The Role of the Professional Code of Ethics in Addressing Security Threats

Historically, many professional associations have viewed ethical codes as mechanisms used to establish their status professionally. This gives a way of regulating their membership in order to convince the world that they deserve to be as self regulating as possible (Aupperle 2005, p. 1057).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Role of the Professional Code of Ethics in Addressing Security Threats specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The state of self regulation depends on ways to curb unethical behavior among members. Therefore, a code combined with ethics review board emerged as the solution. This code of ethics has helped in listing possible violations and has also executed threats and sanctions to such violations. The need to execute the ethical review board has not been an easy task at all for ACM. However, they later came to realize that the act of self regulation depends or can work only if there is a consensus and crucial commitment of its members. Recently, the most crucial rationale for ethical code has been the enactment of a set of commitments of the association members. In some instances, those enactments are brought out as rules and regulations as well as ideas. However, the main social function is clarification and stating the ethical requirement that are important to the organization which is acting as a professional association (Hagen, Albrechtsen Hovden 2008, p. 377) The recent codes of ethics put more emphasis on socialization and education rather than compliance enforcement. In addition, these codes can work toward collective well being of the association even if it might be a distillation of collective reflection and experience. Moreover, a code of ethics is usually the major drive for any profession bearing in mind that professionals should be accountable to the public and by so doing; it leads to great returns when public trust is fortified.Advertising Looking for ess ay on ethics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Before exploring the major security threats that can arise from irresponsible behavior among information technology employees, we ought to concur with the submission that the final and the most crucial function of ethical code is the role it plays as a guide towards decision making by an individual and hence it can be quite ideologically helpful if incorporated in every IT firm (Hagen, Albrechtsen Hovden 2008, p. 377). To begin with, it is worth to admit that human beings were not born to be perfect. This can be supported by the fact that they use brains. Every IT firm requires human beings as members of staff for its goals to be achieved and profitable results realized. However, it happens that there arise cases related to misbehavior among employees for one reason or another. Human carelessness, harm to other employees and machines, dishonesty and untrustworthy, confidentiality, unpr ofessionalism, improper crediting of intellectual property, disrespect of other employees, unfairness and discrimination, unreliability, software risks, unauthorized access as well as conflicting interests are among the many shortcomings that may be experienced in an IT firm ( Jin, Drozdenko Bassett 2007, p. 149) Therefore, due to the employees’ shortcomings, the Association of Computing Machinery (ACN) and the Australian Computer Society (ACS) enacted codes of ethics as part of their constitution whereby all members must adhere to at all times even as they pursue their professions. In addition, members are required to be law abiding citizens and they should also act within the given code of ethics by adhering to the set values. Some of the ACS and ACM codes of ethics, values and ideals that have been subscribed to members include standards of conduct, priorities, competence, honesty, social implications, professional developments and computing competence.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Role of the Professional Code of Ethics in Addressing Security Threats specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Under the main code of ethics, an employee is required to act with high levels of professionalism and integrity whenever dealing with clients, other employees, students and the community at large. By so doing, the interests of the aforementioned parties will be achieved while realizing or attaining the goals of the company (Van, Wempe Theo 2004, p. 385). These firms accept the fact that the standard of conduct are ideal and not can be achieved. It is a practical and a common occurrence for various standards to conflict against each other in various ways. There is need to apply some degree of subjectivity bearing in mind that in any given organization, cases of etjical as well as unethical behaiour will hardly miss out Hawkey Beznosov 2009, p. 4). It is also imperative to mention that variou s cases of poor application of the given code of ethics mainly arise as a result of inadequate accountability on the part of members (Jin, Drozdenko Bassett 2007, p. 149). Finally, it is worthy to mention that according to the standard of ethics, a member is expected to distinguish between ethical and unethical practices in each particular circumstance. In any case, the application of the code of ethics should be exercised by individuals who are well versed with the rules and regulations as provided by the ethical bodies. By doing so, Intellectual properties will be credited properly (Jin, Drozdenko Bassett 2007, p. 149).Advertising Looking for essay on ethics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More These firms also share another close aspect in their codes of ethics. It is known as ‘priorities’. In other words, service should be offered to other stakeholders first before engaging in self service or interests. In other words, they are not supposed to put themselves first. Members are required to preserve and maintain continuity of computing information flow on their own (Messikomer Cirka 2010, p. 55).They are also supposed to preserve to security and integrity of every information obtained from clients. Furthermore, a member is required to advise clients or employers in case any conflict arises in course of their work. Finally, members are given priority to advise clients as well as employers whenever there are conscientious objections facing them in connection to their work. As a result of this clause, conflicting interests can be categorized as security threats among IT firms (Long Driscoll 2008, p. 173). Competence is another valuable clause that is shared amo ng the ACS and ACM IT firms. There is also dire need for members to be quite diligent in their service delivery since it is considered to be part and parcel of the ethics. In addition, the tastes and prefarances of clients must be adhered to bearing in mind that clients who are unsatisfied may lead to poor business performance in any organization. Enacting this clause in the professional codes of ethics has helped in dealing with unprofessional security threats among IT firms (Messikomer Cirka 2010, p. 55). Moreover, it is imperative to mention that honesty is a vital tool that can be possessed by either an individual or organization. With a mission to curb the IT security shortcomings that have been existing among employers, these firms considered the virtue of honesty during the enactment of IT codes of ethics constitution. Under this clause, every member is required to maintain honesty while representing skills, knowledge, services and products to clients (Messikomer Cirka 2010 , p. 55). Besides, members are strictly warned against misrepresenting their skills and knowledge but are required to provide objective and unbiased opinion. Realistic estimates for projects are mandated under their control. The professional requirements of members should also be enhanced in order to have a vast knowledge of those who are practicing in the field. In terms of credibility, they are supposed to strictly credit other people’s IT work in order to prevent unfairness and discrimination. In order to ensure that the IT security is enhanced among employers, these firms included ‘social implications’ clause in their constitution. Members are expected to strive in enhancing high quality of life to the users of their work. Moreover, employees ought to be respected at all times. This can be achieved by avoiding sentiments that may depict lack of respect or dignity. Fair treatment should be the basis of operations. Moreover, they should also offer due respect t o peoples’ privacy (Long Driscoll 2008, p. 173). Finally, the involvement of computing profession in the ACM and ACS firms plays a major role in curbing occurrence of human errors. This helps in minimizing chances of losses resulting from errors which happened without being noticed. On a basic business note, involvement of strategies of ethics remains invaluable. One of the crucial things which should not be forgotten is putting in place monitoring mechanisms. From the above credible observations, it is definite that professional code of ethics is the major foundation upon which modern organizations in computing are ethically regulated (Long Driscoll 2008, p. 173). References Aupperle, E 2005, â€Å"Information security and ethics: social and organizational issues†, Choice vol. 42 no. 6, pp. 1057-1059. Hagen, J., Albrechtsen, E. Hovden, J 2008, â€Å"Implementation and effectiveness of organizational information security measures†, Information Management Com puter Security, vol. 16 no. 4, pp. 377-397. Jin, K., Drozdenko, R. Bassett, R 2007, â€Å"Information Technology Professionals’ Perceived Organizational Values and Managerial Ethics: An Empirical Study†, Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 71 no. 2, pp. 149-159. Long, B. Driscoll, C 2008, â€Å"Codes of Ethics and the Pursuit of Organizational Legitimacy: Theoretical and Empirical Contributions†, Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 77 no. 2, pp. 173-175. Messikomer, C. Cirka, C 2010, â€Å"Constructing a Code of Ethics: An Experiential Case of a National Professional Organization†, Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 95 no. 1, pp. 55-71. Van, J., Wempe, B. Theo, W 2004, â€Å"Rethinking Organizational Ethics: A Plea for Pluralism†, Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 55 no. 4, pp. 385-393. Werlinger, R., Hawkey, K. Beznosov, K. 2009, â€Å"An integrated view of human, organizational, and technological challenges of IT security management†, Informat ion Management Computer Security, vol. 17 no. 1, pp. 4-19. This essay on The Role of the Professional Code of Ethics in Addressing Security Threats was written and submitted by user Wyatt Gibson to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

What does Hou Hsiao

What does Hou Hsiao One of the foremost features of realist editing in cinema is directors’ utilization of particularly long takes, which are meant to ensure the spatio-temporal unity of the explored themes and motifs.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on What does Hou Hsiao-Hsien achieve through the use of the long takes in the film? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Apparently, by choosing in favor of long takes, as the integral element of realist movies’ spatio-temporal structure, directors are able to achieve a number of aesthetic objectives, such as ensuring the plausibility of movies’ semantic content, providing viewers with the in-depth insight into the workings of characters’ psyche, and allowing viewers to gain a better understanding of the explored themes and motifs’ significance. Moreover, according to Bazin, viewers’ exposure to the realistically edited movies, which feature an abundance o f long takes, helps them to address their innermost psychological anxieties, concerned with viewers’ strive to preserve the spatial three-dimensionality of existence.1 As it was noted by Nitzan, ‘The long deep-focused take, enhancing †¦ three-dimensionality of objects shot in close-up†¦ satisfies spectators’ craving for the mummification of being while positioning them in such a way that they could aesthetically experience the flowing passage of objective time’2 In this paper, I will aim to explore the validity of an earlier suggestion at length, while analyzing what appears to be the significance of utilization of long takes in Hou’s 2001 film Millennium mambo. The foremost aspect of how Hou went about providing the in-depth portrayal of film’s characters is the fact that, in Millennium mambo he refrained from emphasizing these characters’ singled-out psychological traits, while allowing viewers the liberty of interpreting t hem on their own, within the context of how the characters are being shown in the process of tackling life’s challenges. In its turn, this endows Millennium mambo with the spirit of intellectual honesty. After all, unlike what it is being the case with formalist/expressionist directors, in this particular movie Hou had made a point in treating audience’s members as such that are being fully capable of defining the semiotic significance of film’s themes and motifs, without a director needing to actively ‘assist’ them, in this respect. In its turn, this leaves very little doubt as to the fact that the specifics of Hou film’s editing are indeed being consistent with Bazin’s idea as to what accounts for the extent of a particular cinematographic work’s spatio-temporal unity, which according to this French movie-critic is being reflective of the extent of director’s willingness to treat viewers as ‘existential sovereigns ’, fully capable of relying on their own sense of rationale, when it comes to defining the essentials of film’s aesthetic/semiotic appeal.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This, of course, reveals Hou as a devotee of realist editing, concerned with the absence of ‘expressionist tricks’, such as back-in-time flashbacks, the presence of abstractionist close-ups, and the deliberately undermined integrity of film’s temporal spatiality. As Totaro pointed it out, ‘Expressive editing invents meaning through juxtaposition of the images†¦This is trickery; it removes the freedom on the part of the spectator†¦ If the scene has only one simple meaning why insult the audiences intelligence with needless and obvious close-ups? Contrarily, if the scene is complex why presuppose only one meaning?’3 Nevertheless, even though there are no traces of expressionist editing in Millennium mambo, in this film Huo did succeed with revealing the whole scope of characters’ psychological traits – mainly, by the mean of ensuring the spatio-temporal soundness of characters’ ‘in-action’ representation. For example, the beginning of the movie features a rather prolonged take of Vicky walking down the sidewalk (00.02.06 – 00.04.37). Yet, despite the fact that this take is not being formally concerned with director’s intention to provide viewers with the better understanding of Vicky, as a character, by being exposed to the earlier mentioned scene spectators do in fact gain a certain insight into Vicky’s psychological constitution. The reason for this is simple – the manner in which Vicky walks (with the cigarette in her hand) implies her being a rather spontaneous person, who take life as it comes, while trying to enjoy it to the best of her ability. The watching of movie’s consequential parts does confirm the soundness of the initial insight into the essence of Vicky’s existential mode, provided by this particular scene. After all, throughout movie’s entirety, Vicky never ceases to position herself as an easy-going individual, who is being quick enough to forgive her boyfriend’s (Hao-Hao) verbal and physical abuses. As it was mentioned earlier, the realist editing, closely associated with directors’ willingness to utilize long takes, often results in endowing realistic movies with the spirit of perceptional authenticity/genuineness. The reason for this is apparent – by representing characters’ act in a spatially prolonged manner, directors encourage viewers to draw parallels between the ‘cinematographic reality’ on the screen and the reality of their every-day living.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on What does Hou Hsiao-Hsien achieve through the use of th e long takes in the film? specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Given the fact that the reality of people’s every-day living often appears rather unsightly, in aesthetical sense of this word, it does not come as a particular surprise that many of realistically edited movies’ long takes represent reality ‘as it is’, even if such reality’s cinematographic representation appears to be detached from movie’s main idea. The scene, in which Vicky and her friends socialize in the bar (00.04.49-00.10.07), illustrates the legitimacy of an earlier suggestion. After all, the main feature of this scene is that the conversations, which take place between the partying individuals, do overlap to the point of being unintelligible to the viewers. This, however, does not lessen scene’s cinematographic appeal because, by being exposed to this particular take, viewers do get the genuine sensation of how they would feel, had they found themselves among the partying young people. Just as it is being the case in Orson Welles’s film Citizen Kane, which contains a number of spatially prolonged scenes, in which characters’ conversations can hardly be heard, due to the loudly played music in the background, the ‘bar scene’ in Millennium mambo cannot be referred to as being particularly appealing, if assessed through the lenses of classical editing-methodology. As Martin suggested, ‘Hou films his dinner-table or restaurant scenes (and bar scenes, we may add) with a kind of maximum suppression of expository, explanatory information, and by the same token a maximum openness to all the instant possibilities of interrelation, of reshuffling of intersubjective identities’.4 Yet, when analyzed within the context of what represents this film’s overall semiotic significance, the spatially prolonged take of Vicky and her friends being shown in the bar appears indispen sible, as it does provide audiences with a comprehensible insight into characters’ positioning in life. Moreover, viewers’ exposure to this particular take does convince them (on unconscious level) that, unlike what it is being often the case with expressionist directors, the ideologically-charged manipulation with the specifics of their psyche’s functioning never accounted for Hou’s subtle agenda.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In the earlier mentioned take, director had left it for the audience’s members to define their own attitude to what they get to see on the screen – those who are being no strangers to socializing in the bar will be most likely to find the spirit, emanated by this take, appealing. Alternatively, moralistically minded viewers will be most likely to find the ‘bar scene’ as an implicit proof of characters’ moral depravity. However, the earlier outlined different categories of viewers will still find the ‘bar scene’ representationally honest. Apparently, Hou never ceased being aware of the foremost principle of realist editing, which presupposes the full appropriateness of cinematographic representation of reality proper. As it was noted by Wilson, ‘There is no reason why film presentation should not reflect certain aspects of the normal perceptual position. This alternative style would respect the complexity of the purely spatio-tempo ral integration of a field of action while being willing to leave, e.g., the psychological and causal integration of the action less articulated’.5 In Millennium mambo, the ‘actual reality’ appears to be the focal point of director’s attention – in full accordance with Wilson’s suggestion. The soundness of this suggestion can also be illustrated in regards to the film’s scene in which Vicky comes homes, undresses, spends some time in the shower, lights up a cigarette and ends up being annoyed by Hao-Hao’s trying to have sex with her (00.10.54-00.16.25). The whole earlier mentioned plot’s developments take place in a clearly consequential manner, with no montage cutting being applied, whatsoever. Moreover, while shooting this particular take, Hou had made a point in applying the ‘perceptually deep’ shooting-technique, made possible by director’s choosing in favor of using the camera with deep-focus lens es. In its turn, this allowed Hou to provide a clearly defined aura of three-dimensionality to the scene – even though that for duration of this scene, Hao-Hao mostly remains in Vicky’s background (in another room), viewers get to perceive him in a manner as if they happened to be physically present in Vicky’s apartment. This, of course, does add to the extent of take’s authenticity rather immensely. The same can be said about this scene’s sheer duration (6 minutes), which emphasizes the spatial particulars of a continually deteriorating relationship between Vicky and Hao-Hao. After all, as it appears from Millennium mambo, there were no many objective reasons for both characters to decide in favor of breaking up with each other for good (this is why the off-screen narrator tells that it has never taken too long for Vicky and Hao-Hao to reconcile, after having had a particular break-up). Yet, it also appears that the idea of breaking up with each o ther never ceased affecting both characters’ existential modes. The reason for this is simple – just as it is being shown in the earlier mentioned take, both: Vicky and Hao-Hao continued to co-exist in the state of an extreme psychological tension. And, it was namely by exposing viewers to the long take of Vicky and Hao-Hao dealing with their mutual annoyance of each other that the director was able to provide watching audiences with the clue as to where this tension had originated out of, in the first place. There can be little doubt as to the fact that, had Hou resorted to the classical or the expressionist editing-methodology, while striving to reveal the hidden roots of psychological incompatibility between Vicky and Hao-Hao, he would not be able to achieve the same effect. The reason for this is quite apparent – it is only when the essence of a relationship between both characters is being revealed to the viewers in a spatially plausible manner, that they c an grasp what amounted to the objective preconditions for this relationship to begin deteriorating. A good illustration to the legitimacy of an earlier statement can also serve the long-take scene in which Hao-Hao begins to grub in Vicky’s wallet and finds a long-distance calling bill, which in turn causes him to suspect her of having some affair on a side (00.33.15-00.37.38). Even though that, throughout this scene’s entirety, Hao-Hao continues to act as nothing short of a mentally deranged individual, viewers do not find Hao-Hao’s act as being utterly implausible, simply because scene’s spatio-temporal unity does help to accurately portray the subtleties of a process of an individual becoming gradually filled with the irrational anger. The foremost aspect of this process can be defined within what represents the conceptual framework of cause-effect dialectics, when one thing leads to another. After having found a long-distance calling bill in Vicky†™s wallet, Hao-Hao begins to grow ever more suspectful of his girlfriend – yet, there is a whole spectrum of emotions to this process. As it can be seen in this particular scene, Hao-Hao does try to prevent his irrational anger from taking over his rational being. However, at the scene’s conclusion, he fails at that rather miserably, while becoming enraged to the point of being ready to hit Vicky with his fist. The conversation that takes place between the two characters, heard in the scene, is helping to facilitate the extent of scene’s authenticity even further, ‘Hao-Hao: Who were you calling? Vicky: I told you, I called home! Hao-Hao: Who did you call? Vicky: I said, I called home†¦ Hao-Hao: You’d better not be lying†¦Vicky: Crazy! Why would I lie to you? Hao-Hao: I’ll fucking beat you, you know’ (00.35.48). It is needless to mention, of course, that Hou’s utilization of a continuous take (in this scene) was diale ctically predetermined, as it was the main contributing factor to ensuring scene’s spatio-temporal unity – hence, the heightened measure of this scene’s overall semiotic credibility. Nevertheless, it would be quite inappropriate to refer to Hou’s tendency to take advantage of long takes in Millennium mambo as such that is being solely concerned with director’s strive to emphasize the spatial realness of the explored themes and motifs. It appears that, by having an abundance of long takes in this particular movie, Hou also aimed to highlight the metaphysical significance of a theme of existential alienation, which is being integrally interwoven into plot’s very unraveling. There is a memorable scene in the movie, formatted as a single take, when Vicky is being shown sitting in front of the window, with viewers being exposed to the sight of passing trains outside (01.33.36 – 01.35.30). While referring to the significance of this particu lar scene, Hasumi states, ’All that is visible is a constant stream of trains passing back and forth outside the window by which she (Vicky) stands. Nothing tells her where he has gone. All she can grasp for in this foreign city is the absent shadow of his (Jack’s) treasured presence, but it has vanished into the distance’.6 It is understood, of course, that just as it is being the case with the earlier discussed movie’s scenes that feature a clearly defined spatio-temporal integrity, this particular one does help viewers to gain a better insight into Vicky’s state of mind. This, however, is not only the scene’s purpose. Apparently, while focusing camera on hotel’s window, so that viewers would get to see passing-by trains, Hou wanted to emphasize that the very passage of time results in ‘objectualization’ of people’s subjective desires and anxieties. Hence, tragic undertones to this particular scene – the p assage of time remains irrespective of how people position themselves within the reality’s spatial framework. Therefore, it will only be logical to assume that there is also a symbolical quality to how Hou went about incorporating long takes in Millennium mambo. The validity of this suggestion can be illustrated in regards to the movie’s final scene, which features a prolonged take of Yubari’s snowy street (01.38.36 – 01.39.42). Even though that there is no cinematographic action can be seen in this particular scene, it does convey the idea that the very subtleties of time’s passing naturally predispose people to continually revise their emotionally-charged attitudes towards the surrounding reality. In its turn, this idea correlates with the spirit of spontaneity, emanated by Hou’s film. The fact that Hou’s movie Millennium mambo appears to be extremely realistic may very well have to do with the particulars of director’s ethno -cultural affiliation. After all, Confucian (Apollonian) tradition does encourage its affiliates to reflect upon reality’s ‘vanishing’ emanations, as opposed to be contemplating upon how these emanations reveal the essence of some fixed ‘metaphysical’ reality, as it is being the case with Christian (Faustian) tradition, for example. Nevertheless, it would be much more appropriate to discus Hou’s cinematographic realism as such that is being reflective of his endowment of intellectual honesty and of his innate dislike of artificially sophisticate pretentiousness (the foremost feature of avant-gardist/formalist movies). In Millennium mambo, Hou positioned himself as an individual who firmly believes that, regardless of what accounts for the ethical undertones of objective reality’s manifestations, these manifestations represent the aesthetic value of ‘thing in itself’. Such Hou’s cinematographic positioning, of course, is being fully consistent with Bazin’s belief that the actual purpose of a cinematographic art is to help people to realize the full extent of reality’s aesthetic beauty ‘as it is’, without depriving this reality of its spatio-temporal unity, ‘A film form†¦ permits everything to be said without chopping the world up into little fragments that would reveal the hidden meanings in people and things†¦ without disturbing the unity natural to them’.7 Thus, it would only be logical, on my part, to conclude this paper by reinstating once again that it is namely the fact that in Millennium mambo, Hou succeeded rather marvelously in ensuring a spatial integrity of the explored themes and motifs, which accounts for this movie’s foremost aesthetic value. I believe that this conclusion is being fully consistent with paper’s initial thesis. Moreover, I believe that is namely the realist methodology of film editing, which will be inc reasingly resorted to by movie-directors in the future. The fact that, as of today, the genre of ‘auteur film’ (associated with directors’ utilization of the expressionist editing-methodology) continues to fall out of favor with the majority of moviegoers, leaves very little doubt as to the full validity of this suggestion. Reference List Adrian, M, ‘What’s happening? Story, scene and sound in Hou Hsiao-Hsien’,  Inter-Asia Cultural Studies, vol. 9, no. 2, 2008, pp. 258-270. Bazin, A, ‘The evolution of the language of cinema’, in What is cinema?, University of California Press, Berkley,1967, pp. 23-40. Hasumi, S, ‘The eloquence of the taciturn: An essay on Hou Hsiao-Hsien’, Inter   Asia Cultural Studies, vol. 9, no. 2, 2008, pp. 184-194.  Millenium mambo, [film], Palm Pictures, New York/Taipei, 2001. Nitzan, B, Film: The key concepts, Berg Publishers, Oxford GBR, 2007. Totaro, D, ‘Andrà © Bazin: Part 1, Fi lm style theory in its historical context’, Off  Screen, 2003, retrieved https://offscreen.com/view/bazin4 Wilson, G, ‘Film, perception, and point of view’, MLN, vol. 91, no. 5, 1976, pp. 1026-1043. Footnotes 1 A Bazin ‘The evolution of the language of cinema’, in What is cinema?, University of California Press, Berkley,1968, p. 36. 2 B Nitzan, Film: The key concepts, Berg Publishers, Oxford GBR, 2007, p. 13. 3 D Totaro, ‘Andrà © Bazin: Part 1, Film style theory in its historical context’, Off Screen, 2003. 4 M Adrian, ‘What’s happening? Story, scene and sound in Hou Hsiao-Hsien’, Inter-Asia Cultural Studies, vol. 9, no. 2, 2008, p. 263. 5 G Wilson, ‘Film, perception, and point of view’, MLN, vol. 91, no. 5, 1976, p. 1031. 6S, Hasumi, ‘The eloquence of the taciturn: An essay on Hou Hsiao-Hsien’, Inter-Asia Cultural Studies, vol. 9, no. 2, 2008, p. 192. 7 Bazin, p. 38.

Informative Research Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Informative Research Paper - Essay Example It seems that solar energy is more potential as compared to other renewable energy sources, because it is easily and freely available and causes less harm to the environment. In the words of Daniel Lincot, the chairman of the five-day European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference held in Valencia, solar energy can meet the energy demand of the whole world, for it is a â€Å"renewable, safe, and clean source† of energy (qtd. in Hill). This paper will suggest solar energy as the most potential alternative renewable energy source currently available, for its potential features such as infinitely free energy, no greenhouse gases, saving eco-systems, and off-the-grid energy generation. Solar Energy The most potential feature of solar energy, according to Kamat, is that it is an infinitely free energy; and this would not usually incur any additional expenses other than the initial installation and maintenance costs (2834). As compared to conventional power generation, solar energy p roduction does not require expensive raw materials such as coal, and it requires a significantly lower labor force. Solar energy generation has advantages of direct and indirect costs. To illustrate, since sun and the solar semi-conductors can do the whole work, it would trim down labor costs to a great extent. In addition, no raw materials are to be extracted and refined for the production of solar power, and hence there are no indirect costs involved. Desideri finds solar energy as the most accessible renewable energy as compared to other energy, because it is more available and free, â€Å"and it is considered such as one of the greatest technological potential areas† (298). Sunlight is distributed almost equally all across the globe although there are some seasonal and territorial variations in the availability of sunlight; it also adds to the potentiality of this renewable energy. Another notable feature of solar energy is that there are no greenhouse gases emitted durin g the solar power generation process, and therefore it contributes little to environmental issues such as global warming or climate change. In addition, solar energy does not produce any smoke or chemical byproduct that is toxic to humans. Thomas also points out how a solar thermal or photovoltaic system avoids greenhouse gas emissions (28). It is clear that today nations strive to eliminate greenhouse gases and other toxic emission so as to promote the concept of sustainable development. In this context, this green energy technology would assist governments in cutting down their environmental intervention costs and promoting environmental sustainability significantly. Furthermore, since solar energy is free from environmentally harmful emissions, solar power plants can be established in any region where high intensity sunlight is available. The United States Environmental Protection Agency proposes solar energy as the most substantial choice: Solar energy is considered environmenta lly friendly because the sun is a natural energy source that does not require the burning of fossil fuels and the associated air emissions. In addition, it is considered renewable since the energy produced from the sun does not deplete any natural resources, and will never run out†¦ Certain additional features allow the end user to continue to operate even when the sun is not shining (EPA). Finally, developing more solar energy is a better way for organizations to demonstrate their corporate social responsibility, which is a central aspect of

IT management Practices in Organisations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

IT management Practices in Organisations - Essay Example The underdeveloped system saps the managers’ ability to make informed decisions while planning for the IT, and the plans most turn out to be impracticable. â€Å"Deficiency in executing the plan formulated has led to a disjoint mode of implementation of technology† (Misra, 2006, p. 49). The system and organizational culture in SMEs is in the nascent stage and is not strong enough to address the loopholes in the organization and integration of IT in the work setup. Organizations take time to develop. In the start, one individual may represent one whole department because of human resource constraints imposed to minimize the expenditures and make the business profitable. Strategies entrepreneurs commonly adopt to limit the expenditure include but are not limited to increased manual work to save the expenditure of purchasing machines, overloading of work on the employees, more working hours, and reduced benefits for the organizational personnel. SMEs that do invest in mach ines do not have an efficient repair and maintenance system in place to ensure that the machines are fully functional all the time. A small dysfunction may take days to be fixed, which not only distorts the process of communication and drawing of information using technology, but also serves as a disincentive for the organizational personnel to rely on the use of technology to accomplish their daily tasks. As a result, there occurs a shift from machine work to the manual work, that in effect lowers the efficiency of the system as well as increases the work-load upon the employees further. Like all employees down the line, leaders are no less affected by the lack of planning and organization. Although leaders are primarily responsible for decision making as well as the planning and organization of IT, yet they are not able to achieve their optimal potential in leadership because of the resource constraints imposed by the owners of SMEs. Involvement of the CEO and the external IT expe rtise has a major influence on the success of IT management in SMEs (Thong et al., 1997). Unfortunately, most of the entrepreneurs/owners of SMEs are just rich enough to establish a new firm, and may not necessarily be qualified enough to lead the companies themselves. Like all other areas of IT management, controlling of IT is no less complicated in SMEs because of the aforementioned reasons. However, it is not appropriate to conclude that IT management in SMEs is absolutely inexistent. Although management of IT in SMEs is not comparable to that in large enterprises, yet various studies have concluded that there has occurred immense improvement in management of human resources as well as IT over the years (Suraweera, Cragg, & Mills, 2010, p. 1). Q. 2: Answer Before identifying the important practices in each of the four areas of IT management, it is customary to briefly discuss the concept of IT management as it helps in understanding the role of different departments in addition t o the IT department in the IT management. IT management is a very broad topic that covers activities that include but are not limited to the management of IT resource as a weapon of attaining competitive advantage, management of the resources of IT like the technical infrastructure and the organizational personnel, and establishment and accurate functioning of the information systems (Luftman, 2004). In the

A research on the issues of the black urban experience according to steven gregory Essay Example for Free

A research on the issues of the black urban experience according to steven gregory Essay Critical Reading Assignment #3 Chapter 5: Race and the Politics of Place Gregory, Steven (1999) Chapter 5: Race and the Politics of Place, in Black Corona, Princeton, NJ:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Princeton University Press, 109-138. The researchers conducted this study in order to challenge the depictions of the black urban experience in the media, academics, and public policy debates, which the author does frequently throughout the study. In this portion of the study, Gregory focuses on the struggles that black Lefrak City residents to disrupt the lingering stereotypes alluding to race, crime, and space in everyday politics. To conduct this research, Steven Gregory, an anthropologist, uses ethnography methods including open-ended interviews, participant observation in neighborhoods and political meetings, and archival research to collect the data used in this study. He interviews various residents and political members from this area and attends a meeting involving the Neighborhood Stabilization Committee and Community Board 4. The study takes place in the Corona neighborhood of Queens, New York, specifically in the Lefrak City are home to many African Americans residents as well as people from many other backgrounds. In this study, Gregory points out the struggles that Black Lefrak City residents had in disrupting the lingering stereotypes about, race, crime, and space in everyday politics. He explains how this area of Corona was viewed as a threat to the quality of life in the surrounding areas, which provides a link to urban decline and crime to black welfare dependency (Gregory 111: 1999). He focuses on struggles in the representation of identity and the meaning of place with the distribution of political power. As evidence, Gregory interviews and observes Edna Baskin, an African American woman eager to get involved and create a political organization to counteract these stereotypes and give black citizens from this area representation in the local politics. She establishes the organization called the Concerned Community Adults, where she would help inform residents of neighborhood issues. She faced many struggles in doing this, however, and was said to be â€Å"rubbing against the grain† (Gregory 118: 1999) while trying to promote her organization and get involved with the Community Board, made up of mostly white participants. Gregory talks about other problems this organizations faced, and the successes it achieved later on. This research has strengths in its overall comprehensiveness of the issues that Gregory is discussing. The topic he tries to tackle is very complex, and he does a good job at trying to try to explain the overall issues of the research. However, Gregory could organize his work in a fashion that is easier to comprehend that helps understand the overall concepts and issues he is focusing on in the research. He also only discusses in depth one example of the struggles that one area of this community faces. I believe that it would be interesting to instead compare the many different struggles that different areas of the community have and relate them to one another. It would be interesting to see the similarities and the differences between the different areas of this community.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder In Veterans :: Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD

For more than twenty years, Patricia Dietz, a wife of a Vietnam veteran, has suffered along with her husband the effects of post traumatic stress disorder. She has stated that, "It has changed everything; it has affected the rest of his and her life." Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is when a person is haunted by his memories so badly that it affects not only the rest of his life, but others close to him as well. Any time there is a traumatic event, physical danger, or threat or personal danger, this disorder is able to appear in ones' life (USA Today Magazine). "A key factor is the persons' response to this event, whether it happens to them or they are witnesses to feelings of intense fear, helplessness, or horror" (USA Today Magazine). "To be classified as PTSD the symptoms must last longer than one month, and usually appear within six months to a year after the event" (USA Today Magazine). Jim Dwyer describes Traumatic memories as "frozen in time, waiting to thaw" (Block, Norris). "PTSD has become a common condition among the armed forces as well as the police, and it has spread throughout society" (Fitzpatrick). "After Vietnam, PTSD appeared and was rapidly taken over from the veterans" (Fitzpatrick). There are a large number of symptoms of PTSD. The Veterans symptoms can be identical to those symptoms experienced when the actual trauma was occurring (Panzarino). "[symptoms include] May be prone to insomnia, irritability, or outbursts of anger, difficulty concentrating, and an exaggerated startled response when shocked" (USA Today Magazine). Michael Wheeler, a Vietnam veteran, is divorced because of PTSD, he was having thoughts of suicide, he couldn't handle life, he thought he was going crazy (Block, Norris). More symptoms are night terrors (dreams), flashbacks, and recurrent/intrusive thoughts of traumatic events (USA Today Magazine). "Many PTSD sufferers develop depression and anxiety or obsessive/compulsive disorder, in addition to alcohol or drug problems" (USA Today Magazine). "Of all the Wars in which Americans have fought Vietnam was without a doubt the one in which soldiers experienced the greatest psychological difficulties" (Welsh 58). In the Vietnam war the enemy didn't have a uniform, they could be hidden in with some of your allies this caused a lot of confusion and led to the saying "I wasn't really sure what was going on," and is probably the key reason why there are so many PTSD sufferers (Welsh 58). Post Traumatic Stress Disorder In Veterans :: Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD For more than twenty years, Patricia Dietz, a wife of a Vietnam veteran, has suffered along with her husband the effects of post traumatic stress disorder. She has stated that, "It has changed everything; it has affected the rest of his and her life." Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is when a person is haunted by his memories so badly that it affects not only the rest of his life, but others close to him as well. Any time there is a traumatic event, physical danger, or threat or personal danger, this disorder is able to appear in ones' life (USA Today Magazine). "A key factor is the persons' response to this event, whether it happens to them or they are witnesses to feelings of intense fear, helplessness, or horror" (USA Today Magazine). "To be classified as PTSD the symptoms must last longer than one month, and usually appear within six months to a year after the event" (USA Today Magazine). Jim Dwyer describes Traumatic memories as "frozen in time, waiting to thaw" (Block, Norris). "PTSD has become a common condition among the armed forces as well as the police, and it has spread throughout society" (Fitzpatrick). "After Vietnam, PTSD appeared and was rapidly taken over from the veterans" (Fitzpatrick). There are a large number of symptoms of PTSD. The Veterans symptoms can be identical to those symptoms experienced when the actual trauma was occurring (Panzarino). "[symptoms include] May be prone to insomnia, irritability, or outbursts of anger, difficulty concentrating, and an exaggerated startled response when shocked" (USA Today Magazine). Michael Wheeler, a Vietnam veteran, is divorced because of PTSD, he was having thoughts of suicide, he couldn't handle life, he thought he was going crazy (Block, Norris). More symptoms are night terrors (dreams), flashbacks, and recurrent/intrusive thoughts of traumatic events (USA Today Magazine). "Many PTSD sufferers develop depression and anxiety or obsessive/compulsive disorder, in addition to alcohol or drug problems" (USA Today Magazine). "Of all the Wars in which Americans have fought Vietnam was without a doubt the one in which soldiers experienced the greatest psychological difficulties" (Welsh 58). In the Vietnam war the enemy didn't have a uniform, they could be hidden in with some of your allies this caused a lot of confusion and led to the saying "I wasn't really sure what was going on," and is probably the key reason why there are so many PTSD sufferers (Welsh 58).

Segmentation, Targeting & Positioning

University of Zimbabwe Graduate School of Management *Marketing Ma*nagement Question: Kotler (1988) has stated that: â€Å"The heart of modern strategic marketing can be described as STP – segmenting, targeting and positioning. ’’ Discuss this statement using appropriate examples. Introduction Market segmentation By definition market segmentation is the division of a market into different groups of customers with similar needs. Or to express it in another way, market segmentation is the division of a mass market into identifiable and distinct groups or segments, and each has common characteristics and needs and displays similar response to marketing actions. ‘’In essence it is the process of dividing a varied and differing group of buyers or potential buyers into smaller groups, within which broadly similar patterns of buyers exist. ’’ (Wilson and Gilligan, 2007, p. 318). There are several ways in which companies can segment their markets. Just as you can divide an orange up into segments you can divide the population as a whole into different groups of people or segments that have something in common. Marketers therefore look for variables they can use to divide up the population. According to Kotler (1997) the commonly used variables are: Geographic segmentation, demographic segmentation, psychographic segmentation and behavioural segmentation. Products can be aimed at a lifestyle. People are grouped according to the way they lead their lives and the attitudes they share. For example, young professionals may drive a sports car because of the image they want to portray. Married parents might want the same things, but have to provide for their children, which is a large extra cost. They will need a family car to suit their lifestyle. Thus you will find a couple that has just married and have no children, will go for a Mazda 3, while older couples with three or so children will go for a Mazda BT-50 because it is bigger and can accommodate the whole family. However the range and variety of marketing decisions suggest that any attempt to use a single basis for segmentation may result in incorrect marketing decisions as well as a waste of resources. Thus increasingly today you will find marketing strategies combining two or more basis for segmentation of their market. TARGETING Once the firm is satisfied that the segments warrants attention there are various ways in which a firm can then target a market. The first is a single product offering. In other words, the marketer targets a single product offering at a single segment in a market with many segments. For example, British Airway’s Concorde is a high value product aimed specifically at business people and tourists willing to pay more for speed. Identifying marketing targets enables organisations to find opportunities and tap into them. It gives firms the information needed to focus on the buyers that are interested in what they have to offer. This saves both time and money in an ever-changing society. However if you pursue one segment of your target market and the demand for your product decreases, so will your financial strength. In essence, you are putting all your eggs in one basket. When your firm becomes well established in a particular market segment, it may be difficult for you to move to another segment. This may occur due to your market reputation or popularity. For example, if Lorimark HR Consultants becomes known for helping college graduates find jobs, unemployed professionals may perceive them as only having the expertise to serve that market. Another downside of target marketing may that a large segment of the population may be left out in the cold. Though demographics and segmentation might give an overall view of the intended market, consumer spending habits change greatly, depending on trends and economic factors. With society taking on more of a unisex lifestyle businesses should be careful when using for example gender to target market. An example of a product that was traditionally targeted at women and is now being targeted with variations in strategy at men is hair colouring. Men now pay particular attention to their hair in much the same way as woman. Thus target marketing should be done with extra care taking into account all factors that may have an effect on the organization’s profitability and the perception or position it wants to create in the market. POSITIONING Thus positioning is all about perception and is inextricably linked to segmentation. It cannot be defined until the market has been divided into unique segments, and target segments have been selected. As perception differs from person to person, so do the results of the positioning map. Positioning reflects the â€Å"place† a product occupies in a market or segment. A successful position has characteristics that are both differentiating and important to consumers and the characteristic may or may not reflect reality. A position is effectively built by communicating a consistent message to consumers about the product and where it fits into the market in terms of the features, performance, quality, conformance, durability, reliability, style and design — through advertising, brand name, and packaging and all the other elements of marketing mix. Kotler, 1997, p. 301) For years OK Zimbabwe has constantly and consistently bombarded the minds of consumers’ with the message ‘†¦. where your money buys you more. ’ Thereby creating in the mind of the consumer that OK has the best prices and your dollar with OK can take you a long way. Another example w ill be that of Colgate and Surf by Unilever, these products are stuck in the minds of consumers (positioned), such that if someone is buying any other toothpaste or washing powder, not necessarily Colgate or surf, they will still refer to the product as Colgate or surf respectively. It is ‘the’ product in mind of the consumers. That is positioning. What is our current position? What does the space look like – what are the most important dimensions in the category? What are the other products in that space and where are they? What are the gaps, unfilled positions or ‘holes’ in the category? Which dimensions are most important? How do these attitudes differ by market segment? What position do we want to have? Some of the positioning opportunities for a product include: Finding an unmet consumer needs – or at least one that is not being adequately met now by completion? Identifying product strength that is both unique and important. Determining how to correct a product weakness and thereby enhance a product’s appeal. For example Ponds â€Å"new and improved†. Changing consumer usage patterns to include different or additional uses for the product. Identifying market segments, which represent the best targets for a product. How do we create a new positioning? Physical product differences. Communications- finding a memorable and meaningful way to describe the Positioning is not what you do to a product; ‘positioning is what you do to the mind of the prospect’. (www. s-m-a-r-t. com/Exp_brandpros. ) Accessed 3 September 2009. Other questions that the marketer should contend with in terms of positioning are: whom do I have to defeat to own the position, do I have the resources to do it, can I persist until I get there and are my tactics supporting the positioning objectives I have set. The positioning map below will show how the motor industry positions their products in the market. Positioning map: +High (price) From the above positioning map it can be concluded that products tend to bunch in the high price/low economy (fast) sector and also in the low price/high economy sector. There is an opportunity in the low price/low economy (fast) sector. Maybe Hyundai or Kia can consider introducing a low cost sport saloon. However it is all down to the perception of the market about the product. Conclusion Undertaking a Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning process is probably one of the most important processes management should undertake both at the onset of a new offer creation as well as part of a periodic revision of the portfolio of offers and strategies used by organization. A market research is always the starting point in the STP process; otherwise the organizations resources will be misdirected. References: Aaker A. David, (1995). Strategic Market Management, 4th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Armstrong J. Scott, (2006). Strategic Marketing Management – A Business Process Approach. Brand pros available at http/www. s-m-a-r-t. com/Exp_brandpros. Accessed 3 September 2009. Grahame Dowling, (2004). Creating Corporate Reputation. Identity, Image and performance. Oxford University Press Inc. Kotler P, (1997). Marketing Management, Analysis, Planning, Implementation and Control, 9TH Edition, Prentice Hall. Malcolm H. B. McDonald, (1996) Marketing Plans, How to prepare them how use them, 3rd Edition, Butterworth-Heinemann. Wilson and Gilligan