Complex Computer Systems Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Complex Computer Systems - Research Paper Example Most computer systems that are considered successful demonstrate a positive direct effect on the perceived eases of use. Therefore, some computer systems are never fully accepted by their intended users, and are underutilized (Hasan, 2007). Also, very few IT systems have been categorized as truly successful. There are numerous factors and processes that make IT projects complex (The British ComputerSociety, 2006). Understanding and proper management of these projects is important to comprehend why such projects fail. It also helps to understand how proper management of complexity can increase success for computer systems. Technology is an important source of complexity of computer systems, but the key source of complexity is the scope of the project, as set by management (The British Computer Society, 2006). Among the success or failure factors are social, economic and technical factors. These factors influence whether the complex computer system project succeeds or fails in its obje ctives. There must be technical and social strategies designed to detect and manage external and internal influences to ensure success of any complex computer system. ... esign and production of prepayment gas meters, introduced to the United Kingdom energy market to make work easier for energy suppliers and domestic clients (The British Computer Society, 2006). Central service installed on server database and application server. These have interfaces and tier supplier infrastructure The Smart Meter System has several components. First, the Smart Meter’s Central System has a web interface and Oracle database (TheBritishComputerSociety, 2006). The web interface and Oracle database have been built on a Distributed Computing Infrastructure. Integration of these components with the central system allows for online payment. The payment is identified by the payment agent. A Short Message (SMS) is processed by the SMS provider system. Also, every Smart Meter System has an Apache web server, which is used to deliver user interfaces. The Oracle 9i database component of the system is was used to produce the database, while the Tomcat servlet container is driven by Java and the STRUTS framework (TheBritishComputerSociety, 2006). This uses Java Server Pages and cascading style sheets for presentation layer. The Prepayment Metering Infrastructure Provider application allows suppliers to interact with their meters in real time (The British Computer Society, 2006). The Smart Meter System is a complex computer system because it allows domestic clients and domestic energy provision customers to make prepayments for their gas, using their mobile phones. The Smart Meter System is also complex because it is can be used by both vendors and end user clients. Therefore, the system accepts top ups in terms of monetary values by customers via their mobile phones (The British Computer Society, 2006). Consequently, plans were put in place to sell the Smart

The Phillips Curve and the Philippines Essay Example for Free

The Phillips Curve and the Philippines Essay According to Cristeta B. Bagsic, the Phillips Curve â€Å"depicts the trade-off between inflation and unemployment rate† (â€Å"The Phillips Curve and Inflation Forecasting: The Case of the Philippines†). Nowadays, the relationship depicted by the Phillips curve is specified in the following equation: Ï€t = Ï€e – ÃŽ ³(UR – UR*) + v where Ï€t is the inflation rate, Ï€e is the expected inflation, ÃŽ ³ is a parameter, UR is the unemployment rate, UR* is the natural rate of unemployment (NRU), and v is a supply shock variable. So while the importance of the negative relationship between unemployment and inflation was obvious enough from the beginning, it is now also apparent that there are other factors that influence the behavior of the Phillips Curve. It is beyond crucial that these additional factors be understood and measured well, if they are to be used in maneuvering developing economies such as the economy of the Philippines. Perhaps the most notable addition to the basic inflation rate-unemployment relationship is the expected inflation or Ï€e. What can be taken from the equation above is that there is a positive relationship between this expected inflation and the actual inflation rate. This is because the expectations involved are those of workers who are assumed to be anticipating rises in the inflation rate. When expecting a rise in inflation rate (for whatever reason), workers tend to withdraw their labor and demand that their employers increase their wages. Assuming that their employers subsequently comply, the workers’ buying power would increase and cause aggregate demand to increase as well. This, in turn, would cause prices to increase which would trigger a rise in inflation – precisely showcasing the positive relationship that was pinpointed (Economics Help Helping to Simplify Economics ). The next factor to be considered is the so-called Natural Rate of Unemployment. Bagsic sees this rate as the long-run unemployment rate because eventually â€Å"the difference between expected inflation and actual inflation should average to zero† (â€Å"The Phillips Curve and Inflation Forecasting: The Case of the Philippines†. When neglecting the rather volatile supply shock variable, the equation specified above will look like this as a result: ÃŽ ³ UR = ÃŽ ³ UR*  or UR = UR* which indicates that the natural rate is more or less what Bagsic suspects it to be – the unemployment rate one would expect to see in the long run. This is caused by the phenomenon already described wherein the workers’ expecting inflation unwittingly react in a way that further aggravates inflation. Also notable is how the NRU is sometimes called the NAIRU or the Non-accelerating inflation rate of unemployment as when unemployment is at this specific rate the corresponding inflation has no propensity to increase (Economics Help Helping to Simplify Economics ). The last notable factor in the equation provided is the supply shock variable v which has a significant historical background. Probably the most poignant supply shock was the 1970’s oil supply shock which is commonly thought to have triggered the unusual state of â€Å"stagflation† (high inflation and high unemployment) in several countries including the US. The exact nature of this variable is, as of yet, quite unpredictable (Amadeo). At this point, what is imperative is determining whether or not the Phillips Curve – or a variation of it – can apply to countries like the Philippines. Bagsic’s findings suggest that there is truly a trade-off relationship between inflation and unemployment in the Philippine context. Her data shows that when actual employment rates are above (below) the NAIRU, they are usually accompanied by decelerating (accelerating) inflation rates. These trends are said to be relevant to investors and policymakers to aid with investment decisions and monetary/fiscal policies respectively (â€Å"The Phillips Curve and Inflation Forecasting: The Case of the Philippines†). It is important to keep in mind, however, that the Phillips Curve is not always accurate as evidenced by cases of stagflation; the information on the current trends in the Philippines must always be up-to-date in order to maximize the benefits reaped from the model.

The west :: essays papers

The west The West was a form of society rather than an area. It is the term applied to the region whose social conditions result from the application of older institutions and ideas to the transforming influences of free land. By this application, a new environment is suddenly entered, freedom of opportunity is opened, the cake of custom is broken, and new activities, new lines of growth, new institutions and new ideals, are brought into existence. The wilderness disappears, the "West" proper passes on to a new frontier and, in the former area, and a new society has emerged from this contact with the backwoods. Gradually this society loses its primitive conditions, and assimilates itself to the type of the older social conditions of the East; but it bears within it enduring and distinguishing survivals of its frontier experience. Decade after decade, West after West, this rebirth of American society had gone on, and left its traces behind it, which reacted on the East. The history of our political institutions, our democracy, is not a history of imitation, of simple borrowing; it is a history of the evolution and adaptation of organs in response to changed environment, a history of the origin of new political species. In this sense, therefore, the West has been a constructive force of the highest significance in our life. The West, as a phase of social organization, began with the Atlantic coast, and passed across the continent. But the colonial tidewater area was in close touch with the Old World, and soon lost its Western aspects. In the middle of the eighteenth century, the newer social conditions appeared along the upper waters of the tributaries of the Atlantic. Here it was that the West took on its distinguishing features, and transmitted frontier traits and ideals to this area in later days. On the coast were the fishermen and skippers, the merchants and planters, with eyes turned toward Europe. Beyond the falls of the rivers were the pioneer farmers, largely of non-English stock, Scotch-Irish and German. They constituted a distinct people, and may be regarded as an expansion of the social and economic life of the middle region into the backcountry of the South. These frontiersmen were the ancestors of Boone, Andrew Jackson, Calhoun, Clay, and Lincoln. Washington and Jefferson were profoundly a ffected by these frontier conditions. The forest clearings have been the seed plots of American character.

Is It Moral for Corporations to Test Cosmetics on Animals?

Is it moral for corporations to test cosmetics on animals or to use animals for medical experimentation? Pain is pain, and the importance of preventing unnecessary pain and suffering does not diminish because the being that suffers is not a member of our own species. (Peter Singer,  Animal Liberation) Human beings†¦.. who are we? Are we Gods or we are just the top of the food chain on Earth? Do we have rights to harm other nonhuman species? These and many other questions I have in my head when I see how cruel we are sometimes to each other and even harsher toward the other nonhuman beings.Personally, I treat animals with respect because I consider them to be reasonable creatures that are in many perspectives similar to us, human beings. I am confident that animals have emotions; they can feel pain and happiness like we do. As we can see this is not enough for us to consider them our â€Å"little brothers. † From ancient times, many animals are being used for satisfying human’s different needs, such as food, transportation, and materials. Nowadays, human beings use animals not only for abovementioned purposes, but also for cosmetics and medical experiments.All these experiments definitely cause harm to animals. Majority of human population believes that all these experiments are the required attribute for all pharmaceutical and cosmetics companies. They believe that these practices can prevent many people from suffering by testing all new medicine and cosmetic products on animals first. According to this I can say that animals’ sufferings caused by people became moral issue for our last generations. In my essay I will use the work of Peter Singer â€Å"All animals are Equal,† because his work covers most of the aspects that I agree with.The main purpose of this essay is to emphasize that nonhuman beings have many similarities with human beings and they need to have basis rights for life without pain. It means that human beings must understand that all species are equal and it is immoral to make them suffer. There are similarities between human beings and animals that can be taken into account. In this case, I consider that main feelings that are possessed both by human and by nonhuman beings are pain and happiness. It is obvious that animals that surround us can experience pain. Just imagine if you kick a dog with your leg, the dog will moan and probably will un away with its tail between its legs. If this dog would not suffer from that kick it would not try to prevent that pain from occurring. On the other hand, imagine the same dog running towards her master, spinning her tail and running around him, licking his hands, jumping and sending many other positive signals that represent happiness. By visualizing these two images you can easily understand that animals have basic feelings like we do. For some people this might sound like nonsense if I say that people are equal to other species that are inhabiti ng our planet. I will not take into consideration some biological features of the beings.I want to look at this problem from the moral perspective. Today it is acceptable by many developed countries around the world for women have equal rights with men. We consider that this is a right thing, but think for a moment that essentially males and females are not the same. I mean they have equal rights but not all rights applied for both men and women, due to physiological differences or other factors. For example, P. Singer mentioned in his work that women have right to abortion so in order to make them equal to men, males also must have the same right to abortion (P.Singer, p. 172). However, men do not need this right since those instances never occur. According to this example, equality does not particularly mean that men and women have all the same equal rights. It means that they have the same rights in regards with to what they have in common. Concerning cosmetics and medical experi ments on animals I can definitely say that it makes animals suffer. Let’s take medical experiments of new drugs. Nobody knows what is going to happen when any external substance is implemented on an animal.There are certain medications tested on animals and that caused the death of the animals. For example, one of the scandal cases is the sheep Dolly that died because of the cloning experiment. Obviously there is a big chance for the animals to die after certain tests are performed on them. Nevertheless, human beings still accept the fact that some species other than humans can justifiably suffer in order to possibly save some human being’s lives. However, animals that are involved in those experiments will receive nothing in return but suffering because the only purpose of those experiments is to help people.So, regarding cosmetic experiments, those animals suffer not for the sake of saving some human’s life, but for the sake of helping a number of people to lo ok more beautiful. For instance, before introducing a new cosmetic product such as shampoo to the market a product should go through the series of tests, the part of which is animal testing. Even this single product can harm a large number of animals. Looking more attractive, in my mind, is not worth causing pain to other species. I want to say, that the number of animals’ suffering is greater than the pleasure that human beings receive.In other words the degree of harm is higher than the degree of happiness. Some people might say let’s think about the morality that animals have. The main principal of their lives is to survive. Most of them survive by killing and eating other animals. Let’s take lions as an example; they kill other animals to feed their prides. In other words, they hurt other species to make their own lives flourish. If we can call this their â€Å"morality†, then medical experiments are the right thing to do, because human beings are the part of the same biosphere as lions and other animals are.As a result of these experiments many lives of the human beings were saved. Without the experiments on animals it would be impossible to reach the constant improvements and developments in medicine. If we talk about equality with animals in this perspective then we are equal to them, since we act according to their â€Å"morality. † All these arguments are related to utilitarianism. Utilitarian theories are dealing with selection of the action that will result in the maximum good for the greatest amount of individuals (Encyclopedia Britannica).Regarding animal testing from utilitarian point of view I can say that this is not right thing to do. Since it can be moral only if it delivers the greatest good to greatest number of individuals I can calculate how many individuals are better off in this case. For example only in France in 2005, 12,117,583 animals were used for medical experiments (Andrew Knight, p. 651). Takin g in account that this number represents the quantity of animals that were used by only a single country, I can definitely say that the total number of animals used for experiments in the whole world is much greater than human population.Moreover, not all people received benefits from those medical experiments, but all animals tested suffered or died. Talking about the previous example of analyses of lions’ morality I want to mention that in that case lions kill not more than two zebras to feed more than ten lions. On basis of this, greater good delivered to greater number of individuals. The professor of Oxford and Warwick universities and also the former head of Medical Research Council Colin Blakemore states that many irredeemable human diseases like Alzheimer’s multiple scleroses would never be possible to vaccinate without using all possible tools.In this case, experimental animals are one of the tools that are needed for the research of those diseases (Colin Blak emore). This claim proves that animal testing is one of the main research attributes. Therefore, in order to provide seriously ill people with quality medications, pharmaceutical companies have to test new drugs on animals. It is obvious, that fifty years ago it was normal for researchers to use animals for medical and cosmetics experiments, because they did not have any alternatives. It is known, that today’s technologies have features that can substitute usage of animals.If it is possible to use other means than animals why people do not do that? It seems to me that until animal tests are regarded as moral by human beings this practice will continue. Moreover, there will be a lot of different arguments that will support the idea of animal experiments. Yet, the fact that we can do medical experiments in 21st century without torturing animals is obvious. It is immoral to cause pain to a human by another one. The main reason for that is that human can suffer. Everyone in his o r her life experienced pain and know what it is.So, it became immoral thing to harm other people. Moreover, every person has a right to not experience pain from other individuals. In other words people are bounded by their rights and morality from making other people suffer. We are protected by rights and by laws not to be harmed, but animals are not protected by those rights and human morality. Nevertheless, they can suffer like we do. In this case both human and nonhuman beings experience relatively the same feeling of pain. Since the pain is the one factor that makes us similar to animals, why other species do not have rights to not suffer?One of the reasons why animals do not have some equal rights with people is probably because all those concepts of equal rights were created by human beings. It becomes obvious that human beings are selfish in this perspective. If you are the man it does not mean for me that you can decide for others what to do with their lives. What about the fact that human beings are the part of the biosphere of our planet. I think this is immoral to not take into account that animals can suffer like we do. In these circumstances I agree with P. Singer as he introduced an example about an orphaned infant.He said that â€Å"would be experimenter ready to make his experiments on orphaned infant if it would the only option to save many lives. If experimenter would be against using orphaned infant for experiments, then his readiness to use animal is simple discrimination. † But many adult animals are more receptive to pain than human infants. (P. Singer, p. 176). This is not good and people must understand why they have to do something about it. I agree that this practice is hard to change. Still, looking back in the history there were many practices that were accepted to be moral.For instance, I want to mention slavery and discrimination of African American or women. All of these cases were perceived to be normal at those times, bu t now moral values have changed. It means that there is a chance that people will comprehend the pain that we cause to nonhuman beings. People cannot decide for animals what to do with their lives. It is not moral to benefit one by harming another one. In this case all experiments on animals must be reformed. However, it is rooted deeply in our moral values system, so this values need to be changed as they were changed in other cases similar to this one.Human moral issues are changing all the time. Just recall the time when all people we classified by skin color or other signs. It was normal to discriminate black people only because they have a different skin color. Going back we can see that white people at those times would never accept that they are born equal to black people. It took a lot of time to change those beliefs. Now Barak Obama is the president of USA while a century ago this fact would appear implausible. It means that it is possible to change moral believes of human beings by giving them enough arguments for that.According to this I can definitely say that there are enough arguments that can be used to prove that animal experiments can be reformed. I want to conclude that the problem of animal experiments is related to each individual. According to utilitarian theory the animal experiments are not a right thing to do, because harm of these experiments is greater than the positive outcome. Number of ruined animals’ lives, is much greater than the number of saved human beings’ lives. The only way to prevent animal usage is to persuade people that this is inapplicable in our modern community.As I mentioned there are many ways, including technological improvements, to not use animals for medical experiments. The technology of 21 century allows constructing virtual models of live organisms that are able to predict a reaction of a tested medicine. This argument can cause the change in human beings’ morality, and animals will get equal rights with humas, by taking into consideration their abilities to experience pain and happiness like we do. Moreover, our morality is the subject that can be changed, as we can observe by looking back in the history.We need to start doing it, because we are the most intelligent creatures on the Earth and the future of many animals is in our hands. Work cited 1) Blakemore, Colin. â€Å"Should We Experiment on Animals? Yes. †Ã‚  The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 29 Nov. 0028. Web. 22 Feb. 2012. . (I trust this web site, because the author seems to me very intelligent, since he is the professor of Oxford and Warwick universities and also the former head of Medical Research Council Colin Blakemore) 2) Knight, Andrew. Systematic Reviews of Animal Experiments Demonstrate Poor Human Clinical and Toxicological Utility. †Ã‚  ATLA -NOTTINGHAM-  35 (2007): 641-60. Print. 3) Peter Singer, â€Å"Chapter 14: All Animals are Equal† in Hugh LaFollette (ed. ), Ethics in Practice. 171-180 4) Singer, Peter. Animal Liberation. New York, NY: New York Review of, 1990. Print. 5) â€Å"utilitarianism. †Ã‚  Encyclop? dia Britannica. Encyclop? dia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclop? dia Britannica Inc. , 2012. Web. 22 Feb. 2012. .

Case Assignment Benzene exposure

Introduction Benzene which is also known as benzol is an organic compound that is colorless, highly flammable and with a sweet odor. It tends to evaporate quickly when left exposed. It is a chemical compound that is normally formed by a natural process such as volcanic formation or forest fires. It is also formed from hydrocarbons. It was said to be present as a â€Å"component of the cigarette smoke† (ACS, 2008). Some of it physical properties are a relatively high melting point and high solubility in water.It is mostly use as a solvent in most chemical industries. It functions ranges from the production of drugs, plastics, synthetic rubber to dyes production where it mostly serves as the precursors of such industrial products. Route of exposure Benzene exposure has a lot of health impact and there are mostly three ways in which an individual can be exposed to benzene toxicity, these are inhalational route, ingestion and transdermal absorption (Media Fact, 2008). Inhalation o f benzene is usually as a result of the breathing of the benzene fumes.Benzene fumes are inhaled easily because benzene is an extremely volatile organic compound and this kind of exposure is one of the deadliest because of it immediate contact with the lung parenchyma. This then elicit a lot neurological symptoms such as headache, dizziness, tachycardia (increase in heart rate), tremors and subsequent death if untreated on time. Benzene ingestion result from eating of benzene laden foods or beverages and its noticeable symtoms are neurological while those of transdermal route usually result from contact with the benzene or benzene laden materials (Media Fact, 2008).The health problems cause by this route of benzene exposure â€Å"are erythema (reddening of the skin), scaling dermatitis, suppression of the hematopoietic system and pancytopenia† (Media Fact, 2008) Sources of Benzene Exposure The major sources of human exposure to benzene are environmental, occupational and cons umer products. Benzene is usually released into air from sources like gasoline filling stations, underground leakage of petroleum, vehicular exhaust, cigarette smoke, waste products or sewage and some food products.Most of the occupational related benzene exposure are seen mainly in industries like those involve in rubber production, chemical plants, refineries and shipments and retail shops. Other sources include consumer products that are made of benzene such as glues, adhesives, cigarettes, paint and varnishes e. t. c Short and long term effects The short term effects of benzene exposure are â€Å"drowsiness, dizziness, headaches, tremors, confusion and unconsciousness† (ACS, 2008).The previous symptoms are as a result of exposure of about 700-300ppm while acute exposure of high dose results in vomiting, irritation of the gastrointestinal tract, narcolepsy, convulsion and tachycardia. In extreme cases of high dose ingestion death usually results. The long term effect of be nzene toxicity has been attributed to the interference with the normal blood cell production i. e. the hematopoietic cells. The sequeale of this is anemia and leucopenia. An individual with this will be immunocompromised hence such individual will be prone to opportunistic diseases.The long term effect can also be seen to result in reproductive organ dysfunction. Precautionary measures 1. The use of personal protective equipment such as gloves, apron and some other clothing materials. 2. Special training on equipments handling and usage 3. If there is accidental release of the benzene quick evacuation of such laboratory must be done urgently 4. Proper ventilation of the laboratory References ACS, (2008). Benzene. Prevention and early detection Retrieved Sept 4, 2008 From www. cancer. org/docroot/PED/content/PED_1_3X_Benzene. asp

Hafnium Facts (Atomic Number 72 or Hf)

Hafnium Facts (Atomic Number 72 or Hf) Hafnium is an element that was predicted by Mendeleev (of periodic table fame) before it was actually discovered. Here is a collection of fun and interesting facts about hafnium, as well as standard atomic data for the element: Hafnium Element Facts Fresh, pure hafnium is a metal with a bright, silvery luster. However, hafnium oxidizes to form a beautiful rainbow colored surface effect.Mendeleev predicted the existence of hafnium in a report he prepared in 1869. It was one of two non-radioactive elements believed to exist, but not verified. It was finally discovered in 1923 by Georg von Hevesy and Dirk Coster by using x-ray spectroscopy on a zirconium ore sample. The element name honors the city of its discovery (Hafnia is the old name for Copenhagen).As you might expect, hafnium is not found free in nature. Instead, it forms compounds and alloys. Because the two metals share similar occurrence and properties, hafnium is extremely difficult to separate from zirconium. Most hafnium metal has some degree of zirconium contamination. Although hafnium is found with ores (mainly zircon and baddeleyite), it is not as reactive as most transition metals.When hafnium is powdered, the increased surface area improves its reactivity. Powdere d hafnium readily ignites and may explode. Hafnium finds use as an alloying agent for iron, titanium, niobium, and tantalum. It is found in integrated circuits, vacuum tubes, and incandescent lamps. Hafnium is used in nuclear reactors, mainly as nuclear control rods because hafnium is an exceptionally powerful neutron absorber. This is one significant difference between hafnium and its sister element zirconium zirconium is essentially transparent to neutrons.Hafnium in its pure form is not particularly toxic, but it does represent a health hazard, particularly if inhaled. Hafnium compounds should be handled with care, as should any transition metal compound, because the ionic forms be dangerous. Only limited testing has been done on the effect of hafnium compounds in animals. All that is really known is that hafnium usually exhibits a valence of 4.Hafnium is found in the gemstones zircon and garnet. Hafnium in garnet may be used as a geochronometer, which means it can be used to date metamorphic geological events. Hafnium Atomic Data Element Name: Hafnium Hafnium Symbol: Hf Atomic Number: 72 Atomic Weight: 178.49 Element Classification: Transition Metal Electron Configuration: [Xe] 4f14 5d2 6s2 Discovery: Dirk Coster and Georg von Hevesy 1923 (Denmark) Name Origin: Hafnia, the Latin name of Copenhagen. Density (g/cc): 13.31 Melting Point (K): 2503 Boiling Point (K): 5470 Appearance: silvery, ductile metal Atomic Radius (pm): 167 Atomic Volume (cc/mol): 13.6 Covalent Radius (pm): 144 Ionic Radius: 78 (4e) Specific Heat (20Â °C J/g mol): 0.146 Fusion Heat (kJ/mol): (25.1) Evaporation Heat (kJ/mol): 575 Pauling Negativity Number: 1.3 First Ionizing Energy (kJ/mol): 575.2 Oxidation States: 4 Lattice Structure: hexagonal Lattice Constant (Ã…): 3.200 Lattice C/A Ratio: 1.582 Hafnium Fast Fasts Element Name: HafniumElement Symbol: HfAtomic Number: 72Appearance: Steel gray metalGroup: Group 4 (Transition Metal)Period: Period 6Discovery:Â  Dirk Coster and George de Hevesy (1922) Sources Hevesy, G. (1925). The Discovery and Properties of Hafnium. Chemical Reviews. 2: 1–41. doi:10.1021/cr60005a001Greenwood, Norman N.; Earnshaw, Alan (1997). Chemistry of the Elements (2nd ed.). Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 971–975. ISBN 0-08-037941-9.Lee, O. Ivan (1928). The Mineralogy of Hafnium. Chemical Reviews. 5: 17–37. doi:10.1021/cr60017a002Schemel, J. H. (1977). ASTM Manual on Zirconium and Hafnium. ASTM International. pp. 1–5. ISBN 978-0-8031-0505-8.Weast, Robert (1984). CRC, Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. Boca Raton, Florida: Chemical Rubber Company Publishing. pp. E110. ISBN 0-8493-0464-4.

Overview of the FAFSA for Financial Aid

Overview of the FAFSA for Financial Aid If you want financial aid, youll need to fill out the FAFSA. The FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Anyone who wants financial aid for college will need to fill out the FAFSA. The application is used to determine the dollar amount you or your family will be expected to contribute towards college. All federal grant and loan awards are determined by the FAFSA, and nearly all colleges use the FAFSA as the basis for their own financial aid awards. The FAFSA is managed by the Office of Federal Student Aid, part of the Department of Higher Education. The Office of Federal Student Aid processes roughly 14 million financial aid applications a year and disburses about $80 billion in financial aid. The FAFSA application should take about one hour to fill out, but this is only if you have all the necessary documents at hand before you begin. Some applicants get frustrated with the application process because they do not have ready access to all necessary tax forms and bank statements, so be sure to plan ahead before you sit down to complete your FAFSA. The FAFSA requires information in five categories: Information about the studentInformation about the student’s dependency statusInformation about the student’s parentsInformation about the student’s financesA list of the schools that should receive the results of the FAFSA Students can fill out the FAFSA online at the FAFSA website, or they can apply through the mail with a paper form. The Office of Federal Student Aid strongly recommends the online application because it conducts immediate error checking, and it tends to speed up the application process by a few weeks. Students applying online can save their work and return to an application at a later date. Again, any financial aid award begins with the FAFSA, so be sure to complete the form before the deadlines for the schools to which you’ve applied. Realize that most state deadlines are much earlier than the June 30th federal deadline. Read more about the timing of your FAFSA application here: When Should You Submit the FAFSA?