Personal Experiences and Public Issues by C.W.Mills_ Essay

The sociological imagination is the ability to see how sociological situation play out as to how people vary in terms of their situation in given historical or social circumstances. The sociological imagination therefore includes the thoughtful of the interconnections that enlighten the fabric of individual societies. However, this things people do are shaped by the condition people are in, the values, the way people around act, and how that all connect to some kind of result. However, discussing about ‘public issues’, it is generally caused by or the failure of one more of society’s institutions or the structure of society. As such, the sociological imagination is the aptitude to shift from one perception to another. For a person to do so, Mills supposed, would enable person to use the sociological imagination to link â€Å"personal troubles to public issues.† It’s common for students to run into serious â€Å"personal troubles† at some point in the course of a semester. These personal troubles are not simply justification to try and get an addition on an assignment, but serious predicament that may prevent students from continuing in class or with their schooling entirely. Let’s reflect on how these â€Å"personal troubles† can be connected with â€Å"public issues.† One semester, a student who had been incredibly interested in class almost stopped attending. She was completing the main course assignments, but the standards of the work had turn down since she had not been attending classes. It’s really convincing to imagine that this student was simply careless, maybe a person or partier who did not take her learning seriously. Later established that, something tough was going on, more than simply her personal failure, she ultimately came to office, almost in tears. She was almost graduating and wanted to perform well in class. She would be the first person in her people to graduate from university, and wanted to be a role model for her youthful siblings. Then understood why: she was trying to feed them on her own. She had been bought in foster care, had â€Å"matured† of the system, and was working hard to keep the family in cooperation.   With no older family members or parents available, she had no financial or emotional support. She was afraid because once she was not a student she would probably no longer be able to stay in student housing and was experiencing the prospect of becoming homeless at the end of the semester. In student words, she was â€Å"freaking out.† On peak of her very reasonable fear of being homeless, the one aim in life that she took pride in, that offered her possibility of a better life, her schooling, seemed to become devastating. Definitely, for this student, these were extremely personal troubles, one she suffered embarrassed about and struggle to keep private until she wanted to ask for sponsor. But they also duplicate serious public issues. Countless juvenile may find themselves in related situations, and many encounter to find a place to live. Living in a luxurious urban area is as well a public issue, where accommodation can be hard to get, and is extremely expensive. The average rent for Los Angeles region is about $1040. A student making California’s lowest wage of $7 an hour and operating 20 hours a week is expected to earn simply under $560 a month prior to taxes and would probably need two roommates to pay a one bedroom house at this cost.   When the â€Å"housing bubbles† separate, many people lost their condominiums or homes, leading them to overflow the rental market, increasing prices and competition in a formerly tight housing market. This public issue happens greatly on student. Shifting to a different lower-priced city may seem like a answer to this private complexity, but considering public issues would help in understanding why this can not be a good suggestion. First, her restricted family ties are in this region, as are her links for social services like case personnel she may still have from foster care. Shifting to another town would also deracinate her from any companionship network she may have for maintenance too. Additional students over the time have experienced other personal troubles that are evidently associated with public issues. As a college student, or people they know are likely to get through personal troubles linked with public issues, whether it is struggling with the rising cost of tuition and accumulating debt or wondering how they can fit into the broader labor market. Using sociological imagination will help them better understand why personal crises are often rooted in social circumstances. Sociology not only helps people analyze current and existing patterns of social life, but it also helps to see some of the possible futures open. Through the sociological imagination, people can see not only what is the case, but also what could become the case should a person desire to make it that way. References Mills, C. W. (1959). The Sociological Imagination. London: Oxford University Press, Giddens, Anthony. (1996). â€Å"Sociological Imagination.† Introduction to Sociology. 1996. Karl Bakeman. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc, Source document

Impact Of The Sarbanes-Oxley Act

Supporters of companies going public suggest that gaining additional capital is one of the benefits medium sized companies gain by going public. The rationale for going public is to float the shares of the company through the stock market by starting an initial public offer (IPO) inviting the public to purchase its shares and raise additional capital. Once the company has met all of the requirements for filing Security Stock and Exchange (SEC) they are in compliance with SOX.Under SOX section 404, requires all CEO and CFO to certify and report to the public the effectiveness of internal control over the financial statements. Secondly, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is another benefit accrued by a medium sized company by going public through publication of it information. Aside from profitability, corporate social responsibility aids company to position ineffective market-based solutions to social. By CSR redirect negative problems caused by corporate operations onto the consum er and protecting their interests while hampering efforts to find just and sustainable solutions.The rationale of publishing company information is to give the company a platform to state its willingness to take into consideration the stakes of all stakeholders involved in its financing and operations. This increases public confidence in the company. Going public also benefits a medium sized company by increasing its competitive advantage in the global market. Going public is a strategic objective by some medium sized companies to become competitively aligned. Finally, gain competitive advantage all through expanded capital base and improved public confidence.Create an argument that the same goals may be achieved if the company remains a privately held entity. Provide support for your answers The opponents of public listing held that a company can acquire the benefits of going public while still being private and more efficient. For instance, Leuz (2007) asserts that a company can g ain additional capital through borrowing loans from banks as opposed to going public. Corporate social responsibility can also be obtained even for privately owned companies that actively engage in community advancement programs.In this way, the company meets the requirements of its stakeholders without exposing itself to public scrutiny and retains its ability to maintain a competitive advantage through internal strengths and enhanced customer relationship management (Dolvin & Pyles, 2007). The opponents of going public also hold that a corporation can devise ways of being strategically aligned while retaining its private status. For instance, a private company can make objectives that are strategically aligned to its vision and mission and narrow its market niche to serve the needs of its customers.This can be achieved through strategies such as being the least cost provider for commodities or emphasizing unique customer experience through the provision of quality products. This d isqualifies the perception that a company can only gain competitive advantage by going public (Li, Morton & Sonja, 2008). When a company decides to go public, it can typically obtain capital by issuing stocks or bonds. Suggest four (4) leading financial rations that will be evaluated and how each will impact the company’s decision to obtain expansion funds. Determine whether the results of the ratios would alter the decision to go public.Financial analysis serves as both a control and planning tool. Aids in making important company decisions obtain expansion funds and also on the decision to go public or remain private. Liquidity ratio illustrates the ability of a company to pay its accrued debt in the short term. A company with high liquidity ratios is not advised to obtain expansion funds through debt since it cannot pay up the already accrued debt. It would be advisable for such a company to generate expansion funds by going public since this increases the equity ratio and reduces the debt and liquidity ratios (Alrafadi, & Md-Yusuf, 2011).Activity ratio assesses the ability of the company to convert its assets to cash. When activity ratio is high, the company should go public since it already has liquid cash and needs to save up more of its finances through the floating of shares compared to borrowing cash. Profitability ratios assess the measures that organizations will use in making money. It mainly assesses the profitability of a company against the earnings ratio, and when this ratio is low, the company needs to remain private then go public since its profitability will not attract any investors (Alrafadi, & Md-Yusuf, 2011).Debt ratio is aimed at assessing what amount of the company capital structure constitutes debt capital. Where the company has a lower debt ratio, it means that it has more of equity than debt, which is a good state in a company. In this case, the company can borrow debt capital or go public to gain more funds as it has a stron g debt ratio. That it is essential to analyze the financial ratios of a company prior to deciding, whether to obtain more funds by going public (Alrafadi, & Md-Yusuf, 2011).By researching, the results of SOX compliance surveys assess the financial impact that SOX might have on your company if it decides to go public. Considering the impact SOX compliance, take a position as to whether your company can overcome the challenges posed by identifying the potential advantages and disadvantages that SOX may have on your company. SOX is a legal framework developed by the United States with the aim of increasing the accountability and transparency of listed companies, especially pertaining to the cost of going public.Transparency is one of the advantages gained by a medium sized company that uses SOX to go public. Structures put in place through SOX monitor the internal systems of the company, prevent failure, ensure accurate disclosures and improves the management of risk of the company. Th is enhances the transparency of the medium sized company and increases its credibility among the public and potential shareholders (Kaserer, Mettler & Obernberger, 2011). Going public with SOX also enhances the reliability of medium sized companies.The consumers and members of the public are able to predict the company’s behavior since the company publishes its accounts. Through transparency and improved public scrutiny, shareholders and other stakeholders such as customers are able to view the profit of the company, the prospectus and evaluate the ability of the company to meet their expectations in the future. The consumers can through public scrutiny develop confidence on the medium sized company going public via SOX, which increases customer base and profitability of the company (Litvak, 2007).Additionally, a medium sized company benefits from going public through SOX by enhancing investor confidence in the ability of the company to offer viable returns to investorsâ€⠄¢ investment. For example, an investor will be more confident in investing in a company that publishes its financial statements as a requirement of going public. This is because the investor will be able to view the profits of the company and its ability of the provide high returns on the investors capital. This benefits the company through investor loyalty and attracts more potential investors (Li, Morton & Sonja, 2008).Cost is one of the major negative impacts of SOX if a company goes public. For example, a company has to incur underwriting cost, which is a, direct cost for a company going public. The company going public under SOX also incurs indirect costs like under-pricing of its shares in the stock exchange (Wintoki, 2007). The Company also incurs legal cost since lawyers are needed to advise the company on legal consequences of going public. In most instances, the cost of a company going public through SOX outweighs the benefit of going public and may have adverse effects o n the company Leuz, 2007).Lack of secrecy is another adverse effect of a company going public through SOX. For example, a company that discloses its financial records risks sharing its strategic plans with its competitors, which robs the company the ability to remain competitive since its strategies and secrets are available for public scrutiny (Litvak, 2007). Moreover, involvement of external auditors is another adverse effect of SOX going public to medium sized companies. Example; prior to being private where a company would have just an internal auditor, a company that goes public also needs an external auditor to verify the internal systems of the Company.This further exemplifies the operations and the auditing costs of the company by going public as a report of the external auditor are more reputable compared to that of an internal auditor (Grifin & Lont, 2005). Make recommendation as the CEO regarding the alternative (i. e. , going public or staying private) that will best sup port the company’s expansion goals. As the Chief Executive Officer of a medium sized company, I recommend that the medium sized company should go public as this will support the company’s expansion goals.This is affirmed by the fact that going public fits into the strategic objectives of the company by being strategically aligned to gain competitive advantage. Although there are costs incurred during going public if the team is committed to the process and there are available resources to go public; economic feasibility evidences that the benefit of going public outweighs the risk and viable venture for any medium sized company. Moreover, though SOX has been challenged, the benefit that accrues to a medium sized company by going public affirms the rationale for a company to go public.

Business Law for Dick Smith

The Sydney Morning Herald, March 20, 2017 The Directors and the Executives of Dick Smith have been accused of mitting a breach of their directorial duty to exercise reasonable care after the pany has suffered financial collapse in January 2016. The former directors of the Dick Smith had to face legal action 14 months after the electronics chain was put into administration. Receiver brought a legal action against the directors and executives to recover losses worth $60 million as the directors failed to exercise reasonable standard of care and skill managing the pany’s inventory. The pany was alleged that its inventory purchasing decisions are based on maximizing rebates instead of demand of the customers which led to an increase in the redundant stock amounting to $180 million by October 2015. The excessive stock led the pany write off $60 million of inventory in November 2015. The directors were accused of inflating profits artificially in the 2015 financial year, as they were recoding rebates as profit. Although the directors denied that they made the purchasing decisions based on rebates, the chief financial officer of the pany admitted in court that the pany did adopt a strategy to enhance the earnings from rebates. The law firm defending the directors contended that the directors have always acted diligently, consciously and exercised reasonable care while carrying out the business operation of the pany. The issue that arises in the Dick Smiths case is that the directors have failed to exercise their statutory duty to exercise due care and diligence while carrying out the business operations of the pany. According to Section 180 (1) of the Corporations Act (Cth) a director was required to act with reasonable care and diligence. Under general law, whether a director had mitted a breach of his directorial duties is subject to the subjective assessment and depends largely on the director’s own knowledge and skill (Velasco 2014). However, in Re City Equitable [1925] the rule, the court held that in order to determine whether a director has violated his directorial duties, the objective test shall be applied where the director must establish that he has exercised reasonable care and diligence and had not mitted a breach of his duties. In Dick Smith’s case, the directors and the executives were alleged to have failed to place adequate systems to manage the supplier rebates and inventory of the pany. In ASIC v Healey [2011], the court held that the directors of the pany are under statutory obligation to be able to read and prehend the financial statements of the pany instead of simply relying on the fact that the systems are in place. Further, in Daniels v Anderson [1995], the Court of Appeal held that directors must prehend the nature of the duty that they are statutorily obligated to perform. Section 180 (1) of the Act further requires to impose an objective ‘reasonable person’ test in order to determine whether the director has exhibited hid duty of care and diligence in the manner as any reasonable person would exhibit under similar circumstances. ASIC v Healey & Ors [2011] FCA 717 JWS Daniels v Anderson [1995] 37 nswlr 438 Re City Equitable Fire Insurance Co [1925] Ch 407 Velasco, J., 2014. A Defense of the Corporate Law Duty of Care.

Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Case Study Example Designing and monitoring are the essential factors that come under evaluation to make sure that they have come under performances in the most effective and productive manner in the strategic management process that leads to attainment of the organizational goals on whole (Stahl & Grigsby, 1992). In more detailed words, strategic management process involves designing and setting up overall objectives and guidelines of the organization in a broad-spectrum, create and constitute precise and explicit strategies, plan and carry out implementation of the designed strategies and make modifications if required based on the monitoring or supervision of the outcomes. However, the below diagram clearly defines the process of strategic management in a much more comprehensive way (Mockler, 2002). Amongst numerous organizations that exercise the processes of strategic management, Utica National is an organization that provides its customers with the insurance services and products and is one of the good models that practice the strategic management processes in an appropriate way. However, the course of actions that carries out the strategic management techniques would come under discussion in detail about how this organization employs such practices. Utica National is an insurance group that dates back to early twentieth century that comprises of several companies namely Utica Mutual Insurance Company and Graphic Arts Mutual Insurance Company came under establishment as its principal companies. Utica National (2011) has come under recognition for its devoted and committed services to the policyholders since time immemorial. In the recent times, the popularity of Utica National (2011) has grown so much that it comes in the top rankings in the insurance organizations of the country (A.M. Best Company, 2008). Moreover, they provide the customers with a wide range of insurance products that take account of commercial coverages, personal coverages,

The Boy scouts of America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Boy scouts of America - Essay Example This study will seek to enlighten how BSA attains its objectives of character and citizenship development and answer questions on how it promotes citizenship. Insights will come from the BSA handbook that has written its guidelines for membership and other related information. The BSA Handbook of 1965 [2] has been reviewed to arrive at a relationship in the development of citizenship. I have found out in the handbook important basic things that shape the character of an individual to become a responsible citizen. The handbook details the character development of BSA members. It explains opportunities of being close to nature; becoming a leader and member of a group; knowing how to survive; and fortifying their oaths to be always prepared, and be able to serve. It is not all about having fun, but of instilling values and training to become responsive and being a good citizen at an early age. Instilling values and training should begin at an early age. This is also the age where boys from 11 to 17 years old are invited to join the boy scouts movement. Boy scouting movement has been designed to strengthen one’s character, physical fitness and good citizenship. The program includes outdoor activities, peer group leadership opportunities, exploration of hobby, career and special interests. a. What does the BSA concept means in the context of its use within BSA and citizenship; or what form of citizenship is being promoted to the broad construction of juridical and socio-political citizenship? Immigrants of all races are attracted to enter the USA. As such, inter-racial integration in the society emerged. Two classes of world citizen have come to the corridors of America, and are classified as the juridical and socio political citizen. A juridical citizen [3] is someone who has gained immigrant status and has lawfully entered the US. Socio-economic citizen applies to investors, business

Strategic management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Strategic management - Essay Example Strategic analysis of Johnston Press Plc business enviroment using PESTLE and SWOT analysis; PESTLE Political. Besley (2008) emphasized the company’s political environment is stable. The United Kingdom government is one of the most stable and easily predictable governments in the world today. Economic. Economically, the year 2010 is characterized by retrenchment. The company’s Limerick plant at Leader Print Ltd has finally closed shop after several years of trying to keep its revenues higher than the company’s daily operating expenses. Social. Gibson sings (2010) The company has been in the forefront of the United Kingdom society. The society has been used to reading the news from the Johnston Press printing plants for several years. In fact, Johnston Press is the second largest printing company in the United Kingdom today. Technological. The company has incorporated digital advertising as one of its biggest revenue generators. Digital advertising and publishing has many advantages. One such advantage is the company’s borderless sales probabilities. Clients from any part of the world can visit the company’s website and patronise the company’s publishing and other related services. Legal. The company has been complying with all the employments laws, work-related laws and other statutes. Environmental. The company continues to adhere to the environmental laws of the United Kingdom. The company does not pollute the country’s pristine rivers with its printing company’s waste products. SWOT Strengths. Johnston, (2010) reiterated during 2010, advertising categories and geographic market segments have performed profitably well. Property advertising has bounced back to a 9.5 percent growth from the 2009 accounting period’s property advertising debacle. Consequently, house sales have started to increase as compared to the 2009 house sales. Understandably, the 2009 low house was had been triggered by the Unit ed States-based financial crisis. Further, cost reduction that included a reduction from 5,640 heads to only 5,417 heads, has augmented the company’s profitability ratio. The company’s single editing process has increase production performance. The company’s newspaper titles include Batley News, Halifax Courier, Glasgow South and Eastwood Extra, Carrick Gazette, and Isle of Man Courier. Weaknesses. Johnston (2010) emphasized the company’s print advertising industry is been set to second place. The Johnston Plc’s print advertising has been losing to the new and innovative digital advertising market segment. The economic debacle has cut the company’s advertising revenue by a significant percentage. Opportunities. Johnston (2010) explained the company should focus on increasing digital sales performance, the internet and computer technology has metamorphosed the printing business into the digital age. In fact, the company’s digital sales growth had increased by ten percent during 2010 when compared to the digital sales growth in 2009. The company should increase its focus on selling of its display inventories. The early part of 2010 shows a slow but sure recovery from the debilitating crunch of the prior year’s unprofitable economic depression. Threats. Johnston (2010) theorized the lack of any influential increase in the economic activity in the Republic of Ireland threatens the company’s plans to increase it overall sales performance. Using Porter's five forces

MIH543 - Perspectives on Abuse Violence Module 5 - Case Essay

MIH543 - Perspectives on Abuse Violence Module 5 - Case - Essay Example Ethnic cleansing and genocide are frequently used interchangeably in a wrong sense. In reality, both of them are different terms and there is profound difference between the two. This is because, while genocide is an attempt to exterminate a minority, ethnic cleansing is a method to expel the minority. Thus, genocide is a type of ethnic cleansing. Genocide may be defined as any act that is aimed at systematic expulsion of a particular group of individuals from their homes either through threat or by force (Naimark, 2001). Infact, genocide is considered as an element of war crime and is considered a crime against humanity. Genocide is against the law and has a juridicial status. The term has specific definitions and has a meaning even in international law. People who are involved in genocide and get convicted like general Radoslav Krstic who was convicted for geneocide, later on appeal was convicted only for accomplice of genocide ("Prosecutor v. Krstic":56). A classic example of geno cide is the mass murder of about 7500 Bosnian muslims at Srebrenica. Thus ethnic cleaning and genocide occupy positions which are adjacent in the spectrum of violence against religions, countries and minorities. In some situations, ethnic cleansing is referred to as "forced deportation" or "population transfer". The means used to achieve this can be legal or semilegal. hence it can be said that genocide is the most extreme form of ethnic cleansing and as Michael Mann put it, it can be called as â€Å"murderous ethnic cleansing† (Mann, 2005:11). As such forced deportation occurs mainly during times of war or aggression and people seldom leave their homes during peace time. This is because each and every individual is attached to their land which their fore fathers cultivated and lived in. In my opinion, both ethnic cleansing and genocide are the same, both are inhuman and against the law. Both can have devastating

Urban outfitters budgets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Urban outfitters budgets - Essay Example expansion of the market will lead to application of new marketing strategies and employment of more workers, which will increase the wages and administrative expenses (Smith 2010). In marketing, control and evaluation is crucial because Urban Outfitters determines the performance and effectiveness of marketing operations. In measuring the performance of marketing information, control and evaluation provides useful information. Evaluation and control program in the marketing department provides the manager with output of the services and products. Evaluation and control can also help the company to know where to make improvement and the areas it has success. Through evaluation and control the business takes into account external conditions relating to marketing programs like customer feedback. The feedbacks help in determining employee performance. Through control and evaluation Urban Outfitters will be able to focus in all marketing areas (Smith

Multinational Enterprises Regulation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Multinational Enterprises Regulation - Essay Example From the report it is clear that international HRM is based on factors such as consistency, expertise, internationalisation experience, and resource power. These factors realise objectives such as the functional re-alignment of operations owing to a multinational corporation’s global operations, and the localisation of HRM policies when necessary. In the practice of HRM within the majority of multinational corporations, there is usually the transfer of the company’s HRM practices and policies, which is referred to as ‘knowledge transfer’, to various foreign organisational units. This process takes place in several stages as the multinational corporation in question first needs to determine what needs to be transferred, and then carries out the actual process of transferring the HRM knowledge. The last stage involves the utilisation, by the foreign branches, of the transferred knowledge.According to the essay findings  the transfer process needs to not onl y occur from the multinational corporation’s headquarters to the foreign branches, but also between the subsidiaries themselves.  The transfer of HRM knowledge and practices to subsidiary organisations from the headquarters of the multinational corporation is based on the assumption that it is best for the organisation to make use of the most superior practices in order to retain its competitive edge over the local firms in places where subsidiaries are based.

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 9

Marketing - Essay Example I feel so passionate about the motorbike particularly considering the shape which almost resembles the cheetah’s speed. The motorbike just seems comfortable and enjoyable to any rider who loves sporting. The Ducati monster would not be assumed by anyone who loves sports especially because of its unique sport nature. What interests me most is the styling of the motorbike which provides a comfortable feeling when the rider is exposed outdoors. The lovely color of the motorbike would actually attract attention of everyone who adores colors even if the person does not love motorbikes. The Ducati Monster motorbike makes me have a real natural taste of an animal ride thus prompting me to feel like it is actually a lifestyle I should adopt. The Ducati Monster motorbike seem to be the fastest motorbike from the advertisement and this makes me cherish it even more because I can ride faster than vehicles. The motorbike shape which looks like the Cheetah’s shape makes it look very flexible especially while moving past many vehicles. Motorbikes normally give me freedom and enjoyment I love more so when I bring things into focus while riding. I find it enjoyable to see nature around and appreciate the beauty of everything around me while riding. While on the motorbike, I really feel in control of almost everything around me. ... This shoe can really inspire and communicate a lot of information to the audience. The green color of the shoe simply makes it look very natural and nature friendly. The color makes it look very cool and comfortable to the wearer. The advertisement is very clear and the writings are too big to be avoided. I love the shoes because they are very comfortable especially while playing. I do cherish sports so much and any sportswear particularly from Nike Company. The company has a record of making some of the best brands of shoes and I am one of its loyal customers. Associating me with Nike Inc. is a good experience and privilege to me. I love being regarded as someone in the high status and that is exactly what I get from the shoes. These shoes’ comfort that is derived from their design and material used to manufacture it may really improve an athlete’s performance and reduce foot injury. These shoes are very flexible and simple thus enabling flexible performance as toes wi ll be able to stretch and clasp. The TOMS advertisement does not impress me but I have a friend called Sam who really loves stylish shoes. The guy is just crazy about fashion. He would always want to match the shoes with his clothes. He really enjoys going out with friends while in the latest fashion shoes or clothes. Sam loves recognition while in the group particularly if someone would just appreciate his attires. He is an individual who can take even 30 minutes thinking about what to wear for an occasion or on a weekend. These shoes are really the best fit for Sam and I have seen him with a few pairs of these kinds. The shoes actually match his casual wears such as jeans and linen trousers. The advertisement by TOMS can

P&I payment Essay Example for Free

PI payment Essay Technology is pervading all levels of mathematics teaching and learning in our modern world, bringing ever more sharply into focus the change from traditional pencil and paper learning to a mixture of calculator, computer and pencil and paper learning environments. Currently the loan has 25 years remaining. Therefore to find out the PI payment, you would plug in 300 for N (2512), 5.75% for I, 0 for FV, and $112,242.47 for PV, and then press PMT which gives you the $706.12. However, we want to find out how much more money they have to pay to pay off the loan in 20 years instead of 25. Therefore change N to 240 (2012) instead of 300. Then press PMT and we should get $788.04. Next, subtract the PI payment they are making now (706.12) from $788.04, which tells you they need to pay $81.92 extra towards the principal each month to have the loan paid off in 20 years instead of 25. This may be reasonable. $81.92 is pretty close to $100 so there really isn’t a lot of wiggle room after meeting the monthly expenses. However, it’s important to note that if you do this way (instead of refinancing), you are not obligated to pay this $81.92 each month if you needed it for something else. Since refinancing costs you $2,000 up-front, we’ll have to add this to the payoff of 112,242.47. This would cause the PV of the loan to be 114,242.47. The new loan would be based on the 30 years, so plug 360 in for N. FV will still be 0. In order to find the highest interest rate you can qualify for that still gives you a PI payment less than your current payment, let’s put in a payment of $706.11 (one penny less than the current payment). This gives us a maximum interest rate of 6.29%. By looking at interest rates in today’s markets, they seem to be around four percent. This is much less than the maximum amount required. At four percent, with $2,000 in closing costs, the new PI payment would be $545.41. This is a monthly savings of $160.71. You almost make up your money, or recoup the cost of refinancing, after a year of payments. This fact, along with the fact that you will be struggling to make these extra principal payments the other way, it makes more sense to refinance if you want to pay off your loan in 20 years instead of 25.

The Development of Machine Translation Essay Example for Free

The Development of Machine Translation Essay Introduction What is machine translation? Simply put, machine translation is the application of computer text from one natural language into another natural language text translation. The translation climax in the history of China again and again set off, the translation of Buddhist scriptures in the Eastern Han to the Tang and Song dynasties, the Ming and Qing technology translation and the Opium War to the May Fourth Movement to promote the progress of history. Today, the advent of the global information age is the translation climax conditions, requirements, involved in the field of computer science, mathematics, linguistics. However, the science of translation career how? Effects? How we will develop and make progress? In this paper, a review of the development of machine translation, disadvantages, role and prospects of superficial discussion, to answer these questions. i. A history of the development of machine translation The 17th century French philosopher, mathematician Descartes and the German mathematician Leibniz put forward the idea of using the machine dictionary overcome language barriers. In 1946, the worlds first electronic computer was born, after 50 years of development, through the tortuous road success, there are setbacks, presented numerous challenges for researchers. Machine translation potential social and economic benefits, some Western countries as well as Japan and other countries have spent a lot of R D, machine translation into the boom by its start-up period of the trough, the recovery period and make showing unprecedented prosperous and developed. The following is a brief overview of the various periods of its development. That is start-up period (1947 to 1954), Trough period (1954 to 1975), Recovery period (1975 to 1989),Prosperous Period. ii. The problem of machine translation The machine translation prosperity does not mean it does not have any problems. According to statistics, machine translation with human translation, translation accuracy and readability is less than 70%, many ways, there are a large number of problems, yet computer, language experts and machine translation users to jointly overcome. Opened the translation history at a glance the criterion the eyes of the beholder, the wise see wisdom. Three Kingdoms period follow essentially, Gavin ornaments East Jindao An best of Record, not so prejudicial statements were made tour word Tang Xuan Zang, neither shall seek the truth, and shall Yu vulgar to modern Yan Fu, letter the relentless pursuit of Dayak Chinese letter, Fu Lei quite similar , environment of Qian Zhongshu Gu Zhengkun best approximation . Tytlers three principles abroad, the famous translator Nidas dynamic equivalence the the fee Road Rove equivalents, otherwise Gorlee, alleged meaning on qualitative quantity. But are all demanding translation standards. The machine is translated as a translation, of course, should pay attention to the quality of the translation. The translation quality of machine translation can understand and loyalty, it is difficult to achieve the ideal standard. These examples to illustrate (1) The erroneous translation of part of speech and meaning. These problems with the machine error on the part of speech, meaning Discrimination are inseparable. Once the parts of speech in this connection vocabulary to syntax bridge is the wrong resolution, the translation will be wrong. Therefore, it is the wrong resolution mistranslation phenomenon should arouse the attention of machine translation researchers. (2)Adverbial wrong translation Of mistranslation. Such as the num ber and type of vehi2cles be misinterpreted as such a number of types of vehicles. Comparative sentence mistranslation. The earlier a smog alert can be issued, the greater its effectiveness is as it al2low s were wrongly translated: constitutes more time this smoke alarm can be as early as issued, the greater its efficiency as it does allow and the correct translation should be: the sooner the alarm, the greater the role, because it will make the Sketch word mistranslated. Small words, such as articles, conjunctions, English is not fluent in English. Chinese On the contrary, they become redundant, this machine translation can not be a good conversion. On these issues, there have been a lot of research, but always simple description, do not be traced. I believe that the key to these problems is not a simple computer program driving hard to the issue of slavery, but the context of the language itself is not a thorough analysis, we should ponder the question is how to make the machine with minimum knowledge. How to make the long-term accumulated cultural knowledge to penetrate into the machine translation. When they make the machine and from the search context, and in a certain culture play a role in its translation, what will? Mentioned Context, we can get some inspiration from the M alinow ski and Firth, Firth linguists task should be to study the text language phenomenon and its context combination, machine translation is the translation of a natural language another natural language should be set analysis, Discrimination select processing as an integrated process, asked to do , Shindaya. Gave us think of fruitRevelation, the word of the keys on the piano, alone has no effect. Keep context together makes sense. Another factor is the cultural context. Firth social scene decided to play social role social role is limited. Therefore, the social scene is also limited. Event enables the machine translation These limited role in society, the social scene analysis processing, translation will be able to improve the understandability credibility and While this robot suspected, but this is the trend. Since the machine translation represents the high-tech should be a breakthrough in the current information age. ii. The role of machine translation. Machine translation through a saddle-type process, PaulDeposit and flourish, today turned into a tool, the reasonIt is its role in promoting. (1)Promote social progress Human leave no stone unturned to develop and complete a machine. Is translation systems, has developed a translation software, promoted by Economic development, social progress, eliminating the language in the world among people Introduction obstacles, communicate with the entire world. (2) Improve translation efficiency With the machine translation research has improved continuously, the field of translation achieved unprecedented success. In our translation work, We can make use of a variety of translation systems or software to complete the translation task, Samples can improve the speed and accuracy of the translation, translation efficiency. (3) Promote the development of other areas Machine translation to get involved in mathematics, computer science, linguistics, translation Science and other multi-discipline areas need strong development of these disciplines, substantial based on the outcome, so as to promote the development of these areas. Fourth, the outlook on the prospects for machine translation. The birth of the machine translation system, especially to people translation, who brought hope. Although machine translation the understandability and loyalty also not ideal, but if the mathematics, computer science, translation studies and language science and other researchers in the field of work together, will make the machine translation out more beautiful flowers, bear more fruit. Conclusion In the above mentioned, if the context of the language environment and cultural context for consideration in the process of programming, will be able to make the translation discourse stronger language three functions, namely the concept of function, people interpersonal function and textual function was more prominent. It is also the author most would like to suggest, hope, serve role. It should be believed that through the tireless efforts of many researchers make machine translation. Having been properly developed, thus will be able to promote vigorous translation cause development.

Department of Health Campaigns

Department of Health Campaigns The Department of Health (DH) and its health campaign The Department of health helps people of Britain to live better for longer. The Department of Health lead, shape and fund health and care in England and making sure that people get the right support, care and treatment they need, with the compassion, respect and dignity they deserve. The Department of Health responsibilities: The Department of Health lead across health and care by creating national policies and legislation, providing the long term vision and ambition to meet current and future challenges, putting health and care at the heart of government and being a global leader in health care policy. The Department of Health support the integrity of the system by providing funding, assuring the delivery and continuity of services and accounting to Parliament in a way that represents the best interest of the patient, public and tax payer. The Department of Health champion innovation and improvement by supporting research and technology, promoting honesty, openness and transparency, and instilling a culture that values compassion, dignity and the highest quality of care above everything. Above all, the Department of Health encourages staff in every health and care organization, including our own, to understand and learn from people’s experiences of health and care and to apply this to everything we do. The Department of Health priorities: Preventing people from dying prematurely by improving mortality rates for big killer diseases, to be amongst the best in Europe, through improving prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Improving the standard of care throughout the system so that quality of care is considered as important as quality of treatment, through greater accountability, better training, tougher inspections and more attention paid to what patient say. Improving treatment and care for people with dementia, to be among the best in Europe through early diagnosis, better research and support. Bringing the technology revolution to the NHS to help people, especially those with long term condition, manage their health and care. In order to achieve and implement the best possible care to the people of Britain, the Department of Health is supported by 24 agencies and public bodies who work across the country. The NHS England is the main department that carries out health and care services and also provides national and international health campaign in Britain. The Campaign Resource Center aims to provide a one-stop shop for all Department of Health public health campaign activities for anyone who works directly with the public. The Department of Health campaigns are intended to help people: To become engaged with their own health and wellbeing. To be able to understand how lifestyle choices impact on current and future health outcomes. To be able to obtain sound advice about what constitutes a healthy lifestyle, and To be able to access appropriate services, products and tools to help the people change their behavior. The Public Health offices together with the Department of Health has several major health campaigns that has been well organized and structured for the people to raise the level of awareness to the big killer diseases in Britain. The Department of Health and the NHS have pioneered the use of social media (e.g. facebook, twitter) to change health behaviors, with some considerable success mainly due to the ever changing technology nowadays on how people find out information for them to raise their level of awareness to certain diseases. Among the popular campaigns that have been implemented by the Public Health together with the Department of Health are the Act FAST and Smoke free. Act FAST campaign The Act FAST campaign is to raise awareness of people about STROKE. Stroke is the third leading cause of death in England each year, and accounts for 10% of deaths (more than 45,000). It kills more women than breast cancer. Being able to identify and detect early signs after the onset is crucial to the effectiveness of Stroke treatments. The campaign is about raising the level of awareness of people about signs of Stroke, it also encourages people to call 999 immediately so that those experiencing stroke can be seen within three hours of onset. The marketing campaign for Stroke is comprised of TV advertising, radio, outdoor, PR and partnership activity. The F.A.S.T was a fantastic mnemonic (Face, Arms, Speech, Time) that brought it home what to do if somebody’s having a stroke and will without doubt save lives. It was originally launched in February 2009 which highlights the visible signs of stroke, the Act FAST campaign is specifically designed to inform the public about FAST – Face, Arm, Speech, Time to call 999. FAST is a simple test to help people recognize the signs of stroke and understand the importance of emergency treatment. The faster a stroke patient receives treatment, the better their chances of surviving and reducing long term disability. When Stroke Strikes ACT FAST: Face – Has their face fallen to one side? Can they smile? Arms – Can they raise their arms and keep them there? Speech – Is their speech slurred? Time – Time to call 999 if you see any of these signs Another campaign which the Health and Care sector of Britain gives focus is about the smoke free campaign which provides the people of Britain necessary information on how to quit smoking successfully. SMOKEFREE Campaign Smoking in Britain is still the biggest cause of preventable death and disease. The SmokeFree campaign is piloted by the NHS which is a nationwide campaign and funded by the Department of Health which aims to provide motivation, information and support to those who want to quit smoking. Different campaign resources are being used to relay information to the people and actually giving specific campaign materials to individual suited to their needs in quitting smoking. A number of campaign materials are being use here in the UK like the use of brochures, quit kit and resource center to support people in quitting smoking. Smokefree kit guides are available online, brochures and leaflets that are being distributed all throughout the United Kingdom. It also uses media like television, radio programs and on the internet showing ways to quit smoking and how to eradicate the deadly effect of smoking to the person directly and indirectly. Stoptober 2014 The stoptober 2014 is a slogan made to encourage mass participation to quit smoking by October. This effort was launch three years ago and it was slowly increasing the number of people trying to quit smoking and totally stop smoking by October. The stoptober leads smokers through a detailed step-by-step program to help them achieve their goals. There would be lots of free resources available for partners supporting the campaign. Smokefree homes and cars campaigns In Britain, over eight hundred children visit their GPs every day due to the serious effects of second hand smoke exposure. The campaign is sponsored by the Public Health England which increases awareness of the hidden dangers of smoking in their homes and cars. More than 80 percent of second hand smoke is invisible and odourless, it contains harmful cancer-causing toxins and poisons. Everyday millions of children in the UK are exposed to second hand smoking, which puts them at increased risk of lung disease, meningitis and cot death. The treatment, hospital and GP visits for second hand smoke related illnesses cost the NHS about  £23.6 million each year. Quitkit campaign This campaign was launched from January 1, 2012 to help people to quit smoking. Smokers will be able to pick up a free quitkit from thousands of pharmacies in England. The NHS quikit is a box of practical tools and advice developed with smokers and experts which has helped thousands of smokers to quit successfully. References https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-health/about (accessed 08/07/2014) http://campaigns.dh.gov.uk/about/ (accessed 08/07/2014) http://campaigns.dh.gov.uk/category/smoke/ (accessed 14/07/2014) http://2013.ncas.brintex.com/zone/ExhibitorList/Exhibitor/11272/DepartmentOfHealth (accessed 15/07/2014) http://campaigns.dh.gov.uk/category/act-fast/ (accessed 15/07/2014) http://campaigns.dh.gov.uk/2013/06/05/smokefree-homes-and-cars-campaign-launched/ (accessed 15/07/2014)

Do Not Call List Essay -- essays research papers

Abstract For years companies from all areas of commerce were allowed to call anyone they thought might be a candidate for their product without repercussions. A court order on Feb, 17th 2004 upheld an order to allow the general public to be listed on a do not call list. Businesses will now be held responsible if they contact someone on this list without their permission. The question is did the court make the right decision.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  We may not agree on much in this country, but one thing most of us can agree on is that telemarketing is a big nuisance. In fact one survey done by Walker Research in 1990 showed that 70 percent of Americans considered telemarketing an invasion of their privacy. In February of 2003 the Federal Trade Commission passed a national law that would restrict the consumers telemarketers could legally call and enforce an $11,000 fine when ignored. By September of that same year more than 50 million Americans had added their names to this list. Telemarketers fought back though claiming that they had the right to be making these calls under their constitutional right to free speech and the case went to court. Finally, after a series of court battles between these companies and the FTC, in February of 2004 the appeals court upheld the so called Do-Not-Call list and the right of Americans to sign up. This brings about the question of how effective this law will be. Also should the average consumer be able to restrict the calls that come into their phone line or do these large businesses have a right to market their products over the phone?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The American Teleservices Association claims that the registry violates the First Amendment rights of telemarketers in regards to free speech. But what is a â€Å"right†? A right can be defined as something to which a person is entitled by law, tradition, or nature, which does not detract from someone else. My freedom to practice my religion takes nothing away from you. However, a house is not a right, since providing me with a house requires land, materials, and labor, and it is one fewer house that is available to be given to someone else. There is a cost involved in entitling me to a house that must be carried by someone else; therefore the entitlement to a house is not a right. If I choose to pay for the house and the seller agrees to acc... ...ever seen a commercial when my TV was turned off. To those businesses that cannot survive without unsolicited outbound telemarketing, which is the only form of telemarketing that is in question, unfortunately I must say, â€Å"Tough!† Innovate! Situations change and businesses adapt. That’s called â€Å"progress.† If your business model is such that it cannot survive being prevented from making junk phone calls, perhaps you need a new business model. Many telemarketers call for products and services that already advertise on TV, radio, or in print. If I want to buy your product, I’ll call you. Don’t call me. With the new do not call list hopefully this won’t be a question. Reference: The Associated Press (Feb. 17th, 2004) Appeals Court Upholds Do-Not-Call List. Retrieved February 18th 2004 from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4287210/ CNN/Money (2003) Do Not Call List Unplugged September 24, 2003. Retrieved February 18, 2004, from http://money.cnn.com/2003/09/24/technology/ftc_donotcall Federal Trade Commission (2004) Straight Talk about Telemarketing. Retrieved March 13, 2004 from http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/tmarkg/straight.htm   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

The Physics Behind Remote Sensing :: Physics

Remote Sensing is the science of acquiring, processing and interpreting images that record the interaction between the electromagnetic energy and matter (Sabins, 1997). Remote sensing offers extensive applications in almost every area of science from monitoring forest fires to geologic mapping . Although many aspects of remote sensing are complex and difficult to understand the basic theory behind remote sensing is simple physics. There are four major stages of remote sensing. The first stage is the source of energy, usually the sun, which sends energy to a target. The second stage is the interactions that the energy will go through as it passes through a vacuum and the earth’s atmosphere. There is then interactions that occurs with the body on earth’s surface. The energy again, goes through the atmosphere and finally the sensor is able to detect and record the electromagnetic energy. Electromagnetic Energy Electromagnetic energy is a dynamic form of energy that is caused by the acceleration or oscillation of a charged particle. All substances above absolute zero (0 Kelvin) emit a range of electromagnetic energy. The sun emits electromagnetic energy and practically all of the natural electromagnetic energy injected into the earth is produced by the sun (Prakush, 2002). Electromagnetic Radiation Electromagnetic Radiation is the streams of mass-less particles, traveling in a harmonic, sinusoidal fusion at the velocity of light each possessing a specific amount of energy. The distance from one peak to the next is the wavelength and the number of peaks passing through a fixed point per unit time is the wave frequency (Lillesand and Kiefer, 1994). Electromagnetic radiation is Electromagnetic energy in motion and can be described by the basic wave theory. Electromagnetic Spectrum Electromagnetic waves are characterized by their wavelength location within the electromagnetic spectrum which is most commonly measured in micrometers. Names are often assigned to regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, but there is no clear cut dividing lines from one region to the next (Lillesand and Kiefer, 1994). Stefan - Boltzmann Law How much energy any objects radiates is a function of its surface temperature. The Stefan - Boltzmann equations tells one that as a temperature of a body increase the total radiance of the body will also increase. (Sabins, 1997). Interactions The way electromagnetic radation interacts with matter can be detected with different sensors. How the radation interacts depends upon the properties of the medium, the wavelength of the incedent radation and the incident angle. There are four major types of interactions that occur: transmission, reflection, scattering and absorption (Lillesand and Kiefer, 1994).

Direct and Indirect Representation :: essays research papers

Direct and Indirect Representation   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Living in a democratic society, we as Americans have the right to vote on just about all aspects of our lives. The votes that we cast either have a direct or an indirect representation of our beliefs. In cases such as city and statewide laws, our beliefs are directly represented; in all national and organizational matters our votes have an indirect impact. The decisions are made by elected officials who we vote into office to represent our beliefs. One example of this indirect representation can be found in any citywide school board where the elected members make decisions on everything ranging from teacher employment to class curriculum. It is debatable whether, on situations as sensitive as class curriculum, we should be directly involved in such decisions or have them made for us by our elected officials. As we will find, however, class curriculum is something that must continue to be an indirect representation of the public’s beliefs, rather than the di rect result of a democratic vote. The people we have voted onto the school board were elected because they have the education and experience to make the decisions that the public is not qualified to make. They try, to the best of their abilities, to represent us with their decisions, but no matter what there will always be people who are not satisfied. In some instances the school board must make a decision which the majority of people will not agree with, but nonetheless will benefit our children. Our representatives have done the research and the public has not, which is why the public should not make judgement calls on the importance and relevance of certain materials and subjects within our school systems. An example of what happens when the public is allowed to decide can be found in the case of evolution vs. creationism. Some states have, in the past, outlawed the teaching of evolution because the public didn’t agree with it, even though almost all scientists had accepted it. The children in school at th at time were deprived of important information. There is no reason why a scientifically recognized subject should be banned from schools simply because the public doesn’t â€Å"agree† with it. Our society is obligated to keep our citizens informed. A direct vote on class curriculum only perpetuates the older generation’s perspective, as their children grow up to take their place.

Impact of Technology Essay

The unprecedented advancement in materialistic technology is setting consistently a wall of high mental affluence-which is inhibiting the parameters to show up in road to development.The rapid advancement in technology is directly proportional to the proliferating population of our very planet.People taking assistance of modern technology is significantly increasing at the moment.Now,we have already entered the era where electricity is indispensible.To live a normal life in modern days,the fuel-electricity and the machine-technology should be present simultaneously daily. Core reasons behind prioritizing modern education are too obvious to belabor-when it comes to development of a nation.Education is the ultimate wall of a nation building heavenward.The use of different technology in schools is now on the brink of becoming a fundamental necessity when starting a school anywhere.The vitality of technology in education is becoming more vivid in society contributing to the technology en terprises that are minting colossal deal of money through education.The new millennium has provided the medium where the technology and education have intersected and synthesized the now popular â€Å"modern education†. The technology giants of the world are enlarging their establishments here in India knowing the fact that India holds the supremacy in the field of future of technology.Moreover,according to a recent article in Forbes India,it has stated that one third of Indian population is under the tender age of 14.We might wonder now,how much pressure do the inquisitive young minds are exerting on education that is still limited to only a certain part of the population.The government is trying to reach as much of population possible but there are still millions of children who aren’t able to avail the facility of schools and proper education.The central government allocated about 42,036crores for both schools and higher education sectors in the year 2010 which grew to 52,057crores last year according to Wikipedia. Pro-education culture is grasping the minds of people everywhere in such a significant fashion due to development.But The World Bank in 2o11 stated that,32.7% of Indian populati on still falls below the global poverty line that is 1.25 dollars income per day.what about them? The enormous sum of money spent in education still is scanty due to the large population of mother India.As per the CBSE,India still has a shortfall of about 200,000 schools.So,we can analyze that,due to the scanty economic capital,the no. of schools dramatically lag the actual demand.Not only economy is affecting the status quo of education but also the number of human resources who are educating the young citizens. Now talking about the existing schools,all of them are doing a marvelous job in imparting knowledge in young minds but I think that there are still many limitations of the classroom education.Architectural infrastructure of classrooms isn’t a big deal but what really matters is the education provided in classrooms.The biggest drawback of the classroom education is that,the students involved in learning are only exposed to the knowledge and ideas of limited faculty wh ereas in world,there are millions of brilliant minds.Second drawback is that,so as to set up a basic school,materialistic facility and human resource are must-present fundamental requirements.This makes education unavailable in rural areas spread across the vast geographical diversity in nation such as India. Now,what is the best way to tackle the problems hovering the present,regarding education?I strongly feel that internet is the ultimate medium through which education should be made possible so as to reach far and beyond.Internet is a bottomless reservoir of information and this invention of mankind has made the physical barriers and distances so small.What is most extraordinary about the internetIt is constantly updated within short span of time.This leads to exposure of our mind to the latest information on topics of our own interest.As internet effortlessly seems to make our information obsolete every now and then,we also can access the information on web without difficulties. The telecommunication technology is rising everywhere.In India,according to Joshua Kim’s recent article featured in Forbes India,he has said that there are over 850million mobile subscribers in India and the number of subscribers is growing at the amazing rate of 10 million per month.From the particula r growth in mobile phone users,we can naturally scrutinize the future of internet accessibility.The increase in mobile phones naturally accelerates the growth of telecommunication technology.As the mobile phones will be easily available,there surely will be a time where the internet connection will be among the default features of the phones.As the access to internet will get better and easier in times to come,they would become an indispensible part of our future lives. Using internet,we can connect with the world without difficulties.The effects of telecommunication technology on education system are best to be said limitless.Till now,collaboration of different universities from different parts of the world hasn’t been a widespread approach for sharing knowledge.This was due to the fact of great physical distances and also due to being unaware about each other’s existence. Collaboration is the only way to complete each other’s deficiency and make education whol esome. Bringing Harvard,MIT and all other top universities to India is only through internet.If not internationally,collaboration can be done within our nation itself.If we try to amass all the knowledge of the contemporary human resources and make it digitally available,then surely,we can check the lack of human resources at a large extend.A live lecture on diseases in Delhi broadcasted in seven rural towns in Maharashtra†¦imagine the benefits! Now the prob

Assisted Suicide

Matthew Donnelly was a man who had loved life, but Matthew Donnelly became a man that wanted to die. For the past thirty years, Matthew had conducted research on the use of X-rays. Now, skin cancer was consuming his tortured body. He had lost his nose, his left hand, two fingers on his right hand, and part of his jaw. He was left blind and was slowly deteriorating. The pain was unrelenting. Doctors estimated that he had a year to live. Lying in bed with teeth clenched from the excruciating pain, he pleaded to be put out of his misery. His pleas, however, went unanswered because of existing law in the state of Texas. One day, Matthew's brother Harold, who could no longer ignore Matthew's repeated cry for mercy, removed a . 30 caliber pistol from his dresser drawer, walked into the hospital and shot and killed his brother. Harold was tried for murder. (Santa Clara University article) Had assisted suicide been legal in Texas, as it is in Oregon, Harold would not be in the position he is in today. Oregon was the first State to pass the law. In 1997 the Death with Dignity Act was implemented. This piece of legislation enables a competent adult who desires to end their life access to a lethal dose of medication which they administer themselves. In order for a person to qualify for assisted suicide in Oregon, they must be a legal adult and be capable of understanding the consequences of their decision. They must also have a prognosis of six months or less to live due to a terminal illness and have the backing of a registered physician (Volker, 2007). We have a moral obligation to relieve the suffering of our fellow human beings and to respect their right to die with dignity. Throughout most of our country today, terminally ill patients lie with incurable diseases and without the means to end their own suffering because the government tells them they can’t. These patients can only look forward to lives filled with yet more suffering and degradation. When such people beg for a merciful end to their pain and indignity, it is cruel and inhumane to refuse their will. Compassion demands that we give these people the choice they currently don’t have. Despite the clear need for a national death with dignity law, assisted suicide remains a controversial topic in today’s society. Opponents of the right to die act have many arguments against euthanasia as the right of all citizens. Some argue that only God is the true owner of when a person should come to their natural end. Others make the case that someone in seat of a terminally ill patient would not have the capacity to make a rational decision and could be negatively influenced by an immoral or poor physician. In response to the critics, I say this. We live in the land of the free and nobody should be able to violate an individual’s freedom by forcing their personal beliefs or spiritual beliefs on others (just as it is written in the Constitution! . Furthermore, as a proponent for assisted suicide I would argue that it is well within an individual’s rights to decide when and how they want to die. Why I understand the concern for patients being taken advantage of, I consider this a problem to be solved as opposed to an impassable wall. Let us come together to create a system, like Oregon, that protects terminally ill patients from being taken advantage of when they are most vulnerable while preserving the rights of those same citizens to choose in what manner they will meet their end. Harold’s story has proved that making it illegal to die when you choose to can lead to desperate acts by either the patient themselves or in this instance, a close family member. We should have the freedom to choose how we live our lives. Whether or not we want to end our lives early or let an illness take its course and let us die naturally are highly personal decisions and an instance where individual opinions are not welcome as law. People deserve to leave this earth with their dignity intact. How that is accomplished should be a personal choice, not subject to public opinion.

Christmas-Time Essay

â€Å"Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.† (Laura Ingalls Wilder) Christmas is coming, it is one of the most important and magnificent holidays of the Christian calendar. This is a miraculous time of year when people begin to believe in miracles again and become pure-minded like heartfelt children. We all come from childhood. This is a fun and good time which is associated with sweet memories and a sense of continuing happiness. I remember this happy-go-lucky period of my life when I dreamed with confidence without thinking whether my dreams would come true or not. On Christmas Eve there were dozens of lights which burnt in my house. Honestly, this amazing picture made my heart so bright and happy that I wanted to embrace the whole world. I waited always for Christmas time because it was very great to help my parents to make a special dinner and feel breathtaking holiday atmosphere. Even growing up I become a light-hearted child again for a while, forget all the troubles and plunge into the world of magic at Christmas. Moreover, everything changes in the days of Christmas. In this period of time even the most hardened cynics turn into romantics and become a little kinder. Most people forget about all the difficulties and could be among friends and relatives. All the year round we called each other on the phone occasionally, however at Christmas all loving people gather together at the same table. There is an opportunity to hug each other, talk, and wish happiness during this marvelous night. On Christmas Eve, the sky opens its gates, and we can make a wish, importantly that it should be sincere and from the heart. I want to believe that we can start a new countdown on the eve of this holiday and our life will be more successful and full of incredible things. Once upon a time there was already a miracle, the birth of Jesus Christ. We yearn to believe in wonders and wish to let a little Christmas magic enter into our lives. Enjoy your life and go towards your dream like children – and then the most cherished desires will be fulfilled.

Management Information Systems At Access Fulfillment Ltd

Introduction In an organizational setting, the main application of information is in making sound decisions and finding the best remedies to a problem. These practices are closely related, and form foundations of all successful companies (Oz, 2008: p.8). In order to achieve this, most organizations have embraced different information systems. By definition, an information system is a collection of related company resources, which aid in retrieval, processing and distribution of information that supports the decision making process. (Heijden, H., Heijden, M. and Govardus, 2009: p.3). It obtains data as input and uses it to process and output useful information for decision making. In this paper, we explore on the application of Management Information Systems by Access Fulfilment Limited, a distribution company for a wide range of products, based in Kent, U.K. Management Information Systems at Access Fulfilment Limited According to Sadagopan (2004: p.1), management information systems (MIS) are computer based systems which provide access to data, which is speedy and flexible. There are several management areas where the management information systems have been used to make strategic decisions at Access Fulfilment Ltd. Management Information Systems for Decisions on New Warehouse Locations In an effort to expand the company, new offices and branches are often opened in different locations. To identify the most ideal locations, management information systems often aid in this analysis. Before a final decision is made, internal company information, as well as environmental information is generated by a management information system. This information includes both the shot and long term aspects that should be considered before setting up the new branch. These include the market and changeability, which is a prediction of the possible market response at the tine the branch is set up and the government policy, among others. For the warehouse branches that have been opened in the recent past, which are at Suffolk and Bristol, this system has provided the management team with the necessary information they need to execute the correct strategic decisions. As stated by Sadagopan (2004: p.14), strategic management information systems require mechanisms necessary for the assimilation of environmental information. This is necessary for influencing strategic decisions systematically. Management Information Systems for Decisions on Alternate Financing In every business, the decision for alternate financing is one of several strategic decisions that need sufficient information before being arrived at (Depamphlis, 2010: p.209). At Access Fulfilment Limited, a summary of status information about the internal financial status of the company is made. This summary is then referred to when such decisions are being made. This summary includes details on payrolls, the company budget, overruns, and variance analyses. In addition to this, external information, which is critical to the long-term status of the company, is also considered. The knowledge of these components of the business environment has enabled the managers of the company to make strategic decisions on this issue. This strategic decision, which applies the management information system, has turned out to benefit the company. For more than ten years that Access Fulfilment Limited has been in business, it has experienced substantial growth. One of the contributions towards this is alternate financing decisions. Management Information Systems for Decisions on Maintaining Competitiveness Competition is one of the major challenges faced by every business organizations (Waters, 2010: p.6). For Access Fulfilment Limited, the main sources of competition are other distribution companies that were in business even before it was founded. Having an advantage of a broader customer base as compared to Access Fulfilment Limited, these companies were difficult to compete with. Thus, decisions that had to be made by management to overcome this were very significant for the company. Management information systems aided in making decisions. Through the application of this information system, vital information about these competitors was obtained. This information comprised of the competitors’ present and future strategies for their distribution businesses. This information was quite helpful to the company. Since the managers were aware of what their competitors had planned, strategic decisions about advertisement and all other marketing functions of the company were arrived at. This enhanced Access Fulfilment Limited’s competitiveness in the market. It has also helped the company survive and grow for the period that it has been in the market, as is hopeful for further growth. For this reason, the application of the management information system has been beneficial to Access Fulfilment Limited. Management Information Systems for Decisions on Employee welfare Policies Any decision that concerns an organization’s welfare policy is among the strategic decisions that are taken by personnel management. In order to execute this decision successfully, internal information about the staff members is vital (Sadagopan, 2004: p.15). At Access Fulfilment, the information that influences such decisions includes staff size, quality of staff, their salary enumerations, motivations, and many more. However, what really governs this decision in the organization is the future vision and plans that the managers have. It is also governed by the probable labour market conditions in the business environment. By the application of management information systems, both the internal and external information needed by Access Fulfilment is obtained. This system has been quite resourceful in terms of setting the salaries for employees and motivating them. This strategy has enabled the company to retain most of their pioneer employees. Had the company failed to apply this system, probably the external job market could have been promising for the employees without the knowledge of the management team. Thus, failure or delay in adjusting the welfare of the employees to match or surpass the external market could prompt some of them to leave. The Relationship between Management Information Systems and Other Information Systems At Access Fulfilment Limited, several information systems are applied. Apart from the management information system (MIS), there is the executive support system (ESS), decision support system (DSS) and the knowledge management system (KMS), among others. One common thing about these information systems is that they all contribute towards the making of sound decisions that will see the company grow. What differentiates these systems is the level of management in which they are used and when they are used. The executive support system, for instance, is used by top level executives in decision making (Stair & Reynolds, 2011: p.446). Thus, for this company in as much as management information systems are used on various management levels, executive support systems are exclusive to the top management. Decision support systems, on the other hand is a support system for the management, with more capabilities than the management information systems (Janakiraman & Sarukesi, 2004: p.26) Conclusion Access fulfilment has been experiencing reasonable growth ever since 2000, when it started business. Although this cannot be entirely attributed to management information systems, it has been shown that these systems have had their contribution to its success. As aforementioned, this support system has been of great aid to the company in terms of strategic decision making. The aim of management information systems is to offer the right information from company reports (Sarukesi, 2004: p.26). Among the several strategic decisions that this system has helped make, this paper has addressed decisions for new locations, employee welfare policies, alternate financing and maintaining competitiveness in the business. On evaluating of this system at Access Fulfilment Limited, it can be concluded that it has been of a positive impact to the company. REFERENCE Depamphlis, D. 2010. Mergers and Acquisitions Basics: All You Need to Know. Oxford: Academic Press. Heijden, H., Heijden, M. and Govardus, J. 2009. Designing Management Information Systems. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Janakiraman, V. S. and Sarukesi, K. 2004. Decision Support Systems. Delhi: PHI Publishers. Oz, E. 2008. Management Information Systems. Massachusetts: Cengage Learning. Sadagopan, S. 2004. Management Information Systems. Delhi: PHI Learning. Stair, R. and Reynolds, G. 2011. Principles of Information Systems. Massachusetts: Cengage Learning. Waters, T.J. 2010. Hyperformance: Using Competitive Intelligence for Better Strategy and Execution. California: John Wiley & Sons.

Costco case analysis until 2008 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Costco case analysis until 2008 - Essay Example This is the reason why it is not charging credit cards because current low margins do not cover this fee. Costco can solve this problem by using both the cash and credit card system of payment, but those people who want to pay using credit cards, an extra 2% should be charged to their bills in the lieu of banking fee. This method will be acceptable to most of the customers as the prices in Costco are already very low and people who use credit card can still make a saving even if they pay for extra 2 percent banking fee. This will help Costco attract a wider customer base and at the same time not lose out on their margins. Costco has also limited itself in the membership program. Special offers and discounts are given only to members of Costco. This is a dangerous policy because many potential customers who want to avail special offer cannot avail them and hence they do not shop at Costco. What Costco can do here is that they should publish and send out special discount coupons throug h direct mail and magazines. These coupons should be redeemable at Costco stores and this way Costco will serve a wider audience and will be able to attract larger pool of prospective customers. Many other shops and competitors to Costco provide ancillary services to its customers. However, Costco does not provide these services to its customers. Costco is operating at very low margin which does not give enough leverage to Costco to provide these services. This can be tackled by Costco advertising that should compare its costs with other retailers and should point out that Costco is competing on cost and the value of saving that Costco provides is greater than ancillary services that other retailers provide. This will encourage many more customers to buy from Costco and it will also help to increase Costco’s sales and revenue. It can be concluded from the above discussion that although Costco is doing pretty well, it needs to look at the external environment and should

Boston Tea Party Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Boston Tea Party - Research Paper Example This one single act is still quite clear in the minds of many Americans and is continuously taught in the educational institutes. This single event was regarded as the Boston Tea Party and is recognized as one of the main events that finally led to American Revolution that took place during the period of 1775 (Ayers, 2009). The event of Boston Tea Party can be said to be one of the responses to the war that took place during 1754 to 1763 and the war occurred between the French and the Indians. Several wars had taken place between the nation of France and England, but the war between the French and the Indians was the most expensive of all (Allison, 2007). The English government was of the idea that since they were at war to safeguard the colonists of America from their Native as well as Canadian French friends, the colonists should reimburse the expenses. They even believed that more money will be spent in order to protect the Western frontier and they planned to pay all these expenses by heavily taxing the colonists. But the colonists believed that it was a waste to pay for all these expenses. Since the English government wanted the natives to pay for the cost of protecting the frontier and to relieve themselves from the national debt, they passed several acts and levied several taxes on the colonists during the era of 1760s (Volvo, 2012). These acts included the Stamp Act that was passed during 1765 and as a result of this act taxes were levied on any form of paper that was used by the natives (Volvo, 2012). These taxes were never accepted by the colonists and to stop the government from obtaining these taxes, they started threatening those who collected taxes and even held various protests with huge amount of people. These protests and acts to make the British government stop taxing the colonists were quite well organized and constant pursuit provided them fruitful results as the English government had to back away. Due to

BUSINESS LAW Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

BUSINESS LAW - Essay Example In our case, Colin’s Computer (CC) is a computer garage offering repair services for computers belonging to other organizations, in return for a monthly payment. Colin’s Computers advertises its services through their website and through a local daily, which reaches the intended organizations that have the need for Computer repair, among them, Geoff’s Gym (GG). After receiving the information regarding CC’s services and the discount offer they are giving to their new customers, GG decides to go for the services and fulfill the necessary conditions that were attached by CC, so that it could benefit from the offering. However, as it turned out, GG never received the repair services for its computers from CC, which in essence did not receive the letter that was to be sent either through mail, text or post; to confirm the offer. The occurrences that follows after GG finds the services of CC and opts to purchase them are the subject of this discussion, with a f ocus on whether a contract occurred, who is liable for the breach of the contract, and whether the contract is enforceable through a court of law, if at all it occurred. ... reat, it invited the organizations in need of computer repair services to make an offer, which would in turn be accepted by CC, based on the fulfillment of certain conditions. The conditions attached for an offer to become complete were; that the organization in need of the services would contact CC either through mail, post or text before 8th June and inform them of the definitive date the organization would like the services to commence. On its side, GG posted a letter on 3rd June and followed the letter up, with a call to confirm to CC that the letter of offer had been posted. However, it turned out that the letter was not receive by CC, that is why CC did not go to offer the repair services to GG’s computers. The facts of this case prove that an offer was made, but the corresponding requirement of acceptance did not occur (Simpson, 1987). According to the ruling of the case in Partridge Vs Crittenden (1968), the display of goods by the seller does not amount to an offer, b ut rather an invitation to treat. The same applies to an advertisement made by the seller. Therefore, even when GG would want to enforce the contract based on the fact that they had accepted the terms made by CC, by posting a letter before the stated date, and even went ahead to follow it up with a phone call, just to confirm that they had posted the letter, they are not in a position to do this, because the advertisement made by CC on its websites and a local daily, regarding its offer of computer repair services, did not amount to an offer, but a mere invitation to treat (Koffman & Macdonald, 2007). Therefore, contrary to the belief by GG that they had met the requirement of the contract and thus CC was liable to compensate them for the breach of the contract, the reality is different. GG

Modern Diplomatic History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Modern Diplomatic History - Essay Example In this paper, for the purposes of clarity, the researcher would define the first half of the nineteenth century from the years 1800 to 1850. In addition, the researcher would also try to look at the significant events in modern European history in these years, as well as the status of the major powers, in order to root out the causes of why no major war occurred in this period. One of the most important historical backgrounds of early nineteenth century Europe was the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars (McLynn 215). This war, which actually lasted from the years 1803-1815, actually proves to be the last major war between great European powers in the first half of the nineteenth century; in addition, this also set the tone for the establishment of the period of â€Å"Pax Britannica,† which would be a major reason why there would be no major war again in continental Europe until the second half of the nineteenth century, as the researcher would expound later in the paper (Fremon t-Barnes and Fisher 321). These wars were actually resulted by the creation of the French Empire by the French General Napoleon, which proved to be the last major challenge to the supremacy of the British Empire until the First World War. The final stages of the Napoleonic Wars (which covered the period of the early years of the nineteenth century) actually pitted the French Empire lead by Napoleon against various coalitions (from the Third to the Seventh Coalition) composed of the British Empire and its allies, most notably Russia, Prussia, Austria, the Netherlands, Sweden, and a number of German States (Fremont-Barnes and Fisher 259). At first, the French Empire (through the use of mass conscription and shrewd diplomacy) actually conquered most of continental Europe (except Great Britain), who at its peak created and/or controlled the client states of the Kingdom of Spain, the Kingdom of Naples, the Kingdom of Italy, the Swiss Confederation, the Confederation of the Rhine, the Low Countries, and the grand Duchy of Warsaw, among others (Fremont-Barnes and Fisher 15). However, constant warfare with the continental alliances, along with their failure to conquer the British Empire, actually brought about the downfall of the French Empire, resulting in Napoleon’s defeat at Russia and finally at Waterloo (Fremont-Barnes and Fisher 306). The Congress of Vienna, where the terms of the surrender of the French Empire, the reestablishment of the French Bourbon Monarchy, and the restructuring of Europe was discussed by the â€Å"Four Great Powers† (Prussia, United Kingdom, Austria and Russia), one of the greatest manifestation of diplomatic negotiation and compromise in Modern European History was witnessed (Chapman 1). Of course, these four great powers actually had their own territorial ambitions, as well as other objectives; however, the main objective among these powers was to resolve the issues caused by the French Empire, and by creating stability in Europe through the balance of powers (Chapman 16). There are many diplomatic provisions that were provided in the Congress of Vienna; however, this paper would focus on the most important provisions that would result to the relatively peaceful Europe for the next four decades (Chapman 55). As a result of the Congress of Vienna, Russia actually received the former French controlled Duchy of Warsaw,

The endangered anmial-Mouse Lemur and White-flag Dolphin Essay

The endangered anmial-Mouse Lemur and White-flag Dolphin - Essay Example Conservation programs are being developed carried out to ensure the continued existence of these fascinating animals. This essay presents a comprehensive description and current circumstances of these two endangered animals. Introduction Extinction naturally happens. In fact, a huge number of species has already died out. With regards to this, several individuals and groups have explained the worsening global scarcity of species by declaring that because extinction naturally occurs, the extinction of recent species is merely an extension of a natural occurrence. The 1973 Endangered Species Act (ESA) was the first official, federal attempt to recognize that every species serves a distinctive, special function in the environment and that people, especially governments, should keep from disturbing the balance of nature or the ecosystem (Liebesman & Petersen, 2003, 89). The double responsibility for stable and organized management of the ESA is assigned to the Fish and Wildlife Service ( FWS) for land and several marine species and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for marine life forms. The Act’s original goal was â€Å"to provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved† (Liebesman & Petersen, 2003, 89). ... From the point of view of ecology, a more effective method is to focus on protecting self-sufficient environment of these species, and allowing nature do its part (Liebesman & Petersen, 2003, 89-90). The FWS is tasked to list, delist, and reclassify protected species. When it is suggested to list a species as Endangered or Threatened, the FWS publicizes the suggestion in the U.S. government’s publication—the Federal Register (Baur & Irvin, 2010, 1). Afterward the FWS makes a decision whether to endorse, modify, or reject the suggestion. A species can be classified either ‘threatened’ or ‘endangered’, which depends on its condition and the level of threat. By definition, a ‘threatened’ species is â€Å"likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range† (Baur & Irvin, 2010, 34), whereas an ‘endangered’ species is â€Å"in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range† (Baur & Irvin, 2010, 34). A species is listed as endangered or threatened due to any of these reasons (Liebesman & Petersen, 2003, 18-20): (1) the threatened or current disruption or devastation, alteration, shortening of its range, or weakening of its habitat; (2) overexploitation for scientific, business-related, or recreational purposes; (3) the incompetence of current regulatory measures; (4) disease; and (5) other human-made or natural phenomena affecting its ability to survive. Once a species is listed, protective measures begin. Such measures involve protection from damaging impact of government programs or operations; limitations on the capturing and selling of species; and execution of recovery plans. These attempts strengthen the survival

Food Applications Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Food Applications - Research Paper Example A customer or user who wishes to make the best use of this great app should create an account. All the necessary payment details are stored permanently, and the customer has to merely provide the mailing information for placing an order (Poeana, 2014). With a nine year history, Eat24 Order Food Delivery & Takeout has achieved considerable popularity. Alexa has ranked it as 62,339 in the world, and it has classified its services as average at 2.071 seconds (JudgeSpot, 2014). Strengths The Eat24 Order Food Delivery & Takeout App can be used for locating restaurants in the vicinity of the customer. In addition, the user can search through the different types of restaurants and examine the various dishes on offer. Moreover, the user of this app has the option of viewing only those restaurants that are open at that time (Poeana, 2014). Furthermore, it is possible to filter the options and obtain a list of restaurants that accept or offer coupons. It is also possible to categorize the search results on the basis of delivery fee, distance, order type, or cuisine. In fact, the use can search for a specific menu item or restaurant. He can also explore the ratings, exhaustive menus, and then arrive at a decision regarding the food item to order (Poeana, 2014). Another facility provided by this app is the presence of the cart mechanism. When the user comes across a menu item that is to his liking, he can add it to the cart, and after completing the selection of food items, the user can view the contents of the cart.

CRM Model Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

CRM Model - Essay Example Consequently, the medical industry has not been left behind in implementing CRM especially in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and High Dependency Unit (HDU) operations, Shortell SM. et al (1994). It analyses the human factors in high-stress and high risk environments. All available resources, information and people are used to achieve safety and competence. It involves team training and simulation of emergency situations. Though there are wide variations in the specific designs and implementation of CRM programs in different organizations, the aim remains the same. There are several similarities between the aviation industry and the healthcare industry. One obvious one is that both have highly specialized experts operating with high-tech equipment. Secondly, both have large numbers of people working in different areas in pursuit of differentiated objectives that lead to a common goal attainment; running efficient flights and delivering effective healthcare respectively. Another similarity is the inevitable interdependency of the different departments involved so as to attain the set goal. However, when it comes to risk factors, healthcare has a much higher occurrence of real emergency situations compared to aviation. Patients with complicated, life threatening ailments are rushed in several times a day and have to be attended to immediately. The possibility of human error in these high speed operations is a definite possibility. When such errors occur, they are attributable to poor teamwork in terms of communication, coordination and split second decision making. In a nutshell therefore, healthcare needs CRM even more than aviation. Modern healthcare organizations have no choice but to apply CRM models. This is because they have to do whatever is possible to ensure that they operate with the highest level of efficiency at all times. One of the numerous available CRM models focuses on primary