Long-Term Impact of the Slave Trade on the Atlantic World Essay

Long-Term Impact of the Slave Trade on the Atlantic World - Essay Example It is known as the triangular slave trade as it involved three continents, Africa, America, and Europe. There were two significant parts of this slave trade. The first was the voyage of Europeans from England to Africa with their own goods such as rum for trade with manufactured goods. In West Africa, there existed a form of barter trade where these goods were exchanged with slaves. Consequently, these slaves were gathered together in ships and transported to the new world in West Indies where they were forced to work in sugar plantations. However, most of them died on the way due to diseases, mistreatment, and harsh conditions. After slaves were sold in the region, the profit from the transaction was used to buy sugar, molasses, and other commodities and these were shipped back to England. In this trade Ships were used to carry slaves, rum, sugar, molasses, tobacco, and other type of crops, which maintained this trade (Rawley & Behrendt,2005, p.189-190). This paper seeks to discuss the long-term impact of slave trade on the Atlantic world. The Atlantic slave trade had its impact on the Atlantic region. These regions were Africa, Europe, and America (new world). These long-term effects were either positive or negative. The impact of Atlantic slave trade had detrimental effect on Africa’s demographics. ... This caused a decline in population of West African states for a long time such as upper guinea. Population growth stagnated in the first in the second decades of the 19th century. Additionally, social unrest started due to intertribal warfare and capturing of slaves for the new market from the Europeans. This fuelled major disasters such as famine and drought as people shifted their efforts from economic activities to fights and slave trade. This was complicated further as there were fewer people to produce for the society and this led to further decline of the population. Moreover, the continued mix of different people at this time led to spread of diseases and further decline of population especially in the state of Angola (Thornton, 1998, p. 326-329). Additionally, Atlantic trade had an impact on African economy. There was a profound social and political change, which had a significant role in underdevelopment of Africa economy as well as ethnic fictionalization and disruption of effective states. It is worth noting that most of the slaves were taken from weaker states. The trade led to taking away of skilled and strong labor force that could have played a role in the progress of African region. Consequently, the only population that remained in most of these regions was old and could not do anything meaningful in economic development leading to stagnation and regression of the African states. Many communities relocated to other regions far away from the trade routes, which led to decline in their technological and economic development and most of the energy was dedicated to their security. In addition, relations between kingdoms, ethnic groups, and religious functions were changed. Actually, the present religious, ethnic,

Franklin Park Zoos Valentine Celebration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Franklin Park Zoos Valentine Celebration - Essay Example The park will be crowning this year’s â€Å"Zoo Sweetheart 2010† base on who among the animals receives the most valentines. A winner will also get a chance to go in a behind-the-scenes tour of the Zoo with the whole family. ‘Catching Joy’ would feature a craft hands-on table where children could create their own valentine artworks on two Saturdays, February 13 and 20, inside the Tropical Forest from 1:00p.m.-4: 00 p.m. Zookeepers would also join in through various activities and encounters where people would get a chance to chat with them and answer questions. Make sure to bring your thinking cap and try to stomp them with questions regarding your favorite animals. Get to know more about the animals’ habitat, trivia and meet the zoo’s favorite residents up close and personal. Daily activities within the week include a valentine dating activity for the animals at the Tropical Forest which starts from 10:00 a.m. till 4:00 p.m. From 11:00 a.m. l earn more about the interesting information on one of the most romantic creatures at Bird’s World Building. Daily story time starts at 11:30 a.m. at the Hippo Theater situated inside Tropical Forest. Afterwards, raise your awareness regarding wildlife and the proper conservation of the earth by seeping in all the knowledge at the biofacts area. This is designed to raise consciousness not only among children but with adults as well. While at it, visit the ring-tailed lemur exhibit nearby. The gorillas, one of the most beloved primates are also featured from 2:00 p.m. with a zookeeper for an encounter at the Gorilla Exhibit. A zookeeper would also talk about the animals that call Franklin Farm home at 3:00 p.m. Think out of the box (or out of the restaurant) and take your date and the entire family to the Zoo. The week’s activities would surely grab the attention of everyone regardless of the age.  

Die Preforming Process: Long Last-stage Blade Nuclear Power

Die Preforming Process: Long Last-stage Blade Nuclear Power Design and Optimization of Die Preforming Process for Long Last-stage Blade of Nuclear Power He Xiaomao1,aà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã…’Jiang Peng1, Lin Jingtang2à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã…’Huang Jianning1 1 Beijing Mechanical and Electrical Institute of Technologyà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã…’Beijingà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã…’China 2 Tian Qian Heavy Industry Company, Ltd, Mianzhu, SiChuan, China Abstract: The long last-stage blade is a key component of the steam turbine of nuclear conventional island. The die preforming process for a new technology that provides billets for near-net-shape roll-forging process was designed, the effects of the forging temperature, friction coefficient, flash lands height and dies outer fillet radius on the die forging force and forging energy were studied by using the orthogonal experiment method, the primary and secondary order of the four factors were analysed by using range analysis method, and the optimal combination of the factors was obtained. By means of numerical simulation and physical experiment, the die preforming process that can provide qualified billets for the subsequent roll-forging process was verified, and the PZS1120f electric screw press can meet the requirements of the die preforming process. 1 Preface The long last-stage blade is the key component of the steam turbine of the nuclear power conventional island. The larger the exhausting area of the last-stage blade of the LP cylinder is, the higher the efficiency of the nuclear power unit is and the better the economy is [1]. Harbin Steam Turbine Factory had successfully developed a 72-inch (1829mm) half-speed nuclear power turbine blade [2], Shanghai Electric had also developed a 67-inch (1710mm) nuclear power blade [3], the development of these long blades effectively improves the efficiency of nuclear power unit, but its also a challenge to manufacture these long last-stage blades. At present, the technology of preforming and overall forging was mainly adopted by the domestic and foreign blade manufacturers [4, 5]. The radial forging and the open-die forging was adopted respectively by the foreign and domestic blade manufacturers as blanking process, and then, the overall die forging process was adopted to form the blades. Due to the large area of these blades, the capability of the blade manufacturers forging equipment cannot meet to the required forging force of producing the blades and the forged blades had got some defects, such as underpressing, underfill and overweight. The die preforming process that provides billets for a new near-net forming process for nuclear last-stage blades was proposed, the new process, which uses the roll-forging process to form the blade body of the long blades, the die forging to form the blade root, crown and damper, can effectively reduce the required forging force. In this paper, the die preforming technology of long last-stage blade was designed, the process parameters were optimized by the orthogonal experiment method and numerical simulation, and the feasibility of the process was verified by physical experiments. 2Optimization of process parameters The die preforming process was carried out in the PZS1120f type of electric screw press, the nominal tonnage of the press is 250,000 kN. According to the nominal tonnage, the maximal projection area of the forging billet was calculated. The forging force is not only related to the material and forgings projection area, but also related to the strain rate, temperature, friction coefficient and die structure (height of the flash land and the outer fillet radius of dies). Because the strain rate is related to the forming speeding of the press, its value is determined when the forging press is chosen. The forging temperature, the friction coefficient, the height of the flash land and the outer fillet radius were chosen as the process parameters to be optimized and the forging force and forging energy were chosen as optimization objectives. 2.1 Die preformed forging and dies 3D model of a preformed forging was shown in Figure 1, the forging model was calculated based on the press nominal tonnage and the forging drawing of the 72-inch blade, the calculation process wasnt repeated here, it will be discussed in detail in the future article. The dies structure was shown in Figure 2, it didnt contain the groove of the flash, and the structure was quite simple, only the height of the flash land h and the outer fillet radius r were considered as parameters. Figure. 1 3D model of die preformed forging Figure. 2 Die Structures Figure. 3 Billet of the die preforming 2.2 Levels and factors table of orthogonal experiment Orthogonal experiment method can be used to study the impact of multiple factors on the optimization objective by less number of trials, to obtain the best combination of factors for the optimal objective value. The forging force and the forging energy of the die preforming are related to the forging temperature A (T), the friction coefficient B (ÃŽÂ ¼), the height of flash land C (h) and the outer fillet radius D (r). The four parameters were adopted as the orthogonal experiment factors, each factor took three levels, and the designed factors and levels table were shown in Table 1. Table 1. Factors and levels table of the orthogonal experiment. Factor Level A Forging temperature T/à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ B Friction coefficient ÃŽÂ ¼ C height of flash land h/mm D outer fillet radius r/mm 1 1180 0.2 6 2 2 1150 0.3 8 3 3 1120 0.4 10 4 2.3 Parameter settings of numerical simulation The billets used in the die preforming were produced in the semi-open heading process in ref. [6]. The shapes and dimensions were shown in Fig 3. The material is 1Cr12Ni3Mo2VN, and the constitutive relation of the material was from ref. [7], in the Arrhenius form and the hyperbolic sinusoidal was used. à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã‹â€ 1à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° The die was modeled as a rigid model with a preheat temperature of 200  ° C and a forming speed of 400 mm / s. The forging temperatures and the friction coefficients were set according to Table 1. 2.4 Results oforthogonal experiment Orthogonal experiments were performed using the 3-level and 4-factor table L9 (34) [8], without considering the interaction between the factors, the orthogonal experiments of simulation arrangement and the results were shown in Table 2. Table.2 orthogonal experiments of simulation arrangement and the resultsà £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ NO. Factor Result A B C D Forging Force F à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã‹â€ kNà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° Forging Energy E à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã‹â€ kJà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° Forging temperature Friction coefficient Flash land height Outer fillet radius 1 1 1 3 2 343000 5830 2 1 2 1 1 462000 6200 3 1 3 2 3 449000 6440 4 2 1 2 1 398000 6420 5 2 2 3 3 364000 6510 6 2 3 1 2 631000 7370 7 3 1 1 3 522000 7270 8 3 2 2 2 465000 7370 9 3 3 3 1 427000 7440 2.5 Range analysis The value of Kjm was the sum of the result of the m factor at j level, and the means were represented by kjm, the value of kjm can reflect the optimal level. Rm was the range of the mth factor, the value of Rm reflected the fluctuation range of the optimal objective when the m factor fluctuated, the bigger the Rm was, the greater the influence of the m factor on the objective was. The primary and secondary order of the factors can be judged according to the range. The results of the range analysis of the forging force F and the forging energy E were shown in Table 3. Table.3 Range analysis of the forging force F and the forging energy Eà £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ Result Factor A B C D Forging Force F à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã‹â€ kNà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° K1m 12540000 1263000 1615000 1287000 K2m 13930000 1291000 1312000 1439000 K3m 14140000 1507000 1134000 1335000 k1m 4180000 421000 538333.3 429000 k2m 464333.3 430333.3 437333.3 479666.7 k3m 471333.3 502333.3 378000 445000 Rm 53333.3 81333.3 160333.3 50666.7 Order C>B>A>D Forging Energy E à ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã‹â€ kJà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° K1m 18470 19520 20840 20060 K2m 20300 20080 20230 20570 K3m 22080 21250 19780 20220 k1m 6156.7 6506.7 6946.7 6686.7 k2m 6766.7 6693.3 6743.3 6856.7 k3m 7360 7083.3 6593.3 6740 Rm 1203.3 576.7 353.3 170 Order A>B>C>D According the range of forging force in Table 3, the order of importance that the factors influences the forging force were the height of flash land C, the coefficient of friction B, the forging temperature A, the outer fillet radius D. According to the range analysis, the optimal combination to obtain the minimum forging force was (C3B1A1D1). The relationships among the forging force and the factors were shown in Figure 4, forging force decreased with increasing temperature, with decreasing of friction coefficient, and with increasing of the flash lands height; the relationship between forging force and the outer fillet radius didnt show significant trend of increasing or decreasing, but the range was the smallest among the four factors. Figure. 4 Relationships among the forging force and factors According the range of forging force in Table 3, the order of importance that the factors influences the forging energy were forging temperature A, friction coefficient B, height of flash land C, outer fillet radius D. Except the forging temperature can cause some fluctuations of the range of forging energy, the effects of other factors on the forging energys fluctuation were quite small, because the heating temperature made the transition of crystal atoms more easily, macroscopically indicated that the metal was more easily deformed, and the temperature increasing weakened the third-phase particles on pinning the dislocation movement, the required deformation energy was smaller; And the rest factors didnt have effects on the atomic migration and dislocation movement, and the macro behavior was that the forging energy didnt fluctuate obviously. 3 Numerical simulation analyses According to the optimizing result of the orthogonal experiment, the parameters were: forging temperature was 1180 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, friction coefficient was 0.2, flash lands height was 10mm, and outer fillet radius was 3mm, and the other parameters were same as orthogonal experiment. The simulation results were shown as follows: Figure.5 Relationship between stroke and forging force and energy As shown in figure 5, the predicated forging force was 304000 kN and the forging energy was 5680 kJ by using the optimal scheme. Compared with the result of orthogonal experiment, it was found that the value simulated by the optimal factor and level combination was the smallest one. Even if the optimal scheme was utilized, the forging force of 304,000 kN was great than the nominal tonnage 250,000 kN of PZS1120f electric screw press. In the live production, there would be some issues, such as the upper and lower die cannot be clamped, the forging would be underpressing and underfill. However, in order to ensure that forged billet has enough width and a certain length, to minimize the deformation along the width direction during the roll forging step, a few underpressing in the height direction would be allowed. The situation of die cavity filling while the forging force was 207000kN was shown in Figure 6, except the crown part of the outlet side, the rest of the billet was almost filled, and the value of underpressing of the dies was 2.7mm, this underpressing value would not have too much impact on the roll-forging of the blade. Figure.6 Situation of die cavity filling while the forging force was 207000kN The reason that cause the outlet side of the crown was not filled was the billet deflected to the inlet side at the beginning of the forging (as shown in Fig. 7), resulting in a shortage of material on the outlet side and the flash at inlet side was too large (Figure 6). 4Die preforming experiment Figure 8a were the upper and lower die used for the die preforming experiment, and Figure 8b is the blank, which was the forging in the heading experiment. Heating temperature was 1180 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, die preheating temperature was 200 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™, lubricated by graphite emulsion lubricant, and two blanks were forged in this experiment. The working force was set to the nominal tonnage of PZS1120f electric screw press, during the forging process, the first blow was to locate the blanks position and to remove the scale, and then, the blank was forged by the next two blows. The final forging forces of the two forged parts were measured to be 223460 kN and 213690 kN respectively. The die preforming forgings were shown in Figure 9, two forgings had varying degrees of underpressing and underfill, the underfill of the crown part at the outlet side was more serious, and the flash at the inlet side was much large. With numerical simulation results, it can be determined that the reason of these defects was the blanks deflection to the inlet side; some measures should be taken to prevent the blank deflection in the live production. The flash lands heights of the two forgings were measured to be 12.9mm and 12.8mm, the values of underpressing were 2.9mm and 2.8mm, because the forging force had reached the maximum tonnage of the press, its hard to clamping the upper and lower die by increasing the number of blows, and it would damage the press and dies. These defects can only be solved by the subsequent roll-forging process. a) Upper and lower dies b) heading billets Figure.8 Dies and billets of the die preforming experiment Figure.9 Die preforming forgings The feasibility of the die preforming process was verified by the experiment, and the PZS1120f electric screw press can basically meet the requirements of die preforming process, and the qualified billets can be provided for the subsequent near-net-shape roll-forging process. 5 Conclusions Through the orthogonal experiment optimization, numerical simulation and physical experiment, the following conclusions can be drawn: 1) Among the four factors: Forging temperature A, friction coefficient B, flash lands height C and the outer fillet radius D, the principle factor that impacts on forging force was the flash lands height, and the forging temperature had some effects on the forging energy, the optimal factor and level combination was C3A1B1D1. 2) The qualified billets formed by die preforming process can be provided for the subsequent near-net-shape roll-forging process and the PZS1120f electric screw press basically meets the requirements of the process. 3) The billet was deflected during the forging process, resulting in the underfill of the crown part at the outlet side, some measurements should be taken to prevent the deflection in the live production. References T. Zhou, M. Zhang, L. Zhang, K. Ran, China Electric Power(Technology Edition), 2, 43, (2012) Q. H. Zhang, Y. F. LI, J. W. Guang, Symp. Turb. Prof. Comm. CSPE, 133, (2012) W. Lu, Z. Y. Peng , Y. Zhou, K. Cheng, East China Electric Power, 38, 1771, (2010) X. J. Li, Z. F. Huang, W. C. Chen, R. J. Qin, Power Equipment, 24, 150, (2010) J. Zhong, C. J. Hu, C. Guo, Forging Stamping Technology, 33, 1, (2008) X. M. He, P. Jiang, F. W. Li, J. N. Huang, Forging MetalForming, 13, 49, (2016) X. M. He, P. Jiang, J. T. Lin, Y. Yang, Journal of Plasticity engineering, 4, 96, (2016) Y. B. Qu. Experimental Design and Data Processing(China Univ. Sci. Tech. Press, 2008)

The Importance of Educational Improvements in California Schools Essay

The Importance of Educational Improvements in California Schools â€Å"The competitiveness of Americans in this global market is coming to depend †¦on the functions that Americans perform—the value they add—within the global economy.† United States citizens devote a significant portion of their incomes to educate future generations through the taxes they pay, and the resultant expenditures of federal, state, and local governments on education. As the epigraph of this essay suggests active participation in a competitive global economy will be required of future tax payers, if we (the people of California) desire to create an environment in our state in which individuals can continue to pursue personal, public, and economic growth. The California Educational Master Plan puts it this way. â€Å"If unity, equity, quality, and efficiency are to be achieved, the Governor, legislature, and people of California must provide the required financial resources.† Moreover, as those responsible for implementing this plan work toward educating the diverse student population of California for a variety of ends—citizenship and economic participation among them—it behooves teachers, administrators, and poli cy makers to consider carefully the practical implications of the linguistic diversity of California’s students. This seems especially urgent when we consider the importance of meeting students at their actual level of knowledge and ability, while looking toward developing them into full participants in the American experiment. Specifically, stakeholders must consider the variety of developmental categories and other characteristics of different cultural and linguistic backgrounds if we are to improve teaching and learning in California’s ... ...engagement and research into best practices for teaching LEP students a top priority instead of leaving new teachers struggling to â€Å"reinvent the wheel† in California’s multi-cultural classroom. Such a commitment can only benefit students, the profession of English, and the body politic as a whole. If we fail to teach LEP students comprehensively and explicitly to succeed as English speakers and writers we are undercutting our own political and economic futures. Moreover, a lack of ESL teacher preparation represents a failure to realize the uniqueness of ESL speakers and writers within California’s complex (56 distinct languages) teaching environment. And while many teachers will not be called upon to teach an entire course in ESL writing, the fact that 1 out of every 4 students is an English Language Learner is something no serious English teacher can ignore.

Mental Duality Essay

Everyone is familiar with the famous Rubin face-vase drawing, a black and white print in which one can simultaneously perceive faces by focusing on the black ink or a vase by focusing on the white. If I announce that this is a picture of a vase, am I right? However you announce you see a picture of two faces, are you right? Who’s right? Are we both right? Or are we both wrong? Is it right and wrong; good and evil? I believe neurobiological research, as well as personal anecdotal study; have demonstrated that dichotomous thinking, (mental duality) is an appropriate expectation for developing brains. However an evolved adult brain has developed the ability (free will) to reconcile their emotional reactivity with reality to understand that there are very few absolutes in life. The picture is both face and vase. You and I may only see one figure; however that does not mean the other does not exist. To see the truth one must integrate the entire picture, black and white, good and evil. In studying Roger Sperry and A.L. Wigan’s work on mental duality, Roland Puccetti believed there were two people inside each human organism. By saying there were two people; Puccetti believed there were two minds with separate streams of consciousness that were therefore capable of separate volitions, or courses of action. Puccetti was attempting through science to justify dichotomous thinking, and therefore indirectly justify dichotomous concepts of good and evil. Critics of Puccetti often pointed to an introspective argument to counter his ideas. This argument was based on someone looking within oneself and realizing they had only one mind because they did not feel two streams of consciousness or separate volitions. This was based on the idea that at one exact point in time, a person seemed capable of realizing and reacting to only one stream of thought. Likewise, there was also a behavior-based argument to reject Puccetti’s hypothesis. This objection, unlike the introspective, asked the reader to examine the behavior, more specifically the volition, of others. In looking at others, it appeared fairly simple for the reader to reject dual minds, because, anecdotally, it never seemed like people behaved with two different minds and decision-making centers. To the onlooker, it never seemed that a person had one decision-making center fighting to act over the other. Ultimately, these introspective and behavioral arguments created a lot of doubt about the idea of dual mindedness and by extrapolation cast doubt on simplified concepts of good and evil. There is reassurance in the certitude of a definitive right and wrong. People, including myself, like to believe they are right and good. Ironically, it is in the believing that I am right that makes me wrong! We mortals have the capacity (free will or volition) to be infinitely right or wrong. However, if God is right and evil is wrong, and this dichotomy exists, then I (and Pucetti) want to be â€Å"right†. In response to the introspective argument, Puccetti looked to the distinction between persons and human organisms to explain his reasoning. He defined a person as a complex minded entity that actually had experiences, whereas a human organism was the combination of the biological substrate of two persons, each of which had one mind. In his view, the human organism did not see or experience anything so therefore the human organism was incapable of being conscious. Puccetti, however, believed there was interconnectedness between the left and right hemisphere in which the left hemisphere received a stream of stimuli or experience from the right side of the body and through the corpus callosum this signal went to the right hemisphere. This connectedness worked both from the left hemisphere to the right hemisphere and also right to left. The two hemispheres were able to create their own consciousness through the unique capabilities of each hemisphere once this stream of experience was shared from one side to the other. This idea ultimately allowed each person and corresponding mind to know what was happening to the other side of the body, without being conscious of the experience in the other. While introspection argued that we only received one stream of experience or stimuli at a time, this idea put forth by Puccetti offered a union of two streams of experience before the conscious state. Therefore, while introspectively it seemed there was only one stream, there quite possibly were two conscious streams that joined together through the complex network of commissures. While Puccetti was convinced of dual mindedness, Thomas Nagel suggested that our idea of â€Å"single mind† precluded this possibility in normal functioning humans. Nagle believed that if a single mind did not apply to ordinary individuals with intact brains then the idea of a single mind should be scrapped altogether. For his argument, Nagle relied heavily on paradigm, or model, examples. Nagle compared how the mind was defined to the idea of how colors were assigned. When we were all young, we learned the concept â€Å"red, the color† likely by being shown an object that was red and taking it as fact. However, the world presents with much more complexity. Even when examining color, few things are absolutely 100% red. The human eye sees red when it looks at light with a wavelength between 620-740 nanometers. In the 1600s, people were wrongfully accused of being witches (evil) after people (presumably people who were struggling with mentally duality) went out looking for them and pointed them out. They were identified as witches, and therefore 100% evil. The definition of a witch implied evil, magical powers, and witchcraft; however, the identification of these individuals was made on an emotional and unfortunately finite basis. Similarly, in ancient times, an element was thought to be the most basic material that could not be broken down. Examples of such eleme nts were earth, wind, fire, and water. We now know, however, that this was not true and that these elements were not the most basic building materials. Seen through both witch and element, dichotomous thinking or mental dualities are extremely difficult to support by simple paradigm example. These two examples hardly defined themselves because they were not correct examples only perceptions. In these cases the examples did not match what they were intended to; they were misapplied concepts. Likewise, this idea would be useful in describing a â€Å"single mind†. Just like the aforementioned examples, one could be drastically misapplying the concept of what a single mind is. While we may see what appears to be a single mind and call it a single mind, the question of whether or not we know what that concept truly encompasses comes to issue. Nagle showed the complexity of the mind as he somewhat contradicted himself when he described simultaneous attention to two incompatible tasks; perhaps similar to our vase and our faces. The threat to the absolutes implicitly calls into question our perception of our internal absolute. Are we good, intelligent, strong?, absolutely? As he threatened assumptions about the unity of consciousness, he also hindered understanding and empathy of another individuals. Puccetti’s belief of â€Å"no-creation-by-splitting† implied that if Sperry’s split-brain patients were thought to have two minds, then one must also assume normal functioning individuals had two minds. If we assumed that brain-splitting could not create two minds, however, and believed that Sperry’s patients actually had two minds, then we needed to conclude that normal functioning humans with intact brains still had two minds. While Puccetti did not provide concrete reasoning to why he believed splitting a brain could not create two minds, he did believe it made more sense to assume the two minds existed prior to surgery. To Puccetti, it is more believable that such a condition was present to begin with than gained through such a procedure. As put forth by Nagle, however, an explanation of mental unity, a capacity to accept the co-existence of complexity, helped to explain the â€Å"split minds†. Nagle stated that we subtly ignore the possibility that the unity of our mind was not actually absolute, but rather another case of integration to one’s control system. Nagle believed the unified brain was made through numerous functional connections across itself. These connections ultimately could be rerouted and cut to create separate minds. Modern research on brain plasticity certainly validates portions of Nagle’s premise. Therefore, while we often think of this unity as numerically absolute, the number of minds was likely relative and performance a function of integration. Through this thought of unity, it was clear why Nagle believed that it was possible to create separate minds through brain splitting and disconnection. †¦ And when I was a child, I thought that God was the God who only saw black and white. Now that I am no longer a child, I can see, that God is the God who can see the black and the white and the grey, too, and He dances on the grey!†¦Ã¢â‚¬  ― C. JoyBell C. There are not two minds. While I do believe there are two parts of the brain connected by certain commissures and connections, I do not believe there are two separate streams of consciousness. Never have I seen someone strain and fight between two different minds. However, often have I witnessed and felt the strain between good and evil and the struggle to understand the grey. Name one premise that every single person in the world would absolutely agree is absolutely positive and has absolutely no negative consequences? There is scientific research to show the interconnectedness of the brain. In previous articles the brains were often manipulated to act independently from one another. Current science details physiological processes and peripheral cues between the two parts of the brain resulting in one conscious mind and an individual in full control of his decisions. I believe much of the search for the dual-minded, was to alleviate the discomfort of moral ambiguity and organic comp lexity.

Maruti Suzuki Company Profile

Organisational Profile of Maruti Suzuki About us – Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL, formerly named Maruti Udyog Limited) is a subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan. MSIL has been the leader of the Indian car market for over two and a half decades. The company's two manufacturing facilities are located at Gurgaon and Manesar, south of New Delhi. Recently, the company has announced a further investment of Rs 1,700 crore (Rs 17 billion) for enhancing the production capacity by 250,000 units annually. The CAGR over two years is 27% for net sales.Nature of the Company Ownership – Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. Is a public limited company and is listed on Bombay Stock Exchange Limited and National Stock Exchange Limited. SMC is the majority shareholder with 54. 21% equity stake in the company. Shareholding Pattern of the Company – Our Vision – The Leader in the Indian Automobile Industry, Creating Customer Delight and Shareholder's Wealth; A pride of India. We believe OUR CORE VALUES drive us in every endeavor. * CUSTOMER OBSESSION * FAST, FLEXIBLE & FIRST MOVER INNOVATION & CREATIVITY * NETWORKING & PARTNERSHIP * OPENNESS & LEARNING Quest Unlimited – â€Å"After 25 years of leadership, what next? † It is not for us to predict the future. Other than to say that the Quest is unceasing. We continue on our journey, uninterrupted and without distraction, avoiding complacence and flamboyance, to explore newer frontiers, strengthen and expand partnerships, connect with the layers and layers of a still larger world and embed ourselves deeper in the lives of people. Success Mantra –Success in this business, we said, asks for â€Å"Stamina and Patience, Order and Creativity, Skills hard and soft and it needs all of them to Co-exist in the Right Proportion. † We follow the natural low of 3G – Give is the route to Get and Grow. CORPORATE INFORMATION – Board Of Directors – Mr. R. C. Bhargava, Chairman Mr. Shinzo Nakanishi, Managing Director and CEO Mr. Tsuneo Ohashi, Director and Managing Executive Officer (Production) Mr. Shuji Oishi, Director & Managing Executive Officer (Marketing & Sales) Mr. Keiichi Asai, Director & Managing Executive Officer (Engineering) Mr.Manvinder Singh Banga, Director Mr. Amal Ganguli, Director Mr. D. S. Brar, Director Mr. Osamu Suzuki, Director Ms. Pallavi Shroff, Director Mr. Kenichi Ayukawa, Director Contact us – Head Office Maruti Suzuki India Limited 1, Nelson Mandela Road, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi-110070 Board no. 46781000 Fax : 46150275-76| Gurgaon Plant Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. Gurgaon Plant Old Palam Gurgaon Road Gurgaon – 122015 Tel: (0124)   2346721| Manesar Plant Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. Manesar Plant Plot no. 1, Phase 3A IMT Manesar Gurgaon – 122051. | BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS Company’s Snapshot – Above 50% market share in passenger cars and van type Vehicles for all 25 years * O ver 7 million cars produced & sold cumulatively * Over 500,000 cars exported cumulatively * 1st in customer satisfaction for 9 consecutive years – J D power CSI survey * One million units/ annum total capacity * Gurgaon facility – capacity 700,000 units/ annum * Manesar facility – capacity 300,000 units/annum * Over 7,600 employees on its rolls. * 681 sales outlets in 454 cities * 2767 workshops in 1314 cities * 315 pre-owned car outlets in 181 cities Recent AWARDS –India's Most Trusted Brand 2009: The Economic times Maruti Suzuki has been ranked Indian most Trusted Brand by India's leading Business newspaper The Economic Times. This prestigious accolade comes alongside company's 10-year long pole position in customer satisfaction surveys. 2000-2009: JD Power Customer Satisfaction Index Award – India The biggest draw for the past ten years has been the award for highest recognition by the customer. In 2009-10 again, for the tenth consecutive ti me, Maruti Suzuki ranked the highest in JD Power Customer Satisfaction Index.Other Accolades During 2009-10, the company, its products and services received reputed awards and accolades instituted by independent expert groups, media houses and research agencies. These include: * Ritz – Hatchback of the year * Ritz – Car of the year * Maruti Suzuki as the ‘Manufacturer of the year' by CNBC Overdrive * In the World's Most Reputed Company Survey 2009, Maruti Suzuki ranked third amongst global car companies and 49 amongst all companies across all segments. * ICSI National Award for Excellence in Corporate Governance' Products –The company has a portfolio of 13 brands and over 150 variants across Maruti 800, Omni, international brands Alto, A-star, WagonR, Swift, Ritz and Estilo, off-roader Gypsy, SUV Grand Vitara, sedans SX4 and Swift DZire and the newest entrant Eeco. Quality – A product of poor quality requires repeated inspections, entails wastage in terms of repairs and replacements. â€Å"Do it right first time†, is the principle followed to avoid wastage. To ensure quality, robots were devices and deployed especially where they reduced worker fatigue and were critical in delivering consistent quality.With consistent improvements in the plant the company was able to manufacture over 600,000 vehicles in 2006-07 with an installed capacity of just 350,000 vehicles per year. Production Management System (PMS) – PMS is derived from the basic Japanese principles of 5S, 3G and 3K. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) concepts – Maruti Suzuki has adopted a CSR policy, which serves as a guiding tool for the management and the employees in steering Maruti Suzuki towards long term sustained growth in harmony along with the interests of the stakeholder.The role of the CSR department is to professionalize CSR activities in Maruti Suzuki and strengthen the mechanisms involving the activities. Significant efforts have been taken to contribute to society at large, through its corporate activities, especially in the areas of Road Safety and Vocational Training. Maruti Suzuki has set up dedicated teams with requisite expertise to steer the social projects. Maruti Driving School – National Road Safety Mission – Driving its message for road safety, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, unveiled a National Road Safety Mission| programme in December 2008.Under the programme, the company will * Train 500,000 people in safe driving in the next 3 years across India| | * While utilizing the existing 4 Institutes of Driving Training and Research (IDTR) in Delhi, Dehradun and Vadodara and 61 Maruti Driving Schools across the country the company will enter into partnerships with state governments for more IDTRs and with its dealers for more Maruti Driving Schools * Of the 500,000 people to be trained, at least 100,000 will be people from underprivileged section of society, who are keen to take driving as a profession. The company will continue to support to government and industry in their efforts for road safety| Sustainability Approach – In line with the global environmental concerns, we have identified the following focus areas with regards to the protection of environment and resources for the future generations. * CO2 emission reduction * Energy Conservation * Water Conservation * Solid Waste Management * Material Usage and Weight reduction * Fuel EfficiencyEnvironment Friendly –Fuel Efficient K-series Engine Technology Maruti Suzuki recognizes global warming and climate changes as global issues, the effects of which are of concern both for the environment and human life. The challenge faced by the society is how to meet the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Maruti Suzuki strongly believes that an investment in environment friendly products and manufacturing facilities is in the best interest of t he society as well as the business.The last 25 years of our journey has reinforced the belief that environment friendly initiatives make products more acceptable to customers and help Maruti Suzuki grow profitably in every sphere. Since Maruti Suzuki started operations, conserving environment and natural resources has been an integral part of our systems and processes. The concept of â€Å"Reduce, Reuse, Recycle† (3R's) has been our driving principle.This three pronged strategy or the 3 R's has been promoted in all our manufacturing facilities, supply chain and logistics operations. Maruti Suzuki also follows the Philosophy of â€Å"Smaller, Fewer, Lighter, Shorter and Neater†. This Philosophy has helped Maruti Suzuki in optimal utilization of resources and cost savings. True Value Outlet – Maruti True Value is India No. 1 organized pre-owned car brand. The company's service businesses include sale and purchase of pre-owned cars (True Value) and Maruti Finance.U nique advantages   Ã¢â‚¬â€œ * India's largest certified used car dealer network * 340 outlets in 197 cities and growing * All car related services under one roof * professionally trained manpower * Complete peace of mind| | These initiatives, besides providing total mobility solutions to customers in a convenient and transparent manner, have helped improve economic viability of the company's dealerships Exports – What do countries like Poland, Finland, Iceland, Malta, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Algeria and Italy have in common?Maruti Suzuki cars ply on the roads of these countries, and what's more, they are soon becoming the fastest selling cars in those lands. Maruti Suzuki exports, entry-level models across the globe to over 100 countries and the focus has been to identify new markets. Some important markets include Latin America, Africa and South East Asia. The Company clocked its highest ever exports at 70,023 units, a growth of 32. 1% in the Fiscal Year 2008-09.

PERVASIVE AND MOBILE COMPUTING The WritePass Journal

PERVASIVE AND MOBILE COMPUTING OVERVIEW PERVASIVE AND MOBILE COMPUTING OVERVIEWFigure 1.1. The computing evolution2. Home systems2.1. Information access devices2.2.   Intelligent appliances2.3.   Smart controls2.4. Entertainment systems3. Electronic Healthcare System3.1. Patient Monitoring3.2. Location based services3.3.  Access to medical data3.4. Health care mobile devices  4. Sensors Networks4.1.   Application of a Wireless sensor network4.1.1. Military applications4.1.2. Environmental application 4.1.3. Medical applications4.1.4. Urban applications 5. Ongoing research6. Conclusion7. Reference  8. AppendixRelated OVERVIEW From the invention of Steam Engine to the invention of dynamo by James Watt and Werner Von Siemens respectively, and also remarkably taking the first power station into operation by Thomas A Edison [1], a massive change took place in the 19th century which brought about the generation, production and distribution of energy. The machines and engines were decentralized making the distribution of energy everywhere a possibility. This discovery led to several others like motor-cars, light bulbs and the rest of them. Although the technology behind these is irrelevant to most users, but then it brings about convenience and make life a lot easier which benefits the economy immensely. After the industrialization transformation, another major transformation occurred which was Computers. â€Å"While industrialization enhanced the manpower with the help of machines, computer multiplied the mental capabilities of man†. Its application then varied from processing large information, creation and organisation of phone bills, payroll, and invoices.   It was also used though with the help of mechanical machines to lift heavy amount of item e.g. steel Figure 1.1. The computing evolution From that point onwards, the computing industry began to grow, and its applications also widened to being used for air traffic control, in administration, and was also used for management systems in the process of â€Å"ensuring a static environment for employees†. Presently information technology has gone so broad that it surpassed the years of using the mainframe system where you have many users to a computer machine, and has since then gone even further to find its way into being an integral part of the telecommunication, entertainment, commerce and finally the finance industry in which nowadays, most organisation run their business online which is also called E-business. This type of computing is known as persuasive computing. Pervasive computing which is also known as ubiquitous computing is an exciting and intriguing field of research that brings in exceptional changes for the computational models in the 21st century. It basically integrates the concept of computation into our daily lives as opposed to having computers standing on its own. The goal of pervasive computing varies from creating an invincible technology to integrating the physical and virtual world together [3]. â€Å"Tremendous development of wireless communications and networking, mobile computing and handheld devises, embedded systems, wearable computers, sensors, FRID tags, smart spaces, middleware, software agents, and the like, have let to the evolution of pervasive computing platforms as natural successor of mobile computing systems†[4]. The internet has ended up being the worlds largest medium of communication. It connects different people all over the world in their billions, share information, data, and application electronically. As discussed above, internet and e-business has now been the order of the day in the business community. â€Å"The rising number of internet accounts proves that within the next years will have the largest internet community†. The internet has contributed greatly to making the world a global market where you find customers comparing prices and purchasing items, employee can get access to business information from distant. Due to the growing trend in computer technology and micro-controller getting smaller allowing them to be included into more and more devices, computer got smaller; the use of laptops became quite common and popular, the use of mobile phones with computing abilities became quite popular as well, examples are the apple iphone, android of google and it likes. The mobile phone with computing abilities is one of the recent developments in computer technology, its uses its wireless access to the internet to browse through information based system from basically anywhere in the world, which works just like a desktop or a laptop computer. Although not all application comes with the mobile phone sometimes, it is usually downloadable which therefore compliments for a poor computational capability, that’s why it doesn’t come as a surprise when there are mobile phone that can be wirelessly connected to the internet, edit photos and videos and print them. 2. Home systems These are basically home appliances that are built around computer networks. As the decentralization of computing continues, computers has now become ubiquitous or omnipresent, it has the ability to be everywhere. Nowadays we have networked home which make use of a web server usually small in size but carries out several tasks. For example, an air conditional can be connected to a web server which manages its operations. Other examples are lights, washing machines e.t.c Pervasive computing in homes can be subdivided into four sections which are Information access devices Intelligent Appliances Smart controls Entertainment systems [5]. 2.1. Information access devices An example of an information based device is the PDA â€Å"A personal digital assistant (PDA) also known as a palmtop computer or personal data assistant is a mobile device usually pocketable that functions as a personal information manager.†[6]. It has an electronic display which enables it have a web browser, and can connect to any network. They function as â€Å"Personal Information Management (PIM)† that include and has got applications such as calendar, address book and can also send and return mails. Although the main function of PDA is to make and record appointments and carry phone numbers, it has now undergone rapid development in wireless communication and its now being used in medical facilities to provide mobile access to a patient’s data. Such is the influence of pervasive and mobile computing in our world today. â€Å"In 1996, Nokia introduced the first mobile phone with full PDA functionality, the 9000 Communicator, which grew to become the worlds best-selling PDA† [7]. It brought about a new class of mobile phones: the PDA phone, now called Smartphone. Today, almost all PDAs are also known as smartphones 2.2.   Intelligent appliances As we continue exploration into the world of pervasive computing, its ubiquity can be seen even more. Intelligent appliances are another section under pervasive and mobile computing that has integrated into home appliances. Washing machine is a major example of such. It goes as far as being able to be connected to the internet, download new updates or request maintenance service. Another example is the fire alarm system. As soon as it senses fire, sends out a distress signal to the fire co-operation in which further action can be taken. Another example is the security alarm systems which gets activated as soon as unauthorised entry is detected, sends out a distress signal as well to the police department, in which further action is also taken as well. 2.3.   Smart controls Smart control is another section under pervasive and mobile computing in homes. Some make use of wireless remote controls for stoves, gas pump e.t.c. and are usually all connected to a network. We also have cases where using a java application, can set a recording time for a video cassette recorder which will automatically start recording when its time. Another example of smart control is the heating system in a house. Usually its has an alarm clock imbedded in it that automatically set in on when its the right time, and heats the room or water as the case may be. 2.4. Entertainment systems â€Å"New kinds of entertainment systems will change the world of traditional broadcasting†. Set up boxes is the technology behind the growth and development of pervasive and mobile computing in home appliances. Interactive digital TV’s, video on demand, improvement in the quality of videos and audios are just one of the few examples of how entertainment is making use of pervasive and mobile technology. Another example is the fire alarm system. As soon as it senses fire, sends out a distress signal to the fire co-operation in which further action can be taken. Another example is the security alarm systems which gets activated as soon as unauthorised entry is detected, sends out a distress signal as well to the police department, in which further action is also taken as well. 3. Electronic Healthcare System The area of healthcare in the field of pervasive computing is a very exciting and promising section, â€Å"it encompasses a broad range of topics such as advanced hospital information and logistics systems, mobile health monitoring, assisted living for the elderly and the handicapped, and lifestyle and wellness related personal systems†. â€Å"Pervasive health care system refer mostly to patient telemonitoring† (Hall et al,2003; Stanford, 2002). Telemonitoring is basically the way in which a patient’s psychological and physical features are being sensed and measured and recorded which provides information through wireless connection to the medical practitioner in real time or/and is transmitted to another location e.g. a medical center or a medical laboratory where other medical experts can work on it [8]. Moreso, with a sensor, a patient’s blood pressure, heart beat rate, blood level, respiration and temperature levels, e.t.c. can be measured. The growth of Pervasive and mobile computing in the health sector is a very promising, the value it adds both socially and economically is enormous in the sense that it creates business opportunities for insurance organizations, telecommunication companies, e.t.c. Moreso, it brings about the hope of a quality medical services while being efficient and ubiquitous and at the same time cost effective. The following are few applications of pervasive and mobile computing in the health-care environment. 3.1. Patient Monitoring With the help of wireless network and private area network, patients who are recovering from an ailment but subject to other complications can be easily monitored anywhere and in case a relapse occur, the nearest hospitals, emergency services are notified automatically. This improves the performance of nurses and doctors, as the time they take to make rounds monitoring patients can be done with the help of pervasive and mobile computing. 3.2. Location based services With the use of network sensors and radio-frequency ID badges, patients with mental challenged patients can easily be tracked if by any chance they leave a designated safe zone. With the help of location based services, people with matching blood types or want to donate an organ can easily be found. Voice-activated systems also act as an aid to blind people. 3.3.  Access to medical data With the help of pervasive computing, patients and medical personnel’s can have access to clinical records. This method is very easy as it reduce the stress of doing paper work, less time consuming and the chance of entering an incorrect data is reduced. 3.4. Health care mobile devices These are mobile electronic device that can be used be used to detect certain medical conditions for example, blood pressure, heart rate, alcohol level, e.t.c. In future, such a device can have a wireless capability to contain the individual medical history and if he/she has adeficiency or suffering from a device, the device should be able to send out a signal or message to his/her G.P or a hospital as the case may be [9].   4. Sensors Networks These are tiny, low cost, low power devices that sense some property e.g. motion, heat sound, light, pressure, e.t.c. and communicate with each other using wireless communication [10]. The wireless sensor is a very major aspect of pervasive computing because it allows computing to be part of the physical environment. It is called a wireless sensors network because many sensors can be spread across different places and can be networked in applications that require no attention producing what is known as a wireless sensor network (WSN). They function in a peer to peer manner in the sense that they do not directly communicate the base station. Usually, â€Å"data collected by individual nodes is routed between the thousands of tiny sensors in a multihop manner until they reach the base station†. A base station is computing device that collects data from multiple sensors node and process them [11]. 4.1.   Application of a Wireless sensor network The application of a WSN is countless; it varies from sensing properties like light, temperature, blood pressure, to being used in the military. Below are typical examples of WSN 4.1.1. Military applications In the military, sensor nodes can be spread across the war zone so as to detect the presence of an enemy and also locate them. It can also be used to detect weapons e.g. chemical weapons, biological weapons and so on. Other applications under the military are target field imaging, security and tactical surveillance, intrusion detection. 4.1.2. Environmental application A sensor node can be spread out in the air to monitor the temperature and from its result weather predictions can be made, climate monitoring, pollution tracking amongst many other. 4.1.3. Medical applications The application can be mostly found in this section. The glucose machine to monitor diabetic patient makes use of a sensor, heart monitors. Basically, most medical equipment for monitoring patients makes use of a sensor system. 4.1.4. Urban applications The application of WSN in our society is very clear and obvious, it can ne see in transportation  Ã‚   and traffic system, automatic identification of drivers licence, street lights, home security, door alarm to mention a few 5. Ongoing research â€Å"A number of leading technological organizations are exploring pervasive computing. Xeroxs Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), for example, has been working on pervasive computing applications since the 1980s. Although new technologies are emerging, the most crucial objective is not, necessarily, to develop new technologies. IBMs project Planet Blue, for example, is largely focused on finding ways to integrate existing technologies with a wireless infrastructure. Carnegie Mellon Universitys Human Computer Interaction Institute (HCII) is working on similar research in their Project Aura, whose stated goal is to provide each user with an invisible halo of computing and information services that persists regardless of location. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has a project called Oxygen. MIT named their project after that substance because they envision a future of ubiquitous computing devices as freely available and easily accessible as oxygen is today.† Today the uses of Internet are limited as its users look for read-mostly information. As we move to a world where the Internet is used as an infrastructure for embedded computing, all this will change. We can hypothesize that the individual utility of mobile communication, wireless appliances and the respective mobile services pervasive technologies in general will be exploited through a digital environment that is – aware of their presence sensitive, adaptive and responsive to their needs, habits and emotions and ubiquitously accessible via natural interaction. Increasingly, many of the chips around us will sense their environment in rudimentary but effective ways. For Example  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Cell phones will ask the landline phone what its telephone number is and will forward our calls to it.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Remote computers will monitor our health statistics and will determine when one is in trouble and will take appropriate action for rescue.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Amplifiers will be implanted and used in the inner ear.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   New machines that scan, probe, penetrate and enhance our bodies will be used.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Refrigerators will be connected to the Internet so one could find out, via cell phone or PDA, what is in it while one is at the store. A refrigerator may even sense when it is low on milk and order more directly from the supplier or rather than this, the connection will enable the manufacturer to monitor the appliance directly to ensure that it is working correctly and inform the owner when it is not.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Stoves will conspire with the refrigerators to decide what recipe makes the best use of the available ingredients, then guide us through preparation of the recipe with the aid of a network-connected food processor and blender. Or they will communicate to optimize the energy usage in our households.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Cars will use the Internet to find an open parking space or the nearest vegetarian restaurant for their owners or to allow the manufacturer to diagnose problems before they happen, and either inform the owner of the needed service or automatically install the necessary (software) repair.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Wrist watches will monitor our sugar.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Digi-tickers or implanted heart monitors in heart patients will talk wirelessly to computers, which will be trained to keep an eye open for abnormalities. In a nutshell, our personal network will travel around with us like a surrounding bubble, connecting to the environment through which we move and allowing our mobile tools to provide us with more functionality than they ever could alone.† [13]    6. Conclusion Pervasive computing provides a very interesting vision for the future. Information would be basically handy through the help of the wireless technology, so instead of sitting on a PC to get information, we would have instant access through the use of our smart phones, our PDAs, e.t.c. As the growth in technology keeps increasing in the 21st century, it has basically influenced our daily lives, the way we communicate, shop, basically every aspect of it and enough evidence has it we are translating into the world of â€Å"pervasive computing† at a fast speed, and in few years time, the world would be living like a scene in the movie â€Å"Star Trek†.    7. Reference   8. Appendix youtube.com/watch?v=Q2DY6jWT2a4 youtube.com/watch?v=bS6XqjBO99Q youtube.com/watch?v=KsKne-fw-X0 youtube.com/watch?v=2I3T_kLCBAwfeature=related

How to Write an Essay on a Teacher

How to Write an Essay on a Teacher It’s a rather complicated task to write an essay on a teacher because only a few people can really understand how difficult and challenging this profession is. A teacher should not only be an expert in teaching but also to be ready to face various problems and cope with them. A good teacher does everything possible to create a comfortable atmosphere at a class that can stimulate students’ creativity and thinking. How to Start? The most important thing is to find a topic that can provoke discussions. That shouldn’t be just â€Å"yes† or â€Å"no† issues. It must let people agree or disagree with the author. In addition, it should be not only provocative but specified as well. It’s better to avoid too general statements and keep to the problem which one can support with solid and trustworthy evidence, facts, and statistics. For example, the topic may sound like â€Å"What Type of Teacher Do Contemporary Students Need: Authoritative, Liberal or Democratic?† Different parents think differently. Such a topic can make people participate in debates trying to prove their point of view. The Next Step Is a Proper Structure Each academic assignment has a required structure. An essay should include an introduction, body, and conclusion. The introduction presents the problem and explains its nature and/or possible solution. There should be also a thesis statement in the introductory part. For example, â€Å"Today, more and more teachers prefer the democratic way of teaching to the authoritative one. As a result, students become uncontrolled and start losing interest in their study.† A writer should also strike the reader from the very beginning using rhetorical questions, citations, analogies, anecdotes, captivating stories, etc. The body is the largest part of the essay because it includes the whole information on the topic in details. The research is to be thorough and correspond with the chosen topic. The conclusion sums everything up and can give the idea for further research of the problem. This part of the essay should also be impressive. When the first and the last words hit the target auditory, the whole essay will have a chance to get A+. For example, â€Å"It doesn’t matter what type of teaching a teacher chooses. If a person is really good at teaching, students will be inspired with hope, lit with rich fancy, and infused with love to learning.† Other Things to Mention When dealing with academic writing a person should pay attention to each detail. A student must learn all the requirements and follow them. There are different writing styles (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.), and each of them needs some specific spacing, font and its size, the arrangement of the bibliography section, footnotes, title page, and a number of other details. It’s also necessary to sound logical and avoid making grammar mistakes. Each part of the essay must support the main idea of the paper and there must be a logical connection between them. One should also arrange appendix and supporting materials if necessary.

Abraham Lincoln Essay Example for Free (#3)

Abraham Lincoln Essay Essay Topic: Literature , Abraham Lincoln Choose cite format: APA MLA Harvard Chicago ASA IEEE AMA ? According to Abraham Lincoln, â€Å"Your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other thing. † (Mills 3). I was inspired by this quote that speaks of success, which I will describe as a golden star that everyone wants to reach. This quote is similar to most of the leadership quotes because it speaks of ways to reach success, but, this quote is special in a way that it could be related to the self-fulfilling prophecy. Simply put, the main road to success is the â€Å"will to succeed. † I’m sure each of us has experienced actually failing a task whenever our mind is embedded with the phrase: â€Å"I can’t do this! † If you believe that you will be successful in any endeavor you want to take, then, you have taken the first step to becoming a person who is the â€Å"king or queen of success. † I myself have noticed that whenever I put into mind that I will â€Å"win,† the outcome turns out to be truly positive. This essay can help readers realize that their goals can be achieved by first believing in themselves. If a person always expects that he/she will succeed in something specific, then his/her expectations will most probably turn into a reality as what the so-called â€Å"self-fulfilling prophecy† suggests. Rosenthal, in his book: â€Å"Experimenter Effects in Behavioral Research,† said: â€Å"Events tend to turn out as one has hypothesized, not because of some great insight but because one behaves in a manner to achieve this outcome. † Believing in this theory would mean that we would have to love ourselves more, believe that we have what it takes to win in this â€Å"game† called life, and, at the same time, because of our mind set, act in such a way that enables us to achieve our dreams. Bear in Mind: Success is in your hands, just believe! Mills, Dawson A. â€Å"Continuing Education Offerings Abound. † The Virginian-Pilot [Virginia] 28 January 1996:3. Rosenthal, Robert. Experimenter Effects in Behavioral Research. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1966. Abraham Lincoln. (2017, Apr 26).

Networks and how they work ----- See below Essay

Networks and how they work ----- See below - Essay Example A client/server network makes use of one or more dedicated machine (that is known as a server) to share the printers, files, and applications. On the other hand, a peer-to-peer network allows its users to share files using any other user and does not necessitate a central, dedicated server (TechsChange, 2010; Nash, 2000; Turban, Leidner, McLean, & Wetherbe, 2005). In the same way, the Internet is a huge network of networks. It connects all the networks so that they could receive and send data and information. For this purpose, the Internet uses a communication protocol that is known as TCP/IP (Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) (TechsChange, 2010; Nash, 2000; Turban, Leidner, McLean, & Wetherbe, 2005). This paper presents an overview of TCP/IP network structure and its working. This paper will discuss some of the important aspects of the TCP/IP framework and how this arrangement has enabled the expansion of the Internet into a worldwide network. This paper also outlines some issues regarding these networks. TCP/IP based network management operations are normally associated with a protocol accountable for applying those processes. This protocol is known as the  SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol). In fact, the majority of IT people are aware of SNMP as it is common for SNMP to determine â€Å"the† method that network management is carried out in TCP/IP. Basically, the SNMP protocol is an element of a higher-level network management policy known as  the Internet Standard Management Framework. Thus, in order to actually identify how SNMP works, we fulfill some conditions of the method that this network is controlled all together (Kozierok, 2005). In addition, open protocol standards are freely accessible and developed autonomously from some particular computer hardware or operating system platform. In view of the fact that the TCP/IP is extensively supported, thus it is perfect for connecting different hardware and software,

Economic Liberalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Economic Liberalism - Essay Example This paper declares that some economies such as Italy, Spain, and Russia did not have political freedom despite their enterprises being economically free. In the modern world, it is challenging to balance between individual freedom and capitalism due to the widespread interdependence that exist. An illustration is the dependence between farmers and consumers of the farm products. Capitalism promotes freedom in such a scenario by facilitating the sale of goods and services on a competitive market where all players have full information. As the report stresses government regulation is almost a mistake. Friedman believes that government regulation is almost a mistake. He depicts regulation being initiated by power-hungry politicians. The key objectives of these politicians are to target their reelection and formulation of red tape for their own advantages. Many of the government regulation are derived from the special interests of a selected few entities in the private sector. Some organizations in the private sector use the government through its regulation powers to tilt the market in a direction, which facilitates them making more profits than their competitors do. These entities therefore interfere with the government’s work making the regulations inefficient. Government regulations have put in industries such as airlines, communication, truckers, and railroads to make it very difficult for competitors to penetrate through the market.

Plagiarism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Plagiarism - Research Paper Example People may differ as to what constitutes the act of plagiarism but there is a general consensus on the undesirability of it in the academic world. The need to acknowledge the work of the person from whom an idea or a passage of words originated is accepted as a fair one by the academic and non-academic fraternity, most of all, to protect their own interests. Writers like Judy Anderson talk of the exclusivity that writers need as the cause for plagiarism being recognized as a crime. This need for exclusivity is intrinsically linked to the idea of intellectual property and the need that writers feel to protect their creations, which may stem from reasons that may be economic or ethical. This crime is directed against this need for exclusivity that writers feel (Anderson, ix). This is tied in with the idea that the work of art is similar to the offspring of the author and any attempt to appropriate the content created by the author is similar to an attempt to violate the maternal instinct of the author. This authorial-maternal instinct, while it destabilizes notions of masculinity and femininity and the instinct of the mother that is conventionally considered to be characteristic of only women, is something that is common to most writers, big and small. These writers are able to bring out the point from the perspective of both the writer and the reader. While the writer feels as if he or she is being deprived of his right of exclusive ownership, the reader of a modern world is likely to feel that the text that he or she reads is recreated or even created by him, in the context of the erasure of the author in the pro cess of providing a text with meaning. This theory, which was propounded by the French literary critic, Roland Barthes, places the onus of processing the meaning of a text, on the reader of the text and not the writer. This, while

Economics of Social Issues Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economics of Social Issues - Assignment Example The total budget deficit does not reflect the effect of all expenses and revenues of the federal government. Some items of expense and revenue are marked as off-budget while others are on-budget. The total budget deficit is the combined effect of the off-budget and on-budget categories. The items that are not included in the on-budget category include the social security payments and unemployment benefits. For most of the past decades the on-budget categories have resulted in a deficit which has been offset by a surplus in the off-budget categories to result in a lower total budget deficit, as in 2012. Cyclical deficits are less of a concern than structural deficits because they are of a temporary nature while structural deficits can be more persistent and even lead to inflation. Cyclical deficits arise as the economy goes through different phases of the business cycle (Arnold, 2010, p. 236). They occur especially during the recession phase when the government has to increase spending on social support. Structural deficits are more permanent and reflect fiscal mismanagement despite the business cycle. If the government cannot derive a reasonable return on them, it may have to print more currency or take on additional debt to pay off the deficit. Budget deficits tend to result in a crowding out of private firm and as a result private sector investment is reduced (Arnold, 2010, p. 241). The government borrows from the private sector to fund its deficit spending and to pay off creditors. As a result, the private sector is left with fewer funds to invest. As this also reduces the employability of private firms, the number of jobs in the economy also reduces. The graph shows the effect of budget deficit on the loanable funds market. The government issues bonds to cover its deficit spending which increases the demand for credit and the demand

The Cove Movie Critique Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Cove Critique - Movie Review Example After watching the film about a week ago, it emerged that it is an outstanding documentary that carries a strong message. The theme of the documentary is a campaign against the hunting and slaughtering of dolphins in Japan, although the activism applies to other countries as well. In a bid to support this theme, the film depicts the extreme treatment of dolphins in a cove in Japan. The team that put together this documentary made efforts of installing secret cameras in the cove hence obtained images of how trapping and killing of dolphins in the coastal village occurred (Eger n.p). After slaughtering the dolphins, the meat was marketed as well whale meat confusing many buyers. The film consists of individuals who are committed to stopping the hunting of dolphins to the point whereby they are almost becoming extinct. Richard O’Barry is an outstanding character in the film. This is because he had been a trainer of five dolphins that had been used on a TV show called Flipper. Evidently, he was an expert in training dolphins explaining why he had excellently trained the dolphins appearing in the show. However, one of the experiences he has during that career was witnessing a dolphin die in his hands because of the distress resulting from the captivity. After that incident, he has been an activist against the capturing of dolphins and their use by companies such as Sea World Entertainment (Eger n.p). The presence of Richard O’Barry in this documentary makes it compelling considering his first career in training dolphins and his modern activism against captivity of dolphins. In my opinion, the documentary presents a very strong message regarding the activism against captivity and the hunting of dolphins. The images depicting the slaughtering and capturing of dolphins and the failure to regard animals in accordance with the defined animal rights serves to affect the audience emotionally. The images expose the evil done against dolphins. The

Plagiarism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Plagiarism - Research Paper Example People may differ as to what constitutes the act of plagiarism but there is a general consensus on the undesirability of it in the academic world. The need to acknowledge the work of the person from whom an idea or a passage of words originated is accepted as a fair one by the academic and non-academic fraternity, most of all, to protect their own interests. Writers like Judy Anderson talk of the exclusivity that writers need as the cause for plagiarism being recognized as a crime. This need for exclusivity is intrinsically linked to the idea of intellectual property and the need that writers feel to protect their creations, which may stem from reasons that may be economic or ethical. This crime is directed against this need for exclusivity that writers feel (Anderson, ix). This is tied in with the idea that the work of art is similar to the offspring of the author and any attempt to appropriate the content created by the author is similar to an attempt to violate the maternal instinct of the author. This authorial-maternal instinct, while it destabilizes notions of masculinity and femininity and the instinct of the mother that is conventionally considered to be characteristic of only women, is something that is common to most writers, big and small. These writers are able to bring out the point from the perspective of both the writer and the reader. While the writer feels as if he or she is being deprived of his right of exclusive ownership, the reader of a modern world is likely to feel that the text that he or she reads is recreated or even created by him, in the context of the erasure of the author in the pro cess of providing a text with meaning. This theory, which was propounded by the French literary critic, Roland Barthes, places the onus of processing the meaning of a text, on the reader of the text and not the writer. This, while

The Cove Movie Critique Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Cove Critique - Movie Review Example After watching the film about a week ago, it emerged that it is an outstanding documentary that carries a strong message. The theme of the documentary is a campaign against the hunting and slaughtering of dolphins in Japan, although the activism applies to other countries as well. In a bid to support this theme, the film depicts the extreme treatment of dolphins in a cove in Japan. The team that put together this documentary made efforts of installing secret cameras in the cove hence obtained images of how trapping and killing of dolphins in the coastal village occurred (Eger n.p). After slaughtering the dolphins, the meat was marketed as well whale meat confusing many buyers. The film consists of individuals who are committed to stopping the hunting of dolphins to the point whereby they are almost becoming extinct. Richard O’Barry is an outstanding character in the film. This is because he had been a trainer of five dolphins that had been used on a TV show called Flipper. Evidently, he was an expert in training dolphins explaining why he had excellently trained the dolphins appearing in the show. However, one of the experiences he has during that career was witnessing a dolphin die in his hands because of the distress resulting from the captivity. After that incident, he has been an activist against the capturing of dolphins and their use by companies such as Sea World Entertainment (Eger n.p). The presence of Richard O’Barry in this documentary makes it compelling considering his first career in training dolphins and his modern activism against captivity of dolphins. In my opinion, the documentary presents a very strong message regarding the activism against captivity and the hunting of dolphins. The images depicting the slaughtering and capturing of dolphins and the failure to regard animals in accordance with the defined animal rights serves to affect the audience emotionally. The images expose the evil done against dolphins. The

The Road to Wigan Pier by George Orwell Essay Example for Free

The Road to Wigan Pier by George Orwell Essay In the Road to Wigan Pier Orwell explained how the English class-system works. He purported that in Britain it isnt possible to determine the class of a person by simply looking at his income. The things that make up a middle-class person are his behavior, birth and profession. To describe fully the concept of middle class, Orwell, in Part One, set out to report, in a detailed and vivid manner, on working class life in the bleak industrial heartlands of the West Midlands, Yorkshire and Lancashire. In the seven chapters of Part One Orwell was able to describe the life of miners and conditions down a coal mine. Orwell described how he went down a coal mine to observe proceedings and he explained how the coal is distributed, and that the working conditions are very poor. He described the housing shortage in the region as the reason why people were satisfied even with substandard housing conditions. In the second part Orwell described his personal idea of socialism. His general idea is that socialism and communism are no longer movements of the working class. The movement is lead by the middle-class, the bourgeoisie. He stated plainly that he himself is in favour of socialism but feels it necessary to point out reasons why many people, who would benefit from socialism, and should logically support it, are in practice likely to be strong opponents. Reasons such as ,class prejudice and machine worship. He points that class prejudice is real and it is visceral. Middle class socialists do themselves no favors by pretending it does not exist and by glorifying the manual worker they tend to alienate that large section of the population which is economically working class but culturally middle class. Orwell finds most socialists guilty machine worship. He himself is suspicious of technological progress for its own sake and thinks it inevitably leads to softness and decadence. He points out that most fictional technically advanced socialist utopia are deadly dull.

Managing financial resources and decisions JS and CO

Managing financial resources and decisions JS and CO JS and co is a medium sized retailer formed by two partners, James and Sainsbury, who are running it in the UK since 1869. The retailer specializes in quality food products but it sells other non-food products as well. This company got very good success in the market from the past three years. During this discussion we are going to discuss about this company sources of finance, finance as a source, financial decisions, and financial performance. The broad view of this company in our discussion: P1 (sources of Finance) P2 (Finance as a resource) P3 (Financial decisions) P4 (Financial performance) P1 (SOURCES OF FINANCE) IDENTIFY THE SOURCES OF FINANCE AVAILABLE TO THE BUSINESS When a company is growing rapidly, for example when contemplating investment in capital equipment, its current financial resources may be inadequate. Few growing companies are able to finance their expansion plans from cash flow alone. They will therefore need to consider raising finance from other external sources. In addition, managers who are looking to buy-in to a business or buy-out a business from its owners may not have the resources to acquire the company. They will need to raise finance to achieve their objectives. There are a number of potential sources of finance to meet the needs of a growing business Existing shareholders and directors funds Business angels Clearing banks (overdrafts, short or medium term loans) Factoring and invoice discounting Hire purchase and leasing Venture capital A key consideration in choosing the source of new business finance is to strike a balance between equity and debt to ensure the funding structure suits the business. The main differences between borrowed money (debt) and equity are that bankers request interest payments and capital repayments, and the borrowed money is usually secured on business assets or the personal assets of shareholders and/or directors. A bank also has the power to place a business into administration or bankruptcy if it defaults on debt interest or repayments or its prospects decline. ASSESSING THE IMPLICATIONS OF DIFFERENT SOURCES. Financial institutions that transcend national boundaries and engage in such activities as extensive inter bank contracts, over-the-counter derivatives contracts, quit, bond, and syndicated loan issuance, and trading activities globally has led to stronger interconnections, innovation, and growth. While tighter interdependencies can increase the efficiency of the global financial system by smoothing credit allocation and risk diversification, they have also increased the potential for cross-market and cross-border disruptions to spread swiftly. In addition, financial innovations have enabled risk transfers that were not fully recognized by financial regulators and institutions themselves, and have complicated the assessment of counterparty risk, risk management, and policy responses. Although linkages across institutions have traditionally focused on solvency concerns, the current crisis reminds us of the relevance of liquidity spillovers, specifically that (1) Interconnectedness means difficulties in rolling over liabilities may spill over to the financial system as a whole; and that (2) Rollover risk associated with short-term liabilities is present not only in the banking sector but, equally importantly, in the nonblank financial sector. Thus, it is essential to improve our understanding and monitoring of direct and indirect financial systemic linkages, including by strengthening techniques to assess systemic link-ages, and thereby contribute to making systemic-focused supervision feasible. Four complementary approaches to assess financial sector systemic linkages and focuses on this definition of systemic risk: 2 The network approach The co-risk model The distress dependence matrix The default intensity model CHOOSING THE APPROPRIATE SOURCE OF FINANCE FOR THE BUSINESS. There are a number of ways of raising finance for a business. The type of finance chosen depends on the nature of the business. Large organizations are able to use a wider variety of finance sources than are smaller ones. Savings are an obvious way of putting money into a business. A small business can also borrow from families and friends. In contrast, companies raise finance by issuing shares. Large companies often have thousands of different shareholders. To gain extra finance a business can take out a loan from a bank or other financial institution. A loan is a sum of money lent for a given period of time. Repayment is made with interest. The lender of money needs to know all the business opportunities and risks involved and will therefore want to see a detailed business plan. The lender may also want some form of security should the business run into financial difficulty, and may therefore prefer to provide a secured loan. Another way of raising short-term finance is through an overdraft facility with a bank. The borrower is given permission to take out more from their account than they have put in. The bank fixes a maximum limit for the overdraft. Interest is charged on the overdraft daily. Businesses may also qualify for grants. Government and private funds are sometimes made available to businesses that meet certain conditions. For example, grants and loans may be available to firms setting up in rural areas or where there is high unemployment. Out comes: By this module I understood the different long term and short term sources of finance with the implications of choice of one source over the other and any advantages and disadvantages of sources different sources of finance. P2 (FINANCE AS A RESOURCE) ASSESS AND COMPARE THE COSTS OF ABOVE MENTIONED SOURCES OF FINANCE. A company might raise new funds from the following sources: The capital markets: i) New share issues, for example, by companies acquiring a stock market listing for the first time ii) Rights issues  · Loan stock  · Retained earnings  · Bank borrowing  · Government sources  · Business expansion scheme funds  · Venture capital  · Franchising. Ordinary (equity) shares Ordinary shares are issued to the owners of a company. They have a nominal or face value, typically of $1 or 50 cents. The market value of a quoted companys shares bears no relationship to their nominal value, except that when ordinary shares are issued for cash, the issue price must be equal to or be more than the nominal value of the shares. Deferred ordinary shares Are a form of ordinary shares, which are entitled to a dividend only after a certain date or if profits rise above a certain amount. Voting rights might also differ from those attached to other ordinary shares. Ordinary shareholders put funds into their company: a) By paying for a new issue of shares b) through retained profits. New shares issues A company seeking to obtain additional equity funds may be: a) An unquoted company wishing to obtain a Stock Exchange quotation b) An unquoted company wishing to issue new shares, but without obtaining a Stock Exchange quotation c) A company which is already listed on the Stock Exchange wishing to issue additional new shares. EXPLAINING THE IMPORTANCE OF FINANCIAL PLANNING Financial planning it is a process which presents before an individual, organization or even a country, the current financial position and the adjustments in the spending pattern, in order to meet the goals. Importance of Financial Planning It is important to plan finances in order to reap long term benefits through the assets in hand. The investments that one makes are structured properly and managed by professionals through financial planning. Every decision regarding our finances can be monitored if a proper plan is devised in advance. The following points explain why financial planning is important. Cash Flow: Financial planning helps in increasing cash flow as well as monitoring the spending pattern. The cash flow is increased by undertaking measures such as tax planning, prudent spending and careful budgeting. Capital: A strong capital base can be built with the help of efficient financial planning. Thus, one can think about investments and thereby improve his financial position. Income: It is possible to manage income effectively through planning. Managing income helps in segregating it into tax payments, other monthly expenditures and savings. Family Security: Financial planning is necessary from the point of view of family security. The various policies available in the market serve the purpose of financially securing the family. Investment: A proper financial plan that considers the income and expenditure of a person helps in choosing the right investment policy. It enables the person to reach the set goals. DESCRIBE THE INFORMATION NEEDS OF DIFFERENT DECISION MAKERS. Commonly used indicators such as the gross national product (GNP) and measurements of individual resource or pollution flows do not provide adequate indications of sustainability. Methods for assessing interactions between different sectoral environmental, demographic, social and developmental parameters are not sufficiently developed or applied. Indicators of sustainable development need to be developed to provide solid bases for decision-making at all levels and to contribute to a self-regulating sustainability of integrated environment and development systems. (a) To achieve more cost-effective and relevant data collection and assessment by better identification of users, in both the public and private sectors, and of their information needs at the local, provincial, national and international levels; (b) To strengthen local, provincial, national and international capacity to collect and use multicultural information in decision-making processes and to enhance capacities to collect and analyze data and information for decision-making, particularly in developing countries; (c) To develop or strengthen local, provincial, national and international means of ensuring that planning for sustainable development in all sectors is based on timely, reliable and usable information; (d) To make relevant information accessible in the form and at the time required to facilitate its use. DESCRIBE THE IMPACT OF FINANCE ON THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS. Financial statements (or financial reports) are formal records of the financial activities of a business, person, or other entity. All the relevant financial information of a business enterprise presented in a structured manner and in a form easy to understand, is called the financial statements. There are four basic financial statements: Balance sheet: also referred to as statement of financial position or condition, reports on a companys assets, liabilities, and Ownership equity at a given point in time. Income statement: also referred to as Profit and Loss statement (or a PL), reports on a companys income, expenses, and profits over a period of time. Profit Loss account provide information on the operation of the enterprise. These include sale and the various expenses incurred during the processing state. Statement of retained earnings: explains the changes in a companys retained earnings over the reporting period. Statement of cash flows: reports on a companys cash flow activities, particularly its operating, investing and financing activities. For large corporations, these statements are often complex and may include an extensive set of notes to the financial statements and management discussion and analysis. The notes typically describe each item on the balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement in further detail. Notes to financial statements are considered an integral part of the financial statements. Outcome: By this module, I identify the costs of finance as a resource, how to make up a budget on the basis of given information and implication of failure to finance adequately. P3 (FINANCIAL DECISIONS) ANALYZE BUDGETS AND MAKE APPROPRIATE DECISIONS How much unbudgeted downside risk you should manage Worst-case scenario (given catastrophic losses) vs. regret The value (and cost) of compliance with regulations (for example, SOX) Real Options: The Value of Midcourse Corrections to Projects One of the fundamental insights of modern financial theory is that options have value. The phrase We are out of options is surely a sign of trouble. However, because corporations (and other organizations) make decisions in a dynamic environment, they usually have midcourse options that should be considered in project valuations: The Option to Abandon a project: Has value if return (or savings) turns out to be lower than expected The Option to Expand a project: Has value if return (or savings) turns out to be higher than expected The Option to Delay a project: Has value if the underlying variables are changing with a favorable trend The Option to Outsource a project: Has value if internal resources dont have required experience and expertise In practice, companies sometimes have other choices. They can delay the decision until later, when more information is available. Or, they can call in outside help, even after having deciding not to do so at the outset. Such investment timing options can dramatically affect a projects estimated mean NPV and risk. Projects that can easily be modified in these ways are more valuable than those that do not provide such flexibility. The more uncertain the outlook, the more valuable this flexibility becomes. CALCULATE UNIT COSTS AND MAKE PRICING DECISIONS USING RELEVANT INFORMATION. Defining Costs There are several types of costs to consider when conducting a breakeven analysis, so heres a refresher on the most relevant. Fixed costs: These are costs that are the same regardless of how many items you sell. All start-up costs, such as rent, insurance and computers, are considered fixed costs since you have to make these outlays before you sell your first item. Variable costs: These are recurring costs that you absorb with each unit you sell. Setting a Price This is critical to your breakeven analysis; you cant calculate likely revenues if you dont know what the unit price will be. Psychology of Pricing: Pricing can involve a complicated decision-making process on the part of the consumer, and there is plenty of research on the marketing and psychology of how consumers perceive price. Take the time to review articles on pricing strategy and the psychology of pricing before choosing how to price your product or service. Pricing Methods: There are several different schools of thought on how to treat price when conducting a breakeven analysis. It is a mix of quantitative and qualitative factors. The formula: Dont worry, its fairly simple. To conduct your breakeven analysis, take your fixed costs, divided by your price, minus your variable costs. As an equation, this is defined as: Breakeven Point = Fixed Costs/(Unit Selling Price Variable Costs) This calculation will let you know how many units of a product youll need to sell to break even. Above the breakeven point, every additional unit sold increases profit by the amount of the unit contribution margin, which is defined as the amount each unit contributes to covering fixed costs and increasing profits. As an equation, this is defined as: ASSESS THE VIABILITY OF A PROJECT USING INVESTMENT APPRAISAL TECHNIQUES. Learning Outcome Assessment Criteria 1. Understand the nature of accounting, accountability and stewardship within a business environment Understand the nature and purpose of book-keeping and accounting and the difference between them. Be able to: Explain the difference between book-keeping, financial accounting and management accounting. Identify different stakeholders and their interest in the financial position of the business. Explain how accounting can be used for planning, decision making and control. Be able to: Identify and describe the fundamental accounting concepts of going concern, accruals, consistency, prudence and true and fair. Identify the key elements of financial statements (income, expenses, assets, liabilities, capital) and describe their relationship using the accounting equation. 1. Understand the nature of accounting, accountability and stewardship within a business environment (continued) Identify the main financial statements and explain how they are compiled (Profit and Loss Account, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Statement). Describe how financial accounts are regulated using accounting standards. 2. Understand how financial statements can be analysed and interpreted to judge the performance of a business Understand how financial statements can be analysed and interpreted using ratio analysis so that stakeholders can judge the performance of a business. Be able to: Identify likely users of ratio analysis and explain how they might use the information. Calculate and interpret profitability ratios (gross profit, net profit, ROCE, asset turnover). Calculate and interpret liquidity ratios (current ratio, acid test ratio, debtor days, creditor days, stock turnover days). Calculate and interpret investment ratios (gearing, interest cover, simple EPS) Use ratio analysis to make comparisons between one business over time, two businesses or to compare results to industry standards. Explain the benefits and limitations of ratio analysis. 3. Understand the importance of working capital maintenance (continued) Explain how creditors can be used as a source of finance and identify the costs of trade credit. Explain how the elements of working capital can be managed effectively to minimise borrowing and its associated costs. Understand how a cash flow forecast can be used to predict and manage future working capital requirements. Be able to: Distinguish between cash and profit. Identify and understand the implications of non-cash accounting adjustments such as depreciation and provision for bad debts. Prepare a simple cash flow forecast and identify periods of cash excess or cash shortage. 4. Identify and assess different sources of funding available for business Understand that there are a range of sources of finance available for businesses and those different types of finance are suitable for different purposes. 5. Understand and distinguish between costs based on their behaviour Understand that costs can be classified in different ways based on their behaviour. Outcome: By this module I able to understand the different investment appraisal techniques and nature of long-term decisions. P4 (FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE) EXPLAIN THE PURPOSE OF MAIN FINANCIAL STATEMENTS The three main financial statements are: The balance sheet-which reports a corporations assets, liabilities, and stockholders equity as of a point-in-time (e.g., as of midnight of December 31, 2009). The income statement-which reports a corporations revenues and expenses for a period of time, such as a year, quarter, month, 52 weeks, 13 weeks, etc. The statement of cash flows (or cash flow statement)-which provides information on the change in a corporations cash and cash equivalents during the same period of time as the income statement. The financial statements that are distributed outside of a company need to be prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). For example, the cost principle generally requires that the balance sheet should report long-lived assets at cost minus accumulated depreciation. The matching principle requires that the cost of long-lived assets used in the business be allocated to various accounting periods in which they generate revenues or are used up. ANALYSES FINANCIAL STATEMENTS USING APPROPRIATE RATIONS AND COMPARISONS, BOTH INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL. 1. CURRENT RATIO OR WORKING CAPITAL RATIO: Current ratio may be defined as the relationship between current assets and current liabilities it is also known as working capital ratio. Current assets CURRENT RATIO = Current liabilities Year ended 2007-08 2006-07 2005-06 2004-05 2003-04 Current assets(in crores) 913.27 2333 1614 1171 913.27 Current liabilities(in crores) 1479 994 475 336 213 Ratio 0.62 2.347 3.397 3.485 4.132 Interpretation: A current ratio of 2:1 is usually considered as ideal. If it is less than 2, then it means the company is not enjoying the adequate liquidity. In past five years it shows a decline in the ratios. 2. QUICK RATIO: Formula = Current Assets Inventory Prepaid Expenses Current Liabilities Interpretation: A quick ratio of 1 is considered ideal. In all the five years, it was above 1, where the funds can be properly employed. LEVERAGE RATIOS 1. DEBT EQUITY RATIO: Debt-equity ratio, also known as External-Internal ratio is calculated to measure the relative claims of outsiders and the owners (i.e., shareholders) against the firms assets. This ratio indicates the relationship between the external equities or the outsiders funds and the internal equities or the share holders funds. Interpretation: A DEBT EQUITY RATIO OS 2:1 IS IDEAL. IN 2004-06 THERE IS NO DEBT EQUITY RATIO. IN 2007 AN 2008 IT SHOWED A NEGLIGIBLE VALUE. 2. PROPRIETORY RATIO: It is the ratio between shareholders equity and Total Assets. Formula= Shareholders Equity Total Assets YEAR SHAREHOLDERS EQUITY TOTAL ASSETS RATIO 2004 125.34 1309 0.095 2005 140.71 1651 0.085 2006 285.15 2257 0.126 2007 291.80 3389 0.086 2008 298.65 3987 0.074 Interpretation: A higher the proprietary ratio the better it is In all the five years it is less than one. It shows weak financial position of the business. 3. INTEREST COVERAGE RATIO: It is the ratio between EBIT and Interest Formula = EBIT Interest YEAR EBIT INTEREST RATIO 2004 355 2005 410 2006 499 1 499 2007 693 6 115.5 2008 834 13 64.15 Interpretation: The higher interest coverage ratio the better it is. In 2004 there is no interest coverage ratio. In 2006, 2007 2008 it showed a heavy ration which indicates a greater safety of Out come: By this I understood the basis business and accounting terminology used and should be able to interpret the information collected from financial statements using ratio analysis and could draw conclusions from it. CONCLUSIONS By this module I understood the different long term and short term sources of finance with the implications of choice of one source over the other and any advantages and disadvantages of sources different sources of finance. By this module I identify the costs of finance as a resource, how to make up a budget on the basis of given information and implication of failure to finance adequately. By this module I able to understand the different investment appraisal techniques and nature of long-term decisions. By this I understood the basis business and accounting terminology used and should be able to interpret the information collected from financial statements using ratio analysis and could draw conclusions from it.