Technology

Question one Significance of confidentiality, integrity and availability (CIA) in information security
Confidentiality, integrity and availability are the benchmark in information security. They are the basic principles that guide security in information security. In the installation of an information system application, a data transfer system or any system that will provide access to data, the principle of confidentiality, integrity and availability must always be maintained.

Confidentiality refers to all attempts to limit the access of information by unauthorized persons. Confidentiality also involves limiting disclosure of information to people whom the information is not intended for. For the security of the information system to be effective, the right people should be able to access the information while it should be immune from unauthorized access. Methods that are commonly used for authentication includes the use of passwords and user identification. The system identifies the users and controls who access what information in the system. Confidentiality is the basic principle of information security since it limits access to information that is considered personal (Stamp, 2006).

The principle of integrity refers to whether the information in the system is trustworthy. Integrity of the information entails the integrity of the data, i.e. whether the data has inappropriately been altered deliberately or by accident and the integrity of the source of the information. The principle therefore defines the validity and reliability of the information in the system. For integrity of the system to be maintained, the information should be preserved and free from corruption during transmission or feeding the information to the system (Layton, 2007).

Availability of the information is a basic principle in any information system. If the information in the system is not available, the system is as good as none at all. The unavailability of the information in the system may even be worse if the organization in question is highly dependent on the information. Majority of organization today are highly dependent on information systems and can literally not operate without them (Bishop, 2003).

Question two Why the CIA principles are not relevant in the firms security architecture design
Confidentiality, integrity and availability are the traditional principles of information security but they are not sufficient in providing absolute security of the information. For this reason, they are not very relevant in the architectural design of an organizations information security system. The main weakness of these aspects of information security is their dependence on technical issues, natural occurrences and interruption by human activities. Even if the CIA principles are adhered to, the system is faced with the risk of technical interruption due to improper functioning of the devices. The system security can also be affected by natural factors such as wind, storm or water. The CIA does not secure the information from malicious or accidental human interruptions.

Before deciding on whether to use the CIA information security principles, it is important to consider whether the security systems are aimed at prevention or detection. Although the CIA principles may not be very relevant in the design of information security system, they are essential and cannot be ignored. The effectiveness of these principles is dependent on the technology available and the risk that the information is faced with.

To determine the validity of the principles in providing adequate security of information, the organization needs to undertake risk management. Risk management will enable the organization to identity the threat associated with the information and decide on the mitigation measures. The architectural design of the information security in the organization will be determined by the threat faced by the information. In many organizations, the basic factors of the information security designs include administrative controls and physical security.  The application of CIA and its reliability is dependent on the technology available and the risk involved (Pfleeger  Pfleeger, 2003).

Question three Advantages of turn the handle algorithms in information security
Replacing the old security systems with new and more security standard is the current trend due to the increased threat which faces the information stored. The old Digital Encryption Standard is being replaced with the more secure Triple Digital Encryption Standard. The system uses the turn the handle algorithm and has several advantages. A more sophisticated and secure system that uses the same algorithm called Advanced Encryption Standard has been developed to improve the security of information (Furusawa, 2003).

The major advantage of this approach is the ability to significantly reduce the susceptibility of the attack. The Advanced Encryption Standard is the most significant approach in the modern computing systems as a result of the increased risks of sabotage. For this reason, most of the federal agencies and international corporations have adopted the Advanced Encryption Standards to improve the security of their systems as recommended by the National Institute of Standard and Technology. The systems are useful to the financial institution in securing sensitive financial information. Over the last one decade, these algorithms have provided uninterrupted information security which has proved their usefulness. Another advantage is the efficient implementation of the security system either the hardware or the soft ware and their performance. This advantage has resulted into manufacturers incorporating this form of security systems. Despite these advantages, the manufacturers should not develop an all in one software and hardware that can perform a combination of DES, AES and RSA cryptography. Although many users continue to use the aging security system with reasonable confidence, there is no compelling reason to force them adopt the new system which may be expensive. The adoption of the new systems will come naturally as more and more devices with the new and improved systems continue to be manufactured (Furusawa, 2000).

Question Four  Firefox and Microsoft Internet Explorer browsers and IT security
The internet explorer has dominated the web browser for over a decade until the entry of firefox. Over the years, the internet explorer has been faced with security vulnerability. However, Microsoft has embarked on reducing the vulnerability through research in order to adopt more sophisticated security systems. The entry of firefox into the market has transformed the market by providing an option to the internet users. Firefox has introduced more secure systems which have resulted in intense competition between the two providers (Parsons  Oja, 2009).

However, lack of diversity due to the dominance of internet explorer and firefox increases the vulnerability because the market is not competitive enough. An entry of a third browser with a substantial command of the market will create more competition and users will be able to have a wider choice of product. Users will always access the security of the product which means that improved security will be the center of competition. The possibility of better security incase the dominance of the two browsers is broken is evident from the reaction of Microsoft to the entry of firefox into the market. Microsoft responded by improving internet explorer in order to remain in the market which was at the benefit of the user.  

Question five Cyber war
There is an increased threat of cyber war among different nations and organizations which increases the risk of information stored in the information systems in different parts of the world. Cyber war refers to a growing trend in which warfare is conducted in the cyberspace using computers and the internet. The war is undertaken in the virtual world with its effects being evident in the physical world. Cyber war generally refers to a situation where one state attacks the cyber space of another state. The attack may also be one corporate organization attacking the cyber space of a rival organization. In some cases, system hackers and terrorist syndicates may maliciously attack a state or organization cyber space. In the recent past, cyber crime has become a major issue where nations are arming themselves with abilities to combat any attack on their cyber space.

The main targets of cyber space attack are the government agencies, infrastructure and financial institution. This indicates that cyber space attack may have far reaching effects on the nation or organization attacked. However, there is no government agency or corporate organization that can claim immunity form cyber attack. This is due to the highly trained and experienced hackers who are capable of attacking any system. The war may have adverse effect on the electronic financial operations and damage essential utility infrastructures such as electrical grids and air traffic control. Attack on the government agencies may release important security information and other classified information to unauthorized persons (Brenner, 2009).  

A good example is the report released in 2009 that showed that the electric grid was susceptible to cyber attack which is likely to interrupt electricity distribution in many parts of the country. The threats came from Russia and the Chinese who were said to have developed software that would breach the security of the system. Although such attacks have never happened in many in the world, if combined with military attack, the impact may be far reaching (Brenner, 2009).

Low back pain and other injuries occurring to the workers during the manual lifting tasks in the work place are one of the most significant issues concerning the health and safety of the workers. The organizations have initiated several new programs and activities for the betterment of workers health issues in the past, still the injuries of workers in this field bear a large percentage of affliction and economic costs affecting organizational performance as well.

Since the last two decades, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has played a key role in the identification of significant issues concerned with the injuries of workers in the work place. The institute has published a report, namely Work Practices Guide for Manual Lifting in 1981. The report proposed an analytical study for the manual lifting tasks by suggesting different approaches for domineering potential hazards during the lifting tasks and using the mathematical approach via equations weight calculations.

Job Description
While working in a textile factory, the worker during his shift has to feed a reel of threads to the machines. This task requires worker to actually do it mechanically by lifting the reel from the stock and then feeding it to the machine, which is usually situated at some height. The shape of reel is such that worker cannot lift it from the bottom. The diameter is 24 inches and the length between workers hands is approximately 12 inches. The total weight of reel is 45 lbs normally.

Analysis
The activity is assumed to occur once per shift so we can calculate F  0.2. We will also assume its duration to be 15 minutes.

Result and analysis
The weight which is to be lifted is 45 lbs, which is significantly larger than RWL at origin and destination which are found out to be 23.7 lbs and 22.37 lbs respectively. Also the LI is found out to be 1.8987 and 2.01. These values indicate that lifting this weight and outing it at destination is hazardous for most of the workers.

An example described here demonstrates the fact how the altered practice of the same work can be important for reduction of the amount of physical stress that is related to this kind of manual lifting job. This type of work is also dependent upon the conformity of the worker doing that job, as well as adaption and amendments needed for that specific physical job.

Proposed Modifications
The proposed modifications by funding out the above results will be
HM value is larger at the origin, so if the object is brought closer to the destination and then mechanical force is used in the form of worker, then hazard will be reduced.

Either the point where thread reel is placed in the machine should be lowered or the worker should lift up before he lifts the object. This will increase VM value and as well as DM value if both of these strategies are applied.

Loading reels from a certain angle of 90 degrees will help reduce the hazards as location of hands at origin is now changed.

After applying these modifications, if LI is still found out to be greater than 1, then vertical height of destination should be lowered. This will reduce VM and DM. Further weight and size of the object should be reduced to minimal levels. This can be done by using smaller reels and repetitive processing.

Summary
The manual lifting is a task that cannot be eliminated practically from the wok field. It indicates the fact that ergonomic study and design are more resourceful to use it as a controlling approach from the hazardous consequences. This strategy is aimed to reduce the dangers of loading conditions in the work field and also teach the best ways to avoid traumatic movements of body. So, the equations and methods provided in this document for the manual lifting tasks were basically designed to resolve ergonomic problems and also examine different solutions for ergonomic designs. Evaluation of the task presented here indicates that dangerous consequences related to this job can be examined, and in turn, be resolved by considering importance of the alternative designs to pursue in this kind of manual work.

Amenorrhea

This is the lack of a menstrual period in a woman of reproductive capability. These are stages seen either when a woman is breast feeding or during pregnancy. Apart from the reproductive period, there are instances that a woman misses her menstrual cycle these include the period of childhood and after menopause (Judith, 1999). It is a symptom with several possible causes.

There are two types of amenorrhea we have the primary and the secondary amenorrhea. Primary amenorrhea is when the menstrual cycle never starts in a lady and this may have been caused by developmental problems such as the congenital absence of the uterus or failure of the ovary to receive or maintain egg cells (Warner, 2007). Further researches have found out that, delay in pubertal development can also lead to primary amenorrhea. And it can be referred to as the absence of secondary sexual characteristics by the age of 14.On the other hand, secondary amenorrhea is caused by the hormonal disturbances from the hypothalamus and the pituitary glands or from premature menopause (Stanback 2002), . It is referred as the absence of menses for three months in a woman with previously normal menstruation.

The main cause of amenorrhea has not fully been established. The normal menstrual cycle occurs because of changing levels of hormones made and secreted by the ovaries. The ovaries respond to hormonal signals from the pituitary gland that is located on the base of the brain, which is, in turn, controlled by hormones produced in the hypothalamus of the brain. Any disorder that will possibly interfere with any component of this regulatory cycle can lead to amenorrhea (Judith, 1999).
Another possible genetic cause of amenorrhea is the Turner Syndrome. This is where women are lacking all or part of the two x chromosomes that are normally present in the females. Here, the ovaries are replaced by scar tissue and estrogen production is minimal, resulting in amenorrhea.

Other conditions that can cause amenorrhea especially primary amenorrhea include the androgen insensitivity in which individuals have the XY chromosomes but they do not develop to exhibit this external uniqueness of males of males due to lack of response to testosterone and its effects (Warner, 2007). Some other conditions that can affect the hypothalamus leading to hypothalamus amenorrhea include extreme weight loss, emotional or physical stress, rigorous exercise and severe illness among others (Warner, 2007). Other types of medical conditions that can cause secondary amenorrhea include tumors or other diseases of the pituitary gland that can lead to increased levels of hormone prolactin, hypothyroidism, ovarian failure, polycystic ovary syndrome and many others.

The only symptoms of the disease are when a female of the reproductive age fails to develop menstrual cycle especially at the age of 16 years. Also, when a woman, who has been previously receiving her menstrual cycle, stops having her periods for three consecutive cycles, she is said to be having secondary amenorrhea (Stanback, 2002). Other symptoms may however include hormonal imbalance or irregular menstrual periods. Milk discharge can also be another symptom this is due to the fact that there are elevated prolactin levels.

Treatment of amenorrhea should be administered immediately the disease is diagnosed. The physician may administer various types of hormones to see whether ovaries are functioning well. Providing that there is no underlying disorder causing amenorrhea, treatment is generally unnecessary (Judith, 1999). However, women who are not undergoing the menstrual cycle seem vulnerable to osteoporosis a physician may suggest estrogen and calcium for such women. If there is an underlying disorder that is causing either the primary or secondary amenorrhea, drugs will be described depending on the nature of the disorder.

Question 1
Could you please list the company name, its address, your name and also the area that you work in and your position within the company.

AE Farms Inc., Des Moines IA  Mr. Joseph Kent  General Manager

Question 2
In your company, is everyone equipped with a personal laptop or computer And is there any way you can ensure that they only use the facility for work purpose

Ours is a small company in the business of making and serving ice cream and ice milk.  We do not supply computers to all our employees, and not everybody has the time to use the computer all day long.  We have customers to greet and serve.

As for your second question, as we are a small company and everybody is considered a friend in my workplace, we do not mind if you use computers to check your personal emails, etc.  If you are an employee at AE Farms Inc., and you check your personal email at my workplace or chat with your friends online, I expect you to invite your friends as customers to taste our ice creams  So, I believe, it is not harmful to use the computer for personal reasons, at least in our business.  

Question 3
Are you aware of the existence of social networking websites such as Facebook, MySpace, Hi5 etc and the fact that employees might be using them at work Is this happening in your company

Of course, my teenage kids use Facebook, and they tell me all of their friends are using it too.  But my kids are not addicted to such technologies.  They have better things to do, for example, homework.

As I mentioned before, I would be delighted if people in my workplace use such websites to invite their friends as customers.  But I would be furious if our employees are addicted to such networking websites so much so that they are neglecting their work.  As I am aware that none of them is neglecting work to use Facebook, it is not an issue we have to be concerned about.    

Question 4
What measurements have you taken to stop employees from logging in social networking websites during work hours

None at all

Question 5
Does your company fully ban access to social networking websites If yes, what methodssoftware do you use

Next question, please But before we move on, thank you for bringing this up as I might consider starting a Facebook site for our company soon.  Or, would it be MySpace  I would have to ask.

Question 6
Besides blocking access to social networking websites, do you permit the use of real-time chatting MSN, Yahoo Messenger etc

As I mentioned earlier, I permit the use of both social networking websites and real-time chatting and I say this not because I have officially granted this permission to our employees rather, they have never neglected their work to use such technologies.  If we ever have an employee who is addicted to such technologies so much so that he or she neglects work, I would advise him or her not to.  If he or she continues to neglect work, I would fire the employee.

Question 7
What were your reasons for introducing restriction to certain websites

First of all, allow me to read your questions differently, as we have never had issues with employees misusing office computers.  In our business, community goodwill is virtually everything.  So if you have a friend you would like to chat with on MSN Messenger for an hour, and you are not neglecting your work as you do so  I would say, Go ahead, but tell your friend he has got to taste our ice creams  Invite him over

Question 8
Who was consulted when this decision was taken

The CEO of this company consults me when he has choices on his mind and decisions to make.  I consult him when there are choices on my mind and decisions to make.  As an example, I would talk to him about starting a MySpace or Facebook site to expand our customer base.

Question 9
How have these policies been received by your employees What are their reactions towards this policy

As all of your questions concern those who have issues with their employees, and I promised to answer them all, let me answer this question as though I have read it differently.

If you are working at AE Farms Inc., we want you not only to consider us your friends but also to make our customers feel that they are family to us.  We want to be perceived as a friendly enterprise serving ice cream and ice milk.

Of a certainty, however, if an employee neglects his or her work to use Facebook or MSN Messenger for personal reasons, and he or she is advised not to before he or she is fired for noncompliance, we expect everybody in our business to be unhappy with the outcome.  As we have never had such problems to deal with, I do not intend to create policies making our employees feel that they are school children under a strict school principal.

Question 10
What positive aspects have you received since the introduction of the policies

Still understanding your questions differently, I can only tell you ours is a happy, friendly organization thriving on ice cream, and our employees do not feel like they are being robbed of their essential human freedom.  Again, we have no policy to stop them from communicating with their friends online.  But we would take action if they neglect their jobs to do so.

Question 11
Have you encountered any problems so far with the banning of access to social networking websites

No.

Question 12
What do you think about the idea of using social networking websites as a helpful tool to do business For example, to improve communication with your long-distanced customers, update them with news, marketing them with your products etc.

I think it is an excellent idea, though we have yet to see how well it can work for us.  I would call an IT expert to look into it and advise us.

Once again, thanks for bringing this up

Question 13
Overall, do you think the introduction of website restriction is a positive measure taken by your company

No, I dont think such policies are positive for any company.  Then again, I dont know how other organizations can treat their employees like noncompliant school children and increase their productivity at the same time.

Question 14
To what extent do you think websites restriction is a necessary policy to be introduced within business And would you actually recommend this to others businesses as well

As suggested previously, I do not believe in such rules and would only deal with a problem as it happens.

Thank you for giving me this interview and also giving up your time, and your information has been very helpful for my project, so thank you very much.

Criterion N. Discussion and Analysis of Interview.

There are two key insights gleaned from the interviews with representatives of Anh and AE Farms Inc. (1) Businesses do not have the same level of computer or IT awareness at the moment and (2) Representatives of both companies believe that employee use of social networking websites is good for business.  The representative of Anh states that employees return to work in a better mood and increase their productivity after personal communication with their friends or family.  Likewise, the representative of AE Farms Inc. believes that employees can make customers of their personal contacts on Facebook, etc.  But, clearly, Kent does not share Truongs level of computer awareness.  Whereas the latter can describe various uses of social networking websites, for example, it can be a very effective marketing station, Kent only states that it is an excellent idea.
   
After all, Anh has its own IT department that has educated Truong in various uses of social networking sites.  Truong even knows about the average time employees at Anh spend on work-unrelated sites on the Internet.  Kents company does not have an IT department, which is why he states that he would have to call an IT expert to learn more about social networking sites for his business.  Moreover, Truongs business monitors employee use of the Internet, whereas Kent believes that this is not positive for any company.  Anh employees are prohibited from visiting certain file-sharing websites and pornography sites.  At AE Farms Inc., there is no restriction whatsoever.
   
Neither Truong nor Kent mentions having fired an employee for misuse of the Internet in the workplace.  Truong does not use the word firing at all.  He only states that HR will intervene if an employee is found to be neglecting his or her job responsibilities.  Of course, the two businesses have different cultures, just as their levels of computer awareness differ.

Criterion O. Reflection on the interview, with respect to the portfolio research.
According to the article, Bosses should embrace Facebook, a company that stops its employees from using social networking sites such as Facebook may actually damage itself in the long run.  Truong and Kent do not name this reason when they state that they do not entirely stop their employees from using such sites, although Kent clearly mentions that restricting use of the Internet is not positive for a business.  The article further states that the use of social networking websites must be tied to a business goal.  Hence, both Truong and Kent name reasons why their employees should be allowed to use such sites in the workplace.  Truong even mentions the importance of social networking sites to customer relationship management.  The article, on the contrary, discusses customers communicating with the organization to resolve issues through such sites.
   
Also according to the article, granting employees the freedom to use social networking sites in the workplace  as these sites increase in popularity  is tied to the stability of a business.  Kent expresses this idea in the following words Ours is a happy, friendly organization and our employees do not feel like they are being robbed of their essential human freedom.  The interviews and the article also stress the importance of control of use of non-work related websites.  The article advises companies to deploy practical guidelines to protect the positive impact of networks.  But Kents company has never experienced the need for such guidelines, although he states that an employee who neglects his or her work after being warned would be fired.  Anh, on the other hand, has HR guidelines in place.
   
As the articles main ideas are included in the two interviews, this comparison validates the articles thesis, that is, social networking sites are good for business.  However, it is not mentioned anywhere that extensive use of the Internet tends to isolate people.  After all, it is healthier to interact with people face-to-face.  Perhaps, therefore, organizations should also consider creating more social opportunities for their employees  using some of their time spent on Internet use  so as to promote wellness.  

Information technology is defined as the means of processing data with the use of a computer and other forms of technologies from electronics, computing and telecommunications that could distribute information in digital and other forms. Parker Earth Moving Company Consulting needs to upgrade its current information technology department to keep pace with other competitors in the market. A major IT investment that needs to be adopted by the company is the introduction of the so-called point-of-sale (POS) or checkout which will manage the selling process for the firm through its terminal. The same system has also the capability of printing or creating order receipts. Another business aspect that needs to be upgraded with the help of the Information Technology department would be inventory management with specific focus on controlling raw materials, work-in process and finished goods. Modern inventory management systems that could be used by the firm include barcodes and radiofrequency identification tags or RFID that offer regular identification of the objects of the inventory (Toomey, 2000). Objects of the inventory could include any type of physical asset associated with the operations of the firm like consumables, merchandise, circulating tools, fixed assets, and capital equipments.

The company could also utilize the services of an invoice reader that comprises of software solutions for the entry of data of the accounts payable department of the business. With this software, the firm could achieve business process optimization performed through the automation of invoice processing. Validations executed on the invoice generally incorporate information about line items, vendors, purchase orders, bank accounts, goods receipts, and contacts information. Communications enabled application must also be incorporated within the information technology department to enhance its capability of receiving real-time information about the various activities of the firm like its constant communication with suppliers and customers. It could increase productivity and quality of experience of transacting with the firm.

With the size of the universe, the Solar System could not have been in existence singly. Galaxies, which have ever become known to man and visible by telescopes, are approximated at a distance of 50 billion miles away. The existence of other planets orbiting around the star in a system other than our own is the thrust of continuous space explorations. In this light, it has been a promising curiosity for the layman and primary concern for astronomers to find out the existence of other planets outside our Solar System.

The study of the existence of Extrasolar planets or Exoplanets has established its own field in astronomy. Part of this discovery is to gain a substantial insight into their attributes which would necessarily involve a great deal of successfully recording their images for study. With this as the principal objective for most astronomical research, the need for improving the technology for recording images with a high degree of accuracy is of utmost importance.

The first planetary detection was in 1988 with the observations of a planet orbiting the star called Gamma Cephei by astronomers Campbell, Walker and Yang. However, with the limited technology in the early days of technological birth, most people were sceptic about the validity of the observations.  The discovery was supported the following year and in 2002, with improved techniques in planetary detection, it was verified.

In 1992, planets PSR 125712 were discovered and were immediately confirmed. These pulsar planets discovered by Wolszczan and Frail are believed to have been formed by a supernova and considered as the first definitive planetary discovery. The first definitive discovery of a planet orbiting around a main-sequence star was announced by astronomers Mayor and Queloz in 1995.

Planetary Detection and SDI
The early discoveries with the capabilities of technology had at the time expectedly developed the need for perfections. Technological advancement, particularly of spectroscopy, marked the age of modern extrasolar planetary detection. It paved the way for a lot of extrasolar planetary discoveries. However, the main problem in imaging techniques for extrasolar planetary detection remained to be the presence of speckle or photon noise in the image produced. This has been the primary concern of researchers on imaging techniques thus aiming at reducing speckle noise through adoptive optics and differential imaging.

Adoptive optics (AO) corrects the deterioration of image quality with the use of wave-font sensors sending signals to initiate corrections. Since astronomers focused on reconstructing degraded image, AO system, is actually a post-detection processing technique. The first system was used to correct the contrast of two-dimensional images. In 1982, a version was created for the AMOS in Haleakala. Thereafter, it was widely implemented for applications in military defence (Biller, et al 389).

Planetary detection imaging involves dealing with light sources coming from the stars around which the planets orbit. The aberration consisting of light waves produces light patterns and noticeable noise in the image. Adoptive optics (AO) has the capacity to lessen but not totally eliminate the light contribution. The failure of AO is in the inability to resolve and overcome contaminating speckles. Eliminating speckles will therefore, requires nearly perfect understanding of their nature as being influenced by variation in appearance as a function of varying AO exposure time understanding the variability of wavelength with the degree of micron-wavelength (interfering speckles of 1.5 micron being more than 2.1 microns wavelength) and marking out differences in speckles formation as a degree of optical path imperfections.

Other modern imaging techniques developed to address the speckles obstruction consist of the use of the Angular Differential Imaging (ADI) and the Simultaneous Differential Imaging (SDI).

Simultaneous Differential Imaging is sometimes referred to as Simultaneous Spectral Differential Imaging (SSDI). The ADI though slightly advanced but constructed with close similarity to the SDI addresses the problem of speckle noise in planetary imaging. It is a powerful technique in detecting extrasolar planets even with faint light source particularly those closely separated from their stars. It matches the contrast produced by SDI without requiring specialized optics and is much simpler to use than the SDI.

SDI is an instrument which utilizes a quad filter for capturing astronomical images. It entails a technique that uses a uniform optical path to determine lights of different narrow band filters at the same time. The multiple filters absorb unwanted speckles thus removing image fainting.  SDI technique is developed to resolve optical image resolution challenge. It utilizes the knowledge of accurate wavelength, optical path and timing to bring about a clear separation by eliminating obscurity. By employing data reduction techniques, the SDI takes the difference of the images simultaneously recorded by its quad filter, then aligning these taken images with the result of a reduced photon noise in the data. Effectively suppressing speckle in the image, it is considered as one of the first cameras dedicated to the discovery of new planets.

The SDI is employed at the VLT (Very Large Telescope) and the MMT (Muliti Mirror Telescope). The simultaneous taking of the difference in images is done with 1.62 mum methane bandhead and at 3 wavelengths. Images are simultaneously taken with the use of the quad filter and are in the gas giants and cool brown dwarfs spectrum. The reduction or attenuation of the speckle noise is possible by performing a difference of images.

Extrasolar planetary detection is extra difficult due to the intrinsic faintness of the planets which are especially close to the parent star and are much brighter. The use of VLT increases the resolution of the objects however, the parent star gets blurred because of the interference of the image of the Earths atmosphere. The distortions are addressed with the use of AO systems using deformable mirrors fixing the star to make a point of light as it should be.

Upon removal of the stars halo, the image produced shows the speckles in the area surrounding the stars centre and mimics the image of a planet. The light sources and the reflections in the optic path cause the speckles to show usually filling up the field closely surrounding the star. When the shape of the optics changes during the night, one can find the speckles roam on the image from time to time in the course of observation. This problem caused by the device is equally experienced with the use of Hubble telescopes.

The two major problems which the innovation of SDI technique addresses are the following a) the difference in the contrast between the planet and the star. Old giant gas planets, or those which are 2 Gyr, are fainter than primary although within the primary. On the other hand, young planets are fainter ten times as compared to a primary but are self luminous b) the use of photon noise limited AO systems for an object 10 times fainter and 1, its primary can be detected with an hour of exposure.  Speckles remain in the image filling up the area within 1 of a star. This is true even after correction with the use of AO system.

Reduction of the speckles is achieved by subtracting PSF images using a multi-channel camera whereby the images taken are normally found in narrow spectral bands.

The multi-channel camera converts the image with the help of a holographic diffuser in fixing the degraded illumination. Re-imaging takes place comparable to a convolution of the PSF image. The aberrations caused by the optics device get diverted to a convolution kernel in the channels. Better and more coherent images are then produced. The efficiency in speckle reduction would dramatically increase the rapidity of direct detection of extrasolar planets.

Conquering the problem of speckles starts with understanding of how exactly they are produced. Speckles are scattered light coming from the brighter parent star. They are naturally brought by the interaction of wavelength, light sources and the optic channels creating blotches as the light beams are reflected and refracted passing through varying filters and mirrors. The light patterns create the resulting speckles which roam around the image due to the optics consistent change in shape. Since the speckles are sourced from the star, they will have the same colour as the source, whereas, the planet will register a different colour.

Astronomers have standard answers to issues that may come up in the use of the optics device. It is, however, impossible to conquer all aspects of the problem. The development of differential imaging technique, whether angular or simultaneous, seeks to address and dissolve all aspects of the problem of speckles together with the AO system (McLean, 25).

The SDI imaging technique was pioneered in the year 2000 (Marois et al. 233). There is a strong CH CH4 (methane absorption) bandhead at 1.62 m in extrasolar giant planets (T  1200 K). The technique uses a subtraction routine whereby the star and speckles can be distinguished through the effective use of quad filters  any CH CH4 rich companion remains.

How exactly does the SDI technique work
SDI measures light in varying narrow-band filters. Since the images are taken simultaneously using the same optical path and differentiation is thereafter aligned, the resulting images would show identical speckles allowing them to be removed.  A double-Wollaston prism is utilized to split a light beam into two. Two prisms will produce four beams which pass through the quad filters taken at 3 different wavelengths (Source Our SDI Techniques).

Easy detection of the planet from the speckles produced would require a proper choice of narrow-band filters. Carbon and hydrogen are always present near the field of the parent star. On the other hand, Methane is present in the atmosphere of a planet which is much colder than the star around which the planet orbits. Cool objects would be much fainter. The heat of the star does not allow methane to form thus can be distinguished from the planet which is fainter.

Data reduction tasks are employed to align images taken in each of the filters with the use of a custom shift and a reduction routine. The routine formula for reduction of data does not at once eliminate the speckles but merely weakens them. The final touch is the rotation of the telescope. This would now reveal the planet because the image would rotate along with the rotation of the telescope, whereas, those which remained fixed in the image are mere speckles.

A survey of 54 nearby young stars at the VLT and MMT conducted by (Biller, et. al.) at the Steward Observatory of the University of Arizona, the researchers obtained H band contrasts 25000 (5  sigma  Delta  F1 (1.575 mum) 10.0 mag,   Delta  H  ,   , 11.5 mag for a T6 spectral type object) at a separation of 0.5 from the primary star. These SDI images have the highest image contrast obtained from ground or space.

One of the breakthroughs recorded was the unravelling of new images using the European Southern Observatory (ESO) VLT on the surface of Titan. Titan happens to be the largest moon containing in the Saturnian System. The SDI, which is an optical device, uses its very high contrast camera resolution to produce distant sharp images in three colours at the same time. The SDI device can equally be utilized to observe objects within a very thick atmosphere in the solar system (methane filled). This made it very possible for the discovery of Titan. According to a press release on ESO-Reaching New Heights in Astronomy, a simultaneous examination through a narrow, unobstructed near-infrared spectral window in a highly dense atmospheric humidity with methane alongside the presence of adjacent translucent waveband, revealed or produced images that clearly eliminated the contamination of the atmospheric components. The viewed detail of the produced objects surface was such with an unprecedented clarity and outline. Regions with different refractive and reflective capacities were picked on view this includes those of high and low reflectivity.  According to the press release, one of the essential advantages of the discovery is the possibility of the delivery of Huygens probe. Though further report is yet to ascertain the outcome, it added that the Huygens probe was projected to approach the Saturn system through a Cassini spacecraft. The final destination was aimed at Titan surface. The successful descent of Huygens probe on Titan surface will allow getting a more detailed report of the Saturn system (Markus Hartung, et al. 1).

Conclusion
The pursuit for a technology advancement in the field of extrasolar planet direct detection, the use of differential imaging techniques implemented with ground-based telescopes proved to be a vital step towards perfection of the technology.  The Planet Finder project using VLT and MMT provided groundbreaking and critical specifications for future advancement in the field of imaging techniques. The use of ground telescopes with the application of adoptive optic systems and implementation of simultaneous differential imaging technique radically changed and improved the future of successfully discovering extrasolar Giant Planets.

In few decades time, the vastness of the universe will be filled with a corresponding enormous knowledge that will help us understand the Solar Systems miniature existence among the billions of galaxies that are resident in the space. Extrasolar detection of planets will upgrade to an Exogalactic pursuit towards an infinite possibility that lies in space.

Many people are very mindful when exposing their financial information. However, maybe it is more alarming for someone to know that hisher medical records are being accessed by someone he does not know. This is discussed in the article by Brian Wheeler entitled Who is looking at your medical records published on the BBC website. IT practitioners are being challenged on how they are going to make a system which will satisfy the needs of the medical practitioners as well as that of the patients.

Much like any other database, only a limited number of people are given access especially since data stored in the database is highly sensitive. It has already been established that the database will greatly help forward medical research however, the privacy of the people becomes an issue. The people working on the database can limit the access of researchers. It must be programmed in such a way that only the attending physician can gain access to a persons medical records in the database. Researchers should be given access to medical histories but identifying information such as name and address should not be made visible. Researchers should however be able to view demographic data such as age and gender since such information is important in a research design.

How the programmers will program the database will determine if the technology will succeed or fail. They must balance between what the industry needs while at the same time protecting the interest of the general public.