Plato’s Euthyphro Essay Example

Plato’s Euthyphro Essay In this platonic dialogue featuring Socrates and Euthyphro, the two engage in a discussion about the essence of piety and the pious. The scene is the porch of king Archon. Both of them are seeking the attention of the king in cases that are of concern to each of them. It is here that Socrates seeks to learn from Euthyphro the nature of piety because Euthyphro professes great knowledge on the subject. Following Socrates characteristic enquiry, Euthyphro comes up with several definitions, which are discussed in this article together with Socrates responses to them.The first definitionAfter Socrates rejects his very first attempt to discover the essence of the pious by the pointing out that he did not ask for a few examples of piety, Euthyphro gives the first definition that piety is what is dear to the gods and impiety what is not dear to them. Taking an earlier assertion by Euthyphro that gods indeed do have dire quarrels, battles and fights, Socrates begins to enquire into the depth of the definition given.Socrates argues that since gods fight and quarrel, then they must do that because of differences in values, beliefs and most importantly because of differences in opinion about what is just and unjust, what is good and evil, what is honorable and what is not. Similarly one act could be considered good to one god and evil to another. That some act could be agreeable to Zeus but not agreeable to Cronos or Uranus. Euthyphro then suggested that surely all the gods would agree on the propriety of punishing a murderer.   Socrates counters this by arguing that even men dare not dispute that a doer of injustice should go unpunished, rather they deny that such a wrong has been done. The gods would do the same and deny that injustice is done among them while others say it is done. It would follow from the argument that what is pious and holy to some gods could be impious and evil to others. A question arises; how do you know for sure that your presumed pious acts are not agreeable to some gods but hateful to the rest? This cannot be and so the definition is rejected.After then Euthyphro amends his definition and say that Pious and holy is what all gods, love and impious what all gods hate. In the same manner as above Socrates refutes this definition by arguing that the gods love piety because it is holy and not holy because the gods love it. Consequently the definition that pious is what all gods love does not satisfy define piety but is just an attribute. In simple terms, what Socrates is saying is that Pious is loved by Gods because it is a kind to be loved and is not pious because its loved by the gods. It is not possible therefore to say that the gods love pious because of the quality in it that is lovable and then say that pious because its loved. That does not add up.The second definitionEuthyphro gives the second definition of piety as the part of justice that attends to the gods. After some guidance from Socrates, he amends this to â₠¬Ëœthe act of attending to the gods.’ Socrates then enquires as to the nature of the attention given. He contends that attention is always designed to benefit that to which the attention is given. Below are some excerpts that give direction to their conversation.Soc. And is not attention always designed for the good or benefit of that to which the attention is given? As in the case of horses, you may observe that when attended to by the horsemans art they are benefited and improved, are they not?Euth. True.Soc. As the dogs are benefited by the huntsmans art, and the oxen by the art of the ox herd, and all other things are tended or attended for their good and not for their hurt?Euth. Certainly, not for their hurt.Soc. But for their good?Euth. Of course.Soc. And does piety or holiness, which has been defined to be the art of attending to the gods, benefit or improve them? Would you say that when you do a holy act you make any of the gods better?Euth. No, no; that was certainly not what I meant.Jowett, B. Euthyphro by Plato (1999).Since no benefits seem to accrue from the attention given to the gods by men, Euthyphro attempts to clarify the kind of attention he means by adding that it is such as servants show their masters-a kind of ministration. Socrates still finds fault with this and asks what work such kind of ministration helps to accomplish. He reckons that all art ministers to a person only with the view of accomplishing a particular purpose. Euthyphro can hardly answer the question that follows. Socrates asks what is accomplished by the gods following our ministration.At this point Socrates argues that Piety cannot be the art of attending to the god since there are no apparent benefits accruing from this attention.The third definitionHaving been unable to defend the second definition Euthyphro quickly comes up with the third definition that states that piety or holiness is learning how to please gods in word and deed by prayers and sacrifices. Thi s third definition still comes under Socrates scrutiny who points out that sacrifice is giving to the gods while praying is asking and thus piety by Euthyphro’s definition is the science of giving and asking. After looking at this definition it follows that we ask what is good (what we think is good for us) from the gods. And we then give what is beneficial to them (What is good to them). However, Euthyphro quickly points out that the gods do not need anything from us. Socrates observes that, if that is this case then our giving and sacrifices are of no benefit to the gods, Euthyphro answers that on the contrary our sacrifices and services are dear to the gods. This takes them back to where they started that piety is what is dear to gods.In conclusion Socrates refutes the three definitions given by Euthyphro. The first one because Pious is loved by the gods because of the quality in it and not pious because it is loved by the gods. It can only be one not both. The second defi nition is not admissible because the attention given to the gods brings no benefits to the gods. This makes no sense. The third definition too is refuted since the sacrificing or giving seems to be without any benefit to the gods and if it does then it takes us back to the beginning.ReferencesJowett, B.(1999). Euthyphro by Plato. Available on line athttp://classics.mit.edu//Plato/euthyfro.html

Modern Day Plague Essays - COBOL, Calendars, Hazards, Free Essays

Modern Day Plague Essays - COBOL, Calendars, Hazards, Free Essays Modern Day Plague Modern Day Plague Argument: Mankind has become too dependent on computers, and we as a society are covering up our errors and not facing the facts, to avoid panic. About four years ago, a new pop headline came hot of the press rumoring something about home computers having problems when the year 2000 hit. The year 2000, that's six years away, people thought. Many believed in six years it would be fixed. Thus, the headline got thrown into the archives along with egg yolks being high in cholesterol and the FBI and the CIA being against each other. Well, today the computer problem has resurrected itself. The downside is that, the second round of hype, as some have called it, is being looked upon less seriously than before. What is the problem anyway, what's the big deal? Many have asked this question without a definite answer, weakening any bit of concern. Here it is put simply. All computers contain small processors that contain a current date. This processor comes in millions of different types and has been for close to 30 years. These processors are responsible for simple and complex operations and in some cases, for recording data. All of these functions require dates to perform. Well, the problem hits when one looks at how all processors have been made. All they contain are six numbers, 2 for the day, 2 for the month and 2 for the year. What about when 99 wants to flip to 00? The computer thinks 00 is before 99. Therefore, many go haywire and perhaps crash. The only way to fix it, is by replacing or up dating ALL processors to record four digits for the year. When this problem first resurfaced about eight months back, the few that were paying attention realized the danger. Many suggested the idea of the world collapsing. This drew enough rally to form a congressional committee in May of (19)98, less than two years to the millennium. Y2K, as it is now known, was targeted more toward government and business application rather than home PC's. Why is that? Mainly because there is much more on the line. All businesses, utilities and transportation companies could be seriously affected. This also includes all forms of data storage as well, like the Census Bureau, IRS and Social Security. The unfortunate part about specifying to these main groups, is that the public is left out. Up until now, there have been only a handful of T.V. news reports about Y2K. This is a definite problem for several reasons. Today's culture is tuned to nightly news for all the issues. For many, it's all that they know. The only in depth documents on Y2K can be found in section E5 of news papers or on the internet. Two sources that might require a little time to research. Another problem is that most of the population thinks of computers (processors) as sitting on top of desks accompanied with a monitor, keyboard and mouse. Well, if that were the case, it wouldn't be all that hard to fix. The real problem exists when all processors must be updated or replaced manually. According to the Committee of Government Management, Information and Technology, as of August 1998, less than 10% of companies questioned, had begun looking at these embedded processors for testing. Many of these processors are hard or impossible to reach. These account for some 600+ satellites orbiting above, which o perate all ATM's, cell phones, pagers and airline guidance systems. Many believe that the public isn't being revealed the facts intentionally. They feel that the government is keeping it quite to prevent widespread panic. If fear spread that business could collapse worldwide due to Y2K, there might be a preemptive collapse due to a crash of stock markets and banks. It's a lose: lose situation. Even if 20% of investors pulled their money out of the U.S. stock markets, there would still be a complete collapse. This report has been made several times by different market analysists. Another worst-cased scenario would be if everyone wanted to pull cash out of banks. Currently there is only 4% of the actual secured amount is out in currency. This leaves every American with only

International Business research paper written in the JOURNAL STYLE Essay

International Business research paper written in the JOURNAL STYLE ARTICLE - Essay Example Indeed it dominates the market with its very affordable Haute Courte fashions for the girls and women on the move. It sells an average of 30 pairs of knickers a minute, 6,000 pairs of jeans a day and 35,000 pairs of shoes every week. â€Å"Topshop attracts women from their teens to the 40s searching for a weekly fashion idea†. (Topshop Website). While basically aiming at the female section, it also fashion lines for men as well as babies. It’s co-branding with Kate Moss, the famous Model earlier this year was a calculated move to give it a fresh thrust to move into the lucrative American and European markets, and it has since never looked back. It has 309 exclusive stores in the UK and numerous famous retailers across US and Europe offer it space at their outlets for a varied and extensive exposure. Indeed the first week’s sales at the UK outlets of the Kate Moss collection exceeded  £ 3 million, were beyond expectations and are going strong ever since. (Fashion United News). Celebrity names do have a positive impact on sales and profit figures and those especially from the world of fashion and entertainment, after sports, are engaged regularly by consumer product manufacturers and retailers. (Sarah Modlock). Consumers have favoured products sponsored or endorsed by celebrities and this is particularly true for apparel and accessories as people have a penchant to look good and thereby feel good. Introducing and aligning with Kate Moss by Topshop was a brilliant move and has paid handsomely. It is expected to improve the sagging bottom-line of the company and will be a grand success. Topshop is owned by Arcadia Group, which also owns British Home Stores, Miss Selfridges, Burtons, Dorothy Perkins and others, and the financial results for the group at the end September 2007 are as follows. It had a total sale of  £ 1.8 billion with profits of  £ 293.3

Risk and vulnerability Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Risk and vulnerability - Article Example At any rate, I try to change my passwords frequently, at least once a month. I try to use a unique password (a combination of numbers and letters, both uppercase and lowercase letters). It makes access difficult but not impossible against a determined hacker. I also keep duplicate files in separate storage just in case data is corrupted or infected with a virus. Buying the branded anti-virus software is also a good step towards protection (Gutwirth, 2009). If the data were compromised, I will try to retrieve my duplicate files stored somewhere else and avoid the same mistakes. 2. Assessing current vulnerabilities – any digital file or data is always subjected to risks no matter what one does to protect it. The best one can do is to mitigate or minimize these risks by doing some simple things like always backing up important data (to another on-line account or storing it in another device), changing my passwords often, being alert to possible intrusions, buying the latest updated data protection software, and always logging out properly whenever I use any of my digital computer accounts. Additionally, I take good care of my hardware devices such as not spilling liquids on them, shutting them down properly after each session, and try not using these devices for long periods to avoid over-heating. It is helpful to be alert to any phising attempts like MITM (or man-in-the-middle impersonators) and be security conscious

People & Organisations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

People & Organisations - Essay Example To this date, the company continues to feel the effects of such actions. This report analyses the role that employee motivation plays in the profitability of commercial organizations. Using Peacocks as a case, the report shows the importance of employee motivations and the ways in which the human resource management can motivate its workforce. Based in Cardiff city, Wales, Peacocks is a large fashion retail chain that has over 400 outlets throughout the United Kingdom and more than two hundred other stores in numerous countries throughout Europe. Prior to 2012, the company had 9,600 employees. Currently, the company has slightly over 6,000 employees in all its outlets throughout the world. Peacocks began experiencing low profitability in 2011. The management could not establish the cause of the problem, as they were engrossed with marketing. The employees were slowing losing their morale and interest with their roles at the company. The growing tension regarding the future of the company affected the morale of the employees further thereby leading to immense demoralization at the place of work. Employees became increasingly clumsy. The fashions and apparel industry is part of the hospitality industry. An employee attitude towards their work is therefore an important feature that influences the profitability of such businesses. The human resource management lacked functional mechanisms of measuring the levels of motivation in their employees. In January 2012, the company laid off nearly half its employees. The spontaneous downsizing and the poor way in which the company treated the employees it laid off was yet another major source of concern to the remaining employees. The company retained with an unmotivated workforce. The employees earned less than their counterparts in competing companies did. Additionally, they worked in fear owing to

Operational Management approaches by Shell Company

Operational Management approaches by Shell Company The chosen company to evaluate the operation management approaches employed in an energy company is Royal Dutch Shell Company. Shell a British-Dutch company that provides oil, gas, petroleum products and renewable source of energy to the world. This company is one of the largest companies around the world that maintains and supplies the world with its fuel, oil and petrochemical products. The Royal Dutch/Shell Group is the worlds biggest and oldest joint venture, formed in 1907 when the Royal Dutch Petroleum Company and the Shell Transport and Trading Company Ltd of the United Kingdom merged their operations. It operates in over 140 countries, providing fossil fuels and green fuels like Hydrogen fuel cells. Some of the facts related to Shell are: has 102,000 number of employees worldwide, provides 2% of oil worldwide and 3% of gas, has 45,000 service stations, 10 million customers worldwide and one of the top fortune 500 companies. Shell has five core businesses: exploration and production, gas and power, refining and marketing, chemicals, and trading and shipping. Source: http://www.annualreview.shell.com/2008/servicepages/downloads/files/entire_shell_review_08.pdf 2 Shells Operation Management System Operation management: Definitions: Management Of the conversion process which transforms inputs such as raw materials and labour into outputs in the form of finished goods and services (Davis, Aquilano Chase, 1999). Schroder (2007) defined operation management as: Operations is responsible for supplying the product or service of the organization. Operations managers make decisions regarding the operations function and its connection with other functions. The operations managers plan and control the production process and its interfaces within the organization and with the external environment (Schroder, 2007). Operation management (OM) is basically the set of activities that creates goods and services by transforming input into output. Activities creating goods and services take place in all organization. In manufacturing firms, the production activities that create goods are usually quite obvious. In them we can see the creation of a tangible product such as Sony TV or a ford Taurus. In organizations that do not create physical products, the production function may be less obvious. It may be hidden from the public and even from the customers. An example is the transformation that takes place at a bank, hospital, airline office, or college. Regardless of whether the end product is a good or service, the production activities that go on in the organization are often referred to as operations or operation management. Operation management is associated with number of areas linked with an organization as how does the organization establish customers requirements, transformation of customers requirement in to product and services, what operations systems/ processes are in place to satisfy the product/services requirement of customer, decision associated with capacity planning, inventory, quality of product etc All these decisions come under the umbrella of operation management. Identification of Customer Requirements: We know that the basic existence of an organization depends upon the product or services it provides to the society. However, with the changing consumer taste and the limited lifecycle of products companies must be looking for new product development. It is a companys life blood. Both profits and growth are affected without aggressive product development. Operation managers give high value to the strong communication between customers, product, processes and suppliers that result in a high success rate for their products. All companies need to search out their customers wants and requirements in order to fill any gaps in the market. A successful market research for new product development comes from knowing what customers value. 3 Shells Operation Management System Product decision: One of the important decisions of operation management is the selection, definition, and design of products. Heizer and Render (2005, pp-132) discussed the product decision in their work as it concerned with the development and implementation of a product strategy that meets the demands of the marketplace with a competitive advantage that can be achieved via differentiation, low cost, rapid response, or a combination of these. Product development system: Product development system may well determine not only product success but also the firms future. Product development goes through a series of steps, starting with ideas that may come from either internal or external sources and ending with the evaluation of new products. Heizer and Render (2005, pp-137) considers two tools that are particularly helpful in the early stages of product development are (1) creativity and (2) identifying customer wants. The former can be addressed via creative, open organizations and brain storming and the second with quality function development. Organizing for product development: According Heizer and Render (2005, pp-141), There are different approaches to the product development. The traditional U.S approach to product development is an organization with distinct departments. These departments are: First research and development department to do the necessary research; then an engineering department to design the product: then a manufacturing engineering department to design a product that can be produced; and finally, a production department that produced the product. A second and popular approach is to assign a product manager to champion the product through the product development system and related organization The third and perhaps the best, product development approach used in the U.S. is the use of teams. Such teams are known variously as product development teams, design for manufacturability teams, and value engineering teams. The Japanese bypass the team issue by not subdividing organization into research and development, engineering, production and so forth. Consistent with the Japanese style of group effort and team work, these activities are all in one organization. Game Changer: Shell Game changer is an internal shell organization which looks for new and innovative ideas that addresses a demand or significant problem in the energy industry. Game changer helps entrepreneurs to convert ideas into products by sponsoring them. Ideas can range from new oil exploration techniques to improved production tools, or even new form of energy. It provides a sheltered testing zone where an idea is developed, tried and improved upon. It also helps to get it to market. 4 Shells Operation Management System Areas of focus are: Increasing energy production Carbon management Energy conversion, storage and distribution Fuelling transportation Working of Game changer: Game Changer screens the novel, early stage idea. If the idea has any potential and game changer agree, it will take it through some important steps and provide the funding and support to get it to proof-of concept. Although game changer grew up on ideas from Shell employees, it also invests in those originating from beyond Shell such as from academics and other entrepreneurs. Game changer primary criteria: Novelty Is the idea truly and fundamentally new and different? Value Could the idea create substantial new value if it works? Credible Plan Is there a plan to manage primary risks prudently by qualified people? Game changer process: The first step in entering the GameChanger process is submission of a short description of the idea through the shell website. A selection panel formed by a group of full-time Shell professionals with diverse backgrounds in the energy industry carries out assessment of all proposals. They assess the proposal at three different levels [7]: Pre-Screening: If a person is an entrepreneur from outside Shell then, after the initial assessment of the idea, a member of the panel will contact the entrepreneur to allocate a Shell technical counterpart to him. This person will then be entrepreneurs co-proponent of the idea and help him through the screening process. Screening Panel: The Screening Panel consists of (any) two members of the GameChanger team. They will listen to the presentation of inventors idea and ask questions in order to obtain a complete understanding of the proposal. The GameChanger panellists will consider the merits of the proposal and within 48 hours decide if the idea could potentially mature into a GameChanger project. If this is the result, the inventor will then be invited to prepare a more detailed presentation for the Extended Panel. Extended Panel: The Extended Panel consists of three members of the GameChanger team and at least three experts who are not members of the GameChanger team. This group will attend the presentation on the inventors proposal and work plan. The panellists will ask questions and the experts will give opinions on the merits of the proposal. The GameChanger panel will then come to a decision on whether to go ahead and fund the development of the 5 Shells Operation Management System idea. Game changer will strive to communicate this decision to the inventor and the co-proponent within 48 hours. If funding is awarded, it is often with a time span of 2- 3 years. The inventor will then use the funds to develop the idea in accordance with an agreed plan. At agreed tollgates, progress and continuation are discussed with proponents and panel experts. Selection Criteria: GameChanger ideas have the potential to effect a significant improvement in the profitability of a business or open up opportunities for growth. The GameChanger panel funds these projects through to their proof-of-concept stage. The final step: Going to the market place If proof-of-concept is reached successfully, GameChanger may also be able to help take the invention a further stage. There are three potential forward paths [7]: Proprietary -The idea is graduated into Shells internal RD funnel or another Shell business for direct use by Shell. Licensing -The idea is licensed to an existing technology provider other than Shell. This is usually applied when complementary capabilities are required to further develop and deploy the idea. Venturing -A new company might be set up to bring the idea to commercial market. In short, once an idea is considered a true GameChanger it will not be shelved and all options will be considered to ensure the GameChanger idea reaches the marketplace. Before digging deep into the operation management system employed within Shell, we need to first understand the following concepts: Process: Process refers to the physical process or facility used to produce the product or service. It includes the type of equipment and technology, process flows, layout of the facility, job design, and workforce policies. Process strategy: A process or (transformation) strategy is an organizations approach to transform resources into goods and services. The objective of the process strategy is to find a way to produce goods and services that meet customers requirements and product specification within cost and other managerial constraints. Virtually every good or service is made by using some variation of one of the four process strategies Process focus: A production facility organized around processes to facilitate low volumes, high variety production.75% of all global production is devoted to making low volumes, high variety products in places called job shops. Such facilities are organized around performing processes. In factory, these processes might be departments devoted to welding, grinding, and painting. In office, the processes might be account payable, 6 Shells Operation Management System sales and payroll. Such facilities are process focused in terms of equipment, layout and supervision Repetitive focus: A product-oriented production process that uses modules (parts or components of a product previously prepared, often in a continuous process. It falls between the product and process focuses. The repetitive process line is the classic assembly line. Widely used in the assembly of virtually all automobiles and household appliances. Fast food firms are an example of a repetitive process using modules Product focus: a facility organized around products; a product oriented, high volume, low variety process. They are also called continuous process, because they have long continues production runs. Shell uses product focused approach for its oil refinery processes. Mass customization: rapid, low cost production that caters to constantly changing unique customers desires.Mass customization brings us the variety of products traditionally provided by low volume manufacturer (a process focused) at the cost of standardized high volume (product focused) production. Operational Systems and Processes at Shell: Shell is involved in production of many products and services. It claims that We provide transport fuel to around 10 million customers each day through our 45,000 service stations worldwide. We are working to deliver cleaner burning and more efficient fuels. Our products and services are also designed to meet the needs of businesses from the construction industry to aviation, chemicals to shipping. [1] (Shell.com) Shell is best known for its service stations and for exploring and producing oil gas on land and at sea. Shell delivers a vast range of energy solutions and petrochemicals to customers; produce and sell petrochemical building blocks to industrial customers on a global scale; invest in making renewable and lower-carbon energy sources; involved in transporting and trading oil and gas; marketing natural gas; producing and selling fuel for ships and planes and generating electricity and providing energy efficiency advice. As mentioned earlier, shell is involved in five core businesses and each business involves number of processes within. To limit our scope, we will discuss the oil gas exploration and production business. Oil Gas exploration and production cycle involves oil exploration, drilling, refining and production of petroleum products. Oil exploration process: In this phase, the initial step is to find the oil. This is of huge importance and Shell invests a lot of money to use statistical analysis to determine the location of oil. This survey process is known as Seismic Surveying. There are three components in Seismic Surveying: 7 Shells Operation Management System A seismic source Sensors Recording equipment During this survey, the scientists create a picture of the rock layer structure beneath the earth and the data collected is carefully examined and interpreted to decide whether to further analysis would be need or to start the exploration process. Once the location of oil is determined, Shell draw up exploration contracts with the countries within whose boundaries the oil was first established. Once the contracts have been approved and negotiations agreed the company can then start its drilling process. Drilling process: Once the oils location is identified, the next step is to drill. Well play fundamental role in recovering oil and gas. With the advancement of technology, new drilling techniques and technology has been developed that helped Shell in drilling wells from few metres to more than 10 kilometers. Wells are not only drilled vertically but also horizontally, can turn corners and snake from one pocket of oil to another. Souce: http://www.shell.com/home/content/innovation/meeting_demand/getting_more/smartfields/smartfields.html As drilling is vital part during oil extraction process, however the issue of planning and operating of wells is of greater importance. Shell realizes that as part of its operations it needs to research into whether a well would produce oil, gas or both. During the late 90s Shell introduced Drilling the Limit methodology which allowed the company to focus attention on how efficiently wells are planned, drilled and managed as a process. The main reason for introducing such a scheme was to limit costs and reduced to time it take to drill. Shell also have introduced a Smart Fields ® program providing both the knowledge and the control by integrating digital information technology with the latest drilling, seismic and reservoir monitoring techniques. 8 Shells Operation Management System Furthermore, Shell has introduced the Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) technology to squeeze out the extra oil that would have been left behind in the oil fields due limited access and hard to get them out. Estimation shows that by recovering just 1% extra throughout the world would equate to 20-30 billion barrels of oil oil that may have been left behind. [5] (Shell.com) Scouce: http://www.shell.com/home/content/innovation/meeting_demand/getting_more/eor_ccs/eor.html Shell is using three techniques: injecting steam into reservoirs to heat and make the oil more fluid, and ease its flow; injecting gas to push oil out or to thin it, or injecting chemicals that free trapped oil. Refining process: Refining is the manufacture of petroleum products from crude oil extracted in the drilling process. Refining process can be classified into three major processes: separation processes, conversion processes and the chemical treatment processes. Refining involves separating crude oil into the desired components depending on the final processes chosen and the available crude oil selected. Separation Processes: Its the first stage of petroleum refining. During this process the crude oil is separated into some of its fractions. This stage involves three separation processes: Fractional Distillation: In the process, the crude oil, which is a mixture of many types of hydrocarbons, is boiled and re-condensed to separate the crude oil into components based on ranges of boiling points. The components with low boiling point are evaporated and collected in the upper part of the chamber known as Distillation column, while the component with higher boiling points are heavier and collected in the 9 Shells Operation Management System lower part of the distillation column. The components collected at the top of the chamber are known as Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG). Solvent Extraction: This process involves the separation of oil into parts by adding chemicals to dissolve the unwanted substances to the crude oil. The main solvents used in this process are furfural, phenol and benzene. Refineries use this method to improve the quality of lubricating oils. Crystallization: This method is mainly used to remove wax and other semi-solid substances from heavy fractions or components. The components are cooled to a temperature at which them become solidify or crystal. They are then put through a filter that separates the solid. Conversion Processes: Petrol is obtained through this process. Conversion process involves to processes: Cracking process and combining process. Cracking Process: It involves breaking up of large hydrocarbon molecules into smaller molecules using a combination of heat and catalytic action. These processes not only increase the production of petrol but also improve its quality and results in products like Cat Cracked Gasoline (CCG) etc. Combining Process: This process is the opposite of cracking. It combines simple hydrocarbons to form more complex fractions. This process results in different products like LPG, Coke (used to generate steam and electricity). Chemical Treatment Processes: Hydrogen Treatment: This process is used to remove the impurities like sulphur compounds by mixing the components with hydrogen. Blending: This is the last stage of refining process. This stage dealt with the mixing of various hydrocarbons, formed in the refining processes, together to make the final product as required by the customer. The final product is tested before sold to the consumer. Capacity Planning and Inventory Management System: Inventory represents a major investment for many firms. Inventories are of four types (Heizer, Render 2005) Raw material and purchased components Work-in-process (WIP) Maintenance, repair, and operating (MRO) Finished goods 10 Shells Operation Management System All organizations have some type of inventory planning and control system. In case of physical products, the organization must determine whether to produce goods or purchase them. Once the decision is made, the next step is to forecast demand. Then operation managers determine the inventory necessary to service that demand. Operation manager establish systems for managing inventory. Vendor Managed Inventory: VMI is an abbreviation of vendor- managed inventory. Shell offer VMI. Vendor-managed inventory (VMI) is more beneficial for the chemical buyers. In this system supplier warehouses the product till customer uses it. In this way Buyers are able to reduce a large portion of inventory from their books. They also benefit from the reduced paperwork, phoning in product orders and following up to see that they are delivered where and when theyre needed. VMI often results in the development of more efficient inventory and supply management, which can shave significant savings off the total cost. VMI takes inventory out of the production equation for buyers. Buyers no longer have to worry about tank levels or when to schedule new shipments. The supplier handles that. By monitoring the customers tank (often using sophisticated telemetry equipment), suppliers know when inventory levels are low. When they reach a certain point, usually agreed upon with the customer, the supplier schedules a deliv ery and the truck shows up at the customers site to replenish the tank. In November of last year, Shell Chemical Corp., Herndon, Va., went into an agreement with ControlSAT, under which ControlSAT would be Shells exclusive telemetry supplier. The agreement has helped the shell a lot because of the compatibility of ControlSATs technology to Shells Supplier Inventory Management Order Network (SIMON), which was developed by Shell Services, the technology arm of Shell Corp. (Reilly, 2000) ControlSAT Telemetry system: ControlSAT, is a technology company that manufactures and markets satellite -based inventory monitoring telemetry systems (system based on cellular and radio wave transmission). Working of ControlSATs System: Orbocomm Global, L.P., ControlSATs parent company, owns a network of 36 del fluorocarbon satellites orbiting the Earth. The satellites are spaced to orbit the polar planes, tropical planes, equatorial plane and about 45 degrees in between, providing total coverage of the Earth. (Reilly, 2000) ControlSAT installs hardware on customers tanks designed to relay inventory data to those satellites. Then, once per day, data is sent via the satellite network to a central monitoring computer, then on to the supplier through a secure Internet link. Data that suppliers receive show their customers inventory levels in tanks around the world. When product inventory levels fall below a certain point, the supplier receives notification to replenish the material in the tanks. In this way, the supplier can proactively 11 Shells Operation Management System schedule its own deliveries. With its daily running inventory and materials needs forecast it can streamline supply. SIMON: SIMON is a Lotus Notes-based software program that provides process industry suppliers with information and analysis tools. SIMON monitors and tracks inventory and consumption and then generates demand forecasts, minimum inventory requirements and re-supplies schedules. As a result, suppliers benefit from an improved ability to control facility and warehouse costs, increased inventory turns, streamlined administrative processes, and better focus on production capabilities. Through ControlSATs tank telemetry service, the SIMON database automatically incorporates timely, accurate and reliable inventory data without the need for manual intervention. Before SIMON and the telemetry supplied by ControlSAT, Shells inventory monitoring used to require a lot of phone calls, faxes and interaction between the customer and Shell. Any Information related to the customers inventory position would be initiated by the customer. Automating the process allowed the supplier to be more proactive in meeting the customers needs (in terms of getting the right product in the right location at the right time) and eliminate the need for time spent faxing and phoning in orders, etc. Shell currently provides the service only to customers that are sole-supplied by Shell, where a very strong business relationship has been developed and where there is a strong, demonstrated opportunity for cost savings through inventory monitoring. One of Shells customers currently using the program agrees that it can save a lot of time in product procurement. Balmoral Marine Inc., a petroleum and industrial gas drilling company based in Houston, Texas, is supplied by Shell and is currently using Shells SIMON and ControlSATs inventory management systems for supply of a particular resin product. (Reilly, 2000) Feature of the new system: Through SIMON, Shell Chemical keeps vital inventory; customers pay upon use for what is consumed. Shell Chemical is the sole source supplier, tied to a supplier/customer business model. Customers reduce safety stocks to bare minimums. Lotus-based SIMON Extracts data on amount of product consumed in past 24 hours. Determines the amount of new product that arrived and was unloaded in same period. Draws information on current and anticipated product schedules. Compares data against known changes to schedules. Data is replicated back to central customer service centre for automatic reconciliation with SAP/MRP systems, generating an automatic re-supply plan. 12 Shells Operation Management System SIMON Features: †¢ When plan indicates a stocking level below accepted minimum, electronic purchase order and shipment is initiated. All information pertaining to status is accessible to customers. Invoices are issued monthly, based on consumption, not shipments. Introduced to 23 of the most strategic customers. Short-term (12 months) results were plus $20 million in product sales. Customer Benefits: Eliminates excess safety stock, reducing working capital and carrying costs. Facilitates timely, low-cost re-synchronization of supply chain. Ensures product is on site when needed. Creates shorter response time to changing conditions. Reduces transaction costs data entry, invoicing, payables, etc. Smoothes erratic order patterns. Reduces order management costs. Streamlines financial accounting. Monitoring and Evaluation of Operations at Shell: Shell has heavily invested in monitoring and evaluation of each of its processes and operations because every process in this business is very much crucial and need careful attention. During the initial stage of oil exploration and production cycle, Shell conducts Seismic Surveying to confirm the presence of oil beds beneath the earth. Otherwise drilling is very much cost intensive process and failure to the initial stage may results in heavy lose to the organization. To determine whether the well would produce oil, gas or both Shell introduced Drilling the Limit methodology which allowed the company to focus attention on how efficiently wells are planned, drilled and managed as a process. Significant reduction both in drilling cost and drilling time has been seen over the decades with the introduction of Drilling the Limit methodology. Shell has introduced a Smart Field program which controls the ongoing drilling, seismic and reservoir monitoring from the separate place equipped with information technology. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Combined with the experience of geologists, engineers and others, Smart Fields ® can help increase the total amount of oil recovered from a field by 10 per cent and gas recovery by 5 per cent, while also boosting the rate of production. [4] (Shell.com) Furthermore, Shell has formed a department under the name Shell Global Solution. Shell Global Solution provide business and operational consultancy, technical services, catalyst and research development expertise to its global customers as well as provide its assistance to Shell in many operational areas such as exploration and production, refining, gas and LNG etc. 13 Shells Operation Management System Conclusion: Shell is one of the largest companies around the world that maintains and supplies the world with its fuel, oil and petrochemical products. In this report we tried to explain how Shell establish its customer requirements, its product development decisions, different operational systems involved in oil and gas exploration and production, inventory management systems and monitoring and evaluation strategy by Shell. As Shell is involved in number of businesses (exploration and production, gas and power, refining and marketing, chemicals, and trading and shipping) and each business has number of operations and processes that need to be maintained. To limit the scope of this report, we only focused our study on the oil exploration and production business.

The Importance of the Origin of the First Quarto of Hamlet Essays

The Importance of the Origin of the First Quarto of Hamlet Ofel: Alas, what a change is this? Ham: But if thou wilt needes marry, marry a foole, For wisemen know well enough, What monsters you make of them, to a Nunnery goe. Ofel: Pray God restore him. Ham: Nay, I have heard of your painting too, God hath giuen you one face, And you make your selues another, --HAMLET, Prince of Denmarke, The First Quarto The title page of the second quarto of Hamlet claims that the text beneath it is "Newly imprinted and enlarged to almost as much / againe as it was, according to the true and perfect / Coppie." Taking this at face value, three facts necessary follow: That there is at least one earlier edition (or else this one could not be "newly imprinted...again"); that the earlier edition was shorter (or else this one could not be "enlarged"); and that this quarto does not include some lines from the "perfect Coppie" (since it is "almost as much"). Indeed, a First Quarto exists dated a year earlier (1603); Q1 is shorter some 1600 lines; and the Folio does restore certain seemingly authorial passages. It appears as if "I.R.," the printer, or "N.L.," the publisher, is correct on all possible counts. We cannot even condemn I.R. or N.L. for self-interested advertising. They admit that their copy is "almost," but not quite, "perfect."* Thus we might wish to take seriously one further point that the tit le page tries to make, namely, that the earlier quarto was neither "true" nor "perfect," and therefore is corrupted not simply in its brevity, but also in the presentation of the text which it actually does contain. This would mean that Q1 did not use the "true and perfect Coppie" as its copy-text. It does not seem preposterous to rephras... ...ay. The strategic early placing of the "To be or not to be, I there's the point" monologue gives it less weight than it has in Q2, as if it were the beginning of Hamlet's train of thought as opposed to the turning point we often think it is when we read a modern edition. Indeed, "the point" is more absolute than "the question." Hamlet does not fight with himself to solve a problem, but merely expresses what that problem is. To argue that this is oversimplification is to oversimplify: it is a revision. It is an Elizabethan argument, positing that a truly revengeful Hamlet would definitely shy away from suicide for hope of salvation, while the confused avenger Hamlet would probably shy away from suicide for fear of punishment. That in itself sheds light on the pop psychology of the day, and thus how we ought to read Hamlet's psychology in the context of its time.

History of communications Essay

In the essay ‘History of communications’, author has tried to make us travel the whole distance right from the beginning when there was no source of communication to today’s world where we have telephone, internet etc. The artist wants us to understand how important means of communication is for us and how difficult it was to invent and implement them. Today’s age can be called as ‘Informative age’ where we can communicate in seconds through latest technology and to any part of the world. The uthor wants us to think about how the life could have been when no such facility was available for our ancestors. Also take pain to think about how they got here and who all were involved in making as well as implementing them to reach the place they are today. The innovative means of communication was different in different countries like Phoenician alphabet in China, use of pigeons in Ancient Greece and many more. Here the author wants to concentrate on the infrastructure for communication that was based on lectronic technologies in 19th and 20th century United States. Importance is given to the people who invented these technologies and developed them further for easy use. There is a relationship between social and technological aspects of society that binds people together. Many other developments like social, political, economic and cultural depend upon the development in communication system. One cannot think of development in any field unless one is able to communicate with other. Society is developed only when communication is perfect and people are able to help each other, as effort of one person cannot make any difference. According to my view the author here has concentrated much on inventions and their developments along with problems faced during implementations. The main central point of making people think about the facts is lacking behind and is dealt in the end of the essay.

Collaboration in publication a study of collaboration rates and citation rates The WritePass Journal

Collaboration in publication a study of collaboration rates and citation rates Abstract Collaboration in publication a study of collaboration rates and citation rates . Six journal articles are a small sample, so the search was manually done on Google Scholar. The journals were picked at random in order to eliminate any form of bias in the final results.   Different aspects of the articles were recorded like the number of authors, number of citations, and the year of publication. Once the data is collected, it was then used to answer the research questions. The six journal articles are listed below as follows: (Journal A). Zhong-Zhi Bai Jun-Feng Yin 2009. Modified incomplete orthogonal factorization methods using Givens rotations. Springer- Verlag (Journal B) Lili Sun , Jian Li Lijuan Wang 2012. Electromagnetic interference shielding material from electroless copper plating on birch veneer. Springer- Verlag (Journal C) Isar Nejadgholi , Seyyed Ali Seyyedsalehi   Sylvain Chartier, 2012. A Chaotic Feature Extracting BAM and Its Application in Implementing Memory Search. Springer Science+Business Media (Journal D) Panda  · S. Saha  · M. Basu , 2009. Optimal production stopping time for perishable products with ramp-type quadratic demand dependent production and setup cost. Springer Verlag (Journal E) Kanjilal  · S. Saha 2009. Electric field distribution and simulation of avalanche formation due to the passage of heavy ions in a parallel grid avalanche counter. Pranama Journal of Physics (Journal F) Md R Islam*, S Saha, N B Manik and A N Basu 2012. Transient current study in safranine-T dye based organic photo-electrochemical cell using exponentially distributed trap assisted charge transport model. Indian Journal of Physics   Ã‚   Research Findings    Table of findings JOURNAL A B C D E F YEAR OF PUBLICATION 2009 2012 2012 2009 2009 2012 NUMBER OF AUTHORS 2 3 3 3 2 4 NUMBER OF CITATIONS 4 1 1 10 0 1       Analysis Question 1 Is there a significantly different rate of collaborative work amongst different journals? Solution   Ã‚   The findings reveal that there is no significant different rate of collaborative work amongst the six different journals. Three journals have been authored by three authors each, whereas the sixth journal has four authors. The remaining two journals have two authors each. The sample reveals most of the authors preferred working in groups of three.   Ã‚  In terms of geographical locations, the authors preferred to work with researchers from the same geographical locations. Article C all the authors are from Canada, in A and B they are all from China, in D, F and E they are all from India. Question 2. Is there a significant difference in quality of research (as measured by number of citations) set against number of collaborators?    Solution   There is a significant difference in quality of research when measured by the number of citations.   One article with two authors got 4 citations and it was published in 2009, the other one published in the same year with the same number of authors got 0 citations. The other article published in 2009 has 3 authors and higher citation rate of 10. Two of the remaining articles were both published in 2012 and both have three authors and one citation each. The last article published in the same year has 4 authors and 1 citation. Going by the findings when the number of authors is the same the articles tend to have the same number of citations but when the number of authors differs, then the number of citations also differ. The citations of 2009 were higher for the article with 3 authors by a margin of 6 citations. This implies that article D was of a higher research value than article A and E. article B C both have the same number of authors and citations but lower than both A and D. The difference between the two sets of years in terms of citations is partly because the 2012 articles are very recent and as such very little or no research has been published on the same topic after they were published. However, the trend is clear in 2009 because article D got more reviews than article A and E.   This is an indication that researchers prefer using publications with more authors compared to the ones with a single or two authors (Becerra-Fernandez Leidner, 2008, p. 47).    Question 3 Has the pattern of collaboration changed over time? Solution The sample indicates that the pattern of collaboration has changed over time. In the year 2009, two journals were authored by two authors and the other one was authored by three authors. In 2012, the situation was different as two journals were authored by three authors and the other one by 4 authors. This indicates a change in the pattern of collaboration as researchers seem to like working in groups of three and above in 2012 which is slightly different to 2009 where some preferred to work in a group of two. This can be attributed to the fact that articles with more collaboration attract more citations as is evidenced by the difference in citations between article A and D. Conclusion The research findings reveal a positive relationship between collaboration in research and citation impact.   The articles with fewer authors seem to get less citation compared to the ones with more citations.   When the articles had a different number of authors in 2009, the article with more authors got more citations. In 2012, the articles had the same number of authors and citations meaning that when the number of authors is the same then the quality of research is considered as being equal. Additionally, there is an increase in the number of authors collaborating in research from the year 2009 to 2012 implying that more authors have started to appreciate the importance of collaboration in research. References Anandarajan, M., Anandarajan, A. (2010). E-Research collaboration: Theory, techniques and challenges. Heidelberg: Springer. Arden, C. H. (2010). Sustaining synergies: Collaborative research and researching collaboration. Mt Gravatt, Qld: Post Pressed. Becerra-Fernandez, I., Leidner, D. E. (2008). Knowledge management: An evolutionary view. Armonk, N.Y: M.E. Sharpe, Inc. Bessant, J. R., Venables, T. (2008). Creating wealth from knowledge: Meeting the innovation challenge. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar. Ekins, S., Hupcey, M. A., Williams, A. J. (2011). Collaborative computational technologies for biomedical research. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley Sons. International Conference on Knowledge Management, Chu, S., Ritter, W., Al-Hawamdeh, S., World Scientific (Firm). (2010). Managing knowledge for global and collaborative innovations. Singapore: World Scientific Pub. Co. International Workshop on Groupware, Kolfschoten, G., Herrmann, T., Lukosch, S. (2010). Collaboration and technology: 16th international conference, CRIWG 2010, Maastricht, the Netherlands, September 20-23, 2010 : proceedings. Berlin: Springer. Napoli, P. M., Aslama, M. (2011). Communications research in action: Scholar-activist collaborations for a democratic public sphere. New York: Fordham University Press. Niedergassel, B. (2011). Knowledge sharing in research collaborations: Understanding the drivers and barriers. Wiesbaden: Gabler Verlag.   Ã‚  BOOK Pardede, E. (2011). Community-built databases: Research and development. Berlin: Springer. BOOK Valentine, J. C., Hedges, L. V., Cooper, H. M., Project Muse. (2009). The handbook of research synthesis and meta-analysis. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.

Raoults Law Definition in Chemistry

Raoult's Law Definition in Chemistry Raoults law is a chemical law that relates the the vapor pressure of a  solution is dependent on the mole fraction of a solute added to solution.Raoults Law is expressed by the formula:Psolution ÃŽ §solventP0solventwherePsolution is the vapor pressure of the solutionÃŽ §solvent is mole fraction of the solventP0solvent is the vapor pressure of the pure solventIf more than one solute is added to the solution, each individual solvents component is added to the total pressure. Raoults law is akin to the ideal gas law, except for solution. The ideal gas law assumes ideal behavior in which the intermolecular forces between dissimilar molecules equals forces between similar molecules. Raoults law assumes the physical properties of the components of a chemical solution are identical. Deviations From Raoult's Law If there are adhesive or cohesive forces between two liquids, there will be deviations from Raoults law. There is negative deviation when the vapor pressure is lower than expected from the law. This occurs when forces between particles are stronger than those between particles in pure liquids. This behavior is observed in a mixture of chloroform and acetone. Here, hydrogen bonds cause the deviation. Another example of negative deviation is in a solution of hydrochloric acid and water. Positive deviation occurs when the cohesion between similar molecules exceeds adhesion between unlike molecules. The result is higher than expected vapor pressure. Both components of the mixture escape solution more readily than if the components were pure. This behavior is observed in mixtures of benzene and methanol and mixtures of chloroform and ethanol. Sources Raoult, F. M. (1886). Loi gà ©nà ©rale des tensions de vapeur des dissolvants (General law of vapor pressures of solvents), Comptes rendus, 104 : 1430-1433.Rock, Peter A. (1969). Chemical Thermodynamics. MacMillan. p.261 ISBN 1891389327.

The Detrimental Effects of Illegal File Sharing Essay

The Detrimental Effects of Illegal File Sharing - Essay Example The thesis is not that clear, because it does not name all affected stakeholders. Original artists are not the only stakeholders affected. The essay mentioned other people who are also affected by piracy at the body, such as those involved in producing and distributing original music, but this is not part of the thesis. The thesis is arguable, because it can be contested. For instance, opponents of intellectual property rights can argue that file sharing can actually increase sales by expanding the distribution of music and enticing people to buy original copies. Each paragraph does not cover one idea, because it lacks topic sentences. The thesis has several points that would have been the topic sentences that could have guided the content or ideas of each paragraph. The paragraph on the motive of illegal file sharing should be removed, because it is not a detrimental impact of illegal file sharing. Each paragraph does not have a topic sentence and so its ideas are scattered, but they can still be connected to the thesis. For instance, one of the paragraphs started with: â€Å"Richard Waterman...logged the number of times Limewire users sought to download each of the files in a sample of one thousand eight hundred.†

Religion Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Religion - Annotated Bibliography Example The site also provides the legal religious rights held by the American citizens. It also extends information on shopping sources for Witchcraft and Wicca and other related materials. The website also provides critical articles written by experts in the subject. The website of American atheists has the objective to conserve the civil rights of atheists. The website strongly promotes the separation between church and the state. It also provides important information to the public about atheism. The information pertaining to the legal, political and mythological aspects of atheism is being effectively conveyed through the website. It also serves as a media for the extension of the activities of American atheists. Withes League for Public Awareness (WLPA) which was found in atheists in Salem, Massachusetts, in May, 1986 extensively work towards creating proper awareness among the public regarding proper understanding on witchcrafts. The vision of the organization is a world free from religious persecution. The organization was founded by Rev. Laurie Cabot H.Ps. The American atheist works towards the rights of atheists. The organization was founded by Madalyn Murray O’Hair almost thirty years ago from now. It works for the active separation between the state and religion and arrange conventions and gatherings for this cause. The organization actively publishes books and disseminates information on the philosophy they preach. Its volunteers also work towards the preservation of the literatures and documents pertaining to the history of atheism. The website of WLPA critically comments on the prejudiced view of the society towards witchcraft. It also mentions the misconceptions of common public on witchcraft. The website also clearly points out the misappropriated ways by which the society approaches Witchcraft. The behavioral approach of the society to blame Wicca and Witchcraft for certain behaviors has been strongly criticized. The