Herbert George Wells Essays - H. G. Wells, International PEN, Wells

Herbert George Wells Essays - H. G. Wells, International PEN, Wells Herbert George Wells In History, many writers have tried to touch on stories of science fiction, but were not too successful. One man though, by the name of Herbert George Wells has been considered by some to be the father of modern science fiction.(GeoCities.com) H.G. Wells as some may call him, have had various books, and stories that has made him very famous in the great book world around the nation, as far as modern science fiction goes. Wells best know books include, The Time Machine, The Invisible Man, The War of the Worlds and The Island Of Dr. Moreau. Out of 100 Books Wells wrote fifty of them were top sellers across the United States and many parts of the world. Many Critics seen Well's as a crazy and loony writer because of his illusional mind, But Wells seen his work as a piece of the world that everyone was afraid to touch on, but Wells was the crazy writer that did so. As far as many people were concerned, Wells was considered a great author for his work and one of the best authors of his ti me because of his imagination and delusional sense of mind. His writings were not like any others because he always wrote about the other side of the world no one dares t touch aliens and the world ending at that time. Now many writers have free-fall writing about science fiction because of our more sense on the science fiction life. Wells can be responsible for why we now talk about science fiction, Because in this world many things are still to be discovered and taught about and some people are too scared and afraid to see what is out there and when Wells found science fiction a whole new door opened. At the time this made him different from many writers because of his subjects but he was just as good as good as some and better than a lot. His sense and wonder for science fiction made him unique and very fascinating to the reader world. At First people we scarred to read Wells writing because they didnt know what to expect from a science fiction writer but once they got a hold of his first book they were fascinated, and thats how Wells succeeded. H.G.Wells had a past that was similar to many great writers but his unique backgrounds made him different. Wells was born in Bombay, Kent in 1866.(Geocities.com). His father was a shopkeeper, even though being a shopkeeper wasnt a great job' during those times but Wells father had a family to tend too so he had to do what he had to do. His mother on the other hand served from time to time and, also was a housekeeper at the newly estate. His fathers business failed and to elevate the family to middle class status, Wells apprenticed like his brothers to a draper, spending the years between the years of 1880 and 1883 in Wilson and South sea.(kirjasto.sci.fi/hgwells.com) His career as an author was fostered by unfortunate accident as a young child. He broke his leg in 4 places and spent a mandatory of the time resting and reading almost every book he could find(kirjasto.sci.fi/hgwells.htm). In 1883 Wells became a teache r/pupil at Midwest Grammar School. He was a very good teacher and many of students and staff seen him as a good and great teacher because of his ways he carried on his teaching and the was he taught his literary work. He obtained a scholarship to the Normal School of Science in London and studied their biology under T. H. Huxley.(kirjasto.sci.fi/hgwells.htm) He majored in biology and science and earned his degrees, this had a lot to do with how he got his knowledge for science fiction books and why he was so good at his work. However his intent fluted and in 1887, he left without a degree. He taught in private schools for four years, not taking his Bachelors degree until 1890. The next year he settled in London and by accident he married his cousin. Her name was Isabel, unfortunately he fell in love with her and forced her to marry him, but when he

Long Island University C.W. Post Admissions Statistics

Long Island University C.W. Post Admissions Statistics Long Island University Admissions Overview: LIU University Post has an acceptance rate of 81%, making it largely accessible. In general, students with good grades and test scores have a good chance of being admitted. Students interested in Post will need to submit an application (the school uses the Common Application), along with high school transcripts and scores from the SAT or ACT. Will You Get In? Calculate Your Chances of Getting In  with this free tool from Cappex Admissions Data (2016): LIU C.W. Post Acceptance Rate: 81%Test Scores 25th / 75th PercentileSAT Critical Reading: 480 / 570SAT Math: 490 / 590SAT Writing: - / -What these SAT numbers meanACT Composite: 21  / 26ACT English: 21  / 30ACT Math: 22  / 25ACT Writing: - / -What these ACT numbers mean Long Island University Post Description: Long Island University C.W. Post Campus is a private university located in Brookville, New York, and the largest campus of the Long Island University system. The 307-acre suburban campus sits among the rolling hills of the Brookville area of Glen Head along the north shore of Long Island, just 50 minutes from New York City. Academically, the university has a 13 to 1 student / faculty ratio, and class sizes typically average between 15 and 20 students. LIU Post offers more than 70 undergraduate majors and over 60 graduate degree programs, including three doctoral programs in information studies, clinical psychology and interdisciplinary educational studies. Popular undergraduate areas of study are business administration, childhood education and criminal justice, while graduate students commonly study library and information science, business administration and special education. Student life is active with over 80 clubs and organizations and an active Greek life. The LIU Post Pioneer s compete in the NCAA Division II in the Eastern College Athletic Conference, the  East Coast Conference  and the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. Enrollment (2016): Total Enrollment: 8,634  (6,280 undergraduates)Gender Breakdown: 42% Male / 58% Female46% Full-time Costs (2016- 17): Tuition and Fees: $36,256Books: $2,000 (why so much?)Room and Board: $13,426Other Expenses: $2,500Total Cost: $54,182 Long Island University Post Financial Aid (2015- 16): Percentage of New Students Receiving Aid: 95%Percentage of New Students Receiving Types of AidGrants: 94%Loans: 64%Average Amount of AidGrants: $21,178Loans: $7,843 Academic Programs: Most Popular Majors:  Business Administration, Criminal Justice, Elementary Education, PsychologyWhat major is right for you?  Sign up to take the free My Careers and Majors Quiz at Cappex. Transfer, Graduation and Retention Rates: First Year Student Retention (full-time students): 74%Transfer Out Rate: 40%4-Year Graduation Rate: 27%6-Year Graduation Rate: 46% Intercollegiate Athletic Programs: Mens Sports:  Basketball, Lacrosse, Soccer, Wrestling, Track and Field, Cross Country, Football, BaseballWomens Sports:  Field Hockey, Fencing, Soccer, Volleyball, Swimming, Tennis, Softball, Lacrosse, Track and Field, Cross Country Data Source: National Center for Educational Statistics If You Like LIU Post, You May Also Like These Schools: Adelphi University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphFordham University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphStony Brook University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphHofstra University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphBinghamton University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphUniversity of New Haven: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphSyracuse University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphCUNY Brooklyn College: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphSt. Johns University: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphSUNY Cortland: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphPace University - New York: Profile | GPA-SAT-ACT GraphMolloy College: Profile

Balance sheet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Balance sheet - Essay Example However, the major underlying problem of Superior Foods is that total current liabilities figure has increased at a phenomenal rate of nearly 10% per annum during 2001 – 2003, whereas the growth rate of total current assets figure is well under 7% per annum. Therefore, it is justified to argue that Superior Food’s current ratio has been constantly declining in last 3 years. Indeed, current ration was between 2.1 – 2.3 in 2001 and 2002 but reduced to 2.0 in 2003. This is an alarming trend because it may deteriorate liquidity position in next 5 years. 1) Current Ratio = Current Assets / Current Liabilities (in thousands of US $) = 83900 / 41950 = 2.00 2) Net Working Capital = Current Assets – Current Liabilities = 83900 - 41950 = 41950 As far the liquidity / solvency of Superior Living is concerned, it should be pointed out that the current ratio indicates that for every $1 that Superior Living owes imminently, it has $2.0 of available liquid resource in fis cal year 2003. The financial experts usually argue that an excellent current is in the range of 1.5 – 2.0 because it enables the firms to easily pay off their debts and future financial obligations to creditors / lenders.

Laterality Differences in Native Arabic Speakers and English Speakers Article

Laterality Differences in Native Arabic Speakers and English Speakers - Article Example This first for example tests whether an English speaker is able to give right ear preference in hearing Arabic sounds and vice versa. This was then extended to include the other categories. Although the majority of tests showed no significant differences for left or right ear perception i.e. showed no suggestion of lateralized perception, at least one from each of the 4 categories of objectives did show evidence of a significant difference at the 5% level of significance. In the first set of tests in which all participants were exposed to both native and non-native sounds to observe any lateralized perception, it was found that each group of speakers had lateralized perception for their own native language but not for the non-native language. That is, the lateralized perception was evident amongst Arabic speakers during the Arabic language test, and amongst English speakers during the English language test, but not during the language test that was in a foreign language for each group. The significant finding was that in these cases, the average scores for right-ear perception was greater than the average scores for left-ear perception. Furthermore, in a comparison bet ween the two tests, the average score on the Arabic language test was significantly greater than the average score on the English language test for right-ear perception in the case of Arabic language speakers, and left-ear perception in the case of English language speakers. Whereas the above was as expected, when the three factors of handedness, gender, and native language were studied, the results were more interesting, and lateralization was evident in one of the 4 instances for each factor. In the English language test, gender was the only significant factor whereas, in the Arabic language test, the other two factors rather than gender were significant.

BA (Hons) Accounting Essay Example for Free

BA (Hons) Accounting Essay Abstract In â€Å"Cost Transparency in Supply Chains: Demystification of the Cooperation Tenet† article, the authors would like to deliver the message about studies on open-book accounting to rivet on mainly on the functions and difficulties, determinants and consequences, and of interorganizational cost management. To offer a new direction, authors seek to detect and systematize applications of open-book accounting. They follow a qualitative approach to analyze why and how open-book accounting is being used in practice. Data were obtained from 59 interviews conducted with purchasing experts and analyzed through content analysis. Authors find that being used for interorganizational cost management, open-book accounting is used in price management. This includes increasing negotiation pressure on a supplier. Based on this finding, we develop a framework to systematize different open-book accounting uses according to both underlying motives for cost transparency and purchasing strategies. The research finding the following to show that cost transparency can be used to achieve to support price management and that it does not necessarily require a trusting and cooperative customer supplier relationship. The background of cost transparency A qualitative research design supplemented by quantitative analysis. Set up a three-tiered design that allows us to evaluate all of the aspects indicated above. Using an online questionnaire that was designed to either affirm or contradict the results obtained from the interviews and to allow for certain quantitative analyses. From a total of 59 interviewees, and received 46 completed questionnaires. Take into account the reverse perspective. To support the results, especially for data manipulation, authors conducted 18 interviews with sales experts. Use the data retrieved from the three step to analysis and explanation on Open-book accounting uses and the article â€Å"Cost Transparency in Supply Chains: Demystification of the Cooperation Tenet† Introduction Cost transparency in the supply chain is the ability to discover how much a particular stock costs, treatment costs or service costs, preferably before receiving the stock, treatment or service. The cost of suppliers is mostly unknown to buyer. We have no way to price in an any services or the cost of a stock, nor do we find pricing published anywhere that helps us compare prices to make better consumer decisions. Cost transparency uses are difference methods in many difference area reform efforts to understand if supplier price increases are justified. We don’t want to pay too much, but you don’t want to knock him down either Literature Review In the world, India is the fourth largest economy and expected to become the fastest growing greater economic in the next few decades. To achieve its economic and development goals, the Indian government targeted the economic growth rates of about 8-10 percent a year for the next few decades. (Rastogi, 2011) The balanced scorecard is a strategic planning and management tool that helps an organization understand and work towards, and allows monitoring the indicators. A completed scorecard system aligns the organization’s picture, with business strategy and daily operation, the fulfillment of the strategy developed by the direction. Strategic performance measures are the better way to notify the decision-making and show progress toward the desired  results. The organization can focus on the most important areas that they are needed to achieve its vision, at the same time it helps an organization make effectiveness objective. (Sharma, 2009) At present, the balanced scorecard is used as strategic analysis system, which indispensable within the strategic management field for future organizations and the competitive business environment. Although balanced scorecard is widely used, but the model has some issues are unable to supply the quantitative indicators and measure the relative important weights for each perspective contribution. The problems associated with the operations using long term strategy has difficult to found by a good number of firms. Firms as well as knowledge of its picture in the future requires more information, compared to financial operational standards that evaluates the strategies and long term view of the firm as well as strategies in operational achievement. Balance scorecard has used for designing and determining strategic operation. The model of balanced scorecard provides the artifice for comparison to obtain many kind of perspective on the strategic decisions taking into consideration for the impact on customers, employee learning, finances and customers. (Sorooshian, 2014) Research Methodology The balance scorecard approach is to improve the firm performance. From previous research, Kaplan and Norton (1992) developed an innovative corporate performance scorecard that provides a framework for selecting multiple key performance indicators that supplement traditional financial measure short term operational controls to the long term strategy of the business. The research suggested mixed results, however, the results confined only to Europe and North America. (Kothari C.R., 2004) To provide evidences to support the balance scorecard is a widely accepted tool for management to achieve different kinds of balance between short and long run operational purposes, Anand et al. conducted a questionnaire on performance scorecard and sent out to chief financial officer (CFO) in India for response. The questionnaire sent to all 579 companies included multinational corporations from a major constituent of Indian corporate  sector, however, only 9% response rate from CFOs. Based on the responses, about half of the responses using balance scorecard. (Kothari C.R., 2004) Anand et al. used field research that they mail questionnaire to each company’s chief financial officer for response. They identified the social and economic background of respondents; however, there are limitations for the methodology. According to the response rate, the survey was likely that the firm does not respond on time and may have non-response bias, which occurs in statistical surveys if the answers of respondents differ from the potential answers of those who did not answer. For example, the chief financial officer with a high workload may not answer the survey because they do not have enough time to answer it, and/or those with a low workload may decline to respond for perceive them as unnecessary. If they found is not necessary or not favorable to the firm, they will definitely ignore the survey. Therefore, non-response bias may make the measured value for the different effects of the above biases happen to offset each other. . (Kothari C.R., 2004) Data Collection The balance scorecard approach is an attempt to arrive different kinds of balance between short run and long run, different perspectives of the of the scorecard, between measuring change and the present position, and between market image and internal focus. It is useful for both strategic and operational purposes. To implement it successfully, it must enjoy widespread support from the company. The questionnaire sent to all 579 companies included multinational corporations from a major constituent of Indian corporate sector, however, only 9% response rate from Chief financial officers. It does not directly reflect those companies actual status. Chief financial officers are the most understanding to the financial situation of a company. If the questionnaire replies from an assistant, clerk or other non-important staff, it would be no more truthfulness. The data impact this research authenticity. It would be more truthful if the questionnaire replies form an important person of company. Table 7 on the research show that only 54.2 per cent of the respondents agree the initial choice of key performance indicators at the design stage of the balance scorecard has been substantially validated. Almost a half of the respondents just validates partly or validates to a limited extent. The validated of the research design stage was too low. Actually, in design stage can be change the visitor more validate to balance scorecard. It can let the research more to fit in with the purpose. Table 1 on the research show that the visitor is major in 3 types of industry(15.09 per cent on other, 13.21 per cent on consumer durable, personal care and food product, and 11.32 per cent on engineering and capital goods). The distributed of industry was not average to Indian companies. It cannot impact the situation of balance scorecard in Indian companies. Conclusion The balanced scorecard is a set of measuring and managing the performance tool. It is focus on the processes and achieving the result. The purpose of the balanced scorecard is to manage and ensure the organizations strategy will be fulfill and achieve the objective. Based on the above article, we have some of the strength, weakness and limitation of using balanced scorecard in the organization. Benefits include align the action to strategy effectively. Balanced scorecard is a powerful system through strategy map, less strategy will align with the financial perspective. By using the balanced scorecard which helps the organization achieves the target and improves the level of management. Also, balanced scorecard maybe causes business unit gain the competitive advantages leading to the benefit to the financial performance. Balanced scorecard has unable to supply the quantitative indicators and measure the relative important weights for each perspective contribution. But the method of quantitative may produce too much performance measures. It is quite difficulties in generating non-financial indicators, but the financial indicators not a certain problem. Sometimes, less highlight on  human resource maybe the greatest weakness of balanced scorecard. There have competitive factors with innovation and knowledge which is the big challenge in current organization. When the organization’s key drivers change, the balanced scorecard must be update such changed. At the same time, resources and organizational capabilities should act as limitation for small organization. Compare with specific industry, there have some limitation or maybe use the balanced scorecard frequently. Any changes in environment, customers and competitors to be more highlight the effect of using the adequate balanced scorecard. If you want to accomplish more easily, should be coordinate with four perspectives, customer, financial, internal business and learning and growth. Nowadays, balanced scorecard is commonly used in the organization. Adopt a good balanced scorecard should be state your strategies with the objective and measure which you have choose. In the organization, everyone must understand each specific strategy, help organizations to acquire full successes. The most important point is the business must maintain updated balanced scorecard and aligned with needs of today. Bibliography: 1. Rastogi, N. P. (2011) Winds of Change: India’s Emerging Climate Strategy, The International Spectator, Vol. 46, No. 2, June 2011, pp. 127–141 2. Sharma, A. (2009) Implementing Balance Scorecard for Performance Measurement, The Icfai University 10 Journal of Business Strategy, Vol. VI, No. 1, p. 11 3. Sorooshian, S (2014) Study on Unbalanceness of the Balanced Scorecard, Faculty of Industrial Management, University Malaysia Pahang, Malaysia, Applied Mathematical Sciences, Vol. 8, 2014, no. 84, 4163 – 4169

Scott Consigny on Protagoras and Logos: A Study in Greek Philosophy and Rhetoric. :: Philosophy Philosophical Papers

Scott Consigny on Protagoras and Logos: A Study in Greek Philosophy and Rhetoric Edward Schiappa's cogent and eloquent book fully deserves the praise it has received. As Donovan Ochs observes in his 1991 review of the book (RSQ 21: 3942), Schiappa, presents a clear account of Protagoras' philosophy and supports his reading with a detailed analysis of each of Protagoras' five extant fragments. But even though Schiappa's reading is compelling, we need not necessarily be persuaded by it; for as Protagoras himself remarks, it is always possible to articulate two opposed accounts about everything, and to make the ostensibly weaker account stronger. In this review I will undertake a "Protagorean" project, articulating and defending an account of Protagoras' philosophy that is opposed to Schiappa's account. To this end I will briefly sketch Schiappa's account, which I label an "enlightenment" reading of Protagoras, and I will then sketch an opposed, "rhetoricist" reading of the Sophist. Schiappa begins his study by acknowledging his debt to George Grote and Eric Havelock. Schiappa concurs with Grote's assessment of the Sophists as "a positive force" in the fifth-century Greek enlightenment (12); and he accepts Havelock's notion that the transition from orality to literacy in Greek society led to a progression "from a mythic-poetic to a more literate, humanistic-rationalistic culture" (21). Drawing on these two scholars, Schiappa depicts Protagoras as a pivotal figure of the fifth century enlightenment helping to transform Greece from an irrational, mythical and theocentric culture into a rational and humanistic culture. Schiappa then proceeds to examine Protagoras' contribution to this intellectual progress, namely his advocacy and analysis of logos, or "rationality" as the proper means of inquiry. In a detailed analysis of Protagoras' five extant fragments, Schiappa argues that Protagoras provides the groundwork for the subsequent development of rational inquiry by delineating the assumptions or principles, the proper procedure or method, and the kind of results or explanations that may be attained through rational inquiry. Concerning Protagoras' conception of the starting points or principles of inquiry, Schiappa argues that in his remark that "humanity is the measure of all things," Protagoras sharply differentiates his anthropocentric logos from the theocentric mythos of the poets who claim to be inspired by the gods. Schiappa also construes Protagoras' remark that he is unable to know whether or not the gods exist as further underscoring the Sophist's rejection of theocentricity. These remarks are fundamental to Protagoras' project, for in them he suggests that valid inquiry must be initiated by humans themselves, without information supplied by the gods.

My walk with the Lord

I realized I needed the Lord as a teenager. Because I grew up in a Christian home, and went to church on a regular basis, I never really experienced that close and personal relationship with the Lord. It wasn’t until I was in high school that I grew close to Christ. My father fought stomach cancer for two years, and the three months he spent at home with our family taught me to rely on God for everything. It was only through prayer and reading Bible passages that I was able to be strong as my father passed away. This was a tumultuous period for me; I was begging God for more time with my father, and praying for Him to ease my father’s pain. Instead of God healing my father, he showed me that Jesus is alive and with us. I was desperate to walk with Jesus Christ, and He helped me to see that He was with my father and my family. I always understood that Jesus is our Savior, yet I didn’t truly believe that He is alive in our heart, until my father’s illness. That was when I felt the promise that He would always listen to my prayers and be with me. The Spirit guided me through my prayers during different times, especially during my junior year in high school. I have faith in eternal life and a strong conviction that I could never obtain through education, but only by experience in Jesus Christ. As a result, I have decided I will do whatever God leads me to do until the day I get to meet my father in heaven. I now truly understand the principles and ideas being taught in my church, and I have begun applying them to my own life. I have learned that every good gift and every perfect gift is from above (James 1:17) and also that if I ask, it shall be given; seek, and I shall find; knock and it shall be opened. (Matthew 7:7). These lessons, although filled with a joyful promise, have not always come easy. There have been times I have prayed so much for something, to have it not happen or to not be fulfilled. It has taken many years to understand that The Lord’s path is the right path, and my way is not always what is best for me. Often times, however, I have been able to see God’s plan for me, after the fact, and was thankful that e is in control of my life. Any problems or questions I find in my life, I have learned that I can turn to the scriptures for the answers, like a handbook for life. I also know that the Lord is with me at all times. Like in Psalms 23, probably one of the most well-known verses, I know that The Lord is my Shepard, and I shall not want. And Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me. In times of solitude or despair, I have taken comfort from this passage. My walk with The Lord is a constant journey. Each day I learn more and trust in His grace further. Although at times it is hard to trust in the unknown, I have put all of my heart into Him, and I know that He will provide for me. Because I realize this, I hope to help others to also understand and come to know Jesus. He has said, in Luke 16:15-16, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. I want to live my life for Christ. I want others to see His good works through me. I want to continue to grow in His Almighty grace and spirit. I want to help unbelievers experience the incredible rock that I have found to help me through good times and bad, and to know the one I call Jesus.

Do environmentalists overstate their

Do Environmentalists Overstate Their Case? The very interesting article â€Å"Do Environmentalists Overstate Their Case? † is included in an academic book â€Å"Taking sides†. In the article writer provides articles for and against the motion. Both the sides are well addressed and are very convincing. However, I personally think that, environmentalists do overstate their case. According to environmentalists the world is going to hell in a handbasket but I disagree with the statement because Various individuals organizations and nations re taking initiatives to improve the condition of the environment.Like for instance, according to the article published in Japan Times in Feb 23, 2013, Tokyo and Beijing are cooperating to decrease the air pollution and it's menace. Similarly, according to article published in Delhi(lndia) government site various steps have been taken to reduce pollution like: ban of vehicles older than 15 years, ban in vehicles driven in conventional fue ls etc. These rules are being effectively implemented though transportation enforcement team.These are few among many examples of initiatives taken to improve the environment thus world is definitely getting better and not worse in days to come. Furthermore, environmentalists are focusing too much on environmental degradation and totally ignoring about the improvement in environmental condition. They fail to address the cases of environmental improvement. For example: according to â€Å"The economist† in the article â€Å"The east is gray† America and Europe combined are cutting down their emissions by 60m tones a year in spite of increase in industrial activities.The above shown chart as published by world bank clearly shows that sulphur- dioxide concentration in all the major places are in decreasing trend. These are some of the facts that environmentalists forget to mention. Most importantly environmentalists have to understand that environment is a dynamic and not static. If it's degraded today, it can always get better tomorrow. We don't really have to make a fuss out of it and exaggerate to the extent that it makes people panic. We can also notice it in our real lives that the environment is actually dynamic.For example: My father told me that â€Å"The Bagmati river† which is one of the most important river of my country Nepal was very clean when he was a child. However, as a child I saw only the polluted version the river. But, as the time passed by various measures were taken to clean up the river. At local level people started cleaning it up and at national level various policies were set up. Now, I can see it for myself that the river is cleaner than it used to be. Similarly, the western countries have followed the pattern of â€Å"grow first, clean up later†.During the process of development and progress the environment is affected adversely. However, later they take the initiatives and clean up the environment. In this way, the environment is changing, sometimes for bad and sometimes for good. Thus, environmental degradation is not a big issue. TO the environment is improving every passing day. The government policies and rules indicate that, the statistics proves that and our own experiences assures the point.

Cloud Computing Security Issues in Enterprise Organizations

Cloud Computing Security Issues in Enterprise Organizations Introduction Cloud computing has started to move beyond hype and into the fabric of businesses today. Small and Medium Businesses have discovered by utilizing cloud services, they can gain significant benefits including access to novel business application and state of the art infrastructure resources.Advertising We will write a custom thesis sample on Cloud Computing Security Issues in Enterprise Organizations specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Although Enterprise Organizations are gaining valuable insight into the potential benefits of cloud, IT directors still have concerns about the security of their corporate data in the cloud. There are three major security issues inherent in cloud computing that make implementation in Enterprise Organizations a challenge. These issues are: Loss of control over data and Dependence on the Cloud Service Provider (CSP) Spying These three issues can lead to a number of legal and security concerns re lated to infrastructure, identity management, access control, risk management, regulatory and legislative compliance, auditing and logging, integrity control as well as Cloud Computing provider dependent risks (CEPIS, 2011). This paper will set out to show that while there are significant security threats that an enterprise faces when it migrates to the cloud, there are solutions that can be implemented to mitigate these threats and ensure that the enterprise is able to benefit from the numerous advantages of the cloud without exposing itself to unnecessary risks. Defining Cloud Computing The concepts behind cloud computing have been applied for over two decades (CEPIS, 2011). However, the widespread implementation of cloud computing services has only become prevalent over the last 7 years. The National Institute of Standards and Technology defines cloud computing as a model for enabling ubiquitous, convenient, on demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing reso urces that can be rapidly provisioned and delivered with minimal management effort or service provider interaction (Chirag et al., 2013, p.562). Cloud computing offers a number of significant benefits, therefore making it attractive to many enterprises. To begin with, cloud computing utilizes a pay-per-use model, meaning that the organization only gets to pay for the services that it uses. Chirag et al. (2012) document that cloud computing present businesses with the ability to increase their IT capabilities on demand and without having to invest much in new infrastructure or training of personnel.Advertising Looking for thesis on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The enterprise is therefore allowed to focus on its core business concerns instead of dealing with technical IT issues. According to Chirag et al. (2013), many of the organizations in the US and Europe that have migrated to the Cloud en vironment have done so in order to exploit the advantages or cost reduction. Skendrovic (2013) reaffirms this observation by noting that most enterprises acknowledge that using a cloud solution is integral to maintaining future organizational growth and productivity. Concerns In spite of the widespread enthusiasm for cloud computing, there still exists significant apprehension about migrating to the cloud. Cloud computing brings about risks that an organization would not be forced to face if its applications were run in-house. A number of significant and valid security concerns have caused this apprehension. Loss of Control over Data When an enterprise makes use of cloud services it, in essence, relegates the control of data and applications to third parties. An enterprise that migrates from the traditional in-house environment to a cloud environment immediately relinquishes its control over the networking infrastructure. The cloud service provider (CSP) is in control of infrastruct ure including servers, log files, and incident reports. The first issue that arises is that the enterprise does not have control over the physical infrastructure where its data is stored. Chirag et al. (2013) assert that a reality for organizations that choose to make use of cloud computing is that their data will be stored off-site. Since the servers, storage space, and application programs are provided by external service providers, the organization will have a loss of control over the infrastructure. Enterprises expose themselves to a higher risk of facing unauthorized access when they use a cloud system as opposed to the traditional network system. Cloud service providers store data for various organizations at the same location. This stored data (data at rest) needs to be protected from physical and electronic compromise. A non-authorized user who is able to access the shared environment has access to the private data of the organizations that use the particular cloud computing service provider. The distributed nature of cloud system resources makes it hard to ensure data security and privacy (Qaisar Khawaja, 2012).Advertising We will write a custom thesis sample on Cloud Computing Security Issues in Enterprise Organizations specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This risk is high since the cloud system typically has a high number of administrators and users. Malicious users can successfully attack a cloud control interface and gain control of an enterprise’s account. When this happens, the intruder will have access to the data stored in the account. Enterprises are likely to be co-tenants with attackers on the Cloud (Juels Oprea, 2013). This jeopardizes the enterprises data since the malicious co-tenant is well placed to carry out a successful attack. Since the enterprise does not own or control where the data is stored and processed, there is a threat of theft or misuse. If the cloud provider does not provide solid physical or logical security, the organizations data might be stolen. The organizations data may also be used in a way that the client has not agreed to. Cloud providers might use the data for different purposes from those originally notified to and agreed with the consumer. Pearson and Yee (2012) document that cloud service providers may gain revenue from unauthorized uses of client data such as resale of detailed sales data to competitors. Enterprises that make use of cloud services do not have control over the lifecycle of their data. Organizations that maintain data onsite have data lifecycle plans that determine how long the data will be retained and when it will be destroyed. When using a cloud service provider, the enterprise cannot be guaranteed that its request for data deletion will be honored. The organization might issue a command to delete data using its application program, but the service provider might continue to store the data without the knowledge o f the organization. Dependence on the Cloud Computing provider As previously noted, employing cloud computing services means that the enterprise will be using the computing resources of a third party; the Cloud Service Provider. This reliance on a third party to provide critical services might lead to a number of problems. To begin with, the organization is not in control of the availability of the computing services it requires. Since the services are provided through the internet, there is a possibility that temporary or permanent loss of services might be caused by Denial of Service attacks. Vulnerabilities in the network have a direct negative effect on the security of the Cloud. Chirag et al. (2013) declare that the network is the backbone of Cloud computing since it is the most crucial component of Cloud services.Advertising Looking for thesis on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Enterprises that make use of the cloud might suffer from access limitations. Since data and information flow occurs through the service provider, it is not possible to ensure that an organization can access its data at all times. The power to limit access control lies with the service provider who has overall control of the communication infrastructure. The enterprise is therefore at risk of having its data locked in by the CSP for a number of reasons including orders from the government. In addition to this, use of cloud services presents a transparency issue. Users are often abstracted from the details of how the applications run on the Cloud and in most cases, the organization is kept in the dark concerning issues such as the exact location where the data is stored and who owns it or what will be done with it. This lack of transparency means that organizations are at risk of having their data used in ways that they did not authorize. In addition to relying on the Cloud service pr ovider to make the computing resources available, enterprises have to rely on the cloud provider to provide adequate security for the data at rest. The enterprise has to depend on the CSP to notify it of any security breaches that might occur on its data or applications. Since the enterprise does not control the data, it might be unaware of any security breaches that occur. Pearson and Yee (2012) state that there are uncertainties about notification, including of any privacy breaches that occur in the cloud. The organization will find it difficult to know if any breach has occurred since the cloud service provider might be reluctant to reveal such information since it will damage the image of the provider. It is also hard to determine whose fault it is in case of a security breach since the comprehensive security logs are maintained by the cloud service provider. Spying Spying has become an issue of significant concern over the last two years. The issue of electronic surveillance ha s gained a lot of interest following the revelations that the US National Security Agency is engaged in rampant data collection. Use of CSP increases the risk that an organization might be spied on. To begin with, cloud services are provided through the internet creating an opportunity for government agencies to intercept data as it is transferred from one location to the other. Saroj (2014) suggests that this risk would not be there is an organization made use of an intranet where all the data was processed in-house. The relationship between the major technology companies that serve as CSPs and intelligence agencies increases the level of spying that enterprises face. Hamilton (2013) reveals that in the US, there is cooperation between technology companies such as Microsoft, Google, and Amazon and intelligence agencies. There have been reports of the NSA and the FBI being provided access to data from the cloud storages of these companies. When the CSP provides government agencies w ith access to its data, the organization’s information is open to illegal scrutiny by the government entities. The risk of spying increases when the data has to cross over geographical boundaries that are subject to different laws. Different countries have varying data protection laws. An organization that is storing personal data with a CSP operating in a different country might find itself subjected to different data protection laws in the host country. Saroj (2014) confirms that due to the exposure of the high level of espionage activities conducted by the NSA, most enterprises are likely to invest more to on-premise solutions for their technology needs. Solutions Coming up with solutions to the security issues inherent in cloud computing is integral to the future success of cloud computing. Undoubtedly, the pooled computing resources and multi-tenancy model utilized by cloud computing introduces new security challenges that call for novel techniques to address them. Witho ut feasible solutions to the challenges, organizations will continue to demonstrate reluctance to migrating to cloud computing. Solutions to Loss of Control Most organizations would like to ensure that they do not lose control of their data. This outcome can be achieved in a number of ways. Enterprises can enter into contracts to ensure that their data and especially intellectual property rights are protected even in the cloud (KPMG, 2013). Ownership of intellectual property should remain with the organization at all times. As such, intellectual property attached to the data or generated by applications that is hosted in the cloud should belong to the user of the cloud. The enterprise can increase control over its data by negotiating a customer-oriented contract with the CSP. Priya and Ward (2013) state that such an agreement should increase the liability of the CSP in the event of a security breach and increase the rights of the organization over its data. Ensuring that the CSP can only use the organization’s data in ways that the organization has stipulated is important. Many organizations are keen to ensure that unauthorized secondary usage or their data do not happen. Pearson and Yee (2012) warn that at the present, there are no technological barriers to such secondary uses and as such, the cloud service provider might misuse company data. However, this risk might be mitigated by developing legally binding agreements as to how data provided to the CSP can be used. Solutions to Dependence on the CSPs The problems of availability that are caused by the high dependency on the cloud computing provider can be solved in a number of ways. Enterprises can make use of multiple providers to ensure continuous availability. Most CSPs provide the data proliferation function which entails having data stored or processed at different data centers. Replicating data in multiple data centers ensures full-time availability since it is unlikely that all data centers wi ll be experiencing problems at the same time. Juels and Oprea (2013) state that distributing data across multiple cloud providers provides redundancy therefore ensuring that reliable cloud services can be obtained from unreliable components. The enterprise can increase their protection against data loss due to damage to the cloud infrastructure by maintaining backup storage. Organizations should demand that the service provider maintains an off-site data backup that can be used in case the cloud infrastructure collapses. The provide should also have a standby disaster recovery and continuity plan that will ensure that the clients are able to resume normal functioning in the shortest period of time after a catastrophic failure (Zissis Lekkas, 2010). Chirag et al. (2013) confirm that it is hard to prevent all the attacks to the Cloud network due to the distributed nature of the cloud. However, implementing security solutions such as firewalls, anti-malware and strong encryption techn ology will mitigate these threats. In addition to protecting the data from online attacks, it is important to ensure that physical security of the cloud computing infrastructure. This security can be assured by ensuring that the servers are located in a secure location where there is constant surveillance. Nkhoma and Dang (2013) notes that most CSPs make use of the best security technologies such as biometric screening to ensure that only authorized staff have physical access to the company’s servers. Saroj (2014) confirms that majority of the cloud data centers offer great security than on-site data centers. The safety of organizational data is therefore better secured in the cloud that it would be if the company stored the data on its own premises. The higher than average security is possible since most cloud providers have the resources and expertise to implement the best security technologies available in the market. Solution to Spying The ability of spying agencies to ac cess organizational data can be inhibited by encrypting data before transmission. Researchers agree that the greatest risk for data being transmitted to or from the cloud is poor encryption technology. Hamilton (2013) observes that organizations such as the NSA find it easy to spy on organizations since they access the data in raw text or they are provided with keys that make it possible to successfully decrypt data. Organizations should ensure that their data is always encrypted before it is transmitted over the network. Using strong encryption standards during data transmission will increase the user confidence that the data is not prone to attacks from opportunistic hackers or government intelligence agencies. In addition to this, the enterprise should demand for its data to be stored in encrypted form in the CSPs storage facilities. This would ensure that even if spying takes place, it would require significant effort to decrypt the data. The threat of spying is exacerbated if t he CSP allows government agencies free access to its databases. Cloud service providers should be able to tell their clients if the data in the cloud is being accessed by any government agency. This transparency will enable the enterprise to make an informed decision on whether to store their data on the cloud. Addressing the spying problem is critical for enterprises to have confidence in cloud solutions. Most US cloud service providers are aware of the negative effect that the NSA spying could have on this industry. In recognition of the damage that spying might have on the cloud business, many companies are enforcing security measures intended to ensure that governments are not able to illegally spy on users. Google enforces mandatory encrypting of all the data stored on its cloud on behalf of the clients. Organizations that make use of the Google cloud are allowed to manage their own encryption keys, therefore increasing the level of security. Conclusion This paper set out to di scuss the issues that an enterprise might face when it makes use of cloud computing providers as well as the solutions to these problems. It began by highlighting the increasing interest that organizations have shown to cloud computing due to the benefits that this technology offers. It then highlighted some of the major issues inherent in cloud computing. The paper has demonstrated that security remains to be the primary factor preventing most organizations from migrating to the cloud. From the facts presented in this paper, it is clear that these fears are valid since the cloud infrastructure has some major vulnerability that could lead to problems for the enterprise. It should be noted that most of the threats inherent in cloud computing are not unique to the cloud environment. Problems such as data loss, unauthorized data access and spying can occur even when the data is maintained by the organization on-site. The problems inherent in Cloud Computing can be mitigated by implemen ting the solutions proposed in this paper. References Chirag, M., Dhiren, P., Borisaniya, B., Avi, P., Rajarajan, M. (2013). A survey on security issues and solutions at different layers of Cloud computing. Journal of Supercomputing, 63(2), 561-592. Council of European Professional Informatics Societies (CEPIS) (2011). Cloud Computing Security and Privacy Issues. Retrieved from: cepis.org/media/CEPIS_Cloud_Computing_Security_v17.11.pdf. Hamilton, D. (October 11, 2013). Leaked Documents Implicate Microsoft in Giving Government Agencies Access to Cloud, Email, VoIP Data. Web Host Industry Review (WHIR). Retrieved from: thewhir.com/web-hosting-news/leaked-documents-implicate-microsoft-in-giving-government-agencies-access-to-cloud-email-voip-data. Juels, A., Oprea, A. (2013). New Approaches to Security and Availability for Cloud Data. Communications of the ACM, 56(2), 64-73. KPMG (2013). The cloud takes shape. Retrieved from: https://www.kpmg.com/Global/en/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesPu blications/cloud-service-providers-survey/Documents/the-cloud-takes-shapev2.pdf. Nkhoma, M.Z. Dang, D.P. (2013). Contributing Factors of Cloud Computing Adoption: a Technology-Organisation-Environment Framework Approach. Proceedings of the European Conference on Information Management Evaluation, 2(1), 180-188. Pearson, S., Yee, G. (2012). Privacy and Security for Cloud Computing Computer Communications and Networks ITPro collection. NY: Springer. Priya, D., Ward, C. (2013). Cyber-Security Threats and Privacy Controls for Cloud Computing, Emphasizing Software as a Service. The Computer Internet Lawyer, 30(3), 20-24. Qaisar, S., Khawaja, F. (2012). Cloud Computing: Network/Security Threats and Countermeasures. IJCRB, 3(9), 1323-1329. Saroj, K. (January 8, 2014). NSA Spying Will Hurt Cloud Computing Software Spending in 2014. Cloud Times Retrieved from: http://cloudtimes.org/2014/01/08/nsa-spying-will-hurt-cloud-computing-software-spending-in-2014/. Skendrovic, D. (2013). Growin g pains in the cloud. NTT Communications Retrieved from: eu.ntt.com/fileadmin/NTT-Europe/media/PDF/Research_Reports/NTT_Research_Report_Growing_Pains_In_The_Cloud_FINAL.pdf. Zissis, D., Lekkas, D. (2010). Addressing cloud computing security issues. Future Generation Computer Systems, 28(3), 583–592.

ACT Study Guide Schedule and Plan for One Year or More

SAT / ACT Study Guide Schedule and Plan for One Year or More SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips You're serious about studying for the SAT. You have a year or more to study, and you want to put a real effort into it. Is studying this much worth it? What are the payoffs? And most importantly, what's the best way to study for the SAT / ACT on the year-or-more level? This post answers those questions! First, let's get a couple of important questions out of the way. Is Studying for a Year or More Worth It? Who Should Use This Guide? The short answer: yes, it's absolutely worth it. We know from recent studies that a 105-point increase on your SAT score (equivalently, 1.5 points on your ACT score) doubles your odds of getting into a given college. If you had a 10% chance of getting into Harvard before, it increases your chances to around 20%. And a 105 point increase can be obtained in a few dozen hours. This means that even if you're studying 100 hours for the SAT / ACT, those 100 hours are doing much more to increase your chance of getting into college than, say, sports or clubs. A study schedule of a year or more is definitely worth it for students who care about getting into the best colleges. How Many Hours Do I Need? How Far Ahead of Time Should I Start? If you're starting your studying a year or more before you take the test, plan to spend at least a hundred hours or more. As this SAT / ACT study schedule planner suggests, you don't want to study too few hours when you start far ahead. You should also begin studying so that you aim to take the test junior year fall (I'll explain more below). If you're planning a year to study, start during the winter or spring of your sophomore year. If you're on the more aggressive schedule of studying for a couple of years, you want to get started at the end of freshman year. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or more? We've put our best advice into a single guide. These are the 5 strategies you MUST be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download this free SAT guide now: Why Aim to Take SAT / ACT in the Fall of Junior Year? Many students aim to take the SAT / ACT junior spring or senior fall. But as an advanced student, if you really care about the SAT / ACT, your goal is to optimize everything about your studying. Optimizing the test date means taking it early. Why take the SAT / ACT so early? Because you want buffer space in between tests. If you don't do well junior fall, you'll still have two more chances junior spring (March and May for the SAT, February and April for the ACT) and won't have to run into summer after junior year and senior fall for testing. This is a huge advantage because you'll have all that time to focus on applying to college. And trust me, from my personal experience, you'll need that time. Think about it this way: what's the harm in taking the tests one month earlier than necessary? Okay, you stress one month earlier, and maybe you take the test with one less month of education. This is really not a large loss. What's the harm in taking it one month later than necessary? Last minute application scrambling, prep courses, and tons of stress. Take the safe bet: aim to take the tests junior fall. The First Step Okay, so you're aiming to test in junior fall, and you have around a year or more - this puts you at sophomore year or younger (if not, follow our guides for more moderate studiers). If you're starting earlier, just stretch the dates in this guide out evenly, like a rubber band. September of Sophomore Year The first thing you want to do is take two practice SAT / ACTs. Use real SATs or real ACTs. The first SAT / ACT you take, do not time yourself. You can break it into multiple pieces. Focus on readingall the instructions and the fine print. Also, focus on understanding the question and not the time pressure. If you've already taken a few SAT / ACTs in the past, you can skip this first test. Reflect on the main features of the test. Are there strategies you can already see without being told? What do you think are some tricks you can use to solve questions? (If you're using PrepScholar, we tell you this automatically). After this, take the test a second time, but follow the timer strictly. Then reflect on how time pressure changes things, and what you must do to counter this. With this second test, you also have a sense of what your mistakes are. For each mistake, write down two reasons you made it, like "carelessness" or "didn't know quadratic equation." Then, tally up the reasons and brainstorm ways to study for them. (If you're using PrepScholar, this tally analysis will be done for you automatically). These two tests will also prepare you well for the PSAT, which happens in October of sophomore year (see the PSAT timeline here). November of Sophomore Year You now have a list of major errors and how to study for them. For example, you might find yourself forgetting grammar rules, and so you'll spend 10 hours memorizing the most commonly tested grammar rules on the SAT. Or you might find that you don't know quadratic equations, and spend 10 hours reviewing them. You'll want to prioritize your content issues first. Content issues are those with fundamental knowledge of math, reading, writing, science, and so forth. These are things like what subject verb agreement is, trapezoids and their properties, and so on. Content issues are the hardest to forget, so studying early has an advantage. These issues are also the most the scalable: even if you dump a lot of time into fundamental content, you'll continue to improve as you know more of it. In fact, if you are scoring under a 1330 on the SAT or a 30 on the ACT, most of your gap is simply due to missing fundamental content. So make sure your foundations are strong. When exactly to take the next step depends on both your time budget and how much fundamental content is missing. If you're scoring, say, 1000 on the SAT or 18 on the ACT, and are budgeting over 200 hours, then the above steps should really be started earlier. The schedule here assumes you're studying 100 hours and already have a 1330 on your SAT / 30 on your ACT for the next step. March of Sophomore Year At this point, you want to shift towards strategy. Repeat the September analysis: do a timed test and see which questions are losing you points. However, this time notice where you're going wrong with strategy and test tactics instead of content. Notice when you run out of time, or make a careless mistake. Notice if you've rushed too much in one section versus another. Now come up with a few ideas to attack your strategic flaws (or if you're using PrepScholar, we come up with these strategies for you). Test out your plan by doing a few sections at a time. Do these new strategies you've thought up work? Iterate on these strategies, and repeat until you get your strategy down. At this point, ask yourself, are you getting the score you want for your school? If so, you can take it a bit easier (but still continue on). Otherwise, consider budgeting more time for studying. Bonus: Want to get a perfect SAT or ACT score? Read our famous guide on how to score a perfect 1600 on the SAT, or a perfect 36 on the ACT. You'll learn top strategies from the country's leading expert on the SAT/ACT, Allen Cheng, a Harvard grad and perfect scorer. No matter your level, you'll find useful advice here - this strategy guide has been read by over 500,000 people. Read the 1600 SAT guide or 36 ACT guide today and start improving your score. Summer before Junior Year This is Round Two of your studying. Repeat the September to March process: find more fundamental content weaknesses, and then look again for strategic weaknesses. Why split the process into two rounds? First, it increases your creativity - you may come up with strategies the second time around that you missed the first time around. Also, the strategies you use in the end will depend highly on your final performance. If you're scoring in the 800/1600 range on the SAT, skipping questions is key. If you're scoring 1270/1600, you can barely afford to skip any questions. By criss-crossing your studying this way, you get a better idea of your final score earlier on. Fall of Junior Year Sign up to take the first SAT or ACT of the year, usually August or September, respectively. Make sure you have a strong final week leading up to the test date. Before you take the test, estimate yourexpected "interquartile range." Suppose you expect there's a 75% chance you'll do better than a 900, and a 25% chance you'll do better than a 1000. Then your interquartile range is 900-1000. The Rest of Junior Year Take the SAT or ACT and then see what your score is. On your first test, if you score lower than the top of your interquartile range, plan to take it again in two months (likely December), following a shortened version of the study plan from the summer before your junior year. If your second score is less than the middle of your interquartile range, try once more in another 2-3 months, likely in February or March. Finally, if your third score is less than the bottom end of your expected interquartile range, try one last time, likely in June. Remember, taking the SAT / ACT more often is generally better for you, especially if you're scoring lower than you expected! Conclusion The above guide is a comprehensive way to study well for the ACT or SAT given 100 hours and 1 year or more of study time. The main theme is tallying up your mistakes and coming up with strategies to focus on them. If you want a system that automatically does this tracking and scheduling for you, check out our PrepScholar software. It comes with a free trial! Want to learn more about the SAT but tired of reading blog articles? Then you'll love our free, SAT prep livestreams. Designed and led by PrepScholar SAT experts, these live video events are a great resource for students and parents looking to learn more about the SAT and SAT prep. Click on the button below to register for one of our livestreams today!

Personal Career Development Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Personal Career Development Project - Essay Example Most leadership researchers agree that leaders need to have important interpersonal skills such as empathy, motivation, and communication (Carlopio et al 32). What has received considerably less attention than the skills is that appropriate application of these skills requires a thorough understanding of one's social setting, or social intelligence. The main strengths I possess are confidence, high-self steam, ambitious, workaholic, forward-looking, always willing to learn, cautious. My leadership functions are partly a function of skilful deployment of personal qualities but probably more of the interactive processes between leaders and their followers and the more general processes through which purpose and commitment are generated and sustained within an organization. It is the willingness of people to follow that makes a person a leader. Moreover, since people tend to follow those who, in their view, offer them a means of satisfying their own personal goals, the more managers are able to understand what motivates their subordinates and colleagues, and the more they reflect this understanding in carrying out their management actions, the more effective they are likely to be as leaders. In my communication, I am concrete, time-limited, realistic, challenging and capable of evaluation (Cole 39). The main weakness is that English is my second lan... Decision-making is directed to reaching a goal/objective. It is about the how, what, why, when (and where) of a course of action and of how to overcome obstacles and to solve problems. Decision-making is what turns thought into action: it implies change and requires a decision to be made against a background of uncertainty and risk. Every person needs to be able to choose the action or course of action that is the best for you/your organization to meet its objective(s). An effective decision is one that produces the goods, ie gives the desired end result. It is important to be able to project ahead, to take the expected and unexpected into account, to have contingency plans in case events intrude in such a way as will turn a good decision into a bad one (Cole 35). The main opportunities are desire to learn and master new knowledge and skills, creativity and self-confidence. On the other hand, creativity can be encouraged in people (including oneself) by exploring some of the qualities and characteristics of creative thinkers and the activities/steps that can be undertaken to improve the processes involved. The main threats are lack of lack of business background. Communication should be good laterally and vertically (and flatter organizations should - in theory, at least - encourage good lateral communication). Managers should ensure a good flow of information - ideas can emerge as a result. Good administration is the hallmark of good management and the proper and efficient use of resources. Managers become leaders when their personality and character, their knowledge and functional skills of leadership are recognized and accepted by the others involved. These leadership functions need to