Monday, September 30, 2019

Modern Ethical Theories

Philosophically Egoism theory purports that one’s self is or should be the motivation and reasons of our own actions.   This theory has two variations, descriptive or normative variation and altruism variation.   Altruism variation holds that one should maximize good for all being in the world (Hobbes, 1651).   Altruism is the opposite of egoism. Ethical egoism is a normative theory that revolves around the idea that each individual should do what is entirely in his or her self interests and by doing actions that aimed at self interest he or she achieves morality.   The theory states that one’s self interest is the primary motive of actions and is the moral thing to do. Hence the theory is a self effacing theory which tries to justify reasons for actions as duty bound or morally right. Psychological egoism theory on the other hand is a descriptive theory that describes human actions as wholly motivated by self interest it implies that individual’s actions are purely by self centered even though the actions may seem to be motivated by interest of others (More, G.E., 1903).   It states that, â€Å"all human actions are selfish acts at their roots†. Thus it asserts that if individual helps others, acts which may seem to be of benefit to others.   The primary motive may be the need for an individual to better him/herself thus making the act self-seeking.   It is impossible to empirically prove the psychological egoism theory wrong but it is just as hard to empirically prove the theory right.   In addition once the premise of the theory is accepted the actions can be interpreted to support the theory. Fallacy of Psychological Egoism Psychological egoism theory states that people are always motivated by their own interests.   This   however hastily   generalizes actions and their motivation   since there are instances we can disapprove this such as, when an individual smokes .this is an act that can be harmful to one’s wellbeing thus not act in   self interest, others such as soldiers carry out their duties without considering personal gains. There are also instances where motivations to act may appear to be of no self interest   at face value but   are nevertheless self interest motivated (Rachels, J., 2003).   For example if an individual is motivated to act out of fear or his acts are motivated by fear, he/she may be acting in the interest of self-preservation. On the other hand, these actions/reactions may be driven by the interest of the other individual or threats from this other individual thus his/her action may be classified as an action motivated for other’s interest.   In this case, the individual actions are what she/he is motivated to do, for instance run. The strong and weak versions of Ethical Egoism The ethical egoism can be split into two versions; the strong and the weak versions.   The strong version supports the endorsement of an individual’s own good as the moral thing to do.   Individual actions that are driven by self-interest or self fulfillment arise out of moral judgement while the weak version supports the premise that there are situations where it may be prudent to ignore personal welfare when making moral judgement (Rachels, J., 2003). For instance if a soldier lies on a grenade to save his friends he may act this way to be able to live with himself In other words if he acted otherwise he may live the rest of his life with a guilty conscience .However the strong version might interpret this action as the moral thing to do. Contrast in Motivation Doctrines of the two theories Psychological egoism theory is the empirical doctrine that an individual’s act is a desire for one’s own welfare (Sigmund, F., 1966).   However, these acts usually conceal the determining motives.   This concealment is usually in their self-interest.   The theory results from observation of human behaviour and can only be proved empirically if there are no exceptions.   It makes no claim to how individuals should act for their self-interest.   This premise can be argued to be verifiable but non-moral. On the other hand, the ethical egoism theory is prescriptive doctrine that individuals actions are in self-interest that is for personal welfare thus the personal welfare is the most valuable thing for an individual.   However, the theory does not claim that all individuals seek their own self interest.   It only claims that individuals should seek their own self-interest that is all individual might not seek self-interest (Sigmund, F., 1966).   For the ethical egoism theory to hold or to be proven as a theory its premises must hold for all individuals. Differences between ethical egoism and psychological egoism Psychological egoism is descriptive while the ethical egoism theory is prescriptive, that is, the psychological theory states why individuals act the way they do while the ethical theory suggests the reasons for such.   The other difference is concerned with their motivation doctrines.   In psychological egoism it is human nature to be driven by selfish reasons whereas in the ethical egoism theory selfish acts are the morally right thing to do (More, G.E., 1903).Psychological egoism deals with reality while ethical egoism deals with what reality should be. It   can also be argued that ethical egoism approves of cooperative behaviour   while psychological egoism does not since the theory   believes in achieving maximum welfare though selfish actions . Conclusion Self-interest actions are not always selfish actions in that one can act in such a way as to benefit or for his personal welfare improvement.   Such actions cannot be termed as selfish and this is always seen as acts out of self-interest.   Self-interest acts are not always selfish acts but selfish actions are always out of personal self-interest. For example if an individual’s self interest is to obey the law we can claim the individual is doing this out of self interest, that is, it is in his/her self interest to avoid legal troubles like being jailed.   This can be seen as a selfish act.   But by obeying the law, it can also be argued that he is doing this in the interest of others or out of consideration of others.   In this case, this is not a selfish act.   However, self-interest actions are not always incompatible with the interest of others for example to help others, which is not a self-interest act.   An individual must first help himself inorder to be in a position to help others. Reference G.E. Moore (1903).   In Principia Ethica: Cambridge University Press. Rachels, J. (2003). The Elements of moral philosophy (4th ed). New York: McGraw-Hill. Sigmund, Freud (1966).   The Interpretation of Dreams.   New York: Avon.   

Sunday, September 29, 2019

History of Waste Management

History: In ancient cities, wastes were thrown onto unpaved streets and roadways, where they were left to accumulate. It was not until 320 BCE in Athens that the first known law forbidding this practice was established. At that time a system for waste removal began to evolve in Greece and in the Greek-dominated cities of the eastern Mediterranean. In ancient Rome, property owners were responsible for cleaning the streets fronting their property. But organized waste collection was associated only with state-sponsored events such as parades. Disposal methods were very crude, involving open pits located just outside the city walls.As populations increased, efforts were made to transport waste farther out from the cities. After the fall of Rome, waste collection and municipal sanitation began a decline that lasted throughout the Middle Ages. Near the end of the 14th century, scavengers were given the task of carting waste to dumps outside city walls. But this was not the case in smaller towns, where most people still threw waste into the streets. It was not until 1714 that every city in England was required to have an official scavenger. Toward the end of the 18th century in America, municipal collection of garbage was begun in Boston, New York City, and Philadelphia.Waste disposal methods were still very crude, however. Garbage collected in Philadelphia, for example, was simply dumped into the Delaware River downstream from the city. During the industrial revolution, recyclers began to form businesses and later trade associations, dealing in the collection, trade and processing of metals and paper. America's Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), a trade association with more than 1,400 member companies, traces its roots back to one such organisation founded in 1913. In the 1930s many people survived the Great Depression by peddling scraps of metal, rags and other items.In those days reuse and recycling were often economic necessities As industrial societ ies began to produce ever-growing quantities of garbage, recycling took on a new meaning. Rather than recycling materials for purely economic reasons, communities began to think about how to reduce the waste flow to landfills and incinerators. Current Conditions: Our whole concept of the business plan has on two important phases – ‘WASTE MANAGEMENT + RECYCLING’ Waste Management: Waste management is the collection, transport, processing or disposal, managing and monitoring of waste materials.The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and the process is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics. Waste management is a distinct practice from resource recovery which focuses on delaying the rate of consumption of natural resources. All wastes materials, whether solid, liquid, gaseous or radioactive fall within the remit of waste management. Recycling: Recycling is a resource recovery practice that refers to the collection and reuse of waste materials. The materials from which the items are made can be reprocessed into new products.Material for recycling are collected by us from general waste using dedicated bins and collection vehicles are sorted directly from mixed waste streams and are known as kerb-side recycling, it requires the owner of the waste to separate it into various different bins (typically wheelie bins) prior to its collection. The most common consumer products recycled include aluminium such as beverage cans, copper such as wire, steel food and aerosol cans, old steel furnishings or equipment, polyethylene and PET bottles, glass bottles and jars, paperboard cartons, newspapers, magazines and light paper, and corrugated fibre board boxes.PVC, LDPE, PP, and PS are also recyclable. These items are usually composed of a single type of material, making them relatively easy to recycle into new products. The recycling of complex products (such as computers and electronic e quipment) is more difficult, due to the additional dismantling and separation required. The type of material accepted for recycling varies by city and country. Each city and country has different recycling programs in place that can handle the various types of recyclable materials. However, certain variation in acceptance is reflected in the resale value of the material once it is reprocessed History of Waste Management History: In ancient cities, wastes were thrown onto unpaved streets and roadways, where they were left to accumulate. It was not until 320 BCE in Athens that the first known law forbidding this practice was established. At that time a system for waste removal began to evolve in Greece and in the Greek-dominated cities of the eastern Mediterranean. In ancient Rome, property owners were responsible for cleaning the streets fronting their property. But organized waste collection was associated only with state-sponsored events such as parades. Disposal methods were very crude, involving open pits located just outside the city walls.As populations increased, efforts were made to transport waste farther out from the cities. After the fall of Rome, waste collection and municipal sanitation began a decline that lasted throughout the Middle Ages. Near the end of the 14th century, scavengers were given the task of carting waste to dumps outside city walls. But this was not the case in smaller towns, where most people still threw waste into the streets. It was not until 1714 that every city in England was required to have an official scavenger. Toward the end of the 18th century in America, municipal collection of garbage was begun in Boston, New York City, and Philadelphia.Waste disposal methods were still very crude, however. Garbage collected in Philadelphia, for example, was simply dumped into the Delaware River downstream from the city. During the industrial revolution, recyclers began to form businesses and later trade associations, dealing in the collection, trade and processing of metals and paper. America's Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), a trade association with more than 1,400 member companies, traces its roots back to one such organisation founded in 1913. In the 1930s many people survived the Great Depression by peddling scraps of metal, rags and other items.In those days reuse and recycling were often economic necessities As industrial societ ies began to produce ever-growing quantities of garbage, recycling took on a new meaning. Rather than recycling materials for purely economic reasons, communities began to think about how to reduce the waste flow to landfills and incinerators. Current Conditions: Our whole concept of the business plan has on two important phases – ‘WASTE MANAGEMENT + RECYCLING’ Waste Management: Waste management is the collection, transport, processing or disposal, managing and monitoring of waste materials.The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and the process is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics. Waste management is a distinct practice from resource recovery which focuses on delaying the rate of consumption of natural resources. All wastes materials, whether solid, liquid, gaseous or radioactive fall within the remit of waste management. Recycling: Recycling is a resource recovery practice that refers to the collection and reuse of waste materials. The materials from which the items are made can be reprocessed into new products.Material for recycling are collected by us from general waste using dedicated bins and collection vehicles are sorted directly from mixed waste streams and are known as kerb-side recycling, it requires the owner of the waste to separate it into various different bins (typically wheelie bins) prior to its collection. The most common consumer products recycled include aluminium such as beverage cans, copper such as wire, steel food and aerosol cans, old steel furnishings or equipment, polyethylene and PET bottles, glass bottles and jars, paperboard cartons, newspapers, magazines and light paper, and corrugated fibre board boxes.PVC, LDPE, PP, and PS are also recyclable. These items are usually composed of a single type of material, making them relatively easy to recycle into new products. The recycling of complex products (such as computers and electronic e quipment) is more difficult, due to the additional dismantling and separation required. The type of material accepted for recycling varies by city and country. Each city and country has different recycling programs in place that can handle the various types of recyclable materials. However, certain variation in acceptance is reflected in the resale value of the material once it is reprocessed

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Personal Statment Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Statment - Personal Statement Example The psychology degree served to open up my mind because it helped me to understand human behavior from different perspectives. Most importantly, I learned critical theories that can be applied by organizations to ensure that a high performance and productivity is registered. After the successful completion of my psychology degree, I want to advance and undertake a master’s degree in management. I have the conviction that this is the right career path for me, as a management degree will open me to new realms of opportunities. A master of management degree focuses on exposing students to the modern organizational environments. Being able to understand the dynamism in modern organizational structures is of critical importance for any individual interested in holding senior managerial positions. Such knowledge will serve to augment my understanding of human behavior gained from my psychology degree. A combination of the two will prepare me adequately for a successful managerial career. I have the confidence that I will benefit immensely from the comprehensive master of management degree curriculum, and that I will graduate with the relevant knowledge required for my dream

Friday, September 27, 2019

Analysis of the deviation of prices on grocery products before and Essay

Analysis of the deviation of prices on grocery products before and during economic crisis - Essay Example In all recent global downturns, commodity prices declined sharply (see table), suggesting a disconnect between commodity prices and the ongoing slowdown of the global economy. Much of the apparent disconnect reflects the fact that emerging and developing economies, which have been responsible for the bulk of recent commodity demand growth, have so far been less affected by the slowing growth in advanced economies. More recently, the price momentum was reinforced by financial factors" (International Monetary Fund). An article from the IMF says that "In the advanced economies, headline inflation accelerated to around 4 percent in July, driven mainly by oil price rises. However, underlying or core inflation has remained contained and, with commodity prices now in retreat, inflation is expected to moderate quickly, notwithstanding the recent-probably temporary-oil price increase" (Lipsky). Theinflation resurgence has gone much further in emerging and developing economies, although risks have receded recently. Headline inflation climbed to about 9 percent in the aggregate by mid-year, and a wide range of countries are experiencing double-digit inflation. Underlying inflation has increased markedly in these economies, underscoring their less well anchored inflation expectations and the capacity pressures stemming from still-rapid growth. But the balance of risks between inflation and growth is shifting for many emerging economies" (Lipsky). The surge of prices is felt around the world; however it is felt more extremely in the emerging markets. In particular focus to commodity prices, "they have retreated recently, but are expected to remain high and volatile. The prices of major agricultural commodities have moderated, although the pass-through to food prices may be more drawn out than for oil and energy prices. Nevertheless, if the trends in commodities prices are sustained, this would help create new space for countercyclical monetary, and in some cases, budgetary policies" (Lipsky). The prices of commodities are observed to be volatile, meaning they are expected to fluctuate through the course of time. Although volatile, the figure will remain to be high compared to the normal prices. This is observed in the data above, with particular reference to the Russian commodity market. One significant factor in the determination of commodity prices is the prevailing price of oil. "Oil prices have moved off their highs, but uncertainty remains high. Crude oil prices have declined about 25 percent from the mid-July peak, but they are still about 10 percent higher, on average, than at the beginning of 2008 and oil prices have risen in recent days. Increasing signs of weaker global growth, indication of some demand response to

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Strategic Management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Strategic Management - Case Study Example Tim-BR-Marts need to develop a combative strategy and develop it fast. Any company do not have a strong strategy will lose the competition. To start the planning the analysis of the problem is most vital way to solve it. Management Processes: Tim-BR-Marts Ltd has management process, which is a process of planning and controlling the performance or execution of their business. This include: 1. Decision making processes A decision-making arises in Tim-BR-Marts because a manager is faced with a problem and another courses of action are available. So manager do study the following: a. Type of information used in decision making In deciding which option to choose, the information is very important to choose which decision to fallow. Also manager do have information relevant to his decision, and manager must have some principle on the basis of which he can choose the best alternative. Tim-BR-Marts know how many competitors are there in the market? What are the strong properties and what we ak area that they have? 1. Firm overhead Time-BR-Marts managers know overhead which all non-labor expenses require to operating such business. How many stores, electricity bills, and phone bills. All these expenses are knew by the manger. 2. Negotiation prices Negotiating on price became a factor in getting the scene to agree to deals. Tim-BR-Mats have competitive advantage of negotiation price. 3. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). This agreement gives good advantage to all component of lumber market. 4. Tim-BR-Marts has defensive strategy Defensive marketing warfare strategies are a type of marketing warfare strategy designed to protect a company's market share, profitability, product positioning, or mind share. Many companies in Tim-BR-Marts territory have attacked Tim-BR-Marts. There is many ways that Tim-BR-Marts to defend their market by principles involved: Always secure an attack with equal or greater force. If Tim-BR-Marts competitor plans to open more stores, Tim-BR should find better places to open new stores. Defend every important market. Be forever vigilant in scanning for potential attackers. Assess the strength of the competitor. Consider the amount of support that the attacker might muster from allies. The best defense is to attack you. Attack your weak spots and rebuild yourself anew. Defensive strategies should be the exclusive domain of the market leader. 5. Market Share Market share analysis is an important part of market analysis and indicates how well Tim-BR-Mart is doing in the marketplace compared to its competitors. b. Decision time frame Competitors are expanding quickly into Canada market. Price negotiated yearly. c. Level of inclusiveness in process autocratic Reduce the stress among managers and employees A more productive group while the leader is watching the growth. 3.Tim-BR-Marts has only two who make the decision. 4. Employees need quick and accurate action instead of obstacles and delays and wait only for two m anagers to make decision. 5. Employees with decision-making permission, save company time and increase client satisfaction. To solve that by 1. Local meetings 2. Business and the mission need of inclusiveness, employees help to achieve the mission, all member of the firm should adapt to the changing. E. Bounded rational model Use the knowledge that they have to the best of their abilities. Define the situation/decision to be made Identify the important

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

To compose a proposal for research paper Assignment - 1

To compose a proposal for research paper - Assignment Example Literature Review: In this research it will entail studying and analyzing previous studies conducted in a similar research topic and evaluation of the theses and hypotheses developed by the authors. Articles, books and other relevant documents to the research problem will be identified, located and analyzed to determine what has already been done thus stimulating new ideas and approaches. Further, literature review will not only provide suggested recommendation but also form a framework for interpreting research findings. I plan to conduct proposal paper with the methodology of action research strategy, which is usually conducted with the aim of solving an immediate problem, in this case, treatment of special needs children. Data will be collected systematically from sources of similar law requirements using the probabilistic method of systematic random sampling. Using this strategy, the information will be selected randomly and ranked in accordance with its applicability in this health law so that an appropriate mechanism to create the law will be developed (World report on disability 21). The selection of relevant information will be crucial in this research thereby researchers will be required to apply judgmental evaluation while observing ethical research procedures. The planned proposed paper’s variables relating to the health law addressing treatment of special needs children will undergo analysis through two procedures; conceptualization and operationalization. This technique ensures that the findings will not only be valid to the entire concept but also reliable. Variables that may affect achievement of sufficient measurement and analysis consist of extraneous variables given they may be easily overlooked by the researcher and cause errors in applicability of the law. This research will statistically minimize their effects by considering every angle while establishing relevant

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Strategic Choices for Coca-Cola Company Research Paper

Strategic Choices for Coca-Cola Company - Research Paper Example The paper "Strategic Choices for Coca-Cola Company" focuses on Coca-Cola Company's strategic choices. The company has not operated alone in the market; it has received competition from other companies like Pepsi. In order to create an edge over its competitors, Coca-Cola has adopted differentiation strategy, which in many ways has proved successful for the company. It is important to evaluate how this strategy has been successful for the company and the likely recommendations for modifications especially in line with its mission and vision. Coca-Cola has for a long time favored the resource-based concept, which has become the main avenue of its strategic goals. The company perceives its success in the market to rest on effective use of its fundamental resources such as the brands, systems, capital, and the people. The goals of the company have been drawn and implemented based largely on these fundamental resources. At the same time, the attempts of the company have largely been geare d towards creating competitive advantage by utilizing its resources to the maximum. The most characteristic of the company has been reflected in its increased use of resources to promote its brands around the globe through increased advertisement and promotion. As a result, the company has been successful in creating strong brands in the market. In order to successful carry out its strategic goals and objectives, Coca-Cola has widely adopted the differentiation strategy, and this strategic method has enabled the company to strengthen. and foster its position in the wider global market (Knol Beta p.1). Differentiation strategy according to Porter aims to make company’s products or services unique when compared to its competitors (Stonehouse and Campbell p.177). The ultimate aim of this strategy is to create customer loyalty that exhibit little price elasticity of demand due to perceived unique aspects of the products or services as compared to competitors (Stonehouse and Campb ell p.177). Effective of this strategy for the Coca-Cola can be linked to its increased and ever growing advertisement and promotion activities, which have enabled the company to create a unique market position as compared to competitors. At the same time, differentiation strategy has proved successful given Coca-Cola’s established customer loyalty base, which has built over a long period. More so, refreshment and beverages market is increasingly becoming saturated and differentiation strategy has enabled Coca-Cola to stay apt and address the needs of its customers satisfactorily (Knol Beta p.1). Weaknesses of the company have been witnessed in negative publicity, increasing health concerns, unpopularity of some brands, and poor performance in some markets (Knol Beta p.1). As a result, differentiation strategy seems to address the concerns by responding to the unique nature of concerns in each market in the areas the company operates. On the same grounds, as the competition i n the market continue to increase especially in localized areas that Coca-Cola operates, the differentiation strategy seems to give the company upper hand in terms of penetrating markets and establishing loyal and satisfied consumer base. Lastly, as health concerns and

Monday, September 23, 2019

Analyze an interveiew for a communication class Essay

Analyze an interveiew for a communication class - Essay Example The interview occurred in New York with a focus on the basic questions. The question included Billy Gate’s personal wealth as a centre of attraction embedded to disapprove common myths. The big question during the introductory part included Billy Gate’s charitable effect. Jorge Ramos inquired the reasons behind Billy’s Gates will to offer support to the poor. The immediate response from the world’s billionaire triggered a diversion in the interview to personal concern over the accumulated wealth. Billy Gates stated over F billon as a personal wealth. He also elaborated donations accounted in the health, education and other anti-poverty schemes. According to Billy Gates, wealth is a common talk and everyday conversations. He states â€Å"but the money belongs to society, and we will try to invest in breakthroughs and programs that really help the world.† The interview entailed open question at this juncture depicting a far stretched interrogation. Jorge Ramos uses different aspects of an interview to obtain personal views of Billy Gates, who is the interviewee. This approach serves to effectively address other relevant aspects of interviewing for critical discussions. The nature of open questions used shows that Jorge Ramos researched greatly on Billy Gates. The question on Billy Gates personal wealth justifies the extent of acquired information before the interview. A personal experience with such circumstance included a job interview at a prestigious mall. The interviewer asked questions in a manner suggesting the use of background information. The interview with Billy Gates elaborated different myths perceived by people around the world. Jorge Ramos used different techniques to acquire information from Billy Gates. Ramos employed informal approaches during the interview. Ramos says, â€Å"is your plan to give almost everything?† to evoke a clear response from Billy Gates and

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Business Research Methods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

Business Research Methods - Essay Example The research will have an interpretivist approach as the data collected do not address the subject fully and lack some information regarding luxury sells in emerging markets. The aim of the research will be to recognise these and investigate how the brands conduct their business to attract the target market to be brand loyal. Furthermore, this investigation will have an academic value adding to the limitation in material that is currently available around the subject. Key words Luxury Brands Internet E-commerce Emerging Market China Online Selling The Objective and Purpose of the Project The research will be created around the topic of fashion luxury brands and sale of products online. Currently the literature does not sufficiently address the strategy problem, brands deals with when expanding into other regions (such as emerging markets) online. The objective is therefore to gain an understanding of adaptations that the luxury fashion segment does online when enlarging to these coun tries. Therefore, there is a need to obtain first hand information in the form of interviews from luxury brands that are expanding towards emerging markets. That will be the feasibility in the dissertation. ... At first, luxury brands and the Internet do not seem to be a perfect match due to the fact that the internet is a mass communication medium whereas luxury tries to stay within a niche market and does not want to lose its appeal of exclusivity. Recently the internet has deeply changed the anatomy of branding and the overall marketing communications strategy of the fashion industry, from fast moving ones such as M&S and Zara to luxury brands such as Burberry and Hermes (Riley and Lacroix, 2003). Perterson et al argue that the internet is extremely efficient at building a sustainable brand identity and providing a forum giving consumers knowledge about the brand and its products. Additionally it is also necessary to point out that the internet provides a platform to build long lasting relationships with consumers. Traditionally brand management relied upon several media outlets such as TV advertising, print media and product placement on TV and movies. Marketing strategies focused on ma rket research, segmentation and positioning in order to create the perfect marketing mix. (Chaffey, 2000). Riley and Lacroix (2003) focus on the changes that online marketing brought to the marketing strategies of luxury industry. Access to information has become much quicker and consumers have become extremely demanding over the last 2 decades. Luxury brands used to have very stringent control over their brand, with an allure of exclusivity that would not allow â€Å"non-members† to enter. With the advent of internet and consequently, social networks, brand management has essentially changed in order to adapt to the new requirements of online marketing and its operational system. It is essential to any luxury company to

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Harvard business publishing Essay Example for Free

Harvard business publishing Essay In mid-September of 2010, Emily Harris, vice president of New Heritage Doll Company’s production division, was weighing project proposals for the company’s upcoming capital budgeting meetings in October. Two proposals stood out based on their potential to strengthen the division’s innovative product lines and drive future growth. However, due to constraints on financial and managerial resources, Harris knew it was possible that the firm’s capital budgeting committee would decline to approve both projects. She also knew that New Heritage’s licensing and retail divisions would promote compelling projects of their own. Consequently, Harris had to be prepared to recommend one of her projects over the other. The Doll Industry Revenues in the U.S. toy and game industry totaled $42 billion in 2008 and were projected to increase by 4.6% per year to $52.5 billion by 2013. The market was divided into two broad segments: video games (48%) and traditional toys and games (52%). The second segment was further divided into infant/preschool toys (14.5%), dolls (14.1%), outdoor sports toys (12.3%), and other toys games (59.1%) including arts and crafts, plush toys, action figures, vehicles, and youth electronics. The U.S. market for toys and games was dominated by large global enterprises that enjoyed economies of scale in design, production, and distribution. Revenues were highly seasonal; the largest selling season in the United States coincided with the winter holiday period. Within the toy and game segment, U.S. retail sales of dolls totaled $3.1 billion in 2008 and were projected to grow by 3% per year to $3.6 billion by 2013. The doll category included large, soft, and mini dolls, as well as doll clothing and other accessories. The phenomenon of â€Å"age compression†Ã¢â‚¬â€ the tendency of younger children to acquire dolls that had traditionally been designed for older girls—reduced growth in the â€Å"baby-doll† sub-segment. Competition among doll producers was vigorous, as a small number of large producers targeted similar demographics and marketed their dolls through the same media. Lasting franchise value for a branded line of dolls was rare; the enormous success of Barbie ® dolls was an obvious exception. More recently and on a much smaller ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ HBS Professor Timothy Luehrman and HBS MBA Heide Abelli prepared this case solely as a basis for class discussion and not as an endorsement, a source of primary data, or an illustration of effective or ineffective management. Th is case, though based on real events, is fictionalized, and any resemblance to actual persons or entities is coincidental. There are occasional references to actual companies in the narration. Copyright  © 2010 Harvard Business School Publishing. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, call 1-800-545-7685, write Harvard Business Publishing, Boston, MA 02163, or go to http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the permission of Harvard Business Publishing. Harvard Business Publishing is an affiliate of Harvard Business School. Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact [emailprotected] Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting 4212 | New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting scale, New Heritage also had created a durable franchise for its line of heirloom dolls. But the popularity of most doll lines waned after a few years. New Heritage Dolls By 2009, New Heritage had grown to 450 employees and generated approximately $245 million of revenue1 and $27 million of operating profit from three divisions: production, retailing, and licensing. The production division, discussed further below, designed and produced dolls and doll accessories. The retailing division offered a unique â€Å"intergenerational experience† for grandmothers, mothers, and daughters, centered upon the character histories and storylines of the company’s dolls and delivered through an online website (42%), a mail-order paper catalog (33%), and a network of retail stores (25%). In fiscal 2009, the retailing division generated roughly $190 million of revenue and $4.8 million of operating profit. The licensing division was started in 1998, and represented the company’s newest and most profitable division. It sought to extend the New Heritage brand and capitalize on high levels of customer loyalty by selectively licensing the company’s doll characters and themes to a variety of media that reached the firm’s target demographic of toddler to pre-teen girls. In fiscal year 2009 the licensing division generated $24.5 million of revenue and $14.5 million in operating profit. New Heritage’s Production Division Production was New Heritage’s largest division as measured by total assets, and easily its most asset-intensive. Approximately 75% of the division’s sales were made to the company’s retailing division, with the remaining 25% comprising private label goods manufactured for other firms. Table 1 summarizes the division’s various sources of revenue and operating income. Table 1 Production Division Data: Revenue ($ millions) Operating Income ($ millions) New Heritage’s dolls and accessories were offered under distinct brands with different price points, targeting girls between the ages of 3 and 12 years. The company’s baby dolls were generally priced from $15–$30, and were offered to younger girls in earlier stages of development. These dolls typically came with a â€Å"birth certificate† and a short personal history. Dolls in the higher-end of this category incorporated technology that produced a limited amount of speech and motion. For the 1 The division revenue figures include approximately $95 million of internal sales within divisions which are eliminated when considering consolidated revenue for the company. BRIEFCASES | HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact [emailprotected] Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 The New Heritage Doll Company was founded in 1985 by Ingrid Beckwith, a retired psychologist specializing in child development and the grandmother of two young girls. Dr. Beckwith believed the dolls produced by the major toy companies did little to develop girls’ imagination or foster a positive self-image, so she created a line of dolls with unique storylines and wholesome themes. Dr. Beckwith’s dolls struck a chord among mothers and grandmothers who also rejected the dated, clichà ©d images portrayed by the popular dolls of the day. New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting | 4212 New Heritage outsourced much of its production to a select number of contract manufacturers in Asia. To ensure product quality and safety, the company maintained a fulltime staff to oversee material sourcing, production, and quality control on site at each of its manufacturing partners. Manufacturing activities that required precise tolerances or proprietary processes, along with all the creative elements (design and product prototyping, for example), were handled in-house at the company’s headquarters facilities in Sacramento, California. Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 Capital Budgeting at New Heritage New Heritage’s capital budgeting process retained some of the informality that characterized the company’s early years as an innovative startup. As the company grew, deliberate steps were taken to decentralize some of the project approval process and increase spending authority at the division level. However, large and/or strategic spending proposals were reviewed at the corporate level by a capital budgeting committee consisting of the CEO, CFO, COO, the controller, and the division presidents. The committee examined projects for consistency with New Heritage’s business strategy and sought to balance the needs and priorities of each division against practical financial and organizational constraints. The committee also sought to understand project interdependencies and the potential for a given investment to strengthen the whole company, not solely the division proposing it. New Heritage’s capital budget was set by the board of directors in consultation with top officers, who in turn sought input from each of the divisions. The capital and operating budgets were linked; historically, the capital budget comprised approximately 15% of the company’s EBITDA. The committee had limited discretion to expand or contract the budget, according to its view of the quality of the investment opportunities, competitive dynamics, and general industry conditions. Before being considered by the committee, projects were described, analyzed, and summarized in self-contained proposal documents prepared by each division. These contained business descriptions, at least five years of operating and cash flow forecasts, spending requirements by asset category, personnel requirements, calculations of standard investment metrics, and identification of key project risks and milestones. Financial Analyses Financial analysis began with operating forecasts developed with oversight from New Heritage operating managers. Revenue projections were derived from forecasts of future prices and volumes. Fixed and variable costs were estimated separately, by expense category. Forecasts of working capital requirements were likewise vetted by line managers, who paid particular attention to a project’s requirements for various types of inventory. Forecasts for fixed assets and related depreciation charges were developed in cooperation with analysts reporting to the controller. HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING | BRIEFCASES Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact [emailprotected] $75–$150 price range, New Heritage produced a line of heirloom-quality dolls and accessories. These were designed to appeal to older girls and to convey a sense of cultural and family tradition among grandmothers, mothers, and daughters. The heirloom dolls had more elaborate accessories and personal histories. Finally, the company offered a line of high-end dolls based on fictional â€Å"celebrities,† each associated with a charitable cause and embracing more contemporary fashion trends. These dolls targeted girls in the so-called â€Å"tween† age range of 8–12 years, and also were priced from $75–$150. Like the heirloom dolls, celebrity dolls also came with more elaborate stories and accessories. 4212 | New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting New Heritage assigned discount rates to projects according to a subjective assessment of each project’s risk. High-, medium-, and low-risk categories for each division were associated with a corresponding discount rate set by the capital budgeting committee in consultation with the corporate treasurer. Assessments of each project’s risk were made at the division level, but subject to review by the capital committee. Factors considered in the assessment of a project’s risk included, for example, whether it required new consumer acceptance or new technology, high levels of fixed costs and hence high breakeven production volumes, the sensitivity of price or volume to macroeconomic recession, the anticipated degree of price competition, and so forth. In 2010, â€Å"medium†-risk projects in the production division received a discount rate of 8.4%. High- and low-risk projects were assessed at 9.0% and 7.7%, respectively. Projects that created value indefinitely, given continuing investment, were treated as going concerns with a perpetual life. That is, NPV calculations included a terminal value computed as the value of a perpetuity growing at a constant rate. However, to preserve an element of conservatism, the capital committee generally insisted on relatively low perpetual growth rates – lower than New Heritage’s historical growth and lower than near-term growth forecasts for a given division. Investment Opportunities in the Production Division Emily Harris was focused on two of the production division’s most attractive current proposals. The first involved expanding the successful Match My Doll Clothing Line to include matching allseason clothing for tween girls and their favorite dolls. The second involved a new initiative, the Design Your Own Doll line, which employed web-based doll-design software to let users â€Å"customize† a doll’s features to the customer’s specifications. Match My Doll Clothing Line Expansion The Match My Doll Clothing line originally consisted of a few sets of matching doll and child clothing and accessories for warm weather. It quickly became successful after the daughters of a few celebrities were spotted and photographed wearing items from the line, and girls’ magazines included some of the line in â€Å"what’s hot to wear† sections. Given recent publicity, Marcy McAdams, the brand manager responsible for the line, believed the timing was perfect to expand. Specifically, McAdams proposed to create an â€Å"All Seasons Collection† of apparel and gear covering all four seasons of the year. She expected the new offerings to be at least as profitable as the existing line, since its current popularity would make it possible to maintain premium prices. She also hoped to take advantage of off-peak discounts offered by some suppliers and contract manufacturers as they tried to smooth their capacity utilization. In the same fashion, McAdams argued the expansion would help reduce, or at least not exacerbate, the seasonality in New Heritage’s sales and earnings. BRIEFCASES | HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact [emailprotected] Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 Operating projections for a given project were used to develop cash flow forecasts that would underpin calculations of net present value (NPV), internal rates of return (IRR), payback period, and other investment metrics. Cash flow forecasts were intended to capture the incremental effect of a proposed project on the firm’s cash flow for each year within the forecast period. That is, each project’s cash flow forecasts excluded non-cash items, such as depreciation charges, and nonincremental items such as sunk costs (i.e., costs that would be incurred regardless of whether a given project was undertaken or not). The cash flow forecasts were computed on an after-corporate-tax basis, but excluded all financing charges. Some elements of the cash flow forecasts were prepared with assistance from treasury analysts, but most of the necessary adjustments were well understood by division staff. New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting | 4212 To exploit the current popularity of the original Match My Doll Clothing line, especially given the fickle nature of children’s fashion trends, McAdams believed the opportunity had to be exploited without delay. Her investment proposal contained relatively large outlays for RD, market research, and marketing to maximize the probability of quick acceptance and longer-term success for the follow-on line. Upfront investment expenditures are summarized in Table 2. Table 2 Match My Doll Clothing Extension Outlays The RD and marketing expenditures would be deductible for tax purposes at New Heritage’s 40% corporate tax rate. The property, plant and equipment was expected to have a useful life of 10 years; the associated depreciation charges, shown in Exhibit 1, were based on the modified accelerated cost recovery system (â€Å"MACRS†) allowed by the IRS. Working capital requirements, shown in Table 2 for 2010 and in Exhibit 1 for subsequent years were based largely on recent historical experience with the original Match My Doll Clothing line. Finally, given the proven success of Match My Doll Clothing, Harris believed the project entailed moderate risk—that is, about the same degree of risk as the production division’s existing business as a whole. Design Your Own Doll This initiative targeted existing New Heritage customers, many of whom owned several of the company’s heirloom dolls. The company’s research showed that, when asked what features (e.g., appearance, ethnicity, â€Å"life story,† etc.) New Heritage should give to future dolls, loyal customers’ responses had a high correlation with their own personal data. That is, girls wanted dolls like themselves. Further research suggested that many loyal customers would purchase yet another doll if they could customize the doll’s features to create a â€Å"one-of-a-kind† addition to a girl’s or family’s existing collection of dolls. It also promised to increase the girl’s pride in and identification with the doll, both because of their shared features and because of the girl’s participation in creating the doll. This in turn further cemented customer loyalty. The customization process would begin with a new section of New Heritage’s website, where proprietary design software enabled the customer to select physical attributes of the doll such as hair color, hair length style, skin color, eye shape, eye color, and other facial features. The software could combine selected features and produce a photo-realistic image showing the finished doll with user-selected accessories. The customer could zoom in or out on the image and rotate it to see different aspects. The software made it easy to try out different combinations of features and accessories before making a purchase. Elizabeth Holtz, brand manager for heirloom dolls, was very excited about the project. She observed, â€Å"A girl’s relationship with her favorite doll is often partly mommy and partly big sister. Either way, having your doll look more like you is really powerful. And there’s excitement in the experience: exploring the website, naming the doll-to-be, selecting her first outfit†¦even the anticipation of waiting for the new doll to arrive. I really think this is big.† Holtz also believed that the dolls could command a premium price. â€Å"Customers will naturally expect to pay more [for a HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING | BRIEFCASES Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact [emailprotected] Initial Expenditures ($ thousands) 4212 | New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting custom doll],† she said. Market research with focus groups revealed significant enthusiasm for the product concept and supported the notion of premium prices. The web-based software tools and order entry system required New Heritage to make significant modifications to its existing technology infrastructure, expand its webhosting capacity, and modify the terms of its third-party service agreements to ensure a higher level of service quality. The majority of the RD expenditures shown below were related to software development, hardware upgrades, and web design. The development time involved, including product testing, was expected to be approximately 12 months. Initial outlays, some of which occurred in 2010 and some in 2011 As with Match My Doll Clothing, the required RD and marketing costs would be tax deductible. Manufacturing equipment had to be ordered by the end of 2010 to be ready for production at the beginning of 2012. While New Heritage had the option to pay for custom equipment in quarterly installments, the firm could get a substantial discount by paying for the equipment up front, in 2010. Figures in Table 3 and Exhibit 2 reflect the discounted cost of the equipment. To support the forecasted level of sales, substantial investment in working capital (primarily work in process inventory of partially manufactured dolls) would be required beginning in 2011. And still more equipment would have to be purchased and installed no later than 2014. In years 2015 and following, investments in working capital and equipment would revert to patterns familiar from the production division’s traditional lines of dolls. To complete development work, Holtz planned to use some of the company’s existing IT staff. The majority of the work would take place during calendar 2011. The number of people and their fully loaded costs are shown Table 4. These costs were not included by Holtz in the initial outlays shown in Table 3 or in the forecasts presented in Exhibit 2. The development personnel Holtz needed were considered â€Å"corporate† resources and were almost certainly available to work on the project. Table 4 Design Your Own Doll Development Personnel, ($ 000s) Application Development Personnel Costs: Web Application Developers Database Manager Systems Integration Specialist Total Cost BRIEFCASES | HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING Purchased for use on the MSc Business Valuation, at Imperial College London. Taught by James Sefton, from 21-Aug-2013 to 31-Dec-2013. Order ref F211857. Usage permitted only within these parameters otherwise contact [emailprotected] However, even a limited degree of customization increased manufacturing complexity and expense. Further, because of the low production runs and volume, fixed costs on a per unit basis were expected to be relatively high. Consequently, the breakeven volume for the project was also expected to be high. New Heritage Doll Company: Capital Budgeting | 4212 Finally, Holtz needed to give Harris her assessment of the project’s riskiness. On the one hand, Design Your Own Doll had a relatively long payback period, introduced some untested elements into the manufacturing process, and depended on near-flawless operation of new customer-facing software and user interfaces. If the project stumbled for some reason, New Heritage risked damaging relationships with its best customers. On the other hand, the project had a relatively modest fixed cost ratio, and it played to the company’s key strength—creating a unique experience for its consumers. Educational material supplied by The Case Centre Copyright encoded A76HM-JUJ9K-PJMN9I Order reference F211857 Emily Harris still needed to complete her review and financial analysis of the two proposals. McAdams and Holtz were in frequent touch with Harris and both had offered to respond to any questions she might have about the proposals: the business case, the financial projections, the operating details, or anything else. Harris expected that she would indeed have some follow-up questions as she worked through her financial analyses. She also knew that her final recommendation might disappoint some executives within the division, who would scrutinize it closely. It had to be well-supported.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Health Essays Treatment OCD Disorder

Health Essays Treatment OCD Disorder Treatment OCD Disorder Introduction My research intention is to compose a literature review aimed at finding the best existing method for the treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive disorder (OCD). OCD is an anxiety disorder characterized by intrusive and distressing thoughts, urges and images as well as repetitive behaviours aimed at decreasing the discomfort caused by these obsessive thoughts. So in order to achieve my research intention I will be comparing and analysing a wide assortment of current and previous literature to distinguish the most favourable treatment method, where advantages outweigh all disadvantages. The key features of OCD as already discussed, include obsessional doubt, the need to feel in control, and risk aversion, and these features have significant impact on the successful application of both pharmacological and behavioural treatments. Treatment History of Obsessive-compulsive disorder Until the 1960’s OCD was considered a refractory psychiatric condition, neither psychotherapy nor a variety of pharmacological treatments had proven successful with the symptoms, however since around 1975, much progress has been made in improving the effectiveness of these treatments. Prior to 1980, OCD was unresponsive to psychotherapy, anxiolytic drugs, and anti-psychotic drugs and had a poor record of success. Today although treatment of this disorder remains challenging, the effectiveness of both behavioural and pharmacological therapies has been significantly improved. Treatments There are many methods available for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) arguably the most popular of these being administration of antidepressants, either taken singularly or a combination of 2. Also Psychotherapy strategies including both behavioural and cognitive treatments where it is common (and often claimed to achieve better results) for the two to be combined, this is known as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). I will then go on to investigate Combination treatments. This being the combination of antidepressants and a CBT treatment to see if a combination of the two is more successful than using either alone. Alternative strategies are available for OCD sufferers and although these are not as successful as some of the already discussed, they are worth mentioning as they can provide relief to patients, also when added to another more established treatment better results may be achieved. I will also be touching on psychosurgery (also known as neurosurgery), and Electro Convulsive therapy, which although are only used in the most extreme cases, are still worth mentioning as, when used, have shown significant efficacy in the treatment of OCD. Pharmacotherapy, the uses of antidepressants for the treatment of Obsessive-compulsive disorder. Currently in the UK only 5 drugs are licensed for the treatment of OCD, They include the Tricyclic antidepressant (TCA) Clomipramine and the Selective Serotonin reuptake inhibiting (SSRI) antidepressants Fluoxetine, Sertraline, Paroxetine, and Fluvoxamine which can be collectively labelled as STI’s, these STI’s represent the cornerstone of Pharmacological treatment in patients with OCD. A good reason for using antidepressants in OCD treatment is that very often there will be underlying depressive disorder. There is a substantial amount of evidence derived from a large number of placebo-controlled clinical trials, to indicate that drugs, which preferentially block the re-uptake of Serotonin, are effective in ameliorating the symptoms of OCD. The evidence in favour of other antidepressants without potent serotonergic properties is poor. Clomipramine was the first agent to receive food and drug administration (FDA) approval for the treatment of OCD, and was also the first medication to demonstrate consistent efficacy in the treatment of patients with OCD (Clomipramine collaborative study group) it has been the most extensively studied medication for the treatment of OCD. Studies in OCD treatment that have compared two antidepressants have been very small and yet an apparent superiority of Clomipramine emerges. In a small three-way study by Thoren et al (94), which compared Clomipramine with Nontriptyline and Placebo, found there was significant effect for Clomipramine but Nontriptyline appeared no different from Placebo. However a significant difference between active treatments is not normally expected unless very large numbers are included in studies. Clomipramine which affects both 5-HT and non adrenalin may be more effective than SSRI’s although does have more side effects which is the biggest disincentive, these include constipation, dry mouth, tremor and weight gain, however these side effects can be used to advantage in patients who cannot deal with the agitation of the SSRI’s During trials, drop out rates due to side effects from Clomipramine are consistently higher than for the SSRI’s. (Pata et al 90) Although there are only rare reports of less efficacy, the issue of how long to maintain treatment before a trial off medication has not been well explored. The only data that exists in this area comes from 3 rather small-blinded discontinuation studies. All were done with Clomipramine. (Pato, Zohar, Kadouch, Zohar Murphy 1988) in each case, the majority of the patients upwards of 90% had their symptoms return within 4-7 weeks of discontinuing medication. The efficacy of SSRI’s versus those of the TCA’s, for these indications is unstudied, further research is required fully to assess the place of the SSRI’s in the treatment and understanding of OCD. Fluvoxamine has been shown to be significantly better than Placebo and equal in efficacy to Tricyclic’s such as Clomipramine however Fluvoxamine compared to Clomipramine is found to have fewer side effects and is a first line agent in the treatment of OCD. More than 50% of patients with OCD are significantly improved after a trial with Fluvoxamine, however not all patients benefit from this treatment- In a single-blind study of Fluvoxamine 6 of 10 in patients with severe OCD were ‘responders’ on the basis of a clinical rating of ‘much’ or very ‘much’ improved. The most commonly reported side effects for Fluvoxamine are daytime drowsiness, nausea, insomnia, and headache. However these seem to be common side effects of all the SSRI’s. The effects of Fluoxetine in OCD have been studied in a number of single blind and open trials, and the results indicate that Fluoxetine is effective in reducing the symptoms of OCD; these results also appear to be dependent of the drugs antidepressant effect. (Liebowitz et al 1990, Riddle et al 1990) While these studies suggest that drugs with Serotonin re-uptake blocking properties are effective in OCD, they do not bear on which of these drugs may be more effective or better tolerated. Although no such comparative trials have been published, Jenike and associates (1990) indirectly compared Fluoxetine with Clomipramine in OCD symptoms in a recent meta-analysis. The data came from two separate open studies of each compound in OCD, and the special statistical techniques used suggested that Clomipramine had a slightly superior therapeutic effect. Fluoxetine however was considerably bettered tolerated. Fewer data is available on Fluoxetine, ideally more research is needed to better understand its place in OCD treatment. Paroxetine efficacy reports back to Wheaden et al (1993) however a more recent study (Zohar et al 1996) reported that in a 12 week acute trail comparing patients on Paroxetine, Clomipramine and Placebo, only 16% of Paroxetine patients had drug related adverse experiences, compared to 28% on Clomipramine, and although generally well tolerated, there have been some reports of severe withdrawal symptoms, even when done gradually. This however may be related to the fact Paroxetine is a newer FDA approved agent for OCD, and there have not been as many published findings of its efficacy compared to other agents available. Sertraline has generally shown significant improvement in OCD symptoms when compared to placebo (Greist et al 95), and although Sertraline does have the smallest effect size, with regard to side effects it is well tolerated. However unlike Fluoxetine, Fluvoxamine and Paroxetine there are no head to head trials comparing it to other antiobsessionals. Some advantages of the SSRI’s are that they have fewer clinically meaningful interactions, for example, they do not potentiate the effects of alcohol, or other sedatives- (Cooper et al 1989), however as not all of the SSRI’s have been tested with all drugs generalisations are difficult. One meaningful global measure of how well medications are tolerated is the number of patients who have dropped out of double-blind trials because of adverse effects. Most double blind studies of SSRI’s have had more dropouts among patients treated with tricyclic antidepressants such as Clomipramine. Within the SSRI’s the highest dropout rate was associated with Fluvoxamine and the lowest with Paroxetine. While the number of dropouts provides useful information, this variable is also important for the examination of specific side effects. When considering a combination of 2 types of drugs there is rarely any rationale for prescribing together more than one drug from the same general class. Fatalities have been reported following the combination of Clomipramine and Tranylcypromine. Other combinations can lead to adverse effects. TCA’s and SSRI’s have been tried together but there is a high risk of adverse interactions. If the two-antidepressant classes were to be co prescribed the safest choice would appear to be Citalopram, or low dose Sertraline that have little or no effect on the metabolism of TCA. (Taylor 95) ‘Triple therapy’ has also been tried, one example being Clomipramine, Tryptophan and Lithium. When considering Pharmacotherapy treatment failure, comparative dropout rates rather than number of intensity of side effects, may be a good indirect measure of the tolerability of the medication, the results in this regard have been mixed but very interesting. In comparative studies between Fluvoxamine and Clomipramine (Freeman et al 1994, Koran et al 1996) dropout rates were virtually identical with both medications around 15%. However in the meta-analysis conducted by Greist et al 1995 they note that analysis of the pooled multicenter studies revealed the lowest rates of dropout in the Clomipramine group at 12%, followed by Fluvoxamine at 24%. There are some data on the characteristics of patients who are more resistant to treatment or poor treatment responders, but more work is needed in this area. For example, many OCD patients have shown poor response to Pharmacotherapy in some studies. (Jenike 93, Riccardi et al 92), and more recently (Black, Manahan, Clancy, Baker, and Gabel 97) Psychotherapy in the treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive disorders a Cognitive-Behavioural approach. Research has shown that psychological and social treatment can produce definite and measurable benefits (Kingdon et al 1994). Cognitive behavioural therapy leads to marked improvement in the large majority of clients with OCD who complete the treatment, and has been estimated that between 80/90% of patients will respond to CBT (Abramowitz 97) In Meyers (1966) treatment plan hospital staff actually stopped the patients from performing rituals-this treatment procedure was labelled ‘exposure and response prevention’ (EX/RP). However this kind of intervention is no longer typical or recommended. Actual physical prevention is too coercive to be acceptable-and reliance upon this technique may limit generalizability to non-therapy situations in which staff are non-present to prevent rituals. Although exposure reduces obsessional distress it is not so effective in reducing compulsions. Exposure and response prevention (EX/RP) is the psychological treatment of choice for OCD. Although other interventions (Cognitive approaches) have received some attention in the literature EX/RP has received by far the strongest empirical support for treating. Despite documented efficacy of EX/RP treatment 25% of individuals with OCD decline to accept this form of CBT. Efforts to understand the factors influencing acceptability of exposure treatment are indicated so that more clients may profit from this powerful remedy. Separate effects of exposure and response prevention for OCD have been examined, treatment that combined both exposure and response prevention was found to be more effective. (Foa, Steketee, Grayson, Turner, Latimer 1984) With non-ritualisers, exposure did not prove particularly effective. Emmelkamp Kwee (1977) noted only 1 of 3 patients showing improvement after 5 one-hour sessions. Although exposure reduces obsessional distress it is not as effective as reducing compulsions. It is generally held that patients with obsessions alone, rather than obsessions and compulsions are more difficult to treat using conventional behavioural procedures. However recent research is inconsistent with this view as patients in 2 studies evidenced some improvement in compulsive behaviour with this technique. (Marks, Crowe, Young Dewhurst 69) CBT has been found to be more helpful than drugs for individuals who complete it. About 75% of clients who complete CBT do well both immediately after treatment and in the long run, showing lasting improvement of about 65% fewer symptoms on average-also no side effects. Drugs, mainly antidepressants in this condition, are easy to administer and are more rapidly effective than the main forms of behaviour therapy, response prevention and gradual exposure. However unlike drug treatment, once behaviour therapy has been used and shown to be effective, relapse is much less likely to occur even after treatment is withdrawn completely. A number of other exposure-orientated procedures, such as paradoxical intention, imaginal flooding, satiation, and aversion relief have been found relatively unsuccessful with OCD. Procedures aimed at blocking or punishing obsessions and compulsions such as though stopping, aversion therapy, and covert sensitisation have also been relatively unsuccessful with OCD. (Emmelkamp Kwee 1977, Kenny, Mowbray Lalani 1978) Conversely Victor Meyer treated clients with OCD with prolonged exposure to situations of objects that evoked obsessional distress and prevention of rituals-the treatment was very successful in 10 of its 15 cases. (Meyer 1966, Meyer Levy 1973, Meyer, Levy Schnurer 1974) Another downfall that the literature indicates is that OCD patients who have additional psychological problems are less likely to respond favourably to CBT, these include depression, anxiety or poor judgement, and unfortunately these often coexist with OCD symptoms. Combination treatments, Antidepressants CBT in Obsessive-Compulsive disorder. As already discussed, effective treatments for OCD consist mainly of Cognitive behavioural therapy and antidepressants. In order to maximise the effects of treatment, antidepressants and CBT are frequently combined in clinical practice, despite the fact that scientific support for this is surprisingly thin. Preliminary findings of a controlled, double blind, multicenter comparison of Clomipramine, exposure therapy and their combination indicate that exposure therapy have stronger effects than Clomipramine-both procedures combined are equivalent to exposure therapy alone. (Foa et al 93) Also Combination of EX/RP was not enhanced by the addition of cognitive therapy (Emmelkamp Beens 1991). However findings by Van Oppen et al (95) show that cognitive approaches compared to EX/RP indicated that cognitive therapy alone was as effective as exposure therapy. A recent meta-analysis (Van Balkom et al 94) showed that CBT was superior to antidepressants on self-ratings, also compared with CBT; antidepressants have a higher dropout rate and higher relapse rate after stopping treatment. Thus when given alone CBT is more effective than antidepressants. However meta-analysis have shortcomings, firstly since studies are combined, there is always a mixture of the specific study details such as the way in which treatments were implemented, also studies differ in length, therapist involvement, and strictness of ritual control, leaving many reasons to believe that the results of meta-analysis are not conclusive. Conversely one large multicenter study carried out by the national institute of mental health compared 2 forms of psychotherapy with antidepressant drug treatment, all treatments were approximately equally effective over the period of study when mildly ill people were assessed, however, with more severely ill patients, drug treatment was clearly superior to psychotherapy. (Elkin et al 1989) Third line treatments-Electro compulsive therapy and Psychosurgery for Obsessive-compulsive disorder. If psychosocial and pharmacological treatments do not work, third-line treatment includes Psychosurgery and electro convulsive therapy (ECT). Although rarely used electro convulsive therapy (ECT) has been shown to be of benefit in some who failed to respond adequately to Pharmacological or Psychotherapy interventions (Strober et al 98). In many cases there will be temporary amnesia post treatment and mild headache but otherwise ECT is free from side effects. This makes it distinct from the anti-depressants, and it is for this reason that ECT is still used. Studies using ECT however lack any control data that allow a conclusion to be reached about its efficacy. Psychosurgery like ECT has aroused a great deal of controversy. Results suggest that 25-30% of the patients who previously were unresponsive to medication and behavioural treatments are significantly improved after psychosurgery, although should always be considered as a last resort, studies suggest that complications are relatively rare and that neuropsychological and personality functioning is not adversely effected by psychosurgery Some Conclusions. In sum, there are 2 very good treatments for OCD. CBT seems to produce more improvement than medication, and improvements are more lasting after treatment is stopped. Medication however does take less time and effort in the short run than CBT but may have to be continued indefinitely. Medication is not emotionally challenging but you must tolerate side effects, EX/RP requires determination and is emotionally challenging. With regards to treatment failure Foa et al (1983) argue that it is only when investigation is carried out of the differences between those who succeed and those who fail, that light can be thrown on the mechanisms involved in the treatment and more effective treatment strategies be developed, as it is evident that new and more effective pharmacological and psychotherapy strategies are needed for the treatment-refractory OCD patient.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Salvidor Dali :: essays research papers

Salvador Dali was born in Figueres Spain in 1904 to Don Salvador Dali y Cuse and Felipa. In 1907, his sister Ana Maria was born; she was his only sibling. At an early age Dali began his strange behavior, he was prone to tantrums, self-induced coughing fits and wet the bed until age eight, as he knew this upset his father. After a year at public school, Dali was still unable to read and write he was then sent to a Christian school, however that did not improve his scholastic abilities (BBC). In 1914, German artist Sigfrid Burman gave Dali his first set of oil paints while the family was vacationing in Cadaques, Spain (daliprint). Five years later, Dali had his first public exhibition in the style of Cubism (duke). In the early 1920’s, his sister was his only female model. At this time he was attending the Madrid Fine Arts school as his father wanted him to gain skill to become a teacher. It was here that he met Luis Burnel and Lorca who would eventually replace his sister as chief model (BBC). In 1925, Dali had his first stand alone exhibit at the Galery of Dalmare (Duke). In 1929 and 1930, Dali collaborated with his friend Louis Burnel on motion pictures enabling him to create jarring juxtapositions, these films were Un Chien Andalau (1929) and L’age’d’or (1930). These films were considered the surrealist style and L’age’d’or caused riots in the streets of Paris (BBC). It was around this time that he met and eloped with Gala Eluard, it is rumored that they never consummated their marriage, as Dali could not stand to be touched. Never the less they remained together for fifty-three years (BBC). In the 1930’s Dali expanded upon surrealism calling his work â€Å"critical paranoia†. According to this theory one should cultivate genuine delusion as in critical paranoia while keeping in the back of ones mind that the control of reason and will has been deliberate set aside. He thought this reasoning should not only apply to art but also to ones daily life (Duke). In 1937, he moved to Italy and was expelled from the Surrealist ranks by Brenton, this was because of his support for Franco during the Spanish Civil War. This was a busy year for Dali as he also wrote a screenplay for the Marx Brothers. In 1938, while visiting London Dali met Sigmond Freud and proceeds to make several drawings of him (Encarta).

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Death Penalty;Does It Deter Crime :: essays research papers

Does the Death Penalty Deter Crime? Scientific studies have consistently failed to find convincing evidence that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than other punishments. The most recent survey of research findings on the relation between the death penalty and homicide rates, conducted for the United Nations in 1988 and updated in 1996, concluded: "Research has failed to provide scientific proof that executions have a greater deterrent effect than life imprisonment and such proof is unlikely to be forthcoming. The evidence as a whole still gives no positive support to the deterrent hypothesis..." (Reference: Roger Hood, The Death Penalty: A World-wide Perspective, Oxford, Clarendon Press, revised edition, 1996, p. 238, paragraph 328) w.web.amnesty.org The death penalty has never deterred crime. When the death penalty was reinstated in the 1970’s crime rates were sky high. In research conducted for the United Nations in 1996, crime rates were the same as those in the 70’s. Depending on the exact year since the death penalty was reinstated in the U.S. crime rates have dipped or risen 10-15%. Normally the ladder. In the United Sates we call the death penalty, capital punishment. The word capital speaks of the head. This is because throughout history the most common way of executing criminals was by severing the head. Now when I hear capital punishment I will be reminded of something even more grotesque and morbid than previously. In a survey taken by prisoners serving life terms, 55-60% said that they would have rather received the death penalty than life terms. www.religioustolerance.org/execute.htm It seems to me that, since more prisoners would prefer to be killed, it is a lesser form of punishment. However that by no means makes this cruel and degrading form of punishment acceptable. We are denying the right of life. Regardless of the fact that those on death row did take that right away from another human being, it is not our place to take theirs.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

The Australian Exchange Rate :: essays research papers fc

The Australian Exchange Rate Introduction: What factors affect the demand and supply of Australian dollars in the foreign exchange markets? Distinguish between the possible causes and effects of currency depreciation and a currency appreciation on the Australian economy. What forces have come into play, if any, in the past four months that have affected the value of the Australian dollar? Exchange Rate: â€Å"The rate at which one unit of domestic currency is exchanged for a given amount of foreign currency† A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR Until 1971, the Australian dollar (AUD) was â€Å"pegged† to the British pound. This meant that the AUD rose or fell in line with the pound. In 1971, the AUD became pegged to the US dollar instead. These currencies were fixed currencies, which meant that the Australian currency would only change value when a major world currency also changed. This system lasted only until 1974 when the AUD became pegged to a trade-weighted selection of other currencies. This was still a fixed currency. In 1976 this selection of currencies became moveable. Small shifts were able to take place when needed. In 1983 the AUD became a floating currency. This means that the value of the dollar is determined by supply and demand. Initially, the Reserve Bank of Australia was not intended to intervene in the market however since then it has been deemed necessary for intervention to take place, usually to prop up the price. FACTORS AFFECTING SUPPLY AND DEMAND OF AUSTRALIAN DOLLARS With a floating exchange rate, such as Australia’s, supply and demand factors largely determine the dollar’s equilibrium price. The exchange rate is sensitive to changes in both demand and supply, which can cause changes in the equilibrium exchange rate. Another factor, which can affect the supply and demand of Australian dollars, is intervention in the market by the Reserve Bank of Australia. DEMAND The demand for Australia’s currency in the foreign exchange market (Forex) is a derived demand. It is derived from the demand for a country’s exports of goods and services and its assets. In simple terms, people who may have a demand for the Australian dollar could include: _ Foreigners wanting to purchase Australian exports _ International tourists visiting Australia _ International investors wishing to purchase Australian shares or property _ International firms setting up branches or expanding in Australia _ Speculators and investors who think the value of the Australian dollar will rise in hope of making a profit.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Judy Bradys I Want a Wife Essay

In Judy Brady’s â€Å"I Want a Wife† she talks about the tasks of a desired wife. There are certain things and duties required for a housewife to do. Brady describes all the helpful things done for a husband and children without even realizing all the responsibility and what she is doing. No one ever acknowledges that things done by a wife can be done by someone who was not a wife, but instead a man. Judy realizes she supports her husband so he can go back to school. She keeps the house clean. She has to be sensitive to the needs of a man in general. There have been many studies about gender roles in a marriage. The wife seems to do a lot. Women feel sometimes they do too much. Married couples should be able to work together. Sometime when the wife does everything it puts a constraint on the marriage. A marriage not only needs to survive, but thrive. In a marriage a husband and wife should be able share the same roles as needed. Society has a perceived notion of this. Everything today in a marriage should be able to be shifted back and forth as needed. This is all evidence that a marriage should be between two people who are willing to share all family responsibilities. It is a married couple’s responsibility to take control of any major problems they may have prior to marriage if possible. Research has shown that when men change roles in the family, there are many challenges for them. There seems to be many issues and problems when the man in the family shows the father involvement Fineman (17). For many years society did not know much about the changing of gender roles in a family. The husband should be able to do anything when needed. Statistics show that the effects of a fathers’ involvement with their children can sometimes cause angry reactions Kefalas (845). This can lead to divorce at times. Based on the evidence that spousal conflict adversely influences physiology and health, negative impact does affect the husband also. The stronger impact of relationship negativity contributes to the decreased marriage benefit for men also. Evidence bearing on two explanations for this differential impact of conflict is reviewed. The relational-interdependence view, proposed by Kiecolt-Glaser and Newton (473), holds that men can be affected by marital conflict because of their more independent self-representations. Men do experience physiological and psychological reactivity to marital discord at times, but typically they do occupy the more powerful positions relative to their wives. Monin (5-6). Researchers have said that gender roles are interesting. In the past, clear gender roles for husband and wife had been understood within the context of the marriage. Today there are fewer clearly defined models for contemporary marriage gender roles and how these roles ought to be lived out. It must be admitted that in some cases, a lack of clear gender roles weakens the marriage. However, when a husband and a wife have the freedom to bring to a marriage his or her whole self, and not just live a traditional gender role, the American marriage has been strengthened by feminist theory. It was said years ago there is one kind of marriage that has not been tried and that is a contract made by equal parties to lead an equal life, with equal restraints and privileges on either side. â€Å"Treckel says, so far we have had men marriage and nothing more†. Treckel (1995 ). Change is not easy, but change is happening. Through education, hopefully more people will see the benefits offered to contemporary marriage by these changes. A real common concern among researchers is that men let the wife take care of everything. Society has heard jokes about â€Å"who wears the pants in the family. † Yet, leadership in the home is no laughing matter. During the last few decades our culture has redefined the meaning and responsibilities of man and woman in society and in the home Martin (421). Many men are confused and insecure. Many do not know how to act in the home. Growing up, they lacked a good model for leadership at home and have no mental picture of what it means to lead a family. Consequently, they do not lead effectively, or they do not even try. Increasingly, many men are becoming passive in the home. They have decided that the easiest thing to do is nothing. The simplest thing-with the smallest risk-is to stay on the fence with both feet firmly planted in mid-air and let the wife do it. When a man is married to a strong wife who will take over, he often lets her do just that Nock (2). By providing these studies there is still a problem today in society that men themselves think the wife in a marriage should take control. They figure they work so the wife can hold down the fort. Mentally there is no real scientific evidence that states why a man feels this way in his mind. If there are going to be responsible parties in a marriage it should be both. It takes two to run a household and makes things run smoothly Christian (34). Researchers said by talking to people, women would not achieve equal opportunities at work until their men folk contributed more to looking after the home. Gender inequalities in all areas are rooted in social structures. They are also in ones attitude. It is difficult to see how women will ever have the same opportunities in the labor market if equality at home is not achieved Yu (651-668). In a large group of men and women were asked about everyday chores, such as the laundry, cleaning, cooking food, shopping, looking after sick relatives and carrying out repairs. But men only made a significant contribution by mending faulty items around the house. At least two-thirds of women said it was usually them who carried out the other tasks, rising to eighty five percent for doing the laundry. More than half of men and even more women, seven out of ten, agreed that men should pull their weight more. Similar proportions also believed that men should also be more involved in looking after children. Nearly three in four adults said it was right for both men and women to work to bring in money. Kalmijn (26). But only eight percent believed that mothers of the under-fives should be in full-time jobs. Nearly half thought that pre-school youngsters were likely to lose out if their mothers worked and that family life suffered when women had full-time jobs. This month, it emerged that mothers who stay at home to look after children under five were in the minority for the first time Yapp (56). By reading the studies about marriage and men pulling their weight, couples must be able to rely on each other to address tasks and responsibilities. Many couples early on enter the marriage with the belief that the other will automatically know what is expected. The Trouble is, both likely hold different opinions as to the expectations of the other. It is difficult for couples to pull their weight when they do not know what the other person may be thinking. This is like starting a new job without knowing anything about the job. It does not matter who cleans around the house, how finances are handled, or how the groceries are obtained, discuss what is to be expected in the beginning. In conclusion Judy Brady’s â€Å"I Want a Wife† told a story of a desired wife. The desired wife in her story seemed to be the head of the house. This was unfortunate due to her husband. In Brady’s eye a husband should be the head of the household. Most women in a marriage just want things to be shared equally. All Brady is saying is that men need to do their share. In life every day we experience gender issues. This is experienced from home to work. This gender has become a label. Women and men experience gender side effects every day. Gender relates to society. Expectations in a marriage need to be between two married people and not one sided.

Caloric Content of Food

Ocean County College Department of Chemistry [Caloric Content of Food] Submitted by Jamie Kaiser Date Submitted:  Ã‚  Ã‚  10/2/12 Date Performed:  Ã‚  10/2/12 Lab Section: Chem-180 Course Instructor:  Bassa Purpose The purpose of the experiment was to take foods and to find out the energy content of the foods that we are experimenting with. By hands on burning or the food and taking the date that we find and putting it into equations to find what is needed. Procedure After organizing all the equipment necessary to perform the lab correctly and safety, I placed the empty beaker on to the scale and recorded the weight.Then I filled the beaker with 50 ml of water and measured it and recorded my results. I then place the beaker onto the burner stand. I took the temperature of the water before heating it up. I first started with the marshmallow. I put the marshmallow onto the fork and measured its weight. Then I lit the marshmallow on fire and place it under the beaker. After the fl ame was extinguished I measure the temperature of the water and recorded it. I then place the remains of the marshmallow and fork onto the scale and recorded my findings. I proceeded to do the same thing with a walnut and then with a potato trip and recording the results of each.Observations and Results Data Table 1: Food Item – Observations| Food Item Description:| Marshmallow| Walnut| Potato Chip| Mass of food & holder – initial| 40. 4g| 18. 3 g| 16g| Mass of food & holder – final| 38. 8g| 16. 3g| 13. 5g| Mass of food burnt| 1. 6g| 2g| 2. 5g| Mass of beaker| 66. 5g| 66. 4g| 66. 5g| Mass of beaker & water| 107. 2g| 108. 2g| 108. 2g| Mass of water| 40. 7g| 41. 8g| 41. 7g| Water temp. – initial| 23 degrees C| 22 degrees C| 22 degrees C| Water temp. – final| 31 degrees C| 72 degrees C| 32 degrees C| Delta T (oC change)| 8 degrees C| 50 degrees C| 10 degrees C|Conclusions From the hands on experience of doing this experiment, I have been a ble to better understand the formula to find the energy release per gram and to properly put the information into the equation. I now have a better understanding of calorimetry and how different products vary in caloric content. References 1. 1. Hands-On Labs, Inc. (2012). General College Chemistry : Physical and Chemical Properties. (Manual page 94-100) Questions A. Which of the foods tested contains the most energy per gram? The potato chip B. How do your experimental results compare to published values?Considering the only published value that I experimented with was the marshmallow, I would have to say my results were above average. C. What type of reaction is used in calorimetry? Combustion reaction D. What are the products of the reactions? Carbon dioxide and water E. Where did the products go? Into the air, a part of the atmosphere F. A student performing an experiment to determine the caloric content of a cashew nut collected the following data: ?Mass of cashew nut before bu rning: 0. 55 g ?After burning: 0. 05 g ?Temp. increase of 200 g of water: 7. 0 oC 1.Calculate the total energy released by the combustion of the cashew nut by using the water temp. increase, the mass of the water and specific heat capacity of water. 58576 Joules. Using the equation Q= delta t x m x cp 2. Calculate the energy released per gram of cashew nut consumed in the reaction. 58576 Joules/0. 55g = 106502/4. 184= 25455= 2. 5 Cal 3. Using the following standards (carbohydrates (4 Cal/g), protein (4 Cal/g), and fats 9 Cal/g), determine the caloric content of a bag of your favorite snack food. Special K cracker chips Carb = 92 Protein= 8 Fats = 22. 5 Caloric Content of Food Ocean County College Department of Chemistry [Caloric Content of Food] Submitted by Jamie Kaiser Date Submitted:  Ã‚  Ã‚  10/2/12 Date Performed:  Ã‚  10/2/12 Lab Section: Chem-180 Course Instructor:  Bassa Purpose The purpose of the experiment was to take foods and to find out the energy content of the foods that we are experimenting with. By hands on burning or the food and taking the date that we find and putting it into equations to find what is needed. Procedure After organizing all the equipment necessary to perform the lab correctly and safety, I placed the empty beaker on to the scale and recorded the weight.Then I filled the beaker with 50 ml of water and measured it and recorded my results. I then place the beaker onto the burner stand. I took the temperature of the water before heating it up. I first started with the marshmallow. I put the marshmallow onto the fork and measured its weight. Then I lit the marshmallow on fire and place it under the beaker. After the fl ame was extinguished I measure the temperature of the water and recorded it. I then place the remains of the marshmallow and fork onto the scale and recorded my findings. I proceeded to do the same thing with a walnut and then with a potato trip and recording the results of each.Observations and Results Data Table 1: Food Item – Observations| Food Item Description:| Marshmallow| Walnut| Potato Chip| Mass of food & holder – initial| 40. 4g| 18. 3 g| 16g| Mass of food & holder – final| 38. 8g| 16. 3g| 13. 5g| Mass of food burnt| 1. 6g| 2g| 2. 5g| Mass of beaker| 66. 5g| 66. 4g| 66. 5g| Mass of beaker & water| 107. 2g| 108. 2g| 108. 2g| Mass of water| 40. 7g| 41. 8g| 41. 7g| Water temp. – initial| 23 degrees C| 22 degrees C| 22 degrees C| Water temp. – final| 31 degrees C| 72 degrees C| 32 degrees C| Delta T (oC change)| 8 degrees C| 50 degrees C| 10 degrees C|Conclusions From the hands on experience of doing this experiment, I have been a ble to better understand the formula to find the energy release per gram and to properly put the information into the equation. I now have a better understanding of calorimetry and how different products vary in caloric content. References 1. 1. Hands-On Labs, Inc. (2012). General College Chemistry : Physical and Chemical Properties. (Manual page 94-100) Questions A. Which of the foods tested contains the most energy per gram? The potato chip B. How do your experimental results compare to published values?Considering the only published value that I experimented with was the marshmallow, I would have to say my results were above average. C. What type of reaction is used in calorimetry? Combustion reaction D. What are the products of the reactions? Carbon dioxide and water E. Where did the products go? Into the air, a part of the atmosphere F. A student performing an experiment to determine the caloric content of a cashew nut collected the following data: ?Mass of cashew nut before bu rning: 0. 55 g ?After burning: 0. 05 g ?Temp. increase of 200 g of water: 7. 0 oC 1.Calculate the total energy released by the combustion of the cashew nut by using the water temp. increase, the mass of the water and specific heat capacity of water. 58576 Joules. Using the equation Q= delta t x m x cp 2. Calculate the energy released per gram of cashew nut consumed in the reaction. 58576 Joules/0. 55g = 106502/4. 184= 25455= 2. 5 Cal 3. Using the following standards (carbohydrates (4 Cal/g), protein (4 Cal/g), and fats 9 Cal/g), determine the caloric content of a bag of your favorite snack food. Special K cracker chips Carb = 92 Protein= 8 Fats = 22. 5

Sunday, September 15, 2019

City of God Analysis

Edited by Ku’ulei  © PhotoWeekly Edited by Ku’ulei  © PhotoWeekly Based on a true story, the movie â€Å"City Of God† tells the story of a man named Wilson Rodrigues (also known as Rocket) and how he became a photographer. Although that was the main storyline of the movie, it had many things to build up to him becoming a photographer. In this â€Å"city of god†, Rocket and another guy named â€Å"lil ze† both grew up together in a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro. One, Rocket, becomes a photographer and the other becomes a drug dealer. The director, Fernando Meirelles, illustrated a great story of how greed can ruin someone’s life.Lil Ze’ used to be called Lil Dice. He didn’t like getting picked on by the older gang members so he started shooting out of his own will and killing innocent people. Ever since then, he started his own gang and needed to be the top of everyone. He needed to have everything. For example, thereâ€℠¢s one part in the story where someone that he hated (knockout ned) was in the paper, and he wasn’t. He got furious at that one little thing. Why? because of his greed that he had. Compared to Rocket, where he has little greed, he appreciates the things that he is given.If Rocket was so greedy, he wouldn’t have been this famous that he is now. It kind of reminds me of the presidential election that’s going on right now. Every candidate has greed. They need to have the most top-notch thing before the other candidate gets it. We all can’t help it, because the world is filled with this thing called greed. Because Lil Ze had so much greed, he killed innocent people so that he could get money and become number one in the gang industry. I don’t understand how people can’t just be more like Rocket.Although Rocket grew up in a bad environment, it didn’t mean he had to live his whole life like that. Overall, this movie’s theme is all ab out greed and what you do with it. I would give this movie a 5 out of 5. Although killings not worth the money, watching this movie is worth the money. Based on a true story, the movie â€Å"City Of God† tells the story of a man named Wilson Rodrigues (also known as Rocket) and how he became a photographer. Although that was the main storyline of the movie, it had many things to build up to him becoming a photographer.In this â€Å"city of god†, Rocket and another guy named â€Å"lil ze† both grew up together in a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro. One, Rocket, becomes a photographer and the other becomes a drug dealer. The director, Fernando Meirelles, illustrated a great story of how greed can ruin someone’s life. Lil Ze’ used to be called Lil Dice. He didn’t like getting picked on by the older gang members so he started shooting out of his own will and killing innocent people. Ever since then, he started his own gang and needed to be the top of everyone. He needed to have everything.For example, there’s one part in the story where someone that he hated (knockout ned) was in the paper, and he wasn’t. He got furious at that one little thing. Why? because of his greed that he had. Compared to Rocket, where he has little greed, he appreciates the things that he is given. If Rocket was so greedy, he wouldn’t have been this famous that he is now. It kind of reminds me of the presidential election that’s going on right now. Every candidate has greed. They need to have the most top-notch thing before the other candidate gets it.We all can’t help it, because the world is filled with this thing called greed. Because Lil Ze had so much greed, he killed innocent people so that he could get money and become number one in the gang industry. I don’t understand how people can’t just be more like Rocket. Although Rocket grew up in a bad environment, it didn’t mean he had to live h is whole life like that. Overall, this movie’s theme is all about greed and what you do with it. I would give this movie a 5 out of 5. Although killings not worth the money, watching this movie is worth the money. Is Killing worth the money? Is Killing worth the money?