Thursday, October 31, 2019

Persuasive Letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Persuasive Letter - Essay Example The society has suffered both social and economic losses given that human health, property, infrastructure as well as various aspects of the economy such as agriculture have been made untenable due to the harsh weather conditions. As of this moment, the WHO in conjunction with several governments continues to report high incidence of heat and cold related diseases. Moreover, developing nations whose citizenry depend on natural resources for income, have found it hard to earn a living. In as much as the advancements brought about by the past and current generations have made our way of life simpler, some of them have caused environmental degradation. This has in turn resulted into climate change. One reality that the current generation should not turn a deaf ear on is the fact that we have our ancestors to thank for subjecting the environment to wise use during their lifetime. As that has enabled us to make something out for ourselves. From where I sit, I presume true the fact that for us to hand over an intact world to the future generations, then we have to adjust our way of life. Moreover, every person within the world should make sacrifices for the adjustments to bring about considerable effect. Some of the sacrifices for example will require that we not only recycle but also reuse some of the local materials such as paper, plastic, cardboard, aluminum among others (Tokar 55). Similarly, we need to reduce the amount of energy that we consume as we spend many n atural resources in producing the energy, and too much production will exhaust the natural resources. In order to reduce the consequences of climate change, we will need to employ the use of ecofriendly cleaning products, and not those that lead to emission of poisonous materials that lead to the erosion of the ozone layer. At the same time, we should change our eating habits and prepare

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Theoretical Skirmish Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Theoretical Skirmish - Essay Example 115), while Condit did not clearly define the term, but stated that hegemony resisted â€Å"the exclusive and narrow focus on the economic base that pervaded earlier Marxist theories† (Condit, 1994, p. 206). Condit stated that the earlier Marxist theories held that in capitalism, dominant classes imposed their capitalism ideology on the working class, and that, since capitalism flourished around the globe, while Marxism failed, the ideology had to have been spread by â€Å"coercive military force of the State proper and the leadership exerted in the civil society on behalf of the world view of the group in power† (Condit, 1994, p. 206). In other words, according to this theory, capitalism is maintained in these societies by coercion and by leadership. The leaders must have allies with whom they have active assent, while also maintaining passive assent from the governed. In this way, there is a distinction between power and leading – power is something that a person obtains, while leading is the quality the person exerts. It is this latter quality that stabilizes a society. Leading takes into account that there are a spectrum of interests in the populace, and that the leadi ng groups interest is not the only one. If a society does not take this into account, but, rather, that the leader merely dictates his own worldview on the populace, this is dominating, as opposed to leading, and this results in â€Å"dictatorship without hegemony† (Condit, 1994, p. 207). Thus, hegemony is defined as a way to stabilize society by generating some kind of consent by the populace to the ideological bent of the leader. Condit and Cloud take slightly different tacts in illustrating the concept of hegemony, however. Condit states that hegemony in the United States is accomplished by concordance. In pre-industrial societies, hegemony was accomplished in a different way. Because these societies were more

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Microwave power transmission using rectenna

Microwave power transmission using rectenna   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Abstract microwave power transmission using rectenna A high efficient rectanna was design and tested at 5.8GHz frequency, which is use to power up applications. Patch antenna used with a low return low simulated in ADS. The micro-strip patch is a good practice for manufacturing physical antenna, as it will be easy to fabricate. The designed patch antenna have been employed in a 22 and 14 triangular antenna array so that the power and gain can be increased. The patch antenna captures the RF signal and then feed through 50 ohm feed line into the low pass filter and then into the rectifying circuit giving DC power. A low pass filter at 5.8 GHz was constructed. The diode used for the rectifying circuit is HSMS 2862 or HSMS 2080 schottky. A comparison analysis has been done between different designs of antenna. The results compared and best possible DC voltage was achieved in ADS simulation. ADS results achieved by simulating the designs for antennas, low pass filters and rectifying circuits were efficient. The designs were manufactured. The result generated from the physical antenna and the simulation is studied. Chapter 1 1 Introduction As the technology is growing the world is now moving toward wireless power. We can see that now days everyone prefers to use a wireless mouse or a wireless headphone. The use of batteries can make this possible but the problem is that too many batteries are being used and there has to be a way by which these applications can run wirelessly and the best thing would be if the batteries were not used. How can this be possible? This is the problem which we will try to solve in the design. The rectanna used will convert the RF power into dc signal and instead of batteries the application will have a rectanna to produce the power. Therefore we will have a true wireless system, which has no wires and no batteries. Although we have to agree that may be so power will not be produced by these rectanna but still as the technology increase, the rectanna manufacturing will also be improved. The word ‘rectenna as we know today was first introduced by Brown [4]. The basic concept of rectanna is a â€Å"rectifying antenna†. In other word an antenna which will be used for receiving RF signal and a rectifying circuit which is used to give us DC power. Personally I view rectanna as a wireless battery, which is a very cool device. Wireless power transmission (WPT) can be viewed as an electrical grid which generates power. WPT is the technology which is used for wireless transmission of power, this will be used in future for solar power satellites [4]. Let me explain the concept in detail. As the satellites are orbiting around the earth 24 hour and the satellites have the capability to convert the solar power into RF signals and then beam those RF signal to the earth. Array of antennas will be used to capture those RF signals and the rectifying circuits to convert those into DC power. If sufficient amount of array antennas are used, a lot of power can be produced. The electrical power station would be viewed as RECTANNA stations where RF signal would be converted into DC power. 1.1 History of Microwave Power Transmission Tesla was the first person who introduced the idea of wireless power transmission. Tesla was not able to produce power with the RF signal because the transmitted power got diffused in all the direction with 140 KHz radio signal [4]. The problem faced by Tesla was overcome, by the fact that higher RF frequency has greater directivity and so the power can be transmitted in a particular direction. Radar technology used in world-war 2 was also very helpful in advancing the growth of wireless power. In the early 1960s W.C. Brown used that latest technology to produce wireless power for the first time. The word â€Å"Rectanna† which we use today was first developed by W.C. Brown. He used an antenna with a rectifying circuit to produce power. The conversion was very good. Based on browns research work, where P.E. Glaser in 1968 introduced a solar power satellite [4] [3]. 1.2 Objectives The object of this thesis is to design a rectanna which will be able to receive microwave energy at 5.8 GHz and then converting that signal to DC power. This thesis will also help to provide a new ways of exploring energy resources. A secondary objective is to reduce the return losses so that maximum output can be achieved. A comparison analysis is done between series and parallel configuration of the 5.8ghz antenna. 1.2.1 Scope of thesis: Perform a good and comprehensive literature review so that all the concepts of RF electronics could be understood. Understand different antenna designs and test them to get the best possible result. Simulating and creating a functional micro-strip patch antenna design suitable for the rectenna frequency of operation of 5.8 GHz. Designing, simulating and creating the rectifier circuit. 1.3 Thesis Outline The thesis was completed in two semesters. Each a certain number task must be completed. Semester 1: Involves literature review of patch antenna, low pass filter and rectifier. The array of antenna design will also be taken under consideration and will be tested and simulated in ADS software and a prototype of 44 circular and triangular patch antenna will be build for testing purpose. Semester I Introduction to the topic Finding the research papers and resources Literature review Design proposal Simulation in ADS Operational system in ADS Prototype for testing Semester 2: The 2nd semester was utilized to make better designs and operation of antennas. Rectifying circuit will be improved as well. An application will be tested, so that the patch antenna can be used to power a small application. Semester II Tweaking of the design Making system efficient Measurements and results Comparison analysis of design Documentation and final report Chapter 2 2 Introduction To Literature Review This section outlines brief theory of micro-strip patch antennas .. The library resources were used extensively and the journals related to the power transmission using rectanna were studied in detail. The articles were used to get idea about the design as well as methods of adapting the microwave techniques. 2.1 Motivation The possibility of transferring power wirelessly can open up infinite applications. The fact that wireless application will not be powered by the batteries but instead use RF signal to generate the power is so extraordinary that everyone would want to be a part of the technology. The idea of using the solar space satellites to create power is not very new. It was first presented in 1968 by Peter E. Glaser [4] [3]. The area of wireless power is not only limited to power generation by satellites but in fact it can be used in daily electronics, such as a wireless headphone, wireless keyboard, wireless mouse and even in wireless small motors. This research will give me a glimpse of future technologies that lies ahead of us. 2.2 What I Want to Achieve At the end of this thesis I hope to have a rectenna which will convert RF signals into DC power and that DC power will be used for any selected application. 2.3 Important Points About Antenna An antenna is device which is made so that it can radiate and receive radiating power from the electromagnetic wave. There are some important points that we need to know about antenna before proceeding towards the main antenna design. 2.3.1 Antenna gain: The ratio of input power to the output power is called antenna gain. 2.3.2 Directivity: The property of antenna to radiate electromagnetic waves in a particular direction is called directivity. If the electromagnetic waves are concentrated in a particular direction then we can that antenna has good directivity. Directivity and gain are related to each other by the following formula. Gain = efficiency/Directivity. 2.3.3 Polarization: The phenomena of polarization can be understand as the orientation of electromagnetic waves at distance from the source. The polarization types have been show in the table below. 2.3.4 Impedance Matching: The energy transfer can only be possible if the antenna and the transmission lines are matched. Typically 50 ohm impedance is used for the radio. If the antenna is not match then the input power or the output power will be reflected back. As a result power will be lost and desired results will not be achieved. 2.3.5 VSWR and the Reflected power of antenna: The voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR) is a parameter, which tells us that how good the impedance match is done. A VSWR of 2:1 is considered good. Most of the antennas which are built have a VSWR of 1.5:1. Chapter 3 3 Rectenna design 3.1 Introduction to rectenna The above diagram shows a basic design of a rectanna. The antenna receives the RF signals. The signal is passed to the low pass filter by a transmission line which has an impedance of 50 ohm. The low pass filter will filter the desired frequency so that unwanted frequency does not go through the rectifying circuit. The low pass filter is also used to stop the harmonics reflected back from the diode. The rectifying circuit is used in double configuration. The double configuration is used so that maximum RF signal can be converted into DC power. Schottky diodes will be used in the rectification process as they have low voltage drop across it. The overall efficiency of the rectanna can be determined by ?= PdcPinc, Pdc is the DC output power. Pinc is the Incident RF power 3.2 Operating frequency The most common frequency used is 2.45GHz and 5.8GHz. The directivity of antenna is more at 5.8GHz. Over all a lot of applications are available at these frequencies. 3.3 Substrate Material Taconic TLX-0 was used for the physical design of the antennas. It has the following properties: H = 0.787 mm(height) T = 17  µm er= 2.45 TanD = 0.0019 Taconic TLX-0 laminate are low loss antennas.[8] 3.4 Design Specifications Chapter 4 4 Array Antennas and Design: 4.1 Introduction to Array Antennas and Design In this section is related with the antenna design in detail and the array antenna design for achieving greater power. 4.2 Micro-strip Patch Antenna The patch antenna is triangular. It has 3 layers. The bottom layer is the ground, middle is the dielectric substrate and the upper layer which is made up of copper or gold. As you can see in the figure, the 3 layer are shown. The patch antenna radiates because of the fringing fields between the ground and the patch. For good performance the thick dielectric should be used with a low dielectric constant [13]. As the design does not allow us to use a thick dielectric, otherwise the size of the antenna would be very big, so in our design a thin dielectric with high dielectric constant would be used. A micro strip antenna has some advantages and some drawback. Some of the advantages and drawbacks are given in the table. ADVANTAGES OF MICROSTRIP ANTENNA Light weight and have low volume with low profile. Fabrication cost is low, easily manufactured in big quantities. Circular and Linear polarizations can be made in them. Dual frequency and dual-polarization is also possible with this. Microwave integrated circuits can be integrated with them as well. The antenna structure can be fabricated with Feed lines and matching networks within. Figure 7 Advantages of microstrip DISADVANTAGES OF MICROSTRIP ANTENNA Bandwidth Narrow Lower gain Large losses with the feed structure. Cannot be high power handling capacity Figure 8 Disadvantages of microstrip 4.3 Feed Technique There are two types of feeding techniques Contacting: In this type feed network the RF signal is feed directly into the patch antenna. Non contacting: In this configuration electromagnetic field coupling occurs due to transfer of energy between the line of mirco-strip and the patch. 4.3.1 Micro-strip Line Feed As you can see in the figure the simplest way of having a feed line is to attach a transmission line feed with the edge of the antenna. This feed line technique is very useful as the feed line and the antenna are both on the same plane. The structure is on the same surface and area is also reduced. It has a better utility as now the antenna (with the feed line) can be place in numerous applications. The thickness of the feed line determines the impedance of the line. 4.4 ANALYSIS 4.4.1 Triangular patch antenna : As we know that lots of work have been on rectangular patch antennas and the circular patch but for my design I will be using a triangular patch so that the radiation pattern and the return losses can be studied. The size of the triangular patch is smaller than the rectangular patch, so a much more efficient design. The design formulas are, in the later sections of the report. 4.4.2 Design specifications 4.4.2.1 TRANMISSION LINE MODEL : In my design I have used the transmission line model to develop the concepts and theory behind the triangular patch antennas the equilateral triangular patch was also design using the transmission model. Resonant frequency The resonant frequency is given by [14] fr=ckmn2pEr =2c3aEr(m2 +mn+n2)1/2 1 In the above equation c is the velocity of the light in the free space. Er is the dielectric constant and K(mn) are the different modes of harmonic order. The lowest order resonant frequency given by [14] fr=2c 3aEr2 The effect of fringing field was not consideration in the above equation. The fringing field occurs at the antenna patch edge. In our case the fringing field will occur at the edge sides of the equilateral triangle. The fringing fields are depended on the physical dimension of the triangular patch and the height of the substrate material. The figure below shows the field lines of a micro-strip antenna. The maximum amount of field lines are going into the substrate and some of them are in the air. The side of a patch is increased due to the fringing field effect. The side length of a triangular patch antenna will no longer will be the same as we have to take account of the effective dielectric constant Ee. The modified equations are given below. The equation above does not take given very accurate results, as it does not consider the fringing fields produced by the antennas. The Er in equation (1) and (2) can be replaced by effective dielectric constant. The dielectric constant given by [14] Ee=Er+12+Er-14(1+12h/a)-12 3 Similarly the a can be replaced by aeff (effective). The value of the aeff (effective) given by [14] aeff=a+hEr -4 Where h is the height of the material Thus equation 2 can be replaced with the effective value of aeff and Ee giving us the final equation given by [14] fr=2c 3aeffEe5 4.4.3 Excitation technique: 4.4.3.1 Micro-strip feed: The location of feed point is determined according to dimension of the antenna. Once we have calculated the accurate dimension of the antenna then we have to connect it with a 50ohm transmission line. In my design I will be using the center fed for the patch antenna. There are two ways to do this. The first is using a quarter wave transformer and the 2nd is to use the inset model. 4.4.3.2 INSET MODEL: A triangular patch antenna was designed using the inset model. The advantage of using the inset model is that the size of the antenna reduces as compared to the quarter wave transformer design [14]. The length of the triangular patch is d. the length of transmission patch is l and the width of the transmission patch is w. the width and length of transmission patch if design do that a 50ohm impedance can be achieved. 4.4.3.3 Quarter Wavelength Transformer The quarter wave transformer is a system which is used to match the impedance. As we know that the resistance Rin of the antenna will not matched with the feed line which has a impedance of 50 ohm. A formula is used to calculate the impedance of the quarter wave transformer. 4.5 Antenna design The calculation for different antennas was designed in ADS. And the result will be shown in much detail the later sections of the report. The operating frequency is 5.8GHz. The result show in the table below is for triangular patch. 4.6 Introduction to Array theory The range of the system can be increased by array of antennas which are working together and the focus of the reception or transmission of energy also increase in a particular direction[10]. The antenna in an array can be manufactured on a micro-strip with a feed network and a power divider. There are two kinds of feed network in array antennas Single line(series feed network) Multiple feed network The series-feed network in an array of antennas is limited with a fixed beam[13]. We can see that series feed is easy to manufacture as it has the same configuration which repeats. There is a major disadvantage, any change to a single element can affect the remaining elements. The antenna elements are fed by a 1 to N (in corporate network).The power divider network has a identical path lengths to all the elements, from the feed point [13]. The phase of the element can be controlled in the corporate network with the help of phase shifters. Amplifier can be used to fix the amplitude [13]. 4.6.1 The Array Factor The array factor depends on Number of elements Element spacings Amplitude Excitation phase which is applied to each elements within the array 4.6.2 Array design As we see in the previous section that that array design is deeply affected by the element of spacing, so for 5.8 GHZ antenna the wavelength is 51.72mm, based on these factors the element spacing for 5.8GHZ antenna the element spacing should be 38.79mm. We can see that the element spacing is 0.75 % of the given wavelength. As we can see in the below figure that the quarter transformer is matched with antenna which has a impedance of 100ohm. The 100ohm line are combined together and gives a resulting impedance of 50ohm at the meeting point of the line. In the last the two 100ohm lines are combined to give a 50ohm impedance which is same for a feed line. 4.6.3 Metering of Corners In our design we are using a microstrip. So with the mircostrip antennas, the 90% angle at any corner can cause large reflection from the 90% degree angle. So a smooth edge has to be made, so that there are no reflection losses. To reduce the reflection factor the edges are metered at the corner so that there is a smooth flow of current. A equation can be used to metered the corners which is given by the equation below. 4.7 Simulation results in ADS 4.7.1 Single triangular patch 4.7.1.1 Single triangular patch : 4.7.2 Single patch with inset model: 4.7.2.1 Single patch with inset model: 4.7.3 2X2 triangular patch with inset model: 4.7.4 14 linear triangular patch: 4.7.5 Single patch with quarter wave transformer 4.7.6 22 triangular patch with quarter wave transformer CHAPTER- 5 LOW PASS FILTER 5 Low Pass Filter 5.1 Introduction to low pass filter In this chapter we will discuss the low pass filter and why is it important for the rectanna design. The techniques which will be used and calculation used to make a low pass filter. The results which are calculated by the ADS calculation will also be show in this section. 5.2 Theory behind LPF The antennas which were designed in the previous section was for 5.8Ghz but still some extra frequencies have to be filtered. The rectifying circuit also cause reflection from the first harmonics. To stop those reflection from the diode, LPF is used. LPF is extensional for the design as it can increase the power of the antenna. The LPF block the signal coming back from the diode and so the phenomena of re-radiation does not occur. The LPF is usually designed for the lower frequencies. We can use lamped component for the design but there is a problem with that. The lamped component can also cause reflection, so SMT components should be used to avoid the reflections from the inductor or the resistors. There is another good way, instead of using lumped component, the LPF can also be designed on the same transmission line by using Richard transmission. I think it would be the best thing for our design because then we would be able to make the design on the same surface. The whole design would have the same physical platform and planer surface can be achieved. There are two kinds of low pass filter which we can use in our design. Equal ripple Maximum flat 5.3 LPF Design The filter can be designed by using â€Å"Richardson method from chapter of Micro-wave engineering by david pozar[9]. We have to get the values from the table then Richard transformation is used to get the series inductors and the stub used and the shunt capacitors to shunt stubs. For Richard ?/8 at ?= ?C. Then the 2nd step would be to use the kuroda identity to series stub and shunt stubs. For the frequency of ?/8 at 2.45 GHz) and (?/8 at 5.8 GHz) we need to apply the impedance and the frequency scaling to get the accurate value. 5.3.1 Equal ripple low pass filter 5.3.2 Maximum low pass filter 5.4 Simulation results from ADS 5.5 LPF AT 5.8GHZ 5.5.1 LFP EQUAL RIPPLE (5.8GHZ) 5.5.2 LPF MAX FLAT(5.8GHZ) CHAPTER 6 6 RECTIFYING CIRCUIT FOR RECTENNA 6.1 INTRODUCTION TO RECTIFYING CIRCUIT FOR RECTENNA The final stage of the rectenna design is the rectanna which actually converts the RF signal into the DC voltage. As the diode has its own impedance so we have to match the impedance of the rectifying circuit as well. The method by which the impedance was match and the results obtained from the ADS simulation will be looked. 6.2 Single Rectifier design The single diode configuration is very easy to understand. In the positive wave of the AC signal the diode d5 is forward biased and the capacitor is being charged. When the negative wave come, the diode is reverse biased and no current crosses the diode and at that time the capacitor is providing the voltage. As the capacitor is providing the voltage we have small ripples in the simulation and in practical applications. 6.3 Single voltage quadrupler: The quadrapler provides 4 times the voltage as campared to the single rectifying circuit. The configuration is easy to fabricate and easy to understand. In the positive cycle the 2nd diode and the 4th diode is forward biased allowing the capacitor c4 and c1 to be charged. In the negative cycle the 1st and the 3rd diode are reversed biased and the capacitor c3 and c2 are being charged. The four capacitor voltages adds up before the resistor, giving us four times the voltage at the resistor. 6.4 Four 5.8 ghz with quadraupler in parallel configuration: In this design we have again used a quatrupler configuration bt this time we are using 4 sources in parallel with each other. The four parallel source were used to replicate the design, when 4 parallel antennas are used and then feeding into a single quadrupler rectifier configuration. The results are show below. 6.5 Four 5.8 ghz with four individual quadraupler rectifier in parallel configuration: The difference between the above design and this design is that, this time individual rectifier is being used with a single 5.8ghz source. The configuration is used in parallel combination. 6.6 Four 5.8 ghz with quadraupler in series configuration : In the design below a series combination was used. Four 5.8ghz source which is acting like a 5.8ghz patch antenna are configured in series conbination. The output from the source is then feed into the voltage quadrupler. The results are shown below. 6.7 HSMS 2862k Diode parameters Chapter 7 7 Conversion efficiency 7.1 Introduction to Conversion efficiency The design with different configuration was tested in ADS simulation. Now we have to move towards the physical antennas and we need to determine how we can mearsure the efficiency of a rectanna. When the antenna designs are manufactured we will tested the parrallel combination with the series combination. We will be comparing two designs. 14 array of antenna 22 array of antenna Chapter 8 8 Complete Rectenna design In this section we will see the complete rectanna design on a single surface. Which means that the low pass filter and the rectifying circuit will be on the same surface as that of the array antennas The dimension and the simulated results of all the component were shown in the above sections of the report. Chapter 9 9 CONCLUSION As we have seen that all the design of the antennas and the other component were tested at maximum in ADS and the results obtained from the ADS simulation shows that we are on the right track and we will be cable of manufacture a good efficient antenna is the next semester. The antenna will be able to convert the RF signal in DC power. The low pass filters were designed and we saw that the equal ripple filter show a much better results and so we will be using that with our design. The rectifying circuit were build and tested and a practical results show that we need a minimum of 3dbm power, so that the SMT led can be turned ON. In the future a 5.8 ghz antenna with array of 22 and 14 will be made. The simulation of 22 and 14 antenna array is already done in ADS. The designs are ready for manufacturing. 9.1 Prototype and gerber Files for Manufacturing 10 Appendix References J.O. McSpaden J.C. Mnakins, â€Å"solar power programs and MWP(micro wave wireless power),† IEEE Micro, volume. 3, number. 4, pages. 46-57, Dec 2002 J.A. Hagerty and Z.Popovic, â€Å"experimental results of a broad band arbitrarily polarized antenna,† found in IEEE MTT-S Int. Moscow Sym. Dig., May 2001, volume 3.,pages 1855-1858 D.G.Guha, Y.M.Antar and J.Y. Siddiqui and M. Biswas â€Å"Resonanting resistance for microstrip-line-fed for a circular-micro-strip patches† Ieee Proc Microw. Antennas Propagation† found in volume 152, Number 6, Dec 2005 W C. brown, â€Å"history of wireless power transmisson† IEEE Transaction on Microwave Theory and Techniques, 1983 Wireless-Power-Transmission(WPT) for the use of Solar Power Satellite found at site www.sspi.gatech.edu (Accessed 13th June 2008) R.P. Jedelika, â€Å"measured mutal coupling between antennas and the patch antennas†, IEEE Trans. on Antennas and Prop., pp. 147-149 Jan. 1981 Change, K. â€Å"Radio frequency and Microwave Wireless Systems† by John Wiley and Sons, Inc 2000 Taconic material â€Å"TLX-0 Data Sheet† TACONIC Advanced Dielectric Division David, M. P. â€Å"Microwave Engineering, second edition by † John Wiley and Sons, Inc 1998 Chang.K. â€Å"Radio Frequnecy and Micro-wave power wireless wystems, Chapter 3 to Chapter 4 Antenna Systems† by John Wiley and Sons, Inc 2000 Kai.chang,RF and microwave wiresless system chapter.3 pp 89-98. 2000 I. J. Bahle and P. Bhartia, â€Å"Microstrip patch Antennas†, Artech House Inc, Dedham, MA 1980 Balanise, C.A â€Å"Antenna Theory and Analysis for Design by † Wiley-Interscience, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey 2005 I. J. Bahle and P. Bhartia, â€Å"Microstrip Antennas†, Artech House Inc, Dedham, MA 1980 Matsumoto. H Shinohara. N, â€Å"study on array of antennas for wireless power transmission† IEEE, volume. 46, number. 3, 1998 Bhartia, B. Roa and K.V.S. Tomar, R.S. â€Å"Millimeter-Wave Microstripe for Printed Circuit and Antennas† Arteche House, Inc, United States of America, 1991

Friday, October 25, 2019

Costa Rica Essay -- essays research papers

General Information Within it's 51,100 square kilometers there is a wider variety of species of birds than in all of Europe or North America. With a relatively small population of roughly three million inhabitants, Costa Rica also boast of one of the oldest and more consolidated democracies in Latin America. In 1869 the primary education for both sexes was declared obligatory and free of cost, defrayed by the State. In 1882 the death sentence was abolished. In the year 1949 the armed forces were abolished and in 1983 Perpetual Neutrality was proclaimed. Prestigious international human rights organizations have their headquarters in Costa Rica.. Beacause of this, of its lush 1500 kilometers of tropical sun-bathed beaches and the wild diversity of flora and fauna to be found in it's wide array of microclimates Costa Rica has justifiably earned it's reputation of paradise regained. Being located within the tropics, seasonal changes in Costa Rica are not as drastic as they are in countries on other latitude s. There is a 'dry" season (equivalent to summer and spring) during which temperatures pleasantly in the high 20’s (Degrees Celsius), which goes from December to May, and a "wet" season from June till November during which mornings are usually sunny and showers might be expected after noon. On areas near the coasts temperatures may be as much as ten degrees higher, where as in the Chirripo Peak, the highest mountain of Costa Rica (3800 meters) temperature may drop down to freezing point although snow is unheard of, even at the Chirripo. Costa Rica's official language is Spanish. On the Caribbean Coast a small minority of Jamaican descendants speak a local version of English, and most Costa Rican can understand and speak a bit of English. Quite recently all public schools made mandatory the learning of a second language. The main religion, as in the rest of Latin America is the Roman Catholic, but there is a very wide margin of tolerance.The national currency is the colon. All air traffic to and from Costa Rica is handled through the Juan Santamarà ­a Airport, located 29 minutes from San Josà ©, in the city of Alajuela. Government Costa Rica is a democratic republic, as stated by the 1949 Constitution, which guarantees all citizens and foreigners equality before the law, the right to own property, the right of petition and assembly, freedom o... ...nts are required to pass tests on all subjects studied during those years. The most notorious of these tests are the Bachillerato Tests, which are required to get the high school diploma needed for admission to Universities. Although the country lacked a university until 1940, Costa Rica now has four state-funded universities and a score of small private ones, whose number has increased dramatically in the last decade, due to the difficulty of being admitted to state-funded, more prestigious universities. Opportunities abound for adults to earn the primary or secondary diplomas they failed to gain as children. The University of Costa Rica (UCR), the largest and oldest university, enrolls some 35,000 students, mostly on scholarships, but even paying full tuition is not hard as it rarely surpasses $200 a semester. The main campus is in the northeastern San Jose community of San Pedro but the UCR also has regional centers in Alajuela, Turrialba, Puntarenas and Cartago. In addition t here are many private institutions like, the Autonomous University of Central America, the University for Peace, sponsored by the United Nations offering a master’s degree in communications for Peace.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Desensitization and Media Violence

Discuss the relationship between violence in the media violence in the society. Does violence in the media make people more tolerant of violence in the society? Also, does violence in the media cause people to behave violently? The impact of violence in the media relating to the society is an intense topic discussed in this century. Gerbner defined violence as â€Å"a threat or use of physical force, directed against the self or others in which physical harm or death is involved† (cited in Giddens, 2006, p. 610).The media includes different means of communication, such as television, radio, newspapers, video games; internet etc. People make use of media as a source of information, entertainment and leisure activity (Brown, 2005, p. 161). According to O’Donnell (2005), the two main roles of the media are to make profit in terms of money and promote particular ideology. The information that people see, hear or read has great influence on people’s identities, values and interests. It also affects the way people think and act regarding particular issues based on the â€Å"provided† evidence (Brown, 2005,p. 62). However, people have ability to evaluate and decide what they hear, see or read based on their social experiences, ethnic origin, social class and gender (Brown, 2005, p. 185). Now, the questions arise as, what is the relationship between media violence and the violence in the society? Whether media violence cause people to behave violently or it desensitizes people? Throughout this century, sociologists and researchers have examined these issues and have attempted to explain or disprove it using different theories and researches.In the first place, the media plays great role in shaping values, attitudes and behaviour through norm setting agenda. It reinforces conformity to social norms and discourages non-conformist behaviour (Brown, 2005, p. 169). It also provides other information that the society feels important like weather a nd health. However, conflict approach declares that the media controls ideas and thoughts of the society through agenda setting and gate keeping (Brown, 2005, p. 169). In addition to that, the media used to enlarge the news of crime and violence to keep people occupied with these issues.For example, attacks older people, stabbing, raping and gang fights get over reported (Brown, 2005,p. 182). Thompson’s theory of audience models stated that interaction between media and people is â€Å"mediated quasi-interaction† which means there is no face to face or direct connection. So, it leaves the viewers in a discussion of unanswered questions. This promotes ideology and influence of what media wants on people (Giddens, 2006, p. 604). The gratification model audience uses the media for what they want and ignore the rest.Instead, hypodermic model audience what they hear, see or read without thinking about it (Giddens, 2006, p. 608&609). So, physically or emotionally â€Å"exci ted† viewers become easily stimulated by violence (Anderson & Wartell, 2003, p. 85). According to Brown (2005), â€Å"estimates suggest young viewers will see around 13000 murders on television†. Osofsky & Eisenberg (1995&2000) stated that exposure to violence undermine the development of emotion regulation skills. This leads to aggressive behaviour, attitudes and loss of problem solving strategies (cited in Funk et. al. , 2004, p. 24).It also effects moral evaluation, as a result the viewer fails to perceive or respond to signs (Eron, 2001, cited in Funk et. al. , 2004, p. 26). Researchers and sociologists refer these effects as â€Å"desensitization†. Desensitization occurs due to repeated exposure to real life violence (Ceballo et al. , 2001, cited in Funk et. al. , 2004, p. 26). Likewise, fictional violence like movies and video games also contribute to the violence behaviour (Funk et. al. , 2004, p. 26). The media produces â€Å"a powerful desensitization i ntervention on a global level† (Science Daily, 2006). Furthermore, desensitization is divided into two categories.When, the viewer show numbing or blunting of emotional reaction to violent events is called emotional desensitization. When people start reacting that violence is nothing extraordinary, it is kind of daily routine is called cognitive desensitization (Funk et al. , 2004, p. 26). A study was conducted to examine desensitization by Drabman & Thomas (1974). In this study, the children who viewed violent movie needed adult help to avoid the aggressive thinking towards the scenes. The amount of time that people spend on watching violent media leads to Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (Schechter, 2010). Aggression is largely based on the activation and application of aggression-related knowledge structures stored in memory† (Bushman & Anderson, 2002). Later, Molitor & Hirsch (1994) confirmed that â€Å"viewing violence increases tolerance of violence† (ci ted in Funk et al. , 2004, p. 26). It is believed that fictional violence desensitizes people to real life violence by letting the viewer engaging in violent actions (Funk et al, 2004, p. 27). A research by Funk (2004) revealed that exposure to video game violence was associated with low empathy and stronger pro violence attitudes.The social cognitive theory suggests that due to repeated exposure to media violence the person undergoes psychological desensitization. This theory explains how people acquire and maintain certain behavioral patterns, while also providing the basis for intervention strategies (Bandura, 1997). According to Bushman & Anderson (2001), scientific evidence was sufficient to claim that media violence exposure was positively linked to significant violent behaviors and that even short-term exposure was sufficient to cause increases in aggressive behavior (cited in Bushman & Anderson, 2002).The basis for future social, emotional, cognitive, and physical developmen t is laid during early childhood. They can be manipulated and victimized by the media violence. â€Å"Concerns about child exposure to violent media have increased as television and video games have shown more violence† (Schechter, 2010). One of the main theories is the Bandura’s social learning theory. This theory mainly outlines that children learn violent acts after seeing them. One of the main problems faced by children, who heavily watch television, is decrease in consciousness of pain and sufferings of others.Furthermore, they tend to be more apprehensive and alert of their surroundings. In addition to this, they resort to choose more aggressive and harmful choices towards others. Psychologists have uncovered that high exposure of violent video games can be linked to delinquency, fighting at school and during free play periods, and brutal criminal actions (Anderson & Bushman, 2007). The severity of violent acts from other types of media such as computer games and movies has also increased rapidly. The most recent type of media violence is the violent video games (Bushman & Anderson, (2002). Violent films and programs that probably have the most deleterious effects on children are not always the ones that adults and critics believe are the most violent† (APA, 2003). Researchers have developed several theories proving that society is affected by the influence of the media. A number of children were shown a video in which a person beats a Bobo doll. Then they were put into a room with a Bobo doll to check whether the child imitates the behavior. After it was implied, this theory proved that children imitated media violence. In addition to that, childhood ith aggression, later in life erupts criminal behaviours like spouse abuse and homicide (Anderson et al, Wartell, 2003, p. 81). Another research conducted by the psychologists, revealed that â€Å"children who watch violent movies, games and TV programs had been convicted of crimes at o ver three times the rate of other men† when they grow up (APA, 2003). Children get immune to the media violence they starts to imitate it (AACAP, 2011). Repeated exposure to violent media grows wide array of aggressive and violent behaviours and later it reforms as aggressive and criminal behaviour (Bushman & Anderson, 2002).The General Aggression model by Bushman & Anderson (2002) has proven their theory on the relationship between violence in media cause people to behave violently. When an environmental situation appears ambiguous, an individual may rely on what they have seen, heard or read to interpret that situation as hostile, warranting aggressive action (Ferguson et al. , 2008). Moreover, Peterson & Pfost (1989) discovered that exposure to non-erotic violent music videos led adversarial sexual beliefs and negative effects on men.Similarly, another research proved that sexually subordinate images of women leads to teen dating violence in real life situations (Johnson et al. Reed, 1995, cited in Anderson et al. , 2003, p. 89). The media also play a remarkable role in â€Å"contagion of violence†. It is believed that â€Å"well known person’s suicide increase the likelihood that other people will also take their own lives† (Phillips, 1979 & Simon 1979, cited in Anderson et al, p. 89). A specific reason for the reason of violence in the society has not been discovered.One of the main causes of this is not being able to employ a standardized measure of aggression and media violence. Measuring violent criminal behavior in laboratory studies would clearly be unethical (Bushman & Anderson, 2001). Furthermore scholars tend to not report negative findings in their researches. Despite all the research, there has been very little reliable evidence that media violence causes aggressive behavior. Media violence studies cannot be completely relied upon as they fail to account for third variables.Researchers acknowledge that other variables may play a role in aggression and that aggression is due to a confluence of variables (Bushman & Anderson, 2001). These variables include genetics, personality and exposure to family violence. They explain why some people show violent behavior. However, the catalyst model approach reveled that these factors interact with each other (Ferguson et al. , 2008, p. 314). All things considered, that there are several angles that show the violence in the media has a correlation with the society.It also could associates with desensitization of the people. We cry at sad movies, laugh at outrageous comedies and pump our fist whenever something explodes. What we see in films and video games invokes a physical response. If it can influence to our physical response, there is a high chance that it could influence out mental and behaviour as well. References Brown, K. , (2005), An introduction to sociology, Third edition O’Donnel, G. , (2005), Mastering Sociology, Palgrave Master Series, Fou rth edition Giddens, A. , (2006), Sociology, Fifth edition Funk, J. B. et al.Baumgardner, (2004), Violence exposure in real life, video games, television, movies and the internet: is there desensitization? , Academic Press,Toledo USA Anderson, C. A. et al. (2003), The influence of media violence on youth, American Physiological Society Schechter, D. S. et al. (2009), Is Maternal PTSD Associated with Greater Exposure of Very Young Children to Violent Media? , National Institute of Health American Physiological Association (APA), (2003), Childhood Exposure to Media Violence Predicts Young Adult Aggressive Behavior, According to a New 15-Year Study, Available from: file:///S:/media-violence. spx. htm American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, (2011),Children And TV Violence, Available from: file:///S:/children_and_tv_violence. htm Ferguson, C. J. et al (2008), VIOLENT VIDEO GAMES AND AGGRESSION: Causal Relationship or Byproduct of Family Violence and Intrinsic Violence Motivati on? , Texas A&M International University Bushman, B. J & Anderson, C. A. (2001) Media Violence and the American Public: Scientific Facts Versus Media Misinformation Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control Huesmann L R. 2007) The impact of electronic media violence: Scientific theory and research. Bushman, B. J & Anderson, C. A. (2002)Violent Video Games and Hostile Expectations:A Test of the General Aggression Model, Iowa State University Science Daily (2006), Psychologists Produce First Study On Violence Desensitization From Video Games, Available From: http://www. sciencedaily. com/releases/2006/07/060727162108. htm Stickland, J. (Does violence in movies and video games desensitize us to the real thing? Available from: http://electronics. howstuffworks. com/violence-desensitize. htm

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Drug Prevention Program

Business Concept Proposal| Drug Prevention Program For| Executive summary This report is a business concept proposal that will help us develop a business plan for our organization which is NBK and that eventually will benefit them. The CSR project that we have chosen is a â€Å"Drug Prevention Program† that will benefit both NBK and society.In this proposal we first gave a small introduction about the company and what other CSRs the company is doing and then we included our aim and purpose of this project which is to increase the awareness level about this problem and provide some possible solutions and also to break all the cultural and society barriers about this specific issue. Then we went on our 4 SMART objectives which are what exactly we are aiming to achieve by the end of the project.In order for us to analysis the market for our proposal we did a Macro and Micro analysis that will help us determine what is our strength and weakness points and what could be the opportu nities and threats that we are facing. Another important part of this proposal is the financial projections. We did an estimated budget including profit and loss account and cash flow. After that we mentioned the requirements considered to ensure our project can be implemented like the logistical and operational requirements and how this may impact on the success of our project.In the viability part we showed our costs and benefit to the organization and its return on investment. Last but not least we talked about the competitive and economic viability on how the different activities that we do will mark us as a strong competitor in the business and on an economic perspective this project is going to benefit the economy as it will provide new jobs for Kuwaiti people and even give them the opportunity to work at NBK. Introduction National Bank of Kuwait is holding an event called â€Å"Drugs Prevention program†. This program is nonprofit event.This event is setup to spread awa reness and take an actual action to people on drugs; or people that doesn’t know about drugs. Many people don’t release how it’s dangerous, serious issue and can cause death. Drug prevention program is will be arrange to give advices and nonprofit rehabs that can be beneficial for drug addicts. Those rehabs will be very helpful to the addicts we as the drug prevention program organizers will provides brochures with full details and contact information. Why we chose NBK? NBK is the oldest bank in Kuwait and it has a very good reputation.Also it has been through a lot of CSR events in various sectors. The campaigns NBK did are Support of National Labor is our first priority, environmental initiative, health care initiative, sport initiative and contributions, education initiative, social care and philanthropic initiative, and conferences and seminars. The activities lies under the support of National Labor are NBK Academy, which intensive training for fresh gradua te that joined the bank and High flier’s leadership program; this program is to develop future leaders.As for environmental initiatives activities are hand-in-hand to preserve our beaches, this campaign launch to clean the beaches of Kuwait and Put your energy into saving energy NBK commenced its energy saving awareness campaign: ‘Put your energy into saving energy’, with staff and summer interns from NBK giving away more than 10,000 long life energy-saving light bulbs at the Avenues Mall. Health care initiative campaigns are breast cancer awareness give discounts for female employees to have a checkups and lectures and seminars for awareness and blood donation; many NBK employees donated blood for the blood hospital in Kuwait.Sport initiative and contribution NBK organized walkathon to encourage people to have a better health and lifestyle. Whereas for education initiative; NBK has hosted high schools and universities to learn day to day operations. Social and p hilanthropic initiative events done by NBK are Do Good Deeds in Ramdan this campaign offer free ftr banquets and Somalia famine relief campaign was launched to donate money. The last but not least the conferences and seminars which were set to increase awareness about currents issue in the society.One of the seminars was on the Global Financial Crisis and its Impact on the Region; which discussed the international outlook. Aim of the project The aim of this project â€Å"Drug Prevention Program† is to benefit the society and this fits in with NBK's mission statement, which is to serve the national needs as a priority. This program will be good for the society as it will increase the awareness level by defining the problem, which is drug usage and then it introduces society to the ways they or the people they know can prevent it and help them find possible solutions and lead them to the right places where they can find treatments.After we make sure people have enough knowledge to prevent this problem, we can expect drug usage to decrease, because they have been introduced to this problem and know all the negatives effects drugs have on the human body. There are a lot of controversial issues in our society and drugs is one of them, so it is very important to bring this topic up to the public and let them know that there is no shame for a drug abuser to admit that they have a problem and that they need to seek therapy.There are also a lot of cultural and traditional barriers that could affect the processing of this program, so our goal is to breach and break all these barriers and expose a problem that is considered as a â€Å"Taboo† topic. It is essential to make a step now, because as we all see, it is a growing issue and the accessibility for drugs is really easy nowadays, that is why our society needs to open up their minds to these kind of problems or else it will affect our future generations. Key ObjectivesSetting objectives is really importa nt for any organization or a project because it will let us know what we are trying to achieve and it will increase our chances of success. Our objectives will deliver major benefits to this program and the most important one that it will define the purpose of this project. We set for our project 4 different objectives for our program (Operational, Marketing, Financial and CSR) and they are all SMART objectives. * Operational Objective: Conduct a seminar every two week in a different location each time while having diverse guest speakers in each location. Marketing Objective: To increase awareness and publicity of the program through sponsored events and media notifications by 20% within the next 3 months. * Financial Objective: To increase customer base of the firm by 7% by the end of the program as a result of the program's positive effect on society. * CSR Objective: Increase community welfare by decreasing level of society's drug administration 15% by the end of program. Having these objectives is like a powerful tool that will help us succeed and it will keep our team motivated and seeks more accomplishments. Feasibility Analysis MacroBefore venturing into a new project, it is important to assess the external environment of a business and what possible impacts can affect the project. The threats and opportunities are external factors that guide a project towards taking certain decisions over others. Social factors: Kuwait, as compared to the rest of the world, receives a generally higher average income. This shows that the majority of the population in Kuwait is on the higher side of the income range. Within the lifestyle changes are the increasing popularity of social media and its different usages within societies.It is a powerful tool to reach as many people within society as possible. Social trends in Kuwait can affect the way people look at the Drug Prevention Program (DPP). Since drug abuse is a taboo topic, tackling it publicly would face some kind of hesitance by the public. Ensuring that local positive public figures as a part of our program would change the attitudes of people in Kuwait. It would garner more publicity and receive more entrants within the program. Technological factors: The increasing usage of technology in these times means more coverage for the DPP.People surfing the net, using social media and/or browsing through the various forms of technologies can find (or be exposed to) items and events that are happening around them and more information about each finding. In order to reach a bigger range of people, the program needs to be technologically updated in terms of websites, social media and pop-up ads if necessary. Technology must also be used to enhance the quality of whatever is being presented and also to improve the organization and efficiency of what is being accomplished.There is no firm, program or organization deemed to be successful without the usage of thorough technology. The marketplace for wh atever that needs to be launched today needs strict technological requirements that need to be met so that it can connect to a wider audience. Environmental factors: There are many factors that influence industries and the industries affected by environmental factors (weather and climate changes) include tourism, agriculture and economic industries. However, there should not be much stress on what environmental aspects can affect the DPP because its nature is not affected by climate changes.As long as there will not be any significant hazard, the environmental factors can be considered as off the radar for this type of DPP. Economic factors: An economy affects the way a society behave and it obviously alternate their decisions depending upon how high or low it is. If the local economy has resulted in higher interest rates, this will mean that firms will be less likely to invest in what might seem like an unpredictable gamble. This DPP needs sponsorship and is based on fund-raiser ev ents to continue the progress of the program, and not much participation will happen if the economic times are low.Another factor of economy is the strength of the currency. Kuwait has a very strong currency and its affects import/export activities, but that will not be an issue because the program does not need much of these activities. If inflation occurs, staff will need higher salaries and this will affect the planned budget. The salaries need to be raised so that the staff can be satisfied when being compared to other raised salaries within the fields and industries. Political factors: When political factors are mentioned, one automatically thinks of the laws and regulations that restrict an action or a project from fully taking shape.Since drug abuse is a taboo topic, there are bound to be limits to what can be done through the project. The law in Kuwait prohibits the live showcase of drugs and substances that can be abused. This can somewhat hinder our performance because it will limit what the group can show a live audience to enlighten them on what needs to be stayed away from. If guest speakers in the form of previous users need to be brought in to enlighten the participants, there will be restrictions due to the law not allowing prisoners to exit their cells and talk about experiences only once their period is over.This means that only ex-abusers who have finished their trials and prison time can enlighten the participants, the newly caught addicts will not be able to. It must be noted that the DPP will not focus much on current abusers who were caught abusing rather than those who willingly wanted to quit drug and substance abuse. Before continuing further with this project, legal framework needs to be conducted so that the project is validated and under the microscopic view of the government ensuring that no illegal limits are surpassed. Legal factors:Laws banning against age and race discrimination will not affect the DPP heavily as the participa tion has no kind of restriction whatsoever. A participant does not even have to be an abuser, or even in contact with one. Since the jobs offered to the staff will not be permanent, there will not be a minimum wage assigned to what the individual salary amount is. There is a law in Kuwait that states: any Kuwaiti national working in the private sector will receive a fixed amount each month as an addition to what a firm is handing over as a salary.This law will not be applied to the DPP because the vacant jobs offered are not permanent positions; it is only in the duration of the events that the assigned staff will be a part of the program. Permission needs to be granted from the governmental censors to give the program the green light to go ahead with the project. After permission has been granted, the banquet hall owners need to be aware of the purpose and activities of the DPP. Macro SWOT Analysis Strengths: * Controversial * Good Cause * Society’s Benefit Weaknesses: * No monetary ROI Costly * Taboo Opportunities: * Program Expansion * Rehab Formation * Brand Image Threats: * Public Decline * Influential Competition * Insufficient funding to continue This drug prevention program has strengths and weakness. The strengths are it controversial many people might disagree to expose the idea or issue; which is currently available and increasing radically. The good cause is that it spreading awareness and leading drug addicts to the right direction. This will benefit the society by having a better living and health.The weakness are that there aren’t monetary ROI; zero profit and it cost a lot there will be a loss in return because this campaign is setup to have better youth to have better society. Its taboo because people in the Arab region see it as shame and don’t attempt that it exists. There are many opportunities for the program; which are to expand the program and format a rehab and boost brand image. The threats are the public decline w hich is the society not accepting the idea. Influential competition is another threat which other companies or banks can launch a campaign similar to ours.The last threat is the insufficient funding; not having enough money or if NBK stops funding us. NBK's CSR programs are successful due to the reason that it encompasses as many fields as it can possibly be a positive addition to. The strengths are the variety of areas that NBK is participating in to achieve and maintain an improved society. It has a diverse selection of activities: social, educational, philanthropic, sports-related and more. NBK has built a positive reputation for itself as a pioneer in merging its daily activities along with CSR activities for the improvement of society.Currently, a weakness is that NBK is not a part of any project or program that supports the fight against drug and substance abuse. The DPP is the right step and opportunity to turn this weakness into strength. Another weakness for the CSR of NBK is that it does not necessarily include the entire society. Without this program, people into drug and substance abuse are sidelined and not given any help or guidance. The opportunities resulting from external factors are that NBK can further push its CSR boundaries and continue in pursuing other untapped fields that need to be brought to the general public's eye.NBK releases a CSR annual report that showcases their social responsibilities towards society. It lists what NBK has done the previous year in terms of initiatives and activities. This shows how the private sectors in Kuwait are competing to be the best CSR champions with the most good done to society. This benefits the society more than it benefits the firms competing to help and improve. An opportunity in the form of program continual rises due to the strong need for initiatives upping society's standards. The next phase of the project can be adopted by NBK's rival if the program proves to be a success.Drug and substance abuse is a taboo topic in Kuwait even today. Not wholeheartedly knowing what the general public's reaction is means that a threat is opposing the DPP. There are bound to be people who do not want to associate themselves with taboo topics such as drugs which mean that there will be some kind of a decline from a section of the public. It is vital to assess how the threats and weaknesses fare against the strengths and opportunities of this program. Financial Projections Cash flow| |   | Year 1| Year 2| Year 3| | | | | |   | Net profit| | | 105,050 | 105,050 | 105,050 |Depreciation| | | 105,050 | 105,050 | 105,050 | Office Rent| | | 2,100 | 2,100 | 2,100 | Media costs| | | 93,500 | 93,500 | 93,500 | Staff| | | 11,000 | 11,000 | 11,000 | Transportation| | | 200 | 200 | 200 | Cash profits| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | Increase in CA| | | n/a| n/a| n/a| Net cash from operating activities| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | Renovations| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | change in FA| | | (850,000)|   |   | Net cash after investing activities| | | (850,000)| 0 | 0 | Capital induction| | | 105,050 | 0 | 0 | change in advance rentals| | | 6,300 | (417,600)| (104,400)| Net increase in cash| | | (738,650)| (417,600)| (104,400)| | | | | |   |Opening cash balance| | | 0 | (738,650)| (1,156,250)| Closing cash balance| | | (738,650)| (1,156,250)| (1,260,650)| | | | | | | | | | (745,350)| (1,281,750)| (1,831,890)| | | | | | | Net Profit| |   | 26,933 | 479,733 | 493,473 | Inv Capital|   | | 0| 0| 0| ROI|   | | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | | | | | | | Net cashflow from operations| | | 26,933 | 479,733 | 493,473 |   | | | | | | | | | | | | Requirements In order for the project to be implemented, there are a few requirements that need to be taken in to consideration. To further promote this program, it has been decided that seminars will be held at different schools and universities.To proceed with this we will need knowledgeable staff or speakers, and/or former addicts to speak at these seminars. Another requ irement would be setting up booths and banners in Avenues, Marina Mall, and 360. Also for spreading the word about this program in less expensive way we will be designing different brochures and handing them out at the seminars and booths. Some of the other activities that will be done are fundraisers and getting different sponsorship’s to boost the program. For this to be done operationally speaking we will need sufficient staff to arry out the tasks and/or guest speakers, money for printing and equipment, vehicles, and having meetings and presentations. The staff will need to be able to design the brochures and banners, set up booths, and be knowledgeable about the program to deliver the message in meetings and presentations. Like most projects money is a key factor to get the job done. We will need money for gas, staff, printing, and other equipment. Technically the program is going to require computers for emailing and organizing with school officials and NBK members also to stay financially organized with sufficient data.For this program to run smoothly we must also focus on logistics. Organization and planning are a must for determining which schools or universities and which dates are the most appropriate and effective. As mentioned earlier the three malls were chosen for the banners and booths, because they are the most popular and seem to be the most effective for reaching the target audience. Some good locations for the seminars could be reception halls and popular locations that can be rented, for the presentations and meetings on the other the NBK meeting room seems to be most suitable for our program.Viability In terms of Return on Investment Viability, our project will not be gaining any monetary returns directly since it is a non-profit program. For the ROI formula we will calculate zero (no profit) divided by 105,050 (for one year) which will be equal to zero percent financial gain. The total investment required is 315,150 for the three years of the program. Our ROI for the first year will be zero. Competitive Viability Like any project, the Drug program will need to be viable and sustainable with regards to competition.This means that our program can survive long-term and eventually gain profit while competing with similar programs in Kuwait. In Kuwait however, there is already some competition. One major competitor is the National Anti-Drug Committee. This committee was founded in 1989, and their main goals are similar to our program’s goals, which are to focus on the youth and the protection of the health of society. Also similar to our goals is the fact that they are trying to introduce some awareness amongst the education fields. Although there is some competition already in the market, we believe that program can become more competitive nce introduced, because we will be working with NBK which is a very popular bank, especially among the youth. The National Anti-Drug Committee is not well known in Kuwa it, yet has been around for many years. Although this is true about the National Anti-Drug Committee, our program will still have a competitive advantage working with NBK. Also we are going to be introducing many guest speakers at different seminars through different schools. We will be bringing people who have abused drugs and overcame these issues, which will have a great impact on people in a society like Kuwait.Another thing that our program is going to offer is setting up different fundraisers throughout Kuwait to raise awareness about the serious nature of drug abuse. These different activities that our project will be conducting will give our company and program a more competitive edge in the market. Economic Viability In order for our drug program to be viable economically, it will need to create different job opportunities and possibly attract people to work at NBK. This program is an extremely controversial activity in a society like Kuwait where the issue of drugs and dru g abuse is a taboo subject.By confronting the matter and showing people how serious and spread out this problem is in Kuwait already, we can show people that NBK cares about this and is not afraid to be associated with fighting it. The project for NBK will require staff and/or volunteers. This will create job openings for anyone interested. It may even attract people to work for NBK, because it shows that they care about and are giving back to society. This further promotes NBK’s vision to benefit the society where they function. References * Fattahova, N. (2012). Awareness campaign to prevent drug abuse . ttp://news. kuwaittimes. net/2012/08/22/awareness-campaign-to-prevent-drug-abuse/. Last accessed 11th Nov 2012. * Kuwait. nbk. (2012). About NBK. http://www. kuwait. nbk. com/about/disclosures/default_en_gb. aspx. Last accessed 10th Nov 2012. * Murray, J. (2012). Viability (of a business). http://biztaxlaw. about. com/od/glossaryv/g/viability. htm. Last accessed 9th Nov 201 2. * Vyakarnam, S . Writing a business plan, clarification and preparation – the market approach. http://https://docs. google. com/viewer/. Last accessed 14th Nov 2012 AppendixCashflow| |   | Year 1| Year 2| Year 3| | | | | |   | Net profit| | | 105,050 | 105,050 | 105,050 | Depreciation| | | 105,050 | 105,050 | 105,050 | Office Rent| | | 2,100 | 2,100 | 2,100 | Media costs| | | 93,500 | 93,500 | 93,500 | Staff| | | 11,000 | 11,000 | 11,000 | Transportation| | | 200 | 200 | 200 | Cash profits| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | Increasein CA| | | n/a| n/a| n/a| Net cash from operating activities| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | Renovations| | | 0 | 0 | 0 | change in FA| | | (850,000)|   |   | Net cash after investing activities| | | (850,000)| 0 | 0 | Capital induction| | | 105,050 | 0 | 0 | hange in advance rentals| | | 6,300 | (417,600)| (104,400)| Net increase in cash| | | (738,650)| (417,600)| (104,400)| | | | | |   | Opening cash balance| | | 0 | (738,650)| (1,156,250)| Closing cash balance| | | (738,650)| (1,156,250)| (1,260,650)| | | | | | | | | | (745,350)| (1,281,750)| (1,831,890)| | | | | | | Net Profit| |   | 26,933 | 479,733 | 493,473 | Inv Capital|   | | 0| 0| 0| ROI|   | | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | #DIV/0! | | | | | | | Net cashflow from operations| | | 26,933 | 479,733 | 493,473 |   | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ROI Calculation Amount of Financial Gain Total Investment Amount 0 0 105. 050