Being a nursing home administrator Essay

Being a nursing home administrator with in a nursing home, excellent communication is a necessity. Communication is how care providers determine the quality of care that is given and needed for the patients. By being a nursing home administrator, it is my job to make sure that the HIPPA rules and regulations are being used by all employees. By making sure that HIPPA rules and regulations are being upheld, the nursing home is providing quality care to the patients. When a change happens at a nursing home there can be confusion and conflict with everyone involved. While following the chain of command can be long and even boring, it is needed to keep the communication process smooth and effective. The chain of command does help reduce the risk of a communication breakdown. If a communication breakdown is developed it can cause commotion in any health care facility which could jeopardize everyone involved. With being the nursing home administrator, the first job that I would need to do i s have a full understanding of the new policies and procedures. I would need to know how the policies and procedures were put into place and how exactly this will affect the patient’s in the nursing home. In order to do this I would want to speak with the board members so my concerns could be addressed. In order to address these issues I could meet with the board members face to face, use social media, or by electronic communication. There are advantages to having traditional face to face meetings. The members are able to see my body language, facial expressions, and hear the tone of my voice while communicating my concerns. With the traditional meetings, it will also allow the board members to respond to my concerns right away with a limited amount of interruptions. While there are some advantages to having traditional meetings there are also some disadvantages. One issue could be misinterpretation on some of the available cues. Traditional meetings can be expensive and time consuming this is a disadvantage when the time and/or finances a re not available. Having a conference by electronic method is another way to communicate. The biggest advantage to electronic conferencing is the fact that it can be done on a global basis, no matter where a person is everyone can join together. Electronic conferences are best when all members attend at the same time but because it’s electronic the members can attend conferences at different times but during a certain time frame. With all members attending an electronic conference at the same time is known as  the synchronous method. When members attend conference at different times but within a certain time frame is known as the asynchronous method. The synchronous method allows real time communication and the asynchronous method does communication through emails. The synchronous method is best because it is real time and more effective. Electronic conferences are also less expensive and not as time consuming. Electronic conferences can also be recorded so they are available for future use. While emails and phone calls are good forms of communication it is not t he best for a conference. Communicating through computers and the internet has become a popular way for health care members. When it is done properly this way of communication can provide clear straight information that is understood by everyone. If it is not used properly, there can be a breakdown in communication and cause many problems. When social media is used properly it can provide many advantages and opportunities. Social media can reach a large amount of people, which means a wide connection within the community. Social media also allows a great way to support collaboration, better communication, and will also people around the globe to share and generate information. Facilities can also have an identity beyond the name and standard of care through social media. It also helps health care facilities reach out to the people of the community. A disadvantage of social media has been looked blindly upon by most members of the health care industry. When it comes to a patient’s privacy, HIPPA rules and regulations require proper procedures to be followed anytime a patient’s information is released. By being the nursing home administrator my job is to make sure that all of the patients who will be discharged have signed a consent form. The consent form would give our facility permission to release the patient’s health care information to other facilities with the hope of finding placement for that patient. HIPPA has very strict rules and guidelines to follow; the patient’s privacy must always be the priority and always be protected. It is the staff member’s responsibility to protect a patient’s information regardless on how the information is being transferred. The staff member can only allow the information to reach who it is meant for and only provide enough information to make proper accommodations for the patient. HIPPA has placed policies and procedures to protect patient’s information, when these rules are not strictly followed a privacy breach can occur. Also, when the HIPPA rules are  not followed patient’s information can get misplaced which will result in a patient not receiving proper quality care. It is a health care staff member’s job to make sure that every patient remains protected at all times. Today’s health care industry has many rules and regulations that have to be followed in order to protect the privacy of the patients. It is a facility’s responsibility to follow these rules and regulations to ensure a patient’s health and well-being. It is a high priority for immediate action to take place if the rules and regulations are not being followed to make sure that the patients are not at any risk. References: Sarringhuas, M. M. (Jul/Aug 2011). THE Great Divide: Social Media’s Role in Bridging Healthcare. Journal of Helathcare Management, 56(4), 235-244. Du Pre, A. (2005). Communication about health: Current Issues and perspectives (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw Hill.

High School and Football Essay

The game of football has become an extremely popular sport over the years. It has two separate professional leagues, the CFL (Canadian) and the NFL (National Football League). While the NFL is the more popular league, the CFL is a very fast growing league in its own right. Football is played everywhere in Canada, especially in high schools. However, the Avon Maitland School Board has banned football as an extra-curricular sport, and stopped funding it, in its high schools. I feel that this is wrong. Football should be an extracurricular sport in every Avon Maitland high school because it has many physical and mental benefits, and it can bring an entire community together. How could the School Board say no to a sport that is full of benefits? Football is a sport that requires a lot of physical contact. This can cause some problems as injuries can occur. The most common and serious ones are concussions. To prevent this, schools can implement tough rules and penalties, which are similar to a professional league for the safety of the student-athletes. The NFL has disciplined many players recently for violent and unnecessary hits. They have created a rule stating that helmet-to-helmet hits are illegal. I feel that schools could implement his kind of a system to protect the student-athletes. Students who do not follow the strict rules that have been placed down will be punished. The severity of the punishment will range from a suspension to being kicked off the team permanently. With these, strict punishments being laid out I feel that students will follow the rules. The students that choose to play by these rules will gain many benefits from the sport of football, both physical and mental. Playing the game of football comes with many physical and mental benefits. It improves your strength, cardio, and speed. Also, due to the amount of physical activity it involves, it can lower the risk of diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. The mental aspect of the game will make you mentally stronger, and an increasingly better strategist. It makes you more responsible and a better listener. Playing football also increases the blood flow to your brain, which will keep you more alert in class. This could benefit your marks. Calvin is a student from another school district. He plays for the football team at his high school. Calvin talks about his typical school day. I awake at 6:30 am to get ready for my morning jog. I jogged from one end of the city to the other in 1 hour. I then consumed my breakfast and sprinted to school. The school is about 5 kilometers away from my house. I arrive at the school with some sweat dripping down my forehead. But I do not feel exhausted at all. I am on time for my class, as usual. The teacher gives us an insightful lecture. I grasped a lot of what he was talking about. After lunch, my friends and I play some football. I then head off to my last class of the day. I completely understand what the teacher is talking about. We then have a surprise quiz. I breeze through all of the questions and feel very confident about my mark. The bell rings for the end of the school day. I then get ready for football practice. Calvin is very physically fit and mentally strong due to the fact that he plays football on a daily basis. He plays for the school team, and with his friends. He is a prime example of the positive effects that football can have on teenagers. The word discipline is a word that gets thrown around a lot when talking about football. Discipline is key word to use when talking about football. You need discipline in order to play successfully and to listen to your coaches. It can be very beneficial. A typical football practice can be brutal. This is an average student’s account of a typical practice. The sun is out and it is 30 degrees outside. The coach makes everyone run suicides to warm up. Everyone is already dripping sweat. We then run wind-sprints for 20 minutes, in the sweltering heat of the sun. I, for one, am exhausted and ready to just leave and go home. The coach motivates me to keep going though. The grass is burnt to a crisp and every member of the team is drenched in sweat. We practice a couple of plays, running constantly throughout. The coach then tells us to run twenty suicides and then hit the showers. I am panting like a dog during each individual suicide, but I made it. That was a very grueling practice. A media example of discipline in football is the story of Camp Kilpatrick. It is a juvenile detention center for kids that are having problems with street gangs, drug dealing, etc. Statistics show that 75% of the residents eventually either go to jail or die. Sean Porter is a worker at Camp Kilpatrick and he gets sick of seeing this stat over and over. He decided to take action and comes up with the idea of creating a football team to teach the teenage inmates what it takes to be responsible, mature, and winners. At first, two of the kids from rival gangs constantly fought and didn’t work well as a team. This is a repeated event and one of the kids, Calvin Owens, gets shot by the rival gang and is hurt badly. Sean disciplines the kids and they eventually get along together and form a formidable football team of teenagers. After the season is over, the kids go on to have successful lives beyond the street gangs that they grew up in. If they had not played football and learned responsibility and become disciplined, who know what those kids could’ve gotten in to after they got released from the camp. 24 of the kids are now going to school, three of them are working full-time jobs, and only five went back to jail. That is increasingly better than the 75% rate, which is the amount of the kids at the juvenile detention center that go back to jail. This story shows how important the game of football can be, even to high school kids. It also shows how powerful football can be. Imagine what it could do to troubled teens in Avon Maitland high schools. It is so powerful that it can even bring an entire community together. Football can also bring a community together, which not many sports can do. Since football is an expensive game to play, it will require fundraising from the whole school . This in itself can bring an entire school together. The entire state of Texas is a huge example of football bringing communities together. They have thirteen different college football teams from every part of the state of Texas. Every game is sold out and many people from different communities come to cheer the team on. If college teams can bring out crowds like those, why can’t high school teams? The same effect can happen if a big Stratford team is created. Not only will a lot of the city come to see them play, but nearby cities will come too. Cities like St. Mary’s and Mitchell will come every week to see the local team play. Also, if the school chooses to charge money for tickets the school will generate a lot of revenue. Concession stands can be opened up as well, with many local eateries. The city will generate more tourism as well. For example, if every Friday night is a home game for the school team, it will become a weekly get together for the whole town, and other towns, to cheer the home-town team on. This can bring the community together, thus making them stand out from other cities/towns. In conclusion, the Avon Maitland School Board is making a huge mistake. I truly believe that football should not be banned as an extra-curricular sport by the board. Football should be an extra-curricular sport in every Avon Maitland high school because it has physical and mental benefits and it can also bring an entire community together. The benefits definitely outweigh the problems. So I ask this, how can the School Board ban a sport like football?

Plato, Descartes and the Matrix Essay

After obtaining knowledge from the Matrix, Plato’s Allegory of the Cave or The Republic and the first Mediation from Descartes, I see that there are a few likenesses and contrasts. I would need to say that The Matrix and Plato’s hole purposeful tale were more comparable because the individuals included in both stories, they existed in this present reality where they were being cheated about what the fact of the matter was. In the Matrix, once Neo saw this present reality and that all that he thought was true was really a hallucination, is very much alike to the shadows on the dividers of the surrender that the prisoners saw in Plato’s Allegory of the hole. In both stories, both characters could encounter reality as well as the phony world and was given opportunity to see reality and were confounded. Nonetheless, the detainee in Plato’s story in the wake of picking up this new information let others in servitude know of his recently discovered learning however felt that the first truth was less demanding to with the exception to. Then again Neo in The Matrix chose he needed to realize what the right truth was. Both characters were intrigued by figure out reality however they recognized reality in an unexpected way. Plato thought it was fundamental for the affixed man in the Allegory of the Cave required to escape from the hole to look for reality. Socrates portrays a gathering of individuals who have lived anchored to the divider of a buckle the greater part of their lives, confronting a transparent divider. The individuals watch shadows anticipated on the divider by things passing before a blaze behind them and start to attribute structures to these shadows. As indicated by Socrates, the shadows are as close as the detainees get to review the reality. He then clarifies how the savant is similar to a detainee who liberated from the hollow and comes to comprehend that the shadows on the divider are not constitutive of reality whatsoever, as he can see the genuine type of reality as opposed to the minor shadows seen by the detainees. Descartes considers and rejects the likelihood that my faculties could just lead me adrift. We research situations when we have been tricked by our faculties, through the activity of those extremely same faculties. However, wouldn’t I be able to be envisioning now, and not understand this? This theory is hard to negate, on the off chance that you permit that a  Ã¢â‚¬Å"fantasy† require not be disconnected and unreasonable. It is coherently conceivable to have an intelligible dream where, for instance, I am in Sheffield, at my machine, composition a consummately or at any rate sensibly mindful response to Ask a Philosopher, regardless of the fact that such dreams happen just seldom if whatso ever. Coherent probability is everything Descartes needs. This is what might as well be called the Matrix situation. As a general rule, while I form my answer, I am dozing in a â€Å"unit† having encounters sustained specifically to my mind by a super-machine. The Matrix speculation is hard to negate. However it still isn’t sufficient for Descartes’ reasons. Since, even on this speculation, certain key convictions stay unchallenged. Specifically, the conviction that there exists a universe of material questions in space. The presence of a physical world is one of the essential suppositions of the Matrix story. That is the reason Descartes makes the additional stride of imaging a capable, non-physical sagacity fit for creating the knowledge of ‘an universe of material protests in space’ in me, despite the fact that in all actuality no such world exists. A fiendishness evil spirit. Anyhow how â€Å"wicked† is this spirit, truly? Berkeley took Descartes’ contention for uncertainty and stood it on its head: nothing could possibly consider confirmation of the presence of ‘matter’, on the grounds that all we ever have is ‘experience’. All that exists, in extreme the truth, is God and ‘limited souls’ similar to us who have encounters that God delivers in us. – When you gaze out at the world you are taking a gander at within God’s thoughts. Ignorance is bliss of illusion when we have security in the unknown of danger. It’s when we establish the danger we want to return to the ignorance to regain the safety. The very nature of man is to need what he doesn’t have. All promoting was focused around that start. You have an auto; however, you don’t have another auto or that auto that was constantly publicized. The very nature of all creatures is â€Å"Fight or Flight.† When they exited the hole – they didn’t have the security of the cavern. So as I studied that story, they came back to the hollow. Security is a manifestation of solace however is not acknowledged until we have lost it – or expects that we will lose it-. The extent that obliviousness, the greater part of us does not feel we are uninformed. We are and need to be unmindful of something else we would go insane. For example, might you want to know the date and time of your  passing? In the event that you realized that, it would cloud any of your problems. You could presumably consider nothing else, irregularly. That information would overpower you. Study the passing line convicts. Obliviousness is most happy when we don’t know we are incorrect yet think we recognize what we are doing – or we think we are on the whole correct. We weren’t sheltered when we fail to offer particular knowledge of looming dangers, yet we feel safe when we don’t think about those risks. To be certain are beliefs are true to ourselves we must firs t pretend that they are not and then begin to question their truths. Descartes argued that our customary knowledge of the world can’t give the sort of ensured establishment on which all other information could be based. We are frequently disillusioned to discover that what we have been taught are simply biases, or that what our faculties let us know is erroneous. That ought to make us ponder about whether the various things that we think are clear may moreover be mixed up. With a specific end goal to test whether what we think we know is genuinely right, Descartes recommends that we embrace a strategy that will dodge slip by following what we know back to a firm establishment of indubitable convictions. Obviously, it is conceivable that there are no totally unshakeable truths. It is additionally conceivable that we may find that our partialities can’t be uprooted or that convictions we think are extreme establishments for all our different convictions are not so much extreme whatsoever. The purpose of our contemplations is to test those convictions, regardless of the possibility that we have held them for quite a while. Furthermore that assess toward oneself will take a true effort. In request to figure out if there is anything we can know with conviction, Descartes says that we first need to uncertainty all that we know. Such a radical uncertainty may not appear sensible, and Descartes positively does not imply that we truly ought to uncertainty everything. What he recommends, however, is that with a specific end goal to check whether there is some conviction that can’t be questioned, we ought to incidentally imagine that all that we know is faulty. This misrepresentation is what is known as a speculative uncertainty. To verify that we consider the affectation important, Descartes recommends that there may be great contentions to believe that such questioning is defended and along these lines more than just something we ought to put on a show to do. His  contentions fall into two classifications: those pointed against our sense encounters and our supposition that we can recognize being conscious and envisioning, and those pointed against our thinking capabilities themselves. http://philosophy.tamu.edu/~sdaniel/Notes/descar1.html

Does the efficient market theory apply on the FOREX market Essay

Does the efficient market theory apply on the FOREX market - Essay Example If the trend is looking upwards, the person â€Å"B† will buy the stock. In both cases, both persons got to the same conclusion of buying the stock of the same company, but their methods were entirely different. The person â€Å"B† does not even have to visit the company to do the technical analysis. Now implying the same method on the foreign exchange market, we can deduct whether the efficient market hypothesis is workable in the FOREX market or he not. For that we need to know the basics of the efficient market hypothesis. The efficient market hypothesis can be viewed as having three levels or stages; the weak form, the semi strong and the strong form. The weak form or the weak stage states that the price of the security or stock at any point in time reflects the true value of the stock, meaning that we cannot predict the stock’s movement from the price of the stock. All the values or the fundamentals of the company (all the negative and positive aspects) are already reflected in the stock price; therefore it is useless to do the fundamental analysis. All the publicly available information has been incorporated in the stock price. The semi-strong form or stage of the hypothesis states that the current stock price reflects all the available public information and the prices instantly change to reflect the new public information. The third stage of string form efficient states that even the insider information cannot affect the stock price. 3. Rationale for the chosen topic My reason for choosing this topic is the huge appeal in the foreign exchange market. The greatest portion of finance is in the foreign exchange by volume. The reason for this trade’s usefulness is that every trade of goods, stocks, bonds, gold silver and the like... The aim of this discussion is to decide whether the efficient market hypothesis is applicable to the foreign exchange market or not. We will try to analyze a small portion from the history of the price fluctuations of the US Dollar Vs the Euro. We will see how the figures react against the technical analysis. We will test their validity and present our conclusion. My reason for choosing this topic is the huge appeal in the foreign exchange market. The greatest portion of finance is in the foreign exchange by volume. The reason for this trade’s usefulness is that every trade of goods, stocks, bonds, gold silver and the like is done through currency and there comes the conversion process. That is why it is so prevalent that to escape the ups and downs of the foreign exchange becomes impossible. The other rationale is that I’m interested in both the fundamental and technical analysis. I believe in the perfect fusion of the both. One important thing for the efficient market hypothesis to be effective is the assumptions, which serve as the rationale for it. One of the assumptions is that a large number of market participants are constantly analyzing the stocks and bonds. They do it on their own, independent of each other. This gives a more subtle and objective evaluation of the security.

Entrepreneurship----Strengths and weaknesses of family businesses Essay

Entrepreneurship----Strengths and weaknesses of family businesses - Essay Example The degree of control over inter departmental affairs is relatively strongly managed in family businesses. The culture is considerably flexible, informal and occasional use of local language might be seen in practice. Long term dependencies and affiliations are another feature of family businesses. Such businesses are not total loss; rather have lots of positives to them. The first and foremost advantage being enjoyed in such cultures is that of trust, reliability and endurance. The chemistry amongst the members of the kin creates a benevolent atmosphere in itself which is very fruitful for the overall working environment. For many, the family businesses perform much better than other kinds of businesses and evidences have been seen where the throughputs have been far better compared to their non allegiance based enterprises. Weaknesses: The weak links in any family business often starts with the succession of an individual by a family member which might be compromising in context of the merit and requirements of professional operations. The resistance to change is relatively more deep routed in the company as personal biases are involved directly or indirectly. The family business environment is often termed as closed loop business atmosphere, since it in contrast to the conventional form of business environment, has relatively related faces around that are more loosely in the organization and business because of personal belonging and affiliations. The existence of obligation to transfer the power amongst family member regardless of the capabilities and professional experience, this serves as serious draw back in this concept of business world. Meritocracy is often believed to be compromised in such forms of business. Personal enmity and competition in a negative way can be another damning factor in the working environment of

Social Media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Social Media - Essay Example Other noticeable social media platforms include Google Corporation’s Google+ and Wikipedia, which normally serves as a reference site. Social media is no doubt becoming an integral part of human lives. They have been celebrated for the fact that they enhance communication between individuals, hence making interaction much easier. The role of social media in marketing has also been applauded as stakeholders have argued that it is the next big thing in marketing. Social media platforms increases both brand recognition and loyalty while at the same time reducing the cost of marketing. Experts have also attested to the fact that it improves customer experience. One major disadvantage of social media platforms According to (Kerpen, 2011) is the fact that their users tend to lose their privacy â€Å"You lose certain confidentialities as compared to not being on social network.† Similarly, concerns have been raised over the prospect of online bullying and stakeholders in various industries have overtime attested to the fact that social media platforms bring about distraction during working hours, hence resulting into time wastage. The Social Marketing book (Zarella, 2010) majorly revolves around how social media and its components have transformed the marketing world. In as much as commercial adverts, discounts and other marketing strategies are still worthy practices, social media marketing is much easier as it lowers the cost and enables producers to interact with the customers at a close range. The source on likability of social media (Kerpen, 2011), heavily touches on some of the reasons why various parts of the globe have faith in social media. One of the reasons why manufacturers and service providers for example, prefer social media is they get to improve their products from the customer comments. Customers on the other hand have fallen in love with the fact that social media takes the pressure of

Strategies for Responsible Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Strategies for Responsible Business - Essay Example A number of strategic management theorists argue that, for an organization to be continuously successful the most important requirement for it is to develop an understanding of the strategic implications of CSR.  This report analyses this claim with the help of the principles of corporate social responsibility and strategic management. The phrase Corporate Social Responsibility or CSR was first used in the 1953 publication of Bowens Social Responsibility of Businessmen. In the 60’s and 70s, many scholars tried to provide a comprehensive definition of CSR. However, the term CSR has attained more popularity and acceptance in the corporate world only in 1984, when management consultant Peter Drucker stressed the importance of connecting social problems with economic opportunities. Since then, companies have started to accept CSR as a liability rather than a principle. The first company that actually publishes a social report was Ben and Jerrys in 1989, and the first major company was Shell in 1998 (Corporate watch, n. d.). Even though corporate social responsibility or CSR is accepted as one of the major topics in the corporate world, everywhere in the world, a standard definition or universal definition for this topic is still unavailable. In other words, CSR has been defined differently by different scholars and perceived differently in different countries or regions. According to Nexen (2009) Corporate Social Responsibility is â€Å"a commitment to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of our workforce and their families as well as the local community at large†. Ethics and morality are rapidly disappearing subjects from the corporate world at present. Even though organizations speak volumes about ethics and morality, they do less to adhere to the principles of ethics and morality. CSR reminds

Analyzing mills saying Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Analyzing mills saying - Essay Example From the aforementioned statement, the English philosopher suggests that happiness or satisfaction is not the ultimate objective of performing an action or making a decision. This means that he does not quite agree to the principle of utility because he maintains that there would be a difference in the kinds of such individual. Meaning, a thing might be good, acceptable and brings happiness to someone but not to another. For the first person may be happy however, when someone looks deeper into what the former is satisfied about, it could be because that person’s standards are way below what his humanity demands of him. For example, one may find pleasure in sex but another finds it displeasing because the person acts immorally. That certain person acts like an animal which simply satisfies his wants. For Mill, he is likened to a pig. It is known that a pig does nothing but eat, sleep and relieves itself from the heat by swimming in the mud or worse, in its own dirt and it is sa tisfied with such kind of life. Therefore, the philosopher argues that he would rather be an unhappy human being than an animal which acts in such a manner but is still satisfied about itself. For the second person, he might be dissatisfied and unhappy but considers himself of higher morality than the former. This contradicts the philosophy of Bentham who says that a person is moral when his actions bring him happiness. Similarly, Mill believes that it is better to be a dissatisfied wise man than a satisfied fool. It is assumed that he argues that when a wise man is unhappy or dissatisfied about his actions or decisions, it is not only because he has done unacceptable things. Rather, the unhappiness and dissatisfaction might be the result of unmet high standard one has set for himself to achieve. In the same way, one cannot say that a person who is satisfied and happy with

Gender differences in entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Gender differences in entrepreneurship - Essay Example Men expect women to put family handling as their top priority and preference. However, gradually women are combating this prevalence of bigotry in the society created by their counterparts. Many studies show that level of women entrepreneurship is less than men’s in many countries, however, there is a high rate of women entrepreneurship where women have no alternatives to earn for a living. Many researches and studies conducted portray that women enter into entrepreneurship as a necessity and not responding to opportunities. Entrepreneurship is a mean to culminate the skills and potential which women possess, and also it can bring forward to the world’s attention that women do not harbor less potential or competition, instead they may create healthy competition for the men too and result in economic prosperity. Entrepreneurship was once a kingdom ruled by men, but it seems that women are pacing into this kingdom too. Ayala Malach Pines, Miri Lerner, Dafna Schwartz, (2010) "Gender differences in entrepreneurship: Equality, diversity and inclusion in times of global crisis", Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, Vol. 29 Iss: 2, pp.186 -

Violent Media is Good for Kids Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Violent Media is Good for Kids - Essay Example The author argues that Violent Media is Good for Kids. This is brought out clearly when the author begins by talking about his childhood experiences in the first paragraph. Despite the fact that he does not mention this thesis out rightly, he talks about how a violent comic book transformed him from a state of loneliness and being passive to being a conqueror of his fears. Later on in the essay, he says that such positive transformation is because of violent media and therefore parents should therefore not be quick to judge that violent media materials are necessarily a bad influence to children. The author chose to exemplify the theme of his story through a discussion of how violent media positively affects the life of kids. This keeps readers want to read more and find out the manner in which violent media is advantageous to kids. It makes the author’s story more captivating and interesting.  The thesis of the article is adequately supported. Even though there are no stati stics used in the article, the author uses examples to expand on his thought.   Gerard Jones has given a personal example of how a violent comic book turned him in to a successful writer of violent comic books and movies. He also speaks of his son who had fears of climbing a tree. In the fifth paragraph of the article, he says, â€Å"In the first grade, his friends started climbing a tree at school. However, he was afraid: of falling, of the centipedes crawling on the trunk, of sharp branches, of his friends' derision.

Current issues in advertising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Current issues in advertising - Essay Example Woodbury' Facial oap, a woman' beauty bar, wa almot dicontinued in 1910. The oap' ale decline wa revered, however, with ad containing image of romantic couple and promie of love and intimacy for thoe uing the brand. Jovan Muk Oil, introduced in 1971, wa promoted with exual entendre and decription of the fragrance' exual attraction propertie. A a reult, Jovan, Inc.' revenue grew from $1.5 million in 1971 to $77 million by 1978 (Del, 66-111) In contemporary maintream conumer advertiing (e.g., magazine, network and cable televiion), ex i preent in promotional meage for a wide range of branded good. Ad feature provocative image of well-defined women (and men) in revealing outfit and poture elling clothing, alcohol, beauty product, and fragrance. Advertier uch a Calvin Klein, Victoria' ecret, and Pepi ue thee image to cultivate a ubiquitou ex-tinged media preence. Alo, exual information i ued to promote maintream product not traditionally aociated with ex. For example, the Dalla Opera recently revered declining eaon ticket ale by marketing the more laciviou part of it performance. A a reult of it exual promotion trategy, eaon ticket package old out fater than ever before . (Del, 66-111) ince the 1960, reearcher uing ocial cience method have attempted to undertand the role of ex in advertiing for elling brand. pecifically, they have attempted to undertand exactly how exual content influence the advertiing communication proce. In thi article, I organize thi body of reearch by firt defining and decribing common type of exual content examined by invetigator, and then by reviewing major approache in pertinent effect reearch. Finally, I et forth area for future reearch that can enhance the congruence between exual appeal reearch with advertiing practice. Thee area include further analyi of ex-related appeal in ad, examining whether and how exual content can influence brand perception, and the utility of including peronality variable (e.g., erotophobia/philia) in future tudie. Thi review i limited to United tate-baed reearch becaue the bulk of ex in advertiing reearch conit of U.. media content and population ample. Included in the review i illutrative content analyi reea rch, a well a an exhautive collection of effect tudie. (Del, 66-111) AA- Rule & Regulation The Advertiing tandard Authority (AA) Annual Report 2007, publihed today, reveal that a record number of advertiement (2,458) were changed or withdrawn lat year. The number of advertiement complained about reached an all-time high of 14,080 - an increae of 9.6% on the year before. The total number of complaint received wa 24,192 - an increae of 7.9% on 2006. The public' main concern about advertiing in 2007 are illutrated by the Report' lit of the Top 10 mot complained about ad. The depiction of violence, ex and race all generated high number of complaint (ee Top 10 lit in the report). The AA alo dealt with record number of complaint about environmental claim a advertier increaingly ought to promote their 'green' credential. (Del, 66-111) TV wa by far the mot complained about medium, generating 9,915 complaint. ignificantly, internet advertiing wa the mot complained about non-broadcat medium and the econd mot complained about medium overall. A total of 2,980 complaint were received about internet advertiing, 2,144 of which related to the content of webite and a uch were outide the AA' remit. The mot common iue raied by the public about internet

Business ratios and formulas a comprehensive guide Essay Example for Free

Business ratios and formulas a comprehensive guide Essay Net profit margin of the company shows how much the profit after-tax profit made by a business for every $1 generated in revenue or sales (Bragg, 2008). A higher net profit margin is better in comparison to that of its competitors. In 2011 and 2012, Tesco was more profitable followed by Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC. However, in 2013, Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC was more profitable followed by Sainsbury.Roce This financial ratio measures the profitability and efficiency of a company with which its capital is employed (Bragg, 2008). In 2011, Tesco was more profitable than Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC and Sainsbury. The following year, it was overtaken by Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC while Sainsbury remained the least profitable. In year 2013, Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC was the most profitable company followed by Sainsbury. Return on Equity – ROE             Return on equity shows how much profit a firm earned compared to the total amount of shareholder equity as contained in the balance sheet (Horrigan, 2010). In 2011, Tesco made a higher profit than Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC and Sainsbury. It was Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC . in year 2012 Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC and Sainsbury reported a higher profit compared to the previous year while Tesco reduced it profitability. However, the three companies reported lower profit in 2013 than in 2011 and 2012. Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC was more profitable followed by Sainsbury in 2013. Gross Profit Margin             It is used to assess company’s financial health by showing the proportion of money that is left over from sales revenue after deducting the cost of goods sold. It shows the financial health of a company (Jenkinson, 2011). In 2011, Tesco had the highest financial health followed by Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC. In year 2012, all the three companies reported lower gross profit margin. Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC and Sainsbury have had a stable gross profit margin.Net asset turnover This is a financial measurement intended to measure how a company turns its assets into revenue (Horrigan, 2010). In 2011, Sainsbury was the most efficient company in turning assets into revenue compared to Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC and Tesco. Tesco was performed the least in turning assets into revenue. In 2012, all the three companies had a lower net asset turnover with Sainsbury having the higher ratio followed by Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC. In 2013, Tesco and Sainsbury increased their ratio while Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC’s ratio decreased. Sainsbury still had the highest ratio followed by Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC.Efficiency and effectiveness Ratios Asset turnover ratio             This is a ratio of a firms sales to its assets. It is an efficiency ratio that shows how successfully a company uses its assets to generate revenue. A comparison of asset turnover ratio for the three companies shows that in 2011 Sainsbury was the most efficient company followed by Tesco in turning assets into revenue. In 2012, Tesco showed a decrease in efficiency which the other two companies increased theyre efficient. All the three companies increased their efficiency in using assets to generate sales with Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC having the highest ratio followed by Sainsbury (Jenkinson, 2011). The debtor’s day’s ratio             It is a measure of how quickly cash is collected from debtors. Different periods are compared for the same company since it is less meaningful since results largely depend on the nature of the business. Tesco is the most efficient company in collecting cash. Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC and Sainsbury have also been decreasing the number of days with Tesco having a lower collection period (Novak, 2009). Supplier credit days This shows the number of days that a company takes to pay its suppliers (Novack, 2009). In 2011 and 2012, the numbers of days for Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC and Sainsbury has been increasing which can be a sign of financial hardship or increase confidence of suppliers on the company. Tesco has a high ratio which could be a sign of a financial crisis. Stock holding period             It refers to the period between the purchase of a product and its sale. There is a general decrease in the stock holding period for the three companies indicating an improvement in investment performance. Sainsbury have the highest holding period followed by Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC (Palmer, 2013). Liquidity and capital ratiosQuick Ratio             This determines if the company has resources to pay its short term liabilities with its liquid assets. The analysis shows that Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC has the highest ability to pay its short-term debt followed by Sainsbury (Peles, 2008). Quick ratio             It measures how a company can use its near cash or quick assets to retire its current liabilities immediately. Analysis shows that Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC has the highest ability to convert its near cash items into cash in order to pay the debt followed by Sainsbury.Gearing ratiosDebt/equity ratio It shows how a company finances its growth. Sainsbury has the highest debt in its capital structure compared to Tesco and Morrison. Tesco has the least debt ratio (Peles, 2008). Times interest covered             This ratio is a measure of number of times a business can make the interest payments with its earnings on its debt before interest and taxes. Morrison has the lowest possibility of bankruptcy followed by Sainsbury. Capital gearing ratio             It measures financial strength of a company. Tesco is a high risky investment to investors. In 2013, Morrison was second after Tesco in terms of riskiness. Investors expect a high return in the future in Sainsbury compared to Morrison and in Tesco. Dividend yield             It shows how much a company pays out the shareholders in divided relative to share price. Sainsbury have the highest dividend yield showing that investors get a lot of funds for investing in Sainsbury. When share price increases, shares with high dividend yield earn more cash. Investors who need cash prefer investing in shares that have high dividend yield. Dividend cover             This shows the number of times dividends of a company paid to shareholders can be paid out of annual profits after tax. It is an indication of the probability which shows that dividends can be maintained in the future. In 2013, Morrison had the highest divide cover followed by Sainsbury (Shimerda, 2011).Corporate strategy Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC can increase its profitability by using Tesco as a benchmark for its operations. This is because Tesco has a higher net profit margin and Return on capital employed. Morrison’s Supermarkets PLC has not been effectively in efficiently utilizing their assets in generating more revenue. It should ensure that acquisitions are attractive and that they help the company increase its return. It should also ensure that they produce better products and services in order to combat competition. Some assets should also be sold. Morrisons Supermarkets PLC should also reduce the amount of debt from their capital structure. This is because it ranks second after Tesco in terms of capital gearing ratio. Debtor’s collection period should be reduced to a minimum. References Bragg, S. M. (2008). Business ratios and formulas a comprehensive guide. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley. Horrigan, J. O. (2010). Financial ratio analysis: an historical perspective. New York: Arno Press. Jenkinson, N. H. (2011). Investment, profitability and the valuation ratio. London: Economics Division, Bank of England. Novack, D. E. (2009). Liquidity Ratios And Recent British Monetary Experience. The Journal of Finance, 13(4), 510-526. Palmer, J. E. (2013). Financial ratio analysis. New York, N.Y.: American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Peles, Y. C., Schneller, M. I. (2008). Liquidity Ratios and Industry Averages-New Evidence. Abacus, 15(1), 13-22. Schmidgall, R. S., Defranco, A. L. (2009). Ratio Analysis: Financial Benchmarks for the Club Industry. The Journal of Hospitality Financial Management , 12(1), 1-14. Shimerda, T. A. (2011). Financial ratios as predictors of profitability. Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms International. Source document

Game Mechanics in Racing Game: Research

Game Mechanics in Racing Game: Research Introduction The very first racing game built by KONAMI was Road Fighter (Konami, 1984). The goal of the game was to reach the finish line without running out of fuel. The interesting part was each time the player gets close to finish line without getting crashed; a superman flies by and the player gets extra 1000 points. If you havent noticed before, the superman has K marked on his dress, which probably stands for Konami. But, if you see from a developers point of view, the superman bonus is the result of reward and feedback game mechanics. This point bonus encourages players to play better. It makes the game more interesting and players concentrate more in order to get the bonus Superman points. Game mechanics is a huge subject. It has been used in many fields today, other than video games. Game mechanics have been used for growing the players interest and involvement in gameplay, but as the area of game mechanics became largely successful, it started being used in other fields for other purposes. With the research on game mechanics, I try to study and understand the vast game mechanics subject and its application in various fields. I have also tried to form up a definition and apply it to study gameplay in various games. At last, a thorough study of game mechanics in racing games is attempted, and I introduce a new mechanics for racing games. Research Context The example above explains the game mechanics at quite brief extent. Here, I present some definitions by various researchers as well as own thoughts, experience and some examples. Game Mechanics Definitions Different researchers provide different game mechanics definitions, most likely related to their research. Here are some of the definitions given by some authors. Miguel Sicart defines game mechanics as: Methods invoked by agents for interacting with the game world. (Sicart, 2008) Here, Sicart offered a formal definition for game mechanics as he exercises this definition with a comparative analysis of Shadow of Colossus (Team Ico, 2005), Rez (United Game Artist, 2002) and Every Extend Extra (Q Entertainment, 2006) to research game context and user experience. One of the game mechanics definitions that Sicart has mentioned in his research is by Lundgren and BjÃÆ' ¶rk (2003) as: any part of the rule system of a game that covers one, and only one, possible kind of interaction that takes place during the game, be it general or specific. The definition given by Lundgren and BjÃÆ' ¶rk covers traditional board games and puzzle games, rather than video games. However, they mention that most of the mechanics identified in their research can easily be brewed into video games played on PCs and consoles. It would have been easy to describe these game mechanics without starting from traditional games, but, starting from traditional games also opens up a way that allows easy comparison between computer-based games and non-computerized games. Mike stout (2010) explains how to come up with a better game mechanics when the gameplay is repetitive and boring. Stout describes game mechanics as A major chunk of gameplay. He gives an example of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Nintendo, 1991) and the game mechanics used in the game like: sword combat, block pushing, boomerang throwing, swimming, button based puzzles, Hazard-avoidance, etc. (Stout, 2010) Amy Jo Kim explains game mechanics applied in functional softwares and social media as The system and features that makes games fun, compelling and addictive. Kim also explains how game mechanics is brewed into social media like eBay, Facebook, YouTube etc, (Kim, 2009). Game mechanics is a subject that is used in many fields other than video games like, social media, social games and entertainment, consumer products and services etc. Game Mechanics in Social Media Social media sites like facebook.com, eBay.com, youtube.com etc. Implements game mechanics at a very large scale. Amy Jo Kim (2009) explains how collection, points, exchange, feedback and customization mechanics is implemented in social media. For example, ebay.com gives rating and feedback score to the sellers based on the feedback received from customers or buyers. The feedback is accessible through sellers profile page where any user can check the ratings and score. This mechanics improves the seller services. Tesco PLC has implemented point mechanics to attract more customers. The customer gets certain points for purchases made at Tesco shops through Tesco Clubcard. Later, they can redeem points for other offers of items. Tesco makes various offers available through Clubcard points which drive customers to purchase more products. (Tesco, 2010) Jesse Schell (2010) presented multiple examples of game mechanics used in non-game media in his presentation Design outside the Box at DICE Summit 2010. Schell mentions new Ford Fusion hybrid car that comes with an EcoGuide facility, which is basically an implementation of feedback mechanics. Its a virtual plant in techno meter; the plant sprouts more leaves as your miles-per gallon go up, indicating how green your motoring is. (Goodwin, 2009) Here, feedback mechanics is used in such a way that might affect the way people drive their car and possibly encourage them to drive in an eco-friendly way. MouseHunt (HitGrab, 2008) and other facebook games are mainly based on points, feedback, collection, and customization mechanics and MouseHunt can be the best example of it. The player is required to build a mouse trap to catch mice and when a mouse is caught, the player is awarded with points and gold. The game keeps a track of points and gold on leaderboard. The mice caught by the player are added in his collection. Game Mechanics in Mainstream Games Quake (id Software, 1996) popularized rocket jumping mechanics. Rocket jumping is the technique of firing a rocket launcher or similar explosive pointing at the ground or at wall and jumping at the same time. The explosion propels and accelerates the players jump to large distance. Rocket jumping mechanics was introduced in Marathon (Bungie, 1994) and Rise of the Triad (Apogee, 1994), adapted in Team Fortress 2 (Valve, 2007) Unreal Tournament (Epic Games, 1999) and others. (Wikipedia, 2010) Another popular game mechanics is slow motion. The gameplay of Max Payne (Rockstar, 2001) involves bullet time-based action sequences. Bullet time slows the passage of time down to a certain level and enables the player to perform special moves. Time based mechanics is also one of the main features in later versions of Prince of Persia series (Ubisoft, 2003). This mechanics makes the prince able to slow down or rewind the time and perform special combat moves. Portal (Valve, 2007) is a single player Puzzle-Platformer game that consists primarily of a series of puzzles that must be solved by teleporting the players character and simple objects using the portal gun, a unit that can create inter-spatial portal between flat planes. The game received praise for its unique gameplay and darkly humorous story. Portal seems a perfect combination of Challenge and Skills, though its gameplay consist teleportation based puzzles only. The gameplay contains no combat sequence or rocket jumping or slow motion. Kill.switch (Namco, 2003) introduced cover and shoot mechanics which was adapted into Gears of War (Epic Games, 2006). As described by Miguel Sicart (2008) Gears of War introduced an effective combat tactic where the player takes cover behind a block or a pillar and patiently shoots enemies. This third-person combat design also influenced Grand Theft Auto IV (RockStar North, 2008) and became highly popular. But Grand Theft Auto series is more popular for its variety of gameplay which consist of action, adventure, driving, racing, and stealth elements. The GTA series is also a good example of open world type of video game level design concept where a player can roam the virtual world at any point in the game. It also contains sandbox style nonlinear gameplay where the player can complete challenges in any sequence. The Game sold 2.5 million units in the America on the first day. (Mazel, 2008) The roots of open-world game concept go back to space simulator Elite (Acornsoft, 1984). However, we get to see open-world gameplay implementations in Midtown Madness (Microsoft, 1999), Need for Speed Underground 2 (EA Games, 2005) and Burnout Paradise (EA, 2008) as well. Game Mechanics in Racing Games The main gameplay in racing game is driving the car. However, many racing games offer various gameplay that are unique to the game itself. Need for speed: Underground (EA Games, 2003) has a unique win condition. The player has to finish the race at first place only in order to win the race, even if there are more than two players playing. This finish-first only mechanics deliberately increased the challenge level in the game. Underground emphasis heavily on import racing scene and featured vehicles associated with it. Cars can be customized to increase performance and visuals. Underground also featured EA Trax (EA Games) which is a collection of soundtracks. Overall, Need for Speed Underground contains multiple game mechanics that appealed many racing game lovers. According to VGChartz.com, the game sold 6.49 million units of PS2 version of the game till date. (VGChartz, 2010) Trials HD (RedLynx, 2009) is a combination of puzzle and stunt bike driving. It doesnt have any competitive race, as in the player has to get through a number of obstacles with as few crashes as possible. The challenge in the game is to balance and control the speed so that the player can pass through obstacles successfully. The game uses 3D graphics but the player can only more forward and backwards. However, the player can lean front or back to perform special moves or stunts. With such limited movement, the controls are also made simple. Trials HD also has a leaderboard feature, and when connected to Xbox Live, the player can compare his progress with his friends. Split Second (Disney, 2010) introduced destructive environment, which, when triggered by player it creates obstacles for other players. As a player performs stunts like drafting, drifting or precision driving, the powerplay meter builds up which allows the player to trigger special events like creating obstacles, enabling shortcuts or altering the race track entirely. High speed racing, imported cars, customization, stunts, crashes and motion blur can be noted as features of a racing game required to make it best selling. Burnout (Acclaim Entertainment, 2002) is noted as the initial in a series of high-speed racing games which also includes high risk gameplay mechanics. Burnout paradise (EA, 2008), the recent release in burnout series, features an open world environment called Paradise City, with day-night cycle. Game Mechanics include stunts, car crashes, and motorcycles. A very player favourite and famous gameplay is Crash Mode in which players can cause car crashes. However, in burnout paradise, the Crash Mode is called Showtime and records are kept for players biggest crash. The game contains best time for every street in the game which encourages the player to keep on driving to get the best time. Recently released blur (Activision, 2010) incorporates real world cars with arcade style handling and vehicular combat. It introduces a completely new type of gameplay to the current racing genre. However, it is brewed with the power ups mechanics that has been used in many games. It also uses the ranking and perk system. The race starts without a count-down timer which is currently popular; we can see such game mechanics in Split second and need for speed series. Results and Contribution The Definition I would like to give a brief explanation rather than a definition. It is possible that this has been mentioned some or other way in many articles. Game mechanics is a set of rules that builds a specific gameplay which makes the game more challenging, interesting and player-involving. Game mechanics can also introduce new ideas or variety within a game, which ultimately makes a game fun. Game mechanics can be used to build up such a gameplay that motivates or manipulates human behaviour. The definition explained here has been used to study and understand the game mechanics and gameplay in a variety of games mentioned in the research. Game Mechanics In Racing Genre When it comes to racing games, speed is everything. The faster the gameplay is, the more the excitement, interest and challenge will be. In a racing game, the player is not given a high performance car at the beginning of the game, but as he levels up in the game, faster cars or performance upgrades that can boost up the speed are unlocked. This mechanism creates a need of high performance car, and as the player progresses further, the game feels more rewarding. Free roam mode or open world environment plays a crucial part in racing games. Player gets a chance to explore the environment and start the race whenever he wants to, which gives a realistic feeling to the game. Players usually get attracted towards imported cars. Car customization has become an important feature of racing games. Models of original cars are highly praised by players and. They have a tendency to customize their cars and show off as well. Leaderboards allow players to compare their best times, high score and achievements, which also keeps a player engaged in game. Challenge is not the only element a player is looking for in racing games. A number of games provides stunts and car crash based gameplay. Trials HD (RedLynx, 2009) and Burnout series (Criterion Games) are good examples of it. Player can drive through a signboard or perform a stunt in burnout paradise to gain extra boost, where Trials HD is all about passing through obstacles by performing stunt moves. Such game mechanics inserts the element of fun in games. A few arcade style racing games have been avoiding the use of start up countdown. The round starts with ongoing race and the player gains control of the car after a cut scene. This type of mechanics is seen in triple-A titles like Blur and Split second. However, Simulation style racing games, where the realism is more persistent, follows the traditional countdown start-up of a race. Need for speed underground featured finish-first only mechanics. In order to win the round, the player has to finish at first place and first place only. This increases the challenge at a high degree, but it also seemed to be improving the player skills. Other notable game mechanics or gameplay features includes motion blur, car pursuit, allowing player to create tracks etc. Music and soundtracks also play an important part in making the game more interesting. Who wouldnt listen to hip hop or rock music while driving ones favourite car at top speed? It is believed that EA Trax has played an important part in the success of Need for Speed series. Gameplay is designed by brewing multiple game mechanics together. There is no specific recipe to make a best-selling racing game, but a game with various gameplay is more likely get popular. Developing a new Game Mechanic for Racing Games Whether a player is performing stunts, chasing a car, trying to make a huge crash score, or just playing a normal race, the core element is speed. Wouldnt it be great if a car never lose speed unless it is commanded to? Here, I have attempted to come up with such a game mechanic. During a race, if a player hits an obstacle, the car will lose health points but not the speed; the car will continue running throughout the track without losing its speed. However, massive loss in health points will ultimately result the player lose the round. The game presented here demonstrates the game mechanics with some other features as well. The demo consists of a single straight track. Instead of solid obstacles, the player will face white ghosts on track. On colliding with a ghost, the car will go through it but will lose health points. The race does not start with a countdown; instead it begins with the player car running at minimum speed; which increases the challenge from the beginning. On the other hand, if the player runs out of health, or fails to finish the race at first place, he loses the round. But, if the player finishes at first place without losing any health points, he wins a perfect finish. The demo also features some power ups. If the player picks up a health pack, the car health is restored. Slow motion slows down the game, allowing player to easily move through ghosts. Once activated, the game runs in slow motion for 10 seconds. Another power up is a shield which protects player from getting hurt by ghosts or opponent cars. The shield, once activated, stays active for 5 seconds. Shield provides a great advantage. When activated, the car will run 2 points slower than the real speed. Opponents do not collide or influence the players game; however, if collided with opponent cars, the player car will lose health. Evaluation Game Mechanics The following racing mechanics have been implemented into the demo, speed mechanics, power ups, random obstacle mechanics, competition mechanics, countdown less start up and finish first only. The gameplay was changed regularly as the demo was forming up in order to get the optimum effect of the mechanics. Multiple values were changed to improve the difficulty and challenge. However, it was also ensured that the difficulty is not far above the ground. Besides game mechanics, the gameplay can be improved with better feedback, graphical and visual effects, music and sound, more rewards or other bells and whistles. The Gameplay A game demo or a beta version of a game is made for testing purposes. The developers would test the graphics, frame rate or overall performance. Here, the game demo was made for an identical aim. The game demo was given to a group of game enthusiasts. Afterwards the reaction of the players towards the game mechanics was observed. The demo has a look and feel of classic road fighter (Konami, 1984) and the players did miss the superman bonus point. Random obstacles increased the challenge; it made the demo interesting as well. The demo has proved to be an ideal combination of challenge and skill. The players had to concentrate more in order to achieve the perfect finish; several players attempted more tactical approach to win the race. When asked about each feature of the game separately, the replies were encouraging and prove the success of the demo. User Comments Here are some comments given by players who tried the game demo. The game is quiet good; the ghosts were terrible as they ate up all my health in the first round. I rate it 4 out of 5. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Pratik Solanki The concept was different from other games, though the difficulty level was maintained throughout the demo. It seemed easy to win the game, but it was tough to achieve the perfect finish. 3.5 out of 5 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Kushal Joshi The game gets addictive as soon as you start playing   Dirk Fortmeier The Research Game development is not quite possible without understanding game mechanics. Gameplay is an important factor that attracts a player. The research on game mechanics helped to understand why a particular gameplay is more interesting and player involving.

The Transformational Process Model

The Transformational Process Model The Transformational Process Model A contrast of the transformational process model as it applies to the manufacturing (car manufacturing) and service (advertising) industries. Slack et al provide a model which assists in understanding the transformational process. Their model looks at the transformation of inputs into outputs of goods and services and the range of activities and operations that an organisation undertakes as part of this process. Slack et al’s transformational process model is robust enough to apply to both manufacturing and service industries and it is perhaps in contrasting these two areas that one is best able to understand the usefulness of their model. In simple terms, Slack et al’s the transformational process model deals with the process involved in transforming an input resource into an output good or service (Slack et al, 2001, p.9). A generic transformational process model can be set out as follows (Slack et al, 2001, p.10): The above generic input-transformation-output model applies to the operations of most organisations. However, as with any generic model, it fails to sufficiently differentiate between subtleties. As such, when considering differences between different types of operations (ie manufacturing and services) and then considering further differences within those different types (ie different types of manufacturing operations), it is necessary to expand on the generic input-transformation-output model set out above. In terms of the generic transformational process model set out above, it is important to note that inputs to the process will either be â€Å"transformed† or â€Å"transforming† resources. Slack et al define â€Å"transformed† resources as being â€Å"the resources that are treated, transformed or converted† (for example, materials, information and customers) and â€Å"transforming† resources as being â€Å"the resources that act upon the transformed resources† (for example facilities and staff) (Slack et al, 2001, pp.10-11). Slack et al note that in most cases, one of the transformed resources takes precedence over the other two. So for instance they note that while a bank devotes some of its time to processing materials and customers, its main focus is on processing information (Slack et al, 2001, p.11). However, it should be noted that in a modern, inter-dependant economy, it is unlikely that any organisation is able to operate without touching on each of the transformed resources and as such, the issue becomes one of the extent to which the other transformed resources are touched upon rather than whether or not an organisation’s operations touch on them at all. With respect to transforming resources, Slack et al refer to two types which form the â€Å"building blocks of all operations†. These are â€Å"facilities†, â€Å"the buildings, equipment, plant and process technology of the operation† and â€Å"staff†, â€Å"those who operate, maintain, plan and manage the operation† (Slack et al, 2001, p.11). Slack et al note that the transformation process is closely connected to the nature of the input resources which are being transformed. The three predominant types of operation processors are material processors, information processors and customer processors. Material processors predominantly transform the physical properties of the input resources, but may also change their location, their possession or store the materials. Information processors transform the informational properties of the input resources, the possession of the information, store the information or change the location of the information. Customer processing operations may change the physical properties of the input resource, store the resource, change the location, change their physiological state or their psychological state (Slack et al, 2001, pp.12-13). However, it is important to note that each macro organisational process also consists of numerous micro organisational processes (eg marketing and sales, set and props manufacture, engineering, production units and finance and costing) each of which contribute to what Slack et al (2001, p.19) refer to as the â€Å"end to end business process†. The flow of information, materials and/or customers throughout this end to end business process is often extremely complex. In terms of operations management, understanding that the transformational process model applies both at the macro level and at a micro level allows an organisation’s management to ensure that managers at all levels within the organisation understand that to a certain extent they are all involved in ensuring that their operation involves a transformational process and that it is only where the transformational processes of all these micro operations operate smoothly that the macro transformational process can be successful. It should also be noted that in many cases, organisations seek assistance from external organisations with respect to those micro processes. Thus for instance, an advertising agency provides a service which a large car manufacturing company may process internally. Or for instance Nike, which is thought of as a shoe manufacturer, is in fact a marketing processor specialising in shoes (the manufacturing of the shoes is, while done to Nike’s specifications, performed by external contractors with Nike concentrating on developing and maintaining their brand image). Slack et al (2001, pp. 18-19) refer to three core functions as transformation process operations. These are â€Å"product/services development function†, â€Å"operations function† and â€Å"marketing function†. The product/services development function involves â€Å"designers design software -> producing effective new products and services -> appropriate designs as promised and to budget†. The operations function involves â€Å"transformed/transforming resources -> producing service value for customers -> products and services†. The marketing function involves â€Å"sales people marketers market information -> producing sales and market plans -> orders marketing plans as promised and to budget†. As noted above, different types of operations (ie manufacturing and services) will involve different types of inputs, a different transformational process and result in different types of outputs. In order to compare how these differences are covered by Slack et als transformational process model, it is perhaps best to compare and contrast two specific examples. In this case, it is intended to compare and contrast differences between the transformational process of a car manufacturing operation (manufacturing) and an advertising agency (service). In terms of the basic input-transformation-output process, a car manufacturing and advertising agency’s operations can be described as follows: Operation Input resources Transformation process Outputs Car manufacturing Steel/plastic/other materials Car manufacturing equipment Machine operating staff Car manufacturing plant Design and procurement Fabrication Assembly Testing Distribution Cars Advertising agency Creative staff Admin staff Computer systems Information Customers Offices Client solicitation and pitching Creative production Delivery Account management Advertisements Increased sales One of the fundamental differences between the transformational process of a car manufacturing operation and an advertising agency is balance between facilities and staff resources. The car manufacturing operation will have much of its investment in physical facilities with the focus of operations managers in such an organisation being on ensuring that those facilities are operating smoothly. The transformational process for a car manufacturing plant is a technical/mechanical process which should run exactly the same every time. While there is creativity involved in the initial design stage of the vehicles and parts, the fabrication stage should involve no creativity and will essentially follow a set process which is repeated hundreds, if not thousands, of times each week with the purpose being to lower costs by automating the same repeated tasks. While staff in a car manufacturing operation remain important, their importance is secondary to the operation of the facilities themselves (ie should there be a problem with the operation of the facilities, the staff are not in a position to continue assembling the cars on their own – ie their effectiveness is directly linked to the effectiveness of the facilities themselves). Conversely, the importance of facilities to an advertising agency is entirely secondary to the importance of the staff that it employs. Preparing an advertising campaign is a largely creative process which varies from client to client and which does not therefore lend itself to automation. Due to the creative nature of an advertising agency’s work, should the facilities of an advertising agency for some reason become temporarily unavailable, it should be able to continue its operations using the same staff. Naturally, the importance of the less important transforming resource should not be underestimated and it is not the case that either of these two operations can continue without both transforming resources. Rather, it is that one of these transforming resources is more fundamentally important than the other. For instance, while an advertising agency’s staff should be able to continue with their transformational work even where the facilities they have been using are temporarily unavailable, it is highly likely that their transformational work will be less effective especially where the unavailability of facilities involves not only office space, but more importantly, informational resources such as computer systems, market research information, etc. Likewise, while a car manufacturing operation can replace staff that for instance, go on strike, the efficiency and effectiveness of newly employed staff will be lower than those who have experience working with the machinery and the organisation’s operational process. The point is that the balance for a car manufacturing and an advertising agency are different between facilities and staff and so too are therefore each organisation’s operations management concerns (Slack et al, 2001, p.12). With respect to the transformational process, a car manufacturing operation is predominantly a materials processor while an advertising agency is predominantly an information processor. A car manufacturing operation transforms the physical properties of the input resources involving the input of steel, plastic, and other materials the nature or which are then physically transformed into cars. An advertising agency on the other hand deals with information as its input resource (for instance, market research, demographic data, previous advertising campaign effectiveness, customer aims, etc) and transforms these into advertising campaigns the goal of which is to increase its customers’ sales. The operational outputs also differ substantially as between a car manufacturing operation and an advertising agency. Perhaps the most profound difference is that the outputs of a car manufacturing operation are an actual tangible product while for the advertising agency it is an intangible service. The difference between these two types of outputs affects such considerations such as storability, transportability, simultaneity, customer contact and quality (Slack et al, 2001, pp.13-14). Clearly a car has a degree of tangibility that an advertising campaign does not. This means that a car is able to be stored and transported. Likewise, the car manufacturing process involves production well before the customer ever sees it while with an advertising campaign, the psychological aspects occur simultaneously with its execution. As most customers will purchase a new car from a manufacturer’s own branded car yard, there is some contact between customer and manufacturer (more so than with other types of manufacturers such as for example household appliances where the manufactured good is sold via a third party retailer with no relationship with the manufacturer). The integrated supply chain for car manufacturers also affects the quality in that whereas with other manufactured products, the relationship between manufacturer and customer is more distant, the integrated supply chain for car manufacturers means that the customer is more likely to judge the quality of the operation from the quality of the product (although still not to the same extent that they would for a pure service such as a hair cut). Slack et al (2001, p.15-16) note that all operations fall somewhere within the spectrum between pure goods producers and pure service producers, with most operations producing a mixture of both products and services. They propose that each producer has a predominant type of output and that any peripheral output for that producer is referred to as a â€Å"facilitating† output. That is, for a goods producer, any services produced shall be â€Å"facilitating services† (eg technical advice) while for a services producer which produces peripheral goods (eg report and documents) these represent â€Å"facilitating goods†. This is perhaps a dated view of such operations which Slack et al acknowledge when noting that the distinction between services and products is becoming increasingly difficult to define. Perhaps a more accurate distinction is between the types of processors (ie materials, information and customer) rather than simply between goods and services. In reality, many service operations (especially information processors) do produce a tangible output which can be stored (for instance a travel agency will produce a booking which is reflected in a physical itinerary, a law firm will produce legal documents, a bank will produce bank statements, etc). It is generally customer processors (such as theme parks, theatres, public transport, airlines and hotels) which do not produce a tangible output which can be stored. In many ways, with the advent of the information revolution, the outputs of information operations have come to more closely resemble to outputs of traditional manufacturing operations more than traditional service operations. In general, a distinction needs to be made between services which produce a tangible output and those services which are consumed at the same time as they are produced. While both these operations fall within the overall heading of â€Å"services†, their natures are entirely different. The main difference between an information processor service and both material processors and customer processors are that an information processor’s output is not unique. That is, an information processor’s output is generally able to be copied at no additional cost. This can be contrasted to a material processor’s output such as a car or a customer processor’s output such as a haircut. Neither a car nor a haircut can be reproduced without additional inputs being used and the transformational process starting again at substantial cost. An informational output on the other hand, such as a legal document or a song can be reproduced an unlimited number of times at minim al cost and without the need for the original transformational process to be repeated (although large scale copying may require an additional transformational process eg producing CDs and DVDs). With respect to a car manufacturing operation and an advertising agency, both produce an output which is (arguably in the case of the advertising agency) tangible (ie cars and an advertising campaign respectively) although one is clearly much more tangible than the other. However, both the manufactured car and the advertising campaign loose relevance as time progresses and as such, the intention for both operations is to transfer the finalised output from the organisation responsible for processing the input onto the customer. The longer this transfer from processing operation to ultimate customer takes, the less relevant within the marketplace their outputs become (this statement will clearly not apply in certain cases for instance prestige cars which may increase in value the longer they are stored). The fundamental differences between a car manufacturing operation and an advertising agency have important implications on an organisation’s operations management. Both the advertising agency and car manufacturing consist of transforming resources facilities and staff. The difference is in the input of transformed resources as the car manufacturing is predominantly a material process and the advertising agency an information processor. The transformation process in operations is closely connected with the nature of its transformed input resources. Outputs from the transformation process are goods and services with the main difference being that an advertising agency provides a service while a car manufacturer produces a good. The difference in tangibility of the outputs also has an affect on storability, transportability, simultaneity, customer contact and quality. BIBLIOGRAPHY Slack, N., Chambers, S. Johnston, R. (2001), Operations Management, 3rd ed., Prentice Hall, Harlow, England

BIG Brother and the Internet Essay -- Web security Internet Essays

'BIG Brother' and the Internet The Internet invention has most certainly opened many doors for a faster, more efficient educational medium. One can find information about almost everything, discussions range from daily issues to highly academic and scientific issues. It has indeed helped this generation to be much more productive and efficient. The vast web of electronic media that connects us is heralding a new age of communications. New digital networks offer a tremendous potential to empower individuals in an ever-overpowering world. However, these communications networks are also the subject of significant debate concerning governance and jurisdiction. While the free flow of information is generally a positive thing, serious problems arise when information flows free, problems such as: How to protect children and undesiring adults from exposure to sexually explicit or potentially offensive materials? How to protect intellectual property rights? How to determine which country's laws have jurisdiction over a medium that is nowhere and everywhere at the same time? How best to protect privacy and protect our values? How to ensure that legislators, access providers, and network users do not stifle disagreeable speech? While well-established legal principles and cultural norms give structure and coherence to uses of conventional media, the new digital media do not fit so easily into existing frameworks. The Internet might be helpful in making lives much more dynamic and resourceful, but we also hear hundreds of horror stories related to the Internet. Some people argue that it also has the potential of destroying our generation by exposing it to "pornography" and other "indecent" material readily available on the Intern... ...plamem.html>" (March 28, 97). 4: Biskupic Joan "Exploring the Frontiers of Internal Freedom" (March 17, 97) Document. "<http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/wplate/1997-03/17/037l-03179- idx.html>" (April7, 97). 5: Burton, Scott "The Indecency of the Communication Decency Act" Document."<http://www.isc.rit.edu/~sab0276/stv/cda.html>" (March 28, 97). 6: Fena, Lori , and Godwin, Mike. "Your Constitutional Rights have been Sacrificed for PoliticalExpediency" "<http:www.eff.org/pub/Alerts/cda_020296_eff.statement>" (March 28, 97). 7: Press Release. "Reno v. ACLU: The Road to the Supreme Court" (October 31, 96) Document. <http://www.aclu.org/news/n103196b.html>" (March 28, 97). 8: Webmaster. "ClariNet files suit over Communication Decency Law" Document. "<http://www.clarinet.com/suitepage.html>" (March 28, 97).

Malaria Essay -- essays research papers fc

Malaria Malaria parasites have been with us since the beginning of time, and fossils of mosquitoes up to thirty million years old show that malaria’s vector has existed for just as long. The parasites causing malaria are highly specific, with man as the only host and mosquitoes as the only vector. Every year, 300,000,000 people are affected by malaria, and while less than one percent of these people die, there are still an estimated 1,500,000 deaths per year. While Malaria was one of the first infectious diseases to be treated successfully with a drug, scientist are still looking for a cure or at least a vaccination today (Cann, 1996). Though many people are aware that malaria is a disease, they are unaware that it is life threatening, kills over a million people each year, and is a very elusive target for antimalarial drugs (Treatment of Malaria, 1996). Being a very specific disease, malaria is caused by only four protozoal parasites: Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium ovale, and Plasmodium malariae. Not only is the disease specific, but the parasites are too, with only 60 of 380 species of female Anopheles mosquitoes as vectors. With the exception of Plasmodia Malariae which may affect other primates, all parasites of malaria have only one host, Homo sapiens. Because some mosquitoes contain substances toxic to Plasmodium in their cells, not all species of mosquitoes are vectors of Plasmodium. Although very specific, malaria still causes disruption of over three hundred million people worldwide each year (Cann, 1996). The life cycle of the parasite causing malaria exists between two organisms, humans and the Anopheles mosquito. When a female mosquito bites a human, she injects an anticoagulant saliva which keeps the human bleeding and ensures an even flowing meal for her. When the vector injects her saliva into the human, it also injects ten percent of her sporozoite load. Once in the bloodstream, the Plasmodium travel to the liver and reproduce by asexual reproduction. These liver cells then burst releasing the parasites back into the bloodstream where they then enter red blood cells. Here, the Plasmodium feed on hemoglobin and reproduce again by asexual reproduction. Afterwards, the red blood cells burst and release the parasites. Some of the para... ...ion people annually. As the Plasmodium parasites mutate more and more to resist the effect of antimalarials, it becomes harder for scientist to find a cure (Treatment of Malaria, 1996). Over forty percent of the world’s population still at risk from this deadly disease, is yearning for a cheap, effective vaccine (Cann, 1996). Bibliography Dr. Cann, Alan J. PhD., "The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute Malaria Database", 1996, http://www.wehi.edu.au/biology/malaria/who.html. Graham, David, "Malaria-Proof Mosquitoes," Technology Review, October 1996, Vol. 99, Issue 7, p20-22, MAS FullTEXT ELITE, Nancy Guinn Library. Herman, Robert, "Malaria," New Groliers Multimedia Encyclopedia, Copywrite 1996. "Atovaquone and Proguanil for Plasmodium Falciparum Malaria," Lancet, June 1, 1996, Vol. 347, Issue 9014, p1511-1515, MAS FullTEXT ELITE, Nancy Guinn Library. "Limited Imagination," Economist, September 28, 1996, Vol. 340, Issue 7985, p80- 82, MAS FullTEXT ELITE, Nance Guinn Library. "Treatment of Malaria," New England Journal of Medicine, September 12, 1996, Vol. 335, Issue 11, p800-807, MAS FullTEXT ELITE, Nancy Guinn Library.

Process Safety Management in the Oil and Gas Industry

Abstract This paper provides a discussion of process safety management applied to the global oil and gas industry. The importance of maintaining regular risk assessments and environmental impact assessments has been indicated upon the completion of this research. The focus of the study is on integrating different management tools, such as EIA and HSE-MS, to evaluate the potential risks pertaining to development projects in the oil and gas industry. In addition, the report explores specific lessons learned from the defence industry, indicating that HSE management systems may be effectively applied to the oil and gas industry as well. Introduction The occurrence of various incidents and hazards occurring in the oil and gas industry is quite frequent, thereby necessitating the adoption of effective and reliable measures to mitigate such risks (Ovind and Sneve, 2004). It has been argued that Health, Safety and Environment Management Systems (HSE-MS) have a positive impact on the functioning of global oil and gas companies considering the high level of accuracy of assessments provided by this management tool (Bergh et al., 2014). The objective of the present report is to explore the feasibility of process safety management in the oil and gas industry. Process Safety Management in the Oil and Gas Industry Significant aspects can be learned in improving human factors in the oil and gas industry from industries, such as aviation, nuclear power and defence. However, the oil and gas industry demonstrates specific challenges that can make it difficult to apply design process and standards that have led to positive results in other industries (Ramirez et al., 2013). The development of various processes and standards has adhered to meet the needs emerging in the global oil and gas industry. Scientific research extensively focuses on the psychology of how irrationality and cognitive biases may lead to inadequate risk assessment and improper decision-making processes. Thus, the necessity to create practical and simple solutions is urgent than ever (Bergh et al., 2014). The introduction of Health, Safety and Environment Management Systems (HSE-MS) is important part of this process. Basic elements of HSE-MS include commitment to appropriate leadership practices, setting of clear goals and objectives, and undertaking strict risk evaluation and control procedures (Ash, 2010). When organisations in the oil and gas industry adhere to these aspects of their overall management, positive results can be expected in the long term. Communication among all divisions of organisations should be ensured in order to meet the expectations of all stakeholders in the industry. Management should provide commitment and personal involvement in health, safety and the environment as a whole (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). A proper expectation that could be indicated relates to setting a personal example of following major HSE rules. The decisions that could be made should consider aspects of quality, cost, morale, and production. In the process of introducing HSE principles in the oil and gas industry, it should be pointed out that allocation of resources should be done effectively in an attempt to carry out some of the most important functions of HSE. The development of local HSE policies should be in line with corporate objectives and standard as relating to the oil and gas industry (Ramirez et al., 2013). Setting objectives for continuous improvement should be the focal point of introducing such policies. All levels of management should be involved in similar processes to achieve optimal efficiency and productivity. In addition, certain objectives should be developed to mitigate risk within organisations operating in the oil and gas industry. The stage of risk evaluation and management should be consistently introduced in oil and gas companies in order to adhere to major HSE management guidelines that may contribute to decreasing the risk of incidents in this industry (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). This step i s associated with the establishment of a proper methodology that outlines acute and chronic hazards including their perceived effects. Moreover, it is important to conduct flexible hazard assessments at the design, development and operating stages. The application of risk management tools may significantly facilitate the process of achieving of the set policy objectives. It has been identified that an effective legislative programme requires three essential dimensions: powerful and well-resources regulations, setting accountability parameters to drive appropriate behaviours in the industry, and ensuring solid industry support (Berg et al., 2014). The globalisation of HSE issues for the oil and gas industry should be explored in order to demonstrate a process of setting high standards of performance in the field. In 2011, the European Commission released a series of legislative proposals to guarantee offshore safety (Ramirez et al., 2013). The focus on preserving the natural environment has been properly maintained. HSE policies are expected to cover oil spill and emergency response preparedness, quality assurance and management systems. The utmost goal of similar initiatives is to ensure a healthy and safe environment for employees in oil and gas companies as well as for residents of different countries (Ash, 2010). The conduct of particular operations from the oil and gas industry should be done with the consideration of strict professional standards for safety. In fact, the safety of employees should be taken into consideration as well as the environment and economic values. In general, oil and gas companies are committed to developing of proper systems for monitoring of their technical facilities and plants. The occurrence of various incidents in the industry, such as the Macondo incident, the US Department of the Interior undertook drastic measures in 2011 to mitigate risks in this sector (Haight, 2013). Two new agencies were created to monitor a series of operations and activities in the Gulf of Mexico, as these are the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and the Bureau of Offshore Energy Management (BOEM). In addition, the Department was responsible for issuing new and more effective regulations to address the specific roles and functioning of these two agencies (Bergh et al., 2014). Product specifications along with emission controls and climate change programmes have contributed to the development of proper and highly effective HSE systems. It can be suggested that these aspects can have a significant impact on the production and profitability of different products introduced by oil and gas companies. Moreover, there are certain environmental laws that require organisations that operate in this industry to restore all areas in which particular incidents or unauthorised release of various hazardous materials have taken place. It can be anticipated that HSE laws and regulations can have a rather positive impact on the operations of oil and gas companies (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). However, it may be challenging to indicate what would be the potential future effects of certain legislations adopted in the context of the global oil and gas industry. There may be risks associated with HSE costs and liabilities, which may be evident in the activities of global oil and gas companies. Thus, such organisations recognise the importance of implementing solid HSE standards and management tools to facilitate the accomplishment of certain outcomes (Ash, 2010). One of the legislative frameworks that provide substantial information on applying HSE standards in the oil and gas industry is the IADC HSE Case Guidelines. These guidelines â€Å"provide a framework for developing an integrate health, safety and environmental management system for use in reducing the risks associated with offshore and onshore drilling activities† (International Association of Drilling Contractors, 2014). The significant of the guidelines reflects in the adoption of high standards that can help in increasing global health, safety and environmental awareness in relation to the oil and gas industry. The worldwide acceptance of the guidelines in countries such as Australia, Canada, South Africa and Cuba implies their universal applicability to solve emerging challenges in the respective industry (Ash, 2010). The need to assist regulatory authorities around the world may contribute to the delivery of standards and principles that are closely tailored to correspon d to the needs of oil and gas companies. Emphasis is put on reassuring that the most proper industry practices have been implemented in terms of health, safety and environmental concerns. Lessons from the Nuclear Power of the Defence Industry Thus, the focus can be shifted to learning important lessons from the nuclear power of the defence industry. One of the crucial lessons learned so far is that of interaction considering that different legislations throughout the world may demonstrate the adoption of similar approaches to mitigate risks in the oil and gas industry (Bergh et al., 2014). Interaction emerging at all stages of the assessments is important to make sure that all needs of the stakeholders in the industry are met. Another lesson that can be learned from the defence industry and applied to the oil and gas industry relates to access to information. It is essential to understand that particular parts of the development projects may contain classified information (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). Such details may be significant in the process of carrying out the intended assessment procedures. Timing also is a valuable lesson that can be drawn from the defence industry in terms of focussing on all points during the proj ect planning stage. It should be initially noted that assessments involving EIA and HSE-MS tools serve as an adequate decision support system that should be available in a timely manner. Analysis of Human Failure Contribution to Process Risk In order to gain understanding of human reliability and accident causation, it is important to focus on various HSE management tools including HAZID, HEMP and HAZOP. One of the most powerful tools for the identification of major hazards and risks, which can be implemented in the global oil and gas industry, is HAZID (Ovind and Sneve, 2004). Its use is recommended to be done early to demonstrate greater precision and accuracy of results. The key benefits of HAZID include fast identification and correction of potential deviations, providing records of hazards to avoid and mitigate further risks in the global oil and gas industry (Rausand, 2013). The method actually represents a design-enabling tool used to enhance the HSE parameters in particular projects. Furthermore, the Hazards and Effects Management Process (HEMP) was designed to present a highly structured approach to analysing various hazards in the life cycle pertaining to installation processes in the industry. This method refers to a three-day session in which participants are provided with significant information on risk management and essential HEMP principles, including HEMP’s role in the HSE management systems (Bergh et al., 2014). The management tool identified as HAZOP has been also found useful in identifying and mitigating risks pertaining to the global oil and gas industry. The initial use of this instrument has been considered for the proper identification of hazards through flowsheets and diagrams. It also implements safety audit after several months of operation (Rausand, 2013). Specific procedures considered by oil and gas companies refer to determining the precise degree of hazard and expected change as well as a consideration of the worst case accident th at may occur as a result of the modification. In addition, the management tool requires the appointment of a competent, qualified person to comply with the strict requirements for HAZOP (Ramirez et al., 2013). Case Study of Operating Events at Commercial Nuclear Power Plants However, it is important to focus on the aspects of human failure contribution to process risk as applicable to various events that take place at power plants. The main tools that have been implemented to identify safety events, in which human failure contribution to process risk was investigated, refer to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Accident Sequence Precursor (ASP) Program and the Human Performance Events Database (HPED). Events in this case were selected on the basis of SPAR analyses that contributed to a proper estimation of human errors that eventually increased risks to the completion of these events (Rausand, 2013). In addition, different human error categories and subcategories have been identified to demonstrate greater accuracy of findings. The formation of categories took place in line with their frequency of occurrence (Gertman et al., 2001). Major categories included command, control, resource allocation, operator actions, communications, design deficiencies, design change testing, configuration management, as well as procedures of maintenance and monitoring of various work processes (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). It has been argued that human failure substantially contributed to process risk in relation to operating events. For instance, seven human errors have been identified to contribute to the emergence of numerous event failures in the identified power plants. Another challenge that has been observed in this case study referred to the lack of attention to recurrent problems (Ash, 2010). In fact, the lack of attention and care to recurrent problems was estimated in approximately 41% of the operating events (Gertman et al., 2001). Such inattention mostly related to improper NRC inspection findings, industry notices, and vendor notices. Operating with known design deficiencies also created certain problems at the commercial nuclear power plants. Human failure was evident in the inability or error to follow plant and industry trends as well as provide timely responses to industry notices (Ramirez et al., 2013). Active human errors were identified as quite problematic pertaining to command and control and resource allocation failures, amounting to almost 28%. For instance, it has been indicated that command and control between Oconee Unit 2 1992 and Keowee hydroelectric station turned out to compromise or challenge the response from the plant (Gertman et al., 2001). The tasks performed by Keowee staff seemed to have affected emergency power at Oconee without receiving proper notifications from control room management. This is a clear example of how human failure contributed to increased risks of operating events. In this relation, it is essential to separate human actions in pre-initiator categories and post-initiator categories (Rausand, 2013). Pre-initiator actions are recognised as actions that may affect the availability of systems and elements associated with the response to incidents. Such actions mostly include errors in restoring particular systems after maintenance procedures at the plants (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). Post-initiator human actions represent a type of responses to incidents occurring in the power plants, as they may be also recovery actions in terms of restoring certain failed systems. It can be suggested that latent human errors mostly suppose a direct relation with pre-initiator human actions, as they are further related to numerous failures in the system. Therefore, it can be concluded that the results obtained from this case study indicated that human performance contributed essentially to increasing risks in analysed operating events (Bergh et al., 2014). Human failures to correct known problems have been frequently identified along with errors made during design and maintenance activities at commercial nuclear power plants. Thus, the results of this case study demonstrate that multiple errors occurring in operating events contribute to the so-called probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) basic events which are evident in SPAR models (Gertman et al., 2001). Importance of EIA and HSE-MS In order to improve practice of the oil and gas industry, the introduction of HSE management systems should take place in line with the integration of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). It is essential to clarify that EIA is defined as a process by which a project’s impact on the environment is measured (Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, 2013). In case the likely effects are identified as unacceptable, professionals in the field are responsible for developing effective mitigation strategies to reduce such a perceived negative impact. Thus, EIA is a crucial tool used in managing the complex interrelations between development and the environment (Rausand, 2013). The examination of the environmental consequences of development actions is done in a structured manner based on multidisciplinary approaches applicable to the global oil and gas industry. The integration of EIA and HSE-MS tools may adequately facilitate the functioning of oil and gas com panies. The primary goal of these management tools is to ensure strict compliance with relevant legislations and standards in the field of operation (Bergh et al., 2014). It is of crucial importance that all HSE hazards are identified and handled in a timely manner. Their systemic assessment is a proper step towards ensuring that all criteria for adequate performance have been met. The integration of these assessments allows for accurate procedures implemented in the context of risk management for oil and gas companies worldwide. For instance, it may be indicated that various development projects that involve the use of radioactive material and nuclear fuel represent serious risks and hazards, which should be extensively assessed through the frameworks of EIA and HSE-MS (Abaza et al., 2004). Global oil and gas companies are held responsible for ensuring that all dimensions pertaining to human health, environment and security are thoroughly considered prior to the accomplishment of particular projects. Thus, importance is placed on risk assessment and environmental impact assessment of planned activities in the oil and gas industry (Rausand, 2013). As a result, such organisations are committed to improve their internal procedures that play a key role in conducting risk assessment and environmental impact assessment. In this context, a viable measure would be to screen all nuclear safety project proposals to ensure that such assessment procedures are done appropriately. Additional requirements for compliance may be specified by the authorities in particular countries in which oil and gas companies operate (Ash, 2010). International measures should be constantly improved in relation to the integration of EIA and HSE-MS measures (Zimolong and Elke, 2006). This aspect may lead to extensive support for initiating a co-ordinated international action to demonstrate high-quality environmental impact assessment and risk assessment pertaining to projects developed in the oil and gas industry. An overall risk assessment is fundamental in order to ensure that all development projects are completed in a cost-efficient and secure manner. These aspects should be considered in the process of setting certain priorities in the operation of oil and gas companies (Ramirez et al., 2013). Such thorough assessments may direct efforts to generate necessary funds for the completion of more urgent tasks in the industry. Conclusion In conclusion, this paper provided a relevant exploration of process safety management in the global oil and gas industry. Specific arguments have been introduced in order to emphasise the important role of HSE-MS tools, which combined with EIA, may contribute to greater efficiency and safety of work practices in oil and gas companies around the world (Rausand, 2013). The paper focuses on discussing the effectiveness of HSE management systems. In addition, human failure contribution was analysed as related to process risk evident at operating events in commercial nuclear power plants. Another aspect outlined in the report included the integration of EIA and HSE-MS tools that may lead to better recognition and maintenance of risks identified in the oil and gas industry (Bergh et al., 2014). In conclusion, providing accurate assessments is associated with the delivery of positive outcomes in this industry. References Abaza, H., Bisset, R. and Sadler, B. (2004). ‘Environmental Impact Assessment and Strategic Environmental Assessment: Towards an Integrated Approach’. UNEP [online]. Available at: http://www.unep.ch/etu/publications/textONUbr.pdf [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Ash, J. (2010). ‘New Nuclear Energy, Risk, and Justice: Regulatory Strategies for an Era of Limited Trust’. Politics & Policy, vol. 38(2): 255-284. Bergh, L. I., Hinna, S. and Leka, S. (2014). ‘Sustainable Business Practice in a Norwegian Oil and Gas Company’. Contemporary Occupational Health Psychology: Global Perspectives on Research and Practice, vol. 3: 198-217. Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government (2013). Guidelines for Planning Authorities and An Bord Pleanala on Carrying out Environmental Impact Assessment [online]. Available at: http://www.environ.ie/en/Publications/DevelopmentandHousing/Planning/FileDownLoad,32720,en.pdf [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Gertman, D. I., Hallbert, B. P., Parrish, M. W., Sattision, M. B., Brownson, D. and Tortorelli, J. P. (2001). ‘Review of Findings for Human Error Contribution to Risk in Operating Events’. NUREG [online]. Available at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/contract/cr6753/cr6753.pdf [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Haight, J. M. (2013). ‘Process Safety Regulations around the World’. Handbook of Loss Prevention Engineering, vol. 1&2: 463-499. International Association of Drilling Contractors (2014). IADC HSE Case Guidelines [online]. Available at: http://www.iadc.org/iadc-hse-case-guidelines/ [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Ovind, A. K. and Sneve, M. (2004). ‘Environmental Impact Assessment and Risk Assessment in Northwestern Russia-from a Norwegian Perspective’. IAEA Organisation [online]. Available at: http://www.iaea.org/OurWork/ST/NE/NEFW/CEG/documents/ws032004_Ovind.pdf [Accessed on: 28 Nov. 2014]. Ramirez, P. A., Utne, I. B. and Haskins, C. (2013). ‘Application of Systems Engineering to Integrate Ageing Management into Maintenance Management of Oil and Gas Facilities’. Systems Engineering, vol. 16(3): 329-345. Rausand, M. (2013). Risk Assessment: Theory, Methods, and Applications. New York: Wiley. Zimolong, B. M. and Elke, G. (2006). ‘Occupational Health and Safety Management’. Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics: 671-707.