A relaxing day on the beach

Why would you choose any beach other than Galveston? The Galveston Island beach is peaceful and serene. The list of natural luxuries this haven provides is endless; and as I sit here relaxed, I soak them all in. In peace at the edge of the water, the myriad cares of the world behind me, the warming rays of the sun bathe me in their wonder and glory.The world around me drowns out by the sounds of the wind whispering its song along the coast, and the distant thunder of the surf rolling forward in its never ending struggle to reach the shore.I lose myself in the mist of these beautiful surroundings, and when I close my eyes I am hesitant to open them for fear I might find myself awoke from the most amazing dream. When I do open my eyes, and cast their gaze outward upon the beautiful blue expanse before me, I contemplate the contrasts of the world in which I am submerged.The warm touch of sun upon my face and shoulders, the cooling sensations of the water washing over my feet with each s urge in the tide, and the sounds of amiable laughter from the seagulls that dance endlessly into the breeze mixed with the surf roaring in its own baritone voice.Both wishing their voice to be heard over the other and yet, in the end, combining into an opera of nature, singing me further into reverie in my chair at the edge of the water.Even the sound of Galveston Island Beach patrollers driving along on their ATVs was just faint enough to blend in with the background sound of the surroundings and still manage to make feel safe and secure. I watch as the surf crashes on the rocks near the shore and the seagulls fly in swirling poetic patterns.This is paradise in its barest form. Who could ask for more? â€Å"The Beach Blues† Could I have chosen a worst vacation spot?Surrounding me in, what to the casual observer can only be described as, a competition for the right to be heard by all are the sounds of the tourists with their stereos blasting a nuance of different styles of mu sic, there incessant questioning of their spouses or friends as to the hue of their skin, and their children screeching incessantly about ownership of some insignificant trinket.The beach is smothered with cigarette butts and empty cans in the sand, deserted remnants of plastic toys, probably left behind long enough for the children who broke them to grow to adulthood and bring children of their own to cut their little feet on the same jagged fragments that dig in my heels. The neglected and unforgiving terrain of the beach is at least bearable and it pales in comparison to devastating scents emitting from its tenants.I realize cutting off my nose might be a good idea when down the coast emerges a breeze that, while eagerly anticipated as a source of relief and refreshment from the glaring sun of the day, is now reviled for the scent of what can only be described as rotting seaweed being carried along in its embrace. The smell is so retched, I can taste it.The sand baked by the sun, and battered by the multitudes of sun worshippers and their children, has become as hot ash from a fire scattered about waiting to greet the soles of the feet of the next brave soul willing to try and reach the edge of the water.If the heat from the sand’s surface were not enough, the rays from the sun presses against my skin like an endless supply of needles prickling at my flesh, and I dare not close my eyes for fear the lids might burn clear off; dually, I’m blinded by this ball of hellfire in the sky. Kill me now.

Circumcision in South African Males vs Phillipino Males Essay

Compare and contrast the attitudes, beliefs and perspectives around a specific health issue amongst two different population groups, and consider the implications of this for clinical or community practice. Introduction A controversial health issue around the world is male circumcision. Male circumcision is the removal of part of or the entire foreskin on the penis and is a controversial topic in many countries and across many different religions. In this essay the beliefs, attitudes and perspectives of South African men will be compared those of Filipino men about medical male circumcision and traditional male circumcision. Traditional circumcisions are usually performed outside of formal medical settings by providers who have a special training but are not health care professionals. Medical circumcision alternatively is performed by a medical professional in a medical setting. According to the world health organisation (WHO), 30% of men worldwide have been circumcised, mostly in developing countries where it takes place for religious and cultural reasons (World Health Organisation [WHO], 2007a). Male circumcision is an important issue, especially in South Africa and the Philippines, as third world countries as it can be uses as a partial preventative measure against HIV infection. Description of population groups The two population groups I chose were South African men and Filipino men. I chose South African men as one of my population groups because while studying circumcision I noticed there was a lot of literature on the topic in relation to South Africa and surrounding nations and the effects it has on preventing HIV transmission. I found this population group interesting because in South Africa even though there is clear benefits in reducing HIV transmission and great publicity around the benefits only 35% of men were circumcised (WHO, 2007a). Furthermore in researching this topic I discovered multiple reasons why men chose to get circumcised, one reason was purely so they weren’t uncircumcised witch I found strange. This was the case in the Philippines, where 90% of all men are circumcised, and most saying there reason for being circumcised was so they weren’t uncircumcised (Lee, 2006). I found this reasoning interesting and decided to explore this culture for my second population group. If circumcision can reduce the chances of transmitting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases as well as reduce penile cancer it is important to understand different cultures beliefs and attitudes toward the procedure to encourage circumcision within the culture. It is also good to understand why some cultures have such high rate of circumcision compared to other cultures and countries as it may help develop strategies to promote circumcision countries with lower rates. South Africa In South Africa 57. 2% of circumcised men had traditional circumcisions and 42. 8% were medically circumcised (Connolly, Simbayi, Shanmugam, & Nqeketo, 2008). Amongst this circumcised population, the majority of the medically circumcised men were white (97. 8%) or Indian (92. 8%), compared with traditional circumcision which was mostly Black South Africans (Connolly et al. , 2008). In South Africa, more specifically within the Black South African community circumcision is done for religious and cultural reasons (Peltzer & Kanta, 2009). It is seen as a ritual that marks the passage from boyhood to manhood for the adolescent. The process usually requires boys to spend about a month in induction camps in seclusion away from women and outsiders. If they fail there initiation into man hood they are believed to be stuck as a boy for the rest of their life. The ritual is considered by the community as a sacred custom (Peltzer & Kanta, 2009). Traditionally this ritual involved traditional circumcisions and traditional initiation, however more recently some communities have allowed medical circumcision followed by traditional initiation into manhood. However there is a hostile relationship between men who were traditionally circumcised and men who were medically circumcised. While most men acknowledge medical circumcision is safer and know the benefits it has in helping prevent HIV and sexually transmitted disease, they fear that they will be ridiculed by peers and stigmatised as â€Å"cowards† and not viewed as â€Å"real men† for having the procedure done under anaesthesia (Peltzer & Kanta, 2009, p. 91). They believe that the pain makes the boys courageous, strong men and is a passage into manhood, where they can have a wife and kids. Philippines On the other hand, in the Philippines very few men are circumcised for religious or cultural reasons. Boys are usually circumcised between the ages of five and eighteen with most being circumcised between ten and fourteen (Lee, 2006). Most boys report being circumcised just so they are not uncircumcised, to avoid teasing and stigma in the community. Many Filipino men believe women prefer circumcised males, and therefor to be masculine and have a wife and children it is preferable to be circumcised. Similar to South African beliefs Filipino boys become circumcised because they do not want to be seen as â€Å"cowards† for not having the courage to go through the pain and anxiety associated with the process (Lee, 2006, p. 228). Filipino men also report getting circumcised because it was their parent’s orders or they were threatened with a beating if they chose not to or because it was just normal for a boy his age to and his friends were getting it done. Many men report being nervous for the procedure but excited to achieve the man hood they have anticipated. Most of the Filipino men submit to this social culture because they want to be seen as masculine and not as a coward. It is a social phenomenon, propelled by individuals need to conform and gain acceptance through this procedure by acquiring a range of masculine related traits and opportunities (Lee, 2006). Comparison of population groups While the two countries have different religions and cultural views, the striking similarity between the two population groups is that they both view the practice of circumcision and the pain and anxiety associated with this process as empowering to the men. Fulfilment of this ritual enhances psycho-social health because it frees them of ridicule and stigma as a â€Å"coward† (Lee, 2006, p. 228). Being circumcised means men from both cultures are considered masculine and therefore allows them to carry out tasks that are believed to be masculine such as having a family. However circumcision in South Africa is seen as a rite of passage and a sacred ritual that allows boys to become me and usually occurs later in life around the age of seventeen to twenty-one but even as late as twenty-six (Mavundla, Netswera, Bottoman, & Toth, 2009). Whereas, in the Philippines the procedure is more of a social trend, done because everyone else is getting it performed. It is also performed much earlier, most commonly between the age of ten and fourteen in the Philippines. South Africa have a more spiritual and deeper reasoning for having the procedure done, men display a deeper more conscious reasoning for having the procedure compared to Filipino men, who tend to follow the social trend (Mavundla et al. , 2009). With so many Filipino men circumcised (90%) the social trend hold strong and the even with new information about risks and benefits the majority continue to get the procedure done (Lee, 2009), while in South Africa with more information coming out more people are opting for medical circumcision with over 130 000 medical circumcisions being performed in 2010 (WHO, 2011). There is a growing trend in South Africa to have medical circumcision, whereas in the Philippines the process in considered outside the general realm of medicine and therefore is not performed in medical settings. While they have different culture and beliefs, and go about performing the procedure differently there main motive to be masculine is common amongst both population groups. Conclusion The advantages associated with being circumcised show great potential to help lower the rates of HIV and sexually transmitted disease in South Africa if more men are circumcised. The cultural transition into manhood is a barrier to overcome as medical circumcision is believed to interfere with this process. If however medical circumcision became more of a social norm as it is viewed in the Philippines, more boys would be inclined to have the procedure to fit in with the rest of the community.  The social normality of the process seems to have a greater influence on boy’s preference then cultural or religious reasons, as 90% of Filipino men are circumcised compared to 35% of South African men (Lee, 2006; WHO, 2007a). Guidelines South Africa: * Conducting community based education and information sessions on the health risks and problems associated with traditional circumcision, and how allowing medical circumcision followed by traditional initiation can reduce these risks. Train more male nurses who can perform the circumcision since most nurses in South Africa are female and boys going through initiation are not allowed contact with women because if they see women during this time they fail there initiation into man hood. * Understand the community’s rationale for the ritual circumcision and work with the community to find alternative solutions together, and trying to help reduce the stigma associated with men being medically circumcised with alternative ays to prove their strength. Philippines: * Developing circumcision clinics throughout the Philippines where boys can have the procedure performed in proper hygienic conditions. * Giving boys information about the risks and benefits of the procedure so they can more meaningfully decide to have to procedure done * Explain the procedure, and offer pain medication so that boy don’t have to feel so nervous about what is happening and have a better understanding of what going to happen.

Abortion Essays (2519 words) - Abortion, Free Essays, Term Papers

Abortion LaTeisha Davis SOC 203: Social Problems Melissa Reed April 12, 2012 Abortion Abortion is the expulsion of the fetus or embryo from the uterus before it is due for delivery. It arguably tops the list among the controversial issues of our time. It is rightfully so because what is at stake is the health of both the unborn baby and the mother. This issue has been made even more controversial by the involvement of politicians who have tirelessly campaigned to win some groups for their positions. In the American political system, Democrats and the people known as liberals are known to be strong supporters of the right of the woman to choose what she wants as far as abortion is concerned. Conservatives and Republicans on their part believe that it is not about the right to choose but the right to life for the unborn. In this respect, they oppose abortion indiscriminately. In between these two groups are people who believe that abortion should not be done for the sake of simple reasons such as the woman not being ready to give birth. Instead they support abortion in cases where the mother and the baby?s lives are at stake. In this paper, the ideas put forward by all the sides will be considered so as to support the thesis that abortion should not be declared illegal in all circumstances neither should it be available for everyone other than cases where the lives of the mother and her unborn child are in danger. Such a condition should be determined by a qualified medical doctor who will be required to demonstrate that indeed the pregnant woman?s life and that of her unborn baby are at risk, and therefore an abortion is necessary. In the vindication of the main argument, the prolife stance will be examined first followed by the prochoice. The rational position that is central to the claim made in this paper will then follow. Beginning with the anti-abortion stance, people who are strongly opposed to abortion argue that abortion is a violation of the individual?s right to life. Kapp and von Herzen (2009) point out that in some cases, abortion is carried out when fetus is in the third trimester, meaning that chances of such a child surviving after birth are very high. In fact, there are several children who live to be healthy adults even after being born prematurely, when they were on their sixth or seventh month in the womb. When a woman has an abortion during this time, it is not a formless mass of cells that is expelled from the body, but a human being. Intimately connected to this argument of the entitlement to life is the notion of the sacredness of life. Under this idea of sacredness, there is societal consensus regarding the respectful manner in which human life should be treated by everyone. It is clear that when a child is expelled from the mother?s womb at the sixth month, it is a life that is ki lled. The anti-abortion or the pro-life group members in society have made strong arguments regarding the inconsiderate destruction of life that takes place in such late abortions for whatever reason. The blame naturally goes to the whole idea of allowing abortions in the first place. They therefore take the position that if all abortions are declared illegal, the women who get the chance to have abortions in their sixth or seventh month of pregnancy will not have this chance and thus the lives of these unborn babies will be saved. With all the good intentions of the pro-life people, a very important idea is left out, which is, in the process of trying to keep the pregnancy, there are circumstances where keeping the pregnancy will mean the death of pregnant woman as well as the child she is carrying. There are numerous medical conditions that are dangerous to both the two parties, that is, the unborn child and the mother, and in this case, the prolife group needs to think seriously about saving one of them or losing both. Since the chances of the unborn child surviving outside the womb in the absence of the mother is practically impossible, the rational option is to abort the

Controversy Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Controversy Analysis - Essay Example Apple products are considered to be of high quality, exceptionally user-friendly and attractive but the price for them is mostly considered unjustified. Moreover Apple`s new models grab a lot of attention because the company managed to create some emotional image and consumers have to pay for status more the for the quality. Apple despite of giving failure in bend test, lack of apps in app store, average camera and other limitations manages to grab the top position. However seeing all these factors, researchers are of the opinions that though Apple and Samsung might compete close enough in the market. The question still remains debatable whether Samsung with its improved technology be able to replace the Apple craze? Considering the previous era, Apple was the only craze and preference of all ages of individuals. It came out undoubtedly that iPhone that had perfect design, perfect operating system, fast functioning, suitable for parties, music, business and what not. Apple with its very first smart phone continued to dominate the market, setting the trend of craze for smart phones (Mika, 2011). People used to rush in lines, and the one who succeeded purchasing the first iPhone of series was also covered by media. All this gave it a royal image, which everyone admired but couldn’t afford due to being immensely expensive. Many brands came and went before Apple iPhone in terms of being successful an giving competition to it. However Samsung remain only that one brand, which could compete with Apple products. It was able to do it with their â€Å"S† series. The smart phones â€Å"S1†, â€Å"S2†, â€Å"S3†, â€Å"S4† and â€Å"S5† have been extremely s uccessful, helping Samsung gain reputation and stability, with one after the other in its launch. Many experts claimed that the characteristics of Samsung were better than iPhone and it was far more affordable

Analysis of an argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Analysis of an argument - Essay Example great delineation of the book gathering contention where Tannen characterizes agonism as a ritualized position for instance in a verbal confrontation whereby the contending gatherings are allotted positions and one gathering wins, instead of contention coming about because of the two gatherings regular contradiction. The book has been developed focused around the impacts and parts of agonism in legislative issues, news coverage, and law. An essential issue tended to in this book is the wild agonism in the scholarly world. Numerous issues concerning scholastics are agonistics in nature, for instance, when instructors and teachers set up the academic papers, they take after a structure that is in a position to contradict another person work, which they demonstrate not right. In this present books setting agonism is clarified by the way that instructors and teachers prepare their scholars and normally dont permit them to think and strive to question thoughts because they dole out them w ith looked into insightful lives up to expectations. This encourages intolerance and self-importance around the scholars and this does not actualize the principal objectives of instruction (Tannen). Tannen in her book investigates the contrasts between a level headed discussion and exchange in class to clarify the Agonism society profoundly. In the classroom, if understudies are occupied with a verbal confrontation, few of them will partake in a civil argument, some will give careful consideration, however, a large number of the learners will, in fact, get turned off. Those learners who are contending will have a tendency to disentangle their focuses and keep away from the unpredictability in considering. They deliberately decline to yield a point climbed by their adversaries, regardless of the possibility that they are mindful that it is legitimate, because such a concession might render them as uncompetitive in the civil argument. In the event that a class captivates itself in

Business Ethics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Business Ethics - Research Paper Example One such area that a business organization should adequately address involves the issue of ethics in business. In line with this, the definition of business ethics vary based on the conception of the topic under discussion. One topic of discussion in business ethics involves the issue of child labor, which is crucial as business organizations seek to achieve a global perspective in conducting business. In effect, it is important to understand the issue of child labor, as an important topic in business ethics, and highlight approaches that business organizations take in order to deal with this issue. To begin with, it is crucial to understand the concept of child labor. There are varying international principles provided by labor organizations, such as ILO, which provide different definitions of intolerable and tolerable forms and definitions of child labor. For tolerable work, the ILO Convention No. 138 (1973) identifies work that does not make children fail to attend school with the work being light and harmless to the growth and development of the child as tolerable work (ILO, n.d.). Consequently, the convention stipulates the right age for this work being 13 years although the age can go down to 12 years depending on various circumstances such as the economic situation of the child and their family, which is crucial since such work can be crucial for the growth and the development of the child in question (UNICEF, 1997). On the other hand, intolerable work is abusive and dangerous with the work being exploitive on children. In this case, the ILO Convention No. 182 (1999) identifies child labor as any form of slavery or practices that are similar to slavery with actions related to the sale of children, debt bondage using children, serfdom, and the involvement of children in armed conflicts (ILO, n.d.). Importantly, this definition covers the use of children in issues related to child prostitution, using children in illegal activities, and in other areas that might harm the growth and development of children in regard to their moral values, health, and their safety. At this juncture, it is crucial to point out this convention, and other international codes and standards such as the UN convention on the rights of children, define a child as any individual below the age of 18 years (UNICEF, 1997). Nonetheless, it is important to point out that perceptions about child labor may vary depending on the culture although business organizations should use the definitions provided by ILO and other international organizations such as the UN. According to data from the International Labor Organization, one in every seven children is in some form of child labor. This puts the figure at 218 million children involved in child labor, which is a decrease from the 240 million children involved in labor in 2002 (ILO, 2006). Nonetheless, it is crucial to point out that this is not ethical practice in business since children are supposed to enjoy their child hood and not working under harmful conditions. In line with this, these children work in various sectors of the global economy with these sectors located in various parts of the world. However, a majority of these children work in the agricultural sector, which is a result of the non-regulation of this sector in terms of regulating the human resource capital working in the sector (Kolk & Tulder, 2002). In

International Accounting Standards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

International Accounting Standards - Essay Example The fair value system has all together improved the information to the individual users of the economy. International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS): IFRS is a private sector organization which is working for the interest of public. The main objectives of IFRS foundation are: 1) It creates a single set of quality which is understandable and enforceable worldwide. The standard setting body that helps in formulating the standards for the organization is the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) (IFRS Foundation. 2013k). 2) They are responsible for promoting the use and application of those standards. 3) They are accountable for reporting the financial needs of the small and medium sized companies. 4) They are also responsible for safeguarding the working of IASB thus ensuring the financing of the organization. The Trustees of the organization are accountable for Monitoring Board of the Public Authorities (IFRS Foundation. 2013k). International Accounting Standards Board: IASB is the standard setting body under the governance of IFRS Foundation. ... 2013g). There are few standard setting duties which IASB had to fulfil. In doing so, it has to go through an open and thorough process which is also transparent for public comment and discussion in papers or exposure to drafts. It connects successfully with the stakeholders worldwide. Like the analysts, regulators, investors, business leaders and accounting standard setters. Fair Value: IFRS 13 has defined fair value as the price that is â€Å"received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement dates† (IFRS Foundation, 2013e). The fair value system sets a single IFRS framework for measuring the fair value. After measuring it is disclosed to the public. Here, IFRS plays an important role in managing and measuring the fair value system. Supporting the objectives of the IFRS Foundation: The activities that are undertaken by the IFRS Foundation for fulfilling the objectives of organization are taken car e by the staffs of IFRS Foundation. Those activities included the following: 1) The important activity of IFRS foundation was to provide the worldwide capital market with a common language of financial reporting. Thus XBRL taxonomy is created by IFRS for the SMEs to facilitate electronic usage, comparability and exchange of the financial data which are prepared according to the IFRS norms. The activity is executed by the IFRS XBRL team members. They are responsible for maintaining and developing XBRL representations of IFRS which is known as the IFRS taxonomy. Taxonomies are the organized categorization schemes which are also â€Å"computer readable dictionaries† (IFRS Foundation, 2013a) 2) They are involved in production of good quality and up to dated materials which

Expansion Joints Issues and Concepts PowerPoint Presentation

Expansion Joints Issues and Concepts - PowerPoint Presentation Example Some structures would not support ground movements such as earthquakes leading to destruction of buildings and bridges. This led to the idea of expansion joints that would later solve the problem (Rosignoli, 2002). Functions of expansion joints The main function of expansion joints is to safely absorb the high temperatures of various construction materials as a result of the constant expansion and contraction. As explained earlier the contraction and expansion is due to the changing weather conditions (Brown, 2001). The expansion joints therefore make structures to remain intact thereby they become safe for public use. There are many types of expansion joints and each is designed to solve a specific problem though the purpose or function still comes back to absorbing stress to avoid damage. Types of Expansion joints used in bridges in Australia Bridge expansion joints are joints that are designed to allow traffic to cross the bridge structure while at the same time permitting the mov ement of the bridge deck due to thermal effects, wind, traffic loading, seismic effects among others. The joints should provide a watertight connection for the lifetime of the bridge as the lack of it could reduce the durability of the main bridge structure that may result in the need for major remedial works. These kinds of joints are rather unique because of their relatively delicate construction and severe loading conditions and therefore need to be replaced several times during the life time of the bridge (Gottermoeller, 2004). Bridge expansion joints can be broadly classified into two types: open joints and closed joints. The open joints are not water proof. Water and debris are allowed to fall through the joints. The water erodes the soil under the structure, strains the bent cap and columns, is detrimental to adjacent steel girders, diaphragms, bearings and is a nuisance to any traffic under the structure. The closed joints on the other hand are water proof and have become an alternative to open joints due to the many advantages that they provide (Blockley, 2010). There are three most common types of open joints used in Australia. The butt joints provide an open space between adjacent edges of the deck. They are used where the movements are of a rotational nature or where the thermal movements are small. The edges are usually protected with metallic armor which is subject to corrosion (Lima, 2006). The open space frequently fills with debris making the joint less effective. Period maintenance is mandatory to clear up the joint and the debris. The second type is the plate joint which accommodate greater movements than the butt joints, usually between one and three inches. A sealant is placed in the joint that prevents some water from passing through. It also prevents the accumulation of debris that can make the joint ineffective. The third type of joint is the tooth joint or the finger joint (Gottermoeller, 2004). They are usually used on long bridges to accommodate large movements. They are usually placed in the span near the point of contra flexure. Drains are placed to prevent drainage across the joint if feasible. In some areas they are provided with a drainage system to collect the water passing through. These joints are used where water and debris passing through cannot damage anything below the bridge. The performance of these joints

Enforcing Arbitration Agreements and Awards for non-signatories in Essay

Enforcing Arbitration Agreements and Awards for non-signatories in International Commercial Arbitration - Law - Essay Example However, the main focus of comparison of information used in and throughout this report will proceed to brake down and give actual facts of participation, pertaining mainly to non-signatories when they become involved or as in many instances avoid involvement altogether tying in the obstacles and many challenges that simultaneously includes themselves during International Commercial Arbitration for non-signatory issues. Showing how joining non-signatories to arbitration in each new development so as to keep down increased incidence of unfair practices during separation and illegal usage of power and authority cornering judgments and official decrees of agreements. Non-signatories arbitration rights which have been in connection to International Commercial arbitration during past mediation matters are relatively rare occurrences, but in recent times it has become quite common place for most companies to use a more standard form of arbitration being a simplified formation that does cre ate a more legally fit system for up to date court rules that has compelled non-signatories to choose to avoid involvement altogether. ... he arbitration clause have one element in common: namely the element that justice would not seem to be done.’ Pepperdine Dispute Resolution, Law Journal, 2004: p.469 Arbitral Commencement During a commencement of functional arbitral duties, the arbitral community seeks to show that arbitration is a mediated dispute that works to settle up a resolution of choice between to parties that have some sort of binding contract between each other. These issues are usually quite complex, especially when dealing with a multi-party that have multi-contracts which have become all tangled in a dispute of some sort. This is particularly a most challenging position for an arbitration committee to be involved in. However, there are differences that make the handling of a domestic dispute a little harder than when dealing with an international issue that have been in a working process of business with each other. The courts of the Untied States will usually seek to handle the laws in awarding t he judgments toward each of the respective parties. Although this is a usual occurrence, it does not always happen this way when dealing with foreign disputes. In these cases there are special convention laws that have been set in place to handle such situations in a specific manner. First let’s get a better feel for what the statement word of convention means when dealing with business arbitration. A convention is a formal agreement between nations. It used when there is a specific law or ordinance that is used to set in place the rules of engagement being in business, war, or any issue that deals in a binding agreement between nations. These types of conventions will govern with authority the do’s the don’ts and all the consequences that follow disobedience. Now, there is one particular

The Traditional CD Marketing Company Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The Traditional CD Marketing Company - Essay Example There has been a lot of change in the retailing environment in association with the issue of downloading digital resource. At the same time, many modern players in the retail CD market have cut out on the branch style of the organization and have streamlined so that they have fewer corporate offices and zones, and more time and attention to pay to its stars and customers. In terms of price, the competition is that of a rivalry between the traditional CD of music, bought at a retailer in a brick-and-mortar form, versus a song or album that is downloaded over the internet. â€Å"Nearly all of the leading OMPs provide the same standard set of features and pricing: $0.99 singles, a dedicated software client, and an extensive catalog of music from the five major labels plus many independents† (Lin, 2009). The current research must also look at the vital issue of how many people are downloading music for free over peer to peer (p2p) networks, or paying minimal amounts through servic es like iTunes, therefore seriously threatening the recording industry’s and the traditional CD retailing industry’s profits. From a modern perspective, one can also take a traditional view of the overall industry, in terms of development, production, distribution and retail, talking more about making CDs than about making mp3 files, and focusing on cost requirements for making a hit in music, developing this as a sort of artist investment process. On the other hand, in considering marketing and promoting costs, it is important to register the popularity of free internet downloading and how much of a threat this represents. The current research examines economic concepts before putting them in the context of CD vs. digital song retailing.

Cell Phones in Schools Essay Example for Free

Cell Phones in Schools Essay Who can work while listening to the incessant ringing of a cell phone? This does not creat an inviting classroom environment for students. Although cell phones would be useful in the event of an emergency, they should not be allowed in schools because of the increased amount of disruptive and social problems. Despite the interruptions, cell phones do provide on advantage. They allow quick communications during times of an emergency; they also enable students to contact their parents at any time for any reason. One example might be: if a student forgot that they have an after school affair to attend for that day, such as a sports practice or tutoring, they could easily notify their parents of the newly needed pick-up time. However, this convenience does not outwiegh the problems cell phones can cause. Disturbances during the school daycan cause students a great distraction. They could ring during class, and students attention would divert from the lesson to the phone. Students could want to chat in between classes, causing many tardies. They would also cause a riot if lost or stolen. Besides these factors, allowing cell phones in school could cause an influx of social problems. Kids are already picked on over a number of issues, such as appearances, financial status, etc. If a student is not fortunate enough to afford a cell phone, this would give cause for the other students to tease them. Overall, cell phone use in school might be slightly advantageous in an emergency sitituation, but they should not be allowed because the problems outweigh the benefits by far.

Kant and Hegel on the Foundation of the State Essay Example for Free

Kant and Hegel on the Foundation of the State Essay Kant and Hegel could not be farther from one another on the question of the state and its moral foundation. It is uncertain even if they define the term â€Å"state† in the same way. Kant remains within the Enlightenment contract tradition, while Hegel leans more towards an intellectual rendering of the romantic and nationalist approach to states and their foundations. (NB–the citations below refer to paragraphs, not pages) Kant holds that there are two major reasons why the state must exist. First, while mankind is not violently predisposed one to another prior to the development of legislation, disputes will have no competent judge prior to the development of the state (44). Hence, even a gentle disposition will render the state necessary in that public right must have a means of enforcing its claims. Here, â€Å"public right† is defined as those sum of laws that bring human beings into rational and orderly contact with one another (43). But further, regardless of the actual condition of man in the state of nature, Kant holds that, at the very least, the only real motive for action is â€Å"that which seems right† to each person, and each group of persons. But these two entities, the individual and groups of persons, both demand the creation of a state: the individual for the sake of rational laws, and the group for the sake of mutual protection against aggression. Either way, the only maxim is â€Å"that which seems right† to the entity in question. The major difference between the state of nature (in which Kant seems to lean towards the Lockeian view) and the civil world is that the laws and agreements that may well develop prior to the state are given the sanction of public law. They are given the means of enforcement. Without enforcement, the same reason that Locke gives for leaving the state of nature holds: the each is the judge in his own case, rendering there no objective and impartial standard (or agency, more accurately) of justice. Kant offers a subtle typology of the nature of civil life, far different from what will develop in Hegel. First, the sum of laws, manifesting a rightful, pre-political relation among individuals under an objective agency is the public right, and living in this state is a civil mode of life. Kant seems to overlap the definitions of constitution and civil right substantially, but at least, the concept of the â€Å"civil† is not an institution, but a state of living and a state of mind where the civil agency is considered right and just, and thus has the right to enforce public right. The state is the sum of all of these: the civil society under a constitution that manifests the proper and rational relations among citizens. There is nothing in Kant that rejects the idea that these relations will develop in a pre-political state as in Locke. Hence, it is rational to hold that Kant is a Lockeian, the state simply existing to judge disputes over property. Even more, in paragraph 47, the legislature is to be the highest form and expression of the state in that the people are fully and completely represented. Here, Rousseau is to be found, since, in this paragraph, the â€Å"people† and the â€Å"legislature† are really one in the same. Rousseau would reject the idea of representation both in Locke and Kant, but the idea is the same: the legislature is the highest organ of the state, the very objectification of the constitution and the popular will. Hence, given the above definitions, the legislature is really the manifestation of the constitution and the civil condition, and a smoothly functioning legislature would be the objectification of the state. To some extent, the legislature being the â€Å"united will of the people† (47) is the real de-ontological basis of state authority. Regardless of the social contract, the legislature can be united with Kant’s more abstract ethics by holding that the legislature is the manifesting of duty: the condition of both universality and autonomy, the latter referring to the lack of any â€Å"special interest† connected to either moral judgements/maxims or civil legislation. If the legislature is the â€Å"united will of the people† then it fits nicely into a de-ontological box, since universality is the maxim of civil legislation in this case. Hegel takes a completely different approach. The Philosophy of Right is a far more satisfying approach to the state than either Kant or Locke, since the state is not merely a sum of laws representing the population, but a synthesis of all other forms of social life and historical development. For Hegel, the development of the state (and one can be suspicious as to whether or not Kant would even define the state this way), is not merely a historical process, but a psychological one as well: the stat is the highest manifestation of human nature manifest in history. It is easy to see how the development of the three general stages in morality, the family, the free market and the state itself, all develop from a specific schema of history. Familial relations were long dominant in social life, but the Enlightenment broke these down, leading to the minds of Locke and Kant, the state is a synthesis of these two, and the completion of the development of human nature as a moral entity. While the history is simple and a little arbitrary, it follows a common Hegelian pattern of unreflective community (the family), individualism ( the market, or â€Å"civil society†), and the concrete, reflective community in the state. There is a far more complex history of European development that Hegel deals with, though it is not found in the POR, but in other writings. The family is the principle of unreflective unity (158). This is in that the family is not based on rational principles (though it does play a rational role), but is united only in love and the willingness to sacrifice. Only when the children grow and the family breaks down does reflection enter into the human person as they function in civil society, the free market where the main motivation is no longer love, but gain and â€Å"expressing oneself. † This is an abstract individualism that can not last. Dialectically, the individual in civil society realizes that a society cannot be based on the individual since social life and economic production are based on a communal approach to living: society can only function as a unit, not a collection of individuals arbitrarily doing their thing. Hence, the corporation develops (250-251), which is a largely economic entity similar to a guild, that manifests the community latent in civil society,. It is the corporations that eventually reveal the seeds of the state, or the unity of corporate bodies, and though here, the development of civil law and right. Hegel does not accept the idea of a contract. The mythology of the state of nature is something that may be found in psychology, but not in history. In the beginning of the POR, the will is seen as â€Å"purely abstract,† that is, completely free, having no restraints, but also having no purpose or end (15). The development of ends for ht will is the real foundation of the POR and Hegel’s mature social theory. The will demands content, that is, guidance and direction. History has given humanity this in the three states of family, market and state. These mentalities have all developed throughout history, but only in the first half of the 19th century have humanity been able to see how they all rationally fit together in an all inclusive unity. Previous societies merely held a one sided approach to things, where one entity was given dominance over everything else. The will seeks content, moral purpose, but it also seeks unity and balance in a rational schema of relations. None of the entities of family or civil society are swallowed in the Hegelian state, they remain, but they remain secondary elements in the broader state, having their latent potential manifest in the state itself (260). This is in that the love of the family is given its reflective basis in the state as an ethic unity, manifesting its own history and struggles, but it also completes the abstract individualism of the market, in that the unity is a reflective one, based on reason and the development of this social reason in the market itself, where communitarian ideas develop in the actual behavior of economic production and consumption which is a communal idea. This paper is far too short to do justice to these giants, but the basic outline is clear: Kant remains in the Enlightenment tradition, being a good generation before Hegel. Kant pictures a simple state of nature which requires a rational legislature, representing the concept of universality, to judge disputes. On the other hand, Hegel approaches the state as an organic unity, not a creation of contract. Ultimately, the two are irreconcilable, and the Romantic era had its rarified champion in Hegel. References: Kant, Immanuel. The Metaphysics of Morals. Trans Mary Gregor. Cambridge University Press, 1996 Hegel, GWF. The Philosophy of Right. Trans TM Knox. Oxford University Pres

Comparison Between Wimax And HSDPA

Comparison Between Wimax And HSDPA ABSTRACT: The future of wireless networks lies in the coexistence of multiple access network technologies. This paper deals with two data oriented access networks, the worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) and the high speed downlink packet access (HSDPA). HSDPA and Mobile WiMAX are two different high speed mobile technologies with distinctive backgrounds. WiMAX is based on OFDM as HSDPA is based on CDMA. INTRODUCTION: The objective of this paper is to provide a techno-economic comparison of two wireless broadband technologies, Mobile WiMAX and HSDPA. The comparison is divided into two parts. The first part is a general overview and comparison of the two technology standards. The second part describes the different releases of WiMAX and HSDPA and the market opportunities. What is WiMAX? WiMAX is the new term for IEEE 802.16 STANDARD. It is based on the wireless MAN technology. It is a communication technology that works with the radio spectrum to transmit tens of MB/sec in bandwidth between different devices like laptops. The two stimulating forces of present internet are the wireless and the broadband. The WiMAX standard joins the two high speed broadband internet access over a single wireless connection. As WiMAX can be used for long distance purposes it is a very effective way to solve the last mile problem. WiMAX would operate similar to a Wi-Fi but at higher speeds, large distance and for more number of users. WiMAX has the capability to provide service in areas which are difficult for wired infrastructure to reach and has the ability to overcome the limitations of the traditional wired infrastructure. It will provide wireless broadband access to the buildings, either to existing wired networks or in the rural areas. It can also be connected to the WLAN hotspots to the internet. Some of the characteristics of Mobile WiMAX are: Scalability: Mobile WiMAX has been framed in such a way that it is able to work in different channel BWs ranging from 1.25 to 20 MHz. High Data Rates: when Maximum Input Maximum Output (MIMO) 2*2 is used and DL: UL is in the ratio of 1:0 and 0:1 respectively, in a 10 MHz channel high data rates can theoretically support peak download data rates up to 63Mb/s per sector and peak upload data rates up to 28 Mb/s per sector. Mobility: Seamless handoff which is less than 50ms latency and Quality of Service (QoS): QoS measures for WiMAX include availability of service, throughput of data, jitter and the rate of error. WHAT IS HSDPA? High speed Downlink packet access (HSDPA) is a packet based data service feature of the WCDMA standard. In the WCDMA downlink, the data transmission is up to 8-10 Megabits/sec over a bandwidth of 5MHZ. It is sometimes referred to as a 3.5G technology. HSDPA is an advancement of the WCDMA standard which is created to increase the data rate by a factor of 5 or more. HSDPA improves on W-CDMA by using different techniques for modulation and coding. It defines a new WCDMA called high-speed downlink shared channel (HS-DSCH). That channel performs contrastingly from other channels and helps to fasten the downlink speeds. HS-DSCH is used only for the downlink communication of the mobile. That means that data is sent from the source to the phone. It isnt possible to send data from the phone to a source using HSDPA. The channel is shared between all users which lets the radio signals to be used most effectively for the fastest downloads. Multimedia: From the technical point of view the choice between voice communications in VoIP/WiMAX or WCDMA/HSDPA is a matter of taste. But not in economic terms WCDMA traffic is much costlier than VoIP traffic. For transmitting multimedia data both technologies have practically the same capacities. Both WiMAX and HSDPA have traffic prioritizing and Quality of Service. Security: The security service in a WiMAX is used by an operator to gain benefits from this service as there is always a chance of theft of service in connections, bandwidth and so on. Hence the security service is divided into two parts namely the encryption and the authentication/key derivation. WiMAX supports modern cryptographic algorithms. In HSDPA, Users are authorized by their SIM (or R-UIM) cards. HSDPA does not provide any additional security functions. Typical of all CDMA standards, data encoding for various users works better than any cryptographic algorithm, but doesnt work if an interrupter somehow gets its channels code (like special agents) or is in a base station. Whereas, in WiMAX the base station is strongly protected from management attacks and as the system is organized strongly a certificate based security is easy to deploy and is advisable. Bandwidth: When HSDPA and WiMAX are at same distance from a base station, the gain in HSDPA vs. WiMAX is not clear yet. One of the main reasons for this is WiMAX doesnt have many frequency ranges. But if HSDPA, being an evolutional step in the development of WCDMA, is getting close to the threshold of spectral efficiency, while WiMAX has many likely ways of progression such as new modulation schemes (as well combined with the old ones),MIMO(multiple-input-multiple output)and new frequency ranges (ranging from 10GHz to 66GHz). Modulation: With the use of a robust modulation scheme at long ranges with high spectral efficiency WiMAX gives tremendous throughput and also bears multipath fading. WiMAX base station interchanges throughput for range and this is allowed by the dynamic adaptive modulation. HSDPA supports 16 QAM and QPSK modulation whereas WiMAX supports QPSK, 16 QAM and 64 QAM. This implies that Mobile WiMAX supports higher order modulation than HSDPA. With 64 QAM 6 bits can be carried per symbol and thus higher data rates can be achieved.

The Life Saving Benefits of Organ Donation Essay -- Expository Exempli

The Life Saving Benefits of Organ Donation There is one clear fact that every person in this world can agree on: at some point in our lives, we are all going to face the reality of death. Death is imminent to each and every one of us, and the prospect of death is usually unknown and very tragic to most people. It is the unknown that can instill the fear of dying in a person or a family. Tragic accidents and terminal diseases are often the source of many deaths, and invariably in those instances we are unable to control the end result, which is death. However, in the course of life and death, there are life- threatening situations that we do have the ability to control. It becomes a choice by a person or a family to offer the greatest gift, life to another person. Life is spared for many through organ donation. Organ donation is truly a gift of life that saves hundreds of lives each day, however, even greater than the number of lives saved is the number of deaths that occur each day as people on a organ transplant waiting list continue to wait. Organ donation is a precious gift that can be given by anyone and can save many lives. All human beings should understand the importance of being an organ donor. Young or old, rich or poor, any one of us may one day get the chance to save or enhance someone's life by becoming an organ donor. Also of greater importance is that someone else may give you or your loved one a chance to live because they chose to become an organ donor. The choice you or your family makes allows a person that may be following a road to death, the chance to take a different road to the gift of life. This ultimate choice can be a precious gift of life, care, and concern for our fellow human being. In a life o... ....29 January 2002. 12 November 2003 http://olympics.belointeractive.com/snowboarding/0130klug.2fle292.html * Illinois Hospital Association. "Organ/Tissue Donation and Transplantation. 28 October 2003. 12 November 2003 http://www.ihatoday.org/public/organ/ * Diehl, Cynthia. "My Mom Is A Survivor-Organ/Tissue Donor. 12 November 2003 http://www.moms-dads.com/sim7.html * Chicago Sun-Times. "A Transplant Journey". 14 January 2002. 12 November 2003 http://www.robi.org/newsandfeatures/issues/remarks_atransplantjourney.asp * "More Facts About Organ Donation and Transplantation". 1995. 12 November 2001 Http://my.inil.com/-paulh/FACTS.HTM * Journal of the American Medical Association. "Organ Donations Increase When Families Have Good Information about the Donation Process". 3 July 2001. 12 November 2003 http://www.ahrg.gov/news/press/pr2001/organpr.htm

Oklahoma City Bombing :: essays research papers

Do you remember the conflict that America had in the Persian Gulf a few years back? An incident occurred there where a man drove a truck loaded with explosives into the building where more than 100 Marines were stationed. He blew up the building, along with the Marines. The incident was published by the AP Press soon after. Now do you remember the bombing just four years ago, in Oklahoma City? Suspects Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols drove a Ryder Van loaded with 4,800 pounds of fertilizer and fuel oil to the front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, where it subsequently exploded, killing 169 people and injuring some 500 others. Of course you do. While both were massive acts of violence involving American citizens, the impact of such acts is always felt the most when it happens right here at home.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   These days, America is filled with those people who disagree with our system of government. Most times, these people suffer silently, expressing their opinions through their votes, or within the discussions that they hold in their own private homes. When these people act upon this anger, and their disagreement, the feelings are brought beyond the point of normal behavior to vigilantism and violence. This animosity, when pushed to these limits, often results in tragedy, a tragedy that we call domestic terrorism.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Being the oldest daughter of a Senior ATF Agent, I have been exposed to domestic terrorism all of my life. My father has investigated thousands of bombings, fires, and explosions for more than twenty years now. Many of these incidents were examples of the terrorism that I speak about. His experiences have taught me countless lessons and informed me of many current events. The information that I have obtained from him is far more valuable than anything that the media could ever possibly convey. Though he is always strictly guarded with the confidences of his profession, he has always provided me with a firsthand knowledge of the impact that domestic terrorism has on the citizens and law enforcement. Through him, I learn the facts of these incidents without the media’s exaggerations. Today I will share with you some of these facts. I will talk to you about the impact that domestic terrorism has on our citizens. These impacts include: the monetary damages that terrorism inflicts, along with the injuries to the victims, the shocking repercussions that are embedded into the minds and souls of the people who come to sort through the rubble to find the survivors and the remaining evidence.

Eulogy for Friend :: Eulogies Eulogy

Eulogy for Friend I'd like to say a few words of tribute to this special man, from me and on behalf of other close friends of his. When he heard the news of Alan's death, a mutual friend and colleague noted poignantly that Alan was a man that was non-judgmental. Alan accepted people largely for what they were and for who they were. Alan was a man without prejudice. His many friendships crossed the barriers of social position and educational background. And his spirit, his generosity, his warmth also reached through barriers of race and cultural background. They reached through the barriers of age and generation. Because everyone was welcomed into Alan's circle of friends and what a multi-coloured, multi-cultural, multi-national, and multi-generational circle of friends it is indeed. What's more, Alan worked eagerly to bring these people from different backgrounds together. To me, he seemed happiest when he'd organised a gathering of the most diverse people one could imagine. If Alan couldn't remake the world outside to his liking, he would make it so in his backyard. He was a man without prejudice. This was not just a matter of principle for Alan, not something he merely theorised in his academic work and teaching. It was his instinct, his very nature. This was not simply tolerance, it was his personal culture. Because when we stop to think about it, Alan's preoccupation in life was people. He was always introducing people to other people. Always saying: you must meet so and so; and with his extraordinary sense of social occasion, by and large you did get to meet them. How many people have we met and got to know through Alan Smith? Dr Alan Smith was among the most intelligent people I have ever known. A sociologist by original training, he completed his Bachelor degree with Honours at the University of Wales in 1978 and was awarded his Doctorate by that University in 1990. His doctoral thesis, titled 'A Cartography of Resistance: The British State and Derry Republicanism' was a learned study of the Irish republican struggle. The freedom of the Irish people and Gaelic people generally was a cause very close to his heart throughout his adult life. His experiences in Londonderry in the 1980s exposed him to the brutal realities of war and I think shaped his political outlook in particular ways. One of these I believe was to deepen his affinity with people from oppressed nationalities and cultures wherever they were and whenever he came across them in his many travels around the world. Eulogy for Friend :: Eulogies Eulogy Eulogy for Friend I'd like to say a few words of tribute to this special man, from me and on behalf of other close friends of his. When he heard the news of Alan's death, a mutual friend and colleague noted poignantly that Alan was a man that was non-judgmental. Alan accepted people largely for what they were and for who they were. Alan was a man without prejudice. His many friendships crossed the barriers of social position and educational background. And his spirit, his generosity, his warmth also reached through barriers of race and cultural background. They reached through the barriers of age and generation. Because everyone was welcomed into Alan's circle of friends and what a multi-coloured, multi-cultural, multi-national, and multi-generational circle of friends it is indeed. What's more, Alan worked eagerly to bring these people from different backgrounds together. To me, he seemed happiest when he'd organised a gathering of the most diverse people one could imagine. If Alan couldn't remake the world outside to his liking, he would make it so in his backyard. He was a man without prejudice. This was not just a matter of principle for Alan, not something he merely theorised in his academic work and teaching. It was his instinct, his very nature. This was not simply tolerance, it was his personal culture. Because when we stop to think about it, Alan's preoccupation in life was people. He was always introducing people to other people. Always saying: you must meet so and so; and with his extraordinary sense of social occasion, by and large you did get to meet them. How many people have we met and got to know through Alan Smith? Dr Alan Smith was among the most intelligent people I have ever known. A sociologist by original training, he completed his Bachelor degree with Honours at the University of Wales in 1978 and was awarded his Doctorate by that University in 1990. His doctoral thesis, titled 'A Cartography of Resistance: The British State and Derry Republicanism' was a learned study of the Irish republican struggle. The freedom of the Irish people and Gaelic people generally was a cause very close to his heart throughout his adult life. His experiences in Londonderry in the 1980s exposed him to the brutal realities of war and I think shaped his political outlook in particular ways. One of these I believe was to deepen his affinity with people from oppressed nationalities and cultures wherever they were and whenever he came across them in his many travels around the world.

Bluetooth based smart sensor network Essay

Currently, huge electronic data repositories are being maintained by banks and other financial institutions. Valuable bits of information are embedded in these data repositories. The huge size of these data sources make it impossible for a human analyst to come up with interesting information (or patterns) that will help in the decision making process. A number of commercial enterprises have been quick to recognize the value of this concept, as a consequence of which the software market itself for data mining is expected to be in excess of 10 billion USD. This paper is intended for those who would like to get aware of the possible applications of data mining to enhance the performance of some of their core business processes. In this paper discussion is about the broad areas of application, like risk management, portfolio management, trading, customer profiling and customer care, where data mining techniques can be used in banks and other financial institutions to enhance their busin ess performance. INTRODUCTION: As knowledge is becoming more and more synonymous to wealth creation and as a strategy plan for competing in the market place can be no better than the information on which it is based, the importance of knowledge and information in today’s business can never be seen as an exogenous factor to the business. Organizations and individuals having access to the right information at the right moment, have greater chances of being successful in the epoch of globalization and cut-throat competition. Business Intelligence focuses on discovering knowledge from various electronic data repositories, both internal and external, to support better decision making.  Data mining techniques become important for this knowledge discovery from databases. In recent years, business intelligence  systems have played pivotal roles in helping organizations to fine tune the business goals such as improving customer retention, market penetration, profitability and efficiency. In most cases, these ins ights are driven by analyses of historical data. Global competitions, dynamic markets, and rapidly decreasing cycles of technological innovation provide important challenges for the banking and finance industry. Worldwide just-in-time availability of information allows enterprises to improve their flexibility. In financial institutions considerable developments in information technology have led to huge demand for continuous analysis of resulting data. Data mining can contribute to solving business problems in banking and finance by finding patterns, causalities, and correlations in business information and market prices that are not immediately apparent to managers because the volume data is too large or is generated too quickly to screen by experts. The managers of the banks may go a step further to find the sequences, episodes and periodicity of the transaction behaviour of their customers which may help them in actually better segmenting, targeting, acquiring, retaining and maintaining a profitable customer base. Business Intelligence and data mining techniques can also help them in identifying various classes of customers and come up with a class based product and/or pricing approach that may garner better revenue management as well. The broad categories of application of Data Mining and Business Intelligence techniques in the banking and financial industry vertical may be viewed as follows: Risk Management Managing and measurement of risk is at the core of every financial institution. Today’s major challenge in the banking and insurance world is therefore the implementation of risk management systems in order to identify, measure, and control business exposure. Here credit and market risk present the central challenge, one can observe a major change in the area of how to measure and deal with them, based on the advent of advanced database and data mining technology.( Other types of risk is also available  in the banking and finance i.e., liquidity risk, operational risk, or concentration risk. ) Today, integrated measurement of different kinds of risk (i.e., market and credit risk) is moving into focus. These all are based on models representing single financial instruments or risk factors, their behaviour, and their interaction with overall market, making this field highly important topic of research. Financial Market Risk For single financial instruments, that is, stock indices, interest rates, or currencies, market risk measurement is based on models depending on a set of underlying risk factor, such as interest rates, stock indices, or economic development. One is interested in a functional form between instrument price or risk and underlying risk factors as well as in functional dependency of the risk factors itself. Today different market risk measurement approaches exist. All of them rely on models representing single instrument, their behaviour and interaction with overall market. Many of this can only be built by using various data mining techniques on the proprietary portfolio data, since data is not publicly available and needs consistent supervision. Credit Risk Credit risk assessment is key component in the process of commercial lending. Without it the lender would be unable to make an objective judgement of weather to lend to the prospective borrower, or if how much charge for the loan. Credit risk management can be classified into two basic groups: Credit scoring/credit rating: Assignment of a customer or a product to risk level. (i.e., credit approval) Behaviour scoring/credit rating migration analysis. Valuation of a customer‘s or product’s probability of a change in risk level within a given time. (i.e., default rate volatility) In commercial lending, risk assessment is usually an attempt to quantify the risk of loss to the lender when making a particular lending decision. Here credit risk can quantify by the changes of value of a credit product or of a whole credit customer portfolio, which is based on change in the instrument’s ranting, the default probability, and recovery rate of the instrument in case of default. Further diversification effects influence the result on a portfolio level. Thus a major part of implementation and care of credit risk management system will be a typical data mining problem: the modelling of the credit instrument’s value through the default probabilities, rating migrations, and recovery rates. Three major approaches exist to model credit risk on the transaction level: accounting analytic approaches, statistical prediction and option theoretic approaches. Since large amount of information about client exist in financial business, an adequate way to build such models is to use their own database and data mining techniques, fitting models to the business needs and the business current credit portfolio. Portfolio Management Risk measurement approaches on an aggregated portfolio level quantify the risk of a set of instrument or customer including diversification effects. On the other hand, forecasting models give an induction of the expected return or price of a financial instrument. Both make it possible to manage firm wide portfolio actively in a risk/return efficient manner. The application of modern risk theory is therefore within portfolio theory, an important part of portfolio management. With the data mining and optimization techniques investors are able to allocate capital across trading activities to maximise profit or minimise risk. This feature supports the ability to generate trade recommendations and portfolio structuring from user supplied profit and risk requirement. With data mining techniques it is possible to provide extensive scenario analysis capabilities concerning expected asset prices or returns and the risk involved. With this functionality, what if simulations of varying market c onditions e.g. interest rate and exchange rate changes) cab be run to assess impact on the value and/or risk associated with portfolio, business unit counterparty, or trading desk. Various scenario results can be regarded by considering actual market conditions. Profit and loss analyses allow users to access an asset class, region, counterparty, or custom sub portfolio can be benchmarked against common international benchmarks. Trading For the last few years a major topic of research has been the building of quantitative trading tools using data mining methods based on past data as  input to predict short-term movements of important currencies, interest rates, or equities. The goal of this technique is to spot times when markets are cheap or expensive by identifying the factor that are important in determining market returns. The trading system examines the relationship between relevant information and piece of financial assets, and gives you buy or sell recommendations when they suspect an under or overvaluation. Thus, even if some traders find the data mining approach too mechanical or too risky to be used systematically, they may want to use it selectively as further opinion. Trading is based on the idea of predicting short term movements in the price/value of a product (currency/equity/interest rate etc.). With a reasonable guesstimate in place one may trade the product if he/she thinks it is going to be over valued or undervalued in the coming future. Trading traditionally is done based on the instinct of the trader. If he/she thinks the product is not priced properly he/she may sell/buy it. This instinct is usually based on past experience and some analysis based on market conditions. However, the number of factors that even the most expert of traders can account for are limited. Hence, quite often these predictions fail. The price of a financial asset is influenced by a variety of factors which can be broadly classified as economic, political and market factors. Participants in a market observe the relation between these factors and the price of an asset, account for the current value of these factors and predict the future values to finally arrive at the future value of the asset and trade accordingly. Quite often by the time a trained eye detects these favourable factors, many others may have discovered the opportunity, decreasing the possible revenues otherwise. Also these factors in turn may be related to several other factors making prediction difficult. Data mining techniques are used to discover hidden knowledge, unknown patterns and new rules from large data sets, which may be useful for a variety of decision making activity. With the increasing economic globalization and improvements in information technology, large amounts of financial data are being generated and stored. subjected to data mining techniques to discover hidden patterns and obtain predictions for trends in the future and the behaviour of the financial markets. With the immediacy offered by data mining, latest data can be mined to obtain crucial information at the earliest. This in turn would result in an improved market place  responsiveness and awareness leading to reduced costs and increased revenue. Advancements made in technology have enabled to create faster and better prediction systems. These systems are based on a combination of data mining techniques and artificial intelligence methods like Case Based Reasoning (CBR) and Neural Networks (NN). A combination of such a forecasting system together with a good trading strategy offers tremendous opportunities for massive returns. The value of a financial asset is dependent on both ma croeconomic and microeconomic variables and this data is available in a variety of disparate formats. NN and CBR techniques can be applied extensively for predicting these financial variables. NN are characterized by learning capabilities and the ability to improve performance over time. Also NN can generalize i.e. recognize new objects which may be similar but not exactly identical to previous objects. NN with their ability to derive meaning from imprecise data can be used to detect patterns which are otherwise too complex to be detected by humans. NN act as experts in the area that they have been trained to work in. these can be used to provide predictions for new situations and work in real time. Thus, historic data available about financial markets and the various variables can be used to train NN to simulate the market. CBR methodology is based on reasoning from past performances. It uses a large repository of data stored as cases which would include all the market variables in this case. When a new case is fed in (in the form of a case containing the concerned variables), the CBR algorithm predicts the performance/result of this case based on the cases it has in its repository. Data mining techniques can be used to detect hidden patterns in these cases which may then be used for further decision making. CBR methods can be used in real time which makes analysis really quick and helps in real time decision making resulting in immediate profits. Thus data mining and business intelligence (CBR and NN) techniques may be used in conjunction in financial markets to predict market behaviour and obtain patterned behaviour to influence decision making. †¢ Customer Profiling and Customer Relationship Management Banks have many and huge databases containing transactional and other details of its customers. Valuable business information can be extracted from these data stores. But it is unfeasible to support analysis and decision making using traditional query languages; because human analysis breaks down with volume and dimensionality. Traditional statistical methods do not have the capacity and scale to analyse these data, and hence modern data mining methodologies and tools are increasingly being used for decision making process not only in banking and financial institutions, but across the industries. Customer profiling is a data mining process that builds customer profiles of different groups from the company’s existing customer database. The information obtained from this process can be used for different purposes, such as understanding business performance, making new marketing initiatives, market segmentation, risk analysis and revising company customer policies. The advantage of data mining is that it can handle large amounts of data and learn inherent structures and patterns in data. It can generate rules and models that are useful in enabling decisions that can be applied to future cases. Customer Behaviour Modeling (CBM) or customer profiling is a tool to predict the future value of an individual and the risk category to which he belongs to based on his demographic characteristics, life-style and previous behaviour. This helps to focus on customer retention. The two important facts that have important implication in selecting customer profiling methods are: – Profiling information can consist of many variables (or dozens of them). – Majority of them are categorical variables (or non-numeric variables or nominal variables). Customer profiling is to characterize features of special customer groups. Many data mining techniques search profiles of special customer groups systematically using Artificial Intelligence techniques. They generate accurate profiles based on beam search and incremental learning techniques. Customer profiling also uses many predictive modeling methods. Predictive modelling techniques applicable can be categorized into two broad approaches. They depend on the type of predicted information or variables, also called target variables. If the type of predicted values is categorical, classification techniques is preferred to be used. Classification Methods: In this approach, risk levels are organized into two categories based on past default history. For example, customers with past default history can be  classified into â€Å"risky† group, whereas the rest are placed as â€Å"safe† group. Using this categorization information as target of prediction, Decision Tree and Rule Induction techniques can be used to build models that can predict default risk levels of new loan applications. Value Prediction Methods: In this method, for example, instead of classifying new loan applications, it attempts to predict expected default amounts for new loan applications. The predicted values are numeric and thus it requires modelling techniques that can take numerical data as target (or predicted) variables. Neural Network and regression are used for this purpose. The most common data mining methods used for customer profiling are: – Clustering (descriptive) – Classification (predictive) and regression (predictive) – Association rule discovery (descriptive) and sequential pattern discovery (predictive) In CRM, data mining is frequently used to assign a score to a particular customer or prospect indicating the likelihood that the individual will behave in a particular way. For example, a score could measure the propensity to respond to a particular insurance or credit card offer or to switch to a competitor’s product. Data mining can be useful in all the three phases of a customer relationship-cycle: customer acquisition, increasing value of the customer and customer retention. For example, a typical banking firm let say sends 1 million direct mails for credit card customer acquisition. Past researches have shown that typically 6% of such target customers respond to these direct mails. Banks use their credit risk models to classify these respondents in good credit risk and bad credit risk classes. The proportion of good credit risk respondents is only 16% out of the total respondents. So, as net result, roughly only 1% of the total targeted customers are converted into the cr edit card customers through direct mailing. Seeing the huge cost and effort involved in such marketing process, data mining techniques can significantly improve the customer conversion rate by more focused marketing. Using a predictive test model using decision tree techniques like CHAID (Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detection), CART (Classification And Regression Trees), Quest and C5.0; it can be analyzed which customers are more probable to respond. And using this with the risk model using techniques like neural network can help build a test model. The way data mining can actually be built into the CRM application is determined by the nature of customer interaction. The customer interaction could be inbound (when the customer contacts the firm) or outbound (when the firm contacts customers). The deployment requirements are quite different. Outbound interactions such as direct â€Å"Building Profitable Customer Relations with Data Mining†, Herb Edelstein mail campaign involve the firm selecting the people whom to be mailed by applying the test model to the customer database. In other outbound campaigns like advertising, the profile of good prospects shown by the test model needs to be matched to the profile of the people the advertisement would reach. For inbound transactions such as telephone or internet order, the application must respond in real time. Therefore the data mining model is embedded in the application and actively recommends an action. In either case, one of the key issues in applying a model to new data set is the transformations that are made in building the model. The ease with which these changes are embedded in the model determines the productivity of deploying these tools. †¢ Marketing and customer care Because high competitions in the finance industry, intelligent business decisions in marketing are more important than ever for better customer targeting, acquisition, retention and customer relationship. There is a need for customer care and marketing strategies to be in place for the success and survival of the business. It is possible with the help of data mining and predictive analytics to make such strategies. Financial institutions are finding it more difficult to locate new previously unsolicited buyers, and as a result they are implementing aggressive marketing program to acquire new customer from their competitors. The uncertainties of the buyer make planning of new services and media usage almost impossible. The classical solution is to apply subjective human expert knowledge as rules of thumb. Until recently, replacing the human expert by computer technology has been difficult. An interesting tool available in marketing and financial institution is analysis of client’s data. This allows analysis and calculation of key indicators that help bank to identify factors that affected customer’s demand in the past and customer’ need in the future. Information about the customer’s personal data can also give indications that affect future demand. In case of analysis of retail debtors and small corporations, marketing tasks will typically include factors about the customer himself, his credit record and rating made by external rating agencies. With the advent of data mining and business intelligence tools it has become possible for banks to strengthen their customer acquisition by direct marketing and establish multi- channel contacts, to improve customer development by cross selling and up selling of products, and to increase customer retention by behaviour management. It is possible for the banks to use the data available to retain its best customers and to identify opportunities to sell them additional services. The profiling of all the valuable accounts can be done and the top most say 5-10 % can be assigned to Relationship Managers, whose job will be to identify new selling opportunities with these customers. It is also possible to bundle various offers to meet the need of the valued customers. Data mining can also help the banks in customizing the various promotional offers. For example the direct mails can be customized as per the segment of the account holders in the bank. It is also possible for the banks to find out thepr oblem customers who can be defaulters in the future, from their past payment records and the profile and the data patterns that are available. This can also help the banks in adjusting the relationship with these customers so that the loss in future is kept to its minimum. Data mining can improve the response rates in the direct mail campaigns as the time required to classify the customers will be reduced, this in turn will increase the revenues, improve the sales force efficiency from the target group. Data mining helps the banks to optimize their portfolio of services, delivery channels. A record of past transactions can give useful insight to the bank and different locations /branches of same branch can also follow some patterns that when noticed can be used as past records to learn from and base the future actions upon. Data Mining techniques can be of immense help to the banks and financial institutions in this arena for better targeting and acquiring new customers, fraud detection in real time, providing segment based products for better targeting the customers, analysis of the customers’ purchase patterns over time for better retention and relationship, detection of emerging trends to take proactive stance in a highly competitive market adding a lot more value to existing products and services and launching of new product and service bundles. Reference:

Elementary School and Middle School Essay

Transitioning from elementary civilize to nitty-gritty drill is something we each(prenominal) demand or had to do Most kids cringe at the fantasy of making this huge step in life. For many students this transition can be a time of mixed emotions. Having been by means of this experience, I will comp ar and secern the two, hoping that this will give you a turn over picture of elementary and nerve schooldays. dewy-eyed and middle school have clear-cut characteristics. In elementary schools, you basically have your homeroom teacher and one an opposite(prenominal) teacher. The ride of students is very limited and you argon more(prenominal) often than not escorted by a teacher.Teachers are more understanding and are not as demanding because of the students age. Fun age are set aside as an award for students that have done what is anticipate of them. Most of the children are rest homed in classroom with the same students each year. simple school is very important in our young students lives this is where it all starts. However, middle school students are judge to execute their daily tasks without assistance. Teachers are on that tiptop to direct the students in right pedagogy everything else is left up to the student.Middle school students have several different classes, in each class it is usually a different teacher. Students have lockers to store their books and other supplies. In middle school students are required to be more fencesitter and serious about school. Elementary school set the pace for all other levels of schooling. Students enter elementary school reading all the basic aspects of school administration and the checking professional personcess. At this stage in life most students are impatient(predicate) to learn and get excited to learn new things. Elementary is the main point of delivery, it introduces social skills, mienal adjustments, and basic pedantic learning.Middle school prepares students for higher education. Ul timately, middle school bridges the gap betwixt elementary and high school. It is definitely a different experience than elementary, but it prepares students for their time to come and encourages them to be more independent. Elementary schools and middle schools in like manner have common qualities. They are both open Monday through Friday on the same days. separately day students annihilate lunch at a designated time. alone students are expected to sit in desks in an appropriate manner. Teachers require students to be respectful and display good behavior at all times.Homework is presumptuousness on a daily origination and class discussions are routine also. prepare is essentially school with minor differences. for each one school level has its give birth pros and cons, they are also very similar. They each have their own benefiting factors and they are used to their advantage. School systems up this way because it is initially what works in our culture. Elementary and mid dle schools are stepping stones that that process us get from one place to another in our academic life. Each level is an important standpoint for academic excellence and they should be taken disadvantageously so that you can be an good student/learner.

OMD Project Management Essay

Background cultivation OMD conduct perplexity is a consultancy that provides construction realise perplexity for its lymph nodes. OMD sound discoverion heed was set up approximately eighteen months ago and has a ply of three. They waste access to a huge acquisition base, which may be c wholeed upon as required to encounter project conditions. This helps to bring down overheads and increase profit ability. The flora include the following services* measured surveys,* agendum of condition (report on the state of the building, identifying any(prenominal) argonas that leave behinding incur rectification at the lymph nodes cost.* Lease judgement (review legal documents on invitees behalf)* Cost estimate of endures.* press whole shebang to specialist contractors* Manage projects* Agree concluding costs of the project with contractors on behalf of client* agree statutory regulations are complied with (planning approvals building regulations and disabled inconsis tency act)Although OMD Project management is a sm exclusively troupe it has a large client base. These vary from large multi-national companies to sm altogether private businesses. They specialise with the retail area where they take over at least twenty years of experienceProblem A current fare that the union has is invoicing. Invoicing currently do-nothing take up to an hour to complete. Invoicing is currently d superstar by strive and on paper, this is not a very good way of doing this argument because it takes up withal a great deal date and human erroneous belief is often an issue. These errors washstand include charging too much or too little specie. By providing an handbill clay it would husband the familiarity large make divulges of time an effort. It would similarly reduce the heart of human error and increase the verity of the placard.Current Invoice System OMD project management currently do all of their invoicing on paper. This representation t hat the consultant forget remember his hours his expenses and his hourly drift in his head and when it comes around to invoicing the client he go away quality all of these things up on to Microsoft word, print it off and give it to the client so the are able to pay the company. As you could tuck this is a very inefficient way of invoicing the client. This grass similarly lead to large summate of errors during the invoicing process, for compositors case a client may be low charged or over charged.End substance absubstance absubstance abuser Skills The primary(prenominal) user of the document that I willing shit is of the grey-haireder generation. He prefers to do things the old fashioned way, this means that he deals to do his invoicing on paper using a calculator and a pen and it would currently take him longer to create an invoice on the estimator than it would for him to do it on paper, however he is not congeries computer illiterate and he is able to use close w ord processing and spread sheet platformmes. OMD Project Management would like to me to create an invoice musical arrangement that is simple yet effective so that he is able to save time by move his invoice system onto computer and they would excessively like me to create a system that is able to be apply by everyone in the company.RequirementsGeneral* The invoice must(prenominal)iness be in Lucida sans console.* The text must be black in colour* The broadcast must be user friendly* The company logo must be at the slip away of the invoice* The clients book of facts point must be at the top left of the rascal but lower than the logo.* The invoice trope should be on the left hand side of the marrow squashmon and under the citation.* A division of the invoice should be in the middle of the rapscallion honest to a lower place the invoice be.* The match, in bold, will go underneath the invoice dislocation.* The company address will go at the bottom of the scally wag.* It must look professional.qualitative* The plan must be able to gestate all of the different types of expenses.* The class must be able to name different types of jobs.* The program must double up as an estimating system.* The program must produce an accurate invoice.* The program must fend for different client addressesQuantitative* From start to finish off the invoice must scarce take 15 minutes.* The invoice must be able to hold 3 different types of jobs* The program must be able to hold at least 20 different client addressesHardware and Software there is a currently a huge amount of hardware available on the market. You post steal many different types of computer each one worthy for a different purpose, for example laptops are por bow and contribute be taken anywhere, this can be very convenient as the user is able to do his work anywhere and also with the invention of wireless technology the user can connect to the meshwork anywhere that wireless internet is available. Another type of PC that is available is background knowledge PC. This is a PC that stays stationary. This type of PC gives you a lot much room to type etc and also has a mouse as standard, these can be permanently linked up to a printer and/or the internet.The current system that OMD Project management runs is a Compaq Presario with an Intel Pentium 4 processor. OMD Project Management tints that there is no need to purchase a modern system because they feel that their current system is sufficient and suitable for the job in hand. on that point are many different types of software that is suitable for this project. I believe that the most capture is a spreadsheet package. This is because you are able to use the program to picture lots of different things. With a bit of self teaching you are able to use the program to do lots of different processes. OMD Project Management already has Microsoft office XP installed on their system and they feel that I should use Micro soft Excel to create their invoice system. This is so that it is compatible with their system. I believe that this is a good choice as Excel is more than adequate for the task in hand.Input move in the job type engraveEnter all the things to with the amount of work done* The reckon of sidereal days worked.* Enter the correct code that corresponds to the appropriate expenditure paid per dayEnter all the applicable expenses flesh out* The progeny of miles travelled and the number of nights stayed in a hotel.Enter the code for the desired client addressEnter the client addresses.* Code number* Address retrace 1* Address line 2* postcode* contact number movementLookup the type of job according to the code and multiply the rate of pay by the number of days worked.Calculate the amount of expenses owed for travelling.Calculate the amount of expenses owed for staying in hotels.Calculate sub-total, VAT and the final total. outturnA full invoice with the amount owed for work done and the amount owed for expenses with sub-totals, VAT added and the final total at the end.It should also display the company logo, company address, company logo and the client address.It should look professional. shew Strategy I will test my program in three different ways. I will ask my end user to use my new system and ask them to give me feedback on it so I am able to adjust it to their liking. to a fault I will devise tests that will be conducted during and after the implementation stage this will acknowledge me to improve my system greatly and identify any errors that are in my system. canvassNumberTestTest DataExpectedOutcome developedOutcomeCorrectiveAction1abc chasten dateValidation run. average10/08/05Extreme32/08/05 preposterous374hcbsiWill yieldData.Wont hold the date.Should not accept thisAs anticipateAs expectedAs expected2 note that the commandment has worked to suppose the sub-total.N/AThe sum of the total cash owed for work and expenses.As expected3 occlusive t hat the reflexion for operative out the VAT works.N/AThe product of the sub-total multiplied by 17.5%.As expected4Check that the look for working out the total works.N/AThe sum of the sub-total and the VAT.As expected5 abcCheck the hunting function works for the job type code number.no(prenominal)mal2Extreme4Erroneous224hsdnsgIt should return 315.00.It comes up with an error messageIt should come up with an error message.As expectedIt comes up with 275 which is the value for 3As expectedPut a governance rule on it so that no number higher than 3 can be entered.6Check that the normal for working out the total amount of money owed for work done works.N/AThe product of the price paid per day and the number of days worked.As expected7Check that reflection for calculating travel expenses works.N/AThe product of the price per mile and the number of miles travelled.As expected8Check that formula for calculating the amount of money owed for staying in hotels.N/AThe product of the pri ce paid per night and the number of nights stayed.As expected9Check that formula for calculating the total expenses owed for works.N/AThe sum of the amount owed for travelling and the amount owed for hotelsAs expected10Check that the sum-up page big spill works.N/AThe sacking takes you to the summary page.As expected11Check that the breakdown page large instruction handout works.N/AThe spillage takes you to the breakdown page.As expected12Check that the job type page macro button works.N/AThe button takes you to the job type page.As expected13Check that the client address page macro button works.N/AThe button takes you to client address pageAs expected14Check that the vindicated invoice/summary macro button works.N/AThe button clears all of the entries that are on the invoice.As expected15Check that clear breakdown macro button works.N/AThe button will clear all of the entries that are on the summary sheet.As expected16Check that the back to briny placard macro button on t he breakdown sheet works.N/AThe button will take you back to the master(prenominal) card page.As expected17Check that the back to main menu macro button on the job type sheet works.N/AThe button will take you back to the main menu page.As expected18 abcCheck data validation for D2D14 on breakdown sheet to allow numbers only.Normal30ExtremeDErroneousdn8949The program allows entry.It shows an error message to explain that no letter are allowed.As above.As expectedAs expectedAs expected19 abTest the lookup function for the client addressesNormal3Extreme51Erroneous73hdhb.It will look up the client address with that code number.It shows N/A in the electric cell meaning there is an error in the formula.As above.As expectedIt comes up with zeroAs expectedI will put a validation rule on the cell so that it will only allow numbers below 51.20Check that the back to main menu macro button on the client details sheet works.N/AThe button will take you back to the main menu page.As expected21Gi ve the program to OMD project Management for them to test itImplementation Log17/11/05The first stage of my implementation was to go into two worksheets.I whence renamed my worksheets for easy reference the sheets will be named Main Menu, Summary, Breakdown, Job typewrite and Client Details. here(predicate) I fuck off entered all of the column headings for the client details addresses present I have highlighted cells A1F51 this allows the user to enter up to 50 different addresses as stated in the requirements. I then named the table Address.Here I have entered all the data for the different types of jobs.And here I have doted the cells to currency so that the data in these cells is displayed as a currency.I highlighted cells B2D5 and inserted a name. The table name is now jobs.Here I have entered all of the headings for this table and I have then highlighted cells A1F15 and named them Breakdown.Here I have entered the vlookup formula,that will lookup the different rates that c orrespond to the code No. entered and put them onto this sheet.As you can see the vlookup formula has worked as it has entered the rate of pay. I have also put in the formula to workout amount of money owed.I have entered the formula to calculate the amount of money owed for travelling.Here I have entered the formulae to work out the total amount of money owed for expenses and to work out the money owed for staying in hotels. I have also formatted all the cells containing monetary set to currency.As you can see here I have entered all the text onto the summary sheet.Here I have entered a validation rule to the date cell on the invoice which only allows a date to be entered in the format 00/00/00 and it must be greater than 01/01/2000.I also added my own error message to inform the user of what the need to enter.Here I have entered the vlookup formula which will lookup each part of the address that corresponds to the code and the transfer them onto this sheet. I entered the same for mula for the 4 cells below but each time increasing the column index number by one.This is the formula that copies the amount of money owed for work from the breakdown sheet onto the summary sheet.This formula is the same as above except that it copies the total amount of expenses owed instead of the amount of money owed for workHere is the formula to calculate the sub-total.And here is the formula to work out the VAT to be added.And finally the formula that will work out the total amount of money owed.This is me recording the macro that will take you from the main menu page to the breakdown page. I will do the same for each macro that is use for navigation. To create the macro button I used the forms toolbar and clacked on the button icon and I move the button. I then right clicked it and assigned the appropriate macro to it. So now whenever I click the button it will take me to the specified page.Here I am assigning the macro to the macro button. I have recorded a macro that d eletes all the entries that have been entered into the invoice breakdown sheet.This macro button clears all the information, on the invoice summary page, that changes. And for the addresses it changes the code so that a line is displayed instead of the client address.I did this each time I recorded a new macro and just chose a new name for it.