Example of school report for facilities Essay

I am writing regarding an article published in your magazine last week entitiled †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ I strongly disagree with the writer for a number of reasons. see more:importance of school facilities Firstly, as Socrates wrote, work makes the man. However, in Plato’s Dialectics he argued that, on the contrary, one must have sufficient rest to Secondly, I believe that we need to ‘recharge our batteries’ in order to have the energy to work efficiently. For example, as an IB student I have so much work to do with CAS, ToK, Extended Essays and all the other portfolios, fieldwork, internal assessments, oral exams that I cannot devote enough attention to one alone. Instead, with exams today I am left tired and unmotivated. If I do not have time to relax and unwind, I cannot possibly do the work properly. Therefore leisure is necessary for doing a good job in whatever field. Lastly, In conclusion, Yours Faithfully, Zorg Last Friday I went to the swimming pool the school said it owned before I moved here to see what it was like. Well, guys, here’s my report: Size- The size is its biggest asset. It is an Olympic-Sized pool which will allow all you fat, physically challenged pre-IB kids to get in shape for 2008. In fact, it also is designed to accommodate disabled children like you Vincent. Even during the weekend it’s open with enough room for you to play with your parents, grandparents, and all the uncles currently staying with you. Price The pool is expensive (if you buy tickets from the school) but there is a discount card for students which gives 15% to orphan children suffering from Bird Flu. Location- Perfectly sited near an industrial dump. Is a problem because it was nuclear industry before the swimming pool located there, so radiation sometimes forces the pool to close on smoggy days. The road is new- it’s being built right now. Facilities- There is a change room in 21st Century Hotel which is a problem in winter. The showers work but the water is greenish and cold. Finally, there is no chlorine in the water so it smells and has algae on the surface. The sauna is equipped with coal but there is no ventilation so get a tan but die of suffocation. Happy Hour- With new management, the owners have now added a bar to the pool allowing you to be totally relaxed swimming in the deep end or jumping off the diving board. Free drinks every time you jump! Doctors- After this new facility, trained medical staff are on standby with dogs trained to swim and rescue disabled children. I highly recommend this pool because it is the only one in Chaoyang apart from the pond behind Annie’s restaurant (during the rainy season).

Brief of US v. Leon

Should the Fourth Amendment exclusionary rule include as one of its exceptions the evidence obtained by officers acting in reasonable reliance on a search warrant issued by a detached and neutral judge but found to be unsupported by probable cause? Statement of Facts: The Burbank Police Department, upon receiving tips from informants, conducted a drug trafficking investigation upon the respondents. Extensive surveillance operation was made on respondent’s three residences and several cars. After sufficient evidence was gathered an officer prepared an application for a warrant to search respondent’s three residences and several vehicles.A search warrant which is facially valid was issued by the judge after examining the supporting affidavits and documents. The search later on yielded large quantities of drugs and other evidence. Respondents were eventually indicted for federal drug offenses. They then filed motions to suppress the evidence seized by reason of the defecti ve warrant. After an evidentiary hearing, the District Court granted the motions in part and concluded that the affidavit was insufficient to establish probable cause.It also concluded that the officer who applied for a search warrant had acted in good faith but rejected their argument that the Fourth Amendment Exclusionary Rule should not apply where the evidence is seized in reasonable and good-faith reliance on a search warrant. The Holding/Decision of the Court: The Fourth Amendment exclusionary rule should not be restrictively applied so as prevent the prosecution from presenting pieces of evidence obtained by officers who acted in reasonable reliance on a search warrant issued by a detached and neutral judge but ultimately found to be invalid and unsupported by probable cause. Reasons/RationaleIn holding in favor of the law enforcement officers, the Supreme Court ruled that the Fourth Amendment Exclusionary Rule was not designed to serve as a personal constitutional right of t he injured person. The use of the evidence taken during an unlawful search does not necessarily constitute a violation of the Fourth Amendment rather the exclusionary rule merely seeks to safeguard Fourth Amendment right by deterring officers from conducting unlawful searches. In determining whether the exclusion of evidence is an appropriate sanction, the court weighed the costs and benefits of preventing the use of evidence illegally obtained.According to the court, the upholding of the Fourth Amendment Exclusionary Rule has serious repercussions for the truth-finding functions of the judge and the jury. This principle has allowed defendants to go free or receive reduced sentence even if they are guilty. The indiscriminate application of this rule hinders and hampers the efficient and effective administration of justice. Although it was clear that they did not question the application of the rule that evidence obtained in substantial and deliberate violation of the Fourth Amendmen t should be made inadmissible in court.However, the court thought that it was time to weigh the cost and benefit of the Fourth Amendment Exclusionary Rule and to modify it to permit the admission of evidence obtained in the reasonable and good faith belief that a search or seizure was in accord with the Fourth Amendment. The court reasoned that the search warrant in this case was issued by a judge after application by a seasoned narcotics investigator. The affidavits were even reviewed by Deputy District Attorneys before it was submitted to the State Superior Court Judge.It stressed that the warrant issued to the law enforcement officer prior to the search and seizure of the pieces of evidence provides a more reliable safeguard against improper and illegal searches compared to the hurried and often impartial judgment of a law enforcement officer. Indeed, there may be differences in opinion insofar as determining whether there is probable cause for the issuance of a warrant, but we a ll agree that search with a warrant is still better than search without a warrant. ,Moreover, according to the Supreme Court, it would not be in keeping with the administration of justice if the law enforcement officers who have diligently conducted their investigation and prepared the necessary affidavits to be punished for the errors of judges. Although it is true that the reason behind the Fourth Amendment Exclusionary Clause is to deter police misconduct and to encourage the law enforcement officers to respect the Fourth Amendment rights of the people, the rule should not be strictly applied to hinder the enforcement of law and order.To suppress therefore the evidence obtained based on the reasonable and good-faith reliance on a search warrant would not be in keeping with the spirit and purpose of the Fourth Amendment Exclusionary Rule which is to render inadmissible any evidence obtained in substantial and deliberate violation of the Fourth Amendment. The purpose of this policy is to force the law enforcement officers to respect the people’s Fourth Amendment right not to punish the law enforcement officers for the errors of a judge.But the Supreme Court also clarified that different result will be reached if the warrant in this case was obtained after the law enforcement officers have misled the judge by indicating in the Affidavit submitted to the judge information that the affiant knew to be false or would have known to be false or if the judge gravely abused his discretion in issuing the warrant. In these cases, suppression of the evidence is the appropriate remedy. Suppression may also be the appropriate remedy if the warrant on its face is so defective that it clearly appears that there was no probable cause for its issuance.Concurring Opinion of Justice Blackmun Justice Blackmun agrees with the finding of the majority that evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment by officers acting in objectively reasonable reliance on a search warrant issued by a neutral and detached judge need not be excluded. He however stressed that the statements made by them in this case is provisional in nature. This should not be taken as an absolute rule as every case will have to be evaluated in the light of its peculiar fights and circumstances.Dissenting Opinions of Justice Brennan and Justice Marshall In their dissenting opinions, Justice Marshall and Justice Brennan expressed their apprehension about the gradual erosion of the constitutional right of the people under the Fourth Amendment. According to them, this decision which allows the prosecution to present in chief the evidence obtained illegally from a person whose rights have been violated is a signal that the court is breaking away from the requirements of the Fourth Amendment.In my opinion, the dissenting Judges fear that time will come when the protection under the Fourth Amendment will merely be an ideal. They fear that someday this decision will be used as a tool t o destroy the Fourth Amendment. For them, they see the situation as that the issue of constitutional rights is incapable of cost and benefit analysis. They think that though it is important to put a stop to crime and to convict the guilty, this should be not made at the expense of sacrificing our most cherished rights.

Expansion Devices

Page 1 of 4 Expansion Devices I. Introduction Expansion devices are basic components of a refrigeration system which carry out two major purposes: (1) the pressure reduction from the condenser to evaporator pressure and (2) the regulation of refrigerant flow into the evaporator. These expansion devices can be generally classified into two types which are namely the fixed opening type (flow area is fixed) and the variable opening type (flow area changes correspondingly with a change in mass flow rates).There are about seven basic types of expansion devices for a refrigerant in a refrigeration system. These include capillary tubes and orifice which are under the fixed opening type and the manual expansion valves, automatic expansion valve (AEV), thermostatic expansion valve (TEV), electronic expansion valve and float type expansion valve which are all under the variable opening type. The float type expansion valve is further classified into high side float valve and low side float valv e (Arora, 2006).One of the most commonly used expansion device is the capillary tube. For the purpose of this exercise, a computation related to it will be performed. In a lesson guide on expansion devices prepared by Prof. R. C. Arora in 2006, he/she defined a capillary tube as â€Å"†¦a long, narrow tube of constant diameter. The word „capillary? is a misnomer since surface tension is not important in refrigeration application of capillary tubes. Typical tube diameters of refrigerant capillary tubes range from 0. 5 mm to 3 mm and the lengths range from 1. 0 m to 6 m. II. Objectives The exercise was conducted to familiarize the students with expansion devices, its functions and its importance. Specifically, the objectives were: 1. ) to examine the construction of some commonly-used expansion devices; and 2. ) to assess the performance of some commonly-used expansion devices. III. Methodology A. Lab-Scale Refrigeration System A lab-scale set-up for a refrigeration system in the refrigeration laboratory was observed for the effects of expansion devices on the pressures at various points within the system.Three different types of expansion devices which are namely the capillary, constant-pressure and thermostatic expansion devices are activated by opening their corresponding valves. The reading at each of the five pressure reading points was recorded for every 2 to 3 minutes until they become stable. An image of the observed set- Page 2 of 4 up was taken and the locations of the pressure-reading points were labelled. See Appendix A for the image. B. Computation: Capillary Tube For the stabilized values of the condenser and evaporator pressures measured, the required theoretical length of the capillary tube was computed.The results were then compared with the actual length of the capillary tube observed in the laboratory. See Appendix B for the value of the computed and measured length of capillary tube. IV. Answers to Questions 1. In the computation part above, is there a discrepancy between the actual and the calculated length of capillary tube? Explain. Based on Table 1, there is a discrepancy between the computed and measured value of the capillary tube. First, it must be noted that throughout the computation, assumptions were made.Upon realizing the difficulty of obtaining a value for the mass flow rate, a reasonable value of it was assumed. This could affect the obtained theoretical length of capillary tube since some of the parameters involved in the computation require its use. Simply said, the theoretical length would either increase or decrease depending on the assumed value but never equal to the actual length, unless the same mass flow rate completely applies to the actual system (which might not really be the case).This is the same explanation behind the other assumed parameters. Additionally, the measurement of quantities necessary for computing the length of capillary tube is also subject to many possible errors. This may include errors due to the limitation of the instruments or devices or due to some human inflicted errors. From the computed percent error, it can be inferred that the two values for capillary tube length deviate from each other at the specified percentage. V. References Arora, 2006. Expansion Devices. [pdf file] Available at . VI.Appendix A. Figure with labels Page 3 of 4 PRESSUREREADING POINT 5 PRESSUREREADING POINT 1 PRESSUREREADING POINT 2 PRESSURE READING POINT 3 PRESSUREREADING POINT4 Fig 1. An image showing the pressure reading points in a lab-scale set-up for a refrigeration system B. Tabulated data Table 1. Measured and computed length of capillary tube Quantities Actual length (m) Theoretical length (m) Percent error (%) Values 4. 1 7. 17 42. 82 Note: Computations on how I arrived with these values are in the spreadsheet submitted with this report. Page 4 of 4

Dealing with Stress the Genentech Way Case Study

Dealing with Stress the Genentech Way - Case Study Example The company has for many years been recognized by professional bodies for its human resource policies that identifies it as a favorable workplace. This has been because the company prioritizes a balance between its commercial goal and employees’ social ‘well-being’. The company for instance promotes â€Å"creativity and innovation† that encourages its employees to communicate their ideas, even outside the organization, besides accommodating its employees’ diverse ideas (Nelson and Quick, 2010, p. 250). The company’s interactive forums between its human resource and patients also enhance emotional stability while employee benefits promote utility at the workplace. These, together with a conducive environment that balances work and family life conversely benefits the organization by motivating its employees towards achieving Genentech’s objectives such as profitability, efficiency and customer utility (Nelson and Quick, 2010). Diagnosis a nd analysis Distress or ‘eustress’ Genentech’s employees are experiencing ‘eustress’ and not distress. ... the impacts of Genentech’s programs towards employee’s well being The Yerkes-Dodson law that provides for a relationship between employees motivation and performance identifies Genentech’s programs as the factors to the company’s success in the industry. The principle stipulates that employees’ performance is directly proportional to motivational factors to a given limit beyond which further increase in motivational factors leads to a decrease in performance. This rule relates to Genentech’s employee motivational programs through achieved employee utility level and the company’s level of success. Commendable human resource policies that develop emotional stability, a balance between work and family life besides academic support programs for example allows the employees to focus on service delivery (Nelson and Quick, 2010). How the company’s management philosophy and culture sets stage for employees’ well being The managem ent philosophy and culture sets stage for employee well being by providing a favorable social environment for the employees. The organization’s management philosophy that stipulates â€Å"causal intensity† offers employees a level of freedom towards well being (Nelson and Quick, 2010, p. 250). A level of informality in the organization for instance facilitates informal communication towards collaboration for innovation, a factor that further promotes employees satisfaction. Informality also breaks monotony that could be a detriment to employees’ well being through boredom and burning out. Similarly, a culture where every employee feels recognized and appreciated promotes employees sense of belonging towards social well being. The organization achieves this through providing an environment for idea generation among employees and

Terrorism Hazards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Terrorism Hazards - Essay Example erefore just as it is important to be informed about the imminent threats it is equally important to have an informed viewpoint towards the information. In this article we will examine how this be done as a service to the public. John Tierney, in his article in the New York times talks about how Sept 11 attacks on America as â€Å"the start of a new age of international terrorism in America, but you wouldn’t know it from the six quiet years on the home front since then.† (2008). But these six years have been injected with many instances of terror scares that for some people the feeling of peace is a bit far removed. Any unusual act of aggression is viewed as terrorism. Therefore if we were to design a terrorist awareness program, the following initial measures will need to be taken to involve the community as a whole in the process. The first task would be to educate the people on terrorism from more of an international point of view and help define the history of terrorism in their minds. Research shows that people as a community come together more during natural disasters than during technological or terror attacks. The reason for this can be attributed towards a heightened fear of individual safety. Therefore it is necessary to gather the community to act as a whole and come together as a whole. There is a need for many counselling cells for individual and group session where people can share their insecurities and fear and gain more insight by communicating with people with similar thoughts and fears. Trained psychologists will serve as moderators for he group session. Special attention will be given to children and elder members of the community who feel a bit more helpless. Once people are educated on what constitutes terrorism and begin to appreciate the fact that the various stringent measures taken by the government to check future attacks has resulted in the prolonged period of peace after the initial storm. Whilst doing this we will also instil

Plato - The Republic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Plato - The Republic - Essay Example as a real philosopher named Plato and was somewhat of a contemporary of Plato (Socrates died when Plato was but twenty-five), the ideas accredited to Socrates are generally thought to be Plato originals and Reeve acknowledges as much (Reeve 2004 P xi). So through his own observations of the Republic Reeve puts forth an interesting argument that Plato felt strongly in the goodness of Kallipolis (in Greek the beautiful or noble city) and was very eager to broadcast his ideas through the argument/debate process written in the Republic. In the introduction, Reeve points out that Plato’s main theme in Kallipolis is not the bylaws which govern the city. Instead, the speaker talks of the value of a social structure based entirely on virtue, achieved in ways not the least of which is the education of all people (Reeve 2004 P xix). This includes females, which is not a very favourable idea among his conversationalists. So almost from the first Plato realizes this vision of utopia (a term coined by Sir Thomas Moore almost 1,900 years later) would never actually exist. In the Republic, Book 1 finds Socrates and his companion Glaucon returning from a religious festival only to find themselves literally forced to spend at least the night with a man named Polemarchus, his brothers and his aged father Cephalus. Wiling away the time the men get into a deep philosophical discussion concerning politics and money. As happens with the elderly, Cephalus is happy with the money he has made and expounds that at his age, having virtues (i.e. not cheating or lying) is far more important than the wealth he has accumulated (Reeve 2004 P 5). So the conversation naturally turns to virtue and two subjects brought up are paying one’s debts and helping a friend with his enemy (your enemy is my enemy). Plato rejects these, not on the basis of not being just ideas, but rather that they are mostly hard to define, for each situation is different (in battle, at sea, etc.) and says he

Organizational Theory Design and Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Organizational Theory Design and Change - Essay Example Each stage has its own crisis that must be resolved to move on to the next stage. Growth through creativity may result in crisis of leadership because of lack of skills in the entrepreneurs. This crisis results in difficult recruiting of top-level managers and strategy makers. Growth through direction face crisis of autonomy in which the creative employees lose control over the development of new product and professional managers take the control and the decision making is centralized. Growth through delegation faces crisis of control occurring due to power struggles between top-level and lower-level managers. Growth through coordination faces crisis of red tape during which organizations become extremely bureaucratic. Growth through collaboration may result in the organization becoming organic which can be difficult for the managers. Works Cited Jones, G. Organizational Theory Design and Change. NJ: Prentice Hall, 2009.

Should High School Students Attend a 2 year Community College then Research Paper

Should High School Students Attend a 2 year Community College then Transfer to a University, or go Straight to a 4 year Universi - Research Paper Example The four years University programs however are taken after enrolling for a specialized degree in an accredited institution. These universities may or may not be privately funded; however the expenses are definitely higher than the two years community college programs. As a general perception, students who are highly competitive and belong to high income groups are directly enrolled for these four years programs and once they get done with their degrees they get highly paid corporate jobs. This is the reason why the capitalist system strongly supports the university programs as the rigorous educational environment equips the individuals to compete for the highly competitive jobs. Community College programs were initiated from the beginning of the 19th century, while the enrollment rate was considerably low at that time. The scope of these community colleges at that time was limited as the students registered for these programs were strictly enrolled to study arts and humanities subjec ts. The Great Depression that hit U.S in the 1930`s owed much to the enhancement in the enrollment rate of students in these community colleges. Now the scope was widened as the students were now being trained to compete for job positions to reverse the effect of the economic depression. The 1960`s saw the most drastic explosion in the cultivation of community colleges and by the 1980`s about 4.3 million American students had been enrolled in these community colleges. Talking about the new century, about 1,076 community colleges had already been produced and the number has only been increasing ever since (Kasper, 2003). This ever increasing boom in these community colleges is an effort to make college education available to all Americans, irrespective of their ethnicities or backgrounds. These community colleges also aim to support international students in their struggle to pursue quality education (Chow, 2007). Thus, community college is a convenient alternative to the University education which is too expensive to be acquired by a common man. University education has become more of a privilege as those who belong to the lower income groups have to face a lot of hardships to get into a reputed university; the state funded universities are no exception to this rule. Let us suppose for a moment here that community colleges cease to persist, and all we`re left with are university degrees. In such a case, it is crucially important to analyze the future of those 29% prospective students with an annual income lower than $20,000 who attend a community college as a pre-requisite to a four years university program. Also, 35% of the students attending community college are those who have other dependents relying on their income, in the presumed scenario the future of these prospective students would be at stake. These community colleges are aiming at making an effort to bring higher education at the doorsteps of all kinds of people. The international students have to pay an even higher amount to get enrolled for these university programs, thus if they get enrolled for a two years community college program, they can save a lot of money which they can later utilize to get admitted to universities where they can complete the rest of the two years and thus compete for the relevant market positions. Community colleges

Political Correctness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Political Correctness - Essay Example There are controversial issues associated with the terminology—those who are â€Å"pro† politically correct, and those who are â€Å"con† politically correct. The â€Å"pro† for changing the language has to do with the need to not have human beings stereotyped. One example of this is the â€Å"hillbilly† and â€Å"redneck† stereotype, which has recently been changed to â€Å"Appalachian Americans,† leaving people from this cultural background now open to scholarships and grants for which they might not have been eligible previously. Arguments abound against this issue, saying that it doesn’t give enough â€Å"freedom of speech† to the public and gives an unfair advantage to those of the political left. In order to remember which is which, think in terms of â€Å"left† as liberal and â€Å"right† as correct and conservative. If that becomes difficult, think of left hand and right hand. Most people see the right hand as the â€Å"correct† hand to use. This concept can be explained with the language used to describe the Indians who are indigenous to North America. It was only in the latter part of the twentieth century that these people were called anything other than Indian. They now are Native Americans in the United States, First Nations and Aboriginals in Canada, and Amerindians or derivatives thereof. None of these are universally used and none are considered exactly â€Å"politically correct.† The politically correctness is found in humor, especially through such comedians as Bill Mahr, who hosted a television show called â€Å"Politically Incorrect.† George Carlin also had a comical routine titled â€Å"Euphemisms. There are comically written books related to this topic. Among them are two of the earlier and famous examples are 1992s Politically Correct Manifesto by Saul Jerushalmy and Rens Zbignieuw X and 1994s Politically Correct Bedtime Stories by James Finn Garner, in which traditional fairy tales are rewritten

Introduction to Business Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Introduction to Business Accounting - Essay Example While the ‘as at’ financial position is presented in the Balance Sheet (Statement of Financial Position), a detailed presentation in terms of Revenue generated against the expenditures incurred in that accounting period is depicted by the Income Statement (Statement of Comprehensive Income) (Vickerstaff & Johal, 2012).The Statement of Financial Position: Also commonly known as the Balance Sheet, the Statement of Financial Position reflects as to what is owned by the entity as ‘Assets’ or ‘Resource’ as opposed to what it owes to third parties as ‘Liabilities’ or ‘Payables’ at that point in time. It also represents Shareholders’ equity, which is sometimes referred to as Capital, which represents the resources that would remain if a company disposes all of its assets and settles all of its liabilities (Wood & Sangster, 2005). Some liabilities are to be settled within the near future (next 12 months) hence, are classified as ‘Current Liabilities’ while others with longer period of settlement are known as Non-current or ‘Long term Debts’. ... It also represents Shareholders’ equity, which is sometimes referred to as Capital, which represents the resources that would remain if a company disposes all of its assets and settles all of its liabilities (Wood & Sangster, 2005). Some liabilities are to be settled within the near future (next 12 months) hence, are classified as ‘Current Liabilities’ while others with longer period of settlement are known as Non-current or ‘Long term Debts’. Similarly, some Assets have a life shorter than of 12 months and are likely to be fully utilized in the company’s operations during this time so are classified as ‘Current Assets’; whilst ‘Non-Current’ or ‘Fixed Assets’ are those that have longer lives and are thus utilized partly in one particular tenure. This utilization is charged as a periodic ‘Expense’ known as ‘Depreciation’ which later adds as a component to the Income Statement (Ferr aino, 2011). The Income Statement: Also known as the Statement of Comprehensive Income, the Income Statement in broader terms is a portrayal of how much a company has earned against how much costs it has incurred in order to generate those earnings, eventually formulating the company’s profitability for that particular accounting period. While direct operational costs are incorporated as Cost of Sales, other incurred expenses such as Depreciation, Interest, Administration, Taxation, Distribution or Marketing are charged in individual ‘heads’, finally leading to the net Profit For the Year. (Wood & Sangster, 2008) Any other unusual or non-operational income can be classified separately under ‘Other Comprehensive Income’, for example income from a Litigation or Gain (or Loss) on disposal of

Speech - The Meaning of Life Essay Example for Free

Speech The Meaning of Life Essay Is human life just a dream, from which we never really awake, as some great thinkers claim? Are we submerged by our feelings, by our loves and hates, by our ideas of good, bad, beautiful, and awful? Are we incapable of knowing beyond those ideas and feelings? Is the reality we know a reality imposed to us by nature? Are the reality and the meaning of life a creation of men, such as music, or love or colors? When I consider the short duration of my life, swallowed up in the eternity that lies before and after it, when I consider the little space I fill and I see, engulfed in the infinite immensity of spaces of which I am unaware, I rest frightened, and astonished, for there is no reason why I should be here rather than there. Who has put me here? By whose order and direction have this place and time have been ascribed to me? Love gives meaning to our lives as do friendship, or art or faith in God. These are factors of true happiness, of inner peace, of feelings of harmony, allowing meaning to our existence. But there is the other side. There is the cruelty of life, the pain, the evil, not to talk of death. When the Tsimtsum sank, not only was Pi shoved face to face with the unknown, but he also lost his family, the core of his human context. Instead, he had to try to survive. Life of Pi is a story about struggling to survive through seemingly insurmountable odds. Throughout the novel, characters are seeking the meaning of life. Pi abandons his lifelong vegetarianism and eats fish to sustain himself. Orange Juice, the peaceful orangutan, fights ferociously against the hyena. Even the severely wounded zebra battles to stay alive; his slow, painful struggle vividly illustrates the sheer strength of his life force. As Martel makes clear in his novel, living creatures will often do extraordinary, unexpected, and sometimes heroic things to survive. However, they will also do shameful and barbaric things if pressed. Exactly like humans. It is between these pendulums the positive, the one that gives happiness and meaning, and the negative that our lives are lived. And when we meditate about all that, we arrive at a diverse and disagreeing set of thoughts about the meaning and purpose of life. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your time and attention. I hope I have clarified the thoughts of some, to be aware of the vast world we live in and the astounding beings we truly are. Speak to others of your thoughts and knowledge; I am sure they will be willing to listen.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Essay Example for Free

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Essay Throughout the book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Jim helps Huck develop greater changes. Huckleberry learns multiple lessons such as growing into better and trustworthy friend. Throughout the novel Jim helped Huck see the different side of life and how everyone grows in different surroundings. Eventually both Huckleberry and Jim grew more mature and wanted the best life for one another. Huck finds out a new identity about the world during the book. During the book, Huckleberry Finn has not experienced what life really was or what you could possibly encounter during times that just come out of anything. Jim is that someone you could call peculiar or unexpected. When Huck and Jim were with each other on the island and going down river together, Huck primarily was giving orders to Jim. The motive why Huck was giving orders was because that was the environment he grown up around. As times moves forward Huck starts to realize how niggers have been treated throughout life and began to respect him more by who Jim is on the inside. When Huck was debating on whether to tell Mary that Jim was with him, â€Å"It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself to a nigger; but I done it, and I warn’t ever sorry for it afterwards, neither. I didn’t do him no more mean tricks, and I wouldn’t done that one if I’d a knowed it would make him feel that way,† page 89. Huck was mortified of what was going to happen if he told Miss Watson, but he overcame it well.

The Role of External Auditor in Corporate Governance

The Role of External Auditor in Corporate Governance External Auditors check companys accounts and report to the company based on the accounts. Basically, the concern is how external auditors conduct these duties effectively. Legislations, such as The Companies Act 1965, have made great efforts to ensure external auditors conduct their duties and obligations effectively. The Code of Corporate Governance in 2001 and the amendment in 2007 have further enhanced the effectiveness of audit in the interests of stockholders and shareholders. In light of the recent scandals involving external auditors in the world, there is a growing concern for corporate governance globally as there is increased reliance by the stockholders and shareholders on external auditors. This study examines the role of external auditors in the corporate governance framework. The study then reviews the financial scandals involving auditors occurred in the world and investigate the role of external auditor in the collapse of the companies. Introduction Corporate governance is a central and dynamic aspect of business. It is very important for corporate success and social welfare. In the wake of Enron, HIH Insurance and other similar cases, countries around the world have reacted quickly by pre-examining similar events domestically. As a speedy response to these corporate failures, the USA issued the Sarbanes-Oxly Act in July 2002, and in UK, the Higgs Report and the Smith Report were published in January 2003 (Solomon, 2007). Nowadays corporate governance is a globally debated topic with many characteristics (Nobel, 1998). However, the concern is whether auditors play an important role in the framework of corporate governance. Corporate Governance Corporate governance is the relationship among various participants in determining the direction and performance of corporations. The main participants are the shareholders, the management and the board of directors. Corporate governance is the process whereby directors of a company are monitored and controlled. There are two areas considered to be fundamental to corporate governance, one is supervision and monitoring of management performance and the other is ensuring accountability of management to shareholders and other stakeholders (Marianne, 2009). Till now, probably the two most important basic elements of good corporate governance have been full disclosure and the presence of independent directors and auditors, who each has their own ways to confirm that the data provided by the corporation are true and fairly stated. The contents of full disclosure are listed out in regulatory demands and professional pronouncements, and companies are expected to fully comply. The independence of the outside director and external auditor means the directors and auditors will have to distance themselves considerably to assure shareholders that they have conducted their tasks (Bavly, 2004). Role of External Auditors in Corporate Governance External auditors play a key role in the corporate governance framework. They conduct one of the most important corporate governance checks that help to monitor managements activities. The audit of financial statement makes disclosures more reliable, thus increasing confidence in the companys transparency. The role of external auditors is to make sure that Board of Directors and the management are acting responsibly towards the shareholders investment interests. By keeping objectivity, the external auditors can add value to shareholders by ensuring that the companys internal controls are strong and effective. And by working with the audit committee and liaising with internal auditors, external auditors can help to facilitate a more effective oversight of the financial reporting process by the Board of Directors (Hassan, 2004). However, the audit expectations gap needs to be acknowledged, as the audit function can only do so much on the fraud. The external auditor can not be expected to find every fraud and error during an audit. In accordance with the Cadbury Report, it is important to know that the external auditors role is not to prepare the financial statements, nor to provide assurance that the data in the financial statements are correct, nor to guarantee that the company will continue as a going concern, but the external auditors have to state in the annual report that the financial statements show a true and fair view. The Cadbury Report highlighted that there was no doubt on whether there should be an audit but rather how the audit could be ensured to conduct effectively and objectively by the external auditors (Solomon, 2007). Auditor Independence External auditors are expected to be independent of the company and report on the company objectively. Actually, auditors can only play their role effectively if they are independent (Peel ODonnell, 1995). They have to conduct their tasks in the most independent and reliable manner to provide investing public with the level of assurance to make their decisions based on the financial statements. According to the Cadbury Report, auditor independence could be affected due to the close relationship between auditors and company managers and due to the auditors intention to develop a constructive relationship with their clients. There are a number of threats to auditor independence, one of which is to provide non-audit services since non-audit services are lucrative. Auditors can obtain the contracts for non-audit services only if they maintain a good relationship with the management. The Cadbury Report stressed that a balance is needed to be achieved in such way that external auditors will work with, not against, company management, but in doing so they need to serve shareholders. This is a difficult path. The easiest way to ensure this balance being attained is suggested to establish audit committees and develop effective accounting standards. The Cadbury Report recommended all companies to establish audit committees. Audit committees serve as representative of shareholder interests. They are not only responsible for monitoring financial reporting process to support good corporate governance, they are also considered to be able to ensure an appropriate relationship exists between the external auditor and the management whose financial statements are being audited (Hassan, 2004). The Smith Report issued in 2003 highlighted that the audit committee needs to be proactive and raise the concern with directors rather than brush them under the carpet. The Report also stressed that all members of audit committee should be independent non-executive directors. Companys annual reports should disclose detailed information on the role and responsibilities of their audit committee. Lessons from Financial Scandals 4.1 Collapse of Enron Enron, the energy trading company based on Texas is the first scandal shaking up the auditing profession. It has led to a crisis to the confidence on auditors and the reliability of financial reporting (Holm Laursen, 2007). The audit quality and the independence of external auditors were questioned. In this case, Enrons audit and accounting function were fraudulent. Arthur Andersen, the auditor of Enron, has been involved in Enrons fraudulent accounting and auditing. Failure of the audit function is one of the key factors contributing to the companys collapse. Enron created The Raptors, four special purpose entities (SPEs). SPEs are established in order that a company can form a joint venture with other interested parties to conduct a specific transaction. This transaction will not subject the other parties to the risks more generally associated with the companys operations. U.S Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAPP) allows companies to record the gains and losses of SPEs without reporting their assets and liabilities in certain instances. In this way, Enron avoided adding more than $1 billion debt to its balance sheet without consolidating certain SPEs (Jenkins, 2003). But the problems are, when the losses of these entities quickly rose into billions of dollars, these entities were brought into the core financial statements. It then became clear that Enron itself had great losses. The corporations stock price dropped sharply, and the company went into bankruptcy in December 2001 (Brown, 2005). Examples of Enrons devious accounting exist widely in the corporation. The company recorded profits, for example, from a joint venture with Blockbuster Video that was never materialized (The Economist, 7 February 2002). In 2002, Enron restated its accounts, which is actually a process that reduced reported profits by $600 million (The Economist, 6 December 2001). In fact, the process resulted in a cumulative profit decrease of $591 million and a rise in debt of $628 million for the financial statements from 1997 to 2000. The difference between the profit figures was mainly attributed to the earlier omission of three off-balance sheet entities. Such profit inflation enabled the company to raise its earnings per share (EPS). The company not only manipulated the accounting figures to inflate the earnings, but it also was found to remove substantial amounts of debt from its accounts by setting up a number of off-balance sheet entities. Such special purpose entities can be used to hide a companys liabilities from the balance sheet, in order to make the financial statements look much better than they really are (The Economist, 2 May 2002). It means substantial number of liabilities did not have to be disclosed on Enrons financial statements, because they were mainly attributed to another legal entity. All these issues raise the question, why did Enrons auditor allow this type of activity? This is because the conflicts of interest exist between the external auditor and the management. Conflicts of Interest Conflicts of interest are a frequent problem in the audit profession. Although independent appointment of external auditors by companys shareholders is regularly replaced by subjective appointment by the company management, the auditor is all too often appreciated to the companys senior management. Further, conflicts of interest arise from interactive functions of audit and consultancy. Arthur Andersen has been blamed to apply loose standards in their audits because of conflict of interest over the subatantial consulting fees collected from Enron. In 2000, Andersen collected $25 million for auditing Enrons books in addition to $27 million for consulting services. In 2001, Arthur Anderson earned US$55 million for provision of non-audit services (Brown, 2005). Although Arthur Andersen reported on the companys accounts, they did not report fraud to the shareholders. This is because the fraud was committed by the management. Kenneth Lay, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) from Feb 1986 until Feb 2001, took home US$ 152 million although the company was facing a loss. If Andersen were to report, they probably will not be appointed in the following years or be engaged in non-audit services (Krishnan, L, 2009). Especially, close relationships are established over time between companies and their external auditors. It can again affect independent judgment and impact on the auditing function. In this case, there are regular exchanges of employees within Enron from Arthur Anderson. Such conflicts of interest affect the corporate governance function. Serious conflicts of interest have also arisen among members of Enrons internal audit committee, which causes the internal audit committee did not perform its functions of internal control and of checking the external auditing function. For example, Lord Wakeham, a member of the audit committee, was at the same time having a consulting contract with Enron (The Economist, 7February2002). This shows that people in responsible positions should have detected fraudulent activities if they were independent. Enrons board of directors was composed of a number of members who have been shown to be willing to conduct fraudulent activity. It is also because the non-executive directors were compromised by conflicts of interest. 4.2 Collapse of HIH Insurance In Australia, the collapse of HIH Insurance Ltd was observed as the beginning of the reflection into external auditors role. HIH is one of Australias biggest insurers, comprising several separate government-licensed insurance companies, including HIH Casualty General Insurance Ltd, FAI General Insurance Ltd, CIC Insurance Ltd and World Marine General Insurances Ltd. On 15 March 2001, HIH went into provisional liquidation with losses of A$ 800 million (Peursem, Zhou, Flood Buttimore, 2007). HIH is one of the largest corporate collapses in Australian history. Similar issues arise as in the Enron case. HIH is claimed to mislead investors by providing incorrect financial reports to the market and HIHs auditor, Arthur Andersen, may have played a part in its collapse. Andersen conducted the external audits for HIH from 1971 until its collapse in 2001. Their contribution to the failure of HIH is considered in the following sections: Audit Practices As part of audit process, auditors will conduct a risk assessment to determine the structure and plan of the audit. Andersen assessed the risk of HIH and deemed it a maximum risk client, however, the engagement team of Andersen had not prepared the risk management plan and therefore the senior management team at Anderson did not review and approve the plan (Peursem, Zhou, Flood Buttimore, 2007). At the end, the auditor simply drew the wrong conclusions. Andersen signed off HIHs annual report for the 30th June 2000 and stated that it was a going concern with net assets of $939 million. Nine months later, HIH collapsed with debts of $5.3 billion (Peursem, Zhou, Flood Buttimore, 2007). Andersen used HIH management reports and forecasts and did not obtain sufficient evidence to get the conclusions they did. The liquidator could not find the documentation on the reasons for considering HIH as a going concern. This implies that Anderson failed to produce sufficient working papers to prove that the audit actually is conducted. Auditor Independence Andersen had a close relationship with HIH. By the time of liquidation, three former Anderson partners who had conducted HIH financial audit work held positions on the HIH board of directors. This obvious lack of independence between the board of directors and the auditors indicated that the best interests of HIH may have not always be a priority. Andersons failure in producing adequate working papers or in obtaining adequate evidence to support their findings have serious concerns on the quality of the audit they did. A significant independence issue is also reflected in the form of Andersons payment to HIH Chairman, Geoffrey Cohen for consultancy fees. These fees totaled $190,887 in nine years and included the use of Andersons office and secretary. These fees were not disclosed to the remaining board members in the annual general meetings (Peursem, Zhou, Flood Buttimore, 2007). The close and complicated financial relationship between the auditors and HIH chairman raise further questions in this case. Finally, the threat to auditor independence is that Andersen provided both audit and non-audit services to HIH. It raises a question on how can an auditor provide an independent opinion on the financial statements when he may play a role in guiding the preparation of the statements? The Royal Commission in Australia, which investigates the collapse of HIH, has found that the largest corporate collapse in Australia was not due to fraud but the result of attempting to cover the cracks on the overpriced acquisition. Andersons role in it appeared to be substantial. Modern Approach to External Auditors Role in Corporate Governance External auditors now have to take a much stricter approach to their clients (Bourne, 1995). There is an increasing view to support that external auditors should take on a more proactive role (Baxt, 1970). The Companies Act has set the stipulation on appointment, eligibility, qualification, disqualification and removal of external auditors (Davies Prentice, 2003). The intention is to ensure that auditors are able to carry out audit in an impersonal, objective and professional way. It is also to ensure that auditors are independent of the company. The reason for such emphasis is to ensure the external auditors are not in a position of conflict of interests. When there is conflict of interest, disclosure must be made to shareholders and stakeholders. Alternatively, there should be prohibition to the provision of non-audit services to the company where they act as auditors. To ensure auditors are truly independent and not in a conflict of interest, auditors should be rotated every year. Thereafter there should be a gap of five years before the same auditors are appointed by the company. Conclusion External auditors have an essential role in corporate governance through their involvement and their examination of financial statements. The external auditors role in corporate governance is a fundamental complement to achieve the desired objective of corporate governance. Therefore, the duties and obligations of external auditors must be expanded for the rights and interests of shareholders and stakeholders. There must be a modern approach to the auditors role in the corporate governance framework.

Prejudice and Racism in Conrads Heart of Darkness :: Heart Darkness essays

Racism in Heart of Darkness   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚      Joseph Conrad develops themes of personal power, individual responsibility, and social justice in his book Heart of Darkness. His book contains all the trappings of the conventional adventure tale: mystery, exotic setting, escape, suspense, and unexpected attack. Chinua Achebe concluded, "Conrad, on the other hand, is undoubtedly one of the great stylists of modern fiction and a good story-teller into the bargain" (Achebe 252). Yet, despite Conrad's great story telling, he has also been viewed as a racist by some of his critics. Achebe, Singh, and Sarvan, although their criticisms differ, are a few to name. Normally, readers are good at detecting racism in a book. Achebe acknowledges Conrad camouflaged racism remarks, saying, "†¦ Conrad chose his subject well - one which was guaranteed not to put him in conflict with psychological pre-disposition..." (Achebe, 253). ***CAN YOU TELL US SPECIFICALLY WHAT THIS MEANS? THE READER DOES NOT KNOW WHAT PSYCHOLOGICAL PRE-DISPOSITION IS*** Having gone back and rereading Heart of Darkness, this time reading between the lines, I discovered some racism Conrad felt toward the natives that I had not discovered the first time I read the book. Racism is portrayed in Conrad's book, but one must acknowledge that in the eighteen hundreds society conformed to it. Conrad probably would have been criticized as being soft hearted rather than a racist in his time. Conrad constantly referred to the natives, in his book, as black savages, niggers, brutes, and "them", displaying ignorance toward the African history and racism towards the African people. Conrad wrote, " Black figures strolled out listlessly... the beaten nigger groaned somewhere" (Conrad 28). "They passed me with six inches, without a glance, with the complete, deathlike indifference of unhappy savages" (Conrad 19). Achebe also detected Conrad's frequent use of unorthodox name calling, "Certainly Conrad had a problem with niggers. His inordinate love of that word itself should be of interest to psychoanalysts" (Achebe 258). Conrad uses Marlow, the main character in the book, as a narrator so he himself can enter the story and tell it through his own philosophical mind. Conrad used "double speak" throughout his book. Upon arriving at the first station, Marlow commented what he observed. "They were dying slowly - it was very clear. They were not enemies, they were not criminals, they were nothing earthly now, nothing but black shadows of disease and starvation lying confusedly in the greenish gloom" (Conrad 20).

The Origin of the Work of Art Essay -- Literary Analysis, Heidegger

In The Origin of the Work of Art, Heidegger attempts to the answer the question of what art is, as well as try to find the origin of art itself. In his attempt Heidegger distinguishes between his ideas of â€Å"Work† and â€Å"Equipment†. While, central to his argument within The Origin of the Work of Art, these ideas are important within themselves in Heidegger’s Philosophy. In this essay I will define as well as compare and contrast these two concepts. I will also explain the ideas of â€Å"Earth† and â€Å"World† presented by Heidegger in order to facilitate this goal. Finally, I’ll conclude the paper by summarizing the key concepts and their relationship to one another. In order to accomplish the goal of defining and explaining both â€Å"Equipment† & â€Å"Work†; I’ll need to introduce and explain two other prevalent concepts in Heidegger’s work. These are the concepts of â€Å"World† and â€Å"Earth†. First I’ll start with the notion of â€Å"World†. Heidegger writes, â€Å"The world is not the mere collection of the countable or uncountable, familiar and unfamiliar things that are at hand† (Heidegger, pg.170). Heidegger is stating that the â€Å"World† isn’t merely an ontical concept that most of us perceive of, a totality of matter existing within the material conception of â€Å"World†. Heidegger clearly explains, â€Å"The world worlds, and is more fully in being than the tangible and perceptible realm in which we believe ourselves to be at home† (Heidegger, pg 170). Heidegger defines â€Å"World† as an ontological concept, in which a web of significant relations exists between Dasein and all that is ready-at-hand. For example, a coffee table exists in a web of significant relations for it points to those who regularly sit at it, which then can branch of to the various conversations ha... ...e work lets the earth be an earth† (Heidegger, pg 172). He then adds, â€Å"The opposition of world and earth is strife† (Heidegger, pg 174). We finally have the criteria of what â€Å"Work† is. Heidegger explains that work sets up a world and sets forth the â€Å"Earth†. â€Å"The work is an instigating of this strife† (Heidegger, pg 175). That strife opens truth or as Heidegger puts it, â€Å"Aletheia† to the observer of the â€Å"Work†. The struggle or â€Å"Strife† is the process of a work of art taking place within the art work itself. In conclusion, the concepts of â€Å"Work† and â€Å"Equipment† that Heidegger presents in The Origin of the Work of Art can be summarized as follows. â€Å"Equipment† defines itself by its use and â€Å"Work† is grounded upon the â€Å"Earth† and â€Å"World† it was created on. Whose essential importance cannot be understated in order to understand Heidegger’s message within the text.

The conservative movement :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The new wave of the right wing conservative movement started in the 1980’s with the yuppies. The young urban professionals were all about business and money and of course most of them were part of the GOP (Republican Party). They strayed away from the left wing liberals like hippies most hippies could have had a yuppie as a baby. The presidents we had were a part of this movement to Ronald Reagan (1981-1989 Republican) started this movement; George Bush (1989-1993 Republican) kept the movement going, Bill Clinton (1993-2001 Democrat) the movement calmed down at this point. Now it comes full circle with George W. Bush (2001-present).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There is one classic book that was too obscene for the conservatives so they banned it. The book was The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. It was placed on the banned list twice and has been twice removed. The first time it was banned in 1965 by the NAACP because it used the word nigger too many times, then in 1984 because a black alderman found the books language offensive. Not only do I think it is wrong to ban any type of literature but how can they say what is obscene and offensive? Another American classic that was banned was The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck once again it was for the vulgarity of the book.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The stifling effect of censorship is worse now since the Janet Jackson fiasco at Superbowl XXXVIII. The FCC was and still is doing a crack down on any and everything they find obscene. Howard Stern takes the spot light, with his â€Å"crude† humor and brash way of doing things. The FCC doesn’t like him very much. They fined him a record $495,000 for a â€Å"blumpkin† reference. The FCC can fine you for things they deem are obscene and vulgar. The only problem is he said this obscene reference over two years before they fined him which has never been done. All that will change on January 2006 when Howard moves to satellite radio.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Satellite radio is new and has only been on the market for about 5 years. It’s like cable T.V. for the radio and that is a good thing for Howard Stern or any Shock Jocks. It is good because the FCC can’t fine or censor any pay service because you (the buyer) want it. There are two different types of satellite radio though one is XM and the other is Sirius.

Effect of Anxiety Disorder

EFFECT OF ANXIETY DISORDER Nowadays people suffer from not only physical healt peoblems but mental problems are also quite common. Anxiety disorder is one of the mental problem which people face to handle commonly. Therefore; what is anxiety disorder ? In article of Anxiety Attacks and Anxiety Disorders explained that ;’’ Anxiety attacks( panic attacks ), are episodes of intense panic or fear’’ (2012)*. Some Effects of the anxiety disorder are faster heart beating and breathing,changing social behaviour. Firstly, one of the main effect of anxiety disorder, faster heart beating and breathing happen with increase adrenalin in human body.Because of the this health problem, people feel always warning and they don’t want to meet and see people around. therefore; this people want to be alone because they afraid if they can be disgraced. One of the point that people should care,not every faster heart beating and breathing mean anxiety disorder,faster heart beating and breathing is quite normal symptom of human being sensation;however,anxiety disorder patients have this beating immediately;moreover,without any symbol. Faster heart beating and breathing is simple and common effect of anxiety disorder problem.Secondly,it is really important and bad effect of anxiety disorder;changing human behaviour. people with anxiety disorder,assume that if they can have panic when they speak or meet someone,As    Lyness, PhD state that â€Å"people who have this illnesses,fear if others dont understand their problem;moreover, if they dont show understandablity,if others can ciriticise his or her behaviour unrighteously. Patient afraid of if they can meet misunderstanding,eventhough the anxiety problem is common,people with the illnesses feel alone and misunderstood (October,2012)**.Anxiety disorder effect of changing behaviour is affect even people social,school and family life. Finaly,effects of anxiety disorder problem are faster heart beating and changing behaviour change human life profoundly. Although it has unwell effects,it isnt unrecover illnesses,it has solution. In article Anxiety disorder,according to Mr. Lyness,PhD,steps of treatment are that Tell a parent or other adult about physical sensations, worries, or fears. Get a checkup and make sure wheather it can be physical problem. Work with a mental health professional.Get regular exercise, good nutrition, and sleep(October,2010). RESOURCES **http://kidshealth. org/teen/your_mind/mental_health/anxiety. html#a_How_Are_Anxiety_Disorders_Treated_(first one: summury from under head of How Anxiety Disorders Affect People,second paragraph.. second one(in final part) is summary of under head of What to Do in article start from second paragraph. ) ————————————————- *http://www. helpguide. org/mental/anxiety_types_symptoms_treatment. htm (Under the head of Anxie ty attacks and their symptoms,first sentence,direct quatation)

Analysis and Valuation of Privately Held Companies Essay

10.1 What is the capitalization rate and how does it relate to the discount rate? Answer: The terms discount rate and capitalization rate are often used interchangeably. Whenever the growth rate of a firm’s cash flows is projected to vary over time, the term discount rate generally refers to the factor used to convert the projected cash flows to present values. In contrast, if the cash flows of the firm are not expected to grow or are expected to grow at a constant rate indefinitely, the discount rate employed by practitioners is often referred as the capitalization rate. 10.2 What are the common ways of estimating the capitalization rate? Answer: Capitalization rates may be estimated by using the Capital Asset Pricing Model, cost of capital, price-to-earnings ratios, accounting based returns such as the return on equity, and the build-up method. 10.3 What is the marketability discount and what are common ways of estimating this discount? Answer: The risk associated with an illiquid market for the specific stock is often referred to as the marketability or liquidity discount. Liquidity is the ease with which an investor can sell their stock without a serious loss of value. An investor in a small company may find it difficult to sell quickly their shares because of limited interest in the company. Consequently, the investor may find it necessary to sell their shares at a significant discount from what they paid for the shares. 10.4 Give examples of private company costs that might be understated and explain why. Answer: Examples may include employee training and the cost of complying with government regulation such as OSHA and the EPA. Small, privately owned firms tend to under-spend in these areas since they do not contribute directly to current profitability. 10.5 How can an analyst determine if the target firm’s costs and revenues are understated or overstated? Answer: The analyst may determine that revenues have been overstated by comparing the accounting practices to GAAP guidelines and to other comparable firms. It may be determined that costs are understated by comparing the firm’s accounting practices with GAAP standards and by comparing the firm’s common size financial statements with those of similar firms. 10.6 Why might shell corporations have value? Answer: Merging with an existing corporate shell of a formerly publicly traded company may be a reasonable alternative for a firm wanting to go public that is unable to provide the 2 years of audited financial statements required by the SEC or unwilling to incur the costs of going public through an initial public offering. Thus, merging with a shell corporation may represent an effective alternative to an initial public offering for a small firm. Shell corporations may also be attractive for investors interested in capitalizing on the intangible value associated with the existing corporate shell. This could include name recognition; licenses, patents, and other forms of intellectual properties; and underutilized assets such as warehouse space and fully depreciated equipment with some economic life remaining. 10.7 Why might succession planning be more challenging for family owned firms? Answer: Succession planning is a critical activity in any firm. However, the challenge often is greater in family firms which wish to keep top management  positions in the family. This restriction limits the total pool of management talent available to the family owned firm, as some family members may have no interest in the firm and others simply do not have the credentials to step into a management role. 10.8 What are some of the reasons a family-owned or privately-owned business may want to go public? What are some of the reasons that discourage such firms from going public? Answer: Private or family owned firms are more likely to go public when valuations are high or are increasing. Companies also are inclined to go public when they anticipate an inability to finance future investment opportunities or the outlook for the future profitability is unclear. In contrast, private firms are less likely to go public because of the increasing reporting requirements of Sarbanes-Oxley and the SEC, as well as concern about interference from public shareholders. Private firms also are less likely to go public when the special privileges that accrue to the controlling shareholders exceed the anticipated benefits from going public. 10.9 Why are family owned firms often attractive to private equity investors? Answer: Family-owned firms often encounter succession problems. The founder wants to retire but either lacks confidence in existing family members as successors or cannot find a family member with the right credentials interested in taking control. Consequently, selling out to a private equity firm may be an attractive alternative. Such firms are interested in not only providing financing but also in providing board and management experience and expertise. They intend to invest for the long-term enabling the founder to cash out with some assurance the firm will continue to prosper. 10.10 Rank from the highest to the lowest the liquidity discount you would apply if you as a business appraiser had been asked to value the following businesses: a) a local, profitable hardware store, b) a money losing laundry, c) a large privately owned but marginally  profitable firm with significant excess cash balances and other liquid short-term investments, and d) a pool cleaning service whose primary tangible assets consist of a 2-year old truck and miscellaneous equipment. Explain your ranking. Answer: In descending order of magnitude, the liquidity discounts associated with these businesses would be as follows: d) The business is small, with few liquid assets of significant value; b) the business is small and unprofitable but does have some equipment that can be liquidated; a) the business is financially healthy; c) the business is large with substantial liquid assets. Selected Practice Problems and Answers 10.14 Based on its growth prospects, a private investor values a local bakery at $750,000. She believes that cost savings having a present value of $50,000 can be achieved by changing staffing levels and store hours. Based on recent empirical studies, she believes the appropriate liquidity discount is 20 percent. A recent transaction in the same city required the buyer to pay a 5 percent premium to the asking price to gain a controlling interest in a similar business. What is the most she should be willing to pay for a 50.1 percent stake in the bakery? Answer: The investor should not offer more than $336,672. Maximum Offer Price (50.1%) = ($750,000+$50,000) x (1-.2)(1+.05) x .501 = $336,672 10.15 You have been asked by an investor to value a restaurant. Last year, the restaurant earned pretax operating income of $300,000. Income has grown 4% annually during the last five years, and it is expected to continue growing at that rate into the foreseeable future. The annual change in working capital is $20,000, and capital spending for maintenance exceeded depreciation in the prior year by $15,000. Both working capital and the  excess of capital spending over depreciation are projected to grow at the same rate as operating income. By introducing modern management methods, you believe the pretax operating income growth rate can be increased to 6% beyond the second year and sustained at that rate into the foreseeable future. The ten-year Treasury bond rate is 5%, the equity risk premium is 5.5%, and the marginal federal, state, and local tax rate is 40%. The beta and debt-to-equity ratio for publicly traded firms in the restaurant industry are 2 and 1.5, respectively. The business’s target debt-to-equity ratio is 1, and its pretax cost of borrowing, based on its recent borrowing activities, is 7%. The business-specific risk premium for firms of this size is estimated to be 6%. The liquidity risk premium is believed to be 15%, relatively low for firms of this type due to the excellent reputation of the restaurant. Since the current chef and the staff are expected to remain after the business is sold, the quality of the restaurant is expected to be maintained. The investor is willing to pay a 10% premium to reflect the value of control. a. What is free cash flow to the firm in year 1? Free cash flow to the firm in year 1 = $300,000 x 1.04 x (1 – .4) – $20,000 x 1.04 – $15,000 x 1.04 = $187,200 – $20,800 – $15,600 = $150,800 b. What is free cash flow to the firm in year 2? Free cash flow to the firm in year 2 = ($300,000 x 1.042) x (1-.4) – $20,000 x 1.042 – $15,000 x 1.042 = $194,688 – $21,632 – $16,224 = $156,832 c. What is the firm’s cost of equity? Industry’s unleveraged beta = 2 / (1 + .6 x 1.5) = 1.05 Restaurant’s leveraged beta = 1.05 (1 + .6 x 1.0) = 1.68 Cost of Equity = .05 + 1.68 (.055) + .06 = .2024 d. What is the firm’s after-tax cost of debt? After-tax cost of debt = .07 x (1-.4) = .042 e. What is the firm’s target debt-to-total capital ratio? Restaurant’s target debt-to-total capital ratio = target D/E / (1 + target D/E) = 1 / 2 = .5 f. What is the weighted average cost of capital? Weighted average cost of capital = .5 x .2024 + .5 x .042 = .1012 + .0210 = .1222 g. What is the business worth? PV = $150,800 + $156,832 + ($156,832 x 1.06)/(.1222 – .06) = (1.1222) (1.1222)2 (1.1222)2 = $134,379 + $124,536 + $2,122,313 = $2,381,228 (Note: The first two terms represent the PV of the firm’s operating cash flows before the application of modern management methods is fully implemented; the third term is the terminal value and reflects the anticipated sustained improvement in cash flows when the benefits of the new management techniques are fully realized.) PV (after the liquidity discount & control premium) = $2,381,228 x (1 – .15) x (1 + .10) = $2,226,448

Normal distribution

Therefore, she wanted to know more about her course mates. Obviously it was difficult to contact all the students from her batch and know about them. So she decides to collect a randomly selected data from about 25-30 students. She was not sure about random collection of data. So she learnt about random number generator and used student roll numbers to select the random sample. With the help of faculty she prepared questionnaire and collected data. From the data she prepared report for submission. It was quite nice and elaborate. However, when she compared it with friends, she found lot of variation. So she decided to take information from her two friends who had also collected the similar data.Of course she has to take some precautions while using the data from the friends. A) b) c) d) e) f) g) h) Collect the data. Draw Simple Bar Diagram to represent specialization wise strength of students. Draw Pie diagram to represent the number of students in each of the blood groups. Prepare t he gender-wise frequency table for the blood groups. Plot graph of height Vs.. Weight of the students. Comment on the graph. Plot graph of family income Vs.. Expenditure of the student. Comment on the graph. Calculate gender-wise mean and standard deviation of marks of 10th and 12th standard. Comment on the basis of the results. Prepare a two way table showing age-wise and gender-wise strength of students.Represent this data with the help of a multiple bar diagram taking age on X axis and gender-wise strength on Y axis. Also comment on the basis of this graph. Prepare a two way table showing father's education and mother's education taking education categories as Below Graduate, Graduate and Post graduate. Comment on the basis of this table. Calculate mean and standard deviation of marks obtained by the students in 10th and 12th standard according to having a Job experience or not. Comment on the values you obtained. You are free to do additional analysis if you feel so. K) Note: Sa mple questionnaire is attached. However, please feel free to add few question based on your purpose.Subject: Statistics & Research Methodology (103) Case No: 04 Microchip Contract A company receives an order for five custom-made microchips at a price of $7,500 each. The company will produce the chips one by one using a complex process which has only a 67% chance of producing a defect-free chip at each trial. After five defect- free chips are produced the process will be stopped. A cost accountant at the company has prepared the following cost report: The cost of production includes a $14,800 fixed cost and a $2,XX unit variable cost. Thus if X number of chips are produced, the total cost of production would be 14,800 + 2. XX dollars. The revenue minus the cost of production will be the profit.After some analysis the finance manager of the company says that the risk may be too high and thinks the order should not be accepted. 1. What distribution will the number of chips produced, X, follow? 2. What is the expected value and standard deviation of X? 3. What is the expected value and standard deviation of the profit? 4 What is the break-even X (allow fractional values for X)? 5. What is the probability that accepting the order will result in a loss? 6. A popular measure of risk in a venture is value at risk, which is the joss suffered at the 5th percentile of the return from the venture. In this problem, find an integer x such that P[X>x] is approximately 5%. 7. For the x value found in part 6, calculate the loss, and thus the value at risk. . Express the value at risk as a percentage of the expected value of the profit. 9. What is your assessment of the risk and reward in the order? Should the company accept the order? The sales manager of the company says that the customer is very likely to agree to increase the order quantity from five to eight chips. But he is not sure whether the matter should be pursued with the customer. 10. If accepting an order of five itself is risky, will it not be even more risky to accept an order for eight? † asks the sales manager. How would 1 1 . Calculate the expected value and standard deviation of the profit for an order quantity of eight. 12.What is the value at risk for an order quantity of eight, computed in a manner similar to parts 6 and 7 above? Express the value at risk as a percentage of the expected profit. 13. Looking at the answer to parts 3,8,1 1, and 12, would you say the risk and reward have become more favorable, compared to an order quantity of five? 14. Should the company pursue the matter of increasing the order quantity to eight with the customer? * Case taken from Complete Business Statistics by Emir Cell &J. Countermanding, DATA Mac Grab Hill. Subject: Statistics & Research Methodology (103) Case No: 05 Acceptable Pins A company supplies pins in bulk to a customer. The company uses an automatic lathe to produce the pins.Due to many causes- vibrations, temperature, wear and tear , and the like-the lengths of the pins made by the machine are normally distributed with a mean of 1. 012 inches and a standard deviation of 0. 018 inch. The customer will buy only those pins with lengths in the interval 1. 00 Ð’Â ± 0. 2 inch. In other words, the customer wants the length to be 1. 00 inch but will accept up to 0. 02 inch deviation on either side. This 0. 02 inch is known as the tolerance. 1 . What percentage of the pins will be acceptable to the consumer? In order to improve percentage accepted, the production manager and the engineers discuss adjusting the population mean and standard deviation of the length of the pins. 2.If the lathe can be adjusted to have the mean of the lengths to any desired value, what should it be adjusted to? Why? 3. Suppose the mean cannot be adjusted, but the standard deviation can be reduced. What maximum value of the standard deviation would make 90% of the parts acceptable to the consumer? (Assume the mean to be 1. 012. ) 4. Repea t question 3, with 95% and 99% of the pins acceptable. 5. In practice, which one do you think is easier to adjust, the mean or the standard deviation? Why? The production manager then considers the costs involved. The cost of resetting the machine to adjust the population mean involves the engineers' time and the cost of production time lost.The cost of reducing the population standard deviation involves, in addition to these costs, the cost of overhauling the machine and engineering the process. 6. Assume it costs $xx to decrease the standard deviation by (x 11000) inch. Find the cost of reducing the standard deviation to the values found in question 3 and 4. 7. Now assume that the mean has been adjusted to the best value found in question 2 at a cost of $80. Calculate the reduction in standard deviation necessary to have 90%, 95%, and 99% of the parts acceptable. Calculate the respective costs, as in questions. 8. Based on your answers to questions 6 and 7, what are your recommend ed mean and standard deviation? Normal distribution Therefore, she wanted to know more about her course mates. Obviously it was difficult to contact all the students from her batch and know about them. So she decides to collect a randomly selected data from about 25-30 students. She was not sure about random collection of data. So she learnt about random number generator and used student roll numbers to select the random sample. With the help of faculty she prepared questionnaire and collected data. From the data she prepared report for submission. It was quite nice and elaborate. However, when she compared it with friends, she found lot of variation. So she decided to take information from her two friends who had also collected the similar data.Of course she has to take some precautions while using the data from the friends. A) b) c) d) e) f) g) h) Collect the data. Draw Simple Bar Diagram to represent specialization wise strength of students. Draw Pie diagram to represent the number of students in each of the blood groups. Prepare t he gender-wise frequency table for the blood groups. Plot graph of height Vs.. Weight of the students. Comment on the graph. Plot graph of family income Vs.. Expenditure of the student. Comment on the graph. Calculate gender-wise mean and standard deviation of marks of 10th and 12th standard. Comment on the basis of the results. Prepare a two way table showing age-wise and gender-wise strength of students.Represent this data with the help of a multiple bar diagram taking age on X axis and gender-wise strength on Y axis. Also comment on the basis of this graph. Prepare a two way table showing father's education and mother's education taking education categories as Below Graduate, Graduate and Post graduate. Comment on the basis of this table. Calculate mean and standard deviation of marks obtained by the students in 10th and 12th standard according to having a Job experience or not. Comment on the values you obtained. You are free to do additional analysis if you feel so. K) Note: Sa mple questionnaire is attached. However, please feel free to add few question based on your purpose.Subject: Statistics & Research Methodology (103) Case No: 04 Microchip Contract A company receives an order for five custom-made microchips at a price of $7,500 each. The company will produce the chips one by one using a complex process which has only a 67% chance of producing a defect-free chip at each trial. After five defect- free chips are produced the process will be stopped. A cost accountant at the company has prepared the following cost report: The cost of production includes a $14,800 fixed cost and a $2,XX unit variable cost. Thus if X number of chips are produced, the total cost of production would be 14,800 + 2. XX dollars. The revenue minus the cost of production will be the profit.After some analysis the finance manager of the company says that the risk may be too high and thinks the order should not be accepted. 1. What distribution will the number of chips produced, X, follow? 2. What is the expected value and standard deviation of X? 3. What is the expected value and standard deviation of the profit? 4 What is the break-even X (allow fractional values for X)? 5. What is the probability that accepting the order will result in a loss? 6. A popular measure of risk in a venture is value at risk, which is the joss suffered at the 5th percentile of the return from the venture. In this problem, find an integer x such that P[X>x] is approximately 5%. 7. For the x value found in part 6, calculate the loss, and thus the value at risk. . Express the value at risk as a percentage of the expected value of the profit. 9. What is your assessment of the risk and reward in the order? Should the company accept the order? The sales manager of the company says that the customer is very likely to agree to increase the order quantity from five to eight chips. But he is not sure whether the matter should be pursued with the customer. 10. If accepting an order of five itself is risky, will it not be even more risky to accept an order for eight? † asks the sales manager. How would 1 1 . Calculate the expected value and standard deviation of the profit for an order quantity of eight. 12.What is the value at risk for an order quantity of eight, computed in a manner similar to parts 6 and 7 above? Express the value at risk as a percentage of the expected profit. 13. Looking at the answer to parts 3,8,1 1, and 12, would you say the risk and reward have become more favorable, compared to an order quantity of five? 14. Should the company pursue the matter of increasing the order quantity to eight with the customer? * Case taken from Complete Business Statistics by Emir Cell &J. Countermanding, DATA Mac Grab Hill. Subject: Statistics & Research Methodology (103) Case No: 05 Acceptable Pins A company supplies pins in bulk to a customer. The company uses an automatic lathe to produce the pins.Due to many causes- vibrations, temperature, wear and tear , and the like-the lengths of the pins made by the machine are normally distributed with a mean of 1. 012 inches and a standard deviation of 0. 018 inch. The customer will buy only those pins with lengths in the interval 1. 00 Ð’Â ± 0. 2 inch. In other words, the customer wants the length to be 1. 00 inch but will accept up to 0. 02 inch deviation on either side. This 0. 02 inch is known as the tolerance. 1 . What percentage of the pins will be acceptable to the consumer? In order to improve percentage accepted, the production manager and the engineers discuss adjusting the population mean and standard deviation of the length of the pins. 2.If the lathe can be adjusted to have the mean of the lengths to any desired value, what should it be adjusted to? Why? 3. Suppose the mean cannot be adjusted, but the standard deviation can be reduced. What maximum value of the standard deviation would make 90% of the parts acceptable to the consumer? (Assume the mean to be 1. 012. ) 4. Repea t question 3, with 95% and 99% of the pins acceptable. 5. In practice, which one do you think is easier to adjust, the mean or the standard deviation? Why? The production manager then considers the costs involved. The cost of resetting the machine to adjust the population mean involves the engineers' time and the cost of production time lost.The cost of reducing the population standard deviation involves, in addition to these costs, the cost of overhauling the machine and engineering the process. 6. Assume it costs $xx to decrease the standard deviation by (x 11000) inch. Find the cost of reducing the standard deviation to the values found in question 3 and 4. 7. Now assume that the mean has been adjusted to the best value found in question 2 at a cost of $80. Calculate the reduction in standard deviation necessary to have 90%, 95%, and 99% of the parts acceptable. Calculate the respective costs, as in questions. 8. Based on your answers to questions 6 and 7, what are your recommend ed mean and standard deviation?

My aunt Gertrude is a rare gem.

My aunt Gertrude is a rare gem. She remains unmarried till this day, and has no desire to do so even though she is exiting the prime of her life in a few months’ time. I asked her once whether she ever contemplated being alone during her twilight years, without the comforting companionship of a husband or the dutiful doting by her children.She looked straight at me in a gaze that at once appeared as if she was reaching deep into the recesses of her being.She spoke in a barely audible whisper that she once had such a dream as I mentioned, but no longer. I was gripped with a curiosity that was tinged with a certain sadness, as I detected that within her voice and readily embraced it as my own in empathy and identification with this woman whom I love.She started tearing, and continued slowly the sad poetry that had haunted her for the past decade. When she was younger, just out of college, my aunt was engaged to a gentleman from Chicago, by the name of Mollier. He was a dealer in antiques, and had a thriving business by the time he became acquainted with my aunt Gertrude.They were a loving couple, always together, engaged in frequent intimate conversations and shared many common interests and tender moments. He was the man that my aunt was destined to marry, and to love and hold till eternity.Alas, one evening as he was making the trip home from California, he ran into a road accident and was tragically killed. My aunt did not receive the call from the coroners till a day later, after they had verified his identity and checked through their databases. Her life there and then was thrown into disarray.She left her newly-begun job, and hid in her parents’ home for the next five years. She had to learn how to live again. As she conveyed these to me, it was not her who sobbed and cried. It was me, one still young and too tender to know just what it meant and how she must have felt.She told me the pain that she carried within her heart, and how that very m oment she had died to her own ambitions, plans, and sensitivity.Her life as she knew it, was over. She had died with him. I learned from her that day what courage meant, and how with silent purpose and prayer, one can emerge from a forest of lost dreams and darkened hope still intact, at least in person. I also learned just how great love can really be, and what lovers go through each time their love disappears, even for a moment on an errand.Aunt Gertrude will never marry. She will live out the rest of her days as a spinster, having come so close to living her life with the man she truly loved and losing it all at once.She will still go about her days bustling about in a cheery manner, loving her nephews and nieces, tending to their moments of despair and immature concerns. She now lives outside herself; a woman constantly challenging herself to focus her love on others in order not to drown in the despair of her own unfulfilled love. She is a beacon of light and hope to us all in the family, and she is what makes us strong and secure.

Business Proposal On Tailor Made Adventure Holidays Tourism Essay

Business Proposal On Tailor Made Adventure Holidays Tourism Essay This report puts forth a unique business proposal, based on tailor-made adventure holidays. This business plan encompasses unique holiday packages for adventure lovers residing in the United Kingdom, attractive deal of prices and promises of delivering a true value for money experience to our customers, a clear understanding of the market, the anchoring segmentation, marketing and pricing strategies that confirm a competitive edge over existing players in the market, along with the financial projections made in light of realistic terms and conditions. â€Å"To deliver our customers an entire experience to value, rather than a mere service for a value.† Our aim is to make it a very simple and pleasant experience for our customers at every step, i.e. right from the time they consult us to bookings made, to the time their trip comes to an end and even after that we intend to live up to the needs of a good and lasting customer relationship. â€Å"To encourage eco-tourism.† Our second aim is to actively encourage eco-tourism. Any kind of harm caused to the ecology, if witnessed, would certainly not be entertained. Our effort towards this aim would be, say, taking care of the camels during camel safari that is amongst one of our packages for trip to Rajasthan in India. Also, not causing any kind of disruptions to the space and milieu of various animals, during trips to forests, would be highly acknowledged. Especially, during trips to forests in Africa which form a paradise for several endangered species. Our objectives are: â€Å"To be the first choice of our prospective customers.† We wish to be the first choice of the adventure lovers in the UK, seeking to book adventure trips for themselves. â€Å"To rule the niche market of exclusive tailor-made adventure holidays.† Considering the fact that we belong to an extremely niche market, it is one of our prime objectives to dominate the market, where customers come to us by choice, and not just by chance. â€Å"To cover as many as, all the adventurous destinations round the globe by 2020.† We intend to take our customers to numerous destinations to adventure the real variety of adventure! Right from the soft adventures like balloon safaris through the royal palaces of the incredible Rajasthan in India to extreme adventures of confronting the ultimate wildlife in the bushes of Amazon. In years to come, not only cover, but we also intend to discover such adventurous destinations round the globe that are still waiting to be seen and experienced. Product PRODUCT The product we would be offering is the various packages to the destinations mentioned below. Destinations Europe Asia Africa Polland India Spain Thailand Amazon Turkey Tanzania Uganda Initially, we have chosen these eight destinations because, they exhibit variety in adventure. Our packages to these destinations would be promoted by the following names: Phenomenal India Wild Tanzania Thai venture Enticing Poland Frantic Amazon Sensational Spain Kingkong Uganda Thrill In Turkey CHARACTERISTICS OF OUR PRODUCT Exclusively for UK residents wanting to book an adventure tour. Our main focus as far as customers are concerned, are the people residing only in the United Kingdom and the ones who want to go for an adventure trip in particular.

Evaluate Bodyshop company Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Evaluate Bodyshop company - Coursework Example Sesame oil and marula oil are the most common natural ingredients utilized by the company in making its products. Marula oil is obtained from kernels and some of its traditional use entailed body moistening as a lotion and massage treatment purposes. Sesame oil also acts as skin moisturizer and skin massage oil (Nitzsch & Rose, 2011, p. 23). Body shop obtains its ingredients via Community Fair Trade. The products fall under various categories depending on their use. The first category is fragrances that include varied products for men and women. Body butters include Meringa, strawberry, Shea, Satsuma, olive coconut and mango products. Skin care products contain a wide range of minerals including vitamin c, tea tree, seaweed and Aloe Vera. Under this category, Body shop has lotions approved by pediatricians for babies. Maca root and White musk are skin products for men. Make ups include eye shadow, lipstick, mineral make up and mascara. For hair care, they have banana conditioner and banana shampoo. The last category is bathing products that include soaps and gels. Antiperspirants are the latest products by Body Shop (Body Shop Business, 2011, p. 1). Market entry Initially, Body Shop was an environmental friendly single-store shop specializing in natural cosmetic products in Berkeley, California. Anita Roddick visited the shop as a customer. It inspired her to start her own shop of similar products. She opened a shop in 1976, UK and began producing the naturally scented products. In 1987, she bought naming rights for her shop consequently labeling it Body Shop (Haile, 2004, p. 24). It expanded at a steady rate of 50% quickly spreading to other countries. Initial investment and ownership Anita needed 4,000 sterling pounds to start her investment. She obtained the money from a bank as an investment loan for her first shop. Following success, she wanted to open another shop but funds remained a challenge. The bank refused to loan her the money. She obtained 4,000 s terling pounds for her second shop from a friend of one of the girls assisting at the first shop. However, the person demanded a 50% share in the shop she was to set up. Further funding for expansion was through informal arrangements with various businesspersons and businesses (Haile, 2004, p. 22). Body Shop offered its first public offing on April 1984. Anita Roddick and her husband Gordon Roddick owned the company for 30 years from the date of establishment until 2006, when L’Oreal corporate team purchased the company (Body Shop Business, 2011, p. 1). Body Shop’s Unique Selling Preposition Anita Roddick advocated for environmental friendly products to conserve the environment and maintain healthy bodies. As Gordon Brown, the English Prime Minister, acknowledge that after Anita Roddick’s death in 2007, she and her company campaigned for green issues long before it became a popular topic in the world (Assenmacher, 2012, p. 24). She is a pioneer in instilling the globe’s environmental concerns in people. This ultimately convinced people to use Body Shop products. Apart from environmental issues, Body Shop campaigned for other social issues that included enhancing self-esteem in women. In this campaign, the company contradicted the popular media concepts of women that depicted women as stereotype (Dutta, 2007). Body shop also engaged in community activities in which it funded various environmentalist and social groups. Consequently, it familiarized their products with interest topics

CLA labor of hero Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

CLA labor of hero - Essay Example With regard to their births, Herakles, therefore, was superior in strength to Theseus as he hailed from a union between man and god (Powell, 2012). Herakles labors resulted as a punishment for his murdering of his wife – princess Megara and all their children albeit with madness bestowed upon him by Hera. Theseus labors, on the other hand, were because of his quest to claim his birthright by taking the sword and sandals back to King Aegeus (Powell, 2012). Both Herakles and Theseus were faced with labors, which they overcame despite everyone expecting them to fail. Herakles endured twelve labors while Theseus was faced with six labors. Herakles transcended his labors purely due to sheer strength while Theseus succeeded primarily due to his wit. Besides, Herakles was at most times supported by deities – Hermes and Athena - whenever he needed them while Theseus never had the support of deities. The hero-myth dichotomy refers to the hero’s movement from the normal world, into the supernatural facet where challenges are encountered and transcended, and finally the hero comes back to help men. The hero-myth has key markers such as one divine parent – for example Zeus in the case of Herakles. Another key characteristic of the hero-myth is that the birth of the hero may be unusual – such as in the case of Herakles where his birth was delayed by the intervention of Hera. Another key marker of the hero-myth is the great strength that the hero possesses – for instance – Perseus who kills the monster Medusa. Almost all of the Greek mythical heroes were male. This orientation depicted the state of affairs at the time in Greece where males were assumedly warriors while the females were expected to handle house chores and bring up children. One of the key roles of the male heroes was to deliver society from the enclaves of suffering, as well as suffering. In addition, the male heroes’