Development of Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) Sensor

Development of Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) Sensor INTRODUCTION CHAPTER-1 INTRODUCTION The physical processes involved in surface plasmon resonance (SPR) phenomena were first reported by R.M. Wood in 1902 [1]. In this work, Wood observed a repeated pattern of dark and bright light bands in the reflected light, when he irradiated polarized light on a mirror with a diffraction grating on its surface. The physical interpretation of SPR mechanism was first initiated by the British physicist Lord Rayleigh [2], and further refined by Fano [3], but its satisfactory explanation was not available until 1968, when Otto [4] and in the same year Kretschmann and Raether [5] reported the excitation of surface plasmons on the metal/dielectric interface. Its first use in a real-time analysis of a biological system was demonstrated in 1990s by Karlsson et al. [6]. Since then, The SPR has become a crucial optical sensing technique in the areas of biology, microbiology, biochemistry, and medical sciences because of its noninvasive nature [7]. The commercially available SPR based devices are not so cost-effective and require consumable sensor chips demanding certain specifications of size, thickness, effective sensing area and so on. For example, The Biacore (acquired by General Electric Healthcare in 2006), a life science products company, are providing a variety of models of SPR-based instruments (a typical cost of $120,000–$250,000) that exhibit compatibility only with expensive Biacore accessories. Moreover, the associated high operational cost inhibits introduction of SPR technique into laboratory classes at the undergraduate or postgraduate level. In addition to that, the commercial SPR instrument is not a good teaching tool because all the components, of the apparatus, are enclosed, thus preventing the students from visualizing the details of the SPR instrumentation. The primary motivation behind the present project work is to develop a low-cost SPR based multipurpose optical sensor especially intended for undergraduate and postgraduate education and Research. The proposed homemade SPR sensor is supposed to be cost-effective, and whose all components would be accessible for visualization and manipulations in future. The presented design not only allows its integration with various other mechanical and electronic add-ons, but also could prove to be an ingenious teaching tool for the students to understand and appreciate the modern instrumentation. In addition, once developed, this instrument could also serve the Research purposes of general chemistry, biochemistry, physical chemistry, Nanotechnology and Material Sciences. For this purpose it was necessary to arrange low cost experimental components but keeping in mind that these components work well to satisfy our purpose. It took a long time first to decide the components, and then taking overviews from various places regarding the type of component available and the price of that particular component. After comparing and analyzing the need and price of whole set-up the components were arranged from different market places. After arranging the components it was necessary to prepare the experimental set-up in a well mannered way to fulfill our purposes. Again it took a long time to arrange them in a dark room (as we were working on light and its intensity measurement) as to get a well observable result. The most difficult and time consuming task was to produce a thin metallic film on the glass slide of a specific thickness to get a better result. Metallic film was of gold and the coating unit was a magnetron sputtering gold coater available in the department of the institute. Initially it was a difficult task to coat the glass slide of specific thickness, for which we coated various glass slides with different thicknesses using variable coating time of the coater. Then we did the experiments with that thickness but didn’t get the results. Then glass slides were again coated to increase the gold film thickness. This process was repeated various times and at last we were succeeded to produce the res ults from the glass slides of different thicknesses. In this dissertation work, we first introduce the principle of Surface Plasmon Resonance and other associated phenomena. Following the introduction part, we describe some literature reviews in next section of report. We further describe the details of the crucial components that would be used in the development of SPR based Sensor or can be termed as the Experimental Set-up for the Surface Plasmon Resonance phenomenon. The very next section contains the soul of the whole report or the Results, mentioned as results and discussion. We finally conclude the report by enumerating the work done so far, the future course of work followed by the References that have been used for the literature survey. SURFACE PLASMON RESONANCE- Principle: SURFACE PLASMON RESONANCE(SPR): The resonant oscillation of conduction electrons, at the interface between a metal and dielectric, stimulated at the optical frequencies is called the SURFACE PLASMON RESONANCE (SPR). This  resonance  condition is satisfied once the incident  photon frequency matches with the natural frequency of surface electrons, which are oscillating under the action of restoring force of positive nuclei of the metallic atoms. The resonance phenomena has been shown to have many applications such as in Gas detection and immune-sensing [8,9], efficiency enhancement of Solar Cells [10], and Magneto-Optical based imaging etc. [11,12]. Figure 1 shows a typical surface Plasmon resonance set-up which consists of a light source, prism, gold film, and a detector. Figure 1: Schematic diagram of a surface Plasmon resonance set-up. Here n1 and n2 show the refractive indexes of prism and air respectively. SURFACE PLASMON POLARITONS (SPP) wave -The surface  electromagnetic waves, propagating along the  metal/dielectric  or metal/vacuum interface, is known as SURFACE PLASMON POLARITONS (SPP) wave. As the SPP wave is propagating along the boundary of the metal and the external medium (air or dielectric), the aforesaid resonant oscillations become extremely sensitive to any change occurring at the boundary, for instance the adsorption of molecules to the metal surface or change in refractive index at the metal-dielectric surface. Thus the sensitivity associated with metal – dielectric interface can be exploited to obtain a non-destructive and cost effective multipurpose sensor for detection of Chemical and Biological species. According to different literature [9,12], the sensing properties has been quite useful for monitoring food quality, safety analysis, medical diagnostics and environmental changes etc. A typical SPR sensor consists of a dispersive element, such as prism or a plane reflection grating, coated with a metallic layer (Gold) and a dielectric layer (usually polymers or bio molecule layers). The Kretschmann configuration, as shown in Figure 2, is often used in most of the SPR sensor applications, where a metal (typically silver or gold) film is placed at the interface of two dielectric media. The medium 1 with higher refractive index (n1) is a prism and the medium 2 with lower refractive index (n2) can be the air or the dielectric of interest. A collimated p-polarized light beam, entering from the glass side undergoes a total internal reflection and interacts with the metallic layer at the critical angel of incidence (as shown in Figure 2). The surface plasmons (SP), at the metallic surface, are excited at the resonance optical frequency resulting in absorption of a part of incident light energy and hence leading to a sudden drop in Reflectance at a specific angle à ¯Ã‚   ±0 adjacent to the critical angle à ¯Ã‚ Ã‚ ±C. The resonance condition of the SPs is sensitive to any change in the refractive index of the metal-dielectric interface and leads to shift of à ¯Ã‚ Ã‚ ±0 to a new angle à ¯Ã‚ Ã‚ ±1 (Figure 2). The change in the intensity of reflected or diffracted light or its wavelength or angular spectrum can be monitored using a charge coupled device arrays or photodiode arrays, for different sensing purposes [13-16]. Figure 2: Diagram representing the Surface Plasmon Resonance mechanism. TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION AND EVANESCENT WAVES: When the light travels from the higher refractive index medium 1 (glass) to the lower refractive index medium 2 (air or dielectric), the total internal reflection (TIR) takes place within medium 1 for the incident angles ÃŽ ¸ greater than the critical angle ÃŽ ¸C, satisfying the Snell’s relation Sin (ÃŽ ¸C) = n2/n1. The Evanescent waves, a near-field wave, are produced in the lower refractive index medium 2 (air or dielectric) under the TIR condition. As the meaning of Evanescent is tending to vanish, the amplitude of evanescent waves decays exponentially with the distance from the point of incidence, to the interface of the media 1 and 2. When a nonmagnetic gold film with a suitable thickness is sandwiched between the media 1 and 2, the amplitude of evanescent wave is enhanced, penetrating in the gold film and also existing simultaneously in the medium 2. Using the well known Fresnel’s relations, magnitude of the parallel wave vector of the evanescent wave, , is expres sed as; (1) where ÃŽ » is the wavelength of the incident light, n1 is the refractive index of the higher refractive index medium 1, and ÃŽ ¸ is the angle of incidence. Figure 3: Schematic diagram showing a layer system of surface Plasmon resonance where kevan and ksp are wave vectors given in equations. SURFACE PLASMONS: Surface plasmons (quanta of plasma), are the surface electromagnetic wave travelling along the limited region of metal–dielectric interface. The magnitude of the wave vector of the surface plasmon is connected to the dielectric constants of medium 2 (n2) and the gold film (ng). For most of the non absorbing materials, the magnetic permeability is very close to unity at optical frequencies. Hence, the dielectric constant for such materials becomes equal to the square of the refractive index i.e. ÃŽ µ = n2. Here ÃŽ µ is the dielectric constant and n is the refractive index. As a result, can be obtained from n2 and ng using the following relation; (2) where n2 is the refractive index of medium 2 adjacent to the interface and ng is the refractive index of the gold film. SURFACE PLASMON RESONANCE: In presence of the evanescent wave, the surface plasmon can be excited leading to the phenomenon of surface plasmon resonance (SPR). In this situation, the intensity of the reflected light, from the metal-dielectric interface, decreases abruptly (as shown in Figure 1). In this process the energy of evanescent wave is conserved and the energy of the excited surface plasmon is coupled to phonons or photons generation at the interface. Hence, the energy conservation requires that equals to . Thus, using eqs 1 and 2 the angle , at which SPR occurs, can be determined by below relation, (3) Here, the incident angle at which the minimum reflectivity is observed is called the SPR angle. The angle has been found to be slightly larger than the critical angle . It is clear from above expression that the angle is linked to n2 if n1 and ng are kept fixed. Hence, even a slight change in the refractive index of interfacial region is reflected in a significant change in the angle . For instance, the phenomena of adsorption and desorption of any gas, on the gold surface, changes the refractive index of media 2 near the metal–dielectric interface leading to change in the . Therefore, the monitoring the change in the angle can be used, as a technique, to study and analyze the adsorption– desorption or association–dissociation phenomena taking place on the gold surface. The refractive index, in the interfacial regime, changes with the mass and density of foreign species attached to the gold film surface. As a consequence, monitoring the change in the SPR angl e provides information about mass and density change on the gold surface, effectively within 200 nm from a metal surface. As mentioned above the surface Plasmon resonance will occur when, Also from the above discussion we know that the is a function of three parameters. The wavelength of incident light. The refractive index of medium 1 or glass prism. Angle of incidence of the incident light falling on the metal-dielectric junction. And also is a function of three parameters, The wavelength of incident light. The refractive index of metallic thin film. The refractive index of the second medium or the air. So we get five different parameters which can be used as varying parameters to get the optimum condition of Surface Plasmon Resonance which are, The wavelength of incident light, The refractive index of medium 1, The refractive index of medium 2, The refractive index of metallic film, and The angle of incidence of incident light. In wavelength interrogation Surface Plasmon Resonance device, wavelength of incident light is varied whereas the other parameters including incident angle, refractive indexes of medium 1, medium 2 and medium 3 are kept constant during the whole experiment. In this case there is a variation in the intensity of reflected light with variation in wavelength of incident light as shown in figure 4. Figure 4: Shows relationship between absorbance of reflected light and the wavelength of incident light. In angle interrogation Surface Plasmon Resonance device, incident angle of light is varied whereas the other parameters including wavelength of incident light, refractive indexes of medium 1, medium 2 and medium 3 are kept constant during the whole experiment. In this case there is a variation in the intensity of reflected light with variation in angle of incident light as shown in figure 5. Figure 5: Diagram indicating the relationship between intensity of reflected light and incident angle. The other type of interrogation device is refractive index interrogation Surface Plasmon Resonance device in which refractive index of any medium is varied which is a tough task and that is why used in very rare cases. Other parameters are kept constant in this type of interrogation system including wavelength of incident light as well as the incident angle of the light. In this case there is a variation in the intensity of reflected light with variation in refractive index of the medium taken in consideration as shown in figure 6. The one other and most complicated interrogation system is phase interrogation Surface Plasmon resonance device in which phase of the reflected light provides the information about the metal dielectric interface. Very less work has been done in this field and is a good topic to work on in future as angle dependent reflectance measurement and other methods discussed above are limited for detecting low weight molecules on the metal dielectric surface. Figure 6: shows relationship between intensity of reflected light and refractive index of the medium with three different gold film thicknesses. Now refractive indexes of medium 1(glass), medium 2(air) and the gold metallic thin film cannot be varied simply during a running experiment. So we have only two parameters which can be used as variable parameters, the wavelength of the incident light and the angle of incidence of that light falling on the set-up. In our work, we have used the later one for our purpose which is angle of incidence of the incident light on the metal dielectric interface, and making the wavelength of the incident light constant near about 650 nm which means we have used a red laser as a source of the light for our experimental set-up. Angle of incidence can be varied either be rotating the light source around the prism or by rotating the prism on its axis and making light source stationary. We are rotating the prism which is mounted on a rotational prism table to vary angle of incidence.

BELIEVE IT OR NOT :: essays research papers

It has always been a myth that sun signs describe who you are. Most of the times, it seems unbelievable to accept the fact that the position of the sun and the planets determine the person’s character, yet we mostly identify firmly with our signs. The characters from Jane Austen’s famous novel, Emma, can be identified with their signs because of their unique personality traits. I believe the protagonist of the novel, Emma Woodhouse, is definitely a Leo. It is stated that â€Å"In grandeur of manner, splendor of bearing and magnanimity of personality, Leos are the monarch’s among humans†. This definition is clearly true for Emma for she bears the nobility in her manners and position. She has a great deal of self confidence, but she also has a great fear of being ridiculed and made to feel disgraced. Though we do not see anyone making fun of her in the novel, she is very much affected by Mr. Knightley upbraiding after she behaves impolitely towards Miss Bates. A Leo is warmhearted, generous, creative, enthusiastic, faithful, ambitious, courageous, dominant, strong willed, independent, self-confident and readily noticed whenever she enters a room. Leos think and act bigger than others would normally dare; â€Å"the ambitiousness of their schemes and idealism sometimes daunt their supporters.† Emma definitely thinks â€Å"bigger† than she should, and her imagination is much beyond the realities. She tries to matchmake Harriet with Mr. Elton, then with Frank Churchill, both who do not have any attachments towards her. â€Å"Leos’ faults can be as large in scale as their virtues, and an excessively negative Leonian can be one of the most unpleasant human beings imaginable, displaying extreme arrogance, snobbish superiority, autocratic pride, haughtiness, and excessive hastiness of temper.† At the scene with the picnic in Donwell’s Abbey, Emma puts Miss Bates down harshly when she begins to chatter continually. Emma’s sharp remark shows her cruelty, arrogance, selfishness, pomposity with the most unpleasant manner. Mostly Leos use their powers for doing good, for they are strongly idealistic, humane, and beneficent, yet they do not hesitate to use cunning, lies and trickery to discredit their rivals if they’re jealous. This becomes true for Emma about her feelings towards Jane Fairfax. She has been brought up like a princess, getting the most attention and love. However, when Miss Bates mentions Jane Fairfax’s letter or Mr. Knightley talks about Jane Fairfax’s beauty and gentleness, Emma suddenly becomes jealous of her.

Critical analysis of “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson Essay

Overall Shirley Jackson discusses the movement of the setting, the unusual foreshadowing, and the outermost symbolism in â€Å"The Lottery† to give an overall point of view of the story. Even though a small village made seem peaceful, and a good place to raise a family, it is not always what it seems to be. The reader is about to enter a world with ritualistic ceremony and religious orthodoxy in â€Å"The Lottery.† The Lottery takes place on a clear and sunny summer morning around June 27 in a small village with about three hundred villagers gathering together in the central square for the annual lottery. As a child Shirley Jackson was interested in writing; she won a poetry prize at age twelve, and in high school she keeps a diary to record her writing progress. In 1937 she entered Syracuse University, where she published stories in the student literary magazine. Despite her busy life as a wife and a mother of four children, she wrote every day on a disciplined schedule. â€Å"The Lottery† is one of Jackson’s best-known works. In â€Å"The Lottery† Shirley Jackson will discusses the movement of the setting, unusual foreshadowing and outermost symbolism to give us an overall point of view from the story. When one thinks of a lottery, one imagines winning a large sum of money. Shirley Jackson uses the setting in â€Å"The Lottery† to foreshadow an ironic ending. The peaceful and tranquil town described in this story has an annual lottery every June 27 early part of 1800’s in a small village with 300 people (456). Setting is to describe time and place of the story. The story occurs â€Å"around ten o’clock† (456). This is an unusual time because in most towns all the adults would be working during mid-morning. In the lottery an ironic ending is also foretold by the town’s setting being described as one of normalcy. The town square is described as being â€Å"between the post office and the bank† (456). Every normal town has these buildings, which are essential for day-to-day functioning. Throughout the story little parts of setting are being told, to give a clearer picture for a better understanding of the story. Jackson foreshadows a surprise ending. Foreshadowing is to hint of something  that would follow with the story. As the story continues the reader is told that school has let out for the summer, and yet the â€Å"feeling of liberty sits uneasily with the children† (456), which is strange, for no normal kid would be anything less than ecstatic over summer break. Finally, the children are said to be building â€Å"a pile of stones in one corner of the square† (456), which is a very strange game for children to play. All of these hints indicate that something strange and unexpected is going to happen, and they all will make sense once we discuss the story’s final outcome. Symbolism is also a strong element of the story. The introduction of the black box carried by Mr. Summer (456) is a key turning point showing symbolism, which is anything in a story that represents something else, giving the awful ominous answers to all those foreshadowing hints. When the black box is brought in, it’s said to be a tradition that no one liked to upset. The villagers kept their distance from the box, as though they feared it (461). More and more the town’s peculiarity begins to become apparent. For an example, the names of certain residents hit at the irony and unfavorable events to come. From the author’s extravagant detailing of the town, one would expect this â€Å"lottery† to be a chance for one lucky family to win some money. Instead, the winner’s â€Å"prize† is death-by stoning In the story Tessie won the prize when Bill, her husband, forced the paper out of her hand (461). The portrayal of the residents at the end of th e story is disturbing–they go about killing the â€Å"winner† ritualistically, trying to â€Å"finish quickly.† (461). They show no empathy at all–they’re simply following an ancient ritual. Overall Shirley Jackson discusses the movement of the setting, the unusual foreshadowing, and the outermost symbolism in â€Å"The Lottery.† The lesson in this story hits pretty hard. The Lottery’s relationship to real life is that sometimes we are presented with traditions that have been adhered to for as long as anyone can remember, and we forget the reason these customs were created in the first place. The problem is that circumstances can change and make these traditions outdated, useless, and even harmful. Overall the main point of the story is that ignorant and indulgent believers can bring death to an innocent person, so therefore we must re-evaluate our traditions;  otherwise we’re just letting ourselves be stoned.

Lab Safety Sign Quiz (Hazard Symbols)

U.S. President William McKinley - Fast Facts

William McKinley (1843 - 1901) served as Americas twenty-fifth president. During his time in office, America fought in the Spanish-American War and annexed Hawaii. McKinley was assassinated near the start of his second term.   Here is a quick list of fast facts for William McKinley. For more in depth information, you can also read the William McKinley Biography Birth: January 29, 1843 Death: September 14, 1901 Term of Office: March 4, 1897-September 14, 1901 Number of Terms Elected: 2 Terms; Was assassinated soon after being elected to his second term. First Lady: Ida Saxton William McKinley Quote: We need Hawaii just as much and a good deal more than we did California. It is manifest destiny.Additional William McKinley Quotes Major Events While in Office: Spanish-American War (1898)Annexation of Hawaii (1898)Open Door Policy/Boxer Rebellion (1899-1900)Gold Standard Act (1900) States Entering Union While in Office: None Related William McKinley Resources: These additional resources on William McKinley can provide you with further information about the president and his times. William McKinley BiographyTake a more in depth look at the twenty-fifth president of the United States through this biography. Youll learn about his childhood, family, early career, and the major events of his administration. Spanish-American WarThis brief conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States arose out of Spanish policies in Cuba. However, many claim that yellow journalism was at least partially to blame with their pro-rebel sentiments and the way they dealt with the sinking of the Maine. Tecumsehs CurseEvery president between William Henry Harrison and John F. Kennedy who has been elected in a year ending with a zero has been assassinated or died while in office. This is called Tecumsehs Curse. Territories of the United StatesHere is a chart presenting the territories of the United States, their capitals, and the years they were acquired. Chart of Presidents and Vice PresidentsThis informative chart gives quick reference information on the presidents, vice-presidents, their terms of office, and their political parties. Other Presidential Fast Facts: Grover ClevelandTheodore RooseveltList of American Presidents

Aphrodite - 1027 Words

APHRODITE (a-fro-DYE-tee; Roman name Venus) was the goddess of love, beauty and fertility. She was also a protectress of sailors. The poet Hesiod said that Aphrodite was born from sea-foam. Homer, on the other hand, said that she was the daughter of Zeus and Dione. When the Trojan prince Paris was asked to judge which of three Olympian goddesses was the most beautiful, he chose Aphrodite over Hera and Athena. The latter two had hoped to bribe him with power and victory in battle, but Aphrodite offered the love of the most beautiful woman in the world. This was Helen of Sparta, who became infamous as Helen of Troy when Paris subsequently eloped with her. In the ensuing Trojan War, Hera and Athena were implacable enemies of Troy while†¦show more content†¦She was unfaithful to him with Ares, and Homer relates in the Odyssey how Hephaestus had his revenge. IN ART Elsewhere in classical art she has no distinctive attributes other than her beauty. Flowers and vegetation motifs suggest her connection to fertility. Aphrodite was associated with the dove. Another of her sacred birds was the goose, on which she is seen to ride in a vase painting from antiquity. Hesiods reference to Aphrodites having been born from the sea inspired the Renaissance artist Botticellis famous painting of the goddess on a giant scallop shell. Equally if not better known is the Venus de Milo, a statue which lost its arms in ancient times. WAR GODDESS? The ancient travel writer Pausanias describes a number of statues of Aphrodite dressed for battle, many of them in Sparta. Given the manner in which the militaristic Spartans raised their girls, it is not surprising that they conceived of a female goddess in military attire. She also would have donned armaments to defend cities, such as Corinth, who adopted her as their patroness. This is not to say that she was a war goddess, although some have seen her as such and find significance in her pairing with the war god Ares in mythology and worship. The two most recent editions of The Oxford Classical Dictionary are at variance over this aspect of the goddess. The 1970 edition sees her as a goddess of war and traces this to her Oriental roots. It is true that she has resemblances toShow MoreRelatedThe Characteristic Of Aphrodite871 Words   |  4 Pagesof the goddess that I chose is Aphrodite, a Greek mythology goddess of love, desire, and beauty. A characteristic that describes Aphrodite in a good way is joyful because she brought happiness and laughter to the mortals. Beauty is the second characteristic, she was very irresistible and brought beauty to everyone. An evil characteristic of Aphrodite is that she is disloyal. She did not love her husband, Hephaestus, so she decided to have an affair with Ares. Aphrodite is jealous, she did not wantRead MoreAphrodite: Goddess of Love702 Words   |  3 PagesAphrodite: Goddess of Love When anyone with a general knowledge of Greek mythology hears her name, their mind automatically shifts to images of beauty. Beauty is what Aphrodite stands for. She is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, and fertility. Aphrodite has a very loving, compassionate nature. Due to her nature, she has numerous powers. They include, but are not limited to, influencing birth, life, love, death and fate. She uses her beauty to her advantage and with it can leave her lover defenselessRead MoreAphrodite And The Victorian Era2248 Words   |  9 PagesAphrodite who is also referred to as Venus, was hugely admired in the Victorian-era and appeared to have kept much of her respected status that she had carried through with her from the 5th Century Greek and Roman mythology. Aphrodite from an early century is the goddess of love and beauty and is the subject to many art and literature forms in the Victorian-era. What Briton’s in the Victorian-era wrote about Aphrodite and how they illustrat ed her indicates what the average, educated Victorian-eraRead MoreEssay on Hera and Aphrodite1947 Words   |  8 PagesHera and Aphrodite. Two goddesses on two sides of the Trojan War. Both of them have their own personalities, and their own agendas. The two of them do have certain similarities. Both Hera and Aphrodite seem to believe in the cause they are fighting for. They do, however have very different ways about getting what they want. In The Illiad, both of these goddesses are on the opposing sides (as I stated before). Hera fights on the side of the Acheans, where Aphrodite has taken sides with the TrojansRead MoreAphrodite Essay examples1167 Words   |  5 PagesAphrodite The image that has been produced over time about the Goddess of Desire, the renowned Aphrodite, is one of a longhaired beauty, riding atop a scallop shell to bestow her beauteous wonders upon the mortal earth and Olympus. This is an icon of femininity and perfection, the most stunning of the already statuesque gods and goddesses. Doves and sparrows are her counterparts as is the sweet and playful Cupid in later Roman myths. However, this seemingly flawless picture of delicacy andRead MoreAthena And Aphrodite : Greek Mythology920 Words   |  4 PagesAthena and Aphrodite, two of the most well-known goddess’ from Ancient Greek mythology. Athena is the goddess of war strategy and wisdom, she never married or had relationships. Aphrodite is the goddess of love and beauty, she had a lot of relationships and had several children. Besides both of them being extremely popular and worshiped goddess’ it seems like these two goddess’ have nothing else in common. However , Athena and Aphrodite have a lot of similarities between the two of them. Some similaritiesRead MoreAn Analysis Of The Torso Of Aphrodite 870 Words   |  4 Pagespieces in the exhibit. In this paper, I will be describing The Torso of Aphrodite, using my own viewpoints and the elements of formal art analysis, in order to explain the uniqueness when compared to other pieces in The Classical World exhibit. The Torso of Aphrodite was constructed in the 1st century A.D. and is made entirely of marble. The torso used to belong to a life-sized version statue of The Greek goddess of love Aphrodite. From the moment I saw this piece, I knew I was attracted to it in aRead MoreAphrodite And Hera Mythology Essay817 Words   |  4 Pagesdifferent. For example the goddesses were seen as insanely beautiful but also vain. Two examples of this are Aphrodite and Hera, who were beautiful but very envious. These goddess were viewed upon as selfish because of their habits of being jealous of mortal maidens. In Aphrodites case, she was jealous of the human, Psyche, because the mortals saw her as so beautiful that was even more so than Aphrodite herself. This led to Aphrodites temples being neglected and her favorite towns falling in ruins. InRead MoreAphrodite : The Standard Of Femininity And Mortality Essay2220 Words   |  9 Pages Aphrodite: the Standard of Femininity and Mortality in the Iliad In the story of the Iliad, an epic focusing on mortality and its flaws, the immortal gods often contrast with the tragic and heroic nature of the story . No god shows this more than Aphrodite, the goddess of love and sexual relations. Her appearances on the battlefield are few and far in between, but when she does appear it leaves a lasting impression on our mind, since she acts so differently than the honor-filled men of the epicRead MoreHomers Relationship With Paris And Aphrodite1737 Words   |  7 Pagesfirst place† Under the leadership of Menelaus’s brother Agamemnon, the Greeks fight around Troy for ten years before finally succeeding in destroying the city and regaining Helen. But who was Helen and what was her relationship with Paris and Aphrodite? Is the Helen that is portrayed in pop culture today still representative of the one put forth by Homer in the Iliad? I will begin to answer these questions and explain how these relationships help to define her by utilizing source material from

Management and Business Context

Question: Discuss about the Management and Business Context. Answer: Introduction Business process management (BPM) is a vast sector of management that influentially deals with the tools and techniques of enacting the business operational activities. Interpreting with the root causes of business performance turns out to be challenging for analysing business purposes. There are different kinds of processes for analysing business performance amongst which Data Envelopment Analysis is one. The concrete output of the analysis only becomes positive and effective when proper and relevant data are imputed, and some influential factors work as well (Naldi, Cennamo, Corbetta, Gomez?Mejia, 2013). The impact of context on the business performance has to be analysed only when we operationalize the material in the form of contextual factors. These factors are either generated in the corporate ambience or internal business environment. Contextual factors are relevant factors that act as parametric for the concerned situation like time, culture and operational activities of the business. The following essay focuses on the different theoretical backgrounds and the contextual factors that have been summarised (Bryman, Bell, 2015). The organization that has been taken into consideration is Harvey Norman, which is a techno service provider company. Harvey Norman Holdings is one of the vast retailers in Australia. As per its Company Profile, deal customers "sniff out arrangements at stores possessed or diversified by Harvey Norman Holdings." Strategic positioning of Harvey Norman The strategic position of Harvey Norman is certain in that the association can utilize bit of the general business in particular ranges, while holding tight to others, the remainder of which are depended upon to upgrade with the economy. The firm has a great deal of focal points and cash related resources, and is prepared for a positive future execution. Its 2009 execution had been extremely incredible considering the negative economy, however in 2010, not as much as stellar results were represented. The association seems, by all accounts, to be optimistic about the future as it should be. It seems like the economy is in recovery and Harvey Norman has different awesome things to progress. Theoretical background This part of the research focuses on four different streams of contextual factors of Harvey Norman, that have been identified to elaborate the framework to the mass generation. Context awareness There have been made a few methodologies how to join business handle demonstrating with the related affect ability to the specific situation. We consider the setting in connection to the client by presenting setting related information which ought to ensure that business forms turn out to be increasing "self-overseeing, programmed and limiting". Setting mindfulness ought to fundamentally be activated by the presentation of differing applied establishments like it is the situation with the "complex, versatile framework". This complex, versatile framework is to empower people of Harvey Norman that are communicating in the process to react rapidly to any remotely prompted change. Subsequently, changes in the earth are in the best case expected, and the business procedure is adjusted instantly (Bargiela-Chiappini, Nickerson, 2014). In reality, the four presented procedures of setting mindfulness (i.e. setting mining, setting displaying, setting scientific classifications for ventures, and setting mindfulness) assume an unmistakable part of each endeavour to enhance business forms (Armstrong, Taylor, 2014). Definition of contextual factors Scholarly writing needs of exact meanings of what is implied by contextual factors. Specialists characterised setting non-exclusively on an operational level: "Context is any data that can be used to portray the circumstance of an entity." Another more limited definition alluding to business was: The blend of all certain and express conditions that effect the situation of a structure can be named the context in which a business strategy is introduced. Gathering both definitions, it can be considered that context is any obvious and unequivocal information about conditions or conditions which influence a section. A particular ordinary for such a condition or situation is named as a contextual variable (Sarstedt, et al. 2014). Levels of contextual factors While analysing the scholastic writing on how contextual factors impact organisations, papers can be recognised by their attention on various corporate substances, be specific the entire organisation, its procedures, and its activities. Early information stayed ambiguous as it didn't choose the relationship between contextual factors and the affiliation clearly. This investigation was the essential who uncovered the reliance of a relationship on the specific situation and pointed out that it is persistently fundamental to consider the context. On the contrary, isolating a particular business condition like the threats to Harvey Norman. Later the research focuses on how context impacts business shapes. Typically a dumbfounding business process is picked, and certain impacts of pertinent factors on this framework are cleared up. The paper uncovers that exercises inside a strategy are influenced contrastingly by the same contextual factors. Two or three exercises are more touchy to cert ain extraordinary condition qualities than others. This is a fundamental learning while at the same time pondering an adjustment of the system in adjustment to a changed setting as every action must be poor down just (Majchrzak, Beath, Lim, and Chin, 2014). Performance of business processes influenced by contextual factors Identifying the purposes behind process varieties and reducing the purposes behind poor process execution or encouraging the reasons which improve the execution of the procedure is the primary point of exploring the specific circumstance. The principal class of execution pointers is identified with quality. These pointers measure the energy about things or relationship with judgments by watching components, for instance, the measure of flaws or the effort predicted that would expect forbidden quality. The pointless is connected with time. General KPIs indicate creating execution of a firm are for example to handle length or time to show. In the pointless notion are those KPIs which think the costs of a firm like Harvey Norman (Ostrom, 2015). However, there is no strong right confirmation about the effect of contextual factors on certain execution pointers. Past research takes allegorically a couple or just a singular execution pointer. Regardless the guide of process mining, the procedure activities are seen before the effects of perceived contextual variables on the plan time of each development are down by using real systems. Thus, the running with subsections look at suggested solicitations and characteristics of understandable discovers shaping (Loorbach, and Wijsman, 2013). Changing condition of the industry The lagging economy is accountable for a modification in industry conditions, in any occasion to a certain extent. It creates the impression that purchasers are less disposed to purchase electronic and family items when they lose their work or are low on cash. Credit is in like manner on press so paying little mind to the likelihood that customers need to spend, they will in all probability be not able do accordingly. It could be a direct result of the effect of high advance expenses. Moreover, the business gives direct indication towards recovery until the economy gains ground. Clearly, while that is the circumstance, the industry has in like manner been decently impacted by the economy. The things sold in this part are without a doubt required by customers. The changing conditions could appear, in every way, to be temporary however as the GFC continue influencing the straggling leftovers of the world interestingly with the Australian economy and that is hard to comment. Relevant works A first mentionable review of relevant components, despite the fact that not with any association with business forms, has been given. A portion of the highlighted contextual factors (e.g. possession, assets, authority) discovered passageway in later examinations of distinguishing fitting setting measurement and classifications (Al Ariss, Cascio, Paauwe, 2014). As of now in the early phases of the recognisable proof and bunching of relevant factors, specialists came to the accord that it is valuable to separate between setting elements that are inside and outer of the organisation. There is an assortment of various relevant factors that are referred to in writing and which give subcategories of the outer and inside measurement. The range of various measurements and qualities is moderately expensive as it extends from the business sort and regularising elements inside the association to the accessibility individually skill of workers and distinctive item qualities. Also, there are additional factors which are hard to quantify, for example, client desires conduct. Also, there is a propensity inside the writing to make utilisation of the PESTEL structure (shortened form for political, financial, social, mechanical, environmental and lawful) with a specific end goal. To group logical elements all the deliberately finished with the inspiration t o receive a well-established structure which can sort elements from a large-scale natural point of view. Another intriguing and solid normal for logical elements is the element of every setting variable (Christopher, 2015). Because of the reality that the outside condition is thought to be quick changing, the variety and unpredictability of logical components ought not to be ignored, and organisations are very much encouraged to have this segment in consideration. This diverse perspectives and cases of contextual factors demonstrate that a great deal of research has been directed in this field. Notwithstanding, a stringent and far-reaching approach of how to bunch and assess relevant components in a sensible and clear way is as yet absent. Hence, the creators structure, which is developed in the following segment, addresses this shortcoming (Boons, Ldeke-Freund, 2013). Framework of the contextual influence and its practical application The primary perspective is the evaluation whether the logical component affects execution. This can be viewed as one of the principle challenges while applying the structure to certifiable cases because logical considers frequently correspond with each other and, like this, can just barely be assessed on an independent premise. Another essential angle is the recurrence of the portrayed examination which relies on upon the level of an element of a logical variable. The level of element states how frequently a specific logical element changes its characteristics (i.e. the all the more often the relevant factors do as such, the more dynamic they are). Indeed, even in such a basic procedure, there are now various relevant elements which may significantly affect the execution of this business procedure. For each measurement and setting sort, one important case of a logical component is recorded which may affect execution or is influential and, consequently, requires setting mindfulness. T he rundown is commendable and does not claim to finish as the reason for existing is to show general materialism of the structure. For reasons of lucidity and fathomability, the system is connected. As demonstrated by the investigation of these two relevant factors, logical elements have different perspectives which could be fused in their investigation. In any case, a more profound examination would go long ways past the motivation behind this case as it would not improve the comprehension of the structure (Schneider, Spieth, 2013). In order to make use of contextual factors on the business strategy of the concerned firm, the analysis of the company helps out to formulate the perfect pitch. Porters five force analysis and PESTLE analysis are the key sources to make the appropriate use of the contextual factors. Lagging economy of the company is one such context that needs special attention to overcome it with best possible policies. The interactivity with customers and demand analysis helps the company to figure out strategic planning of the business infrastructure. Conclusion This paper has shown another structure that serves to get a review of contextual variables that impacts on the execution of systems. Methodology to dissect handle execution (e.g. DEA) can be furnished with satisfactory information utilizing the structure. In this way, DEA examinations pick deal with productivity that can be performed with and without a specific contextual variable. Controls of the paper which may in like way demonstrate the potential for future research is illuminated in the running way. Promptly, there is no course of how to determine a particular contextual variable. Along these lines, the quality and measure of saw cognizant parts rely upon the procedure information of the client of the structure. The unmistakable proposed setting sorts can manage relationship to potential honest to goodness segments (Schneider, and Spieth, 2013). References Bryman, A., Bell, E. (2015).Business research methods. Oxford University Press, USA. Naldi, L., Cennamo, C., Corbetta, G., Gomez?Mejia, L. (2013). Preserving socioemotional wealth in family firms: Asset or liability The moderating role of business context.Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice,37(6), 1341-1360. Bargiela-Chiappini, F., Nickerson, C. R. (2014).Writing business: Genres, media and discourses. Routledge. Armstrong, M., Taylor, S. (2014).Armstrong's Handbook of human resource management practice. Kogan Page Publishers. Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., Smith, D., Reams, R., Hair, J. F. (2014). Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM): A useful tool for family business researchers.Journal of Family Business Strategy,5(1), 105-115. Majchrzak, A., Beath, C. M., Lim, R., Chin, W. (2014). Managing client dialogues during information systems design to facilitate client learning. Ostrom, A. L., Parasuraman, A., Bowen, D. E., Patricio, L., Voss, C. A. (2015). Service research priorities in a rapidly changing context.Journal of Service Research,18(2), 127-159. Loorbach, D., Wijsman, K. (2013). Business transition management: exploring a new role for business in sustainability transitions.Journal of cleaner production,45, 20-28. Al Ariss, A., Cascio, W. F., Paauwe, J. (2014). Talent management: Current theories and future research directions.Journal of World Business,49(2), 173-179. Christopher, M. (2016).Logistics supply chain management. Pearson UK. Boons, F., Ldeke-Freund, F. (2013). Business models for sustainable innovation: state-of-the-art and steps towards a research agenda.Journal of Cleaner Production,45, 9-19. Schneider, S., Spieth, P. (2013). Business model innovation: Towards an integrated future research agenda.International Journal of Innovation Management,17(01), 1340001. Management and Business Context Question: Discuss about theManagement and Business Context. Answer: Introduction Globalization has brought about a revolution in the world of business, entrusting them to form various complex business structures and adopting diversified strategies(Wheelen Hunger, 2011). Traditionally business formed strategies on basis of intuitions but contemporary tools and techniques in management have increased scope and information available to businesses such that they are able to make more informed decisions. For making any business strategy or decision, organization makes internal and external evaluation of situations and thereafter assesses potential risks prior to applying a strategy. Internal analysis of businesses includes internal and external functions to form a Business Model Canvas to recognize the key business functions. Businesses combine external and internal analysis to arrive at a SWOT and TOWS analysis for itself which helps it to take significant business decisions(Phadtare, 2010). The scope of this essay is to be able to explain major domestic and interna tional contextual factors that impact business structures and strategy, utilizing key terms, theories and concepts from management. Analysis Businesses of various types depend solely on their internal functions to capitalize on opportunity from external environment. Key internal functions that drive businesses are operations, finance, marketing and human resources. Operations consist of the key production, servicing functions of business. Finance is concerned with securing and allocating of resources of businesses. Finance helps account for all the monetary and financial transactions of the firm such that it is able to meet its financial goals or revenue generation targets. Marketing is involved with promoting, selling of products and services to targeted customer segment and thereafter servicing the same(Cantwell, 2010). Marketing is the key revenue earning function for the business. Human resource consists of managing the people within the organization, who perform the several key functions. Businesses in order to increase productivity and effectiveness implement High Performance Work Practices (HPWP). The concepts incr ease employee engagement by combining knowledge, information, power and reward systems for employees to increase productivity. All the four business functions are interconnected to each and other. Business Model Canvas includes the fundamental blocks that drives business functions and hence performance. They consist of Value Propositions, Customer Segment, Channels, Customer Relationships, Revenue Streams, Key Resources, Key Activities, Cost Structures and Key Partners(Stacey, 2007). While the internal business functions are supplied primarily by organizations, external business functions are often outsourced to increased productivity. External business functions as tax filling, recruitment and selection, advertising and public relations. These external functions come under the purview of internal functions itself and hence are managed by them. Business can be of various types depending upon their ownership structures, all world over and across various economies. In Australia, businesses are sole trader, partnership, company or trusts types. In Sole proprietorship requires the least type of legal and tax requirements and is operated generally by a single owner. A sole trader can easily conduct business with the help of a Tax File Number. In partnership, more than two people come together to form a company. They generally receive income jointly from the business and a partnership is required to file its Tax File Number (TFN) for filling of business returns. Partners in a partnership firm pays tax on the basis of their appropriated incomes. A company is a business structure that requires continuous administrative costs and it needs to have its separate bank accounts(Katsikeas, 2006). A company needs to file for annual tax returns and has owners, who are responsible for running of the company. Every business registered as a co mpany needs to adhere to strict standards provided by the Corporation Act,2001 for reporting of its memebers and ASIC. A company has limited liability, but in case of directors they can personally responsible by the Corporation Act (2001). An incorporated association on the other hand is a registered legal entity having a minimum of five members. Profits of its activities are generally reinvested into the organization. Cooperatives require a minimum of five shareholders who have equal voting rights. All members have equal vested interest in functioning of the business. All these businesses need to design and adopt appropriate strategy for its functioning and maintaining their competitive advantage. Strategies for these companies are generally formed by assessing and combining of internal functions, internal and external analysis of all prevailing situations(Cravens, 2006). While internal functions help a business to perform an analysis or understanding of external business environment is crucial for a business operations. External analysis for a business included analyzing industry and countrys perspective for strategy formation. In order to analyze broader macro environmental conditions a PESTEL analysis of the firm is undertake. PESTEL is an abbreviated form for political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal factor analysis prevailing within the country(Zalengera, 2014). PESTEL analysis is useful for domestic as well as internal business scenarios as it helps formulate appropriate strategies for the company with the legislative framework accounting for other policies as well. A business also undertakes environmental analysis for the industry within which it is operational. Porters five forces analysis provides a comprehensive understanding of the industry factors that function within the industry to help companies take a decisive strategy. The five forces can be analyzed as industry rivalry, threat from new entrant, threat from substitute products, bargaining power of suppliers and bargaining power of buyers all exert powerful influences on a business strategic decisions(Grundy, 2006). While these forces influential forces on the companys products, their analysis helps arriving at appropriate product strategies for the overall business. On the other hand McKinseys 7S framework which is a model for organizational analysis tool that is used to strategically monitor internal situations prevalent within an organization and changes them accordingly(de Kluyver, 2010). The theory states that all 7S within an organization namely Strategy, Structure, Systems, staff, Style and Skills needs to be realigned to achieve high level of performance for the organization. The physical aspects of the framework are referred to as the hard aspect whereas non-physical aspect is often called the soft aspect. It is by matching of these hard aspects into the soft aspects that a business effectiveness is established. McKinsey is helps analyze internal framework of an organization so as to able to combine internal and external factors to arrive at an appropriate strategy for the business(Slater, 2006). Business strategies cannot be solely based on either internal or external analysis for businesses and a combination of both can help design appropriate strategy. On the basis of analysis of external and internal environment a Strength and Weakness analysis of the business is arrived at, which helps in evaluating possible Opportunities and Threats for the business. Thus, a firm in SWOT analysis capitalizes on its strengths forms strategies on its opportunities overcomes weaknesses and tries to convert possible threats into opportunities as well. Another contemporary approach to forming strategies of the firm is by TOWS analysis, where external factors as opportunities and threats are matched with internal capabilities(Watkins, 2007). Matching of internal capabilities as strengths and weaknesses are then done to provide high opportunities for the business also analyze the critical threats in capabilities. TOWS is a revised and contemporary approach compared to SWOT analysis, as it help s combine internal, external analysis with internal functions to render effectiveness to the overall strategic implementation. When a business of any structure operates within the domestic market an internal and external analysis and matching the same to internal functions helps in designing and application of suitable strategy. But in case of a global organization a firm needs to have a comprehensive risk assessment of the global scenario is required, prior to arriving at a strategic decision. Risks in international scenario can arise from a number of factors as political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal. Risk analysis using a matrix will help understand which risks to avoid, mitigate or adopt(Xu, 2006). Strategies for the company in internal businesses needs a comprehensive analysis of risk management as well in additional to above internal external analysis and matching them to internal functions. Conclusion Businesses in order to develop and design strategies for them utilize a diversified range of complex theories and functions. Strategy suitability for a business is matched or optimized when a business is able to undertake proper internal and external analysis along with its exiting internal functions. One of the best methods to develop and adopt business strategies for a firm is to undertake with the help of TOWS analysis. It not only helps highlight existing capabilities and opportunities but gaps in capabilities from strengths and weaknesses. Combing McKinseys framework along with external analysis tools helps built foundation for concrete strategies for any type of business. But when a business is operational in international scenario, it must also have a comprehensive risks assessment plan. Risk assessment will curve a way for a successful strategy whereas avoiding it might lead to overall failure for the business. All strategies are intended to make the business more competitive and efficient in its processes, such that it is able to become an industry leader. References Cantwell, J. D. (2010). An evolutionary approach to understanding international business activity: The co-evolution of MNEs and the institutional environment. . Journal of International Business Studies, 567-586. Cravens, D. a. (2006). Strategic marketing (Vol. 7). New York: McGraw-Hill. de Kluyver, C. (2010). 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