Cyber Attacks And Its Effects On The United States

Most ISIS practice customs from the 7th century, but the methods they use to fight a war are 21st century techniques. ISIS have an advanced computer network that uses social media to attract terrorists worldwide to help them attack countries like the United States. Many countries have been victims of cyber attacks but may not realize it until long after the security breach occurred. In June of 2015, the Office of Personnel Management found out that it was being hacked. The hack had been going on for several months before authorities realized it. It was one of the largest security breaches in United States history. With the news of security hacks finally reaching the public, many people question the government and wonder if it can adequately protect itself from future attacks. The attacks from ISIS are making people feel uncomfortable and unsecure. Many people are beginning to realize how serious the ISIS and their online schemes are. â€Å"The United States of America is under atta ck,† warned Rep. Elijah Cummings during a House Oversight and Government Affairs Committee hearing in June of 2015. (Law Street) Katherine Archueta is the director of OPM. She faced a lot criticism at the hearing for not updating the databases, because she was already aware of the security issues. An audit was carried out on OPM on November of 2014, not long before the breach. It revealed that several databases still did not meet federal security standards. It was known that many of the databasesShow MoreRelatedCyber Terrorism1716 Words   |  7 PagesChinese hackers targeted United States government sites, after an accidental bombing of a Chinese embassy in Belgrade. During this attack, government sites were hijacked and some sites suffered a denial of service attack. Most recently, it was suspected that Bank of America was the victim of a cyber terrorism attack; although no definitive evidence is available to substantiate that claim.   Cyber terror attacks pose a threat a gainst the national security of the United States. In order to fully comprehendRead MoreCyber Warfare Is The New Warfare Domain1528 Words   |  7 Pages the United States should preemptively attack the opposing country using their cyber warfare capabilities. II. Explanation of thesis and short summary. Cyber warfare is the new warfare domain. Understanding how to morally utilize the newfound capabilities will assist the United States to maintain military dominance as well as mitigate possible immoral tragedies. Cyber warfare and war envelops a vast array of topics available for discussion. Therefore, the topics of interest within cyber warfareRead MoreCyber Deterrence And Its Impact On Western Europe1518 Words   |  7 PagesWhat is Cyber Deterrence? Merriam-Webster defines deterrence as the act of making someone decide not to do something or the act of preventing a particular act or behavior from happening (Merriam-Webster, 2015) . This can be applied to the cyber realm in the sense that we need to deter terrorists, state actors and non-state actors from attempting attacks on U.S. networks. To understand how to apply cyber deterrence we have to look at past policies or theories on deterrence. Deterrence theory firstRead MoreCyber Terrorism And Threats Of Information System1688 Words   |  7 PagesCyber-Terrorism and Threats to Information System National security has been top priority of the United States after World War II. This is due to the fact that the United States before this time was relatively an isolationist country with no influence in the world. As a result national security was not important, this changed post World War II. The United States found themselves among the top, overnight they went from being new and not listened to, to becoming one of the major players in the worldRead MoreInformation Is A Source Of Power In International Relations.967 Words   |  4 Pagessource of power in international relations. Technology is the capability by which states store information. More so now than ever, countries heavily rely on information technology and data storage in order to facilitate the basic functioning of a state. However, when any state places enough importance on a resource of power, that resource becomes a target. An attack on informational structures of a state are cyber-attacks or â€Å"the use of com putational technologies in cyberspace for malevolent and destructiveRead MoreCyber Security, A Government And Private Industry Affair1686 Words   |  7 PagesCyber-security, a government and private industry affair Introduction The role of computers in business operations is growing with each wake. Computers have helped entities boost efficiency, speed up service and product delivery and take consumer interaction to another level. However, this new wave has not come without its challenges. Cybercrimes pose a threat to information security and privacy, which is a concern for private and public institutions alike. The United States has developed laws thatRead MoreCyber Warfare And Global Affairs1543 Words   |  7 Pagescan steal information. Even countries are using the cyber domain as a separate battlefield to fulfill their missions and acquire information. Cyberwar is relatively a new term to describe: an Internet-based conflict involving politically motivated attacks on information and information systems. But the definition is constantly evolving with time and the more knowledge the public acquires about these conflicts. Although the idea of explaining cyber warfare is far too vast and bound to only rea dily availableRead MoreCyber Security : New Law1719 Words   |  7 PagesCyber Security: New laws in United States and Their Impact Throughout the United States today there are many attempted hacks going on right now, most unsuccessful, but some are successful. Major businesses as well as minor businesses have had to invest in a good security systems and making backups of data to protect themselves, as well as their clients, from attempted hacking and the risk of sensitive information being leaked out ( such as social security or credit card numbers). As a result, thereRead MoreThe Patriot Act Title Vii Section 814 And 8161429 Words   |  6 Pagesupon citizens of the United States, the aim of this paper is describe in depth The Patriot Act Title VII Section 814 and 816. These sections of the Patriot Act protects the citizens of The United States from the world’s newest form of terror; Cyber-Terrorism. The aim is to explain this law, its adequacies, and inadequacies in detail and to offer suggestions and solutions for its shortcomings. Commission of Cyber Terrorism In 2013, a man, investigators named the â€Å"Sexual Cyber Terrorist† extorted overRead MoreAirport Security : Technology Versus Common Sense1476 Words   |  6 PagesVirginia from a series of ruthless coordinated terrorist attacks which were carried out in the air. These attacks forever changed airport security measures throughout the United States and the World. The attacks resulted in the immediate creation of the Transportation Security Administration, which was stood up to increase airport security measure to prevent repeating such horrible acts on United States soil. Sixteen years later, the United States is a safer country and airport security has improved

Stem Cell Research Controversy Essay - 681 Words

The controversy over stem cell research’s use in the medical field is almost two decades old. So why the sudden intense return of fierce political debates over an old issue? It’s because President Obama recently revoked the ban on stem cell research, as he believes it holds the potential to revolutionize the medical industry in the years to come. As USA Today quoted him saying in March, after he stopped restricting federal funding for stem cell research, At this moment, the full promise of stem cell research remains unknown and should not be overstated. Scientists believe these tiny cells may have the potential to help us understand, and possibly cure, some of our most devastating diseases and conditions. The bodys master cells are†¦show more content†¦... the embryo would have been thrown away at an abortion clinic anyway. Now, given the choice of completely wasting the life or using it in order to further research, I’d pick research.† (http://www .juniorpolitics.com/) The fertility clinics, however, appear to be stem cell research advocates’ favorite reference on how their work is ethical and humane in comparison. According to Michael Kinsley, Time Magazine reporter, â€Å"Embryonic stem-cell studies are controversial because they involve the destruction of human embryos. However, fertility clinics destroy far more human embryos than stem-cell research ever would, yet they are not controversial.† (http://www.time.com) Pro-stem cell research scientists have found that citing fertility clinics as a similar field severely lessens the educated opposition against their work. This is because most pro-life advocates and mainstream Christians are advocates for the use of fertility clinics to help struggling couples get pregnant. They view fertility clinics as a place to help create life, not take it. In this, I speak from personal experience, as many of my Christian friends and relatives have been in and out of fertili ty clinics throughout the years, attempting to procreate a being to love, raise, and care for. In short, the debate boils down to the ancient debate of whether or not a fetus or human embryo is a life or not. Pro-life advocates say that human fetuses are absolutely,Show MoreRelatedStem Cell Research Controversy : Stem Cells1886 Words   |  8 Pages Stem cell research controversy. What is the first thing that comes to your mind? A person like me will either agree with it or disagree with this topic. I personally agree with stem cell research. First I want to start by pointing out that there are three main stem cells used in research the adult stem cell, induced-pluripotent stem cells, and lastly the embryonic stem cells. It has been shown that using blood stem cells to treat diseases of the blood have been beneficial, and has also saved manyRead MoreThe Controversy Of Stem Cell Research1894 Words   |  8 PagesThe Controversy of Stem Cell Research The ethics of research involving fetuses or material derived from fetuses have been widely debated for over three decades, portrayed by its proponents as holding the key to scientific and medical breakthrough and by its opponents as devaluing the most basic form of human life. The latest chapter in this long saga involves the use of embryonic stem cells. Research in this field took a great leap forward in 1998, when the first successes in growing human stemRead MoreThe Controversy Over Stem Cell Research1169 Words   |  5 Pagesyears, stem cell research has become a prominent way of treating: heart disease, cancer, HIV/AIDS, spinal problems, and much more ; moreover, in recent years as Stem cell research became more popular, it has sparked controversy over the religion aspect of stem cell research. Stem cell research begins with culturing an embryonic cell and then injecting the stem cell into the area of concern(Robertson). Pluripotent stem cells are gathered and used to treat the areas, pluripotent stem cells are thoseRead More The Controversy of Stem Cell Research Essays1410 Words   |  6 PagesThe Controversy of Stem Cell Research One of the most controversial topics these days is Stem Cell Research. There seems to be a split opinion among societies about the research and whether it is socially and morally acceptable. As a society, we need to open our minds to the possibility of broadening our scientific horizons with stem cell research, and take the time to learn and understand whatever we can about it. There are a lot of people who dont know exactly what Stem Cell ResearchRead MoreBenefits and Controversy of Stem Cell Research547 Words   |  2 Pagesproblems associated with stem cell use and stem cell research. Problems Benefits There is a lot of controversy about laws and beliefs in respect to stem cells, specifically embryonic stem cells, regarding contraception, abortion, and in vitro fertilization. Many cultures and religions believe that the use of embryonic stem cells is unethical because they believe life starts from the moment of contraception therefore the destruction of a human blastocyst to obtain embryonic stem cells is murder and itRead MoreEssay on The Controversy Surrounding Stem-cell Research634 Words   |  3 PagesStem-cell research is a complex subject. First of all you need to know there are three main categories of stem cells. Embryonic, Fetal and Adult; not everyone is for or against all of these types. There are different sets on pros and cons to each of these types and I will address a few for each type. I believe the pros outweigh the cons in each of these and stem cell research is very beneficial for medical purposes. The term ‘stem cell research was first used by gist Alexander Maksimov, a RussianRead MoreThe Controversy Over The Ethics Of Stem Cell Research Essay2367 Words   |  10 PagesThe Controversy of Embryonic Stem Cell Research THE 210/04December 2, 2012 There is a debate over the ethics of stem cell research and many people on opposing sides of the issue are not aware of all aspects. In order to intelligently debate the legal and ethical issues regarding stem cell research, one must understand what stem cells are, the applications currently available, and the impact of the research. It is also important to understand the distinction between adult and embryonic stem cells beforeRead MoreControversy Surrounding Research And Therapeutic Use Of Stem Cell Technology831 Words   |  4 Pages Controversy surrounding research and therapeutic use of stem cells has been a contentious and socially polarizing matter for a few decades. Arguments lie largely between the scientific community and the general public, although intragroup disagreements also persist today. These disparate views for and against stem cells arise out of the bioethical implications of an inchoate innovation, the general public’s tenuous understanding of the underly ing technology itself, and sociopolitical ideologiesRead MoreEssay Government Funding of Stem Cell Research775 Words   |  4 Pagesvoters was the battle over embryonic stem cell research. In the weeks leading up to the election, polls were indicating that 47 percent of Bush supporters agreed that the destruction of embryo cells is unethical; however, 53 percent of Bush voters supported stem cell research. The overwhelming majority of Kerry backers also supported stem cell research, indicating that the majority of American voters support stem cell research. Embryonic stem cell research, while still in its infancy, has theRead MoreThe Ethics Of Stem Cell Research1557 Words   |  7 Pagesthese outstanding medical advances a self-renewing stem cell that regenerates and gives rise to all cells and tissues of the body was discovered. The controversy of such finding of abilities of stem cell is that they can only be extracted from the human embryo. In order to extort stem cells from the embryo it needs to be aborted. The extraction needs to be done just days after conception or between the fifth and the ninth week. Though stem cell research has astonishing potential to save many lives due

Ocean and Coastal Management

Question: Discuss about the Ocean and Coastal Management. Answer: Introduction: The purpose of this report is to develop a marketing plan for one of the universities of Australia. The report will focus upon the University of Sydney as the university has its major emphasis upon offering leadership and educational knowledge to the students for developing their career. In the year185, the university was grounded by the efforts of New South Waless parliament. The University of Sydney works upon set standards and values which comprises of encouraging the knowledge management and individual development practices among the students of the university. The University offers appropriate courses of study to the students so that they can effectively met the communal need in upcoming future by their education. The primary objective of the University of Sydney is to become the leader in the educational sector. The purpose of existence of the university is to develop the university in such a way that it benefits the country in the most possible manner and to develop the students by making them use of their potential in the utmost way (The University of Sydney, 2016). Market Summary and Demand Assessment The education industry of Australia is recognized as the most favored educational destination of the students. Since last two decades, there has been experienced a vast growth and increase in the number of students enrolling in the Australian Universities. There were around 1.4 million numbers of students which get enrolled in the year 2014 (Norton, 2016). There is also rapid increase in the number of postgraduates and undergraduates getting enrolled in the various universities. In the demand assessment, it has also been analyzed that there is a combination of the courses which are both general and professional. The maximum numbers of students are in the field of arts. The second highest enrollments are in the field of society and culture. There are also various other subjects in which there are significant number of enrollments such as engineering and technology, health, information systems, management and commerce and natural and physical sciences. From the market and demand assessment, it has been identified that there are vast number of international as well as domestic students in the universities of Australia. The country experience upsurge demand for professional courses as well as higher educational degrees. Australia is recognized as one of the top most and leading service export of the international education (Siemens, Dawson and Lynch, 2013). Segmentation and Target market There is more than one market segment on which the university has to focus upon. The university is required to have different strategies and programs for each market segment. As per the behavioral segmentation, there are two different factors on the basis of which individuals are segmented i.e. the motivation behind consumption and the benefits attained. Therefore, the target individuals of the university are the value based individuals and the quality based individuals. Under the value based individuals, there are students who require value for the proportion of money they have paid. They compare the money spend with the value received. In the quality based individuals, there are students who demand for supreme service with no or very less relevance with the cost or process paid (Pealoza, Toulouse Visconti, 2013). Current Marketing mix analysis Following is the marketing mix analysis of the University of Sydney which sum up in four different factor i.e. product, price, place and promotion: The product for the university is the education which is service in nature. It comprises of the lectures offered by the professors, the responses given by the students and the various programs and courses such as law, health, engineering, IT, social science, management etc. are the part of the product i.e. education only. The price is the diverse set of tuition fees of various courses offered by the university. The tuition fees also depend upon several factors such as residential status, type of course and the duration of the course. The place is that location where the university is situated. In case of the University of Sydney, the place of offering or making available the service is Australia. There is a separate building of the University for the students in Australia. The University of Sydney is a well-recognized university in the country. But for fascinating more n umber of domestic and international students, there is a need of effective promotion. The university takes use of its online website, various other social media platforms, advertisements on televisions, hoardings and newspaper advertisements for fetching attention of the potential customers (Ramachandran, 2010). PEST Analysis Following is the PEST analysis of Australia so that there can be analyzed the effects of the external factors of the country upon the University of Sydney: Any kind of change in the political aspects of Australia, there is a direct impact upon the functioning of the university. With any kind of modification in the various governmental laws and regulation, there can also be seen a change in the university. For example, if the political conditions between Brazil and Australia, then it is a significant probability that there will be a decreased in the number of students coming from Brazil for international studies in Australia (Doherty, Steel and Parrish, 2012). There are several economic rules and policies in the country that have a direct emphasis upon the University of Sydney. There are various economic phases such as economic recession, economic restructuring, inflation, etc. all these affects the number of students gets enrolled in the university as well as the tuition fees of the courses. Australia has a robust economy and is also well-known for higher education; hence the economic afctors support the operations of the university (Davis and Higgins, 2015). The social factors are of also great significance in affecting the university and its various activities. The social factors consist of the culture, status and demographic factors of the population. As a university, the cultural social factors also include the competence and ability of the students in regards with educational courses. For example, the students from various other regions may have issue related to the language. Therefore, the university is required to focus on all the social factors which h can impact the university in any manner. Technological Factors The change in the technological factors poses a direct impact upon the university and its programs. The increasing technology and innovations help the universities in implementing pioneering ways of teaching and providing knowledge to the students. Therefore, with the change in the technological factors, the university is also required to restructure its programs (van Putten, Cvitanovic and Fulton, 2016). Australia is a well-known country for having several numbers of renowned educational institutions and universities. One of the competitors of the University of Sydney is, Macquarie University. The university has its foundation in Sydney from the year 1964 and is consider as one of the best educational institute for the students as it offers numerous facilities to the students such as high security, accommodation, sports and recreation, highly organized library and also medical facilities. The primary mission of the Macquarie University is to offer the students with the best indigenous education and potential knowledge. The university provides extended educational support to the students by the means of expert faculties (Macquarie University, 2017). SWOT analysis Strengths High number of students Expert and highly qualified faculties Direct Feedbacks Separate portals ad touch-points for student interactions Continuous development programs Weaknesses Increased Competition in education sector Low morale of the staff High attrition rate of the faculties Inefficient marketing division Opportunities To have extended reach through promotions To have innovate techniques and programs for student development Threats Increased Competition in education sector New technological improvement emphasis on restructuring of the programs of the university (The University of Sydney, 2016) Value and brand positioning analysis Branding is of vital importance in present scenario. The greater the brand recognition and brand visibility is, the extended is the customer base of an organisation. In the educational industry of Australia, the University of Sydney holds a strong brand name. According to the universitys brand recognition, it also offers value based and high quality services to the students in the form of quality and standard education. The University has its renowned name in building the career of the students and it also supports the development of the society by making the students graduate and building their competency to have a good occupation in the future. For brand building, the university also adopts several strategic approaches such as the university collect feedback from the individuals and also follows their suggestions for future improvement. The University of Sydney also holds a rank in the top 100 universities of the world. In Australia, the university is among the leading universities which offer quality education to the graduates and help them career building (Georgetown University, 2017). Conclusion From this report, it can be concluded that the educational industry is rising with an increasing rate. Australia is recognized as the leading country in offering educational services to the students from across the world. The University of Sydney is a renowned brand that offers best possible educational services to the students. From the report it can be evaluate that the university has number of strengths which supports its continuous development. There are several external factors also which impact the functioning of the university, but id adequate research is conducted in continuous intervals, than the university can easily identify the potential risks and opportunities and can plan accordingly. There is high brand visibility of the university which provides a global recognition to the university. Thus, from the above discussion, it can be analyzed that, there is a great scope for the University of Sydney for further development if it keeps its emphasis on providing quality and va lue based education to the students. References Australiarental, (2016). Record Numbers of International Students Choose Australia to Study, Bringing Over $17Billion to the Australian Economy, Retrieved on: 13th April, 2017, Retrieved from: https://australiarental.com.au/blog/record-numbers-of-international-students-choose-australia-to-study-bringing-over-17billion-to-the-australian-economy-2/ Davis, N. E., Higgins, A. (2015). Researching possible futures to guide leaders towards more effective tertiary education.Journal of Open Flexible and Distance Learning,19(2), 8-24. Doherty, I., Steel, C., Parrish, D. (2012). The challenges and opportunities for professional societies in higher education in Australasia: A PEST analysis. Georgetown University. (2017). Strategic Brand Positioning to Increase Value. Retrieved on: 13th April, 2017, Retrieved from: https://consumerresearch.georgetown.edu/research/strategic-brand-positioning-to-increase-value/ Macquarie University. (2017). About the University. Retrieved on: 13th April, 2017, Retrieved from: https://www.mq.edu.au/about/about-the-university Norton, A. (2016). Mapping Australian higher education 2016. Retrieved on: 13th April, 2017, Retrieved from: https://grattan.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/875-Mapping-Australian-Higher-Education-2016.pdf Pealoza, L., Toulouse, N., Visconti, L. M., (2013). Marketing management: A cultural perspective. USA: Routledge Ramachandran, T. N. (2010). Marketing framework in tertiary education addressing aspirations of students beyond conventional tenets of selling products: International Journal of Educational Management. 22(6). 544-556 Siemens, G., Dawson, S., Lynch, G. (2013). Improving the quality and productivity of the higher education sector.Policy and Strategy for Systems-Level Deployment of Learning Analytics. Canberra, Australia: Society for Learning Analytics Research for the Australian Office for Learning and Teaching. The University of Sydney. (2016). Annual Report 2015. Retrieved on: 13th April, 2017, Retrieved from: https://sydney.edu.au/dam/corporate/documents/about-us/values-and-visions/University-of-Sydney-2015-Annual-Report.pdf van Putten, I., Cvitanovic, C., Fulton, E. A. (2016). A changing marine sector in Australian coastal communities: An analysis of inter and intra sectoral industry connections and employment.Ocean Coastal Management,131, 1-12. Vivian, (2015). A Look at IT and Engineering Enrolments in Australia, Retrieved on: 13th April, 2017, Retrieved from: https://blogs.adelaide.edu.au/cser/2015/07/03/a-look-at-it-and-engineering-enrolments-in-australia/

The ways in which poets make use of form and language to present their views on love and marriage Essay Example

The ways in which poets make use of form and language to present their views on love and marriage Essay The two poems studied from the nineteenth century on love and loss give a very different view on love and marriage. A woman to her lover, by Christina Walsh gives a view of a woman wanting co-equal love, whereas in My Last Duchess by Robert Browning, there is a view of patriarchal love and dominance by man. These are both very different views on love, however in A Woman To Her Lover, the views expressed in these days would be seen as rational and what is accepted. In the days which it was written it would be seen as discordant. This essay will focus on comparing the form and language of both poems and how these techniques help to present their views on love and marriage. Along with form and language, this essay will also comment on the use of rhetorical questions, personal pronouns, the use of exclamation marks, imagery and repetition. In A Woman To Her Lover the poem is based on a four-stanza reply to a question, If that be what you ask. We can see that she has been asked to marry and she is setting out the guidelines. The poem also has no set rhyme scheme or rhythm; it also rejects traditional conversion and rules. In the nineteenth century there were rules which women had to follow and what was expected of them, but this freedom in which the poem is written expresses the freedom that the writer is asking for in the relationship between her and her lover. The freedom in the poem represents the freedom asked for in marriage. We will write a custom essay sample on The ways in which poets make use of form and language to present their views on love and marriage specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The ways in which poets make use of form and language to present their views on love and marriage specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The ways in which poets make use of form and language to present their views on love and marriage specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer My Last Duchess is written as a dramatic monologue, the speakers personality is revealed through what he is saying. It is written in iambic pentameter and rhyming couplets, which gives the effect of strictness, with a patriarchal and restrictive view of love. There is also enjambement in this poem, which gives it a natural flow, this suggests that what he is saying comes naturally and it is the only way that he thinks. The language in both poems is archaic and of the time but Christina Walsh uses an unusual word order, no servant will I be. This makes the statement more direct with a suggestion of harshness. It also emphasises her disgust at the traditional view of love. In My Last Duchess the duke has an ostentatious voice, worked busily a day. This shows that he has high expectations of his employees and he will also have high expectations of his wife. The Duke also tries to make people fear him, if they durst. This would show that he feels that people should be scared of him, which would include his wife, so he would not be very close to his wife if she were scared of him. The use of questions and rhetorical questions are used in both of the poems. The woman in A Woman To Her Lover uses questions in a reply to an assumed proposal of marriage, Or if you think to wed. These questions are the theme for the whole poem. This can show that he has asked her a question, but before she can answer she has to know things about him. This makes us feel that she is not rushing into marriage but is thinking carefully about if she wants to marry him. The duke, on the other hand, answers his own question, whod stoop to blame. He wants the envoy to agree with his anger and disgust at his disobedient wife. He expects correct answers and is single minded about other views. Along with this he always expects people to agree with him. He would not expect his wife to have her own views, even her view of if she wanted to marry him. Cristina Walsh uses the words we, you and I a lot in her poem, A Woman To Her Lover. This shows that the woman wants co-equal love as she involves the man in the poem. She says what we want rather than I want. It shows partnership in the relationship and togetherness. My Last Duchess has a lot of the personal pronoun, I. This shows that he sees love as ownership and will see his wife as a possession rather than a partner. Love does not account for his choice of wife and will only have a trophy wife, someone who will look good to other people. Cristina Walsh uses exclamation marks in her poem to emphasize her disgust in patriarchal views of love at the end of the stanza, I refuse you! If the exclamation mark were not there we would not be able to see how much she despised the view of patriarchal love she is talking about. Robert Browning uses the exclamation mark also to emphasize his disgust but it is when he remembers his wife having her own views, Sir, t was all one! We can see that he is very dominant and gets angry when she does what she wants. Once again the exclamation marks lets us see how angry he gets and how much he hates her having her own views. A Woman To Her Lover uses quite a lot of parallel structure throughout the whole poem If that be what you ask. This use of parallel structure gives the effect that she is ranting and raving about her disgust of the ideas that she is talking about. The parallel structure also gives the effect that she is shouting very fast and gives fluidity to it. My Last Duchess does not have any parallel structure as I think that the duke is trying to give a note of dignity to himself. Therefore the use of parallel structure will give the effect that he is shouting and getting excited. He tries to make himself sound better than he really is which makes him sound fake about love and that women dont see him for what he is. Christina Walsh uses repetition at the beginning of a sentence to try to get a lot of points through. There are three sentences one after the other all beginning with And. This tells us that the woman has a lot of conditions and points for her love to her lover. Robert Browning uses repetition further apart in his poem; that spot of joy, this gives us the feeling that he is wrapped up in one thing only and can only think about that one thing. This repetition makes us think that he is obsesses with the bad behaviour of his wife and cannot let simple things drop. This makes us think that he is strict with his wife and is not caring or forgiving. These two poems both give very different views of love and marriage in the nineteenth century. Christina Walsh gives a modern view of a relationship, which is what most couples try for today. She lists the conditions for her love. These conditions however are not biased but things that will balance the relationship. Whereas in Robert Brownings, My Last Duchess the Duke talks about a relationship where he has complete dominance over his wife. He also expects her to look up to him at all times and be thankful of everything he has and for her to not acknowledge any other men. Robert Brownings patriarchal view of love, which he talks about in My Last Duchess, was seen as acceptable in the nineteenth century, especially by men. Women yearned for the view of Christina Walsh, but nothing was done about it, we can now see that this view is now a reality in todays world and any other view, i.e. Robert Brownings view, would be unacceptable.

A Fool-Proof Way to Achieve Any Goal - And Thats a Promise

A Fool-Proof Way to Achieve Any Goal - And Thats a Promise The Temptation of Giving Up A friend of mine set out to make croissants for the first time. For those of you unfamiliar with the art of French baking, these pastries require several stages of preparation over 2-3 days. On the second day of his first attempt, when the batter got too thin and sticky, my friend got frustrated and threw the dough into a bread pan instead of finishing the croissant-making process. I protested that he was giving up too soon, but to no avail. He ended up with some cross between biscuits and croissants, and a learning experience for the next attempt. The Art of Perseverance – A Lesson from Mouse Tales My tendency is not to give up on almost anything until absolutely all options have been exhausted. Part of that philosophy was hammered into me as a child through multiple readings of the book Mouse Tales, by Arnold Lobel. I did not realize it at the time, but I think I learned some of my most important life lessons from that book. In one story, The Journey, a mouse ventures out in his car on a road trip to his mother’s house. After driving for some time, he encounters a slight problem: The car, sadly, falls apart. But, thankfully, just at the right moment, there is someone selling roller skates at the side of the road. The mouse purchases a pair and rolls and rolls until, guess what? The wheels fall off of the roller skates. As luck would have it, there is a person selling boots at the side of the road! The mouse wears through the soles of the boots, and then through a pair of sneakers, and then, would you believe, though a pair of feet. When his feet get too tired to walk, amazingly enough, there is a person by the side of the road selling feet! The mouse makes it to his mother’s house wearing his brand new pair of feet. Excuses, Excuses Many of us in the mouse’s situation would never have made it to our mother’s house with all these breakdowns. Do any of these laments sound familiar? My car broke down! Now I have to take it to the shop. Sorry mom. I tried! I even tried getting there on roller skates! But everything just keeps falling apart. It wasn’t meant to be. My hands are tied. Bad things are always happening to me. No one is there to help me. I have to do everything alone! I can’t let my mother know that my car is so old and broken down. I don’t have time for this. These excuses keep us from being creative, from keeping our eye on the prize, and from noticing that person who shows up just at the right time to help us. They keep us from prioritizing our relationships. And they have us tossing in the towel long before the game is truly over. The Magic Formula for Achieving Any Goal Setting aside all judgment about how important our mother would feel if we gave up on our journey, what this Mouse Tale has to teach us is something about persistence and perseverance. This mouse was not about to give up no matter what. He understood that his commitment to his goal was beyond any limitation on how he would achieve it. And at every juncture where he could have thrown up his paws and said â€Å"I can’t† or â€Å"It’s impossible† or â€Å"It’s too hard,† he found an alternative and went with it. My friend Seth and I, some time ago, identified a surefire and quite simple way to reliably achieve any goal: â€Å"Don’t give up until you achieve it.† You will either achieve that goal or you will die trying. Whether it’s making croissants, getting a new job, or making a visit to mom, the rule always applies. That’s the rule the mouse followed. He reached his goal, he could feel proud of himself, and his mother was very very happy. [By the way, my croissant-making friend did try again. Things did not go perfectly the second time either, but he pressed on until actual croissants, albeit dense ones, came out of the oven. Perhaps the third time will be the charm.]

Problems for Teachers That Hinder Their Effectiveness

Problems for Teachers That Hinder Their Effectiveness Problems that teachers face include handling student needs, lack of parental support, and even criticism from a public that can be largely unaware of their everyday lives. Addressing these problems and bringing awareness to the educational environment that our teachers and students face daily can help improve teacher retention, student success rates, and the overall quality of education in our schools. Balancing a Wide Range of Student Needs No matter what type of school youre talking about, teachers have to deal with a wide range of student needs, but public schools may struggle the most here. While private schools are able to select their students based on an application and assessment of the best fit for the school and community, public schools in the United States are required to take every student. While most educators would never want to change this fact, some teachers are faced with students who distract the rest of the classroom and add a significant challenge. Part of what makes teaching a challenging career is the diversity of the students. All students are unique in having their own background, needs, and learning styles. Teachers have to be prepared to work with all learning styles in every lesson, requiring more prep time and creativity. However, successfully working through this challenge can be an empowering experience for both students and teachers alike. Lack of Parental Support It can be incredibly frustrating for a teacher when parents don’t support their efforts to educate children. Ideally, a partnership exists between school and home, with both working in tandem to provide the best learning experience for students. However, when parents dont follow through with their responsibilities, it can often have a negative impact on the class. Research has proven that children whose parents make education a high priority and stay consistently involved may be more successful academically. Ensuring that students eat well, get enough sleep, study, complete their homework, and are prepared for the school day are just a few of the basic of the things that parents are expected to do for their children. While many of the best teachers go above and beyond to make up for a lack of parental support, a total team effort from the teachers, parents, and students is the ideal approach. Parents are the most powerful and consistent link between children and school since they are there throughout the child’s life while the teachers will change annually. When a child knows that education is essential and important, it makes a difference. Parents can also work to communicate effectively with the teacher and ensure that their child is successfully completing assignments. However, not every family has the ability to provide the necessary supervision and partnership, and some children are left to figure things out on their own. When faced with poverty, a lack a supervision, stressful and unstable home lives, and even parents who arent present, students have to overcome numerous hurdles to even make it school, never mind succeed. These challenges can lead to students failing and/or dropping out of school. Lack of Proper Funding School finance has a significant impact on teachers ability to maximize their effectiveness. When funding is low, class sizes often increase, which impacts instructional curriculum, supplemental curriculum, technology, and various instructional and extracurricular programs. Enrichment programs are cut, supply budgets are limited, and teachers have to get creative. Most teachers understand that this is completely out of their control, but it doesn’t make the situation any less frustrating. In public schools, finances are usually driven by each individual state’s budget and local property taxes, as well as federal funding and other sources, whereas private schools have private funding and often more flexibility in how it is spent. That means public school teachers are often more affected by lack of funding and are limited in how they can spend their money. In lean times, schools are often forced to make cuts that have a negative impact. Most teachers make do with the resources they are given or supplement with their own personal contributions. Overemphasis on Standardized Testing Not every student learns in the same way, and therefore not every student can accurately demonstrate mastery of educational topics and concepts in a similar fashion. As a result, standardized testing can be an ineffective method of assessment. While some teachers are completely against standardized testing, others tell you that they don’t have a problem with the standardized tests themselves but with how the results are interpreted and used. Most teachers say that you can’t get a true indicator of what any particular student is capable of on a single test on any particular day. Standardized tests arent just a pain for students, either; many school systems use the results to determine the effectiveness of the teachers themselves. This overemphasis has caused many teachers to shift their overall approach to teaching to a focus directly on these tests. This not only takes away from creativity and limits the scope of what is taught but can also quickly create teacher burnout and put excess pressure on the teachers to have their students perform well. Standardized testing brings with it other challenges as well. For example, many authorities outside of education only look at the tests bottom line, which hardly ever tell the whole story. Observers need to take much more into account than the overall score. Consider the example of two high school math teachers. One teaches in an affluent suburban school with lots of resources, and one teaches in an inner-city school with minimal resources. The teacher in the suburban school has 95% of her students score proficient, and the teacher in the inner-city school has 55% of his students score proficient. If only comparing overall scores, the teacher in the suburban school would appear to be the more effective teacher. However, a more in-depth look at the data reveals that only 10% of students in the suburban school had significant growth during the year while 70% of the students in the inner-city school had significant growth. So who is the better teacher? You can’t tell simply from standardized test scores, yet a large majority of decision-makers want to use test scores alone to judge both student and teacher performances. Poor Public Perception Weve all heard the old saying Those who can, do. Those who cant, teach. Unfortunately, a stigma is attached to teachers within the United States. In some countries, public school teachers are highly regarded and revered for the service that they provide. Today, teachers continue to be in the public spotlight because of their direct impact on the nation’s youth. Theres the added challenge that the media often focuses on negative stories dealing with teachers, which pulls attention away from their positive impact. The truth is that most teachers are dedicated educators who are in it for the right reasons and doing a solid job. Focusing on a good teacher’s best qualities can help teachers overcome their perceptions and find fulfillment in their profession. Educational Trends When it comes to learning, experts are always looking for the best tools and tactics for educating children. While many of these trends are actually strong and worthy of implementation, adoption of them within schools can be haphazard. Some believe that public education in the United States is broken, which often drives schools to look at ways to reform, sometimes too rapidly. Teachers can be faced with mandated changes in tools, curriculum, and best practices as administrators race to adopt the latest and greatest trends. However, these constant changes can lead to inconsistency and frustration, making teachers lives more difficult. Adequate training isnt always made available, and many teachers are left to fend for themselves to figure out how to implement whatever has been adopted. On the flip side, some schools are resistant to change, and teachers who are educated about learning trends may not receive funding or support to adopt them. This can lead to a lack of job satisfaction and teacher turnover, and it can hold students back from delving into a new way to learn that may actually help them achieve more.

Project management DB Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Project management DB - Essay Example This conflict though may be avoided by specifying the role of each person in the team even before the project has begun. It should be clear for both Katy and the first person that their cooperation is of utmost importance in the success of the project. Management must decide who among the two individuals will be the person in-charge of the design so that there will be no duplication of jobs. Even if Katy has the expertise in designing products, management must detail to her what task she has to perform in the team. It is to the best interest of the company to assign Katy to a marketing task since the design task may be handled by the first person already. It is the responsibility of management to set the goals and ground rules before the start of the project (Cooper, n.d.). This will prevent potential conflicts and ambiguities later on. Another problem that might confront the team is the schedule of Katy. Since she can only work for approximately 10 hours a week, she should make sure that she is able to cover all her duties given the amount of time that she will be spending on the project. The first person must also be informed of the number of hours that Katy will put in on the project so that he will not expect Katy to work the same number of hours as he does. One other point of difficulty is the issue on compensation. Since the first person will be working for 15 to 20 hours a week, while Katy will work for only 10 hours, management must come up with a fair compensation package for both. It is however management’s responsibility to observe whether the hours put in by both persons are quality time. The first person may be working more hours but the quality of work is below standards while Katy may be working less hours but the work put in is above par. This aspect should be closely monitored by

Law for Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Law for Business - Essay Example Either the acceptance of an offer may be a statement of agreement, or, if the offer invites acceptance in this way, a performance of an act requested in the terms of the offer. It is important to note that acceptance is the final and unqualified acceptance and it must be according to the types and the requirements of the offer hence acceptance must exactly match the offer. Other forms of acceptance of an offer may be spoken, written, by action and an acceptance is never acceptance when there is silence and assumption. For example, if one tells a neighbor kid that if the kid mows the offeror’s lawn, the offeror will pay $50.00, and the kid does actually mow the lawn. The act of mowing constitutes the manifestation of the kid’s assent hence constituting an acceptance given the offer presented and the terms upon which it is presented. For a contract based on offer and acceptance to be binding and enforceable by law, the terms must be capable of determination in the same co urts of law in a way that it is clear that the parties assent was given to the same terms of agreement. The terms must be in the position of being able to manifest themselves or be determined determined objectively. They may be written, or sometimes oral, although some kinds of contracts require writing as evidence of the agreement to be enforced in the courts of law. What is an offer? In an offer the offerer decides to make an offer and goes further vto communicate the offer. The offeree is then left with the responsibility of either accepting or rejecting the offer of which they have to communicate the acceptance in the case they decide to accept the offer with the terms around it Fisher v Bell [1961] 1 QB 394. The offerer then decides to receive the acceptance and the contract remains binding. An offer therefore can be defined as definite promise to be bound upon some specific terms, making it be a proposition by one party to another party on fixed terms that are fixed or in a po sition of being fixed. This is with the intention that it will be binding when accepted by the offeree in either of the forms prescribed for acceptance. In fact, a definite offer does not need to be made to a specific person, this is because it can be made to a particular class of persons or the world in general and it would remain binding if all the requirements were adhered. An  offer  is actually an expression of willingness to contract on certain terms, made with the intention that it shall become binding as soon as the person to whom it is addressed, the â€Å"offeree† [G.H. Tretel, The Law of Contract, 10th edn, p.8], accepts it. The â€Å"expression† referred to in the definition of an offer may take different forms, such as a letter, newspaper, fax, email and even conduct, as long as it communicates the basis on which the offeror is prepared to contract. The â€Å"intention† referred to in the definition is objectively judged and only determinable by courts. The English case of Smith v. Hughes (1871) LR 6 QB 597 emphasizes that the important thing is not the party’s real intentions but; how a reasonable person would view the situation making. This makes an offer not to be so specific to an individual. This is mainly due to common sense as each party would not wish to breach his side of the contract, if it would make him or her culpable to damages, it would especially be contrary to the principle of certainty and clarity in

Sources of Finance Essay Example for Free

Sources of Finance Essay Finance: Finance is the study of how investors allocate their assets over time under conditions of certainty and uncertainty. A key point in finance, which affects decisions, is the time value of money, which states that a unit of currency today is worth more than the same unit of currency tomorrow. Finance aims to price assets based on their risk level, and expected rate of return. Finance can be broken into three different sub categories: public finance, corporate finance and personal finance. Why Do Businesses Need Finance? Finance is the money available to spend on business needs. Right from the moment someone thinks of a business idea, there needs to be cash. As the business grows there are inevitably greater calls for more money to finance expansion. The day to day running of the business also needs money. The main reasons a business needs finance are to: * Start a business: Depending on the type of business, it will need to finance the purchase of assets, materials and employing people. There will also need to be money to cover the running costs. It may be some time before the business generates enough cash from sales to pay for these costs. * Finance expansions to production capacity: As a business grows, it needs higher capacity and new technology to cut unit costs and keep up with competitors. New technology can be relatively expensive to the business and is seen as a long term investment, because the costs will outweigh the money saved or generated for a considerable period of time. And remember new technology is not just dealing with computer systems, but also new machinery and tools to perform processes quicker, more efficiently and with greater quality. * To develop and market new products: In fast moving markets, where competitors are constantly updating their products, a business needs to spend money on developing and marketing new products e.g. to do marketing research and test new products in â€Å"pilot† markets. These costs are not normally covered by sales of the products for some time (if at all), so money needs to be raised to pay for the research. * To enter new markets: When a business seeks to expand it may look to sell their products into new markets. These can be new geographical areas to sell to (e.g. export markets) or new types of customers. This costs money in terms of research and marketing e.g. advertising campaigns and setting up retail outlets. * Take-over or acquisition: When a business buys another business, it will need to find money to pay for the acquisition (acquisitions involve significant investment). This money will be used to pay owners of the business which is being bought. * Moving to new premises: Finance is needed to pay for simple expenses such as the cost of renting of removal vans, through to relocation packages for employees and the installation of machinery. * To pay for the day to day running of business: A business has many calls on its cash on a day to day basis, from paying a supplier for raw materials, paying the wages through to buying a new printer cartridge. * Special situations: For example, a decline in sales, possibly as a result of economic recession, could lead to cash needs to keep the business stable. Types of finance: It is pivotal to have access to money, in order to start and run a business. There are many ways to get money, all businesses need money. Where the money comes from is known as sources of finance. Now there are two different types of sources of finance: internal (finance from inside the business) and external (finance from outside the business). New businesses starting up need money to invest in long-term assets such as buildings and equipment. They also need cash to purchase materials, pay wages, and to pay the day-today- bills such as water and electricity. In-experienced entrepreneurs (or social entrepreneurs) often underestimate the capital needed for the everyday running of the business. Generally, for every  £1000 required to establish the business, another  £1000 is needed for day-to-day needs. This is why sources of finance are crucial for any business. Internal sources of finance: * Retained earnings: For any company, the amount of earnings retained within the business has a direct impact on the amount of dividends. Profit re-invested as retained earnings is profit that could have been paid as a dividend. The major reasons for using retained earnings to finance new investments, rather than to pay higher dividends and then raise new equity for the new investments, are as follows: a) The management of many companies believes that retained earnings are funds which do not cost anything, although this is not true. However, it is true that the use of retained earnings as a source of funds does not lead to a payment of cash. b) The dividend policy of the company is in practice determined by the directors. From their standpoint, retained earnings are an attractive source of finance because investment projects can be undertaken without involving either the shareholders or any outsiders. c) The use of retained earnings as opposed to new shares or debentures avoids issue costs. d) The use of retained earnings avoids the possibility of a change in control resulting from an issue of new shares. The advantage of using retained profits is that  it does not have to be repaid as in the case of loan while the disadvantages can be that new business or loss making business may not have any retained profits and a business may have retained profits which are too few to finance the expense needed. †¢ Own savings: Personal saving is an advantage for entrepreneurs; this will prevent stress and pressure of gathering money from scratch. Savings can be from previous employments, inheritance, and redundancy. This will be a positive head start for the business and a helping hand also advantage is its interest free. Moreover there is no need to borrow money externally and it is a quick way for the firm to obtain finance. On the other hand savings may be too low to finance the expense needed. †¢ Partnership: This is when two savings is used to help start the business. This is an advantage as there is more money and less pressure. There is a disadvantage for this scheme; sometimes entrepreneurs may fall out over disagreements. * Sale of assets: Some companies often find that they have assets that are no longer fully employed. These could be sold to raise cash. In addition some businesses will sell assets that they still intend to use, but which they do not need to own. In these cases the assets might be sold to a leasing specialist and leased back by the company. This will raise capital and there will be better use of the existing capital in the business. However it may take some time to sell off these assets. * Decrease the amount of stock held: Its advantage is that it reduces the opportunity cost and storage cost of high stock level while a drawback might be that stock level should be kept to avoid disappointing customers. External sources of finance: * Shares: This option is only applicable to limited companies. They can raise finance by issuing shares. Public limited company will obviously be able to raise more finance since it can sell its shares to the public. There are two ways  in which businesses can issue shares. They can either go for a new issue or right issue. Selling shares to a new issue will simply mean that new members will be invited to join the business as shareholders. This method of rising capital can be expensive to organize. In addition the more share sold would mean a loss of control to the original shareholders. A right issue of share is where existing shareholders obtain the right to buy new shares in proportion to their current holding. This will avoid the problem of new shareholders changing the balance of ownership. The benefit is that issue shareholders is permanent source of capital which does not have to be repaid back unlike bank loans while a disadvantage may be that if the business is going for a new issue of shares, it might be costly and at the same time implies a loss of control for the original owners. * Bank lending: Borrowings from banks are an important source of finance to companies. Bank lending is still mainly short term, although medium-term lending is quite common these days. Short term lending may be in the form of: a) An overdraft, which a company should keep within a limit set by the bank. Interest is charged (at a variable rate) on the amount by which the company is overdrawn from day to day; b) Long term loan may be offered at either a variable or a fixed interest rate. Lending to smaller companies will be at a margin above the banks base rate and at either a variable or fixed rate of interest. Lending on overdraft is always at a variable rate. A loan at a variable rate of interest is sometimes referred to as a floating rate loan. Longer-term bank loans will sometimes be available, usually for the purchase of property, where the loan takes the form of a mortgage. When a banker is asked by a business customer for a loan or overdraft facility, he will consider several factors, known commonly by the mnemonic PARTS. Purpose Amount Repayment Term Security The advantage is that it is quickly to arrange and the business can obtain different sums of money, sometimes huge amount which can be paid over a long period of time. However the bank will have to be paid in addition with interest and also banks may ask for collateral security. * Hire purchase: Hire purchase is a form of installment credit. Hire purchase is similar to leasing, with the exception that ownership of the goods passes to the hire purchase customer on payment of the final credit installment, whereas a lessee never becomes the owner of the goods. The advantage is that the firm does not need to pay for the good immediately especially if it requires a huge sum of money while on the other hand interest rate has to be paid and this often makes the goods more expensive. * Government assistance: The government provides finance to companies in cash grants and other forms of direct assistance, as part of its policy of helping to develop the national economy, especially in high technology industries and in areas of high unemployment. For example, the Indigenous Business Development Corporation of Zimbabwe (IBDC) was set up by the government to assist small indigenous businesses in that country. Its benefit is that it does not have to be repaid back and the drawback is that businesses can only obtain help if they follow the conditions attached to it. For example, the need to locate in areas which are poorly developed. * Venture capital: Venture capital is money put into an enterprise which may all be lost if the enterprise fails. A businessman starting up a new business will invest venture capital of his own, but he will probably need extra funding from a source other than his own pocket. However, the term venture capital is more specifically associated with putting money, usually in return for an equity stake, into a new business, a management buy-out or a major expansion scheme. Venture capital firms usually look to retain their investment for between three and seven years or more. The term of the investment is often linked to the growth profile of the business. Investments in more mature businesses, where the business performance can be improved quicker and easier, are often sold sooner than investments in early-stage or technology  companies where it takes time to develop the business model. Just as management teams compete for finance, so do venture capital firms. They raise their funds from several sources. To obtain their funds, venture capital firms have to demonstrate a good track record and the prospect of producing returns greater than can be achieved through fixed interest or quoted equity investments. Most UK venture capital firms raise their funds for investment from external sources, mainly institutional investors, such as pension funds and insurance companies. Venture capital firms investment preferences may be affected by the source of their funds. Many funds raised from external sources are structured as Limited Partnerships and usually have a fixed life of 10 years. Within this period the funds invest the money committed to them and by the end of the 10 years they will have had to return the investors original money, plus any additional returns made. This generally requires the investments to be sold, or to be in the form of quoted shares, before the end of the fund. * Borrowing from friends and family: This is also common. Friends and family who are supportive of the business idea provide money either directly to the entrepreneur or into the business. This can be quicker and cheaper to arrange (certainly compared with a standard bank loan) and the interest and repayment terms may be more flexible than a bank loan. However, borrowing in this way can add to the stress faced by an entrepreneur, particularly if the business gets into difficulties. *Trade credit: By delaying the payment of bills for goods or services received, a business is, in effect, obtaining finance. Its suppliers are providing goods and services without receiving immediate payment and this is as good as `lending money`. Its advantage is that it is an interest free of financial rate. However the suppliers might not agree or even refuse to supply the goods in the future if ever payment is not made quickly. * Leasing: It is where a firm can use an asset without the need to purchase it. The advantage is that there is no need to find large sums of money to purchase the asset and care and maintenance of the asset is the responsibility of the  leasing company whereas a disadvantage might be that the total cost of the leasing charges may be higher than purchasing the asset. * Factoring debt: Debt factors are specialist agencies that buy the debts of firms for immediate cash. However they will only give the company selling its debts 90% of the existing debts, the remaining will represent the factor`s profit. The benefit is that the company selling is debts will obtain immediate cash and the risk of collecting the debt is transferred to thee debt factor. On the other hand, the firm selling its debt does not receive the total value of its debts. Factors to be considered when choosing sources of finance: When a firm needs finance, it becomes crucial to pick how much finance they need and for how long. It can ruin or make a business. A firm will have a wide range of sources to choose finance from such as a bank loan or overdraft, share capital, venture capital, profit, or trade credit. However, some sources of cash are suited best for short term while others are best for long term and some are suited for little injections of cash while others are suited to huge injections of cash. Before a business decides what source of finance it should choose, they need to ask the question: * How Much Finance Can the Business Obtain? * The type and amount of finance that is available will depend on several factors. These are as follows: The type of business a sole trader will be limited to the capital the owner can put into the business plus any money he or she is able to borrow. A limited company will be able to raise share capital. In order to become a public limited company, it will need to share capital of  £50,000+ and a track record of success. This will make borrowing easier. The stage of development of the business a new business will find it much harder to raise finance than an established firm. As the business develops it is easier to persuade outsiders to invest in the business. It is also easier to obtain loans as the firm has assets to offer as security. The state of the economy when the economy is booming, business confidence will be high. It will be easy to raise finance both from borrowing and from investors. It will be more difficult for businesses to find investors when  interest rates are high. They will invest their money in more secure accounts such as building societies. Higher interest rates will also put up the cost of borrowing. This will make it more expensive for the business to borrow. These factors will help make the firm decide how much it needs or can borrow. So, at this stage the business knows how much it needs and in the space period it needs it for. Here are the most logical solutions to sources of finance for short/long term and high/low finance: * Amount needed: * Shares issue and sales of debentures, because of the administration and other costs, would generally be used only for large capital sums. * Small bank loans or reducing debtor`s payment period could be used to raise small sums. * Cost: * Obtaining finance is never free, even internal finance may have opportunity cost. * Loans may become very expensive during a period of rising interest rates. * A stock exchange flotation can cost millions of dollars in fees and promotion of the share sale. * Legal structure and desire to retain control: * Share issues can only be used by limited companies- and only limited companies can sell shares directly to the public. Doing this runs the risk of the current owners losing some control – except if a right issue is used. * If the owners want to retain control of the business at all costs, then a sale of shares might be unwise. * Size of existing borrowing: * This is a key issue- the higher the existing debts of a business (compared with its size), the greater the risk of lending more. Banks and other lenders will become anxious about lending more finance. * This concept is referred to as gearing. * Flexibility: * When a firm has a variable need for finance- for example, it has a seasonal pattern of sales and cash receipts- a flexible form of finance is better than a long term and inflexible source.

The Characters of Chandlers The Big Sleep :: sleep

The Characters of Chandler's The Big Sleep    The differences between the characters in Hawks' adaptation of Chandler's The Big Sleep and the novel are obvious to someone who has noticed the details on both. Of course there are positive and negative aspects to such choices which Hawks makes in his film and those decisions which Hawks made from novel to movie should be examined and questioned whether they helped or hindered the production of The Big Sleep. One of the major differences, and I would argue a drawback, in the film version is the representation of the characters and the predictable ending. Looking specifically at Marlowe and Mrs. Regan, it is easy to see that Hawks changed some things about their characters simply because of the high profile actors: Bogart and Bacall. Such a change in the characters was most likely a decision made by Hawks in order to make the novel more believable or exciting to the audience, perhaps assuming the majority of the viewers may not have read the novel. The end of the movie w as completely predictable and I think Hawks took the easy way out when making his decision to end with Marlowe and Regan ending up in love. The changes Hawks made in the characters as well as the end are ones that I assume Hawks made on the basis of what he thought would produce the best film. I can respect Hawks' goal, but I think anyone who has read the novel would agree that the novel is the better version between the two.    Starting with the character of Marlowe, the differences in his character are major ones. In the novel Marlowe is somewhat of a loner- a characteristic that I found intriguing. It is made clear that Marlowe knows this about himself and even revels in this aspect of his personality. He likes to ponder things alone and does not even long for company. Throughout the novel, there are several instances where Marlowe is put in social situations and is always strictly business. Marlowe has drinks with Mr. Geiger while doing business, but does not elaborate on conversation with him. Marlowe is very subdued and laid back in his manner; when he is done talking business with Mr.

Water, the Finite Resources

Water, The Finite Resources Outline I. Introduction A. Opener: What is water scarcity? B. Thesis statement: One of the crises that our environment is facing is fresh water scarcity which is a very serious issue and it affects our global environmental. II. Water shortage effects on environment and human beings. A. Causes disease B. Agricultural fields C. Poverty group D. Aquatic Ecosystems III. Water scarcity is causes by different factors. A. Global warming B. Changes of climate C. Decreasing ground water level D. Population growth and the increased consumption of water IV. Solution for water scarcity is a necessity. A.Water Sharing Treaty B. Environmentalists Oppose Desalination Solution C. Government’s rules, regulations and plan V. Conclusion: People should use water wisely to prepare a better future for our next generation. Water, Our Finite Resources One of the crises that our environment is facing is fresh water scarcity which is a very serious issue and it affects our g lobal environment. In the boundless black desert of space, the Earth which is always a blue-green oasis has a finite stock of fresh water (Lean, 2009). Water is the principal element for all socio-economic growth and for sustaining healthy ecosystems (â€Å"Water scarcity: The†, n. . ). Water scarcity is the product of an inequity between the supply of and demand for water supplies in a geographical area. Plainly put, water scarcity is based on the lack of water which means the quantity of water and the lack of access to safe water which refers to quality of the water. It is hard to picture that safe and clean water cannot be taken for granted; but, finding a dependable source of safe water consumes time and it is expensive in the developing world. This is defined as economic scarcity whereas physical scarcity of water can be overcome if more water can be found, but it needs more resources to do it.In other areas, the shortage of water is a more intense problem (FOA, n. d. ). There is only less than 1% of the world’s fresh water which is readily accessible for direct human use (â€Å"Water facts†, n. d. ). Lean (2009) researched that by 2030, more than half of the world’s population will stay in high risk areas. Based on the World Water Development report, which is compiled by 24 UN agencies under the auspices of UNESCO, add that shortages of water are starting to constrain the economic growth in regions as diverse as Australia, California, Chia, India, and Indonesia (FOA, n. d. ).Thus, this can show that water scarcity really affects human beings and the environment especially poverty, agriculture field, aquatic ecosystems, and causes disease. Poverty is the largest issue on which water crisis has an impact. Shah (2010) announced that there are 2. 6 billion people in the world who lack basic sanitation whereas inadequate access to water has affected 1. 1 billion people in developing countries, while the rest of world enjoys direct access to freshwater for domestic use. For poor people, water scarcity is about ensuring the fair and safe access which they need to secure their livelihoods, and sustain their lives. FOA, n. d. ). About 1. 8 billion people only can access water within one kilometer and consume around twenty liters per day; people in United Kingdom use on average 150liters per day. One out of every five children (400 million) from the developing world does not have access to safe water. Around 443 million children lost their school days each year from water-related illness (Shah, 2010). Furthermore, lack of water means millions of women are spending many hours every day in collecting water, sometimes from several miles away (FOA, n. d. ).It is clearly show that water scarcity is preventing them from attaining even first step on the socioeconomic ladder. Water scarcity has a huge influence on agriculture fields and food production. (Sentlinger, n. d. ) Since agriculture is the biggest water consumer, it takes 70percent of the total use; water deficiency causes weak farming harvest, loss of animal wealth in farmland, and leads to insecurity of food. (â€Å"Water security†, 2010) Moreover, the amount of water needs for food production is the problem. People desire more and more water for even more agriculture.Yet the most major contributor to water scarcity and to the ecosystem is the way people use water (Molden, De Fraiture, & Rijisberman, 2007). In addition, the quantity, availability, and price of key food product inputs can be directly impacted upon by water scarcity having a negative affect on animal and crop yields. The price of food commodities is particularly vulnerable and defenseless to the shocks of unexpected extreme weather incidents, while animals yields are highly at risk from raised water temperatures especially aquaculture and access to clean water sources (Krechowicz, Venugopal, Sauer, Somani, & Pandey, 2010).Within the next ten to twenty years, the wate r crisis seems likely to trigger significant shortfalls in cereal production. As a result, an enormous global food crisis will occur (Quarterly, 2010). Water scarcity, the global critical issue cause increasing environmental stress, and it affects the ecosystem. In order to solve the water scarcity problem, huge dam construction causes interception of river flow, and it is endangering the dependent creatures.The study estimated 24% of mammals, 12% of birds, and 10% of freshwater fish types are endangered (â€Å"Water security†, 2010). Increasing consumption water not only decrease the amount of water for human development but has brought a profound influence on the aquatic ecosystems and their supported stocks (World Water Council, n. d. ). In addition, freshwater species also experience habitat degradation and changes of thermal regimes which relate to climate alteration and water impoundment (Arthurtonet al. , n. d. ).More than half of native freshwater in South Australia a re already listed as rare, endangered or vulnerable and the problem is worsening by the drought which makes conservation difficult, once their habitats dry up (â€Å"Water security†, 2010). Covich, Postel and Carpenter explain that the life those ecosystems support and the health of aquatic ecosystems are in the risk stage because of the withdrawal of more fresh water for industry, agriculture, or cities in many areas (as cited in Postel, 2000). Over and above, water scarcity brings a big effect on human health.The single most important issue determining public health which has been identified by the World Health Organization is clean water (â€Å"Problem: Fresh water†, n. d. ). The global water crisis causes death and disease in the world taking more than 14,000 people’s lives which include 11,000 of children under age five take each day (West, n. d. ). Poor water quality raises the risk of diarrhoeal diseases such as dysentery, typhoid fever, cholera, and othe r water-borne infections. Meantime, diseases such as trachoma, typhus, and plague are caused by water scarcity.People store water at home due to water shortage; this will increase the risk of household water contamination and providing mosquitoes with a breeding ground, which are carriers of malaria, dengue fever and other diseases (World Health Organization, n. d. ). Human health is the most important issue but now water crisis already put human health below the safety level. The ever-increasing world population is a prime cause of the water scarcity. As populations grow rapidly, industrial, agricultural and individual water demands increase (â€Å"Global water shortage†, n. . ). In the last century, global water consumption amplified six fold which is more than twice the speed of population increase and it is believed that water consumption will continue growing and outpace population growth in the future; however, the available freshwater is limited which is less than the one percent of the total water on the Earth (â€Å"Water scarcity and†, n. d. ). Postel predicted the world is now facing the issue of insufficient water supply and foresees that problem of water supply or water availability will get worse for the next 30years.Consequently, Sandra argued it raises the issues of water supply in agriculture, production for human demand due to increase of income, and providing drinking water (as cited in Environmentalist on Water Conservation, 2010). Water shortage also happens because of decreasing groundwater level. In 2000, global water withdrawal was predicted to be 30% of the world’s total available fresh water supply. Before 2025, this fraction might reach 70% (â€Å"Water security and†, 2010). The water level underground in different parts of the earth are called water tables (Edwin, 2010).Water tables are dropping because of the over-pumping out of groundwater in many countries in a large portion (â€Å"Problem: Fresh†, n. d. ) which already exceeds natural replenishment (â€Å"Water security and†, 2010). The lack of the rain water falling causes ground water to flow into the sea. This will cause a slow decrease of the ground water level and this has to be controlled to try to make the water table increase. Water mining is happening at  twice  the speed of natural renewal, causing aquifer water tables to fall by 3 to 10 feet per year in most parts of the country.As a result, the deeper the water table, the more tough it is for those who need to use it (Edwin, 2010). Water scarcity happens due to its distribution but not the total volume of water worldwide (King, 2010). There are various reasons which cause water shortage. Based on research, global warming is one of the major roots of water scarcity (â€Å"Problem: Fresh†, n. d. ). The global temperature rises which leads to upstream glaciers melting into water. This might possibly be permanent and will cause various rivers to reduce in size and some will disappear completely.As there is less snow and more rain, the sea water level increase will encroach into the lower reaches of the streams. There will be more flooding and runoff during the rainy season, but water held as ice and snow in the mountains will also be less for use in the dry season (King, 2010). Yet, global warming raises the chance of evaporation losses from the surfaces of rivers, lakes, and reservoir (Glennon. 2005). Climate change ‘contributes’ to the water deficiency. It brings intensive and more frequent droughts (â€Å"Water security and†, 2010).The sum of water available to refill groundwater sources impacted upon by the rate of evaporation differs a great deal, depending on relative humidity and temperature. Konikow and Kendy showed fleeting heavy rainfall and a fast evapotranspiration rate being combining together with high demand of water channels will cause groundwater reduction. Oki et al had explained that t he terrific temporal inconsistency in water resources worldwide leads to the unevenness of distribution of precipitation in space and time (Climate institute, n. . ). Severe floods inundate coast-lines to cause interruption of salt water into fresh water which is also brought by climate change. UN scientists calculate that climate change effect will probably account for about a fifth of the increase in water scarcity (â€Å"Water security and†, 2010). All told, water as a renewable source has faced crisis due to the several causes which are mentioned above. Government plays an important role in solving the water shortage problem.While the final  custodian of the national water resources must be the government and must play the key role in deciding strategies and frameworks (â€Å"Water†, n. d. ). Some governments instil some rules and regulations to ensure the water supply lasts longer, for example, Arizona’s Groundwater Management Act, which enforces regulati on on all users including cites, farms, and mines over 45years (Glennon, 2005). This innovative law results by starting an effective and comprehensive approach to groundwater management (Arizona Department of Water Resource, n. d. ).On the other hand, China’s 11th five year plan from year 2006 to 2010 is focused on the development of technological innovation and water works for ensuring water supply and the safety of drinking water; it is also improving flood control and mitigation of disaster, and enhancing water saving and conservation. In constructing water conservation programs, governments still have a critical task to play. (Glennon, 2005) An alternative solution for water shortage is implementing new multination water sharing treaties. Currently, there is a large quantity of treaties in effect concerning water, yet most of them do not distribute properly.These ineffective agreements will also lead to apprehension between nations. There are 261 major rivers’ wate rsheds presently shared by two or more nations (Gleick, n. d. ). The Rio Glande Compact which exits between the United States and Mexico has gone through debate, experiment and negotiation to reach agreement. Basically, a water sharing treaty distributes water based on land, population, and contribution to supply to ensure appropriate allocation. Reduced uncertainty or future population, industry and environmental needs are some of the benefits of the treaty (War, 2011).Furthermore, sharing a treaty can let both countries have the high cost-sharing; (Diar, 2008) yet can improve the economics of the country (War, 2011). To conclude this, a multinational treaty would be exceptionally beneficial in resolving water arguments as well as reducing animosity and tension between countries. As, 97. 5percent of water on the earth is seawater (Arthurtonet al. , n. d. ), desalination of seawater is one of the long term solutions for water scarcity (Medalla, 2009). Desalination means remove salt from seawater.Desalinisation is explained as filtering salty water through chemical membranes filters and removing the salt through electro dialysis and reverse osmosis leaving only fresh water as end product. In the Middle East and North Africa, about 130 nations have already worked by this procedure. However, the desalinization process has become much more practical for city areas and reverse-osmosis systems have attained significant enhancements recently. Arrandale shows globally implementing simple water recycling and filtration systems would be a relatively easy task that would reap outstanding benefits.Making these global advancements would be an economically viable and environmentally friendly sustainable green step in the right direction towards the reduction of global water scarcity (Schwikert, Hall, & Jen, n. d. ). If compared with ten years ago, the cost of desalination has considerably lowered; this shows that making this type of solution is now more practicable. The des alination industry has also undergone other positive developments and technological advancement in capacity and filtration that have reduced general operating costs (Medalla, 2009). In conclusion, the problem of water scarcity is growing.As more demand is made on limited supplies, the effort and cost to develop or even sustain access to water will rise (â€Å"Water scarcity: The†, n. d. ). Indeed, solution for water scarcity is a necessity which has been mentioned, such as water sharing treaties, environmentally opposed desalination solutions, and government’s rules, regulations and plans. Apart from corporation, agencies, and government’s efforts, everyone can contribute too. Every small thing makes a difference for the world. Furthermore, people can just buy only fair-trade products, only organics, only sustainably certified seafood, wood and paper (Caldecott, 2008).The next generations deserve a better future! References Arizona Department of Water Resource ( n. d. ). Securing Arizona’s water future. Retrieved from http://www. azwater. gov/AzDWR/WaterManagement/documents/Groundwater_Code. pdf Arthurton, R. , Barker, S. , Rast, W. , Huber, M. , Alder, J. , Chilton, J. , †¦ Wagne, G. (n. d. ). Water. Retrieved from http://www. unep. org/geo/geo4/report/04_water. pdf Caldecott, J. (2008). Water. The causes, costs and future of a global crisis. (2nd ed. ) London, Virgin Books. Climate institute. (n. d. ). Water. Retrieved from http://www. climate. org/topics/water. tml Dinar, S. (2008). Treaty principles and patterns: Negotiations over international rivers. Benefits and costs and/or under economic asymmetry. (6. 1. 2. 2. 4). Retrieved from http://books. google. com. my/books? id=zSvObjuN8wYC&pg=PA229&lpg=PA229&dq=benefits+of+%22Water+Sharing+Treaty%22+cost+sharing&source=bl&ots=_pdTyaOsbd&sig=0S7DAmeJ-c9f0hzkEDlu3aLdOUo&hl=en&ei=ZgyoTrCSLKje4QTOhvDcDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CCAQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=benefits%20o f%20%22Water%20Sharing%20Treaty%22%20cost%20sharing&f=false Edwin, S. 2010). The various causes of water scarcity in the world. Retrieved from http://www. saching. com/Articles/The-Various-Causes-of-Water-Scarcity-in-the-World-254. html Environmentalist on Water Conservation. (2010). Retrieved from http://thegreatvixen. weebly. com/water-conservation. html FOA. (n. d. ) Water & poverty, an issue of life & livelihoods. Retrieved from http://www. fao. org/nr/water/issues/scarcity. html Frank A. Ward. (2011). Presentation from the 2011World Water Week in Stockholm [Power Point slides]. Retrieved from http://www. worldwaterweek. rg/documents/WWW_PDF/2011/Monday/K24/Hydroeconomic-Modelling-in-Basins/Hydroeconomic-Modeling-in-Basins-Practice-Challenges-and-Reward. pdf Geoffrey, L. (2009). Water scarcity now bigger threat than financial crisis. Retrieved from http://www. independent. co. uk/environment/climate-change/water-scarcity-now-bigger-threat-than-financial-crisis-1645358. html Glei ck, P. H. (n. d. ). Making every drop count. Retrieved from http://web. macam. ac. il/~arnon/Int-ME/water/MAKING%20EVERY%20DROP%20COUNT. htm Global Water Shortage Looms In New Century (n. d. ). Retrieved from http://ag. arizona. edu/AZWATER/awr/dec99/Feature2. tm King, B. (2010). Scarcity of water. Retrieved from http://www. greeniacs. com/GreeniacsArticles/Water/Scarcity-of-Water. html Krechowicz, D. ,Venugopal, S. , Sauer, A. , Somani, S. , & Pandey, S. (2010). Weeding Risk: Financial Impacts of Climate Change and Water Scarcity on Asia’s Food and Beverage Sector. Retrieved from http://www. wri. org/publication/weeding-risk-asia Medalla, E. (2009). Hatch: Desalination is the solution for water scarcity in the north. Retrieved from http://www. bnamericas. com/news/waterandwaste/Hatch:_Desalination_is_the_solution_for_water_scarcity_in_the_north

Leadership theory and competency framework Essay

Introduction Leadership is always been interesting topic to be discussed. Given the theories that continue to grow and evolve. There is none of the theories that really can define what is the real meaning of leadership but we agree that the leader must have knowledge, skills on how to analyse the information in order to make appropriate decision. An effective leader is one who is able to read the situation, correct the problem, responsible, willingness to develop the followers, have integrity and good ethics. Effective leadership expected to act within the ethical framework. The ethical framework itself is about what right or wrong and good and bad. The reason why ethical decision becomes so important in the leadership is because business involves in a lot of transactions with people both within and outside the organisation. The purpose of this report is to provide better understanding about effective leadership, decision making and ethical management and how they linked each other both in theori es and practices and how the leaders ensure that every decisions are made within the ethical framework. Ethics . According to Ciulla (1998) Ethics is study about human relationships it is about the role that we play in life on what we should do and what we should be like as human being. Ethics is about right or wrong and good or devil. Ethics is the foundation of leadership. There are four theories in ethics: 1. Virtue ethics. Focused on in individual processes whether their act is expressing good character (moral virtues) or not. 2. Deontological ethics. In deontological perspective, intentions are the morally relevant aspects of an act. As long as the leader acts according to his or her duty on moral principles then the leader acts ethically, regardless of the consequences. In simple words, deontological focus on what is right based on the facts. 3. Ethical growth and learning ethics. Ethical growth and learning ethics also called as the character ethics. According to Covey (1992) the character ethics based on living effectively including things like integrity, courage, fidelity and so on. He believes that human have to go through the necessary stages in their life for their personal growth. Senge (1990), see learning process in each individual are important for the organisation learning  development. 4. Teleological. This theory locates the ethics of the action in its results. Leadership Leadership is the one of the specific type of human relations. There are a lot of thoughts behind the theory of leadership, even those theories still growing from time to time and it stills remain without satisfactory conclusion on that. According to Bolden, The theories of leadership are ranging as follow (Bolden et all.,2003): 1. Great Man theories. These theories based on the idea that leaders are those who are incredible, born with leadership qualities and destined to become a leader. 2. Trait theories. The theories based on the qualities and traits that leaders have. Trait theories often 3. Behavioural theories. These theories are opposite from great man theories. The theories believe that good leaders are made, not born. 4. Situational theories. These theories view leadership as something that is specific into the situations. For example: there are some situations that require the type of autocratic leadership, in other situation participative approach might needed. 5. Contigency theories. These theories focus on particular variables related to the environment to suit the style of the leadership. According to this, successful leadership depends on numbers of variables including leadership style, follower’s quality and the conditions. 6. Participative theories. The theories suggest that ideal leadership style is one that taking input from others. These leaders are more engaging the group members in decision making process. According to Lewin (1939) there are three leadership style in participatory, autocratic, democratic and laissez faire. 7. Management theories or transactional theories These theories focus on the role of organisation and group performance. These theories use rewards and punishment system and most used by the business organisations. 8. Relationship Theories or transformational theories. These theories focus on the connection between the leaders and followers. In this theory, beside focus on the overall performance of the groups, the leader also focusing on each member’s potential. This theory also often has high ethical and moral standards. Decision Making According to business dictionary, Decision making is process of selecting a choice from the available options. In order to make good decision, someone must be able to predict the result of each option and based on that options, take the best for the particular situation. There are two dominant decision making process models: 1. Rational model Rational model is mechanistic. The foundation of this model is quantitative discipline. It involves a cognitive process where each step follows in a logical order in order to get the best result. Disadvantage of this method is slow process in decision making 2. Bounded rationality Bounded rationality foundation is qualitative approaches. Bounded rationality model recognize that the data that available may or may not be completely valid but decision maker stills allow to make decision based on available data. 1. Toyota Toyota started in 1993 as one of Toyoda automatic divisions. Toyoda Automatic was encouraged to develop Japanese automobile production by Japanese government for supply their domestic vehicles. In 1993, Toyota motor co. became independent and separated from Toyoda automatic. Toyota started to expand in 1960 to other countries began by establishing new research and development facility in Thailand and in 1963, the first Toyota built outside Japan located in Melbourne, Australia. During that decade, Toyota had  exported one million units which had their presence established worldwide. In 2010 Toyota facing the most critical crisis on their history as one of the biggest car manufacturers in the world. At least 8 million cars were recalled from the market regarding to floor mats and gas peddles that causing uncontrollable acceleration that reported become the cause of accidents and death. This incident costing the company of millions dollars in repair expenses lost in sales and destroy ed the company image for its reputation and of course undermining its credibility. The company also faced some of expensive lawsuits because it accused that Toyota leaders knew about the problems but they held back the information to held recall and in this case the Toyota leaders using ethical growth and learning approach. A lot of organisation experienced crisis incidents that need them to make audience public messages in explanation, apologies, and other efforts to fix their image. The unethical things that resulting in public accusation often can result in harm to shareholders and stakeholders of the organisation and will have negative impact in organisation’s sustainability. Toyota confront by some very clear situational limitation in trying to respond effectively in responding to the allegations and fixing its bad image. The allegations including the causes of the problem is not all clear yet ranging from engineering issue to human’s error. In reality, some reports suggest that the company do to repair the product are not solving the problems. The toyota also accused on having slow decision making process because they didnt respond to that that problem quickly and decisively. Ideally, the organisation expected to have quickly responsive actions to make positive image in the society because it is indicate that the organisation primary interest is to solving the problems rather that avoid legal problems. Such organisations are likely to be seen as ethical, responsible and decisive. However, the most difficult part that the company confront regarding their CEO. Akio Toyoda, the grandson of the founder. He facing the culture conflict associated with his multinational company’s nature. In general, Japanese corporate cultures encouraging harmony and try to avoid addressing the problems in public and prefer to manage behind the scenes and the process of their decision making is using consensus model. Consensus model is time consuming process and it will slow organisation in  their respond to the crisis. For some countries this can be seen that company is not decisive. Also in the Japanese organisation culture, they more focus on their leader’s opinion than public’s opinion. 2. Trafigura Trafigura is a private company established in 1993 by six partners, Claude Dauphin, Eric de Turckheim, Graham Sharp, Antonio Cometti, Daniel Posen and Mark Crandall. They are focusing on three regional markets, South America for oil and mineral industry, Eastern Europe for metals industry and Africa for oil industry. Currently, the group has 81 offices in 56 countries. The story of ethical issues that faced by Trafigura begun in early 2006 when Trafigura’s oil trader decided to buy Coker naphtha, a refinery by product from Mexico. They did this to make a quick profit. In between March and June 2006, three loads of 28.000 tonned was received in Texas and transferred to chartered cargo ship, Probo Koala. Dangerous chemicals were used to clean the Coker naphtha and then Trafigura realised that they facing the problem on how to dispose the toxic material safely. In July 2006, Probo Koala arrived in Amsterdam where one of the branch corporate offices is located. The Amsterdam Port Service, a Dutch waste management company agreed to treat and dispose the waste but in the higher price than it was agreed because APS discovered that the slop was much more polluted and requiring special treatment. As the consequences of that problem, the Probo Koala back to the sea and in August 2006, it arrived in Ivory Coast to deliver the waste to local company called Compagnie Tommy. Tommy then was illegally dumped the waste without treating it across Abidjan. The weeks after, thousands were sick and at least 10 death reported. Trafigura reached out of court agreement with Ivorian government by paying $ 198 million for cleaning up and helping the victims. Here we can see that the company using teleological approach in handling the problem. However, they denied that what they did is wrong and refused to accept any legal liabilities for that incident. The way Trafigura handled the crisis criticized by corporate responsibility observer. They said it was clearly messed up because when facing the problem, company ideally needs to find the facts quickly,  disclose them quickly and involve those who can reduce the problem and work with affected community in order to clean up the damage. In contrast, Trafigura, held everything privately and in the company like this they don’t have the same transparency and ethical requirements that a publicly company has. By looking for those examples, we realised that the need for ethics in leadership become obvious. Ethics influenced the leader in their leadership and decision making. Understandings of ethics begin with the analysis of values, both individual and organisational. Effective leaders must aware of their values, and system of ethics and ethical decision making. Good character and integrity are what we want to see from the leader. Somehow there is always the connection between a value system and the ability of the leader to use these values in their decision making. According to the Josephone Institute’s (1999), there are six pillars of character that might easily be applied to business setting. They are: Trustworthiness – honesty, integrity, reliability, loyalty, keeping promises and not deceiving others. Respect – using the golden rule or treating others as you wish be treated, in addition to being courteous, listening to others, and accepting individual differences Responsibility – accountability, self-control, the pursuit of excellence and considering consequences of our actions prior to making them Fairness – playing the rule, not taking advantage of others, making informed judgments without favoritism or prejudice, and not blaming others Caring – Kindness, compassion, and altruism, acting to minimize hardship and to help others whenever possible Citizenship – working to make one’s community better, protecting the environment, making our democratic institution work, and operating withi n the law How the leaders ensure that all decisions are made ethically? The foundation of ethical decision making involves choice and balance. As we discuss before ethics is the study of human relationship about right and wrong. To ensure that all decisions made ethically, leaders have to do ethic checks. There are varies on ethic checks but to make it simple, we can define ethic checks into three parts. The most common questions when we questioning about ethics are whether it is legal?, whether it is fair?, and if we do this, how it  will affect ourselves as human being s a member’s of society. The first part of ethic check is bout legality. Legal here means not only within legal system but also whether it is legal within the organisation policies. After we get the answer for the first part the next question will it be fair? One of the traits that effective leadership must have is putting the organisation’s interest above their personal interest. Hence to ensure the decision has made ethically here the leader should check whether the decision will be fair for all stakeholders. Lastly, after those two questions answered, the leaders must ask themselves how they want to be view by the society because whatever it is, regardless the power that the leaders have, they are still a member’s of society. Conclusion Ethics is the heart of leadership. In understanding the leadership it is important for us to understand about the ethics. Ethics is the study of human relationship. It is about what we should do and what we should be like in the society. The ethics can be different from one and another because ethics influenced by other factors such as family influence, religious belief, culture, experience and personal reflection. Leadership on the other hand is the particular type of human relationship that involving power. The effective leader has to have good ethics as one of their traits because in effective leadership, leader should put the group interest above his or her personal interest. Nowadays, many organisations in the world have been damage by their unethical decision making and most cases because they put self- interest above group or society interest which destroys the society trust to the organisations. Regarding to that we can see that ethics and leadership should go hand in hand and the effective leadership should have good ethics that stick to the moral values on the society and oppose all the unethical conduct. Like other things in the world nothing is perfect, but it is very good for the leader to ensure that the decisions are made ethically through questioning their decision whether it is legal or fair for them and for the community and the leader also consider their decision as their personal reflection. References Bolden, R., Gosling, J., Marturani, A. and Dennison, P. (2003). A review of leadership theory and competency framework. Centre for Leadership studies, UK : University of Exeter Linstead, S., Fulop, L., Lilley, S. (2009). Management & Organization A critical text. New York, NY: Palgrave Ciulla, J.B. (ED). (1998). Ethics, the heart of leadership. Westport, CT:Praeger. Driscoll, D. M. & Hoffman, W.M. (2000). Ethics matters: How to implement values-driven management. Waltham, MA Hitt, W.D. (1990). Ethics and Leadership. Columbus, OH: batelle Johnson, C.E. (2001). Meeting the ethical challenges of leaderhip. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishers. The six pillars of Character. (2009). Retrieved from http://charatercounts.org/six pillars.html Leadership Theories and styles. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.etsu.edu/ahsc/documents/Leadership_Theories.pdf History of Toyota. (n.d). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Toyota Seeger, M. (2010) Image restoration and Toyota recall. In communication currents. Retrieved from https://www.natcom.org/CommCurrentsArticle.aspx?id=967 Trafigura corporate history. (n.d). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trafigura Chhabara, R. (2009) Trafigura –Toxic ethics. In communication reporting. Retrieved from http://www.ethicalcorp.com/communications-reporting/trafigura-%E2%80%93-toxic- ethics 10 of most unethical business practices in business (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.businesspundit.com/10-most-unethical-business-practices/