USS Langley - The US Navys First Aircraft Carrier

Laid down on October 18, 1911, at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo, CA, USS Langley (CV-1) began its life as the Proteus-class collier USS Jupiter (AC-3). Its keel-laying ceremony was attended by President William H. Taft. Work continued through the winter and the collier was launched on April 14, 1912. The US Navys first turbo-electric-powered ship, Jupiter joined the fleet in April 1913, under the command of Commander Joseph M. Reeves. USS Jupiter Shortly after passing sea trials, Jupiter was sent south to the Mexican coast off Mazatlà ¡n. Carrying a detachment of US Marines, the Navy hoped that the ships presence would aid in calming tensions during the 1914 Veracruz crisis. With the situation diffused, the collier departed for Philadelphia in October, becoming the first ship to transit the Panama Canal from west to east in the process. After service with the Atlantic Fleet Auxiliary Division in the Gulf of Mexico, Jupiter was switched to cargo duty in April 1917. Assigned to the Naval Overseas Transport Service, Jupiter sailed in support of US efforts during World War I, and made two cargo voyages to Europe (June 1917 and November 1918).   During its first Atlantic crossing, the collier carried a naval aviation detachment commanded by Lieutenant Kenneth Whiting. These were the first American military aviators to reach Europe. Returning to coaling duties in January 1919, Jupiter operated in European waters to facilitate the return of troops serving with the American Expeditionary Forces following the end of the war. Later that year, the ship received orders to return to Norfolk for conversion into an aircraft carrier. Arriving on December 12, 1919, the ship was decommissioned the following March. The US Navys First Aircraft Carrier Work began immediately to convert the ship, which was renamed in honor of aviation pioneer Samuel Pierpont Langley on April 21, 1920. In the yard, workers reduced the ships superstructure and built a flight deck over the length of the ship. The vessels two funnels were moved outboard and an elevator constructed for moving aircraft between decks. Completed in early 1922, Langley was designated CV-1 and commissioned on March 20, with Whiting, now a commander, in command. Entering service, Langley became the primary test platform for the US Navys budding aviation program.    USS Langley (CV-1) - Overview Type: Aircraft CarrierNation: United StatesBuilder: Mare Island Naval ShipyardLaid Down: October 18, 1911Launched: August 14, 1912Commissioned: March 20, 1922 Specifications Displacement: 11,500 tonsLength: 542 ft.Beam: 65 ft.Draft: 18 ft. 11 in.Speed: 15 knotsComplement: 468 officers and men Armament 55 aircraft4 Ãâ€" 5 guns Early Operations On October 17, 1922, Lieutenant Virgil C. Griffin became the first pilot to fly from the ships deck when he took off in his Vought VE-7-SF. The ships first landing came nine days later when Lieutenant Commander Godfrey de Courcelles Chevalier came aboard in an Aeromarine 39B. The firsts continued on November 18, when Whiting became the first naval aviator to be catapulted from a carrier when he launched in a PT. Steaming south in early 1923, Langley continued aviation testing in the warm waters of the Caribbean before sailing to Washington DC that June to conduct a flight demonstration and show its capabilities to governmental officials. Returning to active duty, Langley operated out of Norfolk for much of 1924, and underwent its first overhaul late that summer. Putting to sea that fall, Langley transited the Panama Canal and joined the Pacific Battle Fleet on November 29. For the next dozen years, the ship served with the fleet off Hawaii and California working to training aviators, conducting aviation experiments, and taking part in war games. With the arrival of the larger carriers Lexington (CV-2) and Saratoga (CV-3) and the near completion of Yorktown (CV-5) and Enterprise (CV-6), the Navy decided that the little Langley was no longer needed as a carrier. Seaplane Tender On October 25, 1936, Langley arrived at Mare Island Naval Shipyard for conversion into a seaplane tender. After removing the forward section of the flight deck, workers built a new superstructure and bridge, while the aft end of the ship was altered to accommodate the ships new role. Re-designated AV-3, Langley sailed in April 1937. Following a brief assignment in the Atlantic during early 1939, the ship sailed for the Far East, reaching Manila on September 24. When World War II began, the ship was anchored nearby at Cavite. On December 8, 1941, Langley departed the Philippines for Balikpapan, Dutch East Indies before finally making for Darwin, Australia. World War II During the first half of January 1942, Langley aided the Royal Australian Air Force in conducting anti-submarine patrols out of Darwin. Receiving new orders, the ship sailed north later that month to deliver 32 P-40 Warhawks to Allied forces at Tjilatjap, Java and to join American‑British‑Dutch‑Australian forces gathering to block the Japanese advance into Indonesia. On February 27, shortly after meeting with its antisubmarine screen, the destroyers USS Whipple and USS Edsall, Langley was attacked by a flight of nine Japanese G4M Betty bombers. Successfully evading the first two Japanese bombing runs, the ship was hit five times on the third, causing the topsides to burst in to flames and the ship to develop a 10-degree list to port. Limping towards Tjilatjap Harbor, Langley lost power and was unable to negotiate the mouth of the harbor. At 1:32 PM, the ship was abandoned and the escorts moved into sink the hulk to prevent its capture by the Japanese. Sixteen of Langleys crew were killed in the attack.

Essay about Comparison of Flood Stories - 596 Words

Comparison of Flood Stories There have been numerous flood stories identified from ancient sources throughout the world. The Bible and the Koran both have flood stories that are similar but also share differences. The Epic of Gilgamesh also has a flood myth that is contrary to other flood accounts. Even though these stories are all dissimilar they all start because of the faults of man. The notion of the flood comes from a varied source in each story. In the Koran it was Noah who asked God to flood the Earth because of man’s sins while in the Bible, God called down upon Noah and told him of the plan to flood the Earth and destroy all that was upon it because of man’s wickedness. In Gilgamesh the flood comes to Utnapishtim in a†¦show more content†¦The Bible states that Noah took only his family members and two of each animal. In the Epic of Gilgamesh it is said that Utnapishtim took not only family members but others as well including craftsmen and a pilot for the boat. Utnapishtim also took some of every species of animal with him because he was told to do so in his dream. The source of the waters and the duration of the excursions were not the same. The Bible states that it rained for forty days and forty nights with the water coming from heavy rain and ground water. It also says that after Noah landed on a mountain it took a long time for the Earth to dry up. During this time Noah sent out a raven and three doves until the last of the three doves did not return and then he knew the land was dry. In Gilgamesh the rain only lasted for six days and six nights and after stopping on the mountain the land did not take as long to dry up. Utnapishtim also sent out birds to see if the water was still standing but he sent out a dove, a swallow, and a raven. When the raven did not return Utnapishtim knew the Earth was clean. Both Noah and Utnapishtim made sacrifices at the end of the flood and both were blessed but in different ways. Noah was told his family was blessed and to go out and multiply while Utnapishtim was made a god and given eternal life. It is believed that the flood story in the Bible occurred first although it was recorded at a later time byShow MoreRelated Comparing and Contrasting Epic of Gilgamesh and the Bibles Noahs Ark642 Words   |  3 PagesComparing and Contrasting Epic of Gilgamesh and Noahs Ark Many cultures have stories of a great flood, and probably the best known story is of Noahs Ark. The next most notable is the Sumerian story of Ut-Napishtim found in the Epic of Gilgamesh. In the ancient Babylonian depiction of the flood story, the god Enlil creates a flood to destroy a noisy mankind that is disturbing his sleep. Gilgamesh is told by another god, Ea, to build an ark (Monack 1). The Epic of Gilgamesh has broadly theRead MoreGENESIS AND ANCIENT MYTHS OF THE NEAR EAST930 Words   |  4 Pagescivilizations originated, produced a number of stories of creation and natural occurrences. 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There were many minor differences, but the three main topics in the short story that clearly differentiate it from the movie are the setting, the character traits, and the use of humor. The setting in the movie differs from the setting in the short story in a few ways. The settingRead MoreReligion Provides a Humane Society as a Whole Essay721 Words   |  3 Pagesreligion via a cross-cultural comparison method and his notion of â€Å"the sacred and the profane† results in a deeper understanding of a given religion and the function it provides to human society as a whole. In contrast to many of the earlier theorists such as Tylor, Frazer, and Freud; Eliade suggests that to truly understand the function of a particular religion or religious practice, one must compare it to other religions across the world. For instance, the study and comparison of ancient Egyptian and

Matt Haines Essay Example For Students

Matt Haines Essay To Kill a Mockingbird 5 chunk essayEnglish 10 Mr. Steele 9.25.03The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a book about twochildren, Jem and Scout, growing up in the south during the greatdepression. During the course of the story, they meet many people. Jemand Scout develop perceptions about the people they meet, some of which aretrue, and some of which turn out later not to be true. Some of the peoplethey are wrong about include Boo Radley, Mrs. Dubose, and Atticus. At the beginning of the story, Boo is introduced as someone thatScout is afraid of. Jem and Dill get very curious about him because theynever see him, and so they start getting closer and closer to the house. Atticus tells Jem to stop terrorizing Boo, but he and Dill keep on playingthe games. Jem ends up almost getting shot by Arthur Radley because He andDill go to the Radley house at night. As Jem is running away from thehouse, he gets his pants caught on the fence. He runs away without thembecause he is scared of being shot. He goes back later to get them, andthey are folded over the fence, as if someone knew he was coming back. This is one of the first times that you can see that Boo may not be themonster he is made out to be. Another time is when they find the trinketsin the tree. At first they dont know it is Boo but they finally realizethat he is the only person that could be doing it. The final event thatmakes Scout understand Boo is when he saves her life, and then after shewalks him home and while she is standing on his porch, she sees her andJems life through Boos eyes. She realizes that he feels very close tothem because they are the only people he sees most of the time, and that heis not a monster at all. Mrs. Dubose is another person that is not what she seems to be atfirst. Jem and Scout think that Mrs. Dubose is just a mean old lady thatsits on her porch all the time. When they pass her house every day, sheyells insults at them. Because of this, Jem and Scout think of her as amean old lady who likes to insult them. One day, Mrs. Dubose calls Atticusa nigger-lover and Jem gets really mad about it, and cuts down Mrs. Duboses flowers. As a punishment, he has to read to Mrs. Dubose every dayfor a month. Scout and Jem find it disgusting to have to be near her. Afew days after Jem finishes his punishment, Mrs. Dubose dies. Atticus andScout are not particularly sorry for her, but Atticus tells them the realstory of Mrs. Dubose. He tells then that she is addicted to morphine, butinstead of giving in and taking it, she refuses to take it and it makes hervery sick. That is the reason that she is so mean. Atticus also tellsthem that even if Jem had not destroyed the flowers, he would have madethem read to her, because even though he disagrees with Mrs. Dubosesopinions on some issues, he knows that her resistance to the drug is anexample of real courage. Atticus is another person that turns out not to be like what heseems. Scout and Jem think that he cant do anything, and are jealous ofother peoples parents because they do things like play in a town footballgame. Scout talks to Mrs. Maudie about it, and she tells him all thethings he can do. A little later in the book, Scout and Jem find out thatAtticus is the sharpest shooter in a all of Maycomb county. Scout feelsguilty about thinking that her father couldnt do anything. Then, near theend of the book, Scout realizes how good of a man her father is. She istold how he is the only man in Maycomb who will be a Christian when it isreally needed, because he is the one standing up for what is right when noone else will. Scout then knows how much more she loves her father thanshe would the fathers of her peers. .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 , .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .postImageUrl , .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 , .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4:hover , .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4:visited , .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4:active { border:0!important; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4:active , .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4 .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u8c876fe0ce70ad7d6ea8c93a8102d8b4:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Buddhism And Taoism (2272 words) EssayThroughout the book, Scout and Jem judge a lot of people by what theylook like or act like when they first meet them. In the case of theirfather, they make assumptions about him based on years of living with him. A lot of the beliefs they have about these people turn out to be wrong. The way they look at those people change, not because the people havechanged at all, but because of some event that caused Jem and Scout to seewhat they are really like. In our everyday lives, this happens all thetime. People are judged because of their appearance or attitude, and theyare not really like that at all. If someone dresses in black and wearsspikes then other people look at them, think oh hes a goth and neverfind out any more about that person. If they only met the person, theymight like each other and become good friends. However, that cant happen,and its all because of someone being judged. If people didnt judge eachother, everyone would be happier and would have more friends.

Scarlet Letter By Hawthorne Essays (1058 words) -

Scarlet Letter By Hawthorne She's Worth More Than a Diamond Pearls have always held a great price to mankind, but no pearl had ever been earned at as high a cost to a person as in Hester Prynne, a powerful Heroine in Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel The Scarlet Letter. Her daughter Pearl, born into a Puritan prison in more ways than one, is an enigmatic character serving entirely as a vehicle for symbolism. From her introduction as an infant on her mother's scaffold of shame to the stormy peak of the story, Pearl is an empathetic and intelligent child. Throughout the story she absorbs the hidden emotions of her mother and magnifies them for all to see. Pearl is the essence of literary symbolism. She is at times a vehicle for Hawthorne to express the inconsistent and translucent qualities of Hester and Dimmesdale's unlawful bond at times, and at others a forceful reminder of her mother's sin. Pearl Prynne is her mother's most precious possession and her only reason to live, but also serves as a priceless treasure purchased with her life. Pearl's strange beauty and deeply enigmatic qualities make her the most powerful symbol Hawthorne has ever created. The product of Hester's sin and agony, Pearl, was a painfully constant reminder of her mother's violation of the Seventh Commandment: Thou shalt not commit adultery. Hester herself felt that Pearl was given to her not only as a blessing but a punishment worse than death or ignominy. She is tormented by her daughter's childish teasing and endless questioning about the scarlet letter and it's relation to Minister Dimmesdale. After Pearl has created a letter "A" on her own breast out of seaweed, she asks her mother: But in good earnest, now, mother dear, what does this scarlet letter mean? -- and why dost thou wear it on thy bosom? -- and why does the minister keep his hand over his heart? In saying this Pearl implies that she knows much, much more about the scarlet letter than she lets on. Throughout the conversation Pearl is impish and teasing, saying one thing and contradicting it soon after. She refuses to say just what she means, which makes it hard for Hester to give a straight answer. Hester is shocked that her playful daughter has lead their conversation to the topic of the scarlet letter, and even more disturbed that she has assumed Hester's letter and Dimmesdale's habit of pressing his hand to his heart a branch from the same issue. Pearl, in bringing this forbidden and painful subject about, unwittingly inflicts agony upon her uhappy mother. Hester cannot tell her daughter what has passed between the minister and herself and come clean. Pearl symbolizes a hidden part of her mother that has not, and will never be exposed and therefore washed free of sin. Pearl was always drawn to the "A", and seemed to twist the symbolic knife in Hester's bosom every time she thought she was free of her burden of sin by rudely reminding her of the letter and the meaning it bore. Pearl's questioning wrenched Hester's heart when the child seemed to somehow know about the relationship between Hester and Dimmesdale. Pearl's precocity worried Hester constantly. Hester Prynne herself realized that Pearl was unlike other children, and prayed that she was not sin incarnate. When Hester finally freed herself of her sin and removed the scarlet letter after years of it's leaden weight on her chest, it was little Pearl who brought the reality of her eternal condemnation back to Hester with a stinging blow. She was "the scarlet letter endowed with life". Pearl represented the part of Hester to be always dulled by the searing judgment of others in that she was Hester's ceaseless reminder of the sin she had committed, but also symbolized everything about Hester that was free and alive. Pearl is the only happiness in Hester Prynne's lonely life. Without a child to care for, teach, and love, Hester would have long ago given her soul and life over to evil. When town authorities, shocked at Pearl's apparent belief that she was plucked from a rose bush and not created by God, recommend she be taken from Hester and placed in a school, Hester responds with the following: "God gave me this child!... She is my happiness, she is my torture none the less! Pearl keeps me here in life!...Ye shall not take her! I will die first!" Pearl, though Hester understands that she was God-given as a constant reminder or her sin,

Tracing the Journey of Madness in Jonathon Swifts Gullivers Travels essays

Tracing the Journey of Madness in Jonathon Swifts Gullivers Travels essays Jonathon Swift is notorious for his satire and nothing illustrates his ability to prove appoint than his novel, Gullivers Travels. In this novel, Gulliver experiences many things on his journeys and is driven to madness in the final segment of his adventure. Gullivers madness stems from the fact that he cannot accept himself for who he is Gulliver wants to be like the Houyhnhnms, a species that he considers to be perfect. Their rejection of him causes Gulliver to break down because he cannot and will not ever see himself as a Yahoo. The first step into madness begins with an inability to control events. Over the course of his stay with the Houyhnhnms, Gulliver is filled with pride and when he is exiled from Houyhnhnm-land, he is distraught. He descends further into madness because he cannot (and does not want to) think clearly. Finally, Gullivers madness is a result of pride. Gulliver refuses to accept the truth about his race because it means accepting the truth about hims elf. He would rather live a lie. Madness begins in small doses and unless it is tempered with rationality, it will reign. Gullivers final adventures illustrate this clearly. Gullivers madness occurs from a series of events of which he cannot control. His madness occurs slowly and only after his interaction with the Houyhnhnms and the Yahoos. In a sense, his madness is the result of his inability to accept and discern what he has encountered. He knows what is happening but he cannot make real sense of it other than wants he wants. Gullivers madness becomes evident when he begins to think of his own kind as less than acceptable. Spending time with the Houyhnhnms caused Gulliver to admire them far too much. He tells us that their opinions opened my eyes and enlarged my understanding, that I began to view the actions and passions of man in a very different light (250). He admires the...

How to Calculate Your Heat Index Temperature

How to Calculate Your Heat Index Temperature You check the high temperature to see how hot the day will be. But in summer, theres another temperature besides air temperature thats just as important for knowing how hot you should expect to feel the Heat Index. The Heat Index tells you how hot it feels outdoors and is a good tool for determining how at risk you may be on a given day and time to  heat-related illnesses.  How can you find this summer temperature? There are 3 ways (other than looking at your forecast) to find out what your current Heat Index value is:   look at a Heat Index chart,use a Heat Index weather calculator, orcalculate it by hand using the Heat Index equation. Heres how to do each. Reading a Heat Index Chart Use your favorite weather app, watch your local news, or visit your NWS local page to find the current air temperature and humidity where you live. Write these down.Download this NWS Heat Index chart. Print it in color or open it in a new internet tab.To find the Heat Index temperature, put your finger on your air temperature. Next, run your finger across until you reach your relative humidity value (round to the nearest 5%). The number you stop at is your Heat Index.   The colors on a Heat Index chart tell how likely you are to suffer heat illness at specific Heat Index values. Light yellow areas indicate caution; dark yellow areas, extreme caution; orange areas, danger; and red, extreme danger. Keep in mind that Heat Index values on this chart are for shaded locations. If youre in direct sunlight, it can feel up to 15 F hotter than whats listed. Using a Heat Index Weather Calculator Use your favorite weather app, watch your local news, or visit your NWS local page to find the current air temperature and humidity where you live. (Instead of humidity, you could also use dew point temperature.) Write these down.Go to the online NWS Heat Index Calculator.Enter the values you wrote down into the correct calculator. Be sure to enter your numbers in the correct boxes either Celsius or Fahrenheit!Click calculate. The result will be displayed below in both Fahrenheit and Celcius. Now you know how hot it feels outside! Calculating Heat Index By Hand Use your favorite weather app, watch your local news, or visit your NWS local page to find the current air temperature (in  °F) and humidity (percentage). Write these down.To approximate the heat index value, plug your temperature and humidity values into this equation and solve. Resources Links National Weather Service. What is the heat index? National Weather Service Amarillo, TX. Accessed 30 July 2015.

Biology - Infectious Diseases Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Biology - Infectious Diseases - Research Paper Example In the case of infections, adaptive immunity has a greater role to play. Each foreign organism displays an antigen or multiple antigens that are recognized by the antibodies produced in our body. This recognition allows targeted action and removal of the infectious particles. If the infection is mild, our bodies are easily able to remove it. If however the infection is severe or if the symptoms are dangerous, external medication may become necessary. Also vaccination is important in order to stop the infections from occurring in the first place. Since infectious diseases are a leading cause of mortality, causing about ten percent of all deaths every year, it is important to study then closely and find a cure against them. Initially, there was a theory of spontaneous generation which stated that microorganisms were created out of lifeless matter such as meat broth. There were many scientists who played a key role in refuting the idea but the foremost were Robert Koch and Louis Pasteur . Pasteur devised a series of experiments with beef broth to prove that only when exposed to open air was the broth contaminated. He then proposed his germ theory according to which diseases were caused by microorganisms; however his attempts to prove his theory were unsuccessful. His work was carried forward by Koch who cultivated anthrax virus from a diseased organism and inserted it into a healthy one, which develops a disease (Burnet and White). The virus was isolated again and observed in the lab, confirming the germ theory proposed by Pasteur. A major breakthrough in the field was achieved by Edward Jenner when the first vaccine was developed. During the twentieth century there was a deadly outbreak of small pox that had a very high mortality rate. The victims’ bodies got covered in scabs and blisters that were full of the pox virus. The virus claimed thousands of lives all across the globe. Edward Jenner noticed two things related to the small pox infection. First, tha t the people who survived the onset of small pox did not contact the disease again and secondly the milkmaids rarely got affected by the disease. The milkmaids displayed signs of infection of the cowpox virus which was a milder version of the small pox. Jenner combined these observations and discovered that immunity against the small pox virus could be achieved if the people are injected with the cow pox variola virus. Within a small span of time large scale manufacturing of the variola virus started and worldwide campaigns struggled to spread the vaccine throughout the globe. Finally the efforts paid off and the small pox virus was eradicated from the world (Magner). Since then various vaccines have been developed for different infectious diseases, like polio, cholera, mumps, rubella and many others. These vaccines may be in many forms A live attenuated form of the virus which is alive but weak and therefore a lower chance of causing a disease Dead strains of the virus Toxoid vacci nes which target the toxins produced by the microorganism Viral like particles, generated through genetic engineering that will trigger an immune response without causing a disease. These experiments and incidences allowed the scientists to learn a great deal about the infectious diseases and to develop cures against them. With the advent of modern technology, it is now easier to work on microorganisms. However a new kind of challenge is faced by the scientists around the world. The rapidly evolving microorganisms like HCV and

Christianity and Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Christianity and Education - Essay Example Years ago, people served God without feeling ashamed. He was a part of everyday life. Society valued the Lord as a whole, as it was expected that all people go to church for worship. Those who did not were looked down upon, since they were not giving the Lord the thanks he deserves. Children prayed openly in school, and the class always said prayers before beginning the daily study routine. Nowadays, fewer people attend church. Christians who are faithful in their worship towards God are frequently mocked, and if people miss church, not much is thought of it. Much of society does not hold god in as high of regard as they used to. What’s even worse is that God has practically been taken out of our schools. Some secular individuals who do not take Christianity seriously may reason that Christians are making too much of a big deal about matters. They feel that God is still in our schools, since children are still allowed to pray privately. Evidence, on the other hand, is contrary to such reasoning, as the Bible has much to show us about the times we are living in. What’s more, we can find an explanation in the pages of God’s word as to why the school system is going downhill when it comes to God and morals. The passage at 2 Timothy 3:1-5 gives us a good explanation as to why such events are transpiring. This passage talks about the last days and what is to occur during those times. We are told that children will be disrespectful to those in charge, having a complete lack of regard to authority. Violence will increase greatly, as people will commit violent crimes without a conscience. There will be a serious lacking of self control, and the number of selfish individuals will increase to an alarming rate. Should a person make a mistake, there will be no forgiveness if he wants to smooth things over because people during the last days will be very unforgiving. And if this isn't bad enough, we are told about how people will have a prideful spirit, and will deeply persecute those who love serving God and doing what is right. People will only be concerned about the things that pleasure them rather than devoting time to serving God (the Holy Bible, New King James Version.) Everything that was mention in this Bible passage is characteristic of what is currently occurring in our schools at present. Years ago, children actually respected the teachers. Now, it is not common to hear that teachers stand around helplessly while the children do their dirty business because they are afraid of what the children might do for correcting the behavior. Children talk back to the teachers, and some have even inflicted harsh physical violence. The number of violent incidences that occur in our schools today is ever increasing. Just about every time one switches on the TV to watch the news, there is some sort of report on school violence. There are numerous cases concerning children who bully others, and nothing is done about it because the teachers are afraid of the bullies. Others take things to the extremes by calling bomb threats or bringing weapons to school to injure and kill teachers and fellow classmates. Such violent behavior is not characteristic of a Christian who is reverent in his service to God, and it shows us that things are really getting out of control as described in the above Bible passage. When we look at the pages of God's word, He makes it very clear how he feels about violence. At Galatians 5:19, 20, there is a list of practices that are not acceptable for a servant of God to engage in. Acts of violence are listed among them. In these verses, we are told what will happen to those who engage in such acts. These persons will not inherit God's kingdom (the Holy Bible, New King James Version). Also Psalm 11:5 states that God hates violence (the holy Bible, New King James Version). Nothing can be clearer about how God feels than this verse, which directly states His feelings about the subject. Sadly, school children are not taking this into account, as God is no longer a part of the school curriculum. God

Honda Swot Essay Example for Free

Honda Swot Essay In 2012, the company owned 42,000 patents and had pending applications for 29,000 more patents. 3. Strong brand image. Honda has a reputation for producing the best quality engines around the world. The company’s brand was the 21st most valuable brand in the world valued at $17 billion and was only behind Toyota, Mercedes-Benz and BMW, according to Interbrand. 4. Motorcycle market share in Asia. In 2012, Honda sold 80. 5% of its motorcycles in Asia, the market that has greatest growth potential. Having the largest motorcycle market share, Honda is well positioned to compete with other companies for the sales and profits. Weaknesses 1. Product recalls. Over 2011 and 2012, Honda recalled more than 1,000,000 vehicles to fix various faulty parts and manufacturing defects. Car recalls severely damages firms brand reputation and future sales. 2. Weak position in Europe automotive market. Honda holds a very weak position in the Europe’s automotive market and has maintained only 1. 1% market share in 2012. Although, Europe’s market share is declining at the moment and many companies experience losses, the market is huge and firms can benefit from the economies of scale. 3. Decreasing sales. In 2012, Honda’s revenue hit the lowest point in 4 years to ? 7. 948 trillion. Honda sales were down by 11. 2% in North America, which represents more than 40% of total Honda revenues. Revenue from Asia and Europe also declined by 21. 3%, 15. 5% respectively, signaling poor firm’s performance globally. Opportunities 1. Increasing fuel prices. Honda’s strong emphasis on engineering fuel-efficient vehicles (Honda Insight and Honda Civic) with flexible fuel, hybrid and hydrogen engines will pay off due to increasing fuel prices. 2. Positive outlook for global motorcycle industry. Motorcycle industry grew by 4. 2% from 2011 to 2012 and is expected to grow by at least 6% to 2016. Honda is the world’s leading producer and seller of the motorcycles having more than 29% of the market share. Growing demand for the motorcycles is a great opportunity for the company to expand its global market share and grow sales. 3. Growing global demand for environment friendly vehicles. The declining levels of fossil fuel sources and the rising CO2 emissions became a major concern for many people and many governments. Therefore, ecologically friendly cars, powered by hybrid, hydrogen or flexible fuel engines became very popular. The market for such cars was $33 billion in 2010. Honda’s focus on hybrid and hydrogen fueled engines is a great opportunity to capture the market share for this new demand. 4. Growth through acquisitions. Honda could greatly benefit from strategic partnerships or acquisitions of smaller competitors. The business would add new brands to its portfolio, achieve greater economies of scale and would benefit from synergies between different firms. Threats 1. Intense competition. Honda faces more intense competition than ever. New small entrants are disrupting the market with their capabilities in producing electric vehicles or alternative fuel engines. Big companies are restructuring themselves to become more efficient. As a result, firms like Honda are suffering from competition from both big and small players. 2. Decreasing fuel prices. Some analysts forecast that future fuel prices will drop due to extraction of shale gas. This would negatively influence Honda because the company is focusing on hydrogen fuel, hybrid and flexible fuel engine cars, which are not so attractive to consumers when fuel prices are low. . Rising raw material prices. Metals are the main raw materials used in vehicle and motorcycle manufacturing and the rising price of the raw metals raises overall production costs for Honda. 4. Natural disasters. Honda has manufacturing facilities in Japan, Thailand, China and Malaysia. These countries, including others, are often subject to natural disasters that disrupt manufacturing in the f acilities and decrease Honda’s production volumes. 5. Strong yen. Honda earns most of its profits outside Japan and appreciating yen poses a great threat to Honda’s profits.

Rude Awakening :: essays papers

Rude Awakening The day was over and I lay in my rack wide-awake wishing I were in my own bed at home. As I recalled the events of the day, I began to fully comprehend the magnitude of my decision to join the Navy. I was about to spend my first night in the Navy’s boot camp. I thought of the shower I had experienced earlier. It was my first experience of a mass community shower. The shower was an extra large yellow tiled stall with 12 chrome showerheads. Six on each sidewall evenly spaced apart. Showering two girls to a head, orders to hurry were being barked from the female RDC’s monitoring us. RDC’s are Recruit Division Commanders; they are in charge of our boot camp learning experience. The next set of girls waited nervously just outside the stall for their turn. The shower experience was definitely something I was going to have to get use to. I lay in the top rack of my bunk, feeling sad and a little silly. I missed my family and friends and I felt silly for feeling so emotional and sad. I was surprised at how sad I was feeling and thought maybe I was being a baby. I turned my head to survey my surroundings and I took notice of the girl in the top bed of the bunk next to me. She was lying on her stomach resting on her elbows and crying as she wrote, probably a letter to someone she missed from home. I could hear her soft faint sobs. I could see by the expression on her face that she was fighting back her urge to cry out loud. I looked around the rest of the room and soon got the impression that this girl and I were not the only ones who were feeling blue. I was cold and tired and I knew I should get some sleep so I curled up into a ball and fell asleep. I don’t recall actually falling asleep. I just remember that I was awakened by a series of loud crashes. The crashes were followed by voices piercing into the darkness. I sat up and without any thought to it I jumped off the bed, not remembering I was on the top rack, and landed surprisingly on my feet. Rude Awakening :: essays papers Rude Awakening The day was over and I lay in my rack wide-awake wishing I were in my own bed at home. As I recalled the events of the day, I began to fully comprehend the magnitude of my decision to join the Navy. I was about to spend my first night in the Navy’s boot camp. I thought of the shower I had experienced earlier. It was my first experience of a mass community shower. The shower was an extra large yellow tiled stall with 12 chrome showerheads. Six on each sidewall evenly spaced apart. Showering two girls to a head, orders to hurry were being barked from the female RDC’s monitoring us. RDC’s are Recruit Division Commanders; they are in charge of our boot camp learning experience. The next set of girls waited nervously just outside the stall for their turn. The shower experience was definitely something I was going to have to get use to. I lay in the top rack of my bunk, feeling sad and a little silly. I missed my family and friends and I felt silly for feeling so emotional and sad. I was surprised at how sad I was feeling and thought maybe I was being a baby. I turned my head to survey my surroundings and I took notice of the girl in the top bed of the bunk next to me. She was lying on her stomach resting on her elbows and crying as she wrote, probably a letter to someone she missed from home. I could hear her soft faint sobs. I could see by the expression on her face that she was fighting back her urge to cry out loud. I looked around the rest of the room and soon got the impression that this girl and I were not the only ones who were feeling blue. I was cold and tired and I knew I should get some sleep so I curled up into a ball and fell asleep. I don’t recall actually falling asleep. I just remember that I was awakened by a series of loud crashes. The crashes were followed by voices piercing into the darkness. I sat up and without any thought to it I jumped off the bed, not remembering I was on the top rack, and landed surprisingly on my feet.

Existing television channels Essay

Distinctiveness and originality are always key in any aspect of the media, as it allows anything to be set apart from the rest, drawing the audiences attention towards it. However distinctiveness and originality are becoming a thing of the past as ideas are running thin. Constantly we are able to see similar or replicas of past programming on our screens, whether it be in reality television, soap storylines or big dramas. The BBC have always been known for is popular programming. In the early days of the BBC, they strived to follow a common trend of having an educational programme, follow an entertainment programme. However, as such programming scheduling has been scrapped, both educational programmes do appear in the scheduling. But the question is how original and distinctive are these programmes that the BBC are producing? Well firstly the BBC have publicly admitted that they will be reducing their amounts of repeats to below 10% in their programming schedule within the next 10 years. But will this help the BBC become more original and distinctive? In one sense it will, as the BBC have become well known for having constant repeats they will now have to think ip exciting ideas to fill the slots of the original repeats. However will the BBC crumble under the pressure and resort to common concepts and genres, such as reality and soaps? Well it seems not as the BBC have made a vow to bring the best original ideas to the screen, Saying that the channel will invent, refresh and discover new passions and interests. New educational programmes such as The Blue Planet and Son of God are among the line up. With The Blue Planet exploring the earths final frontier, from the deep to the shore, from pole to pole. It revealed new and extraordinary life and behaviour that had never before been captured on film. While Son on God used breakthroughs in archaeology, astronomy, forensic science and history to help viewers make up their own minds about the man who changed the world. There is said to be no crisis of orginality in British television – though there may be for ITV. Why is this? Well for one ITV has a very important and unique posistion as the only UK channel expected to deliver a mass audience to advertisers, day in day out. With this kind of pressure on their backs ITV have the most to prove with originality and distinctiveness in their programming. Numerous programmes have catered to these needs in recent years. For example the television revival of John Galsworty’s Forsyte novels The Forsyte Saga, and also The Jury, an innovative six parter starring Derek Jacobi and Antony Sher. However ITV is not required to cater specifically for non-mainstream tastes and interests, or to meet particular requirements for innovation, experimentation or distinctiveness. That is not to say that these characteristics will not appear in ITV’s programming. Channel 4 has always stood out, as in the beginning it was designed for minority groups. But today, Channel 4 still stands out with its range of programmes, and it is often said that distinctiveness, diversity and innovation are key requirements to Channel 4’s programming. Shows such as Green Wing, Touching the Void, Spitfire Ace, My Foetus and Supernanny demonstrate that these have been achieved in every part of the schedule and with significant public impact. Channel 4 proved its distinctiveness with programmes ranging from Shameless to Hamburg Cell to Sex Traffic. Channel for has continued and progressed in supplying original and quality programmes that challenge the veiwers opinions and personal veiws. Channel 4 continued to find new formats and reach new audiences with Musicality, Cheating At Athens – Is It Worth It? , Bollywood Star, The Great British Asian Invasion and Time Team’s Big Dig. Overall i feel that originality and distinctiveness has great importance of the ever changing television market, as it sets each channel apart form one another. Also it allows us all to see the potential that these channels have and what they could do when they enter the digital age after the analogue switch off. With this originality and distinctiveness, will the Big 5 be able to compete in the digital age with numerous other channels pinning for the maximum audience share? Yes, i feel they will as they will have a step up on the other channels with their programming. However i feel that this will only happen if the Big 5 continue and improve their originality and distinctiveness in programming, instead of settling for a common concept.

Case Study †Mandalay Shweyi Co., Ltd.

I wish to express my sincere appreciation to U Aye Kyaw, Managing Director – Cum Principal of Myanmar Human Resources Co., Ltd. (MHR). I would like to express my heartfelt thanks and deepest gratitude to my course instructors, Dr. Ohnmar Myint for providing invaluable guidance, encouragement and supervision throughout the process of this assignment. I am also deeply thankful to Mandalay Shweyi Company Limited for the kind permission to study and analyze their operations. I also would like to express my special thanks to ABE for the opportunity to study for the Post Graduate Diploma through which I have gained a thorough understands of business concepts, idea and knowledge. Finally, I would like to thank my parents for their love and support throughout my life. I would also like to thank all my friends for their help in the task of developing this assignment.Executive SummaryThis assignment focuses â€Å"A Research on Improving Customer Satisfaction and Retention† of Man dalay Shweyi Co., Ltd which is a major manufacturer of alcohol industry and also a nationwide foods & beverages marketer in Myanmar. Customer satisfaction may be identified as external and internal customer satisfaction of an organisation.The main objectives of this study were focused on external customer satisfaction, to explore the main influences of customer satisfaction and to determine their relationships with customer satisfaction. This paper also intends to present the research methods reflection of customer satisfaction lead to maximize customer satisfaction benefits and minimize the customer dissatisfaction which were caused by customer service and product quality factors of Herbal Tea Product from Mandalay Shweyi Co., Ltd.Personal StatementI am a candidate of Postgraduate Diploma in Business Management (ABE). I have been trying to complete post-graduate diploma in business management as a bridge to further study for MBA because my aim is to manage either my own business or to be able to successfully manage other businesses. This assignment is requirement for â€Å"Research Methods and their Applications to Marketing† course.Firstly I learnt the business operations and activities of Mandalay Shweyi by interviewing, observation, surveying and studying documents. I learned of the vision, mission, business strategies and challenges by interviewing the management team and identified business practice and activities through dialogs with technicians and staff. By preparing this assignment, I can apply the marketing research concepts and marketing concepts which are covered in ABE courses.This paper displays â€Å"A Research on Improving Customer Satisfaction and Retention† profile of Mandalay Shweyi Company. I have tried my best not only reflection on the subjects and experiences but also to meet the assignment goals and constraints. I hereby declare that this assignment is a bonafide work carried out by myself. It has not been submitted to an y other university or institution for the award of any degree, certified or published any time before.Corporate ProfileAlthough started as a small scale business in 1992, Mandalay Shweyi Co., Ltd. Shweyi has grown into one of Myanmar's largest alcoholic beverages manufacturers with two distilleries one in Yangon and one in Mandalay. The full product portfolio includes 20 products in six different groups. Superior quality is obtained through Shweyi’s strict quality standards which are applied advanced manufacturing process. The company was formed with the well experienced distillers, knowledgeable technical experts and engineers from Yangon Institute of Technology. Shweyi is a major manufacturer of alcohol industry and also a nationwide foods & beverages marketer in Myanmar.There are nine branch offices in order to cope the whole national market (see Appendix-A). The vision of the company is â€Å"to provides healthy foods & beverages to consumers†, they produce healthy liquors series includes HERBAL RUM and SOBASHOCHU (Buckwheat Liquors). And the company also  manufactures various kinds of healthy food including Buckwheat products, Honey products and Herbal Tea products.Background of the studyNowadays, bombing of global market effect, it becomes more and more competitions in business environment and then customer satisfaction is becoming crucial role to the survival of any business organization. The competitors who will be successful recognize that customer satisfaction is a critical strategic weapon that can bring increased market share and increased profits. Therefore most of the companies all over the world are beginning to realize that customers’ satisfaction has a direct impact on the bottom line.And then they are trying to develop the unique strategies and new changes to satisfy their customer needs and wants and strive to exceed their expectations. Measuring customer satisfaction is the most important in differentiating the compan y. As markets shrink, companies are scrambling to boost customer satisfaction and keep their current customers rather than devoting additional resources to chase potential new customers. The key to customer retention is customer satisfaction.Therefore â€Å"A Research on Improving Customer Satisfaction and Retention† is essential for all business organisations. The need for customer satisfaction measurement is well documented and it can increase revenue and profit due to higher customer retention.MethodologyThis paper is a case study of Mandalay Shweyi Co., Ltd. from an inside-out perspective. It attempts to explore the benefits of Customer Satisfaction Survey and how it can provide the company with insight for development and support for future strategic decision making processes.This research was completed to identify what key components affect customer satisfaction at Mandalay Shweyi product. In this research methodology which included research design, questionnaires, samp ling process, data collection method, research timeframe and method of analysis.Research Design Exploratory: After getting the permission from company’s board of director, I  started to discuss what factors of Herbal Tea product contribute to customer satisfaction with marketing team. Because of time and budget constraints, I was unable to conduct focus groups or in depth interviews. By doing brainstorming with marketing team, I developed the research design.Descriptive: To gain a better understanding of the problem, and to clarify the research questions, I conducted secondary research to discover what experts found customer satisfaction to be at other food and beverage products. This research allowed me to gain a solid understanding of the business.QuestionnairesAfter developing what factors may lead to customer satisfaction at Herbal Tea product, I began to design a questionnaire to collect primary data from wholesalers and consumers. The type of instrument used in this r esearch was a five-point likert scale questionnaire. The questionnaire was divided into three sections. The initial portion of wholesaler questionnaire included customer service factors, the second section tested the product quality and the last section tested the pricing and reliability (reliability means that it has no side effect on customer) of Herbal Tea product.In the first portion of consumer questionnaire included demographic factors, the second section was asked the product quality and the last section measured the pricing and reliability of Herbal Tea product. The five-point likert scale assigned points 1,2,3,4 and 5. The questionnaire was pre-tested among a group of 25 potential respondents but no major problems were detected. Several minor modifications were made to ensure clarity of the items in the final version of the questionnaire (see Appendix-B).Sampling process Data were collected through survey using a structured questionnaires administered to wholesalers and con sumers (end-users). The total number of respondents (samples) who participated in this research was 149. The sample was separated into two groups. One is wholesalers group (wholesalers, N=58) and the next is consumers group (consumers, N=91). In this research the type of sampling that I used was convenient sampling.Data Collection MethodI collected the primary data by using marketing team and distributing the questionnaires to wholesalers and consumers. After collecting the data, I coded the questionnaire and entered the data into the SPSS software system to run statistical tests to analyze the data I collected. I collected the secondary research by finding professional articles and past research.Research Time FrameI compiled a research report that addresses how to improve customer satisfaction and retention at Mandalay Shweyi. I began my research in October 2010 and started to develop constructs and research hypotheses to answer the research question of what factors influence custo mer satisfaction at Mandalay Shweyi. In early November I developed my survey by putting the constructs I had previously created into likert scales. In last week of November I surveyed customers in the market, using questionnaire to measure satisfaction, and at early December I ran tests on the data using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 15.0. Method of AnalysisIn this research diagrammatic representations are used to represent the information which included frequencies and correlation tables, and bar charts (see Appendix-C). Appropriate statistical techniques like descriptive data analysis and Pearson correlation analysis were used to analyse and interpret the data.A Literature ReviewMarketing Concept Philip Kotler who is the world's foremost marketing guru. In his first book, â€Å"Marketing Management (1967)†, marketing has been defined as â€Å"A function of management with scientific rigour, models and statistical analysis†. The à ¢â‚¬Ëœmarketing concept' in the words of Kotler is â€Å"Holds that achieving organisational goals depends on determining the needs and wants of target markets and delivering the desired satisfactions more effectively and more efficiently than competitors do.†Marketing is only one factor in attracting and keeping customers but it cannot fulfill its managerial role unless customer needs and wants are understood and satisfied. The organisation must try to understand the target market’s needs and wants.  Needs describe the basic requirements of human, people need food, air, water, clothing, and shelter to survive. People also have strong needs for recreation, education, and entertainment. These needs become wants when they are directed to specific objects that might satisfy the need (Philip Kotler, 2006). Marketing StrategyThe aim of any business organisation is to make profit. This can only be achieved by forming an effective marketing strategy which can actually incre ase double or triple of organisational sales. Marketing Strategy is the set of helps to guidelines and policies used for effectively matching marketing programmes with target market opportunities in order to achieve organisational objectives. Developing marketing strategy includes deciding which customers to target and how to position products and etc. When forming a marketing strategy, customer satisfaction is really the main goal. And a strategy that does not address the needs of the customers cannot be classified as a good marketing strategy.Marketing MixThe major marketing management decisions can be classified into four categories as follow: Product: The product is the physical product or service offered to the consumer. Price: Pricing decisions should take into account profit margins and the probable pricing response of competitors. Place (distribution): Place decisions are those associated with channels of distribution that serve as the means for getting the product to the ta rget customers. Promotion: Promotion decisions are those related to communicating and selling to potential consumers. It is useful to know the value of a customer in order to determine whether additional customers are worth the cost of acquiring them.These variables are known as the marketing mix and also referred to as the â€Å"Four ‘P's. The marketing mix is the combination of marketing activities that an organisation engages in so as to best meet the needs of its targeted market. The service marketing mix involves analysing the 7’p of marketing, involving Product, Price, Place, Promotion, Physical Evidence, Process and People. Most of the firm attempts to generate a positive response in the target market by blending these four marketing mix variables in an optimal manner.External and uncontrollable environmental factors are very important elements of the marketing strategy  Programs. Therefore Marketing Mix should include customers, environmental variables, and c ompetitive variables (Kotler, 1984). Marketing ResearchMarketing research is a systematic process which may include these steps: data – gathering, analysis, storage, retrieval and dissemination of information and finally to aid decision making. The main reasons of doing research are to reduce risks, to help in planning and forecasting results, to aid marketing mix-decisions and to improve decision making capabilities (ABE, Strategic Marketing Management, Study manual). Effective communicating research result on marketing mix is an essential component of the research process. Clear, concise, and cogent reports enable informed effective decision making. For this reason marketing research is necessary to measure and track customer satisfaction.Customer SatisfactionCustomer satisfaction is regarded as customers can get more benefits than their cost (Liu and Yen, 2010). In comparison with other traditional performance measures, customer satisfaction is probably less sensitive to s easonal fluctuations, changes in costs or changes in accounting practices (Kotler, 2006). Therefore, many researchers consider customer satisfaction to be the best indicator of a company’s future profit. Keeping existing customers is as important as acquiring new ones.The approach towards existing customers must be active, based on a separate marketing mix for customer retention (Rozenberg and Czepiel, 1992). Interaction between the one delivering the service and the customer is very important and has direct effect on the service quality and quality perception (Heuvel, 1993). Sales are the most important goal of any commercial enterprise; it becomes necessary to satisfy customers. For customer satisfaction it is necessary to establish and maintain certain important characteristics like:Quality Fair prices Good customer handling skills Efficient delivery Serious consideration of consumer complaintsAccording to the Michael Porter (2006), today, more and more companies are recog nizing the importance of satisfying and retaining current customers.  Major advantage of customer retention is â€Å"Acquiring new customers can cost five times more than the costs involved in satisfying and retaining current customers.It requires a great deal of effort to induce satisfied customers to switch away from their current suppliers.† Customer satisfaction levels can be measured using survey techniques and questionnaires. Getting high levels of customer satisfaction is very important to a business because satisfied customers are most likely to be loyal and to make repeated orders and to use a wide range of services offered by a business.Analysis, Findings and DiscussionTo begin analyzing the Herbal Tea Product data, SPSS version 15.0 was used for statistical testing. In this research descriptive data analysis, frequencies and inferential statistic (Pearson correlation analysis) were used. From the analysis of Descriptive, Frequencies and Pearson correlation, the m ain findings and discussion can be found as follow.Demography of CustomersThe total number of respondents who participated in this research was 91 consumers and 58 wholesalers. Table 1 illustrates the demographic data of consumer respondents. Table 1: Demographic data of Customers (Consumers, N=91)Items n %Gender Male 38 41.8Female 53 58.2Age 20 to 40 41 to 60 61 and above 39 43 9 42.9 47.3 9.8Monthly Income (Myanmar Kyat) 10,000 to 4,00,000 4,10,000 to 8,00,000 8,10,000 and above 50 33 8 55.0 46.2 9.8As shown in table (1), the respondents consisted of 41.8% male and 58.2% female. Most of the respondents (47.3%) were in the age range of 41 to 60 years old. 42.9% of the respondents were 20 to 40 years old and only 9.8% of respondents were 61 years old and above. With regard to personal monthly income level, over half of the respondents i.e (55%) had the level of (10,000 to 4,00,000) Kyats, whereas another 46.2% of respondents earned (4,10,000 to 8,00,000) Kyats and only 9.8% of respo ndents had the range of above 8,10,000 Kyats.Frequencies of Consumers SatisfactionFrom the result of descriptive analysis on customer satisfaction (illustrated in Table 2), 29.7% of the consumers were satisfied with Good condition,  25.3% were satisfied with Fair condition, 17.6% of consumers were satisfied, 16.5% were satisfied with Very Good condition and only 11% were dissatisfied with Poor condition in quality of products.Table 2Customer satisfaction on product quality, taste of product and quality of packing (Consumers, N=91) Item Poor Fair Good Very Good ExcellentProduct Quality (%) 11.0 25.3 29.7 16.5 17.6Taste of Product (%) 18.7 24.2 25.3 23.1 8.8Quality of Packing (%) 16.5 25.3 34.1 12.1 12.1The result of finding on taste of products and quality of packing were displayed in Table 2. According to this research we can see most of the consumers are satisfied with 24.2%, 25.3% and 23.1% for fair, good and very good respectively on the taste of products. But 18.7% of consumer s were dislike the taste and only 8.8 % of the consumers were completely satisfied for taste. We can also see the frequencies of customer satisfaction on Table 2. Therefore we can conclude that majority consumers are satisfied with quality, taste and packing of the products. Table 3 shows the result of customer satisfaction on price, reliability of product and recommend to other for products.Even though (30.8%) of the respondents perceived that the price of the product were fair, another 33% were no comment (neither agree nor disagree) on price. However it was found that a significant total of 36.3% did not perceived price as fair. We can draw a conclusion that the price is not fair for most of respondents and we need to adjust the pricing strategy because pricing is one of the most important elements of the marketing mix and pricing a product too high or too low could mean a loss of sales for the organisation.For reliability (cannot side effect to consumer) of product, (38.5%) of c onsumers were neither agree nor disagree and a total of (34.1%) of the consumers were strongly reliable on product. But (27.5%) of consumers were not reliable on product. According to this result, we need to develop the product to get more reliable from customers.Table 3Customer satisfaction on price, reliability of product and recommend to other (Consumers, N=91) Item Strongly Disagree Disagree Neither Agree nor Disagree Agree Strongly AgreeFair Price (%) 16.5 19.8 33.0 14.3 16.5Reliability of Product (%) 12.1 15.4 38.5 24.2 9.9Recommend to other (%) 5.5 20.9 26.4 30.8 16.5Frequencies of Wholesalers SatisfactionTable 4 shows the result of wholesalers’ satisfaction on service quality. From this result most of the respondents of (20.7%, 39.7% and 12.1%) were felt neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, somewhat satisfied, completely satisfied respectively for on time delivery. According to this analysis we found that most of the respondents were satisfied for on time delivery. But 15.5% of respondents were felt completely dissatisfied and 12.1% of respondents were also felt somewhat dissatisfied for on time delivery. If we want to maintain our customer satisfaction and retention we should care dissatisfied customers by doing effective service recovery which can improve their satisfaction level.Half of the customers were felt neither satisfied nor dissatisfied on sale management. Completely dissatisfied was not found at sale management. For sale person’s dealing, we found most of the customers were satisfied and only 1.7% of respondents were completely dissatisfied. The result of non-defect performance revealed that only 1.7% was defected. Mostly they were performed without defect.Table 4Customer satisfaction on Service Quality (Wholesalers, N=58) Item Completely Dissatisfied Somewhat Dissatisfied Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied Somewhat Satisfied Completely SatisfiedOn Time Delivery (%) 15.5 12.1 20.7 39.7 12.1Sale Management (%) 0 17.2 51.7 24.1 6 .9Sale Person’s Dealing (%) 1.7 13.8 32.8 41.4 10.3Non-Defect Performance (%) 1.7 20.7 44.8 27.6 5.2Hypothesis Testing and Results Table 5 Hypothesis 1: There is relationship between product quality and customer satisfaction Variable Pearson Correlation, r Significant, p Mean Standard Deviation Product Quality .276(**) .008 3.04 1.255 ** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed)

Anne Maxwell Struggle With Exploitative Photography †Essay

Anne Maxwell Struggle With Exploitative Photography – Essay Free Online Research Papers Anne Maxwell Struggle With Exploitative Photography Essay While Anne Maxwell raises some interesting and valid points regarding the exploitative portrayal of indigenous peoples in colonial photography, it is worthwhile focussing on what she sees as exceptions to this rule. Her assertion that studio portraits of the colonised peoples dressed in Western clothes show their ‘empowerment’ is extremely reductive and overly simplistic, especially in light of the critical nature of the rest of the article. Arguably, this type of portrait merely shows an internalisation of the subjugation they were exposed to, and Maxwell betrays her own latent imperialist tendencies when she presents the Westernisation of a colonised people as progressive and empowering. Further, in her examination of the nature of ‘the gaze’ (arguably a romantic and sentimental idea in the first place), Maxwell dictates that ‘the gaze’ that the photographer deliberately allows is more empowering than one which is included despite their attempts at control – an idea which seems to indicate that the empowerment comes not from the sitter themselves, but from the coloniser/photographer, who ‘allows’ them to project their individuality and subjectivity in the terms of the Western eye. Essentially, her ideas of empowerment seem to hinge on the reaction of the Western viewer, as identifying with or seeing the sitter as ‘civilised’, ‘empowered’, rather than an internal feeling of control by the indigenous subject of the photo. Research Papers on Anne Maxwell Struggle With Exploitative Photography - EssayBringing Democracy to AfricaWhere Wild and West MeetEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsUnreasonable Searches and SeizuresRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andCapital PunishmentHip-Hop is ArtIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in Capital

12 Things You Should Never Say At Work

12 Things You Should Never Say At Work At work, we sometimes speak without thinking especially when feeling stressed or overwhelmed. The words being said can be taken out of context and can get you on bad terms with both your employer and co-workers. Here are 12 things you should never  say at work and the alternative of what you should  say instead.Source [ Headway Capital ]

Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 10

Education - Essay Example nd distracted; such classroom behaviour4 was not an encouraging response, so I discarded the initial lecture I had planned and started showing them pictures of Degas’ paintings, to stimulate their interest in the world of Degas’ art and human figures.5 After listening to the tape, I feel that my soft voice and formal approach at the beginning of the lesson was not helpful in gaining the attention of the students, because they could not connect with me. I should have started off trying to engage their interest and stimulate their curiosity since children learn best within a positive environment where they are actively engaged.6 What I was doing was lecturing instead, talking down to them - so they were switching off rather than engaging. I had to adapt my instruction, because what I was using was not working, so I decided that it would be better to adopt a more informal and interactive approach, since children love to ask questions. I was tense and holding myself too stiffly, perhaps the children sensed it too. So I relaxed and held out my hands to invite them to draw closer to me to look at Degas’ pictures and start painting them. I was pleased to note that my ability to realize when one method was not working, in order to switch to another was one of my strong points in the lesson, because my inviting tone and gesture worked very well; the restless children who felt bound by their desks were able to loosen up and I also relaxed when I didn’t feel like I was on the spot, standing up in front of the class, as the teacher. I didn’t have to shout so loud either. I invited their participation by asking them questions like, â€Å"Do you think this painting is good?† and â€Å"What do you like about it?† I wanted to see what the first impressions of the children would be – what would they notice, what would they wonder about? I was delighted to find that they were astute enough to notice that the painting was a set of lots of dots, because they were viewing

Annual Marketing Plan Nokia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Annual Marketing Plan Nokia - Essay Example It is evident from the study that the cell phone industry is becoming increasingly competitive as different competitors are coming up with newer products with the aim of taking more and more market share. The needs of the customers have also become sophisticated and now they are demanding better features. In the midst of all this, Nokia is constantly losing market share to rival companies. Apple, Google, HTC, and Samsung are all making inroads into the cell phone industry. These companies have challenged the market leadership of Nokia and in turn have reduced the sales of the company significantly. The situation demands that Nokia acts immediately if the company wants to remain active in the market for a long period. Analysts have suggested lower pricing as the main reason behind company’s low profits. Nokia, in the wake of all the new, had to lower prices in order to compete. This had a toll on the profits of the company. On the other hand Apple and Google are already shrinki ng the market by targeting the youth. The overall situation is developing to be disastrous for the company. Nokia was once the 5th most valuable brand of the world, but now it has plummeted to 79th. This is evidence of the declining situation of the company. Nokia has to invest in its marketing campaign vigorously in order to retain its position in the market. The problem is lower pricing and that can be solved by creating a brand value. Nokia has to create a sense of value for the customers and only then it can justify its higher prices. The product line of the company is the widest in the industry so the problem is not with the products; rather it is with the marketing strategy of the company. The main marketing objective must be to enhance the brand image of the company in the eyes of the users. The main concern for the company should be the emerging markets of Asia where population is growing. The younger population of Asian markets should be targeted by Nokia through marketing campaigns and features of different cell phones should be communicated to the youth. The main aim of the company should be to do away with price based competition with smaller brands. Pricing should be higher than smaller brands and lower than Apple and Google. This pricing can attract major chunk of the market and Nokia should attempt to cash in this market. The strategy of Nokia should be to provide value to the customers beyond lower pricing. People buy Apple even though it is highly priced just because they expect greater value in return. Nokia is also developing cell phones that are of superior quality but it is essential to communicate this to the customers. The company is currently lowering its prices in India as compared to the prices of similar models in other countries (Daga, 2007). Actually the strategy should be to create a sense of higher quality and then charge a premium for that superior quality from the customers. A total of change in company’s marketing dynam ics is needed. Nokia should adopt a more youth oriented approach in its marketing campaigns. The company has very recently announced smart phones with Windows. The company is also changing its marketing appeal with more focus on the younger population (O’Reilly, 2011). Similar tactics should be used to gain more market share all around the world. Nokia should design similar specific campaigns for different models. Customers should know that Nokia is also a valuable brand like Apple and Google. The new Windows smart phones of Nokia are also not being sold for at least a couple of months outside United States (Velazco, 2011). This is a good step that will enable Nokia to focus on US markets. The company can also gain valuable customer insights before going to international markets. Nokia will have to invest heavily in its marketing campaigns. The products should be advertised heavily using social networking

Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 8

Technology - Essay Example For a school setup, the preeminent suggested computer placement arrangement entails the use of laboratories. In this setup, the placement of the machines should be done in the two 30-station computer labs. This method is suitable in this particular setting since the student’s improvement in learning computers can be closely scrutinized. Moreover, the vulnerability of destruction of the machines will be significantly reduced. In addition, the computer teachers are able to monitor the computers in order to avoid cases connected to theft of computers and the peripheral devices. According to the lab station method, the computers are arranged in the room in an organized manner to prevent learners and other individuals from stumbling over the peripheral devices. In the arrangement of computers, in a lab, there are three main arrangement setups. They include computers arranged in clusters of four, horse shoe facing the walls and rows of computers facing the front board (Andrew, 2010). Experts prefer the use of the horse shoe organization method. This is because the lecturer is able to move around the lab pretty effortlessly in case any novice needs aid on something (Andrew, 2010). In the horseshoe setting, the wiring method will be from the mains circuit to the feeder wires that will transmit power to the computers in the lab. In terms of security, the school should install an alarm system for the two lab rooms, and also introduce strict rules that will protect the computers from damage by the learners. Also, the arrangement setup should also consider that the lab is well aerated to prevent the machines from overheating. This will improve the effectiveness and performance of the computers (Tison, 1991). On the one hand, the school board should pick apt and learned individuals who will be responsible for maintaining the computers and the computer labs. The selection made

History Of The Virtual Private Network

History Of The Virtual Private Network A VPN supplies virtual network connectivity over a possibly long physical distance. The key feature of a VPN, however, is its ability to use public networks like the Internet rather than rely on private leased lines which consume valuable recourse and extra cost . VPN technologies implement restricted-access networks that utilize the same cabling and routers as a public network, and they do so without sacrificing features or basic security , a simple cooperation office and remote branched VPN shown in below diagram . Sonicwall_Vpn A VPN supports at least three different modes of use as shown above: Remote access client connections. LAN-to-LAN internetworking . Controlled access within an intranet . A several network protocols have become popular as a result of VPN developments state as following : PPTP L2TP IPsec These protocols emphasize authentication and encryption in VPNs. Authentication allows VPN clients and servers to correctly establish the identity of people on the network. Encryption allows potentially sensitive data to be hidden from the general public. Many vendors have developed VPN hardware and/or software products. Unfortunately, immature VPN standards mean that some of these products remain incompatible with each other till now. Virtual private networks have grown in popularity as businesses to save money on remote network access for employees. Many corporations have also adopted VPNs as a security solution for private Wi-Fi wireless networks. Expect a continued gradual expansion in use of VPN technology to continue in the coming years. Objectives:- A virtual private network can resolve many of the issues associated with todays private networks. Cost: The cost of such links is high especially when they involve international locations. Even when VPNs are implemented on a provider private network, it would still be less expensive. Mobility of workforce: Many companies are encouraging telecommunications to reduce their investment in real estate, reduce traffic, and reduce pollution from automobile E-commerce applications: However, in traditional private networks, this kind of special access provision is difficult to incorporate because it is not easy to install dedicated link to all suppliers and business partners, nor it is flexible because a change in the supplier would require de-installing the link and installing another one to the new vendor. Advantages of VPN VPNs promise two main advantages over competing approaches cost savings, and scalability (that is really just a different form of cost savings). The Low Cost of a VPN One way a VPN lowers costs is by eliminating the need for expensive long-distance leased lines. With VPNs, an organization needs only a relatively short dedicated connection to the service provider. This connection could be a local leased line (much less expensive than a long-distance one), or it could be a local broadband connection such as DSL service. Another way VPNs reduce costs is by lessening the need for long-distance telephone charges for remote access. Recall that to provide remote access service, VPN clients need only call into the nearest service providers access point. In some cases this may require a long distance call, but in many cases a local call will suffice. A third, more subtle way that VPNs may lower costs is through offloading of the support burden. With VPNs, the service provider rather than the organization must support dial-up access for example. Service providers can in theory charge much less for their support than it costs a company internally because the public providers cost is shared amongst potentially thousands of customers. Scalability and VPNs The cost to an organization of traditional leased lines may be reasonable at first but can increase exponentially as the organization grows. A company with two branch offices, for example, can deploy just one dedicated line to connect the two locations. If a third branch office needs to come online, just two additional lines will be required to directly connect that location to the other two. However, as an organization grows and more companies must be added to the network, the number of leased lines required increases dramatically. Four branch offices require six lines for full connectivity, five offices require ten lines, and so on. Mathematicans call this phenomenon a combinatorial explosion, and in a traditional WAN this explosion limits the flexibility for growth. VPNs that utilize the Internet avoid this problem by simply tapping into the geographically-distributed access already available. Disadvantages of VPNs With the hype that has surrounded VPNs historically, the potential pitfalls or weak spots in the VPN model can be easy to forget. These four concerns with VPN solutions are often raised. 1. VPNs require an in-depth understanding of public network security issues and proper deployment of precautions. 2. The availability and performance of an organizations wide-area VPN (over the Internet in particular) depends on factors largely outside of their control. 3. VPN technologies from different vendors may not work well together due to immature standards. 4. VPNs need to accomodate protocols other than IP and existing internal network technology. Generally speaking, these four factors comprise the hidden costs of a VPN solution. Whereas VPN advocates tout cost savings as the primary advantage of this technology, detractors cite hidden costs as the primary disadvantage of VPNs INTERNET VPNS FOR REMOTE ACCESS In recent years, many organizations have increased the mobility of their workers by allowing more employees to telecommute. Employees also continue to travel and face a growing need to stay connected to their company networks. A VPN can be set up to support remote, protected access to the corporate home offices over the Internet. An Internet VPN solution uses a client/server design works as follows: 1. A remote host (client) wanting to log into the company network first connects to any public Internet Service Provider (ISP). 2. Next, the host initiates a VPN connection to the company VPN server. This connection is made via a VPN client installed on the remote host. 3. Once the connection has been established, the remote client can communicate with the internal company systems over the Internet just as if it were a local host. Before VPNs, remote workers accessed company networks over private leased lines or through dialup remote access servers. While VPN clients and servers careful require installation of hardware and software, an Internet VPN is a superior solution in many situations. VPNS FOR INTERNETWORKING Besides using virtual private networks for remote access, a VPN can also bridge two networks together. In this mode of operation, an entire remote network (rather than just a single remote client) can join to a different company network to form an extended intranet. This solution uses a VPN server to VPN server connection. Through the use of dedicated equipment and large-scale encryption, a company can connect multiple fixed sites over a public network such as the Internet. Site-to-site VPNs can be one of two types: Intranet-based If a company has one or more remote locations that they wish to join in a single private network, they can create an intranet VPN to connect LAN to LAN. Extranet-based When a company has a close relationship with another company (for example, a partner, supplier or customer), they can build an extranet VPN that connects LAN to LAN, and that allows all of the various companies to work in a shared environment. vpn-type INTRANET / LOCAL NETWORK VPNS Internal networks may also utilize VPN technology to implement controlled access to individual subnets within a private network. In this mode of operation, VPN clients connect to a VPN server that acts as the network gateway. This type of VPN use does not involve an Internet Service Provider (ISP) or public network cabling. However, it allows the security benefits of VPN to be deployed inside an organization. This approach has become especially popular as a way for businesses to protect their WiFi local networks. TUNNELING: SITE-TO-SITE In a site-to-site VPN, GRE (generic routing encapsulation) is normally the encapsulating protocol that provides the framework for how to package the passenger protocol for transport over the carrier protocol, which is typically IP-based. This includes information on what type of packet you are encapsulating and information about the connection between the client and server. Instead of GRE, IPSec in tunnel mode is sometimes used as the encapsulating protocol. IPSec works well on both remote-access and site-to-site VPNs. IPSec must be supported at both tunnel interfaces to use. TUNNELING Most VPNs rely on tunneling to create a private network that reaches across the Internet. Essentially, tunneling is the process of placing an entire packet within another packet and sending it over a network. The protocol of the outer packet is understood by the network and both points, called tunnel interfaces, where the packet enters and exits the network. Tunneling requires three different protocols: Carrier protocol The protocol used by the network that the information is traveling over Encapsulating protocol The protocol (GRE, IPSec, L2F, PPTP, L2TP) that is wrapped around the original data Passenger protocol The original data (IPX, NetBeui, IP) being carried Tunneling has amazing implications for VPNs. For example, you can place a packet that uses a protocol not supported on the Internet (such as NetBeui) inside an IP packet and send it safely over the Internet. Or you could put a packet that uses a private (non-routable) IP address inside a packet that uses a globally unique IP address to extend a private network over the Internet. COST SAVINGS WITH A VPN A VPN can save an organization money in several situations: Eliminating the need for expensive long-distance leased lines Reducing long-distance telephone charges Offloading support costs VPNS VS LEASED LINES Organizations historically needed to rent network capacity such as T1 lines to achieve full, secured connectivity between their office locations. With a VPN, you use public network infrastructure including the Internet to make these connections and tap into that virtual network through much cheaper local leased lines or even just broadband connections to a nearby Internet Service Provider (ISP). LONG DISTANCE PHONE CHARGES A VPN also can replace remote access servers and long-distance dialup network connections commonly used in the past by business travelers needing to access to their company intranet. For example, with an Internet VPN, clients need only connect to the nearest service providers access point that is usually local. SUPPORT COSTS With VPNs, the cost of maintaining servers tends to be less than other approaches because organizations can outsource the needed support from professional third-party service providers. These provides enjoy a much lower cost structure through economy of scale by servicing many business clients. VPN NETWORK SCALABILITY The cost to an organization of building a dedicated private network may be reasonable at first but increases exponentially as the organization grows. A company with two branch offices, for example, can deploy just one dedicated line to connect the two locations, but 4 branch offices require 6 lines to directly connect them to each other, 6 branch offices need 15 lines, and so on. Internet based VPNs avoid this scalability problem by simply tapping into the public lines and network capability readily available. Particularly for remote and international locations, an Internet VPN offers superior reach and quality of service. USING A VPN To use a VPN, each client must possess the appropriate networking software or hardware support on their local network and computers. When set up properly, VPN solutions are easy to use and sometimes can be made to work automatically as part of network sign on. VPN technology also works well with WiFi local area networking. Some organizations use VPNs to secure wireless connections to their local access points when working inside the office. These solutions provide strong protection without affecting performance excessively. VPN SECURITY: IPSEC Internet Protocol Security Protocol (IPSec) provides enhanced security features such as better encryption algorithms and more comprehensive authentication. vpn-diagram2 Photo courtesy Cisco Systems, Inc. A remote-access VPN utilizing IPSec IPSec has two encryption modes: tunnel and transport. Tunnel encrypts the header and the payload of each packet while transport only encrypts the payload. Only systems that are IPSec compliant can take advantage of this protocol. Also, all devices must use a common key and the firewalls of each network must have very similar security policies set up. IPSec can encrypt data between various devices, such as: Router to router Firewall to router PC to router PC to server LIMITATIONS OF A VPN Despite their popularity, VPNs are not perfect and limitations exist as is true for any technology. Organizations should consider issues like the below when deploying and using virtual private networks in their operations: VPNs require detailed understanding of network security issues and careful installation / configuration to ensure sufficient protection on a public network like the Internet. The reliability and performance of an Internet-based VPN is not under an organizations direct control. Instead, the solution relies on an ISP and their quality of service. Historically, VPN products and solutions from different vendors have not always been compatible due to issues with VPN technology standards. Attempting to mix and match equipment may cause technical problems, and using equipment from one provider may not give as great a cost savings. TYPES OF VPN TUNNELING VPN supports two types of tunneling voluntary and compulsory. Both types of tunneling are commonly used. In voluntary tunneling, the VPN client manages connection setup. The client first makes a connection to the carrier network provider (an ISP in the case of Internet VPNs). Then, the VPN client application creates the tunnel to a VPN server over this live connection. In compulsory tunneling, the carrier network provider manages VPN connection setup. When the client first makes an ordinary connection to the carrier, the carrier in turn immediately brokers a VPN connection between that client and a VPN server. From the client point of view, VPN connections are set up in just one step compared to the two-step procedure required for voluntary tunnels. Compulsory VPN tunneling authenticates clients and associates them with specific VPN servers using logic built into the broker device. This network device is sometimes called the VPN Front End Processor (FEP), Network Access Server (NAS) or Point of Presence Server (POS). Compulsory tunneling hides the details of VPN server connectivity from the VPN clients and effectively transfers management control over the tunnels from clients to the ISP. In return, service providers must take on the additional burden of installing and maintaining FEP devices. VPN TUNNELING PROTOCOLS Several computer network protocols have been implemented specifically for use with VPN tunnels. The three most popular VPN tunneling protocols listed below continue to compete with each other for acceptance in the industry. These protocols are generally incompatible with each other. POINT-TO-POINT TUNNELING PROTOCOL (PPTP) Several corporations worked together to create the PPTP specification. People generally associate PPTP with Microsoft because nearly all flavors of Windows include built-in client support for this protocol. The initial releases of PPTP for Windows by Microsoft contained security features that some experts claimed were too weak for serious use. Microsoft continues to improve its PPTP support, though. LAYER TWO TUNNELING PROTOCOL (L2TP) The original competitor to PPTP for VPN tunneling was L2F, a protocol implemented primarily in Cisco products. In an attempt to improve on L2F, the best features of it and PPTP were combined to create new standard called L2TP. Like PPTP, L2TP exists at the data link layer (Layer Two) in the OSI model thus the origin of its name. INTERNET PROTOCOL SECURITY (IPSEC) IPsec is actually a collection of multiple related protocols. It can be used as a complete VPN protocol solution, or it can used simply as the encryption scheme within L2TP or PPTP. IPsec exists at the network layer (Layer Three) of the OSI model. Using PPTP PPTP packages data within PPP packets, then encapsulates the PPP packets within IP packets (datagrams) for transmission through an Internet-based VPN tunnel. PPTP supports data encryption and compression of these packets. PPTP also uses a form of General Routing Encapsulation (GRE) to get data to and from its final destination. PPTP-based Internet remote access VPNs are by far the most common form of PPTP VPN. In this environment, VPN tunnels are created via the following two-step process: The PPTP client connects to their ISP using PPP dial-up networking (traditional modem or ISDN). Via the broker device (described earlier), PPTP creates a TCP control connection between the VPN client and VPN server to establish a tunnel. PPTP uses TCP port 1723 for these connections. PPTP also supports VPN connectivity via a LAN. ISP connections are not required in this case, so tunnels can be created directly as in Step 2 above. Once the VPN tunnel is established, PPTP supports two types of information flow: Control messages for managing and eventually tearing down the VPN connection. Control messages pass directly between VPN client and server. Data packets that pass through the tunnel, to or from the VPN client PPTP CONTROL CONNECTION Once the TCP connection is established in Step 2 above, PPTP utliizes a series of control messages to maintain VPN connections. These messages are listed below. No. Name Description 1 StartControlConnectionRequest Initiates setup of the VPN session; can be sent by either client or server. 2 StartControlConnectionReply Sent in reply to the start connection request (1); contains result code indicating success or failure of the setup operation, and also the protocol version number. 3 StopControlConnectionRequest Request to close the control connection. 4 StopControlConnectionReply Sent in reply to the stop connection request (3); contains result code indicating success or failure of the close operation. 5 EchoRequest Sent periodically by either client or server to ping the connection (keep alive). 6 EchoReply Sent in response to the echo request (5) to keep the connection active. 7 OutgoingCallRequest Request to create a VPN tunnel sent by the client. 8 OutgoingCallReply Response to the call request (7); contains a unique identifier for that tunnel. 9 IncomingCallRequest Request from a VPN client to receive an incoming call from the server. 10 IncomingCallReply Response to the incoming call request (9), indicating whether the incoming call should be answered. 11 IncomingCallConnected Response to the incoming call reply (10); provides additional call parameters to the VPN server. 12 CallClearRequest Request to disconnect either an incoming or outgoing call, sent from the server to a client. 13 CallDisconnectNotify Response to the disconnect request (12); sent back to the server. 14 WANErrorNotify Notification periodically sent to the server of CRC, framing, hardware and buffer overruns, timeout and byte alignment errors. 15 SetLinkInfo Notification of changes in the underlying PPP options. With control messages, PPTP utlizes a so-called magic cookie. The PPTP magic cookie is hardwired to the hexadecimal number 0x1A2B3C4D. The purpose of this cookie is to ensure the receiver interprets the incoming data on the correct byte boundaries. PPTP SECURITY PPTP supports authentication, encryption, and packet filtering. PPTP authentication uses PPP-based protocols like EAP, CHAP, and PAP. PPTP supports packet filtering on VPN servers. Intermediate routers and other firewalls can also be configured to selectively filter PPTP traffic. PPTP AND PPP In general, PPTP relies on the functionality of PPP for these aspects of virtual private networking. authenticating users and maintaining the remote dial-up connection encapsulating and encrypting IP, IPX, or NetBEUI packets PPTP directly handles maintaining the VPN tunnel and transmitting data through the tunnel. PPTP also supports some additional security features for VPN data beyond what PPP provides. PPTP PROS AND CONS PPTP remains a popular choice for VPNs thanks to Microsoft. PPTP clients are freely available in all popular versions of Microsoft Windows. Windows servers also can function as PPTP-based VPN servers. One drawback of PPTP is its failure to choose a single standard for authentication and encryption. Two products that both fully comply with the PPTP specification may be totally incompatible with each other if they encrypt data differently, for example. Concerns also persist over the questionable level of security PPTP provides compared to alternatives. Routing Tunneling protocols can be used in a point-to-point topology that would generally not be considered a VPN, because a VPN is expected to support arbitrary and changing sets of network nodes. Since most router implementations support software-defined tunnel interface, customer-provisioned VPNs often comprise simply a set of tunnels over which conventional routing protocols run. PPVPNs, however, need to support the coexistence of multiple VPNs, hidden from one another, but operated by the same service provider. Building blocks Depending on whether the PPVPN runs in layer 2 or layer 3, the building blocks described below may be L2 only, L3 only, or combinations of the two. Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) functionality blurs the L2-L3 identity. While RFC 4026 generalized these terms to cover L2 and L3 VPNs, they were introduced in RFC 2547. Customer edge device. (CE) In general, a CE is a device, physically at the customer premises, that provides access to the PPVPN service. Some implementations treat it purely as a demarcation point between provider and customer responsibility, while others allow customers to configure it. Provider edge device (PE) A PE is a device or set of devices, at the edge of the provider network, which provides the providers view of the customer site. PEs are aware of the VPNs that connect through them, and which maintain VPN state. Provider device (P) A P device operates inside the providers core network, and does not directly interface to any customer endpoint. It might, for example, provide routing for many provider-operated tunnels that belong to different customers PPVPNs. While the P device is a key part of implementing PPVPNs, it is not itself VPN-aware and does not maintain VPN state. Its principal role is allowing the service provider to scale its PPVPN offerings, as, for example, by acting as an aggregation point for multiple PEs. P-to-P connections, in such a role, often are high-capacity optical links between major locations of provider. Categorizing VPN security models From the security standpoint, VPNs either trust the underlying delivery network, or must enforce security with mechanisms in the VPN itself. Unless the trusted delivery network runs only among physically secure sites, both trusted and secure models need an authentication mechanism for users to gain access to the VPN. Some Internet service providers as of 2009[update] offer managed VPN service for business customers who want the security and convenience of a VPN but prefer not to undertake administering a VPN server themselves. Managed VPNs go beyond PPVPN scope, and are a contracted security solution that can reach into hosts. In addition to providing remote workers with secure access to their employers internal network, other security and management services are sometimes included as part of the package. Examples include keeping anti-virus and anti-spyware programs updated on each clients computer. Authentication before VPN connection A known trusted user, sometimes only when using trusted devices, can be provided with appropriate security privileges to access resources not available to general users. Servers may also need to authenticate themselves to join the VPN. A wide variety of authentication mechanisms exist. VPNs may implement authentication in devices including firewalls, access gateways, and others. They may use passwords, biometrics, or cryptographic methods. Strong authentication involves combining cryptography with another authentication mechanism. The authentication mechanism may require explicit user action, or may be embedded in the VPN client or the workstation. Trusted delivery networks Trusted VPNs do not use cryptographic tunneling, and instead rely on the security of a single providers network to protect the traffic. In a sense, they elaborate on traditional network- and system-administration work. Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) is often used to overlay VPNs, often with quality-of-service control over a trusted delivery network. Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) which is a standards-based replacement, and a compromise taking the good features from each, for two proprietary VPN protocols: Ciscos Layer 2 Forwarding (L2F) (obsolete as of 2009[update]) and Microsofts Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP). Security mechanisms Secure VPNs use cryptographic tunneling protocols to provide the intended confidentiality (blocking intercept and thus packet sniffing), sender authentication (blocking identity spoofing), and message integrity (blocking message alteration) to achieve privacy. Secure VPN protocols include the following: IPsec (Internet Protocol Security) A standards-based security protocol developed originally for IPv6, where support is mandatory, but also widely used with IPv4. Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) is used either for tunneling an entire networks traffic (SSL VPN), as in the OpenVPN project, or for securing individual connection. SSL has been the foundation by a number of vendors to provide remote access VPN capabilities. A practical advantage of an SSL VPN is that it can be accessed from locations that restrict external access to SSL-based e-commerce websites without IPsec implementations. SSL-based VPNs may be vulnerable to Denial of Service attacks mounted against their TCP connections because latter are inherently unauthenticated. DTLS, used by Cisco for a next generation VPN product called Cisco AnyConnect VPN. DTLS solves the issues found when tunneling TCP over TCP as is the case with SSL/TLS Secure Socket Tunneling Protocol (SSTP) by Microsoft introduced in Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista Service Pack 1. SSTP tunnels Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) or L2TP traffic through an SSL 3.0 channel. L2TPv3 (Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol version 3), a new[update] release. MPVPN (Multi Path Virtual Private Network). Ragula Systems Development Company owns the registered trademark MPVPN. Cisco VPN, a proprietary VPN used by many Cisco hardware devices. Proprietary clients exist for all platforms; open-source clients also exist. SSH VPN OpenSSH offers VPN tunneling to secure remote connections to a network (or inter-network links). This feature (option -w) should not be confused with port forwarding (option -L). OpenSSH server provides limited number of concurrent tunnels and the VPN feature itself does not support personal authentication. VPNs in mobile environments Mobile VPNs handle the special circumstances when one endpoint of the VPN is not fixed to a single IP address, but instead roams across various networks such as data networks from cellular carriers or between multiple Wi-Fi access points. Mobile VPNs have been widely used in public safety, where they give law enforcement officers access to mission-critical applications, such as computer-assisted dispatch and criminal databases, as they travel between different subnets of a mobile network. They are also used in field service management and by healthcare organizations, among other industries. Increasingly, Mobile VPNs are being adopted by mobile professionals and white-collar workers who need reliable connections. They allow users to roam seamlessly across networks and in and out of wireless-coverage areas without losing application sessions or dropping the secure VPN session. A conventional VPN cannot survive such events because the network tunnel is disrupted, causing applications to disconnect, time out, fail, or even the computing device itself to crash. Instead of logically tying the endpoint of the network tunnel to the physical IP address, each tunnel is bound to a virtual IP address that stays with the device. The Mobile VPN software handles the necessary network logins and maintains the application sessions in a manner transparent to the user. The Host Identity Protocol (HIP), under study by the Internet Engineering Task Force, is designed to support mobility of hosts by separating the role of IP addresses for host identification from their locator functionality in an IP network. With HIP a mobile host maintains its logical connections established via the host identity identifier while associating with different IP addresses when roaming between access networks. Conclusion: So what is a Virtual Private Network? As we have discussed, a VPN can take several forms. A VPN can be between two end-systems, or it can be between two or more networks. A VPN can be built using tunnels or encryption (at essentially any layer of the protocol stack), or both, or alternatively constructed using MPLS or one of the virtual router methods. A VPN can consist of networks connected to a service providers network by leased lines, Frame Relay, or ATM, or a VPN can consist of dial-up subscribers connecting to central