Saturday, August 31, 2019

The women in Othello are presented by Shakespeare as victims

This question requires knowledge of how women were treated during the period ‘Othello' was written and how they are treated during modern days. When this play was written, The Jacobean era, an overwhelming amount of evidence suggests that women were treated as inferiors to men. Women would usually be viewed as pure and divine before having sexual intercourse, but afterwards, they were often treated as low down human beings. In general, they were allowed to be beaten, forced into labour and most did not have the right to an education. So the church would play an important role in everyday life for women, it was an occasion to look forward to. Every female church-goer would learn about the two biblical stereotypes for women, Mary and Eve. Mary was worshipped for being pure and flawless but Eve was castigated for her impurity and deceitfulness towards God. At the beginning of the play, Desdemona was apotheosised especially by Roderigo. She was named a white ewe in Act I, which highlighted her gentleness and purity. But similar in the way Mary and Eve are contrasted, Emilia is reified and treated as an object by Iago; this was the usual treatment for women during Jacobean times. In ‘Othello' Desdemona is introduced as a woman that contradicts the stereotype of women during Jacobean times. She is described like a goddess by many men during the play, ‘She is indeed perfection' is how Cassio describes her in Act I. Othello begins to think of her as his trophy and prized possession, but despite all the attention and praise she receives, she does not become arrogant or boastful and remains eloquent and lady-like, showing how she is worthy of being deified. Even when Othello is strangling her, he comments on her soft, white skin, he says it feels â€Å"as smooth as a monumental alabaster† This very surprising for the audience because at the point of nearly killing her he still treats her like a goddess. However, Emilia is treated as an object of no value by Iago. He often rejects her and He refuses to treat her with even a semblance of kindness. She is treated like a whore because Iago believes she has slept with another man without any hard evidence. She completes a mischievous deed for Iago, displaying her loyalty and desperation for any sort of love shown back to her. Desdemona seems to be praised a lot during the first act. But in fact, she is treated like an object. Iago says to Brabantio â€Å"Zounds Sir, you've been robbed. † This is reifying her because he is describing her like an item. Iago then mentions â€Å"The wine she drinks is made of grapes,† which is showing the audience that he has a strong belief that there is nothing special about her and she is just another possession. Desdemona is then called â€Å"A Land carrack,† which Othello has boarded. This further proves that Iago has a condescending attitude towards Desdemona and women in general. When Othello and Iago are in Venice, Iago pounces on this opportunity to tell Othello of the fallacious women of Venice. He says â€Å"In Venice they do let Heaven see the pranks they dare not show their husbands. † He says this to make Othello think of how he and Desdemona compare to this statement, preying on Othello's ignorance. Shakespeare uses a lot of animal imagery during the play, sometimes in a complimentary fashion but most often, in a degrading manor. Audience from modern times will be shocked at the amount of sexist and racist animal imagery used. Iago calls her a â€Å"White Ewe† which many will probably view as a compliment, reflecting on her innocence and gentleness. But some might view it as an insult, saying that she is common and nothing special. Even Othello uses abusive terms towards women, he says to Desdemona â€Å"thou art false as hell† highlighting his complete lack of trust for Desdemona, both as his wife and as a woman. Yet Desdemona does not say anything of an abusive nature to Othello. In ‘Othello' many people do not think of Cassio as the sexist type, he is portrayed to be well mannered and respectful up until he calls Emilia a ‘common thing'. This surprises many of the audience who thought of Cassio as the sole man in the play who respects women. But Shakespeare was obliged to do this if he wanted to show the audience that Cassio was a ‘normal' Jacobean man. This suggests that he thought it was standard for men to call women such belittling phrases. Emilia is portrayed as naive and desperate when she is first introduced, she is so distant from her husband that she has no idea of what Iago has been trying to do. The most astonishing example is that after he steals the handkerchief for Iago, she still appears to have no idea of what he is trying to do, she just wants to do â€Å"nothing but please his fantasy. † Despite being made out to be the most naive woman in the play, she is the only woman to show signs of courage and feminism in her words. One of the first moments to do this is when she refers to men as ‘stomachs'. Even more significant is when she says â€Å"husbands fault if their wives do fall. † This is one of the earliest signs of feminism, or at the very least defiance in Shakespeare's play. Bianca is the only other woman in ‘Othello' along with Emilia and Desdemona. She is at first portrayed to be a prostitute and whore, although there isn't any evidence that this is indeed her profession. The men in ‘Othello' treat her like a ‘strumpet' and a stereotype of impure women during the Jacobean times. She is able to prove her stereotype wrong by standing up to some of the abuse she takes from Iago. In a manipulative fashion, Iago tries to use the condescending view towards Bianca to his advantage. He assumes nobody will believe her or take her seriously because many of the male characters believe she is a lying and deceitful whore. So he blames the injury of Cassio and death of Roderigo on her. When talking about the incident he says â€Å"this is the fruit of whoring,† which is referring to the fact he wants people to believe it was her. This statement is about whether Shakespeare has written a misogynistic play by presenting the women as victims'. Having established how the women are treated differently and similarly in the play, we can look at a very important scene which shows how the women in the play talk about their husbands. This scene is the willow scene where they talk about events that have happened and how their husbands are behaving. Emilia says that she would do something impure and evil if it would lead to her earning money. This is because Emilia has come from a poor background where money was scarce and very precious. But in Contrast, Desdemona says she would never do such a thing because money is not so important to her due to a wealthy background, this shows She uses morals as motivation rather than money. Then, to confirm to any doubters in the audience, she says she would rather die than cheat on her husband Othello. This is a very bold action that Shakespeare uses to highlight her purity and faithfulness. Desdemona has proved many stereotypes for white, wealthy women in Jacobean times wrong; she has married a Black man and firmly stated that she believes in strong morals. This proves that she is strong enough to stand up for herself despite the abuse and criticism she receives. It would be very unusual for this to be true, not that a woman would do these things, but that she would be able to stand up to the racism and sexism of those around her. Shakespeare is very quick to use the derogatory nature of men's views on women to add extra effect to the play. For many people, he is too quick and too eager to perceive women as victims. The definition of a victim is a ‘a person who is deceived or cheated, as by his or her own emotions or ignorance, by the dishonesty of others, or has suffered from destructive or injurious action'. But Shakespeare, during Jacobean times, may not have been seen to present women as particular victims of this play. In modern day life many people will agree that he is on the border of extremity with the amount of sexism in ‘Othello' whether or not he wanted women to be victims of this play. Many people will agree that the women are victimised by Iago and the people Iago he has manipulated. Othello was an equal if not greater victim than Desdemona, not because he died but he was a victim of his own gullibility, ‘his or her own emotions or ignorance'. He did not once think of believing what Desdemona said or even placing all his trust in her, his wife. So he is a much greater victim in this play than Desdemona, Emilia and Bianca put together. Although there are an overwhelming amount of incidents to show that women have suffered from this play, Shakespeare may have hidden a few signs of feminism in what Emilia said and the way Bianca stood up against the Jacobean stereotypes. We will never know why Shakespeare wrote this play, whether it was to be derogatory towards black men or perhaps to explore the possibilities of defying the sexist and racist stereotypes of Jacobean times.

Week One Ethics Development

The ethical system is built from many theories. Utilitarianism teaches to â€Å"do† the right things in life. Deontology follows dictations and commandments from the bible. The virtue theory contains the development of personal characteristics. It is interesting to know how a person develops morals and values and why everyone is different. Utilitarianism in ethics is the theory that the rightness or wrongness of an action is determined by its usefulness in bringing about the most happiness of all those affected by it. The word utilitarianism comes from the Greek word telos, which means â€Å"end†. Under this direction, acting ethically means making decisions and taking actions that benefit the people by maximizing â€Å"good† and minimizing â€Å"bad† (danielsfund. org). Englishmen Jerry Bentham and John Stuart Mill were too of the most influential developers of the utilitarian view point. Utilitarianism focuses on the pursuit of happiness. Another theory is the deontology moral theory. While utilitarianism revolves around the concept of â€Å"the end justifies the means†, and deontology works on a concept that â€Å"the ends does not justify the means†. Deontology is another moral theory that is dependent on the Scriptures, which may refer to rules, moral laws, and intuition. It is based on the Greek word â€Å"deon† and â€Å"logos† meaning, â€Å"the study of duty†. In other words deontology is based on the idea that we have a duty to do certain things and to not do certain things. For example, if a person refuses to shoot someone because they feel they have a duty to follow the commandment â€Å"Thou shalt not kill†. This sentence becomes a rule that the person lives by. Deontologist have strong feelings about the words â€Å"right† and â€Å"good†. Rights have to do with actions. Good has to do with outcomes. They feel that â€Å"right† is the only consideration. Deontologist are people who freely choose to accept certain constraints and who decide what is right by looking at the nature of the act itself. Some establish rules, such as keep your promises, do not kill, etc. and some follow God’s commandments. They do not look at the consequences as a rule and sometimes find themselves in difficult situations. Deontologists face more problems then conflicting duties. They are sometimes accused of being cold hearted moral machines that ignore the world around them. There are many disputes with this moral theory because people question if they are being ethical by doing what God says because they want to go to heaven. There is a difference between being obedient and being ethical. Another fascinating theory is the virtue theory. The virtue theory is different from utilitarianism and deontology. Many philosophers believe that morality consists of following precisely defined rules of conduct. Virtue theorists place less emphasis on learning rules, instead stress the importance of developing good habits of character. The virtue theory emphasizes moral education since virtuous character traits are developed in one’s youth. Adults are responsible for instilling virtues in the young. There are certain traits which are seen to be virtuous. For example, a few are wisdom, courage, justice and temperance. Virtue ethics can be seen as an ethics of personal development. People can develop virtues over time, and so in theory, grow into a better person. The virtue theory describes the position of my morality on a personal level. My parents taught me right from wrong and how to be a good person. They were my role models and I am the person that I am today because of them. They taught me that stealing is worng, and to respect others. These things are in the bible an my family believes in God but for me that was not the first that I react to when I make a decision. My decision making is guided by characteristics and the virtues that are installed in me. When I was younger I made many terrible decisions but now that I am older and wiser I make better decisions. For example, one day I was leaving Wal-Mart and I noticed that my daughter which is two years old had a toy in her stroller that was not paid for. I immediately went back inside to pay for the item. Because I have great parents that was raised with the good morals and values I will honor them by installing those traits into my children so they will become good people and grow up to be successful in life. Deontology moral theory works for individuals who are obedient and utilitarianism is great for someone who believes in taking action for the good of all. The virtue theory will work for someone who has strong and positive role models in their life. All three of these theories are great ways to incorporate good values and morals. Finding the one the best fits a person’s lifestyle is a challenge.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Revenue and Production

BERGERAC CASE STUDY Summary The purpose of this report is to analyze the opportunity to produce plastic components for cartridge production and choose the best alternative. It is predicted that the annual demand growth is a triangular distribution with a minimum of 5%, most likely of 17% and a maximum of 25%. Due to the continuous growth in the demand, the alternatives cannot be compared using just the data for 2010. An analysis is carried out for the time period 2011 to 2015 and the present worth of the net income is considered as the criteria to select the alternative.The analysis basically can be divided into 5 steps: * Forecasting demand for next five years, * Estimating capacity required, * Developing production strategy, * Calculate the operating expenses for the alternatives, * Select the alternative based on the present worth of net income. From the estimated installed base of 7500 OmniVue instruments at the end of year 2010, the demand for the OmniVue instruments and cartrid ges are forecasted. There is a new product OmniVue mobile, ready to be launched in year 2013.It is assumed that the OmniVue mobile can be accounted for 30% of the demand for Instruments in year 2013, 50% in year 2014 and 60% in year 2015. The growth in demand for the OmniVue instrument is assumed to decrease after the release of OmniVue mobile. It is estimated that the production capacity of Bergerac to produce OmniVue instruments is approximately 2000 units per year with a production of 5 days per week. It is inferred that using level strategy, the probability that the demand is not met in the next five years is 5. 74%.There is no need to increase the capacity of the production line apart from changes required when the OmniVue mobile is released. There are various strategies which are compared in build option. For each production strategy, the optimum solution for the capacities in each year is found out. After finding the optimum solutions, the production strategies are compared w ith each other to find out the best solution for the build option. The production strategies that are analyzed are: * Level production strategy and Chase production strategy * Overtime is allowed / not allowedThe base values assumed to calculate the production costs for cartridges are included in Appendix F. Based on the production plan, the expenses incurred are calculated for both options. The expenses are calculated for the years 2011 to 2015. The expenses and revenue for cartridges and instruments are shown in Appendix H and Appendix I respectively. The income statement is prepared from the expenses calculated and the revenue (refer to Appendix J). The income tax rate for the company is estimated to be 39% from the income statements for years 2007 to 2009.The revenues and other expenses from operations other than OmniVue is estimated and added to the income statement. The net income is calculated. The cash flows for years 2011 to 2015 is also calculated. The net present worth is calculated for the net income and the cash flows. The objective used to optimize the solution is to maximize the mean of net present worth of the net income and cash flows. The four production strategies for the build option are optimized and the maximum net present worth for the options is forecasted. The best solution from the four strategies is chosen and compared to the net present worth of the buy option.Based on the analysis, build is a better option than buy option. The present worth of the net income is highest for level production, overtime allowed. But level production, overtime not allowed is very close to it and it does not affect the employee relationship. It is recommended to use level production strategy, no overtime (net present worth for net income is $59. 8 million). The current objective is to produce the plastic components for Bergerac with the lowest expenses, which can be achieved by building a unit for plastic component production in the plant itself.It is al so recommended to buy 5 machines instead of 4 machines in year 2010 based on the analysis. Dilemma for Ian Wyckoff Since 2008, Bergerac had been exploring the opportunity to begin its own production of cartridge components. Plastic suppliers like GenieTech and Elsinore faced difficulties in responding to demand spikes, leading to production delays. Such supplier unreliability made it challenging for Bergerac to optimize its cartridge production. Thus, the company had to carry more inventory of parts and finished goods than Wyckoff could have liked.The obvious appeal to fully control the supply of plastic lead to a strategy, the company has to decide whether to buy or build this capability. GenieTech owner was interested in retirement and was willing to sell the company for a purchase price of $5. 75 million. GenieTech has 8 molding presses each could produce 5 cartridges per cycle with a total capacity of 10,782,720 cartridges per year with 5 days production in a week. The other alt ernative is to build a unit with 4 molding presses which are more efficient than the presses at GenieTech.The total capacity of the unit will be 6,097,371cartridges per year with 5 days production in a week. It is required to predict the best long term decision among the buy and build options. Mr. McCarthy’s Analysis of Buy vs Build The analysis by Mr. McCarthy is a good basic analysis for comparing the alternatives, Buy vs Build. The main factor which Mr. McCarthy has not considered is the growing demand of the cartridges. The demand for cartridges is growing steadily and the Mr. McCarthy’s build option with 4 molding presses will not be able to satisfy the demand in the upcoming years (refer table 1). Additionally, Mr.McCarthy has not considered the possible revenue from the existing operations of GenieTech with other customers. The possible merger could also serve as a possibility for development in a new product line which would favor the growth of the company. So, Mr. McCarthy has not considered all the factors when comparing the two alternatives which means it is not ideal to accept this analysis. Financial analysis to choose between alternatives – Buy Vs Build using a 2011 to 2015 study period The analysis can be basically divided into 5 steps: First, the demand for the years 2011 to 2015 has to be forecasted.Second step is to estimate the capacity required to meet the demand in both buy and build options. The next step is to plan the production accordingly to meet the demand forecasted previously. The employee strike which is predicted to happen in the start of year 2013 should be accounted for when planning the production. The costs of operation and the revenues are then calculated which is used in the income statement. Final step is to compare the cash flows to determine the optimal solution that can be executed in the years 2011 to 2015.Estimated demand for OmniVue cartridges and the testing instruments for years 2011 – 2 015 The expected annual growth rate of demand is a triangular distribution with a minimum of 5%, a most likely of 17% and a maximum of 25%. From the estimated installed base of 7500 OmniVue instruments at the end of year 2010, the demand for the OmniVue instruments and cartridges are forecasted. There is a new product OmniVue mobile, ready to be launched in year 2013. It is assumed that the OmniVue mobile can be accounted for 30% of the demand for Instruments in year 2013, 50% in year 2014 and 60% in year 2015.The growth in demand for the OmniVue instrument is assumed to decrease after the release of OmniVue mobile. Table 1 – Demand for OmniVue Instruments and Cartridges forecasted for years 2011 – 2015 Capacity planning OmniVue instruments: It is predicted that the installed base at the end of year 2010 is 7500. Bergerac has manufactured 7500 units in the period mid-2006 to 2010. Hence, it is estimated that the production capacity of Bergerac to produce OmniVue instru ments is approximately 2000 units per year with a production of 5 days per week.Using the assumption for increase in demand for the instruments, the number of units to be produced using level production for years 2011 to 2015 is forecasted and it is seen that the probability that the demand is not met is 5. 74%. The maximum number of units to be produced is 2,588. It can be met if the production is increased to 7 days per week whenever required. Hence, it is assumed that there is no need to increase the capacity of the production line apart from changes required when the OmniVue mobile is released.Figure 1 – Level production – capacity required for years 2011 to 2015 OmniVue Cartridges: Build option: Figure X shows the demand for years 2011 to 2015 based on the estimated installed base of 7500 at the end of 2010 and the assumed growth rate. The minimum and maximum growth rates are 5% and 25% respectively. Figure 2 – Demand for cartridge The demand for the assume d growth rates is plotted. The 4 molding presses proposed by Mr. McCarthy will be sufficient to meet the demand if the growth rate is 5% every year, but will not be able to meet requirements if the demand grows by 25%.The capacity of the proposed 4 machines with 5 days/week and 7 days/week are plotted. The number of units to be produced with level production is plotted; the proposed 4 machines will be able to meet the demand with overtime (excess of 5 days/week). It is assumed that the OmniVue mobile is given preference in case of shortage of capacity. Optquest is used to estimate the right number of machines to be purchased and the expansion strategy in the future years so that the company profit is maximum. Buy option: The cartridge components are the only difference between the buy and build options.There is no increase in the capacity required because the current capacity of 8 machines will be able to satisfy the demand for the next 5 years. Figure 3 – Cartridge demand fo r year 2015 – peak demand Other product lines: It is assumed that the new product OmniVue mobile can be manufactured in the same production line with some modifications in the equipment. Overtime: It is assumed that overtime can be used for manufacturing when the 5 days/week is not enough to meet the demands. The overtime wages for the labor are twice the normal.The overtime wages are calculated from the utilization factor of the machines which is 5 days/week normal production (100% utilization). The overtime cannot exceed 40% because there are only 2 more days left in a week. It should be noted that there is only 3% change in the operational expenses for overtime (refer to Appendix E). Employee strike in 2013: It is predicted to be 50% probability that the employees will do strike for a period of 0. 5 to 3 months. So, it is assumed that the annual capacity is reduced to 75% if the strike duration is 3 months (refer Appendix D).Strategies can be formulated to tackle the strik e situation by producing more units in the previous year so that the demand can be met in the first 3 months of 2013. The maximum demand during the strike period is estimated to be a maximum of 1. 6 million cartridges and 277 instruments. It is assumed that the OmniVue mobile will be released after the strike is over. Production planning Cartridges: Buy option (GenieTech): The same number of units is produced every year which will be equal to the production capacity.The plastic components requirement for Bergerac is first satisfied and the remaining capacity is used for the other contracts of GenieTech. After the launch of OmniVue mobile, the production for OmniVue mobile is given preference. Overtime is used for production if the demand exceeds capacity which is unlikely to happen in the next 5 years. Since the production capacity of GenieTech has been always above the demand, the other strategies are not analyzed. Build option: There are various strategies which are compared in bu ild option.For each production strategy, the optimum solution for the capacities in each year is found out. After finding the optimum solutions, the production strategies are compared with each other to find out the best solution for the build option. There criteria used to find the optimum solution is the present worth. The production strategies that are analyzed are: * Level production strategy and Chase production strategy * Overtime is allowed / not allowed For level production strategy, the inventory holding cost is assumed to be $0. 2/unit for OmniVue and $0. /unit for OmniVue mobile. The alternatives are compared using net present worth forecast graphs. The level production plan and chase production plan are included in Appendix B and Appendix C respectively (Note: production plan for both the cartridges and the instrument are available in the same table). Instruments: The instruments are produced using level production strategy. The production is scheduled based on the deman d forecast for the years 2011 to 2015. OmniVue mobile is given more preference like the production strategy for cartridges.It is assumed that 2 foremen and 6 other labors are required for the production line. It is also assumed that OmniVue mobile instrument also can be manufactured in the same production line with some modification in the equipment. The production of instruments does not impact the analysis because the same cost is incurred in both options. Other products: The operations for other products are directly included in the income statement and it is not analyzed. Operational expenses and Income statement The base values assumed to calculate the production costs for cartridges are included in Appendix F.Based on the production plan, the expenses incurred are calculated for both options. The expenses are calculated for the years 2011 to 2015. The expenses and revenue for cartridges and instruments are shown in Appendix H and Appendix I respectively. The income statement i s prepared from the expenses calculated and the revenue (refer to Appendix J). In level production strategy, the expenses are incurred during a period different from the period in which the product is sold. But, it is expended only when the product is sold.For that purpose, the cost per unit is calculated and is used to calculate the cost of goods sold. For example, if in a year, 3000 goods are sold and 1000 are from previous year inventory, then the cost is calculated using previous year cost per unit for 1000 units and current year cost per unit for the remaining units. The income tax rate for the company is estimated to be 39% from the income statements for years 2007 to 2009. The revenues and other expenses from operations other than OmniVue is estimated and added to the income statement.The net income is calculated. Cash flows (refer Appendix K) Similar to the Income statement, the revenues, expenses and capital investment for each year is calculated from the data and the cash flows for the alternatives are calculated. In cash flow statement, the expenses are expended in the same year when it was spent. The income statement which was prepared previously has used accrual accounting. Depreciation is included in income statement. In cash flow, the capital investments are included instead of depreciation. Present worth analysisThe net present worth is calculated for the net income and the cash flows. The objective used to optimize the solution is to maximize the mean of net present worth of the net income and cash flows. The four production strategies for the build option are optimized and the maximum net present worth for the options is forecasted. The best solution from the four strategies is chosen and compared to the net present worth of the buy option. The overtime not allowed scenario is performed in Optquest by adding a constraint that the utilization in all years is less than or equal to 100%.Build option (refer Appendix M): Present worth of Net incom e: For chase production strategy, overtime allowed, maximum of mean of net present worth is $58. 770 million. 31002 For chase production strategy, overtime not allowed, maximum of mean of net present worth is $58. 486 million. 40101 For level production strategy, overtime allowed, maximum of mean of net present worth is $60. 786 million. 40000 For level production strategy, overtime not allowed, maximum of mean of net present worth is $59. 789 million. 50100 Present worth of Cash flow:For chase production strategy, overtime allowed, maximum of mean of net present worth is $53. 474 million. 31000 For chase production strategy, overtime not allowed, maximum of mean of net present worth is $52. 220 million. 40101 For level production strategy, overtime allowed, maximum of mean of net present worth is $50. 086 million30010. For level production strategy, overtime not allowed, maximum of mean of net present worth is $47. 742 million. 50100 Buy option (refer Appendix N): Present worth of Net income: $54. 204 millionPresent worth of Cash flow: $47. 647 million Based on the analysis, build is a better option than buy option. The present worth of the net income is highest for level production, overtime allowed. But level production, overtime not allowed is very close to the highest and it does not affect the employee relationship. It is recommended to use level production strategy, no overtime. There is an issue with inventory building in level production strategy. Also, by not choosing the buy option, Bergerac loses a chance to enter a new product line.But, the current objective is to produce the plastic components for Bergerac with the lowest expenses, which can be achieved by building a unit for plastic component production in the plant itself. It is also recommended to buy 5 machines instead of 4 machines in year 2010 based on the analysis. Appendices List of assumptions * The growth of demand is a triangular distribution with 5%, 17% and 25%. * The OmniVue mobile demand accounts for 30%, 50% and 60% in 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively. * It is predicted that there is a 50% chance of strike in 2013 for a time period of 0. to 3 months. * The OmniVue instruments and cartridges can be manufactured in the same production line with some changes in equipment. A $200,000 cost is added in year 2013 for these changes. * The base values considered for calculating production cost for cartridges and the instruments are available in the Appendix F and G respectively. The labor cost for instruments is assumed to be the same as that of cartridges. There will be no impact for assumptions related to instruments because the same cost is assumed in both options. * The labor growth of GenieTech is 2 to 5%.The material cost increases by 3 to 8%. * For overtime, the salary is 2 times the salary in normal production hours. The overtime salary is calculated from the utilization. * OmniVue mobile cartridge will be sold at $8 per unit. * Transportation cost of plastic components from GenieTech is $0. 1/unit. * The inventory holding cost for cartridges is $0. 2 for OmniVue and $0. 1 for OmniVue mobile. * The plastic components are sold to other customers from GenieTech at $1. 66/unit. * The labor and overhead for instrument production are assumed values. The revenue from other products is assumed to be $35 million. Gross margin for other products is 60%. * The R & D costs increase 7% every year. The R & D cost for GenieTech is 5% of Bergerac’s. * Sales and marketing cost is 25% of revenue. Profit sharing is 0. 1% of gross profit. * The General and administrative cost for HemaVue is $6 million and it increase 10% every year. * Interests are 5% of Income from operations. * In capital investments, installation and building cost has a $125,000 fixed cost and $75,000 variable cost per machine.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Human Resource Trend Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Human Resource Trend - Essay Example Technology has phenomenally changed the way the businesses operate around the globe and bringing them closer in the process. Globalization is one of the major products of rapid onset of technology due to which the world is changed into a global village. Now one organization can share important information and details with its other teams scattered around the world in a few seconds. Now automating many HR processes through the use of technology is also becoming a frequent practice which is basically to leave abundant time for HR professionals to â€Å"concentrate on defining processes, creating measurements, and affecting the bottom line† (Little, cited in Guadagno, 2012). Now, identifying trends in technology can form a task of critical importance for the HR department in any organization. Some of such technologies are continuing to prove how beneficial they can be for an organization in terms of reducing costs, saving money, and making optimum hiring choices through accuratel y measuring the hours worked and ensuring multiple online mediums for collaboration with other teams located far away. Technology has enabled many organizations to gain huge advantages which is why it is considered to be such a huge HR trend. According to Martin (cited in Gray, 2012) who works as a consultant in a New York-based consultancy firm, technology has proved to a potential enabler of significant efficiency gains like monitoring employee information, curbing costs, and enhanced collaboration. Consultants like Martin say that their customers are intent on buying new HR information systems which have proper and useful controls incorporated in them. Organizations everywhere are intent on maximizing the benefits obtained from technology in such a way that constructive HR processes and workforce could be generated consequently which could together help them in obtaining diverse business goals and improve market reputation. Businesses are largely focused on technological perspect ive of HR processes as the employers want different business objectives to be obtained in time without encountering any hassle irrespective of whether a business is growing internationally or recovering from an economic breakdown. It is claimed regarding how technology relates to HR processes that â€Å"it helps firms improve their HR tech strategies and those without an existing framework construct strategies from scratch† (Martin, cited in Gray, 2012). To maximize benefits from technology, organizations everywhere should focus on portal integration when working on any problematic project to ensure a safe working environment and ease for the employees. Also they should focus on using technology in such a way that attendance, leaves, absence, promotions, payments, and meetings all are recorded. HR should make sure how all of the services are shared and convey information regarding how they should be governed by the employees. Committees should be formed charged with the respo nsibility of monitoring technology and determining in what way they should be used. Without efficient HR information systems, organizations have to design HR tech strategies from scratch which results in a wastage of a lot of valuable time. Transforming HR through technology can influence businesses profoundly and others also who work across the world. HR professionals can assist and monitor processes of the organizations growing internat

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Public Affair class summary #5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Public Affair class summary #5 - Essay Example The interest of the reporter refers to what really inspired the reporter to do a particular story. This can be determined by focusing on how the reporter brings out the story or by tracking down his or her past coverage in the media outlets. The next step, as noted by Fitch, in interacting with reporters entails making calls to a reporter. Before contact with a reporter, it is important to consider various tips effective for handling the reporter. For instance, face-to-face communication will require one to maintain eye contact with the reporter while offering responses. Key points should be emphasized using clear and well-structured statements. It is also important that comments made to a report should be specific whether they are going to be on-record or off-record. Both positive and negative information need to be handled professionally in order to avoid any bias or ambiguity. It is important to maintain a positive attitude and tone during any interaction with a reporter to avoid occurrence of any reporter problems during a media interview. Brevity and precision are always preferred during media interviews or in statements written to the media, as Fitch and Holt put it ‘sometimes less is more’. There is a need to create a good rapport with the reporter to win his or her attention. In this chapter, Fitch provides an overview of various forms of media. They include print media, Radio, Television and the internet. The chapter starts by analysing various forms of print media. The chapter indicates that these forms of media form the bulk of where most Americans get their news. They include magazines, newspapers or journal websites. Current financial information can be accessed by reading daybooks recording. Television medium is another form of media used in communication. Television stations offer specific programs aimed at meeting viewers expectations and needs. The programs range from talk

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Supreme Court Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Supreme Court - Essay Example Upon the state's appeal, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals adhered to the suppression ruling in a decision of two-to-one. The issue in this project deals with witnesses to a crime identifying a suspect prior to in-person identifications. One teller had seen the defendant's arrest on television the night before a photo lineup was scheduled. Another teller had seen the defendants' photo in a newspaper story covering his arrest. And yet another teller was shown a lone picture of the defendant instead of a photo array. A police lineup was never completed. This presents a case of power of suggestion. In the case of Simmons v US (1968), the US Supreme Court saw the problem of declining accuracy of identification after witnesses had viewed pictures of suspects. The court ruled that seeing a picture may have a detrimental effect on identification accuracy because"the witness is apt to retain in his memory the image of the photograph rather than of the person actually seen" (quoted in Brown, Deffenbachher, & Sturgill, 1977, p. 312) Eyewitness testimony can be an important tool in the field of justice. However, it can also convict innocent people. In 1991, the percentage was estimated to be at 45% (Loftus & Ketcham, 1991). According to more recent studies, some experts say we are closer to 1% today. This is undoubtedly attributed to the introduction of DNA and the modern technologies now available to forensic scientists. The profiling of DNA was introduced in 1984 by Alec Jeffreys, a renowned geneticist at the University of Leicester, England. Jeffreys' genetic fingerprinting was used to convict a murderer in England in 1988. Today, a DNA sample is one of the most dependable techniques used to apprehend a suspect in a criminal case. Psychology in law states that the use of eyewitness testimony alone is the cause of convicting innocent people. Psychologically, body language and innocent remarks made by officials showing photos and conducting lineups can send unintended subliminal messages to the witness. The witness' level of confidence can be inspired by a perception that the police must be right, because this is what they're suggesting to be true. This can distort a person's memory. A 1997 study led by the National Science Foundation proved that a distorted memory can now fail to know recollect accurately. Studies have also revealed that when the victim is the witness, he has an aggressive desire to nab a perpetrator. In this scenario, they are extremely sensitive to any signals they receive from authorities. If the police have a person in mind, they can unknowingly convey that message to the victim (Loftus, 1998). This suggestibility is the normal tendency of people to agree with what they perceive to be what the authority figure wants to hear (Sadava & McCreary, 1997). Showing a lone photo to a witness sends the subliminal message that 'we believe this is the guy.' Showing a photo array can send the same signal..'one of these people is the one.' Witnesses can sometimes make rash decisions so as to get the whole process over with. For all these reasons, most law enforcement officials would contend that the identifications of the three tellers should be suppressed in court. With all its faults, eyewitness testimony can still be a strong tool. Each individual can see the same event differently (William, 1999). To

Monday, August 26, 2019

Assignment (Economics) Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 6

(Economics) - Assignment Example Also the mortgage fallout over the real estate crash, has skewered the flow of FDI in the US, though recent acquisitions of American firms by overseas companies does indicate some level of foreign investment. But it is also the rise in popularity of a strong Euro amongst global banking giants, that the has resulted in fall of demand for the dollar . In economic terms, it is simply a case of the supply of dollars outstripping the demand for it, thereby decreasing its value. The fallout of this within the US is the rise in prices of commodities like oil and gasoline, and a lower purchasing power. Traditionally, price of gold is inversely related to the value of the US dollar, and on 20th April 2011, gold prices breached $1,500 for an ounce for the first time due the week dollar. Mexico, China, India, Russia have made large additions to their gold reserves recently, which reiterates the fact that emerging economies are diversifying from their dollar dominated assets to lower their risks. China with a forex kitty of a staggering $3.05 trillion said ".. we are pushing forward with a strategy of diversifying our investments of foreign reserves." The Turkish lira- the worlds least valuable currency which after years of severe inflation and devaluations traded at 1.65 million per US $ till 2004 was phased out, when the new Turkish Lira- which trades at averagely 1.5 to the US dollar- was introduced on January 1st

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Mississippi Burning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mississippi Burning - Essay Example As a result, the defendants were tried in state and local court systems, where local influences had a significant effect on the outcomes of the verdicts. In light of the nation's current legal status on domestic terrorism, and society's modern view of the intimidation of an entire population, the acts of the KKK in Mississippi Burning went beyond the line of mere criminal activity and would today qualify as domestic terrorism, while the FBI simply acted with a lack of ethical behavior. One of the ways to differentiate domestic terrorism from criminal activity is the motivation for committing the act, and the KKK in Mississippi Burning clearly fit the definition of terrorism from this aspect. The KKK was targeting the African-Americans' right to vote, a political right. They were not targeting an individual for revenge, or taking an action for economic gain. Their actions were designed to frighten a population and entire society out of exercising their constitutional right to vote. In one segment they expressed their anger at Jews, Catholics, Turks, and Orientals. When the Preacher gave his sermon in the church, he professed a declaration of war against a people. It was not the de-politicized act of a criminal, but was designed to inflict fear and incite violence against random targets in a larger population. By the modern definition, this would qualify as terrorism and clearly fits today's definition. Another aspect of the KKK's actions that qualified them as terrorists was the fact that it was perpetrated by an organized group that had terrorism as an agenda. The FBI has stated that "special interest extremism" has "emerged as a serious terrorist threat" (Jarboe, 2002). The involvement of a group increases the potential threat by giving individual members increased motivation, some degree of anonymity, and an escalated sense of moral justification. In Mississippi Burning, there were cases of blowing up a house, attacking a general store, and chasing the three victims at night with a violent convoy. These actions were taken as a group. Though the individuals were ultimately held responsible for their involvement, the group was guilty of encouraging and inciting the level of violence. When the FBI violated the rights of the citizens and terrorized the man in the barbershop, this was the act of an individual agent, and not authorized by the group. The further use of KKK sympathetic law enforcement officers to participate and chase the victims was another factor that defined it as terrorism. The fear and inability of the African-Americans to get protection or justice was increased by this factor. The involvement of law enforcement, the group mandates and proclamations, and the common agenda of the group all contributed to escalation of random violence directed at an entire people, and the terror that they inflicted upon innocent victims. Critics will contend that constitutional rights protect the KKK and its actions are pro-white, rather than anti-minority. They will argue that the KKK was simply responding to the pressure of the FBI and their tactics. White (2008) contends that "its acts of violence have tended to be retaliatory rather than symbolic". However, the lynching of an innocent man, their mandate of White Nationalism, and the random attacks of violence

Saturday, August 24, 2019

How the Disciplines of Computer Science and Business intertwine Essay

How the Disciplines of Computer Science and Business intertwine - Essay Example eople who have studied the discipline of computer science and information technology becomes essential businesses to progress rapidly in the market and remain competitive. Today, the competition between businesses is increasing with every passing day because of the advancements in technology. In such conditions, a company that does not use computers and related technologies leaves behind in the race of competition too. The writer has written the paper in a coherent manner in which he/she has describes all aspects of the use of internet in businesses very clearly. The paper is based totally on the effects of using computers in the business world and the need or importance of the internet in the success of today’s business. The discussion reveals that the use of internet and other IT technologies lend a hand to small companies competing on a global level. The writer as given many examples of how internet has benefited small businesses and what potential is has for large businesses. Some of the main benefits that the writer has discussed include outsourcing, off shoring, rapid progress, online advertising, social networking, and globalization. Moreover, the writer has also revealed some negative outcomes for small business using internet. However, reading the paper it cannot be said that those negative outcomes are able to overshadow the benefits of information technology for business. These b enefits and negative effects show that the study of computer science and information technology has become an integral part of the study of business management. This is also evident if we analyze the course contents and subjects included in the curriculum of the field of business management. Today, almost every university teaches some basic computer programming in the course of business management, as well as provides internet and computer knowledge to students to make them able to succeed in their professional lives. I do not think the areas of computer science and business

Friday, August 23, 2019

PR Campaign Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

PR Campaign - Essay Example Customers reverse the flow of consumer promotions by either soliciting promotions directly from marketers through intermediaries, PR has been traditionally pushed to consumers by marketers. But customers can now click on press releases that interest them, and request promotional information from manufacturers. PR is pulled by customers and is customerinitiated.. Customers can design and configure their own products, using their imagination and tools provided by marketers. The site's notepad lets would-be buyers scribble and save ideas about products as they browse. In traditional industrial firms, the new offerings often originated in the engineering department, and marketing would be given the task of selling the offerings after the design had been completed (Chitty et al 2005). PR messages will help McBride Financial to inform professionals who are purchasing either primary or secondary residenc and people who are guaranteed capable of paying the mortgage amortization about products and unique propositions available from McBride. More progressive firms have reversed this process, and the marketing department transmits the "voice of the customer" to the organization before the development begins. However, this marketing-led process still assumes a sequential process for designing offers and messages. Consumers make purchase decisions based on what they know about a brand, rather than on what they remember from press releases. Whereas explicit ad recall reflects what people can remember about information stated in an ad, advertisers are interested in what people know about their brand. Implicit measures of memory are useful in this regard. Implicit measures solicit what people know without making reference to the origins of their knowledge. For example, brand recall is an implicit measure because people are asked to tell what they know about a brand. The impact of exposure on brand recall is a more appropriate measure of the learning prompted by PR than is ad recall because brand recall is a reflection of what people know rather than what they can remember. While brand recall and top-of-mind awareness are useful indicators of what people know about a brand, advertisers are generally most interested in consumers' dispositions toward a brand as a result of advertising exposures. To some extent, these measures of learning are useful in making inferences about dispositions. For example, enhancing top-of-mind recall frequently is found to increase preference for a brand. However, because this measure is of limited diagnostic value in efforts to enhance brand purchase, measures specifically designed to reflect people's dispositions are considered (Chitty et al 2005). For McBride Financial, ethical considerations involve communication in the proper way with potential target audiences and fair information. Because many people perceive right and wrong from different angles, the objective of the company in the area of ethical and moral standards must be to establish what it will and will not tolerate. Once the level of integrity has been established, then the areas of vulnerability must be examined and limits established in each of these areas. Since not detecting or overlooking violations weakens the fear of punishment, a system of inspection must be