The Variability Of Sound Velocity Through Cycles Of Neap And Spring Essay

The Variability Of Sound Velocity Through Cycles Of Neap And Spring - Essay Example METHODS Because a variety of water conditions were used to obtain data for the study, it was possible to obtain a wide range of results. The study was an oceanographic survey, which was conducted during the spring and neap phase of the tidal cycle at the Dart and Tamar estuaries. This offered a thorough observation of water column through a period of low water and high water. The table below shows the details of the project: Location 1: River Tamar is found in southwestern England, and forms the border between Devon (to the east) and Plymouth city (to the west). Before entering Plymouth Sound, River Tamar at its mouth, flows into the Hamoaze where it joins with River Lynher. The source of River Tamar is less than four miles (6 km) from the north Cornish coast, and it drains southward. Having a tidal length of thirty-two kilometres from its seaward end, the Tamar estuary is a partially mixed, mesotidal estuary. For about fifty miles, the River Tamar flows south to the English Channel, coursing its way through steep wooded country in its middle reaches. This location was used to collect data profiles during spring tides on December 07, 2005, between the time range of 09:40am to 16:00pm, and during neap tides on December 11, 2005 between the time ranges of 08:00am to 14:10pm.

Supply and Demand Concepts Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Supply and Demand Concepts - Assignment Example The price floor of 16 create a surplus of 4000 in the tablet market. Price floor alters the forces of demand and supply in the market (Bhaskar, 1997). In a natural case, the tablet would be selling at 12, but the price floor of 16 prompt the producer to produce more due to the high return expected in the market. On the other hand, consumer would be hesitant to buy at 16 thus, making the market have a surplus of 4000. Price ceiling is maximum price set for a specific good to help the citizen afford at a considerable price lower than the market value. In the tablet market, market price ceiling will create a shortage in the market as a supplier would not be willing to supply a tablet at a price lower than the market price. For this case where price ceiling is set at price $8, the market will experience a shortage of 4000 tablets. The purpose of price ceiling is to bring equity among all customers. A drop in price for the tablet by 50% would alter the market equilibrium. People will demand more tablet than before and the supply for the same will decrease as the prices drops from $12 to $6. The ultimate impact is a downward shift in the demand curve. The market for tablet will have more demand than the supply of table. This scenario is what is referred to as shortage in the market. In cases, all thing are kept constant when price decreases; the market will have to endure with shortages of tablet as the demand will not be met by the available supply. However, according to the laws of demand a reduction in price dictate that the quantity supplied would also reduce. Thus, the supply curve shift to the left and the market will return to the equilibrium price. An increase in income for the tablet consumer would shift the demand curve to the right (other thing constant). Increase in customer’s income leaves them with extra money after their other expenditure to buy tablets and thus increase the demand for tablet. However, because the market for tablet is free

Brand Identity And Brand Image Marketing Essay

Brand Identity And Brand Image Marketing Essay In business brand isnt a new theory. It is used by marketers from long time to identify their products from other competitors that have same product category. As Van Den Heever said the word brand comes from the old German word brandr which means to burn. (Lombard, 2007, p. 18)A Brand is a symbolic embodiment of all the information connected to the product and serves to create associations and expectations around it (Kalakumari Sekar, 2012)The traditional American definition of brand is, a name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or combination of them, which is intended to identify the goods or services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors (Lee Zhang, 2000) 2.1.1 Brand identity and Brand image Brand image has been assigned different meanings from the day it was introduced into the marketing discipline by Gardner and Levy (1955). Some researches has define brand image as brand identity, but according to the recent studies that have claimed that brand image and brand identity are two different concepts but they are interchangeable. Moreover, there are four basics to understand and define the brand image, which are : 1)Brand image is an image in the mind created by the consumer.2) Consumers use their emotions and feelings to interpret the concept of brand image.3) Brand image is an idea fuelled by knowledge through marketing activities taken from the observation of consumer characteristics. 4) The perception of brand image designed in the mind of consumer is much more important than the actual one. However, Brand image is how a brand is perceived by consumers, while brand identity is the way that the company exposes the brand in the market, and how it wants to be perceived by the customers. Eventually, customers may not have the same image of the brand that the company presented. (Bian X., 2011) (Price, 2010) 2.1.2 Brand Power and Market Share According to Stobart (1994) brand power and dominant market share could be occurred through perceived product quality. Generally, entrepreneurs and managers have a great impact on creating power brands. They understand a need and desire of a specific group of customers then they create products and supply the associated services that satisfy those needs extremely well. Effective quality control procedures make sure they do things right the first time in delivering those products and services. Therefore, they achieve superior quality when they sell them the high quality with a less cost of lower quality competitors. Then, they advertise and promote the benefits and the advantages they got using those products. The customer perceives the high quality and the added value offered by the product. The result : a power brand is created and dominant share follows. (Vantamay, 2004) (draw brand power conceptual model) 2.1.3 Brand equity According to Kwok Keung Tam (2007), brand equity is the value premium that a company  realizes from a  product with a recognizable name as compared to its competitors. when Companies make their products memorable, easily recognizable using its name or symbol and superior in quality and reliability, this is the process of creating brand equity. Also, it depends on the number of people with habitual purchase, in that way it could also be a strategy used by the firm to generate cash flow because people arent buying just an ordinary product but they are buying unique value. However, when people are ready to pay more for a standard product instead of branded one, here the brand fails that means brand equity is negative. This might happen if a company caused a widely publicized environmental disaster or had a major product recall. So, when the company wants to expand its product line, it has to consider the brand equity conceptual model. (draw conceptual model) For the consumers, brand equity could present them information about the brand that improves their confidence while their purchasing process. Nevertheless, the brand equity could reduce the expenses of promotions because when brand equity is positive, brand image is positive too that means consumers dont focus on the short term promotion but on the whole brand. Brand equity has five major areas, which are Brand awareness, perceived quality, brand loyalty, brand association and brand positioning. Brand awareness is one of main determinants of brand equity. Brand awareness consist recognition of one particular brand which allows a potential customer to recognize about a specific product or services existence, and confirms that he or she has previously been exposed to it and creating brand awareness is one of the  key steps in promoting a product. (Csapà ³, 2010) In addition according to Kwok Keung Tam (2007) there is two tasks should be done to achieve brand awareness which are namely increasing brand name identity and associating it with the product class. Also, To raise brand awareness some techniques could be useful as advertising and celebrity endorsement. Furthermore, Using perceived quality strategy may lead to consumer satisfaction, which will be shown through perceived performance and expectation. As well, there are many definitions said by some scholars, as consumers perception towards tangible and non tangible characteristics of a product is perceived product quality. these characteristics may include some added value characteristics as performance, durability, conformance, features, serviceability, aesthetics and reliability etc. Moreover, sometimes the actual quality of the product doesnt confirm all these characteristics but the perceived quality of a product could be derived from consumers past experiences. (Vantamay, 2004) A consumer gives a brand loyalty by purchasing the same product or service over and over again rather than buying from other suppliers that sell the same product category. As well, brand loyalty could be defined as the degree of purchasing repeatedly the same brand by the same consumer within a product class. Brand association is the linkage that exist between a brand and the other nodes stored in memory (Korchia, 2007). Every company through consumer buyer research must understand its brand as well as competitors brands . Such a research studies existing and potential customers, past customers, industry experts, and intermediaries. A strong brand should be difficult to be copied by other companies, and such a powerful brand is associated with beliefs and values. (Ghodeswar, 2008) Brand positioning occurs when brand occupies a distinct position comparative to competing brands, in the mind of the customer. Companies use this brand positioning marketing strategy by differentiating the features and characteristics of their brands, or they try to create a specific image of the brand as luxurious, inexpensive, premium and utilitarian through advertising. Branding its all about adding psychological value on service, products and companies. Such value could be in the form of emotional links, beliefs, values, and feelings that people relate to the brand. Once a brand is positioned, it is very difficult to reposition it without destroying its credibility. (Lee Zhang, 2000) 2.2 Consumer Behavior Consumer behavior is the study of the processes involved when individuals or groups select, purchase, use, or dispose of products, services ideas, or experiences to satisfy needs and desires (Solomon, 2007, p. 7).In other words, it is a study focuses on how, what, why, and why people buy. In addition, it studies how people choose to spend their available resources time, money, and effort. 2.2.1 Consumer Buying Behavior The consumer buying behavior concept is the individuals and households who buy goods and services for personal consumption (Tam, 2007). For companies the buying decision is the most crucial part of their enterprise, yet no one really knows how the human brain makes that choice. Buying decisions are made at an unconscious level (Csapà ³, 2010). Furthermore, there are many theories explain the meaning of consumer buying behavior, one of them is Role theory. It suggests that consumers satisfying a need or desire, for this reason they change their consumption decisions, their evaluation criteria. The 7 Ps of marketing stimuli consumer buying behavior which are product, price, place of distribution, promotion, people, process, and physical evidence (KHOURY, 2008) Moreover, there are many factors called buyers characteristics that affect the buying behavior, which are economical, cultural, personal, psychological and social. All these inputs enter the buyers middle box, then many consumers responses observed as product choice, brand choice, dealer choice, purchase timing, and purchase amount. (Csapà ³, 2010) (conceptual model vanda article) 2.2.2 Factors Affecting Consumer Buying Behavior Culture factors: Buyer culture, subculture, and social class are factors that affect consumer buying behavior. Culture is the piece of every society and behavior of people is deeply influenced by their culture. Moreover, Culture is the collection of beliefs, behavior, values, customs and attitudes. Marketers should be careful by analyzing every culture because needs, wants and buying behavior vary from country to other. Culture is divided to many subcultures, and each subculture is a group of people with mutual value systems based on common life situations and experiences. Moreover, subcultures includes nationalities, religious, racial groups, and geographic regions. Marketers should segment the market into different small portions using these groups. Every society contains many social class(upper class, middle class, working class and lower class) which are determined by different factors such income, education , wealth and occupation. These social classes are used by marketers in market segmentation, and it is an important factor because all similar social classes recommend same marketing strategy and every social class its members shares same interests, values and beliefs. (Griffin Pustay, 2003) Social factors : Social factors which are reference groups, family, role and status also influence the buying behavior of consumers . Reference groups could form the attitude or behavior of a person. The impact of reference groups varies according to products and brands types. As an example if the product is visible as clothes, the impact of reference groups is high. Moreover, there is a person who has special skills, knowledge or characteristics which called leader, his opinion is considered by a reference group in many societies. Family members could deeply influence buyer behavior. Hence marketers are trying to know every role of every person in a family, husband, wife, and children. However, they also try to find out who buys a specific product, if husband then they will try to target the men in their advertisements. So, here we should understand that buying roles vary with evolving consumer lifestyles. In the society, roles and status change from one person to other because every person is a member of a specific clubs, organizations or groups For example a husband is working as a coach of football team, that means he will buy the kind of clothing that reflects his and status in his work. (Csapà ³, 2010) Personal factors: Personal factors have impact on buying behavior, such as the buyers age and life cycle, occupation, lifestyle, and personality and self concept. Age and life cycle shape the consumer buying behavior. Purchasing of goods and services of people change with time because every stage of life has its own interests. Life-cycle of a family consists of diverse stages such as young single, unmarried couples, married couples which facilitate marketers to design specific products for each stage. Occupation of a person will affect his purchasing behavior. For example a accounting manager of an organization he should purchase business suits, but a regular or low position worker will purchase cheaper clothes. Economic situation of a consumer has great impact on his buying behavior. The more the income of a consumer is high the more his purchase will be high. However, a person with low income will purchase cheap products. Lifestyle is an important factor that affect strongly the buying behavior of people. lifestyle is a persons of living as expressed in his or her psychographics (Kotler Armstrong, Principles of Marketing, 2001, p. 146). Moreover, people coming from same subcultures, occupation, social class may have quite different lifestyle because lifestyle is determined by customer opinions, interests, activities (work, sports, shopping etc.) Personality varies from person to person, place to place and time to time. the behavior of a person it is his personality not what he wears or what he eats. Personality includes some characteristics such as : self confidence, positive attitude, dominance , active etc which could be useful to determine the selection of products or services for a person. Psychological factors: There are four factors affecting the consumer buying behavior, which are Perception, motivation, learning, beliefs and attitudes. Motivation level that affect the buying behavior. Every person has specific needs such as biological, social, and physiological needs etc. Moreover, these needs vary from one person to another because every person has priority in his needs, and some of these natural needs are pressing more than others. So, These needs which are pressing strongly become motive for a person to reach satisfaction. Perception is a process to produce a meaningful experience in the mind of consumers which contain three steps: Select, organize, and interpret information. Furthermore, there are three different perceptual methods. First method which is selective attention, this case is used by marketers to grab customers attention. Second method is selective distortion, this case is used to interpret the information available about the product in a way to support the customers beliefs. However, third method is selective retention, which is used to retain information that supports customers beliefs. Every customer has specific belief and attitude towards diverse products. However, some of these beliefs and attitudes marketers are interested in them because they affect buying behavior and make up brand image. Moreover, there are some campaigns done by marketers to change customers attitudes and beliefs. (Kotler Armstrong, Principles of Marketing, 2001)

What Happened to Ward and June Cleaver Essay -- essays research papers

What Happened to Ward and June Cleaver? Single parent homes, broken families, and divorce are rampant in today’s society. Marriage is no longer the revered union that it once was. Divorce is clearly on the rise since the days of yesteryear that depicted happy families in the favorable image of Ward and June Cleaver. Unlike the June Cleaver’s of days gone by, the women of today now busily juggle careers, family and household responsibilities, and play the role of â€Å"soccer mom† among many other things. Now that June is swept away with her many responsibilities, together with her earning capacity, reduces her need to rely on Ward ultimately making it easier, and more likely, that their children, Wally and Beaver will become the unfortunate products of a broken home and divorce. Rather than dealing with so many divorces and trying to battle the issue of broken homes from the back end where the damage is irreparable, why not attempt preventative measures instead? According to the Council on Families In America, â€Å"for the average American, the probability that a marriage taking place today will end in divorce or permanent separation is calculated to be a staggering 60% and more than half of divorcing couples have children under the age of 18. The odds that a child today will witness the divorce of their parents, is twice as great as a generation ago, with as many as half of all children likely to experience a parental divorce before they leave home.† Many states, now concerned with the rise in numbers of broken homes and divorce rates, have decided to take measures to reduce this epidemic by implementing mandatory waiting periods when obtaining a marriage license, and mandating programs and educational seminars similar to post-divorce programs now enforced by almost every court systems across the nation. The controversy, however, lies in the argument from critics that restricting couples from marriage or imposing fines or penalties is unjust. Jennifer Daw, a therapist with the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy quoted an article from USA Today wherein opponents argued that, â€Å"divorce regulations or restrictions would create messier divorces, not prevent them and tougher restrictions on divorce could endanger women in abusive marriages.† People were once required to negotiate in divorce. The â€Å"No Fault Divorce† has changed that and takes the ground... ..., healthier, everlasting relationships fostered by good-old fashioned communication? Works Cited Council on Families in America. "Divorce Harms Society." Marriage and Divorce. Eds. Tamara L. Roleff and Mary E. Williams. Current Controversies Series. Greenhaven Press, 1997. Excerpted from â€Å"Marriage in America: A Report to the Nation by the Council on Families in America,† March 1995. Rpt. by permission of the Institute for Family Values. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Thompson Gale. 15 June 2005 . Daw, Jennifer. â€Å"Saving Marriages: How to do it?† American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. 16 June 2005. 16 June 2005 . McManus, Mike. â€Å"Modesto’s Valentine: Divorce Rate Plunges 47.6%† Marriage Savers. 2001. 8 July 2005 . Plunkett, Robert L. â€Å"Divorce Laws Should Be Reformed.† Marriage and Divorce. Eds. Tamara L. Roleff and Mary E. Williams. Current Controversies Series. Greenhaven Press, 1997. From Robert L. Plunkett, "Vow for Now," National Review, May 29, 1995; (c) 1995 by National Review, New York, NY. Rpt. by permission. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Thompson Gale. 15 June 2005 .

Good vs evil in Shakespeare’s Macbeth Essay

The play ‘Macbeth’ is a very tragic one. It is about the downfall of a hero who is led by temptation to mass murder and cruelty. Shakespeare uses various styles and techniques to display very evidently how Macbeth’s character develops as the story progresses, and thus we see how Macbeth turns from good to evil, from a â€Å"valiant cousin† and â€Å"worthy gentleman† to a â€Å"bloody butcher.† The play tells the story of how a noble warrior, Macbeth, descends into evil after meeting with three witches – supernatural beings who prophesy Macbeth’s destiny. He is told he will become King of Scotland, and this idea of gaining power leads him to murder the king, take his throne and then continue his ‘murder spree’ on seemingly whoever he feels like. Eventually Macbeth is slain and order is restored in Scotland. From the very start we have progressively come to abhor Macbeth, however, we cannot help but feel a certain admiration for him. But much more we have a sense of irony and waste: irony because some sterling qualities have been put to such evil use, waste because Macbeth was a potentially great man who was lost. . Macbeth is a play concerned wholly with the battle between good and evil – throughout the play we continually see signs of a supernatural struggle between the two, with evil ‘winning’ over good when Macbeth murders the king, but then good finally defeating evil when Macbeth is slain. In fact, in the very opening scene we see signs of supernatural happenings and evil – the witches: â€Å"Fair is foul and foul is fair; Hover through the fog and filthy air† Here we see that, to the witches, what is evil is good (â€Å"foul is fair†) and what is good they find repulsive (â€Å"fair is foul†). This seems to be their attitude to life, but it could also be a warning to the audience that things to follow are not what they might seem. The first we hear of Macbeth is with praises to his name. He is called ‘brave Macbeth’, ‘valiant cousin’ and ‘worthy gentleman,’ fighting a war for God, king and country. â€Å"For brave Macbeth – well he deserves that name – Disdaining fortune, with his brandished steel, Which smoked with bloody execution†¦Ã¢â‚¬  However, it is in scene III that good and evil collide, when Macbeth meets with the witches. Some say that this is the beginning of Macbeth’s downfall, as in his first  soliloquy he has already thought of the idea of murdering his king. This small seed planted in his mind will soon sprout and he will indeed commit treason. Already, the audience loses their adoration for Macbeth as we see his mental frailty and evil intention. The question at hand is what Macbeth should do; is he determined on evil intent or is divine intervention the answer? He contemplates this, and decides that it is not worthwhile to throw everything away for one guilty conscience, instead the solution is murder. We are soon introduced to Lady Macbeth, and it becomes clear that she is the ambition, the ‘driving force’, behind her husband. To Lady Macbeth, her husband is brave, loving, ambitious yet he is too noble to fulfil the third prophesy. Lady Macbeth then calls upon evil spirits to make her ruthless so she can kill Duncan. â€Å"Come you spirits, That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, And fill me from the crown to the top toe-full Of direst cruelty; make thick my blood.† After reading the letter, she already has a plan brewing. However, she fears Macbeth’s nature. ‘yet I do fear thy nature, it is too full o’th’milk of human kindness’, ‘Thou wouldst be great, Art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it’, ‘What thou wouldst highly, that wouldst thou holily; wouldst not play false, And yet wouldst wrongly win.’ The planning of the murder of Duncan is one of the most important sections of this tragedy. Here we see a conflict in Macbeth’s character, one side wants him to commit the murder, while the other wants to let fate take its course. In a way it is due to his wife that Macbeth is finally persuaded into committing treason. This shows one of the flaws in his character, which Shakespeare exposes. A while after Macbeth has certain misgivings about the affair. In his mind he argues out the advantages and disadvantages. The good side of him says that ‘he’s here in double trust’ ‘I am his kinsman and subject’, ‘as his host who should against his murderers shut the door, not bear the knife myself.’ The more cunning party says that ‘ his virtues will plead like angels trumpet-tongued against the deep-damnation of his taking off’, ‘but only vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself and falls on the other’,’twere  well it were done quickly’, ‘but this blow might be and the end all here’, ‘bloody instructions, which being taught, return to plague th’ inventor.’ Yet he cannot maintain this spark of morality as, under the influence of his wife he commits treachery. After the murder Macbeth experienced remorse, guilt and regret, still revealing his nobility. â€Å"I am afraid to think what I have done† he says. He is troubled by his conscience, he realizes that he is cut off from heaven. He is in fact so hampered in his actions by the conflict between his knowledge that he has committed the crime and his abhorrence of it, that he becomes immobile. Macbeth’s evil is so great that he cannot even say amen to his prayer â€Å",I could not say amen.† By now he realizes he is too deep into his acts of violence to turn back. Macbeth has confused the values of good and evil. That is, he has confused fair and foul, which confusion has all along been the devil’s aim. Macbeth has completely committed himself to evil. Macbeth still thinks of himself as a man, and as such would rather die than suffer the indignity of being ‘baited with the rabble’s curse.’ This feeling in him reminds us of the worthy Macbeth at the beginning of the play. We also see that he still has the courage to act on his convictions, desperate though that courage may be. For he knows now that he must die. He fights as a man. Macduff and Macbeth fight which signifies the ever on-going battle between good and evil. Eventually Macbeth is slain and the evil has been stopped in Scotland – good has triumphed, as Malcom is crowned the new King.

Oranges and Fair Trade Essay

In both poems â€Å"Oranges† and â€Å"Fair Trade† by Gary Soto, the author explores the recurring theme of compassion and pride. Both poems have several ways to show the theme. The poem â€Å"Oranges† is about young love and knowing how it once felt. At the beginning of the poem, I get the sense that the boy is a little apprehensive in meeting his girl as he states, â€Å"Cold and weighted down / with two oranges in my jacket. † Certainly two oranges aren’t going to weigh anyone down, therefore the image described must be the nervousness along with the anticipation of seeing meeting her. As I walked toward / her house, the one whose / porch light burned yellow / night and day, in any weather,† tells me about his burning passion for her. â€Å"She came out pulling / at her gloves, face bright / with rouge,† tells me that she is also excited to see him and that she is either blushing or has applied some makeup in the manner a young inexperienced woman would. As she comes out of her house, some of that nervousness exits him because he smiles and even has the courage to touch her shoulder. The line about the â€Å"used car lot† and â€Å"newly planted trees† is imagery about his reality and what kind of life he lives. As they enter into the drugstore and look at the candies, the boy is probably feeling for the first time a sense of maturity as he asks her what she wanted; because he’s able to buy her something. â€Å"The lady’s eyes met mine, / and held them, knowing / very well what it was all / about. † The imagery here provides some tension for the reader: â€Å"Will the boy ask the girl to change her selection? Will the saleslady demand cash or no sale? Although his courage is impressive, the risk was also a safe and intelligent bet: If the saleslady had refused to honor his orange for payment, he would still have the two oranges to share with the girl on their way home. The oranges give the narrator â€Å"weight† and importance, and then they became a medium of exchange used to buy the candy. â€Å"I took my girl’s hand / in mine for two blocks,† The boy’s reference to the girl as â€Å"my girl,† shows that he now feels in control. The boy proves himself and impresses the girl, which was the goal in the first place, and he is rewarded for his bravery by being allowed to hold her hand on the walk home. As the narrator describes â€Å"I peeled my orange / that was so bright against / the gray of December / that, from some distance, / someone might have thought / I was making a fire in my hands,† symbolizes the new energy of confidence he has in himself, as well as his increased affection for his girl. As a result, the imagery in this poem reflects the boy’s struggle in life from adolescence to adulthood. The poem â€Å"Fair Trade† is about money, pride, and sympathy. The title gave off an aura of sarcasm as he states, â€Å"she said, â€Å"Dollar thirty,† / I thought, No meat or butter. It wasn’t really a fair trade, because a dollar thirty for two slices of bread is quite expensive at his time. Neither did the waitress offered meat nor butter. â€Å"The man / hesitated, then fumbled for / coins from his pocket,† tells me that the man is poor, because he wouldn’t have been taken aback if he have lots of cash. Only the narrator sympathize the Mexican man as he states, â€Å"I stabbed the carrots, / hurting for this man. † I conclude that the bread may not have satisfied the man because he didn’t leave anything on his plate. At the end of the poem, the narrator tells us that the experience had left him a mark, that he wouldn’t forget the memory of that day. The images of the poem reflect the Mexican man’s pride and the narrator’s compassion towards him. Both poems teach us the same lesson; â€Å"Compassion comes from seeing others struggle. † The poems’ similarities are that they both have people who show sympathetic pity and concern to others. In the poem â€Å"Oranges,† the narrator describes compassion by his own experience, how pride affected him. On the other hand, the poem â€Å"Fair Trade,† describes the narrator’s interpretation of pride.

buy custom Components of E-business essay

buy custom Components of E-business essay Planning for the changeover to e-business from the offline business is a strategic component that determines the success of the ecommerce strategy. It involves action plans that include making available the amount of capital required, trained human resource, information technology skills, technology hardware, such as computers and internet connections. This component of e-business dictates the decision on implementation methods and tools used in the changeover, depending on strengths and weaknesses of the business and the opportunities presented by ecommerce according to the vision and mission of the PepsiCo (Cross Miller, 2009). Ecommerce business is an area faced with several risks. Therefore, companies need to understand it well to ensure that they are protected against such risks. PepsiCo faces such risks as well. Some of these risks include loss of merchandise as a result of fraud, misrouting during distribution process to wrong destinations (majorly when the merchants are untrustworthy and untraceable), leading to loss of both goods and money (Cross Miller, 2009). Any businesses adopting ecommerce should ensure that third party merchants are well known, registered, and traceable to curb the loss of customers merchandise and money to potential fraudsters. This is also applicable to the risks of customers disputes of the delivered goods leading to loss of payments. PepsiCo needs to ensure that during ordering, customers provide adequate information to be able to distinguish genuine customers from fraudulent orders. This will reduce the loss money through credit card payments, which poses impacts both on the company and merchants who are forced to pay the bank charges to compensate the losses. Accuracy in processing the transactions remain key to efficient deals to avoid experiencing chargeback costs that also occur when customers dispute the transactions sometimes due to inaccuracy in the amount involved, errors in processing, authorization errors and fraudulent issues. These costs can be avoided if transactions are accurately and efficiently processed. Therefore, this means that the new ecommerce technology should be well understood before the implementation stage takes effect, to be able to seal all the possible loopholes that are likely to give way to losses (Joseph, 2008). Provision of adequate infrastructure system that warns new clients who are not conversant with purchasing on the Internet is important in proving authenticity of the company. These systems should be in a position of protecting clients passwords to sensitive personal information like credit cards to avoid exposure to fraudsters and at the same time authenticate transactions when dealing with fresh cl ients before closing the purchase orders and delivering the products to the customers. Technological components must also be put in place for a company that needs to grow in the modern business environment that is full of competition through the use of high technology machines (Joseph, 2008). The technological platform where e-Business is carried out involves of technologies that have to be tailor-made, tested out and integrated into the business. This component is one of the essential e-business components that include widely approved technological standards and requirements that generate technical procedures and platforms than computers, but can be used to pass information. Technology infrastructure involves reliable Internet connections and adequate machinery, such as computers and browser connections. Technological constituents, such as middleware, are important since they help build broad and complex e-commerce systems. Employee development is strategy that works well for many companies, including PepsiCo. Employees first need to be prepared for the change to avoid unnecessary resistance during the implementation stage. Employee development also involves training workers to be technology compliant and improve their IT skills, which are mandatory in ecommerce having in mind that technology innovation and improvement takes place every time (Shajahan Priyadharshini, 2007). PepsiCo needs to train its clients on how to access information from the companys websites without risking exposing their information to non-deserving people, such as credit card fraudsters. This training can be done through seminars and online information that can be accessed by all existing and potential customers. Many clients are very skeptical when it comes to online purchases due to the widespread Internet fraud and may only be willing to do business with very organized and secure sites. PepsiCo also needs to segment its market during marketing and advertisement of the products. This segmentation can be done in terms of age, social class to provide products that all social groups can afford, and ensuring availability of these products from the distribution stores for the retail customers at all times. One reason that has led to the success of Pepsi products is the differentiation of its brands that have been established and have built customer loyalty in those regions. Product positioning remains vital in building customer loyalty. This can quickly be done through internet marketing, which reaches more people at ago all over the world. The companys first strategy involving agreements with Yahoo picked up well and were very successful because of adequate planning, as well as embracing of the new digital technology. Other reasons include adequate planning, employee development, good management kills, infrastructure, and risk management systems. Fraudulent transactions that have always mired online transactions that make the merchants and clients lose both merchandise and money are the loopholes that have hampered Pepsis success. Thus, they need to be sealed in order to drive businesses to higher levels. PepsiCo being the second largest food and Beverage Company has very strong financial base, which is enough to implement the ecommerce strategy. Training of employees on the new internet marketing skills, supply chain management, inventory management. Implementation of the ecommerce Technology in PepsiCo involved provision of the computer gadgets and internet connection that to provide necessary platform for the change to e-Business (Shajahan Priyadharshini, 2007). PepsiCo also offered in-house trainings to the staff to be technology compliant ready to execute the ecommerce operations. The major stakeholders of the PepsiCo are the suppliers, customers, government, employees, and the management. The companys consumers need to utilize the ecommerce platform to order and pay for products conveniently, while maintaining and managing internet security risks. The internal control systems that are used to authenticate transactions need to be fully outlined with clear chain of command. The improvement of the technology has also provided good business growth opportunity enhancing PepsiCos strength in the market. The involvement of the society, production of healthy products with low sugar levels favorable for children, guarding them against health and lifestyle related diseases like obesity, diabetes, and the environmental protection proojects, gave PepsiCo business advantage over its competitors, such as the Coca-Cola company. PepsiCo does this by converting its product portfolio, forming global initiatives like calorie labeling to increase nutrition education, and backup up programs that promote physical fitness centers (Romanik, 2007). In the ecommerce, PepsiCo has adopted a responsible electronic marketing strategy that teaches children that good eating habits at an earlier age contribute to their future health. PepsiCo adopted a policy in 2009 not to advertise and sell certain products that do not meet specific nutrition level to children under age 12. The policy took effect in 2009 for beverages globally and all snacks and food in the whole world on January 1, 2011. Pepsi plans to stop selling full sugar soft drinks directly to primary and secondary schools across the world by 2012. This policy is to help schools to provide a wider range of low-calorie and nutritious beverages to their students in primary and secondary schools (Ferrell Ferrell, 2010). PepsiCo plans to implement this policy fully by January 1, 2012 and it has announced this interest on the Internet. PepsiCo does not currently sell directly to primary and secondary schools full calorie drinks in Europe, Canada, and a number of countries in the Arabian Peninsula (Ferrell Ferrell, 2010). Currently the use of iPhone has spread to users many including school going children who can easily access the information. For this reason, PepsiCo implements the responsible e-marketing strategy to ensure that information reaches the only relevant people. In as much as technology is acceptable, many online clients have since withdrawn from transacting businesses over the internet due to the widespread internet crimes committed by fraudsters. Many clients have expressed reservations and they prefer offline business transactions to e-business. Bad experience of wrong delivery and erroneous processing of transactions has also contributed to the failure of ecommerce initiative. Pepsi should not just adopt Ecommerce marketing coverage strategy since it focuses on differentiated marketing, they should also consider other aspects that accompany the marketing strategy. Many clients do not have sufficient IT skills that are required in carrying out e-business. This gave the changeover a slow start in some regions, including India, with many insisting on continued offline transaction (Joseph, 2008). Ecommerce and e-business have become the order of modern business. Many companies than need to compete have adapted the two innovations. Ecommerce and e-business involve the use of the Internet in the transaction of goods and services from production, order, delivery, marketing, and payment for the purchased goods and services. PepsiCo is one of the companies that have adopted ecommerce for about ten years and have used the new technology in inventory management, supply chain management, Internet marketing and electronic funds transfer. PepsiCo is an international company that deals in beverages and foods snacks in four major regions in North America, South America, Europe and Asia and African markets with a number of products like Pepsi-Cola, 7Up, Fritos Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Doritos, Pepsi Max, Quaker Foods, Tropicana Cheetos, Miranda, Ruffles, Aquafina, Tostitos, Sierra Mist, Walker's and Lay's Lipton. The company uses the Internet to market and sell these brands. Several strategies ensure all the stakeholders are successfully navigated through the navigation period. These include adequate planning, employee development, good management kills, infrastructure, and risk management systems. Buy custom Components of E-business essay

The Cost Of Living Essays - Arundhati Roy, Bengali People

The Cost Of Living Essays - Arundhati Roy, Bengali People The Cost Of Living Question #1 With the 3600(A. Roy 16) hydroelectric dams either going up or already built in India, there will undoubtedly be over 33,000,000 people displaced by the big dams reservoirs (16), most of which are Adivasi or Dalits (18), natives of India. Without a proper resettlement program in place, many are left with no place to go. Much of the land thats needed for the reservoirs was confiscated, scammed away, or bullied into being sold by the government. And what land the government did buy, not everyone received the money they were supposed to. The resettlement programs that are in place, are best described by Roy I can warrant that the quality of their accommodation is worse than in any concentration of the Third Reich(20). From what I gather from Roy, these resettlement sites sound pretty inhumane and Im really surprised actions like that of the Indian government arent under fire of the U.N. Granted this doesnt seem to be the most publicized nor well documented ongoing incident. As for the Nuclear weapon problem that faces India, Roy didnt seem to address it in great detail. And if she did, I read right through it. With lack of proper storage facilities and the threat of contaminating Indias extraordinarily expensive drinking water. It might be wise decision for the Indian government to either discontinue their nuclear weapons program or properly address these issues. Question #2 I guess I really have no other choice but to agree with Roys opinions. Maybe if we were given some type of written response from the Indian government or anything from a different viewpoint. Anyone that has read this book, without any outside information, would have to have something against the Adivasi or seen something in the book that probably 99% percent of the people that have read it missed to disagree with Roy on the problems in India. The only people profiting from the dams are in the government, part of World Bank, Jai Prakash Associates, and anyone with enough money that needs the water. Moreover, it doesnt appear that any of the rural citizens of India will be sharing in any of the profits or even get water for quite some time. Question #3 The cautious equation Roy calculates on pg. 17 that estimates 33,000,000 people have been displaced by big dams is a huge strong point in Roys argument. To add insult to injury, the people that are even lucky enough to get resettled, are put in tin shacks on inhospitable land, a far cry from what there used to. Before the dams, the displaced were self-sufficient and doing all right for the lifestyle they led. All of the evidence Roy offers about the Indian government points to a total disregard for human life or a great degree of incompetence. Either way, something drastic must happen before anything is really going to change. To be honest, I failed to recognize any weaknesses in Roys arguments. Im not trying to say there arent any, but I didnt find any. Question #4 I chose to label as coming Roy from a social conflict perspective. I basically did this through the process of elimination. She is definitely not a structural-functionalist. She was certainly not trying to be objective, in the loosest sense of the word, while writing this book. This is another of the states tested strategies. It kills you with committees., she sounds pretty involved in that sentence while describing one of the committees suppose to conduct an independent review. Her equations, monetary reports, and percentages give her a little symbolic interaction flavor, but she definitely is more into the way her people are being treated Bibliography The cost of living by andretti roy

The Inventors or Muckers Who Worked for Thomas Edison

The Inventors or Muckers Who Worked for Thomas Edison Already by the time he moved to Menlo Park in 1876, Thomas Edison had gathered many of the men who would work with him for the rest of their lives. By the time Edison built his West Orange lab complex, men came from all over the United States and Europe to work with the famous inventor. Often these young muckers, as Edison called them, were fresh out of college or technical training. Unlike most inventors, Edison depended upon dozens of muckers to build and test his ideas. In return, they received only workmens wages. However, the inventor said, it was not the money they want, but the chance for their ambition to work. The average work week was six days for a total of 55 hours. Nevertheless, if Edison had a bright idea, days at work would extend far into the night. By having several teams going at once, Edison could invent several products at the same time. Still, each project took hundreds of hours of hard work. Inventions could always be improved, so several projects took years of effort. The alkaline storage battery, for example, kept muckers busy for almost a decade. As Edison himself said, Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.   What was it like to work for Edison? One mucker said that he could wither one with his biting sarcasm or ridicule one into extinction. On the other hand, as electrician, Arthur Kennelly stated, The privilege which I had being with this great man for six years was the greatest inspiration of my life. Historians have called the research and development laboratory Edisons greatest invention. In time, other companies such as General Electric built their own laboratories inspired by the West Orange lab. Mucker and Famous Inventor Lewis Howard Latimer  (1848-1928) Although Latimer never worked directly for Edison at any of his laboratories, his many talents deserve special mention. The son of an escaped slave, Latimer overcame poverty and racism in his scientific career. While working for Hiram S. Maxim, a competitor with Edison, Latimer patented his own improved method to make carbon filaments. From 1884 to 1896, he worked in New York City for the Edison Electric Light Company as an engineer, draftsman, and legal expert. Latimer later joined the Edison Pioneers, a group of old Edison employees - its only African American member. Since he never worked with Edison at the Menlo Park or West Orange laboratories, however, he is not technically a mucker. As far as we know, there were no African American muckers.   Mucker and Plastics Pioneer: Jonas Aylsworth (18-1916) A gifted chemist, Aylsworth began working at the West Orange labs when they opened in 1887. Much of his work involved testing materials for phonograph recordings. He left around 1891 only to return ten years later, working both for Edison and in his own laboratory. He patented condensite, a mixture of phenol and formaldehyde, for use in Edison Diamond Disc records. His work with interpenetrating polymers came decades before other scientists made similar discoveries with plastics.   Mucker and Friend until the End: John Ott (1850-1931) Like his younger brother Fred, Ott worked with Edison in Newark as a machinist in the 1870s. Both brothers followed Edison to Menlo Park in 1876, where John was Edisons principal model and instrument maker. After the move to West Orange in 1887, he served as superintendent of the machine shop until a terrible fall in 1895 left him severely injured. Ott held 22 patents, some with Edison. He died only one day after the inventor; his crutches and wheelchair were placed by Edisons casket at Mrs. Edisons request.   Mucker  Reginald Fessenden  (1866-1931) Canadian-born Fessenden had been trained as an electrician. So when Edison wanted to make him a chemist, he protested. Edison replied, I have had a lot of chemists... but none of them can get results. Fessenden turned out to be an excellent chemist, working with insulation for electrical wires. He left the West Orange lab around 1889 and patented several inventions of his own, including patents for telephony and telegraphy. In 1906, he became the first person to broadcast words and music over radio waves.   Mucker and Film Pioneer: William Kennedy Laurie Dickson (1860-1935) Along with most of the West Orange crew in the 1890s, Dickson worked mainly on Edisons failed iron ore mine in western New Jersey. However, his skill as staff photographer led him to assist Edison in his work with motion pictures. Historians still argue over who was more important to the development of films, Dickson or Edison. Together, though, they accomplished more than they did on their own later. The fast pace of work at the lab left Dickson much afflicted by brain exhaustion. In 1893, he suffered a nervous breakdown. By the next year, he was already working for a competing company while still on Edisons payroll. The two parted bitterly the next year and Dickson returned to his native Britain to work for the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company.   Mucker and Sound Recording Expert: Walter Miller (1870-1941) Born in nearby East Orange, Miller started working as a 17-year-old apprentice boy at the West Orange lab soon after it opened in 1887. Many muckers worked here a few years and then moved on, but Miller stayed at West Orange his entire career. He proved himself in many different jobs. As manager of the Recording Department and Edisons primary recording expert, he ran the New York City studio where recordings were made. Meanwhile, he also carried on experimental recordings in West Orange. With Jonas Aylsworth (mentioned above), he earned several patents covering how to duplicate records. He retired from Thomas A. Edison, Incorporated in 1937.

Australia Voting and Elections Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Australia Voting and Elections - Essay Example Identified with very strong identifiers people are more likely to vote in accordance with their identification and that identification is not very strong and is mostly influenced. Voters also have strategic choices. These are influenced by the number of votes they have been allocated, the way preferences may be ordered, and the manner of distributing votes among the candidates. Party identifiers influence the voters to take their decisions earlier and those people who take their decision earlier are often determined about their voting and they don't feel hesitation. Voting behavior in Australia is also influenced through developing a retrospective view which emerges from an assessment of several social, economical and political issues. A view or assessment on a particular issue helps the voters taking their decisions. So the comments of a party leader, his view on especial issue, the decision taken by him, party philosophy change the voter's mentality. The decisions, changes and reforms taken by the previous government make deep impression in the voting behavior of Australian citizens. Different electoral systems can prompt different voting behavior. It cannot be assumed that every voter would support the same party under one system as another. Since around the middle of the 1960s, one of the most important elements of electoral politics in almost all advanced, democratic industrial societies has been the noticeable weakening of party identification. The various aspects of party identification have already influenced and are influencing the elections of Australia time to time and the share of power which is responsible various political events. For example, in 1996, however, there was a notable drop in the level of identification with the ALP, but no corresponding rise for the Coalition. In 1998 the level of identification with the ALP recovered slightly but then declined again in 2001 (to a level slightly below that of even 1996) and even further in 2004. The level of identification with the Coalition parties has remained relatively constant at around 40 per cent since 1979 and the result has also followed consecutive effects. For another instance, it can be mentioned the possibility that the increased measured level of party identification for the Australian Labor Party (ALP) in 1987 may have been a result of this question-wording effect (though even if true, this still would account for only a part of the effect). There may also have been an electoral system effect resulting from the Australian use of exhaustive preferential voting (Charnock). It has long been suspected that the order in which candidates' names are placed on a ballot somehow influences the decision-making process of voters. Theories of ballot position have suggested, variously, that candidates benefit from being placed first on the ballot, due to a 'primacy effect', or last on the ballot, due to a 'recency effect' (Koppell and Steen, 2004). Party identification has various aspects as for it influence the voters to support minor parties and independent candidates, knowing that their preferences may be used to decide the winner. Thus, votes for minor

Family Business & Entrepreneurship Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Family Business & Entrepreneurship - Assignment Example 2.1. Tata Group: In brief, Kuratko describes the Tata Group as â€Å"a well-known and one of the oldest family businesses in India, with its presence in more than 100 countries. Tata Group was founded in 1868 as a family business in textile industry and has expanded into various other sectors such as textiles, communications, software, engineering, materials, services, energy and consumer products†(2013, p.559). Some of Tata companies include Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Power, Tata Chemicals, Tata Teleservices, Titan, the Taj group of hotels etc. The total revenues of Tata Group are around $ 80 billion, most of which come from Tata companies outside India. While much can be said about the Tata group, the most noticeable point of argument is its future performance in the native and international markets after the appointment of new Chairman, Cyrus Mistry, who is part of Tata family through marriage and as largest shareholding member. 2.1 Point of study: Within the Tata Group, Tata Motors has been the point of attention both for the company and the media in recent times, especially after their acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR) from Ford Motors, under the chairmanship of Mr Ratan Tata, following Ford’s failure to generate profits in the European markets. Reports indicate that Tata Motors, which was running in losses during this acquisition, closed the last quarter of 2013 in impressive profits in their European subsidiaries under the chairmanship of Cyrus Mistry (Sahu, 2014). While this is good news for the Tatas in European markets, their Indian business continued to report losses and weak demand with a 36% fall in volume and 27% fall in revenues. To understand how family members’ commitment to the business translates into growth and profits, it is important to understand the nature of entrepreneurship exercised at the Tatas. This will also probably highlight underlying

Social movement news Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Social movement news - Essay Example From this above mentioned information, it might be clearly revealed that, in this age post racial period, the issue of ethnic discrimination is a major topic of concern as compared to others. Since, slave era or colonial era, the Asian Americans or the African citizens had to bear huge range of discriminations in all aspects such as educational facilities, voting rights, land acquisition, job employment, and many others. However, due to which, a hug range of Native Americans or Africans had to remain uneducated or jobless, as compared to white Americans. As a result, the level of poverty and unemployment raised that hindered their livelihood and living standard to a significant extent. Apart from this, due to the prevalence of racial discrimination, the African citizens feared to send their kids in schools and colleges to attain educational facilities and so their level of illiteracy increased to a considerable extent mainly among the black citizens of the nation of America as compar ed to others. Other than this, numerous African citizens emigrated from neighbouring countries is also barred to attain respectable positions (Parker & Goering). As a result of which, in spite of high experience and knowledge, the African Americans failed to improve their career objective or goals due to racial discriminations in this age of information technology or globalization. Furthermore, due to which, the level of wages of the African Americans are also quite low as compared to Original (Americans American Civil Liberties Union).

Assessment of English Language Learners Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Assessment of English Language Learners - Essay Example 11). Analysis of our data, for example, showed that elementary children were instructed during the week for an average of twenty-two and a half hours. Student involved classroom assessment is an alternative tool of assessment based on: "student involvement in the assessment process, student-involved record keeping, and student-involved communication" (Stiggins and Chappuis 2005, p. 12). Student-involved classroom assessment ensures that student's achievements are objectively assessed and analyzed by a teacher. Students can be guided toward a real, active respect for an interest in education, extending from secondary education through college and beyond. Apart from narrow educational norms and emphases, other personal characteristics are important for the growth of such a positive outlook. These include a real feeling of self-discipline, understanding of and respect for art and other intellectual achievements of human society, an interest in physical and mental health, and in sound relationships with others, and a sensible perspective on the value and use of leisure. Student-involved record keeping allows students to monitor their achievements and improve them immediately. This assessment tool motivates students to pay more attention to their educational achievements. "As they chart progress, they gain a sense of control over their own learning." (Stiggins and Chappuis 2005, p. 13). It yields an immense variety of designs, characterized not only by self-adaptiveness and a very sparing use of natural resources in their realization but also by two other most significant factors of flexibility: the acceptance of imperfections and the mass production of individuality. Both of these characteristics need to be viewed not as an involution but as an evolution, indeed a revolution, in ability to design flexibly. Student-involved communication is effective tools of assessment because it allows parents to monitor achievements of their children and communicate with teachers and other parents. This techniques motivates students to have "a positive story" and to be responsible for their achievements. If effective and stern judgments cannot always be made, then let us at least use the accreditation process to improve things where possible--this seems to be the conclusion that many have drawn. But this conclusion does not fulfill the objective of accreditation, and, of equal importance, it does not have accreditation doing what the public thinks it should be doing. If the process is to survive, therefore, and if the rapid advance of government in the process of educational evaluation is to be halted, steps must be taken to restore accreditation to the role it is assumed to have--that of evaluating educational institutions, honestly, rigorously, and openly, so that when a person obtains a degree fro m an accredited institution, reality will match expectation (Kyriacon, 2000). The other alternative assessment tools are concentrated on reductions in score gaps and low achievements. Classroom Assessment to Reduce Achievement Gaps helps educators to concentrate on problems appeared during education programs: " (a) focus on clear purposes, (b) provide accurate reflections of achievement, (c) provide students with continuous access to descriptive feedback on improvement in their work (versus infrequent

Frederick Jackson Turner writes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Frederick Jackson Turner writes - Essay Example The immigration of people of various ethnic backgrounds mostly Europeans into the region led to their transformation. They cultivated adopted and spread their culture and notions in west America. Thus, through these processes, they become Americanized. According to Jackson Turner, the long established American character originated from the forests and gained momentum every time it reached a frontier thus the frontier thesis. The American character entails democracy, equality, optimism, individualism, violence, and self-reliance (Turner 1). I agree with Turner that America owes its identity from the west. First, the Middle States, as well as the South, possessed democratic ideas and this formed the center of Ohio politics in her early history. This is proved since most of its members elected in the Ohio legislature in 1820 comprised a large number of the natives. For example, New England contributed nine Senators as well as six Representatives who mainly came from Connecticut. Moreove r, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania elected seventeen Senators as well as twenty-one Representatives majority who came from Pennsylvania (Turner 1). Further, the South elected twenty-seven Representatives and nine Senators most of whom came from Virginia. Among the Representatives, five of them were natives of Ireland. In total, the emigrants from the Middle Region and the Democratic South outnumbered the Federalist who originated from New England. Since America is the heart of democracy and Ohio was the first state to elect emigrants as representatives, then it shows that the idea of democracy in America arose from Ohio, which is in the frontier. Secondly, once the immigrants settled in the West, they cooperated among themselves in clearing land, building houses and barns, and establishing communities (Froner 337). These ideals of individualism spread from the west into other areas in America. Thus, the communities promoted selflessness within their communities which later

Purpose statment Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Purpose statment - Personal Statement Example My experiences with my family members had a profound impact upon my thinking. One day my cousin and I were walking on the road. Suddenly, a car approached from behind, and my deaf cousin failed to hear it. I had to push him to the side, in order to save his life. This experience had a profound effect upon me. As such, right from a very young age, I have been exposed to individuals with defective senses. Thus, I had been associated with the hearing impaired, as well as people who experienced great difficulty in speaking normally. Among my family members, there were several people with major hearing defects. Being so proximate, these defects in hearing had a major impact upon my tender psyche. It is necessary to understand that there are several people, of varying age, who are afflicted by defective senses. As a consequence, there are individuals who are blind, deaf, dumb or with other physical shortcomings. As such, in several of these instances, adequate training can be provided to help these impaired persons to develop the skills to manage their day-to-day affairs. Upon encountering a physically impaired person, people tend to behave in a sympathetic manner towards them. This is not what that person desires. Providing such persons with the skills to address their daily problems and to get on with their life is truly beneficial for such people. Thus, I have developed a keen interest in speech-language pathology. It is my honest and humble aim to master this field of knowledge, in order to provide assistance to the individuals with these afflictions. I am keenly interested in helping individuals with defective hearing, residing in the villages of my great nation. This task has proved to be daunting, primarily due to the absence of a master program in speech language pathology. Such academic and professional competence is indispensable for providing outstanding relief to the people with defective hearing. I have been extremely active in

Frederick Jackson Turner writes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Frederick Jackson Turner writes - Essay Example The immigration of people of various ethnic backgrounds mostly Europeans into the region led to their transformation. They cultivated adopted and spread their culture and notions in west America. Thus, through these processes, they become Americanized. According to Jackson Turner, the long established American character originated from the forests and gained momentum every time it reached a frontier thus the frontier thesis. The American character entails democracy, equality, optimism, individualism, violence, and self-reliance (Turner 1). I agree with Turner that America owes its identity from the west. First, the Middle States, as well as the South, possessed democratic ideas and this formed the center of Ohio politics in her early history. This is proved since most of its members elected in the Ohio legislature in 1820 comprised a large number of the natives. For example, New England contributed nine Senators as well as six Representatives who mainly came from Connecticut. Moreove r, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania elected seventeen Senators as well as twenty-one Representatives majority who came from Pennsylvania (Turner 1). Further, the South elected twenty-seven Representatives and nine Senators most of whom came from Virginia. Among the Representatives, five of them were natives of Ireland. In total, the emigrants from the Middle Region and the Democratic South outnumbered the Federalist who originated from New England. Since America is the heart of democracy and Ohio was the first state to elect emigrants as representatives, then it shows that the idea of democracy in America arose from Ohio, which is in the frontier. Secondly, once the immigrants settled in the West, they cooperated among themselves in clearing land, building houses and barns, and establishing communities (Froner 337). These ideals of individualism spread from the west into other areas in America. Thus, the communities promoted selflessness within their communities which later

The magic of the Arabian Nights Essay Example for Free

The magic of the Arabian Nights Essay The original, authentic, real Ur-text of the Arabian Nights (aka Alf Layla wa-Layla, or the Tales of a Thousand and One Nights, or just the Nights) is a mythical beast. There are far more than a thousand and one nights, for the thirty-four-and-a-half stories in the fourteenth or fifteenth century â€Å"core† body of the Nights were soon supplemented by other tales in Arabic and Persian, from the culture of medieval Baghdad and Cairo, and then in Hindi and Urdu and Turkish, tales carried by pilgrims and crusaders, merchants and raiders, back and forth by land and sea. And then came the narratives added by European translators, as well as the adaptations (in paintings and films) and retellings by modern novelists and poets. There is no agreed-upon table of contents. As Marina Warner points out, at the start of this enchanting book, â€Å"the stories themselves are shape-shifters†, and the Arabian Nights, like â€Å"one of the genies who stream out of a jar in a pillar of smoke†, took on new forms under new masters. The corpus lacks not only parents but a birthplace; Persia, Iraq, India, Syria and Egypt all claim to have spawned it. So the Thousand and One Arabian Nights are not only not a thousand and one but not (just) Arabian. The chronological and cultural strata of the Nights are like the layers of a nested Russian doll: you pull off the twentieth century (Salman Rushdie in Haroun and the Sea of Stories, Walt Disney, Errol Flynn) and then the nineteenth and eighteenth century (Marie-Catherine d’Aulnoy, Jean Antoine Galland, Richard Francis Burton, Edward W. Lane); and finally you get to the Arabic sources, and you think you’ve hit pay dirt. But then you sense, behind the Arabic, Homer and the Mahabharata, and the Bible, and you see that there is no there there. It’s not an artichoke – peel away the leaves of the later, accreted, interpolated layers until you find the original centre – but an onion: peel away the leaves and at the centre you find – nothing. Or, perhaps, everything; lacking a birthplace, the Nights also lack a grave: â€Å"The book cannot ever be read to its conclusion†, says Warner: â€Å"it is still being written†. Scholars who could not cure themselves of the nineteenth-century obsession  of searching for the source (of the Nights, of the Nile, of the human race . . .) were soon disappointed to discover that many of the most popular tales – including â€Å"Sinbad†, â€Å"Aladdin and his lamp†, and â€Å"Ali Baba and the forty thieves† – were arrivistes, with no legitimate Arab parents. Jorge Luis Borges, in his essay on â€Å"The Translators of the Thousand and One Nights†, credits Hanna Diab, the Christian Arab colleague of Galland, with the invention of several of these â€Å"orphan tales†. Aditya Behl (in Love’s Subtle Magic, 2012) traces Sinbad back to Sanskrit tales of Sanudasa the merchant. Like the beast fables and mirrors for princes that travelled from India to Europe, so too these sailors’ yarns about the marvels of the Indies circulated in the Islamic and pre-Islamic world of the Indian Ocean. (There is also a thirteenth-century Hebrew text of the Sinbad story). But for many people, the Arabian Nights without â€Å"Sinbad† or â€Å"Aladdin† is like Hamlet without Hamlet, and purists who produced â€Å"authentic† editions without these tales met with such backlash from the reading public that they quickly published supplementary volumes including the beloved bastards. Warner’s subtle unravelling of the rich history of this tradition, from the earliest Arabic traces to present-day interpretations, demonstrates that each of the many versions has a claim to its own authenticity. Yet, within the Arabic tradition, the tales of the Nights were discounted as popular trash, pulp fiction; despite numerous allusions to the Prophet, and quotations and echoes of the Qur’an, they were â€Å"too much fun, often transgressive or amoral fun, to be orthodox or respectable . . .†. Galland cleaned out the homosexual episodes, but Burton (whom Warner calls â€Å"the Frank Harris of the desert and the bazaar†) footnoted them and generally made the tales more salacious, stealing most of them from Richard Payne and adding many of his own, thumbing his nose at the prevailing prudery of Victorian Britain, â€Å"with glee and a fair deal of invention, projection, and transference†. One reviewer epitomized the European translators as â€Å"Galland for the nursery, Lane for the library, Payne for the study, and Burton for the sewers.† Stranger Magic: Charmed states and the â€Å"Arabian Nights† explodes two myths about the Nights: that only the Arabic stories are the â€Å"real ones† and that  you need to know Arabic to understand the Arabian Nights. The two ideas are mutually reinforcing: if there were a single ancient Arabic text, one might well want to read it in the original language; but since there is no such text, the stories in all languages and translations are fair game for all of us to respond to (a creative process in which, as Borges put it, â€Å"the translator is being translated†). The full spectrum of stories certainly yields spectacular insights in the hands of Warner, Professor of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies at the University of Essex, who knows more than anyone alive about the uses of myth and folklore in literature, fine arts, and film. She has written eye-opening books about fairy tales about women (From the Beast to the Blonde: On fairy tales and their tellers, 1996) and men (No Go the Bogeyman: On scaring, lulling, and making mock, 2000) and spirits (Phantasmagoria, 2006) and much else. She is fluent in a number of European and classical languages. But she does not know Arabic. Though she grew up in Cairo and spoke Arabic as a child, â€Å"unfortunately nobody encouraged me to keep it up, and besides, I never could read it†. I must confess that, as a card-carrying Sanskrit snob myself, I first regarded Warner’s lack of Arabic as a potential barrier to her understanding of the stories; after all, as she herself remarks, of William Beckford (1760–1844), â€Å"Beckford paid attention to these inconsistencies and weaknesses in the fabric of the narrative, possibly because he was working from an Arabic manuscript, and the discipline of translation sharpens one’s wits†. Of course, Warner makes good use of the work of scholars of Arabic, pointing out, for instance, contrasts between the Arabic texts in which a huge female jinn (or genie) takes a trophy ring from 570 men, and the translations, in which she gets only ninety-eight. Moreover, the linguistic subtleties that can be achieved only by â€Å"working from an Arabic manuscript† are not essential to the hunt for the larger game that Warner is after, which is a literary archaeology and analysis of what the Nights have meant to people in diverse cultures and epochs, not merely as amusing Oriental artefacts but as profound sources of human understanding. And even linguistic purists will pardon Warner, as W. H. Auden once pardoned  Paul Claudel, for writing well. A fine novelist, Warner works her legerdemain, hiding behind the velvet curtain at the end of the book the endnotes that betray the extraordinary erudition under the elegant prose. She appreciates good writing and laces her book with bons mots from other writers as well as with her own memorable lines, such as â€Å"Homo narrans observes no ethnic divisions, and has more than one god before him† and â€Å"At a level beneath the surface of the narratives, a meaning gathers definition, the watermark in their fabric†. Good writing, good storytelling, is the heroine of this book, embodied in the heroine of the frame story within which all the other stories are gathered: Shahrazad (Scheherazade). The cuckolded and embittered Sultan Shahriyar every night marries a virgin whom he beheads in the morning; Shahrazad volunteers, but after they have slept together she tells him a story that is still unfinished at dawn; the Sultan postpones her execution to the next day, and the next, on and on; in the course of the stories, she cures the Sultan of his misogyny. This is a story about storytelling, feminist protest, dreams, sex and violence. For Warner, it is the springboard for a meditation, threaded throughout the book, on writing as an amulet, a talisman; for writing as magic; and for the story within a story. Putting your own frame around your story makes you the author instead of just a character in someone else’s story – though of course you may be that too, whether you know it or not. The frame mechanism also underlies the themes of the dreamer dreamt, dreams within dreams, and shared dreams, which abound in the Nights, where â€Å"the storytelling scene itself in the Sultan’s bedroom wraps the stories in the night†. Moreover, as Warner points out, â€Å"the anti-realism of the stories matches dream experiences: suddenness and vividness, fragmentation, episodic and often entangling structures, displacements in time and space, the instability of bodies, and a recurrence of certain motifs, are all features of dreams†. Some dreamers move about on flying beds, apropos of which Warner notes that the English words sofa (from suffiah in Arabic), divan (from diwan in Persian), and ottoman (Turkish) are all words for a day bed; the oriental sofa became â€Å"the epitome of oriental hedonism, . . . a low-lying  couch for reclining and abandoning oneself, alone or with others – to love-making, autoeroticism, smoking, gossiping, daydreaming, to storytelling, reading and studying, and to quietness and reflection†. It is the place where daydreaming readers lie fantasizing about the stories they’ve read. The dream stories, too, fly all over. The tale of â€Å"A Fortune Regained† is about a man who learns, from another man’s dream, where his own fortune is hidden. Borges retold it as â€Å"The Story of Two Dreamers† and attributes it to the Arab historian al-Ishaqi, but it also entered Jewish Hassidic tradition (as the tale of Rabbi Eisik from Cracow) and was retold by Martin Buber. Sanskritists can trace some of the dream tales in the Nights back to the Sanskrit text of the Yogavasistha, which was composed alongside the Ocean of Stories, the Indian version of the Arabian Nights (frames within frames, and all), in Kashmir in the eleventh or twelfth century. But Warner’s goal is different; she traces the dream stories forward to our present world, where the idea that the individual mind creates its own reality, which other consciousnesses may enter and control, â€Å"has become a central modern myth, paranoid, solipsistic, and deeply deterministic. It has gained purchase because it matches the way many experience their lives†. Warner chooses just fifteen stories to retell briefly, from both the oldest and later layers (though she does not include â€Å"Sinbad† or â€Å"Aladdin and his lamp†: there is an Aladdin, but instead of a lamp he has a flying bed). Each story inspires an essay on several themes central to that story: jinns, carpets, witches, magicians, dervishes, dream knowledge, Orientalism, King Solomon, talismans, Voltaire and his crowd, Goethe, flying, toys, money, shadows, films, machines, couches, and much, much more. The essays form a coherent chain. This is not, however, a book to read straight through but one to wander in, forward and back, night after night. Most of the stories involve magic. Warner’s argument about the importance of magical thinking in modernity is not particularly surprising, but she documents it in highly original ways. Her analysis of the exoticization of magic through the use of Oriental material, since the eighteenth century,  enhances her discussion of the way that early films of stories from the Nights superimpose Arabic magic on the magic of filmmaking, so that the magic flying horse becomes an objective correlative of the projector, with the peg between the ears of the magic steed, and the brake on the tail, echoing the mechanism that controls the passage of the film through the projector. There is also the magic of speech acts, not just, â€Å"With this ring I thee wed† but â€Å"Hoc est corpus meum†, which inspired the phrase â€Å"hocus pocus† in mockery of the â€Å"trick of transubstantiation†. Warner discusses the magic of things (such as rings and carpets) as fetishes, and cites Lorraine Daston’s insight (in Things That Talk, 2004) into idols (from the Greek eidolon), illusions that are misleading and fraudulent. Daston contrasts idols with evidence, but notes that the two often blend together; forensic exhibits may be fabricated or, on the other hand, become powerful fetishes and take on the idol’s ability to haunt. Warner compares these â€Å"objects with uncanny life† to Winnicott’s transitional objects and to the quasi-magical functioning of her BlackBerry, Satnav, and iPod. And then there is the magic of Freud. Warner suggests that when Freud called his couch an ottoman and covered it with a Persian carpet, he may have been, â€Å"consciously or unconsciously†, creating an Oriental setting for the first psychoanalytical talking cures, â€Å"a form of storytelling, with the roles reversed (it is the narrator who needs to be healed, not the listener-Sultan)†. Freud, who kept a statue of the Hindu god Vishnu on his desk, was very much an Orientalist. Orientalism looms large in Stranger Magic. â€Å"The Orient in the Arabian Nights has its own Orient†, says Warner, also quoting Amit Chaudhuri: â€Å"The Orient, in modernity, is not only a European invention but also an Oriental one†. Fairy tales had always had what Warner calls â€Å"a structural impulse† to imagine that dangerous magic came from far away, but the â€Å"gradual orientalisation of magicians† exacerbated the tendency to have the dirty work done by strangers, â€Å"so that the home team keeps its hands clean and its smile all innocence†. Warner writes in the shadow of Edward Said’s Orientalism (1978), but she is also sympathetic to Said’s later, more balanced, more generous self (in Culture and Imperialism, 1993), and she  acknowledges some of the positive uses of Orientalism. Through the dynamics of â€Å"reverse colonization†, eighteenth-century Europeans used images of Orientalist despotism and sexual and religious depravity to parody their own culture; Voltaire’s satirical Oriental contes were â€Å"an obvious instance of the West putting on Eastern dress in order to examine itself more clearly†. Western feminists could write of â€Å"emancipation in the Oriental mode†, calling up the image of Eastern men, castigated for tyranny and sexual abuses; while the effeminate East reflected Western women’s condition back to them. Performances of plays about Aladdin, in Britain, were used to address, covertly, arguments about the slave trade in America. The film The Thief of Bagdad (1924, directed by Raoul Walsh, and starring Douglas Fairbanks) is, as Warner points out, â€Å"flagrantly Orientalist†. It ends with the Thief â€Å"acclaimed by the adoring grateful multitude as he enters the city at the head of an army bent on rescuing Baghdad from the tyrant emperor†. For us, the city is no longer Hollywood’s â€Å"Bagdad†, but CNN’s Baghdad. As I read Stranger Magic, the city of Bagdad/Baghdad shimmered before my eyes in a double image: the magical place of flying carpets and the scene of a devastating war. I was stunned by the relevance of phrases from the old stories, such as, â€Å"He falls into such a rage he declares war on Iraq: he will lay the country to waste†. Eventually we learn that Baghdad and Iraq had those double meanings for Warner as well. How could they not? As she viewed the film, The Thief of Bagdad, during the war in Iraq in 2003, it became â€Å"an unconscious parable of Western expansionism at the level of nations†. She began the research for this book during the first Gulf War, and wrote it â€Å"during the many, appalling and unresolved conflicts in the regions where the Nights originated. I wanted to present another side of the culture cast as the enemy and an alternative history to vengeance and war†. Not that the Nights themselves come off scot-free; the â€Å"later layers† of narratives include a lot of violence against Christians and conversion to Islam, while the European translations are often anti-Semitic. But in earlier layers there is more interfaith marriage and the observance of Islamic precepts of  tolerance. Warner hopes that her reading of the Nights might offer â€Å"a path towards cha nging preconceptions about Arabs, Islam, and the history and civilization of the Middle and Near East†. The impulse to write a book reminding readers of the beauty and wisdom of that civilization makes Warner an Orientalist in the pre-Saidian, positive sense of the word, which once meant â€Å"people who love the Orient† – never mind how or why they loved it. Many of the early European historians of religions, in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries, were trying, within their Orientalist limits, to make the civilization of the Orient comprehensible, and hence acceptable, to people in the West who would otherwise regard all Orientals as ignorant savages. The founding mantra of the science of comparative religion was the hope that if you know peoples’ stories you are less likely to slaughter them, the lesson that Shahrazad taught to the Sultan. This is the comparatist’s version, avant la lettre, of Emmanuel Levinas’s famous dictum that the face of the other says, â€Å"Don’t kill me†. The guiding impulse of Stranger Magic tur ns out to be that noble, if perhaps naive, Orientalists’ goal. But Warner has another personal investment in this book. She asks, at the start, â€Å"How do we live with the intrinsic, problematic irrationality of our consciousness? How do we make a helpful distinction between religious adherence and an acknowledgement that myth and magic have their own logic and potential, independent of belief in higher powers?† Noting that eighteenth-century writers used the Orient as a place where â€Å"their own reasoning imagination could take wing†, and granting that â€Å"reasoned imagination† (Borges’s phrase) is an oxymoron, she nevertheless hopes that the dream-like stories of the Nights might be the â€Å"fable of modernity† that she has longed for, â€Å"a fable that would meet anthropological needs†. Warner confesses that her particular attraction to â€Å"the implausible, impossible, and fantastic stories† puzzles her, for, she remarks, â€Å"I was once a fervent Catholic and know what it is like to yield fully to verbal transformative magic, miracles, and other demands on faith beyond reason, and I struggled free (lost my faith) a long time ago. So why do I still like to think and read about jinn and animal metamorphoses, conjured palaces and vanishing  treasures, deadly automata and flying sofas, ghastly torments and ineluctable destinies?† Ah, Marina, walk over to that ottoman that Freud covered with the carpet, lie down, and reread that paragraph; it is not your question, but your answer. And, abracadabra, it is our answer too.

Engineering Practice Review Report

Engineering Practice Review Report Introduction I worked for Christie Civil during both of my Internships and received a wide variety of experience during both of these six-month blocks. I worked on several different sites, which included the upgrade of an RTA owned road to the renovation and construction of parts of the Holsworthy Army Barracks. I found out about Christie Civil through the university-run website I2MS. I applied for the advertised position, as well as many others as soon as they became available online. Although I didnt receive a reply as soon as I would have liked. About 2 and a half months after I applied for the job, I received a phone call and an invitation to have an interview with the companies Sydney manager, Martin Carey. I felt the interview went very well and I was initially happy with my first impressions of the place and the people. One week later I was one of the two successful applicants and began work on the 1st of August 2007. In the semester before my second internship, I contacted Christie Civil in the hope of obtaining some information about a site I had previously worked on, for a university assignment. It was then when the Project Manager I was talking to, inquired about where I was working for my second internship and invited me to come back and work for them. Since I enjoyed working there, and I felt that I previously hadnt learnt as much as I could have, I decided to return to the company. About the company Christie Civil is a medium sized construction company that specializes in civil contracting within the Sydney region. For over 40 years, Christie Civil has worked as a Quality Endorsed company whose typical scope of works includes: Foundations (piles, footings, underground structures, shoring and underpinning) Bulk and detailed Earthworks Subdivisions (Site clearance, roads and drainage, services) Concrete Structures (Bridges, water and wastewater treatment tanks, detention tanks) Integrated Services (mechanical/ electrical/ hydraulics/ utilities) Retaining Walls Car parks and Pavements Environmental Remediation Christie Civil employs over 35 people including many Civil engineers, Project Managers and Foreman. On a typical site, Christie Civil provides the On Site Over Heads (OSOH) and usually subcontracts skilled labour (such as carpenters, plumbers and electricians) to professional companies with a good reputation and a proven record. The company also often works in conjunction with a labour hire company called Christies People, as both companies were founded by the same person. First Internship 2007/2008 During my first internship, I worked with Christie Civil for over 6 months between August 2007 and February 2008. Throughout this time, my role varied significantly as the Christie Civil management team placed me in several different positions so that I might gain experience within different aspects of the company (see Figure 1a). The major roles I had are explored below: Figure 1a) Site Engineer As a site engineer I was given the responsibility of preparing and maintaining all of the Quality Assurance (QA) documentation regarding the construction sites to which I was assigned. The QA documents basically provide a system in which to monitor the progress and quality of the construction processes ensuring that it is done in a safe manor, to an acceptable standard. Regularly I was required to: Conduct site inductions, which were aimed at highlighting the important safety rules and regulations for anyone new to the site. Prepare and maintain Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS) which describes the appropriate precautions that must be taken in order expose potential hazards and minimize their risks. Give toolbox talks to the subcontractors and laborers. These talks outline current safety issues and highlight the appropriate action that is to be taken in order to maintain a safe workplace. Conduct Safety and Environmental Checklists. These checklists highlight any potential hazards that may have come about during construction. E.g. Excavations greater than 1.5m that require fencing. Prepare, maintain and sign off on Inspection and Test Plans. Record and monitor the location of newly placed concrete batches. Correspond with the Client Aid the project manager Aid the laborers I was assigned to two main sites during my first internship, the first of these being the construction of a sewerage overflow tank just off Gunnamatta Bay in Cronulla, NSW. This site basically involved the removal of an existing retaining wall, the excavation of the pit for the tank, the construction of the 5m x 3m tank and the restoration of the wall and the surrounding plants. It was only a fairly small, two month job with a budget of about $300,000. The second site I was assigned to on my first internship was a huge multi-million dollar construction and renovation project of the Holsworthy Army Barracks. On this site, several companies were subcontracted to John Holland to complete specific aspects of the job. Christie Civil had the role of excavating the trenches, laying the storm water pipes and the construction of the roads throughout the site. Systems Engineer As a Systems Engineer I was based in the head office, but was regularly required to visit the different sites and conduct Project Review Meetings (PRMs) with the Foreman or Project Managers. The data from these PRMs were collected and collated to form a set of OHS statistics which aim to compare the number of hours worked, with the number of Work Related Incidents (WRIs) and loss time injuries sustained. This allowed the company to gain an overall picture of performance with a focus on Occupational Health and Safety. Also it is a necessary procedure to prove the companies safety records and to build the companies reputation as a safe working company. This is done for the sake of tendering and as documentation in case an authority audits the company. Estimator As an estimator I assisted the estimating division in calculating the price of the different jobs for which we were tendering. This involved communicating with the Senior Estimator and referring to several engineering drawings in order to calculate the cost of the processes involved with the different jobs. For example from the engineering drawings we could calculate the approximate volume of material to be excavated. We could then approximate the time this would take for a certain excavator to complete, and then we would get several quotes from our subcontractors in order to compile a competitive tender for the prospective client. Other In conjunction with the major positions explored above I also had many other less specific roles within the company. Regularly I was required to drop off tenders, buy tools, conduct dilapidation reports, collect information regarding potential work sites, print and interpret engineering drawings and follow instructions as needed. Second Internship 2009/2010 After my first Internship I felt that I had not learnt as much as I could have at Christie Civil, hence I took up an offer to return to the company for my second internship. During this time, I worked for Christies for over 7 months between July 2009 and February 2010. As a result of my previous experience, I spent less time learning the ins and outs of my role within the company, but rather, was put out on one of the companys major job sites straight away. Throughout the course of my second internship I worked on two major sites, the first site involved the upgrade of Hillsborough Rd, a fairly major RTA road located in the heart of Warners Bay near Newcastle. As a site engineer on this particular job I was required to do much of the same work I had done during my first internship, although having a period of about one and a half years away from the company I was fortunate to have another site engineer with me for the first few weeks to remind me of my role. This particular site was unlike any other job I had worked on prior, because the construction client was the RTA. This meant that I was required to read through and understand many RTA specifications to do with the correct process for the construction of an RTA road, and submit all the testing and evidence that was need to prove to the RTA that the construction complied with the specifications. Specifically, this involved submitting Hold Point Release Forms (See Appendix A), to the RTA at particular stages of the construction process, and waiting for them to approve the quality of particular aspects of the current construction, before we could continue. Learning Outcomes The learning outcomes addressed below were chosen because they are not directly looked at elsewhere in the report. Eg. I didnt include the learning outcome about ethics, because it is directly addresses in the Ethics section. to review past experience, so as to plan and prepare for future workplace participation at a graduate and professional level. After reviewing both of my internships, and my university experience as a whole, I think that in the immediate future after graduation, I would like to get a job as a design engineer to experience a different side of my profession. An older civil engineer said to me when I first began my degree was that in his experience, the best design engineers are the ones who had worked in construction beforehand, because they know the practical workings of the job and can apply their experience while designing. So I deliberately went about looking for a job a site engineer for my first and second internships. At university I have enjoyed and found satisfying, the design subjects such as concrete design and steel and timber design, and could honestly see myself pursuing that sort of thing as a career. I would also like to achieve Chartered Professional Engineering Status to further open up opportunities for my career throughout my life. to refine and develop your approach to securing employment for professional engineering practice Since both of my internships were in construction, I hope to eventually get into engineering design, where I can incorporate the practical experience gained from working on site with the designs I am required to complete. As a result I have been looking out for, and focusing my attention to companies which are actively involved in both the design and construction aspects of engineering. I could use my construction experience to get into the company, and then hopefully move on to more of a design role within the company. to extend your knowledge of workplace cultures and organizational behavior Working in the construction industry, gave me the opportunity to learn about and be amongst two very different workplace cultures. The difference between the cultures on site and in the office is extravagant. Workplace culture in the office was professional which meant we were required to wear pants and a collared shirt. The atmosphere in the office was serious compared to the site as most of the people I worked with in the office were skilled engineers and project managers. In the same way, this was confirmed by the fact that everyone worked in their own office, quietly without fuss. On site however, there was many practical jokes and a lot of swearing. Work was done to keep on schedule, but there wasnt a major push for completion. Most days were relatively stress-free and for the most part everyone got along. There was no set time for lunch breaks, and sometimes the opportunity to work through lunch and finish early. to develop a critical basis for understanding principles of management, and of planning and design Throughout my work experience I have had much more to do with planning and construction rather than design. I have worked closely alongside a few different construction managers. I have seen and helped with much of the work they do and seen what is required of them to get the job done. Similarly I have been assigned to construction projects from their beginning, and have been involved in the initial planning of a job. My work experience also has been complimented with subjects I have studied at university, such as Construction and Engineering Project Management, whereas subjects like Concrete Design and Steel and Timber Design, have introduced me to the foundational concepts behind design, which I hope will someday come into use in the near future during my career. to develop and demonstrate effective communication skills appropriate to professional engineering Communication was one of the essential skills I needed in order to complete my job properly. As explored above, working in the different workplace cultures of site and the office, required me to be able to communicate effectively, with different types of people. Typically, when in the office I would be talking to engineers and Project Managers. As a result, the conversations were generally more technically based often referring to specific design specifications and engineering drawings. On site however, conversations, if about work, were regarding the practical aspects of the construction such as getting the grader to trim the road base down 20mm. to relate the theoretical knowledge gained in your experience to your studies, so as to be able to apply it in your capstone project During my internships, I found that a lot of the material and engineering knowledge I had gained at university was reinforced through my practical experience. Subjects such as Surveying, Construction and Engineering Project Management provided invaluable preparation for what I was to learn while working on construction sites throughout Sydney. Working on site, however, helped me to see the bigger picture of civil engineering and how each stage of the engineering process †¦ from initial conception, to design and finally construction of a project, is just as important as each other. Other subjects such as Steel and Timber Design and Concrete Design also introduced me to the other side of engineering, which I am yet to experience in a workplace environment. All of this experience will prove to be a great resource to draw from when completing my Capstone. to identify opportunities to extend your engineering knowledge Since I have had all of my experience within the construction aspect of Civil Engineering, I would like to initially pursue a career within a design consulting company so I can broaden my experience. I have enjoyed completing subjects such as steel and timber design, and concrete design and would love the challenge of applying the skills I have learnt in those subjects, as well as getting a more detailed understanding of engineering design within the real world. Also I love the idea of residential design, and hopefully one day with enough experience, I might be able to design my own house. to develop strategies for collaborative and life-long learning I have found that one of the most simple and beneficial practices to undertake for lifelong learning are to asking questions. The field of Civil Engineering is so broad, that it is rare to find an engineer that can be an expert at it all. Hence, during my internships, I needed to ask questions, not only to understand what I needed to do as a site engineer, but also to understand the reasons for doing such things like environmental inspection reports, or for using material such as heavily bound road base, as opposed to crushed sandstone, during the construction of roads. to develop strategies to secure mentoring and to promote team work While working for Christie Civil, I was basically assigned to assisting one particular project manager on all of his sites. The Project Manager became sort of a mentor to me, as he would be the first person I would contact if I had any questions or issues. In the same way, I have an uncle and a few friends whom are experienced Civil Engineers, and I have often asked for their advice while unsure about particular assignments while at university. During my career, if the company I work for doesnt assign me to a mentor specifically, I would go about seeking someone within the company who would be happy to sit down with me to answer any questions I might have, also I hopefully would still be able to talk to my uncle and civil engineering friends if they work within the same sector of civil engineering. to reflect on, and constructively review, your colleagues practice to help them in their academic, professional and personal development The main place I have been in a position to constructively review colleagues work is at university. As an intern I certainly wasnt in a position to constructively review my Project Managers work, however, I was required to train up another intern, and in doing so I needed to teach him how, and to review the work he had done. In particular, there was one occasion where he completed a Project Review Meeting but it was not done in enough detail, so I had to review it with him, and highlight the main areas of concern before filing the report. At university however I have worked on plenty of group assignments, where I have been required to constructively review members of my groups work. Recently, I found a mistake in one of the other group members work for a computer modeling and design assignment. I went over and gently pointed out the mistake, but it still took further explanation to convince her that she was wrong. Career Episode Reports Career Episode Title: Road Extension, Templar Rd Erskine Park Dates of Career Episode: 01.11.09 to 01.12.09 Length of Career Episode: 30 days Competency Element Claimed This project involved the extension of Templar Rd, Erskine Park further into an industrial area, to accommodate for the increase in traffic to the area as a result of new major industrial developments in the area. My role as a site engineer was basically to act as a bridge between the office and this site, maintain and upkeep of the QA Documentation, collaborate with the foreman and laborers and liaise with the project manager. While I was working here, I was regularly required to manage my own time and processes. I often would move between the office and the site to attend meetings, run errands and deliver items of significance such as inspection reports. To make the most out of each day, I would plan my time and route accordingly to avoid peak hour traffic and determine the most efficient way to complete my tasks. Often during the day, I would be required to cope with change, both in my own daily schedule or in the final design of the project. Sometimes I would be on site and I would get a call from the company manager asking if I could run an errand for him. On one particular occasion, I was asked to drive back to the company office to pick up some important tender documents and drop them off at the Sydney Water head office. I was required to re-adjust my schedule for that day, and prioritize my tasks and complete them accordingly. Similarly, throughout the project there were several design changes. Initially as part of the project we were required to build a large turning bay towards the end of the road, which was designed so large trucks would have easy access in and out of the surrounding industrial warehouses. Just as we were preparing to begin the excavation for this part of the road, the client changed the design and totally removed the turning bay. I was required to adapt and change a lot of the QA documentation such as Inspection Test Plans (ITPs) and the Lot Plans, in order to accommodate for the design change. On site, I was required to complete surveying and leveling tasks in a timely manner. Due to the nature of the site, the client, Penrith City Council, would send out a senior engineer to inspect the levels of each layer of the road to ensure that we were building the road to the design levels. I was responsible for ensuring these levels were correct before the senior engineer arrived to inspect. I did this by calculating the design levels from the engineering drawings and then using a laser level to check the actual road level. If the actual level did not match the design level I would ask the grader operator to adjust the actual levels appropriately, all before the arrival of the Penrith City Councils Senior Engineer. C3.1: Manages Self C3.1a C3.1e C3.1c Signature of Candidate: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Candidates Verifier/s Name: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Verifier Engineering Qualifications: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. I verify that the above narrative is a true account of the candidates own work Verifier Signature: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Career Episode Title: Hillsborough Rd Upgrade, Warners Bay (part 1) Dates of Career Episode: 05.07.09 to 20.08.09 Length of Career Episode: 45 days Competency Element Claimed This project involved the upgrade of Hillsborough Rd, Warners Bay to coincide and accommodate for the construction of a new shopping complex which serviced the Warners Bay and greater Newcastle area. As a site engineer on this site I was required to travel up to Newcastle and spend several days a week supervising, and maintaining all the QA Documentation, whilst collaborating with the client to ensure that the road was constructed according to the design. My role in particular required a lot of communication. I was constantly asking questions, writing emails, sending reports and confirming meetings with my Project Manager, the client and the site foreman. This in itself required me to change the way I communicate, depending on whom I was talking to. For example, there is a very different workplace culture on site with the foreman and laborers on site, compared to the office with the Project Managers and Engineers. I would have to change my approach to communication and language I would use, depending on the context. When talking to my project manager, or the client, I generally would talk with technical terminology, talking about specific aspects of testing such as the RTA approved NAASRA Road Roughness Test or I would make reference to specific reports such as ITPs (Inspection Test Plan) or Hold Points which were required by the client at the end of the job. On one particular occasion, I was required to prepare all the site documentation for an external audit conducted by a company called SAI Global. It took about a week to get everything in order, and I was quite nervous because the auditor was basically going to be rating the organization and completeness of the site documentation and hence, my performance as a site engineer. At the end of the audit, the SAI Global representative highlighted only 2 minor areas which could be improved. My Project Manager turned around and shook my hand and said good job and that he was not really concerned about the minor issues. This event helped me to develop and maintain the trust of and confidence of my project manager and the other staff involved, that I was capable of performing to the required standard. As an Intern working on this site, I came across many new and different materials and processes used to build this road, compared to what I had encountered before. As an RTA road, the material was generally to be of higher quality, with better materials used and significantly more rigorous testing done during construction. As a result I consistently needed to seek answers from internal (my project manager), and the external (the client representative) sources. I asked questions about the benefits of using particular materials (such as Heavily Bound Base, a road base with fly ash and other cement-like properties.) C3.2: Works Effectively with People Signature of Candidate: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Candidates Verifier/s Name: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Verifier Engineering Qualifications: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. I verify that the above narrative is a true account of the candidates own work Verifier Signature: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Career Episode Title: Hillsborough Rd Upgrade, Warners Bay (part 2) Dates of Career Episode: 21.08.09 to 15.10.09 Length of Career Episode: 60 days Competency Element Claimed This project involved the upgrade of Hillsborough Rd, Warners Bay to coincide and accommodate for the construction of a new shopping complex which serviced the Warners Bay and greater Newcastle area. For the second half of this project I continued working as a site engineer, however as the job neared its conclusion, I was required to focus more on finalizing the official documentation to be submitted to and signed off by the RTA representative. In order to understand what exactly was required by the RTA, I need to read through, understand and constantly refer to the RTA Road Construction specifications. Whenever I found the specifications to be ambiguous, I contacted the RTA Rep for clarification as to what he actually required, hence I identified the clients needs. These specifications required me to regularly complete and submit Hold Point and Witness Point Forms to the RTA Representative at critical stages of the construction process. On one occasion the hold points were sent back before being signed off because they did not contain enough detail. For example, A hold point form was required to be submitted before the construction of each new layer of the road. On this particular instant I submitted the hold point form outlining that the previously completed layer (e.g. the crushed sandstone) had passed all the geotechnical tests and asking for permission to continue with the next layer. The RTA rep then sent the hold poi nt from back and outlined that I needed to be more specific about the chainages where the crushed sandstone had been tested and passed. One of the major set of documents I was required to submit to the RTA was the ITPs or Inspection Test Plans. These were Christie Civil Documents that detailed the methods of construction and testing of each construction process throughout the entire job, e.g., Heavily bound base, Storm water, Asphalt etc. It also required the site engineer and client to sign off after each process had been completed. For example, the ITP for the Heavily Bound Base stated the specific type of material to be used, the level of compaction which was to be achieved and the methods of testing among other things. As the job went on, it was my role to sign off on each of the ITP processes once they had been completed. I then regularly submitted these reports to the client to document the companys progress, before finally submitting the entire completed set of ITPs, along with all of the Hold points and Witness Points, and other required documents, as one complete record of the job. C3.5: Maintains customer focus and relationships with clients Signature of Candidate: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Candidates Verifier/s Name: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Verifier Engineering Qualifications: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. I verify that the above narrative is a true account of the candidates own work Verifier Signature: †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Social Responsibility Social Responsibility has become one of, if not the forefront issue in engineering in the last twenty years. A civil engineer is responsible and accountable to rest of society for designing, engineering and constructing in a way which will not harm or have dire consequences for the surrounding environment and its occupants. During my internships I found that the two major ways in which Christie Civil work towards a sustainable future is firstly through the prevention of pollution, and secondly through recycling. On almost every site I went on, there were different measures taken to prevent the pollution of the surrounding areas. While I worked in Cronulla, we temporarily installed a silt boom in the section of the lake nearest to the site. This was to prevent dust and silt and any other form of pollution from the site, from leaking into the natural environment. Similarly, on the Holsworthy site, we temporarily installed small silt filters above all the stormwater drains in the area for the same reason. The use of a water cart to keep the ground moist was a common tool to prevent the spread of dust, whereas every truck (including its wheels) needed to be relatively clean before leaving site, so that any mud or other material on the truck would not get accidentally dropped in public. In the same way, on the Warners Bay and Erskine Park sites I worked on silt fences were installed around all the storm water drains in the area, so as to prevent dirt and dust and other materials from entering the drain and being spread into the environment. On these sites in particular, Christie Civil hired a bobcat with a sweeper extension to continually sweep the existing road of any debris and excess material carried off by delivery vehicles, to prevent the material being spread into the natural environment. During my experience, I found that engineers also generally prefer to recycle materials, not only for sustainable reasons, but because it saves money. For example, on the Holsworthy site we were required to construct roads. This involved the detailed excavation, laying and compaction of road base and then finally the laying and compaction of asphalt. In this instance, on another one of the companys sites, they were getting rid of tonnes of sandstone. Fortunately for us, the sandstone complied with the Australian Standards for a road base. Consequently, the project manager at Holsworthy recycled the sandstone from another site, by re-using it as road base. Ethical Practice Ethics is basically the moral code or set of standards to which someone has been shaped as a result of their culture, religion or society. As a result, ethics is a totally subjective concept, in that something that I might consider wrong or inappropriate might be ok for someone else. Nevertheless the seriousness of ethics cannot be underestimated. I believe that ethics is an especially important topic for the civil engineer, as what they do has a direct impact on society as a whole. Thus, the consequences of bad decisions could possibly have huge ramifications. For me personally, my ethical framework has been predominantly shaped by my Christian faith. One of the major ethical issue I faced while on my internship, involved the project manager and project foreman asking everyone to sign a Safe Work Method Statement which they had changed but dated it as if it was months earlier. The incident arose after an excavator nearly hit some overhead power lines. Upon realizing that this issue had not been highlighted in the Safe Work Method Statement (which should be signed upon induction), the project manager edited the document, including the new issue and re-printed it. He then asked all the laborers and other people involved to sign the SWMS as if it were months earlier, when they signed the original document. In my integrity, I couldnt sign the document and lie about the date on which it had been signed. Fortunately since the document outlined the process for bulk and detailed excavation, it wasnt too important that I didnt sign it, as I had little to do with the physical work in this area. On a similar occasion, while I was working on the Hillsborough Rd, Warners Bay site, one of the young laborers was caught by the police, driving a work truck without a licence on a small public ro