K-Mart Stores Essays - Walmart, Sears Holdings, Retailing

K-Mart Stores K-mart Stores K-mart's upper management is attempting to bring K-mart upmarket without losing the chain's discount image. The goal is to change the store's image from a no-frills discount store to a retailer of quality, brand-name merchandise offered in modern, attractive displays. K-mart is attempting to change with its typical customers, who are now more educated and sophisticated than earlier in the store's history. K-mart assembled a senior management team to evaluate the impacts that emerging social, economic and political changes in the United States would have on the future of the business. This team was called the F-Team. Once the F-Team completed it's report, K-mart management asked for specific marketing strategies to address each scenario from the F-Team's report. Of all items in the report, America's changing social class and income structure is of particular importance. The primary customer base for K-mart has been the middle class group. This group comprises about 32 percent of the population. Members of this group often buy products that are popular and trendy. They tend to be very concerned with fashion. Middle class size is in decline due to the influences of international competition. There is increased competition between countries for the labor pool. Third world workers are willing to accept wages that are up to a third less than United States workers will accept for the same tasks. American labor premium is disappearing, causing a significant downward mobility and an associated diminution of living standards and purchasing power. The group affected is K-mart's predominate customer base. This is cause of great concern to the upper management. According to the case study, this scenario will place the top group in the new social structure of the United States at about 25 percent of households, while the bottom will represent close to 65 percent. The bottom (K-mart's customers) will suffer decrease purchasing power as a result of this shift. Upper management must create a public image makeover in order to attract customers from the smaller, but more affluent upper middle class. Proper decisions by upper management will have the desired impact on imaging and positioning. This will cause K-mart to occupy a distinctive place in the target market's mind. The goals must be carefully set in order to attract customers with higher incomes, and at the same time, not alienate those already shopping at discount stores. New programs designed to help change the store's image include: 1. A new advertising campaign in which designer Martha Stewart uses K-mart products to decorate her farmhouse 2. Use of pro golfer Fuzzy Zoeller in ads to promote golf equipment 3. Co-sponsorship of a race car driven by Mario Andretti 4. In-store greeters and a toll-free customer response number. K-mart has also been working to be identified with fashion. Everything the stores carry will be considered fashionable, chic and popular. According to the case study, the efforts towards this goal have been successful. K-mart increased sales by 7.8 percent during 1992. The nature and extent of change will be decided by upper management and formulated in the offices of K-mart's headquarters, where the retailer's management team will evaluate every aspect of the company's operations. A revival is not implausible. After all, K-mart follows in the footsteps of such chains as Sears, JCPenney, and Montgomery Ward, all of which have accomplished turnaround feats of impressive magnitude. But despite the evidence of past turnarounds by similarly beleaguered chains, the thought of K-mart making such a radical change successfully seems remote. After all, generations of customers have the image of K-mart as a cheap discount store burned into their brains. The blue light specials invoke images of desperate shoppers madly running into or over each other to get their special buy. That image will most easily be changed in the children of K-marts present shoppers. K-mart's chief attribute in the highly competitive discount store arena is convenient locations. Unfortunately, location alone may not be enough for the Troy, Michigan-based retailer that invented discount store retailing 33 years ago. K-mart needs more; it needs a new focus and a new image, and it needs them quickly. At a similarly difficult juncture in Sears' history, the Chicago-based retailer had more going for it than does K-mart. Sears chairman Ed Brennan hired

Use of the Word Analogies in the ESL Classroom

Use of the Word Analogies in the ESL Classroom Using words analogies is a useful way of building vocabulary. Word analogies can be created using many different categories. Here is a simple example of a word analogy: Hot is to cold as up is to down OR hot - cold | up - down This is an example of a word analogy using antonyms. Here are a number of word analogies in a wide variety of categories.   Word Analogies: Antonyms or Opposites hot - cold | up - downblack - white | happy - sadlaugh - cry | rich - poorcrazy - sane | large - small Word Analogies: Relationships Expressing a Part of the Whole eye - head | finger - handcent - dollar | inch - footeraser - pencil | CPU - computerwheel - car | sink - plumbing Word Analogies: Relationships Between Numbers one - two | two - four1/2 - 1 | 10 - 20six - thirty-six | two - four100 - 1,000 | 1,000 - 10,000 Word Analogies: Sequences breakfast - lunch | morning - afternoonMonday - Tuesday | AM - PMwork - earn | plant - harvestleave - arrive | get up - go to sleep Word Analogies: Objects and Their Uses (noun - verb) pen - write | food - eatlawn - mow | coffee - drinksugar - sweeten | ball - throwbutton - push | letter - mail Word Analogies: Objects and Their Users (thing - person) library - student | computer - programmercar - driver | piano - musicianbrush - painter | football - quarterbackdoll - child | cell phone - teenager Word Analogies: Grammatical Relationships I - me | He - himdrive - driven | fly - flownto think - thinking | to shout - shoutingsome - any | already - yet Word Analogies: Group Relationships student - class | member - clubplayer - team | representative - congressjudge - court | policeman - police forceviolin player - orchestra | teller - bank Word Analogies: Cause and Effect (adjective - verb) thirsty - drink | tired - sleepdirty - wash | funny - laughwet - dry | hot - cool downcurious - ask | sad - cry

Johnny Carson Ancestry and Family Tree

Johnny Carson Ancestry and Family Tree John William Johnny Carson (October 23, 1925 Ââ€" January 23, 2005 was an American actor, comedian and writer best known for his tenure as host of The Tonight Show from 1962 until 1992. Born in Corning, Iowa to Homer Lee Kit Carson (no relation to the famous western hero) and Ruth Hook Carson, Johnny grew up with his parents, older sister, Catherine, and younger brother, Richard (Dick), in Nebraska. Johnny Carson married his college sweetheart Joan Wolcott on October 1, 1949. They had 3 sons. In 1963, Carson divorced Joan and married Joanne Copeland on August 17, 1963. After another divorce, he and former model Joanna Holland were married on September 30, 1972. This time, it was Holland who filed for a divorce in 1983. Johnny then married Alexis Maas on June 20, 1987, a marriage that survived happily until Carsons death in January 2005. Tips for Reading This Family Tree First Generation: 1. John William (Johnny) CARSON was born on 23 Oct 1925 in Corning, Iowa.1 He died of emphysema on 23 Jan 2005 in Malibu, California. Second Generation: 2. Homer Lee (Kit) CARSON2,3 was born on 4 Oct 1899 in Logan, Harrison Co., Iowa.4 He died on 9 Apr 1983 in Paradise Valley, Scottsdale, Arizona.5 Homer Lee (Kit) CARSON and Ruth HOOK were married in 1922.6 3. Ruth HOOK7 was born in Jul 1901 in Jackson Township, Taylor Co., Iowa.8 She died in 1985. Homer Lee (Kit) CARSON and Ruth HOOK had the following children: i. Catherine Jean CARSON was born in Dec 1923 in Hand Hospital, Shenandoah, Iowa.81  Ã‚  ii. John William (Johnny) CARSON.iii. Richard Charles (Dick) CARSON was born on 4 Jun 1929 in Clarinda, Page Co., Iowa.9 Third Generation: 4. Christopher N. (Kit) CARSON2,3,10,11 was born in Jan 1874 in Monona Co., Iowa. Christopher N. (Kit) CARSON and Ella B. HARDY were married on 28 Dec 1898 in Harrison Co., Iowa.12 5. Ella B. HARDY2,3,10,13 was born on 18 Nov 1876 in Magnolia, Jefferson Co., Iowa. She died on 20 Aug 1967. Christopher N. (Kit) CARSON and Ella B. HARDY had the following children: 2 i. Homer Lee (Kit) CARSON.ii. Charles E. CARSON3 was born about 1907 in Logan, Harrison Co., Iowa.iii. Raymond E. CARSON10 was born about 1913 in Logan, Harrison Co., Iowa.iv. Doris A. CARSON10 was born about 1918 in Logan, Harrison Co., Iowa. 6. George William HOOK14 was born on 27 Dec 1870 or 1871 in Lowry, St. Clair Co., Missouri.15 He died of a heart attack on 21 Dec 1947 in Bedford, Taylor Co., Iowa. He is buried in Fairview Bedford Cemetery, Taylor Co., Iowa. George William HOOK and Jessie BOYD were married on 19 Sep 1900.15-17 7. Jessie BOYD6 was born on 6 Jul 1876 in Taylor County, Iowa.16 She died of grief on 20 Jun 1911 in Bedford, Taylor Co., Iowa.16 She is buried in Fairview Bedford Cemetery, Taylor Co., Iowa. George William HOOK and Jessie BOYD had the following children: 3  Ã‚  i. Ruth HOOKii. John W. HOOK6 was born in 1904 in Bedford, Taylor County, Iowa.18 He died of peritonitis in May 1911 in Bedford, Taylor County, Iowa.19iii. Mary HOOK6 was born in Feb 1906 in Taylor County, Iowa.20,21iv. Florence HOOK6 was born in Feb 1910. She died in Feb 1910.22,23v. Jessie Boyd HOOK was born in Jun 1911.24 Fourth Generation: 8. Marshall CARSON11,25-28 was born on 14 Mar 1835 in Maine. He died on 21 May 1922 in Logan, Harrison County, Iowa. He is buried in Logan Cemetery, Harrison County, Iowa. Marshall CARSON and Emeline (Emma) KELLOGG were married on 17 Jul 1870 in Washington County, Nebraska. 9. Emeline (Emma) KELLOGG11,26-28 was born on 18 May 1847 in Fayette, Indiana. She died on 12 Feb 1922 in Harrison County, Iowa. She is buried in Logan Cemetery, Harrison County, Iowa. Marshall CARSON and Emeline (Emma) KELLOGG had the following children: 4  Ã‚  i. Christopher N. (Kit) CARSON.ii. Angie CARSON11 was born about 1875 in Nebraska.iii. Phebe CARSON11 was born about 1877 in Iowa.iv. Amilda CARSON11 was born about 1879 in Iowa.v. Ora CARSON26 was born in Jun 1881 in Harrison Co., Iowa.vi. Edgar M. CARSON26 was born in Feb 1882 in Harrison Co., Iowa.vii. Fred G. CARSON26-28 was born in Jul 1885 in Harrison County, Iowa. He died in 1923 in Harrison Co., Iowa.viii. Herbert E. CARSON26,27,29 was born in Dec 1890 in Harrison Co., Iowa. 10. Samuel Tomlinson HARDY10,13,30,31 was born on 1 May 1848 in Angola, Steuben Co., Indiana. He died on 21 Jul 1933 in at the home of his daughter, Mrs. C. N. Carson in Logan, Harrison Co., Iowa. Samuel Tomlinson HARDY and Viola Millicent VINCENT were married on 30 Jun 1872 in Iowa. 11. Viola Millicent VINCENT13,30,32 was born on 2 Apr 1855. She died on 3 May 1935 in Harrison Co., Iowa. Samuel Tomlinson HARDY and Viola Millicent VINCENT had the following children: i. Loyd HARDY13 was born about 1866 in Iowa.ii. Louis HARDY13 was born about 1870 in Iowa.5 iii. Ella B. HARDY.iv. Delaven H. HARDY13,30 was born in Aug 1879 in Iowa.30v. Bruce L. HARDY30 was born in Sep 1881 in Iowa.30vi. Gladys HARDY30 was born in Oct 1896 in Iowa.30

The Attitude and Action of York University Students with Regard to Research Paper

The Attitude and Action of York University Students with Regard to Medical Transplant and Organ Donation - Research Paper Example This research was driven by five objectives namely: to establish how students in York University (YU) perceive organ transplants (OT); to investigate the incidence of OT in the United States of America; to establish the attitude of students in YU towards medical transplants and organ donations; to identify the action of YU towards OT; and to identify countermeasures that can be put in place so that students in YU embrace and perceive OT positively. Chapter one of the study included the background of the study, statement of the problem, purpose of the study, study objectives, research questions, significance of the study, limitations of the study, scope of the study, assumption of study and definition of terms. Chapter two of the study offers an outline of medical transplants and organ donations. These ideas are going to introduce key concepts and understandings that link to the purpose and field of research. Chapter three describes the research design that provides information regard ing the population of the study, sample size and sampling procedure, instrumentation, data collection and data analysis techniques. Chapter four deals with data presentation and analysis; after data collection, the data was recorded. This data was interpreted and analyzed in order to draw varied conclusions from it, and gather meaningful information. Chapter five illustrates the summary of findings based on the analysis and interpretation of the data gathered. Keywords: organ transplant, organ donation CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of The Study Organ transplantation refers to the surgical removal of one or many organs from one person (the donor) to place it into the body of another person (the recipient) commonly for medical reasons. In most cases, the donated organs are derived from dead people, but in some times, these organs can be removed from living beings (Ballard, 2009). Commonly transplanted organs are the liver, kidney, pancreas, intestines, heart, liver an d lungs. Commonly transplanted tissues include the middle ear, skin, bone, heart valves, tendons, ligaments, stem cells, blood, platelets, cartilage and the cornea. The need for organ transplantation in the US and in the world as a whole has continued to rise in the recent past. Numbers of those needing OT in the USA, and in the world in general have continued to rise, even exceeding the available donors for this procedure. The shortage is so massive such that, approximately 20 OT patients die daily due to the afore-mentioned shortage. Statistics have revealed that over 4000 people register to undergo the procedure every month. Furthermore, about 80 people receive new organs every day in the US alone (Durrette, 2009). 1.2 Statement of the Problem For all its benefits and success, OT has received various criticisms and ethical concerns, which has reduced the number of people who are willing to donate organs. Various attitudes exist concerning the practice, and this is impacting negat ively on the success rate of the procedure (Finn, 2010). Unless these are addressed, the bridge between organ donors and recipients will keep increasing. 1.3 Purpose of Study The purpose of the study is to determine the attitude and action of York University students with regard to medical

Does Media Violence actually cause people to Commit Violent Acts Essay

Does Media Violence actually cause people to Commit Violent Acts - Essay Example   Studies disclose that children watch roughly twenty eight hours of television a week (Tompkins). Adolescents and children in America are open to the elements of mounting levels of media violence, particularly in video games, movies, television and youth-oriented music. On average, a young individual would have watched 200,000 scenes of violence on television by the age of 18 (Huesmann, Moise-Titus and Podolski, 207). Many of the studies that claim positive results concerning a link between media violence and ensuing aggression, actually have negative or inconclusive results. Media violence researches frequently fail to report for other variables such as heredity traits, personality and introduction to family violence that may explain both the reason some people become violent and why they may decide to expose themselves to violent media. In more recent years, violence has become the most popular form of entertainment. Most fictional programs on television and scenes depicted in m ost games need this violence to develop a storyline that would be interesting and captivating to most viewers. The violence is far more graphic and disturbing than in the past (Tompkins, 52). Many argue that media violence is at least partly to blame for the school shootings in Littleton, Colorado, Taber, Alberta and Erfurt, Germany.    Proponents of the idea that violence depicted on both television and video games affects the behavior of children state that, contrary to other beliefs, these scenes teach a higher sense of the justification of the use of violence in different situations (Tompkins, 50). It teaches that violence is a correct avenue to solve differences, which is not an acceptable action within real life situations. The classic setting of using violence for a virtuous cause may interpret in daily life into a validation for using violence to even the score against supposed victimizers. Consequently, defenseless youth who have been maltreated may be tempted to use aggr essive means to resolve problems. The hero in most of these scenes also teaches them that violence has no consequences because he/she never gets in trouble for their actions. Most psychologists agree that experiences teach children during their early years and have a longstanding effect on their lives. Toddlers between the ages of eighteen to sixteen months are intelligent enough to comprehend the significance of the programs (Tompkins, 48) that they watch and respond in the same manner to both actual and acted violence since their link between dream and actuality is still not strong. Furthermore, toddlers between the ages of three and five years are engrossed by extremely dramatic scenes, which in today’s viewing, is mostly violence. Additionally, children who are in elementary schools believe that TV reflects real life and will become more active in displaying hostile conduct after watching violent scenes because they have been learning form a young age through watching and imitating what they see their through the violent acts of supposed movie heroes (Malamuth and Check, 436). Children who observe the aggressive shows, even hilarious cartoons, were more apt to hit their playmates, quarrel, refuse to comply with class rules, leave tasks

Learning Through Games

Learning Through Games Learning through Games Every parent and teacher out there can attest to the fact that no matter how smart a child is getting them to study is quite a difficult task, simply because of all the distractions out there. So why not take one major distraction – video games and put it to good use? There are so many good educational tools available many of them cleverly disguised as games. The kids and some adults too will get captivated by the storyline and learn tons along the way. Here are a few of the best ones covering topics like Physics, Engineering, Art and English. Ogre Academy Math Ogre Academy Math is an educational game created to enhance the basic math skills in children. This game caters to a slightly younger audience of ages 5-6 years by default, but can be customized to appeal to those at a higher grade level as well. The game takes place in an ogre filled classroom part of a player avatar’s dream. The player is given a series of questions in the form of math problems that he must solve. Most of these problems are simplistic but the difficulty increases as you go on. They can be addition, subtraction or counting problems. With each correct answer you get a candy bar which is used to feed the ogres. While some students may object to having to give away the candy, it is used to keep the ogres at bay so it must be done. After ten or more wrong answers the candy deprived ogres come and carry the avatar away from their bedroom. Ogre Academy Math promotes quick thinking and the flexibility to switch between different types for questions. Players have to think strategically and learn when and how to use shortcuts like rounding off since they do not have pen and paper at hand and have to rely on quick thinking. Ogre Academy Math will have special appeal to teachers as they can use it to create unique lesson plans. They can customize the problems for any grade level. The kids will enjoy doing something different and will learn tons in the process. As an added bonus the teachers receive detailed reports on the children’s progress as they go along. Platform: iOS Keep the ogres at bay by feeding them treats Kerbal Space Program The Kerbal Space Program is a PC based game that emulates a space flight simulator. Basically you can build virtual rocket ships and blast them off the planet. Gameplay takes place on a planet called Kerbin, home to little green humanoids called Kerbals. These comical little characters build very good spacecraft parts. It is up to the player to construct and assemble the components into rockets or spacecrafts in the most efficient way possible. There is a lot of physics involved in building the rocket ship. If not constructed properly it could fall off the launch pad while taking off or explode mid flight. After building a good spacecraft you have to learn to achieve orbit and then finally land your spacecraft on other planets. There are three game modes – Sandbox Mode, Science Mode and Career mode. As you can imagine the difficulty increases with each of them. In the Sandbox Mode players learn the basics. Players can pick any of inventory and building mistakes are forgiven. In the science mode part picking is restricted. You have to complete scientific experiments on Kerbin and other parts of the solar system before you can unlock them. Career mode adds funds reputation and contracts. Players have to complete contracts so that they can earn money to pay for the parts. Contracts can include tasks like testing rocket parts under certain conditions or exploring places and reporting back. Historical spacecrafts like the Apollo Program or the Mars Rover can be recreated. Children with an aptitude for physics and an interest in aerospace will find this a very enriching learning experience. Platform: PC Build and launch rockets using the kerbal space program Amazing Alex Amazing Alex was created by the developers of angry birds Rovio Entertainment, and is a physics-based puzzle game. Alex is a curious boy who likes to build things with household objects. Players are given goals to complete and supplies they can use to achieve these goals. Players have to create chain reactions which are simply sequences of events that achieve the goals. For example you can set off a line of dominoes which will push a ball off a ledge into a basket below. Stars are scattered all over the place and your event sequence should try and pass through them for a higher score. The nice thing about the game is that it uses household and play objects that children are already familiar with. These objects react realistically with one another. Kids learn short term planning by adjusting to changing conditions and requirements. It puts their planning, flexibility and focus skills to work. They can even create and share their own puzzles for others to solve. There are over a hundred levels spread across four locations. You start off in ‘The Classroom’, and then move onto ‘The Backyard’, ‘Alex’s Bedroom’ and finally ‘The Tree House’ depending on the stars collected in the previous levels. The graphics are high quality, fun and engaging. Kids can try recreating the challenges in the real world using Legos and building kits. They can then compare how actual physics works as compared to the gameplay and what additional factors contribute to making things tick. Amazing Alex is often used to help children with ADHD gain focus. Following directions and planning ahead are tasks that these kids have difficulty with. Amazing Alex helps them focus and plan strategies in a fun way which they respond to much better than regular classroom activities. They get a hands-on introduction into physics concepts like inertia, gravity and friction. Platform: Android,iOS Help Alex create chain reactions with these objects QuizUp QuizUp is for the slightly older kids. It is a fun filled trivia game based on the popular board game Trivial Pursuit. It has over 250 categories and is highly competitive. Players are matched with other players from across the world. Each quiz is exactly 7 questions long, each lasting 10 seconds. This is long enough and short enough so that no one gets bored, and those with sketchy internet connections don’t have to forfeit midway. You can play as many categories as you like and the more you play the higher your skill level in that category goes. QuizUp is fantastic for learning time management and general knowledge. Sometimes questions repeat which helps you commit them to memory. Children can opt for challenging categories such as Math and English and then take a break and do a fun quiz like a Harry Potter themed one. It is also very exciting because you are playing with real people rather than just a computer interface. Quiz up is not only informative but also highly addictive. Kids can spend hours playing and come away with lots of new trivia facts learned and math skills mastered. Platform: Android, iOS Spoilt for choice with Quiz Up Google Art Project The Google Art Project is a collection of over 30000 works of art from collections all over the world. From Impressionist Artworks at the Art Institute of Chicago to modern artwork from the Tate at London, the Google Art Project amasses all periods of art. The high resolution images allow kids to get closer to the images and examine every detail. Each museum has nominated one piece as a ‘Gigapixel Artwork’ which means that Google has captured it using gigapixel photo capturing technology. It produces an image containing 7 billion pixels, so viewers can view the piece in microscopic detail. Be advised, kids could see violence or nudity in these pictures so it is necessary for guidance of some sort while perusing. Browsing the artwork can be done either on the webpage or by browsing through the museum in the form of a map. Some international museums that are included in the project are The National Gallery in London, The Met in New York, the Uffizi in Florence and The Hermitage in St Petersburg. Such a vast collection might be daunting at first but kids will soon enjoy exploring the museums from all over the world. It forms a kind of virtual meta-museum with many thoughtfully designed features by Google as always. The FAQ section has a video Visitor’s Guide for first time users and the site can be translated in to as many as 19 languages. There are lessons, quizzes and project ideas. Users can create their own collections and share them with friends. The Google Art Project allows children interested in art to take their first steps in art appreciation and history. They can explore museums at their own pace, stop and ask questions, compare works from museums across the world and develop their creative abilities. Platform: PC Google Art Project World of Goo World of Goo is a game kids will take an instant interest in simply because of the name. The game revolves around building large structures using balls of goo. The game is divided into multiple chapters each containing several levels. Levels come with their individual music and graphic theme keeping things interesting. To play the game the little balls of goo provided to you have to be stretched out into structures forming ladders, bridges or buildings toward strategically positioned pipes. These pipes then suck the goo and take it to the World of Goo Corporation where it is made into various products. These structures have to be built well enough to overcome gravity and some physical terrain difficulties like hills, cliffs, spikes and windmills. Different goo balls have different properties that make them unique. There is also a bonus meta-game called the ‘World of Goo Corporation’ where the challenge is to build the highest Goo Tower. The game subtly draws parallels between the World of Goo Corporation and real world companies that make similar products in an attempt to get kids thinking on modern world consumerism. Teachers can use World of Goo as a fun way of explaining geometry. There is an open sandbox mode in which teachers can set challenges and competitions. Platforms: PC, iOS, Android, WiiWare, BlackBerry, OnLive Get creative at the World of Goo SpaceChem SpaceChem is a puzzle game based on the principles of chemistry and chemical bonding. In the game you play the role of a Reactor Engineer working for a company called SpaceChem. As a Reactor Engineer you have to create circuits through which atoms and molecules flow. You do this with the help of waldos which are remote manipulators. While you don’t have to have any prior chemistry knowledge to play the game, all the reactions and chemical constructions are based on real chemical and atomic science so you will definitely learn something each time you play. Each level provides you with elements that need to be assembled and disassembled to create new chemical molecules. There are pairs of circuits along which your elements need to travel to the target output areas. Unnecessary collision of the waldos must be prevented. Initially the puzzle consists of only a single reactor but in larger puzzles the player can guide the chemicals through multiple reactors to get the final product. SpaceChem is a mental workout and an excellent puzzle game. It forces you to look at the bigger picture and get multiple tasks working at once. Platforms: PC, Android, iOS Create new elements with Space Chem Fantastic Contraption Fantastic Contraption is a Flash based game played in a web browser. The object of each level is to move the red objects into a rectangular shaped goal area. You are given different materials and a blue ‘building area’ to help you build your ‘fantastic’ contraption. You must be able to move the red objects past certain obstacles into the goal area. It takes a while to get used to the game but there is a very helpful tutorial at the beginning that smoothens out the process. There is no one correct solution. Each player can come up with his or her unique solution to the level. By creating an account the developers allow you to design your own levels or share your solutions with others. There are over 40 different built in puzzles and 16000 downloadable ones. You can play for free on the Fantastic Contraptions website or download the app for $1.99. All you need is an active imagination and some basic problem solving skills. There was a Fantastic Contraptions 2 released in 2010. Platforms: PC, iOS Build fun things with Fantastic Contraption Minecraft Minecraft is a computer, tablet and Xbox video game that has been around for ages and is still very popular by both educators and hard core gamers. It allows you to build your own world from scratch. Gameplay is mostly building and destroying structures using blocks – 3D cubes. There are different kinds of materials to be put to use like various ores, stone, dirt, water, tree trunks. Some of these materials have to be mined others are freely available. The game has three modes – survival, educational and adventure. You can play at different difficulty modes with or without the hostile creatures that threaten your creations. Minecraft has numerous educational benefits. It teaches about various subjects with or without parent/teacher involvement. While playing Minecraft players have to figure out how to best use their resources. For example for paper you require 3 units of sugarcane. This way the game also improves basic math and manipulation skills. Minecraft only uses cubes to build structures. But these structures take on different geometrical shapes like cuboids, tesseracts, square based pyramids. In this way kids get a quick lesson in 3D geometry. Setting up circuits teaches kids the basics of logic circuits. Feed back is immediate and safe. You can build switches without electrocuting yourself. You can even construct weapons to guard against attacks. By contributing to the Minecraft wiki children can learn how to write informative articles for multimedia. Most of all Minecraft promotes out of the box thinking and will give children the freedom to express themselves creatively. Setting up a server allows parents to give their children a safe environment to develop social skills and teamwork. Platforms: PC, iOS, Android, Xbox, Playstation Build 3D cities with Minecraft NASA’s Space Place NASA’s Space Place is a website developed by NASA in 1998 and is complete with interactive games, projects and facts about Earth and Space. The collection of games offered is complex and interesting each teaching you something new. The games each offer a new topic to be learnt like for example how a black hole works. The activities have detailed information on the solar system and other science topics. Kids can freely ask questions and get audio responses in return. There are instructions for at-home experiments. Space Place Prime is a spin off from NASA’s Space Place. This contains most of the educational content like articles and imagery as well as educational movies. The Space Place program has also released several mobile games mostly for iOS. These include Comet Quest and Satellite Insight. Comet Quest is a game about the Rosetta Mission. You are given a spacecraft and learn how scientists use Rosetta to explore comets. Satellite Insight has a more complex background story. You have to save the GOES-R satellite from losing any of the data it is collecting by safe guarding the data grid. Platorm: PC (web) Apps available on Android and iOS The Specatular Space Place by NASA Scribblenauts Scribblenauts is an action and puzzle video game. The objective of the game is to help the game’s hero, Maxwell collect little yellow stars called ‘Starites’. The player can summon anything just by writing its name on the screen. Scribble nauts is an example of ‘Emergent Gameplay’ which means that the difficulty changes according to the choices you make in the game. You can have infinite gaming experiences with this dynamic methodology. Kids are at their creative best using logic, language and problem solving. The tasks can be as simply as collecting a Starite from a tree or difficult like rescuing it from a bunch of bears in the forest. All you have to do is write out the tools you need. For example to get the ‘Starite’ out of the tree, write the word rope and a rope will appear. You can write the craziest things you can think of. If you think a dinosaur is going to help you write dinosaur and the game will present you with one. It’s almost like magic. Summoned objects can be weapons, animals, forces of nature or even famous people.This is because the Scribblenauts Dictionary contains over 22,000 words. As you play more your imagination grows and the solutions get more and more inventive. There are 220 levels over 10 areas each of a different theme. Scribblenauts has won two Parent’s Choice Awards and is suitable for children ages 8 and above. Scibblenauts Remix is available for iOS. Platforms: Nintendo DS Scribblenauts- Let your imagination go wild The Professor Layton Series The Professor Layton Series consists of 6 puzzle games plus a film. It is built around the adventures of two characters Professor Layton and Luke Trinton and is based in contemporary London. Each game is a series of puzzles and mysteries in towns Professor Layton and Luke visit. As part of the game you go along with them on their eventful journeys and help them solve mysteries. The puzzle solving teaches math, logic, spatial orientation and math. The storyline keeps kids thoroughly entertained and engrossed. It is aimed at kids eleven years and above. The games are divided into two trilogies. One set tells you of the Professor and Trinton’s many adventures together. The other is more about how they met and began their journey. The third part of the series, Professor Layton and the Unwound Future won a Parent’s Choice Silver Honors Award from the Parents Choice Foundation. Join Prof. Layton and Trinton on their captivating adventures

Database Slides on Normalization

Chapter 11 Relational Database Design Algorithms and Further Dependencies Chapter Outline ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 0. Designing a Set of Relations 1. Properties of Relational Decompositions 2. Algorithms for Relational Database Schema 3. Multivalued Dependencies and Fourth Normal Form 4. Join Dependencies and Fifth Normal Form 5. Inclusion Dependencies 6. Other Dependencies and Normal Forms DESIGNING A SET OF RELATIONS ? Goals: ? Lossless join property (a must) ? Algorithm 11. 1 tests for general losslessness. Algorithm 11. decomposes a relation into BCNF components by sacrificing the dependency preservation. 4NF (based on multi-valued dependencies) 5NF (based on join dependencies) ? Dependency preservation property ? ? Additional normal forms ? ? 1. Properties of Relational Decompositions ? Relation Decomposition and Insufficiency of Normal Forms: ? Universal Relation Schema: ? A relation schema R = {A1, A2, †¦, An} that includes all the attributes of the database. Every attribute name is unique. ? Universal relation assumption: ? (Cont) ? Decomposition: ? ? Attribute preservation condition: ?The process of decomposing the universal relation schema R into a set of relation schemas D = {R1,R2, †¦, Rm} that will become the relational database schema by using the functional dependencies. Each attribute in R will appear in at least one relation schema Ri in the decomposition so that no attributes are â€Å"lost†. (Cont) ? ? Another goal of decomposition is to have each individual relation Ri in the decomposition D be in BCNF or 3NF. Additional properties of decomposition are needed to prevent from generating spurious tuples (Cont) ? Dependency Preservation Property of a Decomposition: ? Definition: Given a set of dependencies F on R, the projection of F on Ri, denoted by pRi(F) where Ri is a subset of R, is the set of dependencies X > Y in F+ such that the attributes in X U Y are all contained in Ri. Hence, the projection of F on each relation schema Ri in t he decomposition D is the set of functional dependencies in F+, the closure of F, such that all their left- and right-hand-side attributes are in Ri. (Cont. ) ? Dependency Preservation Property of a Decomposition (cont. ): ? Dependency Preservation Property: ? ? A decomposition D = {R1, R2, †¦ Rm} of R is dependency-preserving with respect to F if the union of the projections of F on each Ri in D is equivalent to F; that is ((? R1(F)) U . . . U (? Rm(F)))+ = F+ (See examples in Fig 10. 12a and Fig 10. 11) ? Claim 1: ? It is always possible to find a dependency-preserving decomposition D with respect to F such that each relation Ri in D is in 3NF. Projection of F on Ri Given a set of dependencies F on R, the projection of F on Ri, denoted by ? Ri(F) where Ri is a subset of R, is the set of dependencies X > Y in F+ such that the attributes in X ?Y are all contained in Ri. Dependency Preservation Condition Given R(A, B, C, D) and F = { A > B, B > C, C > D}    Let D1={R1(A,B), R2 (B,C), R3(C,D)} ? R1(F)={A > B} ? R2(F)={B > C} ? R3(F)={C > D} FDs are preserved. (Cont. ) ? Lossless (Non-additive) Join Property of a Decomposition: ? Definition: Lossless join property: a decomposition D = {R1, R2, †¦ , Rm} of R has the lossless (nonadditive) join property with respect to the set of dependencies F on R if, for every relation state r of R that satisfies F, the following holds, where * is the natural join of all the relations in D: (? R1(r), †¦ , ? Rm(r)) = r ? Note: The word loss in lossless refers to loss of information, not to loss of tuples. In fact, for â€Å"loss of information† a better term is â€Å"addition of spurious information† Example S s1 s2 s3 P p1 p2 p1 D d1 d2 d3 = S s1 s2 s3 P p1 p2 p1 * P p1 p2 p1 D d1 d2 d3 Lossless Join Decomposition NO (Cont. ) Lossless (Non-additive) Join Property of a Decomposition (cont. ): Algorithm 11. 1: Testing for Lossless Join Property Input: A universal relation R, a decomposition D = {R1, R2, †¦ , Rm} of R,and a set F of functional dependencies. 1.Create an initial matrix S with one row i for each relation Ri in D, and one column j for each attribute Aj in R. 2. Set S(i,j):=bij for all matrix entries. (/* each bij is a distinct symbol associated with indices (i,j) */). 3. For each row i representing relation schema Ri {for each column j representing attribute Aj {if (relation Ri includes attribute Aj) then set S(i,j):= aj;};}; ? (/* each aj is a distinct symbol associated with index (j) */) ? CONTINUED on NEXT SLIDE (Cont. ) 4. Repeat the following loop until a complete loop execution results in no changes to S {for each functional dependency X >?Y in F {for all rows in S which have the same symbols in the columns corresponding to attributes in X {make the symbols in each column that correspond to an attribute in Y be the same in all these rows as follows: If any of the rows has an â€Å"a† symbol for the column, set the other rows to that same â€Å"aâ €  symbol in the column. If no â€Å"a† symbol exists for the attribute in any of the rows, choose one of the â€Å"b† symbols that appear in one of the rows for the attribute and set the other rows to that same â€Å"b† symbol in the column ;}; }; }; 5.If a row is made up entirely of â€Å"a† symbols, then the decomposition has the lossless join property; otherwise it does not. (Cont. ) Lossless (nonadditive) join test for n-ary decompositions. (a) Case 1: Decomposition of EMP_PROJ into EMP_PROJ1 and EMP_LOCS fails test. (b) A decomposition of EMP_PROJ that has the lossless join property. (Cont. ) Lossless (nonadditive) join test for n-ary decompositions. (c) Case 2: Decomposition of EMP_PROJ into EMP, PROJECT, and WORKS_ON satisfies test. (Cont. ) ? Testing Binary Decompositions for Lossless Join Property ? ?Binary Decomposition: Decomposition of a relation R into two relations. PROPERTY LJ1 (lossless join test for binary decompositions): A decomposi tion D = {R1, R2} of R has the lossless join property with respect to a set of functional dependencies F on R if and only if either ? ? The FD ((R1 ? R2) >? (R1- R2)) is in F+, or The FD ((R1 ? R2) >? (R2 – R1)) is in F+. 2. Algorithms for Relational Database Schema Design Algorithm 11. 3: Relational Decomposition into BCNF with Lossless (non-additive) join property Input: A universal relation R and a set of functional dependencies F on the attributes of R. 1. Set D := {R}; 2.While there is a relation schema Q in D that is not in BCNF do { choose a relation schema Q in D that is not in BCNF; find a functional dependency X > Y in Q that violates BCNF; replace Q in D by two relation schemas (Q – Y) and (X U Y); }; Assumption: No null values are allowed for the join attributes. Algorithms for Relational Database Schema Design Algorithm 11. 4 Relational Synthesis into 3NF with Dependency Preservation and Lossless (Non-Additive) Join Property Input: A universal relation R a nd a set of functional dependencies F on the attributes of R. 1. Find a minimal cover G for F (Use Algorithm 10. ). 2. For each left-hand-side X of a functional dependency that appears in G, create a relation schema in D with attributes {X U {A1} U {A2} †¦ U {Ak}}, where X >? A1, X >? A2, †¦ , X > Ak are the only dependencies in G with X as left-hand-side (X is the key of this relation). 3. If none of the relation schemas in D contains a key of R, then create one more relation schema in D that contains attributes that form a key of R. (Use Algorithm 11. 4a to find the key of R) 4. Eliminate redundant relations from the result. A relation R is considered redundant if R is a projection of another relation SAlgorithms for Relational Database Schema Design Algorithm 11. 4a Finding a Key K for R Given a set F of Functional Dependencies Input: A universal relation R and a set of functional dependencies F on the attributes of R. 1. Set K := R; 2. For each attribute A in K { Compu te (K – A)+ with respect to F; If (K – A)+ contains all the attributes in R, then set K := K – {A}; } (Cont. ) 3. Multivalued Dependencies and Fourth Normal Form (a) The EMP relation with two MVDs: ENAME —>> PNAME and ENAME —>> DNAME. (b) Decomposing the EMP relation into two 4NF relations EMP_PROJECTS and EMP_DEPENDENTS. (Cont. ) c) The relation SUPPLY with no MVDs is in 4NF but not in 5NF if it has the JD(R1, R2, R3). (d) Decomposing the relation SUPPLY into the 5NF relations R1, R2, and R3. (Cont. ) Definition: ? A multivalued dependency (MVD) X —>> Y specified on relation schema R, where X and Y are both subsets of R, specifies the following constraint on any relation state r of R: If two tuples t1 and t2 exist in r such that t1[X] = t2[X], then two tuples t3 and t4 should also exist in r with the following properties, where we use Z to denote (R -(X U Y)): ? t3[X] = t4[X] = t1[X] = t2[X]. t3[Y] = t1[Y] and t4[Y] = t2[Y]. t3[Z] = t2[Z] a nd t4[Z] = t1[Z].An MVD X —>> Y in R is called a trivial MVD if (a) Y is a subset of X, or (b) X U Y = R. ? ? ? Multivalued Dependencies and Fourth Normal Form Definition: ? A relation schema R is in 4NF with respect to a set of dependencies F (that includes functional dependencies and multivalued dependencies) if, for every nontrivial multivalued dependency X —>> Y in F+, X is a superkey for R. ? Informally, whenever 2 tuples that have different Y values but same X values, exists, then if these Y values get repeated in separate tuples with every distinct values of Z {Z = R – (X U Y)} that occurs with the same X value. Cont. ) (Cont. ) Lossless (Non-additive) Join Decomposition into 4NF Relations: ? PROPERTY LJ1’ ? The relation schemas R1 and R2 form a lossless (non-additive) join decomposition of R with respect to a set F of functional and multivalued dependencies if and only if ? (R1 ? R2) —>> (R1 – R2) (R1 ? R2) —>> (R2 – R1 )). ? or ? (Cont. ) Algorithm 11. 5: Relational decomposition into 4NF relations with non-additive join property ? Input: A universal relation R and a set of functional and multivalued dependencies F.Set D := { R }; While there is a relation schema Q in D that is not in 4NF do { choose a relation schema Q in D that is not in 4NF; find a nontrivial MVD X —>> Y in Q that violates 4NF; replace Q in D by two relation schemas (Q – Y) and (X U Y); }; 1. 2. 4. Join Dependencies and Fifth Normal Form Definition: ? A join dependency (JD), denoted by JD(R1, R2, †¦ , Rn), specified on relation schema R, specifies a constraint on the states r of R. ? ? The constraint states that every legal state r of R should have a non-additive join decomposition into R1, R2, †¦ Rn; that is, for every such r we have * (? R1(r), ? R2(r), †¦ , ? Rn(r)) = r (Cont. ) Definition: ? A relation schema R is in fifth normal form (5NF) (or Project-Join Normal Form (PJNF)) with respect to a set F of functional, multivalued, and join dependencies if, ? for every nontrivial join dependency JD(R1, R2, †¦ , Rn) in F+ (that is, implied by F), ? every Ri is a superkey of R. Recap ? ? ? ? ? Designing a Set of Relations Properties of Relational Decompositions Algorithms for Relational Database Schema Multivalued Dependencies and Fourth Normal Form Join Dependencies and Fifth Normal FormTutorial/Quiz 4 Q1) Consider a relation R with 5 attributes ABCDE, You are given the following dependencies: A > B, BC > E, ED > A a) List all the keys, b) Is R in 3 NF c) Is R in BCNF Q2) Consider the following decomposition for the relation schema R = {A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J} and the set of functional dependencies F = { {A, B} > {C}, {A} > {D, E}, {B} > {F}, {F} > {G, H}, {D} -> {I, J} }. Preserves Lossless Join and Dependencies? a) D1 = {R1, R2, R3, R4, R5}, R1={A,B,C} R2={A,D,E}, R3={B,F}, R4 = {F,G,H}, R5 = {D,I,J} b) D2 = {R1, R2, R3} R1 = {A,B,C,D,E} R2 = {B,F,G,H}, R3 = {D,I,J }