Transcontinental railroad Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Transcontinental railroad - Term Paper Example Such policies are implemented by regulatory authorities through budgets and other rules and regulations. However, there are some factors that affect the economy on the very basic level. One of those factors is infrastructure of a country. Infrastructure of a country can play an important role in the strengthening of the economy of a country. This paper analyses one such example of the effects of infrastructure on the economy. The example is that of the First Transcontinental Railroad. This railroad is said to be the first communication revolution of America. The railroad reduced the time of travel between east and west costs from six months to one week and it was indeed a huge achievement. This paper examines the problems faced by the entities engaged in the construction of the railroad and the effects of the railroad on the economy of the country (Heintz, 2009). Infrastructure can enhance the growth of the economy of a country at a very fast pace, specifically in case of developing countries. Developing companies usually have weak economic environment because of lack of sufficient infrastructure. Infrastructure can boost trade in a country which results in accelerated economic activities in the country. This scenario can best be explained with the example of the First Transcontinental Railroad that was constructed between the years 1863 and 1869 in the United States of America. The railroad was built by the Central Pacific Railroad of California and Union Pacific Railroad. These two entities were chartered by the Pacific Railway Act, 1862. This railroad connected the already developed railway network of the Eastern cost with California that was in its developing stages. The railroad was completed in May, 1869 when it changed the economic scenario of the American West for good. The railroad initiated a new series of trade and communication that triggered the economic growth in the USA. Planning for Construction of the Transcontinental Railroad In the year 1862, it was determined that the companies that would carry out the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad would be Central Pacific Railroad and Union Pacific Railroad. The companies started construction from their respective points. Central Pacific started building the railroad eastward from Sacramento, California and Union Pacific started building the railroad westward from Council Bluffs, Iowa. Although the companies had been assigned the task and they had started constructing the railroad, the point where both the railroads would meet was not determined. There were a number of problems that hindered the construction of the railroad resulting from the lack of adequate planning. The construction also slowed down due to the Civil War between the years 1861 and 1865. This factor also added to the problems already present due to the lack of planning. However, a point in the Mormon territory of Utah was determined to the Promontory Point where the railroads being constructed by the two companies would meet. The construction completed on 10 May, 1869 when the two railroads met at the Promontory Point. Problems Faced in Construction A railroad connecting the east and west cost of the USA had always been a dream but it was shaped into reality by the President Abraham Lincoln. However, the railroad was completed after four years of his death. The construction of the railroad was not independent of any problems. There were a num

Computer Creativity in Soccer :: Technology Artificial Intelligence Essays

Computer Creativity in Soccer Studies concerning computer creativity in art and music have been central issues in the field of Artificial Intelligence for over thirty years, and several scholars of computer science are optimistic that computers will eventually be able to create original works (Miranda, 16), but not until recently had any computer programmer pursued Artificial Intelligence in athletics. This is a particularly daunting field because our knowledge of robotics is still very primitive, but this does not merit neglecting further investigation. Robotic soccer has emerged as a new challenge in Artificial Intelligence, but the question remains of whether robots playing sports has anything to do with true â€Å"intelligence,† or the level of creativity that is necessary to produce something artistic. The study of robotic soccer is similar to that of computer-composed art in several ways, the simplest parallel being that the more intelligent a computer is, the more it excels at each of the fields. After a certain point, raw computing power will not help a computer to improve anymore at either soccer or art, but the ability to think originally will be essential in bringing out true talent in a machine. The concept for robotic soccer originated in 1994 at an AI conference when professor of computer science at University of British Columbia, Alan Mackworth, presented a team of motorized miniature Porsches with computer chips that chased a ball around, trying to knock it into a goal. The motorized cars were equipped with only a vision system and some basic programming, but much to the excitement of the crowd of European and Japanese spectators, they were completely independent of any human control. Mackworth had originally come up with the idea only a few years earlier, after learning of MIT and IBM’s joint project to build Deep Blue, the most advanced chess-playing computer program that became better than any human player after beating grandmaster Kasparov in a best out of five game match. Mackworth realized how simple it was to construct a computer that could outwit a human opponent at chess, commenting that, â€Å"chess computers sit in a room and stare at a board. I thought AI should raise the bar.† (Preville, National Post) Chess seemed to be tailored towards computers - it is a single-player, strategical game in which players have no time constraints when thinking through all possible moves, and it does not necessitate mobility.

Sample Solution Algorithm to Determine Meal Charges

Week 2 Activity – Meal Purchase TCO #2– Given a simple business problem, design a solution algorithm that uses arithmetic expressions and built-in functions. Assignment: Your goal is to solve the following simple programming exercise. You have been contracted by a local restaurant to design an algorithm determining the total meal charges. The algorithm should ask the user for the total food purchase and the tip percent. Then, the algorithm will calculate the amount of a tip, a 7% sales tax, and the total meal charge (including tip). The food purchase, sales tax, tip amount, and total meal charge will need to be displayed to the customer. Be sure to THINK about the logic and design first (IPO chart and pseudocode), then code the Visual Logic command line processing. Display all output using currency formatting (built-in Visual Logic function). Advanced (optional): use a constants for the 7% sales tax. Rubric: When completed staple the following documents together neatly in 1,2,3,4 order: †¢This instruction sheet first †¢The IPO Chart, second †¢The Pseudocode, third †¢The Flowchart and output example last. Point distribution for this application: Meal Purchase Document: Points possible: Points received IPO Chart Pseudocode 6 Flowchart 8 Total Points 20 IPO Chart: Input Processing Output Enter Total Food Purchase Price Calculate Food price Add Tip %* Total Food Purchased Add 7% tax * Total Food Purchased Total Meal Charge Pseudocode: Begin mealPurchase Total Food Purchased Imput total Purchased Food Amount Please enter the amount for tip percent Imput tip percent Set total tip = tip percent/ 100 Set total tip=total tip * Total food purchased amount Set total tax= sales tax/100 Set total tax= total tax* = total food purchased amount End Flowchart: Example Output after execution:

Dinosaur-Sized Prehistoric Animals