Economics essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Economics - Essay Example However, the firms often prefer to use machines instead of human labour as they believe that the work can be done more efficiently as compared to the human labour. The researcher through this paper would aim to discuss about the concept of diminishing marginal returns to workers. This paper would offer the researcher a scope to discuss about the employment practices using the concepts of Economics. Law of diminishing return states that in case if equal quantities of one variable factor are increased, whereas, the other factor remains constant, there is a point in the economy beyond which if an extra unit of the variable factor added leads to diminishing return and fall in marginal physical product (Black and Lynch, 2001). The main reason behind this is that as one of the factors is held fixed and the other factor is increased, the proportions of the factors change. As the proportion of variable factor increases, the factor proportions become appropriate for carrying out the production within the economy and the marginal product increases. However, the researcher says that after a certain level, the production system becomes too much crowded with variable inputs and the factor proportions cannot be utilised for the production (Edvinsson, 2002). According to a researcher, an increase in proportions of the labour as well as the capital within the agricultural land for cultivation raises the output depending on the amount of input within the production process (Black and Lynch, 2001). However, in the agricultural process there are changes that may arise due to improvement in technology as well as the factor proportions. Technology within the agricultural field deals with the use of new and improved variety of crops for production and also the use of better quality fertilizers for proper cultivation. The law of diminishing returns is also referred to as the law of variable proportions within the economy (Lopez, Vaya and Artis, 2004). According to another researcher

Assessment Sheet Essay Example for Free

Assessment Sheet Essay Sheet What are three key things you learned about the Dark Ages in this lesson? Please be sure to include at least two complete sentences for each one. In Norman settlements, Lords controlled the villages as well as ruling and governing their land. Lords were oftentimes knights and served the king Norman settlements were surrounded by a wall that encompassed the lord’s house, and the rest of the village and the lord’s house usually had yet another wall. The village usually contained a stockpile of food, a well, and weapons. The idea is that they would have everything that they needed to survive within the walls, in case of an attack. Old English resembles modern English, but not very closely. One must remember that old English was only a component of the languages that formed together to make modern English. Latin, Celtic and German were blended together and reformed over time to make today’s English. Christianity wasn’t always the main religion of ancient Britain. It only became truly popular and dominant after the romans had been ran out of Britain and the Germanic tribes formed together to make the Anglo-Saxons. Explain two things that you would still like to know about the development of Old English. Please be sure to include at least one complete sentence for each one. I would like to learn more about the Modern English words that show roots in German Latin and Celtic. I would enjoy studying which language our grammar is based off of, and how we mixed certain rules in grammar from different languages. In one paragraph, describe how the language of English evolved during the Dark Ages. What were the influences that changed it over the years? Which ethnic backgrounds were involved in this evolution? Please write at least four sentences for this response. Old English gets its roots from the Celtic language that was spoken in ancient England. The romans invaded, and sent the Celtic population north and into Ireland. The clashes with the romans brought a little Latin into the language. When the Germanic tribes invaded the language also adopted a little German and the mix was known as Old English.

Canticle For Leibowitz: Walter Miller :: essays research papers

Canticle For Leibowitz: Walter Miller   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Walter Miller, in the novel A Canticle For Leibowitz, mocks the way we are as humans, particularly in those ways that lead to regressive thinking. The novel pokes fun at the attention to impractical details, such as to the spent copying the Leibowitz blueprints. Miller also mocks humans by describing the inordinate amount of attention and energy given to a spiritual being such as Leibowitz, as today's society worships God. Finally, the most absurd way Miller mocks today's society occurs when he describes how they do not give something very important the considered attention that it deserves. These are three examples how Walter Miller mocks and shows today's society their faults.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Miller mocks the way we are as humans when Francis gives too much attention to impractical details to the Leibowitz blueprints. Brother Francis spends many years copying the blueprints of the circuit design. Francis copies the design so carefully he mistakenly believes the color of the paper is important to the design of the circuit. Francis is set on mindlessly copying the blueprint he does not realize what the circuit design is for, and what is does. Brother Francis thinks regressively. The monks copy out the blueprints, and then do nothing with them. As a society we do the same thing today. In school students copy notes off the blackboard blindly, they do not know what they are copying. Therefore, they do not understand the content.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Not only does Miller also poke fun at impractical details, Miller also pokes fun at the way today's society revolves is the importance of a spiritual being such as Leibowitz. Today's society is strongly set on the existence of God.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Today's society is mocked due to the importance of a spiritual being, like Leibowitz. The monks do not really know who Leibowitz is. All of the information about Leibowitz are only rumors. No concrete evidence surfaced to prove that Leibowitz exists. It is the same in today's society with the belief of God. No proof that God physically exists is evident today. Most people still believe in God spiritually on the other hand. In comparison to the book's society, Leibowitz is their God. When Brother Francis accidently stumbles upon possible genuine evidence of the existence of Leibowitz, they ignore it. The Monks concentrate on the most illogical things. The only thing that they believe is important is a mysterious pilgrim spotted in the desert. The Monks believe that the pilgrim is Leibowitz himself. The Monks are looking past concrete evidence wondering if it is Leibowitz who is seen desert. It seems Canticle For Leibowitz: Walter Miller :: essays research papers Canticle For Leibowitz: Walter Miller   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Walter Miller, in the novel A Canticle For Leibowitz, mocks the way we are as humans, particularly in those ways that lead to regressive thinking. The novel pokes fun at the attention to impractical details, such as to the spent copying the Leibowitz blueprints. Miller also mocks humans by describing the inordinate amount of attention and energy given to a spiritual being such as Leibowitz, as today's society worships God. Finally, the most absurd way Miller mocks today's society occurs when he describes how they do not give something very important the considered attention that it deserves. These are three examples how Walter Miller mocks and shows today's society their faults.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Miller mocks the way we are as humans when Francis gives too much attention to impractical details to the Leibowitz blueprints. Brother Francis spends many years copying the blueprints of the circuit design. Francis copies the design so carefully he mistakenly believes the color of the paper is important to the design of the circuit. Francis is set on mindlessly copying the blueprint he does not realize what the circuit design is for, and what is does. Brother Francis thinks regressively. The monks copy out the blueprints, and then do nothing with them. As a society we do the same thing today. In school students copy notes off the blackboard blindly, they do not know what they are copying. Therefore, they do not understand the content.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Not only does Miller also poke fun at impractical details, Miller also pokes fun at the way today's society revolves is the importance of a spiritual being such as Leibowitz. Today's society is strongly set on the existence of God.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Today's society is mocked due to the importance of a spiritual being, like Leibowitz. The monks do not really know who Leibowitz is. All of the information about Leibowitz are only rumors. No concrete evidence surfaced to prove that Leibowitz exists. It is the same in today's society with the belief of God. No proof that God physically exists is evident today. Most people still believe in God spiritually on the other hand. In comparison to the book's society, Leibowitz is their God. When Brother Francis accidently stumbles upon possible genuine evidence of the existence of Leibowitz, they ignore it. The Monks concentrate on the most illogical things. The only thing that they believe is important is a mysterious pilgrim spotted in the desert. The Monks believe that the pilgrim is Leibowitz himself. The Monks are looking past concrete evidence wondering if it is Leibowitz who is seen desert. It seems

Reagan Revolution

Ronald Wilson Reagan, the fortieth president of the United States of America. He was well known for his economic policies during is first term, which later on became well known as â€Å"Reaganomics†. This policy included large tax cuts which was started and implemented in 1981. â€Å"Reaganomics† was told to rejuvenate the morale of the American people and then let them not be dependent on the government. Supply-side economics is the basis for this economic policy which aimed to stimulate growth of the economy.By implementing this policy, Reagan had the country’s gross domestic product or GDP recover from the 1982 recession and began to progress at 3. 4% per annum and also decreasing inflation.. Unemployment reached to an all time high during the first years of Reagan’s term but gradually decreased till the end of his presidency, thus strengthening the American economy. Then the stock market crashed in 1987 creating a huge governmental budget deficit which had raised the national debt substantially.The cause of this is unknown, yet detractors point out that Reaganomics was the mainly the cause of this crash yet remain inconclusive. In his second term in the presidential seat, he focused on strengthening the nation’s defense capabilities due to the significant build-up of arms in the Soviet Union. His second term was also marked by his foreign policies that deemed him as a war monger. His term also included the cessation of the Cold War and â€Å"Star Wars†. As nation’s economy grew steadily stronger, Reagan now focused on international relation, he was known as â€Å"The Great Communicator† in these affairs.Starting talks with Mikhail Gorbachev, Reagan initiated to have the Berlin wall be torn down as a start of a peace process and a new era to begin. Reagan has noticed that the arms of the Soviet Union was technologically advanced and had initiated defense projects that would enable the nation’s de fense systems to be at par or much superior than others. The space program boomed in that decade with the â€Å"Space Race† competing with the Soviet Union starting a â€Å"Star Wars† program that would rival any nation’s capabilities.

Civil War Reconstruction

America between 1865 and 1876 was very broken and disunited due to the obvious Civil War. There was much effort put in my various powers to put together America again and attain the unity preferably desired by the central governing body. Both the Congress and the Citizenry participated to remedy the discretely disunited states. President Johnson, who took office right after Lincoln against the radical republicans to piece together America, is a perfect example of Congressional effort put into the problem. As for the citizenry putting in effort, the Freedmen’s Bureau and sharecropping both showed a different paradigm of the problem on a level in which the average citizens could assist in unifying America again. Through examples we will soon see exactly how the two entities combined forces of the government and the people to fight for a common goal. After the conclusion of the Civil War with the defeat of the Confederate states, an organization by the name of Freedman’s Bureau was composed to give abandoned or confiscated land to freed African Americans to live on. This land was given to them in the form of grants that were approximately 40 acres, give or take, to live on for three years. After these 3 years, they would be able to purchase the land at a very low price. This organization helped put America together again because it shows the co-op method in which the Congress set up an establishment to give freedom to the black and then the people were readily agreeing to it, not rebelling. This also changed the Citizenry’s view of slaves in a certain way. As the Dread Scott case mentioned that slaved were not people they were property, well, now they were able to purchase land. This meant that since property can not own property and only another person can own property, that people must soon see slaves as reasonably people and not property. Although not revolutionary since segregation was very common amongst both North and South states, there was still a new perspective offered to people to accept slaves as people themselves. This would soon help bring the South and North closer as they would begin to begin in soon the same ideology towards people of different colors and cultures. Another factor important in tying together America was sharecropping, which however was not as good. Sharecropping meant that a squad or family could work independently for a fixed share of crop, around ?. The positive side to this was the fact that there was no expenditure in advance of harvest. The tenant had to share the risks of crop failure or a fall in cotton prices. Blacks believed this to be helpful to them, and since it was the Citizenry who decided upon doing this, we can see that the not only the government, but all the way down to the individual person we can see that citizens would put forth effort to cooperate with the new system of social life considering slavery was no longer an option. Although in the 1870s it became a servitude type instance in which croppers lived on credit until the cotton was sold. This was en route back to a modified adaptation of slavery in this time period. However until then, it was a vital key to show the vast effort put into the bringing together of America. The president also played a vital role in the bringing together of America. President Johnson wanted to reprieve the formerly Confederate states. He believed in organizing a new government and electing new representatives for states. This was contrary to the bringing together of America. Thus his opponent, the Radical Republicans came into action. Their plan was to fully represent the southern states’ government and also used military force to do so. They also passed the Civil Rights Acts to give slaves full rights. They wanted to grant suffrage to freedmen. This political party of republicans showed that the president was overpowered and thus could not disagree otherwise as the republicans fully gained the support of the people in their cause. Because of their success in this, they were able to put together America by the use of military force, which almost always does the job as we can see the Civil War settling any social issues about slavery. The fact that people began to not only include slaves as people, but to give them rights as well was a leap for American men, especially in the South. This was all part of the effort for unity. So as we can see from the efforts of the Radical Republicans and the Freedmen’s Bureau, there is much cooperation between the Citizenry and the Congress in the unity of America pose-Civil War.

Free Essays on NYC Composite Index

In 1966, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) established the NYSE Composite Index to provide a comprehensive measure of the market trend for the benefit of many investors who are concerned with general stock market price movements. The indexes consist of a Composite Index of all common stocks listed on the NYSE and four subgroup indexes Industrial, Transportation, Utility, and Finance. The indexes are basically a measure of the changes in cumulative market value of NYSE common stocks, adjusted to eliminate the effects of capitalization changes, new listings and delistings. The market value of each stock is obtained by multiplying its price per share by the number of shares listed. The aggregate market value, which is the sum of the individual market values, is then expressed relative to a base point market value. The base value was set at 50.00 on December 31, 1965 because this figure was reasonably close to the actual average price of all common stocks at that time. Every measure of changes in stock prices - index or average - must frequently be adjusted to reflect only movements resulting from auction market activity and eliminate the influence of corporate actions. Any change in the capitalization of an individual issue or of all issues in aggregate is dealt with in this index by making a proportionate change in the market value of the base figure.... Free Essays on NYC Composite Index Free Essays on NYC Composite Index In 1966, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) established the NYSE Composite Index to provide a comprehensive measure of the market trend for the benefit of many investors who are concerned with general stock market price movements. The indexes consist of a Composite Index of all common stocks listed on the NYSE and four subgroup indexes Industrial, Transportation, Utility, and Finance. The indexes are basically a measure of the changes in cumulative market value of NYSE common stocks, adjusted to eliminate the effects of capitalization changes, new listings and delistings. The market value of each stock is obtained by multiplying its price per share by the number of shares listed. The aggregate market value, which is the sum of the individual market values, is then expressed relative to a base point market value. The base value was set at 50.00 on December 31, 1965 because this figure was reasonably close to the actual average price of all common stocks at that time. Every measure of changes in stock prices - index or average - must frequently be adjusted to reflect only movements resulting from auction market activity and eliminate the influence of corporate actions. Any change in the capitalization of an individual issue or of all issues in aggregate is dealt with in this index by making a proportionate change in the market value of the base figure....

Parlement of Paris under Louis XV

Parlement of Paris under Louis XV The period of the reign of Louis XV is characterised by the significant public, judges, and parlements’ opposition to the monarch’s government and to the proposed policies and laws. The opposition can be explained from several perspectives. Thus, the judges did not consider the regent and Louis XV as powerful leaders because their economic and political reforms ended as the great losses for the country.Advertising We will write a custom critical writing sample on Parlement of Paris under Louis XV specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Furthermore, the role of the judges in the state was restored during the reign of the regent, but the fact only complicated the situation, making the opposition more obvious. From this point, the opposition against the reign of Louis XV and the associated policies was based on discussing the monarch’s reign as weak with references to the unsuccessful financial policies and to many ineffect ive diplomatic decisions with references to the results of the European wars. The government of Louis XV implemented two ineffective financial policies which made the country’s economics stagnate, and they even led to the decline of definite industries. Moreover, during a long period of time, the French economy depended on inadequate taxation policy. The first attempt to improve the financial situation within the country was associated with the implementation of John Law’s experiment which ended with the significant inflation. The next attempt to change the approaches to the country’s finances was the focus on the fiscal policies. The policy was implemented after the Seven Years War and provoked worsening of the economic situation with references to the newly increased taxation (Swann 1995). The opposition was inevitable. One more reason for developing the opposition is the inability of the government to propose the effective strategy and policy to contribute to the country’s reputation and progress. The participation of France in the Seven Years War did not add to the country’s reputation or status, but it weakened the potential and all the country’s resources, leading to the economic and social instability.Advertising Looking for critical writing on eastern europe? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Moreover, the situation was not improved because the judges, as the main opposition force, questioned the authority of the monarch and his decision (Swann 1995). Thus, they did not support any reforms proposed to gain the economic and political balance within the country. However, it is also possible to assume that the opposition was significantly based on the ideological wars which were typical for France during the whole period of the monarch’s reign. The status of Unigenitus was one of the most controversial questions associated with the ideological and religious lives of the country. Thus, the role of opposition against the government of Louis XV can be discussed with references to the activities of the Jansenist representatives and to the fact of the Jesuits expulsion in 1764 (Linton 1995; Swann 1995). Nevertheless, the ideological wars had less significant effects on the further development of the country in comparison with the financial and diplomatic failures. Thus, much opposition to the government of Louis XV depends on the general weakness of strategies and policies used by the regent and monarch in order to rule the country. In spite of several years of stability achieved by the monarch’s ministers, the reign of Louis XV is characterised by the loss of the country’s international reputation and internal power. The end of the monarch’s reign is also associated with the opposition movement which became the real challenge for authority and led to the dramatic changes in the country’s politics. References Linton, M 1995, ‘The rhetoric of virtue and the parlements, 1770-1775’, French History, vol. 9 no. 1, pp. 180-201. Swann, J 1995, Politics and the Parlement of Paris under Louis XV, 1754-1774, Cambridge University Press, USA.Advertising We will write a custom critical writing sample on Parlement of Paris under Louis XV specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More

Overview of French Interrogative Adverbs

Overview of French Interrogative Adverbs Interrogative adverbs are used to ask for specific information or facts. As adverbs, they are invariable, meaning they never change form. The most common French interrogative adverbs are: combien, comment,  oà ¹, pourquoi, and quand.  They can be used to ask questions with est-ce que  or subject-verb  inversion  or to pose indirect questions. And some can be worked into to nimporte (no matter)  expressions. 'Combien (de)' Combien means how many or how much. When its followed by a noun, combien requires the preposition de (of).  For example: Combien de pommes est-ce que tu vas acheter ? How many apples are you going to buy?Combien de temps avez-vous  ? How much time do you have 'Comment' Comment means how and sometimes what. For example: Comment va-t-il  ?   How is he doing?Comment as-tu fait à §a  ?   How did you do that?Comment  ?   What?Je ne vous ai pas entendu.   Ã‚  I didn’t hear you.Comment vous appelez-vous ? What’s your name? 'Oà ¹' Oà ¹Ã‚  means where. For example:   Oà ¹ veux-tu manger  ?   Where do you want to eat?Oà ¹ est-ce qu’elle a trouvà © ce sac  ?   Where did she find this bag? 'Pourquoi ' Pourquoi  means why. For example: Pourquoi à ªtes-vous partis  ?   Why did you leave?Pouquoi est-ce qu’ils sont en retard  ?   Why are they late? 'Quand' Quand means when. For example Quand veux-tu te rà ©veiller  ?   When do you want to wake up?Quand est-ce que Paul va arriver  ?   When is Paul going to arrive? In Questions With "Est-Ce Que" or Inversion All of these interrogative adverbs can be used to ask questions with either est-ce que or subject-verb  inversion. For example: Quand manges-tu  ? / Quand est-ce que tu manges  ?   When do you eat?Combien de livres veut-il  ? / Combien de livres est-ce quil veut  ?   How many books does he want?Oà ¹ habite-t-elle  ? / Oà ¹ est-ce quelle habite  ?   Where does she live? In Posing Indirect Questions They can be useful in indirect questions. For example: Dis-moi quand tu manges.   Tell me when you eat.Je ne sais pas combien de livres il veut.   I dont know how many books he wants.Jai oublià © oà ¹ elle habite.   I  forgot where she lives. With 'N'Importe' Expressions Comment, oà ¹, and quand can be used after nimporte  (no matter) to form indefinite adverbial phrases.  For example: Tu peux manger nimporte quand. You can eat whenever / anytime. And the Literary Why: 'Que' In literature or other formal French, you might see an additional interrogative adverb: que, meaning why. For example: Quavais-tu besoin de lui en parler  ? Why did you have to go and talk to him about it?Olivier et Roland, que nà ªtes-vous ici  ? (Victor Hugo) Olivier and Roland, why arent you here?

Human Behavior and the Environment Seminar UNIT 6 Research Paper

Human Behavior and the Environment Seminar UNIT 6 - Research Paper Example Nevertheless, the risk before such success is very thin. In other words, the study has ended into a conclusion that children with divorced parents stood either in a normal life or in a rebellious life. For example, a child, who had seen his or her parents within a marital conflict, has a tendency to lead a life under financial insecurities, failure in academic aspect, alcohol, cigarettes, and unemployment. Moreover, McLanahan would eventually point out the economic instability of households facing divorce as one of the main contributors of the adjustment deficiency of a child. In other words, the study claims that rebellious children are neither the cause nor reason of marital conflicts; rather, there is a huge possibility that 8 out of 10 rebellious children were products of marital conflicts. With such gravity of the consequences of marital conflicts, teenagers must be given value and a lot of understanding within their family and institutions they are into. Basically, most of their time when classes start was being spent in schools. During summer, holidays, or other vacations, most of their time was being spent together with their family. These times are very crucial and delicate. Hence, these moments must never be put to waste. In other words, these times will be beneficial if parents and institutions will put it in good use. Otherwise, such moments of development will pass by without emotional or psychological positive effects to the children. A lot of resources and studies were made in order to use such delicate time towards the development of each and every child. A lot of experts, such as the APA President Dr. Norine Johnson, have invited every parent to take time in reading various brochures that are full of information. Such information includes topics about adolescence, peers, self-esteem, sexuality, moods, preventing rebellion, and a lot more. These resources must be taken advantage in order to guide teenagers nowadays.

Film Thesis paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Film Thesis paper - Essay Example In The Big Sleep, which is the first film version of the 1939 novel in the same title by Raymond Chandler, Humphrey Bogart stars as detective Philip Marlowe and Lauren Bacall plays the role of the female lead. Breathless (the French title bout de souffle literally means 'at breath's end'), which achieved international acclaim in the nouvelle vague along with other two movies, was highly recognized for its bold visual style and the innovative editing use of jump cuts. Howard Hawks' film is celebrated as an important Hollywood realist film which treats its subject, theme, and story in a realist manner, and it was highly appreciated by the U.S. Library of Congress, which preserved the film to the National Film Registry in 1997. Through its audacious visual style and the inventive editing use of jump cuts, Breathless is celebrated as a significant example of "anti-realist" film. A comparative analysis of these two essential films brings out significant facts about the various elements of the two genres. Therefore, this paper undertakes a reflective analysis of 'culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant' film The Big Sleep (a Hollywood "realist" film) by Howard Hawks and the French New Wave film Breathless (an "anti-realist" film) by Jean Luc Godard, in order to compare and contrast the theme, narrative, tone, acting, and genre of the two movies. The Howard Hawks film The Big Sleep is one of the most powerful and complex noir movies in the history of the genre and represents the rotten sweetness of corruption through the narration and themes. As the realist version of a celebrated novel, the film depends greatly on the narrative and themes to reflect the story in an effective manner. To several critics, the director has even excelled the author of the novel to represent various significant details of the plot and the narrative of the film is a reflection of this success. "Howard Hawks' The Big Sleep is one of the truly great Hollywood pictures: the Raymond Chandler novel is brought to the screen with panache and authority, and the chemistry between Bogart and Bacall is unsurpassed. While the protagonist lovers are good guys and there is no femme-fatale, the movie has a strong noir aura. The darkly lit atmosphere and strong sexual tension shape our response to a grim and dissolute nether world where PI Philip Marlowe doggedly solves an enigma within a mystery in a plot so convoluted not even the film-makers fully understood it." (The Big Sleep (1946): Love's Vengeance Lost) In the narrative of the film, the director presents a number of murders throughout the film which complicate the audience in easily figuring out the full plot of the story. Significantly, a careful spectator of the film feels that he is left in a world of ambiguity and chaos, similar to the case-hardened private detective Philip Marlowe. Therefore, the realist version of the film through its narrative helps the director in reaching the audience more efficiently. The director has been able to bring about his recurring romantic configuration through the n

Biochemistry Assessment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Biochemistry Assessment - Assignment Example his increase in boiling point is due to higher number of carbons in butyric acid as compared to acetic acid; number of carbons is one of the criteria on which boiling point depends. Aldehydes and ketones both contain carbonyl group (C=O). When C=O is at the end of carbon chain, and carbon has two single bonds, one with other carbon and one with a hydrogen, then it’s an aldehyde. Vanillin is a phenolic aldehyde which is added to beverages and foods as a flavoring agent. It’s also found in French fries (trans fats). 9.Sucrose and honey are commonly used sweeteners.   Suppose you had a sweet-tasting water solution that contained either honey or sucrose.   How would you chemically determine which sweetener was present? For sucrose, resorchinol (1, 3-benzenediol) can be used to detect for the presence of sucrose in the solution. Resorchinol indicator solution is prepared by adding 0.05 g of reagent-grade resorchinol in 100 ml of HCl solution. 1 ml of freshly prepared indicator solution is mixed with 5 drops of 1 % unknown solution and heated to boiling point. If it turns to cherry red color after a few minutes, it indicates presence of sucrose, if it turns to other colors like yellow or salmon then sucrose is not present. Denaturation of proteins results in disruption and destruction of secondary and tertiary structures. As the process is not that much strong to break peptide bonds, so primary structure (sequence of amino acids) remains intact. However, alpha-helix and beta sheets are disrupted resulting in random shapes. 1. Messenger RNA (mRNA) is responsible for carrying the genetic information which is copied from DNA. This information is copied as a series of three-base code â€Å"words,† which are specific for a particular amino acid. 2. Transfer RNA (tRNA) has an important role of understanding and interpreting the genetic code carried by mRNA. In this regard, each amino acid has a specific type of tRNA. This

Womens Contribution during World War I Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Womens Contribution during World War I - Essay Example As far back as 1880, women had worked in textile and a few other industries but were kept away from heavy industries or those positions which involved real responsibility and power. These were the traditional roles they played from which they broke away just before the war started. Women replaced the men, when these men left their jobs to serve their country in war overseas. They filled many jobs which were brought into existence by wartime needs due to which the number of women employed increased greatly in many industries. In U.S, about eight million women had paid occupations before the war but after the war began, the number of women working increased in common lines of work as a newspaper stated, â€Å"There has been a sudden influx of women into such unusual occupations as bank clerks, ticket sellers, elevator operator, chauffeur, street car conductor, railroad trackwalker, section hand, locomotive wiper and oiler, locomotive dispatcher, block operator, draw bridge attendant, and employment in machine shops, steel mills, powder and ammunition factories, airplane works, boot blacking and farming.†(â€Å"Protecting the working mothers† Seattle Union Record) ... )  were very easy to find in all the newspapers ‘help wanted’ sections, which were a good evidence to prove that women of that time were willing to work at any cost, regardless of age or status, to help the nation win the war.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2. Increase in war emergency jobs There was high increase in jobs due to World War I as more and more men were leaving jobs to move to the front for the war, the industries had to look for female workers who could replace their men’s jobs. During 1917 and 1918, demands of female stenographers, telegraphers and phone operators were increasing rapidly. In the field of telegraphing, a newspaper wrote, â€Å"Women are more apt than men in this line of work.† (â€Å"Find women are apt† Seattle Post-Intelligencer.) The railroad companies also employed about hundred of capable woman operators, because not only were these woman known to be skillful but also dependable. There was an extreme high demand of femal e stenographers at one point of time too that almost two thirds of the total ads in newspaper were looking for stenographers, an example being, â€Å"Thoroughly competent book keeper, cashier, and stenographer, six years with last firm in charge of books and collections, desire position of responsibility.† (â€Å"Situation Wanted Ad† Seattle Post-Intelligencer). The women in that era wanted to take more responsible jobs did not wanted to be just a substitute labor force. 3. Military auxiliary jobs Nursing During World War  1, young women and girls worked as nurses. There was a high demand of nurses in the newspapers with headlines like,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Girl: 16 years, wants a position as a nurse.† (â€Å"Help Wanted Ads† Seattle Post-Intelligencer. June 16, 1917.) In April 1917, when United States entered World War I, the Navy had 160 nurses on

Shareholding versus Stakeholding Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Shareholding versus Stakeholding - Assignment Example After suitable measures to overcome the conflict have been taken, the business climate of the enterprise will be readily acceptable by the public investing in the shares of the company. This may indirectly raise the prices of the shares, leading to the generating of profit of the shareholders. Another reason for the rise of the difference between the stakeholders and the shareholders is the lack of protection rendered to the third party. Thus it is very important for the managers to pay heed to the rising differences between the stakeholders and shareholders of the company. But the main issue that the company faces is whether to use single value objective function or balanced scorecard (Siems, 2007, p.180). The challenges faced by managers to be ‘socially responsible’ In the process of being socially responsible, managers face a few challenges, for example the process of value seeking rather than value maximizing. Therefore, through the achievement of the value seeking f unction, the confusion that leads to maximizing the value is difficult to overcome, as the way the world is structured is quite complicated. Under no situation can the maximization of the value of the managers be guaranteed, but the assurance can be given that the movement of the managers is in the right direction. The absence of the negative externalities in the input factor market does not lead to the rise in the opportunity cost of the firm. If the firm is still earning the social cost of the company, this may result in the dilemma caused to the managers during the performance of the social responsibilities. Self-serving manager exploiting social responsibility for his/her personal gain Sometimes the managers of the companies with a purpose of performing the social responsibilities tend to serve their personal gains. The reason behind this is the use of the stakeholder’s theory, through which the personal short run-interests of the shareholders are accomplished. Since a be tter criterion cannot be provided, the proper evaluation of the managers is not possible. Thus, by the application of the shareholders theory, the managers pursue their own interest at the expense of the firm’s financial claimants and the society at large. The directors and the managers use the resources of the firm for their own needs, such as art, medical research, etc. without being held liable for the expenditures caused to the company. As with the practice of the stakeholder theory the internal control system of the company is being hampered, hence arguments are being placed for the government intervention – anti-takeover provisions, for example – in these areas (Letza S., et al., 2004, p.247). Budgeting and strategic management accounting tools as an encouragement for shareholder or stakeholder centric focus Such accounting tools as budgeting and the strategic management, Balanced Scorecard, and the others had been a helpful encouragement in the focusing o n the shareholders and the stakeholders of the concerned country. These tools help decide to what standard the company should stick to avoid neglecting the interests of both the shareholders and the stakeholders of the company. With tools like budgeting and strat

Womens Contribution during World War I Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Womens Contribution during World War I - Essay Example As far back as 1880, women had worked in textile and a few other industries but were kept away from heavy industries or those positions which involved real responsibility and power. These were the traditional roles they played from which they broke away just before the war started. Women replaced the men, when these men left their jobs to serve their country in war overseas. They filled many jobs which were brought into existence by wartime needs due to which the number of women employed increased greatly in many industries. In U.S, about eight million women had paid occupations before the war but after the war began, the number of women working increased in common lines of work as a newspaper stated, â€Å"There has been a sudden influx of women into such unusual occupations as bank clerks, ticket sellers, elevator operator, chauffeur, street car conductor, railroad trackwalker, section hand, locomotive wiper and oiler, locomotive dispatcher, block operator, draw bridge attendant, and employment in machine shops, steel mills, powder and ammunition factories, airplane works, boot blacking and farming.†(â€Å"Protecting the working mothers† Seattle Union Record) ... )  were very easy to find in all the newspapers ‘help wanted’ sections, which were a good evidence to prove that women of that time were willing to work at any cost, regardless of age or status, to help the nation win the war.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2. Increase in war emergency jobs There was high increase in jobs due to World War I as more and more men were leaving jobs to move to the front for the war, the industries had to look for female workers who could replace their men’s jobs. During 1917 and 1918, demands of female stenographers, telegraphers and phone operators were increasing rapidly. In the field of telegraphing, a newspaper wrote, â€Å"Women are more apt than men in this line of work.† (â€Å"Find women are apt† Seattle Post-Intelligencer.) The railroad companies also employed about hundred of capable woman operators, because not only were these woman known to be skillful but also dependable. There was an extreme high demand of femal e stenographers at one point of time too that almost two thirds of the total ads in newspaper were looking for stenographers, an example being, â€Å"Thoroughly competent book keeper, cashier, and stenographer, six years with last firm in charge of books and collections, desire position of responsibility.† (â€Å"Situation Wanted Ad† Seattle Post-Intelligencer). The women in that era wanted to take more responsible jobs did not wanted to be just a substitute labor force. 3. Military auxiliary jobs Nursing During World War  1, young women and girls worked as nurses. There was a high demand of nurses in the newspapers with headlines like,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Girl: 16 years, wants a position as a nurse.† (â€Å"Help Wanted Ads† Seattle Post-Intelligencer. June 16, 1917.) In April 1917, when United States entered World War I, the Navy had 160 nurses on

Foundations of Global Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Foundations of Global Business - Essay Example As an entrepreneur, this creates the need to come up with a different product that can ease these discomforts from them while achieving their objective of being smart. Shaving is a routine for all men in the world, it’s therefore important to ensure that there are no discomforts after the exercise. Therefore the purpose essay of this essay will be coming with friendly shaving equipment’s that can solve the problem of discomfort and hence attract a large market share. This will need to carry out an industry analysis using the porter five forces model so that to assess the viability of the new product in the industry and as well describe the best methods of marketing the products using the 4Ps of marketing. This is a model of conducting the industry analysis; the model uses five forces that affect the industry that is being assessed. These forces are; the bargaining power of supplier’s, the bargaining power of buyers, the threats of new entrants, the threat of substitutes and the intensity of rivalry within the industry (Botten, p120). A competition among the rival firms reduces the firms’ profit. This is because if the firm is not strong enough, it is likely to lose its market share. Most industries strive to achieve a greater competitive advantage over its rival firms. Rivalry among different industries varies according to the interests and goals of each specific industry. In an attempt of gaining competitive advantage in the men’s grooming market, several competitive actions need to be considered, these are; The industry can be entered with varying prices of the shaving equipment.This can be achieved by lowering the prices so as to gain temporary advantage and hence help to create a better public image that can attract customer loyalty. The features of the shaving equipment’s can be improved so that they can be easier to use and to dispose, this call for coming up and

Speech on Everyone Is Human Being Essay Example for Free

Speech on Everyone Is Human Being Essay Sir,Madam.. I am here to present the speech which is about â€Å"Every One is a Human Beign†. My story begins like this. A mother gives a birth to a living creature and We called it as â€Å"An infant†. You, Me and We all were borned because of a mother. When we were in our infantry age, We didn’t know so much things. There had very few things with us. We knew how to smile, how to cry and how to get loved. After becoming older.. Humans learn lot of things. They learn science, Maths, Religion and Languages.. But they forget the initial facts which had with them in born.. They try to cover their real smile, they try to show fake smile, fake feelings and they are running like rats for searching money. They don’t care each others. They don’t like to thing we all are human beigns and they haven’t time too to think so. Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person. They are human just like you and me. They have emotions just like you and me. sadness, happiness, loneliness put it this way, whatever you are feeling everyone in the world can and will feel. so instead of putting them in your mind as better than me put in your mind your as good as they are. We all want to live by each other’s happiness, not by each other’s misery. We don’t want to hate and despise one another. In this world there is room for everyone and the earth is rich and can provide for everyone.The way of life can be free and beautiful.But we have lost the way. Reality is what you believe in. There is no such thing as a fish as fals e reality! So if you put in your mind that everyone else is human, all lonely individuals looking for other people to meet. well then that is exactly what they are.

Starwood Hotels And Resorts Worldwide Inc Marketing Essay

Starwood Hotels And Resorts Worldwide Inc Marketing Essay Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc is one of the most well recognized corporations in the hospitality industry. Founded in 1991 as a real estate company first under the name of Starwood Capital Partners it developed to be a top hotel owning, operating and hospitality management company. What really distinguishes Starwood from other hospitality companies is its philosophy towards hotel customers, employees and guest services (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Providing unparalleled guest experience, high quality services products, creating team spirit among employees and by using an innovate customer approach it managed to be one of the leading companies in the hospitality industry (ibid.). Performing in the hospitality market since 1993, it developed to a global enterprise with the acquirement of Westin Hotels only 4 years after it first operated. In 1998 Starwood purchased the ITT Group, owner of the Sheraton and Four Points by Sheraton brands (ibid.). Today the company owns 992 properties all over the world (appendix 1). The majority of these properties are located in North America, where Starwood has presence with 533 hotels and 298.500 rooms in total. The company has also presence in Europe, Africa, Middle East, Asia and Latin America (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Most of the properties are franchised or operated in joint venture with individual hotel owners. Only 63 of the hotels are privately owned. At this moment 145.000 employees work worldwide for hotels managed and operated by Starwood. The Group is consisted by nine hotel brands and one residential and vacation Ownership Company (appendix 2), (ibid.). St. Regis: St. Regis hotels and Resorts are properties which provide high-end service to satisfy the most distinguished and demanding guests, both business and leisure travelers (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). The Luxury Collection: This brand operates unique and exceptional hotels and resorts, usually classic buildings or palaces. The aim of Luxury Collection is to provide extraordinary services and experiences concentrating in the destination (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). W: W Hotels and Resorts is a new brand of ultra modern, fashion and trendy hotels that is now developing throughout the world. W offers services and experiences never offered by any company in the past. Some examples are the WhateverWhenever service and the unique design and internal environment (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Westin, Le Meridien and Sheraton brands are the three historical and largest brands of Starwood. All of them operate in the upper scale of hospitality industry. Le Meridien is the most classic of them and provides a distinctive French style in all of its properties. Sheraton is the largest brand of Starwood and operates business city hotels and leisure resorts, whereas Westin hotels are distinctive for their gracious style and are ideal for those, who seek a superior guest experience (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Four Points is a brand operating medium scale comfort hotels (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Aloft, opened in 2008, is a collection of hip hotels with modern rooms. Aloft is similar in concept with the W brand but with cheaper rates (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Element Hotels and Resorts, also opened in 2008, is a brand inspired by Westin and consists of environmental and nature friendly hotels (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). One of Starwoods key to success is based on its approach towards enterprises development, which generates from the idea of continuously growth, targeting top markets. Therefore there is no surprise that among the corporations future goals is the expansion in China market; a strong financial country with a huge market and many business potentials (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). 2.Financial Assessment Evaluating the financial assessment of a company is possible either by comparing one company to another one of the same industry or by comparing data of different financial years. In Starwoods case, in order to perform companys assessment the second method will be used; comparison of different years. Hence, from year 2008 to 2009 there was a significant decrease in return of equity, falling from 20.3% to 3.8% indicating that Starwood was not able to generate return for shareholders (figure 1). Caused partly by the fall of return of assets from 5.20% in 2007 to 1.80% in 2008 reaching -1.30% in 2009, showing that Starwood didnt use efficiently its assets to generate profit. Referring to return of capital one of its downside is that it doesnt represent something specific about where the return is being generating. Therefore its not a precise choice of financial evaluation (About.com, 2010). Figure 1: Ratio Analysis for 2007-2009 3 Year Annual Ratios (Year End) Fiscal Period 2007 2008 2009 Return on Equity (%) 26,10 20,30 3,80 Return on Assets (%) 5,20 1,80 -1.3 Profit Margin (%) 9.00 6.00 2.00 Gross Margin (%) 28,10 26,40 21,80 Net Margin (%) 8,80 5,60 1,50 Asset Turnover (%) 0.64 0.61 0.54 Fixed Asset Turnover (%) 1.6 1.64 1.41 Inventory Turnover (%) 7.81 6.09 3.74 Debt to Equity (%) 173 216 160 Current Ratio (%) 0.87 0.81 0.74 Acid Test (%) 0.53 0.44 0.35 Coverage Ratio (%) 8.28 4.55 1.48 Note: Euromonitor International, (2010) Our own Calculations Furthermore, a major drop from 8.80% to 1.50% in net margin occurred during the years 2007 and 2009 revealing that not all of its income is converted into profits. Regarding profit margin in 2007 for each dollar of sales Starwood generated $0.09 of profits, when in 2009 for each dollar of sales Starwood generated $0.02. Also, gross margin indicates that the company will retain $0.28 in 2007 for its dollar of revenue, to be able to pay additional costs and expenses, whereas in 2009 retained $0.21 for the same purpose. Concerning net margin there was a gradual fall from 8.80% in 2007, to 5.60% in 2008 and finally to 1.50% in 2009 meaning that finally for every dollar earned by Starwood, the profit is $0.015 (Investopedia ULC, 2010). Additionally, asset turnover remained almost the same. In 2007 asset turnover was 0.64, in 2008 0.61 and in 2008 it dropped to 0.54 showing that a smaller percentage of sales was able to be generated from the companys assets. Therefore fixed assets turnover had also a small decline from 1.6 in 2007 to 1.41 in 2009. Moreover there was also a substantial decline in inventory turnover from 7.81 in 2007 it fell to 6.09 in 2008, whereas we only had 3.74 in 2009 suggesting that the companys inventories are not marketable as they used to (Investopedia ULC, 2010). As far as debt to equity is concerned there was a significant rise in 2008 from 173% in 2007 to 216, but after a year it fell again to 160%. Also, current ratio had a slight decline from 0.87 in 2007 to 0.74 in 2009. Regarding acid test in 2007 it was 0.53 decreased to 0.44 in 2008 and in 2009 reached 0.35, indicating to investors and to Starwood how quickly the assets can be converted to cash in order to pay their current liabilit ies. Finally, coverage ratio from 8.28% in 2007, dropped to 4.55% in 2008, reaching 1.48% in 2009 (appendix 4.2). Hence, the company will be in danger in the future if the coverage ratio remains around 1.0% or falls below 1.0%, because at this case that will mean that it is not able to meet its obligations (Palepu, Healy, Bernard, Peek, 2007). 3.Financial Performance, Forecast Evaluation In order to perform a financial evaluation of Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide Inc. it is necessary to collect information regarding the balance sheet (appendix 7), income statement (appendix 8) and cash flow statement (appendix 9) of the company. Using these financial statements we were able to calculate the financial ratios, that were presented previously and to produce the forecast models (appendix 10 11 12 ). Also, as presented in Figure 2, Starwoods greatest Dividends per Share rate were in 2006. From that year the dividends per share followed a downward flow to 0.90 in 2007 and 2008 to reach the amount of 0.20 in 2010, the lowest for the past 10 years. This could have happened due to new equity issue. Figure 2: Per Share Data for years 2000-2009 Annual Per Share Data (Year End) Fiscal Period 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Revenue per Share ($) 22,43 20,06 23,36 22,89 25,72 27,26 28,20 30,90 32,27 25,20 Free Cash flow per Share 1,60 1,44 2,04 2,29 1,17 1,37 0,61 2,57 0,93 2,01 Earnings Per Share ($) 2,08 0,73 1,78 1,53 1,89 1,92 4,92 2,72 1,80 0,38 Dividends Per Share 0,69 0,80 0,84 0,84 0,84 0,84 13,90 0,90 0,90 0,20 Book Value Per Share 20,48 19,21 20,29 21,54 22,94 23,77 14,19 10,42 8,86 9,87 Note: (Euromonitor International, 2010) Moreover, Starwoods greatest Dividends per Share rate was 13.90 in 2006. From that year the dividends per share followed a downward flow to 0.90 in 2007 and 2008 to reach the amount of 0.20 in 2010, the lowest for the past 10 years. This could have happened due to new equity issue or the decrease of net income from the year 2006 to 2009. Earnings per Share(figure 3) is also a rate that is affected from the relegation of net income from $1 billion in 2006 to $71 millions in 2009. Operational Income is also a factor that indicated that Starwoods financial condition is not in a good position. Figure 3 Note: Our own Diagram Figure 4 Note: Our own Calculation Regarding the forecast models, firstly the moving average model is calculated as well as the weighted moving average model. However these forecasting models are providing predictions only for one future period, in this case for the year 2010. The same situation applies for the exponential smoothing model. After making two assumptions for the value alpha (0.6 and 0.05) it is proved that this model is also not appropriate, because it provides forecasts for one future period. The most accurate forecasting method for Starwood is the linear regression model. After calculating a and b, which are necessary for the formula y=a+ bx (appendix 10.2, 11.2 12.2) the yearly (seasonal) ratio is estimated (Higgins, 2009). After these calculations the estimation of the sales (appendix 10.3), profits (appendix 11.3) and cost forecast (appendix 12.3) was completed. 4. SWOT Analysis Strengths à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Massive investment on Sheraton brand hotels. Starwood spent billions of dollars on renovations and new hotel openings in order to strengthen Sheraton globally and renew its corporate image (appendix 13), (Euromonitor International, 2010). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Hotel ownership: Starwood is selling its properties in return to long year management contracts of the same properties. This tactic is generally called Sale and lease back and is used in order that the company decreases its expenditures for maintaining the buildings. Starwood sold many of the leased, owned or operated by joint venture properties (Euromonitor International, 2010). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Starwood Preferred Guest loyalty program. The loyalty program of Starwood is well known in the tourism and hospitality industry and attracts new customers due to the benefits, innovative services and promotions in partnership with other companies offered to them (Euromonitor International, 2010). Also, to offer more benefits to their customers Starwood has cooperated with American Express to create a Starwood credit card (appendix 14). Weaknesses à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Luxury Brand Hotels. Starwoods collection contains only luxury, up-scale and mid-scale brands. There are no economy hotels for business or leisure travelers that dont afford luxury brands. Starwoods competitors are present in budget hotels with brands for example Ibis, owned by Accor and Holiday Inn Express owned by IHG (Euromonitor International, 2010). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ U.S. market oriented. Starwood has a large presence in the United States and that makes the company extremely dependant on the economy situation of the country. The U.S. economy upturns and downturns have direct effects on Starwood (Euromonitor International, 2010). Opportunities à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Aloft brand. This new Starwood brand gives the opportunity to travelers that cant afford the other luxury brands to have access to modern hotels with high-tech design and facilities (Euromonitor International, 2010). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Growth in Asia. Asia and especially China are the emerging markets for Starwood in the fore coming years. China is the second largest market right now and Starwood plans to double its presence there by 2012 (Euromonitor International, 2010). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Attraction of wider range of travelers via the social media networking sites. By developing mini-sites in every social media site, Starwood could attract new target groups of customers that never before have used its services or sometimes havent even heard about Starwood brand name (Euromonitor International, 2010) . Threats à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Consumer behavior. Starwood, having only a collection of luxury and upscale hotels is reliant to any changes in travelers behavior. Spending for luxury goods and services is usually the first thing that gets deleted or decreased from every business or family budget (Euromonitor International, 2010). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Travel industry downturns. Travel and tourism industry have experienced in the past a lot of uncertain and unexpected recessions due to facts like terrorism, enlarging fuel prices, political instability economic conditions or extreme weather conditions that caused major catastrophes. These effects could still happen anytime in the future. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ The above point about industry downturns leads most of the times to less credit availability to the companies. This means that there will be fewer investments in tourism either in forms of renovations or new build hotel openings (Euromonitor International, 2010). 5. Competitive Challenges In general 2008 for the hospitality industry was a good year. More specifically a 5% growth occurred at that time, followed however by a significant fall of 11% during the year 2009 due to the economic crisis. Starwood enterprise was affected by this crisis by a 12% fall in that year. Therefore, one solution to avoid the catastrophe was to lower room rates and cut costs. But what Starwood did was to try and gain customer loyalty. One way to do that was by making him feel like home. Another way to offer 1000 reward points for every night the customer stayed at their hotel (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Starwoods policy was by no means lower the price of the room rates significantly as some of their competitive did. Since it would be very difficult for them to recover after the crisis and the customers would become adapted to the discount room rates. Thus, it would be very difficult for Starwood to raise the room rate prices again. Eventually they would manage to do so, but it would take too much time (ibid.). For 2010 Starwood plans to launch its campaign of rediscover Sheraton, which cost US$ 6 billion in order to renovate and built new rooms, lobbies etc of Sheratons properties. A step, that will give Sheraton and Starwood a leading advantage (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). 6. Future Prospects The unpredictable and unstable economic situation in U.S and Europe resulted to the decrease of Starwoods revenue by 18% comparing the years 2008 and 2009. The weakening economic environment and the general reduction of business traveling led Starwood to offer an innovative promotion through the loyalty program called Preferred Guest. Starwood offered a 50% discount for guests staying from November until January 2010 (Euromonitor International, 2010). The future prospects for Starwood in order to adapt to the always evolving hospitality environment is first to franchise some brands to other hotel operators and owners (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). This means that Starwood could give permission to a 3rd organization to operate and be the master franchisor of its brands in a country or market that Starwood doesnt have prior experience. Second prospect intention is to increase sales booked directly from the companys website. That will lead to higher customer satisfaction and revenue increase. Another intention is to increase the number of guests joining the loyalty program and thereby increase the occupancy rates (ibid.). One final overall intention is to make the most out of what technology has to offer to hospitality and therefore boost the operating efficiency. Even though the information needed for Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide Inc evaluation was sufficient, there were some important statistics missing regarding Starwoods individual hotel brands and internal data for every country that Starwood is operating. Having these records we could have made a more informed report containing future prospects for each particular brand. Furthermore, if we had more information and data regarding taxes, distressed costs, market signaling, companys flexibility and management incentives we could make more efficient financial decisions (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010),. 7. Recommendations Geographic expansion Starwood has already a large presence in North America and Europe covering a wide range of properties, from historical palaces to ultra modern and hi-tech hotels. Starwood is now starting to expand in China, India and other Asian countries. Additionally the company should expand its business to Africa and Middle East but certainly should focus on China as it is the rising economy of our days (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). The Chinese, in a few years, are expected to be the largest number of travelers worldwide both for regional and international tourism. It is rational for any company to have strong presence in this country in order to create loyal guests of the future (appendix 15). Affordable Luxury Starwood created new concepts in hospitality a few years ago when introducing the brands aloft and Element. In that way these two new ideas were offered to new target groups of travelers that in the past would have never chosen to stay in a Starwood managed hotel. Element is the eco-friendly brand of the group while aloft is the first hotel company of the group doesnt concentrate on business travelers but focuses on young travelers that dont want to spend large amounts of money but still enjoy staying in a modern, comfortable and hi-tech environment (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Cost controlling Due to the global unstable economic situation companies and organizations like Starwood should deliberate to reducing their operational costs. This means that hotels should maximize the use of their existing resources and increase their efficiency. To give an example of that (Euromonitor International, 2010). New target groups In the near future Starwood should invest in new hospitality industry segments and new target group of both business and leisure travelers. Generation Y in a few years will have the ability to afford staying in a Starwood hotel. This is the reason why Starwood through the two new brands, element and aloft, should focus on developing them to attract the new generation (Euromonitor International, 2010). Customer experience The key point of success for the existing well-known brands of Starwood is to increase customer satisfaction and make each moment he spends using the services unique. This objective can be achieved from considering customers feedback and trying to adapt to their needs (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). Budget hotel brands A new trend that has been developed the last few years is for hotel chains to adapt low budget hotels. This doesnt mean under any circumstances that the quality standards will be lowered. Only that these specifically brand will provide more affordable services to future hotel guests. Other hospitality chains have recognized the market need for more inexpensive hotels and have already launched their budget hotels (Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 2010). 8. References About.com. (2010). Interest Coverage Ratio. Retrieved September 13, 2010, from beginnersinvest.about.com: http://beginnersinvest.about.com/od/incomestatementanalysis/a/interest-coverage-ratio.htm Ashpfoundation. (2009). SWOT Analysis. Retrieved September 21, 2010, from www.ashpfoundation.org: http://www.google.ch/imgres?imgurl=http://www.ashpfoundation.org/leadershiptoolkit/swot-analysis-sm.jpgimgrefurl=http://proiecte4.parvezbd.com/swot-de-starbucks.htmlusg=__6eEJug33fGnGxWj8RZmFQl5hfjg=h=371w=368sz=79hl=destart=0zoom=1tbnid=ui8SJD5s Credit Card Offers IQ. (2008). New Changes To The Starwood Amex Card. Retrieved September 21, 2010, from creditcardoffersiq.com: http://creditcardoffersiq.com/credit-card-news/new-changes-to-the-starwood-amex-card/ Euromonitor International. (2010). Starwood Hotel Resorts Worldwide Inc in Travel and Tourism World. Retrieved September 11, 2010, from www.portal.euromonitor.com: http://www.portal.euromonitor.com/Portal/ResultsList.aspx GuruFocus.com. (2010). HOT Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide Inc. ($47.45) . Retrieved August 27, 2010, from www.gurufocus.com: http://www.gurufocus.com/financials.php?symbol=HOT# Higgins, R. C. (2009). Analysis for Financial Management. New York: The McGraw- Hill Companies. Investopedia ULC. (2010). Fixed-Asset Turnover Ratio. Retrieved September 11, 2010, from www.investopedia.com: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/fixed-asset-turnover.asp Investopedia ULC. (2010). Gross Margin. Retrieved August 11, 2010, from www.investopedia.com: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/grossmargin.asp Investopedia ULC. (2010). Net Margin. Retrieved August 11, 2010, from www.investopedia.com: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/n/net_margin.asp Investopedia ULC. (2010). Return On Assets ROA. Retrieved September 11, 2010, from www.investopedia.com: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/returnonassets.asp Investopedia ULC. (2010). Return On Invested Capital ROIC. Retrieved September 11, 2010, from www.investopedia.com: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/returnoninvestmentcapital.asp Miles, D. P. (2009). Hotel Reward Programs: Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG). Retrieved September 21, 2010, from pointsmilesandmartinis.blogspot.com: http://pointsmilesandmartinis.blogspot.com/2009/06/hotel-reward-programs-starwood.html Palepu, K. G., Healy, P. M., Bernard, V. L., Peek, E. (2007). BUSINESS ANALYSIS AND VALUATION. London: Thomsom Learning. Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (2010). Company Overview. Retrieved September 9, 2010, from www.starwoodhotels.com: http://www.starwoodhotels.com/corporate/company_info.html Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (2010). Company Values. Retrieved September 9, 2010, from www.starwoodhotels.com: http://www.starwoodhotels.com/corporate/company_values.html Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (2010). Development Support. Retrieved September 8, 2010, from development.starwoodhotels.com: http://development.starwoodhotels.com/development_support/ Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (2010). Sales Marketing. Retrieved September 10, 2010, from development.starwoodhotels.com: http://development.starwoodhotels.com/sales_marketing/ Starwood Hotels Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (2010). The beauty of Starwood is the beauty of choice. Retrieved September 8, 2010, from development.starwoodhotels.com: http://development.starwoodhotels.com/brands/ Valane, J. (2009). Starwood Hotels Resorts: Fairly Valued At Current Price. Retrieved September 21, 2010, from seekingalpha.com: http://seekingalpha.com/article/35371-starwood-hotels-resorts-fairly-valued-at-current-price

Macbeth - Characters In The First Three Acts :: essays research papers

Compare and contrast the characters of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in the first three Acts of Macbeth. Macbeth, the tragedy, is a penetrating, concentrated, and harrowing study of ambition. The play itself tells the story of a man, urged by his wife and foretold by prophecy, who commits regicide in order to gain power. His ostentatious appetite for domination only leads to his triumphal downfall deeming he and his wife naught but the, "dead butcher and his fiend like queen." However, the final analogy is a product of circumstantial change made evident in the first three acts. Macbeth is a basically good man who is troubled by his conscience and loyalty though at the same time ambitious and murderous. He is led to evil initially by the witches' prophecies, and then by his wife's provocation, which he succumbs to because of the unrequited love he has for her. In retrospect, Lady Macbeth, whilst appearing patronising and manipulative, is in essence, a good wife who loves her husband. She is also ambitious but lacks the morals and integrity her husband posesses. To achieve her ambition, she rids of herself of any kindness that might stand in the way. However, she runs out of energy to supress her conscience and commits suicide. A foundation reputation for Macbeth is fashioned before he comes on to the stage. The Sergeant who has fought on his side harps about Macbeth’s valour in war, "But all’s too weak | For brave Macbeth – well he deserves that name"(Act I, scene II). We then hear from Ross, who consistently speaks of Macbeth’s courage in battle, "The Thane of Cawdor, began a dismal conflict | †¦Point against point, rebellious arm ‘gainst arm | Curbing his lavish spirit: and to conclude | The victory fell on us - "(Act I, scene II). These accounts imply a mighty, patriotic warrior and a loyal subject to the King. As the plot thickens, Macbeth falls short of these expectations, as a cloud of suspicion hangs over his conspicuous relationships with the Three witches. The suspicion grows when he (aside) confesses his "black and deep desires"(Act I, scene IV). Macbeth knows in order to obtain the throne he must kill Duncan yet acutely acknowl edges the duty he owes to Duncan. He knows to kill Duncan would ultimately be an enormous sin, a crime against heaven and therefore Macbeth is restrained.

What are the differences between how a child learns and how an adult learns?

Child learning is built on the concept that children need to be fully guided on what they need to learn, how they will learn it and when it will be learned. â€Å"Pedagogy is the art and science of teaching children† (Knowles, 1984, p. 13). This type of learning promotes dependency of the learners on the teacher or instructor. The counterpart of pedagogy is â€Å"Andragogy† which is â€Å"the art and science of helping adults learn† (Knowles, 1984, p. 13). It is assumed that adults have capabilities to take responsibility for learning so that there is more independence from the teacher or instructor.Curricula for child learning are very much controlled. They are age specific so that children depend much on what the teacher will teach; and it is expected that the teacher will provide all the answers. For adult learners, teachers do not have much control of the curriculum and they are not expected to provide answers but only to guide the adults to find the answers. It is expected that adults have basic knowledge and experience so that their kind of learning is more self-directed. Children are more subject-centered while adults are more performance-centered.When children learn, they are guided by role models and substitute knowledge and experiences of others. Teachers tell them when situations are worth following and when situations are to be avoided. Adults learn by performing in their own environment and problem situations. Children’s learning is enhanced by rewards and punishments. To recognize their acquired learning and also to encourage them to learn more, they are provided with rewards like high grades; good feedback like very good, excellent and even gifts. Adults are more goal-oriented. Their readiness allows them to immediately apply their learning to achieve their goals.

Lord of the Flies: Human Nature Essay

In the novel, Lord of the Flies, Golding has young and innocent children on a remote island to test how human nature works. Golding uses objects such as the conch and the Beast to reflect our society politically and psychologically. The novel shows human’s own illness and human nature. Human nature is unavoidable and can be a source of evil. It is one’s nature to do whatever it takes in order to survive. By trying to survive one’s evil creeps out. Jack and his hunters showed the most evil. The first pig being killed was the first sign of evil. They celebrated the killings and became blood thirsty for hunting. It was human nature for the hunters and the little boys to follow Jack and to try to survive on the island. Evil is an inborn trait that lives inside every one. It is our parents’ job to teach good morals and values when we are young, but evil can not be fully covered up. The children enjoyed the freedom away from rules and adults. As time passes on the island their freedom soon turns into a nightmare and in the end some died. Civilization is not so far from savagery and everyone has some kind of evil lurking about. Even the little innocent British boys have a certain amount of evil in themselves. The kids are used to rules, but they soon realize that rules do not matter anymore. They can not be punished for throwing rocks or pushing a boulder and killing someone. Roger can not get into trouble by adults anymore, so his human nature kicks in and he reveals his evilness. He was able to kill without getting into trouble. The Beast is messing with the kids’ minds and they become crazed little boys. The fear makes them turn into savages and kill to survive. The Beast is like a phobia for the littluns. Beast from the Air arrives and stirs up some more trouble. It confuses them because they realize there are more things to be cautious of. The conch was supposed to be good, but the power of it changes the kids. Jack and Ralph fight about who has the conch and who is the leader. It is human nature for Jack to desire the conch and what is not his. Human nature has a big role in Lord of the Flies and many of the kids can not handle it. Once human nature was revealed many turned into little killers. It was human nature to try to survive and many did live at the end, but at the cost of lives.

Canterbury tales: The Wife of Bath and the Pardoner Essay

Similarities and differences are easly spotted in a work of fiction. Alot of the time the author will make it very clear what he or she is trying to portray through their similarities and differences. In the Canterbury tales the autthor makes sure that you know that there are alot more differences than there are similarities. For example the Wife of Bath and the Pardoner, they are very different stories but the author seems to tie in their similarities and differences. In the Wife of Bath and in the Pardoner there are many similariries and differences between the two tales. In the tales one of the similarities is that they both have experienced the world. There is one difference between them just in traveling around the world because the Wife of Bath experienced the world by traveling and also in a sexual sense. She goes on for a while in her tale about how she would be the best person to talk about marriage and how you can make it work, or how it wont work. And she states that she ahs the right to say this because she has been married fiive times, and she knows what will and wont work in a marriage. One of the big reasons that she said all of this is so that she can destroy the idea that men are the dominate species and they have a strong power over women, and that if women are given everything that they need, want, and desire, then thhey will be willing to do anything that their husbands want and they will be faithful to them always. While these stories are exptremly different in what they are talking about there are still a few things that they have in common. The Pardoner is all about the journey to canterbury and how they decidd to make the journey a little more bearable so they decided to have a story telling contest. So they decided have each of the men tell a story on their way to canterbury and on their way back and the Inn keeper will decide on the winner. Except for the fact that they never got to finsh their stories on the way back becase the Pardoner dies and their is never a clear winner. Sometimes the author wants you to be able to notice the similarites and differences within a peice of fiction. Sometimes it is hidden but other times, such as in this case they are very obvious.

Counter terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Counter terrorism - Essay Example In the fast changing social paradigms of uncertainties, the preparedness of the various disaster management imperatives needs to be well defined. The Department of Homeland Security is the central agency that provides effective management resource within federal, state and local governments on security issues. Its primary responsibility as a security authority is to anticipate, preempt, detect and deter threats to the homeland and its people from terrorist attacks, natural disasters or any other emergency. Its goal is to coordinate different agencies and programs into a single agency for fast and efficient response to the crisis. Larry Ness states, ‘the Department of Homeland Security is still consolidating most of the more than 40 federal entities’ (Ness, 2006, p. 49). Its security responsibilities are varied and related to the governmental jurisdictions at federal, state, and local level and acts as a complementary system that connects all levels of government.The DHS primarily carries out its goals and objectives through five major agencies that coordinate and form linkages with various other state and federal agencies to protect the tangible and non tangible properties of its citizens. The agencies are as follows:It is an independent agency reporting to the President and tasked with responding to, planning for, recovering from and mitigating against disaster. Its role has become all the more important after 9/11 and works with a vision of ‘A Nation Prepared’. The National Urban Search and Rescue Response System

Appeasement and wars Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Appeasement and wars - Essay Example It is through this party that Hitler controlled Germany with no mercy (Evans 2006, p. 14). This paper will discuss the universally popular consent of Hitler’s rule. In other words, this is the main view of Hitler’s dictatorship rule. Hitler attained full control of Germany the after the First World War crisis (Evans 2006, p. 23). He used charismatic oratory, as well as propaganda, appealing to financial needs, anti-Semitism and nationalism to set up an authoritarian regime in the country. With a rearmed military, as well as a restructured economy, he pursued an aggressive international policy with the aim of expanding or increasing Germans boarders (Bracher 1972, p. 15). This eventually led to the explosion of the Second World War. The fighting broke out after Germany invaded the territories of Poland and Poland chose to resist German’s attempt. Hitler’s name is never forgotten in Germany. During the First World War, Hitler joined the German armed forces. He even got rewards for his stern bravery. However, when he got news of German’s defeat in the First World War, Hitler was extremely depressed. He felt that it was extremely dishonorable for the whole Germany to lose in such a war (Bracher 1972, p. 15). Hitler used documentaries and movies as propaganda devices. He was concerned and appeared in a series of films via Universum Film AG (UFA) by the revolutionary filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl. Such films were Victory of Faith (1933), Triumph of the Will (1934) and Day of Freedom: Our Armed Forces (1935) (Bracher 1972, p. 23). Victory of Faith (1933) or Der Sieg des Glaubens was the first documentary to be directed by Leni Riefenstahl. She was hired regardless of the being opposed by Nazi officials, who disliked employing a female or a non-member of the Nazi Regime. Riefenstahl’s film talks about the Fifth Party Rally of the Nazi Regime, which took place in Nuremberg from August 30th to September 3rd, 1933. Triumph of the Wil l (1934) was made also by Leni Riefenstahl. It recounts the 1934 Nazi Party Congress that took place in Nuremberg. The event was attended by over 700,000 Nazi followers. The film contains excerpts from talks given by different Nazi leaders at the Congress, incorporating portions of speeches by Adolf Hitler, combined with recordings of massed party members (Joll 1990, p. 4). This film portrayed to the Germans of how Hitler was an able leader that could bring success to their nation. It is through this film that a majority of Germans started to admire Hitler. Hitler also used his right hand man, Fritz Darges, to spread propaganda and rule the Germans effectively. Fritz Darges headed the SS movement after being appointed by Hitler. Germans liked how the SS carried out its duties, and how it made their country safe (Bracher 1972, p. 34). The SS, the selected guard of the Nazi regime, wielded increasing control through its power over the police force. Political antagonists, mainly those in the Social Democratic Party of Germany and the Communist Movement of Germany, along with Jews, were subject to persecution, intimidation, as well as discriminatory legislation. In the opening two years of Hitler’s chancellorship, he, through the help of the SS, followed a rigorous strategy of Gleichschaltung (coordination), by which state governments, political parties along with professional and cultural organizations were brought in proportion to Nazi goals. The economy, culture, law and education all

Role and Purpose of Accounting Information Systems Term Paper

Role and Purpose of Accounting Information Systems - Term Paper Example First, the role of the accounting information system is timely and accurate data collection. Data collection is the process that the organization gathers the data related to the transactions of the business. The business gives and receives data on a daily basis that needs to be recorded in a systematic manner for various purposes in the organization. Therefore, it is one of the sole roles of the accounting information system to timely and accurately collect data, which are used by the management to process information that assists in the decision making of the business (Boockholdt, 2010). Accounting and financial transaction are mostly in value form, and their timely and accurately collection becomes core interest of the business. Sometimes, large businesses have multiple departments and subsidiaries, national or international. This calls for the use of accounting information system to enhance central collection of information or data from these department or subsidiaries in accurate ly and timely manner. Second role is to enhance data processing. This involves clarifying, sorting, and calculating data very fast, but accurately. The clarifying involves the process of validation; that is, ensuring that the data supplied is clean, correct and useful to the end users of such data. Sorting involves arranging data in some sequence or different classes of the data supplied. For example, a purchase of an asset such as vehicle may be sorted out by the system and classified under fixed assets. Then the processing also involves the summarization of the information processed. This is reducing the detail of the data to its main points and then aggregating the data to give full information about the data supplied to the business. This may be the stage of the preparation of the financial statements of the business. Then lastly carrying the analysis of the summarized data and interpreting such information appropriately. The third role is to ensure proper

Explaining a Concept Research Paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Explaining a Concept Research Paper - Assignment Example Although that is the ideal set-up, taking the car to the garage every time for a simple oil change can actually add up in costs and rack up quite a bill for the car owner throughout the year. That is why it there are some do-it-yourself supporters out these who believe that the oil change, being a really simple process, can be done by the car owner him or herself. Doing the oil change yourself allows you to get to know the under pinnings and other parts of your car better while also giving you the bragging rights to being a master â€Å"oil change† mechanic. The purpose of this concept paper is to do exactly that, explain the reason, concept, and method by which a car owner can change his own car oil. It is important to remember that although changing the car oil is something that is relatively easy to do with the right tools and equipment, there is still a strong tendency to do it the wrong way. Done properly, the oil change you personally did will result in a purring engine. Do it wrong and you end up back at the garage paying for more than just an oil change. It is this possibility that usually sends most car owners to the nearest garage or gas station for a quick oil change. But with these shops continuing to raise their prices for simple services, having an oil change done professionally does not seem financially sound anymore (â€Å" DIY Car Maintenance - How to Change Your Car Oil Yourself†). In fact, learning to do the oil change yourself will save you not only money, but time wasted sitting in the client lounge of the local garage, waiting for the service to be completed in 3 hours when it should only take 20 minutes on average to do yourself. It would be best to allot an hour for changing the oil the first time that you set out to do the task yourself. This will allow you enough time to get to know the parts of your car and change the oil, inspect the oil plug, etc. without being pressed for time. The whole process should go relatively f ast provided you have the following proper tools and materials prepared beforehand: Wrench to remove the drain plug (box or socket) Oil filter wrench Oil drain pan Funnel Latex gloves Jack and jack stands (optional, depends on ground clearance) Oil Oil Filter Replacement drain plug washer (depending on application) (Edmunds, Dan â€Å"How to Change Your Oil) Now, before you go wrench crazy because you have all the tools you need already, and start to unscrew everything underneath your car, it is important to consult the car manual to make sure that you bought the correct oil and oil filter at the auto supply store. The wrong motor oil or filter will result in a major disaster for your little home project. It is necessary to check your car manual because the manual might require; ... other specific oil requirements as defined by the by the American Petroleum Institute (API) and the International Lubricant Standardization Approval Committee (ILSAC.) Sometimes synthetic oil is express ly called for. Sometimes it's not necessary. And sometimes its use is implied by additional requirements (Edmunds, Dan â€Å"How to Change Your Oil). By following those aforementioned instructions as a diy person, you will ensure that the correct car oil will be used in your car. It is also necessary to make sure that you use the correct oil filter with your car because if; ... your owner’

Revelation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Revelation - Essay Example For instance, God makes it plain for Perpetua and her companions in a vision [where God reveals Himself to Perpetua as a feeding Shepherd] that it was God’s will that He delivers them from the persecution, but through martyrdom. This idea of God using not-so-pleasant experiences, circumstances and occurrences is also exemplified in Genesis 15:12-16. In His relationship with Abraham, God reveals that Abraham’s descendents are to be oppressed as slaves in another land [Egypt] for 430 years (Class notes, 45). In both cases [Perpetua’s and Abraham’s], there are very unfortunate circumstances that God permits, for purposes only He can understand. This is in total contrast to what some modern day televangelists tout in their ‘name-it-claim-it’ doctrine, to the effect that all Christians should have a good life, health and ample financial repository as long as they had faith. Perpetua’s martyrdom and the revelation that God gives Abraham concerning his descendants suffering in Egypt echo St. Paul’s charge that those who will live godly lives shall suffer persecution (2 Timothy 3:12). Again, the revelations in the martyrdom of Perpetua and her companions and in God’s relation with Israel in the wilderness also find a point of similarity. Contrary to the wrongful postulation of the average mind, Even as God allows Perpetua and her companions to undergo martyrdom, He is still a Shepherd to Perpetua and her companions. The intimation herein is that with God as the Shepherd, He delivered Perpetua through [and not from] the persecution (Natgeotv.com, 32nd minute and Class notes, 2). Therefore, God’s deliverance and care surpasses man’s idea of deliverance. Even as someone like Perpetua is tortured, she is given grace, divine resolve and protected, just as Jesus promises that not even a strand of His children’s hair shall be lost during persecution. The same is similar to the revelation God gives to the Israelites in the

Contributions to Misunderstanding Psychology Essay Example for Free

Contributions to Misunderstanding Psychology Essay Rose (1992) has accused psychology of â€Å"Engineering the Human Soul† (p. 351). This is a very odd statement for a sociologist to make because science, whether hard or social, by definition, requires conclusions to be based on use of the scientific method. Alas, the hypothesis that there is a human soul is one that that the scientific method cannot address because there is no way to provide empirical evidence that either confirms or disconfirms it. Indeed, even the phrenologists Gall and Spurzheim (discussed below), who mapped the brain into areas controlling all sorts of human attributes, found an area for â€Å"spirituality† (Myers, 2004), but not for the soul. Rose is, however, in the company of a medical internist with a Ph. D. from Yale in physical chemistry, i. e. , Collins (2007, as cited in Snyder, 2007), who has claimed there is evidence that â€Å"moral law is implanted in our brains by God† (p. 6). Nonetheless, despite psychology being unable to engineer an entity for which there is no scientific evidence, one purpose of this paper is to argue that Rose (1992), along with other critics of psychological research, has failed to recognize that the continued influence of the studies of individual differences beyond the early part of the last century, mainly the development of tests to measure intelligence, i. e. , IQ testing, has not been on psychology, but on education. Indeed, later psychological research on intelligence and cognitive development has been largely ignored in education (Perlmutter Burrell, 1999). There is no disagreement that IQ testing had and continues to have a negative influence on education, but this paper addresses the waning of the influences of IQ testing within psychology itself not long after the development of these tests. What is psychology? Rose (1992) defined psychology as the study of individual differences, based on a â€Å"paradigmatic technique of . . . the psychological ‘test’ . . . (pp. 358-359). The goal of psychology, according to Rose, is â€Å"the isolation, intensification, and inscription of human difference† (p. 359). This definition is not the same as the one used in most textbooks on introductory psychology, where the discipline is defined as â€Å"the science of behavior and mental processes† (Myers, 2004). While psychological questions have been of interest from the time of the ancient Greek philosophers, psychology as a science did not develop until the latter part of the 19th century (Myers, 2004). Psychologists eventually conducted research in areas that began in other disciplines – and also came to be blamed for the wretched excesses of still other disciplines, notably education. In the early 19th century, phrenologists Gall and Spurzheim mapped out brain areas supposedly controlling attributes from acquisitiveness to sublimity and measured people on these attributes by feeling bumps on their heads (Myers, 2004). Despite the embarrassment phrenology caused scientists, late in the 19th century French and German neurologists, notably Brocca and Wertheimer, provided evidence of left-hemisphere dominance in tasks involving language (Deutsch Springer, 1997). They used autopsy findings of those who suffered language deficits following strokes to areas in the left cerebral hemisphere (the dominant hemisphere for more than 90% and 70% of right- and left-handed people respectively). These findings were followed by further research on deficits in spatial abilities following strokes in the right cerebral (usually non-dominant) hemisphere (Deutsch Springer, 1997). In the next century, researchers studied the performance of those who underwent a surgical procedure where the connecting fibers (the corpus colossus) between the two hemispheres were severed to control the spread of severe seizures (Deutsch Springer, 1999). Later research, using equipment such as evoked potentials, was conducted using samples from the general population. The research provided evidence not that only one hemisphere was activated during performance of most tasks but evidence that one hemisphere was more activated than the other, for example, in language comprehension, the left hemisphere is more activated, but the right hemisphere also is activated in comprehending the emotional, metaphoric, and humorous content of language (Deutsch Springer, 1997). Individual differences also were rare, for example, listening to music results in greater activation in the right than left hemisphere, except there is the reverse pattern for trained musicians (Deutsch Springer, 1999). However, the history of research related to the cerebral hemispheres is an example of psychologists falsely being blamed for the nonsense propagated by those in education that there were left- and right-brained people – and teachers somehow were supposed to adjust their teaching for their right-brained students (Connell, 1990). In outlining the history of psychology, introductory textbooks place its beginnings in Wundt’s establishment of a laboratory in Vienna in 1879 for the purpose of applying the scientific method to the study of human mental processes: â€Å"On a December day in 1879 . . . Wundt was seeking to measure . . . the fastest and simplest mental processes. Thus began what many consider psychology’s first experiment† (Myers, 2004, p. 4). However, those in other disciplines, such as Rose (1992), seem to believe not only that psychology began – and ended with the early work of those studying individual differences, but also that research in psychology actually is used in education. Individual Differences One important difference between the early work of neurologists on the human cerebral hemispheres described above and early work on individual differences is that the former research was based on beginning with basic or shared mental processes. Put another way, the law of parsimony is that main effects are studied prior to interactions (Kirk, 1995). The early work on individual differences in intelligence began prior to research on basic cognitive processing. Galton’s definition of intelligence (White, 2006) was based on an assumption drawn from Darwin’s evolutionary theory of the survival of the fittest, both between- and within-species (1859, as cited in Myers, 2004). Between-species, humans clearly are advantaged with superior intellect. However, if human intelligence had been defined as those characteristics that increase the probability of an individual’s survival, predominant attributes would be those related to the attainment of economic and political power. From the beginnings of civilization, world history has been a struggle for power, with members of prevailing powerful groups inhumanely dominating members of less powerful groups (Braudel Mayne, 2003), a concept perhaps best expressed by John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever as â€Å"everybody always has to have somebody to dump on† (Wexler, 1977). Being powerful certainly does enhance one’s chances of survival, but how did anyone reach the conclusion that power was related to what we usually think of as intellect?