A midsummer night dream

A Midsummer Night's Dream Shakespeare is one of the most well-known playwright and poet that the world has ever produced. He's known for his ability to recapitulate the array of human emotions in simple yet Intensely expressive verse. One of Shakespearean most popular plays, A Midsummer Night's Dream Is full of Intense feelings, tragic events and a happy ending. Literature can be defined as a comedy, romance, or a tragedy. A Midsummer Night's Dream can best be defined as a comedy.In literary sense, a comedy is a work which is principally designed to amuse and entertain, and where, despite problems during the narrative, all ends well for the characters (English Literature Dictionary). The play can be proven to be a comedy because of its humorous tone. The play features fairy magic, pranks and the performance of a play within the play by a group of fairies. The play even has trickery and disguise in it as well. Hernia and Alexander try to sneak away from Athens to wed behind Geese's ba ck.Also, Titanic and the nouns lovers have no Idea they've been dazed by Oberon by the love-in-idleness flowers Juice. These examples given are what put A Midsummer Night's Dream under the literature category of a comedy. A romance Is traditionally, a long fictional prose narrative about unlikely events Involving characters that are very different from ordinary people. Nowadays the modern romance novel Is a prescribed love story, where boy meets girl, obstacles get in the way, they are then overcome and the couple live happily ever after (English Literature Dictionary).A Midsummer Night's Dream could also fit into this category because of the fairies that are in it. In the play the fairies experience unlikely events, like Titanic falling in love with Bottom as he as the head of an ass. Another way the play could fit into this category would be how Hernia and Alexander are in love and are forbidden to be married. At the end of the play the obstacle of them not being able to marry is overcome when they are invited by the fairies to go back and marry with the duke.The last category is tragedy. Tragedy Is defined as a serious play where the protagonist experiences a succession of misfortunes leading to a concluding, disturbing catastrophe usually for the protagonist (English Literature Dictionary). The way love Is defined In the beginning of the play is a tragic view. Segues goes to Theses demanding that he make Hernia marry Demerits, and not Alexander. Segues says, â€Å"As she is mine, I may dispose of her. Which shall be either to this gentleman, or to her death. Even though this makes the play come off as a tragedy, the characters and situations do not allow for tragedy to aka over or take form in the plot. As a conclusion, A Midsummer Night's Dream best fits into the literary definition of comedy. It has some aspects of romance in it but comedy smothers the majority of the play. The beginning of the play can make A Midsummer Night's Dream seem that it will t urn out to be a tragedy but again comedy takes over. A Midsummer Night's Dream Is a classic example of Shakespeare comedy. â€Å"English Literature Dictionary'. Education. Asia. Education Asia. ND. Web. 14 June 2014

Ideas to Reduce Corruption

To reduce the level of corruption in our countries, we, as the next generation, must take the lead to make our desire of change public to each government. At the same time community leaders must be used to spread the idea of a progressive change. As my first step to do so, I will convince my sector leaders to increase education in people, youth and childhood, starting from just a few and going up in the whole country. After that, work with the example to other countries and make the change visible and desirable.Corruption is such a major problem in our societies. For bad luck we are daily inmerse in cases where we have to face corruption and of course we will do it depending on the circumstances. Sometimes I think that we already live with corruption as a normal standard of living, how sad! Therefore instead of falling into the trap we should in first place think about what we are doing and the repercussions that my acts are going to have in a long term.The first step is to think if there is correct way to do things, maybe it is difficult but our problem is that we feel comfortable and we forget that we can think outside the box. We should start letting our voices out, and let them be heard, and of course even if it sounds as a utopia, the change starts with us and how are we willing to face this new challenges. It? not going to be easy and we are not going to be able to change it in one day, but slowly, with a noble heart, with passion and desire, small actions can do gigantic things. Last but not least in my particular case, if someday I become what I’m wishing for; Ministry of Agriculture of Ecuador from that position at least I will be able to give back a little bit to my community and to the agricultural sector, and I will try my best to do things right for my country.To reduce corruption is not an easy thing, it requires a lot of effort, but the change should begin by getting people to acknowledge that corruption is not something distant, allusive only to politicians or people in power; sadly, corruption is enrooted in the culture of our countries at all levels; it is like cancer that spreads slowly killing ethical and moral values of citizens. I think the only way to stop the vicious circle of corruption is to raise the awareness among people that corruption must not be considered a common practice, corruption is a problem and the solution is in the hands of each and every one of us.It is in us the responsibility to say no to corruption, to build a better and fairer society. What I propose is to make a social awareness campaign which encourages people to say no to corruption, starting with simple things, like respecting the lines, not offering or receiving bribes, respecting the traffic police, acting with empathy, etc. ; the idea is that this small wins in the day to day activities of people set in an environment in which the vicious circle of corruption can be broken. This campaign should frame its message in civic pride a nd the desire for improvement, something like: â€Å"I am Latin American, and I say no to corruption†.This has to be visual; I can imagine employees putting an emblematic sign of the â€Å"I say no† campaign in front of their desks just to let know others they are not willing to make bad businesses, or policemen wearing I say no badges to let know drivers they won’t accept bribes and posters of â€Å"I say no† in court rooms. Of course this campaign should be based on real actions, such as the improvement of laws, severe penalties for corrupt public functionaries, education in schools and colleges of ethics, improvement of public services, among others.Even though such movement can be sponsored by the government, an ONG, the private sector or any group, the most important is that it must get the support of all constituencies and the message must really get to touch the mind and hearts of people to achieve the impossible, to be part of something special, a nd to create an â€Å"I say no† culture. The best way to change Latin America is to supply basic needs in the communities. Until the basic requirements of healthcare, nourishment and safety are met the more complex building blocks that would inoculate the communities from corruption cannot be achieved.To do this we need to raise the wealth and more importantly distribute it fairly. A simple solution is not available, little steps must be taken to improve governmental entities, private sector, education with example and action. Tactics like micro financing can develop the most vulnerable communities and igniting a culture of respect for those well off individuals who do affect those communities in a positive way. Whenever the benefits of taking the corrupt road outweigh the costs of taking it, the propensity of corruption among public institutions will be present in a significant way.Today in Latin America most our countries are left at the mercy of the only effective deterren t for corruption we are able to find: ethics. And as effective as they are, history has proved us that relying on them is not only naive but kind of irresponsible. So in order to get rid of this awful disease, more is needed to generate change. Going back to the first idea, individuals make their decisions considering the costs and benefits of a particular path. So in order to influence such decisions, incentives must be created to increase the benefits or increase the costs.Either way would prove to be an effective way of influencing behavior. Then what we could do is try to increase the costs of corrupt behavior. How can a society do so? By modifying their current institutions, in order to create a set of rules applicable to everyone, and creating enough will power to enforce this rules. People talk a lot of the role of culture in the corruption dilemma. Nevertheless institutions also help to shape culture. In order to change culture we first have to change our institutions.Which institutions to change, and how to change them, goes beyond the scope of the writer’s intention, but an opinion is clearly defined towards changing institutions as a way of eliminating corruption in our countries. First of all we need to act as we talk; we need to really step up and act upon our words on a positive way. Secondly we need to rely on education and values for our society. We need to start positively influencing our inner circle (Family and friends) and start working our way out (Work ad society). Corruption is something that must be change with time.You cannot change it in one week or month, even one year. The Key is culture and institutions and strong competitive market. In order to eliminate corruption you have to prepare the coming generation with new values, habits and thinking so you begin to create an environment of respect for the society.. The second thing is that it is necessary to guarantee and strong State that applies the law, but also an institution that develop new way to be more efficient and respond to a highly demand society.Finally, it is need to create incentive for people, if the people's needs are not fulfill are not totally fulfill, t is likely to fall in corruption; one way to avoid this is with real competitive market, and if there is a unfair situation, the State has to react. Assuring this three ideas it is more probably you can have a better society in the future generation. To reduce corruption in Central America we all have to do our part. If you get to deal with a corrupt person, always do the following two things; first don't comply with the corruption. Then speak up. Don't keep it to yourself. If you keep quiet, the corruption will never stop. Doing these two things, one person at a time, will make this a better region for everybody.

Discrimination And Prejudice

Prejudice is a term which is used in most of our daily conversations and means unconfirmed or untested formed belief, attitude, opinion or knowledge held about an entity or a group and it is taken as truth by the person or groups who holds such opinion, belief, attitude or knowledge, (Honey, 1999). A typical example is the belief of the western countries that Africans are primitive and nothing good comes from them. This statement qualifies as prejudice since no test has since been carried out to confirm this claim even though most western community widely accepts it.Another example to elaborate further prejudice is an opinion by Christian community that both Muslims and Hindus are sinners, not worthy of heavenly inheritance. The same is also the typical opinion held against Christians by adherents to other religious groups. This statement propagates prejudice since it is not true that following a different religious belief makes people bad. Final example in this category is the belie f by a group of people that Muslims are terrorists. Is it confirmed?Discrimination on the other hand is a term widely used to mean a process of according unequal treatment or chance to different individuals, group of people, objects or events based on the views held on them. In this case therefore, the factors about which positive view(s) is/are held have higher probability of being given favorable treatment as opposed to those factors about which negative attitudes are held. By the same token, to discriminate refers to an act of giving unequal treatment to an entity or group with presume similar characteristics, (Cochran, 1999).For instance, the belief that Africans are primitive may influence someone from western countries to prefer an American as his/her personal doctor over an African medical specialist. A faithful Christian is most is likely to appreciate neither Hindu nor Islamic faith and vise versa. Finally, most Muslims may not be given visa to most countries as other natio nals have access to this document with ease. It therefore follows that discrimination and prejudice are two interrelated words with prejudice possibly resulting to discrimination Discrimination and Prejudice Discrimination is easiest explained through prejudice. Prejudice is when a social subject holds a preconceived notion about another person or a group of people, without judging from experience. Discrimination is when a social subject acts upon such preconceived notions. A common mistake is the concept that both prejudice and discrimination are only negative, as in a derogative notion of someone (such as the treatment many minorities were subjected to), but, in truth, positive discrimination and prejudice are both possible, if there is a preconceived notion in favor of someone.Both of these notions are those of inequality, the difference between them being in thought as opposed to action of any kind. In fact, it's possible to be prejudiced and not discriminate, out of such things as fear or profit, and it is possible to discriminate for the same reasons and not be prejudiced. Though, most commonly, it is those who are biased who discriminate, and those who are-non biased give equal tr eatment to their peers from different groups.There are three types of discrimination, based mostly on the level of social deepness. There is personal discrimination, which consists of any personal attack on a minority member, from slurs to murder. This is any attack on the personal level, any interaction of particular human beings. An instance of such an attack would be calling a transgendered human spawn of Satan. There is legal discrimination, which is when a minority group is denied any kind of rights – public institutions, jobs, housing and anything social, basically.Any person who has ever been denied a job because â€Å"blacks do not work as well as whites do† (without looking at the prior credentials) knows what legal discrimination is like. And, finally, the most deeply entrenched in society is institutional discrimination. This is when there is a tradition of discrimination so deep that it is no longer viewed as discrimination, where a discriminatory idea is s o old and seemingly natural, that even members of the minority group themselves sometimes believe it.A great example is that â€Å"Romani are thieves†. Despite all cultural tradition, if this stereotype weren't upheld by society, building walls on their side of the Romani self-chose seclusion, their way of life might have changed over the centuries, like it did with many other peoples. There are four basic approaches to the matters of aging within society. The first is the functionalist approach, otherwise known as social disengagement theory.It looks upon the withdrawal of elders from society as natural, since they gradually lose social power, and thus remove themselves from social responsibilities as to make room for youth in functional aspects, while retaining the ability to engage in activities of their choosing, such as hobbies, should they so desire. However, the activity (or interactionist) theory disputes the functionalist approach, by claiming that the more active an elderly person remains, the better their quality of life. They may disengage from responsibilities, but remaining active is necessary for a full life even in this age.Research supports this, despite criticisms that this may set unrealistic goals for the elderly. Their capacity for activity does lessen, but activity remains a basic need for happiness, and needs to be fulfilled, even in this reduced amount. But if the elderly are happier if engaged in activities, why do they disengage? Conflict theory states that, since profit is the driving force behind society, there is much pressure on the elderly to leave their positions, so that younger, less expensive and more competent specialists may be hired, the elderly losing social value as time goes on.This seems more correct than the subculture approach, which states that the elderly, while disengaging with those younger, form subcultures among themselves to compensate. While subcultures may be formed, they are not the defining factor f or the disengagement, but rather, one of its consequences. And last, the exchange theory on aging combines all of these perspectives, by stating that the elderly remain active socially (and thus, happy) as long as their activity is beneficial to all involved.By â€Å"beneficial† they do not mean only economic benefits, but also the exchange of simple human feelings such as love, friendship and compassion, though some elderly people remain engaged economically (for instance, by renting rooms in their homes), and thus allow themselves the possibility of social interaction. This also includes the functionalist perspective, for it shows how rewards are given in return for past productivity. This is the most comprehensive approach.

Finance Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Finance - Term Paper Example The equity finance is an expensive and exclusive method for raising capital in the business and it comprises of ordinary and preference shareholdings, bonds and floating market shares. It also includes a listing cost and legal paper work, potential shareholders and raises wider opportunity for pool of finance (Slee, 2011). The difference in usage of appropriate financial capital structure is the selection of Leverage the business can be adhered to. It signifies the impact of debt in the company’s capital structure e.g. long-term bonds for 5 to 8 years and their impact on company’s profitability and earning stream (Khan et al., 2005). If the debt ratio is higher in good economic terms than it will also improve the required rate of return and return on equity of the business, similarly, if the debt ratio is higher in terms of recession than it creates a significance risk to the business operations and its sustainable future (Slee, 2011). According to the conventional theory of Modigliani and Miller (1985), in a perfect world the mix of debt and equity does not matter when economic terms and corporate taxes are assumed to be constant. It also suggested that value of the firm is independent of the financial capital structures and overall operating cost (Cox, 2011). It further argued that if the benefit is obtained due to low cost debt then it could be offset against the cost of equity borrowing that will be considerably higher than the debt finance. It also suggested that the cost of capital remains the same irrespective of the appropriate mix between debt and equity. It can be argued that value of the business and cost of capital will remain constant in a tax-free world e.g. United Arab Emirates (Slee, 2011). Debt financing is bind by obligations to pay interest and principal amounts and failure to meet the payment may result in serious risk to the business and in further case negative impact on the value of firm such as Bankruptcy (Khan et al., 2005). It can also be argued that as compared to the conventional theory if the business’s debt structure is higher than the equity portion, it might result in increased risk of higher interest payments and probable bankruptcy as well. It will also increase the cost of capital for the bondholders thus also indicating a highly geared business. It is suggested that to create an optimal mix of debt and equity structure, the margin level of gearing should be equal or does not outwei gh the probability of bankruptcy cost to the business (Ross et al., 2004). There are various debts to equity and debt ratio for industries and their risk level incorporating their business. The volatile industries like steel, cement, energy might adhere to higher debt ratio as compared

Elements of sustainability in the hotel industry Dissertation

Elements of sustainability in the hotel industry - Dissertation Example In order to achieve the aim of the study, the researcher set out some key specific objectives, based on which certain research questions were asked. On the basis of the specific objectives also, the researcher constructed key themes under which both primary and secondary data were collected. Four of the key themes around which data were collected are given as (1) the personality of people who patronized the services of hotels most (2) the influence of sustainability practices by hotels in their selection for occupancy by customers (3) specific elements of sustainability that contributes to customer satisfaction (4) indications concerning market directions in the demand for green hotel services. Apart from these four major themes, data were collected in other areas of the study. The secondary data collection took the form of a literature review whiles in the primary data collection, there was an online questionnaire model where 150 respondents answered various questions on the researc h problem. Results from the data collection processes showed that patronage of services of hotels is commonest among the working class, especially top executives whose work takes them on business trips. On the influence of sustainability in the selection of hotels, it was established that indeed greater number of people preferred to select a hotel that practiced sustainability to those that did not. This not withstanding, most respondents indicated that they were not satisfied with the kind of sustainability practices that go on in hotels and that they wished much emphasis would be given to areas of energy reservation, water reservation, reduced carbon emission, waste management and customer service that is based on technology. Finally, it was established that there is a growing market trend that makes most business oriented persons to settle for sustainable hotels as a way of fulfilling corporate social responsibility. The implication here is that if existing hotels want to continu e getting the services of these groups of customers they have no other option than making provisions for sustainability. Once such provisions are made, they will become competitive advantage over other hotels that do not have them in place. CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1 Background of the study During times of economic crises, the most vulnerable industries are those which deal with products and services considered to be luxuries, or at least non-necessities. One such industry is the tourism and hospitality industry, which is closely related to the hotel sector. This is not to say that hotel patronage is solely determined by tourist take-up rates, because there is a significant amount of business that is generated by customers whose trips are related to business. Good examples of these are regional conventions or other such gatherings where a good number of participants come from distant locations, and need to stay over at hotels. Other than these, however, tourists typically stay for l onger periods of time and more benefited from the hotel’s services and amenities. Because of the contracting revenues as a result of the economic crisis, hotels feel the need to develop new, non-traditional sources of competitive

The Nuclear Arms race between the United States and Soviet Union Term Paper

The Nuclear Arms race between the United States and Soviet Union during Cold war - Term Paper Example Both states continued to build bigger and more bombs. The United States tested a more powerful and new weapon (hydrogen bomb) in 1952. This prompted the Soviet Union in 1953 to follow with its version (Watts 38). The key features of the Cold War were ideological rivalry where the United States sought to spread capitalism around the world while the Soviet Union sought to spread communism. The second main feature of the Cold war was rivalry over nuclear arms race between the West led by the United States and the Communist countries led by the Soviet Union. Primarily, the United States and the Soviet Union rivaled over global primacy. Arms race is described as a form of cold war whereby two or more countries are competing to gain an advantage in nuclear and/ or conventional weapons, thus causing a spiraling upward of the number and destructiveness of weapons held by either side (Doeden 17). This paper will mainly discuss the nuclear arms race between the United States and Soviet Union during Cold War. There is a consensus among historians that the Cold War was a time of sharp opposition between the capitalist United States and the communist Soviet Union and their respective allies. It stretched from the end of the Second World War until early 1990s, the end that was marked with the Soviet Union dissolution. The arms race and the so-called terror balance between these two major blocks was the primary feature of the Cold War. These two superpowers had frosty relationship, but it never escalated into open war. However, the war put its mark on the political situation in the international system during about 45 years of the Cold War (Hoffman 29). Armed conflicts in South and Central America, Asia, and Africa were in most cases heightened by the involvement of these two superpowers with one party siding with either parties of the regional or national conflicts, supporting with money and guns. Carr Watts identifies four phases of the arms

Characteristics of living organism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Characteristics of living organism - Essay Example The genetic material can exist either as double stranded or single stranded DNA/RNA. Those that have RNA, such as HIV and Influenza, are termed retroviruses and are hard to come up with vaccinations for due to the fact that they synthesize their DNA while they are in the host cell (Beckner, Kleinsmith, Hardin, and Bertoni 99-101). Viruses have their own kind of genetic material which can be stored as DNA or as RNA. The biggest reason as to why viruses are not alive is because they cannot reproduce on their own. They are biological machinery which requires a host. They work by injecting their foreign genetic material into the cell and taking over the cells processes. In the lytic cycle, the machinery in the cell is turned over to the control of the virus. It then begins to replicate copies of itself within the cell. After the maximum area in the cell has been taken up, the cell lyses releasing all the new viruses to infect other cells in the organism. In the lysogenic cycle, the virus integrates its own genetic material into that of the host where it replicates with the organisms genetic material until external factors cause it to become active, which after it enters in to the lytic cycle (Sadava, Heller, Hillis, and Berenbaum 343-48). Viruses are even sometimes used in helping with gene therapy.

Popular Culture Today Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Popular Culture Today - Essay Example No country seems to be free from the rapid growth of popular culture. The only difference is that in advanced countries the growth of popular culture may takes place much rapidly than in underdeveloped countries. For example, soft drinks were signs of lavish life styles earlier and it was available in western countries only. However, it is available in all parts of the world at present. In other words, cultural changes or life style changes are taking place in all the corners of the world. Even the tribal people or the people living in rural areas are changing their life styles periodically. Even in some of the most patriarchal societies like Saudi Arabia, one can visualize pop culture changes. America is a country which is striving for changes. Many people are of the view that cultural changes or the development of new popular culture normally originates from America. Since America is a liberal society, it can accommodate any changes. Religion has not much role in politics or social life of the people and therefore America can welcome or accommodate any changes in pop culture easily. This paper analyses the trends in changing popular culture in America. Students may not be typical of the population as a whole, though jeans are widely popular among nonstudents of same age group, and only slightly less widespread among older age groups. So thinking about jeans is a good way to begin a discussion on popular culture (Fiske, p.1). Clothing is one area in which one can witness huge changes as part of the pop culture changes. Earlier, Americans used pants stitched in different ways. Tight pants, loos pants and bell bottom pants were the symbols of fashion at some periods of time in the past. However, the present era is the era of jeans, especially blue jeans. Majority of the celebrities, not only in America, but all over the world are fans of blue jeans at present. Even though jeans provide a rough look, even the soft hearted females are currently fans of jeans. One of the unique characteristics of jeans is the fact that it attracts all people irrespective of their religion, race, culture, gender, socioeconomic status, age etc. Apart from jeans, T shirts also attract Americans very much. Half pants is another major way through which Americans express their fashion concepts. Only on formal occasions, Americans use formal dressings like pants and coats. On all other occasions they like to wear jeans, T shirts, half pants etc. The gap between two different fashion trends has been reduced completely over the past few years. â€Å"Apparel designers used to have an eighteen-month lead time between concept and sale. Now they're reducing that to a year, or even six months, in order to react faster to new ideas from the street† (Who decides what's cool? Certain kids in certain places-- and only the cool hunters know who they are). Current generation is always looking for new ideas and concepts. The better living standards and advancements in scie nce and technology helped them in doing so. For example, the advancements in computer technologies or digital electronics brought huge changes in America and other parts of the word. The size of the computer has come down gradually and as a result of that, laptops, palmtops and gadgets entered the market. Now a mobile phone like Samsung Galaxy S2 or iPhone can perform the activities of a computer without many problems. It is difficult to see an American without a

Concert Report on Smokey Robinson Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Concert Report on Smokey Robinson - Essay Example The NYCB Theater is among the top music theaters in New York City. Being among the most famous venues for music festivals in the country, the NYCB Theater was in a good position to host the Smokey Robinson’s concert in New York. Firstly, the theater is more spacious than most music theaters in the US. This indicates that the NYCB Theater was the only theater capable of hosting an event of such a caliber as the Smokey concert. Smokey Robinson has many fans from within New York City and other major cities across the country. The attendance at the theater clearly demonstrated how Smokey Robinson is popular among his followers. The attendance of his show proved that R&B music is still popular among American despite previous claims that R&B song are losing ground to other music genres such as hip hop. This is due to the number R&B stars that are currently switching to hip-hop and rock music. Major R&B singers such as Whitney Houston have redone some of their songs in hip-hop in ord er to incorporate the preferences of the American society. The concert proved to me that R&B music still has many fans within the country. Musial theater performance is not like any other performance. I had previously come across this fact through my studies on theater and performances. Unlike other theater performances, musical theater performance can be described as a two-way performance. This indicates that a successful performance will depend on the effort of the performer and the audience. A musician performing on stage requires the response of the audience in order to achieve successful delivery. This response will include appraisal by the crowd and positive response of the audience. A performer will also prefer an audience that joins him or her in the performance. This will involve situations where a musician allows the audience to sing certain segment of his song or dance rhythmically to his song. I had learnt the theoretical concept on the importance of a responsive audienc e but I had not had a real life experience of such scenarios. The concert therefore presented me with an opportunity to verify the importance of a responsive audience to a performance. During the performance, I also had the opportunity to verify the effect that the audience have on the artist. Robinson opened the concert with his hit song Miracle that got the whole auditorium into shouts and screams of joy. Everyone who present in the theatre wanted to be next to Robinson as possible. If it was also possible, some people could have joined the superstar on the stage. However, the theater was so fully packed with fans and therefore, joining him on the stage was not possible. During this time, I discovered that Smokey is not only a songwriter and a performer, but also has a good background on crowd psychology. Similarly, he was well versed with the fact that the success of performer depends on the attitude of the audience. Smokey therefore utilized the first minutes of his performance trying to get the audience into the same tempo as his ensemble. The performer also utilized these crucial moments trying to make the audience anxious about his performance and the expectations of the show. His hit song â€Å"Miracle† compensated his expectations for the performance. During the performance, I realized that this song has many fans and, it is among his most famous song from his last album. After singing the first few lines of the song

US stock market Indexes Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

US stock market Indexes - Research Paper Example The index is used in the context of actual 500 companies having their stocks in it. All the companies are publicly held and trade on NASDAQ, one of the two largest US stock markets. The S&P 500 comes on the second number as the most widely observed index of large-cap US stocks in comparison to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), which is the no. 1 large-cap US stock. Otherwise, the S&P leads the US economy as a part of the index of leading indicators (â€Å"Real Time Charts,† 2008). The Dow Jones Industrial Average index was compiled to measure the industrial component of America’s stock markets, which is the oldest continuing U.S. market index. Currently, it consists of 30 of the biggest and vastly held companies in the U.S. The â€Å"industrial† name is no more relevant as many of the 30 modern components are unrelated to heavy industry. To make up the effects of stock splits and other settings, DJIA is currently a scaled average, not the real average of the prices of its component stocks. To generate the value of the index, the total of the component prices is fractioned by a divisor that changes over time (â€Å"Real Time Charts,† 2008). The NASDAQ Composite is a stock market index of all of the common stocks and similar securities like ADRs, tracking stocks, limited partnership interests, listed on the NASDAQ stock market, which means that it has more than 3,000 components. It is renowned as an indicator of the performance of stocks of technology companies and growth companies in the US (â€Å"Real Time Charts,† 2008). On the other hand, a number of index funds and exchange-traded funds follow the performance of the S&P 500 by keeping the same stocks as held by S&P 500 in the same values to reach near its performance level. Such companies that have added their stock to the S&P 500 list may see a rise in their stock price as the managers of the mutual funds have to purchase that companys stock

Social Problems Work Essay Example for Free

Social Problems Work Essay When referring to social problems, society generally looks at them from a larger objective or standpoint. The problem is going to include some typified examples, general terms that are associated with the problem, and statistics created in the claimsmaking process. This macrosociological approach relies on what the media has portrayed the problem to be. It is the job of social problems work to narrowly tailor aspects of a social problem in order to attempt to solve or address it in a practical and immediate manner (Best 227). Best explains that social problems workers, such as doctors and teachers, have encountered stereotypes of their roles that require them to perform grand feats but they work in highly regulated systems and industries. Bureaucratic procedures make it difficult for the workers to effect change directly. This also leads to varied amounts personal discretion that social problem workers possess. Since social problems work is narrowly tailored, specific individuals receive personal attention. These cases can be a doctor and patient’s interaction, a teacher’s conversation with their student, or a police officer’s interaction with a citizen who has made a call. When they are trying to make accurate assessments of each case, the social problems workers have to ask themselves questions like â€Å"What seems to be the problem Which aspects of the case are relevant†¦ Does this seem to be a serious matter†¦ What is the nature of the subject†¦ Are other people watching†¦ Are there work-related considerations†¦? (Best 236-239). Because the nature of their work can be so sensitive, social problems workers find that they are caught in the middle or blamed for the outcome or consequences from their work. As expected, social problems workers expect for the subjects to cooperate with their plan of action in order to help eliminate their issues, but when they do not, the workers are left to deal with the consequences. â€Å"Social problems worker try to control the flow of information about their activities. They generally prefer that others learn about the work they do directly from them†¦Ã¢â‚¬  in order to prevent the possibility of information being distorted by media outlets looking to portray their work in a certain way (Best 248). Some social problems workers go the extreme and tamper with the information they submit to reporting agencies to ensure that they are seen in the best possible light. They are able to get away with this because there are many situations in which workers are required to use their own personal discretion with out having to defer power to their supervisors or bosses until afterwards. Social problems workers are required to bring larger, abstract problems to a personal, more detailed level. Doing this can benefit certain claims by bringing an actual face and story to a social problem. It does not only create the perfect victim, but it gives a face and a personal account of how the social problem has directly affected their life or wellbeing. Activist as claims makers would benefit from using social problems workers, their subjects, and cases as a method to personify their claim. Experts as claims makers would only be able to capitalize off of social problems work by using the possibly skewed data and statistics they provide in order to give an overall picture. By looking at individual workers and cases, there is a chance they can encounter a unique situation that is not consistent with the data or point they are trying to make. In lecture, we discussed the need for claims makers to not only have statistical and concrete information to prove and advance their claim, but the need for the public to be able to relate to it and see how is also affects them or their loved ones. If it does not, there will be no reason for them to want to support the cause. Social problems work is an ideal way for this to be done because it finds a medium between expert testimony and activists. Many people have interactions with social problems workers, so it is easy for them to bring up their concerns with a particular problem and see how and if they can help or are at risk. For example, child abuse is a social issue that draws attention because of the underage status of its victims. People see children as helpless and in need of a nurturing guardian. Any adult can as a police officer, doctor, or teacher what resources are available to serve as a safe haven for abused children. I feel as though the media and social problems workers have made efforts to use each other for their own gain and benefit. Various media outlets can call upon social problems workers to boost their ratings by bring sensationalized stories and cases. This is used to play on the emotions of the public and â€Å"guilt† them into advancing their cause. This can be seen with infomercials regarding poor children in â€Å"third world countries†, children with cancer, and animal abuse advocates. Organizations like Feed The Children use images of celebrities or former government officials next to images of poverty stricken, starving children. Viewers are made to feel guilty because they are told that the amount of money they use on their daily coffee can provide essentials for that child. Once the viewer has made the connection between how much their Starbucks cost and the idea that their child does not have to live that life, they are then compelled to donate to the organization. The social problems worker in the commercial has been used a pawn for donations and ratings. Similarly, hospitals that specifically cater to children with terminal illness show individual cases of these children and their doctors. Sometimes their parents explain that their child would have not survived without the donations from viewers because the hospital does not charge for their services. The doctors also add their perspective as to how much their procedures would have cost. After they have explained the financial aspect of the individual child’s care, they then proceed to use the medical terminology for their condition with images of young children attached to massive hospital equipment. After watching the commercial and listening to the doctors, the public generally assumes that they are correct and donates to the organization. The media does this as well with animal abuse advocates. They show footage of domestic pets with lesions and injuries. Viewers are led to assume that they came from their owners. While the intentions of social problems workers are usually genuine, they are put on display on these commercials for the benefit of the organization and the network airing it, not necessarily the actual social problem or those affected by it. Social problems workers have the hard task of doing their jobs and helping their subjects in their particular cases. This is a difficult task because of the bureaucratic red tape and policies that they work through. For them to try to solve an entire social problem by themselves would be an endless task, especially due to the added consequences and stresses from the general nature of their work. This can lead to embellishments in their actual efficiency and a lackadaisical attitude towards the issue entirely. Different types of claims makers have attempted to use social problems workers to benefit them and not the entire problem, but despite this, their social problems worker and those they come in contact with are an invaluable aspect to ridding society of the issue in its entirety.

Locke, Berkeley & Hume Essay Example for Free

Locke, Berkeley Hume Essay Enlightenment began with an unparalleled confidence in human reason. The new sciences success in making clear the natural world through Locke, Berkeley, and Hume affected the efforts of philosophy in two ways. The first is by locating the basis of human knowledge in the human mind and its encounter with the physical world. Second is by directing philosophys attention to an analysis of the mind that was capable of such cognitive success. John Locke set the tone for enlightenment by affirming the foundational principle of empiricism: There is nothing in the intellect that was not previously in the senses. Locke could not accept the Cartesian rationalist belief in innate ideas. According to Locke, all knowledge of the world must ultimately rest on mans sensory experience. The mind arrives at sound conclusions through reflection after sensation. In other words the mind combines and compounds sensory impressions or ideas into more complex concepts building its conceptual understanding. There was skepticism in the empiricist position mainly from the rationalist orientation. Locke recognized there was no guarantee that all human ideas of things genuinely resembled the external objects they were suppose to represent. He also realized he could not reduce all complex ideas, such as substance, to sensations. He did know there were three factors in the process of human knowledge: the mind, the physical object, and the perception or idea in the mind that represents that object. Locke, however, attempted a partial solution to such problems. He did this by making the distinction between primary and secondary qualities. Primary qualities produce ideas that are simply consequences of the subjects perceptual apparatus. With focusing on the Primary qualities it is thought that science can gain reliable knowledge of the material world. Locke fought off skepticism with the argument that in the end both types of qualities must be regarded as experiences of the mind. Lockes Doctrine of Representation was therefore undefendable. According to Berkleys analysis all human experience is phenomenal, limited to appearances in the mind. Ones perception of nature is ones mental experience of nature, making all sense data objects for the mind and not representations of material substances. In effect while Locke had reduced all mental contents to an ultimate basis in sensation, Berkeley now further reduced all sense data to mental contents. The distinction, by Locke, between qualities that belong to the mind and qualities that belong to matter could not be sustained. Berkeley sought to overcome the contemporary tendency toward atheistic Materialism which he felt arose without just cause with modern science. The empiricist correctly aims that all knowledge rests on experience. In the end, however, Berkeley pointed out that experience is nothing more than experience. All representations, mentally, of supposed substances, materially, are as a final result ideas in the mind presuming that the existence of a material world external to the mind as an unwarranted assumption. The idea is that to be does not mean to be a material substance; rather to be means to be perceived by a mind. Through this Berkeley held that the individual mind does not subjectively determine its experience of the world. The reason that different individuals continually percieve a similar world and that a reliable order inheres in that world is that the world and its order depend on a mind that transcends individual minds and is universal (Gods mind). The universal mind produces sensory ideas in individual minds according to certain regularities such as the laws of nature. Berkeley strived to preserve the empiricist orientation and solve Lockes representation problems, while also preserving a spiritual foundation for human experience. Just as Berkeley followed Locke, so did David Hume of Berkeley. Hume drove the empiricist epistemological critique to its final extreme by using Berkeleys insight only turning it in a direction more characteristic of the modern mind. Being an empiricist who grounded all human knowledge in sense experience, Hume agreed with Lockes general idea, and too with Berkeleys criticism of Lockes theory of representation, but disagreed with Berkeleys idealist solution. Behind Humes analysis is this thought: Human experience was indeed of the phenomenal only, of sense impressions, but there was no way to ascertain what was beyond the sense impressions, spiritual or otherwise. To start his analysis, Hume distinguished between sensory impressions and ideas. Sensory impressions being the basis of any knowledge coming with a force of liveliness and ideas being faint copies of those impressions. The question is then asked, What causes the sensory impression? Hume answered None. If the mind analyzes its experience without preconception, it must recognize that in fact all its supposed knowledge is based on a continuous chaotic volley of discrete sensations, and that on these sensations the mind imposes an order of its own. The mind cant really know what causes the sensations because it never experiences cause as a sensation. What the mind does experience is simple impressions, through an association of ideas the mind assumes a causal relation that really has no basis in a sensory impression. Man can not assume to know what exists beyond the impressions in his mind that his knowledge is based on. Part of Humes intention was to disprove the metaphysical claims of philosophical rationalism and its deductive logic. According to Hume, two kinds of propositions are possible. One view is based purely on sensation while the other purely on intellect. Propositions based on sensation are always with matters of concrete fact that can also be contingent. It is raining outside is a proposition based on sensation because it is concrete in that it is in fact raining out and contingent in the fact that it could be different outside like sunny, but it is not. In contrast to that a proposition based on intellect concerns relations between concepts that are always necessary like all squares have four equal sides. But the truths of pure reason are necessary only because they exist in a self contained system with no mandatory reference to the external world. Only logical definition makes them true by making explicit what is implicit in their own terms, and these can claim no necessary relation to the nature of things. So, the only truths of which pure reason is capable are redundant. Truth cannot be asserted by reason alone for the ultimate nature of things. For Hume, metaphysics was just an exalted form of mythology, of no relevance to the real world. A more disturbing consequence of Humes analysis was its undermining of empirical science itself. The minds logical progress from many particulars to a universal certainty could never be absolutely legitimated. Just because event B has always been seen to follow event A in the past, that does not mean it will always do so in the future. Any acceptance of that law is only an ingrained psychological persuasion, not a logical certainty. The causal necessity that is apparent in phenomena is the necessity only of conviction subjectively, of human imagination controlled by its regular association of ideas. It has no objective basis. The regularity of events can be perceived, however, there necessity can not. The result is nothing more than a subjective feeling brought on by the experience of apparent regularity. Science is possible, but of the phenomenal only, determined by human psychology. With Hume, the festering empiricist stress on sense perception was brought to its ultimate extreme, in which only the volley and chaos of those perceptions exist, and any order imposed on those perceptions was arbitrary, human, and without objective foundation. For Hume all human knowledge had to be regarded as opinion and he held that ideas were faint copies of sensory impressions instead of vice versa. Not only was the human mind less than perfect, it could never claim access to the worlds order, which could not be said to exist apart from the mind. Locke had retained a certain faith in the capacity of the human mind to grasp, however imperfectly, the general outlines of an external world by means of combining operations. With Berkeley, there had been no necessary material basis for experience, though the mind had retained a certain independent spiritual power derived from Gods mind, and the world experienced by the mind derived its order from the same source. Word Count: 1374.

Purpose of Economics and Price Mechanisms

Purpose of Economics and Price Mechanisms Task 1 Describe ‘economics’, the purpose of its activities and identify economic problem. Economic system is a system aim for producing, distributing and consuming goods and services. It includes the combination of the various institutions, agencies, consumers, entities that comprise the economic structure of a given society or community. Furthermore, it also includes how these agencies and institutions are related to each other, how information flows between them and the social relations within the system which including property rights and the structure of management. The mode of production will be the related concept. Every economic system provides solutions to four questions: what goods and services will be produced; how they will be produced; for whom they will be produced; and how they will be allocated between consumption (for present use) and investment (for future use). In a devolved economic system, these questions are resolved. This lead to economic coordination to achieved through the price mechanism(Elton, 2014). The basic economic problem is about scarcity and choice since there are only a limited amount of resources available to produce the unlimited amount of goods and services which human, people wants and needs. Because of scarcity, various economic decisions must be made to allocate resources efficiently. Resources A resource is a means of support also can be regarded as any feature of our environment that helps to support our well being. There are three main types of resource: The first Physical or natural resource – such as oil, climate, water, minerals, forests and fisheries. The second human resource – peoples and their various skills. The third man made resources – e.g. machines, equipments. Scarcity Scarcity can be broken down into four key ingredients of factors of production: Land – Land includes all natural resources. Labour – Labour includes all physical and mental effort. Capital – Capital includes machinery and other items that go into further production. Enterprise – enterprise is the art of combining the other three factors in the production process. Scarce goods and services As notes above, if did not exist, all goods and services would be free. A good is considered scarce if it has a non-zero cost to consume costs something and is scarce. By consuming one good, another good is foregone. Therefore decisions and trade-offs to be made.(T.Ming, 2014,) The cost of a food is a signal of its scarcity. One good maybe more scare than another, either because of limited resources or higher want (demand) for that good. Choice Because resources are scarce and most of our wants are extensive, a choice has to be made about how to use scare resources in the best way. Based on the choice, the highest-value option will be forgone and this is called ‘opportunity cost’. This rule applies to organisations, society as a whole, and to individuals. Choice and opportunity cost Choice and opportunity cost are two fundamental concepts in economics. Given that resources are limited, producers and consumers have to make choices between competing alternatives. All economic decisions involve making choices. Individuals must choose how best to use their skill and effort, firms must choose how best to use their workers and machinery, and governments must choose how to use taxpayer’s money. Making an economic choice creates a sacrifice because alternatives must be given up, which results in the loss of benefit that the alternative would have provided. Similarly, land and other resources, which have been used to build a new school could have been used to build a new factory. The loss of thenext bestoption represents the real sacrifice and is referred to asopportunity cost. The opportunity cost of choosing the school is the loss of the factory, and what could have been produced. It is necessary to appreciate that opportunity cost relates to the loss of the next best alternative, and not just any alternative. The true cost of any decision is always the closest option not chosen. (Bong, 2014) Define the theory of ‘price mechanism’ by Adam Smith and illustrate by examples(s) to supports yours answer with relevant issues. Adam Smith is one of the Founding Fathers of economics described the â€Å"invisible hand of the price mechanism† in which the hidden-hand of the market operating in a competitive market through the pursuit of self-interest allocated resources in society’s best interest. It was the notion of the invisible hand that enabled Adam Smith to develop the first comprehensive theory of the economy as an interrelated social system. (Tay, 2014) In common, the concept is composed of three logical steps: The first is the observation that human action often leads to consequences that were unintended and unforeseen by the actors. The second step is the argument that the sum of these unintended consequences over a large number of individuals or over a long period of time may, given the right circumstances, result in an order that is understandable to the human mind and appears as if it were the product of some intelligent planner. The third and final step is the judgments that the overall order is beneficial to the participants in the order in ways that they did not intend but nevertheless find desirable. The price mechanism performs three main functions: Rationing The aim is to ration scare resources when demand in market outstrips supply. When there is a shortage of a good, the price is bid up, leaving only those with the willingness and ability to pay to purchase the product. This can causes supply and demand to reach equilibrium of demand and supply. Signaling function They adjust to demonstrate where resources are required or not, via a change in demand. For example, the price of goods which are scarce will increase. This increase in price should provide an incentive for producers to increase production of the good so that can meet the demand. Transmission of preferences Consumers are able to alert producers to changes the nature in wants and needs through their choices so that the market provides the right amount of the right goods. When demand is weaker, then the supply will contracts as the producers cut back on output. Task 2 Identify factors affecting the economics of an organization. There are few types of competition in business. They are perfect competition, imperfect competition, and monopolistic competition. Perfect competition It is a low barrier to entry, many choices by consumers, and no business has supremacy. It means that many companies competing and nobody has a substantial lead. For examples, restaurants, grocery stores, barbers shop, shopping mall, professional services such as dentist, doctor, contractor and others. It is a theoretical state in which not only single buyer or seller has influence over the any products sold in the market. Sellers are free to enter the market to sell any product and buyers are free to purchase any product wanted. A large number of producers and sellers operate in the perfect competitive market, and the products sold by one producer are easily replaced by a similar product from another producer. Prices for goods or services would be established by the rate in majority of consumers are willing to pay and producers will adjusting the productivity to balance with the price. (ReemHeakal, 2014) Imperfect competition It describes a market where many firms offer variations of the same product or multiple products are offered with differences. The difference may be differs in quality, preference, durability, price or utility. However, firm will be forced to departure the market if their products are not purchase by consumers. For example, a hair style cutting may be assisted by more than numbers of barber shops which all differing in style, price and environment. Consumers are bound only by personal preference and affordability in choosing a barber shop. (Hans, 2014) Monopolistic competition The sellers feel they do have some competition. There is one big company dominating the market with a few medium or smaller sized companies. Identify source of finance. Source of finance Some sources of finance areshort termand must be paid back within a year. Other sources of finance arelong termand can be paid back over many years. Venture capital provides long-term, dedicated share capital to help unquoted companies grow and succeed. Obtaining venture capital is significantly different from raising debt or a loan from a lender. The lenders have a legal right to interest on a loan and repayment of the capital depends on the business weather success or failure. Venture capital is the money put into an enterprise which may all be lost if the enterprise fails. A businessman starting up a new business will invest venture capital of his own, but he will probably need extra funding from other source, and can be very successful if he gets very high profits and a substantial return on the investment. However, there must be a very high risk of losing the investment and it will take some times to get the return and profits. A venture capitalist will require a high expected rate of return on investments, to recompense for the high risk. Internal sourcesof finance are funds found inside the business. For example, profits can be kept back to finance expansion. Alternatively the business can sell assets that are no longer really needed to free up cash. Internal Sources of finance and growth It defined as organic growth which is the growth generated through the development and expansion of the business itself. An organic growth can be achieved through generating increasing sales which increase income to influence on overall profit levels. Besides that, it can be used of retained profit which used to reinvest in the business. Other than that, the company also can sale their asset which can be a double edged sword so that it can reduce the capacity. External sourcesof finance are found outside the business, eg fromcreditorsor banks. External Sources of finance and growth This can be categorizing into 3 groups which are long term, short term, and inorganic growth. Long term may be paid back after many years or not to be paid. Short term is used to cover variations in cash flow. The growth which generated by gaining is used to define inorganic growth. In long term, there are shares and loans can be practice. Long term There are few types of shares in long term shares which are ordinary shares, preference shares, new share issues, rights issue and bonus or scrip issue. Ordinary shares (Equities) Ordinary shareholders have the voting to rights in making any decision for company’s benefits. The dividend can be differing according to their contribution and share capital. Last to be paid back in event of collapse. They share the price varies with trade on stock exchange. Preference share The shareholders will be paid before ordinary shareholders. They have the fixed in return. It is cumulative preference shareholders which have the right to dividend carried over to next year in event of non-payment. Rights issue The present shareholders are given discount on buying new shares.Bonus or scrip issue- It is the change to the share structure which increase number of shares and reduces value but market capitalization will remain the same.There are few types of loan in long term loan which are Debentures, bank loans and mortgages, merchant or investment banks, and government. Debentures It has the fixed in rate of return which first to be paid.Bank loans and mortgages- It is suitable for small to medium sized of corporation where property or some other asset acts as security for the loan. Merchant or Investment Banks It act depends on clients to organize and underwrite raising finance. Short term There are some categories in 5 groups including bank loans, overdraft facilities, trade credit, factoring and leasing. Bank loans It has the necessity of paying interest on the payment. The periods of payment is generally from one year then not longer than ten years. Overdraft facilities It is the right to be able to withdraw funds that do not currently have. It provides flexibility for a firm. The interest only paid on the amount been overdrawn. There is an overdraft limit which is the maximum amount allowed to be drawn. Trade credit It can help the ease of cash flow which commonly can be paid within 90 days. Factoring It is about the sale of debt to a specialist firm who secures payment and charges a commission for the services. Leasing The used of capital can be secure without the ownership. It is effectively a hire agreement. Inorganic growth It is about achievement. The components to gain the external finance of inorganic growth are merger and also takeover. Merger The Company agrees to join together which both can remain some of the identity form. Takeover The firm will be secure control by the other, the firm taken over most probability will lose its identity. Task 3 Identify and describe types of financing sources which available for the said projects. On my opinion, this company should base on medium and long terms sources of finance. Medium term sources are usually repaid between 1 – 5 years. Some sources of finance areshort termand must be paid back within a year. Short term sources are repaid within one tear. Other sources of finance arelong termand can be paid back over many years. Long term sources are usually repaid between 5 – 20 years. Medium term Hire purchase:It involves purchasing an asset paying for it over a period of time. Usually a percentage of the price is paid as down payment and the rest is paid in installments for the period of time agreed upon. The business has to pay an interest on these installments. Leasing:Leasing involves using an asset, but the ownership does not pass to the user. Business can lease a building or machinery and a periodic payment is made as rent, till the time the business uses the assets. The business does not need to purchase the asset. Advantage Disadvantage The business can benefit from the asset without purchasing it. Usually the maintenance of the asset is done by the leasing firm. The total cost of leasing may end up higher than the purchasing of asset Medium term loans:The business borrows an agreed amount, which is advanced at the start of the loan. A repayment schedule between one and five years is agreed. Interest is charged in line with general interest rates and the category of the borrower is taken into consideration. The business will normally have to provide security for the loan but, with the cash raised, they can avail of cash discounts when buying assets. Leasing:This form of finance allows a business to use an asset without having to raise the full price. In essence, the business rents the asset from a financial institution. The advantage to the business is that it allows the business claim a tax deduction for the full leasing payments over the life of the lease. The downside is that the asset is not owned unless the business decides to buy out the lease. Leasing is appropriate for IT equipment, which may have to be changed every two to three years Long term Ordinary sharesmay be issued to finance a major expansion such as the building of a factory overseas. The board of directors must convince the existing shareholders or attract investors to subscribe to the new issue. The shareholders will expect a dividend and a capital gain on their investment. The proposed expansion must therefore be profitable or else the investors will be disappointed. Retained earningsare profits, which are ploughed back into the business to create growth. This form of finance is suitable for organic growth as the pace of the expansion can be matched to the funds available. The shareholders have to give up some or all of their dividends but, if growth is a success, the value of their shares will increase. Long-term loansare borrowed from financial institutions and must be repaid with interest within five to twenty years. If repayments can be met, borrowing allows the business to grow without introducing any new owners who would have a share of all future profits. Dunes Stores, one of Irelands leading retail chains, remains a private company and does not look for shareholder funds when expanding. Instead it uses borrowings and retained earnings. This means that a small family group retain absolute control of the business. Venture capitala special type of financial institution has been formed to help firms grow. Venture capital companies provide money for a limited period of time, usually in the form of a minority equity stake. It is hoped that at the end of this time the company will have grown large enough to achieve a stock exchange quotation. This allows the venture capital company to sell its shares for a large profit. Propose a financing source which is suitable for given project. Justify the reason of the chosen option. Some sources of finance are medium term and must be paid back within 5 – 10 years. Other sources of finance arelong termand can be paid back over many years. Long term sources are usually repaid between 5 – 20 years. Long term The term venture capital is more specifically associated with putting money, usually in return for an equity stake, into a new business, a management buy-out or a major expansion scheme. The institution that puts in the money recognizes the gamble inherent in the funding. There is a serious risk of losing the entire investment, and it might take a long time before any profits and returns materialize. But there is also the prospect of very high profits and a substantial return on the investment. A venture capitalist will require a high expected rate of return on investments, to compensate for the high risk. A venture capital organization will not want to retain its investment in a business indefinitely, and when it considers putting money into a business venture, it will also consider its exit, that is, how it will be able to pull out of the business eventually and realize its profits. Examples of venture capital organizations are: Merchant Bank of Central Africa Ltd and Anglo American Corporation Services Ltd. When a companys directors look for help from a venture capital institution, they must recognize that: The institution will want an equity stake in the company. It will need convincing that the company can be successful. It may want to have a representative appointed to the companys board, to look after its interests. The directors of the company must then contact venture capital organisations, to try and find one or more which would be willing to offer finance. A venture capital organisation will only give funds to a company that it believes can succeed, and before it will make any definite offer, it will want from the company management: A business plan Details of how much finance is needed and how it will be used The most recent trading figures of the company, a balance sheet, a cash flowforecast A profit forecast Details of the management team, with evidence of a wide range of management skills Details of major shareholders Details of the companys current banking arrangements and any other sources of finance Any sales literature or publicity material that the company has issued. A high percentage of requests for venture capital are rejected on an initial screening, and only a small percentage of all requests survive both this screening and further investigation and result in actual investments. 1

Mother-Daughter Relationship in Toni Morrisons Beloved Essay -- Toni

The Mother-Daughter Relationship in Toni Morrison's Beloved In Toni Morrison novel, Beloved , the author creates a mother-daughter relationship in which the mother Sethe, out of love, murders her daughter Beloved to free and protect her from the harshness of slavery. Because of this, the baby ghost of her deceased daughter haunts her conscience and is later resurrected to further torment Sethe about her act of love. From the time she slits the throat of her infant daughter and until the end of the novel, we are associated with the justifications of Sethe's actions and become understanding of Morrison's use of this conflict to recreate history in relaying the harshness of slavery in this time period.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The sources of this intricate mother-daughter relationship spurt from Sethe's undying love for her children, a love so strong that causes her to kill her two-year old daughter and in turn for Beloved to haunt her with a "powerful spell" that parallels the powerful love Sethe has for her (4). The complexity of this conflict heightens when the reader takes i... Mother-Daughter Relationship in Toni Morrison's Beloved Essay -- Toni The Mother-Daughter Relationship in Toni Morrison's Beloved In Toni Morrison novel, Beloved , the author creates a mother-daughter relationship in which the mother Sethe, out of love, murders her daughter Beloved to free and protect her from the harshness of slavery. Because of this, the baby ghost of her deceased daughter haunts her conscience and is later resurrected to further torment Sethe about her act of love. From the time she slits the throat of her infant daughter and until the end of the novel, we are associated with the justifications of Sethe's actions and become understanding of Morrison's use of this conflict to recreate history in relaying the harshness of slavery in this time period.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The sources of this intricate mother-daughter relationship spurt from Sethe's undying love for her children, a love so strong that causes her to kill her two-year old daughter and in turn for Beloved to haunt her with a "powerful spell" that parallels the powerful love Sethe has for her (4). The complexity of this conflict heightens when the reader takes i...

Essay --

Chantin Bullock Historical Methodologies The warmth of all suns Precis December 11th, 2013 The Warmth of all suns is a collection of three people’s experiences in the Jim Crow south and how they was able to leave the South and heading to the north which was part of The Great Migration. The Great Migration was one of the most unsought after events in American History. From 1910 to 1960 over 6 million African Americans moved from the rural areas of the south to the urban Northeast, Midwest, and west. African Americans had become an urbanized population because over eighty percent of African Americans lived in cities. Since 1970 African Americans began returning to the south which is also called the reverse migration or New Great Migration. The main theme of this book is to not only provide information of the great migration, but for the reader to see the obsticles the three individuals had to encounter in order to develop the courage to finally leave a place where they weren’t treated as human beings. They decided to leave to pursuit a better life, some left to save their own lives. ... Essay -- Chantin Bullock Historical Methodologies The warmth of all suns Precis December 11th, 2013 The Warmth of all suns is a collection of three people’s experiences in the Jim Crow south and how they was able to leave the South and heading to the north which was part of The Great Migration. The Great Migration was one of the most unsought after events in American History. From 1910 to 1960 over 6 million African Americans moved from the rural areas of the south to the urban Northeast, Midwest, and west. African Americans had become an urbanized population because over eighty percent of African Americans lived in cities. Since 1970 African Americans began returning to the south which is also called the reverse migration or New Great Migration. The main theme of this book is to not only provide information of the great migration, but for the reader to see the obsticles the three individuals had to encounter in order to develop the courage to finally leave a place where they weren’t treated as human beings. They decided to leave to pursuit a better life, some left to save their own lives. ...

The Concept of Power in International Politics Essay -- International

The concept of power is central to the study of international politics. International politics has been defined in terms of influencing major nations in the world to advance the purpose of a nation against the opposition of other nations. Thus, it is rather not surprising that power, either by means of influence or control, has been a dominant concept that is intertwined in discussion when it comes to the study of international politics. Before getting into the fundamental nature of power in international relations, it is needed to consider just what power is. Power in the study of international politics can be derived in several ways as a goal of states or individual; as a measure of influence or control over actors, events, outcomes, and international affairs; as reflecting triumph in conflict and obtaining security; as control over capabilities and resources. Power can broadly be considered of as the ability to manipulate others to act according to our benefit, and to avert them f rom doing the same to us. Power is the creation, in and through social relations, of outcomes that characterize the ability of actors to find out their status and fate. This wide-ranging concept involves two fundamental critical dimensions: the types of social relations through which power works in relations of interaction or in social relations of constitutions and specificity of social relations through which effects are produced. The more power inclines more foreign policy choices; the lesser-known theory of "balance of power," where nations compete for dominance in a complicated chess game of military spending and diplomatic posturing. Possession of power permits both individuals and countries to successfully endorse and guard their interests con... ... Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan. Stronger states such as the US waged war against weaker states such as Vietnam. Interestingly, the defeat of the United States in Vietnam and of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan indicates to a more intricate concept of power which is broader than mere financial or military strength. In fact, a lot of the current theories of international relations dispute that power as conventionally described by realists is intrinsically unclear and open to analysis based on particular state of affairs. Nevertheless, it can be successfully concluded that power is primarily associated with what a state can stop another state from doing to it and what a state can do. The ways by which power is executed may be changing, yet the fundamental nature of competing desires and interests remain predominant in defining the international relations.

Battle of Hamel

July 4th 1918 in a small town of Hamel in northern France on the Western Front. There lay a joint offensive team consisting of Australians, Americans and British. They were there for one reason. To complete all objectives and defeat the Germans from a strong defensive position†¦.. This was the battle of Hamel. Good morning/ afternoon today I will be talking to you about the battle of Hamel. How it is considered to be Significant and the significance of the role Australians played in it. Considered to be the most well prepared battle of the first world war† Quoted by historian John Laffin. The preparation was so great that all objectives were taken within 93 minutes of the battle starting. With less than 1000 Australian casualties 1600 German troop were captured along with their equipment. And so with the Germans Defenses down†¦ The battle was won. The significance of the role played by the Australians in the battle of Hamel was highly distinctive and effected two main areas; the strategy and tactics employed and the leadership. Firstly Australians had a great influence on the strategy and tactics employed through out the battle. Involving three main principles of warfare such as economy, massing and Unit of Command. Using Frontal assault as their main strategy to penetrate the German lines, Artillery were used to perform a â€Å"creeping Barrage† Tactic. Providing cover for the units. The significance if this was it gave protection against the German machine guns which ended up extremely effective. Secondly Leadership. Leadership was played out by the Australian through Lieutenant General John Monash, who planned and commanded the troop into battle. â€Å"Appointing Monash as a commander the key reason for success†. Quoted again by John Laffin. This shows us how the general was able to adapt to the changing nature of warfare, using only the available resource†¦ had penetrated the enemy lines completing all objective. The Battle of Hamel was significant in world war one for two main reason. Firstly it helped hinder Germany’s invasion in France and secondly the strategy and tactics used in the battle. Becoming the Blueprint used in future battles. Quoted by Thomas Cummins â€Å"With a battle well planned, Death will not be welcomed in war† Thank you. Battle of Hamel July 4th 1918 in a small town of Hamel in northern France on the Western Front. There lay a joint offensive team consisting of Australians, Americans and British. They were there for one reason. To complete all objectives and defeat the Germans from a strong defensive position†¦.. This was the battle of Hamel. Good morning/ afternoon today I will be talking to you about the battle of Hamel. How it is considered to be Significant and the significance of the role Australians played in it. Considered to be the most well prepared battle of the first world war† Quoted by historian John Laffin. The preparation was so great that all objectives were taken within 93 minutes of the battle starting. With less than 1000 Australian casualties 1600 German troop were captured along with their equipment. And so with the Germans Defenses down†¦ The battle was won. The significance of the role played by the Australians in the battle of Hamel was highly distinctive and effected two main areas; the strategy and tactics employed and the leadership. Firstly Australians had a great influence on the strategy and tactics employed through out the battle. Involving three main principles of warfare such as economy, massing and Unit of Command. Using Frontal assault as their main strategy to penetrate the German lines, Artillery were used to perform a â€Å"creeping Barrage† Tactic. Providing cover for the units. The significance if this was it gave protection against the German machine guns which ended up extremely effective. Secondly Leadership. Leadership was played out by the Australian through Lieutenant General John Monash, who planned and commanded the troop into battle. â€Å"Appointing Monash as a commander the key reason for success†. Quoted again by John Laffin. This shows us how the general was able to adapt to the changing nature of warfare, using only the available resource†¦ had penetrated the enemy lines completing all objective. The Battle of Hamel was significant in world war one for two main reason. Firstly it helped hinder Germany’s invasion in France and secondly the strategy and tactics used in the battle. Becoming the Blueprint used in future battles. Quoted by Thomas Cummins â€Å"With a battle well planned, Death will not be welcomed in war† Thank you.

Education in the Philippines Essay

The system of education in the Philippines was patterned both from the educational systems of Spain and the United States. However, after the liberation of the Philippines in 1946, the systems have changed radically. The Department of Education (or DepEd) administers the whole educational system, which also includes the allocation of funds utilized for school services and equipment (such as books, school chairs, etc.), recruitment of teachers for all public schools in the Philippines, and the supervision and organization of the school curricula. The former education system of the Philippines is composed of 6 years of elementary education starting at the age of 6 or 7, and 4 years of high school education starting at the age of 12 or 13. In this system, education is not compulsory. However, since June 4, 2012, DepEd started to implement the new K-12 educational system,[3] which includes the new curricula for all schools (see the section). In this system, education is now compulsory. All public and private schools in the Philippines must start classes from a date mandated by the Department of Education (usually every first Monday of June for public schools only), and must end after each school completes the mandated 200-day school calendar of DepEd (usually around the third week of March to the second week of April). The implementation of the K-12 program is â€Å"phased†. The first phase of the implementation will start on SY 2012-2013. During this school year, universal kindergarten will be finally offered, and will now be a part of the compulsory education system; and a new curriculum for Grade 1 and Grade 7 students would be introduced. By SY 2016-2017, Grade 11/Year 5 will be introduced, and Grade 12/Year 6 by SY 2017-2018; with the phased implementation of the new curriculum finished by the SY 2017-2018. Students in 2nd year to 4th year high school this SY 2012-2013 are not included in the program. It is only applicable to students from Kinder to 1st year high school which is now called Grade 7. However, during the new educational cycle, from 2016 to 2018, college enrollment could slow down because of the entrance of the lower-year students to the new educational system. Primary Education Elementary school, sometimes called primary school or grade school (Filipino: paaralang elementarya, sometimes mababang paaralan), is the first part of the educational system, and it includes the first six years of compulsory education (grades 1-6). These grades are further grouped (informally) accordingly into: primary level, which includes the first three grades (grades 1-3), and intermediate level, which includes the last three grades (grades 4-6). The elementary school education covers a smaller but wider than the junior and senior high school because of the spiral approach educational technique. In public schools, the core/major subjects that are introduced starting grade 1 include mathematics, Filipino, and Makabayan (until grade 3, this subject is synonymous to social studies, but also incorporate values education and the fundamentals of political science). English is only introduced after the 2nd semester of grade 1. Science is only introduced starting grade 3. Heograpiya (geography), kasaysayan (history), and sibika (civics) (abbreviated as HEKASI), is only introduced starting grade 4 (similar also to social studies but focuses more on the subjects earlier stated). Minor subjects then include music, arts, physical education, and health (abbreviated as MAPEH). In private schools, subjects in public schools also include those of the public schools, with the additional subjects including: computer education and HELE (stands for home economics and livelihood education; while in Christian schools or in Catholic schools, religious education. International schools also have their own subjects in their own language and culture. From grades 1-3, students will be taught using their mother tongue, meaning the regional languages of the Philippines (also called as dialects) will be used in some subjects (except Filipino and English) as a medium of instruction. It may be incorporated as a separate subject. But from grade 4, Filipino and English as a medium of instruction will then be used. On December 2007, Philippine president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo announced that Spanish is to make a return as a mandatory subject in all Filipino schools starting in 2008 but it didn’t come into effect. DECS Bilingual Policy is for the medium of instruction to be Filipino for: Filipino, Araling Panlipunan, Edukasyong Pangkatawan, Kalusugan at Musika; and English for: English, Science and Technology, Home Economics and Livelihood Education. Article XIV, Section 7 of the 1987 Philippine constitution mandates that regional languages are the auxiliary official languages in the regions and shall serve as auxiliary media of instruction therein. As a result, the language actually used in teaching is often a polyglot of Filipino and English with the regional language as the foundation, or rarely the local language. Filipino is based on Tagalog, so in Tagalog areas (including Manila), Filipino is the foundational language used. Philippine regional languages are used in the provinces in the teaching of Makabayan. International English language schools use English as the foundational language. Chinese schools add two language subjects, such as Min Nan Chinese and Mandarin Chinese and may use English or Chinese as the foundational language. The constitution mandates that Spanish and Arabic shall be promoted on a voluntary and optional basis. Following on this, a few private schools mainly catering to the elite include Spanish in their curriculum. Arabic is taught in Islamic schools. Until 2004, primary students traditionally sat for the National Elementary Achievement Test (NEAT) administered by the Department of Education, Culture and Sports (DECS). It was intended as a measure of a school’s competence, and not as a predictor of student aptitude or success in Secondary school. Hence, the scores obtained by students in the NEAT were not used as a basis for their admission into Secondary school. During 2004, when DECS was officially converted into the Department of Education (DepEd), and also, as a result of some reorganization, the NEAT was changed to National Achievement Test (NAT) by the Department of Education (DepEd). Both the public and private elementary schools take this exam to measure a school’s competency. As of 2006, only private schools have entrance examinations for Secondary school. The DepEd expects over 13.1 million elementary students to be enrolled in public elementary schools for school year 2009–2010. Though elementary schooling is compulsory, latest official figures show 27.82% of Filipino elementary-aged children either never attend or never complete elementary schooling, usually due to the absence of any school in their area, education being offered in a language that is foreign to them, or financial distress. In July 2009 DepEd acted to overcome the foreign language problem by ordering all elementary schools to move towards mother-tongue based learning initially. The order allows two alternative three-year bridging plans. Depending on the bridging plan adopted, the Filipino and English languages are to be phased in as the language of instruction for other subjects beginning in the third and fourth grades. Secondary education PSHS Main Campus. Note the disparity between rural and urban education facilities in the Philippines. Secondary school in the Philippines, more commonly known as â€Å"high school† (Filipino: paaralang sekundarya, sometimes mataas na paaralan), consists of four levels largely based on the American schooling system as it was until the advent of the comprehensive high schools in the US in the middle of last century. The Philippine high school system has not moved much from where it was when the Philippines achieved independence from the US in 1946. It still consists of only four levels with each level partially compartmentalized, focusing on a particular theme or content. DepEd specifies a compulsory curriculum for all high schooling, public and private. The first year of high school has five core subjects, Algebra I, Integrated Science, English I, Filipino I, and Philippine History I. Second year has Algebra II, Biology, English II, Filipino II, and Asian History. Third year has Geometry, Trigonometry, Chemistry, Filipino III, and World History and Geography. Fourth year has Calculus, Advanced Algebra, Physics, Filipino IV, Literature, and Economics. Minor subjects may include Health, Music, Arts, Technology and Home Economics, and Physical Education. In selective schools, various languages may be offered as electives, as well as other subjects such as computer programming and literary writing. Chinese schools have language and cultural electives. Preparatory schools usually add some business and accountancy courses, while science high schools have biology, chemistry, and physics at every level. Secondary students used to sit for the National Secondary Achievement Test (NSAT), which was based on the American SAT, and was administered by DepEd. Like its primary school counterpart, NSAT was phased-out after major reorganizations in the education department. Now the National Achievement Test is administered to second year students. Higher education institutions, both public and private, administer their own College Entrance Examinations (CEE). Vocational colleges usually do not have entrance examinations, simply accepting the Form 138 record of studies from high school, and enrolment payment. Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Philippines

Literacy Plan Essay

As I am starting to learn the basics of how to become an effective teacher, I am learning what type of teacher I am and what type of teacher I want to be. Growing up, aspiring to be a teacher, I never thought teachers had to learn how to do some methods I have seen. For example, teachers always knew how to capture the students’ attention again after the children would get off task. I thought this skill came naturally to teachers and I would obtain it with time. On my adventure of this learning process of becoming a teacher, I have learned this skill is something you learn how to do and there are many other skills to learn along the way. These skills and methods come from multiple studies and research done by theorists over the decades. Learning all these theories at first was overwhelming, but over time I got a grasp on the basics of just a few theorists and their theories. There are so many researchers that have put their opinions out in the open for teachers to take into account and work from. There is Vygotsky, Cambourne, Holdaway, Piaget, Skinner, and Dewey just to name a few! After acquiring this basic knowledge of some theories, I have come to realize that there is one theorist’s methods I agree with the most when it comes to teaching literacy. This theorist is Brian Cambourne. Cambourne is an educational anthropologist from Australia who has emphasized his research in literacy learning. He has come up with many conditions pertaining to literacy learning. His theory compliments my beliefs the best, compared to the other theories I have learned about. I believe in having students experience different types of literature. This process allows students to become familiar with different ways of writing, and how to say things in many different ways. This also gives them a chance to figure out what style of language they like best and grasp an idea of what type of literacy come easiest to them. When students understand more types of literacy, it vastly opens up their range of vocabulary that can only benefit them in the future. This condition of students exploring all types of literacy is what Cambourne calls immersion and I find it to be a step that does not seem to be obvious to children. I feel students do not know when they are looking at different types of literacy. I believe in making an effort in explaining what type of material the students are reading from, rather than just handing them something and telling them to read it. This is the reason why I believe demonstration is the next big important process. Demonstration is a very important step in my eyes for literacy learning. Demonstration is modeling literate behaviors, formally and informally (Cambourne). I personally am a visual learner and prefer to have the teacher model what I am going to do before I have to employ it on my own. When a model was not available to me, I would become stressed and overwhelmed with this feeling of not knowing what I am doing. I do not want my students to become frustrated when they are reading and writing; I want them to enjoy it and be excited about it. Therefore, when I become a teacher, I especially want to practice Cambourne’s condition of demonstration by having a whole group lesson in order to formally demonstrate for my students. This can be done while the students are at their desks, but I believe having this process done in a carpet area reminds students that what I, the teacher, am about to say is important to hear. Also, I believe in the saying, â€Å"monkey see, monkey do. † Therefore, I believe a teacher should always speak proper grammar, self-correct, and demonstrate reading strategies at all times in front of the children because they are going to mimic what they hear and see the most by the adults in their lives. After a demonstration is complete, I believe an expectation of what the students should know is built. Cambourne believes this condition of expectation is that the students â€Å"get the message†. I believe that if a teacher’s demonstration was done correctly, the students will know that information and the teacher can expect them to know it. Not only does expectation build, but I believe the responsibility the student has for knowing what him/herself can accomplish grows. This process of being responsible for their own learning, I believe, does not come naturally. I think the teacher must allow these students to take on these responsibilities themselves. For example, if a teacher never lets a student choose their own book, that student will never gain the responsibility of knowing what books are right for him or her or learn how to pick the right kind of book for him or her. Learners will choose what they will explore intellectually as they go through literate behaviors (Cambourne). Once students have become aware of the skills that are being demonstrated to them, I believe the next important step is allowing students time to practice what they have learned. Cambourne calls this condition employment. I am a strong believer in â€Å"practice makes perfect†. I understand that nothing is perfect and there is always room for improvement. So maybe â€Å"practice provides improvement† is a better quote to go by. A learner will never become better at what they are learning if it is not practiced. With students practicing what they have learned, mistakes happen. This condition is what Cambourne calls approximation. I believe it is a good thing to let the learners make mistakes as they are exploring literacy because they will only learn from it! I know that when I become a teacher, I want to stress that making mistakes is okay and will benefit anyone because they will only learn from it. I could even purposely make mistakes in order to model self-correction as well. But learners will only understand their mistake when feedback is given in a timely fashion. Coming to Alverno, I have probably received the most feedback I ever have here compared to the rest of my educational career. I have come to firmly believe that feedback provides new knowledge for learners because it brings another perspective into their personal work. My feelings about feedback correspond with Cambourne’s condition called response. He believes this feedback should come from someone with more knowledge, such as a teacher. I want to make sure I conference with each of my students, individually, in order to look over what they have been working with and provide timely, appropriate feedback. I feel these conferences build a student’s confidence by being told what they are doing well, and they get to understand what kind of mistakes they are making in order to fix them and grow. After reading over Cambourne’s theory, there was nothing I could not agree with. I remember while I was reading it, all I could say was, â€Å"yes, yes, and yes! † I do have to say developing my philosophy about literacy learning was a challenge. I feel like I am still developing my philosophy, but I have a grasp on my basic beliefs for my future teaching career. I know what kind of teacher I would like to be and when reading Cambourne’s theory I could picture myself doing each condition and feeling proud by teaching literacy in such a way.