The Healing Activity of Jesus and The Ministry of the Church Today Essay

The Healing Activity of Jesus and The Ministry of the Church Today - Essay Example His healing actions were central to His ministry as the Messiah who has come to preach the good news to the poor of the Yahweh. The cardinal principle of Jesus' mission is its stubborn option for the poor and the marginalized and the role of the healing action of Christ is an unequivocal proclamation that the people whom the society considers as the scum of the earth are the children of God in a special way. Since the Church is the continuation of Jesus in the world today, it is necessary for the Church to model its mission after the manner of Jesus and His disciples and missionaries, who provide us the benchmark of missionary conduct. Jesus has a proclaimed bias for the poor, marginalized, outcasts, handicapped, helpless and sinners. Jesus' basic identity was with those who were excluded from mainstream social class, who boasted about their pedigree and righteousness. (The New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Mat.9.11, Mk.2.16, Lk.5.13). The derogatory remark about Jesus by the Jews highlights this identity chosen consciously by Jesus: a friend of the tax collectors and sinners (Mat.11.19). In the words of Martin Percy these friends of Jesus were those, who dwelt outside the periphery of the over- righteous Jewish society, the politically, socially and religiously disadvantaged (p.28). The main focus of Jesus' ministry was directed to the poor, the oppressed, the excluded and the helpless. The then Jewish society had a system of societal exclusions based on their self-righteous attitude as the chosen people of God. In the Jewish brag as the chosen people of God they forgot the fact that God has many chosen peoples. Social classes like the Samaritans were the outcasts, the presence of the sick like the lepers violated their ritualistic standards of cleanliness, tax collectors were branded bad because of their profession and the congenital handicaps like blindness were blindly accepted as the results of the sins of their ancestors. Though healing actions of Jesus is traditionally considered as faith revelations, the Jesus' Messianic mission of the societal inclusion of the marginalized is also inherent in them. This healing touch is a gratuitous gesture extended to all the deprived who came to Him, irrespective of race or religion. (Percy 30). Jesus achieves the empowerment of the marginalized by his own voluntary disempowerment, the culmination of which is the helpless nailed condition on the cross. In the active ministry Jesus demonstrates it by His spontaneous association with all classes of people whom the Jews considered outcastes. So there is dining with tax collectors, moving in the company of women of immoral history and blatant violation of Jewish rules of social segregation by asking the Samaritan woman water to drink. The choice of the ignorant fish folk as His disciples to carry on His mission, in itself is a symbol of the unique nature of Gods' work often achieved by using human beings, who in our judgment is least suited for the task. However, history has shown that the pack of ignorant fish folk under the leadership of the impetus Peter achieved what several divisions of grand armies of historical civilizations could not achieve. According to Martin Percy: This view would not have been strange to the Early Church fathers, whose

The Wonders of the Great Barrier Reef Essay Example for Free

The Wonders of the Great Barrier Reef Essay Marine life has always been one of the greatest wonders in the world. For the longest time, both marine plants and animals have peacefully inhabited the bottom of the sea, and contributing much to the beauty of the environment. Two of the most interesting reefs in the world are the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, and the Lakshadweep Reef in India. Although these two ecosystems are similar in numerous ways, their way of living and the inhabitants found in each still differ, making them unique and extraordinary from each other. Considered as the largest coral reef in the world, the Great Barrier Reef is composed of an estimated 2,900 corals that also serves as home to numerous plants and animals. The smallest to the largest animals are said to inhabit the said reef, with their existence serving as the distinctive mark of the Great Barrier Reef. One of the famous inhabitants is the Dugong (CRC Reef Research Center, n. d. ). Also known as the Sea Cow, the Dugong is a vegetarian mammal found mostly in the waters of the Indian and the Pacific Oceans, the Red Sea, and Australian sea beds. These endangered mammals are large in size, and are said to swim through the different flora found in the seabed. Before heading for the surface, Dugongs can last a total of six minutes underwater. They are mostly seen in pairs, and are often seen gathering in groups, also known as herds. Similar to humans, Dugongs only carry one calf during pregnancy, which lasts for a year. After birth, young Sea Cows stay with the mother for a year and a half, before embarking on their own. Because of their immense appearance, the Dugong becomes a primary target of illegal fishermen and hunters. The meat, oil, skin, and other parts of the Dugongs body may be sold individually for a huge amount of money. Unfortunately, these factors have contributed much to the increasing number of demand for the said endangered animals (National Geographic, Society, 2009). Aside from animals, a wide variety of plant life also exists in the sea beds of the Great Barrier Reef. Like the plants on land, marine plants play an important role in the existence of marine animals. These plants are normally employed as food for the marine animals, and are also used the main habitat of numerous animals. One of the most abundant types of marine plants in the sea beds of the Great Barrier Reef is the Algae (Facts Monk, n. d. ). Different types of marine algae exist in the bottom of the Great Barrier Reef. These include the red, blue, brown, and green algae. Although these floras are simple in consistency, they play an important role in maintaining the balance of nature and the ecosystem. The existence of algae in the Great Barrier Reef has a great impact on how living creatures were able to co-exist with each other. Because of the human disturbance witnessed by the Great Barrier Reef for the last couple of years, some of the marine animals have become endangered, if not extinct. However, the growth of algae in the bruised corals in the seabed has become beneficial in the growth of corals, which also contribute in helping balance the ecosystem (CRC Reef Research Center, n. d. ). Moreover, the Lakshadweep in India was another site to marvel at. The whole area is said to contain numerous species, all extraordinary in their own kind. Each species also contributes to the beauty of the said ecosystem, making sure that balance between all living creatures is maintained. In addition to this, the appearance of the said ecosystem has attracted numerous tourists because of the impressive sight. The Lakshadweep in India is comprised of 36 coral islands spanning an estimated 200-400 kilometer radius. Known to many as a â€Å"tropical paradise†, Lakshadweep never fails to impress the interest of many (South India Tour Travel, n. d. ). In addition to this, the Lakshadweep was also considered to be protected by the government. In this manner, the said ecosystem would be improved in all levels possible, without the difficulty of having to hurt anyone else. Similar to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the Lakshadweep ecosystem in India comprises of different kinds of marine plants and animals. These include different kinds of algae, clams, corals, sea cucumbers, and starfishes of every kind. These floras also serve as the primary food and habitat of the marine life occupying the said ecosystem. Accompanying the flora is a wide variety of marine animals unknown to mankind. One of the most famous animals found in this ecosystem is the dolphin (WWF India, n. d. ) The dolphin is one of the most famous mammals in the world. Often seen in the ocean, dolphins have a way of attracting the people in numerous ways. Unknown to many, dolphins are unique and have impressive intellectual skills. In this manner, they are able to make the existence of each species in the ecosystem worthwhile. From everything that has been said, it is evident that ecosystems have different strategies. Although both the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Lakshadweep in India are home to thousands of species, they too have their own goals to practice. The Great Barrier Reef is a clear example of how we, as people, should care for the environment. In so doing, the Lakshadweep in India also serves as a haven of hope for people all over the world. The said ecosystem was damaged, and almost erased from the map, but with much hard work and dedication, everything was being restored to how they used to be. Now all living creatures, both humans and animals alike, would have hope that a better future is still attainable. References CRC Reef Research Center. (n. d. ) Coral reefs. Retrieved August 6, 2009 from http://www. reef. crc. org. au/discover/coralreefs/index. html National Geographic Society. (2009). Dugong. Retrieved August 6, 2009 from http://animals. nationalgeographic. com/animals/mammals/dugong. html Facts Monk. (n. d. ) Great barrier reef plants. Retrieved August 6, 2009 from http://www. factsmonk. com/Great_Barrier_Reef_Plants South India Tour Travel. (n. d. ) Marine life in Lakshadweep. Retrieved August 6, 2009 from http://www. southindiatourtravel. com/lakshadweep/travel-to-lakshadweep/marine-life. html World Wildlife Foundation India. (n. d. ) Biodiversity and status of coral reefs/ecosystems. Retrieved August 6, 2009 from http://www. wwfindia. org/about_wwf/what_we_do/marine/projects/coral_reef_monitoring/results. cfm

School Violence Essay -- Violence Education Security Technology Essays

Over the past several years, an epidemic of school violence has overtaken our nation. From monthly shootings, to daily bomb threats around the country, violence is becoming more and more common in schools. It is typical to hear about acts of violence among our youth everyday on the news. Although more numerous in cities, this violence does not discriminate against inner city or suburban areas; it happens everywhere. When addressing this quick spread of crime, one can inquire as to its history and why it happens, myths about school violence, and how was can taper it, by the use of technology. History of School Violence The history of violence in schools has no set pattern, but statistics report back to the 1970s. In 1978, a reported 282,000 students were assaulted in high schools, and 5,200 teachers were also assaulted that year (Elliot, 1998). Between 1984 and 1994, the number of teens who were killed doubled, while the number of adult homicides decreased (Elliot, 1998). Over the years, students have felt increasingly more afraid to go to school. Along with the number of homicides increasing, lesser crimes like theft and assault have gone up as well (Elliot, 1998). An outrageous statistic from the book â€Å"Violence in American Schools,† states â€Å"nearly half (47%) of all teens believe their schools are becoming more violent, and one of every ten report a fear of being shot or hurt by classmates that carry weapons to school† (Elliot, 1998). Sadly enough, over the years, children have become afraid to go to a place, which once made them feel safe. Myth and Fact of School Violence People have many different perceptions about what school violence is, and how it is handled. There are many misconceived ideas about... ...ology. American School & University. Retrieved April 11, 2015 from www.ephost@epnet.com Garza, Katie. (2002). School Security Moves Into the Digital Age. The Journal. Retrieved April 11, 2015, from www.ephost@epnet.com. Goldberg, L. (2003). Creating Safer and More Efficient Schools with Biometric Technologies. The Journal. Retrieved April 11, 2015, from www.ephost@epnet.com. Goldberg. P A. & Conoley.J.C. (Eds.)(1997) School Violence Intervention. New York: The Guildford Press Shafii, S, M. & Shafii, S.L. (Eds.). (2001). School Violence: Assessment, Management, Prevention. Washington , DC: American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc. Szczerba, Peter. (2000). Advances in Protection. American School & University. Retrieved April 11, 2015, from www.ephost@epnet.com. Trump. K. (1998) Practical School Security. California : Corwin Press Inc.

Redbull Marketing Communications Essay

Redbull Marketing Communications Digital Campaigns Clarisonic launched a campaign in October 2010, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, in which the company promised to donate 1$ for every new like they received on their facebook fan page. Clarisonic used Facebook advertising, email blasts, twitter, youtube and even their own blog â€Å"Sonic Chatter† to spread the word about their new ‘like’ campaign. Clarisonic objectives included adding a thriving social media section to Clarisonic’s traditional cause marketing for nonprofit. Furthermore, Clarisonic wanted to increase awareness of their brand and products, as well as increase awareness of their Facebook page. Another objective, which was the most direct objective, was to raise money for â€Å"Look Good†¦Feel Better. † Attaching their name to this cause also allowed them to increase sales for their specialized products like Pink Clarisonic, which also benefits the â€Å"Look Good†¦Feel Better† charity. Clarisonic also aimed at marketing beyond their typical target audience of women in their late 20s-50s. Some limitations that were faced was that it was only a two month project and although it attracted a lot of views, interactions, and new Facebook fans, they would have to constantly engage the new fans that were outside their target market, who may not be interested in their actual products being sold. Partnering with â€Å"Look Good†¦Feel Better† was a perfect fit for this campaign because both companies focused on transmitting a message of empowerment. Redbull: On October 14, 2012 the world witnessed a breathtaking experiment; Red Bull Stratos. It took viewers to the edge of space and it was all organized by a private organization, Red Bull. The Red Bull Stratos mission was a record breaking event, one which saw Felix Baumgartner free fall from more than 23 miles above the earth, breaking a free falling world record while becoming the biggest digital live event on record. It reignited a yearning for the extreme, and created a distinct association with what was Extreme and Redbull. The objectives of Redbull marketers was to reach a lot of people, to excite them, give them something to talk about and look forward to and then to directly relate this â€Å"coolness† to drinking their product. They wanted to break world records, not only in the actual freefalling aspect but the hype around the event. This hype could then be translated hopefully in an increase of brand awareness and in turn, an in crease in sales for Redbull. Clarisonic: Clarisonic targeted current consumers of their product by advertising about the campaign on their blog, which users of their product read, as well as non users by making the campaign goal not just relevant for women or those that are in their 20s, 30s. The campaign therefore targeted a much broader audience, those that frequent charity events and support a good cause, not simply women in the beauty care sector. By making their campaign about much more than a physical beauty care product but something that benefits the greater cause, they were able to target men and women of all ages who support cancer organizations and link this support of a good cause with their brand. Redbull: The audience that was targeted in the Redbull campaign was extreme sport enthusiasts as well as the entire world that would also be excited to watch a world record breaking event. The target audience was broad and expanded past extreme sport enthusiasts which most of Redbulls marketing targets. Clarisonic: Clarisonic campaign was extremely ethical as it raises awareness of a certain cancer fund, donates money to the fund, and through these actions is able to also increase awareness of their brand and better their image. Had most of this money not gone to a cancer organization, and just gone to supporting the brand, perhaps it would be less ethical. Redbull: One could argue that the risk involved in this campaign was too much to be considered an ethical campaign for Redbull. Yes, it attracted a lot of new consumers and created record-breaking brand awareness but it was at the risk of being at the cost of a human life, which is unethical. Clarisonic: They were extremely successful in one of their main objectives, which was to raise money for the Look Good†¦Feel Better cancer organization seeing as they raised $1 million dollars and increased awareness of this great organization. â€Å"Likes† as well as interaction on their Facebook page continued to grow even after the two month campaign and n 2010 alone, their selling of their â€Å"Hope† Mia skincare brush more than doubled compared the previous year. Clearly no one can know for sure if it was directly because of the â€Å"like† campaign but it is safe to say that the increased awareness did contribute to an increase in sales of Clarisonic products. The like campaigne increased Clarisonics fan page by 80 percent. Redbull: Without a doubt Redbull achieved its objectives of showi ng the world something that has never done before and reemphasizing their brand motto â€Å" Redbull gives you wings. This event had a huge brand impact on Redbull. Not only did this campaign beat records and was unprecedented scientifically, it was also beating records in a brand marketing perspective. 1,000,000 distinct user accounts were involved in the conversation regarding RedBull Stratos with a suggested audience of this content being up to 90,000,000. 2,000,000 new accounts were subscribed for Red Bull updates within a span of 15 days surrounding the event, these updates included all brand presences in the digital world. These represent engaged consumers that could possibly one day turn into paying consumers of RedBull. Most campaigns, much like Clarisonic are dominated mostly by likes or â€Å"neutral commentary† yet Red Bull Stratos had unmatched positivity and meaningful interaction from people around the world; more specifically 820,000 pieces of extremely positive content was created in regards to Redbull Stratos. 50,000 distinct links were shared about Red Bull Stratos. More than 8 million concurrent live streams of the Redbull Stratus jump on YouTube was had which was the largest in Youtube’s history. This kind of huge reach transcends RedBull Stratos and reaches Red Bull branding in almost ever single comment or interaction, which till this campaign and to this extent was unheard of. According to Vocus, sales of Redbull increased by 55% in the first few months following the campaign so already here we can see that not only did this boost brand awareness and image, it had a direct impact on offline consumer behavior. Clarisonic was always tied to cancer awareness funds in the past, their product line, Pink Clarisonic previously donated some proceeds to the Feel good, look better fund so this new â€Å"like† campaign wasn’t a trigger of some outside market force, it was more an expansion of what was already underway internally in their brand image and concept of empowerment. Furthermore Breast Cancer awareness month was also somewhat of a trigger to tie their brand with this month awareness. Clarisonic competitors are low priced beauty products such as Olay Pro X which did not stray from their traditional marketing ways despite the success of Clarisonics like campaign. Personally, I would make this marketing communication campaign longer than two months, allowing the attention that Clarisonic was receiving to be exploited further. I would also allow fans that mentioned Clarisonic on twitter to receive small samples of new products Clarisonic has, thereby engaging target consumers with the actual product at hand. Timing of this campaign was definetly in Clarisonics Favor. Breast cancer awareness month is a time where many want to donate themselves to the cause and this like campaign allowed them to do so effortlessly and without their own money, simply their participation in a brand they may not have been aware of. Connecting themselves with Breast Cancer Awareness month also lends greatly to a better image for Clarisonic. Twitter did not participate greatly in this campaign other than to advertise for the campaign on facebook. Salespeople were not utilized in this champagne either which also could have further helped promote their products as well as their like digital campaign. Redbull: Redbull was always tagged with an idea of extreme sports, they sponsored athletes, had their own extreme sport web episodes, and could be found at most sporting events. Therefore, the fact that this was the company that decided to do something so extreme and create so much digital hype around this event was definetly no surprise considering past records of RedBull. It was not triggered by stunts pulled by their competitors. The Redbull Stratos was able to reach millions more than their usual marketing antics. I would not recommend a thing to the Redbull Stratos campaign, I think everything they did digitally to boost this campaign was genius. The message was simple; Redbull gives you wings and with a record-breaking free fall, they proved this. Millions will always associate the feeling of â€Å"cool† and â€Å"extreme† with drinking RedBull, and that in my opinion, can only be done by indirect selling of their drinks. No commercial or online campaign could create such brand association by simply telling consumers how cool their drink is.

Cultural Immersion Essay

Culture has been characterized as the beliefs, arts, morals, customs and traditions exhibited by a group of individuals within a particular society (Langness 1987). It has long been believed that culture has been associated with one’s ancestry. My trip to Jamaica has made it evident that this entirely is not the case. There are a number of other factors that could cause two groups of individual from the same ethnical background but living in different societies. My paper will be discussing my experiences and realization during my short but meaningful trip to the island of Jamaica. My Cultural Background In order to show that people who come from the same ethnical background do not necessarily have to have the same culture, I will first provide information regarding my own personal background to serve as the basis. Although I am an American living in California, my ethnical descent is African. The roots of my family are embedded in Mississippi. It is for this reason why the food and way of life I have been brought up with resembles those that live in the southern part of the country. In fact, even if I do come from a single parent household, our traditions are very much Southern from the food we eat, the importance we give to our religion and spending time with the family. Day One of My Trip This trip was not just my first time to Jamaica, but my first trip outside of the United States. The moment I had gotten out of the plane, I could say that I was immediately shocked with what greeted me. When I left California for Jamaica, I went through an airport that was air-conditioned and my full of the latest security precaution devices and machines to pass through. I did not see anything of this sort when I arrived in the airport at Jamaica. No high-technology security equipment and no air-conditioner running in the airport. I was greeted by a man named Darwin Mills who was going to drive me to the house of Mr. and Mrs. James, my host family. Mr. Mill’s disposition was as warm as the weather. He was more than happy to drive me first around the Montego Bay area of the island to show me around. Although he was extremely enthusiastic about everything in Jamaica, I could not help but notice how different it was from my hometown in California. It was if I was in another world. For starters, the vehicle used by Mr. Mills to bring me to my destination was right-handed, which was why they were driving in the opposite lane than I would back in California. I also saw people walking on either side of what was supposedly their main highway. When I meant that they were walking on either side of the highway, I am not talking about them walking on sidewalks on either side of the highway. They were literally walking on the side of the highway. What really caught my attention was how underdeveloped the area was. It was not anything like what you would see in tourist brochures and magazines. The streets were filled with pot holes. Houses were small and the fences were poorly made. There were no skyscrapers or large business establishments back home. It made me realize just how fortunate I was living in a sturdy well-built house with a sturdy fence and driving on a well-paved road, despite the horrendous traffic. My first taste of authentic Jamaican cuisine was at lunch time when Mr. Mills brought me to the Rock House Hotel. I was blown away on just how fresh the food was. It tasted deliciously different. After which, I was taken to Rick’s Cafe, which is known more for the daredevils jumping over the cliffs into the wide blue ocean. At the background was a steel drum band playing Reggae music, which is one of the signatures of Jamaica. I was fascinated on how something so simple could be able to develop wonderful, upbeat music. When Mr. Mills dropped me at Mr. and Mrs. James’ house, I nearly jumped at the sight of the dogs that Mr. James keeps loose at the front yard. He apologized for them and explained to me that their dogs were allowed to run loose for their own protection. Although their homes were equipped with two air-conditioners, he explained to me that this is rarely used since electricity is rather expensive in Jamaica. This is the reason why they only use electric fans. As I retired for the night, I kept reminding myself not to immediately judge my life back in California and what I have initially seen in Jamaica so that I would be able to fully understand more about living in Jamaica. Day Two of My Trip The highlight of the second day of my trip was when Mr. and Mrs. James introduced me to Mr. James’ uncle, Charles and his cousin, Brenda. It was through my conversation with them that I begun to slowly learn more about Jamaica. According to them, for a long time, Jamaica had been a colony of England. It only gained its independence in 1962. Majority of the inhabitants of the island were predominantly of African descent, like I was. Although they live far away from Africa, they still hold dearly to their African traditions and customs. Celebrations of the various African festivals are held annually. Despite its booming tourism industry, Jamaica remains to be a third world country. This conversation had answered a lot of my questions when I had first arrived in Jamaica and it had opened my eyes and my mind and developed an understanding and appreciation to the people living in Jamaica. Despite everything surrounding them, they remain to be warm and extremely accommodating to me and more than willing to help me learn as much as I can about Jamaica and Jamaican’s way of life. Day Three of My Trip My last day in Jamaica happened to land on a Sunday. The day started with a day at the beachside which Jamaica has long been known for. But I did not go there to swim, because I do not know how. Instead, I had been taken by Mr. James to the beach to do some shopping. Unlike in California where everything is bought in the local grocery or seafood market, here in Jamaica, it only takes a matter of a few hours for the food to be caught, picked, cleaned, cooked and served. Speaking with meals, my last meal in Jamaica was something similar that one that I would usually have back home. We were served a feast of greens, jerk chicken, rice and peas. Just like back home, Sunday was a time when families get together and enjoy each others’ company over a wonderful spread of home-cooked favorites. Reflection Taking the road less traveled by American tourists in Jamaica, I was able to learn so much about their way of life. Back home, I have been fortunate to have access to a number of amenities and privileges that most Jamaicans would only dream about. Yet, their situation has not diminished their warm and sunny outlook towards life. Despite their limited resources, Jamaicans are able to make the most of what they have and keep a positive outlook. For instance, some African Americans to this day hold a grudge against Caucasian Americans for the prejudice, racism and oppression the older generations have experienced since the time of the slave trade. While Jamaicans had also experienced the same oppressive treatment in the hands of the English, they have placed the oppression behind them and instead celebrate on the fact that they are now free from the oppression. Reference Langness, L. L. (1987). The Study of Culture. Novato, CA: Chandler & Sharp.

Capital markets in India

Capital markets in India First, the country has not strengthened its capital markets fully. Currently, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) has not reached out to retail businesses and institutional investors properly. Furthermore, the stock market is dependent on metro cities; only about ten cities account for eighty percent of the trading at the NSE. This leaves many rural and semi rural areas untapped (Mohan, 2006).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Capital markets in India specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It has been shown that the Indian people have a very good savings culture. If the retail sector can be engaged, the capital markets will have better prospects for growth. Such an approach is quite imperative especially because the bond markets are growing at very good rates (Sharma Chandan, 2006). Financial literacy is another big problem in Indian capital markets. A number of people are willing to invest, but few of them are fully informed about financial instruments. Some of them have committed themselves to an investment, only to realize that they had not been told about the full risks entailed in the venture. For the Indian capital markets to grow, people need to know the benefits, risks, durations and volatilities of various types of investments before that can commit. Stakeholders have the responsibility of making this information available to them in an easily accessible and understandable form (Farrell et al., 2006). When compared to other capital markets of the world, it is a given fact that transaction costs in India are much higher than they are in similar economies. Consequently, this acts as a barrier that limits potential trading partners from participating in the market. The country is yet to take full advantage of the benefits of technology in order to cut down on some of these transaction costs. India has the opportunity to make their markets the ideal investment destination if it can work on this gli tch. This particular capital market also lacks new products innovation. One particular sector that needs to be improved is the area of financial derivatives. Investors in other parts of the world tend to rely on financial derivatives in order to protect or hedge out their investments against risk (Bekaert et al., 2003).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This can provide a new avenue for revenue growth and could push the boundaries of the Indian Capital markets to other parts of the world through foreign investors. Governance, regulation and risk management are also other sectors that can be improved in the Indian capital markets. Internationalization is fast becoming a reality for emerging economies. If India is competing internationally, it needs to clear out current structural bottlenecks. The country needs to have governance and risk management standards that are well streamlined. For any stock market to function efficiently, it needs to have a mechanism for providing resilience and stability to those concerned. Consequently, India needs to work on its current procedures and models so as to align them with international best practice standards (Shirai, 2002). India’s capital markets have been performing well irrespective of the global financial crisis (Gorham et al., 2005). This is indicative of the potential in these markets in the future. However, for India to reach to that level, it needs to know its weaknesses and work on them. I hope that these few highlights will help in understanding the Indian capital markets further. References Bekaert, G., Lundblad, C. Campbell, R. (2003). Equity market liberalization in emerging markets. Federal Reserve Bank of Louisiana report, 23 Farrell, D., Lund, S., Greenberg, E., Rosenfeld, J. Morin, F. (2006). Accelerating India’s growth through financial sector reform. San Francisco: MGI pu blishers Gorham, M., Thomas, S. Shah, A. (2005). India: The crouching tiger. Web.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Capital markets in India specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Mohan, R. (2006). Monetary policy and exchange rate frameworks: the Indian experience. Bombay: McMillan Sharma, V. Chandan, S. (2006). Developing corporate bond markets in Asia: The corporate debt market in India. TGI Report, Basel, 46 Shirai, S. (2002). Have India’s financial market reforms changed corporate financing patterns? Asian Development bank report, Tokyo, 34

How to Compare High Schools Using SAT Scores

How to Compare High Schools Using SAT Scores SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you’re reading this article, I assume you’re in search of a good high school. When you compare high schools, average SAT score is a useful tool. What does an average SAT score represent? Why should you care about a school’s average SAT score? How do you even find a school’s average SAT score? I’ll answer that and more in this guide. What Does a High School’s Average SAT Score Represent? When considering what a high school’s average SAT score represents, you need to know what the SAT measures. While the College Board may argue that an SAT score simply measures a student’s academic ability, the SAT measures not only academic ability but also other things such as perseverance. What I mean by perseverance is a student’s determination to do well. While a genius might be able to get a 2400 on the SAT with no practice, a student with just slightly above-average intelligence can also get a 2400 with enough practice. For this reason, an SAT score reveals both a student’s academic ability and their willingness to work hard. A high school’s average SAT score represents these same qualities: academic ability and perseverance. However, in terms of an entire high school, its â€Å"academic ability† is dependent upon the quality of education it provides, and its â€Å"perseverance† is dependent upon the caliber of students. A high school's average SAT score helps answer questions such as: Do the students at that school care about their education? Do they study? Do they practice for the SAT? Do they care about pursuing a four-year degree? Why Should You Care About a High School’s Average SAT Score? You should care about a high school’s average SAT score because higher SAT scores can indicate a better quality of education and a better quality of student at that school. Since the SAT measures academic ability and your education is responsible for your knowledge, the better the quality of education you receive, the better you’ll perform on the SAT. Though, as I said before, your SAT score is also affected by how much you prepare for the test. If a high school’s average SAT score is high, the students at that high school are probably more invested in their high school education and more committed to getting into a 4-year college than students at other high schools. These students probably study more and spend more time preparing to take the SAT. You should want to send your child to a high school with a higher average SAT score, where they’ll likely be surrounded by like-minded, hard-working students and receive a higher quality of education. Devil’s Advocate: Why Shouldn’t You Rely Too Heavily On Average SAT Score? A school’s average SAT score can indicate the quality of education and students, but it may not give you the full picture. As an example, some public high schools have magnet (or gifted) programs that are separated from the â€Å"regular† track at that high school. These programs usually have a superior quality of students and teachers compared to the rest of the school. My public high school had an International Baccalaureate magnet program. The admissions requirements for this program were high, but there were no requirements for students on the â€Å"regular† high school track. This program had superior teachers who only taught IB classes. I’d bet the average SAT score for IB students was higher than the average SAT score for students on the â€Å"regular† track. However, the average SAT score for my high school does not separate IB and non-IB students. The number includes the scores of all students at the school. For this reason, you can’t distinguish what the caliber of education and student will be within a specific magnet program versus the â€Å"regular† track. As I said before, your SAT score is also affected by how much effort you put into studying for the test. If you attend a high school with a low average SAT score, that does not mean you’re going to have a low SAT score. If you attend a high school with a high average SAT score, that does not guarantee you'll get a high SAT score. No matter which high school you attend, you can still study, learn the test format and strategies, and achieve a high score on the SAT. However, you should try to attend the high school with the best quality of students and teachers so that you’ll receive the best education you can, be challenged in school, and be well prepared for the SAT. How to Find a School’s Average SAT Score There are four methods for tracking down a public school’s average SAT score: Through the Department of Education website (Note: This only works for PUBLIC high schools. Also, this is the ONLY way to find average SAT scores by school district.) Through the school’s website (however, not all schools publish this information on their websites) By emailing a school administrator Simply Google Searching â€Å"[High School Name] Average SAT Score† (though this can be unreliable) The best method to find average SAT score by high school is to use the Department of Education’s website for your state. NOTE: this will only work for some states. For a full explanation of how to find a district’s or specific public high school’s average SAT score using this method (and for a list of states that don't provide this data), read our article on SAT Scores by High School and District. This approach is the only way to guarantee you’re getting up-to-date, correct, unbiased information. For private high schools (or as another search option for public high schools), you could try the Google search method, looking on the high school’s website, or sending an email to an administrator at that high school. However, websites and Google search can often have outdated information (i.e. SAT score averages from three years ago). Outdated information is still somewhat useful as it can give you a sense of how the school is performing; however, there can be big score differences in just a few years if there are changes in the school administration and teaching staff. There's also the possibility that the school doesn't post this data on its website. If you email administrators, you may also be given outdated information (if they haven’t seen the most recent statistics). Also, it may take them a while to respond to your request with their busy schedule or if they’re on summer vacation. Be a curious cat! What Should You Look for in SAT Data? In the SAT data, you should be looking at the average composite SAT score. NOTE: Typically, states publish average SAT scores by section. You’ll need to add the average section scores together to approximate the average composite SAT score if they don't include composite score as a separate category. The average composite SAT score is the main number you should be concerned with. The higher the number, the better. Read more about that in our other guide: SAT Scores by High School and District. You can also look at the individual section scores. The Math section score may give you a sense of how strong or weak the Math program is. The closer to 800 (the highest possible section score), the better. A high score most likely means a higher quality math program. The Critical Reading and Writing sections (or Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section - for data from 2016 or later) will give you a sense of the quality of English education at that school. Again, same as Math, the closer to 800 (the highest possible section score), the better. A high score most likely means a higher quality of English classes. From the data, you can also find the fraction of students who took the SAT at a particular high school. NOTE: some states will only list the number of students who took the SAT and will not include overall school enrollment. You will not be able to figure out the fraction of students who took the SAT unless you have both pieces of data. However, if your state does provide you with the total enrollment number and the number of test-takers, such as California does, you can determine the fraction of students who took the SAT. As an example here is a screenshot of the SAT data from the California Department of Education’s website: To determine the fraction of students who took the SAT at a specific high school, take the number of test takers (listed under the NumTstTakr column) and divide it by the number of enrolled students (under Enroll912). If I were looking at Alameda Science and Technology Institute (the highlighted school), the fraction of students who took the SAT would be: 61 / 169 or about 36% Don't read too much into this number because it doesn't tell the whole story. The enrollment includes the TOTAL number of students, and you wouldn’t expect Freshmen or Sophomores to be taking the SAT. While 36% seems small, you need to take into account: The fact that Alameda Science and Technology Institute has about 50 students per grade level. Typically, only Juniors and Seniors will take the SAT in a given year, and there are about 100 Juniors and Seniors at Alameda. Some students may opt to take the ACT instead. When accounting for all of that, it seems that close to 100% of Alameda Science and Technology Institute students will end up taking the SAT or ACT before they graduate, which is impressive. While you can look at the fraction of students who took the SAT at a specific high school, the more important number is the average SAT score for that high school. Summary A high school's average SAT score can reveal the quality of education and quality of students at that school. However, when you compare high schools, their average SAT scores will not always tell you the whole story. For example, at schools with magnet programs, magnet students' SAT scores are mixed with the "regular" students' SAT scores to provide the school's average SAT score. Students in the magnet track may have a higher average SAT score (as they may be receiving a higher quality education and be harder working students), but you wouldn't be able to tell from the overall average SAT score of that school. There are several options for finding out a high school's average SAT score. Not all methods will work in all states or for all schools. Check out our other guide on SAT Scores by High School and District to find out the best method for you. When you find the average SAT score data, you should look for the composite SAT score. The higher this score is, the better. What’s Next? If you're taking the SAT, you should learn about the format of the new SAT, and also, check out some general tips on how to prepare for the SAT. Before you start studying for the SAT, figure out what’s a good score for your target college. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points? We've written a guide about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

George Washingtons First Inauguration

George Washington's First Inauguration The inauguration of George Washington as the first President of the United States on April 30, 1789, was a public event witnessed by a cheering crowd. The celebration in the streets of New York City was also a very serious event, however, as it marked the  beginning of a new era. After struggling with the Articles of Confederation in the years following the Revolutionary War, there had been a need for a more effective federal government and a convention in Philadelphia in the summer of 1781 created the Constitution, which established the office of president. George Washington had been selected as president of the Constitutional Convention and, given his great stature as a national hero, it seemed obvious he would be elected as the first President of the United States. Washington  easily won the first presidential election in late 1788 and when he took the oath of office on the balcony of Federal Hall in lower Manhattan months later, it must have seemed to the citizens of the young nation that a stable government was finally coming together. As Washington stepped out onto the balcony of the building, many precedents would be created. The basic format of that first inauguration more than 225 years ago is essentially repeated every four years. Preparations for the Inauguration After delays in counting votes and certifying the election, Washington was officially informed that he had been elected on April 14, 1789. The secretary of the Congress traveled to Mount Vernon to deliver the news. In an oddly formal meeting, Charles Thomson, the official messenger, and Washington read prepared statements to each other. Washington agreed to serve. He left for New York City two days later. The trip was long, and even with Washingtons carriage (a luxury vehicle of the time) it was arduous. Washington was met by crowds at every stop. On many nights he felt obligated to attend dinners hosted by local dignitaries, during which he was toasted effusively. After a large crowd welcomed him in Philadelphia, Washington was hoping to arrive in New York City (the location of the inauguration as D.C. had not yet become the nations capital) quietly. He didnt get his wish. On April 23, 1789, Washington was ferried to Manhattan from Elizabeth, New Jersey, aboard an elaborately decorated barge.  His arrival in New York was a massive public event. A letter describing the festivities that appeared in newspapers mentioned a cannon salute was fired as Washingtons barge passed the Battery at the southern tip of Manhattan. A parade formed consisting of a cavalry troop formed when he landed and also included an artillery unit, military officers, and the Presidents Guard composed of Grenadiers of the First Regiment. Washington, along with city and state officials and followed by hundreds of citizens, marched to the mansion rented as the Presidents House. The letter from New York published in the Boston Independent Chronicle on April 30, 1789, mentioned that flags and banners were displayed from buildings, and bells were rung. Women waved from windows. During the following week, Washington was kept busy holding meetings and organizing his new household on Cherry Street. His wife, Martha Washington, arrived in New York a few days later accompanied by servants which included enslaved people brought from Washingtons Virginia estate at Mount Vernon. The Inauguration The date for the inauguration was set for April 30, 1789, a Thursday morning. At noon a procession began from the Presidents House at Cherry Street. Led by military units, Washington and other dignitaries walked through several streets to Federal Hall. Keenly aware that everything he did that day would be seen as significant, Washington chose his wardrobe carefully. Though he was mostly known as a soldier, Washington wanted to emphasize that the presidency was a civilian position, and he did not wear a uniform. He also knew his clothes for the big event had to be American, not European. He wore a suit made of American fabric, a brown broadcloth made in Connecticut that was described as resembling velvet. In a small nod to his military background, he wore a dress sword. After reaching the building on the corner of Wall and Nassau Streets, Washington passed through a formation of soldiers and entered the building. According to an account in a newspaper called The Gazette of the United States and published on May 2, 1789, he was then introduced to both houses of Congress. That was, of course, a formality, as Washington would have already known many of the members of the House and Senate. Stepping out onto the gallery, a large open porch on the front of the building, Washington was administered the  oath of office by the Chancellor of the State of New York, Robert Livingston. The tradition of presidents being sworn in by the Chief Justice of the United States was still years in the future for a very good reason: the Supreme Court would not exist until September 1789, when John Jay became the first Chief Justice. A report published in a newspaper (The New York Weekly Museum) on May 2, 1789, described the scene which followed the administration of the oath of office: The Chancellor then proclaimed him THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, which was followed by the instant discharge of 13 cannon, and loud repeated shouts; THE PRESIDENT bowing to the people, the air again rang with their acclamations. He then retired with the two Houses [of Congress] to the Senate Chamber... In the Senate chamber, Washington delivered the first inaugural address. He had originally written a very long speech which his friend and adviser, future president James Madison, suggested he replace. Madison drafted a much shorter speech in which Washington expressed typical modesty. Following his speech, Washington along with new vice president John Adams and members of Congress walked to St. Pauls Chapel on Broadway. After a church service, Washington returned to his residence. The citizens of New York, however, continued celebrating. Newspapers reported that illuminations, which would have been elaborate slide shows, were projected on buildings that night. A report in the Gazette of the United States  noted that illuminations at the homes of the French and Spanish ambassadors were particularly elaborate. The report in The Gazette of the United States described the end of the great day: The evening was fine- the company innumerable- every one appeared to enjoy the scene, and no accident cast the smallest cloud upon the retrospect.

Small business managment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Small business managment - Essay Example These problems are all caused by having unmotivated employees who will jump, at any chance, to leave the company. In addition, the major fact that supports this is the high employee turnover rate (Robertson 316). Solutions include the downsizing of staff to reduce company expenses, closing down irrelevant divisions that are not performing well, consolidating positions and restructuring the staff (Robertson 316). All the above stated solutions are all solutions that can save a company at the edge of closure, but the best solution is that which includes increasing the motivation of the workers since they are the simple factors that can make or break a company. (Robertson 317) The C.E.O of Intermatic Inc. Miller proved beyond a reasonable doubt that a company may employ many tactics to save itself from failure, but the only best solution is to make the employees happy and comfortable and that will lead to success, and profitability of the

Analyse geopolitical risk of refugees fleeing from Libya to Europe Essay - 1

Analyse geopolitical risk of refugees fleeing from Libya to Europe - Essay Example Instead, now the greatest threat to Europe’s geopolitical stability is external. Europe has been final destination of majority of immigrants from Africa, Middle East, and Asia. However, after the eruption of democratic revolution, ‘Arab Spring’, in 2011 in Tunisia, which swiftly spread to Syria, Egypt, and Libya, the enormous number of refugees and asylum seekers from these countries and other parts of Africa have been risking own lives in overcrowded, decaying boats to enter Europe. According to the reports of Frontex, the European Union’s border control agency, over millions of migrants from Northern Africa, especially from Libya, have attempted to enter Europe via Mediterranean Sea route in the last 2 years. Libya, which is currently suffering from the clashes between two rival governments and their militia, possesses a serious threat to stability and peace in Europe as major terrorists organizations are regularly threatening to infiltrate Europe with a great number of terrorists through massive migrant flow from Libya to Europe’s s outhern coast. Furthermore, the economic burden and the ineffectiveness of EU to tackle the issue of Libyan refuges is intensifying political and social unrest in affecting states, like Italy, Malta, and France. The present paper highlights the growing issue of North African refugees in Europe, which is significantly affecting the geopolitical stability and peace in the region. The root causes of rapidly increasing number of African refugees fleeing to Europe lies in the 2011 Arab spring and ineffective policies of the EU towards it. In 2011, widespread demonstrations against housing shortages and political corruption in Libya quickly turned into violent clashes between government forces and anti-government rebels. In April 2011, when the Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi was about to succeed in crushing growing opposition of rebels, the US and major European

Business law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business law - Essay Example There are three main approaches to statutory interpretation, also known as canons. The first is the textual canon which gives rules for interpreting legislation as written. For example, one of the textual canons suggests that anything not mentioned on a list given in a statute is not included in the law. The second is the substantive category, which includes canons that promote the judge to favour specific results or judgements. For example, this includes the Charming Betsy canon, stating that decisions made should not conflict with international law, based upon Murray v. The Charming Betsy (Steele, 2007). Finally, there are a group of deference canons, which allow the court to defer to another authority when using interpretation (Steele, 2007), such as the UK Supreme Court. Question 3 Prior to the Human Rights Act 1998, European Convention was not a source of rights (Steele, 2007), and was not allowed to be used for statutory interpretation in many cases (Steele, 2007). The Human Ri ghts Act 1998 has now made it obligatory for courts to interpret the UK legislation in a way that fits in with European Convention rights (as in the substantive category of canons). This effect can be seen in cases such as Venables and Thompson v. News Group Newspapers [2001] 1 All ER 908 (Clarkson et al, 2008). ... This is also applicable in areas where case law is the source of law because there are no legislative pieces that adequately allow the judge to come to a decision (Gruner, 2004). The strength of binding judicial precedent is that it allows decisions to be made based on previous cases without excessive need for interpretation. However, it does take the focus away from the facts of the case in hand which may cause a wrong decision to be made. Task Two Question 1 The exception to the general rule that a corporation is criminally liable occurs in cases where either the crime or the punishment cannot be committed by or served by a company. For example, in the case of R v ICR Haulage Co Ltd [1944] KB 551 (Gruner, 2004), the company was convicted of a common law conspiracy to defraud. However, it was decided that the company as an entity cannot ‘conspire’ as it does not possess mens rea (Gruner, 2004). Additionally, as the punishment for murder is life imprisonment, a company c annot be convicted as it would not be applicable to an organization. Question 2 Using the principle of identification is difficult in some cases when dealing with business law. For example, a company cannot be convicted of manslaughter without some proof that a directing or leading mind behind the company is the reason for this gross negligence, then the prosecution will fail. The main issue with this is that the directing mind has proven to be extremely difficult to identify in many companies (Laufer, 2008), and only 7 of the 34 work-related manslaughter cases brought since 1997 have succeeded (Select Committee on Home Affairs and Work and Pensions First Report, 2004). To illustrate this, in the case

Unlicensed Personnel & Nurse Staffing Ratios Essay

Unlicensed Personnel & Nurse Staffing Ratios - Essay Example Meanwhile, safety concerns due to educational qualifications and accountability issues emerged simultaneously with the increasing demand for UAP because of documented incidental errors. Some say that the UAP is accountable because he committed the error while others say that it was the nurse to blame for errors because of the responsibility inclined with the license. In this case, should unlicensed assistive personnel be licensed by the individual state boards of nursing? As mentioned earlier, UAPs lack enough educational qualifications and training compared to those with baccalaureate degree. Giving these UAPs licenses will neither solve the increasing number of errors in the hospital settings nor make them solely accountable for negligence. In fact, this might just deteriorate nursing education in the future because of the lack of clear boundaries. UAPs are given certificate or diploma or training for low level tasks like toileting, bathing, feeding, skin care, and ambulating whereas nurses are given licenses for high level tasks which require critical thinking, reasoning skills, and nursing judgment such as in making nursing assessments. If the individual state boards of nursing would give license to UAPs, nursing students might think that there are no differences at all and might prefer the shorter track; thus, making future nurses less qualified for the job. In addition, giving UAPs licenses will not make them solely free from accountability as proper delegation is one of the key responsibilities of nurses. If UAP committed an error, the nurse is also accountable for negligence because the National Council of State Boards of Nursing provide specific guidance about scope of practice and proper delegation among nurses (Sherman and Eggenberger, 2009, 7). Instead of giving UAPs licenses, why not strengthened the delegation practices of nurses? Most of the documented errors committed by UAPs

Puerto Rico - A commonwealth with U.S.A Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Puerto Rico - A commonwealth with U.S.A - Essay Example The enjoining of Puerto Rico, according to analysts and researchers in historical studies, as a commonwealth in USA, is one that requires a detailed understanding of the events that took place prior and after the 1952 event. With the USA developing a relationship with Puerto Rico in the 1898 Spanish-American warfare, by the 20th century Puerto Rico was under the martial support of USA. In regards to the words by Levy & Bahrawi, by the year 1947 Puerto Rico was granted the right to select their own ruler, thanks to the US government (28). With Munoz Marin taking over Puerto Rico, the country arrived at the rank of US commonwealth in October 1950. Levy & Bahrawi indicate that the signing of the Puerto Rico Commonwealth Bill guaranteed the country’s status as a commonwealth of USA (28). On the other hand, the citizens of Puerto Rico consistently supported this status by voting for spiraling of the rapport between Puerto Rico and USA. However, it is vital to note that though the ratio for the commonwealth status was extremely high as opposed to the advocates against the commonwealth status, the nationalist movement was extremely willing to campaign for independence. Levy & Bahrawi are of the view that by January 2005 when Anibal Acevedo-Vila was elected the governor of Puerto Rico, the country was driven towards a struggle for autonomy or statehood of the country (29). It can, therefore, be argued that the commonwealth status of Puerto Rico was attained after granting of American citizenship to the Puerto Ricans. This was to later be a conflict especially after the disasters that faced the country under the American rule. In this case, the Puerto Ricans wanted change to be on their own. Puerto Ricans- USA citizens In the research compiled by Thomas, Puerto Ricans attained what would be referred as an exceptional status of US citizens (136). Though the Puerto Ricans were viewed as burdens to the New Yorkers especi ally in terms of distribution of resources in the city, Thomas is of the opinion that the Puerto Ricans were already US citizens and a long struggle would see to their independence (137). In the year 1917, the then US president, Woodrow Wilson signed the Jones- Shafroth Act which legalized the Puerto Ricans to be U.S. citizens. This is unlike the previous years when the Puerto Rico was a commonwealth of US. Upon signing of the Jones- Shafroth Act the Puerto Ricans became full US citizens. The Puerto Rican government was made similar to that of USA, as well as the Puerto Ricans enjoying civil rights in the country according to Sanchez (41). Of essence, Sanchez indicates that the Puerto Ricans became USA citizens after the signing of Jones-Shafroth Act (42). Though a lot of resentment resulted from this move, a majority of the Puerto Ricans would be forced to participate in US wars against other states, an aspect which did not please the Puerto Ricans. Protests followed soon after to campaign against USA control over Puerto Rico’s constitutional rules and the U.S. Congress. (517 words) Summary From the depictions by the authors of the works of the history of Puerto Rico, I not only like the pieces of compilations, but I am also impressed by the quality and depth of research conducted by the authors. In the work by Levy & Bahrawi on Puerto Rico for example, it is easy to get a glimpse of the history of Puerto Rico and commonwealth from the headings in the work. These headings allow the reader get a quick search of the related chapters and the facts behind the years. Levy & Bahrawi are also keen to give the accurate dates of the chronology of events that took place during that particular time in history, an aspect that makes me believe the facts inscribed in the book. The context of events is also evident from the piece, which gives the author an idea of what happened before, at the particular time and after the event. The reader therefore gets a clear pict ure of the entire theme brought forward by the authors. Having

Unlicensed Personnel & Nurse Staffing Ratios Essay

Unlicensed Personnel & Nurse Staffing Ratios - Essay Example Meanwhile, safety concerns due to educational qualifications and accountability issues emerged simultaneously with the increasing demand for UAP because of documented incidental errors. Some say that the UAP is accountable because he committed the error while others say that it was the nurse to blame for errors because of the responsibility inclined with the license. In this case, should unlicensed assistive personnel be licensed by the individual state boards of nursing? As mentioned earlier, UAPs lack enough educational qualifications and training compared to those with baccalaureate degree. Giving these UAPs licenses will neither solve the increasing number of errors in the hospital settings nor make them solely accountable for negligence. In fact, this might just deteriorate nursing education in the future because of the lack of clear boundaries. UAPs are given certificate or diploma or training for low level tasks like toileting, bathing, feeding, skin care, and ambulating whereas nurses are given licenses for high level tasks which require critical thinking, reasoning skills, and nursing judgment such as in making nursing assessments. If the individual state boards of nursing would give license to UAPs, nursing students might think that there are no differences at all and might prefer the shorter track; thus, making future nurses less qualified for the job. In addition, giving UAPs licenses will not make them solely free from accountability as proper delegation is one of the key responsibilities of nurses. If UAP committed an error, the nurse is also accountable for negligence because the National Council of State Boards of Nursing provide specific guidance about scope of practice and proper delegation among nurses (Sherman and Eggenberger, 2009, 7). Instead of giving UAPs licenses, why not strengthened the delegation practices of nurses? Most of the documented errors committed by UAPs

Critical commentary of two articles on Indigenous Australian Essay

Critical commentary of two articles on Indigenous Australian - Essay Example The article, therefore, makes a valid argument when it indicates that indigenous Australians must be credited for their role in conservation of the environment and the country’s cultural heritage. Talbot’s article is highly relevant to environment studies, since it proposes that conservation is best addressed from the roots. In this light, the author posits that Australia’s aboriginals would aid in these efforts, since their role in protecting and managing the environment is inherently linked to their traditional knowledge and responsibility, as custodians and protectors of the land they occupy. The article is also pertinent to the course, because it identifies some of the gaps that persist in Australia’s environment conservation efforts, as well as, potential mitigation measures. The article highlights several principle environmental, social and cultural issues. For example, it takes note of the fact that there have been few processes for acknowledging and getting consent from Aboriginals, while developing global heritage nominations. As a result, majority of the indigenous Australians feel isolated and disregarded, in the environment and heritage conservation efforts (Talbot, 2012). The article emphasizes that national government must formulate national policies on conservation, while engaging indigenous persons in the formal discussions. In addition, this article stresses that research institutions, governmental and non-governmental organizations should value cultural and ecological knowledge systems of the indigenous people. Talbot has written the article from the perspective of a concerned Australia citizen, and as an Aboriginal advocating for his people’s recognition in environmental conservation. The principal argument against the principal assertions of this article is that, the national government should independently make policies on environment and heritage preservation. The validity of this argument is

The Primary Care Clinic Essay Example for Free

The Primary Care Clinic Essay A small primary care clinic has 69 employees, representing 9 different clinical professions and 12 other skills. It operates two (2) sites, one (1) of which is bigger and has the departments for medical specialists, diagnostic labs, and patient services. The clinic also contracts for a variety of services, such as repair and maintenance, referral specialists, and advanced diagnostic services. You are the manager. You report to the owners who are four (4) of the family practitioners and their wives. Two of the wives still work at the clinic as registered nurses. Write a five to seven (5-7) page paper in which you: 1.Discuss the key political, economic, and social forces that may have influenced the development of the clinic. 2.Create a comprehensive mission statement and explain what makes it a comprehensive mission statement. 3.Identify three (3) performance measures you would use to measure the clinic’s effectiveness and provide the rationale for each performance measure. 4.Describe how you would approach decisions regarding clinic expansion and annual plan approval. 5.Describe the role of the clinic as a component of the healthcare delivery system in your community. 6.Examine how public healthcare policy has influenced the formation of outpatient clinics in the healthcare system. 7.Use at least three (3) quality resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and similar Websites do not qualify as quality resources. Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements: †¢Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions. †¢Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length. The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are: †¢Examine the political, economic, and social forces that have influenced the organizational foundations of the United States healthcare system †¢Explain how public policy has shaped the development of the U.S. healthcare system. †¢Analyze the critical management issues, purpose, functions, and performance measures of different departments within healthcare organizations. †¢Use technology and information resources to research issues in health services organization management. †¢Write clearly and concisely about health services organization management using proper writing mechanics. Grading for this assignment will be based on answer quality, logic / organization of the paper, and language and writing skills, using the following rubric.

Marketing analysis for the Allianz Group

Marketing analysis for the Allianz Group Allianz Group is a bigger company which providing insurance and financial services. Besides that, Allianz SE which is holding company of international group located in Munich. Allianz was found in Berlin. Germany in 1980 (Allianz, 2010) Allianz Group, with 152,000 employees in the worldwide, which has over 75million customers in around 70 countries. In the insurance market, Allianz is the market leader in the Germany and has strong international presence(Allianz, 2010). Allianz was a historical company which has more than 100 years. Even Germany defeat in the World War I but Allianz was slowly ventured outside Germany to European markets (Allianz, 2010) At the national socialist Nazi Germany in the era after 1993, Allianz fit in with the guidelines. After World War II, Allianz was start to rebuild post in 1945. Allianz was start to get international by spreading its activities to some country in Europe and Americas in year 1950s throughout 60s, 70s and 80s. In year 1990s, Allianz began to venture into the Asian market. (Allianz, 2010). Allianz Group also expanded its asset management business. Today, Allianz Group is one of the worlds leading financial service providers (Allianz, 2010). The mission of Allianz The mission of Allianz is to achieve sustainable growth of our competitive strength and values. In order to achieve this mission, they implemented a series of measures which characterize as 3+one program. They have an overall 3+1 program: Protecting and enhancing the capital base. Substantially strengthening the operating profitability. Reducing complexity. +One: Increase sustainable competitiveness and value. The organization structure of Allianz Board of Management Supervisory Board International Executive Committee International Advisory Board and Joint Advisory Council Employees The organization culture of Allianz Allianz Group culture combines German characteristic and international flair. In Munich, a lot of language will be using by the people when they talking to each other such as French, German, English, Italian, Chinese and etc. However Allianz values local cultures and markets situation does not dictate a one size all fit solution for the individual location. That why Allianz has defined a strategy framework to guiding standards. So that Allianz Group in the worldwide can adopt the cultural and business requirement to specific regions (Allianz, 2010) The macro environment analysis PEST analysis is concerned with the environmental influences on a business. PEST is stand for Political, Economic, Social, and Technological factors of the external macro environment. Political factors often look at the government policies. The economic factors relate to changes in the wider economy. Social factors is relating to the cultural aspects. The technological factors relate to the application of new inventions and ideas. It is an important tool to understanding risks associated with market growth or decline, and as such the position, potential and direction for a business or organization (Thompson, 2002). Following are the different factors affecting the Allianz insurance in UK. Political Some of these factors had a good impact to the travel, car and home insurance in the UK. The government travelers awareness campaign has brought awareness to the public about the dangers of traveling uninsured highlighting the expensive costs of medical treatments abroad. The travel industry has supported and benefited from this as it increased their sales prospects. The minimum car insurance implemented by the government is third party cover. This has a very good impact on the car insurance industry as this guarantees a sale on every car in the UK and because 76% of adult in the UK have a full driving license, all of them are potential customers (Birtles, 2002). Legal General data revealed that most critical illness cover claims are made by people under 40. (Speedy, 2004) This has been good news for age dedicated home and health care insurance companies as less cover claims means less liabilities. However, according to the Bank of England, the rising tax is slowing down the consumer spending. This has badly affected the whole of the insurance industry as people had less money to spend on higher premiums or packages. Economic In todays world facing inflation, people are more work-orientated, so earning more again translating to larger disposable incomes allowing people to live comfortably take advantage of more expensive schemes in insurance such as taking fully-comprehensive cover rather than third-party (Speedy, 2004). Another economical fact is that we are currently at the boom stage of economic cycle and so people are better off. This means that as stated above people are able to live more comfortably and on a general level are better able to afford things like food, shelter, clothing and health care. This translates to fewer illnesses which mean that insurance companies have less payout to make as less people fail ill (Speedy, 2004). Another important factor to notice about the general public in a boom phase of the economic cycle is that people are more likely to pay for products in the service industry. So things that they may have refrained from due to a lack of money like health insurance will be more welcome during a period of boom so increasing revenue for insurers (Birtles, 2002). Social Nowadays, Allianz facing a lot of social problems such as increase of young driver. They choose to insure on parents cars along with saving the money to buy their own cars. Young drivers aged between 17 and 25 also have a higher chance of being in an accident so they are more costly for an insurer to cover so insurers charge more. For this reason the increase in young drivers translates into larges revenues for insurance companies due to the larger premiums. (Birtles, 2002) Besides that, todays society is the increase in the racing culture with large emphasis placed on driving faster and better looking cars. Modified cars are a cheaper alternative to buying a sports car also increasing insurance costs (Speedy, 2004) . In comparison with 30 years ago the average person earns much more today translating to larger disposable incomes. This has leading to more people being able to afford second cars and so being insured on them giving more business to insurance companies (Speedy, 2004). Technology In new era, technology is an one of the important things using by social such as internet, communication technology and so on. With this technology, Allianz can increase the sales and reduce the transaction costs. By using internet, it can changes the delivery service process. Nowadays, Allianz using internet even sells insurance policies. Internet proving to be one of the widely used distribution networks for selling insurance policies. Also internet is used for sending premium notices to policy holders through e-mails (Shinde, et al., 2008) By using internet, it can provide several convenient such as premium calculator which accurately displays the amount of premium month wise and the remaining balance. One just has to enter the age, name of the insurance policy, the sum assured and whether there is an accident cover or not. By the insurance system, the user only by keying the information, this entire them to shown the premium amount within in short time. This has helped the customer in a way so that they dont have to travel all the way to the branch to ascertain the amount of premium to be paid (Shinde, et al., 2008) The international consideration Allianz operate almost in every continent. The regions are Eastern Europe, Central Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific, Americas and Middle East Africa. Allianz is deeply rooted in their domestic market which is Western, Northern Southern Europe. Western Europe is the home of Allianz. (Allianz, 2010) When Allianz wants doing an international business, Allianz will consider the human resource, financial and legal requirement into particular country. Allianz start a new venture in China, financial will incurred in that China will lower than having a new venture in Europe. Furthermore Allianz can get a large human resource in China. This is because the population in China is very large. Allianz also can save cost. The wage pay to the labor is lower and produced the production in a lower cost (Allianz, 2010). When a company intend to going international, they will consider the macroeconomic that will affect in their business. Before enter to a new country or new venture. They will do a research about the external environment of that country or region first and then only decide whether to start the new venture into that country or not. While Allianz also does the something. The macro environment that consider to the company are political or legal condition, economic condition, social issue environment and technology. Those are significant to evaluate a country before doing an international business (Allianz, 2010). There are several methods of going international when a company intends to go international. The company can go international based on export based, non-equity based and equity based. For Allianz which a company just provide services, it use equity based method to going international which include joint ventures and foreign direct investment (FDI). The first company or office that Allianz venture in is in London with open a subsidiary company (Allianz, 2010). Allianz was venturing into Malaysia in year 2001. It become controlling shareholder of Allianz General Insurance Malaysia Berhad(AGIM). However, AGIM was transferred wholly owned subsidiary AGIC in year 2007. Following the completion of the transfer of general insurance business, AGIM changed its name to AMB and became an investment holding company (Allianz, 2010). Besides that, there have several issue faced by Allianz in Malaysia. Currently, Allianz facing managing climate change risk. Managing climate change risk is the biggest challenge to the Allianz facing today with several impacts on insurance industry. Over past 30years, there was a great natural catastrophes claim by the victims which increase 15fold to approx. 30 billion Euros (approximately RM120 billion). Allianz settles 40% of industrial insurance claims are due to natural catastrophes (Allianz, 2010) With managing climate change risks, Loeffler (2010) was recognize climate changes as a matter of great strategic consequence for Allianz. Allianz need to assess together with their clients by mitigate the risks. In the other hand, Allianz was adapting the impact of climate change and safeguard insurability of risk in future. In year 2007, Allianz was established a subsidiary as Allianz Climate with explicit aim to develop new products and investment trends related to climate change. As a insurance business, Allianz need to act an early warning system to help the business and let the society know and understanding about the new risks. Allianz need to prepare in several ways for effects of climate change. Providing risk coverage for emerging technologies for example plays an important role in their future development. Securing the insurability of risks is essential for economies to be able to operate (Loeffler, 2010) The growth of business In year 1957, the Ansoff Matrix was first published in the Harvard Business Review and has given a quick and simple way of thinking about growth to generations of marketers and business leaders and helps them to assess and understand business development or marketing strategy (Manktelow, 2010). Ansoffs product-market matrix explain that a business attempts to grow depend on whether it markets new or existing products in new or existing markets. Market penetration Market penetration is a growth strategy where the business focuses on selling more of the same products or services in current markets. This strategy normally try to fix or increase the revenue of current products and achieve economies of scale through more efficient distribution more efficient manufacturing, and more purchasing power (QuickMBA, 2010). Take for instance; Allianz can use advertising to promote their product or policies. Advertising is an important tool to help the company to build up the brand name. In fact, consumer will compare the products through advertising. An innovative and creative advertising is able to form a well image in the mind of the public in order to stimulate more consumers to buy the products. Besides that, Allianz can implementation other special offer promotions like Allianz can offer a variety of free health checks in different public place such as hospital, shopping complex or any fair related to healthy. Through the event, the consumers were gi ven an opportunity to purchases health product at a promotion rate. (Anon, 2010) Product development Product development is the name given to a growth strategy where a business aims to sell new products or services in current markets. This strategy often try to develop and innovation new product and sell to existing customers (QuickMBA, 2010). For example, Allianz can provide more comprehensive coverage in addition to the existing insurance plans. Like Allianz can give protection among other, medical expenses including dengue, malaria, bungee jumping, amateur sports, natural disasters, kidnappings and thefts. Because these events were became more serious in Malaysia (Allianz, 2010). Besides that, Allianz can packaging existing products it in new ways. Like when husbands buy a personal healthy policy, Allianz will offer a new package that their wife are also can get the free protection from Allianz. It is means buy an insurance policy but the beneficiary is to two persons. Diversification Diversification is the growth strategy where a company promoted new products or services in new markets. This is the most dangerous type of strategy because the business is entering into markets in which it has little or no experience. For a business to use diversification strategy, therefore, it must have a clear concept about what it expects to obtain from the strategy and an honest assessment of the risks (QuickMBA, 2010). For example, Allianz can try to launch the pets insurance policies. Nowadays, many people feel that raising children is not easy, so they prefer to concentrate on their pets. According to internet firms found that over 90% people look pets as their own children. Many people going and acting crazy in love with dogs and cats (Plano, 2007). They will provide a loving, safe, healthy home for their pets by providing assisted living, hospice, and placement assistance. Since so many people regard their pets as children, they will want to help their pets to buy an insur ance policy and protect their pets. So Allianz can be a first company to implementation this new and creative insurance plan. New venture Vietnam which is located in Asia Pacific is the best investment country. Despite the 1997 Asian economic crisis, Vietnams economy has expanded rapidly since the year 1980s Communist Party of Vietnam leaved from the communist economic policies. According to the Economist Intelligence Unit (2010), Vietnams GDP growth forecast is predicted to be strong, at an average of 7.9% between 2007 and 2010. Besides that, foreign direct investment in Vietnam rise 10 percent to between $10 billion and $11 billion in 2010. Foreign Direct Investment plays an important role in the Vietnam economy (Lan, 2010). Know and predominate the necessary need in Vietnam market in this few years, VIPC Capital Management Corporation provide many services such as Non risk investment , Asset management, Portfolio Management which can give more choices for the customer to choose the financial services and financial consultant to increase the effectiveness in fund management and generating profit. With these facilitie s and benefits, Allianz can use foreign direct investment method to enter Vietnam market. Threat of new entrants Allianz should make investigation on what benefits it will get by investing in Vietnam and build a strong customer royalty and make agreement with the government if possible to prevent possible entrants of competitor. As a new entrant, Allianz should build the good brand name to the customers in Vietnam by advertising such as TV advertisement, road side banner and so on. By advertise about the company to citizen in Vietnam to let them know about this company well. However, Allianz need to know the Vietnam citizen culture such as what they like or dislike. Besides the citizen, government rules and regulation need to learn by Allianz to enter into new market such as labor law. It is very important for Allianz to learn the government rule and regulation because some of the things have banned by the government in Vietnam. In other words, it is to make it harder for potential entrants to go in by imposing barriers to new entry. Competitive rivalry This is important for Allianz to know how rivalry in the market of Vietnam as rivalry among competing firms intensifies, causing industry profits decline and can make the industry becomes inherently unattractive. Since Vietnam less of international insurance company, Allianz can take advantage to enter the Vietnam market to gain more profit from the citizen. With brand equity of Alliance, the customer will prefer more for the international company. Besides that, there have only few multinational insurance company in Vietnam but Allianz need to know how strong the brand entity of the competitors are, and also to find out the weaknesses of competitor in order to get affiliate from the domestic consumers in Vietnam. However, Allianz need continuously innovative about the company to competitive with the competitor in Vietnam to gain more profit for it. Bargaining power of buyers Buyers purchases represent a major portion of income for Allianzs total sales revenue, so Allianz must investigate how strong the bargaining power of the buyers of the host country as most of the buyers have the absolute information regarding the price and the availability for the services. Recent year, Vietnam economic has resilient. Vietnams average income per capita has reached an estimated USD 1,200 in 2010 and the country has moved from the list of poorest countries to the list of low and middle-income countries (Vietnam Business Economy News, 2010). Most of the citizens have extra money to buy insurance for their own and their family. Allianz can offer with different types of policy to the customers such in different age of stage and so on. It will attract more customers to choose what type of policy they like due to increase the profit to the company. In the other hand, Allianz should offer a special price to the customers compare to the other competitors to attract for the c ustomers switch to the Allianz insurance. After the buyers purchase the insurance, Allianz need to make good relationship with the customers to maintains the sales because buyers will make income for company profits.

The Labor Debate, An American :: essays research papers

'The Labor Debate:'; The American Dream Revisited   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Immigration is one hot topic in modern day conversation. Many believe that immigrants coming to the United States are taking many well-needed jobs away from able-bodied Americans. On the other hand, there are still those that believe that the jobs being taken away are not ones that Americans would perform due to the terrible working conditions, low pay, and lack of medical coverage. The immigration problem has come to a point where the United States must make a decision to spend a lot of money to curtail the amount of immigrants using force and funds of an overbearing amount, or to just let the immigrants continue to go about their business in trying to find a way into a country where they are mildly welcome. The article 'The Labor Debate'; discusses both the pros and cons of immigrants, both legal and illegal alike, taking jobs of their own in a country where they might not be welcome.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I believe that the immigrants are not necessarily taking jobs away from the American worker. Those occupations that the immigrants possess are truly illegal for any employer to employ any American. The job sights include unsanitary conditions, dangerous equipment use without proper safety precautions, extremely long working days, and less than minimum wage for average pay. There is not one citizen in this country that would stand for such an outrageous environment to work in. Many would go directly to an inspection board to have the factory/plant evaluated to see if the factory could pass any sort of inspection. Hence, the factory/plant would be closed down and there would be even fewer jobs for Americans.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Those immigrants out there that are working are helping to construct certain items that citizens of the United States do not want to be a part of. Take as an example the sewing of blue jeans, a product that graces the legs of half the country. Many Americans out there need this clothing for working and playing in. However, the tedious work of sewing blue jeans does not fit into the description of the American dream for the citizens of this country. If it helps to put some food on the table for a starving family from Mexico, ask yourself if it is truly worth it to throw all the illegal immigrants out to send them to a place where no jobs are available to pay them money that can even provide this meager amount of food?

Revenue Recognition Essay

The issue of revenue recognition practices is an area that has received a lot of attention from regulators. Whenever there is a report of financial restatements or negative earnings, regulators pay extra attention to review the financial statements in order to verify that that there are not any indications of financial fraud or that the organization overstepped their boundaries in the area of managed earnings. The reason that regulators have taken a special interest in financial accounting and potential fraud is due to the collapses of companies such as Enron, WorldCom and Tyco. Regulators and those in the accounting profession are focusing their efforts on the causes of fraud as well as the steps that can be taken to effectively detect and prevent a possible reoccurrence of fraudulent behavior especially in the area of revenue recognition and the overstatement of assets. Revenue recognition refers to the time when transactions are recorded on the books, Per Generally Accepted Accoun ting Principles (GAAP), revenues, and gains, are generally recognized when: 1. Revenues are realized or are realizable 2. They have been earned the substantial completion of the activities involved in the earnings process. Both of these items are typically met at the point of sale, which generally occurs when goods are delivered or when services are rendered to the customer. Usually revenues and assets are recognized simultaneously. However, assets can be received before the conditions of revenue recognition are met. One example would be if a customer pays in advance for goods or services which will be received at a later date. Even though the cash is received and is recorded as an asset in the company’s books, the revenue has not been earned. Typically the revenue is not recognized prior to a sale because either the customer has not paid for the goods yet or because the goods have not been delivered to the customer. The main exception to not recognizing revenue prior to a sale would be when a contract exists that guarantee the sale or that the customer has promised a valid promise of payment such as when both the seller and the buyer are legally obligated to fulfill the term of a contract (Parizek & Findley, 2008). Another exception to the revenue recognition rule occurs when a product or service may be provided to the customer without receiving a valid promise of payment. This typically occurs with a family dentist who provides services to ease a patient’s pain and then tries to collect the  payment later. Also, if a company has a substantial amount of services to provide even though the customer has provided a substantial payment, the company must wait to recognize the revenue. It is not enough that one of the criteria for recognizing revue is met; both items must be satisfied in order for the recognition of revenue. Because every income statement begins with total revenue, how revenue is measured is a fundamental concept in the field of accounting and as such, the topic of revenue recognition has received a lot of attention over the course of the past few years. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) has produced specific guides to help with the topic of revenue recognition in specific situations in certain industries. The AICPA Statement of Position (SOP) 97-2, â€Å"Software Revenue Recognition† contained the following four items (Parizek & Findley, 2008): 1. Persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists 2. Delivery has occurred. 3. The vendor’s fee is fixed or determinable. 4. Collectability is probable. These four items were used as the framework in the SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 101. The SAB 101 is a very unique and interesting bulletin because it provides specific cases and then proceeds with a questions and answer format. SAB was created in large part to the issues that the staff had encountered in while conducting a review. Because SAB 101 addresses specific situations, it cannot be used as an answer to every instance of revenue recognition, but it does provide a comprehensive guide for companies to use as a form of direction when faced with dealing with a complicated situation such as when there is persuasive evidence of an arrangement, delivery of goods has already occurred or services have been rendered or when the price is fixed or determinable (SEC, 1999). Questions 1 and 2 of SAB address the topic of Persuasive Evidence of an Arrangement and highlight how a seller could be tempted to bend the rules of revenue recognition in order for a more favorable time in which the sale is reported. The first question exhibited the case in which Company A required each sale to be supported by a written sales agreement signed by an authorized representative of both the customer and Company A. This issue was if Company A could recognize the revenue in the current quarter even if the  sales agreement would not be signed until a few days after the quarter had ended. This question highlighted the need for companies to have strong internal controls and the need to a reliable system to be in place for processing contracts. Without a strong internal control structure as well as clearly documented procedures, there is a possibility of managers becoming tempted to adjust how revenue is recognized based on the needs of the quarter. Questions 3 and 4 reviewe d the issue of ownership of goods and when the transfer had effectively taken place. Question 4 reviews the case of Company R that is a retailer that offers layaway sales to its customers. For the layaway option, a customer pays a portion of the sales price and Company R holds onto the merchandise until the customer returns to pay the balance remaining on the merchandise. Once the merchandise is paid in full, the customer can take possession of the merchandise. This case is an example of what is referred to as a ‘bill and hold’ arrangement where the customer is billed for the merchandise but the merchandise is held by the company for release or shipment at a later date. Question 4 is also an example of how some companies could manipulate their inventories at the end of a quarter. A company could increase revenue by pushing some of its merchandise in the warehouse aside and claim that it has already been sold but were being held for the customer. In order for the company to recognize the revenue they must be able to show that the merchandise is completely separate from its other merchandise and cannot be used for any other order. The company also must be able to show that the customer specifically requested in writing that the company hold the merchandise. Questions 5 and 6 reviewed revenue recognition when the company must perform several activities. Question 5 asks the question as to when Company H should recognize the revenue from an upfront, nonrefundable fee for an extended service contract along with regular, monthly payments. SAB 101 illustrates how the nonrefundable fee cannot be treated separately and must be treated as a part of the overall unit because no one would pay a deposit without expecting additional goods or services to follow (SEC, 1999). The questions 7, 8 and 9 in SAB 101 describe situations where the price may not fixed or determinable in the transaction. Question 8 describes how Company A owns a building and leases it to a retailer. The annual lease payment is $1.2 million plus one percent of all the retailer’s sales in excess of $25 million. It is probable that  sales during the year will exceed $25 million. Should Company A estimate and recognize revenue associated with the one percent of the sales over $25 million on a straight-line basis throughout the year? Because the buyer does not have any fixed or determinable obligation to make a payment until the $25 million sales level has been reached, none of the extra revenue can be estimated and recognized in advance. Question 10 in SAB 101 does not deal with when revenue should be recognized but instead how the revenue should be reported on the income statement. Question 10 discusses the situation where Company A operates an internet site where customers can order the products of another company, Company T. Company T ships directly to the customers and Company A never has any ownership of the merchandise but company A does receive a portion of each sale that Company T makes. Since Company A never takes legal ownership of the merchandise, it would be inappropriate for them to use the gross revenue reporting method where they would report $175 in revenue and $150 in cost of goods sold. Instead Company A should report the money that it earns from each sale as commission revenue. SAB 101 is not the only work that has tried to address the issue of revenue recognition. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) are working together on joint project that would create a single standard for revenue recognition. The project is intended to solve issues in the differences between U.S. GAAP and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). FASB has listed the following six for the project (FASB,2012): 1. Converging U.S. and international standards on revenue recognition 2. Eliminating inconsistencies in the existing conceptual guidance on revenue recognition. 3. Providing conceptual guidance that would be useful in addressing future revenue recognition issues. 4. Eliminating inconsistencies in existing standards-level authoritative literature and accepted practices. 5. Filing voids in revenue recognition guidance that have developed over time 6. Establishing a single, comprehensive standard on revenue recognition In creating a new revenue recognition standard, the FASB and the IASB have adjusted their focus to realization and earnings approach instead of focusing on an asset and liability approach. To assist companies with the changes, FASB issued a proposal that broke down the revenue recognition process into five steps. The first step would be to match the  contract with the customer. The second step would be for the company to identify each step of the transaction with the customer. Third, the company would have to identify the transaction price of each separate act or obligation. In the fourth step, the company reviews how much it expects to receive for preforming each step with the company recognizing the revenue in the final step once the merchandise has been transferred to the customer (FASB, 2012). The work between FASB and IASB is still a work in progress but has strong support from several groups in the accounting community some of which have already laid a foundation to work from. In 1998 former SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt delivered what is now considered to be a famous speech titled â€Å"The Numbers Game† in which he expressed great concern over how many companies engage in the practice of earnings management. In his speech Mr. Levitt identified several major accounting techniques that he thought were being used to undermine the integrity of financial reporting(Levitt, 1998). Mr. Levitt stressed how accounting involves significant judgment and he expressed concern that this judgment was being pushed aside by management due to the pressure that they were encountering to meet the numbers. Mr. Levitt mentioned the standards of objectivity, integrity and judgment in reporting accounting number and stressed that it was these standards that remain an integral part of the public accounting profession’s Code of Professional Conduct and form the foundation by which financial statements are compiled, audited and interpreted. He went on the say that the ethical dilemmas facing businesses and their accountants often revolve around the pressure placed upon companies by investors and creditors. These pressures can sometimes cause management to become involved in â€Å"accounting hocus pocus† (Levitt, 1998). Additionally, because accounting involves judgment, the reported accounting numbers can be significantly different depending on the assumptions made by those that are preparing the financial statements. Mr. Levitt stated that accounting principles â€Å"Allow for flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances† and it was this flexibility that creates many of the ethical issues that accountants are faced with. As companies come under pressure to report  favorable results, accountants also come under pressure to flex those rules almost to the point of breaking. Mr. Levitt gave credit to the Code of Professional Conduct for providing guidance to the public accounting profession members when they are faced with difficult issues (Levitt, 1998). Addressing the issues and establishing new policies and procedures is not enough in ensuring that companies are adhering to changes in methods. Communication must be maintained with those that work in the accounting profession so that they are also complying with the latest methods. In October of 2000, the Chief Accountant of the SE, Lynn Turner, wrote a letter to Ms. Arlene Thomas, the Vice President of the Professional Standards and Services office of the AICPA in order to inform auditors of topics that the SEC had been focusing their attentions on. Amount several topics that Ms. Turner included in her letter was the topic of revenue recognition. The letter discussed the issue of revenue fraud and how over half of the revenue frauds that were identified were due to companies that overstated their revenue because that had reported revenue either too early of deceptively (U.S., 2000). Ms. Turner stressed the importance for auditors to test cut off dates and stressed how auditors must place special focus and conduct testing that is above and beyond the reviewing of a few transactions. Ms. Turner also wanted to bring to of Ms. Thomas the issue that was raised with companies having â€Å"side agreements† with their customers which could alter the terms and conditions of the original contract. These adjustments could result in revenue being improperly recorded and that auditors should conduct thorough testing of contracts. This testing is important because it could assist the auditor with identifying if and side agreements exists and then can test the revenue accordingly. Ms. Turner went on to give praise to the AICPA for a document that they issued entitled â€Å"Audit Issues in Revenue Recognition† and stated how this document should be used by auditors for guidance when it comes to properly auditing revenue. Ms. Turner stated how some organizations can be quite complex and conduct several complex revenue transactions and by reading the terms and conditions of the contracts, auditors would be able to determine  the best course of action for conducting a proper and thorough audit (U.S., 2000). The topic of financial reporting fraud is one that will continue to remain the focus of the SEC, FASB and ISAB for some time to come. Revenue recognition will play a large role in the process as it encompasses two primary factors; management will need to use their own judgment in determining how their revenue should be recognized and that management should be prepared to have their judgments analyzed and questioned. By maintaining focus of the issues that have been identified, and keeping an eye out for possible future issues, the authorities can be certain that investors are making decisions based on accurate information. Constant training and communication between all agencies will ensure that the scandals and financial collapse of companies will not be repeated. References American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Accounting Standards Executive Committee Statement of Position 97-2, (1997) Software revenue recognition, p.08. FASB. (2012, October 13). Revenue recognition—joint project of the fasb and iasb. Retrieved from http://www.fasb.org/project/revenue_recognition.shtml Levitt, A. (1998, September 28). The numbers game. Retrieved from http://www.sec.gov/news/speech/speecharchive/1998/spch220.txt Parizek, G., & Findley, M. (2008). Charting a course: revenue reconition practices for toda’ys business environment. Journal of Accountancy, 20(3), 15-22. SEC. (1999, December 3). Sec staff accounting bulletin: No. 101 – revenue recognition in financial statements. Retrieved from http://sec.gov/interps/account/sab101.htm U.S., SEC. (2002, October 13). Letter: 2000 audit risk alert to the american institute of certified public accountants. Retrieved from http://www.sec.gov/info/accountantts/staffletters/audrsk2k.htm