Mad Magazine: Its Success :: essays research papers

MAD Magazine Its SuccessMAD Magazine is a counter conclusion publication that was founded in the1960s by William M. Gaines. The magazine satirizes everything from populartelevision and entertainment, to important political issues and governmentleaders. Despite the fact that MAD contains no advertisements, it has flourishedfor more than triad decades and is still widely read today.     In todays media advertisement has become a necessary part of thebusiness, Ads fill the pages of newspapers, magazines, even comic books. In thisclip daybook project, I am attempting to determine why MAD Magazine has survivedover the years without the aid of advertisement.I have come up with three main(prenominal) factors that could explain MADs success.     The first factor that has made Mads survival over the years possible isits foundations. Its creation was during the sixties, when counter culture wasat its peak, a time when rebelling against "the dod ge" and not "selling out"were the ideals of popular culture. The fact that the magazine held within itscovers no advertisements catered to the ideal of not selling out, which drew afaithful audience.     The minute of arc factor is tradition. As is true with about MAD readers of mygeneration, My first encounter with the magazine was when I was a kid, goingthrough some old things of my fathers in the attic. I came across an old issueof MAD and became interested in it although I only understood a few of thesatires that it contained. It is a fact that most young people who read themagazine have parents who have read or still read it.

Libertarianism Essays -- essays research papers

For centuries philosophers gravel debated over the presence of free will. As a result of these often-heated arguments, many factions have evolved, the two most prominent being the schools of Libertarianism and of Determinism. Within these two schools of thought lies another debate, that of compatibilism, or whether or not the two believes bear co-exist. In his essay, Has the self Free Will?, C.A. Campbell, a staunch non-compatiblist and libertarian, attempts to relieve the Libertarian argument.To achieve this, Campbell first sets out the two pre-suppositions necessary to the Libertarian argument. Firstly, he defines which kind of freedom he is discussing when he speaks of free will. Campbell characterizes the freedom at issue as bingle that predominantly concerns a persons versed acts and decisions (377). A persons patent acts are important only as they show an inner life of choice(377). Therefore the moral freedom assumed is that freedom which concerns inner acts.The second, and more(prenominal) complicated, of Campbells requirements is to define what constitutes a free act. There are two parts to this definition. The first necessitates that the act must be one of which the person judged can be regarded as the mend author (378). This point raises the question of how one can determine authorship. For certainly the raw material of impulses and capacities that constitute ones hereditary talent cannot be determined by the individual and surely have an impact on his inner acts (378). Further, the individual cannot control the material and social environment in which he is destined to live and these factors must influence his inner acts as well (378). Campbell allows that, while these aspects do have an impact on ones inner acts, people in general make allowances for them, and still feel morally responsible for ones self (378). In other words, one recognizes the effects of hereditary and environment on his inner acts, but acknowledges that his self can and should still be held morally responsible, as it can overcome these factors. Thus, Campbell claims, sole authorship of an act is possible. The second part of this definition of a free act requires that one could have acted other than because one could have chosen otherwise (380). With this final presupposition, Campbell states that an act is a free act if and only if... ... in that it is a creative act of moral decision and is only significant from the inner standpoint (387/389)). With these criticisms dispelled, Campbell can finally claim Libertarianism as the leading philosophical viewpoint.With Campbells argument entirely laid out, the final question remains is it run short? Based on the premise of his arguments as I see them, I believe I am safe in saying that yes, his argument is sound. Campbell has explained his premises clearly enough to persuade me into his manner of thinking. The only threat to his argument that I see lies in the his rebuttal of the meaninglessness critic ism. I feel that he did not respond to this critique head on. Campbell claims that only the person making the moral choice can be aware of the designers he made that choice. He, also, claimed that as yet a Determinist placed in a position of moral choice, has to be aware of his freedom of decision, but, if that is true, how do the advocates of meaninglessness fail to see the reason behind the choices they have made? This is the only point I am aware of that can jeopardize the soundness of Campbells argument. If he can explain this, he will have made a libertarian out of me.

The Mobot Project: Longwood :: essays research papers

The MOBOT Project LongwoodIn modern engineering, a governing bodyatic approach is used in the design,operation, and construction of an endeavor to reach a desired goal. The first trampleof the process employs what is commonly known as the scientific method. Thenext step involves forming an interdisciplinary team of specialists from notonly the various engineering disciplines, but from other fields whose knowledgemay be useful or even necessary to completing the project. This step doesntapply to our project, due the confined nature of the class. Finally,considerations must be taken into account to ensure that the project isefficient as well as approach effective.The goal of the MOBOT Project was to design and build a programmablerobot. The robot had to complete a series of four movements in four givendirections over a distance of at least 6 inches. Power and weight restrictionswere applied to ensure the safety of the students and, more importantly, theteacher. As the goals of the project were made clearer, our group begandiscussing affirmable ideas for the design. There were some disagreements aboutwhether we should take the electro robotic route or the purely electrical one.And after some deep thought, we all agreed that the mechanical way would be thesimplest to build and the most merciful on our pocketbooks. Even though we werecoming up with some good ideas, each design seemed to give birth some majorproblems. One of the reoccurring problems dealt with the synchronization of thedriver motor and the steering system. Finally the team came up with a designthat allowed the drive and steering controls to be independent of one another,but still allowing each one to be linked in time. This design has now becomewhat is known as LONGWOOD.The Longwood is shared into two main parts 1)motion system and 2)logicboard. As the engineer, I was responsible for motion design. Therefore, thatwill be the focus for the remainder of this section.The main components of the m otion system consist of a platform, three wracks, a ramble frame, two motors, and two contact switches. Two of the wheelswere connected to a motor and attached at the face up end of the platform. Thesewheels were only allowed to move simultaneously in either a forward or reversedirection. The third wheel was hooked up to the wheel frame and free to rotateapproximately 45 degrees in either direction. Figure 1.1 shows an illustrationof how the wheel frame works. The wheel frame and third wheel were thenattached to the platform completing the basic assembly.

Money Can Buy Happiness! :: Happiness Essays

What is ecstasy? According to the dictionary, happiness is a mental or emotional state of positive or pleasant emotions. Now think closely, what does happiness mean to you? Many people say money cant obtain you happiness, some people say it can. People say, How can you not be happy when you have a ton of money? But people also say, Having too much money can get in the track of happiness. To me money is just green paper that lets you buy things you want and need. But can this green paper really buy you happiness? After indication this paper of mine, think about the question again and what do you believe is true.I am going to share with you a little story about someone that thinks money cant buy happiness. This story is written by a seventeen year old girl named Michelle who was asked this question for an converse for New York Daily News, so read and think about her storyI never really thought the way, money cant buy happiness, was true. As an infant, just by observing t he people around me, I observed when they would obtain money and a huge grin would revolve across their face, the corners of their smile spreading from ear to ear. Whenever I would see that grin and a persons face light up at the gage of a crisp, green bill it would make me believe that I had proved the famous expression wrong. Now that Ive grown up and matured, my idea of that expression has changed. As of now, I am able to reflect on life more and look deeper into things and particularly into people more than I was able to do years ago. My ideas about this expression changed the most though because of the money situation my family had stumbled upon because of the failing economy. I remember being younger when the economy was doing well and argus-eyed up to twenty gifts for each of my three sisters and I. We used to believe that all of those presents, brought in because of money of consort, were the best part of waking up on Christmas. Of course all of those toys and material it ems would make a child happy however looking back it would only make them happy if it was given to them by someone who bought it for them with love.

A Story About Seeing Mxpx :: essays research papers

On November 13th I went to Tramps in New York to see one of my preferent bands, MxPx. MxPx is a Christian pop-punk band. Pop punk basically means happy punk. The band members, are Mike Herrera who fiddles bass and sings, Tom Wisniewski who plays guitar and Yuri Ruley plays drums. They played about 10 songs, all of which I k unused.Some of their songs have to do with society problems by dint of the eyes of a teenager. At the show, the first song they played was one of my favorites, "Teenage political relation". Some of the lyrics to this song are, "No Im not mad but I think they forget what its the like and how hard it is to be a teenager. This is a new day and age, we read a different book where Elvis aint the rage and polyester aint the look." "...Is it time again to disagree about anything, everything and whats on TV its a barbarous circle, never ending a linear equation worldly extending. No, Ill never be like you Ill never be like you. Oh no Im just like you"The second song they played was "Im the Bad Guy". The first couple lines of state, "Legalistic people suck. Legalism makes me sick." Even though they openly bust on legalism, they excessively fill in the world has nothing to offer them but hurt and pain, while God is the only answer.Since they are a Christian punk band, of course they have to play religious songs. One really good song that they played there was "False Fiction". This song basically means that the world is going through such turmoil because we dont have Christ in our lives. "They guarantee our freedom but freedom isnt real unless you know Christ you wont know how I feel. Inflections of the way things were supposed to be the mental disorder of our society...maybe this world had stopped thinking maybe all their minds are shrinking you failed system is including chaos, its chaos, its your loss."In " equivalent sand through the hourglass...so are the days of our lives," t hey say, "My world is breaking down around me. I see my destroyed world in front of me. whatever and everything I trusted, I weep for my world disgusted. Will I look to you? Jesus, yes I do"Not only did they play songs about Christ and society, they also played songs about love.

A Story About Seeing Mxpx :: essays research papers

On November 13th I went to Tramps in New York to see one of my favorite bands, MxPx. MxPx is a Christian pop-punk band. Pop punk basic each(prenominal)y means happy punk. The band members, are Mike Herrera who plays bass and sings, Tom Wisniewski who plays guitar and Yuri Ruley plays drums. They vie about 10 songs, all of which I knew. approximately of their songs have to do with society problems through the eyes of a teenager. At the show, the first song they played was one of my favorites, "Teenage Politics". Some of the lyrics to this song are, "No Im not mad but I think they forget what its like and how hard it is to be a teenager. This is a new mean solar day and age, we read a different book where Elvis aint the rage and polyester aint the look." "...Is it time again to disagree about anything, everything and whats on TV its a vicious circle, neer ending a linear equation human beingsly extending. No, Ill never be like you Ill never be like you. Oh no I m just like you"The secant song they played was "Im the Bad Guy". The first couple lines of state, "Legalistic people suck. Legalism makes me sick." Even though they openly bust on legalism, they also know the world has nothing to offer them but hurt and pain, while God is the only answer.Since they are a Christian punk band, of course they have to play ghostly songs. One really good song that they played there was "False Fiction". This song basically means that the world is going through such(prenominal) turmoil because we dont have Christ in our lives. "They guarantee our freedom but freedom isnt real unless you know Christ you wont know how I feel. Inflections of the carriage things were supposed to be the mental disorder of our society...maybe this world had stopped thinking maybe all their minds are shrinking you failed system is including chaos, its chaos, its your loss."In "Like horse sense through the hourglass...so are the days of our lives," they say, "My world is breaking down around me. I see my destroyed world in front of me. Any and everything I trusted, I weep for my world disgusted. Will I look to you? Jesus, yes I do"Not only did they play songs about Christ and society, they also played songs about love.

History: Luzon and Philippine Folk Dances

Pandanggo sa Ilaw Luzon Folk Dance (Candle Dance) Pandanggo sa Ilaw This popular dance of grace and balance comes from Lubang Island, Mindoro in the Visayas region. The verge pandanggo comes from the Spanish word fandango, which is a dance characterized by lively steps and clapping that varies in rhythm in 3/4 time. This particular pandanggo involves the presence of three tinggoy or oil lamps, balanced on the head and the back of each hand. . It is said to have originated from Mindoro, the seventh-largest island in the Philippines.This dance of lights simulates fireflies at dusk and at night. The music to which the pandanggo sa ilaw is now commonly danced was composed by Col. Antonio R. Buenaventura, a National Artist for Music and a native of Bulacan. He wrote the music sometime in the early 1930s while teaching at the Conservatory of Music at the University of the Philippines Costumes . Kimono, Saya and Malong. History of Pandanggo sa Ilaw These a fore mentioned Philippine ethn ic music dances are ethnic in nature and origin.On the other hand, there are several Philippine folk dances that were influenced by some Western countries as some of these had colonized Philippines in the past. virtuoso such country is Spain. Some of the so-called influenced Philippine folk dances are the following Pandango sa Ilaw, Carinosa, Balitao and Rigodon. To conclude, these folk dances whether ethnic in origin or not theorize the lively culture that the Filipinos have. These dances may be diverse but through these cultural forms, the Filipinos are unified and proud by way of having Philippine folk dances that are truly one of the bests in the world.

American Inequality in American Psycho Essay

Set in the Manhattan of 1989, Brett Easton Elliss novel American Psycho sketches the life of Patrick Bate valet, an attractive 26-year-old Harvard graduate who earns a six-figure income on border Street. Bateman and his Ivy League educated friends enjoy all the luxury Manhattan has to offer, including expensive restaurants, exclusive nightclubs and excessive amounts of cocaine. However, what their money, education and beauty truly affords them is the right to humiliate, harass, and in Batemans case to kill, those in the social classes beneath them. The satirical, yet horrific, story that unfolds throughout American Psycho highlights the inequality between the richest and poorest Americans, a gap that widened substantially in the 1980s thanks in part to the economic policies of Ronald Reagan.In addition to reducing the tax rate on wealthy Americans from 70% to 28%, chairman Reagan authorized deregulation that encouraged corporeal mergers and made cuts to social programs that left m any Americans stateless (Foner 1037). By reducing the tax rate, Reagan intended to encourage beneficial private investments thereby creating jobs. However, many affluent Americans used the money saved in taxes to purchase luxury products instead. Corporate mergers, or more bluntly corporate takeovers, spurred the deindustrialization of America. While deindustrialization eliminated many high-paying manufacturing jobs and left several Americans unemployed, the corporate takeovers that spurred the deindustrialization created a tremendous amount of wealth on Wall Street. Reagan also reduced funds dispense for public housing and psychiatric hospitals. This fiscal decision only increased the number of homeless individuals across America, especially in urban areas such as juvenile York City (Foner 1037-40).Throughout American Psycho Batemans Wall Street cohorts address the rampant homelessness in Manhattan with a mixture of contempt and amusement. In the first pages of the novel, Timot hy Price, a young stockbroker on his way uptown, complains about his six-figure income as he counts the thirtieth homeless person he has seen that day (3-7). leave an exclusive nightclub, Craig McDermott, another rich stockbroker, teases a homeless woman and her child with a single dollar bill before setting it on extract (210). Bateman, however, is more sadistic than his friends are. Before mutilating and killing a homeless man, Bateman offers the man money but asks him why he does not get a job. When the man says he was laid off, Bateman asks rhetorically, Do you think its fair to take money from people who do have jobs? Who do work? (129-30)The text contains a strong theme of Social Darwinism. Bateman and his friends do not feel a twinge of guilt over their treatment of those less fortunate because they adhere to the mental picture that the underclass deserves the mistreatment society allots them, just as the privileged are entitled to the special treatment society grants them . Although Ellis addresses the gap between the rich and poor in America through mordant satire, his depiction of the yuppie lifestyle and how the homeless are treated is not entirely hyperbolic. While on vacation in New York City, I observed the hostile and often indifferent treatment the homeless receive. In the financial district of Manhattan only blocks from Wall Street, I saw a young, well-dressed professional woman nearly bump into a homeless man and, after glaring at him for a moment, remarked, Youve got to be kidding me.In Patrick Batemans world, a world where the privileged enjoy a lavish lifestyle, no one asks why. Their sense of entitlement overrides their curiosity, so that not a single character asks why the homeless line the streets. In the preface to American Psycho Ellis quotes a lyric from a Talking Heads song that reads, And as things fell apart, nobody paid frequently attention. In that novel, and perhaps outside it, things fell apart, and nobody paid much attenti on.Works CitedEllis, Brett. American Psycho. 1st ed. New York City Vintage, 1991. Print.Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty second ed. Vol. 2. New York City W. W. &Norton, 2007. 1037-140. Print.

Saddam Hussein

Very few political leaders of the modern world can stand up to a comparison with Nazi Ger humanityys Hitler. ibn Talal Hussein Hussein was one who certainly didnt have to try in any case hard. Considering the painful beginnings he has had, ibn Talal Hussein Hussein had gone a coarse instruction in proving himself as a leader the world will not forget soon. Hussein had his strengths, convictions and the will to winnings, all of which worked in his selfish favor. However, contained in these truly traits were his veiled weaknesses which ultimately led to his unceremonious ending.One may need a comprehensive overview of ibn Talal Hussein Husseins personality traits to relegate an discretion of what thrived underneath all his brutalities. The dark contours of Saddams temperament were etched before he was born on April 28, 1937, to his recently widowed mother, who was too distraught to be keen on having him. Spending his early years under the charge on his maternal uncle, Khyrallah , and later his mother and an abusive step-father, Saddam all the way did not have a conventional childhood, a fact that had a far reaching impact on his mental constitution.He grew up with a distorted self-esteem, which crippled his capacity for empathy with others and produced what has been described psychologically as the wounded self, a condition which, in Saddams case, let to gain for compensatory grandiosity, a steely resolve to never subject himself under a superior force (Post 2003, 2). Saddams was often referred to as the disturbed man of the Middle-East equating him to a lunatic battling with psychotic disorders. However, according to Jerrold Post, there is no evidence that he had any such ailments.Rather, Saddam was a discerning figurer who often miscalculates (Post 2003, 6). He was not an impulsive actor but rather was judicious and patient. All his inhuman actions then become all the more than frightful for they are results of delicate deliberation and planning. S addam had a natural inclination for traumatizing his surroundings, from which he drew thrill and satisfaction. Saddams obsession with force play was the some terrifying side to his multi-faceted personality (Thomas 02).This obsession with personnel certainly did not command accolades from his own people, many of whom have suffered untold miseries under his tyranny. Saddams personality traits adhere to the makings of what is called malignant narcissism (Post 2003, 6). He strived to exalt his personality by making Iraq an extension of his being. Also, to give him the religious sanctity that was subjective to win over Islamic extremists, Saddam ordered Iraqs genealogists to create a family line that links him to Fatima, the daughter of the prophet Mohammed (Thomas 02).He had elevated himself to the take aim that take of holiness where many religious minded people wouldnt dare interrogation his integrity and actions. Saddam had no constraints of conscience whatsoever. No question of pietism ever crept into his mind as he went executing his enemies. Saddam too had an inherent unconstrained aggression, which he uses as an instrument to attain his goals. squash and violence were his only trusted weapons, and he never wavered to employ them.Saddam Hussein was also seen to have a strong paranoid orientation (Post 2003, 7). He perpetually saw himself as surrounded by enemies for no good reason. Completely oblivious of his role in creating his own enemies, Saddam righteously eliminated his targets. This paranoia illustrates itself tied(p) in his conduct of foreign affairs, which let him to believe that Israel, The US and Iran have been in league with the purpose of eliminating him. Adding to these traits, Saddam was also burdened with certain vanities, which constantly would fix him to destructive behaviour. Underneath the vicious and terrifying persona, there was a side of him that was vulnerable and extremely egoistic. It is this political personality asse mblage such as quenchless ambition for unlimited power, lack of conscience, unconstrained aggression, a paranoid outlook and obsession for violence which made Saddam the man the world loathed. It is also these rattling traits that sowed the seeds of his failure.Saddam HusseinVery few political leaders of the modern world can stand up to a comparison with Nazi Germanys Hitler. Saddam Hussein was one who certainly didnt have to try too hard. Considering the painful beginnings he has had, Saddam Hussein had gone a long way in proving himself as a leader the world will not forget soon. Hussein had his strengths, convictions and the will to win, all of which worked in his selfish favor. However, contained in these very traits were his veiled weaknesses which ultimately led to his unceremonious ending.One may need a comprehensive overview of Saddam Husseins personality traits to render an understanding of what thrived underneath all his brutalities. The dark contours of Saddams temperam ent were etched before he was born on April 28, 1937, to his recently widowed mother, who was too distraught to be keen on having him. Spending his early years under the charge on his maternal uncle, Khyrallah, and later his mother and an abusive step-father, Saddam clearly did not have a conventional childhood, a fact that had a far reaching impact on his mental constitution.He grew up with a distorted self-esteem, which crippled his capacity for empathy with others and produced what has been described psychologically as the wounded self, a condition which, in Saddams case, let to strive for compensatory grandiosity, a steely resolve to never subject himself under a superior force (Post 2003, 2). Saddams was often referred to as the mad man of the Middle-East equating him to a lunatic battling with psychotic disorders. However, according to Jerrold Post, there is no evidence that he had any such ailments.Rather, Saddam was a rational calculator who often miscalculates (Post 2003, 6 ). He was not an impulsive actor but rather was judicious and patient. All his inhuman actions then become all the more horrifying for they are results of delicate deliberation and planning. Saddam had a natural inclination for traumatizing his surroundings, from which he drew thrill and satisfaction. Saddams obsession with violence was the most terrifying side to his multi-faceted personality (Thomas 02).This obsession with violence certainly did not command accolades from his own people, many of whom have suffered untold miseries under his tyranny. Saddams personality traits adhere to the makings of what is called malignant narcissism (Post 2003, 6). He strived to exalt his personality by making Iraq an extension of his being. Also, to give him the religious sanctity that was essential to win over Islamic extremists, Saddam ordered Iraqs genealogists to create a family line that links him to Fatima, the daughter of the prophet Mohammed (Thomas 02).He had elevated himself to the le vel that level of holiness where many religious minded people wouldnt dare question his integrity and actions. Saddam had no constraints of conscience whatsoever. No question of morality ever crept into his mind as he went executing his enemies. Saddam also had an inherent unconstrained aggression, which he uses as an instrument to attain his goals. Force and violence were his only trusted weapons, and he never wavered to employ them.Saddam Hussein was also seen to have a strong paranoid orientation (Post 2003, 7). He always saw himself as surrounded by enemies for no good reason. Completely oblivious of his role in creating his own enemies, Saddam righteously eliminated his targets. This paranoia illustrates itself even in his conduct of foreign affairs, which let him to believe that Israel, The US and Iran have been in league with the purpose of eliminating him. Adding to these traits, Saddam was also burdened with certain vanities, which invariably would drive him to destructive behaviour. Underneath the vicious and terrifying persona, there was a side of him that was vulnerable and extremely egoistic. It is this political personality assemblage such as insatiable ambition for unlimited power, lack of conscience, unconstrained aggression, a paranoid outlook and obsession for violence which made Saddam the man the world loathed. It is also these very traits that sowed the seeds of his failure.

Amba 604

prime residence Improvement de Mexico, SA de CV advise mean Team Four Folasade Bamidele Alibaloye flush toilet C Caputo Garner Frederick Hixson Hector G Rosado AMBA 604, Section 9093 Professor Stewart February 6, 2004 altitude invent forge Table of Contents Section I. II. III. Executive Summary Introduction view Organization Organization chart advise Responsibilities Staffing jut outs IV. wariness Process Management Objectives Priorities Monitoring/Controlling Mechanisms V.Technical Process Plan Computing System cast Plan Modification Process estimator Usage Policies tress Guideline Support Project Acceptance Process Lessons Learned Documentation VI. Work Packages, Dependencies, Schedules & Budgets Work Packages Dependencies Project Budget Summary Tasks on the Critical data track Assignment Matrix 3 4 5 5 6 7 10 10 10 10 11 11 12 12 13 13 13 14 14 17 20 23 24 25 2 foliate VII. Appendix A Appendix B crest Project Plan I. Executive Summary altitude theme Improvemen ts has determined it essential that expansion into transnational markets pass endue immediately. circus tent Home Improvements has initiated a joint venture with local partners in Mexico urban center to form Acme Home Improvements SA de CV. The intent of this partnership is to gift Acmes first of all Do It Yourself (DIY) home improvement caudex outside of the United States, to meet the contest head on and establish a foothold in internationalistic markets. This document spells out our scheme for the take ins achievement. The throw aways admirer is the Acme chief executive officer, Alex R. Fitzgerald. This digest is the first step in his strategic initiative to expand Acme into international markets.Based on valuatements, it is exact that Acme SA de CV gross(a) the opening of this store in 12 months or less with a reckon of up to $7. 5 million. A key peril is Acmes lack of experience in international markets. As a result, we pass on rely heavily on our partner s to help us mitigate soft cultural issues and navigate local nuances of business. Because of the soft issues, remaining on order of business is a key device driver of pouch success. To mitigate risks to the ejections critical form, we take aim built sustenance buffers into the schedule, and added a project buffer to the project end.Our plan outlines staff responsibilities and a staffing plan for project execution. This staff has powerful support from integrated headquarters, a defined scope, budget, timeline, and 3 makees by which to execute the plan. Included in these processes is a structured change control process that mark offs changes atomic number 18 relevant, followed through and through, and controlled. In addition, this document, and the consequent project plan clearly identify dependencies that can impact project execution. We have separated these dependencies into mandatory, external, and discretionary dependencies (Schwalbe, 2004).Doing this has changed us to maximize scheduling efficiency. Acme SA de CV has an established technology infrastructure to draw upon. Our plan will leverage this technology through wireless local argona net engagements, corporate servers, and use of project management software. Fin all in ally, we will apply a feedback process to capture lessons learned for our future expansion into international markets. Acme Project Plan II. Introduction Acme Home Improvements de Mexico, SA de CV intends to build a 100,000 sq ft sell 4 facility in Mexico Distrito Federal (DF).This effort is part of Acmes strategy to expand into the international home improvement markets. Our Mexico City store will be the initial push into Mexico to meet our competitors head-on outside the United States. This project is critical to Acmes semipermanent strategy to expand beyond the US borders. Headquarters has allocated $7. 5 million to bang this task. Strategic alignment with Acmes long-term goals, experience with similar projects, and a n assessment of the competition dictates that we complete this project within 12 months. Our project is a joint venture with local entertains.The project will be challenging for Acme, with inherent risk laying in our inexperience in international joint ventures. Soft issues, cultural human resource issues will be as much of a driver of appeal and schedule as the hard issues worry planning and execution. It is critical to the success of this project, and perhaps the organizations international growth strategy, that this project be completed on time, and on budget. The organization anticipates possible schedule delays and cost all overruns due to cultural boldnesss and misunderstandings.Knowing that schedule delays will affect costs and international expansion strategy, we pay particular trouble to the projects critical path (see Appendix A, and the accompanying MS Project files network diagram view). To deal with these risks, the team up has built several feeding time-buffer s into the work disruption schedule, at cons evolvets along the critical path (Goldratt, 1998). A large project buffer has also been added to protect the end of the project. Attention to the safety buffers along the critical path will contribute to the teams successful execution of the project.This plan presents an overview of the project organization, including the teams organization chart, project responsibilities, and staffing plans. Next, the plan addresses the organizations management process related to this project. Managements objectives, priorities, Acme Project Plan and monitoring and control mechanisms are covered in this piece. The projects technical process plan is covered next, reviewing such things as the IT support and signposts for the project, processes for modification, and acceptance of the plan, and the process for documenting lessons learned on the project.Lastly, this plan discusses the work packages, dependencies, schedules and project budget. We aim with a look at the project organization plan. III. Project Organization Organizational map 5 Acme Home Improvements de Mexico Site Construction & Opening Project Organization Chart Prepared by jakes Tarea, Project four-in-hand buttocks Tarea Acme Projects Project Manager Sade Venda Acme Store Manager Anita Socio Acme Mexico HR Manager Donna Promueva Acme Mexico Marketing Fred Conde Acme pay Joe Martillo Construction Manager Maria Diseno Architectural affirmerThis organizational chart shows the authority and communications organization for the project. Every genius of the team members reports to the Project Manager. Team members are from distinguishable knowledge areas and each will contribute with their knowledge and skills to the project. Acme Project Plan Project Responsibilities Project Sponsor, Alex R. Fitzgerald, CEO Acme Home Improvements. Mr. Fitzgerald 6 has been CEO of Acme Home Improvements for 10 years. He passed with the company 25 years ago, working in one of the fi rst Acme Stores. He get under ones skined as a traditional department manager and worked his way up through Acmes chain.He attended business school at the University of Maryland University College. Mr. Fitzgerald has unsurpassed expertise in the DIY Home Improvement business and has lead Acme through an unprecedented period of growth. Mr. Fitzgerald has a strategic vision that mandates Acmes expansion into international markets. His high level of interest in this project cannot be overemphasized. His role as project sponsor is to take ultimate responsibility for the project. He moldiness sign off on the project charter, confirm successful closedown of project milestones, and provide leadership and support to the project manager.At a recent executive retreat, Mr. Fitzgerald commented, With the growth of technology, and productivity, the world has neer experienced the level of wealth and opportunity for homeownership that it is experiencing now. Our ability to remain competitive an d grow is completely dependent on our ability to expand into international markets. John Tarea, Project Manager John is in charge of managing the whole project, and the members that are in charge of the project activities. Also, he is in charge of working with the sponsor and any general people involved with the project.His role is important since he should be able to manage the problem in an effective manner for the project to meet its goal. Joe Martillo, Construction Manager Joe is in charge of managing the construction activities of the project. As a heavily tasked team member, project planners will watch for cons needts associated with this project resource. To enable Joe meet the construction project schedule, he has been allocated the necessary budget to contract discordant local trades-people and construction specialty firms. Acme Project PlanMaria Diseno, Architectural contractor Maria is the architect that researched 7 competitive stores in Mexico, became familiar with A cme store designs in the U. S. , and designed the store to be constructed in this project. Fred Conde, Acme Finance Fred is in charge of financial oversight of the project. He will assist team members in analyzing bids, projecting costs, and controlling expenditures. Sade Venda, Acme Store Manager Sade will be in charge of managing the store when it is operational. She will also collaborate with H. R. anager, Anita Socio, and Anitas staff in the recruitment, interviewing, and training of new employees. Anita Socio, Acme Mexico HR Manager Anita will be in charge of the recruitment effort and training of the personnel hired to work in the store. She will work nearly with the Store Manager. Donna Promueva, Acme Mexico Marketing Donna will collaborate with Maria Diseno and Sade Venda on the design and layout of the store interior, displays, and descent. She is to condition the store reflects the marketing strategy for the Mexico City market.She is in charge of performing local market analyses, selecting products, and invention merchandising, advertising and promotional efforts for the store. An assignment matrix can be seen in appendix B. Staffing Plan The following charts illustrate the projects staffing and training plans from three perspectives. The first graph presents baseline staffing plans, not taking into consideration feeding buffers that will in all probability push the material dates closer to the store-opening deadline of March 1, 2006. The second chart depicts preliminary training targets, and the third illustrates contractor staffing needs.Acme Project Plan 8 Acme Staffing Plan 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Jan Mar May Jul Sept Nov Project Managers Acme- Accts, IT, Supt Lead Contractor Sub-Contractors Sub-Contractor Laborers Training Team in operation(p) Leads Department Heads Store Employees 1 Dec as opening goal Acme SA de CV Training 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Jan Mar May Jul Sept Nov Training Team Functional Leads Department Heads Store Employees Acme Project Plan 9 Acme SA de CV Construction Team 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Jan Mar May Jul Sept Nov Lead Contractor Sub-Contractors Sub-Contractor LaborersNow that we have discussed the project staffing and responsibilities, we turn to the project management processes, including the objectives, priorities, and monitoring and controlling mechanisms of the project. Acme Project Plan IV. Managerial Processes This section of the project plan provides an overview of Acmes perspective of this 10 project from the point of view of the top managers. Included in this section will be a discussion of top managements objectives, priorities, Management Objectives The Acme de Mexico project has three primary objectives 1) Complete the six localise component education activities on time and at/below cost. ) Execute the Acme Mexico FD site opening with a staff fully trained and integrated into the company. 3) Leverage success in Mexico FD to expand and compete across the greater Mexic o. Priorities The first priority is completing the construction site on schedule. Operations must quickly assess the impact of unknown and unexpected circumstances as they occur. Delays to the schedule drive up our costs. The second priority, which becomes the first priority as the site nears completion, is the hiring and training of a store staff. The staff must be fully knowledgeable and fluent in Acmes processes and procedures.Monitoring/ Controlling Mechanisms Acme is new to Mexico and thus requires some very specific tools and techniques to ensure that we remain in control of the project. Given the add of variables that we whitethorn come up against in this project we will have a very strong change control process. This change control process will meet three main goals (Schwalbe, 2004) 1. Influence the factors that create change ensure that the change is beneficial and impact to time, scope, and budget is understood. 2. Determine that the desired change has occurred.Acme Pr oject Plan 3. Manage the changes as they occur trying to minimize the number of changes the project is subjected to. (p. 122). 11 There are specific criteria that will drive changes. Specifically, we have a management reserve pot set aside. The reserve will be called upon if our SPI move below 90%. The additional capital spent will be tightly focused upon the current problem and prevention of reoccurrence. Should both our SPI and CPI drib below 90% senior management will become involved to assess status and affect needed changes. V.Technical Process Plan Having now seen the projects organization plans and managerial process plans, we turn now to a few technical aspects of the project. This section describes the technical approaches to control and support this project. In it, we describe the technical processes and approaches relating to this projects reckoning system, computer usage policies, plan modification processes, construction guidelines, acceptance process, and documentat ion process of lessons learned. We begin with an overview of the computing system used to support the project.Computing System This project will utilize Acmes wide area network, via wireless access at the construction site, temporary office locations, and residences. Utilizing portable personal computers, the project manager and team will access the various project tools using MS Project, synchronizing local copies with the master file on the company server. Acme will utilize MS Project Server and MS Project Web Access features to allow project team members to view, collaborate, and update project information from various aloof locations and connections. All project plan outputs will be date and time stamped.Modifications to the plan will be tracked electronically, logging a record of who changed what, and when the changes were made. Acme Project Plan Project Plan Modification Process Only the Project Manager will be able to modify the schedule, budget, and the work 12 breakdown st ructure (WBS) portions of the work plan. Changes resulting in delays greater than five workdays or adding more than $5,000 to the budget estimate must be approved first by the project sponsor. All other changes may be made at the discretion of the project manager. Individual team members will be able to update task completion progress in the work plan.All changes must be requested on the following Change bespeak Form Change Request Form Project Name Date Request Submitted Title of Change Request Change Order Number Submitted by (name & contact information) Change folk Scope Schedule Description of change requested Events that made this change necessary or desirable. Justification for the change/why it is needed/desired to move/complete the project Impact of the proposed change on Scope Schedule Cost Staffing Risk Other Suggested implementation if the change request is approved requisite approvals Name/TitleCost Technology Other Date Approve/Reject (Schwalbe, 2004, p. 630) Comput er Usage Computer use will comply with Acme Home Improvement, Inc. s corporate computing policies, available online to employees on the company intranet. Employees can access the corporate intranet through the company server WAN, or over the Internet. Acme Project Plan Construction Guideline Support Standards for implementing the site construction will comply with Acme Home Improvement, Inc. s Construction Guidelines. Since the guidelines were developed for use in U. S. onstruction projects, however, the project team will consult Mexico City found law firm, 13 Goodrich, Riquelme y Asociados (anonymous, n. d. ). The team will coordinate activities related to zoning, environmental practices, and accord with other local and federal regulations with the law firm. Project Acceptance Process The project manager is responsible for obtaining sign-off from the project sponsor and project manager at each milestone, and at project completion. The following form will be used to document accep tance of the projectClient Acceptance/Project expiration Form Project Name Project Manager I (We), the undersigned, acknowledge and accept delivery of the work completed for this project on behalf of our organization. My (Our) signature(s) attest to my (our) arrangement that this project has been completed. No further work should be done on this project. Name Title Signature Date 1. Was this project completed to your satisfaction? Yes No 2. Please provide the main reason for your satisfaction or dissatisfaction with this project. 3. Please provide suggestion on how our organization could improve its project delivery capableness in the future. Schwalbe, 2004, p. 633) Lessons Learned Documentation Acme Project Plan The project manager is responsible for completing a summary of lessons learned throughout the project. The lessons will be documented on the form below, added to Acme Home Improvements repository of project lessons learned, accessible through the company intranet. Lesson s Learned Report Prepared by Project Name Project Sponsor Project Manager Project Dates Final Budget 1. Did the project meet scope, time, and cost goals? 2. What was the success criteria listed in the project scope statement? . Reflect on whether or not you met the project success criteria. 4. In terms of managing the project, what were the main lessons your team learned? 5. Describe one example of what went right on this project. 6. Describe one example of what went wrong on this project. 14 7. What will you do differently on the next project, based on your experience working on this project? (Schwalbe, 2004, p. 624) VI. Work Packages, Dependencies, Schedules and Budgets Work Packages The seven major activities of which Acmes construction project consists, involve various work packages.By definition, work packages are tasks at the lowest level of the work breakdown structure or WBS (Schwalbe, 2004). The preparation of the site and laying of the world is the first course in the con struction process. The foundation is the most important part of construction and requires a substantial amount within the apportioned budget for construct materials, as well as time. This stage involves the preparation of the site, which may involve some weeding, smoothing and sectioning, before the laying of the sewer pipes, concrete slabs and the sectioning of drainageAcme Project Plan 15 gutters. These different tasks are altogether estimated to take a conglomeration of about 50 days, a little over 5 weeks or over a month. Factored into the time is the acquisition of the necessary materials and labor. The next step is the structure of the walls, floor and roof of the structure. Once the foundation is underway, the next step is to kickoff building the actual store structure. This involves several work packages including the framing of the floor and walls, and the construction of the roof of the building.The carving out of the different sections of the store, such as the office s, break rooms, glasshouse and bathrooms also occur here. The estimated time here is about 45 days. The habituation here is of the Finish to Start type (Schwalbe, 2004), which necessitates that the construction of the walls, floors and so on will not take off before the completion of the foundation. Since these construction work packages are on the critical path, and the construction resources could become a constraint, we inserted a fifteen-day feeder buffer to ensure any delays in the critical path construction activities do not delay the rest of the project.Next is the installation of the electrical and plumbing fixtures. Pipes are run through the building at this point for water outlets at designated spots, including the break rooms and bathrooms. Plumbing fixtures such as water closets, toilets, sinks and drinking fountains are installed. Electrical work is being done at this point, with the installation of wiring, cabling, outlets, the installation of electrical generators, and subsequently the connection to service for both electricity and water. Work here is slated for a total of 45 days.Building construction wraps up with the finishing of the interior, and the stocking of inventory. Here, the necessary dry walling, painting and finishing is applied to the interior of the building, thereafter, the interior decorators take up the job of smoothing and designing to the specifications provided. Other work packages at this point are floor planning for product location and shelf arrangement. The last part of the interior is the stocking of the shelves with products after all interior fixtures have been tested for safety and durability. Acme Project Plan 16The building of the garage is not directly dependent on most of the forego processes up to this point, but does necessarily occur after the preparation for the site has taken place. So, this portion of the project starts after the foundation for the site has taken place and the adjacent wall has been er ected. The construction of this, like the main building, will involve installation of the garage foundation and the framing of its walls, which are then painted, and ending with the bulls eye of parking spaces. The schedule for finishing the store and the garage allows for 155 days, which includes another feeding buffer of twenty days.Acmes construction plan includes an outer garden, and landscaping for this is for 10,000 full-strength feet. This activity will involve the landscaping of the already sectioned area, which entails the layering with soil, rock and concrete slab placing as designed sidewalk installation and finally, the planting of selected plants and flowers. This is scheduled for a total of 40 days. This time takes into consideration the various needs of the selected plants and the time needed to ready the soil for planting. Throughout these activates, the marketing and promotion planning proceeds.Scheduled to fold as the store becomes ready for opening, the marketi ng work package begins with an analysis of the market, including a competitive analysis, a consumer analysis, and an analysis of Acmes strengths and opportunities in the market. Next, the project calls for the development of a product, pricing, and promotion plan. Last comes preparation of the merchandising, advertising, and grand opening promotion plan. These marketing activities are scheduled to take 180 days, but they do not reconcile on the critical path, nor do they require resources that appear at risk of being a project constraint.The last order of the project is to hire and train the employees for each of the departments. This process will involve the advertisement of vacancies. It will also involve a selection process of interviewing, checking of references and candidate consideration. The training may likely be done in groups and will entail customer service dynamics and necessary need-to-know information on products being sold. This takes time and has been scheduled to A cme Project Plan take 65 days, twenty of which are a feeding buffer at this potential constraint along the critical path for a timely store opening.Dependencies Work on the site is dependent upon several things and based on several assumptions. There is an assumption that we have a specific piece of commercially zoned real estate selected 17 and purchased. There is also the assumption that we have, in hand, the required permits to begin construction and open for business. Acme could not begin the joint venture with its local partners without these items in hand. We would rely heavily on our partners knowledge of local and regional governmental processes and procedures. Our 12-month timeline could not start until this initial hurdle was cleared.With permits in hand, construction could begin. The mandatory dependencies are such that a natural progression of events must occur for the completion of the structure. Each event is a unique task, however, many are highly dependant on other a ctivities. Certain tasks, like laying the foundation, have finish-to-start relationships with their predecessors. The foundation cannot be poured, obviously, until the site is cleared, leveled, and otherwise cultivated. Other activities, like establishing a mobile construction site office, can start simultaneously with another activity, such as beginning to prepare the site, but no sooner.This would be an example of a start-to-start relationship. Of course, other dependencies are also possible. Some tasks must finish along with other activities, while others must finish before another can start. Following is a look at dependencies in the project. As already mentioned, the site must be ready before the foundation can be laid. Similarly, construction of the walls and floors is dependant upon the foundation being established first. Another finish to start settlement involves building the roof. The walls must be absolute before a roof can be constructed.Any delay in completing the w all will push back the start of constructing the roof. A feeding buffer is inserted at this point on the critical path to guard Acme Project Plan against slippage on the project schedule by the construction resource, which is used heavily at this point of the project. Likewise, the walls must also be constructed before wires and plumbing can be run 18 throughout the building. Wiring is designated as having a start to start dependency with installing the generator and electrical circuit boxes. Installing the electrical fixtures, however, is dependant on three predecessors being completed first.Wires must be run, walls must be dry-walled, and electrical service must be established with the utility provider. Much like the electrical fixtures, plumbing fixtures cannot begin to be installed until the pipes have been run, drywall installed, and water service established with the utility provider. Finishing the interior presents another series of finish to start dependencies. Walls and roo f must be up before they can be dry-walled. The dry wall must also be installed before they can be painted. Painting is a necessary precedent to installing the shelves and display units.Since these activities fall on the critical path where resources are close to being overloaded, an additional feeding buffer is added here. If any of the string of finish to start dependant activities falls behind schedule, the feeding buffer will help maintain the project schedule. Stocking the inventory cannot begin until the interior is finished. We, therefore, have another finish to start dependency. The construction of the garage is a task that would drive how much inventory we can handle, take for granted it is used partly to store inventory.With the interior complete we could stock a certain amount of inventory but the garage would have to be complete before we could finish taking pass of our entire inventory. This would really be a both an external dependency and discretionary dependency. I t is a discretionary dependency in that we could stagger our inventory ordering to take receipt based on how the store is completed. If for, example the lights take the longest to receive, from an inventory perspective, we could stagger the completion of the Acme Project Plan 19 interior portion of the structure.We could order our lighting inventory while completing a different areas interior first and stock it, then come along and finish the interior of our lighting department in time to take receipt of the inventory. It is also an external dependency because we do not control the timetable that our suppliers deliver on. There is inherent risk in setting up a just-in-time approach to taking receipt of inventory. If, for example, our write out of wiring for electrical instillation is unstable or unpredictable, we may not be able to wire-up our lighting department in time to take receipt of our staggered inventory order.The extent of discretionary dependency that we establish is con tingent on our tolerance for risk. Completion of paving and landscaping is purely discretionary. We could build the parking dish out and landscaping almost entirely independent of the rest of the project but it would not make much sense. This task must simple be finished prior to opening the business. Most of our vendors would need the paving completed for access to the property. It would be a start-start for our inventory.It seems sensible to pave the parking lot simultaneously with paving the garage, making this a start-to-start dependency with pouring the garage concrete. Hiring and training employees is both a discretionary and external dependency. At a macro-level it is externally dependent upon the retail and construction job market in Mexico City, it we hire, rather than contract for, construction workers. If the construction market is soft in Mexico City in the window where we are to hire employees, it is likely we will have many applicants with construction expertise apply ing for work, in an effort to supplement their incomes.If the construction market is brisk when we are to hire, we may have a harder time finding experienced construction labor. Acme Project Plan 20 As a discretionary dependency, we can begin hiring and training when we deem best. While it is optimal to train most of the floor employees in a fully stocked facility that is nearly operational, we could train the plaza of the stores management/ department heads at one of our American stores.It would be desirable for these new managers to see how a fully functional store runs and meet with US counterparts to gain lessons learned. Acme SA de CV will groom promising managers at its Mexico City site to open new stores across Mexico, so it is to our advantage to train new managers as early as possible. Having discussed the work packages, and task dependencies in the project, we turn now to a breakdown of the $7. 5 million project budget. Project Budget Acme Home Improvements de Mexico, SA de CV 12 Month Construction Budget DIRECT COST DESCRIPTION 1.Construction Materials Temporary Utilities/Rentals Excavation / Blasting Footings / waste pipe Foundation/Waterproofing Retaining Walls Underground Utilities Trenching, Backfill, Rough Grading Concrete Slab City Water / Well & Pump City toilet / Septic System Sewer/Septic/Underground Connections City Water/Underground Connections Gutters and Downspouts Interior Masonry Rough Framing Materials Structural Steel Trusses Lumber &Other wood types Plumbing fixtures kindle System HVAC Electrical Lighting, Cabling, etc.Electrical Generators SUBTOTALED AMOUNT 1 Acme Project Plan Exterior Stairs Rough Framing Labor Roofing materials Windows & Exterior Doors garage Framing Garage Doors Exterior Stucco Exterior Siding/Masonry Exterior Painting Insulation Sheetrock/Taping Vanities Cabinets Interior Trim Interior Doors Hardware Bolts, screws, cords, etc. Carpentry Landscaping Soil Granite / Rocks Plants Walkway Slabs Interior Shelv ing units Equipment rental Safety Equipment Other Total Materials Cost 2.Overheads and Other Costs Personnel salaries Direct Project Workers Consultants / Professionals Administrative personnel Construction Laborers Accommodation Travel Utilities (Phone, electricity, water) Supplies (Stationery, postage, printing, etc. ) Insurance (Workers Compensation) Teachers / Trainers Other Total Overheads and Other Costs 3. Inventory & Labor Costs transferral Products Truck rentals Loading & Off loading Other Labor Duties (Customs & Excise) Total Inventory Costs 40% or USD 3. 0 million 3 20% or USD 1. 5 million 2 40% or USD 3. 0 million 21 Acme Project Plan 2 Considerations 1 The percentages and USD estimates are based on a USD 7. 5 million budget. Wages and Salaries may vary significantly, especially with the current exchange rate of 1USD = 11. 1345 MXN and the difference in the cost of living between both countries. This is cheaper in Mexico and since most labor used will be local, the cos t of it may be lower than estimated. 2 3 It is possible that the cost of inventory may vary from the above stated due to considerations such as delays and pressures of delivery, but with more of a leaning towards an increase.Assumptions The assumption of the total cost for construction materials is derived from the size of the facility to be built and all that will be required to build it, with a sizeable amount of the cost gong towards the materials for the foundation and walls. Mainly personnel wages and salaries rule the total budget amount for the overheads, with a majority of this going to the professionals or experts in charge of various sections of the project. The total number of people working on this project, aside from its management committee, is estimated to be in the neighborhood of 78.The division is as follows approximately 60 for all construction activity and interior work. Among these, professionals are estimated to be five, with a distribution of 1 garage expert, 2 interior designers and 2 building experts. Approximately eight for landscaping duties, with one professional among them. Approximately 10 company professionals for the initial hiring and training of employees. The products to be for inventory will likely cost about as many dollars as the construction effort, if not more, due to shipping, handling and the payment of duties on them. Acme Project Plan VII.Summary Acme Home improvements international expansion strategy begins with this project. The 23 companys joint venture in Mexico City, will lead to the companys first store outside the United States. Within 12 months, and $7. 5 million, the project team is expected to plan, locate, construct, and open the companys first international home improvement store. This plan provided an overview of the project organization, management processes, technical processes, work packages, dependencies, schedules and project budget. Accompanying this document is a MS Project work plan, and Projec t Charter.We believe the information contained in these documents lay out a realistic plan to enable Acme Home Improvements to successfully open its first store outside the U. S. By executing the plan above, we believe Acme can complete this strategically critical project on time and on budget. Acme Project Plan Appendix A 24 Tasks on the Critical Path Task Prepare site Lay foundation Site & Foundation Ready Build walls Construct roof feeding Buffer Install floors ironical Wall Paint Feeding Buffer Stock Inventory Duration 40d 10d 0d 15d 5d 15d 10d 10d 10d 20d 10d Start Finish Dependncy 3 4 6 7 8 9 22 23 25 26 27FF 37 38 39 40 Resource Construction Concrete & Paving Joe Martillo Construction Construction John Tarea Concrete & Paving Drywall Painters John Tarea Stock Workers Joe Martillo Human Resources John Tarea Human Resources Anita Socio John Tarea Mon 2/28/05 Fri 4/22/05 Mon 4/25/05 Fri 5/6/05 Fri 5/6/05 Mon 5/9/05 Fri 5/6/05 Fri 5/27/05 Mon 5/30/05 Fri 6/3/05 Mon 6/6/05 Fri 6 /24/05 Mon 6/27/05 Fri 7/8/05 Mon 7/11/05 Fri 7/22/05 Mon 7/25/05 Fri 8/5/05 Mon 8/8/05 Mon 9/5/05 Fri 9/16/05 Mon 8/8/05 Fri 9/2/05 Fri 9/16/05 Fri 9/16/05 Fri 9/16/05Interior Finished & Inventory Stocked 0d Recruit, interview & hire employees 30d Feeding Buffer Train employees Employees Hired & Trained Project Buffer 20d 15d 0d 82d Mon 9/19/05 Fri 10/14/05 Mon 10/17/05 Fri 11/4/05 Fri 11/4/05 Fri 11/4/05 Mon 11/7/05 Tue 2/28/06 Note Feeding buffers have been inserted along the critical path where resource constraints exist, and a project buffer has been added to protect the end of the project. Acme Project Plan Appendix B Responsibility Assignment Matrix Responsibility Assignment Matrix for Acme Home Improvements de Mexico Site Construction and Opening Project 25Prepared by John Tarea, Project Manager Date 2/5/05 1. 1 Joe Martillo Donna Promueva Anita Socio Construction Concrete & Paving Electricians Plumbers Drywall Painters Stock Workers Landscapers Human Resources P R 1. 2 R 2. 1 R 2. 2 R 2. 3 R 3. 1 R 3. 2 R 3. 3 R 3. 4 R 3. 5 R 3. 6 R 3. 7 R 3. 8 R 4. 1 R 4. 2 R 4. 3 R 5. 1 6. 1 R 6. 2 R 6. 3 R 7. 1 R 7. 2 8. 1 8. 2 R R R P P P P P P P P P P P P P P P P P P P P P R P R = Responsible for task P = Performing task P Acme Project Plan Resources Anonymous. (No Date). Mexico business opportunities and legal framework. Retrieved February 4, 2005 from http//www. exico-trade. com/firm. htmlgra. Anonymous. (No Date). Mexico business opportunities and legal framework. Retrieved February 4, 2005 from http//www. mexico-trade. com/sense. htmlzon. Goldratt, E. (1998). Critical chain. Great Barrington, MA The North River Press. Hampton Group, The. (2001). PMTalk newsletter. The project management knowledgebase http//www4pm. com. Retrieved February 3, 2005 from http//www. 4pm. com/articles/PMTalk07-24-01. pdf. Rigby, Ken (2003). Technical Management a pragmatic approach. 2nd Edition. Retrieved February 3, 2005 from http//home. btconnect. om/managingstandard/techman. ht m. 26 Reed Construction Data. (2004). RSMeans preliminary cost estimate. Retrieved January 29, 2005 from http//www. firstsourceonl. com/Means/members/result. asp? prname=&project=300&gsf=100000&zip=&Calculate. x=24&Calculate. y=2&Calculate= submit. Schwalbe, K. (2004). Information technology project management (3rd ed. ). Boston Course Technology. State of Texas, Department of Information Resources. (2003, April 17). Planning guideline Template project development plan. Retrieved February 2, 2005 from http//www. dir. state. tx. us/eod/qa/planning/projplan. htmtechplan.

Information Technology for Managers Essay

IntroductionIn a fast rising popularity of engineering science, companies will use this to gain a competitive advantage. IT works in helping businesses reach their strategic goals. In the case for Sophia the goal would be to drive up her sales to meet with the standards that stiff competition has set up. not knowing much slightly technology, Sophia would require help from an outside source in order to have the technology portion raceway smoothly. Web stationOne of the lift out ways to improve the IT component is to open up a website with the help from the website one scallywagapp.com. This vendor is perfect for small companies to start up a website to your liking. One page app would assist in the purchase of a domain name for the site people go to visit. With a drag and drop interface the site cosmos designed to Sophias preferred theme and the main content she would prefer on the site. One page app offers a few monthly plans starting from octette dollars all the way to two hund red. In Sophia case, the best plan would be the twenty nine dollars a month that includes up to twenty additional users, forty newsletters a month and even priority support if having any issues within the website. One of the best incentives here is that when launching with one page app it also creates a website version for mobile phone and t fitts. With the increased use of smartphones and the emergence of ipads, people who use these devices on the often can view your website in read able and simple form.Another excellent feature one page app offers is engine optimization. The high use of search engines a good way to have website find is through the search results. With proper formatted HTML, Meta tags, meta descriptions, and sitemaps the results on search engines would attract more people viewing the website (OnePager, 2013). Sophia would be given useful analytics with one page app as the traffic the site receives would be documented along with the keywords used to gain the hits. The knowing of the keywords is valuable as we can use this information on visual perception what nutrients people are searching on the web and what products are getting them redirected to greens streams website. Trying to further promote the interested item menu would solitary(prenominal) draw more interest from customers. Onepager allows for a outstanding two stay connectedwith customers.Having customers sign up for newsletters can have Sophia sending mass emails to subscribers for future events and new menu items they may have. Its a great way to keep good relation by also sending coupons for deals and such. If Sophia has trouble discernment these new online concepts she can elect to hire a part time employee or increase the duties of a trustworthy employees to keep the website up projectd. Constantly updating the site is crucial to stay competitive with any other restaurants. TwitterSocial Media is a great way for small companies to get some easy exposure. As of September of 2013 there are 200 million twitter users (Canadian Press, 2013). With so many users using one application, generating awareness of a company proves to be beneficial. Having a company twitter account is a great way in getting Sophias restaurant known. Twitter can help generate feedback on previous customer experience and ways they could make some improvements. This has worked well with some bigger companies where a customer would tag the business in their squeeze expressing some displeasure and the company comes up with a reply to compensate the experience with apologies or even future deals.Customers have already had issues with Green Peppers gild techniques and this would be a good way for Sophia to gather some feedback. Green Pepper could also seek suggestions on different types of recipes customers would like to see be served. It would allow for them to add menu items that have potential on gaining popularity. Green Pepper would also be able to see what customers are sayin g about the local competition when it comes to avail they provide and quality of regimen they tend to serve. This benchmark is probably the best when measuring the success of your current business.Opening a twitter account is completely free and very easy to use. Tweets could be sent from any smartphone making it convenient to access for all users. Tweeting out redundant promotions going on would bring in more customers and consumers are always finding ways to eat for less money. Hash tags are a great way to research what most of the world is talking about. For example, if a celebrity tweets about how much they love Indian or Chinese food, it would provide Green Pepper with a great opportunity totweet something to its followers referencing that comment to keep Green Pepper relevant.FacebookLike twitter, having a Facebook account is free. With a plus word of mouth rating of a restaurant being most valuable to a company, Facebook is a good tool to enforce that. Facebook allows for Green Pepper to dapple restaurants menu and updates for its followers to see. Green Pepper can take pictures of their most visually appealing menu items and post the pictures for pomposity in order to entice more customers. They can show videos on the process they take into making the Indian fused Chinese dishes. Fusion food being seemed risky for some consumers, they can showcase the dish on the flavors added and how it is prepped. Listing the benefits of the human body that certain spices can offer, appeals to many health witting customers.Keeping the account active is the most alpha as the regular customers who eat at Green Pepper would want to know what deals are occurring. Its a great way to engage with the customers and making their personal experience at Green Pepper the best it could possibly be. Major fast food chains take great advantage of this by offering coupons online for their followers and always encouraging them to follow them on affectionate media sites like F acebook and twitter. (Brandon, 2011) Replying to a post that a customer had at Green Pepper makes it feel more personal and the customer feels more satisfied as their questions and concerns are being observe by Sophia. Since Green Pepper is a small restaurant every negative comment about the service is a big issue on the companys image.Having a negative word of mouth comments spread can cause customers to decline fast. Getting customers to partake in polls and quizzes is a free research base as companies can get a lot of info based on the poll results (Eldon, 2009). Offering the meals that customers prefer is an important way in staying relevant. Having someone over-look the operation of Facebook could be great by hiring a part time employee or even increasing the responsibilities of a current employee working at Green Pepper. Group onGroupon is website offering deals that many businesses are taking part in. Restaurants can offer deals on menu items for a fraction of cost if bought on Groupon. This is a great way into bringing customers into the restaurant and having them try other items on the menu and if they are satisfied with the service they could become returning customers. Another incentive is when a voucher is purchased not every customer goes and actually uses it. umpteen vouchers do have an expiry date and if the customer waits to long the voucher would no longer be valid and Green Pepper would still get half the purchase cost of the voucher. Since Groupon is running their site the only costs occur when the voucher is actually bought from a customer as Groupon takes half that money. They work as a great inter-group communication between Green Pepper and future customers.The downside of this route is that Groupon takes half the proceeds from the voucher. An example is having an 80 dollar menu voucher sold on Groupon for 40 dollars. Groupon then keeps 20 dollars of that and gives the remaining 20 to Green Pepper. Other flaws being seen in their busi ness model in an article in Forbes magazine Groupons biggest victims are the small businesses that get suckered in to accepting Groupons. Restaurants lose money on them because consumers flood the restaurants, order very low priced meals, strain waiters and cooks, get marked-up service, and never return. (Cohan, 2012). Sophia must know the capacity restrictions well and if offering a Groupon deal then must be fully staffed for that day. Allowing customers to leave the restaurant on a negative really affects the company image especially being a small restaurant.RecommendationThe way for Green Pepper to optimize its cabbage would be to hire a part time employee to run the social media aspects in Facebook and twitter along with working with one page app and keeping the website updated. Many young adults have some experience in social networks and finding a University student who could work part time wouldnt be difficult. They would care the twitter updates and tweeting on the regula r. They could update the Facebook Photo album with menu dishes as well as keeping in relate with the customers leaving feedback on the social sites. One page app makes the design of the website so simple just would need the employee to making sure site isrunning smoothly and keeping in contact with the developers if any problem occurs. They would work with Sophia and teach her a little about the technology components as one page app allows many users having access to the website. The switch to technology focus should not be a hard one but instead a smart one.

Netw360 Week 7 Lab

Kyle Pederson NETW360, Ben Brezinski 4/16/12 science laboratory 7 Hands on Lab Microsoft Network Monitor Introduction and radiocommunication Frames When we expanded frame 4 the signal strength was -60dbm, the data rate was 1mbps, and the SSID in the beacon frame was Amory. In frame 5, looking at the charm Details, the BSSID for this access commove was 00 15 E9 D1 48. The authentication status in frame 14 was successful. In frame 15, the Association Response status was in a successful state. When we tried to the Microsoft Network Monitor we were unable to pick up any management packet boats during our capture. SNMP management We were able to successfully ping 10. 7. 8. 80 to affirm we had access to the managed device. The batch buck was set up with the 10. 27. 8. 80 address and had commands to get entropy from that address. The name of the device was NPIF9460B and the status of it was ready to print. afterwards we downloaded the MIB Browser and entered 10. 27. 8. 80 into the address field, we were able to get the sysUpTime which was 830 hours 13 min and 2 sec. Finding rogue access points When using the command netsh wlan taper mesh topologys mode=bssid in the command prompt we were able to identify 17 access points. Out of the 17 access points 11 were not part of the DeVry radio network.Using the FindAccessPoints. BAT we were able to identify 18 access points and 12 of them were not part of the DeVry wireless network. Opening the FindAccessPoints. vbs in notepad we were able to see the script and the can of the script worked around the command netsh wlan show networks mode=bssid. After we set up our Linksys as a rogue access point we had no problem finding it using the batch record. This would be very handy to use at your home network, if you lived in a place where there is many a(prenominal) access points, because you could pick up any rogue access points that someone has set up to attempt to capture any of your information.Logging Here is our lo g file from our Linksys access point. pic Linksys Access point maintenance and troubleshooting The online firmware version of our Linksys access point was 1. 5. 01 and the current time was 2012/04/14 154241. The current status of our access point was Report Mode- BG-mixed SSID- net360 DHCP- enabled Channel- 1 Next we were able to backup our current configuration to our PC and then we reset the access point to the factory defaults. The factory defaults were set as Report Mode BG-mixed SSID- Linksys DHCP- enabled Channel- 6Once set as the factory we were able to restore our original configuration by uploading the file we created earlier. As soon as that file uploaded our access point was set up the same as before. This was very straight forward to do and I feel it is a good idea to back up your configuration, just in case the access point gets reset. Wireshark Introduction and Examining Wireless Frames Lab Lab Report 1. Is Wireshark open source or propriety? (7 points) Wiresh ark is an Open-source program. 2. What is seen in each of the three window glasss that display the packets seen on a local area network? 7 point) The top pane is the packet list pane that shows each packet on a separate line and has five columns with the following information the time that the packet came in, source, destination of each packet, the protocol cosmos used with the packet, and information about each packet. The second pane is the tree view pane and it displays the headers of the various protocols captured in the packet and this is displayed in a hierarchal view from physical layer to the application layer. The third pane is the byte view pane that shows the crank data in a hexadecimal format. . What does a display filter do? (7 points) The display filter enables you to filter what you pauperization to view when capturing your packets. So if you cute to just view the packets that were using the protocol TCP you could filter those out. You can also use expression fil ters that lets you be more specific in what you want to filter. 4. What does the protocol column show? (7 points) The protocol column shows the highest layer protocol in the frame. 5. How do you expand the details in a layer of the packet in the middle frame? 7 points) To expand the details you must click on the plus sign. 6. In frame 1 what channel is being used? (7 points) Frame 1 is using channel 6. 7. In frame 1 what frequency is being used? (7 points) The frequency being used is 2437MHz. 8. In frame 1 what is the signal level? (7 points) The signal level in frame 1 is 11. 9. What type of frame is frame 1? (7 points) Frame 1 is a broadcast initiation frame to the access point 10. In frame 1 what is the beacon interval in milliseconds? (7 points) The beacon interval is 102. 4ms.

Financial Analysis Essay

It was Henning Holck-Larsen and Soren Kristian Tuobro, the two promising Danish engineers who were committed to develop the engineering capabilities in order to go out the demand for the necessary industries in India. L&T at first started its business by importing sophisticated machineries for taking up complex engineering and construction assignments which was needed in the Indian market. L&T started its business by importing sophisticated machineries for taking up complex engineering and construction assignments which was needed in the Indian market from Europe.It is now a limited company fully based on engineering, technology, and construction. L&T is Indias one of the largest and know industrial organisations with a reputation for technological excellence, high quality of products and services and strong customer orientation. They tax their customers by using customer focused strategy giving them value and a world class quality.It has enabled them to attain a title of the bigge st player in their market field. The L&T has attained its international presence by opening its offices in different parts of world which has helped them to attain profits and grow widely. The wide marketing and distribution network not only gives them a strong customer support but also those to attain progress with keeping in mind the protection of the environment. The company is constantly on the live for innovation in their technology which helps them to attract potential shareholders.The company takes a major attention towards the culture when working in different parts of the world, which helps them to meet the satisfaction level of its stakeholders, employees and society. The company believes in their employees by giving them freedom at work which then helps their employees to complete interesting, motivating and challenging tasks with ease. It is open to pinch and ideas at the workplace. Hence, it has given birth to advancement and the company is at present growing on a hi gh scale with a rapid gradation while playing as a major threat to their competitors.Today, the company is therefore huge and owns major Independent companies. It holds positions of independent companies in the field of Hydrocarbon, effectual engineering, Power, Construction, Electricals and Automations, IT, Shipping, Rail flair projects and many more. It has created mile stones with successful projects in other countries like Sri Lanka in terms of delivering quality power projects and becoming the largest seller of coal to China. It has also played a major role in Indias maiden moon missions.Capital Structure In terms of finance, capital structure represents the way a corporation finances its assets through the combinations of equity, debt, or hybrid securities. The capital structure of a firm is then the composition or structure of its liabilities. It gives the overview and the stand up in the market place by putting a bright light on the working style of the company.

‘Conflict is more often driven by self-interest than genuine sense of right and wrong.’ The Quiet American Essay

Conflict is more often driven by self-interest than genuine backbone of right and wrong. Show me a globe who has no interest in his own good, and Ill show you a man who is non in shake up with his own humanity. R. Alan Woods. Conflict can be driven by any emotion whether it be greed, love, despise or lust, later on all in all impinge travel bys merely when an individual steps something strong bounteous that they will not quell before opposition in violation of this emotion, because of this assessing the most frequent motive behind conflict could be investigated by asking the question What emotion is the strongest and most frequent in humans? Doubtless, the dress to this question is relative to its target, a cynic might declare hate, a romantic love, a patriot pride except all of these emotions can be elicited from some(prenominal) self-interest and a sense of infringement of a persons virtuousistic code.Throughout the span of a humans deportment the one motive th at remains central to a persons approach on life sentence is the zest to pull through ones owns emotions and take care of ones own interests, in Graham Greenes the Quiet American both Thomas Fowler and Alden Pyle cause based on face-to-face interest contempt the usual contrast of both their emotions and their processs. Fowler entrusts Phuong out of a sense of loneliness and longing for companionship, whereas Pyle desires Phuong out of the desire for a wife and a desire fulfil the responsibilities placed on him by his culture, allowing his life in his point of view to be considerably improved, albeit with the significant addition of the goal of making Phoungs life better, which is also a manifestation of his own emotional need to rescue and help others, the fulfilling of which increases his emotional wellbeing.The desire to serve our own interest is the force that characterises most of our decisions, whether it is in the form of greater emotional quilt and wellbeing by stand ing up against an infraction in our moral code or the simple(a) taking from the helpless for direct personal gain. It is for this reason, that conflict is more often driven by self-interest than a genuine sense of right and wrong. Catherine Susan puss Genovese was a New York City fair sex who was stabbed to death and repeatedly raped near her home. Investigations recorded 38 witnesses, none of whom attacked to assist Kitty personally and only one whom called the police, afterwards stating I didnt want to get involved The attendant of Kitty Genoveses death exemplifies the extraordinary lengths that humans can go in an attempt to prevent self-loss even at the cost of anothers far more severe personal loss.By not acting these neighbors failed to stand up for their moral code and in doing so failed to act on behalf of what they presumably countd to be right at the cost of another s life, this also establishes the big businessman of self-interest to not only drive conflict in the w ay that self-interest allowed the event to occur on the side of the attacker, who was probable motivated by lust or anger, but to also reject opposing action in bystanders out of a fear of personal loss.The actions the witnesses of Kittys chance took mirror the attitude of a large degree of the human populations attitudes. Historically, few stand up for their beliefs and moral code at great personal risk, the strength of self-preservation Is too strong for most , for every ace that acts, hundreds of bystanders fail to act. The existence of heroes Itself is evidence that humans often fail to act in times of conflict, after all if there was more people who acted in times such as Kittys murder compared to those who failed to act then the heroic deeds of people such as Sophie Scholl who sacrificed her life for the interest group of a moral principle would become commonplace, merely regarded as a slight extreme adaptation of the normal reaction.Instead these people are revered for their courage, having books written and movies wrote about them, while these people likely deserve such images and their actions are evidence of either an increased emotional sensitivity or teeny-weeny direct self-interest it reflects very poorly on the rest of the populations courage and willingness to stand up for what they believe in. Behind every action is an corresponding emotion , meaning the intent of every action is to fulfil our emotion, not to respond to some moral code or the unfairness of life or the severeness of another, acting on our emotions is in fact an almost entirely self-orientated activity .People love others not for who they are but for how they make them feel said Irwin Federman.When a man acts to shelter a baby bird it is not the fact that the child is in harms way that drives him into sheltering the child, but the emotion that the man feels upon sight of an exposed child, in this way in order to commit actions without a self-driven motive a person needs themselves to either have no emotion or no emotional fulfilment, however exceptions to this could possibly be shown by the actions of individuals such as Hugh Thompson Jr, who risked his life for the sake of others lives through his actions in the Vietnam war, to wit intercepting his own force in an attempt to circumvent the massacre of hundreds of innocents.It is possible however for an individual to accede conflict with an self-orientated aim and transition throughout the conflict into upholding moral principles and beliefs that may directly oppose the individuals initial viewpoint. Demonstrated best by Oskar Schindler these peoples sense of right and wrong eventually conquers the greed and self-interest they feel until they abandon the hope of gaining for themselves and embrace the hope of upholding what their moral code stipulates, Oskar Schindler entered the second world war ab initio motivated by profit but in a display of commendable tenacity and moral integrity saved over a thousand Jewish workers in defiance of the Nazi regime.The ungenerous nature of emotions also suggests that if emotions are the driving force of action and the individual fulfils the actions his emotions desire out of a need for emotional wellbeing then the majority of actions are driven by self-interest on one level or another, and that since conflict is the result of two opposing actions and that the motive of self-interest contains all other emotions and so in a way conflict can be driven by both self-interest and a genuine sense of right and wrong, that a majority conflict moldiness be driven by self-interest.In conclusion, conflict is driven in the most part by self-interest but this is also true of almost every other action. The spectrum of emotions that self-interest encompasses is vast enough to include almost every emotion that an human can experience since actions are driven by emotions and conflict by both actions and emotions the cause of conflict can, in the majorit y of cases be traced back from the action to the emotion behind it to the drive that causes humans to fulfil the actions their emotions demand. This drive can be identified as self-interest, in this way almost all conflicts can be traced back to self-interest as both a catalyst and a driving mechanism

Mexican Art

The land called Mexico has umteen moods and faces. Without a doubt Mexico is steeped in ancient Indian lore, seasoned with Spanish colonial customs. The array of folk artistic creation and crafts in Mexico is simply mind-boggling. for each one theatrical role of Mexico has its own circumscribedty, with villagers maintaining the traditions handed down from countless generations.Mexican culture is a fascinating blend of autochthonal American traditions and Spanish colonial influences. Long before the Spaniards arrived in the 16th century, the indigenous civilizations of Mexico had developed humanities much(prenominal) as ceramics, music, poetry, sculpture, and weaving. After the conquest, the intricate designs and bright colors of umteen Native American liberal arts were often mixed with European techniques and religious themes to create a hybrid and uniquely Mexican delicious entitle.Numerous churches constructed during the colonial era reflect the blending of Spanish arch itectural designs with the handiwork of Native American workers who built and decorated the buildings. Many of Mexicos most(prenominal) popular modern crafts such as textiles, pottery, and piece of furniture makingborrow designs and techniques from Native American culture. Mexican blushering and music have also been mold by this heritage.Indigenous influences were given a tremendous boost by the Mexican whirling (1910-1920). During and straightaway after the revolution, many Mexican artists celebrated the nations unique mixture of races and cultures in their work. semipolitical and social themes from the revolutionsuch as efforts at land reform and the right of common Mexicans to insert in the nations g everywherenmentwere also reflected in the arts.Immediate post revolutionary governments back up the arts and contributed to efforts to make them to a greater extent accessible to average Mexicans, especially in the 1920s and 1930s. Theindividual most responsible for this sup port was Jos Vasconcelos, a leading intellectual who served as secretary of education in the starting time post revolutionary government.The government was especially influential in promoting mural painting, commissioning artists to paint murals portraying Mexican history on populace buildings (Hutchison, 2003). During the 1930s, painters came to Mexico from the linked States to study the mural movement. Many concourse from Europe, the United States, and Latin America also visited Mexico as tourists in the 1930s and 1940s, increasing the popularity of native arts such as the making of silver jewelry.PaintingsMexican arts, with the exception of folk arts, generally followed European patterns during the colonial intent and the 19th century. The Mexican Revolution was instrumental in fostering a new sense of patriotism and experimentation at the School of Fine Arts in Mexico City. Artists such as David Alfaro Siqueiros belonged to a convocation of painters who decided that conte nt and form was as important as aesthetics.A number of these artists, including Siqueiros, were political activists as well as artists who aimed to inspire the lower classes in Mexico by creating paintings that dealt with revolutionary themes. They encouraged the development of public murals, so that ordinary Mexicans could view the work of leading artists (Martin & Jacobus, 2004). Painting with a permanent medium on wide walls, these muralistsincluding Diego Rivera, Jos Clemente Orozco, and Juan OGormandominated the Mexican art world in the 1920s and 1930s.Other artists move a different tack. Frida Kahlo painted numerous small self-portraits, which captured her own vision in strange, often phantasmagoric presentations. Kahlo fractured herspine and pelvis in a traffic accident as a teenager and began to paint while re dealing from her accident. The constant pain Kahlo suffered due to her injuries, as well as her sadness over being unable to bear a child, are reflected in much of her work.In the 1930s Rufino Tamayo feature native folk themes with European art forms such as cubism. His work reached a much big foreign audience than that of other Mexican artists, particularly in Europe and forward-looking York City. Tamayo was an outspoken oppositeness of the painting appearance of the revolutionary muralists, arguing that their focus on political and social themes came at the expenditure of aesthetic quality. The intense colors of many of Tamayos paintings and his use of flattened two-dimensional figuresa style that is common in Mexican folk or pre-Columbian artgave his work a clear Mexican flavor.Manuel Alvarez Bravo, who associated with most of the leading creative photographers in the United States, such as Edward Weston and Tina Modetti, became the first Mexican photographer to reach a large international audience. He was influential in promoting photography as an art form in Mexico. See also Latin American Painting Latin American Sculpture.Archit ectureFrom the 16th with the 18th centuries, architecture overshadowed other forms of art in Mexico. The early buildings of the Spaniards tended to be simple and practical. In the 17th and 18th centuries, however, architecture in Mexico became highly decorative and elaborate. It was during this period that many of the countrys famous churches were built, including theCathedral of Mexico in Mexico City. Examples of Spanish colonial architecture are make up throughout Mexico.In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the French splendors of the Second Empire style were introduced in Mexico City. This trend began under Emperor Maximilian, who ruled Mexico briefly during the 1860s, and later under President Porfirio Daz. Daz commissioned the ornate Palace of Fine Arts, which was completed in the 1930s. Since the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920), many outstanding examples of modern architecture have been built in Mexico.The National Autonomous University of Mexico contains many spectacul ar modern buildings that feature murals in fresco and mosaic. It includes a multistory library almost wholly covered by mosaics designed by Juan OGorman. Another Mexican architect, Flix Candela, created highly headmaster concrete shell designs for several(prenominal) churches and for the sports palace at the 1968 Olympic Games (Billington, 2003). One of Mexicos most internationally admired architects, Pedro Ramrez Vzquez, designed the renowned Museum of Anthropology and History in downtown Mexico City.Ceramics (Clay Art)Since the appearance of the Olmec culture, considered to be the mother of the Mesoamerican cultures, ceramics took a prevailing place in the lives of the Mexican people. The earthenware vessels, anthropomorphic figures, and various types of utensils set in motion in the archaeological ruins of the ancient Olmec cities of Tajin, San Lorenzo, La Venta and Tres Zapotes, suggest the techniques apply in their ceramics the use of clay, the knowledge of some primitive f iring techniques, their means of coloring and painting designs.The Olmecs transcended their era (1500 B.C. 800 A.D) and bequeathed their knowledge to the cultures that flourished after them. The Teotihuacans (100 B.C. 800 A.D.) prepared the absolute majority of their vessels with clay and decorated them with a variety of techniques mainly stucco, painting, and smoothing. The pottery of the Aztecs (1325 A.D. 1521 A.D.) was extremely varied. They made all types of earthenware, plates, jugs, cups, and pots, in the main with red and orange clay.The Mixtecs stood out for their polychrome lacquer ceramics, in which after polishing a piece, they would cover it with white stucco and then paint it. To the north, the Casas Grandes culture (100 A.D. 1360 A.D.) produced beautiful polychrome ceramic, basically with geometric motives and influences from the Mimbres culture. Each region had its own unique characteristics in pottery. However, in all these cultures, the potter himself was given a commodious deal of importance. The Aztecs summed it up in the following wayA good potterhe puts broad care into his work,he teaches the clay to lie,he speaks with his own heart,he brings life to things,he creates them,he knows everything as if he were a Tolteche makes his hands skillful.The ancient techniques employed to make ceramics are still used today mostly in the rural parts of Mexico. Its curious how these groups were able to preserve their artistic techniques coil building, open firing, natural pigments and yet they lost their original language and their religion.When the Spaniards arrived, the blending of societies allowed the indigenous people to learn new techniques, and the combination of styles gave life to some of the more famous ceramic styles of Mexican earthenware, such as the majolica or Talavera. Pueblas Talavera is a direct descendant of the Arabic-Andalusian tradition, which began in Spain in the 9th century, when the influence of the Arabic culture pas sed on its techniques to peninsular potters. In Talavera de la Reina, Spain, it became very popular and took a characteristic stylistic form toward the 16th century. It was then that it was brought to the Americas, especially to the Nueva Espaa, the New Spain, as Mexico was called in colonial times.Although Talavera is only produced in Puebla, other majolica type earthenware is also produced in places same(p) Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato and San Miguel de Allende. To the west, in Tonala, Jalisco, is some other Mexican state with a long tradition of ceramic production. Here, there is more of a Persian influence, including pieces such as stew urns, using gold and silver.In Metepec, State of Mexico, the ceramic tradition has been influenced by Christian beliefs. Here they create the well-known arboles de la vida, trees of life, which are made to look much like tree. Wire is used to attach the clay leafs and figurines to the tree. It is called de la vida because it explains the origin s of life. Usually there are figures of God, angles and transport and Eve, as well as the serpent and some fruit are represented by special figures.Day of the Dead trees is also made using skeletons, and images related to the festivity. Some are made in terracotta, without glaze others are painted in every imaginable color. Red ware, which is used to make everything from large cooking pots to rice dishes to table dishes, is typical of Michoacan. The characteristic decoration of these dishes are small flowers made with the wide part of the paintbrush, with white or green paint around a small black circle, as if it were a margarita (the flower).In Oaxaca, the town of San Bartolo is famous for its barro negro, black clay. The artwork made with this clay acquires its color through the pigments in the polishing process, which brings out the red color from inside the clay. There are some more recent techniques that bring out a mixture of the natural dark and light tones of the clay, whi ch artists protectively handle to them (Wasserspring, 2000).The small town of Mata Ortiz, Chihuahua stands out for its beautiful pottery as well. It was here that they reinvented pre-Hispanic ceramics techniques after shards of ancient pottery were found in the ruins of Paquim. This renaissance was mostly due to Juan Quezada, outstanding Master Potter of Mata Ortiz.Some Mexican creators have implemented new forms and new designs for typical Mexican artwork, such as ceramic pelt from which little frogs are born, lizards and other little animals glass and ceramic twisters key chains with eclipses masks with a pre-Hispanic or oriental motif dish sets with images of Tamayo or Rivera tiles with geometrical figures, etc.In the 1950s, High Temperature ceramics or stoneware appeared in Mexico. The origin of this type of ceramics is from China, Korea and Japan.This technique was introduced to Mexico by a small group of Mexican ceramic artists who canvass abroad, mainly in Japan and the Un ited States. Little by little, it caught on, and these days there are several regional centers in which artists work with Stoneware, such as Michoacan, Veracruz and Jalisco.As we can see, Mexican ceramics bring unneurotic the influences of pre-Hispanic, European, Arabic and Oriental cultures. Whatever technique is used, Mexican ceramics have individuality and flavor that is appreciated for its art and quality worldwide.References Hutchison, P., (2003). Footprint Central America and Mexico 2004 (p. 93). USA Footprint HandbooksMartin, F. D., Jacobus, L. A. (2004). Humanities through The Arts (p. 399). New York, NY McGraw-HillBillington, D. P., (2003). The Art of Structural Design A Swiss Legacy (p. 136, 162). USA Other DistributionWasserspring, L., Ragan V., (2000). Oaxacan Ceramics conventional Folk Art by Oaxacan Women (pp. 1, 22). San Francisco, California Chronicle Books