Weather anomalies very challenging

Nino weather anomalies very challenging. (10)Countries in the Monsoon climatic region of SE & S Asia depend on the rains that come with the precision of Calender dates (due to the precise dates of Sun's seasonal shift as per Calender dates). It is essential for their agriculture, where countries with huge populations have to feed them, made possible with assured crops. Any variation in timing ; rainfall quantum affects their crop production adversely. It also leads to unforeseen flooding caused by excessive rains (other environmental factors ike soil erosion aiding it) that washes out the crops.Monsoon is created by the Sea surface temperature variation (Pacific Ocean largely) as per Calender dates. El Nino refers to the unusual, unseasonal warming of the equatorial currents of the Pacific Ocean that upsets Monsoon. We all know how huge is this Ocean and how very broad (about 10000 miles) it is at its Equator; its sheer volume of water absorbs the solar heat energy and acts like an e ngine for the Monsoon. It is a challenge to these countries. Modellig it mathematically (an exercise in atmospheric Physics) is one of the most complicated problems with an innumerable set of parametrs ; that is a challenge.India bought the first ‘Cray' Super-Computer for its meteorological department that can give accuarte predictio(a) Suggest why many countries find El Nino weather anomalies very challenging. (10) El Nino is referring to the dramatic change that occurs in the walker circulation cell and in other areas but I am going to focus on this specific area, where the usually outh-easterly trade winds going from west of South America to Australia and Indonesia across the Pacific Ocean reverse or severely weaken.This occurs usually every 3-7 years and can last between 12-18 months. During an El Nino the warm sea in the western pacific migrate towards the South American coast because they are being dragged across by the winds. This stops the upwelling near South America and means that there are little nutrients in the sea. This lack of nutrients ruins the South American fishing industry and courses them to loose lots of income and money, for xample in 1982/83 El Nino the South American fishing industry lost $290 million.Also as you can sea from fgure 7 there is lots of rain fall on the west coast of South America due to the low pressure, this heavy rain fall cause severe flooding and mudslides that result in loss of life, an example of this was in central Ecuador and Peru in 1997 when it suffered rainfall 10 times the average rainfall, this caused extensive flooding and erosion as well as mudslides, there was loss of life and destruction of property as the country wasn't able to cope with the severe weather.On the other side of the pacific in Australia and Indonesia the cold weather reduces evaporation, which causes very little rain and therefore drought, for example in the 1982/83 El Nino eastern Australia suffered one of it's worst drought ever, resulting in a $2000 million loss in agriculture production. It causes crop failure and famine and many people died as a result.

In Defense of Food Essay

In the book, In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto, author Michael Pollan commences his tale with a few straightforward words: â€Å"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants†. In his introduction, An Eater’s Manifesto, Pollan discusses how the dietetic wisdom that was passed down from older generations has been heavily tainted by â€Å"nutritional science and food industry marketing† (Pollan, 2008). The first volume of the book entitled, The Age of Nutritionism†, delves into this problem and helps uncover the cause of today’s â€Å"nutritional confusion and anxiety† (Pollan, 2008). Nowadays, it is not uncommon to have â€Å"edible foodlike substances† displayed in every aisle of the grocery store with all products promoting some kind of nutritional benefit from their consumption. These dietary facts are often modified to showcase dietary benefits that are barely present in the food product, if present at all. With such prevalent misinformation, today’s society has become so overly concerned with nutrient enriched food that people have either forgotten or are unaware of the importance of the fundamentals. Pollan further explains that humanity has become â€Å"a nation of orthorexics† meaning that people have developed â€Å"an unhealthy obsession with healthy eating† centred on the theory of nutritionism (Pollan, 2008). Chronic diseases that have the highest death rate such as obesity, coronary heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and cancer, can be attributed to the â€Å"Western diet† which consists of â€Å"highly processed foods and refined grains; the use of chemicals to raise plants and animals in huge monocultures; the superabundance of cheap calories of sugar and fat produced by modern agriculture; and the narrowing of the biological diversity of the human diet to a tiny handful of staple crops, notably wheat, corn, and soy† (Pollan, 2008). In the second volume entitled â€Å"The Western Diet and the diseases of Civilization†, Pollan analyzes the shift in eating habits of today versus those since the discovery of agriculture and the industrialization of food. In the third and final volume entitled, â€Å"Getting over Nutritionism†, Pollan offers helpful recommendations to healthy eating and living. These simple, easy-to-follow tips are intended to: educate society on the dangers of misleading information from food industries and medical communities; and to steer people away from the Western Diet and back to the traditional ways of preparing and consuming food. Pollan suggests for people to refrain from shopping at supermarkets and choose local farmers markets instead. However, for those with no other option, he recommends they only shop from the peripherals of the store. Some other advice that Pollan offers is to â€Å"eat mostly plants, especially leaves†, â€Å"eat like an omnivore† and â€Å"be the kind of person that takes supplements† (Pollan, 2008). He also states that people who â€Å"eat according to the rules of a traditional food culture are generally much healthier than people eating a contemporary Western diet†. This analysis is focused on the cultural traditions of food consumption where â€Å"eating is deeply rooted in nature – in human biology on one side and in the natural world on the other† (Pollan, 2008). People around the world have different relationships with food and eating. Pollan suggests that how different cultures eat plays a large role in what different cultures eat. He further proposes that American society, nowadays, has become a culture heavily focused on quantity and price rather than quality. Society has become so fixated on â€Å"low-fat† or â€Å"low-carb† options that they have failed to realize the true underlying issue of overeating. The distinction between price and quality is often the deciding factor for most American families. As a result Pollan recommends purchasing quality foods in smaller portions thus developing the pay more, eat less ideology. I found that this book provided tremendously eye-opening content. This book offers an insightful perspective surrounding the relationship between people and food; proposes how society, in particular the American culture, can start choosing healthier food options that enable us to live healthy and enjoyable lives; while bringing back the joy of eating and preparing food. I found his analysis of the history of nutritionism, the science behind what to eat and why, to be extremely informative. In particular, when Pollan discusses how the food industry develops food products heavily focused around the latest â€Å"fad† diets or so-called nutritional needs of society, it was enlightening to read his perspective as I often purchase items such as low-fat margarine over regular butter. It is outrageous that the food industry fought for many years to get the â€Å"imitation rule† removed and when modified was allowed to state â€Å"that as long as an imitation product was not â€Å"nutritionally inferior† to the natural food it sought to impersonate [and] had the same quantities of recognized nutrients—the imitation could be marketed without using the word [imitation]† (Pollan, 2008). By keeping consumers misinformed about such imperative factors that impact to our daily diets has contributed to society’s vast health issues. Moreover, the discussion about the differences between culture and food habits resonated with me because while I have lived in either England or Canada my entire life, my family lineage is from India. With this real-life example, I believe that Pollan is correct to assume the â€Å"certain cultures that consumed traditional diets based mostly on plants had strikingly low rates of chronic diseases† (Pollan, 2008). Nowadays, a large portion of Westernized societies base their food choices on price and quantity over quality; so-called nutritional content geared towards weight management than overall well-being; and convenience. According to Marion Nestle, author of Food Politics, â€Å"in advertising and on supermarket shelves, [there is] fierce competition [in the food industry] for our food dollars† (Nestle, 2008). She states that the Westernized food industry is â€Å"food politics in action: watered-down government dietary advice, schools pushing soft drinks, diet supplements promoted as if they were First Amendment rights. When it comes to the mass production and consumption of food, strategic decisions are driven by economics—not science, not common sense, and certainly not health† (Nestle, 2008). The role of innovation in sustainable development should focus on more â€Å"agriculture-based methods [of food production] that have been shown to prevent food waste, help resist climate change, and promote urban farming† (Nestle, 2008). What is most important is to provide innovative products and services that are centered on humanity and that meet the needs of the consumer. Pollan does an excellent job at analyzing the problem and developing solutions based on the needs of society, particularly in America. The solution here is to revert back to the traditional way of consuming and purchasing food: local food grown by local people. Pollan encourages that people become members of a Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) program or shop for fresh produce at their local farmers markets. This local food movement enables new and soon to be farmers to provide â€Å"environmentally sustainable agriculture [while] supporting their local community and growing food that directly connects them to the consumer† (Collins, 2011). On the business perspective, CSA’s are part of â€Å"the Small Farm Movement that is growing across Europe and North America† and farmers start off by selling their products at â€Å"local farmers’ markets to test out what products the consumer is looking for, followed by building clientele and launching into a CSA† (Collins, 2011). In order for CSA’s to succeed as a sustainable innovation, farmers must understand the importance of truthful marketing and fostering relationships with their customers as the most important part of the business model. References 1) Pollan, M. (2008). In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto. Retrieved from: http://ebookbrowse. com/michael-pollan-in-defense-of-food-an-eater-s-manifesto-pdf-d341084275 2) Nestle, M. (2008). Food Politics. Retrieved from: http://www. foodpolitics. com/food-politics-how-the-food-industry-influences-nutrition-and-health/ 3) Collins, D. (2011). Community Supported Agriculture – A Unique Business Model. Retrieved from: http://www. omafra. gov. on. ca/english/crops/organic/news/2008-12a2. htm.

Comparison of market structures of US retail and housing industry Term Paper

Comparison of market structures of US retail and housing industry - Term Paper Example Where there are four types of market structure which are monopoly, oligopoly, pure competition and monopolistic competition. there are number of factors which determine the market structure which are number and size of firms in the particular market, degree of similarity with competitor’s product, firm’s control over its product’s prices, barriers to entry and exit in the market, and the amount of competition based on non price factor. USA housing industry is classified sector wise in mining, construction, manufacturing, retail, wholesale, real-state, professional, administrative and other. These sectors are interdependent on each other in terms of performance and growth. The effect of US crises on housing industry was devastating as demand for land development turn down largely, now the circumstances are far better and recovering. Whereas US retail industry vends specialized and customized products and offers wide variety of products to the consumers. The change in consumer preference and taste has brought up many new opportunities and challenges for retail industry. Recent recession in US economy has shrank the purchasing power resulting in low sales and ultimately low revenue. The selected US retail industry for analysis is tobacco industry; it retails cigarettes, loose tobacco, cigars and cigarillos, and chewing tobacco. Cigarettes have the highest market share of more than 90% in tobacco industry, whereas others have very low market share with very growth rate. Whereas construction is the selected sector from housing industries, which is the second largest revenue generating industry among others US housing industries. US tobacco retail industry is dominant by few large players namely Philip Morris, Reynolds American and Lorillard which jointly holds 90% of the total market value which is actually very huge percentage and hindrance for the growth of small companies (Zitzewitz, 2003). Cigarettes segment is the dominant segment therefore market structure of this industry depends on its market size, market growth, competition and number of companies operating. Product differentiation is very low in this market whereas barriers to entry are significantly high, and associated companies face non-price competition. This shows that this industry possess oligopoly market structure. The selected US housing industry is construction and engineering, is the second largest in terms of revenue contribution to housing industry whereas it has the highest employment ratio as this sector is highly dependent on human resource. This industry decline by 13.9% in 2010 with a market value of $563.1 billion where as it is forecasted that this industry will show an increase from 2010 to 2015 by 26.2 % with an increased market value of $712.9 billion (Datamonitor, Aug 2011). This US industry contributes 24.7% in the global construction and engineering industry. Players in the market are dependent upon suppliers and buyers, whereas the larg est segment of US construction and engineering industry is non-residential building (Datamonitor, Aug 2011). The market structure of the US construction and engineering industry is determined by five key drivers, which are supplier power, buying power, degree of rivalry, new entrants and number of substitutes available. Barriers to entry are there in the market but industrial growth, accessibility of suppliers and weak brands in the market largely appreciates new entrants. There are various factors which determine the supplier power in US construction and engineering industry which are, the degree to which input is differentiated, forward integration, importance of quality/cost, number of substit

How Cultural Differences Between Parent and Host Country Can Affect Essay

How Cultural Differences Between Parent and Host Country Can Affect Business Communication Process of an Organization - Essay Example The Western companies have shown tremendous interest regarding the expansion of business in the Middle East and the Eastern countries because of the emerging market. The international business that the companies have emphasized in the modern world can have strong effects. A bad choice of a country can increase the risks associated with the financial losses and it can also reduce the opportunities for success. There are many reasons due to which the risks associated with businesses arise in host countries. Issues related to the political factor, economic factor, social factor, technological factor and legal factor have the severe impact on business. The differences in the culture with respect to business between a parent country and the host country are the essential reason behind the risks and lack of opportunities. The market entry decisions made by the companies play the very crucial role against the risks associated with cultural differences. This essay illustrates the effects of cultural differences between parent and host country on business communication. Cultural aspects of different countries have the significant impact on the sustainability as well as the profitability of business corporations. The business culture in the western countries is significantly different from that of the eastern world. The major growing business markets such as India and China have several different approaches with respect to business culture. The business practices and culture of China differ greatly from other countries, such as Canada, USA, Australia and UK. In order to initiate a business in China, the essential factor is to understand the business etiquette. Understand the business etiquette and the socio-economic culture can lead organizations to success. There are several challenges that the managers of the Australian companies had to face based on managing employees.

B 777 Design and Development Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

B 777 Design and Development - Research Paper Example Aside from many technical innovations that have done, 777 recognize its uniqueness in the design and the effort. Boeing 777 is pre-assembled and the first 100% digitally designed. It was built in the concept of â€Å"Working Together† and this philosophy made it possible for the company to make 240 designs. The whole team comprises the design team, manufacturing, and the supplier personnel. Building which includes the designing of a new commercial jet liner takes a lot of time and patience. The process take around five years or more than and sometimes even decades. It is very important that this kind of project be documented especially if the specific project is the first of its kind. Outlines Abstract Issues Innovations 777-200LR 777-300ER Decisions about 777 Characteristics and Variants of 777 Deliveries of 777 Accidents of 777 Productions Financial Analysis Final Analysis References Background Model 777 is the first jetliner for more than a decade among the Boeing airplane to be designed using three-dimensional graphics digitally in the computer. An investment of 10$ billion in the development of the 777 is spend by the company. In October 1990, the 777 program was launched through the Chief Executive Officer, Mr. frank Shorts. From the beginning order of the United Airlines, in June 1995, United Airlines flew its first ever 777 profit service. The demand of the market determines 777 as the newest member of the twin-aisle family of Boeing. Features in the design of the airplane was offered like approaches to the development of the airlines and innovations which sets the quality standard of the value in the airlines delivery. The 777-300 authorize production by the Boeing Board of Directors is on June 26, 1995. It was July 1998 when the first delivery materialized to Cathay Pacific Airways in June 1998. Issues: Understand and learn from the designs and facts along the processes in the making Boeing 777. To have the knowledge and deeper understanding ab out the importance and profits of mutual designing in the group effort of many big companies in the process of the aircraft manufacturing. To have a deeper knowledge and appreciation on how modern technologies have been used in the making of Boeing 777. To get an understanding of the beneficial and amazing features of Boeing 777. Innovations The 777 has made improvement in its Interior flexibility, flight plan, distinguish design, airfoil technology and considered as the most spacious and the widest among its class. Its larger shipment and range capacity resulted to lesser operating expenses to airlines. The Boeing 777 is smaller comparing to the 747 nut it is much bigger comparing to either twin jet or even trijet in its class. The 777 aircraft is a double engine, economically advantageous to the medium and in the long-range markets. Some amazing features the 777 is offering in the 1990s are highly develop complex emppenage, advance and considered as the most powerful engines produ ced and used in a commercial airplane, an aerodynamically competent airfoil wing, joint digital data bus originally built for use of the 777, and the fly-by-wire (Global Secutity.org 2009). 777-200LR Pakistan International Airlines built the first 777_200LR (Long Range). When the 777-200LR, the C-marke2 model, entered the service in 2006 is the longest-range commercial airliner in the world. The aircraft is called by Boeing the world liner in

Websites search Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Websites search - Essay Example It is very helpful in the provision of details concerning family and community involvement in children programs. Fine: Family Involvement Network of Educators provided at Harvard Family Research Project (http://www.hfrp.org/) has a lot of resources and publications concerning family involvement that can be employed in classrooms for instructing. The site is very supportive as it provides a lot of publications collectively at one place. National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education (http://www.ncpie.org/) is an informative site that contains a lot of information regarding family and development, family-community organizations, family-education organizations and parents and families. This can be used for teaching in classrooms by reading and facilitating parents with the reading material. National Center for Family and Community Connections with Schools (http://www.sedl.org/connections/) contains family and community based researches and practical works informing about how students at schools can be supported by families and communities. It will be helpful in classroom instructions because it contains a huge collection of resources concerning family and community connections with schools. LDonline (http://www.ldonline.org/educators) is a website that gives detailed data related to disability and ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). The site is very useful in terms of its informative material. The site is rich with information concerning learning about disabilities and ADHD. Information can be retrieved from this site in order to help out students in terms of instruction concerning disabilities. BC Ministry of Education: Special Education (http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/specialed/) contains resource documents and policies concerning education of special children. Hence, this site contains a huge amount of data of resource documents concerning students with disabilities. The information provided at this site can be

Management of Marketing Channels Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Management of Marketing Channels - Assignment Example They provide with special services like build-to-order that directly fulfil the demands from production at a low cost. Build-to-replenish and configure-to-order are also included. The company has an excellent supply chain management with low inventory levels that provide to its network spread over 30 countries across the world. Their supply chain management is extraordinarily efficient since it is backed by key performance drivers like inventory management, transportation management, information system and IT integrated systems to provide the right product at the right time and place. Their worldwide supply chain provides cost-effective services available to all. Reverse logistics is yet another innovation that backs their supply chain by pulling out damaged, obsolete or over-stocked products and redistributing them by using disposition management rules to maximize the original lifecycle of the product. Overall, Flextronics provides low cost products worldwide through a very efficien t and effective supply chain management system backed by logistics solutions for maximum customer satisfaction since satisfying the consumer is the primary priority of the company. Venture Corporation being the leader provides an excellent combination of manufacturing and delivering facilities

The project chosen for the assignment is the house construction

The project chosen for the is the house construction - Assignment Example The time required is only 8 days. The time allocated was 10, which would be on a higher estimation. The major activity is only the fixing the roof components to the wall frames and placing the skylights. The necessary designs for the skylights could be prepared and fabricated early. Placing this could be undertaken along with the roof work. And the attaching the TV antenna shall also be undertaken along with this. Plumbing and wiring: The plumbing and wiring could be simultaneously undertaken and requires 4 days each for this activity. As the it involves only fixing up of he components 6 days of plumbing could be reduced to 4 days as equivalent that of wiring. Plastering: plastering work need to be undertaken after the plumbing and wiring, as any damages to the structure could be rectified at this stage. 4 days would be enough for this operation as it involves only covering the walls with appropriate mortar. Foundation:, Frames: 14 December 2008, Roof: 22 December 2008, Skylight: 25 December 2008, TV antenna - 28 December 2008, Plumbing and wiring: 30 December 2008; Plastering: 3 January 2009; Finishing: 7 January 2009, Painting: 7 January 2009; Carpets, curtains and sides: 13 January 2009 and landscape: 15 January 2009. The critical activities that would effect the shorted time required to complete the project are foundation, frames, roof,... The other two days could be used for the actual operation. Stage 2 : TV Dummy Foundation Frames RoofSkylight Wiring Plastering Dummy plumbing (e) You will need to list the critical activities in your project and explain why they are critical, you will need to list the activities that are non critical and explain why. ( answer why ). The critical Activities Activity Start date Duration Foundation 8 December 2008 6 Frames 14 December 2008 8 Roof 22 December 2008 8 Plumbing and wiring 30 December 2008 4 Plastering 3 January 2009 4 Finishing 7 January 2009 4 Painting 7 January 2009 6 These activities are considered critical because the minimum duration required for the project to be completed is along this path only. Non Critical activities Activity Start date Duration Sky light 25 December 2008 2 TV antenna 28 December 2008 1 Carperts, curtains 13 January 2009 3 Land scape 13 January 2009 4 They are considered non-critical because further reduction of their time don't reduce the overall project duration. They could be undertaken simultaneously with the critical events. Foundation:, Frames: 14 December 2008, Roof: 22 December 2008, Skylight: 25 December 2008, TV antenna - 28 December 2008, Plumbing and wiring: 30 December 2008; Plastering: 3 January 2009; Finishing: 7 January 2009, Painting: 7 January 2009; Carpets, curtains and sides: 13 January 2009 and landscape: 15 January 2009. The critical activities that would effect the shorted time required to complete the project are foundation, frames, roof, plumbing,

English Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

English Literature - Essay Example ‘Browsing’ no longer connotes rifling through the pages of a book, but the surfing of the net. The very word ‘reading’ is no longer confined to print, but to the perusal of text on the monitor of a computer. Everything, from dictionaries to atlases, has been usurped by the net. After all, who wants an atlas, when one can have ‘Google Earth?’ When books themselves seem well on the way to surviving only as bound exhibits in museums, or fashion statements on coffee tables, does the study of Literature remain relevant today? However, anyone who has curled up on a sofa with a detective yarn, sighed over a tale of unrequited love, or laughed out loud over the antics of a comic hero, can shrug aside such cynicism. Anyone who has ever experienced the magic of books can hold fast to the certainty that Literature will always remain an integral part of a cultured, fulfilled human life. Literature is the expression of the highest human thought. Yes, scientific knowledge exhibits mans’ intellectual achievement and its’ manifestation in the mastery of the physical world. But, it is Literature which satisfies the soul, along with music and art. After all, it is this striving for more than the mere satisfaction of basic physical needs which distinguishes man from the animals. The beauty of the written word transcends that of Nature, and it is Literature which gives expression to this beauty. Life is shaped by Literature. From Aesop’s fable of The Fox and the Grapes to the nursery rhyme of The Little Engine Which Could, from the adventures of the Hardy Boys to tales of Sinbad the Sailor, from Greek and Indian mythology to Shakespeare and Steinbeck, Literature gives expression to the lessons learnt from the past and serves as a guide to the future. It is Literature which showcases the strongest and purest of human emotions,

Discuss the role played by Mr. Morrison Essay Example for Free

Discuss the role played by Mr. Morrison Essay Mr. Morrison symbolises the strength of Afro-Americans in the face of adversity. He is a source of courage and protection for the Logan family, acting almost as a guardian angel when papa is not home. There is an air of myth surrounding Mr. Morrison, created by factors such as his stature, his deep voice and scarred features. This makes him an interesting and thus successful character for Mildred Taylor. When the children first meet Mr. Morrison, his description relates directly to Mildred Taylors imagery. The attention that she pays to the significance of trees as an emblem of strength, influences her description of the powerful Mr. Morrison: The man was a human tree in height, towering high above papas six feet two inches. The long trunk of his massive body bulged with muscles The living strength and permanence of trees are a symbol of the strength which the black community draws from its history, tradition and inheritance, and the roots which have been put down in their land. Thus, the description of Mr. Morrison is in keeping with such imagery. The timing of Mr. Morrisons arrival assists Mildred Taylor in developing tension and suspense. He arrives on the scene in the wake of the news of the attack on The Berry Family. Mr. Morrison, we learn, was wrongly accused of starting a fight and then sacked from his job. This gives us an example of institutionalised racism and also hints that there may well be more incidents and fights. The children immediately warm to him and are deeply fascinated by his giant-like appearance. Mr. Morrisons attributes make him immune to the physical threats by which the local whites terrorise the black community. This gives the children courage and inspiration. As a result he is a figure who earns Staceys respect. Stacey becomes much closer to Mr. Morrison after he makes it plain that he will not be reporting the matter of the fight to with T. J to Staceys mother. Indeed, such is Mr. Morrisons positive influence, that Stacey shows increased maturity by telling his mother about the fight himself. On their way back from shopping in Vicksburg, Papa, Stacey and Mr. Morrison are ambushed by the Wallaces. Mr. Morrison shows his tremendous power by taking on three attackers and badly injuring two of them. In the following chapter he again demonstrates power and shrewd judgement too by lifting Kaleb Wallaces truck. This act is enough for him to avoid being drawn into fighting whilst still standing up for himself. By checking the truck for a gun first, Mr. Morrison shows an admirable measured determination not to be bullied. Furthermore, Mr. Morrison is a vital calming influence upon the headstrong Hammer when the childrens uncle is seeking to avenge Cassies humiliation in strawberry. The image of Mr. Morrison sat watching on the porch for the nightmen is a very powerful one. To the Logans he is a guardian angel figure, who protects with great strength, yet is otherwise the perfect example of calm. In the stories he tells to the family we learn of an horrific past in which his family were murdered by racists. His scars symbolise the healing power and capacity to endure that are characterstic of the persecuted black people. His voice like the roll of low thunder further emphasises Mr. Morrison as a key symbolic figure in the book, as this simile echoes the title. Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Mildred Taylor section.

Impact of technology and science on International relations

Impact of technology and science on International relations Impact of technology and science on International relations Introduction: Science, technology and international affairs influence one another. The impacts of science and technology on international affairs, particularly those of communication and information technologies, are especially penetrating. The interactive effects of science, technology and international affairs are so crucial and extensive that the area needs to be identified as an autonomous sub-control. Its current position as a comparatively abstruse theory, to be charged to experts and kept more or less obscured from the principal body of international relations, is a threatening solecism. These impacts may be categorized as handling through one of four main mechanisms: (1) Altering the building of the international system: its structure, its main constructing theories, and the relations among its factors. (2) Altering the operations by which the international system employs, incorporating administration, diplomacy, war, commerce, finance, trade, policy formation, communications, and the assembling of intelligence; (3) Developing new issue regions, trade-offs and new constraints in the constructing environment of foreign policy, an expression which incorporates not only political constraints on international operations, but also constraints imposed by the laws of natural and social science; and (4) Contributing a source of adjusted realizations, of data and clarity for the operation of the international system architecture, and of new theories and schemes for international relations theory. Aim: The major intention of this project proposal is to carry out the factors that influenced on international relations based on technology and science. And how have significant elements in international affairs evolved as they interact with technological change. Objectives: To understand the project needs, it required collecting the background information through literature survey on international relations and it associated issues. To collect the back ground knowledge on technology and science, required to consider case studies. To make research, need to prepare a frame work with proper research methodology and approach. To critically evaluate the survey results and observations in literature study through discussion and analysis. Research questions: What are the critical factors that need to consider for project international relations when technology and science is the primary concern? What is the significant role of technology and science towards international relations get strengthen? Literature review: Taylor (2004), faces that technological creativity has a great impact on international affairs or relations. Yet, he specifies, international relations intellectuals in common have contributed small amount to the effect of science and technology. International Relations in different nations: According to Eugene B. Skolnikoff, the startling changes in world affairs that began in late 1980’s signaled the end of many of the central elements of postwar international relationships. Momentous and unexpected events in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union occurred at a breathtaking pace, with a spontaneity that tended to obscure the underlying currents that had unleashed them. Many forces were at work in those societies over decades, culminating in dramatic upheaval in essentially all countries of the former eastern bloc. The influence of technological change in the disintegration of communism in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union is but one manifestation of a much longer story in which the results of science and technology have contributed to a profound evolution of the details and substance of national and international affairs. The effects are visible not only in the outcome of the communist experiment but in the countless alterations in the relationships within and among nations and peoples. And that influence is likely to continue to be significant long into the future as the nations of the world remain strongly committed of supporting research. The evidence for the role of science and technology in the evolution of international affairs is pervasive, and most easily seen through dramatic developments that have led global consequences such as the deployment of massive strategic nuclear forces, the nuclear accident at Chernobyl, foreign currency transactions on computerized financial markets in excess of $500 billion per day, or the total eradication of the scourge of smallpox. Relationship between Science technology and international relations: The relationship between international relations and science and technology is not only a result of result of recent advances in science and technology, though the breadth of interaction and the rapidity of change are relatively modern characteristics. The historical examples are countless, ranging from weapons developments that altered the fate of nations and social structures, to industrial technologies that were the basis of revolutions in economy and wealth, to new capabilities in science and technology themselves that led to astonishing discoveries and applications. It was not only the physical developments of technology that had an impact; underlying concepts of science and of the natural world were crucial as well. The intellectual currents of the enlightenment, so much a product of the new ideas of experiment and rationality that accompanied the scientific revolution, served to stimulate massive forces for change in the west. Today, given the scale and organization of the scientific and technological enterprises, science and technology have become arguably the most powerful and persistent factors lending to societal change and, necessarily, to change in international relations. The accelerated commitment of resources and development (r/d) during and after World War II has transformed the relatively haphazard climate of invention and scientific research of earlier centuries. There is now in place a formidable and growing capacity, a system for targeting human integrity toward the rapid expansion of knowledge and the production of new technologies designed to serve perceived or speculative needs. Not only do the products of this system have significant international effects, but it’s very operation leads to international consequences and favors the creation of global markets for its products and for surprising portion of the system, international goals provide the underlying motivation for the commit ment of r/d resources by governments and even by industry. Technical aspects of international relations: The subjects with international consequences that have been massively affected by technological change in recent years are familiar; weapons, communications. The economy, transportation, agriculture, health, space, and others; few, if any, aspects of international affairs have been untouched by science and technology. The effects of the application of technology are so widespread, in fact, and often of such obvious importance in the conduct and evolution of relations among nations, that it is routine for commentators to lapse into florid rhetoric in describing the resulting dramatic change in the international political system. Secretary of George P. Shultz said in December 1987, â€Å"Developments in science and social organization are altering the world profoundly- too profoundly for conventional habits of thinking to grasp. History suggests that mankind rarely understands revolutionary change at the time it is coming about.† W. Michael Blumenthal, Secretary of the Treasury under President Carter said in his 1987 Elihu Root lectures at the council on Foreign Relations in New York, â€Å"I believe there is one circumstance which overshadows all else and has set the current period apart: unprecedented, deep and continual technological change†¦extraordinarily rapid technological change has thrust upon us yet unresolved problems of governance in the national and international spheres. For all that the relationship appears to be self-evident; the extent even of the surface changes in international politics stemming from science and technology proves to be quite difficult to characterize with precision or to assess satisfactorily. It is not hard to draw up lists enumerating international political issues that are affected by technological change, but it is very much more demanding to understand the complexity of the interactions and their more profound consequences for international relations. That understanding is necessary not only to capture the relationship for analytical purposes, but also to assess the true extent of the evolution in international relations and to be able to anticipate, and possibly influence, the future directions and implications of change. It is that understanding of the complexity of the interaction and of the consequences for international affairs that we hope to achieve in this inquiry. Theories of international relations: Curiously, though there have been innumerable policy studies dealing with the effects of technological change in specific policy areas and a small number of works that attempt to look across the board at important policy areas, the subject is largely unexplored from the deeper perspective of the overall effects of science and technology on the evolution of international affairs. It is curious because of the evident centrality of the relationship, whether or not there is agreement on its ultimate significance. Even scholars concerned with theoretical issues in international relations tend to create science and technology as static givens or as emanating from impenetrable black boxes. One of the purposes of this study will be not only to fill this lacuna in the subject as a whole, but along the way to provide a basis for considering science and technology more appropriately in policy or theoretical analyses as the interactive, dynamic variables they are in reality. There is much obviously much in the theoretical literature on international relations that is pertinent and that would illuminate the issues we will be discussing. It would be possible, in fact, to structure along the lines of the debates among theorists. For example, according to differing views of the role of the state or of state or international organizations, both of which have been, and will continue to be, much affected by scientific and technological change. The idea of sovereignty, appearing often in both theoretical and policy terms, does require brief discussion, however, for it is a central element in the nation-state system and is repeatedly cited as having been eroded or at least greatly altered in meaning by technological change. It might easily be assumed that it would figure as an organizing theme in a study concerned with the impact of science and technology on evolution of international relations. The concept is generally thought by theorists, statesmen, and the public at large as fundamental attribute of nations, what Stephen Krasner calls â€Å"the constructive principle of the existing international system†. Methodology: As this project is mainly towards the qualitative research work and which extracts the information analysis from ground level. In this project data analysis point of view, primary data collection is considered where it is with the metric point and literature survey is considered towards the qualitative research part. Qualitative is chosen for project scope area where it deals with the amount of data collection which is not come true with quantitative. Corbin, A. S. a. J. (1998) Researcher want to collect the data from recent articles as well as recent publishers reviews and for primary data collection, he want to choose from different level of people in IT organization like project manager, employee and top level management. So it will be very helpful to analyze the particular point in multidimensional view. It will be more helpful for this research analysis. I had some reference in Indian IT companies, with that I want to go for primary data collection by taking the interviews (Yin, R. (1989)). Data collection is considered as primary and secondary resources. In secondary point, data is being collected in indirect manner where resource will be like books, articles, journals and internet resources (Easterby-smith, R. T. a. A. L. (2002). Primary data collection is the process of finding the data collection from real domain experts by taking the interviews and questionnaire. Then make a comparison study between primary data collection and secondary then make analysis according to the researcher choice with proper evolution. As this project deals the research area of qualitative where there is a lot of scope in mine the knowledge about project task. Interviews are conducted in semi structured pattern where the interview is frame with defined set of questions which is towards the objectives. The most common approach to studying the interaction of science and technology with international relations views the relationship in the context of specific policy areas, typically in relation to pressing policy concerns. A limited number of studies have taken a somewhat broader canvas using a variety of specific policy implications of science and technology as a way of illustrating the growth and change in the matter of international politics and the new relationships and institutions that have been created. These studies have been useful with respect to specific policy implications of developments in science and technology, but they are less satisfactory for our goal of understanding the broader and more fundamental interactions of science and technology with the international political system, and how that system is affected by the continued advance of science and technology. Our primary purpose is not to produce a definitive or quantitative measure of system change; the task would be difficult and the result ultimately arbitrary. Rather, we will explore the nature of the interactions between technological and social factors that lead to evolutionary change, identify the direction and patterns of that change, and record its characteristics. Our focus, accordingly, will be on the patterns of evolution of important elements of international relations as a result of the impact with science and technology. We will consider change in system characteristics or concepts to constitute a definitive transformation only when it is ambiguous. Analysis: The complete project is mainly concerned about the international relations with respect to the technology and science. Now a days, completely world relayed on globalization issues where technology plays vital role in all the fields of development as well as service oriented industries. According to the aim of this project proposal, it must be focused on technology relevant domains as well as current positions with respect to the fields of operations. Even here it required to consider the change management factors according to the change occurred in one sector. So change management plays crucial role in international relations when technology and science came in the primary concern. Researcher point of view, this domain brings very helpful information and prediction policies towards the international relations. For this kind of research, primary data collection is essential where the interpretation is mandatory with respect secondary data which gathered through literature survey. For primary data collection point of view, it considered personal interviews to the professionals in technology end who are worked for research and development sectors. For that researcher is considered information technology field which always keep on upgrading with their technologies and shows much impact on international relations and associated tools. According to the researcher, this research is much towards the real world, so it should be useful for improvement of international relations. Schedule plan and timetable: According to the researcher, this project takes around 90 days of time where the initial stage is completely depends on the requirement analysis of project. Then it will consider the significant study of literature associated with project domains. Then it is required to choose proper research methodology and primary data collection from real domain like surveys and personal interviews. Finally researcher will come to produce the key findings of results with proper frame work also conclusion where all the research work is done under supervision of my project coordinator. References: Cultural Impact on International Relations 2002 (Chinese Philosophical Studies). Edition. Council for Research in Values. Committee on Japan, 1997. Maximizing U.S. Interests in Science and Technology Relations with Japan (Compass Series). Edition. National Academies Press. John R. De La Mothe, 2002. Science, Technology and Global Governance (Science, Technology, and the International Political Economy Series). 0 Edition. Routledge. 2001. International Relations and Global Climate Change (Global Environmental Accord: Strategies for Sustainability and Institutional Innovation). 1st Edition. The MIT Press. Beverly Crawford, 1993. Economic Vulnerability in International Relations: East- West Trade, Investment, and Finance. Edition. Columbia University Press. MIT Political Science: Graduate Studies Fields of Study. 2014. MIT Political Science: Graduate Studies Fields of Study. [ONLINE] Available at: http://web.mit.edu/polisci/graduate/core.html. [Accessed 19 March 2014]. JSTOR: An Error Occurred Setting Your User Cookie. 2014. JSTOR: An Error Occurred Setting Your User Cookie. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/20026535?uid=3738256uid=2480264703uid=2uid=3uid=60sid=21103798658603. [Accessed 19 March 2014]. What is the Impact of Science and Technology (NUCLEAR WEAPONS) Upon International Relations?. 2014. What is the Impact of Science and Technology (NUCLEAR WEAPONS) Upon International Relations?. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.preservearticles.com/201106208251/what-is-the-impact-of-science-and-technology-nuclear-weapons-upon-international-relations.html. [Accessed 19 March 2014]. GT Catalog : International Affairs : MS International Affairs. 2014. GT Catalog : International Affairs : MS International Affairs. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.catalog.gatech.edu/colleges/cola/inta/grad/phdintast.php. [Accessed 19 March 2014]. 20th-century international relations (politics) :: Science and technology in wartime Encyclopedia Britannica. 2014. 20th-century international relations (politics) :: Science and technology in wartime Encyclopedia Britannica. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/291225/20th-century-international-relations/32912/Science-and-technology-in-wartime. [Accessed 19 March 2014].

Fichtes Theory of Individuality :: Philosophy

Fichte's Theory of Individuality THEME Fichte’s Wissenschaftslehre lends itself as apparently no other philosophy of mind to the extraction or extrapolation of a theory of individuality. Moreover it proves possible to marry the key concepts on which my essay concentrates to current neurophysiological thinking on how memories are laid down and retrieved. Accordingly it is those nuptials that this essay attempts to perform. PART I The world in my mind The student of Descartes might be brought up short by Fichte’s ‘revision’ of the cogito statement: â€Å"I am I†. Soon it becomes apparent that this ‘I’ does not think: The primordial, absolutely unconditioned first principle of human knowledge . . . is an act (‘Tathandlung’) which does not and cannot appear among the empirical states of our consciousness, but rather lies at its basis and alone makes it possible. [I,91] Thus begins his effort to â€Å"complete† Kant’s system; for although the old man growled â€Å"God preserve us from friends like these†, it cannot be denied that the Critiques *presuppose* a fully-formed mind and may therefore be said to have turned a blind eye to some mandatory prior midwifery. Fichte’s solution conceives of the ‘Ich’ as essentially an act — as an amorphous consciousness brimful with psychic energy seeking instantiation as a finite thinking being. Unlike the cartesian self, the fichtean ‘Ich’ is initially a self in abstracto [I, 96 & 97], the principle of activity in all purity and lacking all predicates [I, 110]. Accordingly what the ‘Ich’ can experience in this state is nothing remotely akin to the cogito, but rather a freudian ‘oceanic feeling’ of limitless being. From this emerges the desire to ‘posit’ itself, which can mean nothing other than a striving for self-consciousness. Thus, The pure self-reverting activity of the Self is a striving . . . This boundless striving, carried to infinity, is the condition of the possibility of any object whatsoever: no striving, no object. [I, 262]. Echoes of Goethe’s apophthegm, â€Å"Im Anfang war die Tat†, itself a sovereign mind’s correction of the evangelical â€Å"In the beginning was the word†. Agency precedes the self-consciousness which commands words. But an ‘Ich’, wanting to become a ‘Self’, needs correlation to an ‘Other’. Activity, whether mental or physical, necessarily implies the existence of a correlated external reality in relation to which we think and act and which comprises the theatre where these relational activities are enacted.

Adam Taliaferro - An Inspirational Football Player :: Personal Narratives

Adam Taliaferro - An Inspirational Football Player I’ve known Adam Taliaferro for almost two and a half years. I knew him before his horrific injury suffered at Ohio State. I knew him throughout his rigorous rehabilitation routine at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital in Philadelphia. I know him today, continuing to rehabilitate and inspire countless individuals through their daily struggles. Remarkably, throughout those two and a half years, he has remained unchanged. Obviously, there are physical differences. He is no longer able to perform the unbelievable athletic feats he was able to perform prior to our freshmen with the Penn State football team. No longer will his five foot ten inch frame be able to goal tend shots in the IM building. Physically, he is not able to deliver a crushing hit on Eric Mcoo on a blitz in one of our preseason scrimmages. However, when it comes to who we really are, our personalities, demeanor, and mannerisms, Adam Taliaferro has remained unchanged throughout his injury. He remains the lighthearted, s pontaneous, and outgoing kid from "The Jers". September 23, 2000 remains for me, one of the days of my life I will always remember. As a redshirt freshman, I remained home while the team, and Adam traveled to Ohio State for an afternoon game. It was the obvious fear conveyed through a television set that remains engrained into my memory. Knowing Adam, my roommate and I were able to see through his motionless the utter fear he was experiencing lying on that field. His recovery would be slow and painful. The other redshirt freshmen and I spent the rest of the season traveling to Magee Rehabilitation Center in Philadelphia during away games to visit Adam and his family. Each week improvement was seen. From the first visit when nurses came often to change the position of his legs because he was unable to do so, to the first finger movement he experienced, to the first leg movement, and eventually, to seeing Adam stand, he remained unchanged. He was still upbeat, constantly making fun of himself and his newfound uncoordination. He fl irted with the nurses and bonded with his roommate. He was still Adam. I know there have been dark moments for Adam throughout his rehabilitation. There must have been moments when he questioned his own ability to overcome this situation. However, he never allowed any of his friends to see these moments because to us, that wouldn’t be the Adam we’ve come to know.

International Business Machines (IBM) :: essays papers

IBM International Business Machines Corporation The Big Blue is often a name use by many to describe the world’s largest provider of computer of hardware, software, and service. Years ago many said International Business Corporation (IBM) wouldn’t as prosperous, but who would have said they were wrong. Know one would of forecast the success of IBM. It was obvious that they would be successfully because computers are extremely important in todays world. Without computers society wouldn’t be advance in technology and other areas. Many of IBM customers consist of such companies as insurance companies, airlines, some banks, and many other large corporation. IBM sales consist of programs for large companies with enormous computer system which needs software. IBM is also trying to get involve in the on-line service. The history of the International Business Machine Corporation began with a 40 year-old salesman name Thomas Watson. In 1914 Thomas Watson was a National Cash Register, he was trying to save a company known as the Computing-Tabulating-Record Company(C-T-R).At this time he was trying to sell or marketed C-T-R’S Hollerith machine and other tabulators to the US government during WW1. He wanted to sell punch cards tabulator. Once he had supplied the US government, with these tabulators, he had triple (C-T-R) revenues to nearly $15 million by 1920. In 1924 Computing-Tabulating-Record was change to International Business Machines.IBM then began to take over the worlds market for tabulators, clocks, and electric type writers. By 1940 it was the us largest office firms that deals with machines. There sales had reach $50 million. In the year of 1944, IBM had perfected the the calculator it was known as Harvard Mark I. It was actually a electromechanical calculation. It is said that this was the first potentially computers. In 1951 Remington Rand’s came out with the UNIVAC it began to replace the IBM machine. In the 1960s and the 1970s IBM came out quickly and built a market share near 80%. IBM used its superior marketing. In 1952 Thomas Watson Jr became president and presented its first computer, 701. While Jr was president he introduce the Stretch system, which get rid of vacuum tubes. Also during this time the first family computes, which were called the 360. In 1957 the first programming language came, it was called FORTRAN. and also the first floppy it was introduce in 1971. IBM then came out with more advance computers such as System/38 in 1978 and the AS / 400 in 1988.

Organizational Ethics Issue Resolution Paper Essay

This paper aims to describe an ethical issue and apply it to six ethical decision making steps namely issue clarification, stakeholder analysis, values identification, issue resolution, addressing objections and resolution implementation. Main Body The ethical issue that will be discussed is giving out unacceptable levels of air and water pollution during the production process by an organization’s factories. In order to effectively resolve the issue, the organization needs to change its production processes so that its social cost is not that high and at the same time the organization will profit from it. Issue Clarification The first step in resolution of organizational ethics issue is to properly defining the problem in detail and discussing it with all the related members of the organization. The definition must be clear, specific and based on the best available information. Then all the people who are getting affected by this issue must be identified. Once this is done, the consequences of this issue must be discussed in detail. Another very important matter that must be dealt with is information needs. This will help the organization understand the nature of the issue at hand. Lastly, the importance of solving this issue must be evaluated so that it can be given a priority. (Michigan State University Extension, 1994) In our case, the issue at hand is pollution. The company’s factories give out a lot of smoke in the atmosphere and also the rivers and canals around the factories are being contaminated by the dumping of chemical waste in them. Because of the rising problem of global warming, air pollution is an issue of great concern. The water from the rivers and canals around the factory is not usable any more. The dumping of chemical waste in the river waters has resulted in no clean water for the housing societies in the locality. After seeing all this, a lot of Non Government Organizations have suggested measures that will reduce the pollution that is given out. In addition to this, the government is also planning on imposing laws that will limit the amount of pollution that is given out. Organizations that give out pollution above the acceptable level will be heavily taxed. Those involved and who are affected include the people of the neighborhood, environmentalist, government and the society as a whole. Stakeholder Analysis Stakeholder Analysis is a process in which the Stakeholders are defined and their importance in the whole decision making process is evaluated. Stakeholders are all those groups that will affect and get affected by an organization’s decisions. Examples include government, community, employees, shareholders etc. In order to resolve organizational ethics issue effectively, it is absolutely essential for an organization to win support from these groups. There are four steps to how this procedure must be carried out. First of all, your stakeholders must be identified. Secondly, you will prioritize them and next the organization will attempt to understand their most important stakeholders (MindTools, 2008). Lastly, all the support that we can get from these stakeholders will be assessed and ways to reduce opposition from some of them will also be considered. The stakeholders involved in our case will be the public, senior executives, press, government and non-government organizations, customers, prospective customers, and lastly trade unions. This list is prioritized, the first one being the most important. They are prioritized according to the amount of interest and power they have on the organization. The stakeholders with high levels of power and interest must be managed closely and be kept satisfied. All these groups are affected by the organization’s decisions and they also have influence over these. The organization will also get support from all these stakeholders. Public will be supportive because decrease in pollution will directly benefit them. Senior executive will also supportive because through press, the company’s brand image will improve and because of this, the customers and potential customers will go for the company’s products. Lastly, we will try to understand these stakeholders and how they feel about the decision and the ethical issue. This can be done with the help of interviews and other means of communication. This understanding will help in more accurately prioritizing the stakeholders. Values identification The third step in the decision making process would be identification of the organizational values. Every organization has its own values. These values set standards according to which every individual in the organization must behave. If these standards are not set, everyone will behave according to their individual values which will disrupt the workplace’s environment. Therefore, it is essential to identify and understand the importance of these values. These values could include honesty, professionalism, teamwork, etc. These values differentiate between the right from wrong, therefore only once we have identified these values, we will be able to resolve organizational ethics issues. (National Defense University, 2006) These values will help us decide whether the issue unethical or not and if the actions of the organization are against the organization’s moral values. In our hypothetical situation, the organization will come together in order to identify its organizational values. The possible values that could be identified would be responsibility, accountability, and professionalism. The organization must realize its responsibility towards the society, be accountable for its actions and lastly be professional in the way they handle the issue at hand. Spreading of pollution by the organizations factories is unethical because it is against its ethical values. Issue resolution This includes compiling everything discussed in the first three steps to come up with a resolution which will resolve the issue. It will include a detailed solution which will cover all the aspects of the ethical issue. This is the most important step in the whole decision making process because this step outlines the complete strategic plan of the organization. After considering the issue, stakeholders and the moral values of the company, the next step is coming up with a resolution. The organization must firstly change its production process so that the pollution it is giving out can be limited. This will require a lot of capital. The Organization at this stage must decide on how this capital will raised. Also, another way of the getting rid of chemical waste that is dumped in rivers must be employed. Next, the organization should ensure that greener products are produced and recycled material should be used for packaging. It should involve the press, so that the community will know about this operation of the organization. Addressing objections The next step in decision making is one of the most difficult to handle as it involves understanding others. This step includes efficiently, powerfully, professionally and competently addressing objections to the decision or the resolution the organization has come up with. There are various groups that might object to this decision. It is the goal of the decision-makers to carefully listen and understand these objections and then addressing to them appropriately. This step is not over until the ones objecting are satisfied with the justification given to them. In our case, one important group that might object to this decision would be the senior executives or the investors who will have to provide for this new project. They might object because the capital required for this new project would be very high and they would want to be satisfied before they invest. These groups need to be assured that this project might cost a lot to the company, but in the long term, it will not only benefit the society but will also benefit the organization itself. Decreasing pollution will improve the brand image of the company which might increase its market share. Plus, in future, when the government will impose laws and taxes on giving out of pollution, the organization will benefit as they will be able to avoid it. They must be given confidence in their investment. Resolution implementation After all the five steps, one very important step is resolution implementation. The decision must be implemented in order for it to be effective. The organization officials can do so by arranging a meeting that will involve everyone working for the organization. Especially, those who are new to the organization must attend these. In this meeting, the resolution must be discussed with everyone in the organization. They must be told the drill and how the organization plans on tackling the situation. At this stage, suggestions from everyone from the organizations would be welcomed as these might help the organization to come up with a better decision. Along with this, the importance of it must be emphasized. It must be made clear that it is important to follow these guidelines at all times, otherwise serious measures will be taken against those who breech it. Finally, workers must be monitored and supervised to know if the ethical standards are being met. At the same times, the effectiveness of the measures introduced must also be checked. The workers could be given feedback on how they are doing keeping up with it, good or bad. They must be appreciated and a reward system must be developed if they manage to follow them. This will motivate them to follow the instructions without supervision in future. An ethics performance evaluation should be developed. This will look at how the organization has behaved. This would enable the organization to examine whether its actions and decisions are consistent with its purpose and moral values. (Miriam Schulman, 2008) Also training must be giving if it is required. Conclusion The new policy will definitely have a positive effect on the organization. It gives a good impression of the organization where ethics and values are of the utmost importance. It gives employees the impression that the organization is serious about meeting ethical standards. This promotes values amongst them. However, on the other hand, it may cause dissent. It could be too hard to follow. This could lead to the workers being discouraged to perform even basic work. The reactions of the employees should be positive but it could be anything depending on the code. After all the discussion, the importance for an organization to meet ethical standards is very clear. Therefore, the organization must do all it takes to meet these standards before they make a decision. During decision making, an organization will greatly benefit if it follows a systematic procedure to develop these ethical standards by following the steps given above.

The Ttc: Private, Public, or Private-Public Partnership?

In July 2012, the TTC was evaluated and given a disappointing grade by TTCriders Group based on its performance at five aspects. These five aspects are about fares, transit expansion, accessibility, service frequency, and environmental impact (â€Å"TTC gets†, 2012). Unlike any other major city in North America, the TTC fares covered 70% of its operating cost, which was the highest fare box ratio within the 11 major North American cities (See Appendix 1). After derailed for 16 months, transit expansion plan finally came back on track, still with concerns about certainty of funds.Due to budget constraints, the target timeline of making all new and existing subway accessible has been pushed back several times from 2020 to 2024, then to 2025. The TTC ridership increased by 12. 5% in 2011 while service levels only rose by 8. 4%, resulting in insufficient service to connect our neighborhoods. As for the environmental impact, the TTC collected no data for this purpose (â€Å"The st ate,† 2012). All these issues are mainly accounted for prolonged budget deficits, which the TTC has been struggling for many years.HISTORY OF THE TTC The Toronto Transportation Committee (TTC) is a public transport service agency established in 1954, the third largest transit system in North America that operates streetcar, transit bus, and rapid transit service (subway and RT) in Toronto. The TTC consists of four repaid transit service lines with 69 stations, 149 bus routes and 11 streetcar lines, making 243 connections among them. In 2011, the ridership went up to 500. 2 million, which exceeded all historical records.The TTC service covers the Greater Toronto Area benefited 4. 5 million people. Particularly, the TTC provides Wheel-Trans service that is responsible for door-door accessible transit service for physically disabled people, 2. 7 million trips made through this service in 2011 (â€Å"2011 TTC,† 2011). Toronto Private Transportation Companies 1849-1921 The W illiams Omnibus Bus Line was the first private-owned transportation company in Toronto, which carried passengers in stagecoaches drawn by horses erving a limited area along Young street in 1849. With the population growth, Williams Omni Bus Line was heavily loaded. The city then gave the first transit franchise for a street railway to Alexander Easton’s Toronto Street Railway (TSR) in 1861. After the franchise expired in 1891, the city passed on the right to a new company, the Toronto Railway Company (TRC), under James Ross and William Mackenzie. The TRC made the first electric car ran on August 15, 1892 to meet the franchise requirement.The city limits had extended greatly by 1912. The city attempted many times to force TRC enlarge its serve area, and failed. In order to build several routes and better serve the greater area, the city created its own street railway operation, the Toronto Civic Railways (TCR). By 1921 when TRC’s franchise expired, the city created the Toronto Transportation Commission combined with the TCR (Filey, 1996). Toronto Transportation Commission 1921- 1954 Toronto Transportation Commission went through boom times and down times from 1921 to 1954.Streetcars and railways served progressively in the extended Toronto area. There were many remarkable milestones during this period such as: 575 new â€Å"Peter Witt† street cars entered service in 1921; first gasoline-electric hybrid bus entered service in 1926; in 1927, TTC expanded its lines of service with Island ferry, hydro-electric railway, and other intercity bus service; TTC overcome the stock crash in 1929 and made improvements; 745 PPC streetcars, which are also called â€Å"red rocket†, entered service in 1938; The great moment came on Sep. 8, 1949, that the city of Toronto was symbolized with its opening ceremony of â€Å" Canada’s First Subway†; in 1954 Toronto Transportation Commission was renamed as Toronto Transit Committee (â€Å"A c avalcade,† 1954). TORONTO TRANSIT COMMITTEE AND ITS BUDGET ISSUES Financial Situation at Beginning From the early 1950s, Toronto Transit Committee had been operated by the supervision of Metropolitan Toronto, which was under the auspices of Province of Ontario who united Toronto with other 12 suburbs. Since the opening of its first subway in 1954, TTC had planned to expand its subway due to increasing needs of the largely adjacent Metro area.This plan was facing obstacles because of the quadrupled bus service and the pressure from Metro Toronto to set up unprofitable service to the suburbs. The development of the TTC went forward because of the subsidy of Metro Toronto as well as the Province of Ontario, making the entire capital budget came from taxpayers. In the 1970s and the 1980s, the Toronto Transit Commission was seen worldwide as a ‘transportation showcase’. From 1979 until 1990, it won awards after awards for safety and design (â€Å"A BRIEF,† 2012) .From 1972, the TTC’s operating profit was greatly affected by the request from the City’s political pressure, which was to eliminate the fare zone system to prevent the suburban paying an additional fare. By the late of 1980s, the subsidies from Metro Toronto and the Province was up to a quarter of the taxpayers’ money, which was 32% of the TTC total revenue, however, the subsidy level within the North American cities was still the lowest (â€Å"A BRIEF,† 2012). Budget Cuts from the Province By the late 1990s, budgets shortage became a major issue for the TTC.Previously the TTC’s subsidies were split in halves provided by the Province and the City. On Feb. 18, 1996, the newly elected government of Mike Harris ended the province subsidy for the TTC. In 1998, provincial government put an end to the federal system of Metro Toronto and let Toronto become a unified City. The result was a significant cutback in transit services. The City of Toronto†™s subsidy of the TTC was roughly $150 million, and the TTC had a continental high farebox recovery of 82%. With passengers paying far more for far worse service, the TTC’s ridership had dropped to roughly 360 million (â€Å"A HISTORY,† 2012) (See Appendix 2).From that point on, the TTC has been always struggling among its fare box recovery, city subsidy, and possible subsidy from the province of Ontario. The TTC would sacrifice its frequent service and routes to save its operation cost. The TTC also have many employees working overtime to compromise the labor cost, saying that this way can be more cost efficient than hiring more employees. Nevertheless, the TTC was renowned because of its sunshine list that has more and more employees every year earning more than $100,000 annually. Other ProblemsAlong with struggles for its budget subsidies, the TTC also had been dragged off by other problems such as service cuts, fare hikes, and union strikes. In February 2012, The TTC reduced its frequency service on more than 35 routes in order to meet its targeted operating budget (â€Å"TTC bus,† 2012). In November 2009, the TTC board discussed a fare increases proposal that would generate $62 million (â€Å"TTC fare,† 2009). This fare hike was implemented on January 3, 2010 (Litwinenko, 2009) (See Appendix 3). The bargaining between the TTC and its union had been on and off for decades.In March 2011, at the request of Mayor Rob Ford, the Ontario government agreed to ban transit strikes in Toronto and would pass a bill to set the TTC as an essential service. In a long-run, critics argued that this would cost taxpayers more because TTC contract disputes could cause bigger raise to settle in the arbitration (â€Å"Liberals close,† 2011). OPTIONS FOR THE TTC Given the facts that the TTC consistently facing budget shortage, frequent service reduction and routes cut, and union issues, the discussion of finding solutions for the TTC has bee n ongoing for a long time.Some people think that privatizing the TTC would make the TTC operating efficiently and profitably in the hands of private company. Others argue that private sector emerging in a public transit could be a better option, giving the reason that private sector infuse profitable drives and boost skills in a public transit system. Many others defend that the TTC should stay public in order to serve better for the public rather than only chasing profit as what happened in private companies. Each of them gives insights of this transportation crisis. Privatizing the TTCThe voices of privatizing the TTC is not sound nowadays comparing to 1990s. Corcoran (1990) stated blankly â€Å"mass transit and mass losses go hand in hand†. He doubted the reason of government so heavily involved in public transportation and the seemingly inherent unprofitable operations. Despite the fact that government rejected the proposal by five developers for investment to build the s ubway extension, a public transit system proved its ability in managing this mass system, which was badly managed, underfinanced, poorly planned, and heavily subsidized. Private-Public PartnershipWith regards to privatizing the TTC, many people generally meant to privatize parts of the TTC because they still want the TTC remain the function to serve and benefit the public. Which parts should be privatized could be a complex process of evaluation. City councilor Karen Stintz thought â€Å"adding some private-sector appointees could boost skills on the TTC board without reducing its accountability to the public. Private-sector members could contribute project management, financial and customer service skills† (Kalinowski, 2010). Staying Public Staying public remains its power in many people’s thoughts towards the TTC.These people think public transit should benefit the public in its full strength. Serving the TTC riders at its very best could be conflict sometimes with g aining profit through the operation. Knowing and still offering some money-losing services to benefit its needed riders differentiate the public system from the private or so-called private-public partnership system. â€Å"Keep TTC public†, the message was given through a coalition, the public transit alliance with the members from the Toronto Environmental Alliance, the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 113, and community activists.They held a $500,000 ad campaign for â€Å"Keep TTC public† to claim that private or private-public partnership can be a disastrous experiment for Torontonians, and the TTC should stay public (Yuen, 2010). The video of â€Å"Keep TTC public† presented compelling reasons against transit privatization, compared with other cities’ transit system that were in either private or private-public partnership. The examples used were London, Melbourne, Auckland, and Vancouver. In 2003, a Private-Public Partnership was introduced in London transit system. This partnership ended in 2009 because the 30 years contacted of ? 7 billion was used up in 7. 5 years, and even overspent more than ? 1 billion. Private companies ran Auckland transport by using the zone system. Due to the tickets difference, riding the similar distance as from Scarborough to Etobicoke would cost $16. 5 in Auckland. When Melbourne government decided to privatize its transit system, its original objective was to reduce the city’s subsidy and increase the quality of service by using the private company. By 1999 when the privatization became effect, the subsidy to the transit system doubled the previous level when it was in public.Till 2010, comparing between Melbourne and Toronto, the subsidy to Melbourne transit system was 4 times than the subsidy for the TTC, while the ridership of Melbourne transit system was just 1/3 of the TTC. Vancouver Canada line was another example for PPP (Private-Public Partnership) which drown money from the bus fa res to subsidize this rapid transit line. This video logically presented the historical cases from different angles to demonstrate the disability of the private system to public transit, giving an inevitable statement that the private company operates for the profit rather than the benefit to the ublic (â€Å"Keep TTC,† 2010). CONCLUSION In December 2011 the 2012 Budget Committee meeting, the TTC presented its less services on many routes because of the subsidy budget cut (Munro, 2011). It is a definite scheme that the TTC will still be facing various problems due to its political context, budget structure, service range, and union issue, simply put as its complexity. Looking back its history and steps of its developments, the TTC managed to meet the service requirement and survived in public for today’s economy. However, the debate of whichever is the best solution for the TTC will still be ongoing.There is no simple answer for this question, but only hopes that peopl e wish the TTC carry on its responsibility in better serving the people in Toronto. REFERENCES: A brief history of transit in Toronto. (2012). Transit Toronto. Retrieved from: http://transit. toronto. on. ca/spare/0012. shtml A calvalcade of progress. (1954). TTC. ca. Retrieved from: http://www. ttc. ca/About_the_TTC/History/cavalcade_of_progress. jsp A history on fares on the TTC. (2012). Transit Toronto. Retrieved from: http://transit. toronto. on. ca/spare/0021. shtml Corcoran.T, (1990). Privatizing the TTC would relieve strain on subway service. The Globe and Mail. Retrieved from: http://search. proquest. com. ezproxy. library. yorku. ca/business/docview/385631727/1383962EB1D56AD7336/2? accountid=15182 Filey. M, (1996). The TTC story. Toronto, Ontario: Dundurn Press. Retrieved from: http://www. ttc. ca/About_the_TTC/History/The_first_75_years. jsp Kalinowski. T, (2010). TTC board could could be public, private mix: Non-elected members, bring new skills: Stintz. Toronto Star. Ret rieved from: http://search. proquest. com. ezproxy. ibrary. yorku. ca/docview/812554793? accountid=15182 KeepTTCPublicToronto, (2010, September 17). Keep TTC public. Video retrieved from: http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=xAmnmehAy3w Liberals close debate on bill declaring TTC essential service. (2011). The Canadian Press. Retrieved from: http://www. cp24. com/liberals-close-debate-on-bill-declaring-ttc-essential-service-1. 614350 Litwinenko. J, (2009). TTC fare hike approved. Blogto. Retrieved from: http://www. blogto. com/city/2009/11/ttc_fare_hike_approved/ TTC bus service cut back. (2012). Toronto Star.Retrieved from: http://search. proquest. com. ezproxy. library. yorku. ca/business/docview/921300938/138368A888C7C5B89BC/2? accountid=15182 Munro. S, (2011). Can the TTC survive budget 2012?. Torontoist. Retieved from: http://torontoist. com/2011/12/can-the-ttc-survive-budget-2012/ TTC fare hike is unavoidable. (2009). Toronto Start. Retrieved from: http://search. proquest. com. e zproxy. library. yorku. ca/business/docview/439627577/1383691789B38A6B670/8? accountid=15182 2011 TTC operating Statistics. (2011). TTC. ca. Retrieved from: http://www. TTC. caTTC gets failing grade from TTCriders group. (2012). City News Toronto. Retrieved from: http://www. citytv. com/toronto/citynews/news/local/article/215620–ttc-gets-failing-grade-from-ttcriders-group The state of public transit in Toronto. (TTCriders, 2012). Retrieved from: http://www. ttcriders. ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/The-State-of-Public-Transit-in-Toronto-July-2012. pdf Yuen. J, (2010). Keep TTC public-coalition. Toronto Sun. Retrieved from: http://www. torontosun. com/news/torontoandgta/2010/09/20/15415186. html APPENDIX 1 REVENUE/COST RATIOS – CANADATTC Montreal Ottawa Vancouver 70% (2011) 56% (2009) 43% (2009) 48% (2009) REVENUE/COST RATIOS – U. S. TTC? Atlanta Chicago Los Angeles New York Philadelphia Boston Washington 70% 29% 40% 29% 54% 38% 42% 45% (2011) (2009) (2009) (2009) (2009) (2009) (2009) (2009) Source: City of Toronto Toronto Transit Commission 2011-2020 Capital Plan, http://www. toronto. ca/budget2011/pdf/presentation11_ttc. pdf APPENDIX 2 TORONTO STATISTICS FOR 1921-2004 APPENDIX 3

Cloning an Instinct Species in “Jurassic Park”

Roger Lee Propes PHI-240 Katherine Allison, Professor April 6, 2012 Cloning an Instinct Species in â€Å"Jurassic Park† When we hear about cloning in the media, they are usually referring to reproductive cloning, human cloning in particular, and it’s scientific and ethical implications. In Jurassic Park, John Hammand, who is a rich entrepreneur, hires a group of scientists to clone dinosaurs from the Jurassic Period. The ethical dilemma presented in Jurassic Park is whether we should use our knowledge of cloning to revive an extinct species that ceased to exist through natural processes.I believe John Hammand used ethical relativism (Van Camp, Olen, and Barry page 4) because he coordinated this project based on moral truths that were true to him. However, several of the experts he hired to sponsor the park disagreed with the ethical judgments he made while developing the park. I will briefly describe two types of cloning that were combined to successfully engineer the d inosaurs in the movie, and give an example of cloning that has been successful. Then I will give reasons why it is unethical to resurrect species that became instinct through natural processes.The words recombinant DNA technology, DNA cloning, molecular cloning, and gene cloning all refer to the same process: the transfer of a DNA fragment or interest from one organism to a self-replicating genetic element such as a bacterial plasmid. The DNA of interest can then be developed in a foreign host cell. This technology has been around since the 1970’s, and it has become a common practice in molecular biology labs today. â€Å"In 1977 scientists at the Asilomar Conference proposed sweeping regulation on so-called recombinant DNA, technologies which recombine DNA from different species in the test tube† (biology. enyon. edu). Their concerns were by combining DNA of different species disastrous monsters would result. Reproductive cloning is a technology used to generate an an imal that has the same nuclear DNA as another currently or previously existing animal. The best and most publicized example of this is the sheep named Dolly. She was the first mammal to be cloned from adult DNA. â€Å"Ian Wilmut, the scientist whose team at Scotland’s Roslin Institute cloned Dolly who was born July 5, 1996, and euthanized in 2003 because of lung disease† (usatoday. om). This successful clone was produced 3 years after the film was produced. â€Å"Dolly, or any other animal created using nuclear transfer technology, is not truly an identical clone of the donor animal. Only the clone’s chromosomal or nuclear DNA is the same as the donor, some of the clone’s genetic materials come from the mitochondria in the cytoplasm of the enucleated egg† (ornl. gov). In the film, the dinosaurs weren’t exact replicas and had mutations caused by the frog DNA that was used.In the film, they discovered dinosaur DNA trapped in the amber of a tre e and extracted the DNA. They DNA sequence was not complete so they decided to combine frog DNA in an attempt to complete the sequence. The scientists also manipulated the sequence to ensure that all of the cloned specimens would be female thinking it would be the more docile than the male. Even though females tend to have less strength than their male counterparts, they are usually the one left to tend for the offspring. Dr. Malcolm made the statement that, â€Å"nature always finds a way†.There are many species that have proven that reproduction is a possibility in a single sex environment. Some species, such as anemone fishes, are born all male and when they mature change sex and become female. â€Å"This is very strange life histories in species whose individuals may change sex at some time in their life. They may change from being males to females, protandry, or females to males, protogyny. † (marinebiology. org) Dr. Alan Grant and the children find a nest of eggs that has hatched while they were evading the T-Rex, proving nature found a way.Human beings, in general, are very naive when it comes to the power they actually hold over our world and nature. If we are to consider resurrection instinct species, we should also consider whether they became instinct through natural causes or the human intervention. Also, we should make sure we consider all of the possible mutations that may occur due to the genetic makeup of the DNA used to complete the sequence. Those which became instinct because of being destroy by humans may still be able to survive in the world as it is today.In addition, we should enter the cloning process with the knowledge that nature will eventually find a way and begin to sustain without future interference of human beings. Those which became instinct through natural causes shouldn’t be revived because the world isn’t suitable for their survival, and reviving these species could cause catastrophic changes in t he environment, which is evident in the movie â€Å"Jurassic Park†. Works Cited Buchheim, Jason. A Quick Course in Ichthyology. n. d. . Department, Biology.KAP Recombinant DNA Technology. n. d. . Energy, US Department of. Human Genome Project Information. 11 May 2009. 15 03 2012 . Julie C. Van Camp, Jeffrey Olen, and Vincent Barry. Applying Ethics: A Text with Readings. Ed. Ian Lague. Tenth Edition. Boston: Clark Baxter, 2011. Jurassic Park. By Michael Crichton. Dir. Steven Spielberg. Perf. Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum Sam Neil. 1993. Wise, Elizabeth. USA Today. 4 July 2006. 15 March 2012 .

Berkshire Threaded Fasteners Case Essay

Berkshire Threaded FastenersBerkshire Threaded Fasteners Company has recently lost their president, John Magers. The resulting appointment of his inexperienced son Joe Magers has lead to the company’s loss of confidence. Brandon Cook is the recently appointed general manger who was hired to turn the company around after a loss of $70,000 in a good business year. As a member of an outside consulting firm I have been called in to give advice on the problems the company is facing. The time period has been updated to the present times. Manufacturing ProcessSee Appendix A for the detailed manufacturing process. In short, fasteners begin as wires, rods and bars which are then cut to length, headed and finally threaded. What should be noted is that this particular manufacturing process called cold forming is high-speed, high-volume, economical and has low wastage. Such economies of scale will allow Berkshire to offset the very high costs of cold-forming equipment. Business StrategyA careful analysis is needed in order to determine Berkshire’s business strategy. At first one would think it was product differentiation because of the inelastic demand in the short run. But one thing that should also be noted is the fact that for most goods, demand is much more price elastic in the long run than in the short run. This combined with the fact that Berkshire is convinced that it could not individually raise prices without suffering substantial volume declines, and that all the products of the different manufacturers in the industry are very similar, prove that their business strategy is in fact cost leadership. Another piece of evidence that also supports this strategy is the fact that the major focus of their accounting system seems to be on cost reduction. Place in the EconomyThe industrial fastener industry has been experiencing modest growth since the 1990s with an average per annum revenue growth rate of 3.6% ; though the number of employees have remained relatively the same. The North American fastener industry is still expected to grow by around 4% annually despite the competition from foreign countries. However this number represents a decline from the 9% growth spurt which occurred in 1998. The North American fastener production is strongly tied to the production of automobiles, aircraft, appliances, agricultural machinery and equipment, and the construction of commercial buildings and infrastructure. The more these industries prosper, the greater the demand and prospects for the fastener will there be. There has been as ever expanding market for fasteners in the 21st century in the aerospace industry. In fact a 9% annual growth in fasteners for this industry can be expected. Motor vehicle sales have also increased by 9.6% from 2005 to 2006. Unfortunately housing starts have only increased by 0.7% from 2005. In the future analysts expect metal fasteners to face competition from the adhesives industry as more products are being made with plastic, a product best joined together by adhesives. Also buyers have now been demanding innovative and diverse fasteners which are also more environmentally friendly- fasteners that maintain lubricity without the use of cadmium, a suspected carcinogen. So the industry is slowly shifting its focus to more highly engineered, technologically advanced fasteners. SWOTStrengths:1) Newly appointed Brandon Cook has wide executive experience in manufacturing products similar to that of Berkshire. 2) Berkshire operates in a capital intensive industry. But as a percentage of total sales, Berkshire’s labour costs are 24.69%. This suggests that they either still retain their employees even when they could have done without them or that they pay very high salaries to a few workers. This shows that Berkshire has either very loyal employees or very skilled employees- both being assets. Weaknesses:1) Joe Magers is not very experienced and the company is facing losses in the production of the 200 and 300 series’. 2) As a percentage of total sales, Berkshire’s fixed costs are 47.37%. This is much higher than what a price competitive manufacturer like Berkshire should have had. 3) Berkshire pays 49% of all its wages and salaries to administrative and sales employee, when the industry average is 27% . This shows poor decision making processes of the firm. Opportunities:1) If product lines are discontinued, with the excess capacity and skilled labour force they can branch out into the production of more diverse fasteners. This ties in with the fact mentioned previously that buyers are now demanding more specialized products. Threats:1) Berkshire operates in an industry where a few of its competitors are much larger. 2) The industry is dominated by Bosworth who dictates the prices that are charged for fasteners. 3) Buyers are slowly demanding more specialized fasteners. ProblemWhat is very evident is that the company is losing money on its products. In the previous time period they had incurred a loss of $70,000. Berkshire is unsure if it is the result of the production of the 300 series or the pricing decisions of the 100 series. These alternatives need a careful analysis in order to make informed decisions that will help turn the company around. Alternative #1 Status QuoQuantitative Analysis:In order to determine if the company should â€Å"do nothing,† is to predict the future cash flows and net income (loss) for the second half of the year. See Appendix B for this calculation. The predicted net income is in fact a loss of 1134. Yet, net income may not be a faithful representation, so cash flows have also been calculated. The predicted cash flow is a negative amount of 388. These amounts while better than alternative #3 (drop the 300 series) is not as good as the cash flow and net income amounts for alternative #2 (reduce price levels of the 100 series). One very important thing that needs to be noted is the fact that variable costs are indeed relevant. Fixed costs remain constant even after the production is stopped, but variable costs increase and decrease with production. Therefore the total contribution margin for this alternative was calculated to be 1504 which does show this alternative in a better light  especially when in comparison to its net loss and cash flow figures. Qualitative Analysis:The reduced production of the 100 series as a result of the price level remaining the same will have a significant impact on Berkshire. The reduced production may lead to employees worrying about the fact that they may be laid off to such an extent that their productivity is significantly lowered. Berkshire could also develop a reputation of charging higher prices than the industry standard and they could end up loosing more and more buyers to competitors. Alternative #2 Change price level to $2.25 for the 100 seriesQuantitative Analysis:In order to determine if the price level needs to be dropped a few calculations are needed. First a prediction of its impact on the net income and cash flows for the second half of the year is needed. These calculations are shown in Appendix C. The predicted net income figure is a loss of 1035. The predicted cash flow is a negative amount of 289. While these figures do seem abysmal, what should be noted is that in comparison to the other alternatives, these figures are much better. Both the net loss and negative cash flow amounts in this alternative is 99 lower than the â€Å"status quo† alternative and 338.58 lower than the â€Å"drop 300 series† alternative. This hints to the fact that maybe the price should in fact be dropped. Another fact that backs this assertion up is in the calculation of the Contribution Margin (CM) for both price levels, based on data from the first half of the year. Table 2 in Appendix A shows this calculation. While the CM of the new price level is lower than that of the original level (0.96 vs. 1.16), the fact that they will sell 250,000 units more (and hence a higher total CM for the new price) clearly makes up for this difference. The success of the new prices level will be contingent on the number of units sold. What is very dangerous about this alternative is that if in the future the demand in the market for this product line slumps, only a very small amount of money will be available to be used to pay off the fixed costs. Qualitative Analysis:The change in price level will not have much of an effect on the employees of Berkshire because they would still be producing  around the same amount of units (1000000 vs. 996859). They would not have to worry about being laid off. What will be affected is Berkshire’s reputation. If they had not changed they would have developed a reputation of charging high prices. The reduction of the price would put them at par with Bosworth. Alternative #3 Drop 300 seriesQuantitative Analysis:In order to determine if the 300 series needs to be dropped a few calculations are needed. First a prediction of the impact of its removal on the net income and cash flows for the second half of the year is needed. The predicted net income figure is a loss of 1373.58 and the predicted cash flow is calculated to be a negative amount of 627.70. The net loss figure calculated is the highest loss of all three alternatives and the negative cash flow amount is also much higher than the alternatives as well. This hints to the fact that maybe the 300 series line should not be dropped. Also, if the 300 series had been dropped at the beginning of the year it can be seen that there would have been a loss of -183. See the calculations for these numbers in Appendix D. Another aspect that backs up this assertion is the calculation of the Contribution Margins for all three product lines based on first half information. Even though Berkshire incurred a loss of .22/unit in the first half for series 300, when you calculate the CM it is a whole new story- the CM of 300 is a positive number- 1.15/unit, this means that Berkshire would in fact incur an even greater loss if they chose to halt production. The 1.15 per unit would no longer be available to cover some of the fixed costs. What is also surprising is the fact that the 300 series Contribution Margin is not far behind from that of the 100 series (the most profitable product line) and equal to that of the 200 series. A few other very important observations also need to be taken into account. First, since many products do cover all their variable costs, no product line would ever be dropped if only a contribution margin analysis were conducted. Second, even though the 300 series covers its variable costs and part of its fixed costs, it proves to be below par when considering full costs. Finally, in the long run all costs are variable, so the 300 series in this time frame is in fact a poor product line. Qualitative Analysis:If the 300 series was dropped it would have a significant qualitative impact on Berkshire and its employees. All the employees who were involved in the production of this line would either have to be laid off (which would have a negative impact on the reputation of the firm), or they could still be retained (which would lead to them obtaining a deep sense of respect and loyalty to the firm). Also the employees who would be shifted around would gain a greater skill set and hence become very valuable assets to the company. Evaluation of the alternativesComparison Table1) Profitability2) Timeliness3) Consistency with Strategy. Alternative #1-$11347 daysNot as muchAlternative #2-$10354-7 daysYesAlternative #3-$137410-14 daysNot as much1) Profitability:The primary objective of all businesses, no matter how big or small, is profit. That is why as a criterion, Profitability was given the number one rank. The three alternatives can easily be evaluated on this criterion by comparing the net income figures. Alternative #2 easily wins in this criterion. Despite the fact that it does have a net loss, the loss was not as great as that of Alternative #1 and #3. One important thing that should be noted is the fact that perhaps the second half of the season is always a slow period and that is why the net income figures are so low. 2) Timeliness:Berkshire operates in a business environment where if firms that lag behind in decision making, implementation of policies etc, they will be left behind with no profits. That is why Timeliness was given the rank of two. Surprisingly Status Quo would have an implementation time of around 7 days. Since keeping the price level of the 100 series the same at 2.45/unit would result in them producing 385332 less number of units (See Appendix E for the calculation), time would be need to shift employees around to new jobs in the firm, possibly close down a warehouse or even convert the machines used to produce the 100 series to now produce a different product line. Alternative #2, â€Å"reduce price level† would probably only take 4-7 days to implement. The only thing Berkshire would need to do would be to inform their current buyers of their new price level and perhaps also to advertise the lower price in a specialized fastener industry journal. Alternative #3, â€Å"drop the 300 series† would probably take around 10-14 days. Not only would Berkshire need to shift employees around, close down a warehouse etc, as a result of producing a lower number of 100 series units, but they would also have to announce the dropping of the 300 series line to its buyers, move even more employees around (or possibly lay them off), close even more warehouses down, move machinery around the manufacturing space etc. This would be a very time consuming process. Overall Alternative #2 would win in this criterion as it would have a less time consuming implementation time and process. 3) Consistency with Strategy:This criterion was given a rank of three because while necessary in the evaluation, Profitability and Timeliness do have a greater importance. In the short run Alternative #2 had the greatest consistency with strategy. Berkshire is a cost leader, and reducing the prices of the 100 series ties in very well with this strategy. Alternative #1 and #3 chose not to reduce the price and this decision conflicts with their cost leadership strategy. ConclusionOverall I would recommend that Berkshire implement Alternative #2- reduce the price level of the 100 series, as it did win in all three criteria. But one important thing needs a re-mention. The CM per unit of the reduced price level was lower than that of the higher price level. It was only because of the higher volume of sales did it manage to have a higher total contribution margin. In the future if sales volumes drop, despite the price change Berkshire would incur heavy losses. At this present time Alternative #1 and #3 are both very unprofitable and will still be in the future. At least Alternative #1 is not as unprofitable at this present time but what happens in the future will all depend on sales. Recommendations for Specific Action1) Chose a date when the price change will come in to effect and make sure all current buyers are aware of this well ahead of time. 2) Advertise in newspapers, journals etc to get the message across to new buyers that Berkshire has reduced its prices. 3) All forms, documentation, accounting systems etc should be changed to take into account the new price level. 4) Make sure that there are people at hand to research the market and evaluate whether demand is going to decline for the 100 series. 5) Make sure that there are researches available to study the market for new trends and new types of fasteners that could be produced in the future.