Police Complaints

Analysis & Application Police Complaints November 21, 2011 Abstract Conducting ourselves as mature individuals could determine whether or not we’re taken seriously within society. Since the beginning of time, black, white, Hispanic, etc. , have filed complaints against police officers, regardless of their maturity level or regardless of their own fault level. Is society too disrespectful to law enforcement? If civilians could walk in police officer shoes for one day would the complaint level decrease? This paper will focus on the perception of the police by measuring public complaints and identifying two key aspects that affect the relationships between law enforcement and civilians. Background One may be shocked to learn that police officer complaints and the final outcome of said complaints are not handled by the police chief, the city’s mayor or a review board, but instead by an â€Å"arbitrator†. (Iris, 1998) This has been a particular struggle between police chief’s and review boards across the United States. In the years between 1990 and 1993 â€Å"there was a total of 328 disciplinary actions decided by binding arbitrators† involving the Chicago Police Department, and under a new policy in 1993, â€Å"205 disciplinary actions were reviewed by arbitrators for non-binding advisory opinions. † (Iris, 1998, pg. 216) Despite a rigorous review process, surprisingly disciplines imposed upon Chicago police officers were cut in half by the arbitrators. Could the ineffectiveness of the police discipline have a major affect in regards to civilian complaints? If arbitrators are not punishing police officers appropriately, this could be a reason for their actions and why some officers feel as though they are above the law. More officers need to be held accountable for their actions and across the United States, each complaint made against an officer should hold the same outcome if found guilty. Concerns/Issues In an article written by Dina DeCrescenzo, the author mentioned two forms of holding police officers accountable early on in their careers and those are; internal and external. Internal forms include the presence of an effective internal affairs division; proper recruitment; selection peer or coworker pressure†. External forms include; civilian review boards and citizens reporting deviant police behavior†. (Burns, 2009, pg. 69) Identifying deviant police officers early can definitely have an affect on civilian complaints. In 2005 in Los Angeles, CA, a 13 year-old, 8th grader was killed by a police officer after failing to stop a vehicle and leading officers on a chase. The officer had not idea that the assailant was a 13 year-old boy. The police chief had a very challenging job at the time, of reforming the police department. The police chief found that the officers’ actions were justified because his life was threatened. However the commission, headed by a civil rights activist, â€Å"voted 4 to 1 to set aside† the police chiefs’ finding and ruled that the officer â€Å"violated department policy when he fired into the car as the boy backed toward him†. (Murr, 2005) Many disagreed with this decision; some thought that because the officer risks his life to protect the public, the decision was unjust. This may be the key reason why complaints are not reported or are not taken seriously. If law enforcement are not being held accountable, how can civilians trust them? Now in the aforementioned case, the ruling was overruled; however the public opinion by law officials in regards to the ruling weighs heavily on society and the criminal justice system. If law officials believe that every shooting incident is warranted because police officers put their lives in danger, then the public will not have faith in the legal system. Proposed Solutions A key issue in this sample is the measurement of how civilians feel about law enforcement. Trust and confidence for law enforcement are the main reason individuals feel compelled to either speak up or not speak up at all against officers. How can we help society gain trust and confidence in its law enforcement individuals? 1. Personal experiences with police: Questionnaires offered to individuals that would love to see a change in policing and less complaints. The questions would consist of thoughts on fighting crime, crime prevention, victims of police brutality, community concerns and thoughts on unlawful stops. Collecting this data will allow law enforcement to react in the appropriate manner. Not necessarily criticizing information, but helpful information. 2. Community: Questionnaires in regards to community policing (good or bad), teenagers within the community, policing programs to assist single parents. This type of information is critical to identifying reasons for crime. Working together with the community can decrease police complaints because confidence and trust has been replenished in the neighborhood. Conclusion Unfortunately the number of police complaints within the United States by citizens are hard to identify because each law enforcement agency records and processes complaints differently. Police officers are held accountable for not only their partners, themselves, but the community. If tactics are not used to build better relationships within the communities they police, citizen complaints will continue. The aforementioned samples can be used to help offset some of the miscommunication happening between law enforcement and citizens. Society and law enforcement must come to a middle point on the ruler to help make a safer environment. References Burns, Ronald G. (2009) Critical issues in criminal justice. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Prentice Hall. Murr, A. (2005). Back on the Mean Streets. Newsweek, 145(8), 32.

Causes of Road Accidents in Pakistan

J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Causes of Road Accidents in Pakistan By Abdul Manan Khan1 and Ansa Tehreem2 Abstract Every day many people are killed and injured on our roads. Men, women, children, biking or riding to school or work, playing in the streets or setting out on long trips, will never return home, leaving behind shattered families and communities. Road traffic injuries are a growing public health issue, disproportionately affecting vulnerable groups of road users, specially the poor.Main causes which are found behind these road accidents are lack of training institutes, unskilled drivers, poor road conditions, use of cell phone during driving, use of intoxicants, over loading and poor performance of government in this regard. If these issues are tackled in a manner way then it can positively affect the social and economic conditions of the residents of developing countries. Key Words: Public Health, Road Accidents, Traffic Accidents 1. In troduction and Literature Review The growth and development of a nation depends, largely, upon the capacity of its transport system to move persons and goods to desired locations safety.In Pakistani society, nuclear family system is very common. Here, it is like a trend that one or two members of family earn the money and other family members heavily depend on them. In developing countries, like Pakistan, roads often carry a wide range of users – from heavy goods-vehicles to bicycles and pedestrians without any separation. Road traffic accidents (RTA) are a significant, cause of any disability, death and economic loss in developing countries like Pakistan. Among the pedestrians, the most vulnerable are those young people who play an important part in the socio-economic growth of the country.In Pakistan, male proportion play dominant role to run their families economically, so they have to face more problems like injuries and disability. Every day many people are killed and in jured on our roads. Men, women, children, biking or riding to school or work, playing in the streets or setting out on long trips, will never return home, leaving behind shattered families and communities. Road traffic injuries are a growing public health issue, disproportionately affecting vulnerable groups of road users, specially the poor.Road traffic injuries are a major but neglected global public health problem, requiring concerted efforts for effective and sustainable avoidance. Worldwide, the number of people killed in road traffic crashes each year is estimated at almost 1. 2 million, while the number injured could be as high as 50 million (WHO, 2004). In economic terms, the cost of road crash injuries is projected at roughly 1% of gross national product (GNP) in low-income countries, 1. 5% in middle-income countries and 2% in high-income countries (Soderlund,1995).The economic cost of road crashes and injuries is estimated to be over Rs100 billion for Pakistan (Ahmad, 2008 ). 1 Graduate, Department of Sociology,University of Gujrat, Gujrat. 2 Graduate, University of the Punjab, Lahore 23 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Lower socio-economic groups have limited access to post-crash emergency health care (Mock, etal1997). In Pakistan also, a large portion of population has also limited access to post-crash emergency health care which causes a precious loss of lives.In many developing countries, the costs of prolonged medical care, the loss of the family breadwinner, the cost of a funeral, and the loss of income due to disability can push families into poverty (Hijar etal 2003). In developing countries, the population groups exposed to the highest risks of injury and death from road crashes, pedestrians and users of motorized two-wheelers – are from lower socioeconomic groups (Nantulya, 2003 and Ghaffar A, 2004). In Mexico, the second commonest cause of children being orphaned is traffic crashes (Hijar etal, 2003). Pakistan is also a developing country where a large number of people die every because of the road-side accidents. Especially death proportion of pedestrians and motorcyclists are very high which mostly belong to lower socio-economic groups of society. Recent studies have shown that pedestrians and motorcyclists have the highest rates of injury in Asia (Yang,etal 2003 and Suriyanwongpaisal etal 2003). In Pakistan Incidence of road traffic injuries was 15. 0 (including minor injuries) per 1,000 persons per year (Ghaffar etal 2004). If we use this rate in 2008 it will be in millions. The burden of injury is unequal.More boys are injured than girls, and children from poorer families have higher rates of injury. In 2002, males accounted for 73% of all road traffic deaths, with an overall rate almost three times that for females: 27. 6 per 100 000 population and 10. 4 per 100 000 population, respectively (WHO, 2004). Pakistan is a patriarchal society, where most of the time male family m embers are the primary source of income. So, the higher rate of road traffic deaths among men, can even more severely affect the socio-economic status of the family as well as the whole social structure of the society.In Pakistan, among males of the economically active age group accidental death rate is very high, and also according to the study, motor vehicle injuries are the third most important cause of death in developing countries. (Soderlund 1995). It is projected that RTA will be the second most common cause of disability-adjusted life years in developing countries in the year 2020 (Murray, 1997). Road traffic crashes can place a heavy burden on the family and friends of the injured person. According to WHO estimates for 2002, there were 180500 children killed as the result of road crashes.Some 97% of these child road deaths occurred in low-income and middle-income countries (WHO, 2004). There are many factors which cause the accidents. The motorized traffic on these roads is capable of high acceleration and speed, both key factors in the causes of road crash injury. Most of the factors of traffic accidents are the driver, the highway and motor vehicles (Aaron ,1990, Balogun etal,1992; Luby etal,1997 and Mock etal,1999). Majority of road users including motorists and pedestrians lack road sense, leading to frequent road accidents and continued traffic jams across the country.Some other research evidence also indicates that the human element is responsible for 80 to 85% of all traffic accidents. Traffic violations, driving while intoxicated and lack of driving courtesy are the results of human actions. Unsafe highway and road conditions cause about 10% of all traffic accidents while mechanical deficiencies are responsible for nearly 5% of all traffic problems (Aaron,1990; Collier, 1983; American Automobile Association, 1988; Mc Glade, 1980).Traffic violations like signal crossing, driving without license, wrong parking, usage of mobile phones while drivi ng, wrong overtaking, disregard of zebra crossing, riding motorbikes without lights and helmets, 24 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X over-speeding, change of lane sans using indicators are so common in Pakistan which are the major cause of accident in our society. 2. Data Collection and Methodology This study is based on primary data which is collected from people belongs to transportation system and drivers of LTV, HTV, motorcyclist and pedestrians.For this purpose 100 cases were selected from the universe as described by Neumann (1997). Data is collected via discussion and questionnaire on causes of road accidents and its aspects from each side. 3. Data Analysis On the basis of primary data, when we ask to respondents about the main reason behind road accidents then 40% of the respondents answer that ignorance of traffic rules is the main reason of road accidents. While 32% respondents answer that rash driving and 28% of the view that untrained dri vers are the cause of road accidents.This whole issue is shown in table 1. Table 1. Reasons of Road Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Ignorance of traffic rules 40. 0 40. 0 Rash driving 32. 0 72. 0 Untrained drivers 28. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 When we put the question that is poor conditions of roads is responsible for accidents then 44% of the respondents answer that to some extent poor conditions of roads cause accidents and 32% people response that yes, poor condition of roads is responsible and all is shown in table 2. Table 2. Is Poor Condition of Roads Responsible for Accidents PercentCumulative Percent Yes 32. 0 32. 0 No 24. 0 56. 0 To some extent 44. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 25 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Our next question highlight another burning issue that 68% of the road accidents occur due to untrained/ unskilled drivers while only 12% of the respondents view that unskilled drivers are not responsible, which is shown in table 3. Table 3. Accidents Occur Due to Unskilled Drivers Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 68. 0 68. 0 No 12. 0 80. 0 To some extent 20. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0In most of the parts of the country, one wheeling occurs by young people on roads and 76% of the respondents view that this cause road accidents while only 4% of the respondents answer that one wheeling is not a cause of accidents. Table 4 shows detailed data on this issue. Table 4. Is One Wheeling Causes Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 76. 0 76. 0 No 4. 0 80. 0 To some extent 20. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 Use of cell phones during driving cause road accidents and government take measures to avoid cell phone and there is some penalty.The 52% of the respondents answers that use of cell phone during driving cause accidents while 40% answer to some extent it cause, only 8% view that cell phone is not the cause of road accidents. This is shown in detail in table 5. Table 5. Is Use of Cell Phone Causes Road Accidents Percent Cumulative Percen t Yes 52. 0 52. 0 No 8. 0 60. 0 To some extent 40. 0 100. 0 26 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Total 100. 0 Another issue was raised when we ask a question from respondents that are use of drugs during driving cause road accidents.The answer was astonished us that only 4% of the respondents view that drugs is not a cause of accidents while 72% and 24% response yes and to some extent, respectively. As shown in table 6 below. Table 6. Use of Drugs during Driving Cause Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 72. 0 72. 0 No 4. 0 76. 0 To some extent 24. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 Overloading is another cause of road accidents and respondents answer that overloading is the cause of road accidents as shown in table 7. Table 7. Is Overloading Causes Road Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 40. 0 40. 0 No 4. 0 44. 0 To some extent 6. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 The literacy rate in Pakistan is low which relates with road accidents because most of the drivers are illiterate and can’t read anything even helping booklet/ safety guides on roads. The 72% of the respondents answer that lack of awareness about driving rules and other safety measures is the cause of road accidents. Only 8% of the respondents view that it is not a cause of road accidents and all this is shown in table 8. Table 8. Is Lack of Awareness Causes Road Accidents 27 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 2. 0 72. 0 No 8. 0 80. 0 To some extent 20. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 Above all information explains the causes of road accidents but now we have collected some information about the role of different administrative institutes in overcoming these issues. When we ask about role of government in reducing the ratio of accidents then 40% of the respondents are of the view that government is playing poor role and there is need to improve its role. 28% respondents answer that its role is satisfactory while only 8% resp onse that government is playing excellent role, detail about this is given in table 9.Table 9. Role of Govt. in Reducing Traffic Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Excellent 8. 0 8. 0 Very good 24. 0 32. 0 Satisfactory 28. 0 60. 0 Poor 40. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 The role of traffic police in reducing the road accidents is better and 52% of the respondents show satisfactory role of traffic police while 24% answers very good. So the overall role of traffic police is good but the problem exists when we make a comparison between roads and number of police servants. Only 8% of the respondents answer that traffic police is playing poor role, which is shown in table 10.Table 10. Role of Traffic Police in Reducing Traffic Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Excellent 16. 0 16. 0 Very good 24. 0 40. 0 Satisfactory 52. 0 92. 0 28 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Poor 8. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 Conclusion The main objective of this paper is to highlight the mai n causes of road accidents in Pakistan. On the basis of primary data we conclude the paper as following. The main reason of traffic accidents is due to lack of awareness about rules and regulation, so there is need of institutes for awareness about these rules.Government may create awareness in public by offering different courses in educational institutes and also distribute some material for drivers and for general public also. Government needs to make some core courses/ training before the provision of license and traffic police should keep strong check and balance in this regard. Another problem which causes road accidents is overloading, use of cell phone during driving and drugs addiction by majority of the drivers. These all issues can be solved by creating awareness and by applying some penalty to defaulters.These are not serious issues and easily solved by the strong system of check and balance by any administrative authority. By overcoming on these causes we can save a lot of benefits in the shape of monetary and non-monetary terms. In a nut shell, we say that road accidents are playing prominent role in the families of victims of traffic accidents which is the loss of property on one side while death of humanity is on the other hand. These both can through a family into a vicious circle of poverty and then it impacts on the overall economy.So need of the day is to take some encouraging steps by public side and individuals side also. References ? A Resource Curriculum in Driver and Traffic Safety Education, (1990), Washington D. C. Automative Safety Foundation. ? Aaron, J. E. and Strasser, M. K. , (1990), Driver and Traffic Safety Education, London: The Macmillan Company. ? Ahmad, B. , (2006), Country Report on Road Network in Pakistan, Ministry of Communications, Islambad. ? Balogun, J. , A. Abereoje, (1992), Pattern of Road Traffic Accidents cases in a Nigerian University Teaching Hospital between: 1987 and 1990, Journal of Tropical Medicine 95: 23 -29. Collier, J. P, (1983), Automotive Safety Education London, Macmillan Publishers. 29 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X ? Ghaffar, A. , Hyder A. A. and Masud, T. I. , (2004), The burden of road traffic injuries in developing countries: the 1st National Injury Survey of Pakistan Public Health. ? Hijar, M. , Vazquez-Vela, E, Arreola-Risa, (2003), Pedestrian traffic injuries in Mexico: a country update. Injury Control and Safety Promotion. 10:37–43 ? McGlade, F, (1980), Adjustive Behaviour and Safety Performance Sringfield, Illinois: Carl of C.Thomas Publisher. ? Mock, C. , Amegashie J. and Darteh, K, (1999), Role of Commercial Drivers in motor vehicle related injuries in Ghana. Inj. Prev 5: 268-271 ? Mock, C. N. , nii-Amon-Kotei D. , and Maier, R. V. , (1997), Low utilization of formal medical services by injured persons in a developing nation: health service data underestimate the importance of trauma. Journal of Trauma. 42:504–513. ? Murray, CJL, Lopez A. D. , (1997), Alternative projections of mortality and disability by cause 1990-2020: Global Burden of Disease Study. Lancet . 349:1498504. Nantulya, V. M. , and Reich M. R. , (2003), Equity dimensions of road traffic injuries in low and middle-income countries: Injury Control and Safety Promotion. 10:13–20. ? Neumann, W. L. , (1997), Social Research Methods, Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches, Allyss and Bacon, USA. ? Peden M, McGee K, and Sharma G, (2002), The injury chart book: a graphical overview of the global burden of injuries. Geneva, World Health Organization. ? Peden, M. , Scurfield, R. , et al (2004), World Report on Traffic Injuries Prevention; Geneva, WHO ? Soderlund N, Zwi A. B. (1995), Traffic related mortality in industrialized and less developed countries. BuU World Health Organ. 73:175-82. ? Stutts, Hunter. , (1999), Motor Vehicle and Roadway factors in pedestrians and Bicyclist injuries. Accd Aral Prev. 31:505-514. ? Suriyanwongpai sal, P. , and Kanchanasut S, (2003), Road traffic injuries in Thailand: trends, selected underlying determinants and status of intervention. Injury Control and Safety Promotion. 10:95–104. ? Yang, B. M. , and Kim J. , (2003), Road traffic accidents and policy interventions in Korea. Injury control and Safety Promotion. 0:89–93. ? www. makeroadssafe. org ? www. prb. org/Articles/2006/RoadTrafficAccidentsIncreaseDramaticallyWorldwide. aspx ? www. asiaone. com/News/Latest%2BNews/Asia/Story/A1Story20080719-77661. html ? www. dawn. com/2008/04/27/nat16. htm ? www. dailymailnews. com/200802/13/news/dmboxitem2. html ? www. dawn. com/2008/04/27/nat16. htm ? www. statpak. gov. pkJ. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Causes of Road Accidents in Pakistan By Abdul Manan Khan1 and Ansa Tehreem2 Abstract Every day many people are killed and injured on our roads.Men, women, children, biking or riding to school or work, playing in the streets or setting out on long trips, will never return home, leaving behind shattered families and communities. Road traffic injuries are a growing public health issue, disproportionately affecting vulnerable groups of road users, specially the poor. Main causes which are found behind these road accidents are lack of training institutes, unskilled drivers, poor road conditions, use of cell phone during driving, use of intoxicants, over loading and poor performance of government in this regard.If these issues are tackled in a manner way then it can positively affect the social and economic conditions of the residents of developing countries. Key Words: Public Health, Road Accidents, Traffic Accidents 1. Introduction and Literature Review The growth and development of a nation depends, largely, upon the capacity of its transport system to move persons and goods to desired locations safety. In Pakistani society, nuclear family system is very common. Here, it is like a trend that one or two members of famil y earn the money and other family members heavily depend on them.In developing countries, like Pakistan, roads often carry a wide range of users – from heavy goods-vehicles to bicycles and pedestrians without any separation. Road traffic accidents (RTA) are a significant, cause of any disability, death and economic loss in developing countries like Pakistan. Among the pedestrians, the most vulnerable are those young people who play an important part in the socio-economic growth of the country. In Pakistan, male proportion play dominant role to run their families economically, so they have to face more problems like injuries and disability. Every day many people are killed and injured on our roads.Men, women, children, biking or riding to school or work, playing in the streets or setting out on long trips, will never return home, leaving behind shattered families and communities. Road traffic injuries are a growing public health issue, disproportionately affecting vulnerable g roups of road users, specially the poor. Road traffic injuries are a major but neglected global public health problem, requiring concerted efforts for effective and sustainable avoidance. Worldwide, the number of people killed in road traffic crashes each year is estimated at almost 1. 2 million, while the number injured could be as high as 50 million (WHO, 2004).In economic terms, the cost of road crash injuries is projected at roughly 1% of gross national product (GNP) in low-income countries, 1. 5% in middle-income countries and 2% in high-income countries (Soderlund,1995). The economic cost of road crashes and injuries is estimated to be over Rs100 billion for Pakistan (Ahmad, 2008). 1 Graduate, Department of Sociology,University of Gujrat, Gujrat. 2 Graduate, University of the Punjab, Lahore 23 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Lower socio-economic groups have limited access to post-crash emergency health care (Mock, etal1997).In Pakistan also, a large portion of population has also limited access to post-crash emergency health care which causes a precious loss of lives. In many developing countries, the costs of prolonged medical care, the loss of the family breadwinner, the cost of a funeral, and the loss of income due to disability can push families into poverty (Hijar etal 2003). In developing countries, the population groups exposed to the highest risks of injury and death from road crashes, pedestrians and users of motorized two-wheelers – are from lower socioeconomic groups (Nantulya, 2003 and Ghaffar A, 2004).In Mexico, the second commonest cause of children being orphaned is traffic crashes (Hijar etal, 2003). Pakistan is also a developing country where a large number of people die every because of the road-side accidents. Especially death proportion of pedestrians and motorcyclists are very high which mostly belong to lower socio-economic groups of society. Recent studies have shown that pedestrians and mot orcyclists have the highest rates of injury in Asia (Yang,etal 2003 and Suriyanwongpaisal etal 2003). In Pakistan Incidence of road traffic injuries was 15. (including minor injuries) per 1,000 persons per year (Ghaffar etal 2004). If we use this rate in 2008 it will be in millions. The burden of injury is unequal. More boys are injured than girls, and children from poorer families have higher rates of injury. In 2002, males accounted for 73% of all road traffic deaths, with an overall rate almost three times that for females: 27. 6 per 100 000 population and 10. 4 per 100 000 population, respectively (WHO, 2004). Pakistan is a patriarchal society, where most of the time male family members are the primary source of income.So, the higher rate of road traffic deaths among men, can even more severely affect the socio-economic status of the family as well as the whole social structure of the society. In Pakistan, among males of the economically active age group accidental death rate is very high, and also according to the study, motor vehicle injuries are the third most important cause of death in developing countries. (Soderlund 1995). It is projected that RTA will be the second most common cause of disability-adjusted life years in developing countries in the year 2020 (Murray, 1997).Road traffic crashes can place a heavy burden on the family and friends of the injured person. According to WHO estimates for 2002, there were 180500 children killed as the result of road crashes. Some 97% of these child road deaths occurred in low-income and middle-income countries (WHO, 2004). There are many factors which cause the accidents. The motorized traffic on these roads is capable of high acceleration and speed, both key factors in the causes of road crash injury. Most of the factors of traffic accidents are the driver, the highway and motor vehicles (Aaron ,1990, Balogun etal,1992; Luby etal,1997 and Mock etal,1999).Majority of road users including motorists and pedestr ians lack road sense, leading to frequent road accidents and continued traffic jams across the country. Some other research evidence also indicates that the human element is responsible for 80 to 85% of all traffic accidents. Traffic violations, driving while intoxicated and lack of driving courtesy are the results of human actions. Unsafe highway and road conditions cause about 10% of all traffic accidents while mechanical deficiencies are responsible for nearly 5% of all traffic problems (Aaron,1990; Collier, 1983; American Automobile Association, 1988; Mc Glade, 1980).Traffic violations like signal crossing, driving without license, wrong parking, usage of mobile phones while driving, wrong overtaking, disregard of zebra crossing, riding motorbikes without lights and helmets, 24 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X over-speeding, change of lane sans using indicators are so common in Pakistan which are the major cause of accident in our society. 2. Dat a Collection and Methodology This study is based on primary data which is collected from people belongs to transportation system and drivers of LTV, HTV, motorcyclist and pedestrians.For this purpose 100 cases were selected from the universe as described by Neumann (1997). Data is collected via discussion and questionnaire on causes of road accidents and its aspects from each side. 3. Data Analysis On the basis of primary data, when we ask to respondents about the main reason behind road accidents then 40% of the respondents answer that ignorance of traffic rules is the main reason of road accidents. While 32% respondents answer that rash driving and 28% of the view that untrained drivers are the cause of road accidents.This whole issue is shown in table 1. Table 1. Reasons of Road Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Ignorance of traffic rules 40. 0 40. 0 Rash driving 32. 0 72. 0 Untrained drivers 28. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 When we put the question that is poor conditions of roads i s responsible for accidents then 44% of the respondents answer that to some extent poor conditions of roads cause accidents and 32% people response that yes, poor condition of roads is responsible and all is shown in table 2. Table 2. Is Poor Condition of Roads Responsible for Accidents PercentCumulative Percent Yes 32. 0 32. 0 No 24. 0 56. 0 To some extent 44. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 25 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Our next question highlight another burning issue that 68% of the road accidents occur due to untrained/ unskilled drivers while only 12% of the respondents view that unskilled drivers are not responsible, which is shown in table 3. Table 3. Accidents Occur Due to Unskilled Drivers Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 68. 0 68. 0 No 12. 0 80. 0 To some extent 20. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0In most of the parts of the country, one wheeling occurs by young people on roads and 76% of the respondents view that this cause road accidents while only 4% of the respondents answer that one wheeling is not a cause of accidents. Table 4 shows detailed data on this issue. Table 4. Is One Wheeling Causes Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 76. 0 76. 0 No 4. 0 80. 0 To some extent 20. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 Use of cell phones during driving cause road accidents and government take measures to avoid cell phone and there is some penalty.The 52% of the respondents answers that use of cell phone during driving cause accidents while 40% answer to some extent it cause, only 8% view that cell phone is not the cause of road accidents. This is shown in detail in table 5. Table 5. Is Use of Cell Phone Causes Road Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 52. 0 52. 0 No 8. 0 60. 0 To some extent 40. 0 100. 0 26 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Total 100. 0 Another issue was raised when we ask a question from respondents that are use of drugs during driving cause road accidents.The answer was astonished us that only 4% of the respondents view that drugs is not a cause of accidents while 72% and 24% response yes and to some extent, respectively. As shown in table 6 below. Table 6. Use of Drugs during Driving Cause Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 72. 0 72. 0 No 4. 0 76. 0 To some extent 24. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 Overloading is another cause of road accidents and respondents answer that overloading is the cause of road accidents as shown in table 7. Table 7. Is Overloading Causes Road Accidents Percent Cumulative PercentYes 40. 0 40. 0 No 4. 0 44. 0 To some extent 56. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 The literacy rate in Pakistan is low which relates with road accidents because most of the drivers are illiterate and can’t read anything even helping booklet/ safety guides on roads. The 72% of the respondents answer that lack of awareness about driving rules and other safety measures is the cause of road accidents. Only 8% of the respondents view that it is not a cause of road accidents and all this is shown in table 8. Table 8. Is Lack of Awareness Causes Road Accidents 7 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Percent Cumulative Percent Yes 72. 0 72. 0 No 8. 0 80. 0 To some extent 20. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 Above all information explains the causes of road accidents but now we have collected some information about the role of different administrative institutes in overcoming these issues. When we ask about role of government in reducing the ratio of accidents then 40% of the respondents are of the view that government is playing poor role and there is need to improve its role. 8% respondents answer that its role is satisfactory while only 8% response that government is playing excellent role, detail about this is given in table 9. Table 9. Role of Govt. in Reducing Traffic Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Excellent 8. 0 8. 0 Very good 24. 0 32. 0 Satisfactory 28. 0 60. 0 Poor 40. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 The role of traffic police in reducing t he road accidents is better and 52% of the respondents show satisfactory role of traffic police while 24% answers very good. So the overall role of traffic police is good but the problem exists when we make a comparison between roads and number of police servants.Only 8% of the respondents answer that traffic police is playing poor role, which is shown in table 10. Table 10. Role of Traffic Police in Reducing Traffic Accidents Percent Cumulative Percent Excellent 16. 0 16. 0 Very good 24. 0 40. 0 Satisfactory 52. 0 92. 0 28 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X Poor 8. 0 100. 0 Total 100. 0 Conclusion The main objective of this paper is to highlight the main causes of road accidents in Pakistan. On the basis of primary data we conclude the paper as following. The main reason of traffic accidents is due to lack of awareness bout rules and regulation, so there is need of institutes for awareness about these rules. Government may create awareness in public b y offering different courses in educational institutes and also distribute some material for drivers and for general public also. Government needs to make some core courses/ training before the provision of license and traffic police should keep strong check and balance in this regard. Another problem which causes road accidents is overloading, use of cell phone during driving and drugs addiction by majority of the drivers.These all issues can be solved by creating awareness and by applying some penalty to defaulters. These are not serious issues and easily solved by the strong system of check and balance by any administrative authority. By overcoming on these causes we can save a lot of benefits in the shape of monetary and non-monetary terms. In a nut shell, we say that road accidents are playing prominent role in the families of victims of traffic accidents which is the loss of property on one side while death of humanity is on the other hand.These both can through a family into a vicious circle of poverty and then it impacts on the overall economy. So need of the day is to take some encouraging steps by public side and individuals side also. References ? A Resource Curriculum in Driver and Traffic Safety Education, (1990), Washington D. C. Automative Safety Foundation. ? Aaron, J. E. and Strasser, M. K. , (1990), Driver and Traffic Safety Education, London: The Macmillan Company. ? Ahmad, B. , (2006), Country Report on Road Network in Pakistan, Ministry of Communications, Islambad. ? Balogun, J. , A.Abereoje, (1992), Pattern of Road Traffic Accidents cases in a Nigerian University Teaching Hospital between: 1987 and 1990, Journal of Tropical Medicine 95: 23-29. ? Collier, J. P, (1983), Automotive Safety Education London, Macmillan Publishers. 29 J. Asian Dev. Stud, Vol. 1, Issue 1, (March 2012). ISSN 2304-375X ? Ghaffar, A. , Hyder A. A. and Masud, T. I. , (2004), The burden of road traffic injuries in developing countries: the 1st National Injury Survey o f Pakistan Public Health. ? Hijar, M. , Vazquez-Vela, E, Arreola-Risa, (2003), Pedestrian traffic injuries in Mexico: a country update.Injury Control and Safety Promotion. 10:37–43 ? McGlade, F, (1980), Adjustive Behaviour and Safety Performance Sringfield, Illinois: Carl of C. Thomas Publisher. ? Mock, C. , Amegashie J. and Darteh, K, (1999), Role of Commercial Drivers in motor vehicle related injuries in Ghana. Inj. Prev 5: 268-271 ? Mock, C. N. , nii-Amon-Kotei D. , and Maier, R. V. , (1997), Low utilization of formal medical services by injured persons in a developing nation: health service data underestimate the importance of trauma. Journal of Trauma. 42:504–513. ? Murray, CJL, Lopez A.D. , (1997), Alternative projections of mortality and disability by cause 1990-2020: Global Burden of Disease Study. Lancet . 349:1498504. ? Nantulya, V. M. , and Reich M. R. , (2003), Equity dimensions of road traffic injuries in low and middle-income countries: Injury Control and Safety Promotion. 10:13–20. ? Neumann, W. L. , (1997), Social Research Methods, Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches, Allyss and Bacon, USA. ? Peden M, McGee K, and Sharma G, (2002), The injury chart book: a graphical overview of the global burden of injuries.Geneva, World Health Organization. ? Peden, M. , Scurfield, R. , et al (2004), World Report on Traffic Injuries Prevention; Geneva, WHO ? Soderlund N, Zwi A. B. , (1995), Traffic related mortality in industrialized and less developed countries. BuU World Health Organ. 73:175-82. ? Stutts, Hunter. , (1999), Motor Vehicle and Roadway factors in pedestrians and Bicyclist injuries. Accd Aral Prev. 31:505-514. ? Suriyanwongpaisal, P. , and Kanchanasut S, (2003), Road traffic injuries in Thailand: trends, selected underlying determinants and status of intervention.Injury Control and Safety Promotion. 10:95–104. ? Yang, B. M. , and Kim J. , (2003), Road traffic accidents and policy interventions in Korea. Injury cont rol and Safety Promotion. 10:89–93. ? www. makeroadssafe. org ? www. prb. org/Articles/2006/RoadTrafficAccidentsIncreaseDramaticallyWorldwide. aspx ? www. asiaone. com/News/Latest%2BNews/Asia/Story/A1Story20080719-77661. html ? www. dawn. com/2008/04/27/nat16. htm ? www. dailymailnews. com/200802/13/news/dmboxitem2. html ? www. dawn. com/2008/04/27/nat16. htm ? www. statpak. gov. pk

Time Bank

Time bank is a unique organisation that holds vast amount of knowledge and skills belonging to its customer. The way time bank operates is by allowing individuals to exchange their knowledge, skills with others. The concept of the Time Bank is based on the fact that people are all individually different, we all have different types of knowledge and we all have different set of skills, no one is good at everything, the typical situation is that we only have the capacity to be good at certain things and not all things.In a world without Time Bank, we have to pay for things we can’t do, for example I am not an expert with computers, if my computer breaks down then I would have to pay for someone to fix it. However, with the existence of Time Bank, I can exchange a skill which I am good at for someone else’s help with the repair of my computer. To illustrate this example more specifically, If a member of the Time Bank has spent two hours repairing my computer then that pers on would have banked two hours worth of time with the Bank, in another word, that person will have two hours worth of credit.When that person needs help with something he has difficulty with, he is entitled to two hours free help from another individual. So individuals can build up their credit by helping others with things that they are good at. This way, people can save time and money in dealing with difficult tasks. It is clear that Time Bank offers a service that many needs, but no such provider exists in the current market in Colchester. However, as Time Bank is such a new concept promotion of the Bank is vital. Effective promotional method needs to be used to introduce people to this new concept.I shall look into these methods in the rest of this essay, but before doing so, it is important to assess who would use Time Bank, i. e. its target audience. 2. Target Audience: One of the key reason that people will want to use Time Bank will be because that they can save money, from this it follows that Time Bank is unlikely to attract very wealthy individuals. Further, it is likely that only people who can offer knowledge or skill in return will use the Bank, this will mean that the younger and older groups are probably excluded from the target audience, as they are likely to be limited with the help they can offer.So, main target group of Time Bank is likely to be working individuals and possibly students. So, we have to have this in mind when selecting the promotion methods for the Bank. 3. Advertising: Placing adverts on local newspapers, radios and internet, magazines and possibly on television may be a good way to build the awareness of the Bank’s presence. Yellow pages is another idea, however, with the expansion of the internet Yellow pages is not as much used by people as before. So, instead, it may be a better idea to place advert on the internet, for example, Yell Colchester.With newspapers and radios it will be a good idea to place the advert on popular Colchester local papers and local radio stations such as BBC Essex and Heart Essex. In terms of magazines, if possible, it would be a good idea to select magazines that our target audience is most likely to read, something like magazines advising on money matters or D. I. Y. magazines (as it is likely that people who are interested in D. I. Y will find it more enjoyable to exchange their skills and bank their time with the Time Bank). Putting up adverts on the internet is also a good idea, an excellent website to place advert is www. sk. com, as people who go on to ask. com will normally be in the need for some kind of help, so an advert on this website will capture some of our key audiences. It may be a better idea to take advantage of free advertising, such as placing adverts on Gumtree Colchester. Putting up posters in University campus may also be a good idea, students are likely to be a key user of the Time Bank, the reason being that students do not earn any income as a result they are likely to prefer to save money by using the Time Bank.Sponsoring a University newsletter or website is another idea to build awareness in the student market, the sponsorship will enable Time Bank’s logo to appear and be seen by students. In terms of working individuals, it may be a good idea to put up posters in job searching agencies such as Reed, or paying for an advertising space on job searching websites. Distributing leaflets is another possible idea, we could position few leaflet distributors on busy locations in Colchester, such as city centre during busy times such as weekends. 4. Publicity:Publicity is a great way to promote the Time Bank, as most publicity can be done for free and more details of the Time Bank can be exposed compared to the advertising option. Writing articles on topic related to the Time Bank: The Time Bank can write an article relating to saving time and money and try to place it on to publications that our target audience mi ght read, as mentioned before, magazine relating to money matters or D. I. Y. magazines are possible options. To target students it may be a good idea to write articles for school newsletters.However, the problem that we may encounter with this promotion method is that there is no guarantee that the article we write will be accepted and published by our preferred magazines. So, to enhance the chance of our article being published it is a good idea to provide a well written article. Magazines, tends to have a long lead time, writing articles for internet magazines might be a better option, as there are higher demand for articles with internet magazines. Newspaper is another source we can supply our articles to.Newspapers have a much shorter lead time than magazines and they are often looking for materials. So, it may be a good idea looking to writing an article to local Colchester newspapers. Press releases: Sending out press releases to local newspapers is another effective promotio nal tool. However, the press release must be newsworthy in order for it to be published by local newspapers. The fact that there is no other organisation that is providing the same type of service as the Time Bank will make the press release newsworthy. Online Forums:Posting message on online forums is a cost effective way of promotion. There will be tons of D. I. Y forums, money savings forums, student forums etc on the net, posting messages or answering queries posted by other people will promote the Time Bank. When answering queries, we can post a link of the time bank’s website or/ and explain the workings of the Time Bank in the process of answering. www. Ask. com is another great internet place to get free advertising; free advertising can be gained by answering queries posted by people on the Q & A page.Try to get an interview slot on local radio shows: It will be ideal is a interview slot can be secured on either Heart Essex or BBC Essex, as these two stations are quite popular stations it will mean that they will reach out to a wide rage of audience. An interview discussing the how the Time Bank works will not only give Time Bank free advertising but also can enable people a better understanding of what Time Ban is and how it works. And this is important due to the fact that the Time Bank is such a new concept. 5. Conclusion – evaluation of the promotional methods:In the above sections I have discussed many possible promotional methods for the Time Bank. Each method have its pros and cons; advertising on the television, radio, newspapers, internet and magazines are an effective way of reaching a wide audience and is a good way of building brand awareness of Time Bank. But, such way of advertising can be costly. It was mentioned that it is possible to get free advertising from certain websites such as Gumtree Colchester, it is suggested that free advertising offered by websites should be taken full advantage of.I then looked into ways of promotion by gaining free publicity on magazines, local newspapers, local radios and internets. I think that emphasis should be placed on these types of promotion, the reason being that such methods are cost effective and it will enable people to get a better understanding of the Time Bank. Time Bank, being a new thing in the market will mean that careful explanations on the concept and workings will be needed for people to fully understand. With the advertising methods, only limited information can be displayed, but with publicity much more detail can be introduced.So, the best way to promote in my view is to select a few paid advertising methods that can target our key audiences, such as putting a paid advert on ask. com and on yell. Colchester and take advantage of free online advertising as much as possible to build Time Bank’s brand awareness. A big part of the promotion should be based on publicity, efforts should be devoted to try to get articles and press releases published in relevant magazines, and newspapers etc and get interview slots on popular local radio stations such as Heat Essex and BBC Essex.

Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Strategy - Essay Example Then in 1998 it further modified with its ‘Two transformation’ strategy which basically meant shifting from a mainly global shipping industry into a global logistics carrier and also, from a cross-border company to a multinational conglomerate (Zhang, Liu and Lorange, p.745). The path that the company has taken has revolutionized the way it has achieved success but this did not come as an easy task, instead this is most apparent in its diversity of operations that almost seem impractical. From a shipping carrier, it has verged into other allied enterprises such as international shipping, terminal operations, shipbuilding and repair and logistics. But aside from this, they also have interests in unrelated undertakings like banking, financing and others. This multiplicity has mostly been possible because of its characteristics as a state-owned enterprise. It would be more practicable as a measure of system integration for COSCO to delineate its focus on its core businesses in convergence with allied ventures. As it is, COSCO is standing resembling something almost near to a deck of cards with billions at stake in its numerous operations. To receive optimum result, each sector must be integrated to the others by forming a network of sub-entities coming together through the core objectives that distinctly makes it within the ambit of the COSCO brand. This poses somewhat a difficulty in the current number of networks within the vast corporation but this is a necessity to secure the sustainability of the corporation that it will not only be able to overcome the cyclical pattern of industry one step at a time but also to create a highly sustainable customized strategy to its own benefit towards further and perpetual

Phase 2 - International Law and Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Phase 2 - International Law and Business - Essay Example Several legal as well as ethical guidelines have been created for the protection of environment. One such legal guideline is Clean Air Act which was enacted during the period of 1970 (Www2.epa.gov, 2014). Under this act the EPA is required to create (National Ambient Air Quality Standards) NAAQS and its purpose was even to have separate NAAQS in all the states of United States by the period of 1975 (Www2.epa.gov, 2014). The main aim of any organization is to ensure that shareholder value is increased and in order to increase the shareholder’s value, a company needs to ensure that it continues to perform its business in a profitable manner. Keeping the profitability of the company in mind, the company needs to give importance to protection of the environment as if due to their activities environment is damaged then the chances of them facing costly law suits may increase and they may even be disliked by the consumers due to which they may loose customers and experience

CIPR Internal Communications Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

CIPR Internal Communications - Coursework Example ce, â€Å"forums, blogs, and social networks,† to make it easier for their employees as well as stakeholders, to not only collaborate but also to connect with one another (Stratmann, 2012, p.1). Social media has proven to be a very vital tool in enhancing the effectiveness of an organisation’s internal communication. With social media inn internal communication come a lot of benefits. For example, social media enable organisations to have â€Å"real-time, authentic† communication with their staff. They also encourage open communication amongst members of an organisation since any member who wishes to contribute to a discussion is always free and able to do so. As such, it enables a smooth flow of communication throughout an organisation. In addition, if one is a member of a multinational organisation, then they can easily communicate to people world-wide, and on a â€Å"more involved level† rather than just through email or through phone. This has been made even better due to the availability of pictures and profile as well as forum features on social sites like Facebook and MySpace (Stratmann, 2012, p.1). VetsNow is an example of an organisation that has successfully used social media in its internal communication. It is an organisation that provides â€Å"out-of-hours veterinary care† all over the UK. Their main aim of adopting social media in internal communication was to strongly engage their internal â€Å"stakeholders.† At VetsNow, employees work both alone and at odd hours. As such, social media would provide its workers the rare opportunity of interacting with one another in person even if at different stations of work. They also saw it as a way of encouraging the sharing of information among employees and stakeholders, and through this exchange of information, they would not only regulate but also improve â€Å"clinical standards and practices† throughout the industry better. This would in turn make them global experts in â€Å"Emergency and Critical Care†

International sale carriege and contract of goods Essay

International sale carriege and contract of goods - Essay Example In the United Kingdom, the nature of a sale transaction, as to whether domestic or international, is determined in accordance with the places where the contracting parties hold their principal places of business. If the parties hold their places of business in different jurisdictions, the sale is characterised as international, otherwise it is domestic. This is the approach taken by the s. 26 of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 as well as Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG hereafter).1 Many types of risks are being borne by long distance sellers in an international sale of goods, which include, inter alia: the uncertainty resulting from the transit of goods by sea; possible political uncertainty; conflict of law, and; payment issues. 1.1 The Uncertainty Brought About by Transit of Goods by Sea It has been said that the management of international business is the management of risk, a fair assessment considering the geog raphical distance between parties and the political and legal disparities between and among various jurisdictions. International sale of goods is complicated by the likely sea transit of goods. The uncertainty of having the goods travel from one point to the other for a considerable period of time from the time the seller brings his goods to the carrier for shipment to the time these goods are actually delivered to the buyer often entails risks that parties are eventually forced to assume. Thus, it is an often told tale in the international business world of goods damaged, spoiled, rusted, contaminated or lost while aboard vessels or when the vessels sink because of bad weather as they are being taken from one point to another. 2 1.2 Conflict of Laws Additionally, when a transaction of sale of goods involves parties coming from different states or countries a conflict of laws is likely to ensue. Thus, when conditions necessitating resolutions of dispute regarding the contract crop u p, the problem of what law should govern the interpretation of the contract as well as the proper forum of the dispute resolution become a problem. After resolution, the problem of enforcing them in the other jurisdiction remains.3 1.3 Problems Pertaining to Payment If the sale, for example, is agreed to be on credit terms the main problem of the seller is how to ensure payment. Allied to this is the problem of currency fluctuation that may occur at any time during the pendency of the transaction, which can potentially change the complexion of the transaction from being profitable to disadvantageous.4 1.4 Political Instability If the other party comes from a state with an unstable political environment and changes in government policies in international transactions occur during the pendency of the transaction, this could lead to changes as well in the nature of the original contract between the parties.5 To minimise risks inherent in

Mental Health by the Red Cross Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Mental Health by the Red Cross - Essay Example The five different articles utilized in this paper are from a variety of backgrounds, ranging from the purely medical and scientific to reports by media professionals and concerned community members. The given paper aims to streamline and narrow the research scope and clearly flesh out a more coherent and viable research question. The Red Cross, founded in 1919 has been providing emergency relief services all over the world in all manners of disasters since almost a century, but it was not until 1989 that the need for addressing the mental health needs of disaster survivors was tabled seriously. Over the subsequent years Red Cross mental health services have developed and improved by leaps and bounds, evolving to provide both the victims of disasters as well as the workers and volunteers who help them to deal with the immense mental trauma and stress experienced by survivors and witnesses of such disasters. Red Cross mental health care has developed to provide a wide variety of cross-sectional mental care help to all types of affected parties, presenting a cross-functional and highly versatile approach to mental health care needs of all affected parties, whether victims or helpers. Mental health care begins with an assessment of the patients’ needs and requirements, this is often a complicated requirement as survivors of disaster victims are generally unaware of any mental trauma to themselves and instead focus on the more physical aspect of their wellbeing. Their care needs don’t usually immediately turn to mental health services (M. Hartsough, Don, Planning for Disaster: A new community outreach program for Mental Health centers, 1982). There is definitely a need for a mental health care outreach program that are linked to the disaster relief efforts. Such strategies need to be intrinsically related to three main components of disaster relief such as: Helpers, services, recipients and locations (Golan,

Critical discussion of Business Ethics and the Internet Essay - 1

Critical discussion of Business Ethics and the Internet - Essay Example SNSs are also identified as medium assisting people and businesses in creating, exchanging as well as sharing information in an effective manner. The increased use of SNSs has raised the issue of business ethics in the present scenario owing to different implications that SNSs pose towards culture, society and politics, which seems to influence behaviour as well as opinions of people especially of children in tremendous manner. In this regard, businesses adopts different business ethics or ‘corporate social responsibility’ (CSR) policy with the aim of ensuring that privacy and identity of individuals are protected. Additionally, business ethics are adopted with the aim of minimising cybercrime, scams and gambling, which might adversely affect the attitudes of children (Guffey & Loewy, 2013; Jurisova, 2013). In the present business scenario, business ethics play an effective role in ensuring that business operations are conducted in a socially responsible manner. Business ethics are standards along with principles adopted with the intention of ensuring that business operations are performed in adherence with acceptable conducts. Business organisations use SNSs as an effective medium of communicating with customers and other stakeholders successfully. Businesses are identified to adopt stockholders theories in seeking that resources are used with better social responsibility in order to accomplish desired business profitability successfully (Smith & et. al., 2011; Fernanda, 2009). Businesses with the assistance of SNSs are facilitated in conducting business operations with better profit maximization objectives. Businesses are recognised to adopt SNSs with the intention of conducting advertising as well as sales operations in worldwide market segments for obtaining large customer base and supporting their profit earning capabilities. Currently, children are recognised to use to SNSs in an immense manner for gaming, communication and making online friends.

ECONOMIC ADVISEMENT PAPER Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

ECONOMIC ADVISEMENT - Research Paper Example The unemployment rate reported from 1948 until 2013, on an average was 5.81 percent. The highest unemployment rate recorded in USA was in November of 1982 which was 10.83 percent and the lowest was recorded in May of 1953, which was 2.50 percent. In united state, the unemployment rate measures the people who are unemployed, from the labor force. (trading economics, 2013) The interest rate in USA is reported by the Federal Reserve. The interest rate last recorded in USA was 0.25 percent. From 1917 until 2013 the average interest rate was 6.81 percent. The highest interest rate recorded was in March 1980, which was 20 percent, while the lowest interest rate was 0.25 in December 2008. In the United States, the interest rate is decided by the combined decision of the Federal Reserve (board) and the federal open market committee (FOMC). The decision is made by the board on the basis of the recommendations, given by one or more regional Federal Reserve Bank. (united state interest rate, 2013) According to a report by the commerce department, there was an increase of 2.6 percent in the consumer income, in USA. The report says that the salaries and wages of the American labors have been increasingly growing since December 2004. Due the increase in the income, there is an increase in the consumer spending as well. The rise in the consumer income rate was due to improve in the wages and the salaries of the American employees. The bonuses and the compensation were given by many companies to their employees, before in the raise in taxes. The consumption rate of the consumer was raised up to 2.2 percent, which was more than the estimated rate. The increase in the per person income rate is more than the estimated, this shows that the American economy have improved more than the expectation. There is an increase in the payroll tax from February, which has decreased the

The sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong - Assignment Example They are the barely remembered sweethearts, or the cherished sweethearts who only exist on photographs. They are conceived as remote objects of sexual desires. The Sweetheart of Song Tra Bong is the lone story that uses a woman as the protagonist. Even before, the woman’s individual emotional response and deep feeling continues to be mysterious. Her story is sieved through a man’s reciting. Something that can be learned from the story of Mary Anne is that the war impacts women as it does to men. Just like men, women can be infuriated and wild. In the story, the insanity and lunacy are manifested through various literary shocks: for instance, the naà ¯ve Madonna stature to the erotic flirt. Mary Anne did not only become a seductive man-slaughterer but has also turned out to be a promiscuous woman. At the beginning of the story, Marry Anne is portrayed as a very American innocent. She is depicted as someone so familiar to both the soldiers in the story and to the readers. She resembles an ordinary American girl who wants to have her own family. The account of her transformation into a beast reflects the modification of the soldiers. They go to the battle as innocent boys; eventually, they return from war as murderers. Prior to the completion of Mary Anne’s transformation, she starts by obscuring the boundary of identifiable gender roles. She no longer takes the shower, she conceals her long hair, and she no longer wears make up. She has mutated into something manly and in spite of her transformation, she is even glad about it. The soldiers go shocked and disturbed by her rebellion. Mary Anne may have shied away from the thoughts that she is a woman, but she still maintains a bit of her sexual charm. Despite the fact that she has already transformed herself and very manly, she stays to be the killer seductress who would lure soldiers of her charisma. Mary Anne’s transformation is one that takes a pattern of a normal human

Ode on the Death of a Favourite Cat Essay Example for Free

Ode on the Death of a Favourite Cat Essay The two poems I am comparing; Ode on the Death of a Favourite Cat by Thomas Gray and To a Mouse by Robert Burns were both written in the eighteenth century, which makes it interesting to make a comparison of their content, style and techniques, to see how poems of the eighteenth century differ from each other.  Both of the poems feature an animal as the main subject of the poem. In Grays poem he has a house cat as the main focus of the poem whilst Burns dedicates his poem to a field mouse. Both these animals come to an unfortunate end. The cat due to curiosity tumbled headlong into a tub of gold fishes This supports the well known phrase curiosity killed the cat In the poem it refers to the cat as actually loosing 9 lives: Eight times emerging from the flood  She mewd to evry watry God.  No one arrives to save her:  No Dolphin came, no Nereid stirrd :  Nor cruel Tom, nor Susan heared.  The dolphin is included in the list of possible rescuers because it is a reference to the classical legend of the harpist, Arion, being saved by a dolphin which had been entranced by his music, much in the same way the cat wanted to be saved by someone who heard its meowing.  Ã‚  In Burnss poem the mouse unlike the cat does not actually die, but it is made clear that the prospects for the mouse are bleak due to its home being destroyed by the plough and the fact winter is coming and the mouse has no time to build another home for itself: Now thous turnd out, for a thy trouble,  But house or hald,  To thole the Winters sleety dribble,  Ancraneuch cauld!  The poems are both basically about a particular ill-fated animal but each has a deeper meaning and message through anthropomorphism.  The cat in Grays poem is given feminine characteristics: a fair round face illustrates the ideal image of an eighteenth century womans face. Gray also uses metaphors to describe the cat which also apply to a ladys jewels and adornments: The velvet of her paws,  Her coat, that with the tortoise vies,   Her ears of jet, and emerald eyes.  In verse four the comparison of the cat to a woman is made even clearer:  She stretchd in vain to reach the prize.  What female heart can gold despise?  What cats averse to fish?  It is clear here that Gray is illustrating how women are seduced by the desire for gold as cats are seduced by the desire for fish. The anthropomorphism continues in verses 5 and 7:  Presumptious maid and  From hence you Beauties, undeceivd  Know one false step is neer retrieved.  The last lines of the poem contain a moral:  Not all that tempts your wandring eyes  And heedless hearts, is lawful prize;  Nor all that glisters gold. Through the cat Gray created a cautionary tale specifically aimed at women. Its a warning not to be tempted by what is not rightly theirs, and not to be seduced by glittering appearances because it may not be as good as it looks on the outside.  Gray is very direct with his message of warning to women but he writes in a light-hearted way throughout. However, Burns poem is much more serious and sombre. He uses anthropomorphism like Gray to get his message across through an animal, in this case the mouse is used to highlight the social and moral problems that he felt existed in both the public and in his own family His father died after eighteen years of hard work as a farmer. After his fathers death they had little money, leaving them no choice but to sublease a farm in order to keep their home. These experiences were brought through in to his poem when the mouse had its home destroyed by the plough:

Yann Martels Life Of Pi 2001 Literature Essay

Yann Martels Life Of Pi 2001 Literature Essay Yann Martels Booker-Prize winning novel Life of Pi (2001) narrates the nine months odyssey of Piscine Patel on the Pacific Ocean. Far from being only a fascinating adventurous tale, this novel addresses important issues such as faith, identity, universalism, religion, and areas of cultural contact. Although the plot may seem to revolve mainly around Pi and Richard Parker, Life of Pi deals extensively with the great human project of trying to live together. By using Pi as his trans-cultural hero, Martel seems to insist on the need to constructively reformulate the human mind in relation to cosmopolitanism, absolute truth and religious identity. This papers aim is to bring out the cosmopolitan message that Martel seeks to transmit to his readers and to show how the latter focuses on that part of our common human identity that links us, instead of stressing on those identities that only partially define and differentiate us. A cross-reference is also going to be made to Homers The Odyss ey so as to highlight the idea of the equal treatment of all human beings, regardless of religion, culture, ethnicity and values, as prescribed by cosmopolitanism. Life of Pi is a novel which can be read in many different ways; as an adventurous story, as an allegory of power, as a reflection on the superiority of imagination over reason, as an explanation of the intricate and complex life of humans and animals, and, of utmost importance to this essay, as a spiritual journey or a quest for identity and as a metaphor of the cultural and religious conflicts that characterize every known human society. Culture and identity play a key role in many contemporary wars. Many philosophers and cultural theorists argue that the resolution of protracted ethnic and religious conflicts lies in the fostering and nurturing of cosmopolitan identities. First of all, what makes Life of Pi an interesting platform for exploring trans-cultural and interfaith relationships is not merely Martels cosmopolitan background, but also the novels portrayal of the protagonists life before and after the shipwreck. Pi Patel grows up in Pondicherry, a former French territory on the Indian subcontinent, where Eastern and Western cultures inevitably exist in close contact. To the dismay of grownups, particularly the representatives of different religions, the wise men as they are almost satirically referred to in the novel, Pi shows devotion to Hinduism, embraces and practices Christianity and Islam simultaneously. After his nine months in the lifeboat, he is hospitalized in Mexico and the author finally encounters him as an Indian immigrant in Toronto. Pis hybrid, multiple faiths and open-mindedness not only help him survive emotionally and physically but are also strengthened after the events. His house in Canada can be used as a proof to support this statement; the author describes the devotional articles that he finds in the protagonists house, ranging from a framed picture of Ganesha, a plain wooden cross, a small framed picture of the virgin Mary of Guadalupe, to a framed photo of the black-robed Kaaba, holiest sanctum of Islam. Pi is therefore presented as a cosmopolitan, a citizen of the world, as he not only practices three religions but is also at home in the worlds of science and theology, having achieved university degrees in both fields. Martel juxtaposes the young Pi Patels receptiveness to other cultures and religions to the intolerance of the three religious figures encountered on the beach; the priest, the imam and the pandit, each convinced of the singular truth of the path he taught. Each of them apoplectically try to impose the superiority and validity of their respective faiths after discovering that Pi shows devotion to three different, opposing, and often conflicting religions; The priest looked askance at both of them. Piscine, he nearly whispered, there is salvation only in Jesus. Balderdash! Christians know nothing about religion, said the pandit. They strayed long ago from Gods path, said the imam. Wheres God in your religion? snapped the priest. You dont have a single miracle to show for it. What kind of religion is that, without miracles? It isnt a circus with dead people jumping out of tombs all the time, thats what! We Muslims stick to the essential miracle of existence. Birds flying, rain falling, crops growing-these are miracles enough for us. Feathers and rain are all very nice, but we like to know that God is truly with us. Is that so? Well, a whole lot of good it did God to be with you-you tried to kill him! You banged him to a cross with great big nails. Is that a civilized way to treat a prophet? The prophet Muhammad-peace be upon him-brought us the word of God without any undignified nonsense and died at a ripe old age. The word of God? To that illiterate merchant of yours in the middle of the desert? Those were drooling epileptic fits brought on by the swaying of his camel, not divine revelation. That, or the sun frying his brains! Whereas Pi just [wants] to love God, the three religious leaders represent those who insist on believing in one, absolute truth. This situation of world-wide coalition of cultures as Claude Levi- Strauss termed it, can be further elaborated using Richard Burtons famous words; All Faith is false, all Faith is true; Truth is the shattered mirror strown In myriad bits; while each believes His little bit the whole to own. Like Burton, Martel implies that absolute truth is inaccessible to human beings, who will probably never be able to understand it fully. Therefore, adhering slavishly and blindly to one faith without taking an interest in the practices and beliefs of others only contributes to [obstruct] empathy and [makes] ethnocentrism inescapable. The problem with most human beings and civilizations, as highlighted in Life of Pi and as extensively discussed by Appiah, appears to be that everyone believes that their particular faith is the all-comprehending and absolute truth. Everyone seems to be holding their little bit of their shattered mirror, guarding it protectively (almost jealously) from others and trying to see as much as they can in it. Gilroy describes such a situation as being one in which we are all sealed up inside our frozen cultural habits and where there is no workable precedent for adopting a more generous and creative view of how human beings might communicate or act in concert across racial, ethnic, or civilizational divisions. What Appiah in turn proposes to cultural and religious differences reflects Pis own ideologies. For Appiah therefore, there is no agreed-upon answer- and the point is there doesnt need to be. He urges that it is of central importance for the benefit of humanity that we all learn about people in other places, take an interest in their civilizations, not because that will bring us to agreement, but because it will help us get used to one another. In this sense, Pis behavior towards Richard Parker can be read as a metaphor used to promote or idealize a cosmopolitan ideology among human beings. Appiah also carefully points out that we can perfectly live together without agreeing on what the values are that make it good to live together. If the world could share their myriad bits, human beings would have definitely been able to see a lot more clearly. Similarly, there exists no singular truth. There are many truths, depending on our moralities and experience. As Pi reproaches to Mr. Okamoto and Mr. Chiba twice at the end of the novel; Tigers exist, lifeboats exist, oceans exist. Because the three have never come together in your narrow, limited experience, you refuse to believe that they might. Yet the plain fact is that the Tsimtsum brought them together and then sank. And at some later point in the same conversation, Love is hard to believe, ask any lover. Life is hard to believe, ask any scientist. God is hard to believe, ask any believer. What is your problem with hard to believe? Pi here implies that openness and the taking of interest in others lives and experiences are more enriching to human beings rather than further entombing themselves in what they believe is the absolute truth, thereby turning their own lives into yeastless factuality. Inspite of all his misadventures though, Pi not only remains faithful to all three religions but also admires the religious as well as the irreligious. Readers cannot disagree therefore with Pis statement that to choose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a means of transportation. Similarly, closing ourselves into our set of beliefs and closing all doors to the appreciation of other cultures, civilizations and people is akin to living without any enriching human and cultural progress. Sharing a lifeboat with a tiger for 227 days is considered as quasi-impossible both to believe and as a thing likely to occur. However, Martel beautifully uses imagination over reason to drag his readers in a kind of magical realism tour which requires a strong yet willing suspension of disbelief so as to show that such a thing is plausible and was actually experienced by the hero of his novel. Pi renounces to the initial idea of murdering Richard Parker because he realizes that if he does so, he will have no one to provide for, no one to depend on him and no reason at all to live. Thereupon, the tiger shifts from being a source of fear and a mortally threatening creature to a source of peace, purposeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ even wholeness. What Pi does therefore is that he uses his understanding of animals, acquired at the zoo, so as to establish a peaceful cohabitation between himself and Richard. According to June Dwyer, Pis success lies in the fact that he respects the Others instincts, n eeds and values and gives him equal consideration; it is acceptance of the Other without imposing change on him.Since Richard has already claimed his part in the lifeboat, Pi decides to negotiate. So, instead of killing, he shares and instead of giving up his authority he makes it clear to the tiger what is his by also urinating on his territory. The tiger in turn, much to Pis surprise, reacts positively to the latters whistle-blows. What Martel is trying to show here is that the human and the tiger are capable of living together (even in a lifeboat with limited space) as long as each respects the others space. If two completely different creatures are able to live together peacefully, by making compromises and respecting each other, then it becomes very much possible for cosmopolitanism among humans to be completely disregarded as a mere set of utopian ideals, as is often claimed by many,or, put in simpler terms, to be seen as a realistic utopia, as Nancy Fraser puts it. Likewise, Homers most enduring hero, Odysseus, celebrates someone seeking adventure and valuing the unfamiliar and the strange.According to one definition, cosmopolitanism represents the attempt to exhibit a familiarity with, or appreciation of many parts and peoples of the worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ This definition aptly applies to both Life of Pi and The Odyssey. Much like Pi himself, Odysseus is also shipwrecked, which leads him to encounter different people, civilizations, cultures and languages. We witness for example his admiration for the Phaiakians at some point in the book, and we see how he admires the latters polity. The simple swineherd Eumaeus, remarkable for his apparent striking similarity to Odysseus, also helps to better understand the shared human condition at that time. According to Patrick Deneen, Eumaeuss understanding of the situation of humanity relative to the gods is similar to that of Odysseus himself. This understanding leads to his realization that the human con dition leads one to recognize that the parts of our human identity that link us outnumber those identities that differentiate us. As he says to Odysseus, whom he meets as a begger, upon their first encounter, Stranger, I have no right to deny the stranger, not even if one came to me who was meaner than you. All vagabonds and strangers are under Zeus, and the gift is a light and dear oneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Readers are thus able to see how Eumaeus, as well as Odysseus, recognize the protection that Zeus accords to all human beings, even to the most desperate ones. Since readers are able to travel through different civilizations, cultures, mindsets and values in The Odyssey, comparisons between those who show kindness to strangers and those who do not (such as in the case of Polyphemus, Poseidons son) are made possible. In this sense, Telemachuss meetings with Nestor and Menelaus also allow Homer to explore the Greek code of xenia, or hospitality. As Bernard Knox argues in the introduction to Robert Fagless translation of The Odyssey, the obligation of attending to and entertaining travelers is the closest The Odyssey comes to affirming an absolute moral principle. This also reminds of Nussbaums most explicit description of the duties or obligations of any citizen of the world; Our task as citizens of the world, and as educators who prepare people to be citizens of the world, will be to draw the circles somehow toward the center, making all human beings like our fellow city dwellers. In other words, we need not give up our special affections and affiliations and identifications, whether national or ethnic or religious; but we should work to make all human beings part of our community of dialogue and concern, showing respect for the human wherever it occurs, and allowing that respect to constrain our national and local politics. Likewise, the social code of ancient Greek necessitated that one expresses kindness to strangers in foreign regions by receiving them into ones home. This social expectation of hospitality was so culturally crucial and significant that it was believed to be implemented by Zeus, the king of the gods. Both hosts offer their guest a warm welcome even before they learn Telemachuss identity. Furthermore, this adherence and respect for the social norms enforced by the gods sharply demarcates Penelopes careless wooers plundering of Telemachuss home in Ithaca from Telemachus and Odysseus. Homer sets the right against the wrong by portraying the latter as hero and the suitors as villains. Although it is set in 700 BC, The Odyssey certainly sheds light on contemporary debates about cosmopolitanism. Martel on the other hand beautifully uses Pi as the hero of his novel, so as to transmit the innocent yet strong cosmopolitan and universal visions of a child, thereby providing more hope for a cosm opolitan future for the new generations. On a conclusive note, it can be noted that what Martel in a way wants his readers to know is that the persistent barriers of doubt, fear of the Other, ignorance, close-mindedness, racism and imaginative, long- held stereotypes are only vicious obstacles to the creation of a cosmopolitan world and fruitful human relations. In order for the human experience to progress therefore, these constant obstacles have to be destroyed. Indeed this book seems to suggest that the most appropriate and beneficial perspective to be adopted in the 21st century is one of cosmopolitanism.

Systems Analysis: History, Concepts And Theories

Systems Analysis: History, Concepts And Theories One could unarguably suggest that systems exist, in various forms, since the dawn of time. From the Solar System, to our planets ecosystem, to the human societies where people gathered into teams to hunt animals or farm the land to be able to survive, all are prime examples of thousand years old systems. By definition, a system could be described as any entity, conceptual or physical, which consists of interdependent parts (Ackoff, 1960). As the human-controlled systems (i.e. society, organizations, information systems and business systems) started to become increasingly more complex, various issues appeared like an increase of costs, harder maintenance and more administrative complexities. The need to overcome and solve all these problems led to the appearance of the field of Systems Analysis. Systems Analysis: History, Concepts Theories The analysis, as defined in the Oxford Dictionary, is the separation of a substance into parts for study and interpretation; detailed examination. Subsequently, Systems Analysis could be described as the early process in the development of a new system, or the evaluation of an old one, where the analysts try to investigate a given situation, identify the main problems that need to be solved, break them up into sub-problems if needed, and finally recommend the most efficient and costless way to solve them (Yeates et al, 1994; Silver et al, 1989; Bingham et al, 1978). Plato once said: the beginning is the most important part of work. Nowadays, Platos words are proved far from wrong in the case of developing or evaluating a system. The first steps of working on a new project are probably the most important ones to guarantee any fair chance of success. This is the main reason why many organizations, companies and governments prefer to spend a significant amount of money in the early stag es of development, in order to be able to minimize the risk of potential disaster later on (Daniels et al, 1981). After all, the sooner a mistake is identified, the sooner it will be fixed, saving a lot of effort, time and money. There are many types of human-controlled systems, as previously mentioned, ranging from large-scale, complex human societies (whose boundaries are usually not so easy to define as they constantly interact with other societies near them), to small-scale computer information systems (whose boundaries are easier to define). Although each key author and researcher tried to describe his own concept of what analysis is and why it is critical to apply it in the development process, their thoughts and views share many common elements. Depending on the type of system they concentrated on, various definitions where given. To begin with, Systems Analysis is the process of investigating a systems boundaries, users, processes, inputs and outputs with the aim of suggesting more efficient and economical ways to solve the problems in question (Silver et al, 1989). Another, more general suggestion is that Systems Analysis refers to an orderly, structured process for identifying and solving problems (Gore et al, 1983). Finally, according to George Marshall in his book Systems Analysis and Design: Alternative Structured Approaches, Systems Analysis is the process of defining precisely what a computer system should do (Marshall, 1986). Igor Hawryszkiewycz describes in his book Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design that analysis is mainly used in order to effectively understand the structure of a system and what its requirements are (Hawryszkiewycz, 1994). John Bingham in his book A Handbook of Systems Analysis describes the analysis in six steps: the project selection, the feasibility study, the definition phase, the design phase, the implementation phase and finally the evaluation phase (Bingham et al, 1978). Perhaps one of the most straightforward explanations of Systems Analysis main objective is that it aims to transform user needs into specifications for programmers (Marshall, 1989). To achieve this, the systems analyst has to complete five tasks and responsibilities: to plan, investigate, understand, document and communicate with the rest of the team (Yeates et al, 1994). Firstly and probably most importantly too, the analyst must study the feasibility of the system. This means that he has to thoroughly search and decide if it is humanly possible to develop the system and how much effort in time and money it will cost to do so. Second step is to discuss with the systems target group and find out their needs in order to be able to understand and elicit the requirements. Third step is to research the existing data, human recourses and available computer procedures to find out the limitations, techniques or methods that will be used in the later stages of development. Usually from this phase and on the analyst works close together with the designers, programmers and testers in order to establish a successful communication between the team and share feedback with them (Parkin, 1980; Daniels et al, 1981; Open University, 1982). Although the human-controllable systems are in existence ages now, Systems Analysis as a scientific field is quite more recent, and its roots can be traced back a few decades. Before computers became mainstream, the first analysts where using more traditional approaches to analyze and solve the given problems. They followed two main steps: firstly they analyzed the projects requirements and secondly they specified these requirements. Although this practice was logical and theoretically correct, it depended too much on the human factor, which means it was prone to mistakes. Among the disadvantages of the traditional approach was that it required vast amounts of written documentation, many times there was a lack of communication between the analysts and the designers and last but not least it was very time consuming. All these negatives caused a great number of system development projects to face difficulties during the analysis phase in the 1970s (Yeates et al, 1994). Researchers in the field of Systems Analysis, in an effort to overcome all the problems caused by the traditional approach, focused their attention to develop new, more efficient methods of analysis. The result of the above efforts was a structured approach to analysis (Yourdon, 1976; DeMarco, 1979; Bansler, 1993). This approach, as described in the book Systems Analysis and Design by Don Yeates et al, follows three general principles: modeling, partitioning and iteration. Modeling is the extended use of models, diagrams, data flow charts and other graphic representations, which aim to provide a non-confusing, realistic image of the system to the rest of the development team. Partitioning is the method of dividing the system in question to sub-systems with the aim of making them more understandable to the rest of the team. Moreover, partitioning helps the analyst to decide which part of the whole problem every member of the team will be given to solve. Iteration is the method of cons tantly repeating the analysis stage, as many times as needed, in order to reach the best possible solution. The need for iteration arises from the fact that it is rare for a system to be represented correctly the first time, as many repetitions are usually needed, in order to achieve a standard of accuracy (Yeates et al, 1994). Following the appearance of a more structured and formal way of analyzing a system, researchers were trying to come up with various models, which held a central role for Systems Analysis. These models, if strictly followed, would significantly enhance the development process. The early software development models though, such as the Waterfall Model (Royce, 1970), did not allow a lot of room for feedback and changes because of their linear structure. In contrast to these early models, modified approaches like the V-Model (German Ministry of Defense, 1992) and the Spiral Model (Boehm, 1988) gave the analyst the flexibility to interact with the rest of the team even in the later development phases. This is particularly important for the sole reason that, as discussed earlier, Systems Analysis is one of the most crucial phases during a systems creation. By providing the team the option to interact with the analyst on the go, it can minimize the time needed for system revision and most im portantly save a lot of time and money. Although return of investment and risk minimization are two of the most salient reasons of why Systems Analysis is so important, there are a lot more benefits to be gained in the long term. The efficiency of the project team is greatly enhanced as goals are reached faster and the available resources are used more wisely. Furthermore, errors are recognized earlier which translates to less time invested in testing during the final phases of a project, which in its own turn leads again to more profit (Silver et al, 1989). It is very important also to mention that nowadays systems become so complex that usually consist of multiple subsystems, each one playing a key role in the whole process. These subsystems coexist and highly depend on each other. Any change that may occur in any of them could affect multiple other subsystems of the whole. It is critical for the analysts to spend a considerable amount of time and effort to understand the system as one single entity and identify all of its problems. Only after a thorough study of the system they will be able to really understand its purpose and support the development team in creating a system that will be safe, robust and effective (Hawryszkiewycz, 1994). In 1994, a study by the Standish Group provides a better understanding of how valuable the correct application of analysis during a systems development phase is. The company studied eight thousand software projects undertaken by 350 different companies in order to see how successful the development process was. The results were disastrous as around 31% of the projects were cancelled before they make it to the production phase (Standish, 1994). When in further study, these companies were asked about the reasons for these failures, more than 54% answered that it was various problems during the analysis phase (Standish, 1995). Systems analysis though is not a cure-all medicine. Like all approaches in system development, it has its own disadvantages and limitations. Some company, for example, could have so many internal problems, financial or not, that a single Systems Analysis, even the best one possible, could not be enough to save it from bankruptcy. Another disadvantage is that Systems Analysis costs a lot of money and time (Silver et al, 1989). Although, it has been proven many times that projects that went through a thorough System Analysis phase had greater chances to become successful, its still not a guarantee. As the human factor never stops to play a vital role in the whole development process, there is always the risk that something is mistakenly overlooked (i.e. a bug in the code that escapes the final testing phase), which leads to a fault product in the production line, which in turn leads to less sales or even stigmatize the organizations good name. Conclusion Systems Analysis has become a necessity, a highly important and integral tool that development teams, governments and companies use to enhance their productivity and raise their profit margins (Silver et al, 1989). As people say: money makes the world go round, and this is especially true nowadays that organizations put even more effort to identify and satisfy their needs in the most effective and efficient way. Systems and projects become even more sophisticated, even more advanced, even more complex and even more critical for the safety of the users. Developers must be able to adapt in this ever-changing environment if they want to survive in the highly competitive world of today. For all these reasons, Systems Analysis continues to play a key role, and researchers are trying constantly to find new ways to make it even more efficient in the future.

Advice Before You Sell Your Website :: Sell Websites Buy Websites

Advice Before You Sell Your Website Reprinted with permission of VotanWeb.com Only 27% of all websites that are put on the market are sold. This is a shocking statistic to most people trying to sell a website. If you follow the tips below your chances of selling dramatically increases. Have All Records Ready Before You Attempt to Sell Have these items ready before the website goes on the market to be sold: The last 3 years of federal tax returns for the website being sold, the last 3 years of financials (profit & loss statement, balance sheet), the last 3 years of monthly bank statements, etc - many parties during the selling process will need this info - serious website buyers, lenders who will provide financing for the buyer, as well as others. Also make sure you know what the correct Adjusted Net income has been for the last 3 years. Serious website buyers will want to know this. Adjusted Net income is: Net Income + Owners Salary + Depreciation + Interest Expenses + Other Website Expenses Deducted (that may not be website expenses to the new owner of the website). Have a Professional Website Valuation Performed Getting a 3rd party professional website appraisal/valuation is important and critical for the process. Most websites put on the market NEVER SELL usually due to too high of a price placed on the website being sold. Getting a professional 3rd party valuation is well worth the expense and will be utilized by many parties during the selling process: possible website buyers, financing companies for the buyer, and others. Keep a Sale Transaction Folder Keep a folder of all contacts, notes, and paperwork for your website for sale transaction. Keep a log of all buyers who contact you - get their phone numbers, email address and keep notes about them. You want to make sure you have backup buyers in case your first choice drops out during the negotiation process. Keep all escrow info, purchase agreements, signed non-disclosure and confidentiality forms, contact phones of CPA’s, attorneys, etc. and other pertinent data/info in this folder. Write Up a Comprehensive Summary of The Website Buyers are going to need to know many details about the website being sold. Instead of having to explain repetitively to many buyers about the website, and possible forgetting many important details, make a summary of the website being sold. Include: History of the website, date established, important attributes