Hafford furniture free essay sample

A Crisis at Hafford Furniture: Cloud Computing Case study MMBA 507 Student ID: 300333323 PROBLEM DESCRIPTION Hafford Furniture was a furniture manufacturer since 1970, supplying to furniture retailers, wholesalers and occasionally one-time bulk purchasers across the United States. Hafford relied on a Business Information System (BIS) to handle all the internal business processes. The BIS was seamlessly connected to a VAN-based EDI system, which served as the customer’s interface for making orders. In 2008, Hafford’s entire IT infrastructure and data storage were destroyed by a massive hurricane. Hafford was able to restore the company data with its disaster recovery plan, but not all its IT function. In March 2009, VP of IT proposed in a management meeting to adopt SaaS cloud solution to restore the IT function. Hafford could access to the same BIS without having to worry about the cost to rebuild another IT data centre. He projected that the IT staff strength could be halved, as the cloud vendor would take care of the management of the software’s platform and its infrastructure. We will write a custom essay sample on Hafford furniture or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The next day, the president of Hafford ignored the internal decision-making protocol and contracted their disaster recovery vendor, PFI Services for that same cloud service. In January 2010, Hafford was faced with appalling sales report for the year before, mostly caused by bottlenecks in the ordering system supported by PFI. Not only was the cloud capability insufficient, PFI was also filing for bankruptcy and undergoing liquidation. Hafford once again fell into a desperate situation. REVIEW OF KEY ISSUES Management issues Lack of Corporate governance The weak corporate governance in Hafford is especially notable in the fundamental change process. While there was an internal policy for creating a fundamental change in Hafford (Fig 1), Feckle, the President, had ignored it by entering into a cloud contract without consulting any of his top management, just one day after the premature proposal was shared with him. It was extremely risky to make such a significant business decision without sufficient knowledge in the service that he engaged. To make a well-informed decision, Feckle should have adhered to the corporate policy and trusted the IT professionals to evaluate and recommend a suitable vendor. Figure 1 Fundamental change policy 2. Failure to think critically during decision-making It is understood that Hafford used to adopt a VAN-based EDI-system specifically due to its security, despite it being slower and more costly. In Norris’ proposal for using cloud, he altered the company’s priority by pushing for an internet-based EDI-system, without providing solid justification. Questions like â€Å"will the internet-based EDI change the business in any way?† or â€Å"will it compromise customers’ security? † were not asked. The management seemed to have accepted this change too easily, without understanding its impacts. This concern should have been analysed more thoroughly before concluding to transit to an internet-based EDI-system. 3. Poor understanding of business needs The IT obj ective was not fully aligned with the business objectives. For example, in 2009, while the company was expecting a 30-35% increase in sales due to the efforts in a series of product improvements, the IT team was preparing a cloud proposal to the company basing only on the old IT functions. It had missed out on considering how it could support an explosive sales surge. Furthermore, Hafford was switching its VAN-based EDI to an internet-based EDI, which could potentially allow Hafford to widen its reach to attract a new group of SME customers. This could play a part in increasing their sales. However, Hafford did not foresee these changes, likely due to lack of communication between departments within Hafford. IT issues 1. Lack of thorough analysis in cloud computing The IT team failed to conduct due diligence in exploring all possible solutions that could meet its needs. While cloud offered great advantages for the company, it might have been too hasty to consider only private cloud as the final solution. In fact, public, private or hybrid cloud offered different potentials and could achieve the goal within competitive cost as well. The IT team should also have analysed each cloud model against its business needs before determining if software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), infrastructure as a service (IaaS) or a combination of services would work best. 2. Lack of on-going management While cloud is said to be flexible, it demands some level of active management to harness the most of it after implementation. The IT team should be able to react quickly to resolve problems like the order bottleneck or a data lock-in. Besides, the IT team should have been more vigilant in ensuring business continuity for the company. RECOMMENDATION The key failure observed in the case was the lack of understanding in cloud computing and the lack of communication in the company. Like any other business decisions, the management should have exercised prudence by developing clear objectives and analysing the opportunities and threats before arriving at its conclusion. In this section, a recommended methodology to approach Hafford’s IT restoral problem is presented. Step 1. To develop business objectives The most important step is to approach a business problem with a clear business objective. It will be necessary for the management to look at the restoral of the IT centre as a collaborative business problem. Communication within the organisation is crucial in aligning all the stakeholders’ goals. With effective teamwork, the IT will appreciate the business values better and be able to analyse the suitability of various options. Step 2. To compare various viable options The IT team should research on what the available solutions are, before zeroing into a particular infrastructure option. While the restoral of a physical data centre may be expensive, there may be payment structures that could help reduce the impact. On the other hand, cloud computing may appear cheaper but it inextricably exposes users to a range of risks, especially in the aspect of security. Also, there are hybrid options that can minimise risk while offering cost benefit. In short, the IT team should fully understand the merits and shortcomings of the following options before selecting the IT infrastructure. 1. Public cloud 2. Hybrid cloud 3. Private cloud 4. Public cloud – Physical data centre 5. Physical data centre Step 3. To choose the suitable cloud service model There are three common service models in cloud computing. It is important to evaluate each model’s attributes and determine which cloud model would be more suitable for the business needs. 1. Software as a service (SaaS) To understand threats and opportunities of cloud computing Cloud computing offers the following powerful advantages but also opens a gateway to a wide range of threats. 1. Elasticity Usage-based pricing model, charging users only for the capacity used Scalability in terms of network and speed depending on demand 2. Simplicity Setting up and maintaining a data centre can take significant manpower. Cloud computing offers convenient and economical business solutions to clients, while taking advantage of the economy of scale by taking care of one specialised area in bulk. 3. Cost-efficiency No capital cost required. Companies benefit from the transference of risk (of over-provisioning and under-provisioning) of investing in a private data centre. While accepting these benefits from cloud, users should also exercise due diligence by being aware of all the possible problems cloud computing brings. Some of the crucial problems are outlined as follows. 1. Business continuity There is always a risk with placing valuable business information with a single third party. As such, the best way to go about is to even out the risk by employing multiple cloud providers and devising a business continuity strategy should any of them fail. Data lock-in It would be risky for a company to be unable to easily extract their data and programmes from one cloud provider to another due to compatibility issues of the programme and data from one cloud provider. In order to mitigate this risk, SaaS developer could use standardised API so that the business can remain flexible and mobile. 3. Data security While most cloud providers invest a considerable amount of attention on managing security, users should assess the security standards adopted by the cloud provider against their requirements before engaging it. 4. Insufficient capacity Although it is said that cloud is scalable, in rare occasions, businesses may experience traffic surges beyond what their contracted cloud can offer. Hence, it is important to strategize carefully before deciding on the cloud service. Step 5. Choosing the cloud vendor After thorough analysis and establishing a clear description for the cloud service needed, the user will have to evaluate the following factors to arrive at the most suitable vendor. 1. Pricing structure While cloud vendors typically follow a pay-as-you-use pricing model, pricing structure varies. For example, Google AppEngine charges users by the cycles used while AWS charges by the hour for the number of instances the user occupied. 2. Security Users need to look at a cloud service’s physical as well as network security. This refers to the physical location the cloud provider houses its equipment and network security measures like firewall and data encryption. Also, a cloud provider should be compliant to government standards specific to your business. In the case of Hafford Furniture, it was an auditing requirement for Hafford to ensure the cloud vendor is compliant with Statement on Auditing Standard No.70. 3. Other factors A clean record does not promise anything, it would be beneficial to also look at the vendor’s track record against available benchmark systems. Also, it would be helpful to have a vendor that can provide reasonably good service. Hence, it is important to know about the extent of customer support services, the setting up process and the ser vicing response and resolution time. Step 6. Engagement of cloud vendor and getting started During cloud rollout, especially from a different sort of data management, it would be common to face various teething problems. Cloud vendor should try to achieve seamless implementation, and companies might need to prepare their staff and/or customers should it affect their routine jobs significantly. Step 7. On-going active management of the cloud service Internal IT team should be continuously vigilant towards possible threats to ensure that the cloud service adopted by the company is safe and secure. Active backups of data must not be neglected. Also, internal feedback reviews could help the IT team understand the possible difficulties faced by the users, and also stay up to date with the company’s business initiatives.

Chinas Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors

Chinas Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors Back in the earliest mists of recorded history, over four thousand years ago, China was ruled by its very first dynasties: the mythical Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. They ruled between about 2852 and 2070 BCE, before the time of the Xia Dynasty.   Legendary Reigns These names and reigns are legendary more than they are strictly historical. For example, the claim that both the Yellow Emperor and Emperor Yao ruled for exactly 100 years immediately raises questions.   Today, these very earliest of rulers are considered demigods, folk heroes, and sages all rolled into one. The Three August Ones The Three Sovereigns, also sometimes called the Three August Ones, are named in Sima Qians Records of the Grand Historian or Shiji from about 109 BC.   According to Sima, they are the Heavenly Sovereign or Fu Xi, the Earthly Sovereign or Nuwa, and the Tai or Human Sovereign, Shennong.   The Heavenly Sovereign had twelve heads and ruled for 18,000 years.  He also had 12 sons who helped him rule the world; they divided humanity into different tribes, to keep them organized. The Earthly Sovereign, who lived for 18,000 years, had eleven heads and caused the sun and moon to move in their proper orbits. He was the king of fire, and also created several famous Chinese mountains. The Human Sovereign had only seven heads, but he had the longest lifespan of all the Three Sovereigns - 45,000 years.   (In some versions of the story, his whole dynasty lasted that long, rather than just his own life.)  He drove a chariot made of clouds and coughed the first rice out from his mouth. The Five Emperors Again according to Sima Qian, the Five Emperors were the Yellow Emperor, Zhuanxu, Emperor Ku, Emperor Yao, and Shun.   The Yellow Emperor, also known as Huangdi, supposedly ruled for an even 100 years, from 2697 to 2597 BCE.   He is considered the originator of Chinese civilization.   Many scholars believe that Huangdi was actually a deity, but was later transformed into a human ruler in Chinese mythology. The second of the Five Emperors was the Yellow Emperors grandson, Zhuanxu, who ruled for a modest 78 years.   During that time, he changed Chinas matriarchal culture to a patriarchy, created a calendar, and composed the first piece of music, which was called The Answer to the Clouds. Emperor Ku, or the White Emperor, was the great-grandson of the Yellow Emperor.   He ruled from 2436 to 2366, just 70 years.   He liked to travel by dragon-back and invented the first musical instruments. The fourth of the Five Emperors, Emperor Yao, is viewed as the wisest sage-king and a paragon of moral perfection.   He and Shun the Great, the fifth emperor, may have been actual historical figures.   Many modern Chinese historians believe that these two mythological emperors represent folk memories of early, powerful warlords from the era just before the Xia Period. More Mythological Than Historical All of these names, dates, and fabulous facts are obviously more mythological than historical.   Nonetheless, it is fascinating to think that China has some sort of historical memory, if not precise records, from about 2850 BCE - almost five thousand years ago. The Three Sovereigns The Heavenly Sovereign (Fuxi)The Earthly Sovereign (Nuwa)The Human Sovereign (Shennong) The Five Emperors Huang-di (The Yellow Emperor), c. 2697 – c. 2597 BCEZhuanxu, c. 2514 – c. 2436 BCEEmperor Ku, c. 2436 – c. 2366 BCEEmperor Yao, c. 2358 – c. 2258 BCEEmperor Shun, c. 2255 – c. 2195 BCE

Final Comprehensive Activity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Final Comprehensive Activity - Essay Example Interviews of approximately twelve couples will be used to create a minimum of six case studies. Secondary research will be used to support the findings of the primary research. Questionnaires will be used as a basis of understanding cultural perceptions The question of the research proposal The Anatomy of Romance is in what way do two people in a long-term relationship that is designated by the emotion of love relate to one another in order to sustain that love? Of the most unanswered questions in the human experience, the question of how people successfully navigate a relationship is one of the more prominent. Self-help books, advertising, and talk shows all make use of the topic to promote the sale of their product. However, a deconstruction of romance to examine the components that create this state can help further the understanding of the phenomenon of love. According to Marshall and Rossman (2006), a sense of ‘Should-do-ability‘, ‘Do-ability’ and ‘Want-to-do-ability’ should be examined when approaching a project. Under the ‘Should-do-ability‘ category, a researcher must decide if the research should be done. The research study on romance should be done to further the understanding of this particular human experience. The research can definitely be approached as the concept of romance is highly prevalent in the cultural experience so therefore has a capacity for ‘Do- The question that the research will attempt to answer is best answered from a narrow perspective. The participants in the study will be from a specific parameter of possible relationship types. The main assumption that has been made is that love is a valid state of emotion, but this assumption should be backed by physiological and psychological foundation. In attempting to answer the core question, it will be essential to both observe and interview those who believe they have successfully attained a consistency in the way

Compagnie Generale des Eaux Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Compagnie Generale des Eaux - Case Study Example The efforts of Guy Dejouany express the company's commitment in maximizing its financial resources by putting them in different investment opportunities. The leader should also be noted for his effort in minimizing company risk by not putting all its investment in a single industry. In contrast, he tried to distribute risk by putting the company's fund in various industries. Guy Dejouany also broadened intensified the influence of CGE by broadening its reach and market base. By establishing presence in industries where the company has no previous operation, CGE gained more bargaining power through its large size and coverage. However, it should also be noted that the choice of which industry to diversify into is the sole choice of Dejouany according to his personal experiences and relationships instead of generating more formal business analyses. The leader has launched aggressive efforts in order to ward off competition or strengthen the business organization's position against its rivals. In terms of management style, Guy Dejouany can be characterized as a charismatic leader who influenced people through his personality. Though engaged in a wide array of businesses, decision making is highly centralized emanating from a superior who very much involved in the operations of each business unit. During his administration, transactions and relationships have operated on trust while no significant attention is put on the performance of his subordinates. Models of Diversification Employed by Dejouany Keeping in mind that CGE has started as a player in the water utility business, the company's efforts to diversify in health care, transport, telecommunication, and real estate sectors represent a move toward unrelated diversification. With this, it should be noted that Dejouany employed conglomerate diversification or opting to deliver new products to new markets which are the currently not served. In other instances, he also utilized vertical diversification by acquiring business organizations which are in the same value chain. Basing decisions solely in his relationships and personal experiences, Dejouany had undoubtedly entered industries which are highly unrelated. Conglomerate diversification has been used in order to manage the complexity of various businesses under a single portfolio. However, instead of utilizing the company's resources to execute similar processes within business units, CGE maintained the separation between its business entities. In contrast to the typical strategy of acquiring promising small companies, CGE opted to establish new companies which will serve new clients. There has also been no establish relationship between business units and often, subsidiaries are unaware that they are a part of a single organization. Problems in the 1990s The year 1990s sees the near collapse of CGE because of its disastrous financial and overall performance. The problems of the business organization can be traced to its larger business environment and issues inherent to its operation and governance. As discussed above, the decisions within CGE are solely made by Dejouany who build businesses

Crime and criminal justice Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Crime and criminal justice - Assignment Example y garnishment of earnings fits the crime except the crime is robbery.  Day fines might not be the mainly useful sanction in discouraging or preventing crime but it is an immense method to secure the citys budget shortfall! An entity who commends a crime may be verdict to penitentiary or contracted a term of try-out by the courts. Electronic Monitoring is an electronic scheme that supplies the probation bureaucrat or bail representative a statement about whether the lawbreaker was obtainable at abode when the wrongdoer was requisite to stay put at his/her abode. Home detention (HD) is a verdict that requires a wrongdoer to stay put at an approved dwelling at all epoch under electronic scrutinizing and close control by a try-out bureaucrat.  It can aid offenders to uphold family affairs, keep effective or vigorously seek work, go to training or rehabilitative programmer. Sentences might range in extent from 14 days to 12 months. Day exposure center a place where select lawbreakers must report whilst on try-out or parole and where the lawbreaker receives an augmented concentration of services. Preparing lawbreakers for triumphant transition rear to their families and reentry to the society is the focal point of the Boards society reentry dissection. Successful reentry can augment public wellbeing, improve the vigor of the society, maintain families, perk up the advantage of kids and lower pricey criminal justice operating cost. That’s why reentry into the society is so vital. The PBPP has made sizeable savings in it is condition reentry scheme through the preparation of agents to extra successfully work with crooks, the maturity of society relationships with associations that can aid lawbreakers to be successful, and the perfection of it is reentry practices. 3- Please explain in detail the supervision of juveniles in the community. Please be sure to discuss probation, the juvenile court system, the role of juvenile records, child protective services,

Extraction of Blue Ice Area in Antarctica

Extraction of Blue Ice Area in Antarctica Chapter 3 METHODOLOGY High resolution satellite data has made it possible to obtain optimistic results in feature extraction processes. High resolution World-View-2 data is used for mapping blue ice areas (BIAs) in Antarctic regions. World-View-2 provides extensively high accuracy, agility, capacity and spectral diversity. First high-resolution 8-band multispectral commercial/business satellite is World-View-2 launched October 2009. Working at an elevation of 770 kilometres, World-View-2 gives 46cm panchromatic resolution and 1.85m multispectral resolution. World-View-2 has a normal revisit time of 1.1 days and it is able of catching up to 1 million square kilometres of 8-band imagery per day. Satellite pictures generally track seasonal annual variations in BIAs coverage over the past 30 year on the East Antarctic plateau region. In late studies, the distribution of BIAs can likewise mulled over from the SAR (synthetic aperture radar) images. In SAR satellite image, blue ice can likewise be outwardly perc eived. The amplitude of blue ice is less than that of snow (white), because the ice surface is smoother than the latter. Yet, distinction is not at all that conspicuous when applying Semi-automatic extraction approach. Blue ice can be distinguished effortlessly in the coherence map got from two SAR pictures in a view of higher coherence of blue ice. It is additionally found that the picture texture data is useful for distinguishing various types of blue ice like rough, smooth and level blue ice. In this study, Atmospheric corrected (QUAC) sharpen calibrated image (World-View-2 data) is used for extracting blue ice areas in Schirmacher Oasis in Antarctic region. Extraction of blue ice area in Antarctica deal with the total area of blue ice areas excluding the other feature (non-target) appearing on or near it. Blue ice areas have some specific qualities that make them of special interest for extraction as they are just 1% of Antarctic region. Many remote sensing approaches have been implemented to monitor and map Antarctic BIAs. 3.1 Methodology Protocol The extraction of blue ice areas is simplified by the Methodology protocol. As the whole image takes time for processing, as Schirmacher Oasis is with an area of 34km ², ranks among the smallestAntarctic oasis and is a typicalpolar desert, so the image is divided in 12 test tiles of different parts of entire World-View-2 image to achieve prior results. Atmospheric correction is done with QUAC (quick atmospheric correction) method to obtain better results. Atmospheric correction to each tile added suitable outputs results to workflow. Calibrated data is also used without applying atmospheric correction to it. Multiband image combination was made from atmospheric corrected data and calibrated data of the study area. Alternating snow and blue ice bands surface patterns are generally found in East Antarctica due to which it is hard task to clearly extract BIAs. For feature extraction processes region of interest (ROI) is considered in which blue ice is target and white ice appearing on or near the blue ice is considered as non-target. Methodology workflow is prepared in order to achieve good and prior results comparing with the previous studies. Extraction of blue ice is not that easy task as dust and white snow appears on it as non-target. Various Semi-automatic extraction methods like TERCAT, Target Detection Wizard, Mapping Methods, Spectral Matching and Object Base Image Analysis (OBIA) are used for extracting blue ice areas in Antarctica. The initial results obtained were good but not better enough to keep them prior. Many trials were carried out for extracting blue ice in Antarctica. Prior results were kept in workflow of methodology to compare them with every trial results. Object based and Pixel based both the classification are used in workflow to get good results. From the High resolution World-View-2 data reference data (digitized data) was prepared for blue ice area and extracted blue ice area was obtained from Semi-automatic extraction methods and OBIA. From the extracted blue ice, blue ice is considered as target and white snow appearing on it as non-target. Comparing reference data and extracted data Bias, % Bias and RMSE values were calculated. After that Average for Bias, % Bias and RMSE values is estimated. BIAS= % BIAS= RMSE= Where, Ref A is Reference area and Ext A is Extracted area n= no. of tiles processed. 3.2 Semi-automatic extraction methods The semi-automatic feature extraction approach intuitively makes endeavours to commonly empowering the insight or data of human perception framework to robustly detect the targeted feature and the computer-aided system to bring fast extraction of targeted feature and exact shape representation. In semiautomatic feature extraction strategy, first target feature is detected by human vision and a couple of estimates in terms of seed points or coaching samples concerning the targeted feature on highlight are typically given. The targeted feature is then portrayed automatically by the PC helped calculations. 3.2.1 TERCAT approach (ENVI 5.1 Exellis Help) [33] The Terrain Categorization (TERCAT) tool creates an output product in which pixels with similar spectral properties are clumped into categories. These categories may be either user-defined, or automatically generated by the classification algorithm. The TERCAT tool provides all of the standard ENVI classification algorithms, plus an additional algorithm called Winner Takes All. This is a voting method that classifies pixels based on the majority compiled from all of the other classification methods that were conducted. In this research, the sub approaches for TERCAT are Maximum Likelihood, Spectral Angle Mapper, Parallelepiped and Winner Takes All. 3.2.2 Target Detection approach (ENVI 5.1 Exellis Help) [33] Target detection algorithms work on the principle of extracting target features based on spectral characteristic of initial coaching spectral signatures of target features, and performing end to the background noise using spectral signatures of non-target features. If the users knows that the image contains at least one target of interest, the wizard can be used to find other targets like it in the same image. The workflow can also be accessed programmatically, so the user can customize options if needed. Target detection tools (ENVI 5.1) were executed to perform supervised image processing tasks into workflows (CEM, ACE, OSP, TCIMF, and MT-TCIMF) to extract blue ice areas (BIAs) as target and white ice as non-target. 3.2.3 Spectral Matching approach (ENVI 5.1 Exellis Help) [33] Spectral matching approaches extract the target features that are described in multispectral imagery based on the target feature’s spectral characteristics. Spectral matching algorithms confirm the spectral similarity or matching between input satellite imagery and reference key points to form an output product within which pixels with similar spectral properties are clumped into target and non-target categories. Spectral Matching (ENVI 5.1) were executed to perform supervised image processing tasks into workflows (MF, SAM, MTMF and SAMBM) to extract blue ice areas (BIAs) as target and white ice as non-target. 3.2.4 Mapping Methods approach (ENVI 5.1 Exellis Help) [33] Selected hyperspectral Mapping Methods describes advanced concepts and procedures for analyzing imaging spectrometer data or hyperspectral images. Spectral Information Divergence (SID) is a spectral classification method that uses a divergence measure to match pixels to reference spectra. The smaller the divergence, the more likely the pixels are similar. Pixels with a measurement greater than the specified maximum divergence threshold are not classified. End member spectra used by SID can come from ASCII files or spectral libraries, or you can extract them directly from an image (as ROI average spectra). Mapping Methods (ENVI 5.1) were executed to perform supervised image processing tasks into workflows [SID SV (0.05), SID SV (0.07), SID SV (0.1), SID MV (0.05) and SID MV (0.09)] to extract blue ice areas (BIAs) as target and white ice as non-target. 3.2.5 Object Based Image Analysis (OBIA) approach (Ecognition Developer Help) [34] Object Based Image Analysis (OBIA), is an advanced method used to segment a pixel based image into map objects that can then be classified as a whole. This kind of analysis is ideal for mapping with high-resolution imagery, where a single feature (such as a tree) might have several different shades of pixels. The example of rule-set for Trial 1, 2, 3 and 4 for extracting blue ice areas in this research is stated below; For Trial 1: 02.063 50 [shape.: 0.8 compact.:0.6] Creating ‘level 1’ Export view to segmentation (no geo) Unclassified with mean nir-1>=50 and mean nir-1 Export view to assign class (no geo) Blue ice with mean nir-1>=50 and mean nir-1 Export view to merging (non geo) For Trial 2: 02.063 60 [shape.: 0.8 compact.:0.6] Creating ‘level 1’ Export view to segmentation (no geo) Unclassified with mean nir-1>=100 and mean nir-1 Export view to assign class (no geo) Blue ice with mean nir-1>=100 and mean nir-1 Export view to merging (non geo) For Trial 3: 02.063 70 [shape.: 0.8 compact.:0.6] Creating ‘level 1’ Export view to segmentation (no geo) Unclassified with mean nir-1>=150 and mean nir-1 Export view to assign class (no geo) Blue ice with mean nir-1>=150 and mean nir-1 Export view to merging (non geo) For Trial 4: 02.063 80 [shape.: 0.8 compact.:0.6] Creating ‘level 1’ Export view to segmentation (no geo) Unclassified with mean nir-1>=200 and mean nir-1 Export view to assign class (no geo) Blue ice with mean nir-1>=200 and mean nir-1 Export view to merging (non geo) The on-top rule-set is employed to extract blue ice areas as well as non-target depending on their mean band values. OBIA is making considerable progress towards spatially explicit information extraction advancement, such as is required for spatial planning as well as for many monitoring programmes. The Semi-automatic extraction strategies and OBIA utilized in this study to extract blue ice areas (BIAs) are supported differently on different underlying principles. To compare these strategies objectively, we kept the input ROIs (regions of interest or coaching samples) constant for all methods for each tile. ROIs are different for different tiles as the area differs. After classifying the image into target spectra, i.e., blue ice areas, using the Semi-automatic extraction methods and OBIA approaches, the 12 semi-automatically extracted tiles (for BIAs) were vectorized to calculate the area of individual tile.

War of 1812 :: essays research papers

List and discuss the events leading up to the War of 1812 and the impact it had on American and Great Britain relations, and the American economy. During Jefferson’s second term in office, fighting between Great Britain and France was posed as a threat to American shipping. Napoleon made the decision to exclude British goods from Europe. As a result, Great Britain decided to blockade Europe and prevent ships from entering or leaving the country. A year later, Britain confiscated American cargoes and seized more than a thousand American ships. France had seized about five hundred American ships as well. America’s anger began to focus mainly on the British, even though France was also involved. This was because of the British policy of impressments. The British decided to capture American sailors, or draft them into the British navy. Also, in 1807, the commander of a British warship insisted on boarding and searching the United States naval frigate Chesapeake. When a United States captain refused to allow him onboard, the British killed three Americans and wounded eighteen. As a result, Jefferson convinced Congress to declare an embargo and ban exporting products to other countries. The Embargo Act of 1807 was eventually lifted in 1809 because it stifled American business. A group of young congressmen, known as the war hawks, were angered by the presence of Native Americans in the Indiana territory. Trobule began when General William Henry Harrison persuaded several Native American chiefs to sign away three million acres of tribal land to the United States government. A confederacy of Native Americans began to organize a fight for their homeland against intruding white settlers. This was lead by Shawnee Chief Tecumseh. Tecumseh’s brother lead the Shawnee in an attack on Harrison, but was defeated. When the war hawks found out that the confederacy was using arms from British Canada, they again called for war. James Madison, another Virginia Republican, declared war against Britain in 1812. He believed that Britain was trying to strangle American trade and weaken the American economy.

Freedom of Speech on the Internet Essay

The advent of internet technology has revolutionized how people interact with each other. Internet has converted the world into a global village, transforming how we communicate with each other. The effectiveness of internet as a means of communication being experienced today could not have been thought of some decades ago. The rapid development in communication technology has created new opportunities through which people pass information on different issues relating to governance. This technology has renewed the ability of citizens to play a role in economic development and extending their labor interests. Moreover, different societies in the world can freely exchange ideas that affect the society in the cyberspace. However, as internet become part of everyday life, the issue of freedom of speech is becoming increasingly important (Freeman, 2000). The need for litigation programs that are aimed at protecting the freedom of speech in the cyber space and protecting the common man from the powerful players in the internet has become necessary in the new technology. The internet has become an important tool in the promotion of freedom of expression. Information can flow freely and unconditionally in the cyberspace which has helped in the promotion of democracy in different parts of the world. The increased popularity of the internet combined with the design of the cyberspace has made it difficult for the government to limit the freedom of expression in the internet. Different government around the world have made attempts of controlling the information available in the internet but without much success. However, there is no doubt that the internet has introduced universal freedom of expression due to it ability pass information instantaneously and at very low cost across the borders. For this reason, free flow of information through this revolutionary technology has attracted moral, political and legal controversies. In the same way it is used to promote freedom of speech, it can also be used to propagate serious crimes such as hate speeches and fraud. The content of information on the internet has always been a contentious issue. For example there have been issues of child pornography in the internet which pushed the United States government to enact laws against such practices. Moreover, materials up loaded in one country where they are legal may be downloaded in another where they are prohibited on the bases of being politically or socially subversive. This raises the big question of whether freedom of expression in the internet should be regulated and whether it is practically possible due to the design of the World Wide Web. Freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a fundamental right of all citizens in a country. Freedom of speech is essential in any country that upholds the principles and core values of democracy. It is also essential in promoting respect for human dignity in the society. Moreover, it is considered to be one of the most dangerous freedoms granted by the state to it citizens because it is a means through which they can express their dissatisfaction with the current situation in the governance and demand a change. For this reason, autocratic regimes have always denied their citizens this fundamental right of expression. As such, in all aspects of the society the freedom of expression is the most threatened, with both the state and civil rights organizations in all societies of the world being limited by this fundamental right (Sanders, 2003). Many countries in the world recognize the importance of the freedom of speech to sustain democracy and social development in the country. In the United States, this fundamental right is guaranteed by the 1st amendment of the United States constitution. There are other federal and states statutes that protect the united states citizens against violation of freedom of speech. This freedom permits criticism and advocacy of the activities in the government that they find distasteful. However, this freedom is not absolute and there are cases where the freedom of speech is restricted. For examples, individuals can not be allowed to promote sexual immorality such as child pornography, hate speeches or incite the public in the name of freedom of speech (Bingham, 2007). The government is also obliged to protect the citizens from false advertisement in commercial speeches as well as protecting the property rights of individuals. The rapid development in information technology has brought about various challenges in the regulation of freedom of speech. The congress has made various attempts to enact laws that govern the freedom of speech in the internet most notably the Communication Decency Act of 1996 and the introduction of web filtering software in public schools as a federal funding precondition (Godwin, 2003). Freedom of Speech in the Internet In the modern world, the internet is becoming increasingly important. This is because of its effectiveness in disseminating information in a society that increasingly requires faster and effective communication channels. Basically the circulation of information need to be free and the internet technology extends the freedom of expression at the global level. The internet has created the largest global common area when individual can say anything they wish. This information in this revolutionary public space can be access by anybody around the world with an access to the internet technology. The internet has created a global village where people can exchange ideas, spread gossips and spread general information. It is there not practical for moral and constitutional standards in the flow of information and governance of what speech is permitted to be applied in the internet. When the cyberspace is considered in relation to the United States constitution and it guarantee of freedom of speech, the first amendment for example can be considered to be a local ordinance (Weber, 2010). At the very basic level, the freedom of speech is inherent in the architecture of cyberspace. The structures of the internet ensure that the information reaches that recipient as it was intended by the sender. This is because the internet interprets any form of censorship on the message as an error or damage. Moreover, because if the robust architecture of the cyberspace it is intrinsically impossible to block an individual from accessing any information in the internet. However, there are very limited circumstances under which access can be blocked such as a specific site in an office computer in workplaces or in home computers. This indicates the level to which internet technology has promoted freedom of speech at the global level. Many people believe that the ability of the society to progress socially and economically is dependent on how effectively they can be able to express and share thoughts especially unpopular thoughts. In other word, freedom of speech is the most important value that any community or nation that seeks to be more civilized should embrace. The ability of the internet to promote free expression without fear of intimidation has made it the most important phenomenon in the modern world. In addition to the internet providing an access to universal free speech, it has promoted the principle concepts behind the right of freedom of expression. There is no doubt that all human being are familiar with the intrinsic value of truth which only exist in a free space of ideas provided by the cyberspace (Viktor & Foster, 1997). There are many evidences that have been proposed to be a clear indication of the cyberspace to promote freedom of speech. The internet has been used in many cases as the only means of free speech in situations where autocratic leadership has paralyzed other means of communication. For example, in 1996, after the dictatorial government in Yugoslavia paralyzed all normal broadcasting in the country, the media continued to exercise their freedom of expression through the internet. This is because the dictatorial government did not have the ability to shut down the cyberspace. The same was observed in China in during the Tiananmen Square in the early 1990s where the internet was essential in keeping the world informed on what was happening on the ground because the government could not censor emails and news transmitted through the internet from the universities. The power of internet to promote the freedom of speech was also evident during the Russian Coup where Relcom, a computer network in the Soviet Union was able to circumvent the blackout as a result of the coup and pass information to the rest of the world the accounts of what was happening in Russia. Internet chat was also used in the Kuwait invasion with many internet users casing network traffic due to the large number who logged in to get live updates on the invasion. Weeks after all other communication networks were blocked, the internet stayed operational conveying up to date information. These markets the first wave of internet relay chat in the world of technology. In the United States, there is evidence of the ability of the internet to bypass any limitation to the freedom of speech. A very good example is the event that followed after the enactment of the Communication Decency Act of 1996. This law banned the distribution of pornographic materials in the web. The enactment of the law received a lot of criticism with many arguing that it was not only unconstitutional but also impossible to implement because of the robust design of the cyberspace. The legislation also brought forth the public support for freedom of expression in the cyberspace. After the enacted of the new law, black background was placed on the pages awaiting the ruling of the court. Following lawsuits filed by civil rights groups, the court issued an injunction against the legislation which was later declared unconstitutional (Godwin, 2003). There are also some notable unsuccessful attempts in many countries in the late 1990s to limit the freedom of speech in the internet. Some of the countries that were frightened by the increase freedom of speech promoted by the internet include China, Germany, Singapore, New Zealand and Saudi Arabia among others. In the late 1990s, all internet users in China were required to register with the law enforcement agencies while access to some cites was banned in Germany. Saudi Arabia restricted internet use to hospitals and learning institutions, Singapore restricted religious information in the web while in New Zealand, all publications in the computers was subject to censoring. However, these attempts among others in the recent past have shown that there is no doubt that internet promotes universal freedom of speech. It is also important to note that due to the ability of the internet to bypass limitations to freedom of speech, it has been subjected to misuse in spreading hate speeches and in activities that put national and international security at stake (Godwin, 2003). Censorship and Freedom of Speech Whenever the issue of freedom of speech in the interne t comes into question, the issue of censorship becomes important. For many reasons, the authorities have acted as censors where they suppress the freedom of expression mainly be deleting some information from a speech which they consider sensitive or harmful to the society. There are some government censorships that are recommended for the common interests of the nation such moral and military censorship. However, there is no doubt that autocratic regimes have employed censorship to promote dictatorship by suppressing the freedom of speech. Censorship in the internet involves all attempts by the government or the authority to control the information that can be access or published in the internet. The legal issues that have been raised concerning freedom of speech and censorship in the internet are very similar to offline censorship issues (Weber, 2010). Due to internet censorship, the cyberspace may not be able to provide the freedom of speech it promises. It is however important to note that the robust design of the cyber space gives it an advantage over offline means of dissemination information. This is basically because of cross border permeability of the internet technology. Therefore, despite various governments around the world attempting to ban publication of certain communicative materials on the internet, residents of the countries can access similar information from websites published outside the host country. Although some governments have made several attempt to restrict access to some foreign websites, it is not possible for them to have control over the sites. Due to the distributive design of cyberspace, it has become very difficult or even impossible to control the information flow in computers connected through the internet (Figliola et al, 2010). These failed attempts have been observed in North Korea. Some software in the in the internet provides unconditional freedom of speech which makes censorship at any level practically impossible. Moreover, this technology ensures that the information can not be removed from the cyberspace nor the identity of the author be traced. The freedom of speech that is being increasingly guaranteed by the internet has it own positive and negative consequences. Anybody will agree with the fact that some information censorship by the authority is understandable and warranted for. For example, no one in his right mind can agree with the government that allows child pornography in the internet. It is the moral responsibility of the authorities to guard the society from such practices in the global space. However, the ultimate solution to such bad information in the internet is providing the right information rather than censorship. Providing better information to the audience will divert the attention away from the bad information. This will eliminate the need for censorship which has the ability of taking away the freedom of expression guaranteed by the cyberspace. This is likely to happen if for example the censorship is extended behold the national borders. It is also important to note that there is no software that can be effectively used to filter to differentiate truth and fiction. This does not only apply in information found in the internet but also other channels of communication (RWB, 2003). Hate Speech in the Internet According to Sitman (1997), with the freedom of speech that in the cyberspace, hate mongers have found an excellent and powerful tool. This has made hate speech to be an important issue related to freedom of expression in the internet. Today due to the effectiveness of internet communication, hate speech can spread easily than ever before. Hate speech can not be compared to other unwarranted messages in the internet such as pornography because it is very obvious. While individual can ignore other messages in the internet, a hate message can not be ignored. Hate messages incite people to violence or fraud and amounts to speech crimes. According to Alexander (2009), there is no doubt the internet is an important tool of promoting democracy by providing one of the most fundamental rights, the freedom of speech. However, if there is no protection against hate speech in the internet, there are no human rights guaranteed. As the debate on the existence of hate speech in the internet gain momentum, there is no doubt that hate speech in other forms of communicative material can not compared to hate speech in the internet. It is a new beast in communication and not an old threat in a new form. This is due to its ability to reach a very large number of audiences worldwide before it can be detected by the relevant authority (Tiffany, 2002). It has the ability to reach the marginalized and disconnected societies of the world which is not possible with other channels of communication. It has increased the individuals accessible to hate mongers from thousands to millions at low cost and within a very short time. It is very unfortunate that the increase accessibility to internet technology all over the world has conceded with the advent of speech crimes. The results have been a legal and political battle between those advocating for free speech in the internet and those concerned with hate speeches. The most important this about hate speech in the internet is that it is a global problem and all solutions to the emerging problems should be deal with at a global scale (Matas, 2007). Conclusion The emergence of internet communication has reminded the world that the freedom of speech is universal fundamental rights. The role of internet in promoting democracy by promoting unconditional flow of information in different parts of the world is not in doubt. However, issues such as censorship of information in the internet and increased cases of hate messages being posted in the internet have threatened this promise of unconditional flow of information. References Alexander T. , (2009). â€Å"Dignity and Speech: The Regulation of Hate Speech in a Democracy,† 44 Wake Forest Law Review 497, pp 502. Bingham, J. (2007). Internet Freedom: Where Is the Limit? ISBN 1403488339, Heinemann Library Figliola, P. M. , Nakamura, K. H. & Lum, T. (2010). U. S. Initiatives to Promote Global Internet Freedom: Issues, Policy, and Technology, retrieved on July 16, 2010 from http://www. fas. org/sgp/crs/misc/R41120. pdf. Freeman, E. H. (2000), â€Å"Freedom of Speech in Cyberspace: Intel v. Hamidi† Information Security Journal: A Global Perspective, Volume 9, Issue 2, pp 1-5 Godwin, M. (2003). Cyber rights: defending free speech in the digital age, ISBN 0262571684, MIT Press Goldsmith, J. (2000). Unilateral Regulation of the Internet: A Modest Defense, in â€Å"EJIL†, vol. 11, no. 1, (p. 135-148) Howard, R. (1995). â€Å"Why Censoring Cyberspace Is Futile,† Computer Under- ground Digest 6. 40 (1995). Kretzmer, D. & Hazan, F. K. (2000). Freedom of speech and incitement against democracy, ISBN 904111341X, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers Matas, D. (1997). Countering Hate on the Internet: Recommendations for Action, retrieved on July 16, 2010 from http://www. media-awareness. ca/english/resources/articles/online_hate/countering_hate. cfm. Reporters Without Borders, (2003). The Internet under

Answers to Questions About Commas #5

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