Personal Statement

From a tender age, long before I could fathom the particulars of science or its numerous fields, I had already developed a compelling desire to practice in the healthcare profession. This desire was as a result of a tragic incident that occurred to my family when I was around ten years old. My beloved little sister, upon premature discharge from the hospital, passed on. The heartbreaking incident happened in my home country, Nigeria. I was utterly devastated. She had been discharged from the hospital because we could no longer afford her medical upkeep. We desperately sought for ways to help her in vain. The loss engraved in me a deep desire to dedicate my life to caring for the sick, and in particular the sick and the poor. Nevertheless, it was not until my senior year in high school that I married my desire to my specific liking for human biology.

My childhood imaginations of how the body works were that there were little persons who always labored to make metabolic processes possible. Honestly, I was thrilled and overly excited to learn and understand the word metabolism later in life at Texas State University. I was very encouraged to confirm the reality of my imagination in real life. My imagination of little persons matched the relationship of body cells to the rest of the body in general. My thirst for learning, great sense of imagination, and the ability to relate textbook knowledge to the practical anatomy it refers to have brought me a long way in becoming the health caregiver that I always aspired to be.

SCENARIO PLANNING CONCEPT IN STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

SCENARIO PLANNING CONCEPT

By (Name)

Professor

Course

Date

Scenario Panning Concept

Scenario planning refers to the process of forecasting future activities. Important to note that, scenario planning consists of formulated plans that are based on the mission and the overall goals of the organisation. Again, the entire process requires the business managers to think and make ethical decisions for the long terms objectives. The fundamental purpose of this paper is to research and discuss scenario planning in strategic management of a business or an organisation. Also, the paper seeks for new developments, advancements, and application of the concept in strategic management. Vivid discussions are presented in the content below.

Scenario planning is an essential part of strategic management since it makes the managers plan for the future. Generally, the concept is crucial in an organisation because it helps to deal with uncertainty in the following ways. Firstly, the idea helps the managers to understand the environment as they become rational to risk-taking and also avoid them from taking unreasonable risks (Porter, 1996). Secondly, the concept helps the managers to become more adaptive in their organisations. The Management team expand their mental models hence take proactive actions. Also, the idea avoids denial and paralysis through providing a framework to outline limited strategic choices in the organisation, thus helping the managers to make rational decisions as they get out of the existing mental models.

The concept of scenario planning within the Strategic management fits in the optimisation of effort in the organisation. Notably, considering the available resources in the organisation, the management plans of what they want to achieve in the future. Therefore, the existing gap provides a room for decision making inspiring what the organisation needs to accomplish at a given time. Finally, the concept helps the management team of an organisation to set the mission based on the goals intending to achieve. The idea, as stated, is useful in scheduling the plans that are crucial in organisation advancement.  

Clarification of Meaning and Origin of the Concept

Scenario planning is also defined as a process and an ongoing approach in organisational development by setting future objectives based on the current resources. The management team of an organisation has the mandate to schedule plans that lead to corporate growth in terms of market penetration as it tries to accomplish its specified mission. The overall process starts by considering the available resources that might have an impact on the world, for example, technology, social, and environmental change. Therefore, the concept seeks for the most critical factors and uncertainties hence exploring their implications as they combine them in distinct plausible ways to create possible future.

Mentioning on the origin of the scenario planning based on the recent articles I have read, it is clear that the source of the concept was used in World War 2 (Cork & Kate, 2007, p.4). The idea was primarily used in analysing the prediction regarding their enemies and make ethical decisions. Later on, the idea was then moved to a business-related organisation in the 1960s, especially in Royal Dutch Shell.  The shell's ability to react to the Arab oil embargo in the 1970s is one of the most exceptional examples of implementing scenario planning in strategic management in business organisation to anticipate significant future challenges. Importantly, the concept assisted the company in dealing and countering its challenges. Since then, the idea is practised in most of the business organisation, helping them to expand as well as developing their potential objectives in both short and long terms. The concept needs diversified and skilled people to implement, whereby in most companies and organisations, managers are encouraged to hold and develop skills in scenario thinking.

Recent Developments in Academic Thought Related to Scenario Planning

The concept has undergone developments in academic thought since the 1980s as it has been seeking for personnel to break the constraints of everyday thinking. The development of scenario planning is illustrated in the following figure.

According to the figure above, different possible futures are identified based on the available resources in the organisation. The overall available resources determine the direction and the speed of movement in terms of development and advancement. Ideally, most of the required resources are in terms of technology-based that affects the entire environment. Secondly, the management team has the mandate to formulate the plan to deal with the specified futures following the available resources. Prominent to memo that, the plans are essential in the organisation since they determine both the short and long term objectives. For instance, an institutional organisation might focus on producing quality service in terms acceptance in the society therefore, this form the basis of the mission of the organisation. In this case, the managers should focus on formulating ideas to meet the plans.

At this juncture, the management accounts for the particular plan to invest that will have an immediate impact on the organisation. For instance, the idea was to install an internet connection for smooth running of the activities, and then they have to invest in the project to facilitate improvement in the institution. Once the management is done with the most basic plan, they can hedge to another scenario plan depending on the urgency. The projects are completed depending on their importance in the organisation such that, the most important ideas are firstly completed. If the entire scenario is invalid or fails to work well, then the management switch to another scenario planning that can have an impact on meeting the overall goals of the organisation. According to the discussed presented above elaborating the figure on the development of scenario planning in academic thought, it is vividly portrayed that following the exact steps lead the progression of the organisation.

Get Solution: Static and dynamic analysis of an unknown suspicious file

Tasks to be undertaken:

In this coursework, you are expected to:

Analyse two specimens of malware and answer questions about the insights gained, detailing your approach with relevant evidence (e.g. screenshots, excerpts of logs, etc.)

Part 1: Static and dynamic analysis of an unknown suspicious file

This is the first part of your graded coursework and is worth 50% of your total marks.

Scenario and goal

You have been provided with an unknown file found on a suspected infected machine on your organization’s network. The goal is to perform an in-depth analysis of the file to determine its type, infection mechanisms, and document any observable behaviours. After the analysis you will recommend steps to eradicate the malware from all the other systems in your organization that have been infected by the same malware.

Answer all the questions below (in the analysis tasks section) backing your answers with appropriate proofs and detailed supporting documentation and evidence from analyses. Please provide your answers under each given question. Any references cited should be listed at the end of your report.

Environment and tools

Analyse the file “suspicious.file” on a Windows virtual machine. The file should be extracted from “suspicious.7z” with the archive password ‘infected’. Please note that this is real malware. Which tools you use is entirely up to you. In malware analysis there is rarely one “right” path. Be creative and observant! However, I suggest you look at previous lab exercises and lecture slides, and pick whatever tools you deem appropriate. Provide documentary evidence to support your answers where

appropriate, for example screenshots, excerpts from Logs, dumps and other analyses outputs.

Analysis tasks

1. What type of file is the suspicious program? How do you determine its type? Document the method you used or steps you took to identify the type of file. Can the program be run as it is? If not, explain what would you do to make it execute? [5 marks]

2. Now that you’ve determined how to make it execute for analysis, is the malware packed? What observable features of the file suggest that it may/may not be packed? Document your observations with any applicable tools of your choice. [5 marks]

3. Next, perform a basic static analysis of the malware sample and document your findings. For example, what do the imports and exports tell you about the sample? (Remember, MSDN is your friend) Are there any interesting strings? Can you observe anything suspicious section-wise? If the sample is packed, make sure you unpack it first. [6 marks] 

4. Analyse the sample dynamically and monitor its activities on the system. What changes do you observe on the host? For example, is anything dropped, executed or deleted? (Hint: if you use Regshot in any phase of your analysis, be careful to set the right scan directory i.e. ‘C:\’) Support your claims with documentary evidence. [8 marks] 

5. Is the malware sample persistent? If yes, how does it achieve its goal of being persistent on the system? What corroborating observations can you put forth from your analysis that the malware is persistent? Provide evidence of the sample’s persistence on the system (use appropriate tools to investigate). [6 marks]

6. Does the malware exhibit any network based behaviours? Analyse and document any observable network activity under (a) an isolated environment and (b) with the system connected online (in this exercise it is ok to let the sample talk to the outside world). Document all observable traffic/network activity patterns using appropriate tools and techniques. [10 marks]

7. As a member of the incident response team in your organization you are tasked with the removal of the malware from all systems infected with this same malware. How would you eliminate the malware from an infected system on your network? Outline the steps to be taken in cleaning up the system. Show how you would confirm that the malware has been completely removed by the steps you have taken. (Hint: For example you can use RegShot before and after the clean-up to show that the infection has been removed) [5 marks] Presentation: organization, readability, references etc. [5 marks]

Part 2: Analysis and reverse engineering of a malicious DLL This is the second part of your graded coursework and is worth 50% of your total marks. 

Scenario and goal Your friend received an email with an attachment and proceeded to open the email. Without being careful, your friend opened the attachment and is now concerned that the system may be infected. Answer all the questions below (in the analysis tasks section) backing your answers with appropriate proofs and detailed supporting documentation and evidence from analyses.

 Environment and tools Analyze the file “malsample.dll” on a Windows virtual machine. Extract it from “malsample.7z” with the archive password ‘infected’. Which tools you use is entirely up to you. In malware analysis there is rarely one “right” path. Be creative and observant! However, I suggest you look at previous lab exercises and lecture slides, and pick whatever tools you deem appropriate. Provide documentary evidence to support your answers where appropriate, for example screenshots, excerpts from Logs, dumps and other analyses outputs. Please provide your answers under each given question. Any references cited should be listed at the end of your report. Analysis tasks 1.

 Your friend receives the file in an email attachment on their windows XP machine and accidentally double clicks the file. Is their system infected?

 If yes why/how? If no, why not? Explain and support your answer with evidence from dynamic analysis.

 [3 marks]

2. Analyse the sample dynamically and monitor its activities on the system. Outline the steps taken to execute the sample for analysis. What changes do you observe on the host? For example, is anything dropped, executed or deleted? Any other changes to the host observed? (Hint: if you use Regshot in any phase of your analysis, be careful to set the right scan directory i.e. C:\). Support your claims with documentary evidence. [8 marks]

 3. Under which process is the malicious DLL running? What is the process ID of this process? Document your approach and show how you obtained this information. [5 marks

] 4. Does the malware exhibit any network-based behaviours? Analyse and document any observable network activity in an isolated environment. How does this malware behave networkwise? [5 marks] 

5. Reverse engineer the sample with IDA/IDA pro. (a) How many functions are exported by the DLL? (b) What are the addresses of the functions that the DLL exports? (c) How many functions call the kernel32 API LoadLibrary function? (d) How many times is the kernel32 API Sleep() function called in the DLL? (support your answers with documentary evidence e.g. screenshots) [4 marks

 6. Navigate to the ServiceMain function. (a) Show the graph view of the function (b) The main subroutine (of the ServiceMain function) jumps to a location where the code calls the kernel32 API Sleep() function right after the JZ assembly instruction. What is the value of the parameter used by this Sleep() function? [5 marks]

 7. Malware analysts sometimes need to patch an executable in order to alter its behaviour, especially when the malware uses evasive techniques. The parameter used in the Sleep function (referred to in question 6) provides a time delay after which the main sub-routines are called to perform network operations that generate traffic. Permanently patch the DLL to remove the delay so that the network activity begins without any delay i.e. immediately after the DLL is executed. Document the steps taken. [10 marks] 8. Run the DLL again and confirm that your patch has removed the delay. Document the activity and present the evidence showing that the delay in sending network traffic has been removed. [5 marks] 

Presentation: organization, readability, references etc. [5 marks] Deliverables to be essay prosubmitted for assessment: Written document consisting of two parts, with answers to each question provided as a separate items. Detailed answers and documentary evidence should be given under each question. Where appropriate, references should be listed at the end of the report and cited within the body of the report (max. 3000 words excluding figures, references, appendices, etc.).

 Part 1: Static and dynamic analysis of an unknown suspicious file; and Part 2: Analysis and reverse engineering of a malicious DLL need to be presented in the document. How the work will be marked: Each malware sample analysis will be awarded a total of 50 points. The questions each are scored from 0 to a maximum point indicated alongside each question, following a specific marking grid that considers the substance of each written response. There is a total of 10 marks for presentation quality (5 marks for each section). Please refer to the criteria marking grid for details of the assessment of the work.

Solved: Create a dialogue between two artists discussing their work(s) with an interviewer asking questions in front of an audience at an art gallery

Instructions

Create a dialogue between two artists discussing their work(s) with an interviewer asking questions in front of an audience at an art gallery (much like a panel discussion format). Have Gris or Picasso dialogue with Matisse, Cezanne Gauguin, or van Gogh, Each one should explain his work(s), influences, philosophy, style, themes, and meaning, highlighting the reason for the work(s)’ importance to and impact on the world of art.
Use the style of dialogue used in a play. For example:
Interviewer: Senor Picasso and Monsieur Matisse, which work do you consider your most significant accomplishment and why do you think so?
Picasso: (Confidently) I have so many that are significant, but one that I think is truly a work of genius and innovation is [insert the Title of the Artwork]. This work shows the innovation the art world refers to as Cubism. I was the founder of that movement and perfected the style. No other artist has had that type of influence in the world of art.
Matisse: (Somewhat insulted). If I may be so bold, Senor Picasso, but I think my work has had a greater influence. My [insert the Title of the Artwork] has had a lasting impression, if you excuse the term, on thousands of artists. For example, …

Write a two to three 2 page paper in which you:

Create dialogue for selected artist #1 that reflects his influences, philosophy, style, themes, and meaning of his work(s).
Create dialogue for selected artist #2 that reflected his influences, philosophy, style, themes, and meaning of his work(s).
Create dialogue for selected artist #1 that highlights the reason for work(s)’s importance and impact on the world of art.
Create dialogue for selected artist #2 that highlights the reason for work(s)’s importance and impact on the world of art.
Create appropriate interview questions that facilitate the dialogue and highlighted the comparison between the two (2) artists.
Include three (3) references that help support the artists’ comments. (The text may be used as one (1) reference.)

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

This course requires use of new Strayer Writing Standards (SWS). The format is different than other Strayer University courses. Please take a moment to review the SWS documentation for details.
Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; references must follow SWS or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required page length.

Sample  Solution

Interviewer: hello. Today we have two guests: Mr. Picasso and Mr. Gris, who are famous painters. Welcome painters (the audience claps).

Picasso: Thank you (smiling).

 Gris:    Thank you.

 Interviewer :( turning to Mr. Picasso). Mr. Picasso you have done a lot of paintings since you were young. What are some of the things that influenced you to engage in art?

Picasso: One of the main reason why I started painting was that my father was a painter, and he taught me how to paint. He taught in the school of art, and he would draw naturalistic paintings such as those of birds.

Interviewer: How about you, Mr. Gris, what influenced you to begin painting?

Gris: As you know, I was once an engineering student before, then later, I decided to start learning how to paint. For quite some time, I was a satirical cartoonist (laughing) before finally going to paint. I went to school for quite a while, but I started exhibiting my art a few years later.

Interviewer: How has your painting changed over time?

Picasso: When I first started painting, they were more naturalistic just like my father's paintings, but with time, my style evolved, and I started experimenting with different techniques, theories, and ideas. I started adding more color to my paintings as you can see (pointing some of the paintings at the back).

Gris: It has always been on simplification of geometric structure. And it is also blurring of distinction and setting between the subject matter and background. It is seen in the woman with the mandolin after Corot which was on September 1916. I have a few samples here you can see (he shows it to the audience, and they are awed by the paintings).

 Interviewer: What is your philosophy, Mr. Gris?

Gris: I believe that paintings communicate more than words. There are something's we cannot say through words of mouth, but we say and achieve them through paintings (the audience claps and the interviewer turns to Mr. Picasso to get his response).

Picasso: My philosophy is to do what I want. Even from an early age, I knew what I wanted in life and pursued it. As you can see, I have become one of the best painters in this era. You got to do what makes you happy.

Interviewer: can you tell us the meanings of one your paintings Mr. Picasso

Picasso: It would be my pleasure (elated) the Guernica was done in 1937. It portrays the bombing by the German and Italian air forces at the behest of the Spanish nationalist government during the Spanish civil war. It is a very somber painting.

Gris: one of the paintings I ever made was of Mr. Picasso. He has always been my mentor, and for a long time, I always wanted to be like him. So this is a token of appreciation. This one is for you Mr. Picasso (he stands up and hands the painting. Mr. Picasso cannot hide his grin. The audience are now cheering as he does so, the interviewer is impressed).

Interviewer: What are some of the themes you tackle in your paintings?

Picasso: They are different, but I always cover everything. Most off my paintings are of people. I have painted some of my relatives such as Mrs. Stein who is my sister in law. Most of the photos are of beggars and prostitutes. They often portray some of the problems the society has to deal with. It, therefore, means that I am trying to inform people of this and make them work to stop such in our community.

Gris: I also tackle different themes in my art. There are some musical instruments that I have painted, and such do signify the theme of entertainment.

Interviewer: Tell us the reason for your work, and do you feel that your work has made an impact in the world?

Gris: I paint because of the passion I have for art, particularly painting. It has a lot of impact on people. During the many exhibitions, I have showcased I can see how the paintings speak to people. They bring what is unsaid within their souls. And that is the impact of my work.

Picasso: other than paying my bills (the audience bursts into laughter), I do it for fun; it has always been my passion. There was a time I went on a trip to Spain. After that trip, it influenced the nature of my paintings. I felt that I needed to show some of the ills in society. With that, it helped to eradicate some of them. Paintings usually communicate with people.

Interviewer: Thank you for your time, gentlemen. I am glad you agreed to do this interview. (They stand up and shake hands with one another. The audience claps as they do so).

                                                         REFERENCES

Cowling, E., & Mundy, J. (1991). On classic ground: Picasso, Leger, de Chirico and the New Classicism, 1910-1930. Choice Reviews Online, 28(11), 28-6065-28-6065. doi: 10.5860/choice.28-6065

Daix, P., (1994). Picasso: life and art .icon editions ISBN 978-0-06-430201-2.

 

Gris, J.(1988). Juan Gris peintures et dessines, 1887-1927 [Marseille]: musees de Marseilles ISBN 2-71118-2969-3. (French language).