The History Of Zara Information Technology Essay

The History Of Zara Information Technology Essay Zara is the most successful brand of Spanish company Grupo Inditex. Its owner, Amancio Ortega, opened first retail store in 1975 in La Coruna, a small port in Spain. Zara became the worlds largest fashion retailer by 2008 end. By this time it had stores in over 70 countries, out performing its rivals like Gap of USA and Sweden based HM (Hennes Maurits) (http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/aug/12/retail.spain). Zaras Innovative Operations: Daniel Piette, director of fashion, LVMH has described Zara as possibly the most devastating and innovating retailer in the world http://tbmdb.blogspot.com/2009/12/business-model-example-zara-devastating.html, owing to the companys innovative and unique approach in fashion retail. Zara follows the concept of a vertically integrated supply chain, in which the company has a tight control over most of the design phase, production phase and distribution system to its chain of retail outlets. The rest of these processes is handled by its sister concerns with nearby locations. Unlike its competitors Zara does not outsource its production to Asian developing countries; the proximity of production units helps Zara by giving flexibility in production so that the company can meet the ever-changing demands of the consumers more efficiently than its competitors. Zara has integrated the system of POS (Point Of Sales) and has formed a unique method that helps in the production of new designs. POS helps in monitoring what designs are bringing in maximum sales at the retail shops. The store managers are allowed freedom to decide which designs to display and which ones to keep back in the store, depending on the sales of those designs. Zaras employees at the retail outlets gather feedbacks from the customers and convey the information to the headquarters with the help of hand-held PDAs that each employee is required to carry. At the headquarters, the design teams immediately respond to feedbacks sent via PDAs and begin designing new clothes accordingly. The clothes are manufactured and distributed to the retail stores within a short period of 2 to 4 weeks owing to the vertical integration of its supply chain. While its rivals are busy finding and identifying what the latest trends might be and finally take 4 to 9 months to distribute new designs to their respective stores, Zara manages to design, manufacture and distribute new designs in a matter of just of 30 days. Taking advantage of the fast turn around time, Zara eschews the concept of producing just one collection per season, like its rivals do. Instead the designs keep on changing frequently so that Zara manages to deliver new designs twice a week to its retail shops. Zara only produces small quantities of each style so that there is continuous demand of popular designs. It cuts down on manufacturing costs as well. Thus Zara manages to deliver around 12000 different styles in a year whereas its competitors can produce only 4000-5000 per year. Hence, the company-coined phrase, fast fashion http://www.3isite.com/articles/ImagesFashion_Zara_Part_I.pdf. Current Technology in Information Communication Zaras use of technology in information technology is unique from its competitors. Firstly Zara uses much less technology, in terms of expenditure and work-force, than its competitors just 0.5% of its work force compared to 2.5% of employees that its rivals utilise. Similarly Zara spends only 0.5% of its revenue on information technology compared to expenditure of 2% by its competitors. Secondly Zara employs a unique combination of human and IT intelligence. Managers at the stores and the market survey done by the employees, form the human intelligence while IT intelligence consists of the PDA devices used to send information collected by the managers and other employees carrying the PDAs. An order form is transmitted to each managers PDA asking for information such as availability of garments and patterns of garment sales. The managers of each retail outlets then divide this order form into sections and these sections are transmitted to the PDAs of each employee to fill up, based o n customers feedback and the kind of designs sold. Employees then transmit back their respective sections to the managers PDA, after entering the customers requirements. The managers of each store are given total authority to determine and identify which sections are to be retained in the order form. The edited order form is then sent back to headquarters where the designing teams start working on the basis of the order forms. This unique hybrid of humans technology helps in managing the inventories efficiently and quick and efficient link between demand and supply, thus successfully helping in their own doctrine of fast fashion. Summing up Zaras use of technology http://leoborjblog.wordpress.com/2009/08/10/zara-it-for-fast-fashion/: Gather customer requirements PDAs Logistics and transmission of order form POS terminals and modems. Quickly designing new style CAD (Computer Aided Design) Advantages of such an Innovative System Vertical integration of supply chain and short turn around time lead to High turnover of product. Quick and efficient distribution helps to eliminate warehouse requirement, saving on additional storage costs. Searching the market for latest fashion trends and responding quickly to the consumer requirements with the help of hand-held PDAs. Complete autonomy and flexibility to the employees and managers who are in direct contact with the customers. POS terminals run on DOS operating system, which is cheap and easy to maintain and operate. Perceived limitations of this System http://www.slideshare.net/koffman/zara-case-study-2780928 Zara and its sister concerns have been using DOS as their main operating system in all the processes. It is an outdated operating system. As the POS vendor supplies DOS OS to zara only, it can always stop its supply, while continue to supply other operating systems to its other customers. Store managers are the decision makers. Zara headquarter relies solely on the experience and intuition of the managers. Instead of looking after customers, managers and employees have the time-consuming task of manually entering the garment details in small PDAs. This could result in the employees failing to assist some customers in choosing and might miss out on few garment sales. Inventory is maintained manually as well. Information transmitted is one way only. Managers have no knowledge of the inventories at headquarters and the stores distribution centre. Consequently managers cannot promise a customer if a particular garment that has been sold out, can be replenished and in how many days. Promises made to customers not kept can damage Zaras reputation, so the managers need to know about the garments inventories at headquarters and the distribution centres. There is a great demand for Zaras garments even though new designs are available twice a week. Zara may consider increase in production to meet these ever growing demands. Gathering of information therefore may need to be upgraded in terms of frequency. Its competitors can change to a better OS or software package and increase their turn around time, neutralizing Zaras edge of fast fashion over them. New IT Technology for Sustainability http://www.123helpme.com/view.asp?id=97642 Benefits: New technology may not help Zara in increasing the competitive edge over its competitors but will help in sustaining that edge. A new operating system will help in installing software packages that will help in efficient access of inventory at the stores as well as headquarters and distribution centers. Upgrading to new OS will remove the companys dependency on its current supplier of DOS. Using more than one IT supplier will increase Zaras bargaining power. A Network can be set up between HQ, production centers and retail stores. POS system can be automated so that each sale will automatically update the POS devices. If the POS system of all stores can be interlinked all the store managers can easily know the inventory online and can make and keep their promises to customers demanding a particular garment. POS automation will help reduce overall workload of the employees and managers, as they will not have to manually enter every detail required in the order form. There will not be any need of hand held PDAs. Dedicated POS software will ensure that orders will now be made on the basis of theoretical inventories and will be more accurate. Orders can now placed continually increasing the frequency from twice a week to daily. Ideal software to be used for integration would be ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning). Linking all the process in the supply chain, from HQ, design centers to retail stores, will not only help the managers in accessing inventories but will also help HQ to regulate the supplies more accurately according to the orders placed. Production will become even leaner than before. ECQ (Economic Order Quantity) can help in determining quantities of different garments that buyer can order so that there is sufficient stock for the customers. This will reduce inventory cost as well. Knowing reorder levels will streamline managing of the inventory and help in maintaining the autonomy of the managers. Managers can determine from the reorder levels whether a particular garment needs to be ordered before it will go out of stock and can transmit the same to the production centers that are now linked to the retail outlets. Of course manual checks will still be needed occasionally to check a stores real time inventory is same as the theoretical inventory in case of exceptions like garments getting stolen or gone missing. Designers at HQ will now not depend entirely on the managers discretion and can observe themselves sales of new designs due to two-way system integration by ERP. Just in case a store does run out of stock on a particular garment, the manager can easily check the inventories of local nearby stores for availability and suggest the customer to go there. Inter-store connectivity will have added advantage of shipping garments to another store that has more demand of a particular garment. This will further increase the speed-to-market. Besides HQ even managers of different stores will benefit if they know through network what is selling at other stores and what is not. Cost Analysis: Zara will have to upgrade to better OS that will support ERP like Linux, Unix or Windows NT. Implementation cost of Linux is lowest of the three OS. But recurring costs like service-contract is much higher (McAfee et al). Annual cost of using Unix is the lowest and if functionality remains more or less same, Unix will be best suited. If other costs like plans for systems failure are not taken into consideration then implementation cost will relatively much lower than prospective ROI (Return On Investment). Risk Analysis: Changing software and operating system in all retail shops world over is not an easy task. Due to location of Zaras retail outlets all over the world, there will be many extra tangible costs. Cost of replacing current POS system with the new one. Cost of installation of new cables in each store and maybe new infrastructure to support the cables. Cost of external IT support, hiring professional consultants. Cost of internal IT management and technical training of personnel. Time taken to train the personnel till outside assistance is not required cannot be determined as level of training and learning will be different at different locations around the world. Risk Reduction: Both current and new systems should operate together till the personnel of each store can run the new system smoothly; this will not interrupt any service provided to customers. Zara has a huge pilot outlet that is around 1,500 square meters. Zara can use this as training facility from its personnel from all over the world. Zara can use it to test the new system as well. Zara can hire experienced software professionals and open an in-house department for software management and development. Zara can outsource the management and development to experienced software companies. However Zara will have to trade-off between highly efficient and expensive companies. Zara should develop a contingency plan and an exit plan as well in case the company cannot continue with the up gradation for some reason. Robust data backup is required in case the new system crashes due to mishandling by inexperienced staff.

The Minutes Pass :: Personal Narrative, Autobiographical Essay

The Minutes Pass I sit at a round desk for eight hours eight bucks an hour and doodle. The phone rings once or twice every few hours (if I’m lucky, that is) and the population of people over 50 seems to rise by the minute. I sit with my legs crossed, sandal-less, wearing â€Å"work† shoes and my â€Å"work† smile. I enjoy the company I find myself in, even if it is a good book and a nice thought of myself at the beach. So I play tunes in my head, sing songs of glory under my breath, even snack on crackers when my stomach grumbles. Right now I’ve got â€Å"Riders on the Storm† playing along in my head Riders on the storm riders on the storm Into this world we’re born into this world we’re throw It’s kinda funny, seeing as how among the massive song files the Doors have recorded, I usually find this one to tickle my fancy the least, though always hear it up on the radio, overplayed in time. I mean don’t get me wrong - great song, better than most - but as far as the Doors go, I find the song rather mundane. It has become accepted by the public, merely because it’s too far out of grasp for ordinary people to actually determine its true and logical meaning. Of course, they’re all oblivious to this. Only true Americans, and maybe some Europeans, can come to some sort of conclusion within themselves about the truth in things of small importance. Europeans I say, because they live within their culture, see the past and their history. Most Americans on the other hand, live in the present, see only BIG and eat at McDonald’s. I say â€Å"Americans† because we’re the home of the free, the home of the brave, all that good stuff. Every other country looks up to us for one reason or another – we are the Mother country. Only it takes a true American to actually comment on the facts that really come into play while living in an unmistakable society. I mean kids are still hungry, households are disrupted, yet there’s a working world out there for us all. Jobs should be out there, and I think they may be.

Seamus Heaney’s Storm on the Island and Walt Whitman’s Patrolling Essay

Seamus Heaney’s Storm on the Island and Walt Whitman’s Patrolling Barnegat which were written in 1966 and 1856 respectively are two classical poems describing vividly How the poems I have studied explored nature and its effect. Seamus Heaney’s Storm on the Island and Walt Whitman’s Patrolling Barnegat which were written in 1966 and 1856 respectively are two classical poems describing vividly the horror and insecurity experienced by human’s during a wild storm. Storm on the Island and Patrolling Barnegat have many similarities and differences, the similarities reside around each writer’s description of a storm but the differences are mainly due to the writer’s on personal attitude and approach to a storm and how they apply it to their writing. At the beginning of Heaney’s Storm on the Island he clearly highlights that they have prepared for a storm â€Å"We are prepared; we build our houses squat†, Heaney also makes it clear that there is no company or shelter on the island â€Å"Nor are there trees that might prove company when it blows full blast†. Throughout the poem Heaney is describing the elements that have to be faced during a storm, he describes the wind, the sea and the fear they produce. In contrast to Heaney, Whitman begins his poem with a prompt and vivid description of the storm and his dramatic account of a storm continues throughout the poem. Whitman’s portrayal of the storm is somewhat different to that of Heaney as it is more sophisticated and complex, â€Å"Steady the roar of the gale, with incessant undertone muttering†. The attitude of each poet towards the poem plays a prominent role in the style and rhythm of each poem. In brief it is quite clear that Heaney’s attitude to a ... ...ed the people experiencing it. My preference would have to be Patrolling Barnegat as I feel I was more engaged in the reading of it than I was in the reading of Storm on the Island and the way Whitman described the various components of a storm really impressed more so than anything else. On a final note I would like to acknowledge that these two poems I have been comparing are non-fiction but I do realise that storms do occur and their consequences can be catastrophic to say the least and you have to look no further than the recent hurricane disaster in New Orleans were over one thousand people lost their lives to the devastation caused by nature and that thousands of peoples lives have been permanently affected by this. We all should learn a valuable lesson from this disaster and in future hopefully this tragedy will not have to be experienced again.

Effects of Illegal Music Downloading on the Music Industry

Illegal downloading is commonly known as piracy, it describe that the steeling music from artists, songwriters, musicians, record label employees and others whose hard work and great talent who make music possible. Nowadays, downloading music is available for everyone on internet. However, it is still illegal. Downloading music on internet is what most people are doing because they do not have to pay, and they can choose only the songs they want to have. Unlike CDs which we have the whole album which might contain the songs that we do not want to listen to, plus we have to pay for it.However, it is not always a good thing, it might be good for the people who download the music, but what about the music industry? Is it killing the industry, or does it have profits on it? This paper will discuss both pros and cons of piracy downloading on the Music Industry. One of the most important influences that internet piracy has had on the music industry is the sale of retail CDs. Until the past few years, CD sales were one of the key things that music industry insiders used in order to find out which musicians and albums were the most popular with the public.As the world’s technology has been growing, it made the digital music and internet piracy growing too, sales of retail CDs dropped amongst younger consumers to such an extent that the best selling CDs on the market began to bear very little resemblance to the music that was actually popular with the young listeners that form the backbone of the music industry. For example, Bob Dylan’s album Modern Times quickly became the number one best seller when it was released in 2006, despite the fact that none of his tracks were highly requested on mainstream radio programs or popular with younger listeners.The most well-known case that involves internet piracy and the music industry was when a group of major recording companies took peer-to-peer file sharing service Napster to court for facilitating copyright inf ringement in the year 2000. After the increasing of the internet piracy, A&M Records and other record companies sued Napster on three separate claims, and it was successful. These claims included accusations that Napster was response for allowing users to infringe upon existing copyrights and were even encouraging users to download unlicensed copyrighted materials.When the recording industry won this landmark lawsuit, Napster stopped offering their file sharing services to users, and soon their company failed. The Institute for Policy Innovation make a conclusion that global music piracy causes $12. 5 billion of economic losses every year, 71,060 U. S. jobs lost, a loss of $2. 7 billion in workers' earnings, and a loss of $422 million in tax revenues, $291 million in personal income tax and $131 million in lost corporate income and production taxes.Today, most people who download music illegally do it by using new peer-to-peer networks like BitTorrent. The BitTorrent protocol is for of handling a lot of data very quickly and is very popular for people who upload and download copies of movies and television programs that have no license. In more recent years, dozens of major record labels and Hollywood studios have begun offering legal videos and tracks through BitTorrent in order to distribute their content on their own terms and avoid the pirating of their content.The Institute for Policy Innovation concludes that global music piracy causes $12. 5 billion of economic losses every year, 71,060 U. S. jobs lost, a loss of $2. 7 billion in workers' earnings, and a loss of $422 million in tax revenues, $291 million in personal income tax and $131 million in lost corporate income and production taxes. However, there are some profits that the music industries get from the music piracy. One of it is that older music is still available. Because of the way contracts are constructed, artists do not own their own music–record labels do.So when artists that change labels, their new label is not allowed to produce the albums the artist made on the old label, and if the old label decides not to release the songs, the music is dead. Music downloading is the only way for people to access these old dead songs. It can also make the artists still be famous over time because people still listen to their music even if they are obsolete. Another positive thing is that the not well-known artists become more famous, and their music albums also have better sales. 1. 87% of the entire music industry was controlled by 4 record companies. But most artists aren’t signed to these labels. As the results, most artists do not get radio play, and their music videos are usually in low quality and they are not usually shown on the television. Music downloading is great for lesser known artists to get the chance to be more famous. Most people won’t buy music they have not listened to. Music Piracy allows people who download music to experiment the unkno wn artists.This kind of experimentation cannot hurt the industry, it helps the industry instead. As people would not have bought the music if they cannot download it, but downloading and having the music may either make them realize they like the music, and buy the albums, or share the music to their friends, who then might like the music, and by the album, or even go to the concert. These smaller, independent artists have been on the rise in the past several years, and they also make profits to their industry. According to the RIAA, only 15% of albums make money.However, most record label contracts require that all costs for making the album be returned to the company, meaning that 85% of artists are in debt to their company after the records are released. Most artists repay this debt through money they got during concerts. And people who found out the artists through piracy may like the music enough to go to the concerts. The RIAA Consumer Profile in 2005 showed that CD sales at c oncerts have risen, it came from more people that go to join the concerts and more people that join these concerts do not own these CDs; both of this all came from online music downloading.From my experiences, I usually download music from internet, and when there is some artist I really like, I will become their fans and buy their albums. It also makes me know more artists that I never know of, and that is how it makes them famous. This is not just happening to me, it also happens to most of my friends. These facts prove that the music downloading is not all bad, but it might be to some music industries which are not so famous Even if music Piracy is illegal, it is very hard for someone to control or forbid people from doing it.It becomes part of the music society, everyone downloads music from internet. Some people do not even know that it is illegal because when they did it, nothing happened, no punishment or anything. However, it is also a good thing it benefits many things, bot h to the consumers and the industries. It might be bad for the industry in few years ago, but now people start to get use to it and make profits from it. Artists actually get more famous from it.

Good Fellas Essay

During the years of adolescence, children tend to conjure up ideas of what life will be like as an adult. Some dream of becoming a firefighter, some a teacher, but young Henry Hill is not like most children. He dreams of becoming a mob member and spends his time fantasizing about the cars and women that will come with the title. In the film Good Fellas, Martin Scorsese uses repetitive violence and poor decisions to show Henry Hill that material possessions and status are not of importance when you are reprimanded by the law, and further, how people in society tend to become blind by fortune and do not think about the consequences they could face by their actions. Scorsese creates a strong sense of what life is like for an Italian American, who is involved in the Mafia. Between the mass amount of mob movies and the reality shows available on cable, the stereotypes of Italians are not too keen. Before meeting an Italian American, a person who is over interested in food, tan, loud, hot tempered and obnoxious comes to mind. In some cases even a visual of a mob member. In this movie, Scorsese focuses on the way the mob members dress and eat, which helps create a strong image for the viewer of what is important to these characters. Once Henry started to become involved in the mob’s activities, he started to dress like them, â€Å"You look like a gangster,† his mother was appalled by his appearance. This is the first time the stereotype of how a member of a mob dressed is acknowledged. Henry shows up on the door step of his parent’s house at a young age, wearing a pressed suit and sparkling black dress shoes. He had used his earnings from the restaurant to make what he thought was an everlasting impression and to show his growing status. Shortly after Henry marries Karen, she is invited to a mob wife’s hostess party. She shows up in a designer dress and notices that â€Å"these women appear to be wearing thrown together pants suits and wearing worn makeup,† to her disgust. Later as the movie progresses Karen herself begins to adapt to this look as well. This is scene when appearances become less important and survival according to the demands of the mob is more of a focus. The aspect that never changes is how important a good meal is no matter what is going on around them and focus on the present tense. Even when Henry and Tommy have a man in the trunk, they think nothing of parking the car in a residential driveway to have a hearty meal with Tommy’s mom. Whenever life takes a turn for the worse, all is lost and the men are in prison, they still manage to prepare a five coarse meal. It is the only thing that gives them a sense of home. The members of the mob lived on the code of respect; if this was forgotten then they were forfeiting the safety that comes with being part of the crew. They were to respect the Boss and listen to whatever advice that was given. If a member were to go against him, there were consequences, â€Å"murder was the only way to keep everyone in line, if you got out of line, you got wacked,† there was no room for mistakes. It was seldom that a second chance would be granted. Once a member of the mob worked their way to the top and proved that they were loyal, they were treated extremely well. Not only did people within the mob know their status but onlookers knew as well. Henry enjoyes the amount of respect he received, he was not at the top but still had the power. He â€Å"didn’t have to wait for [his] fresh bread at the bakery, neighbors didn’t park in their driveway anymore, and the kids in the neighborhood would carry [his] mother’s groceries home for her. † This was just the beginning because as Henry grew older, he received this kind of treatment everywhere he went. Life was good. The luxuries Henry had did not come from volunteering within the community or going to college to earn a degree. These men were well known but not for their good doings. Henry explains it as being as an easy job, â€Å"if we wanted something we just took it, if someone complained they got hit so bad they didn’t again,† violence and crime was the only way to go for them. The people within the community feared them and if the police came after them, they would just pay them off or murder them and dispose of the body so it could not be pinned back on any of them. In order to become completely untouchable from the outsiders as well as the members within the mob, although, they needed Pauly. These members would go to Pauly for help, when they could not go to the police. The only problems with this is Pauly is not cheap and they needed to play by his rules. If his help was needed, he was to be paid weekly and no excuse was good enough for not having his cut when it was due. Scorsese uses violence and crime to show there was more to life than the money and fun that came along with it. It takes a bit of dirty work to get high end items if the hard work isn’t done to allow for the high end job. The members of the mob and their wives see life a bit differently than the typical working American. Henry’s wife Karen addresses this by saying â€Å"Our husbands are not Brain Surgeons; they were blue collar guys who go out and cut a few corners. † She did not see anything wrong in what Henry does as long as he comes home and treats her with all the luxuries she has become accustomed to, nothing else mattered. Henry and his accomplices did not think anything was wrong with how they lived. They enjoyed themselves and were aware of the consequences, but did not fret about them, â€Å"no one goes to jail unless they want to,† Pauly offered protection and as long as the rules were followed there was nothing to worry about. In order to get by, Henry would do everything from boot leg cigarettes, steal cargo, deal drugs and would kill anyone who gets in the way. The two that must be followed were, do not kill a Made man, which is a boss, unless you have permission and make sure you pay Pauly. Henry was living a fabulous life until he started making some bad decisions, got careless and broke the rules. Now the consequences that have been threatened have caught up with him and are starting to give him a rude awakening of what life really can be like for the average person, who does not belong to a powerful family, such as his. Henry was living life day by day and getting by doing whatever he pleases. He had the respect, the power and the wealth that he dreamt of as a young boy. But in the end it didn’t add up, he was left with nothing. All due to a few bad decisions, the materialistic rubbish and money caused Henry to be blinded from what truly should be important in life, he had cut off relationships with all of his real family and now had no one to turn to. Pauly had warned him not to get involved in the scandal that his two close accomplices Tommy and Johnny were getting involved in, but after Henry gets put into prison, he runs out of resources and needs money fast. â€Å"When you go away you are on your own,† because Pauly did not help Karen, while Henry was in jail he decides that instead of asking Pauly for help when he gets out he would take care of this misfortune of his own. He doesn’t feel as if he owes Pauly anything because Pauly did not offer help when he needed him the most. Henry locates Tommy and Johnny and creates a multimillion dollar plan. The problem that surfaces is that it will be hard to keep everyone involved quiet and some of the help decided to spend their cut of the money right away which started to draw some unwanted attention. Tommy and Johnny cannot have this become an issue, so â€Å"months after the robbery, they were finding bodies left and right, â€Å"it was obvious that there was something going on and it was starting to catch up with Henry. Pauly eventually caught up with them and had his men kill Tommy. Henry began to notice he was being followed and he thought he had everything under control but he was wrong. The Federal Government caught up with him â€Å"and now it’s all over, I am and average nobody. † In order for Henry to stay out of prison he had to become a victim of the Witness Protection Program and confessed everything, from the beginning, involving everyone and every detail. He no longer had the power or money he once had. None of it mattered anymore and he now regrets the poor decisions he had made that lead him in this direction. If he would have just listened to Pauly, he may still be living the life he once had. The director uses this end result of regret as the main theme of the movie. It holds as a message, a man may be blessed with good fortune but one bad decision can turn it all around. This film was based on a true story. The main character relives the life of the real Henry Hill to show the general public that it is okay to live life day by day and enjoy what comes with it but make sure that the consequences are acknowledged and be prepared for the outcome of the actions taken. All can be lost by a few bad decisions and there is no going back.

Importance of Statistics

IMPORTANCE OF STATISTICS In today's world we are faced with situations everyday where statistics can be applied. Statistics can be used to determine the potential outcome of thousands of things where the human mind alone wouldn't be able to. Statistics benefits all of us because we are able to predict the future based on data we have previously gathered. Being able to predict the future not only changes our lifestyle but also helps us be more efficient and effective. Statistics is the science of collection, analysis, and presentation of data.Statisticians contribute to scientific enquiry by applying their knowledge to the design of surveys and experiments; the collection, processing, and analysis of data; and the interpretation of the results. Statisticians may apply their knowledge of statistical methods to a variety of subject areas, such as biology, economics, engineering, medicine, public health, psychology, marketing, education, and sports. Many economic, social, political, and military decisions cannot be made without statistical techniques, such as the design of experiments to gain federal approval of a newly manufactured drug.Statisticians provide crucial guidance in determining what information is reliable and which predictions can be trusted. They often help search for clues to the solution of a scientific mystery and sometimes keep investigators from being misled by false impressions Why do we need to study statistics? There are five major reasons to study statistics: * The first reason is to be able to effectively conduct research. Without the use of statistics it would be very difficult to make decisions based on the data collected from a research project.For example, in the study cited in Chapter One, is the difference in recorded absenteeism between psychiatric and obstetrics nurses large enough to conclude that there is meaningful difference in absenteeism between the two units? There are two possibilities: The first possibility is that the diff erence between the two groups is a result of chance factors. In reality, the two jobs have approximately the same amount of absenteeism. The second possibility is that there is a real difference between the two units with the psychiatric unit being more nurses missing work.Without statistics we have no way of making an educated decision between the two possibilities. Statistics, however, provides us with a tool to make an educated decision. We will be able to decide which of the two possibilities is more likely to be true. We will base this decision on our knowledge of probability and inferential statistics. A second point about research should be made. It is extremely important for a researcher to know what statistics they want to use before they collect their data. Otherwise data might be collected that is uninterruptable.Unfortunately, when this happens it results in a loss of data, time, and money. Now many a student may by saying to themselves: â€Å"But I never plan on doing any research. † While you may never plan to be involved in research, it may find its way into your life. Certainly, it you decide to continue your education and work on a masters or doctoral degree, involvement in research will result from that decision. Secondly, more and more work places are conducting internal research or are becoming part of broader research studies. Thus, you may find yourself assigned to one of these studies.Finally, many classes on the undergraduate level may require you to conduct research (for example, a research methods or experimental psychology course). In each of these instances, a knowledge of measurements and statistics will be invaluable. * The second reason to study statistics is to be able to read journals. Most technical journals you will read contain some form of statistics. Usually, you will find them in something called the results section. Without an understanding of statistics, the information contained in this section will be meaningle ss.An understanding of basic statistics will provide you with the fundamental skills necessary to read and evaluate most results sections. The ability to extract meaning from journal articles and the ability to critically evaluate research from a statistical perspective are fundamental skills that will enhance your knowledge and understanding in related coursework. * The third reason is to further develop critical and analytic thinking skills. Most students completing high school and introductory undergraduate coursework have at their disposal a variety of critical thinking and analytic skills.The study of statistics will serve to enhance and further develop these skills. To do well in statistics one must develop and use formal logical thinking abilities that are both high level and creative. * The fourth reason to study statistics is to be an informed consumer. Like any other tool, statistics can be used or misused. Yes, it is true that some individuals do actively lie and mislead with statistics. More often, however, well meaning individuals unintentionally report erroneous statistical conclusions. If you know some of the basic statistical concepts, you will be in a better position to evaluate the information you have been given. The fifth reason to have a working knowledge of statistics is to know when you need to hire a statistician. Most of us know enough about our cars to know when to take it into the shop. Usually, we don't attempt the repair ourselves because we don't want to cause any irreparable damage. Also, we try to know enough to be able to carry on an intelligible conversation with the mechanic (or we take someone with us who can) to insure that we don't get a whole new engine (big bucks) when all we need is a new fuel filter (a few bucks). We should be the same way about hiring a statistician.Conducting research is time consuming and expensive. If you are in over your statistical head, it does not make sense to risk an entire project by attempt ing to compute the data analyses yourself. It is very east to compute incomplete or inappropriate statistical analysis of one's data. As with the mechanic discussed above, it is also important to have enough statistical savvy to be able to discuss your project and the data analyses you want computed with the statistician you hire. In other words, you want to be able to make sure that your statistician is on the right track.To summarize, the five reasons to study statistics are to be able to effectively conduct research, to be able to read and evaluate journal articles, to further develop critical thinking and analytic skills, to act as an informed consumer, and to know when you need to hire outside statistical help. How statistics are used in business areas Statistics clearly has real world applications in all of the subjects you list. * Accounting – Random sampling is frequently used by accounting firms when accounts (like travel expenses) are relatively small and inconseque ntial.You can use a random sample to estimate the quality of the whole population of accounts. * Finance – Trend analysis and correlation are common when making economic forecasts. * Management – Sampling of opinion polls and data pertaining to personnel. These are often summarized with estimates of errors. * Marketing – Customer surveys, correlations between advertising outlays and increased revenues. Estimates of market sizes use sampling. Product quality is also a rich field for statistical analysis. Any time you want a quick answer, you can get a good estimate by using statistical sampling.For example, a stratified random sample of accounts can be used instead of an exact calculation when you have paper sales orders (or pending sales orders) that are not entered into the computer. Make sure to count all the big ones, and you can estimate the small ones. On the other hand following ways, statistics can be possible to use in the business area. In general a typ ical organization has three levels: Strategic, Managerial and Oper- ational. This classi? cation is somewhat general and arbitrary. However, this can help identify and emphasize di? rent tools to be directed at the di? erent levels. We envision Statistics to play important roles at all these levels. Strategic Level (Top of an Organization) At the strategic level the most emphasis should be on Statistical thinking which Have the following components: * Notion of a Process, * Notion of measurement and data based decisions, * Understanding and dealing with variation, * Statistical tools, and * Systematic approach. The notion of process thinking is fundamental to any organizational change. Every action has some inputs and outputs which need to be identi? d in every context. Decisions at the strategic level should be based on facts supported by appropriate data and this requires an understanding of variation (Deming 1986). Business and Industry have seen the arrival and demise of many pr ograms such as Total Quality Management. Embracing any program that comes along without ? rm commitment and understanding is doomed to failure. Managerial Level (Middle Level) This is the level at which systems are devised for implementation of the directions taken by upper management.In particular, systems for robust product and pro- cess design, process control and improvement, and training are the responsibility of middle management. Understanding of some statistical tools and statistical thinking are prerequisites for those who are designing these systems. Operational Level At this level the methods are implemented through the system built at the mana- gerial level. Understanding of statistical tools such as control charting, capability analysis, design of experiments, measurement system analysis, regression analysis etc are essential.Appropriate statistical tools need to be used by operational peo- ple as part of their daily work. People in some areas need to know the details o nly of certain statistical tools. For instance, an operator responsible for maintaining stability of a process by charting should know the workings of a control chart but need not know a lot about design of experiments. On the other hand an engineer responsible for process improvement should be knowledgeable in several aspects of statistical process control and design of experiments.How entrepreneur minimizes the business risk By using following tools, am entrepreneur can minimize the business risk. Those are: * Business forecasting * Risk return analysis in portfolio and project management * Probability concept in manufacturing area and others Statistics are used all over the world. They can be applied in almost any situation and can always help. They are used in explaining group behavior of organisms, marketing research, and the list goes on and on. A good example is how scientists observe the behavior of groups of animals.Scientists can record data from a group of elephants and d etermine that a certain percentage of elephant herds will defend themselves from predators while the other percentage may run away. This kind of data can help scientists predict the elephant's lifestyle and culture. Statistics affects our daily life every day. Researchers use statistics to advertise their products which in turn we the consumer purchase. The price of the products we buy are determined upon statistics which show the demand for the product at that point in time and because of these statistics, we the consumers pay a certain amount of money to buy the product.Another example of how statistics affect me is in school. Every year statistics are looked over and the curriculums for the classes I take are based on data collected in the past. The curriculums are modified and help the learning process. In conclusion, statistics are a major staple of our world today. They are used in practically any situation and help improve our overall lifestyle. Statistics change the way we t hink about tomorrow and the way we live today and without them.

Atticus Quotes from to Kill a Mockingbird

â€Å"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view — until you climb into his skin and walk around in it. † –Atticus (pg. 30) â€Å"As you grow older you’ll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don’t you forget it— whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, of how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash. †Ã¢â‚¬â€œAtticus (pg. 200) â€Å"I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see through it no matter what. †Ã¢â‚¬â€œAtticus (pg. 112) â€Å"Before I can live with other folks I’ve got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience. †Ã¢â‚¬â€œAtticus (pg. 105) â€Å"You just hold your head high and keep those fists down. No matter what anyone says to you, don’t let ‘em get your goat. Try fighting with your head for a change†¦it’s a good one, even if it does resist learning. †Ã¢â‚¬â€œAtticus (pg. 6) â€Å"It’s not okay to hate anybody. †Ã¢â‚¬â€Atticus (pg. 246) â€Å"Jem see if you can stand in Bob Ewell’s shoes a minute. I destroyed his last shred of credibility at that trial, if he had any to begin with. The man had to have some kind of comeback, his kind always does. So if spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell one extra beating, that’s something I’ll gladly take. He had to take it out on somebody and I’d rather it be me than that household full of children out there. †Ã¢â‚¬â€œAtticus (pg. 218)