Chemistry assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Chemistry - Assignment Example For the extracts that included glucose, the process of fermentation continues up to when ADP and P1 inside the extracts were exhausted. Phosphate was needed in the dehydrogenase of the glyceraldehydes 3-phosphate reaction and glucose stopped in this step after the exhaustion of P1. Since glucose remained, it went through phosphorylation by ATP, but P1 was not released. The yeast fermentation gave out CO2 and ethanol instead of lactate. In the absence these reactions and in the absence of oxygen, NADH will be accumulated. There would be no new for continued glycolysis. The bisphosphate hexose which accumulated fructose (1,6-bisphosphate) in the form of energetic. The intermediate was at a valley or low point along the pathway between the input reaction energy that was ahead of it and the following energy reactions payoff. P1 would be replaced by arsenate in a dehydrogenase reaction of glyceraldehydes 3-phosphate to provide acyl arsenate that is hydrolyzed spontaneously. This would inhibit the formation of fructose (1,6-bisphosphate together with ATP thus allowing the formation of 3-phosphoglycerate, that continues in the pathway. Reaction a, b and c will proceed in the direction shown. This is because the phase of payoff of glycolysis will give out ATP which is exergonic. This phase is typified by five reactions which are similar to those of reaction a, b and c. These include: From the table, Ethylene glycol enters through the mediated route. This is so because the facilitated or passive diffusion occurs when the specific molecules are transported down the gradient of concentration high to low. In active transport the energy is used in transporting the molecules against the gradient concentration that is low to high as in the case of Ethylene

- Radiographic Technique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

- Radiographic Technique - Essay Example This paper seeks to discuss how do techniques are changed for a given part of the body while keeping the same density on a film, and the tips for remembering this type of information. X-rays are techniques of radiography used in controlled radiation rays in recording an image of the inside of the body on film. A radiographic technique has varying effect on different parts of the body. This is because different parts of the body appear differently since density affects how images appear on an x-ray. When a bone is targeted, the radiation must be adjusted because bones absorb most of the radiation, this is because a bone is white and much or the radiation is absorbed. On the other hand, for a soft tissue like a muscle, organs or fat, the technique is changed again by minimizing radiation from the x-ray. This is because soft tissues allow more of the x-rays since they appear gray. When this is done, the density on the film remains the same. In summary, radiographic technicians have also employed radiographic tenets that ensure safety for patients. For example the ALARA, an acronym, for As Low As Reasonably Achievable. This principle is used to minimize the doses of radiation on various parts of the body by employing reasonable radiation methods. The technicians have also applied the 3C’s principle which denotes, Correct patient, Correct site, and Correct procedure for any part of the

Investment and Portfolio Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Investment and Portfolio Analysis - Essay Example 102-103). Such the yields are available for the public. For instance, one can easily find them on the Internet. The characteristics of a bond determine timing and values of associated cash flows. Therefore, an investor can easily discount all cash flows associated with a bond to figure out fairly good estimate of its value. As for the common stocks, the company that issues the stock can invest some portion of its earnings in projects in hope to increase the value of the firm. The rest of the earnings is distributed among the shareholders in the form of dividends. Unfortunately, â€Å"the details on forthcoming projects are not generally public information† (Ross, Westerfield and Jaffe 1999, p. 109). Therefore, the patterns of cash flows shareholders receive are not known in advance and can be much more complicated than those bondholders receive. However, a number of techniques for stock valuation were developed. All of them need as input â€Å"investor’s required retur n on the stock† and â€Å"growth rate† of one or several indicators of companys performance such as "dividends, earnings, cash flow or sales" (Reilly and Brown, 2003, p. 377). To estimate the first input, investors can use the return of a common stock of the respective class and rating as a useful benchmark (Haugen, 1979, p. 68). Due to above mentioned complexity, accompanied by the fact that the guarantees to the investors in common stocks differ from the ones to the investors in bonds, sometimes these inputs can be estimated only roughly. Moreover, their uncertainties can turn out to be â€Å"too large to be practical† (Ross, Westerfield and Jaffe 1999, p. 111). Thus, generally investors produce better estimates of bond values than those of common stock ones. To identify appropriate investments, portfolio managers figure out a set of â€Å"marketwide and industrywide factors† that makes unsystematic risks of

College and Universities Should Teach Financial LiteracyManage Money Essay

College and Universities Should Teach Financial LiteracyManage Money - Essay Example One solution is to make financial literacy a part of the core curriculum for all colleges and universities in the United States. According to Annamaria (2010), financial literacy is the capacity to make sound financial judgments, and take workable actions about the current and future utilization and management of finances. Therefore, it is important for all individuals to be knowledgeable on basic financial information to enable them make right decisions based on their needs and income. There are several important aspects of financial illiteracy in the country. According to Braunstein et al (2005), lack of financial knowledge has increased the vulnerability of many consumers to heavy losses and deceptive business arrangements. This has resulted to some of the worst economic problems in the country such as the most recent financial downturn that was mainly caused by extensive consumer overleveraging. American universities and colleges can play a crucial role in empowering students wit h financial skills but historically, it has not been the case. College and university graduates play a critical role in making financial decisions in any economy, but for a long time financial literacy has been regarded as a ‘life skill’ acquired outside the classroom setting in United States (Thomas,2010,p60). In this respect, Thomas (2010, p67-68) notes that university administrators do not consider teaching financial skills a priority in their curriculums. However, recent changes such as increasing college fees, unpredictable job market in addition to various financial challenges that face students at school and after graduating has jolted authorities in higher learning institutions to review their stance. In view of these challenges, policy makers in the United States have indentified the need of introducing compulsory financial education in these institutions to enhance the capacity of students to make sound judgments in school and after graduating. According to Le wis(2008,p50), financial illiteracy is widespread among all American citizens, but low-income earners and people with no post secondary education are the most affected groups. A study conducted by Lewis (2008, pp56-89) found that minority groups especially African Americans and Hispanics had the lowest financial literacy level compared with other groups. In addition, American men have higher financial literacy level than women and as people grew older, their financial literacy increased (Lewis, 2008, p64). Thomas (2010) argues that economic, health and social wellbeing of the individuals, families and societies relies heavily on financial literacy. In this respect, the importance of financial education cannot be overemphasized. At individual level, financial literacy enables a person to plan for the present expenditures and save for the future. This includes developing pragmatic household budgets that enables people to prioritize on their expenses, create saving plans and make wise investment decisions. In addition, good financial education empowers individuals to manage their debts and make sound financial decisions for their retirement to ensure that they lead a financially secure life when they cease working (Thomas, 2010 pp 87-89). Moreover, financially literate people buy goods and services at lower prices and this enhances their savings and investments. In this respect, effective

Competing with Information Technology Essay Example for Free

Competing with Information Technology Essay Chapter 2 introduces fundamental concepts of competitive advantage through information technology and illustrates major strategic applications of information systems. Information Technology (IT) professionals must understand how to use IT systems and technology to deliver a competitive advantage to the organization. Information systems and technology should provide more than a cost savings benefit to organizations. Today, IT solutions are expected to provide the means to surpass a competitor’s performance. As discussed in Chapter 1, the role of IT professionals is changing. Currently, there is an evolving term, business technology, which is used to describe the emerging role in IT. IT professionals are becoming more and more integrated with the business operations of an organizations. The Real World Case Study 4, IT Leaders: Reinventing IT as a Strategic Business Partner, describes how one organization is reorganizing to better utilize IT to increase business benefits and contribute to a competitive advantage. It is important for an IT organization to utilize IT to reduce the cost of running the business, grow the business, or develop new services to change the business. To position an organization to better provide its products and services, an understanding of the competitive forces is needed. Michael Porter identifies five threats that require business strategies ensure that an organization can out-perform other competitors. They are: 1. Rivalry of competitors within its industry 2. Threat of new entrants 3. Threat posed by substitute products that might capture its market share 4. The bargaining power of customers 5. The bargaining power of suppliers To counteract these threats, competitive strategies must be developed to address the potential risks an organization may encounter as it strives to maintain its position on the market place. The competitive strategies are: 1. Cost Leadership Strategy 2. Differentiation Strategy 3. Innovation Strategy 4. Growth Strategies 5. Alliance Strategies 6. Other Strategies These strategies can be used either individually or in a combination to position an organization to better compete for the future. An example of an organization that is utilizing IT to change how it does business and remain economically viable in the future is the online magazine Cross Talk. In the 1990’s, Cross Talk was printing and mailing the magazine to subscribers. With a decrease in funding, this organization had to develop ways to reduce costs, deliver its services to its subscribers, grow its subscriber base, demonstrate its value above other on-line content providers, and justify why it should not be eliminated. Cross Talk is now available at its new website in either an online digital flipbook format or PDF version—CrossTalk is now completely electronic. This change reduces their carbon footprint and allows them to bring the journal to their readers in their preferred and most convenient format. This is also CrossTalks first step towards reaching new reader devices and enhancing the suitability of the journal for our increasing electronic readership. Customer Value Customer value has become a driving force in the world economy. A key success factor for many organizations is developing customer value by increasing customer loyalty, anticipate their future needs, respond to customer concerns, and provide top-quality customer service. One example is Southwest Airlines. Not only have they automated ticket sales via the Internet, Southwest also sends special offers regarding discounts available at my destination, emails to remind customers that the trip is around the corner, text alerts if a flight is delayed, and offers incentives to fly with them. It seems that Southwest Airlines provides a personal assistant to help make the travel experience more enjoyable. Think about how some of your favorite businesses are creating customer value for you. Internet Technologies Many organizations use Internet technologies to create a strategy to offer fast, responsive, high-quality products and services tailored to a customer’s individual preferences. Internet technologies make customers the focal point of customer relationship management (CRM) and other e-business applications. New technologies such as wikis and blogs are also being incorporated as a means to provide enhanced customer experience. Such communications enable continual interaction with customers by creating a cross-functional collaboration with customers in product development, marketing, delivery, service, and technical support. Television is taking advantage of this capability. TV news shows are reading and answering emails and some reality TV shows allow views to vote for their favorite contestant, preferred ending, or favorite commercial. Using the Internet technologies, business units are better able to shape and offer products and services. Value Chain The value chain is another concept that helps to identify opportunities for strategic information systems. It views an organization as a series of basic activities that add value to its products and services. In this framework, activities are organized into primary and support processes. From the business understanding gained by analyzing an organization’s value chain, the IT organization can determine where to best apply IT systems and technology. The following value chain graphic provides an example of how and where information technologies can be applied to specific business processes to gain a competitive advantage in the market place. Value chain offered by information technologies. Business Reengineering Often times, to remain competitive, an organization must consider more than just where and what IT systems and technology solutions should applied. An organization must look at how it actually does business and then reengineer its business processes. Business reengineering requires an organization to re-design how it does business by eliminating stove-piped, silo organizations and functions, develop an improved understanding for opportunities for information sharing, and instituting enhanced stewardship regarding an organizations data and business processes. Agile Companies The rate of change is increasing and organizations must be able to quickly respond to changing market trends. Standardized, long-lived products and services are giving way to globalized, niche markets which offer products that are individualized and short-lived. To become an agile organization, an organization must consider the following strategies. 1. Provide a solution that customers perceive as a solution to an individual problem. This allows the product to be priced based on value rather than cost to produce. 2. Cooperate with customers suppliers, and other companies to quickly bring the product to market. 3. Thrive on change and uncertainty. 4. Leverage the individuals and knowledge of the processes. Become entrepreneurial in spirit. Knowledge as a Competitive Advantage To remain competitive, organization must become a learning organization. Organizations must be able to capture the knowledge of the organization, learn from this knowledge, and then use it to enhance its offerings. Knowledge Management Systems facilitates an organization’s ability to capture and then utilize its knowledge. Understanding and being able to utilize this unstructured date is key to developing and maintain a competitive advantage. Information capture includes processes, procedures, patents, reference works, best practices, etc. This integration of knowledge helps an organization become an innovative and agile provider of high-quality products and customer services, and potentially a more formidable competitor in the market place. Leaders in information technology are expected to be not only a technology professional but also a business professional. Many are tasked with finding emerging business opportunities, driving growth, encouraging innovation, and engaging customers. This provides a tremendous opportunity for you to step up and co-create and ultimately shape the future business vision. Collaborating with the business will not be enough—you dont just provide the technology but jointly own the success and failure of business initiatives. IT Portfolio Management and Governance An emerging trend is enhanced IT Portfolio Management and Governance as a means to effectively apply IT systems and technology to business needs. According to Richard Spires, DHS CIO, in his blog post entitled Getting Program Governance Right Helps Ensure Success on the federal CIO Council Web site: Complex IT systems encompass at least a half-dozen stakeholder organizations that must be synchronized, including the strategy organization, the business or mission owner of the system, IT, finance, procurement, security, and privacy. Ensuring all key stakeholders are involved in key decisions is an essential element to assuring genuine alignment. Program Governance Boards provide guidance, decision-making, and oversight of one or more programs. The function of the Program Governance Board is not to usurp the authorities of the Program Manager (PM), but rather to provide a forum by which the PM can bring key issues and trade-off decisions to an informed, empowered body that has a vested interest in that program’s success and views the PM as a trusted advisor and true subject matter specialist. IT organizations must determine where to invest time, people, and money in current and new IT systems and services in order to enhance the value of products and services. To do this, many organizations are categorizing offerings into individual portfolios and establishing a strong governance structure to guide the selection and investment into solutions. Enterprise Architecture Organizations are establishing an Enterprise Architecture (EA) to inform, guide and constrain the investment decisions made by governance boards regarding IT systems. The Federal CIO Council defines EA as: Enterprise Architecture is a strategic information asset base, which defines the mission, the information necessary to perform the mission and the technologies necessary to perform the mission, and the transitional processes for implementing new technologies in response to changing mission needs. An enterprise architecture includes a baseline architecture, target architecture (sometimes referred to an as-is and to-be), and a sequencing plan. An EA identifies which processes and IT systems to standardize and integrate. The benefits of an EA are reduction in IT Costs, improved IT responsiveness, guides the proper selection of IT solutions to ensure the accomplishment strategic business outcomes. The components of an enterprise architecture is described in the figure below: Various layers of an enterprise architecture. (Source: NIST) Conclusion How does your organization determine how to invest in IT? You might see if one of your organization’s senior executives is available for a 30 minute meeting to discuss how the organization determines what technologies to invest in as a corporation. Think about questions to ask. Some examples might be: how is an business need identified? How are IT investments justified? Who are your competitors? If you work for an IT consulting firm, you might as how the company decides what contracts it will bid on. It can be said that our use of IT systems and technology is equivalent to when we were using rotary telephones. As you complete your Masters Program at UMUC, remain watchful of emerging trends in the IT industry, how it will be utilized to gain a competitive advantage, and what impact it will have on the skills needed by an IT professional and the organization structure required to take advantage of the advancements in technology. Trends currently occurring that may be worth watching are: cloud computing, software as a service, virtualization, social networks, and mobile computing. It is through developing learning as a life-long habit, remaining aware of trends in the industry, and understanding the impact that technology has on a company’s ability to compete that you, as an individual, will be able to keep your skills current, agile, and competitive.

Intercultural Aspect Of Culture Essay Example for Free

Intercultural Aspect Of Culture Essay Before evolving an intercultural model of conflict resolution it is important to understand and identify aspects of culture that lead to creation of the framework of conflict. The cultural spectrum holds different shades for a person, a society and a nation, accordingly helping each of them to assimilate and adapt to a common identity that is defined and shaped by culture (Holliday, Hyde and Kullman, 2004). In the process of evolving this collective identity, culture transcends its traditional role of providing an aggregate set of beliefs, customs, norms, values, ethics, traditions, moral, social and legal codes, perceptions, and philosophy, to become the overall physical framework for the society to function. Culture is strongly related with geographical setting of a place, religion, ethnicity, and race, explaining why different countries have different cultures, and also why places on seashore share common elements of culture that is quite different from culture of mountainous places. The imprinting of culture on ways a person thinks, acts, perceives the environment and models his/her reaction is very strong and virtually indelible, determining every aspect of human behavior and giving rise to cultural identity in addition to individual and national identity. Although the classic rational choice framework says that people are independent in choice of their behavior and approach towards events, its seen that at subtle levels the structural model provided by culture acts as final determinant in predicting a person, a society and a nation. Although culture is dynamic, evolving and continuously upgrading itself, in essence, these changes occur within the context of culture’s own timeframe. One of the most important contribution of culture to human civilization is the orientation provided towards other cultures, making the culture in question receptive, tolerant, indifferent or outright hostile towards different cultures. Societies are seldom mono-cultural, displaying a range of cultural traits, achieved through generations of trades, contact, and cross cultural mixing (Holliday, Hyde and Kullman, 2004). However, although for people belonging to a particular culture, their culture would hardly seem complex, the cultural realities are hidden beneath the surface, difficult to observe and discern from outside. These improper understanding and imperfect perceptions of culture often give rise to conflict when different cultures are required to meet or come across. In the workshops I have attended I have come across people from various cultural background and my first attempt is always to know as much possible as about them; not their individual preferences, but their cultural orientation and philosophy. My this approach has helped me immensely in not only developing an understanding of other cultures, but my own adaptability and flexibility in my relation towards them Conflict and Culture Conflict is an integral part of human culture. When a number of people of interact with their own individual perspectives, view points, ideologies, cultural and social backgrounds and intellectual development then differences and debates are bound to arise as a logical and inevitable consequence of the interaction (Killian and Pammer Jr. 2003, 3). These differences, acted upon by incompatible interests of attaining personal goals, change into conflict within groups, societies and nations. (Rahim, 2001,1) The greater the diversity and richer the profile of a society, the greater is the scope and range of its embedded conflict. Therefore it is essential to educate people on understanding and handling conflict and treat as an integral component of a democratic society that is important for developing a healthy social life (Killian and Pammer Jr. 2003, 3). In every conflict, whether it is individual or at social scale, culture has always an important role to play. Depending upon the actors involved and the context of conflict, the role of culture in conflict can be direct or subtle, but it is always present as the ultimate factor in deciding the scope of conflict, its direction or its outcome. Culture even decides the existence of conflict, for people who are embedded in the culture of seeing world as a harmonious entity, may not be aware of any conflict through their life. In all the major disputes, debates and disagreement taking place around world, differences in cultural identities and perceptions are fundamental causative factors. A further evidence of the role that culture plays is evinced by peace and harmony existing among societies that have same culture, such as observed between USA and Britain, sharing same historical and cultural roots. Every conflict, whether it is trans-generational, geographical, religious, organizational, or personal, has a cultural component involved. People enshrined in their own culture often react with hostility against any cultural identity that appears contrary to their thought process and ideas. It follows therefore that any effort of conflict resolution needs to incorporate cultural understanding and acknowledge the existence and necessity of diversity (ibid). Personally I have encountered cultural difference in perspective of style of communication. Some of my colleagues, belonging to different cultural background, initially took exception to the direct and frank method of communication that is followed in US, as this, according to them constitutes a mild level of effrontery. However, as they assimilated themselves with the general surrounding, they realized that the direct nature of communication is a norm, not an aberration. Communication and Conflict Communication is important, as it is the medium of conveying message, forming the first interface in method of conflict resolution. Communication is almost always within the context of culture, and culture determines the significance of words as well as gestures and non-verbal expressions, affording people with choices of high context or low context communication, depending upon their cultural maturity and ability to handle multi-culturalism and accommodate a range of opinions and ideas other than those familiar to them (Grosse, 2002). During the initial phase of cultural familiarity, communication takes place at low context, meaning that people rely more on direct verbal communication, which is more or less literal in nature. As the cultural relationship progresses, communication interaction moves ahead on continuum to become high context, and it becomes more interpersonal and contextual, minimizing chances of misunderstanding and confusion. Effective cross cultural communication is centered upon knowledge, empathy and intercultural sensitivity (ibid). The correct approach in such cases is be flexible, adaptable and receptive to all views, no matter how contrary or incongruous they appear.. A positive and patient listening attitude is also valuable as it allows people to fathom emotions of others and makes them perceptible to alternate view points. Finally, the most important attribute in cross cultural communication is recognition that every culture is correct in its own context and each has to yield some ground to reach a harmonious consensus (ibid). In my attempts to understand and know about other cultures, I have always relied on effective communication skills, that include both hearing and communicating. Personally I have felt that people from different cultures readily share their cultural background, their beliefs, customs and traditions as I myself do in a multi-cultural environment, as we all want to be well understood and appreciated. Active listening and frank communication skills have greatly helped me in establishing quick rapport in any multi-cultured environment. Discussion on mediation and skills in conflict resolution Effective communication strategies are keys to resolve conflict by providing channels that provide expression of grievances and bring conflicting parties together. In the field of conflict management, communication strategies help through the channels of 1. Negotiation: Negotiation has emerged as an important form of conflict management within organizational and social setups. As such research in communication theory in conflict management has started to pay close attention to communication behaviors, types and strategies towards successful negotiation. Negotiation, as a part of managing conflict, requires interested parties to trade proposals for settlement that include, out of court settlements, business contracts, collective bargaining contract etc (Womack, 1990, 32). As Womack further elaborates, generally the process of negotiation proceeds through motives that are both competitive and cooperative. The approach of communication in the entire process of negotiation is concerned with the messages that are transferred among negotiators and the concerned parties. Communication intervenes in the process of negotiation through its both verbal and nonverbal forms and constitutes the entire base on which the goals and terms of the bargain are negotiated. Communication plays the central role in not only developing the relationship among the parties in conflict, but also in determining its direction. It is also central in every form of bargaining process, whether the bargaining is done for organizational form of conflict management, involves conflict resolution, negotiation on legal agreements or for negotiation in inter-group an intra group conflict. The entire role of communication in negotiation processes and strategies is quite vast and it ranges from defining the conflict issues, selection and implementation of strategies to presenting and defending the viable alternatives and finally helping in reaching on a solution (Womack, 1990, 35). 2. Third party intervention: Third party intervention in conflict situation is a tricky and challenging situation. It is considered as one of those areas that offers real test to the communication skills of the intervening person. Although mediation requires a neutral and third party to bring the disputants on the resolving chairs and solve the conflict, the mediator per se, has no authority and commanding power to force the parties into acquiescing to an agreement. At the best, the mediator can use persuasive and convincing dialogues through which the involved parties voluntarily agree to reach at accord through advises, admonishments, ideas, and views of the mediator and break into meaningful dialogue with each other (Burrel, 1990, 54). Its easy to see that this entire procedure requires very high level of communication skills on the part of the mediator to successfully negotiate agreement among the conflicting parties. I have had the opportunity to mediate in certain cases of cultural misunderstanding in the workshop. I tried to resolve the dispute by completely understanding the issue of contention, and the respective approaches that each party had taken on the issue. Thereafter I clarified the entire situation to them, explaining in the process that their respective approaches where natural consequences of their cultural training and application of that training on the issue in hand. In the process I encouraged them to understand and appreciate each other’s cultural understanding and orientation, they were successful in settling the conflict. Designing a process of Intercultural aspects of conflict resolution In the course to evolve a systematic cultural response to conflict, the first step is to breed familiarity among cultures that adds plurality and multicultural dimension to broaden existing views. In the process of evolving cultural familiarity communication, approaches towards conflict, cultural interpretation of life and identities and roles are identified as essential parameters (Carbaugh, 1990). Out of these, role and range of communication has already been discussed. Now it is time to look at rest of three factors. Responses towards a conflict situation are largely culture dependent, guided by the ways each culture has systemized itself towards conflict. Direct and straightforward ways of approaching conflict, generally acceptable in western society, may seem threatening and offensive in eastern cultures accustomed to third party negotiations. Similarly, cultures that follow calm and reasonable response to conflict, may feel intimidated by emotional and passionate response to conflict situation (Carbaugh, 1990). Cultural interpretation of life sets the starting point for people that forms basis of their thinking, values and philosophy, eventually deciding the role they would play in every conflict and their outcome they come across. It is the cultural orientation that makes societies disciplined or diffused, generalized or specific, value oriented or bohemian, and cooperative or isolated (Carbaugh, 1990). Hence cultural conflict resolution ultimately depends on the depth of understanding attained through interaction. Intercultural differences are very real forces in an environment where multiple cultures are interacting and coordinating on day to day basis. From my learning and observation the nature intercultural differences and their consequences on organizational and group efficiency, these differences can be resolved by taking a more comprehensive, collective and adaptive view of situation, that includes our own cultural vulnerabilities when placed in an unfamiliar social structure. As the workshop trainings and experience has demonstrated, it is very important to know the cultural background of people with whom we interact, fully understand the points where our mutual cultural understanding differ and recognize where they converge. Finally we should also develop a mutual sense of regard and appreciation for our combined cultural diversity. One of the revealing experiences that I have undergone relates to issue of timeliness. While in western culture, schedules are strictly followed and meetings start exactly on designated time, it is normal in many cultures to digress in time by a limited margin. Thus, in a multi-cultured environment, cultural ignorance can lead to conflict on such simple issue of scheduled arrival, while cultural knowledge and understanding would help in ‘looking’ at from other person’s cultural lens. Given the range and depth of cultural impact on overall personal behavior and communication style of people, there are numerous situations where cultural ignorance can directly put people against each other. Hence we should always strive to learn as much about other cultures as possible and continue to update our knowledge. References Burrel, N. A, 1990. Theory and Research in Conflict Management. edit M. Afzalur Rahim editor. Praeger Publishers. :New York Rahim, M. A (2001), Managing Conflict in Organizations. Contributors: M. Afzalur: Quorum Books. Westport, CT Handbook of Conflict Management. (2003) . Jerri Killian ,William J. Pammer Jr. (edits): Marcel Dekker. New York. Womack, D. F, 1990. Theory and Research in Conflict Management. edit M. Afzalur Rahim editor. Praeger Publishers. :New York. Leborn, M. 2003. Culture and Conflict. Accessed online on 17. 11. 2007. http://www. beyondintractability. org/essay/culture_conflict/ Grosse, C. U. 2002. Managing Communication within Virtual Intercultural Teams Business Communication Quarterly, Vol. 65, 2002. Holliday, A. , Hyde, M. ,, Kullman, J. 2004. Intercultural Communication: An Advanced Resource Book; Routledge, Carbaugh, D. 1990 Cultural Communication and Intercultural Contact; Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Price elasticity income elasticity and cross elasticity

Price elasticity income elasticity and cross elasticity Explain the concept of elasticity of demand and discuss the factors that determine elasticity of demand. Distinguish between price elasticity, income elasticity and cross elasticity of demand and evaluate on their importance especially to businessmen. Solutions to Question 2 2.1: Concept of Elasticity of Demand Elasticity is a term that was initially developed by known economic scholar called Alfred Marshall, and has been since used in measuring the relationship that exists between product price and its quantity demanded. It typically followed the law of demand that states that the lower the price of goods and services, the higher the quantity that will be demanded of such goods and services i.e. it primarily explains only the actual directions of changes in the demand for the commodity, but not really explaining the extent of that change. A further development on these lapses led to the concept of elasticity of demands. In practical term, elasticity means the act of responsiveness. Meanwhile, elasticity of demand has been theoretically defined as the responsiveness of the actual quantity demanded of a product to the change in its actual price. E.K. Estham argued further that elasticity of demand could be defined as the measure of the degree of responsiveness of the quantity demanded to any small change in its price. This measure of the degree of responsiveness of the actual quantity demanded of a product to any changes in its price can be calculated with the use of the formula below: A good diagram to represent the established downward sloping curve of elasticity of demand could be seen as the incremental changes that are caused in the quantity that is demanded along the x axis, notably going in the opposite directions that are relative to these changes in the commodity price along the y axis. Below is figure 1 that aptly depicts the degree of responsiveness of demand due to changes in prices of the commodity: Thus, vivid observations of the above elasticity of demand complement the simple mathematical presentations of the elasticity of demand as presented above. Notably, the elasticity of demand is commonly expressed as Ed. Diagram 1 above indicates that depending on the actual responsiveness to any changes in prices of commodity, elasticity of demand could be either elastic or inelastic as seen described through the angles of the above demand curves. Importantly, economist have argued that the flatter these curves, the more elastic is the price of the commodity, meanwhile steeper curves will mean the more the price is inelastic. 2.2: Factors that determine elasticity of demand Below are the important factors that directly or indirectly influence the degree of demand to any small change in price: 1. Nature of the commodity Elasticity has been argued has primarily depending on if the actual commodity to be demanded is a basic necessity, a comfort or a luxury. This is because goods that fall under the basic necessities of life have been categorized as having inelastic demand, while those comforts and luxuries goods are categorized under the elastic demand. 2. Availability of the substitutes of goods or services Goods or services with available substitutes have been theoretically and practically argued and established as having elastic demand and those goods and services that are without available substitutes normally have inelastic demand. Good examples of these goods are coffee and tea that serve as substitutes to each other. They are substitutes because a change in the price of tea might make people to switch over to buying coffee. Alternatively, an increase in the price of coffee may also make people shift to buying tea. But a good example of inelastic good is salt because it has no substitute. 3. Uses and/or applications of the goods or services The usage of goods or services may affect its elasticity either elastic or inelastic. Good example is electricity, any decrease in its price will eventually led to consumers ability to make more use and further establishing electricity as having elastic demand curve. 4. Consumers proportion of the income that is spent on the commodity Practically we have noticed that the consumers can spend only a very small percentage of its income in buying such goods. Good example is salt and matches that normally take a very small percentage of consumers income, making them having inelastic demand curve. 5. The prices of goods Generally speaking, cheap goods and services normally have inelastic demand curve, while the expensive goods normally have elastic demand curve. 6. Income of the consumers Scholarly arguments have shown that the rich or high income earners normally have inelastic demand curves for their goods and services, while the poor or lower income earners normally have elastic demand curve. This is because he rich and high income earners will buy the goods and services at every levels of its prices, whereas the poor or lower income earners tends to change along the quantity of their consumptions due to changes in price. 7. Time period Evidence has shown that elasticity of demand would better occur in the long run production of the goods or services than at the short run. This is primarily because in the long run production and supply processes, the consumers could adjust to their individual demands by switching or trying cheaper substitutes. Industry evidence has shown that productions of the cheaper substitutes are only possible only at the long run operational processes. 8. Income and Wealth Distribution in the society The presence of unequal distributions of the national income would the demand for the goods and services to be relatively inelastic. Most advance countries that allow even distributions of their income and wealth will make possible elastic demand for its commodity. 2.3: Differences between price elasticity, income elasticity and cross elasticity of demand Below are the three types of elasticity:- Price elasticity Income elasticity is further divided into 3 i.e. Zero income elasticity of demand, Negative income elasticity of demand and Positive income elasticity of demand. Cross elasticity 1. Price Elasticity of demand Price elasticity of demand has been defined as the actual degree of responsiveness of the quantity that is demanded of a good or services in response to the changes in its actual price i.e. price elasticity of demand primarily measures how much of a change in actual price of any good that affects the demand for these goods or services, leaving all other factors to be constant. To calculate price elasticity, there is need to divide the proportionate of change in the quantity that is demanded by the proportion of change in the price. EP= Percentage change in the quantity demanded Percentage change in the price 2. Income elasticity Income elasticity of demand has been argued as measuring how much of a change in consumers income that affects the demand for such goods or services if its price and all other factors remained constant. Below is the formula for calculating income elasticity of demand: EY= Percentage change in the quantity demanded Percentage change in the income As divided into three, Zero income elasticity shows that a change in the consumers income will have no significant effect on the quantity that is demanded of such goods. Good examples are salts, matches and cigarettes. Next is negative income elasticity that shows that an increase in the incomes of consumers will lead to the decrease in the quantity that is demanded of such goods. This situation mostly occurs in inferior goods. Last is positive income elasticity that means an increase in the incomes of consumers will lead to the increase in quantity that is demanded of such goods. 3. Cross elasticity Cross elasticity of demand measures the actual change in the demand for commodity A due to the change in the price of commodity B. ED= Percentage change in the quantity that is demanded of commodity A Percentage change in the price of commodity B The above formula indicates that if the goods or services that have substitutes and cross elasticity are positive i.e. as above any increase in price of commodity X will finally result in the increase in sales of commodity Y. 2.4: Importance Elasticity of Demand to businessmen. As evident above, the concept of elasticity of demand has been playing a vital role in the decision making processes of the business world, especially as it relate to fixing commodity prices with the aim of making larger profits. Good example is if the cost of production tends to be increasing the company will want to pass this rising cost to the consumers through raising the price of the commodity. Practical examples have also shown that some companies do change their commodity price even without any visible change in the actual cost of their productions. But practically, whether the raising price is following any rise in the cost of production or otherwise has proved to be beneficial depends on the following situations: The actual price elasticity of the demand for such goods or ser product, i.e. the percentage change is subject to how high or low the proportionate changes in its actual demand relate to the percentage change in commodity price. The price elasticity of the demand is also very relevant for business in determining the value of their substitute, this is because when the commodity price increases the actual demand for the product substitutes also increases automatically even if the products prices generally remained unchanged. Businessmen are also able to know that increasing the price of their goods would only be beneficial if: The demand for their products is less elastic The demand for their products substitutes is also much less elastic. Finally, the usefulness of elasticity of demand also stands in its ability established the required quantitative relationships that exist between the quantity demanded of a product and its price or any other determinants of demand. Question 4: Discuss some of the characteristics of the Malaysian economy. Discuss some of its weaknesses and suggest some appropriate policy proposals to strengthen the economy in order to enable it to become a developed economy by 2020. Solution to Question 4: 4.1: Characteristics of the Malaysian economy. Malaysia is one of the countries located in the Southeastern Asia. The capital is called Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia comprised of two parts, one part is the Peninsular Malaysia and while the other is the East Malaysia which is called Malaysian Borneo. The Peninsular part has 11 states while the East Malaysia comprises of 2 states. Malaysian economy system is an open economy system; the economic involves domestic community and the international community. More so the economy is a state oriented market economy. The country has a fast growing economy. The economy was ranked 3rd largest among the south East Asian countries in 2007. Where Malaysia suited is a great advantage for its foreign trade. Malaysia GDP The Gross Domestic Product of Malaysia depends solely on its agricultural, manufacturing industries and the service sectors.  The agricultural sector contributed 9.7 % to the country GDP in 2007.   Also in the area of manufacturing industries it contributed 44.6% to the country and t of service sector contributed 45.7 % as well to the GDP. For the PPP (Purchasing Power Parity), the country is ranked 29th in the world. They have GDP growth rate of 20 % and it was realized towards the end of 20th century. In 2009 GDP of Malaysia was estimated US$ 207,400 billion PPP was calculated to be $ 3.9 billion. Malaysia Natural Resources Malaysia is rich natural resource, like agriculture, minerals and forestry. Most agricultural plant resources of Malaysia are rubber, pine apple, palm oil tobacco etc. The countrys economy In the area of Forestry, the loggings contributed a larger amount to the countrys economy. More so, in the plantation area is timber, rubber plant and palm tree. When we talk of minerals resources, Malaysia is a rich deposit of minerals like tin and petroleum. Sectors of Malaysia Economy Malaysian Industries Mining Industry: Malaysian Economy Malaysia mining industry has contributed a lot to the economy through the export of mine products. The most important ones are oil, gas and tin. Malaysia was ranked has the worlds largest producer of tin in 1980. The sea transportation was easy because the mine is located in location of the mines in the peninsular Malaysia. Crude oil production and natural gas has increased to a higher level over the last few years. In 1999, the overall production of petroleum reached 693,000 barrels. Production of liquefied natural gas was estimated to be 3.8 billion cubic feet. There are major oil refiners in Malaysia Manufacturing Industry : Malaysian Economy In Malaysia there are many developed manufacturing industries. The manufacturing industries of Malaysia are, electronics manufacturing industries, furniture manufacturing industries and Food processing industries etc. In the sector of manufacturing, the country is ranked in the 23rd position in the world countries. Malaysian Services Malaysian Tourism: Malaysian Economy Malaysia in the sector of tourism was ranking the 9th position in the world. The common tourism locations in Malaysia are Kuala Lumpur, Sabah, Perlis, Malacca, Terengganu etc Banking and Finance: The bank Negara Malaysia is in charge of finance sector. Master Plan was introduced in 2001 after the 1999 financial crisis and this gave more room for to Islamic banking. May Bank is said to be the largest bank in Asia Pacific that practice Islamic Banking. However Malaysian government plan to give licensure to more sectors by the end of 2010 to improve the opportunities of Islamic Banking. 4.2: Some Weaknesses in Malaysian economy. 4.2.1: Political Weakness In Malaysia Malay half of the population holds the constitutionally position in society, and this a kind of discrimination among the three race, this is not only in jobs but in wealth as well. Controversial Internal Security Act (ISA), give room for detention without trial, has been abuse by the government on many occasions with intention of quelling unrest. More so, some of the detentions government used it to oppress the government opposition. BMI Political Risk Ratings The Malaysias short-term political risk rating (STPR) of 80.2 shows higher compared to other regional country like Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand. As the opposition to Pakatan Rakyat always challenges the BN coalition being witnessed in the defeat of the 2010 budget bill in parliament in 2009, the people thought that general political stability will be maintained. However, it is encourage that Malaysia was able to maintain a peaceful political environment, but this all depend on Prime Minister Najib Razaks his straight to encourage unity in the nation with diverse ethnicity and faiths. 4.2.2: Economic Weakness Malaysias is becoming importer of oil in the next few years, Malaysia Economic openness will be as much of a burden as a benefit, because of it confirmations of a high level of vulnerability to global growth and capital flows. The taxes collected on oil contribute over 40% of the states revenues despite the fact that it was expected to become a net oil importer by the beginning of 2011. Because the government had difficult in having alternative income, this will make hard for the governments function perfectly and maintain economic development, which is potentially leading to stagnate economy. BMI Economic Risk Ratings In the previous quarterly report Malaysias STER rating has being declining to be 73.5. And still Malaysia is still in the respectable V-shaped recovery of 4.1% now the 2009.The actual GDP growth is1.7%), never the less Malaysia is exposed to a Chinese double-dip slowdown, most especially if Beijing was unable to diffuse the satisfactorily recent property bubble in the near future. Malaysia in addition, has a huge fiscal deficit that is over 7% of GDP in the year 2009 and this has bring the LTER rating down to 72.6. 4.2.3: Business Environment Weakness The country will keep price subsidization will a peripheral and it has become part of the economy system or economy life of Malaysia. Some of the big construction project and contract for foreign firm are all under the domain of formal Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed so they are not directly connected to the government. In order words engaging in businesses in the country will always mean doing businesses with the politically connected people. BMI Business Environment Risk Ratings Furthermore, in (BER) Business Environment Rating Malaysia scores over average which is 63.4 but the score was dragged down because of the comparatively low score of 55.3 for the Infrastructure subcomponent like public transportation, mean while, in 2009 a reduction in the amount of red tape boosted the Institutions subcomponent to a score of 66.9 from 59.4. 4.3: Some policy proposals to strengthen Malaysian economy. There is a recommendation policy which must be followed accompanied with this, is other improvements in the economy. Firstly there should be huge notification should be on diversification. Most of the Malaysias export markets focused on technology sector and electronics which are vulnerable to global slumps in demand, mostly the US, the US are major exporter of Malaysian goods. Opening trade of a country economy is an important factor to decide a kind of exchange rate system that is desirable. If any country relies on trade, the fixed exchange rates provide stability in the market economy. Anyway, when having the exchange rate fixed does not mean the economy will remain competitive in foreign trade when some other countries are faced with inflation. Never the less it resulted to the second element, the inflation rates. The inflation rate of the trade partner is relevant factor so as the inflation of domestic inflation with the fixed rate; in order words the approach is not straightforward. So it is better for the country to remain with the fixed rate to avoid inflation tendency in the economy. Another recommendation is labor market flexibility which is used to determine which exchange is better in a given period of time. In this respect if there is flexibility in the labor market, the fixed exchange system work better. There must be flexible labor market and flexible exchange rate in order to avoid unemployment because of the output shock. Further more, the degree of financial development of the country is important. So when a country seems to be financially underdeveloped, fixed exchange rate is better to avoid urge effects of foreign speculation. Lastly is how to decide on which exchange rate system is better, and the mobility of capital. Mean while, it is better for exchange rate to be flexible when the capital mobility is high. Observation, Malaysias decision in pegging its currency to the dollar seems adequate. With solid financial institutions and credible policymakers, it would be adequate, as well transforming to a flexible exchange rate system. Concludsivly, easing the changings Malaysia will have to persistently implement consistent macroeconomic policies so as to maintain financial stability and sustainable fiscal and external positions. Question 7: Elaborate what you understand by deficit financing. What are its limitation as an instrument of economic development. Assuming that you are the economic advisor to the prime minister and he/she ask for your recommendations to eliminate a federal deficit, what would you recommend? Solution to Question 7: 7.1: Elaborate what you understand by deficit financing. What do we mean by deficit financing this is a strategy or ways to management of money which when spending is more than collected at the same period of time. In order words this is referred to budget deficit, this approach is used in business that is small, household budgets, in corporations and also in, governments sector mostly in all the level. If deficit financing is used in the right way it will help to launch a chain of the event and this will help in financing situation instead of any debt may cause problem or difficult to pay. Mostly common or know example of government deficit financing is how the government stimulate the economy of that country or nation to put a stop to any recession that country is facing. The government has a set aside a plan which will involved using borrow resources to purchase, the government can use different strategy like increasing demand output for product in all business sector of that nation. It also helps in the motivation of many business in o rder for them to hire more employees and it will reduced the level of unemployment in the country during the period of recession. Further more, the consumer confidence and trust will be restored in the market place because of the safe transformation, and these make it safe for the buyer to buy more goods and services. If the economy of a country in closely looked into and the deficit financing is carefully monitored, it will bring back economy stability in the country over short period of time like few month or few years. Deficit spending in economic does not only occurred in the government sector only but also in all business as well A company may plan to spend a certain amount of money as a kind of upfront thinking that they will be able to generate the fund back for investment .An investor or company owner may decide to buy a new machine for the company production with the hope that a new machine will hasten and make the production of goods in a less period of time with larger unit of goods, and with less cost. This kind of idea or strategy in business help the business to flourish and the manufacturer will be able to pay off his debt and have budget surplus instead of deficit, the owner of the business will be debt free and enjoy the surplus. 7.2: The limitations of Deficit financing being an instrument of economic development. In any given economy, the government normally embarked many projects that assisted it in generating the desired economy outputs both in investment and other capital projects. If the government prints more money out it will cause inflation in that economy and this situation usually affected the poor people in that society. The rich will be richer and the poor will be poorer. The buyer straight will be reducing to greater level and the businessmen profit margin will increase. In any society there is always the people that have and those who do not have so any increase made in price domestics goods leads to importation of cheap goods and the domestic goods high price will reduced the export. This in turn leads to adverse in balance of payments. Never the less this will affect the cost of the production because the raw material used in process of production has being increased, so the goods will be increased as well, perhaps it will definitely reflect on foreign investment, it will be le ss attracted by other country. Good example is figure 3 below that aptly depict government spending in OECD countries: Source: OECD (2010). Listed below are the disadvantages of deficit financing and some other cogent reasons to be alert about a National debt. The interest Payment In a society people do not lend to the government with the charity. Government must pay interest on every debt they are involved in just like any one in the society, it was recorded that last year government spent the sum of  £31 billon on interest payments alone. Looking at this in a perspective manner it will equate to 15 p on income tax. This amount is more than what UK spends on National Defense. The government borrowing for the year 2007/08 going to be  £42 billion same amount the government pays in interest. The Crowding Out effects The government debt always affect the private sector because they sell bond to the private sector in order for the government to borrow money and this in turn lead to less private investment because the government has bombard them with the bonds. Also the private spending is more efficient than the government level of spending because the government result to inefficient spending .this is what we called crowing out, the private investor is crowded out with government bonds because the government needs to borrow The financial crowding out The financial crowding out is when the government want to borrow large sum of money and they tried to increase the interest rate on bonds in order to attract many lender. The bonds rate is increased this will definitely put pressure on the interest rate generally, in order words this increase in the interest rate will affect the economy of that country because people will reduced their way of spending, investment level will be low and later run the economy growth will be low. The tax rises for the future. The tax rises for the future look into how the public sector debt is being paid. Any increasing public sector debts indicated that the future taxpayer will be the one to bear the burden by paying the bill. No matter the situation of the public sector debt reduced or not, the future taxpayer will be the one to pay the interest on the debts. Further this will a problem because, has it was mentioned above, changing of demographics show that government finances is usually placed under pressure, though without borrowing from at that moment of time. Limits Fiscal Policy In a normal situation the government should be able expand the fiscal policy in a situation where the economy is facing problem or recession. When a government has urge public debt they tried to reduced the scope by lowering tax in order to enhance demand. Then government must increase taxes and cut their spending in order to meet up with the budget .this is advisable because of the existing problems in the market economy. 7.3: Suggested recommendations to eliminate a federal deficit   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In summary, I like to recommend these three-step formulas for prosperity: 1) Elimination of federal taxes. It will good to cancel government taxes because when the citizen gives money to the government is just like throwing coals to Newcastle. Government is the maker of money, they are the producer that has no limitation to their production. . When the citizen sends taxes to the government, they just used it to pay debt. When you send your tax money to the government, the government simply uses it to pay down debt. When paying down debt it destroys the economy money in a given society. In order words taxes damaged money in the society.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   More so, the federal tax system is a waste of resources, it will be good if the government can spend the billions of dollars spent on compliance on production of useful goods for citizen and this will ease the problem of the economy and the people.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first suggested tax that should be eliminated is; the Medicare taxes and Social Security taxes. These will be politically popular; also regressive taxes directly impact businesses on low and the middle income people. That politician that ends FICA will becomes a hero.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This will give federal government the opportunity to create money to support retirement and health care sector. 2) Elimination of federal borrowing. Government being a producer of money, an established government will not need to borrow money. These are inefficient; they are harmful, the exercise which provides no economic benefit. The Federal government borrowing provides semantic impression that government is in debt, and people it find repugnant.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  If there no borrowing; there would not be debt. 3) Establishing a national, money-supply goal. It is good to organize a congress, a congress that will look into the checking account called money created, They will add money to this account when needed. They will write checks and make a kind of transfers from the Money Created account in payment for all goods and services.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This will be the suggested system for federal money creation in our economy. The congress will be the one to determine on how much money to be added to the Money Created account, however giving Congress power over money creation. Thus, the Federal will continue to control the interest rates and inflation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The congress will spend what is necessary on retirement, the military health care, crime prevention, education, the infrastructure, and other national needs.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The country will be free the tyranny of semantics and the problem of federal debt. This society prosper has rapid growth in their economy. Question 8: What are the constraints normally countries face in achieving a sustainable economic growth. What are the merits and demerits of attempting to achieve a faster growth rate in this country. Solution to Question 8: 8.1: Constraints facing the achievement of a sustainable economic growth. As evident in existing literatures that sustainable literally means ability of a system to endure and last long. So, sustainable economic growth means an economic development that is able to last longer! According to late David Pearce who happen to be one of the best environmental economists in his generation, states that sustainable economic growth primarily indicates that each of the generation should be able to pass on much of its capital as inheritance to its coming generations, under this Pearce approach he defined capital as including physical capital like machineries and infrastructures, also intellectual capitals like knowledge and technology and lastly environmental capitals like environmental qualities and stocks of the natural resources. This sustainable growth is what the world is witnessing from the groups of emerging economies have been trying all within them to continue to excel, particularly China and India that have remained as major drivers of the recent global expansions. But, evidence has shown that while the recent global growth outlook seems more positive, I will like to use this opportunity to mention that there are major four constraints which could threaten the sustainable growth of any country, i.e.:  Ã‚  Ã‚   The prices of Oil   the unpredictable increase in the prices of oil by producing countries have always been tried to remedy by both the OECD and its other sister organizations such as International Energy Agency all working very add to help many countries in addressing their short and long-term growth challenges as a result of sudden increase in energy prices, problems or fluctuations in security of supply and other alternative sources.   If not properly curtailed globally, fluctuations in oil prices could significantly impede economic growth of countries. External imbalances in trades The imbalances in current accounts of trading partners across the globe has reached an unprecedented levels especially between countries like the US, Japan, China, and some other Asian coun