That Fateful Day

That Fateful Day I remember that day, long ago from my childhood. It was warm the night before, nearly 80 degrees, so I had left my window open. The morning winds where rushing through my school work on the desk. Black and white squiggles on seven pieces of paper, every one of them part of an accumulation of the last two weeks of homework. I needed them to get any kind of decent grade in my first weeks of the fourth grade. â€Å"It’s Tuesday today dad. † I said tentatively to my father. He just stood there in the living room, not really looking at the television. I know† he said in reply without any hesitation. â€Å"Aren’t you usually at work on Tuesdays? † For nearly a minute he just stood there, not saying a word. â€Å"Yes† he said, â€Å"I usually am at work on Tuesdays. But today is different. † Not knowing what he meant I said to him, â€Å"how? † I can’t remember much between that moment of me asking how, and him f inally stopping to try for an explanation. After what seemed an eternity, he finally un-muted the television. There in the center of the screen where two skyscrapers, one of them was burning and had smoke coming off of it.There was no one talking on the news, but they were replaying a clip of the tower before it was smoking. The exact moment when the plane hit the building, I knew what was happening. â€Å"Dad, do I still have to go to school today? † I asked in as solemnly as I could. â€Å"Yes, you still have to go to school. † The moment after my father said this the news woman began to talk again. On the screen there was an explosion of smoke and fire from the second building. I stopped hearing what the reporter said and just stared at the screen. I never thought that I would ever see anything like that in my life.This was the kind of stuff that happened in the movies, not in real life. â€Å"It’s 7:35† I remember someone saying, â€Å"the bus is lat e. † â€Å"No shit† my sister said. We were all waiting for the bus. My sister was in tenth grade, and she had a serious attitude. Normally she dressed in very tight, very revealing clothing. But not today. â€Å"I bet the bus never even comes† she said. One kid instantly said, â€Å"I hope so. † He didn’t know what happened, his family didn’t have cable. He thought everyone was being quite because we didn’t want to go to school just like him. If the bus doesn’t come by 7:45 I’m going home. † I remember all the other kids looking at him like he was the biggest idiot in the world. Some of them even had blank expressions on their face like they couldn’t understand what he was saying. Then it hit me, I remembered he didn’t get to watch the news in the morning. It took me 5 minutes before I started to talk. My throat was sore and felt like it weighed a hundred pounds. I didn’t know what to say, I ne ver did in the first place. I was only nine years old, and felt like I had lived far beyond my own self. I didn’t think the same as I use to.I didn’t want to play any games with the other kids while we waited for the bus. All I wanted was to sit and think. I wanted to think about all those people who were never going to be able to play their Nintendo’s again. About all of the people who would be crying because they lost their son, or their dad. It took all of 30 seconds to tell him what happened. The entire time everyone was looking at me wondering how I was able to talk about it at all especially the older kids. I was dreading the day already. I didn’t want to do any schoolwork while I knew that there were people dying somewhere far away.I didn’t want to go to recess like I usually do and slide down the big kid slide. I wanted to spend the day staring at the television screen just like my mom and dad were going to. I remember when the sun finally came up over the hill. The light was just right that morning. It was spilling through the oak trees onto the road, showing the hundreds of pin drops that were light on the black ground. The trees where flowing back and forth just right, making the sound that I loved so much the swish swish of leaves brushing against each other. If it were any other day I might have skipped school just to sit and read under the trees.But it wasn’t, so I didn’t. I got on the bus when it finally came just like I always should have on these nice days. We were finally at school. The teacher, not knowing what to do, turned on the television to the news. It was the same couple of minutes from the morning playing over and over. The towers had already fallen at this point, so there really wasn’t anything new to show. There was a staff meeting about an hour after school started. All of the students were sent out for recess. I was among the only students who didn’t go and play.I wal ked out of the school onto the playing field and just stood there staring at the grain elevator in the distance. From the perspective of the school the grain elevator looked almost exactly like one of the towers in the news. It was big and new, having been finished only 2 months before. It was tall and silvery, with little lines running up and down the entirety of the building. There were no windows all the way up until you got to the very top. There on top, was a huge window. It seemed to be bigger than my house way up there, but in reality it was only the size of a car, albeit a rather large car.Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiing. Recess was over. It was time to go in. All of the teachers were standing at attention near their perspective lines, waiting for something to happen. The students where chattering away like usual, waiting for the line to start moving. The principal was also outside, which was really weird. He never left his office. Mostly because he was busy, but also because he was some what afraid of talking to people. â€Å"Today, something terrible happened† the principal started. â€Å"Today, we witnessed something that none of us will ever forget. I stared straight into his eyes. They were dark brown, much like a rich wet soil after it rained. His eyes were watering, and had red lines throughout them. â€Å"I am sorry to inform you all that school today will be cut short. You will all be going home in 20 minutes. Those of you who are not able to go home will stay here at the school until the time that school regularly lets out. † The principal began to softly weep. â€Å"I, among others, will be here at the school until the regular hour of the schools letting out. If any of you wish to stay, then you are welcome to stay.But it is not required, and there will be no school lessons today. † The rest of the day seemed to go by slower and slower. I was never going to be able to know why the things that happened did happen. But I will know that I changed that day. For a long time after that I didn’t do anything for fun. I sat around a lot reading books I didn’t want to read. Eating food that I didn’t want to eat. I will never forget that day, because that day changed my life forever. After that day I was never able to look at the world again, and I was never able to think the same way. I remember 9/11.

Methodologies

Human resource development is one of the most challenging tasks of running any business in the present world of competition and globalization. The level of motivation depends greatly on how much focus company gives to understanding the need and the demographics of the company. It is very important to have well-motivated employees, because the motivated employees will probably work harder, and likely produce a higher quality of work; especially for a retail company. Motivation comes from heart and mind; it is an internal process which determines the success and adaptability of an employee within the business environment. It is very important that steps should be taken to strengthen this within the staff. This would require effort on the part of the organization to come up with steps to find out and research about ways in which employees a can be motivated. An organization needs a systematic methodologies based on sound research philosophy. A good research philosophy should be based on positive- scientific approach where analysis is based on factors which can be verified by statistics. Another, aspect of the research could be based on exploring the circumstances or the situations. Based on these two philosophies information should be gathered. The purpose is to research the different motivational factors that affect sales people in the client organization. The research approach should be selected to suit the nature of the company. The research approach can be deductive- based on testing the theory or inductive –based on building the theory. The inductive theory with emphasis on qualitative research should be the focus of research. The environment and the demographics of the company should be considered. The study should use qualitative research. In qualitative research the events could be studied in their natural surroundings. The data can be obtained by exploring the circumstances or the situations. The data for this research comes from the secondary sources. Secondary data is more accurate than the primary data, and is also most economical and easy way of accessing information. The process requires the past and the recent researcher’s studies including books and journals, the internet, newspaper as some of the main sources for secondary data research. This information is very useful and provides comprehensive understanding of the issue. The research analysis is conducted after gathering and analyzing data. The emphasis is on the size and the nature of the respondents. The respondents were randomly selected. All the salespeople from different brands were asked to participate in the survey. The primary source of the survey is through interview. Ten shops have been chosen as target interviewees in different districts. The interview is designed to be done face to face. The time selected for interview is lunch hour. The questionnaires have been put together, which are to be collected after the interview. All data which is collected is confidential. The method employed in this research is through the questionnaire survey. A comprehensive list of question is prepared which could target the employee’s personal information aspect as well as the motivation aspect. The targeted interviewee’s are the staff below manager level. The aim is to evaluate relationship between pay and motivation. The question is prepared in simple and clear language, Chinese version is also made available to help in understanding. Every effort is taken to avoid misunderstanding. The first part of the questionnaire gives personal information of the staff. The personal information related to the employees will reflect that information which gives information about them like, age, sex, education level and years of service with a particular facility or organization. This personal information is very essential for the selection of the right person for the right job. If the person is selected to perform a particular job for which he is suitable, this will lead to the growth of the company as well as the employee. His education a level and his experience plays a key role in determining the nature of his job. His age should be considered in deciding if he can take the amount of work related stress and strain. His gender would give him/ her a certain way of thinking which may help or hinder the kind of commitment. It requires careful selection based on these factors, to really find the right person with good motivation who can work with the company for the long-term. The second part of the questionnaire focuses on the motivational factors or preferences based on eleven questions. These questions are ranked as highest to least desirable as far as motivation is concerned. They take into account he factors which determine motivation. It is important to understand what offer can the company make to raise the motivation level of its employees. If everyone feels that they are equally treated as far as company policy is concerned with regard age, sex, ethnicity, and disability. If the employee’s are well compensated with benefits, holidays, allowances and health benefits determined by their personal qualification. They will be happy to work for the company. The company should make an effort to find out through survey about How the Employee’s feel about working for the company. It is very important to have a motivated workforce with proper training, education and development for success in the present economy. This part of the survey has been evaluated in the following survey done to address the employees’ response. It is very important to have authentic data, which can help research and analyze the motivation factors existing in the retail industry. Data should be collected from the literatures, journals, newspapers and the internet. The research is also aimed to analyze the internal motivation factors with information collected from staff interviews, official website and the staff handbook. The research and the analysis of the survey results combined with the statistical applications allow for the researcher to draw conclusion based on the objectives of the study. Ethical issues regarding the confidentiality of the information should also be carefully observed. The information should be well guarded. The participants should trust the source of their survey. Then only can one obtain authentic and honest information. There are certain limitations to this method of survey; the information may change from day to day. In the process of research it is difficult to update the information on a continuous basis, until the final study is finished. Thus this kind of research imposes that there be date beyond which information cannot be used. This can be a handicap. Some of the information which has been collected is found in Chinese, this will require time for translation. Sometimes the meaning can get lost in the process of translation. Though the study tries it’s best to translate the original meanings from the original meanings. These surveys are critical to the analysis and the discussion of the motivation level of the people working for the retail company. This beautifully classifies the personal qualification which determines the level of their position within the company. Once the employees and employers know each others strength, they find where the right person can be placed for the right kind of job. Even an employee can be trained if interested for a particular job to which he may have better liking. If employer treats every employee with equal opportunity, the employee will work hard and with sincerity. It is very important to maintain that balance and motivation to keep a well trained workforce. If the employees are asked to respond to particular question as mentioned in the survey, they will feel they have important role and participation within the company. This will make them more confident about their future and make them more motivated. So accurate personal evaluation, good benefits and reward system will keep the motivation level high. These methodologies help the company to find clear and defined ways to find suitable employees and also to retain them for long term. They can be a guideline for future decisions made by the company. It can also help company cone up with a reward system for positive consequences and penalties for negative consequences. The internal and unseen aspect of motivation can be developed with good training, proper developmental setup and secure future. The competition and the benefits can be planned in the light of the information gathered. This will further improve understanding between the employers and the employees for better teamwork. Works cited Human Resource Management, HR354, Professional Competence, The Management Report, Student Handbook, 2006/07 Â   Â   Â  

Transformational leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Transformational leadership - Essay Example The group exists to achieve a common purpose or task, and the leader's actions in one area affect both the others; thus successful achievement of the task is essential if the group is to be held together and its members motivated to give their best effort to the job. So, the four key elements of performance should be taken into account. These are: measurement - assessing results against agreed targets and standards; feedback - giving people information on how they are doing; positive reinforcement - emphasizing what has been done well so that it will be done even better in the future; only making constructive criticisms, i.e. those that point the way to improvement; exchange of views - ensuring that the discussion involves a full, free and frank exchange of views about what has been achieved, what needs to be done to achieve more and what individuals think about their work, the way they are guided and managed and their aspirations. Performance and development reviews provide those in volved with the opportunity to reflect on past performance as a basis for making development and improvement plans. Obtaining historical perspective through analysis is a necessary part of the review but reaching agreement about what should be done in the future is what it is all about. The performance review should take the form of a dialogue, not a top-down interview or 'appraisal' (Boehnke, Bontis, 2003). The old routines of central planning and negotiating inputs from might have gone, but there remained the assumption that some other agency would solve the problems: an assumption the CEO himself appeared to share. All of this was taking place within a structure which remained hierarchical, with little involvement of junior management or the workforce, who believed that their product could only sell locally and clung to the assumption that they could sell everything they could produce (Whipp, 1991). This systems view therefore suggests that organisations can and do change by mutually reinforcing and amplifying stimuli within their systems. It is change on the basis of the current ways of doing things: in this sense, it is an explanation of incremental change. The change agent seeking to manage change incrementally would, therefore, search for ways in which changes could be made within current systems, which would have the effect of amplifying change. Education and communication might be appropriate if there is a problem in managing change which is based on misinformation or lack of information. It requires an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect between managers and employees, and might well be time consuming if large numbers are involved in the change since it is unlikely that mass briefings of people will be sufficient to communicate effectively. Many organisations realise that such situations are likely to require small group briefings and debate if the communication is to be effective. However, often the direction or process of strategic change lacks clarity, so relying on processes of communication alone is problematic. The ability to motivate and inspire employees is now a core competence for the best managers. In order to achieve optimal goals three basics would be taken into account: motivation, reward and commitment. Motivating other people is about getting them to move in the direction you want them to go in

Value of a college education Scholarship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Value of a college education - Scholarship Essay Example The greatest achievement of education lies in the percolation of thoughts and implementation of those thoughts into our daily lives. And the exact value of college education lies there. College education does not fall under compulsory education. The term, ‘college education’ is a huge umbrella term and might indicate the areas like graduation or post-graduation. College education falls under the broad head of higher education and essentially indicates the attainment of perfection in any precise field after receiving the formal education in school. College education falls under tertiary or third stage of education and mainly includes undergraduates and post-graduate courses. Vocational education and training also falls under this broad head. The value of college education is immense. It helps to perfect the fundamental knowledge and excel the quest of knowledge that one is set off to receive in any particular field. In college education, the choice of the subject depends upon the interest of the candidate pursuing or intending to pursue any particular course and this enables to open up a wider and enlightened vista pertaining to that subject. The college education helps to find the path; the way out through which the education received at that level can be implemented or percolated through menial chores of life.

Citical, structured report on fundamental marketing issues for Porsche Essay

Citical, structured report on fundamental marketing issues for Porsche automobile - Essay Example This was evidenced when the company produced a model, Porsche 911 which was among the most expensive and competitive cars ever produced in the automobile industry. It was manufactured for its customers who enjoy racing as well as status. Importantly, the organization builds three categories of cars, namely consumer models, racing models, and prototype cars. Out of all these models, the company produces more of racing cars than any other (Zoeller 2015). Because of this, the company’s primary marketing strategy is to produce cars that meet the needs of the wealthy customers. This makes it have a small market share because not all consumers can afford the cars, but at the same time increasing its profits (Zoeller 2015). The rest of the paper will discuss the Porsche Automobile marketing environment, marketing position, as well as the marketing mix. The report will conclude with the recommendation of ways the organization can increase its market share and continue its profitabilit y. Porsche Automobile has been in the market for the last eighty years, and this has given it a chance to gain brand recognition among its customers. Its high brand presence and reputation across the globe gives it the advantage. Secondly, the brand is preferred among the ultra-rich elites making the company to high price their models. Thirdly, the organization has few car models with a high range of variants making it have an advantage on brand extension. Fourthly, Porsche Automobile is a trusted brand for the provision of supreme style with sporty features. Moreover, the company has the popular brand in the racing and gaming industry and over 12,000 employees are ready to give support to customers (Company Spotlight: Porsche 2013). Porsche Automobile lacks presence in the middle-income segments despite their expansion at a higher rate (Taylor 2013). This makes the organization to loose on this market segment. Secondly, the very high maintenance cost in extremely

Research paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 6

Research paper - Essay Example The study further incorporates the use of Swales’ 1990 CARS Model with a perception that the analytical tool used upon the evaluation process of 20 articles would indicate the precise introductions in the study subjects (Hirano, 2009). The third article, â€Å"Rhetorical variation in Arabic academic discourse: Humanities versus law† concentrates mainly on the introduction of genre variations in Arabic articles concerning humanities and law. The research further seeks to define the abundance of the use of rhetorical variations through the genre analysis approach. The fourth study article, â€Å"Research article introductions in Chinese and English: A comparative genre-based study† seeks to emulate the established rhetorical variations on English and Chinese articles, and their introductions to the discipline of educational psychology through the adoption of the framework move analysis (Loi, 2010). Lastly, the fifth article of study, the â€Å"Analysing Genre: Res earch Article Introductions in Economics† enables scholars to undertake precise surveys prior to the establishment of genre analysis in research articles’ introductions (Fakhri, 2008). Mainly, the article engages researchers on evaluating the introductions of rhetoric variations in economics. Therefore, the study seeks to establish the key significant variables and approaches towards analyses of rhetorical introductions in different types of scholarly articles. Abstract The discussion shall evaluate the articles’ importance to readers since the research shall show the writers’ engagement on varied types of studies ranging from academic to economic journals. In order to derive an understanding of the salient correlation of the subject in the journals to the CARS model, the study shall denote the literature review, methodologies used, and later on to establish the results. Further, there is profound evidence that would some of the authors find success in the ir work through the accounting of informative articles from different journals with a close observation on how each of the acquired articles would reflect positively to the CARS model. The research methodology The organization of financial articles introductions and the application of the CARS model The articles compound contrastive information through empirical surveys and the application of exploratory surveys. The financial and economic articles embrace different approaches of the model. Analytically, the survey seeks to emulate the inert information of the adapted genres through the application of exploratory approaches (Loi, 2010). Arguably, the articles may be used on a future date to bolster researches comprising multilingual aspects. Further, the articles are ideal for evaluating the rhetoric introductions shown in numerous financial and economic journals (p.269). Essentially, the comparative approach of evaluating the financial journals shall seek to elevate the application of the CARS model therein. However, the writers sort to use the analytical approach as a means of justifying the inert proposals of the researches, they fail to correlate the former journal materials to Swale’s study. The survey seeks to

National security of independent States (Ukraine and Lithuania) in the Essay

National security of independent States (Ukraine and Lithuania) in the post soviet space - Essay Example The group discussions we had as a group yielded the topic our present discussion, â€Å"National security of independent States (Ukraine and Lithuania) in the post-Soviet space,† which was agreed upon unanimously through a group vote. The group arrived at the topic after thorough deliberations of its significance and centrality in any attempt to understand the state of the independent states (Ukraine and Lithuania) in the post-Soviet space, especially given the ever-shifting and complex nature of the security environment in the post-Soviet space. Governments are charged with the responsibility of promoting and maintaining national security, which entails the protection of a state by using all the resources at their disposal including economic, political, as well as diplomatic power; in practice, national security in many states is determined by the combination of conditions influencing their security environment and dynamics. This paper will employ the constructivism theory to explore the national security of the independent states (Ukraine and Lithuania) in the post-Soviet space, while paying particular attention to the key themes in the region’s security environment, and highlight a probable approach for addressing these problems. Independent states in the Post-Soviet apace, often collectively referred to as the post-Soviet states or the former Soviet Union, or the former Soviet Republics, refers to a group of 15 states that emerged out of the dissolution of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in the year 1991 (Akiner, 1998 p.1089). The USSR dissolved both because of, and against a backdrop of a serious stagnation in the region’s economy, as well as recession; most of the independent states that emerged out of the dissolution embarked on the transition towards a market economy in the wake of the 1990’s, rebuilding and restructuring their economic systems. The independent post-Soviet states fall into five major groupings or

Religion in Africa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Religion in Africa - Essay Example African independent churches formed as a result of the political, social, and economic conditions that were prevalent in Africa at the time. Independent churches were formed as a way of protesting against colonial rule and how Africans, despite being considered equal to Europeans as Christians, were treated as lesser human beings. In most circumstances, Africans resented that they were forced to abandon their own ways and communities by the colonial governments through the influence of Christianity, so that these governments could continue to dominate every aspect of their lives (Mosala, 1985). They felt that Christianity was an extension of colonialism and this made it difficult for them to accept a European led church as part of their lives. These circumstances sowed the seeds of dissention among them as well as the need to remove themselves from the authority of European-led missions and to create churches of their own. As political movements against colonial rule, independent churches took an active part in rejecting the European way of life and chose instead to look back towards the African way of life where they be lieved that they were better off (Machoko, 2013). Their rejection of European ways ensured that they gained followers who felt the same way and this allowed these churches to thrive as they created a new niche for themselves within the Christian community. These movements had charismatic leaders who ensured that they took the first steps towards breaking away from their mother churches and form churches that were truly independent from ones of western origin through the integration of African practices. Independent churches came into being as a place of refuge for those Africans who did not have enough authority or economic means to protect themselves within their societies (Oduro 2006). These churches were highly attractive to the poor, oppressed and outcasts in their communities for whom

State v. Wong (1994), 95 Ohio App. 3d 39 Case Study

State v. Wong (1994), 95 Ohio App. 3d 39 - Case Study Example erdict, on the account of insanity, but these possibilities were quickly eradicated, after two psychologists declined to testify that she might not have been sane on the day of the felony, The Appellant had sent a letter to her husband, threatening him, which illustrated the lack of sanity from the Appellant. The drugs and alcohol influence she was under in combination with the medication she had consumed could have also altered her reasoning and the claim by her daughter that she was â€Å"unwell† during the 911 call is an indication of the possibility that she was not sane while committing the felony. Dr. Jackson asserted that the appellant suffered from a paranoid delusional disorder and could have been under the disorder’s influence during the committing of the crime. The ignored these claims, returning the guilty verdict on all counts back into place. The court ended up sentencing her to fifteen to forty years in a state penitentiary, 12 years for each count of felony done, one year on every count of vandalism and did not sentence her on the gun specification count. These sentences were to run concurrently. The lack of consent of the letter, throughout the trial was unfair and unjust on Wong’s case, but the verdict passed was a bit considerate to that passed by the lower courts. Lack of consideration of the doctors insights was also vaguely

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Paraphrasing the Poem entitled â€Å"My Last Dutchess† Essay Look into the wall so that you may see the last of my beloved woman with glee Wondering why upon looking at it comes alive for it is made intensively out of love. Everyday the painter worked expansively as he watched my woman to a pause. Asking for the painter to take a look at my girl and create a painting of her. On the painter’s face, I can see that he is mesmerized by her. I believe in the capacity of the painter – a well known artist. In my eyes I picture you so differently and other would say, If it is her true beauty and I reply, it is. So other now always looks unto her face. Not only had I told the painter that made the woman blushed. I remember after she was painted, she made a wonderful look and say â€Å"Thank you.† It is her smile – the smile that nurtures my being since then until now. But the vestige is her daughter – my daughter. I need to start all over again for it was the destiny of life. Recollecting the surroundings as what the painter created in my woman’s background, Her beauty cast me away, like an â€Å"Innsbruck in bronze† – for me. Reference Browning, R. (1842). My Last Dutchess. Retrieved 26 March 2008. http://wps.prenhall.com/wps/media/objects/680/696357/student_library/pdf/browning.pdf

Subject Of Human Resource Development Management Essay

Subject Of Human Resource Development Management Essay This report provides an understanding of the subject of Human resource Development . In this report we explain the different learning style and explain the learning theories and its contribution to the planning and design of learning events. and it has been describe the implications of the learning curve and the importance of ensuring the transfer of learning to workplace. Methods of analysis include HRD policy of Nestle,HR practices, types of flexibility could be seen in the organisation, methods of training, and stages of training cycle. And finally analysis of suitable evaluation model for In the second part of the report it has been clearly identified the systematic approach of training methods practiced at Nestle and factors to take into account when planning a training and development event. In the final part of the report it has been explored the evaluation needs, and review the key stakeholders in the evaluation process and evaluation techniques could be practised at Nestle and finally the influencing role of UK government in training and development and the growing emphasis on lifelong learning and continuous development. And examine the range of contemporary training initiatives introduced by the UK government. Table of Contents Introduction The demand of industry and commerce are continually changing and are reflected in the activities of the training department and the training and development programmes. New approaches, skills, operations and procedures require either new training programmes or modifications of existing ones. This in turn affects the members of the training department.- planners, designers, authors, trainers, administrators- who have to develop different programs. Only too frequently the steps proceeding the training event are rushed or inadequate and the training itself is entered into without an effective design The training process in complex and starts at a decision making event. This might be a senior manager meeting at which a new operation or procedure is decided; a personnel report on suspicions of problems gleaned from performance reviews; line managers concerns that they or their staff may be performing at less than total effectiveness ; or staff themselves who realize that they need support, guidance and training to perform their roles or develop beyond their current levels. Whatever the source of the need requirement, if effective training and development is to result , the activities to achieve the needs must be planned in a capable manner. This report describe Nestle training and development policy all over the world and how the successful approaches of training methods and evaluation techniques contribute to the overall success of the companyhttp://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQR_Q1qZpCFk9kfvuK5e67m89By3msSMXwXTeXl4UHYEsS_YOza Task 01 Importance of comparing learning style In practice, effective learning requires that trainees adopt a flexible style, sometime serialist, and sometime hoslist. However, this may not be possible for many people. The implication for differing learning styles for course designers is that training methods should be varied to meet the differing approaches for their course members. Thus, although trainers themselves may wish to use experiential and participative forms of training, these may not always be welcomed by their trainees, who may prefer to opt for traditional methods. Mayo suggests that organizations need to recognize the simple fact that different people learn different ways should take the following actions. Give people the opportunity to discover their most learning style Offer learning opportunities that suit people with different learning style Recognize to complete the full learning style Help people to translate the learning cycle into a continuous spiral of learning Honey and Mumford simplified Kolbs learning cycle and refined his learning style questionnaire. The result is that managers can identify whether they are predominantly: Activist- Whats new? I m game for anything Reflector- Id like to think about this Theorist- How does this relate to that? Pragmatist- How can I apply this is practice? The researchers claim that an understanding of ones learning style will enhance learning effectiveness, whether as a trainee or as a tutor. Different learning theories The way in which people learn best will differ according to the type of person. There are several competing theories about how people learn, and how you can assess your natural learning style. Behaviourism theory As the name suggests, researched were interested Learner must be able to respond actively and it concerned with behaviour than with thinking, feeling, or knowing. Simply it focuses on the objective and observable components of behaviour. Of the trainee. learning is facilitated when objectives are clear and to acquire more skills the frequency of repetition of responses is more important. Cognitive theory Cognitive psychologists saw learning as a complex process involving the exercise of problem solving capacity , mental mapping, intuition, imagination , perception, and purpose. They also held that learning could be latent. i.e stored away until required for use. Social learning approach This theory suggests people learn by watching others. The term modelling was coined by Miller and Dollard to explain learning by imitating others and role models as a label for those individuals who are held up as examples of good practice. The willingness to learn is the key condition that is required by Nestle. And they consider people are they most valuable asset, so when they design a training program, they ensure that by adopting which learning theory will maximise the potential; of the Nestles employees so that they could able to achieve the following objectives through training and development strategy. ensure that a pool of talent team are at the right place at the right time to enable experience through exposure; either through on-the-job training, overseas assignments or project participation. Generate meaningful learning which improve the organisational and personal performance of the employee through effective training programmes (Source :- http://www.nestle-family.com/media/english/people-development.aspx) 1.3 Importance of Learning curve and the transfer of learning Learning curve is a graph showing the relationship between time spent in learning and the level of competence achieved. It describes the progress and variable pace of learning. It basically state the more you learn less steps will be taken to increase the time and effort to complete a given task. in order to get the maximum utilization from the learning it is important to make sure there is motivation and interest is established on the activity that the employee learn, otherwise there could be an imbalance between the learning process and the ultimate performance of the employee . The ability to utilize previous learning in the service of a new learning is called transfer of learning .it is an important factor in any learning , but especially so when basic principles are being learned. Transfer can be two types: positive and negative., Simply nestle encourage people to learn, where it has a strong culture to develop the people from all over the world. So willingness to learn is the most important condition to be employed by Nestle. Their training programmes are purpose oriented and designed to improve relevant skills and competencies. They continuously develop the specific skills to perform the work activities efficiently with minimal time taken. Nestle provide motivation in various ways to their employees, such as providing opportunity to upgrade the literacy skills, on job training, establishment of residential training centres are aimed at improving the learning capacity of Nestlà ©s employees. This will result in higher productivity and efficient work force and having a competitive global market. And the organisation makes sure the employees applied the skills and knowledge learned from the training and work place activities in the task given to them. And update of new skills taught to them http://t1.gstatic.c om/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTSQ8OQctP8TEJK-5ypua5dpnc1r-tjUNUHoZ6mrYRnce5-AQB7 (Nestle case study) Task 02 2.1 Nestlà ©s Approach to training Training is the necessary part at Nestle from the top management to the bottom level. and training is provided continually to develop the individuals who are employed at Nestle throughout the world. e-Learning, classroom courses, management courses and executive courses), are provided by each and every country where Nestle has its operations and it has five training centres including in France, UK, Spain, Mexico and Brazil. Nestle provides the following- Literacy training is provided to upgrade the necessary literacy skills those who missed a large part of their elementary school. This is specially designed for employees who handle new technical equipments and work in independence work teams Nestle Apprenticeship Programs. Apprenticeship programs have been an essential part of Nestle; training where the young trainees spent three days a week at work and two at school. Local Training Programs- On issues ranging from technical, leadership, and communication and business economics. Two third of all Nestle employees work in factories most of which organize continuous training to meet their specific needs. in addition , an number Nestle operating companies run their own residential training centres. International Training Rive-Reine, their International Training and Conference Centre in Switzerland is where Nestlà © people from all over the world meet to exchange information and ideas in seminars and training courses . 2.2 training contribution of training and development policy A systematic approach to training and development will generally follow a logical sequence of activities commencing with the establishment of a policy and the resources to sustain it, followed by an assessment of training needs, for which appropriate training is provided and ending with some form of evaluation and feedback.http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRs5jKLDUyRUvn_xrvqj46c73oxrFqFyXsoMEBLaa7uNPCx9cqC By providing a systematic training Nestle could expect to enjoy the following potential benefits Maintenance of a sufficient and suitable range of skills amongst employees The development of knowledge and skills in the workforce The harnessing of work experience and other forms of on the job development in a planned way Achievement of improvement job performance and productivity Increase value of employee in the labour market Nestle has a decentralised training and learning nature which provide the opportunity to acquire knowledge and tools they need to respond to local needs, which country they are work in. and it has a culture which motivate their people to work with different people with different country ,which leads to a multinational organisation. Training programs are generally purpose oriented and designed to improve relevant skills and competencies which will help them to move on to the next managerial level in their organisations. Specially management and executive courses are provided for managers. Nestle mainly focus on on the job training methods by the Nestle; people it self not by the professional outside trainers, which means part of the training structure in every company focused on developing managers own coaching skills, so in many cases the manager is personally involved in teaching and mentoring practices as a way of communicating knowledge to their fellow members. 2.3 factors Nestle need to take into account when planning a training and development event The introduction of a systematic approach to training and development at Nestle implies the following sequence of activities: Establishing a policy for employee development Setting up an appropriate training function Developing the means for identifying learning needs Planning and designing learning activities Implementing and subsequently evaluating these activities in their context. The Human resource policy of Nestle is give priority to develop the people of their organisation. This simply deals with the recruitment, remuneration, and training and development and emphasizes individual responsibility and strong leadership and a commitment to lifelong learning. At the next stage when identifying the training needs, Nestle need to consider the following factors Since the company has a diverse culture , must encourage employees to work with people from many different countries and cultures in the course of their career. Education in understanding the culture and values of members of a diverse workforce In order to update with the new level of technology , training should be aimed at overall factories Training should be designed to improve relevant skills and competencies A learning need from Nestles point of view is any shortfall in the employees knowledge, skills or attitudes compared with the requirements of the job, and any consequential requirements to adapt to organisational change. In order to satisfy training needs, training plans need to be established. A plan usually has the following components: aims, target group and numbers of employees across the world, diverse culture, nature of employee and their skills, filling the knowledge gap , programme content , including objectives, programme evaluation. Since at Nestle managers are responsible for coaching and guiding their employees as a part of their work so it would not require formally designed programs but learning targets, timescales and evaluation still need to be planned. The content of the training programme should be geared to the knowledge or skills required by the work responsibilities of the target group. The level at which the training pitched will depend on the current level of k nowledge and skills of the trainees. And also nestle basically depend on the job training methods. This method of learning includes learning from experience, colleagues/workmates, coaching and special projects. And finally training can be evaluated at all levels at Nestle from the level of the training activity itself up to its impact, if any on organisational goals. The subject matter of evaluation embraces the following: Nestle culture and structure On the job training methods The managers and the employees at nestle Changes in trainee behaviour Course content And learning methods 2.4 suitable training method based on HRD managers point of view As a HRD manager the first and most important decision concern the type of training approach that will be used to satisfy the agreed objectives for a particular group of learners. At Nestle most of the training programs are provided in house and managers are required to act as coaches . so coaching is a training and or development approach in which learner follows a learning process at work, usually with the involvement of the manager but using real work projects. This learning at work is different from traditional methods, it is achieved by the use of actual work, as opposed to the more artificial nature of training course activities. Coaching techniques are similar to those of many forms of training and development. In summary these will be: Identify the individuals requiring training and development Confirm that coaching will be best and most cost effective form of satisfying the training needs Discuss with the learner what is needed and agree with them that a coaching process should be followed, Agree with them the terminal objectives for the coaching and the most effective ways of achieving them Construct an agreed coaching plan that will be supported by both of you as the manager and the learners Agree starting and finishing dates for the process Agree interim progress discussions and also the final discussions on completion of the project at which , it is hoped, the results of the project will be accepted Review with the learners the learning resulting from the event and discuss future action The HRD manager as a coach must offer full support to the learners and above all must not look over their shoulder all the time, but remembering that this is basically a training exercise and that they still retain the final responsibility for the success of the task . Task 03 3.1 importance of evaluation of training and development programs to Nestle Evaluation is an activity which attempt to assess either the intrinsic merit of a learning event, i.e whether it was worth doing in the first place or the worth of an event in terms of whether it was useful or not in the circumstances. Evaluation that focuses on training processes and training progress is called formative evaluation , evaluation that focuses on the ultimate worth of training is called summative evaluation. Importance of evolution To determine the effectiveness of the training (whether training objectives met) To help improve the design of training To support accountability (determine the cost benefit ratio or return on investment of the event) Gather information on nature, experience and outcomes of training events so that they can be effectively marketed within the organisation. To allow stakeholders in the training process to give feedback To provide management information Nestle human resource policy mainly emphasis the ongoing learning and the training process to develop the skills of the their employees. It is important to ensure that the trainee is provided the expected outcome at the end of the training session. Since Nestles approach for training is differ in different nations and cultures, it is important to evaluate the different training approaches aimed at different people at different nations. As per the case study learning is an integral part of Nestle culture , in that training and development plays a major role. The effectiveness of evaluating training programs directly contribute the overall success of the company. Effective workforce evaluation helps in ascertaining the relationship between acquired knowledge, transfer of knowledge at the work place, and training.it will maximise the training ROI and help to determine the future from of training programs 3.2 evaluation to be one off or an ongoing process Evaluation does not considered the last process at the end of training and development. It is too important to be treated in this cavalier fashion and it starts long before the end of a training programme. Its important is such that I contend that if you do not evaluate your training and development programs to the maximum extent to which you are allowed or are capable , then it is virtually useless to run the training , if you do not evaluate , apart from highly subjective and personal thoughts, you have no evidence of the success or otherwise of your training. At Nestle pre testing or pre knowledge measures of the learners existing skills and knowledge when it comes to recruit people who have missed their large part of elementary schooling , and in order to develop their skills special development programs are provided by the company. Rive -Reine international Training Center has brought together managers from around the world to learn from senior Nestle managers and from each other. This is a continues evaluation arrangement technique made by Nestle to have midterm evaluation by visiting by the Nestle managers. End of programme evaluation- at the end of the on the job training , employees at Nestle required to perform in a highly technical competencies with adopting to a new working practices. This success is not a measure only of an enjoyable training course that has achieved its objectives. Training is the process of changing people to a more effective state so that the business aspects of the organisation are improved. Training without business improvement is usually training for trainings sake. Evaluation is the process to its final and continued successful application in the workplace. Because of this evaluation over the whole training process, it must be considered early in the design and planning , and must start long before the training event. 3.3 key stakeholders in the evaluation process and discuss the different roles they play Senior management- the senior group must be involved in evaluation at the earliest stage and should be encouraged to be interested , rather than be considered as nuisances. They should State clearly and authoritatively the responsibilities for evaluation Require evaluation analyses and review these regularly The training manager- he performs a range of evaluation activities, principally control measures , including: The control of evaluation strategy and practice Assistance with practical evaluation measures, particularly, when a more neutral assessor than the trainer is needed Presentation of analytic results to senior management The trainer- trainers in spite of their considerable involvement in training itself, must be particularly involved in a large proportion of the evaluation. Their responsibilities include: Designing and implementing validation approaches Designing implementation evaluation measures and supporting these activities Supporting line managers in their briefing and debriefing roles as required The line manager- traditionally , line management has considered the responsibility for evaluation as the training department alone. But the line managers must have an input , if only because of their staff are involved in the training and there is a cost for the training services on their budgets. Ideally line managers should participate in: Evaluation design with the training department- essential as they are a significant party to whatever process is arranged. Pre-programme briefing sessions with their members of staff Post programme debriefing sessions with members of their staff The learner Last but not least, the learners must be involved as far as possible- they have to be relied on for reliable , accurate and honest reporting and comments 3.4 compare and contrast evaluation techniques available to nestle There are so many certain techniques could be used to evaluate the training programms Interviews Questionnaires Direct observation Written test Performance test and etc By activity observation One method of assessing the skill levels of the learners at the start of a training programme is the observation by the trainer of a relevant activity. the basic approach will be assess the skill performance of the learners against some form of pre- planned checklist or analytical instrument. Simply at nestle; on the job training method is used to develop the specific skills to operate more advanced equipment. Technical and behavioural processes are frequently combined for assessments at this early stage, more detailed observation taking place at later stage. when they employed the skills what ever they develop at the early stage. Structured follow up interviews The other main method of performing a medium and longer term evaluation is by follow up interview. Interviews are usually more expensive than questionnaires, particularly if the learners are located throughout the country, or internationally. This may be a difficult task of evaluating trainers at international level for Nestle since it is a multinational company Many of the cost problems can be avoided if the line manager conducts the interview rather than a remote trainer , but you must be assured that the line manager is not too close to the learner, and has the necessary skills to conduct effective interviews. Performance tests This is the most simplest and obvious method of evaluating . under this method the applicants are asked to demonstrate their ability to do the job. These tests are however, useful only for selecting experienced workers. These tests are aimed to find out whether the applicant can perform the job successfully by asking him to do it. this measure work and performance, and include cognitive and skill based learning. Nestle would adapt performance test method to evaluate their trainees , because the on the job training method provide in- house training to their employee while their at work. Apprenticeship programs provide training to young people three days a week at work and two at school. Formal training programs at Nestle generally designed to improve relevant skills and competencies. local training aimed to develop coaching skills of the managers. Performance tests include work sampling methods under which applicants are asked to demonstrate the necessary skills, which they possess by actually doing the tasks. And assessment specially designed to evaluate a candidates managerial potential , is administrated in assessment centres. here where applicants go through a serious of exercises and are appraised by line executives, practicing supervisors, and or trained psychologists. This can be used to evaluate the managers at nestle who act as coachers and mentors and provide continues training to the home grown employees and leaders who provide training at Rive -Reine International training center. 3.5 evaluation models based on each of their contribution There are various approaches for training evaluation Kirkpatrick model Kirkpatrick model is one of the evaluation model used by many companies to evaluate the training programs . the framework classify for levels of which consist , reaction, learning, behaviour, results. The first level reaction evaluate the trainees reaction to the programme. And the next level it measure the whether the trainee learn the principles, skills, and facts that the supervisor given to him, thirdly it look at the behaviour change occur on the job and finally the last level focus on the entire performance of the trainee after the training programme. and whether it has helped to achieve organisational objectives. Each level has its own pros and cons, still it the simple and the practical way of evaluating the training programs, IBM and ATT companies also used evaluation models similar to Kirkpatrick model. but this model is only suitable for the lower level of the management, but it is highly costly to implement this system to the higher managerial levels. http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQHMeF-0U7a0UQnSgOAdlRwT0kIaCfHsSo7nMxiqnKL43QeCUmZZg CIRO model The abbreviation for CIRO is- Context, Input, Reaction, Outcome. The context level The context level identify the performance needs or desired outcomes from the training and the knowledge and skills or attitude needed to change the behaviour of the trainee. Input level identify the resources to be used and training methods, so that the most suitable method will be chosen the reaction level measure the participants reaction and the satisfaction with the training programmes so that appropriate feedback and suggestion could be provided to improve the performance .the final outcome level will measure the results of the programme in terms of context requirement https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZOoIarzWFXiFT5TvEHXj5hfwl1Kq2syLNRURCiLb70I26IW9N4dauJz3pIfRFh6Hg-d4bCWqHypVJmwsMO0au6yVHxwte9_1jDTXYuPoyQ-kqQuwBfQB2ZfZL2ERJYm7oOeGVgnRAGko/s1600/Stages+of+Evaluvation.JPG This approach is similar to Kirkpatrick in a few aspects. The reaction level is similar to Kirkpatricks but here the focus has been shifted on getting suggestions from participants. Moreover, the Outcome level of CIRO model encompasses learning, behaviour and end results which are three individual levels in Kirkpatrick. CIRO Model is considered to be a softer approach to evaluation of training. By focusing on analysing the need for training and participants suggestion to improve training program, this model covers the shortcoming in Kirkpatricks model but then lacks the evaluation of impact of training on business. based on the above analysis we could see that CIRO model is suitable to Nestle since it measure the final outcome, the change in behaviour and the learning. Training and developing is the fundamental aspect of Nestle success.so it is important not only to provide training to the employees over the counter , but evaluating the performance, their learning abilities as well the main feature of CIRO model is to provide feedback and the suggestion to improve the employees performance, simply this is very essentials since, the Nestle managers act as mentors and coachers, so it a part of the managers to provide feedback to the trainees. Task 04 4.1 Influencing role of UK government in training and development and the growing emphasis on lifelong learning and continuous development. Government is emphasizing the importance of training and development as they aim to remove the barriers of employability of those that have fewer opportunities to do so. This is where the idea of life-long learning is becoming the main initiative of the government to create such opportunities to a wide-range of communities and backgrounds. The life-long learning aim is remove and combat social exclusions which will then help to promote employability and active citizenship amongst communities. The aim of life-long learning is to: Increase the demand for learning, using vocational learning to create a fun and stimulating learning process Develop world class training, to satisfy the UK and European domestic markets, and also to satisfy the needs of the economy Give people the opportunity to re-develop their skills, without having to continually take courses, but to simply update their current skills and knowledge. The basic education provided by schooling only provides a foundation for learning, however there are then gaps in the skills required for young people to development the skills that they are able to transfer into the workplace. This is also aimed at adult learners, whom have not been able to seek and sustain employment due to their gaps in skills. The life-long learning project aims to remove the barrier of the lack of skills and tries to help those that are not equipped for workplace environments to gain the confidence to do so. The encouragement to keep life-long learning an important part of someones life is being encouraged by the governments continuous investment in education and training; not just for young people but also for adults with no basic skills which are needed in the workplace. Strategies to encourage lifelong learning: Skills for life priority group: the priority group includes the unemployed, prisoners and those supervised in the community, low-skilled employees and others at risk including: Gypsy/travellers homeless people refugees asylum seekers drug users Literacy help is also available t

John Donnes Use of Wit Language and Metaphor in Poetry Essay -- essays

John Donnes Use of Wit Language and Metaphor in Poetry As discussed on a previous short essay question, John Donne is considered to be one of the greatest metaphysical poets of our time, even though he published only a small number of poems in his lifetime. The poems he did write were metaphorical and often humorus poems telling the tale of religious love and sex. Being a metaphysical poet he exhibited many characteristics of the metaphysical poets. He wrote with metaphysical wit, metaphysical conceit, metaphors, symbols and paradoxes. If these were some of the things that defined a metaphysical poet, then John Donne is a good example of one. I will use three of his poems, "Holy Sonnet 14", "The Flea", and "Song" to show how Donne uses these aspects in his writing. Metaphysical conceit is a comparison between two things that is so far out in left field and so abstract that no one would ever think of using it. But John Donne isn't no one, and he used metaphysical conceit in many of his poems. In "Holy Sonnet 14" Donne is talking to god and asking for forgiveness for... John Donnes Use of Wit Language and Metaphor in Poetry Essay -- essays John Donnes Use of Wit Language and Metaphor in Poetry As discussed on a previous short essay question, John Donne is considered to be one of the greatest metaphysical poets of our time, even though he published only a small number of poems in his lifetime. The poems he did write were metaphorical and often humorus poems telling the tale of religious love and sex. Being a metaphysical poet he exhibited many characteristics of the metaphysical poets. He wrote with metaphysical wit, metaphysical conceit, metaphors, symbols and paradoxes. If these were some of the things that defined a metaphysical poet, then John Donne is a good example of one. I will use three of his poems, "Holy Sonnet 14", "The Flea", and "Song" to show how Donne uses these aspects in his writing. Metaphysical conceit is a comparison between two things that is so far out in left field and so abstract that no one would ever think of using it. But John Donne isn't no one, and he used metaphysical conceit in many of his poems. In "Holy Sonnet 14" Donne is talking to god and asking for forgiveness for...

The Value of Product Testing Essay -- Business Market Research

Based upon 30 years of marketing research experience, spanning thousands of research projects, I am convinced that product testing is the single most valuable marketing research that most companies ever do. The great value of product testing is, perhaps, best illustrated by some of its many uses. It can be used to: • Achieve product superiority over competitive products. • Continuously improve product performance and customer satisfaction (i.e., to maintain product superiority, especially as consumer tastes evolve over time). • Monitor the potential threat levels posed by competitive products to understand competitive strengths and weaknesses. • Cost-reduce product formulations and/or processing methods, while maintaining product superiority. • Measure the effects of aging upon product quality (shelf-life studies). • Implicitly measure the effects of price, brand name, or packaging upon perceived product performance/ quality. • Provide guidance to research and development in creating new products or upgrading existing products. • Monitor product quality from different factories, through different channels of distribution, and from year to year. • Predict consumer acceptance of new products. Companies committed to rigorous product testing and continuous product improvement can, in most instances, achieve product superiority over their competitors. Product superiority, in turn, helps strengthen brand share, magnifies the positive effects of all marketing activities (advertising, promotion, selling, etc.), and often allows the superior product to command a premium price relative to competitors. Most companies, unfortunately, do very little product testing. Few companies really u... ...he structure and mechanics of execution will vary greatly from product category to product category. For example, computer software can be tested, furniture can be tested, store environments can be tested, dog food can be tested, airline service can be tested, equipment prototypes can be tested, etc. Competitive Advantage The ultimate benefit of product testing is competitive advantage. Product superiority is the surest way to dominate a product category or an industry. Companies dedicated to ongoing product improvement and product testing can achieve product superiority, and achieve a competitive advantage of great strategic significance. Companies that ignore product improvement and product testing, on the other hand, may wake up one morning to find themselves on the brink of extinction from a competitor who has built "a better mousetrap."

Inner Happiness in Hemingways The Old Man and the Sea Essay

Inner Happiness in Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Hemingway's view of human nature was that happiness was rare and was found within a man and not in his outside circumstances or surroundings.   Hemingway illustrates this in three ways.   First, he portrays the human nature of Santiago, the main character, as being one of humility and compassion, full of strength and pride.   He is shown not as a gleefully happy man, but one who meets life with a serene, quiet resilience.   Second, Santiago's fellow villagers are shown as shallow and materialistic, with a narrow view of life compared to his.   Their focus on appearances is in sharp contrast to Santiago's focus on intrinsic values.   Third, it will be shown that his rare brand of happiness comes from within.    Poignant circumstances surrounded the composition of this novel, which bring out many of the above points. It is widely recognized that Hemingway was possessed of a turbulent personality and suffered from emotional depression.   This was despite the fact that he enjoyed much critical acclaim.   The Old Man and the Sea was written after a ten-year hiatus of public and critical approval. This period saw much of his work receive negative criticism in literary and journalistic circles.   This affected Hemingway adversely and very deeply (Carey 9).   Therefore, Hemingway's personal battle with seeming failure in his life's work and society's attendant criticism parallel Santiago's stoic resolve in the face of his neighbors' disdain.   The author's struggles symbolically match those of Santiago and set the stage for the writing of this novel.    The acclaim generated by this book was due largely to the author's   " complex knotting of spiritual and phys... ... Gardiner, Patrick. Schopenhauer. Middlesex, England: Penguin , 1963.   Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1995. Hutchins, Robert Maynard, ed. Great Books of the Western World. 54 vols. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1952. Vol. 1.   Plato. The Dialogues of Plato. Trans. Benjamin Jowett. Great Books of the Western World. 54 vols. Chicago:Encyclopaedia Britannica 1952. Vol. 7. Schopenhauer, Arthur. Counsels and Maxims. Trans. T. Bailey Saunders. Amherst, New York:Prometheus Books, 1995.     - - -.   On the Basis of Morality. Trans. E.F.J. Payne. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill.   1965.     - - -. The Wisdom of Life. Trans. T. Bailey Saunders. Amherst, New York: Prometheus Books, 1995.   Waggonner, Eric. "Inside the Current: A Taoist Reading of The Old Man and the Sea" Hemingway Review Spring 1998.     

Globalization and Local cultures Essay

The present scenario represents a highly dynamic environment, where transnational advertising, globalization and local culture are found to be closely linked with each other. This essay discusses and critically evaluates some of the major issues that are involved in the relationship between transnational advertising, globalization and local culture. Issues Some of the significant issues that are linked with transnational advertising, globalization and local cultures are as follow: ? Communication: As a result of globalization, the need for transnational advertising in an effective manner has increased. Globalization has led to the proliferation of huge number of products and it is through advertising only that the consumer can be made aware of the uniqueness present in the product. Transnational advertising requires creativity along with the quality of being magnificent depending on the firm. Critical evaluation: The critical evaluation of the issue of communication depicts that advertising should be based on the proper research and well planned groundwork. Advertising should communicate a specific message to target audience in a persuasive and believable manner and also it should not hamper the cultural values of targeted audience and others (Fowles 1996). Globalization has prompted the evolution of advertising agencies, which conduct market research for the clients. Market research deals with the commercial adaptation of standard social science methods in a qualitative and quantitative manner, which should be interpreted in a realistic form. Production of advertisement should not be restricted to just as a business relation between the agency and client; rather its content and practices must be subjected to some self regulatory codes. For instance, cigarette advertising on TV and radio, magazines and newspaper is banned due to federal acts. On the other hand, lack of representation of people in the advertising of cigarette is the result of self- regulatory code (Sinclair 1991). ? Creating consumer: Advertisers usually focus on some repetitive themes such as contentment, youth, achievement, status, lavishness, fashion and attractiveness. As a result of this, Social Opposition and differences among the class get concealed and workplace conflicts are not revealed. Global campaigns propose that remedies for the human problems can be found in the individual consumption, which depicts a perfect channel for mass energies. Critical evaluation: Critical evaluation of the above paragraph states that Consumer democracy serves as a substitute for establishing political democracy. The transformation in the U. S. Pepsi ad campaign, for use in Brazil, which was ‘Join the Pepsi Revolution’ describes that numerous people are left with no other alternative for expressing their requirement for social modification. The only viable option includes changing the brands and enhancing their consumption. Globalization has caused an increase in the transnational advertising and it is one of significant reasons for the enlargement of transnational culture and collapse of traditional cultures. In French or English, the foreign lifestyles of a blond jetsetter are related with the Western products and resemble a sign of modernity. Not only this, they also believe that the elements, which are modern, are superior. On the other hand, traditional elements are absolutely unpleasant. Thus, it will not be wrong to say that transnational advertising and globalization strive towards the removal of local cultural variations. The strategy of global marketing is highly effective as it rarely requires conscious subversion. The message, which states that ‘we will sell you a culture’, has greatly accounted in the global advertising campaign that acts as a particular advertising message utilized in all the countries. The reason behind an increase in preference of worldwide advertising is that it is extremely economical and more effective despite of the fact that it may wildly clash with the local environment (Stravens 1996). Virtue of respect: This is another major issue which represents relationship between transnational advertising, globalization and local cultures. The process of globalization involves principles and motivation of people. Therefore, it is necessary to make modifications in the global strategy and specific marketing concepts must be directed towards the identified groups. Critical evaluation: Critical evaluation of the above stated paragraph reveals that the virtue of respect can be protected from the infusion of foreign culture, if the government takes effective measures to make this fact clear that although they might have an global outlook, yet traditional values will also be given due consideration. The government of Singapore has done it effectively. Here, government formulated a list depicting good and bad aspects of the Asian and western values. This list assisted in the adoption of good systems from both the Asian and western values. In Singapore, it is very essential to understand the family for understanding the consumer behavior. This is so because family has a huge influence on making the decision related to the product’s purchasing and consumption (Stravens 1996). Economic management: In order to maintain a smooth relation between transnational advertising, globalization and local cultures, it is necessary to focus on the aspect of economic management. Values can play both the positive and negative role depending on the developmental stage of a country and extent of preference given to the Asian values. Not only this, international context is also very important. Critical evaluation: From the above paragraph, it is clear that in a world where goods and services move freely across the national boundaries, Asian values can become a part of liability if they do not understand the significance of transparency and accountability. For instance, Singapore is among the developing country that maintain a right blend between the Asian and western values. On the other hand, in South Korea, grouping of traditional and military cultures has led towards extreme dependence on enterprise system. As a result to this, issues like lack of transparency and failure in rationalizing the business structure have aroused (Sung-Joo 1999). Increase in the Decision makers: Globalization and transnational advertisement has brought about a revolution in the decision making capability. Not only this, it has also increased the number of decision makers in a family (Restall 1997). Critical evaluation: Globalization has led to formulation of developed means of technologies for advertising in an effective manner. In a survey, it was found that children in Australia have greater access over the television and computer. This reflects that marketers should give due response to the kids as they also play a significant role in decision making, especially in toys, games, fruit drinks and home PCs (Winton 1998). Not only this, globalization has reappeared as a rational projection of the digitalized revolution. Globalist theories are promoting the idea that people across the world can share widespread common culture (Watson 1997). The only aspect which an advisor should keep in mind that it should not hamper the local culture and must depict any vulgarity and sex. Dignity should be maintained while portraying a male or female in an advertisement. For instance, lee jeans (1987) depict two males and one female draped across bicycle. It is necessary to justify the extent of openness in such advertisements (Wernick 1994). Conclusion From the above detailed discussion, I would conclude with the note that a close relationship exists between the transnational advertising, globalization and local cultures. In order to make the process of globalization successful, it is necessary for the leaders of the globalization to practice the virtues of esteem for religious and cultural values and also surrender their economic self-centeredness for the betterment of the people enduring poverty. This serves as a challenge in front of the world leaders to pay attention to the dimensions linked with the religious and cultural aspects. Globalization portrays a culture of global mass, which is influenced by the contemporary means of cultural production such as Internet, movies, TV, advertising etc. Developing countries are required to understand the significance of globalization. A right blending of Asian and western values is required to gain the benefit of globalization. On the other hand, globalization and transnational advertising should not hamper the local culture, which can be done by effective formulation of rules and regulations by the government. References A. Wernick â€Å"(Re-) Imaging Gender: The Case of Men†, from Promotuional Culture. London: Sage, 1994, pp. 48-66. ISBN 0803983913 B. Restall, â€Å"ABreakthrough in the study of women†, from Production of Culture/ Culture of Production, (ed) P. Du Gay, London: Sage, 1997, pp. 225-232. ISBN 0761954368 Felix Stravens, â€Å"Advertising in Singapore†, in Advertising in Asia, (ed) K. Frith, Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1996, pp. 273-291. ISBN Hang Sung-Joo, â€Å" Asian Values: An Asset or a Liability? †, in Changing Values in Asia, (ed) Han Sung-Joo, Singapore:Institute of Southeast Asia Studies, 1999, pp. 3-9. ISBN 9812300635 John Sinclair, â€Å"Advertising† in the media in Australia, 2nd edition, (ed) S. Cunningham and G. Turner. St Leonards. NSW: Allen and Unwin, 1991, pp. 267-276 ISBN 1863733434 Jib Fowles, â€Å"Deciphering Adverstisements†, from Advertising and PopularCulture, London: Sage, 1996, pp. 167-183. ISBN 0803954824 J. Watson, â€Å"Transnationalism. Localization, and Fast Foods in East Asia†, fromGolden Arches East: McDonald’s in East Asia, (ed) J. Watson, Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1997, pp. 1-38. ISBN 0804732078 K. Winton, â€Å"Pizza and tech talk but hold the veggies†, Communications update, No. 147, September 1998, pp. 10-11. Noreene Janus 2007, â€Å"Cloning the Consumer Culture†, viewed 30 April

Make-Up

Make-up for pre-teens? Recently is seems that more and more girls under the age of eleven are starting to wear makeup, but why? They do not need to their still children. First, many feel that makeup causes damage to the skin, for both older women and younger women. It can be especially damaging to the skin of younger children. Besides, do young children really need to wear makeup? Of course, we all get that awkward stage and you start not liking the way you look. Many doctors feel that this is just one of the growing pains of life.This may be very difficult for a pre-teen girl to accept. Another reason why some parents feel that young girls should not wear makeup is because they will not learn to appreciate their own natural beauty. Of course, most pre-teens do not even want to hear that . It does damage your skin badly; however, it is okay to wear make-up sometime for a special occasion. However, the majority of them did feel that it is important not to overdo it on the makeup. Just a little lip-gloss should be okay.Some of the pre-teens begin to get skin irritations from the makeup. The bottom line is that many parents feel that allowing young children to wear makeup can be hazardous to third skin, but if it is just for fun then it is ok. I am sure that we could all come up with dozens of reasons why young girls should not wear makeup, but it is the parent's decision. We should not look down at the any parent who chooses to allow their child to wear makeup at a young age. Justine Stevens

African American Injustice Essay

â€Å"In the eyes of white Americans, being black encapsulates your identity. † In reading and researching the African American cultural group, this quote seemed to identify exactly the way the race continues to still be treated today after many injustices in the past. It is astonishing to me that African Americans can still stand to be treated differently in today’s society. In reading â€Å"Blacks in America†, Andrew Hacker states that â€Å"being black in America has consequences in areas of: wealth, identity, raising children, occupational opportunities, place of residence, and treatment in the criminal justice system. † To be honest, and I feel bad saying that I already knew this was happening to African Americans. I have heard stories of blacks not getting jobs; regardless of how qualified they are for the position, because of the color of their skin. I have heard stories, and even witness black children getting picked on in school because of the simple fact that they are black. I watched a video in school where a black family moved into a white neighborhood, and before long all the white families had moved out because they didn’t want a black family in their neighborhood. This was confirmed by Hacker in my research in the quote, â€Å"Almost all residential areas are entirely black or white. † I have also seen videos of African American men getting beaten by white arresting officers, and have heard stories of many black men being stereotyped by policemen. This must be why Hacker states â€Å"When white people hear the cry, â€Å"the police are coming! † it almost always means, â€Å"Help is on the way. † However blacks cannot make the same assumption. † These are all reports and events that I think the average American has seen before, but yet most people, including myself, continue to just shrug of and ignore. I guess it’s something that I might have subconsciously accepted, or maybe refused to think more deeply about. In reading and researching, I reaffirmed knowledge that I refused to take a greater note of. I wouldn’t say I learned anything new, because I knew what I wanted to focus on. A quote from Andrew Hacker’s article summarizes the above best, â€Å"In the eyes of white Americans, being black encapsulates your identity. † It may be easy to tell how I am going to focus this anthology. I am going to focus it on the injustices that African Americans continue to face in the United States today. That being, I know exactly what I need to get out of my interviewees, but it is probably a sensitive subject for some of the people I need to interview. I am not black, and I don’t know what it feels like to face this discrimination in everyday life. I can understand the tenderness that African Americans must feel then, when revealing and talking about their experiences with discrimination. I would think then, that it must be especially sensitive to talk about with a person from the race that they receive this everyday discrimination. It will be interesting to hear all the different types of prejudice that my interviewees have received throughout their lives. I would imagine that it ranges from just a look, or the way white Americans act around them, to voiced and physical altercations between themselves and white Americans. Hacker at times seems to be speaking directly to African Americans as he describes these altercations, â€Å"So many of the contacts you have with them (white Americans) are stiff and uneasy, hardly worth the effort. † But to me, that is exactly what the problem is. Why would it not be worth the effort? The first step to take for the uneasiness between the two races to cease to exist is for us (all people) to stop seeing color because once we act differently around the other is where all the problems seem to start. The second step is to make these contacts worth the effort. If we choose to continue to stay in our own comfortable circle of race, when is the problem ever going to end? The answer is never. My opinion as a white 18 year old is that most of the blame lies on the white race. Imagine being eyed every time you go into a store, having your car searched for no reason, or greeted warily at restaurants all because the color of your skin is different. We ignore this daily discrimination because no cares enough anymore to take notice that it happens every hour, every day somewhere in the United States. Will it ever stop? Not until we each take the steps to make it. A recent census commercial I’ve seen said â€Å"We (United States) can’t move forward until you mail it back. † I believe that our country can’t move forward and truly be great until we make sure these daily discriminations are eliminated from our society. In this project, I will interview African Americans on their personal experiences with discrimination, how they handle it, and if they think anything can be done about this problem. Sources: Andrew. 1999. â€Å"Blacks in America. † Pp. 160-168 in The Meaning of Sociology, 6th ed. , edited by Joel Charon. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. A Time to Kill. Dir. Joel Schumacher. 1996. â€Å"African American History. † University of Washington Libraries. Web. 02 Apr. 2010. .

Gps Based Train Tracking

GPS/GSM based train tracking system – utilizing mobile networks to support public transportation. Dileepa Jayakody, Mananu Gunawardana, Nipuna Wicrama Surendra, Dayan Gayasri Jayasekara, Chanaka Upendra, Supervisor, Rangana De Silva Abstract : The paper presents a solution implemented at Sri Lanka, to provide an intelligent train tracking and management system to improve the existing railway transport service.The solution is based on powerful combination of mobile computing, Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), Global Positioning System (GPS), Geographical Information System (GIS) technologies and software. The in-built GPS module identifies the train location with a highest accuracy and transfers the information to the central system via GSM. The availability of this information allows the Train Controller to take accurate decisions as for the train location. Location data can be further processed to provide visual positioning using maps granting a wholesome view on train location.Positioning data along with train speed helps the administration to identify the possible safety issues and react to them effectively using the communication methods provided by the system. Additionally, the location information can be used to facilitate accurate scheduling with regard to train arrival and departure on each station. Introduction Rapid growth in the field of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is a worldwide phenomenon experienced today. Emergence of wireless and mobile technologies plays a key role in the global ICT boost, unfolding a new era of communication technology.Global private sector was the first to explore the endless opportunities and potential of wireless technologies, by redesigning the business processes with the integration of latest wireless and mobile technologies to have the competitive advantage in the business world. Today, the ability to achieve organization’s goals depends purely on the availability, accuracy an d reliability of the information. Governments worldwide have also recognized the high potential in the ICT sector and are using it as a core instrument to facilitate government processes and functions with the goal of uplifting the current standards of living of the society.Governments today are inspired by the concepts like eGovernment and mGoverment where governments are driven by the innovative and intelligent use of ICT as a service provider for government activities and distribution of public information. ICT combined with latest mobile and wireless technologies can be used effectively to streamline government activities and public service delivery process to improve productivity and drastically reduce capital expenditure, time and effort. Many governments have identified potential areas to be developed via the effective implementation of ICT based solutions that will meet the demands of the future world.The transportation infrastructure is one such area, which can be improved to provide an efficient, dependable and safe service to the general public with the integration of advanced communication technology. Appropriate adoption of technology would assist seamless administration of resources that would positively impact the country’s economy. The railway services in Sri Lanka are rendered by the Sri Lanka railways Department, which is wholly owned by the public sector of the country. The government is seeking methods to improve the efficiency of this service with the main objective of providing a better service to the train commuters.However, the effort of the government is constrained by the lack of funding and inappropriateness of the current solutions. But the development of ICT has revealed many options to uplift the railway service at a lower cost. Accurate train positioning has been a fundamental requirement to improve the efficiency of the service. The current switch based train-tracking system used by Sri Lanka Railways (SLR) supports the t rain controllers to manage the train operation by providing the train’s location. The location data provided by this system lacks in dependability.Furthermore, the maintenance of the system accounts to a large portion of total cost incurred on the railway service. Majority of these systems (especially outside the Colombo Suburban Area) offers low accuracy in terms of indicating the location of a train to the Train Controllers. Installing the systems, which can accurately provide such readings are really expensive and the total cost of ownership is unbearable for SLR. The train safety has been an issue with the increasing number of incidents being reported that has caused death and injury.Majority of deaths on the railway involve third parties with the incursion onto the level crossings. Average train accident would cost millions of Sri Lankan rupees and these can be avoided if there is a mechanism to track the train location and speed and warn the locomotive drivers about pos sible safety issues. Additionally, the train commuters also face difficulties due to frequent train delays, as the administration is unable to provide accurate schedules based on train’s location and speed.The solution is a comprehensive GPS/GSM based train tracking system, which provides accurate, dependable and timely information to the controller. The inbuilt GPS module identifies the train location with a highest accuracy and transfers the information to the central system via GSM. The availability of this information allows the Train Controller to take accurate decisions as for the train location. Location data can be further processed to provide visual positioning using maps granting a wholesome view on train location.Positioning data along with train speed helps the administration to identify the possible safety issues and react to them effectively using the communication methods provided by the system. Additionally, the location information can be used to facilitate a ccurate scheduling with regard to train arrival and departure on each station. This information can also be made available for the commuters to identify any train delay in advance making this service more reliable. Railway services in Sri Lanka The Sri express, Lanka Railways Department provides long distance and intercity Colombo commuter, parcel and mail, freight and provision of special harter trains. This accounts to a provision of services to 105 million passengers and transfer of 1. 6 Million metric tonnes of freight per annum. The railways are a vital part of the country's transport infrastructure. As the economy grows, demand for efficient transport services increases, which the rail industry has an important role to play in meeting. The rail industry is making progress in increasing the number of passengers carried, as well as its share of the freight market, and in improving its customer focus and its levels of performance and safety.Railway Today In 2008, railway losses a mounted to LKR 4,553 million and state bus transport losses amounted to LKR 3,554 million, giving a total of LKR 8,107 million losses on state transport. This is not just a one- time phenomenon, but has been the trend for the last few decades. The total losses from the railway alone since 1999 have been LKR 28,052 million. That means, on average, the railway lost LKR 234 million every month over the past ten years; or, to make it even more graphic, LKR 7. 79 million every single day for the last ten years [1].This depicts the current state of the railways system in Sri Lanka as for the efficiency and general acceptance of the service. Reliability matters to the railway’s customers and to the economy at large. Train delay, a common phenomenon in Sri Lanka is considered to be inevitable and an acceptable scenario. A train delay might wary from 15mins to many hours. There are occasions where this has caused disputes among the commuters and the administration but the problem stil l remains unresolved. Railways department maintains a fixed schedule on train arrival and departure but does not pre-update based on potential delays.As a result the commuters face many problems and waste time and energy that can be used more productively. The provision of safe and reliable services is a fundamental requirement of the railway as thousands rely on this service as their prime mode of transportation. The railway accidents accounts to death, injury and a large cost to the government. Most of the accidents are in form of derailments, which occur infrequently but have the potential to result in a large number of casualties. The most significant contributors of these accidents involve track and signaling faults.Lack of communication between the controllers and the drivers might prevent the preliminary precautionary actions being taken to avoid such accidents. Additionally, the danger relies on the fact that there would be no mechanism to identify the potential safety issue s as for the unawareness of trains speed and location. The railways department has set itself several objectives to address this situation through a quantitative improvement of its services. It is planned to increase railway share of passenger transport from percent 5% to 10% and Modal share of freight transport from 2% to 10% by 2010[2].Additionally, the department has identified the importance of improving the safety and efficiency of the service and has set the following objectives in its strategic plan; †¢ Improve cleanliness & quality of coachers / stations †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Reduce train delays by 25 % and accidents/ derailment by 50% Remove all speed restrictions less than 8 Km Ph Establish management structure based on performance evaluation and monitoring process Enhance the percentage of efficiency Put in place a methodology for utilization of public funds corresponding to specific services to make the present negative contribution in to a positiv e oneThere’re several constraints that needs to be addressed in order to achieve these objectives as this might even require complete reengineering of certain technological aspects of the current system. The main constraint of course is the lack of funding. Railways are suffering from historic under-investment stretching back for decades that could be assumed to be so for the foreseeable future as well. However, it’s possible to develop effective solution that is economically feasible to the government. This would only be possible with the appropriate introduction of new technological solutions that achieve both performance and cost goals.Provisions for the future Setting objectives won’t be adequate for the development of the railway service in Sri Lanka. There should be effective and appropriate steps taken with a vision on addressing future demands and expansion. These steps should involve further planning, extensive designing, implementation of solutions and maintaining such systems in order to sustain the service. There are several potential steps that can be taken in order to address most of the aforementioned issues associated with the railway service that in turn would assist the Railways department in achieving its strategic goals.Improving Safety The Railway department of Sri Lanka carries about 150 million passengers per annum and the safety of such service can never be taken for granted. Passengers are entitled to expect to travel in safety throughout their journey and the government should be committed to protect the passengers and employers form any safety issue that might rise during the journey. Effective safety planning requires a detailed understanding of key risk areas; the activities or circumstances where the safety risk to passengers, the workforce and the public is greatest.This allows resources and effort to be concentrated where they will have the greatest impact. Following are the main security issues identified i n Sri Lanka; †¢ †¢ Infrastructure engineering issues – derailment, signaling, points and crossings Public behavior – Assault, objects on line, objects thrown at trains, accidents at level crossings †¢ †¢ Passenger behavior – Struck against fixed objects, falling from train in running Workforce issues – maintenance error, control errors The main safety issues are in the form of accidents that mostly involve third parties other than the passengers and the employers.However, infrastructure safety threats and workforce issues accounts to a considerable amount identified in Sri Lanka. Most of the infrastructure issues are associated with signaling and accident. This can be addressed by developing a communication channel between the train and the control center. The control center should be able to identify the train’s location and speed to recognize possible safety threats; such as collision domains, speeding and noncompliance to sig nals. The control center should also be able to notify the locomotive drivers of the security threat.This will allow the drivers to avoid or at least minimize the harmful consequences. New system-management technology combined with accurate knowledge of train position will give the opportunity to present drivers with advisory speeds as well as safety-critical speeds, aimed at maintaining the flow of traffic by regulating trains in advance of points of conflict so as to avoid or minimize the need to stop trains to await paths. Human intervention at control centers can lead to accidents due to human error or negligence.For an instance if the cross point calculation is done manually it can lead to accidents if an erroneous value is communicated. These problems can only be solved via an automated system, which will handle these tasks and would consequently avoid human error. Improving Reliability & Availability The trust on the railway as a reliable service has degraded over the last fe w decades due to poor provision of services to the general public. This is mainly due to the frequent delays experienced specially in long distance services. A reliable railway is the single most important requirement of passengers.Delays are an unproductive use of people’s time, and serious delays might disrupt their travel plans. The initial cause of a delay can be: †¢ †¢ †¢ An infrastructure problem for which railway department is responsible (for example, a signaling problem or a speed restriction imposed in response to a track defect); An operational problem for which a train operator is responsible (for example, the breakdown of a train); and An incident that is largely beyond the railway’s control (for example, an accident involving a third party)The signaling problems and accidents involving third parties can be minimized using a communication channel between the drivers and the control centers. The control center should be informed of the trainà ¢â‚¬â„¢s current position and speed that should be based on an accurate, dependable source of data. Delays can be minimized with driver advisory speeds, improved platform departure times, backed by predictive routing algorithms and supporting regulation of train movements through junctions, can ensure presentation of trains just in time to utilize a free path, rather than stopping and starting from rest when a path becomes available.None of these solutions will be possible unless the current tracking system is replaced by a dependable and a more informative system that is capable of providing accurate train position and speeds of the entire network. The cost of train control should fall rapidly once real-time train location systems that are suitable to the local context is identified and are implemented.It is likely that operations on most regional lines will be controlled from an operations centre, through low-cost wireless technology such as GSM, the future development of which wi ll allow increased capacity for train control systems, regulation, and improved passenger safety services. Improving Communication and Public Awareness Lack of information regarding train schedules, delays, and low accuracy of the schedules are to become worse within the context of expansions and would only result in more time spent on the platform, consequently resulting in public dissatisfaction and frustration.There are several constraints identified that would prevent the railways from providing accurate schedules and other information. †¢ †¢ The static nature of the information sources (ex: static web pages and notifications at stations) Deficiencies of the current tracking system General public is made aware of the train schedules using notifications at train stations and via the official web site of the railways department.However, none of these methods will provide accurate data as for the static nature of the web site and the notifications at the station. Addition ally, the deficiencies of the current tracking system impose constraints on providing accurate, dependable and timely information to the user. The switched based tracking system used by the railways department is yet to cover the entire network but would cost a considerable amount for expansion and maintenance thus, emphasizes the need of an alternative that would be more accurate and cost effective.This limits effective decision-making due to inaccuracy and would also lead to accidents. Additional train capacity and better service performance will be the key for success, but the coherent use of technology to deliver information on train status in real time will not only improve utilization, but also offer seamless planning as well as accurate information on availability of passenger services.Further enhancements of such system would even grant passengers capabilities such as text messages informing accurate arrival and departure times and even the seating capacity of the train. GPS /GSM Based Train Tracking System We strongly believe that the correct combination of latest information and communication technologies can provide an effective and feasible solution for the requirement of a reliable and accurate train tracking system to improve the efficiency and productivity of Sri Lanka Railways.The solution we propose encompasses a powerful combination of mobile computing, Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), Global Positioning System (GPS), Geographical Information System (GIS) technologies and software to provide an intelligent train tracking and management system to improve the existing railway transport service. All these technologies are seamlessly integrated to build a robust, scalable architecture as illustrated in Fig. 1. Fig. : High Level Architecture The fundamental process in our system is obtaining train location using GPS technology and transmitting the data via GSM network to the central control unit for data processing and information anal ysis. Real- time positioning information received by the server is made meaningful and extremely useful for the end user through integration of GIS technology where the end user can better organize and utilize information from a graphical view point. Our system consists of 3 main modules. †¢ †¢ †¢ The portable hardware unit (GPS/GSM train locator unit) Central server which andles receiving information from train locators and concurrent user requests Graphical User Interface (GUI) to provide services to our stakeholders The train locator unit planted in the train is designed and implemented, considering the cost factor, size of the module, durability and low power consumption. The power supply unit of the module is a main factor which decides the feasibility of the unit, as it should sustain a seamless supply of electricity at a low voltage for the locator module to function properly.The GPS receiver of the unit is capable of identifying the latitudinal and longitudina l position and ground speed of the specific train by receiving information from the GPS satellites. The position data is periodically sent to the central server through the GSM transmitter of the module. The device is capable of storing data in a buffer at a time of GSM connectivity failure, and can synchronize with the remote server when GSM is back online. The device can also respond to commands and data calls from the remote server as per administrative requirements of the train controllers.We have chosen GSM as the communication medium between the train locator and the central server to improve availability of our system by utilizing the existing GSM network which covers the whole country. The use of GSM over GPRS significantly improves the feasibility and availability of our system. Despite the high mobile penetration and number of mobile telecom service providers (GSM) covering the island, GPRS usage and the coverage is poor in many rural parts of Sri Lanka. Thus, selection of GSM over GPRS data communication is feasible and enables island wide service provisioning.The competition between the GSM service providers has also lead to high quality GSM services at fair rates. The central control system includes a server for handling and processing all the position information received from train locators via the GSM network. The server automatically updates the database with latest position, speed and direction information of each train. The server carries out information processing and analyzing in order to cater for different requirements of the users of our system.The main stakeholders of our system are the railway Department), locomotive drivers and the train administrators (Railway commuters. Our main objective is to be instrumental in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of Sri Lanka Railway services by fulfilling the fundamental requirement of reliable and real time information of train positioning for monitoring and administration purposes by th e Railway Department. The end user of our system is offered with an easy to use graphical user interface for information analysis and administration tasks.The web based access and extensible mobile access to our software is designed to be intuitive for the end user to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of our system. We have incorporated GIS techniques to provide location specific data organized in layers so the end user can better apprehend the information provided by the system. a very good Satellite images providing visual positioning can serve as background when used in conjunction with map data specifying the location.Our system essentially provides functionality for the railway administrator to monitor the progress of a particular train or a group of trains operating in a geographical area. The user can search and locate trains by the train ID, train name, current location or nearest station etc. Information such as train speed, direction can also be given along with re al time train positioning data. The train control and management process includes management of heavy traffic of passenger and freight trains, which operates in complex running patterns on the railway network.The train controller needs to ensure that passenger trains are adhering to the schedules as well to find efficient routes for unscheduled freight trains. Recording the train movements, arrival/departure at railway stations, fuel status, railway track conditions, and passenger information is a tedious task for the train controllers and would be time consuming if done manually. The accuracy of this information is very important to ensure smooth functioning of the railway service as well as to optimize resource planning.For example at a point of a railway-track failure or an accident, train controller should be able to decide on how to utilize existing resources and efficient alternative routes to ensure system availability of the railway service in that region. Thus our train tra cking system can be enhanced to automate the train control and management process of the Railway Department in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the railway services provided. Following is a list of facilities that can be offered by our system to automate the train control and management process. †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢Automatic record keeping of train operations and events Functionality to generate time-distance graph for trains which can be used to control and plan the train movements Facility to generate user defined reports and graphs on train movements, arrival-departure at each station, schedule adherence etc. Facility to playback the progress of each train and events for review purposes Automated schedule regulation Forecasting functionality on train arrival-departure at different stations Automatic detection of over speeding, non-adherence r egulations, rail-track failures, train delays etc. o traffic Facilit y to send alerts/warnings to particular train drivers on possible collisions, derailment through the system Automatic rail crossing control By automating the process of record keeping of train traveling, the load of paper work on the train controller is dramatically reduced. This would also ensure accuracy and integrity of the data eliminating human error when documentation is done manually. A single entry point of data ensures there’s no ambiguity of the data recorded in the system.The logged data on arrival-departure time at different stations, number of passengers onboard, freight details, signaling and fuel status at different stations, are instrumental for railway administration when evaluating performance of trains and locomotive drivers. Graphical representation of these data with ability to compare with historical data will be instrumental for the administration to take effective decisions. Various user defined reports on train activities, driver performance, passenge r and freight information also support timely and accurate decision making by the administration.Time-distance graph is vital for the train traffic regulation process. The graph gives the user a wholesome view of the train circulation, railway infrastructure state in different regions and enables the user to detect abnormal conditions and conflicts. The graph is useful for the train operator to identify traffic problems in advance and take precautions to resolve the problems. Data mining is a method of extracting patterns from data [3].The use of advance data mining techniques combined with complex algorithms such as neural networks, genetic algorithms and rule induction can be instrumental in identifying hidden patterns from enormous amount of data. Spatial data mining technique combines data mining with GIS to find patterns in spatial data, which could be a powerful tool for applications using geographical information such as our system. With the huge amount of data pertaining to train operations collected daily, process of information analysis using conventional methods would be a difficult task.Hence, the use of spatial data mining techniques would drastically improve the productivity and effectiveness of the train control and management process carried out through our system. Facility to playback past activities on the railway, enables the user to review and analyze operational situations in the past. Data mining operations can be used effectively in combination with the playback function to identify sequential patterns of particular activities and their impact on the railway traffic.For example, at an unfortunate incident of a train collision, train controllers can use the playback feature combined with the data mining techniques to analyze and identify the sequence of activities which resulted in that accident. With that knowledge, railway administrators can take necessary precautions and trigger alerting mechanisms to avoid such unfortunate accidents i n future, making the railway transportation much safer. Improving safety and availability of railway transport service requires detection and triggering of alerting mechanisms to avoid possible train collisions and other forms of adverse incidents.Constant monitoring of train location, speed, traffic conditions, rail-track conditions and adherence to traffic regulations helps the train controllers to detect potential collisions and derailments. A proper alerting framework is vital in order to avoid such adverse incidents by alerting the locomotive drivers in advance. Our system facilitates a comprehensive alerting mechanism by enabling the train controllers to send alerts/ notifications to locomotive drivers via GSM connection.The hardware unit planted in the train can be enhanced to prompt the alerts to the driver in graphical and audible forms. A LED display unit and an alarm bell to signal adverse conditions can be integrated with the hardware unit to provide a complete alerting framework. The unit can be further enhanced to support voice communication between train controllers and locomotive drivers in order to provide guidance and important messages to the particular driver. This would also enable locomotive drivers to contact the control unit at a state of emergency.Furthermore the system can be incorporated to significantly improve safety at railway and road intersection points. Over the years, many road accidents have occurred at railway crossings imposing a critical safety threat to both train commuters and passengers in vehicles. Such accidents are caused mainly by the unreliability of the safety mechanisms such as blocking arms and signal lights used at the crossing point. Thus our system can be extended to improve the reliability of such safety mechanisms by synchronizing the railway crossing control process with the incoming train’s position.We can provide accurate real time information on train position, speed and length of the train to sy nchronize the functions of rail crossing with the train movements. The productivity of the service can be significantly improved by providing accurate predictions on approaching train at the rail-road crossing and displaying amount of remaining time to clear the crossing from train traffic. Alarm triggers to alert road vehicles approaching too close to the rail-road crossing at a point of train approaching, can also be incorporated to improve the effectiveness of our solution.Thus the system is instrumental in improving safety of both railway passengers and people crossing rail-road cross points. Integrating an intelligent forecasting mechanism on arrival-departure time at different railway stations can further enhance the efficiency and productivity of our system. Train schedule is inevitably subject to train delays which can occur due to various reasons such as excessive train load, rail track failures, train traffic, adverse weather conditions etc.A number of operational paramete rs such as railway traffic, train priority, efficient routes, and railway infrastructure conditions have to be taken into consideration to accurately forecast train arrival time at various stations. Here also data mining with other complex algorithms can be instrumental to provide accurate forecasting on train arrival-departure at stations. The train schedule regulations are automatically updated and stakeholders can be notified. One of the main purposes of our system is to facilitate accurate public information istribution with regard to railway services and operations. Thus, our system can be incorporated to design and implement innovative Passenger Information Systems (PIS) based on real time information of train positions. LED-Display panels put up at railway stations can display arrivaldeparture time of each train enabling the public user to make informed decisions on their journeys. Route number, destination of the arriving vehicle and waiting time can be displayed with real t ime information.With accurate forecasting of train arrival-departure at stations, Railway Department can improve the loyal customer base and also attract new passengers to railway transport service by winning their trust and reducing user uncertainty of using public transport facilities. The user experience can be further enhanced by introducing information Kiosks which can provide information to travelers in an intuitive and interactive manner to make informed decisions on selecting train routes and departure time.The interactive kiosk can be used to obtain travel information such as alternate routes to specified destination, route details on the railway map and latest information on train schedules etc. As a marketing strategy, information regarding the particular city, culture and commercial activities can also be provided to the user through the kiosk. Another extension of the PIS system is delivering real time train information to handheld devices such as mobile phones and PDAs .With the increasing interest on mobile applications, access to latest train schedule information via mobile connection can be influential for improving customer base of the railway service. Easy to use mobile applications can be designed and implemented to enable train commuters to easily subscribe to our service and obtain latest train schedule information via mobile devices. Reliability and customer loyalty of the railway services can be significantly improved by taking such action to improve accurate public information distribution of the current status of railway services.Conclusion After seeing many advancements and changes in the location tracking technology, Sri Lanka Railways now has the ability to pin point the location and other attributes of an operational train in an economical accurate manner. Thus it is visible that to keep up with the today’s demand for information and to comply with the citizen centric governance, technological advancements is essential for a 3rd world country, as after all the deciding factors of a country’s success would be on the how ollaborative and duplex the governance framework in terms of seamless information flow of accurate and timely information between governance ecosystem. Reference [1] Rohan Samarajiva, May 2009, Ideas to win the war: Sri Lanka's main line railway, http://www. lankabusinessonline. com/print. php? nid=1238565096 [2] Sri Lanka Railway Department 2007, n. d. , Future Plans, http://www. railway. gov. lk/future_plan. html