Three Passions Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The three passions that have dictated the direction of my life have been sports, friends and family. My first passion, sports, has guided me through temptations such as drugs and dropping out of school and has kept me on the right track. My second passion, much the same as my first has helped to deflect the many temptations of life. It is my friends who have stuck with me through the ups and downs and it is to them that I owe much of what I am today. My third and strongest passion is my family, and more specifically my father. He brought me up as a single father when my mother wanted nothing to do with me; he fought to give me what he could and it is to him that I owe everything.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sports, my first passion, has been instrumental i...

Defects of Human Nature Essay

Human nature can be defined as being the psychological characteristics of humankind which are understood to be shared by all human beings. In the novel â€Å"Lord of the Flies† by William Golding, the flaws of human nature are explored in detail. When critics asked Golding about the theme of the novel, he replied, â€Å"The theme is an attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature† (p. 204). He believes that political systems cannot govern society effectively without first taking into consideration the defects of human nature. One of the numerous flaws in human nature which is illustrated in â€Å"Lord of the Flies† is the reluctance of admitting one’s mistakes. The characters in this novel are of young age, the oldest being around 12 or 13 years old. This leaves room for many mistakes to be made, as young children are bound to make mistakes. It is human nature to deny mistakes, and to instead blame mishaps on others. In the beginning of â€Å"Lord of the Flies†, when the first meeting is held, Piggy suggests a head count to keep track of everyone, especially the â€Å"littluns. † Ralph and Jack dismiss this idea by making fun of Piggy instead of taking his comment into consideration. There was a little child that talked about a â€Å"snake-thing† (p. 35). He is only distinguished by a mark on his face. The other boys laugh at the child and write off the idea as a nightmare. Later, when the boys are looking for wood, they come across a snake-pit. It is then when Piggy realizes that the small boy with the mark on his face is gone. â€Å"That little’un that had a mark on his face–where is–he now? I tell you I don’t see him–where is he now? † (p. 46-47) Piggy reprimands the other boys for not listening him and taking a head count. Instead of admitting his mistake, Ralph shamefully mumbles an excuse: â€Å"Perhaps he went back to the, the–† (p. 47). Ralph and Jack also blame the incident on Piggy who was put in charge of the â€Å"names. † However, it is not Piggy’s fault because there was no way that he could accomplish this task without the cooperation of the other boys, which was not available to him. The absence of the little one is ignored and is never spoken of again. This is an example of how people are reluctant to admit their mistakes and would rather blame things on others. When Simon realizes that the beastie is not real, but is rather the dead parachuter, he feels obligated to inform the other boys of his discovery. However, Simon barges in on them during one of their feast celebrations. The boys at the feast are dancing and are caught up in the excitement of the night. Not fully aware of the situation, when Simon made his unannounced entrance, he was mistaken for being the beast. In the excitement of the night, nobody realized the mistake and as a consequence, Simon was brutally murdered. After the incident, nobody believed that they actually committed the murder, and instead they all try to find excuses for their actions: â€Å"‘Don’t you understand, Piggy? The things we did–‘ ‘He may still be–‘ ‘No. ‘ ‘P’raps he was only pretending–‘† (p. 157). â€Å"It was an accident, that’s what it was†¦ coming in the dark. He was batty. He asked for it. It was an accident†¦. It was an accident, and that’s that. † (p. 157). Ralph and Piggy are not comfortable with what they had done when they woke up the next morning. Ralph realizes what happened, but Piggy persistently attempts to find an excuse for their actions, as can be seen in the quotes above. He denies all involvement in the murder and struggles to prove to himself, as well as to Ralph, that they both were not connected to the killing in any way. Sam and Eric [or Samneric] feel the same way about the situation as do Ralph and Piggy. The twins act as if they were not present when the murder took place, even though it is obvious they were. They justify this excuse by pretending that they left the feast early because they were â€Å"tired. † Piggy and Ralph go along with this explanation and actually use it for themselves as well: â€Å"‘We left early,’ said Piggy quickly, ‘because we were tired. ‘ ‘So did we–‘† (p. 158). All four of the boys are pretending that they do not know of what is going on and are shaken by the â€Å"dance they had not attended† (p. 158). Throughout â€Å"The Lord of the Flies†, William Golding identifies many â€Å"defects of human nature. † One of the themes of the novel is an â€Å"attempt to trace the defects of society back to the defects of human nature† (p. 204). The flaws in human nature must be taken into consideration in order to build a successful political structure. In this novel, the young children do now have this knowledge and therefore their society breaks down. It is in human nature for one to be unwilling to admit one’s mistakes, and throughout the Lord of the Flies, Golding has exemplified this flaw in a variety of different ways.

Should the Engineers Apply ‘Rhetoric Strategy’ to Popularized Technology?

Should the engineers apply ‘rhetoric strategy’ to popularized technology? Abstract Nowadays, it is common for engineers to overpromise or exaggerate the technology’s advantages while neglecting its potential disadvantages in order to get more attention and investment, which is actually a form of ‘rhetoric strategy’. In this paper, the notion of ‘rhetoric’ in term of technical field will be briefly defined, including the definition, the applying stages and connection with ethic issues. To develop the arguments, a case study of the development of solar co.uk/network-engineer/">energy technology will be drawn upon.Afterwards, the ethical cycle will be used to analyze its potential ethical problem. Last but not least, the conclusion will be given. 1. Definition of Rhetoric The best known definition of ‘rhetoric’ comes from Aristotle, who considers it a counterpart of both logic and politics, and calls it â€Å"the faculty of obs erving in any given cases the available means of persuasion† [5]. Generally, rhetoric is the art of discourse, an art that aims to improve the facility of speakers or writers who attempt to inform, persuade, or motivate particular audiences in specific situations [4].Two decades ago in UK, the notion of strategic science and technology emerged [1]. It is a different kind of research located in different way from traditional science and technology. Expectations and promises are investigated in strategic science instead of actually achieved understanding or immediate application. In this way, the rise of strategic science has created a ‘space’ in which promises can be floated, which is generally for whoever is willing to listen and specifically directed toward sponsors of R&D who have an interest in the promising areas of science.Such space is call ‘rhetorical space’, which voices promises about new technology, gets a hearing and mobilizes audiences . The rhetoric could increase the technology’s popularity and help R&D to attract not only capital investment, but also policy support, because sometimes government agencies are even eager to fill their portfolios with attractive-sounding R&D programs. 2. Stages of applying rhetoric To develop a new technology with rhetoric strategy, a spokesman (lobbyist), argumentation (statements in texts), and audience (creating presentations /brochures) are needed. 1.Firstly, to come clear the technology, definition of the umbrella term is introduced by engineers to the public. Now a technology in the rhetorical space can be defined in a single definition, it is possible to make an index of the technology development over time. 2. Secondly, to attract public attention, relevant articles with the topics (argumentation) of this technology is published to make the technology popular. Behind these articles are authors who try to convince readership. they are spokesman or promise cham pions, who speak for a technology rather than for an organization or own interest. . Thirdly, audience is another important pillar needed in the rhetorical space. To raise an audience, presentations are created. 4. Last but not least, to Interest the industry, public lecture is conducted by government or association of engineers. Because of such promotion, more industries will show interest in this technology. 3. Nexus connects Rhetoric to Ethics Issues As rhetoric is treated as the art in discourse, rhetoric is treated as the strategic science, in terms of technology.It is increasingly prevalent for engineers to apply rhetoric to introduce, describe and popularize the technology. At first glance, engineers just serve their technological enthusiasm, the ideal of wanting to develop new technological possibilities and taking up technological challenges, rather than their personal or others’ interests. It is reasonable and nature to exaggerate the bright side or use the euphuism to describe their technologies for engineers. Since technologies consist of engineers’ beliefs, values and desire to change the world.Based on Kant’s theory, the universal law would be read as follows: â€Å"Engineers can use the rhetoric to introduce, describe or popularize what they believe. † It is quite acceptable that people can picture the promising future of what they believe. Therefore this behavior is morally correct. However, the consequences of applying rhetoric seem quite unpredictable. We will introduce the case study of solar technology at next chapter as an example to demonstrate that, although the rise of solar technology is based on the good will of and technological enthusiasm of engineers and it riggers thousands of breakthrough in sustainable energy technology, there are some certain influence and relevant consequences neglected by society. 4. Case Study—Solar Energy Because of the energy crisis and environmental issue, the early deve lopment of solar technology started in 1860s [2]. Simultaneously, the rhetoric was used to increase its popularity. In the following century, solar energy technology was promoted by being positioned as renewable, sustainable, and eco-friendly technology to mankind, relatively well spread over the global.Besides, it was argued that the operating and financial attributes of solar energy technology including modularity, flexibility and low operating costs would be considerably superior to those for traditional fossil based technologies, which included large capital investments, long implementation lead times, operating cost uncertainties and regarding future fuel costs [2]. It was described as the ideal substitutes for existing technologies. Figure 1 solar panels Due to the successful rhetorical strategy, large quantities of companies got involved in this field.Some business realized that renewable energy would be profitable to invest in. Other business realized that getting involved i n solar energy technology would not only make money, but also benefit from the ethical way their business may be judged. They could win good reputation to create a loyal customer base by appearing to be ethic. Besides, governments provide state subsidies to support the development of solar energy in order to solve the environmental issue and energy crisis in the future. All of these actions push forward the development of this green technology to the climax.Thus, the rhetoric provide has provided solar energy plenty of capital investment as well as policy support. However, the disadvantages of solar energy were neglected in the early phase of development. It isn’t always as reliable as other forms of power and tends to be expensive to install and maintain, because the devices rely on a steady supply of sunlight to generate power. The equipment is not that efficient, typically converting just 10% to 18% of the sun’s energy into electricity [3]. On top of the price of pa nels themselves, the cost of installing them varies greatly by location and climate.By most estimates, it takes at least six years for the initial costs to be repaid in saving from power generation under the best circumstances, and double that time under less ideal conditions [3]. Besides, the batteries and safety serve as potential problems. Since it is impossible to generate solar power 24 hours a day, batteries are needed for most systems to store excess power for use at night and rainy days. Unfortunately, these batteries can be expensive and have a shorter lifespan than solar panels. The solar energy technology cannot perform as well as promised.In early 20th century, the solar markets tended to be saturated on account that the market was not as big as expected. Many companies getting involved in went bankruptcy. The development of the green technology slowed down, and even stagnated. Many countries (including Germany, Spain, UK, China, etc. ) successively declared that the sub sidies for solar energy will be cut down in order to control the overinvestment in this field. Many graduates majoring in solar energy lose their job because of the recession.Besides, the resources and funds of the whole society are limited, other substitutes like nuclear energy lose opportunities to be invested and developed when people’s attentions were all attracted by solar energy. Such unbalanced resource allocation caused by ‘rhetorical strategy’ restrained the fair competition among alternative technologies. The real promising technology can hardly stand out or even be crowded out if the rhetorical strategy has been utilized by other competitors. 5. Methodology Moral problem-solving is a messy and complex process.A systematic approach might even be required to avoid the reduction of moral judgment to mere gut-feeling without any attempt to understand the moral problems or to justify one’s actions. The ethical cycle is a helpful tool in structuring a nd improving moral decisions, trying to avoid certain shortcuts such as neglecting certain relevant features of problem [6]. Figure 2 The ethical cycle Phase1. Moral problem statement The problem is that engineers popularize their technology, using rhetorical methods is morally acceptable or not.It is obviously that engineers are the decision-makers and the moral nature of the problem is engineers might be misled by their emotions: their enthusiasm about a technology can lead them to overlook certain risks. All involved parties might be biased, and their emotions might reinforce those biases. Sunstein calls this ‘probability neglect’ and argues that emotions are especially prone to let laypeople neglect probabilities [7]. Phase2. Problem analysis Shareholders and their interests: Shareholders| Description| Interests|Engineers| Use rhetorical methods to introduce or propagate their own technology to audiences| popularize technology, attract investment andvalue by society | Audiences| Listen to the speech of promising champions and convince by engineers| transform the promising technology into social reality and take first move| Promising champions| Serve technology interest rather than every one’s interest and highly believe in the future of the technology| attract audiences’ attentions and promise the future of technology| Counterparts| Work in the same field of the rhetorical engineers and popularize their technologies based on empirical facts| Popularize technology without applying extra strategic science| Relevant, uncertain and possible missing facts: Engineers use rhetoric to popularize technology should take the active responsibility before something has happened. They should act in such a way that undesired consequences are avoided as much as possible. However the consequences are always neglected by engineers based on their personal emotion. The consequences are not always harmless.The indirect harm to counterparts, audiences and followers should take into account. Besides the uncertainty or disadvantages should be mentioned rather than neglected. Phase3. Options for actions Black-and-white strategy: Using rhetoric to popularize technology or popularizing technology based on empirical facts. Cooperation strategy: Applying rhetoric on some extents to popularize technology. Using rhetoric to describe or introduce technology, after considering the possible uncertainty and take every relevant shareholders into account. Furthermore, engineers should strike a balance between exaggerating the advantages and covering the disadvantages. Phase4. Ethical evaluation Formal moral frameworks: UtilitarianismCost| Benefit| The other promising technologies have been ignored and marginalization. | The particular technology attracts a lot of investment and attention. | The idea of creativity is restricted in this field. | Scientists and engineers operate a lot of research in this technology. | The technology has been prove d fail and lost a lot of time, capital and resource| The technology has been proved successful and promotes the welfare of society| Overinvestment can lead to a disaster| Investing in promising technology can lead to amazing profit| Promising technology has influenced youngsters career choices| Creating new direction for teenagers. |Informal moral frameworks: Intuitive framework In our opinions, the most acceptable and formulate argument should be that engineers should describe their technologies based on empirical facts and compete with the other engineers based on facts rather than rhetorical methods. Phase5. Reflection Criticism of utilitarianism: The consequences cannot be foreseen objectively and often are unpredictable, unknown or uncertain. Next to this there is the problem of distribution justice. Distribution justice refers to the value of having a just distribution of certain important goods, like income, happiness and career. Answer the questions for reflection:The ethica l theory did not quantitative give answers to the result. However the cost applies for all potential technology and the benefit comes from on particular kind of technology, which means egoistic. So on this aspect, the ethical framework provide reasons that support our intuitive opinion- engineers should describe their technologies based on empirical facts and compete with the other engineers based on facts rather than rhetorical methods. Phase6. Moral acceptable action engineers should describe their technologies based on empirical facts and compete with the other engineers based on facts rather than rhetorical methods. 6. Conclusion This paper discussed the ‘rhetoric’ used in scientific field.The seeming advantages of rhetoric strategy will undoubtedly attract large quantity of investment and public attention, leading to further development of the technology. However, the potential ethical problems can be serious and cannot be neglected. Due to the case study and ethic al cycle analysis, our view is that the engineers should popularize their technologies based on facts rather than rhetorical strategy, so that the real promising technology can stand out. Reference [1]. H. Van Lente& A. Rip (1998). The rise of membrane technology: From rhetorical space to social reality. Social Studies of science 28(2) 221-254 [2]. Cedric Philibert. THE PRESENT AND FUTURE USE OF SOLAR THERMAL ENERGY AS A PRIMARY SOURCE OF ENERGY. The InterAcademy Council. [3].What Are the Disadvantages of Solar Power? http://www. wisegeek. com/what-are-the-disadvantages-of-solar-power. htm [4]. Corbett, E. P. J. (1990). Classical rhetoric for the modern student. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 1. Young, R. E. , Becker, A. L. , & Pike, K. L. (1970). [5]. Aristotle. Rhetoric. (trans. W. Rhys Roberts). I:4:1359 http://rhetoric. eserver. org/aristotle/rhet1-4. html [6]. Ibo van de Poel and Lamber Royakkers. Ethics, Technology and Engineering. WILEY-BLACKWELL [7]. Sabine Ro eser. The role of emotions in judging the moral acceptability of risks. Philosophy Department, Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management, Delft University of Technology

Farewell Speech Essay

A Journey by Train A journey by train is the cheapest, comfortable and safe. Last Sunday I went to see my uncle at Rawalpindi. I got up early in the morning. I hired a rickshaw and reached the station. I bought a ticket. There was great rush at the platform. Every body was in a hurry. The train reached in time. I hurriedly boarded the train. Fortunately, I got comfortable seat near the window. The guard whistled and the train moved at 5 a. m. The train passed through the green fields, barren areas and mountains. Trees, buildings and mountains looked running backward. I saw different sights and landscapes. The train crossed many rivers and canals. At last, it arrived at 11 a. m. at Rawalpindi Railway Station. My uncle and cousin were present there to receive me. It was a good experience. My Country The name of my country is Pakistan. It is my home land. It is a Muslim country. It is founded by Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. It came into existence on August 14, 1947. it has four provinces. Punjab, Sindh, Frontier and Baluchistan. Every province has its own culture. The people of every province are recognized by their language and dress. But being Pakistanis, they all are one nation. Its national language is Urdu. The official language is still English. Its population is about 16 crore. It is an agricultural country. There are many rivers in it which irrigate its crops. Its main food crops are wheat, maize and rice. Its main cash crops are cotton, tobacco, and seeds. Its area is 310403 square miles. There are high mountains, vast plains and deep sea in it. India China and Afganistan are its neighbouring countries. There are many universities, colleges, and schools in it. It is making progress in industry quickly. May God keep my country in running condition! My village A.B.C is my village. It is situated on Lahore Faisalabad main road. It is 35 kilometers from Faisalabad. It is a large and big village. Its population is about 22,000. Most of the villagers are farmers. Some are factory workers. Some are government servants. The others do their own business. All the villagers are hardworking. They earn well. All are well to do. There are left only some kacha houses. The people of my village are very fond of learning. Except some, all the boys and girls go to school and colleges. There are two high schools in my village one for boys and one for girls. There are six shops in my village. There is a post office, a patwar-khana, an office of the union council and a dispensary in it. The agricultural land of my village is very fertile and rich. My village produces big crops every year. It is an important and beautiful village. SCHOOL SHOKEEPER OR OUR TUCK-SHOP We have a nice, little tuck-shop in our school. It is run by Mr. Nazir. He is about 45. He is a gentleman. He is very polite to polite the students. Most of the students are known to him. He sells fruit, sweets, eggs, milk, tea and other edibles. We can buy cold drinks of many kinds and some stationary. Sometimes the students borrow things. He writes their names with date and amount in a register. He charges the reasonable prices. He sells the pure and No.1 things. The headmaster often tests and checks his things. He advises him to keep his things clean, fresh and pure. It is always a pleasure to pay a visit to it. Rich students frequently visit the shop while the poor now and then. Because it needs some money to visit his shop recess is the rush time of this shop. The shop keeper opens it before the school opens and closes it after the school time. A FARMER A farmer is the most important member of our society. He grows food and corn for us. He gets up with the first crow of the cock. He goes to the cattle shed. He feeds his cattle and milks the buffaloes. Then he says the morning prayers. He takes his breakfast and goes to fields. He works there till noon. Now he ploughs the fields. Then he sows the crops. At another time, he waters the fields. At noon, his wife brings his lunch. After the lunch, he takes some rest, after about two hours, he is again busy with his work. He returns home in the evening. My Father Father is a blessing of Allah. But a kind and generous father is the greatest blessing of Allah. M. Riaz is my dear father. He is an M.A in English and teaches in local High School. He is about 30. He is tall and strong. He is clean shave. He has a graceful personality. He is a true Muslim. He says his prayers regularly. He recites the Holy Quran daily. He awakes us early in the morning and takes us to the masjid. He makes us to live according to the Sunnah. He never lets us go astray. He does his duty honestly. He teaches us to be honest to our work. The Telephone. The telephone was one of the most important inventions of the nineteenth century. It was invented by Alenander Graham Bell. Since then, the telephone changed many forms, shapes and sizes. Later, mobile phones were produced. Their use is that they can be carried anywhere, as they are very small. The telephone works in the way that it converts our sound into electric impulses. These impulses then travel through wires and cables and reach the receiver as sound. At first the telephone was present in only the big cities. In small towns and villages, it was not present. But then, as development of towns and villages took place, the telephone was provided over there as well. Also, international calls could not be made directly, People had to go to exchanges to make international calls. But now you can dial international number sitting in your house. Now-a-days, you can even make phone calls through the computer. Telephone is a great facility for the people of all around the world to connect them one another. Television What a wonderful feat the scientists have done by invented a television! They have provided us with a source of recreation. It is a boon for the people. In the twenty first century, science is progressing by leaps and bounds. It has caused many inventions. The television is one of the wonders of this age. It has made our life easier and more pleasant. We are very fortunate that we are born in the modern scientific age. The television is a symbol of the wonderful progress. It is manufactured by a large number of firms. It has become very common now-a-days. We can say, it has become a part of modern life. We enjoy many facilities as the ancient people could not even dream of it. We are indebted to that benefactor of humanity who invented it. Bit scientists are always busy in inventing such things as many lessen the troubles of human beings and give them comfort. A village Fair There was time when the amusements enjoyed by the villagers were quite different from that of the people living in cities. They took part in the sports, Kabaddi matches and listened to folk songs. With the passage of time, we find no difference between the amusements of the villagers and those of the citizen. Construction of roads has connected the villages to the cities. Electricity has been supplied to most of the villages. Every village has a television set and refrigerator in his home. That entertains his guests with pepsi cola and other cold drinks. Besides sports and kabaddi matches a village fair is also poplar recreation for the village folk. Farmers work hard all the year in their fields. They need some hours of relief and relaxation from boring life. A fair provides them a good entertainment after a harvest. It provides them an opportunity to enjoy to their heart’s content. They forget their cares, worries and laborious work. They put a few hours in the fun and frolic of the fair. Fairs are associated with seasons. In Lahore Mela Cheraghan is held in the last week of March. Mela Naulakha Hazrari is held at Shahkot (Sheikhupura) on 23rd March every year. It is celebrated in memory of a saint. Villagers come from far and near to enjoy the fair. It continues for three day. They attend the fair in groups. They shout, laugh and dance at the beat of drums. There are stalls and shops of toys and sweets, which have a good sale. Fair the most popular form of entertainment for the villagers. It provides them relief from the year long hard work. Mobile Mobile is a mini device through which people talk with one another. It is the latest invention of this era. There was a time when telephone had great important in business fields and in houses to keep the people in touch with one another. But with the advent of mobile, houses look bare with telephones even offices as well. Mobile is a mini device without wires. Mobile is not only a means of talking to others but also it does many other activities of people. The latest mobiles work like a computer. We can watch movies stored in its memory. We can draw a lot of pictures through its camera. We can watch many live programmes on its mini screen if it has the facility of internet in its functions. Using internet, we can employ facebook , google, youtube and many more websites that we need. Mobile is a sort of mini computer. A latest mobile does all the activities which a computer does. It always remains with us and helps us when we are in trouble. A traveling person does not have any difficulty to reach his goal. A business man always feels a helplessness if he does not have any mobile. Mobile has become the dire need of human life.

Comparison of ratios over a two-year period Research Paper

Comparison of ratios over a two-year period - Research Paper Example Besides, financial ratio analysis can also be used to assess the performance of different departments and managers and how their overall performance may have an impact on the performance of the whole firm. Sparklin Automotive Company is in business since 1990 and is supplying different automotive related parts across the whole country. In order to better assess its performance for the year 2005 and 2006, a comprehensive ratio analysis is important. This will provide a critical insight into areas such as liquidity management, overall asset management, the nature and extent of firm’s debt as well as assessing the profitability during these two years. Ratio Analysis Explanation Ratio analysis is the process of calculation and comparing the ratios which have been extracted from the different financial statements. By forming the historical trends, ratio analysis can actually provide an insight into the performance as well as charm in the company to perform in the long run based on the historical data. Ratio analysis is also important from the perspective of assessing the performance of the managers and understanding as to how the organization is performing. By computing financial ratios, a firm not only compares its performance with the competitors but also get an insight into its own historical performance. Ratio analysis therefore can be used for two different purposes or in two different manners i.e. making comparisons through trend analysis and comparing the ratios with the competitors. When financial ratio analysis is used for the purpose of trend analysis, a firm or a manager can actually get an insight into how the trends in different ratios are pointing towards the performance of the firm. For example, if a manager wants to assess as to how the overall inventory has been managed through out the year, she can compute the inventory turnover ratio and days in inventory to get an insight into how the inventory of the firm has been maintained and how sales have been generated. Ratio analysis therefore provides an ability to perform objective analysis of the performance of the firm. (Bull, 2007) Ratio analysis can either be used by the firm for its own evaluation purposes so that managers can assess what is required to be done in order to improve different areas lacking in achieving the targets. Secondly, ratio analysis can also be used by the investors to not only assess the historical performance of the firm but based on this assessment make forecasts as to how the firm may perform in future. Ratio Calculation Ratio Formula 2005 2006 Current Ratio Current Assets /Current Liabilities 1.475:1 1.403:1 Debt to Equity Ratio Total Liabilities / Total Equity 0.449:0.551 0.440 : 0.56 Inventory Turnover Sales / Inventory 6.11 times 4.620 Times Receivables Turnover Sales / Receivables 18.24 times 18.16 times Gross Margin Gross Profit / Sales 49.19% 40.70% Evaluation of the Ratios Current Ratio Current ratio is one of the basic indicators for assessing the liquidity position of the firm and indicates as to whether the firm has the required liquid assets to pay off its immediate liabilities. A current ratio of higher than 1 is considered as acceptable because for ever $1 of current liabilities firm has more than $1 of current assets to settle these

How Christianity shaped the colonization of the New World Research Paper

How Christianity shaped the colonization of the New World - Research Paper Example this concept is so wrapped around with the misconception, if not premeditated efforts to have it seem either less or more important to native people than it actually is, that getting it directly, even precisely expressed, seems to be a task nearly impossible to accomplish. People of European origin who harbor no exacting ill-will toward Native American have a tendency to over-emphasize the notion of the Great Spirit because it makes some people seem more Christians than others. Some even propose that it is but a little step from belief in a Great Spirit to faith in the one, true God of Judeo Christian custom. At the same time, individuals who still anchorage the hope of our ultimate annihilation point to the notion as one that proves we still persevere in worshipping the devil, an article they see as a Great Spirit with authority over a pack of evil spirit who intimidates the existence of a Christianized civilization itself. Neither situation can be said to conserve any truth whatsoe ver with regard to Native American culture. This tries to guide in understanding the thesis of this essay, which question Native Americans concept on Christianity (Beardsley, pgs 463). Spanish Conquistadors The famous Spanish conquistadors, who were tremendously active throughout the Age of Exploration to the new civilization, impacted the process of civilization in regards to Christianity. In fact, thy were so well skillful and victorious in their efforts that they were directly accountable for a large part of the eastern zest trade, as well as creating massive wealth for their state of Spain.   Gold and spices along with the unearthing of silver made Spain a powerful nation. The name conquistadors imply conquer, which is precisely what these men accomplished.   The Spanish conquistadors were faithful soldiers and explorers, dedicating their lives to the improvement of their favorite Spain.   The Muslim Moors lost charge of the Iberian Peninsula to these soldiers after 800 ye ars of conflict.   This particular victory, referred to as the reconquist, entailed of Holy War fighting.   The Spanish soldiers and explorers travelling the journey to the New World possessed the name of conquistador. In addition to the prosperities enjoyed by the gold, spice, and silver commercial activities the Spanish conquistadors had other motivations.   For example, they sought to grasp a position of power and prestige, key fundamentals to building the Spanish territory (Abler, pgs 1-2).   Additionally, the conquistadors needed to convert natives to the Catholic religion; Christianity, which is why ministers always traveled with the explorers. The Spanish conquistadors took the Indians as being savage.   The exploitation and oppression associated with the populace became recognized as the Encomienda System, which was alike to the Medieval Feudal structure.   In spite of, the objective was to penetrate the Indian communities with religion so they would transform.   However, while the conversion progression was taking place, the Spanish conqu

Art Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Art Studies - Essay Example This musical composition is intended for three violins and basso continuo. However, through time its popularity made it the subject of arrangements for a wide variety of ensemble (Pachelbel's Canon 2). In general, the composition conveys both warm and festive emotion through the instruments that are used, rhythm, and overall structure. I believe that this effect is most likely because of the connection of this music to wedding ceremonies. The Canon in D major is also made more interesting and appealing by the composer's extensive use of chord progression. Overall, the composition seems to be an expression of strong, elaborate, and dramatic expression of emotion through the use of complex musical elements. 6. Choose a work of visual art (painting or sculpture) from the same time period as the musical composition that seems to "relate" in some way. Explain your choice. How do these two works of art fit the time period The Canon in D major as stated above is one of the famous musical composition during the Baroque period. Alongside this composition, the St. Theresa in Ecstasy is also created within the same era. This sculpture is crafted by Bernini showing St.