SmartDust Speech or Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

SmartDust - Speech or Presentation Example The communication protocol has truly transformed and broadened our horizon. The evolution of SMAR DUST is the development of the century. The technological advent under SMART DUST has facilitated mankind in a manner never imagined before. SMART DUST is not a dust collector, it is control system. This is a system not to control dust, but to control what we want it to. Be it climate forecast, temperature change, vibration upset, computation devices; SMART DUST is service provider for all these monitoring items. Cory Doctorow quoted, "technology is a way of organizing the universe so that man doesn't have to experience it"; truly SMART DUST is the realization of this fact. The monitoring of any surveillance parameter is now possible through SMART DUST. SMART DUST is smart solution for power conservation; reasonable reduction is size and power requirement has been achieved through SMART DUST revolution. The SMART DUST technology is simple solution, it merely comprises of "very compact, autonomous and mobile nodes, each containing one or more sensors, computation and communication capabilities, and a power supply". Mobile networking and systems community has advanced after successful evolution of SMART DUST.

Benthams version of Utilitarianism Essay Example for Free

Benthams version of Utilitarianism Essay Utilitarianism is the ethical theory that shows the reasons for a person choosing to carry out an action it justifies an action being for the greater good. Utilitarianism is a teleological theory which means it looks at the consequences or result of an action to decide whether it is subsequently right or wrong this also makes it a consequentialist theory. The theory of Utilitarianism began with Jeremy Bentham. Benthams theory of Utilitarianism is where actions are judged based upon the pleasure gained in the result. Jeremy Bentham was the man who originally thought of and came up with the idea of Utilitarianism, he believed in the greatest good for the greatest number. There are two types of Utilitarianism; Benthams theory is Act Utilitarianism. Act Utilitarianism is about creating the greatest amount of pleasure in a particular situation through a particular action. Bentham believed and used research to conclude that people would naturally seek pleasure and avoid pain. Nature had placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure. It is for them alone to point out what we ought to do as well as to determine what we shall do. (Bentham) Bentham truly believed that pleasure was the purest form of good and pain the sole evil; he saw this as moral fact. This is why Bentham is also known as a hedonist. The hedonists were a group of Greek people who sought to find true pleasure; hedone means pleasure in Greek, this group included people such as Plato and Aristotle who agreed that good was found in the greatest happiness. The principle of utility was a way to find out how good or bad an action was, based on its utility (usefulness). An action that creates the most pleasure and the least pain is a useful one and therefore it is good pain v pleasure. For Bentham good, is the maximum amount of pleasure with the minimum amount of pain afflicted and bad, is pain with little pleasure received. Bentham believed that in any situation a person should think of a solution that will lead to the maximum happiness for the maximum of people. For example, if a man with the cure for cancer and a young child were in a car crash, you would assume to save the life of the child as they are considered to be innocent, however with Benthams theory you should do the maximum amount of good for the maximum amount of people, which means you should save the man. By saving the one man you then save thousands, the action of letting the child die is out weighed by the amount of people you have saved if using Benthams theory. However Bentham knew that it would be hard to predict the outcome of every situation and know which route to take and so in order to help, he came up with the hedonic calculus which you can use to work out which option will produce the greatest amount of pleasure. There are seven factors which you must take into account when choosing what to do in a certain situation; the intensity of the pleasure, the duration of the pleasure, how certain pleasure will be the result, how near the pleasure is to you, how continuous is the pleasure, is there likely to be pain mixed with the pleasure and how widespread will the pleasure be. When faced in a dilemma, Bentham believed that you could chose the good option the option which would do the most amount of good and the least amount of pain. For example, if you are in a plane crash and you could only save one person; your wife, your child or a doctor who has the ability to save many. Bentham believes in this situation you must use the hedonic calculus to form a solution to your problem. The doctor could make thousands of lives better and create much more pleasure than if you save the wife or child, however this tough decision would leave you without pleasure. Following Benthams utilitarianism you must save the doctor. When a decision has to be made over a moral situation, the hedonic calculus is used. In using the hedonic calculus the individuals involved should be considered by applying the seven factors to them in relation to the options for the choice of action you have. Utilitarianism has no serious weakness Discuss It is true that Utilitarianism does have many strengths however it does have weaknesses too. Bentham, Mill, Hare and Singers theories each have their own faults. Utilitarianism is very straight forward and easy to understand. It is very natural for a person to consider the outcome and how much pleasure they will gain before going through with an action. It is a principle that aims to bring people happiness this is very appealing for many in societies. Many of the ideas and theories can be related to specific actions and situations and therefore can be helped out in the process of considering what to do in certain places, for example; giving to charity gives happiness to the poor and is good whereas acting cruelly towards someone is bad. The use of Utilitarianism can be carried out universally. Utilitarianism is not dependant on any religion, culture, race or society as it is about a person or groups happiness. This use of utilitarianism is great because it makes people picture and understand other peoples point of view for example; if you were to hit someone then instead of carrying out the action, you would think about the outcome picture yourself in the other persons shoes understand that pain which you would cause and subsequently stop yourself from hurting them. You have to think of other peoples pleasure and pain rather than just your own. This is mainly used in preference utilitarianism as Hare put it standing in someone elses shoes. The fact that Utilitarianism is a consequentialist theory is both good and bad. It is natural for us to weigh up the consequences of an action before carrying it out however it is never going to be easy to always predict the outcome of an action completely right for example; if you go out to steal to help your family survive but then get caught and arrested then you can no longer carry out the good action of helping your family. Utilitarianism may also be argued against because it ignores or seems to ignore the importance of following duties the act itself may be right or wrong for a reason other than the amount of happiness it produces, for example an old friend is on his death bed and asks you to swear that you will give à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½30,000 (all of his money when he dies) to his favourite park he used to visit but on the way to handing over the money you see an advert that says it needs à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½30,000 to save 10,000 people. Out of duty you must give the money to the park however if you are following Utilitarianism your belief is that the money must going into creating the most good/ happiness which would be saving those 10,000 people. W.D Ross believed it was important for you to follow and carry out your duty. Benthams Act utilitarianism although was flexible and relied on the consequences it had no defence for minorities for example; one slave being treated badly but creating happiness for a whole family would be thought of as right. Also it is very impractical having to calculate using the hedonic calculus every decision we make. There is also a difficulty defining what pleasure is for example; a paedophiles pleasure is very different to another persons. Mills Rule utilitarianism is very practical and sets about certain rules for society that must be maintained which can help societies to operate. However there are weaknesses to rule utilitarianism too again there is no defence for minorities or any help at what defines happiness but also this time if you are following rules you could end up obeying them even when more happiness can be created by disobeying them.

Comparing Hap by Thomas Hardy and The Second Coming by Yeats Essay

Comparing Hap by Thomas Hardy and The Second Coming by Yeats      Ã‚   Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) was one of the great writers of the Late Victorian era. One of his great works out of the many that he produced was his poem Hap, which he wrote in 1866, but did not publish until 1898 in his collection of poems called Wessex Poems. This poem seems to typify the sense of alienation that he and other writers were experiencing at the time, as they "saw their times as marked by accelerating social and technological change and by the burden of a worldwide empire" (Longman p. 2165). The poem also reveals Hardy's own "abiding sense of a universe ruled by a blind or hostile fate, a world whose landscapes are etched with traces of the fleeting stories of their inhabitants" (Longman p. 2254).    The poem's major theme seems to be this sense of the world being ruled by a hostile and blind fate, not by a benevolent God pushing all of the buttons. This is clearly stated within the poem itself as Hardy writes "If but some vengeful god would call to me / From up the sky, and laugh: 'Thou suffering thing, / Know that thy sorrow is my ecstasy, / That thy love's loss is my hate's profiting!' / Then would I bear it, clench myself, and die, / Steeled by the sense of ire unmerited; / Half-eased in that a Powerfuller than I / Had willed and meted me the tears I shed. / But not so." (Hardy, Longman p. 2255: ll. 1-9). As you can see, this poem shows that Hardy has indeed lost all faith in a benevolent God that deals out suffering and joy to his creations as he willfully deems they deserve and need. Instead of this idea of a benevolent God up above pulling all of the strings of the world and dealing out everyone's personal fate, Hardy believes fate is... ...and present as a sign that the 'Beast' is about to be born and rule the next 2000 years just like Jesus was born and resurrected to rule the last 2000 years, while Hardy just relates the evils and pain that is inflicted on man as a sign that there is no benevolent God, but not that there is an evil God staking his claim to our lives now enstead. He leaves our fate up to mere chance and the passage of time, while Yeats leaves our fate up to the beast (also known as Satan).    Works Cited Bressler, Charles E. Literary Criticism. New Jersey. Prentice Hall, 1999. Damrosch, David, et al., ed.   The Longman Anthology of British Literature: Vol. B.   Compact ed.   New York: Longman - Addison Wesley Longman, 2000. Yeats, William, Butler. "The Second Coming." The Longman Anthology British Literature. Ed. David Damrosch. Longman. New York. 2000. 2329.   

Crew Resource Management and Aviation Safety Essay -- Essays Papers Fl

Abstract Throughout the history of aviation, accidents have and will continue to occur. With the introduction of larger and more complex aircraft, the number of humans required to operate these complex machines has increased as well as, some say, the probability of human error. There are studies upon studies of aircraft accidents and incidents resulting from breakdowns in crew coordination and, more specifically, crew communication. These topics are the driving force behind crew resource management. This paper will attempt to present the concept of crew resource management (CRM) and its impact on aviation safety in modern commercial and military aviation. The concept is not a new one, but is continually evolving and can even include non-human elements such as computer-controlled limitations on aircraft maneuvers and the conflicts that result in the airline industry. Crew Resource Management and Aviation Safety Since the birth of aviation, man has been tasked with operating aircraft safely, yet effectively. From the beginning days of being able to simply operate an aircraft without injury for seconds at a time, to today's issues with safety in supersonic international travel, crew resource management has been with us in some from the beginning. The term "CRM" began to spread in the 1980's among the major airlines, fueled by industry and university research into human factors. The U.S. military has also taken a very active in the development of CRM techniques to aid in the high stress environment of military aviation. The basic concept of crew resource management (CRM) is to train crewmembers to use all available personnel, equipment, and experience to safely and effectively operate an aircraft. It is used in nearly every facet of aviation from the smallest regional airline, to the largest major carrier, to the various crew operated military aircraft. One aspect of aviation missing from the fold is the general aviation (GA) community, such as the private pilot. This has become a growing concern as many future air carrier pilots and military pilots begin as private pilots. The need for CRM training in this area is there, but the training seems excessive and useless to many in the field as most of these pilots operate single pilot aircraft. Perhaps this attitude comes from the term "crew" and is dismissed by the ... ... problem are under constant development and analysis, in a hope to avoid these situations. The civilian industry continues to lead in development due to commercialization, with the military not far behind. The only real deficiency in CRM program development seems to be the area of general aviation as described earlier. Until this problem is addressed, there will still be a glaring weakness in the general area of aviation safety. However, with the rate of technology increase and cheaper methods of instruction, we should begin to see this problem addressed in the near future. Until then, aviation will rely on civil commercial aviation the military to continue research and program development for the years to come, hopefully resulting in an increasingly safe method of travel and recreation. References Hawkins, Frank H. (1987). Human Factors in Flight, 2nd ed., 35, 36. Santiago, Marco Jr. (1996). Application of Crew Resource Management and Line Oriented Flight Training Concepts to General Aviation Flight Training. Arizona State University. Simmon, David A. (1998). Boeing 757 CFIT Accident at Cali, Columbia, Becomes Focus of Lessons Learned. Flight Safety Digest.

Mammon Winery

Mammon Winery, Inc is a wine company established by a man with the name Dionysus Mammon, Sr (Mann and Roberts).   He was an immigrant from Greece who came to the United States in 1930 (Mann and Roberts). Mammon Sr. founded the company on a line of non-varietal jug wines (Mann and Roberts).   Mammon Winery, Inc. found its strong hold in the market with this specialty line.   Later, having finished a degree in enology, the study of wine making, Dionysus Jr. would join his father in the company. Dionysus jr. began his wine making crusade by convincing his father to branch out and explore other options within the wine making industry (Mann and Roberts).   This new line of exploration was in the form of premium varietal wines.   However, in order to be successful in this venture, they needed a large increase of capital for purchasing the necessary vineyards (Mann and Roberts).   Reluctantly, Dionysus Sr. took the company public and secured the required funds (Mann and Roberts).   Forty percent of Mammon Winery Inc. became owned by the public (Mann and Roberts).   For the first time, â€Å"outsiders† sat in on the board of directors (Mann and Roberts). The issue most concerning Dionysus Sr. in regards to Mammon Winery, Inc. was how to present this new line of premium varietals.   To use the Mammon Winery corporate name or to not, was the big debate over the labeling of the bottles (Mann and Roberts).  Ã‚   When changing the look and scope of a particular line, using the corporate company name could be detrimental to the initial successful production of wines.   Dionysus Jr.’s want to use a different name just as Canadaigua, Gallo, and Mogen David had done, was not an out of the ordinary proposal. It offers protection to the Mammon Winery Inc. from the consumers of the other line attaching the â€Å"lower class† taste to the whole company (Mann and Roberts).   Another issue is that Dionysus Jr. wanted to change the size of the wine to a pint rather than leave it in traditional wine bottle form (Mann and Roberts).   The idea was that the easier to carry bottle would be more appealing to those in the middle to low economic class.   It would make the new line of production more marketable for the pensioners on a fixed income.   Dionysus Jr. was taking the company into a new area in which it could offer a product to the average consumer even if they were not big on drinking wine. Mammon Winery, Inc. proposed to enter a new wine market for lower-end wines, which is due to the increase in unit sales in the fortified wine market. This is an attempt to enter the cheap wine market and cash in on profits that come along with it. The proposal has a target demographic of middle-to-lower class, or pensioners on a fixed income (Mann & Roberts). In order for Mammon Winery, Inc to come from the bottom of the barrel to the crà ¨me of the crop replies heavily on several key fundamentals. The winery needs to identify and analyze the important issues of how can they capitalize on producing a cost efficient product that is entered into a market that is rising, and who is their chief demographic. Mammon Winery, Inc plans to introduce a low-end wine product that is made cheaply and sold by the pint (Mann & Roberts). It is recommended that the product to be sold by the pint to lower the cost, both for the company and consumer. It is planned to use rejected grapes from Mammon’s premium selection and the filling of their unused capacity is expected. In addition, it is noted that any grape is suitable and can insulate the company from bad grape years (Mann & Roberts). Mammon chooses to use less advertising, which will cut cost, and use wine gurus to entice consumers to their product. The chief demographic is individuals on a fixed income – middle-to-low class. On the other hand, it was reported that a competitor’s lower-end product hit it big with the â€Å"yuppie† crowd of England (Mann & Roberts). The individuals with fixed incomes will find this product appealing and convenient. Mammon Winery, Inc. will sell the cheap sugary wine at eighteen percent alcohol to retailers. They indicate that the projected audience is the perpetually intoxicated and further indicated that it is against the law to sell alcoholic beverages to the intoxicated but state it is not their problem and cannot control what the retailer chooses to do (Mann & Roberts). Mammon Winery, Inc. knowingly sold their product to a target audience of â€Å"winos† and chose to take advantage of the consumer by offering a much more affordable, cheap wine. This can be easily compared to the tobacco companies choosing a target demographic of individuals of non-smoking age by making their product appealing (Mann & Roberts). For instance, both companies are holding back valuable information from the customer. Both products by both companies are addictive and can cause serious health issue, but still these companies greatly affect the target audience one way or another. This is because it pays or at least promises to pay (Sullivan 2001). A company may gain something, or may keep from losing something by selling to their target audience or unethically holding back information that may turn away consumers. However, the profit motive holds in both cases. It is noted by Mammon Winery, Inc. that profit margins would be at least ten percent higher on the lower-end product then their other lines (Mann & Roberts). Therefore, the company’s urge to branch out in the wine industry by offering a new product is nothing beyond regular business practices.   However, their intentional marketing of the product to those suffering from alcoholism or the homeless is an underhanded technique.   They run into an ethical conflict as they must now combat their marketing techniques with significant contributions to charities. These charities though, must also be chosen for a reason.   Just as the tobacco industry chooses specific charities for good-will projects, so too will Mammon Winery, Inc.   Mammon Winery, Inc. will also have to construct both a label and bottle that will effectively promote their new line.   However, the targeted audience should not be able to be determined based upon its looks.   The price will be adjusted for the targeted consumer, but beyond that, it should not be obvious in its aim.   Therefore, the expansion of Mammon Winery Inc. is within reasonable business practices but will have to carefully combat its stated aim at a particular consumer with clever charitable contributions. Works Cited Mann, Richard A. and Roberts, Barry S. â€Å"Mammon Winery, Inc.† Sullivan, Evelin. The Concise Book of Lying. 2001   

School Levies essays

School Levies essays Most of you may think that school levies are a good thing. Pay a little more in taxes to help out the local school. It sounds like a great thing but there is a slight misconception about the school levies that most people dont bother to think about. Every so often, a new levy is introduced for the people to vote on. Some of those people think that the levy is a good deal. Their extra taxes goes to the extra-curricular activities at the school. Most of them have probably voted on another levy before and what they dont know is that the previous levy is still in effect. They are still paying taxes on it. The levy they will vote on in the future is an add-on to the one in the past. Each levy raises taxes just a little bit. Under one percent more. This seems like a small amount but add it onto the past levies and it can sum up to a lot of money. If your property is worth about $100,000, a one percent property tax is worth $1,000. Thats only one house. How much could the school spend on sports? The coaches salary and the bus for away games are about it. The players even have to spend money for equipment too. The school got by before with the money they obtain, why cant they go on without so much more. What is costing more money to the point that the school needs more or they threaten to take away all extra-curricular activities, including sports? What did they do before to keep these activities going? They should be able to do it again. When a levy is passed, all of the people in the area have this small increase on their taxes. How many students out of eight hundred actually play sports? The athletes of our school dont usually play only one sport. They know that they have to stay in shape for the next season so they play others. Lets say theres fifty football players. Not all of them will play basketball but some will. Then there are some people that didnt play f ...

Imagecreatetruecolor() PHP Function

Imagecreatetruecolor() PHP Function The imagecreatetruecolor() function is used in PHP to create a new true color image using the GD Library. True color uses a 24-bit color depth when displaying an RGB image. Its two parameters are the width and height of the image you are creating. Sample Code Using Imagecreatetruecolor() Function This code generates a PNG image that is 130 pixels wide by 50 pixels high. The imagecreatetruecolor() function specifies a shape that is 130 pixels wide by 50 pixels high. The text color is set using RGB values. The text that will print on the shape is A Simple Text String, in size 1 (of 1-5) with an x ordinate of 5 and a y-ordinate of 5. Return Values When successful, this function returns an image identifier that represents a black image of the specified size. If not successful, it returns False. Considerations The GD library must be enabled for this function to work properly; otherwise, the return value is False. It can be downloaded free from the internet if you dont already have it installed. Imagecreatetruecolor() vs. Imagecreate() Function Although the imagecreate() function still works in PHP, the PHP manual recommends the use of the newer imagecreatetruecolor() function, which creates images with many more colorsmakes color transparency possibleallows advanced image processes