Seven Habits free essay sample

Your character is basically the sum of your habits. Therefore, to become successful, you need to develop good habits in your life. This book teaches you how to acquire the seven habits of truly effective people. The foundation of your success and character should be based on common moral values such as integrity, honesty, humility, courage, patience, justice, the Golden Rule, etc. This is known as the â€Å"Character Ethic†. In the long term, it is easier to be motivated by such principles of integrity and goodness. Your character should not be based on a false public image, hypocritical attitudes and behaviors, or superficial techniques for human interaction/manipulation. That would be known as the â€Å"Personality Ethic†. If your principles were based solely on the â€Å"Personality Ethic†, you may achieve short-term success, but people will eventually see through your dishonest motives and cease to trust you. You will not enjoy long-term success and happiness. We will write a custom essay sample on Seven Habits or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Habits 1 to 7 develop your character in a progressive manner. Learning the first 3 habits will help you achieve â€Å"private victory†, where you learn to move from dependence to independence by taking responsibility for your own life. Habits 4 through 6 teach you how to get â€Å"public victory, by moving from independence to interdependence and succeeding through creating synergy with other people. Habit 7 involves the renewal and balance of your mind, body and spirit. Seven Habits of Highly Effective People The book first introduces the concept of Paradigm Shift and prepares the reader for a change in mindset. It helps you understand that there exists a different perspective, a viewpoint that may be different from your own and states that two people can see the same thing and yet differ with each other. Once the reader is prepared for this, it introduces the seven habits, in a proper order. Each chapter is dedicated to one of the habits, which are represented by the following rules: Independence The First Three Habits surround moving from dependence to independence (i. e. , self-mastery).  Habit 1: Be Proactive, take initiative in life by realizing that your decisions and how they align with lifes principles are the primary determining factor for effectiveness in your life. Take responsibility for your choices and the consequences that follow. Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind Self-discover and clarify your deeply important character values and life goals. Envision the ideal characteristics for each of your various roles and relationships in life. Habit 3: Put first things first. A manager must manage his own person personally and managers should implement activities that aim to reach the second habit. Covey says that rule two is the mental creation, rule three is the physical creation. Interdependence The next three have to do with Interdependence (i. e. , working with others): Habit 4: Think Win-Win Genuinely strive for the same beneficial solutions or agreements in your relationships. Value and respect people by understanding a win for all is ultimately a better long-term resolution than if only one person in the situation had got his way.  Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood Use empathic listening to be genuinely influenced by a person, which requires them to reciprocate the listening and take an open mind to being influenced by you. This creates an atmosphere of caring, and positive problem solving. Habit 6: Synergize and combine the strengths of people through positive teamwork in order to achieve goals no one person could have do ne alone. Continuous Improvement The final habit is that of continuous improvement in both the personal and interpersonal spheres of influence. Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw Balance and renew your resources, energy, and health to create a sustainable, long-term, effective lifestyle. It primarily emphasizes exercise for physical renewal, prayer (meditation, yoga, etc. ) and good reading for mental renewal. It also mentions service to society for spiritual renewal. Covey explains the Upward Spiral model in the sharpening the saw section. Through our conscience, along with meaningful and consistent progress, the spiral will result in growth, change, and constant improvement. One is always attempting to integrate and master the principles outlined in The 7 Habits at progressively higher levels at each recurrence. Subsequent development on any habit will render a different experience and you will learn the principles with a deeper understanding. The Upward Spiral model consists of three parts: learn, commit, and do. According to Covey, you must constantly be educating the conscience in order to grow and develop on the upward spiral. The idea of renewal by education will boost one along the path of personal freedom, security, wisdom, and power. Conclusion. This book is not a quick-fix prescription for personal growth. However, if you work hard at acquiring these principles, if you learn them well, think about them deeply and teach them to others, they will eventually become adopted. They will lead to fundamental change because they will affect who you are – your character – for the better. Your personality was formed as the result of specific behaviors you internalized as you grew up. These behaviors are not things we need to think about, they represent little success strategies or ways of coping with life that we have found to be helpful. You will see how acquiring new habits leads to a fundamental change of character.

Free Essays on Mythology

Greek mythology was fully developed by about the 8th century BC. As the Greek people began to realize that the sun, moon and stars followed certain rhythms with The seasons, they thought that something not beast nor human had the power. That is were the idea of gods came in. Ancient Greeks believed that the gods, who resembled Humans lived on Mount Olympus, where they had their own little society. Individual Gods were part of three main parts of the world- the sky or heaven, the sea, and the Earth. The 12 chief gods were Zeus was the god of the sky and ruler of the Olympian gods. He was considered the father of the gods, and of mortals, although he did not create either; he was their father in the sense of being the ruler both of the Olympian gods and of the human race. He was the rain god, and the cloud gatherer, his wepon was the terrible thunderbolt. His breastplate was the aegis, his bird the eagle, his tree the oak. Zeus was the youngest son of the Titans, Cronus and Rhea, and the brother of the Poseidon, Hades, Hestia, Demeter, and Hera. According to one of the ancient myths of the birth of Zeus, Cronus, having heard the prophecy that he might be dethroned by one of his children, swallowed them as they were born. Upon the birth of Zeus, Rhea wrapped a stone in swaddling clothes for Cronus to swallow and concealed the infant god in Crete, where he was fed on the milk of the goat Amalthaea and reared by nymphs. When Zeus grew to maturity, he forced Cronus to regergitate the other children, who were eager to take vengeance on their father. In the war that followed, the Titans fought on the side of Cronus, but Zeus and the other gods were successful, and the Titans were banished to Tartarus.... Free Essays on Mythology Free Essays on Mythology Some of the world’s most compelling relationships have their roots in classical mythology. Many different religions have stories or ideals that have similarities to the relationships seen in ancient Greek mythology. From the interaction of mortals and gods we see how different writers viewed religion, family, and society. More specifically we see how the gods influence the way of life of a mortal. In Homer’s Odyssey there are many instances where the gods help mortals through their struggles. However, at the same time, there are situations when gods use their power to all but destroy the lives of the mortals who have displeased them. One of the most intriguing relationships between god and mortal is that of Athena and Odysseus. There are many times when Athena gives Odysseus the helping hand needed to succeed in his ventures to return to Ithaca. The roles that the gods play in the Homeric world compared with Euripides and Sophocles have great similarities as we ll as differences. Looking at how Athena seems to take care of Odysseus, it seems that the gods, perhaps only Athena, tend to take a liking to mortals occasionally. You could draw the conclusion that Athena seems to like Odysseus’ family. She shows almost as much interest in Telemachos as she does Odysseus. â€Å"Likening herself to Mentor in form and in voice: â€Å"Telemachos, already your well-greaved companions are seated at the oars awaiting your urging. Let us go, so that we may not long delay from the journey.† (Book II, pg 26, lines 401-404) In this passage Athena has taken the form of Mentor, a good companion of Odysseus, and has instructed Telemachos â€Å"to go in a ship onto the murky sea to learn of the return of my father who is gone so long.† (Book II, pg 23, lines 262-263) Athena then says, â€Å"†¦hereafter you will not be a coward or senseless. If there is really instilled in you the good might of your father and you are as he was to achieve... Free Essays on Mythology Greek mythology was fully developed by about the 8th century BC. As the Greek people began to realize that the sun, moon and stars followed certain rhythms with The seasons, they thought that something not beast nor human had the power. That is were the idea of gods came in. Ancient Greeks believed that the gods, who resembled Humans lived on Mount Olympus, where they had their own little society. Individual Gods were part of three main parts of the world- the sky or heaven, the sea, and the Earth. The 12 chief gods were Zeus was the god of the sky and ruler of the Olympian gods. He was considered the father of the gods, and of mortals, although he did not create either; he was their father in the sense of being the ruler both of the Olympian gods and of the human race. He was the rain god, and the cloud gatherer, his wepon was the terrible thunderbolt. His breastplate was the aegis, his bird the eagle, his tree the oak. Zeus was the youngest son of the Titans, Cronus and Rhea, and the brother of the Poseidon, Hades, Hestia, Demeter, and Hera. According to one of the ancient myths of the birth of Zeus, Cronus, having heard the prophecy that he might be dethroned by one of his children, swallowed them as they were born. Upon the birth of Zeus, Rhea wrapped a stone in swaddling clothes for Cronus to swallow and concealed the infant god in Crete, where he was fed on the milk of the goat Amalthaea and reared by nymphs. When Zeus grew to maturity, he forced Cronus to regergitate the other children, who were eager to take vengeance on their father. In the war that followed, the Titans fought on the side of Cronus, but Zeus and the other gods were successful, and the Titans were banished to Tartarus.... Free Essays on Mythology Greek Mythology Greek Mythology, beliefs and ritual observances of the ancient Greeks, who became the first Western civilization about 2000 BC. It consists mainly of a body of diverse stories and legends about a variety of gods. Greek mythology had become fully developed by about the 700s BC. Three classic collections of myths-Theogony by the poet Hesiod and the Iliad and the Odyssey by the poet Homer-appeared at about that time. Greek mythology has several distinguishing characteristics. The Greek gods resembled humans in form and showed human feelings. Unlike ancient religions such as Hinduism or Judaism, Greek mythology did not involve special revelations or spiritual teachings. It also varied widely in practice and belief, with no formal structure, such as a church government, and no written code, such as a sacred book. Principal Gods The Greeks believed that the gods chose Mount Olympus, in a region of Greece called Thessaly, as their home. On Olympus, the gods formed a society that ranked them in terms of authority and powers. However, the gods could roam freely, and individual gods became associated with three main domains-the sky or heaven, the sea, and earth. The 12 chief gods, usually called the Olympians, were Zeus, Hera, Hephaestus, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hestia, Hermes, Demeter, and Poseidon. Zeus was the head of the gods, and the spiritual father of gods and people. His wife, Hera, was the queen of heaven and the guardian of marriage. Other gods associated with heaven were Hephaestus, god of fire and metalworkers; Athena, goddess of wisdom and war; and Apollo, god of light, poetry, and music. Artemis, goddess of wildlife and the moon; Ares, god of war; and Aphrodite, goddess of love, were other gods of heaven. They were joined by Hestia, goddess of the hearth; and Hermes, messenger of the gods and ruler of science and invention. Poseidon was the ruler of the sea who, with his wife Amphitrite, led a g... Free Essays on Mythology Myths throughout history have been in existence since ancient times and still play a vital role in today’s society. Acting as basis of how to live one’s life and a guide towards beneficial pathways, myths compile many elements into a story that teaches a lesson and/or instills fear in one’s mind to avoid making immoral decisions. Born on the frontier of Ancient Greece philosophy these fictitious accounts of legendary heros and mystical lands were first established into the culture of the Greek way of life. Used to explain the Gods, demigods, and explanations of the universe, myths provide a tangible outlet that the mind is left to ponder. Mysteriously disappearing into the Atlantic Ocean, the island of Atlantis has been the subject matter of its own mythological story for many years. As told by Plato, the story starts when the Gods divided the earth into separate parts, each taking control of their deserved piece.(Hefner, â€Å"Atlantis the Myth†) Poseidon gained control of what was to be Atlantis. Soon after, he fell in love with a mortal women named Cleito with whom he would have ten sons with. He made his first born son the first king of Atlantis and his other sons became princes that would rule separate portions of the island. Saying that Atlantis was prosperous beyond all expectations did not prove to be an understatement. Every citizen was educated, the landscape was made up of green grassy meadows and pristine lakes, and there was not to many conflicts between the inhabitants. New inventions and ideas of how to make life easier came about as they used their intelligence to the fullest extent. I t was what we would call a Utopia. Poseidon set rules and laws that were to be followed by the future rulers and leaders of this fruitful kingdom. As long as the rules and regulations were met the state of the island showed no signs of corruption. However, as time went on and the leaders strayed from the set rules of P...

1.Why did Berkeley assert that the existence (esse) of the objects of Coursework

1.Why did Berkeley assert that the existence (esse) of the objects of knowledge consists in their being perceived (percipi) - Coursework Example Thus, an object cannot exist without being perceived. The act of perceiving on the other hand is the product of mind or spirit. It is the mind and spirit that generates ideas and perceive them. Since spirit perceives ideas, it is referred to as understanding. According to Berkeley, it is the understanding that results to the existence of matter. Therefore, what people consider as matter is only the idea that is generated from the sensory perception of physical characteristics of an object. Additionally, one can also deduce that Berkeley asserted that the existence of the objects of knowledge consists in their being perceived because ‘existence’ â€Å"consists of the state of actively perceiving or of passively being perceived† (Berkeley 5). According to him, if something lacks the ability to perceive or it cannot be perceived, then there is no need of claiming that it exists. Thus, Berkeley asserted that the existence of the objects of knowledge consists in their being perceived because he believed in any idea on what objects entail being the product of mind and

Summary of Crime and Violence and Political Rights Essay

Summary of Crime and Violence and Political Rights - Essay Example Democracy lacks strength here due to which crime rate is alarming and public safety is a major concern. The authors try to analyse how public’s thinking influences democracy and to what extent. It was found that there is definitely a strong relationship between public’s ideas and possible support for democracy. Both factors are inextricably linked to one another. In fact, regardless of socioeconomic background, any citizen’s perception is as important to predict support and stability for democracy as any other heavily considered socioeconomic variable. The findings of this research report are of great value because they succeed in establishing a relationship which is extremely important to further establishment and consolidation of democracy in any country. These findings can help to acknowledge what exactly was missing before which needs more work to secure democracy. The value of widespread awareness about democracy among citizens was unknown before which is an area where more efforts should be invested. The article authored by Josà © Miguel Cruz aims to explore why there is a less crime and violence rate in Nicaragua than other Central American countries like El Salvador and Honduras where crime violence is a big national issue. This research study is based on Central America. Nicaragua is the largest Central American country, yet the crime rate here is lower compared to the rest of the region under study. Owing to myriad unexpected political transitions, wars, and troubled conditions, all Central American countries suffered from a lot of ordeal and a state of unexpectedness which gave birth to socioeconomic underdevelopment and poor public affairs. But, it is told that none of these reasons explain why Nicaragua is blessed with a lower crime rate as compared to its fellow countries. Guatemala is a richer country than Nicaragua

Native American Paper Essay Example for Free

Native American Paper Essay In the pre-Columbian era when the Europeans had not yet discovered the â€Å"New World† there lived many distinct but also similar tribes that ruled all across. Many tribes existed during this era of prosperity for the Native Americans. A few of the main tribes of it are the Cherokee, Iroquois, Navajo, and Sioux who were all special in their own way. Firstly, the Cherokee were made up of seven clans with which each had a different purpose and job. The names and jobs of all the tribes in English are Long Hair which sends the Peace Chief, Blue who is the oldest; Wolf to protect clans, Wild Potato is the keeper of the land (gatherers), Deer is the fastest runners and hunters, Bird sends messengers, and lastly Paint are the medicine people. The belief system for the Cherokee was that good is rewarded and evil is punished. One main object they used was river cane making and using it for multiple purposes. The Trail of Tears was an important part of the Cherokee past since they used it to move to a different territory. (Information for the Cherokee Paragraph: Secondly, the Iroquois were consisted up of a small amount of tribes such as Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, and Tuscarora. The main Iroquois considered themselves to be a superior people which lowered their numbers as time went by. One more reason the numbers went down was because they joined the British during the Revolutionary War. The belief of the Iroquois was that they should not kill each other and a sense of internal unity. The way the Iroquois survived was through a political system. (Information for the Iroquois Paragraph:? http://www. tolatsga. org/iro. html).

The History of Stalingrad Essay -- Stalingrad War Battles European His

The History of Stalingrad â€Å"Stalingrad is the scene of the costliest and most stubborn battle in this war. The battle fought there to its desperate finish may turn out to be among the decisive battles in the long history of war†¦In the scale of its intensity, its destructiveness, and its horror, Stalingrad has no parallel. It engaged the full strength of the two biggest armies in Europe and could fit into no lesser framework than that of a life-and death conflict which encompasses the earth† New York Times, February 4, 1943 The battle fought between the Soviet Red Army and the Nazi Wehrmacht over the â€Å"city of Stalin† for four long months in the fall and winter of 1942-3 stands as not only the most important battle of the Eastern front during World War II, but as the greatest battle ever fought. Germany’s defeat at Stalingrad ended three years of almost uninterrupted victory and signaled the beginning of the end of the Third Reich. In this way, Stalingrad’s significance was projected beyond the two main combatants, extending to all corners of the world. This paper is not meant to be a military history of the battle; I am not qualified to offer such an account. It is also not an examination of why Russia won (and Germany lost). The goal of this paper is to explain why this particular conflict, fought at this particular point in time, and in this particular place became the defining moment of World War II. During the late summer of 1942, Germany’s position in the Soviet Union appeared to be dominant. The Russian winter offensive in front of Moscow had succeeded in relieving the pressure on the capital but had failed to make any substantial gains beyond a few miles of breathing space. The Germans had managed to stabilize the situation, inflicting severe casualties on the Russians before opening their own offensive in southern Russia in the spring and summer of 1942. This offensive, like the initial attack on the Soviet Union, caught the Russians (who expected a second assault on Moscow) completely off guard. Germany’s success was immense, and by the end of July the Wehrmacht had reached the Caucasus Mountains and the Volga River, with the oil-rich cities of Astrakhan, Grozny, and Baku in its sights. The first fourteen months of the war had been a debacle of monumental proportions for the Russians. During this time, the Germans had occupied more than a... ... the regime began to make concrete plans to overthrow it. Stalingrad was the beginning of the end for the Third Reich.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  World War II was filled with turning points, including Midway, El Alamein, and Moscow. Stalingrad, however, was not simply a turning point. It was the decisive battle of the most violent and destructive war ever fought. It is a fitting testament to the importance of Stalingrad that General Chuikov, the tough-as-nails commander of the 62nd Army that defended the city, would later lead his men in the final battle of the European war, the assault on Berlin. Works Cited Baldwin, Hanson. Battles Lost and Won. New York: Smithmark Publishers, 1966. Craig, William. Enemy at the Gates. New York: Readers Digest Press, 1973. Elting, Mary and Robert T. Weaver, Battles: How They Are Won. Garden City: Doubleday, Doran and Company, 1944. Overy, Richard. Russia’s War. New York: Penguin Books, 1997. Roberts, Geoffrey. Victory at Stalingrad: The Battle that Changed History. London: Pearson Education, 2002. Stalingrad, Moscow: Foreign Languages Publishing House, 1943. Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World At Arms. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994.

Automation in Daily Life Essay

Automation is the use of machines, control systems and information technologies to optimize productivity in the production of goods and delivery of services. The correct incentive for applying automation is to increase productivity, and/or quality beyond that possible with current human labor levels so as to realize economies of scale, and/or realize predictable quality levels. In the scope of industrialisation, automation is a step beyond mechanization. Whereas mechanization provides human operators with machinery to assist them with the muscular requirements of work, automation greatly decreases the need for human sensory and mental requirements while increasing load capacity, speed, and repeatability. Automation plays an increasingly important role in the world economy and in daily experience. Automation has had a notable impact in a wide range of industries beyond manufacturing (where it began). Once-ubiquitous telephone operators have been replaced largely by automated telephone switchboards and answering machines. Medical processes such as primary screening in electrocardiography or radiography and laboratory analysis of human genes, sera, cells, and tissues are carried out at much greater speed and accuracy by automated systems. Automated teller machines have reduced the need for bank visits to obtain cash and carry out transactions. In general, automation has been responsible for the shift in the world economy from industrial jobs to service jobs in the 20th and 21st centuries.[1] The term automation, inspired by the earlier word automatic (coming from automaton), was not widely used before 1947, when General Motors established the automation department. At that time automation technologies were electrical, mechanical, hydraulic and pneumatic. Between 1957 and 1964 factory output nearly doubled while the number of blue collar workers started to decline.[2] Advantages and disadvantages * Install automation where a high degree of accuracy is required. * Replacing human operators in tasks that involve hard physical or monotonous work.[3] * Replacing humans in tasks done in dangerous environments (i.e. fire, space, volcanoes, nuclear facilities, underwater, etc.) * Performing tasks that are beyond human capabilities of size, weight, speed, endurance, etc. * Economy improvement: Automation may improve in economy of enterprises, society or most of humanity. For example, when an enterprise invests in automation, technology recovers its investment; or when a state or country increases its income due to automation like Germany or Japan in the 20th Century. * Reduces operation time and work handling time significantly. * Frees up workers to take on other roles. * Provides higher level jobs in the development, deployment, maintenance and running of the automated processes. The main disadvantages of automation are: * Security Threats/Vulnerability: An automated system may have a limited level of intelligence, and is therefore more susceptible to committing errors outside of its immediate scope of knowledge (e.g., it is typically unable to apply the rules of simple logic to general propositions). * Unpredictable/excessive development costs: The research and development cost of automating a process may exceed the cost saved by the automation itself. * High initial cost: The automation of a new product or plant typically requires a very large initial investment in comparison with the unit cost of the product, although the cost of automation may be spread among many products and over time. In manufacturing, the purpose of automation has shifted to issues broader than productivity, cost, and time. Reliability and precision The old focus on using automation simply to increase productivity and reduce costs was seen to be short-sighted, because it is also necessary to provide a skilled workforce who can make repairs and manage the machinery. Moreover, the initial costs of automation were high and often could not be recovered by the time entirely new manufacturing processes replaced the old. (Japan’s â€Å"robot junkyards† were once world famous in the manufacturing industry.) Automation is now often applied primarily to increase quality in the manufacturing process, where automation can increase quality substantially. For example, internal combustion engine pistons used to be installed manually. This is rapidly being transitioned to automated machine installation, because the error rate for manual installment was around 1-1.5%, but has been reduced to 0.00001% with automation.[citation needed] Lights out manufacturing Main article: Lights out (manufacturing) Lights out manufacturing is when a production system is 100% or near to 100% automated (not hiring any workers). In order to eliminate the need for labor costs all together. Health and environment The costs of automation to the environment are different depending on the technology, product or engine automated. There are automated engines that consume more energy resources from the Earth in comparison with previous engines and those that do the opposite too. Hazardous operations, such as oil refining, the manufacturing of industrial chemicals, and all forms of metal working, were always early contenders for automation. Convertibility and turnaround time Another major shift in automation is the increased demand for flexibility and convertibility in manufacturing processes. Manufacturers are increasingly demanding the ability to easily switch from manufacturing Product A to manufacturing Product B without having to completely rebuild the production lines. Flexibility and distributed processes have led to the introduction of Automated Guided Vehicles with Natural Features Navigation. Digital electronics helped too. Former analogue-based instrumentation was replaced by digital equivalents which can be more accurate and flexible, and offer greater scope for more sophisticated configuration, parametrization and operation. This was accompanied by the fieldbus revolution which provided a networked (i.e. a single cable) means of communicating between control systems and field level instrumentation, eliminating hard-wiring. Discrete manufacturing plants adopted these technologies fast. The more conservative process industries with their longer plant life cycles have been slower to adopt and analogue-based measurement and control still dominates. The growing use of Industrial Ethernet on the factory floor is pushing these trends still further, enabling manufacturing plants to be integrated more tightly within the enterprise, via the internet if necessary. Global competition has also increased demand for Reconfigurable Manufacturing Systems. Automation tools Engineers can now have numerical control over automated devices. The result has been a rapidly expanding range of applications and human activities. Computer-aided technologies (or CAx) now serve the basis for mathematical and organizational tools used to create complex systems. Notable examples of CAx include Computer-aided design (CAD software) and Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM software). The improved design, analysis, and manufacture of products enabled by CAx has been beneficial for industry.[4] Information technology, together with industrial machinery and processes, can assist in the design, implementation, and monitoring of control systems. One example of an industrial control system is a programmable logic controller (PLC). PLCs are specialized hardened computers which are frequently used to synchronize the flow of inputs from (physical) sensors and events with the flow of outputs to actuators and events.[5] An automated online assistant on a website, with an avatar for enhanced human–computer interaction. Human-machine interfaces (HMI) or computer human interfaces (CHI), formerly known as man-machine interfaces, are usually employed to communicate with PLCs and other computers. Service personnel who monitor and control through HMIs can be called by different names. In industrial process and manufacturing environments, they are called operators or something similar. In boiler houses and central utilities departments they are called stationary engineers.[6] Different types of automation tools exist: * ANN – Artificial neural network * BPM – Bonita Open Solution * DCS – Distributed Control System * HMI – Human Machine Interface * SCADA – Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition * PLC – Programmable Logic Controller * PAC – Programmable automation controller * Instrumentation * Motion control * Robotics Limitations to automation * Current technology is unable to automate all the desired tasks. * As a process becomes increasingly automated, there is less and less labor to be saved or quality improvement to be gained. This is an example of both diminishing returns and the logistic function. * Similar to the above, as more and more processes become automated, there are fewer remaining non-automated processes. This is an example of exhaustion of opportunities. Current limitations Many roles for humans in industrial processes presently lie beyond the scope of automation. Human-level pattern recognition, language comprehension, and language production ability are well beyond the capabilities of modern mechanical and computer systems. Tasks requiring subjective assessment or synthesis of complex sensory data, such as scents and sounds, as well as high-level tasks such as strategic planning, currently require human expertise. In many cases, the use of humans is more cost-effective than mechanical approaches even where automation of industrial tasks is possible. Overcoming these obstacles is a theorized path to post-scarcity economics. Applications Food and drink Automated restaurant The food retail industry has started to apply automation to the ordering process, McDonald’s has introduced touch screen ordering and payment systems in many of its restaurants, reducing the need for as many cashier employees.[7] University of Texas has introduced fully automated cafe retail locations.[8] Some Cafe’s and restaurants have utilized mobile and tablet â€Å"apps† to make the ordering process more efficient by customers ordering and paying on their device.[9][10] Some restaurants have automated food delivery to customers tables using a Conveyor belt system. The use of robots is sometimes employed to replace waiting staff.[11] Stores Many Supermarkets and even smaller stores are rapidly introducing Self checkout systems reducing the need for employing checkout workers. Online shopping could be considered a form of automated retail as the payment and checkout are through an automated Online transaction processing system. Other forms of automation can also be an integral part of online shopping, for example the deployment of automated warehouse robotics such as that applied by Amazon using Kiva Systems. Automated mining Main article: Automated mining involves the removal of human labor from the mining process.[12] The mining industry is currently in the transition towards Automation. Currently it can still require a large amount of human capital, particularly in the third world where labor costs are low so there is less incentive for increasing efficiency through automation. Automated video surveillance The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) started the research and development of automated visual surveillance and monitoring (VSAM) program, between 1997 and 1999, and airborne video surveillance (AVS) programs, from 1998 to 2002. Currently, there is a major effort underway in the vision community to develop a fully automated tracking surveillance system. Automated video surveillance monitors people and vehicles in real time within a busy environment. Existing automated surveillance systems are based on the environment they are primarily designed to observe, i.e., indoor, outdoor or airborne, the amount of sensors that the automated system can handle and the mobility of sensor, i.e., stationary camera vs. mobile camera. The purpose of a surveillance system is to record properties and trajectories of objects in a given area, generate warnings or notify designated authority in case of occurrence of particular events.[13] Automated highway systems As demands for safety and mobility have grown and technological possibilities have multiplied, interest in automation has grown. Seeking to accelerate the development and introduction of fully automated vehicles and highways, the United States Congress authorized more than $650 million over six years for intelligent transport systems (ITS) and demonstration projects in the 1991 Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA). Congress legislated in ISTEA that â€Å"the Secretary of Transportation shall develop an automated highway and vehicle prototype from which future fully automated intelligent vehicle-highway systems can be developed. Such development shall include research in human factors to ensure the success of the man-machine relationship. The goal of this program is to have the first fully automated highway roadway or an automated test track in operation by 1997. This system shall accommodate installation of equipment in new and existing motor vehicles.† [ISTEA 1991, part B, Section 6054(b)]. Full automation commonly defined as requiring no control or very limited control by the driver; such automation would be accomplished through a combination of sensor, computer, and communications systems in vehicles and along the roadway. Fully automated driving would, in theory, allow closer vehicle spacing and higher speeds, which could enhance traffic capacity in places where additional road building is physically impossible, politically unacceptable, or prohibitively expensive. Automated controls also might enhance road safety by reducing the opportunity for driver error, which causes a large share of motor vehicle crashes. Other potential benefits include improved air quality (as a result of more-efficient traffic flows), increased fuel economy, and spin-off technologies generated during research and development related to automated highway systems.[14] Automated waste management Automated waste collection trucks prevent the need for as many workers as well as easing the level of Labor required to provide the service.[15] Automated manufacturing Automated manufacturing refers to the application of automation to produce things in the factory way. Most of the advantages of the automation technology has its influence in the manufacture processes. The main advantages of automated manufacturing are higher consistency and quality, reduced lead times, simplified production, reduced handling, improved work flow, and increased worker morale when a good implementation of the automation is made. Home automation Home automation (also called domotics) designates an emerging practice of increased automation of household appliances and features in residential dwellings, particularly through electronic means that allow for things impracticable, overly expensive or simply not possible in recent past decades. Industrial automation Industrial automation deals with the optimization of energy-efficient drive systems by precise measurement and control technologies. Nowadays energy efficiency in industrial processes are becoming more and more relevant. Semiconductor companies like Infineon Technologies are offering 8-bit micro-controller applications for example found in motor controls, general purpose pumps, fans, and ebikes to reduce energy consumption and thus increase efficiency. One of Infineon`s 8-bit product line found in industrial automation is the XC800 family. Agriculture: Now that we’re moving towards automated orange-sorting [1] and autonomous tractors, the next step in automated agriculture is robotic strawberry pickers. Agent-assisted Automation refers to automation used by call center agents to handle customer inquiries. There are two basic types: desktop automation and automated voice solutions. Desktop automation refers to software programming that makes it easier for the call center agent to work across multiple desktop tools. The automation would take the information entered into one tool and populate it across the others so it did not have to be entered more than once, for example. Automated voice solutions allow the agents to remain on the line while disclosures and other important information is provided to customers in the form of pre-recorded audio files. Specialized applications of these automated voice solutions enable the agents to process credit cards without ever seeing or hearing the credit card numbers or CVV codes[16] The key benefit of agent-assisted automation is compliance and error-proofing. Agents are sometimes not fully trained or they forget or ignore key steps in the process. The use of automation ensures that what is supposed to happen on the call actually does, every time. Relationship to unemployment Based on a formula by Gilles Saint-Paul, an economist at Toulouse 1 University, the demand for unskilled human capital declines at a slower rate than the demand for skilled human capital increases.[17] In the long run and for society as a whole it has led to cheaper products, lower average work hours, and new industries forming (I.e, robotics industries, computer industries, design industries). These new industries provide many high salary skill based jobs to the economy.