The Act of Kindness in the Society Essay Example

Essays on The Act of Kindness in the Society Essay The paper "The Act of Kindness in the Society" is a great example of an essay on sociology. Human behaviors are responses generated from the environmental stimuli. In as much as there are intrinsic traits that people are born with which unconsciously predispose them to the certain fashion of action, values, beliefs and thought patterns among others, they are all products of environmental influences that are acquired during socialization. Virtues such as kindness, humility, patience, self-control, obedience, and loyalty can all be acquired and practiced if one wishes. Religious teachings and socialization have shown immense contributions in inculcating these spirits in individual members of the society. Talking from my personal experience, kindness is a significant spiritual element that has a far-reaching impact on interaction and relationship building amongst people.From the Christian teachings which I have now embraced for about four months, I learned that kindness is a virtue that precedes any moral action that one anticipates. The motto of the church I attend is ‘Know Jesus, Love like Him’ which basically sends the message of ‘Jesus-like’ love to its members. These teachings have laid a strong foundation for me to build the spirit of love, courtesy, kindness and care to fellow humans. The Christian teachings that promote peaceful co-existence and justice in the society have rooted in me a set of positive values making most of my actions sanctified.The three-day kindness activity exposed a number of issues that are a real eye-opener in relationships and interactions. It was unbelievable to note the reactions and responses of people when they were showed love and affection. When I surprised the people who were close to me with items I knew they really needed at that moment, the response was marvelous. It could be seen from their faces how much their hearts jollied and sparkled with appreciation. How they treated me instantly changed and the environment positively changed. Those that I had lost interconnectedness with responded more positively and their attitudes, judgments, and perception toward me became positive; an indication that people react to how you treat them and to get the best out of them means you have to treat them pretty well. Those who least expected me to act in kindness were much more surprised and reacted more actively responded to my kindness than those who were close to me.As much as the Christian principles have mainstreamed me into having a positive outlook and exhibiting morally good behaviors, the manner in which I was brought up and the myriad challenging experiences have restricted my full exhibition of kindness. Deep within me, I struggle with my thoughts to scrap away the negativity towards people so that I can show people kindness that is both internally and externally generated. This experience has further identified this struggle and exposed various nuances in which I find myself prejudiced.ConclusionIt is true that the act of kindness can have an extensive transformation in the society and it only takes one to act a little different; abandon their routine uncourteous behaviors and show love, care, and kindness to people. The response that is likely to be received is splendid. People respond positively to positive actions and vice versa, therefore, to inspire the world one has to choose positive behaviors. From my experience, I have committed to progressively continue working on restructuring my thought patterns so that they may bring out kind behaviors having observed what kindness bears. This plan is based on the fact that kindness is right and not because I am challenging myself.

IKEA Case Analysis Free Essays

IKEA has a distinct market segment in the home furnishing arena. It has created a niche market with innovative designs, quality, and low price structure. IKEA has employed the cost leadership and product differentiation strategies through low price structure and innovative designs, respectively. We will write a custom essay sample on IKEA Case Analysis or any similar topic only for you Order Now Additionally, the uniqueness of the disposable furniture concept allowed IKEA to capitalize on the first mover advantage (Harrison Enz, 2005). Behavioral Customer Segmentation for IKEA The behavioral consumer segmentation data provided by Bartlett and Nanda (1996) indicates the demographic profile of IKEA customers and buyer behavior. IKEA’s strategy post World War II, was to target young couples and new families in the low to middle income range by providing inexpensive furniture with durable construction and contemporary lines. The demographic profile presented by Bartlett and Nanda (1996) suggests that the archetypal IKEA buyer is young; middle-class; married; either has no children or one child; and lives in a rental. This new target market’s primary determinants to purchase were based predominantly on price (44%); followed by large assortment (16%); and design (14%). Quality; design; and price were the three most important criteria for store choice. Similarly, price; distance; and design were the significant factors leading to consumer attitude toward IKEA. This target market based their decision purchases on information gathered from the IKEA catalog; visits to other stores; and prior visits to IKEA. Contrary to the traditional IKEA consumers’ determinants to purchase and buyer behavior, sustainability is now playing a larger role in consumer spending habits (Datamonitor, 2010). In a recent Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI) analysis IKEA was ranked ninth overall for customer satisfaction, which is largely due to IKEA’s commitment to sustainable initiatives. Of IKEA’s products, 71% are recyclable, made from recycled products, or both. IKEA also recycles 84% of the waste the stores generate (Datamonitor, 2010). Comparison of Traditional and U. S. Customers Before entering the U. S. market in 1985, IKEA did not conduct thorough market research on U. S. consumers or U. S. buyer behavior. IKEA assumed that U. S. customers would embrace its way of doing business and the products offered. That was not the case, as IKEA’s furniture; metric measurements; and kitchenwares did not meet U. S. customer’s expectations. The furniture was uncomfortable, as it was designed for the European preference of being hard and rigid. The unit of measure was in centimeters, whereas the U. S. has never adopted the metric system. The U. S. serving sizes are generally larger than the European portions, making the kitchenwares too small for U. S. servings. Likewise, the cabinetry was too small for U. S. appliances. The traditional IKEA customer subscribed to the value proposition that furniture was a soft good versus a hard good. This value proposition was in contradiction with the mindset of the U. S. onsumer, making it necessary for IKEA to rethink its marketing strategy. IKEA launched an advertising campaign targeting U. S. customers at the same time it entered the U. S. market. Its tagline for U. S. consumers was, â€Å"†¦to take a more commitment-free approach to furniture† (Moon, 1996, p. 8). IKEA’s intention was to convey to the U. S. population that it was not necessary to hang on to furn iture for decades. The simplicity and low price point IKEA offers affords consumers the opportunity to replace furniture and opt for a new look at a significantly lower price point than at conventional furniture, appliance, or kitchenware stores. IKEA was essentially making fun of U. S. consumers and the desire to keep furniture for decades. Traditional consumers understood that the value proposition offered by IKEA meant no in-store sales assistance; limited variety; unassembled furniture; and no delivery. This did not meet any of the expectations of the U. S. consumer. Hence, the revenues at IKEA in the U. S. were flat, taking almost ten years before increasing. IKEA has since focused on organic slow growth and low risk in the U. S. as it was a new market (Module 2, Lecture 1, n. d. ). This allowed IKEA time to do more market research on U. S. ustomers and expand manufacturing facilities. IKEA has done a great job in leading customers to pull its products into U. S. homes (Module 2, Lecture 2, n. d. ). IKEA has learned to meet U. S. customer needs by studying consumer preferences and behaviors based on interactions (Module 2, Lecture 1, n. d. ). This information provided demographic and consumer behavior data by store locat ion and region of the United States, allowing IKEA to meet or exceed the loyal customer expectations. Given that, IKEA has built a U. S. cult following and state of mind that is centered on low prices, zany promotions, and contemporary designs (Capell, 2005). U. S. Strategic Growth Opportunities for IKEA IKEA was making a huge push into four major geographic markets in the late 1980’s. They were Eastern Europe, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Any one of these large geographic locations would need exponential resources and one would have to wonder if IKEA was opening itself up to incredible risk. This hard line expansion poses a major strategic challenge. The major strategic concern was the changing target market segment. IKEA rode the post war baby boom wave to become successful. The target market segment of low-income married couples had shrunk and the original IKEA customers, the baby boomers, have become older and more comfortable. IKEA is continuously striving to differentiate its price, products, and services to keep them in line with a first mover competitive advantage and ahead of the market trends to the point that they may be setting the standards for furniture and related product expectations (Harrison Enz, 2005). However, the United States’ target market segment proved to be more difficult; as the U. S. consumers were used to having furniture delivered, and preassembled. Additionally, the U. S. consumers and IKEA’s other target markets all preferred traditional rather than modern furniture, with the exception of consumers in Denmark and Holland who buy modern design furniture. At IKEA, the furniture product mix is comprised of 70% modern with the remainder being traditional (Lee, 2005). For IKEA to be successful in the U. S. market it would need to tweak its product lines and strategic plans in an effort to achieve growth. In order for IKEA to achieve strategic growth in the U. S. it will need to get the buy-in of senior management to change its product line-up. The lack of senior management buy-in has been proven in many studies to be a leading factor in not attaining growth (McGrath MacMillan, 2009). IKEA will need to hire a consultant to perform a SWOT analysis to determine the internal strengths and weaknesses as well as the external opportunities and threats. In addition, utilizing a TOWS matrix derived from the SWOT analysis would prove beneficial (David, 2009). The TOWS Matrix is designed to assist managers with matching the attributes of IKEA with the various opportunities and threats that exist in the environment. It also allows for the development of corporate strategies than can be implemented, thus maximizing marketplace positioning. The four types of strategies that can be formed based on the TOWS Matrix are: SO, which use the firms internal strengths to maximize opportunities; WO, which looks at improving weaknesses by taking advantage of external opportunities; ST, utilizes the company’s strengths to avoid threats; and WT, which are strategies designed to assist in the development of defense tactics to help reduce internal weaknesses and avoid external threats (David, 2009). The crucial information obtained from the SWOT and TOWS Matrix will prove to be invaluable to IKEA if it wishes to grow in the United States as well as globally. The snap shot of information will help tell IKEA what it must become to U. S. and global consumers in order to grow strategically. Failure to capture and understand this information could keep IKEA from growing in a large geographic market. 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Harrison and Treagust Essay Example For Students

Harrison and Treagust Essay Galileo (1564- 1642), was the one who set the foundations for studying real-world systems indirectly through reduced and idealised models, from where we can gather valid descriptions, explanations and predictions about the systems (Halloun, 1996). Furthermore, models are considered important since we humans cannot understand many aspects of the world, because there might be some things going on that we do not know. So, we choose to construct simplified models in order to represent anything we do know from our experiments (Ogborn, 1994). Still models are thought as human constructs, used to provide a representation for the mechanism of the natural phenomena in a coherent way (Louca and Constantinou, 2002). Whats more, models are used because the physical and natural world that we try to study in science is a complex world and to understand it better we break it down into manageable parts and represent it with models (Frost, 2003). As Giere (1988, p. 64) indicates, the model-reality adjustment is not overall, but rather relative to those aspects of the world that the models attempt to capture. Consequently, models are considered to be representations of a real-world process or thing, used to simplify the phenomenon and make it more understandable (Glynn and Duit, 1995, p. 3). Modeling in Science Education Considering all the above and having in mind the powerful potential of models and modeling process, many educators and researchers present their use in science education as essential and core (e. g Louca and Zacharia, 2008, Louca et. al. , 2003, Papaevripidou et al, 2006, Schwartz White, 2005), since they can facilitate and promote science learning and teaching (Grosslight et al, 1991). Therefore, they are identified as vehicles for learning the world (Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy, 2006). Gilbert (1993), recognises models as one of the main products of science, important element in scientific methodology, and major learning tools in science education (pp. 9-10). Specifically, Hudson (No date) emphasizes the importance of modeling in science by indicating that without modeling practices it is not possible to visualise effective teaching. Moreover, investigators (e. g. , Snir et al., 1988) who have talked with students about the nature of models assumed that the enrichment of students conceptions about the nature of models could support students learning from models (cited in Grosslight et al. , 1991). Also, models in science are thought to be the way we construct understanding about the physical world and therefore are an anticipated result of teaching about science (Louca and Constantinou, 2002). Consequently, lot of researches were conducted in the field of models and modeling in science education and several reasons that make the use of models in science education vital were revealed. In order to understand the need for using models in science teaching it is useful to define what model-based teaching is and as Gobert and Buckley (2000) points out model based teaching is any implementation that brings together information resources, learning activities, and instructional strategies intended to facilitate mental model-building both in individuals and among groups of learners (p. 892). Moreover, Popper (1982) indicates that if science is the art of oversimplification, then models are the tools for organizing and simplifying things (cited in Sizmur and Ashby, 1997). Likewise, models in science are considered to be scientists and teachers attempts to represent every day phenomena that are difficult and complex to understand in order to support their students learning (Harrison and Treagust, 1998). The various models that can be generated in early school years are conditional representations of phenomena, explaining aspects of reality that are organised progressively, thereby leading to the development of these models (Acher et al. , 2006). .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d , .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .postImageUrl , .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d , .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d:hover , .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d:visited , .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d:active { border:0!important; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d:active , .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u2101b3270b27af8dffd480ee1b5d0f2d:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: In Africa Ebola killed numerous people leaving beh EssayAs Osborne and Hennessy (2003) add, models can be very supportive, in order to understand the complex and confusing real world, since they give the opportunity to students to focus on specific concept and isolate variables they want to examine. In addition, modeling is recognised as part of a scientists daily life (Zhang et al, 2005) and it is quite vital for students to be able to work and think like scientists (Wilensky and Reisman, 2006). Consequently, there is a growing interest in developing pedagogic models in science education, that help students understand how scientists conceptual physical phenomena (Louca, 2 004). When children are learning science the task is similar with scientists: to progress from a directly experienced realm of things and events toward more theoretical explanations that help students understand objects and processes that cannot observe by themselves (Sizmur and Ashby, 1997, p. 7). So, by engaging students with similar practices with those of scientists such as modeling, helps them to construct knowledge and achieve epistemological understanding (Gobert and Buckley, 2000). Pollak (1994) argues that unless students are introduced to the game that professional scientists play called creating and shooting down models let them in on the game of being a scientist (p. 91). Additionally, the National Science Education Standards emphasizes this by stating that all students should develop an understanding of the nature of science and that this understanding includes knowledge that scientists formulate and test their explanations of nature using observation, experiments, and theoretical and mathematical models (National Research Council, 1996, p.171). However there is difference between scientists and students perceptions about models, since scientists think of a model as a set of assumptions that include theoretical entities and relations among them, that are designed to help them think about how to explain some aspect of reality (Snir et al. , 2000, p. 797), while students assume that models are exact representations or pictures of reality (Grosslight et al. , 1991). Whats more, modeling-based teaching can be beneficial since the development and refinement of models can have qualitative outcomes of understanding different concepts and the nature of science as well as gaining procedural and reasoning skills (Grosslight et al, 1991; Harrison and Treagust, 1998). Additionally, previous research showed that by engaging students modeling skills the achievement of science process skills is also accomplished (Rubin and Norman, 1992). Also, by using models students can gain scientific knowledge meaningfully, something that supports the development of scientific skills, especially critical thinking (White, 1993). Also, it is considered that learning in science can be supported through the construction of models for physical phenomena and knowledge about those models, will permit learners to further use, test and revise their models in the light of new evidence (Louca and Constatntinou, 2002, p. 15), something vital in the filed of science. Various studies in the area of modeling-based learning revealed that the use of models as tools for observing, exploring, synthesizing and predicting, provides a learning environment where students can build, test, revise and apply models (Papaevripidou et al. , 2006, Schwartz White, 2005). Moreover, the experience of any modeling-based learning gives the opportunity to students to think and talk scientifically about natural phenomena (Penner, 2001), to share, discuss and criticize (Devi et al. , 1996; Rowette et al. , 2000) their ideas as well as reflect upon their understandings (Gilbert et al., 1998). Additionally, there has always been a challenge in science education for teaching students complex systems and unobservable phenomena. Therefore, models can facilitate the representation of this kind of phenomena and support students conceptual understanding. Specifically, exploratory modeling activities, which allow students to interact with already constructed models, can explore phenomena that are not accessible to direct observation and the outcome can be a qualitative understanding of complex processes [(Feurzeig Roberts, 1999) cited in Stylianidou et al.

Name Essays (931 words) - Rhetoric, Communication Studies

Name Course Professor Johnson Date Ad Intervention Visual rhetoric is an efficient tool when it comes to addressing a certain issue. Since time, many studies have been able to prove that the brain can relate more to visual aid as opposed to verbal aids or text. The use of visual rhetoric has the capability of making a lasting impression the intended audience when compared to arguments that are dominated by verbal communication (Van Eemeren et al. 39). The use of visual rhetoric has been used to draw the deepest emotional connection with the audience as opposed to another form of rhetoric. Visual rhetoric helps to drive the point home easily and dramatically. From the image presented, the advertisers have used clear and distinctive strategies to draw the audience to the product on display. They have used persuasive strategies such as logos, ethos, and pathos. Through the use of pathos in the image, the advertisers have managed to bring out response that will be based on emotions rather than words when one looks at the pictures. They have been able to show the children seeking attention and love. The children look lonely where they do not show a smile. This is a perfect way of creating a connection with the audience primarily parents. No parent wants to see unaccompanied children who fail to show smiles. This is an emotional attachment where human beings are obliged to keep their offspring safe by making them happy. From the look of the pictures, the presentation immediately captures the emotions of the children. This is a negative form of connection between the children and the rest of the audience. Another kind of feeling that is bein g displayed is guilt or fear. This immediately triggers our feeling of providing guidance and direction to the children since it is our responsibility. The visual representation can talk through the aspects of creating an emotional connection and journey. The pictures have been able to establish presence of the children and what they are wearing. Another possible emotional connection is drawn on the aspects of fashion and elegance for the children. This advert may be targeting the affluent or those who would like their children to swim in style. Elegance has been used to portray being comfortable with life. The elegance being also characterized tries to capture the link between confidence and elegance. Emotional connection has been established where one can interpret the fact that style can be used as a tool for nurturing faith in children. Elegance can also be seen as an instrument that has been used to portray self-expression by the children. Adults or parents are connected emotionally to children who have the ability to express themselves in their terms by creating their unique identity. Every guardian would like to have a child who is trying to capture that image of self-identity and expression. The statement in this advertisement is a method where the makers seek to introduce a new concept of elegance with children. They strive to link the two together and encourage the consumers to adapt to it. It is an emotional connection that builds healthy relationships between parents and children. Through the use of logos in the images presented, the advertisers of the product have been able to give evidence and statistics that is needed when it comes to understanding the function of the clothes on the children. Through statistics, the image has been able to portray that the jeans can be worn by any child, whether they are boys or girls. Perhaps the advertisement was coming at a time when wearing jeans by children was an idea that had not established a strong connection with the consumers. The different colors being worn by the boys and girl use as a code to show that each gender can differentiate what they are supposed to wear. Boys have been coded to wear black while the girls have been coded to wear grey. The other possible strategy is the use of ethos where the advertisers have been able to create credibility of the clothes being advertised for children. It is a strategy which acts as the final assurance to the parents to buy the clothes for their kids. Although this

A pollack by any other name - Emphasis

A pollack by any other name A pollack by any other name We should all be eating more pollack, for cods sake. So say the environmentalists trying to save the perennial partner to chips from an early, non-watery grave: cod stocks in the North Sea are a mere fifth of what they were forty years ago. Sainsburys have given the humble pollack a makeover to boost its popularity as an alternative. Shoppers have apparently previously blushed to ask for this fish by name. We must now all practise our French accents to request colin (pronounced co-lan), which actually means hake across the water. Honourable motives? Mais oui. But will this prove to be a successful rebrand or just fishy jargon? And it brings to mind that age-old question: whats in a name? Quite a lot, it seems, in business. Finding just the right name for a brand is so important that its spawned its own industry to take care of the christening for you. It can be the difference between being noticed or passed over; remembered or forgotten if you will: between being reeled in or thrown back. To borrow from branding firm Hinges website: [a] name encapsulates all of the content intellectual and emotional that people associate with a product or service. The extent to which Colin the pollack will enter public consciousness and public house menus well, time will tell. If nothing else, people are certainly taking the bait for its comedy and pun potential: why not call it Jackson? What a load of pollacks, etc. It does seem to be catching on rather better than the PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) campaign to gain sympathy for all fish by renaming them sea kittens. Even comedy has its limits.

Radiation in Space and Astronomy - Definition

Radiation in Space and Astronomy - Definition Astronomy is the study of objects in the universe that radiate (or reflect) energy from across the electromagnetic spectrum. Astronomers study radiation from all objects in the universe. Lets take an in-depth look at the forms of radiation out there. Artwork of a planet orbiting a pulsar. Pulsars are very rapidly spinning neutron stars are the dead cores of massive stars and rotating on their axes often hundreds of times every second. They radiate radio waves and in optical light. Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library (Getty Images) Importance to Astronomy In order to completely understand the universe, scientists must look at it across the entire electromagnetic spectrum. This includes the high-energy particles such as cosmic rays. Some objects and processes are actually completely invisible in certain wavelengths (even optical), which is why astronomers look at them in many wavelengths. Something invisible at one wavelength or frequency may be very bright in another, and that tells scientists something very important about it. Types of Radiation Radiation describes elementary particles, nuclei, and electromagnetic waves as they propagate through space. Scientists typically reference radiation in two ways:  ionizing and non-ionizing. Ionizing Radiation Ionization is the process by which electrons are removed from an atom. This happens all the time in nature, and it merely requires the atom to collide with a photon or a particle with enough energy to excite the election(s). When this happens, the atom can no longer maintain its bond to the particle. Certain forms of radiation carry enough energy to ionize various atoms or molecules. They can cause significant harm to biological entities by causing cancer or other significant health problems. The extent of the radiation damage is a matter of how much radiation was absorbed by the organism. The electromagnetic spectrum show as a function of frequence/wavelength and temperature. Chandra X-Ray Observatory The minimum threshold energy needed for radiation to be considered ionizing is about 10 electron volts (10 eV). There are several forms of radiation that naturally exist above this threshold: Gamma-rays: Gamma rays (usually designated by the Greek letter ÃŽ ³) are a form of electromagnetic radiation. They represent the highest energy forms of light in the universe. Gamma rays occur from a variety of processes, ranging from activity inside nuclear reactors to stellar explosions called  supernovae and highly energetic events known as gamma-ray bursters. Since gamma rays are electromagnetic radiation, they do not readily interact with atoms unless a head-on collision occurs. In this case the gamma ray will decay into an electron-positron pair. However, should a gamma ray be absorbed by a biological entity (e.g. a person), then significant harm can be done as it takes a considerable amount of energy to stop such radiation. In this sense, gamma rays are perhaps the most dangerous form of radiation to humans. Luckily, while they can penetrate several miles into our atmosphere before they interact with an atom, our atmosphere is thick enough that most gamma rays are absorbed b efore they reach the ground. However, astronauts in space lack protection from them, and are limited to the amount of time that they can spend outside a spacecraft or space station. While very high doses of gamma radiation can be fatal, the most likely outcome to repeated exposures to above-average doses of gamma-rays (like those experienced by astronauts, for instance) is an increased risk of cancer. This is something that life sciences experts in the worlds space agencies study closely. X-rays: x-rays are, like gamma rays, a form of electromagnetic waves (light). They are usually broken up into two classes: soft x-rays (those with the longer wavelengths) and hard x-rays (those with the shorter wavelengths). The shorter the wavelength (i.e. the harder the x-ray) the more dangerous it is. This is why lower energy x-rays are used in medical imaging. The x-rays will typically ionize smaller atoms, while larger atoms can absorb the radiation as they have larger gaps in their ionization energies. This is why x-ray machines will image things like bones very well (they are composed of heavier elements) while they are poor imagers of soft tissue (lighter elements). It is estimated that x-ray machines, and other derivative devices, account for between 35-50% of the ionizing radiation experienced by people in the United States.Alpha Particles: An alpha particle (designated by the Greek letter ÃŽ ±) consists of two protons and two neutrons; exactly the same composition as a hel ium nucleus. Focusing on the alpha decay process that creates them, heres what happens: the alpha particle is ejected from the parent nucleus with very high speed (therefore high energy), usually in excess of 5% of the speed of light. Some alpha particles come to Earth in the form of cosmic rays  and  may achieve speeds in excess of 10% of the speed of light. Generally, however, alpha particles interact over very short distances, so here on Earth, alpha particle radiation is not a direct threat to life. It is simply absorbed by our outer atmosphere. However, it is a danger for astronauts.   Beta Particles: The result of beta decay, beta particles (usually described by the Greek letter Î’) are energetic electrons that escape when a neutron decays into a proton, electron, and anti-neutrino. These electrons are more energetic than alpha particles but less so than high energy gamma rays. Normally, beta particles are not of concern to human health as they are easily shielded. Artificially created beta particles (like in accelerators) can penetrate the skin more readily as they have considerably higher energy. Some places use these particle beams to treat various kinds of cancer because of their ability to target very specific regions. However, the tumor needs to be near the surface as not to damage significant amounts of interspersed tissue.Neutron Radiation: Very high-energy neutrons are created during nuclear fusion or nuclear fission processes. They can then be absorbed by an atomic nucleus, causing the atom to go into an excited state and it can emit gamma-rays. These photons will then excite the atoms around them, creating a chain-reaction, leading to the area to become radioactive. This is one of the primary ways humans are injured while working around nuclear reactors without proper protective gear. Non-ionizing Radiation While ionizing radiation (above) gets all the press about being harmful to humans, non-ionizing radiation can also have significant biological effects. For instance, non-ionizing radiation can cause things like sunburns. Yet, it is what we use to cook food in microwave ovens.  Non-ionizing radiation can also come in the form of thermal radiation, which can heat material (and hence atoms) to high enough temperatures to cause ionization. However, this process is considered different than kinetic or photon ionization processes. The Karl Jansky Very Large Array of radio telescopes is located near Socorro, New Mexico. This array focuses on radio emissions from a variety of objects and processes in the sky. NRAO/AUI Radio Waves: Radio waves are the longest wavelength form of electromagnetic radiation (light). They span 1 millimeter to 100 kilometers. This range, however, overlaps with the microwave band (see below). Radio waves are produced naturally by active galaxies (specifically from the area around their supermassive black holes), pulsars and in supernova remnants. But they are also created artificially for the purposes of radio and television transmission.Microwaves: Defined as wavelengths of light between 1 millimeter and 1 meter (1,000 millimeters), microwaves are sometimes considered to be a subset of radio waves. In fact, radio astronomy is generally the study of the microwave band, as longer wavelength radiation is very difficult to detect as it would require detectors of immense size; hence only a few peer beyond the 1-meter wavelength. While non-ionizing, microwaves can still be dangerous to humans as it can impart a large amount of thermal energy to an item due to its interactions with water and water vapor. (This is also why microwave observatories are typically placed in high, dry places on Earth, as to lessen the amount of interference that water vapor in our atmosphere can cause to the experiment. Infrared Radiation: Infrared radiation is the band of electromagnetic radiation that occupies wavelengths between 0.74 micrometers up to 300 micrometers. (There are 1 million micrometers in one meter.) Infrared radiation is very close to optical light, and therefore very similar techniques are used to study it. However, there are some difficulties to overcome; namely infrared light is produced by objects comparable to room temperature. Since electronics used to power and control infrared telescopes will run at such temperatures, the instruments themselves will give off infrared light, interfering with data acquisition. Therefore the instruments are cooled using liquid helium, so as to lessen extraneous infrared photons from entering the detector. Most of what the Sun emits that reaches Earths surface is actually infrared light, with the visible radiation not far behind (and ultraviolet a distant third). An infrared view of a cloud of gas and dust made by Spitzer Space Telescope. The Spider and Fly Nebula is a star-forming region and Spitzers infrared view shows structures in the cloud affected by a cluster of newborn stars. Spitzer Space Telescope/NASA Visible (Optical) Light: The range of wavelengths of visible light is 380 nanometers (nm) and 740 nm. This is the electromagnetic radiation that we are able to detect with our own eyes, all other forms are invisible to us without electronic aids. Visible light is actually only a very small part of the electromagnetic spectrum, which is why it is important to study all other wavelengths in astronomy as to get a complete picture of the universe and to understand the physical mechanisms that govern the heavenly bodies.Blackbody Radiation: A blackbody is an object that emits electromagnetic radiation when it is heated, the peak wavelength of light produced will be proportional to the temperature (this is known as Wiens Law). There is no such thing as a perfect blackbody, but many objects like our Sun, the Earth and the coils on your electric stove are pretty good approximations.Thermal Radiation: As particles inside of a material move due to their temperature the resulting kinetic energy can be described as the total thermal energy of the system. In the case of a blackbody object (see above) the thermal energy can be released from the system in the form of electromagnetic radiation. Radiation, as we can see, is one of the fundamental aspects of the universe. Without it, we would not have light, heat, energy, or life. Edited by Carolyn Collins Petersen.

Tzedakah Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Tzedakah - Term Paper Example The Hebrew word â€Å"zedakah† or â€Å"tsedakah† has been translated into English meaning either â€Å"righteousness† or â€Å"charity.† In earlier times it was referred to also as â€Å"almsgiving.† It can be defined as â€Å"an act of duty incumbent upon men of means to provide for those in want.† (Jacobs et al.: 2011, no page number). One of the main principles of Jewish faith is obedience to God’s laws, and within the Torah there is provision for widows and orphans through a system of giving from the rich. Heilman reports that when he conducted a survey on charity among Orthodox Jews, one man responded â€Å"I give tzedakah for lots of reasons but foremost because it is a mitzvah that the Torah commanded me to do and by doing so I am fulfilling my obligation to be a good Jew.† (Heilman: 1991, p. 134). This shows that giving tzedakah is seen as an important way of expressing one’s identity as a Jew, and of showing one ’s righteousness before God and before other people. It is not just a voluntary sign of goodwill, but a formal ritual that is a compulsory and fundamental part of being Jewish. There is a saying â€Å"charity begins at home† (Goldman: 2000, p. 250) and this encompasses the duty that parents have towards their children and children have towards their parents. ... Each person is expected to give according to his or her means, and this might be a small or large amount. In ancient times there were strict rules on reserving a portion of one’s wealth for giving to the poor and to strangers in the community. This is called â€Å"tithing†, and its purpose is to help people remember that all good things come from God, and that they have a duty to share their good fortune with others who are in need. In modern times it is all too easy to forget this, and get caught up with the materialism of our consumer society, but practising the act of tzedakah is a good way of keeping our feet on the ground. If everyone took this commandment seriously, then there would be far less poverty in the world. The origins or of the term tzedakah come from Deuteronomy 15:4 â€Å"There shall be no needy among you.† From the earliest times, when the Jewish people lived at times in a precarious land, with deserts, bandits and all kinds of famines and disa sters, feeding the needy was seen as a priority. Husbands died of illness or were killed in wars, leaving weaker members of the family in need of support. Many of the ancient stories speak of strangers in need, and the great Jewish teachers are famed for stopping what they are doing to help the needy. Hospitality is a basic duty in the Middle East, and it offers an opportunity to be charitable and generous even to strangers. When Jewish people were spread out across Europe and the Middle East in the diaspora, there were often persecutions and it was only by sticking together and sharing their wealth with each other that many Jewish communities survived. Today there is often a connection between the giving of tzedakah and the life of

Criminal Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 10

Criminal Justice - Essay Example However, the exacting of the inmate’s freedoms, liberties and choices must be balanced, so that the social or public order is not disturbed. The public order is the prison the inmate is serving in. It is in the interest of social order that every inmate is to be accorded treatment or medical attention, as a way of upholding the US’ civil rights, justice and social order. However, room is left for inmates to exercise choice. Nevertheless, the declining of medical attention is seen to contravene public order in the event that the patient’s medical condition can affect social order. Mental illness, communicable diseases and urgent and important vaccines to an outbreak are some of the conditions which may directly affect public order. The crux of the matter above is that if the inmate is not accorded medical attention when he is in any of the three conditions above, he is likely to endanger the lives and health of other inmates and prison staff as well. Therefore, the exacting of forceful treatment will be being done for the good of the inmate, the rest of the inmates, the prison staff and US (or state) interests. It must also be remembered from the outset that life belongs to the state. Because of this, declining medical attention to a point where the life of the inmate may be in danger is akin to and amounts to breaching public order. No one has a right to take his life, even if it is by resisting medical attention. The two polarities (individual rights and public order) can be balanced by passing a legal injunction which would give prison authorities the power to administer treatment to specific medical conditions, if the inmate resisted. Some of these specific medical conditions that would bestow power on prison authorities include the refusal to receive medical attention because of mental derangement or psychological

Two new species of Chelus from the late tertiary of Northern South America Essay Example for Free

Two new species of Chelus from the late tertiary of Northern South America Essay Testudines Introduction            This is a group of animals widely known as the turtles. The order testudines has over 250 known species of turtles. Testudines are a very unique group of animals due to their shells. The shell is a modified ribcage and vertebral column. All testudines are placed in the order chelonia. (Keith p.5). They can be divided into different categories depending on where they live. Sea turtles and terrestrial turtles. Terrestrial turtles are mostly termed as tortoises while aquatic turtles are known as terrapins. Those that live in salty water oceans are referred to as sea turtles. Apart from Antarctica, testudines can be found in all other continents of the world. They are characterized by a shell. The upper side of the shell is known as the carapace while the lower side is known as plastrone. The shell is normally part of the skin. Evolution history            The first testudines are believed to have lived in the late Triassic periods. This is about two hundred and twenty million years ago. Over two hundred species represented by thirteen group exist today. Since Triassic period, turtles have evolved little by little though it is likely that the modern turtle could resemble the ancient ones with remarkably stable body plan. Testudines are believed to have evolved from body extensions of their back bones and broad ribs that enlarged and grew together to form the protective shell that offered protection at every stage of its evolution even when the components of the bones were not complete( Rieppel 1996 pg453). This is proved by the fossils of freshwater turtles; the odontochelys semitestacea dated back at Triassic period. This species display a complete bony plastrone and an incomplete shell which resembles that of a turtle at embryonic development.            There is no study that shows an exact ancestor for turtles. A molecular analysis of about two hundred and forty eight genes of sixteen vertebrate taxa suggests that testudines could be a sister to birds and crocodiles. (The Achosauria pg35). The separation dates of birds, crocodiles and a turtle is estimated to be two hundred and fifty five million years. The recent common ancestor of the modern turtle is estimated to have occurred about one hundred and fifty seven years ago and corresponds to the separation between cryptodira and preurodira.            Proganochelys is the earliest known fully shelled turtle of the late Triassic period. This genus had so many undisputed traits of the modern turtle. However it lacked the ability to pull its head back into the shell and had a long spiked tail ending in a club. This body form resembles that of ankylosaurs is believed to have resulted from convergent evolution.            Testudines have two extant suborders; pleurodira and cryptodira. Cryptodira is the larger of the two and include all terrestrial turtles, marine turtles and most of the freshwater turtles. Pleurodira is the smaller suborder and consists most of the freshwater species. Taxonomy            Testudines are commonly referred to as tortoises, turtles or terrapins. . There are fourteen extant families of this order. The order has more than three hundred known species though others may have been extinct with time. Ninety seven genera of testudines are also known. These genera are split into two suborders which are cryptodirans and pleurodirans in which the distinguishing factor is how the animals fold their neck to pull their head back into the shell. Pleurodirans have long necks and which they fold sideways while cryptodirans have short ones and they fold them straight back to pull their heads back into the shell. Pelomedusidae and cheidae are the only known extant families of the pleurodires.            The cryptodirans the following known families: carettochelydae, cheloniidae, Testudinae, Dermochelyidae, Chelydridae, kinosternidae, Emydidae and Trionychidae. (Romer 1933 pg 5)            Testudines are placed in a subclass known as Anapsida. Generally, testudines are placed in the following scientific classification.            Kingdom- AnimaliaPhylum- ChordataClass- SauropsidaOrder- Testudines (Linnaeus, 1758 pg 40) Diet            The diet of the testudines varies with the environment as well as the age. Adult turtles’ main diet is aquatic plants, invertebrates such as warms, insects and snails but sometimes they can eat dead marine animals. Some freshwater turtles are carnivals and are reported to feed on small fish and other aquatic small creatures. Young turtles are purely carnivores and feed on crab and snails. This is because proteins are essential for the formation of the carapace and other body features.            Sea turtles feed on sponge, jellyfish and other and other soft bodied sea creatures. Turtles that have stronger jaws have been reported to feed on jellyfish. Some turtles such as green sea turtles are purely herbivores and feed on mainly algae. Behavior            Turtles are extant reptiles and therefore are all of their species endotherms. With this they are seen basking in the sun especially in morning either on rocks or bare soil for terrestrial ones or floating on water for sea turtles. Turtles breathe through the lung and lay their egg on dry ground and not in water. A turtle will fold its neck and pull its head in the shell if it notices any form of danger. Turtles have good night vision due to large number of rod cells in their retina therefore most of them prey at night. They have a great color vision with sensitivities ranging from the near ultraviolet to red. Testudines have poor pursuit movement especially the terrestrial ones. However, carnivores ones can move their necks very fast to catch their prey.            All turtles have rigid beaks and use their jaws to catch, cut and chew their food. Testudines are social creatures and sometimes switch between promiscuity and monogamy in their sexual behavior. The rigid carapace of the turtle is dome-shaped which is difficult for any prey to crush and it is also used for camouflaging in case of danger or when preying. (Laurin 1999 pg65)            Turtles live for long and take long before they reach breeding age. They do not have any parental care so ones they lay their eggs, they leave them to hatch on their own and the young ones are left to find their way to their natural habitat. Habitat            Testudines resides in different environments ranging from freshwater, salt water, coastline and tropical reefs. They inhabit almost all non-arctic terrestrial region which include deserts, mountains, prairie and mountains. (Alderton, 2012 pg15) Interactions of turtles with human beings Some turtles such as red-eared sliders are considered pests where they are not native. The flesh of turtle’s calipii is used for food in some cultures. In the Island of Grand Cayman, turtles are a traditional diet. Fat from turtles is used in cosmetic industry in Mexico and Caribbean. Chinese use turtle plastrons as traditional medicine. Small sized Testudines are mostly used as pets in most parts of the world. References Alderton, David, and Susan Barraclough. Amazing snakes and reptiles. New York: Sandy Creek, 2012. Print.Fogel, David. Matamatas: the natural history, captive care, and breeding of Chelus fimbriatus. Ada: Living Art Publishing, 2011. Print. Wood, Roger Conant. Two new species of Chelus (Testudines: pleurodira): from the late tertiary of Northern South America. Cambridge, Mass.: Museum of Comparative Zoology, 1976. Print. Source document

I have read five short stories from the anthology Out of the Darkness :: English Literature

I have read five short stories from the anthology 'Out of the Darkness' - From the five stories I will be discussing the treatment of the women in three of the stories. For my prose coursework, I have read five short stories from the anthology 'Out of the Darkness'. From the five stories I will be discussing the treatment of the women in three of the stories. The three stories I have chosen are 'Invisible Boy', 'More Than Just A Disease' and 'The Darkness Out There'. In the story 'The Darkness Out There', the old lady, whose name is 'Mrs Rutter', is portrayed by the writer as a woman with a 'wonky leg' and a 'bad back' and also a woman that is getting 'home help'; this shows that she is a woman that is unable to do much practical work. This is a stereotype of an old person as most old people have some sort of problem with their body and a bad back is typical problem. Mrs Rutter getting home help is another stereotype because this also shows that she is unable to cope on her own and needs assistance with doing household chores. Mrs Rutter is shown as a lonely person because in the story the girl who is going to help her with the chores says to herself ' Mrs Rutter will be ever so pleased to meet me'. This is a stereotype in the form that the girl is assuming that most old people are lonely and live by themselves. Mrs Rutter is described as being a sweet woman and having chin upon chin also she is shown to like flowers, dresses and talking to other females; this is the most obvious stereotype in the story against women and also old people who like to talk. When we first meet Mrs Rutter she greets the two children 'Kerry' and 'Sandra' and offers them tea, but she seems to like Sandra more because she talks to Sandra a lot more about dresses, boyfriends and flowers, but when she speaks Kerry she ask's him if he is still at school and he says he will be leaving soon to join a garage and she replies, 'that's good steady money if you'd haven't got anything got any thing special in mind'. This is not a great welcoming message to say to a person that has come to help you with chores. 'Pat' the woman who runs the good neighbours club call's Mrs Rutter an 'old dear' and a 'poppet', it is unlike an old dear to greet someone in that fashion. When Mrs Rutter told her dark story of her past about leaving a young

Computers: Server and Social Media Sites

Nowadays, computer may seem to be very useful because of its various advantages. But as Louis Gerstner quoted, â€Å"Computers are magnificent tools for the realization of our dreams, but no machine can replace the human spark of spirit, compassion, love, and understanding. † Many people prefer computer because it is much easier and is more aesthetic to writing something and print it rather than using a pen. It also allows people to communicate; no matter what time it is because of the differing social media sites on the internet. Some of the people use it for research instead of reading books page by page.In offices, it lessens all the paper works and the mess so that their work will be more efficient and organized. In schools, students usually refer to the internet about some research projects because it has a wide range of sources and information that can be gathered in the differing websites. Some of the students also access the internet for some topics in their lessons th at they can barely understand. They also access the internet for encyclopedic references that certainly makes them ponder on efficiency of the use of computer for their research papers that the use of some textbooks.Introducing computers to the new generation is a better way to prepare them for the more advance technologies in the near future. Computers are also in much use in the medical industry, it is very useful in radical diagnosis, patient monitoring, and general hospital administration. Computers have really made our life totally different, progressive and better nowadays than the life of the world on the past years. Computers may be very helpful because of its advancement; however, using computer has several disadvantages.For example, students nowadays are hooked up in internet cafes because of the differing online games that can be access only through the internet. This becomes the major cause why most of the students obtain low scores on exams and the worst result is to be failed in a subject. Being addicted to the computer and facing its monitor several hours a day can also result to some visual defects due to the radiation that is being released by the monitor as it is being used. Computers also are very prone to electronic generated viruses that can affect its performance and the viruses also can spread from on unit to another unit.

Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes

Honors Literature Independent Reading Assignment Staying Fat For Sarah Brynes The book Staying Fat For Sarah Brynes revolves around a young swimmer by the name of Eric. Eric was also called Moby by his classmates due to excessive weight. Throughout the book Chris Crutcher allows readers to witness a transformation that takes place for Eric not only physically but emotionally. The hundred meter freestyle champion was determined to shed his weight and replace it with muscle.His dream of ending the days students called him Moby was placed on halt due to his commitment to one of his close friends Sarah. Sarah was a girl who lived a familiar lifestyle to Eric. She was constantly teased by the students who attended her school. At a young age Sarah’s face and hands were placed on a woodstove by her dad leaving her with untreated scars that later turned into dead tissue. The scars would later serve as a sign on strength and self-unity . â€Å"You learned a good lesson about pain,â₠¬  when you can’t take it anymore, your body stops feeling for you, (Crutcher89) .One of the major themes Chris Crutcher portrayed in â€Å"Staying Fat For Sarah Brynes is friendship . Eric and Sarah became friends as social outcasts. Both were often rejected by society so they learn to appreciate each other . They discovered ways to understand each other and soothe each other’s pain. They learned to be there for each other through the thick and thin. â€Å"Look, if you keep eating like a starving Biafran turned loose at the Food Circus just to prove me wrong about why were friends , you’ll die of a heart attack before your fifteen† (Crutcher page 93).This showed how much Sarah Byrnes friendship meant to Erick, because he was willing to continue to be fat, even though he had always been made fun of, just to prove to her that he would not stop being her friend. Throughout the book Crutcher takes readers on an adventure of some of the things Sarah faced o n an everyday basis. By providing readers with this discrepancy it showed the building structure of Eric and Sarah’s friendship. It made onlookers realize the seal of respect they had for each other.Even though outside sources tried to detour Eric’s love and compassion for Sarah â€Å"Taking on someone else’s monster will kill you† Crutcher 219-220) he stalwartly stood by her side . The book states that Eric came face to face with Sarah’s dad to confront him on the mistreating of his friend. Sarah’s dad was symbolized throughout the book as a troubled guy who battled alcoholism most of his adult life. The courageousness of Eric to stand up to him despite putting his life in danger shows the commitment he had to Sarah. Apart of supporting Sarah it made Eric a stronger person.While witnessing the harsh reality of Sarah’s life and how she dealt with it inspired him to be as strong as her. â€Å"I wanted to be tough like Sarah Byrnes , t o stand straight and, oblivious to gut eclipsing my belt buckle. He learned that without her friendship his life would have been the same and he would have never learned that he had valor. Erick gave the ultimate sacrifice by putting his life on the line in order for Sarah Byrnes to escape from her father. He helped the world know about the horrible abuse that Sarah Byrnes went through every day of her life.

Japan country analysis- overview of Japan. geography, government, etc.

Japan country analysis- overview of Japan. geography, government, etc. I. ContextA. GeographyJapan consists of many mountainous islands with active and inactive volcanoes. About 75 percent of Japan's area is mountainous, and scattered plains cover the other 25 percent. Tokyo is set on the Kanto plain, which is only 13,000 square kilometer. The total land area of Japan is 374,744 square kilometers. Japan has four main islands. The islands include Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu. All of these islands are prone to earthquakes. The highest point of Japan is Mount Fuji, which is 3,776 meters. The nearest point to Asia is Korea. The distance between Japan and the Korean Peninsula is about 200 kilometers. Japan has always been liked to Asia through trade routes. There are also numerous steep, rapid flowing rivers, which provide water for irrigation and power. However most of these rivers aren't navigable. Extensive coastal shipping compensates for the lack of navigable rivers. The pacific coastline south of Tokyo consists of generally long narrow rivers, which has created many natural harbors.English: The in TokyoHowever the north pacific coastline and the Sea of Japan weren't intended for harbors. Much land has been reclaimed from shorelines and building artificial islands to develop ports. A port was even built for the new Kansai International Airport in Osaka Bay. Hills and even mountains have been raised to provide flat areas for housing.The climate is generally rainy and humid. Since Japan runs from the north to south the weather is diverse. Climate also varies with altitude and with location on the Pacific Ocean or on the Sea of Japan. There are long cold winters in the north with snow and in the south there are long hot humid summers. The range can be compared to that of the east coast of North America. Five or six typhoons hit Japan every year...

Take An Example

Take An Example Take An Example Take An Example By Maeve Maddox The following comment got me thinking about the ways example is used: I hope we all can take an example from Shakespeare, and dare to break the structured guidelines. Since the writer was talking about Shakespeare the writer and not â€Å"Shakespeare† the works, a more accurate wording would have been: I hope we all can take Shakespeare as an example, and dare to break the structured guidelines. Alternately, the writer could have written: I hope we all can take Shakespeare as our example, and dare to break the structured guidelines. Here are some expressions that use example. for example: I like fruit, for example, strawberries, kiwi, and blueberries. by way of example: Let’s take the works of George Eliot by way of example. to make an example {of a person) : The captain made an example of the thief by ordering a punishment of ten lashes. to set an example: People in positions of governmental power ought to set an example for honesty. to take example: Take example from the life of Samuel Johnson and be kind to the helpless. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Comparative Forms of AdjectivesThe Parts of a WordThe Difference Between e.g. and i.e.?

Operation Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Operation Management - Case Study Example In broad-spectrum, Operations Management endeavors to enhance the substance of value-infused ventures in a particular process. Essentially, the value-infusing resourceful ventures ought to be combined with market prospect for the best possible business performance. Traveling is in the contemporary world a major element or part of an institute's management. Based on this, major airlines constitute a vital importance in the achievements of enterprises or institutions around the globe. Enterprises are capable of widening their markets by journeying to various regions by means of airlines. The significance of airlines informs this essays' appraisal of British Airways public limited company in the present fiscal environment. It guides us to appraise their overall business plans and strategies in a bid to improve their management. This essay aspires to discuss the operations management of the British Airline and evaluates its efficiency in the Airline industry. British Airways is the biggest airline company in the United Kingdom. It has comparatively many flights across the Atlantic Ocean than any other airline and makes in excess of 550 trips to 130 or more countries internationally. British Airways is in p... British Airways has large and modern fleets in operation comprising Boeing 747-400, Boeing 777-200, Boeing 767-300, Boeing 757-200, Boeing 737-400 and the Airbus A391/ A320/ A321. It as well has CityFlyer fleet (RJ100) and OpenSkies Boeing 757-200. The British Airways offers various flight classes for the passengers. It offers the First class service, the Business class (club world and club Europe), The Premium economy class (World Traveler Plus) and the Economy class (World Traveler, Euro Traveler and UK Domestic). The airline operates assorted kinds of lounges for travelers using premium cabins and clients with class. The Concorde Room in The JFK New York Terminal 7 was revamped to similar standards as the one at Heathrow's Terminal 5A. The Galleries First lounges replaced the previous First Lounges. The Galleries Club lounges as well replaced the Terraces and Executive Club lounges. At the airports that British Airways does not run departure lounges, the airway provides "third party" lounges for first-class travelers. British Airways runs the British Airways World Cargo. The Subsidiary cargo handling facility has worldwide freight prospects that avails the British Airways World Cargo the opening to provide service to shipment destinations not accessible in the normal passenger routes. The Airline also offers flier programs for its customers, the Executive Club being its major programme. Affiliate passengers get full access to lounges and reservation lines. The other programme is the Premier programme that offers relatively more benefits to subscribed members, and the British Airways board signs up the members of this scheme. Problems British Airways is experiencing considerable fiscal meltdown. Its revenue nose-dived by a gigantic 20 percent. The high

Juvenile Justice Written Assignment Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Juvenile Justice Written Assignment - Coursework Example He believes that the kid will improve if given much support and attention when released from the court in order to avoid being reoffended. The defense attorney also believes that the kid can be involved in more productive activities of his family and society in order to make the best use of his energy and efforts. When the kid is engaged in constructive activities of the society, this will help him to divert his energy in helping the society. This will also help Marquese in doing constructive activities thereby developing life skills which may further help him avoid the criminal activities by appreciating the role of order and justice in the society. The defense attorney therefore claims that Marquese lacked the necessary institutions to help him change his behavior. The kid should therefore be provided with relevant institutions that will help him develop life skills and family nurturing in order to engage and concentrate most of his time and energy in the constructive activities in the society. He should also be given moral support and guidance in order to help him reduce time available and discourage such criminal activities. ... Marquese is referred to as a frequent flier by the system due to his repetitive acts of criminal offences in and out of the court. He was therefore branded a frequent flyer due to his frequent and repetitive cases in court pertaining to criminal activities especially theft. The system has failed this this child because it has taken much into consideration the nature of the child at home and school so as to help him out of such a situation. This name suggests that the child habit could not be reformed but in reality Marquese can actually transform when subjected to close family support and monitoring. This name shows that Marquese was not given the necessary rehabilitation support in order to transform his behaviors. This therefore indicates the failure of the system to provide the child with the necessary support and psychological guidance concerning his situation. This name also convince the child that he cannot change his behavior. The system therefore failed to understand the actu al problems Marquese is undergoing like the abuse of drugs which needs special attention. Marquese was branded with negative names which made him wilder thereby discouraging his change of behavior. Marquese also never received adequate assistance that could help him fit into the society after leaving the court. This child can be rehabilitated because his situation is due to lack of moral guidance and support. This is shown by the arguments of his attorney general. Marquese is said to be a good student in school and he also loves her mother a lot. This child can therefore be rehabilitated through provision of adequate and necessary parental guidance and support of the society in order to engage in productive activities. The child can also transform when

Sustainability in Neo-Classical Economics Coursework

Sustainability in Neo-Classical Economics - Coursework Example The notion of sustainability relates to the creation of economic and social conditions through activities of the present generation for their own existence and maintenance of these conditions in such way that the future generations are able to maintain their own existence (EPA 2013). The following section defines the basic concepts of sustainability and provides an explanation of these concepts, which would allow an in-depth understanding of the issue of compatibility of the neoclassical theory of economics that has been studied in detail in the latter part of the paper. ‘Sustainable development’ is a concept that has gained importance in the late 1990s. It encompasses a vast area of understanding of the path of development of modern economies. However, in common understanding, the ‘sustainable development’ or simply sustainability refers to the path of development for the current generation in these countries. It signifies the way in which the current generation utilizes the resources for satisfying its necessities without indulging in excessive consumption of the resources that the interest of the future generation is hampered. In 1987, the World Commission on Environment and Development implemented this notion in the political agenda of the Commission (Mulder and Bergh 2001). Since then politically the concept of sustainable development has become an important issue in the development process of the countries around the world.   The world has experienced severely rising interest on the issue of sustainable development in the past two decades. Although it came into political light after the 1990s, economists have been devoting huge to the phenomenon of interaction between the ecology and the economy since the 18th century (Mulder and Bergh 2001). In this context, development means that the resources are utilized in a conscious manner in the current period so that enough resources are preserved for the future generations for the fulfilling of their interests (Asheim 1994, 35). The purpose of taking such a development initiative is to allow all generations to come to live a standard life. However, human activities involving the three interfaces; society, environment, and economy create a range of opportunities for the optimization of profit objectives of business organizations, but in most cases, the core concept of sustainability is ignored while performing this pure economic optimization exercise.

Internet The Prevalence Of On Line Grooming Media Essay

Internet The Prevalence Of On Line Grooming Media Essay The purpose of this short, provocative piece is to purport to the reader that whilst the Internet presents itself as a rich source of information, it also has the propensity to produce various dangers due to the nature of communication and identity construction embedded within the World Wide Web. Following Kapousiss (2010) conception of violence as a tool (Kapousis, 2010), I posit that the Internet is also a tool which deviant individuals are able to exploit through the construction of multiple identities and personas in an attempt to satisfy deviant fantasies whilst retaining their anonymity. My illustrative example of such dangers is the recent proliferation of the sexual on-line grooming of children. THE INTERNET AND THE NETWORK SOCIETY Without question, the Internet is a social phenomenon. The advances in technological systems which have made its emergence possible are the result of social production, and social production is culturally informed (Castells, 2001a: p. 36). The Internet has, in recent years, become the fabric of our lives, (ibid, p. 1) for work, for personal connection, for social networking, for information, for entertainment, for public services, for politics, and for religion (Castells, 2010: p. 64); as a result, it is becoming an integral tool of commerce, communication, and popular culture (Brignall III and Van Valey, 2005). However, despite its universality, a body of literature has emerged criticising the Internet for the de-humanisation of social relationships (Slouka, 1995; Kraut et al., 1998), media reports have linked it with increasing levels of loneliness, depression, and social isolation (McKenna and Bargh, 2000), whilst technopessimists have suggested that the Internet is endowed with t he capability to end civilisations, cultures, interests, and ethics (Berson, 2003: p. 6). Some commentators, however, have adopted a more optimistic standpoint and have defended the Internet arguing that through the performance of roles and construction of on-line identities users create a feeling of community (Rheingold, 1993; Turkle, 1995; also see Young, 2008). For the purposes of this paper, I will present the Internet as neither negative nor positive, but rather, as inanimate, a tool which entails various uses (Brignall III and Van Valey, 2005; Shannon, 2008; see also Kapousis, 2010). This position also mirrors that taken by Castells (2010) who suggests that both consumers and producers utilise the Internet as a tool through producers providing content and shaping the web (op cit, p. 382). The Internet forms part of a much larger, significant social change which has occurred over the past three decades the emergence of the network society (Castells, 2001a, 2009, 2010; van Dijk, 2006 Hardt and Negri, 2000). It is beyond the scope of this short paper to provide a comprehensive, all-embracing analysis of the network society and all of its components, therefore the emphasis will be positioned upon the changes which have occurred in communicatory practices. The network society emphasises the form and organisation of information processing and exchange, in this sense, we may define the network society as a social formation with an infrastructure of social and media networks enabling its prime mode of organisation at all levels (individual, group/organisational and societal) (van Dijk, 2006: p. 20). It is important to note that in Western societies the individual is increasingly becoming the basic unit of the network society, whereas in Eastern societies the basic unit remai ns to be groups such as the family, community, or work team (ibid, 2006). Within this paradigm the Internet can be defined as an integrated network (Castells, 2010; van Dijk, 2006). It is an integration of both data communication and mass communication (van Dijk, 2006), particularly since the emergence of the World Wide Web, which through an explosion of web pages created by organisations, companies, institutions, and user-created content (i.e. blogs, forums, bulletin-board systems (BBS), and non-profit sites such as Wikipedia.org), which has resulted in the mass communicative character of the Internet becoming increasingly visible (ibid, 2006). Consequently, the Internet has become a medium through which communication is mediated on a daily basis. However, the Internet does not replace existing forms of communication but, rather, it supplements them. In this sense, the Internet adds new forms of social capital to traditional ones, these forms may include selecting and contacting complete strangers with particular characteristics, types of online conversat ion, and the initiative to act both on-line and offline (ibid, p. 169). This is evident in a study undertaken by Katz and Rice (2002) which found that more than a tenth of Americans had established on-line friendships. Similarly, they found that over ten per cent initiated offline contact of which a significant majority (85%) described positive experiences (Katz and Rice, 2002). IDENTITY ON THE INTERNET Let me now turn to the issue of identity, particularly identity which is mediated and constructed over the Internet. My suggestion here, is, that the Internet functions as a gateway through which social beings are increasingly enabled to present themselves as they desire (Heyboer, 2007). Thus, any dangers which may result from the construction of anonymous identities which currently exist on the Internet are dependent upon the individuals application of the technology, in this sense, the Internet is a tool (Brignall III and Van Valey, 2005; Shannon, 2008; Kapousis, 2010). The construction of multiple identities, however, is not a new phenomenon. Writing more than half a century ago, Erving Goffman (1990/1959) suggested that individuals create various faces or masks which are applied depending upon the specific social arrangement. The subsequent experiences which the individual encounters help shape their reality and thus forms who they are. As Goffman (1959) suggests: In a sense, and in so far as this mask represents the conception we have formed of ourselves the role we are striving to live up to-this mask is our truer self, the self we would like to be. In the end, our conception of our role becomes second nature and an integral part of our personality. We come into the world as individuals, achieve character, and become persons (p.19) Despite the time period in which Goffman (1959) was writing, and that the identity construction he was theorising primarily occurred in face-to-face interactions, his insights are of high importance in relation to identity construction on the Internet. Of course, a central objection to the notion of self-presentation on the Internet is the importance Goffman places upon the physical setting of interactions, here the setting involves furniture, dà ©cor, physical layout, and other background items which supply the scenery and stage props for the spate of human action played out before, within, or upon it (ibid, pp. 32 33). However, applying the example of social network sites (SNSs) such as Facebook and MySpace, we can posit, albeit hypothetically, that the furniture is replaced by buttons and applications, the dà ©cor replaced by profile pages with varying designs (particularly for MySpace), the physical layout replaced by (in Facebook), communities and so forth, and stage props ma y include the instant chat function or messaging system which are embedded within the wider virtual social environment created by SNSs. Thus, it is possible to suggest that the presentation of self has become virtualised. An example of such virtualisation is present in the about me sections constructed within peoples profile pages. In doing so, users are indulging in a presentation of self whereby they paint a succinct picture of their persona, their self, as they desire; however, it is important to note that such personas may be exaggerated or completely constructed. The following quote, extracted from an about me section on social networking site Vampire Freaks tailored for gothic and industrial culture -, provides an eloquent example of such actions: Im a fucking human bitch! Im an epic nerd. I have no life. Im awesome and Im just that arrogant to admit it. Im also a vegetarian because eating animals is rude, would you go into someones house and slaughter there family because youre hungry? I dont think so. I like cute scene guys who make me smile 🙂 I love to tease my hair and draw my makeup wild. dont like it? I suggest you get off my profile now. I like to get drunk and piss on people, then blame it on the booze 😉 (16-year-old girl from Vancouver) Here, a unique form of self-presentation is present. We learn that the person is vegetarian, heterosexual, and abides to arguably widespread teen culture through the consumption of drugs and alcohol without any form of engagement with the actual person, be it virtual, face-to-face, or otherwise. Two studies have demonstrated the prevalence, amongst children and teens, of identity construction on-line. The first, conducted in 2001, found that 24 per cent of teens (12 17 years-old) who have used IMs (instant messaging) and email or attended chat rooms have constructed a false identity when communicating on-line (Lenhart et al., 2001), this finding was replicated in the second study, undertaken in 2005, which found that 40 per cent of minors (6 17 years-old) indulged in identity play on-line (Livingstone and Bober, 2005). Importantly, a third of teens (33%) reported receiving emails and instant messages off somebody who provided fake information about themselves (Lenhart et al., 2001) and 31 per cent reported receiving unwanted sexual messages (Livingstone and Bober, 2005). The findings which have emerged from these studies suggest that at the core of children and other youths use of the Internet is the formation of a culture in which minors are functioning as active social agents and consciously constructing identities on the Internet. Such actions increase the risk of victimisation considerably, the following section will consider the consequences of identity construction in relation to the on-line grooming of children and minors. WANNA CYBER =P? THE INTERNET AND ONLINE GROOMING Over the past decade, as a result of significant social changes in communicatory practices and the growth in electronic media used to supplement traditional forms of interaction amongst young people, Internet use amongst children and teenagers has grown exponentially. Reports suggest that a considerable number of children and young people (9 17 years-old) now access the Internet (74% at home, 92% at school) on a regular basis (41% daily, 42% weekly) (Livingstone and Bober, 2005), with half of 7 16 year-olds in the United Kingdom having access in their bedrooms (ChildWise, 2010). Meanwhile, in the United States, the number of teens (12 17 years-old) going on-line has now reached 93 per cent (Lenhart et al., 2010). Due to this almost ubiquitous use and increased interaction with the Internet, children are now at a considerably greater risk of deviant individuals who hide behind the electronic cloak of deviance (Di Marco and Di Marco, 2003) the Internet provides through retaining the anonymity of an individuals identity. Such risks are evident in the increasing number of global sex crimes which are committed over the Internet, particularly against children and youths (Leander et al., 2008), with as many as three million crimes reportedly occurring in 2006 (Kierkegaard, 2007). Thus, the purpose of this section is to illuminate the sexual on-line grooming of children, an increasing phenomenon (Shannon, 2008), as an unintended consequence (Merton, 1968 [1938]) of the social changes in our communicatory practices and the influence which technology has imposed upon such changes. The sexual grooming of children is not a new phenomenon, neither is the conceptual use of the term grooming. The term has been in circulation for a considerable period of time, for the most part applied by psychologists in attempts to analyse patterns of deviant sexual behaviour (McAlinden, 2006). However, the area has suffered from a lack of academic inquiry and thus the term grooming has become increasingly ambiguous, particularly in its application (Craven et al., 2006). Nevertheless, the most reliable definition is provided by Gillespie (2002) who defines grooming as the process by which a child is befriended by a would-be abuser in an attempt to gain the childs confidence and trust, enabling them to get the child to acquiesce to abusive activity (Gillespie, 2002: p. 411). Through avoiding the use of the term paedophile, this definition provides a clarity concerning the rationale of grooming and the systematic stages such processes are most likely to take. Traditionally, the process of sexually grooming a child with the intent to abuse them would require assuming a position of trust (such as a teacher, caretaker, or lollypop man). From this, the individual would form a relationship with his/or her victim before attempting to engage in sexual activity Traditionally, the sexual grooming of children usually occurred when an adult would assume a position of trust (such as a teacher, caretaker, or lollypop man) and build a relationship with the intention to ultimately abuse the minor (Finkelhor, 1984). However, the Internet has now offered itself as an application through which like-minded individuals can far easily access such social spaces where children hang and convalesce, such as social network sites or chat rooms. As Shannon (2008) eloquently states, (the Internet) has created a new and for the most part completely unmonitored interface between children and adults (Shannon, 2008: p. 160). As has been noted, research in this area is quite limited (McAlinden, 2006; Shannon, 2008). Nevertheless, a comprehensive study conducted by Wolak et al., (2004) incorporating interviews and data from 2,574 law enforcement agencies and 129 minors (13 to 17 years-old) produced important results concerning the study of the on-line grooming of children. The authors found that whilst offenders were frequently deceptive on-line (52%), only a small proportion falsified their age by claiming to be over 18 (5%) (Wolak et al., 2004). The study also supported Livingstone and Bober (2005) and Lenhart et als (2001) findings with a considerable minority of minors (9%) claiming to be over 18 (ibid, 2004). The findings demonstrate the dangers which the Internet enables through the formation of a culture whereby children and other youths are, in some cases, presenting themselves as adults without the constraints of the physical world, it is also important to note that this may be due to the impositi on of a consumerist culture whereby children are sexualised, for example, through the provision of shirts with quotations such as pornstar, lingerie and padded bras (Hennessey, 2010). As David Cameron suggests, Girls are encouraged to dress like women, wear lingerie and worry about what they look like (Cameron, 2010 cited in ibid: unpaginated). Important findings also relate to the nature of on-line interactions, for example, in a majority of instances sexual topics were raised and discussed with the victim on-line (83%) and a considerable number engaged in cybersex (20%) (ibid, 2004). Furthermore, a majority of on-line interactions transcended into offline meetings (74%), of which a frightening proportion (93%) resulted in sexual activity between the victim and offender, it is important to note, however, that a majority of sexual activity (79%) was consensual (ibid, 2004). Wolak et als (2004) findings raise considerable concerns regarding the on-line interaction mediated by minors. It appears, on the basis of the evidence, that children, whilst technically proficient, are culturally unaware of the wide-reaching, unintended, consequences of their actions on-line through the construction of identities and interactions of a sexual nature with older adults. However, put another way, one might suggest that as half of the adult offenders were deceptive (to some extent) a considerable amount of on-line grooming was conducted through the formation of intimate relationships, a hallmark of grooming practices. Indeed, in the study, 50 per cent of victims reported feeling close or in love with their offenders (ibid, 2004). Such evidence leads one to ask the question Is the Internet dangerous, particularly for children? My response to this is that the application of the technology, by both children and adults, provides the risks of victimisation and dangers for chi ldren. Thus, it is both a social and a public policy issue that is at hand. We must educate our children about the dangers of on-line communication, ensuring that they are aware and take the appropriate steps necessary to avoid victimisation. In fact, lessons in using the Internet safely are to become a compulsory part of the curriculum for primary school children, in the United Kingdom, from September 2011 (Fildes, 2010). In conclusion, the Internet has, without doubt, fundamentally transformed the way human beings communicate on a global scale. As Castells (2010) notes the Internet has posted the fastest rate of penetration of any communication medium in history: in the United States, the radio took 30 years to reach 60 million people; TV reached this level of diffusion in 15 years; the Internet did it in just three years after the development of the World Wide Web (op cit, p. 382). It is important that whilst we view the overall changes as positive, we are also aware of the dangers that the Internet poses, especially for one of the most vulnerable cohorts of wider society our children.

King Leopold II and Belgian Imperialism Essay -- European History Essa

King Leopold II and Belgian Imperialism In 1865, King Leopold II succeeded his father to the thrown of Belgium and thus began one of the most brutal and insensitive periods of imperialism ever to exist. From manipulative treaties to straight forward intimidation, Leopold dominated his empire like no other. He was cruel, deceptive, and downright evil, yet it took the world over twenty years to recognize this. The record of King Leopold’s atrocity is an interesting account of how a jealous man could inflict some of the most disgusting forms of oppression upon his fellow members of the human race. When Leopold came to power in 1865, he was incredibly disappointed at Belgium’s lack of power in the imperial world. Every other western European nation by had this time had taken on colonies as part of their empire; and therefore had been acquiring incredible wealth due to their new markets and exploitation of the native peoples they encountered. Belgium, itself, was a small country, and unlike their neighboring nations, they had not yet entered into the colonial scene. This all changed when the famous explorer Henry M. Stanley accepted Leopold’s proposal to return to the Congo acting as an agent of the crown whose mission was to obtain the signatures of all the native chieftains living in the Congo. Using despicable and manipulative tactics, Stanley was able to acquire over 450 treaties which paved the way for the declaration of nearly one million square miles of the Congo River Basin as the property of King Leopold II. The land Leopold had obtained was about eighty times larger than that of Belgium itself. Plus, Leopold was proclaimed the â€Å"sovereign† ruler of all the Congo Free Sta... ...Bibliography â€Å"Africa Imperialism† History of Imperialism. 1998-2002. 5 Oct. 2002. Constitutional Rights Foundation. 2000. 5 Oct. 2002 < http://www.crf-usa.org/bria/bria16_2.html>. â€Å"Leopold II- King of the Belgians† World History: King Leopold’s heart of Darkness. 2000. 5 Oct. 2002 Other Sources http://members.aol.com/TeacherNet/World.html#Africa This link brings the leader to a website consisting of many links regarding African Imperialism. http://www.crf-usa.org/bria/bria16_2.html This link brings the reader to a website focusing on King Leopold II of Belgium. http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Tielemans/hp50marc.htm This link provides the reader with a short biography of King Leopold II.

Business Finance Written Assignment

Q1. Define an â€Å"efficient market† and the three forms of market efficiency. Explain how each of the forms differs from a perfect market. Define arbitrage and explain what kind of information is needed for you to obtain arbitrage in each of the forms of market efficiency. (5 points) Q2. Please compare the advantages and disadvantages of the following investment rules: Net Present Value (NPV), Payback Period, Discounted Payback Period, Average Accounting Return, Internal Rate of Return (IRR) and Profitability Index (PI). You can start by considering the following questions for each investment rule: Does it use cash flows or accounting earnings? Does it consider all cash flows or not? Does it apply a proper discount rate? Whether the acceptance criteria are clear and reasonable? In what situation it can be applied? What kind of weakness does it have? ) (5 points) Question 1 An efficient market is advocated by a hypothesis that under free movement of information, the true valu e of securities are fairly priced, which immediately and accurately reflect all information available to investors.By the assumptions that rational investors evaluate the price by ascertained future cash flows, and are able to learn and react quickly to new information once delivered, investors do not expect to achieve returns in excess of average market returns. The three forms of market efficiency are weak, semi-strong, and strong. Different degree of information is reflected by price in different forms. Under weak form, the prices reflect all past publicly available information, like historical prices movements. Under semi-strong form, the prices reflect all publicly available information, like financial statements and news reports.Under strong form, the prices reflect all public and private information. Generally, because of quick reflection of information in price and quick response of investors to the market, it is impossible for investors to obtain or use new information to f ind undervalued stocks. To illustrate, in weak form, using past prices for technical analysis is useless to predict future trend as past information is irrelevant to the future. In semi-strong form, using fundamental analysis is not useful as the prices are immediately adjusted once the information widely circulated in the market.In strong form, finding undervalued stocks is not consistent as all information is well known. Thus, no investors can earn excess return by trading the information or selling the stocks with too high expected returns. A perfect market is where no arbitrage opportunities occur (i. e. Law of One Price) because complete information is shared among all investors. Compared with efficient market, no distinction in degree of information is reflected in price here. Arbitrage means the practice of buying and selling equivalent goods in different markets to take advantage of a price difference.An arbitrage opportunity occurs if making a profit without taking any risk . An efficient market does not necessarily mean investors cannot yield excess return. Instead, an arbitrage opportunity does exist if they ask for appropriate information quickly. If a market achieves strong form efficiency given that it is mature enough, no investor can yield any excess return in long run. Thus, no more information is needed. On the other hand, private and latest public information are needed to obtain arbitrage in semi-strong and weak form efficiency respectively. (395 words) Question 2 Use of cash flows and discount rateAll investment rules are determined by estimated cash flows but only NPV, IRR and PI consider all cash flows throughout the project’s life. Except payback period, the cash flows are discounted by proper discount rate under each rule. A positive NPV expects the project adding value to firm and shareholders’ wealth. All discounted expected future cash flows are taken into consideration compared with the initial cost. The discount rate estimates the risk level and the return and thus it is appropriate. Thus, NPV is the best because it accounts for time value of money and risk of cash flows.IRR is the return that set NPV to zero. Similarly, the calculation is based on cash flows and discount rate (i. e. same benefit as NPV). It provides a simple tool without estimating all details but intuitively appealing to know. If IRR is high enough, the time spent on estimating a required cost of capital is avoidable. PI measures benefit per unit cost based on time value of money to estimate an additional value to firm. Two versions of PI provide same decision and both are easy to understand and communicate. For calculating PI, NPV calculation is used and thus PI’s advantage is same as NPV’s.Payback period is the amount of time for future cash flows taken to recover the initial investment. It is a scanning tool for uncertain cash flows. However, it ignores cost of capital and time value of money since only cash f lows for that current period are concerned. Also, not all cash flows are considered as cash flows beyond payback period are ignored. Similar to payback period, the only difference is discounted payback period better considers discount rate (i. e. time value of money). Therefore, payback period on a discounted basis will be longer. Clearness and reasonableness of acceptance criteriaNPV, IRR and PI can provide clear and reasonable criteria while only NPV can be applied to all situations. The NPV rule is to accept a stand-alone project with positive NPV or a mutually exclusive project with the highest NPV. As NPV is estimated absolutely, the rule can still be applied despite of different scale of projects. The IRR rule is to accept a stand-alone project with IRR greater than cost of capital or a mutually exclusive project with the highest IRR. However, IRR rule is consistent with NPV rule only if all negative cash flows precede positive cash flows. In other words, the conflict is due t o non-conventional ash flows and change in signs more than once. Thus, non-existent or multiple IRR(s) may cause uncertainty in decision making. IRR is unreliable when mutually exclusive projects are different in scale, risk and time horizon. PI is closely related to NPV, generally leading to identical decisions. PI helps evaluate and identify the optimal combination under resource constraint, especially for limited budget. The project with the highest PI should be chosen first. Nevertheless, it ignores the size factor and thus leads to incorrect decisions among mutually exclusive projects.Moreover, PI cannot be applied during multiple resource constraints. The rule of (discounted) payback period is to accept the project if it is less than a pre-specified length of time. It is easily understood and simply used because of clear acceptance criteria. However, an arbitrary cutoff point is required for determination. It is subjective since ignoring the impact of cash flows after payback period favors short –term projects and biases against long –term projects. Conclusion NPV is the most commonly used investment criteria and true at any time. If any conflicts exist among the investment rules, NPV rule should prevail. 605 words) Reference 1. Hong Kong Institute of Investors (2001), â€Å"Efficient Market Hypothesis†, retrieved 1 April 2012, from http://td. hkii. org/investu/168ch7/7-5. php 2. NYU Stern, â€Å"Market Efficiency – Definition and Tests†, retrieved 1 April 2012, from http://pages. stern. nyu. edu/~adamodar/New_Home_Page/invemgmt/effdefn. htm 3. Wikipedia, â€Å"Efficient-market hypothesis†, retrieved 1 April 2012, from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Efficient-market_hypothesis 4. Wretch (21 February 2006), â€Å"Efficient Market Hypothesis†, retrieved 1 April 2012, from http://www. wretch. cc/blog/jeysafe/3421966