Comparison between xbox one and playstation 4 Research Paper

Comparison between xbox one and playstation 4 - Research Paper Example Facing tough competitions from the rapid industrial challenges, it was vital that industry develop a new way of providing entertainment and also to maintain the tradition of playing video games. It has been viewed that today large companies like Microsoft and Sony are developing updated video games adapting new technological aspects and are also competing with one another to become the leader in the video game market. THESIS STATEMENT The paper aims to provide a detailed descriptive analysis, highlighting the major features of two video games consoles i.e. Xbox One and PS4 that would be launched soon for the public. DISCUSSION Xbox One. Xbox One is a forthcoming video game console that has been developed and manufactured by well-known multinational software company Microsoft. It is believed that the product would be released on November 22, 2013 across North America, some European countries, Australia and New Zealand and on 2014 in the rest of the world. Many critics regards this dev ice as an all-in-one entertainment system and is predicted to provide tough competitions to Sony’s well known PlayStation series (Cunningham, â€Å"Xbox One launches in 13 countries on November 22†). PlayStation 4. ... to launch on November 29 in some of the major countries in the European region (O'Brien, â€Å"PlayStation 4 hitting shelves on November 15th in the US for $399, November 29th in Europe and Latin America†). COMPARISION With the rapid globalization and technological development, it is not only automobile and service sectors that are facing tough challenges from competitors but video game manufacturer like Sony and Microsoft are also facing tough challenges with the increase in competitors in the global market. In this aspect, it has also become tough for consumers to decide which product to choose from a range of available products in the market. Below is a comparison of the two most controversial video game console that would be launched very shortly. The two consoles Xbox and PS4 are considered similar in their hardware specification, especially when it comes to the control processing unit (CPU) and Graphics processing unit (GPU). Both the company uses Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. chip for their consoles, using system on chip (SoC) as a combination component for the CPU and GPU. The processor used in these consoles is an x86 64-bit chip with 8 'Jaguar' cores which provides an estimated clock speed of 1.65GHz. Although, PS4 and Xbox One has the same AMD Radeon GPU, however, the PS4 is much powerful with an 1152 cores compared to Xbox One. Additionally, it has been identified PS4 has a higher peak shader which is 1.84 TFLOPS in comparison to that of Xbox One which is 1.23 TFLOPS (Shimpi, â€Å"The Xbox One: Hardware Analysis & Comparison to PlayStation 4†). Again, it has been viewed that both the console has 8GB of RAM. However, in this aspect Xbox One has 32MB of eSRAM that can be used as a cache memory. It is worth mentioning that when it comes to storage both the

Exploring the connections between the mask of masculinity and the mask Essay

Exploring the connections between the mask of masculinity and the mask of femininity - Essay Example A study of the first chapter ‘Saplings in the Storm’ of Mary Pipher’s Reviving Ophelia and the first chapter ‘Inside the World of Boys: Behind the Mask of Masculinity’ of William Pollock’s Real Boys give an insight into the complex psyche of adolescent girls and adolescent boys in coping with societal expectations and norms. ‘Saplings in the Storm’ and ‘Inside the World of Boys’ approach the same issue from two different perspectives. Both take us back to the world of adolescence. While ‘Saplings in the Storm’ tells us about the distress of adolescent girls, ‘Inside the World of Boys’ presents the struggle of teenage boys. In both the cases the young boys and the girls are trying hard to be masculine and feminine rather than naturally grow up into men and women. A girl has always been an enigma to a boy and vice versa. It is but natural that adolescent girls and boys fall on and off in love. A fantasy soon gives way to disillusionment as one sees the other without the mask. They are in love with the mask which is based on unreal concepts of masculinity and femininity. The adolescent boys and girls pass through the same experience of trying to fit into the mask. They struggle to play a certain role and sink in depression when this unnatural struggle takes a toll on their mental health. Today most of the young girls would go to any extent to be the femme fatale with killer looks and a perfect 10 figure or be that pretty young thing. Sadly enough, this is the recent trend of femininity. Pipher begins her chapter ‘Saplings in the Storm’ with the example of her cousin Polly who gave up her tomboyish and spontaneous self to become a social butterfly only to be accepted by her peers. (Cited in Schmidt et al) Pollock in his ‘Inside the World of Boys’ points out to a similar situation of how boys try to live the myths about masculinity. (Cited in Schmidt et al) Boys don’t cry, boys are tough, boys are

The Pit and the Pendulum Essay Example for Free

The Pit and the Pendulum Essay There are some stories, where the objects that are described or portrayed play a more important part of the story than what we believed. In The Pit and the Pendulum, a short story written by Edgar Allan Poe there is certain symbolism that adds meaning to the story. The narrator is telling the story from a dungeon in Toledo, Spain as a prisoner during the Spanish Inquisition. In the story, there are certain objects that have important symbolism for the drama, since they lead the narrator to his death. This story is one of Poe’s more popular works since he creates a dark atmosphere, adds suspense and a deep meaning to these symbols. His symbolism transmits the theme of man struggles to survive. The symbols make the narrator face his main problem and emphasize what he feels while characterizing his emotions. The pit is the most important symbol in the story. The narrator almost faces death by falling on the edge of the pit, realizing how close to death he had been because the pit had a deep surface. The pit represents death or descending into hell. It can be interpreted as death because for the narrator, it is something unknown, he didn’t know that the pit was there, or how deep it was. The same happens with death, nobody really knows what happens after we die or where is it exactly where we go. In the story, the pit is portrayed as this frightening symbol that can also be interpreted as hell. Since hell is the belief of a place where people go after death because the y have sinned, the narrator is considered to be guilty of a crime he did not commit, he doesn’t deserve to die in the pit, or according to the symbolism, burning in hell. At the beginning of the tale, the narrator describes the seven tall candles that remind him of angels that later turn into meaningless spectres, with heads of flame. The meanings that Thoreau wants to give to these candles are a sign of hope, followed by disappointment and desperation. The fact that he imagined angels coming to his rescue means that he was holding on to his life, not giving up until those angels turned into devil, and then his perception changed into thinking that he was all alone and abandoned. â€Å"And then my vision fell upon the seven fall candles upon the table. At first they wore the aspect of charity, and seemed white slender angels who would save me; but then, all at once, there came a most deadly nausea over my spirit, and I felt every fiber  in my frame thrill as if I had touch ed the wire of a galvanic battery, while the angel forms became meaningless spectres, with heads of flame, and I saw that from them there would be no help.† The pendulum that is portrayed in the story is a symbol that represents time. As the pendulum descends more and more, the narrator realizes that is coming right to him, willing to take him to his unbearable death. In the story, time is a crucial element, since the narrator has his seconds counted before facing his death, which luckily, he escapes. â€Å"It was the painted figure of Time as he is commonly represented, save that in lieu of a scythe he held what at a casual glance I supposed to be the pictured image of a huge pendulum, such as we see on antique clocks.† The pendulum is an instrument for torture since it involves death itself while counting off the seconds until the end. The symbolism that the objects project in the story emphasizes what Poe wanted to add or represent the meaning that is beyond what he wanted the narrator in the story to portray. The symbols connect the narrator to what is actually happening in the story and make the reader understand better. In t his case, the symbols that were utilized are vital for the story, without them, the story would not have the same meaning and this happens with a lot of Edgar Allan Poe’s stories and poems, it is an element that identifies them. Works Cited Short Stories: The Pit and the Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe. Short Stories: The Pit and the Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Mar. 2014. Cover letter: I found the story very interesting I thought that the symbols were not hard to interpret. I decided to analyze the symbols because they are a very important part of the story, even though I did not analyze all of them, but I choose the three that I considered more relevant to the story My essay is concise and easy to read and understand. I included a lot of examples like direct quotes from the text that support my body paragraphs. That was what I liked the most about my essay, the quotes that I included,  because it gives you an idea of the point of view of the narrator and how exactly he felt or what he thought. My introduction is understandable and it gives you the idea of what the essay is going to be about. The body paragraphs explain each of the symbols and I provided examples and analyzed them to make it more clear. My conclusion explains overall what the essay was about and it summarizes the introduction.

Public Interest in Serial Killers

Public Interest in Serial Killers In this weeks module five on the publics interest in fictional and real serial killers a lot of interesting information was given. As much as we dont like the fact that people kill people out of random acts and for no reason, we cant just turn a blind eye to it. These killings weather we like to admit it or not draw us in and we want to know how it happen and the details of the crime that was committed. This infatuation isnt just for one reason but for many different reasons depending on the type of person someone is. One of the reasons a person might be infatuated with a serial killer is because of the curiosity of the crime in the way that the crime that was committed was so rare that it invokes a greater interest then that of a random killing (Bonn, Scott), or a killing that has been done before.   A second reason is that some killers kill at random and dont know their victims this it like a shark attack to people and makes them feel hat anyone can be a target. Another reason is that when some killers kill their inner demons come out (Bonn, Scott) and in a great rage and force it is this rage that draws people to try and comprehend their mind set and try to understand it. When it comes to the monsters portrayed in movies it especially plays on the feeling and emotions of people and this is why we are so attracted to it. It draws us in by playing on our emotions of fear and anger (Bonn, Scott). There is a fine line between those people that have an interest in the fictional characters that are played in movies that are killers versus those that are actual serial killers. Those that have a high interest in fictional killers dont acknowledge those that are actual killers. This to me might be because the crimes committed in the movies havent happened in real life but the fact that the scenarios in the movie could happened and bring upon feelings of fear that makes it interesting and an infatuation occur. There are some people that have gone so far with the infatuation for a real life serial killer that have written them in jail and build a friendship with them because they are obsessed with the crimes they did and their mind set (Bond, Michael). For these people their infatuation has brought them to an extreme. It is because they have a want to be like them or just understand them and have brought their fantasy into reality to get to know them on a personal level. The media is a high influencer of these infatuations and this is because when these kinds of crimes they are highly wanted in the news and that because they are integrating and as far as the media is concerned builds up their ratings. Law enforcement and the media in a way bump heads and this is because when a crime occurs and the media catches wind of it they report on it and they use some facts of the cast and they exaggerate and make their own assumptions about the crime that happen (Morton, Robert). This makes it especially hard for law enforcement with an ongoing investigation because when they make false claims to the public it evokes fear in people (Morton, Robert) and they are looking for the person that did these and any person that they feel is the killer because of the false facts of the media is reported on making law enforcement follow false leads. Our interest and obsession with serial killers could be for many different reason weather that person is a real serial killer or one made up by movie producers. The fact is that this infatuation is a little scary that a person could be so interested with someone that has actually committed a crime and harmed another because they want to be like them and they committed a crime that they know they could not do. On the other hand those that are drawn to killers because of the need to understand their mind set and know what drove them to such extremes, profilers that classify serial killers do this to catch a serial killers and prevent it from happening,. Infatuation and interest in serial killers will always be something the human mind does because of the need for understanding. References 1.) Bond, Michael. Why are we eternally fascinated by serial killers? March 31, 2016. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20160331-why-are-we-eternally-fascinated-by-serial-killers 2.) Morton, Robert. Behavioral analysis unit 2, Federal Bureau of Investigation. Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Procedures for Investigators. Retrieved from http://ct2learn.com/els/resources/ebooks/serial-murder-multi-disciplinary-procedures-investigators/view-serial-murder-multi-disciplinary-procedures-investigators/ 3.) Bonn, Scott. Heres Why We Love Serial Killers. September 22, 2014. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wicked-deeds/201409/here-s-why-we-love-serial-killers

Digital Image Analysis Of Yell :: essays research papers

Digital Image Analysis of Yellowstone National Park Introduction Remote sensing refers to the tele-observational surveying and mapping of physical, urban and environmental features. Remote Sensing is also a composite of many other subjects such as aerial photography, radar surveying, thermal surveying, weather forecasting and photogrammetry. It has now become quite common practice to use remotely sensed data to take inventory, monitor and develop effective management practices of our natural resources. Objective It is the purpose of this paper to further enhance the understanding of remotely sensed data in such a way that we may assist the human brain in the extraction and interpretation of this data through digital image analysis data manipulation techniques, such as rectification, enhancement and classification. The application of conventional and non-conventional image enhancement /classification procedures will be applied to an area of The Old Faithful section of the North Fork forest fire within Yellowstone National Park as it existed on September 8, 1988. They will also be applied to Nile Delta region of Egypt. Conventional technology in the context of this paper refers to imagery that is uni-dimensional, that is, it has only one spectral band available for analysis. The term non-conventional will refer to imagery that has multi bands available for manipulation and analysis. Methods of enhancement utilized in the multi-band portion of this project include: - colour and histogram image enhancement - normalization and image algebra enhancement - filtering image enhancement - band transformations (eigen pictures) image enhancement - coventional methods of enhancement Methods of classification utilized in this project include: - signature training ( sampling) - supervised classification, PPD, Mindis, Maximumlikliehood - unsupervised classification, histogram equalization, clustering Methods of enhancement used in uni-scene portion of this project include: - histogram equalization uni-band - filtering image enhancement Data Acqisition Data acquisition refers to the data by means of information gathering about the scale selection of the remote sensing formats and the target identification of the surveyed and mapped resources. In this analysis we have acquired Landsat Thematic Mapper data which consists of seven spectral bands and covers a 512x512 picture element area. The Landsat ground resolution or pixel size is 30x30 metres which translates to an area coverage of 235.93 square kilometres of ground coverage, which is a subset region of the Yellowstone National Park. The Nile Delta region is located in nothern Egypt and the data acquired was originally acquired for delta topgraphy. The data is Landsat MSS with one available band and covers a 580x640 picture element area. The Landsat MSS ground resolution is 80x80 metres which translates to an area coverage 2211.

Actual Benefits of Information Technology Outsourcing Essay -- companie

1) Critically evaluate the competitive advantage that can be gained by companies through IS/IT outsourcing. Provide suitable example to support your answer. Introduction Outsourcing is an arrangement in which one company provides services for another company that could also be or usually have been provided internal. As we know, outsourcing is a development that is becoming further common in information technology or information system and other industries for services that have usually been regarded as basic to managing a business. In some cases, the whole information management of a company is outsourced, including planning and business analysis as well as the installation, management, and servicing of the network and workstations. For the example, University Kolej Poly-Tech Mara provided Campus Management System (CMS) for student and they bought this CMS from outsourcing from Indonesia. By outsourcing the logistical activities the company can achieve great remunerations. Outsourced environment has been exposed to regularly bring gains in productivity to companies, specifically through scale, technology and expertise. Besides, outsourcing can also h elp companies reduce costs associated with labour and real estate. Taking advantage of an outsourcing vendor’s global, centre-based dispersed delivery brings advance economies of scale and process proficiency. Competitive advantage is very important thing especially in term of business marketing because when your business starts growing, the companies should start to think of the potential benefits of going beyond the basics, as larger companies do, and look for ways to use information systems for competitive advantage. (Dr Donald J McCubbrey, Oct 6, 2010). To achieve a competitiv... ...ks Cited WNS Global Service, Gaining competitive advantage through analytics outsourcing, 14 October 2009. Available at, http://www.slideshare.net/WNSGlobalServices/kpo-whitepaper-wns-2009, Retrieved at November 2013. Journal of Accountancy, The Pros and Cons of IT Outsourcing, June 1998. Available at http://www.journalofaccountancy.com/Issues/1998/Jun/antonuci.htm. Retrieved at November 2013. Journal of IT Management, Volume IV, Number 2, Outsourcing the IS Function, The impact on competitive advantage, 1993. Available at, http://jitm.ubalt.edu/IV-2/article4.pdf. Retrieved at November 2013. B. A. Aubert, M. Patry, S. Rivard, â€Å"Assessing IT Outsourcing Risk†, Proceedings of the 31st Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, Jan 1998, Available at http://www.scribd.com/doc/6550923/The-Information-Technology-Outsourcing-Risk. Retrieved at Disember 2013.

Employment and Absenteeism Problem Essay

Absenteeism refers to unauthorised absence of the worker from his job. According to Benefits Interface (Edited 2010: 1 of 4) absenteeism can be defined as ‘failure of employees to report for work when they are scheduled to work’. Employees who are away from work on recognized holidays, vacations, approved leaves of absence allowed for under the collective agreement provisions are not included. In South Africa, managers consider absenteeism their most serious discipline problem (Nadlangisa, 2003). Absenteeism is not unique to any particular geographical area or industry. It is a major problem for every organisation, particularly since downsizing and other lean changes have left employers with a smaller workforce (Grobler, Warnich, et al, 2006: 123) According to a recent study conducted by AIC Insurance, companies and the country’s economy are losing more than R12 billion annually due to absenteeism in South Africa. In 2000, 0. 7 million workers were absent from work, which is a fraction compared to the 397% leap it took up until 2012 (Goldberg, 2012). Employees are often considered to be a company’s most valuable asset and according to Hamilton-Atwell (2003: 56-61) one of the best ways to increase profitably is by increasing the returns on this asset. Reducing absenteeism is one of the most overlooked methods of reducing costs According to Goldberg (2012) managing absence is critical for all organisations, as the negative impact that they feel with regards to efficiency, operations and cost- effectiveness is enormous. Whatever the causes, absenteeism is costing the country and its businesses heavily and therefore needs to be addressed. Many employers, however, choose to disregard the possibility that there may be issues in the workplace causing poor performance and absenteeism. It makes sound economic sense to address any such issues and pro-actively encourage improved employee performance. This research framework focuses on a medium-sized local organisation, which has asked to not be mentioned. Therefore it shall be referred to as Organisation X. 3 2. Problem identification The failure to show up for work creates problems of varying degrees for managers and administrators. Excessive employee absenteeism can decrease productivity and profits significantly, creating numerous problems for supervisors and the employees who work regularly (Carrell & Kuzmits, 1992: 735). 2. 1. Problem Statement The motivation for this research will be discussed by highlighting problems related to employee absenteeism as experienced within Organisation X Main Problem Unauthorized employee absenteeism from Organisation X and the actions that might be implemented to reduce this due to the fact that absenteeism causes a liability to the company. Sub-Problems The unauthorised employee absenteeism is leading to an overall decrease in: i. Cost- effectiveness – Profitability ii. Operations – Production iii. Efficiency – Competitiveness 2. 2. Explanation of problems: Financial Costs Overtime and agency costs for replacing workers are incurred. Administrative Costs Staff time required to secure replacement employees and to re-assign the remaining employees. Staff time is required to maintain and control absenteeism. 4 Decrease in Productivity The employees that come to work daily carry an extra workload and support new or replacement staff. Also they are required to train and orient new or replacement workers, which cause them to neglect and disregard their own work. The work group itself has a considerable stake in absenteeism, particularly with respect to morale. People in work groups are very sensitive to equity. If one member takes excessive and perceived inappropriate absences without some equitable cost to that individual, other group members are often affected. They take revenge by going absent themselves, o lowering the productivity of the group as a whole (Furham, 2000: 377). Possible reasons for the absenteeism rate in Organisation X Lack of commitment Employees are simply not interested in their work or concerned about the success of the organization. This can stem from low wages or low employee morale, which might be caused by poor treatment by management or an unpleasant working environment. Also the length of service within the company will determine the commitment to the work and the workplace. Lack of consequence The lack of consequences, e. g. no incentives for strong attendance or no punishment for poor attendance leads to increased absenteeism of the employees. Also employee packages that allow for a lot of absence can lead to workers abusing this. Poor working conditions Employees might feel that they receive poor treatment from managers, work in an unpleasant or stressful working environment, have long working hours a lack of breaks, are given an excessive workload or there is too much strict supervision. Personal factors Although there is a fair bit of absenteeism that could have been avoided, employees are often away from work for ‘valid’ reasons. Examples may include domestic 5 problems (bad housing conditions, family issues) and consequent worries, social and religious causes, problems with transport facilities or accidents/ illnesses (Hamilton-Atwell, 2003: 82-95) 2. 3. Research questions I. What are the main factors causing employees to be absent from work? II. Is one specific group of people more absent than another (e. g. male/female, old/young)? III. What are the current disciplinary actions within Organisation X’s Human Resource Department? IV. What is the behaviour of the employees towards these disciplinary actions? V. What are the possible and most suitable solutions for Organisation X? 2. 4. Possible solutions for the absenteeism problem include, but are not limited to the following: Consequences To avoid absenteeism as much as possible the company should implement positive/ negative consequences for strong/ weak attendance. Examples may include offering rewards and incentives, e. g. monetary bonuses, simple raise or recognition (Employee of the month) for strong attendance and punish employees with poor records and unexcused absence (Gitman & McDaniel, 2008: 248). Work-Life Balance According to Chick (2004: 67) managers should allow employees to be able to have or create a work-life balance, as this can reduce the stress levels they are exposed to. Dual income households have increased over the last decades and longer working hours are expected. Managers need to help their employees to manage the numerous and sometimes competing demands in their lives. Employees need to achieve a balance between their work responsibilities and their personal life (Gitman & McDaniel, 2008: 251). Follow-ups The Supervisors need to sit down with the employees when they return from an absence to discuss the reason for absence, if the absence could have been 6 prevented and the implications of absenteeism on the company (if it is a common occurrence for this employee). 3. Hypotheses I. Females are more absent from work then men II. Individuals in any relationship are more absent than singles III. Employees with children are more absent than those without children IV. Employees below 40 are absent from work more frequently V. Current disciplinary actions are not perceived as a reason for employees to reduce the absenteeism VI. Implementing other stricter disciplinary actions will reduce the rate of employee absenteeism 4. Objectives The Objectives of the project are: To understand and analyze: I. The main causes of absenteeism in Organisation X. II. The current disciplinary actions taken by the HR department for reducing absenteeism. III. The attitude of employees towards these disciplinary actions. IV. The factors to be considered in order to reduce absenteeism. V. Suggestions that can be given to the management to improve the regular attendance of the employees in the company.