Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Dealing with Family Dysfunction - 887 Words

Narrative Challenging Vacation Family vacations bring to mind wonderful summer time activities spent with those you love, unless there are challenges to over come in the family circle. National Lampoon’s Family Vacation adventures provide us with other types of family vacation time and social dysfunctions. A father and son plan a vacation to Florida, which puts to test their relationship. The father and son while having a distant relationship were brought together by the vacation which included riding motorcycles, buying matching t-shirts, and a relaxing walk along the beach. Randy, my wonderful husband comes from a dysfunctional family. While in middle school, Randy’s parents divorced, and his relationship with his dad†¦show more content†¦It was no problem; they just off loaded their motorcycles and began touring the town for a motel room. Settled in at a local motel, they walked to a Walgreen’s for some supplies and picked out a pair of matching t-shirts. They then enjoyed a nice dinner and called it an early night. Early the next morning, they donned their matching t-shirts, had some breakfast, and decided to go for a ride along the coastline for the day. Many hours later, they returned and walked down the boardwalk to a restaurant bar. It became quite obvious that something was not right, by all the nasty stares they were receiving. Finally, two burly men came over and inquired as to where they got their t-shirts. Randy said, â€Å"I found them on sale at the Walgreen’s down the street.† One of the men th en stated, â€Å"Well I would not be wearing them around here, if I were you, because they are Hells Angels t-shirts.† Upon hearing that the father and son downed their drinks, went outside, stripped off the t-shirts and returned to the motel room. The father decided to call it a night, but Randy wasn’t ready, so he put on a different shirt and decided to walk down to the ocean. It was a very dark night with only the lights of the nearby businesses. Randy strolled across the sand toward the sound of the ocean. On top of the sand cap, he took a step forward only to be pitched down a sand berm. Tumbling head first, he bounced and screamed in agony over sand,Show MoreRelated Toronto Mississippi by Joan Macleod Essay837 Words   |  4 Pagesa very negative way. King chooses his job over his family thus forcing Maddie into a state of sadness and this is evident when she says â€Å"Hold on to my perfect little girl. (holding Jhana) You were so warm. To hell with that bed of mine that had suddenly become so big and icy. I’ve got Jhana.† (Macleod 58). Maddie realizes how true of a friend Bill has become that by the end of the play she considers Bill and expresses this by saying â€Å"My family is down on the floor† (Macleod 94). She says this whenRead MoreAddiction Is An Individual Problem Or A Family Problem?810 Words   |  4 Pagesaff ects the addict but the family of the addict. How do the families of addicts behave? Are there any definitive characteristics that families of addicts display? The addictive family is real, well look at the characteristic of this type of family; explore how it allows the addict to continue their destructive behavior all in an attempt to maintain homeostasis. When Normal is dysfunctional Even systems theory has disagreed on whether â€Å"addiction is an individual problem or a family problem† (Stevens Read MoreCounseling : The Best Of Both Worlds1318 Words   |  6 PagesAssign: M1T1 - Counselling and Referring Clients Natalie Walsh Mediation Counselling: Using the best of both worlds. Neither Family dispute Resolution (FDR) nor counselling are defined by a set of standardised, homogeneous processes and there are potentially a variety of models and styles of approaches in both disciplines. As a result, there may often be a similarity in style and process between FDR and counselling. †¢ FDR and counselling may encourage similar outcomes such as the resumptionRead MoreA Monster Calls And Jim Henson s Labyrinth1128 Words   |  5 Pagesmovie, has her monster take the shape of a goblin king. During the protagonists journey they learn to accept a truth about life. In A Monster Calls and Labyrinth, Ness and Henson use their protagonist to illustrate how denial, isolation, and family dysfunction affect relationships and maturity. Firstly, throughout the stories, Sarah and Conner are in denial about an aspect in their life. Sarah is in denial over the fact that she has grown up and needs to become more mature by putting awayRead MoreEffects of Postpartum Depression on Child Bearing and Rearing Family1357 Words   |  6 PagesEffects of Postpartum Depression on Child Bearing and Rearing Family Postpartum depression (PPD) is a major event occurring in eight to fifteen percent of the woman population after delivering their child (Glavin, Smith, Sà ¸rum Ellefsen, 2010). The symptoms and causes of PPD are similar to depression symptoms in other periods of life (Glavin et al., 2010). These symptoms may include feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, loss of interest in daily activities, sleep changes, anger or irritabilityRead MoreRunning With Scissors By Augusten Burroughs1444 Words   |  6 Pagesultimately resulting in a teenager raising a baby, using babysitters, or neglecting the baby to continue their life as a young adult. In these scenarios, parents are more or less, the root and foundation of a dysfunctional family, a dysfunctional family is dictionary defined as, â€Å".. a family in which conflict, misbehavior, and often child neglect or abuse on the part of individual parents occur continually and regularly..†. The reflection which is being put on children when living in conditions that bringRead MoreImpact of Foreclosure Crisis on the Economy Essay1405 Words   |  6 Pagescosts always include economic costs, and economic dysfunctions always involve human costs.† The economic dysfunctions that make up the foreclosure crisis have dealt heavy burdens and costs on individual homeowners who lost their homes or struggled to make payments. These homeowners represent individuals, family members, and contributors to society. These members of the social fabric of our country are first and foremost part of the human family who make up the foundation of our democratic societyRead MoreBiogr aphical Sketch : Dr. Vimala Pillari1471 Words   |  6 PagesBiographical Sketch Dr. Vimala Pillari, the author of Scapegoating in Families, is well known in the social work professional community. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker she has published over 8 books that have become widely known along with several articles. Currently serving as Dean of the Whitney M. Jr. School of Social Work, Dr. Pillari has also served as Dean and Director for two other accredited universities. In addition to her education, she is part-time social worker at Children’s HospitalRead MoreA Brief Note On Counseling And Family Counseling1271 Words   |  6 PagesCounseling Specialty Marriage and Family Counseling Focusing on Minuchin s Structural Family Therapy Bridget G. Cleveland The University of Memphis Authors Note: This paper was prepared for the introduction course 4611: Counseling, taught by Instructor Hatcher. Minuchin’s Structural Family Therapy of Marriage and Family According to Nugent and Jones (2009), Marriage and family counseling began between the 1940 s and 1950 s, but officially became a profession in the late 1970’s andRead MoreThe Relationship Between Alice And Her Family914 Words   |  4 Pagesfather. Alice has a lot of internalized frustration and anguish over her relationship with her parents and her family, especially Michael. She drinks to suppress her true feelings and control her anxiety as much as possible. The family as a whole is really struggling with boundaries and this is leading to triangulation. These are normal patterns of a dysfunctional family. No one in the Green family had a clear identity (not even Amy, the nanny; her role should have been clearly defined). These are signs

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Technology Its Effect on Education Essay - 1087 Words

Education is â€Å"The act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge, developing the powers of reasoning and judgment, and generally of preparing oneself or others intellectually for mature life† (Education). Technology comes in many forms including the Internet. It can be used in many different ways, one being educational purposes. Throughout history, technology has had an effect on Education; examples of this are the Internet, online courses, the use of technology in class, and with these there are also limitations. It’s believed that with technology, educators are able to teach students with a higher impact on their education. â€Å"The Internet is a vast computer network linking smaller computer networks worldwide (usually prec.†¦show more content†¦Even though you’re allowed to work at your own pace in an online class it does not mean that you are able to slack off. This idea of a class without actually having to step into classroom has both pros and cons, as many things do. One of the major pros of taking online classes is as mentioned before, flexibility. The flexibility of online classes allows for students with jobs to work around their busy schedules and still gain an education. Working at your own pace is again one of the other major pros because it allows students to learn good work ethic because most online classes do have some sort of schedule. Then we have learning at your own pace, which is helpful but not a major pro because even with this you are still bounded to learning things before a test, whether you do it in a day, or spread out throughout the time allotted before a test. With this there are many cons to online classes too some being little to no social interaction and also focus. â€Å"If you are a procrastinator or you always need an extra push to complete assignments, you may have difficulty making time for your online classes† (What Are The Cons of Online Learning?). Many students fail to stay focused enough for regular classes and this just gets harder when you go to online courses, especially while trying to juggle a job too. Even with the chance to lose focus you can still miss out on the social aspect of attending a traditional class. â€Å"InShow MoreRelatedThe Effects Of Technology On Education1377 Words   |  6 Pages Amidst the past several decades technology has become a crucial organ, advancing our world to great discoveries and knowledge. It has opened doors to what some may have found impossible only one hundred years ago, but the progress of technology seems to have run into a road block. Inadequate education of h igh school graduates and suffocation of creativity has become a problem all over America. Technology has contributed by hindering our ability to retain information, stalling progression inRead MoreThe Effects of Technology in Education3250 Words   |  13 PagesCheng Chang Burgess Olivia ENG 60 26 July 2012 The Effects of Technology in Education Modern technology has penetrated every aspect of our lives and made great impacts on our daily activities, especially in the area of education. The continuous infusion of technology in education has become an unchangeable tendency. Given the increased use of technology in education, much research has been done on the value of technology in education. However, none of the studies have answered all of the questionsRead MoreTechnology And Its Effect On Education10000 Words   |  40 Pagesefforts in innovation, the rise of technology and the consistent changing of pedagogy, a range of studies have recently shown that students may be exiting the schooling system because of the disconnect between this system and the new digital world which ‘digital natives’ (ref) have become accustomed to in their formative years. A number of papers have pointed to the disconnect, disassociation and discontent of students and their perception of the provision of education and its quality in relation toRead MoreTechnology And Its Effect On Education Essay2079 Words   |  9 Pagesimplementation of technologies in education can be seen not only in tertiary institution, but also in primary and secondary. Technology is seen as an important tool in today’s world where most of the affairs such as business, education and networking are done using technological devices. Malaysia, being a developing country, is trying to keep the pace with other advanced countries like the United State of America, Canada and Japan in which the Government are trying to implement an innovative education systemRead MoreEffects Of Technology On Education824 Words   |  4 PagesIs technology a horrible thing to use in the education environment? Some schoolboards would like to see their school’s test scores ranking increase each year. When the test score ranking increase, it will allow some new teachers and scholars to join their school district. Some parts of the world use technology to increase education. For example, some school districts have the highest score ranking in their state by using technology in the classroom. Technology has improved classroom instructionRead MoreEssay on Effects of Technology on Education1563 Words   |  7 PagesMacDougall Effects of Technology on Education 12/11/2011 Abstract Technology is used in classrooms today and has both positive and negative effects on both students and teachers. I want to show in my paper how technology is not a substitute for a good teacher. Technology must be well implanted by a good teacher to be successful. Computers do not give successful teaching. I start out by discussing the positive effects on teachers and students, in my paper. I then debate the use of technology and itsRead MoreTechnology s Effect On Education1994 Words   |  8 PagesTechnology’s Effect On Education Technology in the past decade or so has significantly grown but the question many linger in their mind is, is technology having a positive or detrimental effect on education? Well this topic has people wondering whether education has benefited or has suffered from technolog mostly because they believe it can help while at the same time think it could be a risk. Levels of education such as elementary and high school have severely changed due to technology along withRead MoreThe Effects Of Technology On Students Attitudes Education Essay1995 Words   |  8 PagesTechnology Has Positive Effects On Students Attitudes Education Technology has evolved and grown rapidly. This is the reason why technology plays a major role in modern life that affects all the aspect of human activities. Therefore, our societies get a lot of benefits from modern technology. Universities and colleges for example have so many facilities. Such as labs with sophisticated computer devices, internet connections with high speed, projectors and smart boards. Using these developed toolsRead MoreThe Positive Effects of Technology in Education Essays3020 Words   |  13 PagesAbstract As technology expands into homes and businesses around the world, this paper looks at how schools will also benefit from its integration. With the â€Å"No Child Left Behind Act† as a guide to challenging new standards, schools need to look at the different types of technology available to them now and how it will benefit not only the students but also what this could mean for instructors and administrators too. In order to meet the ever changing needs of the economies technology, the responsibilityRead More Technology and Language in Education: The Effect of New Technology on Teaching Languages1539 Words   |  7 PagesTechnology and Language in Education: The Effect of New Technology on Teaching Languages Annie Moore, a 15-year-old girl from Ireland arrived at Ellis Island in New York City on January 1, 1892. She was the first immigrant to come to that United States immigration station, but she was certainly not the last. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2000), 28.4 million of the 285.2 million US residents in 2000 were foreign-born. With such a large amount of our population being foreign-born, the

Monday, December 9, 2019

Essential Theories Of Motivation Leadership â€Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Essential Theories Of Motivation Leadership? Answer: Introducation The new era of business organizational behavior is very challenging nowadays. Organizational behavior is the study of the behavior of an organization. Also, we can say the behavior study of individuals and groups in an organization. It is essential in an organization, that managers should follow the proper schedule. The job opportunities, instruction, analysis, scheduling, checking, reviewing the result of jobs, retaining the disciplining of employees and production, set the rules and objectives and checking the work procedure of employee (Armstrong, and Taylor, 2014). The Strength of every organization is based on the study of organizational behavior, which is decided into many divisions this includes organizational culture, workforce diversity, and communication, learning of organization, efficiency, and effectiveness of an organization. The main concern of OB is that what people do in the organization, how their effect the group and organizational behavior (Barry. and Wilkinson, 2016). Recognition: According to research, the organization world is changing, in recent years drastic changes have been occurring. Todays new progressive workplace is totally different from the past, they have new technologies, new features, the services are given by them to the customers and clients are totally different and unique. Increased globalization requires more interaction among people in an organization they come from different culture, nation, religion this is called workforce diversity in the organization (Bromiley, et al., 2015). Diversity has positive and negative both effects on the organization. The Systematic approach represents the relationship between groups, people in an organization. There are three main elements or OB- Ethics Conception Goals Self- actualization: Every organization includes the official, casual and social environment. These three elements give the turn to the organizational behavior. Understand the leadership, different ways of organization. Every organization includes the official, casual and social environment. These three elements give the turn to the organizational behavior. Understand the leadership, different ways of communication, individuals and group structure within the organization, these elements have been provided by the organizational culture communication, individuals and group structure within the organization, these elements have been provided by the organizational culture. The Weakness of every organization can be defined as the relationship between profitability and amount of input and output are called productivity. In management, words productivity is the amount of result produced from the raw material and the accounting of manpower used this ratio is known as productivity. If the amount of raw material and manpower are used less than productivity will be high, so in simple words, we can say that productivity is the reciprocal of the amount of raw material and manpower used. Profitability is known the revenue after paying all the bills and taxes of the company. Profitability is affected by the quality and productivity. Managers also pay the attention towards the costing and the accuracy of the result (Sturm, and Antonakis, 2015.). Key Skills:- Working style of manager should be cooperative. Truthful and Trustworthy manager. Manager pays considerations to the correctness and estimate. Manager understands the quality system and profitability. The Manager can also work in under pressure. Motivation: The question of research to describe the view, to increase the performance of employee using the motivation technique by managers on the employee. The Primary section of the research defining the individual employee specification. In the primary section, the main objective of the research is to have a proper description about the sex, stage of development, educational skills and experience, assignment to be a part of this survey (Schneider, et al., 2013). In the second section the motive of the survey to know the view of an employee about the motivation technique. The goal of motivation technique is confirming the employee to work caringly and enthusiastically. In many cases this technique fell through, there are many methods differ from this technique to achieve this. A motivation technique might give a positive effect on some employees, but in some cases, it might not give the same effect. The motivation of individual is based on their requirements, differ. The factors which effect on the motivation technique of employee are: - salary and income increases, bonuses, prizes, agreements, healthy work atmosphere, job safety, rest pauses, working times etc. Salary and bonuses are the main two-factor for every employee to maintain their regular life. Healthy working environment rest hours permit the worker to make their work good. The Complete productivity of the organization and to accomplish the longtime goals and target we need to concentrate on the features which lead to such objectives. Because eventually, wage- earner struggles are going to benefit the business to complete the fixed target. Though, I totally agree with the testimonial that productivity is the vital element to the accomplishment of a business where staffs are the main feature involved and based on their presentation the business target can get. To raise the results of small level administration there is a continuous requirement of inspiration by the high-level administration. The Agreement with the thesis statement is: This is understood that inspiration pushes single to effort in a way which leads to the activities of administrative as well as individual aims. The Inspiration is not only supporting the staff member to enhance their work skills to beat but also fulfills their individual requirements. This indirectly discloses the hidden abilities of folks when they are given correct path and values to monitor. The Motivation techniques support supervisor to plan-out the root of what approaches and how to put on them consequently to the type of employees existing at the moment (Robbins, and Judge 2013). The improved proficiency guarantees control in goods and that outcomes in larger stocks in the marketplace. Real and logical events given under object displays that if correct procedures are to be implemented in an organization then it will be extra stress-free for supervisors to acquire optimistic outcomes. The surveys are done in the provided object it can be assumed that there are methods of procedures and techniques to be monitored to inspire each and all kind of individual and group at the organization (Rideout, and Gray, 2013). The value of motivation at the place of work is well defined and it straitly gives impact on the presentation of workers (Nahavandi, et al., 2013). In favor of the given statement, to provide proof of the same study is being done. It has been said that inspiration methods to raise proficiency of employee applied by supervisors are helpful for the supervisor and business or not. A minor change in the direction of the requirements of teams and what can inspire them to do work extra and in a specific way could outcome in well phases. Sometimes its hard to stay concentrated every time at that specific point one is essentials to be pushed in an optimistic way (Miner, 2015). By supervisors control in an inferior level of management and to keep the things in mind about the taking care of team members, their needs, to change them in a specific way what effort can be done for them. This statement proves that this technique of motivation is one of the best methods to increase the efficiency of employees.There are logical methods which are based on nature and behavior of human about their needs what can be expected, and whats the needs of the workplace and in what sense employees can push themselves to achieve the organization goals. The manager should inspect the strength and way of inspiration required which should ties up with the present team at the moment ( Kreitner, and Kinicki, 2013). From the class concepts understanding, this is understood that by the motivation technique performance could be better of employee and can achieve the set goals in organizations. To get wanted outcomes as each individual employee, managers should do efforts to get wanted outcomes. To motivate each individual employee, there are many techniques and procedures classified. We have studied this year, is Abrahams Maslow theory of needs which is based on the hierarchy of needs. Those five needs give below: -Physiological: this need theory involves basic necessities of an individual. -Security: This need theory based on, the need arise for safety and emotional damage. -Social: this need theory tells about, the need arises for the social belongings. -Esteem: This need theory includes two features (internal and external) which involves self-worth, accomplishment, rank, recognition (Pinder, 2014). -Self-actualization: The need theory of where the determination for self-fulfillment rises. By implementing the Maslows theory, a manager can get a knowledge about, how to motivate individual employee by knowing the current needs of him (Luthans, et al., 2015). As per the studies, the conclusion of the whole critique made in the framework is that motivation technique proves the direst element in accumulating output of individual employees and eventually the efficiency of an organization gets increased. The research shows the diversity of different issues and variables to be taken from budget to display the inspiration strategy. To get desired results this methods and procedures and monetary technique helps the manager. As per my viewpoint, every technique and methods have disadvantages, for the implementation of motivation technique, it needs a well-qualified manager. This technique and strategies also have some drawbacks which make it more critical to adopt as such it is a time-consuming strateg. References: Armstrong, M., and Taylor, S. 2014. Armstrong's handbook of human resource management practice. London [u.a.]: Kogan Page. Barry, M. and Wilkinson, A., 2016. Pro?social or pro?management? A critique of the conception of employee voice as a pro?social behaviour within organizational behaviour. British Journal of Industrial Relations, 54(2), pp.261-284. Bromiley, P., McShane, M., Nair, A. and Rustambekov, E., 2015. Enterprise risk management: Review, critique, and research directions. Long range planning, 48(4), pp.265-276. Kreitner, R. and Kinicki, A., 2013. Organizational Behavior: Key concepts, skills and practices , Ney York. Luthans, F., Luthans, B.C. and Luthans, K.W., 2015. Organizational behavior: An evidence-based approach. IAP.4 Miner, J.B., 2015. Organizational behavior 1: Essential theories of motivation and leadership. Routledge. Nahavandi, A., Denhardt, R.B., Denhardt, J.V. and Aristigueta, M.P., 2013. Organizational behavior. Sage Publications. Pinder, C.C., 2014. Work motivation in organizational behavior. Psychology Press. Rideout, E.C. and Gray, D.O., 2013. Does entrepreneurship education really work? A review and methodological critique of the empirical literature on the effects of university?based entrepreneurship education. Journal of Small Business Management, 51(3), pp.329-351. Robbins, S.P. and Judge, T., 2013. Organizational behavior. Schneider, B., Ehrhart, M.G. and Macey, W.H., 2013. Organizational climate and culture. Annual review of psychology, 64, pp.361-388. Sturm, R.E. and Antonakis, J., 2015. Interpersonal power: A review, critique, and research agenda. Journal of Management, 41(1), pp.136-16

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Slavery In The U.S. Essays - Slavery, , Term Papers

Slavery in the U.S. In North America the first African slaves landed at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. Brought by early English privateers, they were subjected to limited servitude, a legalized status of Native American, white, and black servants preceding slavery in most, if not all, the English colonies in the New World. The number of slaves imported was small at first, and it did not seem necessary to define their legal status. Statutory recognition of slavery, however, occurred in Massachusetts in 1641, in Connecticut in 1650, and in Virginia in 1661; these statutes mainly concerned fugitive slaves. With the development of the plantation system in the southern colonies in the latter half of the 17th century, the number of Africans imported as agricultural slave laborers increased greatly, and several northern coastal cities became centers of the slave traffic. Generally, in the northern colonies, slaves were used as domestics and in trade; in the Middle Atlantic colonies they were used more in agriculture; and in the southern colonies, where plantation agriculture was the primary occupation, almost all slaves were used to work the plantations. As African slaves became an increasingly important element in the English colonies in America, particularly in the South, where they were fundamental to the economy and society, the laws affecting them were modified. By the time of the American Revolution (1775-1783), they were no longer indentured servants but slaves in the fullest sense of the term, and laws defining their legal, political, and social status with respect to their owners were specific. In 1800 the population of the United States included 893,602 slaves, of which only 36,505 were in the northern states. Vermont, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey provided for the emancipation of their slaves before 1804, most of them by gradual measures. The 3,953,760 slaves at the census of 1860 were in the southern states. Eminent statesmen from the earliest period of the national existence, such as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Jay, and Alexander Hamilton, regarded slavery as evil and inconsistent with the principles of the Declaration of Independence. The Society of Friends (Quakers) uniformly opposed slavery and agitated against it. The Presbyterian church made several formal declarations against it between 1787 and 1836. The Methodist Episcopal church always cherished strong antislavery views, but in 1844, when one of its bishops was suspended for refusing to emancipate slaves he had inherited through his wife, a secession took place and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South was formed. Individuals and groups of people of almost all sects defended slavery. On the whole, antislavery views grew steadily; but many who personally held strong antislavery opinions hesitated to join actively in abolitionist agitation, unwilling to dispute what many citizens he ld to be their rights. The 13th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, abolishing slavery throughout the United States, was ratified in 1865. For more information about the history of slavery in the United States, see Blacks in the Americas; Abolitionists; Missouri Compromise; American Anti-Slavery Society; Emancipation Proclamation; and Civil War, American. Slavery in the 20th Century An important achievement was the adoption of the International Slavery Convention in 1926 by the League of Nations. This convention provided for the suppression and prohibition of the slave trade and complete abolition of slavery in all forms. The convictions embodied in the convention were reaffirmed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948. In 1951 a United Nations committee on slavery reported that the practice of slavery was declining rapidly, with only a vestige of slavery remaining in a few areas of the world. Nevertheless, the committee found that forms of servitude similar to slavery affected a large number of people. These types of servitude include forms of serfdom and peonage, various abuses arising from the adoption of children, and the transfer in marriage of women without their consent. At the recommendation of the committee a conference representing 51 nations was held in Geneva in 1956. The conference adopted a Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery to supplement the convention of 1926. The new convention condemns forms of servitude similar to slavery

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Marleys partner was Scrooge Essay Example

Marleys partner was Scrooge Essay Example Marleys partner was Scrooge Paper Marleys partner was Scrooge Paper A Christmas Carol is a straightforward allegory. An allegory is a type of narrative story in which events or characters represent a certain idea or theme, which relies heavily on symbolism. Dickenss story is about a greedy, selfless man called Scrooge who is the opposite of what Christmas means. The first line of the novel Marley was dead, Marley we learn was once Scrooges partner and who comes back as a phantom to warm Scrooge to change his ways otherwise he will become a wondering phantom like Marley once dead. Dickens uses symbolism before the book is even open. The title A Christmas Carol. The novel isnt about a carol but carols show joy, happiness and a time for everyone to come together. The main character Scrooge shows the opposite to the title as he was a greedy, cold man, No warmth could warm, nor wintry weather chill the heaviest rain, snow, hail and sleet could boast of the advantages over him in only one respect. The way Scrooge is described in the novel, is as the weather, as the fog in the courtyard thickens as he leaves work, as if the fog were Scrooge. Musical imagery is used, like the title, as staves and used not chapters, which shows that the theme of the carol is brought through the whole novel. This creates a mood of happiness and song. Scrooge is introduced in the first staves as the greed in humanity. Marley is also introduced in the fist stave but only as a phantom. Marley was dead. The first line shows that the living dead could come into the novel. Marley being Scrooges partner is exactly like Scrooge, a mirror image. Scrooge and Marley sounds like brothers, or very close friends. Marley returning one night, Christmas Eve to warm Scrooge how he should change his ways before he ends up like Marley, a wondering, free phantom all chained up with his own greed. Scrooge representing the greed of humanity in the novel and Marley being the conscience of mankind. When the two gentlemen visited the counting house to collect for charity and food for the homeless, Scrooge managed to turn this charitable gesture into a something cold. Scrooge begins to talk about places for the homeless to go, but not foster homes or an orphanage Scrooge says are there no prisons, union workhouses and treadmills which they can go to. These words show that Scrooge only cares for one person, himself and finishes with its not my business good afternoon gentlemen forcing the men out with out giving any contribution. Fred is the exact opposite of his uncle Scrooge. Fred symbolises the joy and happiness of Christmas. Fred is undaunted by Scrooges refusal to dine with him on Christmas. Fred says that Christmas is the only time I know when men and women seen by one consent to open their shut up hearts freely, Fred shows the true joy of Christmas. Bob Crachet is a worker for Scrooge and is dependant on him, even though Scrooge doesnt really care for him in the slightest. Scrooge had a very small fire, but the clerks (Bob) fire was so very much smaller that it looked like one coal this proves that Scrooge never cared for anyone not even his own employees. The counting house along with Scrooges cold, bitter greed strengthens Scrooges appearance as a hollow man even though not much is said about his work place Counting brings money into sight which is the only thing Scrooge really cares for. When Marleys ghost appears and talks to Scrooge, he sees the large chain around his body. Scrooge notices that it is made out of catch boxes, keys, padlocks, ledges, deeds and heavy purses wrought in steel. This is to symbolise everything that Marley forgot in life. He made it link by link and yard by yard and of my own free will I wore it. Marley goes on to say how Scrooge also beers a large heavy chain himself but really it symbolises his conscience as that is what Marley is the conscience of mankind. When Marley leaves, Scrooge goes to the window only to see the sky full of phantoms like Marley all wearing chains similar to his and all had a partner. Marleys partner was Scrooge but he was still alive so Marley was alone for now as if Scrooge didnt change his ways then he would be joining Marley and the other phantoms, as they all symbolise what would happen to man if they carry on there bad ways. The partners were all linked together. Scrooge knew most of them from their lives, as they must have been in the same trade as Scrooge. Stave two doesnt introduce many more characters. The first ghost that Marley warned him of came at one oclock at night, the Ghost of Christmas Past.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

The Importance Of Lincolns Cooper Union Address

The Importance Of Lincoln's Cooper Union Address In late February 1860, in the midst of a cold and snowy winter, New York City received a visitor from Illinois who had, some thought, a remote chance of running for president on the ticket of the young Republican Party. By the time Abraham Lincoln left the city a few days later, he was well on his way to the White House. One speech given to a crowd of 1,500 politically astute New Yorkers had changed everything and had positioned Lincoln to be a candidate in the election of 1860. Lincoln, while not famous in New York, was not entirely unknown in the political realm. Less than two years before, he had challenged Stephen Douglas for the seat in the U.S. Senate Douglas had held for two terms. The two men faced each other in a series of seven debates across Illinois in 1858, and the well-publicized encounters established Lincoln as a political force in his home state. Lincoln carried the popular vote in that Senate election, but at that time Senators were selected by state legislators. And Lincoln ultimately lost the Senate seat thanks to backroom political maneuvers. Lincoln Recovered From 1858 Loss Lincoln spent 1859 reassessing his political future. And he obviously decided to keep his options open. He made an effort to take time off from his busy law practice to give speeches outside of Illinois, traveling to Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, and Iowa. And he also spoke in Kansas, which had become known as Bleeding Kansas thanks to the bitter violence between pro-slavery and anti-slavery forces in the 1850s. The speeches Lincoln gave throughout 1859 focused on the issue of slavery. He denounced it as an evil institution and spoke out forcefully against it spreading into any new U.S. territories. And he also criticized his perennial foe Stephen Douglas, who had been promoting the concept of â€Å"popular sovereignty,† in which citizens of new states could vote on whether or not to accept slavery. Lincoln denounced popular sovereignty as a â€Å"stupendous humbug.† Lincoln Received an Invitation to Speak in New York City In October 1859, Lincoln was at home in Springfield, Illinois when he received, by telegram, another invitation to speak. It was from a Republican Party group in New York City. Sensing a great opportunity, Lincoln accepted the invitation. After several exchanges of letters, it was decided that his address in New York would be on the evening of February 27, 1860. The location was to be Plymouth Church, the Brooklyn church of the famed minister Henry Ward Beecher, who was aligned with the Republican Party. Lincoln Did Considerable Research for His Cooper Union Address Lincoln put considerable time and effort into crafting the address he would deliver in New York. An idea advanced by pro-slavery advocates at the time was that Congress had no right to regulate slavery in new territories. Chief Justice Roger B. Taney of the U.S. Supreme Court had actually advanced that idea in his notorious 1857 decision in the Dred Scott case, contending that the framers of the Constitution did not see such a role for Congress. Lincoln believed Taney’s decision was flawed. And to prove it, he set about conducting research into how the framers of the Constitution who later served in Congress voted in such matters. He spent time poring over historical documents, often visiting the law library in the Illinois state house. Lincoln was writing during tumultuous times. During the months he was researching and writing in Illinois, the abolitionist John Brown led his infamous raid on the US armory at Harpers Ferry, and was captured, tried, and hanged. Brady Took Lincoln's Portrait in New York In February, Lincoln had to take five separate trains over the course of three days to reach New York City. When he arrived, he checked into the Astor House hotel on Broadway. After he arrived in New York Lincoln learned the venue of his speech had changed, from Beecher’s church in Brooklyn to the Cooper Union (then called Cooper Institute), in Manhattan. On the day of the speech, February 27, 1860, Lincoln took a stroll on Broadway with some men from the Republican group hosting his speech. At the corner of Bleecker Street Lincoln visited the studio of the famed photographer Mathew Brady, and had his portrait taken. In the full-length photograph, Lincoln, who was not yet wearing his beard, is standing next to a table, resting his hand on some books. The Brady photograph became iconic as it was the model for engravings which were widely distributed, and the image would be the basis for campaign posters in the 1860 election. The Brady photograph has become known as the â€Å"Cooper Union Portrait. The Cooper Union Address Propelled Lincoln to the Presidency As Lincoln took the stage that evening at Cooper Union, he faced an audience of 1,500. Most of those attending were active in the Republican Party. Among Lincolns listeners: the influential editor of the New York Tribune, Horace Greeley, New York Times editor Henry J. Raymond, and New York Post editor William Cullen Bryant. The audience was eager to listen to the man from Illinois. And Lincoln’s address surpassed all expectations. Lincoln’s Cooper Union speech was one of his longest, at more than 7,000 words. And it is not one of his speeches with passages that are often quoted. Yet, due to the careful research and Lincolns forceful argument, it was stunningly effective. Lincoln was able to show that the founding fathers had intended Congress to regulate slavery. He named the men who had signed the Constitution and who had later voted, while in Congress, to regulate slavery. He also demonstrated that George Washington himself, as President, had signed a bill into law that regulated slavery. Lincoln spoke for more than an hour. He was interrupted often by enthusiastic cheering. The New York City newspapers carried the text of his speech the next day, with the New York Times running the speech across most of the front page. The favorable publicity was astounding, and Lincoln went on to speak in several other cities in the East before returning to Illinois. That summer the Republican Party held its nominating convention in Chicago. Abraham Lincoln, beating out better-known candidates, received his partys nomination. And historians tend to agree that it would never have happened if not for the address delivered months earlier on a cold winter night in New York City.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Indigenous Identity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Indigenous Identity - Essay Example Religion offers guidance in every matter. People choose to do whatever they like, but refer to religion when they have to assess the legitimacy of their acts. The African American community believes in the power of religion. Although different African Americans have embraced different religions, with the majority of them being Christians or Muslims, yet their underlying belief in religion as the source of guidance is evident from them being the followers of one religion or another rather than being atheists. A vast majority of African Americans are democratic. Issues that are important to them today include but are not limited to racial profiling, poverty, racial disparity, lesser opportunities of health care, and institutional racism. Irrespective of all these socio-economic and political issues, African Americans are just as concerned for the prosperity and well-being of the USA as the White Americans are. African Americans derive their social and cultural values from the religion, and with the majority of them being the followers of Abrahamic religions, African American communities are generally more conservative in their stance on homosexuality and thus condemn gay marriages. According to Jones, the most significant changes in the traditional indigenous identity of the African Americans include gender roles in families, and oppression to racial segregation in the society. African American families have suffered from the torture of slavery resulting into a broken family system for a long time in history. With the end of slavery, men started dominating the women in the African families. But things started to change after the second half of the 20th century. Particularly, near the last three decades, more and more African American women have gained higher education and are contributing to their families financially. This has not only helped alleviate poverty, but has also

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Entrepreneurship College Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Entrepreneurship College - Case Study Example Here, it is the ability to recognize which bit of information/ event/ transaction, though on the face of it appearing routine, is significant for developing leads to produce a fresh product. The research process here is not about collecting data through lengthy or formalized processes, but more about using the data creatively-to predict; and to be able to see what the customer will need, before the customer knows it himself. (p4) The techniques have therefore to be flexible, going hand in hand with the actual production process, enabling the company to add pictures, or junk obsolete product, quickly. The company's research techniques are inherent in their lean structure (forty employees, headed by Jerry and his wife), and Jerry's creative, hands-on approach. (p3) Therefore, research here is not necessarily separate from production. The ability of production personnel to envision what kind of pictures is needed, in future, is an inherent part of the research of such a company. It is likely that there may not be much formal demarcation between research and production, which is evident from the fact that Jerry himself participates in the process of conducting photo shoots. Being the first to do it, has always been an essential part of Jerry's, and therefore, Stockbyte's, entrepreneurial philosophy. For instance, they were the first to seek venture capital assistance in Ireland, the first "significant European publisher" of royalty free stock photography, as well as the first in Ireland to offer downloadable e-commerce by way of virtual CD's (p6) Relying on his gut feeling, and striding boldly into a new venture, backed by his own past background of working in his family's photography unit had helped Jerry to move forward successfully. Apart from this, the company's explicitly stated entrepreneurial objectives, which include the whole organization in its sweep, sets down commendable objectives like exceeding expectations, being "passionately creative" crafting "relevant images", "leveraging the best technologies", and even one enjoining one to "enjoy the ride"(p7) clearly are motivating and entrepreneurial strategies, needed to keep ahead in a competit ive industry. The company has always enjoyed the benefits of the first comer, avoiding the rush, and therefore being able to build up clientele, before the field became crowded. And, being flexible, adaptable, and quick to notice new opportunities, they have succeeded by being equally quick in dumping ideas that no longer worked. Jerry's ability to work with a relatively small team has ensured that they responded quickly to the demands of a market. It is not clear, however, whether Jerry has grown an effective second line of management-most likely not-to handle any contingency that could affect his personal functioning: bad health, for instance. The question is how long can a company, which is driven by a single person, withstand competition from giants, and continue to resist a sell-out How long would it be possible for Jerry to be personally there to deal with crises-it could be a mudslide in Asia today, something else

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Social Work Essay Example for Free

Social Work Essay A career in social work gets people involved the community and the world. Social work is a profession that helps to improve problems faced in society in order to make it better and more civilized. Going into this project I knew all of the common and most basic information about social work. But, as I began to research more on the profession if social work, I learned more than I actually thought I knew. Social work is a great profession that involves people helping people and improving the lives of people all over the world. Making a difference in another person’s life was a huge attraction from social work to me. I have always been the type of person who has a genuine love for helping others. I get great joy out of it and it makes me feel rewarding. I truly believed that my love for helping others was my life’s purpose. The only difficulty I had was figuring out the right career that would allow me to fulfill my purpose. As freshman in high school is where I began my search for the perfect career. I took the time out for two summer’s straight and attended something similar to job shadowing with family members who currently held profession that involved helping people. This is when I was introduced to the field of social work. Even though there were other career fields that would fit my purpose, social work was the only career I felt was just right for me. I felt that social work was the right field for because it fitted my personality perfectly and not only did I want to help people hands on, I also wanted to be able to go outside of my office and help as well. Social work was the field that would allow me to do so. The profession itself is not as stressful compared to the medical professions. Social work professions involve face-to-face communication that is not as intense as other face-to-face conditions. While looking further in to the career that am attempting to pursue, I have gained a lot of knowledge from research and interviews which have inspired me even more to continue to strive for a career in the field of social work. Through my research I found many things from scholarly journals that interest me. I earned from the â€Å"Reevaluation of social work student’s career† study, conducted by researchers Rubin and Johnson, that most students are committed and devoted to the basics in a career of social work. Most of them also plan to open up their own private practice 5 years after graduation (Butler 45). The purpose of the study was to find out how committed master degree students were to a career in social work (Butler 45). Majority of the students wanted to hold positions in social work that did not involve having clients who were disabled in anyway. Students within a few years after graduation planned to go into private practice with social work (Butler 47). I also discovered from the social work of education journal that the instruction of multicultural content in social work classes causes a discomfort amongst professors, other faculty and students (Social work education 251-253). It is a discomfort especially for minority students that are attending schools of social work (Social work education 254-256). Most try to avoid the multiculturalism content when educating or being educated with the study of social work because most fear that the discussion on that particular topic will be blown out of proportion and will cause a huge disagreement (Social work education 254-256). I learned through interviews with social workers, Mr. Charles Blakely and Reava Lipson that the pay that comes with social workers may not be what I want in salary but it is worth it because it reminds me that I make a difference I other people lives so that they may be as successful as me. Overall I have learned from this entire project that you have to first be passionate about the career you plan to take on and secondly stay focused and devoted. Social work is not just a profession that helps other but it I also a profession that gives social workers the opportunity to help themselves through someone else’s problem. Social work is something like a projector that reveals what really goes on in societies all over the world. Social work is a career that many have chosen and are still choosing. Social work deals the change of individuals and the changes in society. I am determined to make a difference in someone else’s life in the field of social work.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

EMail Privacy Rights In Business Essay -- BTEC Business Marketing GCSE

E-mail Privacy Rights In Business I. Abstract How far we have come in such a small time. When you think that the personal computer was invented in the early 1980's and by the end of the millennium, several households have two PC's, it is an astonishing growth rate. And, when you consider business, I can look around the office and see that a lot of the cubicles contain more than one PC. It is astonishing to me that such an item has taken control over the information technology arena like personal computers. Consider, however, the items that go along with personal computers: printers; modems; telephone lines for your modem; scanners; the software; online access; and lets not forget, e-mail addresses. E-mail, or electronic messaging, has taken over the communications world as the preferred method of exchanging information. From the simple, "let's do lunch" messages, to the ability to send a business associate anywhere in the world an e-mail with an attached document that contains 150 megabytes of information, e-mail is quickly replacing the telephone, the U.S. post-office, and even overnight delivery services as primary method of exchanging important data. With the ability to create and send this instant information, the technology has far outpaced the education of how to use this phenomena, the affects of this technology on society, and how to prevent this method of communication from growing itself out of existence. Consider the following numbers:  · There were about 23 million e-mail users in 1994  · There will be approximately 74 millions e-mail users in the year 2000  · Employees sent approximately 263 billion e-mail messages in 1994  · Employees will send approximately 4 trillion e-mail message in the year 2000  · A 1993 study by MacWorld magazine found that 22% of employers have engaged in searches of employer computer files, voice mail, electronic mail, or other network communications  · The number of people subject to electronic surveillance at work has increased from approximately 8 million in 1990 to more than 20 million in 1996.  · Nearly 60% of companies that monitor e-mail or other employee communications conceal doing so.  · Less than 20% of companies have a written policy on electronic monitoring. One of the major areas affected by this new technology is corporate America. Not onl... ...esley, Reading , MA. Bacard, A. E-Mail Privacy FAQ. [On-Line]. Available: http://www.andrebacard.com/ema Casser, K. (1996). Employers, Employees, E-mail and The Internet. [On-Line]. Available: http://cla.org/RuhBook/chp6.htm Cavanaugh, M. Workplace Privacy in an Era of New Technologies. [On-Line]. Available: http://www.ema.org/html/pubs/mmv2n3/workpriv.htm Electronic Communications Privacy Act (1986). [On-Line]. Available: http://www.tscm.com/ecpa.htm#s2511 Entwisle, S.M. E-mail and Privacy in the Workplace. [On-Line] Available: http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~smenwis/privacy.html Freibrun, E. (1994). E-mail Privacy in the Workplace - To What Extent?. [On-Line]. Available: http://www.cl.ais.net/lawmsf/articl9.htm Gan, M. (1996). Employee Rights & Email. [On-Line]. Available: http://www.newsguild.org/d6t.htm Lee, L. Watch Your E-Mail! Employee E-Mail Monitoring and Privacy Law in the Age of the "Electronic Sweatshop. Morris, F. E-Mail Communications: The Next Employment Law Nightmare. HR Advisor (July-August 1995). Oppedahl, C. (July 3, 1995). Security, Privacy, Discovery Issues Stem From E-Mail Communications. [On-Line].

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Indias Space Programme Essay

The country is now capable of launching its own spacecraft. In fact, it offers this service to many other countries. Now India has made landmark progress with the launch of Chandrayan for its moon mission. India started its space programme with the launch of first space satellite ‘Aryabhatta’ on April 19, 1975. This space satellite was named after the great Indian astronomer and mathematician of the 5th century, Aryabhatta. It was launched from a soviet cosmodrome with the help of a Soviet rocket. It marked India’s giant leap and made her the eleventh country to join the space club. The second satellite ‘Bhaskara’ was launched on June 7, 1979. It was also launched from a Soviet cosmodrome. It was named after two eminent personalities—Bhaskara I and Bhaskara II. It was followed by ‘Rohini’. It was the first Indian satellite put into the space by SLV-III, an Indian rocket. It was launched from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on July 9, 1980. It was developed by the scientists of ISRO. It was the success of the mission of SLV-III which brought recognition to the space programme of India. India’s fourth satellite Rohini II was launched by the launch vehicle SLV-III from Sriharikota on May 31, 1981. It was designed to provide useful data for 300 days. It was weighted 38 kg. It was known as India’s first development rocket flight. Unfortunately, it burnt in space on June 8, 1981, without completing its mission. Bhaskara II, India’s fifth satellite in space, was launched on November 20, 1981 from Soviet cosmodrome Volgograd. It was the earth observation satellite. It was a milestone in the space journey of India as it brought to India the honour of being a space nation. Apple, an experimental geostationary communication satellite, was launched on June 19, 1981. It was launched with French coordination. With this, India entered the domestic satellite communication era. India launched INSAT-1A on April 10, 1982. India joined the select group of techn ically advanced countries. But this mission failed on September 6, 1982. In April 1983, India successfully launched Rohini satellite (RS-D-2). It marked the opening of new horizons for India. India’s ninth satellite INSAT-1B became fully operational in October 1983. It was the world’s first geo-stationary satellite combining services like telecommunication, mass communication and meteorological. It was launched in August 1983 from US Space Shuttle Challenger. India’s space programme is primarily driven by the vision of great scientist Dr. Vikram Sarabhai. He is considered as the Father of  Indian Space Programme. The main objective of India’s space programme has been to promote the development of application of Space Science and technology for socio-economic benefits of the country. The launching of Chandrayan I in 2008 marked a milestone in the history of space technology of India. Chandrayan will orbit around the earth for two years. During the period, it will send data to scientists. The scientists with the help of the data will study various aspects of moon, and will prepare a map of the moon. The map will further help in the study of moon. Then onward India made successive progress in the field of space research. It launched INSAT series satellite which made India’s position stronger in the comity of nation. India has now become self-reliant in terms of launching vehicles and telecommunications. Now India offers telecommunication services to other countries. The launching of satellites like IRS’s, ASLV’s, PSLV’s have placed India in the exclusive club of four nations—USA, Russia, France and Israel. Captain Rakesh Sharma was the first astronaut of India. Now the country enjoys a respectful position in the countries of the world.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Learning Preferences Essay

Describe your strongest dimension on the personality spectrum. My strongest dimension on the personality spectrum was kinesthetic. I think that the results of this test best describes the way that I learn best. Kinesthetic learning style refers to a way of acquiring knowledge in which the learner uses sense of movement to gain information about the world. This learning style is sometimes referred to as kinesthetic-tactile. Kinesthetic learners tend to loose interests in activities that rely purely on listening and viewing. Kinesthetic learners work best in activities that incorporate physical activity. I think that I learn best by using my hands, because when I can do hands on activities I pick up very well. When I can learn things by doing them I also tend to retain the skill easier. Describe how each practice activity reinforced or contradicted something about yourself. The results of practice one really reinforced my learning preference. The results were visual 30 auditory 28 kinesthetic 34 and tactile 28. The results indicate that I learn best using the kinesthetic learning preference. This practice also indicated that I learn well using the visual learning preference. In practice three I learned I prefer to use the more abstract approach and make connections to what is being taught using hypothetical situations rather than real world situations. Also I would prefer to have a more random style of teaching than the linear style. The linear style of teaching most likely too much of one set learning preferences and is not a variety of different styles mixed together.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Corporations practicing stakeholders management will be more sustainable

Corporations practicing stakeholders management will be more sustainable Introduction The following is an argumentative essay on stakeholders’ management and whether the corporations that practice stakeholders’ management are more sustainable compared to the organisations that do not practice this type of management.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Corporations practicing stakeholders’ management will be more sustainable specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The discussion is about the theoretical perspectives underlying stakeholders’ management in the corporation. It also looks into how an organisation balances the stakeholders’ interest with the shareholders’ interests, as they are two different entities with conflicting interests. It examines the role of stakeholders’ management. In addition, it looks into the existing literature studies on management to prove that the stakeholders’ management leads to sustainability of the co rporation. Stakeholders’ management It is imperative to determine who is a stakeholder in an organisation. A stakeholder is any individual with interest in a particular organisation. A stakeholder is an entity whose contribution to the organisation is influential such that the organisation cannot survive without it (Clarkson 1995). The stakeholders can therefore be the owners, the government, the trade unions, the political groupings, customers, suppliers, the communities as well as the public. This is because they play an important role in the survival of the organisation. The stakeholders’ theoretical perspectives show that the organisation is like an organism, which has different body parts and cannot function fully without one of its organ. The stakeholders are similar to the organs in an organisation and are crucial to the sustainability of the organisation (Clarkson 1995). Stakeholders influence on corporation’s sustainability To determine the extent of in fluence that a particular stakeholder has, there is a criterion that is used that involves the following aspects. The first aspect is on how the stakeholder influences the financial performance of the organisation.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More For instance, the customers and suppliers are key stakeholders of a corporation as they directly influence the profit that the organisation will make. The second aspect is the stakeholders’ influence on the productivity and operations such as the employees who have direct influence on the productivity of the organisation (Evans Freeman 1988). Other stakeholders who are in the external environment involve the competitors, the government, and the public whose perception on the organisation can affect it positively or negatively. These stakeholders have influence on the corporation’s sustainability for a number of reasons (Morgan 2004). The first reason is that the stakeholders determine whether the organisation will achieve its strategic objectives or not. For instance, an organisation may have a strategy to expand its operations outside the country. This may require additional funds from the stakeholders especially the shareholders. The firm must also look for ways of increasing the number of customers in order to have more sales, hence increased revenues to expand to other countries. If the shareholders do not contribute to such an endeavour, it would be very hard for the organisation to achieve its strategic objectives (Morgan 2004). Other than achieving the strategic objectives, the stakeholders are imperative for the sustainability of the organisation. In instances where one of the stakeholders has been negligent, it has led to the collapse of the organisation. An example is the case of Enron one the major companies that collapsed due to fraud and earnings’ managemen t. It was because shareholders were negligent thereby failing to scrutinise carefully the organisation’s actual financial accounts and performance. The government as a stakeholder was also negligent in auditing the company’s books of accounts. This led to collapse of the company leading to losses worth billions of dollars for the organisation (Freeman 1984).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Corporations practicing stakeholders’ management will be more sustainable specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The stakeholders are also important in the sustainability of the corporation due to their ability to influence the internal environment positively or negatively. The employees for instance are significant for the sustainability of the corporation. Any company cannot ignore its employees if it has to grow. This is because the employees determine the productivity of the organisation. When they are highly motivated the company experiences low rates of absenteeism and employee turnover, which leads increased productivity and huge profits. The motivated employees are productive and stay in the organisation in the long term. They are therefore imperative to the future sustainability of the organisation (Evans 1994). The other important stakeholders who contribute to the sustainability of the organisation are the suppliers as they determine the profit margin of the company. They also determine whether the company will have an edge over the competitors or not. The relationship between the suppliers and the organisation is imperative because when it is sustainable the suppliers can supply goods on credit so that payment can be made at a specified future date. While receiving goods on credit the organisation channels the money to expansion programs or product development, which gives the organisation an edge over the competitors (Morgan, 2004). Sustainability is also determined by ho w well the organisation relates with the customers. A good relationship with the clients determines the sustainability of the organisation. Providing sustainable services is imperative to the development of the organisation as it creates loyalty (Han 2004).Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More One of such organisations that has capitalised on customer service and experience is Tesco retail stores in the UK. These retail chain stores have benefited from good customer service as well as through the customer loyalty programs, which reward loyal customers with additional benefits. This makes the stores to be the most profitable retail stores in the United Kingdom and Europe. Apart from the customers, the other stakeholders who contribute to the sustainability of the organisation are the public. The perception, which the public has towards an organisation, is a key determinant to its sustainability. In the 1980’s Pepsi had to close its operations in the United States of America after there were reports that some of their soft drinks qualities were compromised because they had needles inside. The information created negative publicity for the company and its sales decreased to the extent that the company had to close its operations in the United States. Managing the medi a and the publicity activities that intend to brand the company in positive light is important to the sustainability of the organisation (Freeman 1984). The stakeholders are also important to the sustainability of the organisation as some of them contribute to the formulation of policies and regulations that may affect the organisation positively or negatively. Such stakeholders who have influence on the organisation are usually pressure groups and political groupings, which have influence in the formulation of policies on a particular issue (Jensen 1976). For instance, tobacco industries must contend with pressure groups that influence the government to implement policies that are against smoking in particular places. Such pressure groups may even advocate for the tobacco banning. The cigarette manufacturing industries must therefore win the political groupings that support the cigarette industry in order for those organisations to be sustainable (Morgan 2004). However, without the political support and goodwill the activities of the industry may not be sustainable. The environmental pressure groups may block the establishment or construction of a building or business that they feel its activities would not be in the best interest of the environment. The political stakeholders can also influence other aspects such as licensing and taxation. In many instances, corporations lobby political and pressure groups to advocate for reduction of taxes or subsidisation of a particular commodity (Evans 1994). Stakeholders’ management contributes to the sustainability of the organisation in that it provides crucial information to the management on how to act on a particular issue. It acts as a mechanism of corporation’s information intelligence. It involves having the concerns of each stakeholder and a mechanism on how to respond to their concerns. For instance, the employees may be concerned with the salary increment. However, if the organisation is not sen sitive or does not have stakeholders’ management mechanism, it may lack information on what the stakeholders want. The management may be dealing with unrests, low employee morale and high employee turnover (Puffery 1981). However, with appropriate stakeholders’ management mechanism it is possible to prevent losses that may emanate from industrial action. Information is vital to the development of relationship with the various stakeholders. It means that the organisation’s leadership will have information on what to do pertaining to each situation. Organisations that pay attention to stakeholders’ management are likely to experience high levels of sustainability compared to organisation that do not have a good relational approach to other stakeholders (Donaldson Preston 1995). Although stakeholders’ management is imperative in the sustainability of the organisation, there are stakeholders’ conflicts that may be detrimental to the organisatio n. For instance, in an organisation the shareholders may demand high return on their investments. This may make the management to increase the profit margins by increasing the prices of the products and services. This may be detrimental to the sustainability of the organisation as the customers may react negatively by boycotting the products or using competitor’s products resulting into reduced profits and minimising the future sustainability of the corporation (Ford 1980). Therefore, stakeholders’ management may not always lead to the sustainability of the organisation. Its aim should be to realise the concerns and interests of the stakeholders and balance them (Dwyer 2007). Developing stakeholders’ relationships is not always easy and may involve development of communication mechanisms that will incorporate all the stakeholders. It is also important to inform the stakeholders on what is happening in the organisation as this creates sense of ownership among the stakeholders and makes them to act in the best interest of the company. Establishing departments in an organisation to deal with issues of stakeholders is also imperative in establishing a good rapport. The stakeholders’ management is key and imperative in the development of the company’s long-term sustainability (Porter 1980). Conclusion The aim of stakeholders’ management is to create cohesion among different stakeholders who play important role in the sustainability of the organisation. This is critical to the development of organisational objectives. It enables the corporation to balance different concerns and interest, which if ignored could affect the company negatively. Therefore, it is justifiable to conclude that stakeholders’ management is important to the sustainability of corporations. References Clarkson, M 1995, ‘A stakeholder framework for analyzing and evaluating corporate social performance’, Academy of Management Review, vo l. 2, pp.65-91. Donaldson, T Preston, L 1995, ‘The stakeholder theory of the modern corporation: concepts, evidence and implications’, Academy of Management Review, vol.2, pp.5-10. Dwyer, R 2007, ‘Developing buyer-seller relationships’, Journal of Marketing, vol. 5, p.11-27. Evans, J 1994, ‘The relationship marketing process: a conceptualization and application’, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 3, pp.438-452. Evans, W Freeman, R 1988, A stakeholder theory of the modern corporation: Kantian capitalism, Prentice Hall, New Jersey. Ford, D 1980, ‘The development of buyer-seller relationships in industrial markets’, European Journal of Marketing, vol. 4, pp.339-353. Freeman, R 1984, Strategic management: a stakeholder approach, Basic Books, New York. Han, S 2004, ‘Buyer-supplier relationships today’, Industrial Marketing Management, vol. 2, pp.331-338. Jensen, M 1976, ‘Theory of the firm: managerial behaviour, agency costs, and ownership structure’, Journal of Financial Economics, vol. 3, pp.305-360. Morgan, R 2004, ‘The commitment trust theory of relationship marketing’, Journal of Marketing, vol. 8, pp.20-38. Porter, M 1980, Competitive strategy, Free Press, New York. Puffery, J 1981, Power in organizations, Pitman Publishing, Massachusetts. Appendix Stakeholder’s relationship chart

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Visit an Observatory, See the Stars, Planets, and Galaxies

Visit an Observatory, See the Stars, Planets, and Galaxies Observatories are places where astronomers do their work. Modern facilities are filled with telescopes and instruments that capture the light from distant objects. These places are scattered around the planet, and people have been building them for thousands of years. Some observatories are not even on Earth, but instead orbit or planet or the Sun in a quest for more information about the sky. However, not every such observatory has a telescope. Older ones from prehistory are simply markers that help observers capture a view of a sky objects as it rises or sets. Early Sky-gazing Places Before the advent of telescopes, astronomers did their observing naked eye from wherever they could find a dark-sky site. In most cases, mountaintops did just fine, lifting them up above the surrounding landscapes and cities. Observatories date back to ancient times when people used rocks or sticks placed  in the ground to align with the rising and setting points of the Sun and important stars. Good examples of these early ones are the Big Horn Medicine Wheel in Wyoming, the Cahokia Mounds in Illinois, and Stonehenge  in England. Later on, people built temples to the Sun, Venus, and other objects. We can see the remains of many of these buildings in Chichen Itza in Mexico, the Pyramids in Egypt, and the remains of building on Machu Picchu in Peru. Each of these sites preserved a view of the heavens as a calendar. Essentially, they let their builders use the sky to determine the change of seasons and other important dates. Stonehenge in the UK was built as a way to observe alignments of sun and moon rises and sets. Orion Lawlor, Wikimedia Commons After the telescope was invented in the early 1600s, it wasnt long before people were building large ones and mounting them in buildings to protect them from the elements and support their enormous weights. Over the centuries, scientists learned to make better telescopes, outfit them with cameras and other instruments, and the serious study of the stars and planets and galaxies moved forward. Each leap in technology reaped an immediate reward: a better view of objects in the sky for astronomers to study. Galileo offering his telescope to three young women seated on a throne. Painting by unknown artist. Library of Congress. Modern Observatories Fast-forward to todays professional research facilities and we find advanced technology, Internet connectivities, and other equipment pushing huge amounts of data out to astronomers. Observatories exist for nearly every wavelength of light in the electromagnetic spectrum: from gamma rays to microwaves and beyond. Visible-light and infrared-sensitive observatories exist on high peaks throughout the world. Radio telescope dishes dot the landscapes, seeking out emissions from active galaxies, exploding stars, and more. Gamma-ray, x-ray, and ultraviolet observatories, as well as a few infrared-sensitive ones, orbit in space, where they can gather their data free of Earths heat and atmosphere as well as humanitys tendency to spread radio signals out in all directions. A setting full moon provides a backdrop for the Very Large Telescope complex in Paranal, Chile. This is one of several high-altitude observatories in South America alone. ESO   There are a great many famous observing facilities out there, including the Hubble Space Telescope, the infrared-sensitive  Spitzer Space Telescope, the planet-finding  Kepler Telescope, a gamma-ray explorer or two, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and a number of solar observatories all in space. If we count the probes to the planets, plus a telescope and some instruments on the International Space Station, space is bristling with our eyes and ears on the cosmos. A sample of telescopes (operating as of February 2013) at wavelengths across the electromagnetic spectrum. Several of these observatories observe more than one band of the EM spectrum. NASA The best known Earth-based observatories include the Gemini and Subaru telescopes on Mauna Kea in Hawaii, which sit on the mountain along with the twin Keck telescopes and a slew of radio and infrared facilities.  The southern hemisphere boasts the observatories of the European Southern Observatory collective, the Atacama Large-Millimeter Array radio telescopes, a collection of visible-light and radio observatories in Australia (including the telescopes at Siding Spring and Narrabri), plus telescopes in South Africa and on Antarctica. In the United States, the best-known observatories are on Kitt Peak in Arizona, the Lick, Palomar, and Mt. Wilson observatories in Southern California, and the Yerkes in Illinois. In Europe, observatories exist in France, Germany, England, and Ireland. Russia and China also have a number of institutions, as well as India and parts of the Middle East. There are too many to list here, but the sheer number testifies to the worldwide interest in astronomy . Want to Visit an Observatory? So, can regular people visit an observatory? Many facilities offer tours and some give peeks through a telescope on public nights. Among the best-known public facilities is Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, where visitors can look at the Sun during the day and look through a professional scope at night. Kitt Peak National Observatory offers public nights through much of the year, as does the Foothill Observatory in Los Altos Hills, California, Palomar Observatory (during the summer months), the University of Colorados Sommers-Bausch facility, a select number of the telescopes on Mauna Kea in Hawaii, and many others. There is a complete list here.   Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, CA, is open to the public and provides stargazing opportunities, exhibits, and a planetarium for visitors to learn about the universe. Matthew Field,  via Creative Commons Attribution-Share-alike 3.0 license. Not only can visitors get a chance to see some fascinating objects through a telescope at these places, they get a full behind-the-scenes look at how a modern observatory works. Its well worth the time and effort, and makes a wonderful family activity!

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Glastonbury music festival tickets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Glastonbury music festival tickets - Essay Example Comparing this to the model characterized as efficient equilibrium, where utility functions increase continuously, efficiency appears not to have been a part of the outcome for this particular event. This paper aims to analyse and compare the varied macroeconomics pricing mechanisms as well as the applicable strategies on ticket allocation, all in a bid to determine the best mechanism that would assist work toward a Pareto efficiency balance for this record-breaking event. The general price theory associates the price of a commodity to vary directly with the value of the commodity (Besanko Braeutigam 2013). The theory further draws an analogy between the value of a commodity and its scarcity or ease of its availability. In a market situation, sellers aim at an optimal price for their commodities while buyers to the contrary opt for minimal price set on commodities. In an average or normal situation, it is the intersection between the two varied prices that ensures that markets are cleared without any excess or surplus on either side. A market clearing condition is thus achieved whenever the supply of commodities equals or meets the total quantity of goods or commodities demanded. For the ticket prices set for the Glastonbury music festival, the price was not at a market clearing level since the demand for tickets by willing buyers overwhelmed the amount of tickets available for sale. Under pure exchange price theory, a trader should be able to balance his endowment in the market with his possessed commodities. With such a balanced allocation of endowments and possessed commodities, Pareto efficiency as outlined in Besanko Braeutigam (2013), may be said to have been achieved which was not the case for the music event. The different strategies or economic paths available and apparently of best application to the sale of Glastonbury music festival tickets, and preferably retain or enhance efficient equilibrium have varied merits

Thursday, October 31, 2019

International accountancy standards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

International accountancy standards - Essay Example Policies and frameworks have been developed in efforts to accommodate the entire human race into a more domesticated environment even while in a separate geographical orientation. Such ways through which the world has become integrated is through economic unions and integrations, through these, the world trade has been compressed onto a more unified unit in matters of trade, commerce, politics and social cultural divide among many others. Moreover, the emerging trends in financial operations are pointing out towards the same direction of globalization. More efforts by individual persons or nations are exerted towards harnessing global trade and relations in one global perspective. Though variations are persistent within the structures of governments and individual companies, there have persistently risen the needs to unify the systems through which the global players operate. International accounting standards stand to provide avenues through which trading organizations and the natio ns would converge through application of more unifying methods. This paper therefore is intended to analyze the arguments by many proponents of a more unified world through the use of common language and a standard financial reporting system. These are the main hindrances that have in the past been seen to water down the efforts of global advocacy for a unified globe. Language barrier in financial matters and accounting field has all through stood a block to these efforts. Accounting platforms vary by the common measuring unit and thus the efforts to interpret financial records have always been troublesome by the fact that different organizations or states use varying currencies. However, this has not been so hard for the economic blocks such as the European Union who uses a common currency, the euro. People are divided along language inclinations and people are found to identify themselves through cultural lines, language affiliation and the geographical identity. However, in the a dvent of the current global advancement in technology, these barriers are easily getting eroded and more unification result from the common use of technology. Nevertheless, countries and regions stand distinct on, matters of financial reporting as well as financial language. Technology has done relatively little to address unification of languages. This is the reason for the proponents of a common language in financial reporting to advance the proposition. Common international financial reporting standards are meant to drive the world to uniform global standards of accounting (Centre for Audit Quality, 2009, 1-7). IASB (International Accounting and Standard Board) is the overall body that is mandated to oversee the accounting policies and implementations thereof. Constituted in 2001, the body designs policy frameworks that run the accounting field as pertains to financial reporting in the world. According to the report by Centre for Audit Quality (2009), IRFS has been adopted and ac cepted in many countries since 2001. This is seen to be a positive step towards realization of a more unified system of accounting in the world. However, close analysis requires thorough scrutiny on feasibility of the adoption of this common standard of accounting among organization in different countries. Nations ascribed to the standards operate the different sectors of their economies by the international standards of ac

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Muste and the Logic of Christian Nonviolence Essay

Muste and the Logic of Christian Nonviolence - Essay Example Muste further argued that human beings are vulnerable to evil actions and inequities. Significantly, only an insignificant number is able to rebel inequities, and they do it rarely. However, he postulated that, for those who have cramped life, they have nothing noble for acquiescence, even the mere submission to a deity (Zinn, 1959). Argument It is worthwhile noting that; Muste has confessionary emphasized on the role of being upright in all endeavours. He has persuaded people to abide by right deeds and keep off the wrongdoers for each shall receive according to his efforts. Consequently, for one to engage, tolerate, or trade in pacifism he significantly not connected to passivism. Consequently, he has clearly provided a flourishing confessional approach on nonviolent confessions. Concisely, he has confessionary justified nonviolent revolutions by activists. Therefore, in a world based on violence, an individual must portray revolutionary aspects prior to pacifist qualities (Zinn, 1 959). Counter-argument My argument is that, based on a confessional approach, the author that Muste has not inspiring addressed the issue nonviolence. Significantly, he has demeaned those individuals who would feel sorry for their deeds and would wish to decline their evil lives. For instance, he has argued that the evildoers do not have a right to access superior forces. Therefore, he has implied that the righteous have an enhanced right of access to the deities. Concisely, Muste has confessionary, provided divergent insights on the nonviolence revolution, due to his incredible remarks on the fate of individuals who are acquiescent. Thesis statement Though A.J. Muste follows the logic of Christian nonviolence extremely carefully, the advantage of hindsight, this module explores the argument in pacifism as naive when adapted to the political realities of Muste’s time. Current research has revealed that, once the certain war is over the challenge, is always based on the victor . Significantly, the above crisis erupts from the friction where there is a problem to identify the agent of teaching the victor. Consequently, there is hardly any other way towards peaceful coexistence apart from the peace itself. Additionally, the current confessional approach on nonviolent revolution has revealed that human beings possess some indolence, which makes them not ready to accept disturbances. Therefore, they presume that, whenever there are no skirmishes or unrests, peace is also prevailing. Significantly, they often subconsciously prefer social peace, although it is merely apparent. The above scenario is engineered by their feeling of fear over the security of their lives, as well as, properties (Zinn, 1959). It is evident that disarming people is hardly possible and a war cannot be resolved unless there is a corporation of profound changes in the economy and the society’s social arena. Significantly, human beings must denounce violent activities in accordance with existing systems. In addition, they must denounce evil activities such as material, as well as, spiritual evils. Accordingly, those who accept to denounce wealth and power, which is gotten from violent activities and puts a premium on acquisitiveness, by identifying themselves with the struggling masses, may significantly fight violence.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Mergers and Acquisitions | Literature Review

Mergers and Acquisitions | Literature Review Having read and analysed the various literature available on the topic of mergers and acquisitions it is clear there are many conclusions and views on the long term performance of both the target and acquirer post takeover. The first article I have analysed is Andrade, Mitchell and Staffords New evidence and perspectives on mergers which gives a general overview of mergers and how the pattern has changed over the years. The 1960s seen a large number of deals relative to the number of publicly available targets, therefore the proportion of deals to targets was large even if the actual number wasnt as big as in the succeeding years. The 1980s then led to more important levels of takeovers with multi-million pound deals taking place. Around this time almost half of all major US companies received a tender offer. Now at present day and from the 1990s we have seen a combination of the previous 30 years trends, with a large number of large value mergers taking place. [1] The next part of this journal then looks at the winners and losers in a merger deal both in the long and short term. In both cases the average abnormal stock market return is used to measure value creation or destruction. In the short term the stock prices quickly adjust following a merger announcement and the effect of the merger should be incorporated into the stock price by the time the merger is completed. The choice of event window then determines whether it is a short or long term study, with short term being the three days surrounding the merger ( i.e. one day either side and the day itself). A longer window would be several days before merger ending at the completion; the performance would then be looked at in the longer period after this window. The overall results from merger activity shows that target shareholders are clearly the winners in merger transactions, with research from this paper highlighting the 3-day abnormal return for targets to be 16% with this figure rising to 24% in longer windows. However the evidence for acquiring firms is not so easily analysed, with the average three day abnormal return being highlighted in the paper as being -0.7% and -3.8% over the longer window. However the difficulty comes when analysing these results as although the estimates are negative they are not reliably so as these figures will include the costs of making the bid and financing the takeover. Therefore it is unreliable to say that acquirers are losers in mergers, but it can be seen that they are not big winners in the same way as targets. [2] To summarise this it can be seen that mergers seem to be value creating for shareholders overall, but the target achieves all of the merger gains around the announcement. It has also been argued that acquiring firms in many instances have come close to matching these transactions in the opposite direction; however this is not always the case. The final section of Andrade, Mitchell and Staffords paper focuses on long term event studies and the long term abnormal returns which go with it. The paper mentions that some recent long term event studies measure the negative abnormal returns in the few years following a merger and find some interesting results. They state that some investors fail to properly notice the full effects of corporate announcements and as a result this casts doubt on our previous findings in relation to the announcement-period event window. This is therefore out of line with the Efficient Market Hypothesis where the market will respond quickly and efficiently to new information. Other literature mentions that there is the potential in the long term for both over and under reaction to information and this is something we will analyse in more depth later. Alan Gregorys 2005 journal entitled The Long Run Abnormal Performance of UK Acquirers and the Free Cash Flow Hypothesis mentions a potential drawback of long term event studies. He argues that if long term expected returns are only estimates of the true vale then as a result it follows that the long term abnormal returns will be incorrect. However this problem is seen to be less significant in short window event studies as the returns are seen to be accurate and therefore more reliable. The Andrade, Mitchell and Stafford journal gives a general overview of the topic of mergers, both in the past and present situation. Having established a general understanding I then looked at more precise literature which discusses certain aspects including the post merger performance of both acquiring and target firms. The conclusions gained will ultimately form the basis of my empirical investigation. The majority of texts I have researched base their results on the post takeover performance of the bidder, while some texts also look at the performance of the merged firm after the takeover. The most common conclusion from the various available texts on mergers is that in the short term target shareholders gain and bidders do not lose. However in the long term it is seen that many firms experience abnormal performance in the few years following a merger. One of the most commonly referred to journals based on this conclusion is by Jensen and Ruback and is called The Market for Corporate Control. It was one of the first pieces of literature to comment on the effects of corporate takeovers on shareholders and is therefore commonly used as a basis in later reviews as well as the Hubris Hypothesis which will be discussed later. The results from their analysis based on US companies are that mergers create positive gains, target shareholders benefit and the bidding firm shareholders do not lose. [3]However conclusions made later suggested there were still many controversial issues to be resolved regarding corporate control, for example all the findings in this research lead to positive results on shareholders however this may be as it is difficult to find actions made by managers which would actually harm shareholders. [4]The paper also comments that the long run post merger performance is a problem area as it yields results contrary to market efficiency, and in most texts this is described as a market anomaly. It is stated in the journal that negative abnormal returns suggest that deviations in the stock price are related to the overestimation of future gains from mergers. Although there has been a lot of research into the market for corporate control, there is still a lot more to be done in this area and Jensen and Rubackss forms the basis for future analysis. Firstly in Shareholder wealth effects of corporate takeovers by J.R Franks and R.S Harris they come to the same conclusion that targets benefit and bidders do not lose in relation to UK companies after basing their investigation on the results of Jensen and Ruback (1983) which came to this conclusions after using a data set of US companies. A small number of papers found differing results at this time, namely Firths articles in 1979 and 1980[5] which found that in the UK targets gain and bidders lose and in 1977 Franks, Broyles and Hecht[6] find that both parties gain. Franks and Harris found that a drawback of these results like many other studies was that either the sample size was too small or the sample was taken over too short a period. To combat this they made sure their sample was taken over a 30 year period from 1955-1985 and that it was a comprehensive study of a large number of companies involved in UK takeovers. The conclusion reached was that most mergers are value creati ng for shareholders, with the target achieving most of the gains and the bidder either breaks even or makes small gains. This was found by analysing the equity market price in the event window around the merger date. Franks and Harris however did find a potential problem relating to post merger performance as it is dependent on the benchmark returns against which bidders are evaluated; however this may lead to analysts finding false results depending on the timing of the merger. For example if a bidder times the merger event to coincide with a time were their own stock is doing well then it may produce false results as the good performance of this stock would cancel out and give an overall good performance no matter what.[7] Franks and Harris measure abnormal returns using three varying methods for the 24 months following the unconditional date. These are namely using a market alpha and beta combination, using a market model and using the CAPM asset pricing model. This can clearly b e seen from table 10 (page 245) in the journal and this should be looked at as an area which may require further research. Finally comparisons between the UK examination by Franks and Harris and Jensen and Rubacks US equivalent come to two main conclusions. Firstly target wealth gains in both the UK and US have increased since 1968, as a result of bidder wealth effects and secondly after the form of the original offer is controlled, targets gains are similar for both the UK and US. This may suggest that the wealth effects of takeover are comparable in the two countries. [8] One of the most widely recognised pieces of writing relating to corporate takeovers is by Richard Roll in 1986 and is entitled The Hubris Hypothesis of Corporate Takeovers. This journal was written in order to gain a different view to previously written articles and ultimately to disprove Jensen and Rubacks summary in their 1983 investigation on the market for corporate control. In Jensen and Rubacks conclusion they stated that corporate takeovers generate positive gains, and that the target benefits and bidders do not lose.[9] This result fits in with most other research on corporate takeovers; however Roll manages to give a different side to the argument by firstly looking at takeovers in general. He states that there are no gains from takeovers, however some bidders believe there are and such bidders are said to be infected by Hubris. This ultimately led to managers making poor decisions. Going back to the actual bid itself, the first step of a takeover is for the bidding firm to identify a potential target and value that target. This value is then compared to the current market price and if the value is greater than the price the bid is made and becomes public, otherwise the bid is abandoned. Roll comes to the conclusion that Decision makers in acquiring firms pay too much for their targets on average. [10]The Hubris Hypothesis also predicts that around a takeover the combined value of the target and bidder firms should slightly fall, and individually the bidding firm value should decrease, whilst the target value should increase. It is also stated that the overall gain to mergers, excluding costs is zero. Something which makes little sense as it would obviously seem to discourage takeovers. It should also be noted that the Hubris Hypothesis is consistent with semi-strong market efficiency.[11]Many academics believe that the Hubris Hypothesis is one of the most important pieces of writing in relation to takeovers. They say that if there really are no gains from takeovers then the Hubris Hypothesis is important in order to explain why the managers would not abandon such bids. The hypothesis finds some problems when interpreting the bidding firms returns as a bid can obviously be anticipated and therefore at announcement the return value does not give an entirely true value as it is anticipated. There are also however a few arguments against the use of the Hubris Hypothesis and its results. Firstly it has been suggested that Rolls hypothesis implies that managers act against shareholders interests. This is suggested in several recent papers and the conclusion reached is that the evidence is consistent with conscious management actions against the best interests of shareholders[12]. However the Hubris hypothesis on the other hand doesnt rely on this result and states that it is sufficient evidence that managers act against shareholder interests when they issue bids based upon false valuations of the target firm. Another argument against Hubris is that it is said to imply inefficiency in the market for corporate control. However if all takeovers were to be prompted by Hubris as has been suggested then shareholders could stop the practice by stopping managers to make bids. Therefore since this is not the case then Hubris alone cannot explain the takeover phenomenon. Overall the re are many arguments both for and against Richard Rolls Hubris Hypothesis however most of the arguments against fail to be fully supported and as a result the Hubris Hypothesis remains as one of the most important pieces of literature on the subject of corporate takeovers. In 1974 a pioneering study taken by Gershon Mandelker in his journal entitled Risk and Return: The case of merging firms found that there were gains from takeovers and found results were consistent with two hypotheses. Namely, the perfectly competitive acquisitions market (PCAM) and the efficient capital market hypotheses[13]. His study examines the market for takeovers and analyses the impact that mergers have on the returns of the shareholders involved. Previous studies state that acquiring firm shareholders earn abnormal returns following a merger and some of which actually state that most mergers tend to be unsuccessful. This relates to a study by Hogarty[14] who stated that mergers actually have a negative effect on the merged firm value. However based on this assumption it would seem odd that firms would enter into mergers, though Hogarty states that this is because mergers suit risk taking managers and although the majority of these takeovers lead to losses for the acquiring f irm, a small portion lead to extraordinary profits which is why they are still so common. There are however certain problems which exist in these previously undertaken studies. The majority of which use small samples which can lead to biased or untrue results, and the second problem is that the studies tend to use primitive models which fail to take into consideration any risk or changes in risk. As a result this provided the motivation of Mandelkers study as he tried to include these factors and come to a new conclusion. The principle aim of Mandelkers study was therefore to investigate the acquisitions market using empirical methods to examine the returns of both the acquired and acquiring firm shareholders. In order to do this the author tested two main assumptions. Firstly he analysed the perfectly competitive acquisitions market hypothesis which based its testing on previous literature which stated that acquiring firm shareholders gain abnormal returns following a takeover. However the problem with this result was that it lacked significant empirical support, in fact in a majority of previous studies it was actually found that the acquiring shareholders experienced negative abnormal returns following a merger. These findings therefore fit in with the hypothesis that acquiring firms operate in a perfectly competitive market. Even though it is found that the acquirers experience negative abnormal returns following a merger there is no evidence that they overpay and therefore they do not lose from m ergers. In relation to the acquired firm shareholders it is found that they achieve most of the gains from takeovers and therefore in relation to the perfectly competitive acquisitions market Mandelker finds that there are zero gains achieved by the bidding firm shareholders and that the target firm shareholders obtain the gains from the takeover before the firm disappears. The second hypothesis tested was the Efficient Stock Market hypothesis. Mandelker investigates how the stock market reacts to the announcement of takeover information, with many previous hypotheses stating that the stock market fails to properly react to the announcement of merger information. However in his study Mandelker finds results which are consistent with the Efficient Market Hypotheses and therefore stock prices of the involved firm at the time of merger already reflect all available information. Therefore as a result it is impossible to earn abnormal returns once a takeover becomes public as the stock price will have reacted immediately. Overall Mandelker finds that the acquiring firm shareholders earn normal returns following a merger and that any gains from mergers are entirely of the acquired firm shareholders. Another key piece of literature I have summarised is Dodd and Rubacks Tender offers and shareholder returns. This journal looks at the stock market reaction to both successful and unsuccessful tender offers. The findings show that bidding shareholders earn significant positive abnormal returns in the twelve months prior to takeover, whereas only successful bidders earn significant positive abnormal returns in the month of the offer. The main section of the paper is based on these results and the paper investigates two alternative hypotheses, namely the positive and zero impact hypotheses. Firstly we look at the positive impact hypothesis, where it is stated that the announcement of a merger will lead to positive information about the two involved firms and as a result will cause the stock prices of these firms to rise. There are many reasons for a positive impact and the main reasons are firstly increased market power. Empirically Dodd and Ruback find that for successful bids the tar get and/or the bidder benefit from the takeover, however with regards to unsuccessful bids neither the bidder nor target will gain from the process. A problem with unsuccessful bids is that they cost both the bidder and target during the process of the bid and this is why they can experience negative abnormal returns. An alternative hypothesis is that the gains arising from takeovers can be attributed to the increased product efficiency which is namely synergy. Therefore the synergy hypothesis states that the combined value of the merged firm will increase as a result of the merger. This will therefore again yield positive abnormal returns for a successful takeover and either zero or negative abnormal returns for an unsuccessful takeover. As a result of this it can be seen that the monopolistic market power and synergy hypothesis are very similar and carry similar results. Finally the third hypothesis is the internal efficiency hypothesis. It states that the target was underperformi ng as a result of poor management of assets and also states that this is something the bidder feels can be rectified. Therefore it is believed that a takeover can be used to discipline inept management. As a result an announcement would be seen as positive news by target as it is stated that shareholder wealth will increase with removal of inefficiencies. However the impact on the bidding firm depends on whether the bid is successful or not. Successful bidders will experience positive abnormal returns following the takeover; however unsuccessful bidders will experience zero abnormal returns following the bid. Secondly, we analyse the zero impact hypothesis which states that corporate takeovers have no impact on the value of firms involved. This therefore implies that there are no net gains as a result of merging with another firm. The empirical implications of this are that in successful tender offers the shareholders of both the bidder and target earn normal returns. However Mandelker, as we have just mentioned, disagrees with this statement and states that acquired firms are seen to have positive returns for the twelve months before and 85% of gains occur in the five months post merger. Earlier studies report that stockholders involved in completed mergers earn abnormal returns before the date of merger. However these studies dont look at the first public announcement of the acquisition therefore we cant determine whether gains observed before the acquisition date reflect the market reaction to announcement of acquisition or to prior good performance unrelated to the merger. Therefore D odd and Ruback isolate the market reaction to the announcement of the takeover in order to gain a true conclusion of shareholder performance. It is seen from calculations in the journal that in the month of announcement target shareholders earn large and significant returns of 20.58% for successful offers and 18.96% for unsuccessful offers. Whereas successful bidding shareholders also earn positive abnormal returns however these are a lot smaller (2.83%), and unsuccessful bidders earn normal returns. It should be noted that Dodd and Ruback find that if a firm experiences abnormal returns in the month of the announcement that both the positive and zero impact hypotheses can be rejected. Therefore in conclusion to the above Dodd and Rubacks paper had a big impact on the information available on mergers as they were one of the first academics to assess the market reaction to unsuccessful takeover attempts. Finding that stockholders of unsuccessful bidding firms earn normal returns following the bid and that unsuccessful targets earn significant abnormal returns in the month following the bid. From all the analysis it can be found that the primary motive for takeovers is the removal of inefficiencies, with the target seen to become more efficient as a result of both a successful and unsuccessful bids. These results are actually similar to those experienced by Mandelker as most of the takeover gains accrue to the target shareholders. The journal I have looked at next is Healy and Palepus, Does corporate performance improve after mergers? and analyses the corporate performance of the merged firm post takeover. This article looks at the post merger performance for the fifty largest US mergers between 1979 and 1984. The academics motivation in producing the journal as they have was the inability of previous stock price performance studies to determine exactly whether takeovers create economic gains and if they do what is the cause of such gains. The findings show that merged firms show improved cash flow returns post merger and they are seen to be generated by an increase in asset productivity in their relative industries as a result of the combined firms size. It should also be noted that the improvements in cash flow immediately following the merger are not at the expense of long term performance, as the firms will maintain both capital expenditure and RD rates relative to their industries post merger. The final c onclusion that Healy and Palepu draw is that there is evidence of a strong positive relationship between the post merger increase in cash flows and the abnormal returns at the merger announcement. Overall then Healy, Palepu and Ruback find in their investigation that merged firms overall have shown significant improvements in cash flow returns following merger. It should also be noted that improved performance is strong for firms in highly overlapping business. Some pieces of literature analyse the long term performances of both the acquiring and bidding shareholders in the years following the merger. One such example is Agrawal, Jaffe and Mandelkers 1992 article entitled The Post Merger performance of acquiring firms: A Re-examination of an Anomaly. They comment that existing articles on the post-merger performance of acquiring firms give conflicting opinions and therefore their motivation is to come to a definitive conclusion on what actually happens. They state that although not all previous literature has resulted in post-merger underperformance this could be attributed to biased results through firms not properly adjusting for size or shifts in beta. There are many implications in relation to consistent post-merger underperformance with the main implications being the following; firstly poor performance following a merger is not consistent with the Efficient Market Hypothesis and would suggest that the market is failing to fully react to the merger announcement. This then leads to a problem regarding the second implication which finds that in majority or literature regarding post-merger performance finds that performance is based on the key assumption of an efficient market, which as we have just found is not entirely true. The implication is more in line and suggests that poor post-merger performance fits in with other information which suggests poor economic performance following a merger, with Caves et al being cited as a key writer on this subject. This therefore provides the motivation for Agrawal, Jaffe and Mandelker to undertake a thorough analysis of the post-merger performance of acquiring firms using a near exhaustive sample of mergers between targets in the period of 1955 to 1987. The results of this indicate that acquiring stockholders experience a loss of around 10% over the five years following the merger, and this leads Agrawal, Jaffe and Mandelker to analyse the reasons for this. One possible explanation may be that the market is slow to react to the merger and therefore takes a longer time for the impact of the merger to set in, i.e. the loss in shareholder value. This therefore provides the question as to whether this result is time specific and in order to evaluate this Agrawal, Jaffe and Mandelker analyse the post-merger performance of acquiring firms over the last 3 decades. The results of table 2 in the journal show that the anomaly does not change over time and as a result does not appear to be time specific. Therefore this does not support the view that negative abnormal performance is a result of market inefficiency. In order to try to explain the post-merger performance the academics drew up two hypotheses to obtain a conclusion. Firstly, the market adjusts fully to the announcement of a takeover and any underperformance is due to other factors. And secondly, the market may be slow to react to any takeover information and therefore any post-takeover underperformance is reflected in the negative NPV, therefore market inefficiency is present. The alternative hypotheses are then tested by regressions of the post-merger abnormal returns and the announcement period abnormal returns. From this it is seen that there is a significant negative relationship over the full sample and as a result it can be seen that the post-merger returns and announcement period returns are both related. Therefore in conclusion to all of this analysis Agrawal et al find that acquiring shareholders experience negative abnormal returns in the 5 years following a merger. It is also clearly seen that the market has failed to become more efficient over time as the anomaly holds for all of the previous 3 decades apart from the 1970s. Overall it is found that the results are not consistent with the hypothesis that suggests the poor performance is attributed to slow reaction to information. To conclude Agrawal, Jaffe and Mandelker find that the efficient market anomaly of negative post-merger performance is not resolved. Eugene Fama made key arguments when he introduced the Bad Model Problem in his 1998 journal Market Efficiency, long-term returns, and behavioural finance. In this journal Fama states that we should not abandon market efficiency as he argues that long term return anomalies are basically only chance results, with overreaction of stock prices just as common as under reaction. In the article he states, Most important, the long-term return anomalies are fragile. They tend to disappear with reasonable changes in the way they are measured. Basically Fama says that the anomalies are either chance results or results of a bad model. However following this argument it is difficult to decide how to interpret post-takeover performance. This is a confusing area and one which yields differing results. Many of the previous long term event studies seem to suggest market efficiency, especially under and overreaction to information. This therefore poses the question as to whether market efficiency shou ld be discarded, with Famas response being a definitive no. The reasoning behind this is that an efficient market generates events which seem to suggest an over-reaction in prices following an announcement. However, in an efficient market over and under-reaction are both equally likely. Therefore if the aforementioned anomalies are shared randomly amongst the two then it is consistent with market efficiency. Analysis of previous studies suggests this to be the case. It has also been suggested that these anomalies are sensitive to the methodology selected and can vary or even disappear when a different model of expected returns is employed. Overall, with regards over and under-reaction, long-term return literature does not highlight one or the other to be more dominant. Thus a random split is always likely and as such market efficiency is maintained. With regards the methodology employed, Fama argues against the use of the buy and hold abnormal return (BHAR) as the systematic errors that arise with imperfect expected return proxies (the bad model problem) are compounded with long horizon returns. He also states that the use of methodology that ignores cross sectional dependence of event firm abnormal returns that are overlapping in calendar time is likely to produce overstated test-statistics. Fama then goes on to support the use of a monthly calendar time approach to measure abnormal returns in the long term. The reasoning given is that the use of monthly returns makes the study less affected by the bad model problem. Also, forming calendar time portfolios ensures that the cross correlation of event firm abnormal returns are taken as part of the portfolio variance. Despite Famas preference of the calendar time approach, Lyon, Barber and Tsai (1999) and Loughran and Ritter (1999) prefer the BHAR approach as it accurately represen ts investor experience. Another study which analyses both the bidders and acquirers post takeover performance is Glamour, value and post-acquisition performance of acquiring firms by Rau and Vermaelen, which uses a long horizon event study to analyse the shareholder performance in the three years following a merger. They find that bidders in mergers underperform, while bidders in tender offers over perform post merger. The main motivation in undertaking this study is to try gain a definite conclusion on the long run performance of bidders in both mergers and tender offers. This is done by looking mainly at bidders underperformance in the long run following a merger, and also what causes underperformance, if any. The paper compares results from the study by Jensen and Ruback (1983) which analyses six studies examining bidders returns in the year following a takeover. This study finds that following a tender offer bidders earn positive abnormal returns, whereas bidders underperform post merger. From the acqui rers point of view Rau and Vermaelen find that acquirers in tender offers earn small but statistically significant positive abnormal returns, however the long term underperformance of acquiring firms in mergers is not uniform across all firms. These findings go on to help support the hypothesis that the market overexpolates the past performance of the bidder and therefore as a result the market, management and shareholders overestimate a glamour bidders (bidder with good past performance) ability to do such a good job in managing similar companies. In a similar way the market seems to be pessimistic regarding a value bidders potential to manage other companies. (where a value firm is a firm with poor past performance). However value firms bidders are not affected by hubris in the same way as glamour firms, and therefore as a result are likely to be thoroughly scrutinised by directors and majority shareholders before a transaction is initiated. The biggest problem is that is appears the market fails to realise that past performance is not a good indicator of future performance. To conclude this paper helps to add to a large sample of evidence suggesting that short term event studies fail to fully capture the market reaction to an event. Therefore it is suggested that future studies must try to explain why markets tend to react sluggishly to corporate finance and strategic decisions. Analysis of post takeover performance has be