Somalia Piracy

Outline Thesis: Modern seaborne piracy off the coast of Somalia can be controlled by making Somalia more safe and stable, improving the infrastructure, and finding individual or private solutions. Introduction I. Making Somalia more safe and stable A. Starting an effective government B. Establishing higher demands of security II. Improving Infrastructures A. Forming a steady and firm framework B. Creating and enforcing treaties III.Finding individual or private solutions A. Hijacking ships back B. Providing private security (undercover) Conclusion Currently, â€Å"[t]he International Maritime Bureau (IMB) considers the Somalia coast to be the most dangerous stretch of water in the world†. (Zijlma 1) Piracy has been an ongoing problem off the coast of Somalia of the Indian Ocean for many years now. The country of Somalia is in the need of a quick and effective change to rapidly decrease and eventually eliminate modern seaborne piracy.Somalia will need several solutions and back -up plans in order to help make a quick and clear stop to this modern seaborne piracy. Modern seaborne piracy off the coast of Somalia can be controlled by making Somalia more safe and stable, improving the infrastructure, and finding individual or private solutions. Any of these solutions can help play a role in fixing and eliminating these unbelievable criminal acts on the sea. The first goal to help solve the problems taking place on the sea is to get Somalia going in the direction of being more safe and stable. â€Å"[N]ow that American crews† have stepped in to help out Somalia, action â€Å"against†¦piracy† will be â€Å"taken by the international community†. To help destroy piracy, a reasonable solution would be making Somalia safer and more stable. To begin this process Somalia will need to get â€Å"an effective government in place (Zijlma 15). The Somali government didn’t use to take action because they were a â€Å"barely functioning gov ernment, and a few years before that there was no government at all†. Zijlma 11) The current Somali government would love to get involved and help out, but they don’t know where to exactly start. The Somali government should start by gaining â€Å"complete control of the capital Mogadishu and regions like Puntland† (Zijlma 11). They will also need to begin taking greater action as a whole in order to decrease the piracy going on in the region. An effective government would consist of taking chances, realizing and accepting it could possibly take more than just a few solutions to totally wash away the pirates, and have multiple plans in case one fails.Throughout this whole process, maintaining patience while gaining control will be the biggest challenge they will most likely face. While putting together an effective government, higher demands of security will need to be put into the equation. The demands of high security is in high needs because â€Å"Somalia is among one of the most important shipping lanes dealing with piracy on these lanes cause lot’s of chaos and commerce† (Arons 2) without the high security ships are now paying â€Å"nearly twice what they would have paid a year ago for ransom insurance†. Arons 2) The security will need to protect the ships on and off the Somali coast of the Indian Ocean and perhaps they might need to attempt to try and take control by maneuvering the speedboats containing pirates. A step to this may deal with hosing them down with fire-hoses and firing back at any given time. However, this is up to the â€Å"captains because the pirates are operating in an area approximately four times the size of Texas, there are slim to no chances to ensure that every ship in this area will obtain a safe passage. (Zijlma 13) The other concern with raising the security and possibly taking action is keeping the captains and crew safe along with the captured crew they may fire at. Once again itâ₠¬â„¢s taking chances and figuring out the most effective way for the government to take action that will lead to great success in resolving piracy. No matter what solution or route the Somali government chooses to take, improving infrastructures will be in the equation at one point or another.To start, we will need a firm and steady framework in order to begin any process and complete any process in the hopes of getting rid of the piracy and keeping it gone and off the seas of Somalia. The first framework should be the government and working to save as many hostages taken by the pirates in a non criminal and least harmful way as possible. â€Å"The assets of a Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), acting with the support of an Amphibious Ready Group, are perfectly suited for this type of operation. (Lloyd 5) To begin this you will need to improve the framework of how, when, where, and take into consideration how many you will save and how many you may possibly have to let go if the infr astructure is not operating to the fullest potential possible. A way to begin improving infrastructures would be to create a well formatted treaty that can be agreed and signed by both parties.â€Å"The treaty process has evolved over the last 50 years into the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Today, almost every country on the planet has ratified the convention†¦except the United States. (Porter 4) This solution may take several trial and errors to get the treaty that is right and equal full all parties involved. â€Å"The United states needs to show the pirate ringleaders that they will lose life, limb, and property if they continue with their piratical ways. † (Lloyd 11) This is no game to play, improving the infrastructures and finding solutions that work is the best way to change the rules and not give up without a win over piracy. â€Å"Only by changing the rules of the game will the international community succeed in tackling Somali pira cy. (Lloyd 11) Perhaps, just trying to hijack one of the Somalia ships back could be a fresh start to eliminating the violent acts on the seas of Somalia. In order to do this there needs to more negotiators who will be needed to watch out for any ships getting hijacked when they are to be left alone or are already Somali’s. The only problem with attempting to hijack ships back is the worry of losing American fighters and or hostages. â€Å"These activities seem to be overshadowed and will only treat the symptoms rather than the disease itself† (Lehr 3).Hijacking back ships without the knowledge of the pirates will give the Somalia’s a better chance of losing as many men as possible because the pirates will be unprepared and not have a framework in place to take action. â€Å"The legality of different security measures (as well as their effect on insurance claims and premiums), the negotiation process with pirates and, ultimately, how to secure the safety of shi ps, cargoes, and crew, take priority when a ship is at sea and a threat is imminent. †(Lawyer 8) However, this action could possibly cause harm and chaos, that Somalia must be fully ready for and be able to take ction against it. The last and final solution to modern day seaborne piracy would be to put private security around and on the seas of Somalia. These means of security will have no labels and will remain as seldom seen as possible. They will need to partake in a â€Å"list of services which include specialized antipiracy and maritime counter-terrorism operations. † (Lehr 3) The problem is significant, and the approaches to it varied. The best way to defend against the piracy is at their point of attack  Ã¢â‚¬â€ aboard the ships they approach and attempt to board.Well-armed security teams will need to be aboard them and they will need to be able to sink approaching speedboats and other vessels deemed a threat before they can come alongside, and  can kill pir ates as they attempt to board if that fails. Somalia needs to deal with this problem from the beach side, in concert with the ocean side, but we don't have an embassy in Somalia and limited, ineffective intelligence operations. With no government there was no hope chance in trying to make peace among the criminals participating in the violent acts on the sea.On the flip side, now that the Somalia government is back into action and ready to be in full control of the situation, it will make the process of eliminating the pirates go smoother because working together as one can help build and put together an effective government. Together they will be able to help create a safer and more stable reliable boating experience, along with the society supporting and encouraging the actions of the government. The society should be willing to fight for what it takes to help make their seas safer and more enjoyable without the risk of outrageous acts happening right in front of their eyes.After the â€Å"welcoming release of Captain Phillips, President Obama stated his resolve to halt the rise of piracy† in the Somalia region. By taking â€Å"four immediate steps the U. s. international partners to crack down on pirate bases and decrease incentives to engage in Piracy; develop an expanded multinational response; engage with the Somali government and regional leaders in Puntland to take action against pirates operating from bases within their territories; and work with shippers and the insurance industry to address gaps in self-defense measures. (Library 2) With this being said by the United States president, within a couple years there should be a stop to the outrageous and violent acts happening on the seas and Somalia should be in full control with an effective government on its side.Works Cited Arons, Matt. â€Å"Stopping Somali Piracy: Addressing the Hidden Environmental Causes. † afpprinceton. com. 15 Feb. 2010. Web. 20 Apr. 2010. . â€Å"Legal Solutio ns to Illegality on the Seas. † The Lawyer 4 May 2009: 6. Academic OneFile. Gale. Web. 3 Mar. 2010. Lehr, Peter. Violence at Sea: Piracy in the Age of Global Terrorism. New York: Taylor and Francis Routledge, 2007. Print. Library, The National Defense University. â€Å"Piracy Off the Coast of Somalia. † merln. ndu. edu. 23 Jan. 2010. Web. 20 Apr. 2010. . Llyod, James. â€Å"An Expeditionary Solution to Somalia Piracy. † U. S. Naval Institute Proceedings 135. 11 (2009): 8. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 4 Mar. 2010. ;lt; http://merln. ndu. edu/index. cfm? secID=263;pageID=35;type=section;gt;. Porter, Keith. â€Å"Law of the Sea Treaty. † About. com. 4 Sept. 2007. Web. 4 Mar. 2010. . Zijlma, Anouk. â€Å"Somali Pirates: A Guide to Somalia’s Modern Day Pirates. † About. com. 2010. Web. 3 Mar. 2010. .

Proposal: West Parking

Contents Introduction2 Problem2 Objectives3 Solution4 Doing Nothing4 Installing extra traffic lights4 Hiring an extra parking staff to coordinate traffic congestion5 Improving North and West Parking5 Methods6 Cost8 Benefits9 Conclusion10 References10 Introduction We propose to expand the West and North parking lots of the UAA main campus to greatly reduce traffic congestion, to save time for students and staff, and to help decrease automobile accidents. Problem The UAA main campus is a commuter to more than 15, 000 students (Common data from UAA).The countless number of vehicles commuting to and from campus creates traffic congestions and is desperately in need of more parking spaces. Lack of adequate parking space for students and staff have negative impacts: * Road rage. The survey given in 2008 to UAA students reported that frustration due to congested traffic resulted in unsafe driving practices. Much could have been prevented if there were enough parking spaces for the vehicles that enter campus parking. * Tardiness.Delays due to finding parking space are direct consequence of students and staff being late for classes. Estimated time to find parking space may take up to 20 minutes (2008-UAA student’s survey). People usually experience high stress level due to frustration of finding parking space. Tardiness may have a direct effect on students’ performance in classes (University of Washington MDJ). * Unauthorized use of parking. UAA students admitted to have used Providence Hospital, and Goose Lake parking due to lack of adequate parking spots on campus.This unauthorized use of parking is taking away the spots reserved for the hospital’s patient, and those reserved for recreational use in the park. * Outrageous Parking Fees. The unanimous survey in 2008 for students showed concern over increased parking fees every semester, yet still not enough parking available. This is a â€Å"hot† topic next to book prices and spiking tuition. Student’s complaints are justified that if UAA is going to charge more for parking, then more parking spaces will also be required from the university. * ER access.Traffic created by students and staff vehicles at the main campus has negative impact for hospital emergencies vehicles. UAA main campus is located across the Providence Hospital, and interfering with littering the Providence Drive with students and staff vehicles may be critical of saving someone’s life where minutes or even seconds are critical to one’s well being. * Road safety. Students have reported and are concern about the pedestrian safety once they park the vehicles (2008 survey). There is no pedestrian pathway from the North and West Parking to campus buildings; walking is on the road.Concerns are mostly in wintertime, (fall and spring semesters) where icy and snowy roads, and poor visibility is a road hazard to moving vehicles and pedestrians. * Vehicle accidents. Department of Transportat ions (DOT) ranks the Providence Drive in top five of hazardous locations. The proximity of UAA and Hospital at Providence Drive and congested traffic at this area is responsible for high amount of automobile accidents (according to US. DOT –Federal Highway Administration). Objectives To create a solution for improved parking at UAA and traffic congestion problems issues must: 1.Include a solid development plan that would benefit students, staff, and the UAA. The students and staff would greatly appreciate adequate parking spaces for their vehicle. UAA would positively gain revenue from parking fees. 2. Ensure that parking construction is developed on time and that students attending the following semester are not interrupted with constructions issues. 3. Ensure that pedestrians’ pathways are easily accessible from parking, thus greatly reducing chance of someone being hit by a vehicle. 4. Avoid new traffic congestions on Providence Drive due to parking construction.Sol ution There are several potential solutions to the problems outlined earlier in the proposal. These solutions are: * Doing nothing * Installing extra traffic lights * Hiring an extra parking staff to coordinate traffic congestion * Improving North and West Parking Doing Nothing This is the least effective solution to the existing problem. By doing nothing, we cannot improve parking issues desperately sought by many students and staffs. The use of unauthorized parking in the property of Providence Hospital and Goose Lake will likely continue.Road rage will likely occur as it has. Issues of tardiness will continue if we do not take appropriate steps to solve it. By doing nothing we will not help to solve automobile accidents, impact road safety, or help with ER access (2008 survey, DOT). Installing extra traffic lights This next possible solution is to install extra traffic lights. This measure of safety and coordination of traffic would add benefit t a more regulated traffic flow, an d improve the safety of the pedestrian’s crosswalks. According to Municipality of Anchorage (M. O.A), Traffic Department, Lance Wilber, said that the cost of installing traffic lights may be well over $700,000 per cross-section, depending on the location and construction plans involved. This solution seems ineffective because it does not solve the pedestrians’ safety concerns over the crossing from the parking area to the campus buildings, nor solve the lack of available parking space. This solution contributes to solving some traffic congestion at campus, but better solution is needed. In addition, M. O. A advised against installation of new traffic lights since there are already five in place at the Providence Drive.Hiring an extra parking staff to coordinate traffic congestion Hiring an extra parking staff could be a reasonable solution for traffic congestion at campus. This solution requires hiring of twelve individuals for North and West Parking, for coordinating traffic at the busiest time: mornings and late afternoon. The vehicles entering campus would be guided to available parking and pedestrians’ safety could be looked after. According to Parking Services, estimated cost for an extra staff and equipment on annual basis would amount to over half a million dollars.However, this would not help eliminate vehicle traffic at Providence Drive; in fact, traffic congestion would likely be worse than it is now. Parking Services, advised against hiring an extra staff to help coordinate traffic due to lack of budget. Improving North and West Parking The best solution to the problems outlined earlier in the proposal is to improve the largest parking on main campus, which is the North, and West Parking. These hold the largest accommodation of parking lots, and are easily accessible from: Providence Drive, Lake Otis Parkway, and UAA Drive-Mallard Lane.For its convenience of being accessible to the main campus and having close proximity to 13-UA A buildings, and short walking distance to other facilities, the North and West Parking is the best candidate and that needs improvement. The advantage to this solution is that it would double the available parking spaces. By creating more space, vehicles would move faster to and from campus creating less congestion on busy Providence Drive. Improvement to existing parking would add walkways to help cross over going to the campus, thus greatly improving road safety for both: the vehicles and pedestrians.Vehicle accidents, road rage, and ER access would be improved since the congestion on Providence Drive would be minimized. This solution would favorably affect the issues with tardiness and positively solve the unauthorized use of parking at Providence Hospital and Goose Lake. The cost of this project is approximately set at 2 million dollars per parking, according to Chris Nowak at Affordable Construction, and Stan Vanover-UAA Project Manager. While this may seem expensive at first glance, it is the best solution for improvement.A solution with traffic lights and hiring extra staff to control traffic congestion does not adequately address solving the problems. The only cheaper solution to improving parking is to do nothing. However, this solution though saves money does not solve the students and staff issues, or traffic congestion, and will actually create more problems and complications in the future. The benefit for UAA for this project is that it would recover accumulated expenses from parking fees over 5-7 years (Parking Services), at the same time will solve the outlined problems.This solution is the answer to the described problems, and is reasonably cost effective. Methods Description of Project This project requires adding one more level to existing floor plan, example: airport-parking style, without roof, with ramp access to another level. Second level would have connecting stairs and or elevator to first floor. The pedestrians’ pathways would be implemented between diagonal parked vehicles for safe crossing. Easily accessible ramps would be used by snow removing vehicles during wintertime; the first floor would be snow free.This project will ensure improvement in parking—double the available space, pedestrians and vehicles safety, and would reduce traffic congestion at Providence Drive due to faster rotation of moving vehicles. Pictures of North and West Parking. Note the hazardous road condition and lack of pedestrians’ walkways | | | PARTIAL UAA CAMPUS MAP(arrows point to proposed project area)| Sample pictures of 2-story parking garage with access ramps. | Cost The cost for this project has been estimated at 2 million for the North Parking, and 2, 2 million for the West Parking according to Affordable Construction.These costs include planning, materials, and labor. The planning include the cost of design, surveying, and appropriate permits for the city of Anchorage building code. The materials and labor include the cost of all construction materials and labor needed to complete the project (including 4 elevators if needed). This estimate may change due to prices fluctuation for material or labor cost. Estimate is fairly set as of November 27, 2009. The estimator predicted the low of 4 million dollars to as high as 5, 2 million dollars for this project.Significant amount of money could be saved for material if ordered early in the year from lower 48, and shipped directly. Table 1. Cost Analysis Project| Cost| Total amount| North Parking| Planning $48000Materials $1280000Labor $672000| $ 2,000. 000| West Parking| Planning $ 51000Materials $1410000Labor $739000| $ 2,200. 000| Contingency Fund| | $ 1,000. 000| | Grand total| $ 5,200. 000| Contingency Fund is set to a million dollars for the high end of the project. Ensuring early material ordering will significantly reduce this expense.Time required and Schedule for Project Completion Planning of project can begin early January 2010. The actual construction should start early May— at the end of spring semester—to ensure completion by the end of August, right on time when the fall semester begins. Construction project should take 110-120 days, ensuring as little as possible interruption with students vehicle traffic. The impact on the construction and students should be minimal as fewer students attending UAA during summer. To better illustrate time allotted for the construction, please refer to Table 2.Information for the time and construction was provided by Stan Vanover, Sr. Project Manager, for Construction at UAA. Table 2. Construction & Planning Project| Task| Time allotted in days| Schedule| North & West Parking Improvement| Planning beginsContractors BidsConstruction begins| 4045110| 01/4/201002/20/201005/10/2010| | Project Completion| | 08/30/2010| Benefits Reasonable cost, attracting revenues * Cost for this project is fairly priced according to UAA Project Manager. UAA will collect for pa rking fees and multiply revenues. Traffic congestion alleviated * Improved parking will double available space.This would mean less traffic at the Providence Drive, and smoother vehicle transition to and from campus. Pedestrians and vehicle safety improved * Walkways for pedestrians inside the campus will increase safety. Road hazards, such as the snow and ice would be eliminated on the first floor of parking, thus enhancing pedestrians and motorists safety. Conclusion Despite our economic downturn, colleges in the United States reporting increase in attendance and ever-rising tuition fees. UAA is a home to more than 15 000 students annually; in 2009 UAA reported over 1000 students more than previous year in attendance.We believe that proposed solution to parking improvement is an excellent way to reduce traffic congestion, pedestrians, and motorists’ safety, and provide adequate parking spaces. We look forward to making UAA a safer, well-developed campus. If there are any qu estions you may have, please contact us at your convenience. References 2008 survey, Campus Commuters Statistics can be found at: http://www. uaa. alaska. edu/opra/upload/Common-Data-Set-2008 Department of Transportation, vehicle accidents statistics can be found at: http://safety. fhwa. dot. gov/hsip/fivepercent/2008/08ak. htmUAA Parking Services comments can be found at: http://www. uaa. alaska. edu/parking/, 907. 786. 1119 Lance Wilber, Municipality of Anchorage, information on traffic lights can be found at: http://www. muni. org/Departments/traffic/engineering/Pages/Signals. aspx Information on cost analysis, construction, and planning for the project can be found from: Stan Vanover, Senior Project Manager UAA, Department of Facilities, Planning, and Construction Information on project cost estimate can be found from: Affordable Construction, Chris Nowak, 907. 245. 5722, 20907 Turnagain St, Anchorage

Banning of Public Smoking

Banning of public smoking has become a controversial topic, with the supporters of both the groups putting forward their own arguments for and against banning public smoking. It is well known fact that passive smoking has contributed to the death of large numbers of people, thereby showing the negative consequences of smoking. Based on health reasons, one can suggest that smoking should be banned in the public areas.It has been argued by some scholars and people that smoking is the right of the individuals who should not be forced to quit smoking in the public areas although it is desirable to stop smoking in the places such as public vehicles so as not to affect the co-passengers. The supporters of smoking argue that by banning smoking in public places, the smoker’s right to relax in the places like pubs is taken away, thereby reducing customers to pubs and other places. This has negatively affected business of the pubs.Already, smoking has been banned in the places where the re is intimate contact between different individuals. These people also suggest that smokers are addicted to smoking, which gives them relaxation. It is not desirable to compel the smokers to give up their privilege of smoking without any legal problems. It is also suggested that ban on public smoking creates barriers between smokers and non smokers. (Atwell) Many other scholars have opposed the above argument put forward to support smoking in public places.It is found that passive smoking is the third major reason for the death of large numbers of people. It is unfortunate that so many people have to suffer because of the smoking behavior of the people who use different forms of tobacco. Cigarettes and other tobacco products can be dangerous not only to the smoker, but also to the non smokes who are around the smoker. Smoke contains more than 4000 chemicals, which can negatively affect the health of the individuals.Non smokers, due to public smoking, may suffer from health problems leading to lung, breast, cervical, nasal sinus cancers, strokes, and miscarriages. While many smokers argue that they have the right to enjoy their life by smoking, anti-smokers in the public places argue that they have the right to live without suffering from diseases due to second hand smoking. Therefore, it is argued that through public smoking banning, it is possible to improve the health of second hand smokers.In the absence of public smoke ban, the smokers will be encouraged to continue their habit of smoking in the public, thereby affecting the health of general public. The argument that this ban on public smoking will reduce the number of people visiting pubs and restaurants is also not accepted because studies have indicated that ban on public smoking does not lead to reduced number of customers to the pubs. This is due to the fact that majority of pub customers are non smokers. Ban on public smoking may encourage more number of people to go to bars because they can enjoy their drink in non-smoking environment.By banning public smoking, even the smokers are given an opportunity to leave smoking, thereby assisting them to improve their health. Ban on public smoking can improve the quality of life of individuals in the modern society. Supporters of public smoking contend that ban on public smoking negatively affects the right of the individuals to enjoy their smoke. They suggest that since already there is partial ban on smoking, there is no need to completely ban public smoking as this would decrease the number of people visiting pubs and other public places.However, anti-smokers suggest that many non smokers have suffered due to the consumption of nicotine. Since, large numbers of people are affected by smoking in the public places, this should be banned. Works Cited Atwell, Kate. â€Å"Should smoking be banned in public places? The no argument†. Online Science. 15 November, 2003. August 22, 2006. Available at Bethany, S. , and Minneapolis, M . N. â€Å"Ban Smoking in Public Areas†. Teen Ink. 2006. August 22, 2006. Available at

Human resources management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Human resources management - Research Paper Example This also includes the employees’ need for training and development so that they may be able to customize their skills as per the need of McDonald’s. 2. Advancement in technology MacDonald’s needs to train its workforce to not only update them on the latest technologies in the food manufacturing industry, but also inculcate the necessary skills in them to use those technologies in the best interest of the company. 3. Regulatory changes Change at McDonald’s is inevitable. Things have been constantly changing both within McDonald’s and in the external factors influencing McDonald’s since the company has been established. These factors include but are not limited to the laws and regulations, politics, economics, and the lifestyle of people in general. For example, the new laws may oblige McDonald’s to keep the calorie count in the kids’ meal below a certain threshold. In this case, the employees would need to be trained to follow t he alternate menu with low calorie-count. 4. Organizational changes The need to training and develop of the workforce does not only arise from technological reasons. The environmental factors play a prime role in the ability of an organization to achieve the competitive advantage. One such factor is the organizational change. As McDonald’s is an international corporation, and the company feels the need to relocate its workers at different restaurants around the globe, there is a constant change happening in the organizational structure. The employees need to be trained in order to enable them to adjust to the organizational changes immediately without losing their efficiency because of such factors as change of the leader. Q. 3 Part (b) Comparison of the Responsibilities of Human Resource Specialists and Other Managers in the Administration of the Employees’ Compensations Responsibilities of human resource specialists Responsibilities of human resource specialists are: 1. The human resource specialists participate in the development of budget. So they may advise on the increase of compensation of a specific employee considering his/her exceptional performance. 2. The human resource specialists represent the official at the meetings, so they can openly discuss the compensation related issues of the employees in meetings. 3. The human resource specialists conduct interviews of the interested candidates, so they play a decisive role in the establishment of the employee’s salary. Responsibilities of other managers Other managers include but are not limited to the Finance Manager and the General Manager. Responsibilities of other managers are: 1. The responsibility of the Finance Manager is to make sure that all employees are paid on time. 2. Another responsibility of the Finance Manager is to keep a record of all payments made to a certain employee so that the record may be referred to in the hour of need. 3. The responsibility of the General Manager is to provide funds to the company to make the cash flow cycle going so that no compensation issues arise. Q. 4 Part (a) Implementation of Safety Management Program at McDonald’s Six elements that McDonald’

Social Formations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Social Formations - Essay Example Therefore by making their life hostile there, they would hesitate to migrate into their country hence preventing the alleged across the border terrorism they caused.This article mainly focuses on the Latin as people who cannot easily be incorporated into the society because they are slow to learn the new cultural practices in the new country they have moved into (Aguirre 440-1). Although this article is dated many years back in history, many security research scholars have based their arguments on it hence supporting its relevance. Some of them include huntington who published his article in the recent 2004 but supported the fact that if the USA has to tackle the problem with national insecurity, then it should regulate the entry of latin immigrants into their country. Huntington made these conclisions at acrucial time when America was in great war against the Al Qaeda terror group while investigating for the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden (Nuà ±ez 107-27). However some people pose a great opposition against this article claiming that it negatively affect the society and is not the best way to handle terrorism as claimed by the implementing country. Chavez, for example, criticizes the latino threat Narrative in the sense that he says it makes so many unreasonable assumptions about the latins which could pose a great danger to the society at large. According to him the Latins should be allowed into any society including the US and think of their positive effect n the economy and some other positive role they will have to play within their country. Americans should not discriminate the Latins on grounds that they take a long time to get into their system and adopt their culture. It should be understood that the Latins wiil still retain their identity while helping America grow in many aspects upto where it has reached in the present world. With time, the Latins even

India Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

India - Essay Example From the Indus Valley civilisation, the Mughal Empire, arrival of the British in India, and the subsequent rise and fall of the British Empire. Consequently, analysing and evaluating all these occurrences can facilitate a deeper understanding of how the Indian civilisation transformed over time. The Indus Valley civilisation was one of the most vibrant during its time. However, it later on started to decline quite fast, and eventually disappeared altogether. One of the major reasons attributed to its decline is the sudden and abrupt change in climate leading to difficulties in carrying out economic activities that pushed the existence of the civilisation (Dick 15). Climate change led to a difficult life in the civilisation, and most people opted out of the area. Over time, the area became more and more desolate, which made it unsuitable for the kind of life that the locals were used to. Eventually, the mass migration affected the civilisation such that it eventually had to collapse. It is worth noting that one of the most important economic activities of the locals was farming and agricultural activities. With severe climate change, this turned out to be quite difficult, thereby forcing the people out. Consequently, this led to the collapse of the Indus Valley civilisation. Moreover, the poor climate meant that the locals did not have the ability to take part in trade activities and other economic relations with their trade partners such as Egypt and Mesopotamia (Dick 22). With a reduction in ability to trade, the society was rendered unable to sustain itself, meaning that it gradually had to disappear. Trade and other economic relations with neighbours and trade partners was one of the most significant elements that defined the existence of the Indus Valley civilisation. With the inability to trade, they were not only unable to sustain their own lives, but were also not of any significance to their

South Korea as the Most Sensitive Optimal Option Assignment

South Korea as the Most Sensitive Optimal Option - Assignment Example The country has also been found to have the lowest inflation rates meaning the stability of cost will be on high. The reliability of suppliers in the country can be interpreted to mean that the quality of products will be at an all-time high. With the best cumulative probability risk for cost labor, planning ahead for the cost of labor is possible. The probability of the cost changing is very low. All these builds on the weight measure trait of maximum cost stability. The infrastructure status of the country and the supplier reliability minimizes the cost of operation for the company. The high number of students enrolling in schools and the high number of people speaking English within the country, project an attainment of maximum geographical and demographic location. The second-ranked country is the Czech Republic with the best G.D.P growth, regional vehicle production, currency issuer credit rating, investment cost, supplier reliability and school enrolment. All these features are traits that propel the Czech Republic to be ranked the send best option after South Korea based on the four weight traits. The locally produced vehicles enable maximum use of the geographical and demographic location. The vehicles are customized to cover the terrains of the country more suitable than imported cars. An advantage of the locally produced vehicles is that they are affordable since there is no importation fee on them. The best decision is not perfect without any challenges. It is also surrounded by a number of challenges that make it not be an ideal situation. The Republic of South Korea is faced with a high corruption perception index, and labor cost. These were the two traits that ranked lowest compare to all the other nations. The investment cost and regional vehicle production of the country are moderate compared to the other countries.  

Direct marketing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Direct marketing - Assignment Example mail marketing also has a high return on investment potential due to its extreme targeting and, as a result, businesses are able to market to those consumers that they think are more likely to make a purchase, instead of using mass marketing campaigns through digital media. Direct mail also gives the business a more personal way to reach existing and potential customers, while also enabling businesses to form relationships with consumers and measure feedback on campaigns (Thomas & Housden 35). The first case involves marketing at Guinness with the most important insight from this case being the importance of brand marketing, which has been shown to enhance brand awareness and subsequent sales. This case, however, is historical in nature as Guinness seems not to have adopted the use of interactive social media groups as a way of direct marketing. The second case is LendingTree, which uses the internet for direct marketing. One lesson from this case was that direct online marketing leads to an increase in the number of leads, while it also allows for high volume distribution and targeting. Moreover, direct online marketing was also seen to provide immediate analytics that enhance testing and optimizing performance. Finally, the case on TreadMoves provides insights into the importance of direct internet marketing, especially in the manner that using web analytics helps in making marketing more effective. Another insight involved the manner in which TreadMoves can sue their d atabase in order to directly interact with prospects and customers. Despite the increasing popularity of digital mediums in marketing, several companies continue to use direct mail marketing. The latter is an especially attractive choice for small enterprises since it allows these enterprises to communicate to the consumer complete information on a service or product, while also enabling them to reach any potential target group for relatively low costs (Bird 23). In this case, direct mail may

THE ROLE OF THE TEACHING ASSISTANT(TA) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

THE ROLE OF THE TEACHING ASSISTANT(TA) - Essay Example The role that a teaching assistant holds can be considered as the main essence of their presence in the education institutions. The qualifications then of teaching assistants should match the said role to be able to work efficiently and effectively for the optimum learning of the students. Thus, it is important to realize the role and responsibilities primarily to be able to present the personal qualities required of a teaching assistant. The main defining role of teaching assistants is the optimization of the learning process which is under the teacher’s command. For that matter, the TA’s main responsibility is to assist the teacher. Due to the wide variety of aspects pertaining to the needs of the students, teaching assistants can assume different responsibilities. In totality, along with the responsibilities of the teacher to attain optimum learning process, the TA’s helps in achieving such goal (Middlesbrough Teacher Learning Centre, 2008). The responsibilities and role of the teaching assistants can be categorized as support for the student or learners, the support for the teacher, the support for the school and that for the curriculum. The primary responsibility revolves on the provision of the support to the student. Based on the said role, the welfare of the students is of utmost priority. For that matter, the needs and methods of leaning are needed to given attention. Based on the needs, the presence of great variety in characters in a particular learning environment can pose a challenge to the learning process. The teaching assistant is required to make the learning process an ease by giving attention to the specific needs of the students specifically those who have special needs. In addition, based on the defined responsibilities of a TA, one of the requirements is supporting the learning needs of the students and managing their behaviours. Included

Scope of nursing Essay Example for Free

Scope of nursing Essay Expanding o r E panding your Scope of N rsing Nursing Practice – a practical g p guide Leanne Boase Deborah Pedron The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Scope of Nursing and p g Midwifery Practice What is it? Why Wh is it so important? Why is everyone y y talking about it? Who manages it? Who is responsible? The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Aims of this Presentation 1. To define what Scope of Practice means for Nurses and Midwives Midwives. 2. To present different concepts around Scope of p p p Practice 3. T 3 To report on findings of a small survey of t fi di f ll f nurses and Scope of Practice 4. To discuss expanding Scope of Practice and provide a framework 5. To relate these concepts to ‘real life’ nursing roles. o es. The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre According to our nurses, Scope Of Practice P ti (SOP) is: i SO SOP is Guidelines G and Frameworks we need to abide and work within SOP relates to what I am allowed and not allowed to do within my profession SOP relates to codes of conduct, ethics and professional conduct SOP relates to what a nurse can do within their skill base Area of tasks, procedures and actions a nurse can legally and safely undertake according to their training and education The scope of which p my role as a RN, specialist or credentialed DNE can work within Maintaining knowledge base and competency through constant learning and professional development The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Something which I am taught, qualified, taught qualified or competent to do Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre What is Scope of Practice? p â€Å"That which Nurses and â€Å"the range of roles, functions, functions responsibilities activities, which a registered nurse or a registered midwife is educated, competent, and has the authority to perform † perform. (An Bord Altranais p1) Midwives are educated, competent and authorised to perform. † (QNC p3) Scope of p p practice is not defined in many places. We should define nursing practice and outline principles to assist with the expansion of one’s scope p p of practice And/ Or Require the health professional to identify restricted activities. ( (DEST) ) The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service â€Å"What health care workers actually do in the course of their employment which encompasses the full range of nursing activities. † An individuals scope refers to â€Å"the activities which that nurse is educated and authorised to perform. † (NSWNA p1) â€Å"A professions scope of practice is the full spectrum of roles, functions, responsibilities, activities and decision-making capacity which i di id l within th profession are it hi h individuals ithi the f i educated, competent and authorised to perform†. â€Å"The scope of practice of an individual nurse or midwife may be more specifically defined than the scope of practice of their profession. † ti f th i f i † (ANMC 2007 p2;23) Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre What is Scope of Practice? p †¢ Our definition: Full range of activities that we (nurses and midwives) have been educated, deemed competent, and are authorised to do. It is t t d th i d t d i not just a list of activities and j tasks, or a role description. The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre What Evidence supports your SOP? †¢ From our nurses: – Continuing Professional Development (CPD) – Number of hours per week working – Certificates registration Certificates, – Reflection – Document everything y g †¢ From the literature: – Maintaining records of:  » Reviewing journal articles  » In service education In-service  » Conferences  » Informal or formal discussions  » Accredited educational programs The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Who determines Scope Of Practice? p Is it the clinician the employer, the profession, the clinician, employer profession client, the registering body, the area of practice or specialty, the legislation, codes of conduct IT IS ALL OF THESE!! The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Who determines Scope Of Practice? p From the literature, there are several common themes: The primary determinant of scope of practice for all nurses and midwives is the enhancement of outcomes d id i i th h t f t for patients, and meeting consumer needs. Nurses and Midwives are responsible for their own decisions around scope of practice There are many factors that influence and contribute to scope of practice (Nurses Board Western Australia, Nurses Board of Victoria, Australian Nursing Federation, Ohio Nurses Board, Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council) The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Who determines Scope Of Practice? p Employers, Employers Organisations ; their Policies Patient ; Consumer Needs ; Outcomes O t Professional Bodies SOP Individual Scope of Practice Nurse Or Midwife – You! Regulatory Authorities The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Law Craigieburn Health Service Professional P f i l Scope of Practice Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Why do we need to expand SOP? Nursing d Mid if N i and Midwifery experience and knowledge are i dk l d invaluable resources. It is natural for a Nurse or Midwife to evolve from being a novice, to an expert, and even further towards expanding their scope of p p g p practice, as they y continually learn and adapt to the needs of their clients Again, i A i primarily, expanding scope of practice must il di f ti t be driven by the need to provide improved outcomes and meet the needs of consumers. The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Why do we need to expand SOP? The Health Care Landscape is changing! y Think about the shift to community based and outpatient care, higher acuity patients, technological advances, etc. advances etc The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Why do we need to expand SOP? Nursing and Midwifery evolves along with the i d id if l l ih h health care sector. Nurses and Midwives are: †¢ Participating more and more in evaluation, g patient care assessment and decision making in p †¢ Professional – educated, competent, authorised and registered †¢ Participating in the growth and evolution th d l ti of health care The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Expanding Scope of Practice p g p †¢ How our nurses and midwives have d id i h maintained/expanded theirs: – Conferences/workshops/courses – Self-directed learning i. e. research on-line, journal g ,j reading – In-service education †¢ How they plan to expand in the future: – As above – Presenting in-services in area of expertise The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Expanding Scope of Practice p g p The key concepts for Expanding Scope of Practice found in the literature include: 1. The primary motivation of any expansion to scope of practice is to meet needs of the client or improve outcomes and access 2. The competency or task must be well defined and understood 3. Any expansion must enhance the existing aspects of professional practice 4. The expansion to scope is lawful, appropriate for the context, consistent with relevant standards, acceptable to the profession, consistent with the relevant profession organisations’ policies and consultation and planning has occurred. The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Expanding Scope of Practice p g p Key concepts of Expanding Scope of Practice – continued: 5. The registered nurse/midwife expanding their practice is already practising at an advanced level and has the education p p , p p and competence to perform the task, and is prepared to be accountable. They have been assessed by a competent health professional. 6. Nurses and midwives are accountable for making professional 6 N d id i t bl f ki f i l judgements when an activity is beyond their capacity and to initiate consultation/referral 7. Nursing and midwifery decisions are best made in a collaborative context, with ongoing risk assessment, planning, planning evaluation and support Always discuss expanding your scope with your peers, employers, professional organisations and your registering body. d i i b d The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Expanding Scope of Practice p g p There should be no artificial barriers to Scope Of Practice or expanding SOP such as: †¢ Ambiguous or inconsistent policy †¢ Overly specific or restrictive policy †¢ Inconsistent guidelines and frameworks eg. differences between States and regions †¢ Turf wars or uninformed attitudes The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Expanding Scope of Practice p g p When developing policy and planning for expansion consider: †¢ Permissive versus restrictive approaches – do you want to specifically restrict practice, or allow expansion to proceed within the broader guidelines? †¢ Profession versus client focussed approaches – it is best to be responsive to the needs of the client – ‘nurses will do what nurses needs to be done, providing he or she is competent to do it’. †¢ Competency standards should recognise the characteristics of nursing as well as the broader attributes or potential and i ll h b d ib i l d evolving roles. †¢ Overarching or broad statements are more effective than detailed or overly-specific statements when defining or expanding scope of practice. The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre SOP Expansion Framework Self-inquiry Define the task or activity you wish to add to your role, then ask: Is it legal? No STOP No Yes STOP Am I covered by Hospital Policy? Yes Yes Am I competent? Do I have relevant knowledge and confidence? Yes Am I willing to accept . accountability? Yes PROCEED The Northern Hospital Do you need to develop policy in line with the evidence base? Will this improves outcomes for the patient/consumer and will it improve access to services? Panch Health Service No STOP No STOP Can you access relevant education, education are you willing? NO STOP Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Key Take Home Messages y g †¢ This is relevant to all nurses and midwives. †¢ Not one single factor determines Scope Of Practice. †¢ Scope o p act ce should be shaped to benefit the of practice s ou d s aped be e t t e patient, and improve outcomes, as should any expansions to SOP. †¢ Governance of SOP is complex, but is essentially the responsibility of the nurse or midwife . †¢ Use this frame ork and information in conj nction framework conjunction with NMBA/AHPRA guidelines, relevant State or Federal Legislation, and your g , y employing organisation and it’s policies. The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre Questions The Northern Hospital Panch Health Service Craigieburn Health Service Broadmeadows Health Service Bundoora Extended Care Centre

Ruxolitinib for Intermediate-2 Primary Myelofibrosis.

Ruxolitinib for Intermediate-2 Primary Myelofibrosis. Critical appraisal on the use of ruxolitinib for treatment in adult with intermediate-2 primary myelofibrosis. Introduction: Patients with primary myelofibrosis are prone to develop complicated infection due to defect in their humoral immunity. In addition, patients may develop complication such as portal hypertension, splenic infarction (which may lead to nausea, vomiting and shoulder discomfort), osteosclerosis, hypertrophic osteoarthropathy, occasionally periostitis, spinal cord compression, seizures, haemoptysis and gastrointestinal (GI) tract bleeding. (6, 7, 8, 9) In UK, Novartis holds the marketing authorisation for oral formulation. Ruxolitinib works by inhibiting Janus associated tyrosine kinase (JAK1 and JAK2) protein signalling. Ruxolitinib (Jakavi) is licensed for the treatment of disease related splenomegaly or symptoms in adult patients with primary myelofibrosis, post-polycythaemia vera myelofibrosis or post essential thrombocythaemia myelofibrosis but not recommended by NICE.(10) The major adverse drug reaction associated with Jakavi, documented in the summary of product characterisation (SPC) at incidence greater than 10% are urinary tract infection, anaemia, thrombocytopenia, neutropenia, hypercholesterolemia, dizziness, headache, increase both alanine aminotransaminase and asparte aminotransferase, bruising , bleeding and increase blood pressure. Novartis also recorded other common side effect patient experienced incidence between 1-10% was weight gain, flatulence and herpes zoster, whiles tuberculosis incidence was 1%.(3) The following clinical study, COMFORT-I and COMFORT-II trails as well as primary peered review articles Verstovsek S, Masa RA, Gotlib J, et al and Harrison C, Kiladjian JJ, Al-Ali HK, et al published in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) is used to address the questions below; Evidence recommendation for or against the use of ruxolitinib in Mrs MN treatment Pharmaceutical care plan and medication optimisation for Mrs MN. Creditability and quality of evidence The clinical trial from COMFORT-I was a multicentre (USA, Canada and Australia), phase III, randomised, double blind trial (large sample size, n=309) that compared patient treatment in primary myelofibrosis with ruxolitinib (n=155) to placebo (n=154). All patients enrolled in the trial had intermediate-2 risk or high risk of myelofibrosis, a palpable spleen length of at least 5cm and was 18years or above. Patients excluded were those with an absolute neutrophil count of 1x 109/L or less, platelet count less than 100x 109/L. Incyte pharmaceutical funded this trial.(5) The COMFORT-II trial, was a multicentre (Europe with UK inclusive), phase III, randomised, open label trial that compared ruxolitinib (146) with best available therapy n=73 (hydroxycarbamide, prednisone, opoetin, lenalidomide and thalidomide). The trial was funded by Novartis pharmaceuticals. (4) The primary outcome for both trails was the proportion of patients having a spleen volume reduction of 35% or more from baseline and assessed by MRI or CT scan. The primary efficacy outcome was measured at 24 weeks in CONFORT I and 48 weeks in COMFORT II. Also the COMFORT trail (50% of primary myelofibrosis PM) population of patients with different subtypes of myelofibrosis did not reflect the global prevalence (i.e. PM is 30 times more) data reported. In addition the trials were not powered to measure overall survival or to detect statistically significant differences between subgroups (that is sex, myelofibrosis subtype), IPSS risk category or JAK2 mutation status.(1,2,3,4,5) Patient background verse evidence: Mrs MN creatinine clearance (CrCl) is 60ml/ min (normal about 100-125ml/min). The UK guideline for identification, management and referral March 2006 show that, she has stage 2 mild degree of renal function. But from SPC it is unclear, how this will increase Mrs MN risk of taking ruxolitinib. I must point out that Mrs MN is overweight with a BMI of 28 and ruxolitinib common side effect is weight gain (1-10% incidence rate). Mrs MN is capable of carrying out light house or office work from her ECOG status 1. Again patient is taking clarithromycin prescribed by GP, for possible chest infection. Novartis pharmaceutical (Javaki SPC) advises to treat any infection prior to taking ruxolitinib. (3) Mrs MN presenting complain with symptoms of anorexia, lethargy, night sweats, fever and a productive cough is a suggestive of tuberculosis (TB) infection. She is returning from holiday where risk of getting TB infection is high. If Mrs MN is prescribed ruxolitinib, she has high chances of developing complicated TB. Base on the evolution of patient background and evidences, I will not recommend ruxolitinib treatment for Mrs MN. Since Mrs MN will be receiving treatment for tuberculosis (isoniazid/ rifampicin) for at least 6 months, there is significant interaction between isoniazid and clarithromycin. Isoniazid will increase the level or effect of clarithromycin by affecting hepatic or intestinal enzyme CYP3A4 metabolism. Hence clarithromycin dose be reduce when taking with isoniazid and monitor closely. (4, 5, 11) If opting for rifampicin TB treatment, rifampicin will decrease the level or effect of clarithromycin by affecting hepatic or intestinal enzyme CYP3A4 metabolism. Hence, increase the dose of clarithromycin for the duration of treating chest infection.(11) Also, Mrs MN should be advised to recognise signs of liver disorders to discontinue treatment and seek immediate medical attention if symptoms such as vomiting, nausea, malaise and jaundice develop. (11) References: Verstovsek S, Masa RA, Gotlib J, et al. A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trail of Ruxolitinib for Myelofibrosis. The New England Journal of Medicine.2012; 366(799): 807. Harrison C, Kiladjian JJ, Al-Ali HK, et al. JAK Inhibition with Ruxolitinib versus Best Available Therapy for Myelofibrosis. The New England Journal of Medicine.2012; 366(787):98. JAKAVI, Summary of Product Characterisation. Novartis Pharmaceutical Ltd, http://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/medicine/26991. [Assessed on 07/02/2015] JAKAVI (ruxolitinib), COMFORT-II Clinical Study Fact Sheet. file:///F:/Appraisal%20Assignment/COMFORT-II-ClinicalTrial-fact-sheet.pdf. [Assessed on 08/02/2015]. .JAKAVI (ruxolitinib), COMFORT-I Clinical Study Fact Sheet. file:///F:/Appraisal%20Assignment/Jakavi.pdf. [Assessed on 08/02/2015] Heuck G. Zwei Falle von Leukemie mit eigenthumlichen Blutresp. Knockenmarksbefund. Arch Pathol Anat Physiol Virchows. 1879;(78)475-96. Barosi G. Myelofibrosis with myeloid metaplasia: diagnostic definition and prognostic classification for clinical studies and treatment guidelines. J Clin Oncol. 1999;17(9):2954-70.. Vallespà ­ T, Imbert M, Mecucci C, Preudhomme C, Fenaux P. Diagnosis, classification, and cytogenetics of myelodysplastic syndromes. Haematologica. Mar 1998;83(3):258-75. Jacobson RJ, Salo A, Fialkow PJ. Agnogenic myeloid metaplasia: a clonal proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells with secondary myelofibrosis. Blood. 1978;51(2):189-94. NICE, Ruxolitinib for disease-related splenomegaly or symptoms in adults with myelofibrosis http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ta289/evidence . Assessed on 11/02/2015 BNF 68 September 2014 to March 2015. Joseph Appleton K0606850 Group 3Page 1

Strategic Performance Management Of British Petroleum Management Essay

Strategic Performance Management Of British Petroleum Management Essay This study explores the oil giant, British Petroleum also known as BP within the global oil sector and also it recent activities. Some key external factors have been investigated which includes PESTEL, SWOT, Competition Analysis, Five forces model (Michael Porters). This study has formulated SMART objectives after putting the above factors into consideration and this has led to the creation of Strategic Plan, Measurement and Implementation of the formulated SMART objectives. 1.2 Company background The company British petroleum also known as BP was incorporated in 1909 then as Anglo Persian Oil Company with headquarters in London, operating in both upstream (oil exploration) and downstream (oil refining, sales and marketing) of the world oil sector, BP is one of the largest oil company in the world. The company, BP has more than 21,400 service stations worldwide and its shares is quoted on New York, London, Toronto, Paris, Tokyo, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Zurich stock exchanges. The history of BP will not be complete without making mention of the activities of Williams Knox DArcy, in the year 1901 he was granted concession by Grand vizier (Shah) in todays Iran and as a result of inadequate fund he entered into an agreement with the British government which involved investing the sum of  £2 million that led to the transfer of major shares to the government at the later end. In the 1990s British Petroleum acquired Amoco, Arco and Burmah-Castrol. BP has several retail brands which include Arco in US, BP connect, BP travel centres, BP Express etc. BP is ranked as one of the top three oil giants in the world with staff strength of more than 97,600. Recently, the brand BP has been undergoing serious scrutiny and criticism as a result of it past and recent activities which include Texas refinery explosion in 2005, dumping of toxic waste in some African countries, Prudhoe Bay oil spillage and the recent Gulf of Mexico oil spillage. This study will focus on the brand BP and how to manage brand name damaging crisis. 2 External Analysis 2.1 PESTEL factors Table 1: PEST 2.1 Political/Legal UK government endorsement/ support for BP UK government support during the gulf of Mexico oil spillage crisis BP activities in the Gulf of Mexico has been banned but the UK government has given the company go-ahead to continue on with the search for oil and gas in the deep waters off the coast of Britain. 2.2 Economic The global recession has resulted into reduction in Profit of BP from the previous year. Replacement cost of profit for year 2009 was $14 billion with a return on average capital employed of 11% Gained new resource access in Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Indonesia and Offshore US. 30% increase in lubricants income generated from core market, and market extension to India, China, Russia and Brazil. Strong presence in China with upgraded Zhuhai 2 plant. Reported production increased by 4% and unit and production costs reduced by 12% Refining availability for the year was 93% up around 5% in 2008 Investment of $20 billion in business expansion In Trinidad and Tobago BP recorded launch-to-production time of 18 month with Saronette Project Discovery of Tiber in the gulf of Mexico 2.3 Socio-Cultural Encouraging health and fitness Creation of work environment where diversity and inclusion are valued. Strengthening employee engagement Creation of modernized farming initiative in Argentina Increased employee moral The number of employees fell from 92,000 in 2008 to 80,300 in 2009 as a result of the transfer of BP US convenience retail site to a franchise model. 2.4 Technological Improved operating management system (OMS) All refineries and petrochemical plants are operating on OMS Investment in key technology like wind, bio-fuels, solar, hydrogen power and carbon capture and storage Improved form of transportation of products. 3. SWOT Analysis Table 2: SWOT Analysis 4.1 Strengths Strong brand name with the slogan beyond petroleum. Strong market position in both downstream and upstream of the global oil sector. BP (Castrol) Sponsor of the FIFA 2010 world cup. In 2009 BP and Pan American Energy in Argentina offered 63 young people scholarships with emphasis on engineering. In 2009 the company had a 12.0% market share of the world lubricant oil which put them at 2nd largest market share after ExxonMobil. Ranked among the top three oil in the world Stock quoted on London stock exchange Third quarter 2010 profit of $1.8 billion Operates through retail brands and subsidiaries (Amoco; ARCO; BP Express, BP Connect; BP Travel Centre; ampm; Burmah Castrol etc) BP signed a technical service contract with the Iraqi government in November 2009 to develop the Rumaila oilfield 4.2 Weaknesses Money being lost to clean up of gulf of Mexico Unstable oil price due to the recent recession BP Texas refinery explosion in 2005 Toxic spillage of methanol in Prudhoe Bay in 2006 Total closure of Alaska wells 2010 third quarter loss Oil spillage in the gulf of Mexico A law suit been instituted by the American government Second quarter loss of $ 17 billion Call to shelve the use of all BP product in US during the gulf of Mexico crisis The recent removal of Tony Harward as the CEO of the company and being replaced by a US citizen 4.3 Opportunities Government of UK endorsements Discovery of significant deep gas in Egypts West Nile Delta Award exploration block in Indonesia Investment in Egypt and Libya Increase brand awareness Increase market share Completely new product launch ultimate 1.5 Change customers by continuous product development and awareness Completely rebranding of company image as a result of the recent spillage in US Expansion into African countries Continuous research and development strategy e.g. $8 billion investment in research of alternative source of energy to oil including solar, wind, natural gas and hydrogen etc. Flexible pricing to enhance healthy competition with sector rivals 4.4 Threats Threat of substitution due to high prices Drop in BP share price as a result of Gulf of Mexico oil spillage Suspension of production in Rhum gas field Sales of upstream interests in Pakistan to United Energy Group Limited Agreement to sell interests in Pan American Energy to Bridals Corpoaration Pipelines corrosions Global economic recession Refineries and rig explosions Possibility of tax increment in countries wherein BP operate Economical/political change in countries in which BP operates. Legal action against company by US government Oil price being determine by market forces Exchange rates could affect companies profitability Remodification of oil products to reduce pollution New technology to substitute the usage of oil High focus on green fuel Government policy in countries where BP operates regarding their oil sector e.g. penalty for oil spillage Termination of lease agreement between Bp and foreign governments Competition from Mobil, Chevron and Shell. 3. External Analysis- Competitor Audit As British Petroleum (BP) is situated in many different global markets the following competitor audit will focus on BPs main competitors in the global oil industry. Competitors: 3.1.1 ExxonMobil ExxonMobil is the foremost publicly traded petroleum and petro-chemical venture in the globe, it operations encompasses almost all countries of the world, it has different brand names such as Exxon, Mobil and Esso, it is an organisation that is built on a concept of global business which allow it to compete favourable, efficiently and effectively in the world of energy industry. Both Exxon and Mobil have been in existence for more than a century, but ExxonMobil came into being as a result of merger between Exxon and Mobil on 30 November 1999 to form Exxon Mobil Corporation. It headquarters is located in Irving, Texas, United State with market capitalisation of $323.717 million, revenue of $301.5 billion and assets value of $233.323 billion as at 2009. The CEO of the company is Rex W. Tillerson with staff strength of 90,800, the company is quoted on New York Stock Exchange; it has thirty seven refineries and operate in most countries of the world. 3.1.1 Royal Dutch Shell Shell is an energy giant and one of the worlds largest independent oil company with staff strength of around 101,000 and it headquarters is located in The Hague, the Netherlands. The parent company is Royal Dutch Shell Plc and it is incorporated in England and Wales with Peter Voser as the CEO. The company account for 2% of world oil and 3% of gas, it has 44,000 service stations globally and thirty five refineries. Shell operates in both upstream and downstream sector of the world oil industry. As December 2009, its revenue stood at $278.2billion and capital investment of $31.7 billion with market capitalisation of $186.618 million and assets worth of $292.181 billion, the company is quoted on London stock exchange. 3.2.1 Chevron Chevron is one of the leading energy companies in the world. It activities encompasses crude and natural gas and the company operates in both upstream and downstream sector of the oil industry which includes manufacturing, marketing and transportation, exploration and production, sales and manufacturing of chemicals, power generation and geothermal energy. The organisation Chevron came into being after the merger between Standard Oil Company and of California and Gulf oil Corporation in 1984. Chevron headquarters is located in San Ramon, California, United State with market capitalisation of $154.462 million, revenue of $167.402 billion and assets value of $164.621 billion as at 2009. The CEO of the company is David J ORelly with staff strength of 60,000, the company is quoted on New York Stock Exchange; it has sixteen refineries and operate in thirty three countries and it brand includes Texaco and Caltex. 3.2.3 ConocoPhilips ConocoPhillips is a key global, integrated energy corporation, with universal scale and scope all over the oil and natural gas value chain. The company came into been as a result of merger between Conoco and Philips Petroleum Company which was completed on 30 August 2002. It headquarters is located at Houston, Texas, United State with market capitalisation of $75.772 million, revenue of $152.843 billion and assets value of $155 billion as at 2009. The CEO of the company is James Mulva with staff strength of 30,000, the company is quoted on New York Stock Exchange; it has twelve refineries in US, four in Europe and one in Asia and also operate in thirty countries of the world. ConocoPhilips is the third largest integrated energy company in United State of America. 6. Porters Generic Strategies Diagram 1: British Petroleum and Porters Generic Strategies Focus Middle of the road Middle of the road BP in future BP Presently Cost leadership Differentiation Porter (1980) states that there are four types of generic strategies that are required by an organisation to be competitively successful, and these are Focus, Cost Leadership, Middle of the Road and Differentiation. Before now, BP was using the Cost leadership strategy but at present, the company is using the generic strategy of Middle of the road as a result of the last Gulf of Mexico oil spillage. British petroleum Brand and the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.(Rebuilding the broken bond) This oil disaster is the biggest crisis in the history of the oil industry in United States. We can only agree on the cause of the accident based on the testimonies of the parties involved. The chief mechanic on the Deepwater Horizon rig testified at a hearing held by the US coastguard, he said he was present at the meeting between BP manager and the crew from Transocean. That Transoceans chief driller was not comfortable with the request for the removal of the drilling mud from the well that day because he did not think the well is fully prepared for shut-down but based on the request and persuasion of the BP manager (as a result of the cost incurred in renting the Deepwater exploration rig which cost $500,000 a day to rent) insisted that they should start removing the mud before plugging the well, which later led to the explosion of the rig and the death of eleven crew members. This crisis has really affected the BP brand, because brands are not created by advertising, they are created primary by what organisation does. A Model of Strategic Communication (Grunig Hunt, 1984) A model of strategic communication is composed of two components which are aimed to describe the evolution of stakeholders and publics. The contribution of this model is to overall strategic communication and management by diagnosing the environment to make the overall organization aware of stakeholders and publics as they evolve. The Stakeholder Stage The terms of stakeholder and public are often used synonymously. There is a subtle difference, however, that helps to understand planning of strategic communication. People are stakeholders because they are in a category affected by decisions of an organization or if their decisions affect the organization (Grunig Hunt, 1984). There are internal and external stakeholders including employees, director of boards of BP Company, society, customers, media, universities, research centres, U.S. and U.K. governments, activist groups, etc Internal Stakeholders External Stakeholders Employees of BP Media Director of Boards British petroleum Public/Society CEO Advocate groups US and UK governments Customers of BP Competitors Investors Research centres Universities Shareholders Stakeholder mapping of BP Company in case of the oil spillage. Demirel. K, (2010) After the identification of the various stakeholders, the next stage should be the determination of level of relationship i.e. the linkages. Stakeholders State regulators Govt. Regulators Board of directors Employees unions Suppliers Enabling linkages Input Normative linkages Functional linkages Competitors Association Political groups Professional society BP Customers Retailers Distributors Output Diffused linkages NGO Residents Advocacy group Media Linkage model of BP Company, Demirel. K, (2010) Referring to: Grunig, J. / Hunt, T. (1984): Managing public Relations. Rinhehart and Winston: Holt, P.141. Part A has to do with the enabling linkages that is, stakeholders who have total control and authority over BP company operations especially the government of U.S. Part B. functional linkages: the input and the output, the input deals with provision of the service and output has to do with the product consumption. Part c is the normative linkages that is, groups and association that has common interest. And lastly, Part D is the diffused linkages these groups do not usually have anything to do with BP, they are only active during crisis situation. BP Public Relations In the first days of oil spill, BP Company downplayed oil spill and CEO Tony Hayward stated relatively tiny for the disaster of oil spill. After two months, BP Company has changed head of public affairs. After that, they started to provide consistent and responsible messages for oil spill through various media channels. As a part of PR strategy, BP Company got sponsored links on Google in order to provide first ranked results of key words related to oil spill direct to special part of BP Companys website. Even though it can be considered as implementation of spin doctrine, sponsored links were successful, because most people are not able to distinguish sponsored and actual links. Demirel. K, (2010) Crisis response and rebuilding stakeholders confidence It involves seven specific steps to obtain public forgiveness Voluntarily admit that mistake has been made. Explain why the mistakes occurred (no matter how stupid). Show/say/demonstrate contrition and sincere concern. Agree to take the step necessary to fix the problem. Ask for help from the victims/accept counsel from the community Promise (or publicly commit to) never to let it happen again. Find a way to pay (do penance)/alleviate/remediate Penitential model by Gottschalk. J (1993) We can conclude based on the penitential model that BP company responded to the crisis by voluntarily admitted that mistake has been made, and this can be seen by the stepping down of Tony Hayward as the CEO of the company, we all know the cause of the disaster based on the chief mechanic on the Deepwater Horizon rig testimony and the company has really shown concern and the U.S. government has requested compensation for the cleanup of the gulf of Mexico which the company has agreed to pay . BP vowed on to pay all necessary and appropriate clean-up costs from the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico as the Obama administration called on the energy giant to clarify how it plans to do so.   Other models that can be use to earn stakeholders confidence and trust Key levers to building customer trust, Dr Aaron Sum Wei Wern and David Levi (2009). Building enduring customer trust 1. Integrity Bridge gap between promise and reality 2. Competence 3. Transparency Know whats right for me Be honest with me Building enduring trust 1 Return to the fundamental trust levers Focus on meeting fundamental expectations before addressing higher-order 2 De-risk and simplify Minimise uncertainty in the customers decision-making process 3 Build and solidify enabling capabilities Prioritise capability-building through the lens of the trust levers uing Conclusion: As stated by Edward Artzt Brand loyalty is very much like an onion. It has layers and a core. The core is the user who will stick with you until the end. Shaun and Wheeler, (2002 p.25). BP was able to get out of the mess as a result of the following Quick/prompt response Acceptance of blame Total responsibility Accepted solutions provided Took realistic approach Involvement of top management team

The Electric Chair is Fair Punishment :: Death Penalty, Capital Punishment

This topic is a very controversial one. The paper you are about to read could cause intense arguments between some groups of people. All that doesn’t matter to me because when you finish reading this, you will agree with me if you don’t already. First off, many people consider the electric chair cruel and unusual punishment. What I don’t get is that people think this even though in order to be eligible to get sentenced to the electric chair, they have to be proven guilty of killing someone. Don’t you think that is cruel and unusual punishment? I certainly do. In my eyes, if they don’t get sentenced to the electric chair or some other form of guaranteed death (lethal injection, the gas chamber, etc.) it becomes cruel and unusual punishment on the victim’s friends and family, not physically but mentally. Secondly, in my eyes it is one of the only fair punishments allowed by the judicial system. Personally, I think that the murderer should suffer the exact fate that their victim did. Some people might say to give the murderer life in prison. This is hardly a punishment at all. Today, due to overcrowding in prisons, a lot of prisoners don’t serve their full sentence. Would you want one of these convicts to be a murderer? I can honestly tell you, "no, I wouldn’t." Another thing about today’s prisons is that the prisoners get free meals, clothes, bed, electricity, air conditioning and heating, cable and many other luxuries that make it a comfortable place to live if you get used to the people. My last point is that these criminals should have thought of what the consequences would be before they killed someone. If they didn’t do this or did and still killed someone, they probably aren’t intelligent enough to make any positive impact on the world or they are mentally unstable. They shouldn’t get off the hook for killing someone. You might feel that sentencing them to life in prison is punishment enough but no, not to me.

Schindlers lost Essay -- essays research papers

Shindler's List Schindlers List "Memory is all we have, and when the memories are dreadful- when they hold images of the pain we have suffered or, perhaps inflicted- they are what we are try to escape" (Corliss 110). Steven Spielberg captures the audience in this critically acclaimed movie about the Holocaust. Schindlers List is a movie made to induce the mind into the unknown, the horrors of World War II. David Ansen states "Schindlers List plunges us into the nightmare of the Holocaust with newsreel-like urgency- and amazing restraint" (Newsweek 113). Spielberg brings out all emotions in recapturing this monstrous time period. Schindlers List is about Oskar Schindler, a German Nazi who uses the Jews to make money off the war. At the beginning of the movie Schindler is portrayed as a womanizer, gambler, and heavy drinker. He becomes friends with some top Nazi officials to better himself. As the movie progresses Schindler begins to produce war materials using the Jews as a labor force. As he sits back and watches the various actions of the Nazis he begins to question his morals. His accountant, Itzhak Stern, begins making a list of around 1200 Jews. These Jews were to come and work in Schindlers' factory. When Germany surrendered all of the Nazis were to be hunted. Many Jews thanked him and all of the workers wrote a letter explaining Schindlers' actions. Also, a gold ring was given to him inscribed, "Whoever saves one life saves the world entire" (Talmud). Schindler said good-bye to his workers and fled. Only now the Jews are liberated to have nowhere to go and nowhere to leave. Many great directors concentrate on dialogue, scenery, and plat; however, Spielberg stresses the importance of camera angles and the effect of black and white film, scenes and characters, on viewers in Schindlers List. With his outstanding work on camera angles, Steven Spielberg holds the audience at breath while waiting for the next scene. Spielberg uses a hand held came ra to grasp the effects. David Denby explains how the use of a handheld camera is much more accurate. "The camera keeps moving [†¦] moving fast, chasing corners and up stairways [†¦]." Spielberg makes the movie look "like and advertent look of newsreel footage" (1282). Life magazine quoted Spielberg discussing the image of Amon Goeth sunbathing. A man named Raymon... ...s that there is mass murdering going on. By looking on the walls at the shadows, the sights seen are atrocious. These shadows came from the black and white color of the film. So what caused the Holocaust? Many agree the main factor was indifference. "Schindler's List is about the triumph of the human spirit over sadism and degradation, indifference and silence" (Rader 6). Oskar Schindler saved 1200 Jews. Today more than 6000 Jews are descendants of the Schindler Jews. Spielberg ends the movie with the Schindler Jews placing stones on Schindler's grave. The movie is now in color to remind the audience that there is still mourning going on for the Holocaust victims. Someone who was dedicated to recreating an awful historical event could only do this movie. Steven Spielberg, a Jew himself, never believed he could make it through the movie. He too believed that the black and white made the movie easier to bear with, and gave it a more realistic viewpoint. "The movie en ds with the final message "Whoever saves one life, saves the world entire." This message is true. Spielberg has constructed this movie as an educational film, so that it may never happen again.

Lincoln Electrics Case Study

Introduction ? Lincoln Electric is a leading manufacturer of welding products, welding equipment and electric motors ? Their management system is so successful that people refer to it with capital letters-the Lincoln Management System-and other business uses it to benchmark their own ? Lincoln uses diverse control approach ? The company’s system success is largely is due to the organizational culture based on openness and trust ? Because the management system worked so well, senior executives decided to extend Lincoln Electric overseas ?Things didn’t go quite as they planned and managers at international plants failed to meet their production and financial goals every year Question 1: Does Lincoln follow a hierarchical or decentralized approach to management? Hierarchical (centralization) – decision authority is located near the top of the organization Decentralization – decision authority is pushed downward to all levels Lincoln Electric follows a decentr alized approach to management ? The company uses an â€Å"open-door† policy Every employee has direct access to managers for open communication, discussion and give feedback ?They have an advisory board composed of people elected by their fellow workers who meet with senior management biweekly Question 2: What is the problem with transporting Lincoln’s control system to other national cultures? What suggestions would you make to Lincoln’s managers to make future international manufacturing plants more successful? Problems ? Differences in culture across the globe – The European labor culture was hostile to the piece-work and bonus control system – Therefore, the system wasn’t very effective in different countries with different work culturesSuggestions ? Increase sales and maintain monthly profit – Management should use salespeople because they highlight the costsavings and benefits of Lincoln Electric's products, and also draw in new customers via LE's name recognition and reputation for high quality. ? Optimize number of production workers to the work – Reduce future employment – Employ enough workers for the respective plants ? Give different types of benefits to overseas plants – Eliminate the piece-work and bonus control system – Give benefits in terms of transportation, medical insurance, life insurance and etc.Question 3: Should Lincoln borrow money and pay bonuses to avoid breaking trust with it’s U. S workers? Why or why not? ? After discussion, we found out that Lincoln should not borrow money and pay bonuses to avoid breaking trust ? The company is in a financial crisis. If they keep borrowing money, it might result in a large debt which will be harder to settle and may result in bankruptcy. ? The bonuses are not an obligation. Employee is still paid properly and they will never lose their job due to the no layoff policy executed by the company Conclusion

Annualised Risk and Return

FM Assignment Q) Obtain daily, weekly and monthly closing prices of the stock given to you. Get adjusted closing prices. Daily and weekly prices should be for one financial year. Monthly prices should be for 2 years. E. g. FY 2011-2012 and FY 2010-11. Compute annualized return and risk. DATA| ANNUALIZED RETURN| ANNUALIZED RISK| Weekly| -16. 952| 36. 449| Daily| -16. 241| 39. 347| Monthly| -11. 21| 30. 209| Comparing this with a suitable peer company, Company| Annualized return| Annualized risk| JSP| -11. 2154| 30. 209| TATA STEEL| -4. 0020| 47. 202| OBSERVATIONAs can be seen from the observations above, the stock which gives the maximum return also comes with the maximum risk (TATA STEEL). So when it comes to selecting the stock, the following two cases can be considered: a) Maximum return :- If you are a person who values maximum return and is willing to take the risk for the same, go for TATA STEEL b) Minimum Risk :- If you are a risk averse person, go for JSP as the risk associate d with it is less compared to TATA STEEL In either case, whether TATA STEEL or JSP, the annualized return is negative. Q) Construct 10 different portfolios with another company (Correl < 0. 0) and compute return and risk for each portfolio. Identify the best portfolio. Construct the minimum variance portfolio. Company| Correl| JSP AND TATA STEEL| 0. 89| JSP AND CUMMINS| 0. 65| Initially we compared JSP and TATA STEEL. We found the Correl = 0. 89 which was greater than 0. 70. Next we compared JSP and Cummins and found the Correl to be 0. 65. So we will choose Cummins for making the portfolio. Portfolio| Return(%)| Return(%)| | | Percentage ofJSP| | Percentage of CUMMINS| | Portfolio Return| | JSP| CUMMINS| | | | | | | | 1| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 10%| | 90%| | 12. 2233| 2| -11. 21| 14. 3| | | 20%| | 80%| | 9. 6196| 3| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 30%| | 70%| | 7. 0159| 4| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 40%| | 60%| | 4. 4122| 5| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 45%| | 55%| | 3. 11035| 6| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 50%| | 5 0%| | 1. 8085| 7| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 60%| | 40%| | -0. 7952| 8| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 70%| | 30%| | -3. 3989| 9| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 80%| | 20%| | -6. 0026| 10| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 90%| | 10%| | -8. 6063| Min Variance| -11. 21| 14. 83| | | 36%| | 64%| | 5. 45368| Portfolio| Risk(%)| Risk(%)| | Percentage ofJSP| | Percentage of CUMMINS| Covariance| Portfolio Risk| | JSP| CUMMINS| | | | | | | | 30. 21| 27. 36| | 10%| | 90%| 543. 6637905| 6. 99497971| 2| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 20%| | 80%| 543. 6637905| 9. 326639613| 3| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 30%| | 70%| 543. 6637905| 10. 685008| 4| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 40%| | 60%| 543. 6637905| 11. 42275403| 5| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 45%| | 55%| 543. 6637905| 11. 59986156| 6| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 50%| | 50%| 543. 6637905| 11. 65829952| 7| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 60%| | 40%| 543. 6637905| 11. 42275403| 8| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 70%| | 30%| 543. 6637905| 10. 685008| 9| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 80%| | 20%| 543. 6637905| 9. 326639613| 10| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 90%| | 10%| 543. 637905| 6. 9949797 1| Min Variance| 30. 21| 27. 36| | 36%| | 64%| 543. 6637905| 11. 19196754| From the above observation, for decision regarding the best portfolio the following cases can be considered:- a) Maximum Return :- If one wants to maximize the return, one should have a portfolio mix consisting of 10% JSP and 90% Cummins b) Minimize Risk :- A risk averse person should go for a portfolio mix consisting of 10% JSP and 90% Cummins c) Minimum Variance: – Ideally, as per the minimum variance rule, one should have 36% of JSP and 64% of Cummins as their portfolio mix.But in this case, it does not give the maximum return nor the least risk. Since maximum return as well as minimum risk is observed for a portfolio mix of 90% Cummins and 10% JSP, one should opt for that. Learning’s * For studying the valuation of assets or securities, knowledge about the concepts of Risks and Returns are essential * Variance or standard deviation is the measure of the risk of returns * Combination of multi ple securities are called portfolio’s * Portfolio risk is not a weighted average risk as the securities included in the portfolio are associated with each other.Hence, portfolio risk also accounts for the covariance between the returns of securities * Covariance is the product of standard deviation of individual securities and their correlation coefficient * The magnitude of the portfolio risk will depend on the correlation between the securities.The portfolio risk will be equal to the weighted risk of individual securities if the correlation coefficient is +1. 0. If correlation coefficient < 1, the portfolio risk will be less than the weighted average risk. When the correlation coefficient = -1. 0, the portfolio risk becomes 0. Submitted By Group C14 Vaibhav Bhasin 2012182 Vinay Harinarayanan 2012184

Nature vs. Nurture

Nature Vs. Nurture For centuries psychologists have argued over which plays the larger role in child development, heredity or environment. One of the first theories was proposed in the seventeenth century by the British philosopher John Locke. Locke believed that a child was born with an empty mind, tabula rasa (meaning â€Å"blank slate†) and that everything the child learns comes from experience, nothing is established beforehand. Years later, Charles Darwin brought forth his theory of evolution, which led to a return of the hereditarian viewpoint. With the twentieth century, however, came the rise of behaviorism. Behaviorists, like John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner, argued that a child can be made into any kind of person, regardless of their heredity. Today, most psychologists agree that both nature (genes) and nurture (environment) play an important role, not independently, but as they interact together (Atkinson, p. 72). One of the most important factors believed to influence a child are parents. Parents are known to share a distinctive bond with their children. This special bond is what enables parents to shape their children. Whether it is into free-willed adolescents, ready to challenge any controversy, or into caring adults willing to spend the seventy cents a day to save a poverty stricken child. Parents have the power to mold their children. Setting firm, yet sensible, guidelines teaches children discipline and good behavior. Using physical abuse produces aggressive children, but having patience and understanding leaves a child better capable to handle stress in later years. How parents raise their children influences how they will turn out (Begley, p. 53). Surprisingly, a new debate is taking place. As the author of The Nurture Assumption: Why Children Turn Out the Way They Do; Parents Matter Less Than You Think and Peers Matter More, Judith Rich Harris argues that parents have absolutely no say in what kind of children they raise. She claims that after the parents contribute an egg or sperm filled with DNA, their job of â€Å"creating† a child is complete. Her book is backed by some 750 references, but most of her conclusions come from the observation of her own two daughters; one her own and one adopted (Begley, p. 53). Parents, however, do play an important role in childhood development. For the purposes of this essay, her theory that parents have no lasting effects on a child's personality will be argued. The following contains supporting scientific evidence. The DNA structure of a human, the genes, determines the height a person will reach, whether an individual's eyes will be green or brown, and if a person's hair will be straight or curly (Saplosky, p. 44). Research has also found that genes are 30 to 70 percent responsible for personality traits such as aggression, passion, shyness and intelligence. The other 30 to 70 percent of a person's personality develop from the environment (Pool, p. 2). Genes, however, are not what produces a behavior, an emotion, or even a thought. Instead, genes produce a protein that contains hormones, which carry messages between cells, and neurotransmitters that carry messages between nerve cells. The protein also contains receptors that receive the hormonal and neurotransmitter messages as well as enzymes that read the messages. So what does all this have to do with behavior? Well, the hormone does not cause a behavior either, but rather a reaction. This reaction is a tendency to respond to the individual's environment in a certain way. This response is behavior. Without the ever changing environment, behavior would not happen (Saplosky, p. 42-43). Wouldn't this fact make everyone act the same? Everyone lives in the same world. Everyone is facing the same problems of a growing population, pollution, and disintegrating resources. Wouldn't this make everyone act the same? Not at all. When speaking of the environment that shapes a person's personality, it isn't the environment that the world population shares. It includes more personal things like birth order and personal, unique life experiences. This is the â€Å"environment† that influences behavior. Things like the pollution leave no lasting effect on a child's behavior (Pool, p. 52). Everyone's genes also differ. Of the DNA found in every human being, only 5% can be coded and used to determine which proteins will be used. The other 95% of non coded DNA is used as a instruction manual for the operator. The environment being the operator which regulates the genes. In turn, a personality is produced. As well as having different genes to produce different proteins, the proteins produce hormones at different levels. For example, two people both have the same functioning gene. The hormones produced are the same, but function at different levels. Therefore, one of them may become more prone to depression than the other simply because the proteins in that person's genes function, in a sense, better (Sapolsky, p. 46). Parents can not determine whether or not their family history of shyness is passed on to their children, but they can determine if they are going to let it control their childrens' life. Studies done by Harvard scholar Jerome Kagan prove that parents who push their timid children to try new things end up with children who are far less fearful. On the other hand, overprotective parents did nothing to ease their childrens' discomfort. Intervention studies, studies similar to Kagan's, have shown that parents who purposely change their behavior can change their child's behavior. Although genes cannot be helped, parents can control whether or not they affect the child (Begley, p. 56). Research has also found that a child's experience of his or her parents is an especially strong sculptor in parts of the brain involved with emotion, personality, and behavior. Strong bonds with parents are found to increase a child's ability to learn and cope with stress. On the other hand, abusive parents raise children that in later years grow to express inappropriate aggression and have a small attention span. Having responsive, sensitive parents inspire trust and secure attachments. Yet, insensitive and withdrawn parents create an insecure attachment. Developmental psychologists agree, the bond children have with parents is essential for them to become well-functioning adults (Wright, p. 76). Megan Gunnar, a developmental psychologist at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, studies relationships between parents and children. One of her studies focused on the relationship between attachment security and reaction to stress. Gunnar found that when infants were exposed to stressful situations, such as vaccinations, strangers, or separation from the mother, the stress hormone cortisol was produced. By the age of two, the hormone wasn't produced by the toddlers in stressful situations, although they acted out as if it were. These children, however, had secure attachments to their parents. Children who didn't have the security still produced the hormone cortisol (Wright, p. 76). Harris, who feels parents leave no impression on their children, believes that â€Å"Parental divorce has no lasting effects on the way children behave† (Begley, p. 56). Heredity, she says, is what makes a child act out about or during a divorce. The fact, though, is that the unstable situation of the family causes a child to act out (Edwards, p. 31). For a child, friends, pets, teachers, and others important people may come and go. Parents and their family, however, should always be there for them. When parents divorce, a child may feel lost and may not know how to handle it (Edwards, p. 31). Acting out is one way of showing anger and hurt. Parents, although they don't realize it, are shaping their child's personality. Whether it is by acting out or holding it all in, children are influenced by their parent's actions. Kids will be kids. It's a common phrase. Everybody uses it, but not everybody understands it. Parents often feel that, despite their efforts, their children will do what they want. They'll smoke and drink and party. They'll cuss and cheat. They'll go against their parents wishes. Why? Because human behavior often follows cultural norms (Pinker, p. 94). If the parents did their job well, the rebellion will only be a stage that the child will grow out of. If parents didn't do their job right, the stage may set the mood for the rest of the child's life. Parents are the most influential â€Å"environmental† factors in a child's behavior. A special bond is shared between children and their parents. As Roger Rosenblatt put it, â€Å"We do what we can as parents, one child at a time. We take what we get in our children, and they take what they get in us, making compromises and adjustments where we are able, making rules and explanations, but for the most part letting things happen. . . † (Rosenblatt, p. 90). Genes may determine the possibilities of personality available, but it is the parents that make those possibilities possible. Parents matter. Bibliography: Arkinson, Rita L. â€Å"Psychological Development† Introduction to Psychology. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc. , 1993. Begley, Sharon. â€Å"The Parent Trap,† Newsweek, (September 7, 1998). p. 52-59. Edwards, Randall. Divorce Need Not Harm Children. † in Child Welfare: Opposing Viewpoints. Bender, David and Leone, Bruno, Series Editors. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1998. Kevles, Behhyann H. and Daniel J. â€Å"Scapegoat Biology. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 58-62. Pinker, Steven. â€Å"Against Nature. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 92-95. Pool, Robert. â⠂¬Å"Portrait of a Gene Guy. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 51-55. Rosenblatt, Roger. â€Å"A Game of Catch,† Time, Vol. 152 (July 13, 1998). p. 90. Sapolsky, Robert. â€Å"A Gene For Nothing,† Discover, (October 1997). p. 40-46. Waldman, Steven. â€Å"Divorce Harms Children. † in Child Welfare: Opposing Viewpoints. Nature vs. Nurture Nature Vs. Nurture For centuries psychologists have argued over which plays the larger role in child development, heredity or environment. One of the first theories was proposed in the seventeenth century by the British philosopher John Locke. Locke believed that a child was born with an empty mind, tabula rasa (meaning â€Å"blank slate†) and that everything the child learns comes from experience, nothing is established beforehand. Years later, Charles Darwin brought forth his theory of evolution, which led to a return of the hereditarian viewpoint. With the twentieth century, however, came the rise of behaviorism. Behaviorists, like John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner, argued that a child can be made into any kind of person, regardless of their heredity. Today, most psychologists agree that both nature (genes) and nurture (environment) play an important role, not independently, but as they interact together (Atkinson, p. 72). One of the most important factors believed to influence a child are parents. Parents are known to share a distinctive bond with their children. This special bond is what enables parents to shape their children. Whether it is into free-willed adolescents, ready to challenge any controversy, or into caring adults willing to spend the seventy cents a day to save a poverty stricken child. Parents have the power to mold their children. Setting firm, yet sensible, guidelines teaches children discipline and good behavior. Using physical abuse produces aggressive children, but having patience and understanding leaves a child better capable to handle stress in later years. How parents raise their children influences how they will turn out (Begley, p. 53). Surprisingly, a new debate is taking place. As the author of The Nurture Assumption: Why Children Turn Out the Way They Do; Parents Matter Less Than You Think and Peers Matter More, Judith Rich Harris argues that parents have absolutely no say in what kind of children they raise. She claims that after the parents contribute an egg or sperm filled with DNA, their job of â€Å"creating† a child is complete. Her book is backed by some 750 references, but most of her conclusions come from the observation of her own two daughters; one her own and one adopted (Begley, p. 53). Parents, however, do play an important role in childhood development. For the purposes of this essay, her theory that parents have no lasting effects on a child's personality will be argued. The following contains supporting scientific evidence. The DNA structure of a human, the genes, determines the height a person will reach, whether an individual's eyes will be green or brown, and if a person's hair will be straight or curly (Saplosky, p. 44). Research has also found that genes are 30 to 70 percent responsible for personality traits such as aggression, passion, shyness and intelligence. The other 30 to 70 percent of a person's personality develop from the environment (Pool, p. 2). Genes, however, are not what produces a behavior, an emotion, or even a thought. Instead, genes produce a protein that contains hormones, which carry messages between cells, and neurotransmitters that carry messages between nerve cells. The protein also contains receptors that receive the hormonal and neurotransmitter messages as well as enzymes that read the messages. So what does all this have to do with behavior? Well, the hormone does not cause a behavior either, but rather a reaction. This reaction is a tendency to respond to the individual's environment in a certain way. This response is behavior. Without the ever changing environment, behavior would not happen (Saplosky, p. 42-43). Wouldn't this fact make everyone act the same? Everyone lives in the same world. Everyone is facing the same problems of a growing population, pollution, and disintegrating resources. Wouldn't this make everyone act the same? Not at all. When speaking of the environment that shapes a person's personality, it isn't the environment that the world population shares. It includes more personal things like birth order and personal, unique life experiences. This is the â€Å"environment† that influences behavior. Things like the pollution leave no lasting effect on a child's behavior (Pool, p. 52). Everyone's genes also differ. Of the DNA found in every human being, only 5% can be coded and used to determine which proteins will be used. The other 95% of non coded DNA is used as a instruction manual for the operator. The environment being the operator which regulates the genes. In turn, a personality is produced. As well as having different genes to produce different proteins, the proteins produce hormones at different levels. For example, two people both have the same functioning gene. The hormones produced are the same, but function at different levels. Therefore, one of them may become more prone to depression than the other simply because the proteins in that person's genes function, in a sense, better (Sapolsky, p. 46). Parents can not determine whether or not their family history of shyness is passed on to their children, but they can determine if they are going to let it control their childrens' life. Studies done by Harvard scholar Jerome Kagan prove that parents who push their timid children to try new things end up with children who are far less fearful. On the other hand, overprotective parents did nothing to ease their childrens' discomfort. Intervention studies, studies similar to Kagan's, have shown that parents who purposely change their behavior can change their child's behavior. Although genes cannot be helped, parents can control whether or not they affect the child (Begley, p. 56). Research has also found that a child's experience of his or her parents is an especially strong sculptor in parts of the brain involved with emotion, personality, and behavior. Strong bonds with parents are found to increase a child's ability to learn and cope with stress. On the other hand, abusive parents raise children that in later years grow to express inappropriate aggression and have a small attention span. Having responsive, sensitive parents inspire trust and secure attachments. Yet, insensitive and withdrawn parents create an insecure attachment. Developmental psychologists agree, the bond children have with parents is essential for them to become well-functioning adults (Wright, p. 76). Megan Gunnar, a developmental psychologist at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, studies relationships between parents and children. One of her studies focused on the relationship between attachment security and reaction to stress. Gunnar found that when infants were exposed to stressful situations, such as vaccinations, strangers, or separation from the mother, the stress hormone cortisol was produced. By the age of two, the hormone wasn't produced by the toddlers in stressful situations, although they acted out as if it were. These children, however, had secure attachments to their parents. Children who didn't have the security still produced the hormone cortisol (Wright, p. 76). Harris, who feels parents leave no impression on their children, believes that â€Å"Parental divorce has no lasting effects on the way children behave† (Begley, p. 56). Heredity, she says, is what makes a child act out about or during a divorce. The fact, though, is that the unstable situation of the family causes a child to act out (Edwards, p. 31). For a child, friends, pets, teachers, and others important people may come and go. Parents and their family, however, should always be there for them. When parents divorce, a child may feel lost and may not know how to handle it (Edwards, p. 31). Acting out is one way of showing anger and hurt. Parents, although they don't realize it, are shaping their child's personality. Whether it is by acting out or holding it all in, children are influenced by their parent's actions. Kids will be kids. It's a common phrase. Everybody uses it, but not everybody understands it. Parents often feel that, despite their efforts, their children will do what they want. They'll smoke and drink and party. They'll cuss and cheat. They'll go against their parents wishes. Why? Because human behavior often follows cultural norms (Pinker, p. 94). If the parents did their job well, the rebellion will only be a stage that the child will grow out of. If parents didn't do their job right, the stage may set the mood for the rest of the child's life. Parents are the most influential â€Å"environmental† factors in a child's behavior. A special bond is shared between children and their parents. As Roger Rosenblatt put it, â€Å"We do what we can as parents, one child at a time. We take what we get in our children, and they take what they get in us, making compromises and adjustments where we are able, making rules and explanations, but for the most part letting things happen. . . † (Rosenblatt, p. 90). Genes may determine the possibilities of personality available, but it is the parents that make those possibilities possible. Parents matter. Bibliography: Arkinson, Rita L. â€Å"Psychological Development† Introduction to Psychology. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc. , 1993. Begley, Sharon. â€Å"The Parent Trap,† Newsweek, (September 7, 1998). p. 52-59. Edwards, Randall. Divorce Need Not Harm Children. † in Child Welfare: Opposing Viewpoints. Bender, David and Leone, Bruno, Series Editors. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1998. Kevles, Behhyann H. and Daniel J. â€Å"Scapegoat Biology. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 58-62. Pinker, Steven. â€Å"Against Nature. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 92-95. Pool, Robert. â⠂¬Å"Portrait of a Gene Guy. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 51-55. Rosenblatt, Roger. â€Å"A Game of Catch,† Time, Vol. 152 (July 13, 1998). p. 90. Sapolsky, Robert. â€Å"A Gene For Nothing,† Discover, (October 1997). p. 40-46. Waldman, Steven. â€Å"Divorce Harms Children. † in Child Welfare: Opposing Viewpoints. Nature vs. Nurture Nature Vs. Nurture For centuries psychologists have argued over which plays the larger role in child development, heredity or environment. One of the first theories was proposed in the seventeenth century by the British philosopher John Locke. Locke believed that a child was born with an empty mind, tabula rasa (meaning â€Å"blank slate†) and that everything the child learns comes from experience, nothing is established beforehand. Years later, Charles Darwin brought forth his theory of evolution, which led to a return of the hereditarian viewpoint. With the twentieth century, however, came the rise of behaviorism. Behaviorists, like John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner, argued that a child can be made into any kind of person, regardless of their heredity. Today, most psychologists agree that both nature (genes) and nurture (environment) play an important role, not independently, but as they interact together (Atkinson, p. 72). One of the most important factors believed to influence a child are parents. Parents are known to share a distinctive bond with their children. This special bond is what enables parents to shape their children. Whether it is into free-willed adolescents, ready to challenge any controversy, or into caring adults willing to spend the seventy cents a day to save a poverty stricken child. Parents have the power to mold their children. Setting firm, yet sensible, guidelines teaches children discipline and good behavior. Using physical abuse produces aggressive children, but having patience and understanding leaves a child better capable to handle stress in later years. How parents raise their children influences how they will turn out (Begley, p. 53). Surprisingly, a new debate is taking place. As the author of The Nurture Assumption: Why Children Turn Out the Way They Do; Parents Matter Less Than You Think and Peers Matter More, Judith Rich Harris argues that parents have absolutely no say in what kind of children they raise. She claims that after the parents contribute an egg or sperm filled with DNA, their job of â€Å"creating† a child is complete. Her book is backed by some 750 references, but most of her conclusions come from the observation of her own two daughters; one her own and one adopted (Begley, p. 53). Parents, however, do play an important role in childhood development. For the purposes of this essay, her theory that parents have no lasting effects on a child's personality will be argued. The following contains supporting scientific evidence. The DNA structure of a human, the genes, determines the height a person will reach, whether an individual's eyes will be green or brown, and if a person's hair will be straight or curly (Saplosky, p. 44). Research has also found that genes are 30 to 70 percent responsible for personality traits such as aggression, passion, shyness and intelligence. The other 30 to 70 percent of a person's personality develop from the environment (Pool, p. 2). Genes, however, are not what produces a behavior, an emotion, or even a thought. Instead, genes produce a protein that contains hormones, which carry messages between cells, and neurotransmitters that carry messages between nerve cells. The protein also contains receptors that receive the hormonal and neurotransmitter messages as well as enzymes that read the messages. So what does all this have to do with behavior? Well, the hormone does not cause a behavior either, but rather a reaction. This reaction is a tendency to respond to the individual's environment in a certain way. This response is behavior. Without the ever changing environment, behavior would not happen (Saplosky, p. 42-43). Wouldn't this fact make everyone act the same? Everyone lives in the same world. Everyone is facing the same problems of a growing population, pollution, and disintegrating resources. Wouldn't this make everyone act the same? Not at all. When speaking of the environment that shapes a person's personality, it isn't the environment that the world population shares. It includes more personal things like birth order and personal, unique life experiences. This is the â€Å"environment† that influences behavior. Things like the pollution leave no lasting effect on a child's behavior (Pool, p. 52). Everyone's genes also differ. Of the DNA found in every human being, only 5% can be coded and used to determine which proteins will be used. The other 95% of non coded DNA is used as a instruction manual for the operator. The environment being the operator which regulates the genes. In turn, a personality is produced. As well as having different genes to produce different proteins, the proteins produce hormones at different levels. For example, two people both have the same functioning gene. The hormones produced are the same, but function at different levels. Therefore, one of them may become more prone to depression than the other simply because the proteins in that person's genes function, in a sense, better (Sapolsky, p. 46). Parents can not determine whether or not their family history of shyness is passed on to their children, but they can determine if they are going to let it control their childrens' life. Studies done by Harvard scholar Jerome Kagan prove that parents who push their timid children to try new things end up with children who are far less fearful. On the other hand, overprotective parents did nothing to ease their childrens' discomfort. Intervention studies, studies similar to Kagan's, have shown that parents who purposely change their behavior can change their child's behavior. Although genes cannot be helped, parents can control whether or not they affect the child (Begley, p. 56). Research has also found that a child's experience of his or her parents is an especially strong sculptor in parts of the brain involved with emotion, personality, and behavior. Strong bonds with parents are found to increase a child's ability to learn and cope with stress. On the other hand, abusive parents raise children that in later years grow to express inappropriate aggression and have a small attention span. Having responsive, sensitive parents inspire trust and secure attachments. Yet, insensitive and withdrawn parents create an insecure attachment. Developmental psychologists agree, the bond children have with parents is essential for them to become well-functioning adults (Wright, p. 76). Megan Gunnar, a developmental psychologist at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, studies relationships between parents and children. One of her studies focused on the relationship between attachment security and reaction to stress. Gunnar found that when infants were exposed to stressful situations, such as vaccinations, strangers, or separation from the mother, the stress hormone cortisol was produced. By the age of two, the hormone wasn't produced by the toddlers in stressful situations, although they acted out as if it were. These children, however, had secure attachments to their parents. Children who didn't have the security still produced the hormone cortisol (Wright, p. 76). Harris, who feels parents leave no impression on their children, believes that â€Å"Parental divorce has no lasting effects on the way children behave† (Begley, p. 56). Heredity, she says, is what makes a child act out about or during a divorce. The fact, though, is that the unstable situation of the family causes a child to act out (Edwards, p. 31). For a child, friends, pets, teachers, and others important people may come and go. Parents and their family, however, should always be there for them. When parents divorce, a child may feel lost and may not know how to handle it (Edwards, p. 31). Acting out is one way of showing anger and hurt. Parents, although they don't realize it, are shaping their child's personality. Whether it is by acting out or holding it all in, children are influenced by their parent's actions. Kids will be kids. It's a common phrase. Everybody uses it, but not everybody understands it. Parents often feel that, despite their efforts, their children will do what they want. They'll smoke and drink and party. They'll cuss and cheat. They'll go against their parents wishes. Why? Because human behavior often follows cultural norms (Pinker, p. 94). If the parents did their job well, the rebellion will only be a stage that the child will grow out of. If parents didn't do their job right, the stage may set the mood for the rest of the child's life. Parents are the most influential â€Å"environmental† factors in a child's behavior. A special bond is shared between children and their parents. As Roger Rosenblatt put it, â€Å"We do what we can as parents, one child at a time. We take what we get in our children, and they take what they get in us, making compromises and adjustments where we are able, making rules and explanations, but for the most part letting things happen. . . † (Rosenblatt, p. 90). Genes may determine the possibilities of personality available, but it is the parents that make those possibilities possible. Parents matter. Bibliography: Arkinson, Rita L. â€Å"Psychological Development† Introduction to Psychology. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc. , 1993. Begley, Sharon. â€Å"The Parent Trap,† Newsweek, (September 7, 1998). p. 52-59. Edwards, Randall. Divorce Need Not Harm Children. † in Child Welfare: Opposing Viewpoints. Bender, David and Leone, Bruno, Series Editors. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1998. Kevles, Behhyann H. and Daniel J. â€Å"Scapegoat Biology. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 58-62. Pinker, Steven. â€Å"Against Nature. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 92-95. Pool, Robert. â⠂¬Å"Portrait of a Gene Guy. † Discover, (October 1997). p. 51-55. Rosenblatt, Roger. â€Å"A Game of Catch,† Time, Vol. 152 (July 13, 1998). p. 90. Sapolsky, Robert. â€Å"A Gene For Nothing,† Discover, (October 1997). p. 40-46. Waldman, Steven. â€Å"Divorce Harms Children. † in Child Welfare: Opposing Viewpoints.