Managing Human Resources Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Managing Human Resources - Essay Example As a work motivational approach, Cummings and Worley (2009, p. 434) explained that rewards can either be intrinsic or extrinsic by nature. In line with this, intrinsic rewards include the use of sincere acknowledgement for a good performance whereas extrinsic rewards can be in a form of increased salary, stock options, work promotion, or bonus given to employees (Cummings and Worley, 2009, p. 434). As compared to the use of extrinsic rewards, it is easier to implement intrinsic rewards because HR managers can easily make it a habit to acknowledge the effort of each employee in making the organizational goal attainable rather than requesting the business owners and board of directors to increase the available fund which can be use to reward employees for any improvements in their work performance (Shamir et al., 1993). According to Pfeffer (1998, p. 110), HR managers often ask the question â€Å"how much to pay employees† or â€Å"how much compensation package should be includ ed in the company’s reward system† in order to increase the work performance of each employee. Pertaining to the importance of developing and implementing effective pay and reward system, this report will focus on discussing how internal factors (i.e. organizational vision and mission, organizational structure, organizational culture, business objectives and business strategies) and external factors (i.e. competitors’ pay and reward system that is heavily influenced by economic pressures, the current labour market condition, government implemented labour policies, legal issues concerning the basic labour requirements, and the global labour environment) could shape the organizational approaches when designing a business organization’s pay and reward system (Heneman, Fisher and Dixon, 2001; Zingheim, Ledford and Schuster, 1996). Based on the research findings, the researcher will analyze how each factor is link with the other identified factors when designin g pay and reward systems. Internal Factors that Shapes the Organizational Approaches when Designing Pay and Reward Systems Several research studies revealed that internal factors that could significantly affect the shaping of organizational approaches when designing pay and reward systems includes the organizational vision and mission, organizational structure, organizational culture, business objectives and business strategies (Heneman, Fisher and Dixon, 2001; Zingheim, Ledford and Schuster, 1996). Depending on organizational vision and mission, organizational structure, business objectives and business strategies, a business organization can develop a culture with regards to its accepted and widely practiced pay and rewards system. Communicating the organizational vision to the rest of the employees serves as a guide in the development and implementation of strategic planning. In line with this, a shared vision can be use as a guide in developing the kind of reward system which co uld effectively motivate each employee to improve their work performance (Worldatwork, 2007, p. 39). Upon analyzing the significance of organizational vision and mission in the designing of pay and rewards systems, it is necessary for HR managers to be familiar with the organizational

Tribological Audit Of Rolling Element Bearings

Tribological Audit Of Rolling Element Bearings 1. INTRODUCTION: In the current scenario, conservation of material and energy is very much important. As the principal cause of material wastage is wear, any reduction in wear leads to savings. Friction is the main cause of wear which leads to energy dissipation and damage to equipments. [1] Friction occurs when one surface drags upon another surface. The magnitude of frictional force depends upon the interaction of mating surfaces. All surfaces consist of minute asperities and depressions even though the surface has high degree of finish. From close observation it is clear that frictional force is produced due to the distortion of the micro asperities when one surface slides over the other. As most of the surfaces are elastic up to a limit, the original shape is regained afterwards. In extreme cases the asperities get removed due to plastic flow of materials. [4] This process of removal of material from one or both of two surfaces in contact is known as wear. [6] Lubrication is the most effective me thod to lower the friction and to control wear and tear. Lubrication is the process of interposing a solid liquid or gaseous lubricant in between two surfaces in relative motion in order to decrease wear and tear. [6] Tribology is the science of interacting surfaces in relative motion and of related subjects and practices. [5] Tribology is derived from the Greek word Tribos which means rubbing. It deals with relative motion of the bodies, friction, wear and lubrication. The motion of the bodies includes sliding, rolling, spinning, bouncing or combination of these. [5] The written history of tribology is as old as about five thousand years. In olden days itself people were concerned about friction and the ways to reduce it. Assyrians used rollers made of wood to move massive stones. [2] Later carts are developed as rolling friction is less than sliding friction. Although the ways to reduce friction was highly concerned from the olden days itself, the word tribology was introduced in 1966. [5] The minimum film thickness in tribological machine elements was in the order of 10 µm to 100 µm at the start of the century. Later advance in the tribology led to the development of components with film thickness up to 1 µm. The thickness is further reduced to 0.1 µm by the end of the century. In short, tribolo gy in the important factor in design of machine elements and selection of lubricants. [5] 2. ROLLING BEARINGS: Invention of wheel led to minimise the effort of moving an object as rolling friction is less than that of sliding friction. Even though rolling motion produces less friction, man was seeking different ways to decrease the rolling friction. This led to the discovery that bearing based rolling motion consumes less power. Hence it was implemented in all rolling systems including complex machine mechanisms. In earlier periods the roller bearings was not able to compete with the hydrodynamic sliding bearings as it cannot meet with the endurance characteristics of the other. The roller bearing was universally accepted in the 20th century by the development of superior bearing materials and advanced techniques. This helped to manufacture roller bearing assemblies with extreme accuracy and long life. The competition among the manufacturers increased in early 1970s which led to a sudden increase in the production of high quality products at relatively low costs. [2] Rolling bearing includes all types of bearings to permit minimum friction between two moving surfaces relative to one another. The main application of roller bearing is to rotate a shaft relative to some fixed or oppositely rotating structure. It also allows relative linear motion of a fixture in a fixed direction provided by a stationary shaft. [3] Usually a bearing consists of two steel rings each of which consists of a hardened raceway. The hardened steel balls or rollers roll in these raceways. These rolling elements are usually held in an angular spaced structure which is called separator or retainer. [2] ball.gif Figure 1- Ball Bearings [7] There are different types of roller bearings based on their analysis of operation. A brief description on various types of bearings is explained below. 2.1 BALL BEARINGS: 2.1.1 Radial Ball Bearings: Radial ball bearings are the most popular rolling bearings. This type of ball bearings has an inner and outer raceway grooves in between the balls are inserted. The grooves have curvature radii of about 53% of the size of the ball diameter. The inner groove is concentrically fixed inside the outer groove and the ball bearings are present in between the grooves. The bearings are separated uniformly. A cage is used to maintain the separation. Deep groove ball bearings have the capacity to carry more loads as it is having large ball diameter. It can carry radial as well as thrust loads. Seals are present to keep the lubricant in and protect from external dirt. [2] Figure 2- Radial Ball Bearings [8]radial-bearings.jpg 2.1.2 Angular Contact Ball Bearings:406px-Angular-contact-ball-bearing_single-row_din628_type-b_120.png Angular contact bearings are designed to withstand heavy thrust loads or a combination of both thrust and radial loads. The ball bearings have a contact angle which does not exceed 40 degrees. Single and double row ball bearings are usually used depending upon the nature and magnitude of force to withstand. In this type of ball bearings, the outer raceway is the part of a sphere. The load applied on the outer raceway is minimised as the balls do not conform well into it. By using large balls the load on each ball can be minimised. This type of bearings can be used in applications where the parallelism of shaft and the housing are not exact to each other. [2] Figure 3- Angular Contact Ball Bearings [9] 2.1.3Thrust Ball Bearings: thrust-ball-bearing_din711_ex.png Thrust bearings are those bearings having a contact angle of 900 which can withstand thrust loads. These types of bearings are meant for high speed applications. The thrust bearings are mounted on spherical seats to obtain high degree of alignment ability. These bearings cannot be used to hold any radial loads. [2] They are mainly used in automotive, marine and aerospace applications. These increase smoothness and help in noise reduction thereby reducing friction in the attached part. Small size, reduced friction and long life are the main advantages of thrust bearings. [10] Figure 4- Thrust Ball Bearings [11] 2.2 ROLLER BEARINGS: Roller bearings are used in applications where the bearings have to support very high loads. Rollers are used in these bearings instead of balls. In these roller is cylindrical in shape and so line contact is formed between rollers and raceways. This spreads the load out a large area. Hence they have more load supporting capability. [12] They supply more fatigue endurance than ball bearings. Also the cost of manufacturing is high. These bearings consist of two concentric raceways which consist of rollers in between the two. To increase the load carrying capacity, cylindrical bearings with two or more rows of rollers are constructed. Different types of roller bearings include needle roller bearings, tapered roller bearings, thrust roller bearings and spherical roller bearings. [2] Roller-Bearing.jpgLB_OP_Linear_Motion_Bearing_250x250.jpg Figure 5- Roller Bearings [13] Figure 6- Linear Motion Bearing [14] 2.3 LINEAR MOTION BEARINGS: Linear motion bearings are the recent products developed in order to provide free motion in one dimension. In machine tool slide ways, very high friction is developed. Linear motion bearing consists of balls which carry the loads laterally in a particular direction and hence wear and tear can be minimised. They provide smooth, precision, guiding surface. The rolling element of a linear bearing rides over it thereby reducing friction. [15] 3. TRIBOLOGICAL FACTORS: Tribology deals with friction, wear and lubrication. The two key factors related to tribology are interacting surfaces and relative motion. It is clear that tribology is concerned with two surfaces in relative motion which are adequately close to one another. Usually a poor tribological interface is designed and then various lubricants are used to lower the friction between the surfaces. The most acceptable way is to design a better interface which includes the selection of a good lubricant also to minimise the friction and wear to the lowest. [5] Various tribological factors are to be taken into consideration while taking a situation. The important tribological factors include: Material Surfaces Lubricants Operating Conditions [5] 3.1 MATERIAL: The initial step to be taken while designing a product is the material selection. There are various factors which are taken into consideration while selecting the material. For tribological point of view the following factors are to be given importance before material selection. Basic Mechanical Properties Friction Wear Resistance Compatibility [5] 3.1.1 Basic Mechanical Properties: The basic mechanical properties of the material such as elastic modulus, Poissons ratio, yield stress, hardness, fatigue resistance, ultimate tensile strength and thermal conductivity are to be analysed. [5] Also the availability and cost of the material are also taken into account. Based on these observations the best material suitable for the manufacturing of bearings is selected. The selection of material used for bearings is to be done carefully based on standard specifications. The material plays an important role in the performance of the bearings. This affects the overall performance of the machinery also. The selected material is used to manufacture the load bearing parts of the bearings like raceway grooves and balls or rollers only. Retainers and cages are made from some other soft materials with desired qualities. [17] 3.1.2 Friction: Friction is the resistance offered by two interacting surfaces in relative motion. The degree of friction is denoted by coefficient of friction  µ. [6] Friction occurred during sliding is known as sliding friction and which occurred during rolling is known as rolling friction. The main factors which cause friction are adhesion between surfaces, surface hardness, asperities etc. [6] 3.1.2.2 Laws of Friction: There are different laws of friction which are applicable to dry friction between interacting surfaces. The first and second laws were put forward by Leonardo da Vinci and third law was introduced by Coulomb. [6] The first law of friction states that force required to initiate or sustain sliding FT is proportional to FN, the normal force. [6] Thus FT ÃŽ ± FN or FT =  µ.FN [6] Where  µ = Coefficient of friction The second law of friction states that the friction force FT is independent of the apparent area of contact Aa [6] The third law of friction states that friction is independent of sliding speed. [6] It was found that the first two laws of friction are obeyed in almost all experimental conditions. Lubrication systems can be used to lower the friction developed within the bearings. Friction in bearings depends upon the viscosity of lubricant and shear rate. Self lubricated bearings are widely used as it offers only very low friction. [20] 3.1.3 Wear: Wear can be termed as the material loss or volume loss from the surface of the materials in contact. [21] The main types of wear occurring on material surfaces are adhesive wear, abrasive wear, fatigue wear, corrosive wear. The local pressure at the asperities becomes extremely high when the normal pressure is acted upon the mating surfaces. When the pressure exceeds a certain limit, the asperities deform plastically until the area of contact increased sufficiently to withstand the load. The wear produced due to adhesion process has been explained by Archard equation. Wad = K [22] Where Wad = wear rate K = wear coefficient F = normal load H = hardness of softer material When two dissimilar materials slide over one another, the softer material gets scratched away. Thias type of wear is called as abrasive wear. Fatigue wear occurs when a rotating shaft is subjected to reversal of bending stresses. Corrosive wear is due to the reaction of the material surface with the environment or an external agent. [6] Wear occurs in ball and roller bearings due to corrosion, shock loading of fatigue. Atmospheric agents like dirt and girt are the other external factors which are responsible for wear. [4] 3.1.4 Compatibility: Alloys are usually selected as bearing materials. Alloy is a solid composition consisting of two or more metals and elements in fixed proportions. The two alloys which are used to manufacture the bearings are Chrome Steel and Stainless Steel. Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. [17] Various other elements like silicon, manganese, phosphorous, sulphur, chromium and molybdenum are added in chrome and stainless steels in order to increase the strength, hardness and corrosion resistance of the alloys. [18] Carbon is used in the alloy to form cementite structure and to formation of pearlite, spheroidite, bainite, and iron-carbon martensite. This improves hardenability of the alloys up to 0.65%. Wear resistance is increased up to 1.5%. Toughness of the alloy reduces and the brittleness increases when carbon is added. Manganese increases the hardness penetration of steel. Chromium is added to increase hardness, toughness and wear resistance to steel. Silicon acts as the deoxidiser during the manufacturing process. [19] 3.1.4.1 Chrome Steel Chrome steel is one of the widely used alloys to manufacture bearings. It is used mainly in high load bearing applications as this material is capable of withstanding very high loads. The machinability of the material is as high as highly finished, less noisy bearings are obtained. Also the life of the bearings is also very high. Under test conditions, the Rockwell hardness of the material is observed as 60 64 C. This material is used in applications where corrosion is not considered. [16] The constituent elements in the chrome steel are given in the table 1. 3.1.4.2 Stainless Steel The standard material used for the bearings is 400 series Martensitic Stainless Steel. This type of steel is highly resistant to corrosion and hence stainless steel bearings are used in applications where corrosion is to be taken into account. It is having less load withstanding capacity when compared to chrome steel. There are three types of 400 series Stainless Steel suitable for making bearings. These materials are developed by manufacturers to be used for certain specific applications. [16] 3.1.4.2.1 DR Stainless steel This material is highly resistant to corrosion and is used in applications which deal with highly corrosive medium. The material can be precisely machined so as to obtain high degree of finish to the surface of bearing. This helps in smooth, low noise operation of the bearings. The Rockwell hardness of the material is observed as 58 60 C. [16] The chemical composition of the material is given in table 2. 3.1.4.2.2 AISI 440C Stainless Steel AISI 440C Stainless Steel is highly resistant to corrosion and is easily available. But it is not widely used now a day when more modern materials are developed. The Rockwell hardness of the material is 58-60 C. [16] The chemical composition is given in table 3. 3.1.4.2.3 ES1 Stainless Steel: This material is highly resistant to corrosion and has high machinability. Thus highly finished surfaces can be produced. The material is having a Rockwell hardness number of 58 60 C. [16] The composition of the material is given in table 4. 3.2 SURFACE: Surface quality of the materials is one of the major tribological factors which determine the efficiency of the product. [4] Surface finish decides the amount of friction and wear of the material. Surface texture and conformity are the terms which are to be given importance. 3.2.1 Surface texture: The surface of the material is the part which interacts with the environment. The surface may not be highly finished due to several reasons. It may be due to the imperfections caused during manufacturing, due to external agents or due to loads acting on the surface. The deviations observed on the surface can be mainly classified into three which includes roughness, waviness and error of form. [23] Roughness is the surface irregularities which consist of rises and valleys. This creates an uneven surface pattern. Waviness is the small ups and downs on the surface which is having less amplitude that of roughness. These may be caused due to work piece deflections, vibration or heat treatment. Error of form is the slight deviations from the nominal shape. [6] The surface profiles can be traced by using different apparatus like Abbott profilometer, Tomilson surface finish recorder and Talysurf surface finish recorder. [4] 3.2.2 Conformity: Conformity is the degree of agreement between the surfaces. [5] An interface consisting of two plates is said to have high conformity. Journal bearing is an example for high conformity material. An interface consisting of a plate and a ball is said to be having low conformity. Ball bearing is an example for low conformity material. Conformity is an important factor which is to be considered as it has an important role in determining the pressure, shear stress and temperature in the interface. [5] Figure 7- Surface Texture [23] 3.3 LUBRICANTS: Lubrication is the technique employed to reduce wear by the interposition of a solid, liquid or gas between the two surfaces which come into contact with one another. It was a persistent problem for man for centuries from the day he used to move materials. Friction consumes and wastes energy whereas wear leads to the damage of the equipment which are undesirable and it has to be avoided at any cost. Every moving part of machinery is subjected to friction leading to wear and tear which has to be avoided. Lubrication plays a vital role in avoiding the friction between mating surfaces. The history of lubricant begins thousands of years before. It was found that the ancient Egyptians used lubricants to avoid friction in the wheels of chariots. [24] In ancient times lubricants were of animal, plant and marine origin. Later mineral oils were started to use as lubricant. The new science of lubrication based on hydrodynamics came in 1880s. [24] Lubricants are of solids, liquids and gases but liquid lubricants are widely used. These include mineral oil, synthetic oil, grease, vegetable oil and water. Lubrication is done by applying a thin film of lubricant between the surfaces in contact. [6] Thus undesirable problems like friction, wear, noise and vibrations can be reduced to a very high extent. 3.3.1 Viscosity: Viscosity of a lubricant is the main characteristic which is taken into account before selecting it for a specific application. Friction, heat generation, film thickness and load carrying capacity depend upon the viscosity of lubricant used. Generally viscosity can be stated as the hindrance of the fluid to flow. But based on lubrication, viscosity is the measure of ability of fluid to maintain lubrication at specific operating conditions. [24] 3.3.2 Lubrication Regimes: Lubrication can generally be classified into four different regimes based on the thickness of the fluid film in between the surfaces in contact. They include: Hydrodynamic Lubrication Boundary Lubrication Mixed Lubrication Elastohydrodynamic Lubrication 3.3.2.1 Hydrodynamic Lubrication: image8.jpg Figure 7- Hydrodynamic Lubrication [25] In hydrodynamic lubrication, a fluid film is formed in between the two surfaces in contact. Thus one surface floats on the other and there occurs no direct contact between the surfaces. In microscopic level the surfaces of the materials consist of asperities. In normal condition without lubrication, the asperities are in direct contact with each other. When one surface slides over the other, the asperities get deformed producing friction and hence wear. Hydrodynamic lubrication helps avoid the friction as there is no direct contact between the surfaces. The viscosity of the lubricant helps to increase the fluid pressure in between the surfaces. Thus the lubricant layer holds the surfaces apart. As the lubricant layer formed is thicker than the surface roughness of the material, one material slides over the other without damaging the surface. It is observed that the thickness of the film is more than 1 µm. [24, 25] The surface is separated apart by hydrostatic lift. A fluid flowing over a surface immediately takes the speed of the surface. Similarly when the fluid moves in a converging gap, the pressure increases and the surface is lifted. [25] 3.3.2.2 Boundary Lubrication: Boundary lubrication is a type of lubrication in which the surface roughness of the material is same as that of the fluid layer thickness. Thus when one surface moves upon the other, the asperities comes into contact. When load is applied the asperities gets plastically deformed which leads to friction and wear. As friction is not desirable different methods are also adopted to reduce friction in this type of lubrication. This includes the use of various additives to the lubricants. The additives are classified according to the surface action exhibited on the material surface. They are mainly of three types. Physically absorbed layers Chemically absorbed layers Chemical reaction layers 3.3.2.2.1 Physically adsorbed layers: When the lubricant is applied, it forms a layer on the material surface. The weak intermolecular force called van der Walls force exerted by the layer of the lubricant helps to attach to the surface. This layer lubricates and allows the other surface to slide over the other without causing friction. As the lubricant is not undergoing any chemical reaction, the process is reversible. The bonds formed by van der Walls force are weak and it can be removed. The main disadvantage of the physically adsorbed lubricants is that they have a temperature limit above which the lubricant melts. 3.3.2.2.2 Chemically adsorbed layers: Chemically adsorbed layers are those formed due to the chemical reaction with the surface material. Chemisorption is a type of adsorption in which the molecules are hold tight by the valence force of the molecules of the lubricant. The bonds created are stronger than the physically adsorbed layers. Usually chemically adsorbed lubricants form long chain fatty acid molecules, which has high affinity to metal surfaces. Fatty acid additives like stearic and oleic acid forms chemically adsorbed layers. The typical thickness of the boundary film is about 3 µm. As chemical reaction takes place in the interface, the adsorbed layer can be removed only under extreme conditions like high temperature, vacuum or by using some chemical treatments. [26] 3.3.2.2.3 Chemical reaction layers: Chemical reaction layers are formed by the reaction of additives in the lubricant with the surface of the material on which it is applied. In this adsorption is not taking place, instead a chemical reaction that bonds the lubricant and the material occurs. Thus the layers formed are permanent. The main disadvantage of physisorption and chemisorptions is the temperature limit above which the lubricant gets ineffective. In this type of reaction the working temperature is not a factor. Hence this type of lubrication is used in high speed and high load operating systems as high temperature is developed in these cases. Zinc dialkyl dithiophosphate (ZDDP) is widely used as an additive to produce effective chemical reaction films. [24] 3.3.2.2 Mixed Lubrication: Mixed lubrication has the features of both hydrodynamic lubrication and boundary lubrication. In hydrodynamic lubrication the contact surfaces are separated apart by the pressure of the lubricant interposed between the surfaces. Hence there will not be any contact between the two surfaces in motion. But in boundary lubrication, one surface rests on the other. When the surface moves the asperities gets plastically deformed which causes friction and wear. Mixed lubrication acts between the two extremes of hydrodynamic and boundary lubrication. In mixed lubrication regimes a fluid film layer is developed where contact takes place between the asperities of the surfaces. Thus a slight deformation is formed while sliding occurs which is highly desirable. The film thickness ranges from 0.05 µm to 0.1 µm. [25] 3.3.2.3 Elastohydrodynamic Lubrication: Elastohydrodynamic lubrication is a type of lubrication which brings together hydrodynamic lubrication, hertzian contact and change in viscosity with pressure. In this method of lubrication, the surface is modified to minimise friction. Elastohydrodynamic lubrication is used in applications where low conformity and highly loaded tribological interfaces are present. Roughness of the wearing surface is taken into consideration in this lubrication. Roughness is taken as the average of high and low points of the surface which is called as the centreline average. [27] A non conformal contact can produce pressure to a very high level. When the pressure increases it directly affects the viscosity of the lubricant. In normal conditions the viscosity of the lubricant is less noticeable but during elastohydrodynamic lubrication the viscosity increases which makes the lubricant act as a semi solid. This creates a thin film of oil in between the mating surfaces. [25] 3.4 OPERATING CONDITIONS: Operating conditions are the main aspect to be taken into account while designing a mechanical component including bearings. There are different factors which comprises the operating conditions. Load Relative Motion Temperature Environment 3.4.1 Load: The load applied on each ball and roller is to be determined to manufacture the bearings which can operate at the desired applications without failure. In order to calculate the load deflection relationship is to be developed for roller element contacting raceways. In almost all the applications the outer or inner raceways is in steady state rotation. The speed of the rotation may not be large enough to affect significantly the distribution of the load equally on each roller or ball elements. The rigidly supported bearing is subjected to radial load which may lead to deflection. The radial deflection at any rolling element is given by ÃŽ ´ÃË† = ÃŽ ´r cos ψ  ½ Pd [2] Where ÃŽ ´ÃË† = radial deflection r = ring radial shift ÃŽ ¨ = angular location Pd = diametral clearance Thrust load and roller bearings are also subjected to thrust loads which are distributed equally among the rolling elements. The thrust load can be calculated using Q = Fa / Z Sin ÃŽ ± [2] Where Q = thrust load Fa = applied load Z = number of rollers per row ÃŽ ± = contact angle 3.4.2 Relative Motion: Relative motion is the motion of either one or both surfaces with respect to each other. There are different forms of relative motion depending upon the style of motion. They include sliding, rolling, spinning and bouncing. Sliding refers to the smooth movement over a surface maintaining the contact between each other. Rolling is the movement by revolving within the axis. Spinning is the rotation of a material within its axis. Bouncing is the rebounding due to an impact. Chance for sliding occurs in the rolling bearings due to thrust loads. Bouncing may occur due to sudden fluctuation in loads which may lead to destruction of bearing material. 3.4.3 Temperature: Operating temperature is a factor which is to be taken into consideration for the smooth functioning of the bearings at load conditions. Temperature rise may occur in the bearings during operation which may be due to different reasons. One factor which causes the rise in temperature is the application of excess load. If excess load is applied, the material may not be designed to withstand that much high load. So it may lead to failure. Another reason for the temperature rise is the absence of lubricant. The lubricant should be interposed to the surfaces in contact. If it fails to continuously supply the lubricant to the surface, friction is produced which results in gradual rise in temperature. Various coatings are also used to overcome temperature extremes. 3.4.4 Environment: Nature of environment is the feature which can influence the efficiency and life of the bearings. There are different agents which affect the operating conditions of the bearings which may be harmful. These include contaminations like dust, wear particles, air, water, process fluid etc. Insulations are to be provided to avoid exposure to these external agents. This can be done by using seals or coatings. 4. CONCLUSION: The various tribological factors are to be considered while designing rolling bearings. This tribological audit looks for the different factors which affect the performance and life of the bearings. The major tribological factors found include material, surface, lubrication and operating conditions. Different solutions are available which can be applied to each factor to lower the friction. Material should be wisely selected which can be easily machined to obtain highly finished surfaces and should possess the strength to withstand the loads applying on it. The material should be selected according to the application. Surface texture and conformity of the material is to be carefully observed as the surface finish is one of the major factors which cause friction. Lubrication plays a major role in the performance of the equipment. Right method of lubrication is selected. Elastohydrodynamic lubrication forms the film with minimum thickness which is the most desirable in bearings. Operat ing conditions affects the performance and life of the bearings which includes contaminations like dirt, wear particles, water, corrosive process fluid etc. Proper measures are to be taken to avoid exposure to these agents. From this audit it is clear that we have to take care of the tribological factors and select the most suitable ones to obtain maximum performance and life to the rolling bearings.

Tibetan Oracles: Fact or Fiction? :: Tibet Oracle Oracles Essays

Tibetan Oracles The miraculous feats of the Tibetan oracles are well known sources of mysticism. Stories of men who can bend metal swords with their bare hands, dance wildly and proclaim the future have piqued the curiosity and fascination of many. However, most rationale people will question, how real is the Tibet oracle? Are these men really visited by the deities who they claim to be visited by or are they merely masters of illusion? â€Å"The desire to know the future is probably as old as the human race. Early cultures all over the world have left fragments of evidence telling us that divination was of paramount importance in their daily lives.† (Housdan, 7) This desire causes most Tibetans to fervently believe in the power of these oracles. Like most other cultures, the Tibetans are curious about the future and use the methodology of the Oracle as a means for divination. The Tibetan oracles are highly respected members of the community whom the Tibetans consult to find out the future of their own lives as well as the future of the Tibetan country. Despite the Tibetan’s belief in the spiritual nature of the trance, anthropologists who have studied it have been able to come up with other explanations for the trance state that do not involve the religious belief in spirit possession. These explanations often involve subjects such as psychology and neurology that look at the physiological state of the body during the trance. Through scientifically analyzing the trance state, it raises the question of whether or not the oracles who enter into these trances are able to do so intentionally and if an oracle can willfully enter into a trance, then how does an oracle become valid? The Tibetan oracles are both sources of mysticism but they have also been sources of great controversy in Tibet for these questions involving the authenticity of the oracle. The traditional Tibetan belief is that Tibetan deities will take possession of men or women in society who act as mouthpieces of the gods. â€Å"Spiritual possession is defined as an altered state of consciousness that is characterized by desertion of a person’s original personality, followed by temporary replacement of another.†(AvRuskin, 286) The god enters into the body of the medium and the medium will enter a trance-like state during which the deity is using the mediums body as a tool. Tibetan Oracles: Fact or Fiction? :: Tibet Oracle Oracles Essays Tibetan Oracles The miraculous feats of the Tibetan oracles are well known sources of mysticism. Stories of men who can bend metal swords with their bare hands, dance wildly and proclaim the future have piqued the curiosity and fascination of many. However, most rationale people will question, how real is the Tibet oracle? Are these men really visited by the deities who they claim to be visited by or are they merely masters of illusion? â€Å"The desire to know the future is probably as old as the human race. Early cultures all over the world have left fragments of evidence telling us that divination was of paramount importance in their daily lives.† (Housdan, 7) This desire causes most Tibetans to fervently believe in the power of these oracles. Like most other cultures, the Tibetans are curious about the future and use the methodology of the Oracle as a means for divination. The Tibetan oracles are highly respected members of the community whom the Tibetans consult to find out the future of their own lives as well as the future of the Tibetan country. Despite the Tibetan’s belief in the spiritual nature of the trance, anthropologists who have studied it have been able to come up with other explanations for the trance state that do not involve the religious belief in spirit possession. These explanations often involve subjects such as psychology and neurology that look at the physiological state of the body during the trance. Through scientifically analyzing the trance state, it raises the question of whether or not the oracles who enter into these trances are able to do so intentionally and if an oracle can willfully enter into a trance, then how does an oracle become valid? The Tibetan oracles are both sources of mysticism but they have also been sources of great controversy in Tibet for these questions involving the authenticity of the oracle. The traditional Tibetan belief is that Tibetan deities will take possession of men or women in society who act as mouthpieces of the gods. â€Å"Spiritual possession is defined as an altered state of consciousness that is characterized by desertion of a person’s original personality, followed by temporary replacement of another.†(AvRuskin, 286) The god enters into the body of the medium and the medium will enter a trance-like state during which the deity is using the mediums body as a tool.

Guava Extract Soap Essay

Significance In finding a cure for the said problem, we conducted a research and we found out that there are natural compounds that can contribute in treating these kinds of problem. Natural compounds that are used for making soap are more appropriate than chemical-based products. I. Introduction II. Abstract III. Statement of the Problem This study determined the effectivity and practically of 4 Season Fruits in making a homemade facial soap. It sought to answer the following questions: IV. Hypothesis The researchers hypothesize that the product, Four seasons soap, can be a viable alternative to the ordinary facial soap in treating different types of skin problems including acne and pimples due to its â€Å"4 seasons† fruits component. â€Å"Effectiveness of 4 Season Fruits as a treatment for pimples and acne.† Sacred Heart Catholic School of Cainta Investigatory Project Nowadays, having pimples and acne is a common problem for teenagers and adults aside from growing of their facial hair, eye bags and the like. This is due to exposure from dirt, dust, pollution and many agents that can produce skin reaction and form pimples and acne. These natural ingredients namely: Pineapple ( (Ananas Comosus), Mango (Mangifera Indica), Guava (Psidium Guajava) and Orange (Citrus Sinensis) (commonly called as 4 Seasons). These fruits have healthy benefits for the skin and some of their common effect are for treating pimples and acne. Is the component of the 4 Seasons soap is effective as an alternative treatment for skin problems? Is it an effective treatment for pimples and acne? What are the possible effects of 4 Seasons soap for the skin? Since it is a homemade soap, Is it possible that an individual can create soap just like this easily and safely? Our investigatory project focused in different benefits that can heal skin problems due to daily exposure to pollution, dust and other agents that can contribute to similar skin problems. These fruits have healthy benefits for the skin and some of their common effect is for treating pimples and acne. We researchers have guessed that the 4 seasons fruits are effective in treating pimples and acne because it contains Vitamin C which has antioxidant properties. But since it is a homemade soap, is it possible that an individual can create soap just like this easily? The possible effects of the 4 seasons soap are: Cleansing,  Moisturizing, Exfoliating and Clearing pimples and pimple marks. The researchers believed that because of the most of the components can be found at home, It is possible that any individual can make their 4 seasons soap easily and safely if they just follow the steps carefully and faithfully. To recognize all the healthy benefits of each of the four seasons for the skin. To determine if the 4 season soap is an effective antioxidant and its anti-aging properties. VII. METHODOLOGY MATERIALS: PROCEDURES: VI. Scope and Limitation Scope The study was conducted to reveal some of the advantages and disadvantages of the 4 season fruits for making soap as treatment for some major skin problems. The study aims to prove that not all chemical-based soaps are used in treating pimples and acne. The study concentrates on how fruits( Pineapple, Mango, Orange and Guava) can benefit human skin. Limitation The study is limited in human skin problems. 3 tbsp. Oil 1/2 tbsp. Guava leaves extract 1/2 tbsp. Mango extract 1/2 tbsp. Orange extract 1/2 tbsp. Pineapple extract 1 tbsp. NaOH or Lye 3 tbsp. H2O or Water Tools Used: Bowl Soap Molder Sauce pan Spoon Stirring rod Rubber gloves Masks Plastic cups Prepare the things to be needed. First, get the extract of each fruit ( Guava, Orange, Mango & Pineapple) . Note: For the Guava, We will be using the leaves for the extract. FOR THE EXTRACT: Remove the peelings of the fruits, and then set aside. In a small pot, put the peelings of each fruit (Note: Separate the peelings of each fruit from another fruit. Don’t combine it with other fruits when getting extracts, it might have different chemical reaction). Then Add water with this amount: 10 tbsp. for peelings of 3 mangoes. 13 tbsp. for the peelings of 5 oranges. 15 tbsp. for the peelings of 2 pineapples. 15 tbsp. for the guava leaves. Prepare the stove to be used. Boil it for 10 minutes (Low Heat); Separate the skin from the extract. Put it in a clean container, let it cool and then set aside. Prepare the Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) or Lye. Put in a container. (Note: Read first the directions in using Lye. For Example: Don’t put the NaOH on aluminum containers. You must use rubber gloves and Masks in dealing with lye and with other chemical substances. Don’t play with them and Keep out of reach of children.) Put some oil (3 tbsp.) and Water (3 tbsp.). Mix it thoroughly. Put the extract of the fruits to the mixture. (1/2 tbsp.). Stir the mixture continuously in a single direction. ( Note: Make sure the mixture is viscous) Let it dry for about 2 days or more. VIII. FINDINGS & RESULTS The researchers found out that the 4 seasons fruits can help minimize pimples and pores. It can also help clear skin impurities because of the anti-oxidants that the soap contains. This research gave us a hard time because there are a lot of instances that the measurements of the ingredients would not compliment the desired results. There can also be a downside in this experiment because the soap is not intended to be used in scars because it might irritate it and it stings. IX. Conclusions The researchers therefore conclude that the 4 seasons soap can reduce pimples and other skin impurities. This is shown by the experiment that we conducted by putting various kinds of ingredients in different amounts and sizes. The experiment was successful because the researchers came up with their desired result even after several tries. This product can be a solution in the problem of many teenagers, including the researchers because of its effectiveness during our experiment. X. RECOMMENDATION The researchers recommend that the further experiments similar to this that will be performed by others must use variety of fruits and not just focus on the 4 seasons used in this experiment. It is also suggested that they test the product before producing to help decrease the chances of having skin irritations and rashes. If given a chance, the researchers suggest that they test it on animal skins that are most likely to be similar to the human skin in order to have a possible result as how it would be on the human skin. The researchers hopoe that you may have a successful study and an imporved product in the future.

Bluetooth Technology

Technology already tracks or monitors animals, people, vehicles and other objects to eliminate the need for constant human observation. These technologies need to be small, economical and consume a minimal amount of power. Bluetooth technology is being used extensively in hand-held devices and wireless computing [Pico Communications] because of its characteristics mentioned above. This project aims to use Bluetooth technology to monitor and track animals in the wild. More specifically, this project deals with the off-loading of data from a device situated on an animal. The aim of this literature survey is to investigate the Bluetooth technology, focusing on routing in Bluetooth networks, as well as current animal tracking and monitoring technologies. Current technologies used in tracking and monitoring Many of these projects make use of the Global Positioning System (GPS), Global System for Mobile (GSM) or directional radio transmission tracking. One of them is described in â€Å"Save the Elephants† GSM tracking project, sponsored by Safari. com in Kenya, which makes use of the GPS system to gather locational information of tags placed on elephants [Douglas-Hamilton, I. t al (February 2004)]. These tags also have GSM modules that allow the locational data to be downloaded periodically. Objectives of this project are to develop small tags that have a long battery life, are cheap and light. Before the safari. com project, VHF (Very High Frequency) radio was used to download the GPS data from the animals about every 3 months. Sending data using VHF requires a large amount of power consumption, hence downloads were only done every three months. GSM technology lowers this power consumption enabling more regular data retrieval. Data, such as that elephants usually travel about 10km a day but can walk 30km or more, was collected using this technology. The Kenya wildlife service use this knowledge to plan things like human-animal interaction and fence positioning. A company called Digital Angle has developed a chip that is embedded into animals [Hostetter, J (April 2003)]. While these chips do not produce locational information, they enable a person to electronically identify an animal as well as get its current body temperature. The company is looking at using these â€Å"bio chips† to track an animal's blood pressure and hormonal changes [Hostetter, J (April 2003)]. The bio chips are very small and light but data can only be collected with a hand held reader which provides the chip with power via magnetic induction, similar to RFID technology. Most animal tracking projects are interested in the movements of animals. We are interested in the interaction of animals and possibly data concerning individual animals using the technology being developed by Digital Angle. Because we aim to only use Bluetooth technology (and not GPS), an animal's location could be roughly plotted by tagging physical positions, for example watering holes and trees. The tracking and monitoring systems above use VHF or GSM technologies to download data from animals. We want to look at the feasibility of using Bluetooth networks to download this data. Bluetooth is suited to this application because it is small, light and uses a minimal amount of power, whereas GSM and GPS devices have a short battery life and are large and heavy. In an application that does not involve animals, Ron Alterovitz from the computer science department at Caltech University in California has done a research project involving message routing over a Bluetooth scatternet. Alterovitz, R (2001)] His aim was to make wireless-enabled vehicles communicate while in motion. The ad-hoc properties of piconets and scatternets enable the vehicles to pass messages between them while they are in motion. The vehicles were linked up to a positioning system and set to run around in a 1000Ãâ€"1000 cm room. Each vehicle was able to transmit up to a distance of 250cm. The vehicles were left to move around the room randomly while the positioning system and vehicles passed messages amongst each other to stop them crashing. The routing tables, used to pass messages, were only allowed to be updated at set intervals. It was found that message packets were lost if the speed of the vehicles was increased while the routing interval was kept the same [Alterovitz, R (June 2001)]. Although Bluetooth has been used for tracking small autonomous vehicles, there is no evidence of the use of this technology to track animals. However, wireless devices, for example Bluetooth enabled cell phones, could be used to track human beings. This raises ethical and privacy issues [Potter, B (November 2003)]. Bluetooth as the Underlying Technology The above technologies aim to provide a means of tracking or message-passing through the use of devices that are physically small, use minimal amounts of power and support an ad-hoc type of communication. Bluetooth supports realistic data rates of up to 600Kbps and claims to make a battery last from 50% to 300% longer than other wireless technologies [PicoCommunications, (November 2002)]. There are two classes of Bluetooth device. The class 2 radio allows a range of ten meters while class 1 radios allow for transmission over 100 meters. Bluetooth operates in the license-free 2. 4GHz band making use of frequency hopping at a rate of 1600 hops per second. Although Bluetooth has limitations in its transfer speed and communication distance, its market share is rising while 802. 11 (WiFi) has slowed down in its growth [Dursch, A. et all (December 2003)]. The rising interest in Bluetooth will increase production, causing the already cheap technology to become easily obtainable. The Bluetooth stack Illustration 1The Bluetooth Stack Each Bluetooth packet has a fixed format that starts with a 72-bit access code. This is followed by a 54-bit header containing error correction, retransmission and control information. Finally the packet contains a payload of 0 to 2745 bits. Three methods, Forward Error Correction (FEC), Automatic Repeated Request (ARQ) and Cyclic Redundancy Checks (CRC) are used for error correction during Bluetooth communication [Forum Nokia (April 2003)]. This project is interested in the following Bluetooth stack layers: The Link Manager Protocol (LPM) layer is responsible for setting up the links between Bluetooth devices and deals with master/slave switching, low power modes, clock offsets and packet size negotiation. This layer, although not critical to this project, also handles the exchange of authentication and encryption information. The Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP) enables multiplexing of the protocols above it by segmenting and reassembling packets [Pico Communications inc]. The Service Discovery Protocol (SDP) enables Bluetooth devices to advertise and discover services. SDP passes bitmasks, representing advertised services, to all backbone nodes. This allows other devices to discover the type and location of a service on a Bluetooth network quickly [Nordbotten, N, A. et al (2004)]. RFCOMM is a serial port emulation protocol enabling RS232 control and data signaling over Bluetooth. It allows services such as the Point to Point Protocol (PPP) to be used over Bluetooth. IP is the standard protocol used on the Internet [Pico Communications inc]. Bluetooth profiles Bluetooth profiles describe the main usage models of Bluetooth. The current Bluetooth specification contains four general profiles. [Forum Nokia (April 2003)] The Generic Access Profile defines the discovery of other Bluetooth devices, link management and connectivity, security levels and common format requirements for user interfaces. All Bluetooth devices have to support this profile and all other profiles require and use it. The Service Discovery Application Profile defines procedures for a Bluetooth application to discover services advertised by another Bluetooth device, and should be followed should this project make use of services during implementation. The Serial Port Profile defines the Bluetooth requirements for setting up emulated serial cable connections. This profile is also an option should this project transfer data over RS232 connections. The Generic Object Exchange Profile is used by applications that need object exchange capabilities. This profile is also an option should we want to model our data as objects and pass these objects from device to device and then finally to a data sink [Forum Nokia (April 2003)]. Ad-Hoc Bluetooth Networks Bluetooth enabled devices form ad-hoc networks when they come into contact with one another. These networks are built using scatternet and piconet formation algorithms as described by [Law, C. et al (2001)]. Between 1 and 7 devices can form a piconet. One device is designated to be the master. This decision is made by each device generating a random number determining whether the device will assume to be the master and seek slaves or assume to be a slave and scan for the master. Because only 7 nodes are allowed to participate in a piconet, scatternets are formed by linking many piconets together via shared slave nodes. The number of piconets to which a device belongs is termed its degree. A master node in a piconet may only have a degree of one, meaning a master node may not be shared between two piconets. The shared slaves are time multiplexed between the piconets to which it belongs and data sent between the piconets must be sent via the shared slave [Law, C. et al, (2001)]. The time it takes for data to be passed through a shared slave is dependent on the manner in which the shared slave switches between piconets. Shared slaves need to have timed rendezvous points with piconet masters in order to exchange data [Misic, J. et al (February 2004)]. The masters and shared slaves are collectively referred to as back bone nodes of the formed scatternet. The piconet and scatternet formation algorithms allow nodes to move and migrate between piconets and allow small piconets to be merged [Law, C. et al (2001)]. These ad-hoc properties of piconets and scatternets enable data to be exchanged between many Bluetooth devices while those devices are moving between piconets within a scatternet, effectively enabling the devices to physically move around while data is being exchanged amongst them. Conclusion This literature search has found no evidence that Bluetooth has been used to track or monitor animals in the wild. It has however found many applications where Bluetooth networks have been used for mobile devices needing to exchange data. The literature shows that there is a need for small, inexpensive animal tracking devices that consume a minimal amount of power. It is also shown that Bluetooth is already being used for hand-held and mobile computing applications for these same reasons. Our aim is to build upon the device and network technologies surveyed in this paper, to determine the feasibility of a Bluetooth-based animal tracking and monitoring system, which has a low degree of human probe effect.

Protists Organisms in the Kingdom Protista

Protists Organisms in the Kingdom Protista Protists are organisms in the kingdom Protista. These organisms are eukaryotes, meaning they are made up of single or multiple cells which all contain a nucleus enclosed by a membrane. The protists are a diverse group of eukaryotes that cannot be classified as animals, plants, or fungi. Organisms in the Protista kingdom include amoebae, red algae, dinoflagellates, diatoms, euglena, and slime molds. How Protists Are Defined Protists are defined by  how they obtain nutrition and how they move.  Protists are typically divided into three categories, including animal-like protists, plant-like protists, and fungus-like protists. Protists vary in how they move, which can range from cilia, flagella, and pseudopodia. In other words, protists move by microscopic hair that flaps together, by a long tail that moves back and forth, or by extending its cell body, similar to an  amoeba. Nutritionally,  protists tend to gather energy in a variety of ways. They can either eat food and digest it inside of themselves, or they may digest outside of their bodies by secreting enzymes. Other protists, like algae, perform photosynthesis and absorb energy from sunlight to make glucose. Animal-Like Protists Some protists look like animals and are typically referred to as protozoa. Most of these types of protists are made up of a single cell and are similar to animals in nature because they are  heterotrophs and able to move around. While they are not considered animals themselves, it is often thought that they may be a shared ancestor. Examples of animal-like protists include: Zooflagellates – flagellaSarcodines – extensions of cytoplasm (pseudopodia)Ciliates – ciliaSporozoans Plant-Like Protists There is also a large and diverse group of protists that are plant-like and known as algae. While some are single-celled, others like seaweed have multiple cells. For example, one type of protist in the marine environment is  Irish moss, which is a species of red algae. More plant-like protists include: DinoflagellatesDiatomsEuglenoidsRed algaeGreen algaeBrown algae Fungus-Like Protists Lastly, there are funguss of fungus-like protists may include: DictyosteliomycotaMyxomycotaLabyrinthulomycotaOomycetes The Benefits to Our World Protists are important to the world in several ways. You may be surprised to learn that chalk is made from the fossil shells of protists, which is helpful in our classrooms and our childrens creativity and play. Additionally, protists produce oxygen which is helpful for the planet. Many protists have a high nutritional value which can help improve illnesses. Protists like protozoa are used in foods like sushi and are good for our water, as protozoa are used to prey on bacteria and help to clean water for us to use.

Free Essays on Descartes Discourse

Descartes' first discussion of scientific method is in an unfinished work of 1628 titled Rules for the Direction of the Mind. The first 12 of the planned 36 rules deal with the general aspects of his proposed methodology, and are considered early versions of principles which made their way into his later writings. In 1633 Descartes prepared for publication a work on physics called Le Monde which defended a heliocentric view of the universe. That same year the Catholic Church condemned Galileo's Dialogue (1632). Descartes did not think Galileo's views were prejudicial to religion and he worried that his own views might be censured. Thus he suspended publication of it. In 1637 Descartes published a collection of essays titled Optics, Meterology, and Geometry. Prefaced to these essays was a work titled "Discourse on the Method of Rightly Conducting the Reason and Seeking Truth in the Sciences." Most of the "Discourse" was written before the 1633 condemnation of Galileo's Dialogue. Howev er, he later added a concluding section which explained that he insisted on publishing, in spite of political risks. The simple reason was that he counted on the public to help confirm his scientific theories. In the Discourse, Descartes offers a method of inquiry quite different from Bacon's. Whereas Bacon advocated induction, Descartes insists on a more deductive approach. Most of the Discourse is autobiographical insofar as it traces Descartes intellectual development and how his method assisted him in his investigations. Descartes realized that he needed to reject much of the teachings of his youth. This raised the question as to exactly how he should proceed in replacing old theories with new ones. He found his answer by observing how old parts of cities are replaced with the new. The more elegant cities are those which are methodically built from scratch, not those which continually renovate old sections. Descartes explains that he had learned a va... Free Essays on Descartes Discourse Free Essays on Descartes Discourse Descartes' first discussion of scientific method is in an unfinished work of 1628 titled Rules for the Direction of the Mind. The first 12 of the planned 36 rules deal with the general aspects of his proposed methodology, and are considered early versions of principles which made their way into his later writings. In 1633 Descartes prepared for publication a work on physics called Le Monde which defended a heliocentric view of the universe. That same year the Catholic Church condemned Galileo's Dialogue (1632). Descartes did not think Galileo's views were prejudicial to religion and he worried that his own views might be censured. Thus he suspended publication of it. In 1637 Descartes published a collection of essays titled Optics, Meterology, and Geometry. Prefaced to these essays was a work titled "Discourse on the Method of Rightly Conducting the Reason and Seeking Truth in the Sciences." Most of the "Discourse" was written before the 1633 condemnation of Galileo's Dialogue. Howev er, he later added a concluding section which explained that he insisted on publishing, in spite of political risks. The simple reason was that he counted on the public to help confirm his scientific theories. In the Discourse, Descartes offers a method of inquiry quite different from Bacon's. Whereas Bacon advocated induction, Descartes insists on a more deductive approach. Most of the Discourse is autobiographical insofar as it traces Descartes intellectual development and how his method assisted him in his investigations. Descartes realized that he needed to reject much of the teachings of his youth. This raised the question as to exactly how he should proceed in replacing old theories with new ones. He found his answer by observing how old parts of cities are replaced with the new. The more elegant cities are those which are methodically built from scratch, not those which continually renovate old sections. Descartes explains that he had learned a va...

How to Achieve Cultural Diversity in the School System

How to Achieve Cultural Diversity in the School System Cultural diversity as an issue wasnt even on the radar of most private school communities until the 1990s. To be sure, there were exceptions, but for the most part, diversity was not at the top of the list of priorities back then. Now you can see genuine progress in this area. The best evidence that progress has been made is that diversity in all its forms is now on the list of other issues and challenges facing most private schools. In other words, it is no longer a detached issue requiring resolution by itself. Schools seem to be making well-thought-out efforts to attract and retain faculty and students from a wide variety of societal backgrounds and economic sectors. The resources under The Diversity Practitioner on the National Association of Independent Schools site show the kind of proactive approach which NAIS members are taking. If you read the mission statements and welcome messages on most schools websites, the words diversity and diverse appear frequently. Set an Example and They Will Follow The thoughtful head and board members know that they must encourage diversity. Perhaps that has already been done at your school. If so, then a review of where you have been and where you are going should be part of your annual review activities. If you have not addressed the diversity issue, then you need to get started. Why? Your school cannot afford to turn out students who have not learned the lessons of tolerance. We live in a multicultural, pluralistic, global community. Understanding diversity begins the process of living in harmony with others. Communication enables diversity. Example fosters diversity. Every sector of the school community from head and trustees on down through the ranks must be proactive in listening, accepting and welcoming people and ideas which are different from their own. This breeds tolerance and transforms a school into a warm, welcoming, sharing academic community. Three Ways to Communicate Diversity 1. Hold Workshops for Faculty and StaffBring in a skilled professional to run workshops for your faculty and staff. The experienced clinician will open up sensitive issues for discussion. She will be a confidential resource which your community will feel comfortable turning to for advice and help. Make attendance mandatory. 2. Teach DiversityEmbracing the principles of diversity taught in a workshop requires everybody to put diversity into practice. That means reworking lesson plans, encouraging new, more diverse student activities, hiring different teachers and much more. Communication imparts knowledge which can breed understanding. As administrators and faculty, we send dozens of subtle messages to students not only by what we discuss and teach but, more importantly, by what we do NOT discuss or teach. We cannot embrace diversity by remaining set in our ways, beliefs and thoughts. Teaching tolerance is something all of us have to do. In many cases, it means shedding old practices and altering traditions and modifying points of view. Simply increasing a schools intake of non-Caucasian students will not make a school diverse. Statistically, it will. Spiritually it will not. Creating a climate of diversity means radically altering the way your school does things. 3. Encourage diversityOne of the ways you as an administrator can encourage diversity is to require compliance with school policies and procedures. The same kind of strict adherence to policy and procedure which makes cheating, hazing and sexual misconduct taboo should apply to diversity. Your staff must become proactive when it comes to encouraging diversity. Your staff must know that you will hold them just as accountable for your diversity goals as you will for teaching outcomes. Respond to Problems Are you going to have problems with diversity and tolerance issues? Of course. How you handle and resolve problems as they arise is the acid test of your commitment to diversity and tolerance. Everybody from your assistant to the grounds keeper will be watching too. Thats why you and your board must do three things to promote diversity in your school: Decide on policyImplement policyEnforce compliance with policy Is It Worth It? That nagging question does cross your mind, doesnt it? The answer is a simple and resounding Yes! Why? Simply because you and I are stewards of all that we have been given. The responsibility for shaping young minds and inculcating eternal values has to be a major part of that stewardship. Our abrogation of selfish motives and embracing of ideals and goals which will make a difference is really what teaching is all about. An inclusive school community is a rich one. It is rich in warmth and respect for all its members. Private schools say they want to attract more teachers of different cultures in order to achieve diversity. One of the leading authorities on this subject is Dr. Pearl Rock Kane, director of the Klingenstein Center at Columbia Universitys Teachers College and professor in the Department of Organization and Leadership. Dr. Kane admits that the percentage of black teachers in American private schools has risen, to 9% today from 4% in 1987. While this is commendable, shouldnt we go beyond 25% in order for our faculty lounges to begin to mirror the society in which we live? There are three things schools can do to attract black teachers. Look outside the box Private schools must go outside the traditional recruitment channels to attract  teachers of color. You must go to colleges and universities where these students are being trained and educated. Contact the deans and career services directors at all of Historically Black Colleges, as well as other colleges that focus on specific cultures and ethnicities. Develop a network of contacts at those schools, and take advantage of LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, which make networking efficient and relatively easy. Be prepared to attract faculty who do not fit the traditional teacher profile Teachers of color have often spent years discovering their roots, developing a keen pride in their heritage, and accepting who they are. So dont expect them to fit into your traditional teacher profile. Diversity by definition implies that the status quo will change. Create a nurturing and welcoming atmosphere. The job is always an adventure for a new teacher. Starting in a school as a minority can be really daunting. So create an effective mentoring program before you actively recruit teachers. They must know there is somebody in whom they can confide or to whom they can turn for guidance. Then monitor your fledgling teachers even more carefully than you usually do to make sure that they settle in. The result will be a mutually rewarding experience. The school gets a happy, productive faculty member, and he or she feels confident in the career choice. The true make-or-break issue of hiring teachers of color may be the human factor. Independent school leaders may need to re-evaluate the climate and atmosphere of their schools. Is the school truly a welcoming place where diversity is tangibly honored? The human connection that is offered or not offered when a new person enters the school may be the single most important moment in efforts to recruit teachers of color. - Attracting and Retaining Teachers of Color, Pearl Rock Kane and Alfonso J. Orsini Read carefully what Dr. Kane and her researchers have to say on this subject. Then begin your schools journey down the road to true diversity.

Television News Programs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Television News Programs - Essay Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that advertisements that are aired during news programs take away one’s attention from the news. In this regard, local channels like 10TV and NBS4i are not any better when compared to national channels like ABC or CBS. The advertisements aired during the news include ads on cars, pharmaceuticals, fast-food chains and personal care products. Most of these advertisements are fast-paced, colorful and sometimes downright funny, while others seem to consolidate a lot of information in their thirty-second slot. Although advertisements can engage the viewers for a while, there are other non-news items aired during news programs that can be irritating. For instance, news programs are often littered with announcements telling viewers what will happen â€Å"at the top of the hour† or provide information on other programs that the channel would telecast later on. Teasers like â€Å"A local high school goes up in flames. Will it affect cla sses on Monday?† is past bizarre. Such announcements and teasers can get particularly frustrating for viewers who want to hear the news and get on with their chores. Even weather forecasters keep their viewers waiting when they mention that later on in the program they would give the weather predictions. The wait for weather predictions would sometimes end up being a good fifteen minutes. As if these announcements weren’t enough to get the viewers on edge, there are times when newscasters try to portray a friendly appearance but end up being downright annoying. In fact, the most irritating aspect of most of the news programs is the frequent friendly chit-chat between members of the news team. Apart from the initial acknowledgment, newscasters often try to make small talks on how their recent vacation had been or convey their opinions and ideas on some of the news that they reported. Although it may be done with the

Professional Resource Portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Professional Resource Portfolio - Essay Example Through the development of professional portfolios, prospective and practicing teaching professionals can document their development and reflections as educators and can showcase their knowledge, skills, and accomplishments. There are various challenges in meeting the educational needs of students for their professional growth according to the managerial processes. In first phase a brief overview of educational perspectives on students and how they can define their management role in future (Bloom, L., 2005, 1-9). In second phase there is future educational opportunities for professional growth. The subject of professional Resource portfolio for students, the proper planning is requires continuing their managerial role in future. There is a need of some proper strategies objectives, where all are considered equal, critics are reluctant to support special programming for students because of the fear and suspicion that intellectualism may lead to elitism (Dieker, L. A.2001, 22-36). On the other hand, there is the American ideal, most notably reflected in Brown, and the IDEA, of helping all to succeed and reach their full potential. As noted in this Article, this ambivalence is far from resolved. But there are some vital aspects have been highlighted for their professional growth (Dietz, M. E.2004). The coaching profession has g... For professional portfolio development and growth, students need to be trained in the following grounds: There may be as many as maximum professional coaches worldwide (Dollase, R. H.2003, 85-98). One consulting firm estimated that 59% of organizations now offer coaching or developmental counseling to their managers and executives. Equal Educational Opportunities: A Brief, But Necessary, Excursus Equal opportunities can build strong features of students for their future management roles. Board of Education and its progeny should emphasis on the quality education of students for making their strong portfolio. Indeed, there is the cornerstone of all subsequent legal developments ensuring the rights of disenfranchised groups (Giuliano, F. J. (2005, 42-45). Consequently, reviewing the development of special education is relevant because, like students with disabilities, students have individualized needs and should be entitled to some protection. This section of the article reviews the case law involving all students. This section discusses cases focused on admissions and placement, transportation, federal claims, and race. Admissions and Placement Absent an express statutory or regulatory mandate, when a school board employs a rational method of selection, such as a lottery, that gives all qualified children an equal opportunity to enter a program with a limited number of openings or a program restricted to students of a certain age, courts have generally adopted an all or nothing approach to the extent that a student is either admitted or excluded from gifted education. Leadership Roles New work structures impose new directions for leadership in professional candidates. Leaders must know how to create new organizational designs to match their goals. They need

The Capital Structure Decision and the Cost of Capital Essay

The Capital Structure Decision and the Cost of Capital - Essay Example The products include dolls and accessories, vehicles, games, puzzles, as well as play sets. The company’s popular toy brands include the Barbie dolls, Polly Pocket, Little Mommy, Monster High, BabyGear, WWW Wrestling figures, Fisher-Price, CARS, Toy Story, Max Steel, and Batman. The company sells it toy products in physical stores as well as online stores. Based on the module discussions discussed, the nature of the Mattel (http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bs?s=MAT+Balance+Sheet&annual) company’s toy business operations and its toy clients, it is highly recommended that the capital structure (total liabilities or debt and equity proportions) must be adjusted to the medium debt ratio (1.0) type of business structure. The medium debt type of business organization can be equated to a financial position where there is an equal amount of total debt and total l equity. For, increasing the debt to an amount which is higher than the total equity would entail an increase in interest p ayments to the creditors. Creditors lend money in exchange for interest payments. In terms of amount, the current Mattel debt and equity amounts are high debt for both debt and equity amounts do not reach $3,000,000,000. Thus the medium debt ratio (1.0) amount can be reached my making either the debt equate the equity amount or the equity amount to equate the debt amount. Mattel Company has the best debt to equity ratio at 1.0. In terms of cost of capital, Mattel has the lowest of the three companies. On the other hand, an increase in the stockholders’ equity amount would generate more cash on hand needed for the company’s continuance of its current operations. However, the stockholders may not have enough funds to increase their investments in the company. In terms of risks, borrowing funds will increase the amount of the unpaid liability. Likewise, borrowing funds will generate the risk that creditors may not be able to grant the required loan amount. In terms of ris ks, the company will not be able to generate enough revenues to pay for the loan amount. One advantage of the generation of funds through debts is to avoid increasing the balance sheet’s stockholders’ equity figure. An increase in stockholders’ equity would produce lesser dividend distribution per share of stock. An advantage of the increasing debt amount is the avoidance of decreasing the company’s dividend per share contribution. The company’s 2010 beta is $0.99 each. Clorox The Clorox Company (http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=CLX+Key+Statistics) is engaged in the manufacture and sale of consumer products. The products are sold in the United States and around the world. The company’s products are segregated into four major divisions. The divisions are cleaning, household, lifestyle, and international. The company’s popular brands include Clorox cleaning products, liquid – Plumr, S.O.S., STP, and Armor All. Internationally, the company focuses on the home care products, cat litter products, plastic bags, containers, wraps, and charcoal products. The company’s beta is 0.35. In terms of amount, the current Clorox debt amount is less than $5,500,000,000 and the company’s equity amount is less than $100,000,000. Thus medium debt ratio (1.0) amount can be achieved by either increasing the current equity amount to equal the debt amount or reducing the debt amount to equal the current equit

Article review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Review - Article Example ) â€Å"The goals of SOX were to enhance the transparency of financial information, reaffirm auditor independence, and define corporate governance – the responsibilities of corporate boards and audit committees†. The author has pointed out the advantages of Sarbanes act on the economy and young generation, as many of them are indulging in educating themselves on the aspects of this new law. However, one fact that distracts the reader is that, paragraphs are divided in to real small units. Moreover it can be realized that, the third paragraph is slightly complicated, which can turn the readers perplexed and confused. Many a times, readers can be of ordinary category and they can find theses sentences overwhelming or distracting. On the other hand, the best part is that, the third paragraph gives out statistical fact and figure by mentioning historical evidence on the financial security acts. In the third paragraph, there is also statement about the merits of the Sarbanes Act on the financial and investment sector Further, more proceeding into the later paragraph, it can be understood that the writer is projecting on the quality of PCAOB (Public Companies Accounting Oversight Board) in giving organizations an opportunity in securing their investment and financial transaction processes. It is stated in the article that, PCAOB will establish quality control in auditing, maintain ethical independence and standards in a registered public accounting firms. Moreover, the authenticating nature of PCAOB is revealed in the article, where in it shows how the accounting firms, media and press consider the above listed act. Another highlight of the PCAOB is detailed as its ability to give employment opportunity to people in information technology field. According to (Rosavich)â€Å" Documenting internal control involved a thorough review of systems and also meant additional employment opportunities for information technology professionals†. The writer had presented the

Time Management for the Adult Learner Research Paper

Time Management for the Adult Learner - Research Paper Example Before actually getting enrolled in a course, the adult learner needs to layout reasons as to why or why not there is a need to go back to the university. For regular students, this task may not seem to be of any difficulty at all. For the adult learner, giving up receiving paychecks on a regular basis to earn a degree is a challenging dilemma. Though the degree would give them a better shot for a promotion at work and in getting more digits on the paychecks, the whole course would cost a lot and would add up to the monthly bills waiting to be settled on a regular basis (KeyOrganization.Com, 2011). The dilemma goes on with regards to weighing paychecks that are currently being received with the diploma which is still a goal to be achieved. Even with the better opportunity that lies ahead once the diploma is received, would it be worth it to sacrifice the instability of not earning enough to support the cost of living at present? Though there are scholarships that are being offered, the hours spent at the university could be spent at work to earn additional amount of money (Zupek, 2009). There are companies who may consider employees who are working part-time due to the fact that as the employee is enrolled at a course. However, there are also establishments that have particular needs with regards to working hours and most of the time could not make any special arrangements to accommodate adult learners who are employed under their firm. If the latter situation applies in the firm an adult learner is employed, therefore the student would need to give up the career and look for another that can accommodate school hours (Zuperk, 2009). This factor is just the start of a number of dilemmas that the aspiring adult learner needs to arrange before the actual learning experience in a school environment. It is a totally different story once the actual education experience takes place. Once the adult learner enters the university, there is

Articles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 5

Articles - Essay Example As good as, he was in advertising, Jack truly hated the business, which manifested itself when he retired, and sought to concentrate on art, which gave him satisfaction until his demise. That was then. One hundred years down the line, a new age group of advertising agencies has cropped up with new clients and new needs. I doubt if Jack would be pleased by the present advertising industry much more than the industry he ultimately left behind to concentrate on art. This does not mean that advertising has become any significant than it had previously been. The most important thing to remember is that the glimmer of creativeness holds the future of business. The year could be 2025 or perhaps 2035. You could be sleeping in iPyjamas and driving a driverless car. What is apparent at that time which resembles thirty or forty years ago is your e-mail, which you can log into while dressing probably because you can access it through your shirt pocket. Such are the changes that had been predicted by clairvoyants some twenty or thirty years ago. Media changes and advancements were not left out either by the seers. Technology and digital media will undoubtedly step up. Mobile devices, which are already the ideal internet and media platforms, will keep on growing (Khan, 2014). Globalization of the media will force the western world to step up its game due to competition from Latin America, Asia and even Africa. Evidently, the revolution of the media will take various routes hence be manifested by diversity. Probably the future has already encroached into our society with all the features that define the future media already manifesting themselves. The full impact is what is yet to be seen and we can only deduce the face of digital media in the future by the pace it is

Time Management for the Adult Learner Research Paper

Time Management for the Adult Learner - Research Paper Example Before actually getting enrolled in a course, the adult learner needs to layout reasons as to why or why not there is a need to go back to the university. For regular students, this task may not seem to be of any difficulty at all. For the adult learner, giving up receiving paychecks on a regular basis to earn a degree is a challenging dilemma. Though the degree would give them a better shot for a promotion at work and in getting more digits on the paychecks, the whole course would cost a lot and would add up to the monthly bills waiting to be settled on a regular basis (KeyOrganization.Com, 2011). The dilemma goes on with regards to weighing paychecks that are currently being received with the diploma which is still a goal to be achieved. Even with the better opportunity that lies ahead once the diploma is received, would it be worth it to sacrifice the instability of not earning enough to support the cost of living at present? Though there are scholarships that are being offered, the hours spent at the university could be spent at work to earn additional amount of money (Zupek, 2009). There are companies who may consider employees who are working part-time due to the fact that as the employee is enrolled at a course. However, there are also establishments that have particular needs with regards to working hours and most of the time could not make any special arrangements to accommodate adult learners who are employed under their firm. If the latter situation applies in the firm an adult learner is employed, therefore the student would need to give up the career and look for another that can accommodate school hours (Zuperk, 2009). This factor is just the start of a number of dilemmas that the aspiring adult learner needs to arrange before the actual learning experience in a school environment. It is a totally different story once the actual education experience takes place. Once the adult learner enters the university, there is

Compare and Contrast of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Essay

Compare and Contrast of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber and The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin - Essay Example Even though the genre of both the stories is different, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty takes a humorous look at marriage and The Story of an Hour is more intense, but both deal with the negative aspects of marriage.Besides the main theme of marriage I think the writers also discuss how male and female react differently to situations. If the basic concept is woven around failing marriage then the two protagonists being of different gender provide an understanding as to how the two genders react in the condition. In the next few pages I provide a summary of both the stories and then discuss the two main themes of the stories, gender roles and marriage, under separate headings. Finally a conclusion is provided to the discussion. â€Å"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty† by James Thurber The story deals with the life of Walter Mitty, and old man, who has a dominant wife who bosses around her way while Walter Mitty helplessly listens to her. In order to escape from this reality he li ves in a secret world, a world where he is the boss, he daydreams. In fact he daydreams so often that it is only when somebody else nudges him that he’s brought back to reality. It is interesting to see how he dreams of himself as being a supergenious surgeon or a brave soldier. The writer has used humour to describe the situations however, underneath this humour lies the failure of a person and his inability to do or say anything against a dominant person. It is to be noted that even though it would seem that a dominant wife is the most probable reason for Mitty’s secret life however, the author does suggest that Mitty is the one who follows people cowardly. Despite that marriage can be considered as one of the themes of this story and hence it’s being discussed here. â€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin Here unlike the previous story the protagonist is a woman who apparently has a weak heart. Her husband has died in an accident and her well wisher s are wondering how to break the news to her considering her condition. However, to reader’s surprise the woman is more happy than sad on hearing about her husband’s death. Thus, Kate Chopin too discusses the negative side of marriage. Even her condition can be partly blamed on the marriage and the stress it must have brought on her. She is happy to learn that she might finally be free. She is overjoyed. Even though it seems a little cruel but the author provides a different aspect of human nature. It could be that the protagonist felt nothing for her husband anymore, maybe the burden of marriage and a strained relationship had killed all her feelings. In the end it is learned that her husband had not dies in the accident. However, to everybody’s astonishment the protagonist dies of a heart attack. She finally does get her freedom. Marriage as a theme In our society marriage is the legal certificate that recognizes the existence of a man and a woman as husband a nd wife. However, this institution seems to have its own stresses and responsibilities and writers have now and then discussed the various aspects of this institution. Here we discuss the two stories that bring the negative aspect of the institution to light. Marriage involves understanding your partner in order to carry on the relationship, which is the same with any other relationship. However, when two people live together the sense of mystery is lost and when one of the partners happens to be of dominant nature the other inevitably suffers.

Money Is Not The Only Motivator Management Essay

Money Is Not The Only Motivator Management Essay We are presenting our term project which was chosen from one of the topics provided by the course instructor. We are pleased to present our report on topic Money is not the Only motivator This research gave us an excellent chance to understand the concept of motivation and its applications in practical world. We chose Pakistan State Oil as our organization for our research. We would also like to thank all our respondents, who were kind enough to answer our questionnaires and gave their valuable time in guiding and informing us about their perception on our topic. We acknowledge all of your help and support for this research. We sincerely thank our instructor Ms Unzela Hasni for her support and trust in our capabilities. Yours Sincerely, Syed Ahmed Asad (12131) Bilal Jawaid (12093) Riaz Ramzan Ali ((10712) Abdul Moiz Mughal (11540) Maryam Abbasi (11869) Acknowledgement We begin by expressing our gratitude to our Lord, the Almighty Allah without Whose Guidance and Will, all is impossible. We are also highly thankful to our teacher and instructor, Mr Unzela Hansni, whose teaching has given us great knowledge and a peek into the professional world of Human Resource Management and its various aspects. This report has sharpened our ability to interpret the concepts and methods with greater sensibility. Executive Summary Pakistan State Oil is the leading oil company in Pakistans energy sector with largest retail outlets to serve all industries and consumers of Pakistan. PSO takes pleasure to continue tradition of excellence and it is fully committed to meet energy needs of future. PSO is one of local organization that holds an award for attracting employees because of their strategic human resource practices.PSO takes it human resource management as the most important department of their company because they treat their employees as their most significant asset.PSO along its effective compensation plan (monetary) holds many other techniques and methods of modern era to keep employees engaged and make sure that they are striving for the attainment of companys goal. In this report we surveyed PSO to collect valuable information on different motivational aspects and methods used by management to make sure employees feel interested at work and have a sense of belonging to the organization. We learned var ious techniques such as performance management, motivational surveys, employee awards, recreational facilities , training and development and others. Hypothesis H0: PSO is successful in motivating its employees H1: PSO is not successful in motivating its employees In our research we assumed that PSO is one of the most successful domestic organizations to keep a motivated workforce in Pakistan, so to test our hypothesis we went to the organization and interviewed 2 top managers and got questionnaires filled from 12 employees linked to senior , middle and lower level management positions. Our hypothesis is to prove whether a motivated group of employees help individuals and business to achieve job satisfaction, productive employees, more profit, self development and an effective work environment (culture). Methodology We used research based methodology to work on this report. Our research was conducted in several steps that include: Planning which topic to choose Choosing the Organisation Collecting secondary information from different sources such as Human Resource Books Internet Articles from Harvard Business Review Next we designed a questionnaire Site visit (PSO) Get our questionnaires filled Interviewed two managers Assembled primary and secondary data 1st draft report to check plagiarism Final report INTRODUCTION PSO: Overview Just like any other competitive business, PSO is a challenging petroleum products marketer, supporting foresight, quick judgment and hard work and acumen. At PSO, we have been making new grounds since our situation in the market. By introducing a competitive product portfolio, aligning our corporate social responsibility, putting up up storage depots at far-flung areas, presenting relative marketing techniques, energizing industrial institutions, supporting the countrys defense forces, ensuring customers satisfaction and provision of new business challenges, PSO has been setting the benchmark for other oil marketing companies during the 25 years of its excellent existence. Under the strategy, State Oil Company Limited a private company owned by the Federal government in which undertaking were vested on 15th September 1976 took over the entire undertakings of Pakistans Oil limited companies and National Oil limited companies as disclosed in their respective financial statements declared on June 30th. The company then later converted in to Public limited company. In consideration for the transfer, the reconciliation program provided all shareholders of the two former companies, PNOL and POCL, be issued fully paid-up ordinary shares of PSO against their holdings in PNOL and POCL along with fully paid-up premium shares. This was done at the rate of 1,185 PSO shares for every 1,000 shares of PNOL and 1,136 PSO shares for every 1,000 shares of POCL. The inception period of any company is always comparatively difficult but for an organization emerging out of the merger of three separate units, the problems can be more complex. PSO, during its first year of operation, was no amazing. However, most of the problems were properly solved and taken care by the company. PSO sold a total of 2,514,000 tons of petroleum products till June 30th 1977. This made a turnover of Rs 404.53 crores. Such meager return was partially due to the unrealistic gross margins, which were available to the oil marketing companies in all main products and were fixed by the government as far back as 1963. At the end of the first year, the extent of the PSO operations was that it had four ocean terminals, 34 inland depots, four blending plants and 950 retail outlets. Of the retail outlets, 715 were gasoline and HSD stations, 126 service stations, 44 LDO farm stations and 65 kerosene stations. In its first year of operations, the upcountry storage capacity of the company was augmented by 33,000 tons. The storage capacity was established at Gilgit, Chitral and Skardu, enabling the residents of the Northern Areas to obtain their requirements of petroleum products throughout the year and at reasonable prices. By the second year of operations i.e. 1977, the company had successfully overcome the initial problems of the merger, establishing itself as a homogeneous commercial force capable of playing its rightful role in the economic progress of the country. It sold 1,826,000 metric tons of petroleum products during the year as against 1,746,000 tons in the first year. This indicated an increase of 4.56 per cent. Since then, PSOs success story has continued with the company making a strong impact on the countrys overall development over the years with excellent prospects for further growth. A cursory look at PSO at a Glance in the annual report reveals remarkable financial strength accumulated since inception. Statistics, though somewhat restricted, nevertheless, give a picture of all-round improvement despite temporary setbacks. The companys shareholders have reposed unwavering confidence in the astute financial policies followed by the company that have not only given extremely attractive cash dividends year-after-year but also a consistent increase in the shareholders equity from Rs 116.2 million in 1977 to Rs 9,808 million in 2001. Where do we stand today? PSOs sales revenue during FY-2001 rose to Rs. 170 billion, showing a growth of 25.7% over the previous year. The company earned an all-time record gross profit of Rs. 6.4 billion, which was up by 12.4% over the preceding year. The profit after tax was Rs. 2.25 billion. This was marginally higher than the previous years profit of Rs. 2.23 billion. If PSO had not made these provisions, the company would have reflected an additional profit of the same amount, which would have resulted in significantly higher profit than the preceding year. Not only that, the company has emerged as one of the countrys few largest taxpayers in the corporate sector. PSOs business operations have helped collect over the years Rs 338 billion in duties and taxes on behalf of the government. Integral to our success are our efforts to provide our customers an unmatched service based on innovation, deep care and our vision for the future. Accordingly, we have launched an aggressive plan to build New Vision outlets in order to provide better quality service to its customers. Some 330 New Vision retail outlets have been established all over the country in a short period of two and a half years, which is a record. At the same time, to set high standards of customer service, the number of Company-owned and Company-operated (CoCo) sites has increased to 20. Yet another ambitious program that PSO has launched will see the promotion of Internet, especially in inaccessible areas of Pakistan. A total of 500 retail outlets are to be provided with Internet facility, which is now available at 150 outlets. The philosophy of HR in PSO 1. Consider human asset as the only asset which gets appreciated by passage of time. 2. Always the right person at the right place for the right job. 3. Continuously re-align organization in line with contemporary business practices. 4. Make Organization responsive by making it lean and flexible. 5. All HR issues to be handled with transparency and keenness. Work environment in PSO Employee Recognition To boost the morale of employees a reward and recognition scheme is in place for the last few years and has been a great source of creating a spirit of healthy competition amongst employees. Each year employees are nominated for two company-wide ceremonies viz Shaukat Raza Mirza Management Excellence Award and PSO Managing Directors Performance Award Motivation Survey Special efforts for continuously enriching our business systems and implementing relative strategies have always been fruitful which are aimed at augmenting a work culture that enhances employee motivation as well as gaining a better understanding of forces that shapes motivation, attitude, behavior patterns and expectations. Employee Motivation surveys are conducted that recognize the needs, opinions, concerns and perceptions of our human capital about the organization and what they value in terms of professional and personal interests and incentives. Keeping a human element is mind these surveys help identify a meaningful employee relationship with the organizational objectives and understand their job responsibilities and work expectations. Communication: Open-book direct approach environment An assortment of forums/meetings at hand (Executive Committee, Management Committee, Employee Leadership Team) inspire discipline and accelerate establishment of processes systems. Encourage team work group dynamics while inculcating a sense of ownership through empowered Cross Functional Teams (CFTs) Employ Business Process Reengineering (BPR) to maintain an international working environment by streamlining processes and removing unnecessary layers Interactive sessions are regularly held by the Managing Director at all levels because clear, coherent and consistent messages ensure that employees are able to integrate the inputs into their thinking All organizational changes are announced Tolerance We have high ethical standards and a Business Principles and Ethics Policy in place. We value, encourage and inculcate corporate reforms, good governance, best business practices and an environment of continued adherence to Zero Tolerance, resulting in the development of our human capital and meeting all business challenges. Facilities and Recreational activities PSO encourages recreational activities of workforce at all levels. Formation and functioning of PSO Club provides assistance to employees for their mental and physical health as well as for their social activities. Sports and recreational activities are organized through this forum, where employees and their families are encouraged to participate. It is our top priority to ensure the employees are in good shape and health. To physically show that we care, we have in-house food service with subsidized meals in a cafeteria that can cater all the employees stationed at PSO House. Employees can enjoy gymnasium facility right in PSOs corporate vicinity, a convenience of walking from your workstation to a private gym for a revitalizing workout. Performance Management System of effective performance and feed back is worked out at PSO and is a significant figure of our appraisal management Individual performance is sorted with the business goals and objectives of the company Performance-based rewards are offered on early basis All management employees annual appraisal through a population spread Human Resource Awards In September 2007 Engage Human Resources (consultancy, solutions and services) in partnership with the Pakistan Society of Human Resources Management (PSHRM) conducted a preference study interviewing 550 graduating MBA students from 8 universities, chosen from the latest Higher Education Commission ranking survey. December 18, 2007, Karachi (PSHRM) and Engage Human Resources, announced the results of the first Most Preferred Graduate Employer 2007 study at the ceremony held for PSHRM Graduate Employer Awards 2007. As we create an aspiring internal credibility along with leading HR practices delivering that promise, we standout for graduating MBA students as the most preferred place to work. Pakistan State Oil won the Most Preferred Local Company Award as the highest ranked Pakistani company with their perceived attractive compensation package as the main reason for their ability to attract talent. Literature Review Motivation Motivation is the process that is a mixture of individuals intensity, direction persistence of effort toward attaining a goal. We would like to describe each element separately. Intensity- states how hard a person tries , or how much effort he will apply in his job Direction- A person should know the areas where he has to put more or less effort. Persistence-states how long a person could maintain his effort Effort that is directed toward and consistent with organizational goals is the kind of effort that we must be seeking. Managers are the nervous system of any organization, so they play the main role to make sure of motivational practices that are necessary for an organization. Major steps which managers should take to motivate employees are: Recognize individual differences Use goals and take feedback on these goals Link reward to performance Check the reward system Make sure that employees are present in decision making which directly affect them There are two basic ways to motivate employees. These are monetary and non-monetary approaches that are used by management. Moreover before using rewards to motivate employees we have to take some strategic decisions. These are what should be the pay structure? How to pay employees? Whether there should be flexible benefits or not? How the company should build its recognition programs? First major decision is what to pay, that is to establish a pay structure. It is a rather complex decision and entails balancing internal and external equity. However the best pay system pays the job what it is worth while also paying competitively relative to the labor market. Second decision is how to pay, whether there should be variable programs or skill based programs. Variable Pay Programs A portion of an employees pay is based on some individual and/or organization measure of performance Piece Rate: Workers are paid a fixed sum for each unit of production completed Merit-Based: Based on performance appraisal ratings. This merit based pay is motivating for employees because if they are designed properly, individuals can see their performance and reward they are getting. Bonuses: Reward recent performance rather than historical. SKILLED BASED PAY: It is also known as knowledge based pay, it sets pay based on jobs or skills an employee can perform. Profit Sharing plan: These are organization wide programs that distribute compensation based on some established formula designed around a companys profitability. These can be cash outlays or stock options. Gain sharing: It is a formula based group incentive plan. Rewards are tied to production gains not to profits. Employee Stock Ownership Plans: In this program employee acquire stocks mainly below market price as part of their benefits, it increases employee satisfaction but its impact on performance is still not clear. Third decision is what benefits to offer, another component is known as flexible benefits. Flexible Benefits: It allows each employee to put together a benefits package individually tailored to his needs and situation. Three most popular benefits plans are: Modular plans- a predesigned package of benefits put together to meet needs of specific group of employees Core-plus plans- consists a core of benefits and a menu like selection of other benefits. Flexible spending plans- allow employees to set aside up to the dollar amount offered in the plan to pay for particular services. Employee Recognition: Fourth is to build a comprehensive employee recognition program. It ranges from a THANKYOU to widely publicize formal programs in which specific types of behavior are encouraged and procedures for attaining recognition are clearly identified. Two of the most popular methods are giving gifts certificates and cash rewards. It also includes giving personal attention to employees. But all factors described above holds some pros and cons. Benefits of it are Fulfill employees desire for recognition Inexpensive to implement Encourage repetition of desired behaviors Non Monetary Approaches to Motivation: There are some non monetary approaches to motivate employees. To proceed further we need to understand job design first i.e. way the elements in a job are organized. First way to redesign a job to motivate an employee is job rotation that is periodic shifting of employee from one job to another. When an activity becomes unchallenging employee is shifted to another job usually at the same level of skills requirements. Another way is job enlargement in which variety and number of tasks of an employee are increased; it is a horizontal expansion in an employees job design. Similarly, we expand vertically to which is known as job enrichment. It increases the degree to which worker controls planning, execution and evaluation at the work. Furthermore there are some alternative work arrangements. These are: Flexitime: Employees work during a common core time work each day but can arrange their total hours a day by themselves from the set of hours outside the core. Job sharing It is a practice in which a 40 hour a week job is split between two to three employees. It allows management to draw on talents of more than one individual in a given job and is mostly suitable for female workers. Telecommuting It refers to employees who do their work at home atleast 2 days a week on a computer that is linked to their office. Three types of jobs suits this method Routine information handling task Mobile activities Knowledge related jobs Employee Involvement: It is a process that supports participative management by using employees input to increase their commitment to the organizations success. By increasing worker autonomy and control over work lives (involvement), organizations: Increase employee motivation Gain greater organizational commitment Experience greater worker productivity Observe higher levels of job satisfaction Three major forms of employee motivation are: Participative Management Subordinates share a significant degree of decision-making power with their immediate superiors Representative Participation Works Councils: Groups of nominated or elected employees who must be consulted for any personnel decisions Board Representative: An employee sits on a companys board of directors and represents the interests of the firms employees. Quality Circle A work group of employees, who meet regularly to discuss their quality problems, investigate causes, recommend solutions, and take corrective actions. Articles on Motivation from HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW: To make our research more interesting we decided to summarize some very interesting article from Harvard Business Review which we were told to read regularly by our instructor. References to these articles are given at the end. Article 1: Say, Tom, Let Me Whitewash a Little: The Power of Intrinsic Motivation: Article Link: http://blogs.hbr.org/erickson/2007/07/say_tom_let_me_whitewash_a_lit.html Summary or the Article: This article develops clear sense of what intrinsic motivation is. Intrinsic motivation is the willingness to engage in an activity without some external rewards (i.e. French benefits) or in other words we can say that it is the motivation that comes from inside of an individual rather than from any external reward. It is the pleasure one gets from the task itself or from the sense of satisfaction in completing or even working on the task. The computer games are the best example as its suckled on the principle of intrinsic motivation. The growing skill level and the increasing degree of difficulties led to effective online learning with the motivation for players to move towards the next level. Similarly within this type of cultural norms, smaller steps are far better than the big infrequent increment. If workplace adopt same culture than the workers will work harder to compete with colleague and move towards the next level in order to attain the desired goal. Nowadays the workforce are adopting this culture i.e. using games (whether addictive or not) in which there is a use of intrinsic principles to encourage self-motivated work activities that can led to enormous effective production. This is a successful strategy because people want to move to next level as fast as they can and in workforce competition among workers motivate them to work hard and to move towards the next level in order to attain goal after which they get self satisfaction and pleasure which is known as Intrinsic Motivation. Article 2: Four Motivation Mistakes Most Leaders Make: Article Link: http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/10/four_motivation_mistakes_most.html Summary This articles talks about the motivational mistakes the leaders make while leading their employees. The first mistakes they make are by always thinking rational and create frustrating unintended consequences. The leaders should rather focus on five sources of meaning for humans at work: the impact of the work on society, the customer, the company, the team, and me. Another blunder that is made by the leaders is focusing on offering monetary incentives only. Experience and numerous studies, however, show that big bonuses are less effective than smaller, unexpected gestures, because gifts create a relationship while bonuses are purely transactional also leaders are habitual of giving orders rather listening to the employees perspective. Lastly the leaders need to be optimistic and dont search for problems. Focusing on problems tends to create fatigue and resistance,  instead focus on how your organizations or individuals, strengths can be used to overcome your challenges. Questionnaire For how long have you been a part of this organization? Less than 5 years 5-10 years 10-15 years More than 15 years What is your level of satisfaction with the working culture of the company? Highly Satisfied Satisfied Moderate Dissatisfied Highly Dissatisfied Rate the following statement Executives are interested in motivating the employees? Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree What is your satisfaction level with the incentives provided by the company? Highly Satisfied Satisfied Moderate Dissatisfied Highly Dissatisfied Please rate the statements given underneath according to the following ratings. 1 for Strongly Agree 2 for Agree 3 for Neutral 4 for Disagree 5 for strongly disagree Reasonable periodical increase in salary Job Security Good Relationship with other staff members Effective performance appraisal system Effective promotional opportunities Performance appraisal activities are helpful to get motivated Support from the other staff members is helpful to get motivated Organization recognizes and acknowledges your work. Organizational Policies motivates for achieving its aims and objective Do you think that incentives and other benefits will influence your performance? Yes No Opinion No Does the Top Management involve you in decision making which are connected to your department? Always Usually Often Sometimes Rarely Never Do you think Internal Competition plays an important role in employee motivation? Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree Does ethical principles of the organization influence employee motivation? Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree Do you agree that employees are placed on their jobs according to their field of interest? Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree Does your job provide you the opportunity to continually advance to more senior positions. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree How does pressure motivate you? Handling Competing Priorities Facing Tight Deadlines Managing Setbacks Being in a team motivates you? Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree Results For how long have you been a part of this organization? Less than 5 years 5-10 years 10-15 years More than 15 years Out of 12 people we interviewed 4 were working for less than five years , 6 were working for more than five years and 2 employees were PSOs part for about 12 years. What is your level of satisfaction with the working culture of the company? Highly Satisfied Satisfied Moderate Dissatisfied Highly Dissatisfied A very positive reply was noticed as 59% of the sample was satisfied with the corporate culture of PSO as it has a policy of orienting employees according to their need , which then leads employees to understand the culture more easily. Secondly, open door policy and corporation of colleagues is encouraged in PSO which allows high satisfaction levels. PSO is recognized as an EMPLOYER OF CHOICE for which it received an award in 2007. 25% of the sample was satisfied moderately while remaining 16% were employees who were working for more than 10 years and showed their extra satisfaction because of the growth, status and respect which they received in their career at PSO. Rate the following statement Executives are interested in motivating the employees? Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree Open door policy, performance management, career development, training sessions, authority and being a part of departmental decision making are some factors that aroused 67% of the sample to rank this statement with the second option, however some employees who are still new to the organization rated it as neutral that executives are not biased towards other employees but they are also not directly involved in decision making. Top management provides guidance on particular issues, they encourage Cross functional teams, Employee Business Process Reengineering, meeting with employees, different informational and interactive sessions and make sure that all organizational changes are well announced. When the response of these 33% employees was shown to a top executive Rashad Usama brand manager lubricants, he provided us with the answers that it is our policy of first assessing fresh employees and let them show their potential then with their respective supervisors a complete training and development plan is made for them. What is your satisfaction level with the incentives provided by the company? Highly Satisfied Satisfied Moderate Dissatisfied Highly Dissatisfied 16 % employees were highly satisfied with their benefits that include medical insurance , petrol , children education , pension fund, paid holidays, vacations and etc , 67 % employees were just satisfied as they think even in difficult times PSO assumed them as their assets and rest showed moderate responses. Moreover employee recognition awards, ethical standards, tolerance policies and facilities such as gym, cafeteria and PSO club plays a great role in keeping employees proactive. Please rate the statements given underneath according to the following ratings. 1 for Strongly Agree 2 for Agree 3 for Neutral 4 for Disagree 5 for strongly disagree Reasonable periodical increase in salary Job Security Good Relationship with other staff members Effective performance appraisal system Effective promotional opportunities Performance appraisal activities are helpful to get motivated Support from the other staff members is helpful to get motivated Organization recognizes and acknowledges your work. Organizational Policies motivates for achieving its aims and objectives 84 % employees strongly agreed with 2nd, 3rd and 7th