The 2016 Theodor Seuss Geisel Awards for Books for Beginning Readers

Analysis Of Louie Zamperini As A Hero - 1503 Words

Laura Hillenbrands Analysis of Louie Zamperini as a Hero Peter Parker once said, â€Å"I believe there s a hero in all of us, that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and finally allows us to die with pride, even though sometimes we have to be steady, and give up the thing we want the most. Even our dreams†. Peter Parker is an uncooperative teen who was handed the most daunting task of being a hero and protecting the lives of others. His personality quickly changed from this character who couldn’t care less for others, to putting all his worries into the safety of society. Not all heroes have to be bitten by a spider and given a costume. Some are normal everyday people who accept this challenge of protecting a belief. Louie Zamperini exceeds the limitations for the definition of a hero through perseverance and surviving as well as keeping others alive. In Hillenbrand’s novel Unbroken, syntax, tone, and imagery shows that Louie was proven to be an iconic hero. Hillenbrand utilizes the rhetoric device of syntax to better help the reader apprehend just how heroic Louie is through the passage. Louie had just been introduced to the POW camps and has just been observed by Watanabe (The Bird) who knows an abundant amount of information on Louie. Hillenbrand wrote â€Å"From the moment Watanabe locked eyes with Louie Zamperini, an officer, a famous Olympian, and a man for whom defiance was second nature, no man obsessed him more† (238). Hillenbrand utilizes a run onShow MoreRelatedUnbroken By Laura Hillenbrand : Book Analysis1504 Words   |  7 PagesUnbroken: Book Analysis In Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, innumerable controversial issues were addressed. The actions of many men were recited to be judged by the reader. Some actions elicit sympathy and respect while others induce horror and anger. Although the actions of the Japanese in bombing Pearl Harbor brought the United States into the war, much of the World War II literature has been focused on the European war. This is primarily because the Nazis are most commonly viewed as the predominate

Influence of Digital Media on Education Free Essays

A great man once said, â€Å"If we teach today’s students as we did yesterdays, we are robbing them of tomorrow. † His name was John Dewey. He was an American philosopher, psychologist and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. We will write a custom essay sample on Influence of Digital Media on Education or any similar topic only for you Order Now This man is the inspiration for many enthusiastic educators, who wish to evolve education as the world around us changes, especially with the rapid reforms bestowed upon the education world through this monster that we call digital media. There is no running away from the fact that digital media has already changed the world. It’s not going to stop altering the world it was created in anytime soon. So human beings have taken advantage of this fact. Since digital media reaches every corner of the globe, man has learned how to influence tremendous amounts of people through digital advertisements, expressed opinions on blogs, massive video sharing (Youtube), Internet radios (Pandora, Spotify), universal shopping outlets (Amazon, Ebay) and even extremely localized seller/buyer ran websites such as Craigslist. The list is never ending. Digital media has grabbed our society by the horns. For this project I have chosen to analyze the impact of Digital media on education. Numerous communications technologies have been, and will continue to connect the expertise of professional educators. Digital media and the numerous communications technologies are connecting millions of people to: 1. Increase opportunities for a quality education. 2. Increase audience networks to jumpstart a synergistic routine for online/afterschool studies. 3. Easily develop effective studying techniques in younger children, which ultimately set children up for success. Education on Digital Media 4. Construct interactive communication for peer-to-peer studies. 5. Give parents a chance to provide their children with an excellent structured education. 6. Develop online programs that are extremely user friendly, for parents and children. 7. Learning everywhere. 8. Introduce children to the safest possible online interactions for educational purposes. 9. Allow children to become adaptive to the changing technologies involving digital media. 10. Discover a student’s strength and weaknesses through computer-generated statistics, graphs and tables. These tables will be available to parents and children, at the discretion of the parents. Also, this will be available for regular adult students, hence online college portals (UMUC’s Webtycho). The incorporation of digital media into traditional education allows convenient learning alternatives, rather than the tradition textbook, notebook and highlighter approach. â€Å"Our students have changed radically. Today’s students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach. † (Prensky, 2001) These days’ students use tablets and laptop computers, with wireless Internet to their advantage. Digital media offers students of all education levels an enormous treasure chest of social practices, methodologies and even hands on assignments. Expert educators have become readily available to students virtually anywhere in the world (where and internet connection can be found. ) Of course, only digital immigrants who are adept to the use of digital media themselves will be afforded the opportunity to share their teaching skills globally. A learning application on your IPhone will never replace a quality teacher, who truly has a passion for teaching. However, over the past several years, multiple online platforms have given students the opportunity to take the initiative on learning. â€Å"Tools will never outshine a brilliant teacher, but over the past fifteen years many tools, services, and platforms have become easier to adapt for learning purposes, to help command and hold the attention of learners for whom email is no more than an easy way to talk to â€Å"the man. †Ã¢â‚¬  (Scholz, 2011) A website I have used in the past has helped me pass CLEP (College Level Entry Program) exams, which count for 3 college credits. You can earn these credits simply by passing the examinations, which are usually more difficult than easy. The CLEP system allows students to basically take the final exam of an entry-level college course, without ever having to take the course. This website I utilized and came to appreciate is www. instantcert. com. You have to pay a monthly subscription, which is totally worth it if you apply yourself. There is no instructor for the study guides and test samples provided by the websites creators. It’s simply you and the books. Raw learning at its finest. Of course, there are also online tutoring programs, which provide private tutors for virtually all-academic subjects. Live online courses (much like CMST 301) are available to students of all ages. I would like to point out the difference between an online college course, and an online tutoring program. UMUC’s online program is the perfect example of an online college, where students earn actual college credits that apply towards an official college degree. Then there’s academic tutoring programs, such as Instantcert. com, which I mentioned previously. Another fine example of an online tutoring program is the princetonreview. com. The Princeton review does not offer college credits; it simply aids motivated students in their understanding of whatever subject matter they are pursuing. The concept of â€Å"learning everywhere† has never been easier, thanks to digital media. â€Å"Digital learning not only takes place online or in the university classroom but is also situated in high schools, museums, after school programs, home school living rooms, public libraries, and peer-to-peer universities. Learners do not learn exclusively in the university where â€Å"master-teachers† impart their insights under the tree of knowledge. † (Scholz, 2011) I have found the usage of tourist-interactive digital media programs in museums to be quite useful and educational. Learning everywhere is already happening, in homeschools and public schools. One comparison I would like to make known, is the difference in computer usage regarding homeschool and public schools. There is a graph below that sums up some very useful percentages. The graph shows that the percentage of students utilizing computers at home increases, as their parent’s educational attainment increases, but that the percentage using computers at public school is more nearly equal across the levels of parental education. This proves that computer (Internet) usage for public education is on the rise. Some parents prefer their student’s education to remain traditional, hence the homeschooling. A traditional home school program, in the past has consisted of family bought textbooks and teaching material designed for the students parents. Today however, there are multiple programs offered to parents, so they may have access to quality home school programs. Some of these programs involve the use of the Internet, and some do not. Many home school programs make use of DVD’s. You may notice the higher education attainment for parents makes a slight difference between parents who have bachelor’s degree and a graduate education (regarding homeschool and public school). This was expected. What was not expected was the difference between parents with a high school education, compared to parents with a 4-year degree. 5% compared to 82% is a huge gap. I predict that digital media will shorten this gap. User friendly, affordable and independent home school online programs will be developed by digital immigrants, programmers and educators who have grown up in the tech-savvy generation. The gap will naturally shorten as education becomes readily incorporated into digital media. Another surprise (to me personally) was the fact that the highest percentage for computer usage came from home school environments taught by parents with graduate educations. I expected this percentage to be lower, due to the fact that most traditional home school systems tend to fray away from computer usage. But then again, this graph was created in 2003. I can see digital media having a direct effect on education for all these categories. Reason being, as time goes on, digital media usage in nursery school and students in grades K-12 will increase. It will increase because digital media is only furthering its reach. The good news concerning this graph, the percentage of computer usage in public schools remained relatively close in proximity. Ranging from the lowest (78%) to the highest (84%), this shows that computer and digital media usage in public, private high schools and universities has already become very widely available. The graph above displays computer usage in households. The graph below displays the difference between computer usage and actual Internet usage by grade level from Nursery school through 12th grade. In 2003, it was easy to see the dramatic increase for computer and Internet usage ranging from nursery school all the way up to 10th grade. By the time students reached 10th grade, the Internet and computer usage tended to even out at a moderate rate. Basically what this graph is telling us is that students begin learning how to use a computer and Internet as soon as they enter the school systems. The percentage that surprised me the most, was the nursery school computer and Internet usage beginning in nursery school. Even though this graph was originated by the NCES (National Center for Education Statistics), I questioned the fact that computer usage/Internet usage begins in nursery school. It is happening today, and I predict this to be a growing trend. There are two major organizations, which exist today, whose sole mission is to safely incorporate digital media into preschool and kindergarten. The first major organization is the NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children). This organization is noticeably the largest, and well-funded organization for early educators in the United States. The 2nd is the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media organization. These two amazing organizations have conducted research, which supports the use of digital media technology in preschool and kinder garden. A very brave statement was released by both organizations. The statement regarded technology and small children up to 8 years old. â€Å"Though the groups discourage â€Å"passive screen technology† usage — like TV and DVDs — with children under two, they don’t suggest a ban on screens for preschoolers or kindergartners as some child-advocacy groups have suggested. Nor do they say teachers should avoid using technology with young kids. Instead, the groups puts the onus on teachers to make smart decisions and use technology appropriately. † (Guernsey, 2012) Conclusion: The digital media’s affect on education is more evident now than ever. If professional educators truly wish to reach their students in the world of pedagogy, I predict that these educators must become more adept to the way these new generations of students are accustomed to learning. Today, students learn on their own terms, with their own study methods. The sooner professional educators embrace technology and digital media fully, the sooner our students will reach their full potential. References Scholz, R. T. (2011, March 31). Learning Through Digital Media  » Introduction: Learning Through Digital Media. Learning Through Digital Media. Retrieved  February  23, 2013, from http://learningthroughdigitalmedia. net/introduction-learning-through-digital-media DaBell, M. , Chapman, C. , Spellings, M. , Whitehurst, G. , ; Schneider, M. U. S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2006). Computer and internet use by students in 2003 (2006-065). Retrieved from Institute of Educational Sciences website: http://0-nces. ed. gov. opac. acc. msmc. edu/pubs2006/2006065. pdf Guernsey, L. (2012, March 7). Saying yes to digital media in preschool and kindergarten. Retrieved from http://www. huffingtonpost. com/lisa-guernsey/saying-yes-to-technology-_b_1325070. html Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5), 1-6. Retrieved from http://www. marcprensky. com/writing/prensky – digital natives, digital immigrants – part1. pdf How to cite Influence of Digital Media on Education, Essay examples

Project Execution Planning and Management †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Project Execution Planning and Management. Answer: Project Delivery Method The project delivery method is defined as an efficient process or procedure utilized in any construction project for developing the design, scope, consultants and design sequence for completing the project. Therefore, each project differs in characteristic with the other based on the delivery method used for completion of the project. Currently, in the public funded project, the three major project delivery methods are followed including CM @ risk, Design build and design bid build. The selection of the appropriate project delivery method needs to be considered based on the alignment of the project requirement with the characteristics of the method. The various characteristics of the method of the three project delivery method are illustrated in the section below: Design-Bid Build: The process of Design Bid Build is considered as one of the traditional process used for design and construction. In this process the design of the project is completed before the bidding process, and the construction part of the project is provided for construction project. In this type of delivery method, the errors regarding the design of the construction project becomes the responsibility of the project owner. Design Build: In the project delivery method of Design build, both the design and construction module of the project are being procured. This type of project is being characterized by the contract from one single entity. Usually the process of RFP (Request for Proposals) and RFQ (Request for Qualifications) are being employed in the project. CM @ Risk: This type of project delivery method is characterized with different construction and design procurement for completing the construction. The contract between the construction manager and the construction agency is at risks determining the final time and cost required for the construction project. Based on the characteristics of the three delivery methods, CM @ Risk, Design Build and Design-Bid Build methods has been provided the score in the evaluation matrix. In the project delivery method evaluation matrix, it has been identified that application of design build method would be most appropriate for selecting the appropriate project delivery method for the project for widening the existing highway for the Sydney motorway network. From the case study for the project of widening of the Sydney Motorway Network it has been identified that the working capacity and complexity in widening of the road are the significant factor that needs to be considered while selecting the project delivery method. The M5 motorway has been predicted to have an increase in the traffic of 24 % in the weekdays. Therefore, the construction for widening of the motorway needs to be carried out with utmost care and safety without risking the daily life of thousands of individuals. Therefore, in the evaluation matrix, design complexity has been provided with maximum weightier. In addition to that, the inability or failure to manage the organizational structure associate d with the widening of the motorway carries the potential for slipping out vital activities in the project. Therefore, risk assessment and management in the project is the second most significant factor having the maximum weight. Further, the project has been scheduled to be completed within 2023. Failure to complete the project within set deadline will in turn increase the complexity and budget for construction. Therefore, schedule delivery has been allocated as the second highest weight for the project. Cost allocated and the owner experience has been provided with the thirst highest weight as AUD 16.8 billion has been contracted for the project. Goals/ Criteria Criteria Weight Project Delivery Method Design-Bid Build Design-Build CM @ Risk Score Weighted Score Score Weighted Score Score Weighted Score Schedule Delivery 15 4 60 10 150 8 120 Innovation of the Construction 5 4 20 9 45 10 50 Design Complexity 20 3 60 9 180 8 160 Risk Assessment 20 4 80 10 200 8 160 Experience of the Owner 10 10 100 8 80 3 30 Experience of the staffs 5 10 50 8 40 4 20 Contractor Experience 8 4 32 10 80 10 80 Cost 10 3 30 10 100 8 80 level of control 7 9 63 8 56 10 70 total 100 495 931 770 Based on the evaluation matrix, Design-Build has been identified as the appropriate project delivery method that can be employed in the widening of the motorway project. Financial Contract Type The project for the widening of the motor way required the creating four lanes from the exiting two lanes in order o improve the transportation facilities. The financial contact for the construction projects provides a legal agreement binding the contractor and the owner of the project. The contract further provides the detailed information about the type and amount of compensation provided to the contractors and designers for completing the project within the allocated amount of time. In the construction project, there are three major types of contract followed for binding the contractor on the basis of financial amount. Lump Sum Contract: The contract for the lump sum is characterized by the fixed financial amount provided for the completion of the project. Completing the project before the schedule would help in increasing the benefits and profits from the lump sum provided in the beginning. The lump sum is applicable when the scope and objective of the project are mentioned by the project owner. Application of lump sum contract helps in eliminating any risks associated with the contractor. Cost Plus Contract: In the cost plus contract the total budget provided by the owner is based on the actual price required by the activities that have been followed during the construction project. The cost plus contract provides the contractor with the ability to negotiate the financial amount required for the construction project. During the determination of the prince, all the direct and indirect cost are taken into consideration. Guaranteed Maximum Price Contract: The financial contract of Guaranteed Maximum Price Contract are distributed among the contractors based o the total price provided based on the activities and construction module pre-define din the design of the project. in this type of contract, the financial budget can only be increased after formal approval from the owner. The project for the development of the widening of the motor way network needs to be carried out on the lump sum of AUD 16.8 billion provided to the West LINK for completing the entire project. Therefore, the fixed cost criteria have been allocated with maximum weight along with the risks and quality factor for constructing and completing e entre project. Furthermore, the project needs to be completed within the allocated deadline with 2023. Therefore, schedule has been provided with second highest weight for the construction project. Similarly, all the other criteria has been evaluated and judged based in the requirement as mentioned in the construction project. Goals/ Criteria Criteria Weight Financial Contract Type Lump sum contract Guaranteed Maximum Price Contract Cost plus Fixed Fee Contract Score Weighted Score Score Weighted Score Score Weighted Score Fixed cost for construction 20 10 200 8 160 7 140 Schedule project 15 10 150 7 105 10 150 increased performance and production 5 8 40 4 20 5 25 bidding analysis 5 9 45 2 10 4 20 risk 20 7 140 5 100 9 180 design 5 4 20 2 10 8 40 higher cost for unforeseen condition 10 8 80 4 40 8 80 quality 20 8 160 4 80 7 140 total 100 835 525 775 Based on the evaluation matrix, lump sum financial contract should be utilized for the construction of widening the motorway of the project. Procurement Method The selection of appropriate procurement methods in the construction project helps in ensuring the project success and client satisfaction. The application of appropriate procurement process helps in improving the quality and standard of the construction project. Based on the construction project criteria, three main types of procurement methods are followed namely best value procurement, negotiated procurement and competitive procurement. Competitive procurement methods: The competitive procurement process allowed the all contractors with the process for judging the contractors in the basis of various characteristics of the contractors on the basis of technical quality of the contractors. The competitive procurement methods evaluated the capability, experience and financial cost of the contractor. Further the experience and technical capability of the contractor are judged before selecting the appropriate contractor. Negotiated procurement methods: In the negotiation procurement process, the contractor can discuss and negotiate the budget with the owner. The profit margin and risk factor associated with the project are considered before selecting the appropriated contractors. This type of procurement methods includes huge amount of financial budget by the contractors. Best Value procurement methods: In the method for best value procurement process, the contractor with the least amount of bid is chosen for the construction project. This process is associated with less risks and future consequences of the construction. Further, the application of the best value procurement process eliminates the assessment of the contractor based on the quality and technical process employed for the construction project. In this project for the widening the new freeway, a fixed amount has been provide by the government and deadline for completion has been set. Therefore, the cost for the procurement has been provided with the highest priority in the methods followed by the schedule. The construction would help in improving the quality and safety of the people using the pathway. In addition to that, mission out of any parts or activities in the construction would increase the risks associated with the project. Therefore, the risks have been allocated to next highest weight in the evaluation matrix. Goals/ Criteria Criteria Weight Procurement Method Competitive Negotiated Best Value Score Weighted Score Score Weighted Score Score Weighted Score Cost 20 10 200 4 80 3 60 quality 10 8 80 10 100 10 100 Schedule 10 8 80 6 60 7 70 risk 13 9 117 7 91 4 52 public accountability 5 5 25 1 5 6 30 project size 5 7 35 5 25 8 40 experience of the contractor 15 10 150 8 120 3 45 government policy 5 5 25 3 15 4 20 Decision of the owner 2 3 6 10 20 5 10 expertise of the contractor 15 10 150 8 120 6 90 total 100 868 636 517 Based on the evaluation matrix, competitive procurement method has been selected as the appropriate method for selecting the procurement for the construction project. Therefore the application of the competitive procurement could help in improving the quality and standard of the project. Bibliography Asher, M. G., Sharma, T., Sheikh, S. (2015). Public Procurement Legislation Essential for Improving Public Financial Management in India. da Silva Barboza, L., Gilberto Filho, A. D. A., de Souza, R. A. (2014, August). Towards a legal compliance verification approach on the procurement process of IT solutions for the Brazilian Federal Public Administration. InRequirements Engineering and Law (RELAW), 2014 IEEE 7th International Workshop on(pp. 39-40). IEEE. Gruenen, J., Bode, C., Hoehle, H. (2017, May). Predictive Procurement Insights: B2B Business Network Contribution to Predictive Insights in the Procurement Process Following a Design Science Research Approach. InInternational Conference on Design Science Research in Information Systems(pp. 267-281). Springer, Cham. Hawkins, T. G., Gravier, M. J., Berkowitz, D., Muir, W. A. (2015). Improving services supply management in the defense sector: How the procurement process affects B2B service quality.Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management,21(2), 81-94. Hayden, M. A. (2016).Engaging Users through the Application of Value Stream Mapping to Streamline the Procurement Process for Office Equipment(Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University). Jans, M., Alles, M. G., Vasarhelyi, M. A. (2014). A field study on the use of process mining of event logs as an analytical procedure in auditing.The Accounting Review,89(5), 1751-1773. Lawal, S. O. (2016). Procurement Process Design. Lima, F. S., Gonalves, M. B., Samed, M. M. A., Hellingrath, B. (2015, June). Integration of a Mathematical Model Within Reference Task Model at the Procurement Process Using BPMN for Disasters Events. InInternational Conference in Swarm Intelligence(pp. 440-452). Springer International Publishing. Lippman, E., McMahon, M. (2017). Professionalism and Politics in the Procurement Process: United States Civil War Early Years.Accounting Historians Journal,44(1), 63-76. Lozano, R., Witjes, I. S., van Geet, C., Willems, M. (2016). Collaboration for Circular Economy: Linking sustainable public procurement and business models. Mishra, A. N., Devaraj, S., Vaidyanathan, G. (2013). Capability hierarchy in electronic procurement and procurement process performance: An empirical analysis.Journal of Operations Management,31(6), 376-390. O'mahony, B., Noone, D., Prihodova, L. (2015). Survey of coagulation factor concentrates tender and procurement procedures in 38 European Countries.Haemophilia,21(4), 436-443. Wedin Hansson, L., Johansson, S. (2017). Institutional Incentives for Sustainable Public Procurement: a Case Study of Sustainability Considerations in the Swedish Construction Sector.The Public Procurement Law Review,26(5), 220-235. Witjes, S., Lozano, R. (2015, July). Developing a holistic framework to understand the contribution of sustainable public procurement to the development of more sustainable business models. Project Execution Planning and Management – Myassignmenthelp.Com Question: Discuss About The Project Execution Planning And Management? Answer: Introducation Design-Bid-Build the design-bid build consists of three different phases where the designing phase, bidding phase and the building phase. The designing phase consists of steps, which corresponds to the creation of the project plan and architectural design of the project (Park Kwak, 2017).. The owner hires an architect who is given the task of creating the architectural design of the project. If the owner of the project the architect goes on to approves the design produce the bid document that will be the basis on which, the bidding from the contractor will be happening. The requirements of the design has to be met by the architecture to fulfill the criteria of the project objectives (Ramsey, El Asmar Gibson, 2015). After the bid document is created the document is analyzed and the bidding phase starts. Different contractors come for the bidding auction of the project. They place their bidding for them to buy the tender for the project. After the completion of the bidding the owner along with the architect can either select one of the bidders based on the criteria he had put forward, reject all the bidders or start a new bidding process at a later date. After the complete selection of the contractor the project is assigned to them to work on (Park Kwak, 2017).. The contractor has to then start collecting all the permits that are required for the completion of the project. The contractor then produces a detailed timeline for the working of the project and delivers it to the owner for successful authorization. The architect hired by the owner works as a representative of the owner and looks after the working of the project timeline and the quality of the project (Ramsey, El Asmar Gibson, 2015). Design-Build In this process, the owner has to hire a general contractor who would look after the working of the project and an architect who would be in charge of the designing and implementing project in a correct manner (Minchin et al., 2013). This project delivery method lacks the process of bidding procedure, which selects the contractor who would be working on the project tender. These type of projects are mainly the act of joint venture or are completed in partnership with the owner and the architecture or the contractor who is given the contract (Minchin et al., 2013). CM @ Risk the constructor is provided with a project report during the designing phase or when the design has been completed (Fehling et al., 2014). The constructor is then selected based on the past working experience and the lowest bid set forward by the constructors. The company is then assigned and has to complete the whole project from there forward. The project is approved based on the risks taken by the contractor manager (Fehling et al., 2014). The three processes has been critically evaluated and the case study has been studied with care. Upon successful evaluation, it has been found that the best project delivery system to select for the given case study would be the design build process. As the construction time line for the case study is 7 years so the design build would be the best method to be used by the construction company. The tender has many risks and has to be completely evaluated by the contractor who has taken the job. The marking score provided in the table above has been provided based on the case study. Financial Contract Type Lump sum contract the contract is of a stipulated amount that is confirmed between the owners of the project and the contractor who has agreed to work on the project (Minchin et l., 2014). The major risks, which will be considered during the execution of the project, will be left for the contractor to resolve. The payment is paid in full with the consideration of over head costs, profit margin and the labor costs. Guaranteed Maximum Price Contract this contract is evaluated based on the actual cost compensation of the contractor with the addition of the profit margin of the contractor being added to it (Lee Rao, 2015). The contractor is responsible for the expenditures that will be applicable for the project completion. If there is a shortage in the funds provided then the owner has to evaluate the project again and then provide the money required for the task (Burr, 2016). Cost plus Fixed Fee Contract the contractor is paid an amount of money and a separate nominal amount for tasks provided by the contractor (Chen et l., 2015). This in turn provides a margin of profit for the contractor to earn an extra amount of money. The expenses which will be calculated based on the work which will be provided by the contractor. The tender is settled only when both the parties agree on the said statement (Chen et l., 2015). The best recommendation for the case study will be to follow the lump sum contract. As the project is of large deadline the owner will be paying the contractor a handful amount of money and will be done with it. The contractor will then have to go on with the project execution plan. The contractor has to work on all the working procedures and complete the task with the best quality. Higher the marking given to a criteria the higher involvement it has in the project execution. Procurement Method Competitive the use of fair and ethical method of bidding provided by the contractor who are willing to take up the project (Fong, Avetisyan Cui, 2014). The process provides a platform for all the different contractors to provide a bid on the tender and acquire it. The process is targeted to provide an equal shareable platform for all contractor to come and get the tender (Fong, Avetisyan Cui, 2014). This process is helpful for the owner of the project to acquire the best kind of contractors for the work. The interested contractor fill out the form and then places a bid on the tender. The contractor is chosen based on the evaluation of the form-filled out by them and the amount of money quoted by them (Bajari, Houghton Tadelis, 2014). After the successful evaluation, the owner selects the contractor and is provided with the tender contract. The owner can be of price oriented or can be or best quality oriented. Based on these properties the contactor is chosen. The owner also eval uates the past experience and project delivery before giving the tender (Bajari, Houghton Tadelis, 2014). Negotiated the owner chooses a contractor chooses a specific contractor based on their relation of past working experience on based on the reputation of the contractor (Miller, 2014). The cost to be paid out to the contractor is discussed and if the contractor agrees of the quotation of money then the tender is given to the contractor. The contractor then starts working on the project. If the quotation is not agreeable for the owners then a new contractor is called. This method has been avoided for much reason such as huge amount quotations (Yaqub et al., 2014). Best Value the factor of the lowest bidding is not the only criteria that is evaluated by the owner but also the experience of the contractor in working with similar projects (Ballesteros-Prez et al., 2016). The quality of the work needs to be of high specification and the owner would not settle for less. The selection is made prior to the architectural design of the project. The values of the contractor is to be taken up and evaluated before accepting thee working tender. Due to the following of the procedure the owners has less risk involved in the project completion method. Many working owners for their project have used the system (Ballesteros-Prez et al., 2016). This has been chosen due to the fact that there are minimum amount of risks to be considered when the work is being done. There is less amount of decision making to be done by the worker and the owners. There is a certain amount of money quotation from the previous experience then the contractor can quote the amount of money (Tran Molenaar Gransberg, 2016). This would highly eliminate the process of bidding by the contractors for the tender acquisition. The method has been followed by many government agencies who wants to eliminate process of bidding on the project plans. Goals/ Criteria Criteria Weight Procurement Method Procurement Method Procurement Method Competitive Negotiated Best Value Score Weighted Score Score Weighted Score Score Weighted Score Bidding 30 7 210 8 240 3 90 Decision of the owner is final 35 7 245 2 70 7 245 Negotiation 15 2 30 8 120 2 30 Risk taken 25 5 125 8 200 3 75 Total 105 610 630 440 The recommended procedure to follow for the case study would be the best value method. The recommendation has been provided based on the evaluation of the case study. The quality of work to be provided by the contractor is very high for this project. The price of the project make it to be of cost effective type. The marks has been provided to the criteria based on the case study. The higher the marks provided the more involved the criteria is in the project. References Bajari, P., Houghton, S., Tadelis, S. (2014). Bidding for incomplete contracts: An empirical analysis of adaptation costs. The American economic review, 104(4), 1288-1319. Ballesteros-Prez, P., Skitmore, M., Pellicer, E., Zhang, X. (2016). Scoring rules and competitive behavior in best-value construction auctions. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 142(9), 04016035. Burr, A. (Ed.). (2016). Delay and disruption in construction contracts. CRC Press. Chen, Q., Xia, B., Jin, Z., Wu, P., Hu, Y. (2015). Choosing appropriate contract methods for design-build projects. Journal of Management in Engineering, 32(1), 04015029. Fehling, C., Leymann, F., Retter, R., Schupeck, W., Arbitter, P. (2014). Cloud computing patterns: fundamentals to design, build, and manage cloud applications. Springer Science Business Media. Fong, C. K., Avetisyan, H. G., Cui, Q. (2014). Understanding the Sustainable Outcome of Project Delivery Methods in the Built Environment. Organization, Technology Management in Construction, 6(3). Lee, H., Rao, S. (2015). Nevada Demonstration Project: Construction Manager at Risk Contracting for Rehabilitation of I-80 Carlin Tunnels in Elko County, NV. Miller, D. P. (2014). Subcontracting and competitive bidding on incomplete procurement contracts. The RAND Journal of Economics, 45(4), 705-746. Minchin Jr, R. E., Li, X., Issa, R. R., Vargas, G. G. (2013). Comparison of cost and time performance of design-build and design-bid-build delivery systems in Florida. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 139(10), 04013007. Minchin, E., Ptschelinzew, L., Migliaccio, G. C., Gatti, U., Atkins, K., Warne, T., ... Asiamah, S. (2014). Guide for design management on design-build and construction manager/general contractor projects (No. Project 15-46). Park, J., Kwak, Y. H. (2017). Design-Bid-Build (DBB) vs. Design-Build (DB) in the US public transportation projects: The choice and consequences. International Journal of Project Management, 35(3), 280-295. Ramsey, D., El Asmar, M., Gibson Jr, G. E. (2015). Benchmarking the Procurement Performance of Single-Step Design-Build. Tran, D., Molenaar, K. R., Gransberg, D. D. (2016). Implementing Best-Value Procurement for DesignBidBuild Highway Projects. Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, (2573), 26-33. Yaqub, E., Yahyapour, R., Wieder, P., Kotsokalis, C., Lu, K., Jehangiri, A. I. (2014, June). Optimal negotiation of service level agreements for cloud-based services through autonomous agents. In Services Computing (SCC), 2014 IEEE International Conference on (pp. 59-66). IEEE.

Management Case Study free essay sample

The case study below takes place at the Sir Charles Wilberforce Hospital’s cafeteria, which is experiencing problems with the change management. Due to the new management undertaken by Keith Davis, there was a major issue of inadequate communication channels, as Keith told his employees what to do rather than consult them, especially with the decision-making. The best alternative to rectify this problem is for Keith to adapt to a consultative management style, in order for employees to take ownership in their workplace through expressing their opinions and feel more valued, however still allowing Keith to still make the final decision. Another major issue addressed in the Cafeteria was the amount of unmotivated staff. As employees feel unsatisfied with their work, the best solution to this issue is Goal Setting. Through employees setting strategic goals they will increase their motivation through achievement of these goals which will lead them to set more challenging ones. We will write a custom essay sample on Management Case Study or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Lastly, the third major issue recognised was Keith’s poor leadership skills which made it difficult for employees to fulfil expectations and find enjoyment in the workplace. The best alternative solution for this problem is to retrain Keith’s leadership abilities so he is able to adopt all the qualities needed to become a better leader in his managing role. Although this may be an expensive method, the new leadership qualities Keith will learn will make a happier work environment for his employees and build a better employer/employee relationship. 3. Problem identification Poor communication channels Keith focuses on top down communication channels, providing a one way communication which is from him to his employees, rather than two-way which provides his employees to communicate ideas with him. This negatively impacts the hospital as the Keith is unable to discuss problems or ask questions amongst employees to see if there are any problems going on amongst the workers and therefore leading to job dissatisfaction employees. Although Keith tried to soothe Julia when the issue between her and Madison was brought to his attention, he did not follow it up or treat it as an importance. Lack of staff motivation Prior to Keith’s managing, Anne’s original foundations of self-satisfaction and close family ties seemed to motivate the employees at Sir Charles Wilberforce hospital. Keith’s changes were made to become more efficient, employees were left struggling to gain satisfaction and motivation in order for themselves to achieve their hierarchy of needs (Maslow, 1954). In this hierarchy of needs Maslow developed, employees have five needs, physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualisation, once they fulfil one of their needs they can graduate to the next one to fulfil it and so on. Without fulfilling the social needs of forming social ties or self-actualisation of gaining enough experience within the kitchen to become a supervisor, it became unknown to the employees of what they are capable of and decreased their enticements to complete tasks and feel satisfied. Insufficient leadership abilities Keith lacks major leadership qualities, as the organisational layout he uses is to tell employees what to do, depriving them of guidance and support. The Hersey Situations leadership model suggests that leadership focuses on follower’s readiness (Hersey, Blanchard Johnson, 2001). This theory suggests that at Sir Charles Wilberforce, if the employees feel they are unable to complete a task Keith should give those clear and specific instructions. If they are willing and confident Keith needs to provide them display high task orientation, and if employees feel able but are unwilling Keith would need to use a supportive approach. Lack of teamwork The teamwork environment of delegating tasks amongst of employees was not addressed by Keith. He believed that employees needed to finish work on time, plan menus monthly and take on cleaning responsibilities, whereas, the use of team work would have provided a better suited time managed system. Through having each employee assist with cleaning duties, planning menus, helping out another if time was short as well as assisting each other to get all food out and made the kitchen would be less chaotic. This would have assisted with issues if someone was ill, allowing more than one person to prepare greater portions of meals. 4. Statement of Major Problems The three major problems that are brought to the attention at Sir Charles Wilberforce Hospital are: Inadequate communication channels Unmotivated staff Insufficient leadership abilities The poor communication channel Keith utilises is top-down communication from Keith to his employees. As this is a workplace that depends on seeking ideas from others and support from each other, two way communications between Keith and his employees is necessary. This will allow employees to feel part of the decision making and feel they can share their ideas to improve the workplace. Following this Keith must then improve his leadership skills, putting his employees first and assisting them with any help and support they need in order to achieve a positive workplace. This may involve Keith revising the organisation’s culture, or distinguishing the strength and weakness of each employee so he knows how to assist each of them. Once Keith’s leadership abilities are improved, staff motivation must be identified and given, in order for employees to become productive within the kitchen and gain job satisfaction, increasing their abilities and allowing them to feel the want to work. 5. Generation and Evaluation of Alternative Solutions Inadequate communication channels Regular work meetings Set regular meetings within the kitchen, in order to concerns amongst employees to be discussed as we as evaluation on how the business is going and openly discuss ways to improve or maintain it. Advantages Allows for feedback Employees can listen to each person’s idea and encourages discussion openly Evaluate the earnings to the previous week and that time the previous year, allowing each person to suggest ways to improve or maintain their profit margins. Disadvantages Some employees may not attend May be time consuming to discuss all ideas Consultative management style Implement a Consultative management style in order to increase two-way and open communication between Keith and the employees. Advantages Allows employees to feel ownership in decision making Allows employees to share their ideas and opinions Gives confidence to employees Disadvantages Employees may feel held back to express their opinions because they do not feel comfortable Employees may feel offended if their ideas are not taken into consideration Time consuming Unmotivated staff Goal setting Implement setting goals, which involve employees setting goals that motivate them to improve their capabilities. Advantages Gives self-satisfaction Increases productivity and performance levels Disadvantages Time consuming to distinguish appropriate and achievable goals Goals ay appear as unattainable and lead to employees to give up Job design Mr Dev can alter the job design to assist in identifying and correcting any deficiencies that affect performance and motivation. Advantages Job enlargement, can be used to increase motivation by giving employees more and varied tasks so the employee is motivation to try new tasks Job rotation allows an employee to work in different departments or jobs in an organization to gain better insight into operations motivating the employee to increase his/her skills and knowledge about other jobs. Disadvantages Job enrichment may lead the employee transferred too much responsibility in the kitchen and independence in the planning and control aspects of the job which may suppress motivation levels Reward and Recognition Evaluating each employee to identify which people are performing to their maximum, and rewarding them financially or non-financially for their hard work, therefore motivating other employees to improve their work standards. Advantages Employees will increase performance to obtain more rewards Will produce higher standards amongst the employees Self- enrichment Disadvantages Expensive to keep purchasing rewards and reassess each employee to recognise After a while employees may feel that rewards may not motivate them anymore Keith may not want to undertake the idea of rewarding and recognising employees Insufficient leadership abilities Retrain Keith Retraining programs for Keith within the company or externally will allow Keith to develop better leadership qualities and create a happier workplace. Advantages Positively effects employees to feel trust and support from Keith Keith can evaluate themselves as to what skills are expected to lead the employees Disadvantages May take a while for Keith to learn and adapt to these skills May be expensive Dismiss Keith Dismissing Keith will demolish the issue of poor leadership abilities and will allow the business to replace him with a more experienced manager. Advantages Re-appoint a new manager who possess all correct leadership skills Employees are in a happier environment where they can get the support they need More time appropriate and efficient than retraining Disadvantages May be hard to find a replacement Employees may find it hard to adapt to a new manager and may be resistant to give them a chance due to their bad experience with Keith 6. Recommendation Consultative management style A Consultative management style is the recommended alternative for Keith to address to his employees. The type of management style used by Keith at this point is autocratic, which involves him making decisions for the hospital kitchen unilaterally. Although regular meetings are a good alternative by providing mediation and assistant towards employees, the consultative management style involves a permanent change to the organisation. The consultative style would involve Keith discussing ideas of possible changes to be made within the kitchen, as well as employees being able to give their opinions and ideas. By implementing a consultative management style, employees at the cafeteria will be able to perform to their optimum level, concentrating on increasing common sense approach for Keith to meet the needs and wants of the employees, as well as making employees realise their own abilities and capabilities in performing tasks, (McClelland, 1987). Similarly to regular meetings, the consultative approach gives open communication, however unlike meetings the consultative approach is more permanent in the workplace and is used daily, for example in decision making, gaining assistance with a task or getting support with a concern. This will benefit the kitchen, as the employees will respond more positively to any changes to feel more a part of the workplace and a sense of belonging. Keith will benefit from this style, as he will be given a broader range of ideas as well as maintain his authority to make the final decision. Goal Setting Setting goals is the preferred alternative for Keith to use within the kitchen. Despite the fact being rewarded motivates someone to maintain if not improve performance to be rewarded again, goal setting gives motivation. Goal setting enables employees to measure their processes and work performance. This enables employees to gain feedback on their results, unlike rewards and recognition which just motivates employees to try harder to gain another reward rather than possessing the want to gain the self-satisfaction that they have improved. Edward Locke’s theory of goal setting outlines that in setting specific and challenging goals it enables process and outcome improvement (Locke Latham, 1990). Similarly, job design suggests a different form of motivating to increase their skills of different tasks, however it also does hold the ability to measure the improvement that setting goals do. If goal setting is adapted by Keith, his employees would be able to achieve towards a higher performance, as well as motivating them to set higher goals with increasingly difficult tasks, once they have been achieved. Through Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, this can assist in setting goals with Locke and Latham’s theory. Maslow theory suggests that ‘although no need is every fully satisfied, a substantially satisfied need no longer motivates an individual to satisfy that need’ (Robbins, Bergmann, Stagg and Coulter, 2012, p559). This suggests that in identifying each need, physiological safety social esteem and self-actualisation, employees at sir Charles Wilberforce can pinpoint what tasks they need to complete in order to graduate to the next level. For example one of the employees may find that they feel they don’t belong, in order to achieve this level they can set a goal to form relations with other employees on a professional basis. Once this goal is achieved they can move on to develop their esteem needs. Retraining Keith Although, retraining Keith may be considered a time consuming process, compared to the alternative of dismissing Keith, it appears to be a more logical approach. Through retraining, Keith is able to gain leadership skills that he may not be aware are essential skills he needs in order to be a manager. This will transform him from telling his employees what to do, to instead assisting and guiding them through changes. Despite the expenses of this method, it may also be difficult for Keith to cooperate as well as understand the concept of these skills however unlike dismissing, he will be able to improve and allow for a happier work. The trait theory suggests that it is impossible to identify and isolate characteristics from leaders from non-leaders. However there are seven traits associated with leadership, these being ‘drive, the desire to lead, honesty and integrity, self-confidence, intelligence, job-relevant knowledge and extraversion’, (Robbins, 2012, p605). Eventually with the retraining, Keith may possess these seven leadership abilities to involve his employees in decision making process and form a trust bond.

The Eradication of Smallpox essays

The Eradication of Smallpox essays Although it has taken a huge collective effort by many individuals and nations, the eradication of smallpox was mainly brought about by the pioneering efforts of Edward Jenner. Smallpox had been killing humans for over 3000 years and has been referred to as one of the greatest all-time scourges to mankind. One of the first known efforts to fight this horrible disease by immunization was in China where powdered scabs of smallpox pustules were blown into the nostrils of healthy persons through a tube. This method of immunization was called variolation and involved taking samples (which consisted of vesicles, pus from pustules, or ground scabs) from patients who had a mild form of the disease and inoculating the material into other persons through the nose or skin (Hopkins 24). The practice of variolation came to Europe from the East at the beginning of the 18th century by Lady Mary Wortley Montague, and English aristocrat. Lady Montagues husband was an ambassador to the East for England and while in Istanbul, she observed their method of variolation. She was so impressed by the Turks method that she had her 5-year-old son inoculated then her 4-year-old daughter when they returned to England. This was the first variolation performed in England (Hopkins 38). This method of variolation slowly gained general acceptance throughout all of Europe, although it had varying degrees of success. A portion of patients treated with variolation became ill with smallpox and subsequently died from the infection or started a new epidemic, and thus there was a fear that the inoculation did not provide immunity, but just provided infection. A few innovative scientists saw that there must be a better way to provide immunity, and Edward Jenner saw this better way in a correlation between cowpox and smallpox that eventually dubbed him the father of the smallpox va ...

Advantages and Disadvantages of Effective Budget Control

Advantages and Disadvantages of Effective Budget Control This paper will look at what is required of an effective budgetary control mechanism and try to assess the advantages and disadvantages of using a system imposed from above, or externally, over a decentralized system controlled by lower level management as task level. Using an empirical case study from the international banking sector, it will be shown that too much managerial autonomy can lead to disaster not just for the manager concerned but also for the whole organization. In contrast the role of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund in imposing nation-state loan budgets will be critiqued to highlight the potential flaws of centralizing and dominating budget control management. Effective budgetary control Henderson (2003) notes that regardless of the situation or workplace, in order to be effective it is crucial that budgetary control systems: Account for money received and spent Make sure that the organization’s financial policies are adhered to Ensure that m oney is not wasted Assist managers to run, and develop, services or departments These controls have developed from the need to account for large sums of money but are equally applicable to any budgetary situation. However, from a managerial perspective they have often been criticised for being insensitive and restrictive at the lower levels of management. As the number of stakeholders increases so does the need to be fully accountable and therefore more controls are also needed. This is particularly noticeable in the public sector National Health Service. Here lower level management are extremely subservient to imposed and tight budgeting restrictions from a distantly senior level. This is arguably a result of the need to satisfy a multitude of stakeholder interests and a concern that empowering lower management with the autonomy to control their own budgets would fail to include the number of interested parties from politicians to doctors and patients. With organisations as comple x as the NHS whether public or private sector – It is safer and easier to plan and control from above using imposed budget control methods. Politically imposed budgeting is preferably because senior managers, directors, or institutions who set the budgets are arguably best placed to recognise the wider implications of budgeting decisions but, according to Marginson (1999), financially imposed budget controls make sense too. Financial losses, which can occur for such damaging reasons as incompetence, error, negligence or fraud, are most likely to be minimised, or avoided altogether, by well constructed control systems. Imposed budgets benefit from the experience, acquired knowledge and full backing of senior management. They arguably encourage a sense of confidence in lower level management to do their job whilst reducing the massive levels of stress that come with having to create and manage your own budget. Another advantage of imposed budgeting is that it encourages regular monitoring, reporting, progress reports and ultimately improvements in the budgetary system. This enables problems to be uncovered and dealt with quickly and efficiently. Henderson (2003) states that it is advantageous to review arrangements occasionally. Even if procedures within your work area operate well, you should ensure that the budgetary responsibilities of staff at all levels are clear and understood by everyone. It would be unfortunate if problems arise because people do not know the extent or limit of their responsibilities (p33).

Biography of Immanuel Kant Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Biography of Immanuel Kant - Essay Example This paper illustrates that one of Kant’s important works include, the critique of Pure Reason, which was aimed at explaining the association between human experiences and reason. By undertaking this project, Kant hoped that he could manage to go past what had been thought as the failures in metaphysics and traditional philosophy. In this project, he had purposed to end what had been long considered as a period of speculative theories regarding human experiences while at the same time, opposing the cynicism of some of the great thinkers. Immanuel was born in Konigsberg town of Prussia in Russia in 1724, is the fourth in a family of nine. After baptism, he changed his name from Emanuel to Immanuel after having been introduced to Hebrew studies. In his early career life, Kant worked as a tutor in the town of Judtschen, which is now Veselovka between 1750 and 1754. His father, George Kant, was a harnessmaker who resided in Memel between 1682 and 1746. In his youthful time, Kant w as sold even though an unspectacular student. He was raised in a pietist family that was devoted to religious devotion, literal reading, and interpretation as well as personal humility, which was based on the teachings of the Bible. In his upbringing, he got a stern kind of education, which was very punitive, strict and full of discipline in which preference was given to religious instructions in Latin as opposed to science and mathematics. Despite the fact that Kant was raised in a Christian background and believed in God, he became skeptical about religion as he grew up later in life. Following this development, many people tagged him agnostic. Kant is renowned for his particular contributions I the fields of metaphysics and ethics, however, he was also helpful in providing important insights into various disciplines as well. Kant was instrumental in developing one of the most important discoveries about the origin of the earth and its rotation. In this discovery, he earned a glob al prize from Berlin Academy in 1754.

Critique of a text Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critique of a text - Essay Example Unfortunately, this article does just that. ‘Inconvenient lives’ is an insight into the reasons why humans resort to abortion, supported by statistics and facts and the writer’s own vehement anti-abortion views. Bork, in this article, answers the questions whether abortion is always killing of a human being and is it done mostly for convenience? He takes the stand that abortion is akin to taking a human life by stating scientific research regarding how human life begins; drawing comparisons between a fetus and an elderly human being; discussing the various reasons through statistics as to why women opt for abortion and criticizing the views of some of the pro-abortion advocates. The writer draws the conclusion that abortion is an immoral act and the reasons behind committing it are irrational. He believes that women solicit it because it seems to be the most viable and convenient solution for their own multiple problems that might arise due to unwanted pregnancy. The writer opens the argument by giving the summary of how a fetus comes into being and develops into a full-fledged human being. According to him, killing the organism formed after the fusion of a male sperm and female egg is like killing a human being. It is quite evident that the writer cannot demarcate between a human tissue (the zygote) and a living person (the mother). By stating scientific and medical opinion he is just trying to impose that this human tissue is important enough to have rights of its own. It shall be most unfortunate however, to grant it rights equal to or superior than that of a woman which is a human being, all flesh and blood with thoughts and emotions. It is an absurd comparison that only diminishes the value to a woman. Much dramatic light has been thrown on the rights that the fetus should be granted but at the end the writer himself admits that â€Å"†¦the fetus cannot survive

Comprehensive Problem Essay Example for Free

Comprehensive Problem Essay Dr. Harold Wolf of Medical Research Corporation (MRC) discovered a unique electronic stimulator that is said to have the capability of reducing the pain from arthritis. Even though the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) still has to approve the device, and the testing is in the early stages, the interest generated is powerful. Dr. Wolf has received three offers from interested parties and needs to decide which offer would make the most business sense. Offer One includes additional monetary incentives depending on the success of the device, Offer Two proposes a percentage of profits that would increase as sales are expected to increase and the final offer is the setup of a trust fund in an annuity over the next eight years. For discussion purposes here, each offer will be calculated to find the present value and then summarized; the offer with the highest present value will be identified for Dr. Wolf to review. Offer OneIn this offer, Dr. Wolf is expecting a future value of $4,200,000 in 15 years at a 10% interest rate, in which the probability of the expected future value is 70%. The numbers used in getting the future value is to add the present values of $1,000,000, $200,000, and $3,000,000. The present value for the first offer is $1,005,446.61 which is an increase of $3,194,553.40 for the future and since this calculation has a 70% probability of happening, the first offer would be a good decision. See the calculations below:FV=1,000,000 + 200,000 + 3,000,000 =$4,200,000N =15I =10%PV=$8,974,419.42Offer TwoIn this offer, 30% of the buyers gross profit on the product for the next four years is the incentive Dr. Wolf must decide on. Zbay Pharmaceuticals would be the buyer whose gross profit margin was 60%. If offer two were accepted by Dr. Wolf, his future value after just four years would have amassed approximately $3,138,300. This value assumes that he did not withdraw his profits and let the balance sit and gain 10% interest on the balance of the money and that sales grew by 40% in each of the subsequent years as anticipated by Zbay. Waiting till the fourth year to withdraw funds allowed the unused balance to compound interest payments. In general, this would be a good decision for the Dr. to accept, even considering the tax consequence that he would assume at the end of the four years. With the product not being approved by the FDA, Zbay Pharmaceutical has assumed all the risk which makes the offer even more lucrative. PV:2,000,000 the first year and 40% Growth each additionalFV: $5,488,000N: 4 yearsPV Profits: $360,000 year times 10%interest ($396,000)I: 10%FV Profits: $3,138,300Offer ThreeFor Offer three, Dr. Wolf may opt for a trust fund over the next eight years. Once that period was over, he would receive the proceeds discounted back to the present at 10%. At that time, he would receive semi-annual payments in the amount of $400,000 per year beginning immediately in an annuity due. This may be a worthwhile option to consider depending on the future business plan Dr. Wolf has. This would make the present value $1,721,216. The chart is shown below. Periods: 12 3 4 5 67 8$400,000 400,000 400,000 400,000 400,000 400,000 400,000 400,000Present Value (PV) = $1,721,216Highest Present Value and ReasoningPresent value is the value on a specific date of a payment or payments in the future that have been calculated to show the time value of money as well as other factors. These calculations are used industry wide as a method of the comparison of cash flows at different intervals over the life of the project. The basic present value formula is: PV=FV∙PVIF(r, n). The formula for an annuity is similar: PV=PMT∙PVIFA(r, n). In that case, n=number of periods, r=interest rate in the period, PV=present value at the beginning and FV=future value at time n. There are many financial arrangements that are set up with structured payment schedules and the term annuity is used to refer to that set up. A stream of cash flow that has a limited number of payments periodically that are to be received at given times is an annuity. If the payments were to be received indefinitely, then it would be perpetuity (Block, 2005). Based on this information, Offer I has the highest present value at $8,974,419.42At first glance, it is difficult to determine which offer might be the most beneficial offer for Dr. Wolf to choose. The first offer includes additional incentives relating to the success of the device, the second offer a percentage of profits also relating to the success of the device, while the third is an annuity in trust over the next eight years. Offer One has a present value of $8,974,419.42, Offer Two has a total present value of $2,524,713 and Offer Three has a total present value of $1,721,216. Given that Offer One of Dr. Wolf expecting a future value of $4,200,000 in 15 years at a 10% interest  rate, in which the probability of the expected future value is 70%, this would be the most advantageous offer for him to accept. References: Block, Stanley B., Hirt, Geoffrey A., Foundations of Financial Management (11th ed.),Irwin/McGraw-Hill, 2005, Burr Ridge, IL.

Neurocomputers /article Review :: essays research papers fc

The dream of artificial intelligence that would allow a computer to learn, and thus get really smart, has proven to be something of a nightmare so far. That failure has lead biomedical engineer William Ditto and his team of researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University to look beyond silicon and even beyond light chips. Ditto points out that today’s processors may be a lot faster, but they’re not a bit smarter than they were 40 years ago. Ditto’s processor is designed with living tissue. The tissue being neurons taken from leeches because they are big, easy to use and they learn quickly. Neurons are able to process images more than a million times faster than the fastest computer (Sincell, 2000). The present review has two purposes: (a) to enlighten the reader that the quest to build smart computers, microchip engineers look beyond silicon and light to living nerve cells and (b) to suggest that this future technology could be the basis o f the next great computer wave.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The article being discussed out of Discover magazine states that brains derive tremendous problem solving abilities from two characteristics of their individual cells. First, a neuron can be in any one of thousands of different states, allowing it to store more information that a transistor, which has only two states, on and off (Sincell, 2000). Second, neurons can choose which other neurons to interact with by rearranging their own synaptic connections. Scientists have developed software that attempts to imitate the brain’s learning process using only the yes-no binary logic of digital computers with all the connections in a personal computer wired back at the factory. Breaking a single one of these connections usually crashes the computer. This is not a problem for a neurocomputer Ditto says, because dynamic chaotic systems like these naturally self-organize. An example of this would be the human heart. An isolated heart neuron simply sparks chaotically, without apparent intelligence. But when it is a part of the neuronal network in a living heart, it synchronizes with all the other neurons to create a steady heartbeat (Sincell 2000). The neurocomputer would work in a similar way. If a computer programmer posed a problem to a collection of neurons, such as create a regular heartbeat, the neurons would then figure out through trial and error how to rewire their own circuits to produce a steady rhythmic beat.

Crime Scene Investigation Case Study Essay

OBTAINING and RECORDING PHYSICAL EVIDENCE When it comes to identifying people that have committed a criminal act, the most positive means is through fingerprints. When we are born, our fingerprints stay with us until we die and our bodies start decomposing. To the human eye our fingerprints look the same, however, further investigation will show that each of us have a unique set of friction ridges that comprise our fingerprints and sets our identity apart from each other. At a crime scene, there are two different types of fingerprints that may be found. Patent prints are visible to the human eye. Latent prints are â€Å"unintentional prints found on items of evidence or at a crime scene† (Unknown, Obtaining and Recording Physical Evidence, n.d.). The ability to visualize prints depends on the physical condition of the person who left the print, the surface on which they left it, and the reflection of the light which is used to help visualize the print. Other circumstances that effect the visibility of latent prints is time and exposure to elements like heat and cold. However, in any case, prints should be attempted to be obtained. When latent prints are smudged they lack the specific ridges to distinguish the print correctly. These types of prints may not be perfect for fingerprint analysis; they may be utilized to provide other trace evidence. Before latent prints can be lifted and processed they need to be discovered. Each print left in different types of surfaces have to be processed in a special way. The most common means is with the use of fingerprint powders or through chemical treatment. Most field kits supply a variety of colors so that the powder can contrast with the background on which they were left. The most widely used colors are black and white  because they are standard colors that contrast on many objects. Fluorescent fingerprint powders help develop prints on multicolored surfaces, and require the source of ultraviolet light. As with most equipment, safety goggles and gloves should be used to avoid undue exposure and harm to the investigator. It is important to have a delicate touch and a small amount of powder to make the latent print visible. Once the print has started to show up, continuing to brush with the direction of the friction ridges will make the fingerprint stand out. At that time, a photograph of the print should be taken and logged prior to lifting the print. If an investigator is in the field without proper powders, passing non-flammable evidence through the smoke of a burning piece of pine will cause soot to deposit on the object. Chemical processing of latent prints happens in the laboratory. Lab technicians are trained in using techniques that are required by the federal law in using many chemical mixtures to aid in processing evidence. Many porous objects will absorb the secretions from fingerprints and will not rub off as easy as they will on nonporous surfaces or objects. In order to get these prints visible, chemicals are applied to react to the secretions to make the print visible. The amount of contact and pressure applied by the fingers will affect prints the most. Once the prints are visualized, and photographs have been taken, prints can be lifted and placed on a print card and transported to the lab for further processing. The most common method to use for lifting prints is rubber lifters and transparent lifting tape. Rubber lifters work the best on curved or uneven surfaces, whereas transparent tape will lift the print in the position in which they were left on flat surfaces. How to Lift Fingerprints The basic police officer’s fingerprint kit should contain a fingerprint brush, black and bi-chromatic powder, lifting tape, and fingerprint cards. There are several types of fingerprint brushes available, the one to use is a personal preference. Fiberglass fingerprint brushes have a better rate of to â€Å"distribute the fingerprint powder evenly† (Spraggs, 2007). Most crime  scenes will utilize the black lifting powder; however, the bi-chromatic powder will be very helpful in processing prints on dark surfaces, because it is a mixture of the black powder with a white or silver powder. When the bi-chromatic powder is used on dark surfaces it will look light and it will show up dark on light surfaces. The best rule for processing latent prints using powder is to use less lifting powder than you think you are going to need. Many latent prints can be ruined by over processing with powder. David suggests â€Å"give the print powder jar a quick shake before opening the lid† then goes on to say â€Å"remove the lid and place the fingerprint brush inside the lid† (Spraggs, 2007). The lid will retain enough powder to start processing the latent print. A precise amount of pressure applied while spinning the brush will produce a good print with good ridge detail. He mentions that too much powder will fill the ridges and over process the print and too little will not produce enough, keeping in mind that too much contact between the brush and the print will damage the print. Once the print has been developed it is time to begin lifting the print. Lifting tape comes in a variety of widths and compositions. General lifting tape is used on flat surfaces and polyethylene tape is great for curved surfaces like door knobs. An important key in applying the tape is to keep it evenly and as smooth as possible. David suggests using a credit card to ensure even and smooth applications. â€Å"Securing the lifting tape about an inch from the edge of the print, then use the edge of the credit card to gently press the fingerprint lifting tape onto the surface† (Spraggs, 2007). This process allows for thorough adhesion of the powder and the tape ensuring that air bubbles are eliminated at the same time and being trapped in the tape. He also utilizes the credit card again when placing the tape to the fingerprint card. How Far Should Prints Be Trusted? Fingerprint analysis is not an exact science and has many potential flaws. One man was imprisoned for six years in Massachusetts for shooting a police officer, only to be released in 2004 when the fingerprint evidence that was  used to convict him was trumped by DNA. For a long time the Department of Justice contended that there was a zero error rate in fingerprint analysis. In a study conducted by FBI’s Latent Fingerprint Section in Quantico, Virginia, concluded that the chance to be mistake a fingerprint for someone else was 1 in 1097. This study was conducted on 50,000 pre-existing images and compared electronically against the whole data set, thus producing 2.5 billion comparisons. However, many advocates against the admissibility of fingerprinting continue to jump on the bandwagon and believe the study does not reflect what happens in life. In life, partial prints from a crime scene can be messy and send an invalid picture of the criminal. In an unpublished study conducted by 92 students that had one year of training where they had to match archive and fake crime scenes. The end result was 2 out of 5861 were incorrect, which produced an error rate of 0.0034% (Coghlan, 2005). Results from proficiency tests published and cited in the Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology (Vol. 93, p. 985), report error rates occur at a 0.8% average, and have been known to be as high as 4.4%. Latent Fingerprints In 1914, Dr. Edmond Locard established the first rules on the minimum number of minutiae necessary for a positive identification. According to his study, if twelve or more concurring points are present when the fingerprint is clear the identity is â€Å"beyond debate† (Unknown, Latent Prints, n.d.). If there are eight to twelve concurring points are present the certainty of the identity will be contingent on five additional points. They are the sharpness of the print, the rarity of its type, the presence of the center of the core and the delta in the exploitable part of the print, the presence of pores, and the perfect and obvious identity regarding the width of papillary ridges and valleys, the direction of the lines and the angular value of the bifurcations. If there were less than eight points present, the fingerprints could not provide a valid and accurate identity. Dr. Locard believed that approximately 40 pores in concurrence could establish individuality (Unknown, Laten t Prints, n.d.). Fingerprint Detection: Current Capabilities Crime scene investigators use a variety of tools to help solve a case. Latent fingerprint detection and identification is among one of the greatest forensic techniques used. The value of fingerprint evidence is insurmountable. An investigator needs to know how to detect, enhance and record the print that has been left behind not visible to the human eye. Latent prints left behind at the crime scene are the most common type of fingerprint evidence, but they are also the ones that can cause the most problems, mainly because it is there, but not to the unaided eye. Utilizing optical, physical or chemical treatments to develop the print comes with precise judgment. The investigator or crime scene technician must distinguish between porous, non-porous and semi-porous surfaces; water insoluble or water soluble, etc. Just like anything else, latent fingerprints will start to deteriorate and can lead to the loss of clarity over a specific time because of numerous factors. â€Å"Elements of this process include evaporation of volatile components (e.g. moisture), diffusion (e.g. through the substrate for porous surfaces and across the surface for non-porous surfaces), decomposition (e.g. bacterial action, oxidation, chemical breakdown due to heat and light, etc.)† (Lennard, 2007). The rate of dehydration will depend on certain factors like the temperature, humidity, and exposure to sun, air currents and the surface on which the print was left. Exposure to high humidity can result in diffusion of a water soluble print, causing the print to be lost, and any detection techniques to be ineffective. Using optical detection techniques will aid in finding latent fingerprints. Luminescence will help display a weak friction ridge detail. The best optical detection is achieved by using short-wave ultraviolet (UV) light. This technique is highly effective because the light acts as a contrast between the surface by absorbing the light or reflecting it back showing the presence of print. Will DNA Replace Fingerprints in the 21st Century? The use of fingerprints to help solve crimes was first suggested by Dr. Henry Faulds in 1880. Twelve years later, fingerprints that were left in blood at the scene of a double murder in Argentina were used to convict and identify the killer. However, the first fingerprints accepted in court in the United States didn’t happen until 1911. When we are born, we have distinct patterns on the tips of our fingers that will only change under a biological variation, because once formed in womb, the ridges are permanent and unique to each individual. â€Å"Biological variation is also known as the natural law of variation and is sometimes stated as ‘Nature never repeats’† (Leo, 2005). There are three basic types of fingerprint patterns: loops, whorls, and arches. Each of these patterns are arranged to give individuals unique ridges that make up the person’s characteristics of fingerprints. It is when these ridges are examined under a microscope side by side with a known source that a person can be confirmed or eliminated as a suspect. With new technology, fingerprint evidence can be searched through automated fingerprint information systems (AFIS). Fingerprints are used to establish a person’s identity in the United States and in every other country in the world. Fingerprints are not just used as evidence in a crime (criminal history), but for employment and security clearances. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was discovered in 1911. It was also discovered that this DNA was the carrier of genetic information. However, it wasn’t until 1985 that the structure also established the uniqueness of each person. One year later, the first use of DNA in a criminal case was used to match a suspect to a double murder in England. The first case of DNA evidence admitted in a United States court didn’t happen until 1988. Since then, over thirty-five states have admitted DNA evidence in one form or another while more than twenty-five states have the population frequency data or statistics to be admissible in court (Leo, 2005). DNA evidence is found at crime scenes as the presence of blood, semen, hair, skin, and saliva. In order to make a comparison a DNA profile must be extracted from the evidence and/or a sample taken from a known individual. A DNA profile is accomplished through a process called electrophoresis. After the profile has been extracted, the results are recorded on an autorad and can be compared to other profiles. There are thirteen markers that are used to standardize a national data base called Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) in the United States (Leo, 2005). To date, DNA is still emerging as we continue to move further into the technological future, and can be used for personal identification, employment, security clearance, or to track criminal histories. Every second of the day, millions of fingerprints are being searched via the automated fingerprint systems around the world. Thousands of crimes have been solved because of the fingerprint evidence left behind at the scene of the crime. In 1994, when CODIS began, there have been over 20,000 DNA matches. In Los Angeles County, California, more than 500 latent prints are matched to criminal offender on any given day (Leo, 2005). Both methods of identifying an individual play crucial roles in solving crime. Although fingerprints are still considered the â€Å"golden standard† for forensic evidence in the courtroom (Leo, 2005), DNA is moving forward in being a very important tool to combat and solve crime. However, when it comes down to it, both techniques complement each other and provide vital information to help find criminals. Works Cited Coghlan, A. &. (2005). How Far Should Prints be Trusted? New Scientist, 2517(187), 6-7. Retrieved January 21, 2013, from http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.devry.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&an=18376323&site=ehost-live Lennard, C. (2007, December). Fingerprint Detection: Current Capabilities. Australian Journal of Forensic Science, 39(2), 55-59. Retrieved January 21, 2013, from http://www.informaworld.com Leo, W. (2005, September/October). Will DNA Replace Fingerprints in the 21st Century. The Print, 21(5), 1-5. Retrieved January 21, 2013, from http://www.fingerprintidentification.net/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/dnavfingerprints.pdf Spraggs, D. (2007, February 01). How to Lift Fingerprints. Retrieved January 20, 2013, from Police Magazine: www.policemag.com/channel/patrol/articles/2007/02/how-to-lift-fingerprints.as

Genetically Modified Foods Essay

The term GM (genetically modified) food has gained controversy in the last few years, but in the first place we have to understand what GM food is and how it works, the term GM foods or GMOs (genetically-modified organisms) is used when we refer to crop plants using different molecular biology techniques or methods to change their properties, such as to enhance their resistance to herbicides, improve nutritional content, and other properties. This seems great, but why there are people who disapprove the development and consumption of GM foods? Modifying plant genetics can have many benefits, because of the use of precise and accurate molecular techniques, the main difference between traditional breeding techniques which are not so accurate and need more time to develop, are the molecular methods that are used to modify plants. Genetic engineering can change plants genes in a short time, for example taking out a plant gene that gives low temperature resistance to the plant and insert it into another plant. The uses and varieties we can achieve are immense and can end with great results. â€Å"The world population has topped 7. 5 billion people and is predicted to double in the next 50 years. Ensuring an adequate food supply for this booming population is going to be a major challenge in the years to come. GM foods promise to meet this need in a number of ways† (B. Whitman, 2000). The most common uses of genetic engineering in plants are herbicide tolerance, disease resistance, cold tolerance, drought & salinity resistance, nutrition, pharmaceuticals, etc. It could help even to stop malnutrition and in some years to reduce world food shortage, because the possibilities are wide. Why do people not approve of the use and consumption of these products? â€Å"Environmental activists, religious organizations, public interest groups, professional associations and other scientists and government officials have all raised concerns about GM foods, and criticized agribusiness for pursuing profit without concern for potential hazards, and the government for failing to exercise adequate regulatory oversight†. (B. Whitman, 2000). The principal reasons people disapprove GM foods are given in three main oppositions are separated into three categories, and they should not be concealed , first of all the environmental hazards as harming other organisms, reducing pesticides or herbicides effects and wrong targeting in genetic transfer (wrong species); also the human health stability and the risks genetically modifications and engineering can cause and finally the economic implications of the development and studies GM foods require. Currently, science is fastly evolving and the entire world is part of it and has to decide about changes. This is a subject we cannot be shelved. The problems GM foods may cause needs to be solved and improve constantly, because we are currently looking for solutions to the future and this may be one of them. So the challenges need to be solved and overpassed, with the required caution of avoiding damage to humans and environments, but it is clear we cannot ignore this enormous and potential technology â€Å"Genetically-modified foods have the potential to solve many of the world’s hunger and malnutrition problems, and to help protect and preserve the environment by increasing yield and reducing reliance upon chemical pesticides and herbicides. † (SC-S. SI) Sources ACS SYMPOSIUM SERIES. (1995, August). Genetically Modified Foods . Retrieved Noviembre 2013, from Safety Issues: http://pubs. acs. org/doi/pdfplus/10. 1021/bk-1995-0605. fw001 B. Whitman, D. (2000, April). Genetically Modified Foods: Harmful or Helpful? Retrieved November 2013, from http://www. csa. com/discoveryguides/gmfood/overview. php SC-S. SI. (n. d. ). GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOOD †¦ Is It Safe to Eat? Retrieved November 20, 2013, from http://www. sc-s. si/blog/wp-content/gm-foods-zp. pdf.

8 Things to Write About What to Write About When You Lack Inspiration

8 Things to Write About What to Write About When You Lack Inspiration 8 Things to Write About: What to Write About When You Lack Inspiration Youre struggling with finding things to write about- that much is clear.And you’ve decided to make that jump. Youve finally worked up the courage to write a book. Congrats!Now the daunting question of what you’re going to write rears its ugly head. What on earth can you write? What would people want to read?You find yourself at the first stumbling block, also affectionately (not) referred to as writers block.Here are 8 ways to find things to write about:Write about your passionsFiction or nonfictionWhat youre an expert inWrite about your experiencesGet ideas from friends and familyFind inspiration to write about onlineBrainstorm what to write about for a day or twoCollect a large list of ideas to write aboutNOTE: We cover everything in this blog post and much more about the writing, marketing, and publishing process in our VIP Self-Publishing Program. Learn more about it here8 Things to Write About and How to Find Writing InspirationWell the good news is that all of us could write a book or two about something!Each one of us has our own unique set of experiences that others could learn from, not to mention the plethora of writing prompts and story ideas online. Figuring out what to write about simply takes some self-reflection, brainstorming, and research.Follow these next steps and you will surely find at least one future book topic!#1 Start with your passionsThe best place to start is with what brings you joy. After all, you’re going to enjoy writing your book a lot more if you enjoy the topic.Furthermore, you are more likely to really sell an idea and convince your audience of something if you’re passionate about it.Here are a few questions for finding what to write about:Whats one thing you enjoy most?What do you lose track of time doing?Where do your thoughts go when youre not paying attention?What do people describe you doing often?These things to write about could be as simple as bike riding, home organization, or cooking. It could be something more technical or complex.Take out a pen and paper, and make a list of all the things that you really love. Write them all down, whether they’re big or small. You will draw inspiration from this list, so write down everything that you can think of.#2 Choose to write fact or fictionOnce you have a good, working list of all the things you love, you need to decide something important: will your book be fact or fiction?There are so many different book genres out there that it can feel overwhelming. Hence, it’s best to get an idea of this before you start the writing process.Your passions list will really help you narrow this one down. Perhaps your love of cats could make you want to write a fiction novel about a cat who goes on adventures. Perhaps your love of home gardening could make for a great how-to book to help others who want to grow their own food. Maybe your love of ghosts could make for a good horror book. Whatever it is, your passions are th ere waiting to be turned into a book idea.Your specific genre can be modified as you begin to write. However, deciding whether your book will be fiction or about your real life, like writing a memoir, is something you need to decide before beginning the brainstorming and writing process.#3 What you’re an expert at/inEverybody is an expert in something. Do you believe me? Most people when they hear this go â€Å"oh no, not me!† After all, we are often our own worst critics.However, that’s where everyone is wrong. Each of us is an expert in something. The truth is that you don’t need a million trophies or some fancy title to be an expert. Furthermore, books written by experts don’t always sell. People love getting advice from ordinary people just like you! After all, if you can write and publish a book, so can they.You can find your expertise through a brainstorm.Much like your passion list, make another list! On this one, I want you to write down a ll of your work experience from the last 5-10 (or more!) years. I’m talking everything that you can think of such as employment, volunteer work, hobbies, and unique experiences. After you’ve spent some time on this list, start to look at the patterns: What things keep popping up?What do these things have in common?Are these things related?This list might help you see that you really are more of an expert in something that you can write about.You might not have been the boss of the company, but you might have learned more than you think working in public relations or even answering phones.#4 Pull things to write about from your experiencesYour future book inspiration doesn’t solely come from professional experience. It can come from personal experiences as well. With this, you’ll want to create another list.However, this one will be more of a brainstorm of different life experiences you’ve had.If you can’t just start making a list, start by mapping out your life.Jot down a few of these ideas to write about:Where do you live?Where are you from originally?Who are your family members?Who are your friends?Where have you traveled to?If you answer all of these questions, you will surely start to think of â€Å"that one time I †¦Ã¢â‚¬  or other memories. Write down all the words, thoughts and images that come to mind. Write down how you felt in these moments and how they affected you and youll have plenty of things to write about.When you brainstorm, let your creativity flow! Don’t worry about writing the words in a perfect list. If you feel inspired to draw, draw.These brainstorm sessions are for you and you only, so let them be as crazy as you want!#5 Get writing ideas from friends or family memberThose who know us best often see things about us that we cannot. They have the perspective of seeing our lives from the outside. If you’re thinking of writing a book, speak with someone you’re close to .They simultaneously know you best and want the best for you.Take them out for a cup of coffee and tell them that you want to publish a book. If you already have a few things to want to write about, you could run them by this person.If you don’t, you could simply ask them what they think you should write about. You might get responses like â€Å"I would love to read about your experience with _____† or â€Å"I think you could really tell this story well.†You’ll either narrow down your list of ideas or have a few new ones to add to the list!#6 Turn to the InternetThe Internet is a great place to find inspiration for what to write about. First and foremost, you want to ensure that someone hasn’t already written about what you want to write about.If it’s a broad topic such as â€Å"how to travel the world,† surely at least several people have already beaten you to the punch! However, this isn’t the end of the world.When searching , you can see how these people have written their books and think about how yours would be different. Since no one on earth is exactly like you, you certainly will have your own unique perspective to bring to the table! Only you can be you!In addition to a general Google search, use both Instagram and Pinterest to your advantage.These two social networks will bring your inspiration for what to write about- not to mention give you book marketing opportunities when you do write the book. When searching on Instagram, make sure to look at related hashtags such as this #writerinspiration one.#7 Leave all the brainstorming and discussion for a day or twoAfter you’ve brainstormed and talked with a close friend or family member, put it all down.Simply go about your life as normal going to work or school or whatever your normal routine is. You are sure to come up with more ideas or more details to add to your existing notes at the most random times. When something comes to mind, reco rd it right away!It might be good to have a notebook with you at all times or start a note on your phone. You can actually use an app like Evernote for this very purpose.After a few days of a break, come back to all your notes and decide on what you want to write about.#8 Create a list to work fromA lot of authors feel like pressure when picking their book topic. It is kind of scary to pick an idea and then write several hundred pages on it.However, remind yourself that choosing an idea to write about does not obligate you to write an entire book about it. You might start by writing the outline or the first few chapters and realize that you’d rather write about a different topic. That’s okay!Creating a large list of ideas will help you when youre just not feeling one idea anymore- whether youre writing a book or simply a blog post.Get out that notebook and get to work!The best time to get started brainstorming your perfect idea is now! Don’t wait around and let fear get the better of you.Get out your notebook and start making these lists. Write down every word, thought or image that comes to your mind!Are you ready to move forward with your idea?Weve got your next steps!If you want to take your book from idea to full outline to published book (in as little as 90 days), we have the process for you right here