How does the Islamic religion influence Islamic law Essay

How does the Islamic religion influence Islamic law - Essay Example From the birth to the death, the Muslims across the globe hear the holy sounds of Quran. The holy Quran is regarded as the guide for the lives of all the Muslims across the globe. All Islamic principles and ethics are embedded in it. The finer aspects of Islam and the Islamic Law are ingrained in the holy Quran. The spread of the Islam in this world has been phenomenal. Starting from the cities of the Makkah and Madinah in the Arabian world, the message of the Islam spread at lightning speed. Within 100 years since the death of the Prophet Mohamed, the messages of Islam spread to three continents of the world. In the Western world, the ordinary believe is that that region of Islam has spread at electrifying pace through bloody wars. But this is not true. The sheer appeal of the new Islam religion enticed people to believe in Islamism. The unflinching belief in the existence of One God and the strong emphasis and trust upon His divinity led to large numbers of people embracing Islam. Another important feature of the Islam was that it never adopted the policy to forcefully covert people to Islamism. Even in the modern times, in many Muslim dominated areas in the world, the people of other religions like the Jews and the Christians continued to follow their own religious ideologies.2. Whatsoever, the Islams spread at a rapid pace. The Turks accepted Islamism peacefully. Besides this, many Malay-speaking people and many people in the Indian subcontinent embraced Islamism. Even in many countries in the African and the South American continent, which were under the powerful colonial rulers of the Europe, the Islamism continued to flourish3. It is estimated that the Muslim population throughout the world is in the range 0.7 to 1.8 billion. Nearly one-fourth of the people in the world are adherents of Islam whereas 33% of the world population follows Christianity—by far the largest religion in the world. Given the rising number of followers of Islam, it is estim ated that Muslim will be the largest religion in the world by the middle of the twenty first century4. Indonesia, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Nigeria are the most populous Muslim nations. Of the total Muslims in the world, 25% live in the Middle East. In the US, around 6 million people are Muslims5. Living in a multicultural society brings together people from all religious practices, cultures and religions. The impact of law is seen by the different behaviors of people and the consequences they face for their actions. For instance the controversies surrounding headscarves worn by students in Turkish educational institutions and death sentence imparted to women owing to illegal sexual liaisons raise questions in our mind with respect to the origin of such measures or consequences. For the Islamic countries adherence to the Islamic law is important for the social progress in these nations. The administrations are compelled to encounter a disaster of identity and finds its politic al legitimacy challenged such that they will have to alter the principles and the legal structure within the Islamic frame6. The government feels the pressure of incorporating tenets of the Islamic law into the system and therefore some Muslims recommend the realization of the Sharia or the â€Å"Islamization of prevalent law†. The term ‘sharia’ is an Arabic phrase for ‘track’ or ‘road’. â€Å"The term itself actually derives from the noun ‘shara’a’, which reflects the idea of ‘a system of divine law’†7. Susie Steiner (2002), the author of the article ‘

Dumping of Unsafe Products Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 30

Dumping of Unsafe Products - Case Study Example After the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned the painkiller dipyrone because it can cause a fatal blood disorder, Winthrop Products continued to sell dipyrone in Mexico City (Shaw et al., 2009, p.34). ‘Made in the USA: Dumped in Brazil, Africa, Ira’ seems to be the business philosophy followed by many of the American product manufacturers. In other words, Americans believe that they have the right to enjoy the benefits of the products they discovered or invented. At the same time, they believe that the harmful effects of these products should be suffered by the rest of the world rather than the Americans. The Holy Bible says that those who take the sword will be killed by the sword. However, Americans have changed this proverb as it is the duty of other innocent people to accept death even though the Americans have done the mistakes. It is ethically wrong to dump potentially hazardous products in third world countries. The producers of the hazardous products sh ould take the responsibility of dumping such products properly in their own country instead of cheating the innocent people in other countries. This paper briefly discusses the ethics or morality of dumping unsafe products in overseas countries by America. One of the reasons cited by Americans to justify the activity of dumping unsafe products in overseas countries is related to humanitarian considerations. â€Å"They say their motives are humanitarian. Because the rate of dying in childbirth is high in Third World countries, almost any birth control device is preferable to none† (Shaw et al., 2009, p.34). The above argument is totally unacceptable. The logic of providing dangerous items for saving the life of some people is indigestible, at least for non-Americans.

Compare And Contrast Two Policy Areas Economics Essay

Compare And Contrast Two Policy Areas Economics Essay There is a debate on what the most appropriate method for a policy formulation, weather the policy cycle model or the Kingdons garbage can model. Different policy areas may be a product of different policy processes. In reality, it can be seen that some policies may take long time to be ready to implement while other issues capture policy makers attention and put in place shortly (Tiernan and Burke 2002, 86). The argument of this paper is that in the implementation of policy-making, while the characteristics of the policy cycle model and the Kingdons garbage-can model may appear together, there may actually be only one model which would manifest itself or dominate to policy making process. The writer will use two different policy areas to demonstrate this argument. This paper will have structures as follows; firstly, it will compare the concepts of policy cycle model and garbage can approach which is preceded by the definition of public policy. Secondly, it will describe the implementation of the policy cycle model on the Indonesian government policy on the elimination of trade tariffs on imported goods from Japan. This regulation is an implementation of the Agreement on Economic Partnership between the Indonesian government and Japan. Thirdly, it will describe the implementation of the garbage can model on the Indonesian government action on emergency response on the Situ Gintung Dam disaster in 2009 in Indonesia. Lastly, it will summarise the main points of the paper and restate the main argument. Several scholars provide different definitions of public policy. However, this paper will use one of them as a starting point in comparing the policy making models in two different policy areas as mentioned above. Public policy is about what government concerns to address public issues and increase public welfare. Colebatch (1998, 2006 cited in Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, p. 5) defines public policy as whatever governments choose to do or not to do. This definition deduces several possibilities of what government will do when there is problem in public. Government may solely address the problems; may let other actors to solve the problems with government regulations; may work with other actors to solve the problems; or may do nothing at all. For example, regarding the issue of decreasing on the education quality in secondary school, to address this problem, government may review policy on education system and increase public school quality. Other example to on what government n ot to do is in the case on the privatisation of transport service providers which is projected to increase efficiency and reduce government spending. In comparing two models of policy formulation, the writer identifies several different characteristics of the two models. The first characteristic of policy cycle is the use of rational measurement. Proponents of policy cycle argue that a series of rational stages allows policy cycle works based on embedded rationalism (Bridgman and Davis 2003, p. 98). However, the opponent criticises that a good policy needs more than an effective process good policy entails good content and good content does not necessarily result from an effective process (Everett 2003, p. 67). To respond this criticism, Bridgman and Davis (2003, p. 101) use Driors point of view that alternative solutions are tested against the objectives to gain one rational decision while policy cycle presumes that there is no such outcome. It goes on that the stages in policy cycle are a logical process in terms that each step has a result for the next step, but it does not embody formal rationality (Bridgman and Davis 2003, p . 101). Moreover, Davis et al. (1993, p. 160-1 cited in Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, 59) underline rational comprehensive model which follows a logical, ordered sequence and comprehensive because it canvasses, assesses and compares all options. It seems that both sides, the proponents and the opponent, look weather policy cycle rational or not from different perspective which makes them come to different ends. However, in writer perspective they all are right. The stages of policy cycle model can assist policy makers to do their jobs because the stages can be broken down. However, Everett (2003, p. 67) claims that policy cycle cant resolve controversial or contentious issues or replace political contest. To address this doubt Bridgman and Davis (2003, p. 101) argue that most of government activities are routine and only a few which is unusual. In writers concern, although government does routine activity but issues change along the time and the office work history sometimes is not sufficient to portray the issues. Therefore, this model does not much help decision makers. It is claimed that consultation stage in policy cycle model enhances policy formulation for a better implementation. The opponent of this idea, Everett (2003, p. 67) claims that community consultation fails to address issues related to political contest. It goes that community consultation only results little more than a wish list rather than solution. To address this doubt, Bridgman and Davis (2003, p. 101) argue that political interest does not always burden the government routine, however, if so, typical follows the same process to make less contentious issues. In this point, the writer agrees that community consultation is a step forward to open democracy although it cant provide satisfying solution for all. This model will be more appropriate for a routine policy because it takes time following the stages. Turning to the garbage can model, it is believed that this model has different approach with the conventional model of policy making. Kingdons garbage-can model rejects the policy cycle approach by arguing that policy formulation happens within organisation which has characterised by uncertain or different policy interest, unclear internal rules and unstable participation patterns (Cohen et al. 1972, p.1; Howard 1998; Davis et al. 1993, p. 173 cited in Tiernan and Burke 2002, p. 87). Furthermore, Tiernan and Burke (2002, p. 87) explain that the Kingdons garbage-can theory are antithesis of rational decision making approach. This model is appropriate to address issues which need quick response because it does not follow many stages. For example, in combating terror actions, decision makers have to make quick decision and take actions. Sometimes trial and error strategy works in such a chaotic situation. According to Kingdon (cited in Zahariadis 1999, p. 76) decision making works through three streams, namely, problems, politics and policies. Problems may attract policy makers to find solutions or problem leads to solution. For example, the oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico on 20 April 2010. It may capture policy makers attention to formulate a regulation to give huge tax and royalty to oil industries in order to reduce the reliance on oil and shift to alternative fuel (British Petroleum 2010, online) . Political stream involves the contention of pressure group campaign, interest groups, administrative and legislative, judicial, executive. Policy stream revolves around wide range of ideas generated by policy communities, networks and researchers (Zahariadis 1999, pp. 76-77). Issues will capture policy makers attention when they are in the three streams at the same time. Kingdon (1995, p. 165 cited in Zahariadi 1999, p. 77) calls these conditions as policy window. Furthermore, he explains that when policy window opens, which is unpredictably, policy entrepreneurs have opportunity to orchestra to promote their position in the future. In order to compare the two models above, the writer breaks down the first case study into the stages according to the policy cycle model in the Australian government. To start with, Althaus, Bridgman and Davis (2007, pp. 37-40) maintain that the Australian policy cycle comprises of the phases of identifying issues, policy analysis, policy instruments, consultation, coordination, decision, implementation and evaluation. The relationship among those stages will be described together with case study on the policy on elimination of trade tariffs on imported goods from Japan (the Ministry of Finance Regulation number 95/PMK.011/2008). The writer applies the policy cycle model with an assumption that this model is appropriate for developing policy in a normal condition in term of government routine activities. The implementation of policy cycle concepts for developing regulation on trade tariffs. The first stage of policy cycle normally begins with defining problems. This is mentioned by Parsons (1995, p. 81) who argues that stages of policy cycle starts from defining problem and agenda setting, implementation and up to evaluation. The same idea is disclosed by Althaus, Bridgman and Davis (2007, p 38) who contend that much policy begins with identifying issues. However, in writer perspective, it may start from other stage when there is no public issue, but government want to change its policy. Furthermore, it is believed that an effective policy requires overhaul because of more information occur during its formulation process (Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, p 38). These proponents agree that this model allows policy maker to review the previous steps when there is a new finding which may influence the success of policy implementation. Regarding the policy on eliminating trade tariffs barrier between the government of Indonesia and Japan, the idea was emerged by the Indonesian President and Japan Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi during the Asia Pacific Economic Countries (APEC) Summit Meeting in November 2004. The two leaders agreed to tighten the economic relationship between two countries. In writers concern, the meeting between two countries leaders refers to the Kingdons Garbage-can theory, as actors who enforce selected alternative solution (Kingdon 1995, p.116 cited in Tiernan and Burke 2002, p.88). Follow up meeting was held on December 2004 between the Minister of economic, Trade and Industry from the two countries to discuss about a Joint Study Group to explore future possibility to an Economic Partnership between the two countries. Another meeting was conducted between the Indonesian Vice President and Japan Minister of foreign Affair in January 2005 which planned to hold a three round meeting in April 2005. This meeting recommended a negotiation on bilateral economic partnership agreement. A three round meeting was conducted in Bali, Jakarta and Tokyo. The meeting was attended the representative of related departments, agencies, academic and private sectors from two countries. These meetings discussed a wide range issues about the economic relationship particularly on the possibility to increase the benefits from the economic partnership. The last issue is that Japan has been the largest country for goods export destination from Indonesia and vice versa. Other things are that Indonesia is an important energy exporter to Japan, while Japan is the largest provider official development assistance for Indonesia (Join Study Group Report 2005, p. 4). Since the Asian economic crisis 1997, the direct investment from Japan declined although it was noted that Japan was the highest foreign investor in Indonesia with 19.7 % accumulated during 1967 2004 (Join Study Group Report 2005, p. 3). This is also supported by OECDs survey which noted that Japan was the highest investor in Asia from 1982 1997 (Japan Ministry of Finance cited in Thomsen 1999, pp. 12-13). But, these indicators are only a symptomatic of the real issues. As Lindblom (1968, p. 13) indicates that policy makers are not faced with a given problem. Therefore, in writers concern the real problems are that the economic crisis 1997 had weakened Indonesian to buy domestic metal-based products which have imported components (from Japan). The next stage of policy cycle is policy analysis. In this stage, policy analysts work based on the information gathered in relation with the identified issues. According to Althaus, Bridgman and Davis (2007, p. 38) policy analysis refers to the debates of public servants with the related professionals and experts in order to formulate information to decision makers. In relation with the issues of declining Japan investment and enhancing domestic metal-based industries above, the debate was held in the Department of Economic, Trade and Industry, involving the economists and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce as representative of private sector. During this stage, policy analysts seek appropriate model to increase to make the goods are affordable to public. Economists may employ cost benefit analysis to reduce the goods price in order to support domestic industries. Alternatively, analysts may apply incremental rationality approach to reduce the trade tariffs rate gradually while hopi ng for positive impacts on the public and industries. In writers perspective, policy analysts work under Kingdons Garbage-can approach in selecting formulations of sequential post tariffs which have to be eliminated during the period of 2009 until 2012. The following step of policy cycle is choosing what policy instrument to be used, whether a policy need a new legislation or change programs or adjustment in the operational level. Selecting appropriate policy instruments is essential to a success of public policy because each instrument has its limitation. Drawing from Hoods classifications, the Australian public policy instrument is classified into advocacy, network, money, government action, and law (Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, p. 89). Each instrument has different capability to achieve policy goals. Some policies do not need to be in the form of legislation products. For example, to control the use of electricity, government may apply different rate for a certain level of power unit used. Otherwise, government may suggest publics to reduce electricity consumption through a campaign or subsidy. Regarding the information resulted by policy analysts in the Department of Economic, Trade and Industry, the Indonesian government chose law as instrument to implement policy on trade tariffs. According to the Government Decision no 42/2002, all public revenues should be regulated under the Minister of Finance regulation (Government of Indonesia 2002, President Decision no. 42/2002, article 2). Therefore, the policy on eliminating trade tariffs should be under the Minister of Finance decisions. However, the Indonesian government has to issue a decree as a base of ministerial decisions. There are two kinds of consultation, inside and outside organisation. The Minister of Finance conducts inside consultation through open debate and interactive with public in television broadcasting. Participants come from automotive industries owners, economists, and publics. In this session, the Ministry of Finance sough input and support from public regarding the proposal to eliminate trade tariffs gradually. The idea to hold public consultation is supported by Smith (2005, p. 30 cited in Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, p. 89) who argues that open forum will enable different groups to express and learn the alternatives and give responses as a process of public deliberation. Another consultation session was conducted in legislation forum. Practically, an issue often captures the attention of legislative members which then call for clarification ministers. It is a formal and scrutiny session because as it is held between parliament members (the Commission IX) and the Ministry of Fi nance as government representative. The perception of legislative member will be considered by the Ministry of Finance to finalise the policy. Alternatively, policy makers can apply e-Consultation to reach a wider public participation. As McNutt (2006 cited in Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, p. 117) argues that virtual policy networks will provide collaboration and coordination through online technology. The next stage of policy cycle is conducting coordination throughout the department or agencies. Developing policy needs coordination in order to develop coherence, consistency, and effectiveness when it comes to policy implementation. It is essential to build coordination because departments and agencies have their own functions (Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, pp. 124-125). An example for this point is, in Indonesia, the Ministry of Finance holds important role on allocating budget to all departments and agencies. Furthermore, Althaus, Bridgman and Davis (2007, p. 129) explain that coordination starts from agencies submit proposal to government to allow other department provide opinions about the programs against the existing programs administered by other agencies. From this process, central agency may make a review on the proposals. This step applies the concept of Whole of Government approach in terms of synchronizing program of with overall agency activities (Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, p. 131). In assessing the proposal, central agency employs routine standards to assess the consistency of programs with other government objectives. In the case of eliminating trade tariffs barrier, Directorate General of International Trade Affair through the Ministry of Economic, Trade and Industry submit the proposal to the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry of Finance asses the proposal in financial perspective the impact from eliminating trade tariffs to public revenue in budget statement. The information about revenue from the tariffs in the previous budget is valuable to predict the loss and to find its replacement. The Minister of Finance projects the implication of the regulation to the other sectors and make coordination with related departments and agencies, such as, employment sectors under the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration; taxation income from the increase of domestic industries in steel-based commodity under with the Ministry of Finance; the increase in fuel consumption as the effect of emerging industrial sector under the Minister of Mines and Energy. Coordination is essential for policy alignment. The argument is that support from interest groups, in this case is importers, company owners and civil servants in customs office, is important to the success of these regulations. When the regulations are implemented there will be many irresponsible actors who take advantage from the weaknesses of the regulation. Indeed, by issuing regulation on elimination trade tariffs on a certain goods, the opportunists will manipulate documents on other goods to get benefits. Decisions are formally made by parliament but sometimes policy only need government regulations. In the policy cycle, decision is an important key for the previous stages. Althaus, Bridgman and Davis (2007, p. 144) suggests that the proposal resulted from all sequential efforts are decided in this stage whether will be considered as a policy or not in the future. Furthermore, in cabinet arena, ministers have opportunity to act collectively to consider policy proposals before they are implemented. In the case of regulation on eliminating trade tariffs above, the Minister of Finance has promulgated the Minister of Finance regulation number 95/PMK.011/ 2008 dated 30 June 2008 (Observation and Research Taxation 2010, online). This regulation in the implementation of the Government of Indonesia Regulation number 36/2008 on legalisation of Agreement between the Republic of Indonesia and Japan for an Economic Partnership (IJ-EPA). Policy implementation is the next stage after decision has been made in policy cycle. The outcome of regulation is often far from the expectation. The gap often becomes new issues in the public which often interesting for opposition groups. As noted by Althaus, Bridgman and Davis (2007, p. 159) that the failure of implementation will be use for the opponents and media to show the government weaknesses. Furthermore, they suggest that to avoid the failure, policy proposal should be examine well in every stage of policy cycle before submission to cabinet. The proponents of policy cycle emphasize the scrutiny on every step of policy analysis. Regarding the implementation of regulation on trade tariffs, there are many actors involve as policy guardian. In the bottom level of bureaucracy, customs officers stand in front line to maintain this regulation. As goods are imported through the sea, sea-port customs officers are often as culprits of breaches. However, other actors, such as interest groups (company owners and importers) also play pivotal role. Althaus, Bridgman and Davis (2007, p. 160) argue that the failure in policy implementation is because of government agencies lack of sufficient expertise and resources. The writer agrees with this perspective, however, in Indonesian public administration, it is worsen by unclear borders between public administrators, police department, and army in policy implementation. Indeed, their functions are by far different. That is why public policy often failure in implementation. Evaluation stage is the end and restart of policy cycle (Althaus, Bridgman and Davis 2007, p. 179). Furthermore, evaluation provides three purposes; it questions how well a policy meets objectives in its implementation; it examines public servants accountability to their tasks; it suggests critical points to future policy refinement. However, evaluation often faces obstacles. Anderson (2005, p. 271-5 cited in Althaus, Bridgman and Davis (2007, p. 189) claim that obstacles may consists of uncertainty over policy goals, difficulty in determining causality, diffuse policy impacts, difficulty in data acquisition, resistance, and a limited time perspective. In Indonesian public administration, the actors of policy evaluation on elimination of trade tariffs are, the Inspectorate General on the Ministry of Finance in collaboration with the Financial Audit Board. Moreover, supervisors in customs offices hold essential roles to the success of this regulation. The Inspectorate General has annual schedule evaluations to make sure all organisation functions are run well. In the writer perception, policy evaluation has to be comprehensive. It does not only evaluate the implementation of a policy, but also concern to wider impacts of a policy. The result of evaluation may be as inputs for other public policy. Indeed, regulation on eliminating trade tariffs has impacts on some aspects, such as, financial aspect, relates to revenue shifting from trade tariffs on imported goods to value added tax of steel industries; economic aspect, relates to economic growth on domestic industries; employment aspect, relates to job opportunity and unemployment ra te reduction; environmental aspect, relates to the increase of fuel consumption on industry and automotive sectors, decreasing air and water quality from emission. However, the Indonesian government often fail to do this. Overall, the stages in policy cycle concern to develop a good policy through a scrutiny process in clear frameworks. It helps policy makers to understand the policy process in different functions. This model is able to break down complex issues into manageable stages. It is a normative suggestion on sequence stages for policy making approach. However, this model takes times and money because of the long process. From the example above, it can be seen that the stage of identifying issue happened in 2004 and 2005 whereas the implementation of the policy started in 2008. Turning to the implementation of the Kingdons Garbage-can model, as mentioned above there are three streams problems, policies, and politics to develop agenda change. Public issues might occur from one of the streams, otherwise coupling three streams. Kingdon (1995, p.88 cited in Tienman and Burke 2002, p. 88; see also Kingdon 1995, p. 165 cited in Zahariadi 1999, p.77) describes policy windows opens when three streams converge to push issues to get solutions. A case study on government action in addressing the disaster of the Situ Gintung Dam in 2009 will demonstrate how the Garbage-can model formulates policy through three streams. The problems stream the burst of Situ Gintung dam greatly captures decision makers attention to push the government to take real actions. Although the disaster had been predicted since 2008, there was lack of government action to prevent it (Indonesias Urban Studies 2009, online). The Situ Gintung dam is located in Cirendeu, Ciputat subdistrict, Tangerang district, Banten Province, Indonesia. After the disaster happened on 27 March 2009, the Indonesian government in collaboration with non-governmental organisations found 99 death bodies and searched thousand people missing (Antara News 2009, online). Regardless the causing factors of the collapse of the dam, the disaster has led decision maker to push government action. Tiernan and Burke (2002, p. 88) argues that problems and issues draw government attention in form of systemic indicators or public attentions. Furthermore, Anderson (1994 cited in Tiernan and Burke (2002, p. 88) claims that the way how to identify problems will determine government response to place in agenda setting. It is evidence that the Situ Gintung disaster resulted public attention and systemic problems. Besides creating human victims, it degrades environment quality and reduces economic and social factors. Such as, the number of houses and areas destroyed by the food from the dam burst (Indonesia Matters 2009, online). This issue enables policy entrepreneurs to open windows of opportunity to create linkage between problems, policies and politics streams. This idea is underlined by Kingdon (1995 cited in Zahariadi 1999, p. 77) who contends that policy windows are opened by inducing problems or by event in political stream. Indeed, the impacts of this disaster attracts policy entrepreneurs to collaborate problems, interest groups, environmentalists, public opinion, executive, legislative members, to define policy solutions. As Kingdon (1995, p. 88 cited in Tiernan and Burke 2002, p. 88) argues that problem is identified, solution is available, and the political climate supports to take action. It is evidence that the disaster happened before the general election 2009, where political actors seek votes from public in several ways in public. In response to the disaster of the Situ Gintung dam, in policy stream, the proposal of emergency response is implemented in trial and error concept. For example, event everything needs to be addressed quickly, government may receive unreliable data of victims about who, what and how, they should be addressed. It will be difficult to provide settlements, foods and other basic needs appropriately. Therefore, decision makers often work according to their own perspectives and assumptions. Kingdon (1995, p. 116 cited in Tiernan and Burke 1999, p.88) explains that policy proposal is floating like the metaphor of the the policy primeval soup. Policy proposal may or may not be directed towards solving substantive problems. In politics stream, policy proposal is revealed by national moods, pressure group campaigns, and administrators (Zahariadi, 1999, p. 77). Administrators accommodate public voice to formulate alternative solutions. For example the impacts from debris floods will increase the vulnerability of the area to many diseases. Therefore, government has to clean up the area by mobilising personnel on the Department of Health and the Department of Public Work. However, the writer believes that the occurrence of environmental, economic and social problems resulted from this disaster, will capture policy makers attention to propose regulation upon these issues. In this point, the concept of policy cycle will appear to finalised policies related to this issue. For example, in addressing social problems on the displaced citizens, policy makers may employ the concept of policy cycle method. Policy makers will start to identify problems, why they have to live close to the river streams; analyse the problems and propose alternative solution; seek policy appropriate instruments which can works; conduct consultation with public and internal government; hold coordination with related agencies, for example the Ministerial of Social affairs and the Ministry of Peoples Welfare; make a decision through legislation or government regulation; implement the decisions and evaluate the implementations. The two case studies above explain that in addressing public issues, policy makers possibly implement the two models of policy formulation although there is only one policy model which is dominate. However, the writer underlines that an issue may lead to another issues which need to be addressed comprehensively. In formulation a public policy, the two models of policy formulation, the policy cycle model and the Kingdons Garbage-can model may be implemented, but only one model will manifested itself. To sum up, there are two models for policy formulation, the policy cycle model and the Kingdons Garbage-can model. Both theories have strength and weaknesses. On one hand, policy cycle is frameworks for policy makers to understand policy formulation as a process rather than just a set of institutions. This model is able to disaggregate phenomena into manageable steps. In every stage, policy makers demonstrate their knowledge to find alternative solution in a logic sequence. Policy cycle serves as guidance for policy makers in formulating policies. This model is a normative suggestion and defending the view that a particular sequence is an appropriate way to approach the policy task. However, this model has weaknesses in term of time completion of a policy cycle. On the other hand, the Kingdons Garbage-can model which is developed from the ideas of Cohen, March and Olsen, provide critiques to the rational decision-making model (Hill 2009, p. 156). There are three streams in the agenda setting and alternative generation, problem stream, policies stream and politics stream. The three streams may result policy independently, otherwise in some critical moment there is multiple-streams. By coupling the three streams the issues will capture more policy makers attention to make a public policy. This model considers that policy organisational is in chaotic, complex and fluid as a result of uncertain and competing policy preference. Therefore, policy-making sometimes is irrational. From the case studies above, although it needs further research, it is argued that in formulation public policy, policy makers may follow the policy cycle method and the Kingdons Garbage-can model, but there is only one model which dominate in the process.

Prescription Obesity Drugs Essay -- Pharmaceuticals

1. Has FDA provided ‘sufficient guidance’ to guide development and registration of prescription diet medications? If you agree, provide examples of what you consider ‘sufficient advice’ (including date of publication). I believe the FDA does provide sufficient guidance on the development and registration of prescription diet medications. In 2007, FDA issued draft guidance that clearly defines their expectations to judge effectiveness (weight reduction and maintenance of weight loss after 1 year’s treatment). It also indicates an effective product should provide improvements in blood pressure, lipids, and glycaemia therefore changes in common weight-related comorbidities need factored into clinical trial to assess efficacy. FDA also states it expects to see drug-mediated weight reduction demonstrated to result from a loss of body fat verified through advance screening tools. From a safety perspective, the FDA states the drug should not adversely affect cardiovascular function particularly highlighting cardiac valvulopathy. 2. Has FDA’s grounds for rejecting the NDAs of prescription diet pills in the last 10 years been based on safety/efficacy concerns? In 2010 alone, three drugs reviewed by the Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee (EMDAC) have failed to gain approval. EMDAC felt each drug (naltrexone/bupriopion, lorcaserin and phentermine/topiratate) had unacceptable safety issues (particularly cardiovascular risk profiles). The committee also concluded that lorcaserin did not provide enough convincing evidence of efficacy and safety to gain approval. EMDAC cite lack of diversity in the phase 3 trial population might result in efficacy of the drug being overstated while potential safety risks understated. Whi... ... FDA. (2010). FDA Briefing Document: NDA 22529 Lorqess (lorcaserin hydrochloride) Tablets, 10 mg. Sponsor: Arena Pharmaceuticals Advisory Committee. Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/downloads/advisorycommittees/committeesmeetingmaterials/drugs/endocrinlogicalandmetabolicdrugsadvisorycommittee/ucm225631.pdf FDA. (2007). Guidance for Industry. Developing Products for Weight Management. Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Drugs/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/Guidances/ucm071612.pdf FDA. (2011).Predictive Safety Testing Consortium (PSTC). Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/PartnershipsCollaborations/PublicPrivatePartnershipProgram/ucm231132.html McCallister, E. (2011). BioCentury, Obesity Reset. Retrieved from http://www.biocentury.com/promotions/obesity/next-generation-of-obesity-drugs-unlikely-to-reach-regulators-before-2014.html Prescription Obesity Drugs Essay -- Pharmaceuticals 1. Has FDA provided ‘sufficient guidance’ to guide development and registration of prescription diet medications? If you agree, provide examples of what you consider ‘sufficient advice’ (including date of publication). I believe the FDA does provide sufficient guidance on the development and registration of prescription diet medications. In 2007, FDA issued draft guidance that clearly defines their expectations to judge effectiveness (weight reduction and maintenance of weight loss after 1 year’s treatment). It also indicates an effective product should provide improvements in blood pressure, lipids, and glycaemia therefore changes in common weight-related comorbidities need factored into clinical trial to assess efficacy. FDA also states it expects to see drug-mediated weight reduction demonstrated to result from a loss of body fat verified through advance screening tools. From a safety perspective, the FDA states the drug should not adversely affect cardiovascular function particularly highlighting cardiac valvulopathy. 2. Has FDA’s grounds for rejecting the NDAs of prescription diet pills in the last 10 years been based on safety/efficacy concerns? In 2010 alone, three drugs reviewed by the Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee (EMDAC) have failed to gain approval. EMDAC felt each drug (naltrexone/bupriopion, lorcaserin and phentermine/topiratate) had unacceptable safety issues (particularly cardiovascular risk profiles). The committee also concluded that lorcaserin did not provide enough convincing evidence of efficacy and safety to gain approval. EMDAC cite lack of diversity in the phase 3 trial population might result in efficacy of the drug being overstated while potential safety risks understated. Whi... ... FDA. (2010). FDA Briefing Document: NDA 22529 Lorqess (lorcaserin hydrochloride) Tablets, 10 mg. Sponsor: Arena Pharmaceuticals Advisory Committee. Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/downloads/advisorycommittees/committeesmeetingmaterials/drugs/endocrinlogicalandmetabolicdrugsadvisorycommittee/ucm225631.pdf FDA. (2007). Guidance for Industry. Developing Products for Weight Management. Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Drugs/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/Guidances/ucm071612.pdf FDA. (2011).Predictive Safety Testing Consortium (PSTC). Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/PartnershipsCollaborations/PublicPrivatePartnershipProgram/ucm231132.html McCallister, E. (2011). BioCentury, Obesity Reset. Retrieved from http://www.biocentury.com/promotions/obesity/next-generation-of-obesity-drugs-unlikely-to-reach-regulators-before-2014.html

Department of Care and Professional Studies Edexcel Level 3 for Children and Young People’s Workforce Unit 13 Promoting Children’s Learning and Development in the Early Years Assignment Task 1 Direct Observation

Department of Care and Professional Studies Edexcel Level 3 for Children and Young People’s Workforce Unit 13 Promoting Children’s Learning and Development in the Early Years Assignment Task 1 Direct Observation and Professional discussion Assessment Criteria (Unit 13) 1. 3explain how the documented outcomes are assessed and recorded 2. 2engage effectively with children to encourage the child’s participation and involvement in planning their own learning and development activities. 3. 2prepare, set out and support activities and experiences that encourages learning and development in each area of the relevant early years framework 4. work alongside children, engaging with them in order to support their learning and development 4. 3 use language that is accurate and appropriate in order to support and extend children’s learning when undertaking activities While on work experience you will be visited by your tutor/teacher who will observe your practice to de termine your competency. Your tutor will observe you and record your performance and where it meets the criteria listed above it will be recorded on the ‘Direct Observation’ pages in your Professional Practice Log. All observed criteria will be credited to you. In some cases where a criteria has not been full demonstrated through observation, the visiting teacher will ask you an oral question or hold a professional discussion with you to enable you to fully meet that criteria. This discussion will also be recorded in your Professional Practice Log but on the ‘Professional Discussion’ page and where competency is confirmed you will credited with the criteria, Task 2 – Underpinning Knowledge Evidence Assessment criteria (Unit 13) 1. explain each area of the areas of learning and development and how these are interdependent Assessment criteria (Unit 12) 1. 1explain the legal status and principles of the relevant early years framework/s, and how national and local guidance materials are used in settings Scenario You have been asked to prepare an information pack for the new students who will be starting your setting next term. You should provide guidance which explains the follo wing : a)The purpose and legal status of the early years frameworks and how it relates to achievement of the Every Child Matters Outcomes (Unit 12 – criteria 1. ) (Unit 13 – criteria 1. 2) b) Provide explanations of each area of learning and development identifying their interdependency. Internally verified _______________________________ Date ______________ Task 3 Promoting Children’s Learning and Development This task links to your practical placement. The play and learning activities that you carry out while in each of your placements will be used to meet the assessment criteria for this task Assessment criteria (Unit 13) 2. use different sources to plan work for individual child or group of children 2. 2support the planning cycle for children’s learning and development 3. 1explain how practitioners promote children’s learning within the relevant early years framework. 4. 2explain the importance of engaging with a child to support sustained shar ed thinking 5. 1 reflect on your own practice in supporting learning and development of children in their early years. 5. 2 demonstrate how to use reflection to make changes in own practice In each of your three placements, following consultation with your supervisor, you will plan, provide and evaluate five learning activities/experiences that promote children’s learning and development. For each activity you must show the flowing:- ?your planning (criteria 2. 1;) ?evaluation of the child/children’s learning outcome with recommendations for extending the child/children’s learning (criteria 3. 1; 4. 2. ) ? evaluation of your plan with recommendations for improvement and changes to your own practice (criteria 2. 2; 5. 1; 5. 2)

Self Development Assignment

This assignment is designed to help you understand yourself. In this course, you will explore who you are in terms of your personality, skills and values. Further, you will examine how you work and interact with others. In it, you will explore two areas of strength, two areas of weakness, and then you will develop a plan of action focused on one of your strengths and one of your weaknesses. It is expected that this assignment will contribute to your sense of self-awareness and thus help you make wise choices about your future. As part of our in-class activities, we will focus on self discovery. This will allow you to reflect and disclose those aspects of yourself that you feel are most likely to contribute to your abilities as a leader. Further, you will be encouraged to give and receive feedback from others. In addition, you will have the opportunity to delve into your areas for growth. For this assignment you will also reflect on two areas of weakness (or areas that you would like to develop). Understanding your strengths and your developmental needs should help you because a heightened sense of self-awareness should guide you to make career choices that capitalize on your strengths. The first step in this assignment is to identify two areas of strength and two for development. If you are already aware of your strengths and the areas in which you would like to grow, then you simply need to determine whether you are using appropriate terminology to describe them. If you are uncertain of your strengths and areas for improvement, then you will begin the assignment with an exercise in self-reflection. Increasing Self-Awareness Step 1 Once you have identified two strengths and two areas for growth, you should compare your list with the list of competencies in For Your Improvement (on reserve in the library). Step 2 1. Consider how you exemplify the strengths / areas for development. Provide concrete examples of how you demonstrate these strengths / weaknesses in your daily life (at work or at school). 2. Describe how each of the strengths/weaknesses impacts your performance at work and/or how it currently affects your performance at school. If you find that you cannot identify how the strength/weakness helps/hinders your performance, then re-consider why it is a strength or why you would want to improve the skill, or go back to step 1 and identify another area for development. Step 3 1. Select one strength and one area for improvement. 2. Drawing on theory, explain why the strength/developmental need might affect your current performance and/or how it might positively or negatively impact your future career. When considering theory, you will want to find research articles (academic ones) in support of your hypothesis that the strength will be of benefit to your career and that the area for development will negatively affect your performance (or alternatively, why improvement in this area will be necessary for your career). Developmental Plan The next part of the assignment is to develop a plan for improvement. Your plan should be realistic and you should provide a convincing argument for why you believe it will be effective. In order to be persuasive, I recommend that you support your plan with evidence (i.e., research the potential methods that can be used to improve a particular skill and include this evidence in your paper). 1. Develop a plan of action for capitalizing on one of your strengths. a. Develop a plan for how you believe you can capitalize on your area of strength. Use specific behavioural example(s) to indicate how your plan will give you an opportunity to use the competency to advance your career. The plan should be realistic and you should apply what you know about goal setting to ensure that the plan is likely to be motivating (e.g., consider whether your plan has SMART goals). b. You will need to indicate what would constitute career success and how your plan will bring you closer to achieving it. Further, you need to use research to convince the reader that your plan will be effective. 2. Develop a plan for how you believe you can improve one of your areas of weakness. 1. Use specific behavioural example(s) to indicate how your plan will be implemented. The plan should be realistic and you should apply what you know about goal setting to ensure that the plan is likely to be motivating (e.g., consider whether your plan has SMART goals). 2. You will need to indicate what would constitute improvement. You should explain the criteria for achieving proficiency on the competency. In addition, you should provide a specific behavioural example of how you would demonstrate improvement in your own life/career. 3. Research the plan. Look for evidence to support the idea that you can improve the identified skill and that your method is likely to be successful. If your idea has not been tested, then you should provide a theoretical explanation for why it will work. Please use academic theory and research to support your plan.

Connected Activities and its Influence on Firm

Connected Activities and its Influence on Firm The firm has formed partnership with other big companies like Amazon.com in order to improve on its services to consumers. This has enabled them to deliver orders in time to the benefit of Borders. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Connected Activities and its Influence on Firm specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The firm apart from operating bookstore also runs music store and coffee bars, these helps in increasing its overall sales. The firm uses modern computerized system to manage its inventory; this makes it record highest sales as compared to other competitors within the market. Borders have divided its products to serve as small business segments to the satisfaction of their clients. They operate numerous book and music stores within the United States and additionally organize live performance events by artistes and books authors. The coming of the internet enabled multiple works to be performed by providing an e fficient and cheaper means of communication between the stores and the clients (Gataric et al, 2002, pp 387-397). The firm’s superstores engage in sponsoring community functions like story telling occasions as well as group discussions amongst others. Borders also engaged in sponsoring online magazines one of them being Salon which offers customers with opportunity to read variety of books and keep updated with current affairs. The firm launched the use of Borders Universe which provides online inventory data connecting all the retail outlets, this makes it easier for customers to find books from other related retail stores. Borders deliver books and other products to consumers’ doorsteps and operate telephone support twenty four hours a day throughout the week (Gataric et al, 2002, pp 387-397). Customer value The firm’s superstores provide consumers with various selections of music and videos at affordable prices. These selections comprises of music that are r arely found but sought after by the majority, these include jazz and opera type of music. They offer the same trend within their video stores which makes available a number of title movies. The firms’ use of the internet in retailing provides the consumers with easier means of selecting variety of what they require online. This meant that customers are now able to save on time that could have been consumed looking for items in the stores and undergoing all other required services. The merger with Amazon.com enabled Borders to provide customers with unique services that included complete information on store locations and the several events that take place at the in-stores (Feng, et al, 2001, PP 467-503).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Capabilities The firm launched a site that had the capability of handling the largest multimedia database on the internet. It was also the only firm with the largest in-stock of multimedia selection for most of the retailers using the internet, besides they offer ready shipping services for the millions of their products purchased online. Borders.com offers beautiful sites and choices to the consumers, on top of this they are also time conscious in the way they deliver their services. This makes the firm to be one of the most trusted internet brands. In order to build close relationship with consumers and win more of their trust, the firm created private database that serves customers at individual levels taking care of confidentiality (Gataric et al, 2002, pp 387-397). The company needed to improve on its commercial capabilities whereby the consumers will be served in a more organized way. The firm launched internet in-store kiosks which provide customers with easy time when locating the products availability and prices online. The costs of operating the online services seem to be high calling for fu rther strategies. The firm increased the level of their sales through partnership with top leaders in online sales; this has helped in shifting of costs responsibility for internet sales (Gataric et al, 2002, pp 387-397). References Feng, et al.(2001). A New Business Model? The Capital Market and the New Economy. Economy and Society, Vol. 30, No. 4, pp 467-503. Gataric, I., Gilbert, J., Green, J., Kennedy, I. Lewallen, W., and Sumita, Y. (2002). Borders: Responding to Change. International Directory of Company Histories Vol. 43, pp 387-397.

The Meaning of Other in Sociology

The Meaning of Other in Sociology In classical sociology, other is a concept in the study of social life through which we define relationships. We encounter two distinct types of others in relation to ourselves. Significant Other A â€Å"significant other† is someone about whom we have some degree of specific knowledge and thus we pay attention to what we perceive to be his or her personal thoughts, feelings or expectations. In this case, significant does not mean that the person is important, and it doesnt refer to the common parlance of a romantic relationship. Archie O. Haller, Edward L. Fink, and Joseph Woelfel of the University of Wisconsin performed the first scientific research and measurements of the influence of significant others on individuals. Haller, Fink, and Woelfel surveyed 100 adolescents in Wisconsin and measured their educational and occupational aspirations while also identifying the group of other individuals who interacted with the students and were mentors for them. Then they measured the impact of the significant others and their expectations for the teens educational possibilities. The results found that the expectations of the significant had the single most powerful influence on the students own aspirations. Generalized Other The second type of other is the â€Å"generalized other,† which we experience primarily as an abstract social status and the role that goes with it. It was developed by George Herbert Mead as a core concept in his discussion of the social genesis of the self. According to Mead, the self lives in an individuals ability to account for himself as a social being. This also requires a person to account for the role of the other as well as how his or her actions could affect a group. The generalized other represents the collection of roles and attitudes that people use as a reference to figure out how to behave in any particular situation. According to Mead: Selves develop in social contexts as people learn to take the roles of their consociates such that they can with a fair degree of accuracy predict how one set of actions is likely to generate fairly predictable responses. People develop these capacities in the process of interacting with one another, sharing meaningful symbols, and developing and using language to create, refine, and assign meanings to social objects (including themselves). For people to engage in complex and intricate social processes, they have to develop a sense of expectationsthe rules, roles, norms, and understanding that make responses predictable and understandable. When you learn these rules as distinct from others, the aggregate comprises a generalized other. Examples of the Other A significant other: We might know that the corner grocery store clerk likes children or does not like it when people ask to use the restroom. As an â€Å"other,† this person is significant in that we pay attention not only to what grocers are generally like, but also what we know about this particular grocer. A generalized other: When we enter a grocery store without any knowledge of the grocer, our expectations are based only on knowledge of grocers and customers in general and what is usually supposed to take place when they interact. Thus when we interact with this grocer, our only basis for knowledge is the generalized other.

Business Model Canvas Analysis Of Travelport L ote - Samples

Travelport L ote is an organization which is simple in operations and provides a travel platform for the corporate travellers. This organization mainly empowers the travel managers so that they can drive the change and further achieve a leap in the program efficiencies. The app does not only provide an online booking platform it further powers the workflow and the features related to a corporate travel. The app provides customised deals for the various levels of officials which can suit their specific needs. Globalisation has caused many expansions in the businesses of various organizations. This has led to the establishment of offices of the organizations in various countries (Ltd, 2018). These changes in the business environment further calls for a lot of travel for the business officials. The app provides travel packages to the officials of various levels according to the costs that are permitted by their organizations. The business travels have b e an important of the business op erations in the modern economic environment. The app helps the business executives in planning their business trips by keeping a control on the costs incurred. The pany offers an intuitive and simple platform which is designed for the new working process of the organizations in the modern environment (Joyce & Paquin, 2016).  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The content creators or the users who write reviews of the hotels are important for the panu.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The hotels, restaurants are major partners of the business activities of Travelport (Dudin et al.,   2015).  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The travel   management panies related to corporate travelers.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The travel experts who provide tips to the customers.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The travel agencies who wish to expand their business related activities.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Enhancing the positive effects of indirect networks by the fresh reviews provided by travelers.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Enhancing the experience of the customers.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Providing value to the platform with the help of the technological innovation (Toro-Jarrà ­n, Ponce-Jaramillo & Gà ¼emes-Castorena, 2016).  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Improving the app and increasing the content.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Developing the partners and acquiring platforms.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Enhancing the value proposition.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Increasing the visibility of the app in various search engines.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Observing the steps taken by the other organizations.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     The vision of the pany is to deliver the experience that can redefine travel related to corporate needs.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The pany is driven by the passion to provide best services to the corporate customers.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The value provided to the travelers is related to the reduction of costs related to corporate travel (Vargas, Calva & Camacho 2015).  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The value proposition of the pany to the hotels and other organizations is related to getting listed for corporate travel options.     ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The hotels enlisted in the app have the opportunity to increase their revenue.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The good reviews provided by the corporate travelers improves their reputation.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The hotels can use the app for advertising purposes (Aversa et al., 2015).  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The ability to provide special deals with the help of the app.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Increasing the trust of the corporate travelers.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The genuine reviews by travelers in the app helps in creating loyal customers.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The incentive related policies of the app for the hotels who are their partners.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     The app serves both the sides, the travelers and the hotels.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The travelers are segmented based on their levels in the organization.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The supply side of customers are segment based on the various levels of hotels (Plenter et al., 2017).  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The ratings provided by the travelers are one of the major resources of the app.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The list of the partner hotels.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The major resources of an app or webpage are the customer experience reviews.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The webpages of the pany.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The app of the organization.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The sales team of the organization.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The advertisements in the search engines.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The expenses related to operating of the app.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The costs related to selling of the services and promotional activities of the app.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The costs related to the development of the app.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The costs related to acquisition of the partners of the app.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     The first major revenue stream of the app is related to the profits gained from the partner hotels.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The advertising revenue is related to the promotions of the various hotels in the app.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The revenues earned from the subscriptions of the corporate travelers. The key relationships between the nine building blocks of business lie in the ways by which the various areas of the pany support each other. The key activities of the pany support the customer relationships that are developed by Travelport L ote. The promotional activities of the pany help in acquiring customers for Travelport L ote. The resources that are possessed by the pany will also help in improving its goodwill reputation in the market. This will further assist in the expansion related operations of the app. The pany can increase its customer base by providing enhanced services to the present customers (Fritscher & Pigneur, 2014). The customer segments of the pany are related to the revenue streams and the ways by which it operates in the market. The revenues of the app are generated from the partnerships of the various hotels and restaurants and the corporate travellers who book packages in with the help of the Travelport app. The value proposition of the app is related to t he services provided to the customers and packages designed for the corporate travellers. The costs related to various operations of the pany includes the maintenance of the app. These costs are related to the amount of profits that are earned by the app (Gonà §alves & da Silva, 2017). The major factors behind the success of Travelport L ote are the personalized services provided by the app to the various levels of business professionals. The trust that the customers or the travellers have on the pany is a key to the success of the organization in the industry. The ease and outlook of the website of Travelport helps in attracting corporate travellers towards the app. The app provides services which are personalized for the various levels of business professionals. The executives are able to control the costs related to their business trips. The reason behind this offer is the increase of globalization and global offices in the various countries. The costs related to the trips are also scrutinized by the organizations and the Travelport app helps in maintaining the costs (Fritscher & Pigneur, 2015). The flexibility related to various modes of payment provided to the business professionals is another reason related to the success of the pany. The app also aims to man age the quality of the various services that are provided to the corporate travellers. The attractive offers and discounts provided by the app on the packages designed for the business executives also contribute to the success of the pany within a short span of time. The app also provides solutions to the travellers to reduce the travel cost related to business operations. The safety measures related to business operations are also taken by the app (Ghezzi et al., 2015). The major issue that can be faced by Travelport in the market is related to trust that needs to be gained from the customers who are not used internet based services. The security related issues that can occur in the online transactions can be a major issue for the app while providing services to the corporate travellers. The officials belonging to the senior   management levels are dependent on the other employees of the pany or the travel desk for their bookings related to corporate travel. They are however less likely to use to the app to book their travel packages. The quality of services that are required to be provided to the corporate travellers need to be maintained as they have a certain level of travel related preferences. The pany will be required to take special care about the packages that they provide to these corporate travellers (Zolnowski & Bà ¶hmann, 2014). The app is quite new to the market and they need to give a considerable amount of time to establish their operations in the industry, this can be an issue related to the revenues of the pany. The changes that can made in the business model includes, the increase in the number of partners or channel of the pany. Travelport can make alliances with the travel desks of the business organizations so that can direct access to the travel related needs of the executives of the different levels. The app needs to give more importance on the feedback that is gained from the travellers and the reviews that they provide. The reviews can act as major resource of the organization and help in acquiring customers. The pany needs to increase its promotional and advertising related activities so that they can create the awareness of their brand in the minds of the consumers. The revenue streams of the app can be increased with the increase in the number of partners. The customer relationships can be maintained by the app by keeping contact with the customers and maintained their records. This will help Travelport L ote in getting knowledge about their preferences and designing their service s accordingly. Aversa, P., Haefliger, S., Rossi, A., & Baden-Fuller, C. (2015). From business model to business modelling: Modularity and manipulation. In  Business models and modelling  (pp. 151-185). Emerald Group Publishing Limited. Dudin, M., Kucuri, G., Fedorova, I., Dzusova, S., & Namitulina, A. (2015). The innovative business model canvas in the system of effective budgeting. Fritscher, B., & Pigneur, Y. (2014, July). Visualizing business model evolution with the business model canvas: Concept and tool. In  Business Informatics (CBI), 2014 IEEE 16th Conference on  (Vol. 1, pp. 151-158). IEEE. Fritscher, B., & Pigneur, Y. (2015, July). Extending the Business Model Canvas: A Dynamic Perspective. In  Proc. International Symposium on Business Modeling and Software Design  (Vol. 5, pp. 86-96). Ghezzi, A., Cavallaro, A., Rangone, A., & Balocco, R. (2015, April). A parative Study on the Impact of Business Model Design & Lean Startup Approach versus Traditional Business Plan on Mobile Startups Performance. In  ICEIS (3)  (pp. 196-203). Gonà §alves, R. F., & da Silva, M. T. (2017, March). System Thinking and Business Model Canvas for Collaborative Business Models Design. In  Advances in Production   Management Systems. Initiatives for a Sustainable World: IFIP WG 5.7 International Conference, APMS 2016, Iguassu Falls, Brazil, September 3-7, 2016, Revised Selected Papers(Vol. 488, p. 461). Springer.   Joyce, A., & Paquin, R. L. (2016). The triple layered business model canvas: A tool to design more sustainable business models.  Journal of Cleaner Production,  135, 1474-1486. Ltd, L. (2018).   Corporate Travel Management - L ote.  L ote . Retrieved 24 March 2018, from https://www.l ote /   Plenter, F., Fielt, E., Hoffen, M., Chasin, F., & Rosemann, M. (2017). Repainting the business model canvas for peer-to-peer sharing and collaborative consumption.   Toro-Jarrà ­n, M. A., Ponce-Jaramillo, I. E., & Gà ¼emes-Castorena, D. (2016). Methodology for the of building process integration of Business Model Canvas and Technological Roadmap.  Technological Forecasting and Social Change,  110, 213-225. Vargas, I. S., Calva, A. L. G., & Camacho, J. H. (2015). Business model canvas.  Ciencia Huasteca Boletà ­n Cientà ­fico de la Escuela Superior de Huejutla,  3(5). Zolnowski, A., & Bà ¶hmann, T. (2014). Formative evaluation of business model representations-The service business model canvas.  

Secularizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Secularizations - Essay Example The transition from pre-scientific to scientific must have been a supernatural one since the two are very different concept wise. Metaphysical stage, which is the centre stage, must have been inevitable. It acts as the bridge between religion and modernity. Through it, a communal stage where religion and science overlaps is clear hence bringing in the social part of both religion and science. Religion, which was a soft concept socialize with the hard known scientific concepts bringing in the concept of secularization. Religion becomes secular to adopt some scientific concepts while science becomes softer through the interaction. This makes religion to transition from being pre scientific to scientific hence making it fit in the modern world where science thrives. Science on the other hand creates room for the modernized religion hence making the two adopt secularization. It is in the transition therefore where the overlap between religion and science can be evident since the two have to adapt to each

Where does the law apply and the legal position in different Term Paper

Where does the law apply and the legal position in different organizations - Term Paper Example Property law deals with acquisition, ownership and disposal of both movable and immovable property. Private law is a branch of the legal system which regulations relationships and duties that individuals owe to each other (Weinrib, 1995). Some of the branches of private law include commercial law that deals with business contracts and other legally binding contracts between individuals. Tort law is another branch of private law that deals with civil wrongs which are independent of contracts such as negligence and defamation committed to other individuals. Family law is another aspect of private law that covers domestic relations like marriage, adoption and divorce (Weinrib, 1995). Labor law is another branch of private law that is interested in solving employment disputes such as collective bargaining agreement issues, dismissals and redundancy. Private law also includes property law that deals with the acquisition and disposal of property such as real estate property and the rights of individuals to the individuals (Weinrib, 1995). Inheritance and succession law deals with inheri tance of property and wills. Private international law is also part of this branch of the legal system and deals with laws governing nationality, immigration, laws on aliens and nationality laws. Private international law is mainly covered by the international treaties that govern the rights of aliens and asylum seekers in other countries (Weinrib, 1995). The person bring the case under private law is known as the claimant while the person being sued is the defendant (Cooke, 2011). Tort Law is the main branch of private law. Tort is a civil wrong, breach of trust or equitable obligation, and it is independent of contract. The remedies for torts are a common law action for unliquidated damages. Torts arise when one person owes duties to another due to operation of law. The main objectives of Tort law are to restore rights of individual

External and Internal Environmental Analysis - Apple Research Paper

External and Internal Environmental Analysis - Apple - Research Paper Example The current business environment is volatile and changing. In order to survive and thrive in this competitive environment, firms will have to monitor and analyze the internal and external environment conditions before taking any business decision. In the present research paper, an external and internal environment analysis of Apple has been done. EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT External environment can be described as the factors, entities, conditions and events surrounding a firm, which influence its choices and activities. In a multinational organization, external environment analysis is essential. Apple is a global organization operating worldwide. Thus, external factors surrounding the parent company and the subsidiaries and branches will have an effect on the overall decision making process. An external environment is also known as an operating environment. Apple Corporation falls in the consumer electronics sector and is involved in designing and manufacturing of computer hardware, softwa re and other computer related operations. The major external factors which influence the decision making process and the computer industry are: 1. Rising price competition 2. Rapid changes in technology 3. Changing consumer preference Slow market growth and growing competition from local brands are the major reason for the rise in price wars (Knox, 2004). The majority of emerging countries have witnessed a host of local brands, selling brands and variants akin to iPhones and smart phones. They are sold at low prices, and there is an increasing pressure among bigger brands to decrease their price. In case of developed countries, price competition arises because of availability of a large number of variants from the same brand. Thus, competitors such as Samsung, IBM, HP, etc. launch more versions in developed counties, thereby intensifying competition. Rapid changes in technology have decreased the shelf life of electronic goods. More and more companies are now able to replicate the a vailable technologies. By adding a few features in those technologies, these brands gain a competitive advantage. Apple faces major competition in personal computers and mobile laptops. Apart from that, a slow market and product similarities among most of its product categories have also resulted in an increased competition. Changing consumer preferences is another external operating condition, which impacts the decision making process of Apple. Consumers have become more conscious as a result of the recent economic downturn. As a result, the sale of high-end smart phones and laptops has decreased, especially in emerging nations. Considering that emerging nations are the highest growth contributors for companies such as Apple, monitoring and establishing proper strategies will be crucial for a sustainable future growth. INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT Innovation and creativity have always been the internal strengths for Apple (Rufat-Latre, Muller, & Jones, 2010). Designing and developing most distinctive products and capturing a market share on the basis of innovation has made Apple one of the most renowned computer software companies of the world. However, with the advancement of technology and modern capabilities, it is not taking much time for other brands to imitate Apple’s design and launch in the market with added features. Apart from that, it is very difficult to patent each and every design which Apple produces. Technology and human resource can be described as the most important and crucial

Money Laundering Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Money Laundering - Term Paper Example disposition, movement, rights with respect to, or ownership of property, knowing that such property is derived from serious crime. In simpler words, Hopton (1) defines money laundering as that process in which the criminals conceal the origins of their possessions and the ownership of their proceedings of criminal activities. Their whole objective behind doing so is to maintain control over their illegal possessions (income, wealth or property) by covering them unlawfully. Hence, we can understand money laundering as a process by which dirty money is shown as clean money. The money needs not to be intangible form. Instead, modern day money laundering includes all such transactions of relationships that involve any kind of tangible or intangible wealth or possession that has been gained through criminal activities. Literature Review Alldridge (437-463) studied the imperatives that the money laundering panic of 1990s generated with the arrival of globalization. He states in his researc h that, â€Å"If there is to be an attempt legally to regulate laundering, it (laundering) must be a relatively serious offence, and consequently the anticipated harm must be something other than complicity†, which means that money laundering should be considered as a serious threat at an international level thus uniting all nations to make combined efforts to stop it. This will help homogenize the criminal justice system worldwide. Shneider and Windischbauer (387-404) have quantified and estimated the volume of money laundering activities in their research. According to them, â€Å"The overall turnover in organized crime for example had a value of 800 billion USD in 2001 and increased to 1.700 billion USD in 2007.† These statistics show how great the turnover of money laundering in the modern world is. Article no. 22 of Pursuant to the Law on prevention of money laundering (Ministry of Finance) states how the law for the prevention of money laundering is to be impleme nted. According to it, the Law on Prevention of Money Laundering is to be implemented to make sure that money laundering does not take place at all. Article 2 of the Federal Act on Combating Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing in the Financial Sector, also called as Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA), defines the financial intermediaries that are at vulnerable end in money laundering business (Federal Authorities of the Swiss Confederation). These include banks, fund managers, investment companies, insurance institutions, security dealers, casinos, and persons who carry out credit transactions and provide their services for payment transactions. Stages of Money Laundering There are three stages of money laundering. Placement The first stage of the washing cycle of money laundering is placement. Being a cash-intensive business, large cash is generated from illegal activities which is then placed in the economic structure or is smuggled out of the country, so that the location of a cquisition of that cash can be covered (Levy 2-5). In this way, the authorities cannot figure out the location. The cash acquired is also converted into other forms like postal orders. Layering The first step in the layering phase is the concealment of the source of ownership of funds by way of creating such complicated layers of transactions that aim at impersonating the audit trail by providing

Evaluate Bribery in the context of International Strategic Marketing Essay - 1

Evaluate Bribery in the context of International Strategic Marketing - Essay Example in -- in other words, to "do as the Romans do." When a corporate official is faced with real situations abroad, this advice can give rise to conflicts and ambiguity, when actual situations require responses which are incompatible with the ethical norms in the home country. Payment of a tip to a government official or employee in the home country intended to facilitate licensing can be considered bribery, and therefore subject to legal consequences, at home; however, in a foreign country it may be a standard operating procedure that can facilitate and expedite action. The cost of refusing to comform to local practice can be result in significant losses which are disproportionate in relation to the small amount of "bribe" money. The international marketer can face a difficult dilemma when he has to respond to situations where there is no local law, where local practices forgive a certain behavior, or the companywilling to â€Å" do what is necessary† is favored over the company that refuses to engage in practices that are not ethical. The issue of bribery and corruption is not extensively covered in international or global marketing textbooks. The subject is often located under the rubric of legal environment (subtopic: ethics and regulations); cultural environment, (as in Hill 2005; Verna and Sarathy 1993). Or it is discussed as part of international promotions (Verna and Sarathy). For the most part the subject presents the the relevant US statute (FCPA) and analyzes its features and implications for the business person and marketer. A more comprehensive treatment, including its history and philosophical basis is found in textbooks dealing with the business environment (such as Baron 1997) and legal environment (such as Jennings 1997). This study will deal with the issue of bribery from the Western viewpoint, particularly that of the United States, being the first country to enact a law prohibiting its practice by its companies abroad. The Foreign Corrupt

External and Internal Environmental Analysis - Apple Research Paper

External and Internal Environmental Analysis - Apple - Research Paper Example The current business environment is volatile and changing. In order to survive and thrive in this competitive environment, firms will have to monitor and analyze the internal and external environment conditions before taking any business decision. In the present research paper, an external and internal environment analysis of Apple has been done. EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT External environment can be described as the factors, entities, conditions and events surrounding a firm, which influence its choices and activities. In a multinational organization, external environment analysis is essential. Apple is a global organization operating worldwide. Thus, external factors surrounding the parent company and the subsidiaries and branches will have an effect on the overall decision making process. An external environment is also known as an operating environment. Apple Corporation falls in the consumer electronics sector and is involved in designing and manufacturing of computer hardware, softwa re and other computer related operations. The major external factors which influence the decision making process and the computer industry are: 1. Rising price competition 2. Rapid changes in technology 3. Changing consumer preference Slow market growth and growing competition from local brands are the major reason for the rise in price wars (Knox, 2004). The majority of emerging countries have witnessed a host of local brands, selling brands and variants akin to iPhones and smart phones. They are sold at low prices, and there is an increasing pressure among bigger brands to decrease their price. In case of developed countries, price competition arises because of availability of a large number of variants from the same brand. Thus, competitors such as Samsung, IBM, HP, etc. launch more versions in developed counties, thereby intensifying competition. Rapid changes in technology have decreased the shelf life of electronic goods. More and more companies are now able to replicate the a vailable technologies. By adding a few features in those technologies, these brands gain a competitive advantage. Apple faces major competition in personal computers and mobile laptops. Apart from that, a slow market and product similarities among most of its product categories have also resulted in an increased competition. Changing consumer preferences is another external operating condition, which impacts the decision making process of Apple. Consumers have become more conscious as a result of the recent economic downturn. As a result, the sale of high-end smart phones and laptops has decreased, especially in emerging nations. Considering that emerging nations are the highest growth contributors for companies such as Apple, monitoring and establishing proper strategies will be crucial for a sustainable future growth. INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT Innovation and creativity have always been the internal strengths for Apple (Rufat-Latre, Muller, & Jones, 2010). Designing and developing most distinctive products and capturing a market share on the basis of innovation has made Apple one of the most renowned computer software companies of the world. However, with the advancement of technology and modern capabilities, it is not taking much time for other brands to imitate Apple’s design and launch in the market with added features. Apart from that, it is very difficult to patent each and every design which Apple produces. Technology and human resource can be described as the most important and crucial

Evaluate Bribery in the context of International Strategic Marketing Essay - 1

Evaluate Bribery in the context of International Strategic Marketing - Essay Example in -- in other words, to "do as the Romans do." When a corporate official is faced with real situations abroad, this advice can give rise to conflicts and ambiguity, when actual situations require responses which are incompatible with the ethical norms in the home country. Payment of a tip to a government official or employee in the home country intended to facilitate licensing can be considered bribery, and therefore subject to legal consequences, at home; however, in a foreign country it may be a standard operating procedure that can facilitate and expedite action. The cost of refusing to comform to local practice can be result in significant losses which are disproportionate in relation to the small amount of "bribe" money. The international marketer can face a difficult dilemma when he has to respond to situations where there is no local law, where local practices forgive a certain behavior, or the companywilling to â€Å" do what is necessary† is favored over the company that refuses to engage in practices that are not ethical. The issue of bribery and corruption is not extensively covered in international or global marketing textbooks. The subject is often located under the rubric of legal environment (subtopic: ethics and regulations); cultural environment, (as in Hill 2005; Verna and Sarathy 1993). Or it is discussed as part of international promotions (Verna and Sarathy). For the most part the subject presents the the relevant US statute (FCPA) and analyzes its features and implications for the business person and marketer. A more comprehensive treatment, including its history and philosophical basis is found in textbooks dealing with the business environment (such as Baron 1997) and legal environment (such as Jennings 1997). This study will deal with the issue of bribery from the Western viewpoint, particularly that of the United States, being the first country to enact a law prohibiting its practice by its companies abroad. The Foreign Corrupt

Short History on Cyber Space Essay Example for Free

Short History on Cyber Space Essay The Internet has been designed as a ‘pool of endless information’ for anyone who has access. With its introduction in the mid 1990’s, it has vastly changed the way we do business, obtain all kinds of data and the way we communicate in the world today. With its sheer potential, we have created the most powerful tool of our modern day technology. In a series of memos that were first written in 1962, by an MIT expert of the name of J. C.R Licklider, he had envisioned a type of ‘network’ in which a set of computers were globally interconnected in sharing information and anyone could access data from anyone of these terminals (Leiner, Cerf, Kahn Clark, 1962-1974). The Internet society believe that the Internet should be used by everyone freely, meaning that the number one objective is to promote the development, security and stability of the World Wide Web. Malicious attacks such as viruses, spams, spyware and other viscous attacks on hardware and software have become well known wide spread through the web. These attacks often result in irreparable damage and abuse the very freedom the Internet principles were based on (Internet security, 2012). Many aspects of our lives include the electronic transferring of data through some means of electronic devices such as cell phones, computers and other mobile devices such as emails and text messaging. Everything from traffic signals, car technology and airport/airplane navigation has been linked to the usage of transferring vital information via the web and through other communication channels. Government data such as birth records, social security documentation and tax records also need to be protect ed. This information is very confidential and establishes the identity of millions of people in the world today. What exactly is cyber security? In its broadest definition, it is the protection of information and computer systems in we rely on, whether at work or at school. Information is crucial and it may not be altered incorrectly. It should only be shared with the appropriate users and intentional parties. There are, of course, many different levels of security. The information must only be accessible to those who need it and have been intended to see it, for example, medical records. They should have a different level of security and only be made available to those who need this information such as the appropriate doctors, hospitals, insurance companies and other medical staff. These records need to be well protected to prevent anyone from making unauthorized changes resulting in harmful activities. Cyber security is becoming increasingly more important, because every day, new attack methods are being launched and thousands of web pages are discovered continuously in the involvement of illegal data breaches. Several examples of types of ‘electronic infections’ include ‘Denial-of-Service’, which includes the actual shut-down of many legitimate websites and denies access to its existing user base, rendering many users unable to access important information. Another type of malicious attacks is ‘Malworms’ or ‘Trojan Horses’; these are viruses spread by email and instant messaging, sometimes unaware by the user. They may be downloaded simply by visiting the wrong websites. ‘Botnets or Zombies’ use several computers to launch the attack and steal information across a spread of terminals, copying the ‘evil software’ from one device to the next. Social network attacks are also on the rise and sometimes a link may be posted to steal personal information or download a virus hidden by the attacker. User’s inherent trust in posting vital information for their friends is what causes these social networks to be prime targets for the attackers (Internet security, 2012). Today, 70% of large companies rank viruses and hacking ahead of fraud and physical break-ins as their greatest threat. The importance of protecting vital electronic data is more important today than it has ever been. Whether it is the stealing of information, the planting of malicious malware or simply the intention to ‘search and destroy’, hackers have become the nation’s number one threat in creating immense damage to businesses of all sizes and can severely impact a company’s integrity or capability to perform at its peak potential. IT security has now been placed very high on the risk management agenda of any major corporation (â€Å"Why cyber security, 2010). There are several examples of attacks on computers to obtain private information. One of many examples involves a 20 year old kid, by the name of Christopher Maxwell who created a 50,000 computer zombie network that caused approximately $135,000 in damage by infecting a Seattle hospital and various military locations. The attack shut down not only the finance departments, but also attacked computers in the hospital’s intensive care unit, seriously compromising many patients welfare (OBrien, 2007). With the high demands of IT versatility, companies are more and more in need of more flexible hardware and software to cater to the ever growing demands of data transfer and information storage capabilities. The technology is becoming more advanced and creates endless opportunities for today’s businesses however this also creates more opportunity for cyber criminals to launch attacks and become more proficient in succeeding with new ‘gateways’ to cause great harm or steal valuable data. A new recent trend in stealing data is when traveling employees use these so called ‘hot-spots’ to obtain internet access. Clever hijackers have found ways to throw up ‘splash pages’. These splash pages track user data, credit card details used to pay for the wireless service and other information that may be used to harm the employee and/or the company the person works for. This also applies to home networks. Usually, individuals do not invest into the same type of security that companies may do, making these home networks viable for attacks. This is very crucial, because the home computer can become infected with vicious malware and introduced into the workplace or vital information can be stolen that is confidential to the company (â€Å"Why cyber security, 2010). It is now known that the Secret service maintains its own Electronic Crimes Task Force (ECTFs), which focus on identifying and locating cyber criminals involved in all types of criminal activity such as bank fraud, sensitive data breaches and other cyber related issues. The DHS (Department of Homeland Security) prevented the potential losses of nearly $1.5 Billion through cyber crime and brought charges against 72 individual cyber criminals for their direct or indirect participation of wide-spreading the use of children pornography (â€Å"Combat cyber crime,n.d.). In most recent news, President Obama is considering issuing an executive order that would require the DHS to prepare a set of guidelines and rules in the combat against cyber criminal activity. In April of 2012 (this year) the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) was introduced into the House of Representatives, but failed to pass the Senate due to privacy issues, shows how serious Americans are on creating a plan of attack. Even though CISPA was not passed, the executive order that would be issued would not surpass the privacy issues that were the reason for CISPA not passing the Senate’s approval. The reason the CISPA bill did not pass is that several privacy advocacy groups oppsed the bill strongly because it would have allowed private companies to sell or exchange user data with the federal government for critical cyber security information (Koebler, 2012). Cyber security is the processes and practices designed to protect programs, networks and computers (and other devices) from malicious attacks and unsupervised access. It represents the body of technologies to understand and fight back in the event of unlawful damage and unnecessary harm (cybersecurity, 2010). The conclusion is to do our best to try and prevent as much cyber criminal activity as possible. There a few things that companies and individuals can do. Stop. Think. Connect. These basic rules and guidelines have been measured by the industry and several help factors have been evaluated. The first of many basic rules is to keep your firewall and security software (ani-virus programs) up-to-date. Computer viruses and hackers are like any other common flu virus, they evolve and become stronger with each step in their evolutionary path. Constantly changing your passwords on your devices/software is also recommended. On average (at a minimum) these passwords should be changed at least once every three months. The second recommendation is to shop online with the utmost care. Make sure you are on a HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) website when submitting personal information such as credit card numbers and bank account records or transactions. Another is laptop security. If a laptop is stolen, make sure you have the proper software installed. There is tracking software available to pinpoint where you laptop is and there is also software available that can remotely access your computer’s files, erase them on the stolen device, and then place them in a secure data center for recovery. Another important tip is to avoid spam and scams. Questions every email of which the origin you do not know or trust, because simply by opening the wrong email can one access a virus or other harmful software. Social networking has become huge and it is also a great tool to obtain and research valuable information. It is highly recommended that not all data be put out there for one to see. This information is sometimes easily accessible to the wrong individuals. Also, don’t just open any attachments or click on any suspicious links. Download with caution, because the Internet has a lot of harmful software out there that can cause serious damage to either your hardware or data files (and software). References cybersecurity. (2010, December). Retrieved from http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/cybersecurity Combat cyber crime. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.dhs.gov/combat-cyber-crime Internet security. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.internetsociety.org/what-we-do/issues/security?gclid=CNydtKjAr7ICFYSo4AodvnIA0g Koebler, J. (2012, September 11). Obama may use executive order to advance cybersecurity policies. Retrieved from http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2012/09/11/obama-may-use-executive-order-to-advance-cybersecurity-policies Leiner, B., Cerf, V., Kahn, R., Clark, D. (1962-1974). Brief history of the internet. Retrieved from http://www.internetsociety.org/internet/internet-51/history-internet/brief-history-internet OBrien, R. (2007, January 22). Cyber crimes impact on