Finemaster Projects Ltd.

Executive Summary FP employs highly professional and highly-skilled tradespeople and the demand for its service has reached an all time high so that they are kept busy even in the lean months. However, if the corporate leaders at FP will not be able to turn things around, then they will begin to lose their key personnel. It will take some time and resources to train a new worker and transform him into a reliable employee that can get the job done on time and in a cost-efficient manner. There is therefore a need to improve how things are being done at FP.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Finemaster Projects Ltd. specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Main Recommendations The current organisational structure must be transformed into a matrix type where the company is divided into two equal branches with its respective team of tradespeople and administrative support and this includes a competent Human Resource manager. As ide from that Skip and Bob Donovich will have to shed off their autocratic style of leadership. Finally, investment has to be made on modern tools and strategies to store and retrieve business information. Conclusion Skip and Bob Donovich will agree to the proposal because they cannot afford to keep on hiring and training new workers. They will also realise that a change in structure and leadership style will make the company more efficient and even though they will have to spend money to implement the changes they know that in the long run their profit will increase significantly because they can do their job more efficiently especially when it comes to managing people. Background The success and current problems of the firm can be understood fully if one will study its history. Finemaster Projects (â€Å"FP†) – a residential and construction firm – was established in 1955 by two brothers. Thirty years later ownership was transferred to their sons, Skip and Bob Donovich who became the managing partners of the said firm. Together they transformed the company into a non-unionized and privately held firm that specialises in high-end residential and commercial building projects. This includes complete turnkey service and at the same time provide their customers drawings and blueprint preparation, cost estimates, budgeting, job scheduling, design, installation and even interior decoration. On average the company employs 55 qualified and licensed trades people who were highly committed to their craft and have the same desire as the owners to provide quality service to their customers (Harvey, p.1). The employees were attracted to work at FP because the company is commuted to use the best techniques and the latest technology. Everyone in the organisation, including the Bob and Skip Donovich continue to strive to use the newest styles and highest quality products. This is the reason why tradespeople who are just starting out in their profession w ould like to join FP. Employment in this company is seen as a solid stepping stone for better opportunities.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The success of the firm based on its specialized service allow the company not only to hire the best but also to keep them motivated in the long run. But only because these employees are well aware of what they can receive from the company. It is not much on the monetary gain but the level of experience about the latest technology and the best techniques to build structures and add style to a project that would surely increase customer satisfaction. However, there is a problem when it comes to those who wanted to have a long-term commitment. It is difficult to talk about and discuss their future with the corporate leaders or even the Human Resource manager if there is one. This is unfortunate because FP will simply become the stepping stone for many and when they are experienced enough they will leave the company. Present It is important to first identify the issues faced by the FP. There are many but the problems of John Balmer provides an overview of what could become a major hindrance to the future of the firm. This is because of two things. First, John Balmer is willing to work full-time and can commit to a long relationship with FP. Second and most important of all, Balmer is not an ordinary worker trying to learn the ropes at FP. It is therefore imperative for the business leaders of FP to find every way possible to retain the service of this young man. If Skip and Bob Donovich fails in this regard then there is a possibility that they can lose some of their best men much sooner than expected. There are two major factors though that will make it a challenge to change the way things are being done at FP. First of all there is the corporate structure that at first glance seems to be an inefficient hybrid betw een a functional type of corporate structure and a matrix structure. The second major factor is the culture that exists within FP. Since the company was established by two brothers and then passed on to their sons it is understandable why they tried to maintain a family-like atmosphere within the company. However, there are challenges that they had to deal with and this necessitates major changes in corporate structure as well as leadership style. FP has to deal with a rapidly growing business as well as the need to keep their diverse group of highly-skilled tradespeople happy and contented. They have under their employ people with varied skills and responsibilities. The person who is in-charge with the planning and creation of blueprints and diagrams is not the same person in-charge of the construction sites. Expert interior decorators possess a different skill set as compared to those whose expertise is in carpentry. The need to manage such a diverse set of highly-skilled workforc e is not an easy task. Interestingly, FP managed to thrived in a competitive environment using inefficient strategies when it comes to human resource management. Case in point is John Balmer’s frustration to receive what he believed was due him after a year of dedicated service to the company.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Finemaster Projects Ltd. specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Action Plan The first thing that has to be done is to make sense of the organisational structure of the company. Skip and Bob Donovich could not afford to develop a system wherein order and stability is only good on paper but in real-life the workers are at a loss as to how they were being managed and taken cared of by the company. For example there is only one building that houses all the administrative functions of the company but when it comes to the actual work the leaders created two branches. One group works for Skip Don ovich and the other one works for Bob Donovich. Each branch is focused on their specific projects and rarely worked on jobs that was linked to the other group. Sometimes the two groups share resources. This set-up could have worked for the long-term except for two issues unique to the company. First, the insistence to maintain a family-like atmosphere. This means that although there are two branches it is still impossible for the workers to know who is accountable for them if it is Skip or Bob Donovich. Secondly, the leadership style adopted by the leaders is something that can add confusion and frustration to the workers as seen by the reaction of Balmer and the unethical behaviour of Winters. Changes has to be Made In order to overhaul the company and minimize the number of skilled personnel leaving FP to look for greener pastures, the major part of the solution has to deal with the organisational structure and the leadership style of Skip and Bob Donovich. The first thing that th ey need to do is to make a decision whether they will use the functional structure or the matrix structure. It must be pointed out that combining the attributes of these two types of structure will simply frustrate and confuse the employees when it comes to accountability, sharing of resources, and dealing with human-resource related problems. Due to the workload as well as the need to share resources FP would probably choose the matrix structure. If they will go with this set-up then there is a need to create a clear line of delineation between the two branches. This means that the worker in Branch A should never work in Branch B and the sharing of resources must stop. In other words these two groups should be independent of each other. To some extent this is what is happening at present. But there is one more thing that they need to do. The administrative, marketing and human-resource-management aspects of the business must also be divided between the two groups. This means that B ranch A and Branch B will each have their own set of administrators, finance department, marketing department as well as a human resource manager that can deal with the specific members of each branch.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The downside to this proposition is that it would force the company to buy more equipment because sharing of resources is no longer allowed. More importantly the company has to hire another administrator, finance officer, and HRM personnel. Finally, Skip and Bob Donovich will have to make a commitment to one branch and they are not allowed to cross-over to the other side and take part in their projects or meddle with their problems. The next thing that has to be done is to deal with the issue of leadership style. No information was given with regards to Skip Donovich but one can assume that he shares the same leadership style as Bob. Based on the information given Bob Donovich’s leadership style can be described as autocratic – he solves problems and makes decisions alone. In the case of Balmer he did not consult anyone from the administrative division to find out about Balmer’s work performance. Donovich does not have a system in place where he can evaluate his employees. But worse of all he makes decisions on the fly without thinking about the consequences to the company and to the individual. Timeline The change in leadership style can be done immediately. Skip and Bob Donovich will have to make a decision to not do everything in an autocratic manner especially when it comes to issues of job performance reviews and pay raise. It is interesting to note how a company has thrived for many decades using management strategies that seems only good for a start-up business and not an organisation that has at least 55 employees not counting those working in the administrative and finance departments. When it comes to changes in the organisational structure perfect timing is needed. There is no need to rush and the leaders will have to provide time for all the changes to occur. It would be best to implement the change during lean months such as during wintertime. This is to capitalise on slow demand and would allow for more meetings and discussio ns with regards to the proposed changes in the corporate structure. Justification It is possible that the leaders will resist the idea of change. After all they already experienced a significant level of success. However, they have to understand that if they will lose their key personnel then there will come a time when they will have a few experts under their employ and it would become increasingly difficult to finish projects on time and not waste their resources on duplicate work because customers are unhappy with the final results. The leaders may disagree with the proposed changes because of the additional expenses involved. But it must be pointed out to them that in the long run they will increase their profit. They need to know that it is costly to train workers without experience and then after a few years lose their service to a competitor who is willing to pay more. The proposal must be communicated in such a way that the leaders will feel that this is not only for the emp loyees but also for the overall success of the company. The leaders should be made to understand that their inability to provide what the employees are asking for in terms of benefits and salary increase may not be due to financial considerations but the lack of a system that will help them make accurate and effective decisions. In this regard changes should not only be limited to leadership style and corporate structure but also in modernising their systems. When Balmer went to see Donovich, the boss was busy looking for a purchase order because of the mess that was cluttering his desk. Donovich kept on shouting instructions to a subordinate while he kept on looking for the missing document. Thus, the company would benefit greatly if they move from a manual system of storing and retrieving information and shift to digital technology for more efficient storage and faster retrieval of the same. A better leadership style, an improved organisational structure and the use of modern tool s to manage business information will help them free up resources and allocate it more efficiently. FP’s business leaders will be amazed at what is possible with these changes in place and so they will support it all the way. Works Cited Harvey, Julie. Finemaster Projects Ltd. Ontario, Canada: Richard Ivey School of Business, The University of Western Ontario, 2010. This report on Finemaster Projects Ltd. was written and submitted by user Cristopher C. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

London and Bita Cycling Essay

London and Bita Cycling Essay London and Bita Cycling Essay Bita Cycling are you kidding When you are on it every thing look different . when you ride it you have a incredible joy which I can’t tell you.it is a whole new world.it changed the world. Bicycle is one of the most popular transport in UK and every one is able to understand how to use it but there are not many who can understand it, like me. because I am ridding over London’s streets. I ridded every street ,park and area in London, please join me to tell you the weirdest, unbelievable and nice story about this rainy city. When we talk about London tourists will talk about London eye or themes. When we talk about London businessmen’s will tell you about 'The Square Mile' but if you ask me I wont give you any name I will give you a bike and tell you to fallow me. My favorite street in London is baker street then I can bring you to Swiss cottage and show you every thing, you can hear heart beating of life or you can see the energy which is pumping through city you can easily get that energy because you are listening at it and mostly because you are sweaty and trying to stay at your bike and you need something to hang on it. Bike may be makes us tired, sweaty and exhausted but the breeze cool you down and dry you and the low speed of bike make you see the city in the way which people in the bus or car cant see like the old cottage which now a days is a restaurant or the bakery which is nearly to shed (older than what I expected). I will never

The Life and Music of Johann Strauss II Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Life and Music of Johann Strauss II - Essay Example From among the hundreds of musical compositions that Johann Strauss II created, his most famous work was identified to be the Blue Danube, categorized as â€Å"the most widely played and arranged pieces of its time, known to the most casual listener today from many radio, film and television uses of it†. A countdown of his musical scores generated this profile: â€Å"150 waltzes, one hundred polkas, seventy quadrilles (square dances), mazurkas (folk dances from Poland), marches, and galops (French dances)†. Johann was noted to be the king of waltz or the waltz king.His music was also noted to belong to the classical genre and assuming the orchstral and opera style. In fact, a total of more than 500 orchestral compositions were attributed to his name. Likewise, Johann Strauss II was known to have popularized both light music and dance music, both musical genres and styles that gave way to less serious form of classical music intended for an audience for the purpose of da ncing the waltz, or to put them in the right mood to listen to a concert-type of music. Since Johann’s compositions were predominantly orchestral or opera in style, the musical accompaniment was composed of a variety of musical instruments chosen appropriately to create the intended mood: for dancing, for easy listening, to appreciate a particular musical instrument: cello, the piano, or the whole orchestra. He has also composed selections of best classical music of his time; concert music, music of the opera, and favorite dance music attributed to the Strauss family, to name just a few.From among the famous operettas noted to be composed by Johann Strauss II, the following were detailed: â€Å"Die Fledermaus, is probably one of the greatest operettas ever written and a masterpiece of its kind. The lovely Du und Du waltz is made up of excerpts from this work. His two other most successful operettas were A Night in Venice (1883), from which he derived the music for the Lagoon Waltz, and The Gypsy Baron (1885), from which stems the Treasure Waltz†.... Music of Johann Strauss II From among the hundreds of musical compositions that Johann Strauss II created, his most famous work was identified to be the Blue Danube (An der schonen blauen Donau), categorized as â€Å"the most widely played and arranged pieces of its time, known to the most casual listener today from many radio, film and television uses of it† (Rovi Corp, 2013, par. 1). A countdown of his musical scores generated this profile: â€Å"150 waltzes, one hundred polkas, seventy quadrilles (square dances), mazurkas (folk dances from Poland), marches, and galops (French dances)† (Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2013, par. 9). Johann was noted to be the king of waltz or the waltz king (The Johann Strauss Society of Great Britain, 2013; Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2013). His music was also noted to belong to the classical genre and assuming the orchstral and opera style (Rovi Corp, 2013). In fact, a total of more than 500 orchestral compositions were attrib uted to his name (The Johann Strauss Society of Great Britain, 2013). Likewise, Johann Strauss II was known to have popularized both light music and dance music, both musical genres and styles that gave way to less serious form of classical music intended for an audience for the purpose of dancing the waltz, or to put them in the right mood to listen to a concert-type of music. Since Johann’s compositions were predominantly orchestral or opera in style, the musical accompaniment were composed of a variety of musical instruments chosen appropriately to create the intended mood: for dancing, for easy listening, to appreciate a particular musical instrument: cello, the piano, or the whole orchestra. He has also composed selections of best classical music of his time; concert music, music of the opera, and

Archetypal and mythic patterns in the Titanic Movie Review

Archetypal and mythic patterns in the Titanic - Movie Review Example The Titanic was released in 1997 and became one of the most celebrated motion pictures to have been made. It was honored with four Golden Globe awards besides the Producer Guild of America Award and Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director being prominent amongst countless more nominations and awards.This paper shall highlight the archetypal and mythic patterns in the movie that contributed to the exponential success that the movie attained (.The titanic constituted of a lengthy cast which comprised of actors and actresses playing the characters of fictional characters on the ship as well as a few who represented the real people who were present on the ship. Notable leads in the cast included Leonardo Di Caprio as a fictional character who is a penniless man with nothing to lose and lives life as it comes forth, Kate Winslet as a fictional character who a young girl belonging to the upper class and has the fervor to break free of the hassles of a rich life but lacks the courage to d o so, Billy Zane as fianc to Kate Winslet's character, Frances Fisher as Kate Winslet's character's widowed mother, Victor Garber as Thomas Andrews Junior who was in reality present on the ship when it sailed and was the ship's builder, as well as Gloria Stuart, Bernard Hill and Bill Paxton playing fictional characters as well. However, it was the fact of knowing that a few of the members of the cast had actually once existed and had been involved in the actions shown in the movie that was the reason for the continuous attention that the movie captured.

Assignment as Essay Example for Free

Assignment as Essay As part of the network security team, we will be proving IDI with a network security plan to mitigate the vulnerabilities that have been discovered. A secure site will be set up with network intrusion detection and network protection systems will be available to access via the internal network. Policies will be presented for remote access and the use of VPN. Also contained within this report will be strategies for hardening the network and mitigating risks. An updated network layout with increased network security to meet the current needs will be included. In the interest of business continuity, remote access will be utilized. User wishing access to internal network assets will only be able to access said assets with the use of a company issued laptop. We will make use of MAC address filtering to allow remote users access to the internal network via VPN. Each of the remote access laptops will have been loaded with VPN and have the MAC address added to the list on the MAC address filter. Users will be able to login to the VPN by using their local username and password. By making use of a VPN connection, users should be able to easily access the network assets. VPN connections are protected by SSL encryption which provides communication security over the internet. Each of the remote access laptops will be encrypted with McAfee safeboot encryption and all local data will remain encrypted until a valid login is entered. McAfee safeboot encryption requires additional login information to access the IDI internal network. At the present there is one web server for employees to access both internal and external sites. The network security team will be integrating a web server located within the internal network. This Web server will be accessible only from within IDI’s local area network. We will be using the layered security concept to protect IDI’s internal servers. An (IDS) intrusion detection system will be set up to send out alerts in the event of an intrusion and log all connections. An (IPS) intrusion prevention system will be set up to prevent the detected intrusions and will make use of MAC address filtering to deny or allow connections based off the MAC address or physical address of each machine. MAC address filtering will allow the servers to accept incoming traffic from predetermined hosts. To further secure the local area network, the network security team will be implementing the principle of least privilege in regards to the users. By using the principle of least privilege we will be preventing multiple forms of malicious or accidental risks by only giving the user the permissions and privileges necessary to complete their job. Microsoft’s default security software is commonly used and well known making the vulnerabilities well known, which would make it easier for a hacker to plan out an attack. Third party antivirusmalware and firewall software will be used on all machines. The servers located within the network will make use of a statefull firewall to monitor and filter all traffic on the network by scanning for congruence between data packets. The public facing servers used to connect the internal webserver to the customer website are contained within the demilitarized zone. Due to the demilitarized zones proximity to the wide area network, we will be taking a layered security approach. There will be a statefull firewall located between the router and the demilitarized zone. This firewall will protect the internal network via the LAN-to-WAN connection by performing in-depth packet inspection and closely monitoring the LAN’s inbound and outbound traffic. A stateless physical firewall device will be in place between the internet service provider and the demilitarized zone. This firewall hardware will allow for larger amounts of inbound and outbound traffic. The demilitarized zone will make use of both an IDS and IPS to handle any intrusions within this part of the network. Current IDI Network Weaknesses/vulnerabilities Logisuite 4. 2.2 has been installed 10 years ago, has not been upgraded, however over 350 modifications have been made, and license is expired RouteSim- The destination delivery program is used to simulate routes, costs and profits , it is not integrated into Logisuite or oracle financials to take advantage of the databases for real-time currency valuation and profit loss projections IDI needs to standardize office automation hardware and software currently there are about 600 workstations , 200 HP, 150 Toshibas, 175 IBM, 50 dell, rest are apple PowerBooks without CAD software available Software ranges from various antique word processing packages of which are incompatible for integration with each other, causing transfer of files to become corrupt when opened by incompatible software Polices exist that prohibit the introduction of personal devices, many executives have had administrators install clients on their unsupported non-standard personal laptops, pcs, ws that interface with internet with little or no personal protection WAN was designed by MCI in early 2000’s which has not been upgraded since data rate increases have occurred in Asia and Brazil has been distressed. Between September and March (peak hours) capacity is insufficient, customers are lost due to dropped connections and abandoned shopping baskets, further reducing growth and revenue Telecommunications – limited Mitel SX-2000 private automatic branch exchange (PABX) that only provides voicemail and call forwarding Current IDI Strengths Sao Paulo is presently the strongest link in the chain. Sao Paulo Brazil is a model of standardization; all other sites will be modeled after this site. The Sao Paulo office includes the following setup 30 MS windows for file and print 4 Linux (Unix) servers for major production applications 2 Linux (Unix) servers with the internet zone with juniper high-speed switches and routers A storage area network based on EMC CLARiiON SAP R/3(ECC6-Portal based apps) Up-to-date security policies although in Spanish The telephone system provided by SP Telesis- one of the four competing providers in the metropolitan city The NEC NEAX 2400 Series PABX used for internal and external communications

Essay --

Materials: †¢ Yarn (1.5 feet) †¢ Water †¢ Cup †¢ Tablespoon †¢ Small plate †¢ Granulated white sugar (4 cups and 4 tablespoons) †¢ Wax paper †¢ Screws †¢ Popsicle sticks †¢ Marker †¢ Ruler (cm) †¢ 2 mason jars †¢ Bowl †¢ Stove †¢ Measuring cup †¢ Wooden mixing spoon †¢ Pot holders †¢ Paper towels †¢ Notebook †¢ Pencil †¢ Masking tap Procedure: 1. Gather all materials listed. 2. Cut two strings the same lengths that are about 1 centimeter longer than the jar. 3. Fill a cup with water and place the strings in the cup so they can soak for about 5 minutes. 4. While the strings are soaking spread out 1 tablespoon of sugar out on a piece of wax paper and leave one piece of wax paper with nothing on it. 5. Remove the strings and place one string on the wax paper with sugar and roll the string around until it is completely covered with sugar. 6. Set both strings on the blank wax paper, not touching, and allow them to sit overnight. 7. After the sugarcoated string has soaked for twenty-four hours take a screw and tie it to one end of the string. Do the same with the non-sugar coated string. 8. With the other end of the string tie it to a Popsicle sticks. Indicate by using a marker as to which string has the sugar coating on it. 9. Make sure both stings will be long enough so that they can be placed approximately one centimeter from the bottom of the jar. Then set them to the side. 10. The glass jars will need to be preheated. Place them next to the eye of a hot stove. (That is so the glass jars don’t shatter) 11. Next boil water for both of the jars. Once that has boiled pour the water into the warm jars. 12. Now put a cup of water into a pot and bring that to a boil. Turn the heat back down to low. 13. Put three cups of sugar into the boiling water... ...e and organization to how these molecules are aligned. For this process the jar must be left in an undisturbed setting where there is no sunlight beating on it. It takes approximately a week for the sugar crystals to be able to completely grow. As the water molecules evaporate into the air the dissolved sugar molecules will be left behind. The molecules will cling to any solid around them including the sides of the jar and the nail and string placed in the solution. Through the process of nucleation the crystal will begin to form. In conclusion, the result of the experiment is the savory taste of a rock candy. The sugar molecules that are dissolved in the solution, stick together in a repetitive pattern, forming a crystalline solid. Through the process of nucleation students are able to enjoy the sweet taste of sugar molecules bonded together. Essay -- Materials: †¢ Yarn (1.5 feet) †¢ Water †¢ Cup †¢ Tablespoon †¢ Small plate †¢ Granulated white sugar (4 cups and 4 tablespoons) †¢ Wax paper †¢ Screws †¢ Popsicle sticks †¢ Marker †¢ Ruler (cm) †¢ 2 mason jars †¢ Bowl †¢ Stove †¢ Measuring cup †¢ Wooden mixing spoon †¢ Pot holders †¢ Paper towels †¢ Notebook †¢ Pencil †¢ Masking tap Procedure: 1. Gather all materials listed. 2. Cut two strings the same lengths that are about 1 centimeter longer than the jar. 3. Fill a cup with water and place the strings in the cup so they can soak for about 5 minutes. 4. While the strings are soaking spread out 1 tablespoon of sugar out on a piece of wax paper and leave one piece of wax paper with nothing on it. 5. Remove the strings and place one string on the wax paper with sugar and roll the string around until it is completely covered with sugar. 6. Set both strings on the blank wax paper, not touching, and allow them to sit overnight. 7. After the sugarcoated string has soaked for twenty-four hours take a screw and tie it to one end of the string. Do the same with the non-sugar coated string. 8. With the other end of the string tie it to a Popsicle sticks. Indicate by using a marker as to which string has the sugar coating on it. 9. Make sure both stings will be long enough so that they can be placed approximately one centimeter from the bottom of the jar. Then set them to the side. 10. The glass jars will need to be preheated. Place them next to the eye of a hot stove. (That is so the glass jars don’t shatter) 11. Next boil water for both of the jars. Once that has boiled pour the water into the warm jars. 12. Now put a cup of water into a pot and bring that to a boil. Turn the heat back down to low. 13. Put three cups of sugar into the boiling water... ...e and organization to how these molecules are aligned. For this process the jar must be left in an undisturbed setting where there is no sunlight beating on it. It takes approximately a week for the sugar crystals to be able to completely grow. As the water molecules evaporate into the air the dissolved sugar molecules will be left behind. The molecules will cling to any solid around them including the sides of the jar and the nail and string placed in the solution. Through the process of nucleation the crystal will begin to form. In conclusion, the result of the experiment is the savory taste of a rock candy. The sugar molecules that are dissolved in the solution, stick together in a repetitive pattern, forming a crystalline solid. Through the process of nucleation students are able to enjoy the sweet taste of sugar molecules bonded together.

Concentration of HCL affecting surface area to vol ratio Essay

The research question that this report is going to discuss is â€Å"What is the relationship between concentration of hydrochloric acid (HCl) and the rate of diffusion? † My hypothesis for this research question is that change in rate of diffusion will be observed when the agar blocks are placed in solutions of different concentrations of HCl. As the concentration of HCl increases, the rate of diffusion will also increase due to the steeper concentration gradient created. To investigate the change in rate of diffusion when different concentrations of HCl are used, I used agar blocks that are stained with universal indicator that would change from green to pink when exposed to HCl. To prepare the agar blocks, I used knife and ruler to acquire 5 agar blocks with equal dimensions of 3. 0cm by 1. 0cm by 0. 5cm. Then I prepared 5 different concentrations of HCl with equal volume of 5cm^3 in test tubes, which were 0. 0M. 0. 2M, 0. 4M, 0. 6M, 0. 8M and finally 1. 0M of HCl. Then, I placed the agar blocks into respective test tubes, measuring the time taken for the agar blocks to turn from green to completely pink. This was repeated 2 more times, having 3 set of readings in total. The results collected showed an increasing trend in the rate of diffusion as the concentration of HCl increased. This clearly supported the hypothesis I derived at. (227 words) ? Content Page Abstract2 Content Page3 Introduction4 Research question:4 Hypothesis:4 Introduction (2)5 Literature Review5 Methodology6 Results8 Results (2)9 Discussion10 Limitations11 Improvements11 Conclusion12 Bibliography13 ? Introduction Research question: How does change in concentration of hydrochloric acid (HCl) affect the rate of diffusion through the agar blocks which contain starch stained with universal indicator, while keeping surrounding temperature, the surface area to volume ratio of agar blocks used and the volume of solution to which the agar blocks were placed constant? Hypothesis: Change in rate of diffusion will be observed when agar blocks are placed in solutions of different concentrations of HCl. As the concentration of HCl increases, the rate of diffusion will also increase due to the steeper concentration gradient created ? Introduction (2) Literature Review Diffusion is known as the net movement of particles from a region of higher concentration to a region of lower concentration along the concentration gradient. There are few factors that affect the rate of diffusion, the time taken for both regions to have equal amount of particles. One of them is temperature. It is known that temperature has the greatest effect on diffusion rates and is the easiest of the factors to change. Increasing the temperature increases the diffusion rate by adding energy to each particle. This is because particles with more energy can move to the region of lower concentration with more speed and more easily. Similarly, lowering the temperature will lower the diffusion rate by lowering the energy of each particle. Another important factor that changes the rate of diffusion is the concentration gradient, which we will be exploring in this experiment. The rate of diffusion depends on the difference between concentrations across the region of lower concentration and higher concentration, with steeper concentration differences resulting in higher diffusion rates (Simon 2013). This can be explained by Fick’s Law, which can be summarised by this equation: Rate of diffusion is proportional to(surface area x difference in concentration )/(Length of diffusion path). From the equation derived from Fick’s Law, it is clearly seen that the difference in concentration (concentration gradient) will increase the rate of diffusion (Michael Kent 2000). This theory can be used to explain real life situations, like how human lungs take in oxygen and give out carbon dioxide in a split second. It is due to the great difference in concentrations of both gases (very steep concentration gradient) that allows relatively fast rate of diffusion. For instance, when breathing in, the concentration of oxygen in alveoli is very high compared to that in the blood vessels surrounding the alveoli. Thus, rate of diffusion is great, allowing oxygen to diffuse as fast as possible. (BBC 2013) Methodology Table 1.1-Table of variables and how it is controlled VariablesDetails of variablesHow it is controlled Independent VariableConcentration of HClConcentration of HCl is controlled by the amount of distilled water added to HCl. For example, in order to achieve a concentration of 0. 2 moldm^(-3), 1. 0 cm^3 of 1 mol of HCl is added, with 4 cm^3 of distilled water added. Dependent VariableRate of Diffusion The time is taken by a stopwatch until the agar blo ck turns pink in colour completely. Controlled VariableTemperature of the surrounding Surface area to volume ratio of the agar blocks Volume of solution to place the agar blocks into. Temperature is set at an air-conditioned room in a Biology lab The agar blocks are cut into same length, same breadth and same height (3. 0 cm by 1. 0 cm by 0. 5cm), thus having the same volume and surface area. This ensures the ratio is the same. The volume of solutions used is kept the same at 5. 0cm^3. Table 1. 2-Apparatus used in the experiment Apparatus QuantityUncertainty 2% Starch Agar (Universal Indicator stained)– 1. 0 M Hydrochloric Acid (aq)– Deionized Water– Stop Watch2 ±0. 01s This might be due to the inaccurate cutting of the dimension of the agar blocks. It could also be due to our inability to decide whether the agar blocks have turned completely green to pink in colour. Thus, the calculated rate of diffusion could have changed. Limitations Some of the results were not as accurate as it was difficult to see whether the agar blocks have turned entirely pink in colour. Some of the agar blocks still had strips of green in them when we removed it from the solution and cut it. This could have affected the time taken for the agar blocks to turn entirely pink and thus, affecting the rate of diffusion. The temperature of the solutions containing the agar blocks might not be constant throughout the whole experiment. This can be due to holding of test tubes with our hands and also putting it down again several times. The heat from the hand might get transferred and the temperature might be altered. This can affect the time taken for the agar blocks to turn completely pink, as higher temperature induce faster rate of diffusion. Some of the results are not very accurate as the surface area to volume ratio was not constant for all the agar blocks tested. One of the reasons is due to the limited amount of agar blocks that were allocated for each bench. Another reason is that it was difficult to use the knife provided to cut the agar blocks in a straight manner and as accurately. This limitation can affect the time taken for agar blocks to turn pink, followed by the rate of diffusion, as some blocks are bigger while some are smaller than the others. Improvements In order to make sure that the agar blocks have turned entirely pink, use a light and put it in a white background where the colour changed is more visible. Then, the calculated rate of diffusion will not be affected. Place the test tubes in a water bath where the temperature can be kept constant at the temperature of tap water. This way, the calculated rate of diffusion will not be affected. Lastly, use a stamp with all the desirable dimension of the agar blocks measured. This way, not only is it convenient, it also helps us acquire the accurate dimensions of the agar blocks, having the same surface area to volume ratio for all the agar blocks. Then, the calculated rate of diffusion will not be affected. Conclusion In conclusion, the readings and the derived results in the form of tables, and line graph support my hypothesis, which is: Change in rate of diffusion will be observed when agar blocks are placed in solutions of different concentrations of HCl. As the concentration of HCl increases, the rate of diffusion will also increase due to the steeper concentration gradient created. With the derived conclusion, it shows that in order for rate of diffusion to be greater, higher concentration of the solution must be used, so that the concentration gradient is steeper.