Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Analysis of The Good News Is that Sports Is Bad for Us Passage Essay

Analysis of The Good News Is that Sports Is Bad for Us Passage - Essay Example Assessment of reason for assumptions: The main reasons given for this are the widespread sporting malpractice currently recorded in the field of sports. This means that more and more players, their coaches, as well as other private stakeholders, use sporting. Authorities Cited: A number of authorities are mentioned in the passage, including the International Cricket Council, and Premier League football. These authorities make it plausible for readers to understand the depth of sporting corruption and malpractice in the society. Further Evidence: Further evidence about the failure of sporting corruption refers to the penalties that sportsmen’s and women get because of failing to adhere to sporting rules and regulations. Explanations: It is evident that the sports industry is too corrupt with new cays of cheating coming up every new day, such as using drugs and boosters to increase their performance capabilities in the field. Some cricket players even use illegal drugs in order to outperform their competitors during such tournaments. Comparisons: There are no major comparisons made through this text Further Conclusion: Sporting malpractice and corruption is on the rise because more sportsmen want to get ahead of others through illegal means instead of winning successfully Parallel reasoning: there is no parallel reasoning in the passage. General principles: The passage does not use any general principles. Do the reasons support the conclusion? The reasons were given to support the conclusion as there is a significant possibility of increased sporting malpractice within the society. Passage 2 â€Å"Demi-Gods and Mortals,† By John Harris Conclusion and Reasons: This passage is trying to get me to accept the fact that Demi-gods and immortality exist. These bases because science can now engineer possibilities of having a life prolonged for long years as contrasted to the current life expectancy levels. In addition, the more the development of science, t he more the realization of life elongation techniques, such as those relating to how long a person can live. Future generations may soon become Demi-gods as science tries very hard to beat death at its own game. The reasons given for these are: Scientific research is leading to the indefinite extension of life as reported by researcher all over the world. The possibility of humankind becoming immortal is more than science fiction fantasy In the long-term it may be possible to switch off the aging process and maintain a repair program in cells Assumptions: The assumptions of this passage are that science has the capabilities of designing new ways of prolonging life by making adding impossible. As such, death will no longer be part of the human life cycle, and this means that human beings will be immortal with time, as the future progresses, and somehow become Demi-gods.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Reflective Writing on the meaning of Leadership

Reflective Writing on the meaning of Leadership During the first workshop of PASBD, I was in a way taught by our lecture, that working in a group or a team, every member is an important key to achievements, and having a leader is important to keep the team on track as well as lead the team to achieve goals. Leadership can be seen as a counteractive influence when groups experience difficulties in establishing the conditions necessary for making the best possible choice Dennis Gouran (qtd. in Beebe Masterson 2006). Therefore, a leader always gave me an impression that he or she has to be brilliant with good leadership skills, thinking that if a group is lack of a skillful or brilliant leader, a team would most probably fail. Throughout the semester I came to see the importance of a leader, but not as a dominant to the entire team. I felt that having a vertical leadership  [1]  is somehow not so appropriate in completing our task as a group in this subject; rather Shared Leadership will be more appropriate used to explain our g roup. Having a leader is crucial to keep the team going, however a team does not restrict to only one leader. According to Pearce Conger (2003) leadership is broadly distributed among a set of individual instead of centralizes in hands of a single individual who acts in the role of a superior, referring this as Shared Leadership Craig Jay, (2003), which is the process of influencing each other in a team, leading each other to achieve a certain goal or achievement, where leadership is carried out by the team as a whole, rather than solely by an individual alone.  [2]  . In our group, I felt that each group member has a very important role to keep the team going, having each with different skill contributing to a team will only keep the team resourceful, and unlock the thinking by bringing in new idea. Benne and Sheats, 1948, (qtd. In Craig Jay, 2003), raised that team members had actually the roles that is as critical as the team leader, where leadership is a reciprocal process. And the roles are divided by Benne and Sheats into two categories, which are Task Role  [3]  and Socioemotional Roles  [4]  . In my own opinion, I felt that I am most suitable to be classified as the Socioemotional Roles in a team, where I played most of the role as a group observer or as a follower. I do not enjoy leading a team dominantly, most of the time it will depend on situation where I felt suitable to contribute, usually collecting each group member opinion and idea before deciding on which suggestion is most appropriate to be taken up. Team Role Considering the team role, define as A tendency to behave, contribute and interrelate with others in a particular way. Belbins (1993) I would consider myself as a Monitor Evaluator Belbins (1993), being describe as having the characteristic of sober, strategic, discerning, able to sees all options and could judges accurately. A Monitor Evaluator in a team is needed to provide a logical eye, make impartial judgments where required and to weigh up the teams options in a dispassionate way  [5]  . This stands in a part of my personality, where I often not like to make a judgment without knowing the actual situation. During a group discussion, I usually observe the interaction and the statements of others before I start putting more of my opinions. It is important to have delegated team role in a group, with the different combination of characteristic, the team can only help each other to meet up all the requirements needed to complete the task. Due to the different characteristic of members in a group, it leads to a certain disagreement between members during the completion of the task. However to get job done, members of a group often need some corporation to a certain extent. In my situation I find it sometimes difficult to coordinate with group members who are in the team role of a Shaper  [6]  , where they have the tendency to hurt people feeling on some statement they made, without realizing it. Their actions often speak louder than words, made me feel annoying and difficult to concentrate. Despite the characteristics which I do not like about Shaper, they are actually important in providing drive to ensure that the team kept moving and did not lose focus or momentum, Belbins (1993). On the other hand, I most enjoy te aming with members with the role of Co-coordinator ², where they often delegates well, and will seek for advice for other members, allowing each members to feel the respect and involved in to team. According to Beebe Masterson (2006), Not only group members need a mutual concern to unite them, but they also need to feel they belong to a group. Nevertheless, each Team Role has its own contribution; however there are also allowable weakness Belbins (1993), where allowable weaknesses are the downside of the characteristics of the roles, which is allowable due to the strength which goes with it. As for my role as a Monitor Evaluator, I have the weakness of being said to lack of drive and ability to inspire others, and overly critical, Belbin (1993). I often realize this weakness of mine and attempt to change, by trying to say things to keep the discussion in progress. Weakness offers clues to a possible strength, Belbins (1993), knowing my own weaknesses could help to improve more in the future. I believe that by making use of my weakness appropriately, it could transform into strength. Working in Team/Group Working in a group is different from working individually. Working individually allows having flexibility in time management, as I can plan my own schedule to work on the assignment, as well as deciding on something without have to seek discussion or the opinion of other group members. When working in group, one of the major frustration about group work is the time it takes to accomplish task Beebe Masterson (2006). Working in a group, it needs much cooperation from each group members to get things done effectively and efficiently. This includes encouraging the group members to attend the discussion meeting, and ensuring every group member to take on the responsibility to complete their task assigned, If we want a better solution, it is going to take time, patients, and understanding, Beebe Masterson (2006). Because working in a group involves a few individuals, and few individual usually means involving different time to suit, as each has own different daily activities. This will create some difficulties in finding the correct time and place that is convenient for all to hold a discussion meeting. On the other hand, I also find many advantages in working in a group. Having a group of people working together is like pooling of skills and knowledge, and this will to certain extent speed up the researching process and the decision making. Working together with a few person, allows to have discussion on problems and solutions, increasing the probability of picking the error done by another, and could pool different opinion to a problem. There are different types of group according to Beebe Masterson (2006); there are the primary group and secondary group. Primary group members associate with one another to perpetuate the joy of community, to fulfill the basic human needs to be social Beebe Masterson (2006), therefor the conversation is informal. Secondary group is what I would classify as our group, as the secondary groups exist to accomplish task or achieve goal the reason you join secondary group is to get something done Beebe Masterson (2006). Our group is assigned with a take to complete every week, we gather to solve the problem in the task given. Further, our group could also be classifying as the Focus Group, where we have a goal to focus, as well as given a particular topic to follow, Beebe Masterson (2006). In order to get the group working well there are two most important behavior of group member based on Michael Mayer, Beebe Masterson (2006), these behavior encourage members to participate fully in the discussion, especially in analyzing problem, and, offer supportive comments to others, Beebe Masterson (2006). To me, having these behaviors can only our group fully utilize the skills and knowledge we have to achieve the best result possible. However, working in groups, I had come through different types of personalities grouping. Some are in a dominating role, where without seeking permission from others, they tries too in a way give order to people telling them what to do. Trying to get ideas across group members who like to dominate is rather challenging for me, I had experience some hard time convincing on an idea. This experience gives me a lot of practice on my patients, and practicing different way of communicating an idea. Nevertheless, there are also group members who are B locks Progress and some are Social Loafing, Beebe Masterson (2006). Block Progress has an attitude which is often stubborn and disagreeable with no supportive reason. Social Loafing are people who attempt to rely on others to do their job, and hold back on their contribution, Beebe Masterson (2006). These group members will delay the progress of the group, keeping the group from achieving goals. From these, I had realized that to work together effectively, individuals must develop common goals and collective focus rather than pursuing only individual goals Beebe Masterson (2006). To get the work effectively done I will have learn to be a competent group communicator, Beebe Masterson (2006), to always have motivation  [7]  and have the ability to interact appropriately to achieve goal. Communication Having the ability to convey ideas through communication is very important when working in group, as Speech communication gives individual access to the ideas and inner world of other group members, Beebe Masterson (2006). Failure in communication well will cause misunderstanding, leading to conflict or inability to come out with a well done assignment. Problems of communication that I have faced are such as Bypassing and Allness Statement, Beebe Masterson (2006). Bypassing is when, I or my group member is trying to make a statement, we misunderstand the meaning of on a same word, and this had leaded us to produce or work not as required at first. Further is Allness Statement, means that some statement is simple but untrue generalization, Beebe Masterson (2006). Knowing that there are chances that we may misunderstand out group members word, I often like to summarize our discussion at the end of the meeting, to ensure that the message is got through clearly. Throughout the entire course, I found myself in groups are being generally low profile, in the sense where I prefer to monitor the progress of the group discussion and only give opinions when I felt I am needed to, in another words seeking for others to discover that I have something to say. Realizing that a group cannot function without words; communication is the vehicle that allows a group to move towards its goals Beebe Masterson (2006), I have encouraged myself to speak out more during a discussion. At the beginning I was struggling to get points out of my mouth, after few discussions, I had felt more comfortable. In order to be sure of my communication skill I had done a test through the internet, on a website call Test Yourself  [8]  . The outcome of the test on my communication skill says that I am insightful, where I sometimes have difficulties interpreting other peoples words and actions, and see things from their perspective, although I can generally sense what others are feeling and thinking relatively well. Conflict between group members Conflict, happens when members have disagreement over two or more options that a group can take, Beebe Masterson (2006), and A conflict occurs because people do not understand one another Beebe Masterson (2006). It is something difficult to avoid when involving contact between human, in terms of communication or what so ever. In my situation, while needed to work in a group of five, there are always chances of conflict happening once any members cant get into the same opinion. A group with more than two people will often add complexity and element of uncertainty to the Trans active communication process, and this will affect the outcome Beebe Masterson (2006). I would preferably try my best to avoid conflict when working in my group, as conflict will have negative impact on a group harmony and the outcome of our work, I will keep the group from completing its task, interferes with the quality of the groups decision or productivity, threatens the existence of the group Beebe Maste rson (2006). According to the book of communication in small groups, Beebe Masterson (2006), Communication scholars Gerald Milller and Mark Steinberg had identified three common types of interpersonal conflict; they are the pseudo-conflict, where people misunderstand one another, Simple conflict, where people disagree about issues, and, Ego conflict, when personalities clash, Beebe Masterson (2006). Throughout the entire course, I came through the three types of interpersonal conflict in a different way. These conflict does not happen when our group members first met, it all happen when we begin to know more about each characteristic and working style, then begin the disagreement between each other. The conflict that I found most challenging to deal with is the Ego Conflict, as in the situation when the group members become defensive about their position because they think they are being personally attacked, Beebe Masterson (2006). There are times where the entire progress of the task is being delayed, and other group members are put into pressure, by worrying if the deadline could be met. Fortunately, we managed to overcome these obstacles, meeting the deadline. Dealing with conflict, each individual will have different style in managing it. Even though working in a group, each will manage the conflict in their own way as the feel more comfortable with. I myself manage conflict in a Nonconfrontational Style, one of the three general styles of managing conflict by, Linda Putnam and Charmaine, according to Beebe Masterson (2006). Nonconfrontational Style explains that a person in managing the conflict face by working hard to avoid conflict with others, Beebe Masterson (2006). I do not like to go into argument with others, for any reason; I will feel very uncomfortable to communicate or rather become speechless, when things begin to feel unpleasant. Thus, I would choose to withdraw myself to a certain extent, until the situation become calmer before I start to sort things out by communicating with the group member. Avoiding an immediate attack from another group member may give you time to think of more appropriate response rather than blurti ng out the first thing come to your mind Beebe Masterson (2006). However, in some situation, Avoiding conflict does not make the source of problem go away, it still exist Beebe Masterson (2006). When the conflict became too critical to be left to calm by itself, it cant be avoided by keeping quiet, things would have gotten worst if so. In this, no matter how uncomfortable I am to face the conflict, I still have to stand out to solve the problem, trying not to make things reach the extent where, group members turn into enemies. If others are unlikely to change, then you may have to change yourself, Belbins (1993). Conclusion Going through the entire PASBD course is a whole process of learning, teaching in the lecture, and through experience. From the lecture, I had learned on skills of presentation as well as got more understanding on the topic of PASBD. What I gain from the lecture are actually from the experience of others, and I can only understand it theoretically, if I did not got the true experience I can never have the real feeling of what the theories actually trying to convey. Mr. JJ said something about experience, the meaning is roughly of: experiencing the process is like riding a roller coaster; you will not want others to tell u about it, it is what you need to feel for yourself through your real experience. It is through the experience that I could utilize what I learned, and physically going through the process allowing me to have deeper impression on the leanings. Belbins (1993) had also mentioned something about experience learning, saying that Like competing in the Olympic Games, the g reat thing is to have taken part. Unless people enrol for the event, they cannot win the race. What we do will be what we learn; people equipped themselves for work through working, and through the lessons learned through experience, Beebe Masterson (2006).

Friday, October 25, 2019

Creative Story: Deadlock :: essays research papers

Creative Story: Deadlock "Bzzz! Bzzz!" The alarm went off, and Susan Calvin rolled over. It was 6:30 in the morning, and RoboTimerâ„ ¢ had done its job admirably, waking her up to the second of the time that it had been factory-programmed. Unfortunately, it hadn't been set to the correct date, and when it announced "Saturday, December 14th! Good morning!" in a load cheery tone, she groaned out load with the realization that it was Saturday, and after that affair with the hyperdrive motor, she wanted to sleep in, since it she had just come back to earth. "I hate this stupid robot!" she yelled out loud, then suddenly closed her mouth. For Susan Calvin had just remembered that her pact with the satans, as she thought of them, known to the robotics world as the team of Powell and Donovan. She stretched, rolled out of bed, and went downstairs, wrapping a robe around her as she went, to get some coffee. "Well, since I'm already up, I might as well take a look at the rest of those Rasssjemani-Quazaric-Smith Equations and see why they were causing all those robots to go psycho," she thought. "Good thing that U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men hushed up that little incident, I'd be out of a job if the whole world, the xenophobic and primally-fearful lot of them, knew about that!" As she got out and buttered her toast, she mulled the day ahead of her in her mind. Weekends were never truly weekends for Susan Calvin, as she was forced to work for most of the weekend, with her only respite being Sunday, which she was allowed to come in an hour late for. However, she usually found herself working late into the night on Sundays, out of an artificially induced guilt that she knew was not real, but could do nothing to correct. After being driven to work (working for the company that produced every MechTaxiâ„ ¢ in existence did have some perks after all), greeting the doorman, and going up to her office, Susan Calvin was ready to look at those equations! She only needed a small period of time to warm up, and the wakeup-breakfast-come to work routine sufficed. Almost as soon as she had sat down to work, the Founder of U.S. Robots came in and said, "I need to speak with you, Calvin. There's been more reports in across the nation of those psycho robots, all of them with positronic brains built using the Rasssjemani-Quazaric-Smith Equations. We will be ruined, and drawn and quartered by the masses if we don't start hushing this up again and

Thursday, October 24, 2019

The American Involvement in the Cold War

The role of America at the end of World War II was where the origins of policing the world originate. America had been engaged in a very costly war in terms of dollars as well as lives. But, despite the expense the United States came out of World War II better than any other nation that was involved. The Second World War was a battle between the Allied and Axis Powers. The Allied Powers consisted of the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, China, and France. This war was seen as the fight against Nazi Germany, and therefore resulted in a majority of the battles fought on German and Russian soil. The aftermath left the Soviet Union in bad shape. Close to twenty million Russians had died fighting the war, which accounted for about eight percent of their population. Conversely, none of the fighting was done on American soil, and while the United States suffered in terms of casualties it was nothing compared to the loss Russia had endured. Because the war would not end until the Axis Powers fully surrendered to the Allied Powers, the United States was forced to use the first atomic warfare in history. The atom bomb would later serve as America's greatest possession. Stalin, the Premier of the Soviet Union had always distrusted the American and English intentions. Because of Stalin's aggression and attitude pertaining to Soviet influence on Europe, the postwar stance on Russia had turned into a standoff. This became the origin of the Cold War. The Cold War, seen as a battle between communism and capitalism, was â€Å"in reality a more complex struggle over a broad range of ideological, economic, and strategic issues. † Over the next several years the United States would spend more money on military and defense than ever before. Several measures were taken to ensure that the same mistakes at the end of World War I would not be repeated. The first in a series of measures was a postwar conference involving President Truman and the Soviet Foreign Minister, V. M. Molokov, where Truman controlled the entire meeting and basically scolded the Soviet's for not honoring agreements on Poland. Truman â€Å"told the Russians just where the got off and generally bossed the whole meeting. † This symbolized America's strong-arm stance against communism and signified the position we would hold throughout the Cold War. The next step in Truman's agenda was to work with Congress to pass the National Security Act of 1947, which was designed to strengthen defense operations. This act created a single Department of Defense, and created the Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA. These two new agencies acted as the first step in atomic warfare management. Continuing to act as police of the world and leader of capitalism, Truman drafted the Marshall Plan. The Marshall Plan, which complemented the Truman Doctrine, â€Å"was a program of large scale economic and military aid to Europe. Considered by some, this was the most â€Å"innovative piece of foreign policy in American History. Where over the next four years the United States contributed over $12 billion to a highly successful recovery effort. † The Soviet Union stilled commanded a blockade on highway, rail, and river traffic to West Berlin. As a result, the United States responded by entering into a peacetime military alliance; this being the first time since the American Revolution. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) a project costing $1. billion, enabled the basing of all four United States Army divisions into Western Europe. Twelve nations agreed to sign this pact that stated â€Å"an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all. † Consequently, a few months later, Stalin â€Å"lifted the blockade which had made the city a symbol of resistance to communism. † Between the creation of NATO, the National Security Act and CIA, and the Marshall Plan, America was dictating their position with Russia and communism. These measures made it possible for Americans to become more comfortable with the Cold War. While all of these governmental policies were being put into action, Americans were settling back into the ideology of family and free enterprise. The post-war period became one of the most exciting in American history. With the rising economy and feeling of consumerism, Americans were rebounding from their efforts in World War II. Capitalism was on the rise and the â€Å"Apple Pie† portrait of middle class suburban families was shaping the country. America was now the wealthiest country in the world and Americans had â€Å"accumulated savings of $140 billion† in 1945. â€Å"Over the next two decades the gross national product more than tripled,† signifying prosperity. Between 1945 and 1960, the gross national product would grow from $213 billion to more than $500 billion, while real income would rise 25 percent. Included in these figures was the percent of American families owning homes, which grew from 43 percent to over 60 percent in this same time period; this created the suburban explosion. This suburban lifestyle was intended to symbolize the superiority of capitalism over communism and imply that the American way of life would win the Cold War. † Americans were again beginning to see the capitalist society they fought for, and the confidence level of the country continued to rise throughout the 1960's. The people cannot create a great nation themselves; great leaders must direct them. Besides the three Presidents who led America throughout the end of World War II and through the Cold War, there were many influential voices that helped to shape the views of the public. Among these influential people was a man named George F. Kennan. He was a member of the United States embassy to the Soviet Union and author of the â€Å"long telegram† which was sent to the heads of state in Washington D. C. In his telegram, Kennan described the Soviets as insecure, inferior, and less advanced than Americans. â€Å"As Russia came into contact with the economically advanced West, fear of more competent, more powerful, more highly organized societies,† was the general message Kennan was trying to get across. Because he saw the country from the inside Kennan also believed the United Sates should † pursue a policy of firm containment†¦ at every point where the Soviets show signs of encroaching upon the interest of a peaceful and stable world. † This opinion and idea of the relationship between the United States and Russia should have been widely accepted by Americans. They backed this idea of aggressive behavior, rather than a passive approach to the Cold War. Conversely, postwar liberal such as Henry Wallace, â€Å"a Progressive Party leader, continued to seek cooperation with the Soviet Union and defended the participation of Communists in their organizations. † These ideals were quickly silenced. The American majority, being extremely anti-communist, felt relations with the Soviet Union should be harsh and firm. This period introduced American dominance in foreign policy. The ideals of personal freedom and opportunity were the driving forces behind Western philosophy throughout the Cold War. Not only were these principles showcased, they were set as the benchmark of equality for the human race.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

How Values Affect Decisions in Personal and Professional Life Essay

Abstract Many people have a set of core values, either personal, organizational, or cultural, that help guide his or her life, and that assist him or her in making decisions in their everyday existence. Most of my decisions are based on how they will affect my family, me, and my career. My family is the key factor in any decision I make. I have to consider what influence my choices will have on my family before I act on them. My success in my career choice of Information Systems is also an important value to me. I strive to improve my knowledge of information systems to the best of ability in order to further my career. This value has brought me to be results oriented, a hard worker, and a team player. Companies are now doing business with other companies in different countries. Organizations are now set up to where employees have to interact with different people to get the job done. If someone desires a long, prosperous career, they have to learn to work with diverse people of different cultures. Everyone has a set of core values that assist him or her in making decisions in their daily existence, and many people expect these values to lead them to live a wonderful life. Many people have a set of core values, either personal, organizational, or cultural, that help guide his or her life, and that assist him or her in making decisions in their everyday existence Values such as my family, friendships, and personal growth contribute to the choices that I make in my personal life. Values such as being results-oriented, a hard worker, a team player, and the desire to be successful guide me in making decisions in an organizational environment. I evaluate my core values before making any decisions that will influence them in anyway. According to author David Peters (2003): Personal ethics have been defined as principles of good behavior, a moral code of conduct, or a system to decide between competing options. But simply stated, personal ethics are nothing more than the rules impose on ourselves that govern our daily actions. (p. 30) For many people different factors and beliefs shape their values but, I believe that everyone shares one goal of living the best life possible not just physically but spiritually and mentally. Many of my decisions are based on how they will affect my family, me, and my career. My family is the key factor in any decision I make. I have to consider what influence my choices will have on my family before I follow through with them. For example, my returning to school keeps me from spending as much time as I would like with my loved ones. I thought about returning back to school long and hard and came to the conclusion that I need to return to school now before I have more children, my daughter gets to an age were I have to run her all over town for things that she wants to participate in, or any other life-changing event takes place. I came to the conclusion that I need to go now because it will only take between a year and half or two years to complete. By the time I am done with school, my daughter will be four and starting kindergarten, and that is a good time to also think about having another child. So I decided to go ahead and return to school and get my master’s degree in information systems. If I know that a decision will drastically affect my family, I will go to them to get their input on the situation. My success in my career choice of Information Systems is also an important value to me. Roy Posner states, â€Å"One of the interesting values in life is one’s innate desire for continuous improvement. † (Roy Posner 2006). I strive to improve my knowledge of information systems to the best of my ability in order to further my career. This value has brought me to be results oriented, a hard worker, and a team player. In the environment of information technology, everyone has to be team player because most of the positions require people to interact with each other. Whether the person is a systems analyst or a mail clerk, he or she will be part of a diverse group of people who have to work together effectively and efficiently to meet the goals of the organization as a whole. â€Å"Culture is the key to people’s way of living, accepting changes and doing business is rapidly loosing geographical borders. † (Kanungo, 2006, p. 23). Companies are now doing business with other companies in different countries. Organizations are now set up to where employees have to interact with different people to fulfill his or her job duties. If someone desires a long, prosperous career, they have to learn to work with diverse people of different cultures. At one time or another, everyone has had life experiences that help guide his or her decision making process. Nancy Haught (2006) states the following: For many people, from many different belief systems, their faith is the only factor that they see shaping their personal ethics. But most Americans would admit that other factors do play a part: parents or other relatives;? experiences such as a stint in the Peace Corps or a brush with the law. The factors that shape our ethics are varied, but it religion that often gets the credit, or the blame† (p.C1) Many people have come to the realization that they don’t have to have the world to live a good life. Although, someone may want a successful career, they shouldn’t have to sacrifice other aspects of their life to obtain it. Other aspects of life are more fulfilling, such as a wonderful relationship with God, family, and friends. Many people have a set of core values that assist him or her in making decisions in their daily existence, and many people expect these values to lead them to live a wonderful life References Haught, N. (2006, March 11). Ethics & values | definitions ethics, morals, values. The Oregonian, C1. Kanungo, R. P. (2006). Cross culture and business practice: are they coterminous or cross-verging? Cross Cultural Management, 13(1), 23. Peters, David. (2003) Your Personal Ethics ? is it time for a check up? National Jeweler, 97 (7), 30. Posner, Roy. (2006). The Power of Personal Values. Retrieved July 05, 2007 from http://www. gurusoftware. com/GuruNet/Personal/Topics/Values. htm.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

George Lucas Essays

George Lucas Essays George Lucas Paper George Lucas Paper George Lucas varies slightly from Bill Gates, largely because of the fact that the entrepreneurial talent was triggered within him. This resulted in him thinking very differently about his life and the way in which he wanted to live it. In terms of Gallups life themes, the main ones that he possess are dedication, focus, urgency, activator, opportunity and creativity. Once the car crash had occurred, Lucas suddenly felt the need to do certain things, and this was to go into film; this shows urgency and activator. He suddenly realised that he had to something, so he changed his original plans and set about making new ones almost immediately (everyone thought that he was mad! ). Before this Lucas had not been the brightest, but now he had found something that he wanted to focus on, and this showed his dedication to get where he wanted. He realised that world cinema was in a depression, ticket sales were poor and films were costing a lot more than they were actually making at the box office. Lucas had spotted his opportunity, he realised that in order to get people back into the cinema he needed to create something new and fresh. : He accomplished this by directing the Star Wars trilogy, which shows his creativity attribute. Also, Kaos (1989) traits indicate perseverance and risk-taking as common entrepreneurial traits, and Lucas also possessed these. Star Wars was a massive risk for him financially, and he had had to persevere in the past in order to get the funding for his film; and that is why he created the 1973 film American Graffiti. However, there are some traits in my research that go against some of George Lucas characteristics. In Gallups life themes it states the traits of profit orientation and ego-driven. However, it does seem that George Lucas was ever ego-driven; he simply did what he had to do because he felt the need to do it. He had experienced a trigger event, and this had led to him changing his career path totally from a racing car driver to a film director. Also, George Lucas did not change his career path because of the prospects; he simply had a change of heart after his accident. George Lucas has generated both financial and aesthetic capital through his entrepreneurial ventures. Financially, the six Star Wars films alone have grossed over i 2billion worldwide and Lucas has obtained all the rights to Star Wars merchandise as well. Aesthetically, he has created one of the most influential film sagas of all time, and this has been a great influence to modern sci-fi films. Bill Gates Bill Gates possesses many of the entrepreneurial talents that I have highlighted through my research into various resources. In terms of Gallups life themes, he clearly possesses ten out of the twelve. He has dedication, he used to work ridiculously long hours and in turn this also showed determination. He is focused, and clearly ego driven; he wanted to make a difference that would be recognised and would make a change. The Microsoft operating system is the result of his entrepreneurial venture, and it also shows urgency because in order to start Microsoft he left Harvard University in his final year; he had no time to waste because he is an activator. Gates clearly saw an opportunity in the market; he predicted that the ever-growing personal computer market would need an efficient operating system. Kao (1989) however highlights a certain attribute called low status and power. This clearly does not describe Bill Gates, because it is basically the opposite of being egotistic. It is stating that entrepreneurs do not feel the need to have a high status or lots of power. I do not believe this is the case with Bill Gates though, he purposefully aimed to be the only sole provider of operating systems in the PC market, and he is said to be quite aggressive in terms of ensuring that Microsoft are number one. Therefore this shows that Bill Gates does not quite fit into this theme of a low need for status and power. Throughout his entrepreneurial venture, Bill Gates has generated financial, social and aesthetic capital. Financially, he has made billions and is currently the richest man in the world Section Five: A summary statement Previously to this the word Entrepreneur was a word that I had heard of but did not fully understand what it meant. To me it was just a term used to describe someone who took risks in business. I now know that it is much more than that! The most important being that Entrepreneurs have shaped todays world and will continue to in the future. Entrepreneurs are not simply people who start a business and make lots of money, some do not make any at all. They are innovated people who spotted opportunities, took risks and succeeded against the odds. They are global and can come from all walks of life and religions. Each one of us could be an entrepreneur, all we have to do is spot the opportunity.

Monday, October 21, 2019

How to Use Sentence Fragments Effectively

How to Use Sentence Fragments Effectively Most writing handbooks insist that incomplete sentencesor fragmentsare errors that need to be corrected. As Toby Fulwiler and Alan Hayakawa say in The Blair Handbook (Prentice Hall, 2003), The problem with a fragment is its incompleteness. A sentence expresses a complete idea, but a fragment neglects to tell the reader either what it is about (the subject) or what happened (the verb) (p. 464). In formal writing, the proscription against using fragments often makes good sense. But not always. In both fiction and nonfiction, the sentence fragment may be used deliberately to create a variety of powerful effects. Fragments of Thought Midway through J. M. Coetzees novel Disgrace (Secker Warburg, 1999), the main character experiences shock as the result of a brutal attack at his daughters house. After the intruders leave, he attempts to come to terms with what has just occurred: It happens every day, every hour, every minute, he tells himself, in every quarter of the country. Count yourself lucky to have escaped with your life. Count yourself lucky not to be a prisoner in the car at this moment, speeding away, or at the bottom of a donga with a bullet in your head. Count Lucy lucky too. Above all Lucy.A risk to own anything: a car, a pair of shoes, a packet of cigarettes. Not enough to go around, not enough cars, shoes, cigarettes. Too many people, too few things. What there is must go into circulation, so that everyone can have a chance to be happy for a day. That is the theory; hold to this theory and to the comforts of theory. Not human evil, just a vast circulatory system, to whose workings pity and terror are irrelevant. That is how one must see life in this country: in its schematic aspect. Otherwise one could go mad. Cars, shoes; women too. There must be some niche in the system for women and what happens to them. reflect the characters efforts to make sense of the harsh, disruptive experience. The sense of incompleteness conveyed by the fragments is deliberate and quite effective. Narrative and Descriptive Fragments In Charles Dickenss The Pickwick Papers (1837), rascally Alfred Jingle tells a macabre tale that today would probably be labeled an urban legend. Jingle relates the anecdote in a curiously fragmented fashion: Heads, headstake care of your heads! cried the loquacious stranger, as they came out under the low archway, which in those days formed the entrance to the coach-yard. Terrible placedangerous workother dayfive childrenmothertall lady, eating sandwichesforgot the archcrashknockchildren look roundmothers head offsandwich in her handno mouth to put it inhead of a family offshocking, shocking! Jingles narrative style calls to mind the famous opening of Bleak House (1853), in which Dickens devotes three paragraphs to an impressionistic description of a London fog: fog in the stem and bowl of the afternoon pipe of the wrathful skipper, down in his close cabin; fog cruelly pinching the toes and fingers of his shivering little prentice boy on deck. In both passages, the writer is more concerned with conveying sensations and creating a mood than in completing a thought grammatically. The Series of Illustrative Fragments Pale druggists in remote towns of the Epworth League and flannel nightgown belts, endlessly wrapping up bottles of Peruna. . . . Women hidden away in the damp kitchens of unpainted houses along the railroad tracks, frying tough beefsteaks. . . . Lime and cement dealers being initiated into the Knights of Pythias, the Red Men or the Woodmen of the World. . . . Watchmen at lonely railroad crossings in Iowa, hoping that theyll be able to get off to hear the United Brethren evangelist preach. . . . Ticket-sellers in the subway, breathing sweat in its gaseous form. . . . Farmers plowing sterile fields behind sad meditative horses, both suffering from the bites of insects. . . . Grocery-clerks trying to make assignations with soapy servant girls. . . . Women confined for the ninth or tenth time, wondering helplessly what it is all about. . . . Methodist preachers retired after forty years of service in the trenches of God, upon pensions of $600 a year. Collected rather than connected, such brief fragmented examples offer snapshots of sadness and disappointment. Fragments and Crots Different as these passages are, they illustrate a common point: fragments arent inherently bad. Though a strictly prescriptive grammarian might insist that all fragments are demons waiting to be exorcised, professional writers have looked more kindly on these ragged bits and pieces of prose. And they have found some imaginative ways to use fragments effectively. Over 30 years ago, in An Alternate Style: Options in Composition (now out of print), Winston Weathers made a strong case for going beyond strict definitions of correctness when teaching writing. Students should be exposed to a wide range of styles, he argued, including the variegated, discontinuous, fragmented forms used to great effect by Coetzee, Dickens, Mencken, and countless other writers. Perhaps because fragment is so commonly equated with error, Weathers reintroduced the term crot, an archaic word for bit, to characterize this deliberately chopped-up form.The language of lists, advertising, blogs, text messages. An increasingly common style. Like any device, often overworked. Sometimes inappropriately applied. So this isnt a celebration of all fragments. Incomplete sentences that bore, distract, or confuse readers should be corrected. But there are moments, whether under the archway or at a lonely railroad crossing, when fragments (or crots or verbless sentences) work just fine. Indeed, better than fine. Also see: In Defense of Fragments, Crots, and Verbless Sentences.

Sunday, October 20, 2019

The Work and the Sadness - Freewrite Store

The Work and the Sadness - Freewrite Store This is a guest post by  Lancelot Schaubert. Schaubert is the author of the forthcoming novelFaceless, and lives in Brooklyn with his wife and attack spaniel.The City of Joplin, Missouri commissioned him to write and direct a photonovel that fictionalized and enchanted the history of their town. He has sold articles to Writer's Digest (one forthcoming and one in the 2016 Poet's Market), the World Series Edition of Poker Pro, McSweeney's, Bernie Sanders' campaign site, and others. His fiction or poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in The Misty Review, Carnival, Encounter (who has purchased a dozen or more) and many others. He loves soup. Send him soup. You can learn more about him athttp://lanceschaubert.org/ orlet him directly send you his best work. ________________________________ Do you believe in writer's block? I don't. But perhaps not for the reason you think. The fantasy writer Patrick Rothfuss has said ten thousand times that plumbers don't get plumbers block. I like that, especially since my plumber was also my sensei for shoto jitsu the man was brilliant at both and invested time heavily in both, both black belt of the year and your local handy man. Ed Daniels. Ed Daniels never got â€Å"blocked.† Rothfuss elaborated on this during one of his Worldbuilders Twitch streams last fall. He believes what some people attribute to writer's block is clinical depression. You could say further that plumbers don’t get plumbers block unless, as a human, they’re clinically depressed. Let’s break that down. Writer's block, in my estimation, comes down to one of two things: laziness or depression. We'll talk about depression first. Rothfuss was right to bring up the number of writers who have committed suicide, passively or actively, in history. A deep sadness runs parallel to the writing gene because we spend so much time in our headspace. Some believe that depression is an evolutionary trait that helps us reevaluate our situation: we go into a quiet place to reassess, to come to a better understanding of our current predicament, and then move forward stronger and more agile. The monks? They might have called it silence and solitude the prayerful posture of one who uses meditation to remain present in â€Å"this, my Father's world.† Wherever you sit on that spectrum, you can't deny that spending so much time imagining other worlds can leave you drained of your happy-happy joy-joy juices. And you get stuck. You're stuck not because you're a writer. You're stuck because you're a human. My buddy T. A. Giltner who teaches religion at St. Louis University says to all of his freshman on the first day of class, â€Å"Raise your hand if you want to be a good doctor. A good lawyer. A good scientist.† They raise their hands. â€Å"Keep your hands up if you think this class is pointless as a means to that end.† They lower their hands. â€Å"This class is not about religion. It's about becoming a decent human being. You want to be doctors and lawyers and scientists but you don't want to be good human beings? Good luck with that.† The phrase â€Å"good doctor† has the assumption of a â€Å"good human† built in. Writers too. Without a healthy, patient, joyful, kind humanity there ain't a one of us who's going to become a good writer. Let alone a great one. And that includes this awful disease that hit even me as a high school student and sometimes hits me even now: depression. To tackle this form of writer's block, you must do what all humans do. You must become whole by seeking help. I have a counselor who has helped me dig my way out of the hellhole that was my 2015 and my writing has improved. But again, that’s not specific to writers. As for laziness, I'm convinced that those who minimize their own depression by glorifying it with labels like â€Å"writer's block† make it easier for sluggards to scoot along. I know, I was one. I was a lazy teenager who had little reason to be lazy, considering the poverty of some of my early years. For one reason or another, perhaps because they follow the exact opposite trajectory of those professional football careers that blossom early and fade as fast, the careers of writers take a long time to marinate, cure, and hibernate. Coupled with wealth and privilege whether you're a trust fund kid or simply whiter than your neighbor writers have invented the most absurd methods of procrastination on the market all the way down to writing about not writing about not writing on social media. And then they hijack this term that has been used to minimize the clinical depression found in the pros or the greats and they say, â€Å"I have writers block.† Are you depressed? If that's the case, seek help and support, but it has nothing to do with being a writer.   If you're not depressed, then you're lazy. I am convinced that most writers need spend their time learning how to write at first. I'm convinced most writers must begin by learning how to work their asses off to survive and then thrive. That probably means some low-wage job or finding a way of generating passive income yourself rather than inheriting it or shoving it off to some future generation through debt. It might mean finding simple joy in trimming the verge or taking out the trash. If this is you, you don't have writer's block, sorry. You have an aversion to hard work. And only through learning how to work, how to enjoy your work, how to thrive even in an environment that's cursed and stacked against you, will you be able to write well. Stephen King has a high output precisely because he worked his ass off in a laundromat, as a teacher, and as a chimney sweep and then applied those skills to writing. Once you’ve learned to work, then apply that work to your study and practice. Then you read the "On Writings" and the "Elements of Style" of the world. Then you literally re-write your drafts over from scratch. Then you tap into the thing you've always wanted to do and bring it to bear upon the Earth. But let's not call it block anymore. If you're depressed, seek help. And if you're lazy, shut up and get to work. I should mention that I wrote the first draft of this on a Freewrite I'm testing it today because I've followed this team from the day they started taking contributions. I've been known to jack out of the matrix more than my peers and head to upstate New York or to Northwest Arkansas to duck into some hobbit hole and type away on my Smith Corona or scribble on whatever scraps I find. Perhaps the Freewrite will help me with that.   But the typing itself? Hell it took thirty minutes hunched over this metal coffee table in the lobby of their offices here in the Flatiron district. My back hurts, I have a headache, and I'll have to revise this before they post it. And yet somehow it wasn’t as bad this time around because for once I wasn’t focused on the machine, the sound, the internet, or the reloading of paper and ribbon. Me and the words, baby, me and the words. Was it worth it? The sky was grey when I began, but the sun's reflecting off of the windows of this high rise next door. And I've taken pleasure in my work. I am not worried about future awards. I have no delusions of grandeur in this moment. In my mind right now, there hides no phantom of any high school sweetheart or bully or hardass teacher I must now impress. There is only the work and the pleasure I take in it.   Lancelot took pleasure not in winning tournaments. Not in the wreath or the prize. It was the virtue he sought, virtue as an end in itself. He took pleasure in drawing back the bow and shooting the arrow, in dehorsing other knights, and in running the gauntlet faster and with fewer bruises than the time before. The discipline itself brings the joy.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Taxation portfolio Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Taxation portfolio - Assignment Example It is due to this reason that students without business background often get intimidated whenever they embark of taxation as a course to study. Nonetheless, it is important to understand taxation concepts and how they impact on businesses as they prepare to enter professional practice. Globalization has forced governments to acknowledge the significance of small businesses in the present competitive markets. In this regard, governments have formulated regulations to implement numerous taxes with a view of maximizing revenue collection. Globally, small and medium enterprises are known for their contribution to economic growth, entrepreneurship and employment creation. Basically, small businesses are known universally as engines for economic growth. This paper focuses on the tax aspects of a small-scale wine business in Australia and also tax implications of individual employees. Taxation consequences This is because they stimulate economic growth and therefore, play a critical role in wealth creation. In Australia, small and medium enterprises account for 37% of economic production and employ roughly 3.7 million people. Nevertheless, similar to other small and medium enterprises across the globe, compliance with government regulations heavily impacts on their operations. This is because SME’s bear significant costs of compliance cost relative to their size. According to Hasseldine and Anold, government regulations, in particular, tax compliances are a major issue for SME’s (370). For instance, following intense political debate, the Australian government introduced good and services tax (GST) which was one of the significant tax reform policies. This was an outrage on the economic impact of GST to SME’s starting with start-up taxation costs. Compliance costs as defined by Kumar, are those costs incurred by businesses in meeting the requirements in order to comply with a given tax structure besides payment of tax itself (35). Such costs inclu de legal and other professional fees, acquisition costs among others. GST compliance costs popularly known as commencement costs are usually incurred by the business in preparation to comply with GST legislation. According to National Audit Office, SME’s forms the large component of the informal sector and are known to evade tax (44). Pope and Fernandez observed that complex tax registration, and high tax rates are the main contributing factors to problems experienced by SME’s in the Australian tax system (15). Value-Added Tax Act provides that Australian economy cannot compete effectively with other world economies when SMEs continues operating in an informal sector (9). In this vein, it is therefore, paramount to reduce the informal sector by putting in place a simplified tax system. Australian government acknowledges the significance of SMEs to the economy and has been providing support to entities falling under this group by way of reducing tax and tax compliance b urden. In addition, the government has also simplified reporting requirements and record keeping. For instance, in 2006 budget, the Australian government passed to reduce taxes on SMEs by AUS$ 435 million over the following four years. As such, SMEs continued to receive more assistance by aligning thresholds, streamlining definitions and reducing tax complexity and compliance costs. SMEs are required by law to maintain record of their sales, which includes income earned excluding GST. Tax compliance and administration

Friday, October 18, 2019

Analysing Australian Social Justice issues Essay

Analysing Australian Social Justice issues - Essay Example For the individual self, he or she is obliged to respect the corresponding right of others. This goes to say that a violation of the right of the other would entitle the violator or offender a punishment. Punishment is a form of regulation. When a criminal commits a crime, he or she is imprisoned. Regulation here is justifiable. Social justice then is achieved by the victim. This is how the rule of law works. It is fair and balanced. Incarceration takes away the liberty of the offender in exchange for the victim’s security. In this sense, the right to liberty is essentially linked with the right to security. A person’s â€Å"physical security is an inseparable part of the deprivation of liberty† (Langley, 1999). Q2) In recent years, the Queensland Police Service launched their One Punch Can Kill campaign. (See attached Case study #1) (a) In addition to young men aged between 15-25 years, who is the program trying to reach, and why? Aside from young men aged betwe en 15-25 years old, the â€Å"One Punch Can Kill† program is trying to reach girls and women. It is desired that the females in Queensland, Australia will help in making the program successful by influencing the young males not to violently react in heated instances as well as to instill in their minds that it is okay to walk away. Facilitators of the program are hopeful for the women to heed this call. Research data actually show that young men are highly influenced by the females surrounding them such as their moms, girlfriends and sisters. (b) What are some of the social effects of alcohol related violence? The â€Å"One Punch Can Kill† program enumerates the social effects of alcohol-related violence. There are six known results of this kind of violence. These are the following: (1) death (2) imprisonment (3) a permanent record of crime commission (4) leads one in not having a passport (5) prohibition to travel overseas and (6) emotional trauma for friends and fami ly of the offender and the victim. Of the six, death is to be rated as the most undesired consequence. Alcohol-related violence destroys the future of young individuals. It affects the way the victim interacts with other people. Q3) Why do crimes such as domestic violence and rape often go unreported? Provide at least four (4) reasons in your answer. According to Bergman and Berman (2009), domestic violence and rape are often unreported due to the following reasons: (1) the victim may think that it is better for the violence to be an isolated case so that it will not be repeated (2) the victim may fear that reporting the act of violence will just trigger his or her attacker to make more violent conducts (3) in case of a battered wife, she may fear that reporting the domestic violence could lead to loss of financial support for her children (4) in case of a raped victim, she may be ashamed of her situation. Q4) Thinking in terms of social and criminal justice, provide four (4) explan ations for the over-representation of Aboriginal people in Australian prisons. In your answer, also provide one example of how the Australian Government is responding to this inequality. Aboriginal people are over-represented in Australian prisons due to the following reasons: (1) the compulsory removal of the Aboriginal children away from their families and the institutionalisation that followed (2) socio-economic disadvantages -- such as unemployment,

Critically evaluate, in relation to the common law duty of care, the Essay - 10

Critically evaluate, in relation to the common law duty of care, the liability of employers for references. How, if at all, does - Essay Example Along these lines it is essential for the petitioner to secure that the litigant owed them a duty of care. The presence of a duty of care hinges on, upon the sort of misfortune and distinctive legitimate tests, applying to diverse misfortunes. This address recognizes the position in connection to particular damage and property harm. Critical Evaluations between a university and an employer in reference provisions Liability of a university such as Sussex in providing reference In the University of Sussex, It has dependably been clear that they owe a general obligation of consideration in planning references for learners. On the other hand, court decisions now make clear that this obligation has a particular legitimate measurement, and that an official may be subject for harms to the subject of a reference if misfortune is brought on to that individual through carelessness. Such obligation might come to fruition through lack of regard on matters of reality or estimation. In this way th ey guarantee that they put a duplicate of the reference you compose on the focal record. For current learners, this means the School record; for ex-people they send it to the Student Systems Office, Sussex House to be documented (Sussex, 2013). They likewise attempt to be reasonable, acknowledging the obligation of consideration owed to both the subject and the beneficiary of the reference, they also guarantee that the reference is genuinely exact and true as they are unequivocally encouraged to ask for, as suitable, the present School document or the filed index from the Student Systems Office and to check your realities as needs be (Sussex, 2013). It is additionally exceptional to note that they attempt however much as could reasonably be expected to oppose demands to compose up unsolicited references particularly when the person has not referred to you as a ref and likewise have halted from phone references as Oral references are effectively mis-interpreted, mis-listened, or misc onstrued (Sussex, 2013). This practice does not contrast much from the act of that of a manager to the procurement of references as is set to be laid out underneath or below. Liability of an employer providing References. There is no legitimate commitment on a boss to provide a reference for an ex-representative. This is liable to administrative prerequisites in certain divisions, for example financial services and where the gatherings have entered into an understanding, for example a bargain assertion under which they have contractually concurred a reference. A management's strategy on whether or not to give a reference needs to be dependable: a choice to provide a reference to some however not all ex-representatives could be discriminatory under the Equality Act 2010 (the Act) if this is linked to ensured qualities (Flint, 2013). Where a superintendent does provide a reference, he/she has a duty of care to the ex-representative and must take sensible care in the readiness of the r eference which must be accurate, correct and reasonable and not give a misleading image. While the given reference does not necessarily have to be comprehensive, it should not be misleading through oversight. A manager may be obligated for careless error where its reference gives an inaccurate impression and in great cases it might likewise be subject in the tort of double

Muscular Distrophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Muscular Distrophy - Essay Example The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) has defined muscular dystrophies (MD) as â€Å"a group of more than 30 genetic diseases characterized by progressive weakness and degeneration of the skeletal muscles that control movement. Some forms of MD are seen in infancy or childhood, while others may not appear until middle age or later. The disorders differ in terms of the distribution and extent of muscle weakness (some forms of MD also affect cardiac muscle), age of onset, rate of progression, and pattern of inheritance† (NINDS, 2010, par. 3). There are various types with corresponding clinical manifestations and therapy for MDs. In this regard, the essay aims to compare and contrast, one particular type, the Duchenne MD with another type, the Facioscapulohumeral MD. The causes, pathology and treatment would be discussed and evaluated in light of the two identified MDs. The Duchenne MD is considered the most common form of MD afflicting children, identified to occur in 1 out of 3,500 live male births (London, et.al. 2007, 1791). This type of MD, likewise known as pseudohyperthophy â€Å"refers to enlargement of muscles as a result of their infiltration with fatty tissue† (London, et.al. 2007, 1791). The disorder usually appears within the first three to four years of the child’s development. In a research conducted by Bogdanovich, et.al. (2005), the authors averred that â€Å"DMD is characterized by progressive and severe muscle loss that leads to loss of ambulation, with those affected often becoming wheelchair dependent toward the end of the first decade of life. The disease is caused by mutations in the DMD gene resulting in quantitative and/or qualitative disturbances in expression of the gene product, dystrophin† (par. 1). The symptoms for Duchenne MD include any or a combination of the following: â€Å"fatigue, mental retardation (possible, but does not worsen over time), muscle weakness, and

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Monitoring Risk Response Actions for Effective Project Risk Management Case Study

Monitoring Risk Response Actions for Effective Project Risk Management in Western Oceanography Institute - Case Study Example The explanation for the problem experienced by Dr. Simons geothermal assessment program would be that the program may not be compatible with the new system, thus it would be reconfigured otherwise, to become compatible, or a new program similar to that would be installed for his use. The problem that Young made is the failure to ensure perfect installation of electrical wiring, which contributed to the unnecessary delay. She also contributed to the problem by failing to investigate all the staff computers in advance, to ensure that sufficient space had been created, all unnecessary files removed and the necessary program reconfiguration is done, to ensure they were compatible with the new system. She could have managed the conversion better, by ensuring that all the necessary preparations were done well in advance, to prevent the unnecessary delays. She could have also managed it better by collaborating fully with all the staff and seeking their approval of the project (Kujawski, 361). This way, they would have taken it as their responsibility, to prepare all the requirements to have the project succeed. Collaboration and seeking approval of all the stakeholders in a project is essential for a project to succeed (Kujawski, 357).

Corporate Productivity and the New Economy Personal Statement

Corporate Productivity and the New Economy - Personal Statement Example And, I learned that the unique educational program of the Graduate School of Computer and Information Science at Nova Southeastern University is one of the many features why many students study and research here. For, one of the main reasons for my selection of Nova Southeastern University is its Cluster classroom format. Since I am a firm believer in the concept of teamwork, I believe the cluster meetings will be beneficial for me as I network and team with others in my field with the guidance and wisdom of my instructors. Further, I believe I will also be able to make a formidable contribution to my classmates and professors as we exchange prior experiences, expertise, and hopes in a bond that will last a lifetime. Furthermore, the online aspect of the program is equally as attractive to me as the cluster meetings. I am no stranger to online learning since at least 50% of my undergraduate courses and 90% of my Master's courses took advantage of the online format. For, the schoolâ⠂¬â„¢s unique learning environment is the missing link that will help me maximize my current skills and capabilities in the field of Information Technology in my zeal to improve the lives of people using information technology. Evidently, my entire life has been seriously focused on the complex but rewarding world information technology.  

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Monitoring Risk Response Actions for Effective Project Risk Management Case Study

Monitoring Risk Response Actions for Effective Project Risk Management in Western Oceanography Institute - Case Study Example The explanation for the problem experienced by Dr. Simons geothermal assessment program would be that the program may not be compatible with the new system, thus it would be reconfigured otherwise, to become compatible, or a new program similar to that would be installed for his use. The problem that Young made is the failure to ensure perfect installation of electrical wiring, which contributed to the unnecessary delay. She also contributed to the problem by failing to investigate all the staff computers in advance, to ensure that sufficient space had been created, all unnecessary files removed and the necessary program reconfiguration is done, to ensure they were compatible with the new system. She could have managed the conversion better, by ensuring that all the necessary preparations were done well in advance, to prevent the unnecessary delays. She could have also managed it better by collaborating fully with all the staff and seeking their approval of the project (Kujawski, 361). This way, they would have taken it as their responsibility, to prepare all the requirements to have the project succeed. Collaboration and seeking approval of all the stakeholders in a project is essential for a project to succeed (Kujawski, 357).

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Expected Frequency even in dessert Research Paper

Expected Frequency even in dessert - Research Paper Example It has also been observed that families with children have higher rates of consumption as compared to those without children. Various flavors of ice cream are found in the market today and these include chocolate, vanilla, cookie dough/ cookies and cream, mint chocolate chip, butter pecan/ Swiss almond, strawberry, peanut butter, coffee, cherry vanilla and peach, among many others. According to a Harris Interactive poll conducted in 2013, chocolate and vanilla are the favorite flavors followed by cookie dough/cookies and cream. In terms of gender, a disparity exists in favorite flavor: for women, almost a third prefers chocolate flavor followed by mint chocolate chip and cookie dough/cookies and cream. However, for men, vanilla tops the list of favorite flavors followed by chocolate and cookie dough/cookies and cream. The dynamics of ice cream and frozen desserts consumption does not end with demographics and flavor, how the consumers actually eat their ice cream also varies from one group to another. Methods of consumption include eating it form a cup, cone, sundae, sandwich and others, including eating it as a topping on a cake. Disparities exist here too. It has been hypothesized that a relationship exists between gender and how they eat ice cream. For instance, according the aforementioned Harris Interactive poll, more men than women prefer eating ice cream in cups while more women than men prefer cone. This influence of gender on how a person eats their ice cream has not been well researched and this is the motivation for this research. The paper aims to investigate whether gender and ways of eating ice cream and other frozen foods are related, or whether the choice is independent of gender. For this study, data will be collected from students on how they eat their ice cream. Accordingly, data was collected from a sample of 40 students. To ensure that the data is not biased, efforts were be made so that the

Monday, October 14, 2019

Preventing Blood Stream Infections Health And Social Care Essay

Preventing Blood Stream Infections Health And Social Care Essay National Patient Safety Goals (NPSG) were introduced in 2002 in order to help address some of the issues that were responsible for causing a majority of the situations that were responsible for creating patient safety issues. These goals were implemented in order to put focus on what were deemed to be the most preventable of these issues. One of these goals is the prevention of central line-associated blood stream infections (Lyles, Fanikos, Jewell, 2009). Literature Review Central venous catheters (CVC) are indispensable in the care of critically ill patients. However, their use is not without risk. Catheter-associated bloodstream infections (CA-BSI) are common healthcare-associated infections in intensive care unit (ICU) patients and have been estimated to occur in 3%-7% of all patients with CVC (Warren, et al., 2006). It is well documented that intravascular catheter related complications are associated with extending hospital length of stay, increasing direct costs and increasing ICU mortality. Clinicians insert approximately 7 million central venous access devices (CVAD) annually in the United States, and of these, 1 in 20 is associated with a CA-BSI, despite the use of the best available aseptic techniques during catheter insertion and maintenance. Overall, an estimated 250,000 CVAD-related CA-BSI occur annually, with an attributed mortality of 12.5% to 25% per occurrence. The national cost of treating CA-BSI equals $25,000 per infection, respecti vely, or $296 million to $2.3 billion in total. While the number of CA-BSI has remained relatively steady, vascular access device use has drastically increased, especially in nonhospital settings (Rosenthal, 2006). A vast amount of research is directed toward reducing these complications in an effort to improve patient outcomes. A review of the literature provides an overview of current recommendations concerning intravascular catheter care and research regarding the use of education programs to promote recommended practice. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published the Guidelines for the Prevention of Intravascular Catheter-Related Infections in 2002, which is the benchmark for all intravascular catheter care recommendations. The guidelines for CVC suggest the replacement of dressings every 7 days or when soiled or loosened, intravenous tubing changes every 72 hours, and the replacement of tubing used to administer blood products and lipid emulsions within 24 hours of infusion initiation (East Jacoby, 2005). According to the CDC, approximately 53% of adult patients in intensive care units have a central venous catheter on any given day (Rupp, et al., 2005). Skin cleansing of the insertion site is regarded as one of the most important measures for preventing catheter-related infection. Historically, povidone-iodine is an antiseptic that has been used during the insertion and maintenance of the intravascular devices. It works by penetrating the cell wall of the microorganism. More recently, chlorhexidine has been studied and found to be more effective as a skin antiseptic to prevent catheter-related infection. It works in less time, retains its antibacterial effect against flora longer, is not inactivated by the presence of blood or human protein, and causes minimal skin irritation. Chlorhexidine works by disrupting the microbial cell wall. It is active against many gram-positive and to a slightly lesser degree gram-negative bacterium (Astle Jensen, 2005). A multistep process is recommended to prevent CA-BSI that includes: educating staff, using maximal barrier precautions (e.g. a sterile gown and gloves, mask, cap, and large sterile drape), performing infection surveillance, and replacing occlusive dressing every 7 days or when needed (Buttes, Lattus, Stout, Thomas, 2006). Other strongly recommended practices include proper hand hygiene, use of chlorhexidine gluconate for insertion site preparation, and avoidance of routine catheter changes. Catheters impregnated with antimicrobial agents are recommended when infection rates are high or when catheters will remain in place for a considerable time (Krein, et al., 2007). Education of staff on the proper care of CVC is paramount in reducing the amount of CA-BSI. This is perhaps one of the most cost-effective methods of reducing CA-BSI (Ramritu, Halton, Cook, Whitby, Graves, 2007). Implementation A staff education program was initiated for the nursing personnel that primarily deal with CVC. This education program was aimed at training the ICU and step-down unità ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s nursing staff proper care and maintenance of the CVC. Education focused on proper care of the CVC, including when dressing changes should be performed e.g. every 7 days or when the dressing is soiled. Nurses were also trained in how to appropriately assist with CVC placement and the documentation tool that infection control utilizes to evaluate adherence to insertion guidelines. Posters were also placed in the nurseà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s break and conference areas that had educational material related to proper care of CVC. Documentation was also placed in the physicianà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s lounges that encouraged utilization of maximal barrier precautions during CVC insertion. The facility that was observed currently utilizes a few different means of measurement with regards to CA-BSI. First, a checklist is utilized during CVC insertion that evaluates adherence to insertion guidelines by the staff. This checklist is sent to infection control and entered into a database which is correlated with patient data regarding CA-BSI. Second, in patients that are identified as having a CA-BSI, after catheter removal, laboratory microbiological studies of the catheter, blood, and insertion site swabs are performed to identify causality of the infection. Implementation Compared to Literature Suggestions Practices that reduce the risk of CA-BSI include the following: (1) use of maximal barrier precautions during CVC insertion (i.e., a surgical mask, sterile gown, sterile gloves, and large sterile drapes), (2) placement of the catheter in the subclavian vein rather than the internal jugular or femoral vein, (3) changing catheters only when necessary, and (4) changing dressings on CVC exit sites when they become nonocclusive, soiled, or bloody. These practices have been incorporated into national guidelines. Currently, the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that hospitals implement comprehensive educational programs that teach proper CVC insertion and maintenance techniques (Warren, et al., 2006). These practices are mostly in line with what is implemented at the observed facility. One difference, which is not in line with these recommendations, is that the observed facility has a high nu mber of internal jugular insertions rather than utilizing the subclavian vein. When asked about this, many of the physicians stated that access was easier to identify utilizing ultrasound during insertion and they preferred this method over subclavian insertion. Recommended Changes First, implementation of an education program for providers that is focused on infection control, especially the recommendation of utilizing the subclavian vein insertion for CVC placement as a first choice in patients that have no contraindications to this placement. Second, procuring the second-generation antiseptic catheter, coated with chlorhexidine and silver sulfadiazine on the internal and external surfaces, to more effectively prevent microbial colonization in patients that are identified as being at risk. Decreased bacterial colonization, a critical step in the pathogenesis of catheter-associated infection, may correlate with prevention of catheter-related bacteremia (Rupp, et al., 2005). Third, education and training needs to be expanded to any nurses that may be responsible for caring for a patient with a CVC. These areas include non-critical care areas such as pediatric and medical floors. Larger numbers of patients with CVC are now found in non-ICUs than in ICUs and that CA-BSI rates in those settings are higher. Catheter types and insertion sites vary greatly among settings. For example, jugular and femoral insertion sites are common in ICUs; subclavian and peripheral sites are more common elsewhere. So strategies for reducing CA-BSI must be tailored to the setting (Hadaway, 2006).

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Valuation of Supersize me Essay examples -- Morgan Spurlock Super Size

Evaluation of Super Size Me   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Americans are fat and growing fatter with each passing day. One does not have to do look far to see how fat we are. Take a stroll to the supermarket, college campuses, offices, playgrounds, fast food restaurants, or malls and see the evidence of fat America. What is causing this epidemic of obesity? There are a plethora of reasons including overeating, lack of exercise, fast food, processed food, dieting, and sedentary lifestyles. Morgan Spurlock of New York City decided to tackle one aspect of this problem with his idea of studying the McDonald’s way by limiting his intake of food for one month to only McDonald’s and filming this adventure. The result is the movie Super Size Me. Spurlock finds that the McDonald’s way is a super highway to fat city.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mr. Spurlock followed three rules as during this journey; he could only eat what was available over the counter, including water, no super sizing unless it was offered, and he had to eat and try every item at least once. But before Spurlock hit the roads throughout the United States interviewing Surgeon Generals to gym teachers, cooks to kids, and lawmakers to legislators, all in 20 cities (including Houston which is known as the â€Å"fattest city† in America) he went to numerous doctors and nutritionists and every one told him that he was in shape and in good health. While making the film, Spurlock consumed in 30 days as much McDonald’s as most nutritionists would advise to have in 8 years. He revealed to the American public the truth about fast food. Something many already knew, but found it easier to avoid the fattening truth. Today 1 in 4 Americans visit a fast food restaurant on a daily basis. About 95% of the commercials that children see are for foods filled with sugars and fats. Children are bombarded with images of fast food by media advertising. Most Americans understand the marketing strategy of McDonald's -- appealing to the young. From an early age children are lured into McDonald’s by promotions of toys, actions figures, yummy food packaged into Happy Meals, and small on site playgrounds. The food is fast, comparatively cheap, and hot. In the film Spurlock interviewed a family in front of the White House and asked them to recite the Pledge of the Allegiance. After they wearily recited it, the family was asked about their memories of McDonald’s. Their faces lit... ...e are those folks that will eat there every day let alone numerous times a week. In 1972, we spent 3 billion a year on fast food - today we spend more than 110 billion. Ironically Americans spend all kinds of money trying to lose weight each year, but need to concentrate on exercise, eating healthy, and cutting out fast food. Overweight Americans need to empower themselves and stop talking about being fat, and get moving on some simple solutions like eating less and moving more.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After this movie was shown at a film festival McDonalds stopped super sizing 6 weeks later and introduced the â€Å"Go Active!† meal. The results on Spurlock may have been extraordinary on how quickly he gained weight and how his body and health were slowly deteriorating, but this shows why so many Americans are overweight and the way they are. Everything, even the little â€Å"healthy† options are jam packed with sugars and calories. This might also explain why 60% of the population is overweight or obese. Super Size Me. Dir. Morgan Spurlock. Perf. Morgan Spurlock. 2004. DVD. Samuel Goldwin Films, 2004. â€Å"Super Size Me by the Pound†. Super Size Me: A Film of Epic Proportions. 8 Mar. 2004. .

Saturday, October 12, 2019

1015 Folsom Night :: essays research papers

There are many nightclubs in the city of San Francisco and throughout the Bay area. There is two different kind of nightclub. One is the high-class nightclub, which the cover charge is more expensive, tight security and the nightclub itself is more exclusive. The other one is the lower class club, which all people can enter and the security is not that tight. Nowadays, most nightclubs are the same. Nightclub used to be for people to meet their friends and having fun together but nowadays many people misuse nightclub as a place for using drug. I never like to go to nightclub because the place is very noisy, dark and lastly drugs are often involve in nightclub. It took me a few hours to decide which club to go. I am a person who likes to stay at home watching television, playing video games and surfing through the Internet. Well, it was very hard for me to go out, as my legs felt heavy to walk through the front door. After a long struggle, then I forced myself to go to a nightclub. My friend recommended me to go to 1015 Folsom nightclub because the songs are funkier. The club is located at Folsom street, downtown San Francisco. We arrived at 1015 Folsom around 11.45pm. Many people were still lining up to get into the discotheque. I didn't know why people like to go to such a dark and noisy place like that. Anyway, people who were there are mostly dressed up. Some of them looked interesting. My attention went to an old man about 50-60 years old man who were already dressed up and ready to rock his world. I wondered why would the old man go to a nightclub. May be he was lonely or may be he was just looking for fun and excitement. Well, I didn't really know. Ten minutes after lining up, I went inside the nightclub. From the door, I could hear the song and the beat of the bass so loud that my heart could feel it. Inside the nightclub, I saw people were dancing everywhere, on dancing floor, on their own seats, everywhere. They would dance and take a big gulp of their beer. Even the bartenders were dancing too, following the rhythm of the loud funky music. The rainbow rays of light moved through the club to make the mood even more exciting and funky.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Determinants of Bank Profitability in Nigeria

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1. 0BACKGROUND INFORMATION TO THE STUDY The study of profits is important not only because of the information it provides about the health of the economy in any given year, but also because profits are a key determinant of growth and employment in the medium-term. Changes in profitability are an important contributor to economic progress via the influence profits have on the investment and savings decisions of companies. This is because a rise in profits improves the cash flow position of companies and offers greater flexibility in the source of finance for corporate investment (i. . through retained earnings). Easier access to finance facilitates greater investment which boosts productivity, productive capacity, competitiveness and employment. The existence, growth and survival of a business organization mostly depend upon the profit which an organization is able to earn. It is true that when Profitability increases the value of shareholders may increase to considerable extent. The term profitability refers to the ability of the business organization to maintain its profit year after year.The profitability of the organization will definitely contribute to the economic development of the nation by way of providing additional employment and tax revenue to government exchequer. Moreover, it will contribute the income of the investors by having a higher dividend and thereby improve the standard of living of the people. In order for a business entity (whether public or privately owned) to continue to prosper, there is need for its earnings to be relatively stable for its expansion and growth over time.In addition to its level of earnings, its external environment must also be carefully understood and reliably anticipated (Burns and Mitchell, 1946). Earnings and business environments are so serious issues that a business must study and understand in order to face its opportunities and threats with vigor and determination. Where for instance, the business does not recognize the effects of changes in external environment which may necessitate changes in business earnings, it may suffer some losses consequently.This perhaps explains why there has been continuing search by modern businesses to improve their methods of production necessary to cut down costs, and to develop new attributes or products, which may have wider appeal and satisfaction to their customers. On the other hand, the environmental and cyclical conditions are usually volatile and Dynamic (Sabo, 2003). This underscores the need for business firms to be able to reliably conduct forecast not only for their future demands or sales for their goods and services but also other variables that affect them directly such as their personnel and future profits.The volatility of the changes in the variables from the external environment in specific ways to the immediate factory level and to the remote industry and task environments can sometimes be very significant. Th ese calls for managers’ ability to appreciate and apply formal forecasting techniques to assist their banks achieve this veritable task. The determinants of profitability are empirically well explored although the definition of profitability varies among studies.Disregarding the profitability measures, most of the banking studies have noticed that the capital ratio, loan-loss provisions and expense control are important drivers of high profitability. In this study, the drivers that would be considered are in two categories namely endogenous (internal) and exogenous (external) drivers or factors of Profitability. Internal drivers of bank performance or profitability can be defined as factors that are influenced by a bank’s management decisions. Such management effects will definitely affect the operating results of banks.Although a quality management leads to a good bank performance, it is difficult, if not impossible, to assess management quality directly. In fact, it is implicitly assumed that such a quality will be reflected in the operating performance. As such, it is not uncommon to examine a bank’s performance in terms of those financial variables found in financial statements, such as the balance sheet and income statement (Krakah and Ameyaw, 2010). External determinants of bank profitability are factors that are beyond the control of a bank‘s management. They represent events outside the influence of the bank.However, the management can anticipate changes in the external environment and try to position the institution to take advantage of anticipated developments. The two major components of the external determinants are macroeconomic factors and financial structure factors (Krakah and Ameyaw, 2010). In summary, it appears previous empirical research has suggested a possible connection between bank profitability and various internal and external determinants like Bank Assets, Loan-Loss Provisions, Total Deposit and Inflation, but is far from definitive as ifferent authors have made use of the inclusion and exclusion of different variables in their studies. Hence, our study will try to shed more light on this controversial issue by reviewing more empirical literatures on opposing sides of the topic and finally drawing conclusions from our findings from the mode of data analysis we intend to carry out. 1. 1STATEMENT OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEM The Federal Government of Nigeria and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have perennially sought permanent measures that would enhance the profitability and stability of banks operating in the Nigerian banking industry.Unfortunately, they have never completely succeeded in achieving this feat. For instance, from 1987 – 1991 financial sector reforms (intended to enhance competition in the sector, mobilize savings and lead to a more efficient allocation of resources) were implemented, encompassing elements of liberalization (such as the decontrolling of interest rate s) and measures to enhance prudential regulation and tackle bank distress (Oluranti, 1991).Also, between 1990 and 2004, bank regulators increased the minimum share capital requirement for banks operating in Nigeria five times, namely in 1991, 1997, 2000, 2001 and 2004 (Aburime and Uche, 2006). However, these measures were unsuccessful in curtailing the spate of bank distress and failures in the1990s and beyond (Oluranti, 1991; Beck et al. , 2005 and Brownbridge, 2005). Currently, a set of banking sector reforms have also been introduced to ensure inter alia a strong and reliable banking sector (Okagbue and Aliko, 2005).Unfortunately, if the historical antecedents of financial sector reforms in Nigeria are anything to go by, the current reforms may also not help to improve bank profitability and stability in Nigeria. Another major factor, which has often not been given appropriate attention, is the issue of strategic planning through forecasting and prediction of future performance i ndices of commercial banks (deposit money banks). To achieve this task, a bank must recognize and anticipate the important Variable affecting its profit determination.The works of Stevens (1999), Blyther (2000) and Naceur (2003) established the inability of the business firms to adequately anticipate and forecast several operating variables in them as a very critical factor in explaining their non-performance. They argued that it is dangerous for a firm to fail to anticipate its cash flow sales, profits and production under whatever situation it finds itself. Given the efforts stated above banks need to appreciate the role of other indicators in enhancing the profitability or performance for that matter.Indeed examining the determinants of corporate profits in the banking sector in Nigeria is crucial, if these banks are going to remain competitive, efficient, and viable taking into cognizance the challenges that befall competition in the industry. 1. 2RESEARCH QUESTIONS The motivati on behind this study stems from the fact that in the past decade or so, a lot of tremendeous changes has been witnessed in the Nigerian banking industry thereby leading to a number of reforms that has seen players in the banking industry transform from one level to another.Hence, this study will sought to answer the following research questions: 1. Is there a long run and short run relationship between bank profitability and its determinants? 2. To  what  extent  are  discrepancies  in  First Bank’s  profitability  due  to  variations in endogenous factors  Ã‚  under  Ã‚  the  Ã‚  control  Ã‚  of  Ã‚  bank  Ã‚  management as well as exogeneous factors under the control of the macroeconomy? 3. Given previous empirical studies on this topic, can it be deduced that First of Nigeria actually makes sustainable profits in the last three decades? . 3OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY The sole objective of this study is to provide a framework to investigate the f actors or indicators intrinsic in the bank’s asset structure that had impacted on their profitability, and performance for that matter, and make policy recommendation that could be used by bank managers in their policy decisions in the future. Specifically the study seeks to achieve the following Objectives: 1. Examine  the  profitability  of  First  Bank Nigeria Plc during  the  last  three  decades. 2.Study  Ã‚  the  Ã‚  key  Ã‚  endogenous or company-level  value  Ã‚  drivers  Ã‚  of  Ã‚  performance  Ã‚  or profitability  Ã‚  of  Ã‚  the commercial  bank  in  Nigeria using FBN Plc 3. Study  Ã‚  the  Ã‚  key  Ã‚  exogenous  or macroeconomicvalue  Ã‚  drivers  Ã‚  of  Ã‚  performanceor profitability  Ã‚  of  Ã‚  the commercial  bank  in  Nigeria using FBN Plc 4. To find out if any long-run or short-run relationship exists between Profitability variables and its determinants using FBN Plc. 5. Make  policyà ‚  recommendations  regarding  the  key  drivers  of  profitability  at First Bank of Nigeria as well as other commercial  banks  in the country based on  the empirical  findings. 1. 4SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDYGiven the relation between the well-being of the banking sector and the growth of the economy (Rajan and Zingales, 1998; Levine, 1998), knowledge of the underlying factors that influence the financial sector's profitability is therefore essential not only for the managers of the banks, but also for numerous stakeholders such as the central banks, bankers associations, governments, and other financial authorities. Knowledge of these factors would be useful in helping the regulatory authorities and bank managers formulate future policies aimed at improving the profitability of the Nigerian banking sector.Furthermore, at the present time, the type of analysis to be employed in this study is completely missing in the literature concerning profitability in the banking sector in Nigeria. 1. 5SCOPE OF THE STUDY Even though there is an existence of numerous empirical studies on the determinants of corporate profitability in the banking sector almost none exists regarding banks case studies in Nigeria, with one exception though in a study by Krakah and Ameyaw (2010) who found a significant correlations between Bank’s Financial Statement and Macroeconomic variables with Profitability given case studies of two banks in Ghana.However, since their study relied more on a cross-sectional approaches from two different banks, this study collects a broad array of profitability determinant indicators, specifically, using data solely from First Bank of Nigeria from 1980 to 2010, we will be examining different measures and linkages of endogenous and exogenous variables like total  assets, interest  income, total  overhead expenses, money  supply, annual  inflation  rate and Return on Assets (ROA).Furthermore, since the determinants of profitability are a complex and multi-faceted concept, as such no single measure will capture all aspects of the internal and external determinants in the Financial Statements of First Bank to be used in this study. 1. 6PLAN OF THE STUDY For the purpose of simplification and clarification, this study will be drafted in the following manner: Chapter one will begin with a brief introduction on the topic of our study assessing a few opinions on what some authors have to say relating to the topic of our study.This chapter continues by analyzing some of the problems in the Nigerian economy as it relates to the banking industry as a catalyst for economic growth, then followed by the research questions. The statement of objectives to the study follows afterwards then the significance of the study comes next. An historical overview detailing various facets of developments in the Nigerian banking industry from pre-independence to date is also examined in this chapter. This chapter will be co ncluded by giving the scope of study.Chapter two of this study, which is the Literature Review and Theoretical Framework, will begin with a brief introduction of what the chapter aims to achieve and how it will be structured. This will be followed by stating various theoretical frameworks to be used in the study. Furthermore, an empirical review of related literatures on the determinants of banking industry profitability as seen by different authors who have written widely on the topic published their findings on this issue would be discussed.This chapter continues by reviewing the Nigerian banking industry performance over the year with a comparative analysis of all the major banks making up the industry. This will be achieved through the use of charts and graphs. Finally, this chapter will be rounded-off by the historical existence of First Bank of Nigeria Plc as well as the corporate profile of the bank. Chapter three, which is the research methodology chapter of this study, will also begin with a brief introduction to the chapter.This will be followed by the method of data collection section as well as method of data analysis section where we will explain the various methods of analysis like Multiple Correlation Matrix, Cointegration Regression Model as well as the Error Correction Mechanism of time series econometric analysis intended to analyze our data is explained. Also in this chapter, we shall state the various regression models to be estimated for this study as well as an explanation of the justification of the variables to be included in the model.This chapter will also explain the how the data gotten for this study will be formatted in Ratio forms to suit need of our intentions for this study. In addition, the statement of hypothesis and assumptions behind our model will be stated in this chapter and the various reasons behind the sampling procedure of arriving at FBN Plc for this study will be explained. Finally, this chapter will be concluded by explaining ‘A Priori’ Expectations of each variable within the model and the yardsticks in econometric measurement to be used in acceptance or rejection of the various hypothesis stated for this study.Chapter four, which is the data Presentation, Analysis and Interpretation chapter, will be introduced stating what should be expected as the chapter moves from section to section. Here, the data used for this study will be presented in a tabular format then followed by the analysis and estimation of the explicit model already stated in chapter three of this study. Finally, this chapter is concluded by interpreting the models estimated via different methods of econometric analysis.Chapter five is the Summary, Policy Recommendations and Conclusion chapter of this study. This chapter, like the previous ones before it also begins with an introduction of what to expect, this is followed by a summary of our study thus far. Hence, policy recommendations would be made under a dif ferent section and finally, the conclusions of our finding on the study as it relates to the analysis made in chapter four of the study would be highlighted in this study.