Sunday, January 26, 2020

Knights Templar

Knights Templar Knights Templar â€Å"The Knights Templar was a religious military order that arose during the first and second crusades and their secrets and wealth destroyed the organization† (Campbell 29-33). The Knights Templar started out as a small group of monks and eventually grew to become a powerful religious order. Members had duties and certain lifestyles as a Templar. The order rapidly spread across Europe after it began. The Templar would become one of the most innovative and influential groups during the Crusades period (â€Å"Templars†). The Knights Templar is shrouded in secrecy; this would be their downfall and their biggest calling card. The original name or the full name for the Knights Templar can be quite a mouth full â€Å"[t]he Holy Order of the Poor Knights of Christ and the Temple of Solomon is the full name of the Order†(Campbell 29-33). Most paraphernalia refer to them as the Knights Templar. Some call the members just Templar, or warrior monks. The Poor Fellow Soldiers of Christ and the Temple of Solomon is another name used (Campbell 29-33). People back in the time of the crusade would have called them heroes. After the first crusade, two new military orders came about in Jerusalem (Read 17-24). One, the Knights Hospitallers, or Knights of Saint John, whose task was to aid the wounded in Outremer, or the land across the sea (Read 17-24). The second military order to arise was the Knights Templar, whose duty was to defend the pilgrims on their way to the Holy Land (Campbell 29-33). In 1118, before the start of the Order, Hugues de Payan and eight fellow knights went to Jerusalem and offered their se rvices to the king. The king offered housing to the knights at the former mosque al-Aqsa, which was located on the site of King Solomons great temple (Hughes 34). The Order was born here and received its name from the temple it was protecting. The Knights Templar took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. The religious order was created at the Temple of Solomon and swore to protect the Holy Land (Campbell 29-33). Hughes states in his book that â€Å"[t]he Templar fought bravely against the Saracens, not leaving battle unless outnumbered three to one† (34). The order received the blessing of the Pope in 1129, and the Templar soon got recognition as heroes. With the Popes blessing, the Templar could now recruit members and raise money through donations. Donations came to the Templar in large amounts. The warrior monks were given wealth, jewels, and property (Hughes 34). King Alfonso I of Argon gave the Templar one-third of his Spanish Empire on his deathbed (Read 17-24). They owned land in France, Spain, England, Italy, Germany, Portugal, Austria, Hungary, and other places. Men also went to the Templar to support their cause, and some in hopes of getting rich. The Knights Templar did have their critics though (Sterns 84-111). The Templar owned houses all across the map, and they used that to their benefit. The Knights Templar became the first bankers in a way. Travelers would deposit money at one Templar building, and travel, with a statement of deposit, to another city (Knight, and Lomas 121). They would then cash in their statement and receive the same amount of money at another Templar structure at their final destination. This was a very safe method, because the traveler could not be robbed. The Templar began to escort travelers on their fleets of ships, charging a fee for both services. That allowed them to take in a large sum of money (Knight, and Lomas 121). The Order was so beloved by the Christian people that the Pope freed the Templar from loyalty to any ruler. From then on the order only answered to the Pope. The Templar later became involved with politics. They served on royal committees and councils. The duties of a Templar split among the regions (Hughes 17). In the east, they remained fier ce warriors defending Christianity, and in the west, they became farmers and merchants. The order was rapidly gaining wealth and riches (Campbell 29-33). During the second crusade, the Templar fought for the Christian effort. They were among some of the highest skilled fighters during this time. Indrikis Sterns quotes a 13th century author by saying†[t]hey are marked by their trademark white helmets and armor, which bears a red cross† (84-111). During the second crusade, the knights became very powerful and wealthy due to payments for their services from several empires. This excluded King Phillip IV of France. He was greatly in debt with the order, owing them large sums of land and money (Hughes 17). The King was worried about his debts to this powerful and influential order. Phillip IV called upon Pope Clement V to put all the members of the order on trial for heresy and other crimes committed. The Pope found no fault in the Order under the trials of heresy but did find fault in their initiation ceremonies. The Pope had them burned at the steak for unspeakable acts against the church (Sterns 84-111). The Knights Templar were said to spit upon a cross before battle and kiss their leaders to show complete obedience to them. The order was not destroyed, but badly crippled. The Knights Templar was hidden in darkness and secrecy, and they will always remain a mystery. This is believed to have led to their downfall. The Knights Templar was said to possess a great secret (Hughes 17). This secret may have been practical knowledge, which if revealed could undermine Christianity or some people believe that the Templar had some great relic. â€Å"Possibly, a piece of the true cross or the crown of thorns worn by Jesus was in their possession† according to Campbell (29-33). The shroud which Jesus was wrapped in his tomb, a piece of wood from a bath used by Jesus, a bronze bowl used to wash the feet of the disciples at the last supper or the head of John the Baptist are all rumored (Hughes 34). The Holy Grail used in the last supper is the most famous of all the relics thought to be owned by the Templar (Knight, and Lomas 121). It is truly unknown whether the Templar had any of these artifacts. Maybe they had one, or two, possibly all, but nobody can be certain. With the amount of land and money that the Templar had, and the possible possessions of great relics, specifically the Holy Grail, people were bound to envy the order (Knight, and Lomas 121). Some people also say that the Knights Templar and their relics live on under the Freemasons. The Masons are said to use many of the same symbols and rituals of the Knights Templar. Things do not help the cause when the Freemasons are also just a shrouded into secrecy as the Knights Templar (Knight, and Lomas 121). Whether the Order lives on or not is a question to be left answered by the opinions of us all. A person may believe all the tales or that the Freemasons, the makers of our country are members of the Order. One may also believe that the entire story of the Knights Templar and the later Freemasons is a complete hoax. However, what would history be without mystery and intrigue? Works Cited Campbell, G.A.Knights Templar: The Rise and Fall. San Francisco: Kessinger Publishing, 2004. 29-33. Print. Hughes, Charles. â€Å"How The Vatican Destroyed the Knights Templar.†Independent26 October 2007: 34. Print. Knight, Christopher, and Robert Lomas.The Hiram Key. Sacremento: Fair Winds Press, 2003. 121. Print. Read, Pierce.The Templars. 1. New York: MacMillan, 1999. 17. Print. Sterns, Indrikis.Crime and Punishment among the Teutonic Knights. 1. 57. New York: Medieval Academy of America, 1982. 84-111. Print. â€Å"Templars.† Dictionary of the Middle Ages. Supplement. American Council of Learned Societies. Charles Scribners Sons, 2004. Reproduced in History Resource Center. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/History/

Saturday, January 18, 2020

Albatross Anchor

Albatross Anchor is a small family owned business located in Smallville, MA. Albatross Anchor is located on 12 acres of land. They started out with four employees in 1976 and grow over the years to over 100. The company manufactures two types of anchors in different sizes. The types are the mushroom/bell anchor and the snap hook anchor. Albatross Anchor has many manufacturing problems which are the cause of the company not doing as well as it should be. The company is antiquated, worn and does not meet government guidelines. Albatross can be a company of the future with the application of much need upgrades and expansions. Question one A. Albatross Anchor‘s competitiveness in relations to cost below their competitors. They are 30% lower than their competitors. The cause of this is all the operation inefficiencies. They need to correct all of their problems in order to get in line with the competitors. The cost to manufacture is the same as the competitors $12. 00 per/lb. for mushroom/bell anchors and $6. 00 per /lb. for snag hook anchors. But, with the high price of shipping raw materials in finished goods not shipping out, and the cost of raw material, these are just some of the problems causing the company to lose money. The cost of the manufacturing process is hurting Albatross. The down time in between set up of the different anchors is a downfall of the company. They are paying workers to be there to wait for work to begin. The cost of raw material is high, since the company smaller than most. They will not get a better price as a large company would who manufactures more product. Cost efficient companies keep its capital, labor, and operating costs lower than its competitors. Then they must also provide a good price to its customers. Albatross Anchor should take on the method of Six Sigma This will help to achieve a level of quality, reduce costs related to scrap, rework, inspection, and customer dissatisfaction. B. The speed of manufacturing is a slow process; this is due only being able to produce one type of anchor at a time, which is called batch manufacturing. The time to switch from one process to another is 36 hours. The plant space is limited; it does not have enough room to have enough equipment to manufacture each anchor at the same time. The company needs to implement a score card to help with the operations strategies. The balanced scorecard has evolved from its early use as a simple performance measurement framework to a full strategic planning and management system. † (http://www. balancedscorecard. org/BSCResources/AbouttheBalancedScorecard/tabid/55/Default. aspx) C. The flexibility of filling an order with Albatross Anchor is non-existent. The manufacturing area is too small to make both anc hors at the same time. If an order comes in and need to be produced in a hurry they are not able to do this, because of the lack of technology in having a machine to produce both without a long set up time. Flexibility is important if a company is to respond quickly to changes in the industry. Time is money. Companies that can design, produce, and distribute their products faster than the competitors will have the upper hand. (Russell & Taylor, 2007, Operations Management: Creating Value Along the Supply Chain, pg. 124. ) D. The technology at Albatross Anchor is antiquated and deprived and is no longer up to standards. The manufacturing process is not capable of continuous production. The time to switch from one process to another is too long. The equipment and process should be update, or replaced. The funds for these projects are considered to be a capital investment. Albatross should consider making this investment to have a positive effect on the manufacturing process. Once the company makes the investment into new equipment, they will also have to invest into training the employees to run the new equipment. The company may need to have new hires, ones that can possibly do the job with less training. E. The capacity and facilities have out grown what the company has now. The company was designed to be a small manufacturer. Albatross is sitting on 12 acres of land they would be able to expand to make room for better technology. They have plenty of land to become an aggressive modern company, who is producing a top quality product. They can be the top producer of anchors with the changes that need to come about. Capacity is the maximum amount capable of producing. Another why to expand the capacity is to consider outsourcing. Outsourcing would come into play when they cannot set up the equipment and they need to produce product to satisfy an order. Some things to consider are the cost of making the product, such as labor, raw materials, and overhead. The facilities need to be made larger. The area that holds the raw materials should be expanded and should be close to the receiving area. Finished products should be close to the shipping area. This would cut down on time by not having to move product from such a long distance. The receiving and shipping should be together on the side where imports and exports are done. F. Service to customers is not very good. Long lead times and bad shipping methods are cause for problems. Accessibility and convenience are also a cause for concern. By offering a quality product, be able to meet orders and a touch of individualized customer service, you add value to your offering and your customers experience a higher level of satisfaction. The process of benchmarking can also help solve some of the problem and help to become a better company. â€Å"Benchmarking is the process of measuring an organization's internal processes then identifying, understanding, and adapting outstanding practices from other organizations considered to be best-in-class† (http://www. benchnet. com/wib. htm) The scorecard will also help determine where the problems lie within the service area. Albatross needs to come up with new designs of anchors to be more competitive, this will give the customers more options to choose from, bit the company needs to know how to make the process of making the anchors go smoother and faster. Based on the needs and perceptions of their target customers, they should either improve their products or reduce the cost of the product to enhance customer value. There are six things that influence a customer’s buying decision they are selling price, quality, dependability, flexibility, time, and service. These are all thing that a company must keep in mind to gain and keep customers. Customers do not want to buy products of the companies that they cannot trust. They want dependable producers. Question Two There are many ways that mushroom/bell anchors may be manufactured. Albatross Anchor is considering two new manufacturing processes (Process A and Process B) to reduce costs. From the available information below determine which process has the lowest breakeven point (this validates the process is more cost effective) and report your analysis and supporting conclusion. For each process the following fixed costs and variable costs have been identified:

Friday, January 10, 2020

Understanding How to Start a Paper about Yourself

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Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Pink Floyd Paper - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 960 Downloads: 2 Date added: 2017/09/21 Category Advertising Essay Type Argumentative essay Did you like this example? Dark side of the moon review The album that I chose to review for this project is my favorite Pink Floyd album, Dark Side of the Moon. Pink Floyd is a four piece psychedelic rock band that originally consisted of Roger Waters on the bass guitar and vocals, Nick Mason on the drums, Richard Wright on the keyboard and backing vocals, and Syd Barrett on vocals and guitar who was eventually replaced with the legend that is David Gilmore. The album was recorded in June 1972 – January 1973 at the Abbey Roads Studios in London England. This was Pink Floyds sixth studio album eighth overall and was released in March of 1973 and was a great success â€Å"Topping the billboard charts for one week it remained on the charts for 741 weeks†¦. With an estimated 45 million copies sold. † (Wikipedia) Pink Floyd is a Psychedelic rock band that came out of Cambridge, England in 196574. he band began playing covers of old American Rhythm and Blues songs until Syd Barrett, th eir original guitarist, began writing songs and moved the group into the psychedelic rock movement. Pink Floyd said they were influenced by Jimi Hendrix because of the way that he experimented with different sounds and improvised on the guitar. They also were heavily influenced by a band called Can who helped start the psychedelic movement in Europe. Pink Floyd fits well in progressive rock and psychedelic rock genre because they incorporate a lot of different sounds and use many effects in the music they play. They try to replicate and or enhance the effects of mind altering drugs which were very popular during the late 1960’s and 70’s, this is shown in the song â€Å"on the run† where there is a lot of different effects and sounds that may confuse the conventional rock listener. They have also been said to fit in the progressive rock genre because they pushed the boundaries with their music and went beyond the classic verse-chorus based song structures. Pink Floyd always pushed their music but dark side of the moon was the first time that they went all out using multi track recording, tape loops, and analogue synthesizers which gave it the very unique â€Å"pink Floyd sound† and was the most technically advanced way to produce an album at the time. It was their eighth album and helped introduce a lot of people to their music. The song that helped sell the album was the sixth track â€Å"Money†. Money was very unique compared to the other music of the time because it started off with the sound of money hitting the ground and was not on a conventional 4/4 time but a 7/4 because of the double tracking. Fans had never really heard music put this way and really took well off it. Even though this album was released late in their career many fans consider it the beginning of the real Pink Floyd era. I believe Dark Side of the Moon falls really well in the psychedelic genre because of the unique way they made the album. The album is a whole entity in that to its hard to just take out one or a few songs because you wouldn’t be able to grasp what they were trying to present to you. With that being said I chose the songs that I believe were the most unique because they pushed the boundaries of music at the time by incorporating many different kinds of producing techniques and helped people get introduced to the album. The first song on the album â€Å" Speak to me† is a great example of what is to come on the rest of the album and shows off the different producing effects they used like the over dubbing of cash registers which is a foreshadowing of what is to come later on in the album in the song Money. The song starts off with a man arguing with someone about how he can’t explain his anger then transitions to people laughing and a person screaming in the distance and grows louder and louder until the synthesizer takes over and the band enters into â€Å" Breathe†. People generally say that these two songs should have been put into one five minute song but it would have changed the feel of the song. This song shows off David Gilmour’s slide guitar and lead vocals in his gentle and warm timbres. The lyrics were written by Roger Waters and he tries to make the listener take notice of the smaller things in life which is different than what people generally see life as which is just to work. The song goes off of a 4 bar measure and has a slow tempo. The song ends abruptly because it is followed immediately by the song â€Å"on the run†. The next song that I’m going to be evaluating is the song â€Å"money†. The song starts off with the sound of cash registers opening and closing which are full of change. They keep a very good harmony during the whole song with the use of different instruments like the tenor saxophone, slide guitar, synthesizers, and piano. The song’s lyrics say that money rules the world an d that a person’s social class is determined by how much money they have. It says that money is the root of all evil and so you should share it with people but when you ask they never give you any. Dark Side of the Moon has gone on to be one of Pink Floyds most successful albums and has had a profound effect on other musicians like Phish and David Bowie, and has also been tied to the Wizard of Oz controversy. All in all it was and always will be a landmark in Psychedelic rock. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Pink Floyd Paper" essay for you Create order