Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Choose one from the instruction Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Choose one from the instruction - Research Paper Example The two cases constitute to intentional or negligence cases. There are other cases where the person causing damage remains liable to the victim regardless of whether they intended to cause harm. These constitute to strict liability cases. A country’s court has many cases to handle ranging from criminal cases to civil cases, among many others. Among the many cases the court handles are tort cases. The court seeks to administer justice to those involved through compensation as well as they look for ways of deterring further occurrence of torts (Best and David 8). Sometimes, compensation for losses incurred becomes the core function of tort law, and contributes to its development. Although the primary function of tort law can be described as the need to determine the required compensation. However, prevention and punishment measures too are important factors that help prevent further tort cases. This is because as the court looks for compensation of the injured, it also looks to send a warning to the offender. When a court makes its decisions on the case and defendants understand they may have liability in the case, it may act as a deterrent measure on further tort cases. However, research shows that goals of compensation and deterrence of future damage may differ in some cases as the court may favor one side than the other (Best and David 8). When courts in the U.S started undertaking tort cases, they considered compensation and deterrence as the main goals of concern. However, compensation became easier to perceive than deterrence and courts expanded tort law focusing on compensation. Later, economic hardships that hit the country largely affected the court's decision to follow compensation (Best and David 9). Impact of legal issues on economy Economic analysis of... The social cost incurred from the accident is the cumulative precaution and the cost of the expected accident, and becomes what the society is liable for. Economically, for the society to reduce the costs of an accident they should take a precaution that lies in between two extremes; the cost of the precaution itself and the cost of the expected accident (Mattiacci 5).The in-between precaution is the optimal care the society takes because it reduces the cost of the precaution and the expected accident cost thus minimizing the social cost. Therefore, decisions made by the tort law system should ensure that the incentives they give to the injurer to avoid the accident should enable them take an in-between precaution. The legal issues existing in tort law systems include giving parties incentives to acquire information on the accident occurrence. The court authority should ensure that incentives given for accessing information about the accident should not constrain the economy. This in one way relieves the country economic pressures. To minimize spending on risks, the tort law system should ensure a most favorable allocation of risks between the injurer and the victim, and it can only achieve this goal through insurance (Shavell 188). On the side of the transaction costs, the tort system’s goal is to minimize the administrative costs that result from the system’s attorney’s and magistrate’s payment. However there is conflict between the distinction on allocations of incentives towards the prevention or precautions taken or compensation for the accident. Acquiring equilibrium between the injurer and the victim will help achieve the social goal of compensation and deterrence and minimize cost on economy.

Monday, October 28, 2019

Media and Objectivity Essay Example for Free

Media and Objectivity Essay Human rights activists should always be conscious that the media cannot afford to always be objective for fear of losing audience loyalty. Sensationalisation is a sure tool that the media uses as it seeks to make stories, news, features, and other production appear more appealing to audiences (Sloan Mackay, 2007). Media-produced information should thus always be subjected to careful scrutiny to establish its authenticity. Media people also have personal feelings that arouse various emotions in them with regard to various news stories and other productions. Further, unscrupulous media practitioners may allow the greed for personal gain to cloud their objectivity, thus accepting financial rewards in return for distorting information to make its appeal to audiences. It is thus very likely that many media personalities are overcome by subjectivity as they execute their duties. In turn, media information is subject to subjectivity, thus customizing objectivity. It is thus possible that, with regard to the media, objectivity is usually greatly compromised, thus rendering media information unreliable or completely erroneous. Human rights activists should thus employ caution when handling and acting upon media derived information in order to avoid being ensnared into the subjectivity that usually characterizes media-derived information. Reference Sloan, W. D. ; Mackay, J. B. (2007). Media bias: Finding it, fixing it. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

The Puffy Chronicles :: Puff Daddy Music Musicians Rappers Essays

The Puffy Chronicles Puff Daddy, born Sean Combs on November 4, 1969 in Harlem to Melvin and Janice Combs, began his life of violence at a young age. When Sean was two years old, his father was tragically murdered. This forced Janice to move to a safer environment in Mt.Vernon, NY where she had to work three jobs in order to provide for her family. One can see that Sean’s broken home and the violence that constantly surrounded him influenced his lyrics and style of music throughout his life[I1] . His angry lyrics and shouts of aggression in his individual tracks certainly support the argument of his childhood having a big impact on his style of rap. Exploding onto the rap scene, Puffy soon found himself engulfed by the lifestyle of a rapper. For a short time, Puff Daddy was involved in one of the biggest East Coast vs. West Coast battles. Violence erupted, which lead to the death of two rappers: 2Pac and Notorious B.I.G. During this whole time, Puffy was busy producing music and influencing the style of other artists.[I2] Biggie’s single â€Å"Hypnotize† soared up to number one and stayed there long after his death. It was not long until the world would get a taste of Puffy’s very[I3] own style. Puff Daddy released the solo album No Way Out in the summer of 97’. No Way Out is an odd mixture of gangsta rap, soul, and r&b. But, somehow it seems to work for Puffy and his crew. At times while listening to the tracks, one is confused as to which direction Puffy and such featured artists as Mase, Lil Kim, Notorious B.I.G., and Busta Rhymes are headed because the tracks are either violent, apologetic, or r&b. In â€Å"Victory†, Busta Rhymes spews out angry lyrics of violence about kidnapping rival West Coast Rapper families and gunning down enemies. Then in a spin-off of Sting’s â€Å"Every Breath You Take†, one can feel the pain and anguish as well as the regret in Puff’s voice as he raps about the death of his best friend, Notorious B.I.G. â€Å"I’ll Be Missing You†, a tribute to Biggie, won the award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group (vh1.com 2). Biggie’s wife, Faith Evans, provided background vocals to th e song while Puffy raps, â€Å"Give anything to hear half your breath/I know you still living your life, after death.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Macro Economic Factors Affecting the Video Game Console Essay

Demographic Factors: Age is the main demographic factor affecting the market for video game consoles although common misconceptions are that the market is mainly comprised of teenagers. Recent Studies shows that the largest market sector of video game console purchases are teenagers or young adults. ESA demographic data shows that America’s average game player’s age is 34 and the average age of game purchasers is 40 (see article x) Generational factors play a big role in the market sector of gamers who purchase more than one game console, buy the latest version and buy games into adulthood. In 2010 26% of gamers were over 50. There is a definite generational factor as many of the consumers were in their teens when the mass video gaming culture began and now are in their 40s or 50s and have retained their gamer status, therefore are also ready to adopt new products. Gender is another factor that should be noted. Female gamers are a large portion of the video console market although significantly less than their online gaming counterparts. ESA research predicts that 40% of video game players are females. Economic Factors: Household income  ± studies have shown that video games in the toys and games market are able to gain a significant share of the market the larger the average household incomes are of a given market segment or particular region. For video games to comprise of 15% market share in toys and games of a given country, 60% of the population must earn incomes above US $15,000 (see figure x). Business cycle-The sale of consumer electronics andnovelty products are influencedby macroeconomic factors of a country. If there are recessionary or inflationary pressures, sales are likely to be affected sincechanges in consumers behaviour is determined by the perceived increase or decrease in the level of disposable income. This is, however, likely to have a short term impact and in the long run will have negligible changes on the sales of video game consoles, as business cycles return to a favourable position for higher consumer spending. Demand elasticity- Video Game consoles have a price elastic demand (for a portion of the consumer market) and combined with a high substitutability factors creates susceptibility to changes in competitor’s prices or quality hence impacting the size and share of the market for our product. Factors that change the cross price elasticity of our product need to be considered and addressed. Technological Factors: Innovation R&D- Technology, particularly technological innovation is a critical factor in the video game console market, and the leading competitors Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo have significant R&D invested in technology improvements. If our product development lifecycle does not include product improvements that are comparable to the leading competitor’s product, future success will not be guaranteed. Compatibility – Hardware issues include compatibility with existing hardware and the ease and cost of switching to the use of new hardware. Our product has the benefit of not requiring additional video output devices, i. e. television sets and monitors. Software Development -Technological developments in the software developing industries with which we have partnerships and licencing contracts will affect the attractiveness of our virtual video game console and hence indirectly affect sales generated. Also revenues generated from licencing and subcontracting are dependent on the success of game software publishers; a tactic to reduce risk would be to diversify the scope and use of our product, i. . develop a large partner relation database. Political Environment: Industry Regulation plays an important role in the success and growth of any technology specific product. It will invariably depend on the industry regulations specified the country code of regulatory law when production and manufacture will be conducted but also within the countries where target market segments reside. Ownership of manufacturing, distribution, and exporting firms also vary in different countries and will need to be considered before launching a worldwide market strategy. Trade Barriers -The trade and product specification restrictions on use of certain technology and/or products as well as licencing and exporting costs of the distribution and sale of various product categoriesdiffer between countries/regions and will have a large impact on the competitiveness of the virtual video game console. This can be in the form of trade barriers or indirect barriers through the use of health and safety standards, product labelling and advertising laws and restrictions. Intellectual Property Rights – Legal issues in country of sale, aside from aforementioned industry regulations, include trademarks, copyrights, licensing, patent applications, online ownership, and revenue recognition. Piracy and counterfeiting issues will need to be considered. It has become an accepted practice for the console manufacturers to lose money on the hardware and to recover the loss by charging high licensing fees to game publishers and developers. IPR standards are weakly enforced in many emerging markets with large market potential such as China, Brazil, and Russia. Environmental Factors: Raw Materials  ± The Video Game industry uses a lot of plastic resources and requires the use of scarce metals for its hardware. Given the negative public view on large amounts of non-biodegradable waste product, manufacturing processes and the use of valuable raw materials in the virtual video game console need to be carefully considered. Energy usage and efficiency- The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) recently published a study on American energy usage with specific regard to game consoles and found that game consoles consume roughly 16 billion kilowatt hours annually(see figure x). These finding were based on the assumption that half of the consoles are left on or on standby after use. A console that has timed automatic shutdown, as the virtual gaming console does, reduces this energy wastage. Health related concerns ± There is a general perception that frequent video gaming has a negative impact on a person health. However this perception may subject to change as research shows contrasting outcomes that there is the view that considers such side-effects to be ‘relatively minor or temporary’ (Griffiths 2002) and that finds playing computer games is comparable to a mild intensity exercise: with normal use, playing may neither improve nor harm physical fitness (Emes 1997)? Cultural Factors: Fashion Trends: Video Game console purchases are often made according to similar purchases made in a consumer’s social reference groups. Word of mouth and peer reference can play a crucial role in the choice of video game consoles. Networkingcapabilities ± the ability to connect to a large number of players online through a portable console has a definite cultural factor as the popular use of online networks determine the success of the addition of these features. Recreational Alternatives- changes in the demand for video game console may be created through a shifting trend in choice of recreational methods. Advances in the market for other toys and games could play an important role.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Review of Related Literature and Studies Essay

Being always present in class and getting to school on time are two of the crucial determining factors of a student’s success, not just as a student but as a person who will be managing his/her own life in the future. Given the importance of being punctual, this study aims to explore and find out the factors that affect the punctuality of UP students. In this chapter, we will be discussing about the background of our study. It includes facts about tardiness, the different factors that causes it and its effect to the students as students and as bearer of their own lives in the future. From reliable research materials like online journals and research papers, we will provide some facts and theories from authors, teachers and notable people in order to have a concrete justification of our study. First, we will give a definition of tardiness and present some theories and facts about it. Next, we will discuss he various factors that causes the students to come to school late, the psychological theories, the observation of the teachers and the personal reasons of the students. Lastly, the effects of tardiness to students, not just to himself/herself but also to his/her future and to other people, will be discussed. Tardiness As UP students, we are expected to perform well with excellence in everything that we do, most especially in the academic aspect. One factor that dictates the quality of performance of a student is his/her punctuality that is, getting to school on time or being tardy. As cited by Nakpodia and Dafiaghor (2011), â€Å"lateness† can be defined as the â€Å"situation where an individual arrives after the proper, scheduled or usual time (Oxford Advance Learners’ Dictionary, 5th ed., 1995), Lauby (2009) puts it as a term used to describe â€Å"people not showing up on time† and Breeze et al. (2010) contributed by saying that, lateness is synonymous with â€Å"tardiness†, which implies being slow to act or slow to respond, thus not meeting up with proper or usual timing. Lastly, Weade (2004) defined tardiness as â€Å"being late for any measurable length of time past the stated or scheduled start time for work or school.† In most schools, a student is con sidered tardy  when he/she is not present when the school bell rings or when the first teacher starts to give instructional materials for the first subject in the morning class. One of the most recurring and the most â€Å"frustrating problem† that the schools are having with their students nowadays is tardiness (Sprick and Daniels, 2007). It creates problems, not just to the students but also to the teachers (Cowan Avenue Elementary School Community, 2007, para 1). Cowan Crier, the official School Publication of CAESC, also states that while having â€Å"occasional tardy† isn’t a big deal, unfailing tardiness is and it gives students problems including being ill-prepared for the job market. According to the results of the study of the U.S. Department of Education on â€Å"truancy†, which is related to tardiness, being present and on time in going to school are big factors on the â€Å"success and behavior† of the students (Zeiger, 2010, para 1). Thus, it is a lot important to value time and practice being on time while being a student. According to CAESC (2007) and Zeiger (2010), the most essential learning time of the day for the students lies in the morning, specifically between 8:00 to 9:30 AM. It is because the students are most mindful and observant at this time of the day. It is also the reason why the most important lessons and subject matters are discussed during this time. So when students are late or are not present during this time of the day, they, in effect, miss out most of the important lessons to be noted and learned. Factors affecting Punctuality Reasons for being late in class and other factors affecting the punctuality if a student vary. There had been some theories that pointed out that tardiness is caused by the personality of a person. Santillano (2010) stated that psychological theorists considered some â€Å"personality traits, including low self-esteem and anxiety† as triggering factors of tardiness (para 2). She also mentioned that while some theorists considered tardiness as an â€Å"inborn quality† since our being early or late is â€Å"partially biologically determined†, which she also agreed, other experts also believed that some people are â€Å"chronically tardy† for the reason that they consciously and unconsciously get good things from it (para 3). In the book cited by Santillano, â€Å"Never be late again: 7 cures for the punctually challenged†, the author Diana DeLonzor suggested that some  personality traits could most likely lead to a person being often late. Some of the traits included were â€Å"struggling with self control†, â€Å"feeling nervous or uncomfortable with social situations† and â€Å"getting distracted easily† (para 4). Santillano also discussed about the study conducted by DeLonzor at San Francisco State University in 1997 in which she surveyed 225 respondents about their habits that makes them late from their appointments. It was also a test on the personalities of the respondents that affect their habits. According to the results of DeLonzor’s study, those respondents that were often tardy apt to be anxious and gets distracted easily. Nakpodia and Dafiaghor attribute lateness or tardiness to a lot of factors or causes. Going late to bed and waking up late next morning are the most common. The authors added film-watching late at night as a cause for tardiness. The student may forget that he/she needs to be in school the next day. The distance between the student’s home and school or solely the school’s location is also considered by Nakpodia and Dafiaghor as a possible cause for tardiness. Not just because it takes more time to get to school, but according to the authors, the student is susceptible to more distractions and hindrances along the way. Parent’s untimely tasks and commands are also reasons that students come late to school. Habitual tardiness can also be learned from other members of the family, especially from the older ones. Lack of a firm and consistent policy on punctuality also encourages students to come late at school since there are no consequences attached to lateness or tardiness. These causes of tardiness will lead to serious effects. Another study was the one conducted by Enamiroro Oghuvbu in Nigeria. The objective of the study was to determine the causes of the absenteeism and lateness among the secondary students in Nigeria and to seek for solutions to the growing problem. According to Oghuvbu (2008), female students are more likely to be late than male students because of â€Å"their involvement in domestic activities by their parents† (para 7). Also, as cited by Oghuvbu, â€Å"distance to school, school discipline, family background and school location† (Emore, 2005) are some of the common causes for the tardiness of the secondary students. Oghuvbu collected the data from a sample size of 17, 417 Nigerian respondents from 2005-2006. The sample was made up of 20 principals and 50 each from a set of teachers, parents and students. The means of collecting  data was through a thirty-item questionnaire answerable by either strongly agree (SA), agreed (A), disagree (D), and strongly disagreed (SD). The questionnaire had four questions, one of which was about the causes of lateness among the secondary students of Nigeria. The study revealed that the causes of lateness among the secondary students in Nigeria were â€Å"going late to bed because of watching films and home movies, resulting into wake up late in the morning, distance to school and keeping friends who are not students† (Oghuvbu, 2008). These results went consistent with the results of Oghuvbu’s reference studies which proves that tardiness among students have been a growing problem and that it is caused, not just because of the students but also because of the lack of imposing discipline from the parents. Another research partly studied about tardiness but tackled a specific reason or factor. A study by Pimentel and Quijada (2011) focused on the frequency of use by the UP Cebu freshmen students of Facebook and a part of the study tackled about the effect of the famous social networking site to UP Cebu students’ punctuality and academic performance. For their study, Pimentel and Quijada collected 60 respondents and provided them with questionnaires. The questionnaires contained questions that ask the respondents about their use of Facebook and its effects. A certain question asked the respondents if late-night use of Facebook has an effect on their punctuality. According to the results of the study, three out of 60 respondents are always late, eight said they are sometimes late, 12 said they are seldom late and 37 said that they never get late due to late-night use of Facebook. Generally, the results showed that the respondents are seldom late in class because of late-night use of the social networking site. Ledoux, as cited by Pimentel and Quijada, said that lack of sleep causes neural malfunctions and further affects a person’s behavior. In the study’s case, it is a student’s punctuality that is affected. Sometimes, it is not solely the students’ fault why they keep on being late in coming to class. Another factor that could affect the punctuality of a student is the response of the teachers to tardy students. Sprick and Daniels (2007) stated that the range of the teachers’ response was â€Å"from ignoring them to sending them to office† (p. 21). This variation could lead the students to confusion as to how important it is to be on time in going to class. Another reason is the lack of motivation. Students who  come to school on time are not given incentives or rewards. Also, responses to tardiness are lenient, that is nothing is done until the tenth strike or more. Another reason is â€Å"giving the student the impression that they won’t be missing anything if they are late† since in some classes, no important activities or instructions and no lessons are being done for first few minutes. Lastly, crowded hallways could create traffic, thus blocking the way of other students and making it hard for them to pass through. Effects of Tardiness Tardiness among students has its own negative repercussions. Nakpodia and Dafiaghor (2011) emphasized that lateness or tardiness is not just the problem of the late student but it affects the surrounding people. A student coming late in class distracts the rest of the students and disrupts the flow of the teacher’s discussion. It is even a burden to the student/s whom the late students ask for what to catch up with. The rest of the effects given by Nakpodia and Dafiaghor are about the welfare of the whole school, its productivity and revenue. Knowing the possible effects of lateness or tardiness, it is necessary for solutions to be executed. Studies have revealed that those students with â€Å"perfect or near-perfect attendance† have good grades compared to those students who misses classes often and late-comers (Cowan Avenue Elementary School Community, 2007, para 3). Moreover, as mentioned by Zeiger (2010), the results from the survey report conducted by teachers show that students with high tardiness rates have â€Å"higher rates of suspension and other disciplinary measures† (National Center for Education Statistics Indicators of School Crime and Safety [NCESISCS] (2007)). It also causes the students to have behavioral problems and to drop out. Lastly, Zeiger (2010) stated that â€Å"Students who are frequently tardy to school are also more apt to be fired from a job for showing up late† (para 5). A study conducted by Barbara Lee Weade on 2004 tried to â€Å"determine if school tardiness is a predictor of work tardiness† (Weade, 2004). It provided a lot of literature that observes correlations and factors affecting a student’s tardiness. As cited by Weade, the 3rd most common cause for the failure of a student is â€Å"excessive tardiness and unexcused absences† (Ligon and Jackson, 1988).  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Inconsistency of school rules† (Britt, 1988) and situations such as â€Å"crowded halls, limited opportunities for social interaction, irrelevant course content, and teacher indifference† (Damico et al., 1990) are also factors that affect a student’s attendance and punctuality. As mentioned by Weade, personal v alues, financial security and lack of parental guidance (Payne, 2001) as well as family background (Featherstone et al., 1992) influence tardiness and absences of students. Weade gathered data from the schools of participating students. First and foremost, she asked consent from the students and their parents in order to gain permission to collect their school records. She collected and studied the attendance and punctuality records of these students based on the number of unexcused absences and minutes of tardiness. Her study showed that among high school students, the grade point average is correlated with absences and tardiness. This means that students with better attendance and punctuality have higher grade point averages and vis-à  -vis. Her study was also able to show that attendance and punctuality of students are not consistent throughout the year. There were more absences and tardiness at the latter part of the year. Gender has also shown to be a non-factor in the attendance and punctuality of high school students. The study was very comprehensive in its subject matter. It tackles not just school tardiness but its implications on work tardiness. It shows that â€Å"students who are on-time for school classes are also likely to be on-time at work while students who are tardy frequently at school will probably also be tardy at work† (Weade, 2004). The study requires a lot of data but Weade was able to gather a sufficient amount. Though some possible correlations were not established, it is outside the scope of this research. Due to the fact that tardiness has been giving negative effects on the students nowadays, the most important thing to do is to develop a firm, consistent and functional policy that addresses late students. There must be defined sanctions and penalties for late students. Nakpodia and Dafiaghor (2011) stated that school administrators must lead by example. They should be punctual in their own meetings and classes to avoid students to think that being late is just alright since even the authoritative persons are doing it. They should as well teach it and integrate it in every lesson. The effort on the remedy on lateness or tardiness does not start and end with  the school. It must begin with the parents of the students and the government must take part as well. Transportation must be improved in order to avoid students getting stuck in traffic or encountering other obstacles down the streets. Some schools have already started finding solutions that would effectively minimize and/or eliminate tardiness among students. One of the solutions made by some schools is implementing tardiness policies, wherein they take steps in approaching the students and parents for them to solve the problem. CAESC has their policy worked this way. Other schools initiated interdisciplinary curriculum that integrates discipline and conduct in academics. Cordogan (as cited by Weade, 2004), said that a school in Chicago, Illinois adapted a similar curriculum and yielded positive results. Students under the interdisciplinary program exhibited more positive behaviors from students not from the curriculum. Interdisciplinary students showed less absences and tardiness, as well as higher grades. Other schools made smaller academic changes such as developing personality works and cooperative learning activities, such as creation of portfolios and tutorial to younger students. These taught the students better goal-setting, decision making skills and time management. In return, students under these behavior modification programs yielded less tardiness and higher grades. To summarize, many studies have shown the reasons and factors that may contribute to the tardiness of a student. One of the mentioned reasons of tardy students was waking up late in the morning, which can also be attributed to late-night activities, such as social networking, watching movies and television shows, as well as untimely academic and domestic errands. As proven by several studies, sometimes, it’s not also the act of the student that leads to his/her tardiness. The heavy traffic, the teachers, the school surroundings and policies may also serve as influences to the tardiness of students. Many studies have also shown the effects of tardiness on the students, the teachers, the school and the society. According to these studies, the tardiness of a student consumes his/her learning time as well as disturbs other students and teachers. The tardy student also poses as a threat to the school as an educational and professional institution and the student may be one of the less productive members of the society. A lot of studies as well gave testimonies to effective remedies  on tardiness. These studies promoted integration of personality development and interdisciplinary programs into school curriculum to aid students enhance positive behavior and personality leading to the decrease of tardiness. Our study intends to find out the tardiness of UP Cebu students and the reasons and factors that may influence this tardiness.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

The eNotes Blog The Writers Diet Is a Trim Essay a GoodEssay

The Writers Diet Is a Trim Essay a GoodEssay WARNING: your writing may be headed for a coronary. No, this is not an indictment of your eating habits. (Believe methese days I can hardly put fingers to keyboard without a sugary coffee and half a bag of Cadburys mini eggs in me. I am intimately familiar with the ailment that is writers bum. Ergo, I am NOT the person to school anyone on the  deviousness  that occurs between hand and mouth.) I am, however, qualified to speak on the trimness of your writing itself. Back when I tutored students for the SAT and ACT writing exams, eloquence was a prominent focus of the grading rubric. And while eloquence to me, as a Literature and Creative Writing major in university, harkens back to the masters of languageDickens, Bronte, Austeneloquence (dubious quotation marks and all) to the standardized testing officials actually means quite the opposite; sentences should be devoid of descriptive words, lean to the point of dullness, about as tasty and filling as a leaf of lettuce. It was soul-crushing to teach, though perhaps a necessity when it comes to teaching high school students how to write effectively. Thats why I found The Writers Diet, a new tool that objectively assesses the leanness of a writing sample, so interesting. Could it be a helpful tool for students? A measure of eloquence? To find out, I gave it a whirl with one of the best opening paragraphs in the history of the English novel. Oh my dickens! Look at that lovely paragraph splattered with ugly neon highlighter. Whats even more injurious to the eyes? The Writers Diet tests fitness rating, which breaks down on a smug little bar graph the faults of A Tale of Two Cities. Alright, so I get it that this test is a totally algorithm-based assessment, and that I chose one of the most flowery writing samples in existence to try it out. But to say that Dickens is beyond flabby is frankly insulting. The only way the WD test could redeem itself now was by casting its harsh neon criticism across the greatest assault to English literature I know of Fifty Shades of Grey. So yeah, turns out that the passage about the girl feeling adventurous because she borrowed her boyfriends toothbrush is officially Fit trim. Nice one, Writers Diet. As it turns out, there is no objective assessment for good writing, because no algorithm can calculate style. And what I didnt mention before is that style is the one factor of the SAT/ACT grading rubric  that separates a mediocre essay from a great one. Its one thing to be able to simply state a message, and another to instill it in your reader. So before you forsake all commas, dependent clauses, adjectives and adverbs, take some time to become a master of the English language. Scratch thatbecome an apprentice of the English language. Even a small infusion of style will take you further than you think. After all, would you rather chomp into a low-fat, gluten free cracker or a dripping, succulent guacamole bacon burger? Yeah, I think I know your answer to that already.

Monday, October 21, 2019

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) invested internationally with the intention of sourcing capital to expand its operations in china. The bank targeted the international markets as they readily have adequate capital. In addition, ICBC wanted an opportunity to increase its wealth, manage bank risks, and increase its loan productivity.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Industrial and Commercial Bank of China specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More ICBC is China’s biggest bank, with 6.45 trillion in assets. Due to high demand of money, the ICBC issued equity to both domestic and the global markets. The aim of the Initial Public Offer (IPO) was to upgrade its domestic operations and extend its lead in corporate lending and the potentially huge credit card market in China (Akerlof, 1970) Due to the excellent performance of the Chinese economy, the investors felt a strong need to invest in ICBC’s IPO; as t hey expected to make huge profits. By then, China’s economy was growing by 10 % a year. Many corporate investors were attracted by the banks IPO, including Goldman Sachs Group, American Express and Germany’s Allianz just to mention but a few. Diversification was a critical consideration that inspired ICBC in its decision to go international. Essentially, the bank wanted to spread risk by investing in other companies, individual investors and firms outside China (Akerlof, 1970).). Hedging the banks currency against risky exposures was a very essential benefit that ICDC expected through issuing of equities in the international markets. As such, the currency exchange value was a significant factor in making such a global investment. ICBC wanted to generate monetary gain from those economies that had lower money value in comparison with China, therefore selling more equities with the same amount of capital (Abbey, 2007) One of the key factors that attracted international i nvestors to China’s ICBC was the fact that China had been voted as one of the best attractive investment destinations in the world .The American Chamber of Commerce had continually reported that American firms’ that operated in China were more profitable than its counterparts in the United States, hence drawing attention to foreign investors. Indeed, ICBC had consistently rewarded investors with higher stock prices and dividends hence sending the attractive signals to foreign investors. In addition, ICBC investors were promised higher interest rates in their fixed deposits. ICBC’s returns on equities were associated with multiple indicators including interest rates, exchange rates, stock prices, commodity prices and minimum returns. Similarly, ICBC offered attractive customized products for its home and foreign investors (Abbey, 2007)Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More One of ICDC’s recent reviews revealed that the banks experienced critical default risks on more than a quarter of more than 8 Billion Yuans lent to local governments and other investors across the country. This puts the investors at a risk in the event that the bank is liquidated. Apparently, ICBC scrutinized its loans at some point, spreading the risk among other investors. Lack of transparency could also be an issue to investors as it can lead to loss of money especially through corruption (Lee, 2003). The process of Chinese capital market modernization can create complications. For instance, foreign strategic investors’ participation in China has dropped drastically because of barriers stemming from bank reforms and recapitalizations in recent times. Another challenge that the ICBC faced was the complex relationship between Chinas balance of trade and the value of its currency. In conclusion, global market is a large market that helps investor s raise capital from foreign markets. Such a move helps the banks across the world to increase wealth, manage bank risks, and increase loan productivity (Abbey, 2007) References Abbey, N. H. (2007) The Methodology of Positive Economics, Essays in Positive Economics. London: University of Chicago Press Akerlof, G. A. (1970). The Market for International Banks: Quality Uncertainty and the Market Mechanism. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 84(3), 488–500. Lee, A. (2003). Do We Really Need Central Bank Independence? A Critical Re- examination. London: University of Connecticut