Learn the Basics of Earthquakes

Learn the Basics of Earthquakes Earthquakes are natural ground motions caused as the Earth releases energy. The science of earthquakes is seismology, study of shaking in scientific Greek. Earthquake energy comes from the stresses of plate tectonics. As plates move, the rocks on their edges deform and take up strain until the weakest point, a fault, ruptures, and releases the strain. Earthquake Types and Motions Earthquake events come in three basic types, matching the three basic types of fault. The fault motion during earthquakes is called slip or coseismic slip. Strike-slip events involve sideways motion- that is, the slip is in the direction of the faults strike, the line it makes on the ground surface. They may be right-lateral (dextral) or left-lateral (sinistral), which you tell by seeing which way the land moves on the other side of the fault.Normal events involve downward movement on a sloping fault as the faults two sides move apart. They signify extension or stretching of the Earths crust.Reverse or thrust events involve upward movement, instead, as the faults two sides move together. Reverse motion is steeper than a 45-degree slope, and thrust motion is shallower than 45 degrees. They signify compression of the crust. Earthquakes can have an oblique slip that combines these motions. Earthquakes dont always break the ground surface. When they do, their slip creates an offset. Horizontal offset is called heave and vertical offset is called throw. The actual path of fault motion over time, including its velocity and acceleration, is called fling. Slip that occurs after a quake is called postseismic slip. Finally, slow slip that occurs without an earthquake is called creep. Seismic Rupture The underground point where the earthquake rupture begins is the focus or hypocenter. The epicenter of an earthquake is the point on the ground directly above the focus. Earthquakes rupture a large zone of a fault around the focus. This rupture zone may be lopsided or symmetrical. Rupture may spread outward evenly from a central point (radially), or from one end of the rupture zone to the other (laterally), or in irregular jumps. These differences partly control the effects that an earthquake has at the surface. The size of the rupture zone- that is, the area of fault surface that ruptures- is what determines the magnitude of an earthquake. Seismologists map rupture zones by mapping the extent of aftershocks. Seismic Waves and Data Seismic energy spreads from the focus in three different forms: Compression waves, exactly like sound waves (P waves)Shear waves, like waves in a shaken jump rope (S waves)Surface waves resembling water waves (Rayleigh waves) or sideways shear waves (Love waves) P and S waves are body waves that travel deep in the Earth before rising to the surface. P waves always arrive first and do little or no damage. S waves travel about half as fast and may cause damage. Surface waves are slower still and cause the majority of the damage. To judge the rough distance to a quake, the time the gap between the P-wave thump and the S-wave jiggle and multiply the number of seconds by 5 (for miles) or 8 (for kilometers). Seismographs are instruments that make seismograms or recordings of seismic waves. Strong-motion seismograms are made with rugged seismographs in buildings and other structures. Strong-motion data can be plugged into engineering models, to test a structure before it is built. Earthquake magnitudes are determined from body waves recorded by sensitive seismographs. Seismic data is our best tool for probing the deep structure of the Earth. Seismic Measures Seismic intensity measures how bad an earthquake is, that is, how severe shaking is at a given place. The 12-point Mercalli scale is an intensity scale. Intensity is important for engineers and planners. Seismic magnitude measures how big an earthquake is, that is, how much energy is released in seismic waves. Local or Richter magnitude ML is based on measurements of how much the ground moves and moment magnitude Mo is a more sophisticated calculation based on body waves. Magnitudes are used by seismologists and the news media. The focal mechanism beachball diagram sums up the slip motion and the faults orientation. Earthquake Patterns Earthquakes cannot be predicted, but they have some patterns. Sometimes foreshocks precede quakes, though they look just like ordinary quakes. But every large event has a cluster of smaller aftershocks, which follow well-known statistics and can be forecasted. Plate tectonics successfully explains where earthquakes are likely to occur. Given good geologic mapping and a long history of observations, quakes can be forecasted in a general sense, and hazard maps can be made showing what degree of shaking a given place can expect over the average life of a building. Seismologists are making and testing theories of earthquake prediction. Experimental forecasts are beginning to show modest but significant success at pointing out impending seismicity over periods of months. These scientific triumphs are many years from practical use. Large quakes make surface waves that may trigger smaller quakes great distances away. They also change stresses nearby and affect future quakes. Earthquake Effects Earthquakes cause two major effects: shaking and slip. Surface offset in the largest quakes can reach more than 10 meters. Slip that occurs underwater can create tsunamis. Earthquakes cause damage in several ways: Ground offset can cut lifelines that cross faults: tunnels, highways, railroads, powerlines, and water mains.Shaking is the greatest threat. Modern buildings can handle it well through earthquake engineering, but older structures are prone to damage.Liquefaction occurs when shaking turns the solid ground into mud.Aftershocks can finish off structures damaged by the main shock.Subsidence can disrupt lifelines and harbors; invasion by the sea can destroy forests and croplands. Earthquake Preparation and Mitigation Earthquakes cannot be predicted, but they can be foreseen. Preparedness saves misery; earthquake insurance and conducting earthquake drills are examples. Mitigation saves lives; strengthening buildings is an example. Both can be done by households, companies, neighborhoods, cities, and regions. These things require a sustained commitment of funding and human effort, but that can be hard when large earthquakes may not occur for decades or even centuries in the future. Support for Science The history of earthquake science follows notable earthquakes. Support for research surges after major quakes and is strong while memories are fresh but gradually dwindles until the next Big One. Citizens should ensure steady support for research and related activities like geologic mapping, long-term monitoring programs, and strong academic departments. Other good earthquake policies include retrofitting bonds, strong building codes and zoning ordinances, school curricula, and personal awareness.

Top German Mistakes Made by Beginners

Top German Mistakes Made by Beginners Unfortunately, there are much more than ten mistakes you can make in German. However, we want to concentrate on the top ten kinds of mistakes that beginning students of German are likely to make. But before we get to that, think about this: How is learning a second language different from learning a first? There are many differences, but the most significant difference is that with a first language there is no interference from another language. An infant learning to speak for the first time is a blank slate- without any preconceived notions of how a language is supposed to work. That is definitely not the case for anyone who decides to learn a second language. An English  speaker who is learning German must guard against the influence of English. The first thing any language student has to accept is that there is no right or wrong way to construct a language. English is what it is; German is what it is. Arguing about a languages grammar or vocabulary is like arguing about the weather: you cant change it. If the gender of Haus is neuter (das), you cant arbitrarily change it to der.  If you do, then you risk being misunderstood. The reason languages have a particular grammar is to avoid breakdowns in communication. Mistakes Are Unavoidable Even if you understand the concept of first-language interference, does that mean youll never make a mistake in German? Of course not. And that leads us to a big mistake that many students make: Being afraid to make a mistake. Speaking and writing German is a challenge for any student of the language. But the fear of making a mistake can keep you from making progress. Students who dont worry so much about embarrassing themselves end up using the language more and making quicker progress. 1. Thinking in English Its only natural that youll think in English when you begin to learn another language. But the number one mistake made by beginners is thinking too literally and translating word-for-word. As you progress you need to start to think German more and more. Even beginners can learn to think in German phrases at an early stage. If you keep using English as a crutch, always translating from  English to German, youre doing something wrong. You dont really know German until you start to hear it in your head. German doesnt always put things together like English.   2. Getting Genders Mixed Up While languages such as French, Italian, or Spanish are content to have just two genders for nouns, German has three! Since every noun in German is either  der, die,  or  das,  you need to learn each noun with its gender. Using the wrong gender not only makes you sound stupid, it also can cause changes in meaning. It can be aggravating that any six-year-old in Germany can rattle off the gender of any common noun, but thats the way it is.   3. Case Confusion If you dont understand what the nominative case is in English, or what a direct or indirect object is, then youre going to have problems with case in German. Case is usually indicated in German by inflection: putting different endings on articles and adjectives. When  der  changes to  den  or  dem, it does so for a reason. That reason is the same one that makes the pronoun he change to him in English (or  er  to  ihn  in German). Not using the correct case is very likely to confuse people a lot! 4. Word Order   German word order (or syntax) is more flexible than English syntax and relies more on case endings for clarity. In German, the subject may not always come first in a sentence. In subordinate (dependent) clauses, the conjugated verb may be at the end of the clause. 5. Calling Someone Sie Instead of du Almost every language in the world- besides English- has at least two kinds of you: one for formal use, the other for familiar use. English once had this distinction (thou and thee are related to German du), but for some reason, it now uses only one form of you for all situations. This means that English-speakers often have problems learning to use  Sie  (formal) and  du/ihr  (familiar). The problem extends to verb conjugation and command forms, which are also different in  Sie  and  du  situations. 6. Getting Prepositions Wrong One of the easiest ways to spot a non-native speaker of any language is the misuse of prepositions. German and English often use different prepositions for similar idioms or expressions: wait for/warten auf, be interested in/sich interessieren fà ¼r, and so on. In English, you take medicine for something, in German  gegen  (against) something. German also has two-way prepositions  that can take two different cases (accusative or dative), depending on the situation. 7. Using Umlauts German Umlauts (Umlaute  in German) can lead to problems for beginners. Words can change their meaning based on whether they have an umlaut or not. For example,  zahlen  means to pay but  zhlen  means to count.  Bruder  is one brother, but  Brà ¼der  means brothers - more than one. Pay attention to words that may have potential problems. Since only a, o, and u can have an umlaut, those are the vowels to be aware of. 8. Punctuation and Contractions German punctuation and the use of the apostrophe is often different than in English. Possessives in German usually do not use an apostrophe. German uses contractions in many common expressions, some of which use an apostrophe (Wie gehts?) and some of which do not (zum Rathaus). Related to the prepositional hazards mentioned above are German prepositional contractions. Contractions such as  am,  ans,  ins, or  im  can be possible pitfalls. 9. Those Pesky Capitalization Rules German is the only modern language that requires the capitalization of all nouns, but there are other potential problems. For one thing, adjectives of nationality are not capitalized in German as they are in English. Partly due to  German spelling reform, even Germans can have problems with spelling hazards like  am besten  or  auf Deutsch. You can find the rules and a lot of hints for German spelling in our capitalization lesson and try our spelling quiz. 10. Using the Helping Verbs Haben and Sein In English, the present perfect is always formed with the helping verb have. German verbs in the conversational past (present/past perfect) can use either  haben  (have) or  sein  (be) with the past participle. Since those verbs using to be are less frequent, you need to learn which ones use  sein  or in which situations a verb may use  haben  or  sein  in the present or past perfect tense.

Can be on anything to do with microbiology (you can chose the topic) Article - 1

Can be on anything to do with microbiology (you can chose the topic) - Article Example The greatest microbial risks are because of ingestion of water contaminated with animal or human feces. Other sources of contamination are waste water discharges. Children under 5 years of age are the most affected population with these infectious diseases. Common diseases which are transmissible by water are cholera, typhoid and bacillary dysentery. Cholera is caused by gram negative rods Vibrio cholerae which are facultative anerobes. The organisms are aquatic bacteria and their distribution depends on sodium and temperature of the water. The incubation period of the disease is 1-3 days and the disease is characterised by acute and intense diarrhoea leading to dehydration. Cholera is associated with high mortality if not treated timely. Infection due to Vibrio cholera is dependent on adhesion of the cells of the bacteria to the mucous membrane of the intestine and production of cholera toxin. Cholera is very famous for its pandemics. The genes responsible for toxin production are h arbored in the CTX? segment (7–9.7 kb) of the chromosome. The strains of the organism are common in the environment, especially is estuaries. Non-culturable but viable bacteria are responsible for episodic nature and the sudden appearance of violent cholera outbreaks, followed by a rapid slowing down.

The Environmental Values of Industrial Nations and Native Societies Essay

The Environmental Values of Industrial Nations and Native Societies - Essay Example Man’s relationship with nature and his environment has always been stimulated by his economic interests and dictated by political decisions. This can be proven by just studying the distinctive characteristics of the values adhered to by industrial and native societies. The industrialized countries of the world today are generally societies with capitalist economic backbones. Capitalism is a system that thrives on the drive of private businesses to utilize the earth’s resources to derive profits. It is basically incidental that such business interest also results in the satisfaction of consumerist demands. In fact, it is because of the interest of profits that prompt businesses to create demands from consumers. As industries owned by private businesses try to create wealth and as the consumers demand for more, the requirement for the massive exploitation of sources of energy, of above-ground and underground land resources and minerals, as well as aquatic resources become s an imperative. Industrial and capitalist countries tend to set aside environmentalist concepts to make way for economic activities that would satisfy business and consumerist interests. Consequently, this resulted to wanton disregard of the well-being of the environment. However, environmental degradation is not only brought about in the process of the capitalist society’s aim to produce more wealth. The products and production wastes have also resulted in pollution. This is the reason why, globally, it is the industrialized nations that are the major exploiters of natural resources and are, at the same time, the worst polluters. There are sectors in industrial societies though which have seen the necessity to introduce protection for the environment. To some extent, these have compelled their respective governments to introduce regulatory policies in favor of the environment. However, â€Å"government agencies and ministries concerned with economic growth †¦ usually have more power and influence on government policy than the ministry concerned with the environment†¦ these agencies generally argue against strict environmental laws and regulations on the grounds that such policies reduce economic growth† (Desai 2002, p.374). In many cases, the government is beholden to business groups, which is why environmental policies by the state are oftentimes inadequate. The treatment of the environment by native societies is very much in contrast to that of the industrial countries. Native populations are generally more conscious about taking care of the environment. They make sure that the resources are not overused or abused while at the same time relying on the environment for their basic needs. Unlike in industrial countries, there are no big capitalists in native societies, which mean that all semblances of production are not at all profit-driven. Instead, the utilization of resources, which may have an effect on the environment, is a resul t of man’s need for food, clothing, and shelter. However, it is true that the respect and the protection of the environment and its resources can oftentimes be brought about by religious or superstitious beliefs. According to Robert Brightman, â€Å"rather than inhibiting overkill, religious definition of the

Supply chain Essay Example for Free

Supply chain Essay INTRODUCTION The operation plays key role in firms because it affects operation managers understand their customers and translate their customers needs into performance objectives. In turn, the performance objectives (and especially the relative importance of each one) influence the overall operations strategy of the business. (Slack et al., 2010,) The reason is that managers can based on performance objectives to do decision because it is reflection of corporation strengths and weaknesses. This essay will describe the Toyota Motor Corporation performance around five-performance objective: quality, speed, dependability, flexibility and cost. Then following discussion of how Toyota uses techniques in operation management to achieve the five objectives. Based on analysis, some suggestions for this firm will shows in the conclusion. FIVE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES IN TOYOTA As most successful car manufacturer in the world, Toyota is a few automobile companies that able to be stockless production system by its unique operational management systems, the most famous Toyota Production System (TPS) and Just-In-Time (JIT). Further, in terms of five performance objectives, which Toyota did quite well in the overall circumstances, especially in the cost, speed and flexibility areas. Toyota cooperation was chosen to analysis because its significant performances and great operations management. Organizations can respond to the performance objectives, but the real challenge is to offer better quality, speed, dependability and flexibility at lower costs than the competition. (Slack et al., 2007) Also, the aim and objective of Toyota is making low-cost, high-efficiency, high-quality production to maximize customer satisfaction and keeping strong competitiveness. (Toyota, 2011) QUALITY Quality can be defined as specification of a product or service, also meaning high specification and must satisfy your customers by providing  error-free goods and services, which are fit for their purpose. (Pycraft, 2000) The external affect of good quality within in operations is that the customers without (or less) complain leading to customers more likely to consume again because the customer feel has received real value for money. This brings in more revenue for the company. For internal influence, conformance quality is high that generally means that cost is saved, dependability increases and speed of response increases. If an operation is continually correcting mistakes, it finds it difficult to respond quickly to customers requests. (Slack et al., 2010) SPEED Speed indicates the time between the beginning of an operation process and its end. (Greasley, 2010) More specific, that means the elapsed time between a customer asking for a product or service and getting it with a satisfactory condition. (Slack et al., 2010) Externally affect of speed is important because it helps to respond quickly to customers and resulting customers return with more business. The internal side have much to do with cost reduction. Usually, faster throughput of information (or customers) will mean reduced costs via reduces the need to manage transformed resources as they pass through the operation and helps to overcome internal problems by maintaining dependability. DEPENDABILITY In terms of dependability, is usually means being on time, in other words, keeping delivery promised to the customer that receive their products or services on time. (Slack et al., 2010) Also, dependability is other half of total delivery performance along with delivery speed and always linked in some way. In externally influence, dependability as good thing for customers also enhances the company product or service in the market, or at least avoids customer complaints. Internally dependability has affect on cost via saving time, saving money directly and giving an organisation the stability that allows it to improve its efficiencies. Moreover, it prevents late delivery slowing down throughput speed. FLEXIBILITY Flexibility always means being able to change the operation in some way, vary or adapt the operations activity to cope with unexpected circumstance or to meet customer requirements gives a flexibility advantage to customers. (Slack et al., 2010) Flexibility has several specific types: Product or service flexibility; Mix flexibility; Volume flexibility and Delivery flexibility. For external affect, the different types of flexibility allow an operation to fit its products and services to its customers in some way, such as produce wide range and frequent new products or services. On other hand, Volume and delivery flexibility adjust its output levels and its delivery procedures in order to cope with unexpected changes. The internal influence is speeds up response, saves time (money) and helps maintain dependability. COST Produce goods and services at a cost, which enables them to be priced appropriately for the market while still allowing for a return to the organization. (Slack et al., 2010) not surprisingly, low cost is a universally attractive objective because lower cost means higher revenue and more competitiveness. If managed properly, high quality, high speed, high dependability and high flexibility can not only bring their own external rewards, they can also save the operation cost.(Greasley, 2010) FIGURE 1: INTEGRATION IN FIVE PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES Reference: Slack el at, 2010. Chapter 2: _The strategic role and objectives of operations_, Operations management. From figure 1 and unique Toyota Production System, which shows the company five-performance objectives irrelative significantly with each other. As Toyotas mainstay, quality is the most emphasize element of this company. According to the relevant survey institutions that indicates Toyotas  vehicles consistently rank near the top in third-party customer-satisfaction. (Toyota, 2012) Excellent quality of Toyota not only prevents errors slowing down throughput speed, also avoid wasted time and effort, therefore saving cost. For instance, if there occurs many non-value-added activities that mean the company need use time, money and human resource to solve it and increase cost. Also, if quality is not qualified in the produce process then rework will drag on production speed. According to survey data from relevant agencies, the three giants in US, General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, parts procurement costs higher than Toyota 8%. Alternatively, Just-in-Time (JIT) stockless production system is extremely increasing Toyota productivity, which means the speed of production is fast. High speed helps Toyota maintaining dependability via zero (less) inventories because the company can respond to the market quickly. Toyota is a dependable company resulting by TPS (Toyota production system) with multi skilled worker that work as a team, and with control has allowed them to deliver products as promised. On the other hand, be more dependability can increase speed without late delivery and saving cost. In addition, For Toyota plant, flexibility means the ability to produce new products and offer wide range volume. During these years, Toyota has provided a wide range of options cars, such as SUV (Prado, RAV4), hybrid fuel (Prius,Yaris Hybrid) , commercial vehicle, sports car(GT86) and bus et al, also to meet environment and economic changes, Toyota was the earliest car maker to introduce hybrid fuel cars, with the commencement of Prius model. The high flexibility leading to Toyota brings frequent new products to the market to gain more competitiveness. Moreover, the speed from JIT system makes Toyota more flexibility in volume. TECHNICS IN TOYOTA Currently, the main competition between enterprises is from supply chain. The world famous TPS strategic management is also created by Toyota. It is called a variety of small amount of production of the unique market demand in Japan. From mass production of the highly formative changed to be a variety of small amount of production, to completely eliminate waste, improve production efficiency and cost competitive. For example, to increase  production, one person can do kinds of multi-skilled jobs (Kawada Makoto, 1993) Figure 2: TPS Structure JIT JIDOHKA According to Figure 2 indicates that TPS is comprised of two pillars, JIT and Jidoka (automation). Bicheno (1991) states that JIT aims to meet demand instantaneously, with perfect quality and no waste. Three key issues identified by Harrison (1992) as the core of JIT philosophy are: eliminate waste, involve everyone and continuous improvement (Kaizen). JIT approach, through rational design for make the product easy to produce and easy assembly. Essentially, just in time manufacturing consists of allowing the entire production process to be regulated by the natural laws of supply and demand. Customer demand stimulates production of a vehicle. In turn the production of the vehicle stimulates production and delivery of the necessary parts and so on. The result is that the right parts and materials are manufactured and provided in the exact amount needed. Under just in time the ultimate arbiter is always the customer. This is because activity in the system only occurs in response to customer orders. In order to support its JIT system, Toyota needs to ensure that the supplier in accordance with the cost, quality and timeliness, with on time delivery and production, stringent quality control system to help Toyota to reduce inventory, also minimize scrap production, and reduce non-value-added operations to increase quality, save cost and respond market immediately by decrease lead time. It also played an important role to ensure working capital is fully available that make the company be more flexibility to explore new production. (Kawada Makoto, 2004) Moreover, JIT emphasis on total preventative management (TPM), developed by total quality management (TQM). Toyota insists to regular maintenance activities, periodic inspection to equipment to avoid breakdowns and preventative repairs. Attention to the detection and control of each process, ensure found quality problems in a timely manner, immediately stop  produce until resolved. On other hand, TPM encourage all employees involved and use their knowledge to improve performance. (Greasley, 2010) In Japanese jidoka simply means automation. At Toyota it means automation with a human touch. The most visible manifestation of automation with a human touch is using andon cord situated in the line to intervene any abnormalities occur. KANBAN One system for implementing a pull system called a kanban production system. (Greasley, 2009) Kanban is the core in the JIT and it does not work without Kanban manage method. A kanban is simply a message. For example, in the assembly shop this message takes the form of a card attached to every component that is removed and returned when the component is used. The return of the kanban to its source stimulates the automatic re-ordering of the component in question. This system permits greater control over production as well as inventory via efficiency maximum. In Toyota process of produce, kanban is intended to convey information: what is needed when it is needed, and in the amount needed!(Lowson, 2002) The accurate number of parts allocation to avoid waste in the production process, thereby improving the manufacturing speed. KAIZEN / CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT Kaizen is the heart of the Toyota Production System. The day-to-day improvements that Members and their Team Leaders make to their working practices and equipment are known as kaizen. This is simply common sense since it is clear that inherent inefficiencies or problems in any procedure will always be most apparent to those closest to the process. The sense of continuous improvement also can influence Toyota performance, such as quality directly. (Iyer, 2009) Overall, TPS use JIT to eliminate inventory and develop close relationships with suppliers, eliminate all but value-added activities, reduce the number of job classes and build worker flexibility, apply Total Productive  Maintenance (TPM) to increase productivity and ensure quality, thereby obtain faster produce speed and improve productions; avoid waste time and resource to reduce cost; Regards to integration of these five performance objectives, faster speed and low cost resulting to Toyota becoming more dependability and have enough capital to be flexibility. When a company can respond the customer required immediately that means it could be depend. Refers to the flexibility, when Toyota have large amount capital then the firm could use on the production innovation to explore more cars types to offer the market and develop cars capability to increase quality of productions. (Greasley, 2010) CONCLUSION In conclude, Toyota has good performances on speed and quality, thereby promoting the dependability to the customer, also this firm did great on the flexibility because Toyota keep introducing new types of car. The interrelationship between these performances takes a significant benefit for save cost, for instance, faster speed means efficiency to save time and labor source to avoid waste. Although Toyota is extremely successful carmaker, but the recall events in 2009 caused great impacts for it. The reason is the company eagers to rapid expand to the market, the quality of management and personnel training has not been followed up, and then resulting series of parts defects. Moreover, in terms of excessive cost cutting, cause quality of components cannot guarantee. There have four suggestions for Toyota to developing performance: Firstly, Toyota in order to reduce expenditure in research and development via using general parts and components, but the manager have not realize technical innovation is the most important mean to reduce the cost of doing business, promote new products, the company should focus on technology innovation to be more efficiency and flexibility. Secondly, Toyota enterprises should pay more attention on After-sales service, the cost of these services is much lower than the recall and increase the sense of dependability to Toyota, such as Toyota car examination and driving lessons for free. Thirdly, Toyota need to strengthen the staff training to avoid the quality defects occurs in  the process of produce line. Thus, not only can ensure the cars quality and save cost without deal with the consequence from employees non-value-added activities. Finally, the company should increase more quality testing sections to examine new productions repeatedly. In general, the speed of produce car is quick resulting the production line easily ignore the nature of Toyota quality. Increase the quality inspection to insure Toyota manufacture superior products, which enhance the company production quality and dependability. As we known, quality is everything, if the company to seek a long term development then should be offer good products, not just focus on how to save cost thereby supply defective to the customer. REFERENCE: Iyer, A., 2009. _Toyota Supply Chain Management: A Strategic Approach to Toyotas Renowned System_.pp.95-99 Harrison,A. ,1992. Philosophy and core techniques, TIME†¬: Greasley, A., 2010. Lean Operations and JIT, _OPERATIONS MANAGEMTN_ pp. 348-365 T. Gabriel, J. Bicheno, J.E. Galletly, (1991) JIT Manufacturing Simulation, Industrial Management Data Systems, Vol. 91 Iss: 4, pp.3 7 Kawada Makoto.1993. _Why And How, Management Accounting_, Strategic Management Accounting Kawada Makoto.2004. Toyota System And Management Accounting. Publish: Central Economic, China. Lowson, R., 2002. Lean production and just-in-time, Strategic Operations Management. PP.457 Pycraft, M., 2000. _OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT_, pp. 48. Slack N., Chambers, S., Johnston, R., 2010. _OPERATIONS_ _MANAGEMENT._ Slack, N., 2007. _OPERATIONS, STRATEGY AND OPERATIONS STRATEGY,_ pp.24 Toyota, 2011. _Toyota Global Vision Mission Statement Announced._ Available at: Toyota, 2012. _Global sustainability reports_ [pdf] Available at:

The Mango: Asias King of Fruits :: Botany

The Mango: Asia's King of Fruits The genus Mangifera is one of the 73 genera belonging to the family Anacardiaceae in the order Sapindales. The greatest number of Mangifera species are found in the Malay Peninsula, the Indonesian archipelago, Thailand, Indo-China and the Philippines. Edible fruit is produced by at least 27 species in the genus, primarily species found in Southeast Asia. The mango's scientific name is Mangifera indica. Asia has held the mango with high esteem and has been considered to be the 'king of fruits'. Other areas of interest are the Borobudur Buddhist temple where sculptures were erected to depict the mango tree as a concept of royalty. The center of origin and diversity of the genus Mangifera is now firmly established as being in Southeast Asia. However, the origin of Mangifera indica has been a matter of speculation for years. Fossil records provided few clues. Mangifera indica is believed to have first appeared during the quaternary period. Some believe the mango originated from several related species, primarily located in the Malay Archipelago. Others believe that the mango originated in India and spread outward from there to southeast Asia and then to the New World and Africa. The Fruit and Nutritional Value The mango fruit is a large, fleshy drupe, containing an edible mesocarp of varying thickness. Fruit color is genotype-dependant and range from green, greenish-yellow, yellow and red blush. The exocarp is thick and glandular. The mesocarp can be fibrous or fiber-free with flavor ranging from turpentine to sweet. The endocarp is woody, thick and fibrous. No part of the fruit is wasted. The seed is used for extraction of the starch 'amchur', and the peels have been used as a source of anacardic acid. The mango wood is of low quality and the bark of the tree is an important source of tannins for curing leather. Mango fruit contains amino acids, carbohydrates, fatty acids, minerals, organic acids, proteins and vitamins. During the ripening process, the fruit are initially acidic, astringent and rich in ascorbic acid. Following fruit set, starch accumulates in the mesocarp. Free sugars, including glucose, fructose and sucrose generally increase during ripening giving the fruit a turpentine to sweet tasting flavor varying with species. The fruit is picked from the tree prior to ripening for export to other market places throughout the world. The fruit will turn colors during the ripening stage even after its removal from the tree.

Language attitudes comprise Essay

Bilingualism is the ability of an individual to speak in two languages and to utilize them for different purposes. The degree of bilingualism is defined as the levels of linguistic proficiency that a bilingual must attain in both languages (Ng & Wigglesworth, 2007). There are various factors that may affect the acquisition of the degree of bilingualism in home, school and work settings, including the age at which the language is acquired, to whom the language is utilized, the manner in which the language is used, and the frequency of usage of the language (Ng & Wigglesworth, 2007). There are two contexts in which bilinguals acquire their skills in using two languages: primary and secondary. Primary contexts pertain to a child’s acquisition of both languages in a naturalistic way in the absence of any structured instruction, while secondary contexts pertain to a child’s acquisition of one of the languages in a formal setting, usually school (Ng & Wigglesworth, 2007). Children, who are able to acquire two languages in a primary context during their infanthood, adopt the languages due to natural input in the environment, usually provided by the parents, siblings, caregivers (Ng & Wigglesworth, 2007). However, when the child enters his or her early childhood, the input may be provided by other sources, like the wider community or the extended family (Ng & Wigglesworth, 2007). According to Ng and Wigglesworth (2007), age plays a key role in the development of bilingualism because there is a strong relationship between the age of acquisition and the ultimate achievement of language proficiency at different linguistic levels. The authors add that attitudes, motivation, and contextual factors such as exposure have been found to affect strongly on the final attainment of the learners’ language proficiency level. Bilingualism has a psychosocial dimension that can greatly affect a child (Bialystok, 2001). The language a person speaks has a role in the formation of his or her identity, and speaking a language that is not completely natural has the possibility to interfere with the child’s construction of self (Biolystok, 2001). A child who is a bilingual due to relocation, especially unwanted relocation, may dislike the new community language he or she has learned despite of his or her proficiency with it (Biolystok, 2001). Factors that affect bilingual children must account the attitudes to the language and the role of language in forming ethnic and cultural affiliations (Bialystok, 2001). The reasons why children become bilingual include education, immigration, extended family, dislocation, temporary residence in another country, or being born in a place where bilingualism is normal (Bialystok, 2001). Social factors that affect the child’s development of bilingualism include parents’ educational level and their expectations for children’s education, degree, and role of literacy in the home and the community; language proficiency in the main language used; objectives for using the second language; support of the community for the second language; and identity with the group who speaks the second language (Biolystok, 2001). The quality and quantity of the interaction also affects the child’s acquisition of two languages. Attitude has been associated to the language proficiency, bilingual’s usage of two languages, bilingual’s perception of other communities and of themselves (Ng & Wigglesworth, 2007). Attitude has also been linked to the strength of bilingual communities and to the loss of language within the community. Furthermore, it is a powerful force that emphasizes the experience of being bilingual and the willingness of members of a minority group to contribute to the maintenance of a minority language (Ng & Wigglesworth, 2007). Language attitudes comprise of three major components of cognition, affect, and readiness for action. The affective component may not be similar with the cognitive component, while the readiness for action component analyzes whether feelings or thoughts in the cognitive and affective components translate into action (Bee, Wigglesworth). There are different types of bilingual acquisition in childhood. In the ‘one person, one language’ type of acquisition, parents have different native languages with each having some degree of competence in the other’s language, the language of one of the parents is the dominant language in the community, and the parents can speak their own language to the child from birth (Romaine, 1995). In the ‘non-dominant home language’ type, the parents have different native languages, the language of one of the parents is the dominant language in the community, and both parents speak the non-dominant language to the child who is completely exposed to the main language only when outside the home (Romaine, 1995). In the ‘non-dominant home language without community support’ type, the parents use the same mother tongue, the dominant language is not utilized by the parents, and the parents speak their own language to the child (Romaine, 1995). In the ‘double non-dominant home language without community support’ type of acquisition, the parents are using different native languages, the dominant language is different from either of the languages of the parents, and the parents each use their own language when speaking to the child from birth (Romaine, 1995). In the ‘non-native parents’ type of acquisition, the parents use the same native language, the dominant language is similar with that of the parents, and one of the parents always speak to the child in a language which is not his or her mother tongue (Romaine, 1995). In the ‘mixed language’ type of acquisition, the parents are both bilingual, the community may also be bilingual, and parents may code-switch and mix two different languages (Romaine, 1995). Romaine (1995) explains that various individual factors may affect the outcome in each type of bilingual acquisition in childhood, including the amount and kind of exposure to the minor language, the consistency of parents in their language choice, attitudes of children and parents towards bilingualism, and the individual personalities of children and parents. Types of Bilingualism A child learns his or her first language during his her five years of life. He or she spends several hours of listening, repeating and learning his or her first language by trial and error. The second language can be learned by a child by various clues that assist him or her to understand the message such as the intonation and by memorizing rules in grammars or lists of words. The desire of a child to communicate using the second language is not powerful, particularly in a school environment. A child can learn a second language easier when he or she is involved or lived in a community where the second language is spoken because it provides him or her a chance to use it. The three types of bilingualism are compound, coordinate and sub-coordinate bilingualism. Both coordinate and compound bilingualism are categorized as forms of early bilingualism because they are developed in early childhood. The sub-coordinate bilingualism is developed when a second language is acquired by a child after age 12. In coordinate bilingualism, an individual learns the languages in different environments and the words of the two languages are separated with each word having its own specific meaning (Romaine, 1995). A child may acquire coordinate bilingualism when his or her parents have different native languages and each parent speak to the child using his or her own native language. He or she develops two different linguistic systems that he or she can handle them at ease. Another situation wherein a child can adopt coordinate bilingualism is when the mother tongue mastered by a child is adopted by parents who use a different language. The languages in the coordinate bilingualism are independent. A coordinate bilingual has two linguistic systems and two sets of meanings linked to them (Romaine, 1995). In compound bilingualism, an individual acquires the two languages in the same circumstances, where they are utilized at the same time in order to have a mixed representation of the languages in the brain (Romaine, 1995). A child may acquire compound bilingualism when both parents are bilingual and use two languages when speaking to the child indiscriminately. He or she will learn to speak both languages without making an effort and accent but will never master all the difficulties of using either of the two languages. A child who acquires compound bilingualism will not have a mother tongue. The languages in compound bilingualism are interdependent. A compound bilingual consists of one set of meanings and two linguistic systems linked to them (Romaine, 1995). In sub-coordinate bilingualism, an individual interprets words of his or her weaker language through the words of the stronger language (Romaine, 1995). The dominant or main language utilized by a sub-coordinate bilingual plays a role as a filter for the weaker language (Romaine, 1995). The sub-coordinate bilingualism consists of a primary set of meanings formed through their first language and another linguistic system tied to them (Romaine, 1995). The Positive Aspects of Bilingualism According to Cummins, bilingualism has positive benefits to a child’s educational and linguistic development. The author adds that a child attains a deeper understanding of language and how to utilize it effectively when he or she continues to develop his or her ability in two or more languages during his or her entire years in primary school. A child has a chance to practice more in processing language, particularly when he or she develops literacy in both and he or she is capable of comparing and contrasting the ways his or her two languages create reality (Cummins). The research study indicates that a bilingual child may also develop more flexibility in his or her thinking because of the processing information through the use of two different languages (Cummins). Other positive effects of bilingualism include increase of mental alertness, broadening of horizon, and improved understanding of the relativity of all things (Appel & Muysken, 2006). A research study of 15-year-old Spanish/English bilingual children suggested that bilingualism encouraged creative thinking because of the greater flexibility in cognition demonstrated by bilinguals due to the fact that they better able to differentiate form and content (Romaine, 1995). Another research study also mentioned that bilingual children have a better understanding of concept formation, which is major part of intellectual development, because they were involved to a more complicated environment and an enormous amount of social interaction compared to children who were gaining only one language (Romaine, 1995). The superiority of bilingual children to monolingual children in terms of various tasks is dependent on their high levels of selective attention, which is the main mechanism of their cognitive performance (Romaine, 1995). One source of improving the bilingual children’s flexibility and creativity may come from a variety of semantic networks related with words in each language (Romaine, 1995). The relation between bilingualism and the social context of language acquisition indicates a positive benefit to bilingualism. The Negative Effects of Bilingualism Child bilingualism has negative effects on linguistic skills because he or she has a tendency to have a verbal deficit with respect to active and passive vocabulary, length of sentence, and the usage of complex and compound sentences (Appel & Muysken, 2006). Research study has also claimed that a bilingual child demonstrated more deviant forms in his or her speech, like unusual word order and morphological errors (Appel & Muysken, 2006). Bilingualism could also endanger the intelligence of a whole ethnic community and result to split personalities (Romaine, 1995). A bilingual child has a deficit in his or her language growth and a delay in his or her mother tongue development. Some psychologists have also stated that a bilingual child is more inclined to stuttering because of the syntactic overload brought by processing and producing two languages (Romaine, 1995). According to Appel and Muysken (2006), it is stated that speaking two languages is a negative factor in personality or identity development because bilingual persons are anticipated to experience a conflict of values, identities, and world views due to strong relation to the two different languages. The authors add that research studies have indicated that bilingualism may have negative effects on personality development but only when social conditions are not favorable. The emotional and social difficulties of certain bilingual persons are not due to bilingualism as a cognitive phenomenon but by the social context (Appel & Muysken, 2006). In order to avoid the degree of language loss in children, Cummins suggests that parents should form a strong home language policy and offer opportunities for children to broaden the functions for which they utilize the mother tongue, particularly in reading and writing, and the circumstances in which they can utilize it, like visits to the country of origin. Teachers have an important role in helping bilingual children maintain and develop their mother tongues by interacting to them strong positive messages on the value of acquiring additional languages and that bilingualism is a key linguistic and intellectual achievement (Cummins). They must also create an instructional environment where the cultural and linguistic experience of a child is actively accepted (Cummins). References Appel, R. & Muysken, P. (2006). Language Contact and Bilingualism. Netherlands: Amsterdam University Press. Bialystok, E. (2001). Bilingualism in Development: Language, Literacy, and Cognition. England: Cambridge University Press. Cummins, J. Bilingual Children’s Mother Tongue: Why Is It Important for Education? Retrieved June 7, 2009, from http://74. 125. 153. 132/search? q=cache:f490N3_lOpAJ:www. iteachilearn. com/cummins/ mother. htm+positive+effects+of+bilingualism&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ph Ng, B. C. & Wigglesworth, G. (2007). Bilingualism: An Advanced Resource Book. U. S. : Routledge. Romaine, S. (1995). Bilingualism (2nd ed. ). Malden, M. A. : Wiley-Blackwell.

Analysis of how both companies meet their financial objectives and aims Essay

In this report I have decided to concentrate on two companies, Woolworth’s plc and WHSmith plc, I will be analysing and comparing the two companies on their objectives (what they say their objectives are, and how they meet those objectives set) and their performances (if they have made profit or loss). I will research all these from their annual report, which is provided on the Internet. An introduction of both companies Woolworth’s is known to be one of Britain’s leading general merchandise retailers, with great brands, strong market position and a powerful presence in home entertainment. The company has one of the highest customer shopper’s performances of all UK retailers’ and today known to be the largest non-food retail chains. WHSmith is also one of the UK’s leading retail groups incorporating market-leading companies in retailing publishing and news distributing. WHSmith has 1,464 stores world-wide; all these locate in place like the UK high street, airport, stations and countries outside of the United Kingdom such as North America and Asia The performance of the companies Last year was an eventful and challenging year for the Woolworth; the first half of the year when they were still part of Kingfisher’s plc was a moment of uncertainty as the future of the company was being decided. The company detached themselves from Kingfisher plc on 28 August 2001, leaving them with 200 million of debt, over ? 100 million of excess stock, loss marking new format and e-business. Woolworth’s formats are designed to appeal to the value-conscious consumer. Woolworth’s is a mass-market retailer with a leading brand and broad product offering at competitive prices. Their mission is â€Å"to be at the heart of the community and the best loved retailer for kids, home and family leisure†. The company’s brand is known to be one of the best-recognised retail brands in the UK and proving this is on average, 6. 5 million customer transactions are made on tills per week. Woolworth’s business operates in the UK general merchandising market, which is both large and highly fragmented, with participants of varying sizes and covering different category mixes.

The Universal Living Wage essays

The Universal Living Wage essays According to the 2002 Human Development Report, from the United Nations Development Program, of the 6.2 billion people on earth, 1.2 billion live on less than $1 a day for their hard work. This would be fine if they were able to afford basic food, clothing, shelter, and access to health care on this amount. Unfortunately, no one can. All across the world, people are desperate to work, but the wages they are paid wont afford them even the basic necessities in life. According to Global Inc., an Atlas of the Multinational Corporations by Medard Gabel and Henry Bruner, there were 63,000 multinationals in 2003 that are taking advantage of this impoverished situation with their 821,000 subsidiaries. They are globetrotters in the pursuit of the bottom line. (Bruner These companies attach themselves to no single country. Instead, they operate without ties and allegiance to any nation or any group of nations. While they unabashedly pursue maximum capitalism, some of their business application practices come into question. Their pursuit of riches along with their lack of allegiance leads them to make their businesses mobile. They locate their operations in the direct vicinity of the lowest paid workers around the world. Once it becomes cost effective to abandon one cheap source of labor or workers start to organize in an effort to improve their working conditions or raise their wages, the parent organization picks up and leaves. Jobs that started in the United States shifted to Mexico in pursuit of the $5.00 a day wage. Recently, those jobs shifted from Mexico to Haiti and China where workers are earning $4.00 a day wages. (Bruner It is estimated that one in ten jobs will be outsourced to countries like India by the end of 2004. At the end of five years, it is expected that this will no longer be cost effective and those same jobs will move to China. (Bruner & Gabel, 2004) The fact that these trans-nationa...

10 Hobbies That Look Great On Your Resume

10 Hobbies That Look Great On Your Resume The going advice might  tell you to leave your hobbies off your resume- there isn’t enough space and potential recruiters are most eager to see your skills and experience. But there are a few situations in which adding a few of your hobbies to your resume can actually add value to your candidacy and help you stand out from the crowd. You can and should include any hobby that has some bearing on your proposed job duties, or something that would endear you to a more creative company like Google. Just remember: if you put it on your resume, it’s fair game in the interview.Here are a few hobbies that might actually make things easier for you to land a job.1. YogaBelieve it or not, a dedication to yoga shows a commitment to staying calm and in control. The ability to breathe through tough moments will look like an asset in a fast-paced, high-energy environment. Shows you can handle pressure.2. Extreme AdventureIf your bosses to be are impressed by risk and pushing boundari es without losing your cool, listing extreme adventure sports on your resume can show you have these valuable traits- which might just land you a leadership role.3. Video ProductionDitto any kind of design, especially if you’re going for a gig in production or event planning. Who knows when you might be asked to livestream or broadcast content in the course of a job?4. Endurance SportsThese show dedication, perseverance, and grit. Who doesn’t think these qualities are appealing in a potential hire? Particularly in sales or business roles.5. Creative HobbiesYou like to cook or paint or take photographs, or do any sort of design, you might be in a better position to list these on your resume and appeal to jobs that are not just looking for hard skills, but a little creative je ne sais quoi. 6. Team SportsShow you can be part of a team- especially if your team experience is leaner in the work sphere and you are applying for a team-based job.7. WritingA bit of creative wri ting can both showcase your creative side, but also show your strengths as a writer or editor- both incredibly useful skills in communication for almost any job. It’s a highly sought after skill that most people are just not that great at. Show your stuff!8. Community InvolvementBeing active in your community or volunteering suggests that you are caring, service-oriented, and comfortable with collaboration. You might even show yourself as perfect for a managerial role without even trying too hard.9. BloggingAs long as your blog is professional looking and not too salacious in content, an interest in blogging can be a real asset. Bonus points if your blog matches your online presence/personal brand and if the content is current, well-written, and free of mistakes.10. Playing an InstrumentPlaying an instrument takes talent, yes, but also determination and dogged practice. Show you’re willing to put in the time and commitment to improve, and your future boss just might be lieve you.That being said, while your hobbies are important, it’s also important to build the functional aspects of your resume because that is what will ultimately determine whether or not you get your foot in the door.And one way to make sure your resume is top notch is by keeping up with certain resume trends. If you can keep up with trends, you will be able to keep your resume updated and efficient.

Response paper 3 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Response paper 3 - Essay Example It was in the twilight of Kurtz’ life when he finally understood while Marlow found it by contemplating on another’s life (Said, 2005). It becomes logical for us to cover our apprehensions with naivety, arrogance, and sometimes even hate. The style in which Joseph Conrad delivers an objective perspective of the issue of racism in his book â€Å"Heart of Darkness† emanates off the subtlety with which a number of arguments are presented. At a glance, it is reminiscent of Plato’s writings wherein characters are representative of the different points of view regarding one topic. This narrative undertaking gives the purposeful intention that allows the readers to form their own opinion regarding the subject as the author impartially presents us with all possible angles of the debate. We have Marlow, Conrad and Kurtz as the voices of reason each with their own proper merit. It is an irony that in the end of ‘Heart of Darkness’ there was still the undeniable obscurity between Marlow and the natives. The paradox is that revering the text is further acknowledging its flaws because of the absence of reciprocity in its dialogue as Achebe asserts (Armstrong, 2005). The vast sea and the travels are symb olic of the immense encompassing arguments and opinions of many that are altogether true and viable in real life. â€Å"It was just robbery with violence, aggravated murder on a great scale, and men going at it blind—as is very proper for those who tackle darkness. The conquest of the earth, which mostly means the taking it away from those who have a different complexion or slightly flatter noses than our-selves, is not a pretty thing when you look into it too much† (Conrad, p.3). Such was the real scenario of the conquest of the West with the rest of the world. Self-proclaming themselvess superior for the sole reason that they were the conquerors and by process of simple deduction makes those who they were able to pass