History of Skiing

The Sami people, Scandinavia’s only indigenous population during the Middle Ages, are widely credited as the inventors of skis. The primary use for skiing was a mode of transportation during the winter.

In Asia, the Han dynasty documented the first references to skiing, describing it in Northern China between 206 BCE and 220 CE. Vikings also used skis for transportation and had a god and goddess called Ullr and Skade dedicated to skiing in the ninth through the 11th centuries.

Skiing was the primary form of scouting snow-covered areas in Norway by the Norwegian army in 1200 CE. The army also tested soldiers by holding tournaments in which soldiers skied down slopes, navigated forests, and negotiated snowfields. In the 1700s, the military influenced the evolution of skiing in other areas such as Russia, Poland, and Finland, while Norway had gotten way ahead by 1760. In 1868, skiing took a new turn with the telemark ski design by Sondre Norheim that allowed skiers to choose a course lane with more precision. This paved the way for two different ski techniques named after the Norwegian mountains, where they were invented: Telemark and Christiana.

Telemark skiing involves using binders that leave the skier’s heel free to ride uphill and downhill while incorporating a turning style to move in a squatting motion. In comparison, Christiana is a type of ski turning where skiers move the skis parallel to each other.

During the later parts of the 19th century, skiing in Norway was a luxury for only those who could afford to travel to remote mountains with alpine ski courses. The sport had begun to gain popularity in North America, reaching villages high in the mountains. North Americans embraced leisurely skiing, and by the early 20th century, skiers flocked to the east coast mountains in New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire.

In 1843, Tromso, Norway, held the first cross-country skiing tournaments. Downhill skiing championships had debuted in California by the 1860s, and participants used 12-foot skis with only the front of the boot connected. In 1868, Christiania (Oslo), Norway’s capital city, held the first Norwegian national skiing contests. The city added ski-jumping competitions in 1879.

In 1908 in Germany, Robert Winkelhalder invented mechanical ski tows powered by a water mill. However, it was not until 1933 that another inventor, Alec Foster, installed the first ski tow in Canada. The United States followed in Woodstock, Vermont, the location of the first rope tow powered by motor vehicles. The tows eradicated the necessity of climbing the mountain before skiing down.

Skiing debuted as a sport in the Olympics for both men and women in 1936. The events included both downhill and slalom skiing. Still, by 1948, the events were divided into two distinct groups, and the super giant slalom became the fourth alpine skiing event in 1988 after the addition of the giant slalom in 1952. The slalom skiing event involves skiers weaving in and out of closely spaced gates while finishing high-speed turns and changing directions. Supergiant slalom skiing is similar to slalom skiing, with quicker turns and closer spaced gates.

The International Ski Federation certified freestyle skiing as a sport in 1979. It debuted at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.

In conclusion, present-day skiing is a popular sport and pastime, with many ski disciplines and styles. Advances in technology have also made the sport more accessible and more enjoyable, unlike earlier years when equipment and ski courses were too expensive to access.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/7edm145
via IFTTT

An Introduction to Golf Clubs

For those that are newcomers to golf or even those who may be apathetic to the sport, golf may seem like a simple sport where you hit the ball as hard as possible towards a hole. However, simply hitting the ball as hard as possible won’t get you the desired results, and this is where having the right equipment comes in. Being aware of this equipment and its uses will further improve your knowledge of the sport and improve your game.

The first piece of equipment you should be familiar with is a golf club. These aren’t just ordinary sticks with which you hit the ball; different clubs are used in different scenarios to attain different degrees of distances and trajectories. There are four categories of clubs: Woods, Irons, Hybrids, Wedges, and Putters.

The first category, woods, are clubs used for very long shots and to hit the ball the hardest. Originally made out of wood, these clubs are now made of steel, with a hollow shaft that enables them to be lightweight and easy to swing.

Second in this group is Irons. Divided into short, middle, and long irons, these clubs are used for shots less than 200 yards away. Their clubheads are usually much smaller and thinner than woods, and because they don’t have much loft (angled faces etched with grooves usually help with the ball’s spin), they could make the ball bounce too much.

Third, there are the Hybrids. These are a cross between woods and irons. They are also the newest category of clubs and are considered the replacement for irons because they are easier to hit. This makes them preferred by beginners as well.

Next in this category are Wedges. While they are their category of clubs, they may also be considered a sub-category of irons. This is because they have the same clubheads as irons but angled for more loft. They are divided into four, the first of which is the pitch wedge, which can make a 50-120 yard shot. The sand wedge comes second, and it is best for about 90-yard shots and getting the ball out of sand traps and rough patches. In tight situations, the gap wedge bridges the gap between the sand and pitch wedges. Finally, the lob wedge is predominantly used for getting the ball out of rough patches and back onto the green.

Last in the clubs category are the Putters. These are the clubs used at the end of the game when you need to get the ball into the hole without having to overhit it. It is also the club you will use for most of the game, so it is best to use one that you are extremely comfortable with.

Getting yourself familiarized with the different kinds of clubs, as well as their purposes and the situations they can be used in, could potentially make the difference between being a golf novice and a good golfer. Also, make sure to get clubs you can easily hit with, as those would make your swings and shots better, as opposed to struggling to hit with heavier clubs.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/IA3doG7
via IFTTT

MSU Broad College of Business Working to Realize 2030 Vision

With about 5,000 students and more than 140 faculty, Michigan State University Broad College of Business (Broad) is recognized as among the top 25 undergraduate business programs globally by U.S. News & World Report. It has a mission to develop transformational leaders who will positively impact organizations and the society. It does this by disseminating knowledge collaboratively, and fostering a culture of excellence and integrity.

Broad is currently pursuing a strategic plan, Broad 2030, to guide it in achieving its vision of becoming a top-tier business school. The plan is made up of five key initiatives: empowering lives through undergraduate education, promoting lifelong learning through graduate education, nurturing a culture of belonging and success, strengthening impactful scholarship and research, and enhancing outreach and engagement. Each of these builds on the success of Broad 2020, which the college implemented from 2015 to 2020.

So far in 2022, Broad has executed two major projects that align with the last two key strategic initiatives, strengthening both scholarship and research and enhancing engagement. For the former, Broad’s objective is to leverage the expertise of its faculty to build upon its knowledge base, address complex societal problems, and nurture the next generation of leaders. Toward this aim, in February 2022, Broad opened the Behavioral Lab at Eppley Center. This is the college’s first behavioral research lab, and it is exclusively available to Broad faculty and doctoral students for their study of consumer behavior, decision making, and teams research, among other topics that combine human interaction and business.

Built for flexibility, the lab has an open design that allows researchers to configure it to suit their research needs. It also has individual computer stations, spaces for group study, and private rooms for interviews. All these facilitate different kinds of research. For example, marketing researchers may bring study participants into the lab and perform tests on them as a unit or split them into groups and simultaneously test each group independently. The lab even has a reception area where study participants can check in and wait as the rooms are set up for their study.

Before Broad built the lab, faculty and doctoral students had to reserve other rooms such as computer labs and breakout rooms to conduct their studies. Now, with the Behavioral Lab, they have their own dedicated research space to study consumer behavior and its broad implications in business. In the future, the college plans to add equipment for specialized research such as virtual reality goggles and devices that track physiological changes such as skin conductance and blood pressure.

For enhancing outreach and engagement, Broad’s objective is to create and deepen relationships with external organizations to realize additional value for its clients and stakeholders. For example, in January 2022, Broad announced a partnership with DECA to help high school students in their transition to college and to positively influence their business careers. DECA is a global nonprofit with over 160,000 members. Broad partnered with Michigan DECA, a local chapter with members for local high schools.

To launch the partnership, Broad hosted a two-day DECA Leadership Conference that brought together over 330 students from 35 high schools to interact with corporate leaders as well as Michigan State University faculty and students. The engagements were spread out over the course of several sessions. These covered various topics including admissions at Michigan State University, college preparation, and higher education opportunities abroad. During the conference’s breakout session, Michigan State University’s admissions officer Terrene Brown even announced that students in attendance who eventually gained admission into the university would get a $500 scholarship.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/wbgkmy2
via IFTTT

Businesses Need Supply Chain Professionals for Inventory Management

Inventory management is an elaborate process that involves tracking, reporting, and organizing a business’ inventory throughout its supply chain. For some businesses such as manufacturers, it includes managing incoming raw materials from suppliers, work-in-progress goods moving along the value-adding process, and finished goods for sale to customers. For other businesses such as retailers, inventory management involves organizing ready-to-sell stock as it comes in from suppliers and goes out to customers.

Done well, inventory management minimizes a business’ inventory costs while optimizing its operations. Some of the costs associated with inventory include warehouse rent, utilities, capital expenses for storage infrastructure (shelves and boxes), and employees’ salaries. There are also insurance costs and handling costs such as paperwork. Good inventory management minimizes these costs while optimizing operations. It enables the latter by ensuring the business always has the inventory it needs, in the right amount, and at the right time. This smooths internal operations and ensures customers have access to the products they need, when they need them. It also improves cash flow as the business balances between supply costs and incoming sales receipts.

There are many types of inventory management strategies. Examples are Six Sigma, par-level inventory systems, FIFO (first in, first out), and LIFO (last in, first out). There is no one-size-fits-all strategy for businesses. In fact, many blend a number of strategies to achieve an ideal inventory management process.

Business owners who want to set up their own inventory management systems should work with supply chain professionals. These individuals possess the knowledge and experience to help business owners come up with a system that properly aligns with their unique business needs. They help business owners answer critical questions that will guide them toward realizing a suitable inventory management system. For example, at the internal business level, they will ask the business owner questions such as what are the primary and secondary items the business needs? Are they perishable? Where will the business source these items? Where will it store them and how will it organize them? Further, how will the business track its inventory and inventory holding costs?

Sales side factors will also come into play. For example, will the business be selling its products online, through a store front, or both? How will it manage its inventory levels across these channels? How will it forecast customer demand? Answering these questions will provide a firm understanding of the business’ inventory management needs, allowing the supply chain professional to prescribe an appropriate strategy.

Even after developing and implementing an inventory management system, a business will still need to monitor its success and make changes where the system needs improving. Examples of issues that point to a failure in a business’ inventory management system include excess inventory, increased inventory holding costs, inventory shortages (especially for fast-selling items), inaccurate records of inventory, and lost inventory. A business that experiences any of these too often should re-examine its inventory management system for efficiency, making changes where necessary.

External factors may also necessitate modifications to a business’ inventory management system. For example, a competitive business environment where a business’ competitors reduce their prices or launch new versions of products may require a business to re-evaluate its supply contracts to realize cost savings or upgrade its suite of products. Changing consumer preferences may also prompt modifications in the inventory management system.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/P3JZRQD
via IFTTT