Tooth and Claw

â€Å"Disguises† Every character and their relationships between them in â€Å"Tooth and Claw† by T. Coraghessan Boyle, disguise themselves in many ways, both consciously and unconsciously, all for different purposes. The author introduces us to four major characters in this story that all interact with each other and have some sort of mask over themselves hiding their true identities and motives. The main character James Turner Jr. as recently moved to California â€Å"So that I could inject a little excitement into my life and mingle with all the college students in the bars†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he lives by himself in an apartment which his aunt pays for even though he has a full time job. This apartment is extremely messy and unorganized. It seems to me that James is not living up to his full potential, he is running away and maybe even hiding from something the apartment is perfect example of just that. James has a full time job but was recently told to take some time off and now he does not know what to do with his free time. James is drawn to a bar named â€Å"Daggets,† â€Å"Daggets is the only place I feel comfortable. And Why? Precicely because it was filled with old men drinking themselves into oblivion. It made me think of home. Or feel at home, anyway. † James has moved halfway across the country to â€Å"Mingle with the college students† yet he frequently visits a bar that is surrounded with â€Å"old men. † He has been eyeing a waitress at â€Å"Daggets† named Daria, but â€Å"hadn’t worked up the nerve to say more than hello and good-bye to her. â€Å"Daggets† may serve as another mask that James is hiding beneath, it reminds him of his father (who died sixth months earlier) and he can also relate to Daria because of how close in age they are. A mysterious man enters the bar named â€Å"Ludwig† who begins to show falsehoods right from the start. He begins to flirt with Daria and orders two raw eggs from her, everyone believes he is going t o eat them but he does not. After James has had a few drinks Ludwig convinces James to play him in a game of dice but doesn’t tell him what they are playing for. Ludwig surprises everyone and brings in a large cage with an African wild cat nside it, to everyone’s surprise this is what they will be playing for. James doesn’t have the courage to back down and â€Å"I couldn’t back out without feeling the shame rise to my face—and there was Daria to consider, because she was watching me, too. † It seems as though Ludwig sort of a con artist, he brings an exotic animal that he wants to get rid of to a bar where almost every person in there is judgment impaired. This was Ludwig’s plan, go to a bar, convince some drunk people to play a game, and dump this animal on them and leave. James is intoxicated enough to fall right into his plan, not knowing what hit him until it was too late. James wins the game of dice, winning the cat and immediately after Ludwig disappears and James is trying to figure out what has just happened. Daria witnesses this and immediately shows interest, excitement, and curiosity. â€Å"Daria rose and came to me with a look of wonder. ‘Don’t do a thing till I get off, O. K.? ’ and in her favor she took hold of my arm. ‘I get off at nine, so you wait, O. K.? ’† Daria is falsely identifying herself to James (unconsciously or consciously) she begins to lead him on. James believes she is interested in him but she is really interested, excited and curious about the cat and the moment, she is in for the ride. Daria has her own motives, it seems she does not really care about James. They go shopping together to buy essentials for the cat, Daria in control of the situation and in complete disregard for James. â€Å"I watched Daria march up and down the aisles seeking out kitty litter and the biggest cat pan they had†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢I’ve only got ten bucks,’ I said†¦she reached back to slip the band of her ponytail so that her hair fell glistening across her shoulders, a storm of hair, fluid and loose, the ends trailing down her back like liquid in motion. She tossed her head impatiently. ‘You do have a credit card, don’t you? ’† Daria is subtly flirting with James; she is leading him on again so that she will get what she wants. She does not care whether he has any money; she is so interested and curious about the animal that she will do anything to get what she wants. The next two days Daria stays at James’s house and they occasionally talk and have long conversations but becomes clear that she is only there for the concern and interest in the cat. The first day she leaves and says â€Å"Take care of our cat now, O. K.? † It seems as though she is implying that they are together and the cat is both of theirs. This seems to confuse James, he doesn’t know exactly what she meant by that. Replying to this he shows another falsehood by not showing exactly how he feels, â€Å"I shrugged in a helpless, submissive way, the pain of her leaving as acute as anything I’d ever felt. ‘Sure,’ I said. † She then pulls him in for a kiss and calls him â€Å"sweet. Every time she enters the apartment she goes right to the cat and every time she wakes up she immediately says â€Å"We have to feed the cat. † Soon Daria’s ride is over, her interest is lost in the cat and in James (if there was any real interest to begin with) and so is her curiosity. She soon figures out James’s real personality, how he is basically a loser and whatever interest she may have had with him, has been lost. After she has spent the last three days with him she ends up telling him that she has a boyfriend and that she doesn’t want to give him the wrong â€Å"impression. Whether she realizes it or not she leads him on this entire time and already did give him the wrong impression, she was falsely identifying herself and her actions towards James. James does not know what to do with himself after what Daria informs him. He formed a dependence on her, â€Å"I felt lost without her. † He becomes angry and hostile with the manager at â€Å"Daggets,† his boss, and himself. After he is asked to leave the bar for drinking too much and insulting the bartender, James faces the cat and essentially attempts to commit suicide. He goes back to his apartment, â€Å"Pulled open the door, and slipped inside. And then—and I don’t know why—I pulled the door shut behind me. † Every character in this story misrepresents themselves in one way or another with the way they act towards each other and with what they have people believe. Even the giant African cat misrepresents itself, it does not belong in a bar, nor does it belong in an apartment. The characters in this story hide behind masks, physically or theoretically all to gain something or to hide something.

Difference of girls and boys in school Essay

How do boys and girls experience school? Somewhat differently it seems, because their learning styles tend to differ somewhat. Although individual differences always trump gender-related differences, here are some differences between the ways boys and girls in K12 grades classrooms behave that have implications for teaching and learning. Girls are more likely to Boys are more likely to 1. be good listeners -a trait that serves them well in today’s language-rich classrooms. 1. do well when using mathematical-logical thinking. 2. print neatly and follow directions carefully. 2. settle for messy handwriting and disorganized work. 3. sit calmly in their seats. 3. need space to spread out their materials; move around in that space. 4. gather facts before they draw conclusions. 4. deduce conclusions from general statements. 5. need concrete examples when learning abstract principles. 5. be comfortable with mathematical symbols and general ideas in math. 6. need to talk about their subject before beginning a writing project. 6. lose focus on a writing task and spend little time talking about what they plan to write. 7. work well in cooperative groups. 7. Prefer to work alone; argue over who will lead when working in a group 8. entertain themselves during boring parts of the school day. 8. act out and disrupt the class when bored. 9. pay attention to more than one activity at a time. 9. find it hard to concentrate on learning when they are upset. 10. discuss problems with a teacher. 10. act as if they don’t care about learning when they are confused or frustrated. At a primary school Manning, a small town 65 miles east of Columbia, South Carolina, second grade teachers Holly Garneau and Anna Lynne Gamble are convinced that segregating elementary-age boys and girls produces immediate academic improvement—in both genders. Eager to capitalize on their past progress, the two created a teaching plan for the upcoming semester. The kids will be in a coed environment for homeroom, lunch, and recess, then  divide up for four hours each day to learn their math, science, reading and social studies. But first, Garneau and Gamble need the parents’ approval. That’s where David Chadwell, South Carolina’s coordinator of single gender education, comes in. He doesn’t argue the politics of the issue. He emphasizes the science â€Å"These (learning) differences are tendencies, not absolutes. That is important,† he tells the group. â€Å"However, we can teach boys and girls based on what we now know because of medical technology.† Just as he’s explained to hundreds of parents and teachers across the state, Chadwell patiently walks the Manning crowd through how boys and girls perceive the world. â€Å"They see differently. Literally,† he begins. Male and female eyes are not organized in the same way, he explains. The composition of the male eye makes it attuned to motion and direction. â€Å"Boys interpret the world as objects moving through space,† he says. â€Å"The teacher should move around the room constantly and be that object.† The male eye is also drawn to cooler colors like silver, blue, black, grey, and brown. It’s no accident boys tend to create pictures of moving objects like spaceships, cars, and trucks in dark colors instead of drawing the happy colorful family, like girls in their class. The female eye, on the other hand, is drawn to textures and colors. It’s also oriented toward warmer colors—reds, yellow, oranges—and visuals with more details, like faces. To engage girls, Chadwell says, the teacher doesn’t need to move as much, if at all. Girls work well in circles, facing each other. Using descriptive phrases and lots of color in overhead presentations or on the chalkboard gets their attention. Parents tilt their heads, curious to hear more. Boys and girls also hear differently. â€Å"When someone speaks in a loud tone, girls interpret it as yelling,† Chadwell says. â€Å"They think you’re mad and can shut down.† Girls have a more finely tuned aural structure; they can hear higher frequencies than boys and are more sensitive to sounds. He advises girls’ teachers to watch the tone of their voices. Boys’ teachers should sound matter of fact, even excited. Chadwell’s voice sounds much more forceful as he explains. Chadwell continues. A boy’s autonomic nervous system causes them to be more alert when they’re standing, moving, and the room temperature is around 69 degrees. Stress in boys, he says, tends to increase blood flow to their brains, a process that helps them stay focused. This won’t work for girls, who are more focused seated in a warmer room around 75 degrees. Girls also respond to stress differently. When exposed to threat and confrontation, blood goes to their guts, leaving them feeling nervous or anxious. â€Å"Boys will rise to a risk and tend to overestimate their abilities,† he says. Teachers can help them by getting them to be more realistic about results,† he says. â€Å"Girls at this age shy away from risk, which is exactly why lots of girls’ programs began in the private sector. Teachers can help them learn to take risks in an atmosphere where they feel confident about doing so.† It’s an aha! moment for many of the parents, who seem to understand. These differences can be accommodated in the classroom, Chadwell adds. â€Å"Single gender programs are about maximizing the learning.† Mar. 5, 2008 — Although researchers have long agreed that girls have superior language abilities than boys, until now no one has clearly provided a biological basis that may account for their differences. Share This: 811 For the first time — and in unambiguous findings — researchers from Northwestern University and the University of Haifa show both that areas of the brain associated with language work harder in girls than in boys during language tasks, and that boys and girls rely on different parts of the brain when performing these tasks. â€Å"Our findings — which suggest that language processing is more sensory in boys and more abstract in girls — could have major implications for teaching children and even provide support for advocates of single sex classrooms,† said Douglas D. Burman, research associate in Northwestern’s Roxelyn and Richard Pepper Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), the researchers measured brain activity in 31 boys and in 31 girls aged 9 to 15 as they performed spelling and writing language tasks. The tasks were delivered in two sensory modalities — visual and a uditory. When visually presented, the children read certain words without hearing them. Presented in an auditory mode, they heard words aloud but did not see them. Using a complex statistical model, the researchers accounted for differences associated with age, gender, type of linguistic judgment, performance accuracy and the method — written or spoken — in which words  were presented. The researchers found that girls still showed significantly greater activation in language areas of the brain than boys. The information in the tasks got through to girls’ language areas of the brain — areas associated with abstract thinking through language. And their performance accuracy correlated with the degree of activation in some of these language areas. To their astonishment, however, this was not at all the case for boys. In boys, accurate performance depended — when reading words — on how hard visual areas of the brain worked. In hearing words, boys’ performance depended on how hard auditory areas of the brain worked. If that pattern extends to language processing that occurs in the classroom, it could inform teaching and testing methods. Given boys’ sensory approach, boys might be more effectively evaluated on knowledge gained from lectures via oral tests and on knowledge gained by reading via written tests. For girls, whose language processing appears more abstract in approach, these different testing methods would appear unnecessary. â€Å"One possibility is that boys have some kind of bottleneck in their sensory processes that can hold up visual or auditory information and keep it from being fed into the language areas of the brain,† Burman said. This could result simply from girls developing faster than boys, in which case the differences between the sexes migh t disappear by adulthood. Or, an alternative explanation is that boys create visual and auditory associations such that meanings associated with a word are brought to mind simply from seeing or hearing the word. While the second explanation puts males at a disadvantage in more abstract language function, those kinds of sensory associations may have provided an evolutionary advantage for primitive men whose survival required them to quickly recognize danger-associated sights and sounds. If the pattern of females relying on an abstract language network and of males relying on sensory areas of the brain extends into adulthood — a still unresolved question — it could explain why women often provide more context and abstract representation than men. Ask a woman for directions and you may hear something like: â€Å"Turn left on Main Street, go one block past the drug store, and then turn right, where there’s a flower shop on one corner and a cafe across the street.† Such information-laden directions may be helpful for women because all information is relevant to the abstract concept of where to turn; however, men may require only one cue and be distracted by  additional information. Boy and girl babies differ from the time they are in the crib. Richard Restak studied these differences in babies from birth to twelve months and published his findings in the now classic book The Brain: The Last Frontier (Grand Central Publishing, 1988). He found that boy babies demonstrate early superiority in visual acuity and possess better spatial abilities in dealing with three-dimensional space. Boy babies also perform better in gross motor body movements. He found girl babies to be more sensitive to sounds (especially their mother’s voice) and more attuned to the social contexts of situations (faces, speech patterns and tones of voice). Girl babies speak sooner and develop larger vocabularies. Inborn Learning Styles Dr. Rita Dunn, Director of the Center for Study of Learning and Teaching Styles at St. John’s University in New York, and Dr. Kenneth Dunn of Queens College, have spent nearly 25 years in the study of learning styles. They identify the most common learning styles as Auditory, Visual and Tactile. From their studies, the Dunns have observed that learning styles are inborn and run in families, and can be observed as early as the first year of life. Of the children I have evaluated in my own practice, over 80 percent demonstrates a learning style that is either identical to that of one parent or a blend of both parents’ styles. Ten percent demonstrate the learning style of a close relative, such as a grandparent or uncle. Listeners, Lookers and Movers Listeners, Lookers and Movers are the terms I use for Auditory, Visual and Tactilelearners, respectively. Listeners are attuned to sounds and words. They talk early, have large vocabularies and learn to read with ease. From the first year of life,Lookers are drawn to color, shape and motion. They display excellent eye-hand coordination, and can be expected to excel at math and computers. As babies,Movers often crawl, stand and walk ahead of schedule. They are well-coordinated and confident in their bodies, but their affinity for moving poses problems for them in structured classroom settings. Male vs. Female Learning Styles While external circumstances can have an impact on a child’s preferred  learning style, some generalizations are possible. Girls tend to be auditory learners, more attuned to sounds, and as a result talk earlier than boys. From the time they begin formal schooling, girls excel in auditory subjects, such as reading, which require the ability to break words into individual sound units, and then blend them back into a whole. As auditory learners, they perform well in classroom settings that demand attention to teacher instructions. As adults, they often lean toward careers in communications. Male broadcasters, courtroom attorneys and speech-language pathologists prove that there are exceptions to this rule. Beginning at birth, boys tend to be visually alert and take a whole body stance to learning. As visual learners, boys tend to excel in visual subjects, such as spelling and math. Spelling requires accurate visual recall of the patterns of words, and success in math hinges on the ability to mentally visualize and manipulate quantities. As adults, males tend to favor visually precise fields, or favor fields where they can be physically active. However, female airline pilots, accountants and landscape designers prove exceptions to this rule. Learning and Teaching Strategies Left to their own devices, children, over time, tend to settle into a preferred way of learning to the point of screening out less favored types of information. Whenever a child gets set in a particular way of learning and begins to screen out auditory, visual or tactile information, he or she is at risk of being labeled learning disabled. Children do not â€Å"outgrow† their preferences for learning in a particular way. In fact, without help, as they progress through the grades, they tend to become more set in their learning style ways. Children can, however, become more flexible in their approach to learning when adults encourage them as early as possible to welcome auditory, visual and tactile information.

Bolman & Deals Four-Frame Model Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Bolman & Deals Four-Frame Model - Essay Example The power to reframe is vital for modern leaders. The ability to see new possibilities and to create new opportunities enables leaders to discover alternatives when options seem severely constrained. It helps them find hope and faith amid fear and despair. Choice is at the heart of freedom, and freedom is essential to achieving the twin goals of commitment and flexibility (Bolman & Deal, 2003, p.433)." In the contemporary times, change within the organizations is an expected and normal phenomenon, though the pace of chance has been manifold accelerated by the IT revolution and the digitization of the economies. Corporate organizations more then often consist of a highly complex framework that can make the task of managing change really challenging and unpredictable. Every organization undergoing a change represents a unique scenario that may have multiple facets such as the popping up technical challenges, existing political framework and the rampant cultural ethos (Tichy, 1983, p.17). The multiple dimensions inherent in the functional efficiency of the organizations call for astute management responses and seasoned administrational efficacy. Also the attitude of the employees towards the inbuilt values and ethical moorings within the organizations more then often gives way to immense resistance from within and without (Lewin, 1947). Thus the complexity involved in managing change may further be aggravated due to a friction between the gamuts of opposing elements within the organizations (Charles, Bastein & Hostages, 1991). In such a scenario, the top leadership within the organizations often gets bifurcated into managers who insist on the relevance of existing maintenance procedures and the managers who aspire to play a leadership role in facilitating the inevitable change (Zaleznick, 1977). Change management undeniably calls for a visionary perspective on the part of a leader and demands an ability to visualize the overall process of change from a vantage point that is seldom distracted by the humdrum of everyday activities (Bums, 1978, p.42). The ability of a leader to visualize change in the context of multiple frames facilitates a linkage of the experiences of the people working within an organization with the requisite transformational behaviour (Avolio, 1994). These intrinsic connections between experience and behaviour yield the stimulating driving f orce that transforms organizations (Schuster, 1994). Hence Bass was not wrong in tracing a direct correlation between the ability of a leader to visualize change from multiple perspectives and team effectiveness (1985). The ability of a leader to dissect the predominant influences within an organization into constituent frames helps in unravelling the vision, beliefs, assumptions and goals that aught to be dealt with on a priority basis to facilitate change (Schein, 2004, p.22).Over the years there has occurred a sea change in the way managers and administrators are expected to visualize change within organizations. From the anachronistic perspective of seeing change as a monolithic phenomenon, managers today are encouraged to

The chemisrty in onions Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The chemisrty in onions - Research Paper Example Some of these acids like the 1-propenesulfenic acid is acted upon by the lachrymatory factor synthase enzyme to produce a volatile gas known as syn-propanethial-S-oxide also referred to as onion lachrymatory factor. The syn-propanethial-S-oxide diffuses in the air and on reaching the eye; a stinging sensation is felt due to its activation on the sensory neurons (Block, 2010). The onion cells contain various different enzymes kept separate and upon cutting, the cells contents become free and mix with the acids kept in the onion forming volatile compounds. In the eye, a reaction occurs between the propanethiole S-oxide and the tears released from the tear glands forming a mild sulphuric acid stimulating rapid release of tears which in turn makes the situation more worse. The alliinase enzyme is responsible for breaking down onions compounds into unstable intermediates which either change into thiosulfinate or lachrymatory factor. Thiosulfinate is responsible for the distinct flavor and odor from the onions as well as converted into sulfur compounds that benefit the body by lowering the cholesterol levels, acting as anti-blood clotting, anti-asthma, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory. Research has confirmed that only one specific enzyme is responsible of causing the formation of the lachrymatory factor hence inhibiting it will stop crying and on the long run increase the thiosulfinate compounds yield. Several strategies ranging from laboratory research to local imaginations have been employed towards the production of tear free onions or the prevention of the lachrymatory factor from reaching the eyes by neutralizing it in the air. To start with, the New Zealand Crop and Food Research together with the Japan House Food Corporation in 2008 developed tear free onions aiming at less reaction and irritation to the eyes. The new variety, taste and look like the regular onions but the action of lachrymatory factor synthase enzyme is lowered through genetic alteration. Th e modification has been engineered through the production of genetically modified foods that have been said to contain the desired nutrients. Research refills that if onions are grown on sulfur deficient soils, the creation of lachrymatory factor and other sulfur compounds is reduced and sweet flavor enhanced. This is in relation to Vidalia; a brand of sweet onions (Imani, 2002). The local methods used in a daily basis include: Chopping onions while chewing gum. Though the method is not as certain to the expected results, less crying is evident but the coordination between keeping on chewing the gum as you cut the onions is tricky. At the end of it, less tears come out besides high levels of irritation. It has been found to be an easy and convenient method to use (Walter, 2006). The use of goggles is gaining popularity as it gives painless results. The goggles protect the eyes from the volatile gas hence no tears or stinging. They are easy and convenient to be used though it is an a dded cost and their tight grip causes uncomfortable moments (Dille, 1996). Another method fruitfully used is that of freezing the onions in the freezer for about 15 minutes before chopping. The temperature in the freezer is very low to an extent of inhibiting the onions from releasing chemicals that irritate the eyes. It is painless, no tears and irritation. The

Financial Accounting coursework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Financial Accounting coursework - Essay Example References†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..7 1. Executive Summary This report includes some of the basic principles and conventions that must be adhered to while preparing the financial statements. It includes analysis and evaluation of some of the accounting practices and conventions. This report also analyses and evaluates some of the accounting practices in Marks & Spencer Plc. 2.1 Accrual Accounting Accrual concept includes recognition of revenue when earned while expenses are only acknowledged when they are suffered or incurred. This accounting concept needs creation of an extra account that records the variance obtained from the difference between revenue and expenses recognized as well as reception or payments of cash. Accounts receivable is normally used in recording accrued incomes while deferred re venue account is used to record revenue not earned (Banerjee 2005, p. 4-5). On the other hand, accrued expense account is used in recording expenses before payment of cash while deferred expense account is used in recording expenses after paying cash. This type of accounting concept is very expensive and that it is possible for the account to owe taxes on their income even before the cash is received. In marks & Spencer income is recognized when the products are sent to the customers and important risks and title incentives are shifted to the client. The deferred tax is accounted for after calculating it based on anticipated way of realization. The company also has trade receivables account and trade payables (Banerjee 2005, p. 4-5). 2.2 Going Concern Going concern is regarded as one of the most important assumptions in accounting used in preparation of final accounts with an assumption that the business will continue to operate in the next foreseeable future. The company is expecte d to successfully settle their liabilities after realizing their assets. It is always upon the management of the company to check on the ability of the organization to continue doing business in the coming future. The accounts of Marks & Spencer are prepared in the basis of going concern and the directors are convinced that the company will be able to operate in the next future. The directors are very much concerned that there are no uncertainties that may interfere with the company’s operations in their future (Gibson 2012, p.11-12). The company managed to make a profit of $458 as at March 2013 and positive cash and cash equivalents. The company’s current assets also exceed the current liabilities thus showing an element of going concern. The company is also in a position of paying out her dividends and financing The company will not likely to fail in its operations in the near future considering her statement of financial position and the consolidated income statemen t (Marks & Spencer 2013, p. 1-3). There are a number of indications of a going concern business which are not reflected in the financial statement of Marks & Spencer. Some of the dangerous signs indicating challenges of going concern are poor liquidity positions, high financial risk and delay in payments as well as serious litigations affecting the company. Marks & Spencer do not also have any indication of defaulting by one of their chief customers that may eventually affect her operations (Gibson

Causes of childhood obesity Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Causes of childhood obesity - Research Paper Example The US government has estimated that only in New York out of 4 children’s under age of 18 one is affected with obesity as a result of which approximately 1.1 million children’s are obese. Major problem is not with the lack of understanding of the causes but with the high number of cases coming up with obesity among children’s it is difficult to decide which policy and program is the best to fight this problem. Some of the factors like changes in life style and also changes in culture has made kids not so healthy and have increased the cases of obesity in the last few decades. As per Ebbelung et al, currently across the globe 18000000 childhood obese cases are been seen which is a very crucial matter to be looked upon by all the countries to reduce the affects arising from obesity. According to Lissauet al. 2004, the countries with less obesity in the earlier years have shown signs for higher childhood cases from the last few decades because of the change in culture and their living standards (kalies, Jacksonville and Kries 112-120). Klein in 2008 stated that America is the fastest developed nation and also richest country in world, but the cases of obese has always hindered the name of the country in different countries. Robert Burton has said that to speak over the remedies and cures for fighting obesity is a waste until the perfect cause for the problem is been found and searched. In an international review Silventoinen et al. explained that genetics played a strong on variation of body mass index (BMI) among various ages and this factor is far stronger than the environmental influence of the country over the children’s. Even in 2004 Baur and O’Connor said that the rise in obesity among children’s is due to the changes in physical and social environment (Paxon 234-240). This particular research over the causes for the rise in obesity in US is been done using secondary data. The secondary

Tibet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Tibet - Essay Example â€Å"Five hundred years before Buddha Sakyamuni came into this world i.e., circa 1063 B.C., a semi-legendary figure known as Lord Shenrab Miwo reformed the primitive animism of the Shen race and founded the Tibetan Bon religion. According to Bonpo sources there were eighteen Shangshung Kings who ruled Tibet before King Nyatri Tsenpo† (Brief History of Tibet) After the empire of Shangshung exhausted another kingdom known as â€Å"Bod† came into exist and the present name of Tibet has been used during this era. The Tibetan has been ruled by many kings of different empires in the following years. â€Å"During the first decade of the 16th century, Tseten Dorje, a servant of the Rinpung family, with the help of some local tribes and Mongols, managed to gain control of Shigatse and the surrounding regions of Tsang province. From 1566 to 1642 Tseten Dorje and his two successors ruled Tibet with the title of Depa Tsangpa.† (Brief History of Tibet) Sonam Gyatso, one of the prominent figures of Tibetan history was born in 1543. He was a person of immense wisdom in spiritual activities and his visions and missions were soon made him the unquestionable leader of the Tibetan community. He converted Altan Khan to Buddhism and the latter conferred on him the title Dalai Lama meaning "Ocean of Wisdom" in 1578. In 1642, the Fifth Dalai Lama, Ngawang Lozang Gyatso, assumed both spiritual and temporal authority over Tibet and established the present system of the Tibetan Government. (Brief History of Tibet) The Ming emperor who was ruling China at that time had a wide respect towards Dalai Lama and they were never questioned the sovereignty of Tibet under the leadership of Dalai Lama. In 1786 Ghurkhas invaded Tibet because of the Tibetan help to Sikkim people when they were attacked by the Ghurkha led Nepal. In order to escape from the attack of Ghurkhas, the eighth Dalai Lama, the ruler of Tibet at that time sought help

Marketing challenges about hotel industries in Cyclades island Essay

Marketing challenges about hotel industries in Cyclades island - Essay Example The subject deals with the point of view of two broad streams of knowledge – economy, and, marketing, with a heavier inclination towards challenges in tourism marketing in general, and, towards the Cyclades Islands in particular. Business Week in one of its articles asked â€Å"What a poor country to do?†, and said, â€Å"Ask the average economist how a country can lift itself out of poverty, and the answer will be simple: Educate your populace, squelch inflation, open your economy to free trade and investment, and then sit back and watch gross domestic product soar† (businessweek.com, 1997). True to its assertions, it is not that simple. Many poor economies, especially those dependent on tourism have made a mistake in relation to this. Greece’ ascension to the EU could do no miracles, and now talk of leaving the Eurozone is back in the air, though the majority of Greeks do not approve this(Wall St. News, 2011). As Theodore Levitt pointed out back in 1960 in his famous article Marketing Myopia, â€Å"Every major industry was once a growth industry. But some that are now riding a wave of growth enthusiasm are very much in the shadow of decline. Others which are thought of as seasoned growth industries have actually stopped growing. In every case the reason growth is threatened, slowed, or stopped is not because the market is saturated. It is because there has been a failure of management.† Levitt (1975) in his classic railroad example argued that today the railroads which were once a craze in the U.S. have been replaced by a developed transport system. He describes this as a trend wherein people were convinced that they were not a part of the transportation business as â€Å"they presumed themselves to be in the railroad business.† Then he further explains that they believed this to be a development that was â€Å"railroad-oriented instead of transportation oriented; they were product-oriented instead of customer-orient ed† (Levitt, 1960). Even after more than five decades, Levitt’s arguments appear to be as valid and relevant as they were then, in all industries, and in all parts of the world. The hotel industry in the Cyclades Islands is no different. Therefore, as in the railroad case, the problem is not with the railroads, but with its understanding about its own fundamentals, in what business it was. In relation to this the fundamentals, the present review of literatures will try to answer the research question â€Å"what are the marketing challenges for the hotel industry in the Cyclades Islands†. The review will first shed light on the nature and characteristics of service industries, followed by a study of the marketing challenges in them. It will subsequently make a review of what researchers say about the marketing cha

Public Policy - Prescription Drug Abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Public Policy - Prescription Drug Abuse - Essay Example There are intense wellbeing dangers in taking physician endorsed pills. This is the reason they are taken just under the forethought of a specialist. Furthermore and still, after all that, they must be nearly observed to evade dependence or different issues (Barnes et al, 2013). Numerous pills appear to be identical. It is to a great degree unsafe to take any pill that you are unverifiable about or was not endorsed for you. Individuals can additionally have distinctive responses to pills because of the contrasts in every individuals body science. A medication that was alright for one man could be exceptionally hazardous, even lethal, for another person. Doctor prescribed medications are alright for the people who really have the medicines for them and nobody else. According to Kraft and Furlong (2013), the rational analysis and decision-making model represents a series of analytical stages that are both comprehensive and evaluative in nature, which seek to identify important aspects and an in-depth understanding of a problem. This technique serves to provide valuable information such as defining what the problem is, identifying who it affects, factors that may have caused or contributed to the problem, highlight goals and objectives desired, examine an array of alternative solutions, individually assess each alternative to clarify its consequences, and ultimately establish which option would have the most probability to resolve the issue. It’s a multi-step approach to the policy process and a concept that follows a logical structure and affords practical application of clear and sensible methods for problem solving. Analysts ultimately seek to provide policymakers with the most pertinent and complete data necessary in order to fully un derstand the nature of an issue, as well as offer the best available options for effective problem solving. Although the sequence of steps and at what stage of the process they are applied may vary as well as

Issues in Multicultural Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Issues in Multicultural Education - Essay Example As part of the solution, the people who are involved comprise of the community elders who shall induct such teachers and mentors who have no difficulty in coming up with the standards and levels of the students and the ones who are gaining education in more than a single way. This is so needed because the same people are involved within the problem phase as are the ones in the solution element. The distinction of people depends entirely on how a task is cut out and what kind of activities come about with the passage of time under differential circumstances. The proposed solution is that the multicultural education is an important affair and should be treated with the required respect that it richly deserves (Bertera, 2007). The people involved with education and making the entire process possible are the ones who have to bring about a change, and that too for the betterment of all and sundry. This is because the multicultural education norms highlight the element of success that the community elders are instilling within the students who want to attain new heights and learn a number of new trades in the changing professional world of today. The proposed solution takes into account that the funding initiatives are handled properly and without much fuss. It would mean that the people involved at different levels find the best possible solution for collective growth and development of the students for which the multicultural education is in place in entirety. The elements that will be needed in order to implement the proposed solution comprise of the money issues that engulf the multicultural education in essence. This means that the multicultural education will only be seen as a point of strength if the educational levels are properly addressed and when there are enough budgeting inputs by the people who matter the most within the related domains of inculcating quality education within the diverse set of students. Thus the time element is also an important consid eration when one speaks of the aspect of multicultural education bringing in sound results (Oikonomidoy, 2009). The projected timeline to implement the solution is around a year’s time. This is the time during which the multicultural education would be exponentially enhanced and its success would therefore be dependent on significant steps, all of which are undertaken by the community members on a proactively consistent basis. This time is enough to analyze the problem at hand when one speaks of the multicultural education and its varied norms (Coutts, 2007). Also there would be enough time in between to take care of the negatives which would arise in the wake of undertaking certain steps. It would comprise of the steps that have been left unattended as well as the ones which were never fulfilled in the first place. The projected outcome of the entire exercise of multicultural education is that it will put the people in close perspectives of one another, and ask of them to br ing about success as it is required by the students.

The courts of Henry IV and his son Prince Harry Essay Example for Free

The courts of Henry IV and his son Prince Harry Essay A comparison (up to the end of Act 3) of the courts of Henry IV and his son Prince Harry Shakespeares Henry IV part 1 deals with a Scottish challenge to the throne of King Henry IV led by Henry Percy (Hotspur) who was the son of the Earl of Northumberland. But it also deals with the differences of the lives at which the King and his son live, and how they differ in the time of need. In this essay I shall be carrying out a comparison of the courts of Henry IV and his son, Price Henry, also named as Hal. When I mention courts, I am describing the area of which a monarch conducts all aspects of their business, but also the inhabitants of it. The outcome I am aiming to produce is to show how the two inhabitants of different courts come together when they are needed by each other. I shall start with a comparison of the settings of the two courts. The setting of the Kings court is of many great places in which he conducts his business, such as discussions of rebellion and how to keep the country at peace. These are very prestigious and modern (in the set era) rooms and areas which would allow a select few to enter. Surrounded by high quality goods and paintings, these courts would be very solemn. They would be used for their sole purpose only, and any unneeded acts would rarely commence. Examples of this are shown, not only in the BBC Broadcast of the book, but also in the ink drawings in the novel. They show the setting to be extremely tidy but at the same time bland. These areas have no character, no feeling in them; they are merely for show. In the BBC broadcast of the book, near the beginning there is a scene in which the King is giving a speech in which he addresses his supporters in giving them the news that he shall lead a crusade in Jerusalem (among other things). This setting in which he is in is extremely royal and expensive; this helps me to explain my comparison. But also, during Act 3 in the book, there is some clear ink drawings describing the settings of his courts. These are extremely plain areas, but they have their unique points to them. But in a complete contrast of this court, is Hals: Inns, dirty apartments filled with commoners and prostitutes- that was the world of Hals. But this was also of feeling, of life, of happiness. Hals courts were rarely dull or uneventful, but full of excitement; although, for this fun and excitement to occur, the circumstances shall be rough and cheap. The main areas to socialise would be in his Royal Apartments, but also the Boars Head, an uninviting tavern in Eastcheap. They are completely opposite to the layout of the Kings areas. Descriptions would be shabby, cheap ornaments, alcohol everywhere feeding the drunks. The setting is dirty fit for a common man, not a Prince. The BBC broadcast clearly elaborates on my comparison above in the scenes in which the Prince is socialising with his friends. Also, during Act 2 Scene 4 in the book, there is an ink drawing showing the tavern in which the Prince and his comrades are socialising. It shows many drunks sleeping on tables, fighting over drinks, sitting on various items trying to settle down. But this depicts the tavern to be full of low-life people trying to drown their sorrows. Another comparison I shall make is of the types of speeches between Henry IV and Hal. Iambic Pentameter, more commonly known as Blank Verse, was the verse used in the era of Shakespeare for those more able in society. They were unrhymed lines which were ten syllables long. Here is an example below of how the Kings speech is adapted to this style, So shaken as we are, so wan with care, Find we a time for frighted peace to pant, And breathe short-winded accents of new broils To be commencd in stronds afar remote: No more the thirsty entrance of this soil Shall daub her lips with her own childrens blood; No more shall trenching war channel her fields, Nor bruise her flowrets wit the armed hoofs Of hostile paces. The King here uses different tones when speaking, first of solemnity with his views on the battle, but then with hope and determination as he encourages his supporters about the tactics of how to lead England from there on. This type of speech can adapt to any tone of voice, but also to change, mid-verse. Notice how the sentences carry on in some areas to the next line, to keep the type of speech in proportion. Anyone who had a high social stature at the time would use Blank Verse, such as a Lord of Lady. Hal and his court rarely used this type of speech. The only times he would use Blank Verse is during speeches to the public, but also to important figures in his social areas, such as his father or visitors of his (King Henry IVs). The main type of speech Hal was adapted to would be that common of the subjects of the country, such as the working class or poor. I think that the use of this showed the Prince to be not just a monarch to be feared of, but one to appreciate and respect. The speeches would use language common to the poor and not common to royalty, as in the Kings Courts. For example, as where Hal and his Court would refer to an alcoholic drink as sack, the Kings Court would use a more dignified term. This shows that a type of slang language would be used amongst the Prince and his fellows, but the King would not allow his Countrys speech to be attacked like that. There is one exception where Hal uses the Kings type of speech: this is were he talking about how he will change for the better, and become a true Prince. This is throughout Act 3 Scene 2. An example to show this will be in lines 18-28, So please your Majesty, I would I could Quit all offences wit as clear excuse As well as I am doubtless I can purge Myself of many I am chargd withal: Yet such extenuation let me beg As, in reproof of many tales devisd, Which oft the ear of greatness needs must hear, By smiling pickthanks, and base newsmongers, Health faulter wanderd and irregular, Find pardon on my true submission. The inhabitants of a court shall make up a large proportion of its character: they are the ones who decide how it is handled, but also the manner in which they are handled. The main inhabitants of Henrys IV court consist of the Earl of Westmoreland, Sir Walter Blunt, Lord John of Lancaster, and of course King Henry IV. Lord John of Lancaster was the son of the King and a possible rival to the throne if Hal deceased before his father. He was involved in the Kings plans for the country and part of his trustworthy group of advisors. The Lord w as the opposite of his wild brother, and was quick to take on responsibility in the Kings councils. Another interested in the affairs of the land was the Earl of Westmoreland. He was an ally to the King and was loyal and trusted. Sir Walter Blunt was a supporter of the Henry IV. He served as an intermediary between the King and the rebels before the battle of Shrewsbury. Altogether, along with many other small inhabitants to the court, these peopl e were highly respected in their day with many friends, but also many foes. The inhabitants of Hals court stretched from the barmaid in the Boars Head, to Falstaff, a well known thief and lowlife. Sir John Falstaff was a main companion of Hals. This character was extremely dishonourable, but at the same time easy-going. He would make a joke out of everything, but never a true word be spoken from his mouth. The only person Falstaff would look after is himself, when it came to anyone else he was never interested. After all these characteristics, he has many friends. Poins was a person interested in mockery and the simple side to life. He would be someone always ready for a joke, but also ready for anything else the world may like to throw at him. Gadshill, a companion more of Falstaffs, was a cheat and liar much like his friend. When a robbery was setup and he and Falstaff were attacked by Hal, his versions of events were same to the lies of Falstaffs. Peto, a fellow member of Hals court was also a thief- he had no respect. He was a partner in the robbery used to trick Falstaff. Another was Bardolph, one of Falstaffs disreputable pals. Falstaff calls him the Knight of the Burning Lamp, because of his red nose, caused by too much drinking. This was the bulk of Henrys inhabitants, but there were many more minor ones. Please note that there were no inhabitants which were of a good social stature, except the Prince. The courts would be subject to many different activities. Henry IV was regularly anticipating the concept of a rebellion against the empire. This is shown throughout Act 1 Scene 1 as the King is told of a challenge to thrown made by Henry Hotspur. This is some what of a surprise to the Henry as it is his own nephew making the challenge. The King was extremely confident that his own country was running itself that he had made plans to lead an army in a Crusade to Jerusalem, to fight the Turks, who were in possession of the Christian Holy Land. But this was all postponed by the news delivered in Act 1 Scene 1. Altogether, the Kings Court was set on running the country and keeping it from collapsing into the hands of rebels: this meant attending meetings with both allies and rebels in the same room. Although Hals Court had a different perception of activities- His activities were the same as an average man. His court had their hearts set on destroying the country (up until the great battle in the beginning of scene 4). Most of the scenes in this book concerning the court would be in an inn or in royal apartments, and the inhabitants- drinking. This group of friends would be regularly visiting brothels for the company of a prostitute, especially Falstaff. In Act 3 Scene 3, lines 14-20, it shall show how Falstaff explains his activities, I was as virtuously given as a gentleman need to be virtuous enough: swore little; diced not above seven times a week; went to a bawdy-house not above once in a quarter of an hour; paid money that I borrowed three or four times; lived well, and in good compass. And now I live out of all order, out of all compass. Here, he admits to being a constant gambler and to visiting brothels a significant amount of times. Falstaff is also telling of how he rarely pays back debts owed. After this speech is made, no one makes a comment about his activities, so that goes to suggest that they also lead lives similar. One activity that the whole court was involved in was a double-robbery in Act 2 Scene 1 on Gads Hill. The Prince and Poins had left Falstaff and others to commit the first robbery alone. After this, Hal and Poins had dressed also to thieve, and they now took on his friends in order to receive the stolen goods. After defeating them, the two-some left the others and returned back down the hill. Hal had planned this so that Falstaff would have to make two very dishonourable lies to him in order to retain his pride: he would need to exaggerate the amount of attackers on him, and also how they fought. This was as he had no significant marks on him to say that he was wounded and could not retaliate. As predicted, Falstaff made these comments later on in the Boars Head. In Act 2 Scene 4, lines 167-173, Falstaff tells of how he fought for hours on end against many attackers, I am a rogue I never dealt better since I was a man. This is blatantly a lie as he goes on to say things that would be unbelievable, even for a knight in battle. Finally Falstaff stumbles onto another major lie, which was on lines 223-226, he says how 3 hooded men came at him from behind, But as the devil would have it, three misbegotten knaves in Kendal green came at my back and let drive at me; for it was so dark, Hal, that thou couldst not see thy hand. Although, Falstaff made a mistake whilst improvising a speech- he added in the detail of the colour of the cloaks the attackers were wearing, then goes on to say that it was too dark to even see his hand. Now Falstaff must lie repeatedly to make up for the mistake. Overall, Hals Court and their activities are much more exciting in some tenses, but also unfaithful. Speeches in the two Courts vary in content. The Kings shall have an elegant and prestigious topic of conversation, whereas Hals is the opposite. In the next couple of paragraphs I shall explain this theory; I shall start off with the content of the Kings courts speeches. The main topics of interest shall be of rebellion, war and hot to keep the country afloat. In Act 1 Scene 1, lines 1 to 33, the King is rifling on his alliance and encouraging them to support the country, So shaken as we are our Council did decree In forwarding this dear expedience. Here he talks about how they are on top of all their troubles and shall now move on to larger targets; such as claiming back Jerusalem from the Turks. In Act 1 Scene 3, King Henry confronts the rebels who have been causing him anger. He argues heavily with Hotspur about him not agreeing to surrender captured prisoners. Throughout this scene there is one main content for the conversation; how to run the country. For example, in lines 1-9, he is apologising for being too harsh to these rebels, and admitting his mistakes in leadership. Although, Hotspur, during lines 28- 68, then retaliates that comment and admits he has captured prisoners, but then gives reasons for his treachery. But after this conversation, the King has gained some respect for this young man. During Act 1 Scene 1, lines 77-94, express the Kings feelings for his son. Yea, there thou makst me sad and makst me sin In envy that my Lord Northumberland Should be the father to so blest a son- A son who is the theme of honours tongue, Amongst a grove the very straightest plant, Who is sweet Fortunes minion and her pride- Whilst I, by looking on the praise of him See riot and dishonor stain the brow Of my young Harry. O, that it could be proved That some night-tripping fairy had exchanged In cradle clothes our children where they lay, And called mine Percy, his Plantagenet! These lines above set the stage for the conflict between Prince Hal and Hotspur. The King describes the fame and fortune of young Hotspur by calling him the theme of honours tongue. As a comparison, he states that Prince Harry has been sullied by riot and dishonour. He then refers to an old English folk superstition- fairies who switched young children at birth. Henry wishes that a fairy had switched Harry and Hotspur at birth, so that Hotspur were really his son and Harry the son of Northumberland. Hals content of speeches is significantly different- they will either be joking towards each other or plotting a new scheme. This Court would never be seen to have a civilised conversation. An example of this shall be shown in Act 1 Scene 2, lines 2-12, Thou art so fat-witted, with drinking of old sack and unbuttoning thee after supper and sleeping upon benches after noon, that thou hast forgotten to demand that truly which thou wouldst truly know. What a devil hast thou to do with the time of the day? Unless hours were cups of sack and minutes capons and clocks the tongues of bawds and dials the signs of leaping-houses and the blessed sun himself a fair hot wench in flame-coloured taffeta, I see no reason why thou shouldst be so superfluous to demand the time of the day. This shows the extent to mockery this Court would go to in order to entertain their selves. But in contrast, there is a speech made by Hal in which he is talking about how he has played everyone for a fool, and is now going to become the true Prince. This is in Act 1 Scene 2, lines 173-195, I know you all, and will awhile uphold The unyoked humour of your idleness. Yet herein will I imitate the sun, Who doth permit the base contagious clouds To smother up his beauty from the world, That when he please again to be himself, Being wanted, he may be more wondered at By breaking through the foul and ugly mists Of vapours that did seem to strangle him. If all the year were playing holidays, To sport would be as tedious as to work; But when they seldom come, they wished-for come, And nothing pleaseth but rare accidents. So, when this loose behaviour I throw off And pay the debt I never promisà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½d, By how much better than my word I am, By so much shall I falsify mens hopes; And like bright metal on a sullen ground, My reformation, glittring oer my fault, Shall show more goodly and attract more eyes Than that which hath no foil to set it off. Ill so offend to make offence a skill, Redeeming time when men think least I will. Here Hal is revealing his deception about his character; his theory is that people will like him more if he has a sudden change of personality and turns into a noble Prince. It shows young Hal to have an extremely complex mind and that common people are not worthy as his friends. King Henry IV and his son Hal have a very complicated relationship: they are not alike in many ways, but when it comes to the time which they are seeking salvation by each other, they have many similarities. In Act 1 Scene 1, lines 77-94, the King reveals how he wishes that the young Hotspur and his own son Hal were switched at birth, Yea, there thou makst me sad and makst me sin And called mine Percy, his Plantagenet! The above speech is explained above when I am carrying out a comparison of the content of speeches. Although, in Act 3 Scene 2, both faces admit to each other that they are in need of help from one-another. The King berates him for his behaviour and the company he keeps. This is shown in lines 10-17, For the hot vengeance and the rod of heaven And hold their level with thy princely heart? But soon he is pouring his heart out and pleading for Hal to change his ways and become a real monarch; the proof of this is throughout this scene. Although, in lines 129-159, Hal promises his father that he will be a noble Prince; an honourable Prince; a worthy Prince, Do not think so, you shall not find it so; Ere break the smallest parcel of this vow. I have now made all my comparisons relating to the courts of Henry IV and his son, Prince Harry. I have gained several conclusions throughout this piece of coursework at the end of each section. But as I final conclusion, I shall like to state what I think is occurring with the courts near the end of Act 3: Henrys and Hals courts are different in many senses, although the only occasion they join each others company is when fighting for their country; when they have a purpose.

Merger And Acquisitions Of Multinational Enterprises Economics Essay

Merger And Acquisitions Of Multinational Enterprises Economics Essay Growing through MA is one of the main ways in which MNEs seek to expand globally. Often, however, expectations outrun reality and the difficulties of merging two companies are underestimated. Examine a cross-border takeover or MA of your two cases choices discussing the balance between the benefits it has generated and difficulties that had to be overcome. Introduction: Globalisation has influenced by major changes in the business world over the past decade. Companies have been searching for competitive advantage in a worldwide scale. Companies are forced to follow their customers- who are going global- as they respond to the competition that is worldwide in scale. Globalisation in combination with other trends such as deregulation, privatisation and corporate restructuring has spurred an unprecedented surge in cross-border merger and acquisition activity. The recent figures in business clearly indicate that cross border mergers and acquisitions have become a fundamental characteristic of the global business landscape. Within the globalisation context, that has opened up a new world of corporate opportunities, accompanied by increasing risks and challenges, rapid changes and volatility, M and A has been an accelerating phenomenon- a business mantra- for companies driven by the urge to survive, evolve and grow. But the big question is whether these business mergers and acquisitions are pulling off as well as expected or intended, through the realizations of goals, there by achieving projected/desired levels of synergy. Background of the study: The mere process of M and A cannot guarantee success. It is only a facilitator and post merger operating performances depend largely on how well post merger opportunities are capitalized and resources are utilized. In the early 90s there was a significant awakening in this sector to become more competitive and exploit opportunities on a global playing field through M and As and other strategic alliances. As a result of the liberalization measures that lessened governmental control, regulations and trade restrictions, there has been a spurt of M and A activity in the recent past a manifestation of the corporate response to the greater freedom to modernize , expand and diversify. A liberal economic policy provided the stimulus and favorable atmosphere for companies to upgrade their technological and production capabilities (economies of scale)and improve their cost effectiveness and competency by merging with related or subsidiary units. During this period, M and As were also a significant method of foreign investment. The services sector, mainly the financial (including the banking sector) and communications services, leads this trend, with the chemical industry being the leader in the manufact uring sector. M and As are poised to rapidly increase in the near future as they provide acquiring companies the cutting edge amidst global competition. Beena (2004) says that the new industrial policy also brought about a shift in corporate strategies, in terms of share holding patterns, adoption of product differentiation, etc. Studies by Khanna (1998) show that, as a consequence of withdrawing all monopoly restraints in acquisitions, several markets have become oligopolistic and reduced competition. Many of these Mergers and Acquisitions involved companies of the same business groups, aimed at increasing control levels to safeguard against possibilities of takeover. Merger and Acquisition trends and patterns can be theoretically linked to studies of market power and reactions, access to markets or technologies, managerial ego etc(Cantwell and Santangelo,2002) There are many theories on mergers and acquisitions emerging from the studies of international business, industrial organization and financial economics, that include the category on synergy which assumes that the merger creates a total value that is greater than the sum of the values of individual firms where as the hubris theory proposes that value resulting from the merger is zero. Economic theory provides two contrasting perspectives regarding the efficiency and performance of mergers and acquisitions as corporate restructuring strategies- The value maximizing theory which proposes that corporate mergers as value -enhancing activities where managers work for shareholders wealth maximization goal of the firm(Franks and Hariss,1989) second is the managerial theory which proposes merger activities as an extension of managers own personal interests and wealth maximization prestige of managing a bigger post-merger business entity(Roll,1986) and as a platform of corporate control where managerial teams compete for the rights to manage resources(Jensen and Ruback,1983). Drivers and motives of M and As are to gain market power, reducing new product development risks, gaining access to innovative capabilities, maximizing efficiency and reshaping competitive scope.(Hitt et al.,2007) Other reasons include overcoming finance issues, that firms face due to information asymmetry (Fluck and Lynch,1999) Kumar(2009) argues that the post-merger profitability, solvency and assets turnover of acquiring companies show no improvement when compared with pre-merger figures, and hence mergers do not usually lead to improvement in the financial performance of the acquirer. The results of his study show that mergers are not aimed at maximizing wealth of owners and suggest that managers should focus on post-merger integration issues to generate synergy rather than achieving bigger corporate size, in the pursuit of hidden agendas. Beena(2004) emphasizes that one of the main objectives of M and A is to increase equity, which could be further leveraged to borrow resources for modernization and up gradation. According to Vardhana (2001) the population of all firms, in a finite sample, would change since there would be new entry through merger of an established firm with an incumbent and likewise, the merger of an incumbent would lead to its exit from the industry. This firm restructuring, a process taking place primarily through mergers, makes it difficult to choose a sample of firms that can be analysed with long-run data to isolate the effect of a merger. Therefore the short-run data for a merging firm would be more appropriate, which at the same time is long enough for pre- and post-merger period, so as to capture the merger effects. One bottleneck in assessing post merger performance is that the target company ceases to exist. Hence, for a more accurate measure of the merger effect, some post merger performance studies have isolated it by adopting the model that compares performance of the merged entity with that of control groups consisting of acquirer and target before merger and matching sample of units that did not involve in merger but have similar size and belong to the same industry. Also, to isolate the impacts of mergers and acquisitions which are influenced by several factors existing that are dynamic, a better model would have been the regression to norm frame work developed by Mueller (1986), by which analysis of regression of profits and regression of persistence of profits to norm can be carried out comparing to the industry standard as well or the control group. This would help to capture the impacts of M and As, with respect to size, pre-deal profitability, size, competition etc. Other variables like Market power/Market share, Inventory turnover, export intensity, capacity utilization, price -cost margin; etc could also have been included in the study. Kumar(2009) argues that the post-merger profitability, solvency and assets turnover of acquiring companies show no improvement when compared with pre-merger figures, and hence mergers do not usually lead to improvement in the financial performance of the acquirer. Overall, my opinion is that the authors have been rather vague in their conclusion and failed to establish convincingly that mergers and acquisitions have any significant positive impact on corporate performance, to a large extent because of the sample limitations as well as the limitations of financial data and their interpretations. But the research paper contributes to the understanding of M and As in India and their relative performances, although in a limited way. It also emphasizes that synergy can be generated in the long run; by optimizing resources and that the success of M and A deals depend on proper deal valuation, futuristic planning and effective management. Research similar to the one being reviewed has been conducted on mergers and that occurred almost in the same time frame, during the post liberalization period in India. But the results do not corroborate with each other. The term merger has been broadly used beyond its technical implications, to discuss the merging between the acquirer and the target in some acquisition cases too. However I have noticed that the samples of firms or cases of mergers taken for most of these researches were quite different as there were very few companies that were common to all the samples (of studies conducted by different researchers on the topic), within almost the same time frame. This disparity would inevitably yield different results, that cannot be co-measured and only a trend relating to the respective samples or cases can be analysed. The possibility of self-selection bias arising cannot be ruled out, because of the selection of samples comprising survivor firms that are existing during the p re-merger and post merger period under study. Also as pointed out earlier, results obtained using the operating performance approach, can be influenced by the limitations of financial measures to capture the impacts of mergers and acquisitions as a whole , as well as the intrinsic limitations of the financial ratios themselves. Some of these ratios do not have a benchmark to fit all industries, capturing only quantitative factors and not the qualitative factors. Also these ratios might vary and have varying significance across different industry types. This would give a limited perspective of the impacts of mergers and acquisitions. The more number of parameters used, the better the perspective and the conclusion. However this brings up the issue of comparability and co-measurability between results of researches on this topic, unless all studies use the same parameters. Falkner and Pitkethly (2001) say that there is an increasingly positive approach to mergers and acquisitions than before. Earlier MA was seen as a false activity but now they are welcomed by the government as well. Cosh and Hughes (1996) are skeptical about the merger activities and talks about the need for governments regulations over the merger and acquisitions in the light of U.K. economy. They argue that everything should come under legal scrutiny. Kang and Johanson(2001) talks about the role of globalization in promoting mergers and acquisitions and how mergers and acquisitions help companies to survive in the competitive environment. They see merger and acquisition as a positive business tactic in the competitive world. Ahmed and Glaister(2008) have done an extensive research on the topic and have pointed out the recent trends in CBMA in the U.K. They have identified the various driving forces behind the cross border merger and acquisitions in the companies in UK. Benefits: The driving forces underlying the trend of CBMAs are complex and vary by sector. One of the most significant driving forces is technological change. In addition, changes to government policies influence CBMAs by opening up opportunities and increasing the availability of favourable targets for mergers and acquisitions (MAs). Other forces are market drivers, industry-level drivers and firm-level drivers. The scale of CBMAs involving UK companies has increased rapidly in recent years. The area analysis shows that European Union (EU) companies are the most significant target for UK companies followed by the USA and Canada. In terms of distribution within sectors, UK companies tend to acquire more manufacturing companies in the EU, the USA and Canada than in the Asia-Pacific region. In contrast, UK companies tend to acquire more service sector companies in the Asia-Pacific region than in the EU, the USA and Canada. Example: On January 30, 2007, Tata Steel, part of Indias Tata Group, has purchased 100% stake in the Corus Group at 608 p. per share. Acquisition Type : Indian Company acquiring a foreign company. Tatas overtake the Mukesh Ambani- Reliance Group to become Indias largest business house by this takeover. Tatas, who have staked their century old reputation, will certainly leave no stone unturned in making this acquisition a success. Benefits: Triples Tata Steels capacity to almost 28m tonnes from 8.7 million. Gives it access to high- value European market. Corus has highly developed RD capabilities. Dangers: Tatas have paid a heavy price. It now needs to service a very large debt burden Integration can be a problem in such acquisitions because of both distance and culture Challenges ached: Financials will hinge on the future and the behavior of the steel prices Muthuraman is confident about more consumption from India and China over the next 50 years Labor is another issue as British Union, which represents 80% of UK based workers, warned against trimming down the labor force Post merger integration of human resources would be a Herculean task as acquisition of this scale in a developed country by an Indian company has not been seen before Cultural integration is another issue- retaining key talent and imbibing confidence in the workforce The merger may take 5-6 years to realize its full potentials. But these will certainly a trend-setter as to what will happen, not just in the Indian steel industry, but across all sectors. Discussion: The evidence can be found from many sources like journals and articles that point out the recent trends in Cross border merger and acquisitions. A sneak peek into the business world also reveals the relevance and importance of CBMA s in the new global economy. There are many examples that can be analysed to show the recent trends in CBMA s. An in depth study into the recent trends in CBMA reveal that presently, companies in UK are in the forefront of CBMA s both in the case of value of Mergers and Acquisitions and the numbers. CBMA s occurred between manufacturing companies in the US and EU, while in the Asia pacific region, the service sector companies merged with the UK companies. These are all evidences for recent trends in cross border merger and acquisitions. Conclusion: Companies are expanding beyond their domestic markets to be a part of the global market place. In doing so, companies can choose to export, establish new operations or acquire existing companies. CBMAs are now a common activity among the companies. UK companies are in the forefront of CBMA s in both the numbers of MA s and their values. Between 1996 and 2005, UK companies acquired 7,026 foreign companies. In terms of value, UK companies acquired  £520 billion worth of foreign companies over the period. The area wise analysis reveals that EU companies are the most significant target for UK companies followed by the USA and Canada while Asia pacific region also showing an increase in CBMAs. In terms of sector distribution, UK companies tend to acquire more manufacturing companies in EU, USA and Canada and more service sector companies in the Asia pacific region. High technology and Industrials are the most active industrial sector groupings in the EU, USA and Canada while financial s ector was the most active industrial sector in the Asia-pacific region. In short, we can say that while UK companies acquired EU and USA technology over the last decade, financial services were also acquired by UK companies in the Asia pacific region. The driving forces behind CBMAs can be grouped into factors at the macro-economic, market, industry and firm-level as well as technological and government-related factors. Technological change acts both as a pull and push factor; it promotes international expansion by reducing communication and transport costs; it creates new business and markets by rapidly changing market conditions or by increasing the costs of RD. The speed of technological development along with the technical competence and market knowledge, flexibility and ability to innovate are increasingly promoting the CBMAs. Companies are searching for partners from whom these tangible assets can be obtained. Government policies including liberalization, privatization and regulatory reforms influence CBMA s by opening up opportunities and increasing the availability of favourable MA targets. Economic fluctuations like recession or boom can also affect the level of global MA activity and its regional focus. Growth prospects, market structure and competition in the market promote CBMA. Slow growth, over-capacity and increased competition in global markets typically drive industrial restructuring and often make MAs preferable to Greenfield investments. This report tried to analyze the recent trends in CBMAs in U.K. To conclude, it can be said that CBMAs by UK companies are increasing by time and more and more companies are becoming aware of the benefits of CBMA. There is a need for a well planned strategy among these companies and that can lead to cost effective CBMA s leading to the benefit of the economy.

Use Case: An Analysis

Use Case: An Analysis Use Case A use case diagram depicts the units of functionality of the system as well as the actors capable of carrying out these functions. An actor is a person within the system needed to carry out a particular function. A function is depicted by an oval text box and is referred to as a use case as well, use case in this terms meaning unit of functionality. A Use Case diagram is a compilation of Use Cases to form a system. There are four actors within the MPP system. This does not suggest that only four literal people are responsible for operating the entire system. An actor is a classification of a person. In essence an actor refers to something general such as a job title as in this example the four actors are Secretary, HR Manager, Accountant and Staff Member. This use case diagram suggests that the classification of actors are responsible for the duties they are connected to. As such all persons holding that job title will be required to fulfil the duties depicted. The duties or use cases are explain further as use case specifications and the actors are details as classes in task two. Use Case Specifications Number: UC0001 Name Create Employee Actors Secretary, HR Manager Goal: To add a new member of staff Use Case Relationships Extend: Include: Associations: Secretary, HR Manager Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Secretary gives member a form 2 Member fills form an returns it to secretary 3 HR Manager reviews form and approves employee 4 Secretary notifies employee 5 HR Manager confirms details Alternatives Index Actor Event A 1/1 Person Not Approved A 1/1.1 HR Manager disapproves person A 1/1.2 Secretary notifies person A 1/2 Invalid Data A 1/2.1 Person confirms data invalid A 1/2.2 HR Manager edits details A 1/2.3 Person confirms details This use case specification explains the procedure to be undertaken when adding a new member of staff to the MPP payroll. This process involves both the HR manager and the secretary in terms of the system. The secretary initially distributes a form to the potential employee to fill within which the applicants qualifications and contact information is kept on file. The details mentioned within the specification encompass all the personal information of the applicant inclusive of contact information as well as personal details. This information is then sent to the HR manager to review where a decision is made to approve the employee for an interview. This decision dictates whether the secretary contact the applicant to inform them of an upcoming interview or to inform them that their application has been rejected. The assumption here is that MPP only hires members of the party to become staff members. Number: UC0002 Name Create a Member Actors Secretary Goal: To add a new member to the MPP party Use Case Relationships Extend: Include: Associations: Secretary Create an Election Candidate Create a Member of Parliament Create a Regional Assembly Member Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Person requests membership 2 Secretary creates new member record 3 Secretary confirms persons details to be accurate 4 Member is added to membership list Alternatives Index Actor Event A 2/1 Incorrect Details A 2/1.1 Secretary enters incorrect details A 2/1.2 Secretary edits details A 2/1.3 Person confirms details This use case specification depicts how a new member of MPP is added to the system. There is an estimated fifty thousand members of the party whom which information is needed to be stored as they are relied on during election time when the party is campaigning for election. The political party most probably doesnt discriminate the right of membership by any one person. Seeing that not much clerical data needs to be manipulated the secretary is fully capable of adding a member to the party. The process begins as a person requests membership to the party. The secretary then enters the members personal information especially their contact information as given by the applicant. Once the member confirms the information to be accurate the record is saved and thereby added to the membership list of MPP. Number: UC0003 Name Create an Election Candidate Actors Staff Member Goal: To add a new Election Candidate Use Case Relationships Extend: Create a Member Include: Associations: Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Staff Member elects Member to become candidate 2 Staff Member contacts Member 3 Member confirms 4 Staff Member adds member to shortlist 5 Staff Member changes member position to EC Alternatives Index Actor Event A 3/1 Member Disapproves A 3/1.1 Staff Member elects another Member to become candidate This system assumes that only existing members of the party are elected to become election candidates for a particular seat. A member therefore can be classified as an election candidate once their name has been added to a shortlist, which is a list of potential election candidates for a particular area. Using this assumption a member position classification was created within the member file an as such a member may have many classifications ranging from volunteer represented as VOL and election candidate represented as EC. Once an election candidate wins an election for a post they may be contending their position will be changed to Member of Parliament or Regional Assembly Member respectively as will be discovered. Number: UC0004 Name Create a Member of Parliament Actors Staff Member Goal: To add a new Member of Parliament Use Case Relationships Extend: Create a Member Include: Associations: Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Candidate is voted member of parliament 2 Staff Member changes member position to MOP Alternatives Index Actor Event A 4/1 Member Looses Election A 4/1.4 Staff Member changes Member position to VOL Number: UC0005 Name Create a Regional Assembly Member Actors Staff Member Goal: To add a new Regional Assembly Member Use Case Relationships Extend: Create a Member Include: Associations: Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Candidate is voted Regional Assembly Member 2 Staff Member changes member position to RAM Alternatives Index Actor Event A 4/1 Member Looses Election A 4/1.4 Staff Member changes Member position to VOL Both the Create a member of parliament and Create a regional assembly member use cases rely on the Create a member use case. Once a member looses an election his position within the party is reassigned to a volunteer. Number: UC0006 Name Add Member to shortlist Actors Staff Member Goal: To add a Member to a shortlist Use Case Relationships Extend: Include: Associations: Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Member approves to become a candidate 2 Staff Member adds member details to shortlist 3 Staff Member changes Member position to EC Alternatives Index Actor Event A 4/1 Member Steps Down A 4/1.1 Member notifies Staff Member A 4/1.2 Staff Member removes member from shortlist A 4/1.3 Staff Member edits Member position A staff member is responsible for adding a member to the shortlist thereby creating an election candidate. The shortlist is a record of potential election candidates of the MPP. Editing of the shortlist is as simple as editing a table. A staff member is responsible for this responsibility. This use cases is used in conjunction with the Create an election candidate use case within which adding a member to a shortlist is referred to. Once a member agrees to become an election candidate their personal information is added to a list of potential candidates for a particular seat within a respective area. Number: UC0007 Name Contact Members Actors Staff Member, Secretary Goal: To contact members of the party Use Case Relationships Extend: Include: Associations: Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Staff Member/Secretary queries member details 2 Secretary/Staff Member contacts Member Alternatives Index Actor Event A 7/1 Contact Unavailable A 7/1.1 Contact unavailable at given contact A 7/1.2 Use another form of contact given by the member This use case the procedure to be undertaken when contacting a member of the party. As shown, only full time workers and secretaries contact members. There are many uses of this unit of functionality beyond the boundry of this system. The political party requires that sufficient contact information is stored on each member as individual members are relied on during the campaigning process to organise meetings and assist with advertisement. The contact information that is stored on an individual member of the party includes a telephone contact, home mailing address and email address. The staff members as well as the secretary therefore have three options in which to utilise when contacting a member. Number: UC0008 Name Record Income Actors Staff Member Goal: To record income generated by MPP Use Case Relationships Extend: Include: Associations: Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Staff Member records Invoice Number 2 Staff Member records income Details 3 Staff Member records the ID number 4 Staff Member records the Amount 5 Staff Member records the date generated Alternatives Index Actor Event A 8/1 Incorrect Record A 8/1.1 Income is recorded incorrectly A 8/1.2 Staff Member confirms details with Invoice A 8/1.2 Staff Member edits details The member of the party responsible for recording income will be a full time employee of the party. Since there are several offices each of which generate individual incomes there must be persons within each regional office to account for funds the party may receive, either by subscriptions received or from other sources such as donations from persons interested in supporting the party and its objectives. The person receiving income distributes an invoice through which a record is kept of individual payments to the party. This invoice must contain all the information needed on the transaction such as what the payment was for, whether it is a subscription or donation. The invoice also contains who made the payment, how much money was paid to MPP and what date was the payment made. In the instance of a donation a record is kept of the donor personal information so they are kept on record an assigned a donor identification number. This is to ensure full accountability of the finances reaching the party. This donor number is entered into the â€Å"ID Number† field in the income table. Where a member pays their annual subscription to the party their member ID is stored within the same field. This ensures accountability for the transaction as well as a record of the subscription received for that individual member. Number: UC0009 Name Record Expenditure Actors Staff Member Goal: To record expenditure incurred by MPP Use Case Relationships Extend: Include: Associations: Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Staff Member records Receipt Number 2 Staff Member records expenditure Details 3 Staff Member records the ID number 4 Staff Member records the Amount 5 Staff Member records the date incurred Alternatives Index Actor Event A 9/1 Incorrect Record A 9/1.1 Expenditure is recorded incorrectly A 9/1.2 Staff Member confirms details with receipt A 9/1.3 Staff Member edits details Full time employees are also responsible for recording the expenditure incurred by the party. The operation of any political party requires a host of expenses in which to organise and manage the party properly. The individual offices of the party will incur expenses for each office it maintains. The main expenses that must be accounted for include payment of rent for the various offices that the party operates. Salaries must also be accounted for as MPP employs over a hundred individuals which accounts for a major portion of the partys expenditure. A major part of any election campaign is advertising which as for MPP includes television advertising as well as leaflets that need to be distributed by the partys members. Along with these major expenditures the party may also incur miscellaneous expenses in order to keep the offices running such as telephone bills and mailing expenses, all of these are classified as sundry expenses. Whenever any expenditure is incurred all receipts given to the party is filed and documented. These receipts are used to document all the expenditure incurred by the party as the amount, dates and to whom payments are made are documented on the receipt. Each office, member and advertiser are assigned an ID number so that a level of accountability can be maintained as to whom payments are made. Number: UC0010 Name Generate Financial Report Actors Staff Member, Accountant Goal: To generate a financial report for each office Use Case Relationships Extend: Include: Associations: Generalisation: Description Index Actor Event 1 Staff Member/Accountant selects Financial Report table 2 Staff Member/Accountant print Financial Report Alternatives Index Actor Event A 10/1 Incorrect Report Printed A 10/1.1 User selects correct report A 10/1.2 User prints correct report Each regional office is expected to produce a financial report to account for its activities. This will make for easier planning and budgeting by the national officers responsible for this such as the accounts department of the party. Therefore both party members as well as the national accountant can generate a financial report. To ensure the legitimacy of the financial reports the political party is expected to employ an internal as well as external auditor that examines the financial reports and compares them to the income and expenditure of the party. The financial report entails the total income generated as well as the total expenditure incurred for a particular office. These s can be used to determine the General Reserve available for funding the partys activities. Activity Diagrams An Activity Diagram the logical flow of data within a particular use case. The following diagrams show the Create a Member use case but in two different activity diagram formats. The first diagram simply the logical order in a flow chart fashion. The second diagram the same use case with the implication of swim lanes. Class Diagram Class diagrams are used to identify the objects of the system and show how they relate to each other and their attributes. The class diagram used to analyse the objects associated with the MPP and depict their relationships with each other. Everything is related to each other through the MPP class. It is an empty class but is there to show that the generalisation relationship exists between the Regional Office and Head Office Class and the MPP class. Most other relationships within this diagram are generalisation relationships depicted by the empty arrow head. This diagram is structured in a hierarchal format. A generalisation relationship allows the subclasses of any parent class to inherit the properties of the parent class. This feature is also show in the diagram by the empty boxes within the Secretary, Staff Member, Accountant and HR Manager classes. This does not suggest that these classes dont have any attributes but that they inherit the attributes of their parent class. The other relationships depicted is; the relationship between the Staff Member class and the Income, Expenditures and Financial Report classes, and between the Accountant class and the Financial Report class. These relationships show an association relationship as the classes interact with each other on some level of their functionality. The individual classes are explained in detail within their respective CRC card. CRC Cards A tool used to document the purpose and capability of a class is the CRC card. CRC stand for Class-Responsibility-Collaboration, as will be discovered, is exactly what the cards depict along with several other features of the class. The CRC cards represented in this section depict the classes identifies in the MPP system and show how they relate to each other. Name: Regional Office ID:1 Type: Concrete Description A MPP office representing a region of Contentedland Associated Use Cases: Record Expenditure Responsibilities Collaborators Full Time Employee Employee Attributes Relationships Office ID Generalisation: MPP(super class) Region Member (subclass) Address Donor (subclass) Monthly Rent Employee (subclass) Aggregation: Other Association: Full Time Employee Expenditure The regional office class is a subset of the MPP as a whole. There are several regional offices namely; Northland, Southland, Eastland, Westland and Central. Each office will possess the same characteristics as the other and as such are represented by a single regional office class within the class diagram. Distinction between classes is possible through the attributes of the class utilised and as such can be uniquely identified. The assumption made is that the entire system is divided into regions and as such all corresponding members and records are also presented in that regional office category. Name: Member ID: 2 Type: Abstract Description A Member of MPP Associated Use Cases: Create Member, Create an Election Candidate, Create a Member of Parliament, Create a Regional Assembly Member Responsibilities Collaborators Full Time Employee Income Attributes Relationships Member ID Address Generalisation: Regional office(concrete class) Last Name E-mail Aggregation: First Name Office Other Association: Full Time Employee Title County Secretary Date-of-Birth Position Telephone The member class comprises all the attributes of all the members of MPP. The assumption is that, regardless of hierarchal qualification all members of the party share common attributes and inevitably are all members of the party. This assumption gives way for the â€Å"position† attribute within the member class. A member according to the party can be a volunteer that assists the party in some way for no charge. Members are also election candidates who contend regional and national elections. The member doesnt change their nature only their position when they are elected and become either a Member of Parliament or a Regional Assembly Member. As such the member class depicts that it is associated with the creation of all members of the party as they relate to their appropriate use cases within the system. Sufficient contact information is stored on members of the party as they may need to be contacted during election time when the party wishes to implement a rigorous advertising campaign. The email contact of each member may be a useful attribute as it is more efficient to send a mass email to all members than to individually contact them. Name: Donor ID:3 Type: Abstract Description A person other than a member of MPP that donates to the party Associated Use Cases: Record Income Responsibilities Collaborators Full Time Employee Income Attributes Relationships Donor ID Telephone Generalisation: Regional Office(Abstract class) Last Name Address Aggregation: First Name E-mail Other Association: Full Time Employee Title Office Income Date-of-Birth County Income is earned through subscriptions as well as through donations. People who donate to the party does not necessarily have to be a member. A person whos interests are aligned with the policies of the party may choose to donate to their campaign in a hope that they may win the election. Information needs to be stored on such individuals to account for the sometimes large sums of money they may give to the political party. It is also useful where the party wishes to contact these members for one reason or the other. A Donor share similar attributes to members however as they are not members of the party they do not require a position field. However sufficient contact information is kept on these individuals so the party can always keep in touch with them. Name: Employee ID: 4 Type: Concrete Description An Employee of MPP Associated Use Cases: Create a Staff Member Responsibilities Collaborators HR Manager Attributes Relationships Employee ID Telephone Generalisation: Regional Office(Abstract class) Last Name Address Secretary(sub class) First Name E-mail Staff Member(sub class) Title Office Aggregation: Date-of-Birth County Other Association: HR Manager Position The political party hires full time employees to coordinate their activities. These employees are classified under each regional office and withdraw a salary from the party. Employees include Staff Members whose hierarchal classification is determined within each regional office as well as Secretaries who attend to each office of MPP. Name: Secretary ID: 5 Type: Abstract Description An Employee of MPP Associated Use Cases: Create a Member, Contact Member Responsibilities Collaborators Create a Member Member Edit Member HR Manager Delete Member Staff Member Contact Member Attributes Relationships Employee ID Telephone Generalisation: Employee(Abstract class) Last Name Address Aggregation: First Name E-mail Other Association: HR Manager Title Office Member Date-of-Birth County Staff Member Position The Secretary of the party is responsibilities include contacting members as well as adding members to the party. However they can only maintain volunteer records. Staff Members are responsible for the management of the other members of the party. Name: Staff Member ID: 5 Type: Concrete Description An Employee of MPP Associated Use Cases: Create Member, Contact Member, Add Member to Shortlist, Create an Election Candidate, Create a Regional Assembly Member, Create a Member of Parliament, Record Income, Record Expenditure, Generate Financial Report Responsibilities Collaborators Record Income HR Manager Record Expenditure Secretary Generate Financial Report Add Member Edit Member Delete Member Attributes Relationships Employee ID Telephone Generalisation: Employee(Abstract class) Last Name Address Aggregation: First Name E-mail Other Association: Income Title Office Expenditure Date-of-Birth County Financial Report Position HR Manager Secretary Staff members handle the brunt of the work within the party. Staff Members is a general term used to describe all the full time party workers who are employed within the regional offices of the political party. Staff members include all the party workers represented for each county of Contentedland. The duties of these members function similarly to clerical duties within an office. These staff members are allocated duties within the office structure oven though each member is responsible for their respective county that they oversee. Name: Head Office ID: 6 Type: Concrete Description The Head Office of MPP Associated Use Cases: Record Expenditure Responsibilities Collaborators National Officer HR Manager Accountant Attributes Relationships Office ID Generalisation: MPP (super class) Region National Officer(subclass) Address Aggregation: Monthly Rent Other Association: Staff Member Expenditure The Head Office posses the same characteristics as a regional office and it functions similarly as well. The difference between the head office and the regional office aside from its geography, is the employees that it houses. The assumption made is that the national officers within the head office function as managerial employees as would happen within a typical company. It should be structured in a way so that the ten national officers act as the managerial departments of the political party inclusive of the accounts department and the human resource department used within this scenario. Name: Accountant ID: 7 Type: Abstract Description The accountant responsible for the finances of MPP Associated Use Cases: Generate Financial Report Responsibilities Collaborators Financial Report Attributes Relationships Employee ID Telephone Generalisation: National Officer(concrete class) Last Name Address Aggregation: First Name E-mail Other Association: Financial Report Title Office Date-of-Birth County Position The accountant of the MPP is housed within the head office of the party. The accountant has the duty of managing the finances of MPP. The accountant is also responsible for generating the financial reports that are to be audited to produce a tax which the party must incur annually. This expenditure is classified as a sundry expense and must be accounted for within the finances of the party. The accountant is also responsible for ensure that proper control procedures are in place in terms of managing money the party receives. After all he is responsible for maintaining the integrity of the financial records and ensuring that they are in good standing with the laws of the country. Name: HR Manager ID: 8 Type: Abstract Description The HR Manager of MPP Associated Use Cases: Create a Staff Member Responsibilities Collaborators Add Employee Employee Edit Employee Delete Employee Attributes Relationships Employee ID Telephone Generalisation: National Officer(concrete class) Last Name Address Aggregation: First Name E-mail Other Association: Employee Title Office Accountant Date-of-Birth County Position In keeping with the assumption, the HR Manager is classified under the head office as this position is a managerial role. The human resource manager holds the same attributes as any other employee of MPP how ever his duties implicate him to be the one to manage the records of all the employees of the party. Name: Income ID: 9 Type: Abstract Description Revenue generated by MPP Associated Use Cases: Record Income Responsibilities Collaborators Print Staff Member Display Attributes Relationships Invoice Number Generalisation: Income Details Aggregation: ID Number Other Association: Staff Member Amount Financial Report Date Generated Income is generated through two sources in the party. The attributes of income allow for any sort of income to be documented, whether it is a subscription received from a member or a donation given to the party. A staff member is responsible for recording income into the system. The summation of the income table is exported to the financial report to form the net income . Name: Expenditure ID: 10 Type: Abstract Description Expenditure incurred by MPP Associated Use Cases: Record Expenditure Responsibilities Collaborators Print Staff Member Display Attributes Relationships Receipt Number Generalisation: Expenditure Details Aggregation: ID Number Other Association: Staff Member Amount Financial Report Date Incurred Expenditure is incurred from several means. A Staff Member is responsibl