Company Law Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Company Law - Coursework Example This legislation is a critical constituent of the constitution since it provides guidance to corporate entities2. Initially, company act begins by establishing diverse business forms. The key forms include partnership, sole proprietorship and companies. Sole proprietorship Sole proprietorship is the oldest business structure normally founded by a single party. Consequently, the founder of the organization serves as the overall manager of the entity3. Sole proprietorship lacks a legal personality since the owner is accountable for the organization liabilities. Similarly, the revenues of this entity act as the income of the founder for tax purposes. Sole proprietorship is the most rampant form owing to easy in formation. Moreover, the entity’s governance follows few regulations thus its operations are easy to manage. Despite the inclusion of the business form in company law, the entity lacks legal personality4. Therefore, strict legal analysis deters inclusion of Sole proprietor ship in this legislation. Because of the absence of a distinct legal personality, the founder bears all legal consequences that relate to the entity5. Partnership Represents an organization founded by more than one individual. An assorted forms of this partnership exists. Notably, the differences to the partnership exist due to liability of the founding members6. Unlimited liability characterizes a general partnership. Consequently, founders bear legal liability both individually and jointly for business’ transactions. This means that the entity has no legal individuality. Similarly, the founders coin a ratio that dictates sharing of profits. This ratio principally corresponds to the capital ratio. This section of the company provides the basis for dissolution of partnerships. Additionally, the legislation provides for limited partnership. Limited partnership deviates from the convectional partnerships by admitting partners with limited liability. Subsequently, the unlimited partner bears the blunt of the entity’s losses. Partnerships suffer multiple management hitches due to differing ideologies of the partners. However, the Company act provide for a treaty that guides the partnership. The treaty outlines how the partner will operate the entity. Moreover, it establishes the responsibility of the partners. Limited liability companies The Company act predominantly addresses this entity in detail. Fundamentally, a company represents an alliance of individuals with a unified objective. The legislation begins by establishing an entity with a distinct legal individuality7. The distinct legal individuality arose through judicial precedents. The distinct legal personality allows the entity to transact in its own identity. Additionally, a company can undertake legal action against a party. Similarly, the entity can be a defendant in litigation. â€Å"Salmon vs. Salmon† established the legal identity of the companies. Salmon, a shoe designer, incor porated his business with himself as a debenture holder8. Additionally, the entity borrowed more money creating creditors. Owing to industrial upheaval, the entity collapsed and the creditor applied for liquidation of the entity. In adherence to the company act, the liquidators paid Salmon prior to the creditors. Nonetheless, the creditor argued that the entity was a deception hence creditor should receive refunds before Salmon. The lords stated that the entity’

Sampling Questions Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sampling Questions - Research Paper Example Confidence interval with its reliability around the population measures the sampling error and ensures that it provides confidence of the samples by around 95% hence making the samples more reliable. It therefore tries to reduce the sampling error. The relationship between the two is based on inverse square root. This means that as the sample size increases the confidence intervals increases by squares. This relationship is so because an increase in sample size means a reduction in sampling error and a more reliable representation of the population that will be known and hence the reduction in the confidence interval. Probability sampling is a sampling technique where all the elements in the population have an equal chance of being included as samples. This method therefore reduces bias and it is fair. It is effective where large samples are required and time is not of the essence. The disadvantage is that it is a costly process, requires higher level of expertise and resources like time (Cozby, Paul and Bates, 146). Non-probability sampling is a technique where there is no guarantee of an equal chance of the elements in the population being included in the study. This is because the samples are chosen according to their convenience to the researcher and not randomly. The advantage of this technique is that it is time saving, very effective when the samples required are few and it is also more flexible. The lack of randomness introduces the disadvantages of bias, lack of reliability and also generalizability of the results. Response rates in surveys are sometimes lower than expected. In order to reduce this tendency it is important for the researcher to assure the respondents of the confidentiality of their responses, provide them with a bit of background information about the research hence making them informed, keep the

Theories and studies about reducing racial prejudice

Theories and studies about reducing racial prejudice Everyone has a race or ethnic group that they see themselves as being part of. On the other hand, not all people are exposed to stinging words or physical harm from a prejudiced individual because of the color of their skin. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (2005), there are approximately 210,000 hate crimes a year; racial prejudice is the motivation for over half of them. This paper will discuss theories and studies on ways to reduce racial prejudice. Racial prejudice has been around since groups of people could distinguish themselves from one another (Milner, 1983). The 1920s were when prejudice started catching the attention of psychologists as a social phenomenon that needed to be studied (Duckitt, 1992). Samelson (1978) talked about how tests between races were first meant to measure individuality but soon the authors were publishing empirical evidence that Whites were superior to Blacks (as cited in Duckitt, 1992, p. 1185). Milner (1983) states that prejudice occurs because people become frustrated, need a scapegoat, or because they are feeling some anxiety and need a way to release it. One of the first texts on prejudice and reducing prejudice was written by Gordon W. Allport. Encouraged by Robin Williams study on conditions that further the reduction of racism, Allport wrote The Nature of Prejudice in which he discusses his contact hypothesis (Utsey, Ponterotto, Porter, 2008). Allport (1954) stated that prejudice may be reduced by equal status contact between majority and minority groups in the pursuit of common goals (p. 281). Allport (1954) also says there are eight different areas of contact, causal, residential, occupational, recreational, religious, civic and fraternal, political, and goodwill intergroup activities. Allport (1954) says that both state and federal legislation can be used to pass antidiscrimination laws and have public agencies enforce these laws. According to Allport (1954), there are six programs that can be used to reduce prejudice. They are formal educational methods, contact and acquaintance programs, group retraining methods, mass media, exhortation, and individual therapy. Allport (1954) feels that individual therapy is the best one, yet no study has been convincing of this. Allport (1954) describes formal educational methods as teaching about prejudice in the school setting. There are five types of formal educational methods. There is the informational approach, direct approach, indirect approach, the approach through vicarious experience, and the project method. The next method is contact and acquaintance programs which means that White people and Black people get together and get to know each other. The third method is group retraining. In group retraining, the outgroup members and the ingroup members switch roles and try to become empathetic to each other. The fourth method is mass media in which messages are sent in the media spreading information on tolerance of others. The next method is exhortation which is like religion in which leaders spread the message of tolerance of other people. Finally, there is individual therapy in which a person meets with a therapist to change their way of thinking. Blincoe and Harris (2009) talk about three major programs that cause a minimization in racial prejudice. Cooperation is similar to Allports (1954) contact theory. This program has been used in jigsaw classrooms in which children are broken up into racially varied group and then each child is given a piece of information to teach to the others (Aronson Bridgeman, 2007; Blincoe Harris, 2009). Along with the children learning information, they also showed higher self-esteem, liked school more, and for minorities, their school grades had improved (Aronson Bridgeman, 2007). The tolerance program is synonymous with political tolerance and the respect program is supposed to reinforce and encourage diversity (Blincoe Harris, 2009). Crisp and Turner (2009) hypothesize that imagining contact with an outgroup can have a close or same effect on diminishing prejudice as actual contact with an outgroup. Turner, Crisp, and Lambert, (2007) found that participants who imagined an optimistic interaction with an outgroup member conveyed more positive attitudes and less prejudice than those who did not (as cited in Crisp Turner, 2009). Stathi and Crisp (2008) did a study that showed that even though projection of positive self traits is higher for ingroups than outgroups (Clement Krueger, 2002), positive imagined contact leads to greater projection of positive traits to outgroups (as cited in Crisp Turner, 2009, p. 234). In addition to contact theory, there is the goal based approach which consists of three goals that people need to reach. These are comprehension goals, self-enhancement goals, and motivation to avoid prejudice (Kunda Spencer, 2003). Kunda and Spencer (2003) say that comprehension goals include the need to understand events, reduce the complexity of the environment, gain cognitive clarity, and form rational impressions. Stereotypes serve these needs by enabling perceivers to simplify and understand the huge amounts of social information that they confront and to make inferences that go beyond available information (p. 524). They also say that self-enhancement goals include the need to protect and enhance self-esteem. Lastly, motivation to avoid prejudice inhibits the activation of stereotypes. When people notice that they are treating others differently because of their skin color, they will feel the discrepancies because they know it is not right. Therefore they feel guilty which ma kes them repress their prejudiced thoughts. Another part of the goal-based theory is why there is prejudice in the first place. Kenrick, Neugberg, and Cialdini (2009) feel that there are two things that prejudice does for people, it helps us gain economic resources and the characteristics of the other groups bring our economic goals to our attention. The first way to achieve the goals of the goal-based theory is to attempt to change the character of the prejudiced person. The second is to change the situation in which the prejudiced person feels like they can discriminate against others. Next is to give people a different way to satisfy their goals and last is to activate goals incompatible with prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination. Part of the goal-based approach involves looking at the point of view of other people. Galinksy and Moskowitz (2000) say that when a person looks at themselves, they have higher favorable responses to the ingroup. Turner (1987) says favoritism increases toward the in-group (as cited in, Galinsky Moskowitz, 2000, p. 709). Therefore, thinking that you are part of the outgroup will increase positive responses to them and decrease prejudice thoughts about them (Galinsky Moskowitz, 2000). In the judicial area, the goal-based approach has some significance. Studying about prejudice and ingroups and outgroups can become very important especially for those who may be suing another person in civil court for injury that they could have caused. People tend to like others who are similar to them (Kerr, Hymes, Anderson, Weathers, 1995). If a juror feels that they are not similar to the plaintiff in a malpractice case that juror might feel that the plaintiff should get a lower amount of money to compensate for the damages or perhaps believe they should not get any money at all. The same applies to the defendant. If the juror feels they are similar to the defendant than they could be more lenient on his punishment (Green Bornstein, 2003). However, Marques and Yzerbyt (1988) say that the opposite effect can also happen. That is, the jurors are harsher on an ingroup member because they are part of the ingroup and they pose a threat to the positive image of the ingroup members. They call it the black sheep effect in which positively viewed ingroup members are viewed better than outgroup members but negatively viewed ingroup members are viewed as being worse than outgroup members (as cited in, Green Bornstein 2003). Finally, there is the ignorance hypothesis. People experience prejudiced thoughts because they simply do not know any better (Kenrick, Neugberg, Cialdini, 2009). If everyone would interact with the other groups, they wouldnt stereotype individuals of other groups. However, Stephan and Stephan (1996) say research shows that this approach does little to reduce prejudice (as cited in, Kenrick, Neuburg, Cialdini, 2009). Case (2007) did a study in which college students were required to take a course on diversity. The course was designed to heighten recognition of White privilege and racism, raise support for affirmative action, and decrease prejudice, guilt, and fear of other races. The students took a survey at the beginning of the course which measured White privilege, awareness of racism, and the students level of racism to different ethnic groups. The same survey was given at the end of the semester as well. Results showed white privilege, awareness of racism and support for affirmative action increased. However, students reported greater fear of other races. Students levels of racism remained constant except for racism against Latinos, which increased. Case explains this as possibly being by chance or that the course could have actually increased prejudice. Blanchard, Lilly, and Vaughn (1991) hypothesized that hearing another person express strong antiracist opinions would have more of an effect than hearing another person express equal opinions or opinions that were more accepting of racism. They also speculated that when a person hears another person express strong support of racism, the first person showed less support of antiracism. They did two studies in which they interviewed college students in a group with a confederate who either openly expressed strong antiracist views or strong racist views when asked about a false situation in what should happen to another student who wrote racist notes. There was a neutral condition in which the participant answered the questions first and in the other condition the confederate answered first. The authors hypotheses were confirmed in both of the experiments. In 2007, four studies were done by Turner, Hewstone, and Loci that investigated self-disclosure as a mediator of the effect of cross-group friendship and vicarious experiences of such friendship (p. 371). The subjects for studies one were children between the ages of eight and twelve. The ages of the children for subjects two and three were 12 through 16. The last study included undergraduate students. In Study One, students were first given tasks that required them to categorize photographs of faces as negative or positive and White or Asian. The last tasks were to categorize White/Positive or Asian/Negative and White/Negative or Asian/Positive. In Study Two, the students were given questionnaires on their thoughts on the other ethnic group. The third study was the same as the second study except the experimenters used a larger group. In Study Four, White participants were given a questionnaire that measured predictor variables, mediator variables, and explicit outgroup attitude. So me of questions were, How often do you discuss intimate or personal issues with people who are Asian? (p. 380) and How rewarding are the interactions you have with Asian people? (p. 380). All four studies found that self-disclosure positively predicted explicit outgroup attitude. Vrij, Akehurst, and Smith (2003) conducted a study where people were shown cue cards and then were given surveys to measure prejudice. They focused on seven principles, that they say decrease prejudice when used in public campaigns. The seven principles are (1) an emphasis on similarities; (2) positive similarities in a positive context; (3) many representative members; (4) provision of explicit information; (5) employ a credible source; (6) state illegality; (7) central and peripheral routes to persuasion (p. 285). Each of the cue cards had one of the seven principles or the opposite of it. For example, state illegality was shown on one cue card as one White man and one Black man approximately the same age with wording above them that said These two men applied for a job as an Accounts Manager. The man on the left was turned down because he is Black (p. 291); the other card was the same as the first one but had the wording IT IS ILLEGAL TO DISCRIMINATE ON THE GROUNDS OF RACE (RACE R ELATIONS ACT, 1976) (p. 291). Subjects were then given a survey that measured their prejudice. Vrij, Akehurst, and Smith found that if the subject viewed a card that did not have one of the seven principles, their prejudice had increased versus if they had seen one of the principles. The two principles that had the most effect were emphasis of similarities and similarities in a positive context. Carpenter, Za ´rate, and Garzas study that was done in 2007, focused on using differences and individuality to reduce prejudice in groups that are African American, White American, Mexican American, and Mexican National. In Experiment One, the African American and White American participants were first primed with stories that had an emphasis on the personal self or others. Then, they filled out questionnaires while looking at pictures of African Americans and White Americans. The White Americans, who were primed to have an emphasis on others, had reduced prejudice. However, the African Americans showed no difference in prejudice levels. In Experiment Two, White Americans, Mexican Americans, and Mexican Nationals took self-esteem tests and then answered questions on all three groups. Carpenter, Za ´rate, and Garza (2007) found that self-esteem did not have any effect on prejudice and that looking at ways that your own ethnic group is different from other groups can lessen prejudi ce. Pettigrew and Tropp (2006) did a meta-analysis of over 500 studies and 713 independent samples that tested the intergroup contact theory. Their findings showed that intergroup contact does decrease intergroup prejudice. Pettigrew and Tropp go on to say that the conditions are not independent but entwined with each other. They also feel that intergroup contact can be utilized to end prejudice against other underrepresented groups. Racism not only exists among individual people but also in government forms. Billingsley and Giovannoni (1972) have been doing studies that show that African American children have been consistently counted out from services provided by child welfare establishments, they believe this is due to racism that exists in these institutions (as cited in, Miller Ward, 2008). Miller and Ward (2008) say there has been overrepresentation of African Americans in the welfare system for a long time. They then go on to talk about the Breakthrough Series Collaborative (BSC) methodology was used to analyze the welfare systems racism and then identify strategies to reduce the racial disproportions. The BSC theory of change has six areas which are (1) increase the awareness and understanding of the issue, (2) identify challenges and test strategies for improvement, (3) implement site-level policy and practice improvements, (4) spread the improvements throughout the larger system, (5) sustain system-wi de improvements, and (6) improve child and family outcomes (p. 227). Many participants of the program reported being able to achieve a fully functional program in their location. However, the participants said they had difficulty spreading changes from their location to a larger system. More work still needs to be done to stop the racial prejudice that occurs in the welfare system. There are also racial discrepancies in the health care system. For example, according to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2006, the age-adjusted death rate for White Americans of both sexes, was 764.4 and for African Americans of both sexes, it was 982.0 (Heron, Hoyert, Murphy, Xu, Kochanek, Tejada-Vera, 2009). In 2002, Dovidio et al. conducted a study of racism that occurs during an emergency. White subjects were half as likely to help a Black person as they were to help a White person. While the participants opposed that the idea they were racist, it was the only difference in the fabricated emergency (as cited in Carlson Chamberlain, 2004, p. 375). Carlson and Chamberlain (2004) say that to reduce the health disparities between White Americans and African Americans, there must be a change in the research areas that combine social conditions with the physiological pathways to health and disease and that we need to join together on emotional levels to understand each other to c hange racial attitudes. In addition to healthcare and welfare, racism has even showed up in our grocery stores. In a study that was done in 2003, Topolski, Boyd-Bowman, and Ferguson found differences in the quality of fruits in grocery stores that were part of the same chain but were located in different parts of the city. They collected fruit samples from stores that were located in neighborhoods that had high socio-economic status and low socio-economic status. More minorities lived in the lower income neighborhoods. The quality of the fruit in the high SES neighborhood was better than the fruit that came from the other neighborhood, as judged by students who examined, ate the fruit and then rated them. As you can see, there is hope for eliminating racial prejudice. On the other hand, a lot of the studies that I presented in this paper were done with children and college students. It still leaves out a majority of the population. Yet, I think we have come a long way from previous generations in accepting others, especially in the case of race and ethnicity. If we eliminate or even reduce racial prejudice, then minority children will do better in school, they will have better economic and career opportunities, and will experience lower rates of crime against them. With the current research on racial prejudice, we could also apply these theories to sexism, homophobia, and ageism. Hopefully, in time, Andy Warhols I think everybody should like everybody quote will finally be true.

Leashing Carnivore :: Argumentative persuasive Papers

Leashing Carnivore Just like a dog needs a leash, so does Carnivore. Carnivore is a software program that the FBI has developed to aid in the collection of evidence. After obtaining the proper court order, the FBI connects the Carnivore system to the subjects ISP. The system then scans and collects emails only relevant to the subject of the court order. The issue surrounding the Carnivore is rather or not the system enables to the FBI to violate personal privacy, and that the FBI cannot be trusted with such a system. Those opposed believe that Carnivore violates Fourth Amendment rights and that the FBI cannot be trusted not to abuse Carnivore. The FBI believes that Carnivore is well within the bounds of the law and that they can be trusted with Carnivore. I believe that the FBI should be able to use the Carnivore system, but only under strict guidelines and oversight. Some government control needs to exist on the Internet or else any one could get away with anything on the Internet. But at th e same time, the use of Carnivore needs to be controlled. The government definitely needs to have some control of the Internet. They need to have control in order to stop criminals from using the Internet. The FBI’s position on Carnivore is outlined in Donald M. Kerr’s congressional statement made before a Senate committee that was reviewing the FBI’s Carnivore system. In a congressional statement made by Donald Kerr who is the Assistant Director of the Laboratory Division for the FBI, Kerr explains terrorists, spies, hackers, and criminals used computers and the Internet with malicious intent. Another reason the FBI feels that they need Carnivore is to combat information warfare, fraud, and other various crimes on the Internet. I believe that Carnivore will help the FBI to prevent some of the crime on the Internet. There is no way for any government to completely prevent any crime on the Internet. I rather have some government control than a lawless Internet. At least this way, I would know who would be violati ng my privacy. Even though I believe that the FBI should be able to use Carnivore, I believe that there should be strict guidelines and oversight in the use of Carnivore. As it is right now, the only control over Carnivore that the public can trust is the integrity of the personnel who use it. Leashing Carnivore :: Argumentative persuasive Papers Leashing Carnivore Just like a dog needs a leash, so does Carnivore. Carnivore is a software program that the FBI has developed to aid in the collection of evidence. After obtaining the proper court order, the FBI connects the Carnivore system to the subjects ISP. The system then scans and collects emails only relevant to the subject of the court order. The issue surrounding the Carnivore is rather or not the system enables to the FBI to violate personal privacy, and that the FBI cannot be trusted with such a system. Those opposed believe that Carnivore violates Fourth Amendment rights and that the FBI cannot be trusted not to abuse Carnivore. The FBI believes that Carnivore is well within the bounds of the law and that they can be trusted with Carnivore. I believe that the FBI should be able to use the Carnivore system, but only under strict guidelines and oversight. Some government control needs to exist on the Internet or else any one could get away with anything on the Internet. But at th e same time, the use of Carnivore needs to be controlled. The government definitely needs to have some control of the Internet. They need to have control in order to stop criminals from using the Internet. The FBI’s position on Carnivore is outlined in Donald M. Kerr’s congressional statement made before a Senate committee that was reviewing the FBI’s Carnivore system. In a congressional statement made by Donald Kerr who is the Assistant Director of the Laboratory Division for the FBI, Kerr explains terrorists, spies, hackers, and criminals used computers and the Internet with malicious intent. Another reason the FBI feels that they need Carnivore is to combat information warfare, fraud, and other various crimes on the Internet. I believe that Carnivore will help the FBI to prevent some of the crime on the Internet. There is no way for any government to completely prevent any crime on the Internet. I rather have some government control than a lawless Internet. At least this way, I would know who would be violati ng my privacy. Even though I believe that the FBI should be able to use Carnivore, I believe that there should be strict guidelines and oversight in the use of Carnivore. As it is right now, the only control over Carnivore that the public can trust is the integrity of the personnel who use it.

Solow Growth Model

Solow model – how well it holds in the real world? Prepared by:- Amol Rattan (75013) Introduction Prior to Solow Model, Harrod Domar model had shown how the savings rate could play a crucial role in determining the Long run rate of Growth. Solow model however proved a result that was contrary to what Harrod Domar model had predicted. It showed that savings has only level effect on income and the growth rate of income depends upon the rate of efficiency or technical progress in the country. Solow Model relies on certain assumptions 1. There are constant returns to Scale(CRS) 2.The production function is standard neoclassical production function with diminishing returns to factor 3. The markets are perfectly competitive 4. Households save at a constant savings rate ‘s’ Equilibrium in Solow Model is defined as the steady state level of capital where the economy grows at a constant rate. By assuming that the two factors of production are capital and labour per efficie ncy unit, it can be shown that savings only affects the level of per capita income. It is only the rate of growth of efficiency which determines the rate of growth of per capita output.For production function: Y= K? L1-? Steady state values are: y†¢=[s/? +? +n]? /1-? k†¢ =[s/? +? +n]1/1-? Objective i) To find how true the result of convergence of Solow model holds for a sample of countries of the world ii) Test Solow model for India for the period 1990-2008 Methodology i) To find how true the result of convergence of Solow model holds for a sample of countries of the world †¢ To prove: Convergence result Solow model predicts that all nations with same parameter of savings rate, population growth rate and depreciation rate will all grow at the same rate in long run.This implies A) The rich countries (defined as those at high level of income) will grow at a lower rate B) The poor countries will grow at a faster rate These conditions mean that the poor countries are able to catch up with the rich countries in the long run. †¢ Test of convergence Regression We test the relation ln(rate of growth of y) = ? + ? ln(initial value of y) Conditions A and B imply that the coefficient ? should be negative Result: For a sample of 23 countries for period 1990-2008 we find: 1) the value of ? = -0. 377451859 ) I t is highly significant as the probability value(pvalue) is close to zero 3) The correlation of ln rate of growth of per capita income over the period with initial income is negative 4) % of data growth of rate of growth is explained by the initial level of income. It makes sense also as rate of growth depends not only on the initial level of income but other factors like education, R&D, etc Standard deviation We test how standard deviation of relative incomes (relative to US) of the countries changes over time. Convergence implies that income of countries become more and more equal.So we expect standard deviations to decrease over time. Result: St andard deviation falls over time for the sample of countries implying convergence Caveats The results that we get are consistent with the theoretical results. However most of the empirical work that has been done on Solow Model has shown the opposite result i. e. unconditional convergence is not seen to hold. The reason for this could the sampling error. We need to take a larger data set to test it again before accepting. ii) Test Solow model for India for the period 1990-2008Solow model gives us the steady state value of per capita income as y†¢=[s/? +? +n]? /1-? Taking log on both sides ln y†¢= (? /1-? )ln(s) – (? /1-? )ln(? +? +n) We estimate this equation for India for the period 1990-2008 A priori theory tells us that o The signs of ln s and ln (n+ ? +? ) should be opposite o The sign of ln s should be positive implying a positive impact of savings on level of per capita income o The sign of population growth increase in efficiency and depreciation should be ne gative as they lead to erosion of capital stock per capita.Result: 1. The signs are as per the expectations. Savings have indeed had a positive impact on the level of per capita income. The coefficient of saving is significant at 5 % level of significance 2. The sign of n +? +? is negative as expected. Though the value of the coefficient is very small. It is hard to believe that 1 % increase in population growth rate or depreciation rate or efficiency decreases per capita level of output by just 0. 3 %. Moreover, this term is not significant. 3.The reason could again be due to the fact that increase in expenditure on education has been taken a proxy for increasing efficiency. Perhaps growth rate of expenditure is not a good proxy and therefore we get such results. Conclusion Thus the two tests that we have taken prove some of the results of the Solow model but not all. Savings do have a positive effect on per capita level of income and convergence seems to exist for the set of count ries that we have taken. SOURCE 1. http://data. un. org/ 2. http://databank. worldbank. org/ 3. http://www. oecd. org/

Poetry Analysis Essay

?One may try and seek a definition for poetry, but there is no correct answer. In fact, each person will have his own version for the definition of poetry. But that is the beauty of poetry, the same poem will have a unique meaning for each individual that reads it. The most fitting description for poetry comes from the character Pablo Neruda in Michael Radford’s 1994 film Il Postino: The Postman, â€Å"When you explain poetry it becomes banal. Better than any explanation is the experience of feelings that poetry can reveal to a nature open enough to understand it. † Poetry is so crucial to have in the world because of the functions poetry serves as, the special qualities poetry has, and life without poetry would simply be boring. ?Poetry can function as an epiphany, awakening, for someone or to express one’s feelings. After reading a strong piece of poetry one can feel a sudden growth in confidence to change something about their life or community. In Il Postino, the character Mario Ruoppolo has an epiphany after researching poetry with the poet Pablo Neruda. Mario found the confidence to stand up to the politician who was exploiting the people of the island. Mario also became a political activist for the communist party. Poetry also helped Mario express his love for poetry. After reading a lot of poetry, Mario found confidence within himself to make changes. The epiphany poetry gave him made Mario realize he had the ability to make a difference within himself and the community. Poetry cannot just act as a catalyst for an awakening but also as a channel to express inner feelings. Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem â€Å"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways† expresses her love for her husband Robert Browning. Browning uses similes throughout the poem to express her love, â€Å"I love thee freely, as men strive for Right/ I love thee purely, as they turn to Praise. † Browning used poetry to express her forbidden love to her husband, whom she eloped with. Poetry can express other strong feelings the writer wishes to share. Poetry can be used to trigger an epiphany or to share one’s feelings. ?What is also great about poetry is that it allows writers to be creative, and to use special poetic qualities such as figures of speech or rhyme scheme. In â€Å"Young and Old† by Charles Kingsley he uses metaphors to describe the theme of aging. â€Å"When all the world is young, lad/ And all the trees are green†¦ When all the world is old, lad/ And all the trees are brown. † His successful use of metaphors paints a picture throughout the poem of being young to growing old. The use of metaphors helps the reader grasp the concept Kingsley was portraying. Rhyme scheme is a special quality poets use to make poems have a playful twist. In Philip Larkin’s poem â€Å" This Be the Verse†, the rhyming brings down the serious tone of the poem. â€Å"The fuck you up, your mum and dad/ They may not mean to, but they do. / They fill you with the faults they had/ And add some extra, just for you. † The rhyming at the end of every other line puts a playful twist on the serious tone and the strong language used. Poetry lets the writer be creative in how he wants the use poetic devices throughout the poem. ?Most importantly, try imagining life without poetry. If you’re having difficulty, try imagining the most popular genre of poetry, music. Music is a part of everyone’s life and is used in various ways such as entertainment or to cope with hardships. Music is a form of poetry with a musical beat to go along the lyrics. Artists use their music to cope with strong emotions. For example, British musician Adele used her music as a way to manage her break-up with her boyfriend. Songwriting has the same elements of poetry in the sense of expressing one’s feelings like Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Musicians also write music to shine some light on the corruption in politics. Rapper Immortal Technique uses his music to show how America’s policy making is strongly influenced by the military and corporations. He encourages society to confront policy makers to please the average working person, not the wealthiest people in society. He uses his music to inspire people to make changes like Neruda influenced Mario to have an epiphany in Il Postino.

The Adventures of Huckelbery Finn essays

The Adventures of Huckelbery Finn essays Mark Twain wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in the 1800s. During this time slavery was socially acceptable. Even in the church it was taught that there was nothing wrong with slavery. Black people were often referred to as niggers. Huck, even though he was a friend of Jim, didnt even think twice about calling a black person a nigger. Huck would say things like Give a nigger an inch and hell take an ell.(86) He didnt see anything wrong with using language like this. He didnt see anything wrong with it because he was taught to call black people niggers just like his dad did and everyone else around him did also. During this period in history in the south, that is how people talked. I think the meaning of the word nigger was different then than it is now. The word nigger was used in this book because in the 1800s it was common language. It did not have the same impact on a person back then as it does today. Jim even uses the word nigger freely as if it does not have any meaning to it. He says, I wouldnt low no nigger to call me dat.(77) Jim does not seem to be offended by the word because he uses the word himself. I think that the African Americans at this time are so prone to hearing this word used that they do not even think about what the meaning of the word nigger is. I do not think Huck really knew what the true meaning of the word nigger was. I think he just thought it was another name for a person that was black. If there is anyone in this novel that has an anti-racism attitude, it is Huck. He is the one who helped Jim escape to freedom when nobody else would have cared. Huck was Jims only friend and I think Jim knew it. When Huck found Jim on Jackson Island, Jim trusted Huck enough to tell him what he had done. Jim said, ...you wouldnt tell on me ef I uz ...

buy custom Egypt Police essay

buy custom Egypt Police essay Historical Background Defining Characteristics of that Countrys Police Force For many years, there were disturbing relationships between Egyptian police and the citizens. Such a trend contributed to developing negative stereotypes about police system among Egyptians. Contrary to the police of the United States, which have a good reputation, the Egyptian police gained notoriety that was aggravated before the revolution of 2011. The police greatly discriminated citizens in law enforcement to support the ruling regime. With total impunity, they violated human rights and the law. They had laxity in performing public duties but readily provided political security. Consequently, Egyptian society was subjected to the oppressive regime since the police system was inclined to have an authoritarian behavior (Mervio, 2015). Thus, the image of police that exists in Egyptian society shows them as those establishing order by force and defending violently the system to fulfill desires of the authorities. Police Reforms Democratic transition in Egypt could only be completed after reforming the security sectors (Human Rights Center for the Assistance of Prisoners, 2002). Reforms called to change the approaches of the police force from brutal ones to those serving the public, emphasize respect for human rights while law enforcement, train to humanely deal with people were expected to be implemented. However, the Egyptian police force has not been reformed yet. The only evident alternation was the modification of the intelligence unit name from Security Investigation to National Security and the police uniform color. In contrast, in the USA, the police force is continuously reformed. One of the latest, for example, was community policing reform aimed to establish association and society trust in law enforcement (Human Rights Center for the Assistance of Prisoners, 2002). Unique Features of the Recruitment, Training, and Qualifications of Police Recruits. In Egypt, there exists Egyptian Police Academy that maintains colleges to train and educate the police at all career stages. Cairo Police Academyis an institution in charge of training and educating the police, as it supervises all other institutions that train the police throughout Egypt (Human Rights Center for the Assistance of Prisoners, 2002). It determines the qualifications for recruits and employs the teaching staff. Police recruitment in Egypt does not require specific class, race, or bodily features from candidates. To become a policemen, one only must be a physically fit citizen of Egypt and possess the basic academic documents. The preparation of police forces focuses predominantly on education. The academies have a belief that courses encouraging decent social behavior and a development of good personality are mandatory for police officers. The officers also do the courses of academic syllabuses. Such formation of the police is clearly distinctive from police training an d education in the United States. In the US, law enforcement organizations concentrate mostly on training that is performed by the academies of the police; however, they do not have the recognition of educational institutions. Police Structures How are they Structured The government, through several arms all under the Ministry of Interior, provides law enforcement in Egypt. The ministry ensures the safety and security of all citizens and the state at large. The ministry is mandated to recruit, train and manage the security forces. It also oversees criminal investigations, administers licenses, and controls traffic among others. Egypt has the Interpol National Central Bureau (NCB) that is a combination of both administrative staff and the police. The section deals with foreign and domestic links to criminal activities. NCB also focuses on the exchange of internal intelligence information. Such structure is divergent from the American one since there exists no national police system in the United States. Police are simply on the state basis. Why did They Choose This Kind of System The Egyptian police structure was historically influences by the British one. In both systems, the police are virtually the property of the government. Moreover, the police administration is highly centralized with all instructions coming froom the Ministry of Interior. The method was adopted to assure the total authority and security of reigning regime. Police Misconduct In Egypt, police misconduct and brutality are as commonplace as any other crime and, thus, tend to be pervasive. Victims describe the police as using excessive force to get confessions from alleged criminals (Human Rights Center for the Assistance of Prisoners, 2002). Activists from the Muslim Brotherhood face particularly a lot of violence from the police as they are seen to be a political threat. After the 2011 revolution, the ruling government conceded and confirmed the existence of torture within the police system (Kandil, 2012). Such gross misconduct in the line of duty attributes to poor training as well as frustration due to understaffing. Efforts are made to curb it, and, in the recent years, numerous policemen were convicted on torture claims. Independent human rights organizations also assist with reinforcing the political will by the government. Such a situation is uncommon for the USA. The majority of police officers work with respect for the citizens they serve there (Ur bina, 2012). However, unacceptable occurrences sometimes take place, and the United States Department of Justice enforces the laws that address these occasions among the officers. Police Coordination and Cooperation The Federal Government campaigns for police cooperation are implemented both locally and at the international level. Their aim is preventing and combating organized criminal activities including terrorism (Giacomantonio, 2015). The cooperation also offers windows to relief and support in the event of serious accidents. In addition, the government assumes that there is a need to support its security authorities. It is particularly reflected in controlling criminal crosses-border offenses such as human, drug, and vehicle smuggling. The United States similarly facilitate the formation of programs that depend on coordination with state police within federal districts. To this end, the Congress enacted Law Enforcement Coordinators (LECs). The LECs promote communication, coordination, and cooperation among States law enforcement agencies (Rothman, 2012). Buy custom Egypt Police essay

Janet Reno - First Woman Attorney General of the U.S.

Janet Reno - First Woman Attorney General of the U.S. About Janet Reno Dates: July 21, 1938 - November 7, 2016 Occupation: lawyer, cabinet official Known for: first woman Attorney General, first female states attorney in Florida (1978-1993) Janet Reno Biography Attorney General of the United States from March 12, 1993 until the end of the Clinton administration (January 2001), Janet Reno was an attorney who held various states attorney positions in the state of Florida prior to her federal appointment. She was the first woman to hold the office of Attorney General of the United States. Janet Reno was born and grew up in Florida. She left for Cornell University in 1956, majoring in chemistry, and then became one of 16 women in a class of 500 at Harvard Law School. Facing discrimination as a woman in her early years as a lawyer, she became staff director for the Judiciary Committee of the Florida House of Representatives. After a failed bid for a Congressional seat in 1972, she joined the states attorneys office, leaving to join a private law firm in 1976. In 1978, Janet Reno was appointed states attorney for Dade County for Florida, the first woman to hold that position. She then won reelection to that office four times. She was known for working hard on behalf of children, against drug peddlars, and against corrupt judges and police officers. On February 11, 1993, incoming President Bill Clinton appointed Janet Reno as Attorney General of the United States, after his first two choices had problems getting confirmed, and Janet Reno was sworn in May 12, 1993. Controversies and Actions as Attorney General Controversial actions involving Reno during her tenure as U.S. Attorney General included The Branch Davidian standoff and fire in Waco, Texas,Leak of the wrong name of a suspect during the investigation of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing during the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta (and later identification of the correct suspect, Eric Rudolph, who evaded capture until 2003)Return of Elian Gonzalez to his father in Cuba, andHer reluctance to appoint a special counsel to investigate allegations about 1996 campaign fund-raising by President Clinton and Vice President Gore. Other actions of the Department of Justice under Renos leadership included bringing Microsoft to court for antitrust violations, capture and conviction of the Unabomber, capture and conviction of those responsible for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, and initiation of a lawsuit against tobacco companies. In 1995, during her term as Attorney General, Reno was diagnosed with Parkinsons disease. In 2007, when asked how it had changed her lifestyle, she replied, in part, that I do spend less time doing whitewater. Post-Cabinet Career and Life Janet Reno ran for governor in Florida in 2002, but lost in the Democratic primary. She has worked with the Innocence Project, which seeks to use DNA evidence to help gain  release of those who have been wrongfully convicted of crimes. Janet Reno never married, living with her mother until her mothers death in 1992. Her single status and her 61.5 height were the basis of innuendos about her sexual orientation and mannishness. Many writers have pointed out that male cabinet officials were not subjected to the same kinds of provably-false rumors, comments on dress and marital status, and sexual stereotyping as was Janet Reno. Reno died on November 7, 2016, the day before Election Day in the United States, when one of the major candidates was Hillary Clinton, wife of President Clinton who appointed Reno to his cabinet.   The cause of death was complications from Parkinsons disease which she had battled with for 20 years. Background, Family Father: Henry Reno (Danish immigrant, police reporter, originally named Rasmussen)Mother: Jane Wood (homemaker, then reporter)Three siblings (Robert, Maggy, Mark); Janet Reno was the eldest Education Cornell University, AB, chemistry, 1960Harvard Law School, LLB, 1963 Janet Reno Quotes Speak out against the hatred, the bigotry and the violence in this land. Most haters are cowards. When confronted, they back down. When we remain silent, they flourish.Haters are cowards. When confronted they often back down. We must resist haters.I hope to end racial, ethnic, and gender discrimination and disharmony in America by enforcing the laws to ensure equal opportunity for all Americans, and by restoring civil rights enforcement as one of the top priorities of the department. (acceptance speech for Attorney General)Im not fancy. Im what I appear to be.We want to continue the efforts against domestic violence and spread the drug courts, and develop real effective means of providing treatment for drug abusers without having to have them arrested.Nothing can make me madder than lawyers who dont care about others.At this moment I do not have a personal relationship with a computer.It might be that some day I shall be drowned by the sea, or die of pneumonia from sleeping out at ni ght, or be robbed and strangled by strangers. These things happen. Even so, I shall be ahead because of trusting the beach, the night and strangers. Anybody that thought that I tried to protect the president has forgotten that I asked for the expansion of the Monica Lewinsky matter.I mean, obviously, a situation like Waco, you wonder what you could have done differently. And in hindsight you would do something differently.I made the decision. Im accountable.The buck stops with me.I worked with some wonderful people, tried my best and I feel comfortable.Until the day I die, or until the day I cant think anymore, I want to be involved in the issues that I care about. Quotes About Janet Reno What is it about Janet Reno that so fascinates and confounds and even  terrifies  America? (Washington Post Magazine, Liza Mundy)While the capitals elite attended state dinners and fancy fundraisers, Reno would be out kayaking the Potomac River. (Julia Epstein)

How does depreciation accounting help the firm manage equipment Essay

How does depreciation accounting help the firm manage equipment investment costs and taxes - Essay Example † More so, the question which contains a series of sub-questions will be answered in the order in which these sub-questions have been asked. Current Liabilities usually form a sub-section of the Balance sheet. Typical Current Liabilities of known amounts may include accounts payable, short-term loans, outstanding salaries or other operating expenses that are still outstanding. Accounts payable refer to the amounts that ought to be paid to suppliers for merchandise bought from them in credit terms. Short-term loans are those types of loans that are usually repayable in a time period of less than a year. Outstanding expenses are those expenses that have already been incurred in the business in their day-to-day operations and which are yet to be met but have are already due. For an illustration of how Current Liabilities of known amounts are treated in the accounts, Accounts payable will be used. Whenever accounts payable increase in the business, the accounts payable ledger accou nt is usually credited with the increase while the goods or stock account is debited with a similar amount. The journal entry is usually as illustrated; Dr Cr Amount Stock a/c xx Accounts payable xx Then, this Accounts payable amount has to be put under Current Liabilities sub-section in the Balance Sheet. The other Current Liabilities are also credited with an increase and debited with a decrease. (principlesofaccounting.com, 2011) Estimated Liabilities are those liabilities for which payee is known as well as payment date, but they remain uncertain as concerns their payment amounts. These payment amounts can be estimated with reasonability, though. Uncertainty in the amounts may come about due to the fact that the amounts to be paid are based upon a given event the will occur in future or an amount which determination is not yet. Estimated Current Liabilities maybe with the inclusion of; vacation, bonus, warranty liabilities and health benefits. Any estimated liability is usually recorded for expected commodities in future to be provided in that future period. Whenever payments are met that estimated liability is usually reduced and to reflect the same in the Balance Sheet the equivalent account of estimated Current Liability in question is debited and the double entry is also reflected in the equivalent account. When a payment of an estimated current liability is made the journal entry is as follows (using health benefits as an example): Dr Cr Amount Health Benefit xx Cash/ Check xx (harpercollege.edu, 2008) Contingent Liabilities are liabilities that are connected with uncertain events. To this, the explanation given in any typical business is that some events are likely to eventually lead to a liability; however, the timing of such an event as well as the amount is not possible at present. Such liabilities are thus, referred to as Contingent Liabilities. Examples of Current Liabilities befitting this description are Legal disputes which are ongoing and wh ich may cause a contingent liability to the business, environmental pollution that may call for the business to cover the cost in future, or other liabilities like commodity warranties. However, it should be noted

Annotated Bibliography on Finance Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

On Finance - Annotated Bibliography Example Eugene Fama is one of the renowned economists, working as a finance professor in the University of Chicago. His interest in the concepts related to stock market prices have pushed him to walk through several untreated paths and notions about the subject. And in all researches of his, he has succeeded indubitably and his hypothesis on efficient markets has encouraged several other economists to pursue further research on the same subject. In this paper, he has described about the theories about random walks and through which he has raised concerns about the working aspects of a market. The author however has given only an introduction to the random walks theory and has not divulged more about its extrapolations. The stock prices can be evaluated and predicted based on their past performances. However, the authors Craig and Andrew have opposed this analysis and have shown through their experiments that stock market prices do not follow this theory. Robert Higgins, just like the author cited above, is also in the teaching profession taking classes in the field of Finance. He has done several researches in finance including on concepts that deal with the management issues present in dealing foreign exchange and money matters and also on theories that underlie the importance of valuation. In this book, the author has mainly focused on principles and issues that have to be followed and faced up in case of acquiring new resources. He also deals with the idea of managing the resources that are newly bought. The knowledge showcased by the author on the theories and ideas related to understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the financial assets of a company is exemplary. In addition he showcases very useful tools that could be used in the evaluation of financial assets of a company (Higgins, 1992). The important characteristic of the entire book is that most of the technical jargons related to finance and economics which deal with income and balance statements have been explained to the readers in a common language. 4. Firth, Michael. Share Prices and Mergers: A Study of Stock Market Efficiency. UK: Saxon House. 1976 .Print The author, being a Ph.D. holder, has quite an experience in the field of accountancy after working as an accountant for several number of years in several organizations. He is an ardent follower of economics, of its feasibility and efficiency and has published several journals and books in relevance to the mentioned topics. In this book, the author has described about the practices involved in carrying out business activities and given a critical account of the predicting game that take place in share markets - that produces the most controversial and most sensational ideas

Organizational Behavior and the Individual Essay

Organizational Behavior and the Individual - Essay Example Porter and Lawler’s theoretical model on individual motivation is largely based on this theory, and identifies expectancy, instrumentality and valence as the critical elements of motivation. These elements are related to extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors which include praise, recognition, incentives, etc and intrinsic factors are associated with an individual’s psychological values associated with work, leaders and the self (Isaac, Zerbe & Pitt, 2001). This theory has been expressed through the MARS model by McShane and Glinow (2006, 2008) who describes individual behavior as a resultant of motivation, ability, role-perception and situational factors. Motivational activities at Verizon may be related to the critical elements of expectancy theory and heed to individuals’ material motivation in the form of external compensation and benefits; achievement motivation through internal rewards and recognition, and emotional motivation through a great work place for the employees. These in turn influence individual performance shaped by extensive training involving simulation, classroom instruction, and on-the-job training that define individuals’ role-perception, create ability and cover situational factors such as product knowledge, soft skills, time and budget, facilities etc (McShane & Glinow, 2008). Verizon’s training plays a significant role in attaining high customer satisfaction scores (Noe, 2008). McShane and Glinow quote, â€Å"people rely on their ethical values do determine ‘the right thing to do’† (2006, p.33). For this, they attribute utilitarianism, individual rights, and distributive justice as the main requirements to foster ethics in organization (2006, 2008). At an organizational level, its culture is one of the main spheres where business ethics can have a significant impact on organizational

Evidence based task1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Evidence based task1 - Essay Example This in turn tends to affect the overall efficiency of the hospital. Empirical evidence collected by the authors further indicates meager relevance provided towards the improvement of compliance degree when considering hand hygiene in hospitals. The method of data processing used in the article was based on an observational survey conducted by involving 7 hospitals from 1994 to 1997. The data was accordingly segregated on the basis of attack rates of Meticillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), nosocomial infection rates and consumption of handrub disinfectant. The data was further evaluated through Chi-Square analysis and two-tailed p-values besides taking into account the secondary findings available. As mentioned, data analysis in this article was conducted on the basis of Chi-Square and Two-Tailed statistical tools. Measured through the three indicators, i.e. (1) attack rates of Meticillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), (2) nosocomial infection rates and (3) consumption of handrub disinfectant, proportions of the data gathered was treated through logistic regression that rewarded a better insight of the trends in the hospitals concerning the compliance and the non-compliance rates. In alignment with the determined objective, the researchers concluded that their implemented campaign indicated a sustainable improvement in the rate of compliance. The researchers also concluded that along with an improvement in the compliance rate for hand hygiene, nosocomial infections propensity and the propensity of MRSA transmission also increased sustainably. 3. The statistical data provided by the researchers indicated that the compliance rate was increasing following their implementation of the campaign denoting a compliance rate of 47.6% in 1994 and 66.2% in 1997. On the individual quantitative terms, this variation was

International Business Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 3

International Business Environment - Essay Example (Koontz 1984) Gabor (1990) in his analysis has mentioned that the theory of management has developed over the past one-hundred years growing from the time and motion studies of engineers to get influenced by the social movements or events; from a decentralized operation to the concept of looking for the best or supremeoperative mode of an organization or Total Quality Management or TQM. (Gabor, 1990) There are various theories associated with the organizational management and those theories are developed based on functionality of various departments. Those theories are revised with the time depending on various real life examples (incidents of various departments in various organizations) over the world. All those theories have various advantages as well as some limitations. In this paper the focus is to analyze three of the following theories, their applications and most importantly what are their advantages and what are the limitations. The Three theories are: International Product Life cycle theory; Krugman’s First Mover Advantage Theory and Porter’s Diamond model. The life cycle of any product can be divided into four distinct parts namely: introduction phase, growth phase, maturity and decline phase. When any particular product first introduce in the market then the demand for that product remains high as people wants to buy the new product. Soon after the introduction, the product often passes through the growth phase where the sales volume hit the top. Slowly it reaches the maturity phase when the demand and supply meets one point and the product is able to reach its ultimate high in terms of demand. This is the normal product life cycle associated with any product all over the globe. The IPLC or international product life cycle model was first designed by Vernon in the year of 1966. The main objective of this mode was to develop an advanced trade theory beyond David Ricardo’s static framework of comparative advantages which was designed in

Social inclusion policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social inclusion policy - Essay Example Immigration policies, while developed at the EU or national level, impact social and economic matters at the community level. In May 2003, the EU addressed this issue at the Thessaloniki summit and in June of that year at the Commission’s Communication on Integration (Spencer, 2004). Four years earlier, the EU had proposed the establishment of an ‘area of freedom, security and justice’ that would be in place by May of 2004. Known as the ‘Tampere Programme,’ this plan was designed to initiate the Common European Asylum System. In November 2004, the ‘Hague Programme’ was agreed to by the EU in order to strengthen the Tampere strategy. This programme outlined wide-ranging goals that extended to 2009. The UK, according to provisions of the EU Treaty, is not required to accept EU directives regarding immigration and asylum. Generally speaking, the UK has rejected all proposals concerning illegal immigration but has accepted the majority of EU directives concerning legal immigration (Local Government International Bureau, 2005). According to Dick Oosting who heads the EU division of Amnesty International, the attacks by terrorists in the United States on 11 September, 2001 were among the reasons that the EU began to alter its priorities towards support for security issues and away from human rights concerns with regard to immigration. Oosting remarked, â€Å"Amnesty has felt this concern since the EU’s individual states began merging some of their immigration policies in 1999† (Lobjakas, 2004). People, even those who are citizens of the EU’s 15 member states, have had to deal with immigration barriers such as the lack of legal qualifications, language difficulties and a growing public resentment. Those persons from countries outside the EU are more likely to encounter additional hardships in these areas and are in need

International Business Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 3

International Business Environment - Essay Example (Koontz 1984) Gabor (1990) in his analysis has mentioned that the theory of management has developed over the past one-hundred years growing from the time and motion studies of engineers to get influenced by the social movements or events; from a decentralized operation to the concept of looking for the best or supremeoperative mode of an organization or Total Quality Management or TQM. (Gabor, 1990) There are various theories associated with the organizational management and those theories are developed based on functionality of various departments. Those theories are revised with the time depending on various real life examples (incidents of various departments in various organizations) over the world. All those theories have various advantages as well as some limitations. In this paper the focus is to analyze three of the following theories, their applications and most importantly what are their advantages and what are the limitations. The Three theories are: International Product Life cycle theory; Krugman’s First Mover Advantage Theory and Porter’s Diamond model. The life cycle of any product can be divided into four distinct parts namely: introduction phase, growth phase, maturity and decline phase. When any particular product first introduce in the market then the demand for that product remains high as people wants to buy the new product. Soon after the introduction, the product often passes through the growth phase where the sales volume hit the top. Slowly it reaches the maturity phase when the demand and supply meets one point and the product is able to reach its ultimate high in terms of demand. This is the normal product life cycle associated with any product all over the globe. The IPLC or international product life cycle model was first designed by Vernon in the year of 1966. The main objective of this mode was to develop an advanced trade theory beyond David Ricardo’s static framework of comparative advantages which was designed in

Goethe’s Faust Essay Example for Free

Goethe’s Faust Essay Scene vii of Faust ii act v takes place in a steep, rocky side of an unspecified mountain. The scene is dominated by female characters and takes place on earth. It starts with a chorus of nature spirits, in which the nature is describes the mutually interdependent processes taking place. The idyllic conditions described by the chorus of nature are the celebration of processes like plant and animal life, earth and water. Then enter the four anchorite fathers, who seem to represent progressively increasing degrees of spiritual attainment. First there is Pater Ecstaticus who is hovering up and down in the air. Then there is Pater Profundus who apparently lives in the depth of the earth. He marvels at the creative processes of nature and describes lightning, trees which strive to reach heaven and water flowing from heaven to earth. His heart is however is not at peace and he asks for a divine illumination from the Lord â€Å"Oh, God! Calm my thoughts, pacify us/ And bring light to my needy heart! † The third father is Pater Seraphicus. He lives in the middle regions, (probably between the air and earth). He invites the spirits of young boys who died at birth and had not thus experienced earthly life to come and experience the world through his body. Then a group of angels pass by carrying the soul of Faust and relate why they rescued Faust’s soul. We learn that Faust soul was saved because he struggled so much in developing his projects (â€Å"Whoever strives, in his endeavor, we can rescue from the devil. †). In this instance we are also told of the other reason why Faust’s soul was saved which is that Gretchen was interceding for him to Mother of God. The Younger Angels say of how they distracted the Mephistopheles by using roses of holy love. The More Perfect Angels also say that even though the heart of Faust has â€Å"escaped the flames† it is still impure and that the bond between the soul and body is left for â€Å"Eternal Love† to unwind. The angels then take Faust’s soul to the blessed boys above who â€Å"Joyfully receive Him as a chrysalis† after all the ‘threads that surround him’ disappear since ‘divine love has found him. ’ Then we meet the fourth anchorite father, Doctor Marianus who resides in ‘the purest cell’. When he sees â€Å"womanly shapes† floating around he starts praising Mater Gloriosa and together with the choir of penitent women, Magna Peccatrix, (the woman who anointed Jesus’ feet), the Samaritan woman who met Christ at the well and Mary of Egypt together plead to Mater Gloriosa not to begrudge the true soul of Gretchen. They plead that she transgressed without knowledge of her fall. The Gretchen herself goes to Mater Gloriosa and pleads on behalf of Faust asking Mater Gloriosa to allow her, Gretchen, to teach him the new ways there since he is still blinded by the bright light. She says that Faust is a completely new person having â€Å"thrown off every bond/ Of his old earthbound integument,† The scene ends when Mater Gloriosa accepts Faust’s soul and beckons Gretchen and all the others to follow her into the higher sphere. This scene takes place by the Aegean Sea where the Sirens are addressing the Moon. The Nereids and Tritons are also swimming around and even swim to the Greek mythological island of Samothrace, ‘the domain of the mighty Cabiri’ in an effort to show that they are more than fish. Meanwhile, Thales and Homunculus have gone to visit the sea god, Nereus for advice on how Homunculus can be reborn completely. Thale tells Homunculus that though Nereus is stubborn and a grumbler, people respect him because of his wisdom. They then meet Nereus, who is angry and wants to send them away, he tells them of how men can never heed advice and tells them of how Paris laughed at him when he told him of the future he saw, he also tell them of how he warned Ulysses of ‘Cyclops’ horrors and of Circes wiles’ but the advice brought Ulysses no gain. He tells them finally to go to Proteus, the shape changer since he is waiting for Dorides and Galatea. Nereids and Triton arrive then carrying Cabiri in a turtle-shell and Thales and Homunculus watch the procession. Proteus, who is hovering near is so attracted by the light that that homunculus emits. He draws near and Thales asks for advice on Homunculus’ behalf. Proteus suggests that homunculus can repeat the human birth process by starting in the sea and then develop to a full being. They then all (Thales, Proteus and Homunculus) leave together to go and watch the sea festival. In the procession, the Telchines, the nine dog-headed Children of the Sea, pass by and boast that they were the first to shape gods in the image of man. Galatea finally arrives and Nereus, the Sirens and Thales comment on the doves of Paphos which accompany Galatea. Galatea comes closer to her father. And in the process Homunculus drawn near and smashes the glass that holds him at the feet of Galatea and all marvels as the light of Homunculus mixes with the waves in a symbolic marriage with the sea. Analysis of the acts In both these two acts there is a strong reference to the female presence. The female presence in act v is represented by Mater Glorioso, Gretchen, Choir of Female Penitents, Magna Peccatrix, The Woman of Samaria, Mary of Egypt and the female forms that hover in the sky which Dr. Marianus. The strong women influence in this act, as in the rest of the drama, shows the empathetic face of women. The three repentant women plead for Gretchen while Gretchen pleads for Faust. The women are a strong symbolism to life givers. Mater Glorioso gives Faust soul another life by uttering few words. In this act we also know that the soul Faust is received by the young boys in a ‘pupal’ stage. This is so like Homunculus, who is a half being and only survives in a bottle. The rebirth of Homunculus takes place when he joins with the Galatea in a sea wedding. This is what completes Homunculus. Faust soul is also completed by the love of Gretchen. It is Gretchen’s love that finds him and is to lead him in the new place since ‘The new light still blinds him. ’ In act ii, there is also an overwhelming female presence. The sirens, Nereids and Tritons, Galatea, Dorides are all representative of female personalities. Generally this act is one in which the three, Homunculus, Faust and Mephistopheles are on a search of what completes them, which in the three cases happen to be the female personality. References Wolfgang, Johann von Goethe. Faust. Berlin: Bernhard Tauchnitz, 1867.

The importance of caterpillar inc in mining

The importance of caterpillar inc in mining Caterpillar Inc is the largest maker of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines and industrial gas turbines in the world (Caterpillar Inc, 2010, p.1). It was started in 1925, and is based in Peoria, Illinois. Its operations are divided into three segments: machinery, engines, and financial business segments (Businessweek, 2010). With a global footprint, Caterpillar Inc.s product line boasts of more than 300 products, manufactured in twenty three countries (Caterpillar Inc, 2010). In the sections that follow, an internal analysis of the firm is carried out and its distinctive capabilities and core competencies evaluated. Its corporate, functional, and competitive strategies are also analyzed. Distinctive capabilities: The resource-based view of the firm asserts that an organizations resources and capabilities underpin the bedrock upon which the firms competitive advantage and strategy is based. While resources refer to the productive assets owned by the firm (Saloner, Shepard, and Podolny, 2008, p.12), capabilities refer to what the firm can do (Saloner, Shepard, and Podolny, 2008, p.12). Three types of resources have been identified: tangible resources, intangible resources, and human resources. As far as Caterpillar Inc is concerned, these are discussed below: Tangible Resources: Financial Resources: Caterpillar has a strong and healthy cash flow position. Net cash flows have increased from $592,000 in 2007 to $1,614,000 in 2008 and $2,131,000 in 2009 (Yahoo Finance, 2010). It enjoys strong market capitalization, which stands at $39.8 billion compared to only $6.29 billion for its closest competitor and the industry average of $1.71 billion. Its operating margins as well as price earnings ratio are well above the industry average (Yahoo Finance, 2010). Caterpillars sales revenues, profits, and other financial indicators have shown a consistent improvement over the years. For instance, sales revenues have risen from $30.3bn in 2004 to $51.3bn by 2008, surpassing the firms 2010 target of $50bn with two years to go. Over the same period, profits have risen from $2bn to $3.6bn. Other financial ratios have also witnessed a strong climb-up (Annual Report). The firm also boasts of an investment-grade credit rating as well as easy access to the capital (Caterpillar I nc, 2009). Marketing Resources: Caterpillar Inc has a marketing and distribution system that spans the entire globe. Additionally, it holds the market leadership position in the construction and mining industries as well as in the construction of natural gas, diesel, and industrial engines (Caterpillar Inc, 2009). With the broadest global footprint in the industry, it is very well diversified in terms of geographical spread and derives only 33% of its revenues in the US market. With over 300 products in its product line, its product base can be described as broad and well diversified which can help cushion it against downturns in specific product areas. Its customer service can also be described as superior, given that the firm offers among others quality assurance underpinned by a three year warranty, as well as fixed rate long-term financing tailored to specific customer needs (Caterpillar Inc, 2009). Physical Resources: Caterpillar Inc boasts of hi-tech manufacturing facilities spread in at least twenty three countries, and geared towards production in thirteen different industries. Under the Caterpillar Production System (CPS), it has a world class manufacturing, supply chain, and distribution system that are closely aligned with the flexible manufacturing philosophy (Caterpilar Inc, 2009). Intangible Resources: Technology: the number of patents which Caterpillar Inc has received has continued to increase year after successive year. By 2010, it had 620 patents. This is in line with its expenditure on RD which has grown from just $928 million in 2004 to $1.73bn by 2008 (Caterpillar Inc, 2009). Reputation: the market leader in the construction and mining industries and in the natural gas, industrial, and diesel engine industries, Caterpillar enjoys strong brand recognition as well as a strong reputation for machines distinguished by their specialist expertise, durability, design, as well as dealer and service excellence. According to Saloner, Shepard, and Podolny (2008, p.12), resources by themselves cannot give a firm a competitive advantage but must be blended together to give the firm capabilities. Based on the inventory of Caterpillar Inc.s resources presented above, the firms capabilities can be given as follows: strong financial position which also gives the firm a high ability to finance innovation (RD) and working capital requirements, raise credit financing to expand its operations or investments, as well as the ability to finance its customers and dealers purchases over the long run. Strong innovation capabilities as evidenced by the increasing number of patents it holds and the sustained investment in RD activities. Supply chain efficiencies (flexibility, cost effectiveness, etc) as evidenced by its Caterpillar Production System (CPS). Strong manufacturing and distribution capabilities as evidenced by its global configuration of production, supply, and distribution facilities. Strong marketing capabilities as defined by its market leadership position, broad product portfolio (over 300 products in thirteen different industries), its strong brand recognition and reputation, and superior customer service and excellence. Selznick (1990) coined the term distinctive competences / capabilities to describe those things which the organization does extremely well relative to its marketplace rivals. In the case of Caterpillar Inc, its distinctive capabilities can be said to include: its innovation and financial capabilities as well as its well-diversified product base and geographical spread. Core competencies: Prahalad and Hamel (1990) define core competencies as those capabilities which are central to an organizations achievement of a sustainable competitive advantage. For the capability to be termed as a core competence, it has to meet four criteria as spelled out by the VRIO framework. It must be valuable, rare, inimitable, and the organization must be sufficiently organized to exploit it. While Caterpillar Inc has a very broad product line and wide geographical spread, this can be easily replicated by its rivals through a deliberate strategy of market development and product diversification. Its supply chain capabilities can also be easily replicated through undertaking demand and supply chain integration activities such as maintaining low inventory levels and adopting flexible manufacturing systems. Its main core competencies therefore are its innovation capabilities, its superior financial position, and its superior customer service. Strategy: Strategy formulation has been described as taking place at three levels: the corporate level, business level, and the functional level. Robbins and Coulter (2005) identify three types of corporate strategies. These include growth, retrenchment, and stability strategies. Traditionally, Caterpillar has pursued the growth strategy which involves aggressively expanding into new markets and introducing new products so that by 2008 it had more than 300 products. Apart from its domestic US market, it has spread to most countries in Asia Pacific, Africa, Europe and Middle East, and Latin America. However, prompted by the increasingly cyclical nature of the industries across which it operates as well as the recent global economic recession, the firm put brakes on its growth strategy and pursued a retrenchment strategy instead. This was characterized by cost reduction initiatives, closure of underperforming business units, and employee layoffs (Caterpillar Inc, 2009). According to its annual report, the firms trough planning initiative has involved: Scaling down the number of its employees by more than 20,000, through voluntary as well as forced layoffs. Additionally, the firm has done away with many contingent workers (that is, temporary, agency, and contract employees). Reducing working hours as well as closing some plants temporarily in many of its global facilities. In some areas, the firm has introduced shorter working weeks. The firm has also undertaken various measures to optimize its supply chain management. These include reduction of inventories (which is expected to lead to lower inventory carrying costs), forging closer relationships with key suppliers, and the alignment of its logistical processes to conform to its flexible manufacturing system dubbed the Caterpillar Production System (CPS). It has drastically reduced compensation levels for its employees and managers, in some instances by as much as half. This is expected to drive cost savings. According to Robbins and Coulter (2005), firms which pursue the corporate strategy of growth have various strategic alternatives at their disposal. These include: concentration, vertical integration, horizontal integration, and diversification strategies. Of the four strategies, Caterpillar Inc has primarily made use of the diversification and horizontal integration strategies. Diversification involves expanding the firms scope of operations into other industries and product lines and this can be seen in the firms expansion to over 300 products and in thirteen industries. The horizontal integration strategy involves merging operations with other players in the same industry with a view of enhancing the firms competitive thrust and lowering competition in the industry. In the case of Caterpillar, this is evidenced by: Combination of its operations with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in 1965 in the Japanese market; joint venture with Navistar International Corporation which led to the creation of a new entity known as NC2 Global LLC in 2009; and a joint venture agreement with China Yuchai Machinery Co. Ltd in 2009 (Businessweek, 2010). The Ansoff Matrix has further identified the strategies which can be pursued by a firm deploying the corporate strategy of growth as: product development, market development, diversification, and market penetration strategies (Mercer, 1996). The firm has predominantly made use of the product development strategy which involves the introduction of new products for existing markets. Cases in point include the introduction by the company of next generation mining trucks, the first ever electric drive tracks in the industry, as well as the innovation of the revolutionary cat 175 engine (Caterpillar Inc, 2009). The market development strategy is also evident in the firms strategic posture, especially in its forays into more countries through geographic expansion. Some of the countries recently ventured into by Caterpillar include Saudi Arabia and India (Caterpillar Inc, 2009). At the business level, three main strategies have been identified. These include the overall low cost leadership strategy, the differentiation strategy, and the niche / focus strategy. The niche strategy has further been distinguished as either a differentiated niche strategy or focused low cost strategy. Additionally, an organization may follow a stuck in the middle approach where it simultaneously pursues two or more of these strategies (Porter, 1998). Of the three generic strategies, Caterpillar Inc can be described as following the generic strategy of differentiation. As its annual report (Caterpillar, 2009) attests, this strategy is based on two of its core competencies: its innovation capabilities and superior customer service. Functional level strategies are strategies which are implemented at the functional level in order to support the business level and ultimately, the corporate level strategies (Robbins and Coulter, 2005). For example, as far as the human resource is concerned, the firm continues to put a lot of emphasis on the training and development of its personnel. In 2008 for example, it spent up to $60 million in training and development initiatives. By ensuring that its employees are well trained and developed, the firm can see to it that creativity and innovation is fostered and that the staff are in a position to deliver exceptional levels of customer service. Its customer service strategy for example has involved offering three year warranties, and long term financing for customers and dealers (Caterpillar Inc, 2009). Its manufacturing strategy has involved upgrading of its facilities. For example, in 2008, the firm spent up to $2.4 billion in initiatives aimed at modernizing its manufacturing infrastructure. Other functional level strategies include ensuring costs are kept within manageable levels while maintaining high quality standards through initiatives such as the Six Sigma program, and ensuring that the organization is aligned with emerging market needs (Caterpillar Inc, 2009).

The Effect of Concentration on the Rate of Reaction :: GCSE Chemistry Coursework Investigation

The effect of concentration on the rate of reaction between sodium thiosulphate and dilute hydrochloric acid This investigation is about rates of reaction and what affects them. In this case I am going to look at hydrochloric acid and sodium thiosulphate which is a precipitation reaction causing the solution to go 'cloudy'. They react as in the equations below: sodium thiosulphate + hydrochloric acid -> sodium chloride + sulphur + sulphur dioxide + water Na2S2O3(aq) + 2HCl(aq) -> 2NaCl(aq) + S(s) + SO2(g) + H2O(l) A reaction will only occur where the particles of the reactants meet and combine. This is called the collision theory. For a reaction to occur particles have to collide with each other. Only a small percent result in a reaction. This is due to the energy barrier to overcome. Only particles with enough energy to overcome the barrier will react after colliding. The minimum energy that a particle must have to overcome the barrier is called the activation energy, or Ea. The size of this activation energy is different for different reactions. If the frequency of collisions is increased the rate of reaction will increase. However the percent of successful collisions remains the same. An increase in the rate of reaction can be achieved by increasing the frequency of collisions. Therefore to increase the rate of reaction it is necessary to cause more particles to collide harder and collide more often. There are several ways to do this and these make up the factors for this experiment. They are listed below along with predictions as to their affect on the reaction. Possible Factors To make sure I carry out a fair test I will only change the concentration of sodium thiosulphate. I will keep the following factors the same. Increasing the pressure. By reducing the volume in which the same amount of particles exist the pressure is increased. Once the same number of particles are in a smaller area there is less space in which to move and so the particles are more likely to hit each other. It is therefore possible to predict that increasing the pressure will result in an increase in the rate of reaction. I will not test this variable because we don't have the facilities to test it. However pressure is a continuous variable. Catalyst. A catalyst is a separate substance that speeds up a reaction. After the reaction has happened it gets left behind. This makes this variable unsuitable for the type of experiment I am going to do. Temperature. By giving the particles extra energy they will move faster. This means that they cover more ground and are therefore more

Lightning Never Strikes Twice :: essays research papers

Lightning Never Strikes Twice A few miles off the cost of Cape Cod, sits the island of Nantucket. On this island, during the 1600’s lived the Haley family. Tom Haley was the only tobacco farmer on the island and due to this fact they were extremely wealthy. Their estate was the largest on Nantucket and was located right over a beautiful cliff. Tom and his wife Janice ate breakfast every morning at 6:00am everyday with their son Garnet. Late Thursday night a storm was getting very close to their house until a bright fist from the heavens stroked down on their chimney and collapsing the house, killing the entire Haley family. As the legend of the family goes their souls were not able to escape the rubble and float into the sky. Therefore their soul will inhabit the house until their able to escape. Their souls will reside there until they find another soul to watch over the house. Three months ago. Steve Windmere a wealthy young CEO of AT&T is driving around Nantucket looking for a new house to settle in. When he comes across the most beautiful house he has ever seen. He loved every bit of it from the aged gray shingles to the pealing paint off the white shutters. With a happy surprise he sees a Murrey’s real estate sign. As fast as he can he looked at the address, "52 Cliff road" he says to himself. He rushes to his car and drives to Murrey’s real estate office on Main Street. He signs up to buy the house right away. Of course everyone working there has a greedy look in his or her eyes while Steve signs the contract. Being so self-centered as he is he doesn’t even notice. Steve could smell the sweat falling from the agents. They were so nervous most of them had to leave, they couldn’t believe that they were actually going to sell the old Haley residents. When he was finished he stepped out on to Main Street and sa w a mysterious man sitting up against the brick wall of the real estate office. The mysterious man got up and walked toward Steve and said, "looks like you just bought more than you bargained for." Laughing he walked away into a fog that seemed to appear out of nowhere, confused and baffled Steve just walked across the street to Something Natural to have lunch.

Diffusion Coefficient Apparatus Essay

General Start-up Procedure: ïÆ'Ëœ Prior to running an experiment, students are advised to perform the following startup procedure. ïÆ'Ëœ Fill the water with clean (preferably filtered) water to approximately 20 mm from the top. ïÆ'Ëœ Plug the main cable to the electrical supply. Be sure that the voltage of the supply is correct to suite the equipment. ïÆ'Ëœ Switch on the main power on the control panel. ïÆ'Ëœ Adjust the set-point value on the temperature controller to 500C. Warning!! Do not set the temperature controller beyond 700C. Switch on the heater. Observe the water temperature heats up to 50 0C and remain constant. The equipment is now ready for experiment. Priming procedure for capillary Tube: Before using the capillary tube in an experiment using acetone, students are advised to clean the inside of the tube. ïÆ'Ëœ Prepare a weak solution of detergent. ïÆ'Ëœ Use the Hirschman pipette to fill the tube with the solution. Tapping the of side of the tube may be necessary if the solution is trapped and does not flow down. ïÆ'Ëœ Turn the tube upside-down and shake. Empty the tube. ïÆ'Ëœ Repeat steps 2 to 3 with acetone. ïÆ'Ëœ The tube is now ready for student experiment. General Shut-down Procedure: ïÆ'Ëœ After the completion of an experiment, students are advised to shut down the equipment as follows: ïÆ'Ëœ Switch off the heater and air pump. ïÆ'Ëœ Adjust the set-point value of the temperature controller to approximately 5 degree below the room temperature. ïÆ'Ëœ Allow the water to cool down until it is safe to touch. Open the drain valve and empty the water tank. ïÆ'Ëœ Detach the flexible tubing and clean the capillary tube for next use. (Refer to priming procedure) ïÆ'Ëœ Switch off the main power. Unplug the main cable if the equipment will not be used for a long period. EXPERIMENT OBJECTIVE: To determine gas diffusion coefficient of acetone using the established Winkelmann’s method. Procedure: 1. Perform the start-up procedure. 2. Partially fill the capillary tube with acetone to a depth of about 35 mm. 3. Carefully insert the capillary tube through the fitting on the top of the water bath cover. Do not over-tighten the fitting. 4. Observe the initial level of acetone through the telescope. Record the level of acetone. 5. Connect the flexible tubing from the air pump line to one end of the capillary tube. Switch on the air pump. 6. After 30 minutes, switch off the air pump. Disconnect the flexible tubing and close the two capillary tubes ends with the cap provided. Observe and record the level of acetone. 7. Repeat steps 4 to 6 at 30 minutes intervals. ANALYSIS & DISCUSSION: Plot t/ (L-L0) against (L-L0).Determine gas diffusivity, D from the obtained slope, S. Compare the experimental value with the theoretical value that can be predicted from empirical equations (e.g. modified Maxwell’s equation by Gilliland).

Objectives of the Various Database Marketing Essay

When its competitors entered new markets with advantages of innovation and lower cost during the 1990s, Harrah’s capped the business growth. However, the company rather chose to make use of an existing advantage – customer loyalty, instead attempting to create new resources. A marketing database contains information about individual customers or potential customers that is relevant to the marketing process. DBM is an important tool to build up customer relationship and increase the loyalty. To strengthen the loyalty competency, requiresd Harrah’s to process sophisticated database analysis of customer profiles, so that the company could market the right customers with right ways, in order to attract repeated visits and retain the loyalty (See Appendix A and B). Harrah’s used the data base in three programs – new business program, loyalty program, and retention program – to build up the customer relationship and strengthen the loyalty. Another objective of DBM is to predict consumer behavior and â€Å"customer worth†. Customer profiles provide information about customers’ play preferences, betting patterns, how often they visit, how much they play, etc. After retrieving detailed information from every customer, Harrah’s could predict potential customer playing behavior at all of its properties through quantitative models. After the models identified some opportunity-based customer segments for rationalized reinvestment, Harrah’s sent customized incentives to these customers, seeking relationships with them based on their future worth, rather than on their past behaviors. One more important objective of DBM is to track customers over time and conduct some â€Å"marketing experiments†, so that Harrah’s can find the right marketing instrument, for the right behavior modification, for the right customer. When Harrah’s issues special promotions, it needs to know which kind of promotion is the most effective at the lowest cost. For example, through marketing experiments, Harrah’s found that a less attractive offer was more profitable, and the return of a portion of customer’s bet was unnecessary. Through the DMB program, Harrah’s could gain a better understanding of customers to increase customer satisfaction and achieve organization’s objective at a profit level.

The Art of Choosing Well by Pierre Wolff

Discernment is defined to be the act or process of exhibiting keen insight and good judgment. Interestingly, the bible is rife with accounts and teachings how important discernment is to the people of God. Apostles, for example, were witnesses how Holy Spirit gave them the gift of discernment in the New Testament. The action of the apostles of continuing what Jesus told them to do was discernment in itself; discernment in action, that is. â€Å"Discernment can be defined to be the calling on the Holy Spirit to lead or give direction on a matter,† says Spirithome.com.Moreover, Jesus Christ himself was a discernment personified. In Luke 11:9 he says to His people, â€Å"So I say t you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. † The words alone are an encouragement that people always have the good judgment of everything, and that in their judgment blessings await. Author Pierre Wolff in his book The Art of Choosing Well talks about this very thing – discernment. Wolff presents the ways of choosing and deciding wisely rooted in the different works of St.Ignatius of Loyola. Seeking God, St. Ignatius believed, is not meant to wait for visions, but had to seek Him in an intelligent and humble way and then by His grace and time, everything will be given and answered. Moreover, Wolff never fails to be practical and at the same time simple. He stresses different basic principles applicable to contemporary people, such as taking adequate time to listen to both your heart and mind, and clarify your most innermost held values.Although his teachings rooted in the Catholic-based faith, this, however, can be applicable to people of different faith (or lack thereof). Discernment or decision-making, to begin with, is a universal trait necessary for us as we deal our life. There are so many things to put to consider when discerning about something. In 1 Corinthians 13: 1-3, discernment is characterized to be governed by love, for it is not, it’s worthless. 1 Corinthians 12-3 is bolder in its emphasis of Christ, discernment â€Å"centers us onto Jesus the Christ and Lord, and His good news.†But Ephesians 4:11-12 is more general and more empowering; discernment it says â€Å"builds up the church and its members, giving it power, wisdom, character, boldness, and unity. Other people sometimes mixed up their decisions with their own veiled interests. Wolff summarizes some of St. Ignatius works to know if we are truly discerning the right things thus: We must desire to do God’s will, open to God at the moment of discerning, know what God is like, and we must be a person who prays.Furthermore, there are three ways of making a choice: Revelation (or God is speaking to you), Reasoning (Weighing the pros and cons of our choices and putting yourself on someone’s shoes to be able to know better the right thing), Discernment (or the time where â€Å"much light an d understanding are derived through experience,† says Ignatius. ) True enough, discernment is more than just a skill and process. It is a gift from God, from the Holy Spirit†¦ and this can be acquired and developed through asking God and continuing it through training and experience.Growing in discernment is a challenge for everyone. And the price is a peace of mind. To grow in discernment requires everyone to work on it like prayer; to know deeply what’s inside our thoughts – if it’s God’s or if it’s not. One way of nurturing it is through Daily Consciousness Examen, which is recommended by the Church. This basically can be done through asking the Holy Spirit to guide you always, to look back on your day and recognize the blessings God has given you, asking God to teach you, and asking yourself if you’re acting what the Lord told you to do.