Mayan Indians :: Pre-Columbian History Culture

Mayan Indians The Maya Indians are Indians that Lived in parts of present time Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. The Maya Indians had a complex hieroglyphic alphabet and a complicated calendar system. Only the high priests and kings knew how to read it and write and read the complex alphabet. The Maya Indians did not live in teepees like you may think they lived in houses sort of like ours but no nails or installation to keep it warm. The Maya Indians where great builders they made large buildings made out of stone some stones weighed more than 2 tons that is over 4,000 pound. When a child was born in the Maya civilization it was a sign of good luck. After it was born the priest was called and the baby was given a sacred name and then the priest predicts the future. In marriages the woman was allowed to marry when she was 14-15 years old. The boy in the relationship had to be at least 18 years old like our country in marriages. The Maya men and woman where very short compared to us. The average woman was 4à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬(tm) 8à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ quite short for our women who reached an average of 5à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬(tm) 4à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬. The men where also short but not too short. They reached5à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬(tm) 8à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ only 2 inches shy of our men who reach an average of 5à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬(tm) 10à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬. The Mayan disappeared close to the year 900 A.D. By 1450 most of the major cities where abandoned. Nobody knows for sure but there are theories that the men would go to war and the family would hide in a near by countryside and take cover. The tribe made their culture so advanced and just abandoned it for war. So why would a culture ruin their life style to fight but that is just a theory we may never know. The stylish thing to do in the Mayan civilization was having tattoos and wearing tons of jewelry was considered hip. Also they thought that filling your teeth to a sharp point and having your eyes crossed was attractive. Priests had three main types of calendars. The first was a civil calendar this was based on the solar cycle of the sun. The year lasted 365 days there was no leap year though so they where a day off every 7 years. The long court had a special system that kept track of long spans of time such as decades and centuries.

Strayer Cis500 Assignment 1

1. Compare and contrast the application of information technology (IT) to optimize police departments’ performance to reduce crime versus random patrols of the streets. In recent years, the idea of predictive policing, or the use of statistics and data to make policing decisions, has become widely popular in the United States. In 1994, the New York City Police Department adopted a law enforcement crime fighting strategy known as COMPSTAT (Computer Statistics). COMPSTAT uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to map the locations of where crimes occur, identify â€Å"hotspots†, and map problem areas.COMPSTAT has amassed a wealth of historical crime data. Mathematicians have designed and developed algorithms that run against the historical data to predict future crimes for police departments. The purpose of this paper is to briefly examine predictive policing and how tools such as COMPSTAT allow police departments to respond more efficiently to criminal activity. Using information technology to fight crime by the police officers is becoming increasingly effective in apprehending the crime perpetrators.Predictive policing, or programs such as COMPSTAT, involves using data from disparate sources, analyzing them and then using the results to anticipate, prevent and respond more effectively to future crimes. â€Å"The predictive vision moves law enforcement from focusing on what will happen and how to effectively deploy resources in front of the crime, thereby changing outcomes,† writes Charlie Beck, chief of the Los Angeles Police Department (Predictive Policing: The Future of Law Enforcement, NIJ, 2012). From the early 1800s to the 1980s, patrol and criminal investigation dominated policing.Uniformed police patrolled the streets to prevent crime, to interrupt crimes in progress, and to apprehend criminals. However, research since the 1960s has shown the limits of both patrol and investigation for controlling crime. Patrol officers did not eff ectively prevent crime by questioning suspects, victims, and witnesses. In the 1990s, the police adopted  predictive policing strategies  in which police initiate action instead of waiting for calls. Patrol remains the backbone of police operations. It consumes most of the resources of police agencies.On patrol, a police officer makes regular circuits or passes through a specific area. Studies of foot patrol indicate that these patrols are costly and do not reduce crime. Because crime is not evenly distributed throughout a community, which means some places need more patrol than others. The tradition of giving each neighborhood an equal amount of patrol wastes police resource, so the tradition of giving each neighborhood an equal amount of patrol just wastes police resources, however, which can make citizens less fearful of crime and improve citizen attitudes toward the police(CliffsNotes. om. ). While predictive police operations focus on the concentration of crime in certain o ffenders, places, and victims. Predictive operations include using decoys, going undercover, raiding, relying on informants, stopping and frisking suspects, shadowing repeat offenders, policing repeat-complaint locations, and saturating an area with police to maintain order which can be an effective method to prevent crime(CliffsNotes. com. ). 2. Describe how COMPSTAT, as an information system (IS), implements the four (4) basic IS functions: 1.Input, 2. Processing, 3. Output, 4. Feedback. COMPSTAT is the name given to the New York City Police Department's accountability process and has since been replicated in many other departments. COMPSTAT is a management philosophy or organizational management tool for police departments, roughly equivalent to  Six Sigma  or TQM, and is not a computer system or software package. † (State of CA, 2010). COMPSTAT as an information system implements the four basic IS functions in the following ways: InputData gathering process which is th e building block of COMPSTAT is comprised of information compiled from variety of sources like police incidents, arrest reports, suspect debriefing, telephone calls, and field interview reports. Pushing the data into the Incident Reporting System will help to maintain a database for future reference (Willis et al. , 2003). Processing The collection of data is presented during every COMPSTAT meeting. This would be entered into a database using a data management program like MS Access. This task is performed by the Crime Analysis Unit (CAU).These analysts classify, categorize, aggregate and analyze the data in order to gain a detailed report including many details like date, location, day and other information related to the crime. At this stage they would be able to identify a targeted response that may be the source of concern. This report provides useful identification of crime patterns like the point of entry for a burglary or make and model of a stolen vehicle (Willis et al. , 20 03, Pg 48-50). Further by using GIS (Geographic Information Systems) data and spatial analysis geographic hot spots are located and mapped to the data.Output Once the data is processed, it is presented to the department commanders. With available intelligence they should devise a strategy and deploy resources with expertise to tactfully pre-empt a crime situation and follow it up to ensure performance and results were as desired. These are key steps or principles which guide the departments patrol and investigative work: * Accurate and timely intelligence, * Rapid deployment * Effective tactics, and * Relentless follow-up and assessment (William J. Bratton, 1999 pg-15). Feedback The key element of improvement is feedback.As it includes data, any error related to this aspect should be avoided. Consistent and correct data has to be entered into the incident reporting system and database. Accurate report writing should be followed while recording incidents. Extensive data analysis to i dentify the root cause of crime becomes mandatory. Regular meetings and brainstorming session should be conducted to improve data collection and teams involved should be evaluated. Learning from past mistakes should never be avoided. Continuous aiming at innovation and integration with latest technology to keep the system up to date can provide better results.Periodic assessments of performance and gaps in accomplishing set goals and objectives should be reviewed so that corrective measures can be taken to fill the gaps to meet desired results. 3. Determine how information systems have allowed police departments that implement tools such as COMPSTAT to respond to crime faster. With the implementation of information systems real time access to data has become easier. Identification of hot spots related to crime is possible and problem solving has become proactive instead of reactive. Monitoring of multiple locations and futuristic crime and its patterns can be detected.This allows op erations to be carried with fewer resources, and reduced random patrols. Further it provides a platform for administering vast information which enables better decision making and problem solving. By demanding accountability it facilitates team work and police personnel are now working together to accomplish set goals faster thereby reducing crime. 4. Apply the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats analysis (SWOT analysis) on behalf of police departments that intend to implement predictive policing. SWOT Analysis of Predictive Policing SWOT Analysis of Predictive PolicingStrengths: The strength of predictive policing is that it allows resources to be used more efficiently because they can be deployed to specific locations in which crimes are likely to occur and for specific types of crimes. In this regard, it is also easier to prevent crime from occurring as opposed to merely responding to it (Goode, 2011). Weaknesses: Predictive policing is often treated as being solely related to the use of computers and data to the detriment of involving front-line police officers in the decision-making process.This can result in police officers feeling both disrespected and unimportant in performing police work (Willis, Mastrofski ; Weisburd, 2003). Opportunities: Predictive policing provides for the opportunity for police departments to reduce criminal activity at a lower cost to taxpayers. Police departments can prevent crime from occurring rather than using limited resources to respond to crimes once they have occurred and hoping responses will deter other criminals (Pearsall, 2010).Threats: The primary threat related to predictive policing is that some police officers, particularly older police officers, are skeptical of the use of statistics and data in place of traditional street patrols. This could result in predictive policing efforts not being carried out in a way that will allow them to be as successful as possible. Conclusion The information containe d in this brief paper has shown that with the use of information technology and programs such as COMPSTAT, predictive policing can result in a reduction in crime by predicting where it will occur rather than responding to it once it has occurred.However, predictive policing can have problems if the sole focus is on the use of information technology. Instead, police officers and the general public must be included in the process. Their feedback must be solicited as part of the larger process. Otherwise, they have the ability to derail any reductions in crime and improvements in performance that might be possible from predictive policing. References 1. Goode, E. (2011, August 15). Sending the police before there’s a crime. Retrieved from http://www. nytimes. com/2011/08/us/16police. html 2. Pearsall, B. (2010, May).Predictive policing: The future of law enforcement? National Institute 3. Willis, J. J. , Mastrofski, S. D. , ; Weisburd, D. (2003). Compstat in practice: An in-dept h Analysis of three cities. Police Foundation. Retrieved from http://www. policefoundation. org/pdf/compstatinpractice. pdf 4. CliffsNotes. com. Police Strategies. Retrieved April,12th, 2012, from http://www. cliffsnotes. com/study_guide/topicArticleId-10065,articleId-9953. html 5. Bratton, W. J. ; Malinowski, S. W. (2008). Police performance management in practice: Taking COMPSTAT to the next level. Policing, 2(3), 259-265.

5 Things to Consider Before Dropping Out of College

So, you’re thinking of dropping out of college, huh? The essays have got to much, the stress just doesn’t seem worth it any more? Well, before you make any rash decisions, consider these five questions (and look over all your old party photos from your first semester, teary eyed-ness optional). 1. Why are you dropping out? Is the reason you’re thinking of dropping out related to something that could be changed? Is a problem with your course, with your stress levels, or with a professor? If it’s connected to any of the above, or similar, see if you can do something to change your college experience before you drop out. For a lot of people, however, their reasons for wanting to drop out are down to a general dissatisfaction with the college experience. So if you can, track down a couple of graduates from your university, and ask them if they ever felt the way you’re feeling now. Sure, you’ll feel like a freak of the highest order for asking, but pretty much every student suffers a waver (shake/storm/hurricane/apocalypse) of doubt every now and then. 2. How will this affect your future? For some people, college isn’t vital their chosen career can be forged through hard work elsewhere. But others haven’t got a hope in hell of doing what they want to do without a degree, and it’s worth looking into that before you hop into the dropout bus. Are a few months of boredom now worth a career that you’ve been looking forward to all your life? 3. What are you going to do now? Dropping out of college is often painted as the death knoll for any kind of ambition, but you can still go on to do what you want without a university education. The important thing is not to let all your free time and ability to get up after noon every day of the week kick your ambition in the nuts. What’s your game plan for your post-dropout months? Where will you be when the rest of your friends graduate? Laughing at them from your solid gold limousine sprinkled with dollar bills and beautiful women/men (delete as appropriate) if you have your way. 4. Are you prepared for people doubting you? Thing is, lots of people are probably going to doubt your ability to succeed now you’ve dropped out of college classmates, family, even friends whether they mean to do it or not. You now have to work twice as hard to prove yourself to future employers and yourself. If you can handle that doubt and use it as a screw-you-now-I’m-definitely-going-to-succeed, good for you. 5. Are you prepared to admit you were wrong? If you do drop out in the end, and whatever intricate plans you had in place for your future fall through, you can always go back. Sure, your pride might have taken a dent, but it’s better to head back now that you’re certain a degree is right for you than stubbornly try to prove yourself elsewhere, no matter how difficult it is.