All About Christianity Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

All About Christianity - Research Paper Example Christianity’s sacred literature is called the Bible, which is comprised of the Old Testament and the New Testament. As stated in an online article entitled Overview of Christianity, central to Christian practice is the gathering at church for worship, fellowship, study, and engagement with the world through evangelism and social action (Davis-Stofka). In this paper, we take a close look at Christianity by highlighting on its origin, its history, and its belief system. Indeed, through this holistic research approach, we intend to understand Christianity in a much deeper level by being able understand the various concepts that have shaped its unique views on an Ultimate Creator, on human nature, and on external reality. The origin of Christianity is attributed to the life of Jesus Christ who was born in 4 B.C.E. in a Jewish province called Nazareth. Believed to be the Son of God the Father, Jesus Christ spent his entire human life by doing acts of goodness and by spreading know ledge about God’s plan toward humanity. Aside from Jesus Christ, Christianity is also known to have been deeply influenced by Jewish, Greek, and Roman cultures. Since the first Christians were Jews, their ways of worship included attending the holy temple, reading Jewish scriptures, and adhering to Jewish laws and customs. As Jewish Christians spread to Mediterranean provinces in Rome, they were able to proselytize the Greek-speaking Gentiles. Through this, Greek intellectual culture was infused into the core of Christianity. The belief on the supremacy of logic helped in the development of philosophical explanations of the Christian faith. Likewise, it is the model of Roman political organization that formed the hierarchical system in Christianity—wherein the pope is deemed to be the religious leader, followed by the archbishops, bishops, and priests. Lastly, Christian scriptures, as contained in the bible, play a vital role in the foundation of Christianity. The bibl e, which comes from the Latin ‘biblia’ that means ‘books’, is composed of the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Jewish scriptures make up the Old Testament while the twenty seven manuscripts from the apostles complete the New Testament. As further noted in Overview of Christianity, the bible has been published into 2,000 languages and is regarded as the largest selling book of all time (Davis-Stofka). The history of Christianity can be viewed in two parts. Firstly, the early developments of Christianity from 2nd to 4th century C.E. were marked by intense persecution and identity creation. The persecution of Christians was primarily driven by their refusal to honor the roman emperors as god-like figures, since they considered it as an act of idolatry. As punishment to their disloyalty, majority of the early Christians were tortured and killed during the reign of Emperors Domitian in 81-96 C.E., Marcus Aurelius in 161-180 C.E., and Decius in 249-251 C. E. The persecutions, however, did not stop the spread of Christianity. In fact, more people got converted through the hospitality and philanthropy of the early Christians, as evidenced by their establishment of social networks that cared for the poor, the widows, and the orphans. Indeed, it is Christianity’s emphasis on communal life and social generosity that attracted religious conversions. As the Christian fait

Women in Fashion and Photography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Women in Fashion and Photography - Essay Example The essay "Women in Fashion and Photography" talks about the woman in fashion photography and analyzes the gender issue in this context. Through this discussion, it is planned by the researcher to find better resources which could actually make a great impact on how the understanding of men and women status in the society becomes likely controlled through media works. Men were particularly known as the supreme gender in the human society. As the population belonging to the supreme gender, men are expected to have special responsibilities as well as advantages with regards the activities that they are able to do. Men were expected to have responsibilities of providing for those that belong to them. This includes their families and other people that are living around them. On the other hand, they benefit form the authority that is given to them. The power to control others, especially women has naturally given them pride when it comes to the thought of being able to rule over several s ectors of the human society. Through the pages of the human history, men of different races and different ages have primarily been able to change the ways by which humans perceive their purpose in living. Indeed, men have naturally drawn the different demarcation lines of limitations and possibilities that identify each human individual’s capability of living. Most likely, the powerful sense of being of the appearance of man has naturally affected the characteristic and the attitude that he perceives upon others. Within the paragraphs that follow, the different roles of men within the American society shall be outlined in clarity to be able to assist in the understanding of what actually is the important part that men plays in the advancement of the human civilization towards progress. II.A. Men as Key Agents of Family Strength The family is one of the basic units of social relationship within the human generations. It could be observed that men are appointed as head of the family. As head of the family, a man has the responsibility of providing the guidance that the members of the family need to be able to get through with the challenges of life. Aside from this, men also stand as the basic source of spiritual and intellectual aspects of life when it comes to taking care of the younger generations of the family. Not to mention, men are also viewed as the major providers of the needs of the family in terms of finances, shelter, food and clothing. From this particular point of view, it could be observed that men are indeed given high regards by the human society especially in terms of the role that they play in the family. At some point, they work as complimentary personnel to the fulfillment of the dream of their wives and their children. They are the primary source of strength for their family members and from them comes the most valuable advices of life that would naturally help the members of the family get along with the ups and downs of living in a more eased and controlled procedure. Certainly, men are given the chance to handle the most complicated responsibilities within the family arrangements. The challenges are really not that easy to face. However, with the strong conviction and determination of men to succeed in this particular responsibility shall give them the reputation that they need to be able

Study on Monetary Policy and the Stock Market

Study on Monetary Policy and the Stock Market Monetary policy is the regulation of the interest rate and money supply of a country by its Central Bank or Federal Reserve in other to achieve the major economic goals which include price stability, full employment, economic growth etc.  Ã‚   The stock market on the other hand is often considered a primary indicator of a countrys economic strength and development as it is a major source of savings and income for most individuals. History has shown that the economy of any country reacts strongly to movements in stock prices and is replete with examples in which large swings in stock, housing and exchange rate markets coincided with prolonged booms and busts (Cecchetti, Genberg, Lipsky and Wadhwani, 2000). Recent happenings even confirm this as the latest economic recession was preceded by a crash in the stock market. As a result of the relationship between the stock market and the economy, it is very important to the Central bank that the stock market performs well as bad performance can seriously disrupt the economy. This is because the stock market serves as a primary source of income and retirement savings to many and movements in stock prices can have a major effect on the economy as it influences real activities such as consumption, investments, savings etc While some economists say that monetary policy decisions depend on stock price movements, some others believe that stock price movements depend on monetary policy decisions. In this paper, we analyze both sides of the coin by looking at how stock markets react to monetary policy and how monetary policy reacts to movements in stock markets. This research work is aimed at finding out which granger causes which using the Granger Causality test. We will also analyze the relationship between both interest rates and monetary policy and that between money supply and monetary policy. In section II, a thorough review of the relevant literature of the topic is carried out as we try to understand more about the relationship between monetary policy and the stock market and the effects of both components (money supply and interest rates) of monetary policy 0n the stock market. In the next section, we describe the variables and data set used in the study and the empirical model is developed. Results are presented and discussed in the next section. We conclude the paper in section V and suggestions for further studies are pointed out and policy implications are considered. REVIEW OF RELEVANT LITERATURE Monetary policy is one of the most effective tools a Central Bank has at its disposal (Maskay, 2007) and is used to achieve the macroeconomic goals set by the government. This is done by regulating the two components of monetary policy which are interest rates and money supply to maintain balance in the economy. The stock market is an important indicator of the wellbeing of the economy as stock prices reflect whether the economy is doing well or not. Movements in stock prices have a significant impact on the macroeconomy and are therefore likely to be an important factor in the determination of monetary policy (Rigobon and Sack, 2001). The stock market is a financial market where equities are bought and sold either as an IPO (Initial Public Offer) in the primary market or exchange of existing shares between interested parties in the secondary market. Although stocks are claims on real assets and researchers have found considerable evidence that monetary policy can affect real stock p rices in the short run (e.g Bernanke and Kuttner, 2005), monetary neutrality implies that monetary policy should not affect real stock prices in the long run (Bordo, Dueker and Wheelock, 2007). To understand the relationship between monetary policy and the stock market, we must first understand what monetary policy is. Lamont, Polk and Saa-Requejo (2001), Perez-Quiros and Timmerman (2000) among others use change in market interest rates or official rates as their measures of monetary policy. This measure of monetary policy, however, coincides with changes in business cycle conditions and other relevant economic variables. Christiano, Eichenbaum and Evans (1994) extracted monetary policy as the orthogonalized innovations from VAR models proposed by Campbell (1991) and Campbell and Ammer (1993). Research methodology based on this has shown that the response of US stocks returns to monetary policy shocks based on federal fun rates show that returns of large firms react less strongly than those of small firms (Thorbecke, 1997), that the overall policy for stock returns is quite low ( Patelis, 1997) and that international stock markets react to both to changes in their local mon etary policies and that of the United states ( Conover, Jensen and Johnson ( 1999). Monetary policy shocks that are extracted from structural VAR models or from changes in interest rates using monthly or quarterly data are likely to subject to the endogeneity problem i.e they are unlikely to be purely exogenous ( Ehrmann and Fratzscher, 2004). Another VAR-based method was used by Goto ad Valkanov (2000) to focus on the covariance between inflation and stock returns while Boyd, Jagan and Hu (2001) considered the linkages between policy and stock prices. Their analysis did not focus directly on monetary policy; rather it focused on markets response to employment news (Bernanke and Kuttner, 2005). In their own research paper, Ehrmann and Fratzscher (2004) find that SP 500 shows a strong effect of monetary policy on equity returns, that the effect of monetary policy is stronger in an environment of increased market uncertainty, that that negative surprises ( i.e monetary policy has tightened less and loosened more than expected) has larger effects on the stock market than positive surprises, that small firms are react more to policy shocks than large firms, that firms with low cash flows are affected more by US monetary shocks and that firms with poor ratings are more prone to monetary policy shocks than those with good ratings. They find that firms react more strongly when no change had been expected, when there is a directional change in the monetary policy stance and during periods of high market uncertainty. There has also been cross-sectional dimensions of the effect of monetary policy on the stock markets in literature though few. Hayo and Uhlenbruck (2000), Dedola and Lippi (2000), Peersman and Smets ( 2002), Ganley and Salmon (1997) etc are some economists who have analyzed this and overall, their findings show that the stock prices of firms in cyclical industries, capital-intensive industries and industries that are relatively open to trade are affected more strongly by monetary policy shocks (Ehrmann and Fratzscher, 2004). According to Bernanke and Kuttner (2005), changes in monetary policy are transmitted through the stock market via changes in the values of private portfolios (â‚ ¬Ã…“wealth effectâ‚ ¬?), changes in the cost of capital and by other mechanisms. In their paper, they analyzed the stock markets response to policy actions both in the aggregate and at the level of industrys portfolios and they also tried to understand the reasons for the stock markets response. Their findings show that monetary policy is, for the most part, not directly attributable to policys effects on the real interest rate instead it seems to come either through its effects on expected future excess returns or expected future dividends. While economists commonly associate restrictive/expansive monetary policy with higher/lower levels of economic activity, financial economists discuss various reasons why changes in the discount rate affect stock returns. (Durham, 2000) Changes in the discount rate affect the expectations of corporate profitability ( Waud, 1970) and discrete policy rate changes influence forecasts of market determined interest rates and the equity cost of capital ( Durham, 2000). Modigliani (1971), suggests that a decrease in interest rates boosts stock prices and therefore financial wealth and lifetime resources, which in turn raises consumption through the welfare effect. Mishkin (1977) on the other hand suggests that lower interest rates increase stock prices and therefore decrease the likelihood of financial distress, leading to increased consumer durable expenditure as consumer liquidity concerns abate (Durham, 2000). Tobins q is the equity market value of a firm divided by its book value. It can also be defined as the ratio of the market value of a firms existing shares to the replacement cost of the firms physical assets. Higher stock prices reduce the yield on stocks and reduce the cost of financing investment spending through equity issuance (Bosworth, 1975). Tobins q explains on e of the mechanisms through which movements in stock prices can affect the economy: the wealth channel. The other channels of monetary policy transmission include; the interest rate channel and the exchange rate channel. The wealth channel has the investment effect, wealth effects and balance sheet effects (www.oenb.at/en). Bernanke and Blinder (1992) and Kashyap, Stein and Wilcox (1993) show that a tightening of monetary policy has a very strong impact on firms that highly depend on banks loans to financing their investments as banks reduce their overall supply of credit. Deteriorating market conditions affect firms by also weakening their balance sheets as the present value of collateral falls with rising interest rates and that this effect can be stronger for some firms than for others (Bernanke and Gertler 1989, Kiyotaki and Moore 1997). These two arguments are based on information asymmetries as firms for which more information is publicly available may find it easier to collect loans when credit conditions become tighter (Gertler and Hubbard 1988, Gertler and Gilchrist 1994).Stock returns of small firms generally respond more to monetary policy than those of large firms ( Thorbecke 1997, Perez-Quiros and Timmermmann 2000). Some economists (Sprinkle (1964), Homa and Jaffee (1971), Hamburger and Kochin (1972)) in the early 1970,s alleged that past data on money supply could be used to predict future stock returns. These finding where not in line with the efficient market hypothesis which states that all available information should be reflected in current prices (Fama, 1970) meaning that anticipated information should not have any effect on current stock prices. Most economists believe that stock prices react differently to the anticipated and unanticipated effects of monetary policy ( Maskay, 2007). The Keynesian economists argue that there is a negative relationship between stock prices and money supply whereas real activity theorists argue that the relationship between the two variables is positive (Sellin, 2001). The Keynesian economists believe that a change in money supply or interest rates will affect stock prices only if the change in the money supply alters expectations about future monetary policy while the real activity economists argue that increase in money supply means that money demand is increasing in anticipation of increase in economic activity (Maskay, 2007). Another factor discussed by Sellin (2001) is the risk premium hypothesis proposed by Cornell i.e higher money supply indicates higher money demand and higher money demand suggests increased risk which leads investors to demand higher risk premiums for holding stocks making them less attractive. The real activity and risk premium hypothesis is combined by Bernanke and Kuttner (2005) who argue that the price of a stock is a function of the present value of future returns and the perceived risk in holding the stock. While advocates of the efficient market hypothesis hold that all available information is included in the price of a stock, the opponents argue otherwise and that stock prices can also be affected by unanticipated changes in money (Corrado and Jordan, 2005). The effect of anticipated and unanticipated changes in money supply on stock prices was analyzed by Sorensen (1982) who found out that unanticipated changes in money supply have a larger impact on the stock market than anticipated changes. Bernanke and Kuttner (2005) on the other hand analyze the impact of announced and unannounced changes in the federal funds rate and find that the stock market reacts more to unannounced changes than to announced changes in the federal funds rate which is also in line with the efficient market hypothesis. Studies by Husain and Mahmood (1999) have opposing results. They analyze the relationship between the money supply and changes (long run and short run) in stock market prices and find that chan ges in money supply causes changes in stock prices both in the short run and long run implying that the efficient market hypothesis does not always hold. Maskay(2007) analyzes the relationship between money supply and stock prices. He also seperates money supply into anticipated and unanticipated components and adds consumer confidence, real GDP and unemployment rate as control variables. The result from his analysis shows that there is a positive relationship between changes in the money supply and the stock prices thereby supporting the real activity the theorists. The result from his analysis on the effect of anticipated and unanticipated change in the money supply on stock market prices shows that anticipated changes in money supply matters more than unanticipated changes. This supports the critics of the efficient market hypothesis. According to Cecchetti, et al. (2000), macroeconomic performance can be improved if the central bank increases the short-term nominal interest rate in response to temporary â‚ ¬Ã…“bubble shocksâ‚ ¬? that raise the stock price index above the value implied by economic fundamentals. On the other hand, Bernanke and Gertler (2001) assumed in their research that the Central Bank cannot tell whether an increase in stock prices is driven by a bubble shock or a fundamental shock. This study will analyze both exogenous and endogenous components of the relationship between monetary policy and the stock market i.e the effect of monetary policy on the stock market and the the effect if any of the stock market on monetary policy decisions. This particular analysis will be done using the federal funds rate as a representative of monetary policy. We also follow the methodology used by Maskay (2007) closely as we try to find the effect of money supply on the stock market. Although Maskay used M2 as a measure of money supply, this study will separate money supply into M1 and M2 and analyze their relationship with the stock prices. Following from the theory and review of literature, this paper is aimed at answering the following questions: How do movements in the stock market affect monetary policy decisions on federal funds rates? How does monetary policy affect stock market prices? Do stock market prices react differently to the M1 and M2 components of money supply? RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The effect of stock market prices on monetary policy. In this section, I test for the relationship between monetary policy and stock prices using the Taylor rule. The Taylor rule is a monetary policy rule that stipulates how much the central bank would or should change the nominal interest rate in response to the divergence of actual inflation rates from target inflation rates and of actual GDP from potential GDP. The rule is written as; it = r*t + ÃŽÂ ² (à Ã¢â€š ¬ tâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" à Ã¢â€š ¬*t) +ÃŽÂ ³ (yt Ã…Â ·t)â‚ ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. (1) Where; it = target short-term nominal interest rate. r*t = assumed equilibrium real interest rate. à Ã¢â€š ¬t = the observed rate of inflation. à Ã¢â€š ¬*t = the desired rate of inflation. yt = the logarithm of real GDP. Ã…Â ·t = the potential output. But, to analyze the behavior of monetary policy, the following regression equation is estimated; it = ÃŽÂ ± + ÃŽÂ ²Et(à Ã¢â€š ¬ t+iâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" à Ã¢â€š ¬*t+i) +ÃŽÂ ³Et (yt+i+ Ã…Â ·t+i)+ÃŽÂ µt â‚ ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..(2) Where: Et = the expected value conditional to information available at the time. A good conduct of monetary policy should have ÃŽÂ ² and ÃŽÂ ± each equal to 0.5 as suggested by John Taylor. To conduct our study, we use the following equation; it = ÃŽÂ ± + ÃŽÂ ²Et(à Ã¢â€š ¬ t+iâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" à Ã¢â€š ¬*t+i) +ÃŽÂ ³Et (yt+i+ Ã…Â ·t+i)+ˆ‘Π´k à Ã¢â‚¬ ¦t-k + ÃŽÂ µt ..(3) Because the monetary authorities target variables other than inflation and output deviations from the target (asset prices in this case) thereby making equation (2) mis-specified. A standard Taylor rule is well specified when the monetary authorities target only inflation and output deviations from the target. The addition to this variable is the lagged change in asset prices which is added in order to determine the relationship between monetary policy and stock prices. The data for the CPI (Consumer Price Index), real GDP (Gross Domestic Product) and the federal funds rate are obtained from the IMF Washington website while the data for SP 500 Index are obtained from the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) of the Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis website; www.federalreserve.gov. The effect of monetary policy on stock market prices. In this section, we test whether movements in stock prices are sometimes dependent on monetary policy. This test is carried out by regressing the actual change in federal funds rates upon the SP 500 index. We us the following simple model for this purpose: SP500 = ÃŽÂ ²1 + ÃŽÂ ²2*actual change in federal funs rate + ÃŽÂ ²3*real GDP + ÃŽÂ ²4* unemployment rate. Real GDP and Unemployment rate are added as control variables. The data for real GDP is obtained from IMF, Washington while the data for unemployment rates in obtained from www.federalreserves.gov. We add GDP because it is an important determinant of the stock prices as most industries react to changes in the economy and do well as the economy does well and vice versa i.e they are procyclical in nature. When the GDP is low, the stock prices generally tend to be low, as the companys performance would be worse than before. A direct, positive relationship is expected between stock prices and the GDP. Unemployment rate is also used as a control variable in this model because it is one of the major factors that determines the demand for stocks thereby either driving the stock prices up or down. When the unemployment rate is high, demand for stock reduces as less people can afford to buy them and this subsequently drives down stock prices and vice versa. The unemployment rate is also a proxy for for overall aggregate demand in the economy ( Maskay, 2007) and when it is low, aggregate demand is high. We expect an inverse relationship between the unemployment rates and stock prices. The effect of M1 and M2 components of money supply on stock prices. In this section, we test the relationship between monetary policy and stock prices from the money supply angle of monetary policy. We use the M1 and M2 components of money supply for this analysis. This is done by first testing the relationship between the percentage change in M1 and the stock prices and then testing the relationship between M2 and the stock market. The simple empirical model used for this test is; SP500 = ÃŽÂ ²1 + ÃŽÂ ²2*%ˆâ€  M1 + ÃŽÂ ²3*Real GDP + ÃŽÂ ²4*Unemployment rateâ‚ ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. (1) SP500 = ÃŽÂ ² 1+ ÃŽÂ ²2*%ˆâ€  M2 + ÃŽÂ ²*3Real GDP + ÃŽÂ ²4*Unemployment rateâ‚ ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. (2) Unemployment rate and real GDP are also used here as control variables for the same reasons given above. The data on percentage change in M1 and M2 were obtained from Federal Reserve Economic Data from the website of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. We were able to get the monthly data of M1 and M2 and then got the quarterly averages to produce the quarterly data. DATA DESCRIPTION In this section, we define and describe the various data used in this study. We used quarterly data from 1990 to 2009. The variables used in this analysis include; The Federal Funds Rate; The federal funds rate is a monetary policy tool used by the Central Bank/Federal reserve of the country to regulate the economy. Economists believe it has an inverse relationship with stock prices as because when there is an upward movement in stock prices above the desirable level, the federal reserve increases (contractionary) the federal funds rate . This leads to a decrease in the amount of money demanded by individuals thereby causing a lower demand for stocks and pushing down stock prices. We obtained data on the federal funds rate from the website of the federal reserve bank of Louisiana. 2. The Consumer Price Index; A consumer price index (CPI) is an index that estimates the average price of consumer goods and services purchased by households. It is used in our study to calculate inflation. We do this using the eviews software (100 ÃÆ'— (cpi â‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" cpi ( -4)). We obtained the quarterly data on CPI from the website of the International Monetary fund in washington. The CPI has an inverse relationship with monetary policy actions. 3. Real Gross Domestic Product (Real GDP); This can be defined as a measure which adjusts for inflation and reflects the value of all goods and services produced in a given year, expressed in base year prices. Real GDP provides a more accurate figure as it accounts for changes in the price level. The quarterly data on Real GDP is obtained from the website of the International Monetary Fund, Washington. 4. SP 500; It is a capital weighted index of the prices of 500 large-cap common stocks actively traded in the United States. It is believed to have an inverse relationship with monetary policy as an expansionary (interest rate reduction) monetary policy leads to an upward movement of the sp500 index. The quarterly data for the sp500 is obtained from the federal reserve bank of Louisiana. 5. Unemployment Rate; The unemployment rate is used as one of the control variables. It is an important indicator of the wellbeing of an economy. The lower the unemployment rate, the higher the aggregate demand for stock thereby pushing up stock prices. The quarterly data on unemployment rate is obtained from the website of the Federal Reserve Bank of Louisiana. We get the quarterly data by finding quarterly averages from the monthly data provided. 6. Monetary aggregates â‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" M1 and M2; M1 is a monetary aggregate and it includes the transaction deposits of banks and cash in circulation and all other money equivalents that are easily convertible into cash while includes M1 plus short-term deposits in banks and 24-hour money market funds. Money supply has a positive relationship with stock prices because the higher the money supply, the higher the demand for stock which eventually increases stock prices. We split money supply into M1 and M2 to find out if they have the same relationship with stock prices. The quarterly data on percentage change in monetary aggregates is obtained from the website of the federal reserve bank of Louisiana. We also had to calculate the quarterly averages of the monthly data given. DATA ANALYSIS Model 1: The Taylor rule it = r*t + ÃŽÂ ² (à Ã¢â€š ¬ tâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" à Ã¢â€š ¬*t) +ÃŽÂ ³ (yt â‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Ã…Â ·t)+ ÃŽÂ µt Dependent Variable: FED_FUNDS_RATE Method: Least Squares Date: 07/05/10 Time: 20:19 Sample(adjusted): 1991:1 2009:4 Included observations: 76 after adjusting endpoints Variable Coefficient Std. Error t-Statistic Prob. C 3.615513 1.220783 2.961634 0.0041 INFLATION 0.684264 0.156212 4.380348 0.0000 OUTPUT_GAP -1.42E-06 9.83E-07 -1.442803 0.1534 R-squared 0.249642 Mean dependent var 3.860658 Adjusted R-squared 0.229085 S.D. dependent var 1.686064 S.E. of regression 1.480394 Akaike info criterion 3.661167 Sum squared resid 159.9844 Schwarz criterion 3.753170 Log likelihood -136.1244 F-statistic 12.14348 Durbin-Watson stat 0.181830 Prob(F-statistic) 0.000028 The estimation results are; it =3.62 + 0.68(à Ã¢â€š ¬ tâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" à Ã¢â€š ¬*t) â‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" 1.42 (yt â‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Ã…Â ·t) The coefficient associated to inflation is positive, 0.68, but is statistically significant with a p-value of 0.00. The coefficient associated with the output gap is negative (-1.42) and statistically significant. The estimated stabilizing rate of interest (c) is positive (3.61) and statistically significant. An R-squared of 0.25 means that we are only able to explain about 25% of the variability in the interest rate. The augmented taylor rule model: it = ÃŽÂ ± + ÃŽÂ ²Et(à Ã¢â€š ¬ t+iâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" à Ã¢â€š ¬*t+i) +ÃŽÂ ³Et (yt+i+ Ã…Â ·t+i)+ˆ‘Π´1 à Ã¢â‚¬ ¦t-1 + ÃŽÂ µt one lag Dependent Variable: FED_FUNDS_RATE Method: Least Squares Date: 07/05/10 Time: 21:30 Sample(adjusted): 1991:3 2009:4 Included observations: 74 after adjusting endpoints Variable Coefficient Std. Error t-Statistic Prob. C 8.298961 1.280893 6.479044 0.0000 INFLATION_F 0.548999 0.181198 3.029825 0.0034 OUTPUT_GAP_F -9.10E-06 1.51E-06 -6.041926 0.0000 S(-1) 4.24E-05 7.35E-06 5.775767 0.0000 R-squared 0.442430 Mean dependent var 3.809595 Adjusted R-squared 0.418534 S.D. dependent var 1.678852 S.E. of regression 1.280190 Akaike info criterion 3.384432 Sum squared resid 114.7220 Schwarz criterion 3.508976 Log likelihood -121.2240 F-statistic 18.51494 Durbin-Watson stat 0.214690 Prob(F-statistic) 0.000000 Interpretation: The estimated regression is; it = 8.30 + 0.55Et(à Ã¢â€š ¬ t+iâ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" à Ã¢â€š ¬*t+i) -9.10Et (yt+i+ Ã…Â ·t+i)+4.24ˆ‘à Ã¢â‚¬ ¦t-k The coefficient associated to expected inflation is positive (0.55) but is statistically significant because it has a p-value of 0f 0.003, the coefficient associated with expected output gap is negative (-9.10) and is statistically significant (p-value = 0.000). The coefficient associated with the change in asset prices (lagged by 1 for better estimation) which is denoted by S (-1) is negative and it is statistically significant therefore we reject the null hypothesis. The measure of goodness of fit (R-square) is 0.44 meaning that we are able to explain about 44% of the variability in the interest rate Our model consistently overestimates the actual interest rate and the residuals do not seem to be independently and identically distributed. We therefore conduct some tests which include: 1. The Jacque-Bera test: This is a statistic that measures the difference of the skewness and kurtosis of the series with those from a normal distribution. By simply looking at the histogram, we can see that the distribution is roughly normal and the jarque-bera statistic of 0.58 shows that it is not statistically significant and we should accept the null hypothesis. The white test: This is used to test whether the errors are heteroskedastic or not. In the presence of heteroskedasticity, OLS estimates are consistent but efficient. White Heteroskedasticity Test: F-statistic 3.846209 Probability 0.000621 Obs*R-squared 25.97528 Probability 0.002062 Test Equation: Dependent Variable: RESID^2 Method: Least Squares Date: 07/06/10 Time: 00:41 Sample: 1991:3 2009:4 Included observations: 74 Variable Coefficient Std. Error t-Statistic Prob. C -35.28961 24.46199 -1.442630 0.1540 INFLATION_F -5.419657 3.008210 -1.801622 0.0763 INFLATION_F^2 0.307231 0.200286 1.533961 0.1300 INFLATION_F*OUTPUT_GAP_F 5.95E-06 2.83E-06 2.105586 0.0392 INFLATION_F*S(-1) -2.78E-05 1.73E-05 -1.603361 0.1138 OUTPUT_GAP_F 9.90E-05 5.34E-05 1.852558 0.0686 OUTPUT_GAP_F^2 -6.19E-11 2.74E-11 -2.257288 0.0274 OUTPUT_GAP_F*S(-1) 3.35E-10 1.43E-10 2.337290 0.0226 S(-1) -0.000309 0.000140 -2.205282 0.0310 S(-1)^2 -7.97E-11 5.33E-10 -0.149679 0.8815 R-squared 0.351017 Mean dependent var 1.550298 Adjusted R-squared 0.259754 S.D. dependent var 1.968439 S.E. of regression 1.693596 Akaike info criterion 4.016674 Sum squared resid 183.5692 Schwarz criterion 4.328034 Log likelihood -138.6169 F-statistic 3.846209 Durbin-Watson stat 0.580160 Prob(F-statistic) 0.000621 According to the two test statistics involved in the regression result, we can say that the distribution is statistically significant so we can reject null hypothesis. The Durbin-Watson test: This is used to test for serial correlation. Autocorrelated residuals means that OLS is no longer best, linear, unbiased estimators and that the standard errors computed using the OLS formula are not correct. The Durbin-Watson statistic of 0.214690 shows that there is positive serial correlation as DW Model 2: SP500 = ÃŽÂ ²1 + ÃŽÂ ²2 federal funds rate + ÃŽÂ ²3real GDP + ÃŽÂ ²4unemployment rate. The aim of this model is to determine if the federal funds rate has any impact on the stock market. Real GDP and unemployment rate are used as control variables for reasons given in the research methodology. Dependent Variable: SP500 Method: Least Squares Date: 07/06/10 Time: 01:38 Sample: 1990:1 2009:4 Included observations: 80 Variable Coefficient Std. Error t-Statistic Prob. C -115.7008 222.2313 -0.520632 0.6041 FED_FUNDS_RATE 0.990301 12.96436 0.076386 0.9393 REAL_GDP01 0.159538 0.010327 15.44916 0.0000 UNEMPLOYMENT_RATE -119.5674 17.42177 -6.863101 0.0000 R-squared 0.872734 Mean dependent var 924.0339 Adjusted R-squared 0.867710 S.D. dependent var 378.2205 S.E. of regression 137.5651 Akaike info criterion 12.73478 Sum squared resid 1438237. Schwarz criterion 12.85388 Log likelihood -505.3912 F-statistic 173.7244 Durbin-Watson stat 0.350064 Prob(F-statistic) 0.000000 Interpretation: The estimated regression is: sp500 =-115.78 + 0.99*actual change in federal funds rate + 0.16*real GDP â‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" 119.57* unemployment rate. The coefficient associated with the federal funds rate is negative and is not statistically significant. The coefficient associated with the real GDP is positive and is statistically significant while the coefficient associate

My Problem With Standards: Implementing Group Work in the Non-Traditional Enlish Classroom :: Learning Teaching Essays

My Problem With Standards: Implementing Group Work in the Non-Traditional Enlish Classroom This experience opened my eyes. I learned a lot, and my ideas and ideals have changed since I completed the first part of this project. As a student teacher in a vocational program, academics were not the priority of these studentsà ³their specialties and there outside jobs were. At first, I found this challenging in a negative way; but gradually, I saw possibilities. The biggest challenge that I saw as far as my inquiry project went lay in how I would implement all of the research that I had done on à ¬ how great group work is all around.à ® Mainly this was due to the fact that I approached this topic with a very idealistic, wide-ranging view. The first part of this project was very much a à ¬head knowledge/research approvedà ® paper. As I read over it now, I could not possibly have had a lot of hard ideas on how I could actually implement ità ³and even if I did, I doubt that would have profited me. As I entered my class eight weeks ago, I had all of those wonderful ideals of collaborative learning before meà ³it is what I wanted to see. But, as my grandmother always told me when I was little (and occasionally now), à ¬I want doesnà ­t get.à ® I see now that if all of my ideals had come easily to me in this experience, I wouldnà ­t have learned a thing, and I definitely wouldnà ­t have learned how to deal with the personality types and the needs of the students that I had. The class itself was within a non-hostile environment for the most part. The students were used to having too much autonomy, and thus my research statistic of à ¬70-90% teacher talk in most classroomsà ® was put out of touch. The problem consisted in not only the studentà ­s having control of the class, but the fact that they had plenty of oral language abilities, and there was no need for me to try and develop them. These seniors had been working on one assignment since the beginning of the year, and they were tired of looking at it. Having said that, 80% of the students only had three, pencil corrected pages to show for a yearà ­s worth of work. All of them were not responsive to correction. After my four weeks of observation, I was doubtful that these kids would do any learning, much less group learning, at all.

Physically old but young in mind Essay

â€Å"Physically old but young in mind† Late adulthood is a developmental stage where senior citizens belong. It is the period beginning in the sixties or seventies and lasting until death based on our psychology subject. It is the time of adjustment to decreasing strength and health, life review, retirement, and adjustment to new social roles. People are said to be senior citizens when they reach the age of sixty or sixty-five because those are the ages at which most people retire from their work. As teenagers we should respect those people who are now in this stage of their life. One of the simplest reason to respect the elders is that we love them . They care for us when we are sick , cook for us , care for us , talk to us teach us and love us more than life itself. We love them , we follow them and their words .They show us their love by the acts of kindness and care , we show it by respect . Respect is part of love, love doesn’t exist without respect and respect is one of many signs of love. To let the elders know you care, just respect their words and actions. This will cement your relation and trust will multiply in no time. Life becomes easier for us when we have our elders on our side during our struggles. Also, when we have grandmothers and or grandfathers we want them to be happy. We do all things and spend a lot of time for them to enjoy the last years of their lives. But sadly, many people send or put them in a hospital or home for the agent maybe because they think that it’s a waste of time if they will take the responsibility of taking care of these elders. Being in a senior citizens stage, one must not think that he will stop exploring about things. Living in the past memories alone is to stay inactive. In order to stay active, one must find new interests; create within him a love for life; must not be content to simply watch life move on; rather he must be willing to take part in it. Anyone of us can stir up a new spirit of interest and enthusiasm with in. If one starts to think of himself as being too old to make a new start, this is merely an excuse. One may take up a hobby, call up old friends or relatives, start writing a blog or journal, learn a new art or technology, lead a spiritual life or involve oneself in all other activities one wanted to do, but could not do due to a genuine lack of time before retirement. Senior citizens should involve themselves in engaging activities to stay fit and prevent memory loss because at this stage of  life, they may be prone to diseases, syndromes and sickness. Seniors that participate in group activities may share laughter and joy. This develops a bonding experience between them. Playing games can be the answer to relieving depression, anxiety and loneliness. Technology has evolved where game consoles can read the motion or activity of your body. Senior citizens who have never played video games may be intimidated because of the game or complex control schemes. However, there are now games on the market specifically for seniors that are fun and some are even group oriented. Other games provide challenges such as crossword puzzles, Sudoku or brain teasers. These can enhance a senior citizen’s memory. Seniors also have the opportunity to go on trips and discover things they couldn’t before. This could be due to obligations or responsibilities such as work or being a full-time parent that didn’t allow them to pursue travel earlier in life. Retirees may obtain the free time to explore other cultures in different states or continents. They can go on aerial tours or on cruise vacations to see famous landmarks and experience the world. They also need to exercise, and gardening provides that source. According to â€Å"Senior Journal,† gardening is acceptable for seniors to meet the physical activity requirements needed to stay in good health. The report came from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). Gardening has a calming effect because seniors are creating and nurturing flower beds or growing their own herbs and vegetables. Another help for senior citizens is t he regular massage therapy that can relieve stress, improve posture, circulation, relax muscles and control pain. Therapeutic massages provide relief of daily tension associated with stress and can help with the recovery process of various medical conditions. Another very popular activity for the elderly is ceramics. Many ceramic projects only need light sanding and painting, resulting in a beautiful and rewarding finished piece. This type of project offers a wonderful way for seniors to pass the time either at home. Other suitable crafts for senior citizens includes painting, photography, sewing, scrapbooking and many others. Playing games and solving puzzles are also an excellent cognitive activities for older seniors. These types of activities engage the brain keeping it stimulated and vital. This includes dominoes, card games, chess, scrable, bingo, jigsaw puzzles crossword and sodoku. By adapting these activities and games to the needs of  their limitations, many seniors are able to enjoy the health and social benefits of staying active. The benefits may include Mental stimulation that keeps the mind fit and challenged, Reestablishing recognition skills, Enhancing the senior’s memory, A healthier and longer life, Social interaction and friendships, Lower rates of depression, and A reduction in muscle and joint pain. What get’s old is body, not mind and soul. Soul does not age, and age of mind is a choice. One can be physically young but drained out in mind or physically old but young in mind. It is the people who really develop their own adjustment in whatever condition of life.

Influence of Internet on Students Essay

The influence of internet is uniformly shared by all the age group of the society in spite of being young or old. But the school and college students under the age of 20 are more involved in INTERNET. They have become active users of social networking sites like Orkut, Facebook, and Twitter. Even though these social networking sites have restricted the use by users under the age of 18, there are currently millions of users who overcome this age group restriction and join these sites. The over use of such social networking sites make the younger generation addicted to these sites. As a result, they become less interested in School and College activities and start to lag behind in studies. They are online 24 hours which indeed cause health problems because they do not get enough sleep. They are also crazy about downloading new films of Hollywood and Bollywood which indeed causes problems for film producers as their income gets reduced. There are countless sites in internet through which we can download movies for free. Other than movies, they also download and view content which are not appropriate for their age which makes them addicted to PORN and other vulnerable stuff. They become addicted to these at such young age, which creates problem for them in future. As the activities of youth on internet are not monitored, they do not need to fear anything to misuse the contents available on internet. Also they join bad forums and get involved in hacking and stuff like that which makes the mind of the young reader enslaved to such stuff which takes a lot of effort to recover from. The new generation is enslaved to the world of internet. They destroy their youth by sitting in front of the PC all the time. They do not even trend to go out even for shopping. They do not know the joy of playing outside. In spite of going out and play, they sit at home in front of Pc or gaming consoles such as play station and play violent games which are violent in nature. It is high time that they started thinking about the problems internet is creating on students and restrict the over use of internet.

Organization Development Essays - Economy, Organizational Theory

Organization Development Essays - Economy, Organizational Theory Organization Development Organization Development (OD) is the application of behavioral science knowledge to improve an organization's health and effectiveness through it's ability to cope with environmental changes, improve internal relationship and increase problem-solving capabilities. OD is an effort of planned, organizationwide, and managed from the top, to increase organization effectiveness and health through planned interventions in the organization process's using behavioral science. It must be managed from the top. Top management must have commitment to and knowledge about the goals of the program and must actively participate in the management of the effort. OD focuses on the entire organization; plant, firm or work group to attain the set intended goals. OD is both a professional field of social action and an area of scientific inquiry. It involves the creation and the subsequent reinforcement of change by using four major interventions: technostructural, human process, human resource management and strategic intervention. Some OD programs focuses more heavily on different kinds of change than others. The intent is to get a company to attain it's full potential in productivity and profits, to be able to solve it's own problems, and to manage change. This process is divided into three steps: entry, normative change, and structural change. In the entry stage the aim is to establish a felt need for change using three approaches, interviewing, survey information or other means to give the organization inharmonious information in what people wants and what actually happen. The second approach is used to demonstrate the value of OD through particular projects in one or more subsystems of the client's organization. The final approach is a direct attempt to change values through the use of T-groups or similar technique. Normative change step is directed at targeting as many organization members as possible to expose them to the new social norms. The intent is to change the climate of the organization. The final step is structural change; it involves placing advocates of OD in position where they have the power, prestige, and flexibility to conduct further OD projects. Technology change relates to the organization's way of doing its work. Technology changes were designed to make the production of product or service more efficient. A good example of technological change is the adoption of robotics to improve production efficiency in the automobile industry. Technological changes are more effectively implemented from the bottom up. The lower-level technology experts act as idea champions. Almost any change in the management of the organization falls under the structural change category. The implementation of new pay incentives, an affirmative action program, and a move from functional to product structure are all examples of structural changes. Successful structural changes are accomplished from the top down. The experts of administrative or structural improvement originate at upper middle to top managers. Organizations have traditionally structured themselves into three forms: functional departments that are task specialized, self-contained units that are oriented to specific products, customers, or regions and matrix structures that combine both functional specialization and self-containment. The basic hierarchical structure is probably the most widely used in organizations today. The management structure organized with, top management at the top and middle to lower employees spread out in a descending order. The organization more often than not would be divided into different departments or functional units, for example accounting, advertising, marketing, human

Chronological Order Essays - Occitan People, Pierre De Fermat

Chronological Order Essays - Occitan People, Pierre De Fermat Chronological Order -399 pythagoreans discover irrational numbers -240 Eratosthenes determines circumference of earth -230 Archimedes determines fromulas for the area of a secton of a parabola formulas for the area of a section of a parabola -200 Appollonius studies conic sections -200 Euclid writes Elements -100 Hipparchus develops the trig tables 825 Al-Khowarizmi uses Zero 1525 Rudolff introduces the radical sign 1535 Tartaglia solves cubic equations 1545 Square roots of negative numbers 1557 Recorde introduces the equals sign 1565 Goldbach states famous conjecture 1614 Napier invents logarithms 1614 Briggs uses base 10 logarithms 1621 Harriot introduces the inequality signs 1630 Oughtred invents the slide rule 1637 Descartes creates analytic geometry 1641 Descartes' Geometrie was published 1654 Pascal and Fermat discuss theory of probability in their correspondence 1655 Wallis introduces the symbol for infinity 1660 Fermat leaves last theorem 1665 Newton invents calculus 1669 Barrow discovered the general solution for the tangent line to a curve 1675 Leibniz invents calculus 1696 L'Hopital wrote the first text on differential calculus 1715 Brook Taylor's published account of polynomial approximations of transcental functions 1742 Goldbach states famous conjecture 1748 Agnesi writes Foundations of Analysis 1755 Euler shows that ePi i + 1 = 0 that epi i + 1 = 0 1770 Lambert proves pi is irrational 1773 Saccheri writes Euclid Freed of Every Flaw 1797 Lagrange proved the Mean Value Theorem 1814 Argand graphs imaginary numbers 1828 Gauss determines the convergence of infinite series 1830 Galois writes agout group theory 1842 Lovelace describes how to program Babbages Analytical Engine 1854 Riemann creates elliptic geometry 1854 Cayley uses matrices in solving equations 1858 Mobius strip is discovered 1888 Kovalevski is the first woman to earn a doctorate in mathematics 1895 Cantor creates transfinite numbers 1905 Einstein publicly formulated his theory on relativity 1910 Whithead and Russell write Principia Mathematica 1919 Alice Hamilton is Harvard's first female professor 1931 Godel publishes incompleteness theorems 1942 ENIAC, the first electronic computer is invented 1974 Mrs. Greminger became a mathematics instructor at Valle High School 1975 Bill Gates started his computer company Microsoft 1976 Four color map problem is solved 1998 Mrs. Moll became a mathematics instructor at Valle High School

Birth Control Essay Example for Free (#2)

Birth Control Essay Birth control is a way or method used to prevent pregnancy. There are different kinds of methods of birth control that can be used by man and woman. All of these methods have positive effects or sides. The pros of birth control are the following: (1) lessen the possibility of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) (â€Å"Pros and Cons of Different Contraceptive Methods â€Å"); (2) it is helpful in preventing pregnancy, but the degree of the effectiveness of the birth control method depends on the type of method that is being used by the couple (â€Å"Pros and Cons of Different Contraceptive Methods â€Å"); (3) allows active participation of men in the prevention of pregnancy (when using condom or withdrawal method) (â€Å"Pros and Cons of Different Contraceptive Methods â€Å"); (4) it helps regulate the menstrual cycle of a woman; (5) it lessens the pain and difficulty of having a menstruation (â€Å"Pros and Cons of Different Contraceptive Methods â€Å"); (6) prevents or lessen the possibility of having uterine and ovarian cancer, anemia, ovarian cyst and pelvic inflammatory disease (â€Å"Pros and Cons of Different Contraceptive Methods â€Å"). There are also some other pros of birth control method but it depends on the method that the couple is using (â€Å"Birth Control Pill Faq: Benefits, Risks and Choices†). There are many types of birth control. The following are the types of birth control that is being used: (a) male condoms which are also called as barrier because it blocks the sperm cells from getting near or into the egg cells; (b) oral contraceptives or birth control pills prevent the ovary from releasing eggs; (c) female condom is also called as a barrier because it prevents or blocks the sperm cells from reaching the egg cells; (d) Depo-Provera hormonal injections is a type of birth control that uses hormone progestin. Continuous injection of this for more than two years has an adverse effect on woman; (e) spermicides; (f) contraceptive sponges is also a barrier type of birth control. Although using this type of birth control would still have a risk of having a toxic syndrome. Woman that are very sensitive to spermicide nonoxynol-9 are not encourage to use this type of method; (g) diaphragm and cervical caps also blocks the sperm cells going inside the cervix. This type of method needs the assistance of the doctor for proper usage and fitting of the cervical cap or diaphragm; (h) intra – uterine devices is used and placed inside the uterus to prevent the sperm cells from entering it and reaching the egg cells; (i) surgical sterilization or tubal ligation is a permanent birth control that needs a surgical process; (j) periodic abstinence or natural family planning. In this type of birth control, the woman should have the knowledge about the fertility process so that this method would be successful (â€Å"Birth Control Methods â€Å"). There are some mild health risks related to the use of birth control methods. But there is also one severe health risk when using birth control method such as pills for a longer period of time like cardiovascular diseases such as heart failure, cardiovascular accident or stroke, high blood pressure and other cardio related diseases (â€Å"Birth Control Methods†). Both man and woman are responsible in birth control planning. They have an active participation in the birth control method. Although their physician would prescribe a pill or appropriate birth control method, still the couple would be responsible to the possible outcome of that method. They are the one who can observe to the negative or positive effect of that particular method. When a serious or life threatening situation or death happens, the couple is more reliable than their physician. In choosing birth control method, couples or person that is going to use it must consider if (1) it will affect your health like if they have history of breast cancer, have high blood pressure, has low density of the bone, diabetes, sexually transmitted disease (STD), and heart disease; (2) those possible side effects of the method; (3) frequency of having sexual intercourse; (4) the benefits that the method can give; (5) the quality of that certain drug or method in birth control; and (6) the possible outcome if ever the couple decided to have a child (â€Å"Birth Control Guide†). Shop Lifting Shop lifting is very common especially on malls and convenient stores. People shop lift because they need that particular thing or that they can’t afford to buy the things they wanted to (â€Å"Teenagers Shop Lifting†). Some shop lifters that has the money to buy things thinks that shop lifting gives them the adrenalin rush or thrill that cannot be caught, they think that what they have stolen is not important and they also think that they are not stealing because the owner or the store can afford to buy that again or the store is insured (â€Å"Teenagers Shop Lifting†). In some cases, people shop lifts especially students because of peer pressure. Shop lifters always carry a small bag or large jacket with a large pocket or umbrella (â€Å"Preventing Shoplifting†). Those things can be use to shop lift. Store management or staff should also be aware and alarm when a person puts down their bag because they may place the thing they get simply by dropping it into the bag (â€Å"Preventing Shoplifting†). There are also times that shop lifters are into a group (â€Å"Preventing Shoplifting†). Some of them will distract the attention of the staff while the others do the crime. Shop lifters can be seen mostly in malls that are crowded and convenient stores. The similarities of these two places are that they have a big space and do not have enough staff that would assist and guard the clients or buyers. Those shop lifters know that in places were there’s enough employee to assist and guard them, they won’t be able to the deed because there’s a big chance of getting caught while in malls and convenient store, they can easily place the things they get and hide it in their bags or clothes without being notice by the employees. Shop lifting is a crime that can be categorize as light. In some states, the fine depends on the amount that the shop lifter stolen while the jail time depends on the repetition of the incident (Zukowski). The penalty or fine ranges from 40 to 1000 dollars and the jail time is only 30 days up to 6 months (Zukowski). The society and justice system give the offenders a second chance to correct their action. If they are going to repeat their action, they will be punished again with a higher penalty and possible longer jail time. Compiling an Annotated Bibliography ? â€Å"Birth Control Guide† Ed. US Department of Health and Human Services: FDA Consumer Magazine, 2003. This article focuses on different approved birth control methods. It also provides information about the different types of birth control method and also the severe health risk that may be obtain from the prolonged use of contraceptive pills. ? â€Å"Birth Control Methods†. 2005. Planned Parenthood of Connecticut. June 27 2007. http://www. ppct. org/medical/services/bc_method. shtml. This article talks about different birth control methods. It also provides knowledge about pros and cons of different types of birth control method especially tubal sterilization. ? â€Å"Birth Control Methods† Ed. Us Department of Health and Human Services: National Women’s Health Information Center, 2005. This article provides birth control methods that can be use. It also provides knowledge on what they should take into consider when choosing a birth control method. ? â€Å"Teenage Shop Lifting†. 2006. Indian child. com June 26 2007. http://www. indianchild. com/parenting/teenagers/teenagers_shop_lifting. htm. The article provides the reasons why teenagers try to steal and ways to handle and persuade them. ? â€Å"Birth Control†. 2007. Cool Nurse. June 25 2007. http://www. coolnurse. com/birthcontrol. htm. The article tackles about having safe sex with the use of birth control methods. This provides idea or knowledge about the effectives of each method and the reasons why it is not recommended for teenagers. ? â€Å"Preventing Shoplifting. † Namibian Police 2007. The Namibian Police Force carries out their duty by informing the public of the different crimes and ways how to handle that situation. They encourage the public to have an active participation in fighting the crime to maintain the peace and order in their place. ? â€Å"Birth Control Pill Faq: Benefits, Risks and Choices†. 2007. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. June 25 2007. . The staff focuses on the advantages and disadvantages of taking contraceptive pills. The staff also discusses other contributing factors that make birth control pills unsafe to use than any other birth control methods. Birth Control. (2016, Aug 09). We have essays on the following topics that may be of interest to you

Situational Analysis Report about Jetstar Airways Essay

Situational Analysis Report about Jetstar Airways - Essay Example It has continued to expand, opening new routes every now and then. Its dominance in Australia is apparent. Nonetheless, Jetstar Airways has on several instances been accused of discrimination against persons with disability and poor employee relations. However, Jetstar Airways is not immune to competition. It has faces stiff competition form other low-cost airlines such as Virgin Blue and Tiger Airways. This report therefore provides an extensive analysis of Jetstar Airlines with regards to its market situation, product situation, distribution situation and competitive situation. Also, using the SWOT analysis, the report gives a brief summary of Jetstar’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, and finally an analysis of two main issues that the airline has created as a plan for market strategy. In this regards, the identified issues are: desire to expand and enhancing employee relations. Product overview Jetstar Airways specializes in providing a low-fares network o f airlines that operate in the leisure as well as value based markets. In Australia, Jetstar operates across 17 domestic destinations. Its mission is to provide all day, every day low fares to enable more people to fly more often (Jetstar.com). Indeed, it is palpable that Jetstar Airways has been committed to its mission as it continues to offer the lowest air fares in Australia as compared to its major competitors. Due to its amazingly low-cost services, a Jetstar airway has been crowned a myriad of awards. For instance in 2009 and 2011, it was ranked the best low-cost airline in Australia by Skytrax. In 2007 and 2008, it was awarded the Low-cost Carrier of the Year (CAPA), among many others. It is credited for being the first Australian airline to allow its passengers an opportunity to select their seats when booking for a flight (Jestar.com). With specific reference to pricing, Jetstar offers exceptionally low prices for fights. The airline operates over fifty airbuses of various sizes, majority being Airbus A320. Currently for instance, the charges from Sydney to Brisbane is $ 79, Sydney to Cairns is $139, Sydney to Hobart is $ 99 whereas from Sydney to Adelaide is $ 100.Despite this amazingly low prices, Jetstar still affords incredible margins. For instance, as per the six month ended 31st, 2011, Jetstar Airways recorded an unaudited earnings of $1,565 Million in terms of total revenue and other incomes. This was an increased from the previous $1,346 million reported in the previous year (Jetstar.com). With regards to competition, Jetstar Airline veneers s stiff competition from two major airlines in Australia. The most eminent competitor is Virgin Blue Airways which commands about 31 percent of the domestic flights in Australia. It operates 2,100 flights in a week with 68 modern aircrafts. Virgin Blues Airline provides very competitive prices. For instance, whereas Jetstar charges about $100, for a flight form Sydney to Adelaide, Virgin Blue charged $12 0 for the same flight. As a fact, Jetstar was established as a response to the threat posed by Virgin Blue. The other major competitor is Tiger Airways. Based in Singapore, Tiger Airways was launched in 2007 to provide low cost airlines as well. It tends to charge lower prices compared to Jetstar. For instance, the price of a flight form Sydney to Adelaide is $49, to Melbourne is $29 whereas to Gold Coast is $39. SWOT analysis At this juncture, it is important to

Application of ethical values to the business Essay

Application of ethical values to the business - Essay Example The second code is about professionalism that should be adopted to contribute towards public interest and to support public preferences. A person should not always work for his own benefit only; rather he should do well to others as it is rightly said "Do good have good". The third code is objectivity that is essential for business growth and to avoid controversial downfall. One must avoid self interest in business activities that would be beneficial both for him and the firm. Every person has his own point of view but one cannot impose them on others so we should avoid such situations as much as we can. The fourth code is confidentially that refers to the information obtained in business relationship is not disclosed outside the firm without proper and specified authority, so that the clients may feel secure. It is our moral duty to keep one's secret in complete guard. The fifth code is competence; all the tasks performed by the employees should be in relevance with their ability, d ue skill and care, which is the only way to get efficient work by the employees and I personally think that an employ is better adapted to the work if he has a good command on it because If you want to do justice to your work you should do it properly and it only happen if you have enough knowledge about the task. The sixth code of my business ethics is courtesy. My staff should behave with courtesy with the dealers and the customers so that we may get positive response. As far as the question of my employees is concerned that how I will enable them to establish shared ethical position, for this I must say that Once Napoleon Bonaparte had said, "There are two levers to set a man in motion, fear and self-interest."(Napoleon) My prior method to enhance the ethical position of my staff is through developing their self-interest which is the most appropriate scheme. Their interest can be build up by introducing bonus system for exceptional work and by increasing their nominal and real wages; this will certainly assure their interest towards their duty and they shall work with greater responsibility and shared ethical codes. I shall guide my staff that you should work with integrity in all professional, business and personal financial relationships. You should not provide misleading statements and should be free from frauds and errors so that the customers may feel secure and rely on us while dealing with us. You should ensure that your conflicts of intere sts are not compromised. You should do your best for objectivity in all professional and business judgments, so that our business may not suffer from any type of controversial downfalls. You should carry out your work with due skill, care, diligence and expeditions, and with proper regard to your expertise which is expected from you. You should not

Women in Policing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Women in Policing - Essay Example There are several reasons: first, this job offers financial security; second, there is significant inspiration from the peer group; and acquaintanceship with police work (Price, 1996). Nevertheless, women police officers, face considerable discrimination. Initially, they were not permitted to undertake patrolling duties, because of their perceived physical shortcomings, Vis – a – Vis their male counterparts on the force. This was a double-edged sword employed by the chauvinistic superior police officers, who were exclusively men. Since, patrol duty was a prerequisite for promotions, women were effectively, prevented from obtaining promotions (Price, 1996). Women police officers, have fewer opportunities to progress in their career, and obtain promotions and rewards. Their distribution throughout the force is irregular and there are specialized units, which are conspicuous for the near total absence of women. It is an indisputable fact that men dominate the police force, and that they ensure that women face several hurdles in achieving career advancement and job satisfaction. Professional and social life necessitates a commingling of attitudinal, structural and technical changes. This is essential for engendering social change; and is all the more relevant in ushering in gender equality. The police department is no exception to this notion, and the US has brought about fundamental changes to its laws (Price, 1996). These changes have served to enhance the importance of women in policing In addition, the US initiated moves to better the educational and employment opportunities of women and minorities, by according them privileged treatment in admissions to educational institutions, employment, award of contracts and the conferral of social benefits. This constitutes affirmative action, and it was the consequence of the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Teaching With

MHE599 - Culminating Project Module 5 - Case Essay

MHE599 - Culminating Project Module 5 - Case - Essay Example however in other cases their response to the disaster will be inadequate without proper steps and this will to lead to views that Federal government bodies could have done a better job. This scenario of inadequate response was visible during the disaster of Hurricane Katrina in the geographical region of Louisiana. U.S. Constitution’s 10th Amendment states that, â€Å"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.† (gpoaccess.gov). That is, through this amendment, the constitution entrusts the responsibility of public health and safety of the people in a particular state to the respective states itself. This means the emergency management of disasters and other tragedies as well as law enforcement is also the responsibility of the state government and local bodies. Critics of this amendment and ones who are against further autonomy for the local governments state that giving the responsibility of public health and safety particularly during emergencies would be too much for the local bodies. The 10th Amendment provides significant responsibility on the states; however Hurricane Katrina because of certain shortfalls has proved that the amendment wrongly places too much responsibility on the states. Although, in course of our history, several state and local governments have done an adequate and commendable job in aiding the public in times of natural disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, Tsunami, etc, it is not the case all the time. Hurricane Katrina is one such case of inadequate response because the first responders, Louisianan government and New Orleans City council themselves became the victims of the catastrophe, as their local infrastructure was maximally wiped out. Along with this shortfall, the local bodies performed inadequately raising questions regarding the 10th Amendment and how the Federal bodies if involved maximally could have

Performance Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Performance Management - Assignment Example There are various types of performance management plans that a corporation may select to use. The two most prominent types of performance management plans are strategic performance management plans and administrative plans (Customwritingtips, 2013). Strategic plans place emphasis on the long term. As part of a strategic performance plan an organization must assess the external factors that affect the organization. Administrative performance plans focuses on the short term and on the internal factors that can be altered to achieve positive change in a company. The use of performance management impacts the employees of an organization in a variety of ways. Performance management helps improve the motivation of the workers. It does a more effective job of rewarding employees that are performing. The corporate culture of a firm is enhanced by the use of performance management. Firms that implement performance management typically experience a productivity boom. Using performance manageme nt can help track employee performance better. The total compensation of employees increases. Despite the benefits associated with performance management there are also cons associated with its implementation. Often work related stress increases as a direct consequence of the use of performance management. Cooperation and teamwork decreases among the employees. When performance management is used competition among the laborers rises. ... Employees also feel a greater pressure to perform. Three ways to determine individual performance are personal observation, feedback, and performance reviews (Aprioritylearning). Performance management affects the compensation that the employees receive for their labor. The traditional compensation system of paying a fixed salary or by the hour has proven to be ineffective. When employees are paid a fixed compensation for their work they lose motivation. In a company that uses performance management the workers that achieve higher productivity receive higher reward. Low performers are adversely affected because they receive lower compensation. The compensation system under performance management is fairer. Companies obtain greater efficiency from its compensation plan under performance management. A lot of factors should be considered when starting a performance management plan. It is very important to properly train the workers on the different aspects and implications of the perfor mance management plan. During the first few weeks of implementation the employees should undergo an orientation period. The skills of the workers should be aligned with the job requirements of the program. The company has to determine if the firm has adequate financial resources to pay for the added compensation of the workers. The corporate culture of the business is another factor that should be considered. The impact the plan will have on employee relations must be assessed. Administrative expenses are likely to increase under performance management. The effectiveness of the plan must be tracked. Companies must study the long term impact of using performance management and they also have to deal with the short term consequences. It is important to include a balanced

Women in Policing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Women in Policing - Essay Example There are several reasons: first, this job offers financial security; second, there is significant inspiration from the peer group; and acquaintanceship with police work (Price, 1996). Nevertheless, women police officers, face considerable discrimination. Initially, they were not permitted to undertake patrolling duties, because of their perceived physical shortcomings, Vis – a – Vis their male counterparts on the force. This was a double-edged sword employed by the chauvinistic superior police officers, who were exclusively men. Since, patrol duty was a prerequisite for promotions, women were effectively, prevented from obtaining promotions (Price, 1996). Women police officers, have fewer opportunities to progress in their career, and obtain promotions and rewards. Their distribution throughout the force is irregular and there are specialized units, which are conspicuous for the near total absence of women. It is an indisputable fact that men dominate the police force, and that they ensure that women face several hurdles in achieving career advancement and job satisfaction. Professional and social life necessitates a commingling of attitudinal, structural and technical changes. This is essential for engendering social change; and is all the more relevant in ushering in gender equality. The police department is no exception to this notion, and the US has brought about fundamental changes to its laws (Price, 1996). These changes have served to enhance the importance of women in policing In addition, the US initiated moves to better the educational and employment opportunities of women and minorities, by according them privileged treatment in admissions to educational institutions, employment, award of contracts and the conferral of social benefits. This constitutes affirmative action, and it was the consequence of the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Teaching With

Performance Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Performance Management - Assignment Example There are various types of performance management plans that a corporation may select to use. The two most prominent types of performance management plans are strategic performance management plans and administrative plans (Customwritingtips, 2013). Strategic plans place emphasis on the long term. As part of a strategic performance plan an organization must assess the external factors that affect the organization. Administrative performance plans focuses on the short term and on the internal factors that can be altered to achieve positive change in a company. The use of performance management impacts the employees of an organization in a variety of ways. Performance management helps improve the motivation of the workers. It does a more effective job of rewarding employees that are performing. The corporate culture of a firm is enhanced by the use of performance management. Firms that implement performance management typically experience a productivity boom. Using performance manageme nt can help track employee performance better. The total compensation of employees increases. Despite the benefits associated with performance management there are also cons associated with its implementation. Often work related stress increases as a direct consequence of the use of performance management. Cooperation and teamwork decreases among the employees. When performance management is used competition among the laborers rises. ... Employees also feel a greater pressure to perform. Three ways to determine individual performance are personal observation, feedback, and performance reviews (Aprioritylearning). Performance management affects the compensation that the employees receive for their labor. The traditional compensation system of paying a fixed salary or by the hour has proven to be ineffective. When employees are paid a fixed compensation for their work they lose motivation. In a company that uses performance management the workers that achieve higher productivity receive higher reward. Low performers are adversely affected because they receive lower compensation. The compensation system under performance management is fairer. Companies obtain greater efficiency from its compensation plan under performance management. A lot of factors should be considered when starting a performance management plan. It is very important to properly train the workers on the different aspects and implications of the perfor mance management plan. During the first few weeks of implementation the employees should undergo an orientation period. The skills of the workers should be aligned with the job requirements of the program. The company has to determine if the firm has adequate financial resources to pay for the added compensation of the workers. The corporate culture of the business is another factor that should be considered. The impact the plan will have on employee relations must be assessed. Administrative expenses are likely to increase under performance management. The effectiveness of the plan must be tracked. Companies must study the long term impact of using performance management and they also have to deal with the short term consequences. It is important to include a balanced

Types of Network Attacks Essay Example for Free

Types of Network Attacks Essay A Denial-of-Service (DoS) attack is mounted with the objective of causing a negative impact on the performance of a computer or network. It is also known as network saturation attack or bandwidth consumption attack. Attackers make DoS attacks by sending a large number of protocol packets to a network. The problems caused by a DoS attack are as follows: * Saturate network resources. * Disrupt connections between two computers, thereby preventing communications between services. Disrupt services to a specific computer. Man-in-the-middle : Man-in-the-middle attacks occur when an attacker successfully inserts an intermediary software or program between two communicating hosts. The intermediary software or program allows attackers to listen to and modify the communication packets passing between the two hosts. The software intercepts the communication packets and then sends the information to the receiving host. The receiving host responds to the software, presuming it to be the legitimate client. Replay Attack : A replay attack is a type of attack in which attackers capture packets containing passwords or digital signatures whenever packets pass between two hosts on a network. In an attempt to obtain an authenticated connection, the attackers then resend the captured packet to the system. In this type of attack, the attacker does not know the actual password, but can simply replay the captured packet. Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS) : In the distributed denial of service (DDOS) attack, an attacker uses multiple computers throughout the network that it has previously infected. Such computers act as zombies and work together to send out bogus messages, thereby increasing the amount of phony traffic. The major advantages to an attacker of using a distributed denial-of-service attack are that multiple machines can generate more attack traffic than one machine, multiple attack machines are harder to turn off than one attack machine, and that the behavior of each attack machine can be stealthier, making it harder to track down and shut down. TFN, TRIN00, etc. are tools used for the DDoS attack.

Woman At Point Zero Analysis

Woman At Point Zero Analysis Symbolism has seeped into the arts and became an essential part of literary works and general communication. Since the concept of symbolism is effective in the construction of a novel, both works; The Outsider by A. Camus (translated by Joseph Laredo) and Woman at Point Zero by N. El Saadawi (translated by Sherif Hetata) portray the symbolic use of Nature. The symbolic use of nature in literature embodies the emotions and feelings of a character. The protagonists, Firdaus in Woman at Point Zero and Meursault in The Outsider mutually use nature as a way to express their feelings. More abstractly, besides giving insights into the characters, both Firdaus and Meursault use nature to symbolize significant events in the plot. Hence, by analyzing the representations of nature, insights into many of the ideas and images that the authors are trying to convey are obtained. This paper will highlight the symbolic use of nature in both novels. Meursault devotes significant attention to the different colours of the sky, the suns rays at different times of the day and the beach. In the novel, green is linked to happy moments. This is evident from the vague line: The sky was green; I felt happy.  [1]  Earlier in the novel, the sky was blue and gold, and now its green. The colour green is a blend of blue and yellow, it mediates between heat and cold. It is refreshing, comforting and the colour of plant life. Throughout the novel, A. Camus illustrates that red is associated with love and anger. The sky changed again. Above the rooftops the sky had taken on a reddish glow and with evening coming on the streets came to life.  [2]  Red is one of the most powerful colours. It incites visions of passion and pain, war and love. The symbolic use of red is different depending on the experiences and the culture of an individual. In African societies, the color red is linked to love and hate. It is based on the intensity of these two emotions. This is also analogous to the Arab on the beach scene and Maries red coloured dress, as they both signify love and anger. The colour red affected Meursault biologically, as it increased his metabolism and sped up his breathing. Comparatively, N. El Saadawi examines the different colours of the sky in diverse times of the day. The sky also had undergone a change; its colour had turned to black, like that of the earth, and it was pressing down upon me with its added load.  [3]  The author has experienced this feeling once, when she felt unloved by a man. The colour black in the novel is seen as a cold and negative aspect suggesting passivity. The change in the colour of the sky symbolizes the feeling of rejection by the vast world. The sky was blue with a blueness I could capture in my eyes. I held the whole world in my hands; it was mine.  [4]  The author came across this feeling when she met the man that she loved for the first time. Although blue is more common in western societies, blue skies are full of optimistic meaning in every culture. The color blue in the novel is related to freedom, strength and new beginnings. Both, A. Camus and N. El Saadawi are striving to exhibit the unexpected changes of emotions and feelings by using colours as a symbol in the novels. Throughout the novel, A. Camus usage of the sun disputes its warmth and beauty. Similarly to the changing colours of the sky, the sun and heat are a symbol for feelings and emotions. To Meursault, the sun has an impact on all his senses. Depending on its power, it either makes him angry, happy or resentful. The images of sunlight and heat are common throughout the novel as it is set in Algeria. There are two times when these images are significant to the plot. The impact of the sun on Meursault is represented early in the novel, at his mothers funeral. He was unable to think about his mothers death because of the glaring sun and intense heat. At the beach, A. Camus portrays once more the negative version of the sun. The sun shattered into little pieces on the sand and water.  [5]  The sun provokes Meursault to kill the Arab. This indicates the controlling influence of the hot weather. In spite of this, Meursault changes his view on both the sun and his life in prison. I moved clo ser to the window, and in the last light of the day I gazed my reflection one more time.  [6]  Early in the novel, he was introduced to the harsh sun. However in jail, Meursault realizes that the sun and life are warm and friendly. In contrast, N. El Saadawi uses cold weather as a symbol to illustrate her feelings as a character in the novel. The ground under me was cold. The same touch the same consistency, the same naked cold. Yet the cold did not touch me, did not reach me.  [7]  The author draws cold weather as a negative aspect. In the middle-eastern societies, winter seasons portray fright, death and stagnation. The author uses cold weather as a symbol to present fright and danger when she first met Firdaus. In the beginning, N. El Saadawi was concerned when she sat on the cold floor in prison next to her. Although danger and insecurity were surrounding her, she felt safe and fearless when she sat next to Firdaus. As if the coldness and all the insecurity could not touch her or reach her. In The Outsider, water symbolizes relief, escape and peace. This is evident from the beach scene, before the murder occurred: I was thinking of the cool spring behind the rock. I wanted to hear the murmur of its water again, to escape from the sun and the effort of the womens tears, and to relax in the shade again.  [8]  To Meursault, its easier to step towards the cool water and away from the sun. In the novel, water is a symbol of regeneration, relief and escape; it washes away all the guilt of the protagonist. The closest Meursault comes to happiness, is in the absence of pain from his surroundings. Natures surroundings are vicious that the only thing on Meursaults mind is escape and peace. Meursaults urgency to escape from the discomfort caused by heat initiates the murder of the Arab. On the contrary, Firdaus illustrates that water is a symbol for death and new beginnings. This is evident from the incomprehensible line: On my head I carried a heavy earthenware jar, full of water. Under its weight my neck would sometimes jerk backwards, or to the left or to the right.  [9]  Water has a universal undertone of clarity. Symbolically, it is viewed as the source and origin of life itself. When Firdaus neck jerks backward with the jar, water represents warmth and comfort. When it moves to the left, water signifies coldness, alienation and death. When it moves to the right, it denotes renewal and love. N. El Saadawi embodies water as both, the fluidity of life and death in the novel.

Curleys Wife Essay -- English Literature

Curley's Wife ============= At first, Curley's wife is described to the reader through the comments of the men on the ranch. Candy tells Lennie and George when he first meets them that she ' got the eye' for the men on the ranch, even though she has only been married to Curley for two weeks. Candy thinks that she is 'a tart'. We first meet Curley's wife when she comes into the bunkhouse, when Lennie and George are in there. She is apparently looking for Curley but she already knows that new men have arrived. Steinbeck gives a detailed description of her as she stands in the doorway of the bunkhouse and talks to Lennie and George. She is 'heavily made up', with 'full rouged lips' and red fingernails. Her body language is provocative as she positions herself in the doorway so that 'her body was thrown forward'. She smiles 'archly' and 'twitched her body'. The general impression the reader gains is of a young girl who is pretty and wants the attention of men. George's reaction to Curley's wife, however, makes the reader realize that she is a potential threat to the two men. George sees her as 'poison' and 'jailbait'. He is angry with Lennie's admiration of her 'she's purty' and fiercely tells him that he must stay away from her. 'Don't you even take a look at that bitch.' Later, when we find out what happened at Weed, where Lennie frightens a woman by stroking her dress and they are forced to flee the town from a lynch mob, we understand why George is so alarmed that she will be the cause of more trouble for them. Whit's opinion of Curley's wife is one of bewilderment, he sees through the flirty appearance and just sees a girl trying too seek attention, but he still doesn't understand why she acts like ... ...only married Curley to get away from home. She met him at the Riverside Dance Palais, probably attracted to him because he was the son of a ranch owner. Now, however, the reality is that she doesn't even like him. 'He ain't a nice fella', she confides in Lennie. When they are talking together she shows some kindness to Lennie when she realizes that he understands little of what she is saying. After she is dead we are shown by Steinbeck a different side of Curley's wife. In death the 'meanness and the plannings and the discontent and the ache for attention' have gone from her face. We see she is just a young and pretty girl. Steinbeck's description of her dead body seems designed to make us see her as a victim of life. The best laid plans o' mice and ------------------------------- men gang aft agley. (Robert Burns) Best laid Plans often goes astray.

BMW Essay -- essays research papers

BMW and Audi, two German automobile manufacturers, have a reputation for making some of the best cars in the industry. Not only are both companies superior in their production, but their financial statements also indicate stability and efficiency. Looking at financial ratios, we will compare both companies on a basis of management efficiency and debt status. As a bank analyst, we will make a recommendation as to which company would be better to approve a loan for. A recommendation will also be made regarding management effectiveness and which company would make a better investment. BMW has captured the attention of automobile drivers from all around the world with their â€Å"Ultimate Driving Machine.† The BMW Company was originally established in Germany and has extended nationally reaching over 12 countries. With Germany and the United States being the top two target countries, BMW has established their products as a combination of luxury, safety, and comfort with product lines to suit all styles of living. Revenues have been increasing each year since before 1996 with profits coming from product line of automobiles and motorcycles. In 2001, BMW came out with a new product group, the Mini. The Mini also contributed to the revenue increase in 2001. BMW has current developments in their sports cars, the Z8. BMW has created a trustworthy name for the automobiles they produce and has all the potential to continue their success in the future. Audi, one of Germany’s first automobile producers, has been designing and building cars since August Horch, its founder, completed his first car in 1901. Over the years following, a series of innovations and mergers have led Audi to the position it is in today. Audi’s subsidiaries include companies to facilitate international operations, part manufacturers, a vehicle customization company, a technology research company, and Lamborghini Corp, a successful sports car manufacturer. Audi’s current developments include its holding the EU Seal of Environmental Protection, and a number of technological advancements, including new car designs and a â€Å"seeing car† technology that has been nominated for the German Future award for Technology and Innovation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  BMW  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Audi Profitability Ratios  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Return on Equity  ... ...reflects this. This again shows BMW’s less efficient cost management than Audi. Through Dupont analysis, we have been able to see the specific strengths and weaknesses of BMW and Audi’s management. BMW’s lower profit margin and asset turnover indicate less efficient cost management and asset management. Their debt multiplier indicates that they’re taking advantage of debt, but the benefit of this isn’t realized because of their problems with cost and asset management. Due to Audi’s more efficient use of their assets, and better cost efficiency, it can be said that their management has performed better than BMW’s over the past year. BMW and Audi both build cars that have a reputation for security, reliability and quality. These traits transcend into their financial statements, making both of them a good investment due to their debt status, and management effectiveness. Our recommendation as a bank loan analyst would be for BMW due to its superior liquidity and low risk. When evaluating management performance for equity investment, Audi is clearly a better investment. This is primarily due to its superior asset management, debt allocation, and inventory management.

Kant vs. Kierkegaard Essay

I also believe that the issue that I am discussing is deep, and therefore interesting. Its weaknesses would be its lack of quotes. The difficulty with this paper was trying to find the idea in the first place. It took me a lot of time to find deep similarities and differences between the two. It also took me some time to figure out how I would lay the essay out and how I would flesh the essay out. As this paper is not superficial, I found myself finding new ideas and problem as time passed. This gave me another problem as I always had to rethink and re-edit. The goals for my next paper are to include more quotes, as my papers lack evidence. My other goals are to carry on writing interesting and thought provoking papers. I aim to try to make my essays as clear as possible, as tackling deep issues can sometimes make the writing quite convoluted. Love of Duty vs. Love of Choice In their essays ‘Lectures on Ethics – Friendship’ and ‘Works of Love – Thou Shalt Love Thy Neighbor’, respectively, Kant and Kierkegaard both appear as idealists: They each portray a utopia in which friendship is universal. Kant believes that perfection can be achieved if people put love of mankind before love of oneself, and Kierkegaard believes that perfection can be achieved if you love everyone as if they were your neighbor. Ironically, both also contradict themselves: Kant contradicts his other idea that one will never be able to achieve the ideal of friendship, where partners share everything with each other. While Kierkegaard contradicts himself by saying a true Christian is completely selfless. This is a contradiction, as someone who is selfless cannot have a choice (free will), but as rational humans we do have a choice. Given these parallels, are these two thinkers ultimately offering us the same sense of utopia? No – in fact, Kant is a realist who uses a scientific approach to figure out what it means to be a friend, whereas Kierkegaard is a religious thinker who applies his religious morality on people. Their utopias look very similar on the surface, but their underlying methods to reach them are vastly different. Both Kant and Kierkegaard come from two very different backgrounds. Kant was born in Prussia, and was interested in physics and mathematics. He didn’t have a positive view of religion was also asked to stop teaching Theology at the University of Konigsberg by the government as he allegedly ‘misrepresented’ the principles of Christianity. This shows that Kant was a thinker independent of religion. Kant believed that â€Å"mankind’s final coming of age,† was â€Å"the emancipation of the human consciousness from an immature state of ignorance and error. † This is the opposite of Kierkegaard, as he was a devout Christian. Kierkegaard tried to incorporate religion (Christian morality) with reason. This is where he comes up with his idea of ‘loving thy neighbor’. Whereas Kierkegaard comes from a position that his way is the ‘right’ way, as it was mandated from God, Kant comes from a position which is influenced by Rousseau and Aristotle, in fact Kant’s idea of man having self-love and love for humanity comes straight from Rousseau’s book ‘The Discourse on the Origin of Inequality’. There is also a deeper difference: Kierkegaard’s religious morality implies duty, whereas Kant’s view on friendship implies choice. Choice lies at the heart of Kant’s philosophy. He says that man has two basic instincts: self-love and love for humanity (pity). These two instincts conflict with each other and only one can win. Kant believes that in an ideal world, all people would put love for humanity before self-love. This would create a world where love is reciprocated, and therefore man does not have to worry about losing his happiness. In essence, Kant’s version of a utopia is where man chooses to love humanity. This is vastly different to Kierkegaard’s version, where man has no choice, as it is his moral duty to love everyone as if they were his neighbor. Kierkegaard does acknowledge Kant in a way, by distinguishing between earthly love and spiritual love. He says earthly love (Kant’s type of love) is the exact opposite of spiritual love. He argues that a ‘poet’ (Kant) is absolutely right in saying that earthly love cannot be commanded. Kierkegaard believes that Christian love is better as it is ‘completely selfless’. For Kierkegaard, â€Å"Christian love teaches love to all men, unconditionally all. Just as unconditionally and strongly as earthly love tends towards the idea of there being but one single object of love, equally unconditionally and strongly Christian love tends in the opposite direction. If a man with respect to Christian love wishes to make an exception in the case of one man whom he does not wish to love, then such love is not ‘also Christian love,’ but it is unconditionally not Christian love. † (41) Kierkegaard also believes that it is quite liberating to be forced to love. As if the absence of choice creates peace. He believes that â€Å"it is encouraging in your relation to a distinguished man, that in him you must love your neighbor; it is humbling in relation to the inferior, that you do not have to love the inferior on him, but must love your neighbor; it is a saving grace if you do it, for you must do it† (50). Thus the difference between earthly and spiritual love is that earthly love is a choice and spiritual love is a command from God. Both Kierkegaard and Kant come to different conclusions because in their writing, their focus is on separate ideas. Kant, being a man of reason primarily, approaches his philosophy in a scientific manner. To explain, he breaks one thing into smaller things. Kant makes observations based on what he sees, hears, tastes, smells, and feels (like his three types of friendships). However, he does also make some conceptual assumptions (discussed earlier) such as his idea of putting love of humanity before self-love will cause reciprocation of friendship. Unlike Kierkegaard, Kant does not focus on religion as it is unnecessary for someone who is only interested in empirical observations. Kierkegaard however is not concerned with empirical observation, as he believes that there is something higher and more important i. e. Christianity. Kierkegaard concentrates more on morality and what he believes is right, instead of focusing on what is actually there. Kierkegaard doesn’t even talk about friendship in his writing. This shows that he places much more importance on what his religion says is right instead of trying to observe and deconstruct what friendship is. Although both philosophers have radically different ideas on how to achieve a utopian world, their ideas as an end result are very similar. They both want a world in which everyone loves everyone. The difference is that Kant’s love comes from reason, whereas Kierkegaard’s is spiritual. For this reason Kant’s idea seems more logical to the rational human being. Kant doesn’t believe in forced love, he believes in a choice to put either love of humanity or love of oneself at the fore. Kierkegaard’s idea of loving as a moral duty is contradictory at its heart, because how can you love if you don’t have a choice who to love? If you ‘love’ everyone it stops being love because love is defined by its opposite. How can there be love without hate? If it can’t exist, then how feasible is Kierkegaard’s idea? This is the main problem with Kierkegaard, because his observations come from his faith. In the real world, love should come from understanding, not dogma. If there is no understanding, it’s like a slavery of the mind. Works Cited Immanuel Kant, â€Å"Lectures on Ethics†, Ethics. Trans. Louis Infield, Harper Torchbooks, The Cloister Library, Harper & Row Publishers, New York and Evanston. Soren Kierkegaard, â€Å"Works of Love†, Thou Shalt Love Thy Neighbor. Trans. David F. Swenson & Lillian Marvin Swenson, Princeton – New Jersey, Princeton University Press.