery of the goods. However, it later turns out that the goods were non-existent and they had only been conned. The third example of cyber fraud is phishing, which is the act of masquerading as a person that can be trusted, such as bank agents or consultants, to acquire information that is sensitive, such as details of credit cards and passwords, among other details that victims may be convinced to share. Subsequently, the information offered is used for fraudulent transactions. It is argued that cyber frauds makeheadlines each day. In October 2012, Barners Noble Inc. made announcements that several PIN keypads had been hacked in as many as its 63 outlets, leaking the card information and PIN numbers of its customers. Easy Solution is one of the companies with evolving techniques of curbing cyber frauds. The company claims to be the only one that is well placed to curb various forms of electronic fraud, clouds and premises. The company has introduced an updated version of the Detect Monitoring Services, which entails timely fraud protection, enhanced monitoring capabilities and enhanced fraud protection. Detect Monitoring Service software effectively monitors the behaviors and patterns associated with phishing scams. Thus, it stops the threats before they cause damage. The software comprises of a relatively simple interface that can effectively function for all forms of clouds and even premises. It is argued that of over 800, 000 phishing attacks, the service enabled the company to detect as many as 76% on timely basis, exhibiting 3.6 hours of average deactivation time. Online transactions services have been particularly affected by cyber frauds. More often than not, customers often get cautious when asked to give personal information. Online transaction service providers have only resorted to instilling confidence in the customers as a way of encouraging them. This entails displaying policies, security badges and trust certificates, as well as the contact information. Online retailers should highlight security around the websites’ secured areas to assure customers that their confidential information is safe. This should be done, regardless of whether some browsers have security indicators built in them. Some online retailing companies, such as Amazon, display this through the use of the sign-in button. Others opt to use padlock symbols that are located in the sign-in areas. This is advisable, even when it is not needed by the customers. Online retailing companies are advised to give alternative contact options. Indeed, some companies are offering customer care support by using call backs, e-mails, and chats to enable users report suspicious activities. Data breaches Data breaches includeall those cyber activities characterized by unauthorized access, use and disclosure of individuals’ or organization information over or from the internet. Malicious attacks are considered to constitute the most expensive data breach, yet they are increasing. Malicious attacks account for as significant as 40% of the data breaches where negligence account for about 32% (In Defense of Data, 2013)Computer software companies, healthcare records and companies have been the most targeted and have accounted for as significant as 93% of the global data breaches (In Defense of Data, 2013). Network security is a necessity for every company. A company’s network cannot be said to be effective if it consists of security lapses. Threats to company’s network can be considered as a subject of various activities. However, former employees who leave the company due to downsizing can be considered as a significant threat. Other activities such as a daily courier dropping packages at the company’s premises, employees travelling on company business to other cities, or building management company installing a fire extinguisher system in company’s premises are not a serious threat. It can be argued that individuals with the potential of hacking, sabotaging and damaging systems are those with familiarity to nature and form of network system. Therefore, an employee that left the company has the capability of hacking the company’s network since they are familiar about the loopholes in the company’s network system. What increases the possibility of hacking is,if the employees left the company due to retrenchment, the attempts of network hacking could be fueled by the whims of revenge. It is argued that all former employees that worked in the company, accessing sensitive data bases and financial documents pose a threat to the company’s security. You read "Internet Security Breaches" in category "Papers" The fact that information technology does not respond to the altering of access points act as a fueling factor. Therefore, a person with information about the company’s network system has the potential of causing more harm than a hacker. According to the 2005 CERT survey, a significant number of former employees are increasingly utilizing the opportunity. The survey indicates that about 59% of the security intrusion is done by former company’s contractors;48% of those involved in hacking had been sacked;38% had left the company due to downsizing while 7% had been retrenched. The survey also notes that former IT professionals are particularly a significant threat to data security(Hazelden Foundation, 2012). Data breaches caused by negligence could be resolved by addressing the factors associated with negligence. On the other hand, data breaches caused by malicious software could be prevented by using appropriate network intrusion, detection techniques and anti-spyware software. Technological mechanisms would include updating and altering passwords for security purposes. Network intrusion/ Hacking Network intrusion or hacking refers to the unauthorized entry into a network, often characterized by malicious ambition of intercepting information from the network or website. The information can be used for other criminal activities such as fraud or espionage. Telvent Company hacking is considered as one of the recent hacking events that occurred in September 2012. The company has learned that its firewall and security systems have been compromised by the attackers who installed malicious software that enabled them steal project files. Telvent, a company whose services and software are applied in monitoring energy industry reported that it has been hacked which affected its operation in United States, Spain and Canada. The incident was blamed on Chinese hacking groups opposed to Western interests (Thiel, 2012). Lately, US officials have blamed Russia and China for staging intrusion attacks against United States for espionage, economic gains and other selfish motives. In November 2012, Leon Panetta, the US Secretary of Defense, had warned that United States was about to experience a cyber-attack comparable to Pearl Harbor, blaming hacking incidents that had been linked to the Middle East and United States Oil producers (Messner, 2012). The technological intervention to network intrusion is the development of Intrusion Detection Systems (IDSs). IDSs refer to application of device or software that aims at monitoring either networks or activities of systems against activities that are either malicious or that violate policies in place. Types of IDSs include Network Intrusion Detection Systems (NIDSs) and Hot-based Intrusion Detection System (HIDS). Network Intrusion Detection System is considered as one of the most popular approaches. Network Intrusion Detection System refers to a system that is designed to detect activities that are considered malicious such as service denial attacks, port scans, as well as cracking into computers via Network Security Monitoring. NID senses the packets coming through the network and scans them in order to identify patterns that are suspected to be malicious. Such patterns can be referred to as rules or signatures. Not only NIDSis limited to scanning of the network traffic that comes into the system but, one can also find a lot of important information concerning network intrusion from both local traffic and outgoing networks. More so, through NIDS, it is possible to stage attacks from the inside the network under monitoring and even a segment of the network. In this regard, such attacks are not in any way considered as incoming traffic. Usually, other various systems are incorporated to function with NIDS. The other network systems could, for instance, deal with updating the blacklists of firewalls using IP address of the computers under the use of real or suspected network crackers. NIDS consist of documentation (DISA) that utilizes ‘NID’ as a terminology with a target of distinguishing IDS that are internal from external. Just like any other IDS, NIDS comprises sensors and management console as its essential components. While management console deals with management and reporting, sensors deal with monitoring of networks. NIDS senses network intrusions through examination of network traffic. The system has the capability of monitoring multiple hosts. Usually, the access to the network traffic is gained through connection to a hub of networks, port-mirroring configured networks or even through the network taps. The NIDS sensors are situated at checkpoints of networks under monitoring. This are more often than not located in demilitarized areas or at the boarders of the network so as to increase effectiveness. All the network traffic is captured by the sensors before each of the packets’ contents are eventually analyzed for malicious network traffic. There are various examples of NIDS such as commercial products (such as ISS Realsecure, NFR Network Intrusion Detection System, Sourcefire and Computer Associates e Trust IDS) and freeware products (such as Ethereal, Snort and Tcpdump). Snort is the most common of all. NIDS should be considered as the most appropriate for organization securitybecause it ensures the greatest impact on the security of the network, takes shorter time to deploy compared to HIDS, yet it is relatively cheaper. Additionally, as long as it is placed on the outside of firewall or demilitarized zones to ensure for effectiveness, NIDS is capable of monitoring all forms of internet traffic and relays immediate feedback on the nature of network security. NIDS is very important to the general internet security. But particularly concerning the network security, NIDS is farther important to organizations in the following ways: first, NIDS has the capability of detecting attacks that HIDS cannot, for instance, fort scan and denial-of-service. Second, NIDS quickly detects and alerts on incidents of intrusion to avert maximum damage. This is particularly suited t o the demilitarized zones, considering the fact that internet providers usually situated at the zones are major computer attack targets. Third, NIDS is capable of reporting successful as well as unsuccessful attacks which is particularly essential as it offers a chance to better understand the network and hence, a key to network security enhancement. Fourth, NIDS equips organizations with knowledge regarding the environment of their network. Fifth, but for application of NIDS, it is difficult to identify network hacking. Lastly, NIDS is very important for organizations’ forensic evidence tool (Thiel, 2007). In this regard, it is not easy to tamper with the evidence unless the aggressors interfered with IDS. Launching worms Launching worms is a cybercrime that involves development of worms, also referred to as viruses, then releasing them on the internet domains. The worms slow down the internet connectivity or infect computers to stop them from functioning effectively. In 2000, FBI suspected incidents of cybercrimes being committed by the Russian citizens namely Alexey Ivanov and VasiliyGorshkov. It sought to track the suspected cyber criminals, luring them to come to United States with a ruse of a job promise (Quinlan, 2012). Activities of concocting worms and launching them on the internet are illegal in some parts of the world. As such, a person found to engage in cybercrime activities that spreads worms is likely to be prosecuted in various courts of countries affected by the worms. In some cases, the prosecution can be consecutive. However, in practice, few countries are in the position of claiming jurisdictions partly because some assume other countries would have incurred serious damages to consider it a priority to prosecute. These reflect how tricky dealing with cybercrimes across the borders is. Certain actions that are done on the internet may be legal in countries where they are initiated, but illegal in other countries that have access to the internet content. There are various recent incidents that entail virus launching. In October 2012, reports were made that FBI was to shut down a DNS as a way of containing viruses. Users were required to check their computers for virus and clean them before they could be allowed to access. These steps had been taken following the launching of the internet infestation by the DNS changer virus. The virus had cost the world billions of dollars (Quinlan, 2012). There are various technological approaches to worm problems. The most common approach is through installing anti-virus software. The antivirus software could be installed remotely on the computers, creating the allowance for all the information that streams in to be scanned for viruses. Malicious files and viruses are either blocked or repaired. Anti-virus could also be installed on the internet to scan the information that is sent over it. Websites, such as Google, are now offering such services. There are various antivirus software products on the market, including Avira, Norton and Kaspersky, which are effective in detecting and blocking malware (Nnap, 2011). Cyber bullying Cyber bullying has been cited as one of the areas that constitute internet security breaches. It entails transferring of abusesor information aimed at intimidating other people. Cyber bullying has turned out as the newest platform for which the people, especially the youth, are increasingly abusing each other. The more concerning issue is that there are currently no new appropriate techniques that intervene for cyber bullying despite the large numbers of children who have access to information and technologies. Internet and cell phone communications have been cited as tools of cyber bullying. Even more intriguing is that cyber bullying occurs during class time. Various incidents of cyber bullying have been witnessed recently. One of the cases that conspicuously featured on news headlines was of Alexis Henkel, a high school student. Henkel was charged with posting a number of anonymous and threatening messages on the internet account of one of her former classmates, who she accused of engaging in a flirt with his boyfriend (HazeldenFoundation, 2012). It has been argued that cyber bullying is particularly rampant because most cases are not reported. The most appropriate technological approach to addressing cyber bullying entails the application of safety tools, which facilitates content monitoring, as well as blocking. Indeed, various social sites now offer safety tools that enable users and administrators to report and block forms of communication that amount to bullying. These go hand-in-hand with the approach of instilling of ethical morals among the users, as well as enlightening the society on online safety, including ways of using online safety tools. Category of internet security Breaches Information leakageIntegrity ViolationDenial of ServiceIllegitimate use Data breaches; information stored in a website is accessed and released without authorityCyber bullying; entails sending abuses and information that undermines the integrity of other people Worm Launching; worms or viruses block internet access, denying the victims access to the internet. Additionally, some worms infect computers, making them malfunction. This also denies the victims access to computer services1. Internet intrusion and Hacking Hacking enables the perpetrators to access websites and use services illegitimately. 2. Cyber fraud Cyber fraud constitutes the motives of illegitimate use of internet resources How to cite Internet Security Breaches, Papers

Enterprises free essay sample

The budding entrepreneur Sam Marcus along with investor Mr. Walter saw the potential of dynamic growth in Mike’s cabinet making company and purchased a small 25 year old cabinet-making company from its founder 2 year earlier. The company competed in basically two segments, commercial and residential construction markets. Sam envisioned the company to grow to 70 Million in sales by 2007. Though commercial market offered the growth opportunity, the operating cycles were rigid because of bidding process which only has 32 % success ratio. On the other hand, the residential market was small but has the ‘got’ ratio of 70 %. The case raised many interesting facts about the value of the customer for an organization perspective. Blackstone being the biggest customer offered annual sales of about 2. 4 % to CMR, but does this relationship offered any value add to the CMR? In the end Sam Marcus must decide whether to continue this relationship without increasing prices or to increase prices thereby threatening a relationship with CMR’s biggest customer. We will write a custom essay sample on Enterprises or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Relationship with Blackstone: Clearly, initiating a relationship with the Blackstone was a complete strategic fit for the CMR enterprises. CMR wanted to increase its revenue 10 times in coming 10 years by creating a scalable and replicable business model. Blackstone will not only offer CMR high volume of sales but also will give them the strong foothold in the residential market share. More so, with aggressive growth strategy in mind, alliance with the Blackstone will gave CMR an opportunity to standardize its business processes in order to benefit from improved operational efficiencies that comes because of scale of operations. The following calculation specifies quantitative value of relationship of black stone for CMR enterprises. Blackstone contribution towards the CMR for year 1998 Fiscal year 1998 | Revenue| Total Residential | 1596000| Blackstone Contribution| 210314| % of contribution in Residential Segment | 13. 17757| Es CM | 65,344| Though the contribution of the sales given by Blackstone does give a positive contribution margin to the business of $ 65344, but with reference to the detailed calculation mention in the exhibit1, the relationship does hurt the CMR bottom line once the SGamp;A costs were taken into account. The overall effect was negative 3,444 which clearly mean that CMR has lost money on this account. Clearly I believe this wasn’t the case when Sam decided to initiate the relationship with Blackstone. So what went wrong and where for CMR? CMR relationship with Blackstone deteriorated over time because of the multiple implementation difficulties that arises over time. CMR was not able to garner the operational efficiencies which they thought they would be achieving, like for example, homeowners were still visiting showrooms of CMR for which CMR has to have a salesperson available in stores to serve them. Secondly, neither CMR and nor Blackstone was able to limit the involvement of the homeowners in the design phase, which again costs money to CMR. Also, as homeowners were working with many other sub-contractors, it created a project –coordination problem for both CMR and Blackstone, resulting in last minute design changes. Such changes entail last minute workings on manufacturing process and often results in loss of material and increases shop floor time etc. Hence I believe, because of the above mentioned reason, there exists a gap between the budgeted shop floor hours and the actual shop floor hours put in on the job. CMR will be right because they can justify the price increase but from the Blackstone perspective, any increase in price might results in non-conformance of the agreement that existed between CMR and Blackstone. Subsequent to my understanding of the above mentioned problems, mentioned below are some of my recommendations that can help CMR in improving the overall customer value chain. Improve the Operational Efficiency on the shop floor: As evident from the data, CMR was clearly not doing a good job in budgeting shop floor hours put in on the Job. It will be tough to believe that much of 69 % of unfavorable variance shown in exhibit 6 of case can be explained by above mentioned problems. Therefore, my hunch is that either the Project Managers/Design engineers were not making right assumptions about a particular job or it is the workforce who is putting inflated numbers on the shop floor time spent on one particular job. In both the cases, it is project manager’s job to improve the operational efficiency in order to reduce the difference between the actual and the budgeted hours. As evident from the calculation mentioned in the attached exhibit1 , if the revenues are to be calculated only using budgeted hours which means only the budged hours are spent on the Job , CMR can get the positive 16% value add on its EBIT / Revenues. Price based on Actual shop floor hours spent in the Job : Going forward, CMR can change its strategy and can start charging based on actual time spent on the job but such a strategy entails a risk that it will open up their margins to Blackstone which again can beat the prices down. This is the price increase option, but the price increase can be justified to the Blackstone management. Based on my calculation In Exhibit1 (If priced right Colum), using such a strategy will again bring positive contribution margin to CMR enterprises. Improve project coordination: As much of the problems results from poor project coordination, having a strong agreement in place will give both CMR and Blackstone an advantage if the other party fails to deliver on its promise. I recommend the penalty clause in the agreement if any party fails to deliver on its promises. CMR should make the agreement more strong like limiting the no of changes, requiring sufficient time to make changes, and pre budget approvals before initiating any change on the job. Similarly from Blackstone perspective, they can penalize CMR on late delivery or wrongful delivery, qualities issue, etc. By having a risk and reward relationship, the project coordination problems can be improved. CMR can selectively outsource some Jobs to different contractor: If CMR can’t bring in operational efficiency into their company on certain jobs or in fact as a whole, what they can do is to hire a subcontractor who can do the job for them in much less price. Rather than losing a complete business with Blackstone, what they can do is to pick and choose which project they would want to do and leave the rest for their subcontractors. This way they can really optimize their efforts and any risks associated with poor jobs get transferred to other sub-contractors. Increase the Prices: If CMR thinks they are right and believes that their price doesn’t justify the amount of work needed on the particular job, they can go ahead and increase their prices up to the minimum whereby they can make the positive return. As mentioned in the case, the market will follow sooner than later.

Maya Public Ritual Arts

The main idea, which is being explored throughout the course of Inomata’s article, is that the functional purpose of plazas in ancient Mayan cities has been concerned with providing Maya’s rules with an opportunity to expose their subjects to public spectacles.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Maya Public Ritual Arts specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In their turn, these spectacles served the purpose of endowing ancient Mayans with the sense of communal belonging – hence, contributing to the formation of collectively explored self-identity, on their part, â€Å"Large-scale theatrical events gave physical reality to a community and helped to ground unstable community identities† (Inomata 818). Given a rather unconventional sounding of this idea, it is not very surprising why the publication of Inomata’s article attracted a number of critical responses. According to Aoyama, Inomataà ¢â‚¬â„¢s line of argumentation can indeed be considered as such that represents a scientifically objective value, as the analysis of plazas’ holding capacities supports the validity of a suggestion that they could have been used for staging public performances. Aoyama explores the legitimacy of his point of view, in regards to the relevant empirical data, collected by archeologists in the Mayan cities of Aguateca and Copan. Becker, however, is challenging Inomata’s assumption. According to him, there is no rationale in believing that plazas served this specific purpose. This is because the amount of plazas’ open space may in fact be reflective of polities’ wealth, which in turn cannot be discussed as such that directly relates to the size of corresponding populations.Advertising Looking for essay on art? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Becker also criticizes Inomata for his failure to consider the p ossibility that, as time went on, plazas’ ‘holding’ function might have undergone a qualitative transformation. Yet, it is specifically the fact that Inomata’s idea is based upon the assumption that Mayan polities have been unilaterally governed by ‘divine rulers’, which appears to have caused Becker to adopt a strongly critical stance towards his colleague’s line of argumentation. Mazariegos’s reaction to Inomata’s article can be referred to as being generally positive. After all, he does recognize the validity of Inomata’s idea that Mayan plazas are in fact theatrical spaces. At the same time, however, Mazariegos points out to the fact that there a number of more effective ways of endowing people with the sense of a shared identity, such as prompting them to participate in a warfare, â€Å"Opposition to outside enemies, the shared vicissitudes of military campaigns†¦ are likely to create shared identitiesâ⠂¬  (822). Nevertheless, Mazariegos does welcome Inomata’s article, as such that is being potentially capable of advancing our understanding of ancient Mayan civilization. Ruiz and Pavon’s response to Inomata’s article can also be defined as being generally positive. In it, they acknowledge that by publishing his article, Inomata was able to contribute immensely to our knowledge of ancient Mayan culture. At the same time, Ruiz and Pavon suggest that there are no good reasons to believe that the artistic depictions on stelaes are being necessarily concerned with theatrical performances.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Maya Public Ritual Arts specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Partially, the validity of this suggestion can be illustrated in regards to the specifics of steales’ location, â€Å"The (Inomata’s) analysis links the presence of stelae with the largest plazas, but this link cannot be asserted categorically† (823). This appears to be the only critical remark in Ruiz and Pavon’s response. According to Clancy, the assumption that plazas in Mayan cities served theatricality-related functions is indeed being fully legitimate, â€Å"Ancient Maya plazas were surely places for performances choreographed by royal intentions† (823). At the same time, however, Clancy does not quite subscribe to the suggestion that it was solely ancient Mayans’ exposure to public performances, which used to endow them with the sense of a communal identity. Grube’s response to Inomata’s article can be defined as being enthusiastically supportive, â€Å"I strongly concur with Inomata’s conclusions† (824). According to Grube, the reason why Inomata’s idea can be considered thoroughly legitimate is that it correlates with our knowledge of how the rulers of Mayan polity-states used to go about exercising a political aut hority. Given the fact that, due to the absence of adequate technologies, Mayan rulers could not utilize any technical means for imposing their authority upon populations, they had no choice but to rely upon purely psychological ones. In this respect, staging public performances, on the part of Mayan rulers, would prove particularly effective. Even though that, while reflecting upon Inomata’s article, Isendahl did acknowledge its high discursive value, he nevertheless expressed his concerns as to whether Inomata’s utilization of the term ‘theatricality’ is being conceptually appropriate, â€Å"Theatricality is simply not the most appropriate analogy† (825).Advertising Looking for essay on art? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Moreover, Isendahl appears rather skeptical about Inomata’s assumption as to what accounted for the actual nature of centrifugal tendencies in ancient Mayan societies. According to Stuardo, Inomata can be well congratulated for having advanced our understanding of what might have accounted for the very principle of political centralization in ancient Mayan city-states. Nevertheless, it is specifically the fact that Inomata’s article allows the conceptualization of new methodological approaches to researching subject matters, concerned with ancient Mayan civilization, which Stuardo considers the most important aspect of this article. Looper’s response to Inomata’s article can also be defined as being highly supportive. Nevertheless, this response does contain a few critical remarks. For example, Looper points out to the fact that Inomata’s line of argumentation implies ancient Mayan societies having been rather secularized. However, this point of vi ew is being inconsistent with how the majority of historians and archeologists discuss the discursive implications of the factor of religion in these societies, â€Å"Theatrical metaphors and models risks secularizing ancient Maya performance† (826). According to Looper, however, this does not affect the overall legitimacy of Inomata’s article. According to Lucero, Inomata’s line of argumentation does deserve to be taken into consideration by mayanists. At the same time, Lucero suggests that in his article, Inomata downplayed the importance of a number of down-to-earth factors for ancient Mayans (especially rural dwellers) to be committed to participating in mass-gatherings. After all, one of the possible reasons why Mayan rural dwellers used to participate in these gatherings is that they were driven to do so by purely objective circumstances , â€Å"Rulers also fulfilled (people’s) material needs—specifically, water during the annual droughtâ₠¬  (827). The foremost of aspect of Newsome’s response to Inomata’s article is that this response stresses out the discursive importance how the author went about substantiating his line of argumentation. According to Newsome, it is not only that Inomata succeeded in revealing the actual mechanics of how Mayan rulers used to ensure the societal integrity of polities, but that he also succeeded in discovering a qualitatively new dimension to the very notion of ‘theatricality’. Therefore, the reading of Inomata’s article will prove utterly beneficial to just about anyone who strives to overcome the limitations of a number of euro-centric discursive conventions. In his response to Inomata’s article, Dorado criticizes the assumption that the staging of public spectacles should be considered a universally applicable tool of maintaining the social integrity of just about every hierarchically structured state. At the same time, however, Dorado expr esses his agreement with Inomata, as to the fact that plazas in ancient Mayan cities did in fact serve the function of accommodating crowds for a number of ritualistic purposes. According to Sanchez, Inomata’s hypothesis, in regards to the functional purpose of plazas, can indeed be defined as being logically and discursively coherent. At the same time, Sanchez suggests that this hypothesis is far from being considered as such that represents an undeniable truth-value, because as of today, the concerned subject matter remains relatively unexplored. Despite the fact that Tokovinine does admit that the author did contribute to our knowledge of ancient Mayan civilization, he also points out to an essentially speculative nature of many of Inomata’s conclusions. In particular, Tokovinine suggests that there is no well-grounded rationale in believing that the theatrical activities, depicted on Mayan murals, connote publicity. While replying to the earlier outlined responses, on the part of his critics, Inomata pointed out to the fact that, even though his interpretation of what should be considered Mayan plazas’ functional significance is far from being considered unchallengeable, it does help to explain how Mayan rulers were able to exercise an administrative control over their subjects. In addition, Inomata suggests that in many cases, responses’ critical overtones appear to reflect the fact that some of his arguments have been misinterpreted. I personally consider the line of Inomata’s argumentation logically coherent but somewhat speculative. This is because; the discussion of a significance of just about any public event through the conceptual lenses of a particular ‘performance theory’ becomes invariably affected by this theory’s discursive subtleties. Given the fact that there are strongly defined euro-centric undertones to how Inomata went about elaborating on the societal implications of public performa nces in ancient Mayan city-states, it is quite doubtful whether Inomata’s conclusions could be considered ideologically neutral. Bibliography Inomata, Takeshi. â€Å"Plazas, Performers, and Spectators: Political Theaters of the Classic Maya.† Current Anthropology 47.5 (2006): 805-842. Print. This essay on Maya Public Ritual Arts was written and submitted by user Izaiah R. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Infosys and Corporate Social Responsibility in India Essays

Infosys and Corporate Social Responsibility in India Essays Infosys and Corporate Social Responsibility in India Essay Infosys and Corporate Social Responsibility in India Essay Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is defined as a businesss policy to encourage positive impact through its activities on the environment, consumers, employees, communities and all other member of the public who may be considered its stakeholders. [8] Analysis The Infosys Foundation The Infosys Foundation was established in the year 1996 with the goal of serving the under-privileged sections of the society The focus areas of the foundation are: Learning and education in 2007, the foundation embarked on the Library for Every Rural School program to get people to donate books in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, and Kerala. It has since set up 35,000 school libraries, the largest rural education program in India. Healthcare Since its inception in 1996, the foundation has constructed hospital wards, donated medicines and advanced medical equipment to hospitals, and organized health camps in remote areas, all in order to get the under-privileged access to modern medical practices. Arts Culture The Infosys Foundation sustains and preserves several art forms that are unique to our country and form a part of our heritage. Over the years it has sponsored art and music shows by rural artists, sponsored documentaries on Indian culture and published books that delineate the roots of art in Karnataka. Social Rehabilitation and Rural Uplift The foundation works for the welfare of destitute women and children and also helps towards developing rural India by providing education and vocational skills. It has built orphanages where education is prioritized and organized training centres for destitute women in and around Karnataka. Assessment There are a number of observations to be made from the above. Firstly, Infosys is seen to be engaged in various, unconnected welfare activities. Though laudable, this may not be the best policy to adopt towards CSR because many of these have little or no relevance to its core business ability. Thus, there is a chance that it may drop them in the future if aspects of the activities start to clash with their normal business working. This will damage the entire premise of sustainability that the company promotes about its CSR. The extremely local nature of these activities (most are based in and around Karnataka) show that Infosys is perhaps trying to build a good relationship at home where it wants to address as many problems as possible. However, scaling up of these activities will be the real test of its CSR practices because being a global company it cannot afford to limit its welfare activities to only one region. This may raise questions about their sincerity as their efforts may be construed as simply trying to appease the authorities at home and maybe get benefits over its competition. In the next section we will see that in matters in which it has expertise, Infosys has already expanded its activities to the global level. Sustainable Social Change Infosys makes the proud claim of influencing sustainable social change through its varied development initiatives. [1] The following are some of these initiatives: Education and Intellectual Capability It is no secret that India is engineering-mad with Indian Engineering Institutions churning out over 500,000 science and engineering graduates every year. However, even as rival IT companies and a host of other recruiters vie with Infosys over the recruitment of the fresh, inexpensive engineering talent, there is little that these corporates have done to aid in the recognition and reward of top Indian research. This is a matter of pressing concern because not only does this hamper the intellectual capital of our country in relation to competition from overseas (Even China has more PhDs per capita than India) but it promotes a lack of systematic learning that ultimately results in making a lot of these graduates unfit for immediate industrial employment. It is here that Infosys has once again differentiated itself from the competition by undertaking ventures that promote science and engineering education as more than simply a means of landing a job. The Infosys Science Foundation (ISF) was set up with the goal of achieving the above. It was set up by some of the companys founder members in February 2009 with the aim to elevate the prestige of scientific research in India and inspire young Indians to choose a vocation in scientific research. The ISF honours outstanding contributions and achievements by Indians in various streams of science with the Infosys Prize in five categories: mathematical sciences, physical sciences, engineering and computer sciences, life sciences and social sciences. The award is given to Indian scientists below the age of 50. The Foundation is funded by an amount of Rs. 215,000,000 contributed by the members of the Infosys Board and an annual grant from Infosys Tech. Ltd. The annual award in each category amounts to Rs. 5,000,000. The importance of this award is highlighted by the names of its past winners and their achievements, for e.g. last year the award for Life Sciences went to Dr. Chetan Chitnis for having discovered the first viable malaria vaccine and the award for Engineering Sciences went to Prof. Ashutosh Sharma for his applications in energy storage. Along similar lines is the ACM Infosys Foundation Award in Computer Sciences, established in August 2007 and carrying a cash award of USD 150,000 provided by the Infosys Foundation Endowment. It aims to reward educators and researchers whose work in software systems foster innovations that address existing challenges in the domain. Assessment Unlike a number of Indian companies whose education related welfare activities focus primarily on issues of primary/basic education, Infosys initiatives are unique in that they are associated exclusively with the domain of higher technical education, a segment in which it is arguably the most respected company in the country. This allows it to create perfect synergy between its everyday business activities and its investments in the above initiatives because unlike a lot of other companies who get into CSR without doing their homework and as a result get accused of doing it for ulterior motives, Infosys engagement with the field of technical education is a natural extension of its business practices. Its approach in this direction must also be lauded. While Narayana Murty has been accused in the past of favouring foreign universities when it came to giving grants, his decision of having Infosys establish the above awards is a godsend for the research establishment in India because though grants may be siphoned off by agencies without the threat of accountability, awarding individuals for their excellence is more effective as it provides a greater encouragement for others to follow in their shoes. But Infosys has not completely ignored the primary and secondary education sectors either. It has just approached it in a different way and yet received accolades all the same. A case in point is the Akshaya Patra Foundation, which was founded in 2000 and has three senior Infosys members apart from numerous Infosys volunteers who work towards providing free midday meals to schoolchildren. The foundations functions in partnership with state and central governments and currently serves over 1.3 million students in 7699 schools across India. Its impact is easy to assess from third party recognitions: it was awarded an International Fellowship by the US Congressional Hunger Centre, it received the 2008 CNBC India Business Leader of the Year Award and it even made it to the MBA curriculum as a case study at the Harvard School of Business in 2007. Similarly, Infosys BPOs work on Project Genesis, under which it works to improve the written and spoken communication capabilities in addition to the analytical skills of students in Tier 2 and 3 towns of the country so that they become employable, was awarded as the best CSR initiative at the 8th National Outsourcing Association (NOA) Awards 2011, in London. It was especially lauded for making sure that no expense was incurred by the participating academicians in the program. Community Development Unlike the education schemes already mentioned, community development initiatives do not at first seem the best fit with the companys existing activities. However, Infosys has done its share of work in this domain too and while most of it has been in the vicinity of its offices, there are projects like the Flood Relief Project for the victims of northern Karnataka in which the company has participated quite actively. Only last year the first phase of their initiative to construct 2250 houses across 18 villages was completed and subsequently these houses were handed over to the villagers. Assessment This aspect of Infosys CSR efforts can also be criticized for not matching with the core business abilities of the organization. The question to be asked is whether Infosys could have done a better job as simply a service consultant (a domain in which it already has expertise) to a third-party organization and have the latter handle the actual on-ground developmental work. Also, nearly all of Infosys developmental work has come in the neighbourhood of Karnataka. The scalability of this work can be called into question much like in the case of the Infosys Foundation. Regionalized developmental work can always raise questions about its sincerity, i.e. whether they are simply means to appease the local public/authorities. Infosys Eco Group Plans and Implementation Infosys has been considering the worsening impact of businesses on the environment for several years and has understood the importance of a clean environment and energy efficient solutions. It has hence committed itself to come up with innovations which positively impact the environment and can lead to large energy savings. Many of these have been implemented at Infosys itself. Under this initiative of Green Innovation, Infosys has not only come with a number of ideas but has also implemented some of them in tangible forms: iSustain: Carbon energy and resource management tool that helps the user to generate and monitor the use of various resources such as energy and water etc. being used, take majors to allot them efficiently and also monitor the carbon footprint. InGreen Energy Management: A tool used by Infosys to monitor the energy consumption at micro level and to take majors to cut on unnecessary usage. Using this, Infosys has been successfully reducing its carbon emission at a rate of more than 5% per annum. InGreen Personal Carbon Calculator: A tool that helps the user organizations to assess their impact on ecological systems in terms of carbon emission. Smart Integrator for Smart Grid: A device that continuously monitors the power usage of various devices in the range using a sensor and controls them accordingly. Infosys also plans to become carbon neutral and shift to entirely renewable energy by 2017. The steps taken for the same seem to be promising which include building of renewable energy power generation plants (recently they have built a solar energy plant at Jaipur Campus) and aiming for a platinum rating, the highest rating given by LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for environment friendly architecture. In January 2012, the third building at the Mysore Campus achieved this rating. Besides these, Infosys has been taking small but effective measures to reduce its own energy consumption, such as building designs with maximum exposure to natural light, design of windows which could lead to reduction in room temperature thus saving on air conditioning consumption of energy, increasing use of green power and use of recycled water. (Refer Exhibit 1) Assessment In year 2011, Infosys has saved more than 4 lakh units of conventional energy units through the use of the renewable energy sources. Not only has this helped in energy conservation but it has also resulted in savings of Rs. 20 Crore for the organization. In a similar way, innovative ideas such as smart integrator, rooms having maximum exposure to day light, optimum room temperature maintenance measures and use of LED and CFL tubes in place of conventional ones saved more than 7 lakh units of electricity, accounting for monetary benefit of Rs. 35 lakhs. In addition to these, Infosys is working closely with the Karnataka Government and Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) for implementation of renewable energy power plants. It has been successful in convincing KERC to remove the cross-subsidy on renewable energy thus reducing its cost. Moreover as a result of these efforts, KERC has made it compulsory for the power utilities in Karnataka to buy at least 0.25% of total energy in form of solar energy, which will cost the end users only 4 paise more than regular rate per unit. Though listed under the CSR activities and initiated as Green Innovations, the activities mentioned above are not only intended to improve the environmental conditions as a social need but are also aimed at a reduction in Infosys energy consumption thereby giving it a competitive advantage as it can sell these innovative solutions to its clients as well. It is these latter observations that have been points of concern for critics who blame Infosys of hyping its energy savings and accuse it of Greenwashing. [18] Employee-Driven CSR Employees at Infosys are given ample opportunities to contribute to the society. This way of engaging employees to have hands on experience on CSR can also help the society, which needs responsible citizens to contribute man hours. The policy also helps these employees to attain their personal aspirations of serving the society. This sabbatical policy was initiated in the year 2008, where all the employees are encouraged to work through Infosys Foundation to support the needs of the society. The company as an entity is greatly supportive of its employees in executing the initiatives. The employees are made to pledge that they will make a difference to the society on a consistent basis. For effective execution, the company has individual divisions which run independent of each other under major themes like Health, Art, Education, Rural welfare and Rehabilitation and Targeted inclusive growth. A governance framework has also been put in place to streamline and implement the employee driven CSR initiatives in order to provide operational efficiencies and financial transparency.

The value of an education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

The value of an education - Essay Example One of the most well-known facts about society’s advancement is the fact that from an archaeological perspective, we have banded together to increase our chances of survival. At its root, this suggests that we band together to work together and to learn from one another. Learning from a person is what modern education is today. Society can only progress forward due in part to education and without it, it is a wasteful experience. Education progresses people beyond their limits, allowing for improvements that would not be otherwise possible. It becomes more concrete when perceived from the lens outside of what is commonly understood and held. The implications of a good education can become a persuasive argument for socioeconomic development. One can identify trends within any society to see that education is a tool for success when building a middle class and to some extent, solidifying the community. However, education is a complex issue that holds different keys and locks, al l of which cannot be answered through a singular answer. The importance of an education is valued through what it can grant, provided that individuals help to support their educators but are often hindered by aspects like geography, familial dynamics, and income; which should be overcome if one looks to improve society. Economic development can bring about change in its purest and simplest form. At its core, it can be said that an education has a key role in improving the quality of life and well-being. This is an important aspect of society.

Benefits of e-communications in integrated marketing communications Essay

Benefits of e-communications in integrated marketing communications - Essay Example as been integrated into today’s systems especially with the acceptance and rapid use of the internet which has simply brought a revolution on how things are done. (Pratten 2007) The marketing field has not been left behind in the use of e-communication. Integrated marketing on the other hand is a general term which seeks to describe an entire spectrum of marketing communication. It helps ensure that the messages communicated are both consistent and complementary. Integrated marketing utilizes both online marketing which is basically e-communication and offline methods in its roles. To shape this discussion coherently, it is important to first have the e communications methods discussed and in addition, the basic marketing milestones they help achieve. The final part will draw the benefits in each of the marketing communication fields. (Tony 1999). To start with, it is almost impossible to form a paper on marketing without looking at the basic foundations of marketing which are the four P’s. Every marketer aims at achieving these as far as strategic positioning of goods is concerned. This is known as the marketing mix in a marketing field. Marketing mix is defined as a set of controllable marketing tools harnessed together to help achieve the laid down objectives of the selling company. This is the exchange value of the product or the amount paid by a customer in the exchange of a good. A price in most cases is subject to many factors either present in the company or externally determined. Factors determining the price of a good are mainly the market share of the particular company, competition levels, the total cost of producing these goods and finally the perceived value of the goods by the customers. This refers to the sum total of all the communications a marketer undertakes for the purpose of ensuring that the word about availability of a product goes out to the potential buyers/customers. This last P is the subject of this study as we look at how it