The First Jump Essay -- Personal Narrative Sky Diving Essays

The First Jump My first jump out of an airplane on December 17, 1999 was the most exciting experience of my life. I had been anticipating this day since some point when I was a little kid and saw a skydiver on TV for the first time, at which time I promised myself that I would let nothing stop me from jumping out of a plane sometime before I die. It was the first time I had been in a small airplane since I was a young child. From shortly after I was born until I was seven years old, I had flown in my father's Cessna 150 countless times, so I have always felt comfortable flying in airplanes, but I always had a small fear of heights; the kind of heights where there is nothing around you to keep you from falling off. The aircraft that we were to jump out of was a Cessna 182- a commonly used five-person, high-wing, single engine airplane. The interior of this particular plane was not much to speak of. All of the upholstery had been removed, as were all the seats (except for the pilot's seat, of course). That was okay though. This plane is used for skydiving, not first-class passenger transportation. As we were climbing to 3,500 feet, I was experiencing the most exciting yet nervous point in my life. I had been looking forward to this day for a long time and there I was sitting in the back of that small aircraft, waiting to take the plunge of my life while nervously taking turns looking at the little needle on my wrist altimeter and glancing out the window, looking at everything on the ground getting smaller, anxiously reviewing the jump routine over and over in my head, â€Å"arch one-thousand, look one-thousand, reach one-thousand, pull one-thousand.† Since this was going to be a static-line jump, there was not a real ripcord to pull because the canopy would deploy automatically, but we were equipped with a dummy ripcord so that we would learn the proper free-fall technique. At about three-thousand three-hundred feet, the jumpmaster hollered â€Å"one minute to jump,† and opened the cabin door. It was me and two other beginners on board, Jennifer and Susan. Since Jennifer was the first to go, she was already sitting by the door, facing aft of the aircraft. When the door flung open and the air came rushing in, Jennifer took a quick glance at the ground and her eyes grew huge. At this time, I was going over the exit routine in my head. â€Å"Wait for the ju... ...went out the window and was replaced with "oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!" Instead of arching my back with my arms and legs spread out like I was supposed to do, I instinctively tried to "swim" back to the aircraft. With my arms and legs flailing all over the place, I flipped and flopped through the thin air until my chute opened about five seconds after leaving the airplane. The momentum of my spinning body caused my lines to twist when my canopy deployed. Not a big deal. They taught us how to deal with this during ground instruction. I pulled my lines apart and kicked my way out of it. Having successfully left the plane with my chute open and my lines untwisted, I breathed the biggest sigh of relief that I had ever breathed in my entire life. The ride down was extraordinary. The only problem was that I had gotten so caught up in the moment that I had pretty much forgotten to steer the chute toward the airport until I was about two-hundred feet above the ground. Luckily, I barely made it back into the airport, but landed in some mud about three-hundred yards from the X that I was supposed to be aiming for. Oh, well. I knew that next time, I'd make it a lot closer to that X.

Images, Symbols and Symbolism in Fahrenheit 451 :: Fahrenheit 451 Essays

Symbols and Images in Fahrenheit 451 Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury is a futuristic novel, taking the reader to a time where books and thinking are outlawed. In a time dreadful FOR those who want to better themselves by thinking, and by reading, BECAUSE READING IS OUTLAWED. Books and ideas are burned, books are burned physically, where as ideas are burned from the mind. Bradbury uses literary devices( I ONLY SEE ONE DEVICE!) such as symbolism, but it is the idea (WHAT IDEA?) he wants to convey that makes this novel so devastating. Bradbury warns us of what may happen if we stop expressing our ideas, and let people take away our books, and thoughts. Bradbury notices what has been going on in the world, with regards to censorship THROUGH book burning in Germany and McCarthyism in America. Bradbury is also a WRITER WHO incorporates symbolism into his book. Bradbury's use of symbolism throughout the novel makes the book moving and powerful by using symbolism to reinforce the ideas of anti-censorship. (WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THIS?) The Hearth and the Salamander, the title of part one, is the first example of symbolism. The title suggests two things having to do with fire, the hearth is a source of warmth and goodness, showing the positive, non-destructive side of fire. Whereas a salamander is a small lizard-like amphibian, WHICH in mythology is known to endure fire without getting burnED by it. Perhaps the salamander is symbolic of Guy Montag who is described as a ONE because he works with fire, endurING ITS DANGER. YET HE CONTINUES TO believes that he can escape the fire and survive, much like a salamander does. On the other hand, it is ironic that Guy, and the other firemen believe themselves to be salamanders because both CAPTAIN Beatty's and Montag's destruction comes from the all mighty flame, from which they thought they were invincible. The symbol of a Phoenix is used throughout the novel. This quote accurately describes the Phoenix, "It is known to be a mythical multi-colored bird of Arabia, with a long history of artistic and literary symbolism, the Phoenix is one of a kind. At the end of its five-hundred-year existence, it perches on its nest of spices and sings until sunlight ignites the masses. After the body is consumed in flames, a worm emerges and develops into the next Phoenix.

Hrm Brunei vs Other Western Country Essay

Introduction Employees are indispensible to an organization. Personnel management, now known as human resource management (HRM), ensures that an organization produces maximum output with the greatest efficiency. The role of HRM covers selecting and hiring the right employee, training and retaining talent, wage dispensation to maintaining employee relations (Nankervis et al, 2011). In this essay, we will be looking into a case study of HRM in Brunei and will cover three topics. Firstly we explore how culture affects the way a country runs its economy, its legal and political system, and how they adapt to technology. Next, we discuss how HRM allows individual employees to acclimatize themselves to technical differences in an organization. Lastly, we will do a comparison of how HRM differs in Brunei as compared to a western country. Culture (An Overarching Umbrella) Laurent (1986, p. 92) stated that, ‘every culture has developed through its own history some specific and unique insight into the managing of organization and their human resources.’ Hofstede’s (1984) cultural dimensions theory defines that the values of a society are influenced by their culture, and their belief in those values shapes the behavior of the society. This cultural dimension is most frequently used across culture studies, especially in differentiating Asian and Western cultures (Cho, et al. 1999). Figure 1: Hofstede’s Software of the Mind (Hofstede, 1984) Dimension| Explanation| Power Distance| The degree to which the less influential associates of institutions (such as family) and organizations expect and accept the unequal distribution of power.| Collectivist vs. Individualist| The scale of which individuals are incorporated into groups| Masculinity vs. Femininity| Refers to the distribution of roles and values between the genders. The women in feminine countries have the same modest, caring and competitive, like the men. However, in masculine countries, women are more competitive and assertive, but not as much as the men.| Uncertainty Avoidance| A society’s tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity| Figure 1 identifies the characteristics of the four dimensions (Hofstede, 1984). Brunei regained independence from British rule in January 1, 1984 (Brunei Civil Service, 2007). Bruneian’s are ruled by the Sultan and adopt the National Philosophy called the ‘Malay Islamic Monarchy’ (MIB) where the Malay culture, language, customs and Islam is incorporated as a set of model values. The population in Brunei is estimated at 390,000 and it comprises of Malays, Chinese and Ethnic Minorities with 67 per cent, 15 per cent and 18 per cent respectively (Kramar & Syed, 2012). According to the Country Paper of Brunei Darussalam, the Government Sector employs 12.23 per cent of the entire population (Brunei Civil Service, 2007). Brunei’s legal and political system is based on both the Islamic law and English Common law. The Sultan takes on the role of the Prime Minister and is the head of government and chief of state (Central Intelligence Agency, 2013). Brunei’s social structure is one of absolute conformity to the Sultan’s authority and challenges made by individuals and organizations are frowned upon (Clarke & Salleh, 2011). Therefore it is evident that power distance is high in Brunei. Brunei’s economy is heavily dependent on the Oil and Gas sector. Actions have been made to branch out into a variety of non-oil related sectors. In a 2008 estimate by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the labor force is composed of agriculture, industry (oil and gas) and services, with it being 4.2 per cent, 62.8 per cent and 33 per cent respectively (Central Intelligence Agency, 2013). Local males and females hold different employment structures, with the females being hired excessively in office, cleaning jobs and associated occupations. Males are predominantly hired in top managerial roles, as well as ‘non-office’ middle level jobs, such as agriculture, plant and machine production. Employment patterns between the local genders does not drastically differ from 20 years prior to 1991, and has been ingrained in Brunei’s employment structure. Thus, masculinity proves to be strongly evident in Brunei due to the job scopes each gender undertakes. The socio-culture in Brunei’s organizations stresses the importance of upholding the national heritage to pass down to generations to come. Islamic values and teachings have been endorsed since 16th century, which differentiates Brunei from other South-East Asian Islamic or Malay countries (Zanko & Nugi, 2003). Hence, Brunei is skewed towards a collectivist culture as they are influenced by the MIB, which instills a family like culture in the workplace. Loyalty to family and the Sultan is expected of Bruneians (Minnis, 1999). The Sultan, in a bid to improve data entry efficiency, transparency and eliminate the use of paper, is implementing a new form of technology. The system, also known as Government Employee Management System (GEMS), is being implemented in three main sectors: government employees, human resource administrators and the public. GEMS will permit the sharing of documents, leave applications and benefits entitlement to be accessible any time, anywhere. There has been mixed reactions toward the implementation of GEMS, with some preferring to stick with the old system, as it is in Malay, which is their national language. It may cause stress to older employees who have difficulty keeping up with technological advances and learning of a new language. From this, we can conclude that Bruneians have concerns towards adapting to new technology. Therefore we can conclude that they have high uncertainty avoidance. From the results above, it can be deduced that Brunei’s culture is adapted in their law and politics, technology, and the economy. The Importance of Human Resource (HR) Policies The heart of organizational effectiveness is developing long-term goals to nurture and skillfully develop human resources as key assets. The importance of investing in training and development has proven to contribute positively to the success of organizations. Government policies worldwide have since adopted management programs to help improve the quality of their human resources, in order to improve overall organizational effectiveness (Rajah & Wallace, 1993). According to Brunei Economic Development Board, 54 per cent of its population is made up of 20-54 year age group that are economically productive. This indicates a major productive workforce with both experienced and inexperienced individuals. With the availability of the workforce, HRM needs to provide training and development to upgrade their staff with knowledge and skills that is required in both macro and microenvironment. (need evidence) Comprehensive policies and procedures establish the foundation of HRM in the public sector. Policies are crucial and serve several important functions. It ensures that organizations comply with legislation and are accountable for the protection against employment claims. Policies also help the management make consistent judgments that are perpetual and expectable. Established HR policies protect not only individuals, but also organizations as well from the pressures of pragmatism (Hard Power: Soft Power, 2011). Human rights legislation is crucial as it protects employees from discrimination. It guarantees equality treatment for the people regardless of well-known characteristics that involved stereotyping or biasness in relation to employment. In Krama & Syed (2012), some interviewees felt that favoritism is still the pivotal point of recruitment, particularly in the government sector. Some interviewees suggested that cohesive social relationships in Brunei society had influence on work connection in the workplace. Although the impact was moderated by the HRM practices, particularly in employment, there is a strong need for Human Rights Legislation to be firmly enforced in Brunei in order to create inclusive workplaces that are more diverse and respectful. (can we link this to how hrm enables individual employees to adjust themselves to technical changes?) Krama & Syed (2012) stated that staff not in managerial roles was not familiar with the availability of the General Order (GO) and State Circulars (SC) as the regulations were poorly imposed. To improve the situation, HR policies must be enforced and properly implemented. Communication of policies horizontally and vertically is important. All new and existing staff could be issued an employee handbook that clearly defines an organization’s values, expectations and standard operating procedures (SOP). The purpose of the policies should be transparent, easily understood and not perceived as variable. A policy training session across the board can be implemented for certain policies like dispute resolutions, disciplinary and safety issues, which are more complicated. With the policies inaugurated, it will greatly support the country’s consistency in treatment of staff, fairness and transparency. These policies must be direct, serve the organization’s mission and not simply be enforced to regulate the conduct and rights of the staff. HRM could also implement key training in communication skills. As mentioned above, Brunei’s national language is Malay, which may lead to language barriers. Teaching employees to communicate in fluent written and spoken English is vital as Brunei branches out into the international market. In comparison to the old SIMPA system in Malay, the new GEMS system in English causes older employees to have a harder time in keeping up with the changes. HRM could provide information technology (IT) trainings to older generation employees to ensure that they are equip with relevant IT skills such as computer software (usage of emails, software program and knowledge of file format) and hardware skills, usage of organization intranet/internet and how to access and use GEMS systems (including searching, gathering of information, applying electronic-leaves, allowance and benefit application). Provision of IT skills would equip them with knowledge and skills to keep up with the technology. HRM can also implement performance management systems within the organization. The purpose of these systems is to identify, gather individual performance and information through self-review of employees and their managers/supervisor. With the self-review programs, managers/supervisor would gather more information about each individual within a team. Self-review program promotes team bonding, interaction and communication between managers/supervisor and staff. By discussing, identifying potential key individual talents, retaining key individuals that benefit the organization. With this, it allows HRM to identify key training areas that can be provided to their employees to adapt to the ever-changing environment. It could be done by overseas attachment allowing the staff to get more exposure and experience. Workshop targets on leadership quality, self development and team building within the organization that allows HR to identify potential leadership quality in individual of each different department of the organization, thus helping individual to achieve self actualization. Implementing formal and informal work environment learning in the organization. Informal workplace learning involves senior experience and junior management where senior management would hold a small meeting/sharing session with the junior management on their knowledge, skills and experience in their field of work. And as for formal work environment learning, a junior will be attached to a senior manager to attend for international meeting or conference held overseas for exposure and experience. Learning and Development program such as social and business etiquette, current affairs between host and home countries, languages, sensitivity awareness and pre-departure training. HRM In Brunei Versus HRM In A Western Country Using Hofstede (1984) and Cho, et al. (1999), we will examine the difference in society cultures of Brunei as compared to a western country, and the differences between their HRM. As mentioned above, Brunei’s culture and politics are represented by Malay-Islamic values whereas a western society where wide mixtures of culture groups are incorporated in the workforce. (need evidence) Malay cultures are highly collectivist with strong emphasis on family orientation (Blunt, 1988; Maxwell, 1996). HRM in Brunei looks beyond the welfares of the employees. Consideration for their families implemented in their HRM policies. A married female interviewee stated that work hours are family friendly and flexible. (Krama & Syed, 2012) Individuals are also less receptive to individual responsibilities, and prefer collective responsibilities in the organization. However, this collectivism also results in informal recruitment as suggested by the case (Myloni et al. 2004). In the individualist western context, employees are likely to focus on self, which also applies for compensation and rewards, where HRM rewards individuals for good performances rather than that of a team, or as collective whole. High power distance is present in Brunei’s workforce; senior managers of organizations take the lead and are regarded as significant role models based on rank, title and status, along with a tall organizational structure. (Abdullah, 2005) In the past, employees were afraid to disagree with their superiors. (Blunt, 1988) Nowadays, managers take into consideration the suggestions and point of view of employees to ensure that they feel valued by the organization. (Kramar & Syed, 2012) Apart from that, managers have no authority to press for change. This reflects a centralized system where the top management exercise great power and subordinates choose to leave the decision making process to senior executives. It is the duty of HRM to ensure that these leaders are highly committed in leading subordinates to fulfill the organization values and goals. In the western context, a decentralized structure is adopted and employees seek to be part of management decision-making process. A low power distance means that they want to be empowered by their management and be autonomous, being able to make decisions and be given responsibilities. The way to motivate them is through challenging jobs, where HRM needs to focus on the job design (Herzberg, 1966). Group discussions value the input of individuals that are taken into consideration, whereas in Brunei, SC and GO shape the HRM practices and the Sultan holds the decision making power. As mentioned in the case study, Bruneians have high uncertainty avoidance. (Blunt, 1988) Employees prefer a clear organizational structure and respect and behave ritually towards authority figures. Promotions or a raise in salary are also based on passing an examination based on the SC and GO. In contrast, a western country is skewed towards having low uncertainty avoidance whereby they are more uncertainty accepting, with higher acceptance for new ideas, innovative products and a willingness to try something new, be it technology or business practices. They also tend to be more tolerant of ideas or opinions from anyone and embrace freedom of expression (Hofstede, 1994). Maybe find a country to support this? In Brunei, the emphasis is on masculinity, men are expected to be assertive and dominant over women in social relations and demonstrates ambitious and competitive behavior. (Maxwell, 1996)

Dra Fast Ferment

__________________________________________ MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS – 2011/2012 FINAL EXAM __________________________________________ The examination will last for TWO (2) hours. The exam is open book. You are allowed to use the course pack, class handouts and any other materials that relate to the course. You are not allowed to access the internet, or e-mail. The examination paper consists of 10 questions: You should answer ALL of the questions. Make explicit any assumptions underlying your answers, interpret your esults and justify your answers, conclusions and recommendations. But keep your answers short and to the point. In grading, importance will be attached to the clarity and conciseness of your answers. Good luck! DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAM FastFerment FastFerment is a start-up venture started by UCL scientists and engineers. The firm has discovered an enzyme which accelerates the evolution of the mold Aspergillus Orgza e, which is used for making traditional rice-based alcoholic drinks (rice wines) in East Asia such as Sake or Makgeolli.W hen this powder is included in the production of the rice wines, the production lead time is shortened from 10 days to 3 days without affecting the taste or quality of the wine, as it accelerates the fermentation of the rice. Thus, the powder can substantially increase the production capacity for the rice-wine manufacturers and provide them with a competitive advantage. Recently, FastFerment has perfected the technology of genetically engineering and mass producing this accelerating enzyme and storing it in a powder form.They are currently formulating strategies to commercialize the powder by selling the powder to manufacturers. Currently, they estimate there are 156 rice wine manufacturers, but this could be as less as 140, as existing firms may no longer be active, and as many as 190, as there are recent new entrants to the market as the rice wines have become popular in recent years. Because the powder is new, they expect only a few early adopters would be interested in the product. The y expect between 5~10% of the firms to be their potential buyers, with no specific percentage being greater than the other.The price they would charge for 1 kg of the powder would depend on the cost of manufacturing the powder as well as the value it delivers to each manufacturer. After conducting initial market research, they expect an average manufacturer to be willing to pay as high as ? 950/kg, but as low as ? 400/kg depending on the initial negotiations. They expect the selling price to be ? 550/kg. Moreover, it is uncertain how much quantity each manufacturer would want to buy, which will depend on their current production capacity, but they are estimating anywhere between 100kg to 400kg per firm.The founders agree that they would need to hire professional sales people with the necessary knowledge of the science of the powder to help them sell to ea ch manufacturer. They do not know how many will join, but they have made an offer to 6, and expect between 4 and 6 to join FastFerment, with each number being equally likely. The annual wage will be given in terms of salary (no commission), and it is expected to be ? 50,000, but it is negotiable between ? 45,000 and ? 75,000 depending on their qualifications and experience. FastFerment is also examining the cost associated with production.While they have perfected the technology to manufacture the powder, they currently do not have the manufacturing plant set up to accommodate the potential demand. Initial estimates show that the fixed cost associated with setting up a manufacturing plant is at least ? 300,000 and at most ? 600,000, with ? 500,000 being the most likely. The variable cost for producing 1kg of the powder is expected to be ? 200/kg, but this is also variable by 10% in either direction. Lowest Rice wine manufacturers 140 adopters (%) 5. 0% price/kg 400 Quantity of purch ase (kg) 100 salesforce 4 Salary (? ) 45,000 Fixed cost of production (? 300,000 Variable cost per 1kg (? ) 180 –TABLE 1– Likely 156 -550 –50,000 500,000 200 MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 highest 190 10. 0% 950 400 6 75,000 600,000 220 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAM The objective of FastFerment is to maximize the annual profit, but it is unclear whether the firm would be profitable based on the numbers. Question 1. Scenario Analysis Start @Risk for Excel and open the Excel spreadsheet â€Å"FastFerment. † Perform a scenario analysis for this venture, and determine the best-case and worst-case scenarios (do not use @Risk for this, just plug the numbers in the model and observe the results).What are your conclusions? The scenario analysis below shows that there is significant uncertainty in the profitability of this venture. The worst-case scenario shows a loss of ? 924,000, whereas the best-case scenario shows a potential profit of ? 5,372, 000. So there is a substantial downside, but also a huge upside. AT this point, therefore, it is not recommended to make any decision, as it is yet unclear how the risks will affect th profitability of this venture. Rice wine manufacturers early adopters (%) price/kg Quantity of purchase (kg) salesforce Salary (? ) Fixed cost of production (? )Variable cost per 1kg (? ) Annual profit (? ) Worst Case Scenario Best Case Scenario 140 190 5. 0% 10. 0% 400 950 100 400 6 4 75,000 45,000 600,000 300,000 220 180 -924,000 5,372,000 Question 2. Sensitivity Analysis Which is the biggest risk, (a) the variable cost/kg (b) the price/kg or (c) the % of early adopters? How did you determine this? Again, do not yet use @Risk. Setting as the base case 7. 5% for %-adopters, 250 to quantity of purchase, 5 as the number of salesforce, and the rest of the parameters to the most likely case, and we examine the potential impact of these three parameters.The price/kg is the biggest risk, with a potential i mpact of ? 1,608,750 when varied from 400 to 950 (-? 165,000 versus ? 1,443,750). The %-early adopters is the second biggest risk with a potential impact of ? 682,500 when varied from 5% to 10% (-? 67,500 versus ? 615,000). The variable cost/kg is the lowest risk with a potential impact of ? 117,000 when varied from 180 to 220 (? 215,250 versus ? 332,250). MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAM Question 3. Simulation Analysis – DistributionsTo perform a simulation analysis, we need to identify an appropriate distribution to model each of the risk factors. Determine an appropriate distribution and their parameters for each of the risk factors. Triangular distributions (with the lowest, likely and highest estimates as parameters) would work well for all risks except % of early adopters and quantity of purchase, which should be uniform (with the lowest and highest estimates as the parameters), and salesforce, which should be discrete with eq ual probability of 0. 33 to each three cases {4,5,6}.Question 4. Simulation Analysis – Average Using @Risk, perform a simulation analysis, and determine the average profit for this venture. How high and low could the profit potentially be? Compare these results with the scenario analysis results. After performing 5000 iterations, the average profit is approximately ? 570,000. This means that if we were to run this business for many years, we would have an average annual profit of around ? 570,000 per year (provided the conditions do no change over time). MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAMQuestion 5. Simulation Analysis – VaR What is the likelihood that the profit is positive? What is the probability that the profit is ? 1. 5M or more? W hat is the Value-at-Risk (VaR)? There is about 80% chance of making a profit, and about 10% chance of making a profit that is ? 1. 5M or more. The VaR at 5% is around -? 300,000. Question 6. Sim ulation Analysis – Tornado Diagram Examine the tornado diagram. What can you conclude? Suppose that increasing the number of sales people and their salaries increase the quantity of powder that each manufacturer buys.Would this be a good investment? The tornado diagram shows that the quantity of purchase and the price/kg are the biggest risk factors. The risks related to the cost of production of the powder or the number of salesforce and salary are actually not that significant. Increasing the salesforce and the salary in return for increase in the quantity of purchase therefore seems to be a good investment. MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAM Five Grains is one of the leading manufacturers of rice wines.The CEO of Five Grains, a UCL alumnus, has learned about FastFerment’s powder through his personal networks, and immediately recognized the potential opportunity the powder can represent. According to Five Grains’ recen t internal consumer trend study, the demand for various specialty rice wines (using different variety of rice), which is currently negligible due to nonproduction, is expected to rise in the next several years. In particular, for the current year, they conjecture that with 50% the demand will be large (translating into a potential profit of ? 4. 5M), and with 50% it will be small (translating into a potential profit of ? . 5M). Although other firms are looking into producing the specialty rice wines, it is difficult for them to quickly do so as it requires building additional capacity, as most firms do not want to produce the specialty rice wines at the expense of sacrificing the traditional rice wine production. However, with access to the powder, firms can immediately free up their production capacity to mass produce the specialty rice-wines and capture its potential demand. Five Grains also recognized that the competitors also eventually receive information and gain access to the FastFerment’s powder.If this happens, Five Grains will have to share the demand with its competitors. Based on intuition, the CEO believes that there is 70% chance that more than 1 competing manufacturers will eventually adopt the powder and dive into the specialty rice-wine market. In such case, Five Grains will only capture 20% of the demand and hence earn 20% of the potential profit. On the other hand, there is a 20% chance that one competitor adopts the powder, in which case they will be able to capture 50% of the demand and hence earn 50% of the potential profit.He believes that there is only 10% chance that nobody else will MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAM enter the market during the year, in which case they can capture 80% of the demand and 80% of the potential profit. To maximize their knowledge of the powder, Five Grains is currently negotiating a deal with FastFerment to ask for a 1-year exclusivity agreement. If the deal can be made, then Five Grains will be the only manufacturer with the access to the powder and be certain to capture 80% of demand (80% of profit). Question 7.Decision Analysis – What to do? The meeting takes place and FastFerment asks Five Grains for ? 1. 5M for the 1-year exclusivity deal. Using a decision tree, find out whether or not Five Grains should agree to buy the 1-year exclusivity deal at ? 1. 5M. I would recommend Five Grains to not buy the one year exclusivity deal for ? 1. 5M, as the expected profit associated with not buying the deal (? 0. 8M) is greater than that with the deal (? 0. 5M). MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAM Question 8. Decision Analysis – Value?What is the maximum amount that Five Grains should pay for the 1-year exclusivity deal? The maximum amount that Five Grains should pay for the deal is ? 1. 2M, as it is the price when the expected profits are the same when buying and not buying. Question 9. Decision Analysis – Risk/Sensitivity Examine the risk profile for Five Grains with and without the 1-year exclusivity deal at ? 1. 5M. If the demand turns out to be large, what is the (expected) profit with and without the 1 -year exclusivity deal? What if the demand turns out to be small?How does the value of 1-year exclusivity deal change with respect to the probability that the demand is large? If the demand turns out to be large, then with the 1-year exclusivity deal, Five Grains will earn ? 2. 1M, whereas without it they will earn ? 1. 44M on average with the risk of earning less than ? 1M. However, if the demand turns out to be small, then Five Grains will lose ? 1. 1M, whereas without it they will earn ? 0. 16M. Thus, while there is higher upside with the 1-year exclusivity deal, it also represents a greater downside risk. MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAMWhen the probability that the demand is high increases by 1%, there is a ? 12,800 increase in the expected profit. MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAM Question 10. Decision Analysis – A year later The deal for the 1-year exclusivity had been signed for ? 1M, and the demand for the specialty rice wines had turned out to be high. After a new study, Five Grains now projects that the demand for the variety wine will be large with probability 90% (translating into a potential profit of ? 9M), and small with probability 10% (translating into a profit of ? 1M).Moreover, the CEO feels that there is a 95% chance that more than one competitor will adopt the powder, which would allow them to earn 20% of the potential profit, and there is a 5% chance that only 1 firm will adopt , which would allow them to earn 50% of the potential profit. He believes that there is 0% that no firm adopts the powder this year, unless Five Grain brokers a 1-year exclusivity deal again with FastFerment, in which case they will earn 80% o f the potential profit. (i) W hat is the value of 1-year exclusivity for this year for Five Grains? Call this VFG. Five Grains contacts FastFerment and offers to pay (0. * VFG) for a 1-year exclusivity deal, citing the fact that it represents a steep increase from the ? 1M paid in the previous year. (ii) From FastFerment’s point of view, they believe that the adoption rate of the powder has now increased and expects between 50~60% of the manufacturers to become their potential buyers. Taking the rest of the parameters from the previous year as a conservative estimate of the current year (change all the parameters in Table 1, except the % -adopters), what is the minimum amount that FastFerment should demand from Five Grains this year for the 1-year exclusivity deal?Run the simulation analysis using @Risk and find the expected profit with the high adoption rate. W ill the deal go through? From the Decision Tree, we find that the value is approximately ? 4. 8M. MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014 DECISION & RISK ANALYSIS: EXAM We find that with the adoption rate between 50~60%, the expected profit is around ? 8. 9M, and there is 10% chance that FastFerment will make ? 15M or more. The deal won’t go through this time as the 1-year exclusivity deal would need to be prohibitively expensive for Five Grains. MSING014 – MSING014B – MSINM014

Study of Nurse Workarounds in a Hospital Using Bar Code Medication Research Paper

Study of Nurse Workarounds in a Hospital Using Bar Code Medication Administration System - Research Paper Example The implementation of BCMA technology might impact negatively on the nurses’ attitudes toward the medication administration process. This, in turn, might make work processes more difficult to nurses while administering medication to patients. This paper will provide a response to Goodner’s journal article as regards to nurses’ perception to the use of BCMA system and then provide my judgment over the issue. It will also review three other journal articles to demonstrate if they agree with my viewpoint. Finally, the paper will list my evaluation and three points of criteria used in my judgment. Research reveals that medication errors are the most frequently experienced preventable errors at (19%) according to Gooder (2011). Gooder notes that most (34%) medication errors take place during medication administration. The impacts of these errors are directly related to patients and can cause grave injuries. It is for this reason that the Institute of Administration (IOM) recommended the introduction of bar coded medication administration system (BCMAs) as a solution to medication administration errors. This, argues Gooder, will reduce medication errors by about 86%. This is true because it will enhance the prevention of patient injuries, which have characterized most of today’s hospitals. On the other hand, the technology will also improve the overall quality of services offered in the hospital. With the application of the technology, there will be faster administration of medication and improved accuracy in service delivery. This will improve the overall satisfaction o f patients. In spite of the benefits of the BCMA system as regards error reduction, Gooder notes some concerns about its safety and effectiveness. Among the concerns is the non-compliance with the BCMA system by nurses in many hospital settings.

Music Videos, Sexuality, and Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Music Videos, Sexuality, and Culture - Essay Example In them, women are portrayed as sexual objects to be exploited by skillful males and not as mothers, sisters, and daughters (that is as people). They are simply figures to be gawked at and not humans deserving both respect and dignity. In the world of music videos, men wield all the power and need not care for social or moral customs. This hyper-sexualized reality of easy, submissive women perverts even traditional female gender roles. Women, prior to the 1960’s, often did live in submissive-like situations if they were housewives. They depended on their husbands for their livelihood. The difference is that then they were portrayed as being chaste and virtuous as well. Sex was only for after marriage. In the world of music videos, women are submissive and sexually ‘liberated,’ in that they are free to have sex outside of wedlock. But when they do, it is only to satisfy the needs of men. As such, it could be said that music videos tell the story of a juvenile, freshly pubescent male, despite the fact that they attempt to present their message as being ‘male’ in general. The consequence-free world of the music video allows men to act out their most juvenile desires: disrespecting women, sex with no real relationship, and, perhaps worst of all, the power to defile and even assault wo men whenever they want. The stories these videos do not tell are clearly those of women who have been the victims of violence and sexual assault or rape. These women are the victims of men living in a world which lacks morality and sexual taboos. Sadly, these men can have their desires realized by watching

Political Science - Politics in Quebec (Canada) Research Paper

Political Science - Politics in Quebec (Canada) - Research Paper Example Cultural globalization refers to the emergence of a combination of values and beliefs even across the world. Globalization is associated with a clash of ideas, lifestyles, and identities, as well as enhanced interdependence within the international community. The amplification of international migration and advancement of technology has led to an increased ethnic and cultural diversification of societies. Canada hosts a constantly increasingly number of immigrants, majority of who originate in cultural1 environments that do not share similar values with the host society (Di Sciulo 2011, p. 28).1 The pressure of globalization on language and culture has triggered a remarkable range of research and analysis. This is certainly true in Canada where scholars and policy makers have long been anxious on the impact of globalization on local culture and language. The problem has aroused keen interest, especially owing to Canada’s geographical and cultural proximity to the U.S., the world’s biggest exporter of cultural products, as well as Canada’s internal division of twin population, French and English. Of recent, issues 2of globalization, ethnicity, and politics of identity have been dominant in Canada, especially in the region of Quebec. Most inhabitants of Quebec have raised concerns on the effects that cultural homogenization could have on Quebec’s distinct culture and language (Fletcher 1998, p. 360). 2 Most Quebeckers are fearful that increased globalization will lead to language loss or language shift together with their cherished cultural heritage. Language shift in this case refers to circumstances in which speech communities witness gradual displacement of a certain language by another. The language question in Quebec has constantly aroused mixed feelings of anxiety and passion enveloping maintenance of cultural and linguistic diversity. Language