DSS VS MIS Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

DSS VS MIS - Coursework Example n the other hand Decision Support System (DSS) is used for establishing the correct decision established on activities, planning, forecast, management and operations. (Kersten, Mikolajuk, & Yeh, 2000, p. 41-42) Database of Decision Support System contain information from a variety of resources that includes information that was generated from various applications, data generated internally and the data extracted from external sources like Internet, etc. Size of DSS database can vary from a small standalone system to a very large datacenters managing the data requirements needs of an organization. Decision Support System’s database normally holds a backup of the production database to avoid any kind of obstruction with the normal operational systems. DSS software contains number of different analytical and mathematical models. These models are used for analyzing the complex data, in that way developing the needed information. An analytical and mathematical model forecasts the outcome on the basis of various different inputs or varying situations, or determines the outcome by combining both. A DSS may includes different models while each performing some particular function. Some of them are: (Laudon & Laudon, 2004, p. 274-275) Decision Support System has an interactive graphical user interface. This interface makes an easier interaction between the user and the DSS. The result of the analyzed data is displayed in several different forms, like table, graphical (in the form of charts), and text. Interface users and select the suitable option to view the result as per the requirements. This component works same as it does in an expert system. It presents information regarding connections between data that is excessively difficult for a database to represent. It includes the rules to facilitate possible resolution as well as another methods and solutions for assessing them. Let us assume that the some manager of a business organization who deals in products or

Booker Jones Analysis Essay Example for Free

Booker Jones Analysis Essay 1. A. If the cost of barrels were to be incorporated into the inventory account (balance sheet), then the cost of barrels used (Income statement) can be reduced. From 1960-1961, Booker Jones increased its barrels produced from 43,000 barrels to 63,000 barrels. That is 20,000 barrel increased in just one year. The cost per barrels is $31.50. (20,000 * 31.50= $630,000) We can reduce the cost per barrel expense from income statement of $630,000. ïÆ'   (-407,000+630,000= 223,000) Therefore, pretax profit would have been $223,000 instead of net loss of $407,000. B. If the change were made retroactively as of June 1, 1959 then Effect on the balance sheet at the end of 1960 Number of barrel in inventory in 1960 is 172,000 (172,000 barrels * . 50 = 5,418,000) $5,418,000 is the increased inventory after incorporated the cost of barrels to inventory. ($5418000 + $4,506,000 = $9,924,000) $9,924,000 is the new ending inventory in 1960 Deferring the Aging costs into the inventory balance would increase the Net Profit in 1960. This would then increase the Retained Earnings account on the balance sheet Effect on the balance sheet at the end of 1961 Number of barrels in inventory in 1961 is 192,000 (192,000 barrels * $31.50 = $6,048,000) $6,048,000 is the increased in inventory after incorporating the cost of barrels to inventory ($6,048,000 + $5,030,000 = $11,078,000) $11,078,000 is the new ending inventory in 1960 Deferring the Aging costs into the inventory balance would increase the Net Profit in 1960. This would then increase the Retained Earnings account on the balance sheet Effect on the income statement for 1960 2. We do not believe that Jones went from a profit in 1960 to a loss for 1961 because they can capitalize the patented barrels as inventory instead of expense it. Because of the 4 years aging life, it makes sense to capitalize the barrels and expense it as the aging process reduced. 7. 1. The original Levi’s Store Channel has a higher return on invested capital, meaning it is a good investment in a long run. Column1 Wholesale Channel Estimate Original Levis Store Channel Estimate Operating Profit before Tax 4 6 Tax at 40% 1.6 2.4 NOPAT 2.4 3.6 Fixed Asset Factory PPE 5 5 Distributed PPE 1 2 Total Fixed Asset 6 7 Non-Cash Working Capital Current Asset 8 12 Current Liability 1 1 Cash 0 0 Total Non-Cash Working Capital 7 11 Invested Capital 13 18 Return on Invested Capital 18% 20% 2. Value Chain Analysis Providing strategic direction – corporate strategy Provide the perfect fit jean for customers Market segment for unsatisfied customers Broaden market segment by offering customized jeans Generating customer demand – sales, marketing and customer service Increase in profit 24% unsatisfied customers Provide more styles, more colors, better fits 4224 possible combination of measurement 400 prototype pairs stock at Kiosk for customers to try on Fulfilling customer demand – supply chain, manufacturing, production Order is transmitted directly to Levi’s factory. Each pair of jeans is individually cut 3 days shipping back to customers (at $5 extra charge per pair) Pull based: responsiveness to actual buying patterns, improve manufacturing, and delivery cycle Need to find ways to fix the 8 months lag between ordering cotton fabric and selling the final pair of jeans. Providing support services – Finance, HR, legal and compliance Need additional finance to pay for trained personal clerks Need to take out loan to finance initial investment of the project In 4 retail store locations

The Internet Essays -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Webster’s dictionary defines the Internet as â€Å"a widely used networking interface, connecting several very large information servers† (193). The Internet is a good way for companies or anyone to get information out to the entire world. Electronic marketing (e-marketing) is a very large part of the Internet. E-marketing is â€Å"the process of creating, distributing, promoting, and pricing products for targeted customers in the virtual environment of the Internet† (Ferrell 597). There are many advantages and disadvantages to e-marketing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One disadvantage to e-marketing is the advancements in cookie technology. A cookie is a way for companies to track how many times people visit their website. Cookies can also reveal information such as what part of the site individuals are checking out and how often they do this (Ferrell 600). I-won.com is a very good example of a cookie. At I-won.com, a tally is made and points are given to people who visit different places on the website. These points determine how many times the visitors name is entered in the end of the week sweepstakes. A drawing is held and a cash prize is given to the winner. Most people would argue that there is no problem with this, as would I. A problem does however occur with some websites. For example, is it ethical for some websites to monitor where and what people are visiting so they can target consumers for sales?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pop-up ads a...

Gastrin

What is gastrin? What is its source? What are its target cells? What are its functions? gastrin is one of the many hormones that stimulates secretion of digestive acid by the parietal cells that lining the stomach. The G cells produced and released the gastric acids in the stomach and the duodenum to allows the stomach to break down proteins swallowed as food and absorb certain vitamins, gastric acids also disinfectant and kills most of the bacteria when entering the stomach with food that reduces the risk of infection in the stomach. 2.What causes the release of gastrin? The G cells trigger the release of gastrin in the blood when food enters the stomach, as gastrin level rises in the blood, the stomach will release gastric acid to help digest and break down food. 3. What cells produce stomach acid? What is stomach acid? Parietal cells or oxyntic cells are cells that produce stomach acids. Stomach acid is a digestive fluid that has a pH of 1-2 composed of hydrochloric acid, potassiu m and sodium. 4. What systemic (body-wide) condition can occur as a result of too much stomach acid production (usually occurs due to excessive vomiting)?Explain why this happens. Helicobacter pylori or (H. pylori infection), patient with this condition may develop peptic ulcer if there is imbalance between the amount of acid and the mucus defense barrier lining the stomach thus, the amount of imbalance acid will damage the lining ot the stomach, causing the detense mucus barrier to be disrupted and inflammation to the stomach mucosa leading to acid to be increased and excessive vomiting that caused by lost of potassium, sodium, hydrogen and chloride ions in the stomach acid composition. 5. What is Helicobacter pylori? How is it treated?Is also known as H. pylori infection that is identified in the gastric antrum of patients with active chronic gastritis and peptic ulcers, which is now recognized as the major cause of gastric cancer. It can be treated by omeprazole and antibiotic tr eatment. 6. What pathological conditions can H. pylori cause in humans? Gastric adenocarcinoma, Chronic Gastritis, gastric cancer gastrointestinal cancers and peptic ulcers 7. What did this study assess/evaluate/explore? The study assess that gastrin has a distinct effect on the gastric corpus and antrum n the setting of chronic gastric Helicobacter infection.While gastrin is possibly an essential cofactor for gastric corpus carcinogenesis, gastrin deficiency can predispose animals to antral tumorigenesis, and thus any imbalances in gastrin physiology may represent a risk for gastric transformation 8. What were the authors' conclusions? There are different effect of gastrin on carcinogenesis (normal cells are transformed into cancer cells) of both the gastric corpus and antrum, suggesting that gastrin is an essential cofactor for gastric corpus carcinogenesis

Drama Soap Opera Essay

Our soap opera is called â€Å"Selby Walk†, named after a nearby park situated near the street where our soap is filmed. It’s set in a city suburb. The first scene of the soap contains three characters. Their names are Dave Hudson who assumes the role of a cabby driver, Mark Hayes who is a family businessman and Rob Kallis- a shady drug dealer operating in the area. The cabby driver, Dave, is modelled as a chatty person in his early 40’s. At times, he’s also the street gossip. He’s a pretty likeable personality. Mark Hayes is a businessman in his late 30’s. Although he occupies the spotlight longer than his fair share, he is a family man and laden with responsibilities, so he keeps himself to himself. Rob Kallis is renowned as the town villain. He usually dresses in black and always spiteful of many people. At 25, he is also despised by the community that he is a part of. he scene begins in Dave’s taxi. He is driving Mark to an area where Rob Kallis’ dealings are rife. The camera is continuously jumping from catching the reaction of one actor to the other. Before the dialogue starts, the camera swivels from looking at the road to the driver. This starts the scene off. However, the scene does not begin from when the journey begins. We catch it in the middle. Mark closes the door and begins to walk up the road. Before travelling up to a house footpath, he takes a quick look around. The camera also does this as if it was filming through his eyes. Mark walks up the footpath and up to a door. He rings the doorbell, but nobody answers. However, he finds the door unlocked and walks in. Dave watches this carefully, with a suspecting look on his face.

Financial Aid Calculator for Private Schools

Financial Aid Calculator for Private Schools While many parents experience sticker shock when they see the price of tuition at private schools, it is important to remember that affording a private school education is not like purchasing a house, vehicle or another high-end purchase. Why? Simple: private schools offer financial aid to qualified families. Thats right, about 20% of private school students nationwide receive some form of financial aid to defray the cost of tuition, which averages about $20,000 at day schools (and closer to $40,000 or more in many urban areas on the East and West Coasts) and over $50,000 at many boarding schools. According to NAIS, or the National Association of Independent Schools, nearly 20% of students at private schools nationwide are awarded some financial aid, and the average grant of need-based aid was $9,232 for day schools and $17,295 for boarding schools (in 2005). At schools with large endowments, such as top boarding schools, about 35% of students receive need-based aid. At many boarding schools, families earning under about $75,000 year may actually pay little or nothing in tuition, so be sure to ask about these programs if they apply to your family. Overall, private schools give out more than $2 billion in financial aid to families.   How Schools Determine Financial Aid To determine how much financial aid each family should be granted, most private schools ask families to fill out applications and possibly submit tax forms. Applicants may also have to fill out the School and Student Service’s (SSS) Parents’ Financial Statement (PFS) to determine what parents can pay towards their children’s private school tuitions. About 2,100 K-12 schools use the Parents’ Financial Statement, but before parents fill it out, they should be sure the schools they are applying to accept this application. Parents can fill out the PFS online, and the site offers a workbook to guide applicants. Filling out the form online costs $37, while it costs $49 to fill it out on paper. A fee waiver is available. The PFS asks parents to provide information about the family’s income, the family’s assets (homes, vehicles, bank and mutual fund accounts, etc.), the debts the family owes, how much the family pays for educational expenses for all their children, and other expenses the family may have (such as dental and medical expenses, camps, lessons and tutors, and vacations). You may be asked to upload certain documents related to your finances onto the website, and these documents are stored securely. Based on the information you submit on the PFS, the SSS determines how much discretionary income you have and makes a recommendation about your â€Å"Estimated Family Contribution† to the schools to which you are applying. However, schools make their own decisions about the amount each family can pay for tuition, and they may adjust this estimate. For example, some schools may decide that they can not afford this amount and may ask the family to pay more, while other schools may adjust the cost of living for your city or town based on local factors. In addition, schools vary in how much aid they offer based on their endowment and the school’s commitment to providing financial aid to broaden their student body. In general, older, more established schools tend to have larger endowments and can offer to provide more generous financial aid packages. Where to Find a Financial Aid Calculator The truth is, there really isnt a fool-proof financial aid calculator for private school applicants. But, private schools do try to work closely with families to meet their needs. If you want a general idea of your estimated FA award, you might consider a financial aid calculator used by students applying for financial aid at college. You can also ask the admission office for statistics on average financial aid awards offered by the school, percent of family-need met and the percent of students who receive aid. Also, look at the schools endowment and ask what the full financial aid budget is, these factors can help you get an idea of how aid is allocated to families. Because each school makes its own decision about financial aid and how much your family should pay toward tuition, you may wind up with very different offers from different schools. In fact, the amount of aid you are offered can be one of the factors you consider when choosing the right private school.

Interesting Facts and Data About American Indians

Interesting Facts and Data About American Indians Due to longstanding cultural mythology and the fact that Native Americans constitute one of the smallest racial groups in the United States, misinformation about indigenous peoples abounds. Many Americans simply regard Native Americans as caricatures that only come to mind when Pilgrims, cowboys or Columbus are the topics at hand. Yet American Indians are three-dimensional people who exist in the here and now. In recognition of National Native American Heritage Month, the U.S. Census Bureau has collected data about American Indians that reveal noteworthy trends taking place among this diverse racial group. Get the facts about what makes Native Americans unique. Almost Half of Native Americans Are Mixed-Race More than five million Native Americans live in the United States, making up 1.7 percent of the population. While 2.9 million U.S. indigenous peoples identify as solely American Indian or Alaska Native, 2.3 million identified as multiracial, the Census Bureau reported. Thats nearly half of the indigenous population. Why do so many Natives identify as biracial or multiracial? The reasons for the trend vary. Some of these Native Americans may be the product of interracial couples- one indigenous parent and one of another race. They may also have non-Native ancestry that dates back to generations past. On the flip side, many whites and blacks claim to have Native American ancestry because race mixing has taken place in the U.S. for centuries. There’s even a nickname for this phenomenon, â€Å"Cherokee Grandmother Syndrome.† It refers to people who claim that a distant ancestor such as their great-great-grandmother was Native American. This isn’t to say that the whites and blacks in question are always lying about having indigenous ancestry. When talk show host Oprah Winfrey had her DNA analyzed on the television show â€Å"African American Lives,† she was found to have a significant amount of Native American lineage. Many people who claim American Indian origin don’t know much, if anything, about their Native ancestor and are ignorant about Native cultures and customs. Yet they may be responsible for a boost in the indigenous population if they claim Native ancestry on the census. â€Å"Reclaimers are perceived as preying upon the current trendiness of Nativeness as well as perhaps embracing this heritage for economic, or perceived economic, gain,† Kathleen J. Fitzgerald writes in the book Beyond White Ethnicity. Margaret Seltzer (aka Margaret B. Jones) and Timothy Patrick Barrus (aka Nasdijj) are just a couple of the white writers who profited from writing memoirs in which they pretended to be Native American. Another reason for the high number of multiracial Native Americans is the spike in the number of Latin American immigrants in the U.S. with indigenous ancestry. The Census Bureau found that Latinos are increasingly choosing to identify as Native American. Many Latinos have European, indigenous and African ancestry. Those who are intimately connected to their indigenous roots want such ancestry to be acknowledged. The Native American Population Is Growing â€Å"When Indians go away, they don’t come back. Last of the Mohicans, last of the Winnebago, last of the Couer d’Alene people†¦,† says a character in the Native American film â€Å"Smoke Signals.† He alludes to the widely spread notion in U.S. society that indigenous peoples are extinct. Contrary to popular belief, Native Americans did not all disappear when Europeans settled in the New World. Although the warfare and disease that Europeans spread upon arriving in the Americas did decimate entire communities of American Indians, U.S. indigenous groups are actually growing today. The Native American population rose by 1.1 million, or 26.7 percent, between the 2000 and 2010 census. That’s much faster than the general population growth of 9.7 percent. By 2050, the Native population is expected to increase by more than three million. The Native American population is concentrated in 15 states, all of which have indigenous populations of 100,000 or more: California, Oklahoma, Arizona, Texas, New York, New Mexico, Washington, North Carolina, Florida, Michigan, Alaska, Oregon, Colorado, Minnesota, and Illinois. While California has the largest number of Native Americans, Alaska has the highest percentage of them. Given that the median age of the Native American population is 29, eight years younger than the general population, the indigenous population is in a prime position to expand. Eight Native American Tribes Have at Least 100,000 Members Many Americans would draw a blank if asked to list a handful of the nation’s largest indigenous tribes. The country is home to 565 federally-recognized Indian tribes and 334 American Indian reservations. The largest eight tribes range in size from 819,105 to 105,304, with the Cherokee, Navajo, Choctaw, Mexican-American Indians, Chippewa, Sioux, Apache, and Blackfeet topping the list. A Significant Portion of Native Americans Are Bilingual Unless you live in Indian Country, it may be a surprise for you to learn that many Native Americans speak more than one language. The Census Bureau has found that 28 percent of American Indians and Alaska Natives speak a language other than English at home. That’s higher than the U.S. average of 21 percent. Among the Navajo Nation, a whopping 73 percent of members are bilingual. The fact that many Native Americans today speak both English and a tribal language is, in part, due to the work of activists who have striven to keep indigenous dialects alive. As recently as the 1900s, the U.S. government actively worked to stop Native peoples from speaking in tribal languages. Government officials even sent indigenous children to boarding schools where they were punished for speaking tribal languages. As elders in some indigenous communities died, fewer and fewer tribal members could speak the tribal language and pass it on. According to the National Geographic Society’s Enduring Voices Project, a language dies every two weeks. More than half of the world’s 7,000 languages will vanish by 2100, and many such languages have never been written down. To help preserve indigenous languages and interests worldwide, the United Nations created a Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007. Native American Businesses Are Booming Native American businesses are on the rise. From 2002 to 2007, receipts for such businesses jumped by 28 percent. To boot, the number of Native American businesses increased by 17.7 percent during the same time period. With 45,629 Native-owned businesses, California leads the nation in indigenous enterprises, followed by Oklahoma and Texas. More than half of indigenous businesses fall into the construction, repair, maintenance, personal and laundry services categories.

Writing Prompts for 5th Gradeers

Writing Prompts for 5th Gradeers By fifth grade, students are developing basic fluency as writers. In order to hone their skills, fifth  graders should practice supporting claims with factual information, conveying information clearly, and writing narratives in a logical order. The following fifth-grade writing prompts encourage students to develop their skills through topics that are meaningful to them. Narrative Essay Writing Prompts Narrative essays tell a story based on a student’s personal experience. They encourage students to use descriptive writing to reflect on their experiences, explain them in a logical manner, and draw conclusions from them. New Beginnings.  This is your  last year of elementary school. What are you most excited or most nervous about when you think of starting middle school?Betwixt. Students in 5th grade are often referred to as â€Å"tweens,† meaning that they are between the young child and the teen years. What is the hardest thing about being a tween in today’s society?Besties.  What is the best book you’ve ever read? What made it so special?Reflections.  Do  you remember your first-ever day of school? Describe one vivid memory from that day.Bullies. Have you ever witnessed someone bullying another student? What happened and how did it make you feel?Man’s Best Friend.  Do you share a bond with your dog or other pet? Describe your pet, and explain what makes your relationship unique.Families.  A family isn’t always a mom, a dad, and their children.  Write about the ways your family is the same as and different from  other types of families  and wha t makes your bonds so strong.Holiday Memories.  Think about one of your favorite holiday-related memories. Write an essay describing it and tell why it is so unforgettable. Guilty.  Think about a time you did something that made you feel guilty. Describe what happened.The Ultimate Field Trip.  If you could choose anywhere in the world to go on a field trip, where would you choose and why?Family Game Night.  Do you enjoy playing games with your family? Describe your favorite family game or activity.Tasty Treats.  What is your favorite food? Describe it as if you were introducing it to someone who has never seen or tasted it.Someday.  Have you thought about what you want to be when you grow up? Write an essay explaining why you think you’d like that career. Persuasive Essay Writing Prompts Persuasive essays are those written to convince another person to agree with the writer or take action. These persuasive essay prompts inspire 5th graders to share their passions with an audience. Pets Day.  You’ve just gone to work with your parent for â€Å"bring your child to work day.† Write an essay convincing your school to have a â€Å"bring your pet to school† day.Yuck.  What is your least-favorite cafeteria food? Give three compelling reasons why your school should quit serving it.Let’s Trade.  Your friend’s lunches from home always look better than yours. Write an essay convincing  your buddy  that you should start swapping meals every day. Be sure to  highlight the benefits of the food you bring!Home Alone. Write an essay convincing your parents that you are old enough and responsible enough to stay at home alone.Sunny Day.  The weather outside is beautiful for the first time in weeks. Persuade your teacher not to assign any homework so that you’ll have time to go out to play.The Sequel.  The long-awaited sequel to your favorite book or video game is now available. Convince your brother or sister to do your c hores this week so that you have plenty of time for reading or gaming.Seating Chart.  Because of your teacher’s seating chart, you’re not going to be able to sit next to your friend all year! Persuade your teacher to let students choose their seats. Birth Order. Are you an only child, the oldest sibling, the youngest, or the middle? What makes your birth order the best?The Ultimate Game.  What is the best video game on the planet? Explain why it’s better than similar games.Life Lessons.  What are the three most important lessons parents should teach their children and why?Test Time.  Do you think standardized tests  are helpful or harmful? Explain your answer.Tunes.  Some studies have shown that listening to music can help students concentrate. Should students be allowed to listen to music using headphones during independent work times at school? Persuade the reader of your answer.Catch-22.  You’re not a big fan of writing. Write an essay  convincing  your teacher that you shouldn’t have to write any more essays this year. Expository Essay Writing Prompts Expository essays are often called how-to essays. They usually teach the reader something or provide facts about a particular topic. Let’s Play. Your family frequently attends community theater productions, but your friend has never seen one. Write an essay describing what he or she can expect during the evening.Band. Youre graduating elementary school, and a younger student is taking your spot in the school band. Explain to him or her how to clean and care for your  musical  instrument.Lessons Learned. Write an essay to a younger sibling explaining two or three key strategies for having a positive 5th-grade experience.Class Pet.  You’ve cared for your class pet this week, but now it’s another classmate’s turn. Explain how to feed and care for the pet properly.Upgrade Ahead.  You have an idea to improve your school. Explain it.Safety Zone.  Explain three of the best steps kids can take to be safe online.Family Traditions.  Does your family have any customs or traditions that might be unfamiliar to a classmate? Describe them.Pen Pal.  Describe for your pen  pal who lives in another state an  animal native to your area, including its physical characteristics, behaviors, and any sounds that it makes. Creepy Crawlies.  Compare and contrast two insects or animals that are similar, but have different characteristics such as a bumblebee and a yellow jacket or a horse and a mule. How are they alike and how are they different?Clean Up.  Your class is going to spend a day cleaning up at a local park. You’ve done this with another group before, but some of your classmates haven’t. Explain the process.Action.  Your favorite book was made into a movie. Compare and contrast the film and book versions.Team Players.  Explain how contributing responsibly helps or how it hurts a group when someone doesn’t do his part.Tell and Show.  Your class is having a â€Å"tell and show† day. You have to describe your item in as much detail as possible without naming it. Only when the class guesses or gives up can you show your item. Write out the description of your item. Creative Writing Essay Prompts Creative writing allows students to engage their imaginations and story-telling skills while also practicing vital writing skills such as sequence and description. Magic Lamp.  You’ve just found a  magic lamp. What happens when you rub it?Say Cheese.  You are given an exceptional camera. Everything you take a picture of becomes yours, but you can only take three pictures. Tell a story about the photos you take.Invisible Man. One morning, you glance in the mirror and realize that you don’t have a reflection. You’ve become invisible! Write a story about your day.Gone to the Dogs.  Write a story from your pet’s point of view.All Hail the King.  Imagine that you discover an uncharted land that you claim as a new country. And, you’re the ruler! Describe your country, its people, and your newfound position of power.Part of the Story.  One night, you doze off after reading the latest book in your favorite series. When you wake, you discover that you’re in the story! Write about your adventures.Before or After. Imagine that you live either 100 years in the past or 100 years in the future. What is yo ur life like?Dr. Doolittle.  You’re walking through a pet store when you  discover that you can talk to the animals.  What happens next? Meet and Greet. Imagine that you can meet anyone you’re studying in school right now from famous scientists to historical figures to the characters in the class read-aloud. Write a story about your meeting with that person.Switcheroo. If you could switch lives with anyone in your school, who would it be? Write about your day in the life of that person.Holiday Loop.  Imagine you get to relive your favorite holiday every day. What’s that like?Tall Tales. Tall tales are possibly true stories that contain  highly exaggerated actions or events. Create a tall tale about something that happened in your family.Teachers Pet. Imagine that your teacher is actually your parent. Describe a day in class.

Project Mgmt Discussion Topic - Week 3.2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Project Mgmt Discussion Topic - Week 3.2 - Essay Example However, the system has been criticized in various ways because of the fact that it may not offer long term solutions to sustained increased performance. In the first place, the system plays an important role by making the members to increase their efforts in order to get more benefits. This is a good move since the team ends up achieving more. However, one of the disadvantages is that the system does not create and sustain intrinsic motivation (Emerson & Loehr 2008). For this reason, some members often do not put their best in the work because they are not motivated by the incentives they receive. In most cases, the attention often shifts to those that do best and not encouraging those that do not. In this case, the mode of motivation can affect work relationship between the members of the team (Emerson & Loehr 2008). The manager needs to ensure that the method he uses elicits maximum intrinsic motivation from its members. In as much as the project has to succeed from achievement of its set targets, it does not need to achieve them at the expense of its workers; instead, it needs to ensure that the attained results are celebrated by all members because of their combined efforts and effective motivation

Parental involvement in 'homework' does it help children achieve their Essay

Parental involvement in 'homework' does it help children achieve their school based targets - Essay Example vidence shows that different elements of parents’ involvement provide a cognitively stimulating home environment which reinforces parental beliefs and aspirations (Feinstein et al. 2006: 301). The proposed project aims at producing a comprehensive and reliable research on the relationship between parental involvement in homework and its impact on pupil achievement. The investigation looks into the parent-child relationship in terms of parental support, family learning, parental involvement and parents’ level of education and pupil achievement. Parental involvement in early intervention programmes has been found to equate with better outcomes for the child. Most effective interventions involve parents in pre-school children’s cognitive development. Play and fun and scope for physical activity seem to produce most effective outcomes. Parents’ self esteem is very important in determining long term outcomes for both themselves and their children. The objective of this research project is to identify if parents that are involved in their children’s homework will promote the achievement of their school based targets. This will be accomplished by identifying the current guidelines on homework and why do parents get involved. A portion of this research will be my own analysis of my practice as a parent in the contribution of homework. A plan will be devised on how best to support a child with their homework by considering a number of strategies as suggested by Hoover-Dempsey et al (2004). To conclude the study there will be examination of literature with a personal opinion. Homework, especially for primary age pupils, has become the subject of an increasingly heated debate. There are opinions in favour as well against the practice of homework. Despite government guidelines that primary school pupils should do at least 30 minutes of homework a day, some unions and academics doubt its efficacy, and protest that the home lives of pupils are becoming increasingly

To analyze the production of M. Butterfly and how it represents Asia Essay

To analyze the production of M. Butterfly and how it represents Asia through the story, scenic design, costume design, movement, sound, and lights - Essay Example M Butterfly play is one of the most popular plays and which was a highly applauded Asian American plays during the late 20th century. The importance of this play and the new visibility of Asian American theater reveal the growing attention given to cultural, political and intellectual issues. The intellectual issue includes ethnicity, gender, race, and sexualities (David pg. 12). The main strategies of understanding the play depend on the background of political histories between North America, China and Europe as well as on the cultural political of Orientalism. Critical reading of M butterfly varies from debates over the re3prewsentation of sexualities and ethnicity, theories of performance, politics of Orientalism, and the notion of the masquerade. This paper intends to look at how M. Butterfly represents Asia through several things. The image of a woman of Asia as both dangerous and sensual is important. The clash in this combination of need for fear of Oriental women gives some light on the manner in which inter-racial relationship get viewed in America (David pg 24). The plot of an Inter-racial romance that is seen in this play about a European American mans fateful love affair with a lady from another culture and race, almost ended in the nonwhite tragic pregnancy of a woman or her final sacrifice. It depicts the best of the two worlds like Gina Machetti states while apparently confirming a complete separation of the races; it also gives way for the possibility of assimilation through adopting mixed-raced child. This kind of unfortunate love between white men and Asian women becomes an efficient cultural means of accepting the interracial relationships; it is a method that emphasizes the splendor of love as an ideology and, concurrently, introduces the transitory and the tragic nature of inter-racial love. T he symbol of Butterfly serves well the cultural trends of her time: she reflects the persistent fantasy on the submissive,

Social networking site does more bad than good Essay

Social networking site does more bad than good - Essay Example Evidence exists that the use of these sites has a negative effect on individual lives. A research done concluded that longer use of internets had a strong association with â€Å"increased depression, loneliness, and smaller social circles† (Ahn 1441). The effect occurs, as individuals are mostly isolated from their friends and families due to heavy reliance on SNS. As a result, such individuals psychological well-being is affected. Secondly, SNS have been found to affect student’s performance in schools. The effect has been noted in reduced grades to persistent users of these sites. For example, in one of a conference paper by Karpinski (2009), it noted that college Facebook users have lower GPAs as compared to nonusers of the site (Ahn 1442). The argument was that users are most likely to spend longer time at the expense of studying. On the other hand, these sites have led to cyber bullying. Perpetrators of cyber bullying have significantly used these sites (Jung 1). Hence, those that use these sites especially kids are more prone to cyber bullying. Usually, perpetrators hide their real identities to terrorize victims (Jung 1). The vulnerable kids are likely to develop mental problems and sometimes even contemplate committing suicide. Ahn, June. â€Å"The Effect of Social Network Sites on Adolescents’ Social and Academic Development: Current Theories and Controversies.† Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology 62(8) (2011): 1435-1445.

Analysis of a Non-Profit Organization Assignment

Analysis of a Non-Profit Organization - Assignment Example According to the research study it is moral obligation of every individual to give back something to the community that has helped the individual to earn a living. Therefore, some people just contribute back to society by providing financial assistance while others dedicate their lives just to serve the ones in need. Non-profit organizations can operate in different fields like medical research, development programs, and health services and so on. The type of NPO that really interests me is Maryland Angels, which is a NPO that conducts research and treatments for cancer patients.   This paper stresses that  starting a non-profit organization is certainly one of the most inspiring way through which one can help those in need and give back to the community. The first and most important thing here is to always remember that serving community is more important than making money. Ironically, monetary contributions are equally important. Hence, the members serving the NPO will have to carefully balance monetary needs. This is also one of the reasons as to why it takes many years to sustain and grow a non-profit entity.  A non-profit organization’s success or failure is totally dependent on its foundations. The stronger the foundations the more people in the society would come forward to contribute.  Making a non-profit organization attractive to donors is probably the most difficult task. Not only has the very survival of the organization is depended on it but also an indication that the society is accepting it.

Social networking site does more bad than good Essay

Social networking site does more bad than good - Essay Example Evidence exists that the use of these sites has a negative effect on individual lives. A research done concluded that longer use of internets had a strong association with â€Å"increased depression, loneliness, and smaller social circles† (Ahn 1441). The effect occurs, as individuals are mostly isolated from their friends and families due to heavy reliance on SNS. As a result, such individuals psychological well-being is affected. Secondly, SNS have been found to affect student’s performance in schools. The effect has been noted in reduced grades to persistent users of these sites. For example, in one of a conference paper by Karpinski (2009), it noted that college Facebook users have lower GPAs as compared to nonusers of the site (Ahn 1442). The argument was that users are most likely to spend longer time at the expense of studying. On the other hand, these sites have led to cyber bullying. Perpetrators of cyber bullying have significantly used these sites (Jung 1). Hence, those that use these sites especially kids are more prone to cyber bullying. Usually, perpetrators hide their real identities to terrorize victims (Jung 1). The vulnerable kids are likely to develop mental problems and sometimes even contemplate committing suicide. Ahn, June. â€Å"The Effect of Social Network Sites on Adolescents’ Social and Academic Development: Current Theories and Controversies.† Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology 62(8) (2011): 1435-1445.

Marketing Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Marketing Planning - Essay Example 256). In an effective way to overcome, this particular barrier, the top management should be actively involved in the process of marketing planning. Continuous update of the planning process also needs to be provided to them at regular intervals. Lack of line Support Hostility and non co operation on the part of the functional as well as divisional managers and personnel of the organization regarding the implementation of the newly designed marketing planning process is another factor that has to be taken into account in this case. It can be said that in order to overcome this particular barrier, the managers of the respective functions and division has to be increasingly convinced about how the effectiveness of the new process of marketing planning will lead to the process of better value proposition for the customers and thereby will promote significant growth of the company. Failure of in depth analysis The failure to conduct an in-depth analysis of the capability of the resources available to the company is another reason that can lead to the process of failure of marketing planning. To overcome this particular barrier, an internal audit has to be carried out by the company which will increasingly focus on the process of highlighting the resource capability and its probable effective utilization by the company. Lack of Synchronization The lack of proper co-ordination and synchronization between the departments of marketing and production of the company can also emerge as a barrier to effective marketing planning. In an attempt to overcome this particular barrier, it can be said that the application of an information system throughout the organization will be highly relevant. The application of the information system throughout the company will lead to the process of eradication of this particular barrier by significantly promoting a common platform which will promote synchronization of the marketing and production department. Regard Marketing Consultant. 4b . Strategic Planning process is a very important activity for any business organization (Simerson, 2011, p.1). It is a key factor in the business in regards to strategic management, which enables the company to provide directions, guidelines and boundaries to the functional and operational processes of an organization (Steiner, 1997, p.4). It can be increasingly said that the entire process of strategic planning is intended to focus on the forward progress of the business through the process of market development, product development as well as achieving significant share of the market and growth in revenue. The presence of a large number of macro factors that can bring a significant range of impact in the firm’s area of business environment leads to the process of providing a significant level of importance to the strategic planning process of the firm. It can be said that the strategic planning process undertaken by various business organizations helps them to prepare for t he impending uncertainties lingering in the business environment and thereby prepare backup plans and options, which will empower them to avoid complete disruption of the firms’ business processes. On the other side, it can be said that the marketing planning process enables the marketing teams of organization to focus on the processes of generation, communication, distribution and capture of values from the target audience, while

Lord of the Flies Essay Example for Free

Lord of the Flies Essay Lord of the flies has been called â€Å"a fable in which the characters are symbols for abstract ideas,† and there are many ways in which the characters can be viewed. One way, for instance, is comparing them to Sigmund Freud’s theory of id, ego, and superego: the boys being like a metaphorical person, where Jack is the id, Ralph the ego, and Piggy the superego. It is an appropriate allegation because of the fact that id, ego, and superego all have specific traits that match those of these three characters. The id wants, with no consideration for the reality of the situation. In the beginning of the novel we are shown Jack marching his choirboys across the beach in the way a militia leader would, making them halt and stand to. Already we are shown the image of a boy who loves, and wants, power. We see it in the way he demands and commands. Jack is the type of person who throws a tantrum when he doesn’t get exactly what he wants. He is always sticking his knife into a tree in a fit of rage, or trying to prove himself in some way. When he see’s he can’t be leader he tries to make up for his own feelings of inadequacy by proving that he can hunt and kill a pig. He does this to try and show the rest of the tribe his talents and qualities. Most all human beings have a basic desire to rise up, prove themselves and win praise and happiness, which is apart of their id. In Jacks case he craves power and attention and he will, by all means necessary, achieve it. Unlike Jack, we see Ralph: the ego. The ego is a persons own morals and standards that hold the id in check. In a way it is one’s personal Jiminy Cricket. Ralph knows right from wrong very well and we can see he has been raised to have virtuous morals by the way he acts towards the others on the island. When he left piggy to go explore with the two other boys, you could tell immediately that he had a moral conflict by the way that he quickly ran back to piggy to apologize. This shows that Ralph has a deep sense of principle, which is one of his best leadership qualities. When Piggy’s glasses were stolen, Ralph was upset that Jack no longer had morals and standards, like he did. He was also upset that Jack’s id had taken over most of the group and that they gave into their most basic, savage instincts. As the id, Ralph keeps Jack in check, and stands between him and Piggy, who happens to be the superego. The superego is considered society’s morals and standards that one must conform to. The superego goes hand-in-hand with the ego to try and keep the id in check. Here Piggy is like Ralph â€Å"right hand man†. Piggy is constantly reminding everyone that they should behave like mature adults act properly even though the grownups aren’t around. The little ones are always running about and messing around leaving the older children to build the shelter and the fire and gather wood and water. Piggy talks about what the grownups would do and how they should do everything like that. Lord of the Flies proves to be a novel of many abstract ideas. Though Golding may not have meant to allude to Freud’s id, ego, and superego theory in his novel, there certainly were many suggestions and many ways to interoperate the characters and their actions.

Developing Energy Efficient Building Design

Developing Energy Efficient Building Design Introduction Aims and Objectives The following five points are the key aims and objectives of the proposed building design: To provide the client with an energy efficient building design. To utilise renewable energy systems to reduce the buildings carbon footprint. To use materials in the construction of the building fabric that minimise heat losses/gains so as to reduce the loads on the services systems, and therefore the energy consumption. To provide a flexible, let able HVAC system solution for the landlord/tenant. To provide a design solution in accordance with current Building Regulations. Building summary Heron Tower is an office block located in Central London near to Liverpool Street train station. The site is situated on a traffic island bordered by Camomile Street, Outwich Street and Bishopsgate. The building has a footprint of approximately 1610m2. Site Location Heron Tower is a lightweight steel frame construction, with a concrete structural slab. The external faà §ade of the building is predominantly glazed. The building consists of a basement level, Ground Floor and 2 Floors above ground. The basement will predominantly be used for plant and storage. The ground floor comprises an entrance lobby / reception area, retail area and a loading bay. Each of the floors above ground will be broken down into two distinct areas, the office area and the core area. The building has a flat roof that is available for use for plant and equipment. The office area is to be let to tenants and will be open plan, with a floor area of approximately 1270m2. The core area will be under the control of the building landlord and will house the lifts, stairs, toilets, service risers and will have an allowance for space for tenants plant. The core area has a floor area of approximately 340m2. The total floor area is therefore approximately 6440m2, of which 3900m2 is designated landlords space (i.e. plant, storage, services, retail etc.), and 2540m2 to be let. Occupancy Design Criteria Alert the reading where youre getting the information to design each room of the building, what standards you are trying to meet / exceed. From experience, this is best presented as a cut down of an Excel in the appendix in the form of a table. This sheet should have criteria for every room. Cut it down to every type of room, so it fits on one page, usually rotated, tricky. Environmental data from CIBSE Guide A  [2]   Lighting data from CIBSE LG7 -Lighting for Offices  [3]   Ventilation Cooling Heating Domestic Cold Water The domestic cold water service will be provided via a cold water booster set, taking water from a mains fed storage tank. This service will provide water for drinking, toilets, cleaning, mechanical pressurisation units, and will also feed the domestic hot water system via an unvented storage calorifier. The cold water service will be sized as follows: Occupancy: Cold water demand: Hot water demand: Domestic Hot Water The domestic hot water service will be provided via a two-pipe system fed from a central unvented storage calorifier, with a system pump to circulate the water to maintain the temperature. It is proposed that the primary method of heating the water is produced using an indirect solar hot water heating system. The system will comprise a solar array on the roof of the building that will heat the domestic hot water via a coil in the storage calorifier. The system water will be circulated through the solar panels and coil using a pump. The calorifier provided will have dual coils to allow the solar heating system to be supplemented by the main building heating system. This secondary coil will be used to heat the water if the solar system fails to meet hot water demand. Both coils will be controlled using automatic 3-port control valves For more detailed information about the solar hot water heating system see section 6.1. Acoustics Lighting Electrical Services Supplemented by wind turbines on roof Distribution of Services Landlord Areas Mechanical Electrical Tenants / Public Areas Mechanical LTHW and CHW pipework to air conditioning units will be housed in the ceiling void. Electrical Distribution of small power to the office area will be via floor boxes fed from a raised floor. Power for air conditioning units and lighting will be distributed via the ceiling void. Energy Metering Metering will be provided on both incoming service mains to the site and on sub-circuits within the building for monitoring by the building energy manager. Metering provisions will enable the energy manager to attribute at least 90% of the energy usage to specific systems, e.g. lighting, heating etc. in accordance with The Building Regulations Part L2A  [4]  . The meters provided shall be BMS compatible to allow for automatic data collection. The metering strategy for the building is as follows: Mains Metering Electricity Electricity will be metered on the incoming mains to monitor the buildings overall electrical energy usage and for billing purposes (in accordance with ) Water Water will be metered on the incoming mains to monitor the overall water usage and for billing purposes (in accordance with water bylaws). Gas Gas will be metered on the incoming mains to monitor the overall gas usage and for billing purposes (in accordance with ) Sub-Metering Sub-metering will be provided to monitor energy usage on sub-systems so that the overall energy usage of the building can be broken down into the various systems and analysed by the building energy manager. Sub-metering will also be used to differentiate between energy usage by the landlord and tenants for billing purposes. The sub-metering strategy has been devised in accordance with CIBSE TM39  [5]  . The sub-metering strategy for the building is as follows: Electricity The landlords and tenants supplies will be fed from separate distribution boards to allow differentiation between energy usages. The feeds to these distribution boards will be metered at the L.V switchgear. Metering will also be provided at the local distribution boards to monitor energy usage across the main categories of electricity usage. The categories that will be monitored are: Lighting Office small power (including computer equipment etc.) Ventilation plant Heating plant Cooling plant Air conditioning units Heating/Air Conditioning Heating and air conditioning in the landlord and tenant areas will be fed by separate sub-circuits. The energy used by each of these circuits will be monitored by using in line pipe heat meters located in the service risers. Water Domestic hot and cold water usage at the toilets on levels 1 2, and in the staff areas in the basement will be monitored using water meters located in the service risers. Gas Gas is only used for the gas fired boiler plant. As the gas is metered at the incoming main no sub-metering is required. Solar Domestic Hot Water System The output of the solar hot water generation system will be measured by installing a heat meter inline to the feed from the solar array to the storage calorifier. This heat meter will measure the flow rate of the water as well as its temperature in order to gauge system output. A meter will also be installed in the sub-circuit feed from the LTHW system to ascertain how much LTHW has to be used when the solar hot water generation system fails to satisfy demand. Wind Power System Energy produced by the wind turbines located on the roof of the building will be metered to provide the building energy manager with data on the actual output of the wind turbines. This will be metered on the common feed from the turbines to the storage battery. The consultation on changes to the technical  guidance for Part L issued in June 2009 proposes: The output of any renewable energy system  provided as part of the works must be  separately monitored. Safety Benchmarking This section is to give the reader an idea of the minimum standard to be achieved by your proposed design. Usually BSRIA Rule of Thumb gives you a starting point in W/m2. There is usually guidance in the form of Best Practice for a particular type of building: school, hospital, office, leisure centre etc. CIBSE guide A Table 6.2 Benchmark allowances for internal heat gains in typical buildings BSRIA Rules of thumb 4th ed Heat Calculations You will need to calculate the current baseline design using typical construction materials. This could be done using Hevacomp  [6]  , IES  [7]  or Excel. Then you could consider orientation, shading and construction materials to recalculate heat loss /gains. Typically, improved U values for windows are considered, but then you must justify the decision based on costs / environmental pollution etc. Could include the unoptimised design, if the building is a refurbishment. You should include any restrictions, listed building, planning constraints etc. Heat losses You should make the calculations, say in Hevacomp, but only include a summary in the text. This includes the U values for the building elements: wall, floor, roof, door, windows, these could be calculated from scratch, taken from the CIBSE guide, Hevacomp database or manufacturers data. Literature Review (In-depth investigation) The literature review should consider one or two particular areas. You should use a selection matrix to highlight two or three potential solutions depending on your criteria (your client usually wants the cheapest construction- low capital cost) usually you want either low C02, low energy bills, low maintenance, highest safety etc. You must be able to defend your selection. Now investigate the options based on the selection matrix, you dont need to supply manufacture information, but you may need to hassle manufacturers for cost information, or size information (e.g bore hole depths for ground source heat pumps, GSHP) Heating supply for example You could select gas or electric or CHP or GSHP or ASHP or oil, liquefied gas etc. Select two or three and investigate options in-depth Heating systems You could decide between radiators, under-floor heating, electric storage heaters etc. Ventilation Requirements Ventilation is a means of changing the air within a space in order to: Provide fresh air for respiration Preserve oxygen levels in the air in enclosed spaces Control carbon dioxide Control moisture/humidity Remove heat from processes carried out within a space Remove atmospheric contaminants such as odours, smoke and dust Maintain comfort conditions Provide oxygen for combustion Types of Ventilation Ventilation may take many forms and the method of ventilating buildings will vary from project to project. Whatever the specific design for ventilating a building may be, it can always be divided into three categories- natural ventilation, mechanical ventilation and air conditioning. Designers may decide to focus the design of the buildings ventilation system solely on one of these three methods, or to use a combination of the three. Natural Ventilation Natural ventilation is the most economic method of ventilating a building as it uses components of the buildings structure, such as windows, louvres, trickle vents and air bricks to provide the buildings ventilation, therefore requiring little or no energy to operate (although it can contribute to the buildings energy losses). When deciding to use natural ventilation in a building design the following factors should be taken into consideration: Location: is the building situated in an area where having windows open for the purpose of ventilation is going to allow high noise levels or smells into the building? Size: how big is the building? If the building is large are there internal rooms that are not close to external walls/windows and could therefore be insufficiently ventilated naturally? Temperature maintenance: what measures will be used to maintain a comfortable internal temperature if the external temperatures are fluctuating? Energy consumption: although utilising natural ventilation will reduce energy consumption by not requiring any mechanical plant to operate, constantly having windows open will lead to larger heat losses than would be expected from an identical sealed building. This will increase the energy use of any heating systems in place. Seasonal weather: will natural ventilation provide enough cooling on hot summers days to maintain comfortable conditions? Will it still be practical to have windows open on particularly cold days? If natural ventilation is used as a buildings sole means of ventilation then it can be very difficult to maintain comfortable conditions all year round, as you are depending on an unknown and uncontrollable factor i.e. the weather. The only control that is really available is to open or close windows or other building components. Mechanical Ventilation Mechanical ventilation systems are installed where natural ventilation is impractical or there is a necessity to achieve a specific number of air changes per hour in order to comply with legislation and regulations. Mechanical ventilation systems can take three forms: Mechanical intake with natural extract Mechanical extract with natural intake Mechanical intake and extract Whilst both the capital and running costs of a mechanical system are higher than that of a natural system, mechanical systems will provide a reliable and controllable air change rate that is required in some circumstances, and is simply not achievable via natural ventilation. When deciding to use mechanical ventilation in a building design the following factors should be taken into consideration: Size: is the building big enough to warrant the installation of a mechanical ventilation system? Location/use of rooms: does the building have internal rooms that have no other means of smell/heat extraction such as toilets or kitchens, therefore requiring a mechanical ventilation system? Cost: does the buildings need for ventilation warrant the cost of installing, running and maintaining a mechanical ventilation system? Maintenance: is maintenance of the system going to be easy and affordable? Space: is there going to be enough space in the building for the plant/distribution systems required for a mechanical ventilation system? A mechanical ventilation system provides the occupants of the building with a higher level of control over comfort conditions than would be provided when relying solely on natural ventilation. It would not however provide the level of controllability that can be achieved by an air conditioning system. Air Conditioning Air conditioning is the process of controlling condition of the air supplied to a space by subjecting the air to a number of processes including heating, cooling, humidification and dehumidification. Air conditioning is used where close control of comfort conditions is required, or where acceptable internal conditions cannot be achieved using either natural or mechanical ventilation. When deciding to use an air conditioning system in a building design the following factors should be taken into consideration: Size: is the building big enough to warrant the installation of an air conditioning system? Location/use of rooms: does the building have internal rooms that have no other means of smell/heat extraction such as toilets or kitchens, therefore requiring the installation of a mechanical ventilation system as well as the air conditioning system? Cost: is the need to maintain comfort conditions and temperatures great enough to warrant the cost of installing, running and maintaining an air-conditioning system? Maintenance: is maintenance of the system going to be easy and affordable? Space: is there going to be enough space in the building for the plant/distribution systems required for an air conditioning system? Efficiency: is the plant that is going to be installed going to be energy efficient? An air conditioning system gives by far the greatest level of control over comfort conditions. Temperatures can be controlled locally and accurately, meaning that people in different areas of the building can decide on the conditions that they feel most comfortable. The installation of an air conditioning system can also remove the requirement for a separate heating system, if a multi-functional fan coil unit system, or equivalent, were to be installed, therefore allowing conditions to be maintained comfortably all year round. Renewables Now the Mayor of London has put his backing into renewables, it must be included as a potential measure. Typically students investigate hydrogen, solar heated water, PV, tidal, wind or biomass. You need to decide which one is appropriate then make some calculations. Please learn to use equation editor (its under Insert -> Object). Unfortunately, its not installed by default by Word, but you can add it in by a add/remove option in Office Setup. From your decisions you should be able to calculate the CO2 and energy savings, based this upon a standard condensing boiler and the current price of gas and electricity. Include grants / tax breaks into the calculation. Finally, financials including simple pay back period should be included, but you should rerun the calculation based on future energy prices as well.

Comparing Yeon Yi Min and Me Essay -- comparison compare contrast essa

Yeon Yi Min and Me             I could easily recognize the differences between Yeon Yi Min and myself as soon as I met her and recalled all of the factual information I knew about Koreans, but I did not discover our similarities until after I had opened my eyes to her individual, yet universal, nature. I saw her as a drone of her culture, held in by rigid structure and lacking of any independent, individualistic thought beyond rules of society; I was ready to share my culture with her and to learn of her culture, but I never believed that I would discover a connection between us because of what she said, or did not say. However, while I sat and communicated with Yeon Yi, I felt many of the learned stereotypes drain out of me in order to be replaced by understanding, awe, and respect. We discussed families and friends, basic beliefs, our daily lives, and ourselves; and we discovered that we, human beings, are not so drastically different as we would like to believe. In fact, Korean and American individ uals are relatively the same; however, differences in attitude and action arise from the extent of cultural independence that the respective citizens enjoy.    Even with Yeon Yi's broken English and my American colloquialisms, we understood each other perfectly; we made unconscious affirmations as to our similarities, yet we spoke of our differences. As she discussed the duties of children in Korea, I thought of my parents and their futures; while her brother would completely support her parents in exchange for his college education, I might visit my parents on their farm for Thanksgiving and Christmas. She outlined her complete devotion to her parents and described how she w... ...dependence, that I have so that she can be the individual she was born to be, yet she adheres to her traditions because she has spent all of her life supported by a foundation with which she certainly defines herself. I found that our connection with each other did not come from our certain respect for each other's distinct culture but from our interests in discovering our individual potentials and also our mutual understanding of current trends. As I now recognize that Yeon Yi Min and I are both in the same struggle to find individual definition within our cultures, she taught me that everyone is an individual with a unique, and universal, personality but that some people have greater opportunity to be themselves than others. She awakened me to her culture and absorbed some of mine while she discovered herself and while I discovered her.      

Cross-cultural Communication Essay

In order to accomplish the task I decided to interview my friend from Italy who arrived to the USA after having won a language competition to live and study here and whom I recently visited in Italy. So, below you may see some differences and similarities of American and Italian culture. First of all he decided to rent a car since it was more convenient than a train or other transportation vehicle. He noted that there are almost no pedestrians in the streets as everybody drives a car. Also, he stated that American people take care of their life as no other culture in the world because they have a list of emergency calls in every household and therefore are rightfully scared to death of Italian drivers. The system of driving in Italy is almost beyond American understanding. The basic difference is that Americans like lanes and pretty much expect everybody to stay in one. Italy does not work like this at all. Instead they use a surprisingly tolerant system of swerving, tail gating, and other go-as-you-please driving etiquette that Americans would be driven to homicidal road rage by if it happened in the hometown. Traveling through Italy American person will never see anyone irritated or aggressive while driving. Italians just casually drive like maniacs and know that everyone else is too. Along the way, they adore chatting and laughing with each other. As a huge generalization Italians are very attractive people. It felt like people are living in an Armani commercial. But as he says they smoke everywhere, all the time. As expected, he liked American food everywhere: in restaurants, in coffee shops, etc. although he was more accustomed to have a dessert and a thimble of coffee. It was quite a surprise for him to reveal that dinners last an hour or an hour and a half at most while in Italy they go on for hours. Time in general moves differently in the USA, as he says. In the USA days start earlier than according to the Italian standards. In Italy the whole country shuts down from one o’clock to three or four o’clock every afternoon. There is also a great difference in architecture of these two cultures. Italy is full of narrow streets, plazas and buildings. He says if you want to live in an apartment that is several hundred years old and is probably built on top of even older building you can do it. In the USA it is hard to find something older than about 200 years old. In my essay I would like to refer to the idea of the context of situation (Kramsch 25) that includes three major parts: o The field of discourse o The tenor of discourse o The mode of discourse The field of discourse covers the situation of visiting another country and penetrating into its culture. The tenor implies the participants, while the mode includes the role of the language in this situation. Therefore, it would be appropriate to note that Italian tradition of driving may serve as a good example of the context of situation. First of all, it involves such important factors as high level of emotionality, hot weather, narrow streets, and their somewhat confusing location. As the tenor of discourse investigates the members of the situation, it is necessary to mention here the importance of the origin of the participants. As we may see from the interview and from my own experience Italians and Americans drive in completely different way and both of them believe that their driving tradition is the best and most convenient. In conclusion, I may add that cultural diversity implies different traditions that require understanding, open-mindness, and tolerance. References Kramsch, Claire. (2003). Language and Culture (4th edition). New York: Oxford University Press.

How Technology Affects Modern America

The microeconomic picture of the U. S. has changed immensely since 1973, and the trends are proving to be consistently downward for the nation's high school graduates and high school drop-outs. â€Å"Of all the reasons given for the wage squeeze – international competition, technology, deregulation, the decline of unions and defense cuts – technology is probably the most critical. It has favored the educated and the skilled,† says M. B. Zuckerman, editor-in-chief of U. S. News & World Report (7/31/95). Since 1973, wages adjusted for inflation have declined by about a quarter for high school dropouts, by a sixth for high school graduates, and by about 7% for those with some college education. Only the wages of college graduates are up. Of the fastest growing technical jobs, software engineering tops the list. Carnegie Mellon University reports, â€Å"recruitment of it's software engineering students is up this year by over 20%. † All engineering jobs are paying well, proving that highly skilled labor is what employers want! There is clear evidence that the supply of workers in the [unskilled labor] categories already exceeds the demand for their services,† says L. Mishel, Research Director of Welfare Reform Network. In view of these facts, I wonder if these trends are good or bad for society. â€Å"The danger of the information age is that while in the short run it may be cheaper to replace workers with technology, in the long run it is potentially self-destructive because there will not be enough purchasing power to grow the economy,† M. B. Zuckerman. My feeling is that the trend from unskilled labor to highly technical, skilled labor is a good one! But, political action must be taken to ensure that this societal evolution is beneficial to all of us. â€Å"Back in 1970, a high school diploma could still be a ticket to the middle income bracket, a nice car in the driveway and a house in the suburbs. Today all it gets is a clunker parked on the street, and a dingy apartment in a low rent building,† says Time Magazine (Jan 30, 1995 issue). However, in 1970, our government provided our children with a free education, allowing the vast majority of our population to earn a high school diploma. This means that anyone, regardless of family income, could be educated to a level that would allow them a comfortable place in the middle class. Even restrictions upon child labor hours kept children in school, since they are not allowed to work full time while under the age of 18. This government policy was conducive to our economic markets, and allowed our country to prosper from 1950 through 1970. Now, our own prosperity has moved us into a highly technical world, that requires highly skilled labor. The natural answer to this problem, is that the U. S. Government's education policy must keep pace with the demands of the highly technical job market. If a middle class income of 1970 required a high school diploma, and the middle class income of 1990 requires a college diploma, then it should be as easy for the children of the 90's to get a college diploma, as it was for the children of the 70's to get a high school diploma. This brings me to the issue of our country's political process, in a technologically advanced world. Voting & Poisoned Political Process in The U. S. The advance of mass communication is natural in a technologically advanced society. In our country's short history, we have seen the development of the printing press, the radio, the television, and now the Internet; all of these, able to reach millions of people. Equally natural, is the poisoning and corruption of these medias, to benefit a few. From the 1950's until today, television has been the preferred media. Because it captures the minds of most Americans, it is the preferred method of persuasion by political figures, multinational corporate advertising, and the upper 2% of the elite, who have an interest in controlling public opinion. Newspapers and radio experienced this same history, but are now somewhat obsolete in the science of changing public opinion. Though I do not suspect television to become completely obsolete within the next 20 years, I do see the Internet being used by the same political figures, multinational corporations, and upper 2% elite, for the same purposes. At this time, in the Internet's young history, it is largely unregulated, and can be accessed and changed by any person with a computer and a modem; no license required, and no need for millions of dollars of equipment. But, in reviewing our history, we find that newspaper, radio and television were once unregulated too. It is easy to see why government has such an interest in regulating the Internet these days. Though public opinion supports regulating sexual material on the Internet, it is just the first step in total regulation, as experienced by every other popular mass media in our history. This is why it is imperative to educate people about the Internet, and make it be known that any regulation of it is destructive to us, not constructive! I have been a daily user of the Internet for 5 years (and a daily user of BBS communications for 4 years), which makes me a senior among us. I have seen the moves to regulate this type of communication, and have always openly opposed it. My feelings about technology, the Internet, and political process are simple. In light of the history of mass communication, there is nothing we can do to protect any media from the â€Å"sound byte† or any other form of commercial poisoning. But, our country's public opinion doesn't have to fall into a nose-dive of lies and corruption, because of it! The first experience I had in a course on Critical Thinking came when I entered college. As many good things as I have learned in college, I found this course to be most valuable to my basic education. I was angry that I hadn't had access to the power of critical thought over my twelve years of basic education. Simple forms of critical thinking can be taught as early as kindergarten. It isn't hard to teach a young person to understand the patterns of persuasion, and be able to defend themselves against them. Television doesn't have to be a weapon against us, used to sway our opinions to conform to people who care about their own prosperity, not ours. With the power of a critical thinking education, we can stop being motivated by the sound byte and, instead we can laugh at it as a cheap attempt to persuade us. In conclusion, I feel that the advance of technology is a good trend for our society; however, it must be in conjunction with advance in education so that society is able to master and understand technology. I think technology has an important effect on us, the way we act, react, and take actions in society. We can be the masters of technology, and not let it be the masters of us.

Ethics and Values in My Life

Ethics and Values in my life There are many values that revolve around my life for a better life, but the 5 important ones are: 1. Integrity  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Do the right thing! This is the most import value and I consider it to be the foundation of achieving a better life. 2. Courage-  Face your fears accept and take on new challenges. The moral and mental strength that allows for the acceptance of new challenges without regards to the fear that may lie beneath. 3. Contentment  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ The pursuit of contentment is a state of mind established by fulfilling your basic needs. 4.Action- Do not wait until tomorrow when it can be accomplished today. 5. Respect  To treat people as you would like to be treated. I operate on two value systems in my professional life. This is not necessarily a negative approach since they don’t conflict with each other in fact, they go hand in hand. I believe that your personal values drive your professional values. You don’t just develop pro fessional relationships in a work environment but informal relationships too and sometimes they can be more important as it can drive people to take decisions for the benefit of the organization.For example, having good ties with your direct subordinates can help to retain employees. One can’t always put a price on a comfortable business environment and it maybe the reason workers remain loyal to the organization. In another instance, to achieve contentment one works hard to have access to basic needs and that means doing your job well which is in line with professional competence at work. Before I took admission in the MBA program, I worked as a business partner of a small clothing business in my country.My partner was a good friend and my decision to start a business with her was her commitment to providing unique designs of clothes that maximized customer satisfaction. I often thought of expanding the business but she decided to grow slow as fast expansion can often be unc ontrolled and it can cause compromise on quality. Although I agreed with her premise, I thought it could be done in a harmless way. I was approached by an acquaintance who offered to supply cloth for our business. I jumped to the idea as one part of expansion was to build a strong supply chain.I discussed the idea with my business partner who was interested but pointed out that we can’t just take this decision because I knew the potential supplier personally. We have to carry out research before we make a decision since we can’t risk our business and the money of our two investors. While we tried to establish an idea of the reputation of the supplier, I was offered generous gifts by her and was tempted to take her offer because I assumed her principles and commitment to perfection on the basis of what I knew of her past.She also offered to invest in our business which was a very attractive offer. A person who had a personal stake in the business would ensure best stand ards of operation. From what we got to know about her business was that it supplied cloth of not very good quality, which would affect the quality of our product and could bring disrepute to the business. This actually challenged one of my value ‘objectivity’.For the benefit of our business, I was required to be objective and not let her gifts to cloud my judgment. This was in line with maintaining integrity since we had a customer base that trusted us and we were required to deal fairly with them. It required courage on my part to reject her offer but it was what I needed to do for the benefit of the business and its stakeholders. I am actually very content that I was able to stand firm and did not throw away my beliefs just for some material gains.

E-commerace of Marks & Spencer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

E-commerace of Marks & Spencer - Essay Example In the essay, we shall examine four aspects of e-commerce that have been incorporated by Mark and Spencer (M&S). These areas are; Online selling, Security, Collaborative Commerce and Stock control. The essay will focus on reasons that triggered adoption of E-commerce by (M&S). After the expansion of the European Union, there were more retailers that entered the UK market. This meant that M&S was now facing renewed competition from the new entrants and had to incorporate changes to deal with this competition. The Company needed a source of knowledge on what consumers need and it also needed to do outsourcing. These two objectives were met through ecommerce and now the Company is ahead of its new European competitors. (M&S Annual report, 2007) The Company has adopted this mode of operation because the world is becoming increasingly global; this implies that there are more and more people doing business with parties that are quite distant from them. E-commerce therefore helps Marks and Spencer to reach customers that are not in the UK. This is especially useful to the Company because it has numerous stores world wide. E-commerce has affected the speed at which transactions are made because it is very fast. Before the introduction of online selling, customers had to go manually to M&S yet some of them were very far from them or were even out of the country. Companies that had already ... aused M&S to adopt online selling so that it can get feedback from consumers, conduct business quickly and efficiently and improve quality of service to its customers. Another market force that caused the Company to adopt this ecommerce strategy was the fact that the Company was spending a lot of its resources on advertisements. It also had to do a lot to become popular. Ecommerce has therefore provided an affordable mean of advertisement for the company, expanded markets for the Company by reaching a large audience that could not have been accessed before through ordinary mean of advertisement. (M&S Annual report, 2007) Social pressures The Company adopted this strategy because there were many changes in customer preferences and it needed to keep up with these changes. Besides, it was responding to the increased availability of knowledge among consumers. Availability of knowledge to consumers meant that they needed to know a lot of background information about a Company and its products before they can buy it. E-commerce was the tool which could respond to this demand. It has allowed M&S to exchange information with consumers through 'blogs' and 'comments' section on their website. Thus customers can now have their questions answered and can also participate in innovations made by the Company. (M&S Annual report, 2007) 2) Security Technological pressures With increased technological advancements and internet availability, it is possible for people to teach themselves all the skills necessary in a particular trade. This means that someone can pose as a representative for M&S and tell a customer everything they expect to hear yet they had nothing to do with the Company and may be fraudsters. It therefore became necessary for the retail Company to install security

Multiple Sclerosis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Multiple Sclerosis - Essay Example Though the real cause of this disease is not clearly known, yet researchers are of the opinion that it occurs due to the abnormal response of the immune system in a person’s body and that such an abnormal response is triggered by a virus. According to researchers, the disease is neither contagious nor inherited but definitely genetic susceptibility plays a major role. Besides the virus, the other triggers include heavy metals, trauma and other environmental triggers. ‘There is no cure for MS, but medicines may slow it down and help control symptoms.’ (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) To keep this disease under control even Physical therapy or occupational therapy would also help. In individuals suffering from multiple sclerosis, the immune system of the person is attacked by the immune cells that are sent out by the body to fight against bacteria and other viruses that attack the body. The immune cells lymphocytes, T-cells and killer cells, not only attack the myelin and the oligodendrocytes (oligo, few; dendro, branches; cytes, cells, but also destroy them completely. These killer cells not only attack the myelin but also consume it and damaging the myelin sheath, (the fatty insulation that covers the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.) The Myelin sheath is responsible for facilitating the smooth transmission of all the high- speed messages that travel between the brain, the spinal cord and the rest of the body. Therefore, when the Myelin sheath is attacked or affected, the messages cannot be sent efficiently and in many cases do not reach their destination. That is why Multiple sclerosis is called an autoimmune disease. Other autoimmune diseases are lupus and Rheumatoid arthritis. In multiple sclerosis, when the Myelin is attacked and destroyed, there is a gradual build up of scar tissue (sclerosis) occurring in multiple

Paper 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 3

Paper 2 - Essay Example At the beginning of the story the readers are mislead to believe that Mrs. Mallard â€Å"was afflicted with a heart trouble† (Chopin 2009). Within the context of the whole story â€Å"heart trouble† has a double meaning. The author here tries to hint that the heart trouble might not be the heart disease that Mrs. Mallard is thought to suffer from. Besides the literal meaning, heart troubles are also connected to the feelings and inner spirituality of people. The use of the passive voice â€Å"was afflicted† speaks about the impossibility of Mrs. Mallard to act as she wishes. And because of her faint heart Josephine – her sister and Richards – a close family friend, reveal her â€Å"gently† the heart-breaking news of her husband’s death. They way in which her sister delivers her the news is in â€Å"broken sentences†. Broken sentences contrast with the fear of her family to break her heart. The use of oxymoron – â€Å"rev ealed in half concealing† suggests that the revelation of the death of her husband, conceals Mrs. Mallard’s inner feelings. Someone else’s feelings are also concealed in this paragraph. Mrs. Mallard’s husband’s friend Richards is depicted as impatient. Unclear clues are scattered throughout the paragraph. Richards assures himself of the truth, he hastens to Mrs. Mallard’s home and uses â€Å"less careful, less tender† language to bear her the â€Å"sad message†. There is an opposition here. â€Å"Less careful† might mean that Richards is both clumsy and rough man, but it can mean that he also conceals his feelings for Mrs. Mallard, as she is already married. By being less tender he will show to Mrs. Mallard that he has a strong personality and emotions to her. The â€Å"sad message† is employed ironically here. It is both ironic and sarcastic that sad message can bring happiness to two people

Low Production and High Unemployment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Low Production and High Unemployment - Essay Example A change in either the demand or the supply will cause a similar shift of the other. However, for an economy to experience sustained economic growth and equilibrium, it must step up its factors of production such as labour, capital, and land. Several economic indicators depict the state of an economy and the stage (Frenkel, Razin 29). The Growth Domestic Product (GDP) is a total market value of goods, and services produced and consumed, investments, minus government spending plus the exports minus the imports. A GDP of a country depicts what is happening now in an economy. Rises in the GDP depicting a rise in the economy while a drop in the GDP depicting a recession. In this scenario, country A has a RGDP, which means that its GDP has fallen. Its economy has shrunk, by the amount of the GDP drop. A Second indicator of an economy is the rate of unemployment that describes an economy after it happens. An increase in the rate of unemployment depicts a lagging economy. A country is said to be in a long run economic equilibrium when no firm in the industry wants to leave or enter the market. In this state, no existing firms make losses and those entering the market make losses. Every firm produces at the efficient cost of production and the maximum profit they can make is zero. This means that price is equivalent to average cost of production (Osborne Web). ... In country A, high levels of unemployment depict a recession. Country A is not in an equilibrium state, meaning that it has to undertake some fiscal and monetary policies to take it to this level. A fiscal policy is a tool used by the branches of government via either spending or taxes to attain a desired change. It is an act done with a conscious mind and geared towards effectiveness and efficiency. For country A that is in a recessionary period, imposing taxes will make the situation worse. Therefore, first, country A will have to increase government spending in the areas it deems fit. This king of fiscal policy is called expansionary that increases the government spending and decreases the taxes. This will increase the government budget deficit to increase and lead the country to a long-run equilibrium. According to Keynes, a government can achieve a real GDP every year through market mechanisms where it influences prices and wages, which they assume to be flexible. They believed that in a recessional economy one should not wait for the prices to go down but instead an expansionary fiscal policy can be used. The government should ensure that its spending is higher than the current tax receipts. This way the level of unemployment will fall as the unemployed persons get to work in the government projects increasing their purchasing power. Secondly, the government can engage in purchasing of bonds to release more fund to the corporate and to individuals. As people gain purchasing power, they will invest in various categories of businesses or even purchase goods increasing demand. Price levels will go up, employment levels going up and eventually raise the RGDP. Thirdly, to achieve a long run

A literature review on electromagnetic transponders in prostate cancer

A on electromagnetic transponders in prostate cancer treatment - Literature review Example The present research particularly involved reviewing a number of recent publications including journals, books, articles, magazines and databases related to the use of electromagnetic transponders in cancer treatment. Electromagnetic Transponder is an emerging high tech system that is increasingly being used to track the movement of prostate glands particularly during external beam radiation therapy. The technique particularly involves implanting three tiny electromagnetic transponders into a patient’s prostate gland in order to enhance the delivery of post- prostatectomy radiation therapy by providing real time tracking required to ensure accurate treatment of prostate cancer through radiation therapy (Kindblom et al., 2009). According to many experts, the technique is particularly preferred for the post-surgical radiation therapy for prostate cancer because it significantly allows for enhanced localization of the specific targeted area thereby allowing for the delivery of maximum radiation dose while at the same time minimizing the exposure of the patients surrounding non-targeted normal tissues to radiation (Foster, Pistenmaa and Solberg, 2012, p.2924). The present literature paper particularly focused on a comprehensive review of relevant recent publications such as journals, books, articles, magazines, databases and other professional manuscripts related to the theory, practice and use of electromagnetic transponders in cancer treatment. Finally, the findings of the literature review were then analyzed and clustered based on the key major themes namely the oncologic and functional outcomes of electromagnetic transponders, placement of electromagnetic transponders in prostate cancer treatment as well as the challenges related to the use of electromagnetic transponders in the prostate cancer treatment. For the last 15 years, development of electromagnetic

I Like to Eat Pizza Essay Example for Free

I Like to Eat Pizza Essay Hose who eat their slices with two hands, and those who (dare I say) like to cut their pizza with a fork and knife. Some people soak up the olive oil with a napkin, while others don’t mind a greasy slice. Some people like the crust, while others live for that first bite. Some people decorate their slices with spices, while others like it plain. Nearly any ingredient can be put on pizza. From pepperoni and anchovies to barbecue chicken and pineapple, every pizza pie is like a unique work of art. Every pie is a different shape and size. There are thin crust pies, deep dish pies, and everything in between. There are pies with different cheeses and tomato sauce, or even pies with a completely different base altogether. Growing up in the suburbs of Washington, DC there weren’t so many great options for pizza. Ordering in from Domino’s and Pizza Hut was a weekly occurrence. But when I arrived in New York in 2002, I was thrust into an entirely new pizza universe. Living at an NYU dorm by Washington Square Park, I developed a quick allegiance with my local pizzerias. I could barely walk a block without passing by a shop — many of them claiming to serve up the best slice in the city. There was Joe’s on the corner of Bleecker Street and Carmine Street (which closed it’s doors in 2004) where tipsy students, homeless people, and even celebrities made their way to the counter through the wee hours of the morning. I remember eating a slice of pizza with Dave Chappelle one evening after he’d finished up a set at the nearby Comedy Cellar. Joe’s served up a good slice, but it was about more than the food. Going there was an adventure. It was where old friends would run into each other and new friends were made. You couldn’t help but notice the non-stop hustle and bustle around you — but at the same time there was sense satisfaction once you took your first bite of their delicious slices. Within a five minute walk from my dorm, there were dozens of pizza places and I intended to try them all. I fell in love with many including Pizza Booth on Bleecker Street and The Pizzeria on MacDougal Street. I remember the night I ran into Adam Sandler at Ben’s Pizza on the corner of MacDougal and 3rd Street and the first time I went to Pasty’s Pizzeria on University Place — the final meal I ate in 2002. Patsy’s opened my eyes to a whole other world of pizza — the upscale pie. I had always thought that a New York slice was served on a paper plate — intended for a quick late night bite on your way between watering holes. But I soon came to learn that many of city’s best pizza places didn’t serve slices and that eating their pizza involved a great deal of patience while your custom pie was prepared. The fall of 2003 took me to what is still one of my favorite pizza places in the New York: Grimaldi’s. Although there is a subway stop a few blocks from this Brooklyn pizzeria, the only true way to get there is by walking over the Brooklyn Bridge, arguably the most picturesque ways to take in New York’s sprawling skyline. To me, a walk over the bridge and Grimaldi’s have become synonymous with one another. I can’t walk across the bridge without stopping at Grimaldi’s and I can’t stop at Grimaldi’s without walking across the bridge. This is the first thing I do with any out-of-town guest. It’s just off the beaten path enough to make a tourist feel like a New Yorker, yet not so touristy that a New Yorker feels out of place. It is the quintessential New York experience. There have been days when I’ve been seated at Grimaldi’s right away and other times where I’ve waited behind hundreds of people outside in the cold. When you’re inside, the best view of the action is in the bathroom line, adjacent to the brick ovens where pies are constantly being removed, put on a platter, and placed on a nearby table as the steam still rises off the top. The pizza is thin enough that two people can split a large pie. In fact, ordering the small pie for $2 less is not even economical. There is no better place to digest Grimaldi’s than on the Brooklyn Heights Promenade overlooking lower Manhattan. It’s the only place in the city that I can be assured to find at least one bride and groom snapping photos every time I’m there. On weekend afternoons it’s common to see five or six couples taking wedding photos. Walking back on the bridge, one feels content, satisfied, accomplished, and [insert positive feeling here]. There are few experiences that rival this. The spring of 2004 took me to Italy where I spent a semester studying in Florence. At the time, I was not a big foodie, so I rarely kept track of where I ate. Today, however, if I was to return, my entire trip would be dictated by food. Although Florence is a very Americanized city, my apartment was a 20 minute walk from the center of town. One evening, while exploring the area around our apartment, my roommates and I discovered a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant on a hidden side street. There wasn’t a single English speaking person in the entire place and there was no English version of the menu. Although I have no idea what this place was named, I know how to get back there and one day plan to return. Their pizza pies were large, but so thin that everyone needed their own. Their pies were more closely resembled the shape of a puddle in the street than a geometric figure. Of the dozen times I dined there, my pizza never looked the same. I think about this place a lot — whether it still exists, what it was actually called, whether any other tourists every discovered it. But most of all, I’m upset that I can’t tell people traveling to Florence how to find it. I need to get back there for the sake of this pizza place.