Virtual Reality And Its Impact On Society Information Technology Essay

Virtual Reality And Its Impact On Society Information Technology Essay Technology has transformed peoples perception of the world by either creating new environments for them to traverse, or by providing them passage to corners of the earth they will never otherwise visit in their entire lifetimes. Virtual reality, briefly defined as an environment that is computer-simulated, has transcended social and geographical barriers ever since its applications have been increasingly used by everyday people. Whereas before it was limited only to labyrinth and high-cost applications availed of by expert users, virtual reality has now broadened its breadth to encompass the general public which optimizes the Internet to configure, share and create virtual communities benefitting society in the areas of education, law enforcement, medicine and industries. Defining Virtual Reality Virtual reality is an environment which is computer-simulated, and the simulation could be that of an imaginary world, or a real one (Gajera, n.d.). Virtual reality environments are mainly three-dimensional visual experiences that are displayed either on a screener through special or stereoscopic displays, and enhanced by sensory information such as sounds that emanate from headphones or speakers (Gajera, n.d., p. 3). There are modern applications that provide force feedback or tactile information, which are generally used for gaming and medical applications. To experience this, multi-modal devices such as the omni directional treadmill, the Polhemus boom arm, or a wired glove is used, as in Figure 1 at Appendix Page (Gajera, n.d.). Michael R. Heim, in his book entitled, The Metaphysics of Virtual Reality, has named seven applications of virtual reality: network communication, full-body immersion, telepresence, immersion, artificiality, interaction and simulation (Gajera, n.d.). In light of these, a virtual environment may be defined as a digital space in which a users activities are monitored, and his or her surroundings rendered, or digitally composed and displayed to the senses, in accordance with those activities (Fox, Arena and Bailenson, 2009, p. 95). According to Jesse Fox, Dylan Arena, and Jeremy N. Bailenson, the critical element of the most fascinating virtual reality experiences is the hindering real, sensory impressions; a users senses are engaged in the virtual world, with the body consigned to a reality engine, as in Figure 1 at Appendix Page (Fox, Arena and Bailenson, 2009, p. 95). Technically, the virtual reality system uses both software and hardware which allow developers to produce virtual reality systems (Riva, 2009). The hardware elements receive inputs coming from devices that are manipulated by the user, and sends multi-sensory output to generate an imagery of a virtual world (Riva, 2009, p. 337). Meanwhile, the software element of a virtual reality system does not really create the virtual world. Rather, there is a separate software which projects the virtual world through the use of the virtual reality software system (Riva, 2009, p. 337). Hence, a virtual reality system is made up of a graphic rendering system, a database construction and virtual object modeling software (337), and the input and output tools (Riva, 2009). The Impact of Virtual Reality on Society Virtual Reality has taken the world by storm, and is now tagged as the next dominant technological development. In the same way as the Internet, virtual reality was created for a specific purpose but modern technology has made it more versatile. At first, virtual reality was conceptualized as a new medium of entertainment; but as time passed, it has found more useful uses from providing online education, to applications in the medical field and giving hope to people with terminal diseases. Currently, virtual reality is used in (i) businesses, specifically in the presentation of graphs and charts, (ii) industries like the automotive industrys manufacturing arm, (iii) military for simulations and training, (iv) medical field for treatments of various ailments and disorders, and (v) education, specifically in laboratories, online education and virtual museums (Fortune City, 2010). It is foreseen that in the future, virtual reality will further enhance training at medical schools, comme rcial airlines, the Air Force, and will even be utilized by clothing manufacturers in the form of virtual reality shopping (Fortune City, 2010). Education Educators and scientists have joined forces all throughout the U.S. to establish virtual reality education to students and teachers alike, through the use of head-mounted displays (HMD), Immersawalls, ImmersaDesks and Cave Automated Virtual Environments (CAVEs), see Figure 3 at Appendix Page (Rusch, Sherman and Thakkar, 2002, p. 205). CAVE has a standard size of 10 x 10 x 10 space and has a floor, ceiling and three walls. Students utilizing this system don stereographic glasses which intensify images, and use a CAVE wand to assist that user as, i.e., molecule, or pedestrian, or fish, in navigating the virtual environment (Rusch, Sherman and Thakkar, 2002, p. 205). This is just a birds eye view of the role that virtual reality will play in education. Despite the fact that there are a good number of educational applications of virtual reality being availed of in the U.S. these days, the development of virtual reality has not yet achieved its maximum potential in the classroom (Rusch, Sherman and Thakkar, 2002, p. 205). The field of Career Technical Education has begun to benefit from virtual reality. Students can explore operating rooms, submarines, a prototype car, airplane cockpits, biotech laboratories, crime scenes and agricultural farms without having to travel, through the use of virtual reality (Ausburn and Ausburn, 2008). Again, through the use of CAVEs and HMDs, students are provided with three-dimensional simulations to give them a sense of being there' (Ausburn and Ausburn, 2008, p. 43). A good number of careers necessitate learning that will allow individuals to safely carry out their tasks amid dangerous circumstances. Because virtual reality is supremely realistic, it enables the student to benefit from active involvement with accurate and intricate visual scenes (Ausburn and Ausburn, 2008). Hence, training programs utilize virtual reality for railway and mining operations, dangerous driving scenarios, handling of hazardous materials, nuclear energy, marine exploration, space and aviation exploration, emergency medical operations, firefighting, military and law enforcement (Ausburn and Ausburn, 2008). The aim of these training programs is to teach students how to efficiently and effectively respond under high-cost, high-risk and complex circumstances, without damaging equipment and endangering personnel while still at training. Educational programs for courses like spray painting, bio-technology, aircraft maintenance, crime scene investigation and forensics, (44) engineering, dentistry, surgical technology and welding also benefit from virtual technology. Because the technology is still fairly new, CAVEs are expensive to avail of. Moreover, it is also expensive to implement and sustain, because of the specialized skills that are needed to set it up and maintain it. Nevertheless, as technology continues to evolve, there is much promise for virtual reality systems that may be used through laptops or desktops, utilizing special software that are based on JAVA, Flash and QuickTime technologies (Ausburn and Ausburn, 2008). Figure 4 illustrates how virtual reality may be accessed from a web system (Ottoson and Holmdahl, 2007). Because of the benefits offered by virtual reality technologies, there is a high degree of enthusiasm surrounding it in the world of the academe. Figure 5 summarizes the benefits of virtual reality in education. Law Enforcement Taking its cue from the September 11 terrorist attacks, the U.S. has been innovating on taking protective measures preserve the security of its citizenry. One effective way of doing this is through the use virtual reality for training and intelligence gathering purposes. The U.S. intelligence community has been using virtual reality to simulate actual battlefields in the future, utilizing cyber weapons for initiating attacks against terrorists and other potential adversaries (Wilson, 2008, p. 4). Military use of virtual technology is efficient and effective in training personnel manage better under potentially risky scenarios. Participants utilize avatars in virtual environments that simulate, i.e., a checkpoint in Iraq, or a New York subway tunnel subjected to terroristic chemical attacks (Wilson, 2008). The downside is that a study conducted in 2007 showed that American firms are not ready to take the lead in embracing Web 2.0 technology which is the foundation of virtual technology in the years to come. The leaders in this area are (i) India, with plans of escalating their virtual reality investments by 80%, (ii) Asia-Pacific companies, by 69%, (iii) European companies, by 65%, (iv) Chinese companies, by 64%, (v) North American companies, by 64%, and (v) Latin American companies, by 62% (Wilson, 2008, p. 4). Number one in the list, India, has been showing a strong economic presence in the global markets. Figure 6 indicates its industry production forecast until 2012 (Economist Intelligence Unit, 2010). The implication here is whether the U.S. can protect its citizens if its virtual reality servers and communication systems were operated by another country very much possible, by an enemy nation. Under wraps in the virtual reality program of the military is Sentient Worldwide Simulation, which will depict mass casualty events, that not only need military action but medical interventions as well. Hence, this program includes virtual reality hospital rooms that emulate military and civilian facilities, populated by avatars representing victims, casualties, nurses, the National Coast Guard and other first responders. Other training simulation modules are Urban Resolve, for urban war fighting in Baghdad in the year 2015, with over two million simulated objects (Wilson, 2008, p. 5). In addition to this, Noble Resolve is being developed, which is a training exercise covering homeland security scenarios in the event of a terroristic attack (Wilson, 2008, p. 5). Meanwhile, police unites utilize virtual reality programs such as the Meggitt Training System which teaches basic firearms skills and responses in both shoot/dont shoot decision making (Griffith, 2009). The Los Angeles Police Department uses the IES Milo System; the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority Police Department uses the Advanced Interactive Systems; and, the Phelps County Sheriffs Department uses the IVR-300. Most of these systems permit multiple students in the virtual environment (Griffith, 2009). Medicine Techniques in virtual reality are increasingly being utilized in medical education, treatment and diagnosis (Yellowlees, 2009). Early adoptions of virtual reality in the field of medicine pertained to representation of intricate data emanating from Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Computed Tomography (CT) (Yellowlees, 2009). Recently, virtual reality has been applied to virtual colonoscopy in which information from contrast enhanced abdominal CT scan is utilized to present a fly-through of the colon which is then used for screening for colon cancer (Yellowlees, 2009). Phobias and post-traumatic stress disorders are also being treated now using virtual reality, Figures 7 and 8 illustrate virtual environments for the treatment of agoraphobia (Cà ¡rdenas, Munoz, Gonzà ¡lez, and Uribarren, 2006). In particular, training for medical students are enhanced by the use of a virtual psychosis environment, wherein they have the opportunity to experience visual and auditory hallucinations of schizophrenic patients (Yellowlees, 2009). As mentioned earlier, indispensable training may be provided by virtual reality for mass casualty, as well as for disaster response and medical emergencies. Although it has been found out that the use of standardized patients for training such as these were more effective because of the realism element, virtual reality simulations were more cost-effective, it was also advantageous in the sense that the simulations may be repeated unlimitedly, so that skills may be practiced and mastered (Yellowlees, 2009). Virtual reality has been used in other areas of medicine like in chemotherapy distraction intervention, providing leisure time opportunities for people with intellectual and physical disabilities, brain damage rehabilitation for stroke victims, smoking cessation, physical therapy, autism, mental retardation and other relevant areas. Business Marketing efforts for businesses have been greatly enhanced by virtual reality. Business owners can now advertise their products over various multi-media, and depict a 360-degree image of products that they are manufacturing, marketing and selling. Websites have been high-tech critical missions for Top 500 companies, triggering a competition on virtual reality advertising (Kassaye, 2006). Figure 9 depicts a chart tracing these new breed of competitors and how they fare through their communication objectives (Kassaye, 2006). Meanwhile, virtual reality is also useful for the manufacturing process, because layout planning for assembly systems and machines require more data than the basis geometry (Okulicz, 2004). Moreover, 3D CAD Systems are not effective for plotting out production processes, and virtual reality has no restrictions as the two aforementioned processes (Okulicz,2004). In addition to this, virtual reality provides semi-immersive and/or interactive immersive visualization that is essential for the visual estimation of each manufacturing process (Okulicz, 2004). With some slight overlap with the aforementioned field of Education, virtual reality platforms are valuable in training and education for businesses. For instance, developing, testing and operating sophisticated machinery and fixing it under tight tire pressure when it malfunctions are some skills that employees in the industries have to master (Blumel, Termath and Haase, 2009). Companies benefit from investing in learning platforms like the Fraunhoffer IFF Learning Platform which utilizes virtual reality in customizing training modules to suit its end users levels of knowledge through configuration (Blumel, Termath and Haase, 2009). Virtual Reality in the field of business encompasses a much broader scope, and development in this area is anticipated to be quick and impressive. Conclusion People have benefited from virtual reality in more ways than one, attesting to the fact that the it has positively impacted society in general. Education has been enhanced by virtual reality, and students have been provided a new dimension of learning that prepares them for their chosen careers more efficiently. Meanwhile, security measures being adopted by the government have been highlighted with modern technology, especially virtual reality. Police and military forces can now be trained for highly-dangerous scenarios, without actually exposing them to great risks. On the other hand, the medical field has furthered its growth due to the advent of virtual reality. Of the advantages of virtual reality, this is one of the most significant because of its potential in asisting scientists discover life-saving technologies and techniques. Lastly, business enterprises also benefit from virtual technology, to enable organizations to compete more in international markets. Virtual reality has a long way to go, and more benefits are anticipated for humankind. IRTUAL REALITY 8 Appendix Page Figure 1 Virtual Reality (Images from Google) VIRTUAL REALITY 9 Figure 2 Virtual Environment (Gajera, n.d.) VIRTUAL REALITY 10 Figure 3 Virtual Reality in Education (Rusch, Sherman Thakkar, 2002) Figure 4 Virtual Reality and the Web System (Ottoson and Holmdahl, 2007) VIRTUAL REALITY 11 Figure 5 Benefits of Virtual Reality in Education (Blumel and Hasse, 2009) VIRTUAL REALITY 12 Figure 6 Industry Performance History and Forecast, India (Economic Intelligence Unit, 2010) Forecast summary (% unless otherwise indicated) 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Real GDP growth 8.8 8.6 8.8 8.7 8.6 8.6 Industrial production growth 10.9 8.4 9 8 7.9 7.9 Unemployment rate (av) 10.8 10.6 10.6 10.4 10.1 9.7 Consumer price inflation (av) 11.7 6.5 5.2 5.2 5.9 5.6 Consumer price inflation (end-period) 7.4 5.8 5.2 5.5 5.7 5.5 Short-term interbank rate 12.4 13.4 13.5 13.2 13.2 13.2 Govt balance (% of GDP) -5.5 -5.3 -5 -4.3 -4.1 -3.5 Exports of goods fob (US$ bn) 208.3 231.6 257.9 291.4 328.9 371.3 Imports of goods fob (US$ bn) -334.9 -373.7 -429.2 -498.6 -578.9 -677.4 Current-account balance (US$ bn) -32.5 -36.8 -42.7 -50.5 -51.1 -55.2 Current-account balance (% of GDP) -2.1 -2.1 -2.1 -2.1 -1.8 -1.7 Total foreign debt (year-end; US$ bn) 237.9 256.9 280.4 308.5 337.9 367.4 Exchange rate Rs:US$ (av) 46.14 46.53 45.43 44.1 43.1 42 Exchange rate Rs:US$ (end-period) 46.34 45.98 44.77 43.6 42.55 41.45 Exchange rate Rs: ¥100 (av) 49.24 52.73 51.77 50.84 50.12 48.84 Exchange rate Rs:à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ (av) 64.28 60.12 54.06 50.72 49.13 47.88 (c) Economist Intelligence Unit 2010 VIRTUAL REALITY 13 Figure 7 Virtual Environment No. 1 for Agoraphobia (Cà ¡rdenas, et al., 2006) Figure 8 virtual environment number 2 for agoraphobia VIRTUAL REALITY 14 Figure 9 New Breed of Competitors Using Virtual Reality (Kassaye, 2006). VIRTUAL REALITY 15

Advantages and disadvantages of the civil war Essay

In 1861, when the Civil War broke out, the Confederacy and the Union both had numerous advantages and disadvantages and there were multiple women and slaves that contributed to the war. To begin with, the Confederacy had its significant advantages that helped it push through the war, one of which was its strong leaders. Many believed â€Å"Stonewall† Jackson and Robert E. Lee were some of the best officers even before the war. Also, they had the advantage of fighting on their own soil. They knew the terrain better that of their counterparts. A psychological aspect could be that fighting for their land, for their families, could have been the driving force or motivation. Moreover, they have longer coast lines which increased the travel time and decreased the chances of blockade or capturing of ports and major cities. On the other hand, the Confederacy did have several disadvantages as well. First, they were not recognized by Europe at all which limited their foreign aid. The Confederacy also had minimal factory production and industry. At the beginning of the war, the Confederacy had only one-ninth the industrial capacity of the Union. But that statistic was misleading. In 1860, the North manufactured 97 percent of the country’s firearms, 96 percent of its railroad locomotives, 94 percent of its cloth, 93 percent of its pig iron, and over 90 percent of its boots and shoes. There was not even one rifleworks in the entire South. The railroad system that the Union had was far more sophisticated than that of the Confederacy, having over ten thousand more miles of railroad tracks that were, in itself, more modern. Due to the large amounts of manufacturing businesses and the railroad system to move the products, the Union, unlike the Confederacy, could produce and ship weapons, clothing, and food at a much more efficient rate than their counterparts. Also, because they were a newly founded â€Å"sovereign state†, the Confederacy did not have a professional, organized standing army and navy. The army and navy of the Federal United States were already organized and ready for war. Since, The Union had a naval advantage and the confederacy had Long Coastlines that were hard to defend,the union could block the Confederate’s ports for supplies. Furthermore, the economy of the Confederacy was destroyed by the Union. Second, the Union also had its many advantages as well as some disadvantages. One of the North’s significant advantages in fighting the war was that the industrial, urbanized Northern states held a significant edge in the population and manpower. The North had over twenty-two million people whereas the South had just over nine million (three and a half million of whom were blacks). Additionally, the Union had already an more experienced government since it was around for some years, when on the contrary, the Confederate government was fresh and new. Also, as mentioned before the Union was far more industrialized with its vast networks of factories, railroads, and ships which exceed any amount of industrialization in the south. This aspect gave the Union of being able to transport supplies and equipment faster and finance the war much better than the Confederacy. Finally, as it was also mentioned previously, the Union did have a large navy that allowed them to block major southern ports. During the horrible four years of the Civil War, women who did not own property, did not have the right to vote, or did not have many civil liberties came together in support of the war efforts. Women were so eager to help that they hid their identity by dressing as men, taking up masculine names, and took up arms of their own. They cared for sick and dying soldiers, risked their lives to gather information as spies, cooked, cleaned and care for children. The tenacity and love with which these women served their country was astounding, and yet often overlooked. About 3,000 women served as Union army nurses. Dorthea Dix was one women who was acknowledged for being the Nation’s first superintendent of women nurses. Clara Barton was recognized for being the first women to work in the U.S. Patent Office and was given the name â€Å"Angel of the Battlefield.† Sally Tompkins was a Confederate army nurse commissioned as captain because she performed her hospital duties so heroically. Finally, Belle Boyd was honored for being a brave Confederate nurse and spy. After President Lincoln presented the Emancipation proclamation, which held a section for the enlistment of African Americans into the Union Army, African American men rushed to enlist. This time they were accepted into all-black units. The first of these was the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts Colored Regiment, led by white officer Robert Gould Shaw. Their heroism in combat put to rest worries over the willingness of black soldiers to fight. Soon other regiments were being formed, and in May 1863 the War Department established the Bureau of Colored Troops. Black recruiters, many of them abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass, Henry Highland Garnet, and Mary Ann Shadd Cary, brought in troops from throughout the North. Douglass proclaimed, â€Å"I urge you to fly to arms and smite with death the power that would bury the government and your liberty in the same hopeless grave.† Others, such as Harriet Tubman, recruited in the South. On March 6, 1863, the Secretary of War was informed that â€Å"seven hundred and fifty blacks who were waiting for an opportunity to join the Union Army had been rescued from slavery under the leadership of Harriet Ross Tubman†¦.† By the end of the war more than 186,000 black soldiers had joined the Union army; 93,000 from the Confederate states, 40,000 from the border slave states, and 53,000 from the free states. They participated in about 500 Civil War battles and skirmishes. Although they were treated unequally they continued to volunteer. For example, white privates in the Union army were paid $13 monthly with and extra $3.50 clothes allowance, while black privates in the Union were only paid $10 monthly WITHOUT an extra clothes allowance. It wasn’t until 1864 that Congress equalized the pay for the black and white soldiers. Also, the mortality rate of blacks were higher than that of whites due to the fact that they were assigned to labor duty in the germ-ridden garrisons where they were likely to ctach typhoid, pneumonia, malaria, or other diseases.

Human Resource Plan Essay

Abstract Planning is important in our everyday life. Similarly planning in Human Resource (HR) is significant for an organization wishing to be successful. It is vital for attaining competitive edge in the market. Mostly top management fails to use HR Department more than as administrative support because they don’t realize its importance in managing the most crucial asset of the organization i. e. Human Resource (Rothwell, W. J and Kazanas, H. C. , 2002). In this paper an HR Plan has been formulated for getting a practical view of Human Resource Planning. Super Mart is an American company dealing in chain of departmental stores. Founded in 1972, it is the largest private employer and grocery retailer in United States. It owns 20% of the market share. It is functional across globe in U. K, Mexico, Argentina, China, South America, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Canada, Japan, Germany and South Korea. The company’s main competitor includes American Superstore, Sellers and Canada’s PurchaseKo (Frank, 2006). Super Mart has developed a frugal culture. The company’s aim has been to keep the prices low and also maintain the cutting-edge technology, a frugal corporate culture and a drive to make suppliers sell merchandise at cheaper prices. The employees are expected to keep the expenses at bare minimum. This shows in the meager salary and health facilities provided to the employees. The culture is present at the Headquarter also which is situated in a suburban location of Arkansas rather than New York. Its executives use coaches and don’t drive limousines and share hotel rooms. They come early, go late and work half day on Saturdays. The company’s main aim is delivering to customers at low cost which shows in its work culture as well (Wilbert, n. d. ). For its internal communication Super Mart has recruited 300 HR personnel, whose job is to communicate the business objectives and growth opportunities to the employees. There also has been an integration of human resource practices with all business strategies for ensuring that all the employees are moving in same direction. An Ethics hotline has been developed where all the ethical issues are reported and promptly investigated (Wal-Mart’s new Communication Plan, 2007). The company has also updated its website to include all issues and controversies. The answer to the question as to why an employee will choose Super Mart as its employer lies in its brand value. Super Mart has 270 stores across America and has global presence. Its initiative in health care and employee benefits are gaining praise. Super Mart has realized that it is successful if its employees are happy, especially as it belongs to service sector, which spells good news for the employees. Recruitment and Selection Recruitment is an important aspect for planning manpower. The recruitment process has been divided into four stages i. e. search plan, selection techniques, timetable and recruitment budget (Human resource Planning, 2006) Search Plan: For attracting the potential employees, media tools like advertising, visits at university and job exhibition are planned. This process is carried on for a period of one month. Selection Techniques: First job specification is designed for a particular position, say for front office employee. Educational Qualification: 10+2 or Graduate Age limit: 25- 30 Qualities: Good communication skills, ready to work in shifts, adaptable to situations, customer friendly and persuasive and eye for detail. On the basis of the above specifications, candidates are shot listed and interviewed. The successful candidates are recommended and unsuccessful candidates are thanked and send back. The selection decision is detained with the area manager only. Timetable: The recruitment and selection process is spread over for four months, from January to April. The recruitment budget covering the advertisement, assessment of applications, interviews and reference checks of employees have been estimated around 2lac. The job description and interview questions have been provided in the appendix. Compensation and Benefits For determining compensation for various posts’ salary, survey is carried out. For making correct comparison, not only matching the job title but matching job duties and responsibilities is also essential. Salary is decided by considering labor market characteristics and cost of living (HR Planning, n. . ). Going by the example taken in this paper for fixing salary for front office employees, their job description is reviewed. Also other components apart from basic salary like traveling allowance and extra pay for overtime have been included (see appendix). Performance Management The performance appraisal of employees is an essential process to keep the employees in check as well as monitor the quality of work. It also provides avenues for development based on feedback and lacunae are identified. Here, as the employees in consideration are front office employees, a simple tool for performance management is selected as the Rating Scale Method. As only basic qualities are expected out of the employees and no technical or high expertises are required, a simple technique like Rating Scale is preferable. In rating scale, the appraiser is asked to rate individual employee on the basis of qualities identified like communication skills, customer feedback, product knowledge, attitude etc. (Sturo, J. , 2006). Employees are ranked on the basis of points assigned to them. Training Program Training is an integral part of HR activity. It is provided not only to new employees but also to the existing employees due to the technological changes or change in ways of marketing or introduction of any new methodology at work. The front office workers are provided training in communication and product knowledge. Certain level of computer education is also given for handling the billing job. The training period lasts for two weeks which includes lectures and simulation program. At the end of the training program, new employees are kept on a probation period of one month where their performance is monitored. Employees showing lack of any learning or scope of improvement are discharged. Retention Program A lot of revenue and time is devoted towards recruiting and selecting people for any position. The story doesn’t end here. The new employee is trained and becomes productive only after a month or so. This adds further to the expenses. Thus, loosing an employee in a short duration after putting so much of money into his/her development becomes uneconomical. This spells more damage for service sector companies because being intangible form of product customers symbolize their experience as equivalent to the standard of service offered. And front office staff is the key to this satisfaction in a big way. Thus, in order to retain the employees, various retention techniques should be adopted, for example incentives for being rated at the top of performance appraisal for consecutive three times, awards for most punctual and well dressed employees, having a star system where employees are given a star badge if he/she has received five positive customer feedback in a month etc. Super Mart is an American Company with global presence. But throughout the years, it is having an approach of ignoring the human resource development by following a frugal system. But with the changing time, it has realized that the best way to succeed is to have happy employees. Keeping this in mind, it has come up with an HR plan which covers areas of recruitment, compensation and benefits, training, performance benefits and retention programs. Hope it will bring smiles for the employees as well as the company in the future. Appendix Job Description: Working hour is 24/7 divided in shifts of 6 hours on a rotational basis. Employees should have good communication skills and identifying products Employees will be expected to deal with customers with patience Assisting customer with making right purchase choice and managing customer flow. Politeness and earnestness to help are other desirable qualities. Interview Questions: Tell me something about yourself? Have you ever lost your cool? When and why? Describe any random product’s features. Compensation Description Basic salary: 9000 Conveyance: 500 For overtime: 500 Total salary: 10,000 Rating Scale for Front Office Employee

Financial Statements Of Financial Statement Fraud

Financial Statement Fraud Financial statement fraud is any intentional or grossly negligent violation of generally accounting principles (GAAP) that is undisclosed and materially effects any financial statement. Fraud can take many forms, including hiding both bad and god news. Research shows that financial statement fraud us relatively more likely to occur in companies with assets of less than $100 million, with earnings problems, and with loose governance structures (Hopwood, Leiner, Young, 2011). Financial statement fraud is usually a means to an end rather than an end in itself. When people cook the books they may doing it to buy more time to quietly fix business problems that prevent their entities from achieving its expected earnings or complying with loan covenants (Fraud Magazine, 2014. It may also be done to obtain or renew financing that would not be granted or would be smaller if honest financial statements were provided. People intent on profiting from crime may commit financial statement fraud to obtain loans they can then siphon off for personal gain or to inflate the price of the company s shares, allowing them to sell their holdings or exercise stock options at a profit (Fraud Magazine, 2014). However, in many past cases of financial statement fraud, the perpetrators have gained little or nothing personally in financial terms. Instead the focus appears to have been preserving their status as leaders of the entity - a status that might have been lostShow MoreRelat edFinancial Statement Fraud And Corporate Financial Fraud1310 Words   |  6 PagesFinancial Statement Fraud Background Financial statement fraud is one of the biggest types of fraud in today’s business world. The complexity and mechanism of financial statement fraud brought the attention of auditors and regulators. 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It will also be discussed as to what some of the common ways financialRead MoreUnderstanding Financial Statement Fraud And Financial Statements1730 Words   |  7 PagesUnderstanding Financial Statement Fraud Anna Gallagher American Public Universityâ€Æ' Understanding Financial Statement Fraud Financial statement fraud is any intentional or grossly negligent violation of generally accounting principles (GAAP) that is undisclosed and materially effects any financial statement. Fraud can take many forms, including hiding both bad and god news. Research shows that financial statement fraud us relatively more likely to occur in companies with assets of less than $100 millionRead MoreFinancial Statements Fraud56771 Words   |  228 PagesGraduate School 6-1-2008 Detecting financial statement fraud: Three essays on fraud predictors, multi-classifier combination and fraud detection using data mining Johan L. Perols University of South Florida Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the American Studies Commons Scholar Commons Citation Perols, Johan L., Detecting financial statement fraud: Three essays on fraud predictors, multi-classifier combination and fraud detection using data mining (2008)Read MoreFinancial Statement Frauds29904 Words   |  120 Pages2002:53 Financial Statement Fraud - Recognition of Revenue and the Auditor’s Responsibility for Detecting Financial Statement Fraud - Tiina Intal and Linh Thuy Do Graduate Business School School of Economics and Commercial Law Gà ¶teborg University ISSN 1403-851X Printed by Elanders Novum Abstract Financial reporting frauds and earnings manipulation have attracted high profile attention recently. There have been several cases by businesses of what appears to be financial statement fraudRead MoreFinancial Statement Fraud5172 Words   |  21 PagesFinancial Statement Fraud ACCT 710: Assignment 6-2 Shannon Baxley David Welch September 24, 2011 Table of Contents Abstract†¦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‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦3 Introduction†¦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‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..3 Literature Reviews†¦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‚¬ ¦5 Conclusion†¦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‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..16 References†¦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‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...18 Abstract This paper describes financial statement fraud (FSF) and how it may occur within companies. The reason of this study was to researchRead MoreQuestions On Financial Statement Fraud1889 Words   |  8 PagesFinancial statement fraud is a common way to commit fraud. There are many types of fraud that can be committed with financial statements, including timing differences, fictitious revenues, concealed liabilities, improper disclosures, and improper asset valuation. These fraud schemes can be prevented and detected with a variety of audit techniques. The auditing techniques applied depend on the type of audit that is been carried out. They depend on whether it is an internal audit or an external auditRead MoreFinancial Statement Fraud Schemes Essay727 Words   |  3 PagesFinancial Statement Fraud Schemes While evaluating Apollo Shoes, there are some areas of concern that are potential fraud schemes. Fraud can lead to the entire collapse of a company if not corrected, and will also affect share value and investor confidence. This paper provides an overview of the process of investigation along with recommendations for the company. As with any company, revenue recognition is an important part of operations for Apollo Shoes. Generally accepted accounting principlesRead MoreFinancial Statement Fraud Schemes : Worldcom Essay1374 Words   |  6 PagesFinancial Statement Fraud Schemes WorldCom was involved in two major forms of financial statement fraud schemes, overstatement of revenue and understatement of line costs (Vance, 2016). WorldCom was overstating there revenue by regularly monitoring revenue through the sales groups’ performances measured against the revenue plan (Vance, 2016). Every two to three months a meeting was held that brought each sales channel’s manager and they were obligated to present and defend their sales channel’s

Food Is So Black And White - 942 Words

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary Food is, â€Å"Material consisting essentially of protein, carbohydrate, and fat used in the body of an organism to sustain growth, repair, and vital processes and to furnish energy† (Merriam-Webster). Biologically the dictionary perfectly defines the word food, yet it is described as something so black and white. Food’s definition should describe food as something meaningful instead of something bland. Food is so much more than just an everyday necessity but rather food is an extension of the individual who is eating, which can give an insight on the life of the individual. For instance, in the past the surplus of food became a status symbol. Men and women of wealth used their money to simply buy†¦show more content†¦The food that people eat can give hints of someone’s economic class. The wealthy, on the other hand find luxurious foods easily accessible. Only a small portion of the entire population may ever t ry these expensive foods. Luxurious foods like caviar, truffles or kobe beef can take an enormous amount of energy to harvest and collect which results in an expensive price. These luxurious foods can cost more than an average person’s rent. Not only can the wealthy afford healthy foods, they can afford food reserved for those with high incomes. The price of the food can give in insight on the wealth of people. Also food can reveal a person’s health. Additionally, a person’s health can associate with the food a person eats.(Those who eat foods high in fat content, will usually gain weight. For instance, those who gain an unhealthy amount of weight can give an insight on the health of the individual. Gaining too much weight in fat can eventually lead to heart failure and a whole plethora of diseases. On the other hand those who actively watch their weight and who eat a well balanced diet will typically live healthy lives. The foods people choose to consume can u nveil their health. Similarly the food available to people can reveal their culture. Furthermore, the type of food someone consumes can indicate a person’s ancestry. Oftentimes when referring to food it contains a label of the country of origin. A cultures food mayShow MoreRelatedObesity As An Extreme Excess Of Body Fat1690 Words   |  7 Pagesthe risk of illness from numerous issues such as heart disease and diabetes. As weight increases, so does the prevalence of health risks. Because of the importance of these issues, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services considers obesity among the 10 leading health indicators in Healthy People 2020, which are the health objectives for the Nation. In recent history, obesity among the black communities has become one of the most prevalent issues that urban America endures. But why is urbanRead MoreRichard Nathaniel Wright s Life1520 Words   |  7 PagesNathaniel Wright was born September 4th, 1908 in Roxie, Mississippi. 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The Career As A Social Worker Essay - 1416 Words

â€Å"All of us are born for a reason, but all of us don’t discover why. Success has nothing to do with what you gain in life or accomplish for yourself. It’s what you do for other’s† - Danny Thomas (founder of St. Jude Children’s Research hospital). That concept alone is able to inspire people every day to do better for others. Some are actually so passionate about aiding other individuals that they decide to choose a field in regards to it. In actuality a profession as a Social worker is one of the most renowned occupations when it comes to assisting people. The path to becoming a social worker is very difficult, but in the end you will know what is to be human and to be humane. What it’s all about A career as a Social worker primarily involves attending individuals, families, groups of people to cope with complications they are facing which is beneficial to improving the patient’s lives. As a licensed Social worker you will carry immense responsibility and very little authority. You will have to handle researching and referring individuals to useful sources, evaluate clients and follow up to ensure their conditions are improving, help clients cope with alterations like illness, be a critical support network for the clients, and many more. Becoming a Social worker not only requires multitasking, but it also involves a substantial amount of professional skills like, detailed note-taking skills (helps develop strategies and interventions), Active listening skills (helps askShow MoreRelatedThe Career Of A Social Worker Essay1487 Words   |  6 PagesThe career of a social worker is known by others as a person who has both the determination and responsibility to help others despite the unfavorable situations that is presented. From my perspective, a social worker is a giving person who loves what they do, despite the varying schedules. That perspective of a social worker is someone who I would like to become. 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Imperialism and South Africa free essay sample

Effect on South Africa Imperialism was a movement that affected all parts of the world, beginning as early as the 19th century. Wealthy and established nations would annex and take control of underdeveloped nations and civilize them. This may sound good in theory, but Imperialism seemed to take advantage of the so-called â€Å"inferior† nations more than truly help them. The economic superpowers seized the land of the territories they thought to be subordinate, using it as trading depots, an outlet to gain natural resources, and to civilize the native people. These three factors continued to be a main staple in society of South Africa even after imperialism ended and it was an independent nation. Racial segregation was extreme, and it all stemmed from imperialistic qualities left from those such as Ferry and Paton. Qualities assumed from imperialistic times had a lasting negative effect on South Africa, leading to racial segregation and a sense of inferiority in the black population during the second half of the 20th century. At the outset, imperialism has an extensive background that affected all parts of the world, including South Africa, the New Hebrides, Tunisia and Madagascar. The economic superpowers- England, France, the U. S. S. R, the United States, Portugal, and several other European nations- began to expand their empires. Areas of primitiveness that were rich in valuable natural resources were obvious and popular targets for expansion (Notes 10/25). This soon became a race to see which countries could annex as much land as possible, and in the case of Africa, the competition soon became known as the â€Å"Scramble for Africa†. Yet why was this land so valuable? Ferry said it best when he talked about reasoning behind colonial expansion. The main goals behind imperialism were to open up trade routes, gain land and therefore the natural resources found there, and to civilize the subordinate people that populated the regions (Ferry 1-2). Many countries would have been benefited by opening trade routes and hoped to get an edge on the competition. Having ports all around the world would create an economic boom for a country. Paton, a Scottish missionary sent to the New Hebrides, explained the desirable aspects of this incentive when he says, â€Å"Because the New Hebrides are already a British dependency in this sense – all its imports are from Sydney and Melbourne and British colonies, and all its exports are also to British colonies† (Paton 1). These o-called subordinate lands were an important feature to expanding the trade market of the powerful European nations. Another important aspect of why Imperialism was so popular had to do with the valuable natural resources found in the annexed countries. The â€Å"Scramble for Africa† was ultimately a race to see what country could gain the most land, and therefore the most natural resources to help stimulate the economy. Ferry speaks of the immense amount of coal that could be found on Africa’s islands- coal which could be used to power their naval ships to offer the country protection (Ferry 2). Paton also goes on to mention the vast agricultural benefits, â€Å"The islands on this group are generally very rich in soil and in tropical products so that if a possession of Great Britain, and if the labor traffic stopped so as to retain what remains of the native populations on them, they would soon, and for ages to come, become rich sources of tropical wealth to these colonies, as sugar cane is extensively cultivated on them by every native of the group, even in his heathen state†¦The islands also grow corn, cotton, coffee, arrowroot, and spices, etc. , and all tropical products could be largely produced on them (Paton 2). Each of the overly-industrialized European nations wanted to reap the benefits of the agriculturally opulent countries. However, the most mutable aspect of Imperialism would be the â€Å"civilizing† of the native people. The Imperializing countries believed the native people to be a subordinate race in need of civilization. In the eyes of Ferry, the native people had no right to the land. He claimed that the land belonged to the French, as they were a superior race of people (Ferry 2). He exclaimed, â€Å"Gentlemen, we must speak more loudly and more honestly! We must say openly that indeed the higher races have a right over the lower races† (Ferry 1). Ferry again went on to explain that it was the duty of the superior people to cultivate the lives of the natives. Paton and Great Britain also shared the same views on civilization as the French, but with more of a religious point of view. Missionaries were sent to spread Christianity, as Paton explains, â€Å"The islands of this group on which life and property are now comparatively safe, the 8,000 professed Christians on the group, and all the churches formed from among them are, by God’s blessing, the fruits of the labors of British missionaries, who, at great toil, expense, and loss of ife have translated, got printed, and taught the natives to read the Bible in part or in whole in nine different languages of this group† (Paton 2). It seemed that all of the so-called superior countries agreed upon the fact that they saw the native people as subordinate beings. Together, these three factors of Imperialism shaped the future of South Africa in the second half of the 20th century. Although South Africa was fundamentally independent during this time period, there were irreversible changes made in the mentality of the South African citizens. For instance, the white populous still saw South Africa as an outlet for natural resources. There was an immense amount of coal deposits in Apartheid, which were mined and exported. The spread of Christianity also remained a staple in South African culture, which was originally an effect of Imperialism. However, what proved to be the most outstanding attribute adopted from Imperial lifestyle was the inferiority of the black race to the whites. Apartheid, a predominantly white governed territory in South Africa, was plagued with severe racial segregation. Even though Imperialism had ended and South Africa was now independent, blacks were still thought to be subservient to the white population. The blacks were paid less to work in jobs that were menial and sometimes hazardous, they were given a lesser education, were forced to live in areas of poor conditions, and were not allowed to hold any positions of power (Tutu 3). This inferiority could also be seen through Geyer’s writings about Apartheid, especially when he refers to the entire black South African population as Bantu, which shows the extent of the segregation. Geyer even has the audacity to confront the issue of the native blacks holding no power in Apartheid by saying, We believe that, for a long time to come, political power will have to remain with the whites, also in the interest of our still very immature Bantu† (Geyer 2). Geyer continues to defend himself and the racial discrimination in Apartheid by referring to the old Imperial powers, such as Ferry and Paton, as reasoning for why it is acceptable. Geyer relates Apartheid to Ferry and Paton when he says, â€Å"The only alternative is a policy of apartheid, the policy of separate development. The germ of this policy is inherent in almost all of our history, implanted there by the force of circumstances†¦ Apartheid is a policy of self-preservation. We make no apology for possessing that very natural urge. But it is more than that. It is an attempt at self- preservation in a manner that will enable the Bantu to develop fully as a separate people† (Geyer 2). Imperialistic values held by those such as Ferry and Paton translates to the independent territories of South Africa, with the blacks still being seen as an inferior race of people. Geyer refuses to see the native South African people as anything but inferior, and inhibits their development. In conclusion, the characteristics imperialism inflicted during the scramble for Africa had a lasting negative effect on the lives of the black population during the second half of the 20th century in South Africa. Although by this time Imperialism had come to an end and South Africa was an independent nation, the blacks were still seen as an inferior race as seen during Imperialistic times. Many qualities of imperialism still held strong in South Africa, and it shaped South Africa into a racially segregated society, where blacks made less money, had lesser education, and were not allowed to hold positions of power. It goes to show how the radical opinions of old imperialistic leaders could still hold strong even decades later.