Battle of Mogadishu (Black Hawk Down) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Battle of Mogadishu (Black Hawk Down) - Essay Example The mission aimed to abduct several top lieutenants and significantly warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid then return to base. The operation intended to last for 90 minutes. The work provides insightful and original analysis of the commander’s performance, based on establishing cohesive teams through mutual trust, use of mission orders, and accepting prudent risk. On 3rd October 1993, Task Force Ranger, U.S. Special Operations Forces comprised of Bravo Company 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (better known as â€Å"Delta Force†) operators, and the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), (â€Å"The Night Stalkers†), attempted to capture Aidid’s foreign minister Omar Salad Elmi and his top political advisor, Mohamed Hassan Awale. The Special Forces elements involved lightly armed warriors fielding submarine guns, automatic rifles, and light machine guns1. Delta Forces members had variety ofi assault rifles whilst Army Rangers depended on the support of squad-level, small-caliber machine guns in the M60 and M249 SAW. In addition, Heavily-caliber, vehicle-mounted 0.50 quality weapons were on lightly armored HUMVEE vehicles. However, main line of heavy support lay in the air cover provided by Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk medium transport and Hughes OH-6 â€Å"Little Bird† light helicopters. The Black Hawks outfitted a pair of 0.50-caliber heavy machine guns while; â€Å"Little Birds† fielded a collection of mini-guns, rocket pods, or M60 machine guns as needed. The Somali militias used AK-47s, rocket propelled grenade launchers (RPG-7), automatic rifles. They convoyed in improvised fighting vehicles. During this period, the Somali guerillas gained several tactical advantages over the US Special Forces. First, the Somali militias engaged on familiar grounds, leaders could muster an Army of several thousand men, and boys in short order. Second, their civilian appearance

Hybrid or alternative-Fueled Vehicles Essay Example for Free

Hybrid or alternative-Fueled Vehicles Essay

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Literature is our ancient form of a hard drive where we can read something from the past and connect with our present. The more we read, the more literate we become. Therefore, we have the opportunity to open our minds to more ideas and try to understand the way other human beings think. From the beginning of time human beings have developed methods to communicate with each other. Our ability to develop these methods have allowed us to pass our knowledge from one generation to another. This development has given us the opportunity to expand our knowledge to higher standards. Literate work is beneficial to all of us by allowing us to understand others way of thinking, the ability to analyze characters, learn about the authors experiences and stimulate our mind. Literature gives us an insight of what other people think, feel, know, understand and gives us a glimpse of their past to name a few. In â€Å"Fences† by August Wilson, we learn how African American people have struggled to have equality. Wilson is able paint a picture for us through his literary work. As we read this play, we can almost feel as if we are there with the characters. We are able to learn how they dealt with obstacles when segregation was still happening and what they did to overcome those obstacles. Without Wilson’s literary work, we would not be able to acquire the knowledge and understanding from the past. Literature allows us to be able to evaluate characters. We can analyze the character analytically and with an open mind. The more we are exposed literary works, the more we are able to omit the obvious in characters. We are able to create our own thoughts about them and use our critical thinking skills to connect with them on a more in depth level. A perfe... ...d dive into our imaginations allowing us to have a pleasant break from our everyday routine. Literature is often our sanity in a busy, hectic life. How about a good thriller or mystery? These works are exciting because we find ourselves playing detective and involved in situations we normally wouldn’t be immersed in. A good romance novel will keep that helpless romantic hopeful and full of joy believing in a life of love and happiness. It is important to expose children to literature. Their minds are vessels filling with information and expanding with knowledge every day. It’s important they read about history to learn where they came from. No matter how young our old we can all benefit from literature and even become kinder, smarter and happier beings. In short, Literature is an expression of individual thoughts and feelings achieved through our unique creativity.

The Turtle Jean Lafitte: Adventures of a Pet Psychic

Gordon 1 Stephanie Gordon College Writing 112. 005 Guyant 10/11/11 Psychics reading the gullible Gordon 2 The world today is filled with psychics claiming they can perform tasks involving extrasensory projections. There are people who say they can speak with the dead, read minds, feel energies, and see into the future. It is very easy, when vulnerable and gullible enough, to fall into what these psychics are saying. Most will say what you want to hear in order to gain credibility for themselves, or even to just earn a living. It is a complicated thing to argue, however, because this science cannot be proven true. It has undoubtedly been proven a hoax time and time again, but there are two sides to every story. Those who believe and buy into what these psychics are saying are the ones who keep this business alive. I think that people will believe what they want to believe, which is why psychics can continue putting on a show to make believers out of the gullible. There is a term used in Psychology to represent when it is actually the subjects who make a reading succeed. It is called the â€Å"fallacy of personal validation. This means that when someone is being read by a psychic, the way they interpret the reading to match their own character is what makes them believe in what the psychic is saying (Gordon 48). This is most often true with horoscopes. We usually only read the horoscope that matches up with our own birthday, but when reading ones that are for other months, they can be matched up to anyone. Horoscopes can be very general, such as, â€Å"Good things are coming your way†, or â€Å"You will meet someone with potential for a relationship next month†. These things could be interpreted in a different way for every person who reads them. Almost anyone could find a way to fit the readings into their own lives. Most of the time the horoscope â€Å"predicts† things that would have happened to a person anyways. Chances are whoever reads it will have something good happen to them or meet someone new any period of time after they have read it. It is the fallacy of personal validation that makes astronomical readings seem so accurate for each individual. Psychics themselves have a lot of confidence in what they do. Though there are some who know they are putting on an act, there are others who truly believe they have a gift. One psychic who Gordon 3 makes a living off of being a reader, DeAna, lives in the United Kingdom. She explains in an interview that ever since she was a young girl, her family and friends were baffled when DeAna knew information that she was never directly told. She constantly knew information that she not only should not, but could not have possibly known. Using her skill as a career measure did not come until much later in life. When asked â€Å"How have you become a psychic reader? † DeAna replies, â€Å"A lady I worked with was dreadfully distraught about a relative who had gone AWOL. One day she handed me a coffee and I found information about the person flooding in – as she touched me. I gave her the info and the person was located. She was shocked at first and then thrilled and told an awful lot of people! Before I knew it, after a 12 hour shift – 6 days a week, I would arrive home to find people waiting on my doorstep needing a reading. † (DeAna) She continues to explain how she helped people before and after her shift at her regular job, for no pay. One day a woman came along who was offended when DeAna would not accept payment. She scolded the psychic and said that she was offering a service and should expect payment for her skills. DeAna decided to make her readings a full time job, after the woman put things into perspective for her. She thought she should use her gift to help whenever she could, whenever she could. DeAna soon realized this was her calling, and chose to start charging all of her clients and turn her talent into a career. DeAna helps people who are looking for answers. Her clients who now pay her for reading sessions in person and over the phone, come to her because they need help with something in their lives. DeAna even helps corporate businesses in finding the correct applicant for a job. She states that she wrote out a paragraph for each applicant on their character traits and strengths as she saw it. Perhaps the person in charge of hiring had poor skills in his job area to begin with, which is why other people he had hired did not end up working out for their company. The fact of the matter is, every person DeAna has picked out for the company has worked extremely well in their position. One man, who admits to being a fake, is Henry Gordon. He calls himself a mentalist-magician, Gordon 4 because his tricks are what he calls slight of mind. His career has been based on debunking those who claim to have magical or psychic powers. In 1977 (Gordon 3), he put on a magic show in his hometown, but performed under the stage name Elchonen and wore a mask so his identity would stay hidden. After performing several amazing tricks, the audience was completely hooked and bought into his entire performance. When it came time for the second act, Gordon walked out on stage without his mask and was instantly recognized by his community. He told people they had been duped, and proceeded to explain why it is so easy for them to believe his tricks. People in the audience had every reason to be upset. They had put themselves in a vulnerable position and got sucked into Gordon's act. This is also part of the reason people believe so strongly in psychics and their readings. Those who are curious are the ones who are easily pulled into the hoax. After an atmosphere is created with a crystal ball, one or two correct guesses, and just a hint of belief, a psychic can pull a client in and the rest is history. It is very easy for a mentalist magician like Gordon to pull simple tricks and attract a following. Some members of the audience in Gordon's show were so upset they demanded their money back. Gordon told them they would receive a full refund for their ticket if they asked for it at the ticket office. He later found out most of the people who received their refund came back to find out the tricks of his trade. He calls himself a mentalist magician, because he uses slight of mind tricks, as opposed to sleight of hand. His tricks test a person's mind, rather than how well they were paying attention. Gordon makes a living off of debunking psychics and anyone who claims they have extra sensory projection. He says that he could make a much better living off of being a magician, but there is something standing between him and a life full of riches. His conscience. Psychics make general assumptions that lead to specific answers, based on the responses of the person they are reading. (75) This is what makes the person believe they are taking part in something outside our natural world. It is what pulls them in and makes them a believer in this phenomenon. Some people tend to believe when they need an answer that they cannot seem to find on their Gordon 5 own. Local law enforcement has been known to use a psychic when they have hit a dead end during a case. This happens rarely. Often times the psychic is brought in by the family of the victim, and not law enforcement directly. Law enforcement will comply with the psychic if they feel they have no other options and need help taking a step in a new direction. The psychics, however, can be more of a problem than a help. Police may be looking for a step in the right direction, but what if the psychic sets them on a completely wrong path? Time is of the essence in the majority of these cases and a psychic may throw off the entire investigation. If a psychic chooses to help in a search, officials may decide to ignore their claims. One man, Mr. Earl Curley, is extremely confident in his psychic abilities. He brags to his followers about how his help led to an arrest in a murder investigation. Curley states that he gave a composite drawing of the alleged killer in the investigation of the Atlanta Child Murders. He then claims that because of his help, a criminal named Wayne Williams was apprehended four and a half days later. Since Curley seemed to be so confident in his help, Henry Gordon went to investigate how much he had really helped the investigators on the outcome of this case. When Gordon contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigations about Curley's help with the case, he received a direct quote from the Press Information Office. â€Å"Mr. Earl Curley contacted our Atlanta office (voluntarily) in 1980 and 1981. He sent in some kind of write-up of what he thought the subject would look like, and he sent in some sort of a drawing. However, there was no impact on the case as a result of what he sent in. (Gordon 88) This goes to show that psychics can brag about using their abilities, but unless someone digs deeper in the matter, they will not know how much the psychic really helped. Psychics may have helped law enforcement with their two cents worth, but it does not mean that they led to any kind of conclusion in a case. Suppose the FBI had used Curley's drawings. They might have arrested a man who matched the picture, but who was not the criminal who committed the murders. Any set of circumstances resulting from Curley's voluntary help could have sent the entire investigation in a completely wrong direction. Luckily the Bureau was smart enough to ignore this psychic and stick with their own set of techniques. Gordon 6 Having confidence in their work is part of what makes them so believable. If they believe in it themselves, others are sure to follow in the hype. Psychics use all sort of ways to show their skills. Whether it is using a reading to predict an outcome, predict the future, communicate with the afterlife, they all have their own set of ways to create believers. A popular method some psychics use when attempting to contact someone who has passed on, is the Ouija board. It is a board with numbers from zero to nine and all of the letters of the alphabet on it. A game piece in the shape of a triangle with a plastic center is used to spell out the answers to questions asked. When the piece goes over a letter or number, it is supposed to spell out a word of phrase that is from a spirit. This board was considered a game in the United States. It sold extremely well, mostly to people who had lost a loved one in World War I. The woes of someone dying, going missing, or simply being affected by the tragedies of war, drove some people to turn to magic. These were people who needed answers from their loved ones and had no way of getting them elsewhere. The man who created the Ouija board, Isaac Fuld, was a toymaker. He attempted to say the game was a scientific instrument, so that he would not have to pay a ten percent tax on toy sales. This was even argued all the way to the Supreme Court. There is no way to test that connecting with those in the afterlife is a scientific measure, so the board was ruled a toy. How surprising. To make a point as to how the toy could not possibly be magic, Henry Gordon, once again was there to help us out. He taught a class on the paranormal at McGill University. He brought in a woman who claimed to be a psychic and used the Ouija board as a tool to contact spirits from the afterlife. Since Gordon made his living off of proving psychics to be fakes, she was one of his star guest speakers. She wore a long green dress and a turban, which made her appear as someone who you would see behind a crystal ball in a dimly lit room. This was obviously a part of her performance. She demonstrated how the board worked, and allowed Gordon to ask a few questions to someone he knew who had passed. After receiving a few answers from the â€Å"spirits† (Who knows if they were right? ), Gordon tested the woman’s skills. To Gordon 7 prove the board, and the woman, who truly believed in her gift of communicating with spirits, were both fake, he placed a piece of brown paper wrapping over the board. The game piece moved around over the paper, so the numbers and letters were hidden. This way the woman could not see what characters her hands were moving over. He asked a few more questions, but the game piece only spelled out gibberish for answers. Gordon 110) If the spirits really were speaking to Gordon and the class through the Ouija board, would it matter if there was paper covering it? This throws the Ouija board in with the crystal balls, tarot cards, astrological charts, and any other tricks a psychic may use to convince the world of their talent. Another way the public is pulled into psychic hysteria is with animals. Some pet owners claim that their horse or dog o r pig have psychic powers. The most well-known psychic animal came around in the 1920s. (Milbourne 40) She was a benign mare named Lady who performed in a red barn near Richmond, Virginia. Mrs. Claudia Fonda, Lady’s owner claimed she could spell, add, subtract, multiply, divide, tell time, and answer questions. Reporters who visited Lady to see the Wonder Horse with their own eyes wrote that she could predict the future and read minds. Mrs. Fonda charged a fee of fifty cents for children and one dollar for adults for admission to see Lady and her talents. People would ask the horse a wide range of questions. Lady was asked anything from â€Å"When will I marry? † to â€Å"How should I invest my money? † (41) Lady even took part in helping find the body of a missing boy in Norfolk County, Massachusetts. She also knew a lot about baseball, and even had a more success in picking winners than most professional sportswriters. Everything in Lady’s career left everyone astonished, and in 1956 (43), Mrs. Fonda shortened Lady’s time with the public to afternoons only. A man named John Kobler was being sent to write an article on Lady for the Saturday Evening Post. He asked Christopher Melbourne if he was available to come along as a consultant, because he was one who was familiar with the techniques of deception. Since Melbourne had written articles on the horse before, he introduced himself to Mrs. Fonda as John Banks, so that she would not be upset by his Gordon 8 presence. Banks carried a camera, so that he would be accepted as a photographer associate to Kobler. When they arrived at Lady’s Barn, Mrs. Fonda assumed her position to the left of Lady. Lady communicated through a giant typewriter-like machine. When she pushed down a plank with her nose, a letter popped up. Mrs. Fonda instructed the men to ask Lady whatever they wanted. Banks asked the horse â€Å"What is my name? † Lady spelled out B-A-N-K-S on her typewriter, but his name was not really Banks. He also asked when his brother would return from Europe, and Lady answered â€Å"S-U-M-M-E-R†. Banks did not have a brother. After Kobler asked several questions of his own, Mrs. Fonda handed each of the men a long, skinny pad of paper, and a long pencil. She instructed them to write down a number, and Lady would read their minds and know the number. Kobler did as he was told, and Lady guessed everytime. Banks, however, would write the number one, but act as though he was writing the number 9. He would only push the pencil to paper as the spine of the 9 came down. He used this technique for almost every number, and Lady guessed wrong every time. It was obvious that a technique called pencil reading was being used. Mrs. Fonda had given the men skinny pads, so that the stroke of the pencils could easily be seen. This is the same reason for giving them longer pencils. Had a large pad of paper and short, stubby pencils been used, pencil reading could not have occurred. At the end of the visit, Melbourne had come to the conclusion that Lady had indeed been trained very well by Mrs. Fonda, but Lady was no psychic. Mrs. Fonda stood on Lady’s left side. Horses cannot see what is in front of them, only what is on the side. Therefore the only thing in Lady’s sight was Mrs. Fonda, and the stick she held in her hand. The stick is what Fonda used to direct Lady for which plank she should push. This means that Lady was simply doing as her master instructed, and that Fonda was really answering everyone’s questions. Although it has been proved that Lady was not a psychic animal, it leaves us with the question as to how Mrs. Fonda knew all of those answers? One way researchers attempted to discover just how many people believed in Psychical Phenomena, was with a survey called the Sheep-Goat scale. In the late 1970s (Haraldsson, Journal of Gordon 9 American Society for Psychical Research 2), a group of researchers set out to discover how belief in psychical phenomena may be related to attitudes, experiences, and activities in the domain of religion and politics. The survey asked questions about belief in the existence of telepathy, ability to know the future, spiritual experiences or dreams, and whether the person read books or articles on psychic phenomena. (2-3) Subjects were scored on their answers and only taken into account if they had answered every question. This scale was used in four different to obtain information on the public’s knowledge on psychical phenomena. The first study was done in Iceland on persons ranging from 30-70 years old, selected at random. About 80% of the original sample size returned the survey, which was enough to use the results as a representative of the Icelandic population in that age range. (3) The other three studies were done at the University of Iceland. All of the studies concluded that belief in the psychic and religious beliefs have common facts to some extent. 9) This positive correlation may be due to the fact that the respondents read often. Belief in one item may lead to a belief in the other. As a result of this research, I feel it is clear that psychics can absolutely be proven to be fakes. They cannot, however, be proven to be real. Their profession relies solely on belief, most of which is from vulnerable, gullible people. Psychics use their props, tricks, and performances to pull in peo ple and turn them into believers. Depending on the type of hoax they use to attract a clientele, they can make an entire living off of other people’s gullibility. I feel it is wrong to be able to do this, but am happy there are people such as Henry Gordon who continue to work on proving them wrong. There are still some questions left unanswered, like how Claudia Fonda, knew all of the answers to everybody’s questions. The fact of the matter is that there will always be questions left unanswered, because there is no science developed to prove or disprove a psychic’s abilities. Gullible people will continue to be fed on by psychics. Only a look into the crystal ball will tell when the hoaxes will all come to an end. Gordon 10 Christopher, Milbourne. ESP, Seers & Psychics. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1970. Print. DeAna. Interview. Jacob. Parapsychology articles and blog. 3 May. 2007. Web. Gordon, Henry. Extra Sensory Deception. Buffalo: Prometheus Books, 1987. Print. Haraldsson, Erlendur. â€Å"Representative national surveys of psychic phenomena: Iceland, great Britain, Sweden, USA, and Gallup’s multinational survey. † Journal of the Society for Psychical Research 53(1985) pg. 1-14. Web. Haraldsson, Erlendur. â€Å"Some Determinants of Belief in Psychical Phenomena. † The Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research 75(1981): pg 1-10. Web.

A Doll’s House and the Macaroon

Gloria Nguyen Period 5 2010 February 24 A significant symbol in A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen are the macaroons that show up several times within the course of the play because it shows that Nora is not truthful to Torvald and that their household is tangled up in a web of deceit. â€Å"She slips the bag of macaroons in her pocket and wipes her mouth†¦ †. Nora knows that Torvald dislikes her spending money on guilty pleasures like macaroons so she tries to hide them, just as she tries to hide the truth of her bond and debts. The macaroons also show that Nora is uncomfortable with all of the rules and regulations Torvald has set up and that she has her own will and mind set. When Torvald asks her if she had any macaroons, she immediately responded with â€Å"No, Torvald, really; I promise you. It shows that she may have a different set of morals than Torvald and that she is not at all comfortable in her living situation and Torvald is not one of her confidants like Dr. Rank and Mrs. Linde. The macaroons show that Nora is not the perfect doll that Torvald tried to mold her into. The macaroons function in the text was to show that although that some families and lives seem picture perfect, most of the time it is not true, as proven by Nora’s need to hide the bond and macaroons from Torvald. The macaroons could also represent Nora’s want to be independent and free, that she wants to rebel and be someone of her own making as opposed to being Torvald’s little â€Å"songbird†, â€Å"squirrel† and â€Å"capricious Capri†. Ibsen’s use of symbolism in using such a minor pleasure impacts the story in a huge way by subtly showing the reader that Nora’s lifestyle is not as truthful and happy as it seems and that something as small as an innocent white lie about macaroons can set the precedent of lies that are to come.

Management Accounting Case Assignment Essays

Management Accounting Case Assignment Essays Management Accounting Case Assignment Essay Management Accounting Case Assignment Essay Management Accounting Case Assignment BY Allele Case 8-28. Evaluating a Companys Budget Procedures. 1 . Identify the problems that exist in Ferguson Sons Manufacturing Companys budgetary control system and explain how the problems are likely to reduce the effectiveness of the system. The overall companys strategy is not well defined by executives and communicated to the management. There is no goal other the cost reduction at total company level as well as at departmental level. Managers dont see connection between expenses, revenues and overall companys profitability. As a result managers are frustrated because instead of help that budget is suppose to bring it creates problems. Managers dont participate in budgets development; it is purely a task of an accounting department which sets up performance goals for the company as a whole and all its divisions. Accounting department also controls the execution; other departments managers are completely removed from that process, they are only informed about their departments performance at the monthly meeting. It turns out that department managers are accountable for the results that they never truly omitted to. This approach would lower companys performance on the long run, when managers loose motivation they are not interested to deliver good results. Accounting departments has a very distant relationship with other operational departments; they concentrate on evaluating only financial goals, looking strictly at the numbers. They are only concerned with the cost reduction and continue to tighten the individual budgets once performance goal is met. At the same time it looks like budget tightening strategy may become unreasonable because at some mint the only way the department can meet the budget is by sacrificing its quality for quantity. If quality becomes an issue, it may lose customers and potentials profits. The way the managers performance is being evaluated does not seem to be fair. Managers are not recognized well enough if they met the budget or even saved more than expected. They are being rewarded with the tighter budget every time they achieve the goal. However if expenses end up to be higher than predicted, managers get a low rating during their monthly performance evaluation. The only motivation for managers to meet the budget is trying to avoid the low performance rating. With the current strategy managers are not rewarded for the good performance instead they are punished in both cases when they meet the budget and get the tighter goal or when they dont deliver expected savings and given lower performance rating which also affect their income. In this circumstance some managers may decide to leave the company and it may be hard to replace them, especially the most experienced ones. Company will incur the additional costs related to hiring the replacements. Operational processes are not well coordinated when special orders are given analysis being done to investigate the cause and no recommendations are made on how to avoid certain costs and improve the performance. The work between departments is not well coordinated either because all departments are over concerned with meeting their monthly budgets. The maintenance department chooses not to help machine shop to fix their broken equipment Just to save time they need to meet their own department budget. However at the total companys level expenses are higher because of idle time that loud be avoided if the maintenance department reacted to the problem on a timely manner. When departments can, they choose to first perform the Jobs that could be done with less time than budgeted; as a result the more important Jobs are being postponed. As a result the whole companys performance may suffer. Company would have to pay additional costs for idle time or for delaying Jobs that are more critical but require more time to complete then allowed by the budget. 2. Explain how Ferguson Sons Manufacturing Companys budgetary control system could be revised to improve its effectiveness. To be more efficient the companys budget has to be done for the whole company. Departmental budgets should not be separately developed and evaluated since they are all part of the same company. In addition to setting cost reducing goals, it also has to set up revenue and profitability targets. In addition to financial, it should have non financial measurements against which performance should be evaluated. The overall companys strategy has to be reflected in the budget goals. Budgeting has to become a common effort for all level of managers when every manager participates n the goal setting discussions, agrees on the goal and feels accountability for the result. While developing budget, a set of clear and specific expectations has to be prepared which will help managers to compare actual and budgeted results. Accounting department role has to change, instead of setting goals and controlling the performance it has to provide support to managers to help them to set up their own goals and provide with data supported by analysis to help managers to understand where the potential problems can be and make a decision on how to improve the performance. Variance analysis has to be done on a regular basis, all variances to the plan have to be investigated and explained, and then appropriate action should be taken to avoid the potential variance in the future. Variance investigation should be a common effort for managers and accountants because while accountants are responsible for the financial part, managers provide expertise into other operational processes that they are responsible for in their departments. All the internal processes and expenses have to be analyses, especially ones that affect two or more departments. This would help to avoid some costs. To achieve companys efficiency, all its internal Once budget is set it has to be reviewed and adjusted during every budgeting cycle. The tightening of the budget would only make sense if it does not sacrifice quality and does not lower motivation. Companys goals have to be realistic and could be revised if internal or external conditions change. Executives should also revise their performance recognition system and to tie individual managers clear goals to the results. Once manager understands the goals and feels his accountability he would be better motivated to meet these goals. Company should develop effective rewards and recognitions system other then budget tightening to increase managers involvement in companys performance and to retain its best employees. Case 108-5. Ethics and the Manager; Rigging Standards. 1 . How did Preston Lansing probably rig the standard costs are the standards set too high or too low? Explain. Since Lansing rigged the standards so that they were always large favorable variances it means that he was setting standard costs too high because positive variance appears when goods produced at the lower costs then standards. That is he way to artificially overestimate Costs of Goods Sold and underestimate Operating Income up until the positive variance is recognized. The way the costs are manipulated is when the positive variances are gradually recognized throughout a year showing increasing performance in second and third quarter and demonstrating the highest performance in the forth quarter. 2. Should Preston Lansing be permitted to continue his practice of managing reported earnings? This is an example of earnings manipulation and it should not be permitted. First of all Preston is being rewarded based on last quarter/year end results. The bonus would not be as high if the earnings were not manipulated. This creates an ethical issue for the company. Manipulation should not be rewarded. Income Statement does not represent a true picture of companys performance which may hide the existing problems. This is not acceptable from the external reporting prospective, when external users of the information are being misguided on companys true performance. 3. What should Stacy Cummins do in this situation? Stacy was concerned about her findings and notified the president of the situation, but did not receive his support. She could go further and bring it to the attention of the Board of Directors, particularly the audit committee, and outline problems that it may create for the company. It may not have desirable results since Board of Directors may already be aware about the issue but does not want to change anything in the current situation. If Stacks actions have no results and she feels insecure in the current situation she may choose to leave the company to avoid potential problems if any controversy arises as a result of companys unacceptable accosting practices and she may be liable for the professional misconduct.

How to Name a Dinosaur

How to Name a Dinosaur Most working paleontologists dont get the opportunity to name their own dinosaur. In fact, for the most part, paleontology is a somewhat anonymous and tedious occupationthe typical PhD candidate spends most of her days laboriously removing encrusted dirt from newly discovered fossils. But the one chance a field worker really gets to shine is when he or she discoversand gets to namea brand-new dinosaur. (See The 10 Best Dinosaur Names, The 10 Worst Dinosaur Names, and the Greek Roots Used to Name Dinosaurs) There are all sorts of ways to name dinosaurs. Some of the most famous genera are named after prominent anatomical features (e.g., Triceratops, Greek for three-horned face, or Spinosaurus, the spiny lizard), while others are named according to their presumed behavior (one of the most famous examples is Oviraptor, which means egg thief, even though the charges later turned out to be overblown). A bit less imaginatively, many dinosaurs are named after the regions where their fossils were discoveredwitness the Canadian Edmontosaurus and the South American Argentinosaurus. Genus Names, Species Names, and the Rules of Paleontology In scientific publications dinosaurs are usually referred to by their genus and species names. For example, Ceratosaurus comes in four different flavors: C. nasicornus, C. dentisulcatus, C. ingens and C. roechlingi. Most ordinary people can get by with just saying Ceratosaurus, but paleontologists prefer to use both the genus and species names, especially when describing individual fossils. More often than you might think, a species of a particular dinosaur is promoted to its own genusthis has happened numerous times, for instance, with Iguanodon, some former species of which are now referred to as Mantellisaurus, Gideonmantellia and Dollodon. According to the arcane rules of paleontology, a dinosaurs first official name is the one that sticks. For example, the paleontologist who discovered (and named) Apatosaurus later discovered (and named) what he thought was an entirely different dinosaur, Brontosaurus. When it was determined that Brontosaurus was the same dinosaur as Apatosaurus, official rights reverted back to the original name, leaving Brontosaurus as a deprecated genus. (This sort of thing doesnt only happen with dinosaurs; for example, the prehistoric horse formerly known as Eohippus now goes by the less user-friendly Hyracotherium.) Yes, Dinosaurs Can Be Named After People Surprisingly few dinosaurs are named after people, perhaps because paleontology tends to be a group effort and many practitioners dont like to call attention to themselves. Some legendary scientists, though, have been honored in dinosaur form: for example, Othnielia is named after Othniel C. Marsh (the same paleontologist who caused the whole Apatosaurus/Brontosaurus brouhaha), while Drinker wasnt a prehistoric alcoholic, but a dinosaur named after the 19th-century fossil hunter (and Marsh rival) Edward Drinker Cope. Other people-saurs include the amusingly named Piatnitzkysaurus and Becklespinax. Perhaps the most widely recognized people-saur of modern times is Leaellynasaura, which was discovered by a married pair of paleontologists in Australia in 1989. They decided to name this small, gentle ornithopod after their young daughter, the first time a child had ever been honored in dinosaur formand they repeated the trick a few years later with Timimus, an ornithomimid dinosaur named after the husband of this famous duo. (In the past few years, there have been many more dinosaurs named after women, correcting a long-time historical imbalance.) The Silliest, and Most Impressive, Dinosaur Names Every working paleontologist, it seems, harbors the secret desire to come up with a dinosaur name so impressive, so profound, and so just-plain-cool that it results in reams of media coverage. Recent years have witnessed such unforgettable examples as Tyrannotitan, Raptorex and Gigantoraptor, even if the dinosaurs involved were less impressive than you might think (Raptorex, for example, was only about the size of a full-grown human, and Gigantoraptor wasnt even a true raptor, but a plus-sized relative of Oviraptor). Silly dinosaur namesif theyre within the bounds of good taste, of coursealso have their place in the hallowed halls of paleontology. Probably the most famous example is Irritator, which received its name because the paleontologist restoring its fossil was feeling, well, particularly irritated that day. Recently, one paleontologist named a new horned, frilled dinosaur Mojoceratops (after the mojo in the expression Ive got my mojo working), and lets not forget the famous Dracorex hogwartsia, after the Harry Potter series, which was named by pre-teen visitors to the Childrens Museum of Indianapolis!

Word Choice Formally vs. Formerly Proofeds Writing Tips

Word Choice Formally vs. Formerly Proofeds Writing Tips Word Choice: Formally vs. Formerly A lot of adverbs end with the letters â€Å"-ly.† This does, unfortunately, mean that some unrelated words sound quite similar, such as â€Å"formally† and â€Å"formerly.† So to make sure you can use these terms correctly, check out our guide to what â€Å"formally† and â€Å"formerly† actually mean. Formally (In a Formal Manner) â€Å"Formally† is the adverbial form of the adjective â€Å"formal.† And since â€Å"formal† means â€Å"official† or â€Å"in accordance with convention,† we use â€Å"formally† when something is done in a formal manner. To dress â€Å"formally,† for example, usually means dressing smartly for a special occasion: We dressed formally for the wedding. Alternatively, we could make a â€Å"formal† announcement. This would be a statement that makes something official (even if people already knew about it through hearsay): He formally announced his resignation on Tuesday. The opposite of â€Å"formally† is â€Å"informally.† This implies doing something in a way that ignores official rules or conventions. The adjectival form is this word, meanwhile, is â€Å"informal.† Formerly (Previously) The word â€Å"formerly† means â€Å"in the past† or â€Å"previously.† For example: The Google search engine was formerly called â€Å"Backrub.† Here, we’re saying that Google was called â€Å"Backrub† before it was Google (which is true, weirdly). The adjectival form of this word is â€Å"former,† which means â€Å"from a past time.† All in all, its probably a good thing they changed it. Formally or Formerly? Although these words sound similar, they don’t mean the same thing. As such, you should be careful not to mix them up in your writing. Remember: Formally comes from â€Å"formal† and means â€Å"officially† or â€Å"in a formal way.† Formerly comes from â€Å"former† and means â€Å"previously† or â€Å"in the past.† Since the words â€Å"formal† and â€Å"former† sound more distinct, moreover, you can use them to remind you what their adverbial forms mean. And if you want to be sure that your word choice is always correct in your writing, a little bit of proofreading can be a big help!

Nursing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Nursing - Essay Example These changes coupled with the escalating complexities of the ever evolving healthcare delivery system and the changing socio-political market has further heightened the pressure on nurses to be more responsible and accountable for delivery of quality patient care (Lenburg, 1999; Savage & Lucy, 2004:9). As the healthcare environment becomes more demanding with the increasing complexity and changing patterns of healthcare delivery, and the development and evolution of the nursing practice in response to the increasing health needs of clients, nurses are faced with the increasing pressures of decision making (Accountability in Nursing and Midwifery, 1997). In all these changes, what stands the same is that the nurse must exercise discretion and judgment in the management and supervision of patient care, in accepting or rejecting responsibilities, seeking consultation and even in assigning responsibilities to others who may carry out nursing care. With this increasing level of responsibility in patient management and care, the demand for nurses to be accountable for their decisions, judgment of discretion becomes more crucial for evaluating and improving quality of care. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) A-Z Advise sheet on Accountability states that "registered nurses have a responsibility to deliver safe and effective care based on current evidence, best practice, and where applicable, validated research." (NMC, 2006:1). While the NMC code of ethics also states that as a registered nurse, "you are personally accountable for your practice. This means that you are answerable for your actions and omissions, regardless of advice or directions from another professional." (NMC 2002) These policies hold grave implication for the nursing management of patient care. This paper therefore aims to look at the subject of accountability, in the light of the related concepts such as responsibility, autonomy and authority and how it affects the nurse delivery, supervision and management of patient care in the adult branch of nursing. For a start, let us take a look at what the term 'accountability' entails. According to Savage & Lucy (2004), although accountability is not a recent concept, it has however evolved over the last couple of decades from "a matter of regular reporting to an explanation of actions and outcomes and, more recently, a justification of the values informing actions and outcomes"(pg13). They argue that despite the fact that the use of the term is increasing in frequency in management and policy making circles, the term is becoming more vague as it now appears to refer to an increasing number of phenomena. However, within the nursing context, accountability has been described in different lights, by different authors. For instance, while the American association of Nurses (ANA) described nurse accountability as being Answerable to someone for something one has done. It means providing an explanation or rationale to oneself, to clients, to peers, to the nursing profession, and to society. In order to be accountable, nurses act under a code of ethical conduct that is grounded in the moral principles of fidelity and respect for the dignity, worth and self-determination of clients (Accountability in Nursing and Midwifery, 1997). The NMC considers accountability as being "fundamentally concerned with weighing up the interests of patients and clients in complex

The Routines of Decision Making Math Problem Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Routines of Decision Making - Math Problem Example 2. The maximum purchase price for the pair of bindings is $10.00, as this is the cost of production that differs between the alternatives. In case if the price is higher, the company will be realizing a loss. 3. If the production increases from 10.000 units to 12.500, the fixed costs that change between the alternatives allocated to a pair of skis would be the following: 10.000 / 12.500 = $0.8. The fixed cost of 100.000 should be considered when making the decision, as it does not differ between the alternatives. Since all the rest of the production costs remain unchanged, we can simply add the net change in fixed cost from the total cost of production that varies between the alternatives in order to receive the cost of production for a pair of bindings under the new circumstances: 10.00 + 0.8 = 10.80. When considering the long run (30,000 sales form by the end of the third year), the fixed overhead that varies between the alternatives per pair of bindings is only $0.33 (10.000/30.000). Under this sales volume the company should produce the bindings itself.

Analyse the business environment of Japan Essay

Analyse the business environment of Japan - Essay Example In order to drive this growth, National Innovation System (NIS) plays a very important role. Innovation is one of the key drives that have led Japanese business corporations to this state of success. This paper presents a detailed study of the activities of NIS which helps to evaluate its impact on the business environment of the country. Business environment in Japan The Japanese business environment has been reflecting huge success during the late 1980s. The success of Japanese business enterprises is affected by the formation of the enterprise to a large extent. Three main types of companies can be recognized in Japan under Japan’s commercial code and another form of company is separately recognized under the Yugen Gaisha Law. Therefore, four different forms of a business company exist in Japan. These are Go-mei Gaisha (or commercial partnership), Go-shi Gaisha (or limited partnership), Kabushiki Kaisha (or general corporation) and finally Yugen Gaisha (or limited liability corporation) (Japanlaw, n.d.). ... Cheap exports made by Japan include particularly electronic devices, cars and computers (Japan-guide, 2013). This characteristic of Japanese business corporations is imparted by the human resource of these organizations. Human resource is considered a very important aspect in Japan. Hence, companies dedicate attention towards maintaining good human resource management system and employees provide the commitment of sustaining a long-term relationship with their respective corporations. Strong industrial relationship is one of the main factors that affect the performance of Japanese business firms in international context (Asetuc, 2003). This leads to improvement in the skills and employees might utilize their potential to the fullest extent for the growth of their organization. With globalization, Japan has been increasingly participating in the global business scenario. Japan is known on the global platform for its cheap exports. Japan mainly imports agricultural or intermediate good s, such as, culinary materials, wood, oil and other raw materials. Since the manufactured goods (imported) yield higher price than the raw materials imported by Japan (that requires lesser payments), Japan has a trade surplus. However, globalization makes the manufacturing units all around the world more cost efficient (Gu?jonsson, 2009). Thus, Japanese firms are currently facing intense competition in the global front. National Innovation System (NIS) Government component of the NIS The National Innovation System (or NIS) refers to the system of flow of information as well as the rapid transfer of technological knowhow amongst people residing in different parts of a country. It has been recognized by the Japanese government

The market for health insurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

The market for health insurance - Essay Example Rises in health insurance covers, has besmirched access to health cover (Berkowitz 30-45). Presently 7 percent of the United States nonelderly, acquire coverage through personal strategies bought frankly from insurance providers. Numerous plans at the national state and centralized, in addition to the standard propositions using the personal health insurance market as way of growing access to reasonable health policies. States license bodies that provide health insurance coverage and have determined laws that regulate their structure, finances, and responsibilities to the people that they insure (Berkowitz 46). Introduction Health care costs in the US, which have escalated quickly in actual terms in the last few decades, have put pressure on the state and national budgets. Future expansion in health insurance costs is estimated to threaten the monetary status of state and national governments unless primary strategy transformations take place. Also, for many American citizens, the la ck of health insurance coverage sophisticates access to health care. Health insurance markets are frequently focused on a single insurer accounting for over 50 percent of the market. Issues about focus on health insurance markets are connected to broader issues about the cost, value, and accessibility of health care. The market structure of the health insurance and hospital commerce may have helped is increasing health care costs and in restricting access to inexpensive health insurance and health care. Some debate market focus has amounted to higher care prices. Higher cost of health care or health insurance may then make health care less inexpensive and consequently less available for some homesteads. Patrons in the personal and small group markets characteristically face specifically challenging situations. Whilst health insurance purchased in the personal market has the advantages of being portable, and potentially being an enhanced match to an individual’s predilection f or health coverage than standards purchased via group strategies, it does have elements of essential concern. Amid these issues is how regulations and edicts surrounding the personal insurance market reflects is potential to meet numerous population needs. It is needed to comprehend these concerns to establish how market transformations would interrelate with these policies (Henderson 10-15). Others, nevertheless, agree that health care givers with strong bargaining weight should assist restrict health providers’ potential to increase costs, and that the advantage of minimal premiums coming from the potential to negotiate may be passed along to patrons. Some commerce analysts have expressed competition amid primary health care providers as strong, and some pricing trends show that competing has stalwartly impacted on insurers’ market plans. Additionally, some argue that economies of scale along with state and national control have contributed to the increasing level of focus on health insurance markets. The Obama government has made transformation of the American health insurance and health care structure utmost policy precedence. Numerous congressional attempt at broadening access to health insurance by rising the number of Americans with health care coverage, by minimizing the price of insurance faced by persons, by offering sturdy incentives for persons

Economic Commentary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Economic Commentary - Essay Example They are both asking China to implement what it had already agreed to which is the imposition of a lower ten percent tariff. In fact, the United States threatened in 1995(Baumol, 1998) (was ist baumol) to impose a one hundred percent tariff (100%!) on Japanese cars entering the United States if Japan will not remove its protectionist policy on car importations. Unless Japan would open its doors to United States automobiles, the one hundred percent tariff would push through. Korea and Japan have been charged by domestic competing companies in the United States of DUMPING their goods at very low prices( Baumol, 1998). The United States companies are protected by putting up maximum goods called quotas that each country is allowed to export to the United States. The United States and the European Union member states are trying to impose that all countries adopt a free trade policy where each country is allowed to import and export goods to and from other countries. The local industries fight back importation of lower priced goods by asking government to increase the tariff on such imported goods. The government, then, is torn between implementing the low tariff rules of a free trade industry and to PROTECT its domestic industries from the flooding of imported low priced and high quality imported goods. Advocates in the United States contend that the United States cannot live in a free trade market if the countries it deals with is imposing a protectionist policy. In this scenario, the protectionists will eventually win over the free trade states. The protectionist states want to export their goods to the free trade countries but does not want to import the goods from the free trade country at lower tariff rates. Table (das hier sieht gut aus) 1 below shows the cost of protectionism to consumers in the United States Market as : Industry Cost per United Sates job saved Apparel $139,000 Costumer Jewelry 97,000 Shipping 415,000 Sugar 600,000 Textiles 202,000 Women's footwear 102,000 Source: Gary C Hufbauer and Kimberley Ann Elliott, Measuring the Costs of Protectionism in the United States ( Washington D.C., Institute for International Economics, January, 1994) Table 1.3 pp. 12 - 13 Advantages of Protectionist policy Domestic industries are protected from competition against foreign companies which in this case produce better quality spare parts as compared to locally made Chinese made spare parts. In fact, the European union has put up tariffs on Chinese clothing and shoes saying that the Chinese government is putting up the money to give

The market for health insurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

The market for health insurance - Essay Example Rises in health insurance covers, has besmirched access to health cover (Berkowitz 30-45). Presently 7 percent of the United States nonelderly, acquire coverage through personal strategies bought frankly from insurance providers. Numerous plans at the national state and centralized, in addition to the standard propositions using the personal health insurance market as way of growing access to reasonable health policies. States license bodies that provide health insurance coverage and have determined laws that regulate their structure, finances, and responsibilities to the people that they insure (Berkowitz 46). Introduction Health care costs in the US, which have escalated quickly in actual terms in the last few decades, have put pressure on the state and national budgets. Future expansion in health insurance costs is estimated to threaten the monetary status of state and national governments unless primary strategy transformations take place. Also, for many American citizens, the la ck of health insurance coverage sophisticates access to health care. Health insurance markets are frequently focused on a single insurer accounting for over 50 percent of the market. Issues about focus on health insurance markets are connected to broader issues about the cost, value, and accessibility of health care. The market structure of the health insurance and hospital commerce may have helped is increasing health care costs and in restricting access to inexpensive health insurance and health care. Some debate market focus has amounted to higher care prices. Higher cost of health care or health insurance may then make health care less inexpensive and consequently less available for some homesteads. Patrons in the personal and small group markets characteristically face specifically challenging situations. Whilst health insurance purchased in the personal market has the advantages of being portable, and potentially being an enhanced match to an individual’s predilection f or health coverage than standards purchased via group strategies, it does have elements of essential concern. Amid these issues is how regulations and edicts surrounding the personal insurance market reflects is potential to meet numerous population needs. It is needed to comprehend these concerns to establish how market transformations would interrelate with these policies (Henderson 10-15). Others, nevertheless, agree that health care givers with strong bargaining weight should assist restrict health providers’ potential to increase costs, and that the advantage of minimal premiums coming from the potential to negotiate may be passed along to patrons. Some commerce analysts have expressed competition amid primary health care providers as strong, and some pricing trends show that competing has stalwartly impacted on insurers’ market plans. Additionally, some argue that economies of scale along with state and national control have contributed to the increasing level of focus on health insurance markets. The Obama government has made transformation of the American health insurance and health care structure utmost policy precedence. Numerous congressional attempt at broadening access to health insurance by rising the number of Americans with health care coverage, by minimizing the price of insurance faced by persons, by offering sturdy incentives for persons

Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks in Nursing Practice Research Paper - 1

Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks in Nursing Practice - Research Paper Example The patients’ overall well-being should be at the centre of nursing. In line with this, nurses need to relate professional knowledge into clinical practice, through theoretical and conceptual frameworks bridges, dynamically linking care between health personnel and care, recipients, in consideration with environmental factors. The body of knowledge in nursing had been divided into several categories to distinguish bulks of nursing concepts constructed. Fawcett (1995 as cited in Timmins, 2005) identified hierarchical structure in nursing knowledge, where different levels are interconnected in clinical fields: â€Å"(1) metaparadigm (2) philosophy (3) theory (4), conceptual models.† Metaparadigms are quite broad in context, which translate clinical values indicated in constructed philosophies, while theories are more specific in experiential nursing fields. Fawcett (1994 as cited in Masters, 2005) added that conceptual models, being the last, pertain to sets of nursing abstracts and propositions that are meaningfully integrated for valid reference in nursing disciplines. One of the fundamental bases in the modern nursing profession is the theory created by Florence Nightingale. Her philosophical concepts are simple in construct, though, it primarily stabilized how nurses act in deference to patient in teraction. In her environmental model for nurses, Nightingale proposed that elements observed in the environment can have a significant impact on patients’ health conditions (Butts & Rich, 2010). The model substantially linked three important entities together: the patient, nurses, and their environment. Her meta-paradigm in Figure 1 (please see Appendix A), showed these three factors that may influence outcomes in health.

Public and Private Sector Collaborations Essay Example for Free

Public and Private Sector Collaborations Essay Open research organizations and private firms work under very diverse situations and with poles a-part aims and objectives, which result in fairly different outcomes in the two types of organizations. Public researchers are mainly ambitious due to their willingness to expand knowledge and publish them in journals and magazines to help for the cause of bringing it to knowledge of the masses. On the other hand, private firms and ventures aim to achieve higher profits through commercially valid information that the firm builds up or obtain to be kept in the boundaries of the company and far away from opponents in the market or the industry. This usually results in the conflicts among the two forms of organizations and it is difficult to work in collaboration between the public and private organizations. But it has also been evident from the past that, private companies and firms which have worked in public collaborations, although not many succeeded, but those who did, have been able to achieve goals and have set trends for other organizations to work for the cause of social development and enhancement of public systems for noble cause. Current Situation (LoJack) and Strategy: LoJack Corporation markets and authorizes the LoJack System, a unique, proprietary system used entirely by law enforcement workforce to track, establish, and pick up stolen motor vehicles. The problem of vehicle theft has escalated to an epidemic level an estimated to result in an yearly loss of approximately $8 billion. The LoJack System has an established track evidence of falling damages, striking public protection, and solving grave crimes related to motor vehicle thievery, all accomplished within the realistic restrictions of overburdened law enforcement structure.   Currently, LoJack has unique system designed to assist law enforcement in locating and tracking stole vehicles. Competition is fierce if viewed with Telemetric and GPS tracking devices. However, if we look at vehicle recovery systems, LoJack is the global leader with a law enforcement network that cannot be easily duplicated.   This law enforcement network is challenging politically and requires a high degree of local political assistance.   Financially, sales are climbing, but year over year growth is declining.   The distribution system through auto retailers seems stuck to new car sales. The LoJack strategy at the present time consists of several discrete variables.   LoJack has elected to expand into new geographic areas and markets which is a logical growth strategy for the firm which has established an enviable reputation in terms of asset recovery systems.   This company has developed a new tracking unit that permits it to move into new segments such as trailers while simultaneously reducing costs for such units, therefore, establishing itself as a cost leader in the sector.  Ã‚  Ã‚   This combined with a strong differentiation of product through law enforcement networks gives LoJack a strong competitive advantage.   These are strengths that cannot be quickly or easily duplicated and because of the proprietary technical aspect of this product.   Competitors would have to try and find substitute products to compete directly with LoJack. Competitive Environment New Entrants Teletrec and other competitors were on the market prior to LoJack’s entrance and other competitors are entering the market through GPS based systems such as ‘OnStar’.   These systems are not a onetime purchase but incur monthly fees to maintain service and may require the use of a cell phone. Substitutes Just as with GPS, there is a threat of substitute products coming on-line through new technology, but this threat should be mitigated by LoJack’s network with local law enforcement agencies. Suppliers Suppliers are also a threat as the auto industry is developing its own telematics technology.   The automakers have started relying on standards to speed up the plan cycle. Their incapability to bring state-of-the-art activity, communication, routing, and other telematics (navigation, driver-warning, and communication systems) evidently emphasize the manufacturers unwillingness to relying on these standards. The automakers came into view to have understood their errors and restrictions and are participating in the development of new network standards for both critical mission and convenience or entertainment systems. LoJack must continue to market its law enforcement advantage to thwart off this threat. Buyers At this stage, buyers have relatively limited buying power due to the lack of alternative technology. However, the threat is the heavy reliance on car dealers to sell the product.   If there is no incentive to do so, then the buyer may lack the knowledge that would drive the purchase. Intensity of Rivalry Although the product is in its growing stages, and there is no clear competition, the increased activity in this sector could be conducive of a threat to achieve a large enough market share to make the implementation worthwhile. Perspective on network level strategy Both LoJack and Micro Logic embrace the embedded organizational structure.   While they both have proprietary technology, they rely on other organizations to leverage these technologies.   LoJack’s technology would not have been possible without the alliance with local law enforcement agencies, Motorola, and Micro Logic.   Micro Logic’s existence had been to partner with organizations to influence its technological resourcefulness to additionally expand the companies that it works for.   It would take an evenhandedness stand in these companies and take a long term approach. In order for Micro Logic to be successful in this venture, it would need to rely on LoJack’s distribution and marketing systems. Not only to sell its products but also to ensure its own financial stability. If LoJack is to review its long term strategy, it must understand that research and development are not at the core of its operation.   Motorola is a key component to both LoJack and Micro Logic and has been a strong partner providing vital assistance. They cannot be relied on to only provide this technology to LoJack.   They are a much larger company and will look to broaden their reach.   In the fall of 1999 Motorola was already working to become a driving force in the telematics industry and moved to position itself with the major car companies. Recommendations Short Term LoJack should look to form a free alliance with Micro Logic. This would allow for LoJack to expand into the new market of construction equipment where need exist and no clear provider exist. An alliance between these two organizations has a proven track record and a proven product that can be marketed globally. The alliance should tackle the construction equipment market. This is a market that has a strong need for a location and asset management technology there is no clear market leader and creativity and innovation in products play a vital role to become a leader. The combination of LoJack’s proven solution for tracking and the ability of Micro Logic to develop strong asset management software would allow for strong penetration in this market.   Both organizations should look to work in their core areas of expertise. LoJack recognizes how to market and allocate the products and Micro Logic should right away assume the Research Development purpose. This will allow both companies to continue to drive down cost. LoJack presently has sufficient cash on hand to assist the need for cash with Micro Logic.   At this point, the cash infusion should be done as a low or no interest loan to Micro Logic. The partnership works well over time, Micro Logic can establish if this is their core business.   If not, they will be able to sell this product back to LoJack just as it did the first time and move in a different direction or become a secondary firm to LoJack.   Motorola is currently working on the 3rd generation LoJack and Micro Logic shou ld work directly with Motorola on this function. Medium Term Once a clear hold on the construction market is protected, then the alliance will have the opportunity to move into the trailer market. A proven track record in auto recovery and construction equipment asset management will allow strong credibility and should allow LoJack and Micro Logic to become the market leaders. During this stage both firms will need to determine the structure of the company and if they are able to grow construction equipment sales to the same rate as existing auto sales then LoJack would be in a position to either absorb Metrologic into the existing organization or turn Micro Logic into a subsidiary. Long Term Emerging markets will be critical to the long term success of LoJack.   With a strong foothold on the construction market this area would be a logical first step into emerging markets as contraction equipment would usually surpass new car sales.   Immerging markets will provide the strongest revenue growths for the company and is possible this may need to be moved into the mid-term focus depending on the success for the technology.

Que He Hecho Yo Para Merecer Esto Film Studies Essay

Que He Hecho Yo Para Merecer Esto Film Studies Essay Her only companions are her household appliances. Theyre the sole witnesses to her pain, her solitude and her anxieties. Theyre also the only witnesses of the murder she commits. Expand on this comment from Almodà ³vars interview with Strauss explaining the full significance of this statement to the characterisation of Gloria in  ¿Quà © he hecho yo para merecer esto!! (1984). In  ¿Quà © he hecho yo para merecer esto!!, the household appliances are, as Almodà ³var states, Glorias companions. They are also, quite simply, the bane of her existence. They stand for the incessant amount of housework within which she is constantly immersed, the deterioration in the relationships she shares with her husband and children, and the modern lifestyle that has failed to deliver its lucrative promises. This duality that the household appliances present for Gloria will be explored in the ensuing essay. The first time the viewer sees Gloria in connection with her household appliances is when she fills her washing machine with clothes. The next direct liaison between housewife and appliance is seen when she puts a pan into the oven. In both instances the camera is positioned so as to show the appliances, in effect, taking the point of view and looking back at her. Almodà ³var explains this choice of camera angle: I framed the shots from within these domestic appliances because I wanted to tell the story from the perspective of the objects that were a part of her daily life. Indeed, the subjective shots from inside the household appliances suggest Gloria is being observed by the objects. Moreover, the camera frames Glorias face in a close-up for several seconds at a time a view which is rarely seen throughout the entire film and it is in these instances that the viewer can properly see Glorias wrinkles, her frowning lips, her eye bags. All this infers that it is only the appliances that are able to comprehend her pain, her solitude, and her anxieties, whereas her husband, or anyone else for that matter, could not care less. Her only companions are indeed her household appliances. On the other hand, the viewer could deduce the opposite at the same time by analysing this same mise-en-scà ¨ne. These sequences feature an unconventional reverse-angle shot amidst a conventional kitchen setting: only the reverse shot is shown; we do not see Glorias point of view that one would normally expect of the washing machine as she loads it with clothes. While this non-naturalistic use of the reverse-angle shot is startling as it creates a distancing effect for the viewer, it is not entirely unfamiliar, since TV commercials for clothes washers and fried-chicken recipes long ago appropriated this particular editing figure (DLugo, Pedro Almodovar, p. 40). Almodà ³var explains in his interview with Philippe Rouyer and Claudine Vià ©, I wanted to show the flip side of all these ads that always tout the happiness brought by domestic appliances but never the misery that envelops the housekeeper, the lack of pleasure that these appliances bring. (Willoquet-Maricondi, Pedro Almodà ƒ ³var: Interviews, p. 75) Almodà ³var indeed succeeds in demonstrating this concept since there is no sense of happiness in Glorias look as she puts in the laundry; the quotidian, routine nature of loading the washing machine can be clearly perceived here in her indifferent expression. In the ads of yesteryear however, the housewife using the washing machine would have a bright toothy smile plastered onto her face, as if to suggest that she could not be happier doing anything else since the machine has made her life so easy. In fact, this spoof of old commercials seen in these sequences sets the genre of the entire film itself. Despite its eclecticism and resultant hybrid nature,  ¿Quà © he hechoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦!! suggests in general a satire of a sitcom about a beleaguered housewife. Its frenzied pace makes the film run hastily, and the close-quarters framing, where the viewer is shown the constant movement of actors in and out of the frame, recreates the look of the television screen. As Marcia Pally writes,  ¿Quà © he hechoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦!! plays directly off the traditions of daytime TV without quoting any particular sitcom or soap (Willoquet-Maricondi, Pedro Almodà ³var: Interviews, p. 86). These appliances definitely do not in any way make her life any easier: the chicken that she had put into the oven for dinner becomes burnt, causing her husband to curse at her. It is then she who eats the burned parts this effectively being an example of how it is the housewife who sacrifices herself for her family. In this respect, it can be deduced that the household appliances do more harm than good to her. In this latter scene, the oven undoubtedly manifests itself as a contributing source of tension and conflict between the married couple. Moreover, after the shot from within the washing machine, she impatiently shoos away her son Toni from the kitchen when he comes to ask her help with his homework. In the next shot, the viewer sees Toni walk into the living room and it his grandmother who asks him how his homework is coming along, and offers to lend him a hand. True, she gives him all the wrong the answers, but that is beside the point: Toni and his grandmother spend a lot of time together, discussing their future plans when they go back to their pueblo, walking in the streets and the park, going to the cinema, etc. To this end, in terms of film editing, the contrast between the relationships between Toni and Gloria, and Toni and his abuela, are especially emphasised due to the juxtaposition of these two scenes. Gloria has been far too busy doing her housework to notice her sons grow up over the years. This is demonstrated near the end of the film when Toni hands her some of his savings. She tells him, Hijoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ quà © poco te conozco; she obviously has been unaware of what he does and where he goes everyday. When the bus pulls away, we are shown a mid-shot of Gloria for more than 45 seconds as she walks back home. The length and type of shot allows us to fully comprehend Glorias facial expressions which is markedly chock full of emotion: tearful and distressed, it appears that it has just dawned upon her what she has missed all these years being a housewife, and now it appears to be too late as both sons have left. It could be thus said that her only companions are her household appliances by virtue of the very fact that her household appliances are her companions! The fact that she is addicted to amphetamines such as washing detergent could not convey any clearer this point that she has an unhealthy relationship with her household appliances; just like any drug addiction, it spells the deterioration of her relationship with her family. To Almodà ³var, the sequences which are reminiscent of commercials also have another implication: Advertisingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ is the only medium which makes these objects alive and even endows them with personalities. There are a huge number of commercials in which the main character is a yoghurt carton, directed as if it were a real character, lit by the cameraman as if it were a genuine star. Im very interested by this aspect of advertising. The value it gives to objects and the way it turns them into characters. Indeed, the fact that the viewer sees Gloria, the subject of the shot, from the point of view of the washing machine and the oven makes it appear as if the household appliances are autonomous beings who have some sort of command and higher authority over Gloria, bidding her to live her life around opening this door, filling that compartment with detergent, pushing this button, turning that knob, and so on. These shots are disturbing and slightly alarming when seen in this light, but this is certainly the underlying reason why Gloria is so downtrodden by her career as a housewife, slowly crumbling under the weight of the travails that everyday life dictates. On a deeper level still, these household appliances, independent of their commercial-like representation in the film, are a constant reminder of this modern standard of living in which Gloria and her family inhabit. This mise-en-scà ¨ne reflects the migration motif of the narrative. The plot and mise-en-scà ¨ne of  ¿Quà © he hechoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦!! is reminiscent of a specifically Spanish tradition of black comedies from the fifties and early sixties such as Josà © Antonio Nieves Condes Surcos. Indeed, it is a film which Almodà ³var himself acknowledges as one of the cinematic inspirations for  ¿Quà © he hechoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦!!. Grounded in the socioeconomic conditions of the period, these films focused on the plight of urban dwellers. They struggled to survive in a city that was unable to provide jobs and housing to a population swollen by recent arrivà ©es from the economically even more desperate provinces in search of the consumerist culture that had been the promise of Francos economic policies (DLugo, Pedro Almà ³dovar, p. 41). Contrary to Almodà ³vars often-cited declarations about making films as if Franco never existed,  ¿Quà © he hechoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦!! depicts a world created by the urban non-planning of the Franco years, growing out of a policy that actively sought by passive neglect of urban social services to discourage immigration to the corrupt cities (Carr and Fusi, The Rural Exodus in Spain: Dictatorship to Democracy, pp. 66-70). Like the characters from those earlier films, both Gloria and her husband have come from the pueblo, the pueblo to which her mother-in-law and older son Toni will return at the end of the film. The post-Franco city has failed them, as it fails Gloria, despite their apparently greater material well-being in a world of timesaving home appliances, the consumer paradise of contemporary Spain. As Almodà ³var succinctly puts it in his summary of the film, [Gloria] would like to become a member of the consumer society, but only manages to consume herself, day by day. Nevertheless, as Almodà ³var states in the quote in the question above, the only witnesses to her murder are not beings but her refrigerator and gas stove. The only other witness, the lizard, is killed. Obviously due to their inanimate nature, they cannot reveal the truth to the policemen, but because they do not, thus seems to suggest that they sympathise and even tacitly approve of the murder of her brutish husband. In this regard, the household appliances are indeed her companions, and perhaps passive accomplices in the crime. The characterisation of Gloria is also conveyed through the use of still camera shots. Almodà ³var acknowledges that although this technique was determined rather by the restricted nature of the sets, the tripod was perfect for the film; it added a great deal of tension. Generally, tracking shots tend to soften the action while the tripod hardens it. I wanted to stay inside the house because it was Glorias only universe. Hence it is the house that is the setting for much of the film as if the house, and everything within it, were a protagonist itself. This inevitably connects the household with Gloria, as if they were on equal footing, and thus reinforcing Almodà ³vars statement that her only companions are her household appliances. Moreover, this tension that the use of the tripod brings for the viewer serves to intensify the sense of anxiety and stress that Gloria the housewife undergoes perpetually as she exists within her universe. In the attempted suicide scene, on the other hand, Almodà ³var uses almost a long tracking shot. He starts with a shot of Gloria and then moves to an elaborate tracking shot, with the camera surveying her entire field of vision before returning to her. I really wanted to use an original shot. The effect if pretty deep, it renders what is most intimate in a human being. I wanted to show that the moment she becomes free, free from any obligation, she comes back home and finds it so neat and ordered that she feels terrible, because theres nothing for her to do. Her life has no meaning. She worked for her family her entire life, never taking time to do something for herself, to have hopes. She feels the emptiness created by everybodys departure, a huge abyss opens under her (Willoquet-Maricondi, Pedro Almodà ³var: Interviews, p. 75). This 360-degree pan from her point of view registers the emptiness of the home. It appears that Glorias entire life has been about nothing but cooking and cleaning and serving her family. The film starts with Gloria as a housewife and thus, as far as the viewer is concerned, she might as well have been a housewife forever prior to that. It follows thus that when there is no longer a need to use her household appliances to serve her family, she has lost her raison detre. This is indeed what leads her to want to commit suicide at the end of the film. It must be obvious after this discussion that when Almodà ³var describes the household appliances as Glorias companions, he does not mean to suggest that they are her friends. Although they are the only entities that pay her any attention whatsoever, she is enslaved to them, and this is clearly detrimental to her relationships with her husband and children. Moreover, the household appliances represent the modern way of living for Gloria and her family, and as such reveal the lack of fundamental change despite the intervening years of the so-called economic miracle and the end of Francoism.

The beach :: essays research papers

Review from Los Angeles Times Book Review, 02/02/1997: "[A]rresting though no masterpiece....Garland's message is complex and acute. The self-indulgence of a generation of young Westerners--seeking isolated and well-funded paradises and ignoring the miseries and needs around them--can itself breed monsters. There is more than one kind of Vietnam....The reader's suspense in this intelligently conceived and often effective novel, may consist more in wondering what the author will do than in what his characters will do." -- Richard Eder Review from Times Literary Supplement, 10/18/96: "This exceptional first novel by...Alex Garland creates a picture of an ideal society gone awry through the heady conjunction of a secret beach on an island in southeast Asia and a cultural breadth of reference determined by pop songs, the Vietnam War, and Nintendo Gameboys." -- Giles Foden First Line: Vietnam, me love you long time. All day, all night, me love you long time. "Delta One-Niner, this is Alpha patrol. We are on the northeast face of hill Seven-Zero-Five and taking fire. Immediate air assistance required..." Publishers note The Khao San Road, Bangkok--first stop for the hordes of rootless young Westerners traveling in Southeast Asia. On Richard's first night there, in a low-budget guest house, a fellow traveler slashes his wrists, bequeath to Richard a meticulously drawn map to "the Beach." The Beach, as Richard has come to learn, is the subject of a legend among young travelers in Asia: a lagoon hidden from the sea, with white sand and coral gardens, freshwater falls surrounded by jungle, plants untouched for a thousand years. There, it is rumoured, a carefully selected international few have settled in a communal Eden. Haunted by the figure of Mr. Duck--the name by which the Thai police have identified the dead man--and his own obsession with Vietnam movies, Richard sets off with a young French couple to an island hidden away in an forbidden to tourists. The beach :: essays research papers Review from Los Angeles Times Book Review, 02/02/1997: "[A]rresting though no masterpiece....Garland's message is complex and acute. The self-indulgence of a generation of young Westerners--seeking isolated and well-funded paradises and ignoring the miseries and needs around them--can itself breed monsters. There is more than one kind of Vietnam....The reader's suspense in this intelligently conceived and often effective novel, may consist more in wondering what the author will do than in what his characters will do." -- Richard Eder Review from Times Literary Supplement, 10/18/96: "This exceptional first novel by...Alex Garland creates a picture of an ideal society gone awry through the heady conjunction of a secret beach on an island in southeast Asia and a cultural breadth of reference determined by pop songs, the Vietnam War, and Nintendo Gameboys." -- Giles Foden First Line: Vietnam, me love you long time. All day, all night, me love you long time. "Delta One-Niner, this is Alpha patrol. We are on the northeast face of hill Seven-Zero-Five and taking fire. Immediate air assistance required..." Publishers note The Khao San Road, Bangkok--first stop for the hordes of rootless young Westerners traveling in Southeast Asia. On Richard's first night there, in a low-budget guest house, a fellow traveler slashes his wrists, bequeath to Richard a meticulously drawn map to "the Beach." The Beach, as Richard has come to learn, is the subject of a legend among young travelers in Asia: a lagoon hidden from the sea, with white sand and coral gardens, freshwater falls surrounded by jungle, plants untouched for a thousand years. There, it is rumoured, a carefully selected international few have settled in a communal Eden. Haunted by the figure of Mr. Duck--the name by which the Thai police have identified the dead man--and his own obsession with Vietnam movies, Richard sets off with a young French couple to an island hidden away in an forbidden to tourists.

The Reluctant Fundamentalist

How does Hamid employ symbolism throughout the novel? Is his use of symbolism effective? What is lost and gained through the use of symbolism? The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a novel in which an American immigrant Changez is living a dream with a great job, money, and the â€Å"regal† Erica by his side. However after the 9/11 attacks Changez’s perception on America shifted, he was forced to question where his allegence lies and this developed into contempt for America.If you read The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid, and fail to dig below to the surface of the text then the novel will hold an entirely different meaning to you. Hamid used heavy sybolism to convey meanings and themes that are better not said outright, and overall altered the impression the novel leaft. While reading The Reluctant Fundamentalist it became apperant that Changez’s love interest Erica symbolized America. Besides the obvious that Erica is the last five letters of America, there were multiple parallels in the story Hamid built for Erica and the way he portrayed America.When Changez first met Erica he says, â€Å"She had a presence †¦a naturalist would likely have compared her to a lioness: strong, sleek, and invariably surrounded by her pride†(22). Changez also comments of the pride America shows with, â€Å"stickers of flags adorned windshields and windows; large flags fluttered from buildings. They all seemed to proclaim: We are America†¦the mightiest civilization the world has ever known. †(79). Akin to America after 9/11, Erica seemed to be, â€Å"utterly detached, lost in a world of her own†¦ she was struggling against a current that pulled her within herself†(86).Similarly after 9/11 Changez felt that America, â€Å"retreated into myths of your own difference, assumptions of your own superiority†(168). The grief that Erica felt over the loss of Chris was representative of the grief America felt after 9/11 and how that prevented both Erica and America from moving on and accepting Changez. When Changez goes to see Erica at her clinic he is told by a nurse that, â€Å"It did not matter that the person Erica was in love with was deceased; for Erica he was alive enough, and that was the problem. †(133) America, too, was increasingly giving itself over to a dangerous nostalgia,† he claimed that he, â€Å"had always thought of America as a nation that looked forward; for the first time I was stuck by its determination to look back. †(115) The grief that Erica felt over the loss of Chris was representative of the grief America felt after 9/11 and how that prevented both Erica and America from moving on and accepting Changez. When Changez goes to see Erica at her clinic he is told by a nurse that, â€Å"It did not matter that the person Erica was in love with was deceased; for Erica he was alive enough, and that was the problem. (133) If Erica represents America and their in ability to move on from their grief, then Chris is a symbol for 9/11. When Changez goes to visit Erica in the clinic,the nurse he meets when he first enters tells him that, â€Å"It did not matter that the person Erica was in love with was This was included to show Cahngez’s changing relationship with America and an alternative way to show how America is broken and how because of America’s tendency to look back, and hold on to the past prevented America fro building relationships with outher countriesIf you did not connect that Erica was America you might hink that this was about a Pakistany that came to American and wound up hating and criticisming it until he left. In reality it was about a man, or boy rather, that had big dreams of his life in America, ones that seemed to be coming true. But just as Erica could not let go of the past, America couldn’t let go of the hatred and fear they held for those who seemed un-American.

Impact of the Recession on Construction Contractors Essay

The current crisis in the world’s financial system has left the construction industry facing its toughest challenges for a generation. Salaries are falling; job cuts are predicted to reach 400,000 in England alone; and the impacts look set to get much worse before they get better. No country is immune from the impact of this and the UK, and much of the rest of the world, is already in, or about to enter a recession. Even buoyant construction markets such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are starting to feel the effect, with construction growth rate expected to slow from 20% to 15% in 2009 (Al Mal Capital). The United Nations (UN) predicts world economic output will shrink by as much as 0.4% in 2009 (UN’s World Economic Situation and Prospects Report, 2009). These are serious times, however, the industry needs to be prepared to contribute to the recovery by retraining workers, maintaining the highest of standards of quality and supporting innovation. Construction professionals must not lose sight of their commitment to issues of sustainability, health and safety, ethical business practices and improved building standards. These will future-proof the industry and allow it to grow after the economy recovers. Companies seeking to find an extra edge in an increasingly competitive marketplace are likely to employ greater innovation as they look to become more efficient. This could have far reaching benefits for the industry in the future, where innovation has never been more vital. Construction Output It is clear that construction is in for a period of deflation. Forecasts suggest that there will be a 7% decline in output over the next three years, however, this figure is heavily contingent on Government spending coming through as planned (Construction Products Association). In the second quarter of 2008 new order figures were at their lowest level since 2004; 14% below the average last year. Housing orders were down 30%, private industrial orders by 36% and commercial orders by more than  £1bn from 2007 (Construction Products Association). A rapid decline in private work has been partly propped up by more public sector spending, however the outlook for the private sector over the next few quarters is set to get worse. The Olympics will prop up the industry to a certain extent but the cessation of office development will have a much greater effect. Overall, even if all public sector funding was spent next year, the construction industry in 2009 would still see the largest percentage of fall in output since the early nineties, when over 500,000 left the industry. This has been brought about by the sharp fall in private sector investment in construction – offices, retail, entertainment, as well as private house building. Public Sector Spending The Government’s decision to bring forward  £3bn of capital spending on infrastructure was cautiously welcomed by the construction industry (Pre-budget statement, November 2008). Given the extremely high levels of borrowing that the Treasury is expecting over the next few years, there is a risk that Government will fund later debt repayments with cuts in capital spending on construction further down the track. There is also a risk that delays in the Government’s existing build programmes will lead to increased under-spend. Programmes such as the Building Schools for the Future Programme have already fallen behind schedule, and reports suggest that this is as a result of bureaucracy rather than lack of funding. Business Finance and Loss of Confidence According to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), more than half of British firms have seen a decline in the ease of access to capital since the onset of the credit crunch; 30% of businesses have been, or expect to be refused new credit; and 78% expect business conditions to be worse next year. The Government must urgently take steps to unblock the financial markets and improve the flow of capital to business. The fiscal mitigation measures that were recently announced by the Chancellor (Pre-budget statement, November 2008) were not sufficient to address the underlying loss of confidence facing all UK businesses (and people). More innovative ways could be investigated by Government to help the industry survive, such as providing credit insurance; relaxing bonding requirements on public projects; setting up project bank accounts; and providing tax breaks/concessions for sustainable construction R&D. At present, the latter has effectively ground to a halt largely as a result of the deeply entrenched uncertainty that abound. Jobs & Loss of Skills Almost 400,000 jobs in the construction sector in England could be lost over the next two years (assuming GDP shrinks by 2.2% in 2009 and rises by 0.75% in 2010). It is predicted that the worst affected area will be London, where 23% of workers are expected to be made redundant (Public and Corporate Economic Consultants for the Local Government Association). On the other hand, Eastern Europeans are responding to the downturn in the market by returning home, and this has eased the severity of the job situation in many instances. Given the forecasts for construction output in 2009, it could be assumed that jobs in the public sector may offer more security than those in the private sector. This reinforces the need for Government to establish how an accelerated public spending package will be implemented. It is essential that the government makes sure timetables don’t slip, and that it does what it can to speed up deal flows and bidding times. Through no fault of its own, the Construction Industry, in particular the house-building Industry, is having to dramatically re-structure and down-size merely to survive. The loss of technical resource and therefore expertise has been considerable and there are already signs that an upturn in the fortunes of the UK economy will not see these people return. This is a real concern, particularly as the science and technology that underpins UK sustainable construction is becoming even more complex and at a time when we need experienced people if we are to meet our sustainability objectives. Furthermore, it is not something that can be addressed overnight by short-term training and/or education. Procurement It has been reported that the credit crunch is likely to reverse the industry’s trend towards negotiated contracts and partnering. Instead, there could be a swing back towards single-stage, lowest bid tenders aimed at achieving the lowest possible outturn cost. While single-stage tendering may be seen as a quick fix during the economic downturn, this does not take the long-term view, nor adequately consider best value for money. It does however provide a more risky financial environment which is likely to become a fertile breading ground for claims and liquidations as contractors cut their profits to secure work in a decreasing market. Partnering has proved itself as the most efficient way of undertaking all kinds of construction work including new buildings and infrastructure, alterations, refurbishment and maintenance. Indeed the figures show that that in the four years from 2001 to 2005,  £700m of public money was saved, and the potential for two and a half billion in savings, would have been feasible had best practice been adopted across the board. When times are hard, best practice is at its most crucial to successful business. Fraud An unexpected knock-on effect of the credit crunch has been a dramatic rise in worldwide construction fraud. Evidence suggests that the average construction company’s loss to fraud has increased by 69% in the last year (Kroll Global Fraud Report), driven largely by tough economic conditions. A total of 890 senior executives participated in the worldwide survey, which covered 10 industries, with just over one-quarter based in Europe. More than 95% of the construction companies surveyed said they had suffered from corporate fraud in the past three years – up by 77% from last year’s survey. Most frequent types of fraud occurring in the construction industry include theft of physical assets or stock, financial mismanagement, management conflict of interest, and corruption and bribery. Companies will need to be even more vigilant than usual to reduce fraud in the construction industry. Sustainability Opinion is divided about the impact of the credit crunch on the sustainability agenda. A recent survey from the UK Green Building Council (UK GBC) suggests that while the conventional building industry suffers, the sustainable building sector is experiencing growth. Asked whether the financial crisis has impacted on their organisation in tackling sustainability, 56% of UK GBC members said sustainability had become a bigger focus. Only 18% said the credit crunch has had an adverse effect on efforts to address sustainability. On the other hand, a survey of small-medium sized contractors suggests that tough government targets on sustainable construction are being missed, as buildings fail to achieve the standards set by the Code for Sustainable Homes (National Federation of Builders). The survey revealed that contractors appeared to be quite knowledgeable about the driving issues and regulations for sustainability, but in over half (53%) of projects tendered for, sustainability was not a client requirement. Either way, it is important that new buildings, not least those procured by government, are of the highest possible environmental standards. Green building can be at the heart of a low-carbon economic recovery, boosting growth and creating green collar jobs. This is particularly true in existing homes and buildings, where we need a massive programme of refurbishment to cut carbon, reduce energy bills and produce more comfortable places to live and work. By continuing to build using sustainable technologies the built environment will be preserved for future generations, and a proven record in sustainable design will be invaluable in gaining new contracts in the growing sustainable market. Education and Training The future success of the construction industry depends on the availability of skilled professionals. The credit crisis poses a significant threat to the number of students enrolling in graduate construction courses. Students may be apprehensive about pursuing a career in construction in this unstable climate. This would result in a loss of specialist skills, which in turn would hinder the recovery and future development of the industry. Sandwich courses could be at particular risk because of the lack of available placements available. Many companies are reducing the number of placements they have for students or not taking on any at all. This could result in a reduction in the number of places available on the courses because they can not guarantee work experience placements. Apprenticeships in the UK house-building industry have also suffered as a direct result of the credit crunch. However, opportunities still exist in the bigger public sector infrastructure projects such as schools, hospitals, railways and roads. As a result of these risks the Government is working with Construction Skills to try and secure as many positions as possible for students. A new taskforce is being created to ensure that construction training is as effective as possible, and apprenticeship funding will also be increased to over  £1 billion to try and prevent skill shortages (Department for innovation, Universities & Skills). For professionals already within the industry, there is research to suggest that individuals with specialist skills or training could potentially gain a competitive advantage in the current economic climate (Chartered Institute of Management). The research predicts that professional qualifications could result in an additional  £152,000 in lifetime earnings. It also suggests that a working knowledge of sustainable building and other innovative methods will be a particular advantage, with major projects on the horizon requiring an extensive skilled workforce in these areas. It is important for employers to train and encourage further development if they want to secure the future of the construction industry. This will ensure that their workforce is properly trained in up-to-date techniques and will put them in a stronger and more competitive position to win new contracts when market conditions improve. Although it may be inevitable for some to make financial cuts to survive, it is crucial to maintain a constant number of new innovative minds that will allow the industry to recovery and continue to grow.