Things fall apart by Chinua Achebe Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Things fall apart by Chinua Achebe - Essay Example The Ibos were already rich with religion and traditions before the coming of the missionaries. Therefore, two religions contrasted each other when the missionaries went to spread the word of God to the Ibo community. The differences and similarities between the two religions of Ibo and Christianity are seen through the conversation between Mr. Brown, the missionary and Akunna, one of the Ibo’s religious elders. When Mr. Brown entered the village of Umuofia to spread the word of God, he met with Akunna. They then engaged in a conversation that demonstrates the differences that exist between the religion of Ibo clan and Christianity that was professed by the missionaries like Mr. Brown. One of the key differences between the two religions is that Ibo clan’s religion practiced polytheism while Christianity practiced monotheism. The main similarity is that both religions believed in a supernatural being. The traditional religion of the Ibo and the Christian religion brought by missionaries were different in some ways and similar in other ways. Both religions believe in a supernatural being. They both believe in their supernatural beings and respect them. They believe that the supernatural being could help them in their troubles and give them good things. In fact, the defenders of Ibo religion believed that their god was almighty, just as Christians viewed their God.

Travel Agency Online Expansion Options

Travel Agency Online Expansion Options Slide 1 Introduction The individual giving the presentation is called John. The focus of this presentation is to consider the options for expansion online for a travel agency business that has traditionally operated from a high street shop. During this presentation the aim is to consider the reasons and potential scope for an internet-based travel agency. The presentation will then move on to consider the types of products that would be best suited for the Open Skies Travel Agency given its current strategic position within the market. Once the scope and positioning has been established, the presentation will move on to look at the potential costs and benefits of the possible expansion and change of strategy. This will include consideration of both the financial and practical implications with implementing the new online venture[1]. Slide 2 – Online Trends Despite the current economic trends, the travel industry and more specifically the online purchasing of travel services has boomed, in recent years. The amount of money being spent online in relation to travel services has increased by 12 percent in 2007 and it is anticipated that this trend will continue between 2007 and 2012. This is not surprising when all factors are considered[2]. The travel sector is vast with multiple suppliers offering a range of different products which lend themselves perfectly to online selling. As travel is perishable (i.e. it cannot be stored and used at a later date), companies will be keen to ensure that all seats on flights and all hotel rooms are fully occupied. This leads to incremental and ever changing prices which require immediate update and these are facilities from which online travel agencies benefit. Package holidays sold through the high street travel agency have reduced by approximately 20%. This means that traditional agents such as Open Skies must embrace these new trends in order to maintain their market share. Correspondingly, however, the number of package holidays booked online has increased by 19%, showing that the market is still strong; it is simply the purchasing patterns that have changed[3]. The scope online is much greater and this is widely recognised by many tour operators. In fact, travel services and agencies currently make up around a quarter of all online advertising, showing that there is an increasing recognition of the power and extent of the online travel sector. When considering high internet users, i.e. those who use the internet for at least 16 hours per week, 66% of these people have booked holidays or travel services online[4]. A further 10% of people will look for information about travel on the internet, before then going on to purchase the products in a traditional high street environment[5]. Slide 3 – Product Mix One of the major benefits that internet users cite about using the internet to plan holidays is that it allows for dynamic packages. This means that various flight options can be looked at alongside different accommodation options. By allowing for this degree of flexibility, customers are able to create their own packages that are individual to their own specific needs[6]. Open Skies is a customer-friendly travel agency that has a high reputation for offering excellent personal advice to its local customers. This unique selling point need not be lost by having an online presence. Although there are several large online based companies such as Thomas Cook that have the advantage of a much larger network of offices and suppliers, they do not have the same personal relationships with their clients. Open Skies needs to look at the way in which it can capitalise on its added value customer service, while also allowing customers to investigate their various options for creating their own dynamic packages. Open Skies is a locally based company and will physically remain so. Therefore, the main products being offered online will be no different from those currently offered in the high street. The travel industry is fiercely competitive in terms of pricing, which means that local high street travel agents such as Open Skies have to add value to their product mix by ensuring that they offer additional security and advice to customers. Having a website is an opportunity to capture a wider range of customers who can then contact the agency directly to finalise their booking. For this reason, it would seem prudent that the main focus of the Open Skies website should be to have an informative online presence that encourages customers to believe that Open Skies offers genuine additional value to their travelling experience[7]. This will enable Open Skies to set itself apart from the larger online travel agencies that merely offer cheaper and price competitive travelling options. Slide 4 – Costs and Benefits Setting up the initial infrastructure to manage the website will require a degree of additional expenditure. There will be the need to purchase computing equipment to run the website software as well as the need to design, manage and regularly update the website. A basic website is relatively cheap to establish and can be updated and maintained with relative ease. As Open Skies already has a computer system in place and already makes use of the email system, it is possible that the expertise and infrastructure to manage the website is already in-house. This possibility should not be overlooked before outsourcing the tasks[8]. Additional staffing will be necessary. Firstly, it will be necessary to maintain up to date and accurate information on the website, if customers are going to be able to trust and respect Open Skies Travel Agency. With increased traffic on to the website, it will also be necessary to ensure that there are staff members prepared to respond to booking requests within an acceptable timeframe. Users of the internet are much more instantaneous in their needs and expectations. If Open Skies is to maintain its current position as offering value added products, then it will need to adapt its structure to be able to respond to this faster pace of trading. This will inevitably mean a larger, more flexible workforce[9]. However, this expansion will be funded by the considerable increase in the number of customers and trade that will pass through the website. By establishing a web presence, Open Skies will potentially gain customers from across the country and even internationally. Customers are no longer limited by geography and this will naturally be reflected in the volume of custom that will come to Open Skies. This additional influx of customers will not be reflected with a similar increase in costs of servicing these customers. As bookings will be largely done online and over the phone, there will be no need to have additional office space (except to house the additional staff). Therefore, the returns from these additional customers will be greater and will continue to increase in line with the number of customers that are gained[10]. Slide 5 – Strategy into Action Whilst it is clear that there are benefits to Open Skies from obtaining an online presence, it will require careful planning if the reputation of the company is not to suffer. Firstly, Open Skies will need to ensure that the infrastructure and back-up procedures are in place. Customers will need to trust that the systems are accurate, efficient and secure; any breaches in this respect would lead to a loss of trust which would impact on the value of the company. The current workforce will need to be considered in terms of how the individual members of staff can adapt to this new way of working. It is almost certain that additional staff will be required to manage the increasing number of customers and the immediacy of the demands of online customers. This increase in workforce will need to be managed carefully so as to ensure that the costs of the expansion are evenly matched by the increase in revenue[11]. Continuous monitoring and updating will be necessary to ensure that the information is accurate and that Open Skies is making the most out of its new online arm. Slide 6 – Conclusions Online travel agencies are experiencing a continuing boom, despite the current economic downturn. For a company such as Open Skies, gaining an online presence is vital, if it is to maximise the potential in the market. Depending on the current infrastructure in place, the costs of set up and maintenance could be relatively little. Security and back-up processes will be important, if it is to maintain its current high level of customer service and reputation. New staff will almost certainly be required to deal with the increase in trade and to continue to offer the high level of customer service that it currently offers. The need to go online is clear and Open Skies needs to embrace the changing trends. However, embracing new, online technologies needs to be planned carefully so that the value added services can be maintained and customers will be prepared to pay more for these services, meaning that Open Skies will not have to compete with the low prices offered by the larger organisations. Bibliography Bharadwaj, Prashanth Nagendra, Soni, Ramesh G., E-Commerce Usage and Perception of E-Commerce Issues among Small Firms: Results and Implications from an Empirical Study, Journal of Small Business Management, 45, 2007 Buhalis, Dimitrios, ETourism: Information Technology for Strategic Tourism Management, Pearson Education, 2003 Duray, Dave, Vering, Matthias, The E-Business Workplace: Discovering the Power of Enterprise Portals, John Wiley, 2001 Frew, Andrew J., Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2004: Proceedings of the International Conference in Cairo, Egypt, 2004, Springer, 2004 Goeldner, Charles R., Brent Ritchie, J.R., Tourism: Principles, Practices, Philosophies, John Wiley and Sons, 2006 Kozak, Metin, Andreu, Luisa, Progress in Tourism Marketing, Elsevier, 2006 Rayman-Bacchus, L., Molina, A., Internet-Based Tourism Services: Business Issues and Trends, Futures, 33, 2001 Tate, Will, Rosen, Cheryl, Frame a Travel Strategy: Find the Delicate Balance between Avoiding Travel Costs and Keeping Travelers Productive, Journal of Accountancy, 199, 2005 Watkins, William M., Technology and Business Strategy: Getting the Most out of Technological Assets, Quorum Books, 1998 2002 Mori Survey commissioned by Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) Footnotes [1] Bharadwaj, Prashanth Nagendra, Soni, Ramesh G., E-Commerce Usage and Perception of E-Commerce Issues among Small Firms: Results and Implications from an Empirical Study, Journal of Small Business Management, 45, 2007 [2] Rayman-Bacchus, L., Molina, A,. Internet-Based Tourism Services: Business Issues and Trends, Futures, 33, 2001 [3] 2002 Mori Survey commissioned by Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) [4] Travelers Use of the Internet, 2004 Edition [5] Frew, Andrew J., Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2004, Proceedings of the International Conference in Cairo, Egypt, 2004, Springer, 2004 [6] Goeldner, Charles R., Brent Ritchie, J.R., Tourism: Principles, Practices, Philosophies, John Wiley and Sons, 2006 [7] Kozak, Metin, Andreu, Luisa, Progress in Tourism Marketing, Elsevier, 2006 [8] Watkins, William M., Technology and Business Strategy: Getting the Most out of Technological Assets, Quorum Books, 1998 [9] Buhalis, Dimitrios, ETourism: Information Technology for Strategic Tourism Management, Pearson Education, 2003 [10] Duray, Dave, Vering, Matthias, The E-Business Workplace: Discovering the Power of Enterprise Portals, John Wiley, 2001 [11] Tate, Will, Rosen, Cheryl, Frame a Travel Strategy: Find the Delicate Balance between Avoiding Travel Costs and Keeping Travelers Productive, Journal of Accountancy, 199, 2005

Old Major :: Free Essays

Old Major Comrades of before the Rebellion, you know me. For the new animals here I am Old Major. As you well know the Rebellion has caused a great change to our farm. I must say you have done exceedingly well on the upkeep of this farm. Isn't the rebellion about being free? Also, did you not get rid of Jones so that we could all feel equal? Be treated equal, share the work equally? Tell me who under these current conditions is benefitting? I have spoken to a few of you and now know how the initial plan went so very wrong. You listened to the pigs, they seemed smart, and some of them would have had good ideas. One pig Napoleon had an idea, and made promises to the rest, so they followed. All but Snowball. Snowball was chased away by the vicious dogs Napoleon raised and he himself took Snowballs plan to use in his own beneficial way. Those pigs care only for themselves and because of their intelligence, they have taken full advantage of you. You now see that you are working for them. They are the ones benefitting, they have all the apples and milk for themselves. They don't do much work and they don't care about you animals as long as they have the power. You will not now let these unfair conditions continue will you? For you have done so much, and received so little in return. I forward my idea of a new revolution. This new revolution will be gone with all unequal facts. Food, working and living conditions will all be fair and you shall not be ruled over by one kind of animal. A committee of two of each animals on this farm will represent and give forward your ideas to each other. Everyone is invited to the meetings so you all know what is happening and you an be involved in the planning for your future, as it is your future! You have been pushed over though, by the pigs, just because they seem

Ethical Issues in Accounting Essay

â€Å"Accountants and the accountancy profession exist as a means of public service; the distinction which separates a profession from a mere means of livelihood is that the profession is accountable to standards of the public interest, and beyond the compensation paid by clients.† —Robert H. Montgomery, describing ethics in accounting. Accounting ethics is primarily a field of applied ethics, the study of moral values and judgments as they apply to accountancy. It is an example of professional ethics. Accounting ethics were first introduced by Luca Pacioli, and later expanded by government groups, professional organizations, and independent companies. Ethics are taught in accounting courses at higher education institutions as well as by companies training accountants and auditors. Due to the diverse range of accounting services and recent corporate collapses, attention has been drawn to ethical standards accepted within the accounting profession. These collapses have resulted in a widespread disregard for the reputation of the accounting profession. To combat the criticism and prevent fraudulent accounting, various accounting organizations and governments have developed regulations and remedies for improved ethics among the accounting profession. Importance of Ethics in Accounting The nature of the work carried out by accountants and auditors requires a high level of ethics. Shareholders, potential shareholders, and other users of the financial statements rely heavily on the yearly financial statements of a company as they can use this information to make an informed decision about investment. They rely on the opinion of the accountants who prepared the statements, as well as the auditors that verified it, to present a true and fair view of the company. Knowledge of ethics can help accountants and auditors to overcome ethical dilemmas, allowing for the right choice that, although it may not benefit the company, will benefit the public who relies on the accountant/auditor’s reporting. History Luca Pacioli, the â€Å"Father of Accounting†, wrote on accounting ethics in his first book Summa de arithmetica, geometria, proportioni, et proportionalita, published in 1494. Ethical standards have since then been developed through government groups, professional organizations, and independent companies. These various groups have led accountants to follow several codes of ethics to perform their duties in a professional work environment. Accountants must follow the code of ethics set out by the professional body of which they are a member. United States accounting societies such as the Association of Government Accountants, Institute of Internal Auditors, and the National Association of Accountants all have codes of ethics, and many accountants are members of one or more of these societies. In 1887, the American Association of Public Accountants (AAPA) was created; it was the first step in developing professionalism in the United States accounting industry. By 1905, the AAPA’s first ethical codes were formulated to educate its members. During its twentieth anniversary meeting in October 1907, ethics was a major topic of the conference among its members. As a result of discussions, a list of professional ethics was incorporated into the organization’s bylaws. However, because membership to the organization was voluntary, the association could not require individuals to conform to the suggested behaviors. Other accounting organizations, such as the Illinois Institute of Accountants, also pursued discussion on the importance of ethics for the field. The AAPA was renamed several times throughout its history, before becoming the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) as its named today. The AICPA developed five divisions of ethical principles that its members should follow: â€Å"independence, integrity, and objectivity†; â€Å"competence and technical standards†; â€Å"responsibilities to clients†; â€Å"responsibilities to colleagues†; as well as â€Å"other responsibilities and practices†. Each of these divisions provided guidelines on how a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) should act as a professional. Failure to comply with the guidelines could have caused an accountant to be barred from practicing. When developing the ethical principles, the AICPA also considered how the profession would be viewed by those outside of the accounting industry. Teaching Ethics Universities began teaching business ethics in the 1980s. Courses on this subject have grown significantly in the last couple of decades. Teaching accountants about ethics can involve role playing, lectures, case studies, guest lectures, as well as other mediums. Recent studies indicate that nearly all accounting textbooks touch on ethics in some way. In 1993, the first United States center that focused on the study of ethics in the accounting profession opened at State University of New York at Binghamton. Starting in 1999, several U.S. states began requiring ethics classes prior to taking the CPA exam. Seven goals of accounting ethics education †¢ Relate accounting education to moral issues. †¢ Recognize issues in accounting that have ethical implications. †¢ Develop â€Å"a sense of moral obligation† or responsibility. †¢ Develop the abilities needed to deal with ethical conflicts or dilemmas. †¢ Learn to deal with the uncertainties of the accounting profession. †¢ â€Å"Set the stage for† a change in ethical behavior. †¢ Appreciate and understand the history and composition of all aspects of accounting ethics and their relationship to the general field of ethics. —Stephen E. Loeb In 1988, Stephen E. Loeb proposed that accounting ethics education should include seven goals (adapted from a list by Daniel Callahan). To implement these goals, he pointed out that accounting ethics could be taught throughout accounting curriculum or in an individual class tailored to the subject. Requiring it be taught throughout the curriculum would necessitate all accounting teachers to have knowledge on the subject (which may require training). A single course has issues as to where to include the course in a student’s education (for example, before preliminary accounting classes or near the end of a student’s degree requirements), whether there is enough material to cover in a semester class, and whether most universities have room in a four-year curriculum for a single class on the subject. There has been debate on whether ethics should be taught in a university setting. Supporters point out that ethics are important to the profession, and should be taught to accountants entering the field.[18] In addition, the education would help to reinforce students’ ethical values and inspire them to prevent others from making unethical decisions. Critics argue that an individual is ethical or not, and that teaching an ethics course would serve no purpose. Despite opposition, instruction on accounting ethics by universities and conferences, has been encouraged by professional organizations and accounting firms. The Accounting Education Change Commission (AECC) has called for students to â€Å"know and understand the ethics of the profession and be able to make value-based judgments.† Phillip G. Cottel argued that in order to uphold strong ethics, an accountant â€Å"must have a strong sense of values, the ability to reflect on a situation to determine the ethical implications, and a commitment to the well-being of others.† Iris Stuart recommends an ethics model consisting of four steps: the accountant must recognize that an ethical dilemma is occurring; identify the parties that would be interested in the outcome of the dilemma; determine alternatives and evaluate its effect on each alternative on the interested parties; and then select the best alternative. Accounting Scandals Accounting ethics has been deemed difficult to control as accountants and auditors must consider the interest of the public (which relies on the information gathered in audits) while ensuring that they remained employed by the company they are auditing. They must consider how to best apply accounting standards even when faced with issues that could cause a company to face a significant loss or even be discontinued. Due to several accounting scandals within the profession, critics of accountants have stated that when asked by a client â€Å"what does two plus two equal?† the accountant would be likely to respond â€Å"what would you like it to be?† This thought process along with other criticisms of the profession’s issues with conflict of interest, have led to various increased standards of professionalism while stressing ethics in the work environment. The role of accountants is critical to society. Accountants serve as financial reporters and intermediaries in the capital markets and owe their primary obligation to the public interest. The information they provide is crucial in aiding managers, investors and others in making critical economic decisions. Accordingly, ethical improprieties by accountants can be detrimental to society, resulting in distrust by the public and disruption of efficient capital market operations. â€Å"Every company in the country is fiddling its profits. Every set of published accounts is based on books which have been gently cooked or completely roasted. The figures which are fed twice a year to the investing public have all been changed in order to protect the guilty. It is the biggest con trick since the Trojan horse. †¦ In fact this deception is all in perfectly good taste. It is totally legitimate. It is creative accounting.† —Ian Griffiths in 1986, describing creative accounting From the 1980s to the present there have been multiple accounting scandals that were widely reported on by the media and resulted in fraud charges, bankruptcy protection requests, and the closure of companies and accounting firms. The scandals were the result of creative accounting, misleading financial analysis, as well as bribery. Various companies had issues with fraudulent accounting practices, including Nugan Hand Bank, Phar-Mor, WorldCom, and AIG. One of the most widely-reported violation of accounting ethics involved Enron, a multinational company, that for several years had not shown a true or fair view of their financial statements. Their auditor Arthur Andersen, an accounting firm considered one of the â€Å"Big Five†, signed off on the validity of the accounts despite the inaccuracies in the financial statements. When the unethical activities were reported, not only did Enron dissolve but Arthur Andersen also went out of business. Enron’s shareholders lost $25 billion as a result of the company’s bankruptcy. Although only a fraction of Arthur Anderson’s employees were involved with the scandal, the closure of the firm resulted in the loss of 85,000 jobs. Causes Fraudulent accounting can arise from a variety of issues. These problems usually come to light eventually and could ruin not only the company but also the auditors for not discovering or revealing the misstatements. Several studies have proposed that a firm’s corporate culture as well as the values it stresses may negatively alter an accountant’s behavior. This environment could contribute to the degradation of ethical values that were learned from universities. Until 1977, ethics rules prevented accounting and auditing firms from advertising to clients. When the rules were lifted, spending by the largest CPA firms on advertisements rose from US$4 million in the 1980s to more than $100 million in the 2000s. Critics claimed that, by allowing the firms to advertise, the business side overstepped the professional side of the profession, which led to a conflict of interest. This focus allowed for occurrences of fraud, and caused the firms, according to Arthur Bowman, â€Å"†¦ to offer services that made them more consultants and business advisers than auditors.† As accounting firms became less interested in the lower-paying audits due to more focus on higher earning services such as consulting, problems arose. This disregard for the lack of time spent on audits resulted in a lack of attention to catching creative and fraudulent accounting. A 2007 article in Managerial Auditing Journal determined the top nine factors that contributed to ethical failures for accountants based on a survey of 66 members of the International Federation of Accountants. The factors include (in order of most significant): â€Å"self-interest, failure to maintain objectivity and independence, inappropriate professional judgment, lack of ethical sensitivity, improper leadership and ill-culture, failure to withstand advocacy threats, lack of competence, lack of organizational and peer support, and lack of professional body support.† The main factor, self-interest, is the motivation by an accountant to act in his/her best interest or when facing a conflict of interest. For example, if an auditor has an issue with an account he/she is auditing, but is receiving financial incentives to ignore these issues, the auditor may act unethically. Principles- vs. rules-based â€Å"When people need a doctor, or a lawyer, or a certified public accountant, they seek someone whom they can trust to do a good job — not for himself, but for them. They have to trust him, since they cannot appraise the quality of his ‘product’. To trust him they must believe that he is competent, and that his primary motive is to help them.† —John L. Carey, describing ethics in accounting The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) are standards and interpretations developed by the International Accounting Standards Board, which are principle-based. IFRS are used by over 115 countries including the European Union, Australia, and Hong Kong. The United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), the standard framework of guidelines for financial accounting, is largely rule-based. Critics have stated that the rules-based GAAP is partly responsible for the number of scandals that the United States has suffered. The principles-based approach to monitoring requires more professional judgment than the rules-based approach. There are many stakeholders in many countries such as The United States who report several concerns in the usage of rules-based accounting. According to recent studies, many believe that the principles-based approach in financial reporting would not only improve but would also support an auditor upon dealing with client’s pressure. As a result, financial reports could be viewed with fairness and transparency. When the U.S. switched to International accounting standards, they are composed that this would bring change. However, as a new chairperson of the SEC takes over the system, the transition brings a stronger review about the pros and cons of rules- based accounting. While the move towards international standards progresses, there are small amount of research that examines the effect of principle- based standards in an auditor’s decision- making process. According to 114 auditing experts, most are willing to allow clients to manage their net income based on rules- ba sed standards. These results offers insight to the SEC, IASB and FASB in weighing the arguments in the debate of principles- vs. rules based- accounting. IFRS is based on â€Å"understandability, relevance, materiality, reliability, and comparability†. Since IFRS has not been adopted by all countries, these practices do not make the international standards viable in the world domain. In particular, the United States has not yet conformed and still uses GAAP which makes comparing principles and rules difficult. In August 2008, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed that the United States switch from GAAP to IFRS, starting in 2014. Responses to scandals Since the major accounting scandals, new reforms, regulations, and calls for increased higher education have been introduced to combat the dangers of unethical behavior. By educating accountants on ethics before entering the workforce, such as through higher education or initial training at companies, it is believed it will help to improve the credibility of the accounting profession. Companies and accounting organizations have expanded their assistance with educators by providing education materials to assist professors in educating students. New regulations in response to the scandals include the Corporate Law Economic Reform Program Act 2004 in Australia as well as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, developed by the United States. Sarbanes-Oxley limits the level of work which can be carried out by accounting firms. In addition, the Act put a limit on the fee which a firm can receive from one client as a percentage of their total fees. This ensures that companies are not wholly reliant on one firm for its income, in the hope that they do not need to act unethically to keep a steady income. The act also protects whistleblowers and requires senior management in public companies to sign off on the accuracy of its company’s accounting records. In 2002, the five members of the Public Oversight Board (POB), which oversaw ethics within the accounting profession, resigned after critics deemed the board ineffective and the SEC proposed developing a new panel, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). The PCAOB wa s developed through the Act, and replaced the POB. In 2003, the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) released a report entitled Rebuilding Public Confidence in Financial Reporting: An International Perspective. By studying the international company collapses as a result of accounting issues, it determined areas for improvement within organizations as well as recommendations for companies to develop more effective ethics codes. The report also recommended that companies pursue options that would improve training and support so accountants could better handle ethical dilemmas. A collaborative effort by members of the international financial regulatory community led by Michel Prada, Chairman of the French Financial Markets Authority, resulting in establishment of the Public Interest Oversight Board (PIOB) on 1 March 2005. The PIOB provides oversight of the IFAC standards-setting boards: the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB), the International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB) and the Inter national Ethics Standards Board for Accountants(IESBA). The most recent reform came into effect in July 2010 when President Obama signed â€Å"The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act†. The act covers a broad range of changes. The highlights of the legislation are consumer protections with authority and independence, ends too big to fail bail outs, advance warning system, transparency and accountability for exotic instruments, executive compensation and corporate governance, protects investors, and enforces regulations on the books. The legislation also resulted in the Office of the Whistleblower, which was established to administer the SEC’s whistleblower program. Congress authorized the SEC to provide monetary awards to whistleblowers who come forward with information that results in a minimum of a $1,000,000 sanction. The rewards are between 10% and 30% of the dollar amount collected. Whistleblowers help identify fraud and other unethical behaviors early on. The result is less harm to investors, quick ly holding offenders responsible, and to maintain the integrity of the U.S. markets.

Nobel Prizes in Chemistry Essay

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded 104 times to 163 Nobel Laureates between 1901 and 2012. Frederick Sanger is the only Nobel Laureate who has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry twice, in 1958 and 1980. This means that a total of 162 individuals have received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Click on the links to get more information. 2012 – Robert J. Lefkowitz and Brian K. Kobilka â€Å"for studies of G-protein-coupled receptors† 2011 – Dan Shechtman â€Å"for the discovery of quasicrystals† 2010 – Richard F. Heck, Ei-ichi Negishi and Akira Suzuki â€Å"for palladium-catalyzed cross couplings in organic synthesis† 2009 – Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Thomas A. Steitz and Ada E. Yonath â€Å"for studies of the structure and function of the ribosome† 2008 – Osamu Shimomura, Martin Chalfie and Roger Y. Tsien â€Å"for the discovery and development of the green fluorescent protein, GFP† 2007 – Gerhard Ertl â€Å"for his studies of chemical processes on solid surfaces† 2006 – Roger D. Kornberg â€Å"for his studies of the molecular basis of eukaryotic transcription† 2005 – Yves Chauvin, Robert H. Grubbs and Richard R. Schrock â€Å"for the development of the metathesis method in organic synthesis† 2004 – Aaron Ciechanover, Avram Hershko and Irwin Rose â€Å"for the discovery of ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation† 2003 â€Å"for discoveries concerning channels in cell membranes† 2003 – Peter Agre â€Å"for the discovery of water channels† 2003 – Roderick MacKinnon â€Å"for structural and mechanistic studies of ion channels† 2002 â€Å"for the development of methods for identification and structure analyses of biological macromolecules† 2002 – John B. Fenn and Koichi Tanaka â€Å"for their development of soft desorption ionisation methods for mass spectrometric analyses of biological macromolecules† 2002 – Kurt Wà ¼thrich â€Å"for his development of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for determining the three-dimensional structure of biological macromolecules in solution† 2001 – William S. Knowles and Ryoji Noyori â€Å"for their work on chirally catalysed hydrogenation reactions† 2001 – K. Barry Sharpless â€Å"for his work on chirally catalysed oxidation reactions† 2000 – Alan J. Heeger, Alan G. MacDiarmid and Hideki Shirakawa â€Å"for the discovery and development of conductive polymers† 1999 – Ahmed H. Zewail â€Å"for his studies of the transition states of chemical reactions using femtosecond spectroscopy† 1998 – Walter Kohn â€Å"for his development of the density-functional theory† 1998 – John A. Pople â€Å"for his development of computational methods in quantum chemistry† 1997 – Paul D. Boyer and John E. Walker â€Å"for their elucidation of the enzymatic mechanism underlying the synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP)† 1997 – Jens C. Skou â€Å"for the first discovery of an ion-transporting enzyme, Na+, K+ -ATPase† 1996 – Robert F. Curl Jr., Sir Harold W. Kroto and Richard E. Smalley â€Å"for their discovery of fullerenes† 1995 – Paul J. Crutzen, Mario J. Molina and F. Sherwood Rowland â€Å"for their work in atmospheric chemistry, particularly concerning the formation and decomposition of ozone† 1994 – George A. Olah â€Å"for his contribution to carbocation chemistry† 1993 â€Å"for contributions to the developments of methods within DNA-based chemistry† 1993 – Kary B. Mullis â€Å"for his invention of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method† 1993 – Michael Smith â€Å"for his fundamental contributions to the establishment of oligonucleotide-based, site-directed mutagenesis and its development for protein studies† 1992 – Rudolph A. Marcus â€Å"for his contributions to the theory of electron transfer reactions in chemical systems† 1991 – Richard R. Ernst â€Å"for his contributions to the development of the methodology of high resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy† 1990 – Elias James Corey â€Å"for his development of the theory and methodology of organic synthesis† 1989 – Sidney Altman and Thomas R. Cech â€Å"for their discovery of catalytic properties of RNA† 1988 – Johann Deisenhofer, Robert Huber and Hartmut Michel â€Å"for the determination of the three-dimensional structure of a photosynthetic reaction centre† 1987 – Donald J. Cram, Jean-Marie Lehn and Charles J. Pedersen â€Å"for their development and use of molecules with structure-specific interactions of high selectivity† 1986 – Dudley R. Herschbach, Yuan T. Lee and John C. Polanyi â€Å"for their contributions concerning the dynamics of chemical elementary processes† 1985 – Herbert A. Hauptman and Jerome Karle â€Å"for their outstanding achievements in the development of direct methods for the determination of crystal structures† 1984 – Robert Bruce Merrifield â€Å"for his development of methodology for chemical synthesis on a solid matrix† 1983 – Henry Taube â€Å"for his work on the mechanisms of electron transfer reactions, especially in metal complexes† 1982 – Aaron Klug â€Å"for his development of crystallographic electron microscopy and his structural elucidation of biologically important nucleic acid-protein complexes† 1981 – Kenichi Fukui and Roald Hoffmann â€Å"for their theories, developed independently, concerning the course of chemical reactions† 1980 – Paul Berg â€Å"for his fundamental studies of the biochemistry of nucleic acids, with particular regard to recombinant-DNA† 1980 – Walter Gilbert and Frederick Sanger â€Å"for their contributions concerning the determination of base sequences in nucleic acids† 1979 – Herbert C. Brown and Georg Wittig â€Å"for their development of the use of boron- and phosphorus-containing compounds, respectively, into important reagents in organic synthesis† 1978 – Peter D. Mitchell â€Å"for his contribution to the understanding of biological energy transfer through the formulation of the chemiosmotic theory† 1977 – Ilya Prigogine â€Å"for his contributions to non-equilibrium thermodynamics, particularly the theory of dissipative structures† 1976 – William N. Lipscomb â€Å"for his studies on the structure of boranes illuminating problems of chemical bonding† 1975 – John Warcup Cornforth â€Å"for his work on the stereochemistry of enzyme-catalyzed reactions† 1975 – Vladimir Prelog â€Å"for his research into the stereochemistry of organic molecules and reactions† 1974 – Paul J. Flory â€Å"for his fundamental achievements, both theoretical and experimental, in the physical chemistry of the macromolecules† 1973 – Ernst Otto Fischer and Geoffrey Wilkinson â€Å"for their pioneering work, performed independently, on the chemistry of the organometallic, so called sandwich compounds† 1972 – Christian B. Anfinsen â€Å"for his work on ribonuclease, especially concerning the connection between the amino acid sequence and the biologically active conformation† 1972 – Stanford Moore and William H. Stein â€Å"for their contribution to the understanding of the connection between chemical structure and catalytic activity of the active centre of the ribonuclease molecule† 1971 – Gerhard Herzberg â€Å"for his contributions to the knowledge of electronic structure and geometry of molecules, particularly free radicals† 1970 – Luis F. Leloir â€Å"for his discovery of sugar nucleotides and their role in the biosynthesis of carbohydrates† 1969 – Derek H. R. Barton and Odd Hassel â€Å"for their contributions to the development of the concept of conformation and its application in chemistry† 1968 – Lars Onsager â€Å"for the discovery of the reciprocal relations bearing his name, which are fundamental for the thermodynamics of irreversible processes† 1967 – Manfred Eigen, Ronald George Wreyford Norrish and George Porter â€Å"for their studies of extremely fast chemical reactions, effected by disturbing the equlibrium by means of very short pulses of energy† 1966 – Robert S. Mulliken â€Å"for his fundamental work concerning chemical bonds and the electronic structure of molecules by the molecular orbital method† 1965 – Robert Burns Woodward â€Å"for his outstanding achievements in the art of organic synthesis† 1964 – Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin â€Å"for her determinations by X-ray techniques of the structures of important biochemical substances† 1963 – Karl Ziegler and Giulio Natta â€Å"for their discoveries in the field of the chemistry and technology of high polymers† 1962 – Max Ferdinand Perutz and John Cowdery Kendrew â€Å"for their studies of the structures of globular proteins† 1961 – Melvin Calvin â€Å"for his research on the carbon dioxide assimilation in plants† 1960 – Willard Frank Libby â€Å"for his method to use carbon-14 for age determination in archaeology, geology, geophysics, and other branches of science† 1959 – Jaroslav Heyrovsky â€Å"for his discovery and development of the polarographic methods of analysis† 1958 – Frederick Sanger â€Å"for his work on the structure of proteins, especially that of insulin† 1957 – Lord (Alexander R.) Todd â€Å"for his work on nucleotides and nucleotide co-enzymes† 1956 – Sir Cyril Norman Hinshelwood and Nikolay Nikolaevich Semenov â€Å"for their researches into the mechanism of chemical reactions† 1955 – Vincent du Vigneaud â€Å"for his work on biochemically important sulphur compounds, especially for the first synthesis of a polypeptide hormone† 1954 – Linus Carl Pauling â€Å"for his research into the nature of the chemical bond and its application to the elucidation of the structure of complex substances† 1953 – Hermann Staudinger â€Å"for his discoveries in the field of macromolecular chemistry† 1952 – Archer John Porter Martin and Richard Laurence Millington Synge â€Å"for their invention of partition chromatography† 1951 – Edwin Mattison McMillan and Glenn Theodore Seaborg â€Å"for their discoveries in the chemistry of the transuranium elements† 1950 – Otto Paul Hermann Diels and Kurt Alder â€Å"for their discovery and development of the diene synthesis† 1949 – William Francis Giauque â€Å"for his contributions in the field of chemical thermodynamics, particularly concerning the behaviour of substances at extremely low temperatures† 1948 – Arne Wilhelm Kaurin Tiselius â€Å"for his research on electrophoresis and adsorption analysis, especially for his discoveries concerning the complex nature of the serum proteins† 1947 – Sir Robert Robinson â€Å"for his investigations on plant products of biological importance, especially the alkaloids† 1946 – James Batcheller Sumner â€Å"for his discovery that enzymes can be crystallized† 1946 – John Howard Northrop and Wendell Meredith Stanley â€Å"for their preparation of enzymes and virus proteins in a pure form† 1945 – Artturi Ilmari Virtanen â€Å"for his research and inventions in agricultural and nutrition chemistry, especially for his fodder preservation method† 1944 – Otto Hahn â€Å"for his discovery of the fission of heavy nuclei† 1943 – George de Hevesy â€Å"for his work on the use of isotopes as tracers in the study of chemical processes† 1942 – 1940 No Nobel Prize was awarded this year. The prize money was with 1/3 allocated to the Main Fund and with 2/3 to the Special Fund of this prize section. 1939 – Adolf Friedrich Johann Butenandt â€Å"for his work on sex hormones† 1939 – Leopold Ruzicka â€Å"for his work on polymethylenes and higher terpenes† 1938 – Richard Kuhn â€Å"for his work on carotenoids and vitamins† 1937 – Walter Norman Haworth â€Å"for his investigations on carbohydrates and vitamin C† 1937 – Paul Karrer â€Å"for his investigations on carotenoids, flavins and vitamins A and B2† 1936 – Petrus (Peter) Josephus Wilhelmus Debye â€Å"for his contributions to our knowledge of molecular structure through his investigations on dipole moments and on the diffraction of X-rays and electrons in gases† 1935 – Frà ©dà ©ric Joliot and Irà ¨ne Joliot-Curie â€Å"in recognition of their synthesis of new radioactive elements† 1934 – Harold Clayton Urey â€Å"for his discovery of heavy hydrogen† 1933 No Nobel Prize was awarded this year. The prize money was with 1/3 allocated to the Main Fund and with 2/3 to the Special Fund of this prize section. 1932 – Irving Langmuir â€Å"for his discoveries and investigations in surface chemistry† 1931 – Carl Bosch and Friedrich Bergius â€Å"in recognition of their contributions to the invention and development of chemical high pressure methods† 1930 – Hans Fischer â€Å"for his researches into the constitution of haemin and chlorophyll and especially for his synthesis of haemin† 1929 – Arthur Harden and Hans Karl August Simon von Euler-Chelpin â€Å"for their investigations on the fermentation of sugar and fermentative enzymes† 1928 – Adolf Otto Reinhold Windaus â€Å"for the services rendered through his research into the constitution of the sterols and their connection with the vitamins† 1927 – Heinrich Otto Wieland â€Å"for his investigations of the constitution of the bile acids and related substances† 1926 – T he (Theodor) Svedberg â€Å"for his work on disperse systems† 1925 – Richard Adolf Zsigmondy â€Å"for his demonstration of the heterogenous nature of colloid solutions and for the methods he used, which have since become fundamental in modern colloid chemistry† 1924 No Nobel Prize was awarded this year. The prize money was allocated to the Special Fund of this prize section. 1923 – Fritz Pregl â€Å"for his invention of the method of micro-analysis of organic substances† 1922 – Francis William Aston â€Å"for his discovery, by means of his mass spectrograph, of isotopes, in a large number of non-radioactive elements, and for his enunciation of the whole-number rule† 1921 – Frederick Soddy â€Å"for his contributions to our knowledge of the chemistry of radioactive substances, and his investigations into the origin and nature of isotopes† 1920 – Walther Hermann Nernst â€Å"in recognition of his work in thermochemistry† 1919 No Nobel Prize was awarded this year. The prize money was allocated to the Special Fund of this prize section. 1918 – Fritz Haber â€Å"for the synthesis of ammonia from its elements† 1917 No Nobel Prize was awarded this year. The prize money was allocated to the Special Fund of this prize section. 1916 No Nobel Prize was awarded this year. The prize money was allocated to the Special Fund of this prize section. 1915 – Richard Martin Willstà ¤tter â€Å"for his researches on plant pigments, especially chlorophyll† 1914 – Theodore William Richards â€Å"in recognition of his accurate determinations of the atomic weight of a large number of chemical elements† 1913 – Alfred Werner â€Å"in recognition of his work on the linkage of atoms in molecules by which he has thrown new light on earlier investigations and opened up new fields of research especially in inorganic chemistry† 1912 – Victor Grignard â€Å"for the discovery of the so-called Grignard reagent, which in recent years has greatly advanced the progress of organic chemistry† 1912 – Paul Sabatier â€Å"for his method of hydrogenating organic compounds in the presence of finely disintegrated metals whereby the progress of organic chemistry has been greatly advanced in recent years† 1911 – Marie Curie, nà ©e Sklodowska â€Å"in recognition of her services to the advancement of chemistry by the discovery of the elements radium and polonium, by the isolation of radium and the study of the nature and compounds of this remarkable element† 1910 – Otto Wallach â€Å"in recognition of his services to organic chemistry and the chemical industry by his pioneer work in the field of alicyclic compounds† 1909 – Wilhelm Ostwald â€Å"in recognition of his work on catalysis and for his investigations into the fundamental principles governing chemical equilibria and rates of reaction† 1908 – Ernest Rutherford â€Å"for his investigations into the disintegration of the elements, and the chemistry of radioactive substances† 1907 – Eduard Buchner â€Å"for his biochemical researches and his discovery of cell-free fermentation† 1906 – Henri Moissan â€Å"in recognition of the great services rendered by him in his investigation and isolation of the element fluorine, and for the adoption in the service of science of the electric furnace called after him† 1905 – Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Adolf von Baeyer â€Å"in recognition of his services in the advancement of organic chemistry and the chemical industry, through his work on organic dyes and hydroaromatic compounds† 1904 – Sir William Ramsay â€Å"in recognition of his services in the discovery of the inert gaseous elements in air, and his determination of their place in the periodic system† 1903 – Svante August Arrhenius â€Å"in recognition of the extraordinary services he has rendered to the advancement of chemistry by his electrolytic theory of dissociation† 1902 – Hermann Emil Fischer â€Å"in recognition of the extraordinary services he has rendered by his work on sugar and purine syntheses† 1901 – Jacobus Henricus van ‘t Hoff â€Å"in recognition of the extraordinary services he has rendered by the discovery of the laws of chemical dynamics and osmotic pressure in solutions†

Madama Butterfly

Madama Butterfly Madama Butterfly When asked to go view a live performance there were no doubts in my mind that I would go see Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly. The story of Cio-cio-san, the eternally faithful heroine, is one of the most wrenching and well known in all of opera. A young geisha is so blinded by hope for a better life that she does not see the truth about the man she loves until it is far too late. There is more to this story than we often see. The culture conflict between the East and West is just beneath the surface. In 1900, Japan was discovering the West, both the arrogance and the promise, for the first time. During that time, hundreds of Japanese women married American servicemen and immigrated to America. Countless others suffered the cruel fate of Madama Butterfly.Act one takes place in Japan in the early twentieth century.Pinkerton Academy, Derry, N.H.

How the Internet Fuels Terrorism

How the Internet Fuels Terrorism Free Online Research Papers The First Amendment is the bedrock of the United States, and without adherence to First Amendment rights and privileges, America will suffer. The Foreign Intelligence and Surveillance Act (FISA) was first enacted in 1978 and subsequently modified extensively with the USA Patriot Act of 2001. After the tragedy of September 11, 2001, the federal government ramped up its security investigations to gather intelligence on foreign terrorist groups seeking to destroy the spread of democracy. The proliferation of satellite communications is allowing these terrorist groups to exchange information and coordinate attacks on their â€Å"enemies.† Introduction The First Amendment’s protection of free speech is the United States’ bedrock and is being threatened by the internet explosion that is being misused by global terrorists. The explosion in technology over the last two decades laid the framework for interconnectivity opening communication channels twenty-four hours per day, 365 days per year to every corner of the world. Internet connections can be achieved with satellite technology through out the globe allowing entrepreneurs to maintain continuous trade, medical professionals to collaborate cures, academics to correlate research, law enforcement to snoop on every human being and terrorists to plot world destruction. With any good technology, there are always those schemers trying to make illicit profits or to cause harm to settle personal vendettas or advance personal goals. In particular, the United States has taken up radical Islamists as its twenty-first century enemy. The U.S. government has reorganized nation al security to battle the terrorists until financial ruin or victory is achieved over the terrorists. To battle terrorists, America primarily uses the Foreign Intelligence and Surveillance Act (FISA) first enacted in 1978 and subsequently modified extensively with the USA Patriot Act of 2001 (law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode50/usc_sec_50_00001801-000-.html). After the tragedy of September 11, 2001, the federal government ramped up its security investigations to gather intelligence on foreign terrorist groups seeking to destroy the spread of democracy. The proliferation of satellite communications allows terrorist groups to exchange information and coordinate attacks on their â€Å"enemies.† FISA provisions of court ordered warrants by Supreme Court nominees and the Constitution are now being ignored for the sake of fighting the global war on terror. Freedom of Speech When the founding fathers began writing the constitution of the USA it focused on individual rights and responsibilities. The first known formalization of the concept of free speech recorded is the appearance of Sir Thomas More before King Henry VIII in 1523 (Freedom of Speech, 2007). Since free speech has been a governmental concept for only the last six centuries, continued prescription is inevitable. With today’s litigious society, limits and expanses of free speech will be continually challenged. The United Nations in 1948 attempted to universalize the right to free speech without fear of incarceration (Freedom of Speech, 2007). Certain speech that is intended to incite a riot or violence is generally restricted as the public need to peace and tranquility takes the forefront. Referencing Wikipedia, one must note that many countries are listed for their advances in declarations of rights to free speech, but it is quite notable that Middle Eastern countries are missing . This paper will attempt to bring to the forefront the immense challenge of encouraging technology deployment while maintaining a vigilant watch on terrorists that seek to do harm to America and its many freedom partners. Regulations That Promote Free Speech The Constitution and its Bill of Rights are the foundation of the Freedom of Speech. Our judicial system continually referees challenges to the First Amendment. Landmark cases that limit free speech are noteworthy and somewhat numerous: 1) Miller test for obscenity, 2) Copyright protections, 3) Roth versus the United States, and 4) the Pruneyard Case. Freedom of speech in the U.S. generally allows anyone to say anything, print any publication, or broadcast any media without censorship only to defend its permissibility and its innocence after the fact. Larry Flint is one of those willing to challenge all boundaries of obscenity and be very willing to suffer the consequences. Flint could definitely be called a First Amendment martyr. With so many means of media and communication, many federal agencies come into the foray to protect free speech. Besides federal, common and case law, the United States takes to heart international law such as the United Nations Universal Declaratio n of Human Rights. Article 19 of that UN declaration states, everyone has the right to opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media, regardless of frontiers (Freedom of Speech, 2007). The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with its traditional challenge of reigning in unruly broadcasters and publishers must now face the perils of unfettered internet access. The internet opens up so many means of communicating – both beneficial and harmful. Specifically the FCC utilizes post facto sanctions to punish media providers that violate community standards definitions of obscenity or indecency. Since internet transmissions can come from anywhere in the world into every living room in the world, the FCC has an almost insurmountable challenge to protect the new digital age of communication while building â€Å"firewalls† to protect against terrorism. Protecting Internet Free Speech The First Amendment will always take the form of granite for America with the judicial system continuing to define the crystals that form the rock. Public action groups such as www.savetheinternet.com and www.MoveOn.org serve as citizen referees to maintain the internet and other public venues available to all to express opinions openly. A recent victory for these groups was the defeat of Senator Ted Stevens’ H.R. 5252 Telco bill that was seen as very pro-industry and anti-public in nature (Huge Victory†¦, 2007). The bill and the subsequent fight to defeat featured the concept of net neutrality. Net neutrality focuses on the process design of the internet and not the content; passage of the Stevens’ bill would have allowed internet providers to price web content according to a scale that would have left public non-corporate content at hit 1,000,000 plus. Most call the processing system of the internet, the pipes (internet backbone on servers, fiber optic netwo rks and web portals). Supporters of net neutrality stress that the pipe owners maintain a reasonable separation so content will not be slanted too far left or right. Traditional media such as newspapers definitely show political leanings by their editorials, and the internet serves as the virtual scales of justice. While net neutrality focused on the backbone, other groups trying to protect the internet are the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT). One example of federal law protecting internet content was the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) that offers protection to intellectual property (Free Speech, 2006). Such property takes the form of something as simple as clipart: ?. One well established protection for reporters that allows anonymous sources to remain anonymous is being afforded via internet bloggers for the most part. These attempts to extend free speech protections to the digital world closely track laws and regulations in the traditional beacons of transparency: vagueness, overbreadth, and prior restraint. With the internet being the most participatory form of mass speech yet developed, the right to free speech will be tested until t he end of time. Invasions of Privacy Big brother is watching. George Orwell would love to rewrite his classic book, 1984, based on such organizations as the Army Web Risk Assessment Cell (AWRAC) (Reed, 2007). AWARAC operates automated surveillance of troops’ blogs and web content to control careless or possible malicious release of secret data. In the meantime AWARAC can scan soldier’s complaints. Many soldiers typically disagree at one time or another about command’s direction, but the internet allows a bon fire of unlimited blogging that could lead to detrimental troop morale. This example portrays the possibility of common citizen monitoring very plausible. Of course, it is not illegal to search the internet for say military complaints randomly, but if the government sets up digital programs to monitor all lanes of free speech that leaders find displeasing, an invasion of privacy is inevitable. The internet has given birth to the newest crime category and venue of today: cyber crime and internet terrorism. These new crime areas threaten aviation, financial security, national security, identities and national defense. Committing criminal or forbidden acts can take the simple form of posting a blog where an Army unit is traveling. Travel fears should ripple when someone hacks into the Federal Aviation Administration’s air traffic control server to change location displays of various aircraft in order that several horrendous crashes occur simultaneously. The question remains, if individuals knowingly or innocently violate laws and regulations, does that give the government carte blanche to monitor all internet transmissions? This appears to violate the innate right of Americans to say and print almost anything to only suffer consequences later. To battle these new crime channels, governments must tune traditional intelligence gathering and sharing paradigms. To establish and adjudicate security clearances for all levels of government is essentially unachievable. To fight these new breeds of terrorists, all levels of government must be keen to threats, vigilantly share information with other agencies and in turn receive valuable intelligence to shift resources in preparation for upcoming attacks. Intelligence officers today need to be master surfers as well as master data analysts. When all sects of society join together and the federal government sharpens their intelligence frameworks, homeland security can be continuously improved. Global Internet Technologies To imagine that America’s homeland security can be threatened by something as simple as a bicycle powered generator and a 30-inch dish with a $150 laptop changes all preconceived ideas of typical criminal backrooms. Simple technology is being developed to spread educational opportunities throughout the world, but that same capability can easily deliver Al Qaeda’s next operation order to attack a U.S. Embassy in Tanzania. Communication has always been vital to the battlefield, but with instantaneous messaging, Osama Bin Laden could direct a strike against any target at any time with a $100 GPS that is accurate to within 100 feet. Various groups will continue the development of simple and easy to use computing technologies, and this information sharing may help inform diverse groups to understand others so they are not feared or hated. One such foundation is One Laptop Per Child which deploys laptops to impoverished children (Hilton, 2006). These laptops do not have much software but come with wireless network connectivity. Network connections take the form of existing cellular telephone networks, long-range microwave and satellite fed networks. Besides expansion of educational opportunities, this technology explosion opens up new venues for holding national elections, agricultural trading, medical treatment extension, and banking. Internet Technologies Used by Terrorist Originally hackers were very annoying to the point that computers were corrupted requiring operating systems to be reinstalled. Bruce Berkowitz stated in 2001, â€Å"the real threat is not the hackers you see; it’s the ones you don’t.† Now those same hackers are being hired by terrorists to look for data to discover vulnerabilities of their enemies to cause havoc. The simplest method to battle an electronic enemy is to develop advanced technology continuously: firewalls, encryption programs, and training vigilant users. This technology of course has to be home grown. Traditional national security intelligence efforts are known for their reports and briefs and now need to be known for their internet savvy. If the federal government can attract young techies with the glamour to be the next 007, our intelligence efforts will be back at the forefront. As vast and diverse illicit uses of the internet become evermore prevalent, the costs to society to counter cyberterrorism will impact the free flow of information. Intelligence agencies must reform around internet connectivity to analyze potential enemies as well as serving as the microscope to dissect who and what is being planned. Some of the many ways the internet can be used by terrorists are psychological warfare, propaganda, fundraising, recruitment, data mining, and coordination of actions. Foreign Terrorist Organizations designated under the U.S. Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 almost all unanimously maintained websites by year 2000 (Weimann, 2004). These organizations employ webmasters that change internet protocol (IP) addresses almost daily and upload and remove websites as quick as a mouse click. The first avenue of eight different ways to use the internet by terrorists is psychological warfare. All modern armies use some psychological warfare. Terrorist are very good at disinformation causing fear and panic with fake attacks. This method draws eerie similarities to Orson Well’s War of the World’s infamous radio show nearly effecting pandemonium. Information is powerful, and terrorists who learn how and when to spread disinformation may cause almost as much damage as rockets. The USA’s most wanted terrorist organization, Al Qaeda, wages continuous fake attacks on the US, like white envelopes with white powder. These attacks typically cause some level of alarm that impacts the stock and bond markets, but principally diverts intelligence resources away from a possible another September 11, 2001. The second focus area, publicity and propaganda, are used by terrorists to gain public awareness and empathy for their cause and financial support. One key area that is always stressed is the perils faced by their captured comrades. Those prisoners are touted as being religious zealots not terrorists. Religious groups should have a free reign to practice their religion, but when that practice takes the form of collaborated Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), those groups must be controlled. Terrorists claim that their point of view will not be heard without explosions, that their way of life is being attacked by the West, and that their espousing of sovereignty is their sole goal. All of these goals gel easily around the internet’s free, unfettered and uncensored communication. It is strange to think that the internet is the ultimate symbol of a free world but is also a terrorist’s greatest weapon. The third area that terrorists focus on is data mining. This area is exploited by all parties – good and bad. When one thinks that there are over a billion pages of information on the internet, it is easy to see that this is much more valuable than all the South African diamond mines together. A simple Yahoo search on the term â€Å"internet terrorism† yields over 24 million hits. Since the internet grows by the nanosecond, information analyzing is becoming infinite. Terrorists form such organizations as the Muslim Hackers Club who disseminates sensitive or classified information such as Secret Service radio frequencies, electronic virus tutorials, and building blueprints (Weimann, 2004). When the US discovered Al Qaeda with U.S. dam drawings, the Army Corps of Engineers stop posting engineering project designs as a part of contract solicitations. These contract packages are now only available on a bona fide need to know. A real security challenge remains to pro tect key infrastructure sites around the world, and this increasing effort to protect will no doubt close venues to public access in the future. How is all of this paid for? Fundraising on the internet becomes a very economical means. Howard Dean displayed in the 2004 US Presidential election that raising funds on the internet is very viable. Terrorist publish overseas account numbers for sympathizers to make deposits. Many groups that appear to be legitimate non-profits are in fact fronts for jihadist groups. One uncanny example is that of Sami Hussayen who was a doctoral candidate in computer science supported by the National Security Agency. He was found to be creating websites that disseminated radical jihadist messages. Supporters of various terrorists are recruited and mobilized easily through the web and its many tangles. The perils of internet cookies tastes bitter when one is considered to be targeted for donations or moral support because of their perusing of terrorist websites. Principally the internet is used to sway sympathizers to join the militias based on their anti-American propaganda and religious decrees. Al Qaeda is the principal group using the internet to stage recruitment campaigns. The internet is also used to invoke public displays of support as demonstrated by the world wide collective protest to the arrest of Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the Kurdist terrorist group, Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK) (Weimann, 2004). The internet perfectly enables Al Qaeda and Hamas to form loose coalitions of terrorism organizations. Since these organizations are constantly being hunted by the western world, a traditional hierarchical structure is not easily maintained. The internet lends itself to horizontally organized groups dispersed all over the world. Bombs are being built by these groups with online assembly manuals, and the terror cells are formed lightening quick and text message operation orders are issued to place and detonate those bombs. The seventh area terrorists are using the internet is information sharing – collaboration. Three scary publications found on the internet are 1) The Terrorist’s Handbook, 2) The Anarchist Cookbook and 3) The Mujahadeen Poisons Handbook. Of course the best of those 3 manuals along with other terrorist publications are collated into The Encyclopedia of Jihad (Weimann, 2004). Information on the internet with evil purposes is not solely privileged for Jihadist groups but also inspires individuals to formulate individual evil. Many other examples in the free world display the unpredictable consequences of having such malevolence information available freely on the internet. The eighth portal that the internet opens to terrorists is the planning and coordination efforts that can be conducted virtually. Planners of September 11, 2001 used public free email accounts to transmit cryptic messages from public internet terminals. Graphic files are used frequently with operation orders embedded behind the graphics for concealment. Anti-terrorist organizations have focused their efforts normally on cyber terrorism and not the routine transmission of complex encrypted email messages containing the next 9-1-1. When the battle begins on the many ways that terrorists use the internet, democracy may be dealt blows with losses of privacy. Terrorists are starting to finance their campaigns by conducting cyber crimes, e.g. brokering stolen corporate secrets. Gabriel Weimann stated in 2004, â€Å"It is a paradox: those movements who criticize Western technology and modernity are using the West’s most advanced communication technology, the Internet, to spread their message.† As this digital cat and mouse continue their chase, the U. S. Government must balance their aggression against sacred freedoms. Counter Internet Terrorism FISA, Foreign Intelligence and Surveillance Act, first enacted in 1978 as a reaction to the new cold war, started with good intentions, but have gone awry in recent years. FISA is the federal government’s most lethal homeland operation platform available to fight terrorism in general. Along with FISA, the more recent USA Patriot Act added complimentary defensive postures. Besides laws, our government uses Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening Systems (CAPPS II), Terrorist Threat Integration Center (TTIC), the Defense Advanced Projects Administration (DARPA), Terrorist Information Awareness (TIA), and the Privacy and Civil Liberties Board (PCLB) (Steinberg, Graham Eggers, 2003). These modern efforts to secure our national security are force multipliers to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). If all of these national laws, regulations and agencies are worked in concert, all Americans will be safer. FISA details procedures for electronic and physical surveillance and gathering of foreign intelligence information that is between foreign powers. This intelligence gathering should be for the sake of finding terrorist cells that intend harm on America or Americans living abroad. FISA’s very secret court that approves almost baseless warrants to perform physical searches or electronic surveillance programs started being used extensively in year 2000 under President Clinton and even more frequently under the Bush Administration. This secret court is comprised of 11 judges appointed by the Supreme Court Chief Justice and is housed in the Department of Justices. Troubling concerns became public in recent years that the President of the United States conducted electronic surveillance specifically without FISA warrants in the name of fighting the Global War on Terror. FISA was significantly revised with the USA Patriot Act of 2001 to allow intelligence gathering activities on foreign groups that may or may not be backed by a foreign government. The USA Patriot Act approved by Congress as a result of the tragedy of September 11, 2001 was the greatest step-change that the Federal Government has promulgated to protect America while threatening our freedoms commonly called privacy rights. Privacy rights are definitely going to be violated as the Patriot Act is utilized, but it is the terrorist that the wire taps, data mining, and various cyber probes were supposed to target. The Patriot Act is supposed to be used to find foreign threats that generally reside within the United States. Common reactions leading to the Patriot Act were to never allow terrorist to be trained to fly planes in the U.S., travel around the country freely or violate VISA requirements. One overarching goal of the Patriot Act is to coalesce local, state and federal law enforcement agencies into a homogenous intelligence gathering and sharing team to stop terrorists. CAPPS II is being tested by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), an agency formed as a result of 9-11-01 (Steinberg, Graham Eggers, 2003). TSA intends to scan all commercial airliner passenger manifests looking for potential terrorists. TTIC a creation of 2003 vintage by the George W. Bush administration offers another very pervasive avenue into our everyday lives (Steinberg, Graham Eggers, 2003). TTIC seeks to coordinate information sharing between various intelligence gathering agencies. The goal of TTIC is not to gather more information, but rather to facilitate the collaboration of intelligence agencies to gain analytical synergies. Successful collaboration could lead to protections for critical infrastructure such as agriculture, transportation, water resources, and energy. DARPA sponsors research into data mining techniques and pattern recognition technologies that could develop new tools to discover terrorist plots or battlefield plans by the enemy. One s uch program to mine data is TIA (Steinberg, Graham Eggers, 2003). TIA is designed to detect terrorist groups planning attacks against America. TIA serves as the ultimate blender to integrate various technologies to provide tools to authorized intelligence and law enforcement agencies to gather critical data to detect terrorists. To possibly balance the three above intelligence agencies, the five-member Privacy and Civil Liberties Board has secretly operated for almost a year and will make its first report to Congress soon (Yen, 2007). The Board was intended to be a watchdog over the various FISA and Patriot Act reforms to determine if they have caused unruly invasions into private lives. The Board has looked at international financial transaction monitoring, warrant less eavesdropping, and the Homeland Security Department’s no-fly lists. The Board was tasked with looking at how the various oversight activities were conducted so that national security validated warrants and searches without warrants did not cause irreparable harm to America. Citizen Protections from Counter Terrorism Activities FISA courts were set up to serve the President while providing some means of protection for our citizen liberties. One really has to wonder why President Bush avoids the court formed to protect America. In 2000, Judge Lambert discovered that the FBI was misleading the court on the purpose of national security wiretaps. As a result of this court’s actions, tremendously needed wiretaps of Al Qaeda suspects were shut down. Immediate search and seizures in the name of foreign terrorist surveillance can be made without a warrant, but must be certified by the Attorney General after the fact. Domestically, the FISA court serves as the principal gatekeeper, but internationally the young Council of Europe’s Convention on Cybercrime (CECC) steps into the foray to offer some common sense (Cybercrime Hacking, 2007). Anytime a process is validated by several countries, it should offer greater individual freedom protections. Only time will tell if this international intelligence gathering venue truly gets to the source quicker and more efficiently while avoiding violations of citizen’s personal life. Since all of these information gathering methods involve some form of communication, it must be obvious to realize that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must play a key role in protecting constitutional freedoms. A crucial supporting cast to the FCC is the Homeland Security Policy Council (HSPC, 2007). HSPC was formed in late 2001 to strengthen measures to protect U.S. telecommunications, broadcast and communications infrastructure. HSPC was also tasked with being the emergency coordination agency in the event of terrorist attacks on communication systems, providing the means of last resort for first responders to effectively communicate. It is essential that the FCC plays a key role in terrorism awareness as that agency is able to reserve vital frequencies for communication. National disasters such as Hurricane Katrina clearly displayed the importance of interoperability. Besides government sponsored internet protectors, grass roots organizations such as Reporters Without Borders (RSF) maintain websites devoted to uncovering enemies of the internet (Enemies of the internet, 2006). As of November 2006 RSF listed 13 blacklisted countries. RSF has organized online coordinated protests to show worldwide support to maintain a free open internet. A free uncensored internet will keep bloggers posting their complaints about countries that are traditional human rights violators, e.g. China, Iran and North Korea. It will certainly be very interesting to watch whether penetrating U.S. intelligence activities could actually plop America on the predator of freedoms list. Global War on Terror (GWOT) Over $700 billion spent in the last four years and no closer to finding Osama bin Laden or weapons of mass destruction (WMD) makes every taxpayer cringe at the thought of continuing the fight for years to come. The answer to this world dilemma will come from innovative novel solutions. One such potential solution is allowing young scientists to craft means to destroy satellites virtually or physically. The Air Force Research Laboratory in New Mexico houses one such simple group formed to achieve those results. The group is named Space Countermeasures Hands On Program or Space CHOP (Shachtman, 2007). For example this group may go to the neighborhood electronic store to build simple devices that block vital satellite signals. Discovering these vulnerabilities along with hacking in their free time, define the next defensive front that must be armed and ready to protect national assets. For the free world to achieve a semblance of terrorism control, it is simple to see that to be able to fight modern terrorists, one must think and act like one. When someone considers that an individual can peddle an exercise bike to generate electricity to connect to the World Wide Web to transmit a lethal operational order that releases deadly attacks on trains in Spain, advances in counter-terrorism are critical. Instant messaging becomes a normal means of communication for battlefield commanders via PDA’s linked to satellite or cellular systems. Information is available to understand the issues; one such web page by the Counterproliferation Center of the U.S. Air Force lists 28 pages of links (GWOT, 2007). One day, counter terrorism classes may become as common as First Aid classes. Sacrifices for Security Intelligence gathering will not subside anytime soon, so the question must be answered how America will maintain privacy for every citizen and organization. Discussions are really just beginning to start with the apparently never ending GWOT. The public has only learned within the last year or so that the President of the United States authorized search and seizures without warrants to gain information about potential foreign terrorists. Regulations to protect us also offer invasions into every personal life. FISA, CIA, FBI, and our military are intended to make peace, but they also offer chaos. Becoming a better and stronger nation must be the goal of our leaders for all facets of life: education, economics, medical care, safety and democracy. Democracy is what sets America apart with its unlimited entrepreneurial spirit. This spirit in a sense makes close bedfellows with internet hackers. Hopefully each reader can see that creating an atmosphere that allows some harmless hacking actually presents opportunities to build new firewalls from terrorists. The key to fighting today’s and tomorrow’s radical terrorists lies within the internet. Sophisticated terrorists are the norm, and America must develop a new army of cyber warriors. Do you feel the calling? References Attacking Terrorist Networks at Home and Abroad, The White House, Washington, accessed February 20, 2007. Becker, Gary S., Why a Crash Wouldn’t Cripple The Economy, Hoover Digest No. 4, Hoover Institution, 1997. Berkowitz, Bruce, Fixing U.S. Intelligence, Hoover Institution, March 19, 2001. Berkowitz, Bruce, Preparing for the Computer Wars, Hoover Institution, August 13, 2001. Censorship Fears over New Online Ethics Commission, Reporters Without Borders, February 16, 2007. Cybercrime and Hacking, Computer World, IDG News, August 04, 2006. Enemies of the Internet Named, BBC News, London, November 7, 2006. FCC To Study ISP Business Practices, Stars and Stripes Volume 4, Number 346, Department of the Defense(DOD), 2007. 50 USC 1801, , law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode50/usc_sec_50_00001801-000-.html, accessed April 21, 2007. Flexible Deployment Assistance Guide 2nd Edition, Packet Mode Communications, Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act – CALEA, August 2001. For $150, Third-World Laptop Stirs Big Debate, New York Times, November 11, 2006. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, Wikipedia, accessed February 4, 2007. Free Expression, Center For Democracy Technology(CDT), 2007. Free Speech, Electronic Privacy Information Center, 2007. Freedom of Speech, Wikipedia.org, 2007. Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), U.S. Air Force Counterproliferation Center(USAFCC), accessed February 21, 2007. Glusing, Jens, Rao, Padma Himar Schmundt, The Dirt Road to the Information Superhighway, Spiegel Online, June 01, 2006. Goodman, Seymour Sofaer, Abraham, The Transnational Dimension of Cyber Crime and Terrorism, Hoover Institution, 2007. Help Us Protect Free Speech Online, Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), 2007. Homeland Security Policy Council, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, accessed February 21, 2007. Huge Victory for Real People as Telco Bill Dies, savetheinternet.com, 2006. Lame Duck Alert: Don’t Let Senators Sell Us Out, savetheinternet.com, 2006. Lawmakers: Abuses Could Lead to Cuts in FBI Power, Associated Press, Stars and Stripes Volume 4, Number 343, Department of the Defense (DOD), 2007. Nakashima, Ellen, Business transactions rely on flawed terror watch list, Washington Post, Stars and Stripes, March 28, 2007. O’Brien, Teri, Did the FISA Court Stop Us From Connecting the Dots?, Free Republic, January 3, 2006. Privacy Technology: Internet Free Speech, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), 2007. Reed, Fred, Troops’ Blogs Under Scrutiny, Washington Times, February 17, 2007. Shachtman, Noah, The Satellite Hackers, Popular Mechanics, February 2007. Sniffen, Michael J., FBI chief defends bureau’s authority to spy, Associated Press, Stars and Stripes, March 28, 2007. Steinberg, James B., Graham, Mary, Eggers, Andrew, Building Intelligence to Fight Terrorism, The Brookings Institution, September 2003. Swartz, Jon, Terrorists’ use of Internet spreads, USATODAY.com, February 20, 2005. Weimann, Gabriel, www.terror.net: How Modern Terrorism Uses the Internet, United States Institute of Peace (USIP), March, 2004. Yen, Hope, Board OKs eavesdropping, financial tracking, The Associated Press (AP), Washington, March 7, 2007. Research Papers on How the Internet Fuels TerrorismThe Effects of Illegal Immigration19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraTwilight of the UAWNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceGenetic EngineeringDefinition of Export QuotasAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2Relationship between Media Coverage and Social andBringing Democracy to AfricaQuebec and Canada

World War II Research Essay Topics

World War II Research Essay Topics Students are often required to write a paper on a topic as broad as World War II, but you should know that the instructor will expect you to narrow your focus to a specific thesis. This is especially true if you are in high school or college. Narrow your focus by making a list of words, much like the list of words and phrases that are presented in bold type below. Then begin to explore related questions, like those that follow the words in this list and come up with your own cool WWII topics. The answer to questions like these can become a good starting point of a thesis statement. Culture and People When the US entered into war, everyday life across the country changed drastically. From civil rights, racism, and resistance movements to basic human needs like food, clothing, and medicine, the aspects of how life was impacted are immense. African-Americans and rights. What impact did the war years have on the rights of African-Americans? What were they allowed or not allowed to do?Animals. How were horses, dogs, birds, or other animals used? Did they play a special role?Art. What art movements were inspired by wartime events? Is there one specific work of art that tells a story about the war?Clothing. How was fashion impacted? How did clothing save lives or hinder movement? What materials were used or not used?Domestic violence. Was there an increase or a decrease?Families. Did new family customs develop? What was the impact on children of soldiers?Fashion. Did fashion change significantly for civilians? What changes had to be made during wartime?Food preservation. What new preservation and packaging methods occurred during and after the war? How was this helpful?Food rationing. How did rationing impact families? Were rations always the same for different groups of people? Were soldiers affected by rations?Love letter s. What do letters tell us about relationships, families, and friendships? What about gender roles? New words. What new vocabulary words emerged during and after WWII?Nutrition. Were there battles that were lost or won because of the foods available? How did nutrition change at home during the war because of the availability of certain products?Penicillin and other medicine. How was penicillin used? What medical developments occurred during and after the war?Resistance movements. How did families deal with living in an occupied territory?Sacrifices. How did family life change?Womens work at home. How did womens work change at home during the war? What about after the war ended? Economy and Workforce For a nation that was still recovering from the Great Depression, World War II had a major impact on this countrys economy and workforce. When the war began, the fate of the workforce changed; overnight, American factories were repurposed to produce goods to support the war effort and women took on jobs that were traditionally held by men, who were now off to war. Advertising. How did food packaging change during the war? How did advertisements change in general? What were the advertisements for?Occupations. What new jobs were created? Who filled these new roles? Who filled the roles that were previously held by many of the men who went off to war?Propaganda. How did society respond to the war? Do you know why?Toys. How did the war impact the toys that were manufactured?New products. What products were invented and became a part of popular culture? Were these products present only during war times, or did they exist after? Military, Government, and War Americans were mostly against entering the war up until the bombing of Pearl Harbor, after which support for the war grew, as did armed forces. Before the war, the US didnt have the large military forces it soon became known for, with the war resulting in 16 million entering the service. The role the military played in the war, and the impacts of the war itself, were vast. Americas entry into the war. How is the timing significant? What factors are not so well known?Churchill, Winston. What role did this leader play that interests you most? How did his background prepare him for his role?Clandestine operations. Governments went to great lengths to hide the true date, time, and place of their actions.Destruction. Many historic cities and sites were destroyed in the U.K.- Liverpool, Manchester, London, and Coventry- and in other nations.Hawaii. How did events impact families or society in general?The Holocaust. Do you have access to any personal stories?Italy. What special circumstances were in effect?Kilroy was here. Why was this phrase important to  soldiers?  Nationalist Socialist movement in America. What impact has this movement had in society and government since WWII?Political impact. How was your local town impacted politically and socially?POW camps after the war. Where were they and what happened to them after the war? Heres a starting poin t: Some were turned into race tracks after the war! Prisoners of war. How many POWs were there? How many made it home safely? What were some long-lasting effects?Spies. Who were the spies? Were they men or women? What side were they on? What happened to spies who were caught?Submarines. Were there enemy submarines on a coast near you? What role did submarines play in the war?Surviving an attack. How were military units attacked? How did it feel to jump from a plane that was disabled?Troop logistics. How were troop movements kept secret? What were some challenges of troop logistics?Views on freedom. How was freedom curtailed or expanded?Views on governments role. Where was the governments role expanded? What about governments elsewhere?War crime trials. How were trials conducted? What were the political challenges or consequences? Who was or wasnt tried?Weather. Were there battles that were lost or won because of the weather conditions? Were there places where people suffered more because of the weather?Women in warfare. What roles did women play during the war? What surprises you about womens work in World War II? Technology and Transportation With the war came advancements in technology and transportation, impacting communications capabilities, the spread of news, and even entertainment. Bridges and roads. What transportation-related developments came from wartime or postwar policies?Communication. How did radio or other types of communication impact key events?Motorcycles. What needs to be led to the development of folding motorcycles? Why was there widespread use of military motorcycles by the government?Technology. What technology came from the war, and how was it used after the war?TV technology. When did televisions start to appear in homes, and what is significant about the timing? What TV shows were inspired by the war, and how realistic were they? How long did World War II affect TV programming?Jet engine technology. What advances can be traced to WWII needs?Radar. What role did radar play, if any?Rockets. How important was rocket technology? Shipbuilding achievements. The achievements were quite remarkable during the war. Why and how did this happen?

Fin 301 slp module 02 (walmart) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Fin 301 slp module 02 (walmart) - Essay Example ince the last five years so that’s why the price of 100 shares after one year will be higher but not very high due to lot of fluctuation in price but it will go higher as we can see the trend of the price since the last 6 months it is going up. By analyzing the trend of the share price it is expected that the price of Wal-Mart shares will go up but it will not go very high. This is because, from the past record, we have seen that the Wal-Mart share prices have been fluctuating but overall they have moved in a positive direction. That is why the prices will go up in a year and the future price of the shares will be much higher than of today’s price. The stock price is a little bit risky because of the fluctuating price that we have seen in the previous years so there is a risk involved in investing money in Wal-Mart shares because the return on investment is relatively high but the risk level is also high due to wild ups and downs in share price of Wal-Mart. There are lots of other investments that we can do in order to have a fixed rate of return or a positive return on our investments. We can invest in a treasury bond which is giving a constant return of 4% per year on our investments and there is no risk involved in investing in a treasury bond as it is issued by the government and we have a guaranteed rate of return because government cannot be bankrupt. Investing in a Treasury bond will save our investment but the return is low as there is no risk involved in it. On the other hand if we invest in Wal-Mart shares there is a risk involved in it but there is higher return while investing in Wal-Mart stocks. Although investing in a Treasury bond would give us secure returns but it would not yield high returns. Investing in Wal-Mart shares will increase our investment so the future value of shares will be higher as we have stated earlier and if we buy future shares we will get a good return on our investment. As the performance of Wal-Mart is outstanding in

A case study requirs reading an artical first, see the detailed

A requirs reading an artical first, see the detailed information below - Case Study Example The other opportunity is creation of better health for the BoP. Many people at the bottom die of diseases caused by spread of germs. This is majorly as a result of lack of knowledge and affordability of the cleaning products. If they are taught the importance of good hygiene and constant demonstrations made, they can be able to keep up the hygiene. This paired with making available hygienic products in smaller quantity hence cheaper costs will ensure maximum benefits to both the BoP and the multinational company (Prahalad 175). In line with the above is ensuring affordable packaging which comprises of small packages of each product which is affordable to the people. They cannot afford spending a lot on one product with big packages but the money can be distributed on several different products with smaller affordable packaging. This is still beneficial to the companies as their customer base will have expanded while they spend less on packaging and its attractiveness. Financing is the greatest challenge in all these opportunities discussed. The three marketing opportunities mentioned above can be integrated by the multinationals. The integration will reduce the financing which has been established to be the greatest challenge while still serving the purpose of improving the lives of the people, and maximizing the newly discovered and acquired customer base. Unhealthy people make up the worse type of customers as they are not able to purchase products which means a loss of income for the organizations. Ensuring that the largest population group in the world; the BoP are healthy will mean that their purchase rate will be high and so will the returns to the multinational companies. The first thing any multinational company aiming to explore the BoP should ensure is teaching the people good hygiene. While they adopt the healthy trait and purchase the hygienic products,