Saturday, November 30, 2019

Media Influence on Society (Smoking) Essay Example

Media Influence on Society (Smoking) Essay The mass media, some may argue that It Is for the common good, others say It Is all brainwash hyped up by publicity, who is the one at fault, or can they both be correct? Throughout the decades the media has grown exponentially with the advance of technology. It all started out with the telegraph, moved to the radio, newspapers, magazines, television and now the World Wide Web. Today people live in a social community, between testing, Faceable, Twitter, TV, Magazines, or newspapers, people are always being informed of what is going on. Oh a day to day axis, people base their decisions off of knowledge, experience, values, and attitudes. When people work, they base what they do off of what they have learned from their experience and studies. However in their daily lives, they rely on the mass media to fill them in with current news and what they want to be aware of. People put their trust into todays media, but the media does have a positive and negative affect on the way people are channeling the Information being dealt. A way that the mass media Is positive has to be looked at from a technologies way of view. We will write a custom essay sample on Media Influence on Society (Smoking) specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Media Influence on Society (Smoking) specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Media Influence on Society (Smoking) specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Technology helps reduce the distance for its users; the world would Just me to be smaller due to the increased communication and access information. Staying connected also helps people stay In tuned with that Is going on In the world. Getting news feed sent directly to smartness, laptops, and Pads Is Just an everyday occurrence. Cinema, radio, television, magazines are a school of inattention: people look without seeing, listen in without hearing (Robert Browser). Even Browser would have to agree that people do not even realize that they are being flooded by the mass media. The mass media makes billions on the commercials, ads, and publicity that people are exposed to. People buy what they might think is a good item based on what they see or hear TV, the radio, magazine, or newspaper ads. How can people be so sure that what they are buying Is the best available Item, or Is It the best available Item that the media dons upon them? These are the effect that the media has on teens, they buy what they see the hottest celebrities wearing, or what their favorite actor or singer is selling. Apparently there are some positive and negative influences on teens. In a negative type of way, teens may see the commercials for cigarettes, cigars, and alcohol as being cool and acceptable. This might give them an excuse to give drugs a try and might even leave a permanent habit that they can carry onto their children. Besides the obvious fact of tobacco and alcoholic products being a negative Influence on teens, fast food chains are also polluting the minds of the young, developing teens. McDonalds showing their annual commercial for the Micro, or Taco Bell advertising their value menu will call out to kids seeing that these foods are cheap and delicious but not knowing that they are filled with saturated fats, trans fats, and high sodium content may lead to obesity, high blood pressure, high holster, or diabetes If eaten excessively. Joe Kelly from PBS says, Theyre talking to pre-pubescent girls about managing their calorie intake!! With Campbell soup, of all things an All-American family company. This is crazy! I saw the ad on the Rosier ODonnell snow. Overall AT our memoirs saw It Ana sent me e-mails saying, Have you seen this ad, its crazy (Kelly). Along with obesity, society puts this image in teens heads on how they should look, having bulging biceps and a cut 6-pack maybe the ideal body for guys but it may not work out for all males, and achieving that type of body takes a lot or training and dedication. Being stick thin as a girl may also be as unhealthy or ma ybe even unhealthier than obesity. Anorexia is also a chance when young girls are starving themselves trying to fit into a 00, and looking like a Victorians Secret model. On the other hand the media does have a positive effect on teens. Some might think that the media has negative influences on society, there are certain shows and ads that persuade teens to be a better them. Today we are beginning to notice that the new media are not Just mechanical gimmicks for creating worlds of illusion, but new languages with new and unique powers of expression Marshall Mclean). When Mclean says this, he is acknowledging that the media has an influence in society by changing society for the greater good and potentially evolving humans to be smarter. When it comes to shows like The Biggest Loser or Extreme Home Makeover, they provide a great influence on kids to get out there and make a change, whether it is losing some excess weight to get down to a healthy more comfortable size that they are not so self-conscious about, or doing some volunteer work in their community to change someone elses life in a positive way. Also teens are at a stage in their life where they do not quite know who they are and area looking for a sign of acceptance. They want to be accepted by their parents, role models, peers, and they Just want to be loved and successful. The media creates this ideal image that teens want to match, kids see fancy cars, nice houses, and extravagant parties and the only thing on their mind is, l want to be Just like them, or l wish I had that kind of money. In a way, the media pushes kids to achieve success, by getting a better education and really trying in school to be that lawyer, or hat film director, or that brain surgeon. In my opinion, even though the media has positive influences on our society it is masked by the mass majority of negativity. Some young minds are intellectual enough to see around the publicity and propaganda, but to others that are brainwashed, it may be hard to see what is real and what the media wants to be seen as real. When William Branch said, All of us who professionally use the mass media are the shapers of society. We can vulgarize that society. We can brutalize it. Or we can help lift it onto a higher level (William Branch). He is stating that people can either take the media for being good or bad, and how people interpret that and use it in their everyday life is all on them. When it comes down to reality shows like Laguna Beach, Gossip Girls, or The Hills; the mass media puts off teenage life as being this rich and spoiled but when in reality, these kids are Just one in a million that have overly wealthy parents. These shows teach kids the value of quality over quantity, but not in any kind of realistic way. When kids watch these shows, they want what all the kids have on TV, they want the $140 pair of Arabian sunglasses, rather than the $6. 99 pair they can pick at Target across the street. Another value that kids are learning from the media is violence. The effects of violence in the media can be traumatic for growing children that are in the process of shaping their personality traits, values, and beliefs. In the past years, there have been incidents of school shootings and playground violence and those events have Eden lanker to excessive use AT violent peeve games Ana grapnel war Images. I neuron video games like Call of Duty, kids are thinking that war is a form of entertainment, UT in reality war is a serious issue that should not be taken lightly. Over all, whether some may think that the mass media may either be a good thing or bad influence, the public can come to a mutual agreement that the world would not be the same without the mass media. People use the media on a daily basis, keeping in tune to what is going on is important, whether it is something less important like what Lad Gaga wore to the Grammas, to the latest earthquake that struck California. Malcolm X once said, The medias the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and thats power. Because they control the minds of the masses (Malcolm X). Even though the mass media is linked to spreading hyped up fake news like a wildfire, but on the safe side, it helps a lot to inform people about the realities as well. Media has a constructive role to play for the society. The media focuses on social issues in almost every era. Issues in society are always raised in order to provide Justice to the people. Being born and raised in LA and having an older sister that I was pretty much attached to the hip at, I felt like I was always into self-image and always wanting the est. of the best things. I was spoiled as a kid and into my preteen age by my sister, she always seemed to buy me brand named clothing when honestly, I Just wanted something comfortable. I think the psychology term of Nature vs.. Nurture really came into play here. The whole idea of Nature vs.. Nurture is that we are all born with a set personality, this is who we are and this will never really change, that is our nature side. Our nurture side is how we were raised, the different things that our parents tell us to do or not to do mold our nature side and ultimately makes us who we are today. I think my nature was really about sports and I was nurtured into fashion and other material goods. I feel like the media has had an exponential influence on my sister, who was my role model growing up, and that really made me who I am today. Like I said before, I am no better than anyone else, I look up to the media for guidance because I feel like I would be lost without it, but I think it is good that I can admit up to that and can see clearly how the mass media influences me. The wrong is the fact that society today believes that whatever is in the media is socially acceptable to the common populous. When these beliefs revolve around bad influential things then children grow up believing that these are all acceptable and just the way the world really is. It is harmful for the future of our societies and also spread ignorance around the world. We have to realize that although sex, pain and suffering makes for a good story, it should be taken as it is, very bad, and not be glorified in any way. There should be limitations to freedom of speech as some things people can get away with are utterly disgusting. Look at Camel cigarettes, the image here is their Marci Grass Limited Edition flavored packs.

Monday, November 25, 2019

It Makes You Sic How to Use “Sic” in Academic Writing

It Makes You Sic How to Use â€Å"Sic† in Academic Writing It Makes You Sic: How to Use â€Å"Sic† in Academic Writing Despite the best efforts of proofreaders, sometimes books are published with typographical errors. Mostly these are minor errors that don’t affect clarity, but it can be annoying if you want to quote a source in your paper and notice an error in the text. Don’t panic though, as this is where sic comes in. What Does Sic Mean? The literal meaning of the Latin term â€Å"sic† is â€Å"thus.† Nowadays, its primary use is to show that something has been written incorrectly in quoted passages. For example: According to Cameron (2013), It’s important to spell wurds [sic] correctly. Here, â€Å"[sic]† has been added to the quote because â€Å"wurds† (i.e., â€Å"words†) is spelled incorrectly. This shows your reader that the error was in the original text, not something you’ve added by mistake! When Should I  Use Sic? The short answer is â€Å"not at all if you can avoid it.† With minor errors, the best approach is usually to correct the mistake using [square brackets] to indicate the edited text. The above example, for instance, could be presented as: According to Cameron (2013), It’s important to spell [words] correctly. We use â€Å"sic† only when we want to reproduce the original text exactly, complete with errors, such as when quoting interview transcripts or sources that use archaic spellings: Wittgenstein (1953, p. 87) aimed to shew [sic] the fly the way out of the fly-bottle. Another common use of sic is to poke fun at a writer by preserving (yet pointing out) their mistakes or use of poor grammar, but this isn’t appropriate in academic writing. How to Use Sic Like all edits to quoted text, the general rule is to enclose â€Å"sic† in square brackets when inserting it into a quote, as shown above. A more controversial issue is whether or not to italicize â€Å"[sic].† Many style guides recommend using italics for non-English words, including Latin terms. But â€Å"sic† is common enough that some consider it a part of English, meaning it shouldn’t be italicized (like with â€Å"e.g.† and â€Å"etc.†). The best thing to do is check your school’s style guide for advice about italicizing Latin terms, as well as how â€Å"sic† should be used in your work.

Friday, November 22, 2019

The Ultimate Guide to Applying to Emory

One of the 50 oldest private universities in the United States, Emory University was founded in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia, originally as Emory College. Today its main campus is located in historic Atlanta. A liberal arts research university, Emory offers more than 70 majors and 50 minors . One distinctive feature of its academic program is the First-Year Seminar requirement, in which freshman participate in small classes run by faculty members to discuss meaningful topics, fostering interaction, critical thinking, and communication skills. The undergraduate program consists of four schools: Emory College of Arts and Sciences, Oxford College, Goizueta Business School, and Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. Students begin their studies at either Emory College or Oxford and may complete Bachelor’s degrees at Emory or apply to finish their undergraduate studies at the Business or Nursing Schools after completing at least one and more commonly two years. Students may apply to Emory, Oxford, or both. Oxford is a two-year college located on the original campus in Oxford, Georgia, specializing in liberal arts education for freshmen and sophomores. Oxford has a much smaller campus, and offers early opportunities for leadership. After their sophomore years, Oxford students automatically enter Emory College, or may apply to complete their studies at the Business School or School of Nursing. Emory is a competitive school, with an acceptance rate of 25.2%. 3,809 students were offered a spot on the waitlist, and of these, 45 students were offered admission. After accepting a position on the waitlist, these candidates with be notified of their final decisions by June 1 st . Emory offers two Early Decision plans, both of which are binding, meaning students must matriculate at Emory and withdraw applications from other schools if accepted. For both plans, applicants may apply to Emory College, Oxford College, or both. If accepted to one of the campuses but not the other, you will pay your deposit to that school; if you are accepted to both campuses, you will have until the enrollment deposit date to choose. The application deadline for Early Decision I is November 1 st , and you will receive your admissions decision by December 15 th . If accepted, your enrollment deposit is due by January 15 th . Students who are not admitted may be deferred to the Regular Decision pool of candidates or denied admission. The application deadline for Early Decision II is January 1 st , and you will be notified by February 15 th . If accepted under this plan, your enrollment deposit is due March 15 th . As with Regular Decision, students applying under this plan may be d enied admission or waitlisted. The Regular Decision application deadline is January 1 st , and you will be notified of your admissions decision by April 1 st . Your enrollment deposit is due May 1 st . Emory offers an Early Admission plan for academically exceptional high school juniors. These students may apply by the above deadlines in their eleventh grade year, as long as they have exhausted their high schools’ most advanced course offerings. Tuition costs $47,300, with a total cost of $65,080 (including food, housing, and other expenses) at Emory College, and $42,600, with a total cost of $58,900, at Oxford annually. Emory offers both merit and need-based aid. Financial aid forms are due December 5 th for Early Decision I and February 15 th for Early Decision II and Regular Decision. Visit the Net Price Calculator   available through Emory’s website to estimate your cost of tuition. Merit-based scholarships include the Emory University Scholars Programs in conjunction with Emory College, Oxford, and the Business School. Candidates must complete application materials for the programs by November 15 th , and finalist will be notified, along with their admissions acceptances, by February 15 th . Roughly 175-200 finalists are chosen, and scholarships are awarded in mid-April. Students may apply to be Emory, Oxford, or Goizueta Scholars, and those chosen as Goizueta Scholars are automatically admitted to the Business School in their junior year of college. Emory accepts either the Common Application or the Coalition Application . You must also complete the Emory supplement. There is an application fee of $75. The Emory supplement has five sections: General, Academic, Contacts, Family, and Writing. In this section, you will indicate whether you are applying to Emory College, Oxford, or both. You will also indicate under what plan you are applying: Early Decision I, Early Decision II, or Regular Decision. Additionally, you will be asked if you are applying for financial aid, if you have been given an application fee waiver, and if you are a QuestBridge applicant. The academic section is intended to give the admissions committee an idea of your future academic pursuits. First, you will indicate your primary area of interest from the following options: Business; Humanities, Arts, and Performance; Natural Sciences and Engineering; Nursing; and Social Sciences. Next, you will select your preferred major or program within that field. You will also indicate your secondary area of interest and preferred major or program within that field, if applicable. You may select undecided for any of these if you are not sure what you want to study yet. Keep in mind that you are not declaring a major here; Emory simply wants to know more about your current interests. You will also indicate whether or not your school or school district adjusts grades for AP, IB, or Honors courses. Some schools adjust grades for courses at these levels to compensate for their rigor. Check with your guidance counselor if you aren’t sure what your high school’s policy is. Finally, you will indicate if you plan on applying for one of the Emory Scholars programs. There are additional application requirements if you do intend to be considered. In this section, you will indicate whether or not you have previously applied to Emory. If you answer yes, you will be prompted for the month and year you applied. Here, you will list any parents, siblings, or other relatives who have attended or are currently attending Emory. You will list their relationship to you, names, degrees (if awarded), and year of graduation. You will also be asked if you have any parents or other relatives who are currently employed by Emory University or Emory Healthcare, and indicate their names, relationship to you, affiliations or departments, and whether or not they are still employed by Emory. In addition to the Common Application’s Personal Statement, please choose two (2) of the short answer prompts below. Be thoughtful in your responses, but don’t stress about what the right answer might be — we just want to get to know you a bit better. Each response should be no more than 150 words. There are five prompts. For a more detailed look at how to write each of these prompts, check out out   Emory University Essay Breakdown . -In your opinion, what is an important challenge facing your generation in the next 50 years? -What are you most excited about or looking forward to in your college experience? -What is your favorite fiction or non-fiction work (film / book / television show / album / poem / play)? Why? -Please describe your ideal college campus/academic environment and what you hope to gain from it. These questions are meant to give the admissions committee of who you are as a person. They are not necessarily related to your academic achievements or intellectual pursuits; instead, you should discuss what drives you and what your personality is like. Some of the questions, particularly the final two, do relate to your academic motivations, but they focus more on your particular drives, rather than past achievements. Even though some of these questions may seem less intellectual than other college essays, remember that it is as much a part of your application as any other requirement, and be sure to come across as professional and mature. Still, make sure your personality comes through, as this will allow you to differentiate yourself from other applicants. Given the limited amount of space, use plenty of examples and be as specific as possible.    Students must submit scores from either the SAT or ACT. SAT II subject tests are encouraged, but not required. Some applicants may be invited to interview   with an Emory alum off-campus. Whether or not a candidate receives an invitation depends on location and timing, and does not have any bearing on the likelihood of acceptance to Emory. Students who do receive invitations are encouraged to accept them, however, since this provides the admissions committee with an opportunity to learn more about the student, and the student with a chance to learn more about the school. Applicants and prospective students may not request interviews. Applicants should also send two teacher recommendations, as well as a guidance counselor recommendation and school report. Need help applying to Emory and other colleges on your list? Contact us to learn more about our College Application Guidance Program today!  

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Reform and the Political Background of Public Education in Texas Essay

Reform and the Political Background of Public Education in Texas - Essay Example Governor Edmund J. Davis set â€Å"curriculum for all schools, grading of classes into different levels, systematic teacher certification, teacher conventions, and central administration† to improve public education (Moneyhon 393). In April 24, 1871, he legislated the board of education for public schools including the governor, attorney general, and superintendent. The board is responsible for the establishment of rules for the education system, provision for choosing and certifying teachers for their validity, salaries of staff, choose books and instruments for classroom use, guarantee â€Å"a common course of studies, and oversee the general operation of the schools† (Moneyhon 395). The teacher’s certification garnered criticism and complaints from private institutions because of the threat to their business. As a result, parents selected public schools for the education of their children. The dispute heightened when the State proposed for the imposition of ta xes. In 1875, DeGress formulated a recommendation to increase the salary of public school teachers, downsize supervisors’ jobs to avoid tax increase, and allow instructors to teach based on the three categories of teachers’ certificates (Moneyhon 410). The struggle in the political aspect between the Republicans and Democrats was evident during this year because of Democrats’ propaganda against Republicans pertaining to the expensive education system. The Democrats won, but the people suffered due to the low cost or budget in the education system. Major Reforms in Education In early 1980 and 1990s, Texas led the school reform through policies in standardizing testing and school accountability, which adheres to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 (Domina 200). Domina added that in mid-1990s, Texas aimed for higher education to improve the accessibility of education for poor and separated high schools receiving disparate education with Black and Hispanic origins. The first proposition on K-12 education system required an experiment to pursue K-16 reform model that aims to â€Å"improve the clarity and consistency of higher education signals and thereby shape the educational experience of high school students† (Domina 201). Prior to that event, the education reform bill was devised in 1981, which was called House Bill 246. It authorizes curriculum in every grade schools and district in Texas. It was followed by the commonly known as Chapter 75 that was written by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and proceeded by the State Board of Education. The bill necessitates students to master at least 70 percent to pass the grade or subject. However, H.B 72 was ratified and became a law in 1984. This bill became the standard of education in Texas, which gave priority to competent teachers in exchange of raising their salaries (Lutz 71+). Teachers must undergo professional competency called the Texas Examination of Current Administrators and Teac hers (TECAT), but they perceived it as an insult to their capability. Despite the complaints of teachers, principals, and coaches, the bill was not amended due to the threat of Perot, the overseer of Texas education system, to legislators (Lutz). Moreover, racial discrimination was an issue in the

Monday, November 18, 2019

Likes and dideerecnes of computing variances Assignment

Likes and dideerecnes of computing variances - Assignment Example Having been defined as the square of mean differences between each number in a data set and the mean of all the numbers in the set, the variance is a derivative of differences between the same numbers. Computing the variance of a data set is therefore equivalent to analyzing the difference between the same numbers (Wegner, 2010). The definition of variance as a measure of dispersion also explains the relationship between the variance and the difference between points. A data set with a higher magnitude variance, for instance, means that data points in the set are far apart from each other, a factor that indicates greater variation from the mean. The gaps between the data points however defines the differences between the points and this means that computing the variance and analyzing differences between data points generate the same understanding on distribution of data in the set (Madrigal,

Thursday, November 14, 2019

The Truman Doctrine :: American America History

The Truman Doctrine "I believe that it must be the policy of the United States to support free people who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressure." (Harry Truman mach 1947). This is part of the speech Harry S. Truman gave to congress on the behalf of small countries falling to the pressures of communism. The Truman Doctrine was a anti-communist foreign policy that would change of the world. Turkey and Greece were under a great threat by the Soviet-supported rebels seeking to topple the government and install communist power. This made the United States and especially Truman very nervous. This is why the Marshall Plan which is one of the direct influence to the Doctrine was thought up. This plan was designed to give aid to any european country damaged during WW2. It tremendously helped ravaged European nations such as Italy and France. By helping these countries the United States was economically forcing away communism. This was the way the United States had it all planned out. We weren't making the Communist very mad cause it was very indirect but later on this wouldn't be the case. The process by which the Truman Doctrine came about was a long and tedious one. After WW2 the US and Soviet Union were at the top of all world powers. Everything was pretty much equal such as military, economics, and nuclear power. The one thing that scared the US the most was the fact that the Soviets were greedy and wanted more and more land. This is where we began to see a huge threat to Greece, Turkey, and Iran. Because of all this on March 12, 1947 President Harry S. Truman gave a speech to congress that would later be call the Truman Doctrine. The Truman Doctrine would ask for a total of 400 million dollars for both Greece and Turkey (Freeland pg. 87). The money for Greece would be split between economic and military aid and for Turkey the aid was entirely for military purposes. The President had turned debate on two modest proposals into a vote of confidence on his administration's foreign policy and a test of American willingness to resist a threat defined to endanger the basic security and values of the American society (Pemberton pg. 92). By Truman doing this it almost put congress at a no win situation. Congress couldn't go against Truman cause this speech was nationally broadcast which would mean the people would be scared. The Truman Doctrine :: American America History The Truman Doctrine "I believe that it must be the policy of the United States to support free people who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressure." (Harry Truman mach 1947). This is part of the speech Harry S. Truman gave to congress on the behalf of small countries falling to the pressures of communism. The Truman Doctrine was a anti-communist foreign policy that would change of the world. Turkey and Greece were under a great threat by the Soviet-supported rebels seeking to topple the government and install communist power. This made the United States and especially Truman very nervous. This is why the Marshall Plan which is one of the direct influence to the Doctrine was thought up. This plan was designed to give aid to any european country damaged during WW2. It tremendously helped ravaged European nations such as Italy and France. By helping these countries the United States was economically forcing away communism. This was the way the United States had it all planned out. We weren't making the Communist very mad cause it was very indirect but later on this wouldn't be the case. The process by which the Truman Doctrine came about was a long and tedious one. After WW2 the US and Soviet Union were at the top of all world powers. Everything was pretty much equal such as military, economics, and nuclear power. The one thing that scared the US the most was the fact that the Soviets were greedy and wanted more and more land. This is where we began to see a huge threat to Greece, Turkey, and Iran. Because of all this on March 12, 1947 President Harry S. Truman gave a speech to congress that would later be call the Truman Doctrine. The Truman Doctrine would ask for a total of 400 million dollars for both Greece and Turkey (Freeland pg. 87). The money for Greece would be split between economic and military aid and for Turkey the aid was entirely for military purposes. The President had turned debate on two modest proposals into a vote of confidence on his administration's foreign policy and a test of American willingness to resist a threat defined to endanger the basic security and values of the American society (Pemberton pg. 92). By Truman doing this it almost put congress at a no win situation. Congress couldn't go against Truman cause this speech was nationally broadcast which would mean the people would be scared.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Critically Analyse How the Government Debt Problems Essay

Introduction Since the Greece’s debt crisis happened, the Euro zone has to confront with a huge sovereign debt crisis, like governments’ debt increased, bond yield spreads widened, Euro exchange rate fell as well, which caused that the whole international financial markets gradually lost the confidence. The purpose of this essay is to discuss the impact of this crisis both on foreign exchange and derivative markets. And the rest words is to analyse several possible reasons why this small economy could trigger such a wide impact on global financial markets, in which contagion can be considered as the fundamental and identifiable cause during the whole spread of crisis. The Impacts of European sovereign debt crisis Foreign exchange Foreign exchange market, as the largest and the most liquid financial market, with an average daily trading volume of nearly $1.5 trillion changing hands where statistically it is superior to all US equity and Treasure markets combined (Michelle Chan, 2011), was expectedly deteriorated as well as fluctuated by the ongoing European debt sovereign crisis since 2008. On one hand, the foreign exchange market reflected considerable stress under the lingering European debt crisis. On the basis of the Financial markets Stability Map(Graph1), apparently, financial markets, particularly the foreign exchange market continued to be weaker and experienced the heightened volatility. This weakness is shown in the graph1 that risks successively increase as the movement gradually moves away from the map center. Dissimilarly, risks in the rest of three components of the financial markets stability map, banking sector funding, debt and equity markets remained largely stable as well as unchanged, compared with the foreign exchange market. Generally to say, as indicated by the trends in the Financial Stability Map, the overall stability of the financial system kept in a robust development. Graph1 Financial Stability Map [pic] Source: Bloomberg On another hand, the foreign exchange rate was deeply influenced as well, particularly the depreciation of the Euro was more prominent against non-European currencies, such as yen, the USD and the GBP, as non-European currencies was coinstantaneously affected by spillover effects from the euro-zone. According to the graph2, the euro has depreciated against the USD and Japanese yen by around 25 percent since the late 2011, but by approximately 4 to 8 percent against the UK pound. Overall, the euro has depreciated by 8 percent on a trade-weighted basis (TWI) since the mid 2011, fluctuating around its average index. Graph 2 Euro against Selected Currencies [pic] Source: Bloomberg; RBA On the contrary, according to the Graph3, the Japanese yen had been depreciated slightly and modestly against the USD from its nearest highest rate in late November 2011. Generally to say, the yen was smoothly unchanged against the US dollar during the time period of six mouths. Nevertheless, the yen has appreciated by 7 percent against the euro since late 2011, reaching a highest level during past 11 years at the beginning of 2012. Reflecting this in the graph2, Japan’s nominal trade-weighted index (TWI) has recovered to historically high levels, though it remains only above its long-run average in real term (Reserve Bank of Australia, 2012). Graph 3 Japanese Effective Exchange Rates [pic] Sourceï ¼Å¡ BIS; RBA As for the USD, it was appreciated extremely strongly against the euro since late November 2011, seen in the Graph4, but depreciated against other foreign currencies. Concerning the trade-weighted index (TWI), the USD was mostly unchanged since 2011. Graph 4 US Dollar against Selected Currencies [pic] Source: Bloomberg Oppositely, after fluctuational depreciating during the past few months, several emerging market currencies have appreciated since the beginning of 2012(Graph5). However, as the continuous concerns about spillover effects from the euro area debt crisis, emerging European currencies remained relatively weak nowadays. Graph5 Emerging Market Currencies [pic] Sources: Bloomberg; IMF; RBA Derivative Market In 2001, in order to enter European Union, Greece referred the U.S. Goldman Sachs to design the currency swaps, which facilitated Greece join the European union. Nevertheless after predicting the prospects of the Greek economy, Goldman bought German CDS credit default swap insurance and gambled that Greek could not afford such a large sum of payment of insurance that purchased the cheap CDS. When Greece debt broke out, distribute the bad news of the Greece’s pay ability to increase the price of CDS and earn the price differences. With the emergence of European debt crisis, the credit rating of some countries like Greece, Portugal, Ireland and Spain had been downgraded in term of there sovereign credit, which means the international markets would no longer trust these economical situation and credit rating levels. As a result,most of potential buyers and sellers of bonds in the sovereign debt market began to suspect the governments’ ability to repay its debt, and then they will require a higher bond discount rate in the potential risk of default about sovereign bond as the part of the compensation of risk premium. When the discount rate significantly exceeds the risk-free rate, the national debt will be in a rather high discount rate. In addition, the CDS price of the European countries increased rapidly. As we saw from the graph6, the Greece five years CDS price had reached to almost 1500, which reflects the buyer of the CDS have to cost a relatively higher fix rate to buy the Greece’s credit ri sk call option. Graph 6 5 years’ Sovereign CDS risk premium and Sovereign credit rating in different countries. [pic] Source: Bloomberg Another impact on derivation market is the Futures and Options. Traders and hedge funds had bet nearly $8bn ( £5.1bn) to against the euro, amassing the biggest ever short position in the single currency on fears of a euro-zone debt crisis. Figures from CME(Chicago Mercantile Exchange) illustrates that investors had enhanced their positions against the euro to record levels. This phenomena demonstrates that investors were losing confidence in the single currency’s ability to withstand any contagion from Greece’s budget problems affecting other European countries(Financial Time, 2010). Additionally, European debt crisis aggravated as the Moody turn 17 German banks rating outlook to negative on the 25th of July. The bear have the advantage in the Futures and Options market. How does the European debt crisis transmission Since the Greece was downgraded by credit rating companies, European sovereign debt crisis broke out and then intensified across the euro-zone. Other European countries like Belgium, Portugal, Spain and Italy. Germany and other primary euro-zone countries had begun to be impacted by such an unavoidable crisis(Graph 7), simultaneously the euro fell sharply. With European stock markets at rock bottom, the euro area was experiencing the most severe difficulty since its inauguration. Whist the debt crisis was unexpected expanded. As to how and why this small economies could trigger such a wide impact in financial markets, it must be the financial contagion. Graph 7 How sovereign debit crisis could spread through the Euro-zone [pic] The inter-contagion within a country could be considered as an essential cause that triggered such a wide impact in financial markets. The interconnectedness means that a crisis in one can cripple the other (Daniel and Harold, 2012). As European banks are much more deeply connected to their individual governments, euro-zone banks naturally hold large shares of their governments’ debt, like in Greece and Germany, domestic banks hold nearly 20 percent of domestic government debt, and Spanish banks hold around 30 percent (Silvia and John, 2012). So look, other financial domestic institutions may hold much domestic debt as well, such as insurance companies. Government. Spain exemplifies contagion spreading from banks to government. Spain’s banks were loaded with mortgages that went bad when the country’s housing bubble popped. Despite modest debt and budget surpluses in six of the seven years preceding the crisis (World Bank, 2007), the band crisis caused the governm ent to lose control of its financing. Generally to say, government risk could affect banks, otherwise, if banks fail, the government’s bond market customers are bankrupt (The Heritage Foundation, 2012). And moreover, with the momentum of the globalization, the world economy is becoming tightly linked, like non-euro countries’ governments or banks hold the European bonds. It means that problems in one part of the world can reverberate almost everywhere else-risking a cascade of default contagion, contracting credit and collapsing economic activity. For example, in October 2011, Italian borrowers owed French banks $366 billion (net). Should Italy be unable to finance itself, the French banking system and economy could come under significant pressure, which in turn would affect France’s creditors(Seth et al., 2011). Greece, for instance, its debt is held by a host of other EU members. Once it defaults, the ripple effect for the economy as a whole would be devastating across the region, probably the world. The statistics from the IMF illustrated that the German banks held Greek government bonds up to totaling $ 14.1 billion and $ 13.4 billion was held by French banking ind ustry. And also the China holds nearly 600 billion Euros of the European bonds. So if the debtor countries cannot pay the money on time ,not only itself but also these creditor will under a huge financial pressure. This is simply showed by the MF Global who is the biggest victims in the European debt crisis that Global voted to file for bankruptcy. The main reason why MF Global got into financial trouble is because it bought over 6 billion U.S. dollars in European sovereign debt, mainly related to the national debt of countries like Italy, Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Belgium. Finally, European debt crisis have the first victims outside the region of the Europe. Thus,the connection each economic system makes the risk contagious simply. Apart from those mentioned above, an alternative way for this crisis transmission is the relation among correlation coefficients in the conditional correlation model (DCC),which may be related to herding behaviour, specially the rating agency continually reduced euro-zone counties’ grades and as well as influences formed the short-selling speculators.Some studies estimated a dynamic conditional correlation model (DCC) in order to analyse the correlation structure of Greek, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Belgian and Austrian bond yield spreads over the German yield to study contagion in the Euro Area. In particular, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and Belgian yield spreads do increase along with their Greek counterpart. Thus it seems that Greek financial problems could spread via contagion to other Euro Area countries. As European counties are related, if it is more likely for similarly bad rated countries to sustain a rating cut once Greek was downgraded, then for such countries the control variable should have a positive impact on the correlation coefficients(Sebastian and Sebastian, 2011). Therefore in terms of European debt crisis, contagion occurs when investors believe that other countries, in addition to the original country facing economic crisis, pose a risk of finance loss and act accordingly(Lia Menà ©nde, 2012). And according to the Herd Instinctï ¼Å'other European countries, to some extend, would be influenced,particularly for those counties who had been facing such problems. Due to the European sovereign debt crisis not only impacted the bond market, the equity market, money market and foreign exchange market, even the whole world was also affected. As all the country has International Reserves, Gold Reserves and Foreign Exchange Reserves, it can be evidently reflected that a bigger concern would be jitters over if sovereign debt become less focused on euro-zone and more global. As the stock price declined, and the euro devaluated, Europe’s crisis will no longer be Europe’ s along. It would affect the global trade balances even. Conclusion Since the early 2010, the Euro Area faced a severe sovereign debt crisis, resulting from government deficits and debt levels which triggered rating agencies subsequently to downgrade the credit ratings of nine euro area sovereigns, thereby creating a loss of confidence in financial markets. Learning from this crisis, bank should increase their capital to counteract the loss and passive influences of the crisis. And meanwhile, governments need to broaden revenue and strengthen the budget management, as well as control the government debt reasonably, particularly, investors’ confidence should be reactuated urgently. Reference [1] Chan, M. (2011) Robin Hood Meets Wall Street (online). Poole: Friends of the Earth. Available from: http://www.foe.org/news/archives/2011-02-robin-hood-meets-wall-street (Accessed 22 Feb 2011). [2] Reserve Bank Of Australia(2012). Statement on Monetary Police (online). Available from: http://www.rba.gov.au/publications/smp/2012/feb/html/intl-fx-mkts.html (Assessed 9 August 2012). [3] Financial Time,2010:’raders in record bet against the euro’ (online)Available from:http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9203f08c-151a-11df-ad58-00144feab49a.html#axzz2BOITU3eG [4] Daniel, W. and Harold, H. (2012). Spain’s Banks, Government Co-Dependent on Debt . Associated Press. June 25, 2012. Available from:http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Spain-s-banks-government-co-dependent-on-debt-3660227.php (Accessed June 26, 2012) [5] Silvia Merler and John Pisani-Ferry (2012), Who’s Afraid of Sovereign Bonds?†Bruegel Policy Contribution. No. 2012/02, February 2012. Available from: http://docs.jean-jaures.net/NL470/21.pdf (Accessed June 26, 2012). [6] World Bank, World Development Indicators. Cash Surplus/Deficit as % of GDP 2001–2007. [7] Furth, S. and Ligon, J. L. (2012) How Contagious Is Europe’s Economic Crisis? Backgrounder (online), No.2726. Available from: http://report.heritage.org/bg2726 (Accessed 18 Sep. 2012). [8] Seth W. Feaster; Nelson D. Schwartz; Tom Kuntz (2011-10-22). â€Å"NYT-It’s All Connected-A Spectators Guide to the Euro Crisis†. New York Times Available from: http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2011/10/22/opinion/20111023_DATAPOINTS.html?ref=sunday-review. Retrieved 2012-05-14. [9] Sebastian Missio;Sebastian Watzka,(2011-08-31).†Financial Contagion and the European Debt Crisis†Journal of Economic Literature, E43, E44, E63. p2. [10] Menà ©ndez, L.(2012). The spread of the European Sovereign Debt Crisis(online). Available from: https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:IaD0olBUZ2kJ:ebook.law.uiowa.edu/ebook/sites/default/files/Spread%2520of%2520the%2520European%2520Sovereign%2520Debt%2520Crisis.pdf+The+spread+of+the+European+Sovereign+Debt+Crisis&hl=zh-CN&

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Nursing Home vs. Home Health Care Essay

INTRODUCTION Either young or old, we love our family members dearly, and disabilities does not focus on a specific age group. We would love to feel assured that they are being taken care of the best way possible. As we all know, time does not allow us to take care of them ourselves, with business to tend to of our own, it makes it almost impossible. There are a few options to assist with this matter, but making the best choice is always in our best of interests. NURSING HOMES Nursing homes are facilities that provide high levels of care assisting elders and even young people that are temporarily or permanently disabled. There are several options that you can refer to for payment method. Medicare is an option. Medicare is a national social insurance program, administered  by the U.S. Federal government since 1966, it is currently using about 30 private insurance companies across the United States. You can also pay through your private insurance company, as well as out of pocket. Within a nursing home facility, they will be assisted with all of their ADLs. (Activities of Daily Living is a term used in healthcare to refer to daily self-care activities within an individual place of residence, in outdoor environments or both.) In this facility, they will interact with their peers, medical professionals, as well as others when visiting. They will have continuous care around the clock including routine vital signs. Vital signs includes the blood pressure, temp erature, heart rate and respirations. With the option of being able to choose a nursing home, there are a few factors in which you might need to consider. One factor is the ratio of CNA’s (Certified Nursing Assistant) to the residents, the ratio might not match the entire time accordingly to state requirements. According to Abbasi and Rudman, medical literature has continued to identify many clinical problems occurring within nursing homes. With this being said, there is a possibility that the patient will not have the required undivided attention that is necessary, because the aide will have several others to tend to as well, the aides time will be limited with each patient, especially if an emergency occurs within the facility. Due to other situations that occur within the nursing home, aides will not have the time to make sure each resident consumes their proper fluids and nutrients which are essential to daily intake. Malnutrition and dehydration are the main issues that affect the patients most of all, because of lack of the proper nourishment and fluids can lead to rapid skin breakdown and a quick decline in the health status. The patient will also be more prone to infections. Depression is an issue the family member will be faced with as well. Being stripped from everything you know is a heart wrenching experience of its own, which can lead to stress that will also affect their health. The wrong medicine given to the wrong resident is another issue. With all the patients that the nurse have to deal with on a daily basis, juggling them can result in such mistakes. Being understaffed can result in a many of mishaps. A majority of these mishaps can be avoided with the proper attention. The more you think about it, one on one attention is very important to ensure the safety and  well-being of your loved ones. HOME HEALTH CARE Another option when it comes to providing care for your loved one is home health care. This option allows the aide to assist your family member within their home. Home health care provides plenty of one on one attention, and allows the aide to focus entirely on the patient and the patient’s needs. This option can also be covered by Medicare, your private insurance company or out of pocket pay as well. The need for home health care is greater than ever. You will be able to choose the healthcare provider, which not only eases the mind of the guardian but it is also affordable, being that you are able to set a wage that is comfortable enough to meet the guardian’s or the relative needing assistance means of income. Who wouldn’t want their relatives to be cared for within the comforts of their own home? This specific kind of care will allow the guardian to feel more at ease. Even the LPN (licensed practical nurse), and RN (registered Nurse) make home visits as well. In this option, they are also assisted with activities of daily living. The one on one attention is the only attention your loved one will receive and is a repeated occurrence versus that of a nursing home. Vitals signs are also checked in this method of care. Another positive factor in this method is that there is a high possibility that the aide can develop a great relationship with the patient, which will allow the patient to feel more comfortable. The personal relationship can benefit the patient and the patient’s family greatly. This can also help the aide to pin point any improvements and odd changes in the patient’s health. Being that they are in a well-known environment, they are more likely to do for themselves more, rather than depending on the assistant they will be provided at a nursing home. Medical literatures has identified that a family member that is allowed to be cared for in the comfort of a familiar environment is less likely to become depressed. The one on one attention will guarantee the proper care for your loved one. Your family member will feel that sense of independence, which helps them emotionally as well as physically. CONCLUSION When it comes to ensuring the well-being of our loved ones, we have to weigh out the positive and negative in order to come up with the best choice possible. One on one attention that can truly assure the proper care that our loved ones need and deserve is definitely a positive factor. Just the idea of knowing that our loved ones are well taken care of is a gift within itself. At the end of the day, it is about family, their health, and how we can keep them in our lives longer. REFERENCE Abbasi, ., & Rudman, . (1994). . , (). (1996, August). . The New England Journal of Medicine, (335.5), 324-329. D, M. (). What is a Nursing Home?. , _Volume 5_(), p. 410.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

For-Profit Organizations Essay

Nonprofit/For-Profit Organizations Essay Nonprofit vs. For-Profit Organizations Essay Nonprofit vs. For-Profit Organizations Essay Comparing Differences in Operation of Profit and not for Profit Organizations In business, it is important to compare the differences between not for profit and profit making organizations. They operate under different systems of management. These organizations are under different management types because their purposes are not the same. Different management strategies are used to deals with different organizations. They operate under different cultures and it is important to know precisely how they affect the community. These organizations serve different levels of stakeholders and it is vital to compare the differences between nonprofit and profit making organizations. This comparison is vital for the government and other related institutions. Investors ought to know the differences between these organizations so that they know where to place their investments. At the initial stages of forming a business it is important to know if it is for the financial benefit of an owner. Profit making organizations are always guided by profits. Nonprofit organizations ex ist to provide better services to citizens. They exist to perform the intended services. Most hospitals must make profits so they can survive economically. A profit-making hospital is a business venture that is run mostly by private individuals. This may not be the case for all situations. They can also be owned publicly by shareholders, who buy the hospital shares. It means that if the public buys shares of the hospital then they are the owners of the hospital. The public expects the hospital to make profits so that they can expand their investments. The main objective of profit making hospitals is always to yield profits that will ensure their survival. There are formed for the sole purpose of generating profits. Profit is normally the main objective and the hospitals pay taxes based on these. Not for profit hospitals are formed to provide healthcare. According to new financial standards, it is now preferred to call organizations not for profit rather nonprofit organizations. This is because the organizations will make profits either way although their main aim is not to yield profits but provide better healthcare. There are formed to provide outreach programs to the community and create networks with other facilities to provide better health care services. It is important to compare the operation and quality of services provided by various hospitals. It will help in better decision making and planning. Capitalism is a major factor in the economy of the United States, where commercial firms have market dominance. However, the situation is much different in the healthcare sector, because nonprofit making firms have a large market share. In addition, healthcare is the biggest nonprofit industry, forming 60 percent of the revenue from nonprofit sector and over 25 percent of contributions from private charity. Healthcare has consistently represented a bigger portion of the sector and expenditures on healthcare continue to be on an upward trend in the United States. From 1965 to 1996 the healthcare expenses increased from $230.3 (in billions of 1996 dollars) to $1,035, which is 349 percent rise, which is almost twice that of GDP of the nation (Barocci, 2001). Hospitals are the biggest component of the healthcare sector, accounting for 35 percent of $1.035 trillion (1996 dollars) in healthcare expenditure, or about $362.3 billion, rendering hospitals considerably important for the nonprofit sector. There can be three types of hospitals ownership: (1) Nonprofit, which constitutes a half of all hospitals (2) Government, which forms 31 percent of all hospitals and (3) For-profit, which only forms 19 percent of all hospitals. (2006 spending basis) Advocates of not-for-profit organizations believe that the non-distribution limiting factors allow the objectives of such organizations to focus on community service, with not utilized revenues being invested into the community; the result is more benefits to the society caused by the increase in care rates not compensated, and educational programs designed for the community. Also, the aspect behind not-for-profit organizations is the emphasis on output maximization while it should be on profit maximization. Therefore, tax exemptions are offered to not-for-profit organizations. If there has been significant influence of nonprofit organizations on the healthcare sector, then the matter at hand would be questioning why the transformation of hospitals into for-profit from nonprofit status are criticized. As examined by Thorpe, Seiber, and Florence (2000), the degree of uncompensated care decreases when transforming a nonprofit organization into a for-profit one. Advocates like Young and Desai (1999) make suggestions that â€Å"transformation of a nonprofit organization does not averagely reduce the benefit to the community as compared to services that are not profit oriented†. The definition of community benefit is â€Å"any service or program made for the improvement of health in communities and increased accessibility to health care†. Three different factors are examined when comparing a for-profit firm with a nonprofit firm. First, non-profit organizations must raise initial capital from investors because the powers to borrow capital have not been vested in them, as they have to repay from future profits made. Secondly, as a result of non-distribution, a limiting factor, nonprofit organizations cannot propose and pay dividends from either interim or whole year profits the company may make; rather investing the funds back into the company is recommended. Lastly, where a nonprofit firm is sold, the funds raised cannot be used to pay owners. These three major factors essentially affect the overall performance of nonprofits hospitals. The objectives of the companies are affected by the differences in organizational structures. There is a significant difference in the missions of for-profits and not-for-profits organizations. As a result of the non-distribution limiting factor, there is a primary similarity of all not-for-profit missions concerning the output maximization idea, an attempt by a firm to maximize the level of services provided to the community. For-profit companies are formed on the basis of profit maximization. Upon first examination, it is expected that not-for-profit organizations should be of the most benefit to the community, at a lower cost; however, the research has both credited and discredited this conjecture. The argument that not-for-profit structures add benefit the community is one of the important reasons why they are granted tax exemptions. Since exempted taxes provided to not-for-profit organizations reduce a significant amount of their expenditures, they should be at a position to provide more benefits to the community. Ultimately the services offered by hospitals can result to three types of benefits to the community: uncompensated care, unprofitable services and net prices. In brief, a definition to uncompensated care is â€Å"any care out of charity given to persons who are less privileged to cater for the bills of the service†. There is a consideration of net prices that when prices of services are lower, the services become more affordable. The unprofitable services comprise of the programs developed to raise awareness of various issues and to broaden community knowledge. Together, all three factors assist in the creation of community benefits. In order to compare a profit making clinic with a not for profit hospital, a research done in New York; it indicated that the clinic’s ownership was held by physicians who were interested in the company’ well-being. The results show that the clinic used a strategy of costs reduction effectively using its supplies; as a result, the expenditures of the clinic were 35% lower than those of the nonprofit hospital. The latter was bigger in size, had many resources and had problems giving back to the community. Consequently, board members and hospital managers disagreed due to the allocation of funds and what programs should be commenced; this led to minimal or no community benefit production. This resulted to inefficiency of the management structure and final decisions prevented the hospital’s mission from being followed. For-profit organizations have a fundamental obligation in ensuring the shareholders’ wealth is maximized. â€Å"Transformation of hospitals had a negative impact on provision of charity care. Studies intimate that not-for-profit organizations do not prevail in health care due to the occurrence of market failures when for-profit organizations control the market of hospital services. The market fails because of three factors: first, the private market functions when participants of the market have perfect knowledge.† There is a complexity of healthcare and it is difficult to determine the services needed, so the consumers usually do not have perfect information. Secondly, allocation of resources is based on the most profitable expenditures. Persons unable to afford the service do not get appropriate care. Thirdly, positive externalities make a contribution to market failure. There is a poor allocation of resources where externalities exist. The demand for healthcare is hi gh and most people do not access it because of high medical costs. Poor people rely on subsidized government healthcare. Medicaid is a government program that targets low income earners. Both governments allocated $213 billion (2002 dollars) to fund this program. Baker and Royalty (2000) showed that a 10% increase in fees for services provided by Medicaid, increase the number of physician office visits by the poor by 2.4%. Not-for-profit hospitals are very few in New York. There are 8 for-profit hospitals in the metropolitan area of New York City. Only one of the hospitals is not for profit. The hospital is owned by groups of partners who have been certified by the state to be competent enough to provide healthcare to people in New York. The state screens and identifies the potentials individuals who want to run a profit making hospitals. It is a sensitive matter and the state normally controls the actions they take. Profit making hospitals always have better access to capital for expansion than the not for profit hospitals. Not-for-profit hospitals use their profits for the purpose of improving the hospital activities. The profits are used to run daily operations of the hospital. These hospitals are formed to accomplish a certain task. The profits raised by these hospitals must be circulated back to the operations of the hospital. These will enable the hospital to finance its operations leading to the hospital fulfilling its mission. In Mount Sinai hospital, which is a not for profit hospital, the profits are used to pay administrative expenses. The employees are paid using the profits made by the hospital in the course of providing better health care. The generated profits of the hospitals are accumulated and are used to improve the efficiency of services provided by the hospital. Lenox Hill Hospital in New York retains the profits it makes to address the administrative needs of the hospital. L enox Hill Hospital has a 67% approval rating by the patients. It is an indication that the patients approve the hospital`s function. Profits made by profit-making hospitals are for the owners of the hospitals. Profit making hospitals have access to more finances than not for profit organizations. The profits are distributed among the owners of the company. The owners may be the shareholders who are allowed to realize financial gains if the hospital becomes successful. Tax Exemption Profit making hospitals are not granted the federal state tax exemptions. They are required to pay taxes on the property owned by the organization. The hospital is entitled to pay some amount depending on the rates provided by the tax authorities. The donations made by the hospital are tax deductible depending on the recipient. Raising Capital Not for profit hospitals raise capital through the solicitation of funds. The not for profit hospitals are funded by the government mostly and they may be used to fund the operations of the hospital. Capital in these hospitals is used to fund the internal operations of the hospital. These hospitals find it easier to borrow money from the public, investors and the government. This is because they are seen to be helping the humanity in comparison with the profit making hospitals that raise capital by offering a certain percentage of the hospital shares to the investors. The investors are supposed to become partial owners of the hospital. They are given shares and in exchange for funds provided to the hospitals. The hospital management then must look for ideas that will enable them to maintain solvency. The ideas are incorporated into the normal activities of the business. The profit making hospitals rarely make money soliciting the government and other investors for money. Resourcing Profit-making hospitals have more asset freedom to use assets than the not for profit ones. Profit making hospitals like Bellevue Hospital Center in New York have assets that belong to the hospital. These assets legally belong to the owners of the hospital while the assets of not for profit making hospitals like Long Island Jewish Medical Center belong to the hospital itself. Investors are less likely to invest in not for profit hospitals because their assets are restricted to the hospital itself. In case a not for profit making hospital is dissolved the assets of the hospital are donated to another not for profit organization. In cases a profit making hospital is dissolved the assets are distributed among the owners. The profit-making hospitals normally find it hard to retain and attract skillful individuals to work in their organization. The profit-making organizations have few resources at their disposal. They also don’t have the capabilities of providing high salaries and bonuses to employees. The not for profit hospitals offer good salaries that enable them attract the best doctors to work for them. It has been witnessed that New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York offers high salaries to their medical staff. This has led to a high approval rating by patients who prefer to be treated there. As a result, the hospital is able to attract highly skilled doctors, who are motivated by high salaries provided to them. Differences in Provision of Quality Services in not for Profit and Profit Making Hospitals There is difference in the quality of services in not for profit and profit making hospitals that are based in New York City. The profit-making hospitals offer relatively profitable medical services to their patients. The not for profit hospitals offer services that are non-profitable. Not-for-profit hospitals accept when it comes to treatment of individuals. This act comes regardless of a patient’s ability to pay for the medical services provided to him/her. This makes the not for profit hospitals exempted from paying tax. St Francis Hospital in New York accepts patients regardless of their financial background. They believe in providing better health care for each and every individual. It provides the needed service that individuals require at crucial times. The profit-making hospitals in New York provide their medical services at a fee. They don’t accept just anyone to be treated at their hospitals. The individuals to be treated should have insurance or any other means of payment in order to receive treatment at the hospital. It indicates that not for profit hospitals provide quality services when dealing with a large number of individuals due to the capability of handling them. Both not-for profit hospitals and profit making hospitals offer medical services to the community as a whole. They both offer services that are beneficial to the community. Therapy sessions and other educative services are offered in a large amounts by not for profits hospitals. Winthrop University Hospital offers educations to students who want to obtain a degree in medicine, which is very beneficial to the community. The hospital also offers clinical services to the low income earners and therapy session to individuals who want to stop smoking. This shows that the not for profit hospitals offer better quality of services to the community members (Hepton, 2007). The not-for profit-hospitals offer more salaries to their doctors and nurses. This is important when it comes to provision of quality services. The not for profit hospitals have skilled doctors and nurses at their disposal. The doctors and nurses are highly motivated to do their work. This will improve the quality of medical services offered in such hospitals. Profit making hospitals do not have the capacity to offer high salaries to their employees. Both not for profit and profit making hospitals offer good services to the citizens. This may differ because of skills of doctors who work in these hospitals. New York-Presbyterian Hospital offers high quality medical services. The hospital has the highest patient approval rating among the not for profit hospitals in New York City. It provides medical care to all people irrespective of their background. The hospital provides a variety of procedures that are not always offered by profit making hospitals (Gentry Penrod, 2008). Clifton Springs Hospital, located in New York, launched an incentive to try and get quality doctors to work for it. It shows that the profit making hospital doesn’t offer good salaries to their doctors and nurses. The hospital has many facilities compared to their counterparts who are in the field for the purpose of generating a profit. The aim of not-for profit hospitals is to adequately satisfy the demand in the market in instances where there might be positive externalities, resulting in healthcare terms` underproduction. The structure of ownership ascribed to not-for profit hospitals induces the maximization of quantity in place of profit maximization. This focus on the maximization of quantity encourages these entities to provide the community with healthcare services at a low cost or in some instances for free, hence increasing its contribution to the community. The figure below exhibits a model of output maximization, with the assumption of a demand curve that slopes downward. The quantity and price outputs represent the points of equilibrium ascribed to both not-for profit and profit companies. The not-for profit organization makes a decision to break even and is obligated to produce where (P=AC) is the maximization equilibrium quantity. live CHAT The model of output maximization draws comparison between profit maximization ascribed to for-profit organizations and output maximization ascribed to not-for-profit organizations. The y-axis gives a representation of the dollar in terms of unit of healthcare services while the x-axis stands for the quantity of health services, which amounts for the number of patients to which services are provided. These two structures of ownership produce different equilibrium prices as well as quantity outputs. A number of market conditions exist and function to alter the prices and output ascribed to health services within a real market. Moreover, the graph herein makes the assumption that these two entities offer goods that are perfectly substitutable (Hepton, 2007). Not-for-profit firms produce in contexts that have the average revenue (AR) and the average cost (AC) intersecting. In respect to this model, the quantity and price of a firm that maximizes quantity is represented by Qq and Pq. Not-for-profit organizations seek to capitalize on their output owing to the constraint of non-distribution, meaning that not-for profit organizations are not able to redistribute profit to executives or employees of a firm. Proponents of for-profit organizations within the healthcare sector hold that organizations which are motivated by profit maximization tend to produce almost the same quantity of benefits associated with not-for-profit organizations owing to a number of reasons. To begin with, in the short-term, for-profit organizations constantly seek to establish ways in which they can decrease costs of the services they provide. Secondly, fixed costs represent most expenses within a hospital. An additional patient’s cost has a relatively minimal marginal cost, which means that for-profit organizations are able to avail charity levels that are similar to those of not-for-profit organizations at a much lower cost. The figure below makes adjustments and espouses new points of equilibrium for the non-profit and for-profit hospitals. The model herein incorporates two adjustments. Proponents of for-profit organizations intimate that these adjustments differentiate these two structures of ownership. The first adjustment is a representation of the increase of fixed costs ascribed to both firms. Hospitals spend the greatest amount of money to acquire and pay for costly medical facilities and equipment. Additional patients do not significantly impact the total cost but cut down the opportunity of availing charitable services. The graph herein makes the assumption that for-profit hospitals incur lower expenses. The theory stems from the idea that executives and owners of for-profit organizations invest more in their firms in contrast to those of not-for-profit organizations. The investment they make in their firm motivates the employees to look for techniques that can enable them to seek for avenues of saving costs in a bid to maximize short-term profits. However, in the long term, organizations enter the market when t here is economic profit, which is effective in lowering the cost of services provided to patients. Consequently, the amount of services increases up to such a point that the equilibrium of quantity and price is attained. The equilibrium of price and the average cost of not for profit hospitals is normally found when the curves intersect. The intersection of the marginal curve with marginal cost leads to the production of profit making hospitals. There are new equilibrium points that are derived from the adjustment of fixed costs and the average costs. In the short run, the not for profit hospitals (Pq and Qq) will produce a situation where the price is lower and the quantity is relatively compared to the one of for profit hospitals( PÏ€ and QÏ€). There is a narrow difference between the price and the quantity levels. The not for profit hospitals have to have an ownership structure that will enable them produce at a zero economic profit. An organization willing to operate like this must be able to provide quality medical services with the patients paying absolutely nothing. It means engaging the variable QÏ€ which increases the contribution of the hospitals benefit to the community benefit. Contrary to these is that there are tax exemptions granted to the not for profit hospitals that will reduce the contribution of not for profit organizations to the community benefits. The for-profit organizations in the hospital industry have to pay corporate taxes. An example of tax that they pay is the property tax that goes back to the local community. This tax may be presented in different forms which include: income given to schools, creating roads and parks in the area and other related forms of giving back to the society. The not for profit hospitals give back to the community, when the amount of medi cal care and lower prices is outweighed by the impact of the tax exemption. The taxes are used by the government to intervene in situations that may arise if the market is to be left alone (McElroy, 2006). The not for profit hospitals exist to serve and increase the community benefits. The for-profit hospitals exist to increase profit of their owners. They are driven by the urge to maximize the profits through efficient allocation of resources. The not for profit hospitals are driven by the urge to increase the benefit of the community. They however lack the financial outlay to execute this idea of benefiting the community. They incur relative losses compared to profit making firms. An efficient increase in the delivery of services is one of few contributions made by the individuals who manage a hospital. The government needs to find a way to encourage the not for profit hospitals to increase benefits provided to the community. There are anachronistic policies used to treat the not for profit hospitals. It has lead to an inefficient healthcare system. Most not for profit hospitals provide charity care. There issues related to tax exemption since the current tax regulations are not properly implemented. When a company gets a not for profit approval it doesn’t adhere to the existing tax rules. Such companies result in taking tax from the community and yet they have not fulfilled their community obligations. This leads to an inefficient health care system. In conclusion, the conversion of the structure of ownership of not for profit to for-profit leads to the maximization of the benefits granted to the community, as a result of minimizing the positive externalities created by a poor health care system. The Role of Non-Profit Organizations in Addressing Social Challenges: Food for the Poor Many non-profit organizations have appeared recently around the globe. It is justified by the importance and the variety of functions they perform in everyday life. Historically, the most common response to social ills like poverty, homelessness, and poor education has been to spend more money. When money is tight, concerned citizens ramp up their efforts for more fundraising, more requests for federal grants and government funding, and, ultimately, more investment in short-term solutions to solve long-term problems. But these traditional efforts rarely yield sustainable long-term results. To make progress, leaders needed a new approach. They needed an approach that integrated the best ideas of social programming with the expertise that the for-profit sector has acquired in achieving long-term outcomes (Rothschild 1). Non-profit organizations perfectly fit this role. Non-profit organizations play the vital part in shaping modern civil society, developing the democratic values, and human rights protection. With time, their contribution to addressing both international and regional challenges becomes more and more noticeable, especially when referring to the issues related to the economic growth, social security of population and cultural cooperation. However, the impact of the non-profit organization on social and economic environment in every country is directly dependent on their collaboration with governmental and executive state bodies as well as with local authorities. Generally, the non-profit organization is known as the one whose activity is not aimed at receiving profit and whose members, respectively, may not share any profit. Some people prefer to call the non-profit sector the humanitarian sector. Others call it the social profit sector, the third sector, the independent sector, or a number of other things (Pallotta 13). Alike organizations include public, religious, charitable organizations, science, culture, education, health security or sport assisting funds and other different associations and unions. The non-profit institutions usually may do business within the limits required to fulfill their main functions. Most non-commercial institutions are founded to solve the same problems the state and municipal authorities are dealing with every day. The scope of activities thereof covers the help to low-income population, upbringing and education of children, preserving and advancing culture, basic rights and freedoms protection and many other spheres which are not   able to operate only at purely commercial basis. Activity of the majority of non-profit organizations is focused on addressing most vital issues within certain community or region. The existing of alike organization is primarily determined by the striving of the most active members of society to contribute to solving sharp problems through not only performing their direct duties laid down by the state, but also by doing something extra, exceeding the main responsibilities. There is an opinion that non-profit organizations may even operate more efficiently in social and public domains than the state and the structures thereof. It may be explained by the fact that the non-profit organization is governed by the members only and solely according to the focal purpose of each organization. As a result, states often decide to delegate funds to independent non-commercial organization, of course, in return of strict and clear obligations the latter undertakes, rather than establish additional governmental bodies. Common good organizations form one of the most important groups of non-profit organizations. They are also referred to as philanthropic organizations, and their main feature is that private resources of the members thereof are voluntarily distributed by their owners in order to help those in need, solve social problems and improve public life conditions. The mission of the common good organizations consists in implementing general interests together with the ones of the organization members, in drawing the authorities, mass media and social attention to the issues and circumstances of public importance. Philanthropic organizations often become the feedback channel between population and the state, contribute to the transparency of power and to the breeding of the social responsibility spirit. When choosing an organization to talk about, I found out that no so many charitable institutions are trusted. The money never gets to the people who need it. That’s the familiar refrain we hear whenever the subject of charity comes up in casual conversation. A Google search for â€Å"charities waste money† generates 3.6 million results – about twenty-five times more results than a search for the phrase, â€Å"charities use money wisely.† It hardly constitutes a scientific inquiry, but it probably means we can conclude that people who don’t trust charities outnumber people who do. Similarly, people’s comments in the blogs, articles, and forums picked up on a simple Internet search reveal a pervasive public distrust of how charities conduct their business (Pallotta 1). Therefore, I decide to pick up â€Å"Food for the Poor† – one of the largest charitable organizations in the United States, the organization operating for more than 30 years and having been rated the fifth-largest recipient of private support according to 2011 survey by Forbes of the 200 largest U.S. charities (Food for the Poor). This organization is different from other food and shelter providing organizations, first of all, by the scale of its’ activity, and, secondly due to its’ defined Christian-based ideology. This aspect is clearly visible from the mission statement of the organization, which says the goal of the institution is to connect the Christians in the developed countries with the Christians from the developing states in a way that assists both the materially poor and the poor in spirit (Food for the Poor). I share alike vision of aid as I believe everyone who is able to help should help those in need. Food for the Poor was established in 1982 by Ferdinand G. Mahfood with the focus purpose to help the poorest population in the countries of Latin America and Caribbean. At its’ beginning, the founds mostly came from the members of various Christian communities. First members were actively engaged into the activity of the Organization both by donating money and by personally working with poor people. They were travelling to the Latin America and Caribbean countries to provide the most essential help and support to those who needed it. They campaigned for collecting more funds, and soon the Christian network of caring people enlarged. Currently, more than 300 people are permanently employed by the Organization rendering assistance to more than 17 countries. Since the inception in 1982,   the Organization has provided approximately $9 billion in aid and has built more than 77,417 housing units for the destitute (Food for the Poor). According to the latest information on the website of the Organization, in 2011, Food for the Poor shipped 3,319 containers of aid and built 6,294 new housing units in the countries they serve. More than $19 million were spent on housing, medical, educational, sanitation and development projects (Food for the Poor). The Organization hosted several Food for the Poor Special Events. These are regular activities organized in different sited over the country aimed at raising funds and deepening the social awareness on the issues that form the core activity of the Organization. They are not so frequent but the schedule is published on the website. For example, there only five alike events planned for 2013. They are all free for children but paid for adults. For instance, the last such event, which took place on 2 February 2013, raised enough money to build homes for 65 destitute families in Canaan Heights in May Pen, Jamaica. The beginning of works is scheduled for March (Food for the Poor). Besides the activities focused on fundraising, the Organization encourages people to participate in its’ mission trips. As for today, more than 6000 volunteers have traveled to the states of Caribbean and Latin America. During such journeys, the volunteers have the opportunity to communicate with the local population, to help the mission by participating in hands-on activities – for example, painting houses, repairing schools, planting fruit trees, drilling water wells etc (Food for the Poor). These trips are to be paid by the volunteer, but the price is fair enough. As for me, I would love to come in one of such journeys some day. I believe alike experience will change my outlook and my perception of the world. Of course, it is easier to give money, but I think that the real understanding of what the charity is may come only when becoming a part of mutual philanthropic efforts. Unfortunately, not many people who want to donate for good purpose, trust charitable organizations. I understand their concerns. In my point of view the main reason for it is that the majority of alike organizations are not active enough in media. To make people trust, the organization should report regularly on its’ activity and inform though all means they can about their future planned events. It would also be nice to create the general database of most reputed charitable organization with different focus to suit personal commitments of various people. The more people know about the possibility to donate, the more people will be saved. I believe non-profit institutions are very important for our nowadays society as they serves to achieve charitable and administrative aims, where the state has proved to be helpless. Non-profit organizations are established, as a rule, â€Å"from below† at the initiative of concerned people. An organization develops from a seed – a common concern, a critical issue, a central purpose, an individual’s passion. If this seed interests enough people, including potential contributors who share the passion, a group of some sort forms (Hummel 1). Such organizations mostly do not have strict hierarchy, they are independent, fluent and what is more important – they really long for helping people by solving certain issue. Throughout the country, non-profit organizations provide needed services to children, other young people, elder adults, the mentally and physically differently abled, and other socially or economically disadvantaged people. They promote arts. They a dvocate for the rights of people and focus attention on threats to the environment. They work and volunteer in support of many religious faiths and organizations (Hummel 1). International experience provides numerous evidences of efficient cooperation between state and private philanthropic capital and proves of fruitful collaboration of state authorities and social good organizations aimed at social system improvement. Today we see initiatives like the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, which call for achieving a series of benchmarks for tackling extreme poverty by 2015. We see Share Our Strength, calling for the end of child hunger in five years; Bono’s ONE Campaign calling on us to save 4 million children’s lives within five years, and many other similar examples (Pallotta 9). Besides international cooperation, we see many examples of personal non-profit activities. Fortunately, as the need for more effective social organizations has become urgent, innovation is proliferating among organizations that have a social purpose. Throughout the world, entrepreneurs with social agenda are experimenting with new business models, new ways to finance start-ups and growth, and new ways to combine the practices of business and charity. Social entrepreneurship has become a recognized global movement (Rothschild 5). This understanding of the vital role of non-commercial aid proves that alike initiatives are to exist. Common good organization not only solve the problems the state and business do not have enough forces, they often become the leaders of social sphere through getting involved with the resources thereof into performing social policy and offering progressive means of addressing sharp public concerns.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Mathematics and statics for economists Statistics Project

Mathematics and statics for economists - Statistics Project Example The sample data for happiness is positively skewed which means that most people interviewed has a positive happiness level. The kurtosis of 15.41579212 shows that the probability of extreme values is less than for a level of happiness, and the values are wider spread around the mean of 4.820680628. The histogram gives a clear graphical representation of positive kurtosis and skewness. The data are concentrated to the left of the mean level of happiness representing a general positive level of happiness among the sample population. In a nutshell, the data is positively skewed but with a median of 5, the data is almost normally distributed considering that the mean is 4.820680628. From the Anova results above, the P value 0.00 while the significance level ÃŽ ±=0.05. The P value 0.00 The correlation results show that level of happiness and means of traveling to work exhibit a positive association. The correlation coefficient is 0.819346. This happiness and means of travelling travel in the same direction. The regression equation shows the relationship between happiness and means of travelling travel in the same direction. According to the regression line, an increase of means of travelling to work by one unit will increase the level of happiness 2.740298 when all factors are held constant. From the regression result, means of traveling to work positively influence the level of happiness. This means the two variables exhibit a positive relationship. The results according to the link above show that there effects of commuting to the level of happiness at

Saturday, November 2, 2019

The effects of the 2008 financial crisis on the investment in the Gulf Research Paper - 1

The effects of the 2008 financial crisis on the investment in the Gulf area and Qatar - Research Paper Example While closely evaluating the investment activities of Gulf countries including Qatar during 2008 financial crisis and post-recession period, it seems that the global financial crisis did not affect the Gulf region’s investment sector much when compared to other regions. Recession 2008: Impact on the Arab Region The crisis affected most of the Arab region also causing a significant decline in financial markets. Despite the region’s potential economic sources like oil revenue, real estate investment, tourism, and housing, countries in the region became vulnerable to an economic slowdown albeit at a slower pace. The main reason was that the region’s economic activities did not involve productive actions which could reroute the wealth surplus into establishing strong industrial and human skill bases. Also, the region as a whole failed to absorb income and investment on a multiple basis. The results of the downturn were visible in the form of declining living standard s, increasing inequality, growing unemployment rate etc. Migrant workers were the most affected segment in almost every GCC country. The main investors in the region included but not limited to The Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA), the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Singapore GIC, the Saudi prince al-Waleed Bin Talal, Kuwait, and Qatar. The outcome for their investment in Corporates like Citigroup, Merrill Lynch, Barclays, and Credit Suisse was not satisfactory or even inflicted great loss on the investors. The crashes in the UK, U.S financial markets affected the Middle Eastern stock markets as well. On September 15th 2008, the Saudi Arabian stock market fell by 6.5%, Doha 7%, Kuwait 3% and Abu Dabi 4.35% (Casa Arabe). However, since the gulf region had already learned lessons from the recession of the 1980s and the oil price fall, they were prepared to confront the new downturn unlike many other developed nations. Evidently, the impacts of the 1980s’ price fall were more intense and rapid than the recent one. The bitter experiences of 1980s taught the GCC countries to respond more flexibly to the new crisis. The difference was that the strategic decisions taken recently were of long-term significance whereas the first ones involved rapid actions. Better fiscal policies and the private sectors’ less dependence on state spending also contributed to the relatively sustainable position of the region. The direct result of this strategy was that all rich GCC countries namely Qatar, Kuwait, and Saudi had sufficient overseas assets to carry out their annual programs at least for a short term. Post-Recession Scenario One of the post-recession trends in the Gulf investment sector is the boom of real estate market. When compared other sectors, investing in developed market real estate seemed secure and profitable for many Arab investors, among which Qatar held the prominent position. As Roubini reports, Qatar unlike its Emirati or Kuwaiti counterparts s ustained with lower loan growth, lower profitability and thereby weakening balance sheets (â€Å"Are there..†). The government bought â€Å"stakes in local banks, as well as property and equity holdings on the balance sheets of local banks† and the nation’s â€Å"sovereign wealth fund was among the first to return to significant foreign investment† (Roubini). In fact, the world overcame the issues of the 2008 recession, mainly led by Asian and Middle East countries. For instance, subsequent to the