Does Technology Make Us More Alone? Essay

Technology is supposed to make us more connected. We can stay in touch with our friends all the time on Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, and obviously by texting or messaging. But are our smartphones actually getting in the way of real socializing? Could technology be making us more alone? Even though technology helps us to communicate with people around the world but it also can make us become more isolated. â€Å"Get connected† is a phrase that we have grown accustomed to hearing and seeing in the 21st century. With technology developing faster than ever, the digital world is at our fingertips. Some might say that the introduction of social networking has helped to bring people closer together all around the world. Though our online communities may have a likeness to real-life societies, they are in fact nothing but numb conceptions of our day to day lives fuelled by self-pride and egoism. With our reliance on social media sites such as Facebook actually cutting us from real-life society, it is a sad truth that mankind is looking at a very forlorn and pitiful future. Instead of meeting someone in person and hanging out with them more, we tend to text or utilize our smartphones to talk to people. Technology makes us more alone because we are always depending on our phones and other technology; when we start to get too attached to our gadgets, we start to compare our life with the lives of others, and we just ourselves with the amount likes and followers someone else has. Besides, being lonely is a big deal. Research revealed that being lonely is even more dangerous to your health than being overweight. Loneliness can increase your risk of dying by 26%. According to The Independent, â€Å"Recent research indicates that this may be the next biggest public health issue on par with obesity and substance abuse.† Technology is great if we use it correctly with a certain limit, if we do not it is going to tear our lives apart if we become too attached to it. We are more focused on talking to someone thousands of miles away rather than someone who is right next to us. When we use technology constantly it makes it harder for us to interact with people in real life. The more time we spent on our phones and televisions the harder it will be for us to interact and talk to people in the real life. Research has shown that people who have lots of friends tend to be happier, healthier and they live longer than the ones who do not have many or any friends in real life. Many people build relationships online and for a while, they would not feel lonely but over time we will feel frustrated because we cannot interact with the other person face to face. We scroll through our Instagram in silence when we are in the car with your family. We text our friend instead of meeting them in person. It is easier for us to make friends virtually than in real life. This shows how attached we are to technology. Being too focused on a screen makes you forget the difference between being alone and being lonely. Technology negatively influences our social interaction, it makes people more socially awkward and lonely. In fact, a study by greater good suggests that â€Å"smartphone use may be taking a toll on our biological capacity to connect with other people†. Technology is affecting our society in a negative way, but that does not mean that we are going to stop using technology, it has come to stay. But it is up to us to decide how much we let technology domin ate our lives. At the end, it is always our decision if we want to see the world through a screen or your own eyes.

Family and Happiness

Hello Professor Do you know what happiness is? Where does it come from? In this essay I will conduct an experiment for what older, experienced adults may think happiness is. To what preteens may think happiness is. The following includes the people I’m experimenting on and their results to my questions. Six Questions First suspect: Church Member Sis Wims Question: What is happiness in your own words? Answer: I think happiness is your smile and the way you act toward others. Question: what influenced you to give the answer that you gave? Answer: because it my personality and I walk around with a smile all day. Question: What has brought you happiness? Answer: My job, my family and my good health. Question: Do you think other people have different perspectives of happiness? Answer: yes, because some people have happiness and different ways I think some is can use happiness as how they live with big fine home, cars, money and all the luxuries things in their home. Question: Can happiness be bought? Answer: No, because you cannot buy happiness it will come on its own. You may feel happiness in your heart. Question: Do you find happiness in the little things? Answer: Yes I can find happiness in little things by meeting new friends helping the elderly peoples help out with the people in my church is a good leader. Be one of the best people that I can do my best in what do. Second suspect: Granddaughter Maya Question: What is happiness in your own words? Answer: Happiness in my own words would be being around family members and being loved by others. Question: what influenced you to give the answer that you gave? Answer: When I was younger my uncle Paris died and I was so happy to see all my family members there to support my mom and siblings. To see the support of my family member it brought me great happiness. Also when I come out of school my grandmother is outside waiting for us in her car to pick me up. Question: What has brought you happiness? Answer: My siblings and loving grandmother brought me happiness. Question: Do you think other people have different perspectives of happiness? Answer: Yes I do think people have different perspectives of happiness because it all depends where you come from and how you were raised. Question: Can happiness be bought? Answer: I don’t think so because what brings you happiness is from deep down inside and what comes from your soul. Question: Do you find happiness in the little things? Answer: Yes I do find happiness in little things like young love or accepting who you are inside. In conclusion the age difference may not change how one person may think happiness is. Both my suspect have almost the same ideas of happiness. I also agree with their answers. I may not know what other peoples definition of happiness is but I know what mines are and the people around me. Happiness may change over time but mostly everyone knows what they really want in their life. You may not see what makes you happy right away but when you do I will be more obvious than ever before. I remember the song of Al Green â€Å"Love and Happiness†. Like in the song â€Å"Love make you do right, love make you do wrong make you stay out all night long. Happiness can bring many different things. Happiness made me return back to school. Without returning back to school I don’t think I’ll have the happiness I have right now. Happiness will never come to those who don’t appreciate it. So from all this I can what I like the most from this experiment was how people explained what they thought happiness was. As I was a little girl I always believed in a good life that I could live in that I could be very happy for rest of my life. Have a happy family, a nice paying job and a loving home. Life brings happiness that look for it. It is gentle. Happiness is a dance you choose which one you want to dance to probably a nice gentle dance. Happiness is everything you put into it. How you show your love to others. I think happiness is the best thing that you can accomplished out of life. It does matter how or what you did to get it all that matters is that you have it now. Thank you professor I did it!

Seventeenth-Century Art Royalty and Riches Essay

Seventeenth-Century Art Royalty and Riches - Essay Example The illusionistic style that had been developed presented a different angle to the viewer to deter from the usual pieces known to predict some societal events. Some of the paintings in the seventeenth century had been based on the Ostentatious Illusionism. The concept saw the application of an illusion style that had been meant to cause impressionism in the minds of the viewer. The concept saw inclusion of visual elements that cause an impression that saw critical elements that defined the composition. The seventeenth century paintings had been based on the aspect of visual illusion and distortion of elements to suit the provision of delivering a composition that contain the illusionistic elements (Stella 1986, p28). Moreover, Christianity had influenced the period and artists were under the authority of the church to create pieces that depicted the religious forms. The seventeenth century art had mostly been based on the two styles of illusionism and realism that saw the development of outstanding pieces mostly ceiling paintings that had been commissioned by the church. The style saw the influence in art across Europe, particularly in the Baroque period and the paintings by some famous Dutch artists. The style that had been dubbed Ostentatious illusionism saw a massive contribution to the development and creation of the seventeenth-century paintings and influenced various artists in differentiated ways. Baroque The seventeenth century witnessed the development of elements to derive the component of illusion to develop the known Baroque style. The period had been marked by the discoveries in the scientific technology and numerous religious developments that saw the enhancement of a style that held numerous techniques. The illusionism created in the Baroque era had been the response derived by the artists of the technique to develop the perception criteria (Stoichit?a? 1997, p117). Art pieces needed to hold more effects and meaning to the viewer and bear added l iteral definition. The artists managed to create forms that had structures meant to create an outstanding effect to the perception that meant the application of a unique illusionistic style. Within the baroque style, trompe l’oeil painting style had been developed to highlight the illusionistic effects. Within the Baroque style, the outstanding style that had been developed saw the development in the illusionistic ceiling paintings. In the style, the developed techniques saw illusion develop in the theme of di sotto in su and the renowned quadrata techniques of completion in paintings. With these forms, the style developed saw the inclusion of an outstanding perspective element that distorted the ceiling paintings to appear to have an extended dimension. The style saw the development of a three-dimensional illusion within a developed two-dimensional surface. The other illusionistic forms developed the perspective element and invention of trompe l’oeil that advanced the distortion element within paintings in the seventeenth century (Peucker 2007, p9). The style witnessed the increased definition of concepts to include an added meaning to the completion of works. The church grew more interested in the artistic influences and sought to incorporate illusion within the pieces created. The artists chose to adopt the illusion technique in Baroque to intrigue the viewer and enable the church to spread the needed

Issues in Global Political Economy Research Paper

Issues in Global Political Economy - Research Paper Example As the research stresses natural resource abundance hinders economic growth. Many countries in African have plenty of natural resources such as gold, oil, and copper among many others. More than two-thirds of their products moving outside the country are natural resources, and yet these nations are poor and politically unstable. The countries depend on foreign investors for their economic feasibility. As the paper discusses some countries rich in oil minerals such as Iran, Kuwait, and Libya experienced slow growth in the last several decades. Moreover, members of the OPEC, in general, experience a fall in the GNP per capita whereas states not rich in minerals enjoyed a growth in their GNP per capita. South Africa went through a period of de-industrialization and a disappointing economic growth in the 1970's during the boom in gold prices. Several factors led the effects key of them being that the real exchange rate appreciated, and depreciation followed after that. The world saw a shift in making of cocoa paste from countries such as Peru and Venezuela to Colombia after the disruption of the air bridge. Consequently, a booming demand for Colombian coca was experienced, and many people in Columbia became self-employed, and teenagers in the rural areas got work to do. Although, the boom had economic spillover effects as well as financial opportunities it marked the beginning of viol ence and conflicts in major cities.

Career research report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Career research report - Assignment Example Ways of obtaining this information often eludes the graduates and they end up going back and forth between applications without success. This lack of understanding leads students leads graduates to settle on wrong choices. In my case, I am applying for the position of a sales executive that I saw in an advertisement. I conducted a thorough research into the details of this job including its pros and cons. This report should empower me with the knowledge, from tedious research, that I need to increase my employability in this field. This report outlines the details of the position, the methodology I used to conduct my research and the sources I used. It also analyzes the pros and cons of this career choice; showing the long tern and short term aspects of this field. This report also analyzes the chances of graduates getting jobs as sales executives and the problems they face making this transition. The sales profession, including managers and executives, has been around since mankind discovered they could sell things. The earliest forms of sales include prostitution, which was among the first fields to be recorded as having employed all the techniques used by sales people today. Other examples include the sale of homes and used cars, just to name a few. In the beginning, the field of sales was not as crowded as it is now. Most businesses’ sizes ranged from small to medium; therefore, the sales were handled mostly by the owners. Only in rare cases could one find a business that had employed personnel to aid in sales. The business owners were focused on fulfilling the customer needs by meeting orders and had no need fro sales and marketing. They did not feel the pressure that is present today to branch out their businesses. This was before the industrial revolution (edis.ifas.ufl.edu). After the industrial revolution, businesses had the ability to increase their production and serve a larger client base. From here, the need for sales personnel grew by the d ay. Businesses were branching out to new locations, employing sales executives and managers along the way to spread the reach of their product. Sales executives acted as a go-between for the consumer and the producer and nothing more. Recent trends, however, reveal the use of sales executives to gather information about specific client expectations to help improve product and service quality. Competition has grown through sales executives’ efforts to sell quality services and products. They play a major part in influencing the production process through the intelligence they gather. Sales executives receive training on how to obtain information about their products from the customers. This information is taken to the managers who use it in the production process to increase sell ability of the products. Sales executives offer a great deal of service to these companies, not only through sale of product but also through gathering of information. They are tasked with the duty of answering product questions while out in the field. In doing so, they promote the customers’ confidence in the product and in the company making it. Occupational Research Terms of Reference This research was conducted diligently and following due procedure. The purpose was to understand what it entails to be a sales executive. The research also sought out to determine the skills and qualifications required for employment. It outlines the details of the position,

Criminal Litigation. Case Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Criminal Litigation. Case Management - Essay Example The inclusion of expert evidence in civil and trial has increased remarkably to encompass, for example, modern and innovative scientific procedures and related assessment reports. This paper critically examines how courts have influenced expert evidence at trial. Common law traditions require that expert witnesses are only sought with the permission of the court and that the principal obligation of the experts is to remain impartial to the court during the course of their submissions. The obligations and conduct of expert witnesses are well stated in both the Practice Direction 35 and the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) Part 35, with CPR Part 35.3 specifically indicating that: experts are duty-bound to assist the judicial process on the issues within the scope of their respective professions. The obligation surpasses any duty to the party from whom such a professional has received briefing or who is responsible for their earnings (Gans 353). In addition, Practice Direction 35.2 also indicates that expert evidence should be the impartial outcome of the expert who is free from the duress caused by the long-drawn and challenging litigation procedures. However, the fact that there are two different categories of experts raises the controversy of impartiality at trial. As Sonenshein and Fitzpatrick (14) noted, an expert with clear directions to provide evidence at trial and another expert whose evidence is basically advisory may have clearly delineated mandates. However, the provisions of CPR Part 35 and Practice Direction 35 normally apply in factual evidence provision rather than giving opinion evidence at trial. Expert evidence in court processes is regarded as having the potential to shade more light on issues which are beyond the understanding of conventional fact-finding process. However, members of the court are sometimes ill-equipped to tell whether expert

Acceptable Use Policy & Security Audit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Acceptable Use Policy & Security Audit - Essay Example In a sense, AUP provides a way to carry out things in an organization’s information systems. Any unacceptable behavior that is not outlined in the AUP is liable to lawful action. In conducting a security audit in my computer, I am currently using Windows 7. I have not conducted any OS updates in the past 3 weeks. In addition, there are some software application updates, like You Tube downloaders, IDM, which I have not conducted an update to date. I use the Firefox browser version 3.2 in my computer, a version which is already outdated and would require update to a recent version (Harriett 63). I usually use a registered Kaspersky antivirus, though it is seems that is has not been updated for the past 1 month. I usually used the antivirus to conduct a full system scan on my computer, which it always eliminates most of the viruses. My computer has the admin and user account. Admin is for me and is password protected while the user account does not have a password and any one can use it (Harriett 89). The security level of the user accounts does not exist. It is only in the administrator side that my security level on my crucial files is good. Firewall is always enabled to prevent entry of unknown viruses and trojans in to my computer (Harriett 67). Currently I have a screen saver, though it does not require a password to clear

Developing a question (picot) Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Developing a question (picot) - Research Paper Example llows: Among the young generation of the modern world (P), the dependency on technology has increased to a high level (I) in comparison to earlier times (C), having both positive and negative impacts on their activities (O) in the times of a rapidly developing world (T). Thus if a research is conducted based on this question, the study would be conducted on the younger generation who forms the target population of the study. The emphasis of the study would be on an understanding of the use of technology in the modern times and comparing the situation with earlier days. The outcomes or consequences would be reflected; the study being based on the time period and development of the technology in the world. The PICOT format gives a clear direction of the research objective and hence enables the researcher to use the appropriate measures that may lead to the desired results or learning through a proper research design and implementation and preparation of report. 1) Rios, L.P. Ye, C & L. Thabane. (2010). Association between framing of the research question using the PICOT format and reporting quality of randomized controlled trials, BMC Medical Research Methodology, 10(11), pp.1-8, Retrieved on September 25, 2011 from:

Physiology and metabolism, cardiovascular system, MacMan computer Essay

Physiology and metabolism, cardiovascular system, MacMan computer simuklation - Essay Example Physiological homeostasis in the cardiovascular system is maintained depending on baroreceptor and chemoreceptor reflexes. Baroreceptor reflexes respond to changes in blood pressure and chemoreceptor reflexes respond to changes in pH, which are usually caused by an increase or decrease in blood CO2 (Scanlon & Sanders, 2011). Question 1: What happens to the blood pressure and heart rate? The systolic blood pressure is increased to 132.8 mmHg and the diastolic pressure is increased to 82.2 mmHg. The heart rate is decreased to 51.8/min (table 1). When arterial resistance is increased, the vessels experience vasoconstriction, which leads to an increase in blood pressure and a decrease in heart rate. Changing the heart rate resulted into a change in the time of the systole and that of the cardiac relaxation. The alteration in the blood pressure and cardiac output displayed a plateau, but increased by a small margin. At low heart rates, the existence of pericardial constraints causes a limitation in the viscous pressure (Her, Mandy, & Bairamian, 2005). A decrease in the heart rate led to the redistribution of the thoracic compartment from the extracic hence causing a reduction in the blood pressure. Question 2: What might give rise to the altered arterial resistance in a natural situation? The result of altered arterial resistance is increased high blood pressure (hypertension). Systolic pressure ranging between 125 and 139 mmHg and diastolic pressure that range between 60 and 80 mmHg are often considered prehypertension. This can be caused by stress, smoking, and high level of salt consumption (Her, Mandy, & Bairamian, 2005).

Coretta Scott King Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Coretta Scott King - Essay Example Discussion Coretta Scott King had worked most of her life for equal rights and peace among the mass. During the time when she was born, African Americans did not have the equivalent rights as other people had. The Scott family was also treated badly because they were African Americans3. The basic identity of Coretta Scott King had been shaped due to racism that she had to encounter in Alabama, in her formative years. She was by then a political activist before her marriage4. She had become a fervent follower of the left-wing Progressive Party, while breaching racial barriers at Antioch College as an undergraduate. Coretta Scott King was attracted to her future husband’s idealism after coming in the New England Conservatory, located in Boston in order to study music. Martin Luther’s rejection of the notion of â€Å"making all the money you can and ignoring people’s needs† had reinforced her own views. They married in the year 1953 and had moved to Alabama, where Dr. King became preacher of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. All through the 1950s and 1960s, she escorted her husband in his campaign for civil rights5. Coretta King emerged as a public figure primarily after the assassination of her husband. She sought opportunities to express her irrepressible idealism. Coretta Scott King joined ‘Women’s Strike for Peace to the Disarmament Conference’ held in Switzerland, Geneva, during the early 1960s expressing her opposition to the Vietnam War several years before her husband was willing to take a public anti-war stand. Similar to her husband, she too viewed the civil rights struggle in the broader context of anti-colonial movements in Asia and Africa, in the United States. She along with her husband attended the independence ceremony of Ghana, i.e. Africa’s first black-ruled nation in the year of 1957. In 1959, the Kings travelled to India, where she sang spiritual songs at events in which her husband spoke. After the family moved to Atlanta in the year 1960, she appealed to John F. Kennedy thereby helping to achieve her husband’s discharge from a Georgia reformatory. Furthermore, in 1964, she attended the ceremony in Norway, Oslo for which Dr. King had received Nobel Peace Prize. During mid - 1960s, Coretta King’s association in the civil rights movement had augmented because she took part in ‘freedom concerts’ that encompassed singing, poetry recitation and lectures representing the record of the civil rights movement. The proceeds received were bequeathed to the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Before 1968, she also maintained speaking about the commitments that her husband could not accomplish6. Coretta, being the founding president of the King Center, not only campaigned assiduously to establish the national King Holiday but also revealed her magnanimous vision of universal peace as well as social righteousness. She had dynamically propagated her husband’s philosophy of nonviolence after his assassination7. She strongly assumed that death penalty continues the cycle of brutality and shatters all anticipations for a descent civilization. Few days after her husband’s assassination, in Memphis, she led a march on behalf of her husband for sanitation workers. In addition, she also launched the

Characters in Relation to a Bee Hive Essay Example for Free

Characters in Relation to a Bee Hive Essay In Sue Monk Kidd’s novel The Secret Life of Bees, the female community and the roles in a colony of honeybees go hand in hand in completing the underlying theme that assists the plot’s development. The characters throughout the novel present many parallels to the novel’s main symbol: bees. The aspects of a colony and how every bee, each with a different job works together for a common goal or purpose, reflects significantly on the plot and on the main characters. The symbol of bees is related to many extremely significant themes in the novel such as the power of the female community, and the need for a mother. The jobs of bees in a colony directly relate to and draw parallels to the main characters in the story and the strength of the female community. The brood or baby bee, the worker bees, and the Queen bee are all important roles within a hive of bees just as each different role is important within a household or community. Coming of age in an imperative theme within the plot. A brood or a baby bee characterizes initial innocence and growing up. Lily Owens, the antagonist of the novel, is on a journey of self-discovery, which is comparable to a baby bee in a colony learning its place in the hive. In her growing up, Lily learns important lessons, which help her in the coming-of-age process. Not only is Lily on a journey mentally but she is also on a voyage to find out if her mother truly left her when she was young. Finding out the truth was quite possibly the hardest part of Lily’s journey: â€Å"Knowing can be a curse on a person’s life. I’d traded in a pack of lie for a pack of truth, and I didn’t know which one was heavier. Which one took the most strength to carry around? It was a ridiculous question, though, because once you know the truth, you can’t ever go back and pick up your suitcase of lies. Heavier or not, the truth is yours now† (Monk Kidd 256). When she finds out the truth, although the insightfulness exemplified demonstrates her increasing maturity, the anguish in her tone characterizes that she is still a young person with extreme emotions. Lily learns that in fact, refusing to know something is bliss but bliss is not necessarily happiness. Lily, although would feel more comfortable not knowing the actuality of the issue, understands that now that she knows the truth, there is no â€Å"un-knowing†. She realizes that she can either dwell over fact or learn from it. The astute that Lily illustrates, demonstrates that she is in fact maturing, and becoming a large part of the community. When Lily’s extremely obnoxious father, who abused her both mentally and physically, intruded into the house where Lily was staying, storming in and demanding her to come home with him, Lily’s increasing maturity, once again overpowered her once young voice and eventually persuaded him to leave: â€Å"He drove slowly, not tearing down the road like I expected. I watched till he was gone from sight then turned and looked at August and Rosaleen and the Daughters on the porch. This is the moment I remember clearest of all-how I stood in the driveway looking back at them. I remember the sight of them standing there waiting. All these women, all this love, waiting† (299). Lily now understands that her biological mother, the one she has been yearning for her entirety, was in fact never going to be with her. Lily finally accepted this and saw that a mother does not need to be biological, nor does it need to be just one. A female role model, someone strong, courageous, and loving can be found in any women. The racist community Lily grew up in during the 50’s, where black women were looked down upon, was absolutely defied. Lily accepted that her biggest role models, her mothers, were a group of black women. The maturity required while overcoming a deep, racist thought surrounding one’s mind from the most thought-influencing time of development, is extensive and far-reaching. The power of love is finally understood by Lily and therefore embodying her hunger for knowledge of adult knowledge. Lily’s love interest, Zachary Taylor, a black boy is a seemingly outrageous thought for anyone who looked in on the tight night community of the Daughter of Mary. Zach and Lily shared a distant but true and pure love for one another: The silver rectangle dropped down under my shirt, where it dangled cold and certain between my breasts. Zachary Lincoln Taylor rested there, along my heart† (231). This type of love is a first for Lily. The perplexing, untouched and weakening bound of love between two individuals who are in love was something Lily had never previously sensed.

Prime Numbers Divide

Prime Numbers Divide Prime Numbers: History, Facts and Examples Prime Numbers: An Introduction Prime number is the number, which is greater than 1 and cannot be divided by any number excluding itself and one. A prime number is a positive integer that has just two positive integer factors, including 1 and itself. Such as, if the factors of 28 are listed, there are 6 factors that are 1, 2, 4, 7, 14, and 28. Similarly, if the factors of 29 are listed, there are only two factors that are 1 and 29. Therefore, it can be inferred that 29 is a prime number, but 28 is not. Examples of prime numbers The first few prime numbers are as follows: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, 89, 97, 101, 103, 107, 109, 113, 127, 131, 137, 139, 149, 151, 157, 163, 167, 173, 179, 181, 191, 193, 197, 199, etc. Identifying the primes The ancient Sieve of Eratosthenes is a simple way to work out all prime numbers up to a given limit by preparing a list of all integers and repetitively striking out multiples of already found primes. There is also a modern Sieve of Atkin, which is more complex when compared to that of Eratosthenes. A method to determine whether a number is prime or not, is to divide it by all primes less than or equal to the square root of that number. If the results of any of the divisions are an integer, the original number is not a prime and if not, it is a prime. One need not actually calculate the square root; once one sees that the quotient is less than the divisor, one can stop. This is called as the trial division, which is the simplest primality test but it is impractical for testing large integers because the number of possible factors grows exponentially as the number of digits in the number to be tested increases. Primality tests: A primality test algorithm is an algorithm that is used to test a number for primality, that is, whether the number is a prime number or not. AKS primality test The AKS primality test is based upon the equivalence (x a)n = (xn a) (mod n) for a coprime to n, which is true if and only if n is prime. This is a generalization of Fermats little theorem extended to polynomials and can easily be proven using the binomial theorem together with the fact that: for all 0 (x a)n = (xn a) (mod n, x r 1), which can be checked in polynomial time. Fermat primality test Fermats little theorem asserts that if p is prime and 1≠¤ a a p -1≠¡ 1 (mod p) In order to test whether p is a prime number or not, one can pick random as in the interval and check if there is an equality. Solovay-Strassen primality test For a prime number p and any integer a, A (p -1)/2 ≠¡ (a/p) (mod p) Where (a/p) is the Legendre symbol. The Jacobi symbol is a generalisation of the Legendre symbol to (a/n); where n can be any odd integer. The Jacobi symbol can be computed in time O((log n) ²) using Jacobis generalization of law of quadratic reciprocity. It can be observed whether or not the congruence A (n -1)/2 ≠¡ (a/n) (mod n) holds for various values of a. This congruence is true for all as if n is a prime number. (Solovay, Robert M. and Volker Strassen, 1977) Lucas-Lehmer test This test is for a natural number n and in this test, it is also required that the prime factors of n − 1 should be already known. If for every prime factor (q) of n − 1, there exists an integer a less than n and greater than 1 such as a n -1 ≠¡1 (mod n) and then a n -1/q 1 (mod n) then n is prime. If no such number can be found, n is composite number. Miller-Rabin primality test If we can find an a such that ad ≠¡ 1 (mod n), and a2nd -1 (mod n) for all 0 ≠¤ r ≠¤ s 1 then ‘a proves the compositeness of n. If not, ‘a is called a strong liar, and n is a strong probable prime to the base a. â€Å"Strong liar† refers to the case where n is composite but yet the equations hold as they would for a prime number. There are several witnesses ‘a for every odd composite n. But, a simple way to generate such an ‘a is known. Making the test probabilistic is the solution: we choose randomly, and check whether it is a witness for the composite nature of n. If n is composite, majority of the ‘as are witnesses, therefore the test will discover n as a composite number with high probability. (Rabin, 1980) A probable prime is an integer, which is considered to be probably prime by passing a certain test. Probable primes, which are actually composite (such as Carmichael numbers) are known as pseudoprimes. Besides these methods, there are other methods also. There is a set of Diophantine equations in 9 variables and one parameter in which the parameter is a prime number only if the resultant system of equations has a solution over the natural numbers. A single formula with the property of all the positive values being prime can be obtained with this method. There is another formula that is based on Wilsons theorem. The number ‘two is generated several times and all other primes are generated exactly once. Also, there are other similar formulas that can generate primes. Some primes are categorized as per the properties of their digits in decimal or other bases. An example is that the numbers whose digits develop a palindromic sequence are palindromic primes, and if by consecutively removing the first digit at the left or the right generates only new prime numbers, a prime number is known as a truncatable prime. The first 5,000 prime numbers can be known very quickly by just looking at odd numbers and checking each new number (say 5) against every number above it (3); so if 5Mod3 = 0 then its not a prime number. History of prime numbers The most ancient and acknowledged proof for the statement that â€Å"There are infinitely many prime numbers†, is given by Euclid in his Elements (Book IX, Proposition 20). The Sieve of Eratosthenes is a simple, ancient algorithm to identify all prime numbers up to a particular integer. After this, came the modern Sieve of Atkin, which is faster but more complex. The Sieve of Eratosthenes was created in the 3rd century BC by Eratosthenes. Some clues can be found in the surviving records of the ancient Egyptians regarding their knowledge of prime numbers: for example, the Egyptian fraction expansions in the Rhind papyrus have fairly different forms for primes and for composites. But, the first surviving records of the clear study of prime numbers come from the Ancient Greeks. Euclids Elements (circa 300 BC) include key theorems about primes, counting the fundamental theorem of arithmetic and the infinitude of primes. Euclid also explained how a perfect number is constructed fro m a Mersenne prime. After the Greeks, nothing special happened with the study of prime numbers till the 17th century. In 1640, Pierre de Fermat affirmed Fermats little theorem, which was later on proved by Leibniz and Euler. Chinese may have identified a special case of Fermats theorem much earlier. Fermat assumed that all numbers of the form 22n + 1 are prime and he proved this up to n = 4. But, the subsequent Fermat number 232+1 is composite; whose one prime factor is 641). This was later on discovered by Euler and now no further Fermat numbers are recognized as prime numbers. A French monk, Marin Mersenne looked at primes of the form 2p 1, with p as a prime number. They are known as Mersenne primes after his name. Euler showed that the infinite series 1/2 + 1/3 + 1/5 + 1/7 + 1/11 + †¦ is divergent. In 1747, Euler demonstrated that even the perfect numbers are in particular the integers of the form 2p-1(2p-1), where the second factor is a Mersenne prime. It is supposed that there are no odd perfect numbers, but it is not proved yet. In the beginning of the 19th century, Legendre and Gauss independently assumed that because x tends to infinity, the number of primes up to x is asymptotic to x/log(x), where log(x) is the natural logarithm of x. Awards for finding primes A prize of US$100,000 has been offered by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) to the first discoverers of a prime with a minimum 10 million digits. Also, $150,000 for 100 million digits, and $250,000 for 1 billion digits has been offered. In 2000, $50,000 for 1 million digits were paid. Apart from this, prizes up to US$200,000 for finding the prime factors of particular semi-primes of up to 2048 bits were offered by the RSA Factoring Challenge. Facts about prime numbers 73939133 is an amazing prime number. If the last or the digit at the units place is removed, every time you will get a prime number. It is the largest known prime with this property. Because, all the numbers which we get after removing the end digit of the number are also prime numbers. They are as follows: 7393913, 739391, 73939, 7393, 739, 73 and 7. All these numbers are prime numbers. This is a distinct quality of the number 73939133, which any other number does not have. (Amazing number facts, 2008) The only even prime number is 2. All other even numbers can be divided by 2. So, they are not prime numbers. Zero and 1 are not considered to be prime numbers. If the sum of the digits of a number is a multiple of 3, that number can be divided by 3. With the exception of 0 and 1, a number is either a prime number or a composite number. A composite number is identified as any number that is greater than 1 and that is not prime. The last digit of a prime number greater than 5 can never be 5. Any number greater than 5 whose last digit is 5 can be divided by 5. (Prime Numbers, 2008) 1/2 0.5 Terminates 1/3 0.33333 Repeating block: 1 digit 1/5 0.2 Terminates 1/7 0.1428571428 Repeating block: 6 digits 1/11 0.090909 Repeating block: 2 digits 1/13 0.0769230769 Repeating block: 6 digits 1/17 0.05882352941176470588 Repeating block: 16 digits 1/19 0.0526315789473684210526 Repeating block: 18 digits 1/23 0.04347826086956521739130434 Repeating block: 22 digits For some of the prime numbers, the size of the repeating block is 1 less than the prime. These are known as Golden Primes. 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, 89, 97 9 primes out of the 25 (less than 100) are golden primes; this forms 36% (9/25). (Amazing number facts, 2008) Examples of mathematicians specialized in prime numbers Arthur Wieferich, D. D. Wall, Zhi Hong Sun and Zhi Wei Sun, Joseph Wolstenholme, Joseph Wolstenholme, Euclid, Eratosthenes. Applications of prime numbers For a long time, the number theory and the study of prime numbers as well was seen as the canonical example of pure mathematics with no applications beyond the self-interest of studying the topic. But, in the 1970s, it was publicly announced that prime numbers could be used as a basis for creating the public key cryptography algorithms. They were also used for hash tables and pseudorandom number generators. A number of rotor machines were designed with a different number of pins on each rotor. The number of pins on any one rotor was either prime, or co-prime to the number of pins on any other rotor. With this, a full cycle of possible rotor positions (before repeating any position) was generated. Prime numbers in the arts and literature Also, prime numbers have had a significant influence on several artists and writers. The French composer Olivier Messiaen created ametrical music through natural phenomena with the use of prime numbers. In his works, La Natività © du Seigneur (1935) and Quatre à ©tudes de rythme (1949-50), he has used motifs with lengths given by different prime numbers to create unpredictable rhythms: 41, 43, 47 and 53 are the primes that appear in one of the à ©tudes. A scientist of NASA, Carl Sagan recommended (in his science fiction ‘Contact) that prime numbers could be used for communication with the aliens. The award-winning play ‘Arcadia by Tom Stoppard was a willful attempt made to discuss mathematical ideas on the stage. In the very first scene, the 13 year old heroine baffles over the Fermats last theorem (theorem that involves prime numbers). A popular fascination with the mysteries of prime numbers and cryptography has been seen in various films. References Amazing number facts, 2008. Retrieved April 28, 2008 from http://www.madras.fife.sch.uk/maths/amazingnofacts/fact018.html Prime Numbers, 2008. Retrieved April 28, 2008 from http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0876084.html Solovay, Robert M. Strassen, V. (1977). A fast Monte-Carlo test for primality. SIAM Journal on Computing 6 (1): 84-85. Rabin, M.O. (1980). Probabilistic algorithm for testing primality, Journal of Number Theory 12, no. 1, pp. 128-138.

Corporate strategies of Skanska Construction

Corporate strategies of Skanska Construction Strategic planning and strategic management have attracted continuing interest from both researchers and executives over past decades. Strategic decision making although recently taken into account in the construction industry is one of the key drivers of success. Since construction is a project-based and highly fragmented industry, corporate strategies are difficult to develop. Studies so far point out the significance of project management competencies in delivering successful projects, however the organizational performance heavily rely on the effectiveness of the strategic decisions made by the companies based on their competitive resources and the market conditions where they operate. In this work, a world-known construction company, Skanska Construction from Sweden, is taken as a case and its corporate strategies together with its competitive resources are analyzed. Future directions for the company are discussed in the light of the challenges faced by the company. Keywords: Corporate strategy, construction industry, strategic analysis. INTRODUCTION It is generally considered that modern organizations should develop long term strategies in the face of an increasingly dynamic and competitive world. Porter (1980, 1985) suggested that a company needs to develop a competitive strategy in order to achieve competitive advantage in a market economy. Strategy has grown from a practice of military commanders and corporate executives into the field of management science. It has enjoyed contributions from various disciplines such as economics, organizational sociology, political science and cognitive psychology (Rumelt et al., 1994). Differing perspectives of strategy development and implementation have evolved, centering generally on ones view of the capacity and motives of individuals and organizations (Whittington, 2001). Mainstream strategic studies, however, have not typically considered the construction industry, and conventional thought within the industry has often downplayed strategys significance. Strategy is defined as a plan, pattern, position, perspective, and ploy (Mintzberg et al., 1998). Its significant effect on performance is demonstrated empirically in the literature (Porter, 1980). Emphasizing the importance of strategic decision, Child (1972) also stated that companies can achieve higher organizational performance by adopting different competitive positioning alternatives based on strategic decisions. Lately, construction industry researchers have changed this perception to some degree as publications regarding strategic management have increased. Warszawski (1996) outlined a methodological procedure for strategic planning in construction companies. Serving as somewhat of a primer to construction professionals on the topic, he discussed the definition of companys mission, the significance of business environment, and a broad outline of the steps involved in analyzing a companys resources. His elaboration on the development of competitive strategy was based largely on Porters (1980) theory of generic strategy. Chinowsky and Meredith (2000) conducted a survey to identify areas of strategic concern that construction organizations need to emphasize. Venegas and Alarcon (1997) were the first to propose a simplified model of variables affecting strategic decisions before recommending a mathematical model to predict the impact of the decisions. In this paper, the corporate strategies of a very well known Swedish construction company, Skanska Construction, will be analyzed. In doing so, first of all the components of corporate strategy will be investigated based on a literature review. The performance models that examined the importance of strategies and competitive resources will also be included as a part of this study. The major section will deal with Skanskas success based on its corporate strategies and competitive resources. Besides, the external factors including the market conditions together will be discussed along with the future directions of the company. CORPORATE STRATEGY IN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY Corporate Strategy Cheah and Garvin (2004) developed a framework to define corporate strategy. The model divides corporate strategy into seven strategic fields as shown in Figure 1. All strategic fields rightly are separate, major components within the realm of corporate strategy. Whereas some strategic models such as Porters (1985) value chain concept treated activities like human resource (HR) management merely as supporting activities, this model casts these strategic fields as distinct areas since they have currently evolved into disciplines requiring separate planning and execution. As evidence, most business schools at present offer separate courses for each of these fields after a general treatment of the topic of strategic management. Figure 1: Framework for corporate strategy (Cheah and Garvin, 2004) The following sections summarize the dimensions of corporate strategy being HR strategy, financial strategy, business strategy, operational strategy, IT strategy, marketing strategy, and technology strategy. HR strategy In essence, HR strategy is more concerned about the aspects of managing human assets of an organization. HR strategy deals with (Cheah and Garvin, 2004): personnel management (e.g. training programs; job rotation among functions and geographical regions); industrial relations (e.g. employment law; union-management relationship; negotiation tactics and strategy); incentives and compensation policies and systems; and restructuring concerns (e.g. downsizing). The goal of HR strategy is to have an effective system for obtaining (recruiting), training, mobilizing and managing the human assets of an organization to systematically carry out business operations and new ventures. Financial strategy There are two fundamental aspects in financial strategy: investment decisions and financing decisions. During investment decisions, firms are confronted with the challenges of capital budgeting and financial resource allocation. In order to make better decisions, managers must select the appropriate tools for project analysis and evaluation, which include, but are not limited to, the net present value (NPV) method, decision tree analysis, optimization, portfolio planning and real option valuation. Behind these tools lies a common and fundamental principle of balancing risk and return (Cheah and Garvin, 2004). Financing decisions, on the other hand, are concerned with issues of capital structure. In providing the detailed mechanics, Grinblatt and Titman (1998) showed how investment and financing decisions could impact the corporate strategy as a whole. Business strategy Business strategy is defined as strategies adopted to ensure successful ventures of individual business units, whereas corporate strategy is concerned with operations of the entire organization. This distinction is obviously consistent with the model, since business strategy is one of the seven core fields of the overall structure (Cheah and Garvin, 2004). Business strategy formally deals with the development of competitive advantage and core competencies. In particular, Porters (1980, 1985) techniques such as the determination of uniqueness and cost drivers, the Five Forces model, and the market segmentation matrix are some commonly known concepts in formulating business strategy. Operational strategy Operational strategy is primarily concerned with execution and implementation how firms manage their operational processes to convert different inputs into final products and services. These activities might include inbound and outbound logistics, procurement functions, production processes for physical products such as precast components, and procedural functions for service provision. For contractors, these activities are analogous to most project management functions such as material procurement, construction of the physical structure, and management of labor and machinery. Likewise, service firms utilize their expertise and knowledge to assist clients in fulfilling their needs and goals, as in planning, design and engineering functions (Cheah and Garvin, 2004). IT strategy In this conceptual model, IT strategy is separated from technology strategy. Specifically, IT strategy focuses mainly on the use of technology to leverage information to the advantage of a firm. This contrasts with other types of technology development in general. This distinction is justified by the fact that information technology has grown into a separate market segment and research area since the mid-1990s (Cheah and Garvin, 2004). IT is often taken as the driver of corporate strategy. More appropriately, it should be treated as an enabler that connects the corporate strategy of a firm with its operational processes (Ross and Rockart, 1999). In many aspects, the current trends of IT investment and implementation within the construction industry still appear to follow very vague goals. Too often, participants from the industry investing in IT (at least during initial stages) have forgotten their original identity as firms that provide construction services, thereby putting their core competencies at stake. In many cases, these investments are lacking in terms of establishing linkages between processes and corporate strategy in the long run (Cheah and Garvin, 2004). Marketing strategy In manufacturing and other industries that sell physical products, the Four Ps (product, price, place and promotion) in conventional marketing management remains relevant at present, though changes in technology and IT have redefined the boundary and meaning of these components (Cheah and Garvin, 2004). Although construction is mainly service-oriented (except suppliers or vendors who are selling physical products), many of these concepts can be applied to selected parts of the construction value chain. For example, in terms of promotion, marketing strategy is especially important in signaling to clients the value created from the design of products and services in order to demand a price premium differentiation is meaningless unless clients are able to perceive the value added that suits their unique needs. To achieve this, firms need to identify both needs (demand) and resources (supply factors), and choose the most efficient means of service provision. Some common corporate involv ement in marketing strategy includes: umbrella branding and reputation building; logistics issues (a critical factor toward lean construction); and collection of information about clients needs (e.g. to improve facility operation and maintenance) (Cheah and Garvin, 2004). Technology strategy Tatum (1988) illustrated that the range of possible technology-based strategies for construction firms is wide. At present, choices and means for technology development still remain as the most basic questions in technology strategy. Three primary issues particularly stand out. The first issue is the notion of pioneer versus follower. Not surprisingly, whether one should be at the bleeding edge of the technology wave as a first mover is always a tough decision to make. This is especially true when technological trends are shaped by uncertain environmental factors. The second issue deals with integration. Large Japanese contractors, for example, have their own research institutes and tend to develop their technology internally. Third, firms have to assess the relative importance between basic and applied research in order to allocate resources accordingly (Cheah and Garvin, 2004). Corporate performance in construction Based on Isiks (2009) work, a construction companys performance is mainly determined by the strategic decisions made and resources and capabilities of the firm. External factors, strength of relationships, project management competencies, and project performance are the other factors of success. These variables are listed in Table 1. Since this papers major objective is to discuss the corporate strategy and competitive resources impacting on the success of a construction firm, the main emphasis is on the strategic decisions and resources and capabilities leading to success as defined by Isik (2009). Construction organizations have long been criticized for a lack of long-term strategic planning and management (Veshoskyi, 1994; Chinovsky and Meredith, 2000). The literature on strategic decision-making is spread over a wide range from an individual strategists perspective to strategic management techniques, to the implementation of these techniques in real situations (Globerson, 1985; Letza, 1996; Warszawski, 1996; Neely et al., 1997). The strategies adopted in Isiks (2009) work represent the characteristics of the construction industry as a project-based organization. These strategies are summarized in the following section. Table 1: Factors affecting the corporate performance for construction firms (Isik, 2009) Corporate strategies in construction firms: Corporate strategy can be seen as the linking process between the management of the organizations internal resources and its external relationships with its customers, suppliers, competitors and the economic and social environment in which it exists. The organisation develops these relationships from its abilities and resources. Hence, the organisation uses its history, skills, resources, knowledge and various concepts to explore its future actions (Adnan and Jusoff, 2009). The industry environment is the set of factors that directly influences a firm and its competitive actions and competitive response; the threats of new entrants, the power of suppliers, the power of buyers, the threat of product substitutes and the intensity of rivalry among competitors. An opportunity is a condition in the general environment that if, exploited helps a company achieve strategic competitiveness. A threat is a condition in the general environment that may hinder a companys efforts to achieve strate gic competitiveness. The resources of an organisation include its human resource skills, the investment and the capital in every part of the organisation. Organisations need to develop corporate strategies to optimise the use of these resources. Differentiation strategies refer to the differentiation of products or services that provides competitive advantage and allows a company to deal effectively with the threat of new entrants to the market (Porter, 1980). Many new construction companies enter the industry every year because starting a new company does not require a large investment; consequently the construction industry becomes more competitive and forces existing companies to seek advantages over competitors by means of differentiation strategies. Market, project, client and partner selection strategies are related to the characteristics of construction projects such as the location and complexity of the project, environmental conditions, availability of competent subcontractors, availability of materials, equipment and know-how locally, financial stability of the client, and potential partners that have capabilities that the company does not possess. Project management strategies can be developed by referring to the mission of the company and the companys business environment. The managerial functions of a project include activities such as planning, cost control, quality control, risk management, safety management, to name but a few. In order to achieve project goals, adequate strategies have to be set up relative to these functions. Investment strategies occur along several dimensions such as capabilities of the company (resources), pricing (financial decisions), product (construction project related factors), and finally research and development (Spence, 1979). Organizational management strategies involve decisions pertaining to the companys reporting structure, planning, controlling and coordinating systems, as well as the management of the informal relations among the different parties within the company (Barney, 1991). Resources and capabilities: The strategic management literature defines resources and capabilities as the strengths of a company. Given the competitive environment among the rivals, resources and capabilities cannot be assumed to be identical in every company (Porter, 1980; Barney, 1991). According to the resource-based perspective mentioned by Barney (1991), a companys resources and capabilities have to be valuable, rare, inimitable, and should lack substitutes to have a positive effect on performance. Only if these conditions are met can resources and capabilities be transformed into a source of competitive advantage (Barney 1991). It follows that a construction companys equipment, manpower, technical, and managerial know-how should be efficient, cost-effective, rare, and sophisticated enough to prevent imitation by competitors. Financial resources indicate a companys strength in the market in terms of its capacity to carry out projects. Adequate financial resources ensure the company can get into risky situations that have a prospect of high returns. As a companys financial strength increases, its credibility and reputation also increases among clients and suppliers (Warszawski, 1996). The majority of construction projects are funded by the owner who pays the contractor periodically, who in turn pays the subcontractors, the suppliers and other parties of the project for services rendered. The success of this routine depends on the financial strength of the owner as well as of the contractor (Gunhan and Arditi, 2005). Technical competency refer to the physical assets of a company such as machinery and equipment and the extent of technical know-how available that is necessary to undertake specific projects. According to Warszawski (1996), a companys technical competency can be assessed by analyzing the companys preferred construction methods, the experience of its technical staff, the productivity and speed of its construction activities and the quality of the companys output. Leadership involves developing and communicating mission, vision, and values to the members of an organization. A successful leadership is expected to create an environment for empowerment, innovation, learning and support (Shirazi, 1996). Researchers have examined the links between leadership styles and performance. Fiedler (1996), have emphasized the effectiveness of a leader as a major determinant in success or failure of a group, organization, or even an entire country. Experience is highly related to a companys knowledge management competency. Organizational learning can be effective only if the lessons learned from completed projects are kept in the organizational memory and used in future projects (Kululanga and McCaffer, 2001). Organizational learning is difficult for companies because of the fragmented and project-based structure of the industry. This difficulty can be altered by knowledge management activities and provision of a continuous organizational learning culture (Ozorhon et al., 2005). The image of the company compared with its competitors is important. As in all market-oriented industries, contractors also need to portray an image that fits the needs of the market and the clients targeted. It gives an impression of the products, services, strategies, and prospects compare to its competitors (Fombrun and Shanley, 1990). Contractors in construction industry have to portray an image that addresses the expectation and demand of the clients and users, like in all other market oriented industries. Moreover, image of a company may enable higher profitability by attracting better clients and investors and increasing the value of the product (Fombrun, 1986). Research and development capability is a response to increased industry requirements that occurred as a result of globalization and competition between the companies. Developments occur in all phases of the construction process and technologies emerge that are deemed to have a positive impact on competitive advantage. In contrast to the traditional conservative stance of the industry, construction companies are forced to develop and adopt new technologies in order to survive. Innovation capability is an important factor in achieving cost leadership, focus, and differentiation, hence enhancing competitiveness as stated in Porter (1980). A companys ability to innovate is related to the industry in which it operates. The traditional characteristics of the construction favor cost leadership obtained through lowest bids and focus obtained through specialization (e.g., tall buildings, sewage systems etc.) as the predominant competitive advantages. According to Arditi et al. (1997) innovations are rather incremental than radical in construction industry. The construction is a supplier dominated industry. Construction companies are dependent on other industries for innovations such as construction materials, equipment other than the technological innovations such as new construction processes and methods. Alternative corporate structures, financing methods etc. can also be added as the potential innovation areas in construction industry (Arditi et al. 1997). SKANSKA CONSTRUCTIONS CORPORATE STRATEGY Skanska AB is one of the worlds largest construction enterprises. With headquarters in Sweden, the Skanska group employs 54,000 people worldwide and provides construction-related services and project development. They create sustainable solutions and aim to be a leader in quality, green construction, work safety and business ethics. They also aim to maximize the potential of Skanska with regard to returns. They are a Fortune 500 company and a member of the UN Global Compact. Skanska is one of the worlds ten largest construction companies. Background of Skanska A brief history of Skanska is found in the website that reads (Skanska, 2010): The origin of the company dates back to 1887 when Aktiebolaget Skà ¥nska Cementgjuteriet was established and started by manufacturing concrete products. We quickly diversified into a construction company and within ten years the company received its first international orders. Through the 20th Century we played an important role in building Swedens infrastructure, including roads, power plants, offices and housing. In the mid-1950s, Skà ¥nska Cementgjuteriet made a major move into international markets. During the next decades we entered South America, Africa and Asia, and in 1971 the US market. The US is now our largest market and Skanska ranks among the largest in the construction sector. Today, Africa and Asia are not included in our home market concept. The company was listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange A-list in 1965. In 1984 Skanska became the Groups official name. During the 1990s, Skanska initiated its most expansive phase ever. Sales doubled in only a few years. While the major portion of this growth was organic, a string of successful acquisitions also paved the way for Skanskas growth into a global company. Since the beginning of the 21st Century profitability rather than growth is a strong focus. The operations are streamlined to construction and development of residential, commercial and infrastructure projects in selected home markets in Europe and America. Skanska offers construction services in all of their home markets Sweden, the US, UK, Norway, Finland and Estonia, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia and in Latin America. Skanskas management structure is shown in Figure 2. Figure 2: Skanskas management structure (Skanska, 2009) Skanska aims to be a financial and qualitative leader. Their financial targets reflect the ambition to exceed the industry norm. In each of their geographic markets and specific segments, they have established what we call outperform targets. In addition to the financial targets and as means to reach them they have also adopted qualitative targets. The qualitative targets are expressed in Skanskas five zeros vision (Skanska, 2010): Zero loss-making projects. Loss makers destroy profitability and customer relationships Zero accidents, whereby the safety of their personnel as well as subcontractors, suppliers and general public is ensured at and around their projects Zero environmental incidents, by which their projects should be executed in a manner that minimizes environmental impact Zero ethical breaches, meaning that they take a zero tolerance approach to any form of bribery or corruption Zero defects, with the double aim of improving the bottom line and increasing customer satisfaction. The qualitative targets, as expressed in the five zeros, reflect their core values. The five zeros as well as the financial targets also provide the basis for incentive systems at various levels within Skanska. Markets of operation and market strategies of Skanska Skanska is active in selected home markets in Europe, the US and Latin America. In the US, which is their single largest market, they are a leading company within building and civil engineering projects. They are also targeting the US Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) segment. In the Nordic region, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland, their operations cover the construction and investment businesses. In Latin America, they are mainly active in the oil, gas and energy sector and in PPP. In the UK, they are a leading player in construction as well as within PPP. In 2006, there were 67 891 companies operating in the construction sector in Sweden. The biggest companies are Skanska, NCC and Peab. There has been an increase in the competition from foreign companies over the last years. It has been a rising market in 2006-2007. During the last four years the investments have increased with 5-10 %. However, due to the current market weakness, there was a decline in 2009. There is no legislation in Sweden stipulating how construction work and services should be performed. Instead, there are general conditions which have been developed by organizations and parties operating within the Swedish Construction Sector. Figure 3 shows the geographical markets of operation of Skanska including Sweeden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, UK, US, and Latin America. Figure 3: Markets of operation of Skanska (Skanska, 2010) Skanska attaches special importance to metropolitan regions, which often demonstrate higher growth than their respective country as a whole. Skanska offers many of the products and services that are needed in growing cities workplaces, schools, hospitals, sports and leisure facilities, as well as housing and infrastructure for transportation, energy and water. In individual markets, Skanska operates today only in certain segments, but by taking advantage of its collective expertise, the Group can enhance its opportunities for growth and higher earnings in these markets (Skanska, 2009). Competitive advantage of Skanska (resources and capabilities) In Isik et als (2010) work, resources and capabilities was found to be most influential on company performance. The critical importance of the resources and capabilities of a company was also emphasized in the literature. The strategic management literature defines resources and capabilities as the strengths of a company. Given the competitive environment among the rivals, resources and capabilities cannot be assumed to be identical in every company (Porter, 1980; Barney, 1991). Skanskas distinctive resources that create competitive advantage for them are as follows (Skanska, 2009): Size: Being a market leader positions Skanska well with the most demanding customers. Its stature also provides access to the best suppliers, which can live up to Skanskas promises to customers regarding timely delivery and quality as well as safety and ethics. Skanskas size gives it an advantage in the most complex assignments, where it uses its collective experience and know-how to meet the demands of customers. Only a few companies can compete for the type of projects where, aside from price, comprehensive solutions and lifecycle costs are of crucial importance. The Groups size and international profile are also attractive qualities in the recruitment of new employees. Technical competency: BIM, a computer-based method for detailed panning, coordination and more efficient execution à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ shall be used in Skanskas design-build projects, in which Skanska is responsible for both design and construction. BIM means greater standardization and also improves Skanskas ability to utilize the savings potential of its corporate-level purchasing efforts. Human resources: Skanskas skilled, dedicated employees combine expertise with the Groups overall focus on sustainable development in order to successfully deliver projects to customers. The Groups ability to transfer knowledge between different geographic markets also contributes to its strength. Image of the company: Skanskas brand has been built up during more than 120 years of working in many different countries. One element of the brand is the Groups Code of Conduct, which includes policies on employee relations, health and safety, the environment and business ethics. Financial resources: Financial strength is an important factor in maintaining the confidence of customers and capital markets in Skanska. It also enables the Group to invest in project development and assume responsibility for and invest in major privately financed infrastructure projects. Innovation capability: Business units of the Skanska Group specialize in project development or construction but often collaborate in specific projects. This strengthens the Groups customer focus and creates the prerequisites for the sharing of best practices, while ensuring efficient utilization of the Groups collective competence and financial resources. To take further advantage of synergies and bring together the Companys expertise, a number of support services are available to all units. These include the Skanska Knowledge Map, a web-based intranet tool that visualizes experts and teams of experts from Skanska on a global basis in selected strategic areas, for example Building Information Modeling (BIM), Green Business and Design/Build. By utilizing its specialized expertise in planning and executing projects, Skanska improves risk control, which in turn results in higher quality and profitability. Global collaboration thus leverages both earnings potential and the Groups abilit y to satisfy the needs of its customers. In the Skanska Group there are both operational and financial synergies that generate increased value for their shareholders. By being a global player, Skanska generates operational synergies mainly due to the potential for taking advantage of the local specialized expertise found globally in various business areas. Shared purchasing activities and product development also boost efficiency and contribute to greater synergies in the organization. The Construction business stream operates with negative working capital and generates a positive cash flow over time. This cash flow is invested in the Groups project development business streams, which have enjoyed very good return on invested capital. These investments also enable Construction to obtain new assignments that generate a profit for the business stream. Figure 4 illustrates how this system works. Figure 4: Synergies at Ska

Fanons Three Stages Related To The Indigenous People Of Chiapas :: essays research papers

Fanon's Three Stages Related to the Indigenous People of Chiapas The passage Shadows of Tender Fury by Subcommander Marcos of the Zapatista Army explains that the people of Chiapas are currently facing a period of revolution. The Zapatista army (consisting of Chiapian campesinos) has risen to combat the intolerant system of oppression by the Mexican government and has attempted to create a better lifestyle for the campesinos of Chiapas. Frantz Fanon's three stages to national culture; assimilation, self discovery, and revolution, relate to the struggle of the campesinos of Chiapas. In the last 500 years, the indigenous people of Chiapas have faced all three of Fanan's stages during their struggle for the development of a national culture. Five-hundred years ago when the first Europeans came in contact with the Mayan Indians, the first stage of Fanon's theory, assimilation, began formalizing. Throughout history the colonizers of Mexico were more technologically advanced than the natives. The Europeans had guns, cannons and massive ships. Not only did these possessions enable them to have greater brute force, but it took the white man to the level of the gods in the eyes of the natives. The colonizers could easily take advantage of this reverence. Fanon states "The effect consciously sought by colonialism was to drive into the natives' heads the idea that if the settlers were to leave, they would at once fall back into barbarism, degradation, and bestiality."(Fanon 211) The colonizers, believing the natives were savages that needed enlightenment, forced European culture upon them. The Europeans believed that to assimilate the natives to European culture was to help them progress. Therefore, to return to the old ways would have been regressing. When the natives objected to the forced assimilation, the colonizers smothered the rebellious efforts with stronger, more lethal weapons. Fanon compares the colonizer to a mother who restrains her "perverse" child so that he will not commit suicide.(Fanon 211) The analogy implies that the colonized must be protected (by the colonizer) from self-destruction. In the minds of the European colonizers, this idea of protection justified forcing assimulation onto the natives. Although the native campesinos (the poor people of Chiapas) haven't fully assimulated, they have adopted particular aspects of European and present day Mexican culture. The campesinos have learned the Spanish language and joined the catholic religion. An example of Fanon's first phase is when the colonizer tries to calm the angry, poor and exploited colonized people by promising social reform.(Fanon 207) These reforms promise things such as employment, welfare and education. According to Fanon, the government rarely follows through with pledged social reform. They find it easier to simply

Making a Less Restrictive Environment Through Inclusion Essay -- Inclu

Making a Less Restrictive Environment Through Inclusion Inclusion can be an excellent opportunity for many students with special needs when the classroom situation appropriately fits the needs of the students with special needs, the needs of the rest of the students in the classroom, and the teacher. It allows special needs children the ability to defy stigmas, a deficit of resources, and unrealistically low expectations. Social atmospheres enable both the special needs and non-special needs children necessary potential bonding opportunities for proper development. Additionally, the increased class size and demands mandate additional support and aid for the teacher. Unfortunately, there still exists much debate over the definition of inclusion as well as the implementation of it. Arguments over consequences, support, effectiveness, and funding dampen its effects. The future of the inclusion process for special needs children still leaves much to the imagination. Conclusion: The issues surrounding special needs children are diverse and not easily rectified. The complication and variety of the children’s situations and individual needs are a further complication to this dilemma. The children, those with and without special needs, are undoubtedly the future of the world; All should be equipped to deal with tomorrow’s challenges with the most formidable tools at disposal. This should be priority one. Inclusion can be an excellent opportunity for many students with special needswhen the classroom situation appropriately fits the needs of the student with special needs, as well as the rest of the students in the classroom, and the teacher. There are many advantages of integrating a student with special needs i... ...html Sullivan, L. (2001). Why Inclusion? Retrieved October 25, 2003, from: http://www.childcareresourcesinc.org/pdfs/TS525.pdf Viadero, D. (1993). Special Educators’ Group Weighs in on ‘Full Inclusion.’ Retrieved November 16, 2003, from: http://www.edweek.org/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=29cec.h12 Venn, J. (1999). Students with Physical Disabilities and Health Impairments. ERIC Clearinghouse Digest, 459. Retrieved October 17, 2003 from ERIC. Harris-Kroll, N. (2002). Learning in Resource Rooms. Retrieved November 22, 2003 from http://learningresourcecenter.net. Special Education Curriculum. (2002). Retrieved December 3, 2003 from http://www.stow.summit.k12.oh.us/speceduc.htm. Kidder, K. (2003). Pull-Out or Pull-In? What Works Best. Retrieved on November 21, 2003 from http://www.ldonline.org/ld_indepth/special_education/inclusion_pullin.htm.

Alcoholism among Victorians Essay -- Victorian Era

Alcoholism among Victorians Wrayburn: â€Å"It will be necessary, I think, to wind up Mr. Dolls, before anything to any mortal purpose can be got out of him. Brandy, Mr. Dolls, or - ?† Mr. Dolls: â€Å"Threepenn’orth Rum.† --Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens Throughout Victorian society â€Å"gin was the preferred spirit of the lower class, while wine and brandy were imbibed by the more comfortable citizenry† (Alcoholic Beverages 12). During the nineteenth century, the Victorians had high expectations of their class system to make sure the classes were distinct and properly represented. They â€Å"valued controlled, propitious behavior† and would tolerate nothing less (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). There was a â€Å"cultural value placed on teetotaling,† total abstinence from alcoholic drinks, but despite this value â€Å"alcohol consumption became a popular pastime† (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). Behavior such as drunkenness was strongly disapproved of because of its association with the lower class. Alcoholism: Representation of the Working Class It was widely known that â€Å"drunkenness, and the related loss of self-control, was associated with the lower classes† and therefore had negative connotations (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). Spirits, a popular hard liquor, â€Å"had become the everyday drink for less wealthy people† and â€Å"laborers commonly used spirits to flee from their desolate everyday lives† (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). The awful working and living conditions of the working class contributed to their â€Å"hard, controlled, and monotonous life, [leading] to excessive drinking of hard liquor† (Harding Victorians and Alcohol). This excessive drinking would sometimes result in public intoxication which was â€Å"regarded as anti-s... ...ss, Inc. 1996. 12. Distad, Merrill N. â€Å"Food and Diet.† Victorian Britain: An Encyclopedia. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc. 1988. 304-307. Garwood, John. â€Å"Religious and moral Character of the Pensioners, and Provisions made for their Instruction.† Social Investigation/Journalism – The Million-Peopled City. (1853): 94-96. 11 Mar. 2005 Harding, Stephen. â€Å"Alcohol.† Victorians’ Secrets. â€Å"Absinthe and Victorians.† Victorians’ Secrets. 2000. University of Texas at Arlington. 24 Feb. 2005. Kent, Christopher A. â€Å"Drink.† Twentieth-Century Britain: An Encyclopedia. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1995. 239-240. Murdock, Catherine Gilbert. Domesticating Drink: Women, Men, and Alcohol in America, 1870-1940 . Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998.

Family in African-American Literature Essay

In literary pieces such as Alice Walker’s story â€Å"Everyday Use†, Langston Hughes’ â€Å"My People†, and Robert Hayden’s poem â€Å"Those Winter Sundays†, the theme of family relationships is significantly evident. In â€Å"Everyday Use†, Walker presents one stage and aspect of a family life when one adult child chooses to live on her own while the other one stays with the family. Hughes’ poem portrays his love for his people which he considers to be a family as a whole. Meanwhile, Hayden’s â€Å"Those Winter Sundays†, talks about the narration and description of a boy about his father whom he is not well acquainted with. As the first piece speaks of a story about a family in relation to their heritage, the latter speaks of a boy’s reminiscence of a father who was never able to show his love directly to his children. These two aspects of family relationships reveal several angles to look upon.   Such family situations are influenced by authors’ own race and heritage. Alice Walker portrays the story of a fully grown-up daughter, Dee, who goes back to home to her home to visit her mother, Mrs. Johnson and her younger sister, Maggie. She arrives accompanied by an African American Muslim man who is currently dating her. She comes home to collect some family possessions which she intends to turn into artistic pieces to be exhibited in a museum. Meanwhile, her sister Maggie grimaces as her sister takes some of their personal belongings including a quilt that her mother has promised to give her as a wedding present. Dee tells her mother that Maggie would only ruin the quilt by using it everyday which puzzles Mrs. Johnson as she could not think of any way to use the quilt than to spread them. When Mrs. Johnson sees the sadness in her younger daughter’s eyes upon Dee taking the quilt, she snatches it away and gives it to Maggie. Dee walks away after claiming that their problem is they do not understand their own heritage (Walker). In this story, Walker portrays a family whose eldest daughter has become estranged from them. In the first part of the story, Mrs. Johnson recounts how Dee had hated living in their house and even almost set it on fire when she was young. The concept of a dysfunctional family is quite present here; however, it focuses more on the mother-child relationship rather than every member of the family. It is important to note that Walker made use of the damaged relationship of Dee to her mother and sister to show and illustrate the different types of African American people. On the other hand, Langston Hughes shows his love and appreciation for his people in his poem â€Å"My People†. He does not speak of family but his tone and use of words make it seem as if he is speaking of his beloved family. â€Å"The night is beautiful, / So the faces of my people† (lines 1-2). The possessive pronoun â€Å"my† indicates a certain intimacy between him and â€Å"his† people which is usually used for referring to a small group of people who shares something intimate and common such as â€Å"my family†. In this regard, Hughes speaks highly of his race as if he is talking about a family he loves most. â€Å"The stars are beautiful, /  So the eyes of my people† (3-4). The comparison of his people to the heavens indicates the depth of his love and care for them as he would to his family. â€Å"Beautiful, also, is the sun. / Beautiful, also, are the souls of my people† (5-6). In the poem â€Å"Those Winter Sundays†, it can be assumed that Robert Hayden personally speaks through the voice of the speaker in his poem â€Å"Those Winter Sundays†. His distant relationship with his father is evident. In this melancholic poem, he narrates about the concealed appreciation of a son for his father’s acts of love by means of writing it in a prose. The narrator tells about the labors of his father even on a cold winter Sunday. However, in the poem, the speaker emphasizes that his father’s great efforts are usually ignored. The title of the poem itself already suggests a background for the readers. The speaker is obviously focused only on the â€Å"winter Sundays† and why it means too much work for the father. In the first stanza of the poem, the detailed description of the speaker’s father is very noticeable. He illustrated him by means of mentioning his physical condition as he works on cold Sundays. He could have described it in a clearer way by going straight to the point.   Nevertheless, he expressed his father’s poor countenance in a way that the reader can visualize the father’s hands cracked hands and the busy Sundays. The first two lines of the poem somewhat develops a thesis that would cover the whole idea in the poem. â€Å"Sundays too my father got up early / And put his clothes on in the blueblack cold,† (1-2). Sundays should be a day of rest but the speaker stresses that his father still wakes up even before the sun rose to go to work. He further highlights the weary countenance of his father as he describes his father’s â€Å"cracked hands that ached / from labor in the weekday weather made / Banked fires blaze† (3-5). The poem further shows how heartbreaking the father’s situation must be by writing the last line of the first stanza with, â€Å"No one ever thanked him† (5). With the last line, it is reasonable to consider that the speaker is one of those people who failed to thank him. In this regard, it can be assumed that the speaker is already in his old or middle age when he remembers how his father has shown him love in his own way. Clearly, these renowned African-American writers have frequently used the theme of family relationships to further address the problems of their society. The issues of racism, nationalism, and love are the implicit ideas which are present in the three literary pieces discussed. These authors portrays different types of African-American families which serves as the representation of the current society that they are in. since the family is the basic unit of society, it is the primary target of societal effects such as racism and other social issues. Every problem of the society can become the problem of the family which is why the most meaningful literary works of art somewhat involves the theme of family relationships. Works Cited Hayden, Robert. â€Å"Those Winter Sundays.† The Oxford Anthology of African-American Poetry. Ed. Arnold Rampersad, Hilary Herbold. United States of America: Oxford University Press US, 2006. 261. Hughes, Langston. â€Å"My People.† Poem Hunter. 19 April 2009. Walker, Alice. Everyday Use. Ed. Barbara Christian. United States of America: Rutgers University Press, 1994.

Iago -Betrayal and Loyalty

The Theme of Betrayal and Loyalty Through the Eyes of Desdemona, Othello, and Iago The play The Tragedy of Othello the Moor of Venice, written by William Shakespeare in the 1600’s, has many underlying and reoccurring themes. The major themes are betrayal and loyalty. During the entire play, every character is either betrayed or proved loyal. The Tragedy of Othello the Moor of Venice can be seen through the characters of Iago, Othello, and Desdemona. Othello and Desdemona have both been betrayed in their attempt to be loyal to another character.Throughout the play, Iago manipulates the other characters into betraying one another so that he can get his ultimate betrayal on Othello. Shakespeare uses Iago as the main portrayer of betrayal throughout the entire play. He betrays all the other characters, but his main focus is on Othello. Despite that, he ends up betraying all the people closest to him. Iago’s betrayal starts off from the first scene page of the play right unt il the end. The audience learns Iago’s motive through his monologue: â€Å"Thus do I ever make my fool my pursel hate the moor, and it is thought abroad that ‘twixt my sheets’ has done my office.I know not if’t be true, but I, for mere suspicion in that kind will do as if for surety. † Iago suspects that Othello has had an affair with his wife. However, Shakespeare makes Iago’s motif very unclear; therefore, it can be argued that this is Iago’s excuse and in actual fact he has no reason other than he simply hates Othello. Iago wants to destroy Othello because Othello promoted Casio as chief lieutenant instead of him, which is another reason why Iago wants to destroy him. Iago is one of Shakespeare’s most complex villains. Initially, we see Iago’s character as pure evil, yet later we see him as a completely amoral person.Iago does not push aside his conscience to commit his evil plans, he simply lacks a conscience to begin with. Through Iago, Shakespeare shows us a character that acts against his reputation and betrays all this friends and loved ones. Through some careful thought out words and actions, Iago is able to manipulate others to do things in a way that benefits him and moves him closer to his ultimate goal. He is the main driving force of the play, pushing Othello and everyone towards their tragic end. Iago is smart. He is an expert judge of people as well as their character and uses this to his advantage.Iago is also quick on his feet, making him able to improvise when something unexpected occurs. Being as smart as he is, Iago is quick to recognize the advantages of trust and uses it as a tool to forward his main purpose. Throughout the story he is commonly known as the â€Å"honest Iago†. He even says himself, â€Å" I am an honest man†. Trust is a very powerful emotion that is easily betrayed. Iago is a master of betrayal. He slowly poisons people’s thoughts, creatin g ideas in their heads without risking himself. Iago is capable of anything, not even the brave soldier Othello is safe from this villain.Othello holds Iago to be his closest friend and advisor. He believes Iago to be a person, â€Å"of exceeding honest, who knows all qualities with learned spirit of human dealings†. Yes, he does know about human dealings, but he is not the honest man he appears to be. He uses Othello’s trust in him to eventually turn Othello into a man no better than himself. Othello is introduced to us in the first scene of the play in a negative light, when Iago and Rodrigo refer to him using derogatory terms such as, â€Å"The Moor†, â€Å"the thick lips†, â€Å"an old black ram† and â€Å"a Barbary horse†.Othello may be an outcast in Venice due to the color of his skin; however, he is a highly respected soldier. He is extremely skilled in his field and a loyal man; therefore, valuable to the state. Due to this, we soon learn of Othello as the noble man he is. Othello, however, has the â€Å"tragic flaw†. It is the internal imperfection in a hero that brings him down. His downfall becomes his own doing; he is no longer the victim of fate. The prejudice of those around him destroyed him, and they believed that, â€Å"A black man is an unattractive creature, not quite human, and unworthy of love†.Thinking this made him unable to believe that Desdemona could truly love him. This is why he believes Iago so easily when he convinces him Desdemona has had an affair. Othello betrays his wife by believing Iago’s word over hers, this then leads him to his ultimate betrayal when he kills her at the end of the play. At this point he also shows his loyalty to her by killing himself, stating that he can’t live without her. The man we see at the end of the play is not the loyal man we meet in the beginning.Othello has let the â€Å"green eyes monster of jealousy† turn him from a loyal soldier to a betrayer just like Iago. Desdemona is a lady of spirit and intelligence; she is the most direct, honest and loyal character of the play. She only betrays people to those to who she is loyal. Desdemona is a lady of few words, yet she makes sure every word counts to get her point across. In Desdemona’s eyes, Othello is the hero of many exciting and dangerous adventures; he is the orphan who needs love. These are the reasons Desdemona had fallen in love with Othello, despite all the nasty remarks from fellow Venetian citizens.Her marriage has brought her position and happiness, so much that she finds it unbearable to think that her husband has turned against her. This numbness lasts until she sees that he actually intends to kill her. She then puts up a defense, insisting on her loyalty and innocence. In despair of losing his love, she still defends him from consequences of his actions, but he is past seeing the truth: that she has committed herself to his lo ve, and without it she cannot live. Othello ends up killing his wife, in spite of her loyalty toward him till the very end.By the end of the play, all characters have lost their loyalty to each other from what Iago as done to make them feel betrayed. Desdemona is left lifeless in her room, Iago kills his wife Emilia, as she reveals that Desdemona has been falsely accused of adultery, and Othello kills himself rather than living with what he has done. Iago is the only survivor by the end of the play, which further justifies his intelligence. All the characters have reached their downfall and Iago is finally pleased. He has completed the ultimate betrayal.

Determining Operating Systems and Software Applications

Determining Operating Systems and Software Applications BIS/320 Amazon has made a business of selling a variety media types while also making the reselling of the same media an attractive option. What better way to regain in part what you spent on media interests than to resell it and have money to put towards the next interest. As of 2004 Amazon began running the Linux operating system across the board. Amazon then became one of the largest and well known companies running the Linux operating system.As one of the largest ecommerce centered businesses with a large global customer base with high expectations of constant expansion. Currently, it is known that Amazon is running Linux servers â€Å"Amazon's Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), had close to half-a-million servers already running on a Red Hat Linux variant (Vaughn, 2012). † At this time â€Å"Amazon has never officially said what it's running as EC2's base operating system, it's generally accepted that it's a customized ve rsion of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). (Vaughn, 2012)† In addition Amazon uses Xen hypervisor as host to the Linux system for virtual machines.Solaris; OpenSolaris; FreeBSD and NetBSD and Windows 2003 and 2008 are additional virtual machine instances. The multiple operating services that Amazon is currently using assist with meeting the high demand of users that browse and purchase from their sites. In using their cloud technology, EC2, it is also possible that not all information will be stored at any specific location, but is easily accessible to anyone within the company to access it. With Linux gaining popularity this will ultimately become beneficial to Amazon in their continual global expansion goals.Hardware are electrical mechanisms that is physically connected to your computer such as an electronic components and related gadgetry that input, process, output, and store data according to instructions encoded in computer programs or software (Kroenke, 2012). The Amazo n-to-buyer operating system is quite simple and uses a variety of input and output in comparison with various office based business. A difference will be the amount that is actually used verses an output or input device. The individual consumer at home using their computer will initiate the process by registering as a user , followed by inputting heir shipping and billing information which will be stored by the website’s servers. The consumer’s computer is considered the input device and the server is a storage device. Once a purchase has occurred the website will use the stored information to input the customer’s credit card information into a card reader which automatically debits the funds from the customer’s account. Card readers and scanners are widely used input devices (Kroenke, 2012). Most output devices are located at various individual merchants that use Amazon to sell their goods. Each having a database that show pending orders inputted through Amazon.These merchants will use their printers to document the order and locate the desired merchandise. Once the merchandise is located, information is then sent to the shipping department. Versatile shipping options like UPS, Fed Ex, or the U. S. Postal service are available and output devices will print things such as the bill of lading; the inventory of the packaged goods and the shipping labels with the previously entered customer’s shipping information on it. Once delivered, the merchandise is scanned via another input device called a barcode scanner.This information is then relayed to the merchant who reports a successful delivery to Amazon. A confirmation email will be sent to the customer confirming their transaction is complete. If desired the consumer can give their input on the Amazon experience via their home based computer. Amazon’s Founder and Chiefy Executive Office outlines the companies business objectives as: Increase Sales, promote the brand, creat e a loyal customer base and fiscal strength. By expanding each operational goal its gives a better understand on how the operating systems contribute to Amazon’s objective.Sales can be defined as making sure the customer gets what he wants, but also feeding in to the psychology of impulse buying. Impulse purchases can be promoted through an application Amazon employs, called the Dash. When conducting a search for a particular item the results of that search offer not only the item itself, but also similar items. There is also a feature that shows the customer what other customers, who have order this particular item of interest, have also purchased. Promotional brand occurred during Amazon’s Kindle was launched.In 2005 Bezos believed that â€Å"every book ever written in any language will be available (to the enduser) in less than sixty seconds†. (Bezos, 2009). The edict issued that the demarcation between Kindle, the device and Kindle the service be seamless to the enduser. In the four years that followed, sales have exceeded budgetary expectations. The e-mail feedback from customers is strongly positive with 26% of customer e-mails containing the word â€Å"love†. Amazon has positioned itself prominently on search engine sites so a pattern match of only a few letters will bring Amazon to the forefront.Amazon itself has become a search engine of sorts, which many people use for pricing items being considered for purchase. The brand has made Amazon not only a shopping site, but also a reference guide for benchmarking other purchases. Bezos defines customer loyalty as encouraging his staff to be â€Å"obsessed over our customers†. The computer applications used for tracking purchases as well as shipping allows customer service representatives to assist dissatisfied customers and get them to a satisfactory result. References Kroenke, D. M. (2012). MIS Essentials (2nd ed. ). : Pearson Education Thorp J. Feb 99), The Information Paradox, Retrieved from http://www. amazon. com/Information-Paradox-Realizing-Business-Technology/dp Vaughn, S. (2012, March 16). Amazon's EC2 cloud is made up of almost half-a-million servers. ZDNet. Retrieved from http://www. zdnet. com/blog/open-source/amazon-ec2-cloud-is-made-up-of-almost-half-a-million-linux-servers/10620 | Operating Systems| Horizontal-Market Applications| Vertical-Market Applications| One-of-a-Kind Market Applications| Example| Linnux, Eucalyptus(cloud), OpenStack(cloud),EC2 and Red Hat Linux†¦ for starters| | | | Description of how it is used| | | | |Typical user| Amazon draws its users from anyone that can operate a computer and has an internet connection. | | | | Advantages| Easy to use; large amounts of information can be accessed without incorporating mass amounts of storage on a single server with cloud technology; accessibility to data from any location with cloud technology. | | | | Disadvantages| Even though Amazon continues to hire developers b andwidth is still and issue. People lose data. With such a broad base of people with the ability to browse and purchase products it poses a security issue regarding