Compare and Contrast Between the Socs and Greasers

Compare and Contrast Essay Have you ever thought once that the Greasers and Socs (from â€Å"The Outsiders†) could ever have similarities? These rich kids and deprived kids will ever have something in common. Well, you’re going to find out each ones life style, personality and society treatment. How each of them lives, how they are treated by the society and how they both feel. The Socs are filthy rich kids in the west side, making them very spoiled and all their orders are brought and done. To give an example to that is Bob Sheldon, and his gang ride with a mustang, for teenage kid this is very expensive.While, the Greasers are a group of underprivileged children who have some that work for their living, but still don’t get half of what the Socs get. Most of them have very long and greasy hair because they couldn’t afford to shave. Which shows huge difference in lifestyle. Secondly, here comes their general personality, starting with Socs. To keep up in t heir life they have to lock their emotions up inside until they are numb to their effects. They remember the feeling of anger the hit the weak ones in the society; the Greasers.They jump on the Greasers and just start hitting them and terrorizing them. Unlike the Socs, the Greasers are too emotional, they take everything serious. And when they try express it they get into serious trouble, it is why dally got arrested a over half a dozen times. Have in consideration that they both are starting to get sick of their lives and how each lives it. For example Cherry is bored of pretending not being how she is for her friends and so is Ponyboy, he pretends to be not in love with literature and music in front of his family and friends not feel weird our his friends.Here will be discussed how society treats both crews of characters. The Greasers were always known as vicious thugs in the neighborhood while they are just misunderstood kids in the wrong place and also with know one to tell them what to do. On the other hand the Socs. have to live up to a perfect vision people see of them, they have to stand up others people high expectations, Which really kills them in the inside. It reminds me when Cherry was in the movie theatre talking with Ponyboy, she didn’t hide loving bizarre music nor reading literature.She told her friends that at all, as she is a cheerleader. Finally, after comparing and contrasting Greasers and the Socs we conclude that both the Socs and the Greasers have completely different lifestyles. Surprisingly, they have something in common; not being who they are with their closest friends and also are not penchant to be judged. It shows us no mater how wealthy or poor you are you still are a normal person like everyone else, no difference in having feelings.

Power of Positive Thinking Book Summary

THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING Table of Contents 1. Weakness†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 3 2. Why this book?†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 3 3. Synopsis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦4 4. How did the book help me overcome my weakness? †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 9 WEAKNESS The weakness on which I was working was pessimism. Pessimism is a state of mind in which one anticipates negative outcomes or believes that the evil, hardships, dangers, displeasures in life outweigh or dominate the good, luxuries, securities or pleasures in life. It affects ones thinking process adversely.It leads to loneliness, doubts on one’s own capabilities and con stant anxiety. I wanted to overcome this weakness, to develop self-confidence and redeem my self-esteem. This would fill my mind and eventually life with more optimism and happiness. WHY THIS BOOK? SYNOPSIS In the first chapter the author deals with the cause of feelings of inferiority and insecurity and ways to overcome them and build self confidence. Believe in yourself! The author says one should have faith in his abilities. To be successful and happy one must have a humble and reasonable confidence in his powers or capabilities.A sense of inferiority interferes in attainment of goals whereas self-confidence leads to self realization and thus further successful achievement. According to the author, the sources of inferiority complex are usually some emotional violence done to us in the past or the consequences of certain circumstances or something that we did to ourselves in the past. The author suggests that to build up feelings of self confidence in oneself the practice of sugg esting confidence concepts to one’s mind is very effective.A mind is obsessed by thoughts of insecurity and inadequacy because such ideas have dominated that person’s thinking over a long period of time. Hence, more positive pattern of ideas must be given to the mind and that is accomplished by repetitive suggestion of confidence ideas. Thus, disciplining the mind is required if one has to re-educate it and make it a power producing plant. We build up the feeling of security or insecurity by the way we think. In our thoughts we constantly fix attention upon sinister expectations of events that might happen, the result we constantly feel insecure.And we have a tendency to create by thought, the very condition we fear. Instead one can create positive results by vital thoughts of courage and confidence. Attitudes are more important than facts. Any fact facing us, however difficult, even seemingly hopeless, is not as important as our attitude toward that fact. How you thin k about a fact may defeat you before you ever do anything about it. The author further suggests going about your business on the assumption that what you have affirmed and visualized is true. Affirm it, visualize it, believe it, and it will actualize itself.Feelings of confidence depend on the type of thoughts that habitually occupy your mind. Think defeat and you are bound to feel defeated. But practice thinking confident thoughts and you will develop such a strong sense of capacity that regardless of what difficulties arise you will be able to overcome them. Feelings of confidence actually induce strength. Emerson said: â€Å"They conquer who believe they can† and â€Å"Do the thing you fear and the death of fear is certain†. Thus, practice confidence and faith and your fears and insecurities soon will have no power over you.In the first chapter, the author suggests following ways to overcome inferiority and to build up self-confidence: †¢ Picture yourself as su cceeding. †¢ Whenever a negative thought comes to mind, deliberately voice a positive thought to cancel it out. †¢ Do not build up obstacles in your imagination. Instead tear them down by tearing them apart. †¢ Do not compare yourself to others. †¢ Get a competent counselor to help you understand why you do what you do. Learn the origin of your inferiority and self-doubt feelings which often begin in childhood. Self- knowledge leads to a cure. Practice self-affirmations, for example, Yes, I can. Or I can do all things through belief in myself. †¢ Take an inventory of all the things you have going for you and begin to really appreciate your assets. Health, eyes, hearing, friends, family, son, house, shelter, food, income, transportation, intelligence etc. In the second chapter, the author talks about having a peaceful mind. The essence of the secret lies in a change of mental attitude. For this, one must learn to live on a different thought basis, however tho ught change requires effort.A life of inner peace, being harmonious and without stress is the easiest type of existence. A primary method for gaining peace is to practice emptying the mind. Thus, practice emptying your mind of fears, hates, insecurities, regrets, and guilt feelings. After you have emptied your mind of all the old, unhappy thoughts immediately start refilling it with creative and healthy thoughts. The mere fact that you are consciously trying to empty your mind tends to give you relief. Also emptying your mind is not enough. Your mind cannot remain in a vacuum for long.Fill it with creative end healthy thoughts so that thoughts of fear, hates and worries do not enter. At intervals, practice thinking a selected series of peaceful thoughts or utter a series of peaceful words. They have a healing effect on your mind. Another way of developing serene and quiet attitudes is to watch your manner of speech. It is important to eliminate from conversations all negative ideas, for they tend to produce tension and annoyance inwardly. Peale also says to spend some quiet time each day relaxing, and not thinking about anything much.He says picture your mind as a pond and see if you can achieve the state of smoothness and no ripples. Fill your mind with all peaceful experiences possible, then make planned and deliberate excursions to them in memory. He continues, saturate your thoughts with peaceful experiences, peaceful words, and ideas, and ultimately you will have a storehouse of peace-producing experiences to which you may turn for refreshment and renewal of your spirit. It will be a vast source of power. On fear and guilt he says, the quantity of vital force required to give the ersonality relief from either guilt or fear or a combination of each is so great that often only a fraction of energy remains for living. The result is that he tires quickly. Not being able to meet the full requirements of his responsibility, he retreats into an apathetic, dull, listless condition and is indeed even ready to give up and fall back sleepily in a state of enervation. You must eradicate fear and guilt before you will ever be able to sleep and regain your strength. On happiness, he says, you can be unhappy if you want to. It is the easiest thing in the world to accomplish.Go around telling yourself that nothing is going well, that nothing is satisfactory, and you can be quite sure of being unhappy. But say to yourself, â€Å"Things are going nicely. Life is good. I choose happiness,† and you can be certain of having your choice. Peale says, â€Å"The happiness habit is developed by simply practicing happy thinking. Make a mental list of happy thoughts and pass them through your mind several times each day. If an unhappiness thought should cross your mind, immediately stop, consciously eject it, and substitute a happiness thought. The way to happiness: keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry. Live simply, expect little, and g ive much. Fill your life with love. Scatter sunshine. Forget self, think of others. Do as you would be done by. Try this for a week and you will be surprised. † Peale recommends we think about what we want to do if we could do anything. And to think about what we are good at. He says that if you talk to your subconscious, you can convince it to change its mind about things. But that it is naturally very reluctant to do this. So you must be firm and persistent.He says to remember that â€Å"mighty oaks from little acorns grow†. He says that as a clean engine delivers power, so too a clean mind (free from negative thoughts, guilt, hate, bitterness, fear, etc. ). He believed the secret of achievement is to hold a picture of a successful outcome in mind. Peale gave few problem solving tips which could be summarized as: †¢ Believe that for every problem there is a solution. †¢ Keep calm. Tension blocks the flow of thought power. Your brain  cannot operate efficie ntly under stress. Go at your problem easy-like. †¢ Don't try to force an answer.Keep your mind relaxed so that the solution will open up and become clear. †¢ Assemble all the facts, impartially, impersonally, and judicially. †¢ List these facts on paper. This clarifies your thinking, bringing the various into orderly system. You see as well as think. †¢ Trust in the faculty of insight and intuition — believe in your own ability to come up with a satisfactory solution. Don't get paralyzed by focusing on the idea that you must have the â€Å"perfect† or the â€Å"best† solution. Probably several solutions would somehow work out. Irritation, anger, hate, and resentment have such a powerful effect in producing ill-health.It is to fill the mind with attitudes of good will, forgiveness, faith, love, and the spirit of imperturbability. Some suggestions include †¢ Deliberately, by an act of will, keep your hands from clenching. Hold your finger s out straight. Deliberately reduce your tone; bring it down to a whisper. Remember that it is hard to argue in a whisper. Slump in a chair, or even lie down if possible. It is very difficult to get mad lying down. †¢ Say aloud to yourself, â€Å"Don't be a fool. This won't get me anywhere, so skip it â€Å"Everything is okay. It is not that big a deal. Everything is all right.It is ok. † †¢ Make a list of all the minor irritations. And find a reason for them not to irritate you anymore. Then cross them off. Do not leave any irritations uncrossed off. In this way you will weaken your anger to the point where you can control it. † †¢ When a hurt-feeling situation arises, get it straightened out as quickly as possible. Don't brood over it for a minute longer than you can help. Do something about it. Do not allow yourself to sulk or indulge in self-pity. Immediately apply the cure Unless you do so the situation can become distorted out of all proportion.So put some spiritual iodine on the hurt at once, by using a healing thought. †¢ Apply grievance drainage to your mind. He gives the example of pouring out your feelings to someone you trust, or to yourself on paper, until â€Å"not a vestige of it remains within you. Then forget it. † †¢ For those who believe in power of prayer he offers this technique: Pray for the person who you feel caused the hurt. Over and over and over until â€Å"†¦ you feel the malice fading away. † He also talks about the importance of relaxing in order to be able to cope and deal with things better.To summarize his tips on relaxation: †¢ Don't get the idea that you are Atlas carrying the world on your shoulders. Don't strain so hard. †¢ Determine to like your work. Then it will become a pleasure not drudgery. †¢ Plan your work–work your plan. †¢ Don't try to do everything at once. Try to do one thing well. †¢ Get a correct mental attitude, remember ing that ease or difficulty in your work depends upon on you think about it. Think it's hard and you make it hard. Think it's easy and it tends to become easy. †¢ Be efficient. †¢ Practice being relaxed. Take things in stride. Discipline yourself not to put off until tomorrow what you can do today. Accumulation of undone jobs makes your work harder. Keep your work up to schedule. On how to have constant energy,  Peale reveals the secret source of energy of every great person he has known: attunement with the Infinite. The knowledge that what one is doing is supported outside oneself and is serving a divine end, provides a constantly renewable source of energy. Working only by oneself and for oneself leads to burnout. Peale asks the readers to try prayer power. According to him,  prayer is different to what you thought it was.It is a space to say whatever is on your mind, in whatever language you choose. Instead of asking for things, give thanks in advance for what you desire, leave it in God's hands, and visualize the good outcome. The Peale formula is ‘Prayerize, Picturize, and Actualize’. Be surprised at its effectiveness. He asks us to expect the best and get it. Fearful creatures that we are, we tend to expect the worst. But an expectation of the best has a way of organizing forces in your favor. You are less likely to keep anything in reserve. The subconscious, which regulates much of our actions, merely reflects your beliefs.Alter the belief about an outcome, and your actions will seem to be shaped in order to achieve it. Peale's phrase is: ‘Doubt closes the power flow. Faith opens it. ‘ New thoughts can remake us. Use only positive and hopeful language for a 24-hour period. Then go back to being ‘realistic' the next day. Repeat this over a week and you find that what you considered realistic a week ago now seems pessimistic. In golfing terms, discover that ‘the rough is only mental'. Your new understand ing of what is realistic moves up to a higher, permanently positive level. HOW DID THE BOOK HELP ME OVEROME MY WEAKNESS? ———–THE END———–

The problem to be investigated is ethical challenges and grey areas Essay

The problem to be investigated is ethical challenges and grey areas within business processes that are exploited by businesses for financial gain. Laddering, Layered investment strategy - Essay Example Once the prices escalate, the shares are sold to make profits from the gullible public. Goldman has been using this strategy to make quick money. It is ethically wrong. Business ethics are mainly principles and values that guide business strategies and decision-making processes to promote responsible behavior. Kantian ethical theory is implicit in its universalism and proposes that one must act in a manner that one would expect others to act towards oneself (Johnson, 2008). Goldman Sachs had used underhand techniques to deliberately increase the price of shares and then float the same share into the market to profit. Hence, Goldman was highly unethical and exploited the trust of the public to gain profits. Laddering It is an agreement between the client and the firm whereby the client or buyer promises to buy the shares of IPO at a higher price above the initial one so that its market shares are guaranteed to increase. This is a scam between the underwriter for the IPO and the favore d client to make money at the cost of general public. Goldman Sachs has been responsible for committing this crime with the deliberate intention of fraud. Not only has the company violated the trust and confidentiality of other clients but also its irresponsible and fraudulent behavior has resulted in the bankruptcy of the new firm whose IPO was floated. A prime example is eToys, which had gone bankrupt. Hosmer (1994) asserts that business decisions need to be constructed on the basis of economic considerations, ethical values and moral obligations to its various stakeholders. Goldman’s sole purpose was to make profit and benefit few clients thereby harming the interests of its other clients and public in general. Hence, its conduct and business practice was hugely unethical. CDO or collateralized debt obligations Collateralized debt obligations are financial instruments that are mortgage backed and, therefore, attractive to clients. The short sale and maintaining short subpr ime position considerably benefits the firm. In 2008, Goldman became a bank holding company. Though the company was brought under the regulation of Federal Reserve Bank, it also obtained easy access to funds from Federal Reserve at zero percent interest and no time limit. It started recommending CDO to its clients. The mortgage pools of CDOs were not good and were purposely chosen for their low value by the finance director, Paulson. The deal was structured by a trusted company that continued to question the validity of the mortgage pool. Goldman insured the CDOs for $11 million with AIG. The company has created false demands by buying it and then selling it in open market to make short position. When Goldman pulled out, the clients were left with $40 million of securities which had no worth. Goldman sold its insurance profits to hedge funds. Goldman’s culture was based on maximizing profit and money for themselves and their select few clients. Promising to make a person rich by forty was the critical philosophy that encouraged them to evolve innovative ways to manipulate market and cheat general public. The general culture of dishonesty and non-accountability towards their various stakeholders was an important ingredient of their work environment. Thus, values and ethics played no part in their decision-making processes. They only conformed to the legal

The Female Entrepreneurship in Comparison to Its Male Counterparts in Essay

The Female Entrepreneurship in Comparison to Its Male Counterparts in UK - Essay Example The involvement of women in entrepreneurship is crucial for the growth of every nation's economy. In the UK, women gained the right to vote only in 1918 (Peele, 2004 p251). This shows that women were marginalized in the past and were prevented from taking a full and active part of the economy. However, ninety years after women gained the right to vote in Britain, the lot of women has increased significantly. In the 1970s, women became more proactive in matters relating to entrepreneurship. This paper examines the trends in the increase in the numbers of women involved in entrepreneurship in the UK since the 1970s. It identifies the core concepts of and theories of female entrepreneurship in relationship to changes in trends and improvement the bridging of gaps between UK female entrepreneurs and their male counterparts. It also evaluates the elements of female entrepreneurship in Britain in relation to female entrepreneurship in other nations around the world. Theories of Female Entr epreneurship Female entrepreneurship is a combination of structured and chaotic methods which lead to women establishing and running businesses (Ho Chu, 2004 p111). This means that there are two main ways that female entrepreneurship comes up. In the first route, female entrepreneurship is a conscious effort made by females to set up businesses by learning the art and science of entrepreneurship. This way, there are structured methods and means that enable women to set up businesses. On the other hand, Casson et al (2008) identify that most women find themselves in entrepreneurial positions by circumstances which lead them to take up business ownership positions around the world. Thus, in this context, female entrepreneurship is simply seen as a phenomenon whereby women establish or gain ownership of businesses in a given nation. This conception, therefore, views the process through which females get to rise to this level. Another view put forward by Carter (2005 p11) is that female entrepreneurship can best be evaluated and understood if it is viewed in direct contrast to male entrepreneurship. In this vein, Carter begins her thesis by stating that entrepreneurship has been traditionally viewed as a man's thing. As such, the involvement of females is a study that is meant to bridge the gap that has been created by the stereotypes that have existed in society for generations. Whereas the first view examines the procedure through which a woman acquires the position of entrepreneurship, the second view tries to view the whole concept of female entrepreneurship as a method of reducing the injustices of the male-dominated society. Thus, the second view diagnoses the reasons why women are not often seen in business ownership roles and try to find ways of addressing the issue. This has been seen as a feminist position because it adopts a conflicting position to the status quo and demands some degree of recognition of women through positive discriminatory measures wh ere necessary (Greer & Greene, 2004). Either way, the fundamental view of female entrepreneurship is to identify the characteristics, training and innovation systems that are necessary to keep females in business ownership roles (Ho Chu, 2004). It involves amongst other things, the motivation, expertise, and expectations that female entrepreneurship adds up to society (Carter & William, 2003).

The Developing Manager (Tourism Management) Essay

The Developing Manager (Tourism Management) - Essay Example Travel & Tourism business is known for its potential and peculiarities. This industry is very much dependent on a range of factors like economic, socio-cultural and environmental. The behavioural aspect holds key to the overall character of the organisation. Clouds Tours and Travel is a group of companies having six tour agencies, serving customers in different segments. In this type of business, customer loyalty is very important as the existing customers serve as the brand ambassadors for the company and its services. The role of leadership therefore becomes very crucial in devising strategies for the achievement of developmental goals of the company. Leadership is something which allows an individual or an organization to lead. Leadership qualities are not just an asset for the individual, but it also helps other members of the organisation or the team. If the manager is found to adopt an aggressive and autocratic approach, as in case of the Clouds Tours and Travel, the company is bound to suffer in terms of a congenial working environment. Underlining the key differences in these two components Hodgson (1987) states that ‘Management is about doing things right, whereas leadership is about doing the right things’. Three main styles of management are defined as1; Autocratic: Managers with this style prefer to have their way and they are least bothered about the suggestions of others around. Managers in Clouds Tours and Travel seem to believe in this type of management only, which is resulting in lot disgruntlement amongst the subordinates. Democratic: Managers with such style of management prefer to take the final decision after due consultation with others around. Their main line of action is to create some sort of unanimity in the final decision. It needs to be emphasised here that an effective manager is the one who holds a balanced mix of these three types of qualities. A number of

Critical Thinking Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Critical Thinking - Article Example Strategies like demonstration and practice learning hold more appeal to me than other strategies for CT practice since they involve more or less all CT skills and alongwith identifying the need for CT skills in practice, these strategies provide ample opportunity to understand and perform the skills. In case a person has an opposite view such as case study analysis is better strategy over problem learning, then it must be brought under consideration that not only the latter involves all CT skills hence helping CT skills practice, but also in stark contrast to a mere analysis on narrative form, problem learning helps to think independently and stimulates ability to understand and make decision. Next roadblock is Fatigue which is though entirely physical has effect on intellectual skills as well and therefore may result in inaccurate understanding of problem, inaccurate analysis or irrational interpretation or explanation. The only ways to adapt to such situations is to first understand that anyone is prone to roadblocks and accept that fact. Next step is to identify the roadblocks and take care to control or tackle them. There are a few ways in which experts and novices differ from one another. Firstly, within RC when a problem requiring immediate attention and decision making is present, experts who have more experience and have more knowledge would be able to handle the situation by applying CT skills whereas a novice would try and do the same but instead of believing in one’s own self would adhere to rule books and text to get things done correctly. Another major difference is in the decision making. Experts develop an intuition where they are able to segregate each problem from one another and know that each problem requires a different approach. However, the novice having lesser experience cannot rely on intuition and therefore has a textual approach

Company Culture and Making the Investment Decisions Assignment

Company Culture and Making the Investment Decisions - Assignment Example It may also affect the performance of the organization. However cultural considerations are taken into account more in case of productive physical resources rather than financial investments. Product/Service Quality This is an essential factor to be taken into consideration while making any investment decision. The quality of the invested capital resources has a direct effect on the quality of the products or services of the organization. The least extensive investment resources would be yielding the lowest quality of products or services for the organization. The manager requires balancing between the quality and the cost for maximizing the cost-effectiveness of the investment. In a similar manner let us consider another example- purchase of the lowest quality of vehicle for the on-site workers would result in the interruptions in fluent or efficient services due to vehicle breakdowns or other related problems. If Laurentian Bakeries Inc. purchases lower quality equipment, it would result in the preparation of low quality food products. Thus the company requires finding a balance between the cost and the quality in order to increase the efficiency of the investment. ... It is very important for the manager of Laurentian Bakeries Inc. to consider the impact that the capital investment decision possess in the environment (Albrecht, 2011). Implementation of strategic plans The strategic plans for the first year of the project are identified to be the operating plan for the same. The operating plan is supported by a detailed list of capital projects which are proposed earlier and thus, becomes the basis for the capital allocation of the project. Initiatives are taken to improve the strategic plans and the benefits associated with the company (Jennings, 2006). The managers are also trained in such a way that they can give out proper instructions to their employees and thus, balance the operation efficiently (Porter, 2011). The corporate strategies are also evaluated in order to acquire the successful projects. The companies are evaluated with regard to the challenges that are being faced by them. The tangible actions have to be linked with the corporate vision so that the projects are successful and yield suitable results. The risk-minimizing factors are also evaluated in order to take the right decision for any project. The quantitative factors that are required for the evaluation of the projects of the company are as follows: 1) Net Present Value: Net present value is the difference in between the present value of the total cash inflow and the present value of the total cash outflow. It helps in determining the value of an investment project thereby facilitating the investment decisions.

Cradle Will Rock Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Cradle Will Rock - Essay Example Developing large-scale government-sponsored national arts program is already possible today because government can afford it now compared to the 1930s where government was virtually bankrupt. During that time, American economy was in depression where there were long lines of unemployment so government just cannot afford it let alone sustain it. Today, US economy is the largest economy in the world and despite its mounting deficits, it still has a lot of money to spare for a government-sponsored national arts program. If government can afford to fight and finance a war which is not its own, it can surely afford a national arts program. The political and ideological environment today is very much different during the 1930s. Today, communism is no longer a threat as it was during the 1930s. In addition, the type of communism which sent paranoia to government before was the Soviet type communism which is no longer existent today. Also, government is now more tolerant towards dissenting political ideologies and labor unions and other similar organizations no longer has communist or left leaning affiliations. The general public is also well informed today politically to be easily swayed by ideologies that go against government. Above all, government is already tolerant and secure to be threatened by an artwork Cradle Will Rock that has left leaning content. It will be taken as it is, an artwork, a musical that could educate people. Finally, people now are way sophisticated compared to the 1930s where very little number of people have time and money for the arts and musicals because life then was difficult. People had barely anything to eat while people now are getting fat because of overeating. The point is, people now have greater appreciation and support for the arts making a government sponsored art program sustainable because government is likely to spend on a program that public

Management Contracting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Management Contracting - Essay Example Furthermore, it is considered that using the design and build approach tends to produce projects that are poorly adapted to complex technical or aesthetic requirements (Quatman & Dhar, 2003). Additionally it is argued that the design and build approach fails to utilise competitive bidding so that prospective builders might bid on the very same design. The selection criteria for contractors is often subjective and becomes hard to justify in the later stage of the project (Broyles, 2011). In contrast research has shown that the design and build approach provides projects 33.5% faster than projects built using the separate design and build approaches. In addition the same research has highlighted that the design and build approach allows 12% faster construction along with a 6.1% lower unit cost (Construction Industry Institute, 1998). 2. NEC3 Approach The New Engineering Contract (NEC) is a formal system of contracting adopted by the Institution of Civil Engineers which provides guideli nes for drafting various kinds of documents for construction projects. These documents relate in general to obtaining tenders as well as awarding and administering different kinds of contracts (Gerard, 2005). In legal terms these prescribe the duties and responsibilities of Employers and Contractors through the Works Information (Brook, 2004). In itself the Works Information comprises of the Contract Data part one which details the Data provided by the Employer as well as the Contract Data part two which details the Data provided by the Contractor. The flexibility provided by this contracting approach makes it a popular choice as it provides the Employer and the Contractor with a number of choices for contracting... This essay describes the management contracting, that recently has diversified the approach to contracting in a number of ways. Employers today may choose to use any types of contracts in order to deal with design, building, procurement and other aspects of construction. Typically it is up to the requirements of the individual build to define the most suitable form of contract. The current situation at hand requires that a flagship store be built for a high value client. This indicates that the build needs to provide the client with a fresh and innovative design. There might be chances that the unique design would require special expertise in modern construction techniques. Therefore, it could be surmised that the required building requires innovation in both the design and construction phases. The different options available to the client are presented in the essay including the design and build approach as well as the NEC3 approach to discern a fitting solution for the issue. In co nclusion, the researcher states that for the case of the customer being discussed it would be highly appropriate to suggest a NEC3 framework based contract. The design contract should be well separated from the construction contract in order to ensure that the best possible Designers and Contractors bid for both aspects of the project. This in itself will ensure competition and better results, the use of the NEC3 framework design and build fronts will ensure that cooperation is promoted along with a sustainable working relationship.

Cost Centres, Profit Centres, Investment Centres Essay Example for Free

Cost Centres, Profit Centres, Investment Centres Essay The increasing complexity of today’s business environment makes it virtually impossible for most firms to be controlled centrally. Decentralisation is a necessary response to this increasing complexity and involves the delegation of decision-making responsibility by senior management to sub-ordinates. The structure is such that decision making is dispersed to various units within the organisation, with managers at various levels making key decisions relating to their centre of responsibility. These centres of organisational activity are known as responsibility centres and may be defined ‘as a unit of a firm where an individual manager is held responsible for the unit’s performance. ’1 The performance of each centre and its manager is measured and controlled through a system of responsibility accounting which is based on the principles of locating responsibility and tracing costs/revenue/investments etc. to the individual managers who are primarily responsible. The division of the firm into separately identifiable units of responsibility allows for more accurate measurement of managerial performance because local information is more thorough. Overall, in order to obtain an accurate measurement of managerial performance, measures should be based on elements which the manager can control or significantly influence. There are three main types of responsibility centre. A cost centre is the lowest level of responsibility, and performance is measured in terms of the costs incurred by it. Cost centres do not generate revenue and therefore have no profit objectives, which differentiates it from profit and investment centres. Managers of cost centres are accountable only for controllable costs and are not responsible for level of activity or long-term investment decisions. Managerial performance is measured by efficiency of operations in terms of the quantity of inputs used in producing a given output. The basis of this type of measurement lies in comparing actual inputs to budgeted controllable costs or some predetermined level that represents efficient utilisation. Cost control and efficiency of operations are the main elements of this type of unit. However, costs in general can be difficult to measure, trace and allocate and it can be difficult to differentiate between controllable and uncontrollable costs. This poses a major drawback for the evaluation of cost centres and their management, since cost is its main element of measurement. The focus being mainly on costs, makes this centre some-what weak in terms of evaluation and measurement of managerial performance. Cost centres can be split into two different types; standard cost centres and discretionary cost centres. In the former, measurement is exercised by comparing standard cost with actual cost. Variances would be indicative of the efficiency of the centre and therefore its managers’ performance. Discretionary cost centres are centres where output cannot be measured in financial terms, for example advertising and publicity, RD etc. ‘Control normally takes the form of ensuring that actual expenditure adheres to budgeted expenditure for each expense category.’2 However, a major problem with this type of responsibility centre is the measurement of the effectiveness of expenditure and the determination of the efficiency of the centre itself and its management. A profit centre offers an additional element to the measurement process in that both inputs and outputs are measured in monetary terms. The manager of a profit centre has increased autonomy as s/he is responsible for revenue as well as costs; hence it is easier to measure the effectiveness and efficiency of managerial performance in financial terms. ‘In this situation, managers are normally free to set selling prices, choose which markets to sell in, make product-mix and output decisions and select suppliers.’3 A profit centre differs form a cost centre in that its main objective is to maximise profit and the performance of the manager is measured in terms of profit made. Top executives allocate assets to a profit centre, and the manager is responsible for using these assets to make a profit. Each profit centre has a profit target and has the authority to adopt such policies that are necessary to achieve these targets. Profit centre managers are evaluated by comparing actual profit to targeted profit. Profit analysis using profitability ratios or segmented income statements are used as a basis for evaluating managerial performance. The major issue with profit statements is the difficulty in deciding what is controllable or traceable, and in order to assess the managers’ performance rather than the economic performance of the unit, measures must be based on controllable profit only. Another difficulty arises in allocating revenue and costs to profit centres, as it is unlikely that the profit centre is completely independent. This has prompted many firms to use multiple performance measures such as a balanced scorecard, which measures non-financial as well as financial elements of the unit. The measurement of profit is also compounded by the use of transfer prices and agreeing on its ‘fairness’. Transfer prices are allocated to goods transferred from one unit to another within a firm. The implication of transfer prices is that for the selling unit it will be a source of revenue and for the receiving unit it is an element of cost, and as a result each division may act in its own interests. Transfer pricing therefore has a significant bearing when calculating revenues, costs and profits of responsibility centres. The choice of transfer pricing method is important because it affects goal congruence as well as performance measurement. However, it is difficult to determine the correct transfer price, as there are a wide variety of methods available, varying from negotiation to approaches based on the market or based on cost. The investment centre manager has increased responsibility in comparison to the cost and profit centre managers and as a result there are further options for managerial performance measurement by top management. The investment centre manager has responsibility for revenue and costs, and also has the authority to make capital investment decisions. This type of unit represents the highest level of managerial autonomy. An investment centre differs from a profit centre in that investment centre management is evaluated on the basis of the rate of return earned on the assets employed or the residual income earned, while profit centre management is evaluated on the basis of excess revenue over expenses for the period. The manager in charge has the objective of profitability, depending not only on sales but also on profitability of the capital used. Overall, investment centres offer the broadest basis for measurement in the sense that managerial performance is measured not only in terms of profits, but also in terms of assets employed to generate those profits. Performance can be measured using a variety of tools, and this ensures that the drawbacks of one method are overcome by the merits of another. This in turn leads to more accurate results and is one of the main reasons why investment centres are so popular as a means of managerial performance measurement in large companies. Both the effectiveness and the efficiency of the manager can be assessed by reference to the accounting data available. Investment centres offer many qualities required for good managerial performance measurement. For example, they provide incentives to the unit manager, they can recognise long-term objectives as well as short-term objectives and the increased responsibility means there are more controllable factors for use in performance measurement calculations. Return on investment is a measurement approach in common use in investment centres. This method has the advantage of being simple and easy to calculate. ‘ROI expresses divisional profit as a percentage of the assets employed in the division.’4 It has the further advantage of motivating managers to achieve the best return on investments in order to achieve the associated rewards. ROI provides a return measure that controls the size and is comparable to other measures. It can be used as a common denominator for comparing the returns of similar businesses, such as other divisions within the group or outside competition. It is widely used and most managers understand what the measure reflects. However, some complications arise in the calculation of this method. For example, difficulties regarding the calculation of profit, some of which are described above. Profit can be defined in a number of ways and this enables the figure to be manipulated. In the case of the figure for investments, the question arises whether this should be total assets (gross or depreciated), total operating assets or net total assets. The result would differ in each case, but if consistency is maintained throughout the organisation, decisions would remain unaffected. Another difficulty that may arise in relation to this method is that managers may focus on self-interests rather than the overall goal of the organisation and some profitable opportunities may be ignored because s/he fears potential dilution of existing successful endeavours. Furthermore, ROI does not adequately recognise risk. A manager who generates a large ROI result may be investing in riskier assets which may not be consistent with organisational goals. Use of ROI as a managerial performance measure can lead to under or over investment in assets or incorrect asset disposal decisions, in order to achieve the result the manager requires to accomplish his reward. To overcome some of the above difficulties, many firms use residual income to evaluate managerial performance. This method seeks to motivate managers to invest where the expected returns exceed the cost of capital. For the purpose of managerial performance measurement, ‘it compares the controllable contribution of an investment with the targeted rate of return.’5 There is a greater possibility that managers will be encouraged to act in the best interests of the company. Another advantage of this method is that it is more flexible because different cost of capital rates can be applied for different levels or risk. Though ROI and RI operate on a similar basis, RI proves better in certain circumstances. For example, if ROI is chosen as the measuring technique, managers may be reluctant to make additional investments in fixed assets as it may bring down the ROI for their centre. RI calculation results would be more accurate in these situations. However, residual income does not overcome the problem of determining the value of assets or the figure to be used for profit. If RI is used in a short-term perspective, it can over-emphasise short-term performance at the expense of long-term performance. Investment projects with positive net present values can show poor ROI and RI results in early years, leading to rejection of projects by managers. Residual income also experiences problems in comparing managerial performance in divisions of different sizes. The manager of the larger division will generally show a higher RI because of the size of the division rather then superior managerial performance. Another drawback for this method is that it requires an estimate of the cost of capital, a figure which can be difficult to calculate. Economic value added is an extension of the residual income measurement. It measures surplus value created by total investments which include funds provided by banks, shareholders etc. Its key element is the emphasis on after-tax operating profit and the actual annual cost of capital. The latter aspect differentiates it from the RI measure, which uses the minimum expected rate of return. EVA is a further step towards encouraging centre managers to concentrate on the overall goal of the organisation rather than their own self interests, hence reducing dysfunctional behaviour. The above measures are financial measures. As stated previously, it is important also to study non-financial aspects, such as customer satisfaction, quality, internal processes, growth etc. in order to get a more complete picture when measuring managerial performance. The above measures also focus on performance within the investment centre and do not consider the performance relative to overall company objectives. In conclusion, it can be stated that in order to assess managerial performance as opposed to the economic performance of the division, it is vital to make a distinction between the controllable and uncontrollable elements used in the chosen calculations. Each measurement technique is not without limitations, but these difficulties can be overcome by using a wide variety of measurement tools and striking the right balance between them. Of the three types of responsibility centre, an investment centre can be considered to yield better results, as it allows for the broadest basis for measurement, making it widely popular as a means of managerial performance measurement. 1 C. Drury, Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Ed. P. 653 2 C. Drury, Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Ed. P. 654 3 C. Drury, Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Ed. P. 654/655 4 C. Drury, Management and Cost Accounting, 6th Ed. P. 845 5 IPA Manual, Management Accounting, P 239

Types of Cyber Crime and Strategies for Prevention

Types of Cyber Crime and Strategies for Prevention Crimes In cyber Age And Its Response By Indian Judiciary Table of abbrevaitions AIR All India Reporter AP Andhra Pradesh Art. Article Bom. Bombay ed. Edition Ltd. Limited. P. page number Pat. Patna SCC Supreme Court Cases SCR Supreme Court Reporter Sec. Section Crimes In cyber Age And Its Response By Indian Judiciary Introduction The advent of the third millennium has brought in an era of information society. The new era is the result of rapid changes brought about by the new technology and the cyber world. Obviously the information society offers vast scope and opportunities to human beings to identify information, to evaluate information, and to exchange information for the benefits of the citizens the world over. The in formation technology provides for a new environment, new work culture, new business links and trading networks. It allows information and knowledge based work to be located anywhere. It is virtually transforming and revolutionizing the world. The information technology is a double-edged sword, consistently presenting us with benefits and disadvantages. The increasing opportunities for productivities, efficiency and worldwide communications brought additional users in droves[1]. Today, the internet is a utility, analogous to the electric company and ‘.com has become a household expression. The reliability and availability of the internet are critical operational considerations. Activities that threaten these attributes like spamming, spoofing, etc, have grave impacts on its user community. Any illegal act, for which knowledge of computer technology is essential for its perpetration, investigation, or prosecution, is known as cyber crime. Among the various problems emerging out of the internet are the menace of hackers, cyber terrorism, spamming, Trojan horse attacks, denial of service attacks, pornography, cyber stalking etc. Through this paper the researcher will try to study the problem of cyber stalking, cyber defamation, various types of data theft and the laws relating to it. An effort will also be made to recommend some suggestions to fight these dangerous problems, with the response of Indian judiciary to it. Cyber staking Cyber stalking, has been defined as the use of electronic communication including, pagers, cell phones, emails and the internet, to bully, threaten, harass, and intimidate a victim. Moreover, it can also be defined as nothing less than emotional terrorism.[2] Cyber stalking can take many forms. However, Ellison (1999) suggests, cyber stalking can be classified by the type of electronic communication used to stalk the victim and the extent to which the communication is private or public. Ellison (1999) has classified cyber stalking as either ‘direct or ‘indirect. For example, ‘direct cyber stalking includes the use of pagers, cell phones and the email to send messages of hate, obscenities and threats, to intimidate a victim. Direct cyber stalking has been reported to be the most common form of cyber stalking with a close resemblance to offline stalking (Wallace, 2000). Why people do it? Generally, to be defined as stalking the behaviour must be unwanted and intrusive. Another important point is that the stalker must also have an intense preoccupation with the victim. The range of behaviour involved in stalking can be broadly grouped in three categories. Firstly, there is following, which includes frequenting workplaces and homes, maintaining surveillance, and engineering â€Å"coincidences.† Secondly, there is communicating—by phone, letters, cards, graffiti, gifts, and, Increasingly, electronic mail and the internet (â€Å"cyber stalking†).Often the stalker will order goods and services on the victims behalf. Finally comes aggression or violence, in which stalkers threaten their victims, harass their families, damage their property, make false accusations about them, and cause sexual or physical injury. Sexual attractions and motives are other very important reasons for cyberstalking. In USA, the federal law enforcement agencies have encountered numerous instances in which adult paedophiles have made contact with minors through online chat rooms, established a relationship with the child, and later made contact for the purpose of engaging in criminal sexual activities.[3] Nature of cyber staking The nature of cyber stalking is ascertains by the medium which is used for its execution. According to †¦ cyber stalking had been classified into four kinds[4] a) E-mail stalking b) Chat stalking c) Bulletin board systems d) Computer stalking. Email stalking Electronic mail is an electronic postal service that allows individuals to send and receives information in matter of seconds. This sophisticated use of telephone lines allows communication between two people who may or may not know each other but can ‘speak to each other using a computer. In general Email is an insecure method of transmitting information or messages. Everyone who receives an email from a person has access to that persons email id. With some online services as AOL, a persons screen name is also an email address. In addition, when a person posts an item on a newsgroup, that pesons email id may be available to anyone who reads that item. It is unsurprising, then, that email is a favoured medium for cyber stalkers. Technologically sophisticated email harassers send ‘mail bombs, filling a persons inbox with hundreds or even thousands of unwanted mails in the hope of making the account useless. Others send electronic viruses that can infect the victims files.[5] Chat stalking A chat room is a connection provided by online services and available on the internet that allows people to communicate in real time via computer text and modem. Cyber stalkers can use chat rooms to slander and endanger their victims. In such cases the Cyber stalking takes on a public rather than a private dimension. As live chat has become more popular amongst users of the internet with tools such as internet relay chat (IRC), it has also become more popular as a medium through which stalkers can identify and pursue their prey. When a person enters a chat room, his screen name joins the list of names of others in the group. Depending on the nature of the chat software, that person can address others in the room and vise versa as a part of the group discussing from a smaller group in a private chat room or send private, one to one instant messages to others anytime.[6] During ‘chat, participants type instant messages directly to the computer screens of other participants. When a person posts a message to a public news group this is available for anyone to view copy and store. In addition, a persons name, email address and information about the service provider are easily available for inspection as a part of the message itself. Thus, on the internet, public messages can be accessed by anyone anytime- even years after the message were originally written. In IRC, the harasser may chose to interrupt a persons chat electronically or otherwise target a chat system, making it impossible for someone to carry on a conversation with anyone else. The Cyberstalker can engage in live chat harassment or abuse of the victim( otherwise known as ‘flaming) or he/she may leave improper message o the message board or in chat rooms for or about the victim. Bulletin board systems A bulletin board system (BBS) is a local computer that can be called directly with a modem[7]. Usually they are privately operated and offer various services depending on the owner and the users. A bulletin board allows leaving messages in group forums to be read at a later time. Often a BBS is not connected to a network of other computers, but increasingly BBSs are offering internet access and co Cyber stalkers area using bulletin boards to harass their victims.[8] Online have been known to known to post insulting messages on electronic bulletin boards signed with email addresses of the person being harassed. The Cyber stalker can also post statements about the victims or start rumours which spread through the BBS. In addition a Cyber stalker can ‘dupe another internet users into harassing or threatening a victim by posting a controversial or enticing message on the board under the name , phone numbers or email address of the victim, resulting in subsequent responses being sent to the victim.[9] Computer stalking With computer stalking, cyber stalker exploits the internet and the windows operating system in order to assume control over the computer of the targeted victim. An individual ‘windows based computer connected to the internet can be identified, allowing the online stalker to exercise control over the computer of the victim. A cyber stalker can communicate directly with his or her target as soon as the target computer connects to the internet. The stalker can also assume control over the victims computer and the only defensive option for the victim is to disconnect and relinquish his or her current internet address.[10] An example of this kind of cyber stalking was the case of a woman who received a message stating ‘ Im going to get you. The cyber stalker then opened the womans CD-ROM drive in order to prove that he had control over her computer. cyberstalking trends and statistics offenders Previous studies that have investigated stalking offenders by and large, have focused on the offline stalking offender Regardless for the offenders group such as ‘simple, ‘love or ‘erotomanic statistics reports, male offenders to account for the majority of offline stalking offenders. Working to Halt Online Abuse (2000) statistics also support the gender ratio of offenders claiming, 68% of online harassers/cyber stalkers are male. Furthermore, common social and psychological factors have been found within offline stalking offender population. For example, social factors such as the diversity in socio-economic backgrounds and either underemployment or unemployment have been found significant factors in offline stalking offenders[11]. In a research done on young stalkers between 9 and 18 years of age little difference was found between young and adult offline stalking offenders. For example, the majority of offenders were male, had some form of previous relationship with the victim and experienced social isolation.[12] Victims Currently, there are limited studies on the victims of cyber stalking. Although, anyone has the potential to become a victim of offline stalking or cyber stalking, several factors can increase the statistical likelihood of becoming a victim. Studies[13] that have investigated offenders of offline stalking, have found some common factors within the selection of victims. For example, contrary to public belief, a large proportion of stalking victims are regular people rather than the rich and famous. Goode claimed[14], up to 80% of offline stalking victims are from average socio-economic backgrounds. In addition, the statistical likelihood of becoming a victim increases with gender. Working to Halt Online Abuse (2000) reports, 87% of online harassment/cyber stalking victims are female. However, victim gender statistics may not represent true victims, as females are more likely to report being a victim of online harassment/cyber stalking than males. Although studies have shown that the majority of victims are female of average socio-economic status, studies have also shown that offline stalking is primarily a crime against young people, with most victims between the age of 18 and 29.[15] Stalking as a crime against young people may account for the high prevalence of cyber stalking victims within universities. For example, the University of Cincinnati study showed, 25% of college women had been cyber stalked.[16]. Nevertheless, previous relationships have been shown to increase the likelihood of being stalked offline. For example, it was reported, 65% offline victims had a previous relationship with the stalker[17]. Although studies of offline stalking claim the majority of victims have had a previous relationship with the stalker Working to Halt Online Abuse Statistics[18] fails to support a previous relationship as a significant risk factor, for online harassment/cyber stalking. For example, 53% of victims had no prior relationship with the offender. Therefore, the risk factor of a prior relationship with the stalker may not be as an important factor in cyber stalking, as it is in offline stalking. Psychological effects of cyberstalking Currently, there are few studies on the psychological impact on victims. However, Westrup[19]studied the psychological effects of 232 female offline stalking victims. He found out that the majority of victims had symptoms of PTSD, depression, anxiety and experienced panic attacks. Additionally, it was found that 20% of victims increased alcohol consumption and 74% of victims suffered sleep disturbances[20]. Nevertheless, social and psychological effects of offline stalking cannot be separated as social effects can impact on psychological effects and psychological effects can impact on the social effects. Although the majority of studies have focused on the offline stalking victims, there is no evidence to suggest that cyber stalking is any less of an experience than offline stalking (Minister for Justice and Customs, 2000), As shown, there are many common themes between offline stalking and cyber stalking. For example, offenders are most likely to be male and offline stalking or cyber stalking is the response to a failed (offline/online) relationship. Additionally, young females account for the majority of victims. Furthermore, victims experience significant social and psychological effects from offline stalking or cyber stalking.[21] Legal responses to cyberstalking Cyber stalking is are a relatively new phenomenon and many countries are only now beginning to address the problem. India has also witnessed cases of cyber stalking, cyber harassment and cyber defamation. However, as there is no specific law or provision under the IT Act, a number of these cases are either not registered or are registered under the existing provisions of Indian Penal Code—which are ineffective and do not cover the said cyber crimes.[22] Since its promulgation, the IT Act 2000 has undergone some changes. One big change is the recognition of electronic documents as evidence in a court of law. Market players believe this will go a long way in giving encouragement to electronic fund transfers and promoting electronic commerce in the country. However, all hope is not lost as the cyber crime cell is conducting training programmes for its forces. It also has plans to organize special courses for corporate to combat cyber crime and use the IT Act effectively. Cyber defamation Defamation can be understood as the intentional infringement of another persons right to his good name. It is the wrongful and intentional publication of words or behavior concerning another person, which has the effect of injuring that persons status, good name, or reputation in society. It is not defamatory to make a critical statement that does not have a tendency to cause damage, even if the statement turns out to be untrue[23]. In this case a claim for malicious falsehood[24] may be raised. Another key feature of the Internet is that users do not have to reveal their identity in order to send e-mail or post messages on bulletin boards. Users are able to communicate and make such postings anonymously or under assumed names. This feature, coupled with the ability to access the internet in privacy and seclusion of ones own home or office and the interactive, responsive nature of communications on the Internet, has resulted in users being far less inhibited about the contents of their messages resulting in cyber space becoming excessively prone to defamation. What is defamatory? As to what is defamatory; Permiter v. Coupland[25] and Youssoupoff v. Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures Ltd[26] lay down that it is a publication without justification or lawful excuse, which is calculated to (meaning â€Å"likely to†) injure the reputation of another by exposing him to â€Å"hatred, contempt, or ridicule†[27] and make the claimant â€Å"shunned and avoided†. Then in Sim v. Stretch[28] the definition was widened to include the test whether the words tend to lower the plaintiff in the estimation of the right-thinking members of society in general. A persons good name can only be damaged if maligning statements are made to someone other than that person; that is, the defamatory statement must be disclosed to a third person, thereby satisfying the requirement of publication. Thus the law of defamation places a heavy burden on the defendant. All that a plaintiff has to prove, in a defamation action, is the publication of defamatory matter. The onus then lies on the defendant to prove innocence. In essence, the law on defamation attempts to create a workable balance between two equally important human rights: The right to an unimpaired reputation and the right to freedom of expression. In a cyber society, both these interests are increasingly important. Protection of reputation is arguably even more important in a highly technological society, since one may not even encounter an individual or organization other than through the medium of the Internet. Jurisdiction It is a fact that the tried and true real world legal principles do not apply in the digital generation. Even seemingly ubiquitous, time honoured principles must be examined, including whether a court has the power to exercise jurisdiction over a defendant because of the defendants ties to or use of the Internet or Internet related technologies. This jurisdictional rethinking requires us to address the concept that involves the right of the sovereign to exert its power and control over people or entities that use the Internet One of the complexities of the Internet is the fact that Internet communications are very different than telephone communications. The telephone communication system is based on circuit-switching technology, where a dedicated line is allocated for transmission of the entire message between the parties to the communication. A dedicated line, on the other hand, does not accomplish Internet communications. A message sent from an Internet user in India may travel via one or more other countries before reaching a recipient who is also sitting at a computer in India. Therefore, the lack of a physically tangible location and the reality that any Internet communication may travel through multiple jurisdictions creates a variety of complex jurisdictional problems[29]. Position in india Cases of cyber defamation do not fit neatly in the accepted categories of crimes. They represent harm of greater magnitude than the traditional crimes and of a nature different from them. Unlike the traditional crimes, they are not in the shape of positive aggressions or invasions[30]. They may not result in direct or immediate injury; nevertheless, they create a danger, which the law must seek to minimize. Hence, if legislation applicable to such offences, as a matter of policy, departs from legislation applicable to ordinary crimes, in respect of the traditional requirements as to mens rea and the other substantive matters, as well as on points of procedure, the departure would be justified[31] An effort is still wanted to formulate an international law on the use of Internet to curb this imminent danger of cyber crimes and to achieve a crime free cyber space. Defamation laws should be sufficiently flexible to apply to all media. The difficulty is that the defamation laws world over were principally framed at a time when most defamatory publications were either spoken or the product of unsophisticated printing. We do need a stronger legal enforcement regime in India to combat the increasing cyber crimes or in other words, efficacy in dispensation of justice will be instrumental in curtailing such activities. The position in Indian law is not very clear and amendments should be brought to Section 67 of the Information Technology Act, 2000[32] and also to Section 499 of the Indian Penal Code[33], by expressly bring within their ambit offences such as defamation in cyber space, which is certainly a socio-economic offence. Internet Banking Fraud The concept of internet banking was introduced to facilitate the depositors to have access to their financial undertakings globally. But every good thing has its own demerits; the introduction of this system was coupled by a number of fraud incidents in which the money of depositors was embezzled by the net swindlers popularly known as hackers.[34] Digital Extortion For any company doing business on the Internet, its the sound of doom: a computer voice warning of an inbound attack. Call it a cyber-shakedown: A hacker threatens to shut down a companys Web page, unless the business pays up.[35] Digital Extortion can be defined as, â€Å"Illegally penetrating through the system of an enterprise and then compelling it to pay substantial amounts in lieu of their secret data or to save their system from being wiped out by the hackers.† In a recent incident, Security researchers at Websense were trying to learn why a clients files were scrambled when they found a note demanding $200 for the electronic key to the files. The money was to be sent to an online payment service. The data was recovered without paying the ransom, but experts are worried that more sophisticated attacks could be more serious.[36] Credit Card Frauds Credit Card popularly known as plastic money has came up as a panacea for the troubles of carrying huge amount of money in the pocket. The credit card embodies two essential aspects of the basic banking functions: the transmission of payments and the granting of credit. But again the usage of this technology has brought in new forms of crimes with the fraudsters employing entirely new technologies to manipulate this technology for their illegal economic gains because unlike paper money, it was not anonymous and the usage of credit card can be traced. The Indian Legal Response to Data Theft Related Cyber Crimes In the past few years, India has emerged as a leader in information technology. Also, there has been an explosion of the BPO industry in India, an industry which is based primarily on IT[37], an industry where there is a huge risk of data theft since the business primarily is based on huge amounts of sensitive data of the customers. The numbers of computer literates have also grown at a rapid pace. The prices of computers and other peripherals have slashed drastically. Dial-up and Broadband connections, both are found and are easily accessed at cheap rates. All this has resulted in making the middle-class in India computer literate as well. Hence, as a result of all these developments, the Indian Parliament enacted the Information Technology Act, 2000. The researchers will discuss some of the remedies provided for in brief and has also provided certain suggestions as to where the act can be amended. 1) Penalty for Tampering with Computer Files As discussed already, Industrial espionage may also include tampering with the computer files to slow down the system or corrupt databases. Section 65 of the Act defines this sort of offence and prescribes an imprisonment of 3 years or fine extending to two lakh rupees. 2) Penalty for Hacking This also relates to data theft and industrial espionage. Hacking is where a person hacks into a computer resource and in any way destroys, deletes or alters any information is to be punished with an imprisonment of up to three years or a fine extending up to two lakh rupees. For this the requirement of mens rea, i.e. metal element is required. 3) Penalty for Damage of Computer, Computer System, etc. This is the section which can be said to deal directly with data spying. Section 43 says that whosoever without the permission of the owner accesses any computer ,downloads, copies or extracts any data, computer data base or such information is liable to pay compensation not exceeding rupees one crore. It takes care of all the possibilities arising out of such situations. In this case the condition of mens rea is not required, i.e. this section imposes a strict liability on every unauthorized access. 4) Penalty for breach of Confidentiality and Privacy Now, this section seeks to bring to the book people who secure access to any electronic record etc. and without the consent of the person concerned disclose the information to a third party. Shortcomings of the Act: * No steps to combat Internet Piracy- There is absolutely no legislation to combat the menace of piracy which has India firmly in its iron grip .As discussed by the researchers above India is one of the countries where there is rampant violation of copyrights. Pirates sell copyrighted material openly, on the streets, yet nothing can be done about it. * Power of Police To Search Limited to Public Places-Police officers can search public places and arrest any person having committed a cyber crime but it is seldom that such crime takes place in the open. Hence, the police have been limited in its powers by the act. * Issue of Privacy and Surveillance-There is no legislation that protects the citizens from having their physical features being examined and the details stored without their consent. When biometric systems gain currency in India the old argument of Privacy v. Security will have to be waged as it has been waged in the US. As we have seen, there are various aspects of data theft, not only the conventional one, though that remains one of the most well-known ways of data-theft, i.e. data spying .In todays world there is no one way of defining data. Data can still be in the form of a spreadsheet and also you can call information about a person including his physical features, which if they fall into the wrong hands can cause identity theft and can be used in various other ways to commit crime. The companies should monitor their employees, before hiring their employees and after hiring them. Employees should be given incentives and good salaries so that they resist the temptation to give away information to rival companies. Since it is a capitalistic system, competition will always remain, and companies will sink to unfair competition. Hence, unfair practices will always exist, and to minimize those companies should take all precautions necessary. As far as the laws concerning internet piracies go, not only in India, but the entire world needs better and more stringent laws that protect the copyright of intellectual property and stop the rampant copyright violation that has engulfed the whole world. Copyright laws need to be strengthened or else creativity will suffer since the artistes or investors will have no incentive. The music, film and publishing industry have all suffered heavily, to the tune of billions. India, also, needs more legislation, and most importantly of all, it needs to find ways to implement the existing laws, for example giving the police powers to search private places in case of suspicion of cyber crime. The definition of hacking needs to be modified and narrowed, since in the existing legislation the definition includes too many unnecessary acts. A lot of work regarding the use of biometric technology has to be done. The problem which the US face now (as has been discussed above) is the problem which is going to arise now, in India. Though biometric technology is definitely the way to go in view of the increased risk of terrorist attacks all around the globe, but there are serious issues of, not only violation of privacy, but also that of data theft, not only by criminals, but by the state itself Challenges of information technology to existing legal regime The impact of Internet on the existing legal regime can be well appreciated by the fact that the US Congress had introduced more than 50 bills pertaining to Internet and e- commerce, in the first three months of 1999 alone.[38] The issues, which need to be addressed urgently, are security of transactions, privacy, property, protection of children against an easy access to inappropriate content, jurisdiction, and validity of contracts, Procedural rules of evidence and other host of issues. Constitutional issues The issues raised by the advent of the Internet relevant to the constitutional lawyers are freedom of speech and privacy. The questions regarding the freedom of speech, which need to be answered, are: 1. Is publication, of information on the Internet equivalent to the speech and expression made by an ascertained person in real space within the political boundaries? 2. If it amounts to speech and expression should it be then regulated? 3. If it is to be regulated, should it enjoy the freedom available to press and thus subject to restrictions of article 19(2) or be treated as broadcast media, which is subject to governmental regulations? 4. Should we consider Internet a different media unparallel with the traditionally known and have to come up with different legal regime? In the developed world, a record bank is created in which individuals record image is stored. This record image is based on the information collected from different sources pertaining to an individual who remains unaware of the method, process and sources of record image[39].This record image has far reaching implications for an individual who may apply for insurance, medical care, credit and employment benefits.[40] The government also maintains electronic files, which contain sensitive information. This information is shared among the government agencies, private organisations and between the government and private sector, which in fact is facilitated by the technology itself. There is a possibility that the data collected from different sources to prepare a profile is outdated, inaccurate or out rightly false. Translating information to make it computer readable further compounds the problem. This increases the possibility of inaccuracies. Thus the objection is not that the inform ation has been collected with the knowledge of the concerned person, but the objection lies in the fact that an inaccurate information has been collected which will be repeatedly used to evaluate character, reputation, employment chances and credit worthiness of an individual who was not given chance to go through the information before it is finally stored, nor does he know the source where from the information has been collected. The Supreme Court of India has found article 21 flexible enough to encompass right to privacy within its fold. In Peoples Union for Civil Liberties v. Union of India[41] the apex court held the right to privacy a fundamental right. The apex court reminded that this right has its genesis in international instruments more particularly in articles 17[42]and 12[43] of the international Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1948, respectively to which India is a signatory and has to respect these instruments as they in no way infringe the domestic laws.[44] There are no two opinions about the fact that the Internet is going to be on central stage in future where an individual cannot be even in a take it or leave it situation. Its pervasiveness, speed and efficiency will provide little scope t

The Writing Style and Beliefs of Kate Chopin Essay -- Biography Biogra

The Writing Style and Beliefs of Kate Chopin  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   Kate Chopin was an extraordinary writer of the nineteenth century. Despite failure to receive positive critical response, she became one of the most powerful and controversial writers of her time. She dared to write her thoughts on topics considered radical: the institution of marriage and women's desire for social, economic, and political equality. With a focus on the reality of relationships between men and women, she draws stunning and intelligent characters in a rich and bold writing style that was not accepted because it was so far ahead of its time. She risked her reputation by creating female heroines as independent women who wish to receive sexual and emotional fulfillment, an idea unheard of in the 1800s. In the late nineteenth century, the central belief of the vast majority was that the woman's job was to support and nurture her husband and children. Women were given no individual identity and were seen only in relation to a family. Women of this time could not vote and therefore had no say in any political matter. Women who wished to comment politically did so with some form of art, including music, painting, and writing (Magill, American 387). According to Frank Magill, when a woman considers herself only as a part of a relationship with someone, then that relationship becomes the central issue of her life (American 386). As a woman whose husband died young, leaving her six children to raise alone, Chopin understands that kind of dependency upon relationships (Magill, American 384). Almost as working out of her own role, she explores in her writing the complexity between men and women. Readers realize that Chopin's writing in the 1890s was far ahead of ... ...'The Storm'." The Markham Review 2.2 (1970): 1-4. Baker, Christopher. "Chopin's 'The Storm.'" Explicator 52.4 (1994): 225-226. Chopin, Kate. "The Storm." Literature Across Cultures. 2nd ed. Sheena Gillespie, Terezinha Fonseca, Carol A. Sanger. Boston, Allyn: 1998. 345-348. ---. "A Respectable Woman." Gillepsie, Fonseca, and Sanger. 342-344. ---. "At the 'Cadian Ball." The Awakening and selected stories by Kate Chopin. Ed. Sandra M. Gilbert. New York: Viking Penguin Inc., 1983.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  179-188. ---. "Athà ©naà ¯se." Gilbert. 229-261. Dyer, Joyce. "Gouvernail, Kate Chopin's Sensitive Bachelor." The Southern Literary Journal 14.1 (1981): 46-55. Magill, Frank N., ed. Critical Survey of Short Fiction. New Jersey: Salem Press, 1981. 1132-1136. ---. Magill's Survey of American Literature New York: Marshall Cavendish Corporation, 1991. 386-391.

Humanity and Reason in Othello Essays -- Othello essays

Humanity and Reason in Othello  Ã‚  Ã‚      In Othello Shakespeare probes deeply into the human condition by creating characters, who, by their inability to think rationally, surrender what sets them above animals. Before he succumbs to Iago's poisonous innuendoes, Othello himself expresses his clear understanding of this role of the human intellect. He initially refuses to listen to Iago's suggestions that Desdemona cannot be trusted, "Exchange me for a goat/When I shall turn the business of my soul/To such exsufflicate and blown surmises" (3.3.194-96). Othello feels that he would be acting like an animal if he became irrationally jealous because someone would say "my wife is fair, feeds well, loves company" (3.3.198). He tells Iago that he will not blindly fall into jealousy, especially when he never has had reason to suspect Desdemona, "I'll see before I doubt; when I doubt, prove;/And on the proof, there is no more but this--/Away at once with love or jealousy" (3.3.205-07). Othello is at this point a confident man, both in his wife's faithfulness, and in his ability to think rationally. However, Shakespeare shows that this confidence is often not enough. In his Sonnet 129, Shakespeare describes lust as another force that destroys the ability to reason effectively. The poet depicts lust as desire that is Past reason hunted, and no sooner had, Past reason hated as a swallowed bait On purpose laid to make the taker mad: ... All this world well knows, yet none knows well To shun the heaven that leads men to this hell. (7-8,15-16) In his sonnet, Shakespeare laments that even when we know that lust is dangerously irrational, most people cannot resist falling under its spell. Othello finds the same to be true ab... ...mplete Works of Shakespeare . Ed. David Bevington. 4th ed. NY: Longman, 1997. Soellner, Rolf. Shakespeare’s Patterns of Self-Knowledge . N.p.: Ohio State UP, 1972. OUTLINE Thesis Statement: When the characters in Othello cease to use reason they lose their humanity and are associated with animal imagery. Roderigo Irrationally in love with Desdemona Wants to drown himself like "cats and blind puppies" Iago calls him a snipe Iago Irrationally jealous of Othello and Cassio Equates love with animalistic lust Encourages others to "be a man" A man is decisive A man looks out for himself A man loves himself Roderigo calls him an "inhuman dog", Lodovico a "Spartan dog" Emilia implores him to tell the truth "if thou be'st a man" Othello Irrationally jealous of Desdemona and Cassio Equates lack of reason with animals Refers to himself as a dog.

Glory vs Shawshank Redemption :: essays papers

Glory vs Shawshank Redemption Two of the well known movies that were the abolishinst movement in Amerrica were Glory and The Shawshank Redemption.On the surface, the movies the shawshank redemption and glory seem to be completely different.But, as the movies upfold, it is evident that both the prisoners of Shawshank and the soldiers of the 54th Massachusetts are in search of the same thing. For the prisoners of Shashank, normalcy is freedom. For the soldiers of the 54th, normalcy is equality. In the Shawshank Andy uses his influences to give prisoners of shawshank tastes of freedom. The solodiers of the 54th strives to be normal, but before they can be normal, they must be equal. They wanted freedom too. One point of intrest that shows Andy's spirit is indeed unbreakable was when he offered Captain Hadley some financial advice on his recent inheritance. He tells captain Hadley that if he trusts his wife he can tell the I.R.S that he is giving the inhertance as a gift from Andy to his wife. By doing this the money can not touched by the I.R.S, so Captain Hadley gains all the money without any tax taken out.In return andy Dufresne( tim robbins) asked for beer for his " Co-workers.His friend ., Red simply states," we sat and drank with the sun on our shoulders and felt like free men.Hell, we could have been tarring the roof of one of our own houses. We were the lords of all creation. As for andy he spent that break hunkered in the shade, a strange little smile on his face, watching us drink his beer." This quote shows how little things teh prisoners get can make them happy.Another example would be when he used the hammer to escape from prison. It started when he asked Red to get him a rok hammer, which he said he would use to shape rocks. He calms Red's conscious as he tells it would take him a thousand years to break out of prison with a rosk hammer.When he received the rosk hammer he started to shape rocks as soon as he could and hidden that hole with a poster.After he had the hole big enough to crawl throught, he asked Heywood for a six-foot piece of rope.

Life of the Prophet Jeremiah

More is known of the life of Jeremiah than of any other literary prophet. He began prophesying in the thirteenth year of the reign of King Josiah (1:2; 25:3), i. e. , 627 B. C. , when Jeremiah was but a youth (1:6). Jeremiah was a reluctant prophet, but felt compelled to speak God's word (20:9). He prophesied until after Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem in 586 B. C. (39:1-10; 43:7-8; 44:1), and his ministry lasted a total of about fifty years. Josiah's great religious reformation came in the early part of Jeremiah's work (cf. Kings chapters 22-23), but the reforms did not reach the hearts of the people, for they were still rebellious (25:1-7). The Jews opposed Jeremiah and his work from the very outset. First, the citizens of his native Anathoth tried to stop his work and even attempted to kill him (11:18-23). Even his kinsmen opposed him (12:6). Jeremiah later moved to Jerusalem, but he endured inveterate opposition there also. When King Josiah died, Jeremiah lamented his death (2 Chron. 35:25). Jeremiah prophesied against Josiah's wicked successors: Jehoahaz (also called â€Å"Shallum†) (22:11-17), Jehoiakim (22:18-19), and Jeconiah (i. . , Coniah or Jehoiachin) (22:24- In the very year Nebuchadnezzar came against Jerusalem, Jeremiah announced both his coming and the seventy year captivity of the Jews (25:1-14). Under the rule of Jehoiakim, Jeremiah preached a great sermon in the temple in Jerusalem (chapters 7-9). After this the princes, prophets, and priests of Judah called for his death (26:8-11). However, Jeremiah was delivered at that time (26:24). At the Lord's direction, Jeremiah dictated his prophecies to Baruch, who wrote them on a scroll (36:1-8). However, when King Jehoiakim read the scroll, he was so angry he cut it with a scribe's knife and threw it into the fire (36:20-25). The king commanded that Jeremiah and Baruch be seized, but the Lord hid them (36:26). Jeremiah dictated the prophecies to Baruch again and added others (36:27-32). Jeremiah urged King Zedekiah to be faithful to Nebuchadnezzar, but Zedekiah refused (27:12-22). The Babylonians besieged Jerusalem, and great suffering resulted. Later, Jeremiah was accused of trying to defect to the enemy and was placed in prison (37:11-15). Subsequently the king transferred him from the dungeon to the court of the prison and gave him a daily ration of bread (37:17-21). When Jeremiah again prophesied against Jerusalem, the king turned him over to the princes, who threw him into a dungeon, the bottom of which was filled with mud, into which Jeremiah sank (38:1-6). Jeremiah would have died there, had he not been rescued by Ebed-Melech, an Ethiopian eunuch of the king's house (38:7-13). When Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem, he let Jeremiah go free to his own home (39:11-14). A mutinous band of Jews murdered Gedaliah, who had been appointed governor by Nebuchadnezzar (41:1-3). They decided to flee to Egypt for safety, taking Jeremiah with them as a hostage (43:1-7). They took Jeremiah to Tahpanes in Egypt, where he continued to prophesy against them (43:8 – 44:1). The life of Jeremiah was one of sorrow upon sorrow. His people whom he loved and with whom he pleaded unceasingly for fifty years continually refused to hear him, rewarded his labor with rejection and persecution, and eventually perished as the result.

Communications Decency Act Essay

Different countries have different laws. Since different countries have different laws, internet service providers from different countries have different policies. Because of that, it will be hard to come up with a universal standard for the Internet. And enforcing that standard will be a different story on its own. â€Å"The laws concerning decency are only as good as those who are willing to abide by them† (â€Å"Grossman† internet). There have been a lot of attempts to censor the Internet. There has been an attempt to make censorship on the Internet a law, as a part of the telecommunications bill, Communications Decency Act, shortened as CDA. CDA would have made it a crime to post anything on the internet â€Å"that, in context, depicts or describes, in terms patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards, sexual or excretory activities or organs† (â€Å"Grossman† internet). Also caught up in the internet-censorship-fervor are the software companies. Almost overnight, many companies sprang up providing parents and libraries programs that promised to filter out all the inappropriate materials on the Internet. Branched out from the filter programs are filter search engines. Basically, it is a same old search engine that puts its results through the filter engines. Another attempt to censor the Internet is made by companies that attempted to rate every website on the homepage. They are independent companies that visit each website and give it a rating. All of the attempts to censor the Internet had been ineffective. All of the past actions about Internet censorship have been, more or less, failures. The filter programs have failed to truly filter out the unwanted. It is like using mesh wires to filter out basketballs. Not only do you filter out the basketballs, you also filter out the tennis balls and golf balls. The filter programs filters by two ways: searching for keywords or blocking a list of websites previously reviewed by someone as inappropriate. When the filter program filter out websites by keyword, they also filter out a lot of appropriate and possibly useful information. For example, a website containing information about breast cancer would be blocked out because it contained the word breast. Same result would happen with a website containing a recipe for chicken breast. When the filter program uses the pre-made list to block out, it is very accurate because someone has already reviewed the website, and would not confuse a website about breast cancer with a breast fetish website. However, there are two downfalls to the method. First, there is just too many websites to review. There are literally billions of websites out there and millions of new ones being made everyday. If a staff of a thousand people reviewed day and night for a year, they still wouldn’t have gotten close to reviewing all the websites. Second, unlike books and magazines, Internet websites come and go on a snap of a finger. It doesn’t take long to create a homepage, neither does relocating it. The second a new list of â€Å"banned† website is released, it is already obsolete. Since the so-called â€Å"family-friendly† search engines are based on the same inefficient filter programs, they are also inefficient. Only a very small fraction of the Internet contains inappropriate material, however, the inefficient â€Å"family-friendly† search engines filters out around 95% of the Internet (â€Å"Faulty† internet). Even when Dr. Suess was searched, most of the websites were blocked. 2630 of the 2638 websites found in a normal search engine was blocked (â€Å"Faulty† internet). It is a fact that pornography websites tend to link themselves all over the search engine to attract the most customers. But do they really link themselves to 99. 7% of a Dr. Suess search (â€Å"Faulty† internet)? Even after they wiped out 99. 7% of the search result, one of the eight that wasn’t blocked was an inappropriate website (â€Å"Faulty† internet). It was a parody of a Dr. Suess story using details from the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson (â€Å"Faulty† internet). The companies that tried to set up a rating system have yet to succeed either. The companies have yet created an universal standard for the ratings.

Corporate Finance

1. Which one of the following is a means by which shareholders can replace company management? A. stock options B. promotion C. Sarbanes-Oxley Act D. agency play E. proxy fight 2. Decisions made by financial managers should primarily focus on increasing which one of the following? A. size of the firm B. growth rate of the firm C. gross profit per unit produced D. market value per share of outstanding stock E. total sales 3. Which one of the following is the financial statement that shows the accounting value of a firm's equity as of a particular date? A. income statement B. creditor's statement C. balance sheet D. statement of cash flows E. dividend statement4. Which one of the following is the financial statement that summarizes a firm's revenue and expenses over a period of time? A. income statement B. balance sheet C. statement of cash flows D. tax reconciliation statement E. market value report5. The percentage of the next dollar you earn that must be paid in taxes is referred to as the _____ tax rate. A. mean B. residual C. total D. average E. marginal EDCAE6. The cash flow of a firm which is available for distribution to the firm's creditors and stockholders is called the: A. perating cash flow. B. net capital spending. C. net working capital. D. cash flow from assets. E. cash flow to stockholders.7. Canine Supply has sales of $2,200, total assets of $1,400, and a debt-equity ratio of 0. 3. Its return on equity is 15 percent. What is the net income? A. $138. 16 B. $141. 41 C. $152. 09 D. $156. 67 E. $161. 548. Beach Wear has current liabilities of $350,000, a quick ratio of 1. 65, inventory turnover of 3. 2, and a current ratio of 2. 9. What is the cost of goods sold? A. $980,000 B. $1,060,000 C. $1,200,000 D. $1,400,000 E. 1,560,0009. The sustainable growth rate of a firm is best described as the: A. minimum growth rate achievable assuming a 100 percent retention ratio. B. minimum growth rate achievable if the firm maintains a constant equity multiplier. C. maximum growth rate achievable excluding external financing of any kind. D. maximum growth rate achievable excluding any external equity financing while maintaining a constant debt-equity ratio. E. maximum growth rate achievable with unlimited debt financing.10. The internal growth rate of a firm is best described as the: A. inimum growth rate achievable assuming a 100 percent retention ratio. B. minimum growth rate a chievable if the firm maintains a constant equity multiplier. C. maximum growth rate achievable excluding external financing of any kind. D. maximum growth rate achievable excluding any external equity financing while maintaining a constant debt-equity ratio. E. maximum growth rate achievable with unlimited debt financing. DEDDC11. What is the present value of $1,100 per year, at a discount rate of 10 percent if the first payment is received 6 years from now and the last payment is received 28 years from now? A. $6,067. 36 B. $6,138. 87 C. $6,333. 33 D. $6,420. 12 E. $6,511. 0812. The current yield is defined as the annual interest on a bond divided by which one of the following? A. coupon B. face value C. market price D. call price E. dirty price13. Currently, the bond market requires a return of 11. 6 percent on the 10-year bonds issued by Winston Industries. The 11. 6 percent is referred to as which one of the following? A. coupon rate B. face rate C. call rate D. yield to maturi ty E. interest rate14. Big Falls Tours just paid a dividend of $1. 55 per share.The dividends are expected to grow at 30 percent for the next 8 years and then level off to a 7 percent growth rate indefinitely. What is the price of this stock today given a required return of 15 percent? A. $67. 54 B. $69. 90 C. $72. 47 D. $77. 67 E. $78. 1915. Hardwoods, Inc. is a mature manufacturing firm. The company just paid a $10 dividend, but management expects to reduce the payout by 9 percent each year, indefinitely. How much are you willing to pay today per share to buy this stock if you require a 15 percent rate of return? A. $34. 79 B. $37. 92 C. $38. 27 D. $41. 33 E. $42. 09 ACDDB Corporate Finance Consider a project to produce solar water heaters. It requires a $10 million investment and offers a level after-tax cash flow of $1. 75 million per year for 10 years. The opportunity cost of capital is 12 percent, which reflects the project's business risk. Suppose the project is financed with $5 million of debt and $5 million of equity. The interest rate is 8 percent and the marginal tax rate is 35 percent. The debt will be paid off in equal annual installments over the project's 10-year life. A) Calculate APV.APV = NPV + PV of debt tax shield NPV = PV of cash flows – initial investment Initial Investment 10,000,000 Cash flows 1,750,000 Period 10 years Discounting rate12% PV of cash flows 9,887,890 using the PV function NPV (112,110) We now calculate the PV of debt tax shield Year Debt Outstanding at Start of Year InterestInterest Tax ShieldsPresent Value of Tax Shields 1 5,000,000 400,000 140,000 129,630 2 4,500,000 360,000 126,000 108,025 3 4,000,000 320,000 112,000 88,909 4 3,500,000 280,000 98,000 72,033 3,000,000 240,000 84,000 57,169 6 2,500,000 200,000 70,000 44,112 7 2,000,000 160,000 56,000 32,675 8 1,500,000 120,000 42,000 22,691 9 1,000,000 80,000 28,000 14,007 10 500,000 40,000 14,000 6,485 Total 2,200,000 770,000 575,736 NPV (112,110) PV of debt tax shield 575,736 APV 463,626 B) How does APV change if the firm incurs issue costs of $400,000 to raise the $5 million of required equity? With flotation cost , APV = NPV + PV of debt tax shield – flotation cost Flotation cost 400,000 APV 63,626 Corporate Finance There is nothing like optimum capital structure for a firm. The Optimal Capital structure is that Capital Structure at which the weighted Average cost of capital (Ko) is Minimum. It is that combination of Equity and Debt at which the total cost of capital is mini-mum. Trade-off theory argues that there's an optimal amount of debt of each firm. At this level of debt, firms can take the most advantage of debts. Debts can be tax shield so that they can save money for firms to reinvest in other projects so as to earn more profits.However, debts can be quite dangerous because highly leveraged firms may face bankruptcy and financial distress costs (no matter they're direct or indirect) may increase the cost of debt of the company. Therefore, there must be a level of debt that make the benefits of debt and potential danger of debt offset each other. In another word, the marginal revenue of debt equals the marginal cost of debt. But remember, the real cases are not as easy as we put here.Whe n a firm procures funds from investors or owners, there will be an explicit or implicit promise to pay return to them. The return is paid in terms of interest which is compulsory paid to all investors and owners, but the return paid to owners in the form of dividends is optional. The dividend decision by any firm, like the investment and financing decisions is also taken for maximization of market price of the share.The term dividend refers to that the portion of profit (after tax) which is distributed among own-ers/shareholders of the firm and the profit which is not distributed is called as retained earnings Dividend Payout Ratio is determined by the dividend policy adopted by the company, and it is im-plemented to decide about the percentage of profits to be distributed by the firm to its own-ers/shareholders. Dividend is always depends on the total profit that a firm acquired after taxes. There are a few factors that affect the Dividend policy of a company.They are Liquidity , G rowth Plans and Control Dividend Payout Ratio is also called as DP Ratio which is a mathematical value as DP Ratio = Dividend paid to the Shareholders / Net Profit after tax. Capital Structural Theories Capital structural theories are designed with a concept of valuation of the firm; it is the earnings of the firm and the investments made by the firm. Capital Structural Theories also used to find the dividend pay-out for its owners/shareholders. Cost of the capital, investment and return on investment (ROI) are a part of dividend policy.The relationship between leverage cost of capital and the value of the firm can be analysed in different ways. Factors determining Capital Structure are minimization of risk, control, flexibility and the profitability of the firm. A firm's capital structure is a combination of the firm's liabilities (debts) and the assets (equity and profits). For Example: A firm with 100 billion as capital structure has 40 billion from equity (shareholders and owner s) and the 60 million as debt (Loans and Funding), then the firm is said to be 40% – equity fi-nanced and 60% – debt financed. . Traditional Theories Net Operating Income (NOI) approach is just an opposite of NI approach. According to the NOI ap-proach, the market value of the firm depends upon the net operating income or profit and the overall cost of capital. NOI approach is based on the argument that the market values the firm as a whole for a given risk complexion. Thus, for a given value of the firm remain the same irrespective of the capital composition and instead on the overall cost of capital.Mathematically Net Operating Income (NOI) is Value of the Firm = Earnings before Tax / Cost of Equity Capital Net Operating Income approach says that an increase in debt proportion of the capital source will always result in increase of the equity proportion of the firm. Modigliani-Miller Model Modigliani-Miller model which was presented in the year of 1958 on the relatio nship of leverage, cost of capital and the value of the firm. This is widely used capital structure method to analyze the value of the firm.They have shown that the financial leverage doesn't matter and the cost of capital and the value of the firm are independent of the capital structure. Modigliani-Miller methods show that there is nothing which may be called as Optimal Capital Structure – to get high valuation of the firm. Modigliani-Miller model is based on following assumptions: 1. The capital markets are perfect and complete information is available to all the investors free of cost. The implication of this assumption is that investors can borrow and lend funds at the same rate and can move quickly from one security to another, 2.Securities are infinitely divisible; Investors are rational and well informed about the risk-return of all the securities. Modigliani-Miller model says that the total value of the firm is equal to the capitalized value of the operating earnings of the firm. The capitalization is to be made at a rate appropriate to the risk class of the firm. Growth Plans, are involved in capital structural theories in which a certain amount will be allocated for the growth plans. A finance manager should draw a plan according for the dividend policy.For Example: The firm has $10 million as equity capital and $6 million as debt capital and the firm made a profit (after tax) of $2 million, and the fund allocated to the growth plan was $1 million. For suppose there are 10,000 shareholders in the company and as per capital structural theories some amount will be allocated for the liquidity that is five hundred thousand and the remaining amount should be distributed as Dividends. In this case each shareholder or the owner will receive $50 as dividend.Capital structural theories say that if a firm is in profit and it is looking to expand the business, the profit can be rolled over to the investment option. In this case there will be no dividend s or bonuses issued to the shareholders or the owners. For Example: Low-payout consequences, which is done when the cash gets accumulated the finan-cial manager may be tempted to take on more projects that do don't meet the minimum rate of return investments. If a firm has $1 million as operating income with 1000 shareholders and firms adopts to take new projects with the profit.Then this may cause unrelated relationship balances between the share-holders and the management of the firm. Optimal Capital Structure: Even though Modigliani-Miller Model says that there is nothing like Opti-mal Capital Structure, but the non-traditional methods say that a firm can attain profits only by im-plementing Optimal Capital Structure. Some firms adopt this capital structure to minimize the risk, flexibility on the investments and the profitability.The finance manager should be able to identify that optimal point (profit point) for the firm precisely, but not to attempt to track the optimal range for the capital structure. Optimal Capital Structure differs from different firms, Existing Firm and a New Firm. For Example: Existing Firm may require additional capital funds for meeting the requirements of growth, expansion, and diversification or even for working capital management. The decision for a particular source of funds is to be taken in the totality of capital structure, i. e. n the light of the re-sultant capital structure after the proposed issue of capital or debt. The Capital Structure of the new firm is designed in the initial stages of the firm and the financial manager has to take care if many considerations, the present capital structure be designed in the light of a future target capital structure. Future plans, growth and diversifications strategies should be considered and factored in the analysis, so optimal capital structure greatly influences the divi-dend policy of any firm, depending upon there capital structure.Broadly speaking the dividend policy can b e determined by two basic analyses required to find the valuation of the proposed capital structure of the firm, i. e. one from the point of view of profitability and another from view of liquidity. Capital structure will always determine the profits of the firm and the development of the firm. Equity and Debt capital are well managed by the capital structure of the firm. A well designed capital structure will have a very good impact on the dividend policy of the company.