Narrative, Plot, and Story

Narrative, Plot, and Story Narrative, Plot, and Story Narrative, Plot, and Story By Mark Nichol What’s the difference between narrative, plot, and story? Not much, but enough that it matters. Here are the distinctions, explained with aids of analogy, plus some details: Narrative is the structure of events the architecture of the story, comparable to the design of a building. Story is the sequence of events, the order in which the narrative occurs the tour through the building. Plot is the sum of the events, told not necessarily in sequential order, but generally consistent with the story and often considered synonymous with the narrative the building itself. But these similar and even overlapping components of composition are further affected by the narrative mode the techniques the author employs to tell the story. Among these strategies are narrative point of view and narrative voice. Narrative Point of View A first-person narrator relates the story by using the pronoun I (or, rarely, if two or more narrators are telling the story simultaneously, we). This device enables the reader to know the narrator’s internal thoughts and feelings as well. This narrative style may indicate that the narrator may or may not consciously be aware of a reading audience. Also, the first-person narrator is not necessarily the main character, or even central to the story. Second-person narrative, rare in literature, is that in which the narrator refers to a character as â€Å"you.† The most frequent mode, third-person narrative, involves reference to characters as â€Å"he,† â€Å"she,† â€Å"they,† or â€Å"it.† Variety is achieved by the author’s decision to narrate subjectively, revealing characters’ thoughts and feelings, or objectively, without internal insight into any of the characters, as well as choice of omniscient or limited point of view: The author either knows all that is occurring in the story or is restricted to sharing only what is known to the focal character. Narrative point of view can vary within the same story, either by section or chapter or even within the same passage. Narrative Voice Narrative voice is the style in which the narrative is presented for example, a character’s recounting of events, or a privileged window into the character’s thoughts and feelings. A narrator may be a participant, a character in the story who describes events, or a nonparticipant, an objective (but not necessarily accurate) observer who is not integrated into the story. Another technique is to feature an unreliable narrator, one whose narrative is initially or ultimately suspect because it contradicts what the reader learns from nonnarrated exposition or other points of view. For instance, in the Japanese film Rashomon, based on two short stories, four characters give conflicting accounts of an event. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the title character’s naivetà ©, a plot device enabling author Mark Twain to demonstrate his gift for social satire, makes him an unreliable narrator. Note that narrative applies to nonfiction as well as fiction, and even plot and story have a place in nonfiction, as reporters and authors often manipulate an account by constructing a narrative more sophisticated than the who, what, when, where, and why formula of traditional journalism. There’s even a term for this approach: creative nonfiction. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Fiction Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:12 Types of LanguagePeace of Mind and A Piece of One's MindDozen: Singular or Plural?

Relational Databases, Normalization, and SQL

Relational Databases, Normalization, and SQL A database is an application that can store and retrieve data very rapidly. The relational bit refers to how the data is stored in the database and how it is organized. When we talk about a database, we mean a relational database, in fact, an RDBMS: Relational Database Management System. In a relational database, all data is stored in tables. These have the same structure repeated in each row (like a spreadsheet) and it is the relations between the tables that make it a relational table. Before relational databases were invented (in the 1970s), other types of database such as hierarchical databases were used. However relational databases have been very successful for companies like Oracle, IBM, and Microsoft. The open source world also has RDBMS. Commercial Databases OracleIBM DB 2Microsoft SQL Server Ingres. The first commercial RDBMS. Free/Open Source Databases MySQLPostgresSQLSQLite Strictly these are not relational databases but RDBMS. They provide security, encryption, user access and can process SQL queries. Who Was Ted Codd? Codd was a computer scientist who devised the laws of normalization in 1970. This was a mathematical way of describing the properties of a relational database using tables. He came up with 12 laws that describe what a relational database and an RDBMS does and several laws of normalization that describe the properties of relational data. Only data that had been normalized could be considered relational. What Is Normalization? Consider a spreadsheet of client records that is to be put into a relational database. Some clients have the same information, say different branches of the same company with the same billing address. In a spreadsheet, this address is on multiple rows. In turning the spreadsheet into a table, all the clients text addresses must be moved into another table and each assigned a unique ID- say the values 0,1,2. These values are stored in the main client table so all rows use the ID, not the text. A SQL statement can extract the text for a given ID. What Is a Table? Think of it as being like a rectangular spreadsheet made up of rows and columns. Each column specifies the type of data stored (numbers, strings or binary data - such as images). Unlike a spreadsheet where the user is free to have different data on each row, in a database table, every row can only contain the types of data that were specified. In C and C, this is like an array of structs, where one struct holds the data for one row. For more information see Normalizing a database in the Database Design part of databases.about.com. What Are the Different Ways of Storing Data in a Database? There are two ways: Via a Database Server.Via a Database File. Using a database file is the older method, more suited to desktop applications. E.G. Microsoft Access, though that is being phased out in favor of Microsoft SQL Server. SQLite is an excellent public domain database written in C that holds data in one file. There are wrappers for C, C, C# and other languages. A database server is a server application running locally or on a networked PC. Most of the big databases are server based. These take more administration but are usually faster and more robust. How Does an Application Communicate With Database Servers? Generally, these require the following details. IP or Domain name of the server. If it is the on the same PC as you, use 127.0.0.1 or localhost as the dns name. Server Port For MySQL this is usually 3306, 1433 for Microsoft SQL Server.User Name and PasswordName of the Database There are many client applications that can talk to a database server. Microsoft SQL Server has Enterprise Manager to create databases, set security, run maintenance jobs, queries and of course design and modify database tables. What Is SQL?: SQL is short for Structured Query Language and is a simple language that provides instructions for building and modifying the structure of databases and for modifying the data stored in the tables. The main commands used to modify and retrieve data are: Select - Fetches data. Insert - Inserts one or more rows of data. Update - Modifies existing row(s) of data Delete - Deletes rows of data. There are several ANSI/ISO standards such as ANSI 92, one of the most popular. This defines a minimum subset of supported statements. Most compiler vendors support these standards. Conclusion Any nontrivial application can use a database and a SQL-based database is a good place to start. Once you have mastered the configuration and administering of the database then you have to learn SQL to make it work well. The speed at which a database can retrieve data is astonishing and modern RDBMS are complex and highly optimized applications. Open source databases like MySQL are fast approaching the power and usability of the commercial rivals and drive many databases on websites. How to Connect to a Database in Windows using ADO Programmatically, there are various APIs that provide access to database servers. Under Windows, these include ODBC and Microsoft ADO. [h3[Using ADO So long as there is a provider- software that interfaces a database to ADO, then the database can be accessed. Windows from 2000 has this built in. Try the following. It should work on Windows XP, and on Windows 2000 if youve ever installed MDAC. If you havent and want to try this, visit Microsoft.com, do a search for MDAC Download and download any version, 2.6 or higher. Create an empty file called test.udl. Right click in Windows Explorer on the file and do open with, you should see Microsoft Data Access - OLE DB Core Services. This dialog lets you connect to any database with an installed provider, even excel spreadsheets! Select the first tab (Provider) as opens by default at the the Connection tab. Select a provider then click Next. The data source name shows the different types of device available. After filling in username and password, click the Test Connection button. After you press the ok button, you can open the test.udl with file with Wordpad. It should contain text like this. [oledb] ; Everything after this line is an OLE DB initstring ProviderSQLOLEDB.1;Persist Security InfoFalse;User IDsa;Initial Catalogdhbtest;Data Source127.0.0.1 The third line is the important one, it contains the configuration details. If your database has a password, it will be shown here, so this is not a secure method! This string can be built into applications that use ADO and will let them connect to the specified database. Using ODBC ODBC (Open Database Connectivity) provides an API based interface to databases. There are ODBC drivers available for just about every database in existence. However, ODBC provides another layer of communication between an application and the database and this can cause performance penalties.

Careers Management in Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Careers Management in Business - Essay Example It also seeks to analyse how graduates aim to get over some of the challenges going to be discussed below. An analysis of the volatile economy will also be undertaken and the last part of the paper sums up the main points discussed. Basically, a career can be defined as a pattern of work and work related to activities that people develop throughout a lifetime (World Book Encyclopedia, 2008). It includes a job or a series of jobs a person has until retirement. In most cases, it can be observed that careers vary greatly in the type of work involved and in the ways they influence a person’s life. Many careers are based on work for pay and they usually shape the type of lifestyle a person can lead. Of notable concern is the fact that tertiary qualifications usually obtained by graduates often shape their lifetime careers. However, it may not be very easy for the graduates to easily get their dream jobs as they often face numerous challenges during their studies like failing to get places to do their internship or to secure permanent employment after completion of their respective degrees. In as far as the aspects of internship and employment are concerned, it can be noted that the employer plays a significant role in creating the opportunity and climate for full development of the student such that his or her capabilities are optimally utilised (Nelson, 2002). The main advantage of this aspect of internship or in-service training is that the student is given the opportunity to experience the actual environment of their chosen careers before entering into them. This allows for a realistic assessment of the expectations and understanding of the employer’s requirements. It can be noted that the volatility of the economy has a bearing on the students’ endeavours to pursue their careers as a result of different factors going to be analysed below. Due to the emergence of the borderless economy as a result of globalisation, it can be observed that tre nds in the global economy have a bearing on the performance of economies of different countries as well as the respective organizations operating in such environments. Over the past two decades, it can be noted that the size of the global village has rapidly shrunk as a result of the massive advances in information and technology (Venter, 2003). Investors are often seen moving to developing countries given that globalisation sought to liberalise trade and investment opportunities in different countries by various multinational companies as a result of the emergency of the borderless economies. However, the extent of employment creation through globalisation strongly hinges on the competitive edge of the economic policies of the host countries. If these are not in tandem with the dictates of globalization, the host country can fail to attract investors which results in limited chances of employment creation for new graduates. Given such a scenario, competition among the graduates can be seen to lead to shortages of employment as well as internship vacancies for these people. The volatility of the global economy can also pose serious challenges to organizations which may be forced to retrench rather that employ new workers. For instance, the global economic crisis that recently gripped the world resulted in many multinational com

History of Management in Criminal Justice Agencies Essay

History of Management in Criminal Justice Agencies - Essay Example e way the United States criminal justice system has been managed over the past few decades, with former English customs and laws playing a significant role in influencing the contemporary system (Randolph, 2005). The criminal justice system includes parole and probation officers, correction officers, court officers, investigators and line officers. In the early days of the English law enforcement instituted by Alfred the Great, police forces were formed by loyal families who patrolled their regions. They appointed their own leaders, known as reeves, to oversee and coordinate the wider alliances (Friedman, 1993). The reeves later came to be known as sheriffs. To ensure the loyalty of the sheriffs, the power of appointing them was taken over by William the conqueror when he came into power. In the early 18th century, the system established by William the conqueror was borrowed by Philadelphia, Boston and New York with each having 10 official patrol areas (Randolph, 2005). The 19th cent ury industrialization and population growth brought about the need for police departments in municipals. Although New York and Philadelphia had 24 hour police force in service by 1830, some counties still operate under the sheriff system today. The difference is that the sheriffs are not appointed through local governments, but rather elected by citizens. Today, managers within the criminal justice system are knowledgeable in security, police and disaster management fields. Within the judiciary, before the revolution, American courts followed laws that Great Britain had handed down to them. However, the settlers and colonists later rejected the English laws because they did not grant them equal rights as Englishmen under The Great Charter of the Liberties of England (Friedman, 1993). They rejected attempts to be governed by the English Parliament from overseas yet they were not accorded representation. The subsequent rebellion ended in the American Revolution. With the adoption of the

The Eruption of Mount Saint Helens Essay Example for Free

The Eruption of Mount Saint Helens Essay â€Å"The Eruption of Mount St. Helens† On May 18th, 1980, in Washington State, the volcano, Mount St. Helens erupted. This eruption caused widespread terror throughout the towns surrounding the mountain. The magma from the volcano burned up the forest and killed most of the animals in the area. It affected the wildlife greatly because, after the eruption, the ecosystem was burned and smoldered thus killing thousands of animals in the region. This eruption was the deadliest of all the volcanic activity in the United States, and the people who live near the mountain are still affected by what the eruption did to this day. There were many warning signs that preceded the nine-hour eruption of Mount St. Helens. After being dormant for 123 years, the volcano showed her first sign of life on Thursday, March 20th. There was a 4. 1 magnitude earthquake that centered directly underneath of the volcano. A week later, the snow on the mountain smudged because of the ash. On March 30th, 79 earthquakes were recorded on the mountain! A few days later, on April 3rd, tremors were recorded signaling movement of magma deep within the volcano. By that time, ash, rocks, and ice chunks were daily occurrences and the slopes were ash-covered. A few days before the eruption, it all stopped. But on May 18th, it all went wrong †¦ On May 18th, 1980, the worse volcanic eruption in United States history occurred. Mount St. Helens, in Washington States, violently erupted. At 8:32 A. M. a 5. 1 magnitude earthquake struck about one mile below the mountain, causing the largest landslide in history. The snow and ice moved at speeds of more than 175 miles per hour and removed over 1300 feet from the summit, sweeping away almost the entire North side of the mountain. The landslide raised temperatures about 60 degrees higher than usual. There was a lot of ash that came out of the volcano when it erupted as well. The ash caused a major problem to the townspeople because it contaminated the oil systems, clogged air filters, and scratched any moving surfaces, like cars and other vehicles. Particularly small, finer ash particles caused electrical shorts in transformers. This caused town wide blackouts. Also, the elevation of the mountain dropped from 9677 feet to 8363 feet. It decreased more than 1300 feet! This famous eruption had many affects on the wildlife and the people in the region. Thousands of small game, fish, insects and birds were killed along with black-tailed deer, elk, bears, and goats. All life in Spirit Lake was slain as well. The residents and visiting tourist of the area were affected too. There were a lot of architectural damages. For example, about 250 houses were obliterated. Roads and railways were destroyed. Also, 27 bridges were demolished. 57 people died and 36 more were rescued from being trapped underneath of debris or in their cars. There was significant crop loss in the area, about $100 million. The logging industry was hit hardest. About 25% of the forest had been wiped out, enough to build 300,000 two-bedroom homes! This eruption did not take it easy on the area. Despite how much damage it did, people still came together to try to help out. Their efforts have really paid off. Most of the houses have been rebuilt. But some still suffer from the flood damage. A significant number of trees have grown back, too. However, the timber industry isn’t back to the rate it was before the eruption, but it is still recovering steadily. It has been a pretty long time since this occurrence, but Spirit Lake still is inhabitable for fish. Only small creatures and bacteria can survive. Many people wonder â€Å"When can we expect it erupt again? † No one can really tell for sure. The eruption of 1980 wasn’t predicted, and future eruptions will probably also be unpredictable. But before the eruption of 1980, the volcano had been dormant for well over 100 years. The volcano can erupt whenever it wishes, whether it be tomorrow or another hundred years from now! Well then when will it erupt? Only time will tell.

Things Fall Apart: An Analysis :: essays research papers

Things Fall Apart: An Analysis The culture of the Umuofia society before the colonial infiltration, may be hard to understand but we are forced by Achebe to realize it has traditions and customs that make it work. Although, looking at it from our Judaeo-Christian point of view we may be appalled by some of their practices. We also have to realize that they have strengths. Things Fall apart is the idea of balance and interdependence, earth and sky, individual and community, man and woman or different perspectives on the same situation. The central image of this balance is contained in the Ibo concept of "chi," which occurs throughout the novel. A persons "chi" is their destiny, his inner self, "you wouldn't challenge your "chi" to a wrestling match," as did Okonkwo when he assisted in the killing of Ikemefuna, whom he loved and who called him father. Okonkwo sins not only against the earth goddess, protector of family relations, but also against his inner most feelings or his "chi." Any bad luck that occurs, people of this culture would say that you have a bad "chi." Okonkwo's destiny is marked by bad luck, one reason may be that he is so driven by the fear of resembling his father that he struggles to repress part of his personality with predictably afflicted results. This was a society where a man was judged by his own achievement and not that of his fathers. Yams were the primary crop of Umuofia. A sign of manliness was if you could farm yams to feed your family. Okonkwo is respected because of his hard work. The complex patterns of Umuofia's economic and social customs materialize throughout this novel as we see Okonkwo compelled to rid himself of any similarities that his father had. Unoka had no titles, was lazy and when he died was greatly in debt. Some may wonder how a society like the Ibo's functioned, how they enforce

Greco-Roman influence on Mediterranean Society Essay

Mediterranean society, a name manifesting proximity to Mediterranean Sea, flourished around 6th century BC and was dominated in its early years by Greek and Roman influence. Greek and Roman periods came sequentially and at times are collectively referred as Greco-Roman. This influence not only defined characteristics of Mediterranean society for many centuries that follow but also had articulate influences on contemporary societies in western world. Similarities between Greeks and Romans Both Greeks and Romans developed art with their own peculiarities. Forms of art like poetry, drama, mythology, philosophy and architecture defined these civilizations. These contributions are now also known as â€Å"classical antiquity† in history which Mediterranean society enjoyed during Greco-Roman period. Greeks and Romans also had strong military legacies. They both military might to counter any threat against their way of life. Romans also developed a strong naval legion which helped them strengthen their empires. Both Greeks and Romans developed agriculture with a focus on its commercial side and promoted trade. In religion, both did not enforce a universal religion instead promoted concept of tolerating other religious beliefs. Differences between Greeks and Romans Although historians at times refer to Greek and Roman periods in Mediterranean society’s history collectively, both have some clear differences in approach to society and governance. Greek culture is more towards lifestyle and seems to be more focused on development of a society. On the other hand, Roman civilization was oriented towards creating an empire of which Mediterranean region and society was a part. So, while Greeks had more cultural impact on Mediterranean society, Roman influence was more towards developing governance and systems. Politically, Greeks had a decentralized form of government with many city-states flourishing during their period. On the contrary, Romans developed an empire while developing less independent cities and more focus on creating specialized regions. Romans also were more focused on enhancing their empire while maintaining a strong linkage with developed transportation networks and administrative control. While Greeks gave Mediterranean society the philosophical works of Plato and Socrates, it was Romans who gave concept of governance, including civil service, public administration and tax collection. Greco-Roman influence on Western world Modern day politics has always been influenced by Greco-Roman influence on Mediterranean society. A broader case in point would be that modern political systems prevailing in many western countries mirror key elements from Greco-Roman period of Mediterranean. Roman concept of senate and Greek idea of city-state is sprawled around the globe as political systems. Further, concept of constitution and republic instigated in thoughts of Greek philosophers and was later materialized in Roman Empire. So much so, there is an intriguing presence of various elements in modern constitutions, which arguably were formulated by Greco-Roman. For instance, in United States constitution, President can only be a citizen born on American soil. This is akin to Roman concept of citizenship in which citizens having full rights were free, naturally-born, land-owning individuals. In art, contemporary art has genesis in Greco-Roman influence on Mediterranean world. For instance, architectural concept of Corinthian, Ionic or Doric columns which was developed in Greco-Roman period is basis of classical architecture in Western world. In order to govern a vast empire, Romans developed concept of public administration not known to human civilization and also created an extensive civil service and formalized methods of tax collection. These innovative concepts can still be found in Western world. Conclusion Greco-Roman influence on Mediterranean society had strong impact on human civilization. Both had differences but of lesser depth compared to strong similarities which existed in both civilizations. This is one of the reasons that for common understanding Greeks and Roman civilizations exist collectively in history under the label â€Å"Greco-Roman†. Bibliography Bentley, J. H. , Ziegler, H. F. , & Salter, H. S. (2010). Traditions & Encounters: A Brief Global History (2nd Edition ed. ). Virginia, United States of America: McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages. Pomeroy, S. B. , Burstein, S. M. , Donlan, W. , & Roberts, J. T. (2007). Ancient Greece: A Political, Social and Cultural History. USA: Oxford University Press. Stearns, P. N. , Adas, M. B. , Gilbert, M. J. , & Schwartz, S. B. (2010). World Civilizations: The Global Experience. Prentice Hall.

Do Societies Choose to Fail or Survive Essay

The society is a very important aspect on the life of any human. The very definition of the term society which is entwined on the aspect of relationships of a group of people, who depend on each other in either way make it to be of utmost importance. When viewed in broader terms, the society depicts people in a certain region and most certainly has common bonds such as culture, language or any other factors that brings them together. It is therefore common knowledge to note that although the society has the gist of prospering, other societies have fallen and the question that arises is whether a society chooses to fail or survive. Various arguments have been put across with some of the hardliners taking passionate stands on what they believe in with regard to the prosperity or failure of a society (Diamond, 2005). One of the authors who has been vocal in examining the survival of societies Jareed Diamond, probes why some of the societies in the past were able to survive and why some feel out rightly. The author bases his research mainly on concentrating on the past right to the modern world. In his award winning book titled Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Survive, the author in the prologue states that the book â€Å"employs the comparative method to understand societal collapses to which environmental problems contribute†. The author in writing this book tends to offer a historical context of societies that have on the â€Å"collapse or survival† of the society. The author thus seems to argue that â€Å"input† variables have significant effect on the â€Å"output† (Diamond, 2005). The author highlights some of the factors that have in the past been culprits in collapse of societies. Some of them are overfishing, overpopulation, deforestation and others. He also goes further to include factors that may in the future aid in the survival or collapse of societies. The author uses the Anasazi collapse to put forward his arguments on why societies fail at sometimes. The Anasazi who are a Native American society are used by the author to clearly illustrate the link between population growth and environmental damage directly to the collapse of the Anasazi. The author as he tries to highlight is that the warfare that took place was not a significant contributor to the failure of this society (Diamond, 2005). Another incisive and highly critical book of how society thrives is the book Questioning Collapse: Human Resilience, Ecological Vulnerability and the Aftermath of Empire. The book which has an impressive number of 15 scholarly scientists, provide an incisive look at this issue with each of the personalities contributing significantly. The authors of this book borrow appraise Diamonds work and use his â€Å"provoking inquiries† to give their valuable insights into this issue (Norman and McAnamy, 2010). Another highly critical and analytical book Marketing Conquest and the Vanishing Indian: an Indigenous Response to Jared Diamond’s Archaeology of the American Southwest, the book tries to respond to Diamond’s work. The essay seems to suggest that Diamond’s are some of the most important aspects with regards to conquest. In Diamonds books, he seems to suggest that â€Å"colonialization and conquest† were what he refers to as ‘accident’ and that modern collapses of various societies can be avoided by studying the root causes of these earlier conflicts. This essay is a direct response to Diamonds assumptions and it mainly questions the authenticity of his assumptions and comes to the conclusion that diamonds are actually an important aspect of conquest. References: Diamond, J (2005). â€Å"Prologue. † Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Survive. New York: Penguin —. â€Å"The Ancient Ones: The Anasazi and Their Neighbors. † Chapter 4 of Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. New York: Penguin, 2005. McAnamy, P. A. and Norman Y (2010). Questioning Collapse: Human Resilience, Ecological Vulnerability and the Aftermath of Empire. New York: Cambridge UP, 1-20 Wilcox, M. â€Å"Marketing Conquest and the Vanishing Indian: An Indigenous Response to Jared Diamond’s Archaeology of the American Southwest. † Eds.

Free Essays on E-Banking

E-Banking E-banking (electronic banking) is the wave of the future. It provides enormous benefits to consumers –in terms of the ease and cost of transactions– and banks –in terms of new business opportunities. However, it also poses new challenges for country authorities in regulating and supervising the financial system and in designing and implementing macroeconomic policies. E-banking has been around for some time in the form of automatic teller machines (ATMs) and telephone transactions. More recently, it has been transformed by the Internet. This newest channel for banking services is the focus of this report. With e-banking access is fast, convenient, and available around the clock, whatever the customer’s location. Plus, services are provided more efficiently and at substantially lower costs. Comparing bank services and products is made easier and therefore competition is increased, allowing banks to penetrate new markets. It is even an opportunity for countries with underdeveloped financial systems to leapfrog developmental stages. The flip side to this technological boom in e-banking is the exacerbation of some of the risks involved in traditional banking, particularly governance, legal, operational, and reputational. Trends in E-banking E-banking is rapidly gaining ground; with more and more banks operating websites through which customers are able not only to inquire about account balances and interest and exchange rates but also to conduct a range of transactions. To date, most banks have combined the new electronic delivery channels with traditional "brick banks" creating "brick and click banks". However, a small number of banks offer their products and services predominantly, or only, through electronic distribution channels. These "virtual" or "internet-only" banks do not have a branch network but might have a physical presence, for example, an administrative office or non-branch facilities like kiosks... Free Essays on E-Banking Free Essays on E-Banking E-Banking E-banking (electronic banking) is the wave of the future. It provides enormous benefits to consumers –in terms of the ease and cost of transactions– and banks –in terms of new business opportunities. However, it also poses new challenges for country authorities in regulating and supervising the financial system and in designing and implementing macroeconomic policies. E-banking has been around for some time in the form of automatic teller machines (ATMs) and telephone transactions. More recently, it has been transformed by the Internet. This newest channel for banking services is the focus of this report. With e-banking access is fast, convenient, and available around the clock, whatever the customer’s location. Plus, services are provided more efficiently and at substantially lower costs. Comparing bank services and products is made easier and therefore competition is increased, allowing banks to penetrate new markets. It is even an opportunity for countries with underdeveloped financial systems to leapfrog developmental stages. The flip side to this technological boom in e-banking is the exacerbation of some of the risks involved in traditional banking, particularly governance, legal, operational, and reputational. Trends in E-banking E-banking is rapidly gaining ground; with more and more banks operating websites through which customers are able not only to inquire about account balances and interest and exchange rates but also to conduct a range of transactions. To date, most banks have combined the new electronic delivery channels with traditional "brick banks" creating "brick and click banks". However, a small number of banks offer their products and services predominantly, or only, through electronic distribution channels. These "virtual" or "internet-only" banks do not have a branch network but might have a physical presence, for example, an administrative office or non-branch facilities like kiosks...

Interesting Facts About the Olympics

Interesting Facts About the Olympics Have you ever wondered about the origins and history of some of our proud Olympic traditions? Below youll find answers to a lot of these inquiries. The Official Olympic Flag Created by Pierre de Coubertin in 1914, the Olympic flag contains five interconnected rings on a white background. The five rings symbolize the five significant continents and are interconnected to symbolize the friendship to be gained from these international competitions. The rings, from left to right, are blue, yellow, black, green, and red. The colors were chosen because at least one of them appeared on the flag of every country in the world. The Olympic flag was first flown during the 1920 Olympic Games. The Olympic Motto In 1921, Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympic Games, borrowed a Latin phrase from his friend, Father Henri Didon, for the Olympic motto: Citius, Altius, Fortius (Swifter, Higher, Stronger). The Olympic Oath Pierre de Coubertin wrote an oath for the athletes to recite at each Olympic Games. During the opening ceremonies, one athlete recites the oath on behalf of all the athletes. The Olympic oath was first taken during the 1920 Olympic Games by Belgian fencer Victor Boin. The Olympic Oath states, In the name of all competitors, I promise that we shall take part in these Olympic Games, respecting and abiding by the rules that govern them, in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport and the honor of our teams. The Olympic Creed Pierre de Coubertin got the idea for this phrase from a speech given by Bishop Ethelbert Talbot at a service for Olympic champions during the 1908 Olympic Games. The Olympic Creed reads: The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well. The Olympic Flame The Olympic flame is a practice continued from the ancient Olympic Games. In Olympia (Greece), a flame was ignited by the sun and then kept burning until the closing of the Olympic Games. The flame first appeared in the modern Olympics at the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam. The flame itself represents a number of things, including purity and the endeavor for perfection. In 1936, the chairman of the organizing committee for the 1936 Olympic Games, Carl Diem, suggested what is now the modern Olympic Torch Relay. The Olympic flame is lit at the ancient site of Olympia by women wearing ancient-style robes and using a curved mirror and the sun. The Olympic Torch is then passed from runner to runner from the ancient site of Olympia to the Olympic stadium in the hosting city. The flame is then kept alight until the Games have concluded. The Olympic Torch relay represents a continuation from the ancient Olympic Games to the modern Olympics. The Olympic Hymn The Olympic Hymn, played when the Olympic Flag is raised, was composed by Spyros Samaras and the words added by Kostis Palamas. The Olympic Hymn was first played at the 1896 Olympic Games in Athens but wasnt declared the official hymn by the IOC until 1957. Real Gold Medals The last Olympic gold medals that were made entirely out of gold were awarded in 1912. The Medals The Olympic medals  are designed especially for each individual Olympic Games by the host citys organizing committee. Each medal must be at least three millimeters thick and 60 millimeters in diameter. Also, the gold and silver Olympic medals must be made out of 92.5 percent silver, with the gold medal covered in six grams of gold. The First Opening Ceremonies The first opening ceremonies were held during the 1908 Olympic Games in London. Opening Ceremony Procession Order During the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, the procession of athletes is always led by the Greek team, followed by all the other teams in alphabetical order (in the language of the hosting country), except for the last team which is always the team of the hosting country. A City, Not a Country When choosing locations for the Olympic Games, the IOC specifically gives the honor of holding the Games to a city rather than a country. IOC Diplomats In order to make the IOC an independent organization, the members of the IOC are not considered diplomats from their countries to the IOC, but rather are diplomats from the IOC to their respective countries. First Modern Champion James B. Connolly (United States), winner of the hop, step, and jump (the first final event in the 1896 Olympics), was the first Olympic champion of the modern Olympic Games. The First Marathon In 490 BCE, Pheidippides, a Greek soldier, ran from Marathon to Athens (about 25 miles) to inform the Athenians the outcome of the battle with invading Persians. The distance was filled with hills and other obstacles; thus Pheidippides arrived in Athens exhausted and with bleeding feet. After telling the townspeople of the Greeks success in the battle, Pheidippides fell to the ground dead. In 1896, at the first modern Olympic Games, held a race of approximately the same length in commemoration of Pheidippides. The Exact Length of a MarathonDuring the first several modern Olympics, the marathon was always an approximate distance. In 1908, the British royal family requested that the marathon start at the Windsor Castle so that the royal children could witness its start. The distance from the Windsor Castle to the Olympic Stadium was 42,195 meters (or 26 miles and 385 yards). In 1924, this distance became the standardized length of a marathon. WomenWomen were first allowed to participate in 1900 at the second modern Olympic Games. Winter Games BegunThe winter Olympic Games were first held in 1924, beginning a tradition of holding them a few months earlier and in a different city than the summer Olympic Games. Beginning in 1994, the winter Olympic Games were held in completely different years (two years apart) than the summer Games. Cancelled GamesBecause of World War I and World War II, there were no Olympic Games in 1916, 1940, or 1944. Tennis BannedTennis was played at the Olympics until 1924, then reinstituted in 1988. Walt DisneyIn 1960, the Winter Olympic Games were held in Squaw Valley, California (United States). In order to bedazzle and impress the spectators, Walt Disney was head of the committee that organized the opening day ceremonies. The 1960 Winter Games Opening Ceremony was filled with high school choirs and bands, releasing of thousands of balloons, fireworks, ice statues, releasing of 2,000 white doves, and national flags dropped by parachute. Russia Not PresentThough Russia had sent a few athletes to compete in the 1908 and 1912 Olympic Games, they did not compete again until the 1952 Games. Motor BoatingMotor boating was an official sport at the 1908 Olympics. Polo, an Olympic SportPolo was played at the Olympics in 1900, 1908, 1920, 1924, and 1936. GymnasiumThe word gymnasium comes from the Greek root gymnos meaning nude; the literal meaning of gymnasium is school for naked exercise. Athletes in the ancient Olympic Games would participate in the nude. StadiumThe first recorded ancient Olympic Games were held in 776 BCE with only one event - the stade. The stade was a unit of measurement (about 600 feet) that also became the name of the footrace because it was the distance run. Since the track for the stade (race) was a stade (length), the location of the race became the stadium. Counting OlympiadsAn Olympiad is a period of four successive years. The Olympic Games celebrate each Olympiad. For the modern Olympic Games, the first Olympiad celebration was in 1896. Every four years celebrates another Olympiad; thus, even the Games that were cancelled (1916, 1940, and 1944) count as Olympiads. The 2004 Olympic Games in Athens was called the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad.

Boeing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Boeing - Essay Example ecommendable such as the ideal anonymous channel that does not reveal the identity and the ideal pseudonymous channel that ensures the registration of the members first (N, 2013). In comparison to other firms, the UC mechanisms of protection enhancement in the coverage of the IP networks is more potent (N, 2013). This means that the Boeing Company is experiencing the value of systems whose probability of hacking is zero percent (N, 2013). The chances of hacking in the UC security mechanisms are severely complex in comparison to other security firms (N, 2013). The UC security firm gives Boeing an advantage in low cost video deployment compared to what the other security firms cannot express (N, 2013). The UC security firm has much capability that the Boeing Company has not deployed (N, 2013). As the CIO of the Boeing Company, I would utilize these capabilities to the company’s advantages (N, 2013). These capabilities offered by the UC security mechanism would enhance the security of the technology employed in the Boeing Company (N, 2013). As the CIO, I would ensure that everything is under the security of the UC security firm (N, 2013). N, G. (2013, January 16). Guard Now. Retrieved from UC Berkeley Security: Getting Security Guards for Parties and Events: