NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF HURRICANE KATRINA ON THE GULF REGION Essay

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF HURRICANE KATRINA ON THE GULF REGION - Essay Example Moreover, while giving examples about the hurricanes that hit before the hurricane Katrina, it presents a comparative analysis of how the hurricane Katrina was different from those that happened earlier and why was it a major setback for the Homeland Security Departments of America. Furthermore, the book also describes the major factors and problems of the hurricane and why is it marked as an important event in the history of America. Also, this book gives details about how the government tried to help people recover all that they lost in this catastrophe, and what kind of role did the government play in helping them economically and psychologically (Hoffman, 2007, pp 25-89). Palser, B. (2007). Hurricane Katrina: Aftermath of Disaster. Compass Point Books. This is a comprehensive book, with easy to understand vocabulary and language. The book provides with the details of the hurricane Katrina that hit the Florida, rapidly moving towards the Gulf of Mexico, causing hundreds of deaths and heaving thousands homeless. Also, it states how the government failed to provide enough backup fur the people of America, as it was one of the most accurately predicted hurricanes in the history of America. ... Brinkley, D. (2007). The Great Deluge: Hurricane, New Orleans, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. HarperCollins. This book written by the bestseller author, Douglas Brinkley (2007) epically describes the events that caused major devastation in the United States of America; the hurricane Katrina. The hurricane Katrina that demolished ‘Gulf Coast cities of America’ (Brinkley, 2007) and took away hundreds of lives within just five hours was one of the five most catastrophic hurricanes in the history of United States. This book highlights all the events preceding the hurricane Katrina, including the mismanagement of the government officials and the lack of preplanning in spite of the early prediction. Moreover, this book also records the stories of actual survivors who witnessed and experienced the hurricane, it narrates all the troubles that they went through and how the hurricane affected their lives. It states the emotional, physical and economic losses of the survivors and describes how they are coping up with their lives in the current time; years after the disaster took place. Moreover, it also identifies the role played the government to help the survivors. Plus it also plays a tribute to the unsung heroes of the hurricane Katrina, who sacrificed their own lives to save others (Brinkley, 2007). Brown, D. (2005). Hurricane Katrina: The first seven days of America’s worst natural disasters. Lulu.com Press. This book was written with the intentions of donating funds for charity purposes. The book narrates the whole event of hurricane Katrina that destroyed lives in America within just hours. It states how dramatically the lives of the victims changed

Larry page Essay Example for Free

Larry page Essay How was the leader ‘vision’ implemented? Google founded in 1998 with Sergey Brin. Google soon found itself at the top of search engines and from a small, garage- based company had transformed into a global giant. Google now is a synonym of worlds no1 ideal (New York Post, 2011) and employs 53546 people owns numerous offices worldwide. Some vision points for Google and future technologies that Larry pages laying out from Google’s developer conference in San Francisco 2011. â€Å"Technology should do the hard work so people can do the things that make them the happiest in life. † â€Å"We’re really only at 1% of what’s possible, and maybe even less than that†¦we’re still moving slow.† â€Å"We should be building great things that don’t exist.† â€Å"Being negative is not how we make progress.† â€Å"I’m sure people in the future will think were just as crazy as we think people in the past were.† â€Å"I think today we’re still just scratching the surface of what’s possible. That’s why I’m so excited Google is working on the platforms supporting all your innovations.† Source: http://www.businessinsider.com.au/larry-page-lays-out-his-vision-for-the-future-of-google-and-technology-2013-5 Analyse Leader style. (Explain/ justify your answer) Larry Page has 5 leader style strategies 1. Follow the crazy ideas Google search engine of creativity stems from one of his dream: He was trying to download the entire Internet to your computer, but also to maintain the entire link. When someone did crazy to this extent, you will face smaller competitions. He said. 2. Create the team work, Avoid bureaucratic Larry is doing the reorganization without a whisper and streamlining of middle managers in order to eliminate bureaucracy. 3. Respond quickly and concisely  Page hopes to develop a more responsive and more flexible approach to management in Google, which would easy to make a judgment when making a decision. 4. Understand the importance of â€Å"little tricks† Google always improving their products such as Gmail, search engines and android products to take their customers have good image to Google. 5. Unremitting.  Larry pages thinks unremitting is a successful method to achieve the goals. If people not keep faith the thing they want to do, they may not achieve their objective. Source: http://tech.sina.com.cn/i/2011-04-19/11585423562.shtml Purpose of program. Google Larry and Sergey reason why the search engine named Google is actually taken from the mathematical term googol, meaning one followed by 100 zeros. In 1998, Sun Microsystems (Sun) co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim wrote a check for $ 100,000 U.S. dollars, the company does not yet exist to open Google Inc., Google Inc. Was born Summary and timeline of program implementation 1996 Larry and Sergey this time is a computer graduate student at Stanford University, they began to build a cooperative called BackRub search engine. 1997  Larry and Sergey decided to change to a new name Backrub search engine. After some brainstorming, the final decision is named Google 1998. Sun Microsystems (Sun) co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim wrote a check for $ 100,000 U.S. dollars to open a company does not yet exist: Google Inc. 8 1999 ~ recent  Eric Schmidt was appointed as chairman of the board First published 10 kinds of language version of Google.com , available in French, German, Italian, Swedish, Finnish, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Norwegian and Danish Start for searching for Chinese, Japanese and Korean language support to a total of 15 species. Google Toolbar launched . This is a browser plug-in can be carried out without entering the Google home search. Released the first mobile device with an open platform Android, August 19 in the United States Wall Street initial public offering of Class A common stock Google Maps official on-line Officially acquired AdMob, which is a mobile service multimedia advertising company. Announced the co-founder Larry Page in April 2011 will be the companys chief executive , Eric Schmidt will serve as executive chairman. (Source: http://www.google.com.au/about/company/history/#top)

The Effect Of Temperature On Permeable Membranes Biology Essay

The Effect Of Temperature On Permeable Membranes Biology Essay The aim of this experiment was to determine what effect an increase in the surrounding temperature has on the selectively permeable membranes of plant cells, e.g., red cabbage (Lane, 2010a). The cell membrane is the fluid-mosaic model. The proteins are embedded in the cell membrane. The lipid exists as a phospholipid bilayer form. The hydrophobic which mean water hating portions of the lipid molecule face the inside while the hydrophilic which mean water loving parts face either the cytoplasm or extracellular aqueous environment. The protein molecules are of two types in the membrane. Internal proteins are embedded in the phospholipid bilayer which enhance the membranes shape, providing passageways for the movement of substances through the membrane while the peripheral proteins are attach to the surface of membrane and are easier to extract (Losos, Manson and Singer, 2008) The purpose of a cell membrane is to controls what enters and exits the cell. It acts as a selective barrier between the internal and external fluid that means the cell membrane to be selectively permeable. This process supplies the cell with useful material and removes waste products. Normally, this is done by active or passive transportation. The passive transportation allows substances to move from high concentration to low concentration without energy required. The active transportation carries substances such as ions and glucose from low concentration to the high concentration, requiring energy and a carrier to support (Losos, Manson and Singer, 2008). Figure 2 (Adapted from Garland, 2004) shows the process of transportation through the cell membrane Figure 2: Transportation through the Membrane (Adapted from Garland, 2004) Certain conditions can damage the cell membrane. For instance, high temperature leads to violent collisions that can destroy a membrane. There is a hypothesis that an increase in temperature denatures the membrane and causes the substances within the membrane to leak out (Answers, 2010). The high temperature can make the cell membrane more permeable and allow it to be more prone to leakage. Red cabbages are used as a model to investigate how the temperature affects the selectively permeable membranes. Red cabbages contain a large mount of a water-soluble red pigment called anthocyanin, which is located in the vacuole and unable to pass through the tonoplast membrane. If these cells are affected by changes in temperature, the integrity of the cell membrane becomes damaged. As a result, anthocyanin which as antioxiants and protects cell from oxidative damage can leak out of the cells and into the surrounding water. The extent of damage to the cell membrane is directly associated to the intensity of red color and it would appear in the water surrounding the red cabbage (Manhattan, 2009). Method Apparatus 7 test tubes Test tube rack Cork borer Scalpel Tile Small beaker Mounted needle Large beaker Thermometer Burner (Lane, 2010b) Firstly, a leaf of red cabbage tissues was cut into 42 discs of the same size (approximately 1mm wide) by a cork borer. 42 red cabbage discs were placed in a small beaker and were washed. 7 test tubes were labelled 30à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, 40à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, 50à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, 60à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, 70à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, 80à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ and 100à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™. The first two test tubes which labelled 30à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, 40à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ and approximately 6 cm3 cold water was added using a measuring cylinder. The remaining test tubes had 6 cm3 cold water added to each. Meanwhile, a water bath was prepared using a large beaker, tripod and gauze. The 7 test tubes with 6 cm3 water were heated in the water bath. A thermometer was placed into each test tube to measure the temperature. 6 red cabbage discs were impaled on a mounted needle with space between each disc. When the water inside the test tube labelled 30à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ reached 30à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ temperature, the burner was removed a nd 6 discs on the needle was placed in the test tube for exactly 1 min then the test tube was removed from the water bath. The disks were left in this tube. When the water inside the test tube labelled 40à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ reached 40à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ temperature, the above procedure was repeated. The test tube labelled 50à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ reached the temperature. All the procedures were restarted according to the guide. To all the test tubes were added 6 cm3 cold water and a water bath was prepared using a large beaker, tripod. When the water was heated gently to 30à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, the burner was removed and the 6 red cabbage discs on an impaled needle were placed in the water bath for exactly 1 minute. The discs was pushed off and dropped into the test tube labelled 30à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™. The procedure was repeated for the other tubes. From 40 °to 90 °C, all the procedures in own water bath. For 100à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ the discs, needle were placed in others water bath with the temperature at 100à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ for 1 minute, then the discs were pushed off and dropped into the test tube labelled 100à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™. The discs in the test tube s were left for 20 minutes and then the tubes were shaken and compared. Result Temperature /à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ Observation 30 The 6 red cabbage discs were still purple and unchanged the water was still colourless. 40 The colours of the 6 red cabbage discs were remained and unchanged purple and the water was still clear. 50 The colours of 6 red cabbage discs were a little faded and the water became a little purple. 60 The colours of 6 red cabbage discs were faded lighter purple more than 50à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ and the colour of water changed from colourless into light purple. 70 The colours of 6 red cabbage discs were faded more than 60à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ and the colour of water changed from transparent into a light blue. 80 The colours of 6 red cabbage discs were very faded than 70à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ and the colour of water changed from transparent into a light green. 100 The colours of 6 red cabbage discs changed from purple into white and the colour of water was strongly changed from transparent into green. Table 1: Heating the Red Cabbage Discs Discussion Table 1 shows clearly that an increase temperature on the red cabbage fades the purple of these discs and they become more and more faded while the colour of the surrounding water inside the test tube becomes darker and darker. This phenomenon purple-blue-green result from that the red cabbage dices have permeable membranes losing the permeability of their cell membranes. If the temperature goes against what the membranes can withstand, the permeability of membranes increases as the protein becomes denatured, the lipid parts of membranes liquefies and the proteins create holes in the fabric, and the membranes fall apart. The high temperature produces an increase in kinetic energy that makes atoms in the protein to vibrate and move more breaking hydrogen and ionic bonds in protein molecules and changing the 3D shape of the system. These proteins are unable to translate substances in and out of the membrane. All the factors lead to the anthocyanin leaking out of the membranes producing a colour in the water surrounding the red cabbage cells (Erik, 2002). The results of investigating the effect of temperature on permeable membranes are largely as predicted. There were several variables that controlled this experiment to make sure the results were comparable. The first major key variable was the size of red cabbage discs. The red cabbage tissue was cut into discs which were used to ensure accuracy by increasing precision in the volume of water. The cylinders should be same for all experiments because the volume of water affected the concentration of the pigment. The second variable was allowing enough time (20 minutes) for colour to be seen. All the test tubes should be left the same and enough time for observations after putting the red cabbage discs into the test tubes. Time altered the effect of the experiment; some tubes had a longer effect than others, more of the pigments in the red cabbage cells will leak out and the pigments in the surrounding water. All the material should be washed very thoroughly after cutting. This process made the experiment more highly accurate, because using water to wash the material meant that impurities were minimised. Possible errors may have arisen during this experiment. Firstly, the procedure at the beginning of the experiment was not correctly followed according to the instructions (Lane, 2010c). For instance, 6 cm3 cold water was measured not accurate, the red cabbage leaf did not wash under running water and using another water bath which resulted from the instruction had not been read carefully and seriously. Secondly, the phenomenons purple-blue-green in this test was a little different from the theory that as the temperature increases, the colour of the surrounding water will become darker (Lane, 2010d). This may stem from much of the red pigment escaping from the discs while heating the red cabbage in the beaker. The result of the higher temperature may have affected this more as a lot of the pigment has already leaked out into the beaker. Another reason may be the concentration of pigment leading to change the stability of the pigment molecule. Thirdly, the time was not sufficient for r epeating the experiment, which made the results less accurate. A future experiment should be improved in follow ways. The instruction should be read carefully and thoroughly, so the experiment can go on logical. Secondly, the temperature should be checked at the start of when the red cabbage was put in the water and at the end of the last minute using a thermometer to maintain the temperature of the heated water. Thirdly, a colorimeter should be provided to measure the amount of light absorbed by solution of each reaction temperature. The higher concentration of anthocyanin means a higher reading on the colorimeter. Fourthly, the experiment should be repeated more times to make sure the results were not obtained by chance or by external factors. In addition, the effect of cooler temperature even under 0à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ could be tested to observe if the membrane is broken down in a similar way. Conclusion It can be concluded that as the temperature was increased, more of the red pigment leaked out of the permeable membrane. The permeability of the membrane in red cabbages can be damaged by high temperature.

Condoms, STDs, & Pregnancy :: essays research papers

During the 1980s, efforts increased to alert the public to the dangers of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and unintended pregnancy, yet these problems have increased. Adolescents and young adults have been especially hard hit. Pregnancy and birth rates among teenagers are at their highest levels in two decades. Research has demonstrated that consistent condom use is an effective way to prevent the transmission of HIV and other STDs and in the prevention of pregnancy. Analyses of the Urban Institute’s National Survey of Adolescent Males (NSAM) show that although most sexually experienced teenage males have used condoms at least once, many do not use them consistently. Only 35 percent reported using a condom every time they had sex in the past year. But teenage males use condoms more than older men, and between 1979 and 1988 reported condom use among male teenagers doubled. These patterns indicate that teenagers are a promising target population for condom promotion efforts since they appear more ready than older men to change their behaviors. Unfortunately, condom use among young men appears to have plateaued since 1988. Comparisons of 1988 and 1991 NSAM data show no change in rates of use. Attitudes Related to Use Condom use is higher among young men who worry more frequently about AIDS when the effects of other factors are held constant. Between 1988 and 1991, however, sexually experienced teenagers showed declines in the frequency with which they worried about AIDS, how serious they thought AIDS was, and the likelihood they would get AIDS. These reductions were associated with lower levels of condom use. Male teenagers who think they will be embarrassed buying or using condoms, use them less consistently than those with higher embarrassment thresholds. If they think that the use of a condom will reduce the physical pleasure associated with intercourse, they are even less likely to use condoms. Anticipated loss of pleasure is one of the strongest correlates of reduced condom use. Beliefs about male responsibility for contraception are also associated with condom use. Teenage males use condoms more often when they believe that men bear responsibility for initiating discussion of contraception with their female partners, refusing sexual intercourse if contraception is not used, helping to pay for the contraceptive pill, and assuming financial responsibility for any resulting children. Further work has shown that young men’s views of their contraceptive responsibility are very much related to their beliefs about masculinity.

Embarking Patriotic Immortality: Rhetorical Analysis

Daniel Aubertine Dr. Viera 10/11/2011 Final Draft Embarking Patriotic Immortality: Rhetorical Analysis of the Gettysburg Address The Gettysburg address was given on the grounds of a historical battlefield in Gettysburg Pennsylvania during the American Civil War on November 19th, 1863 by the late President Abraham Lincoln. The brief, powerful speech that he delivered to fifteen to twenty thousand people is regarded as one of the greatest in American history. It is considered the turning point of the Civil War, helping preserve the union and keep America together.Lincoln’s famous war-time speech, given on the graves of fallen soldiers, uses remarkable pathos along with an astonishing endowment to the history of American speeches through diction and patriotic passion. Following the three-day bloodbath that occurred in the fields of Gettysburg Pennsylvania in early July, thousands of bloody corpses rotted in the summer’s scorching heat. Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin a ppointed David Willis, a prominent Gettysburg lawyer, to oversee the project. An interstate commission was formed, money was raised, and seventeen acres of land at the battle site was purchased.The federal government provided the coffins. By November the cemetery was ready for dedication (Hay). The event was set-up so that orator Edward Everett would be the main speaker of the day. Lincoln sought to speak at this event because it would be a prime opportunity to boost the Union’s war efforts. Crowds of fifteen to twenty thousand citizens and soldiers gathered around the stage and listened to Everett speak for nearly two hours (Borade). Lincoln then rose and spoke for just under two minutes, and the crowd was speechless (Hay).Throughout the speech Lincoln uses the pathos to make the audience feel emotionally invested in the speech through guilt and courage. The audience is standing six feet above their fellow citizens who died in battle on their behalf, and to preserve the Amer ican way of life. Lincoln uses the location of the speech as emotional leverage on the crowd. Many of the members in the audience were either soldiers or citizens who lost loved ones in the battle of Gettysburg. Lincoln uses the guilty conscience of the audience members as persuasion into his main idea that the union cannot give up the fight.Lincoln states in his address, â€Å"We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who have gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. † He effectively uses pathos as a transition into a strong initiative that America should fight for the soldiers who lost their lives. The feeling of guilt is also intertwined and overcome by a feeling of courage in Lincoln’s speech. He makes the citizens who are opposed to the war feel guilty, and the citizens who are for the war, and the soldiers who are fighting, feel courage.The courageous compo nent of the speech that is felt by the audience is inspired by reminding them how heroic the soldiers who died on this field were. An example of this is when Lincoln states,†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion†¦Ã¢â‚¬  They faced terrifying situations with courage and, in the end, gave their lives for what they believed in. The soldiers’ courage is the source of the courage for the audience. The inspiration though emotion that Lincoln delivered was the driving force of this inspirational speech.The incredible diction used by the president is the factor that set this historical speech apart from all the rest. Not once in his 272 word speech did the president use the word â€Å"I† or â€Å"me†. Lincoln was not that kind of man; he was unselfish and never distinguished himself from the audience. Another key aspect of Lincoln’s speech that is used very o ften in all types of writing is the use of repetition. He doesn’t repeat large memorable phrases; he repeats small words that seem to have great power. Throughout the speech he uses the words â€Å"we† and â€Å"us† a total of twelve times, referring to himself and the audience.Also, he often says the word â€Å"here† referring to the hallowed ground of Gettysburg to further associate himself with his audience (Zimmer, 4). This heavy use of plural first person tense creates a strong sense of unity with the audience and himself. Additionally he utilizes a strong vocabulary throughout the speech. He employed many complex sentences for an overall intelligent-sounding speech. For example, â€Å"Four score and seven years ago†¦ † is very poetic and elegant, much more dignified than simply saying â€Å"Eighty- seven†. Lincoln uses his words to dig deep into the udiences hearts and pull out every sense of patriotism that he can get. Each one o f the 272 words that he spoke that day was to bring out the American passion that is needed for victory in the Civil war. He begins by mentioning our forefathers and how they created this nation built on equality and liberty. Then he proceeds to tell that the principles on which the nation was founded are under attack. This immediately gets the audience in the mood for being inspired to act, because soon after this he hits them with pathos, the emotions of guilt and courage.But he ends the short speech with a powerful conclusion, â€Å"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion— that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain— that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that the government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not pe rish from the earth. † Lincoln’s powerful closing words left the audience in muted shock.The short powerful speech is one of the most patriotic in American history. Lincoln’s famous war-time speech given on the graves of fallen soldiers uses remarkable pathos along with an astonishing endowment to the history of American speeches through diction, and patriotic passion. The brief, powerful speech that he delivered to fifteen to twenty thousand people is regarded as one of the greatest in American history. It is considered the turning point of the Civil War, helping preserve the union and keep America together.The inspirational, patriotic, persuasive speech given by Lincoln shows just how good a speech can be from effective use of pathos, diction and patriotism. Works Cited Borade, Gaynor. â€Å"Summary and Significance of the Gettysburg Address. † Buzzle Web Portal: Intelligent Life on the Web. N. p. , n. d. Web. 17 Oct. 2011. . Hay, John . â€Å"Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, 1863. † EyeWitness to History – history through the eyes of those who lived it. N. p. , n. d. Web. 17 Oct. 2011. .

Enterprise Architecture and Its Implementation in Federal Domain

Enterprise Architecture and Its Implementation in Federal Domain Definition of Enterprise Architecture (EA) and Federal Enterprise Architecture According Michael Platt, â€Å"enterprise architecture (EA) is a conceptual blueprint that defines the structure and operation of an organization† (Platt 5). This definition takes into account how â€Å"an organization can effectively use EA to achieve both its current and future aims† (Platt 5).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Enterprise Architecture and Its Implementation in Federal Domain specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This means that an organization must define its business vision and strategies in terms of enterprise aspiration by determining, improving, and communicating main needs, rules and models which demonstrate the organizational future aspiration and create chances for its development. The EA scope must include people, information and technology, stages, existing relationships, and contacts with the external fa ctors. EA provides whole-system solutions that cater for business opportunities and challenges of the organization and offer solutions needed for the implementation of the EA system. EA offers advantages in terms of enhancing decision-making, adjusting according to the needs of the market, avoidance of redundancy and inefficiency, making maximum use of organizational resources, and reduce staff turnover. The Federal Enterprise Architecture (FEA) is an initiative by the Federal government to combine its agencies and their related functions under one and available-everywhere enterprise architecture. FEA initiative is still under development, and its main applications are not yet available. However, the program started long ago, and there has been failures, and improvement in its development. Studies view FEA has a system with only five performance models. These include service, data, business, technical and data models. However, under these models, FEA offers much more than what we ca n see. The five models entail ideas on how we should view EA under the segment models. There are also collections of reference models to demonstrate various aspects of the EA under the five models, and also stages of developing an EA platform. This model provides opportunities for movement from a pre-EA to post-EA model. EA also has a cataloging taxonomy for resources that are within its scope. In addition, it also has a measuring system that determines its success in enhancing business values. This analysis shows that EA has many components that the models highlight. It offers the necessary materials needed to create an EA for the most complex and elaborate organizations like the US government.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The FEA-Program Management Office (FEAPMO) puts it in totality that FEA offers a common language and framework to describe and analyze IT in vestments, enhance collaboration and ultimately transform the Federal government into a citizen-centered, results-oriented, and market-based organization as set forth in the Presidents Management Agenda (The Chief Information Officers Council 25). Fig 1: Segment map of the federal government Enterprise Architecture Framework and Federal Agencies and their mission alignment The FEA offers a general approach for acquiring information technology (IT), using and discarding within the Federal government domain. In this respect, EA helps the Federal government aligns its resources so as to enhance business values and assist government agencies to perform their main missions. In addition, it offers a plan for transformation from the existing state to the preferred future state. Thus, FEA is an EA that will help the Federal government achieve its desired objectives. The US government based this platform on Clinger-Cohen Act and attempts to align it with the budget. The main aim of the FEA is to facilitate â€Å"sharing of information, enhance service provision for citizens, and reduce costs† (CIO Council 24). The FEA works on a common platform that allows for IT acquisition within the Federal government (CIO Council 24). FEA has offered E-governance, change management, program management and deployment system in the Federal government missions. It is the responsibility of the agency to control and manage the processes and applications of the EA in service provisions and policies implementation. Every agency is also responsible for sponsoring their EA at the executive level, allocation of resources, and appointing its Chief Architect. The agencys office carries out the maintenance, development and implementation of the EA. This implies that all agencies must have the capacity to manage any change in the system, artifacts, and EA documents. At the same time, every agency must be in a position of facilitating the deployment and accessibility of EA content to the ir intended recipients and user community.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Enterprise Architecture and Its Implementation in Federal Domain specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This should also include training, communication and repository deployment. Further, for accountability, every agency must be able to avail the artifact in every level of EA and offer justification in case of failure to provide artifacts. The rationale for using this approach is to ensure effective governance and management of policies according to the compliance and alignment with the EA procedures, and stages in order to offer the executive the needed support. Change and system setups are essential parts of managing the EA system. This is necessary so as to keep EA processes and outcomes current for factual information due to its role in IT investing and agencies strategic planning. All the stakeholders of the EA must be able to understand its processes and outcomes. Overview of the Federal Enterprise Architecture The FEA functions as a business-based framework for the Federal government and its agencies. It helps in developing IT investment portfolios according to different Federal agencies processes and functions, in addition to providing cross-agency requirements. The FEA has many artifacts under its various models to support the agencies functions and processes. The FEA framework works under five models in order to provide benchmark terms and scopes of EA; thus, it facilitates â€Å"collaboration and sharing of information among the federal government agencies† (Bernus and Nemes 179). Business Reference Model The Business Reference Model (BRM) provides the business side of the different roles of the Federal government. For instance, under natural resources, BRM may provide a benchmark business function as water resource management. We may take this as a line of business function for citizens’ business ar ea. The BRM is mainly framework that relies on function capabilities so as to describe functions of the business Federal government, irrespective of the Federal agencies that carry out such duties. The BRM gives step-by-step and organized patterns for describing the daily business activities of the Federal government through a performance-based approach. The BRM is the top layer of FEA, and it serves the main purpose in â€Å"data analysis, technology, and service components viewpoint† (CIO Council 24). It has four domains. Services For Citizens Mode of Delivery Support Delivery of Services Management of Government Resources The BRM framework is rather functional than organizational in relations to the Federal government. The BRM overrides the functions of agencies in describing duties such as internal operations and services accorded to the citizens independent of the performing office, bureaus, or agency.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More It describes the Federal government based on general business areas instead of each agency. This approach enhances collaboration among various agencies and makes the BRM serves the main purpose of the E-government strategy and the foundation of FEA. The BRM offers an improved approach to the Federal government operations. However, we must note that it is only a model which we can only realize its effectiveness when used well. It core approach can facilitate low collaboration and description in Federal government. In addition, it can achieve little in accomplishing the aim of â€Å"the E-government if policymakers do not incorporate it into EA and as part of management platform of all Federal branches† (CIO Council 24). Components Reference Model (CRM) The Component Reference Model provides a performance-driven and business view of the platforms, which can offer support to the business functions of the agencies. It may also classify service components along the line of the sup port they provide or performance objective they fulfill. The main purpose of the CRM is to support the discovery of the Federal government business and use of service components in the investments of IT and resources. The CRM relies on both vertical and horizontal scopes, which are independent of the function of the business. It can offer a leverage foundation that can â€Å"support parts, business services, application functionalities, and the reuse applications† (CIO Council 24). The CRM domain consists of the following components â€Å"Customer Services, Process Automation Services, Business Management Services, Digital Asset Services, Business Analytical Services, Back Office Services, and Support Services† (CIO Council 24). These domains have their Service Types. For instance, under Customer Service Domain, we may find â€Å"other three sub-domains, namely, Customer Relationship Management, Customer Initiated Assistance, and Customer Preferences† (CIO Counc il 24). Technical Reference Model (TRM) The TRM provides definitions of â€Å"benchmarks and different technologies that architects can use in creating IT platforms† (USA Government 1). For instance, TRM may create a â€Å"definition of HTTP under a subset of the transport system† (Bernus and Nemes 179). TRM has parts and technical framework that differentiate information technologies and service standards so as to allow delivery and access of Service Components and functionalities. TRM also functions as a unifying platform of E-government and existing agencies by offering a basis that enhances the reuse and adaptability of Service Components, and IT from a wide view of Federal government. The basic parts of TRM are mainly the following. TRM has Service Areas. These mainly represent complex layers that support a secure creation, swap, access and delivery of Service Components. Every Service Area sums up technologies and standard into functional areas of low-level tiers . This place also has several categories and standards of Service Components. This step-by-step arrangement of layers offers the framework to technologies that ultimately provide support for the Service Areas. TRM also has Service Categories. These sections group the low-level technologies according to their functions and business utilities they fulfill. As a result, a Service Category will also contain its components of Service Standards. There are also Service Standards in TRM. Service Standards mainly depict the technologies and standards that provide support for a Service Category. Most Service Standards use â€Å"illustrations and specifications of plain text as indicators so as to support mapping of the agency into TRM† (Bernus and Nemes 179). TRM uses a general, â€Å"collaboration, standard vocabulary, interagency discovery, and interoperability to align Federal capital investments† (Bernus and Nemes 179). This approach offers the Federal government and its age ncies opportunities for taking advantage of economies of scale through â€Å"identifying and reusing the best technological solutions for enhancing missions, and business applications in the model architecture† (Bernus and Nemes 179). The hierarchy of TRM defines the technologies and standards that function in support of the FEA and create secure channels of delivery, swap, and building of business and functional Service Components. These applications work in a service-oriented or component-based architecture. Data Reference Model (DRM) The DRM defines the â€Å"total level, information, and data that offer solutions to government program and operations lines of business† (Bernus and Nemes 179). DRM provides opportunities for different agencies to define the â€Å"types of involvements and interactions that happen between the citizens and Federal government† (Bernus and Nemes 179). DRM offers a thorough creation of the government information into a high degree o f details. DRM also provides a chance for grouping Federal data and notice any duplicates regarding data constructs. Performance Reference Model (PRM) The PRM focuses on providing standard methods of stating the value that the EA delivers. According to PRM, quality may be a technological gauge area that defines how technology can fulfill functionality and requirements in its role. Thus, PRM assists in generating improved information content for enhancing day-to-day decision-making and strategic options. PRM also enhances alignment of inputs and outputs in order to distinguish the outcomes of the desired results. In addition, it also enables policymakers identify areas of improvement across the organization. The PRM relies on many ways of carrying out functional measurement. These methods include the Balance Scorecard, the Theory of Constraints, Methodology for value measuring, Baldrige Criteria, Value chain, and Program logic. Further, the PRM uses methods within the agencies for me asuring, such as â€Å"GPRA, EA, PART assessments, Investment Control and Capital planning† (CIO Council 24). The PRM has four areas of measuring functionalities in the EA. Mission and Business Results Customer Results Processes and Activities Technology FEA and Managerial Flexibility The FEA initiative provides strategic options that may allow the system to change scale, defer, explore, grow or combine sequential together. These adaptabilities allow the FEA to use the options for analysis of further details through breaking down and relating each area in building decision trees for benefits of making optimal decisions. Thus, managerial flexibility in the system provides opportunities for the investment to conduct any analysis in case of availability of new information. However, the presence of flexibility in the system changes characteristics of the FEA risk initiative. Consequently, this changes the cost of capital (Brach 370). In this context, risk management forms the b asis of incorporating flexibility in the system. Analysis of Real Options The second to last step under-investment plan relies on analyzing the benefits in the decision tree by applying risk-neutral or repeating portfolio methods. The calculation takes into account many investment portfolios depending on various perceptions of risks and related trade exchanges. According to Benaroch, there are several configurations that we cannot exhaust; thus, he suggests â€Å"three rules of excluding implausible configurations† (Benaroch 45). First, â€Å"consistency between sequences of options in an investment configuration with the sequence in which options materialize in the investment lifecycle, second, ability of options to coexist in an investment configuration, and finally, consideration for configurations involving maximal subsets of viable options† (Benaroch 45). The concept of Reuse and Cost Saving in Enterprise Architecture best practices Reuse shows agency achievement in moving towards their target functionality and sharing of services content, and building an environment of service within the agency. Gauging the agency achievements in terms of sharing information usually focuses on reuse. The system uses varieties of arrangements and other similar patterns to measure agency results and combine all requirements in the process of procurement. It can also measure the agency achievements in terms of building a positive service environment so as to enable both the consumption and production of general data, services and component services. At the same time, it will also measure investment accuracy and its mapping categories together with consistency of the Service Reference Model service parts, and TRM service mappings (Groth 51). For an EA to be effective, it must identify chances of consolidating, reuse, sharing, and standardizing. This enhances effectiveness in mission and financial performance among the agencies. This is the only way an agency ca n justify its massive spending in advanced IT systems i.e. by achieving superior outcomes of mission performance (The Chief Information Officers Council 2). Likewise, every agency must demonstrate its reuse of Service Reference Model components, information, infrastructure, and other services and increased levels of services sharing among agencies. Further, agencies must demonstrate an application of a combined purchasing power by reuse of contract and procurement methods for getting needed services. The definitions of segments in a global context enable their reuse across several agencies. For instance, we can map out an application of a given segment, and then apply the same map in other areas of the aim of EA reuse. This indicates that all segments, whether vertical or horizontal, are suitable for facilitating the concept of sharing among the agencies (Sauer and Willcocks 497). Therefore, the initiative of FEA will ensure that the Federal government rectifies the existing lack of integration, immediate response to changes, and alignment. If the agencies can restore the anomalies, then services provisions to the public will be efficient and at low cost through enhanced government processes of services delivery. FEA has enormous potential for cost reduction and cost avoidance. FEA can make the Federal government realize costs reductions and avoidance through helping Federal agencies depend on a single EA platform, instead of developing and redeveloping several business support systems (Mun 46). Therefore, we can look at costs reduction in terms of economies of scale. This is whereby the FEA locates a common function among the agencies and then shows possible areas of cost-cutting through reuse of systems, models, and the entire processes by collaboration. Cost-saving can also occur through sharing of resources. The FEA identifies possible opportunities of sharing resources, such as support services, IT application and other solutions. Finally, the Federal gov ernment may realize cost saving in terms of conducting market research. The FEA depends on constant study of emerging technologies and their applications across the entire organization. The Federal government can share the research results across its multiple agencies, depending on their shared business functions. This will reduce extra costs and time used in conducting single studies (USA Government 1). There are indicators to show how agencies are using FEA and other IT platforms to control their costs. Cost savings and cost avoidance are long-term initiatives of the Federal government, which improve as the system becomes familiar with users. We can locate indicators of cost avoidance and cost savings from the analyses of financial records of the agencies. Every agency must produce its reports on cost savings and avoidance (Perks and Tony 13). Agencies must demonstrate their declining costs in given percentages over the years in IT spending. This may be in relations to the Federal government budget or other agencies. However, the system also allows for readjustment due to factors of inflation or changes in new IT applications at their initial stages. The agencies can decide to redeploy their savings according to their budgets and processes of executions. We can also estimate costs and perform a valuation of benefits. This stage in the process of investment and subsequent control entails establishing the increase in cash flows due to achievement of the desired EA capabilities. The system uses a basis of discounted cash flow (DCF) in its analysis (Benaroch 43). This base acts as the standard for analyses of the project cost savings and cash flows. The system uses the old methods based on forecasting of revenues and costs so as to determine the net present value (NVP). It also takes into account discounts associated with the costs and revenues and their risks at a given rate. Historical data enables the system to perform an analysis based on time-series forecas ting. In case the data is not available, then â€Å"analysts have to rely on assumptions of the management† (Taudes 165). We must also note that most analyses assume no flexibility in pricing (Taudes 165). Benaroch, Michel. Managing Information Technology Investment Risk: A Real Options Perspective. Journal of Management Information Systems 19.2 (2000): 43–84. Print. Bernus, Peter and Laszlo Nemes. A Framework to Define a Generic Enterprise Reference Architecture and Methodology. 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Journal of Management Information Systems 15.1 (1998): 165–185. Print. The Chief Information Officers Council. Federal Enterprise Architecture Framework, v 1.1. Washington, DC: CIO Council, 1999. Print. USA Government. Improving Agency Performance Using Information and Information Technology: (Enterprise Architecture Assessment Framework v3.1). Washington, DC: The US Government, 2009. Print.