Wednesday, July 31, 2019

American Superconductor Case

American Superconductor offer electric power infra structure from its generation to distribution. AMSC is the leader in alternate energy. The company has two main business units: AMSC power systems and AMSC Superconductors. AMSC Superconductors American Superconductor has spent nearly 18 years as public limited company developing transmission wires of high quality in order to generate and deliver power. The Company has been posting continuous losses and mostly dwindling on cash.It has however posted recently its first ever profit for the quarter ended 31st March 2009 by earning a profit of $1. 3 million or 3 cents per share. (MSN Money) Debt Verses Equity Financing Equity and debt financing both have their advantages and disadvantages explaining why most big companies select an optimal capital structure which is a mix of debt and equity. Theoretically having a higher ratio of debt in the capital structure maximizes the return on equity. The interest payments on debt are tax deductibl e and usually the cost of debt is much lower than the cost of equity.With debt financing a company pays a fixed interest payment irrespective of the amount of profit or growth it has achieved i. e. it does not have to share its profits with its creditors. For a profitable company requiring extra capital, â€Å"debt financing† is the best option because with debt financing it does not have to share its profits or the ownership of the business with others. Equity injection however results in further dilution of earnings and management control. With the above argument one may feel that debt financing is the best option.Debt financing is a good option as long as the company has huge profits and liquid assets to support it. For a business that is facing losses, debt payments can be a huge burden in the form of interest payments. The creditors will have to be paid while the stockholders on the other hand will not get any dividends since the company is only making a loss. We can the refore say that equity financing puts less of a burden on a company’s financials when profitability is depleting or business is posting a loss.Higher equity percentage in the capital structure impacts the financial ratios of the company positively. Restructuring to 100% Equity It all started after the 2003 black out which occurred due to the over load of power grids and American Superconductors stocks surged by nearly 42% as an expectation that the quality wires manufactured by American Superconductors could be used to relieve congestion on the power grids. The company took this situation as an opportunity and the managers and board of directors decided to forgo debt financing of $50 million and adopt an equity financing strategy.The company raised $51. 1 million by selling shares which helped strengthen the balance sheet and enhanced the liquidity condition of the company. American Superconductors however continued making losses, but conversion of capital structure to 100% e quity allowed the company to reduce its interest expense significantly. Since higher leverages magnifies return on equity of a profitable business but also maximizes the loss by putting additional pressure on the profit and loss account of a company.AMSC after converting to 100% equity capital structure saved millions of dollars every year in terms of interest expense. Recently AMSC has posted its first profit since the capital restructuring in 2003. If AMSC had not converted to equity financing it would have had a major problem financing its cash needs and credit worthiness would have gotten worse. The Debt to Equity ratio would have increased and debt would have gotten more and more expensive for the company thus increasing the interest expense of the company and it may have never became profitable.Long term debt continues to be zero whereas the number of outstanding shares can be seen increasing from 19. 7 million shares to 41. 5 million shares. Conclusion American Superconductor being a technology company had to face many challenges such as failed projects, higher cost of business and ever changing environment. Board of Directors in my opinion took a very good decision by not using long term debt in their capital structure. AMSC has been a subject of criticism but it has finally posted a profit and if it stays profitable they might want to rethink their optimal capital structure.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

The Reality of the Moon Landing

During the 1960s, the Cold War and the Vietnam War were in full swing, and tensions grew internationally and nationally. People began to lose trust in the moral and ethical behavior of the government. One example of this distrust occurred following a major historical event around the same time period. With millions of people watching, a United States astronaut was televised setting foot on the moon for the first time.Some skeptics thought that the moon landing was fabricated by the U. S.’s desire to beat the Soviet Union in the Space Race; however, the points made by these conspiracy theorists are mere speculation, lack solid evidence and leave more questions than answers. For example, lying about the authenticity of the landing came with too much of a risk of getting caught by other countries. Those who claim the landing never happened also stated that the moon landing was filmed on a movie set, but they do not consider that the special effects needed to create such a realist ic scene were not yet developed thoroughly enough at that time.If the moon landing was a falsehood, the lie would be an immense secret kept with great difficulty, considering the thousands of people who would be involved in the hoax. This paper will prove that the moon landing did occur, and will also disprove the opposing side. There was not enough motivation for the U. S government to stage the landing on the moon because that lie would encompass too much of a risk and likelihood of getting caught by the world. Although President Kennedy was under a lot of pressure to compete and excel in the â€Å"Space Race† with the Soviet Union, that competition only served to motivate success.American pride and support for the U. S. space program was strong and would be even further bolstered if the U. S. would be able to beat the Soviets to the moon. According to the article â€Å"The Decision to Go to the Moon,† by Steve Graber, he states that â€Å"The decision involved much consideration before making it public, as well as enormous human efforts and expenditures to make what became Project Apollo a reality by 1969. † Clearly the decision to formally challenge NASA and the world with this undertaking was not made lightly.Kennedy, at this point, was quite determined to prove that the U.S. did in fact possess the technology and the ability to lead the world into space. President Kennedy, along with NASA, was determined to get a man to the moon, and he brought the American people together and united them under the common goal of beating their enemy by the end of the decade. Enormous efforts were underway as NASA and the government began constructing their plans. The success in putting a man on the moon gave the U. S. tremendous advances in technology, scientific knowledge, and improved economic and political advantages from the use of satellites.Thus, by analyzing the motives to either fake the landing or to actually pull the landing off, the obviou s answer was that there was little incentive to fake the landing and tremendous benefits to actually landing a man on the moon. The U. S. government obtained enough motivation to complete the goal of landing a man on the moon by the end of the decade because they would gain significant benefits and not because they desperately wanted to beat the Soviets; they also had no need to worry about the risk of getting caught since there was no need to to lie, therefore, the U. S. did land on the moon.Some conspiracy theorists believe that the moon landing was faked because motivation to â€Å"beat† the Soviets to the moon was too strong to delay; however the government realized the other motivations besides beating the Soviets, so the moon landing did occur. Both the U. S. and Russia were watching each other extremely closely, waiting for the other to slip. In his article â€Å"Did NASA Fake the Moon Landing,† Ray Villard states that a group of citizens made a claim that †Å"The United States needed to cement its world leadership during the Cold War by pretending to pull off what really was a technologically impossible stunt.†But, the U. S. at this time did possess the correct technology and landing on the moon was not impossible because of the efforts put in by the technicians and scientists to create the necessary machinery. The U. S. also wanted to make their world leadership stronger, but they could not lie to achieve that goal because the Soviets were watching the U. S. and their every move during this time. If the Soviets were to find out the landing was a lie or was staged then they would easily expose the U. S. to the world.But, the Soviets did not deny the landing and accepted the fact the U. S.  landed on the moon first knowing we did actually possess the technology to go to space. This fact alone provides evidence that the government did not stage the moon landing. Even though the U. S. government did desperately want to beat the So viet Union there was no reason to lie because the U. S. knew they possessed the power and the technology to reach their goal. The government also knew that landing on the moon would bring more benefits to them, such as the advancement in science and a broader understanding of space, which would ultimately encourage them to not lie and follow through with their goal to get a man to the moon.With the support and the money from congress and the backing of the citizens, the U. S. acquired a strong determination to get to the moon first. Even though the theorists claim the motivation was wrong to land on the moon and that the government lied to the world, there is too much evidence in support of the moon landing because we did hold the advanced technology and the correct motivation; therefore the moon landing was not faked and did happen.The special effects at this time were not developed enough to stage a realistic moon landing and a film directed on Earth would not be able to fool the world, which means there would not be a reasonable way to fake the landing and the moon landing did occur. During the 1960’s the science fiction genre was just emerging and the available special effects technology was not nearly as sophisticated as today. For example, if the moon landing was created using special effects the moon most likely would not look as real as needed and many people would start questioning the reality of the landing.In the article Villard goes on to state that at that time â€Å"No microcomputers, digital-image processing, or 3-D animation software existed. The decade's landmark space film, 2001: A Space Odyssey, illustrates the pinnacle of special-effects capability in the 1960s. † Even the film, 2001: A Space Odyssey included flaws in regards to special effects because of how underdeveloped they were at the time the movie was made. The claim is that the same director who filmed the movie was also asked to stage the moon landing.If such were th e case, one would expect that the two films should contain similarities in production value, but the two sets of footage were both quite different from one another. Additional proof that the landing was not filmed is provided in video of the astronauts walking on the moon: the moonwalk is far too complex to be faked with the available special effects. In the videos, the men are almost floating at points- a feat that would be impossible to portray with the pull of gravity on Earth.1960’s America did not possess the movie making capabilities needed to create a believable moon landing on a movie set, leaving one other possibility: we actually did set foot on the moon. There are those that believe the moon landing was filmed in a large Hollywood movie set, however, this cannot be true because the movie technology was not capable of such a task and there are clear counter points for each reason the critics say the landing was filmed, such as why there are no stars; so there are st rong facts that the landing did happen.The critics claim with confidence that the scientific technology was not there to send a man to the moon but they fail to acknowledge the fact that we actually did not hold the technology to produce a realistic film of the landing. The fact of the matter was that because of the advances of top end scientists, engineers, test pilots, medical researchers, from across the country and the test flights that orbited the Earth, we were able to get a man to walk on the moon for the first time.But, despite this knowledge, according to an article from International Business Times the author states â€Å"Some theorists allege that NASA officials approached Kubrick sometime in early 1968 and asked him to film ‘footage’ depicting an earth ship landing on the moon and a space traveler walking on the lunar surface. † While the claim is a strong idea, the government would not lie about the landing because they knew the many benefits that wo uld come their way if they were able to land on the moon.The knowledge of what the country would gain pushed them even further to reaching their goal, as they eventually did. Theorists also say that since there was no stars in the photographs brought back, that proves Kubrick filmed the landing because there are billions of stars in space, yet not one star was in the photographs. But the landing took place during the lunar morning with the sun shining too brightly. Similar to the fact that we cannot see the stars from earth during the day, they cannot be seen while in space either: they are too bright to be captured in a picture.So the fact that there were not any stars actually helps prove the moon landing was not filmed because that gives more reality to the pictures if thought about from a scientific perspective. Even though the critics accumulated possible theories as to why they believe the landing was filmed, each can be refuted with scientific explanations, such as why there were no stars or why the flag was moving, and prove that Apollo 11 did land on the moon.If the moon landing never happened and the world was lied to, such a secret would be almost impossible to keep for this long, and therefore gives proof  that the moon landing occurred. Thousands of people would be needed to work on the staging- everyone from makeup artists to the director, and to this day not a single person ever come forward claiming the landing was a hoax or even hinted at the possibility. There were also thousands who were a part of the actual moon landing. In an article from Balance-Today. org the author states, â€Å"Including the astronauts, scientists, engineers and technicians, more than 400,00 skilled workers contributed to the Apollo project. To date, not one of them even hinted that the landings were faked.†Again, there was no hinting or an accidental slip that we never actually succeeded in landing on the moon and all of these people who were a part of the â €Å"staged† event would gain a lot of fame if they came forward with their story. The Soviet Union would also never keep the secret if they found out. The Soviets were looking for ways to hurt the U. S. and they would not think twice before exposing us to the world if they found out the U. S. government lied. Given human nature and the drive for power, fame, money and glory, it is simply unreasonable to believe a secret this immense could be kept for this long.Considering the fact that nobody came forward and confessed that the moon landing was a lie, then one can conclude the U. S. made the first man walk on the moon. Some say that the reason nobody confessed the landing was faked, was because the government threatened and murdered people who would potentially leak the secret; however the theory of the killings cannot be true because there were too many people involved, and since nobody hinted that the landing was a lie the landing did actually occur.The theory of the govern ment’s â€Å"murders† is farfetched because of the fact that there were thousands who would know and would be involved in the process of not only the actual moon landing, but a â€Å"staged† occurrence as well. In the article Villard states that conspiracy theorists believe that â€Å"The government scared and murdered potential tattletales, including its own astronaut heroes in a reprehensible assertion that the tragic 1967 Apollo 1 fire was rigged. † However, despite the existence of treacherous and devious governments, the democracy of the United States would never allow the government to carry out such an atrocity.As was becoming more and more the norm, the citizens would ask questions, and the media, along with other countries would also become involved. Also, even though the theorists say the government caused the Apollo 1 tragedy, that theory was proven wrong. After a thorough investigation the tragedy was determined to be caused by a spark from a short circuit in a bundle of wires, quickly causing the fire to spread through the flammable materials. The impossibility was too big for everyone to believe the government could silence or murder anyone involved.There were too many people and too many benefits for a person who could claim they worked on the greatest hoax ever. Even though the theorists tried to come up with an explanation for why nobody confessed, the idea that the government killed everyone is impossible because the murders would be too obvious, which means there was no secret that needed to be kept and no need to kill people who knew, so the moon landing was real. In conclusion, there is too much concrete evidence and reasoning for the moon landing to be faked. The U. S.retained the correct motivation to get to the moon first before the Soviet Union because of the benefits that would come to them such as what the satellites could offer and the scientific discoveries they found. Pulling off the lie would help the country’s growing status in the world but they would not gain much more than that besides being able to say they finally beat the Soviets in the Space Race. The moon landing being filmed on a movie set is not possible either because of the lack of the special effects technology during this time.Nothing made on Earth would look real enough to be presented to the world, especially the realistic moonwalk since there is no way to float on Earth. Unlike what the theorists claim, we did possess the scientific technology to go to space and land on the moon because NASA and the government brought in the top end scientists and engineers to accomplish the task some say was impossible. The secret, if the moon landing was faked, became to enormous to keep and the government could not murder every person without the killings resembling genocide.Since nobody ever came forward with a confession there is nobody to prove the moon landing was staged. As a result, the theories that accumulated after the moon landing cannot be possible because of the scientific evidence and the fact that there were multiple moon landings closely following the first Apollo mission which means we did possess the technology; therefore the U. S. government did not lie and the country did land the first man on the moon.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Southwest Airlines Case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Southwest Airlines Case - Essay Example The essay "Southwest Airlines Case" discusses the Southwest's Human Resource Policy, its Organizational Culture and their Human Resource Management practices in terms of ensuring the success of their business model. The real reason for Southwest's success is its remarkable Human Resource Policy and its Organizational Culture. Southwest believes, and practices, that its employees are family and the culture is entirely informal. Teamwork is the watchword and practiced from the top down. The entire strength of 14000 plus employees work with each other, help out each other, indeed reach out to comfort and support co-workers facing difficult times even in private lives. The company has nine labor unions but they are nowhere like their counterparts in other airlines. In the last decade, there has been only one strike lasting six days by machinists. It has dominated the Californian skies for over two decades and now in 1994 controls 45% of the market share of the aviation sector. It has the lowest cost per available seat mile in the industry at 7.1 cents that is 30% lower compared to its nearest rivals United and Continental. It is a lone operator that has no code sharing arrangement with any other airline. People management has always fascinated everyone and various theories have been expounded to explain how people act and react in different situations. The primary image of an organization is akin to family, clan or tribe where relationships, needs, feelings, and skills are the characteristics of its members.

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Information management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Information management - Essay Example This paper will equally explain why information and knowledge have become more important in contemporary societies, differentiating industrial from knowledge economies. The paper will relevantly apply the framework Knowledge Management Value Chain to explain how Knowledge Management Systems can improve knowledge management in organisations, and the limitations of such systems. Explaining the three conceptual frameworks by Michel Porter The three generic strategies for building a competitive advantage include cost leadership, differentiation, and focus. The focus strategy has two variables that include cost focus and differentiation focus. In cost leadership, a company seeks to become a low cost producer in its area of specialization where it must find and exploit available sources of cost advantage. This is possible only where the company is able to command prices in the neighborhood of the average price. In this case, cost advantage is dependent on the structure of the industry and its sources are not exclusive and may include proprietary technology, the pursuit of economies of scale, and preferential access to raw materials. A firm that manifests cost leadership guarantees competitive advantage. Dell Computer Company falls in this strategy. ... In cost focus strategy, the company seeks a lower-cost advantage in the minor market segments. It focuses on a basic product that is dominant and high priced but acceptable to sufficient consumers. A small retailer featuring its own-label is a good example in this strategy. In the differentiation focus strategy, a company seeks differentiation between needs and wants that an existing competitor is not providing within just one or a small number of target market segments. A perfume shop is a good example (Porter, 1998, p. 11-15). The five forces model addresses the operating environment of a company and includes the threat of entry, the power of buyers, the power of suppliers, the threat of substitutes, and competitive rivalry. The force of threat of entry notes that the ease of easier of new companies to enter the industry generates stiff competition. As such, the numerous conditions that limit the threat of new entrants to the market are the barriers to entry. On the other hand, the force of threat of substitutes is the probability of a consumer to change to a competitive product or service. This arises from the similarity of substitutes. The lower the changing cost the greater the threat. The force of power of suppliers relates to the amount of pressure that suppliers can place on a business. The larger the suppliers pressure power, the greater the competitive advantage. The force of pressure customers relate to the pressure that a customer can place on a business. The greater the customers pressure power, the less the competitive advantage of the company. The force of competition rivalry describes the intensity of competition between existing firms in an industry. Competitive advantage falls with an increase in competition. The

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Explaining governmental organizational structure Essay - 2

Explaining governmental organizational structure - Essay Example It has a local economic impact that annually support more than 1370 jobs in the town leading to Annual Earnings of about $78,025,500 and annual economic activities that are amounting to about $214,144,300. It’s a source of employment to the residents of Babylon in different fields like accountants, managers, and aircraft control staff. Since the airport is self-supporting, none of the towns earning from tax is spent in funding any of its operations. In addition the airport together with its residents also contributes over 600,000 dollars as tax to the town. The airport is also the home to the famous American Air power museum which invites air travel enthusiasts from all over the globe. The facility hence adds to the income of the town and the airport. It is also the home to Long Island Republic Airport Historical Society which keeps the important displays of the airport. Finally, the airport has led the town to attain national publicity. It hence hosts world class events like golf. This also earns the town much income. In a recap of all these economic developmental benefits that the airport generates to the town of Babylon, we can conclusively sum it up by saying that the republic airport is an economic pillar to the town of

HIPPA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

HIPPA - Essay Example The health sector across the world has developed various strategies for reducing medical errors and its effects (Becher and Chassin, 2010). These strategies are designed to reduce the increasing cases of medication errors and the impact of such errors on patients’ health. To be certain that the correct drug in the right dosage and route is prescribed to the right person at the right time, health care professionals ought to adopt and make proper use of Bar Code Label Rule. The Bar Code Label Rule requires the introduction of bar code on specified biological products and drugs. The bar code is then used to scan drugs and equipment to ensure proper drug administration. Over years, the Bar Code Label Rule has demonstrated significant contribution in zero rating cases of medication errors. Additionally, educational training on the most effective ways of reducing medication errors is relatively critical to all health care professionals. Training on interventional risk management, emerging medical errors prevention, techniques can also be effective in reducing medication errors as well as promoting team work among health professionals. To counter complications associated with drug name confusion, the health center ought to have a systematic and effective drug labeling mechanism. There is also need for pharmaceutical companies to develop a workable labeling mechanism that will reduce confusion in drug administration. The pharmacy technicians should complete medication history on the medication forms to necessitate correct drug prescription. This would reduce cases of incorrect prescription as in the case of Darnell Mares who was given Topril instead of Topramax. Additionally, cooperation between all stakeholders in hospital settings is also effective in reducing medication errors. Pablo Garca was prescribed with the drugs prescribed for Maria Garcia due to lack of proper communication among health professionals The heath center should consider introducing the

Friday, July 26, 2019

Comparison and Contrast of Definitions of Rape in Common Law and Research Paper

Comparison and Contrast of Definitions of Rape in Common Law and Modern Law - Research Paper Example Many states have different variations of the definition of rape which fits their Modern Statutory Law. The most general definition of the rape is as follows: any unlawful sexual penetration, which is also called a sexual assault. For instance, in California, rape is defined as â€Å"an act of sexual intercourse ... accomplished against persons will by means of force, violence, duress, menace, or fear of immediate and unlawful bodily injury on the person or another† (qt. in Lyon, 2004, p. 277). Introduction of the Model Penal Code in the Modern Law, as the result of general feminist movement in the 1970s, brought some changes to the definition of the rape, hence gave additional grounds for charges against the criminals. The two major reforms were: â€Å"(1) the partial abolition of the marital rape exemption; and (2) the increased emphasis on the nonconsent of the victim, rather than the use of force by the attacker, in defining rape† (Lyon, 2004, p. 278). The reforms brought both positive and negative attitudes of the public. The reform concerning marital rape was criticized for ambiguity and for victimization of men (Kilpatrick, 2000). Each of these reforms was meant to add something new to or change the definition of the rape in order to take into account all the circumstances of this type of criminal actions. However, there always has been some kind of confrontation in the lawmaking system. Only in recent years some amendments, for instance, the inclusion of the marital rape into the general definition of rape, brought improvements to the modern law, which â€Å"explicitly prohibits forced, nonconsensual intercourse at any time during the sexual act, rather than just at penetration† (Lyon 285).  

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Juvenile Probation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Juvenile Probation - Essay Example The jurisprudence today looks at these youngsters as victims of society rather than as perpetrators of a crime. There are many improvements and reforms being implemented in the juvenile justice system and one of these is the increasing use of probation to help wayward youngsters avoid jail time. In this regard, a highly recommended approach is the use of information technology to improve the probation administration system by giving probation officers access to vital data in a flash. High Performance Teams – one of the best game-changers in the administration of a juvenile probation system is the use of the new information technology (IT). The use of IT is a positive influence on those who need to monitor several hundreds or even thousands of the youngsters on probation. With an IT system in place, probation officers can obtain the needed information to make their jobs easier. Information technology has long been recognized as the enabler that has a big positive impact on soci al work practice. The information contained in a database will allow probation officers to make better decisions with regards to using a correct intervention modality with regards to a particular juvenile â€Å"probationer† because they have at hand information about that youngster.

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Money,Banking&Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Money,Banking&Finance - Essay Example The present prices of the bonds would help in the determination of the market rate of interest, or the price that would be paid for the use of the money for a period of time. There exists a functional relationship between the rate of interest and the time of the bonds. The term structure of interest rates or the yield curve shows the relationship between the rate of interest and the yields of the bonds with the terms to maturities. The curve is a representation of the various opportunities that may exist for the arbitrage as well as the expectation of the markets about the interest rates that may prevail in future. Interest Rates While carrying out the analysis of the yield curve it is essential to know the components of the nominal interest rates. This equation shows that the real rate of interest represented by r is the main component of the rate of interest. On the other hand, sigma is the risk premium that is being added to the rate of interest which is open to fluctuations due t o various events. On the other hand, ? is the representative of the rate of inflation while l is the component that would capture the liquidity. The various financial markets would offer bonds and other long term instruments that would be offering a variety of interest or the rates of return (Kettell, 2001, pp. 19-26). The premium is the representation of the consumer behaviour that would depict that the consumers would be unwilling to hold that particular asset class. The following diagram shows the break-up of the various components of the rates of interest. The loans that are provided for the long term cost higher because the premium for liquidity would increase with the increase in the tenure of the bonds. The people would always want to hold liquidity at the present period of time rather than a later period. The opportunity cost of keeping the money in the hand would be less in the present period as compared to the future period. Yield Curve The yield curve is drawn from the yi eld to maturity of the bonds. The yield to maturity (YTM) is considered to be the approximate value of the rate of interest for a particular term to maturity of a bond. The various points of the terms to maturity and the corresponding yields to maturity are plotted on a plane and the curve that is fitted along these points is known as the yield curve. The following diagram is an example of a yield curve. In the plane the vertical axis measures the yield of the bonds and the horizontal axis measures the term to maturity of the bond. Figure 1: Yield curve The yield curve thus summarises yield of the different bonds that are being traded on a particular date. The yields or the different tenors in such cases may be different. The yield of a bond is the unique rate at which the cash flows that is provided by a bond is discounted. Thus even though the accrual of the cash flows are taking place at the different points in time the rate at which it is taking place is the same (Rossi, 2007, p p. 225-241). This rate is known as the yield to maturity of the bonds. In most cases the interest rates are considered to be fixed for the entire tenor. This would give rise to a flat yield curve as shown in the diagram below. Throughout the tenure of the bond the rate of interest that has been offered in case of this yield curve is 3.5%. Figure 2: Flat Yield Curve The

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Operating Systems and Networking Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Operating Systems and Networking - Coursework Example Background and Requirements The chosen case which requires solution is a storage and logistics company based in Surrey. Evidently through research, the company has around 200 vans with drivers running daily nationwide and 3 storage warehouses in London area. They aim to offer the best services for customers needing temporary storage spaces and deliveries (Bergman & Steven, 2009, P. 23). There is the need for any profit making company to have organizational measures and appropriate network design if the business is to run smoothly and make good profits. The organizational aspect of a company tends to incorporate a business plan which keeps the company or firm on track. Requirement Analysis Any piece of technological development comes in handy and thus being able to promote performance of organizations. The technological developments have enabled organized to adopt new materials and techniques which have as well led to an improvement in the kind of security being offered and delivery o f products (Bergman & Steven, 2009, P. 25). In that case, any given business organization should be able to adopt such technologies and apply means of security and risk management operations. Such applications are vital in ensuring that profitable business involvement has been done and eventually leading to business growth and expansion. The issue of network design and security has become a new form of development which has been able to effectively change the focus of security and business transactions in majority of the organizations today. The issue of network design is something which can have great impacts on any given organization and the reason it is something which should be adequately addressed (Bergman & Steven, 2009, P. 26). In that case, implementing network design in addition to enhancing security is one way through which several different organizations are adopting in order to become effective and competitive in the business realm. This is a new kind of network design p rovision through which technological knowledge and tools have to be incorporated, and thus has been able to change the mode of performance. In any given business, there are very many issues and operations which are done through connected networks, and which should be safeguarded to avoid any damages and losses on the organization. This is so because such kind of a loss can have very great impacts on the organization thus compromising its future developments (Bergman & Steven, 2009, P. 27). As more and more technological breakthroughs continue to be invented, similar infiltrations shall be expected and the reason the security blueprints which was mainly more of physical security has been on the change, and that shall be the case for the coming years as well. This has thus been able to integrate the use of commoditized controls which should function correctly other engaging in other forms of risks management systems. There are various functional tools or requirements that are involved in a network solution. Such functionalities vary accordingly depending with the organizational structure and the network design to be implemented. That is been the case such tools help to develop a strong and reliable network design for the organization (Bergman & Steven, 2009, P. 28). This is the design, which considerably brings positive

Monday, July 22, 2019

Renaissance (1300-1650), the Industrial Revolution Essay Example for Free

Renaissance (1300-1650), the Industrial Revolution Essay Throughout history, slavery has played a very prominent role in shaping the worlds societies and economies. Across three time periods in particular, slavery throughout the world has notable similarities and differences in areas such as the status of slavery, the way slavery influenced society, and the motivation for a civilization to practice slavery. These time periods are the Renaissance (1300-1650), the Industrial Revolution (1700-1900), and World Wars I and II (1914-1945). Renaissance The time period known today as the Renaissance was, as its name means, a â€Å"rebirth† of Greco-Roman values. It was a reaction against the Dark Ages and stood in stark contrast to the medieval time period before it. The practice of slavery was no exception. Whereas slavery had fizzled out during the Dark Ages, it was instituted again during the Renaissance. Slavery in the Renaissance began in Spain, and for a while the Spanish played the primary part in the slave market. Soon, though, slavery spread to the other parts of Europe. This was especially true with the case of the Italian city-states in which the Renaissance boomed. As the Renaissance grew in Italy and as the city-states expanded, slavery became more and more widespread until Italy became a main user of slaves (Hooker). In contrast to slavery in the later periods of the Industrial Revolution and the two World Wars which is explained later in this essay, slavery in the Renaissance was not solely based on race, but mostly religion (at least in Europe; another type of slavery was practiced in America during the Renaissance, as explained later). Europe and Africa at that time was divided between Christians and Muslims, and so slavery in nations dominated by either religion was based on captured people from the other religion. In other words, in the Renaissance, Christians mostly enslaved Muslims and Muslims mostly enslaved Christians. In the case of the Italian Renaissance, Muslims slaves came from â€Å"Spain, North Africa, Crete, the Balkans, and the Ottoman Empire† (Hooker). The vast majority of slaves at the beginning of the Renaissance were white (Hooker). But as the Renaissance progressed, black slaves began to be used more and more widely. In the beginning of the Renaissance, these African slaves were acquired through Arabs in North Africa, who also held them as slaves. When the Portuguese started exploring the African coast, they participated in a black slave market, shipping slaves to the Americas and back to Europe (Guild). El Mina was the first slave trading post set up by the Portuguese on the West Coast (â€Å"Gold Coast†) of Africa (Guild). Thanks to enslaved Africans, the Portuguese were especially successful in their plantations in the islands off the west coast of Africa known as the Cape Verde, where they transported many of the Africans they enslaved to work in plantations there (Gascoigne). While most slaves in the Industrial Revolution did hard labor in fields, most slaves in the Renaissance were domestic slaves. This means that they did work in the home, doing duties for their masters around the house. Rich people in the cities almost always had one or more slaves. Instead of the brutal, inhumane treatment of slaves common in the Industrial Revolution, slave-owners during the Renaissance commonly integrated their slaves into the family. In both the Industrial Revolution and the Renaissance, masters claimed all rights for their slaves; they did with them what they willed. Therefore, there arises the similarity between all three time periods in that commonly the slaves were used as sex slaves, although sex slaves in the World Wars were used mostly just for sex, not for hard labor. When masters in the Renaissance had an illegitimate child with a slave, the child was not a slave but was free (Hooker). However, when a child was born to a slave and its master in the Industrial Revolution, the child became a slave like its mother (â€Å"Master-Slave†¦). While most slaves were domestic in the Renaissance, another form of slavery was surfacing, slaves used for cheap labor in plantations. In the Renaissance, slaves were starting to be used in plantations, mostly in America, but also in plantations in Italy and off the coast of Africa (Gascoigne). So, in both the Renaissance and the Industrial Revolution, at least some slaves were used for hard labor. The Portuguese were the first to put slaves to work in plantations, and slaves soon came to be used on plantations in the Americas by nations such as Spain, Holland, France, England, and the Netherlands. The first slaves they enslaved in these colonies were the native peoples, but soon, the native population began to dwindle. Since Portugal had been exploring the coast of Africa and since Africa had a booming population of people, Africans became the people they predominantly enslaved (Guild). Thus, racial slavery was started. Blacks came to be viewed as lower than human, and this view spread to all the nations which came to have plantations in America. Millions of blacks were imported to plantations for sugar, spices, tobacco, coffee, etc. during the span of the Renaissance (Hornsby). Industrial Revolution Slavery went through many changes during the course of the Industrial Revolution. At the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, slavery on plantations that had developed in the Renaissance continued to grow in the Americas. With the success of the plantations in America, what is known as the triangular trade began to form, and this trade majorly affected the world’s economies and prosperity. This system of trade is known as the triangular trade because the directions of travel for the trade were in the shape of a triangle—from Europe to Africa to the Americas and back to Europe. Items such as weapons, liquor, jewelry, and products made from cotton were taken to Africa from Europe and traded for slaves. These were loaded on ships and taken to the Americas. Conditions in the ships were horrible. Thousands of slaves were chained in very tight spaces in the ships. Disease permeated the hold where slaves were kept. Slaves laid in their own excrement and urine, and were fed barely anything. Many slaves died or committed suicide—an average of 16% of slaves. When the horrible trip was over, the remaining slaves were auctioned and sold in slave markets to plantation owners in the Americas. The products made in the plantations, such as tobacco, coffee, sugar, spices, and molasses which could be made into rum were then shipped to Europe, completing the trade system. The British were the primary traders in this system, but other nations participated (Gascoigne). Slavery greatly affected the Industrial Revolution. It made it possible to create and grow products in a shorter period of time and for less money. All the master had to do was to provide food, which he have very little of, so slaves provided very cheap labor. In the case of America, slaves operated the new inventions such as the cotton gin to make cotton products easier. This greatly affected the economy of America. The prosperity in the South boomed as agriculture continued to see success. This cotton industry and therefore the textile industrial majorly drove the Industrial Revolution in America. It became the primary export and cash crop. Hundreds of thousands of slaves were imported until 1808, when the American slave trade was banned. Still, hundreds of thousands of slaves were moved across America to the South and West to work on cotton plantations. These plantations and slavery in general brought in a huge profit for the American people. A similarity between slavery in the Renaissance and the Industrial Revolution can be seen here—both used slavery as a catalyst for economies (â€Å"Africans.. †). But a difference is that most slaves in the Renaissance were domestic slaves in homes and were considered part of the family (Hooker). However, most slaves in the Industrial Revolution were plantation slaves and were considered less than human and were subjected to incredibly harsh treatment by their masters. However, near the Industrial Revolution, there was more of an awareness of the brutalities of slavery and more of a movement to stop it than the Renaissance. The final time period that will be discussed in this essay is the World Wars from 1914 to 1945. World Wars Forms of slavery used during World Wars I and II from 1914 to 1945 were very different from slavery before it and slavery after it. The wars during this period of history had a huge impact on all aspects of society, and so the status of slavery and the motivation for slavery was largely based on the huge wars taking place. During World War I and the time after it before World War II, outright slave traffic continued to be curbed in the areas of the world still practicing slavery. The slave trade still continued underground between countries in eastern Africa, especially Ethiopia, and the Middle East, especially Arabia. Throughout this period before World War II, there were outrages about revealed underground slave trades with enslaved Africans in Liberia and the Congo, and enslaved Native Americans in northern Peru (â€Å"Slavery†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ). Joseph Stalin was the dictator of the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1953. During his regime, millions of people were forced to work in labor camps. This was in accordance with the USSR’s Labor Code, which stated that all citizens must labor for the government. Prisoners, enemies of the state, and other convicts were sent to do hard manual labor in Siberia during this time. Citizens were accused of being enemies of the government and sent to work without a trial and without much grounds at all. Like in the Renaissance and Industrial Revolution, Stalin used his massive free labor force to build up the Soviet Union’s economy and to industrialize the nation. Labor projects included building roads and railroads, building houses and power plants, mining, cutting trees, working in fields, etc. The workers were given nothing but food. One third of all the workers died from the poor environment in which they worked and from starvation and the cold. They were brutally treated on unjust bases. Therefore, this â€Å"corrective labor,† as it was called, is really slavery at its core. World War II was the instigation of several other types of slavery, also, such as POW slavery, Holocaust slavery, and sexual slavery. Nazi Germany captured enemy civilians and soldiers and brutally enslaved them to fill the gaps in the workforce. Much of the weaponry made by the Germans during World War II was made by slaves. One manufacturing company alone – Krupp—held 100,000 slaves by the end of the war. Many of these slaves died from exhaustion, starvation, and lack of basic necessities. They were kept in stables like livestock. Those that didn’t die were forced to work in German factories and farms. In 1944, Germany held 9. 5 million slaves—7 million civilians and 2. 5 million captured soldiers. Russian women that the Germans captured were held as domestic slaves, and Russian adolescents that the Germans captured were apprenticed to German businessmen. Not only were the Germans notorious for their brutal system of slavery for prisoners of war, but even worse, they enslaved innocent Jews and other â€Å"undesirable† people during the Holocaust. As a method of exterminating them, these people were sent to labor camps where they were treated even worse than the prisoners of war. Children from 6-years-old up were forced to work in these camps. Slaves mined, built weapons, sewed, etc. Slaves there were driven to work too hard in tight spaces with the poorest of living conditions. They had poor and meager food rations and a shortage of shelter and clothing. Loads of people died from diseases such as tuberculosis, from being overworked, from the cold, and from starvation. Their corpses were systematically burned in huge crematoriums (Sylvester – everything above). The fact that there were scandals about slavery and labor camps during the time period of the World Wars indicates a similarity and difference between this time period and the Renaissance/ Industrial Revolution. A similarity is that all three time periods had some forms of slavery to enhance nations’ economies and extract resources. But a difference is that slavery in the World Wars was looked down upon and was underground, whereas it was not in the Renaissance. But there lies a similarity between the World Wars and the Industrial Revolution, in that in both, measures were enacted to end slavery and the slave trade. However, World War II had labor camps for prisoners of war and specific races, which had never been done before. It also had sexual slavery, which though it had been practiced before, never to the extent it was carried out in World War II. Some captured slaves in the World Wars were used as domestic slaves, as they were in the Renaissance. But in the World Wars, there was not the worldwide slave trade there was in the Renaissance and the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Part 222 Introduction The 18th century English poet William Cowper’s poem, â€Å"Pity for Poor Africans,† accurately portrays the world’s mindset throughout history about slavery. A line from that poem reads, â€Å"I pity them [slaves] greatly, but I must be mum, for how could we do without sugar and rum? † This sums up much of the world’s motivation for millennia for slavery. Throughout history, slavery has been a way to easily derive resources and produce goods. It has played a very prominent role in shaping the worlds societies and economies. Though it may have struck a chord with peoples’ consciences, the world did not know how else to get luxuries and how to live without them, and so the world allowed this horrific practice to go on. This essay details more of how slavery was used as an economic stimulus, how the world finally took action against it, and what forms of it still were used after this action took place. Across three time periods in particular, slavery throughout the world has notable similarities and differences in areas such as the status of slavery, the way slavery influenced society, and the motivation for a civilization to practice slavery. These time periods are the Renaissance (1300-1650), the Industrial Revolution (1700-1900), and World Wars I and II (1914-1945). Conclusion As one can clearly see, slavery has been a major factor in affecting and molding the world’s economies and societies throughout all of history. It has gone through major changes, affecting the world as a whole, especially in three time periods, namely, the Renaissance, the Industrial Revolution, and World Wars I and II. Throughout all three and under many names, it was used as cheap labor to easily produce goods and advance civilizations’ economies. This slavery did, and it played a massive role in getting the world to where it is today. Without slavery, America might not have been industrialized or industrialized as quickly. Without slavery, we would not have the manufactured goods we have today. However, I am by no means condoning slavery; if slavery had not been practiced, millions of innocent, beautiful people would have lived their lives in freedom and would not have been torn away from their homeland, families, and livelihood to go labor without profit for people who abused and beat them. The Civil War would have been largely prevented if it weren’t for slavery. Though slavery was mostly domestic in the Renaissance, this does not make it any better. Also, the plantation slave emerged in that time period, and the triangular trade between Europe, Africa, and the Americas continued well into the Industrial Revolution. Men achieved luxury through the pain and misery of others. Thankfully, mankind realized, though later than it should have been, how deplorable this system was. Finally, they put an end to it through abolitionist movements that spread throughout the world at the end of the Industrial Revolution. Yet, slavery continued in several other forms into the 20th century. Throughout the time period of the World Wars, labor camps emerged. Though these were seen as punishment for criminals and war prisoners, they were slavery at root, used to industrialize and make transportation routes, weaponry, etc. These labor camps were even used against innocent Jews and other â€Å"undesirables† during the Holocaust. Unbeknownst to the world for a time, even outright and brutal slavery was still used as exemplified by King Leopold of Belgium. Sexual slavery is another often overlooked form of slavery that had been carried out through past time periods like the Renaissance and Industrial Revolution but that was executed en masse by the Japanese during World War II. Still today, the pernicious act of slavery continues to be practiced, though concealed to the world, in underdeveloped countries of the world. Let us hope that mankind’s conscience continues to overshadow its greed and that slavery continues to be fought until it is completely wiped out the whole world over.

Analysis Soft Drink Essay Example for Free

Analysis Soft Drink Essay 1Analysis of the U. S. soft drink industry, based on the competitive forces model of Michael Porter. In the soft drink industry the entry of new competitors depends on the barriers to entry that are present, and also the reaction from existing competitors that the entrant can expect. I will now analyze the six major sources of barriers to entry the soft drink industry. Economies of scale deter entry by forcing the entrant to come in at large scale and risk strong reaction from existing firms or come in at a small scale and accept a cost disadvantage. If a company wants to decline its unit costs of their product, they will have to produce more to lower the cost. The more you produce, the lower the costs. In the soft drink industry establishing firms have brand identification and customer loyalties. The brand name can have differences. This is a high barrier to enter. Entrants are forced to spend a lot to overcome existing customer loyalties. The capital requirements within this industry are very high. Production, distribution and advertising are a must to compete with the industry leaders like coca cola and Pepsi. So if a new The aluminum cans, plastic and glass bottles are pretty much dependant on the soft drink industry to survive in the business. This makes suppliers to have little power over the soft drink industry. The access to distribution channels is a high barrier because the most successful soft drink companies are aggressively spending their distribution channels and buying full ownership of bottling plants. Supermarkets are at present the largest channels in the U. S. and there the competition is very high. Switching costs is also a barrier to entry this business. Switching costs by changing from one supplier to the other may happened. Also employee training, new equipment, testing new technology. This things are common in this industry. This are barriers for new entrants.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

A social network services

A social network services Introduction Asocial network servicefocuses on buildingonline communitiesof people who share interests and activities of others. Most social network services areweb basedand provide a variety of ways for users to interact, such ase-mailand instantservices. Boyd (2007) What is Social Networking? Social Networking is the forming of persons into specific group. It is a worldwide community while networks achievable human beings in particular place to some other places through the internet, since internet overflowing those people are looking to other peoples sharing the information of relations, religious, experience of work, etc., Most social network services such as chat, message, email, video, video chat, file sharing, blogging, discussion group and so on. What are the uses of Social Networks? It offers some benefits to organization members. Learning of supports: In essence of social networking require as a less controlled, user environment, which challenged convention view of the attractive management of learning and teaching. The most conventional learning environment is objectivist in life and highly planned in term of student development and selection. While here are best points on other side of the contest to essential difference in academic position. Support for members of an organization: Social networks help the improvement of communities of practice, It can be used all folks of an organization, moreover people not involved in working with students. Effort of information and applications: In the case of many social networking service can be provided to assistance of users by simplify to access other tools and applications. Common interface: A potential assistance of social networks could be the common interfaces which span works. However, in addition of barrier to those who wish include the severe limits between work and social activities. Examples of Social Networking Services: There are several sites of social networking sites Facebook: Facebook is a social networking Web site that allows people to communicate with their friends and exchange information. In May 2007 Facebook launched the Facebook Platform which provides a framework for developers to create applications that interact with core Facebook features. [3] MySpace: MySpace is a social networking Web site offering an interactive, user-submitted network of friends, personal profiles, blogs and groups, commonly used for sharing photos, music and videos. MySpace is currently the worlds sixth most popular English-language Web site. [4] LinkedIn: LinkedIn is a business-oriented social networking site. It is an interconnected network of professional all over the world. In the website have more than 50 million members in excess of 200 countries around the world. [5] Bebo: Bebo is a most popular site in UK. It has a more than 25 million members in this site, the journalist, musicians and writers are using this website interrelation to the people. [6] Ryze: Another business oriented site called as Ryze. It is a first online networking site; the people who can expand the business networks meeting such as new people to join business, industries, safety, and geographic areas. [7] What are the Advantages and Disadvantage of Social Networking? Social networking is a modern creation to facilitate the internet unmoving reputation through the people. Present community to stand the collective of networking site even as advantage and also disadvantage. Here are the some advantages Economical It is free cost online networking in favor of together with personal and business peoples. Personal thing is quite easy for everyone; the business works understand the real cost, size, difficulty, etc. Although social networking site survey of target markets and potential customers among a small amount of clicks in addition to keystrokes, adding an increase of the advertisement as well as strategies. Builds Credibility Individual appearance of social networking to make easily to find the people of corporate social networking. You can develop the customer satisfaction to connect both personal and professional level. To join with corporate social networking to form a good contacts with new people from your company. You able to good references and build a reputation with social networking. It is a tremendous to get a network in your field or trade. [8] Connections I do have friends who have many other friends whom I dont know. There is prospective of such a common situation. In the social networking sites to very helpful for students, many students organizations contain particular social networks designed to help students connect. E.g. MySpace, bebo, etc. [9] To Share Multiple Points of View protected folks could not understand a lot of different points of the people who have possible to hold extremely different way of thinking, although to learn the diversity and experience to various points of view. Most of them can use mobile social networking tools to along with friends and makestrategyon the fly. Here are the some Disadvantages Lack of Anonymity The majority of people would be careful, but individual to be firm at all time. They are putting information about our name, location, and several types of information that we may not want to let others know, since the people know how to exact to find the way. Scams and Harassment There is some illegal plan for making money failure of security together with personal and business level. While several sites apply to certain dealings of these cases of irritation, cyber-stalking, online scams, as well as personality. Time Consuming The explanation of social networking supposed to be entertainment sites, whether the people are doing its kick or click in the order of business purposes. Some people assumed it is not kind of thing it would be a waste of time. At the present there is something in actual fact not anything without a mark, other than type of networking should not be actually to be much regarding of your safety. As long as we go restricted of make a big mistakes, that time as good quality. On one occasion to understand the advantages and disadvantages of social networking, then you can travel through without fail. [10] Conclusion Social networking is great convenience of people. Easily connect with friends, reconnect with old friends with the few button clicks. However, like all things have well with some people time to spend the internet. As well as the people getting the internet to community, chatting through instant messenger. It becomes a safety and security issues. Online social networking sites agree to user that a constant site and making a explicit or improper content is removed. Some requirement of social networks makes a risky situation of children and young adult. Even though in future will be a technologies surrounding of social networking. References Boyd, Danah, Ellison and Nicole (2007) Social Network Sites: Definition,Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication 8:17 PM 11/14/2009 Social networking, Available: http://www.whatissocialnetworking.com/ Learning of supports, Available: http://thejournal.com/Articles/2008/05/21/Social-Networking-Learning-Theory-in-Action.aspx?Page=3 [8:00 PM 11/14/2009] Facebook, Wikipedia, Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebook MySpace, Wikipedia, Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myspace LinkedIn, Wikipedia, Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LinkedIn Bebo, Wikipedia, Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bebo Ryze, Wikipedia, Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryze The Advantages of Social Networking, Available: http://www.everyday-wisdom.com/social-networking.html [8:17 PM 11/14/2009] Connections, Available: http://www.life123.com/parenting/tweens-teens/social-networking/advantages-of-social-networking.shtml 8:17 PM 11/14/2009 Disadvantages of Social Networking, Available: http://www.everyday-wisdom.com/social-networking.html [8:17 PM 11/14/2009]

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Lord Of The Flies :: essays research papers

Lord of the Flies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Lord of the Flies deals with universal truths because many of the characters have characteristics we can relate to which makes the book more interesting. One of the characters is Jack. Throughout the book Jack wants to be the leader of the boys on the island. Jack also does not like work. He likes to go out and hunt, Jack considers hunting as fun, have parties, and do whatever he wants. We see this because he is never working and is always out hunting. Even when he finally becomes the leader he does not take responsibility. All he does is hunt and party. We see that he is not responsible because he throws a party and they get so carried away that someone was killed. Jack’s character makes the book stronger because Jack possesses the same ruthlessness and savageness that is in many of us and we can relate to that. Another thing we all can relate to is Jack wanting to be the leader because at one time or another we have all wanted to be the leader of something. Since universal t ruths are things we can relate to, this ties into universal truths because we can relate to wanting to be the leader.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another character is Piggy. From the beginning of the book when Piggy told Ralph what the kids at school used to call him until the end of the book where they take Piggy’s glasses and later on kill him. Piggy is being made fun of which is all a form of mockery. Nobody likes to be made fun of and people can relate to the torture of being picked on. Piggy has a medical problem, which is asthma. This kept him from doing many things. Most of the time he sat and thought about ways to improve life on the island. Piggy was more of a thinker then a doer. During the book Piggy loses his pride, honor, and self-confidence but he tries to regain that when he faces Jack after his glasses were stolen.

Friday, July 19, 2019

Pat Buchanan :: History

Pat Buchanan Pat Buchanan is currently campaigning to become the Republican representative in the next U.S. Presidential election. He is credited with striking a chord amongst the main stream, blue collar sector of the country. This is because he has based his economic platform on common myths about free trade and how it is the cause of the economic problems in the U.S. His theme is that layoffs and the closing of American plants are the result of foreign companies and countries taking advantage of easy access into U.S. markets which, in his opinion, is not being reciprocated abroad. This is how he accounts for the current trade deficit that the U.S. is running with countries like Japan. Pat's economic platform regarding trade policy can be summarized as follows: * Impose a 10% tariff on Japanese imports and a 20% tariff on Chinese imports. This would generate, in his opinion, $20 billion in government revenue and reduce the trade deficit which could be reinvested into the American economy and help create tax cuts for small businesses. * Impose a social tariff on Third World manufactured goods to protect U.S. workers' wage rates from the foreign laborers who are paid a fraction of what their U.S. counterparts earn. He also resents that foreign companies do not have to adhere to the strict environmental, safety, and health standards that American firms do yet get free access to the U.S. market via GATT and NAFTA. It is evident that Pat Buchanan believes that trade deficits and trade with Third World countries are at the heart of what he perceives to be America's economic problems. He feels that through tariffs the burden of income taxes paid by U.S. workers and small businesses can be shifted onto consumers who purchase foreign goods. His underlying sentiment about his trade restrictive policies is, "This is our land; America is our country; the U.S. our market. We decide who enters here and who does not." The basis of international trade is that their are gains to be had from partaking in it. This was proven by David Ricardo, an economist in the early 19th century, who introduced the concept of comparative advantage. His theory stated that a country's "absolute advantage (overall productivity differences between countries) should be reflected in differences in income, whereas comparative advantage (variations in productivity differences by sector) will determine the pattern of international trade.