Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Nuclear Technology essays

Nuclear Technology essays The use of nuclear technology for civilian and military use is a highly controversial issue. Most people argue that nuclear technology is bad. However, they do not analyze how nuclear technology can be a good thing. To me, the advantages of nuclear technology out way the disadvantages. A comparative analysis of the advantages and disadvantages makes it easy to see how nuclear technology is the way forward. Even though nuclear proliferation and terrorists are serious threats, nuclear technology is good for civilian uses in that it produces high yields of environmentally friendly electricity and it is good for military uses in that it maintains a power balance and prevents countries from going to war. As the human population grows and more advances are made in technology, our energy demand rises greatly. To meet these energy demands, large amounts resources are used. Most of these resources are fossil fuels. Hydropower, wind power and other environmentally friendly techniques of producing power have great economic and environmental advantages but these techniques are rare. The reason is because these techniques require a great amount of technology and are very expensive. Also the yields of electricity from these techniques are much lower than that of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are abundant these days and are widely available. Producing electricity using fossil fuels also requires little technology and are not so expensive. This is why they are widely used. However, the fossil fuels contribute greatly to pollution. Pollution is a big issue now because it poses a threat to us as it causes global warming and a greenhouse effect that is harmful to us. Therefore, environmentally frie ndly techniques of producing electricity are the alternative. What would be the ideal source of energy is something that does not pollute the environment, is cost effective and produces a high yield of energy. The closest to these criteria is nuclear technolog...

Saturday, November 23, 2019

4 Types of Reference Books You Didnt Know You Need

4 Types of Reference Books You Didnt Know You Need 4 Types of Reference Books You Didn’t Know You Need 4 Types of Reference Books You Didn’t Know You Need By Mark Nichol OK, it’s time to conduct an inventory of your reference library to ensure that you have a comprehensive collection at hand. Dictionary? Check. Thesaurus? Mm-hmm. Compendium of famous quotations? Right. Visual dictionary? (Silence.) You’re telling me you don’t have a visual dictionary? Before you get too self-conscious, I’ll let you off the hook: You don’t have to own your own visual dictionary. But you should know where to find this type of resource, and three others, at your local library, or you simply must do some online research and see what electronic simulacra you can discover. 1. Visual Dictionaries The four books listed here are all superior guides to the names of physical objects and their components. Does a scene in your novel require you to distinguish the parts of a plane? Do you need to know the difference in home construction between a rafter and a joist? What is the base of a horse’s neck called? A visual dictionary knows all: The Macmillan Visual Dictionary, Jean-Claude Corbeil Merriam-Webster’s Visual Dictionary, Merriam-Webster What’s What: A Visual Glossary of the Physical World, Reginald Bragonier Jr. Ultimate Visual Dictionary, DK Publishing 2. Guides to Symbolism These five volumes, and others, will enlighten you about the religious, mythological, and folkloric significance of symbols. Perhaps you want to strew visual metaphors throughout your novel. Or you want to avoid cliched occult symbols in your supernatural thriller, and want to find something unusual. Or you want to make sure your medieval mystery accurately describes a cross without anachronistic errors. Follow the signs to these sources about symbology: An Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Traditional Symbols, by J. C. Cooper Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them, Hans Biedermann 1,001 Symbols: An Illustrated Guide to Imagery and Its Meaning, Jack Tresidder The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols, Jean Chevalier Reverse Symbolism Dictionary: Symbols Listed by Subject, Steven Olderr 3. Guides to Hierarchies Do you know the order of succession among Cabinet officials in the United States in case the president, vice president, and Speaker of the House are all incapacitated? Is a battalion bigger, or smaller, than a regiment? What’s higher up the taxonomic scale a phylum, or a family? The Order of Things: How Everything in the World Is Organized into Hierarchies, Structures, and Pecking Orders, Barbara Ann Kipfer, will set you straight. 4. Reverse Dictionaries Flip Dictionary, Barbara Ann Kipfer, is the best of the class of reference books known as reverse dictionaries, for when you know how to describe something but can’t think of the word. One of the qualities that set it apart is the numerous charts and tables that group things by subject. The Describer’s Dictionary: A Treasury of Terms Literary Quotations, David Grambs, is a similar work that’ll help you transfer a word from the tip of your tongue to paper or the computer screen. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Book Reviews category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Dialogue Dos and Don'ts"Wracking" or "Racking" Your Brain?Honorary vs. Honourary

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Landscape Painting Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Landscape Painting - Assignment Example Thus romanticism style of art involved exotic, more authentic, familiar and distant modes in harnessing imagination power as portrayed in landscape paintings that were prepared during this period. Romanticism went beyond the confines of population, industrialization unlike it preceding periods, the classical period and medievalism. In fact, romanticism exalted subjectivism, imagination, irrationalism and individualism. The art was highly characterized and influenced by artists’ fascination by their passions, nature, their moods, their mental potentials and the heroes. On the other hand, the Impressionism movement thrived in France between late 1860s and 1890s. This movement was inclined to optical realism since it sought to relate art to visual experience and the effect of light on appearance of various objects. The form of art in impressionism involved transcription of the artists’ visual sensation towards nature, which was unconcerned with the actual depiction of the objects. The main ideas of impressionism were, a quick painting of a landscape could depict it actual physical appearance and that art is promoted by a naà ¯ve vision, free from influence by intellectual preconceptions which were realist traditions and naturalist traditions. In comparison, the romanticism form and style of art applied to landscape paintings is distinguishable from the impression form art employed in landscape painting. This is evident from a keen observation of the following paintings, soleil levant by Claude Monet.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Operational Management Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Operational Management Report - Essay Example In the fashion world customers needs have changed and they are looking to get new styles and fashions in the market at frequent rates. The supply chain management in the fast fashion business deals with the movement of goods from the suppliers where the raw material is originated to the end customer who consumes the particular end product. In this fashion world there is a he competition among the companies for coming up with new styles and also in quick time. Thus agility in the whole operation process is a very important factor which helps the company to respond quickly to the changing demand of the customers. In 1975, Inditex a Spanish group which was been owned by Amancio Ortega established Zara as a fashion label and value chain store. In the last two decades Zara has grown in huge numbers and its profit has gone up by three times and has become the third largest fashion retail store in world. The other brands which Inditex has are Uterque, Oysho, Zara Home, Bershka, Pull and Bear, Zara kinds, Stradivarius and Massimo Dutti. Zara has around 300 designers in its headquarters in Spain where approximately 40,000 designs are made from where only 10,000 designs are selected for production. By Dec 2010, Inditex had approximately 5000 stores worldwide becoming the worldwide leader in fast fashion chain network. Zara has a strategy of maintaining a policy of generating a huge variety of products every year. Zara being n the fashion business and being the worldwide leader in 5this business the overall operations process including the supply chain management, design process, production process and procurement is very efficient and also agile. Each of the process included in the overall operations management process is been discussed below one after the other. Zara has a huge number of faculties and a huge infrastructure. The company reaches to its target market and the customers by

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Cases in Financial Management Essay Example for Free

Cases in Financial Management Essay Case Synopsis Founded in 1984 Laurentian Bakeries Inc. operates in the industry of manufacturing a vast variety of frozen baked products within their three operating plants in Montreal, Winnipeg and Toronto. The operating plants produce items such as frozen pizza in Winnipeg, MB, pies in Montreal, QC and Cakes in Toronto, ON- with each representing 30%, 30% and 40% of the total revenue stream respectively. The buyers for this company include large institutional clients such domino’s pizza, etc. which have a significantly higher level of power whereas the seller of the products consists of several food producers which have a relatively low level of power. With the cost of setting up a plant of this scale being high, substitute products will also remain high in the market causing the overall profit margin to be low. With the company’s ongoing effort for continuous improvement Danielle Knowles (VP of operations) proposed to expand one of the operating plants in Winnipeg-which was based on the opportunity if the company expanded into the U.S. market. Statement The statement of the problem is how Danielle Knowles will prepare a capital project expenditure proposal to expand the company’s frozen pizza plant in Winnipeg; which is consistent and in line with the company’s capital allocation policy. The proposal should also satisfy the company’s continuous effort for improvement, identification of lost opportunities, satisfaction of HR and environmental impacts and provide sufficient ROI. Situational Analysis The strengths of the company are clearly visible through the company’s effective operations and reputable image in the industry. Being one of the top five in the industry, Laurentian Bakeries has established themselves as a dominant player in the market; however, with a shortage in capacity it can  potentially overpower the strengths due to its negative impact on the company. This includes a decrease in sales and potential decreases in retailer support. Nevertheless, with the acknowledgement of a capacity shortage and an opportunity to expand and grow in the U.S. market the company seems to be in good standing. Moving aside to a different area amongst the competition, all the products are similar which indicate there is heavy competition. The presence of numerous suppliers makes this industry highly competitive, as a result, there is high aggression amongst competitors. This is a leading factor that indicates this is not an attractive business to be in. SWOT ANALYSIS Strengths * Danielle Knowles has experience in the food industry for 13 years. This is a great benefit for the company, because she is able to use her knowledge and experience and apply it for Laurentian Bakeries in order to improve operations or even avoid errors. This in return can potentially save the company from incurring additional expenses. * Danielle has her Master’s in Business Administration which indicates that she is educated and has the credentials to maintain her position as the VP of operations. Also, Danielle is able to use that knowledge and apply it to everyday operations of the company. * Laurentian has above average consideration for human resource and environmental impacts. This benefits the company to the extent that it creates a public awareness which shows their commitment to the community which in return can potentially be used as a marketing tool to attract more sales. * Laurentian company is one of the five large firms that produce frozen foods dominating 21% of the market. This indicates that they are a dominant player in the market and have survived many difficulties from various competitions. * Well established and profitable company which indicates that they have survived one full economic cycle and have withstood their competition. * The company has a diversified revenue stream with three operating plants located in major cities which are not as risky as a single revenue stream. * All three segments are profitable. * Low cost pizza producer which is helping to expand into the US. Market. * Laurentian Bakeries has an integrated workforce such as sales, marketing, etc. for all of their operating plants. Weakness * Shortage of capacity. If this weakness is not dealt with the company can face losses in their sales because of the shortage. This in return lowers the overall profit of the company and can potentially decrease buyers if they cannot meet the demand due to the shortage. * Class 1 products are too risky and by taking such a great risk any wrong doing can have a negative impact on the company. Opportunities * Arrangement to supply large U.S. based grocery chain with private label brand. If the opportunity is taken to its advantage the company can potentially see higher figures in sales and profits. * Since U.S. pizza consumption is 3x bigger than the Canadian segment the overall US market is bigger which can potentially lead to a higher market share. * Within N.A. the economy is recovering modestly and is expected to grow. This indicates that consumer spending on discretionary items such as food products will remain strong. Threats * Inflation is forecasted to remain between 3-5%. This may cause interest rates to rise causing the cost of capital to increase higher than its current level. Capital projects such as expansion may suffer. * North American growth rate of gross domestic product slowed down which may lower the company sales. * Threat of new entrants will increase competition and is always a factor that makes the sales aggressive. * Health Conscious consumers will potentially affect sales due to the products offered by Laurentian Bakeries are considered â€Å"unhealthy.† With on-going health awareness the products offered by Laurentian Bakeries might not meet the changing demand of consumers. Porter’s Five Forces Buyer’s Power * Mixed Power. * There are two types of buyers: large institutional buyers such as  domino’s pizza pizza pizza as well as large retailers. Thousands of smaller clients have less power because of their current low clientele base. Supplier Power * Low Power. * Pizza suppliers distribute production to pizza stores, restaurants and grocery chain stores. Since there are numerous suppliers in the market for ingredients such as cheese, flour, vegetables, etc. they have low power. Barriers to Entrant * High * Due to high capital costs, skilled workforces, environmental regulations, high distribution channels, entry into this industry is high. Threat of Substitute * High * The products offered by Laurentian such as their Pizza can be made at home or even purchased fresh from fast food restaurants. Also they can easily be substituted for other products such as calzone, sandwiches, tacos, etc. Competition * High * There is high competition for the items offered by Laurentian Bakers. Competition for their pizza baked items can easily be substituted through franchised restaurants such as Pizza Pizza, Boston Pizza, Pizza Hut, etc. also competition is high through other companies offering the same goods. In addition, this company is also competing against other food products rather than frozen pizza alone. Financial Analysis Financial Summary: Laurentian Bakeries is seeing a cash increase from $6.2 million in 1993 to almost double its value of $13.1 million in 1995. At the same time long term debt for the company has increased by $7.23 million which indicated that Laurentian Bakeries is funded by its long term debt and has not utilized its cash and therefore has incurred additional interest expenses. Moving over to the sales figures, Laurentian Bakeries has seen an increase of 11% from 1993-95; however, net income is flat which indicates that their COGS and operating expenses have also risen almost at the same pace as sales. This setback has no advantage to the shareholders. Alternatives 1. Continue original plans to continue expansion in Winnipeg. 2. Build a plant in U.S. to cater to that market. 3. Buy an existing plant. 4. Expand the Toronto plant as it is the strongest plant for the company. Recommendations By carefully analyzing all the alternatives, we recommend alternative one as the best fit solution to this company due to it being most practical at the company’s current situation. We strongly believe that continuing original plans to expand in Winnipeg is the beneficial solution for the company as they already produce the same type of products and have the additional land to carry forward the expansion, because this plant is a low cost producer and is ideal to utilize the U.S private label sector. In addition, this alternative is beneficial because it is consistent with the company’s overall objectives. Given the discount rate of 18% and a $5.2 million capital investment the NPV of the expected cash flow is positive. Moreover, recommendation one is the best suited for this company because: * There is land readily available in Winnipeg. This can save the company some money in terms of the expansion because these will incur less of an expense due to Laurentian owning the extra land space. * Building a plant in U.S. will require a lot of capital, additional expenses for hiring, training, etc., and potential change in production, management or other techniques due to different regulations in U.S. * Expanding in Toronto will also require additional capital and additional time to hire and train the workforce to produce the pizza products which aren’t produced in the Toronto facility.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Free Essay on Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide - Mother Teresa :: Euthanasia Physician Assisted Suicide

Mother Teresa's Little Sisters and Euthanasia In this essay we see Mother Teresa of Calcutta's Little Sisters of the Poor responding to the Europena Parliament's pro-euthanasia measure. In their response is found an insight into death which the Western world lacks. The Little Sisters are knowledgeable from personal experience with the many whom they have seen die. They are also firmly rooted in a strong religious tradition. Both of these considerations make their advice the very best one can hear in the euthanasia debate. "How can the Little Sisters of the Poor, in the service of the elderly, not be concerned about the passing of the principle of euthanasia by a Commission in the European Parliament? We feel that the confusion caused by the text pertaining to the use of extraordinary means to prolong life, palliative care and euthanasia can easily mislead an uninformed public. Yet behind these extremely complicated phrases, the thought is clear: to give doctors the right to satisfy the request for euthanasia, that is to say, to take a person's life. Human dignity does not consist in being able to choose the time of one's death, but in being aware of the fact that one's basic right is the right of respect for life, of respect for human dignity"(Little) The Little Sisters have 150 years of experience in accompanying the elderly up until the end of their lives, and by this experience they are authorized to make known to the public what they have seen and learned. Since their foundation, 17,080 Little Sisters have lived with the dying, and today they are in 30 countries on six continents, with 74 homes in France and Belgium, First World nations. So the dear sisters have expertise with the dying of both the Third World and our world. Making the elderly happy, that is what counts!" Mother Teresa used to say, encouraging the Little Sisters to attain this goal by employing means adapted to each person, to his/her possibilities, tastes, past life, health, etc. Making the elderly happy means believing in the value of their life, and the Little Sisters are witnesses of the extraordinary resources of the elderly. Having a center of interest, doing something they like to do, feeling useful, being able to take initiatives, to communicate, to form friendships, maintaining a facilitated relationship with the family, having contacts with youth: these are factors which provide joy and happiness.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Origin of Narcocorridos

In the book, â€Å"The Handbook of Texas† Dan Dickey writes that in the late 1940’s and 1950’s when â€Å"Tex-Mex† music became commercialized, so did the Music called â€Å"corridos†. Back then it became popular to hear songs about drug smuggling and violence. Music from the genre corridos which was about drugs and drug smuggling was called narcocorrido, which some would say is â€Å"Mexico’s style of gangsta rap†. An excellent example of narcocorrido would be â€Å"El Avion de la Muerte† (The Plane of Death) performed by Los Tigres del Norte, which is arguably one of the most popular corridos bands in history. Los Tigres del Norte have written and performed many songs throughout their career. This famous Mexican band started in 1968 and was made up of three brothers (Jorge, Raul and Hernan Hernandez) and their cousin (Oscar Lara). They started to play their grandparents’ instruments in bars, and like thousands of immigrants they crossed the border to make it in America. Their first hit came in 1970 and was a song about two rival drug dealers. However, in 1972, their song â€Å"Contrabando y Traicion† (â€Å"Contraband and Betrayal†) became a topic of controversy. Not only was it about drug smuggling but how a woman killed a man before he could abandon her. Why would the act of murder committed by a woman spark such controversy? Bataille’s tells us that, â€Å"Such a divinely violent manifestation of violence elevates the victim above the humdrum world where men live out their calculated lives. To the primitive consciousness, death can only be the result of an offence, a failure to obey† (Bataille, 82). Even before Los Tigres del Norte, there was Rosalino â€Å"Chalino† Sanchez, a renegade artist from Sinaloa, a state in the north of Mexico that is well known for its abundant marijuana fields. Hodgson writes, â€Å"When he was 15, Sanchez shot and killed a man who had raped his sister, and fled to California, where for a while he worked as a ‘coyote', smuggling illegal immigrants and drugs across the border. Only when he was arrested, and spent nearly a year in Tijuana prison, did he discover his skill at song writing. He began composing corridos for fellow inmates, and once outside, found his skills in demand from both dealers and legitimate immigrants. † While not the best singer, his incredible lyricism built his reputation quickly. Having earned his street credibility in jail, he soon afterwards was contacted by famous Mexican drug lords who would commission him to write songs about them and their criminal exploits. To shed some light on this fascination with death, we can turn to writer Margaret Atwood in her book Negotiating with the Dead: â€Å"All writing of the narrative kind, and perhaps all writing, is motivated, deep down, by a fear of and a fascination with mortality — by a desire to make the risky trip to the Underworld, and to bring something or someone back from the dead† (157). Chalino, in this way, had a sought-after ability to immortalize the Mexican drug lords. Chalino, himself, portrayed the brave image of the Mexican cowboy. After dealing with the narcotraf icantes, he acquired both powerful friends and enemies. According to an informer that talked to Martin Hodgson, â€Å"The cartels used the group’s music to lay out a code of conduct for its members: ‘Through the corridos comes the philosophy, how the members of the cartel have to behave. If you listen carefully, the songs tell you what they did wrong. You learn what you have to do so they don’t kill you. ’† At the same time, the death drug-lords became heroes through corridos. Some enjoyed their hero status while still alive, but most of them earned it after death. This returns us again to Becker’s introduction to Human Nature and the Heroic in his book The Denial of Death. He explains, â€Å"†¦ [T]he problem of heroics is the central one of human life, †¦ it goes deeper into human nature than anything else because it is based on organismic narcissism and on the child’s need for self-esteem as the condition of human life. Society itself is a codified hero system, which means that society everywhere is a living myth of the significance of human life, a defiant creation of meaning. † Hence, by commissioning corridistas to write about them, narcotraficantes could satisfy that narcissism and become heroes in their own right.