Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Chester Barnard’s Management Theory Essay

Management has been in our business culture many years. Ideas of management from the past are applicable to management practices today. In today’s society, managers are seen as a ruling authority that get their jobs done through other people; their employees. Most of the time there is a lack of communication between the managers and their employees resulting in conflicts that may place their company at high risk of failure. Leading and motivating should be the top priorities of a manager. Motivating includes communicating with your employees, dealing and solving problems and encouraging them to do their job to be successful in today’s management business. This all leads us to Chester Barnard’s management theory and his belief of the role of effectiveness within management. Chester Barnard was born in 1886 and died in 1961. He attended Mount Hermon Prep School and later enrolled at Harvard University. While at his position as a telecommunications executive, Bernard was influenced by Walter Gifford, Harvard President A. Lawrence Lowell, Donham. At that time, Chester was president of the New Jersey Bell Telephone Company. In his time he was known for publishing an article on ‘The Functions of the Executive in 1938’ which was an influential 20th century management book. In this article he helped advance thinking about organizations that later on contributed to the management theory. He created two theories which are Theory of Organization and Concept of Authority. â€Å"Authority is the character of a communication in a formal organization by virtue of which it is accepted by a contributor to or ‘member’ of the organization as governing the action he contributes; that is as governing or determining what he does or is not to do so far as the organization is concerned. †

Experts need to slow down the rate of global warming

Experts around the world have been warning about this for decades and have been urging governments to do more to slow down the rate of global warming. They warn that there is a 75% risk that global temperatures will rise a further two to three degrees in the next 50 years. The consequence of this would be dramatic. In fact a rise of just one degree would melt the Greenland ice sheet and drown the Maldives, but a three degree increase would kill the Amazon rainforest, wipe out nearly half of all species facing extinction and wreak havoc with crop yields due to weather changes. Whilst the global climate goes through hot and cold cycles, what is worrying about the current phase is the pace of change that could send us head first into a final spin. Although we have certainly benefited from technological advancements that have given us plastics, air travel and cheap food – what is important is to maintain a balance so that excessive consumerism does not ride roughshod over nature's harmony. In Islam man is given the role of trusteeship over the earth, which is a huge responsibility. In the past, man had to be careful how he treated his local environment since excessive grazing or agriculture could bring ruin to his livelihood. His knowledge was also limited but in the event of a disaster either through ignorance or abuse at least he could resort to moving elsewhere and start again. Now we should have no excuse for ignorance and we should have learnt from our past to avoid misuse. But what is worrying is that the impacts of our behaviour are not just local anymore, they are global. If we fail to act in a responsible manner then we cannot simply relocate because there will be nowhere to go. It is therefore vital that as producers, manufacturers and consumers, we ensure that we give due consideration to the impact of our actions. Such a responsibility is not just that of the east or the west but a responsibility for all of us. Islam teaches us that God has continued and will continue to provide us with ample resources for all time. But through man's misuse, this balance may change. It is this personal greed of man that makes them squander these resources and deprive others who may need those resources. The Holy Quran warns mankind in Chapter 7, verse 32 â€Å"O children of Adam!†¦ eat and drink but exceed not the bounds; surely He does not love those who exceed the bounds† The overall message of Islam is that it promotes harmony by advising moderation. It accepts that we need to use resources for our progress but this should be done wisely and in a sustainable manner, so that a satisfactory medium is found. The Holy Quran relates in Chapter 25, verse 68 â€Å"those who, when they spend are neither extravagant nor niggardly but moderate between the two. So as individuals we should act on the Quranic injunction that promotes balance and avoids excess and Nations need to be more willing to share knowledge for the sake of the planet rather than for profit and take collective action in line with their collective responsibility. By doing so we will be able to win the pleasure of God and honour our trusteeship of the earth for the present and future generations

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Ritz Carlton Сase Study

The history of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. originates with The Ritz-Carlton, Boston. The standards of service, dining and facilities of this Boston landmark serve as a benchmark for all Ritz-Carlton hotels and resorts worldwide. The legacy of The Ritz-Carlton, Boston begins with the celebrated hotelier Cesar Ritz, the â€Å"king of hoteliers and hotelier to kings.† His philosophy of service and innovations redefined the luxury hotel experience in Europe through his management of The Ritz Paris and The Carlton in London. The Ritz-Carlton, Boston revolutionized hospitality in America by creating luxury in a hotel setting: Private bath in each guest roomLighter fabrics in the guest room to allow for more thorough washing White tie and apron uniforms for the wait staff, black tie for the Maitre d’ and morning suits for all other staff, conducive to a formal, professional appearance Extensive fresh flowers throughout the public areasA la carte dining, providing ch oices for diners Gourmet cuisine, utilizing the genius and cooking methods of Auguste Escoffier Intimate, smaller lobbies for a more personalized guest experienceCesar Ritz died in 1918 but his wife Marie continued the expansion of hotels bearing his name. In the United States, Albert Keller bought and franchised the name and established The Ritz-Carlton Investing Company. In 1927 The Ritz-Carlton, Boston, opened and other hotels followed in New York (at Madison and 54th), Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Atlantic City and Boca Raton, followed by the Miami hotels including the south beach location. However, by 1940 none of the hotels were operating except The Ritz-Carlton, Boston. The hotel embodies the vision of Cesar Ritz, Yankee ingenuity and Boston social sensibilities.The Ritz-Carlton south beach resort was first created in 1953 with the acquisition and restoration of the Morris Lapidus-designed Di Lido Hotel in Miami's South Beach district. The new resort featured 375 rooms; a 16,000 -sq.-ft. spa located on the third level; and 20,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, including a 10,000-sq.-ft. ballroom capable of seating up to 1,000 guests. The historic restoration retains the exterior flavor of the Morris Lapidus design, characterized as Art Moderne or MiMO (for Miami Modern). A three-story addition on top of the existing eight-story hotel, along with the incorporation of other surrounding buildings into the new resort, brings the Ritz-Carlton to approximately 500,000 sq. ft. These futures along with the rich history of the building make this hotel resort one of a kind and a must see destination.II. Company ProfileThe Ritz-Carlton South Beach hotel lies on Miami’s most famous beach and is located just steps from Ocean Drive and Lincoln Road. This is a 10-block  pedestrian esplanade with the best shopping, dining, nightlife and people-watching South Beach Miami has to offer. This hotel caters to the most discerning hotel guests, dignitaries and celebrities and includes features that you may not find anywhere else. The hotel has 375 luxurious guest rooms, including two poolside lanai wings in the style of early Miami Beach. It also provides more than 20,000 total square feet of exceptional South Beach meeting and conference facilities and a 16,000-square-foot Ritz-Carlton spa.This resort is a prime location, within walking distance to Miami's Ocean Drive, Lincoln Road and South Beach nightlife. The hotel went through a complete restoration of the original 1953, Morris Lepidus-designed, landmark South Beach Miami hotel in order to provide their customers with the luxurious experience associated with the Ritz Carlton name. The hotel is rated as a triple a diamond tier 4 hotel, making it the recipient of the highest rating award for a luxury hotel. Guest Room Features & Amenities400-450 square feet Views of the Atlantic Ocean, pool, and South Beach Contemporary, warm furnishings inspired by South Beach’s vibrant ocean destination with the luxuries of home, accented with colors of blue, sea mist green, and coral Generously sized desks iPod docking stations, with AM/FM clock radios In-room laptop-compatible safe Computer and fax hookups Multi-line telephones with hold button Choice of one king or two double beds Goose down and non-allergenic foam pillows Luxurious 100% cotton linens Sumptuous marble baths Suit, skirt and padded hangers Fully stocked mini refreshment bar Rollaway beds available ($50 per day) All rooms in our South Beach hotel are non-smokingProperty Features & Amenities The Ritz-Carlton Spa The Signature Shop Two restaurants, including upscale dining and casually chic oceanfront lounge dining Elevated outdoor pool and private day beds overlook the Atlantic Ocean $2 million original art collection featuring established and emerging artists 24-hour room serviceValet parking available at our Miami hotel: Daily $27 / Overnight $36 Limousine services available upon request Personal shoppers available up on requestIII. Balance scorecardThe balanced scorecard is a strategic planning and management system that is used extensively in the hotel industry to align business activities to the vision and strategy of the organization, improve internal and external communications, and monitor organization performance against strategic goals. The balanced scorecard has evolved from its early use as a simple performance measurement to a full strategic planning and management system. The â€Å"new† balanced scorecard transforms an organization’s strategic plan from an attractive but passive document into the â€Å"marching orders† for the organization on a daily basis.It provides a framework that not only provides performance measurements, but also helps planners identify what should be done and measured. It enables executives to truly execute their strategies. The Ritz Carlton uses this strategy and is comprised of some key basic concepts, which are Financial, Customer, lear ning and growth, and internal business processes. By adopting this crucial strategy, Ritz Carlton south beach will be able to create a consistent level of service and ensure a path of future growth.A. Service cultureWho We Are The Ritz Carlton separates itself from its competitors in the hospitality industry by offering experiences of exceptional quality. Our objective is to  be considered the best luxury hotel brand in the world with each and every location personifying that goal to our customers. We build properties that are designed to take you away to a dream of unlimited possibilities and while also creating a service culture that is the best in the industry. Doing so allows Ritz Carlton to satisfy the needs and tastes of our customers, and to maintain our position as the world's premier luxury hospitality company.What We Believe Our greatest asset is our team. We do not label our staff with the term â€Å"employee† or â€Å"worker† because it takes a true team effort to provide the type of experience that the Ritz Carlton is world renown. We believe that each team member exemplifies that notion and proudly instills the image of Ritz Carlton to our customers. Our success depends on the work of our team and we will always be known as having the best team members in the land.How We Succeed We succeed when all the core components of the BSC are achieved. We must focus on the needs and desires of our customers while also maintaining a safe and surplus level of revenues and profits while minimizing our expenditures. We must account for our outside competitive set and deliver a product to our customers that cannot be matched.How We Behave We demonstrate our behavior through hard work, compassion, and a true love for what we do. We pride ourselves on having the best code of conduct policy which adheres to all state and federal guidelines while ensuring the happiness of our guests and team members.B. Balance Scorecard table (exhibit 1) â€Å"A br oad look†(Exhibit 2) â€Å"a detailed look into BSC†Perspectives Objectives Measures Target Initiatives/Actions Financial 1.Increase Revenue 2.Increase RevPAR 3.Increase profit margin 4. Minimize expenses P&L statement STAR reports Department operations reports Operating budget -Maintain RevPAR Index Achieve higher ADR, RevPAR and OCC% than comp set 30-40% profit -secure market share from competitors. -Maintain optimal ADR by appropriate revenue management – Up sell high margin services Customer -Customer service – No guest dissonance -Happy guests-Customer Satisfaction Repeat customers Referred customers -Online surveys -100% customer satisfaction – Repeat business -Loyalty-Monitoring social media -Mystery shoppers -Score cards with incentives to give any feedback -Creating internal network for sharing customer ifo between associates Internal Business Processes – Adherence to brands standards for operations processes – Following stand ard operation and billing procedures in the catering department -Service errors -Failure rates -Maintenance and renovation of physical assets – Guest complaints – Bill disputes-3ÃŽ ´ level of quality for all business processes – Less than 1% bill disputes -Hiring an Operations control manager – standardized Training for all employees -operating inventory cycle monitoring Learning and Growth – Grooming and retaining the best associates. – Shorter work hours and rested more attentive employees in catering department. – Internal Promotion – Turnover rate – Associate retention – Employee overtime – Employee burnout – Service satisfaction ratings for F&B department -70% promotion from within -turnover below 40% hourly & 10% managerial -5-15% overtime for F&B employees maximum -Developing effective training programs-Quarterly reviews and evaluations – Incentives for employees staying in the company -promotion from withinThe BSC tables shown in exhibit 1 and 2 highlight the objectives considered important for the Ritz Carlton at south beach to succeed. Due to the fact that it is a luxury property, the objectives considered in this table are aligned with strategies targeting upscale travelers with unique demands and needs. In a luxury hotel, the top line revenues and profits depend on the level of guest satisfaction.It is assumed that wealthy travelers are willing to pay a premium if all their needs and demands are satisfied. Thus exquisite hotels such as The Ritz Carlton depend directly on the level of satisfaction of their guests as well as the public perception of their brand name and property when setting room rates and other pricing strategies. With all being said it makes sense that such an emphasis is put on the level of service in this second exhibit of BSC.The balanced scorecard approach allows a hotel to asses what its biggest area of opportunity is to succeed and buil d upon that to better serve its customers worldwide. Financial and business process measures are taken into account to assure that the company is running at optimal efficiency and that money is being made at an acceptable rate. Although these measures are important, they would mean nothing without the loyalty, retention, and happiness of your team members. In this case, the Ritz Carlton is a luxury hotel, so focusing on the retention and overall happiness of your team members is what will ultimately benefit you the most.Companies make it a priority in finding and retaining top team members, but it is very difficult. This is why managers must acknowledge the presence of such members on their staff and make an effort to keep them in the company. The retention and development of these members is key in the success of the hotel. You must also understand that not every person is suited for the luxury service culture, so finding the best mix and combinations of team members will bode help ful in the long run. Training courses and a structured system for development should also be put in place to ensure a consistent service culture.A huge retention meter would be to offer employees incentive for their performance. This can be money based, recognition based, or promotion based. Internal promotion is a practice adopted by upscale properties more than many other types of hotels because the team member is battle tested. They have been brought up from within he/she has learned the company culture along the way and already has the attitude and approach needed to be successful. Another benefit is the fact that this person is familiar with a large portion of the hotels operations, making the transition easy to any department or manager role when needed.Maintaining and exceeding financial goals and measures are important to the short-term operational success of the hotel; however, the purpose of the Balanced Scorecard is to emphasize the importance of non-financial measures fo r the success of the business. By following this objective, you will create team member satisfaction, which will cause the customers to experience the full luxury experience, and it will all trickle down to the bottom line, which is increased revenue, and high profits from all departments.C. Strategy mapThe Strategy Map below shows how the four perspectives of the BSC influence each other and how the objectives in the bottom affect the ones above them. This ultimately leads to superior workforce effectiveness. Not only does this show workforce effectiveness, but also the overall guidelines to superior financial performance.IV. Operating Budget(See attached Excel document)Market segmentsThe Ritz Carlton at south beach differentiates its potential guests into 2 main market segments – corporate (business travelers) and leisure (vacationers).Corporate Luxury hotels have traditionally focused on the business traveler because of the amount of money they make and spend, and the freq uency of their visits to the property. However, many of the luxury brands including the Ritz, have shifted their focus to other segments. Business travelers rarely use all the amenities available to them at the resort, and restrict their visit to a â€Å"professional† exposure.Even with that known, Corporate business during high season is still considerably high. Luxury brands do not discount as much as their lower end neighbors. During low season the hotel can try to attract some large corporation meetings to offset other lost opportunities.Leisure Just as stated above, the leisure segment is picking up popularity each and every year and many luxury properties have concentrated their efforts in attracting these leisure guests, whose main purpose is to utilize wide array of services and products offered, thus generating additional revenue through the alternative revenue sources. (Unlike the business traveler). There are multiple types of subgroups within the leisure segment s uch as transient, and group rates.The transient rates vary depending on the time of year or season. For luxury hotels such as the Ritz Carlton, the rates can skyrocket in season, and fall drastically off-season. Group rates are tailored to meet the needs of different companies, charities, and other organizations with better pricing for bulk deals. Rooms Department – a P&L evaluationThe sample data below was fabricated to reflect similar numbers that is shown their most recently available STR report. The data is an approximation, but will show key patterns in ADR, RevPAR, Occupancy percentage, and revenues.Jan Feb March April ADR $649 $729 1399$ $679 OCC% 80% 88% 95% 85% RevPAR $519.20 $641.52 $1329.05 $577.15 Revenue $5,841,000 $6,735,960 $15,450,021 $6,492,93730 28 31 30May June July August ADR $329 $379 $389 $299 OCC% 60% 52% 55% 41% RevPAR $197.40 $197.08 $213.95 $122.59 Revenue $2,294,750 $2,217,150 $2,487,168 $1,379,13731 30 31 30Sept October Nov Dec ADR $319 $379 $399 $ 529 OCC% 49% 65% 68% 75% RevPAR $156.31 $246.35 $271.32 $396.75 Revenue $1,817,103 $2,863,818 $3,052,350 $4,612,21831 31 30 31CATEGORY YTD AVERAGES ADR $539 OCC% 68% REVPAR $405.72 REVENUE 4,573,634 total = 54,883,612From the data above, we can get a clear picture of how the different times of year affects the hotels key measures. Average Occupancy Levels for this segment have been estimated at 68%, which was estimated from the charts above. Many luxury hotels, including the Ritz Carlton, keep a relatively high occupancy through the year because of brand recognition and popularity. The ADR rates were estimated through the research of other competing properties in the area.The RevPAR was then calculated by multiplying the OCC% by the ADR. The RevPAR indicates how well the Revenue managers did in optimizing the financial performance of the hotel. Luxury hotels such as the Ritz Carlton typically stay away from the â€Å"price war† tactic of attracting business, but on slower mon ths, doing this may actually increase your revenues and all the other key measures. Food and beverageThe DiLido Beach ClubThe only oceanfront restaurant and lounge on South Beach with a relaxed, chic ambiance perfect for people-watching Ocean-table cuisine features a selection of fresh local seafood, small plates, salads, sandwiches and a selection of homemade sangria Home to special events including the Down-home, Beachfront Crab boil or D.B.C and the Far East Summer Nights 1 Hours of Operation:Open seven days a week from 12- 8 p.m.Lobby Bar A chic, relaxed but vibrant gathering spot designed for socializing, sipping cocktails, enjoying light bites and people watching, located in the hotel's upper lobby Live entertainment at this South Beach restaurant Friday and Saturday from 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Signature cocktails by master mixologist Ramsey PimentelBistro One LR Contemporary American bistro infused with Spanish flavors. Specializing in fresh, local seafood and exceptional st eaks. Miami’s leading Sunday Brunch featuring delicious cuisine, unlimited mimosas, champagne, Bloody Mary’s and live entertainment every Sunday from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. 1 Hours of Operation:2 Breakfast: 7 a.m. – 11 a.m./Saturday and Sunday until 11:30 a.m. 3 Lunch: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. 4 5 Dinner: 5 p.m. – 10 p.m.lapidus Lounge Lapidus Lounge, named after the famed architect Morris Lapidus – who designed the hotel when it was built in the 50s, serves specialty cocktails, light bites and sushi inside amongst the sophistication and poolside under the stars.CompetitionAlthough the Ritz Carlton has the name recognition and the luxurious fortitude to be the top dog in its competitive set, the hotel still has a few direct competitors in the south beach area of Miami. These hotels include:1. SLS hotel south beach 2. The W south beach 3. Bentley hotel south beach 4. Z ocean beach hotelThese hotels are direct competitors to the Ritz due to their similar p ricing strategy and their â€Å"suite style† rooms. These hotels do provide something that the Ritz cannot. Customized experiences. These hotels do not have the brand recognition and corporate structure so they can adapt to customer wants and needs on the fly. This is there main advantage in the marketplace. P & L overviewAfter careful review of the P&L statement, we can see that the rooms department generates the most total revenue for the hotel and food and beverage and Clubs and entertainment generate the rest of the revenue. Clubs and entertainment is very revenue driven, but lacks profit margin, so focusing on other areas is key for the Ritz. With the emergence of the Internet and mobile devices, it’s safe to say that telephone reservations are at an all time low, causing that department to bring in relatively low figures.The spa for the hotel is generally provided as a luxury for the guest but is not intended to be a moneymaking department for the hotel. Many tim es that service is deemed complimentary in which the hotel would incur a loss liter for that sale for the room. With fixed and overhead expenses being as high as they are, the key takeaway from this is to maximize the room revenue and profits by providing a luxurious experience through all of the other departments.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Reflective paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Reflective - Research Paper Example The fear over environmental sustainability arises because the global population of about ten billion people must decently feed and shelter without damaging environment, (Goodland, 2002, p. 1). The possibility of sustaining this size of population while keeping the environment intact is lean because the social and economic needs of this population size exceed the carrying capacity of the environment, (Marquart-Pyatt, 2010). More importantly, the economic sector (the corporate) is the chief culprit in derailing environmental sustainability. I believe environmental sustainability directly affects economic sustainability because economic growth derives its inputs from the environment, (Goodland, 2002, p. 2). This relationship has implication on the natural resources that sustains the economic growth. Economic growth is infinite but the ecosystem that supports the economic growth is finite. This means that economy continues to grow in terms of rate of production and consumption of products while the environmental capacity from which raw materials are derived remains constant or reduces with increased extraction. However, part of this limited environmental capacity, the renewable resource, has ability to replenish, (Goodland, 2002, p. 2). Renewable resource partly provides mechanism of adopting environmental sustainability. The other portion, non-renewable resource, lack ability to replenish. Implementing environmental sustainability policy is challenging because only part of the whole environment is able to replenish wher eas the depletion process affects both. In respect to this, I would propose three rules for environmental sustainability. The first is the rule for the output, which stipulates that the quantity of waste emitted from a social or economic activity must be within the assimilative capacity of the local environment without compromising its subsequent absorptive capacity for similar wastes

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Aristotlean Virtue Ethics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Aristotlean Virtue Ethics - Assignment Example Such, having the right quantity, including moral qualities, is to be desired and this can only be acquired through temperance. Temperance in everything should be exercised because this is wise and anything that is deficient and excessive should be avoided for this destroys temperance and the preservation of the mean. To strengthen value in accordance to Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, one has to practice it at all times. In the same manner that nature nurtures the body that is rightfully nourished and trained, virtue is also strengthened by perpetual observation. This virtue or moral disposition is determined on how pain or pleasure influences an individual’s behavior. If a man is susceptible to pleasure, he is licentious. But if he is able to restrain himself and abstains from indulging in physical pleasure naturally without distressing himself, then that said man is virtuous. The ability to restraint oneself from excessive physical pleasure is necessary because it is the temptation of pleasure and its excesses that makes and induces us to behave badly. For us to endure and become virtuous, training is necessary for an individual to feel and experience joy and grief at the right time which is a requirement in the observance of the golden mean. This training has to begin in infancy for us to be educated on becoming virtuous because joy and grief are the basic motivations that dictates our actions. If our sense of joy and grief are misplaced; that is, feeling joy and grief at the wrong time and place, it would inhibit us from becoming virtuous. We would tend to be shunning the wrong pains and we would be seeking the wrong virtues that would lead us to become licentious. Early training would predispose us to act according to the right virtues and would avoid vice as expressed in Nicomachean ethics. This sense of virtue which had been nurtured since infancy would also dictate on how we make choices. The good man, who had been trained since infancy to be feel joy and grief at the right time and place is likely to make right in his choices. In the same vein, the bad man will likely to decide wrong when given a choice especially when it involves pleasures. Pain and pleasure regulate our conduct and the virtuous man is he who effectively regulates his sense of pleasure and pain. And the real virtuous man is he who exercises virtue by choice and not just performs them because it is expedient. Rather, the real virtuous man effectively conducts himself and makes those choices for the sake of doing it amid difficulty and he knows what he is doing. Knowing the choices that one is making that is virtuous is different from an incidental virtuous man who only acts virtuous when it serves a particular purpose or without difficulty. The real virtuous man chooses it from a fix and steady purpose whatever the circumstance or qualification. The doctrine of the golden mean According to Aristotle’s Nicomachean ethics, the acquisition of vi rtue is a result of the right habit which was nurtured by education and choice. This virtue which has been nurtured by early training and conscientious choice can be destroyed either by excesses or deficiency and it is important that the individual should hit the mean condition of virtue to remain virtuous. This â€Å"golden mean† according to Aristotle is an approximation of in-betweens between two extremes that is neither excessive nor deficient. It is to feel fear, confidence, desire, anger, pity and pleasure that is neither too much nor too little because both polarized directions are wrong. What is desired is to have â€Å"feelings at the right times on the right grounds towards the right

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Presenting song as poem Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Presenting song as poem - Essay Example This kind of music usually uses a simple vocabulary, and known words ."Dear mama" opens with a statement that shows there will be not so many sophisticated words: "You are appreciated". So, the message and the theme of the poem are stated very clear and directly. In this case this sentence , according to the style of music is equivalent to all the literary devices used in other poems or songs. Even this thing happens it does not mean this song has less suggestive meaning. The word choice is much more related to the events that influenced the speaker's attitude or feelings about his mother: the problems from school, with the police, Thanksgiving Day. The speaker uses the blacks' dialect or the street language for showing an affiliation to a group. Here his mother is shown as an icon, "black queen", "sweet lady", but she also has a terrestrial side, understanding and helping him. Being a straight song the figurative language is not so much used , but it can still be found some literary devices. At the beginning of the text the speaker makes a simile between his family and other ones: "Over tha years we wuz poorer than tha other little kids", his condition being much poorer.

Friday, July 26, 2019

Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Law - Essay Example These doctrines are specific performance and partial performance. When and how these doctrines were invoked and why they are rarely ordered in construction cases are the major points to consider in this essay. Doctrine of Specific Performance This doctrine of specific performance is a remedy granted by the court in cases where there is breach of duty or contract committed either by the owner or by the contractor. It is an equitable remedy that compels a party to execute a contract according to the precise terms agreed upon or to execute it substantially so that, under the circumstances, justice will be done between the parties ( Hill, 2005). It is the right of the party to a contract to demand that the defendant (the party who it is claimed breached the contract) be ordered in the judgment to perform the contract. Specific performance may be ordered instead of (or in addition to) a judgment for money if the contract can still be performed, and money cannot sufficiently reward the pla intiff (Ibid). The basis for the grant of this remedy is equity. Doctrine of Partial Performance The doctrine of partial performance is an exception to the requirement prescribed by the Statute of Frauds that any agreement to transfer land must be written and executed. Partial Performance of an oral agreement can render it as a binding contract (Gervais et al, 2010). The essence of this doctrine was that if the plaintiff could show that he or she had acted under the contract - had partly performed the contract - then a court of equity would enforce the contract even though a court of law would not. The doctrine of part performance requires that the plaintiff must be able to show that he or she has made a substantial commitment to the contract so that it would be unconscionable to allow the defence. Note that it must be the acts of the plaintiff. The doctrine is based on the idea of unconscionability generated by the plaintiff's reliance on the existence of a contract. It does not ma tter whether the acts of the defendants clearly show that there is a contract (Heffey et al. 1998). Difference between the two doctrines and their application to construction cases The invocation of Specific Performance is based on a written contract or any agreement entered into by the parties. And non-performance of any provision or stipulation in the contract will make the erring party liable for breach of contract and an action for specific performance will be granted as in the case of Kasten Construction Co. v. Maple Ridge Construction Co. There is no blanket prohibition against a court ordering the equitable relief of specific performance in a case involving breach of a construction contract as held in the case of Granite Broadway Dev.  LLC v. 1711 LLC. However, this doctrine of specific performance is rarely a remedy in construction cases. If a contractor fails to perform or renders defective performance, it is unlikely than the owner will want the court to order the same c ontractor to continue the work. Instead, contract damages are the primary remedy in construction cases (Wanek, nd). The doctrine of partial performance on the other hand is invoked based on the intention of the parties strengthened by the fact that it was partially performed. In Elsberry v. Sexton, the Supreme Court of Florida unequivocally held that part performance is an equitable doctrine only and is not available in actions for damages at

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Aid for trade is beneficial for developing countries but Coursework

Aid for trade is beneficial for developing countries but disadvantageous for firms in the developed world - Coursework Example It has also been observed that traditional work has a lot of demand across the globe, and generally such work is carried out in villages of developing countries. Providing aid to such developing countries could enable this work get across borders and provide healthy inflow of cash across borders, thereby helping the trade position of the exporting developing country, alongside providing cash to cash stripped producers often located in villages. While trade is beneficial for developing as well as developed countries alike, developed countries generally have substantial resources and they do not really need aid for trade. Giving them further aid only adds onto their pile of wealth and pressurizes them to perform even when they do not have the ability to do so. Rather than providing aid for trade to developed countries, such nations need to focus on new inventions, which can then be traded across the globe. Finally, aid for trade is unhealthy for developed nations from an economic point of view as well as it causes productive and allocative inefficiencies within their economy, and clearly leads to waste of resources that could be put to use much better

Ethics and Governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Ethics and Governance - Essay Example Historically, interest in business ethics accelerated dramatically during the 1980s and 1990s, both within major corporations and within academia. For example, today most major corporate websites lay emphasis on commitment to promoting non-economic social values under a variety of headings (e.g. ethics codes, social responsibility charters). In some cases, corporations have redefined their core values in the light of business ethical considerations. The emergence of business ethics is similar to other management disciplines. For example, organizations realized that they needed to manage a more positive image to the public and so the recent discipline of public relations was born. Organizations realized they needed to better manage their human resources and so the recent discipline of human resources was born. As commerce became more complicated and dynamic, organizations realized they needed more guidance to ensure their dealings supported the common good and did not harm others so business ethics were born. Now 90% of business schools now provide some form of training in business ethics. Today, ethics in the workplace can be managed through use of codes of ethics, codes of conduct, roles of ethicists and ethics committees, policies and procedures, procedures to resolve ethical dilemmas, ethics training, etc. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is an American public corporation that runs a chain of large, discount department stores. It is the worlds largest public corporation by revenue. It was Founded by Sam Walton in 1962 and it was incorporated on October 31, 1969. It was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1972. It is the largest private employer in the world and the fourth largest utility or commercial employer, trailing the Chinese army, the British National Health Service, and the Indian Railways. Wal-Mart is the largest grocery

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Social Issues Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social Issues - Research Paper Example However that is not the case. On the contrary has been the cause of radical growth in the middle class population in these countries, which in turn has caused a huge income disparity that has succeeded in swelling the ranks of those individuals living below the poverty line. According to many research studies carried out by the United Nations 25% of the world’s population either owns or controls 75% of the total world income while the poorest 75% of the population has access to the remaining 25% of the world’s income. 42% of the world population mainly living in countries like India, China and Brazil, earned less than $1000 dollars a year (â€Å"United Nations†, 2004). . This 42% made up 2.4 billion individuals worldwide, which is almost half the world population and they earned or had access only to a meager 9% of the world’s income (Cornia, 2004). Through the study the author found that some of the key reasons for income disparity in the developing world was the lack of skills and educational opportunities to the poorer segments of society when compared to those opportunities that were available to richer segments. Factors such as politics, corruption, exploitation and simple ignorance were also cited as causes for income inequalities in the developed world. While it can be argued that the globalization and off shoring has indeed helped to spur growth in these economies and create the â€Å"middle class†, it is still vital to remember that the income earned from such ventures by the bulk of the individuals working in these offshore plants is minimal in comparison to the salaries earned by their counterparts in the developed countries (Ming, 2001). If we take for instance a company like Marks and Spencer Clothes Manufacturing or Clothes suppliers to Walmart and George (ASDA’s name brand), the individuals working in the factories in China that produce these products amount

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

New Service Ideas ( based upon changing Consumers and Markets) Article

New Service Ideas ( based upon changing Consumers and Markets) - Article Example Try to find articles that have a focus on consumers or consumer groups and how they are changing. DON’T pick articles on new products or services- pick a broader consumer or environmental trend- make sure it is a major, not a minor trend- and that it is in the U.S. (we are not focusing on other countries for this assignment- it may be a Global trend- that’s OK, but must be ‘trending’ in the US too.) 2) Then answer the question "HOW are these trends important to marketers of services?" How will they Impact some services? (1/2 page). Focus on SERVICES, not products- and how this trend will impact Services in General- what unique elements of services will be impacted by this trend (like restaurants, or bars, or airlines, or hotels†¦etc) 3) Finally, take a stab at developing TWO NEW (2) Services or Service Extensions (Wal-Mart having child-care; Target decorating college dorm rooms) that would capitalize and be successful because of this trend. Cool examples in past of new services: â€Å"Elder Universities† (for seniors); Airlines for adults only (no babies/ children); Nightclubs for older women (cougars); Cruise Lines for Disabled People; Spa for Asian Americans; Evangelical Christian Dating or Cruise Line, Vacations where you can take your dog†¦.etc. (1/2 to 2/3 page for EACH service idea). Turn in a copy of the two articles with your 2-2.5 page write-up (hint- good magazines/journals to look in are American Demographics, Advertising Age, Business Week/Forbes/ Fortune, and Wall Street Journal. One of the major social trends that is developing in America is assimilation of immigrants and young generation adapting to cultures from different cultures. For instance, more kids of young generation are exploring new avenues of socializing and even dating. More than ever, groups of different nationalities and religions are intermixing, which is

Monday, July 22, 2019

Ethical Dilema Essay Example for Free

Ethical Dilema Essay In this paper, I will discuss the ethical dilemma faced by a nurse who is caring for an eight month old patient, who reports with his mother to the emergency room with a suspicious fracture. The mother provides a plausible story, and the physician knows the family and does not suspect abuse. I will discuss the action I would take in order to provide the appropriate care for this patient. As a registered professional nurse, I feel the only approach to the case is to report the injury to Department of Family and Child’s Services (DFACS) for their investigation. When a report is made, DFACS will complete an investigation and make the ultimate decision if abuse or neglect was the cause of the injury. Each nurse has a duty to report all suspicious injuries to DFACS, regardless of her feelings on abuse or neglect. This is true even when the physician knows the family or does not suspect abuse. The nurse is responsible for her own actions. In order to provide the best quality of care for this patient, I would take the statement from the parent about how the patient was injured, and then talk to the physician to gather the physical finding, which may include x-ray reports after this information is gathered, I would report the case to the local DFACS. Anytime there is a suspicious injury regardless of the plausibility of the story, or if the physician knows the patient and does not suspect the parent, the DFACS case must be reported. The nurse in this situation has a duty to report this injury and let child services decide if the patient is in danger. I would perform a complete examination of the patient and communicate with the physician, in addition to noting any other signs of abuse, along with paying close attention for indicators of abuse. Indicators of abuse can warn healthcare providers to pay closer attention to situations that may indicate abuse or neglect and someti mes there are not indicators even though the child may be abused (Henderson, 2013). Three indicators of abuse or maltreatment include physical, child behavioral and parent behavioral indicators (Henderson, 2013). These indicators should not be considered in isolation but should be considered along with the child’s condition in the context with overall physical appearance and behavior; however, it is conceivable that a single indicator may be consistent with abuse or neglect (Henderson, 2013). Considerations of abuse are raised by injuries to both sides of the body and/or to soft tissues, injuries with a specific pattern or injuries that do not fit the explanation, delays in  presentation for care, and/or untreated injuries in multiple stages of healing (Henderson, 2013). It would be helpful to check the patient’s record for previous unexplained injuries or history of frequent visits to the emergency room or physician’s office. Any burns or patterns of bruising during the examination would warrant further investigation. Other signs of physical abuse I would monitor for include signs of pain where there is not visible injury and lack of reaction to pain. I would also note any emotional signs of physical abuse, which include passive, withdrawn or emotionless behavior, and fear when seeing parents. Any symptoms noted on exam should include this in the report to DFACS. Since the physical signs of abuse are often visible, most cases of abuse are recognized by a healthcare provider (Padera, 2009). These signs may be noted at routine appointments or while providing acute care. The ethical principle of non-maleficence and beneficence are addressed with this case. The ethical principle of non-maleficence helps to ensure that healthcare providers do not harm to their patients. If I did not report this case to DFACS for investigation and the abuse continued causing any harm to the patient, this would be an ethical violation of non-maleficence on the part of the nurse. The ethical principle of beneficence ensures that health care provider’s actions benefit the patient. By choosing to report this case to DFACS, my actions would benefit the patient and help ensure that the patient was no longer being abused. As a nurse, if I did not report this to DFACS for investigation, I would be in violation of the nurse practice act, and I could be held liable if the patient suffer more injuries or death at the hand of an abuser. My report of child abuse or neglect is confidential and immune from civil or criminal liability as long as the report is made in good faith and without malice (https://www.oag.state.tx.us/victims/childabuse.shtml). Provided these two conditions are met, as a nurse, I am immune from liability if they are asked to participate in any judicial proceedings resulting from the report (https://www.oag.state.tx.us/victims/childabuse.shtml). In conclusion, mandatory reporting can produce unanticipated and unwanted consequences (Buppert Klein, 2008). Nurses may be concerned about reporting suspected abuse especially, when the investigation is completed, no abuse or risk to the patient is found (Buppert Klein, 2008). Boards of Nursing rarely  discipline nurses for failure to report and nurses are covered with their nurse practice act when they make reports in â€Å"good† faith (Buppert Klein, 2008). Given this information there is no reason not to report this mother to DFACS for investigation. References: Buppert, C. Klein, T. (2008). Dilemmas in Mandatory Reporting for Nurses. Medscape. P. 4- 16. Henderson, K. L. (2013). Mandated reporting of child abuse: Considerations and guidelines for mental health counselors. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 35(4), 296-309. Padera, Connie. (2009). Nursing, Child Abuse, and the Law. 7(37). P. 122-126. When you suspect child abuse or neglect: A general guide. Retrieved from https://www.oag. state.tx.us/victims/childabuse.shtml

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Effect of the Recession on Sustainable Development

Effect of the Recession on Sustainable Development Sustainability has been on the lips of everyone involved in the construction industry for the last 10 years. However, the issue of Sustainability arouse first in a Report named Our Common Future. This then prompted the need for the conference in Brazil (1992). Discussed in this conference were the core principles of sustainability being; Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generation to meet their own needs Greene, D. (1997) Both Sustainability and the Recession are both terms in which have a range of meanings and attitudes. As the issue of Sustainability is being used more and more in the construction industry is recent years it is imperative to try and pin point exactly what sustainable commercial construction is. It is also paramount to determine just exactly what the recession is and show just how they have affected each other. In recent years, we have had two previous recessions, one being in the 1980s and the second one being in the early 1990s. This is the third recession that the country has been in, in as many decades. In June 2008, the country officially entered the third recession, of which we are still in today, Sustainability has become more of a problem in recent years due to the major issue of the recession. Sustainability needs to be addressed and identified and it is important that it is done within one of the largest industries, if not the biggest, being the construction industry. In my research I will hopefully try to clarify the terms, sustainable commercial construction and the recession and show how each one has affected the other. Keywords Sustainable Commercial Construction; Recession; Introduction One of the main priorities for the construction industry and any construction company are to produce Sustainable Commercial Buildings. As everyone knows, the country has been hit by a recession with the construction industry being hit the hardest. It is important to define exactly what Sustainable Construction in commercial buildings is and exactly what the recession is and see just how the recession has affected Sustainable Commercial Construction 1.2 Aim In this dissertation I aim to investigate exactly what the recession is, exactly what sustainable development is and I aim to show the audience just how each one has affected each other 1.3 Project Objectives To define the recession To define sustainable construction To determine just how the recession and sustainable construction have been affected by each other. What barriers or influences encourage or deter companies to build Sustainable Commercial Buildings. 1.4 Proposed Structure 1.4.1 Background First of all the research will define both the recession and will also define sustainable construction and go on to look at how they have been affected by one another. The research should then go on and look at what barriers or influences encourage or deter companies to build Sustainable Buildings. 1.4.2 Collection of Results The collection of results will be accomplished using professionals who are currently working in and around the construction industry. Results will be collected with information regarding their views on whether Sustainable Construction has been affected by the Recession and other information regarding Sustainable Construction. 1.4.3 Analysis The results collected from my interviews will then be analysed so that an outcome can be gained to answer the investigation objectives pointed out earlier. They will also be analysed to show a comparison with past research relating Sustainable Construction and the Recession. 1.4.4 Final Analysis The final analysis is the last part of the research, like a conclusion it will assess the data to check and make sure that all aspects of the investigation have been covered. The investigation will then be checked to make sure it cannot be improved and revisited. Sustainable Commercial Construction and the Recession Scope of the Chapter This section of the dissertation will determine the definition of Sustainable Commercial Construction and will also try and determine just exactly what a recession is. 2.2 The Recession In June 2008 the United Kingdom officially entered the recession that we are still in today. The main area that has been affected in this country and many other countries is construction, which has been hit massively. Companies and businesses right across the board are being affected from big names such as Balfour Beatty, the Kier Group down to small independent companies. Any sort of work is few and far between nowadays with every company accepting any sort of work no matter how small or big it is. I feel that this topic as it will show you past the commercial side of the recession. Everybody knows that the country is in the recession, but not that many people know exactly what a recession is and what damage it can cause to the economy and the country. It has a massive knock on affect right the way down the board and I believe that if we are going to get out of the recession quickly and efficiently people need to know how to adapt and work with it. The recession is not very well understood for one simple factor: There is not a universally agreed upon definition. There is a standard newspaper definition of a recession is a decline in the gross domestic product (GDP) for two or more consecutive quarters. There are 4 quarters to the year and each one lasts for approximately 12 weeks. This definition is not popular with most economists for two main reasons. Firstly, this definition does not take into account changes in other variables such as unemployment rate or consumer confidence. Secondly, by using quarterly data this definition makes it difficult to pinpoint when a recession starts to when it ends. The second definition is from the Business Cycle Dating Committee (BCDC). The committee provides a better way to find out whether or not there has been a definition as they determine the amount of business activity in the economy by looking at, employment, industrial production, real income and whole-sail retail sites. The past 20 years has been a growing realisation that the current model of development is unsustainable and basically, we are living beyond our means. Before anyone knew anything about this current recession, one part of construction that was on the rise was sustainable development. It is rumoured that one of the key factors in which the recession was brought on is that companies were being too selfish in that they were thinking about the short term rather than the long term. Some unsustainable business practices were concerned about profiteering and not focused enough on balancing profit with social and environmental targets. With the current economic crises being the way it is, companies are rarely willing to spend money on anything but essentials to their business. The credit crunch has virtually halted all new development and with falling land prices, affordability has become more important than ever, thereby highlighting development costs and the increased expense of complying with sustainable standards. Ultimately crucial issues related to sustainable development such as healthcare, education, affordable access to food, water, energy and responsible harvesting of natural resources are being affected as the crisis deepens. The increasing stress we put on resources and environmental systems such as water, land and air cannot go on forever. The need for Sustainable Commercial Development is too great to be ignored. Even in this recession and the state that the economy is in it is absolutely paramount that we as a country, continent and as a human race continue to develop sustainably. Instead of businesses thinking of their short term future, they now need to be thinking about their long term future. Instead of reeling in the cash straight away, we need to hold out and wait for the return from sustainable buildings and development all round. The sooner people and companies realize this, then the sooner the construction industry will have left the recession and will be planning for the future and sustainable development wont be a thing upon which businesses sigh about doing, it will become the first thing they think of. 3.0 Sustainable Buildings Sustainability in building was completely unknown up until around the late 1970s. The idea only came about in reply to the energy crisis and people concerned about the environment. There are not many people in this country or the world in fact who will not have heard the word sustainability but the vast majority of them will not understand what it means. According to Holmberg and Sandbrook (1992) there now appears to be 70 definitions in circulation. However, out of these 70 or so definitions that are circulating there is no definite, set definition of sustainable building but according to Kirby et al (1995) the definition which is commonly deemed as the most accurate or the official one is the Brundtland definition (WCED 1987) development that meets the needs of the present without comprising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Although, Brundtland did make this definition, it is an adaption of a previous definition made by Lester Brown. Lester Brown however defined a sustainable society, rather than sustainable development. He defined a sustainable society as one that is able to satisfy its needs without diminishing the chance of future generations. (Charles J Kilbert 2008) It is easy to see the comparisons between the two definitions made firstly by Lester Brown and secondly, the Brundtland definition. Although the Brundtland definition is the most common and widely used, it doesnt define sustainable construction, only sustainable development. According to Dickie and Howard (2000) they describe sustainable construction as the contribution of construction to sustainable development. This definition from Dickie an Howard (2000) is very simple, but explains a lot, anyone would be able to understand it. ORiorden (1985) commented on the difficulty of describing sustainability, describing its definition as Exploration into a tangled conceptual jungle where watchful eyes lurk at every bend. This description of how hard and elusive it is to describe correctly what sustainability just shows you how vague and confusing defining sustainability can become. sustainability is like plumbing or air conditioning its a general attitude you apply to a building. It doesnt create its own architecture but it informs the way architecture is produced Slavid, Ruth (1998) uses this definition and its obvious that there are not only different definitions but also different meanings to the definitions. According to Addis, B and Talbot, R (2001) Sustainable development is about achieving economic and social objectives while minimising adverse environmental impacts This definition comes from the e-journal; Sustainable construction procurement: a guide to delivering environmentally responsible projects by Addis, B and Talbot, R (2001). As you can see all the definitions on this page and the previous page all define sustainable construction, development or sustainability on the whole, and they are all pretty much nothing like each other. Although there have been many definitions of sustainability for example that from the World Congress of Architects (1993) Sustainability means meeting our needs today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs Even though all the definitions above are different you can see a definite trend between them. I believe they are all loosely based on that from the Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future. This report is commonly known as The Brundtland Report. Some people may believe that having no definition for sustainable development could be an issue because how are people meant to implement and deliver sustainable development and in this case sustainable construction if an official definition has not been agreed. 3.1 Case Study To help what is understand what is involved in Sustainable Commercial Construction, a case study will be used. Whitecross High School, Hereford, England Owner: Herefordshire County Council Address: Three Elms Road, Herford, Herefordshire Architect: Haverstock Associates Building Services Consultant: Couch Perry Wilkes Contractor: Stepnell LTD Figure 1 Image of Whitecross High School, Hereford, England Whitecross High School in Hereford was primarily designed where energy / sustainability was high priority for the client. The gross internal floor area of the school is 9160m2 and was built for approximately 900 students. The brief for the project contained stringent sustainability requirements, and this became the key driver for the design process. Sustainable features of Whitecross High School: High mass and thermal insulation levels with low air permeability rates Excellent air quality and summertime temperature control Heat recovery ventilation 90% efficient Very Low annual energy consumption Sustainable solutions provided within PFI cost framework Natural materials used throughout construction Hazardous materials excluded from the building specification Following the case study, we can see at the Whitecross High School that not only is there sustainable energy solutions in this sustainable building but there have been solutions designed in the buildings. For example the excellent air quality and summertime temperature control system means that other expensive and unreliable systems would not be needed, saving time and money on the sustainable building. You can tell by the number of definitions and the lack of agreement of an official definition about the subject of sustainability and sustainable construction is confusing and complex. The main disagreement is apparent around how to implement sustainable construction what systems actually make a sustainable building, sustainable. 4.0 Research Approach 4.1 Scope of the Chapter This chapter of my dissertation will outline the research methods used to complete my dissertation. It will compare the two different types of research and will also show why I have chosen my specific method. 4.2 Qualitative and Quantitative Research When researching for any type of information there are different methods that can be used. There are two principal strands of data collection methodologies and strategies which are distinctly different. (Bryman 2004) Quantitative research involves the use of structured questions where the answer are predetermined, this research is done over a large number of respondents and is statistically valid while qualitative research is about collecting and analysing data interpreting what people say or do for instance a questionnaire. The very nature of the dissertation, the different types of information needed in order to achieve the objectives and the resources that are actually available like time implications for instance affects what types of research methods will be used. To gain a wider perspective about sustainable development and about the current recession period, it is always a good idea to do some research within the public, using both primary and secondary research. There are many different types of research that you could do, some of which are quantitative and qualitative approaches. Usually research methods and styles are not mutually exclusive although only one, or a small number of approaches, will normally be adopted due to resource constraints on the work. The different approaches focus on collection and analysis of data rather than examination of theory and literature. Quantitative approaches normally seek to gather factual data, studying relationships between facts and how such facts and relationships accord with theories and the findings and of research carried out previously. Qualitative approaches seek to gain and understand peoples perceptions, both as individuals and as groups. This research looks at peoples beliefs, understandings, opinions and views etc are investigated. The data is detailed and rich in content because the data gathered may be unstructed, but will be in their raw form. If you do use this method of research you would have to be willing to be highly laborious, involving transcripting interviews etc. The researchers are likely to be closely involved in all stages of the work in a more active way than usually is acceptable in quantitative studies. Features of Qualitative research Features of Quantitative research Difference in respect to: Quantitative Research Qualitative Research The aim is a complete, detailed description. The aim is to classify features, count them, and construct statistical models in an attempt to explain what is observed. Underpinning philosophy Rationalism: That human beings achieve knowledge because of their capacity to reason (Bernard, 1994) Empiricism; the only knowledge that human beings acquire is from sensory experiences (Bernard, 1994) Researcher may only know roughly in advance what he/she is looking for Researcher knows clearly in advance what he/she is looking for. Approach to inquiry Structured/ rigid/ predetermined methodology Unstructured/ flexible/ open methodology Recommended during earlier phases of research projects Recommended during latter phases of research projects Main Purpose of investigation To quantify extent or variation in phenomenon, situation, issues etc. To describe variation in a phenomenon, situation, issue etc. The design emerges as the study unfolds All aspects of the study are carefully designed before data is collected Measurement of variables Emphasis on some form of either measurement or classification of variable. Emphasis on description of variables Researcher is the data gathering instrument Researcher uses tools, such as questionnaires or equipment to collect numerical data Sample Size Emphasis on greater sample size Fewer cases Data is in the form of words, pictures or objects Data is in the form of numbers and statistics. Focus of inquiry Narrows focus in terms of extent of inquiry, but assembles required information from a greater number of respondents Covers multiple issues but assembles required information from fewer respondents Subjective individuals interpretation of events is important ,e.g., uses participant observation, in-depth interviews etc. Objective seeks precise measurement analysis of target concepts, e.g., uses surveys, questionnaires etc Dominant research value Reliability and objectivity (value-free) Authenticity but does not claim to be value- free Qualitative data is more rich, time consuming, and less able to be generalized.ÂÂ   Quantitative data is more efficient, able to test hypotheses, but may miss contextual detail. Dominant research topic Explains prevalence, incidence, extent, nature of issues, opinions and attitude; discovers regularities and formulates theories Explores experiences, meanings, perceptions and feelings Researcher tends to become subjectively immersed in the subject matter. Researcher tends to remain objectively separated from the subject matter. Analysis of data Subjects variables to frequency distributions, cross-tabulations or other statistical procedures Subjects responses, narratives or observation data to identification of themes and describes these Communication of findings Organisation more analytical in nature, drawing references and conclusions, and testing magnitude and strength of relationship Organisational more descriptive and narrative in nature Figure 2 Table adapted from www.wilderdom.com and Kumar (2005) The features of qualitative and quantitative research methods along with the differences in the two methods can be seen in Figure which has been adapted from www.wilderdom.com and Kumar (2005) The table shows the two different research methods that can be used and their advantages and disadvantages. It shoes the features of both Qualitative Research and Quantitative Research. 4.3 Research Design There are several different ways that the research for this project could be undertaken and when looking at the most suitable method. There are three major factors that are the most significant amongst the others that need to be taken into account. They are; Reliability Replication Validity These three factors that have been identified are all issues that could affect the consistency, therefore the reliability of the data for my dissertation 4.4 Approaches to date collection 4.4.1 Interviews Interviews have been described by Kumar (2005) as being person to person interaction with specific purposes. There are two main types of interviews and these can be seen in figure below taken from Kumar (2005, page. 123) Interview Styles Unstructured Structured Flexible interview structure Rigid interview structure Flexible interview contents Rigidy interview, rigid interview contents Flexible interview questions Questions and their wording Figure 3 Diagram showing the two possible interview techniques The advantages and disadvantages of interviews have been identified in the table below. Advantages of Interview Disadvantages of Interview ÂÂ   More appropriate for complex situations Can be expensive and time consuming Interviewing has a wider application Interviewee could be bias Questions can be explained Quality of information may deteriorate Good for in depth information Quality of interviewee may be poor Face to face interaction Quality of data could differ on interaction Figure 4 Advantages and disadvantages of the interview 4.5 Research Proposal Because of my dissertation, and what it is involving, it was not feasible for me to produce any quantitative data as the majority of the general public will have very limited or no information whatsoever about my chosen subject. Therefore my research method was a set of self designed research questions used to gather honest and first hand information, about the effects the recession is having on commercial sustainable construction. The purpose of this interview based approach was to abstract through questions the information needed to answer the research question. Tesch, (1990) defines qualitative research as Intensive study of one individual or a group as an entitiy, through observation, self-reports and any other means. In this case the individual was interviewed alone, yet was also grouped together in order to distinguish any inter related experiences. 4.6 Sampling It is clear that to get the best information possible, a wide range of professionals needs to be used. I therefore opted to use professionals from different backgrounds to interview. The professions in which I used are; Building Surveyor Life Cycle Director Commercial Sector Director Senior Design Manager The reason for selection of the professionals is that hopefully I can gain an insight into the different views on the set of self designed questions that have been prepared for them. I was careful in choosing the professionals in which I did. I wanted to gain the best information possible to obtain the best results for my dissertation. I decided on choosing professionals who are well established in their different fields and have a wide vocabulary of knowledge, and in some cases, have plenty of experience. 4.7 Interview Design I decided in order to gain the best and most accurate information it would be best to have a structure interview. Therefore I would take a set of pre determined questions into the interview and asked to the professionals. The advantages of such a structured interview would be that each and every one of the professionals would be asked the same questions then a better analysis could be gained as their responses are all to the same questions 4.8 Summary The above chapter covers the whole process of collecting data and the means for it to be compiled. 5.0 Data Collection Activities 5.1 Scope of the Chapter This chapter in hand looks at the activities that took place in order for me to successfully collect the data. The data collection activity covers what was completed to collect the resulting information and the processes that have taken place. The following chapter should show the results collected, which be analysed according to the objectives. 5.2 Data Collection The only source of data collection was conducted using structures interviews. The interviews were recording on different days, but in the same week as I deemed it important as it would give me the most accurate information. The professionals all gave a good sample of answers to the questions given to them. The interviewees were of a high professional level and of high standard. 5.3 Interview Results I considered it was important to correctly select the amount of the actual questions I would be asking. This was for the simple reason that it would give me the best and most accurate answers about sustainable commercial buildings, the recession and whether or not they have had an effect on each other. Independant Variables I deemed it necessary to find out the age of the interviewees, the years of experience they have in the necessary feild and more importantly what their profession was. Age of the interviewee Figure 5 shows the age of the participants Amount of experience in current profession Figure 6 shows the amount of experience each interviewee has What profession the participants are in Figure 7 shows the profession of the interviewees 6.0 Data analysis 6.1 Scope of the chapter In this chapter I will critically analyse the results that were compiled from the interviews that were undertaken. The results will assess the impact that the interviews have had upon the research completed, and will compare or contrast findings. The way in which I will be analysing the interviews is by looking at each question, explaining each of the results and from there, I will be analysing them. Question 01 Analysis Do you utilise in-house staff rather than specialist consultants? Results You can see from the transcripts that the interviewees have answered the question, with different opinions. Interviewee 1 and Interviewee 3 both say that they use both in-house and specialist consultants. Interviewee 3 then goes on to say that the main reason they are using in-house staff rather than specialist consultants is that they are much much cheaper. Interviewee 2 and Interviewee number 5 both have the same sort of answer. They both said that they try to use specialist consultants rather than in-house staff in their companies. Interviewee number 2 explained it was because contractors are seeing the need for specialist advice that can help them differentiate in a competitive market; to have an edge and make sure they win the tender. Interviewee number 4 however, said that in his company they try to utilise the in-house staff as much as possible but because the company in which he is employed by is fairly small company compared to the Balfour Beattys, Carillions and other such companies.. Analysis From this question, I have a mixed bag of answers to whether companies use in-house staff or specialist consultants. Because of the varied answers, I believe that some companies are doing better in the recession than other companies and still can afford the specialist consultants. I also believe from the answers that some people believe it is more important to gain the specialist knowledge than it is to use in house staff as they believe using in-house staff hinders your chances of winning a contract when tendering for it so having the best knowledge possible is key. Questions 02: Analysis Has the amount of contractors being tendered to changed since the recessional period started? Results I can see from the transcripts there is a popular answer to this question. Interviewee numbers 3, 4 and 5 all agree that there has been some change in the amount of contractors being tendered too. Interviewee 1 the Senior Design Manager is alone when saying that there has been no change. He explains because Balfour Beatty is a big big company they have a local supply chain in every major area. He explains that at Balfour Beatty they use contractors that they have had previous relationships with because you get better quality out of them. Interviewee number 2 is also alone with his answer. He states Tender lists are long, but I am not too sure at the moment if this is better or worse than before.. At the moment, he is unsure as to whether having long tender lists is better or worse than before. He then goes on to state a main problem with long tender lists is that contractors dont want to spend money on sustainability advice if they only have a low win probability. Analysis There is a common answer among the professionals about the amount of contractors being tendered too. The two Building Surveyors and the Life Cycle Director all believed that there has been some change since the recession started. This tells me that the building surveyors definitely believe that there has been a significant change in the amount of contractors being tendered too. The Senior Design Manager (Interviewee 1), whom I believe is the professional with the most experience, is completely alone with his answer. This in my opinion is because he works at one of the largest construction companies in Europe. Although the recession would still have had an effect on Balfour Beatty, I believe they would not nearly be as affected by is as some of the smaller companies in the industry. The Commercial Sector Director (Interviewee 2) doesnt really give a definitive answer to the question; he just states that the tender lists are long. Question 03: What financial arrangements have been put in place depending on sustainability? Results When asking this question you can see from the transcripts that there was a very popular occurrence of and around the term BREEAM Excellent Interviewee numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4 all mentioned the word BREEAM. Interviewee 1 said I think if affected by the recession but its actually probably a very positive time for us he also went on to say if you look at commercial projects whoever is building a commercial project has got to think about their tenant and tenants often look for; is it a sustainable building? So it is actually a marketing tool that we are using now you know to give us an advantage against our opponents so sustainability rath

Limitations Of Biometrics

Limitations Of Biometrics This paper focuses on the limitations of biometrics and demonstrates how the theory of cancellable biometrics can mitigate such limitations. Cancellable biometrics gives biometric systems, theoretically, the ability to re-issue biometric signals. Thus, if a biometric database is ever compromised, the biometric image can be re-set. Our team believes that cancellable biometrics should be a best practice when utilizing biometric technologies. This paper begins with a background of biometric technologies, the global biometric market, and general limitations of biometrics. The main body focuses on the background, concepts, and function of cancellable biometrics offered as a solution for some of the limitations addressed. Finally, an analysis of cancellable biometrics advantages and disadvantages concludes our paper. What is Biometrics? To define biometrics, you can look at the Greek translation. Bios translates to life and metric translates to measurement. This leads to a direct translation of biometrics to life measurement. (Biometric Definition-What, 2005) Biometrics is a technique for identification of people that uses body characteristics or behavioral traits and is increasingly being used instead of or in conjunction with other forms of identification based on something you have (e.g. ID card) or something you know (e.g. password or PIN). (8.5 Biometrics) The direct Greek translation of life measurement is fitting because biometrics looks to measure physical or behavioral traits of a human for identification purposes. There are two types of biometrics: behavioral and physical. Behavioral biometrics measures the characteristics that an individual naturally acquires over the span of their lifetime. Examples of this technology include speaker recognition, signature verification, and keystroke verification. Physical biometrics measures the physical characteristics and body measurements of an individual. Examples of this technology include facial recognition, iris and retinal scan fingerprinting, and DNA typing (Biometric Definition-What, 2005). There are also two modes that biometrics can operate in: verification and identification. Verification is used to validate a person against who they claim or present themselves to be. It is a one to one match between the acquired template of the individual and a stored template for matching. This mode relies on individuals entering their biometric information into the system prior to trying to gain access to it (8.5 Biometrics). Identification is the process of trying to figure out who an individual is. This involves a comparison of the individual to a list of templates stored in the database. (Yun, 2003) Physical biometrics can be used for either verification or identification while behavioral biometrics is typically only used for verification purposes. (Biometric Definition-What, 2005) The History of Biometrics Biometrics seems to be a modern day technology, but its concept was actually applied as far back as the fourteenth century. Chinese merchants used fingerprinting during the fourteenth century to identify children (Osborn, 2005). In 1890, Alphonse Bertillon developed a form of biometrics known as anthropometrics. Anthropometrics is a method of identifying individuals based on precise measurements of their body and physical descriptions. This method fell out of use when it was discovered that multiple individuals could share the same body measurements. (Biometrics History, 2006) Early in the 20th century, an applied mathematician named Karl Pearson used statistical history and correlation to biometrics research. Signature biometric authentication was developed during the 1960s and 1970s, marking a huge breakthrough in behavioral biometrics. (Osborn, 2005) Also during this time, the FBI pushed for automating their fingerprint recognition process. This automation was the start of modern day biometrics, a combination of the biometrics process with information technology. During the 2001 Superbowl in Tampa, Florida, face recognition software was installed at the stadium to identify known criminals. (Biometrics History, 2006) Post 9/11 terrorist attacks, there was a huge push by the U.S. government to implement biometrics on a large scale. The government began installing facial recognition hardware and software in airports to identify suspected terrorists. (Osborn, 2005) Generic Biometric System While there are many biometric technologies in use today, and many more being invested in and researched on, they all share a similar process flow (Yun, 2003). The following image is a basic block diagram of a biometric system: Source: (Yun, 2003) The process always starts with some type of sensor device. This is what captures the biometric information. The capture information is then sent through a processing phase. Here the information is cleaned up, noise is removed, and the important data is enhanced. The processed data is then put together to form a template. A template is what represents the biometric data within the system. If its the first time the individual is using the system, the template is stored within the system. Otherwise, the generated template is compared against an already stored template during the matching process. If the biometric technology is operating in a verification mode, the generated template is matched against a specific stored template. If the technology is operating in an identification mode, the generated template is matched against a list of stored templates. If the matching process yields a positive match, then the individual is granted access to the application device. (Yun, 2003) Current Global Biometric Market It is important to consider the prevalence of biometrics. Although it may seem futuristic, biometrics is being used in countries all over the world. According to Prabhakar, Pankanti, and Jain, biometric applications fall into three main categories: commercial, government, and forensic. The commercial category includes applications used in e-commerce, banking, and social networking sites. Governments use biometrics for drivers licenses, immigration control, and e-passports. Forensic applications include devices used in criminal investigation and prisoner identity control. (Prabhakar, Pankanti, Jain, 2003) According to BCC research, the global biometric revenue increased from $1.950 billion in 2006 to $2.7 billion in 2007. The compound annual growth rate from 2007 to 2012 was expected to be 21.3% (The Global Biometrics Market, 2007). As you can see from the figure below, the biometric technology being used ranges from fingerprint scanners, leading the market, to hand geometry scanners. The market statistics above were derived in 2007. As a means for comparison, our group thought it best to obtain market research from at least one more source. According to a more recent article, issued by homeland security newswire on January 18, 2011, the market is expected to grow at 18.9% per year until 2015, bringing estimated global revenue from biometrics up to $12 billion in 2015. Fingerprint technologies will still dominate the market, with face, iris, vein, voice recognition following (Biometrics market expected, 2011). BCC assumed a 21.3% annual growth rate, which would have made 2011 expected revenue around $5.8 billion, the actual 2011 global biometric market revenues totaled $5 billion (Biometrics market expected, 2011). The main point is that the global biometrics market has been growing as expected and is expected to grow. Biometric technology offers significant advantages, but there are some limitations that need to be addressed as the biometric market continues to grow. For example, although the US has been the leader of the biometric market, scanning of iris or fingerprints to use ATM machines has not been implemented due to privacy and expense concerns. (Biometric ATMs not, 2005) One of the major limitations is the issue of privacy. The issue of privacy and other limitations, if not resolved, may continue to prevent the biometric market growth as seen by Americans lack of biometric ATM machines. The following section will discuss limitations of generic biometric systems Limitations of Biometrics An obvious issue with biometrics is costs. The table below was derived from the product offerings of a leading biometrics supplier, digitalPersona, Inc., using the framework from their whitepaper on best practices. This chart includes all aspects of a typical authentication system. As you can see the cost of biometric technology hardware and software is expensive in itself and costs for training, design, maintenance, and security will also be incurred. Category Details Cost Time Training Users, administrators $100-$1,500 per user 1 hour 5 days Design Ensure compatibility with other systems $1,000-$4,000 1 day 10 days Installation Hardware and software purchases/configure $3,000-$50,000 10 days 30 days User enrollment Acquisition of biometrics $50-$175 per user .75 hr Maintenance Add/modify users $25-$200 per instance 0.5 hr Security Extra safeguards within system to ensure privacy $500-$20,000 1 day 10 days Source: (Best Practices, 2009) Another area of concern with biometrics is the fact that once a biometric image has been leaked or obtained by an unauthorized source, that image is no longer secure for use with any application (Teoh, Kuan, Lee, 2008). Authentication tools, such as passwords, keys, and identification cards have always been easily cancellable and renewable, but biometrics have been a concern because users only have, in general, one face, two eyes, one set of fingerprints, etc. (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). Although it is difficult to do, determined data thieves can extract biometric images and put them to improper use, rendering stolen images useless in terms of security. The figure below demonstrates eight vulnerabilities of ordinary biometric systems. Source: (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). Figure www.fidis.netOnce original biometric data is obtained, reproduction can easily be achieved. Attacks around the sensor may include inputting fake or copied biometric signal (point 1) or using a copy of a genuine biometric, tape with fingerprint, to bypass the sensor (point 2) (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). The other parts of the system, feature extraction method (points 3 and 4), the matching device and decision (points 4 and 8), the database that holds the biometric images (point 6), and the communication channel between database and matcher (point 7), are much harder to attack, but if successfully breached will result in the theft or alteration of biometric templates which cannot be replaced (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). The biggest disadvantage of biometrics is that biometric data cannot be changed or reset. For example, if a password is stolen, a new password can be created. However, if a biometric characteristic is stolen from a database, a new biometric characteristic cannot be issued. Thus, if a biometric database is compromised, that biometric used for authentication purposes cannot be used again. Finally, there is a huge privacy concern, as seen with the USs delay of implementing ATMs with biometric systems. The uniqueness of biometric data raises this concern. There is already an enormous amount of data being collected by social networking sites, employers, the government, retail stores, medical centers, etc., Each entity may identify someone with data that can either be changed or is not solely unique to them, such as an email address or a name (Joe Smith). Thus, if the government wanted information from a retail store about a particular person, they may not be able to determine, from the retailers database, whether it is Joe Smith from California or Joe Smith from Arkansas. Currently to make data sharing possible, data would have to be paired with more data in order to identify the right person and then share information about that person between entities. This idea of data sharing among entities produces a fear in some people with regards to the use of biometrics because biometric data is completely unique to a person. If all these entities have biometric data, data unique to just one individual, all the entities could share data in their databases (cross-matching). For example, data collected by private company can be matched with the governments data. (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001) One solution to this privacy concern is cancellable biometrics (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). Cancellable biometrics allows authentication biometric signals to be re-set if a database is every compromised. Basically, cancellable biometrics distorts a biometric signal based on a certain transform during enrollment, and continues to distort it the same way for every presentation and authentication thereafter (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). If biometric data is ever stolen, a new transform is used and re-enrollment is allowed (Gaddam, Lal, 2010). The following sections further explain cancellable biometrics and how it can mitigate the risks of biometric systems vulnerabilities. History of Cancellable Biometrics The study and research around cancellable biometrics is relatively new with most research beginning around the turn of the 21st century. Although many have contributed to the field, several publications, including the Encyclopedia of Biometrics (2009) and The Journal of the Pattern Recognition Society credit Nalini Ratha with the concepts that led to the creation of cancellable biometrics (Teoh, Kuan, Lee, 2008). Cancellable biometrics was conceptualized as a way to address the potential downsides and security concerns of ordinary biometrics. In order to prevent the preclusion of a biometric image, cancellable biometrics was created. The goal of cancellable biometrics is to provide biometric authentication that is not only unique to an individual, but one that also has the ability to be changed. Cancellable biometrics does not provide extra security around biometrically authenticated systems, but does provide a way to avoid losing the ability to use biometrics as an authentication m ethod. As its name suggests, cancellable biometrics allows a biometric template to be cancelled and replaced with a new image that is based on the same biometric data, resulting in one of many possible permutations (Teoh, Kuan, Lee, 2008). According to the Encyclopedia of Biometrics (2009), cancellable biometrics allows biometric images to be reset by encoding each biometric image with a different distortion scheme for each application that uses the image (Lee Jain, 2009). In order to assure the security of each permutated biometric image, a unique distortion scheme must be used for each unique application (Teoh, Kuan, Lee, 2008). The use of a distortion scheme creates an image for storage in a database that is not an exact match to the original biometric measure, therefore changing the image is as easy as changing the distortion scheme. Next we will discuss the concepts behind cancellable biometrics that are used to increase the security of biometric authentication and to keep biometric data unique. The Concepts Behind Cancellable Biometrics There are three criteria that a cancellable biometric template must meet in order to be useful and secure: (1) each cancellable template must be used for only one application, (2) the revocation and reissue procedures must be straightforward, and (3) the template computation must not be able to be reversed in order to protect the original biometric data. These three steps may also be referred to as diversity, reusability, and one-way transformation, respectively (Teoh, Kuan, Lee, 2008). Using the same biometric template for multiple applications exposes data to the same threats that using the same password for multiple applications would. If an unauthorized user gains access to one application, access can be achieved to all applications that use the same template. When using one template for multiple applications, no matter how strong the security is for the strongest application, the security of all the applications with the same authorization template is only as strong as the weakest link. Addressing the second criteria, that revocation and reissue procedures must be straightforward, is as it says, straightforward. Without a straightforward way to cancel and reissue a biometric template, biometric data is subject to interception and physical alteration (Teoh, Kuan, Lee, 2008). The third criterion, that the computation of the template not be reversible, is also meant to protect the integrity and the identity of the original biometric data (Teoh, Kuan, Lee, 2008). If a computation can be reversed, and the original biometric data is revealed, the biometric measurement will be useless and unsecure. A popular method for creating non-invertible biometric data is to use a hashing function. Due to the unique characteristics of individual biometric data, there are several guidelines that a hashing function must take into account when creating non-invertible data. For example, regarding fingerprint data, Tulyakov, Mansukhani, Govindaraju, and Farooq (2007) suggest that hashing functions should have similar hash values for similar fingerprints, different values for fingerprints that are different, that the rotation of a fingerprint should not affect the hash value, and that, if sufficient minutiae is available, partial fingerprints should be matched. Minutiae refer to uniquely identifiable points on a set of fingerprints (Tulyakov, Farooq, Mansukhani, Govindaraju, 2007). Within cancellable biometrics there are two distortion techniques that are widely recognized, signal domain distortion and feature domain distortion. What signal and feature domain distortion basically provide are ways to either distort a biometric image directly after acquisition or extract features from a biometric image, such as minutiae, and then distort the features, respectively (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). Signal domain distortion creates an independent image to be registered by a biometric reader, but still provides landmarks that can be compared to the original image, e.g. points on a persons face or eyes, for authentication. Feature domain distortion extracts template features and scrambles them, providing a sufficient technique for biometric measurements, such as fingerprints, which would be difficult to preserve accurate minutiae and a similar image (Lee Jain, 2009). How it works: Cancellable biometrics is achieved when a normal biometrics pattern is modified before it is stored in an intentional and repeatable method. This change in the pattern can be initiated by several methods, however this topic is still in development and a single industry best practice has not yet been distilled. Instead of the actual values from the biometric sensor being stored, a value that is the combination of the modifier and the sensors reading is stored. In the case that the biometrics is impersonated or the database is compromised, the modifier can be changed and the user can be authenticated with the system. (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001) Modifiers can be anything from a random number, a personal identification number, or even another biometric reading. The combination of these two items, similar to two-factor authentication, can create a unique key that uses both an individually unique value with the independent but derived from the biometric. (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001) Once the biometric reader scans the individual, an algorithm is applied to the value. This transformation can happen in either the scanning device or post-processed within the computer system before it is validated against the record within the database. These readers can be hardware devices that connect to a computer network or appliances which are self-contained. After successful verification of credentials the user is granted authentication. (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001) Demo: use ppt slides to explain the images and how they are distorted and stored for cancellable biometrics. Advantages of Cancellable Biometrics Different entities and different applications use different transforms for the same signals. This prevents the sharing between databases of different entities (Gaddam, Lal, 2010). For example, a law enforcement agency will use one transform for a fingerprint scan, and a commercial entity will use a different transform for the same fingerprint scan. This idea of diversity makes cross-matching impossible. As seen in the figure below, the merchant takes the biometric data from the customer and compares it to a transform from one of the transform databases associated with a particular service (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). This should ease privacy concerns as different transforms are held in different databases per entity. Source: (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001) Also, the authentication server never stores original biometrics (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). The benefit is that the risk of identity theft is significantly reduced because the transforms are non-invertible. Even if a hacker accessed a template database, there would be no way for he/she to figure out the original biometric. The reusability feature, described in the section titled The Concepts Behind Cancellable Biometrics of this paper, protects the biometric authentication process from becoming obsolete. If cancellable biometrics did not offer re-usability and data continually was compromised, theoretically, people would start to run out of body parts to use. Limitations of Cancellable Biometrics Cancellable biometrics is not the solution to all of the limitations of biometrics. Cancellable biometrics provides a solution for privacy concerns and resetting issues related to biometrics. However, it does not decrease the enormous cost associated with biometrics. Also, it does not prevent the use of a copied biometric signal (Ratha, Connell, Bolle, 2001). For example, if someone found a way to obtain a copy of a fingerprint and used that copy of the genuine biometric to access a system/account/place etc., matching could be possible and access could be granted. Cancellable biometrics prevents identity theft by the use of non-invertible transforms and it increases privacy by preventing data sharing among entities because original biometric data is never stored, it doesnt prevent people from using copies of genuine biometrics. As discussed in the section Limitations of Biometrics, biometric systems are subject to attack. Cancellable biometrics does not prevent an attack, however, i f a biometric database or other parts of the system are compromised, a new transform can be used for the authentication process and the hacker will not be able to obtain the original biometric. Thus it mitigates the damage, but not the risk of attack. Another limitation of cancellable biometrics is the trade-off of higher protection for higher error rates. The invertible feature increases protection of original data, but causes a decrease in recognition accuracy (Cheung, Kong, Zhang, Kamel, You, Lam). This may lead to a higher false rejection rate. A higher false rejection rate is inefficient and costly. Conclusion: The global biometric market is expected to continue growing. However, limitations of generic biometric systems may inhibit the market growth from its full potential. General limitations of generic biometric systems include enormous costs, fake enrollment, physical copies bypassing sensors, attacks on the system parts and/or database, threat to privacy of individuals, and failure to reset biometrics. Cancellable biometrics provides a solution to some of generic biometric system limitations. With cancellable biometrics, a biometric template must have three criteria: (1) each cancellable template must be used for only one application, (2) the revocation and reissue procedures must be straightforward, and (3) the template computation must not be able to be reversed in order to protect the original biometric data. These three criteria, also known as diversity, reusability, and one-way transformation (Teoh, Kuan, Lee, 2008), disallow data-sharing among entities, protect the overall biomet rics from becoming obsolete, and prevent a hacker from obtaining genuine biometrics. Our team believes that due to the demand for biometrics in general, cancellable biometrics has a potential market. IBM has been researching and developing cancellable biometrics. According to an article off IBMs website, Helping enhance security and protect identities, several large banks have been talking with IBM about the use of cancellable biometrics. Cancellable biometrics also is applicable to sectors of the government like the IRS, Social Security administration, and law enforcement organizations (Helping enhance security-). Thus, cancellable biometrics may evolve from research and development into a marketable tool that may refresh the global biometrics market. Work Cited 8.5 Biometrics. University of Leicester. 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