Soccer Ball Lab Essay Example for Free

Soccer Ball Lab Essay I. INTRODUCTION Speed, distance, time, and acceleration are all very complex formulas that are interdependent. These formulas are measured in motion data and used to determine the final instantaneous speed, distance, time, and acceleration. Distance and time are two formulas that are used to determine speed and time. For example, distance equals speed multiplied with time given, time equals distance divided by speed, and speed is equals distance divided time. Speed and time are required to determine acceleration. ( This is how they are an interdependent formula. ) These complex formulas will benefit you in situations , where as you are trying to find the missing equation value dealing with motion data. For example, in many situations, the problem gives information with only the values of time and distance. You are trying to solve for the speed in the given problem, so in order to determine the speed, you’d have to taken the given information and divide the time by distance. In other situations, you are trying to solve for acceleration, which only initial velocity, time, and acceleration are given. You would have to interrelate the given values and take the initial velocity and add it to the acceleration, multiplied by time, then your data and equations sum up to the final velocity. These formulas and equations, in particular, acceleration and speed, are related to Newton’s first law of motion. This is also known as inertia, inertia is the resistance of any physical object to a change in its state of motion and rest, or the ability of an object to resist any change in its motion. Objects at rest will remain at rest if both acceleration and speed are equal to zero . Newton’s first law of motion states â€Å"An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.† An unbalanced force is when 2 forces are not equal they work against each other. It acts upon an object, either opposite, or beside it. Depending on the situation, an unbalanced force can make an object either decelerate or accelerate. Friction is a common force that forces  objects to decelerate. Now, acceleration is compatible with this situation because when an object is traveling at a certain speed, eventually it will slow down and stop. Inertia works with the situation, because inertia is a property of mass, meaning the larger the mass, the more inertia there is. Mass is a measurement of the amount of matter an object contains, therefore the larger the mass, the more the object resists its change of its state of motion and deceleration. All of these are interdependent and interrelated resulting in all the solutions to these complex equations dealing with motion and time. II.PURPOSE AND HYPOTHESIS The purpose of this lab is to determine whether a soccer ball will accelerate, decelerate, or travel at a constant speed when kicked from a certain distance to another. If a soccer ball is kicked from a certain place to another, while being timed, then the soccer ball will decelerate .This is because the incredible force of friction will work against the force moving the ball. The unbalanced force will cause the ball to decelerate and eventually stop. III.MATERIALS 1. (1) Stop watch 2. (2) Soccer Ball 3. (1) Chalk/ Marker- IVPROCEDURE 1. Position yourself at a designated, and marked place. These must be measured in units, in order to get an accurate description. 2. Stand in your designated area, until the soccer ball reaches it. 3. Have the ball be kicked.  4. When the traveling soccer ball reaches you, stop and record your time. 5. Record the time showed on the stopwatch on a piece of paper This can be redone multiple of times. V.OBSERVATIONSobser * QUALITATIVE: The group walked to the measuring area ( A parking lot ), where stations were set up. A straight line, that measured 10 meters was marked across with a  piece of chalk. The soccer ball was very soft and deflated to have a more accurate observation. The soccer ball traveled on ground until stopped by a person. * QUANTITATIVE: Distance (m/s)| Time (Seconds)| Instan. Speed (m/s)| Acceleration (m/s ²)| 2| .47| 4.25| -4.7| 4| .93| 4.30| -0.62| 6| 1.5| 4| 1.57| 8| 1.8| 4.44| 2.21| 10| 2.49| 4.01| 2.22| Graph, representing distance vs. time. VI.ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSION When the soccer ball was kicked, and measured, it traveled and eventually decelerated. Now, the ball decelerated, but not at a constant rate. It depended on various things in order to have taken the ball to either decelerate faster, or for the ball to have travel faster. But, in this case, the soccer ball accelerated very slightly on halfway to the 8 meter mark. This was due to friction and an unbalanced force, that took control of the 14 ounce soccer ball, and made it decelerate. The question, is why the soccer ball went at the speed, and not at a faster speed. Well, one person was chosen to kick the ball. The person, if they wanted to, could have either kicked the ball softly, or put more pressure into kicked it. If more people were selected to kick the soccer ball, the amount of force exerted on the ball might have been different. The factors that determine the speed the ball are the amount of force initially exerted on the ball and the unbalanced force. In this case, it was frict ion that acted upon the ball. VII.DISCUSSION Although, the group remained and recorded many accurate results, there were some complications. When conducting the lab, some people at other designated spots pressed their stop watches too early, resulting in different results. Another error that might have occurred, is that too much force was exerted on the soccer ball, when kicked. This could have resulted  in the soccer ball traveling at a faster rate. Either that that, the most observations and results were accurate.

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Joining A Currency Union Economics Essay

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Joining A Currency Union Economics Essay Currency Union are a group of countries that share a single currency. There is a misconception that currency unions are a product of the 20th century globalization, but it is not true. They have existed since the times of Roman, but still they havent been adopted as a global financial system. The reason being despite it having many advantages it has few disadvantages as well. I will discuss these advantages and the disadvantages in the first part of my essay. While in the second part I will show some light on the current heated debate about UK joining the Euro Zone. Transaction cost:- The most essential advantage connected with changing to a single currency was the removal of the need to change currency . Savings are very large because of the elimination of the transaction cost connected to the exchanging currency, the taxes for countries that have most of the exports to the European counties only. The significant decrease in the cost of exports will be most useful for small scale business to achieve economies of scale. By switching to the euro, members of the EMU were expected to save as much as $30 billion a year (The Euro, the European, pp. 154), :- Daniel Portone. Investment:- As there is low transaction cost there is large amount of investment because companies now this is one of the most important decreases in the cross border investment. This has lead to large cross border investment like in France the foreign direct investment has increased from 12% to 18%. The disappearance of the cost of transaction and the introduction of the common currency makes the money market deeper and integrated. The major financial institutes are being listed in the Euro, which in turn attracts potential investors to gain confidence in different EU financial markets . The market combination provides various links to dilute the risk in the EMU. If we assume that the French and German bond and equity markets are fully integrated, it will facilitate the adjustment to asymmetric shocks (see Figure 1). When France is hit by a negative shock, companies there make losses and that drives down stock prices of these companies.- Jean Monnet.which bring the profit to germen investors ,thus the boom in germany brings profit to French . A very similar mechanism also works through the fully integrated bond market, Jean Monnet Exchange rate stability (Common Currency):- Common currency generates a platform to judge the price relationship, make price difference more noticeable and helps to equalise it across borders.- Jean Monnet .Along with the removal of the need to change currency, there is also problem with the volatility of the exchange rates also. When the rate fluctuates it also affects the profitability of the company and increasing the risk which in turn decreases the net investment into the country. Thus to stabilise the situation it is useful for a company to enter in a currency union. .. having the same currency can boost trade by a factor of three. Canada again provides the example : inspire of close proximity to the US and similarities in culture , Canadian provinces trade twelve to twenty times more amongst themselves than with the US states The common currency provides the member nation to compare the prices efficiently . The poor regions would never become richer simply by devaluing its cur rency repeatedly. On the contrary the associated high inflation would introduce economic distortion and reduce its average real income, :- Professor Alec Chrystal Free movement of workers :- Free mobility area of the labour helps the countries to prevent from an asymmetric shock which is the result of inflation in one country A and a recession in country B . If there is mobility of labour ie they can move freely this will lead to release the inflation in A and increasing employment of the people in B. For example, workers from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand account for 10 percent of the employment in Singapore. Emigration has been as much as 2 percent of the labor force of the sending countries- (http://www.adb.org/Documents/ERD/Working_Papers/WP012.pdf ) The prevention of competitive devaluations and speculation:- The Monetary unions protect the member countries damaging effect of competitive devaluation of the currency which may lead to steeling the business of the other . But is any country which try to do this with the monetary unions has an adverse effect of high inflation. Other advantages of joining the currency union are as follows. The country gets an access to larger markets and thus increasing the overall income of the country. It also reduces the effect of shocks from exterior instability to an individual country. Joining the currency union is very important for those countries which lack internal control . This allows free movement of goods and sevices without any obstacles. This also keeps peace between the nation as they now that they are all interdependent on each other . the one of the most important advantage is it it will increase the tourism in the countries as there is easy movement and no currency changes . Disadvantages of currency union Loss of sovereignty: This means that country adopting the Common currency has to give up the Monetary policies to the body who is controlling the union . like in the case of European union all the 12 countries had to give up their monetary rights to the European central bank with decides the monetary policies for all the nation . Its most biggest disadvantages come during the crisis when the situation are different in all the different countries and cannot be handled in the same way. Like in a case of sudden increase in the unemployment the governments income will decrease as taxes are not paid so the government will have to increase the taxes which will lead to further disaster decrease in the interest rates during the crisis will help some but will adversely affect the other . So it is very difficult to be in an currency union . In the United States, Texas could not avoid a recession in the wake of the 1986 oil price fall, whereas demand for Sterling changed in the light of the ne w oil price, adjusting the exchange rate downwards.- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/special_report/single_currency/25081.stm Cost of adopting the new currency: The adopting of new currency will have a very huge cost to the economy. These are like Such changes include educating customers, changing labels, and training staff, changing computer software and adjusting tills.- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/special_report/single_currency/25081.stm Lower inflation and reduced transactions costs of trade provide gains, while the inability to respond to idiosyncratic asymmetric shocks generate losses.:- Andrew K. Rose1 New negative cross-border spillovers of fiscal policy:- a national fiscal expansion raises the demand for savings, ceteris paribus pushing up the long-run interest rate and discouraging investment. In an integrated capital market strengthened by monetary unification, this effect will spread to other countries, imposing a negative externality. A monetary union may also generate new negative spillovers. An increase in domestic government purchases, in affecting the demand for domestic products, raises local inflation, thereby pushing up average euro-area inflation and forcing the ECB to contract monetary policy for the entire area. Further, a national fiscal expansion may cause an appreciation of the euro, thereby undermining the external competitive position of all union members.- (http://www.voxeu.org/index.php?q=node/4305) The other disadvantages of the Monetary unions are as follows, the one of the biggest disadvantage is the difference in languages with in turn leads to the decrease in the mobility of labour Language in Europe is a huge barrier to labour force mobility. This may lead to pockets of deeply depressed areas in which people cannot find work (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/special_report/single_currency/25081.stm.). The countries in the currency union also lose the ability to cope with the external shocks. It have to leave it on itself so be rectified with in todays time is very difficult. Should Britain join euro Britain is one of the biggest financial hub in the world, which is also the worlds largest hub for currency trading . Britain does the maximum currency trading . Britain from the beginning has been independent and has been flourishing . But it was a real shock to the Britain when EMU was formed and the biggest threat . After reading the list of journals , it is very difficult to say whether or not Britain should join the Euro or not . There are many arguments and thoughts over it and would like to bring them forward to you . I would first like to bring forward all the positive aspects of the Britain joining the euro with the real facts about it . There has been a significant decrease in foreign direct investment in Britain after the formation of the EMU . Britains share of the foreign direct investment coming into Europe has fallen by a half (see Table 3). In 2001 the Netherlands received more of this investment than Britain.:- Richard Layard, Willem Buiter, Christopher Huhne, Will Hutton, London as mentioned is a important financial hub, but the pound has little to do with it. Where most of the trading is done mostly in dollars in most of the transaction , but the euro outranked the pound ,where euro was involved in 41% and pound in just 24 % of the transactions (as seen in the table 1). The other thing is that this financial centre employ about 1,50,000 people creating  £10- £15billion annual invisible exports . If the UK exercises its opt-out, long-term damage would be inflicted on the City, which will ultimately lose its pre-eminence to Frankfurt or even Paris, in part because trading in the Euro will be focused within its area of operation:- Brian Burkitt The continues increase in the instability will decrease the attractiveness of Britain has as a destination of capital flow. The stock of euro-denominated corporate bonds nearly tripled between 1998 and 2001, to 1.2 trillion Euros. This clearly shows the euro-zone has reconstructed its business which has increased the annual cross border foreign direct investment by 4 fold. Britain almost has its 50% of its trade with the EMU, which is shown in table 2, so it would be better for the UK to join the euro and thus reduce its cost of import and exports .During November 2002 the Chief Executive of Ford UK specifically stated that euro/sterling exchange rates were damaging the profits of the company:- http://www.fpma.scot.nhs.uk/euro_pros_cons.pdf The British consumers will be now able to compare prices all over Europe . This will end the phenomenon of rip-off Britain that allowed coca-cola to charge double here what it charges in Spain, or Ford to charge 43% more for a focus than in Denmark. :- Christopher Huhne . From long time the MNCs new that Britain is the Treasure Island and the consumer are willing to pay high price. Britain chance to exploit the Asia and the America is by joining the bigger currency thats the Euro

Conversion of Waste to Energy

Conversion of Waste to Energy This section of the report focuses on waste to energy which is one of the most popular methods used to manage municipal solid waste around the world. Through waste to energy, trash has become a useful material because we are able to convert it to heat. The combustion of trash at a waste to energy facility produce ash, heat and flue gas. From the ash, metals are recovered and recycled. The flue gas is cleaned then it is released into the atmosphere through the chimney. The heat produced is used to generate electricity that powers the plant and nearby buildings. A waste to energy plant in the community helps to increase recycling rate which is beneficial for the city. There are more advantages to waste to energy than disadvantages, therefore it is essential that the city utilizes waste to energy has a way of managing municipal solid waste. 4.1.1. Introduction The management of municipal solid waste (MSW) in New York City has changed over the past decade from ocean and street dumping, to unregulated incineration, to current and export landfilling practices (Sylvan, 2011). The NYC Department of Sanitation, which is in charge of managing NYC waste collaborates with the Department of Parks and Recreation, the Sims Multi Recycling Recovery Facility, and GreeNYC to manage the citys waste through recycling, waste reduction, and composting and organic waste diversion (Cohen et al., 2015). In 2006, to efficiently manage the citys waste, the city Council approved the Comprehensive Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP) which was created under the administrator of former Mayor Bloomberg (Cohen et al., 2015). The purpose of this plan was to establish a dependable, economical, and sustainable system for managing the citys waste (Cohen et al., 2015). This plan was eventually integrated into the sustainability planning under the PlaNYC, New York Citys compr ehensive sustainability plan in 2011 (Cohen et al., 2015). Under the new plan, in 2012, Former Mayor Bloomberg announced that the city would solicit plans to build a waste to energy facility near or within New York City (Rizzo et al., 2012). Waste to energy (WTE) technology is a process where trash is converted to heat/electricity. The most common waste to energy technology use around the world is mass burn, where trash is combusted to produce energy (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). However, the plan to build a WTE facility was eventually archived due to misconceptions surrounding WTE (Rizzo et al., 2012). 4.1.1.1 Background on the Problem Incinerators are not new to New York City. In the 20th century, there were thirty-two municipal and 17,000 apartment house refuse incinerator in the city (Walsh et al., 2001). In 1935, New York City was forced to stop ocean dumping, which was the waste disposal method for the city at that time, after a federal lawsuit was filed by New Jersey coastal cities (Cohen et al., 2015). This led the city to rely on incinerators and landfill to dispose of its waste (Cohen et al., 2015). However, in 1952, citys officials reported that apartment house refuse incinerators were responsible for 30% of the citys air pollution (Walsh, 2002). The report on air pollution caused by incinerators in the 1950s led to the limits on incinerator usage based on environmental grounds (Walsh, 2002). In 1970, after the Federal Clean Air act was enacted, the city was forced to shut down incinerators plant that did not meet the emissions guidelines (WastedNYC, 2015). The emission guidelines led to the closure of th e citys four oldest municipal incinerators by 1971, and by mid- 1970s thousands of residential incinerators were closed down (Walsh, 2002). In 1989, City Council committee passes a bill to ban incinerators in the city in the next four years (WastedNYC, 2015; Dunlap, 1989). This bill led to the decline of both residential and municipal incinerators, and by 1994 there were no more incinerator plants in New York City (Walsh, 2002; Rizzo et al., 2012). 4.1.1.2. Purpose of the Paper The burning of garbage and WTE are related because they both involve the combustion of trash. However, WTE is not just about burning trash but it is used to produce energy. The purpose of this paper is to outline how WTE plants work as well as the benefit the city stands to gain if it builds its own WTE facility. The city currently sends approximately 10% of its MSW to WTE plants in Hempstead, Long Island and Essex County, New Jersey (Cohen 2015, Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). If the city were to build its owns plant, it would save money from not spending on the transportation of waste and the use of other states landfills or WTE facilities. WTE has the ability to improve New York Citys current waste disposal practices (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). 4.1.2. Municipal Solid Waste Incinerator Process 4.1.2.1. How Incineration Works Figure 4.1.1: Schematic Diagram of the MSW incineration process (Lam et al., 2010). The incineration process of MSW is separated into three main parts: combustion, energy recovery and air pollution control (Lam et al., 2010). The crane in the machine (upper left, Fig.4.1.1) is used to feed solid waste into the furnace of the machine continually for combustion (Lam et al., 2010). The combustion of the waste in the furnace is enhanced by following the three Ts guideline, which are temperature, turbulence and time (Lam et al., 2010). High temperature increases burnout of the waste, while increasing turbulence reveals more waste surface and also increases burnout. (Lam et al., 2010). A longer resident time for the flue gas and waste also increases burnout (Lam et al., 2010). The temperature for incineration should be at least 850 oC with a residence time of 2 minutes (Lam et al., 2010). Air supply must be sufficient during the process to ensure complete combustion of waste and to inhibit the formation of carbon monoxide and dioxins (Lam et al., 2010). For the energy recovery process of the system, heat is generated from the waste and it is used to produce steam in the boiler (Lam et al., 2010). The steam is then used to drives the turbine to generate electricity (Lam et al., 2010). Air pollution was a major problem for old incinerators in the 20th century. However, modern incinerators are equipped with advanced pollution control systems which are designed to reduce pollution and ensure that the system is in compliance with environmental standards (Lam et al., 2010). To neutralize acidic gases such as hydrogen chloride and sulfur oxides, fine atomized slurry or lime powder is spray into the hot exhaust gas using a dry/wet scrubber (Lam et al., 2010). Also in the system, an activated carbon column is used to adsorb the heavy metals and organic pollutants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the exhaust gas (Lam et al., 2010). The bag filter install in the system acts to filter and remove dust particles and fine particulates from the combustion (Lam et al., 2016). 4.1.2.2. The Product of Incineration of Waste After the combustion of the waste three products are produced, the products are flue gas, heat and ash (Lam et al., 2016). 4.1.2.2.1. Flue gas The flue gas produced from the combustion contains air pollutant (Zaman, 2010) (See table 4.1.3). Therefore, before the flue gas is release through the chimney, the filtering system makes sure the gas is clean to be released into the atmosphere (Zaman, 2010). 4.1.2.2.2. Heat The heat produced is used to generate electricity. The facilities use the electricity generated to operate the plant and sell the excess energy (Chambers, 2016; Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). At most facilities, for every ton of waste combusted, 550 to 650 Kilowatt/hour (KWh) of electricity is generated for sale (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). This is the way that WTE facilities are able to earn more income for the plant (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). 4.1.2.2.3. Ash There are two types of ash produced from the combustion, bottom ash (BA) and fly ash (FA) (Lam et al., 2016). The ash is 90 percent smaller than the original volume of the waste combusted (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). From the ash, WTE facilities are able to extract recyclable ferrous and non-ferrous metals (Chambers, 2016; Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Then the ashes are landfilled (Chambers, 2016). Before the ashes are landfilled, the facilities test the ashes to make sure that the ashes are not hazardous to the environment (Chambers, 2016). However, in some Asian and European countries that uses WTE, the ashes are not landfilled but rather utilized for other purposes such as cement and concrete production, road pavement, glass ceramics and ceramic production, adsorbent for dyes and agriculture (Lam et al., 2010; Pà ©rez-Villarejo et al., 2012). Application of MSW ashes Type Application Composition % Country BA Aggregate in concrete up to 50% France BA Aggregate in concrete replace up to 15% of cement Slovenia BA Road base Spain BA Adsorbent for dyes India BA Concrete Italy Mixed Ash Cement clinker up to 50% Portugal Mixed Ash Cement clinker 44% Japan Mixed Ash Cement clinker 15% Taiwan Mixed Ash Aggregate in concrete Spain FA Concrete 50% France FA Eco cement 50% Japan FA Ceramic tile China FA Glass ceramic Korea FA Blended cement up to 45% UK Table 4.1.1: The uses of MSW Ash in different countries. The BA represents Bottom Ash, the FA represents Fly Ash and the Mixed Ash represents the mixture of both BA and FA (Modified after Lam et al., 2010). Table 4.1.2: Research projects on MSW ash as road construction materials in the U.S. BA represents Bottom Ash and combined ash represents both Bottom Ash and Fly Ash (Modified after An et al., 2014). WTE facilities in the United States(U.S.) such as Covanta have been lobbying to recycle the ash instead of landfilling it, but these attempts have been unsuccessful so far (Chambers, 2016). The facilities have been lobbying for both federal and state regulation that would allow the usage of ash in the country (Chambers, 2016). Several studies conducted in the U.S. has proved that ash can be used in the U.S. as part of road construction (An et al., 2014) (see table 4.1.2). Despite the research showing that ash is usable in the U.S. no regulation has been passed to allow the usage of ash (An et al., 2014). Recycling of ash would be beneficiary because it would help eliminate landfills. Therefore, it is essential that these facilities continue to lobby for the recycling of ash. 4.1.3. Misconception about Waste to Energy Opposition to waste to energy plant in the city is rooted in two misconceptions (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). One of the misconceptions is that a waste to energy plant would displace recycling programs in the city (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). This has been proven to be false based on places that use waste to energy as part of their waste management program (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). High reliance on WTE is in fact correlated with high recycling rate (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). For example, in Austria where WTE facilities are used, 70 percent of its MSW is either recycled or composed while the remaining 30 percent is sent to WTE plants (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Meanwhile, in the U.S., studies have shown that states that do not rely heavily on WTE to manage their waste have a recycling rate below 20 percent while states that rely heavily on WTE has recycling rates above 20 percent. (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). For example, Connecticut, which is one of the leading states in reliance on WTE, sends 63 percent of its waste to WTE plants and recycle d 26 percent of its waste (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). As of 2015, the recycling rate for the city was 16%, which is lower than the recycling rate for Connecticut (Szendro, 2015). This demonstrates that having a WTE plant in the city would not displace recycling but rather help us recycle better. The other misconception about WTE is that it causes air pollution which would affect the health of the resident that would who live around the plant (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). In the 20th century there was a problem with incineration due to the fact that it causes air pollution. However, modern incinerators are equipped with systems that reduce the amount of pollutants released from the plant (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Also tight rule and regulations have led to the reduction of pollutant from WTE plants (Chambers, 2016). Under the federal Clean Air Act, WTE facilities must abide by the Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) rules, which apply to eight different air pollutants (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Every five years, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) updates the MACT, which result in the update of pollution control in WTE facilities to meet the new EPA limits (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). In 2012, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) examined eight air pollutants at the states municipal waste combustion plants and found that most pollutant had declined by 30 to 60 percent from 1996 to 2010 (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). *Toxic equivalent (sum of substance amounts multiplied by toxicity equivalency). Table 4.1.3. Emission from US WTE facilities Pre- versus Post MACT (Modified after EPA, 2016). Table 4.1.4. Average emission of 87 US WTE facilities (Lumber et al., 2006 as citied in Psomopoulos et al., 2009). WTE facilities in the US emit pollutants that are below that of the EPA Standard (Chambers, 2016, Psomopoulos et al., 2009) (see table 4.1.4). Numerous studies have shown that modern combustion plants pose no significant health risks (Citizen Budget commission., 2012). For example, a study in Germany, found near new WTE facilities the dioxin levels are only 1 to 2 percent of the level considered harmful to human health (Citizen Budget Commission., 2012). Another example, in Montgomery County WTE facility a health risk assessment found that even in the worst case scenario a nearby farmer has a one in three million chance of increase health risk from exposure to the facility(Budget Citizen Commission., 2012). This shows that WTE plants have no effect on human health and the idea that WTE plants in the city would affect the health of New Yorkers is false. 4.1.4. Benefit of Waste to Energy 4.1.4.1. Energy production and reduction in Greenhouse gases At WTE plants, combustion of 1 metric ton of MSW generates approximately 600 kWh of electricity thus preventing the mining of 0.25 ton of U.S. coal or importing one barrel of oil for electricity (Psomopolous et al., 2009). This lead to the displacement of energy produced at local facilities (Citizen Budget Commission., 2013). For example, the EPA calculated that for a ton of wasted combusted in the Middle Atlantic region prevent about 0.56 metric tons of emission from local utilities (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). The EPA also estimated that for every ton of waste combusted, 0.04 tons of carbon dioxide from metal recovery is saved (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). WTE is the only alternative to landfilling of non-recyclable wastes, where the decomposing waste releases methane into the atmosphere (Psomopoulos et al., 2009). Which means that the city practice of hauling waste to other states landfill is increasing the citys carbon footprint. Disposing of the citys garbage to local WTE would decrease the citys carbon foot print (Citizen Budget Commission., 2012). 4.1.4.2. Source of Renewable Energy Figure 4.1.2. Sources of U.S. electricity generation in 2015 (Modified after EIA, 2016). The combustible materials in MSW consist of 82% biomass (paper, food, yard wastes etc.), and 18% petroleum chemical wastes (Psomopolous et al., 2009). Therefore, MSW is considered a renewable source of energy and it is included by the U.S. Department of Energy in the biomass fuel category of renewable energy source (Psomopolous et al., 2009). In 2015, renewable energy generated 13% of the energy produced in the U.S. (EIA, 2016). The electricity produced by WTE facilities in the U.S. is 3% of the renewable energy generated in 2015, which is less than the amount of electricity generated by other renewable energy sources such as wind (35% of renewable energy generated), and solar (5% of renewable energy generated) (EIA, 2016) (see Figure 4.1.2). However, compare to wind and solar energy, the electricity generated by waste is consistent because the availability of these resources is stable, while the amount of electricity generated by the wind and solar energy depend on daily and seasona l weather, and this make the sources unreliable. (EIA, 2016). This shows that even though waste is not generating a lot of energy, it is a stable energy resource. 4.1.4.3. Recycling Having a WTE plant in the city would increase the citys recycling rate. WTE plant in the city would burn only non-recyclable material, which means that New Yorkers have the responsibility of sorting out their garbage before it is taken to the WTE plant (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). 4.1.4.4. Free Amenities The people who live near the WTE plant might be entitled to free amenities. For example, the Toshima Incinerator plant in Tokyo has a swimming pool and an affordable fitness center located within the plant (Harden, 2008). These amenities are accessible to the people who live in community where the plant is located (Harden, 2008). Another example, is the Hiroshima Naka Citys Incinerator plant in Japan, which is also known as the museum of garbage (Harden, 2008). The end of one of Hiroshimas main boulevards, overlooks the citys harbor, but the building has entirely blocked residents access to the water(Bernstein,2004). Therefore, the architect of the building decided to continue the boulevard, in form of a raised, glass-enclosed walkway (Bernstein, 2004). Beginning where the pavement ends, a 400-foot walkway slips was put through the building, ending in a new waterfront park. Residents can walk through the slip to get access to the waterfront park (Bernstein, 2004). The beautiful archi tecture of the plant has made it a tourist attraction center in Hiroshima (Bernstein, 2004). This proves that WTE plants can be multifunctional. If the city decides to build its own WTE plants it can make it attractive to the community by including free amenities. 4.1.5. Economic Analysis In 2012, the average price of sending our waste to distant landfill was $95 per ton and it was estimated that the price would increase to $140 per ton in 2016 (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Meanwhile sending our waste to WTE facilities in Newark, New Jersey, and Hempstead, Long Island cost the city $66 and $77 per ton, respectively (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). The prices for sending our waste to distant landfill and WTE facilities is expected to increase in the coming years (Citizen Budget Commission, 2016). In comparison, the projected tipping fees of new plants are much lower than sending our waste out of the city (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). The New York City Independent Budget Office (IBO) estimated that the tipping fee at a new WTE plant that process 900,000 tons of waste per year would cost about $108 per ton in 2019, which is cheaper than the $140 per ton in 2016 for landfill (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Therefore, it would be beneficiary for the city to build its own plants. A full detail on economic analysis regarding WTE can be found in section 4.4 of this report. 4.1.6. Recommendation The use of a WTE plant located in the city or near the city offers both economic and environmental benefits compared to sending our waste out of the City (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Different factors are involved in estimating the economic benefits from the use of citys own WTE facility (citizen Budget Commission, 2012). The Key factors for the estimation are the future price of transporting waste to landfills, and the time it would take to plan, design and construct a plant (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Therefore, the cost of WTE would be compared to the amount the City would be paying to export its waste in 2022 (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). It is estimated that in 2022 the City would be paying $170 per ton to export to landfill (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). It would cost the City $750 million to finance a 3,000-ton per day WTE plant and capital funding, cost of operations and net of electricity sales for the plant would be approximate $109 million in 2022 (Citizen Budget Commission, 2016). It is assumed that the plant would be able to process 985, 500 tons of waste annually at a cost of $111 per ton if it operates all year round with 90 percent availability, (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). This would save the City $59 for every ton sent to the new plant instead of being transported to landfill (Citizen Budget Commission,2016). Using this estimate, taxpayers would save approximately $119 million if the city diverts two million tons from landfill to WTE plant in 2022 (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). This would lead to a reduction in the cost for disposing MSW in the City from $526 million to $408 million, a 23 percent drop in 2022 (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). The diversion of two million tons of waste from landfills to WTE woul d not only save the city money but also reduce greenhouse gas emission (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). Greenhouse gas emission due to this diversion is expected to decrease by 35 percent, which is equivalent to the reduction of carbon dioxide from 679,000 to 439,000 metric tons (Citizen Budget Commission, 2012). A Full detail on recommendations for the city regarding WTE can be found in section 4.4. of this report 4.1.7. Conclusion The use of WTE facilities has proven to be one of the best ways of managing MSW. WTE helps lower greenhouse gases and provides energy and material recovery. WTE also help reduce our reliance on fossil fuels for electricity, which leads to the reduction of greenhouse gas. WTE would also help increase the recycling rate of the city. Building WTE plant within NYC might be a problem due to the misconceptions surrounding WTE facilities. When people hear WTE, they think back to the old incinerators that were used in the 20th century in NYC. Therefore, it is essential for New York City to develop programs that would educate New Yorkers about the benefit of having WTE in the city and the differences between modern incinerators and the incinerators from 20th century. WTE has more benefits for the city than any effect it might have on the environment. References An, J., Kim, J., Golestani, B., Tasneem, K. M., Al Muhit, B. A., Nam, B. H., Behzadan, A. H. (2014). Evaluating the use of waste-to-energy bottom ash as road construction materials. University of Central Florida: Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering. Accessed: December 8, 2016: http://www.fdot.gov/research/completed_proj/summary_smo/fdot-bdk78-977-20-rpt.pdf Bernstein, F.A. (2004). Beauty in Garbage: Naka Incinerator Plant by Yoshio Taniguchi. Arch News Now. Accessed November 26. 2016: http://www.archnewsnow.com/features/Feature152.htm Chambers, T (2016). Interviewed by me. Facility manager of Covanta Huntington LP. Kings Park, NY. Citizens Budget Commission (2012). Taxes In, Garbage Out: The Need for Better Solid Waste Disposal Policies in New York City. Citizens Budget Commission New York. Accessed October 6, 2016: http://www.cbcny.org/sites/default/files/REPORT_SolidWaste_053312012.pdf Cohen, C., Martinez, H., and Schroder, A. (2015). Waste Management Practices in New York City, Hong Kong and Beijing. Columbia University. Accessed October 5, 2016: http://www.columbia.edu/~sc32/documents/ALEP%20Waste%20Managent%20FINAL.pdf Dunlap, D.W. (1989). Panel Votes Bill to Ban Incinerators. New York Times. Accessed November 28, 2016: http://www.nytimes.com/1989/05/23/nyregion/panel-votes-bill-to-ban-incinerators.html EIA (2016). Energy in Brief: How much U.S. electricity is generated from renewable energy. Energy Information Administration. Accessed December 6, 2016: https://www.eia.gov/energy_in_brief/article/renewable_electricity.cfm EPA (2016). Energy Recovery from Waste: Air Emissions from MSW Combustion Facilities. Environmental Protection Agency. Accessed December 8, 2016: https://archive.epa.gov/epawaste/nonhaz/municipal/web/html/airem.html Harden, B. (2008). Japan Stanches Stench of Mass Incinerators. Washington Post. Accessed November 28, 2016: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2008/11/17/AR2008111702968.html Lam, C. H., Ip, A. W., Barford, J. P., and McKay, G. (2010). Use of incineration MSW ash: a review. Sustainability, 2(7), 1943-1968. Pà ©rez-Villarejo, L., Eliche-Quesada, D., Iglesias-Godino, F. J., Martà ­nez-Garcà ­a, C., Corpas-Iglesias, F. A. (2012). Recycling of ash from biomass incinerator in clay matrix to produce ceramic bricks. Journal of environmental management, 95, S349-S354. Psomopoulos, C. S., Bourka, A., Themelis, N. J. (2009). Waste-to-energy: A review of the status and benefits in USA. Waste management, 29(5), 1718-1724. Rizzo, C., Plum, M.K. (2012). Waste-to -Energy Facilities in New York City: Challenges and Opportunities. Accessed October 2, 2016: http://www.clm.com/publication.cfm?ID=370 Sylvan, D. (2011). Municipal Solid Waste in New York City: An Economic and Environmental Analysis of Disposal Options. New York League of Conservation Voters Education Fund (NYLCVEF). Accessed October 6, 2016: http://nylcvef.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Solid-Waste-Background-Paper.pdf Szendro, B. (2015). New York City Makes Small Improvement in Recycling Rate: Despite improvements, Department of Sanitation falls short of its goal. New York League of Conservation Voters (NYLCV). Accessed November 15, 2016: http://nylcv.org/news/new-york-city-makes-small-improvement-in-recycling-rates Walsh, D. C., Chillrud, S. N., Simpson, H. J., Bopp, R. F. (2001). Refuse incinerator particulate emissions and combustion residues for New York City during the 20th century. Environmental science technology, 35(12), 2441-2447 Walsh, D. C. (2002). Peer Reviewed: The Evolution of Refuse Incineration. Environmental science technology, 36(15), 316A-322A. WastedNYC (2015). History of Incineration in New York City. WastedNYC. Accessed November 28, 2016: https://wastednyc.wordpress.com/local-incineration/incinerators-in-inwood/

Jane Goodall Essay -- essays research papers

Goodall, Jane. Through a Window. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1990.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jane Goodall’s books, Through a Window, In the Shadow of Man, and The Chimpanzees of Gombe, recount her many years as an observer of chimpanzees and other species of monkeys. In Through a Window, she gives her account of thirty years with chimpanzees in the village of Gombe, off of Lake Tanganyika. During those thirty years with her son and husband, she observed and researched the chimpanzees with the help of other researchers. This book is a collection of the observations and data, in addition to the emotions she felt during this era. The theme of Through a Window is that chimpanzees have very human characteristics and feelings, and she proves this through her descriptions of love, war, power, and life in general.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The African community of Gombe remains the center of the events throughout the book. Goodall describes it as â€Å"peaceful† and â€Å"hauntingly beautiful† (Goodall 2). The monkeys are the main residents in this beautiful place, as they can suddenly take over any calmness or serenity that was once there. â€Å"Goblin abruptly sat up and, almost at once†¦instant pandemonium broke out.† (Goodall 2). Many characters are born and die throughout the story, and their setting is always described, as if being compared to the eternalness of nature. â€Å"The field staff found Charlie’s dead body lying near the Kahama Stream† (Goodall 106).   Ã‚  Ã‚  &n...

Blake :: essays research papers

In Blake's "London" the speaker connects various characters and socio/political institutions in order to critique the injustices perpetrated in England. The busy, commercial city of London functions as a space in which the speaker can imagine the inescapable interconnections of English institution and citizens. Although separated by differences of class and gender, the citizens of London brush up against each other so that the misery of the poor and dispossessed is a direct indictment of the callousness of the rich and powerful, f the institutions of state and religion. The speaker of the poem emphasizes the social and economic differences that separate the citizens of London. By repeating the word "charter'd", he reminds the reader of the commercial nature of the city, the fact that portions of it are owned, and that not everyone has equal access to goods or property. In the first line of his poem as Blake speaks of how he is wandering through the "charter'd" streets, he is commenting on this commercial aspect of London. As he moves on in his poem he also refers to the "charter'd" Thames, he is telling us in this second line that even a river which is a force of nature, is owned in London. When Blake says that he sees "marks of weakness, marks of woe" in "every face" he meets, he means that he can see how this commercialism is affecting everyone rich and poor. Yet, despite the divisions that the word charter'd suggests, the speaker contends that no one in London, neither rich or poor, escapes a pervasive sense of misery and entrapment. The speaker talks of how in "every cry of every man" he hears the misery. Blake is once again reminding us that this is affecting everyone. As he goes on to comment on he can hear it in "every infants cry of fear", he is saying that even the babies know what is going to happen to them when they grow up and they fear the misery that they will soon face. In the next line of the poem Blake chooses to use a very interesting word. When he writes "in every ban" he leaves the line open to many different interpretations. The word ban can mean a political prohibition, a curse, or an announcement of marriage. The political meaning is an obvious one in this poem, Blake obviously does not like the politics of London and he fells that the commercialism is preventing the people from being happy.

Marks & Spencer PESTLE Analysis Essay

Major Firms cannot survive and continue to prosper without analyzing their general environment and acting upon the trends identified. Scanning and monitoring the general environment are activities they cannot afford to ignore. Discuss this statement with reference to the performance of the UK retailer Marks & Spencer over the last 10 years. Introduction Marks and Spencer is a major British multinational retailer headquartered in Westminster, London. It has a network of 766 stores in the United Kingdom and 418 stores spread across more than 40 countries. It was founded in 1884 by Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer in Leeds. It specializes in the selling of clothing and luxury food products. Michael Marks was from Russia and Thomas Spencer was a cashier from Yorkshire. In 1884, Michael Marks started his own business in Kirkgate Market, Leeds by opening a penny bazaar stall. Then to develop his business he opened a shop at Manchester with the partnership of Thomas Spencer. Initially, the company used to be known as Marks & Sparks but over the years, the company decided to settle down for Marks & Spencer. In 1998, it became the first British retailer to make a pre-tax profit of over ?1 billion. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. PESTLE Analysis An organization’s environment is made up of: The Internal Environment: Staff, office technology, wages, finance, etc. The Micro Environment: External customers, agents, distributors, suppliers, etc. The Macro Environment: Political, economic, social, technological, legal, environmental etc. This is also known as the PESTLE environment. PESTLE analysis describes a framework of macro-environmental factors used in the environmental scanning component of strategic management. It is a part of the external analysis which gives an overview of the different macro-environmental factors that the company has to take into consideration in order to achieve its goals. Let’s talk about the different factors of the PESTLE environment for Marks & Spencer in depth. Political Political factors are those factors that are made, run and changed by the government. These factors show the level of anticipation by the government in different trades and businesses. Specifically the sectors in which government’s anticipation is the most are trade policy, labor law, trade restrictions, tariffs, and political stability. These factors also include goods and services needed or provided by the government. This is decided by the government what kind and quantity of goods and services can enter or go out of the country. These policies are directly worked by government and can only be changed by them. Other than these political factors government have a large anticipation in health, education, infrastructure and defense of the country. The government has its own sets of rules and regulations which every company has to abide such as health & safety, planning for hazard identification, risk management and risk control. If somehow a company doesn’t follow these rules and regulations, the companies will have to face strict consequences and outcomes, which include heavy fines or even closure of the company. Marks and Spencer was accused of not abiding the standards for and was charged for neglecting the safety regulation after a door fell on an employee. Marks and Spencer was not pled guilty of this trial. Marks and Spencer was the first company to achieve fair trade policy route which is cut salt and fat in M&S food. Marks and Spencer’s believes that it is very important to interact and work with the government to protect an  organization’s legitimate interests and to develop policies which addresses wider public objectives. Marks and Spencer’s respond to the government queries which are available publically on their sites. The company has full support from the government because of its rich historic values and fair means of trade practice. Because Marks & Spencer has become a very powerful organization in the retail world, new competitors find it very difficult to keep up with the quality of products and services that Marks & Spencer provide. The two political f actors that affect the company are political stability and VAT. Political stability is the government works their way whereas Marks and Spencer’s wants things differently. VAT is the terms known as value added tax which is set by the government and paid by the companies. It definitely affects Marks and Spencer’s because if the government increases VAT, M&S also has to increase their prices or else it would decrease the firm’s income. Economic Economic factors are determinants of an economy’s performance that directly impacts a company and have long term effects. For example, a rise in the inflation rate of any economy would affect the way companies’ price their products and services. It would also affect the purchasing power of a consumer and change demand/supply models for that economy. Economic factors include inflation rate, interest rates, foreign exchange rates, economic growth patterns etc. It also accounts for the FDI (foreign direct investment) depending on certain specific industries who’re undergoing this analysis. The United Kingdom has an open economy and ranks among the fourth largest in the world. Fiscal and monetary policies are properly managed because of that there is low inflation and strong government finances in the country. Marks & Spencer needs to organize a complete economic analysis. It is essential to consider the state of economy in the short- and long-terms. Issues such as i nterest rates, inflation, GDP, employment levels, etc. need to have hold in the marketing plan so that the strategies adopted encounter all such issues and ensure sustainability of competitive position. Current economic situation in the UK is favorable with low-to-moderate interest rates which signal a healthy economy. A healthy economy is a sign of increasing disposable income which, in turn, is good for the business. Marks & Spencer needs to concentrate more in the fashion arena as younger  generation spends most of their disposable incomes on clothing. Social Social factors are fundamentals that one cannot directly control but they definitely affect your business and marketing strategies. Basically, to know your social environment and to deal with it, you have to think about ‘people’ here. The aspects that we need to consider in order to understand people are cultural aspects, age distribution and emphasis on environment concerns. Trends in social factors affect the demand for a company’s products and how that company operates. Marks & Spencer has modified itself a lot according to its consumer’s wants. M&S core shops typically feature a selection of the company’s clothing ranges and a food hall. In UK, people are seen to live longer now, which means now they can spend more during their lifetime. As Marks & Spencer’s most of the customer were people aged over 40, with a large proportion of them over 55, this is why the clothing range offered by M&S is of a conservative nature. Now, as peopleâ€℠¢s choices of attire have been changing since last ten years, Marks & Spencer is improvising its clothing line in accordance with the customers changing tastes. The clothing line sold and the space given to it basically depends on the locality and customer demographic. Say for example, some shops located in London do not stock the Classic Collection, instead they go with the stock Limited Collection and a full Autograph range. The latest recession had played an important role in increasing the level of unemployment. This caused a decrease in Marks & Spencer’s sales as people’s purchasing power declined. Eventually, Marks & Spencer lowered its price for customer’s convenience. As it was estimated there will be rise again in the level of employment, people would have money to spend, eventually a rise in sales was seen. Now a days, people want to feel unique, up to date and convenient. Therefore, people have started using credit cards to satisfy their desires. Another factor is that since credit card came into action, an increase of more than 10% happened in all trade (BBC News, 2000). Since 18 April 2000, Marks & Spencer allowed its customers to pay with credit cards. They did so because they wanted to compete with its competitors who had started accepting credit cards a long time back. Another significant social effect that took place in the recent years is the environmental. Marks &  Spencer have recognized an increase in the number of their customers who say they will tak e environmental action. It is not only the usual buying concerns such as price, quality and style which attracts their customers but also making sure all these things are underpinned by sustainability. This sets Marks & Spencer apart from its opponents and assures its customers that they can trust them to do the right thing. Marks & Spencer are continuing to drive hard to reduce, reuse, recycle and reinvent to become more capable across their operations. In UK, stores have been set as â€Å"Simply Food† that cater to customer’s demand in convenient locality. In 2009 the company also began selling a limited range of other brands such as Coca-Cola and Stella Artois without dropping the number of Marks & Spencer goods they sold. Technology Constant evolution in technology has helped businesses operate efficiently in competitive markets such as retail as modern IT systems help increase productivity & lower costs. Furthermore, consumers across the globe are harnessing the power of internet to purchase items online & get them delivered straight to their homes. Online shopping has enabled M&S to automate & accelerate purchases & reduce the supply cycle for products sold online. M&S has already invested ?100m on new technologies and ?150m on a new model for its website that will be completed by 2014. This clearly shows that M&S is investing heavily in technology to increase its efficiency. Analysts expect sales figures to be somewhere between ?800 million to ?1 billion once the website is fully revamped. Recently, M&S stores in UK were equipped with free Wi-Fi. M&S hopes that customers will use the Wi-Fi to explore other products the company has to offer. Additionally, customer assistants in stores have been given iPads to help shoppers by providing them with more information about different products. This move has helped M&S to integrate its internet & high street offerings. Other tactics involve installing big screens in stores which promote clothing & interactive screens placed strategically which enables customers to browse through the products & place orders. M&S believes that their â€Å"hospitality offer† is an advanced way to get more business. Probably the biggest advancement in M&S’s books would be the opening of M&S’s distribution centre in Castle Donington. The reason for its remarkableness is that it’s a 900,000 sq. ft. by 25 metre  high centre that has been exclusively made to serve as a warehouse for online orders. Because of its tremendous size, it is arguably the biggest distribution centre in UK. The centre is capable of processing 1 million products per day & hold 16 million products as inventory. The centre is fully automated & fitted with world class warehousing technology which involves automated storage & retrieval systems. More than 150,000 different variety products are stored in the warehouse. Work g oes inside 24Ãâ€"7 & 50 vehicles are uses every day for inventory management. As for employees, 1,200 people are employed during peak seasons. Lastly, the site has been built with an eco-friendly outlook. The centre has solar panels installed on its outside to harness solar energy & use it to heat the centre during cold weather. Legal Like any other firm, Marks & Spencer has also had to deal with some legal issues. In September last year, BBC news reported that M&S was fined 1 million GBP over asbestos risk. It failed to protect the staff and customers from the risk of asbestos which is a highly heat resistant silicate mineral. The judge, Christopher Harvey claimed that the company was more interested in making profits rather than planning for asbestos removal .However the company claimed that it acted responsibly and was disappointed. On 8th august 2010, M&S was accused for sweatshop scandal where Indian workers were paid just 25p per hour and forced to work overtime. Some workers have even claimed that they were paid half the amount for the overtime they worked and those who refused to work were asked to leave and find new jobs. M&S admitted that the suppliers had worked excessive overtime and that their own audits found a number of other violations which was described as high risk issues in documentations and conditions .The observer found that the company was using workers hired through middlemen and were being forced to work for 7 days a week, a practice that is condemned by their union as, â€Å"slave labor† but the company again refused all these claims and said that they were ethical in their working and they would not tolerate anything in their supply chain. On 19th May 2013, it was found out that M&S was involved in a tax fraud like that of Amazon. Moreover, earlier M&S claimed to be doing the same business as Amazon whereas it wasn’t. The sales revenue that was supposed to go to the UK was sent to Ireland because of the tax rate being  26% in the United Kingdom and 20% in Ireland. Even though Marks and Spencer claimed to do the same business as Amazon, it was rather saving up on its sales revenue. M&S was actually engaging in unethical practices such as evading tax. Environmental It is to be noted that M&S is one of the most sustainable brands out there in the market. Infact, they launched an initiative called â€Å"Plan A† in January 2007. They set out 100 commitments that were to be achieved in a time frame of 5 years. Currently, they’ve extended their Plan A to achieve 180 commitments by 2015 & with that they are aiming at becoming the â€Å"world’s most sustainable retailer.† One of M&S’s Plan A programs is â€Å"shwopping.† The idea of shwopping is simple. You donate your old clothes. Your old clothes are sold to Oxfam. Oxfam either recycles your clothes or re-sells them to third world markets where there is demand for clothes but consumers do not have enough money to pay for them. Over the four years, shwopping has seen more than 11 million clothing items get donated which comes out at around 8 million GBP of charity in the form of recycled clothes. By engaging in sustainable practices, the company has improved energy efficiency in stores by 10% & reduced packaging by 15%. Another thing is that the distribution centre M&S has in Castle Donington, it’s been equipped with Europe’s largest solar-wall. The walls of the centre are equipped with solar panels which helps heat the building. The project is carbon neutral & half of the structure has been built from concrete that was from a former power station. Currently, M&S charges 5p per plastic bag that a consumer needs for carrying items. All profits generated from selling plastic bags are forwarded to Groundwork which invests in projects that improve parks, play areas & public gardens in and around UK. One time, when concerns were raised by customers about the production of Angora Wool, M&S took action and conducted additional visits to the farms. On 12th December 2013 it announced that it would stop selling products containing Angora Wool and that it has updated its animal welfare policy to remove all Angora from its supply chain. By engaging in sustainable practices, M&S has been able to cut down on carbon dioxide emissions by almost 40%. The company also has been accredited with efficient electricity usage, reduced gas leaks & better waste recycling levels. They also encourage their suppliers to practice eco-friendly techniques & helped them go green & achieve higher efficiency. Conclusion With the help of PESTLE analysis, we were able to gain insight into Marks & Spencer’s business environment. Although there are a lot of factors which affect every business, we think were able to highlight the important factors that affect M&S on a macro level. No doubt, M&S has been very successful & highly competitive in their drive to provide unparalleled high quality goods & services for decades. Economic slowdowns have compelled to compete against cheaper, younger & more fashion conscious clothing lines. The sustainable approach that M&S has adopted definitely deserves another mention. Firms like M&S actually make younger & smaller firms think about their practices & inspires them to undertake a similar approach to business. Agreed, there are some initial costs that have to be incurred while going green, but in the long run, there is a lot you get back, both from customers & Mother Nature. References 1. Marks & Spencer. 2014. Marks & Spencer. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.marksandspencer.com/. [Accessed 01 March 14]. 2. HubPages. 2014. Marks & Spencer’s PEST Analysis. [ONLINE] Available at: http://mr-gadget.hubpages.com/hub/Analyse-your-own-organisation-or-division-in-organisation. [Accessed 02 March 14]. 3. Tripod. 2002. A Marketing Analysis of Marks and Spencer. [ONLINE] Available at: http://betty-sung.tripod.com/marks_&_spencer.htm#_Toc23588767. [Accessed 02 March 14]. 4. issuu. 2010. A case study analysis report of Marks and Spencer Plc. [ONLINE] Available at:http://issuu.com/emmabunce/docs/m_s_case_study. [Accessed 01 March 14]. 5. The Telegraph. 2012. Marks & Spencer installs wi-fi in e-commerce push. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/9504384/Marks-and-Spencer-installs-wi-fi-in-e-commerce-push.html. [Accessed 02 March 14]. 6. Marks & Spencer. 2013. Marks & Spencer. [ONLINE] Available at:http://corporate.marksa ndspencer.com/investors/press_releases/mands-opens-new-distribution-centre-in-castle-donington. [Accessed 02 March 14].

Time Series

IntroductionA time series is a set of observations, xi each one being recorded at a specific time t. After being recorded, these data are rigorously studied to develop a model. This model will then be used to construct future values, in other words, to make a forecast. When looking at a time series, some questions must be asked:Does the time series have a trend or seasonality?Are their outliers? Is there constant variance over time?Essential of Good time seriesThe data must be long enough.There must be equal time gap.There must be a normal period.Example1The following plot is a time series plot of the annual number of earthquakes in the world with seismic magnitude over 7.0, for 99 consecutive years. By a time series plot, we simply mean that the variable is plotted against time.Some features of the plot:There is no trend.The mean of the series is 20.2.There is no seasonality as the data are annual data.There are no outliers.Example 2 This shows a time series of quarterly production of beer in Australia for 18 years.Some features are:There is an increasing trend. There is seasonality.There are no outliers.The Components of Time SeriesThe components of time series are factors that can bring changes to the time series:Trend component, TtWhen there is an increase or a decrease over a long period of time in the data, then we say that there is a trend. Sometimes, a trend is said to be changing direction when it goes from an increasing trend to a decreasing one. It is the result of events such as price inflation, population growth or economic changes. Seasonal component, StA seasonal pattern exists when the time series exhibits regular variations at specific time. It arises from influences such as natural conditions or social and cultural behaviors. For example, the sales of ice-cream are relatively high in summer. So, the salesman expects greater profit in summer than in winter. Cyclic component, CtIf the time series shows an up and down movement around a given period of time, it is said to have a cyclical pattern.Irregular component, ItIrregular components consist of changes that are unlikely to be repeated in a time series. Examples are floods, fires, earthquakes or cyclones.Combining the time series componentsTime series is a combination of the components which were discussed above. These components can be either combined additively or multiplicatively.Additive modelIt is linear, and the changes are made by the same amount over time.Yt = Tt + Ct + St + ItMultiplicative modelIt is non-linear such as quadratic or exponential, and the changes increase or decrease over time.Yt = Tt Ãâ€"Ct Ãâ€" St Ãâ€" ItUsesTime series can be useful in the following fields: StatisticsSignal processingEconometricsMathematical financeAstronomyEarthquake predictionsWeather forecastingImportance of Time series for businessesThere are many benefits of time series for business purposes:Helpful for study of past behaviorBusinessmen use time series to study the past behaviors and to see the trend of the sales or profit of their businesses. Helpful in forecastingTime series is a great tool for forecasting. Businesses can make a time series of the past strategies of their competitors and make an estimate of their future strategies. In this way, they make can built a better strategy and make more profits.Helpful in comparisonTime series can be used to calculate the trend of two or more branches of the same company and compare their performance. On their performances, rewards can be given. However, time series can have some limitations for a business. Sales forecasting relies on the past results to predict future expectations. But, if a company is new, there is a limited amount of data to make predictions. Even so, past results do not always indicate what the future sales will be.To fully understand this topic, we will work out this example. Example 2We will consider the actual arrival of passengers from an airport over the year 1949 to 1960. From these data, we will make a forecast.The first step is to plot the data and obtain descriptive measures such as trends or seasonal fluctuations.The second step is to check for the stationarity of the time series.StationarityA time series is said to be stationary if its mean and variance does not change over time. Obviously, not all the time series that we encounter are stationary. It is important because, most of the models we work on, assumes that the time series is stationary. If the time series has the same behavior over time, there will be a high probability that it will follow the same trend in the future.How to check for stationarity?For the graph that was plotted, we can see that it has an increasing trend with some seasonal pattern. But, it is not always evident to see whether a plot is increasing or has a seasonal trend. We can check for stationarity using the following:Plotting rolling statisticsWe plot the moving average or variance and see whether it changes with time. But, as it is a visual technique, we will take more consideration for the next test. Dickey-Fuller testIt is one of the statistical methods to check for stationarity. The null hypothesis is that the time series is non-stationary, and the alternative hypothesis is the converse.As shown below, the test consists of the test statistics and critical values at different significant levels. If the test statistics is less than the critical value, we reject the null hypothesis. Results of Dickey-Fuller Test: Test Statistic 0.815369p-value 0.991880#Lags Used 13.000000Number of Observations Used 130.000000Critical Value (1%) -3.481682Critical Value (5%) -2.884042Critical Value (10%) -2.578770According to the Dickey-Fuller test, the test statistics is less than the critical value. Therefore, the time series is not stationary. However, there are various methods to make a time series stationary.How to make a time series stationary?The assumption of stationarity is very important when modelling a time series, but most of the practical time series are not stationary. Eventually, we cannot make a time series one hundred percent stationary, most of the time, it will be with a confidence of 99%.Before going into detail, we will discuss on the reasons why the time series is not stationary. There are two major reasons to that, trend and seasonality.Having discuss the reasons, we will now talk about the techniques to make the time series stationary:TransformationLog transformation is probably the most commonly used form of transformation. DifferencingDifferencing is a widely used method to make the time series stationary. It is performed by subtracting the previous observation from the current one. When making the forecast, the process of differencing must be inverted to convert the data back to its original scale. This can be done by adding the difference value to the previous value. Using the Dickey-Fuller test we can see that the test statistic is -2.717131 and that the critical values at 1%, 5% and 10% are -3.482501, -2.884398 and -2.578960 respectivelyThe time series is stationary with 90% confidence. The second or third order differencing can be done to get better results.DecompositionIn decomposition, the time series is divided into several components mainly trend, cyclical, seasonal and irregular components. The time series can sometimes be broken down into an additive or multiplicative model.We will assume a multiplicative model for our example.Since the trend and seasonality were separated from the residuals, we can check the stationarity of the residuals.Results of Dickey-Fuller Test is test statistic is -6.332387e+00 and the critical values at 1%, 5% and 10% are -3.485122e+00, -2.885538e+00 and -2.579569e+00 respectively. We can conclude that the time series is stationary at 99% confidence.Now, we can go forward with the forecasting.Forecasting the time seriesWe will fit this time series using the ARIMA model, ARIMA is an acronym that stands for Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average. It is a linear equation similar to a linear regression. The first goal is to find the values of the predictors (p, d, q), but before finding these values, two situations in stationarity must be discussed.A strictly stationary series without any dependence among the values. In this case, we can model the residual as white noise.The second case is a series with significant dependency among the values. The predictors mainly depend on the parameters (p, d, q) of the ARIMA model:Number of AR(Auto-Regressive) terms (p)It is the number of lag observation that were included in the model. This term helps to incorporate the effect of the past values into the model.Number of MA (Moving Average) terms (q)It is the size of the moving average window, that is, this term sets the error of the model as a linear combination of the error values observed at previous time points in the past. Number of differences(d)The number of times that the raw observations are differenced.In order to obtain the values of p and q, we will use the following two plots:Autocorrelation Function, ACFThis function will measure the correlation of the time series with its lagged version. Partial Autocorrelation Function, PACFThis function measures the correlation between the time series with a lagged version of itself, controlling the values of the time series at all shorter lagsIn the ACF and PACF plots, the dotted lines are the confidence interval, these values are p and q. The value of p is obtained from the PACF plot and the value of q is obtained from the ACF plot. We can see that both p and q are 2. Now, that we have obtained p and q, we will make three different ARIMA model: AR, MA and the combined model. The RSS of each of the model will be given.AR modelMA modelCombined modelFrom the plots, it is clearly shown that the RSS of AR and MA are the same and that of the combined is much better. As the combined model give a better result, the following steps will take the values back to its original scale. The predicted results are stored.The differencing is converted the log scale. This can be done by adding the differences consecutively to the base numbers.The exponent is taken and is compared to the original scale.Therefore, we have the final result.ReferencesAarshay Jain(2016) A comprehensive beginner's guide to create a Time Series Forecast (with Codes in Python) [WWW] Available from https://www.analyticsvidhya.com/blog/2016/02/time-series-forecasting-codes-python/ [Accessed 14/04/18]Maxime Phillot (2017)How do I interpret the results in an augmented Dickey-Fuller test? [WWW] Available from https://www.quora.com/How-do-I-interpret-the-results-in-an-augmented-Dickey-Fuller-test [Accessed 23/04/18]Jason Brownlee (2016)What Is Time Series Forecasting? [WWW] Available from https://machinelearningmastery.com/time-series-forecasting/ [Accessed 23/04/18]Chris St.Jeor and Sean Ankenbruck (2018)Time Series for dummies- The 3 step process [WWW] Available from https://www.kdnuggets.com/2018/ 03/time-series-dummies-3-step-process.html [Accessed 22/04/18]Pennsylvania state university (n. d) Overview of Time Series Characteristics [WWW] Available from https://onlinecourses.science.psu.edu/stat510/node/47 [Accessed 22/04/18] Time Series A time series is a set of observations, xi each one being recorded at a specific time t. After being recorded, these data are rigorously studied to develop a model. This model will then be used to produce future values, in other words, to make a forecast.Important Characteristics to Consider FirstWhen first looking at a time series, some questions must be asked:Does the time series has a trend or seasonality over time?Are their outliers? With time series data, the outliers are far away from the other data.Is there a long-run cycle or period?Is there constant variance over time? Essential of Good time series Data must be for a sufficient period Equal time ga Constant or normal period. Example1The following plot is a time series plot of the annual number of earthquakes in the world with seismic magnitude over 7.0, for 99 consecutive years. By a time series plot, we simply mean that the variable is plotted against time.Some features of the plot:There is no trend.The mean of the series is 20.2There is no seasonality as the data are annual data.There are no outliers. Example 2 The plot at the top of the next page shows a time series of quarterly production of beer in Australia for 18 years.Some important features are:There is an increasing trend.There is seasonality.There are no obvious outliers.The Components of Time SeriesThe components of time series are factors that can bring changes to the time series:Trend component, TtWhen there is an increase or a decrease over a long period of time in the data, then we say that there is a trend. Sometimes, a trend is said to be changing direction when it goes from an increasing trend to a decreasing one. It is the result of events such as price inflation, population growth or economic changes.Seasonal component, StA seasonal pattern exists when the time series exhibits regular fluctuations at specific time. It arises from influences such as natural conditions or social and cultural behaviors. For example, the sales of ice-cream are relatively high in summer. So, the salesman expects greater profit in summer than in winter. Cyclic component, CtIf the time series shows an up and down movement around a given period of time, it is said to have a cyclical pattern.Irregular component, ItIrregular components consist of changes that are unlikely to be repeated in a time series. Examples are floods, fires, earthquakes or cyclones.Combining the time series componentsTime series is a combination of the components which were discussed above. These components can be either combined additively or multiplicatively.Additive modelIt is linear, and the changes are made by the same amount over time.Yt = Tt + Ct + St + ItMultiplicative modelIt is non-linear such as quadratic or exponential, and the changes increase or decrease over time. Yt = Tt Ãâ€"Ct Ãâ€" St Ãâ€" ItUsesTime series can be useful in the following fields:StatisticsSignal processingEconometricsMathematical financeAstronomyEarthquake predictionsWeather forecastingImportance of Time series for businessesThere are many benefits of time series for business purposes:Helpful for study of past behaviorBusinessmen use time series to study the past behaviors and to see the trend of the sales or profit of their businesses. Helpful in forecastingTime series is a great tool for forecasting. Businesses can make a time series of the past strategies of their competitors and make an estimate of their future strategies. In this way, they make can built a better strategy and make more profits.Helpful in comparisonTime series can be used to calculate the trend of two or more branches of the same company and compare their performance. On their performances, rewards can be given. However, time series can have some limitations for a business. Sales forecasting relies on the past results to predict future expectations. But, if a company is new, there is a limited amount of data to make predictions. Even so, past results do not always indicate what the future sales will be.To fully understand this topic, we will work out this example.Example 2We will consider the actual arrival of passengers from an airport over the year 1949 to 1960. From these data, we will make a forecast. The first step is to plot the data and obtain descriptive measures such as trends or seasonal fluctuations.The second step is to check for the stationarity of the time series.StationarityA time series is said to be stationary if its mean and variance does not change over time. Obviously, not all the time series that we encounter are stationary. It is important because, most of the models we work on, assumes that the time series is stationary. If the time series has the same behavior over time, there will be a high probability that it will follow the same trend in the future.How to check for stationarity?For the graph that was plotted, we can see that it has an increasing trend with some seasonal pattern. But, it is not always evident to see whether a plot is increasing or has a seasonal trend. We can check for stationarity using the following:Plotting rolling statisticsWe plot the moving average or variance and see whether it changes with time. But, as it is a visual technique, we will take more consideration for the next test.Dickey-Fuller testIt is one of the statistical methods to check for stationarity. The null hypothesis is that the time series is non-stationary, and the alternative hypothesis is the converse.As shown below, the test consists of the test statistics and critical values at different significant levels. If the test statistics is less than the critical value, we reject the null hypothesis. Results of Dickey-Fuller Test: Test Statistic 0.815369p-value 0.991880#Lags Used 13.000000Number of Observations Used 130.000000Critical Value (1%) -3.481682Critical Value (5%) -2.884042Critical Value (10%) -2.578770According to the Dickey-Fuller test, the test statistics is less than the critical value. Therefore, the time series is not stationary. However, there are various methods to make a time series stationary.How to make a time series stationary?The assumption of stationarity is very important when modelling a time series, but most of the practical time series are not stationary. Eventually, we cannot make a time series one hundred percent stationary, most of the time, it will be with a confidence of 99%.Before going into detail, we will discuss on the reasons why the time series is not stationary. There are two major reasons to that, trend and seasonality.Having discuss the reasons, we will now talk about the techniques to make the time series stationary:TransformationLog transformation is probably the most commonly used form of transformation.DifferencingDifferencing is a widely used method to make the time series stationary. It is performed by subtracting the previous observation from the current one. When making the forecast, the process of differencing must be inverted to convert the data back to its original scale. This can be done by adding the difference value to the previous value.Using the Dickey-Fuller test we can see that the test statistic is -2.717131 and that the critical values at 1%, 5% and 10% are -3.482501, -2.884398 and -2.578960 respectivelyThe time series is stationary with 90% confidence. The second or third order differencing can be done to get better results.DecompositionIn decomposition, the time series is divided into several components mainly trend, cyclical, seasonal and irregular components.The time series can sometimes be broken down into an additive or multiplicative model.We will assume a multiplicative model for our example.Since the trend and seasonality were separated from the residuals, we can check the stationarity of the residuals.Results of Dickey-Fuller Test is test statistic is -6.332387e+00 and the critical values at 1%, 5% and 10% are -3.48 5122e+00, -2.885538e+00 and -2.579569e+00 respectively. We can conclude that the time series is stationary at 99% confidence.Now, we can go forward with the forecasting.Forecasting the time seriesWe will fit this time series using the ARIMA model, ARIMA is an acronym that stands for Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average. It is a linear equation similar to a linear regression. The first goal is to find the values of the predictors (p, d, q), but before finding these values, two situations in stationarity must be discussed. A strictly stationary series without any dependence among the values. In this case, we can model the residual as white noise.The second case is a series with significant dependency among the values.The predictors mainly depend on the parameters (p, d, q) of the ARIMA model:Number of AR(Auto-Regressive) terms (p)It is the number of lag observation that were included in the model. This term helps to incorporate the effect of the past values into the model. Number of MA (Moving Average) terms (q)It is the size of the moving average window, that is, this term sets the error of the model as a linear combination of the error values observed at previous time points in the past.Number of differences(d)The number of times that the raw observations are differenced.In order to obtain the values of p and q, we will use the following two plots:Autocorrelation Function, ACFThis function will measure the correlation of the time series with its lagged version. Partial Autocorrelation Function, PACFThis function measures the correlation between the time series with a lagged version of itself, controlling the values of the time series at all shorter lagsIn the ACF and PACF plots, the dotted lines are the confidence interval, these values are p and q. The value of p is obtained from the PACF plot and the value of q is obtained from the ACF plot. We can see that both p and q are 2.Now, that we have obtained p and q, we will make three different ARIMA model: AR, MA and the combined model. The RSS of each of the model will be given.AR modelMA modelCombined modelFrom the plots, it is clearly shown that the RSS of AR and MA are the same and that of the combined is much better. As the combined model give a better result, the following steps will take the values back to its original scale.The predicted results are stored.The differencing is converted the log scale. This can be done by adding the differences consecutively to the base numbers.The exponent is taken and is compared to the original scale.Therefore, we have the final result.ReferencesAarshay Jain(2016) A comprehensive beginner's guide to create a Time Series Forecast (with Codes in Python) [WWW] Available from https://www.analyticsvidhya.com/blog/2016/02/time-series-forecasting-codes-python/ [Accessed 14/04/18]Maxime Phillot (2017) How do I interpret the results in an augmented Dickey-Fuller test? [WWW] Available from https://www.quora.com/How-do-I-interpret-the-results-in-an-augmented-Dickey-Fuller-test [Access ed 23/04/18]Jason Brownlee (2016) What Is Time Series Forecasting? [WWW] Available from https://machinelearningmastery.com/time-series-forecasting/ [Accessed 23/04/18]Chris St.Jeor and Sean Ankenbruck (2018) Time Series for dummies- The 3 step process [WWW] Available from https://www.kdnuggets.com/2018/03/time-series-dummies-3-step-process.html [Accessed 22/04/18]Pennsylvania state university (n. d) Overview of Time Series Characteristics [WWW] Available from https://onlinecourses.science.psu.edu/stat510/node/47 [Accessed 22/04/18]