The Zone Diet Essay -- Health Nutrition Weight Loss

It seems like everywhere you look there is some new diet plan making miraculous promises of weight loss through pills, plans, and formulas. The zone diet is no exception. The zone diet was developed by Dr. Barry Sears in his book," Enter the Zone" which was on the bestseller lists for weeks. The zone promises high energy, weight loss, and no hunger to those willing to follow the simple set of zone rules. It sounds great you say, but does it really work? What is the Zone? The "zone" was first referred to by athletes as a period of maximum performance and energy levels. When things are clicking and every part of our body is working at its best, we say we are "in the zone." When we fall short we experience a loss of performance, more illness, and feel moody and restless. The zone diet helps individuals to stay in the zone, not just trying to hit or miss. Instead of experiencing periodic energy highs and lows, it regulates levels throughout the day, putting the body in a metabolic state of peak efficiency. Much of this energy regulation is controlled by eicosanoids (http://www.coolrunning.com/sponsor/thezone/zone.htm#eicos). These are some of the most important chemical messengers in the body. However, since they perform their cell-to-cell communications very rapidly and in very small concentrations, they have often been overlooked by many researchers. Eicosanoids are completely derived from dietary fat. In addition, they have opposing physiological functions, which can be either good or bad. The good eicosanoids accelerate the use of stored body fat, whereas the bad do the opposite. These levels of eicosanoids can be controlled by what we eat at each meal. For example, high levels of carbohydrates decrease the produ... ...er 4. Gray, J., and Martinovic, A. (I 994). Eicosanoids and essential fatty acid modulation in chronic disease and the chronic fatigue syndrome, Medical Hypotheses, 43(l): 31-42. Harvey, J., Wing, R.,& Mullen, M. (I 993). Effects on food cravings of a very low calorie diet or a balanced, low calorie diet. Appetite, 21(2): 105-15. Kurilla, Michael G. (I 996). Protein Requirements in Humans. Intemet Librwy Shah, M., McGovern, P., French, S. & Baxter J. (1994). Comparison of a low-fat, ad libitum complex-carbohydrate diet with a low-energy diet in moderately obese women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 59(5): 980-4. Suchner, U., and Senftleben, U. (1994). h=une modulation by polyunsaturated fatty acids during nutritional therapy: interactions with synthesis and effects of eicosanoids. Infusionstherapie und Transfusionsmedzin, 21(3): 167-82.

The Origin of Money

The use of money began in the sixth century B.C. in what is now western Turkey, when lumps of gold found in rivers were melted and turned into pieces of uniform size imprinted with a stamp. For almost all of the time since then, the common monetary system has been commodity money, whereby a valuable commodity (typically a metal) is used as a widely accepted medium of exchange. Furthermore, the quantity of money was not under anyone†s control; private agents, following price incentives, took actions that determined the money supply. Today, the prevalent monetary system is that of fiat money, in which the medium of exchange consists of unbacked government liabilities, which are claims to nothing at all. Moreover, governments have usually established a monopoly on the provision of fiat money, and control, or potentially control, its quantity. Fiat money is a very recent development in monetary history; it has only been in use for a few decades at most. Why did this evolution from commodity money to fiat money take place? Is fiat money better suited to the modern economy or was it desirable but impractical in earlier times? Were there forces that naturally and inevitably led to the present system? Fiat money did not appear spontaneously, since government plays a central role in the management of fiat currency. How did govern-ments learn about the possibility and desirability of a fiat currency? Did monetary theorizing play any role in this evolution? In this article, I will argue that the evolution from commodity to fiat money was the result of a long process of evolution and learning. Commodity money systems have certain advantages, in particular in providing a natural anchor for the price level. But they also have certain disadvantages, manifested in particular in the difficulty of providing multiple denominations concurrently. These problems arose early on, in the fourteenth century, in the form of money shortages. Societies tried to overcome these disadvantages, and this led them progressively closer to fiat money, not only in terms of the actual value of the object used as currency, but also in terms of the theoretical understanding of what fiat money is and how to manage it properly. In the process, societies came to envisage the use of coins that were worth less than their market value to replace the smaller denominations that were often in short supply. These coins are very similar to bank notes; they are printed on base metal, rather than paper, but the economics behind their value is the same. What governments learned over time about the provision of small change is thus directly applicable to our modern system of currency. In his A Program for Monetary Stability (1960), Milton Friedman begins with the question: Why should government intervene in monetary and banking questions? He answers by providing a quick history of money, which he describes as a process inevitably leading to a system of fiat money monopolized by the government (p. 8): These, then, are the features of money that justify government intervention: the resource cost of a pure commodity currency and hence its tendency to become partly fiduciary; the peculiar difficulty of enforcing contracts involving promises to pay that serve as medium of exchange and of preventing fraud in respect to them; the technical monopoly character of a pure fiduciary currency which makes essential the setting of some external limit on its amount; and finally, the pervasive character of money which means that the issuance of money has important effect on parties other than those directly involved and gives special importance to the preceding features. †¦ The central tasks for government are also clear: to set an external limit to the amount of money and to prevent counterfeiting, broadly conceived. This article will find much to validate this view. It turns out that the problem of counter-feiting, identified as central by Friedman, provided obstacles that were overcome only when the appropriate technology became available. As technology changed and offered the possibility of implementing a form of fiduciary currency, various incomplete forms of currency systems were tried, with significant effects on the price level. These experiments led to the recognition that quantity limitation was crucial to maintaining the value of the currency. The need for a government monopoly, however, does not emerge from our reading of the historical record, and we will see that the private sector also came up with its own solutions to the problem of small change, thereby presenting alternatives to the monetary arrangements we have adopted.1 Among the desirable features of a monetary system, price stability has long been a priority, as far back as Aristotle†s discussion of money in Ethics. In the words of the seventeenth century Italian monetary theorist Gasparo Antonio Tesauro (1609), money must be â€Å"the measure of all things† (rerum omnium mensura) (p. 633). Aristotle also noted that commodity money, specifically money made of precious metals, was well suited to reach that goal: â€Å"Money, it is true, is liable to the same fluctuation of demand as other commodities, for its purchasing power varies at different times; but it tends to be comparatively constant† (Aristotle, Ethics, 1943 translation). The commodity money system delivers a nominal anchor for the price level. The mechanism by which this takes place can be described in the context of a profit-maximizing mint, which was how coins were produced in the Middle Ages and later.2 Suppose there is a way to convert goods into silver and silver into goods at a constant cost (in ounces of silver per unit of goods), which can be thought of as either the extraction cost of silver and the industrial uses of the metal or the â€Å"world price† of silver in a small country interpretation. Silver is turned into coins by the mint; the mint (which really represents the private sector) also decides when to melt down existing coins. The government†s role is limited to two actions. It specifies how much silver goes into a coin, and it collects a seigniorage tax 3 on all new minting. When the mint is minting new coins, its costs are the cost of the silver content, the seigniorage tax, and the production cost;4 its revenues are the market value of the coins, which is the inverse of the price level. Similarly, when the mint is melting down coins, its costs are the market value of the coins, and its revenues are the value of the silver contained in them. Whether the mint will produce new coins or melt down existing coins will thus depend on how the price level relates to the parameters: silver content of the coins, production costs, and seigniorage rate. The price level cannot be too low (or the purchasing power of the coins too high) or the mint could make unbounded profits by minting new coins and spending them. Similarly, the price level cannot be too high (or the purchasing power of the coins too low), or the mint would make profits by melting down the coins. The absence of arbitrage for the mint places restrictions on the price level, which is contained in an interval determined by the minting point and the melting point

The Natural Nature Of Human Beings - 1693 Words

Human beings became unique as a result of consciousness that is immediately they begun to produce their means of substance, they automatically begun to distinguish themselves from all other things including animals. That is where the mode of production sets in hence the formation of society. There is this natural instinct that exist in human i.e. whenever human beings come together the spirit of leadership or headship automatically permeate either through wealth, religion, age, etc. The mode of production came to existence as a result of what nature has created and that is what led to the process of division of labor which has brought a system or organization in which we see ranks in a society. The system developed to the extent that someone has to be at the top in other to control those at the bottom and also led to the barter system where money were being use in exchange of commodities, (†We now have to grasp the essential connection between private property, greed, the separation of labor, capital and landed property, exchange and competition, value and the devaluation [Entwertung] of man, monopoly and competition, etc. – the connection between this entire system of estrangement [Enifremdung] and the money system.†) This system which finally resulted in a production of commodities or service to mankind has brought the relation to the worker (producer), the commodity (product) and property owner. Each of these three entities are very importa nt to each other, the workerShow MoreRelatedNature Is The Natural Root Of Human Beings Essay2007 Words   |  9 PagesNature From the very beginning, we have took whatever we knew and created certain things that would help us get through life better. We were gifted with brains that allow us to think rather than strength as other creatures. Although the time that we had took to make changes to the world was quite a long time, but it had an enormous impact to the evolution of human beings. Exploration is a good skill which has helped us gather the information from the environment around us. Intelligent is a centralRead MoreThe Natural Law Theory Of Human Nature954 Words   |  4 PagesIt is our human nature that makes us feel great when we get a job and makes us feel horrible for something we steal something. This is because it feels natural for us to feel that we did something right or wrong. The natural law theory tells us that an action is morally right if it is natural and an action is wrong if it is unnatural. This means that human morality comes from nature and has a purpose to live a good life. If so meone’s actions are preventing them from making them live a good life,Read MoreUniversalist Theory Of Universalism1237 Words   |  5 Pagesprocess. The justification for this rises from human nature, which is a shared vulnerability of suffering and demands universal reasoning. It also involves religion mandates and existing moral codes. It contrasts moral relativism, which claims that moral truths are relative to personal, historical, cultural, and social circumstances. There are three Universalist theories. They include Rationalism, Legalism, and Natural Lae. The focus of this discussion is Natural Lae. It is a moral theory that claims jurisprudenceRead MoreThe New Technology Can Save Lives960 Words   |  4 Pagesusing this technology to help save lives. 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In addition, Kant believed that the outcome of human nature is not the central issue when it comes to knowing whatRead More`` Faking Nature `` By Robert Elliot745 Words   |  3 PagesAuthenticity holds intrinsic value. The process of destroying something to then later recreate it removes its authent icity and in turn, its intrinsic value. In his essay, Faking Nature, Robert Elliot argues that the recreation of natural landscapes after human destruction strips nature of its value. Rather than disrupting and restoring landscapes, Elliot emphasizes the priority should be preserving it. Elliot rejects the argument of the restoration thesis which is the claim that a recreation ofRead MoreDavid Humes Distinction Between Natural and Artificial Virtues1060 Words   |  5 Pages In David Hume’s A Treatise of Human Nature, he divides the virtues of human beings into two types: natural and artificial. He argues that laws are artificial and a human invention. Therefore, he makes the point that justice is an artificial virtue instead of a natural virtue. He believed that human beings are moral by nature – they were born with some sense of morality and that in order to understand our â€Å"moral conceptions,† studying human psychology is the key (Moehler). In this paper, I will argueRead MoreThe Theory Of God s Eternal Law1382 Words   |  6 PagesMetaphysics recognizes that the ultimate reason for being is made manifest in the created structure of reality by God, who is a subsistent being. Since God is a subsistent being, all creatures, including huma ns, are â€Å"placed by him in existence† and they are therefore naturally oriented towards him. Because of this, â€Å"natural law is therefore defined as a participation in the eternal law,† and it is mediated by human reason and human inclinations—which participate in the divine intelligence. TheseRead MoreBlade Runner and New Brave Worlds Perspectives on Humanity Essay1297 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"Blade Runner: Director’s Cut† and Aldous Huxley’s novel â€Å"Brave New World† explore the concept of ‘In The Wild’ by focusing on the natural world and its rhythms falling victim to unbridled scientific development. They present a wedge that is divorcing man from his relationship with nature, in an attempt to define what it means to be ‘human’. Both texts depict chilling dystopic futures where the materialistic scientific and economic ways of thinking have been allowed toRead MoreThe Idea Of Natural Selection872 Words   |  4 PagesThe idea of anthropocentrism provides comfort to humans. It posits that in this messy, incomprehensible world, we are still the central species. This idea allows, and even encourages, humans to view the world through a very anthropological lens and assume that, because we are the dominant and most important species, nature works in human terms and is the domain of man. The idea of creationism is very anthropocentric itself. In the Hebrew Bible, man was created before all other animals and designed

Presidents Who Never Won a Presidential Election

There are only five presidents in American history who never won a presidential election. The most recent was Republican Gerald Ford, the 38th president of the United States. Ford served from 1974 to 1977 and then left office in electoral defeat. Where some others assumed the presidency under tumultuous or tragic circumstances and then went on to win a second term, Ford is among a handful who failed to convince voters to return him to power after he ascended to the White House because his predecessor resigned. The other presidents who never won presidential elections were John Tyler,  Millard Fillmore,  Andrew Johnson, and  Chester A. Arthur. Ford is also among fewer than a dozen one-term presidents  who ran for second terms but were denied by voters. So How Did Ford Become President? Ford was serving as vice president in 1974 amid scandal in President Richard M. Nixons administration. He ascended to the presidency when Nixon resigned before he was to face prosecution over the 1972 break-in at the Democratic Partys headquarters in what became known as the  Watergate scandal. Nixon was facing certain impeachment at the time.   As Ford said in taking the Oath of Office:  I assume the Presidency under extraordinary circumstances. This is an hour of history that troubles our minds and hurts our hearts. Did Ford Run for Re-Election? Yes. He won the Republican presidential nomination in 1976 but lost in the general election to Democrat Jimmy Carter, who went on to serve one term. Fords political fortunes sank amid a depressed economy, inflation, and energy shortages at home.   Ford and Carter had engaged in what is believed to be among the most important political debates in political history. The debate, many historians believe,  proved disastrous to Fords bid for a second term in the White House. Ford famously claimed, erroneously, the following: There is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe and there never will be under a Ford administration. Fords statement was met with incredulity from moderator Max Frankel of  The New York Times  and served to tarnish his campaign. What About the Others Who Didnt Win Election? John Tyler became president when President William Henry Harrison died in office in 1841. Tyler could not muster enough support to sustain a legitimate presidential campaign.  Millard Fillmore became president when Zachary Taylor died in 1850. Fillmore sought his partys nomination for a second term but was denied.Andrew Johnson became president when Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865. Johnson did not run for office after being impeached by Congress.  Chester A. Arthur became president after James Garfield was assassinated in 1881. Arthur did not run for re-election.

The Issue, Racism And Segregation - 847 Words

The issue, Racism and segregation in sports. The answer, Jackie Robinison. â€Å"A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives,† a quote by Jackie Robinson. Jack Roosevelt Robinson, born on January 31st, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia. His mother Mallie and his father Jerry were sharecroppers at the time and lived on a plantation. Jerry Robinson made just about $12 dollars a month which was not enough to support a total of five children. Jerry went to his boss and was allowed the opportunity to become a half-cropper which means that he gains profit off of the produce. This allowed him to gain a higher income and therefore provide for his family. Six months after Jackie’s birth, his father went to go visit his brother in Texas and never returned. They soon found out that Jerry had actually ran away with the neighbors wife. To this day Jackie has no idea what became of his father but could only look at him with disdain because he asked himself what type of ma n would leave his wife and 5 kids to fend for themselves in such an oppressive time period? Jackie and his family then moved to Pasadena, Ca. When his family moved, Jackie’s mother, with help from her niece, moved into a white neighborhood. Manfred Weidhorn noted in his biography, Jackie Robinson, Jackie was proud of his mother, who would not allow the white neighbors to drive her away or frighten her or mistreat her kids. From her he learned to stand up for his rights. 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Analytical report on the sustainability of the London 2012 Olympic games Free Essays

string(151) " six main achievements that have arisen from the Games: The Olympic Park; Carbon management; Sustainable transport; Food vision; Waste; and Standards\." Executive summary This report presents a discussion of the sustainability plan developed for, and implemented during, the 2012 Olympic Games held in London. The sustainability plan was governed by five main themes: climate change; waste; biodiversity; inclusion; and healthy living (London 2012, 2012). The aim with regards to climate change was to deliver a low carbon Games in order to be able to showcase the ability of London 2012 to respond to the need to minimise our impact on the environment. We will write a custom essay sample on Analytical report on the sustainability of the London 2012 Olympic games or any similar topic only for you Order Now The aim with regards to waste was to deliver a zero-waste Games. The aim for biodiversity was to conserve biodiversity and to create new green spaces across London, which would enable people to be brought closer together through both sport and Nature. With regards to inclusion, the aim of London 2012 was to be the most inclusive Olympic Games to date, with the Games being used as an opportunity to develop the region of London in which the Games was held. With regards to healthy living, the aim of the Games was to inspire people in the UK to become more motivated to exercise and to take up sport, through this developing more active and healthy lifestyles (Girginov and Hills, 2008). In order to provide a framework for the achievement of these five themes, the sustainability plan was divided in to five main aspects, each of which will be discussed in detail in the next section of the report: Local community work; Our responsibility; Food vision; Active travel; and Recycling. Overview of the sustainability plan put forward by the organisers of the London 2012 Olympics As London 2012 (London 2012, 2012) state, â€Å"When we bid to host the 2012 Games, we made a radical proposal to the International Organising Committee†¦we were going to hold the world’s first truly sustainable Olympic and Paralympic Games†. The Olympic 2012 organising committee sat down with BioRegional and the WWF to develop a plan called Towards a One Planet 2012 which outlined how the Olympic Games 2012 could be made as sustainable as possible, guided by the idea that the â€Å"†¦world should live within it’s means† (London 2012, 2012). The sustainability plan that was developed has five main areas of consideration entitled climate change; waste; biodiversity; inclusion; and healthy living. These were implemented via five main approaches: local community work (inclusion and biodiversity); our responsibility (inclusion); food vision (climate change and waste); active travel (healthy living); and recycling (waste). These five areas were develo ped through consultation across four main areas, all of which related directly to those attending the Games or watching the Games on the television, namely the venues, travel, food and waste (London 2012, 2012). As London 2012 (2012) state, â€Å"All our venues were designed to ensure that all the athletes perform to the best of their ability whilst pushing the boundaries of sustainability knowledge and design†, with all the venues being designed – or remodelled – on the basis of the venues leaving a sustainable legacy for future generations. With regards to travel, London 2012 (2012) note that the most important consideration was to enable the millions of spectators – and the thousands of participants – to be able to reach the venues on time and for the Games to be used as an opportunity to educate the population about sustainable travel, including the benefits of using public transport, walking and cycling. With regards to food, the organisers of the Games worked very closely with the food industry in order to be able to bring ethical and sustainable food to the Games. Waste was another major consideration of the organising committee, with the organising committee aiming to send none of the extra waste generated during the Games to landfill (London 2012, 2012). The five areas will now be discussed in detail. ‘Local community work’, as London 2012 (2012) detail, was based around a specially created outreach program called Changing Places, with the specific aims of encouraging inclusion and preserving and increasing biodiversity (London 2012, 2007). This program aimed to encourage people to get out in to their local community to effect positive changes in their community, changes that would make the communities more attractive to residents and to visitors. The main aims of the ‘Local community work’ area of the London 2012 sustainability plan were to inspire communities to improve their public spaces; to enable people from communities to become more united and to develop new skills and interests; and to improve the quality of the neighbourhoods around London 2012 venues, with a view to not only improving the visitor experience but providing an opportunity for long-term positive changes in the aesthetics of these comm unities. The program was begun in 2009 and, since that date, as London 2012 (2012) note, there have been more than 6000 volunteers who have signed up to help, with over 15,000 hours of volunteer time having been given to the program. More than 15 tonnes of waste have been removed from communities near the Olympic venues and over 7000m of community gardens have been created across 250 sites, with 2000 square metres of graffiti having been removed from walls in these communities. As London 2012 (2012) discuss, this represents a massive commitment from local communities who have felt the impact on the environment of their local communities, making these local communities more attractive and increasing the sense of pride that local residents take in their communities. With regards to the ‘Our responsibility’ area of the sustainability plan, London 2012 (2012) notes that â€Å"Sustainability has been a part of every bold and challenging decision we have made in the development of the Olympic Park and the staging of the Games†. This area fits within the main ‘Inclusion’ theme of the London 2012 sustainability plan. The Games were not only a success but the preparation for the Games has meant that London has, â€Å"†¦changed†, with the sustainability plan, â€Å"†¦.changing the way we impact people, industry and the planet† (London 2012, 2012). As London 2012 (2012) note, within the framework of ‘Our responsibility’, there are six main achievements that have arisen from the Games: The Olympic Park; Carbon management; Sustainable transport; Food vision; Waste; and Standards. You read "Analytical report on the sustainability of the London 2012 Olympic games" in category "Essay exampl es" The Olympic Park features the most sustainable sports venue ever built, with 60% of construction materials for the Park having been brought to the site by rail or river, thus minimising the pollution that the transport of these materials caused. As Collins et al. (2009) note, however, it can be difficult to accurately measure the impact of mega sporting events on the local area, both in the short- and long-term. It is difficult, therefore, to know how London 2012 managed to assess, in quantitative terms, the reduction in pollution generated as a result of moving materials in this way and whether this reduction was maintained during the actual hosting of the Games. In terms of carbon management, London 2012 was the first Olympic Games to measure it’s carbon footprint across the whole Games, with the analysis of this footprint enabling decisions to be made about how to avoid, reduce and substitute carbon emissions in London in future (London 2012, 2012). Sustainable transport wa s a major concern of the organising committee, with the committee committing to achieving 100% sustainable transport across the duration of the Games. This was achieved through the ‘Supporting Active Travel’ plan, which will be discussed later in the report. Regarding ‘Food vision’, which fits within the ‘Healthy living’, ‘Waste’ and ‘Biodiversity’ themes of the sustainability plan, London 2012 represented the â€Å"†¦largest peacetime catering operation in the world† with the delivery of food using ethical and sustainable principles meaning that the Games delivered 14 million sustainably sourced meals to visitors and participants. ‘Waste’ was treated as a fundamental issue that needed to be tackled if the Games were to be delivered sustainably, with the overall aim of London 2012 to achieve ‘zero-waste-to-landfill’ and the Games actually achieving an overall 98.5% reuse and 99% recycling of all materials from the Games (London 2012, 2012). In terms of ‘Standards’, London 2012 were the first Olympic organising committee to be certified to the British Standard 8901: Specification for a Sustainability Management Systems for Events (London 2012, 2012). Under the area of ‘Food vision’, the London 2012 organising committee made certain commitments, including a commitment to deliver choice, diversity and affordable prices to visitors in terms of the food that would be available for them to buy at the Games (London 2012, 2012). It was also noted that the food that was sold was healthy, this being a key consideration of the organising committee in view of their commitment to the Games being used as a showcase to encourage people in the UK to become more active and, through this, healthier. To achieve these broad aims, five aspects of food vision were considered: food safety and hygiene; choice and balance; food sourcing and supply chains (with local food being given precedence); environmental management, resource efficiency and waste (with food providers being encouraged to use recyclable packaging); and skills and education (London 2012, 2012). One major aspect of the food vision was the decision to use only fish caught or farmed sustainably, this inspiring the naming of London as the Sustainable Fish City in 2011 (London 2012, 2012). With regards to active travel area of the sustainability plan, which fits in the ‘Healthy living’ theme of the sustainability plan (London 2012, 2007), this will be discussed in more detail in the next section of the report. The ‘recycling’ area of the sustainability plan was an important aspect of the plan, constituting the main concern of the ‘Waste’ theme of the plan (London 2012, 2007), the organising committee encouraging the food providers at the Games to use compostable packaging and for all visitors to recycle wherever possible. In terms of the non-recyclable rubbish generated during the Games, the organising committee placed designated black bins around the venues, the material going in to these bins was then used to produce electricity, which was then pumped back in to the Games. Overall, then, the five areas of the sustainability plan were well thought out and delineated in such a way that each area supported each other area, providin g an overall plan for sustainability that was not only comprehensive but also, and importantly, highly practical (Girginov et al., 2009; Davies, 2012). It can be argued that it was the practical nature of the sustainability plan that led to its aims being achieved across all five areas of the plan (Nichols, 2012; Horne, 2012). Detailed review of ‘active travel’ As London 2012 (2012) discusses, one of the main aims of the sustainability plan was to encourage UK society, in general, to become more active, to undertake more exercise and, through this, to become healthier as a whole. As Devine (2012) discusses, the Government, as part of the planning for the Olympic Games, organised this aim in to four areas of focus, aiming, through this, to, â€Å"†¦harness the UK’s passion for sport to increase grass-roots participation, particularly by young people and encourage the whole population to be more physically active†. With this in mind, the sustainability plan included, as one of the five main areas, the idea of ‘Active travel’, which aimed to encourage visitors to the Games to walk and cycle more often and, as a result of this, and education surrounding this idea, to encourage people in the UK to walk and cycle more often. The Active travel program was developed to encourage people to adopt healthier lifestyles, with this not only offering a way to improve the overall health of the population – and therefore having a public health perspective – but also easing the burden on public transport and on the road network during the London 2012 event (London 2012, 2012). As part of this framework, the London 2012 Inspire Programme was set up which aimed to encourage more walking and cycling. In the run up to the Games, 60 Inspire programmes were set up, with the lessons learned from these pilot projects being consolidated and turned in to plans to effect real changes in the choice of transportation across the UK as a whole (Horne, 2012). As London 2012 (2012) noted, â€Å"By creating a positive experience for people walking and cycling to the Games, London 2012 and Transport for London hope people will continue to choose to walk and cycle in the future, both for every day trips and to future sporting and cultural events†. It is clear, then, that the London 2012 organising committee has a serious commitment to using the lessons learned during London 2012 to improve the health of the general populace beyond the 2012 Games. As London 2012 (2007; 47) states, â€Å"Living healthy lifestyles within the resources of the planet, is an essential element of working towards a one planet 2012†, with healthy living being tightly linked to other aspects of the sustainability plan, including access to green spaces, healthy food and active travel. If more green spaces are available, for example, as a result of the quest for community involvement and the commitment to restore and create more biodiversity spots across London, then people will be more inclined to get outside and be healthy. Once people start to feel healthier, their bodies ask for healthier food. As Shipway (2007) notes, it can be difficult, however, to determine what the sustainable legacies of an event such as London 2012 might be, in terms of health. Whilst the Games had a unique opportunity to deliver sustainable sporting and health legacies, there are many key challenges that need to be overcome before these legacies can have any short- or long-term impacts. What is needed, argues Shipway (2007), is a â€Å"†¦positive step change in the attitudes towards sport and physical activity in British society†. Until this is achieved, it is difficult to see how the ‘active travel’ legacy of the London 2012 sustainability plan can be achieved. As Dickson and Benson (2011) note, what is needed, in reality, is some form of metric that could enable the measurement of the degree of implementation of these desired legacies and the impact of the desired legacies on the local area and beyond. Without this, as Dickson and Benson (2011) note, the sustainability pla n put forwards by London 2012 is simply talk with no substance (Leopky and Parent, 2012). Closer links to local and regional planning activities could, for example, have ensured a greater likelihood of achieving, and sustaining, the aims of ‘active travel’ (Gratton and Preuss, 2008). A short opinion survey of ‘active travel’ A short survey was undertaken of GSM London students, in order to find out their opinions on the active travel ideas in the London 2012 sustainability plan. As shown in Table 1, of the twenty students interviewed, none of them had realised that the London 2012 Games had been accompanied by a sustainability plan. Number of students who knew the London 2012 Olympics had a sustainability planNumber of students who did not know that the London 2012 Olympics had a sustainability plan 020 Table 1: Showing the number of students who were aware of the London 2012 sustainability plan When the respondents were asked if they could imagine what this plan might have included, eighteen of the students said they were not sure, with one mentioning that they thought the plan might include ‘minimising impacts on climate change’ and another mentioning ‘encouraging less waste’. Of the twenty students that were interviewed, all twenty of them had been in London at the time of the Games but only three of them had visited an event during the London 2012 Games. Asked for their opinion of the London 2012 Games, twelve of them responded that tickets for the events were too expensive and that the transport had been ‘a nightmare’ around the time of the Games, with the seven students who travel by public transport saying that they had become tired, during the Games, of having to help tourists find their routes and of having to stand because the bus/Tube they usually used was very full during the duration of the Games. Two of the students interviewed said that they had taken to using a bike, during the Games, because of the crowding on public transport, and that, as they had enjoyed the experience so much, and felt so much healthier when they used their bike to get to their place of study, they had continued to use their bike since the Games. When asked if they would recommend using a bike to their peers, both of these students stated that, yes, they had recommended using a bike to friends and that, between them, six other students had now started cycling to their place of study, rather than using public transport. When asked whether they felt the London 2012 planning committee had been successful in their mission to encourage the use of active transport to move around the Games, the twenty students replied that they had not realised this was an aspect of the sustainability plan of the London 2012 Games. When told that it was, and that the main aim of this was to encourage people in the UK, in general, to be healthier, the twenty students seemed perplexed by this idea, stating that they were unsure if this would work, as they had not even heard of the sustainability plan and certainly had not seen any adverts encouraging people to use active transport during the Games. It was clear from the short opinion survey undertaken that the twenty students interviewed were not very well informed of the sustainability plan of London 2012 nor of the specific parts of this plan, nor of the fact that Londoners, and people in the UK in general, were being asked to use active transport, following the model of this piloted during the London 2012 Games. It seems, therefore, that from this small sample of people, the London 2012 organising committee were not very successful in transmitting their grand ideas to the general populace. Conclusion This report has provided an analysis of the sustainability plan of the London 2012 Games, looking at the main themes in the plan and how these themes were implemented. The results of a short survey were presented which suggest that, despite the fact that London 2012 were very successful in implementing some of their plans (such as those covering waste and food), they were not so successful in educating the public about the benefits of engaging in active transport. References Collins, A., Jones, C., and Munday, M. (2009). Assessing the environmental impacts of mega sporting events: two optionsTourism Management 30(6), 828-837. Davies, L.E. (2012). Beyond the Games: regeneration legacies and London 2012. Leisure Studies 31(3), 309-337. Devine, C. (2012). London 2012 Olympic legacy: a big sporting societyInternational Journal of Sport Policy and Politics DOI: 10.1080/19406940.2012.656674. Dickson, T.J. and Benson, A. (2011). Developing a framework for evaluating Olymic and Paralympic legacies. Journal of Sport and Tourism 4, 285-302. Girginov, V. and Hills, L. (2008). A sustainable sports legacy: creating a link between the London Olympics and sports participation. International Journal of the History of Sports 25(14), 2091-2116. Girginov, V. et al. (2009). The political process of constructing a sustainable London Olympics sports development legacy. International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics 1(2), 161-181. Girginov, V. (2012). Governance of the London 2012 Olympic Games legacy. International Review for the Sociology of Sport 47, 543-558. Gratton, C. and Pruess, H. (2008). Maximising Olympic impacts by building up legacies. The International Journal of the History of Sport 25(14), 1922-1938. Horne, J. (2012). Leisure, culture and the Olympic Games. Leisure Studies 31(3), 261-263. Leopky, B. and Parent, M.M. (2012). Olympic Games legacy: from general benefits to long-term legacy. The International Journal of the History of Sport 29(6), 924-943. Leopky, B. (2013). The Governance of Olympic Games legacy. PhD thesis, Universite de Ottowa. Available from https://ruor.uottawa.ca/fr/handle/10393/23640 [Accessed 21st March 2013]. London 2012 (2007). Towards a one planet 2012. Available from http://www.sel.org.uk/uploads/London-2012-Sustainability-Plan.pdf [Accessed 22nd March 2013]. London 2012 (2012). Sustainability. Available from http://www.london2012.com/about-us/sustainability/ [Accessed 22nd March 2013]. Nichols, G. (2012). Olympic cities: 2012 and the remaking of London. Leisure Studies 31(3), 378-380. Shipway, R. (2007). Sustainable legacies for the 2012 Olympic Games. Perspectives in Public Health 127, 119-124. How to cite Analytical report on the sustainability of the London 2012 Olympic games, Essay examples

Mobile and Executive Computing for Mobile Enterprise System

Question: Discuss about theMobile and Executive Computing for Mobile Enterprise System. Answer: Introduction The revolution brought about by mobile phones was of immense impact to the traditional ways of doing many business activities especially interaction. Information spread faster and communication became more efficient and instant. The growth of the mobile influence has extended beyond the normal business activities and now includes managing production processes as well as facilitating human resource and much more. It is estimated that within the next decade, more than 50 percent of the business processes will be conducted over mobile phone applications (Gunnarsson 2013). Additionally, the use of smartphones is growing at a rapid rate all over the globe. Precisely, more than 90% of the global population has a smartphone at the moment, a number that is projected to grow and surpass the population (Derbyshire 2017). This growth accompanied by a number of other favorable factors like their mobility, convenience, and small size make mobile business solutions an inevitable alternative to the traditional business process as well as desktop based business solutions. The implementation of a mobile solution is, however, an expensive and complex process that needs to be evaluated thoroughly to ensure that the investment put in by the acquiring company matches the returns expected from it. This report seeks to explore the implementation process that an implementation manager may explore to come up with a working system. It looks at the different factors that may have an impact on the end functioning of the system. The report uses the experiences gained from several case studies that have implemented such systems. It looks at the problem they solved, the benefits these systems brought to their respective companies, the cost factor of the system, dependents of the success of the system and the platforms used and the factors that affected the choice of those platforms. Cost-Benefits Analysis One of the biggest tasks for the implementation management team is to ensure that the ultimate benefits of any system will be of a higher value than its cost. To determine this, the management team will have to evaluate the different platforms that may be used, the technologies used, the emerging technology used, vital backup procedures, maintenance of the system and how long will the technology used to create the system will exist in the foreseeable future (Jacobs 2006). Cost Factor The cost factor of a mobile enterprising system, like that of a regular automated system, is subject to a number of costs that may not only involve the initial costs but also recurrent costs that might be required to run and maintain the system. Estimation of the right amount of cost is viable to carry out an effective cost-benefit analysis. The estimated cost of implementing and running may vary depending on a specific firms needs. To accurately estimate the costs that may be involved, costs are divided into different categories such as initial cost, recurring cost, wireless infrastructure costs, training costs and additional costs(Jacobs 2006). It is necessary to break these costs further down into smaller even smaller groups to increase the accuracy of the estimates to the real costs. For instance, the initial costs can be broken down into the cost for hardware, software, wiring system, mount installation and other peripheral devices that could be used. The software development co st will as well vary depending on the expected complexity of the application. Similarly, the recurring costs such as maintenance contracts, training for technology support, software upgrades and any necessary replicable should be put into consideration. Benefits Factor On the benefits side of the cost-benefit analysis, it is essential to evaluate the benefits that systems, if successfully implemented, will bring to the firm. Factors such as the current workload, the congestion associated with the workload, the effectiveness of the system in easing management, resource allocation and supervision, reduction in the current cost and improvement in quality are crucial in helping in the analysis of potential benefits (Jacobs 2006). However, since there is no definite measure of the impact that the system may have on the company, the company must take the burden of carrying out an extensive benefits analysis to ensure that the benefits are not overstated in relation to the costs (Sabine Andrea 2014). Understanding the key components of the implementation process are crucial to the success of the process is a great way of having an effective cost-benefit analysis. Key Components The key components of an implementation of a mobile enterprise system can be included in a three-step process that forms up the implementation process; reach, act and transform (Gunnarsson 2013). Each step has some designated components that are required to be taken care of. Reach In the reach stage, the main components are communication and productivity tools. These ensure that the customer using the app can be reached anytime, anywhere. These components may include main needs of the business, the staff section of the app, the type of device to be used and system requirements and are the main focus at this stage (Gunnarsson 2013). The designing bit comes in as well with a focus on user experience and the security of the application during accessing of content by the customer. Act In the second stage, the management team should make sure users of the application can access service through a simple authorization and allow input in real time from a remote location. The key components at this stage are security authorization and acknowledgment. The management may decide to test the components by allowing internal people to use and give feedback on the operations of the application. The main focus should be the emphasis on the applications usability and how consistent it is when in operation. The retrieval of information both online and offline should be also a priority. Transform The last stage is transformation. The key components involved at this stage are re-reengineering of the core process, automation of routines and certainty of flexibility to the customer. The management may compare their progress to that of other players ahead of them in the industry. A perfect scenario may be developed and shared with experts to identify ways in which the progress can be bettered further. The system may be strategized more to find ways in which it can be streamlined to solving more than the immediate problems by incorporating Artificial Intelligence. Carrying out a poll from the executive and users, both customers and staff may help to identify areas of improvement. Choice of Technology The biggest driving force behind mobility of business solutions is the technology used. A study conducted to determine the major factors holding back mobility in many companies found out that the number one inhibitor of mobile embracement was the design system (Gunnarsson 2013). From the three currently popular systems, Software Configuration Management (SCM), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM), the study also found that the most desirable design was CRM (Gunnarsson 2013). The choice of technology depends much on the internal process of the business in question and the status of its inter-organizational coordination. For instance, in a case study of a wood processing firm, the firm uses RFID in the manufacturing process to identify and track the logs as they are processed (Salo 2012). In this, the choice of the system would depend on the type of the business that the firm intents or already entails in. Alternatively, the choice of the techno logy to be employed may be depended on the interaction of the different departments within the organization. In addition, there is a factor on the impact of the inter-organizational connection. In some instances, the connection may be strong and thus require that the involved departments use a technology that will allow smooth transaction or communication between the different them, For example, an insurance company agent may use the same platform as a customer to initiate the claim process instantly at the point of accident (Salo 2012). There are many factors that may affect the choice of a companys technology, the company, therefore, must be able to identify all the factors that are involved and ensure each point is factored during the decision process. An all-inclusive decision process is likely to reduce the problems of restructuring in future. Even with a perfect choice for the right technology, the success of the implementation process depends on other equally important factor s. Success Factors and Enablers Factors that drive the success of the implementation process, just like the other factors discussed before, may as well differ from one project to another. However, there are factors that can be seen as defining factors to the success of the implementation. These include end-to-end solution, mobility built-in, and industry excellence (Gunnarsson 2013). These factors are discussed in detail below. End-2-End Solution It refers to the development of the business solution from scratch, starting from the front-end to the back end without using any templets throughout the process. Garrison (2013) notes that a hands-on development from scratch will ensure a seamless transition from one step to another. This will allow any inhibitors or potential errors to be identified in the early stages. Mobility Built-in The second success factor is the mobility built-in factor. The success of the project depends very much on the focus and the goal of the implementation management team. A focus on the technological constraints is likely to fail because it does not focus on the very problem it tries to solve (Gunnarsson 2013). Gunnarsson (2013) also notes that if much investment and focus is put into the technical aspect of the system, it puts constraints on the management in future in case newer technologies that are better come up. Industry Excellence The third success factor that may affect the success of the implementation is focused on the excellence of the system in the industry. Users of the application will definitely want a service that is as close as to the natural if not better. It is the role of the management team to ensure that the application developed is an excellent application and solves the problem it is designed to solve. The application may be tested to meet excellence on the basis of its design, the speed, the bugs and the simplicity of using it to the end user. From the success factors, it can be seen that the most important bit of the implementation process is not necessarily, as much as it may be important, the technical bit but the design bit. It is necessary to ensure that the design, therefore, meets the standards of the industry. The focus should be on the ability of the system to be usable to the end user without the need for an intensive training. Platform There are a number of platforms used to facilitate mobile systems. These may include the Apples iOS, Blackberry, and Android (Salo 2012). The choice for Blackberry is limited since most of the apps are customized to the device. The choice between iOS and Android is determined by the platform with the most customers or potential customers. However, it is advisable to provide an application for all the available platform to ensure that the customers have a wide choice in regard to the platform they want to use. Conclusion The implementation process of a mobile system is as complex as the implementation of the desktop enterprise system. However, its nobility makes it a favorable choice due to its mobility and capabilities of allowing users to access services at their own convenience. With the complexity involved and the high costs of implementing the system, the implementation process must be undertaken with care to avoid any mistakes. This report has explored the process of implementation focusing on the several factors that entail the successful implementation of a mobile enterprising system. Although the report tries to include all the aspects of the process, it may not have covered every step that there is and there should not be taken as exclusive. Works Cited Gunnarsson, M 2013, 'The Business Benefits of Enterprise Mobile Solution', IFS. Jacobs, M 2006, 'Mobile Computing Technologies', IT Department, Illinois State Police, Illnois. Sabine , B Andrea, B 2014, 'e-Ecosystems : living bits and things : 27th Bled eConference, 4th Living Bits and Things Conference', in The 27th Bled eConference "eEcosystems", Moderna Organizacija, Kranj. Salo, J 2012, 'The role of mobile technology in a buyer-supplier relationship: a case study from the steel industry', The Journal of Business Industrial Marketing, vol 27, no. 7, pp. 554-563.