Elevator pitch Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Elevator pitch - Essay Example The government will profit when the Americans spend more money in the country. Everything comes down to creating employment and employment can be created should the government support small scale industries. Small scale industries are more than capable of creating a plethora of jobs. This is how one initiative by the government can change the fortune of the nation. The economy of America is yet to recover from the recent setbacks, it is important for it to recover only then will more jobs be created and more Americans will get employed. Structural troubles are haunting the economy, the housing trouble for instance which was also the main reason for the recent recession impacted the economy of America severely. Americans who had borrowed money to buy houses failed to return that money to the banks as a result of which there was very little liquidity and the economy was greatly affected. â€Å"Uncertainty is natural, of course. The future is always uncertain. But there is good uncertainty and bad uncertainty, much as there is good cholesterol and bad cholesterol. Good uncertainty, for example, presents opportunities for profit. Bad uncertainty arises largely when investors and entrepreneurs have very real questions about the consequences of government policy.† (Promoting Job Creation) To conclude it is very fair to say that the government has to take initiatives and create jobs for the unemployed Americans and this will only happen when the economy of America recovers from the recent setbacks. Hopefully it will happen soon and the unemployment rate will be under control once

Article Rebuttal Essay Example for Free

Article Rebuttal Essay The author stated that, â€Å"There is a difference between a married couple and a same-sex couple in a long-term relationship. The difference is between the duties that marriage imposes on married peoplenot rights, but rather onerous obligationswhich do not apply to same-sex love. † This statement, in my opinion, is completely untrue. All relationships can be difficult and time consuming, the statement would have more truth if the author of was talking about all relationships or marriages. When reading the article, I took every word as people that are in a same sex relationship can’t have a normal marriage or a normal family and normal life and that is why same sex marriage will ultimately fail. The only thing that is different about same sex marriage is that the genders of both people are the same. This doesn’t mean that the two people can’t have children, it just means they can‘t have them in the traditional way. Homosexuals that are married can have a normal life; they just might have to face other judgmental people, which they face even without being married. This author had no credibility, no fact or anything to back up his argument. There were not any reliable sources in this argument which makes me believe that everything about this article was just the opinion of the author. While I believe that everyone is entitled to their own opinions, I believe one should have reliable sources and make valid points before writing an article and making it public especially on such a controversial topic. Reference; http://www. weeklystandard. com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/016/533narty. asp

Primary Pulmonary Hypertension :: essays research papers fc

Primary Pulmonary Hypertension INTRODUCTION A.Each year in the US there are about 300 new cases of PPH diagnosed each year. B.My purpose today is to inform you on the disease PPH C.This topic concerns you because it is a deadly disease that is on the rise. D.Today I will discuss.... 1.What the disease is 2.Causes of PPH 3.Symptoms of PPH 4.Diagnosis 5.Course and Treatment PPH-What is it? Primary(unexplained) pulmonary hypertension (abnormally high blood pressure) is an extremely rare lung disorder. Pulmonary hypertension occurs when there are changes in small blood vessels in the lungs resulting in an increased resistance to move enough blood through the lungs. The resistance places a strain on the right ventricle which must work harder to pump enough blood. If untreated,or if the conditions are generally bad enough,the right side of the heart may fail resulting in death. PPH-What are the causes? There is no definite cause of PPH,but there are possibilities. 1.PPH may be the result of another infection such as heart disease,lung disease,or HIV. 2.PPH may be genetic. A specific chromosome which runs in families is linked to PPH although the type of defect is yet unknown. 3.Familial Inheritance 4.Diet Drugs-By far this is the most known cause. Fen-Phen and Dexfenfluramine,2 diet drugs have been studied and are linked to numbers of cases of pph. These drugs can cause PPH in as little as 23 days the risk increases with the amount of time it is used. 5.Serotonin-Although this is not proved,it is believed that the above diet drugs increase the release of serotonin which is often found in patients transplanted lungs with PPH. It is very possible that this is a cause What are the symptoms of PPH? In the early stages of PPh there are no symptoms. Usually a person will go to the doctor for another disease and will find that it can’t be cured. After numerous tests,PPH is found to be the primary cause. 1.frequent tiredness or tiring easily as if you are out of shape. 2.Difficulty breathing,dizziness,fainting 3.Swelling in ankles/legs,bluish lips and skin 4.chest pain 5.trouble getting air 6.Palpitations-may be so severe that it is compared to a heart attack. How is PPH diagnosed? 1.Electrocardiogram-indicates whether heart is under increased stress 2.PPH is rarely picked up in a routine medical exam. It is usually confused with other heart/lung diseases. 3.Echocardiogram-The doctor uses sound waves to map a structure of the heart and see if the right side is larger. 4.Pulmonary Function Tests-measures lung volume. 5.Right-heart Cardiac Catheterization-A catheter(tube)is placed in the patient’s arm,let,neck...to measure the blood pressure of the right side of the heart. what is the course and Treatment of PPH? PPH starts when a layer of cells in the lungs are damaged.

PBGC Company Profile Essay

PBGC is an abbreviation of a Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. The purpose of this federal corporation is to protect American’s pension. Its mission is related to protection: Forty four million American workers retirement income is currently being protected in more than 30000 benefit pension plans of private single-employer and multiemployer. Its formation is the result of an act of 1974 by the name Employee Retirement Income Security Act. It has the following objectives: First It helps private-sector define benefit pension plans to be continued and remain well maintained. Second is to provide pension benefits payment time to time, without any interruption. Its third objective is to keep minimum pension insurance premiums. The defined benefit pension plan gives pension on a monthly basis to the retirees but the pension amount is depended upon the salary and the year of services the retirees have rendered. The corporation does not only give monthly payments to retirees up to the guaranteed maximum but also the multiemployer plans participants and one who have not retired yet get financial assistance from it. General Tax Revenues don’t give any kind of fund to this corporation. Insurance premiums financed the operations of this federal corporation which was being set by Congress. Insurance premium is being paid by the sponsors defined for each benefit plan that are basically employers. The recoveries are being made from the companies which would be responsible for the plans in the past. Earnings come from investments for this corporation. According to the plan ended in 2008, workers will get $4,312. 50 monthly when they will get retire at the age of 65. It serves the range of customer’s e. g. general public, media and so on. Board of directors including the Secretaries of Labor (Chair), Commerce and the Treasury guided the operations of PBGC. The two highest priorities of this administration is to reform the defined benefit pension system and bring improvement in retirement security. It contributed in the development of Pension Protection Act of 2006. Since PBGC has worked over the last 33 years for the protection plan of participant’s interests and also to support private pension system’s growth; millions of American workers can now think about secured retirement along with their families. Both the benefit plan and the guarantee by PBGC have made a difference in the lives of the diligent Americans. Annually about $4 million is being given by this corporation to 44 million Americans. The development of the 2006 act not only improved the status of funding of many defined benefit plans but also pension system is being strengthened. Competitive advantage: The corporation has been very effective throughout in managing change over the past few years,’ pension insurance programs have faced many unexpected challenges. The corporation also won an award of managing its work force superbly in this changing business environment. The executive director said: â€Å"We are pleased to be recognized for having the right people, processes and systems in place to manage a doubling of our customer base with no diminution in the quality of our customer service. † (www. pbgc. gov,2008). It was being a first federal agency which got the full certification for its executive evaluation system. It got plenty of awards presented in magazines. These are as under: General Excellence, Service, Competitive Advantage, Global Outlook, Innovation, Managing Change, Financial Impact, Partnership, Ethical Practice and Vision. Weaknesses of PBGC: Weaknesses of PBGC’s certification and accreditation (C&A): This would impact the accuracy and completion of information which would affect the credibility of the corporation. It also affects the capability of the corporation to take and manage risks. It compromises agency’s personnel and assets too. There should be an effective C&A system to assure security of assets, personnel and operations and that could assure that the corporation is capable enough to meet its functional requirements. The National Institute of Standards and Technology Special Publication 800-37, Accreditation of Federal Information Systems and Guide for the Security Certification provides the framework under 2002 act named as the Federal Information Security Management Act, Public Law 107-347, for how C&A program of this corporation should be implemented. Inadequate security policy and plan: The security policy and plan of the current information of PBGC are not according to the guidance provided by National Institute of Standards and Technology Special (NIST) under Federal Information Security Management Act. NIST has developed guidance and standards. It also includes minimum requirement to provide sufficient security of information for all agency assets and operations Change in organizational structure: In 2006 the reorganization of the OIT i. e. ffice of information technology had badly affected the Information System Security Officer’s ability to ensure appropriate operational security for PBGC’s information system. It affected the clarity for officer in terms of his responsibilities and accountability. It made it hard for the officer to establish security standards and procedures. Internal control weaknesses: High risk is being involved in the PBGC’s single-employer pension insurance program. The program had an accumulated deficit of $5. 4 billion in 2003 which was the largest one in history of the corporation. Under funding also increased dramatically in private pension system. The deficit was due to the following reasons: bankrupt firm’s under funded pension plans were ceased, there was a drawback in funding rules, stock market and interest rates decline, companies went global and economy is turned into knowledge based economy. The company had taken steps to improve the internal control for premiums. This is being done for two reasons. First Safeguard of assets: controls must be establish to ensure that cost and obligation are according to the law applicable and assets are safeguarded against any loss or related factors. Second reason is Financial Reporting: it is to ensure that proper reporting is being done of all the revenues and expenditures so that documentation and reports can be made and are accurate. Data Quality Weaknesses: Incorrect data entry, adjustments, and system-generated balances generate errors. Because of the data quality issue, the corporation is unable to ensure the accuracy and completeness of premium data by utilizing Past Due Filing Notices and Statements of Account. The 1st one used to notify plans which had not yet submitted premium filings and 2nd one is used to ensure that underpaid/overpaid premiums from a plan sponsor could be sort out effectively. During auditing it was being noticed that these two tools are not being used timely as it requires significant resources before mailing. Due to this, premiums could not be collected and errors could not be detected. Additionally policies and procedures have not been documented, communicated, or implemented throughout PBGC which is related to the premium accounting cycle. www. pbgc. gov,2008). Business Strategy: The new investment strategy is being formulated to balance risk and return and to improve chances of reaching full funding over the long run. According to this strategy diversified set of fixed-income investments and diversified equity investments both will be given 45% of its assets each and 10% will be given to alternative investment. Financial Information: A deficit of $18. 1 billion was being posted by insurance program for single-employer pension plans in fiscal year 2006. Due to the airline relief provisions in the Pension Protection Act, the corporation managed to reduce its probable liabilities. This led to a $4. 7 billion net improvement. It announces maximum insurance benefit for 2009. The amount would be higher for those who retire later and vise versa. The corporation had a peak year in 2000 when they had a surplus of $10 billion almost which was followed by surplus of $8 billion in 2001. The corporation got the calls in order to stop charging premiums. It got around $9 billion claims in 2002. The claims were because of airline and steel industry. (www. soa. org, n. d. ).

Mass media Essay

From my point of view, I agree that the mass media, including TV, radio and newspaper have a great influence in shaping people ideas . Nowdays mass media is a form of progress of information and communication technology. Through the mass media that the more developed allows information spread easily in the community. Information in any form can be disseminated quickly and easily so that it affects the viewpoints, lifestyles, and culture of a nation. The rapid flow of information causes us not to be able to filter the messages. As a result subconsciously it little by little have been affecting pattern of behavior and culture in society. Long-standing culture and become a benchmark in society behave are now almost gone and escapes the attention of the community. As a result, the longer the social changes in the community began to surface a raised. The influence of the mass media on contemporary theory of the influence of media on society has been fostering the rapid reforms in society. The influence of the media with regard to other aspects such as the nature of the communicators, the content, information from the media itself, as well as the response from the community. Rapid development of information and communication technologies such as mass media, led to rapid changes everywhere. The Mass Media have gradually brought the community into a new cultural patterns and begin to determine the mindset and culture of community behavior. The Media tells people how decent standards of living for a human, thus indirectly causing the Community judge whether their neighborhoods have been worth or whether he has met the standard and this heavily influenced picture of what is seen, heard and read from the media. Message or information conveyed by the media could be a support community for the better, making the public feel happy to be themselves, feel quite deflating or otherwise trust him or feeling low than others. Existence of other behaviour pattern changes of lifestyle. Usually someone will imitate everything related to his idols are good in terms of dress, look, or how to speak her piece that reflects themselves his idols. The above are likely to be more influential on a generation. A socio-psychological, information flows that continue to hit our lives will give rise to various influences on the development of the soul, especially for children and teens. Their behavior patterns, little by little is affected by what they receive may be deviated from the stage of development of the soul as well as the norms in force. The positive effects of mass media on society is the society would gain something more news worthy. For example, news bombing of WTC and the war in Iraq, despite being in a different country but with proper information and information through the mass media. This will cause people to be more sensitive to the issues at. In addition, through the use of internet and telephone bimbit allow community out of its cocoon. For the conclusion, am agree that the mass media, including TV, radio and newspaper have a great influence in shaping people ideas.

Breaking away essays

Breaking away essays The move breaking away is about four teenage high school graduates name Dave Stohler, Mike, Cyril and Moocher. Dave the main character has decided to spend the year hanging out and having a good time with his friends. Breaking Away is about the hostility between the college fraternity students at Indiana University and the locals called cutters, which are Dave and his friends. Dave is a very talented bicycle rider and wants to be like the Italian racers.   He idolizes the Italian racing team, because he enjoys bicycle racing to the point that he imitates them.   He won many local races without breaking a sweat.   He poses as an Italian exchange student to get Katherine, a sorority girl, to like him. Cyril was beaten up after a sorority girl informed the frat guys the "outsiders" were singing to Katherine.   Mike was enraged when he found out and arranged a fight between the two groups at a local bowling alley. This movie is about the differences between the wealthy frat students and the locals.   Dave and his three friends are not doing anything with their lives after high school.  Mike is jealous of the fact that the frat students are still involved in sports because he used to be a high school quarterback and challenges a swimming race, which he lost.   Throughout the movie the friends start to separate because they realize they want different things in life.   Moocher goes and gets married and wants to move to Chicago to follow in his father's footsteps. Cyril plans to retake the college entrance exams even though he won't get a basketball scholarship.   Dave gets a job at his father's car dealership after being treated unfairly by the Italian team at the exhibition race when they threw a bar in his front wheel.   In the movie they spend a lot of time fighting with the frat boys because they are jealous of their upbringings.   In the movie the school frowns on the feud between the two groups.   The school decides ...

Discussion 1 Essay

Discussion 1 Essay Discussion 1 Essay (1) Briefly describe the nature, aim, skills, and value of philosophy. Nature Philosophy begins with wonder, a search for unity of knowledge, and the desire to answer the general questions of life. The main questions are concerning â€Å"what if?† and asking the powerful question â€Å"why?† Questioning the familiar and challenge â€Å"accepted wisdom† is the nature of philosophy. â€Å"Why?† is the most profound question in the human language that reveals hidden assumptions and exposes the rationale of conclusions. Philosophy holds the desire for synthesis and integration, and â€Å"put[s] all of the pieces together.† Aim Philosophy is driven by the desire to evaluate principles of thought and reality in our universe. Its outcome is to make human existence more intelligible. It is a personal responsibility to ask many questions, find out the meaning of life and find purpose. Skills In order to learn and â€Å"do† philosophy, one must try to be a critical thinker. This is a list of skills a critical thinker possesses: Qualities of a critical thinker: -Open-minded- In discussions, he or she listens carefully to every viewpoint and evaluats each perspective carefully and fairly. -Knowledgeable- Opinions are based on facts and evidence. If there is lack of knowledge on a subject, he or she acknowledges this. -Mentally active- Takes initiative and actively uses intelligence to confront problems to meet challenges, instead of passively responding to events. -Curious- Explores situations and questions beneath the surface issues, instead of being satisfied with superficial explanations. -Independent thinkers- Unafraid to disagree with a group opinion. Develops well-supported beliefs through thoughtful analysis, instead of uncritically â€Å"borrowing† beliefs from others. -Skilled discussants- Is able to discuss ideas in an organized and intelligent way. Even when issues are controversial, he or she listens carefully to opposing viewpoints and responds thoughtfully. -Insightful- Is able to get to the heart of the issue and problem. Others may be distracted by details. He or she is able to zero in on the core and see the â€Å"forest† as well as the â€Å"trees.† -Self-aware- Awareness of own biases and quick to point them out. Takes this into consideration when analyzing a situation. -Creative- Breaks out of established patterns of thinking and approaches situations from an innovative directions. -Passionate ­- Has a

How to Define Atmosphere

How to Define Atmosphere The term atmosphere has multiple meanings in science: Atmosphere Definition Atmosphere refers to the gases surrounding a star or planetary body held in place by gravity. A body is more likely to retain an atmosphere over time if gravity is high and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. The composition of the Earths atmosphere is about 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, 0.9 percent argon, with water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other gases. The atmospheres of other planets have a different composition. The composition of the Suns atmosphere consists of about 71.1 percent hydrogen, 27.4 percent helium, and 1.5 percent other elements. Atmosphere Unit An atmosphere is also a unit of pressure. One atmosphere (1 atm) is defined to be equal to 101,325 Pascals. A reference or standard pressure is commonly 1 atm. In other cases, Standard Temperature and Pressure or STP is used.

Summary&Response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Summary&Response - Essay Example They spend a lot of time with technology and own gadgets such as iPod and other mobile devices and do most of their activities online. The authors further note that difference between the three categories offers advantages and conflicts. The digital natives have some techniques that captivate the older generation such as creativity in technology but also lack some fundamental aspects such as interpersonal skills. Technology also induces bad traits among the digital natives. Digital settlers are however in a better position to handle the digital natives who rely on online technology for their interpersonal interactions. Even though the digital natives depict different lifestyles from digital immigrants, some of the fundamentals are retained. Shared online music with playlist, for expressing affection, has for example substituted music cassettes with track lists. Acknowledging development that the digital natives have caused and potential improvements, the author notes that the technol ogy use among digital natives must be handled with care because actions on it may either propel or destroy the society. The authors offer a rich description of the digital natives, their distinguishing characteristics from the digital immigrants and settlers, and effects on contemporary technology on the digital natives. This means existence of a gap between segments of the population with respect to use of technology. I agree with the authors position on these themes. First, experience with the digital natives exposes their extreme reliance on technology as they spend a lot of time on related devices. Interaction with them in public places and even in family even illustrates this as they are oftem immerced in the computerized devices, either chating with friends, updating status, or downloading online content. My personal experience in family occasions confirm this as family members, from

Principles of advertising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Principles of advertising - Essay Example However, the vast variety of brands and products may also be the companys biggest weakness as it makes it almost a certainty that some items will not become popular. It also makes it difficult to give all of their products enough attention when it comes to staying up-to-date with market changes. Regardless, PepsiCo has the opportunity to increase sales at almost any time simply by exploiting their strongest markets through raised prices and the introduction of new, well-researched, and desirable products. The biggest threat to the continued growth of PepsiCo is the Coca-Cola Company, whose focus on beverages has kept it on top of the market. PepsiCo is a strong company with a lot of power and much to offer the public. Moving forward, they will likely be focused on overtaking Coke. The only way to accomplish this may be to become less diverse, so that more time and resources can be given to their top

Writing an evaluative essay about the experience

Writing an evaluative about the experience - Essay Example The play begins with the appearance of the three witches where they meet the two generals Banquo, Macbeth. We later find that the heinous crimes committed by Macbeth and Lady Macbeth have affected their psyche. Lady Macbeth is seen suffering from sleep walking malady and finally she kills herself. Macbeth is left alone to fight with the enemies after he has been crowned the King of Scotland. The play ends with the death of Macbeth. He is beheaded (Shakespeare, Gill). I have analyzed the play based on- The program note informed that the director designed the theme based on a 16th century mandala, which was present at the backdrop of the play. The play was spectacular. The supernatural scenes, which were played by three men, were exquisite. The witches looked perfect in their black gory dressed with their accompanying high-pitched voices. The dresses of the actors looked perfectly of the Elizabethan period. The dim lights and the shadowy backdrop reinforced the effect of darkness and mystery that portrayed though out the play. To enhance their effect the witches were dressed in rotting costumes, which were types of shrouds. The porter scene was also very symbolic. The drunken porter went on rambling about the inner hell of Macbeth’s castle. His drunken yet appropriate metaphors not only enhanced the plays but also lifted to another level. The sleepwalking scene of Lady Macbeth is also nerve chilling because it shows the complete disintegration of her psyche. It is seen that she tells to herself that not all the perfumes of Arabia would sweeten her hand. By this she means that the crimes that were committed by these hands could not wash away and the heinous deeds were as if smelling even after they had been washed away repeatedly. The doctor informs later the audience that she used to keep on washing her hands. We

Fitness Assignments Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Fitness Assignments - Coursework Example The client is a complete beginner to exercise and have not attended any fitness program before. In addition, the client possesses an active lifestyle with high intake of junk food. No cardio respiratory diseases or blood sugar abnormalities were identified to relate with the family history of the client. The client’s secondary motive is to remain fit and healthy. On the other hand, the primary goal of the client is to become a basketball player. A detailed information about the client has been presented below in a tabular format. Basketball is recognized as a ‘non-contact’ sport, wherein body contact is commonly witnessed among the players. Hence, basketball players usually require muscular strengths as well as body mass to maintain their position against the opponents. In this regard, certain qualities are extremely important for the basketball players to acquire a competitive edge over the opponents. Speed, agility and quick recovery are a few major fitness components that are essential for developing the performance of the individual players as well as team. The goals of the client behind attending training are to become a basketball player and keep self-fit and healthy. Hence, in line with these goals of the client, certain specific methods of testing by which further assessments can be gauged against for effective training have been designed. These testing methods will include ‘test of jumping’, ‘test of agility’, and ‘tests of strength’ (Sporis, Naglic, Milanovic, Talovic, & Jeleskovic, 2010). On each exercise, 20-30 sec work will be performed with 20-40sec recovery after the completion of each exercise. At the same time, warm up before starting exercise and cooling down after exercise will also be performed. The following exercise circuit has been set up for conducting a resistance-based circuit so that the fellow students work in each body part. The session is divided

Write a memo, Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Write a memo, - Essay Example Viral gastroenteritis, caused by norovirus, has been an epidemic in the nation, including the capital of South Caledonia, affecting communities such as schools, residential complexes, and emergency shelters for humanitarian aid, and causing illnesses such as fever, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, during its outbreak. There have however been limited cases of fatalities and victims are able to recover a few days after its onset. Secondary consequences such as restrain from work when the virus infects people or as people stay at home to tend to victims. A vaccine was developed for the infection and the Food and Drug Administration authorized for suitability for human use and for effectiveness in controlling the infection. The vaccine has no adverse effects and was approved for people above three years. The South Caledonia legislature then passed a law that would compel people to receive the vaccination, at the state’s cost, and fine a person who failed to receive the vaccination a sum of $ 750, unless there is a valid state exemption. Mr. Russell has been notified that he must receive the vaccine but he does not qualify for an exemption and do not wish to pursue it. He therefore seeks advice on possible suit against the state. Mr. Russell plans to sue the state for protection of his right of autonomy in order to avoid liability for not receiving vaccination against the viral gastroenteris. He relies on the provisions of the 14th amendment that provides that states shall not enact laws that infringe a citizen’s rights and liberty nor shall states deprive such rights without due process (Guminski, 2009). There are however other amendments that limit the rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. The Ninth Amendment provides that no right shall be interpreted to deny others their rights and the Tenth Amendment gives states powers such as legislations that are not reserved to the

Fitness Assignments Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Fitness Assignments - Coursework Example The client is a complete beginner to exercise and have not attended any fitness program before. In addition, the client possesses an active lifestyle with high intake of junk food. No cardio respiratory diseases or blood sugar abnormalities were identified to relate with the family history of the client. The client’s secondary motive is to remain fit and healthy. On the other hand, the primary goal of the client is to become a basketball player. A detailed information about the client has been presented below in a tabular format. Basketball is recognized as a ‘non-contact’ sport, wherein body contact is commonly witnessed among the players. Hence, basketball players usually require muscular strengths as well as body mass to maintain their position against the opponents. In this regard, certain qualities are extremely important for the basketball players to acquire a competitive edge over the opponents. Speed, agility and quick recovery are a few major fitness components that are essential for developing the performance of the individual players as well as team. The goals of the client behind attending training are to become a basketball player and keep self-fit and healthy. Hence, in line with these goals of the client, certain specific methods of testing by which further assessments can be gauged against for effective training have been designed. These testing methods will include ‘test of jumping’, ‘test of agility’, and ‘tests of strength’ (Sporis, Naglic, Milanovic, Talovic, & Jeleskovic, 2010). On each exercise, 20-30 sec work will be performed with 20-40sec recovery after the completion of each exercise. At the same time, warm up before starting exercise and cooling down after exercise will also be performed. The following exercise circuit has been set up for conducting a resistance-based circuit so that the fellow students work in each body part. The session is divided

The Ballad of the White Horse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Ballad of the White Horse - Essay Example These lines were quoted by leading journals which were carrying war news. The Lady appearing before Alfred tells him that there is nothing much to look forward to, if it is only comfort that he is desiring. Things would only get tougher and man has to keep fighting as evil would only return stronger each time to engulf. Earl Ogier of the Stone and Sling, a General in King Gurthrum's army sings these lines in reply to the sentimental songs sung earlier by another Earl Elf, and Prince Harold before him who sang of the pleasures of this earth. He refutes their songs in which they speak about gods and women. Here he says that when all the pleasures are enjoyed , in life there is only Hate left. Having grown old, men like him and King Guthrum know that there is no such thing as true love. Chesterton with his strong faith in Roman Catholicism writes such lines to underline the state of Hell in side the minds of men of no belief. There is only despair and no faith in God to relieve the despair. This is King Gurthrum's song which express the bleakness of his heart. He sings in reply to the songs of Ogier and Elf before him , that, by now men have grown up to realize that there is no comfort of truth in any of the fanciful tales of gods and youth. The cold truth is that even gods die; even the mightiest kingdoms are raced down.

Project Implementation Plan Essay Example for Free

Project Implementation Plan Essay In a project the communication level is a very important part from the beginning to the end of project close out and completion stage. This method in the plan is extremely necessary and it is a needed tool that helps assist the project team, the stakeholders, and the executive team of Enterprise. This tool is effective and it makes sure all members involved with the project is on the same level of understanding, it makes sure all involved stays updated on the project, knows what is going on in the project, and it helps keep the project information together. â€Å"One of the primary jobs of a project manager is to manage the trade-offs among time, cost, and performance† (Gray Larson, 2006, p. 103). A project manager must ensure that he keeps everybody inform about the latest development of the project; thereby gives sense of belonging to every member of the project team as well as the sponsor or customer. Within this project, the communication plan is the key element that is designed to help assist the project team, stakeholders, and the executive team aware of any progress, and to help keep up with the status of the progress in the process. The plan of communication design help keep all members of the project aware of the progress and the status of the project, it helps everyone stay informed and connected in the project, and it gives information regarding any matters of urgency that are crucial within the project progress. The purpose of this  communication plan is to make sure all key aspects and elements of the communication strategy are documented and implemented successfully in the project. The strategies implemented include: frequency, method of delivery, recipients, and owner. The frequency in this communication plan entails scheduled meetings and how often they are being scheduled, it explains the project progress and all important information needed to help assist with the project deliverables which helps keep all the members aware of everything needed to meet the objectives of the project while keeping everyone on the same level of understanding. The team will have meeting on the status and progress of the project deliverables scheduled throughout the project as needed. Method of delivery is the avenue in which the reports or minutes of all the meetings will be disseminating to all the participants. The method adopts for the purpose of this project is through email, in person, and paper copy. The recipients in this project are project team, enterprise executive and potential stakeholders in the project outcomes. These are the people that directly are involved in carrying out activities in this project. The format is in regards to the style adopted to see the communication being effective as the project progresses. These are important elements needed to help achieve the project objectives and deliverables which keep all members connected, informed, and constantly communicating. The training, development, and overall retention and selection practices helps manage challenges (McNamara, 2011). The channel of communication for the purpose of this project will be formal in nature. No informal meeting will be allow or reckon with, all information must be well documented with proper references. Verbal and written communication is needed in as much it does oblige with the communication plan designed for this project. It is essential to the elements of the project success that all stakeholders involved have to follow the rules as contains in this communication plan because this will help track any issues as regards the scope, schedule and cost of this project. The project manager is in charge of clarifying any elements in this communication plan, and all concerns need to be addressed to the project manager. PROGRESS MEETING AGENDA Introduction Review meeting times Project progress update Contingency modification Request for information Scope performance Budget performance Project Schedule Owner items Next meeting date PROGRESS MEETING AGENDA Meeting agenda are guidelines that help modify and keep focuses of the issues to be discussed. The elements are tools that write down everything that needs to be achieved after a meeting. In the case of this project, many items have been identified and pencil down for this purpose of this meeting. They are introduction, review of last meeting minutes, project progress update, contingency modification, request for information, contractor update about scope performance, budget performance, and project schedule, also identified are owner items, and next meeting date. Introduction gives every participant in the meeting the ability to tell people who they are, what they are doing and their contribution or job function as related to the on-going project. This process brings everyone together on the same page and it helps members get to know one another and form an effective working relationship. Review last meeting minutes is an important element in this process that explains all the activ ities of previous meeting if there is any out loud so that everyone clearly hears and knows what is going on in the project. This allows all members to know what has been said, what needs to be done, and it helps to go over everything about the agenda of the day. Progress update is the most important aspect of this process. All the major stake holders furnish the house with comprehensive update of what happen to the project since last meeting. This must cover the areas of what was identified in the previous progress meeting as well which helps keep all members of the project on the same level of understanding what has happened, is happening, and will happen in the next meeting. Contingency modification is when things happen unexpectedly during the activities of the project needs to cater for. This should bring attention to the house if there is any  contingency or not, and if there is any, what is the solution put in place to address this contingency. Request for information is where information that needs immediate attention of project team is discussed. The information here could be result of specifics action that was previously talked about in the past meetings. Contractor update is when the contractor gives detail reports of the project or major portion of the project to the sponsor or customer. The parameter that the report of contractor will focus on must include project scope performance, project budget performance and project schedule. Owner items explain what the owner has observed within the project. He or she explains whether or not the project is going as scheduled? Is the project still running within the budget and are specifications being met? This is a means that the owner talks extensively about what he or she has observed and what changes he or she wants to see before the next meeting. Next meeting date is where the current meeting is adjourned and the next progress meeting date is announce to everybody. The date, the time and the venue of the meeting will be known to everybody. The next meeting helps prepare all members for the future meetings and the aspects of these meetings that are important and essential to the success of the project. PROJECT CHARTER PURPOSE The project charter defines the scope, objectives, and overall approach for the work to be completed. It is a critical element for initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and assessing the project. It should be the single point of reference on the project for project goals and objectives, scope, organization, estimates, work plan, and budget. In addition, it serves as a contract between the Project Team and the Project Sponsors, stating what will be delivered according to the budget, time constraints, risks, resources, and standards agreed upon for the project.

Commodity Price Movements in the Twenty first Century

Commodity Price Movements in the Twenty first Century Commodity Super Cycles and Bubbles Sharp movement in commodity prices, especially of oil, and some base metals like copper, since the turn of the century, have attracted enormous international attention and debate. The price of oil, which shot up from the sedate levels of approximately twenty-eight USD per barrel, a few years ago, to the high seventies, in 2006, sent ripples through the economies of advanced nations, even as it added billions to the current account surpluses of oil rich nations, like Kuwait. While the movement in oil attracted international attention because of its universal usage, prices of items like copper, steel, cement and uranium also soared to new heights. These developments led to intense discussion among economic experts and business thinkers, who were divided in their opinion about the causes of commodity behaviour, as well as its future movement. While a large number of scholars feel that the recent movement in commodity prices is no more than the initial movement of a wave that will last for many more years, if not decades, others put it down to wrong economic policies and the work of market speculators. This research assignment aims to study and explore the various aspects of this extremely intriguing and globally significant development, and thus arrive at findings and conclusions that are able to illuminate the complex topic. Executive Summary This research assignment attempts to delve deeply into the causal factors behind the sharp upward movement in prices of commodities during the last six years. The assignment is structured into sections that describe the situation in totality, and then take up the many theories that have gained ground in recent years on the issue. While many people believe that a commodity super cycle is under way, powered by the demand for materials from an enormously fast growing China, others feel that these movements, like the one in the price of oil, is a twenty-first century reminder of the commodity bubble that took the price of tulips to astronomical heights in seventeenth century Holland. The study includes an analysis of the commodity super cycle, the roles played by the growth of China and India in increasing commodity demand, the effect of liberal monetary policies, and that of speculative activity, in the price movement process. Detailed analyses of the thoughts and writings of experts on the subject, including thinkers like Jim Rogers and financial professionals like Stephen Roach, along with the study of texts and journals available on the subject, have led to findings that have lent themselves to some interesting analyses and conclusions. These will hopefully prove to be relevant in providing fresh perspectives, and increase available knowledge on the issue. 1. Introduction a. Overview Recent years have witnessed enormous changes in the global economic scenario. Much of what is happening in the cross continental market place owes its origin to the vision and determination of a slightly built and thrice married octogenarian, Deng Xiao Ping. Deng, the Chairman of the People’s Republic in the 1980s, introduced broad and sweeping changes in the Chinese economy under the name of the four modernisations. His reforms, which covered agriculture, industry, science and technology, and the military, opened up the Chinese economy, and were instrumental in transforming it into one of the largest and fastest growing economies of the world. (Deng Xiao Ping, 2007) Years of double-digit economic and infrastructural growth in China profoundly affected the economies of other countries, and, in the process, set off a huge tide of economic movement that encompassed the whole world. In the mid nineties, the socialist government of India, threatened by international debts, shrinki ng foreign exchange reserves, and an exasperated population, decided to catch up with its larger neighbour, and initiated a series of economic reforms that led to sharp increases in economic development, and catapulted the country into the ranks of the fastest growing world economies. The unharnessing of these two countries, which together account for a third of global population, from the shackles of state economic control, has created an unprecedented demand for commodities. As China and India rush to make up for decades of low growth, poor living standards, and abysmal poverty, their booming economies are hungrily devouring ever-increasing quantities of metals, agricultural produce and oil products. This insatiable hunger, in the opinion of economists and market analysts, has led to the development of a sustained increase in prices of commodities, known in economic parlance as a commodity super cycle. Other thinkers and columnists have expressed dissenting views, blaming market speculators for building up prices to unrealistic levels and creating artificial bubbles; which were bound to burst, and cover all connected with a good amount of unpleasant and possibly disastrous debris. b. Definition of problem The current upward movement of commodity prices has assumed worrying overtones. The escalating prices of crude oil, which moved up, in a period of a few years, from the regions of the mid twenties per barrel, to that of the high seventies, perplexed and worried governments, and economic thinkers all over the world. Apart from oil, prices of many commodities, particularly metals and agricultural produce, have escalated to unprecedented levels, impacting price indices, affecting buying power, and unsettling economies on a cross continental basis. Price behaviours of different commodities are under detailed scrutiny, with experts trying to pin down their reasons. While the sharp increase in the price of maize is attributed to the diversion of corn for production of bioethanol for the US and Brazilian markets, (Trade aspects of Biofuels, 2007) the increase in prices of oil is thought to be due to its increased consumption in China and India. The huge boom in the Indian stock market, on t he other hand, appears to be due to the large influx of foreign institutional investors, who have taken indices in the last two years to more than twice that of 2005. While the enormous increase in economic activity has resulted in increased profitability for business corporations, and has presumably contributed towards reduction of poverty and want, the accompanying inflation has also brought with it enormous worries, particularly for governments of developing countries. Recent months have seen governments, (under tremendous pressure from angry citizens) and central banks raise prime lending rates, and use other economic tools to suck extra money out of the system, in futile attempts to contain runaway inflation. In the midst of numerous theories, the only constant appears to be in the movements of commodity prices, which continue to climb, of course with periodic pauses, and occasional corrections. The development of a long lasting commodity super cycle, in the opinion of many experts, appears to be the major causal factor behind the present circumstances. In this scenario, it becomes important for economic thinkers to focus on the actual reason s for this phenomenon, and its likely consequences, in order to take corrective action. c. Objective This assignment delves deeply into the issues related to commodity life cycles, and commodity bubbles, from economic, political and social perspectives, and with particular reference to the current global economic scenario. The subject matter is enormous and covers local and international developments in politics, society and economics. The assignment involves examination of primary and secondary information sources, and the study of available literature and research. It makes substantial use of secondary material in the form of texts, journals and magazine articles as well as internet sources for purposes of data availability, analysis and investigation. A good amount of thinking on the subject has occurred in the past few years with numerous experts expressing frequently contradictory and quite confusing views in their syndicated and one-off columns. Despite serious and sincere effort, some important information regarding the topic may well have not found place in the assignment, a deficiency that could limit the validity of its conclusions. The bibliography provides complete details of the accessed information. The order of issues taken up for discussion is sequential, for the sake of logical progression of ideas and thought. 2. Literature Review a. The Commodity Super Cycle Economists have, for decades, believed in the theory of cyclical growth, characterised by periods of growth, followed by years of depression or slump. Events, economies, and political systems move through cycles similar to the natural life cycles of living beings. These cycles, while observable, have no obvious reason and involve changes between periods of comparatively swift increase of production, income and prosperity and periods of relative stagnation. (Business Cycle, 2007) These periodic movements do not follow an established or expected pattern and behave randomly, with extended, or short, growth or slump years. In the stock and commodity markets, these boom and bust periods have been famous for causing widespread prosperity or destruction. Cycles generally comprise of four distinct phases namely contraction, trough, expansion, and peak. Whereas expansions and contractions account for the major portion of the cycle, the troughs and peaks denote the lower and upper turning poin ts where contractions change into expansions and vice versa. These cycles have been the focus of detailed economic study for ages with governments trying, mostly without success, to smoothen slumps, periods that have historically caused widespread unemployment, losses and suffering. Business cycles are as applicable to commodities as to other elements of the economy and are generally measurable in movement of national or regional GDP. Occasionally, commodities move into a phase of upward movement in prices for extended periods, which continue for many years, sometimes even many decades. They mainly occur because of major economic developments that are significant enough to drive demand and consumption on a global basis for long periods. Super cycles form because of the industrialisation or urbanisation of a major economy, (Heap, 2005) a process that normally occurs over decades, and leads to situations wherein increases in supplies of commodities are unable to catch up with increases in their demand. These imbalances, while originating in particular geographical areas, occur for years and result in substantial price increases of commodities, and that too on a global basis, for extended periods. What we can say is that there clearly are long-term cycles and that they are driven by fundamental changes in the world around us. Global wars, the industrial revolution, major innovations in transport and communications are just some of the factors that can instigate long-lasting shifts in economic growth, that in turn stimulate demand for commodities. Increased demand drives prices higher while producers struggle to increase the capacity to meet that demand. Ultimately, prices peak when excess capacity has been developed – the cycle is then completed when demand abates and general surpluses force prices lower. (Guthrie, 2007) Two discernible super cycles have occurred during the last 150 years. (Heap, 2005) Huge economic and infrastructural growth in the USA, during the turn of the nineteenth century, created a super cycle in commodities. Later, commodity super cycles developed during the post war reconstruction of Europe followed by enormous economic activity in Japan. If you look at history, there have always been super cycles in demand for commodities. There was a super- cycle during the British industrial revolution, during America’s huge period of growth before and after the second world war and during Japan’s industrialisation in the 1970s.† (Cooper, 2005) Many economists feel that the movement of commodity prices since the turn of the millennium indicates that the global economy is in the midst of a strong commodity super cycle, a phase that has just about started and still has a long way to go. Gary Dorsch, writing for SafeHaven (2006) states that the Reuters Jefferies Commodity Price Index (CRB), which comprises of futures in â€Å"live cattle, cotton, soybeans, sugar, frozen concentrated orange juice, wheat, cocoa, corn, gold, aluminium, nickel, unleaded gasoline, crude oil, natural gas, heating oil, coffee, silver, copper and lean hogs† has reached levels 91 % higher than what it was four years ago, its highest level in 26 years. Apart from the behaviour of the CRB index, prices of oil have increased seven times from its 1999 levels. Demand for oil is about 85m barrels a day at the moment and most people forecast that it will hit 125m barrels a day in the next 15 to 20 years. I see no way in which this will be met, so oil prices will stay high.† Goldman Sachs, the investment bank, has even forecast that the oil price could hit $100 a barrel in the event of a â€Å"supply shock† — a disruption to the supply of oil as a result of natural disaster, sabotage, war or political upheaval. (Cooper, 2005) Copper has also behaved in virtually the same manner from the lows it saw in 2001. â€Å"Now it’s the turn of the grains, where wheat and particularly corn have exploded higher on the US futures exchanges.† (Guthrie, 2007) A number of other experts are reinforcing this phenomenon. While metals, led by base metals such as copper, aluminium and zinc, as well as precious metals like gold, silver and platinum have, until now, along with oil, led the price charge, prices of agricultural produce are also beginning to rocket. â€Å"Recently however, commodity traders have doubled sugar prices to 24-year highs, and are moving into coffee and soybeans.† (Dorsch, 2006) Prices of iron ore have risen to dizzying heights, practically 72 % in 2005. While tracking of commodity prices is an ongoing activity, the frenetic movement of prices during the last seven years has added another dimension to the issue. Numerous articles, either prophesying its continuation for many more years or predicting a roll back in the near future, pack the pages of financial journals and magazines. Each minute movement in commodity prices is subjected to detailed scrutiny, compared with trends and used as a base for future forecasts. The majority however appears to be in consensus that the current trend of increasing prices, across a cross section of fuel, metal and agricultural commodities should remain in place for quite some time. b. Main Causes behind Current and Expected Price Behaviour in Commodities While numerous major and minor reasons affect commodity price behaviour, this discussion focuses on a few major reasons, widely accepted to be the primary causal factors behind the constant and significant price increases of the past few years. The liberalisation process kick started by Deng Xiao Ping, in China, in the early eighties, led to developments that were possibly beyond his wildest expectations, and catapulted him into the ranks of those whose actions changed today’s world. The implementation of economic reforms accompanied with the opening of the Chinese economy resulted in unprecedented and unimaginable growth rates. During the last twenty-five years, the country’s economy changed from a centrally administered system, largely closed to international trade, to a market oriented economy with a rapidly growing private sector. Reforms, which commenced with the phasing out of collective farming, expanded to incorporate freedom from price control, fiscal decentralization, increased autonomy for state controlled enterprises, a large and diverse banking infrastructure, vibrant stock markets, the growth of privately owned and controlled enterprise and the opening of the economy to trade and investment. As C hina implemented the reforms in a phased manner, the restructuring and consequent efficiencies led to a year on year GDP growth well in excess of 10 % and a tenfold increase in GDP since 1978. The country, in recent years, has overtaken the most advanced nations of the world, and in terms of purchasing power parity, stands second only to the United States. Exports are a key driver behind the Chinese economic miracle, with Chinas currency exchange controls and trade surplus with the US topping $204 billion in 2005, a 25% increase on the previous year and nearly 30% of the total US deficit. The lynchpin of Chinese exports is the low Yuan /dollar exchange rate pegged at 8.11 per dollar, undervalued by 30% to 40% on a trade-weighted basis. (Dorsch, 2006) Growth has also driven enormous spending on infrastructure and urbanisation, with millions of Chinese relocating from villages to urban centres. Foreign investors, from the west, as well as from East Asian economies like Japan and South Korea have invested significantly in the PRC, making it, in many ways, the world’s factory. The country has the largest current account surplus, nearly 180 billion USD, in the world. (CIA Factbook, 2007) This phenomenal economic and industrial growth, involving a ten-fold increase in GDP, has made the country a huge commodity consumer. â€Å"In China, intensity of use is now three times that of the USA, with demand driven by urbanisation, industrialisation and fixed capital formation.† (Heap, 2005) The Chinese miracle, with its huge demand for commodities has affected commodity prices profoundly in the past few years. â€Å"As China’s economy expands, it is sucking in raw materials to build up its infrastructure, including roads, power stations and factories.† (Cooper, 2005) This demand led to the country picking up a huge share of the overall growth in global consumption with growth in internal consumption. â€Å"The International Monetary Fund reports that its share of the overall growth in global consumption of industrial commodities between 2002 and 2005 was massive – 51% for copper, 48% for aluminium, 110% for lead, 87% for nickel, 54% for steel, 86% for tin, 113% for zinc, and 30% for crude oil.† (Guthrie, 2007) The country now accounts 12 % of global industrial production, compared to 6 % in 1995, 4 % of GDP on an exchange rate basis and 13 % on a purchasing power parity basis. Appendix A provides details about China’s demand for various metals. The constantly increasing demand from China, despite regular predictions of slowdown, has served to propel commodity prices year after year. While these price surges have had their periods of relative stagnation, as well as corrections, the demand shows no sign of abating and should grow for many more years. The per capita consumption of beef, for example, in China is 12 pounds per person, compared to 100 pounds per person, in western countries. As perceptions change and the possibility of the country catching up in the prosperity scales with advanced nations becomes a reality, the projected increase in demand assumes overwhelming proportions. While China has been and should continue to be a major driver of commodity prices for many more years to come, other factors have also contributed towards price movement and their effect may well increase in future. India, the world’s second largest country and its’ largest democracy started opening up its economy from the mid nineties. Shackled for years under a bureaucratic mixed economy regime that favoured the public sector, the country suffered from an abysmally slow growth rate for practically fifty years since it achieved independence in 1947. The opening up of the economy, and the introduction of economic reforms, while slower in implementation than China’s, (due primarily to the democratic and debate oriented nature of Indian society), nevertheless picked up steam by the end of the millennium, and entered an era of high growth in the early years of the present decade. The country is today, after China, the second fastest growing economy in the world, and is achieving growth rates of nearly 9 %. While both industry and services are growing at rates much faster than 10 %, agricultural growth has been comparatively slower. Indias Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, wants his country to achieve 10% economic growth in the next two to three years, to create more jobs and help lift a third of the countrys 1.1 billion people out of poverty. Asias fourth-biggest economy expanded 8% in the second and third quarters of 2005. Singhs government wants industrial production, which makes up a quarter of Indias economy, to grow 10% annually to boost the incomes of Indians, one in three of whom live on less than $1 a day. Indias industrial production grew at an annualized 8.3% rate between April and November 2005, faster than major economies like US, UK, the Euro zone, Japan, Brazil, Indonesia and Russia. Only China and Argentina recorded faster industrial production rates of 16.6%, and 9.6% respectively. (Dorsch, 2006) In India, domestic demand makes up practically 70 % of the national GDP and dominates the economy, as opposed to exports, in many other nations. Indian imports, though lesser than that of China, doubled in the last three years, adding to commodity demand and strengthening the consumer super cycle. Terming Indias economic growth since 1991 phenomenal, World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz on Saturday said its GDP (gross domestic product) growth could be pushed up by one to two per cent with speedy reforms. He said: The dynamism shown by India in the last 15 years is phenomenal. India can do better A couple of percentage more growth can be possible. But it needs sound fiscal and monetary policies. Continuity of reforms was important for the high growth, evident in the last 15 years. Indias incredible growth story was a policy model to the world. It showed continued development in democracy and open society. (India’s growth story, 2005) Apart from India, the two other BRIC countries, Brazil and Russia, are also growing strongly, strengthening the demand for major commodities. While the sharp spurt in growth shown by Japan in recent years has also fuelled demand, the growth generated by the BRIC countries, as well as economies of countries like Argentina and South Africa should continue for many years, even for some decades, as these countries try to achieve parity with the advanced nations. Monetary policies followed by the central banks of most countries have also played a significant role in fuelling commodity price increases. Central banks of most countries, Japan, Europe, China and India have followed super easy money policies from the beginning of the millennium right upto the last quarter of 2006 and this along with the demand from the Chinese and Indian economies have worked towards pushing prices up to record levels. The Peoples Bank of China increased its M2 money supply by 18.3% last year, issuing more Yuan to soak up foreign currency earned through foreign trade and direct investment into Chinese factories from abroad. Explosive money supply growth, in turn, boosted domestic retail sales by 13% last year, and industrial production was 16.6% higher in November from a year earlier. Chinas central bank raised its M2 money supply target to 17% in the third quarter from 15% earlier, to offset stronger demand for the Yuan, and maintain the peg at 8.11 per US dollar. (Guthrie, 2007) In Japan, money markets have received trillions of yen, more than required by local Japanese banks, pushing interest rates on deposits to levels even below zero. This enormous amount of excess and free liquidity has enabled both Japanese and hedge fund traders to take up large speculative positions in global commodity markets. While conservative counsel advocates a stricter monetary policy, authorities are reluctant to make changes in a policy that has seen overnight lending rates staying at zero for nearly five years. In Europe, loose money availability has also helped in fuelling inflation and price instability. The growth rate of M3 Money supply in Europe in Europe has become considerably higher than the previous year, and helped in lifting stock markets to higher levels. All over the world, bankers have seen commodity indices running away but refrained from taking action lest growth rates get hurt. Another factor that hinders bureaucrats from taking action after inflation starts hitting significantly high levels is the underlying fear of small course-corrective measures not working and the risk of dampening growth.† If a central bank stops excess liquidity too late it has to raise rates much more strongly and that causes turbulence on the markets.† (Guthrie, 2007) Indian policy makers, found to their chagrin, that inflation growth rates that had crossed 6.5 % (and were threatening to destabilize the government) proved immune to three doses of interest rate hikes, by 50 basis points each time. A sharp hike in borrowing and lending rates took place in recent weeks. With inflation up at 6.4 per cent and the RBI saying it will take â€Å"all the necessary monetary measures†, further hikes in interest rates could come. But will raising interest rates bring inflation under control? Does India have the markets and institutional framework in which raising interest rates is an effective instrument for inflation control? Does India have a central bank that has learned how to conduct monetary policy in an open market economy? The answer to these questions is: No. In this sphere, India lags behind modern practices. (Patnaik, 2007) While lack of faith in the measures taken by one’s own government appears to be a generic trait with analysts all over the world, sustained increases in commodity prices have led to a consensus that economic and monetary policies, followed all over the world, have been unbalanced in their blind preference towards growth, to the exclusion of inflation. The unbridled use of liberal monetary policies has contributed towards this present climate of inflation, and in strengthening the commodity super cycle. The creation of shortages because of rapid and unexpected growth in consumption is a fait accompli, and a short-term discomfort economists are ready to bear, (in the interest of growth), until increased supply stabilizes the situation. In the absence of measured intervention, unbridled increase in prices, apart from inducing speculative activity, also attracts hordes of genuine investors, big-ticket investment funds, pension funds, and even individual retail investors. Pension funds, as well as small, retail investors are looking to commodities as a crucial part of diversification of any investment portfolio. Although schizophrenic commodity day traders could decide to turn massive paper profits into hard cash at a moments notice, causing a 5% shakeout, the longer-term odds still favor a continuation of the Commodity Super (Guthrie, 2007) c. The Future of the Present Inflationary Movement Commodity super cycles, by their nature and their reasons of origin, run for extended periods, for many years and some times for decades. Modern day literature refers to just two or three super cycle in the last two centuries, one caused by American industrial growth at the beginning of the twentieth century, and the other caused by post war reconstruction in Europe, followed by intense Japanese economic activity. The second super cycle lasted for nearly three decades from the late forties until the depression of the eighties. The current super cycle, if at all it is one, has gained momentum only during the last six years, and prima facie still has a long way to go. While monetary policies of powerful and rich individual nations, like the USA and Japan, as well as regional groupings, like Europe, will be able to influence commodity prices through tightening or loosening money supply, the extent of the commodity super cycle will depend primarily upon the growth stories being played ou t in China and India, and to some extent in the other two countries, Brazil and Russia. While China and India are both on the fast track to economic prosperity, they remain countries with low per capita incomes and consumption. The desire to achieve economic prosperity, in these economies, will not be satisfied with achievement of national GDP targets but will continue until individual aspirations of people are met in these two countries. We have China embracing capitalism. We have India embracing capitalism. That’s brought 2.2 billion people into play as very ambitious earners, who aspire to middle class status. If we take Asia, there are 3.5 billion people who aspire to the same middle class lifestyle many of us in the West take for granted. If we look further beyond Asia, this same phenomenon is evident with many other developing countries. We see it in parts of the Middle East with the Dubai city-state as an example. (Finch, 2006) Two simple examples will serve to elaborate this argument. As stated earlier, per capita consumption of beef in China is 12 pounds per person whereas it is more than 100 pounds per person in the advanced countries. Similarly, in India, where the majority of the people do not eat beef, and around fifty percent are vegetarian, the per capita consumption of chicken is around 12 pounds compared to more than 200 pounds in the west. A recent report by Goldman Sachs states that even if, as predicted, both these countries reach the GDP levels of the USA by 2050, their per capita income will not exceed half that of the USA. This gives rise to two inferences, (a) the huge amount of latent demand in these countries and (b) the extended period over which these growth stories will possibly play out. Indias Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, wants his country to achieve 10% economic growth in the next two to three years, to create more jobs and help lift a third of the countrys 1.1 billion people out of poverty. Singhs government wants industrial production, which makes up a quarter of Indias economy, to grow 10% annually to boost the incomes of Indians, one in three of whom live on less than $1 a day. (Dorsch, 2006) Apart from the enormous potential for prolonged economic and industrial growth that can occur because of progress in these two countries, the fact that India is moving roughly ten years behind China, could lead to a situation where India’s growth rates start improving further when China’s starts tapering off; thus extending the period of the cycle. Climbing markets are prone to periods of lulls, stagnation and even correction. Experts feel that these phenomena are bound to continue to happen, but the demand for commodities will grow at such an overwhelming pace, not just in China and India, but also in other countries of the developing world that it will soon reassert itself and bring back bullish behaviour. While there is intense speculation in academic circles about the probable period of the inflationary run, very few people are ready to take a bet on its probable date of demise. Economists are quite sure of phases of economic activity where waves of activity and growth follow periods of slowdown and even stagnation. The problem arises when quantification is called for. In the past Dewey and Dakin in their book â€Å"Cycles: The Science of Prediction† (1947) that a super cycle that moves from trough to peak to trough can last for as long as fifty to sixty years. Obviously, these longer waves comprise of a number of sm aller waves, where activity increases and decreases in finite periods Even as convinced a believer in the commodity bull cycle as Jim Rogers points out that the shortest boom lasted 15 years, while the longest lasted 23 years. His conclusion is that we have much further to go, but don’t expect a great deal more precision than that. Oh, and don’t forget that we’ll endure some huge corrections along the way. (Guthrie, 2007) Much of the current discussion on commodity super cycles owes its initiation to

Video Games: The High Tech Threat To Our Younger Generation Essay

Video Games: The High Tech Threat to Our Younger Generation Anyone who has ever walked through a shopping mall on a weekend knows how popular videogame arcades have become with our young people. It is becoming a force in the lives of millions of kids all across America. Parents and teachers become more concerned and worried when they see their kids devoted to videogames. They are highly concentrated because vidiogames greatly influence the mental and learning processes of the younger generation. Many parents believe that their children learn values more from the mass media rather than their from homes. Generally speaking, the video and computer game industry has been a growing concern to the religious groups, responsible politicians and bewildered parents for the disturbing contents and the substandard themes in some of its games. The videogame technology must be recognised for its role and influence on the younger generation because, for better or worse, it clearly affects their academic and social life. Indeed, statistics are really alarming on the videogame industry. It is a multi-million dollar business growing at 40 per cent a year from 1987 to 1993 (Palmeri 102). Tetzeli in his article "Videogames: Serious Fun" compares videogames $ 6.5 billion--a--year business to the Hollywood film industry (110). He continues to point out that two Japan based conglomerate have put about 64 million videogame machines in US households in total. In addition to that they also produced and licenced for all their softwares for their machines (110). Palmery estimates to produce and market a ful featured videogame it would costs up to $10 million (102). Because of the cost producers attempt to make a return on their investments and earn as much profits as they can. To achieve their goals, they feature more blood, gore and human dismemberment in their games to appeal to the younger generation because violence sells. According to Palmery the game Mortal Kombat has sold a record 5 million copies for about$65 apiece.(102) The advanced technology in upcoming videogame machines even allows the players to interact with screen images in ways never before possible. Analysts in this field say that it is only a prelude to the emerging world-wide network popularly known as the electro... ...which would require the stores to place signs on shelves in stating : "Warning. Think before you buy. This is a war toy. Playing with it increases anger and violence in children. Is this what you really want for your child? (WAR TOYS). Which may not be very effective altogether to control the vidiegames with violent contend. But still the warning gives a chance and may be the parents pause a moment before they decide to buy any thing for their offspring. Voluntary rating system or any other form of self regulatory arrangement will only help to widen the loop holes of the existing system. By including this multi billion dollar industry under the existing film rating system or something similar to that would greatly reduce the risk of violence and ultimately would prevent the youths on turning for violent solution for all their problems. And also would help to form a violent free life style and prevent the younger generation and spend their quality time with their studies and parents. All other arrangements will, at least help us to further delay the process of controlling the emerging violent theme and content of the many thousands of videogames yet to be produced or released.

Driving Age Should Be Increased to 18 Essay

The huge number of car crashes caused by young drivers is an issue which is now being strongly debated in Australia. According to the new research released on 7 April 2010 by Carhistory.com.au, Australia’s most comprehensive vehicle history website, one in ten Australian teenagers have had a car accident (Coffey, J 2010). Due to that serious fact, an idea of increasing the driving age to 18 with a minimum of 18 months on ‘P’ plates has been suggested to reduce the number of teens’ deaths by car accidents. Although that proposal will lead to some inconvenience for young drivers, it can prevent them from unsafe and immature way of driving, which guarantees the reduction on teens crashes. One drawback of the issue that the driving age should be increased to the age of eighteen is the inconvenience caused to teenagers. Driving is becoming essential in modern society, especially for the youth. 16 and 17 year old children should be allowed to drive to get to scho ol or work because taking public transportation is very time consuming, and it is also a big problem for them if they are late from the classes for they miss a bus. Furthermore, country kids who live in areas with few buses or trains and very far from city cannot expect their parents to drive them around every day, so having rights to drive is really necessary to them. On the other hand, everything has two sides. The increase in the driving age to 18 has been strongly advocated due to the fact that young drivers are not able to control the cars safely on the road. One major reason leading to car accidents is the distraction while teenagers drive. Multi-tasking is  becoming popular in many teens but it does not work for young drivers. They chat on the phones, listen to an iPod while driving, and even eat some fast food. They can also be distracted by debating with their friends or changing the radio station (The three top reasons why teen crash cars). Those actions directly prevent them from concentrating on the road, which is able to cause collisions. Even experienced drivers can have accidents when they leave their minds and eyes off the road, and their hands off the wheel. From the research for young drivers of South Australia government, having passengers in the vehicle is a distraction and can increase the risk of a crash. Inattention was reported as the cause of 32% of fatal crashes and 44% of serious injury crashes in 2005 (Government of South Australia 2005). Another element leading to car crashes is young drivers’ inexperience on the road. During the first 500 miles of driving, teen drivers are 10 times more likely to be in auto crashes than any other age group because they are lack of training (Ten tips to keep teens safe behind the wheel 2010). At the age of 18, one gets more exposure to traffic situations and experience in making decisions, so he drives more securely and is less likely to harm others. Moreover, the longer teenagers stay on ‘P’ plates, the safer they drive due to some restrictions like no alcohol while driving as well as the speed limit of 100 km/h even where the posted speed limit is higher (Government of South Australia, n.d.). Therefore, 18 months on ‘P’ plates is a good idea to make young drivers drive more consciously. Another factor leading to the raise in the age of driving is young drivers are not mature enough to be on the road. Firstly, teenagers’ brain does not develop enough to deal with all complicated situations while driving. This is clearly shown by the fact that some parts of the brain do not develop until late teenager, like the prefrontal cortex which is the most intelligent part of the brain and known as the brain’s executive. According to Earl Miller, a professor of neuroscience at MIT, the prefrontal cortex does not grow fully until the age of eighteen, nineteen and twenty (Patterson 2010). Moreover, young people are those who are at an age of demanding the independence, as well as taking part in a thrilling social life. They act at night, travel at a very high speed under the influence of alcohol or drug to show off because of peer pressure. Teenagers are also  irresponsible for what they cause. With the overwhelming desire to experience new more challenging actions, they usually do whatever they like without thinking about the subsequences. This is proved by the fact that the parts of the brain responsible for controlling impulses and considering the consequences of decisions may be under development until well after teenage years (Young Drivers: The Road to Safety, 2006). Therefore, they cause an enormous number of car accidents which result in a significant amount of deaths. In Western Australia, according to the Western Australia Government, young less experienced drivers, especially from 15 to 19 years old, who consume alcohol before driving are at higher risk of crashing than people in the other age groups (Government of Western Australia 2010) In conclusion, the increase in the driving age to the age of 18 with the minimum of 18 months on ‘P’ plates has raised many for and against arguments. For young drivers, that idea is indeed irritating. In spite of that fact, it cannot be denied to help to avoid the raising number in car accidents caused by young drivers because of reckless and unconscious driving. Modern technology such as car was invented to serve the society, but young people are abusing it and causing a lot of regrettable consequences. Therefore, the law of increasing the driving age should be applied as soon as possible to urgently lessen the bad results that young drivers may cause. REFERENCES Coffey, J 6 April, 2010, One in ten Aussie teens have has a car accident, Media release, accessed 13 April 2011, . Government of South Australia, 2005, Road crash facts 2005 for South Australia, Department for transport, Energy and Infrastructure, pp.15, accessed 13 April 2011, . Government of South Australia, n.d., P1 provisional licence, Department for Transport, Energy and Infrastructure, accessed 13 April 2011, . Government of Western Australia, July 2010, Drink driving: Information sheet, Government of Western Australia, accessed 15 April 2011, pp.1. Patterson, L Mar 29, 2010, Earl Miller says younger generation will be better multi-taskers, Earthsky, accessed 12 April 2011, . Ten tips to keep teens safe behind the wheel, Jul 21, 2010, accessed 06 April 2011, . The three top reasons why teen crash cars, n.d., Car accident advice, accessed 06 April 2011, Young Drivers: The Road to Safety, Oct, 2006, Policy Brief, accessed 06 April 2011, .

My Home by Dr. Jose Rizal Essay

I had nine sisters and one brother.My father,a model of fathers,had given us an education in proportion to our modest means.By dint of frugality,he was able to build a stone house,to buy another,and to raise a small nipa hut in the midst of a grove we had,under the shede of banana and other trees. There the delicious atis displayed its delicate fruit and lowered its branches as if to save me the trouble of reachich out for them.The sweet santol,the scented and mellow tampoy,the pink makopa vied for my favor.Father away,the plum tree,the harsh but flavorous casuy,and the beatiful tamarind pleased the eye as much as they delighted the palate. Here the papaya streatched out its broad leaves and tempted the birds with its enermous fruit;there the nangka,the coffee,and the orange trees perfumed the air with the aroma of their flowers.On this side the iba,the balimbing,the pomegrante with its abundant foliage and its lovely flowers bewitched the senses;while here and there rose elegant and majestic trees loaded with huge nuts,swaying thier proud tops and gracefull baranches,queens of the forests. I should never end were I to number all our trees and amuse my self in identifying them. In the twilight innumerable birds gathered from every where and I,a child of three years at most,amused my self watching them with wonder and joy.The yellow kuliawan,the maya in all the varieties,the kulae,the Maria kapra,the martin,all the species of pipit joined the pleasant harmony and raised in varied chorus a farewell hymn to the sun as it vanished behind the tall mountains of my town. Then the clouds,through a capris of nature,combined in a thousand shapes,which would suddenly dissolve even as those charming days were also to dissolve,living me only the slightest recollections.Even now,when I look out of the window of our house at the splendid panorama of twilight,thoughts that arelong since gone renew themselves with nostalgic eagerness. Came then the night to unfold her mantle,somber at times,for all its stars,when the chaise Diana failed to coures trought the sky in pursuit of her brother Apollo.But when she appeared,a vague brightness was to be dis-cerned in the clouds:then seemingly they would crumble;and little she was to be seen,lovely,grave,and silent,rising like an immense globe which an invisible and omnipotent hand drew through space. At such times my mother gathered us all together to say the rosary. Afterward we would go to the azotea or to some window from where the moon could be seen,and my ayah would tell us stories,sometimes  lugubrious and at other times gay.In which skeletons and buried treasures and trees that bloomed with diamonds were mingled in confusion,all of them born on an imagination wholly Oriental.Sometimes she told us that men lived on the moon,or that the markings which we could percieve on it were nothing else than a woman who was forever weaving.

Research Paper on Fun Things Essay

For this assignment, you will compose a ten-page research paper on a great thinker chosen from the attached list. There are three components to this assignment. The first is that you will write about the major thought, idea, or system of belief for which the great thinker was known. Secondly, you will write about two or three ways in which the teachings of the great thinker influenced history. Thirdly, you will provide a thoughtful analysis of at least one idea touted by the great thinker. You will need to research and properly document eight to ten scholarly sources using the MLA standard for citation. In addition to writing the paper, you will be learning and implementing a way to organize your research and writing. You will receive two grades for this assignment: one for the final paper and one for the research and writing prep work. Research Component Research is an important skill for college students to learn and implement. When done well, research will help strengthen an argument, prove a point, verify facts, and explain with first-hand knowledge. At its most basic level, research is studying the works of experts in any given field. For instance, if I want to research heart surgery, I will locate experts in the field of cardiology and read what they say about the heart. In reading their works, which may consist of published studies, medical journal articles or medical books, or informative medical websites or blogs, I am presuming and appealing to their expert knowledge and skill in an area I know little or nothing about. In short, I’m reading and studying their work in order to learn. For your research paper, you will be appealing to the expert knowledge of a great thinker. You will research articles and/or books that were either written by the great thinker (we call this a primary source) or by someone who studied the great thinker (we call this a secondary source). For example, let’s say you are studying Jonathan Edwards (great puritan theologian). Were you to read and study his actual sermons, you would be researching a primary source. Were you to read and study what John Piper (present day pastor and avid Jonathan Edwards fan) has written about the theology of Jonathan Edwards, then you would be conducting secondary research. Both primary and secondary sources are very valuable when writing research papers. Usually primary research is considered to be the most reliable in that it is closest to the original (the idea originator, the eye-witness account, the photograph, etc†¦). A good research paper will be able to navigate both types of research and carefully integrate it appropriately. For the purposes of this assignment, you’ll be doing both because you’ll be concerned with what the great thinker actually taught and that will best be discovered by his or her actual writings, and you’ll be concerned with how his or her thoughts influenced history, which is most likely written by other scholars. In addition to conducting primary and secondary research, you’ll need to make sure that your sources are consider scholarly; that is, your sources come from people who have appropriate expertise in the field of you are studying. This will not be an issue with your primary sources because you will go straight to the source (i.e., you’ll study the writings or Marx or Lewis), but it will be more of an issue in secondary sources. How to tell if an article or book is considered scholarly or written by an authoritative expert in the field can be tricky, but here are a few rules: 1. Does the author have an educational background that would account for the knowledge in the article or book? 2. In the case of articles, is it published in a peer-reviewed journal? 3. Does the article or book offer analysis and critique of original sources or just give mere impressions or opinions? Another term I have mentioned in regards to research is MLA citation (Modern Language Association). MLA is a method of citation that is used primarily in the humanities that indicates the source of your research. Learning MLA citation rules takes time and lots of effort, but it is a necessary part of conducting and writing a well-researched paper. For this assignment, you’ll need at least eight scholarly sources that may include journal articles or books but may NOT include websites. There will be in-class lectures that will teach you where to locate scholarly resources and how to properly keep track and cite them. As I see it, there are two major avenues of research for this paper: the first is research involving the actual ideas of the great thinker. The second is research involving the analysis of the thinker’s ideas. Content of Research Paper As mentioned in the assignment overview, there are two components to this research paper. The first is that you will research the major idea or set of ideas for which the great thinker was known. This will be the first section of the research paper and will include a thorough explanation of the great thinker’s idea or ideas and he or she came to belief or think in such a way. The second section of the paper will include a discussion on two or three of the major ways the great thinker’s ideas influenced history. The third section is where you provide thoughtful analysis about at least one of the great thinker’s ideas. This is not, necessarily, an argument, but rather it is an opportunity for you to break down the idea and comment on it yourself. Although I’m more interested in your analysis, it may help to research how others have analyzed and critiqued your great thinker’s ideas. In this section you may 1. Critique the thinker’s idea 2. Break down the thinker’s ideas and provide additional clarification or implication 3. Show how different scholars have viewed or interpreted the great thinker’s ideas and whether agree or disagree 4. Show why the thinker’s ideas produced negative or positive effects on society, theology, history, etc. 5. Any combination of the above. Please note that I do not wanting you to write a biography; that is, I do not want detailed discussion on the great thinker’s family history, marriage, hobbies, physical appearance, personal health, friends, etc. unless is it absolutely pertinent to his or her intellectual contribution. Paper Organization Each of you will be required to create an outline for your paper and turn it in as part of the assignment. Additionally, you will be required to keep track of all research and turn in your research notes. Research Organization I will require you to keep track of your sources through Microsoft One Note or Word, whichever works best for you. For every source you look at, you’ll need to record the following information: 1. Source Title- title of the article or book 2. Source Location-book, ebook with web address, journal article with web address 3. Source Citation- MLA citation as it would appear in your works cited page 4. What-what information are you using from the source. If it is short, type it here. If it is a chapter or large section, write down the major idea or some key words and the necessary information to find it in your source easily (page or section numbers, headings, etc.). 5. Plan- how you plan on using the information You will have at least eight records with the above information, although it is much more likely you’ll have more and may not use all sources in the actual writing of the paper. That is okay. Note: Make sure you accurately record information for every source because you won’t remember. Grading Criteria: Each paper will be graded on the following: 1. Accurate, detailed, and thoughtful discussion and analysis of the great thinker’s ideas 2. Coherent, fluid prose 3. Accurate implementation of MLA citation 4. Integration of scholarly sources 5. Proper adherence to Standard English grammar and style 6. Proper adherence to page length and formatting guidelines

The topic is in details Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The topic is in details - Essay Example During disputes, each party has specific needs and wants. Conflict ensues because both differing parties do not agree about whose wants and needs takes precedence over the others’. Negotiation strives to create an environment where prioritization of interests can be achieved. In case prioritization fails, negotiation will help conflicting parties reach an agreement through balanced compromise of their respective interests. According to Smith (2000), such balanced compromise of interests creates fairness. However, conflicting parties may fail to agree because both sides may hold substantially different understanding and perspectives of fairness. An example of such a situation is seen in the ancient Melian-Athens conflict features in the Melian Dialogue by Thucydides. Prior to engaging in any negotiation or in understanding why two conflicting parties are engaging in a negotiation, it is appropriate to appraise the causative aspects of an underlying conflict. In addition, it is advisable to acknowledge the social, political and economic context in which conflicts and subsequent negotiations are taking place. Melian Dialogue by Thucydides covers events surrounding tribal conflicts in ancient Greece. Despite being a single empire, Greece was divided along its ethnic lines. Buckley (2010) said that there were two major divisions, the Athenians deriving its roots from the Ionians and the Spartans from the Dorian heritage. Sparta adopted an oligarchic political structure characterized by a few wealthy members of the society commanding and ruling the rest of the citizens. On the contrary, Athens was democratic and the wealthiest nation in Greece. In this case, both parties held contrary political, economic and social opinions which lead to growing tens ion between them. Sparta had allies, including Melos while Athens also had its allies. Increasing tension sparked a 10-year conflict marking the first phase of Peloponnesian war between Sparta and its allies

European Cinema Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

European Cinema - Essay Example The concepts that were associated with pan – European films created an alternative culture that identified the margins of culture, as opposed to the mainstream that was often accepted in contemporary movies. The concept of pan – European films began to become significant after the 1950s and 1960s with the emergence of Hollywood. As the styles and themes of Hollywood began to reach popular culture, those in Europe also began to change the approach to film. While looking at the movies of Hollywood, there was a movement that was defined which rejected the American culture in movies. The pan – European movement was one that went in the opposite direction of creativity and inspiration as Hollywood, specifically to create a European style film. The particular movement began with the French New Wave in the 1950s and 1960s and was known to adapt to specific influences that were a part of the films in cinema. â€Å"Here European cinema adopts a mode of film practice that rejects dialogue with Hollywood, favouring instead filmic models, which appear to be embedded in European culture and untouched by American cultural influence.1† The rejection of influence from popular cultu re, as well as the influences of American Hollywood was then able to define the pan – European film and the way that it was associated with the culture of Europe. The concept of moving into the culture of Europe to produce films was not the only definition that was associated with Europe and the functions that it had for film. The establishment of culture in pan – Europe also led to the understanding of borders and the concept of Europe as the cultural affiliation that was associated with this particular arena. The pan – European film focused not only on the concepts of culture, but also was affiliated with creating movies that were nationalistic in nature. Because there was a movement against