Air Transportation - Smart Custom Writing Samples

Air Transportation - Smart Custom Writing Gay MarriagesIn the United States, homosexuality and consequently, same-sex marriages, has resulted in a lot of controversy and the trading of accusations and counter-accusations. Conceptually, marriage is defined as a legal and religious long-term commitment between two people of the opposite sex. This stretches further to incorporate rights in financial responsibilities and benefits as assigned to heterosexual couples. However, this traditional view is increasingly facing change and opposition. Several states such as Massachusetts, Connecticut, California, Iowa, the District of Columbia and, New Jersey have already reflected this clamour for change and adopted legislation allowing gay marriages. In these states therefore, homosexual couples have the freedom to decide whether to marry or not in a legally acceptable manner. The gay couples can enjoy mutual couple benefits such as legal spouse representation, medical visitations, pension benefits and inheritance rights accorded to the bereaved. In a few other states such as Rhode Island, Hawaii, Maine, Colorado and Wisconsin have instituted domestic partnership laws whereby gay couples can enjoy limited rights though gay marriages are out rightly outlawed. This has however not influenced the society to radically accept gay couples and end all stigma and discrimination directed unto them. Proponents of the entrenchment of gay rights into the United States Constitution argue that barring homosexual marriages is tantamount to discrimination. The essence of the United States Constitution is to protect and preserve minorities' rights and hence gay advocates feel that the federal government or anyone else should not bar marriage to any minorities. This argument is further supported by the Interracial Marriage Act whereby marriages across races were prohibited in the United States till 1967. Therefore, it is crucial to examine the pros and cons of gay marriages and evaluate them from a basis of whether it is plausible to not only legalise them but also mount awareness campaigns to de-stigmatize them, (Dunlap, 15 march 1995). There are various arguments that have been put forward in support of gay marriages. These range from rights in freedom in the Bill of Rights, inherent rights, societal perspectives and biological claims. First, lobbyists and advocates for gay couples feel that if they are not legalized, this will be tantamount to isolation of their rights to religious freedom. Opponents to this have expressed the fact that all major religions consider homosexual relationships as a sin. However, the First Amendment as entrenched in the American Constitution that every person’s rights and views pertaining to religion or lack thereof be it a minority group or not, must be protected. The marriage institution is a secular and societal activity in contrast to the widely acknowledged view as a solely religious perspective of people’s lives. Therefore, the government cannot base laws on a religious concept. This can be equated as entrenching the mentioning of God’s name in vain as a crim e. Secondly, benefits that accrue to a married couple such as joint property ownership and medical benefits are also accorded to gay couples if their unions are legalized. Vital societal and mutual benefits such as tax reduction, property ownership, insurance benefits and agency laws affect a couple’s decision-making. For instance, if a partner in a gay couple that has lived together for twenty years falls ill, visitation rights to the other partner are denied since they are not recognized by law as the next of kin or spouse. Therefore, critical decisions such as incapacitation are not discussed conclusively by the couple. This, as the advocates pointedly illustrate, is unfair just because these individuals do not fit a state definition. Thirdly, gay couples and various couples not only feel that this is an accepted lifestyle but also cite biological causation. Over time, the widely held conception that homosexuality is a deviant sexual behavior is fading out. History, dating back to the Greece indicates the existence of homosexual relationships and the origin of such terms such as Lesbos for lesbians. Psychological research is underway that has already achieved in showing that same-sex relationships have a biological causation. However, caution should be taken to differentiate this from a genetic causation which has no substantial basis. This is depicted by the fact that in most gay couples, one partner exhibits characteristics of the opposite sex such as softer voices in males and strong cheekbones in females. There would be absolutely no need for an individual to choose to be gay in a world that frowns upon the same. This argument therefore renders support to the implied theory that homosexuality is involuntary, ( Hetter, 3June 1996). Fourthly, denying gay couple the right to a legal marriage is discriminatory. America was founded on the concept of majority rule with the protection of minorities such as the anti-slavery acts and inter-racial marriages. Furthermore, it does not hurt anyone in particular or the society. A marriage is deemed as a personal commitment between two people and should not be dictated upon by society. On to the fifth argument for gay marriages, it is important to note marriages are founded on the basis of love not the mutual benefits accorded by the state on couples. This is a life-time commitment whereby the partners vow to support each other through thick and thin and forsake all others till death. It is noteworthy that legal maneuvers accorded to couples in several states have not served to quest the clamor for legalization and acceptance of marriages. This implies there is more to these marriages than just legal aspects. The sixth argument put forward is that gay marriages will entrench family values whereby couples will give up high-risk sexual behaviors. This is a two-edged approach whereby the opposite can be viewed as the erosion of family virtues. However, marriages encourage people to settle down and give up frivolous lifestyles which expose them to STDs and other risks. When married couples commit to building a life together, they depict a positive desirable behavior that should be encouraged, (Member Resolution and Opinion Poll, 2005 ). Finally, it is important to note that gay couples enjoy the same financial benefits and constraints encountered by heterosexual marriages. Therefore, a homosexual marriage ensures couples support each other especially in the face of the ongoing turbulent economic times. They can easily meet their bills and utilities and live the American dream if these unions are legalized. On the other hand, opponents to this legislation have come up with a myriad number of reasons as to why gay marriages should not be legalized. First and chief among these is the religious aspect. Most religions in the world today consider homosexuality a great sin. Homosexuality is not only deeply opposed by the various religions in the country but it is also deemed offensive. It is seen as limiting the freedom of religion enjoyed by the majority. The fact that the United States Constitution was founded under a religious perspective and highly borrows from the Christian Bible further serves to indicate the citizens’ opposition to homosexuality. Hence, laws prohibiting homosexuality should be upheld,. Secondly, the legalization of gay marriages shall weaken the definition and perspective attached to marriage as per se. With rising cases of divorce, which are projected at 50 percent, the respect accorded to marriages has already been weakened. Gay marriages, if legalized, are expected to increase the number of non-serious marriages viewed as making fun of this serious intuition such as individuals desiring to be tax-exempt. This shall be in utter contrast to the widely felt view that marriage is a sacred institution that should be well-adhered to. Further, this is supported by the fact that only people in the opposite sex can pro-create. Most activists against homosexuality feel that it encourages adoption while ignoring pro-creation, which is viewed as a gift from God. Secondly, the full adoption of marriage into the social setup shall ideally weaken the perspective in which traditional family values are held as the most vital in society. The chief building blocks of every society is the traditional nuclear family setup of man, woman and children. This has been the reason as to why societies have managed to remain rational throughout historical events such as the world wars, the great depression and other similar challenges. Family members have always stuck up close even when friends and lovers forsake thee. Therefore, it is noteworthy that our societies are crumbling due to the increasing change in perception of families and the weakening of their structure. Introducing another perceptive view to the already weakened family view shall definitely worsen the situation. Thirdly, this would trigger a slippery slope in the scope of the legality of marriages. Contrary to the proposition by gay proponents that these marriages would hurt no-one, this would trigger the onset of a chain reaction that would ultimately lead to a radical change in the whole idea of marriage. Abhorrent traits such as incest in which closely relate family members intermarry may come up. There is therefore a need to define the institution of family and marriage firmly, otherwise, the options and variations might prove to be endless. This may sound absurd, but it is vital to note that it does not take the majority to change this but a few activist judges to change these laws by interpreting them under the doctrine of stare decisis so as to impose this on everyone just as was the case in where two judges in California declared the Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional, (Dunlap, 15 march 1995). Finally, the gay culture, under a psychological analysis and review, should not be encouraged. This is since it leads to psychological disorders, much lower life expectancy which is indicated at less than twenty years in comparison to the general population which can be attributed to the hassles experienced by this couples; and the highly likely transmittance of Sexually Transmitted Diseases as is the case in the studies conducted in Haiti by Centre of Disease Control. There is therefore a need to discourage unhealthy practices that are detrimental to humanity, (Hetter, 3June 1996). In conclusion, it is important to note the controversy on gay marriages and homosexuality is a societal issue that must be resolved. Either the proponents and advocates of homosexuality will attain legislative and mutual recognition over time or the opponents of this change will manage to contain this whirlwind. It is therefore vital to analyze various articles that have appeared in the recent past which act as pointers as to the direction this crucial debate is taking,. References D, W. (August 22, 2008). What's the Harm?: Does Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage Really Harm Individuals, Families or Society? Lanham: University Press of America. Dunlap, D. (15 march 1995). Some States Trying To Stop Gay Marriages Before They Start. wall street journal , 18. Hetter, K. ( 3June 1996). The New Civil Rights Battle . U.S News and World Report , 28-31. Member Resolution and Opinion Poll. ( 2005 , August Friday,26). Retrieved November 18, 2010,

How to Measure Employee Business Writing Skills

How to Measure Employee Business Writing Skills One of the challenges of improving business writing in an organization is actuallymeasuringbusiness writing skills. "Good business writing" is a coveted skill for every analytical and collaborative employee. But, "good business writing" is also an fuzzy concept and tough to codify and measure. How then, can we measure "good business writing" skills? STEP ONE - Separate the measurement of content and analysis (the substance of a document) from thelanguageof the document (the syntax). Substance and syntax must be measured separately, because they are two distinct aspects unique to business writing. Business writing requires a keen analysis of the audience and decisions about matching the right document content to that particular audience. If this is wrong,syntax improvements will never correct content gaps or repetition or jumbled content. If the content is wrongly matched to audience needs, polish alone will never fix it. So, to first measure business writing skills, we have to separate the substance of documents from the syntax. STEP TWO - Analyze the substance of typical employee documents to measure what is working and what is not. Define the goals of the documents your employees need to write. What do you want a reader to know or do after reading this document? Then assess the skills required to achieve the document purpose. Every business document requires five core requisite skills. The first four are related to substance, while the last is related to syntax: Audience awareness Appropriate content Content logically categorized Content logically sequenced Syntax and grammar that is clear and correct and interesting The key is to identify the desired business outcome of key documents, and then break down the writing skills into measurable components. This will give you the content measurements you need to truly measure what is working, and not working. CLIENTS ONLY: Please contact us for templates you are welcome to use for your assessments. STEP THREE - Working with the same representative documents, next analyze the syntax. Good news. Syntax is much easier to evaluate than substance. And, syntax errors are very easy to fix. Typically, strong analytical employees, who likely work in finance, business analysis, technology, engineering, and energy, may not love business writing as part of their work only because they didn't write much in college. They preferred other courses. So, they may mistakenly feel their writing skills are weak. In fact, they possess the critical analytical skills so important for substance. I'm guessing you didn't hire a financial analyst for his or her ability with commas. You hired him or her because of keen analytical ability in finance! hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(41482, '934718b3-251a-45d6-8853-a7f94e43b92c', {}); Here are 2 resources to help you assess syntax in your employees' documents: 1. Syntax Measurement Resource #1 Microsoft's Readability Index. Run the documents through this tool, which will provide actual measurements for passive vs. active voice, and simplicity of sentence structure. This is an excellent tool to assess the all-important element of clarity since it reports on: 1. Words per sentence (average) 2. Percentage of passive sentences 3. Flesch Reading Ease score 4. Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level. Words per sentence - In general, the longer the sentence, the harder it becomes for your reader to follow along. That's not to say you should always write in short sentences. Instead, strive for a variety that makes for lively reading. Percentage of sentences written in the passive voice measures the readability of your text as the ratio of passive sentences over active sentences. The lower the score, the better. Active sentences are nearly always easier to read and understand, making your message clearer and more persuasive. Aim for a score less than 20%. The Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) is the standard test of readability used by the U.S. Department of Defense for its documents and forms. The results can be between 0 and 100. The higher the score, the easier it is to understand what you have written. For example, a typical issue of Reader's Digest earns an FRE score of around 65 while Time Magazine scores in the low 50's. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address scores a 74.2. One way to score higher is to use shorter sentences. The results can be interpreted as following: * 0-29 - very confusing hard to read * 30-49 - difficult to read * 50-59 - fairly difficult * 60-69 - standard * 70-79 - fairly easy * 80-89 - easy * 90-100 - very easy Recommendation: A score of 60 or more. Higher is better. Even for business documents, a score of 60 is very achievable and it takes only a few edits to obtain it. Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL)translates the Flesch Reading Ease measure to a grade level. The grade level means the number of years of education generally required to understand the document. For example, a score of 9.4 would indicate that the text is expected to be understandable by an average student in the 9th grade. Most newspapers in the U.S. are written at a seventh to eighth grade level. Recommendation: 8.0 to 10.0 is a good target, but lower is better because it reflects language clarity, not content complexity. Remember: these measurements only assess the syntax of documents, not content. But, they will provide useful snapshot measurements to diagnose the clarity and syntax in employee documents. Here are the Readability Scores for the article you are reading now: Passive voice is very low, so that's good. The Flesh Reading Ease score is just a bit above standard, which is fine since this is a complex topic and you, my fine readers, are smart business leaders! The Flesh-Kincaid grade level score assures me that even though the concepts in the article are complex, the language is easy to understand. 2. Syntax Measurement Resource #2 Microsoft's Grammar Check. It is not infallible, but you can use simple Grammar Check to discover the actual grammar errors presenting in employee documents. Then, summarize those errors. It's ineffective - and let's admit it's boring - to present general grammar training. Instead, address the actual errors presenting. This is much more productive. Consolidate and Analyze Your Measurements See where the gaps in content are occurring. The usual gaps for content are in audience targeting and content. We all tend to write a subject from our understanding, instead of what our reader needs. Categorizing content logically is another very common issue in analytical writing. The usual gaps in syntax are clarity and engaged tone. Grammar errors vary across organizations. Knowing what is working, and not working, in your employees' business writing is the first step in truly improving business writing. Armed with real measurements, you can then provide employee feedback and request business writing training that addresses actual gaps.

Information Assurance and Governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Information Assurance and Governance - Essay Example IT governance system established in many organisations is incongruent as it has been designed in several different patches of problem solving mechanisms. The designing activity of the governance system reduces the synergy level and limits the opportunities for strategic impact from IT. In order to deal with the issue it is important for the management of the organisation to design the IT governance procedure according to the goals and objectives of the organisation. The notion requires the management of the organisation to actively play part in the procedure. Without the proper support of the management the successful designing and implementation process of IT governance cannot be undertaken. Although it is not possible to actively redesign the overall governance mechanism but it is important to undertake mechanism reviews on regular basis. The Burton report recommends undertaking assessment of IT governance system on regular basis in order to implement security improvement processes at MOD. The report is full of recommendations for the change in the governance structure at MOD regarding the security of the IT infrastructure. It is also important to undertake change in the behaviour of the employees at the organisation according to the change in governance. The redesign in the governance system will although take some time but its effective implementation will lead to the final objective of making the security of data foul proof. The report has recommended a change in the organisation perspective according to the direction in which the IT governance system is redesigned. Failure to do so will stultify the whole change process. The Burton report also suggests training and education all across the organisation. Burton suggested reviewing all the current training on Data Protection and Information Management, and identifying the uptake by the relevant post-holders, in order to determine future training needs. The involvement of the senior management of the

Saudi Arabia IT and Telecommunications industry analysis Essay

Saudi Arabia IT and Telecommunications industry analysis - Essay Example This was meant to make the telecommunication industry in the country expand and upgrade its management of network. The Saudi Arabian information technology and telecommunication industry has grown substantially since 1970 up-to-date by advancing its capacity by 3.5 million telephone lines. These subsequent expansion and privatization of telecommunication industry has drawn national recognition in this seventh development plan. Currently the markets are hot and their maintenance is not guaranteed. Manufacturers will have to rely on big money generating projects with personal relations being the main leeway to winning these deals (Oxford Business Group 102). There are possible opportunities in Saudi Arabians IT and telecommunication industry particularly with the wireless communications though there are barriers of its expansion. Complicated bands of telecommunications have been restricted to defense and aviation programs though it is anticipated that the government will ultimately free this authority. The launch of GSM has shown possibility of privatization and consequent expansion of broadband service available for the wireless (Al-aklabi and Al-Allak 76). Saudi Arabia has key pillars that are quite promising in shaping the next growth sectors in the technology field. The youth favoring population of Saudi Arabia shows high potentials of future technological growth. Youth can be perceived as the drivers of telecom development as they posses the prime purchasing power of technological products and services. This pillar continues to be the motivating factor for telecom industry hence the economy of Saudi Arabia (Jasimuddin 60). The mobile operators have on their side been providing services that favor the youth or target the youth segment as their possible clients. In Saudi Arabia, there has been a surge in internet

Case Sharp Printing Essay Example for Free

Case Sharp Printing Essay Three years ago the Sharp Printing (SP) strategic management group set a goal of having a color laser printer available for the consumer and small business market for less than $200. A few months later the senior management met off-site to discuss the new product. The results of this meeting were a set of general technical specifications along with major deliverables, a product launch date, and a cost estimate based on prior experience. Shortly afterward, a meeting was arranged for middle management explaining the project goals, major responsibilities, the project start date, and importance of meeting the product launch date within the cost estimate. Members of all departments involved attended the meeting. Excitement was high. Although everyone saw the risks as high, the promised rewards for the company and the personnel were emblazoned in their minds. A few participants questioned the legitimacy of the project duration and cost estimates. A couple of RD people were worried about the technology required to produce the high-quality product for less than $200. But given the excitement of the moment, everyone agreed the project was worth doing and doable. The color laser printer project was to have the highest project priority in the company. Lauren was selected to be the project manager. She had 15 years of experience in printer design and manufacture, which included successful management of several projects related to printers for commercial markets. Since she was one of those uncomfortable with the project cost and time estimates, she felt getting good bottom-up time and cost estimates for the deliverables was her first concern. She quickly had a meeting with the significant stakeholders to create a WBS identifying the work packages and organizational unit responsible for implementing the work packages. Lauren stressed she wanted time and cost estimates from those who would do the work or were the most knowledgeable, if possible. Getting estimates from more than one source was encouraged. Estimates were due in two weeks. The compiled estimates were placed in the WBS/OBS. The corresponding cost estimate seemed to be in error. The cost estimate was $1,250,000 over the senior management estimate; this represents about a 20 percent overrun! The time estimate from the developed project network was only four months over the top management time estimate. Another meeting was scheduled with the significant stakeholders to check the estimates and to brainstorm for alternative solutions; the cost and time estimates appeared to be reasonable. Some of the suggestions for the brainstorming session are listed below.

Morals :: Religion, Ethics

Who’s to Blame One night, a few years ago, I was watching television with two of my younger brothers. As I flipped through the stations I could not help but notice that on every channel was an interview of our President, Bill Clinton. The discussion was about President Clinton’s involvement with another women. They questioned him if he had â€Å"oral sex† or â€Å"committed adultery† with Monica Lewinsky, a White House intern. Neither of my brothers commented at the time on what they saw or heard but I just started to imagine what could be running through their heads. â€Å"Well if the President can, why can’t I cheat and lie?†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This, just one of many, is an example of how a child’s morals may be misguided. A young child may be looking at the wrong person or people as role models. If the situation rose in which a kid has the chance to cheat on a test will he? Would that child realize what he is doing wrong when people like the president are committing acts that may give that child the wrong impression on what is the right thing to do? These are just some questions that may be brought up on the topic that schools are teaching children bad morals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many people say that schools are not to blame for children holding bad morals. Some may ask, â€Å"Is it the schools responsibility to teach children good morals or is it the parents job?† Some parents are â€Å"too easy† on their children. In today’s world most parents defend their children rather than punish them. For example, a child is caught doing drugs or alcohol, and instead of the kid receiving a punishment from the police, his parents hire a lawyer and find loop holes in the system to â€Å"get the kid out† without a punishment. This proves to kids that although they did something wrong they can get out of it so it’s no big deal, bad morals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another problem that rises is that in today’s schools teachers can not use any type of a faith or religion as a guideline for morals. Today’s laws prohibit teachers from teaching religion in public schools. Teachers are also told not to involve personal feelings in their teaching. It is very difficult for teachers to teach about morals without involving what they feel is the â€Å"correct way to act.† Some parents ask, â€Å"who are they to say what is right way for my child?

Broadcasting Quality

Broadcasting organizations exist basically to communicate to people. Whether radio or TV stations are Government, Commercial or Private, whether programmes are spoken word, music, commercials or community announcements, in all cases the message needs to get through. The emphasis in programmes must always be on quality, both content and sound. Staff engaged in program presentation need to be conscious of making the broadcasting system seem to be transparent to the audience. Listeners and viewers should only be aware of the actual program and not the ‘nuts and bolts' of the radio and / or TV station.In order to ensure High Quality Broadcasting, a Broadcaster or Broadcasting company should by all means be instrumental in enhancing our understanding of the world – To inform its audiences and arm them with a better understanding of the world through news, information and analysis of current events and ideas. It is a function which comes hand in hand with the Stimulation of kn owledge and learning, since the content should be of capable of stimulating its viewer’s interest in the knowledge of arts, sciences, history and other topics through content that is accessible to its projected recipients and can easily encourage informal learning.Representing diversity and alternative viewpoints is by all means also a component of responsible quality broadcasting. It is one its main purpose to make people aware of different cultures and alternative viewpoints, by showing programmes that reflect the lives of other people and other communities. One of the major influences affecting broadcasting would be the existing Socio-Economic factors. Economic components have long played a key role in public policy toward broadcasting, not only where private commercial systems dominate but also where there is a public funding mechanism.Major national public service broadcasters are large programme production industries that collectively represent a substantial capital and operating investment. Many of them have had commercial support, and no matter how â€Å"non-commercial† the production distribution-reception process, it is usually closely associated with (and profits from) a substantial private, profit-oriented industry that manufactures receiving sets and electronic equipment.But broadcasting’s direct contribution to the gross national product has been modest, especially when compared to most societies† major sources of economic activity (Blumler, 2000; 26). In the field of digital television broadcasting, North America has been some years ahead of the rest of the world in its faith in what could be done with very powerful image compression systems. The open decision–making process which has taken place in the United States for advanced television (ATV) is a considerable achievement, and a great credit to the many individuals involved.In Europe, considerable expertise has been accumulated in image compression and digit al modulation, but a range of factors and circumstances have influenced the profile given, until recently, to studies of digital terrestrial television broadcasting. These have included pessimism that the planning environment in Europe would allow the development of digital high definition terrestrial television with reasonable coverage, and pessimism that sufficiently attractive picture quality could be achieved with the bit–rates that are possible in terrestrial networks.Today there is clear recognition in Europe that we must pursue quality digital television broadcasting, that we should be undaunted with the problems, and that we should explore the potential solutions, this is because the prize for success w ill be considerable. An international committee, the European Launching Group (ELG), has been established to try to coordinate the various projects which are developing digital terrestrial television broadcasting, or indeed related systems, in Europe.This committee has a technical subcommittee, the Working Group on Digital Television Broadcasting (WGDTB). The WGDTB has examined the aims of the current collaborative projects, and their timescales, and looked at the potential uses of digital television broadcasting. They arrived, at the end of 1992, at a work plan, intended to make it possible for Europe to achieve common standards for digital television broadcasting within the next few years (Altschull, 1984, p 112).European centered on the development of modulation systems appropriate for digital terrestrial television centered on the development of modulation systems for 20 GHz digital satellite television centered on the development of digital HDTV satellite point–to–point systems developing all aspects of digital terrestrial television developing all aspects of digital terrestrial television developing base band coding systems continuing studies of terrestrial and satellite planning, requirements and testing present article will outline some features of this plan, and give the background to the conclusions reached (Anand, 1993, p 156-210).What the WGDTB has done is to develop a first scenario which needs now to be taken up by experimental work. A fundamental limitation on the quality and ruggedness of terrestrial television services will be the terrestrial channel capacity. In Europe, the VHF/UHF broadcast television bands use either 7or 8 MHz channels. The working assumption has been that the system should have a bandwidth of about 7. 5 MHz. The prospect of using more than one channel in a contiguous way for a single broad-cast service seem remote, and the prospects of obtaining new frequency allocations with a wider channel spacing, even more so.Given a 7. 5 MHz channel, it seems that the upper bound on gross bit rate is likely to be about 30 M bit/s. The first task the WGDTB undertook was to evaluate the options which seemed most likely to be attractive and saleable to the European consumer in the next c entury, in the light of what could be seen, or predicted, as general trends in society (Anand, 1993, p 156). There is no doubt that the quality expectations of viewers are rising, and that the long–term future of television lies with HDTV. Nevertheless, the Group was also conscious that viewing habits are changing as society evolves.Therefore, when setting system goals there are dimensions other than quality which need to be taken into account (Briggs, 1999, p 145). It is not sufficient to ask what the public may want, we also need to ask when and where they will want it. Furthermore, the practical large flat–screen HDTV display, for many years regarded as the key to HDTV acceptability in the domestic environment, seems nearly as far away as ever. One underlying trend in society is toward individual activity, rather than group activity. A second element to consider is mobility.Essentially sound–radio has migrated from a group experience in the home, to a nearâ⠂¬â€œindividual activity in the car. We could reasonably ask if some of the same evolution will apply to television to any degree, orate least whether television will also have to cope with a mobile environment. There seemed to be four options, essentially linked to different viewing environments, which were worthy of most attention. The options are as follows:– HDTV (high definition television), which offers services to viewers with very large screen receivers, using fixed roof–top aerials.– EDTV (extended definition television), which offers services to viewers with medium to large screen receivers using fixed roof–top aerials. – SDTV (standard definition television), which offers services to viewers with portable televisions using set–top aerials. and LDTV (limited definition television), which offers services to viewers with small screen receivers using whip/stub aerials in a mobile situation (e. g. in acre). In order to translate these concepts to practical sys-teems, it is necessary to decide what is meant pre-cicely by the quality in each case, and what is meant precisely by each of the receiving environments.Picture quality is difficult to quantify in absolute terms, because it is the net effect of a series of factors such as resolution, sharpness, noise, artifacts, etc. It is by no means only related to the scanning standard. The picture quality that is achieved will also be related to the source quality, the sophistication of the compression algorithm, and the bit rate used. The receiving environment can be defined some-what more easily. It is related to the bit–error distribution in which the system is required to work. In other words, it is associated with the ruggedness necessary to achieve impairment–free pictures of the intended quality.As a first assumption in the WGDTB, the roof–top environment is considered to be associated with a spectral efficiency of 4 bits/s/Hz. The portable e nvironment is considered to need 1–2 bits/s/Hz, and the mobile environment is considered to need 1 bit/s/Hz. 2. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE A. The Dimensions of Picture Quality Color Television was initially conceptualized in the 1950’s. Back then, a single color picture requires three images, specifically red, green, and blue (RGB) for light emitting devices such as cathode ray tubes (CRT).This would require a 30 MHz bandwidth to provide the desired picture rate, starting from the full progressive scan picture. To reduce the bandwidth to 15 MHz for an analog RGB system, an interlace is used. Within a studio the signals are carried on three separate cables at 5 MHz or more bandwidth each, a fundamental compression scheme used in color television is to translate the three color signals into the color-difference domain where the picture is represented by a luminance (equivalent to the earlier monochrome) picture and two color difference pictures, R-Y and B-Y.Another nam e for this system is YUV, Y for luminance and U, V for the two color difference signals. Again using the limitations of the human visual system, in this case less color than luminance visual acuity, the bandwidth of the color difference signals is reduced by 50% for a total YUV bandwidth requirement of 10 MHz. Today, YUV signals are used in both analog and digital forms and have very little visible degradation compared to interlaced RGB video. Both forms are known as component video with YUV being used for most applications.Nowadays, there are two reasons to compress television video signals, practical limitations of processing speed (bandwidth) and cost of transmission or storage resulting from the required bandwidth. Today, the availability of high speed semiconductors and integrated circuits make the latter reason most important in nearly all applications. Virtually all video compression methods utilize the limitations of the human visual system to remove the less visible picture information that might otherwise be present.As broadcast television was being developed, display rates of 50 or 60 pictures per second were considered necessary. Discussing Quality Broadcasting and its future would not be complete without discussing the past and present of Broadcasting. Cathode-ray tube, also known as CRT’s is the technology used in most televisions and computer display screens. A CRT works by moving an electron beam back and forth across the back of the screen. Each time the beam makes a pass across the screen, it lights up phosphor dots on the inside of the glass tube, thereby illuminating the active portions of the screen.By drawing many such lines from the top to the bottom of the screen, it creates an entire screenful of images. The technology used for the display is also a critical part of the quality equation, and all broadcasters currently suffer from a lack of flat panel monitors which can be used to check that picture quality is perfect before it l eaves the studio. The reason is because display are no longer made using ‘CRTs', which had many disadvantages, but could be made as very high precision instruments when needed.This is not so easy with today's flat panel display. An analysis of the options available for a common multiplex is currently being made. There seem to be a number of potential candidates for a common multiplex, and particular attention unfocussed on the MPEG proposals and the DAB system. A unique system for DAB and Devisees particularly attractive. a. ) HDTV Nowadays, we have different prototypes of devices which we use to enhance broadcast information quality with.One of these numerous devices would be what we call HDTV which is also known as High-Definition Television. This is basically a new television prototype that provides much better resolution and resonance than current televisions based on the NTSC standard. HDTV is a type of Digital Television (DTV) broadcast, and is considered to be the best quality DTV format available. Types of HDTV displays include direct-view, plasma, rear screen, and front screen projection. HDTV requires an HDTV tuner to view and the most detailed HDTV format is 1080i.HDTV is a digital TV broadcasting format where the broadcast transmits widescreen pictures with more detail and quality than found in a standard analog television, or other digital television formats. High definition television is defined rather loosely by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) as a system which has about twice the horizontal and vertical definition of conventional television. This still leaves open the amount of noise or artifacts that are permitted, and which affect the picture quality just as much as definition.In Europe, Asia, South America and across other parts of the world the PAL system is adopted by each state, and often with some unique characteristic, such as the location of the sound carrier. This means for protecting sovereign borders has made f or complications in program exchange, though presumably has not impacted the set sales in any of the regions. Further-more, there is a relatively wide range of definitions available within the term â€Å"conventional television†. In addition, interlaced systems have a triangular vertical–temporal response, so it is difficult to know where the concept of â€Å"twice resolution† applies (Anand, 1993, p 210).To pin down HDTV, we have to look at the combined effect of all the quality factors on the picture; and, to some extent, make up new rules. It is apparent that the NTSC standard sets the limits today in television quality. The NTSC system is a composite system, meaning the color or chrominance information is embedded in the luminace information. In over-the-air and cable transmission there are frequently micro reflections produced, which deliver somewhat delayed second or third harmonic images (which are commonly referred to as ghosting).Only so many scanning l ines, so much bandwidth is in the standard. There is also the inclusion of interlace scanning, producing aliasing artifacts, interline noise (often called â€Å"twitter†), and dot crawl which is undeniably the factor which makes perfected separation by way of comb filtering of color and luminance information very expensive, thus color smearing results in most modestly priced sets without this device included. The accumulation of artifacts from the traditional NTSC standard has placed a practicalsize limit of the television image since most consumers perceive an increase in size as a â€Å"cause† of the artifacts, rather than merely the exposing of them. While filtering techniques have improved, the cross color and dot crawl artifacts, there remains the unalterable fact that the total amount of picture information in the broadcast standard has a specific limit. When deciding on a required picture quality we have to bear in mind the target viewing distance, and the need to ask, responsibly, for no more than is necessary.Digital compression systems all work in a similar way. The information content of the source picture varies from scene to scene. The system reproduces the content of the input picture essentially intact, until the point is reached where the transmission bit–rate will be exceeded if nothing is done. At this point, a series of approximations are made to parts of the scene. The output scene can thus have (apparently) added noise or loss of resolution, to an extent depending on the original scene content.For any practical system there will always be scenes which are reproduced perfectly, and others which are impaired. The system designer’s intention is to make the impairments occur as infrequently as possible, and be as unobtrusive as possible. The main approach examined by the WGDTB to specify the quality needed is termed the â€Å"scene–content failure characteristic†. This is a logical and scientific metho d, but it is also relatively ex-pensive to use.The basic element to be specified is the proportion of total programmed time which should be free of artifacts. â€Å"Freedom from artifacts† is considered to be associated with a minimum mean score of 12% in a double–stimulus continuous–quality scale (DSCQS) subjective evaluation. This is somewhat arbitrary figure, but much experience shows it to be a good rule of thumb for virtual transparency. The challenges are then, first, to decide what constitutes a sensible proportion of time for which impairment free pictures should be demanded.The second challenge is to assemble statistical evidence about the relative occurrence of different kinds of scene content, so that it can be verified that the requirements are met. In choosing the proportion of time for which impairment–free pictures could be expected, we can look to the other â€Å"statistical† domain of picture quality, which is the propagation failu re characteristic, used as a planning criterion. For example, in broadcasting satellite systems (BSS), quality is required to be maintained for a defined percentage of the worst month of the year.If this kind of guide-line is acceptable for satellite systems, would it also be acceptable for terrestrial television broad-casting? Unfortunately, the answer is â€Å"not quite†. In satellite broadcasting, the â€Å"outage time† is used up in rain–fades, which occur over a period of, say, half–an–hour. The quantization–noise artifacts that are introduced by digital coding will probably be more spaced out than this, and their effects will therefore be less severe on the viewers overall perception of quality (this is sometimes called the â€Å"forgiveness effect†).However, it may be appropriate to adopt a value similar to that for the BSS as a starting point for fixing the scene content failure characteristic requirement (Anand, 1993, p 210). The WGDTB has tentatively begun by taking 99. 7% transparency as the requirement for the dig-ital terrestrial HDTV service. Coupled with this, it is assumed that the reference quality is a1250/50/2:1 HDTV studio signal, with 1440 samples/line. We do not yet have a catalogue of HDTV picture sequences and their places on a code â€Å"criticality table†, but we do have some experience from for-mar 4:2:2 code studies (Altschull, 1984, p 112).These suggest that to achieve the target transparency, the code would need to pass, unimpaired, almost all the test pictures so far devised, including the second most–stringent CCIR sequence â€Å"mobile and calendar†(critical, but even so only in the area of 80%–90%criticality). The quality target is very high, and may not be achievable at the available bit–rate. But it certainly is worth aiming high at the start. It is known from past experience that HDTV source and display equipment quality will improve, and a system which will last well into the next century would be valuable.The next key question is â€Å"what quality can be achieved with 20–30 M bit/s? † Initial tests may be possible in autumn 1993 with the HD–DIVINE system, and these would probably provide first clues. b. ) EDTV The second quality level to be discussed is termed EDTV. EDTV is a common name for a particular subset of the DTV (Digital Television) standards, but On a large display screen only. It is also known as Enhanced Definition Television or extended definition television. EDTV is considered to be specifically a part of the HDTV format but does not fall near the quality and performance of HDTV.EDTV as a whole can only simulate HDTV viewing quality. However, The EDTV prototype offers more technological advancements over the SDTV unit. EDTV operates as 480p (where 480 represents the vertical resolution and p represents progressive scan). To take advantage of the said 480p standard, video source th at outputs that signal (i. e. a DVD player) must be used and the display must be able to read the 480p input signal. As an additional feature an EDTV unit also offers the benefits of Dolby digital surround soundThis is not a particularly appropriate name, because the scanning standard for the system would be the normal625–line system. The level is included because large–screen HDTV receivers, which have an HDTV dot pitch, will be very unwieldy and very expensive for many years to come. An EDTV level would fulfill a need for a lower–cost and lighter receiver. Having probably a screen size less than about 30 inches, it would not be dramatically inferior to an HDTV display in perceived quality. There may also be living rooms which are not large enough to take a true HDTV receiver.The source format for EDTV is assumed to be a signal conforming to CCIR Recommendation 601, with 720 samples per line and a 16:9 aspect ratio (Starks, 1993, p 196). The codes transparency required, in terms of the percentage of program time unimpaired, would be roughly the same as for the HDTV level (al-though in this case with respect to the 4:2:2source). The best information available at the present time is that in order to achieve this level of transparency, a bit–rate of about 9–11 M bit/s is probably needed for a motion–compensated hybrid DCT system.c. ) SDTV The third quality level considered is SDTV,. Short for Standard Definition Television it is a type of digital television operation method which is able to transmit and produce images which are of a higher quality than standard analog broadcast. While SDTV does not reach near the quality of HDTV, it is definitely superior over traditional analog television. SDTV is typically a 480i signal – where 480 represents the vertical resolution and i represents interlaced. Digital cable and digital satellite programming is widely available in SDTV format.This is specifically intended to mat ch the quality needs of portable receivers. On small–to–medium screen sizes, even today’s PAL/SECAM quality is very good. Thus, for the SDTV level, a system which has a625–line scanning format is needed, but some artifacts can also be accepted, as is the case for both PAL and SECAM. The kinds of artifacts associated with PAL/SECAM and a digital motion–compensated hybrid DCT system will be different, but it is believed that in order to achieve, globally, about the same over-all quality, a data rate of about 5–6 M bit/s is needed. d. ) LDTVThe fourth quality level is LDTV, limited definition television. This is intended to match the needs of very small screen receivers, which might be used in cars, and now being incorporated to mobile phones as well. The quality requirements of this level would be about the same as the MPEG 1 codes or about VHS level. Specifying the quality requirements, and evaluating the systems in terms of their sceneâ€⠀œcontent failure characteristics will be a major technical challenge, principally because of the need to establish how often scenes of a particular type of content are likely to occur.There may be alternative simpler approaches which will also help to understand and quantify the systems’ behavior. Another potential quality evaluation criterion, which the WGDTB has been asked to consider, is associated with the concept of â€Å"quality space†. Our perception of the picture quality of a given system is directly influenced by the viewing distance. The further from the screen, or the narrower the viewing angle, the less discriminating we are in terms of resolution or artifacts.One way, therefore, to see the various quality levels, is by imagining that there is a â€Å"quality space†, which is a graphical representation of picture quality–versus–viewing distance. For the picture quality axis, we use the same axis as for DSCQS evaluations (Andersen, 199 0, 291). There are five contiguous and equal intervals characterized by the quality descriptors: excellent, good, fair, poor, and bad. Similarly, It was specified by the EDTV system as one for which the results of assessments must fall in the excellent band at 4H.SDTV systems are those for which the results must fall in the excellent band at6H, and an LDTV system as one for which the results must fall in the excellent band at 8H. This seems a relatively clear means of defining and distinguishing between the quality levels, but experimental work remains to be done to establish its viability in practice. DISCUSSION A. Impact of Source quality Another interesting dimension to this question of picture quality concerns the impact of source quality on final picture quality under high compression.Compression systems may show a characteristic such that it could be considered (in a simplified way) that their characteristics of quality–versus–bit–rate have two regions. A Camcorder video compression device was recently developed to function effectively in a variety of applications and which could effectively address the need for high-resolution surveillance image recording. The said device is able to simultaneously encode two separate streaming images — full size and quarter size — with robust compression and high quality.The creator of the device, Showlei Associates has announced that its CamCoder video compression device will dramatically lower the cost, power consumption and size for the compression of high-definition streaming images. The IC also contains internal logic for user-programmable motion detection and watermark insertion, as well as on-board memory. High definition compression systems, as available today, do not perform as well as predictions made several years ago, with the exception of the newly created device – but the next years should bring maturity and allow more complexity in equipment.E It is a common conse nsus that the full benefits for broadcasters of the new advanced compression systems would be achieved eventually. However as of the present time inventors are still finding a way to get pass one of the quality defects of digital broadcasting today, this problem is the lack of synchronization between vision and sound. Achieving this may even become more difficult with more advanced codes. This still needs to be carefully evaluated by all broadcasters to find any loopholes in the said device. ConclusionThe Quality of Broadcasting is by all means generated by a combination of both responsible dissemination of information and state of the art broadcasting equipment. The way in which information is disseminated and retained by the audiences would first and foremost be the determining factor as to effectiveness of the broadcasting being done. The content plays a very important role in keeping the interest of the audience and it should be discerned that without a substantially good topic, even the most advanced equipment to disseminate information would not be a factor at all.It is in this context that commitments must soon be made and it is to be of utmost importance that all administrations and organizations which will be affected by technological changes should be able to share in the accumulated understanding of the factors involved with a view to taking carefully considered decisions. To assist in this process, the ITU/BR has convened a Workshop Tomorrow’s television – Thaw IDER picture, with the support of the European Broadcasting Union and the Asia–Pacific Broad-casting Union.It aims to bring together the expertise necessary for a common understanding of the issues and, to allow a balanced representation of all contending systems, the Workshop is being held away from the main centers of study, in New Zealand. 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