EDITORIAL Dear Reader, Greetings from the Editorial Team of Crucibles. Wow.! Is what all I can say. This is probably an overwhelming experience to write in as the editor and work with such a diligent, efficient and energetic team. I thank Crucibles for entrusting me and enhancing my skills. It’s my honor and pleasure to introduce the 26th edition of the e-zine. As we all know it’s February the month of Valentine’s Day. Hardly a few of us know it's not just the day of love, but it's also a day of making money, the pocket goes empty, but have we ever thought that it actually fills someone’s pocket. Huge margin of profits and increase in revenue is witnessed. As it has a lot of business dealing with economy and management involved in it, we thought of making it the cover story of this edition. Hope you enjoy reading it. We have encountered a lot of new members coming up with new ideas and I appreciate their hard work and would like to congratulate them for the same. A special mention, the cover page is designed by Mukhpreet Khurana (UGP/SS/13-16) and Maruthi Shah (UGP/SS/13-16). I would like to thank them for their painstaking efforts. This month we have older members writing in for us and a few external contributors too. 1. N. Sangeetha Reddy, Professor, Indian Institute of Planning & Management. 2. Shikinah Dekkapaty, B.Tech IV year, Computer science, Vishnu Institute of Technology. 3. Mukhpreet Khurana, UGP/SS/13-16, IIPM. I would take this opportunity to thank all for their effort and hope that this association would lead to prosperity in the mere time to come. Our aim is to learn and come up with things that could enhance our skills and work in a way that could bring about a change in the society. I would like to end it on a note, “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality”- Warren Bennis. I can completely relate to it in the present circumstances, as it asks me, as a leader to unite and ignite ideas and get the ball rolling and let it roll until the vision is realized. A leader has to set examples of determination and focus that would encourage others to follow. HAPPY READING!!!
ZOYA NAAZ PGP/SS/13-15
“VALENTINE’S DAY – LOVE IS STILL A BIG BUSINESS” Who says that this day should be restricted only to romantic love? No other day can imbibe such powerful influence of chocolate, flowers, romance and love. It is a commercially driven day that provokes strongly divided reactions to the ecstatic display of hearts, and hearty-eyed romance. For those in stable, loving relationships, the day offers a wonderful opportunity to express and blossom their love. For those who have been recently betrayed, or single, this is a day that can trigger feelings of overwhelming loneliness and grief, complemented by sorrow. But do not get disheartened, you have another valentine’s day coming up next year...! While Valentine’s Day is merely a day that we use as a light hearted way to express our feelings to our partners, it is also true that this day portrays the myth that all couples are happy. We can all benefit from an expression of love. You might be wondering how. It’s simple. Why can’t we bring about a perspective change? What if we were to adopt the idea that Valentine’s Day is not just for couples, but for everybody? While your friends might be buying flowers for their partners, consider the people in your world whom you love, and who love you back. Something special for your Mom, a telephone call to your Dad. Perhaps your daughter would appreciate flowers as much as any lover would. Maybe spending the evening with your son watching a hockey game would be one way to express your particular brand of love. Random acts of kindness can bring a surprisingly wonderful sense of well-being. Initially, Valentine’s Day began as a liturgical celebration in the name of the Christian Saint Valentinus. Later, as the time passed by, i.e., in the early 18th century, it evolved into an occasion of expressing love using flowers and cards which are now replaced by heart-shaped dove and winged cupids. Presently, we are in that clockhour where it is no more celebrated as a day, but the word day has been replaced by the word week. Every day of this week is celebrated in the name of kiss, hug, promise, chocolate and teddy bears. Did you ever think that the concept of these days has pushed us to buy the above mentioned tangible commodities, in order to express our love? Now churn your brain and think economically. What happens when you buy them? You aren't actually buying them. But I would be more precise by saying purchasing them. When you purchase them you are actually increasing their sales, which in turn lead to increase in their revenue. If you have noticed, the production of heart shaped candies, red balloons, teddy bears, candles have increased drastically over the years. This is because the demand for such commodities is increasing year by year. The urge of lovers to propose their to beloved and express their love is increasing and hence the impact is clearly visible in the rise in demand of these commodities.
Let's look through it with a statistical perspective. The research conducted estimates that the sales for this Valentine’s Day would rise from 3.2% in 2013 to 3.7% in 2014.The marketers were expected to rope in huge figures as the cupid arrow fell on Friday this year.Hence, being a long weekend. The sales of all the commodities were expected to grow, specifically the premium products and products like jewelry and getaways were expected to be the winners. Whereas the sales of gift, cards and chocolate are the fastest-growing sector. The average expenditure has increased to $135.10 in 2014 from last year’s $134.28 (2013) which was a result of a slight increase from $133.99 in 2012.The rise in sales in 2012 was up by 8.2% when compared to that of 2011. According to ibisworld.com
Apart from just exchanging cards and flowers, it is also estimated that, based on their income levels, more of the consumers prefer dining out with their loved ones, and this has increased the restaurant revenue by 4.1%. According to the Jewelry Industry Research Institute, there is an increase in the jewelry sales as more people chose to get wed this year compared to last year.They had forecast it to grow up by 4.2%. Moreover, the sales of candies, flowers and greeting cards were expected to grow at a slower rate compared to other commodities. The growth of flower and clothing sales are facilitated by the e-commerce websites.
Moving on to the statistics of the previous year (i.e., 2013): The jewelry sales had under performed when compared to the sales of other commodities because of the government’s fiscal cliff negotiations.Whereas, spending on flowers had strengthened the market as the cupid arrow was falling on Thrusday then. People preferred online flower orders and delivered them to their workplaces. Although it had increased the sales, but the price wars had limited the revenue growth. The candy sales saw higher revenue in 2013 as they are considered to be the small luxuries, but the sales of other commodities were quiet. 2013 had also witnessed an increase of about 1.8% in the clothing sector and an
increase of about 0.4% in the greeting card sector .The reason behind this slow growth rate in the cards is because people switched to homemade cards and e-cards. The above statistics could be also represented through the following images:
When you talk about expressing your love or proposing to your beloved, the first thought that would strike you would probably be a mental image by triggering your visual cortex. Now the question is what did you imagine? Basically, the lucky he/she, right in front of you, beautiful scenery,perfect set for a meal, a glass of champagne, a diamond ring and how can I forget this, a bunch of beautiful flowers. But do all of them prefer and buy the same red roses? No. A survey conducted in 2013 says that there is a majority of people opting for red roses then followed by others.
What are consumers buying? (Multiple Responses Allowed)
Percent
Red Roses
63%
Mixed Flowers
41%
Roses (not red)
27%
Plants
22%
Other type of flower such as all tulips, all carnations, all lilies, etc.
30%
The survey also confirms that approximately 25% of adults have opted for flowers as gifts among which 64% were men and 36% were women. Apart from this, it has also been observed that a number of flowers are imported and exported, to and from different countries. Lilies are considered as one of the most imported flowers, especially in India. The artificial feather rose princess is imported from China and Orchids from Thailand. Eritrea flowers are also one among them. The Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey have conducted surveys on the gifts that are most often purchased in the year 2013 and it can be represented as follows:
Gifts Most Often Given on Valentines Day (Allowing for multiple gifts given) 11.20% 12.60% Candy
14.40% 47.50%
Flowers Cards Jewelry
34.60% 34.30%
Dining / Eating Out Clothing
17.30%
Gift Cards 52.10%
Other Gifts
Now, the creative minds of marketers have come up with a new strategy of selling printed shirts with nasty and catchy quotes. They have made these T-shirts available at different online stores and the demand for these are increasing day by day. If we view things in a traditional and cultural perspective, there are few Hindu and Islamic traditionalists who believe that it is a cultural contamination from the west and is criticized by many Indians. It all started in the year 1992 and despite these protests and obstacles, Valentine’s Day is celebrated over huge masses and hence, contributing to the revenue and forming a market of about Rs.15 billion.
Keeping aside all the statistics, I would end up on a note, “Encourage yourself, believe in yourself, and love yourself. Never doubt who you are.” – Stephania Lahart. Valentine’s Day offers us a unique opportunity to undertake a new perspective on how we choose to celebrate love. The traditional approach with flowers,
cards, and romance works beautifully for some. For others, a display of love towards children, parents, or friends can be equally rewarding. But in the midst of all the various means of displaying love to others, let us not forget the benefits of looking after our own needs. This Valentine’s Day, offer yourself the same thing you give to all of the loved ones in your life, and make the effort to show yourself a little love!
Reference Links:
http://www.aboutflowers.com/flower-holidays-occasions-a-parties/flowers-for-valentines/valentines-daystatistics.html http://www.ibisworld.com/media/2014/02/05/valentines-day-sales-3-7-2014/ http://www.ibisworld.com/media/2013/01/28/valentines-day-sales-up-3-2-percent-in-2013/ http://visual.ly/valentines-day-2013-statistics-and-marketing-ideas?view=true http://www.statisticbrain.com/valentines-day-statistics/ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/valentines-day/eventcoverage/11699021.cms http://www.bbb.org/blog/2012/02/valentines-day-figures-2012/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine's_Day http://zeenews.india.com/business/news/economy/valentines-day-market-in-india-pegged-at-rs-15billion_70092.html
ZOYA NAAZ
MUKHPREET KHURANA
PGP/SS/13-15
UGP/SS/13-16
“FACEBOOK TURNS 10” What strikes your mind when I say February? You might end up recollecting someone’s birthday or it could just be the 14th February “Valentine’s Day”. But do you guys know that there is another important date in February that's worth celebrating? Yes, it's Facebook’s birthday. Facebook was launched by Mark Zuckerberg and his room mates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes, ten years ago on February 4th 2004 with about 400 million active users and 70 different language translations, connecting about 160 million objects of interaction.
Facebook has many personal and professional uses. May it be poking a friend or advertising your brand, Facebook has always been the podium to endorse abstract and concrete products. Apart from adding friends, liking the photos, commenting on statuses, we also like pages and set different cover photos. Did we ever think how does the concept of timelines and cover photos help brands to enhance user relationships? How is the Facebook design helpful to marketers? Facebook was used as a marketing tool when the users increased in specific segments. Marketers used promotion strategies in order to target those segments through social media. Facebook provided them with several key opportunities such as : Permitted consumer interaction and enhanced the two-way communication Helped in developing the brand in a way, which was not possible through the website or traditional advertising Provided a level of credibility for brands Facebook has become a visual-oriented platform. It has provided businesses with a great opportunity to advertise in different and newer ways. The concept of cover photos has helped businesses in marketing themselves, allowing users to connect between the business and their Facebook page. The large dimensions of cover photo quickly grabs attention from users, enabling them to access the basic and necessary information or may remind the users about the company through their catchy slogans. As the media continues to shape the marketing strategies, cover photos become a useful tool of brand representation. Facebook cover photos would come up with opportunities that allow us to call to action, purchase information, provide contact information and refer to other Facebook features or actions. These guidelines give us freedom
and flexibility, but these too have rules to follow. As per the rule, it limits the amount of text content that could be included in 20%. A grid-based text overlay detection tool is used to detect the non-compliant images. The new Facebook design has a greater emphasis on the visuals. The marketers should make sure that the images they use should properly represent their brand values and products.
Facebook offers are considered as a promotional tool that allow marketers to address potential customers. This feature increases the sales of the business. As the offer is created, it is shared and liked among friends and if the offer is redeemed it is automatically updated on the news feeds. This feature can also be considered as an invaluable tool when the content is vital.It also enables businesses to specify how their fans redeem the offer. This can be done in three ways: in-store only, online only, or both in-store and online. Apart from all this, did we ever think how can we prevent our businesses? The United States government joined hands with the other institutions to protect businesses. As we all know, the brands are protected by trademarks and copyrights whereas the reputation of celebrities and athletes are protected by the anti defamation laws, privacy laws and paparazzi laws. But the question is, is it possible to apply these laws to our online identity? Content posted at times is difficult to delete. What would you do in case of brandjacking? How can one protect oneself or one’s company from brand identity theft?
Facebook is referred to as an easy, relatively undetectable way to hijack an identity. A survey conducted reads the statistics as 80% of brandjacking sites that were observed in 2007 were still active on the web at the end of 2008.This can be prevented by consistent monitoring of how the brand is being referred to, thereby allowing marketers to take immediatetete actions and address any falsifications. It can also be treated as a personal attack. It also interferes with future opportunities. Brandjacking is an activity where you have temporarily lost control of what is said in your name on the Internet, thereby leaving an organization to media attacks or bad publicity, potentially leading to lost sales or a reduced share price.
One such threat was encountered by Starbucks in 2006, when a YouTube host presented a video advert underlining the contrast between consumption and poverty. This sort of threats can be avoided by registering the brand names and sub-brands on the sites, using monitoring tools to seek evidence of infringement, taking legal action against the hijackers who are responsible for the infringement. Brands like Gap, J.C. Penney, Nordstrom and GameStop have opened and shut down since the retailers have entered the ‘f-commerce’ market. Right now, Facebook does not deal with online shopping but it may change in the mere future. Reference Links:
http://socialmediatoday.com/ubersocialmedia/1335031/facebook-business-benefits http://nyumarketingsociety.weebly.com/1/post/2012/02/why-are-brands-shutting-down-their-facebookstores.html http://www.socialbakers.com/blog/1535-new-facebook-cover-photos-rules-will-benefit-brands
ZOYA NAAZ PGP-SS-13-15
“IS BEAUTY PARLOUR AN INDUSTRY?” ABSTRACT An attempt is being made to focus on one of the least pronounced service sectors in the economy, namely, the beautifying sector. The transformation of traditional saloons to the beauty parlors with professional specialization in the field which took them to the heights of their income & success ladder with their self employment generation is really the matter of appreciation. It also tries to focus on their financial security that they are enjoying for the past few years and how they are at threat. This article on beauty parlor industry exhibits the shape that it has taken right from its inception, its challenges and the way out to overcome them.
History of the Beauty Parlor Industry Although the beauty parlor industry is not a historically recent phenomenon, women and men have used creams, lotions and preparation alter their bodies in order to conform to the aesthetic standard of their day and their social position since time immemorial. No wonder the fact that the concept was well-known to the ancient Egyptians, Aryans, Mughals and even Cleopatra. However the contemporary beauty industry and beauty salon has its roots traced back to the middle of the 19th century.
The urge and eagerness to look more beautiful and ever beautiful gave birth to millions of beautiful customers. Who doesn’t want to get noticed? There is a global, national, regional and local obsession to look more beautiful. The beauty seekers’ expectations raised towards beauty clinics led to a tremendous growth in the saloon market. It is difficult to imagine how exhausting and miserable life would have been for poor women of the period. Also interesting was the fact that she had access to know pre prepared beauty products. Washing her hair becomes a struggle with raw eggs and barely concealed disgust at having to live with greasy hair full of odour. Hands were constantly chapped from washing and other domestic chores and women started to make their own hand creams from a mixture of glycerin and other ingredients. This preparation sufficed for face clean and was described as feeling similar to wax on the face. For men also, visit to the barber supplemented his own clumsy attempts to shave with a cutthroat razor.
WHAT IS BEAUTY THERAPY? The term “Beauty Therapy” suggests a conjunction of ideas incorporating a transformation-involving mind, body or both. The development of the beauty industry sheds light upon political, social, economic and cultural processes.
GROWTH AND SCOPE OF THE INDUSTRY In recent years, its place in contemporary culture has altered hugely as salons have become not simply places to have your hair cut or nails. There has been a multi-folded progress in the beauty parlor industry with regard to its size, expansion, nature which has heralded to the trans-national borders across the world. With the globalization, the industry has taken its full-fledged shape covering almost all the sectors of the economy. The Modeling industry, the film industry, the Television industry, the etc have all been the part and parcel of the beauty parlor industry. Its scope is so widespread that various specializations have emerged in this industry based on gender, age, time and space. Several magazines, Literature and websites have come up with updates on the rapidly expanding beauty culture.
FROM MALE PARLOR TO THE FEMALE PARLOR Beauty parlor is no way common for all. With trends it has become more gender specific. Business knows no gender discrimination. Today we have beauty parlors for women and men separately. It stops men complaining that visiting parlor is useless and which is meant for only rich women. It has been a great pastime for some. Beauty parlor invites the women from the stressful life of office and house. It acts as a great mental leveler for those who are stressed out from their daily routine and for those who are health and beauty conscious. Today men and women are acquainted with the numerous beauty products with the help of the ever fastest growing media and cybernetic revolution. In the last 10 years, however, there has been a sea change in the growth of beauty products. Liberalization has thrown the vistas into the beauty revolution and beauty culture. Women are no more restricted to the lipstick and cold cream like in the past and now they are brand conscious of what Issey Miyake and Lancome , French cosmetics, Amway skin care products, Shehnaz beauty care products, Anoos’ products and many more what they are. What's popular abroad is very popular here due to the globalization and liberalization. Derived businesses The drastic growth again contributed to the growth of derived businesses such as books and magazines on beauty care and culture, T.V shows on Beauty care like that of MERI SAHELI, SAKHI, ANDAM, SOUNDARYA LAHARI etc on the national and Regional channels, modeling business, advertisement industry, film industry etc. All these businesses are now under the top profit generating ladder in the economy. Who can ignore the fact that we have the world players on the international stage like Diana Hayden, Lara Dutta, Aiswarya Rai, Priyanka Chopra, Sushmitha Sen, and Diya Mirza to our credit who make us feel proud of in general and are absolutely financially secured even for their generations to come?
Like as the saying goes “every speck of water constitutes an ocean, every saloon parlor with its expansion has constituted an industry. Today one can find a beauty parlor mostly run by women in every nook and corner of the cities. Now let us take a few samples of beauty parlors in the city of Hyderabad depicting their services and the incomes generated through their services. GLAMOROUS BEAUTY PARLOUR AND BLOSSOM’S BEAUTY PARLOUR Weekly Incomes earned by the beauticians against the treatment for various categories (September 2010 statistics)
Weekly incomes(Rs)
Bar diagram showing weekly incomes in different treatments for Blossom's beauty parlor
15000 12000
Threding
Cleanups
Facials
Cuttings
9000 6000 3000 0 1 Treatments
Weekly incomes(Rs)
Bar diagram showing weekly incomes earned in different treatments for Glamorous beauty parlor
15000 12000
Threding
9000
Cleanups
6000
Facials
3000
Cuttings
0 1 Treatments
By looking into the rows and columns of the above stated, we can infer that with the increase in the demand for the services of a beautician, the respective incomes of the beauty parlors also increase. In other words, income elasticity is high with the increasing demand for the services of a beautician.
Threat to the Industry There has been a threat to the beauty industry on the following grounds:Common threats
Unhygienic conditions of the Salons
Use of Cheap quality products for treatment
Suitability to this type of business Lack of Formal training/required skills Targeting the customers Not Knowing the competitors Difficulty in promoting Not knowing the key issues affecting the market Not meeting the minimum requirements in salon hygiene, product quality and regulations, level of qualification held and customer service.
Global threats In the light of liberalization, privatization & globalization, the industry is being posed with a great threat for the past few years. It has its treats from the various fronts like:
Severe competition from the domestic players
Competition from the foreign players Economic Slowdown Irregular source of income Unregulated sector Disparity in the remuneration for the staff involved from location to location, time to time and from person to person. High consultancy charges Lack of systematic Education and Training
Measures to overcome these threats Before one could take up this area as the profession and wants to be successful, one should ask these questions to oneself that
Are you suited to this type of business? What formal training do you need? Who are your customers likely to be? What the skills and training are needed Who will you be competing against? What are the key issues affecting the market? How can you promote this enterprise? What start up costs can you expect? What are the legal issues to consider?
Beauty tips for all An important part of being beautiful is having a good skin and healthy eating habits. There are several products in the market for skin care but the basics of skin care are very simple. If you follow the guidelines below, you will be doing 90% of what is required for a healthy and beautiful skin. The basic truth is that the normal skin has a natural capability to clean and protect itself. We know that animals don’t take any special care of their skin!
Taking a bath regularly Use of lukewarm water cleans more efficiently. Use of normal soap for better cleaning Use of medicated soaps only if the skin has a problem Oils can be used after bathing for dry skin Some oils containing additional anti-bacterial and anti-fungal agents are good or massaging the scalp and body Oil massaging enhances skin softness, improves blood circulation and body relaxation Use the suitable variant of Moisturizers, Vaseline, Creams, Powders, Face Packs, and Sun Screen Lotions etc that are available in the market.
Try not on the counter (OTC) with irrational combinations which are not only silly, but do look ugly causing damage to the skin and health. Use of herbal products prevents the damage to the skin.
CONCLUSION: Yes, the Beauty parlor is an Industry. The beauty industry is now a multinational, multimillion-dollar business. Beauty business generates money if one is able to give "quality, superior and satisfying services" to your customer. It has been universally proved that nearly 80-85% of the global business are successful by the power of Interactive Marketing which involves no advertisement cost. And this beauty parlor industry withstood against odds to emerge as an industry. Of course, all that glitters may not be gold, but also a thing of beauty is a joy forever.
Notwithstanding the fact that there may be competition or not, whether the industry is regulated or not, whether there are disparities in the remuneration part or whatever may be the reason, the beauty industry is less affected by the slowdown compared to its counterparts. The industry is ever booming and will continue to blossom amidst every odd. It is a provider of self employment for many men and women-the women who are not highly academically qualified and who are reluctant to go out of their home premises and work for many reasons. The industry can become glamorous and survive if it is regulated. In the light of this, the government authorities can come out with the reasonable policy for its firm survival.
References
http://www.womenfitness.net/beauty/ http://www.quickmarch.com/Cosmetics.html http://www.beautyexpert.co.uk/ http://www.beauticiansonnet.com http://www.paloalto.co.uk/software/start_up_planning/beauty _therapist_startup.cfm
N. SANGEETHA REDDY, Professor, Indian Institute of Planning & Management.
“10 Plans by NASA after end of robust Space Program” Who hasn’t been bitten by the space inquisitiveness bug? Well, almost everyone has. In fact, if you have a somewhat idea of what’s going round you, i.e. the North, East, West and the South (simply the NEWS), then it might have just hit you now that there are no more headlines splashed across like, ‘Space Shuttle Discovery lifts off for ISS’ or ‘Crucial repair done by Atlantis Crew on Hubble Space Telescope’ any more.
Well, that’s primarily because NASA had decided to shut down their robust, yet on-life-support obsolete space vehicles of the ‘70’s. However, they decided to put their foot on the accelerator to steer towards creating more state-of-the-art spacecraft by using current cutting edge technology as they look towards the future. But if you thought that NASA got all their strategies wrong by not having an equally good space program in place to continue the space trips, well then you might have just got it wrong. However, we are also not all that lame to assume that a world renowned organization like NASA would not have future plans in place. They in fact do have plans, something we can term as, ‘Taking one step back to take many leaps forward.’ Let me corroborate that. "Don't be misled into thinking we have left human spaceflight," Charlie Bolden, NASA chief told reporters on July 21, 2011. "The future is today." He also went on to say in another TV show that NASA has spent seven years working on a "well-organized transition plan" for phasing out the shuttle and "moving on to the next era.". Let’s look more closely into what these plans actually are: 1. Atlantis, still after its official final flight in 2011, ferret supplies and equipment to the International Space Station to keep the latter going on till 2012. 2. NASA, in this interim period, is experiencing and will experience a lull in space mission or exploration activity, but it has contingency plans to rent seats from ex-rival Russian Soyuz spacecrafts besides, spending up to around $63 million per seat, to send astronauts into space, besides keeping the Space Station running. 3. The most important and paramount goal of NASA is to develop multi-purpose space vehicle(s) within the next few years to lengthen the range of future space missions, predominantly to take humans to near-Earth asteroids as well as Mars (Remember the 1 step back, many leaps forward?) 4. NASA is also looking to outsource some of its core competencies to an enterprise building system of allowing firms to develop space modules and mechanisms, with the former funding them and closely monitoring the whole paradigm and keeping them in the house.
5. NASA will comprehensively have a two-pronged strategy of leveraging the prowess of American private aerospace companies’ potential with ‘American ingenuity’, quoting Charlie Bolden. 6. Plans are in the pipeline for regular missions to low Earth-orbit asteroids, thus providing the impetus for NASA to eventually reach Mars and make it commercially viable too. 7. NASA’s current activities to probe planets like Mars, Saturn and Jupiter are underway and would continue in the future, like the Juno spaceship which is monitoring Jupiter’s planetary core, aurora’s etc.
8. The Dawn spacecraft is currently on its way to an asteroid named Vesta to help us understand the evolution of the solar system, ending its mission in 2015. 9. The Mars Science Labaratory, also called Curiosity was launched in 2011 and its mission is underway to ascertain whether Mars ever had or has the capability to support microbial life. 10. Missions like the Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL), Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array and a few others only make facts more concrete about NASA’s consistent and ongoing resolve to dig deep and unravel facts about the universe. Reference Links :
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/after-atlantis-launch-whats-next-for-nasa/ http://news.nationalgeographic.co.in/news/2011/07/110708-space-shuttle-launch-atlantis-nasafuture-science/ http://www.ibtimes.com/after-shuttle-ends-nasa-discusses-whats-next-295943
BENJAMIN TAYLOR ISBE/FW/11-13/E (IIPM ALUMINI)
“SOFTWARE BUSINESS TRENDS”
Entrepreneurs interested in tech are always looking for new and exciting ways to streamline business processes to make their business as tight knit, as rock solid and as automated as humanly possible. The integration of tech into a business is very important. Many of these tech trends have been quite popular with business in the tech space. Lately, however, more and more traditional businesses are looking to get involved with some of these trends as well, and when this happens, these trends become the mainstream.
Cloud Computing: The cloud is an exceptionally powerful force and it is bringing along some important changes to businesses that choose to integrate it into their daily business processes. Living in an ever increasingly mobile world, there is not just one computer. There are several computers, mobile phones and maybe even tablets. Access to our data may be required whenever, wherever, which is why the cloud is so important, especially for business owners. Cheaper storage, modular quantities and easier integration with business processes. These are just a few of the benefits of moving a business into the cloud.
Big Data: Big data technologies have been much talked about in the financial services sector and impact this and other industries.
Life sciences and healthcare firms are adopting big data analytics to better predict, diagnose and ultimately prevent disease. The travel & hospitality industry is rapidly applying big data technologies to fuel better revenue management, and guest management systems. As the energy industry becomes increasingly automated, it will use big data for management of drilling efficiencies and for predictive analysis of new gas tracking locations. From adapting big data for financial services reporting, monitoring and compliance purposes, to deploying it for enhanced health care diagnostics, users will benefit from countless opportunities to intelligently leverage data to discover new insights and generate business-impacting analytics.
Data Visualization: Data visualization can be adopted on a wider scale, to allow interaction with, and management of, data in a variety of ways, with new mobile technology allowing users to view critical data via applications on multiple devices.
Machine to machine (M2M) technologies: A greater push from the industry to use M2M technologies, such as mobile apps, acting as keys, or remotely controlling room temperature and facilitating check-ins, will help enhance customer experiences in the hospitality sector. The life sciences sector has seen a rise in the usage of sensors that can automatically track health parameters, including pulse, temperature and EKG. Usage of smart medicine bottles to ensure drug adherence and ePRO systems connected to wearable technology to automatically track patient data in clinical trials has become prevalent.
100% paperless offices: Just about any business in the world can go paperless. There is no need to have mountains of paper everywhere in this day and age. It gets messy, it takes up space and more importantly, it takes up time. There are apps and software that can help eliminate the paper on hand. Whatever it is, it can be stored on a computer and in the cloud.
Smart phones: Fifty-two percent of Smartphone users want to use their fingerprints instead of passwords and 48 per cent are interested in using eye-recognition to unlock their screen, according to research by Ericsson. A total of 74 per cent believe biometric Smartphones will become main stream during 2014.
CONCLUSION: Because the business software market evolves, so quickly, it is important to keep track of the latest software market trends which can utilize technology as a strategic advantage for a company. Technological and functional improvements in business software can have a big impact on how business is done.
SHIKINAH DEKKAPATY B.Tech (CSc)
“Kindness” as a subject…! Dear Readers…
Gone are the days when people spoke sentences like this “Thank You Sir, You are most welcome kind lady, it is my pleasure, May I take your permission, et al.
These days we have an endless list of unkind morals followed and cherished. Throwing tantrums, insulting people, questioning their morals and usage of slang have been adapted by humankind at a very basic level. On a higher level, we have abuse towards Mother Nature, unkindness towards animals and other inhabitants, demoralizing people on caste, creed, color and race and the list is endless. Do we care about anything except ourselves?
Where has our essence of kindness lost? Have we forgotten to be kind? Why do we not care anymore? Why is it always “ME” and never “WE”? We need to understand, there is, this one planet we live in, as of now, and we haven’t found life and humanitarian habitat anywhere else in the universe. We live here, with all the other living species. Do we think we can dwell while we continue living with our egoistic self?
We are living in an era, where the respect towards another individual, towards humanity, towards nature & towards everything else needs to be re-learned from the basics. Somewhere in leading towards modernity, we have forgotten to be kind.
Has it ever crossed your mind, that implementing from the beginning has always helped? Can we as well focus on implementing kindness from the beginning? We were all taught counting tables (2x2=4, 2x3=6) at a very tender age, which I am sure is always on our mind, in spite of that learning being very old. Why cannot we implement something similar to rekindle and ignite the value of kindness in our society? Doing so, will position kindness as an important and valuable asset, our generations will learn the respect which is now seen to be diminishing.
Sometimes the minutest of the things leads to the biggest of the changes. Let us all participate in practicing kindness rather than experiencing regret later.
I haven’t written this article to demoralize the readers, or create a tension, but I have written this article, to spread awareness among the youth to open their minds and think, the next time when you see a banana peel, don’t hesitate to throw it in the bin. The next time you see an elder, don’t hesitate to help. The next time you see someone depressed, don’t laugh at them. The next time you see a nearly dead tree, don’t hesitate to water
it. The next time you see a stray dog hurt, don’t hesitate to medicate. Because, your one single action has saved someone. We are all unaware of our future, it could have been you who may slip on the peel, it could be you struggling to cross roads in your future, it could be you suffering from the heartbreak and depression, it could be us dying of lack of oxygen because of no trees in the future, and it can also be your dog who is hurt on the road? At that particular moment, wouldn’t you have thanked someone from the bottom of your heart if you had been receiving kindness rather than some egoistic look?
Being kind is not a matter of choice, but it is a necessity. You cannot take choices, whether you should be kind or not, you need to, and you have to cherish it! It can be made possible by teaching it all from the basic level, since the time we start learning alphabets & number, and implementation of that subject in our practical life is the only way to pass the examination.
Remember, kindness is the only language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see (Mark Twain). And, I believe in the magic of kindness, Do you???
Khadija Ansar Crucibles Co-Founder & IIPM Alumni