Training Report Essay Example

Training Report Essay It is always a pleasure to remind the fine people in the Engineering Workshops for their sincere guidance I received to uphold my practical as well as theoretical skills in engineering. Firstly I would like to thank Prof. Sanath Ranathunga (Dean/Engineering and Senior Lecturer/Department of Production Engineering) for convincing me the fact â€Å"Whatever a man can imagine, that can be achieved†, treating me as a son of his own and guiding me to taste the real flavor of engineering. Secondly I would like to thank Dr. S. D. Pathirana (Director/Engineering Workshops and Senior Lecturer/Department of Production Engineering) for the positive attitude he showed for my work, always allowing me to question him and giving prompt replies for my uncertainties in all the fields including educational, social and managerial to labor work. And I always great him for his aspects of crew resource management who always said, â€Å"I may be wrong†. Thirdly I would like to thank Mr. Sarath Perera (Senior Teaching Assistant) and Mr. Mahanama Dharmawardhana (Teaching Assistant) of Department of Production Engineering for extending their friendship towards me and making a pleasure-training environment in the Engineering Workshops. A paper is not enough for me to express the support and guidance I received from them almost for all the work I did there. Dr. We will write a custom essay sample on Training Report specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Training Report specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Training Report specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Devapriya Dewasurendra (Head and Senior Lecturer/Department of Production Engineering) is always reminded for allowing me to work in the machine tools in the Department. Mr. A. Illamurugan (Senior Teaching Assistant), Miss F. Faslina Badurdeen (Lecturer) and all the instructors of the Department of Production Engineering are greeted as well fir various supports they extended. The Workshop Engineer Mr. M. M. K. Sirisena, Workshop Superintendents and all other workmen are also greeted. I thank all the NAITA trainees who underwent training with me for the mutual support I received from them. Mr. S. B. Wijekoon (Senior Lecturer) and Mr. W. M. R. U. Wickramasinghe (Senior Teaching Assistant) of the Industrial Training Unit of the Faculty are very much thanked for allowing me to have my training in Engineering Workshops. Finally I apologize all other unnamed who helped me in various ways to have a good training. Knowledge is power and unity is strength. 4 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Being a public property, the Engineering Workshops is a section of the Faculty of Engineering, University of Peradeniya. In collaboration with the other departments, its prime purpose is to provide facilities for the engineering undergraduates to perform the academic activities of the Faculty of Engineering. During the time of training, it comprised a resource crew of fifty one members directed by Dr. S. D. Pathirana, a senior lecturer of the Department of Production Engineering. 1. 1 SERVICES AND MAJOR FUNCTIONS The infrastructure of the Engineering Workshops could provide the following listed services to its consumers both in academic and non-academic terms. Machining of metals Welding Foundry work Smith and fitting work Woodwork Vehicle repair Subject to the rules established by the Faculty and the University, deploying the following functions was expected from it. Provide above mentioned services to the engineering undergraduates to carry out their academic activities such as practicals, experiments and etc. Provide above mentioned services to the Faculty of Engineering and the University as a whole if requested. Within the feasibility limits, provide above mentioned services to the public. (Service cost is usually expected to be charged from the service consumers). It is important to distinctly note that the Engineering Workshops could provide related knowledge wise services to other engineering organizations and to the public who need assistance in their work. . 2 DIFFERENT SECTIONS AND CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS The Engineering Workshops itself is a collection of five different subsections that are interrelated. Brief descriptions about them are given below. 5 1. 2. 1 DIFFERENT SECTIONS 1. 2. 1. 1 Metal Workshop The Metal Workshop is the place for machining metals. It comprises the following prominent machine tools with other supporting machines a nd equipments. Drilling machines Engraving machines Gear shapers Grinding machines Lathe machines * Several varieties of some of these machine tools could be found for specialized operations. Milling machines Planers Shaping machines Slotting machines 1. 2. 1. 2 Welding And Foundry Shop The Welding and Foundry shop comprised equipment to deploy following services: Arc welding Metal casting Mig welding Oxyacetylene welding Spot welding Tig welding 1. 2. 1. 3 Smithy And Fitting Shop The Smithy And Fitting Shop mostly comprised hand tools (anvils, hammers, chisels, etc. ) and some machine tools (Electric hammer and sheet metal rollers, benders and cutters). 1. 2. 1. 4 Woodwork Shop Comprised of 10 carpenters and 2 laborers the Woodwork Shop enclosed the following machine tools. Band saw Circular saw Disc and bobbin sander Double end tenoner Drill Mortiser Pattern miller Router 6 Saw and planner Thickness planner Wood planer Wood turning lathe 1. 2. 1. 5 Vehicle Repair Unit The Vehicle Repair Unit extends its services to the whole University. It comprised the following work force: Electricians (1) Greasers (3) Mechanics (3) Welders (1) 1. 2. 1. 6 Other Sections The Tool Store and the Consumable Good Store being separate from the above supply the tools and consumable goods to all the above five subsections. 1. 2. 2 CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS The Engineering Workshops has close relationships with the other departments of the Faculty and especially with the Department of Production Engineering through which the academic activities are conducted. On the other hand, machine tools and equipments of the Department of Production Engineering are also used to carry out the tasks of the Engineering Workshops freely. Specially, the Computer Numeric Controlled (CNC) Machining Center. 1. 3 SITE LAYOUT Gate 1 Gate 2 Faculty Main Corridor Woodwork Vehicle Tool Consumable goods Welding Metal Smithy fitting Foundry Figure 1-1 The Engineering Workshops 7 1. 4 ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Chart 1-1 shows the hierarchical structure of the University of Peradeniya pointing the position of the Engineering Workshops in it. UNIVERSITY OF PERADENIYA CHANCELLOR VICE CHANCELLOR DEANS OF OTHER FACULTIES DEAN/ENGINEERING HEADS OF OTHER DEPARTMENTS DIRECTOR ENGINEERING WORKSHOPS Chart 1-1 Organizational Structure Of The University Of Peradeniya Chart 1-2 shows the internal organizational structure of the Engineering Workshops. 8 DIRECTOR ENGINEERING WORKSHOPS [DR. S. D. PATHIRANA] WORKSHOP ENGINEER (1) [MR. M. M. K. SIRISENA] WORKSHOP SUPERINTENDENTS (2) METAL WORKSHOPS WOODWORK SHOP WELDING FOUNDRY SMITHY FITTING VEHICLE REPAIR UNIT (48 Workmen: Technicians, Clerks, Mechanics, Carpenters, Welders, Foundry men, Electricians, Machinists and Laborers) Chart 1-2 Internal Organizational Structure Of The Engineering Workshops 9 CHAPTER 2: MATERIALS AND CUTTING SPEEDS Production of an item with desired qualities inherently involves the knowledge of the materials that should be used for the product and the qualities of them. A simple example is using stainless steel for a product that should not get stained. Furthermore the effective processing of these materials until a finished product is obtained requires the knowledge of processing characteristics of the materials. For example consider machining stainless steel. Some important points to be considered are: The tool material that should be used. The level of machining (i. e. rough or finish) The cutting speed Requirement of coolants Table 2-1 gives the cutting speeds of the commonly used materials under different conditions. 10 Table 2-1 Cutting Speeds Workpiece Material Rough cut (ft/min) Finish cut (ft/min) Rough cut (ft/min) Finish cut (ft/min) Cast iron Mild Steel Malleable iron 80-110 110-130 250-300 300-400 Cast iron Bronze Aluminium Stainless steel 100-120 100-120 140-200 240-360 Brass HSS tools 50-60 80-110 120-200 350-400 40-50 65-90 140-160 250-300 45-60 70-90 150-180 200-250 110-150 150-180 600 1000 400 700 800 1000 200-300 200-300 600-1000 600-1000 Carbide tools 11 CHAPTER 3: MACHINE TOOLS AND SPECIFICATIONS 3. 1 PLANNING MACHINE Unlike most of other machines, the planning machine contains a sliding table which carries the workpiece. Cutting tools do not move but the workpiece. The one in Metal Workshop was not frequently used because of the heavy operating cost. It was only used for heavy duty metal works. The prime mover of the sliding table is a DC motor with the following specifications. Volts Amps HP rpm Excitation Volts Rating Insulation Class Year BSS 115/39 25/113 15/4. 5 1500/720/225 110 Cont E 1965 261 315 7 The DC supply for the above motor is obtained from a DC generator which is directly coupled to an induction motor driven by main AC supply of the Metal Workshop. The rating of those are as follows: DC Generator Specifications: Volts Current 115/39 113 A 12 Power rpm Excitation Winding Rating Insulation Class Year BSS 13 kW 1440 110 V Comp. Int. Cont E 1965 2613/57 Induction Motor Specifications: Volts Current Power Rpm Rating Stator Insulation Class Year BSS 400/440 (3 Phase 50Hz) 27. 5 A 21 HP 1440 Cont Delta E 1965 2613/57 13 3. 2 UNIVERSAL MILLING MACHINE The universal milling machine in the Metal Workshop has a horizontally swivel bed and can be used in both vertical and horizontal milling arrangements. The detachable milling head is used when vertical milling is performed and can be turned vertically to mill at any other inclination. Specifications of the machine are listed below. Manufacturer Spindle motor Brown and Sharp MFG Company, USA 230 V, 3 phase, 50 Hz, 9 A (full load) Cutter Speeds Feed rates 33 to 1275 rpm 3/8 to 16 7/8 inch/min 3. 3 SHAPER A shaper contains a table on which the workpiece is mounted. The linear movement of the cutting tool wipes away the excess material. This is exactly the opposite of what happens in the planning machine where the tool is fixed and the workpiece is linearly moved. The Metal Workshop has two shapers, a fully mechanical one and a hydraulic operated one. The ram moving motor of the fully mechanical shaper is of 2HP and that of the hydraulic one is 7. 5HP. The mechanical shaper has a constant speed prime mover which turns a disk as shown in Figure 3-1 to convert the rotational movement of the prime mover into reciprocal motion of the cutting tool. TOO e Figure 3-1 Rotational Into Reciprocal Motion Conversion 14 This arrangement allows quick return motion. Further more this allows feed rate change without any gear arrangement or control of speed of motor. This is done by varying the eccentricity e. The higher the e, the higher the feed rate is. A simple trade off of this feed rate control system is that as the feed rate is reduced, the stroke of the ram also gets reduced. The hydraulic type shaper does not have this problem and the feed rate and the stroke can be independently controlled. Figure 3-2 shows the hydraulic arrangement. This machine has been manufactured by Rockford Machine Tool, Rockford, Illinois, USA. CYLINDER PISTON CONNECTED TO RAM HYDRAULIC SWITCH HUDRAULIC PUMP OIL SUMP Figure 3-2 Hydraulic Arrangement Of The Shaper 3. 4 HAND DRILL A hand drill is a versatile equipment which can be freely used for drilling holes as well as for some other purposes where a portable rotational prime mover is required. The specifications of the NHP1030 hand drill manufactured by Makita Corporation, Japan are given below. Supply 230 VAC, 2. 0 A, 50-60 Hz 430 W 0-2700 rpm drill Power Speed Maximum bit size 10 mm 15 CHAPTER 4: CNC MACHINING CENTER 4. 1 HITACHI SEIKI VA35 CNC MACHINING CENTER The Hitachi Seiki VA35 CNC (Computer Numeric Controlled) machining center that belongs to the Department of Production Engineering is frequently used for accurate and automated machining of metals as well as for wood, plastic and other materials. The machining accuracy of the machine is 0. 001mm. Figure 4-2 shows various parts of the machine tool. Figure 4-1 Hitachi Seiki VA35 CNC Machining Center 16 Figure 4-2 Hitachi Seiki VA35 CNC Machining Center 17 Manufactured by Hitachi Seiki Co. Ltd. , Japan, the control unit of this numerically controlled milling machine is of Fanuc System 6M-B. The controlling is based on two Intel 8085 microprocessors. Figure 4-3 is a block diagram which shows the controlling structure of the CNC machine. EEPROM OR TAPE INPUT CONTROL MICRO PROCESSOR ROM SPINDLE POSITION X,Y,Z POSITION X S SPINDLE MOTOR MOTOR DRIVER Y Z X,Y,Z MOVEMENT MOTORS Figure 4-3 Numerical Control Of The Machine 4. 2 MACHINE SPECIFICATIONS 4. 2. GENERAL INFORMATION Manufacturer Model Control unit Weight Hitachi Seiki Co. Ltd. , Japan VA 35–II Fanuc System 6M–B 4000 kg 18 4. 2. 2 TABLE Working area Maximum carrying capacity 1000*355 mm2 500 Kg 4. 2. 3 STROKES x-axis stroke in the crosswise direction of the table y-axis stroke in the longitudinal direction of the table z-axis stroke in the vertical direction of the spindle head Distance between the spindle nose and top of the table 560 mm 350 mm 400 mm 150-550 mm 4. 2. 4 SPINDLE HEAD Spindle nose contour Spindle speed Spindle speed change Spindle motor NT 40 60-600 rpm Stepless (s 4 digit) AC 5. kW (30 min) 4. 2. 5 FEED Least increment Cutting feed rate Rapid traverse 0. 001 mm 3600 mm/min 13000 mm/min 19 4. 2. 6 AUTOMATIC TOOL CHANGE (ATC) No. of tools Shank type Maximum tool diameter Maximum tool length Maximum tool weight Tool selection method Pull stud type 30 BT 40, CAT 40 95 mm 250 mm 10 kg Random shortest course MAS 1 4. 3 G CODE AND M CODE The entire functioning of the machine is based on G Code and M Code specifications. G Codes define the preparatory functions of the machine. In simple terms, they control the movement and machining related functions of the machine tool. For example, the code G76 followed by some related arguments is used for fine boring. G00 with X,Y,Z arguments rapidly moves the bed and the spindle head to the position specified by the arguments. M Codes are known as auxiliary functions. They control specific behaviors of the machine. For example M08 turns on the coolant, M05 stops the spindle. 4. 4 AN EXAMPLE PROGRAM The listing given below is a program which was used to bore holes in couplings of two turbines which were manufactured in the Engineering Workshops. It is written in G and M Codes. Unless otherwise stated, all the dimensions are in mm. 1 2 3 4 5 G28 G91 Z0; G28 X0 Y0; G40 G49; G90; G92 X253. 087 Y177. 818 Z343. 05; 20 6 7 8 9 G00 x131. 25; G00 Z5. 0 F10; M03 S150; M98 P151; 10 M05; 11 M09; 12 G28 G91 Z0; 13 G28 X0 Y0; 14 M30; 15 % The meaning of each line is given below. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Return to reference point, Incremental programming, Z=0 is the reference point (Z movement only) Return to reference point, X=0 and Y=0 (X and Y movements only) Tool diameter compensation cancel, Tool length offset cancel Absolute programming Programming of absolute zero point, X=253. 87, Y=177. 818, Z=343. 05 Positioning (rapid), X=131. 25, Y=0 Positioning (rapid), Z=5. 0, Feed rate set to 10 mm/min Spindle rotation CW, speed=150 rpm Sub program (o0151) call-out 10 Spindle stop 11 Mist/coolant off 12 Return to reference point, Z=0, Incremental programming (Z movement only) 13 Return to reference point, X=0 and Y=0 14 End of program, Control unit reset 15 Just display the end of current listing Line 9 in the above program calls the sub program o0151. This sub program is the actual part of the program which bore holes and is listed below. 21 1 2 3 4 G76 G98 X131. 25 Y0. Z-52. 0 Q0. 5 R2. 0; X119. 903 Y53. 384; (some more x and y values) M99; The meaning of each line is as follows: 1 Fine boring; Return to initial level in canned cycle after finishing; Starting X,Y coordinate: X=131. 25, Y=0. 0; Final Z coordinate = -52. 0; Before boring tool is taken out, move it 0. 5 away from the bored wall of the workpiece; Radius of boring = 2. 0 (This value does not have any effect on boring since the tool determines the actual radius. ). Repeat boring for X=119. 903 and Y=53. 384. Repeat the same in line 2. End of sub program. 2 3 4 4. 5 STEPS IN USING THE MACHINE The distinct operations involved in using the CNC machine are listed below in sequence they are done. 1. Generating the program (in G M Codes) 2. Sending it to the machine 3. Running the program First a drawing of the machined workpiece is created using AutoCAD in a PC. Then using a special routine of AutoCAD, the contours of the cutting tool are generated. This is finally stored as a text file in the hard drive of the PC. Next, the CNC machine is set to retrieve this file. Through the coaxial cable which links the PC and CNC machine, it is then fed into the machine tool. A numeric name for the program is given at the beginning of the file retrieval to figure out the starting point (or the address in the memory) of the retrieving program from earlier read programs. Using this numeric name of the program, it is taken to the front from other programs in the memory and it stays waiting to run. Pressing the Start button sequentially executes the listing. Figure 4-4 shows the monitor (on the Main Control Panel) displaying a program waiting to be executed. If needed a program can directly be written using the Main Control Panel of the CNC machine and executed. This is tedious and errors may occur easily. 22 Figure 4-4 A Program Waiting To Be Executed (Sub Control Panel Display) 23 CHAPTER 5: FEASIBILITY SURVEY ON A MINI-HYDRO POWER PROJECT 5. 1 INTRODUCTION This chapter described the methods that were used for flow rate prediction and measurement and head measurement of a stream called Madapiti Oya in Nuwara Eliya district as a feasibility survey to construct a mini-hydropower plant. APPENDIX A: FEASIBILITY REPORT ON THE PROPOSED MINI-HYDRO POWER PROJECT AT KABARAGALA ESTATE contains full details of it. The capacity of a hydropower scheme entirely depends on two factors being the water flow rate and the head (the height difference between the reservoir and the power house). 5. 2 FLOW PREDICTION AND MEASUREMENT Two methods that were carried around the stream are described here. One is a flow prediction method and the other one is a flow measurement method. 5. 2. 1 AREA-RAIN FALL METHOD This is a flow prediction method. In simple terms, the catchment area of a water stream is multiplied by the rainfall to find the flow. Figure 5-1 shows an example contour map that can be used in this method to find the catchment area of a stream. The lighter dashed lines enclose the areas. For example the area which determines the flow at point B of the stream is enclosed by the outer light dashed lines bounded by three mountain peaks. Figure 5-1 Using A Contour Map To Find The Catchment Of A Stream Figure 5-2 shows a simple representation of a hydrological cycle. It is seen that sub-surface transfer flow, evaporation and transpiration reduce some amount of water from the value 24 calculated just by multiplying the area and the rainfall. Depending on the weather and geographical conditions, suitable corrections for these can be applied for a more accurate flow prediction. Figure 5-2 The Hydrological Cycle 5. 2. 2 THE FLOAT METHOD This is a flow measurement method. As shown in Figure 5-3, the time taken for a float to travel a known distance on the surface of the stream is found and hence the mean velocity of the stream. The mean velocity depends on the bed surface of the stream and hence a correction factor is applied for the velocity given by the division of the float length by the time in calculating it. The mean cross sectional area of the steam is also found. The flow is obtained by multiplying the mean values of cross sectional area and velocity. Figure 5-3 Float Method Of Flow Measurement 25 5. 3 HEAD MEASUREMENT 5. 3. 1 PRESSURE GAUGE METHOD Being not a very accurate method, pressure gauge method of head measurement employees a calibrated pressure gauge into which a long transparent water filled open ended pipe is fitted. A B Figure 5-4 Pressure Gauge Method Of Height Measurement Figure 5-4 shows how a pressure gauge is used in height measurement. The calibrated pressure gauge at B directly reads the pressure at point B with reference to point A. This reading can then be used to calculate the height difference between points A and B using the density of water. The open end A of the pipe is then taken to point B and the meter can then be moved down to a point below the point B. This is done from the expected beginning to the expected end of the penstock and the head is calculated from the sum of reading of the meter. 5. 3. 2 TACHEOMETRIC SURVEYING This is an accurate method of head measurement which uses an optical theodolite as shown in Figure 5-5. Figure 5-5 Tacheometric Surveying A measuring staff is kept at point X and readings at points A, B and C which can be identified because of the cross hairs and stadia hairs of the instrument are taken. The inclination of the 26 ines of sight (? ) is also taken. These measurement can be mathematically manipulated to find the vertical and horizontal distances between the instrument and a given point. Thus a vertical profile along a path can be generated. If a compass is additionally used at the instrument position to find the direction of point X relative to some reference direction (magnetic nort h), a bird’s eye view of the surveyed path can also be drawn. 27 CHAPTER 6: MANUFACTURING CROSS FLOW TURBINES 6. 1 INTRODUCTION During the time of training, two similar 280kW cross flow turbines were manufactured in the Engineering Workshops. They were intended to be directly coupled to the generator as shown in Figure 6-1. WATER TURBINE COUPLING WATER GENERATOR Figure 6-1 Direct Coupled Turbine The following sections describe each component of the above system. 6. 2 A CROSS FLOW TURBINE Figure 6-2 shows the cross section of a cross flow turbine that had been manufactured earlier in the Engineering Workshops. 28 Figure 6-2 A Cross Flow Turbine In a cross flow turbine, the blades are arranged in a squirrel cage. Water from the penstock hits a blade and travels across the cage, hits a second blade and leaves out. This is illustrated in Figure 6-2. The turbine shown in Figure 6-2 has a governor connected to it internally. The latter produced ones do not contain governors. Figure 6-3 shows the external dimensions of a 280kW cross flow turbine that was manufactured in the Engineering Workshops. 29 520mm 590mm ? 80mm 540mm 840mm 770mm Figure 6-3 External Dimensions Of A 280kW Cross Flow Turbine The squirrel cage blade structure of the turbine is kept in position by two bearings at each end of the rotor. The especial feature is that one of them is of self aligned type. A self aligned bearing allows the axis of the shaft which goes through it not to be the same axis of the outer fixed frame and the inclination may vary. This is shown in Figure 6-4. INCLINED TRUE AXIS OF ROTATION NOMINAL AXIS OF ROTATION Figure 6-4 A Self Aligned Bearing The self aligned bearing allows the manufacturing eccentricity of the bearing mounts not to cause vibrations or related mechanical failures. 30 6. 3 COUPLINGS The connection between the turbine and the generator is established by a set of cast iron couplings shown in Figure 6-5. Each of these couplings contains fifteen nylon bushes. Each bush on the turbine side coupling is connected to one bush on the generator side coupling using a metal rod. The nylon bush arrangement reduces vibrations and related failures due to possible eccentricities that may exist between two shafts. one set of connectors METAL ROD NYLON BUSHES TURBINE SIDE GENERATOR SIDE Figure 6-5 Coupling Between Turbine And Generator 6. 4 GENERATOR The alternator for an above turbine is of brushless self excited type with an automatic voltage regulator fitted into it. Figure 6-6 is a simple representation of such an alternator. GENERATOR EXCITER ARMATUR 3? RECT FIELD ARMATURE AVR FIELD 3 ? OUT Figure 6-6 Brushless, Automatic Voltage Regulated Alternator 31 CHAPTER 7: OTHER ACTIVITIES 7. 1 MANUFACTURING A CHALK MACHINE The chalk machine that was being manufactured in the Engineering Workshops used a piston-cylinder arrangement in producing crayons. Made of brass, Figure 7-1 shows one such piston-cylinder pair. MOLTEN PASTEL CYLINDER WATER PISTON Figure 7-1 A Piston Cylinder Pair Of The Chalk Machine The operation is as follows: 1. Fill the cylinders with molten pastel. 2. Pass water around the cylinders to solidify the crayons quickly. 3. Move the piston upwards to remove the crayons. The machine contained a set of piston-cylinder pairs which worked simultaneously. Pressing the molten pastel into the cylinders and moving the piston upwards were performed by using two hydraulic jacks one on top and the other under the piston-cylinder structure. 7. 2 SELF POWERED WATER PUMP FOR RIVERS This is a design of Professor Sanath Ranathunga and I had no personal involvement with it. A pipe is spiral wound inside a thrown away barrel as shown in Figure 7-2. The barrel is fitted with blades on its surface and submerged in the river. As the barrel rotates, water and air enter and pipe from its open end one after another. This pressurize the water inside the pipe and naturally elevates to a higher level. 32 AIR SPIRALED PIPE BARREL WATER BLADES Figure 7-2 The Self Powered Water Pump For Rivers 7. 3 MILLING A PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD The conventional way of creating a printed circuit board or PCB for short involves chemical etching of unwanted portions of copper from a copper clad board. Instead of using a chemical, milling away the unwanted portions of the copper surface reduces time and effort needed in creating PCBs drastically. Though some drawbacks exist, this was tried on the small universal milling machine and satisfactory results could be obtained. First some broken tool shanks were found and ground to the shapes shown in Figure 7-3 using the drill bit grinder. a 0. 5mm b 0. 5mm Figure 7-3 Tools To Mill A PCB Figure 7-4 Milling A PCB Cutter (a) in Figure 7-3 created a rough surface finish. The shape of the cutting edge of cutter (b) was seen to force the copper chips into the board producing a smooth surface finish. 33 7. 4 AN ELECTRONIC ROTATION COUNTER On request of the Workshops Director Dr. S. D. Pathirana, an electronic rotation counter was designed and assembled. This was intended to give a primitive idea of electronic counting to the engineering undergraduates who were not exposed to them before. In fact, the counter was supposed to be used as a teaching guide to teach the students automated motion controlling of machines. The block diagram of the four digit counter is shown in Figure 7-5. SENSOR AMP PHOTO CELL LED Interrupt point to increment count SCHMITT TRIGGER CD4026 SSD DRIVER 7 8 SSD LM324 CLK input of next CD4026 Figure 7-5 Electronic Rotation Counter CD4026 is a decade counter and can drive a seven segment display (SSD) directly. The carry out pin of one IC is fed to the clock input of the next IC so that the count of next stage is incremented by 1 for 10 counts of this stage. LM324 contains four general purpose operational amplifiers and used for the photo cell signal amplification and as a Schmitt trigger. 34 CHAPTER 8: ANNUAL PHYSICAL VERIFICATION OF STORES At the end of each year, a physical verification of the stores is usually conducted and an inventory of items and prices is made. The Annual Physical Verification Of Stores as at 31st December 1995 contained 1889 items listed alphabetically. The value of the items was Rs. 1 570 074. 61. The price of the condemned items was Rs. 44 397. 83 during the year. It is interesting to note that the prices of the items were put as the prices existed when they were bought. For example a set of allen keys was only Rs. 25. 00 the present value being around Rs. 600. 00. In this sense, the present value of the stores might be around 40 million rupees. Usage of past prices of items in the inventory has no value at all. It just shows the total expenditure for the stores from the past. It would have been much more useful if the present prices of the items were used in the inventory. 35 CHAPTER 9: ADMINISTRATION, MANAGEMENT AND WELFARE 9. 1 UNDERSTANDING THE ATTITUDES OF EMPLOYEES Understanding the attitudes of employees is one of the most important aspects an engineer should gain in his currier. Collaborating with employees with different mentalities is inherently difficult. Some of the points that were possible to discover are listed below. Different employees have different expectations from their jobs: Faithful earning to live the life. Just earning money to live the life. Earning some extra money. Acquiring experience for a better job position. Acquiring the name of the current working organization in his curriculum vitae for a better job. While coming to the work, employees come with different mentalities: Fresh mind and pleasure to work. Burdened mind and unpleasant to work. Different personalities: Living with the community. Showing the existence. 9. 2 JOB DISPATCHING AND ADMIRING THE WORK Faithful job dispatching among the employees in the organization makes the environment pleasant for the employees to work and the administration becomes easier. In the Engineering Workshops job dispatching was done by the Workshop Engineer. Though the organization had excessive human resources and workmen were given less tasks than they could carry, in some cases it was seen that some workmen saying â€Å"I have been given more work than others†. Some even said, â€Å"Since I am the only person who knows the subject I am always burdened with the work†. It was interesting to find out whether they state the truth. In response to these statements a secret survey was conducted. Four workmen were selected including the ones who said that they were burdened and their work was observed in intervals of 15 minutes for two days. The results showed that they just lie. Some were not even possible to find for hours. One just signed the attendance register in the morning and evening and did nothing at all. Not a single was found to work at least quarter the nominal time period. 36 On the other hand, persons in the tool stores were truly burdened with work. They had to serve others all the times. In fact they disliked working there. Whatever the case it was seen that workmen always tried to show the Workshops Director that they work. When the Director was not near by, workmen did there work in lethargy. This was discussed with the Director and the final point was: â€Å"Yes, they want to show their boss that they work. Though a very little work is done, they are quite happy to be admired by me. † In any case, accepting feedback from the employees and acting on them necessarily upholds the productivity of any organization. CONTROL EMPLOYER FEEDBACK Figure 9-1 Listening To Feedback From Employees EMPLOYEE 9. 3 GUIDE LINES FOR BETTERMENT In some places of the Engineering Workshops guidelines for improving the performance of workmen could be found. Among them the ones that most people did not follow and the ones that should be followed are listed below: Keep your eyes on the man ahead – you may be called on to take his place some day. Read one or two of the technical magazines related to your line of work. It was unfortunate to say that most guidelines were in English and many workmen did not understand them. Furthermore a discussion with the Workshops Director revealed that earlier there were some sessions for the employees about implementing the Japanese S5 Concepts in the Workshops and they just died. Later he was seen refreshenning it by dividing the Workshops area among the workmen and allocating each area to several employees to maintain the enclosed machines. In Figure 9-2, the thick lines indicate the boundaries of the divided areas. 37 Figure 9-2 Division Of Flow Areas To Implement The Japanese S5 Concepts 9. 4 FREEDOM AND WELFARE SOCIETIES WITH POLITICS In the Engineering Workshops several welfare societies could be found. The Engineering Workshops Welfare Society united all the workmen in the Engineering Workshops. Furthermore some welfare societies formed at the university level could be found. Unfortunately these societies were heavily based on the political parties of the country. Depending on the political party one likes, he may join the related society. Freedom is lost and people get framed with the political party the

Free Essays on Brain

Discuss The Relationship Between Brain Size And Intelligence The brain is the most complex machine in the world. It is the thing that we think, wonder, create, and perceive with. However, little is known about this amazing machine, this is not to say that there has been little research done on the brain, merely that there is such a vast amount that remains utterly inexplicable to us. There is a familiar correlation between intelligence and brain size; other things being equal, a larger brain correlates with greater intelligence. For example, our brain is larger than that of an Orangutan, and an Orangutan’s brain is larger than a Great Dane’s. The level of intelligence among these three species follows the same progression, i.e., we are more intelligent than Orangutans, and they are more intelligent than Great Danes. It seems plausible to hypothesize that a creature that had a brain size of 2200 cc ought to be more intelligent than Homo sapiens with our measly 1300 cc. Certainly this is the sort of reasoning that is used to explain the vast difference in intelligence between humans and apes, i.e., apes (although similar in body weight) have much smaller brains. Below are to charts the first shows the average brain size for three races and the second shows average intelligence for the three races. These charts show a reasonably strong relation between brain size and intelligence, but this does not prove causation. The notion that overall brain size is an indicator of intelligence levels within a species can be proven to be quite wrong. There have been extremely intelligent humans with small brains as well as big-brained people who low intelligence levels. There are such a variety of other factors involved in this complex machine that, such a crude measurement is basically useless within a species. Comparing one species to another, however, it does seem to be relevant, although many are unsure in what way to apply the data... Free Essays on Brain Free Essays on Brain The understanding of how the neuron (the basic functional cell of the nervous system) works is fundamental to all processes such as sensation, perception, memory, emotion, cognition, etc., in health and in disease. In this article, the second of a series on the fundamentals of the neuron, you will learn how inorganic ions, the cell membrane and basic processes, such as diffusion and ion transport, generate one of its basic and most important characteristics, the resting membrane potential. The resting membrane potential is a stable electrical charge of approximately -65 to -70 milivolts of the internal side (inside the cell) in relation to the external side. It is the basis of bioelectricity, that is, the generation and use of electrical energy by excitable cells such as the neuron to perform its functions of storage and transmission of information. The last article of the series, in the next issue, will explain how neurons actively transmit information by means of the action potential. The action potential is a sudden and reversible depolarization (reversal of the membrane potential value) which propagates across the dendrites and axon of a neuron. Electricity is a natural phenomenon in our body and it is involved in the specific functions of certain special cells in the brain and in smooth and striated muscles. Each pattern of light, sound, heat, pain, each twinkle, finger snap, each thought translates into a sequence of electric pulses. How does it happen? Nerve cells possess properties similar to other cells in many aspects: they feed, breed, undergo processes of diffusion and osmosis in their membranes andso on, but they differ in a major aspect: they process information. The ability of nerve cells to process information relies upon the special properties of the neuron membrane, which controls the flow of substances to the inner cell (sodium, calcium and potassium ions and so on). Neurons do not ex... Free Essays on Brain Discuss The Relationship Between Brain Size And Intelligence The brain is the most complex machine in the world. It is the thing that we think, wonder, create, and perceive with. However, little is known about this amazing machine, this is not to say that there has been little research done on the brain, merely that there is such a vast amount that remains utterly inexplicable to us. There is a familiar correlation between intelligence and brain size; other things being equal, a larger brain correlates with greater intelligence. For example, our brain is larger than that of an Orangutan, and an Orangutan’s brain is larger than a Great Dane’s. The level of intelligence among these three species follows the same progression, i.e., we are more intelligent than Orangutans, and they are more intelligent than Great Danes. It seems plausible to hypothesize that a creature that had a brain size of 2200 cc ought to be more intelligent than Homo sapiens with our measly 1300 cc. Certainly this is the sort of reasoning that is used to explain the vast difference in intelligence between humans and apes, i.e., apes (although similar in body weight) have much smaller brains. Below are to charts the first shows the average brain size for three races and the second shows average intelligence for the three races. These charts show a reasonably strong relation between brain size and intelligence, but this does not prove causation. The notion that overall brain size is an indicator of intelligence levels within a species can be proven to be quite wrong. There have been extremely intelligent humans with small brains as well as big-brained people who low intelligence levels. There are such a variety of other factors involved in this complex machine that, such a crude measurement is basically useless within a species. Comparing one species to another, however, it does seem to be relevant, although many are unsure in what way to apply the data...

Interpersonal and Intercultural Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Interpersonal and Intercultural Paper - Essay Example The senior management must be willing to tolerate dissent in order to ensure informed and responsible decision-making in appointing effective departmental management heads. Richard Johanneson (2002) concluded that ethical issues that arise in human behavior have a significant impact on other people when the behavior entails conscious choice of means and ends, and when the behavior is judged by standards of right and wrong. According to utilitarian ethics, interpersonal communication ethics must aim at benefiting all parties and should focus on the consequences of the decisions or actions. On the other hand, virtue ethics requires the communicators to respect the moral character and dignity of a person during communication and avoid unethical practices such as deception, coercion, tapping telephones and inappropriate jokes.The current changes in departmental management heads have shifted the perceptions of power in the hospital thus leading to conflicts. The event has generated power imbalances and misuse of power thus hindering effective communication and interpersonal relationships in the hospital. The junior staff members perceive the new departmental heads as very powerful due to the position power attached to their title in the hospital. The new management of the department has excess informational power and have hindered effective horizontal communication in the hospital.Conflicts at the hospital can lead to hostility and resentment thus hurting interpersonal relationships between the employees.

Political science 2 question paper on civil right and civil liberties Essay

Political science 2 question paper on civil right and civil liberties - Essay Example een trampled upon by the USA Patriot Act of 2001 (a contrived acronym meaning Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism), established in the aftermath of September 11th to protect Americans from the threat of future terror on American soil. Controversial from the outset, the Patriot Act represented a serious departure from established legal norms and prior American jurisprudence with respect to civil liberty legislation (ACLU 2008). Following an analysis of the Patriot Act, this brief essay will explore the key motivations behind the U.S. Civil Rights Movement by exploring those who fought institutionalized racism and discrimination during the latter half of the twentieth century. We now turn to the most important challenge to civil rights and liberties in this country, the US Patriot Act and its effects on the right to privacy, freedom of assembly and due process in the 21st century. Created under the pretense of securing the United States against the threat of terror in the wake of 9/11, the Patriot Act of 2001 significantly strengthened the scope of powers afforded to law enforcement agencies while redefining the term terrorism to include domestic terror, i.e. homegrown terror perpetuated by American citizens. Accordingly, this Act significantly sought to redefine the rights of law enforcement vis-Ã  -vis the rights and liberties of the American public.This Act increased the powers of law enforcement agencies to gain access to previously protected forms of communication include telephone conversations, email, financial, medical, business and other private recorder. Additional powers relate to the surveillance and detention of immigrants and broad powers of detention are given to law enforcement agencies with respect to immigrants in the United States. Major criticisms of the USA Patriot act are leveled at the fact that this particular piece of legislation tra mples over civil liberties and

Dinosaur ridge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Dinosaur ridge - Essay Example On the 20th September 2014, I visited the famous Denver Dinosaur Ridge for a practical activity that involved fossil examination, gold panning, mineral recognition and dinosaur track printing. The place has experts and representatives from FODR geologists who help in the analyses of the geographical activities. For instance, the experts take students and visitors through the faulting, volcanic and earthquake processes that took place in the area. However, the geohazards occur in different ways due to the geological structure of the terrain and the localities of the features. This implies that the influence of the geohazards may vary in separate places depending on the geological composition in that area. The impacts of earth tremors on plain lands cause minimum risks compared to the one on rugged terrains. For instance, earthquakes on barren lands might cause destructions to properties, especially in congested areas. According to the FODR experts, volcanic ash bends are the common influence of geohazard processes at the Denver Dinosaur Ridge. This is because of the dumping nature of the volcanic bends during eruptions as was evidenced at the Colorado disaster. The experts further indicated that the determination of the geohazard activities is undertaken through checking on the mineral zircon crystals. This model considers the date of the rocks and their nature that might contribute to the breaking. It emerged that the volcanic ash bends had taken place over 100 million years ago because of the nature of the rocks and the number of mineral zircon minerals found. Geohazard activities may have also occurred at the Karst Hazards in the recent years. The formation of the Karst Hazard occurs because of the sinkholes that damage the infrastructure. It is evident that the sinkholes dissolve in the underlying limestone, exposing the infrastructure, such as roads or buildings, to risks of collapsing or sinking

Research Analysis: Acceptance of Non-Abstinence Goals

Research Analysis: Acceptance of Non-Abstinence Goals Aaron Glogowski Dr. Michael E. Dunn Davis, A. K., Rosenberg H. (2013). Acceptance of Non-Abstinence Goals by Addiction Professionals in the United States. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 27(4), 1102-1109. doi: 10.1037/a0030563 Alan K. Davis and Harold Rosenberg have observed some formerly unexpected results from the use of drugs and alcohol recreationally. While the effects of excessive drug and alcohol use have been monitored and proven to be unsafe and unhealthy, recent studies have shown that a controlled use of them, otherwise referred to as non-abstinence, may bring several health benefits. Addiction professionals specializing in substance use disorders (SUD) are beginning to open their eyes to new alternatives of drug therapy for their patients. While many of these views are controversial among the professional world, many clinicians and doctors are starting to turn to the idea of non-abstinence in an attempt to help their patients more in the long term, by giving them short term goals that are easier for them to achieve. In this article, Davis and Rosenberg have catalogued their findings from a study that they conducted on the changing attitudes and ideals of professionals in many different clinical fields, in regards to the practice and implementation of non-abstinence. Davis and Rosenberg conducted their study based on previous surveys that they found that had been created to determine people’s opinions on the idea of non-abstinence. They asked the participants about how acceptable they thought it would be to administer a suggestion of non-abstinence to patients in eight different categories. They divided these categories based on the type of substance use disorder, as well as the severity of the problem and the intended final result from the practice. All of the survey respondents were then asked (using the eight categories from the previous question) to give a proportion of patients whom they had prescribed a non-abstinence procedure to. They gave proportions in increments of 25%, from none to 100%. After this, the participants were asked to rate its acceptability in different clinical settings. The survey was concluded with questions about the personal history of the respondents, such as their work environment, and whether or not they had any past history with substance abuse. The survey respondents were mostly Caucasian members of the National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Addiction Counselors, and over half of them had previous experience with a substance use disorder. The results appeared to be in favor of non-abstinence being used as a mid-term goal on the way to giving up drug abuse, however, only 32% of respondents said it was acceptable to use non-abstinence as an end-goal. When the issue came to alcohol abuse however, 51% agreed that non-abstinence was an acceptable end-goal. On the other hand, when it came to drug or alcohol dependence, far fewer participants agreed with non-abstinence as a procedure. The participants ranked non-abstinence acceptability for drug dependence as 27% for an intermediate procedure, and 15% for an end-goal. They found very similar results with alcohol dependence, at 28% and 16% respectively. No matter what type of drug or severity of the problem, Davis and Rosenberg’s participants seemed to disagree with non-abstinence more often than agree with it. At least half said that they would not consider non-abstinence as a procedure in any case, regardless of the situation. Most of the respondents who were against non-abstinence thought it was ineffective, or it did not agree with the treatment philosophy that they had laid out for themselves. Some other reasons why participants disagreed with non-abstinence included things such as a fear for a medical condition that a patient could have, or worries over the legality of the substance that was being used, or the context in which the patient would be using it (such as underage drinking, or drug use in a stressful work environment). Another key player in the determination of the acceptability of non-abstinence procedures was the environment in which professionals would be recommending the procedure. In both rehab and detoxification programs, the majority of survey participants found it to be a completely unacceptable treatment, with unacceptability ratings at 74% and 68% respectively. However, outpatient programs, DUI/DWI education programs, and independent practices saw significantly better results in terms of acceptability, with unacceptability ratings at 57%, 45%, and 28% respectively. Davis and Rosenberg also observed various characteristics of their respondents to determine whether there was any correlation between those factors and their acceptance of non-abstinence programs. They found that participants who had history with alcohol or drug related issues tended to disagree with non-abstinence programs more than those who had no history with drugs and alcohol, however, the variation was so small that it was deemed insignificant. In observing the results of their study, Davis and Rosenberg noticed some outside circumstances in relation to their topic of discussion. They realized in conducting the surveys that there was a possibility of bias, especially in regards to whether or not the addiction professional was willing to work with the client. They found that some professionals were simply unwilling to work with clients who were attempting to continue taking drugs or alcohol in moderation. These professionals were less likely to accept the possibility of non-abstinence treatments. These same professionals also accepted the fact that some of their clients may resort to non-abstinence procedures anyway, even if they didn’t prescribe or condone the procedure. Davis and Rosenberg’s study, when compared with previous studies on the subject, found that American addiction professionals had become more accepting of non-abstinence in terms of drinking than they had been 20 years prior. The amount of participants who rated non-abstinence as an acceptable mid-goal for alcohol abusers is twice as many as 20 years before their survey. Davis and Rosenberg claim that the increase in acceptance could be due to several factors, including an understanding of non-abstinence as a potential method for reducing long-term harm, and a reduction of total abstinence, or the 12-step program. Other regions still appear to be more accepting of non-abstinence in general, whether it is for a mid-goal or an end-goal. From previous studies, Rosenberg found that the United Kingdom had over an 80% acceptance rate of non-abstinence for alcohol abusers, and a 68% mid-goal as well as a 50% end-goal for alcohol dependence. Overall, even though America is slowly becoming more accepting of non-abstinence, they still have a long way to go before they reach the United Kingdom’s acceptance level. Davis and Rosenberg realize that their study may be skewed by outside factors, such as the study being a web-based study, or an inherent bias with the way that questions were asked. With regard to the outliers, Davis and Rosenberg conclude their study with notice for those practicing non-abstinence as it is becoming more common, especially in outpatient or independent practices. Everyday Use, Alice Walker | Symbolism And Characters: Everyday Use, Alice Walker | Symbolism And Characters: In the story Everyday Use, Alice Walker uses a detailed description to help describe the symbolism of the unique and highly valued quilts, as well as, contrasting the characters throughout the story. The quilts stand as a specific symbol and as more than just a creative piece of artwork throughout the story. According to an article written by Sam Whitsitt, the quilt, itself, represents the history and tradition that binds the African culture to the past and the past to the present (Whitsitt, 445). The quilts helps portray the theme of African American heritage throughout the story and binds Mamas ancestors and her heritage altogether. The quilts signify the bond between each generation and the impact they have on each main character in the story, which include Mama, Dee and Maggie. Walkers usage of the quilts throughout the story also helps demonstrate the differences between each of the characters. The quilts are the main focus in the story that brings out the characters true person alities and shows the differences in those personalities. Throughout the story Everyday Use by Alice Walker, the quilts help portray the unique cultural symbolism of the African culture and the way they view quilting, as well as, illustrating the differences of the main characters in the story. In the story, quilting is used as a symbol to signify the African American past. The quilts are a primary symbol that stands for the ties of heritage and the distinctive culture of Mamas family. According to an article written by Claudia Tate, Barbara T. Christian, the person who showcases the corpus of Walkers works and the traditions of African-American literature, explains that Walker articulates the metaphor of quilting to represent the creative legacy that African Americans have inherited from their maternal ancestors (Tate, 308). Quilting is part of the African American past and travels from generation to generation. According to an article written by David Cowart, the quilt that Dee, or Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo, fights over links her generation to previous generations and, therefore, the quilt is shown to represent the African American past (Cowart, 171). There are many types of unique patterns in the quilts that Mama and Dee are disputing over. According to Whitsitts article , many African American quilters employ large, often abstract designs, the use of these different designs shows the uniqueness of the quilt (Whitsitt, 454). The patterns in the quilts represent the African American past and Mamas heritage. In both of them were scraps of dresses Grandma Dee had worn fifty and more years ago. Bits and pieces of Grandpa Jattells Paisley shirts. And one teeny faded blue piece, about the size of a penny matchbox, that was from Great Grandpa Ezras uniform that he wore in the Civil War (Walker, 113). The use of these different types of patterns in the quilts symbolizes the history of Mamas family and the creativeness they had. The precious materials used in making the quilts represent the culture and the high value they each contain. The fabric that is used in the making of the quilts shows Mamas unique culture and the love her family has for their culture. The work Mama, Grandma Dee, and Big Dee put into the quilts show their strong African American herit age and background. In the African American culture many quilts travel from generation to generation to show ones familys culture and where they came from (Cowart, 171). The quilts Dee and Mama are fighting over are to be traveled from generation to generation, also, to help keep the culture alive. The quilts play a major role in the family because of the prestigious heritage they each contain. They help show the distinctive African heritage and special cultural symbolism. The quilt ties everything, heritage included, together. As the quilts are passed down the familys history and culture is past down, also, which makes the quilts play a special role in the African American culture. The quilts made by Mama, Grandma Dee and Big Dee are not only used as a symbol throughout the story but are shown as objects that the African American culture keeps in reserve because of the value the they contain (Whitsitt, 455). The quilts contain a historic value because of the creativeness that was put into making them. As Patricia Mainardi notes in Whitsitts article, many inhabitants of the African culture who make the quilts sign them and date them to show the high value they contain and also put a list in their will of who should inherit the quilts they make once they pass away (Whitsitt, 455). The quilts have a specific value and are treated with much care because of the strong culture they uphold. Throughout the story Mama and Maggie distinguish the quilts as more than just a piece of artwork, instead they see them as something to treasure in remembrance of loved ones. According to Whitsitts article, the quilt represents those values of things which do not circulate, do not wander, do not gel traded or sold but, rather, stay at home (Whitsitt, 454). They value them because the quilts remind them of their beloved relatives, such as Grandma Dee and Big Dee. The quilts portray a high value throughout the story and because of this high value Mama promises the quilt to Maggie for when she marries (Whitsitt, 455). Mama wants to give Maggie the quilts because of the history they each contain and because Mama wants the quilts to be utilized in everyday use. If the quilts were to be hung on the wall, like Dee wanted to do to preserve the African American heritage, then the true culture wouldnt be shown. On the other hand, if the quilt was put to everyday use, like Maggie would do with the quilt, then the African heritage would be shown and kept alive because it was being put to use. Mama wants to give Maggie the quilts for that reason. Mama knows Maggie will preserve the quilts and put them to everyday use to remember her ancestors and their families history and culture. Throughout the story the quilt not only shows symbolism and value but also helps in contrasting each character. According to the article by Susan Farrell, Dee is seen throughout the story as shallow, condescending, and manipulative, as well as, overly concerned with style, fashion, and aesthetics, and thus as lacking a true understanding of her heritage (Farrell, 179). Mama remembers Dee as a fearless girl who, unlike herself, would always look anyone in the eyes. Hesitation was not part of her nature (Farrell, 181). Dee is seen throughout the story as very different then Mama and Maggie because she is very selfish and demanding (Farrell, 181). Maggie, on the other hand, was the complete opposite of her sister. Maggie, throughout the story, was seen as the quiet and timid child with no characteristics that related to her sister. In Farrells article, she states that most readers see Mama and Maggie as having a true sense of heritage as opposed to Dees false or shallow understanding of the past (Farrell, 183). Mama and Maggie are seen throughout the story as wanting to cherish their heritage by keeping the quilts to use, as well as, to remember loved ones. Dee, on the other hand, sees the quilts as something that should be kept in reserve and to hang on the wall as a unique piece of artwork. Maggies moderation in the story contrasts with Dees courage (Farrell, 183). When Dee says that Maggie would ruin the quilts by putting them to everyday use, and that hanging the quilts would be the only way to preserve them, Maggie, like somebody used to never winning anything, or having anything reserved for her, meekly replies: She can have them, Mama, I can member Grandma Dee without the quilts(Farrell, 183-184). Once this occurs, Mama acts in a different manner than she has before. She sees Maggie standing with her hands hidden in her skirt and says: When I looked at her like that something hit me in the top of my head and ran down to the soles of my feet. Just like when Im in church and the spirit of God touches me and I get happy and shout (Farrell, 184). This powerful feeling causes Mama to do something she never had done before; she snatched the quilts out of Dees hands and dumped them into Maggies lap(Farrell, 184). This scene in the story is the only part where Mama acts differently than before. Instead of acting like the patient Maggie, Mama begins to act more like Dee, with her refusal to back down and her motivation to stand up for herself (Farrell, 184). The quilt in the story acts as a way to contrast the characters and show their different personalities. Throughout the story, the quilts symbolize and show the value of the African American culture, as well as, acting in a way to show the differences between the main characters in Everyday Use. The quilts play a major role in Everyday Use and are mentioned throughout the entire story. The quilts have an impact on each character throughout the story, and they help in contrasting each character and showing symbolism of the African American culture. The mentioning of the quilts display the importance of the African American heritage and the true value it has on Mama, Maggie, and Dee. Dee is shown wanting the quilts to just hang on the wall and show their unique culture from afar. In actuality, the quilt is shown as a symbol of the African American heritage and importance of remembering loved ones. The remembrance of Mamas ancestors will also be preserved forever with the use of the quilt in everyday life. The values of the quilts are shown as a way to remember the loved ones who helped in the making of them and also of Mamas ancestors. The quilts portray the unique cultural bond between Mamas ancestors and her heritage. The quilt binds Mamas ancestors and the value of her heritage together and shows the impact the quilt has on her, Maggie and Dee. The quilt brings out the diverse personalities of Mama, Maggie and Dee throughout the story and the different views they have on their heritage, as well as, the actions they each take. With the usage of the quilts, the distinction between each character is shown, as well as, the unique cultural symbolism throughout the entire story.

Essay --

From the late 1800s and early 1900s immigrants saw the United States as a golden opportunity for success. Between 1880 and 1930, over 27 million new immigrants arrived, mainly from Italy, Germany, Eastern Europe, Russia, Britain, Canada, Ireland, and Sweden. This period in American history caused great change in culture of the neighborhoods and cities humanitarian movements that helped assimilation, laws surrounding immigration, and educational reform. Many factors in other country’s pushed immigrants to the new world. In Italy, many southern farmers had been struggling at the mercy of wealthy land owners and had to face declining health conditions. In Ireland, a great potato famine left the country in utter despair. Jewish immigrants, particularly from Russia, fled to avoid religious persecution. Everyone had their reasons for coming, whether it be expectations of economic success or for freedom, and the American Dream. However, most immigrants were not greeted with success and fortune as they expected upon entering the United States. In reality, many economic, social, and political conditions caused early American immigrants to endure great struggle in order to shape what became a thriving country. The new immigrants arrived imagining the United States as a land of freedom, where people worshiped as they pleased, enjoyed economic opportunity, and had been emancipated from the oppressive social hierarchies of their homelands. However, these new immigrants had no intention to permanently stay in the United States. Most expected to hit gold and promptly return to their homelands. Upon arrival, immigrants began to pile into cities which quickly became overpopulated. Lack of appropriate housing and generally having little money m... ...ng of the 20th century forever changed America. Many of these immigrants came to the country expecting to find the streets paved with gold, and opportunity knocking at their door. However, an evolving system of labor greeted these immigrants, and they were often forced to adjust to unfavorable working conditions and wide spread discrimination. Laws put into legislation further restricted the lives of these people making it even more difficult to assimilate to the American way of life. These hard working men and women truly exemplify the spirit of excellence and effort for without them, we would not be where we are today. Their contributions to society were numerous, and the effects of that era revolutionized the urban landscape of the United States. Immigrants are truly an example of what hard work and determination can achieve when a group of people stick together.

Creative Intelligence †Mental Models Essay

Introduction Creative Intelligence is the ability of mind to devise innovative and smart solutions to the problems faced in routine life. It is a very essential component of successful intelligence as it determines the potential to go ahead of the given situations in order to produce creative and interesting ideas. Such a situation appears when an individual moves in a direction opposite to that of general opinion with a motive to develop efficient means to accomplish the task (Burt, 1931). The four styles of Creative Intelligence are: Intuitive, Innovative, Imaginative and Inspirational. The comparison of these styles and their influence on organizational decision making is as follows- Intuitive: According to the intuitive style, the basic concepts and insights of mind are responsible for developing innovative ideas and determining the decision to be taken. In such a style, facts and figures hold less importance and complexity of the situation is not annoying. In intuitive style, constant changes in the internal as well as the external environments of the organization are presumed, beforehand. This style has a major influence on the organization as decisions are largely taken on the basis of the basic understanding of the employees. Innovative: As per the innovative style of creative intelligence, the creative ability of the mind to develop remarkable solutions to the problems gains high prominence. Such style is usually characterized by out-of box thinking and unconventional point of views. Similar to the intuitive style, it does not focus a great deal on the data and statistics. As every organization desires novel and innovative ideas for its problems, thus, the innovative style plays a pivotal role in the decision-making process. Imaginative: In this style of creative intelligence, an individual devises  new and creative ideas entirely on the basis of his imagination capabilities. Such a style requires the situation to be perceived from a variety of perspectives and solved entirely on the basis of shear creative potential of the mind. It does not require many details related to the given circumstances. Such a style does influence the decision-making process of an organization by recommending inventive measures to resolve the problem. Inspirational: The inspirational style is a very unique form of creative intelligence. According to this style, novel ideas and solutions are developed by drawing inspiration from the actions taken in situations of similar nature. Such kind of motivation can also be derived from the figures acknowledged by the individual. In contrast to other styles, it realizes the importance of the details related to the situation. Also, the inspirational style, simplifies the process of decision-making in a positive manner by recommending tested and proven measures. Influence of Five forces on Mental Models- A mental model accounts for an individual’s thought process about how things work in the real world. As these models refer to a symbol or representation of outside facts, they are assumed to play a crucial role in decision-making (Sternberg, 1982). The five forces affect the mental models existing in an organization in a significant manner. As a result of these forces, the mental models adapt themselves to the changes in the internal and external environments (Mental Models, Metaphor and Design, 2008). How Mental Models might limit the decision-making process- As the mental models form preconceived responses to a given situation or a problem, they prevent the introduction of any new solutions to tackle the current issues (Robles-De-La-Torre G. & Sekuler, 2004). For illustration, the poor performance of an employee owing to certain inevitable measures would lead the HR Manager to take an incorrect decision about his future due to his set mental model. Similarly, an organization’s defensive mindset would prevent it from engaging in a risky yet profitable project (Increasing Intelligence, 2008). Commonly used Mental Models and their influence on the decision-making process at the workplace- At the workplace, a number of mental models are used by the individuals to take decisions in the given situation (Mental Models, 2008). On similar lines, my decision-making process at the workplace is guided by the structural and functional mental models. In order to take a decision in the given situation, I firstly employ the functional model as it helps to know the actual task to be performed in the given circumstances. Generally, this mental model serves as the fundamental basis for taking any kind of decision for the problem. However, in order to understand the factors leading to the problem, the structural model is used. This model assists in understanding the various components of the problems at the workplace and their relationships with each other. In fact, both the models influence my decision-making process to a great deal as they assume varying significance depending on the situation encountered at the workplace. At the same time, they help in the process of taking appropriate decisions as per the requirement of the given situation. References Burt, C. 1931. _The Differentiation Of Intellectual Ability_. The British Journal of Educational Psychology. Robles-De-La-Torre G. & Sekuler R.. 2004. _Numerically Estimating Internal Models of Dynamic Virtual Objects_. ACM Transactions on Applied Perception. Sternberg, R.J. 1982. _Handbook of human intelligence_. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Increasing Intelligence. (2008). Retrieved April 17, 2008, from http://www.psych.utoronto.ca/users/reingold/courses/intelligence/cache/sternberg_intelligence.html Mental Models. (2008). Retrieved April 17, 2008, from http://www.cs.umu.se/kurser/TDBC12/HT99/Laird.html Mental Models, Metaphor and Design. (2008). Retrieved April 17, 2008, from http://www.syntagm.co.uk/design/articles/mmmad.pdf

ISU-E Research consultation portal Essay Example

ISU ISU-E Research consultation portal Essay ISU-E Research consultation portal Essay CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND This chapter discusses the problem and its background which comprises of project framework, statement of the objectives, the importance of the study, scope and delimitation and definition of terms. 1. 1 Introduction Isabela State University Echague Campus offers undergraduate and graduate programs that require research projects as course requirements. Students and faculty researchers need constant consultations to their advisers who are experts in doing research. This enables them to answer their queries about the research being ndertaken and educate them on how to perform different research processes. Providing a rendezvous for the researchers allows them to share their expert thoughts to students both in the undergrad and graduate programs who are willing to venture in the field of research. Although ISU-E are full of competent and knowledgeable researchers the instant contact and access to these researchers becomes impossible due to lack of time and instant communication. The advent of the new technology today allows the students and faculty researchers get in touch with the experts using forum, chat room and mails and social networks for consultation. The development and implementation of ISU-E Research consultation portal provides an ultimate solution to the problems of ISU-E in providing unlimited access to all its clientele and researchers. It also provides a venue for the students of the undergraduate and graduate programs to consult and communicate to their advisers for some insights and professional inputs in doing the research via online communication using the internet. The ISU-E Research Consultation Portal highlights different faculty and students researches. The system provides resources that can store research output such as journal, proposals, and finished researches of both graduate and undergraduate researches. The system also provides chat room, news updates, publication, and announcement page for the users. The users who are bonafide students and faculty members of ISU-E can also upload and download faculty and student research abstracts, Journal, research templates and other information related to research undertakings. 1. 2 Project Framework 1. 2. 1 Information System Usability Theory Usability is one of the important factors that determine the success of a website of ny types. It is related to the design aspect of web pages that make sense to people who use them. It not only surfers to navigate easily and conveniently but also helps em n tne InTormatlon tney wanted wltnln a partlcular weD sl e t . DITTerent definitions of usability have been so far proposed, which vary according to the models they are based on. Usability by Nielsen, (2003) was adopted in the field of web site; he defines Usability as a quality attribute that assesses how easy user interfaces are to use. The word usability also refers to methods for improving ease-of-use. Learnability: the ease of learning the functionality and the behavior of the system. Efficiency: the level of attainable productivity, once the user has learned the system. Memorability: The ease of remembering the system functionality, so that the casual user can return to the system after a period of non-use, without needing to learn again how to use it. Few errors: the capability of the system to feature a low error rat e, to support users making few errors during the use of the system, and in case they make errors, to help them to easy recover. Users satisfaction: the measure in which the user finds the system pleasant to use. In usability literature, Powell, T, A, defines usability as the extent to which a product can be used by specific users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specified context of use. In this definition, effectiveness means the accuracy and completeness with which user achieve specified goals. Efficiency is the resources expended in relation to the accuracy and completeness with which users achieve goals, and satisfaction is described as the comfort and acceptability of use. Benbunan-Fich,(2001) Usability problems therefore refer to aspects that ake the application ineffective, inefficient, and difficult to learn and to use. The concept of usability can be defined as how well and how easily a user, without formal training, can interact with an information system of a website. Bernard et al. (1981) suggested that a 3 truly usable system must be compatible not o nly with the characteristics of human perception and action, but, most critically, with users cognitive skills in communication, understanding, memory, and problem solving. Therefore, the researcher looks usability as the overall quality result of the proposed study as being in line with usability literature. Since system perception will be viewed as the desired result by the users (how easy user interface are to use). According to the usability Engineering approach, a cost-effective way for increasing usability is to address it since the early phases of the application development. A solution for achieving this goal is to take into account some criteria. Various criteria and factors for evaluation have been so far proposed and several stud adopted it, according to Nielses heuristics. (2003) for user interface design and evaluatlon there are five dimensions need to consider; LEARNABILITY, EFFICIENCY, MEMORABILITY, FEW ERRORS, AND SATISFACTION. It also includes Shahizan Hassan FengLi, (2001) seven factors or SCANMIC gathered from various literature on web design and usability such as screen design, content, accessibility, navigation, media use, consistency, and interactivity which used by several industries and study. Also the modified version of Meyer, et al, (2009) as 25- point Website Usability Checklist which is divided only into four (4) sections such as Accessibility, Identity, Navigation, and content which is originally derived from Nielsen 113- point checklist in his book, Homepage Usability. 25-point Website Usability checklist as developed by Dr. 4 Meyer will be the instrument to use and it will be guided through the Nielsens heuristic process. The following are the sections relating to usability of the proposed system which is defined and organized by Dr. Meyer: Accessibility: the application features that support universal access by any class of users and technology. It is one of the main goals of the agency to attract as many as possible from various users, especially farmers. By the word accessible it means that users would not only to get connection to a site but also able to browse all ontents available, the higher the degree of accessibility, the higher the level of usability. The agency, farmers, agricultural expert, and other visitors might keep from being able to access the information on a website and there are three elements need to consider, first is the loading time, and second is browser compatibility and lastly the search facility because web users are impatient: they want to get their answer immediately and do not want to be slowed down by cool features, missions statements, or self-promoting grandstanding (Nielsen, 1997). 0 ntlty tne Olstlnctlve cnaracterlzatlon Delongs to an Inalvlauallty or slte. It glves clear path to the company information and makes the company purpose clear. Navigation: the act of navigating. The good navigation in a site is comparable to good road map. With good navigation users especially farmers know where they are, where theyVe been, and where they can go from their 5 current position. In short navigation is the key to making the experience enjoyable and efficient. Content: it refers to information contains One factor of content is providing clear information if what the agency being offered, the information must be accurate, reliable, and up-to-date. Also, the importance of short pages titles, meaningful headings and singed pages must be considered. 25- Point Website Usability Checklist is measured on Five Point Ranging Scale. This indicated that the value of (1) is equivalent to strongly disagree and (5) as to strongly agree. The Lickert scale Method was used in analyzing the result of the survey. Usability Figure 1. 1 . Meyers 25 Point Website Heuristic Framework Figure 1 shows the Meyers 25 Point Website Heuristic Framework. The criteria are consists of the following: Accessibility, Identity, Navigation and Content. User 6 atisfaction is obtained when the four major criteria are met. The 25 point website heuristic framework is the basis of the users in evaluating the website being developed. In analyzing the result of the evaluation 5 Point Licker Scale is used with the following qualitative rating: 5 Strongly Agree, 4 Agree, 3 Undecided 2 Disagree, 1 Strongly Disagree. 1. 3 Statement of the Objectives After a thorough analysis and investigation the researcher aimed to attain the following specific research objectives: 1. To be able to investigate the status of the current system of ISU-E campus on research consultation; 2. To be able to design, develop and implement ISU-E Research Consultation Portal for Isabela State University -Echague Campus; and 3. To evaluate the users perception on the system using the following criteria: a. Accessibility b. Identity c. Navigation d. Content 1 4 scope ana Dellmltatlon 0T tne study This study was conducted to Isabela State University Echague Campus located at San Fabian, Echague Isabela. The research started on April, 2012 and ended on November, 2012. There are 150 respondents in this study which is consists of: I. T. 7 Experts (22), CT Faculty Researchers (23), Student Researchers (98), Research Heads 2), and RDET Employees (5). This research covered the different researches conducted by graduate and undergraduate programs of Isabela State University specifically on the research consultation process conducted by the advisers. Although Isabela State University is the main school respondent of this study, the Institute of Information and Communication Technology (CT) served as the pilot college in implementing this research. Since the research includes system development, there are four users who can use the system this includes the administrator, registered students, and the guest users. The administrator has a full control over the system. It is responsible for maintaining the system, updating information of the website, validating information to be posted on the website, and creating user account to access the system. The registered user can browse the different modules of the system, Join the chat room, post comments, upload and download information such as Journal and research abstract on the website. The guest users can only browse limited information on the website. Guest users can only Join chat room, post comment, download and upload information if they sign in on the system. Isabela State University-Echague Research Consultation Portal (ISU-E RCP) covers the following information as modules of the system: Home, Researches, Journal, Publication, Services and Portal. The home module also contained sub-modules such as: Mission, Vision, History, Research Agenda, News Updates, List of Researches, Announcement and Galleries. The system is a web application system that requires internet connection to run the system. The system runs best using Fire Fox internet browser. MySQL was used as 8 the back end of the system. Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP) was used in constructing he interface of the system. The technologies used by the researcher in constructing the system were Web 2. 0, and AJAX technology. Three-tier network architecture using Star topology was used by the researcher in deploying the system. 1. 5 Importance of the Study The implementation of the ISU-E Research Information System provides new technology for the ISU-E. This study provides an avenue for the researchers to publish, promote, and maintain a repository of records of all researches conducted by the researchers. The unlimited access to the different researches of ISU-E allows the users to enhance heir basic knowledge in conducting researchers through the help of the online communication prov10ea Dy tne system. Researcn output 0T tne OITTerent researcners at ISU-E is now in a wider range of coverage in terms of publication and not only found in the library, desktop computer and office shelves but can also be viewed not only within the premises of Echague but it can be accessed anywhere as long as internet connection is available. The limited access of research information is now replaced with unlimited access time. The students form the graduate and undergraduate programs can now communicate o expert researchers using the system to do queries regarding research matters. Consultation is now easy for the students of both graduate and undergraduate program since the system is equipped with interactive features to address the problem. Researchers can easily publish their researches and Journals online for further criticisms 9 of different experts in the field for some professional insights and inclusion of relevant information for the success of the research being undertaken. Researchers and advisers can now communicate online anytime of the day for consultation purposes about the research being undertaken by the researcher. Delays in critiquing the papers in now eliminated since the adviser can easily access the manuscripts online and talk to its advisee online using the online chat room. Advisers and researchers can also upload and download information and resources to be used as reference in the research study being carried out by the researcher. 1. Definition of Terms Accessibility as used in this study, refers to the application features that support universal access by any class of users and technology. It is one of the main goals of the agency to attract as many as possible from various users, especially farmers. By the word accessible it means that users would not only to get connection to a site but also able to browse all contents available. The higher the degree of accessibility, the higher the level of usability. The agency, farmers, agricultural expert, and other visitors might keep from being able to access the information on a website and there are three elements need to consider, first is the loading time, and second is browser compatibility and lastly the search facility because web users are impatient: they want to get their answer immediately and do not want to be slowed down by cool eatures, missions statements, or self promoting grandstanding (Nielsen, 1997) Consultation as used in this study, refers to the face-to-face conversation of an adviser and the researcher as regard to thesis concerns. 0 Content as used in this study, refers to information contains One factor of content is providing clear information if what the agency being offered, the information must be accurate, reliable, and up-to-date. Also, the importance of short pages titles, meaningful headings and singed pages must be considered. ETTlclency as usea In tnls study, reTers to tne level 0T attalnaDle proauctlvlty, once he user has learned the system. Few errors as used in this study, refers to the capability of the system to feature a low error rate, to support users making few errors during the use of the system, and in case they make errors, to help them to easy recover. Graduate Research as used in this study, refers to the research output done by the researcher under graduate program. Identity as used in this study, refers to the distinctive characterization belongs to an individuality or site. It gives clear path to the company information and makes the company purpose clear. Institute of Information and Communication Technology as used in this study, refers to the institution offering IT programs which is the pilot college in implementing this research. Isabela State University as used in this study, refers to a higher education institution located at San Fabian, Echague Isabela. ISU-E Research Consultation Portal as cited in this study, refers to a Web Application Program that is used as a tool in handling research consultation of graduate and undergraduate studies. 11 Learnability as used in this study, refers to the ease of learning the functionality and the behavior of the system. Memorability as used in this study, refers to the ease of remembering the system functionality, so that the casual user can return to the system after a period of nonuse, without needing to learn again how to use it. Navigation as used in this study, refers to the act of navigating. The good navigation in a site comparable to where theyVe been, and where they can go from their current position. In short navigation is the key to making the experience enjoyable and efficient. Portal as used in this study, refers to a component of web application software that requires users account to access the different modules of the system. Research Adviser as used in this study, refers to an individual who act as research expert that criticizes and give recommendation in a research output. Undergraduate Research as used in this study, refers to the research output done by the researcher in the undergraduate program. Usability as used in this study, refers to quality attribute that assesses how easy user interfaces are to use. The word usability also refers to methods for improving easeof-use, (Nielsen, (2003). Users satisfaction as used in this study, refers to the measure in which the user finds the system pleasant to use. 12

buy custom Multinational Acquisition essay

buy custom Multinational Acquisition essay The global marketing platform is currently experiencing numerous mergers and acquisitions. Mergers usually involve companies, which can achieve more per company if united as compared to operating alone. The concerned firms may or may not be dealing in the same line of products or services (Cartwright, 2006). On the other hand, acquisitions involve complete purchase of a company by another company. This includes all subsidiaries of the acquired company, and any legal rights, entitled to the use and production of material, or use and dissemination of information, originally belonging to the acquired firm. On May 10, 2011, Microsoft announced its intent to purchase Skype for $ 8.5 billion and the deal was finalized on 13th of October, 2011 (Cartwright, 2006). In this paper, the acquisition of Skype, a Voice over Internet Protocol telephony as well as software company by Microsoft, the global leader in computer software development and sales in the year 2011, will be critically looked at . Microsoft Microsoft is a multinational company that develops a wide range of computer products, including the manufacture and licensing of computer software. It is an American Company, whose headquarters is in Redmond, Washington. The firm is the dominant manufacturer of Computer Operating Systems as well as the Office Suite markets. Recently, it has also ventured into the Video gaming market with its Xbox 360 as well as cell phone operating systems with the Windows Phone OS. Microsoft, registered on 4th of April, 1975, is owned by Paul Allen and Bill Gates. Its first operating System (OS), Xenix, was developed in 1980 and was later followed by the MS-DOS (Micro soft- Disk Operating System). In 1984, Microsoft jointly with IBM developed a new operating system, OS/2, and, at the same time, released Microsoft Windows, which was advanced from MS-DOS with graphical capabilities. It became a public company and staged its first Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 1986. Later, Microsoft developed the Wi ndows NT platform in 1993 that took the computing platform higher to 32 bit from the original 16 bit (Allan, 2001). Microsoft produced new systems, such as the Windows 95 OS in 1995, which also came bundled with new internet and networking capabilities, particularly Internet Explorer and MSN. In 1996, Windows joined with NBC Universal to start the 24 hour cable news station MSNBC. Microsoft released Windows XP operating system in 2001, followed in 2007 by Windows Vista. The company released a yet new operating system, Windows 7, in 2009. The company also launched a new version of its older Mobile phone operating system, Windows Mobile with the Windows Phone OS in 2010, which enable it to compete with rivals Apple and Google mobile applications (Cartwright, 2006). Financially, Microsoft made profits of $ 5.2 billion in Q1 of 2011, making less than Apple Inc. for the first time in 11 years. That indicates how dominant Microsoft has been in its industry. Microsoft is rated by Moodys, Standard and Poors as AAA Company with an asset base of $ 41 billion. Recently, it releases a corporate bond totaling $ 2.25 billion with relatively low lending rates (Arthur, 2011). Skype Skype is a multinational company that was originally created by Niklas Zennstrom in 2003 and acquired by Microsoft in 2011. It is software as well as an Internet communications company with an estimated more than 500 million users accounts (Ryan, 2011). It uses the Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) to enable voice and video calling worldwide. Skype calls are free to other Skype users, while calls can also be routed to the traditional phone lines and mobile phones and bills settled trough a user held debit account platform. Additional services offered through Skype are file transfer and video conferencing. It is a peer to peer network system that uses processing resources on any computer with Skype installed, raising bandwidth license issues with multiple companies and institutions. Although Skype calls and calls to mobile and landline numbers were available when the company began, the newer video calling as well as video conferencing capabilities were incorporated into Skype in 2006 for Windows and Mac OS X operating system clients. Linux OS clients received the capability in 2008. Skype version 5 beta for Windows allows video conferencing with up to 5 persons, while audio conferencing supports talks with up to 25 people. Skypes main competitors are the instant talk and messaging providers such as Google Talk, Google voice, Facetime, Yahoo messager, Windows live messager and iChat. It also has competitors in the VOIP and Telephony industry such as Ekiga and Google voice (Cartwright, 2006). Acquisition of Skype by Microsoft Microsoft expressed its interest to acquire Skype on May 10, 2011, for a total cost of $8.5 Billion. The bid was $2.5 billion higher than the amount paid by Microsoft to acquire aQuantive in 2007. While the bid to acquire Skype was definitely a positive strategy that would bring Microsoft about 660 million internet users and give it a leading position as far as internet communications and advertisement is concerned, the price Microsoft was willing to pay was way higher than the perceived current worth of Skype. Skype had earlier been acquired by eBay for $2.6 billion in 2005. In 2007, eBay gave up its 70% stake in Skype after its intended profitability through use of Skypes telephony services failed. Microsoft, on the other hand, has been experiencing losses in its online services division prior to acquiring Skype. Its online services division, which includes its search engine, Bing, has reported an $8 billion in the last six years, having been profitable the last time in 2005 (Arthu r, 2011). On the other hand, Skype had not been making sustainable profits, owing to the nature of its operations. At the time of its sale, it was relying only on its E-mail service and calls to landlines and mobile numbers for profits. It was estimated to have debts above $ 886 million, which Microsoft would assume in its purchase. In 2010, Skype had revenues of $889.8 million, and a loss of $7 million. Mobile Telecommunications operators have been reluctant to route Skype calls, owing to the competitive nature of data linked calls as compared to their expensive voice connections, a factor that further reduced its revenues. Silver Lake, a company that purchased part of Skype from eBay in 2007, made a $2 billion profit from the sale of Skype to Microsoft. The sale of Skype to Microsoft was concluded on 13th of October, 2011 in cash, making Microsoft the sole owner of Skype, and its former CEO Tony Bates becoming the president of the Skype division of Microsoft (Poletti, 2011). Acquisition Analysis The value of $ 8.5 billion, for which Skype was purchased, was famously criticized by analysts around the world as being on the higher side. Firstly, Skypes true value, as is usual with most others services companies, could not be immediately fixed. Save for its fixed assets and liabilities, the rest of its value could only be established through non-cash aspects, such as its average gross revenues, market size, and its current users. Skype had initially been purchased and partly re-sold by eBay in 2007. A 39% stake in the company was taken by Silver Lake. During the sale to Microsoft, Silver Lake annouunced that it would make $2 billion in profit. Based only on this statement, it can clearly be seen that Silver Lakes investment of $1 billion in 2007 was tripled after the sale. That means that Skypes value during its purchase by Silver Lake in 2007 was less than $3 billion or approximately 2.56 billion dollars. It had obviously grown between 2007 and 2011, and a reserved estimate for the value of its growth can be obtained, taking the following indicators Continued revenue growth of 20%, based on the market trends around the time. A rise in pre-tax operating margin to 30% in the next ten year period A decline in its cost of capital to about 10% in the next 10 years, owing to the rapid change in technological advancement. Taking these factors into consideration, it can be assumed that Skypes value at the time of sale would be about $ 4 billion. This is less than half of the amount for which it was acquired. However, other factors such as potential for growth, competitive edge status as well as its means of survival, would have led Microsoft to agree to the overrated price. It could also be true that in achieving Skype, Microsoft was little concerned with its value but was purchasing the brand name and the 633 million customers. In either case, it can be agreed that it is very difficult to obtain Skypes value and its purchase price was based largely on the buyers intended purpose upon acquisition. This was the chief challenge during the sale as well as in the financial analysis. This challenge is further amplified by the fact that Skype was a private company and was, therefore, not obligated to make public its financial and audit statements. All its perceived value approximations were based entirely on its initial sale prices and other market indicators. Intangible Assets in the Purchase It maybe agreed that Skype sale to Microsoft was more to do with good will and intangible interests that it was to do with its financial statement. Microsoft had already invested huge amounts into its internet and services division, which was running services similar to those of Skype, even during the time of acquisition (Cartwright, 2006). In addition, Microsoft also acquired the Skype logo and trademark, making it easier for customers and other users to find continuity in using Skype. Skype retained most of its employees and its headquarters. It only became a separate division of Microsoft, headed by its former CEO. Issues, related to the Acquisition After the purchase, there was a total change of ownership of Skype from its initial owners, mainly Silver Lake and eBay, to total ownership by Microsoft. There was no name change as the company only shifted its ownership. There were minor structural changes too, since most employees were retained, and the locations of its various offices were retained too (Arthur, 2011). It can be said that the acquisition did not use the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), or United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP) , which requires an organizations true position be reflected in the books of accounts, specifically the financial statement. This was partly due to the public unavailability of Skypes records as well as the nature of Skypes business, which makes it hard to fix its value (Cartwright, 2006). In conclusion, it can be seen that there is a need for companies to adequately adhere to the aspects of good governance during acquisitions. Failure to do this may lead to unsustainable growth of the concerned firms, both in the short and long-run. Buy custom Multinational Acquisition essay