Project Management for Information Systems Essay examples -- Business

Project Management for Information Systems Abstract Information systems (IS) projects are vulnerable to resource cutbacks and the increasing complexity of systems and advances in information technology make finding the right personnel difficult and the associated development costs high. Good project management is essential for success. Some alignment methodologies include IBM's business systems planning (BSP), Robert Holland's strategic systems planning, James Martin's (1989) information engineering and method/1 from Anderson Consulting. Critical success factors (Rockart, 1979) methodology focuses on identifying key information needs of senior executives and building information systems around those key needs. Williams, (1997) identified four steps to system planning. Earl (1989) proposed five alternate strategy frameworks which project managers should consider when deciding how the system will enhance the business function. Standard business strategy methods are used to identify such opportunities by using: value chains, application searching and information analysis (Earl 1989). Project managers may decide that major changes to business processes may be required. Change management is important for project managers and business leaders, starting at the project phase and continuing throughout the entire life cycle. Employees need training to understand how the system will change business processes. Technology factors relate to the system software, support for legacy systems and the IT infrastructure on which the system will be put on. Information systems are powered by information technologies which need to last throughout the system development life cycle. Introduction The responsibility for achievin... ...Manufacturing Systems, 5, 1, 31-8. - Rockart, J.F., 1979, "Chief executives define their own data needs", Harvard Business Review, 57, 2, 81-93. - Rosario, J.G, 2000, "On the leading edge: critical success factors in ERP implementation projects", BusinessWorld, Philippines. - Scheer, A, Habermann, F, 2000, "Making ERP a success", Communications of the ACM, 43 , 3, 57-61. - Sumner, M, 1999, "Critical success factors in enterprise wide information management systems projects", Proceedings of the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS), 232-4. - Wee, S, 2000, "Juggling toward ERP success: keep key success factors high", ERP News, http://www.erpnews.com/erpnews/erp904/02get.html. - Williams, L.T, 1997, â€Å"Planning and managing the information system - a manager's guide†, Industrial Management & Data Systems Volume 97 Number 5 1997 pp. 187-191 Project Management for Information Systems Essay examples -- Business Project Management for Information Systems Abstract Information systems (IS) projects are vulnerable to resource cutbacks and the increasing complexity of systems and advances in information technology make finding the right personnel difficult and the associated development costs high. Good project management is essential for success. Some alignment methodologies include IBM's business systems planning (BSP), Robert Holland's strategic systems planning, James Martin's (1989) information engineering and method/1 from Anderson Consulting. Critical success factors (Rockart, 1979) methodology focuses on identifying key information needs of senior executives and building information systems around those key needs. Williams, (1997) identified four steps to system planning. Earl (1989) proposed five alternate strategy frameworks which project managers should consider when deciding how the system will enhance the business function. Standard business strategy methods are used to identify such opportunities by using: value chains, application searching and information analysis (Earl 1989). Project managers may decide that major changes to business processes may be required. Change management is important for project managers and business leaders, starting at the project phase and continuing throughout the entire life cycle. Employees need training to understand how the system will change business processes. Technology factors relate to the system software, support for legacy systems and the IT infrastructure on which the system will be put on. Information systems are powered by information technologies which need to last throughout the system development life cycle. Introduction The responsibility for achievin... ...Manufacturing Systems, 5, 1, 31-8. - Rockart, J.F., 1979, "Chief executives define their own data needs", Harvard Business Review, 57, 2, 81-93. - Rosario, J.G, 2000, "On the leading edge: critical success factors in ERP implementation projects", BusinessWorld, Philippines. - Scheer, A, Habermann, F, 2000, "Making ERP a success", Communications of the ACM, 43 , 3, 57-61. - Sumner, M, 1999, "Critical success factors in enterprise wide information management systems projects", Proceedings of the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS), 232-4. - Wee, S, 2000, "Juggling toward ERP success: keep key success factors high", ERP News, http://www.erpnews.com/erpnews/erp904/02get.html. - Williams, L.T, 1997, â€Å"Planning and managing the information system - a manager's guide†, Industrial Management & Data Systems Volume 97 Number 5 1997 pp. 187-191

We Need Automatic Voter Registration Now :: Politics Political Essays

We Need Automatic Voter Registration Now    Political participation should not plummet in the new millennium. Young people should automatically become registered on their eighteenth birthday. With all of the new technology our now it should be able to be done. All babies are given social security numbers shortly after birth. From this procedure every individual should be registered to vote on their eighteenth birthday.    Every young person enrolled in high school should be required to take and pass a current government class that teaches the student about the current government laws and political offices and who holds the current positions. If this is done no one should have the excuse not to vote because they don't know who to vote for or who the candidates are. Keeping the young informed and involved in politics and the politicians and their views can only help in getting them to vote and stay involved.    The voting age should not be lower than 18 years of age. Voting is an earned privilege and is given to mature individuals who want to make a difference in their lives. To vote for the candidate that will best serve the office in which they are elected is what young people should look forward to. Every eligible person should want to participate in making a difference in the country in which they live. Everyone young or not should be provided with: all of the information on all political offices that are to be voted on; what the person elected to the office is responsible for and the qualifications it takes to obtain the position; and, what the position is supposed to accomplish for the well being of the citizens.    Keeping lines of communication open for everyone is another way of helping voters to encourage voters to exercise their rights to vote. Keeping the ballots simple and uncomplicated also is great help to the young and elderly. Making sure the voting day and the voting hours are suitable to all working people with odd shifts easy to get to vote.    The absentee ballots that are available are also a great idea for people who can not get to the polls on Election Day. Keeping things simple and uncomplicated are ways to help young people to use their rights to vote and make a difference in this political world.

Treatment of Ethnic Minorities by Nazi Germany Essay -- Papers

Treatment of Ethnic Minorities by Nazi Germany Hitler hated three kinds of people- Jews, communists and democracy and in his view they were all connected. Hitler believed that the Aryan people were the master race, and most of theses people were Germans. He believed that Jews were an "inferior species". He believed that what the Jews believed in was spreading and crushing Germany. Anything Jewish was wrong. He spoke of a myth that the Jewish bankers planned to break down the financial system and that this was a reason that war broke out in 1914. Hitler hated Bolshevism (communism) because he saw it as a Jewish belief. The Jewish founder, Karl Marx, set out to break the world politically, just as the Jews were breaking it racially. Hitler believed that the reason why communism had taken over in Russia was because most of Russians were Slavs, who just like the Jews were a sub-human species. Hitler called the Slavs rabbit people, only here to reproduce, but unable to organize themselves. That's why Hitler admired Stalin for turning such a degraded form of people into a nation. IN Hitler's book Mein Kampf, he said that it was Germany's job to be the saviour of the Aryan race by killing all the Jews and seizing the Slavs land of the East. This was the goal of the National Socialists. Hitler believed that democracy was a product of the Jews. That's why he believed it was such a weak political system. He didn't believe in compromise and so he thought it lacked purpose. If democracy were to be allowed in Germany it would wreck the whole country and prevent it from it's destiny. When Hitler came to power he got rid of the whole de... ...en's book and is primary evidence. The source was produced in 1938. The Nazi's must have produced this anti Jewish picture for the children to use as part of their propaganda. The source was produced in Germany. The source was produced as a use of propaganda. They fed children's minds to believe that Jews were bad so that they would go home and tell their parents. This source is biased as it shows what the Nazi's wanted life to be like. They wanted the Jews to leave. It shows the Jews in a bad way, it shows them mocking the other children. They are shown sticking their tongues out at the Germans and pulling out their hair. The German girl is pure German with feminine features and the Jewish boy is trying to wreck that by ripping out her hair and making her look bad. This is how Hitler saw things not how the people did.

Crime Scene Investigation

Research Paper: Crime Scene Investigation (first draft) If a murder, a homicide and or a suicide occur, the crime scene investigator(s) collects the clues and evidence that will be analyzed by the forensic scientist(s) which can lead them to their suspect(s). The purpose of a Crime Scene Investigation is to help victims find justice. When a crime has been reported, the responding officer and/or detective have to note the dispatch information such as address/location, time, date, type of call, parties involved. The officer(s)/detective(s) have to be observant when approaching, entering and exiting a crime scene such as look, listen and smell.Next thing they have to do is to secure the crime scene. Officers have to scan the area for sights, sounds and smell that may cause danger to personnel and other individuals such as gasoline and explosives. They also have to survey for any dangerous civilian around the scene and control the situation. If there are any dangerous civilian, officer w ill immediately call for back-up and while the officer(s) are waiting for the back-up, they have to handle the situation thoroughly. They would first position the â€Å"Crime Scene DO NOT CROSS† tape around the perimeter, this allows authorized personnel to cross the area of the crime scene.Following this procedure will preserve the scene with minimal contamination. Officers and detectives have to be alert and attentive about their surroundings. The detective(s) have to identify all the individuals around the crime scene. They have to identify the witnesses and secure them. Identify possible suspects and secure them and also separate them from the witnesses. They also secure and separate the victims/family/friends and show compassion to them. They must also exclude the media, bystanders that are just watching what is going on and the law enforcements that are off duty.When the crime scene investigator(s) arrive at the crime scene, they have to do a â€Å"walk-through†. Investigators have to avoid contaminating the crime scene by using the established path of way. They have to make sure that before they entered the crime scene, nothing in the scene should have been moved. While they are going through a walk-through, they may have to construct theories about what happened in the crime scene based on visual examination. Investigators have to take photographs of the scene and will later on be collected. Taking photographs of the scene will help them solve the crime ecause there are some points of the investigation that investigators may have overlooked evidence, and that evidence could be found in the photographs. After taking photographs of the scene, they will start to collect clue and evidence that may lead them to their possible suspect(s). What they may find in the crime scene are fingerprints which can be done using colored powder and a brush, other thizngs such as blood, firearms, hair, glass and many more things that can be found in the crime scenes. After doing their job in he crime scene, the evidence they took will be taken to the forensic scientist.Crime scene investigators will look at the photographs and connect their theories based on the crime that occurred. The forensic scientists will also examine the victim’s clothes, while the medical examiner will analyze the victim’s body for more clues and evidence that they may find and they will all be doing this in the crime lab. The things they may find could be hair, fiber, semen, blood, another person’s DNA, bruises and many more. After the forensic scientists have done their job, they will give their report to the crime scene investigators. Just if he forensic scientists could not find any trace that can lead them to their suspect, then the investigators have to go back to the crime scene and find fore more clues and evidence that could help them. The new evidence will be taken to the forensics for them to be examined. When the crime scene inve stigators receive the report from the forensic scientists, they will invite their possible suspect(s) for questioning or if they could not reach the suspect, they could question the suspect through the phone. After this, the investigators need to go to the suspect(s) place.The investigators may ask the suspect(s) about the victim on what they know about the crime and may also ask for names that are may be connected to the crime that occurred. If it may also help, investigators and detectives may ask the victim’s family, friends, co-workers or anybody who knows the victim that could help them solve the crime that was committed. Investigators may ask them if the victim has enemies that may want the victim to be killed. The crime scene investigators will do the same procedure until they get the right person who committed the crime and be placed in jail.The suspect may still deny what is being accused of committing a crime and asked for a lawyer, the investigators and witnesses h ave to be prepared with strong evidence so that they can place the suspect in jail and pay for the consequences from what the suspect has done. When the crime scene in no longer needed to be processed for any evidence, the crime scene cleaners/Biohazard Technicians will start to clean the scene. They have to clean the place like nothing happened. Like gathering all the blood, brains and bugs then casting them in the extractor.What the extractor does is kill to the bacteria in bodily fluids with a special enzyme. They also need to eliminate the horrible smell in the scene and may have to cut off things like the mattress, curtains and many more. The crime scene cleaners are dedicated to assist the law enforcement, public service agencies and property owners/managers in restoring property that has been contaminated as a result of crime, disaster or misuse. If there’s a murder, a homicide or a suicide, the CSI investigators are to call.In Crime Scene Investigation a lot of things will happen, but mainly it is about collecting physical evidence. The process of what be revealed at a crime scene is very difficult. It involves a number of different searches and collections that help to solve a crime. After solving the crime, this means that the victim received justice for that happened to them. No body deserves to die and no body has the right to kill someone. Being a crime scene investigator is a hero, they used their knowledge for good reason and not for bad. The good reason is solving a crime that should have not happened.Work Cited Crose, Nicholas. â€Å"Extreme Careers: Detectives : Life Investigation Crime†. New York: Rosen Central, 2003. Print Cooperman, Stephanie. â€Å"Extreme Careers: Biohazard Technicians†. New York: Rosen Central, 2004. Print â€Å"Encyclopedia of Careers and Vocational Guidance†. New York: Ferguson, 2005. Print Murdico, Suzanne J. Extreme Careers Forensic Scientists: Life Investigating Sudden Death. New York: R osen Central, 2004. Print Technical Working Group on Crime Scene Investigation. †Crime Scene Investigation: A Guide for a Law Enforcement†. January 2000. Web. December 12, 2009

Making Sustainable Large-Scale Change Possible: The Ontario Experience Essay

Whoever said that the only constant thing in the world is change is indeed a sage. That person could have acknowledged the statement based on personal experiences. Everything in the world changes from time to time- persons, government and even the climate. Changes are staple events in the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Changes often come as surprises. On organizational level, change could come as a way of intervention which may bring forth negative or positive consequences. The world today is filled with movements of people clamouring for change. The daily news in the television flash with headlines on citizens calling on their governments for reform; students protesting on the streets to demand democracy; environmentalists and animal-rights advocates asking for ban on chemicals; and so on. Practically, people yearn for change in their personal lives, work, laws, and in the government.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The education sector in some countries goes for change, too. In Ontario, Canada an overhaul in the public education system took place to address the problems plaguing the system.   Levin (2007) summarized the change as a strategy which serves as â€Å"an example of large-scale change in education that is respectful of educators, fair to students and communities and based on the best available knowledge† (p. 323).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The education system in Ontario, Canada suffered from setbacks since early 1990s due to government measures imposed (Levin, 2007).   There were reductions in staffing levels and increased in teachers’ workloads. Consequently, these yielded labour strikes, dissatisfaction and low-morale among the teachers. Levin reported that during the late 1990s, a change in the government system took place which adversely affected the education system. Local school districts were reduced to half, school principals were taken out of the teachers’ union and significant amount of funding was cut. Teachers took the brunt of these changes as the government then was deemed as critical of public teachers and schools.   Levin cited that the people were unhappy and dissatisfied with the public education system.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Canada’s 2003 election changed the educational atmosphere as it became the rallying cry of the Liberal Party, which won the election. Levin pointed out that the new government crafted new strategies (dubbed as the Literacy and Numeracy Strategy and the Student Success Strategy) in late 2003 to solve the problem of public education.   These have two main goals: to improve elementary school literacy and numeracy outcomes and increase high school graduation rates.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Now on its almost fifth year of implementation, the strategies proved effective. The Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat of the of Ontario’s Ministry of Education reported the following accomplishments through its 2006 Project Report, Making It Happen:   improved overall provincial rate of 64% for reading, writing and mathematics in Grade; about 17,000 schools improved by five or more percent in their Grade 6 reading scores; over 2000 schools got better reading scores among Grade 3 students; while 900 schools did better on both the Grades 3 and 6 reading scores.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Moreover, Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat reported in 2007 that the number of schools with very low performance dropped by three-fourths. Graduation rates rose by fiver percent, from 68% to 73% in school year 2005-2006. Levin wrote that there have been an obvious level of energy and enthusiasm and the number of teachers leaving the profession or opting for early retirement was reduced. Insight from Basic System Approach on the Ontario Case   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Ontario experience is one example of how a system works. From the previous lesson, Owens (2004) explained the interrelatedness of subsystems and the multiple causations. The problems of education in Ontario in the 1990s directly hit the teachers. These problems caused serious effects on the quality of education. In turn, the students were affected as they struggled with difficulties on subject areas such as reading and mathematics. Since Ontario is a highly-diversified province, students who are children of immigrants were also knocked down by the problems within the system.   One can see, as Owens emphasized, that the multiple causation of problems and solutions directly affect the whole system. My personal analysis is: as a system, the problem of one minute part ripples through the whole system, contributing to its downfall once left unguarded.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Ontario problem back then was caused by a change in the political leadership and system. Decisions imposed upon the teachers from the authorities led to successive breakdowns in the public educational system. Ultimately, Levin said that most parents lost their confidence in public education and resorted to private enrolment.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Reading through Levin’s article, I could say that the principles behind the continuing success of the Ontario public education system are consistent with our lessons and previous reading. Ontario is a success story; a model which is worth emulating.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Nevertheless, one may wonder: is the Ontario experience transferable? Can it be duplicated to other provinces within Canada and to other countries as well?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I should say that the Ontario experience is unique; for every situation is different from the rest. Many factors contribute to its situation such as the political, economic, cultural, and social atmospheres.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   But, despite of the given unique conditions, the strategies can be also applied to smaller systems on a case-to-case basis. Strategy such as reducing classroom size and student mentoring are very pragmatic. Likewise, the principles of participation, consultation and evaluation are quite universal which for me, makes the Ontario project can be reproduced or duplicated to other schools provided that the socio-political and the cultural aspects are integrated. I believe good practices are worth following and must be contextualized to ensure its effectiveness. It must also be sustained. Lessons Learned from the Ontario Experience   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Ontario example is a case which highlights the necessity of change. It demonstrates the power of change to generate positive results which impact the whole system.   There are significant lessons which we can pick from the article. Personally, I gained from reading Levin’s work.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first lesson that struck me is the complexity of the educational system. Education is really indispensable to a country that it takes a government policy to influence the whole system. A government’s decision or ruling on the educational system either build or ruin a country. Countries count on their education department for productive, patriotic and loving citizens; good citizens are profitable to a country. I also realized that a government initiative is very powerful as it demands implementation and obedience from its constituents as compared with a grass-root level or city-level proposals. Political influence and leadership make the implementation of projects or programs more smoothly.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I also appreciate the consultation aspect of the Ontario project. I learned that consultation has benefits. Consultation is a venue where the voices of the concerned parties are heard. By this, there is representation. The suggestions of the parents and teachers are heard. As I ponder through the case, it came to me that consultation is one factor which makes a school system successful.   After all, parents and students are the clients of a school. Their voices must also be tapped for the proper implementation of school projects. Consulting the parents on their children’s concerns and inquiring them on issues are part of our profession as teachers or educators.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another particular lesson is the relevance of partnership. Levin discussed that the Ministry of Education forged partnerships with different local school boards for the implementation of the two strategies. The educational system has many stakeholders and they must be acknowledged and won over.   Through partnership, relationships are formed, allowing for a better working environment.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The reading taught me also that test and accountability matters. Like what the Ontario example demonstrated, tests are very important to measure the success of educational policy. Tests also work as gauges which measure the success of students. I was impressed by the fact the Ontario’s Ministry of Education directed its provincial and district offices to report on the public the progress indicators of the students.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There is no such thing as a complete or perfect program, as what I have reflected from the article. The Ontario experience is not without flaws. Levin wrote that the teachers feel overwhelmed by the tasks. There are challenges for every change or new programs to be implemented. There are always detractors and encouragers within a system. A program can be accepted or scorned. Either way, it is an inescapable reality.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In relation to change, it does not happen in an instant. It is not an overnight function. A change in the system may mean years of implementation. Time can only aid and sharpen its implementation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Lastly, to recognize the skills and the capabilities of the teachers is one winning factor in education. The Ontario problem commenced because of the government’s bias against the public school teachers (Levin, 2007).   Teachers are major stakeholders in the educational system; thus, there’s a need for acknowledgment and incentives. Teachers are important assets; therefore, they must be treated as invaluable human resource to the system. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The strategies adopted by the Ontario Ministry of Education proved to be successful. Sustainable, large-scale projects can be a tough challenge but if all the systems are in agreement to it and proper delegation of work is done, it can become a pleasurable job and a welcomed change. Ontario has set an example; my conviction follows: impossible ideas can be realized if the stakeholders within the system are united. Bibliography Levin, B. (2007). Sustainable large-scale renewal. Journal of Educational Change, 8, 323-336. Owens, R. G. (2004). Organizational behavior in education: Adaptive leadership and School Reform. Boston MA: Allyn & Pearson, p. 19-21. Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat. (2007). Making it happen. Toronto: Ontario Ministry of Education. Retrieved April 11, 2008, from http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/makeithappen.pdf. p. 14

Finding the best use for degraded lands in western India Essay

This research paper takes into account different approaches for the use of land in the Western Ghats located on the west coast of India. First of all we will see how this research will use the information that is coming ahead in order to decide which approach should be taken into account. This needs answers and justifications that make an alternative better then the others. Whatever alternative me take upon, first thing first, we need to analyze and enlist both the negative and positive points separately so that we are in a better position in order to make a decision on the behalf of the entire community. Then we need to see weather the alternative that is being implied is cost efficient which means that weather the cost incurred on the implementation of the programme does generate benefit to the community at the same magnitude (Prasad, 2002). A cost benefit analysis is to be don’t in order to see weather the investment on such a programme is beneficial or is a mere waste of money because at this situation, both the people and the government cannot take any risk regarding any such relief programme for which people have been waiting for so long. In continuation to this approach, people of this area are anticipating a long-term solution to their water shortage problem, they want their problem to be solved in the same tenure of the government, without any further time lags, and also they want a solution that they can run themselves even after the administration changes. This is because a system being there and not having adequate resources or authentication to operate is just a mere waste of money and no use to the inhabitants of this village. (Prasad, 2002). The approach that we select through this research paper should be focused on more crop cultivation by the farmers of this area so that they can earn more revenue out of it and hence improve their standard of living. (Prasad, 2002) The area that has been discussed in this research paper is the eastern flank of the Western Ghats in Mahrashtara, India. This area spreads over 180000sq kilometers and is one of the 34 global biologically diversified places. With 30% of all the mammals, plants, fishes and birds in the entire country, the land only comprises of 6% of the total area of the country. This area holds great significance due to its richness in different type of medical that are used in bioengineering research methods and other medicines that we use daily. (Verne, 1999) The area is also known to be one of the richest due to its biodiversity. Moreover this area is also known for having centuries old heritage, values, culture and norms that are still practiced widely among the villagers. Apart from biodiversity, the area has some rich cultural and religious backgrounds which make them stand in the league of highly diverse cultures. They have different rituals norms and values which had led to the creation of separate religious sections which in turn affects decision making at the personal level and hence on the political front. Although, different cultures have brought diversity into the area, the main point over here is to keep them work together so the natural habitat for the endangered species can be saved and the area could be developed in order to protect the biodiversity of the area. (Bull, 2006) The social condition of the area is pathetic as the government officials are notoriously slow in providing the basic services like clean water, schools, hospitals, banks and other recreational services. Lack of the basic amenities of life makes living of the local’s tough which in turn slows down the economic progress of the area. (Bonelle, 2005) Analyzing the topographical situation of the, the area has a mountainous terrain. It receives annual rainfall of around 200-600mm. The rain fall has cycles which vary between two or three months and normally occur between the period of June and September. Lack of water storage facilities makes water a scarce resource because all of its gets dried up in the extreme weather of May and June so there is a dire need of conservation of water. (Bull, 2006) The agriculture sector consists of rice as the only cash crop of this area which is cultivated in the monsoon season starting from June to September. Other crops like grains and pulses are grown after the cash crop is harvested. The fate of the growth of other crops depends on the soil fertility of the left over soil (after being used for sugar cane). Dearth of water coerces farmers to apply expensive fertilizers to keep soil fertile but they are unable to use them due to their exorbitant costs. In turn, these poor farmers have to settle for low quality natural fertilizers like dead leaves, ashes and cow dung which are procured from neighboring areas including other villages and localities. (Verne, 1999) There are three options or alternatives we have to offer to improve the situation of the local inhabitants by lessening their problems and improving their current state of affairs. The alternatives are: 1. A water pipe line to be made in association with the sugar cane mill so cane could be grown in the area. This solution is not a unanimous one but it is suggested by the local politicians who represent the district and federal government. In this way the cultivated sugar cane will earn a handsome amount of revenue to the local population; will bring in water from far flung areas and will also serve the demand of sugar mill. In the long term, it will attract investment for other mills to be set up in the area which would bring in prosperity in the locality as it will create more jobs in the area. 2. Best practices to be adopted from neighboring areas such as Aloke Taluka. Copying the solutions applied to similar problems in other areas shall be beneficial as it would made the conditions of local better, both economically and financially. 3. Lastly, what we can do is just to leave the plan as it is and look for a better venture because no other solution seems to be viable for a problem of this nature. Tackling the last problem first, if no heed is paid to the current problem, it would not harm the county itself except to the cause of biodiversity conservation. These Western Ghats have inhabitants of around 400 – 500 households only which not even contribute to a single percent in the GDP of the country. If we just look it from a different prism, we see that there are other lot of issues left to be dealt with so savings mammals and other endangered species is a good idea but not on the expense of already deprived humans who are dying due to insufficient calorie intake and earn less than 1$ a day which does not satisfy their daily needs. We all are aware of the fact that more than half of India’s population lives below the poverty line and have no nutritious food at their disposal. (Lewis, 2004) Apart from this all, doing nothing on providing water to the locality, it would serve as a push factor for villagers to leave this place and migrate to cities where they can earn good living and can live happily. Global warming is also playing its role as the amount of rain fall is has decreased over the time and the future seems to be bleak too as there would hardly be any sufficient rainfall in years to come. (Lewis, 2004). Secondly, copying the viable and practical practices adopted by Aloke Taluka village is something worth to ponder on. The topography of both the villages is more or less the same so the experience gained in one area will certainly help us out in making strategies on the other area. It would make us analyze and learn what their residents have done for the uplift and development of the village. (Verne, 1999) The village of Aloke Taluka has a very fascinating and captivating programme to conserve water. It is something worth analyzing because it shows the desire by the inhabitants of the area to conserve water as it is a scarce resource for them. The project was initiated with the assistance and collaboration of Windsor University of Canada and the cooperation of local government body. The main mission behind this program was to devise strategies which would pool in water from every possible place (mainly in the areas where the water gets wasted), turning it into a huge reservoir (Lewis, 2004) The land on which the agriculture takes place, had never been used before for this purpose so it remained rich and fertile which resulted in extra yield. Terraces were also built on the tops so to prevent water from running off the slopes and to stop soil erosion too. Another interesting way to conserve water was to store water from the roof sheds of the houses. In this way, water was used in kitchens and for gardening purposes. Aquifers were made in a traditional way so water could be stored in it. (Lewis, 2004)Various other contour bunds, damns and nalla bunds were built with the traditional designing and low excavations include ponds and trenches. These trenches were made at 90 degree to the slop of the hills to stop the runoff water and the rich fertile soil from the surface. Waste from farms was taken to field to make soil fertile. It mostly included cow dung and dead leaves. The elder generation of the village has also set up a committee in the area where meetings are held on the regular basis to talk about and converse things related to the farming practices. (Lewis, 2004). They believe that in the order they carried out their farming practices were far better than today’s as it yielded good results. These ‘nitty gritty’ and tips full of wisdom can only be found in the talk with the elderly men, can not be found in books. They train and coach their fellow farmers who always get something important to learn from them related to the field of farming. To give an example, there is a tree which is admired, valued and honored by the local community. On snooping it further, it was found that that type of a tree always grows in those places where table is closer to the surface, so the land can be dug out to bring out water easily. This research helped a lot as it uncovered many wells and springs located in the area. The main advantage of this knowledge is that it makes researchers think for more sound and viable solutions. It makes them consider natural fertilizers available in the area like cow dung, burned leaves, ashes of left crop etc. (Lewis, 2004)The awareness of using clean water for the fields and live stocks brought many benefits for the village. Before its knowledge people were of the view that they can come with good amount of yield with any kind of water, whether it is dirty or clean. Now when they were made aware of the repercussions of the dirty water, they demand clean water as crops yields more, live stock remains healthy and copious amount of milk is being produced. This also had an overall positive effect on the hygiene of the village as they are getting healthy things to eat without any toxic or unhygienic elements in it. Notion of crop rotation is also practiced over there. It was first started in 16Th century and its main purpose was to give the fields some rest in order to gain some nutrition and minerals so it could give better yield in the next harvest. (Jeffery, 2001). . The disadvantages associated with this solution are also there. First of all they are dealing with the kharif crops and no other cash crops are added to the carts. Also, electricity and gas supply is required for sugar mill to start operating and until its availability to the area; the sugar mill unit can not be set up. Moreover, the water supply is not ensured as there is no permanent canal in the area and it can be a big problem if rainfall cycle gets disturbed. (Jeffery, 2001) Tackling the very the first option of bringing the pipe line, the local representatives who have say in both the federal and district government came up with the proposal of bringing in water from a British made dam located 8km from the area through a pipe line in cooperation and collaboration of Sugar Mill. Seeing from the planner’s point of view, taking water from the neighboring dam will give a respite to locals from importing in costly water tankers from the dam. (Jeffery, 2001) One major positive point behind the whole project is that no hill slopes modifications are required for the construction of pipe line. If we scrutinize the positives of the project more closely we come to a conclusion that water pipe line is always imperative for a locality that is underprivileged due to the insufficient supply of water for most of the year. So in this regard if direct access of water is given to the village, it will not only be used for agricultural purposes but also for the domestic use too. Water is the basic necessity of life so ease of its availability will certainly improve hygiene conditions of the locals. Most of the diseases which pop due to insufficiency of water shall be wiped out due to its supply. Most of all, water will bring in development in the locality as more people will be attracted to the place which would in turn lead to the social development of the area too. (Lewis, 2004). Sugar cane is a cash crop, so cultivating it will for sure help locality to raise its standards from the past. Growing sugar will also exert a pull on Sugar Mill owners to set up their plants near the area so they can procure the crop as soon as it is ready. This would bring in employment for the villagers which would raise their income levels and thus will increase economic activity in the area. Extra revenues will lead to more investments in markets in the village which also include purchase of new land, making of new shops and stores etc. (Wirthman, 2001) If we see the dark side of the picture, one can harbinger that in times to come the plan does not seem to be working efficiently as it is meant to be. First of all, pipe line is not going to generate enough employment for the village which would give the locals a cushion against their financial problems. Moreover when pipe line is completed, villagers will realize that it was a momentary bonus for them as this job was not there on permanent basis. (Wirthman, 2001) Looking at the cultivation of the sugar cane itself, we find out that the farmers from that locality have a weak financial back bone. Sugar cane requires loads of high quality fertilizers and farmers can not afford it so if they use cheap fertilizers, it would produce low and substandard quality crop which would neither be valuable for the cane grower nor to the sugar mill. Also, if we divert our attention to the local government conditions we see that due to vested interests and nepotism, some groups would use their influence in the division of water from the pipe line. Apart form this; maintenance of the pipe line is also a major issue. It is strongly believed that as the pipe line will be there in the hands of the government, it would not be properly maintain which would be drastic in the long term. (Wirthman, 2001) Laying down such a big pipe line is also a daunting task to undertake. Its maintenance is also one of he biggest issues to handle because if its maintenance costs overrun the economic interests of the locality, then it won’t be considered as a good project to undertake. So option number one closes with its all positives and negatives. One big question which raises its ugly head is the cultivating sugar cane. Soil in this area had already lost valuable nutrients which had decreased its fecundity and with every harvest, it will continue to become less fertile. (Wirthman, 2001) The experts have already advised the locals not to grow cane in this area as the soil is on the brink of degradation. The reason is that sugar cane requires a lot of fertilizers along with these nutrients. After two or three harvests, the soil looses its potency and turn into a low nutrient soil which is not good for growing next crop of sugar cane harvest, even for second crops (grains, pulses). Thus in the long run, this pipe line will be used for the domestic purposes only in stead of watering the field for growing the cash crops like sugar cane. (Wirthman, 2001) Conclusion: In the light of all the positives and negatives discussed earlier, we firmly believe that the practices started by villagers of neighboring Aloke Taluka very much gratify all the questions brought forward in the beginning of the research paper. The consequences of these practices would result in great benefit for the entire village and its inhabitants (Verne, 1999). If we analyze it, we see that in the area, 20% of the houses have a direct access to the fresh water from springs whereas rest of the area have an access to water from other different sources which would uplift the living standards of that locality and will make people self sufficient in financial, economical and social terms which would in term enable them to arrange their own amenities of life not being provided by government up till now. The average capacity of water available to people can be raised up to 750 liters a day and can rise further too. This can only take place if 73000cubic meters of water can be stored in around 14 masonry check damns and gabions (Wirthman, 2001). A winter crop can also be grown as an alternative or second crop. This all will generate economic activity in the area which will open up new markets for the villagers adding up extra revenues in their annual income. Uplifting of standards will increase morale of people. They now have a sense that they need to keep their appearance reasonable and keeping up homes and houses is essential. People will now have surplus resources which will be used in research purposes with different cash crops such as grafting and making new ways of minting money. When people will become self sufficient at the lower levels, they would be able to afford school for their children which in the long run will be beneficial for the whole society. Many of the well- off farmers has bought some machinery for their farms in order to mechanize threshing and plowing of their crops and fields. (Prasad, 2002). Reference Ameen, Retrieved June 20, 2008, from Call of the hill Web site: http://westernghats. blogspot. com/(2001 April). Bonelle, M (2005) Forests, Water and People in the Humid Tropics: Past, Present and Future Hydrological Research for Integrated Land and Water Management (International Hydrology Series) . Cambridge University Press. Bull, A (2006). Forest Diversity and Management (Topics in Biodiversity and Conservation). Springer. Jeffery, R (2001) Conflict and Cooperation in Participatory Natural Resource Management (Global Issues) . Palgrave Macmillan. Lewis, M (2004). Forest Diversity and Management (Topics in Biodiversity and Conservation). Ohio University Press. Prasad, R (2002). Research Perspectives in Hydraulics and Water Resources Engineering . World Scientific Publishing Company. Retrieved June 21, 2008, from The Western Ghats Web site: http://highrangephotography.com/wp/wpcontent/publications/SanctuaryAsia_Western%2 0Ghats_4_2001. pdf Simpson, Frank (1998). Retrieved June 21, 2008, from Conjunctive use of water resources in Deccan Trap Web site: http://www. unesco. org/most/bpik13-2. htm Verma, Deepak Thematic Report on Mountain Ecosystems. Retrieved June 21, 2008, Web site: http://www. cbd. int/doc/world/in/in-nr-me-en. pdf Verne, J (1991) The Extraordinary Journeys: Around the World in Eighty Days (Oxford World’s Classics) . Oxford Univ Press Wirthman (2001), A Geomorphology of the Tropics. Springer.

Facebook: Social Network or Social Disaster

Facebook: Social Network or Social Disaster Your busy day is done. You head home open up your laptop or head over to your desktop and turn it on. After impatiently waiting for everything to load on your computer you open up your web browser. You go to the top of the page and type in www. face and arrow down in the drop box to http://www. facebook. com/. As the website loads you wait in anticipation. When the blue bar at the top of the page loads you immediately look to the left hand corner of that bar.You glance over the first icon which is a silhouette of two people. Any friend requests? You then skim over to the next icon, a picture of two message bubbles. They remind you of the ones you would see in a cartoon. Any messages? You then proceed to direct your eyes over to the last icon, the world icon. Any Notifications? You click on these icons and with that click you begin a social interaction with someone. For many people, what I described above is an action they do everyday. Over 500 million people worldwide live their lives on Facebook. † (Fletcher and Ford, 32) After reading this quote I asked myself one question, â€Å"Is it the communication aspect of facebook that causes everyone to be addicted to facebook or is there more to this addiction? † I know I go on Facebook almost everyday without fail but why? Do I go on to communicate and use Facebook as a social network or do I go on it mainly to get the dirt on others and what is going on in their lives?I came to the conclusion that Facebook is definitely a good place to keep in communication with people, however, in many ways, Facebook has definitely been misused and become gossip central. When you think about Facebook what is the first thing that comes to your mind? The first thing for me is friends. Right now I have 933 friends on Facebook and friends are a very important part of everyone’s lives. Facebook, like any other social network, gives you the ability to communicate with frie nds, coworkers, family members, and people from all over the world.You request to be their friend and wait for them to accept that request. There are so many people on Facebook today it would be rare to turn next to the person that sits next to you in math class and for them not to have a Facebook account. It is a very easy way to get in contact with those whom you may not have seen in a while. Old friends that over the years have become acquaintances or even friends that you can’t talk to on a regular basis because they live in a completely different country then you.For many of my high school years I went on missions trips to Mexico to help out at an orphanage down there. I met many different people and as the years went by I looked forward to seeing my long lost friends. Because of Facebook, I no longer have to call them my long lost friends because I can keep in contact with them through Facebook. I think it is great that so many of my friends are on Facebook and this is another way that I can communicate with them. However, one danger of having friends on Facebook is that some of the friends you accept may be quite superficial. Muise, Christofides, Desmarais, 442). I have almost a thousand friends on Facebook do you really think that I am as close to all of them as I am with my best friend? No, that is ridiculous. However, because Facebook is such an open social network and give us many different ways to communicate with others it has a tendency to give us a more open look at life so people tend to share more intimate aspects on life over their facebook status’. It has changed our social DNA, and made us more accustom to openness (Fletcher and Ford, 33).When we share these intimate aspects we are not necessarily thinking, â€Å"I hope everyone sees this. † We are just thinking about the friends we usually interact with on facebook, but the problem is anyone that you have accepted as a friend can see that status change. For example, I am friends with my mother on Facebook and when I asked her what her favorite thing about Facebook was she replied, â€Å"My favorite part about Facebook is that I can look on my kids profile and see what they have been up to. I got a similar response from a friend that said she likes Facebook because it keeps her in on the latest gossip. This is why we need to be careful when on facebook. Not everyone’s intent while on Facebook is to enhance communication. Some people use Facebook as their center for gossip and you never know who has this outlook while interacting over Facebook. Facebook offers many different ways to communicate with others. Status updates is just one of the many different services facebook offers. Status updates are a nice way to communicate what you are doing from a day to day asis or share short quotes that you found interesting. These status updates definitely help communication between people. Another service Facebook offers to communicate with others i s the message service. If you want to have a private conversation with one or more people you can use the message service. This message service is somewhat like an email in the sense that you can send and receive messages that no one but the intended recipient can see. This is helpful if you want to plan a surprise party for some one and only want certain people to know about it.This service is a very good way to have an intimate conversation with others, and I think that it is a very good service. However, many people don’t use the message box as much as they should. This creates problems over Facebook. Another conversation method that is used on facebook is posting on others wall. The only problem with this is that everyone can see your wall. This can create many social mishaps. â€Å"While social networks sites provide the opportunity to reunite with long lost friends, they also allow people to make their information public within their circle of friends. (Muise, Christof ides, Desmarais, 442) Anyone that is your friend can look at your wall posts and read into it wrong and start a huge rumor about you that ruins your reputation. It is that easy for a simple post on Facebook to be turned into a rumor and soon enough it will be all over your wall and all your friends will see it, making Facebook a center for gossip. That is why I believe if the wall posting service is used unwisely it can turn Facebook into a social disaster waiting to happen. Facebook makes it easy to see what is going on in everyone lives.It gives you notifications when anyone does something such as post on your wall or make a comment on your status or pictures. On your home page it gives you a play by play of what everyone of your friends are doing over Facebook. It tells you when they are online so if you wanted to have a brief conversation with them you could just click on their picture icon and a little chat box will pop up. Also on the home page all your friend’s status changes will be listed on it and you can freely comment or like them whenever you would like.I think these notifications are very helpful ways to quickly send out a conversation to someone so you can keep up a relationship with someone even when our lives are hectic and we don’t have time to sit down with them for coffee. However, Facebook is very addicting. Tynee Seno from the Philippines quotes, â€Å"On average, I spend about four hours a day on Facebook- more time then I spend outside. † (Facebook and You, 34) From personal experience, I can suspect that Tynee is not just conversing with others over facebook for the whole four hours he is on Facebook everyday.When I spend an overwhelming amount of time on Facebook I’m usually looking for an â€Å"in†. I don’t know how many times I have read something over Facebook and went immediately to my phone to text someone about what I had read over facebook. â€Å"Did you see what she posted on his wall ? † And as simple as that, another gossip chain has begun. For many, it is not intentional to start this gossip chain. As humans, we are just very curious beings and sometime I even believe that jealousy can get involved. â€Å"Facebook may expose an individual to potentially jealousy-provoking information. (Muise, Christofides, and Desmarais, 443) Like I said before, we don’t do this on purpose. It is just in our human nature to do this. However, I want to encourage you that next time you read something on Facebook that wasn’t meant for you to read, instead of going and sharing it with the world, try to look past it. Just think how you would feel if you posted something without thinking who all would see your post and it ended up getting spread around in a nasty rumor. If we can avoid this we can avoid making Facebook a place where simple socialization can turn into a disaster.So my advice is, next time you sit down at that computer and go straight to Facebook be careful because you wouldn’t want a simple post to be the start of a social disaster. I think that overall Facebook has great potential in helping people communicate with others. It helps me communicate with people from Mexico by allowing me to be friends with whomever I want, as well as helping me keep in touch with people through its different venues for communicating with people. I think that Facebook is a great social network, however, I believe that it can be made into a social disaster if it were to be misused.Works Cited â€Å"Facebook and You. (Cover story). † Time 175. 21 (2010): 34-35. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 2 Nov. 2010. Fletcher, Dan, and Andrea Ford. â€Å"Friends Without Borders. (Cover story). † Time 175. 21 . (2010): 32-38. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 2 Nov. 2010. Muise, Amy, Emily Christofides, and Serge Desmarais. â€Å"More Information than You Ever Wanted: Does Facebook Bring Out the Green-Eyed Monster of Jealousy?. † CyberPsychology & Behavior 12. 4 (2009): 441-444. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 2 Nov. 2010