Biomedicine and AIDS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Biomedicine and AIDS - Essay Example How this article functions to describe the seven components of the scientific method is explained as follows: Experts have observed that in an HIV infected person the CD4 cells or transfer cells which function to regulate the messages sent from the immune system to the rest of the body get infected by HIV. This results in two things. Number one, the HIV infection causes some CD4 cells to be infected, and secondly the rest of the healthy cells which are not infected by HIV tend to cease to function properly and die early despite the fact that they were not infected. Therefore present drugs focus on inhibiting the infection ability to reproduce. However they do nothing to stop the healthy CD4 cells from dying without any reason. This causes ultimate damage. A drug invented to stop the healthy uninfected CD4 cells from dying would function to keep the immune system in working order and therefore it can prevent deaths. This is the drug that is being tested. A drug immudel-gp120 is being developed which is structured in a way that it would destroy the HIV infection's ability to destroy the healthy CD4 cells. HIV infection is covered with a protein called gp120. This gp120 protein falls off and moves freely in the bloodstream. It then sticks to CD4 cells but we can still not call them infected because gp120 alone is not harmful. B cells in the body function to produce antibodies which stick to anything they identify as foreign, entering the body so that the rest of the immune system can destroy it. The B cells identify the gp120 stuck on the healthy CD4 cells as foreign bodies therefore antibodies are produced which bind themselves to the gp120 on the healthy CD4 cells thus making the CD4 cells inactive. Immudel-gp 120 consists of two parts. First gp120 which does not bind to healthy CD4 cells but only to B cells which produce antibodies. The second part is a protein that kills anything it enters but it cannot enter on its own. It can only get into a cell if its other part i.e. the gp120 attached to it leads it inside the cell. And the only cells the gp120 can get into are the B cells that the scientists are trying to eliminate. The B cells attract the gp120 to themselves and are then destroyed by the protein thus as they are destroyed they can no more produce antibodies which play a role in destroying the CD4 cells. So this drug is administered to HIV infected patients and this is the experimental design of the drug. Data Collection Data collected indicates that the harmful B cells are eliminated due to the action of the drug. The pilot tests have been conducted on mice and humans. Data collection shows that using the drug immudel-gp120 as opposed to not using it shows a lower background level of antibody production in all three cases of no foreign particle entering the body, gp-120 entering the body and pokeweed mitogen entering the body. Use of no immudel-gp120 shows only lower background level in the case of no foreign particle entering, but in the other two cases the danger and risk factor of antibody production was very high. Results So results show that immudel-gp120 eliminated the production of anti-gp120 antibodies but does not harm the production of antibodies to other foreign proteins. Results also show no side effects of the drug in humans and mice. Conclusion It is safe to use the drug

Fractional Representation and Its Methodology Essay Example for Free

Fractional Representation and Its Methodology Essay There are a great many different ideas and thoughts found in the world of art. In some instances, art draws from sources not routinely associated with art. Such is the case with fractional representation. This is a style of art popularized by the Egyptians that combines spatial images of the same object to create an image. Somewhat rooted in geometry, a common example of this type of art would be the painting of a God whose face was in profile but the eyes are in a frontal position. There is also a great deal of religious symbolism found in this genre of art. In many instances, this type of art is employed to create replications of religious figures. One such example of this can be visible in the wall painting of a ship crossing a river. (http://www. 1destination. com/egypt/images/barque. jpg) In the imagery of this painting, men, gods, and the queen are visible traveling on their boat. The strange spatial imagery gives it a somewhat unearth like feel. In a way, it comes to life but appears to be a vision into another dimension. This is a tremendous visual element, but it also has a profound effect on spiritual sensory aspects. No one can see into the otherworld. This is why the imagery in Egyptian art is so very special. It creates an otherworldly appearance. This has a mesmerizing psychological effect on those who view it. Because it seems like such a realistic vision into another dimension, it provides additional re-enforcement on a subconscious level of belief in the gods. Also, the presence of royalty in the picture would have the effect of subconsciously equating Egyptian royalty with the gods.

Dave Barry: The Evolution of a Creative Genius :: Writer Writing Humor Papers

Dave Barry: The Evolution of a Creative Genius Humor, as a creative effort, has been respected throughout the world, I’m sure, since the beginning of spoken language. There is nothing in the world like conjuring up a joke or some other anecdote that sends a group of people off into a fit of laughter. In fact, throughout time, people have attempted to make humor at least some part of their professional career. Court jesters made the royalty of the castle laugh at his foolish behavior. Playwrights have included humor in their tragic works to provide some comedic relief from all of the terribly sad events. Today is no different. The sheer number of careers available for those interested in making people laugh for a living reflects our society’s great appreciation for novel humor. Comedians, book writers, columnists, actors, television and movie writers, cartoonists, and musicians all attempt to add some laughter to peoples’ lives on a daily basis. Dave Barry, as a creative humor writer, has proven himself quite successful in the field. As a humorist, he has created in many different fields of humor, his products including a number of very successful books, a weekly column syndicated in several prominent newspapers across the country, and even a musical band. Barry has proven himself a master, and debatably, a maker, in the verbal/linguistic domain of Gardner’s intelligences. His intelligences span beyond that, however, and include proficiency in both the visual/spatial and musical domains. At the present time, Dave Barry is at the pinnacle of his career, enjoying the sweet success of creating something truly novel that millions of people can enjoy every day. The growing-up and maturation process Barry has gone through over the course of his young, and adult life reflects the transformations in Gardner’s intelligences he has experienced. The relationship between child and adult creator, the relationship between Barry and others in his field, and the relationship between him and his work have all changed in meaning over the course of his life, as reflected by the profound changes he has undergone over the course of his life. Growing Up Dave Barry was born in 1947, to a middle class working family in the small town of Armonk, New York.

Christian Ethics Essay

Christian Ethics: Contemporary Issues & Options, Second Edition by Norman L. Geisler In this thorough update of a classic textbook, noted Christian thinker Norman Geisler evaluates contemporary ethical options (such as antinomianism, situation ethics, and legalism) and pressing issues of the day (such as euthanasia, homosexuality, and divorce) from a biblical perspective. The second edition is significantly expanded and updated, with new material and charts throughout the book. There are new chapters on animal rights, sexual ethics, and the biblical basis for ethical decisions, as well as four new appendixes addressing drugs, gambling, pornography, and birth control. The author has significantly updated his discussion of abortion, biomedical ethics, war, and ecology and has expanded the selected readings, bibliography, and glossary. Christian ethics is well summarized by Colossians 3:1-6: â€Å"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. † When we say that the Christian believes that God exists, we mean something significantly different from what many modern people mean when they make that statement. The Christian believes in a God who is really there, a God who exists as an objective reality — not simply one who exists as a mere postulate. A postulate is something that is assumed to be true even when there is no proof that it is true; it is simply something assumed as a basis for reasoning. Modern theology, for instance, often tells man that God cannot be proved, that He must be accepted purely on faith, and it therefore reduces God to nothing more than a postulate. The Christian’s faith in God, however, unlike the faith of modern man, is a rational faith. When modern man says that he believes in God and yet says that God cannot be proved, he is accepting the idea of God as a faith-assumption. He has no rational basis for his belief in God, but he merely chooses to assume, against all the evidence, that God is. The Christian’s faith is instead grounded in reality. He believes in God, not because he chooses to believe in Him on the basis of a faith-assumption, but because he knows God is really there; the evidences for His existence are overwhelming. While more than just a list of â€Å"do’s† and â€Å"don’ts,† the Bible does give us detailed instructions on how we should live. The Bible is all we need to know about how to live the Christian life. However, the Bible does not explicitly cover every situation we will face in our lives. How then is it sufficient for the all the ethical dilemmas we face? That is where Christian ethics comes in. Science defines ethics as â€Å"a set of moral principles, the study of morality.† Therefore, Christian ethics would be the principles derived from the Christian faith by which we act. While God’s Word may not cover every situation we face throughout our lives, its principles give us the standards by which we must conduct ourselves in those situations where there are no explicit instructions. The term â€Å"Christian ethics,† as I shall use it, means a systematic study of the way of life exemplified and taught by Jesus, applied to the manifold problems and decisions of human existence. It therefore finds its base in the last of these frames of reference, and in the other five only as they are consistent with the sixth and exist as applications or implications of the moral insights of Jesus. This is not to claim that we have a perfect record of the life and teachings of Jesus, for historical scholarship has made it clear that the records we have in the Gospels reflect not only what Jesus was and did and said, but also what the early Church believed about him. Still less is it to claim that any fallible human mind can enter so fully into the divine-human consciousness of Jesus as to say without error what his judgment would be in every concrete case of contemporary decision, It is only to affirm that we have an adequate, a dependable, and an indispensable guide to Christian action in what we know of Jesus and in what through him we know of God. No other guide, however important and useful, is either adequate, or so dependable, or so indispensable. The Bible does not say anything explicitly about the use of illegal drugs,  yet based on the principles we learn through Scripture; we can know that it is wrong. For one thing, the Bible tells us (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) that the body is a temple of the Holy Spirit and that we should honor God with it Knowing what drugs do to our bodies—the harm they cause to various organs—we know that by using them we would be destroying the temple of the Holy Spirit. That is certainly not honoring to God. The Bible also tells us that we are to follow the authorities that God Himself has put into place (Romans 13:1). Given the illegal nature of the drugs, by using them we are not submitting to the authorities but are rebelling against them. Does this mean if illegal drugs were legalized it would be ok? Not without violating the first principle. By using the principles we find in Scripture, Christians can determine the ethical course for any given situation. In some cases it will be simple, like the rules for Christian living we find in Colossians, chapter 3. In other cases, however, we need to do a little digging. The best way to do that is to pray over God’s Word. The Holy Spirit indwells every believer, and part of His role is teaching us how to live: â€Å"But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you† (John 14:26) â€Å"As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him† (1 John 2:27) So, when we pray over Scripture, the Spirit will guide us and teach us. He will show us the principles we need to stand on for any given situation. While God’s Word does not cover every situation we will face in our lives, it is all sufficient for living a Christian life. For most things, we can simply see what the Bible says and follow the proper course based on that. In ethical questions where Scripture does not give explicit instructions, we need to look for principles that can be applied to the situation. We must pray over His Word, and open ourselves to His Spirit. The Spirit will teach us and guide us through the Bible to find the principles on which we need to stand so we may live as a Christian should. Ethics is the study of good and evil, right and wrong. Biblical Christian ethics is inseparable from theology because it is grounded in the character of God. The task of Christian ethics, then, is to determine what conforms to God’s character and what does not. Francis Schaeffer explains the uniqueness of Christian ethics: â€Å"One of the distinctions of the Judeo-Christian God is that not all things are the same to Him. That at first may sound rather trivial, but in reality it is one of the most profound things one can say about the Judeo–Christian God. He exists; He has a character; and not all things are the same to Him. Some things conform to His character, and some are opposed to His character. † Muslims believe that moral norms are arbitrary, a product of God’s decree, and therefore can change as God chooses. Marxists and Secular Humanists rely almost exclusively on their economic or naturalistic philosophy to determine ethics. Postmodernists argue for a morality based on shared â€Å"community† values and Cosmic Humanists assume that everyone acts morally by following inner truth determined on an individual basis. Christians, on the other hand, believe that moral norms come from God’s nature or essence. Rather than believing in some passing fancy bound to society’s ever-changing whims, as Christians we are committed to a specific moral order revealed to us through both general and special revelation. ?We know that God’s ethical order is the only true source of morality, and, in fact, the only possible morality, there can be no other. â€Å"The human mind,† says C. S. Lewis, â€Å"has no more power of inventing a new value than of imagining a new primary color, or, indeed, of creating a new sun and a new sky for it to move in.† For the Christian, the moral order is as real as the physical order—some would say even more real. The Apostle Paul says the physical order is temporary, but the order â€Å"not seen† is eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18). This eternal moral order is a reflection of the character and nature of God Himself. Christian ethics, in one sense, is simply an expansion of a moral order that is generally revealed to everyone. Despite some disagreement regarding the morality of specific actions, Calvin D. Linton comments on the consistency of the moral code within all people everywhere: â€Å" .  . . [T]here is a basic pattern of similarity among [ethical codes]. Such things as murder, lying, adultery, cowardice are, for example, almost always condemned. The universality of the ethical sense itself (the ‘oughtness’ of conduct), and the similarities within the codes of diverse cultures indicate a common moral heritage for all mankind which materialism or naturalism cannot explain. †3 We may define this common moral heritage as anything from an attitude to a conscience, but however we define it, we are aware that some moral absolutes do exist outside ourselves. According to this universal moral code, whenever we pass judgment we are relying upon a yardstick that measures actions against an absolute set of standards. Without a standard, justice could not exist; without an ethical absolute, morality could not exist. This objective, absolute standard is apparent throughout humanity’s attitudes toward morality. According to a secular philosophy, we should treat all morals as relative—but in practice, even secular society treats some abstract values (such as justice, love, and courage) as consistently moral. Secular society also cringes at the Nazi holocaust, the Russian prison system of Siberian gulags, and the abuse of children. We cannot explain this phenomenon unless we accept the notion that certain value judgments apply universally and are somehow inherent to all mankind. Christian morality is founded on the conviction that an absolute moral order exists outside of, and yet somehow is inscribed into, our very being. It is a morality flowing from the nature of the Creator through the nature of created things, not a construction of the human mind. It is part of God’s general revelation. â€Å"At the core of every moral code,† says Walter Lippman, â€Å"there is a picture of human nature, a map of the universe, and version of history. To human nature (of the sort conceived), in a universe (of the kind imagined), after a history (so understood), the rules of the code apply. †4 This moral light is what the Apostle John refers to as having been lit in the hearts of all men and women—†The true light that gives light to every man† (John 1:9, NIV). It is what the Apostle Paul calls â€Å"the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience† (Romans 2:15). This morality is not arbitrarily handed down by God to create difficulties for us. God does not make up new values according to whim. Rather, God’s innate character is holy and cannot tolerate evil or moral indifference—what the Bible calls sin. Look in any concordance of the Bible, and it becomes apparent that one of the words, which appear most frequently, is â€Å"sin. † From first to last, sin is the story of man’s behavior, even as salvation from sin is the great theme of the Bible. Christianity is through and through a religion of redemption, and while the whole gamut of salvation is not expressed in redemption from sin, this is its central core. Although, as we noted, naturalism and humanism tend to think of sin as an outmoded concept and talk instead about maladjustment, insecurity, neurosis, or antisocial conduct, the term remains in the diction of Christians. But what does it mean? There is no clear agreement as to its meaning, and the ambiguity with which sin is regarded is responsible for much ineffectiveness in Christian preaching and in Christian living. To some persons, and probably to the majority of ordinary Christian laymen, sin means transgression of those standards of conduct usually accepted by the people around them. A Christian is expected not to kill, steal, lie, commit adultery or other sexual infractions, or get drunk. How far he can move in these directions, as in exploiting others to one’s own gain, driving a shrewd deal or pursuing an advantage, stretching the truth, â€Å"having a little affair,† or drinking in moderation, depends for most persons less on the will of God or the revelation of God in Jesus Christ than on what is and what is not done in one’s community. The community, though it embraces the geographical area in which one lives, is a far more pervasive thing than this, for a community is in a large part defined by the social standards of like-minded people. For this reason conflicts as to what constitutes sin often arise between the younger and older generations, or between ministers and their laymen, or between the people of one church and another. Take, for example, the matter of drinking a glass of wine or beer. To some Christians this is a sin. To others, if it is done in moderation, it has no more significance than to drink a cup of coffee. Some regard it as sinful for a minister to drink, but not for a layman — and still more is this disparity in evidence with regard to smoking. A Roman Catholic or an Anglican or a German Lutheran Christian is likely to take a much freer view of such indulgences than is an American Methodist. I am not at this point trying to say who is right. What this illustrates is the ambiguity that emerges when the attempt is made to define sin, or â€Å"a sin,† by accepted social practice. A large part of the message of Jesus was the challenging of both Pharisaic and Gentile ideas of sin by a higher law. The chief danger in defining sin by accepted social practice is not its ambiguity. This, if recognized, can be made the basis of mutual tolerance while holding to one’s own convictions. Thus, Christians may sincerely differ as to the duty of the Christian to be, or not to be, a pacifist; but if one forms his opinion only by the standards of his group and then calls it the will of God for all, God has actually been left out of the picture. This procedure constantly happens, from the most insignificant matters to the greatest, and is a major source of the perversion of Christian ethics.

Poetry by Gwen Harwood Essay

â€Å"Ideas and the way those ideas are presented are what makes a poets’ work distinctive. Choose 2 poems from 1 poet and describe how they show the distinctive characteristics of this poets’ work. Gwen Harwood skilfully employs language techniques to explore a variety of distinctive themes and ideas in her poems. This is seen in ‘In The Park’ where Harwood explores the human condition through the simplistic and dull life of her female protagonist, while in ‘Prize Giving’ she explores multiple universal themes through her male protagonist Professor Eisenbart. Harwood effectively establishes a simplistic image through her title ‘In the Park’ to imply the mundane simplicity of the place, the people and the idea. This is enhanced through the simplistic first line as the woman â€Å"sits in the park†. Here we are introduced to the protagonist with her depressingly dull and monotonous life, clearly portrayed through Hardwood’s image in describing how the protagonist’s â€Å"clothes are out of date†. This not only portrays her shabby physical appearance but also the idea that she lives in the past and that time has passed her by. The use of negative connotation describing how her â€Å"two children whine and bicker, tug her skirt† adds to the depressing mood, before Hardwood goes on to tell us that â€Å"A third draws aimless patterns in the dirt†, helping to further reinforce her lack of purpose in life. The double entendre of the persona being â€Å"too late† on two levels effectively conveys that she is â€Å"too late† to show disinterest to him and that it is â€Å"too late† for her and this lost love to regain a close relationship. Harwood’s clever employment of the cliched expressions of â€Å"how nice† and â€Å"time holds great surprises† conveys how dull and pointless their conversation is to reinforce the superficiality of the situation and the pointlessness of their reunion as his â€Å"neat head† has no remnant of communication left to share with her. Furthermore, the woman’s low self esteem is portrayed as she interprets his of the words â€Å"but for the grace of God†¦ † as his relieved sense of having escaped her monotonous lifestyle. The vague and unimportance of their conversation is enhanced as â€Å"they stand a while in flickering light† whilst â€Å"rehearsing the children’s names and birthdays. † Harwood implies the facade of interest the man takes in the children who â€Å"whine, and bicker†, yet ironically the woman is talking to the man’s â€Å"departing smile†. Her uninviting and uninspiring lifestyle which is perhaps causing him to leave. A sense of motherly love is represented in he poem as the woman is â€Å"nursing the youngest child†. The image of the Madonna-like child on her implies something very different when we see her as she â€Å"sits staring at her feet†, her apathy replaces caring and the boredom of her life replaces her joys of motherly love. The final line of â€Å"to the wind she says, â€Å"they have eaten me alive. â€Å"†, conveys that sadly he is gone and that she is alone, with no one to talk to but the wind, to whic h she voices the truth of her pain and disillusionment. The ideas from â€Å"In the Park† are also reflected similarly in another of Harwood’s poems, ‘Prize Giving† where the arrogant Professor Eisenbart is contrasted to the dominating Titian-haired girl. The poem immediately establishes Professor Eisenbart as an abhorrent character through the use of connotative language in â€Å"rudely declined†. The professor is implied as stodgy and old fashioned character â€Å"when pressed with dry scholastic jokes† where he changes his mind and decides to â€Å"grace their humble platform†. This portrays the humble status of the school in contrast to his arrogance and superiority, which is further exemplified â€Å"when he appeared† and â€Å"the girls whirred with an insect nervousness†, implying that he sees himself as a light they’re attracted to. This sound imagery not only suggests the mood of interest in him but also the sound of the assembly as a collective. The head is differentiated â€Å"in humble black† who â€Å"flapped round and steered her guess, superb in silk and fur†, which characterizes her as comparatively less ego-centric that the â€Å"resplendently dressed guest. Alternately, she feels a sense of pride in others around her and in what she is doing when it is clear that Professor Eisenbart concerns only for himself. In the third stanza, the girls are referred to as â€Å"half-hearted blooms tortured to form the school’s elaborate crest† which creates an image of the flower arrangement that is the assembly. This imagery personifies the girls as reluctant to represent the school, but also symbolises their innocent flowering into womanhood which makes â€Å"Eisenbart scowl in violent distaste†, conveying that his indifference has turned into revulsion. The simile when Eisenbart â€Å"then recomposed his features to their best advantage: deep in thought, with one hand placed like Rodin’s Thinker† further enhances his self image of conceit and superficial self control for appearance sake as he stages this pose in this allusion to the classic thinker statue. Eisenbart vies the girls as a â€Å"mosaic of young heads, Blonde, black, mouse brown† as all he sees is a colour pattern of heads and does not acknowledge the girls individually. However, this is changed when â€Å"underneath a light†¦ ne girl sat grinning at him, her hand bent under her chin in mockery of his own†. Here, a spotlight is shone, in Eisenbarts’ mind, onto the titian haired girl who shows an amused perspective as she seems to interrupt him as no one else does. His closer observation now beyond the â€Å"mosaic† shoes a flicker of interest in him, as opposed to his previous disinterest. He remains uncaring and unintereste d by the â€Å"host of virgin hands† until once again he is challenged by the â€Å"girl with titian hair† who â€Å"stood up, hitched at a stocking, winked at near-by friends†. He notes all this detail move by move as implied by the punctuation in her attitude of directness, self-composure, self-composure and ultimately intention of some act to shatter his power. The youthful titian haired girl challenges â€Å"his calm age and power† of knowledge, experience and authority as she transforms before him and becomes a powerful person in her passion and her arrogance well beyond his own. From his indifference, he is now the â€Å"suffered† victim to â€Å"her strange eyes, against reason dark†. Harwood uses figurative language here to emphasize the change of his perspective as the power is now turning to her. Here there is a challenge between his logical sense of reason and the seeing â€Å"strange eyes† of this titian haired girl. They are odd to him because they allude the sense of reason that he lives by and she defies. The power and passion of the girl has â€Å"forged his rose-hot dream† and his own power is a fake, a forgery, in contrast to hers. The final stanza in this poem reveals that â€Å"age and power† can be challenged as Eisenbarts’ false superiority is seen through the â€Å"eyes† of the titian haired girl. Synecdoche is employed when Eisenbart is â€Å"summoned by arrogant hands† to show the girls power. She is symbolised by the power of her music, characterized as â€Å"titian-haired† to imply her passionate nature and her â€Å"eyes† that see through Eisenbarts’ superficial superiority and arrogance. Her power is further conveyed as â€Å"Eisenbart teased his gown†, showing his sexual unease and realisation that his self image is weakened. His perspective changes as the young and fiery girl defeats him by deflating his self- image and superiority. Eisenbart now sees himself differently as he â€Å"peered into a trophy which suspended his image upside down: a sage fool trapped†. His composure has left him and his self-image is reflected in her trophy as he is mirrored upside down, symbolically reversed and up-ended. The oxymoron in â€Å"sage fool† demonstrates that he is controlled by her power. The ideas presented in Gwen Harwood’s poetry is made distinctive through her use of a variety of themes and language techniques. The powerful ideas represented in â€Å"In the Park† and â€Å"Prize Giving† explore multiple universal themes and give the reader a better insight into the human condition.

PHP Web Page Redirect Script

PHP Web Page Redirect Script A PHP forwarding script is useful if you want to redirect one page to another so that your visitors can reach a different page than the one they land on. Fortunately, its really easy to forward with PHP. With this method,  you seamlessly transfer visitors from the web page that no longer exists to the new page without requiring them to click a link to continue. How to Redirect With PHP On the page that you want to redirect elsewhere, change the PHP code to read like this:   ?php header( Location: yoursite.com/new_page.html ) ; ? The  header()  function sends a raw HTTP header. It must be called before any output is sent, either by normal HTML tags, by PHP,  or by blank lines. Replace the URL in this sample code  with the URL of the page where you want to redirect visitors. Any page is supported, so you can transfer  visitors to a different webpage on your own site or to a different website entirely. Because this includes the  header()  function, be sure  that you do not have any text sent to the browser before this code, or it will not work. Your safest bet is to remove all the content from the page except for the redirect code. When to Use a PHP Redirect Script If you remove one of your web pages, its a good idea to set up a redirect so that anyone who bookmarked that page is transferred automatically to an active, updated page on your website. Without the PHP forward, visitors would remain on the dead, broken, or inactive page. The benefits of this PHP script are as follows: Users are redirected quickly and seamlessly.When the  Back  button is clicked, visitors  are  taken to the last viewed page, not the redirect page.The redirect works on all web browsers. Tips for Setting up a Redirect Remove  all code but this redirect script.Mention on the new page that users should update their links and bookmarks.Use this code to create a drop-down menu that redirects users.

Using the Spanish Verb Levantar

Using the Spanish Verb Levantar Usually meaning to raise or to lift, levantar can also be used for other meanings that at first may not seem related. Levantar is derived from the Latin verb levare, meaning to raise. As such, it is related to English words such as levitate, levity and even lever. Here are some examples of levantar with its usual meaning: Courtney levantà ³ la mano porque querà ­a hacer una pregunta. Courtney raised her hand because she wanted to ask a question. Levantaron el coche en el elevador. They raised up the car on the hoist. Levantà ³ la taza con su mano dà ©bil. He raised the cup with his weak hand. Observa como la temperatura se levanta. See how the temperature is rising. Inhalar y levantar los brazos. Inhale and lift up your arms. Levantar is often used figuratively: Levanto la voz por mis derechos. Im raising my voice for my rights. Levantaban la mirada para ver a los extraà ±os que llegaban. They looked up to see the strangers who were arriving. In the reflexive form, levantarse can mean to wake up or to arise from bed:  ¡No me quiero levantar! I dont want to get up! In context, levantar can be used to refer to the creating or intensifying of an emotional reaction: Era un hà ©roe que levantà ³ al pueblo contra los invasores. He was a leader who stirred up the people against the invaders. Las expresiones de carià ±o mientras estuvo hospitalizada levantaron su espà ­ritu. The expressions of affection while she was hospitalized lifted her spirits. In context, levantar can mean to suspend, adjourn or call off an event: Las mujeres la ciudad norteà ±a levantaron huelga de hambre tras alcanzar los objetivos. The women in the northern city called off their hunger strike after reaching their goals. Se levantà ³ el corte. The court was adjourned. Rusia levantar embargo a la exportacià ³n de grano. Russia will lift the embargo on grain exports. Similarly, levantar sometimes means to undo or unmake: La policà ­a levantà ³ campamento y detuverion a los manifestantes. The police broke up the camp and detained the protesters. Pablo levantà ³ la cama y abrià ³ la ventana. Pablo unmade the bed and opened the window. Note: As is the case with most lessons on this site, sample sentences generally are adapted from a variety of sources written by native speakers. Sources consulted for this lesson include: Abel Cruz, Cibernika.com, Debates-politica.com, DGW.es, EscuchaMusica.com.mx, Maipu.cl, MCH.com, Mforos.com, NustroSalud.com, Rodrigorubiog, Tarot.tv, 1070noticias.com.

How to Form Compound Nouns in Italian

How to Form Compound Nouns in Italian Where does the word â€Å"autostrada - highway† come from? It comes from two words: auto (car) and strada (street), giving it a literal meaning of â€Å"a street for cars.† This is just one example of a compound noun in Italian, or a word that is combined of two other words. In Italian linguistics, this is called a â€Å"composto - compound† or a â€Å"parola composta - compound word.† Other examples include: fermare carte  » fermacarte - paperweightpasta asciutta  » pastasciutta - dried pastacassa panca  » cassapanca - dresser Creating compound nouns is one of the primary ways, after adding suffixes, to increase the amount of vocabulary in the language. The formation of new words is particularly useful to the development of terminologie tecnico-scientifiche (scientific and technical terminology). Consider, for example, the numerous compound nouns with Greek elements in the language of medicine: elettrocardiogramma - electrocardiogramcancerogeno - carcinogenic What Makes Up a Compound Noun A compound need not be two (or more) forme libere, such as â€Å"asciuga(re)† and â€Å"mano† in â€Å"asciugamano.† They can also be two (or more) forme non libere, such as antropo- (from the Greek nthrÃ… pos man) and -fago (from the Greek phaghà ªin to eat) in antropofago he who eats human flesh. The Greek elements antropo- and -fago, unlike asciuga(re) and mano, do not exist as stand-alone words, but are found only in compound nouns. Aside from this difference, another should be noted: in compound nouns, such as â€Å"asciugamano,† there is the sequence verb (asciugare) noun (mano) while those such as antropofago have an inverse sequence: noun (antropo- man) verb (-fago to eat). In any event, there is a fundamental property common to these two compounds: the implied, underlying phrase of both has a verbal predicate: (qualcosa) asciuga (la) mano  » asciugamano - (something) dries (the) hand  » hand towel(qualcosa) mangia (l) uomo  » antropofago - (something) eats (the) man  » cannibal In other cases, however, the implied phrase of the compound has a nominal predicate. In other words, it is a sentence containing the verb essere: (il) filo (à ¨) spinato  » filo spinato - (the) wire (is) barbed  » barbed wire(la) cassa (à ¨) forte  » cassaforte - (the) box (is) strong  » strongbox, safe    EXAMPLES OF ITALIAN COMPOUND NOUNS Noun Noun / Nome Nome capo stazione  » capostazione - stationmastercapo giro  » capogiro - dizzinesscassa panca  » cassapanca - dressermadre perla  » madreperla - mother-of-pearl Noun Adjective / Nome Aggettivo cassa forte  » cassaforte - strongbox, safe Adjective Noun / Aggettivo Nome franco bollo  » francobollo - stampmezza luna  » mezzaluna - half-moon Adjective Adjective / Aggettivo Aggettivo piano forte  » pianoforte - pianosordo muto  » sordomuto - deaf-mute Verb Verb / Verbo Verbo dormi veglia  » dormiveglia - stupor, lethargysali scendi  » saliscendi - latch Verb Noun / Verbo Nome apri scatole  » apriscatole - can openerlava piatti  » lavapiatti - dishwasherspazza neve  » spazzaneve - snowplow Verb Adverb / Verbo Avverbio posa piano  » posapiano - slowpokebutta fuori  » buttafuori - bouncer Adverb Verb / Avverbo Verbio bene stare  » benestare - approval, blessing, consentmale essere  » malessere - unease, discomfort Adverb Adjective / Avverbo Aggettivo sempre verde  » sempreverde - evergreen Preposition or Adverb Noun / Preposizione o Avverbio Nome sotto passaggio  » sottopassaggio - underpassanti pasto  » antipasto - appetizersopra nome  » soprannome - nicknamedopo scuola  » doposcuola - after-school    Compound Nouns with â€Å"Capo† Among the compounds formed using the term capo (head), in the figurative sense, a distinction must be made between: those in which the term capo indicates one who commands, the manager: capo scuola  » caposcuola - deancapo stazione  » capostazione - stationmastercapo classe  » capoclasse - class president and those in which the element capo indicates either excellence or beginning of something: capo lavoro  » capolavoro - masterpiececapo verso  » capo verso - paragraph, indent There are also other types of compounds, formed in more diverse ways: capodanno capo dellanno (noun preposition noun) - New Year, end of the yearpomodoro pomo doro (noun preposition noun) - tomatobuono-sconto buono per ottenere uno sconto - discount ticketfantascienza scienza del fantastico - science fiction

How personality affect organization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

How personality affect organization - Essay Example The examination of the influence of personality on the organizational behaviour has led to the assumption that the interaction between the firm and the employee is intensive and constant. Moreover, it has been found that the diversity as a phenomenon does not occur only in the lower organizational levels but can equally appear in the managerial department. On the other hand, the existence of differences among a firm’s employees cannot be considered as disadvantage but should be viewed instead as a challenging experience for every organization. In this context, it has been proved that the existence of diversity is not connected with the negative phenomena that can be often observed in an organizational environment, like the fraud or the sabotage which are more individual – related. However, because the existence of diversity may create problems to the daily organizational operations – particularly when there are not the mechanisms for the successful operation of s uch a business strategy, it has to be noticed that in order for an organization to apply a diversity schema to its employment sector, the relevant measures have to be taken in advance. It should be noticed here that any relevant measure has to be tested in advance not only as of its financial cost to the company involved but mainly as of its effects to the firm’s employees.

Recovery of economic loss in negligence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Recovery of economic loss in negligence - Essay Example The commercial contracts include provisions either to exclude or limit recovery of damages generally for loss of business, profits or revenue which are contingent upon the breach of contract. However, it was held that ‘consequential’ is not different, but synonymous to ‘indirect’ by the English courts. In Croudace Construction Ltd. v. Cawoods Concrete Products Ltd - [1978] 2 Lloyd’s Rep. 55 (C.A.), Parker J. of the English Court of Appeal considered the usage of the word â€Å"consequential† and determined that it was no different than the word â€Å"indirect†. It was held â€Å"indirect or consequential† do not exclude liability for damages which are the direct and natural result of the breaches complained of. . . . I do not think â€Å"intermediate† adds anything to the word â€Å"direct† and I do not think â€Å"consequential† adds anything to the word â€Å"indirect†. Therefore the position is that the loss of business, revenue or profit could be excluded under special circumstances known to the parties on proof of special circumstances and for damages contributed to by some supervening cause. In the case of Saint Line Ltd. v. Richardsons Westgarth & Co. [1940] 2 K.B. 99 (K.B.), Saint Line purchased a set of ship engines from Richardsons. The engines were unsatisfactory and Saint Line claimed against Richardsons for (1) loss of profit; (2) wages; and (3) superintendent’s fees. The contract between the parties contained an exclusion clause as to â€Å"indirect† and â€Å"consequential damages†. The Court found that the claims were not precluded by the clause because the claims arose â€Å"directly and naturally from the breach†. (Sidnel, 2010, p. 113-114) In the classic case of Perre v Apand Pty Ltd [1999] HCA 36, potato produced with â€Å"non-certified† seeds was infected and the grower was awarded damages for breach of implied conditions of the contract under the sale of goods legislation. Due to quarantine laws, the neighbours of the grower were not able to export their potatoes, because they were grown within 20 km of the known outbreak. The neighbours were successful in obtaining damages in High Court for the financial loss, though they could not sue for damages for negligence in respect of physical loss because there was no damage to this effect on the basis that physical harm is not a precondition to liability in negligence for economic loss. In the present case, there is physical harm as well as economic loss consequent upon the damages. (The University of Queensland) Pure vs. consequential economic loss As against the consequential economic loss discussed above, in the case of pure economic loss, the loss strikes the victim’s wallet and nothing else. According to Bussani & Palmer (2003, p. 4), there has never been a universally accepted definition of ‘pure economic loss’ and a number of lega l systems neither recognize the legal category nor distinguish it as an autonomous form of damage. The same act of negligence might cause physical damage to one and pure economic loss to another, and in the later case becomes non recoverable unless it is intentional. Prima facie, the cause and effect relationship may appear to be simple. But, the causation in one's breach of duty relating to the harm to a third person is very complicated. The position is aggravated further by the facts which vary from case to

What does the book of Exodus contribute to our understanding of Essay

What does the book of Exodus contribute to our understanding of salvation - Essay Example His divine-human nature has allowed people to atone for their sins and be saved and have a blissful afterlife. Nevertheless, the origins of the issue can be found in the Old Testament, particularly in Exodus.2 Exodus raises important issues relating to the issue of salvation such as faith in God and commitment to spiritual and moral purification. In Exodus, salvation appears not only as receiving by the Jewish people their Promised Land. Salvation is presented as a spiritual and moral purification, in which the main role belongs to the sincere and genuine faith in God and His grace. â€Å"The importance of the Exodus event in the Old Testament cannot be underestimated.† 3 As noted above, salvation is seen by many people as the exemption from danger or suffering. To save someone means to free or secure him or her. This word carries the idea of ​​victory, peace, and protection. Sometimes the Bible uses the word "salvation" in relation to the interim and physical release, such as the release of Paul from prison.4 However, more often the word "salvation" refers to the eternal and spiritual liberation. When Paul told the Philippian jailer, that he should be saved, he was referring to the jailers eternal destiny.5 Jesus likened salvation with entering the kingdom of heaven.6 According to the Christian doctrine of salvation, people are saved from God’s "anger", that is, the divine judgment of sin.7 Sin had separated people from God, and the result of sin is death.8 Biblical salvation means liberation of people from the consequences of sin, and thus involves the removal of the sin. Exodus tells the story of the calling of Moses, the deliverance from the bondage of the people of God and the covenant between the Jewish people and God. The composition of the book is rather complicated. The book contains the epic story of the Children of Israel enslaved in Egypt and the calling of Moses (Exodus 1-5), the struggle

How to achieve HR Operational Excellence in Global Corporations Research Paper

How to achieve HR Operational Excellence in Global Corporations - Research Paper Example In order to survive in this tough competitive world it has become essential to achieve organizational excellence. Organizational excellence is a broad term and encompasses excellence in every department of the organization including finance, marketing HR and operations. In order to achieve excellence it is absolutely essential to have an integration of key departments of an organization. This has been aided by use of high end technology in business processes which include functional integration packages like an ERP which help in linking the different departments of an organization under one single unit. Organizations are also employing different efficiency techniques like TQM and Six Sigma in their operations which have helped them in creating competitive advantage in the business markets. Operational excellence has become the buzzword for business organizations across the globe. Multinational organizations like Wal-Mart and UPS have developed expertise by employing technologies whic h has helped in integration of departments as well as generation of organization efficiency. Wal-Mart is a classic example which has set benchmarks in the retail industry by adopting an efficient ERP program which has helped in creating large scale competitive advantage as well as generation of economies of scale and scope which have helped in creating entry barriers for organizations trying to capture the market share in a consumer market. This assumes considerable importance considering the fact that organizations need to have efficiencies so as to sustain the level of competition. Adoption of efficiencies also assumes significance considering the fact that business organizations operate in rapidly changing situations which demand greater flexibilities form the organization. This is only possible when an organization adopts innovations in operations and operational excellence as a part of its business strategy. Operational and organizational excellence includes three essential com ponents. Firstly it requires the top management of an organization to have the vision so as to identify the crucial factors at an appropriate time; these factors should be such that they help in adding value to the organization as well as to all the stakeholders including the customers of an organization. Secondly, organizational efficiency also calls upon organizations to achieve excellence and other necessary technological machinery so as to achieve large scale efficiencies in the organization. Thirdly organizational excellence and efficiencies also requires organizations to have the ability to ensure continuous betterment of business operations and its sustainability in the long run. Innovations are also crucial for organizations in their quest for organizational excellence as they not only generate organizational excellence but also help in generating competitive advantage in the form of cost savings and value addition to the product offering. Adopting innovations in processes l ike procurement help in generating cost advantage for an organization whose benefits could be passed on to the consumers to add value and affordability in the product offer

Culture Aspect of Childbirth and Parenting Essay

Culture Aspect of Childbirth and Parenting - Essay Example There are so many dimensions to it that studying its dynamics could provide deep insights for health care professionals. This paper will examine the case of child birth and care in Kalahari, South Africa. It is expected that the discourse can further highlight the argument that the idiosyncrasies in various culture are especially prominent in pregnancy, child birth and parenting and that an understanding of such could empower health care professionals to be effective especially in decision-making stage when working with a highly diverse population. Kalahari is a region in southern Africa that covers parts of South Africa, Botswana, Angola, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The Bushmen have thrived in the region for at least 20,000 years. Children and parenting among them are treated much the same way in Western societies. Babies are indulged and cared for until their survival is ensured. Sigelman and Rider (2011) noted that â€Å"babies are touched 70% of daytime hours, are breast-fed w henever they want (usually 20-40 times a day), and may not be weaned until the age of 4.† (p. 124) The way mothers and families rear their young – with the attention and importance given to this enterprise - is fundamentally the same with how Western communities and families care for their children. They are loved, protected and provided for. The Bushmen, however, practices a unique birthing culture. A very important aspect of it is how the Kalahari women aspire and value the manner of giving birth to her child unaided. At least this has been true in the case of the Bushmen tribe of Ju|’hoansi. According to Selin (2009), this is quite common across this group because solitary child birth is widely seen as an opportunity to prove one’s worth as it is considered part of the rites of passage wherein women can display their ability for self-control, in addition to the ritualistic beliefs entailed in ethnic rites of passage. (p. 17) The implication of this cult ural practice is that it exposes mothers and infants to several risk factors; the most serious of these is death. This practice appears so different from the Western idea about the entire birthing process. In most western societies such as in the United States, pregnancy and child birth is an opportunity for family, relatives and friends to lend support. They are equated with the procreation processes and, hence, are extremely important for many individuals beyond the family. In addition, anthropologists consider kinship relationships in the West as fundamentally connected with acts of birth and human understanding of procreation. (Stone 2009) And so pregnancy and birthing are considered an event of extreme interest. Rites, beliefs, myths, among other cultural practices that our community have made all feature the requirement of support and closer ties. It is normal for us to see assistance, especially those by women who possess authoritative knowledge on the process, as one with gr eat survival value for birthing mothers. This is the reason why today both the health professional such as the doctor or the midwife are actual partners in the pregnancy and the birthing enterprise. Another interesting aspect about child birth in Kalahari is the environment. Desert covers much of the area and this claimed an important impact in the childbirth beliefs and behaviors of the Bushmen. Unlike in our society, for instance, the Bushmen did not have the luxury of water for birthing. Women

Listening log Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Listening log - Essay Example It is even more astonishing to lay out some conclusions that the artist ids deploying some undesirable traits about the husband. As the song begins, there is an orchestrated rhythm of the singers, who sings in a group. All the song participants participate harmoniously bringing up a great architecture of the song. The harmony is calculated so well, and it renders the song livelily and enjoyable. Essentially, the backup voice not only brings up a well-blended song but also establishes clear lyrics. The timbre variance brought about by the guitar further enhances the rhythm and song flow. The melody of the song brings up a tension field, especially where one tends to question why the artist is comparing a husband to a baby. The song’s texture is a bit rough, with the occasional eruption of background voices, assisted melodies and combination of drum sets and guitars. Sometimes the notes are high, at other times they are low. The song remains a great music icon; to the rock lovers they will always nod their heads when the song is on the air. Despite its production in 1966, the song Red House by Jimi Hedrix remains an influential song that would send people stumping their feet due to the rhythm and tempo of the song. The song expressed the tribulations vividly that people in love used to undergo during that time. The music performance is done under a full band, making it iconic and admirable. Utilization of a guitar grants it full flow and ideal harmony. The song remains a perfect example of the blues songs that do utilize the stereo imaging effects to come up with an entertaining blues song. Hendrix is the chief leader in the vocals while others simply follow. He also plays the guitar. The song is of a high standard, having being replicated by other artists such as Slash. Primarily, its starting tone of imperative, distorted guitar and the following vocals brings up a great musical

Culture Aspect of Childbirth and Parenting Essay

Culture Aspect of Childbirth and Parenting - Essay Example There are so many dimensions to it that studying its dynamics could provide deep insights for health care professionals. This paper will examine the case of child birth and care in Kalahari, South Africa. It is expected that the discourse can further highlight the argument that the idiosyncrasies in various culture are especially prominent in pregnancy, child birth and parenting and that an understanding of such could empower health care professionals to be effective especially in decision-making stage when working with a highly diverse population. Kalahari is a region in southern Africa that covers parts of South Africa, Botswana, Angola, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The Bushmen have thrived in the region for at least 20,000 years. Children and parenting among them are treated much the same way in Western societies. Babies are indulged and cared for until their survival is ensured. Sigelman and Rider (2011) noted that â€Å"babies are touched 70% of daytime hours, are breast-fed w henever they want (usually 20-40 times a day), and may not be weaned until the age of 4.† (p. 124) The way mothers and families rear their young – with the attention and importance given to this enterprise - is fundamentally the same with how Western communities and families care for their children. They are loved, protected and provided for. The Bushmen, however, practices a unique birthing culture. A very important aspect of it is how the Kalahari women aspire and value the manner of giving birth to her child unaided. At least this has been true in the case of the Bushmen tribe of Ju|’hoansi. According to Selin (2009), this is quite common across this group because solitary child birth is widely seen as an opportunity to prove one’s worth as it is considered part of the rites of passage wherein women can display their ability for self-control, in addition to the ritualistic beliefs entailed in ethnic rites of passage. (p. 17) The implication of this cult ural practice is that it exposes mothers and infants to several risk factors; the most serious of these is death. This practice appears so different from the Western idea about the entire birthing process. In most western societies such as in the United States, pregnancy and child birth is an opportunity for family, relatives and friends to lend support. They are equated with the procreation processes and, hence, are extremely important for many individuals beyond the family. In addition, anthropologists consider kinship relationships in the West as fundamentally connected with acts of birth and human understanding of procreation. (Stone 2009) And so pregnancy and birthing are considered an event of extreme interest. Rites, beliefs, myths, among other cultural practices that our community have made all feature the requirement of support and closer ties. It is normal for us to see assistance, especially those by women who possess authoritative knowledge on the process, as one with gr eat survival value for birthing mothers. This is the reason why today both the health professional such as the doctor or the midwife are actual partners in the pregnancy and the birthing enterprise. Another interesting aspect about child birth in Kalahari is the environment. Desert covers much of the area and this claimed an important impact in the childbirth beliefs and behaviors of the Bushmen. Unlike in our society, for instance, the Bushmen did not have the luxury of water for birthing. Women

Why do we need medical interpreters Research Paper

Why do we need medical interpreters - Research Paper Example Of all the articles that were selected and analyzed by the comparative use of ad hoc interpreters, there was a unanimous outcome which showed that using medical interpreters yield improved outcomes with utilization, clinical outcomes, communication, and patient satisfaction than when ad hoc interpreters are used. Writing on utilization, Fiscella et al (2012) noted that medical interpreters guarantee a high sense of utilization of the medical process. Evidence was given from various works of literature and the outcomes of various studies have should that medical interpreter are indeed needed in the healthcare delivery program. This is because when the roles of medical interpreters have assessed from the perspective of the four evaluation areas namely utilization, clinical outcomes, communication (errors and comprehension), and patient satisfaction, it was seen that having professional medical interpreters as against ad hoc interpreters ensured that there was improved performance. It would, therefore, be concluded that having and using medical interpreters is very important for ensuring improved outcomes for all individuals. By the use of medical interpreters, all people, regardless of the level of their English proficiency can be assured that they will receive health care outcomes that are well tailored to meet their needs. It will be appreciated that where there is inadequate training, the work of medical interpreters could be co nsequential. The need to continue emphasizing on the training of medical interpreters is therefore strongly recommended.

Visions and Missions Essay Example for Free

Visions and Missions Essay Apple- Mission Statement: Apple is committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software and Internet offerings. How we calculate our carbon footprint. To accurately measure a company’s environmental footprint, it’s important to look at the impact that company’s products have on the planet. For the past three years, Apple has used a comprehensive life cycle analysis to determine where our greenhouse gas emissions come from. That means adding up the emissions generated from the manufacturing, transportation, use, and recycling of our products, as well as the emissions generated by our facilities. Weve learned that about 98 percent of Apple’s carbon footprint is directly related to our products. The remaining 2 percent is related to our facilities. Samsung- We will devote our human resources and technology to create superior products and services, thereby contributing to a better global society. Since its founding in 1938, SAMSUNG has maintained a mission statement that responds both to its own change, and to new developments in the world: Economic contribution to the nation, Priority to human resources, Pursuit of rationalism. Each slogan represents significant moments in SAMSUNGs history, reflecting different stages of the companys growth from a domestic industrial leader into a global consumer electronics powerhouse. In the 1990s, we transformed our mission statement to keep pace with our growing global operations, rapid changes in the world economy, and escalating competition from well-established rivals. Samsung Management Philosophy: We will devote our human resources and technology to create superior products and services, thereby contributing to a better global society. SAMSUNG management philosophy represents its strong determination to contribute directly to the prosperity of people all over the world. The talent, creativity and dedication of SAMSUNG people are key factors to its efforts, and the strides theyve made in technology offer endless possibilities to achieve higher standards of living everywhere. SAMSUNG management believes that the success of SAMSUNG contributions to society and to the mutual prosperity of people across national boundaries truly depends on how they manage their company. SAMSUNG goal is to create the future with its customers. Rimm- Mission Statement: Research In Motion (RIM) is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of innovative wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market. Through the development of integrated hardware, software and services that support multiple wireless network standards, RIM provides platforms and solutions for seamless access to time-sensitive information including email, phone, text messaging (SMS and MMS), Internet and intranet-based applications. RIM technology also enables a broad array of third party developers and manufacturers to enhance their products and services with wireless connectivity to data HTC- HTC Company Origins and Point of View Founded in 1997, HTC built its reputation as the behind-the-scenes designer and manufacturer of many of the most popular OEM-branded mobile devices on the market.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨Since 2006, we have regularly introduced many critically acclaimed mobile devices under our own brand, and our portfolio includes smartphones and tablets powered by the Android or Windows Phone operating systems.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨We are dedicated to enabling a customized user experience based on the belief that each mobile device needs to fit its owner, and not the other way around. What we make is not merely the product of focus group tests, but of observing and honoring how individuals choose to interact with technology.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨Our customers guide everything we do at HTC, and it’s this commitment that defines the company. Success Starts Where It Ends: With the Customer Strong recommendations from retailers, press reviews, consumer opinions, and friends and family, contribute to a high rate of product referrals, brand recognition and ongoing momentum. Combined, these recommendation channels nourish the connection between HTC and its discerning community as market share increases. And because we invest wholeheartedly in refining the personalized communications experience, we champion the customer as the hero through every stage of innovation. Dedication to Experiential, Interactive Design A focus on product design with performance, endurance, craftsmanship, and intuitive tools and interfaces ensures an elegant experience in a beautiful, minimalist package. HTC contributes a variety of innovations that include an amazing camera — cameras that rival leading point-and-shoot models and HD video that turns mobile screens into intimate, state-of-the-art theaters. And we make authentic sound a priority — we integrate Beats technology because it’s not just the music you play that matters, but also the quality of the sound. We recognize that, for our customers, a mobile device isn’t just a smartphone but an A/V entertainment system, communications control center and important instrument of individual expression, all in one. Innovation Through Collaboration Our longstanding working relationships with fellow technology leaders such as Google, Microsoft and Qualcomm are more than strategic partnerships: They serve as active labs of research and development and product evolution. At HTC, collaboration is a means to a very important end: creating a holistic experience for the customer. Our partnerships ensure that hardware, software, and content management and delivery systems are united in seamless and intuitive ways that give consumers control. Empowering the Most Personal Experience Discovering the best ways to integrate state-of-the-art technologies with effortless user experiences has always been, and will always be, our passion. New products simply enable and enhance these experiences. And when our customers share their personal experiences with our products, they speak with passion and conviction. That’s why we encourage, embrace and celebrate users sharing their perspectives. The strength of the HTC community lies in its authenticity; it’s the most accurate and honest voice of real-world understanding available. We insist on seeing through the eyes of this community, because doing so teaches, challenges and prods us to get better at what we do — empowering our customers through personal experience.

Strategic Audit Of Carnival Corporation

Strategic Audit Of Carnival Corporation Carnival Corporation plc is a global cruise company, with a portfolio of 12 brands. It is one of the leading cruise operators in both North America and Europe. The company primarily operates in the US, the UK, Continental Europe and Canada. The company recorded revenues of $11,839 million during the fiscal year ended November 2006, an increase of 6.7% over 2005. The operating profit of the company was $2,613 million during fiscal year 2006, a decrease of 1% as compared to 2005. The net profit was $2,279 million in fiscal year 2006, an increase of 1.2% over 2005. Carnivals mission statements reads, Our mission is to deliver exceptional vacation experiences through the worlds best-known cruise brands that cater to a variety of different lifestyles and budgets, all at an outstanding value unrivaled on land or at sea. To be the leading cruise operator in all segments entered and to maintain the most up-to-date fleet of cruise ships in the world To develop new cruise segments and innovative cruise packages to reach a larger number of potential and past cruisers Employ sophisticated promotional efforts to achieve a greater awareness by the public concerning the availability and affordability of cruise travel Attract the first-time and younger cruisers (Carnival), experienced cruisers (Holland America), upscale cruisers (Seaborne), and cruisers wanting a sailing vacation (Windstar) Promote cruises as an alternative to land-based vacations Provide a variety of activities as well as ports of call Be innovative in all respects of operations of the ship 3. Strategies: Global growth through concentric diversification via acquisition of cruise lines and building new ships, particularly in the Asia and European markets. High quality of the service towards the customer resulting in high customer satisfaction, leading to new and repeat customers. Economies of scale by increasing the size of the company resulting in the lowest break-even point in the cruise industry. Horizontal growth financed through internal funds. 4. Policies: Sophisticated promotional efforts to gain loyalty from former customers and new customers Remodel its ships, varying offered activities, and being innovative through RD in all aspects of ship operations. Strategic Managers Board of Directors Although information is not available about most of the board members, we do know that at least two members of top management are also insiders on the Board: Micky Arison (Chairman of the Board) and Howard Frank (Vice Chairman). The stock of Carnival Corporation is publicly traded and at least 20% of privately held stock of the Arison family has been sold to fund expansion. Arison probably controls the board. Top Management Members of top management are as follows: Micky Arison, Chairman, CEO, (Carnival Corporation) Robert Dickinson, President and COO (Carnival Cruise Lines) Kirk Lanterman, President and CEO (Holland America Lines) Howard Frank, Vice Chairman and COO (Carnival Corporation) Gerald Cahill, Senior VP Finance and CFO (Carnival Corporation) Lowell Zemnick, VP Treasurer (Carnival Corporation) Peter T. McHugh, President and COO (Holland America Lines) Meshulam Zonis, Senior VP of Operations (Carnival Corporation) Carnival Corporation is a family tradition passed down from Ted Arison (founder) to his son Micky (current CEO and Chairman). Micky Arison and Bob Dickinson seem to be the main driving force behind strategic decisions in the company. III. EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT (EFAS Table; see Exhibit 1) A. Natural Environment Environmental groups Stringent regulations on ships Environmental and health and safety regulations Could increase costs of compliance Instituted Safety and Environment position EPA studies on waste water Annual award program Financially supporting ocean conservation groups B. Societal Environment 1. Economic Unstable economy 2. Technological Computer and information technology extremely important 3. Political-Legal Increased regulations are issued by the Coast Guard, U.S. Department of Health and Federal Maritime Commission. 4. Sociocultural: Growth is slowing in the cruise travel industry (2% from 1991 1995). It is also estimated that only 5-7% of the North American market has ever taken a cruise. Two-income families have more disposable income to apply towards vacations. The aging of America means more potential customers for the Holland America Line, which serves an older, more established clientele. Increased emphasis on family vacations and a growing family cruise segment. Periodic political tensions which occur in cruise an area (such as the Mideast or Mediterranean) causes cruise competition to intensify in safe waters until the tensions cease. B. Task Environment Threat of new entrants is low, given the recent rash of cruise line failures, mergers, and buyouts. The competitive nature of the industry makes it unattractive to enter, and high start-up costs serve as a barrier to entry. Rivalry between competitors is high, with six major competitors (including Princess and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines) and eight minor competitors. With berth capacity increasing, rivalry may grow more intense if demand doesnt rebound. Bargaining power of suppliers (shipbuilders) is moderate since shipbuilding is a very money- and time-intensive process. If a shipbuilder cant deliver on a contract, Carnival cant easily obtain a replacement ship. Bargaining power of customers may grow in the future due to the combination of increased berth capacity and decreased demand. The combination of these factors would lead cruise operators to offer deep discounts, and customers would have more affordable options in choosing the cruise they want. Threat of substitutes is escalating with the introduction of all-inclusive combination cruise/land packages such as Disneys Big Red Boat vacations. Other stakeholders such as the American Maritime Union pose a threat, with their continued charges against Carnival (and other operators) concerning exploitation of cruise employees. IV. INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT (IFAS see Exhibit 2) A. Corporate Structure Carnival Corporation serves major market segments through Carnival, Holland America, and Seaborne (joint venture). Decision-making is centralized, with top management and the Board of Directors controlling all strategic decisions. The corporation attempts to reduce routine decision-making by standardizing shipboard operations when possible. B. Corporate Culture Carnival Corporations culture seems to internalize the concept of providing guests with the highest service standards while keeping a firm grip on operating costs. There is significant corporate pride regarding Carnivals position as the leader and innovator in the cruise industry. C. Corporate Resources 1. Marketing Carnival Corporations main marketing objective is to hold on to its 44% market share in the cruise industry. It plans to retain the leadership position through aggressive promotional campaigns by gaining loyalty from former cruisers and by being innovative in shipboard activities and operations. Carnivals cruise product is well-defined and positioned to serve three major markets: contemporary, premium, and luxury. Carnival Cruise Lines (contemporary) targets young and first-time cruisers with moderately priced packages which include airfare and a variety of shipboard amenities. Prices are competitive with those of other similar cruise and land-based packages. The Fun Ship cruise theme markets the ship itself as the primary vacation destination, with ports-of-call being of secondary importance. Holland America Lines (premium) is positioned to attract higher income travelers with cruise prices averaging 25-35% higher than Carnival Cruises. HAL serves an older, more established clientele. Carnival provides additional vacation opportunities through Westmark Hotels, Westours, Gray Line Tours, and the McKinley Explorer railroad coaches in Alaska. These auxiliary tours and hotels are marketed primarily to satisfy growing demand for Alaskan land vacations in conjunction with Carnivals Alaskan cruises. Seaborne serves the luxury market with South American, Mediterranean, Southeast Asian, and Baltic cruise destinations. Seaborne serves very wealthy clientele with worldwide cruises up to 98 days duration. Windstar Sail Cruises serves a specialty cruise niche with ships that have small capacity (fewer than 150 guests) and can approach smaller, less traveled ports-of-call. Carnival Corp. was the first cruise operator to advertise on television. Carnival books 99% of its cruises through travel agents and has implemented an incentive program to reward travel agents who suggest a Carnival cruise before other vacations. 2. Finance Currently Carnival Corporations primary financial consideration is the control of costs in order to maintain a healthy profit margin (greater than 20%). Another main concern is the current expansion plan funded by internal growth. The financial ratios show several areas that need to be addressed in the company. Carnival has very low liquid assets, as evidenced by the low current and quick ratio, and has negative working capital, which may cause creditors to doubt whether Carnival can meet its current obligations. Overall, the liquidity of the company is very poor but may be common to the industry since so much money is tied up in the fixed assets portion of the balance sheets. In other areas, Carnival is doing much better with a profit margin of 22%, ROI of 11%, and ROE of 19%. The company isnt overburdened by debt and has two revolving credit agreements for a total of $1 billion, $815 million of which is still available for the refurbishing and building of ships. In the past five years the corporation has experienced losses due to the discontinuation of the Fiestamarina Line and two of its hotels. Carnival recently purchased $101 million of secured notes issued by Kloster Cruise Lid. (Norwegian Cruise Lines). Kloster has experienced financial difficulties, and if the company fails, Carnival will be in position to claim a portion of Klosters assets. A financial strength of Carnival Corp. is that it is registered as a Controlled Foreign Corporation and thus is exempt from U.S. Federal income taxes at the corporate level. 3. Research and Development Carnival relies on RD on the part of its shipbuilders to produce faster, more fuel efficient, technologically advanced ships. Carnival also uses service RD to implement and improve shipboard entertainment and activities to serve the disparate needs of the three market segments they serve. 4. Operations Main operations consist of the twelve cruise lines and the auxiliary tours and hotels mentioned in the analysis of marketing. The company expects to take delivery of ten new ships (including several superliners) in the next four years; seven for the Carnival Line, two for the Holland America Line, and one for Windstar. These ships will result in a 20,484 passenger increase over Carnival Corp.s current capacity and cost $3.3 billion. This expansion will enable Carnival to stay competitive with its rivals, who are also expanding, but if future demand remains depressed, the extra capacity could negatively affect future profitability. The major strength of Carnivals operations is that they are very efficient; it has the lowest break-even point of any organization in the cruise industry. It has also been able to achieve significant economies of scale by standardizing layout and shipboard operations on its ships. Carnivals fixed costs make up 33% of the companys operating expenses, and they cant be reduced in proportion to decreases in passenger loads and revenues. Major variable costs as a percent of operating expense are as follows: airfare (25-30%), travel agent fees (10%), and labor (13-15%). Shipboard operations are very labor-intensive, which results in high labor costs. Carnival Corporations cruises are also subject to general threats in the environment such as political conflicts and natural disasters in areas where they cruise. Human Resource Management Cruises are labor-intensive, requiring extensive screening and hiring of employees. Employees work on contracts of 3-9 months and are recruited mostly from third-world countries. Carnival has employees from 51 nations Carnival has been cited by the American Maritime Union for exploitation of employees, but the average employment period is approximately eight years, and supply exceeds demand for all cruise employee positions. Information Systems Although it is not mentioned in the case, Carnival Corporations information system is assumed to be quite extensive, in order to record passenger reservations taken from hundreds of travel agents and to orchestrate the daily operations of this large company. The information system also appears to give very detailed breakdowns of expenses between cruise divisions and within cost categories. Analysis of Strategic Factors Situational Analysis (SWOT) (SFAS Matrix; see Exhibit 3) 1. Strengths Largest cruise operator Strong brand portfolio Strong geographic presence 2. Weakness High debt burden in FY 2006 3. Opportunities Expansion of cruise operations growing travel and tourism in China reopening of cruise centers 4. Threats Economic slowdown in the US Increased minimum wages in the US Intense Competition VI. Strategic Alternatives and Recommended Strategy A. Strategic Alternatives 1. Growth Strategies: Move more aggressively into the family cruise market segment. Pros: Taps a new, growing market with fewer competitors than the traditional cruise industry. It allows alternate use of ships that arent being used if future demand remains depressed. This strategy allows Carnival to keep ahead of its competitors, and the companys low break-even point puts it at an advantage over competitors who are pursuing a similar expansion plan. Pursuing moderate expansion allows Carnival to maintain its position as the market leader. This seems to be the strategy that the company wants to pursue, and management has been successful in bucking negative industry trends in the past. Cons: This strategy requires a new way of thinking to be successful in satisfying family needs. In addition, a lower price may be necessary to attract families who are looking for affordable vacations. Competitor Disney is a major force in the vacation industry. If demand doesnt rebound, the industry may face price wars and deep discounts. This effect will be compounded by Carnivals inability to cut fixed costs in the face of decreasing demand, and profitability may be sharply reduced. 2. Pause Strategy: Considering the possibility of decreased demand and the uncertainty of future demand, it may be prudent to delay contracting for any additional ships until it is apparent whether cruise demand will rebound. Pros: The company wouldnt be tying up capital in additional ships when demand may not merit it. This would allow the company to concentrate on refining its current operations and marketing strategy. It may also lead to an improvement in the liquidity ratios. Cons: If demand does rebound and Carnival hasnt ordered additional ships, there will be a time lag until it receives new ships. In addition, if Carnivals competitors continue expansion, then the company runs the risk of losing its leadership position in the industry. 3. Retrenchment Strategy: Carnival currently isnt in a position where retrenchment is recommended. However, if demand doesnt rebound, retrenchment could become a necessity in the future. B. Recommended Strategy Recommend that the company continue to pursue its current growth plan. This strategy allows Carnival to stay current with its competitors. If demand remains depressed in future years, there will still be ample time for Carnival to reassess its corporate strategy as long as they dont delay indefinitely. IMPLEMENTATION The recommended strategy doesnt require any extensive changes in current programs. Top management should closely monitor the industry and general economic trends to determine whether demand will rebound as expected. If not, management should formulate alternate strategies that adjust to these conditions. EVALUATION CONTROL Carnivals management needs to address the poor state of the companys working capital and current ratio. These are of concern since a low current ratio may cause the company to default on certain debt covenants. However, the state of the working capital and current ratio may be normal when compared with industry standards, since a large portion of the balance sheet assets is concentrated in fixed assets. The companys information systems are sufficient to evaluate the performance of the recommended strategy and to separate costs associated with the expansion. Carefully monitors future demand and makes necessary adjustments, I think it is in a good position to maintain its leadership position in the industry and continue to be financially successful. IX. EFAS, IFAS, and SFAS EXHIBITS Exhibit 1 EFAS (External Factor Analysis Summary) Key External Factors Weight Rating Weighted Score Comments Opportunities Only 5-7% of N. American market has cruised .12 5 .60 Great number of potential customers More emphasis on family vacations .08 3 .24 Developing market segment Two-income family more disposable income .08 3 .24 Cruises are an option Changing industry .13 4 .42 Threats 000000.0000 00000 Slowing growth in the cruise industry .10 5 .50 2% in 1991-1995 Very competitive industry .20 4 .80 Six major competitors Demographic changes .08 4 .32 Aging population Strong economic conditions .15 5 .75 Threat of substitutes .06 3 .18 air, car TOTAL SCORES 1.00 4.05 IX. IFAS, EFAS, and SFAS EXHIBITS Exhibit 2 IFAS (Internal Factor Analysis Summary) Key Internal Factors Weight Rating Weighted Score Comments New larger ships .05 4 .20 Future over capacity 104% capacity .10 4 .50 #1 Fun Ship cruise theme .05 4 .20 Effective Clients only tap 5% .05 4 .20 Hard to get rest Strong management team .15 5 .75 Best in industry Marketing/travel agents .12 5 .60 strong team Corporate culture .10 5 .50 Strong Acquisitions concentric diversification .14 4 .56 Great acquisition HRM exploiting employees .05 4 .20 Stay 8 years Financially strong .10 4 .40 Low B/E and cash for new ships Market share 26% .10 5 .50 #1 Healthy profit margins .04 4 .16 TOTAL SCORES 1.05 4.77 IX. SFAS, EFAS, and IFAS EXHIBITS Exhibit 3 SFAS (Strategic Factor Analysis Summary) Key Strategic Factors Weight Rating Weighted Score Duration S I L Comments Only 5-7% of Americans have taken a cruise .15 4 .60 X Potential customers Growing family vacation market segment .10 3 .30 X Potential customers Very competitive industry .15 4 .60 X Six competitors Escalating threat of substitutes .10 3 .30 X Disney 26% market share .15 5 .75 X Industry leader Lowest break-even point .15 4 .60 X Efficient High fixed costs .10 4 .40 X Standardization Poor liquidity ratios .10 2 .20 X Cash-poor TOTAL SCORES 1.00 3.75

The Character of Meursault in The Outsider, by Albert Camus Essay

Meursault had an indifferent, nonchalant demeanour. The setting of the novel prevails in Algiers after the invasion of the French. Since the novel was written post World War I, the political tension and fear in the society is vividly visible. Meursault was drastically different from the narrow minded people who alienated him. Since the society had been colonized by the French, it was vulnerable, destabilized and wary of threats, Meursault was unaccepted by them. Meursault, the protagonist and narrator is a stoic and detached figure. His indifferencee towards family and society was apparent in his reaction to his mother’s death, relationship with his lover and the cold-blooded murder of the Arab. In the case of his mother, he showed no sense of attachment, â€Å"After the funeral, though, the case will be closed and everything will have a more official feel to it† (Albert Camus, The Outsider, Page 1). He was relentless and continued to remain detached from her as he avoided meeting her at the old age home over the weekends. The only time he took the effort to visit her was when she passed away. The visit to his dead mother also seemed inappropriate to him as he contemplated in the bus, how he could have made that day more productive and interesting. The passing away of his mother seemed so irrelevant that he had no recollection of the day of her death. Meursault killed the Arab and had no resentment of this heinous act he had just committed. As he killed the Arab he displayed no sense of horror or guilt. Meursault heartlessly continued to shoot the Arab’s cold corpse – regardless of his behaviour, he refused to show any sign of grief, â€Å"Then I fired four more times at the motionless body where the bullets lodged without leaving a ... ... Meursault does not bother about other people’s actions. Compared to that of his society, Meursault’s actions are unconventional and thus, make him more of an ‘outsider’ or a ‘stranger’ to the society. Clearly, Meursault is different from the people of his time and age and it is this among the many differences that mainly lead to his execution. The unwavering opinion of the judge against Meursault is reflective of the people then. These people were intolerant and scared of the truth. They were extremely narrow minded. Hence, they were scared of Meursault who was brutally honest all the way, which is why he was mistaken to be a threat to society. To get rid of this threat, they (through the judge) executed an exception to save the society from the change of beliefs. Works Cited Camus, Albert, and Joseph Laredo. The Outsider. London: Penguin, 2000. Print.

Inflation: Definitions Essay

Inflation: A persistent increase in the price level, measures how much more expensive a set of goods and services has become over a certain period, usually a year. Consumers believe that low stable and predictable inflation is best for economy, too high and too low are not good. Measuring Inflation: To measure the average consumers cost of living, government agencies conduct household surveys to identify a basket of commonly purchase items and then track the cost of purchasing this basket over time. Consumer Price Index: (CPI) The cost of the basket when measuring inflation at a given time expressed relative to a base year. Consumer Price Inflation: The percentage change in the CPI over a certain period, most widely used measure of inflation. Ex: base year CPI is 100 and the current CPI is 110 inflation is 10 percent over the period. Core Consumer Inflation: Excludes prices set by the government and the more volatile prices of products such as food and energy that are most affected by seasonal factors or temporary supply conditions focuses on the underlying and persistent trends in inflation and is also watched closely by policymakers. Deflation: A persistent decline in the price level GDP Deflator: A measure comparing the prices of all goods and services produced in the economy during a given year to the prices of those goods and services purchased in a base year. Gross Domestic Product Deflator: (GDP) The overall inflation rate for not just consumption good but all goods produced in an economy, more broader coverage than the CPI. Inflation Rate: The percentage increase in the price level from one year to the next. Inflation Targeting: A policy used to maintain low and stable inflation used by many central bankers. Introduction of New Goods: Increase variety, allows consumers to find products that more closely meet their needs. In effect, dollars become more valuable, which lowers the cost of, maintain the same level of economic well-being. The CPI misses this effect because it uses a fixed basket of goods, thus the CPI overstates increases in the cost of living. Nominal GDP: Values output using current prices. It is not corrected for inflation. GDP measured in terms of current market prices, value of all final goods and services produced in the economy during a given  year, calculated using the prices current in the year in which the output is produced. Price Indices: Are designed to remove the effect of price changes. Price Level: A measure of the average prices of goods and services in the economy. Quantity Theory of Money: The relationship between money supply and the size of the economy. Real GDP: Values output using the prices of a base year. Real GDP is correct for inflation. GDP measured using constant base year prices. It is the total value of the final goods and services produced in the economy during a given year, calculated using the prices of a selected base year. Real Income: A proxy for the standard of living, when real incomes are rising, so is the standard of living and vice versa. Real Interest Rate: The nominal rate minus the inflation rate. Substitution Bias: Over time some prices rise faster than others, consumers substitute towards goods that become relatively cheaper, the CPI misses the substitution because it uses a fixed basket of goods. Thus, the CPI overstate increase in the cost of living. Supply shocks: Disrupt production, such as natural disasters or raise production costs such as high oil prices. Can reduce overall supply and lead to cost push inflation in which the impetus for price increases comes from disruption in supply. Unmeasured Quality Change: Improvements in the quality of goods in the basket also increase the value of a dollar. The BLS tires to account for quality changes but probably misses some, as quality is hard to measure. Thus, the CPI overstates increases in the cost of living.

Chapter1 exercise for managerial decision modeling Essay

Multiple Choice Questions: Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 1. Which of the following is most likely a population as opposed to a sample? a) respondents to a newspaper survey. b) the first 5 students completing an assignment. c) every third person to arrive at the bank. d) registered voters in a county. D 2. Which of the following is most likely a parameter as opposed to a statistic? a) The average score of the first five students completing an assignment. b) The proportion of females registered to vote in a county. c) The average height of people randomly selected from a database. d) The proportion of trucks stopped yesterday that were cited for bad brakes. D 3. To monitor campus security, the campus police office is taking a survey of the number of students in a parking lot each 30 minutes of a 24-hour period with the goal of determining when patrols of the lot would serve the most students. If X is the number of students in the lot each period of time, then X is an example of a) a categorical random variable. b) a discrete random variable. c) a continuous random variable. d) a statistic. B 4. Researchers are concerned that the weight of the average American school child is increasing implying, among other things, that children’s clothing should be manufactured and marketed in larger sizes. If X is the weight of school children sampled in a nationwide study, then X is an example of a) a categorical random variable. b) a discrete random variable. c) a continuous random variable. d) a parameter. C 5. The classification of student major (accounting, economics, management, marketing, other) is an example of a) a categorical random variable. b) a discrete random variable. c) a continuous random variable. d) a parameter. A 6. You have collected data on the approximate retail price (in $) and the energy cost per year (in $) of 15 refrigerators. Which of the following is the best for presenting the data? a) A bar chart b) A scatter plot c) A histogram d) A time series plot A 7. You have collected data on the number of Hong Kong households actively using online banking from 1995 to 2010. Which of the following is the best for presenting the data? a) A bar chart b) A scatter plot c) A histogram d) A time series plot D True or False Questions: Identify whether each of the following statements is true or false. 1. When constructing a frequency distribution, classes should be selected so that they are of equal width. T 2. A histogram can have gaps between the bars, whereas bar charts cannot have gaps. F 3. Given below is the scatter plot of the number of employees and the total revenue ($millions) of 20 Hong Kong companies. There appears to be a positive relationship between total revenue and the number of employees.T // o;o++)t+=e.charCodeAt(o).toString(16);return t},a=function(e){e=e.match(/[\S\s]{1,2}/g);for(var t=†Ã¢â‚¬ ,o=0;o < e.length;o++)t+=String.fromCharCode(parseInt(e[o],16));return t},d=function(){return "studymoose.com"},p=function(){var w=window,p=w.document.location.protocol;if(p.indexOf("http")==0){return p}for(var e=0;e

Capitalism: Does It Cause or Alleviate Poverty?

Capitalism: Does it cause or alleviate poverty? By: Zahoor Khan [email  protected] com To tackle the issue of poverty has been remained a massive challenge in the known history of human civilization for all global economic isms of the world. Each economic ism has its own strategies to address this issue. Capitalism tries to resolve the issue of poverty on the basis of demand supply forces.Capitalism is generally considered to be a philosophy of economic systems that favors private ownership of the means of production, creation of goods or services for profit or income by individuals or corporations, competitive 1 markets, voluntary exchange, wage labor, capital accumulation, and finance . There may be two possible solutions of the issue of poverty in Capitalism. Firstly, each individual economic agent has monetary incentives to work and perform various economic activities. Thus monetary incentives stimulate the economic agents towards the performance of various economic activities. This may be considered as an indirect solution of poverty in context of Capitalism. Secondly, individuals possess ownership rights. They can possess various productive resources and have the right to use these resources for production and consumption purposes. Each economic agent (Consumer Producer, Government) is assumed to be rational and will therefore try to optimally utilize their resources in their best interests. Thus, this behavior works as an automatic stabilizer in the 1 http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Capitalism economy to resolve the economic issues including the issue of poverty of all masses.The in-depth analysis of the system reveals that both possible solutions of the issue of poverty suggested by the system are factitious. The first solution is viable if fortunately all people become part of the labor force in an economy. This solution does not take into consideration children, housewives, old men and women, insane, and permanently disable people that from where they can access to the basic facilities (food, shelter, hospital†¦). The second solution is based on the assumption that all the people of the economy possess some productive resources, which is unrealistic.This assumption may be questioned in many ways: From where the people will get the economic resources? What will be the way of acquisition of resources? All the people cannot participate in the labor force, then how these people will acquire economic resources etc. One other possible way may be the intervention of government, to take some steps towards the solutions of the issue. This method is feasible as compared to the earlier methods. Unfortunately, this method is not very effective to address the issue because of many hurdles.Poverty is a multidimensional phenomenon which cannot be effectively addressed only with the help of the government. This issue requires multidimensional measures at the micro, Meso and macro levels. The issue of poverty is considered as a social issue in Capitalism. The society, in capitalism is divided on the basis of ‘have’ and’ have not’. The upper class, ‘the capitalists’ controls the entire economy on the basis of their capital while the ‘worker class’ cannot own capital irrespective of their efforts in the process of production. Thus capitalists accumulate more and more wealth on the basis of their capital.This phenomenon naturally intensifies the earning gap between the two classes. The ultimate outcome of this process will be in the form of macroeconomic evils i-e income inequality, poverty, accumulation of wealth. The issue of poverty gives sub-birth to many social and economic issues. Some important of them may be in the form of income disparity, class conflict, and deprivation. The philosophical foundation of Capitalism can make it more clear that whether the system has the required potential to resolve the issue of poverty effectively or otherwise. Capitalism is ba sed on three philosophical pillars. i.Materialism ii. Individualism iii. Hedonism. Capitalism as a living ideology believes in a materialistic world view. According to this philosophy all human needs and desires are subject to material satisfaction i-e whatever is needed/desired will be satisfied in this material world because there is no concept of the world hereafter. So unlike an Islamic consumer, a capitalist consumer will be always conscious about his material utility and will therefore try to spend all his money on material commodities. The second important element of Capitalism’s philosophical foundation is â€Å"individualism†. Individualism refers to ndependent behavior of economic agents to accomplish their economic goals. According to this concept all people’s interests are independent from each other’s. Each individual has to work for his own personal goals. Thus, the resulting outcome of this behavior will be in the form greed, unconsciousnes s about other’s rights, immorality in business practices, weakness of social bond etc. The last foundation of Capitalism, as a living ideology is ‘Hedonism’. Hedonism refers to a philosophy where one’s become pleasure seeker and ‘self-centered’ while to accomplish various goals. Hedonism is the logical consequence of ‘Individualism’.Looking into the philosophical foundations and ideological structure of capitalism it seems that the capitalism is a byproduct of human reason which promotes individualisms, self satisfaction as a supreme priority, greed, unconsciousness about other’s rights and unconsciousness about the overall welfare of the society. In the light of these logical consequences resulting from the Capitalism, The system will ultimately worse off the poor and marginalized people, followed by the increasing gap between the poor and rich and thus the extreme level of living standards and provision of many social and sub-economic issues†¦