#topic3

On 10th Jan 2018,

The World Bank forecasts 2018 growth to be at 3%, following above-expectations performances in 2017

"For the first time since the global financial crisis, all major regions of the world are experiencing an uptick in economic growth," 

The bank cited this improvement in conditions due to increased capital investment and stronger global demand, with developing and emerging economies carrying world growth, with these economies on average growing at 4.5%.

For economies such as Australia, an improvement in commodity prices has lead to stronger growth prospects.

However, in many economies, mainly advanced, the structural changes occurring to the labour force, resulting in ‘declining potential’.

Many economies will experience an increase in retirees as the baby boomer generation heads into retirement

This will decrease labour supply and the size of the labour force, as well as decreasing prodcutivty

This will result in a smaller income tax base as well as a need fro greater welfare payments to retirees.

"More than 84 per cent of global GDP is currently produced by countries whose working age population shares are expected to shrink by 2030."

The world bank recommends investment into human capital, such as higher quality education, and other forms of infrastructure to made the labour force more productive to offset the decrease in size.

Furthermore, gender equality in the workforce can also add to the size of the labour force, which can increase the productivity of the labour. 

Global female labour force participation, at 58 per cent on average in 2013-17, remains three-quarters below that of men... and even less in [emerging market and developing economies]."

On 25th May 2018

Watch me rant about the tax cuts ohohohoho

The proposed tax cuts will deliver ‘middle income’ earners $44 mil AUD in the later stages of the plan, and $144 billion over a decade in tax reliefs.

This is expected to boost aggregate demand as ‘low to middle’ income earners has a higher MPC, bringing more economic activity in this period of slow growth as they spend it on necessities.

However, as the tax plan extends to the full range of tax brackets, and the extension of tax brackets, this scales the recipients of the tax reliefs to the high income earners.

Analysis from the Australian National University, the Grattan Institute and the Australia Institute has shown that households on higher incomes get a bigger proportion of the tax cuts over time

This will in effect increase disposable income inequality

By increasing inequality, this will reduce Australia’s’ PPP in the future, as the reduction in government tax revenue will reduce the ability to fund other social services, such as healthcare and education

It’s true that reducing the burden of personal income taxes is a desirable goal, particularly at a time when households are feeling the pinch of slower wages growth.

But Australian politicians have simply not done the hard work to reform our tax base to ensure finances are in a sustainable position before Australians can be relieved of the burden of bracket creep.

- Jessica Irvine

The foretasted budget revenues to fund propsed services such as the NDIS is reliant on positive global economic conditions, however with the increased tensions between the US and China currently it will most likely stump growth.

On 25th June 2018

Currently, women consist of 27.7% of board directions of the ASX 200, which are the 200 largest companies on the Australian Stock Exchange. The goal of the 30% club is to have 30% of all ASX 200 board members be female by the end of 2018.

The 30% Club was launched by Ms Patricia Cross in May 2015 to campaign for 30 per cent women on ASX 200 boards by the end 2018.

This has been successful, seen as the number of female board members in 2015 was 19.4%, with the ASX 100 already reaching the 30% goal presently.

This allows a smaller gender pay gap, as senior members receive a considerably higher wage, especially with bonuses, as compared to lower management-level employees

“The next target for these companies should be 40 per cent by 2022″ -  Nicola Wakefield Evans, new Chairman of 30% club

The eventual target is to have an equal share of female and male directors, to more accurately portray the makeup of the population

As more women join the workforce, this increases Australia’s productive capacity, which generated more human resources, creating growth potential

https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/why-we-need-to-get-highincome-women-back-to-work-the-case-for-tax-deductible-childcare-20171020-gz4ywg.html

This article brings up some interesting points about the barricades to women attaining senior positions

As women are usually the primary carer of a family, it is hard for them to re-enter the workforce after taking maternity leave as there may be a mismatch of skills or the inability to work longer hours

A recent Grattan Institute report noted that if Australian women did as much paid work as women in Canada, where there's subsidised childcare – implying an extra 6 per cent of women in the workforce – Australia's GDP would be about $25 billion higher. 

Furthermore, when women re-enter the workforce, they will not be eligible for social welfare benefits relating to childcare. Given the high cost of childcare in Australia currently, this reduces their disposable income, or forces women to work part-time 

This both increases the underemployment rate and diminishes the productive capacity of the economy

On 1st June 2018

The latest minimum wage decision has inceased the base wage to $719.20 per week. It is estimated that over 2 million Australians are covered by the award, and will therefore receive the addistional $24.30 a week.

The new hourly minimum rate of $18.93 will take effect from July 1, affecting workers on a 38 hour week.

The Australian Council of Trade Union argued for an increase of $50/week, however this was rejected as the commision ruled that this risked increasing unemployment, especially for low skilled and younger workers.

Due to the currently high level of unemployment, the existing slack in the labour market does not increase labour demand

This does not increase competition for labour, and thus no incentive for wage increases

Iain Ross, commission president, said the real value of the national minimum wage had increased by 5.8 per cent over the past decade and by 4.3 per cent in the past five years

"However, this has not resulted in improvement to the actual or relative living standards for many categories of national minimum wage and award-reliant households due to changes in the tax and transfer system"

The latest minimum wage decision increased the wage price index by 0.5 points, as wage growth is at 2 of WPI. This is extremely low in comparison to historical averages of around 3,5 %.

As households on the minimum wage has a higher marginal propensity to consume, by providing them with increased disposable income it will help facilitate greater economic growth from household spending

In a similar trend to the previous years, wage growth grew in the same proportion as CPI, resulting in little to no real wage growth

However, the income tax cuts in the 18-19 budge should be able to provide more disposable income for those on a mimmum wage, as the government seeks to accelerate GDP growth

on 24th May 2018 The Paris climate target is for the world to achieve a two-degree reduction in temperatures below pre-industrial levels.

However, there are only 4 out of 38 sustainable energy technologies that are on track to meeting Paris Climate change emission goals according  to the International Energy Agency (IEA)

These 4 are:

Solar panels

LED lights

Electric vehicles

Electrical vehicle sales has increased by 54% over the past year, with 3 mil vehicles in operation. This still only accounts for less than 1% of total automobiles however.  

Data centre energy management technology

"Energy efficiency improvements, for example, have slowed and progress on key technologies like carbon capture and storage remains stalled. This contributed to an increase in global energy-related CO2 emissions of 1.4 per cent last year," - IEA 

Both coal power and geothermal are not on track to meeting the sustanabiliy goals

This increases the social cost (environmental pollution) of providing power, resulting in market failure

As coal usage is not being reduced, this still greatly depletes an non-renewable resource

The power sector currently accounts for 42 per cent of all carbon emissions worldwide.

Emissions grew by 2.6% in 2017

However needs to reduce by 5,6%/ annum until 2030 to reach goals

Other forms of energy production, such as wind generators, hydropower are lacking, and gas and batteries are behind efficiency development schedule.

"This failure to move effectively towards the Paris targets was also driven by a decline in investment in the power sector, down about 5 per cent in 2017 to $US760 billion globally. Investment in renewables coming online last year was around $US300 billion, down almost 7 per cent compared to 2016."

Due to the low prices of energy in recent years, there is a lack of motivation to develop new ways of energy generation. This, combined with weak global government policy has slowed progress towards lower emmisions.

In order to be on track, renewable energy will need to account for a third of total energy production.

This will reduce the negative externalities generated from creating power as it reduces CO2 emissions into the air

Identify the advantages of wireless network

Wireless Networking is relatively cheaper than wired Networks since they require no cables between the computers as well as lower long term costs due to less maintenance since there is less equipment. 

Wireless network equipment is plug-and-play, which helps reduce the total cost such as vendor installation and eliminates redundancy is case of a system crash. 

Wireless Networking is also very mobile and versatile; it is adaptable to most situations and requirements. 

Wireless networks can easily be set up and dissembled, which is perfect for many people who are on temporary worksites/homes or leased space. 

Wireless networks provide networking in places where regular wire cannot reach such as the backyard in a home situation. 

Access points can be used to boost the wireless signal range if required. Since portable workstations such as laptops have become popular, wireless networks can provide quick and easy access to the internet and workspaces for students and teachers in universities etc. 

It is also extremely easy to add other components onto this type of network such as easy installation of VoIP and printers etc without the need to configure ones computer. 

List all of the wireless devices in your home and college. Briefly explain the purpose of the each device

Phone - To be able to make and receive telephone calls.

Laptop -  Designed for portability and enable people to work on their projects from virtually anywhere.

Printer -  Device that accepts text and graphic output from a computer and transfers the information to paper, usually to standard size sheets of paper.

PC -  Perform calculations, store information, retrieve data and process information.

Research the IEEE 802.11g and 802.11n standards. Explain the key points of each standard including the data rates & make comparison between the two standards.

The 802.11g specification is a standard for wireless local area networks (WLANs) that offers transmission over relatively short distances at up to 54 megabits per second (Mbps), compared with the 11 Mbps theoretical maximum with the earlier 802.11b standard.

802.11g attempts to combine the best of both 802.11a and 802.11b.

802.11g supports bandwidth up to 54 Mbps, and it uses the 2.4 GHz frequency for greater range. 802.11g is backward compatible with 802.11b, meaning that 802.11g access points will work with 802.11b wireless network adapters and vice versa.

Pros of 802.11g - Fast maximum speed; signal range is good and not easily obstructed.

Cons of 802.11g - Costs more than 802.11b; appliances may interfere on the unregulated signal frequency.

802.11n is a specification for wireless LAN (WLAN) communications. 802.11n, an addition to the 802.11 family of standards, will increase wireless local area network(WLAN) speed, improve reliability and extend the range of wireless transmissions.

802.11n (also sometimes known as "Wireless N") was designed to improve on 802.11g in the amount of bandwidth supported by utilizing multiple wireless signals and antennas (called MIMO technology) instead of one.802.11n also offers somewhat better range over earlier Wi-Fi standards due to its increased signal intensity, and it is backward-compatible with 802.11b/g gear.

Pros of 802.11n - Fastest maximum speed and best signal range; more resistant to signal interference from outside sources.

Cons of 802.11n - Standard is not yet finalized; costs more than 802.11g; the use of multiple signals may greatly interfere with nearby 802.11b/g based networks.

Explain the different wireless network security risks and give the possible solution in order to avoid these risks. 

1. Rogue Access Points -  A method that is often used by attackers targeting wireless LANS is to setup a rogue access point that is within the range of the existing wireless. These are solutions to prevent the risk:

Build a policy prohibiting introducing network equipment into the network which is not owned by or approved by the company IT department.

Enforce port security so that unknown mac addresses cannot connect to your network.

Set up a separate wireless network. These access points should be secured with PEAP.

Regular security scans using tools like netstumbler to detect and track rogue access points in your network.

Perform IPsec over your network so that in case someone does set up a rogue AP, the exposed "waves" will not be plain readable in case of someone sniffing the wireless network.

2. Denial of Service -  This can be done by simply sending a large amount of traffic at a specific target.These are solutions to prevent the risk: 

Easy installation on Apache and IIS server.

Strong security against known and emerging hacking attacks

Best-of-breed predefined security rules for instant protection

Interface and API for managing multiple servers with ease

Requires no additional hardware, and easily scales with your business

3. Passive Capturing - Passive capturing is performed by simply getting within range of a target wireless LAN and then listening and capturing data.To avoid this is by implement high security standards using complex parameters.

List at least FOUR (4) wireless networking protocols and explain each protocols. 

1. 3G & 4G 

3G was the first “high speed” cellular network, and is a name that refers to a number of technologies that meet IMT-2000 standards. 4G is the generation of cellular standards that followed 3G, and is what most people use today for mobile cellular data. It needs a constant power source or must be able to be recharged regularly.

2. NFC 

Near Field Communication (NFC) is a short-range wireless connectivity standard (Ecma-340, ISO/IEC 18092) that uses magnetic field induction to enable communication between devices when they're touched together, or brought within a few centimeters of each other.

3.  LoRaWAN

A media access control (MAC) protocol for wide area networks. It is designed to allow low-powered devices to communicate with Internet-connected applications over long range wireless connections. LoRaWAN can be mapped to the second and third layer of the OSI model.

4. EnOcean

EnOcean is a protocol designed specifically for energy harvesting applications that are extremely low power. Thus, its applications are centered around building automation, smart homes, and wireless lighting control.

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Reference

UKEssays. (2015). Wireless Network Advantages and Disadvantages. [online] Available at: https://www.ukessays.com/essays/information-technology/wireless-network.php [Accessed 3 May 2017]. 

SearchMobileComputing. (2017). What is 802.11g? - Definition from WhatIs.com. [online] Available at: http://searchmobilecomputing.techtarget.com/definition/80211g [Accessed 3 May 2017]. 

SearchMobileComputing. (2017). What is 802.11n? - Definition from WhatIs.com. [online] Available at: http://searchmobilecomputing.techtarget.com/definition/80211n [Accessed 3 May 2017]. 

Lifewire. (2017). What's 802.11? What These Wireless Standards Mean. [online] Available at: https://www.lifewire.com/wireless-standards-802-11a-802-11b-g-n-and-802-11ac-816553 [Accessed 3 May 2017]. 

M.eet.com. (2017). [online] Available at: http://m.eet.com/media/1056129/11n-fig1.jpg [Accessed 3 May 2017].

network?, H. (2017). How do you prevent rogue wireless access points on a network?. Networkengineering.stackexchange.com. Retrieved 5 May 2017, from https://networkengineering.stackexchange.com/questions/123/how-do-you-prevent-rogue-wireless-access-points-on-a-network  

Prevent Denial of Service (DoS) Attacks. (2017). Applicure.com. Retrieved 5 May 2017, from http://www.applicure.com/solutions/prevent-denial-of-service-attacks

Wireless Security Considerations: Common Security Threats to Wireless Networks. (2017). Pluralsight.com. Retrieved 5 May 2017, from https://www.pluralsight.com/blog/it-ops/wireless-lan-security-threats

What is Near Field Communication (NFC)? - Definition from WhatIs.com. (2017). SearchMobileComputing. Retrieved 5 May 2017, from http://searchmobilecomputing.techtarget.com/definition/Near-Field-Communication

Home - The Things Network Wiki. (2017). Thethingsnetwork.org. Retrieved 5 May 2017, from https://www.thethingsnetwork.org/wiki/LoRaWAN/Home