(Operations Management) Key recent developments of operations design Assignment

(Operations Management) Key recent developments of operations design and practise in airline and automotive (car ) industry - Assignment Example self many various issues and activities through which an organization’s goods and services are changed and transformed from the inputs that were put to the outputs that are produced. It is about the various operations that are performed on the goods and services from the moment their production starts to the moment the customer receives it. Operations management consists of ten areas in which an operations manager has to make the right decisions so as to fit the company’s strategic vision with what the budget allows, and to achieve that competitive advantage too, all at the same time. A strategy is the course of action that a company aims to take with respect to achieving a particular goal. Strategic fit would be when the company has very well integrated the firm’s mission as well as the strategies along with the internal capabilities that it has and the external environment that it has to survive in. thus, missions (what needs to be achieved) as well as the strategies (how it needs to be achieved) must be in alignment with what the company is capable of doing itself and how much the outside environment and externalities will allow it to perform. (Slack, 2005) As far as operations management is concerned, the operations manager has to take decisions in ten critical areas. They are product design, quality management, process design, location selection, layout design, human resources, supply chain management, inventory, scheduling and maintenance. When it comes to operations management, the operations manager has a wide variety of choices as to how to go about it. Operations management is all about increasing the productivity of the company, thus efficiency has to be present, along with effectiveness in the first place. With the rise of competition, it can be said that new methods need to be found which will keep an air cargo company going and at least give him a place in the top cargo service providers of the country. For this, many owners of the cargo

The impact of gambling in America Essay Example for Free

The impact of gambling in America Essay The impact of gambling on the United States carries both positive and negative effects into our society and communities. Gambling is a leisure activity that usually provides excitement and fun for its players. Gambling also brings tremendous amounts of money into the economy and provides employment. American cities such as Las Vegas and Atlantic City thrive off of the gaming industry. Sure, gambling can be fun and exciting, but at what point does that fun activity develop into a pathological problem? I will contend that the harmful side- effects of gambling far outweigh any positive aspects. Pathological gambling can destroy families, careers, and lives. The reason why casinos are so successful is because their customers lose money while playing their games. Gambling is a broad subject in definition and is also known as â€Å"betting†. It is defined as â€Å"any behavior involving risking money or property on the outcome of a game, contest, or other event in which the outcome of that activity depends partially or totally upon chance or ones ability to do something† (wikipedia. org). In reality, someone could bet or gamble on just about anything. For example, I recently stumbled upon an online gambling site (www.bodog. com), which features a section where you can wager on who will win the reality shows on television. Gambling is most prevalent in card games, slot machines, dice games, sports, and horse racing. Gambling and the gaming industry in the United States have come a long way since their early beginnings. According to historical records and archeological evidence, gambling has existed throughout the ages of most civilizations. Anthropologists agree that data collected in the 20th century implies that gambling took place within a large portion of the greatest societies to have ever existed. For example, gambling artifacts have been recovered from ancient China, India, Egypt and Rome dating as far back as 2300 B. C. (GamblingPhd). Gambling has been around for centuries, but until recently, it has been restricted to back rooms, pool halls, hard to reach casinos, and Indian reservations. Geographic barriers, state regulation, and local ordinances effectively restricted the industrys growth (gsu. edu). Perhaps the most important reason why gambling is most prevalent today is because it is convenient. Large market companies, casinos, and the rise of the internet have paved the way for the industry to target potential gamers. I was on my way to Keeneland to watch the horse races this fall when I passed a sign that read â€Å"Drive-through betting†¦.. Gate 2†. While others may not have noticed, I was shocked to see this simple sign. No longer do you have to step out of your car to wager on horse races. This is just one example of the convenient way to gamble money. The unregulated and decentralized nature of the Internet creates the perfect environment for the growth of gambling. Anyone, anytime, anywhere with a computer, a connection, and a credit card is able to gamble online with thousands of websites dedicated solely to gaming (gsu. edu). Online sportsbooks and casinos get around federal laws by locating their company in a foreign nation, but still target the American consumers. Is online gambling legal for Americans? Often times, there is a â€Å"grey area† in the laws governing gaming products and online gambling. Internet gambling laws are also extremely difficult to enforce. The simple answer is there is an explicit law against online betting in only three states – Nevada, California, and Louisiana. Even so, no American citizen has ever been arrested for betting on the internet (about. com). These convenient methods are contributing to the growing popularity of gambling among Americans. Many people gamble socially without ever encountering a psychological problem. Often times they buy a lottery ticket, go to the racetrack, play a game of poker with some friends, or a night of bingo. When the activity is done, they go on to other non-gambling activities. But for some people, gambling becomes a big part of their lives. They are unable to stop, and believe in the â€Å"big win†. The problem gambler believes that the big win will solve all of their financial problems. They are always waiting for it, which causes them to lose more and more money. Rather than changing their gambling habits, they pin all of their hopes on the big win (aadac. com). A problem gambler will also boast about their wins often. Re-living their wins makes them feel more comfortable when they are actually losing. Legalized gambling brings both positive and negative economic effects to our society. It affects American communities in various ways. Gambling is helpful in our economy in two major ways. First, the gambling industry has provided an increase in employment opportunities. The NGIC reported that in 1996, the legalized gambling industry employed more than a half million people that earned more than $15 billion in salaries (gao. gov). Casinos have also created economic development by bringing in money from tourism, and increasing tax revenue and investment for communities. Charitable gambling benefits many needy causes in local communities. Native American tribes have also benefited enormously from legalized gambling. Casinos located on Indian reservations have allowed these tribes to grow financially and work their way into the U. S. economy. The negative economic effect that gambling has on communities is the increase in personal bankruptcy. In communities where casinos were introduced, there is usually a direct increase in personal bankruptcy. For example, in 1998 the bankruptcy rate in Atlantic City, New Jersey per 100,000 people was 1,019 while the rate of the state of New Jersey was only 555 (gao. gov). In 2003, there was a proposal to add casinos into the mix of Kentucky’s gambling options. Dr.John Kindt, a professor of commerce at the University of Illinois said that bringing casinos to Kentucky would be â€Å"bad economics and bad social policy†. â€Å"Studies show that within the 35-mile feeder market around a casino, gamblers will spend 10 percent less on food, 25 percent less on clothing and that 37 percent will dip into their savings to pay for gambling. For every three (video slot) machines, youll be losing two jobs from the feeder market economy, Kindt said. â€Å"This occurs because each machine can be expected to bring in $100,000 per year that will not be used elsewhere in the economy† (kybaptist.org). This is a serious issue that occurs when business owners do not think about how their actions will affect others in the future. Not only does gambling affect the economy of our communities, but it also has social effects. There are many negative consequences of gambling, while there are minimal positive outcomes. Beginning with the positive side, gambling is a recreation, a break from the everyday pressures of life and a relief from stress. People feel good about themselves when they do hit a jackpot or â€Å"win big†. Without gambling, certain sports such as horse racing and boxing would not be nearly as successful. Lastly, casinos do occasionally give back to the community and fund local and national charities. Socially, gambling has a greater affect on communities in a negative way. Three primary problems that occur are an increase in crime, suicides, and family problems. Individuals who suffer from problem or pathological gambling engage in destructive family behavior, such as domestic violence, divorce, and homelessness (gao. gov). Children of these individuals are often prone to suffer from abuse and neglect. In 1998, the NORC (National Opinion Research Center) estimated that the annual average cost to society for a problem gambler for job loss, unemployment and welfare benefits, poor physical and mental health, and gambling disorder treatments were approximately $1,200 dollars (gao. gov). The time that some of these gamblers spend at a casino is detrimental to their marriage, their children, and their job. Pathological gambling has been linked directly to increases in crimes committed. Whether it is robbery or insurance fraud, these types of gamblers are usually desperate for money to fuel their gambling needs. The counselor for the Department of Corrections in Wisconsin, Bill Schaff stated, In the most desperate phase of compulsive gambling, they will do anything to gamble. They start stealing money from their spouses; family . . . theyll get money anyhow, anywhere. Theyll do forgeries, embezzlements and thefts. Its mostly white-collar crime† (family. org). Lastly, the suicide rate among pathological gamblers is higher than for any other addictive disorder (gao. gov). With most businesses, their customers are assets and are catered to and cared for. In order for a business to succeed, they need their customers to return to them and remain loyal. Their customers are, in essence, cultivated. With casinos, their customers are not there for a service. They let the machines and games do the work, especially if they are the only casino in the area. What happens to their customers is not their concern. It is in the casinos benefit for the customers to become addicted. To casinos, they are resources that are strip-mined. There are four stages of gambling a person can go through while becoming a pathological gambler. The first stage is the reason why someone is gambling. They either gamble for the action or for escape. Gambling for the action begins when someone has success and thinks they are good at it. The excitement boosts their self-esteem and they continue in search of more money. Gambling for escape begins when someone is lonely or depressed. It becomes an outlet for them to escape from reality and their problems. The second stage is the gambler’s reaction to losing. Pathological gamblers â€Å"chase† after their losses. They find losing intolerable and focus on getting their money back. â€Å"Chasing† is easily avoided by setting a reasonable limit of money to spend in a day. The third is the desperation phase. In this stage, their losses become significant and their jobs and family come into jeopardy. The obsession with getting out of trouble overtakes the excitement of gambling. Crime and illegal activities occur in order to gain extra money. Serious bouts with depression and suicide attempts take place. They continue to escape from their lives by gambling, but find no relief. The final stage would be the hopeless stage where getting even financially would not be possible. The gambler knows they will lose and no longer cares. There are numerous organizations that focus on gambling behavior modification. They help pathological gamblers acknowledge their problem and overcome irrational thoughts and impulsive behavior. Gamblers Anonymous, Gam-Anon, and NCPG (National Council on Problem Gambling) all contribute to assisting problem gamblers and their families. In rehabilitation, gambling is treated the same as alcoholism, drug abuse, and sex addiction. Gambling is just one of the addictions that provide the users with a temporary, illusional escape from reality. The overall mission of all of these groups is to increase public awareness of pathological gambling, ensure the widespread availability of treatment for problem gamblers and their families, and to encourage research and programs for prevention and education (ncpgambling. org). Gambling addiction often leads to alcoholism and depression. It is important for family physicians to identify and treat this condition as a psychiatric disorder. The personal costs of gambling rarely gain public attention, but one prominent example is that of Pete Rose, who was denied induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame as a result of sports gambling. Rose, a pathological gambler, had bet thousands of dollars on baseball games while he was a player and manager of the Cincinnati Reds. He admitted that he did have some problems in his life, but said he did not bet on baseball. This is a prime example of a pathological gambler who repeatedly lied and ruined his life over gambling. One of the criteria for a gambling disorder is repetitive lying to conceal the extent of one’s involvement in gambling, much the same way an alcoholic, or drug addict tries to conceal their behaviors (about. com). Teen gambling is on the rise across the country, due to a couple of factors. One is the glitzy, celebrity-filled, high-stakes poker games that fill the cable TV channels. The popularity of Texas Hold’em poker was booming this year. The other is the cultural attitude that says gambling is fun, glamorous and possibly the source of vast wealth (about. com). Unfortunately, many parents view games as friendly, social events. They know where their kids are and assume their child wont develop a problem. Last Christmas, you could find poker sets targeting teens in almost every store. The fact is, that the risk of developing a gambling problem is the same for everyone, and possibly higher among teens. Teenagers are unable to make the same financial decisions as adults are, yet gambling companies continue to target the teenage consumers. The consequences of becoming a gambling addict are just as harsh for a teenager as they are for an adult. Once again, the internet and the ease of gambling are contributing to this problem. In an online environment of anonymous identity, the ease with which teenagers and children can access Internet gambling, coupled with their interest in gambling and poker, will only add to this worrisome trend. The sad part about the gambling industry and large market casinos is that they also target the elderly. Their propaganda reaches out and brings in the people who are unable to gamble responsibly. Casinos provide cheap buffets, coupons, drug discounts, and cater to elderly handicaps. They provide shuttles and buses from nursing homes and retirement centers. I have seen first hand how the senior citizens flock to slot machines and casinos. Often times they sit there for hours at a time with walkers, canes, wheelchairs, and even oxygen tanks. I have even heard stories of elderly gambling addicts committing suicide because they were so far in debt. The gambling industry is not a modern day Robin Hood that takes from the rich and gives to the poor. It takes from the elderly and the poor and gives it to the rich†, said Dr. Jimmy Porter, of the Mississippi Baptist Christian Action (kybaptist. org). Many of these people do not have the ability to control their gambling habits and do not realize how much money they are losing. An article in â€Å"The Call†, a Rhode Island newspaper is titled â€Å"A helping hand for seniors addicted to gambling†. It reads, â€Å"Sitting in her own urine, the elderly woman continued to play the game. Observers concluded she had some sort of bladder disorder, but the real problem was actually staring the woman in the face: the slot machine. Her gambling addiction had reached the point where she ignored everything even her own bodily functions simply so she could keep on playing† (The Call). Americans seem to clamor for seats at the blackjack table a lot more often than they do for seats in the ballpark. Now more people gamble at casinos than attend professional baseball games each year (aadac.com). This is a major statement about the changing values of American society. Located in twenty-three states, casinos gross more revenue than all sporting events, movies, plays, and concerts combined (aadac. com). In conclusion, the negative effects of gambling far outweigh the positive outcomes. The continued growth and convenience of the gambling industry raises concerns about a possible increase in the prevalence of problem and pathologic gambling. With the industry on the rise, the only solution to problem gambling will be to gamble responsibly. We need to ensure that all Americans have the information, skills and encouragement to reduce the risk that they develop a gambling problem, with special attention to those at increased risk. We must promote safe gambling practices and encourage people to set a limit. If we do not take action immediately, we are going to see the negative effects of gambling unveil themselves like never before. Pathological gambling is a serious psychological problem, and needs to be addressed just as drugs and alcohol are. Works Cited Baldwin, John. Ungar, Bernard. â€Å"Impact of Gambling. † April 2000.http://www. gao. gov/new. items/gg00078. pdf Bell, R. J. â€Å"Online Sports Gambling: The Law and You. † 10 Nov 2005. About. http://www. sportsgambling. about. com/od/legalfacts/a/betting_laws. htm Eadington, William. â€Å"Current Trends in Gambling. † 15 Sept. 2005. University of Nevada. http://www. unr. edu/gambling/eadington_papers Haynes, Jeff. â€Å"A Helping Hand for Citizens Addicted to Gambling. † 3 June 2003. The Woonsocket Call. http://www. zwire. com/site/news McMurry, Kevin. â€Å"Gambling on the Internet. † December 1999. http://gsulaw. gsu. edu/lawand/papers/fa99/mcmurry_thomas/. â€Å"Problem Gambling: The ABC’s. † 10 November 2005. AADAC. http://www. corp. aadac. com/gambling/the_basics_about_gambling. asp Reeves, Robert. â€Å"Expanded Gambling Bad For Economy. † Kentucky Baptist Convention. http://www. kybaptist. org/kbc/welcome. nsf/pages Reno, Ron. â€Å"Gambling and Crime. † 11 Dec 2003. CitizenLink. http://www. family. org/cforum/fosi/gambling/facts/a0029358. cfm â€Å"The History of Gambling. † 10 November 2005. Gambling Phd. http://www. gamblingphd. com/gambling-history. htm â€Å"The NCPG Mission. † 21 Nov 2005. National Council on Problem Gambling. http://www. ncpgambling. org/.

Alice Munros Boys and Girls Essay examples -- Boys and Girls, Alice Mu

â€Å"Boys and Girls† is a short story, by Alice Munro, which illustrates a tremendous growing period into womanhood, for a young girl living on a fox farm in Canada, post World War II. The young girl slowly comes to discover her ability to control her destiny and her influences on the world. The events that took place over the course of the story helped in many ways to shape her future. From these events one can map the Protagonist’s future. The events that were drawn within the story provided the Protagonist with a foundation to become an admirable woman.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout the story there are several aspects of the Protagonist’s character that play a major role in the shaping of her future. During her childhood she often demonstrates a sense of fear when she is sent to her bedroom. â€Å"We were afraid of the inside, the room were we slept (pg. 549).† She is intimidated by her personal space because she does not have control over it. Later, she gains control by adding lace to her side of the room; symbolically adding personality to herself and slipping into womanhood. When she felt uncomfortable she exercised her imagination, to psychologically regain control over the confusion in her life. Her subconscious effort to control confusing times were carried on to her later years as she was constantly put in difficult situations, which helped her to adjust quickly to change during adulthood. The dreams she created changed when she began to place emphasis on her appearance-that which she could control, other than past dreams of heroism that seemed so distant from reality. The Protagonist filled her childhood with much pride and maintained a consistent focused upon the activities that filled her childhood. She relished working at the side of her father, taking immense pride in every aspect of her assigned duties. She proclaimed, â€Å"I worked willingly under his eyes, and with a feeling of pride (pg. 551)† Once after her father introduced her to a feed sales man as â€Å"my new hired man (pg. 551),† the Protagonist was flooded with pride as she â€Å"turned away and raked furiously, red in the face with pleasure (pg. 551).† In her later years her pride helped her to assemble strong self-confidence she used in her years of growing. Passion and depth were characteristics that impacted her future as a woman. Her passion and depth was revealed early on in the story ... ...uide boys and girls through a difficult transition period. During her childhood she loved to have influence upon her younger brother. Her need to influence carried on to her adulthood. Story telling was an essential part of her class. It was her conscious way of helping her students to deal with the confusing and threatening world around them. As a child her imagination was a comfort zone for her. She provided her students with that atmosphere. As a child she dreamed of a different world, on she described as â€Å"On that presented opportunities for courage, boldness and self sacrifice (pg 550).† Teaching was an ideal job for the protagonist to attain as it allowed her to remain influential and child like.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Boys and Girls† describes a major turning point in a girl’s life, turning down a path towards womanhood. Her childhood fears of the dark and fears of being less than a perfect worker to her father and her control of her brother slowly dissolve. Her decision to free the terrified horse highlights her pivotal journey into adulthood. And her ability to cry with sensitivity over her decision of freedom, demonstrates the acute sensitivity of a woman.

Lab 5 Acid/Base Extractions Essay

The purpose of this experiment is to separate either the organic base (amine) or organic acid (carboxylic acid) from a mixture that contains inorganic impurities (salt) by performing a liquid-liquid extraction and then taking a melting point. Key Experimental Details and Observations Our starting material, Compound B, was a fine white powder and weighed 0.535g. The final product was a shiny white sheet that resembled acrylic paint and weighed 0.109g. Results Our percent yield was 0.109g/0.535g x 100 = 20.4%. Discussion and Conclusions The melting point ranges we got for compound B ranged from 110.8-114.0 Â °C, while the melting point range for benzoic acid is 121.0-123.0Â °C and 103.0-107.0Â °C for 4-amino acetophenone. Since the ranges we acquired for compound B are directly in between both acid and base melting points, we can conclude that the purity for compound B is relatively high due to the compound being made up of equal parts of benzoic acid and 4-amino acetophenone. Thus saying that our melting point ranges are fairly accurate because they exemplify an equal percentage of both compounds, which is exactly what compound B is made up of. The purity can also be concluded through the melting points depression because depression arises from impurities within the lattice of a crystalized sample. We acquired a percent yield of 20.4%, which is relatively low. This result could be from part of the compound B solution being left behind in the Erlenmeyer flask when pouring the solution into the vacuum filtrate. The efficiency of a liquid-liquid extraction is high because it did allow us to gain some of our starting product back. We were able to isolate the acid from the base by deprotonating the solution with 10mL of NaOH. This caused the benzoic acid to settle at the bottom of the separatory flask because the NaOH broke it into ions, which made the acid polar. We then protonated the solution by adding HCl, which cause the acid to separate from the solution.

Painting, Music, Theater and Dance as Individual Discipline Essay

Discipline implies a commitment to hard work and that hard work is necessary to grow spiritually, just as it is to develop one’s artistic talents (Wuthnow 2006, p. 107). Painting, music, theater, and dance are individual disciplines as artists have to work hard to master techniques and movements. Learning the art of painting, music, theater, and dance is a discipline because it is a painful step of going through the process of mastering its art. Citing various opinions on discipline, Wuthnow stated, â€Å"To make something that would not meet my expectations and to try again and improve it, step by step, that’s discipline. Four means of expression for each discipline Appreciating a work of art implies an intellectual involvement with what is to be appreciated, be it a painting, music, theater arts or dance. Painters expressed their arts in many ways. One of this is the so called â€Å"realism† whose manner of presenting their subject depends on the interest, imagination, creativity, and purpose of the artist. Their Objects are depicted in the way they would normally appear in nature, and the presentation is said to be realistic. Next is the Abstract form which is usually expressed in geometric shapes which are rarely identified. The third is Distortion this is used by artist to dramatize the object and to create an emotional effect. Last is cubism which represents realities through the use of geometric object. Music artist express their arts in various ways. First is through the so-called â€Å"live music† which is played fast or slow, loud or soft, and happy or sad. Second is the Jazz which is an exhilarating and an intricate play intending to mystify the listeners. The third is the Rock is usually inspired by classical string pieces. The last is the so-called Sonata which Hoffman (2005) identified an instrumental piece. The theater art is expressed through audio-visual. Foremost of this expression is the Broadway which has been generally referred to as an institutionalized exhibition of art. Opera is another expression of theater art which is usually a character depiction while Shadow puppet is an important expression of theater art especially among Asian countries like China and Indonesia. Finally, Puppetry is a â€Å"calculated and controlled† discipline in exhibiting the art form (Harkavy, 1996). Dancing is considered as art that is characterized by a free movement that is guided by the tempo of music. Dancing as an art is expressed in such manner as â€Å"Ballet† â€Å"tango† â€Å"Ballroom† and modern dances. Description of four characteristics for each discipline The characteristic of painting is that need subject which are either a human person, nature or an art it self. Next, imagination and creativity is both the artist’s invisible eye to see things hidden and technological tools. Canvas is also an element of painting which is a hempen cloth loosely woven and is used by painters for painting. The simplest element of painting is Paint which is a chemical use by painters in varied colors. Elements of music include strings instruments. These are instruments played by artist using their fingers. Wind instruments are another element of music. They are played by using their lips. Drums too are elements of music. Artists played them using a stick and are usually accompanied by other instruments such as cymbals and tambourine. Tempo is also an element of music. It is the music’s beat, that is, its speed. Theater elements include Character depiction, which is usually performed by artist on stage, drama which is an element of theater art and is usually a story acted by artists to the audience. The dramatists are the artists or the stage performers. Plays are perhaps the most important element which is normally the entire script or a form of story telling. Elements of dance include choreography which is creative dance movement that conveys ideas. The tempo of music is an in a dance that determines the actions and movements. Emotions are the elements of dance that â€Å"makes the immediacy come alive† (Runco & Pritzker (1999, p. 476). Scenery is the place for dancing which is a wide open area conducive for dancing. How each characteristic is unique to the discipline? Each characteristic is unique to the discipline in such a way that they provide important knowledge and ideas of the particular discipline. They also serve as the introduction and identities of each discipline. These characteristic are unique to the discipline they identify their description only fits with the particular discipline they are representing. References Harkavy, M. D. (1996) Baroque, In the New Webster’s International Encyclopedia. ’ Hoffman, M. (2005) The NPR Classical Music Companion USA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Runco, M. A. & Pritzker, S. R. (1999) Encyclopedia of Creativity USA: Elsevier Wuthnow, R. (2006) All in Sync USA: University of California press