Amadeus Biopic Essay

Told from the flash back perspective of an aged Antonio Salieri in an insane asylum to a priest for a confession, the movie reveals Antonio’s introduction to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, his professional career with Mozart, and his bitter rivalry and betrayal of Mozart. The film depicts an inaccurate account of Mozart’s life but still delivers on the pieces which he composed. Throughout the film, we’re exposed to what are clearly historical inaccuracies. I understand that this film is an adaptation of the original Peter Shaffer’s Amadeus performed on Broadway in the 1980’s and for purely theatrical purposes to endow the story with a plot, these changes had to either be implemented or just purely fabricated in order for the story to make sense. However, some of the erroneous interpretations of Mozart’s life are just impossible to ignore for anyone who even had even the simplest understanding of his life, such as myself. The predominant trait of Mozart that stuck out to me like a sore thumb was his high pitched cackling laughter. The movie’s laugh for Amadeus was constructed from letters that referenced Mozart having an â€Å"infectious, giddy laugh† much like â€Å"metal scraping glass† according to Forman. However, Robert L. Marshall, author of â€Å"Film as Musicology: Amadeus,† discredits this notion as there were no citations that provided the existence of such letters. Since Mozart lived over two centuries ago, there’s no possible way to know exactly how he sounded. However, the brilliant Mozart in the film is supposed to be Gods creature (The Latin translation of Amadeus translates to â€Å"lover of God† or â€Å"beloved by God†) that usurps the mediocre Salieris position as the â€Å"voice of God. † So in effect, his laugh is God mocking Salieri in his mediocrity which further drives the frustration and anger of Salieri towards Mozart thus pushing the plot along. While we’re on that subject, there is little evidence that Mozart and Salieri actually rivaled each other to the extreme that the movie depicts. Certainly, they were rivals, but they were professional rivals. By professional rivals, I mean that even though they often butted heads in their pursuit of music and their attempted publicity of their works, they still admired and respected each other greatly. Despite Salieri being the inferior musician, he still pooled great respect from Emperor Joseph II and his subjects and served as court composer, director of the Italian opera, and court conductor. Mozart on the other hand came as an outsider therefore did not possess the same influence or reputation as Salieri. To me, this just appears to be the politics of music; it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Regardless, Salieri really didn’t have a reason to hate Mozart as much as the movie shows because his influence alone virtually neutralized Mozart as a threat. I’m sure when Mozart attempted to get his operas on the Italian stages it must have certainly irked Salieri, but never to the point of violence. However, once again the fiction is created in order to develop a sensical plot line. Without that aggressive rivalry, there’s no movie. One last thing that I personally found confusing is that absence of Joesph Haydn from the entire movie. History tells us that Mozart and Haydn met somewhere 1783 or 1784 and instantly hit it off. They both admired each other’s work immensely and Mozart even went as far as to dedicate six string quartets to Haydn as a tribute to the father of the string quartet. Throughout their lives, they were in correspondence with one another up until Mozart’s death. However, despite this documented historical fact, Haydn is still left out of the movie. The movie itself is about two famous classical composers so why not add Haydn to attract Haydn fans to the play or movie? One can only guess as to why that is. Perhaps Forman thought that the addition of another prominent classical composer would ultimately lessen the importance of the feud between Mozart and Salieri. But Forman fashioned other characters throughout the film in order to serve roles that further drove the plot, so why not use Haydn instead? Or at least mention him? At one point in the film, Mozart mentions that he doesn’t care for Gluck (which is also inaccurate, he was an admirer of Gluck), but nevertheless, he still at least mentions the name. At this point it’s all speculation and I can’t find anywhere an explanation for his absence. The movie is riddled with other inaccuracies that raise a lot of questions, but if anything I learned in English is true, it’s that in order to read any literature that’s fiction or watch any movie, you’re supposed to â€Å"suspend yourself in willful disbelief† meaning that enjoy it for what it is without dissecting it too much, which I can honestly and wholeheartedly say I did. Although it doesn’t give an accurate portrayal of Mozart, Salieri or the setting it’s supposed to be placed in, it still gives an enjoyable experience. Despite the erroneous depiction, the musical pieces revealed chronologically throughout the film are in fact the offspring of Mozart’s genius. Whilst enjoying each piece as much as the next, I don’t have the musical ear or expertise to discern which piece is being played in which scene, aside from the operas. However, the films composer John Strauss created a two disc soundtrack for the film and I have to admit, even though I lack the expertise, I am astounded by Mozart’s ability. Luckily, between the internet and my own mothers personal love for music (Fortunately, she had a library of CDs that included many of Mozart’s work), I was able to essentially find each individual piece within the movie. I have to say, my favorite musical piece offered in the movie is the finale of the Don Giovanni. Perhaps some of it is because of the twist that Salieri puts on it; that â€Å"only [he] understood that the horrifying apparition was Leopald raised from the dead! The inference that I took from that between the monumental sounding music and the fervently conducting Mozart in the scene is that Mozart poured his personal misfortune of not living up to his father’s expectations in his work. It just makes it seem to be so personal, so passionate. I know that was the movies intent for me to feel that way, but I couldn’t help getting sucked in, between seeing the gargantuan black commander singing in the deep bass voice is what seems to me to be such an accusing tone allegorically â€Å"accusing his son in front of the world† as Salieri puts it. All the while the plot twists during this play, as the madness grew within Salieri as he discovers such a simple way to destroy Mozart. It’s just so epic, for lack of better words. One of the brighter operas in the film â€Å"The Marriage of Figgaro† has a much lighter note. Despite all of the red tape Mozart endures, he nevertheless through the exceptionally brilliance of his music and borderline arrogance persuades the emperor to allow him to perform his opera. While we obviously never get to see the whole thing, the music and performance we do see is good. I wouldn’t say I particularly cared for it. The colors, the notes, the lighting, it’s just too bright. However, the most impressive part of it is that his confidence in his music allowed him to break the traditional rules in order for his perform his opera. This seems metaphorically to portray the fact that Mozart’s music didn’t follow these contemporary musical rules of the time which contributed to his genius. Perhaps that’s a long stretch, but that’s immediately what came to mind. While the movie is composed (Pun intended) of Mozart’s work, it would take an entire separate paper to dissect each one individually. Regardless, each piece performed in the play is enjoyable from one degree to another. Overall, I have to say I was more than happy with this movie. For a while, I dreaded watching the movie thinking it would be a long drawn out boring biographic film, but to my surprise it shared little characteristics with a biography. The central thematic message of the movie is mostly if not entirely fictitious, but still lays a foundation in which the movie tells factual information about Mozart and sets a stage in which one can hear the pieces and enjoy them chronologically. To be frank and honest, if these fabrications of the bitter rivalry between Salieri and Mozart weren’t there, I would have had a hard time truly appreciating the Mozart as seen in the movie. Not to say his music is bad, it’s brilliant, but the underlying plot is what made the movie so interesting. Ultimately, if you’re looking for historical facts about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, look elsewhere. If you’re looking for a movie that’s interesting and loosely based on one of the world’s greatest composers who ever lived, look no further.

Powerful Women and Submissive Women in Njal’s Saga and the Bible Essay

Ancient societies and their cultures traditionally provided women with no access to power. It was nearly universal for women to be treated as subservient to men while being expected to behave mildly and submissively. The New Testament makes no exception. The Apostle Paul explains that through Christ, women are absolved of constraints that the social hierarchy imposes on them, but he later goes on to explain that even in Christ a religious hierarchy still exists. By acknowledging that women are inferior to men in both the social and religious circles, Paul presents women as subordinates. This contrasts with Njal’s Saga. Through the saga’s characters Gunnhild, Hallgerd, and Bergthora, the unknown author presents the way Icelandic society treats women as property to men, and demonstrates women as powerful and influential characters who hold their individual desires to a higher degree to those of men; acting as catalysts of conflicts among men and the overall plot itself. In Njal’s Saga, the author introduces the Queen of Norway, Gunnhild, in the beginning of the story. Gunnhild’s position in society as a powerful character is demonstrated when she sends a servant for the traveling Icelanders, Hrut and Ozur, saying, â€Å"Tell them that I invite them both to spend the winter with me and that I want to be their friend. If Hrut listens to my advice I will look after his property claim†¦ I’ll also put in a good word for him with the king. † The two give their response when Ozur says, â€Å"It’s clear to me, kinsman, that we have already taken our decision, for I know Gunnhild: if we don’t go to her she will drive us from our land and grab all our possessions. But if we go to her she will show us the honour she has promised (Njal’s Saga, 7). â€Å" Rather than simply disregarding the woman and approaching the king, here the two Icelanders acknowledge a woman’s (Gunnhild’s) power to take away their possessions and act to avoid this from occurring. Additionally, Hrut and Ozur’s realization of the strategic benefit that follows when submitting to Gunnhild as well as the quoted promise suggests that they also acknowledge that Gunnhild may possess significant influence in decisions. This suggestion is eventually confirmed when she successfully convinces the King to accept Hrut as a bodyguard (Njal’s Saga, 8). Even though the King is the superior, Gunnhild still possesses the ability to influence him. Her influence demonstrates her ability to assume and exercise a degree of power. It is through her power that Gunnhild goes on to instigate a chain of events. After having Hrut as a lover for several seasons, Gunnhild reasserts her power when Hrut asks to return to Iceland. Though she lets him return, she sends a curse along with him. She says, â€Å"If I have as much power over you as I think I have, then I cast this spell: you will not have sexual pleasure with the woman you plan to marry in Iceland, though you’ll be able to have your will with other women. Neither of us comes out of this well, because you did not tell me the truth (Njal’s Saga, 13). † The curse she places on Hrut actually comes true (Njal’s Saga, 16). Hrut cannot please his wife and Gunnhild’s desire to hold a degree of dominance over Hrut is fulfilled. Because Hrut wants to please his wife but cannot, his desires are unfulfilled. This suggests that Gunnhild’s demands and desires are superior to those of men. It is the demands and desires of a woman that instigate events. The author immediately presents Gunnhild in the very first significant event of the Saga, as a woman with power. It is through this that it is ultimately suggested that the tone of behavior of women is established early in the saga. The behavioral tone set by Gunnhild is echoed through Hallgerd, Gunnar’s wife. Her desire to preserve her honor in the face of Bergthora, Njal’s wife, as well as her position of power allows her to trigger a series of conflicts. At a customary feast between the families of Njal and Gunnar, Hallgerd and Bergthora engage in an argument, attacking each other’s honor. Gunnar refuses to defend his wife, saying, â€Å"I’m going home, and it would be best for you to pick quarrels with your servants, and not in the dwellings of others. I’m in debt to Njal for many honours, and I’m not going to be a cat’s paw for you. When the time comes for the men to ride to the â€Å"Thing,† Gunnar tells Hallgerd, â€Å"Behave yourself while I’m away and don’t show your bad temper where my friends are concerned. † Hallgerd, thinking that Bergthora is plotting to steal excess wood from a forest shared between Gunnar and Njal, sends her servant, Kol, to kill Svart Bergthora’s servant who is innocently collect ing wood (he does so) (Njal’s Saga, 57-59). Here Gunnar clearly expresses his friendship with Njal and his disdain for his wife’s behavior. Even though Gunnar clearly commands his wife to not act against his friends, Hallgerd refuses to relinquish her anger and desire for honor and disregards Gunnar’s demands. Hallgerd’s desire to preserve her honor by causing the death of Svart demonstrates her ability to incorporate her desires into her decisions. Combined with her authority over her servants, she clearly possesses the ability to make crucial decisions. This particular decision results in the death of another’s family, which in turn instigates reoccurring conflict between Njal and Gunnar. It could be argued that women do not actually possess power because it is not exercised against the will of man when he is present, based on Gunnar’s absence during Hallgerd’s actions. This argument is rejected because the feud between Hallgerd and Bergthora still disregards their husbands’ demands to retain peace. Disregarding a man’s will, whether in his absence or not, indicates a lack of absolute authority over women. Because of this disregard, women appear to have authority over their own lives and decisions. Even Gunnar acknowledges this when he â€Å"said she would decide her own actions – ‘but I shall decide how the cases are settled (Njal’s Saga, 60). ’† This clearly demonstrates the husband’s inability to assert complete dominance over his wife, leaving only the decision of the consequences of the women’s actions to the men. Again, the desires of the women take precedence over the demands of the men. On the other hand, the Apostle Paul presents women as completely subordinate to men, expected to never act on their own desires and to submit to God and their husbands. Paul does this by establishing women’s inferiority in both the social and religious hierarchy. He first says, â€Å"For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Gal. 3:27-28). † Here Paul is acknowledging that in his society, like the Jews, Greeks, and slaves, women are repressed and that the following of Christ does not discriminate against these social restraints. Because there is no discrimination through Christ, it could be argued that Paul is preaching religious equality among women. However, he goes on to establish women’s inferiority even in religion. I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the husband is the head of his wife, and God is the head of Christ. Any man who prays or prophesies with something on his head disgraces his head, but any woman who prays or prophesies with her head unveiled disgraces her head†¦ For a man ought not to have his head veiled since he is the image and reflection of God; but woman is the reflection of man (Cor. 1:3-16). Here Paul clearly expresses that the religious hierarchy is as follows: God, then Christ, then man, and finally women. In that order Paul establishes a chain of command per se. Paul clearly places men above women in this hierarchy, which clearly indicates women’s inferiority to men in religion. His decree that women should wear a veil when prayin g or prophesizing is reflective of this hierarchy; the veil is a symbol of a woman’s subordination to man and therefore God. This means that equality in religion does not exist between men and women. Because Paul acknowledges that social restraints on women do in fact exist and because he establishes a religious hierarchy with men outranking women, it is assumed that Paul views women as generally inferior to men in both social and religious spheres. Although Paul’s letters to both the Galatians and the Corinthians do not refer to any specific women, they establish his expectations of women. Paul’s identification of women as both socially and religiously inferior creates a general air of inferiority for women, which contrasts with the women of Njal’s Saga who possess actual power over men, able to instigate events and conflicts between men. The women of Njal’s Saga are not totally confined to any kind of hierarchy , while those that Paul speaks of are. The role of women in varying societies has been a dilemma in today’s contemporary age. The increasing number of those who view women as independent and equal to men combats firm-standing traditions and cultures that expect women to behave as subordinates to men. Many religions to this day implement the same expectations (to be mild and submissive to men) of women that Paul shares in both their social and cultural, as well as their religious spheres. In other parts of the world women hold influential positions of power, from independent mothers to high-ranking political officers. The dilemma of the role of women in society is prominent in every society, forming a variety of societies due to their adherence to social and more often than not, religious customs.

Business Organization Essay

In 2005 my aunt left me an inheritance. It was a large sum of money. There was a stipulation to receiving this gift. I needed to invest in a company of my choice. My last employer was a cleaning company and I approached my old employer with a proposition. I and another business partner that I convinced in investing with me would organize a joint-stock company. This was to be a private partnership, as well as a limited partnership. So I approached him with this idea and he agreed. So after several negotiations the other investor and I devoted the majority of shares to this company. We received a registrar of completion certificate for this joint company venture and we expected our common seal to come next. We also had to increase the liability insurance before registering with state authorities as a Limited Liability company (LLC). With this Partnership all investing parties agreed that there would be a semi-annual information report to look at income deductions and any gains or losses that the company might occur. This is to insure mutual interests and success. The semiannual meetings would also indemnify any problems or debatable issues. It is now 2010 and the company has developed into a four person joint stock company, opening three more cleaning offices and we are in the process of franchising. In 2000 I had a dream and that was to open a gym called Anytime Fitness. Well, this dream was put on hold when I invested in other enterprises. So, I talked to my wife and she agreed to help me open up this fitness facility and she would have sole proprietorship and I would be a silent partner. I give thanks in my prayer to my aunt who gave me this opportunity.

Finance: Free Cash Flow

inance COOPERATE FINANCE| Miss Afifa| | Assignment# 4| | UMAIR ASIF11 March 2013| You submitted this Assignment on Sun 10 Mar 2013 7:21 PM PDT. You got a score of 85. 00 out of 100. 00. You can attempt again, if you'd like. Top of Form Please read all questions and instructions carefully. Note that you only need to enter answers in terms of numbers and without any symbols (including $, %, commas, etc. ). Enter all dollars without decimals and all interest rates in percentage with up to two decimals. Read the syllabus for examples.The points for each question are listed in parentheses at the start of the question, and the total points for the entire assignment adds up to 100. You are strongly encouraged to use spreadsheets. Refer to Note on Sample Cash Flow Template. Question 1 (5 points) The project with the highest IRR is always the project with the highest NPV. Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| True| | | | False| ? | 5. 00| Correct. Try now to sort this out in different contexts,| Total| | 5. 00 / 5. 00| | Question Explanation This is all about the fundamental difference between IRR and NPV. Question 2 10 points) Ann Arbor is considering offering public bus service for free. Setting up the service will cost the city $0. 6M (where M stands for million). The useful life of the buses is 25 years. Annual maintenance of the buses would cost $50,000 per year and they would need a major overhaul in year 15 that will cost a total of $350,000. This overhaul is in addition to the annual maintenance. Annual operating costs will begin at $90,000 in year 1 and grow at 2% per year thereafter. By using the buses as advertisement space, the city will generate a revenue of $75,000 in year 1 and it will grow at 4% per year thereafter.Reduced parking requirements and other benefits generated by the project will save the city $100,000/year. The salvage value (price city can get in the future after maintenance) of the used buses in year 25 is expected to be $150,000. What is the NPV of the bus proposal? Ann Arbor does not pay taxes and the discount rate is 5%. (Again, all cash flows except initial investments happen at the end of the year. ) (You are strongly encouraged to use a spreadsheet. ) Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| -10223| | | | 29847| ? | 10. 00| Correct. You apparently have thought through issues. 31222| | | | 19323| | | | Total| | 10. 00 / 10. 00| | Question Explanation A real world problem with some simplifications in cash flows. Question 3 (5 points) Alpha Inc. has the following two projects that it is considering, and it wants to choose one. Project A has an investment outlay/expense today of $1,000, and its cash flows over the next three years are $500, $600, $700. Project B has an outlay of $2,000, and cash flows of $1,000, $1,200, and $1,400. Which project should Alpha choose? (You can assume no taxes. ) Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| Project A| | | |Does not matter; both are essentially the same| | | | Cannot make a choice based on information| ? | 5. 00| Correct. What information is missing? | Project B| | | | Total| | 5. 00 / 5. 00| | Question Explanation This question is probing your comfort level and understanding of decision making; and the most common pitfall we confront all the time. Question 4 (10 points) Mango Technology has the following three projects that it is considering; it can choose only one. Project A has an investment outlay/expense today of $100M, and its cash flows over the next three years are $20M, $40M, $70M.Project B has an outlay of $110M, and cash flows of $40M, $80M, $20M; Project C has an outlay of $120M and cash flows of $0M, $20M, and $142M. Which project should the company choose if the cost of capital for similar projects is 6%? Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| Project B| | | | Project C| | | | Do not have enough information| ? | 0. 00| You do have enough information. Try again. | Project A| | | | Total| | 0. 00 / 10. 00| | Question Explanation This is an exercise in testi ng your knowledge pitted against our tendency to choose the incorrect criterion for making decisions.Question 5 (5 points) To get from net operating profits after tax (NOPAT) to free cash flows (FCF), you need to ADD back depreciation, SUBTRACT capital expenditures and ADD net working capital (i. e. , current operating assets – current operating liabilities). (Free cash flow is another name for cash flows. ) Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| False. | ? | 5. 00| Correct. You understand the nature of â€Å"capital. â€Å"| True. | | | | Total| | 5. 00 / 5. 00| | Question Explanation This is an important issue that makes you focus on differences between stocks and flows. Question 6 5 points) Last year your firm had revenue of $20 million, cost of goods sold (COGS) of $12 million, Selling, General, ; Administration costs (SG;A) of $2 million, Account Receivables (AR) of $6 million, Account Payables (AP) of $4 million and Inventory of $4 million. What will be the free cash flow next/this year if you boost revenue 6% and AR 12%, while holding COGS growth to 3% and everything else remains the same as last year? (Assume no taxes and no new capital expenditures. ) (You are encouraged to use a spreadsheet even for this specific type of question. ) Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| 4170000| ? 0. 00| Review the basics; see template and references. | 6120000| | | | 7240000| | | | 5250000| | | | Total| | 0. 00 / 5. 00| | Question Explanation Cash flow estimation for a specific year. Question 7 (15 points) Rain in Spain (RiS) is a manufacturer of high quality raincoats. Currently, the retail price of each raincoat is $70 and is produced at a cost of $45. This past year, they sold 50,000 raincoats and they expect this number to grow each year by 6% each year for the next 10 years. The operations team at RiS recently brought to your attention a new technology that could lower the cost of production.This technology requires an upfront fixed investment of $2,000,000 a nd has the capacity to produce up to 90,000 raincoats per year at a 12% lower cost per unit. There is no increased working capital need due to this new technology, and no value of the machine/technology after 10 years. What is the NPV of investing in the new technology? Ignore taxes and assume a discount rate of 14%. (Hint: Think incrementally; the difference between the world without and with this new technology! Also, ignoring taxes will be a big help if you think right. ) (Enter just the number without the $ sign or a comma; round off decimals. (You are strongly encouraged to use a spreadsheet. ) Answer for Question 7 You entered: Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| -150683| ? | 15. 00| Correct. You exhibit a clear understanding of how to conduct incremental analysis. | Total| | 15. 00 / 15. 00| | Question Explanation A probing question that is all about the creation of value; incremental value. Question 8 (15 points) Fresh off the excitement of the 2012 London Olympic Games, you decide that you want your firm to take advantage of the profits to be made for the 2016 games in Rio de Jeneiro. To do so you plan to open a factory in Brazil.After examining the idea, your CFO projects revenues next year (2013) to be $15 million and costs to be $9 million. Both of these are expected to grow at a rate of 25% per year as the excitement for the games builds. Your firms faces a 35% tax rate, a 14% discount rate and you can depreciate your new investment using the straight line method over the four years leading up to the games, at which point the value of the venture moving forward will be $5 million. (This $5 million is the terminal value that is in year 4 (that is, 2016) dollars and is the PV of all cash flows year 5 and beyond. The capital expenditure of this project is $12M. What is the NPV of the project? Assume that you have no significant working capital costs. (Enter just the number without the $ sign or a comma; round off decimals. ) (You are strongly encourag ed to use a spreadsheet. ) Answer for Question 8 You entered: Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| 9815100| ? | 15. 00| Correct. You know how to set up and execute a valuation exercise, albeit a simplified one. | Total| | 15. 00 / 15. 00| | Question Explanation A valuation exercise that includes most of the elements of a real world situation. Question 9 15 points) Starbuck's is considering opening another store in Chicago. A store is expected to have a long economic life, but the valuation horizon is 7 years. The store in Chicago is expected to create revenues of $3M in the first year and they are likely to grow at 2% per year thereafter. The cost of goods sold are $1. 2M in year 1 and they are also expected to grow at 2% per year thereafter. Selling and administration costs are likely to be $0. 5M in the first year and then grow at 5%. The tax rate is 35%. Starbucks is so good at managing its stores that working capital increases can be assumed to be negligible.But Starbucks will hav e to invest $3. 5M in purchasing a store (with land). The good news is that this outlay can be depreciated straight line over 7 years. Also, Starbucks has estimated that the terminal value in year 7 dollars will be $10M. This value is the value of all cash flows in year 8 and beyond. What is the NPV of opening this new store if the appropriate discount rate is 7. 75%? (Again, all cash flows except initial investments happen at the end of the year. Enter just the number without the $ sign or a comma; round off decimals. )(You are strongly encouraged to use a spreadsheet. ) Answer for Question 9You entered: Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| 7879584| ? | 15. 00| Correct. You are now building spreadsheet models. | Total| | 15. 00 / 15. 00| | Question Explanation It is time to do a more complete project analysis. Strongly encourage use of spreadsheets to build cashflows, though remember that you can do it step by step as well. Question 10 (15 points) Big Blue Granite (BBG) needs to purc hase a new saw for creating their top quality countertops. Saw A costs $250,000 with $4,000 of annual maintenance costs for the first year that will increase by 5% each year for the 7-year life of the saw.Saw B costs $150,000 with $10,000 of annual maintenance costs for the first year that will increase by 15% each year for the 4-year life of the saw. Which saw should BBG choose? What is the annualized cost of this choice? Assume a discount rate of 12%, and ignore all taxes. Your Answer| | Score| Explanation| (B, 46794)| | | | (B, 49983)| | | | (A, 59331)| ? | 15. 00| Correct. You know how to figure out the true annualized cost. | (A, 40367)| | | | (A, 38682)| | | | (B, 61624)| | | | Total| | 15. 00 / 15. 00| |

Two topic Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Two topic - Research Paper Example Various professionals have delved into the major elements that paved the way for diverse organizations to excel among the rest. According to Greenberg (2006), diversity is defined as â€Å"the variety of differences between people in an organization†¦Diversity encompasses race, gender, ethnic group, age, personality, cognitive style, tenure, organizational function, education, background and more† (par. 1). In a related literature, Esty, Griffin & Schorr-Hirsh (1995) cited Green, Lopez, Wysocki & Kepner (2009) as providing an appropriate definition of the term by indicating that diversity is â€Å"acknowledging, understanding, accepting, valuing, and celebrating differences among people with respect to age, class, ethnicity, gender, physical and mental ability, race, sexual orientation, spiritual practice, and public assistance status† (Esty, et al., 1995, par. 4). The definitions emphasize the encouragement and acceptance of people from an array of backgrounds dee med to provide instrumental benefits for the intricate needs of organizations. As averred by DiTomaso (1999), several factors contribute to diversity in the workplace, to wit: â€Å"(a) the changing demographic structure of the U.S., (b) the increased importance of globalization to profits and long-term survival in many companies, and (c) changes in the structure of how work gets done† (DiTomaso, 1999, p. 1). Due to the variety of influencing elements that interplay, organizational leaders recognize the need to manage diversity to ensure that it works towards the achievement of organizational goals. Managing a diverse workforce should encompass effectively integrating managerial functions in terms of planning, organizing, directing and controlling diversity in the organizational setting. B. Examples of Current Applications Contemporary successful organizations have attested the incorporation of diversity in their organizational policies. From among the most prominent and acti ve in its implementation and application of diversity is Walmart. The official website of Walmart boasts of methods that â€Å"implement initiatives to attract and retain a diverse workforce, including recruiting from colleges and universities with large multicultural populations. We also provide associates with on-the-job training, leadership seminars, and direct access to job opportunities through our Career Preference System† (Walmart: Diversity, par. 2). The personnel profile of Walmart reveals that â€Å"more than 850,000 of our associates are female and make up 59 percent of our U.S. workforce. 35 percent of our associates are minority: 249,000 African Americans, 171,000 Hispanics, 42,000 Asian Americans, 6,000 Pacific Islander Americans, 15,000 American Indian and Alaska Natives, and 430,000 associates 50 and over† (Walmart: Diversity Report, 2009). Another corporation that actively applies diversity in their organization is HSBC that â€Å"invites, embraces an d manages difference in the changing workforce to gain the best from its people and to provide the best service to its customers. It encourages the breaking down of barriers of the past to look at things in a new way, to find effective business and customer solutions. In such organizations diversity is regarded as a competitive differentiator, in both employment and customer

Analysis Movie Amadeus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Analysis Movie Amadeus - Essay Example Amadeus tells the story of the great musician, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It is narrated by his rival, Antonio Salieri. His story is a flashback to the events of his acquaintance with the young prodigy who was well-spoken of in the field of music. Mozart was considered a genius, performing in the presence of kings, emperors and the pope while Salieri was still playing common games with his equally pauper friends. As Salieri grew, he became more and more passionate with music but his father did not share the same dreams that he had. Fortunately, at least for the young Salieri, his father died and as fate would have it, the orphan was adopted and educated in Vienna, rising to the position of court composer. Salieri first encounters his mischievous contender at a performance for the prince archbishop of Salzburg where Salieri finds out that his rival is actually an immature and reckless person. His contention towards the young musician grew stronger as the two are finally formally introduced in the emperor’s palace. Salieri, the court composer produced a marching piece for Mozart’s entrance as he was invited to the palace. Later, Mozart plays it without a copy and even suggests some revisions for the music in front of the emperor and his guests. This starts Salieri’s jealousy toward Mozart and his enmity with God. He then uses his position to influence the emperor and other officials of the court in order to stagnate Mozart’s career. Consequently, Mozart and his family suffered financially and the musician slowly became a drunkard. Mozart’s depression further worsened when his father died and his health deteriorated. With his vice and financial troubles, Mozart’s wife, Constance, finally leaves with their son. The genius still continued with his works but his health progressively worsened until he finally collapsed during his last opera. Salieri was there to

Environmental Sustainability - Define the concept of renewability, and Term Paper

Environmental Sustainability - Define the concept of renewability, and apply it to Damen Hall's replacement - Term Paper Example To date, innovative technologies have been adapted in order to harvest this resource. Auspicious developments are in the areas of photovoltaic cells that directly convert the sun’s light energy to electricity (Kamal, 2010 & van Santen, et; al. 2010). To put it in a concept, the sun’s energy is the ultimate energy resource and in the simplest explanation, it is renewable because it is easily refilled as long as the sun continues to shine and along with the consideration that it is not capable of polluting the environment and therefore hastening climate change. Sun’s heat aside from giving light energy, heat and as energy resource for photosynthesis also stirs up phenomenon in the earth’s surface that can also serve as promising energy sources such as wind and water movement (van Santen, et. al. 2010). Renewability and Sustainability: Establishing relationship Closely related to the concept of renewability is the universally accepted principle of sustainabil ity. The term is not difficult to understand for almost all efforts of economic development and planning in many modern countries especially in the United States today centers on sustainable economic development. ... They argued that the current lifestyle we are in is an ideology of death where we are over-consuming and therefore destroying resources not capable of replenishing itself. Moreover at the economic standpoint, sustainability and renewbaility are both important backdrops where in they are essential ingredients to sustainable economic policies. When the principle is integrated into sustainable economic policies such as giving them positive economic values and functions, then there is a reduced risk of overuse. At the standpoint of sustainable development and resources use, the utility of non-renewable resources points to an economic of collapse. There are many misleading yet established notions that the use of nonrenewable resource is cheaper and the renewable ones would entail a plethora of investment (Kamal, 2010 & van Santen, et; al. 2010). This is in the other hand, a largely inaccurate assessment and as a matter of fact, it is the use of nonrenewable raw materials have plunged econ omies in different parts of the world. Recycling and Nutrient Cycling in the Purview of Renewability In the context of renewability, the closet and most relevant point of view where recycling and nutrient cycles comes is in on the direct and indirect effects of global warming. Nutrient cycle is the process of transforming and utilizing nutrients from one organism to another. It is obvious therefore that energy plays a central role in this nutrient transport (Kamal, 2010). To illustrate, remember that the Earth is a huge ecosystem – a natural environ. And that the function, as well as the structure of the ecosystem is highly governed by energy flow and

Teaching Issues Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Teaching Issues - Research Paper Example Prior research has been based on the theory that in the course of reading, good readers use strategies that facilitate comprehension and that these strategies can be taught to children with reading difficulties by using the "think-aloud" method.More generally, the theory is that comprehension depends upon focusing one's attention on the meaning of what is being read, e.g., instead of attending to meaning, you can read words while thinking about an upcoming vacation, especially when reading an assigned book that you may find boring.The strategies in the "think-aloud" method include using mental imagery, asking yourself questions, making inferences about what you've read, determining major themes, and using prior knowledge and surrounding words to find the meaning of a word you don't understand. In demonstrating the "think-aloud" method, the teacher chooses a book to be read (based both on the quality of the book and the interests and abilities of the children) and tells the children t he purpose of the method. He or she reads a short section aloud, stopping often to demonstrate strategies, such as asking a question, relating what was read to another book or to prior knowledge, trying to predict what will happen later in the book, etc.The researchers investigated whether children with different kinds of difficulties in reading could benefit from use of the "think aloud" method of teaching. More specifically, they investigated whether particular strategies that are part of the method would benefit children. However, they were less concerned with testing the method than with providing a demonstration that other teachers could use to apply the "think-aloud" method in their own classes. Methods: The participants were one first-grade ("Courtney") and one second-grade girl ("Callie") and one second-grade boy (Yobo) (ages not included). Courtney guesses what a word means by choosing a word with the same first letter or one that's consistent with her interpretation of an illustration. Although not stated in the article, giving up after encoding the first letter suggests difficulty in grapheme-to-phoneme conversion, typical of those who are dyslexic. Using illustrations to find word meaning, although she's usually incorrect, suggests she's trying to use context, displaying what seems to be fairly advanced meta-cognition for a first-grader. Callie has difficulty remembering instructions, makes literal interpretations (their nature isn't clear, since second-graders in general understand little, if anything, about metaphor), and fears failing. Yobo speaks English as a second language (ESL) and is having some difficulty with vocabulary and in understanding when reading about events typical to American culture but not in his culture. (Based on his being a recent immigrant and examples in the article, it seems reasonable to suspect that like most immigrant children his age, he'll soon be reading at grade-level.) The researchers conducted a think-aloud session. Before reading, one researcher (also a teacher) showed the children the book's cover and asked questions about the title, author, and illustration. Yobo's response

Examples of Real Life Markets Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Examples of Real Life Markets - Research Paper Example This may be seen in real life in Apple’s products; the company has its own selling propaganda – when it produced the iPad it was the only firm in the market to produce such a smooth tablet for the purpose of work as well as entertainment. Other companies later came out with similar products however it holds monopoly in the market even today for its high end and sophisticated products. A monopoly however will not always produce at a profit maximizing level because if it prices its products too high then it might not have any consumers at all; thus it needs to check the level of competition among the consumers as well as the other potential producers in the market before pricing its products. Oligopoly on the other hand is a market that is dominated by a few suppliers (Oligopoly definition) for example in the case of cell phones, there are a few renowned companies like Nokia, Blackberry, iPhone, Samsung that dominate the market at a large level. They place their prices at somewhat the same as one another while bringing about innovation within their products to attract consumers. The demand thus is high however the supply is also at a constant with the demand because of the number of suppliers and options available to the

Environmental controversy-energy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Environmental controversy-energy - Essay Example With reduces oil consumption, the oil reserves will always be highly sufficient to cover the whole duration when a shortage of supply could be experienced, and thus eliminate the shocks that are associated with oil price hikes every time a shortage in supply is looming. Another argument in support of government intervention to increase fuel efficiency is the fact that, this intervention will go a long way in mitigating the impacts of global warming and air pollution (National Research Council, 2002). With reduced fuel consumption for each vehicle, the gasoline emissions which cause air pollution and the consequent degradation of the ozone layer; which poses a great danger of global warming, could be reduced (Faiz, Weaver, Walsh & Gautam, 1996). This is also in line with the current policy for environmental protection, since global warming is an emerging important concern for the world. Thus, for those opposed to the government intervention to enhance fuel efficiency for all vehicles, the best explanation to have them support the move, is welcoming them to the realization that improved fuel efficiency does not only help in the conservation of our environment, but also in avoiding the price shocks associated with oil supply fluctuations. National Research Council (U.S.)., National Research Council (U.S.)., & National Research Council (U.S.). (2002). Effectiveness and impact of corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards. Washington, D.C: National Academy

Monetary Policy, Fiscal Policy, Business Cycles, and Economic Growth Assignment

Monetary Policy, Fiscal Policy, Business Cycles, and Economic Growth - Assignment Example Owners of multinational companies in Malawi will receive reduced dividends. Some multinational corporations’ employees in Malawi will either be laid-off or receive lower salaries (Hansen, 2013). 6.b). If the president of Malawi imposes a mandatory minimum wage of $5.00 per hour, workers in multinational companies will receive better pay. Consequently, the level of poverty will reduce in the country. Multinational corporations will incur more cost especially salary expenses. Due to higher costs profits for the companies will reduce thus shareholders will receive lower dividends. Multinational corporations might lessen the number of employees to reduce the salaries expenses they incur (Hansen, 2013). 7. Western states like the United States and United Kingdom resort to deficit spending by borrowing money to stimulate economic growth or recovery in times of economic recessions. The main disadvantage with deficit spending is that it leads to interest rates. High-interest rates reduce the ability to borrow. High-interest rates discourage entrepreneurs to invest. Consequently, low investment rates mean that the production capacity of a country is reduced the general output of the country decreases hence. Reduction in the output of a country reduces the rate of economic growth in a country. Deficit spending means that the government spends more than the private sector. States tend to utilize resources inefficiently. So these actions might lead to wasted resources. Deficit spending and increased borrowing increases an economy’s inflation rate. Increasing inflation rate reduces the value of a currency and adversely affects its competitiveness with other currencies. Inflation wi ll also lessen the amount of savings (Hansen, 2013). 8. Listening to Laurence Kotlikoff of Boston University, I was interested in the argument he brought forward regarding the government’s concealment of its debt obligations. Kotlikoff pointed out that United

An Outstanding Multicultural Manager Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 6

An Outstanding Multicultural Manager - Assignment Example No one should be discriminated against in any way. Being committed to educational equity, I have to ensure that everyone has access to it. I will fight for all equities, be it racial, gender or sexual orientation. I will reevaluate value system or worldview to ensure that I don’t justify my inattention to any given group of underrepresented or disenfranchised students because of such worldview or value system (Ramsey, 16). Secondly, I can give lessons to my students regarding the critical multicultural issues like poverty, sexism, racism, and heterosexism. To ensure that cultural diversity is well addressed and practiced fully, I will start imparting knowledge on such issues to younger students because children from disenfranchised communities begin experiencing the problems at the youngest ages. Thirdly, I can provide an integrated multicultural curriculum all the year, every day and not just during special celebrations or months. This will ensure that the students are continuously learning how to deal with cultural diversity. Fourthly, I can practice correct pronunciation of each student’s full name so that every student can feel included. Students do not have to change or shorten their names to make it easy to be pronounced by anybody. This will contribute to making students feel cared for and not discriminated against. Fifthly, I can make sure that students that come from disenfranchised communities are fairly treated and not placed unjustly into lower academic tracks (Ramsey, 125). Moreover, I can tirelessly fight to get them into talented and gifted programs. In order to also benefit high achievers, I can fight tracking altogether. Sixthly, I can direct my effort towards building coalitions with other teachers who are from the different race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, class, home language, and so on.

Evaluating an international human resource strategy Essay

Evaluating an international human resource strategy - Essay Example The balanced score card of Tesco indicates areas like customer perspective, motivation and community service which needs to be stressed even more to enhance customer shopping experience. Tesco should look at improving customer experience through proper innovation, reducing carbon emission and improved training and development. Each of the above factors presents an opportunity for Tesco at improving their customer service. The strategy map of Tesco indicates areas where it can improve the communication lines between the factors for effective implementation of strategy. For Tesco to continue to be the leader in UK retail and grocery segment, it needs to invest in the above areas and proper up gradation of all their objectives with change in time. Tesco plc is a general merchandise and multinational grocery retailer based in England, United Kingdom. Presently it is the second largest retailer in the world in terms of profits after Walmart and third largest in the world with respect to revenues after Walmart and Carrefour. The core purpose of Tesco is that they make what matters better together. Tesco has a team of over 5, 30,000 people in 12 markets which are dedicated in bringing the best choice, value and service to their millions of customer each week. Despite being in a highly competitive market they have established strategies which reflect their priorities as the business grows and the needs of the customers change. Tesco uses their balanced scorecard, the Steering Wheel, to manage and measure their business performance. This report will discuss about the balanced scorecard and Strategy map of Tesco. Tesco has clearly defined Vision which helps them to guide their business direction. Their business guides their direction and the decisions they take as an organisation. The company is centred on colleagues and customers

Planning and Implementation of Mega-urban Projects Essay

Planning and Implementation of Mega-urban Projects - Essay Example Another aspect of these mega urban projects is the fact that the built environment needs to be based on the social systems and structures in such a way that the economy, culture, and social factors become evident through the arrangement of the landscape. This is what Soja describes as the â€Å"socio-spatial dialectics† These four major factors come together to define the capitalist and socio-spatial elements of a given mega urban project. This is because these indicators provide the basis for evaluating urban development project. This paper examines three urban mega projects in the United Kingdom, Germany, and South Korea. The paper examines the key elements of these three project in relation to the concepts and ideas of urban megaprojects. In arriving at this end, the paper will compare differences and similarities between the base projects. In this process, the paper will examine the trends in urban megaprojects. Liverpool ONE is a major urban development project that was conducted to boost the competitiveness of one of the UK's cities. It involved a total of about  £1 billion in expenditure and it sought to redevelop 42 acres of Liverpool into a retail-oriented zone (Grosvenor, 2007). The project was completed in 2008 and it made that zone of Liverpool one of the top five retail centers in the UK. The Potsdamer Platz in Germany is one of the key areas of Berlin and lies just a kilometer away from the famous Brandenburg Gate and has the German Parliament [Reichstag] just over twenty kilometers away (Weitz, 2007). This makes the region a very sensitive cultural and public section of Germany. The area came under intense Allied bombardment during World War II and it became a buffer zone during the Soviet Occupation (Weitz, 2007). However, after German reunification in the late 1980s, the Potsdamer Platz has gone through a lot of change processes.  

Economics for Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Economics for Business - Essay Example This would entail more concern for the poor and redressing those imbalances set off by the market capitalism. The point in the article is about how the rise of the â€Å"social democrats† would lead to a new order in the world. This article would be of interest to anyone concerned about the rise of the sort of market capitalism or the â€Å"neo-liberal† order that prevailed over the last thirty years or so. Given the way in which leading banks around the world collapsed or had to be bailed out for fear of imploding, the article certainly is timely and relevant to our times. Thus, the thesis of the article is about moving away from the old order and building new regulatory mechanisms in place. As Mr. Rudd puts it, â€Å"unfettered capitalism† is not only dangerous but malignant as well. I have chosen this article to review as it fits it with my thinking about the evolution of market economies and the way in which the future forms of capitalism would evolve from the debris of the current economic crisis. And given that Mr. Rudd was elected on a platform of â€Å"social change†, I am interested in pursuing this line of thinking. Many commentators have called the excesses of Wall Street as â€Å"Casino Capitalism† where the players tend to look at investments as a sort of game that yield higher and higher rate of returns without a thought for the risks involved in such an enterprise. The term has stuck as several of the â€Å"Ponzi† schemes have shown how unscrupulous brokers and bankers around the world resorted to an economy of debt and reckless lending practices combined with high risk taking behavior. Though classical economics places a reliance on debt and risk taking to get the profits coming, there are certain norms that are prescribed along with tenets of economic theory. What has happened over the last decade or so is that these tenets of economic theory have been ignored. One of this states that the value of an asset

Reverend jeffrey brown cops kids and ministers Essay

Reverend jeffrey brown cops kids and ministers - Essay Example Young people were dying in large numbers, and several very extreme instances had occurred recently which shocked and stunned the local community. Everyone realized that something had to change because the situation was untenable for residents, police and religious communities. Another factor in the context in Boston that was relevant was the fact that much of the violence was located in gangs, who dominated pockets of territory and had little understanding of each other. The big breakthrough that Brown and his team brought to the situation was to tackle all of areas separately, with each minister taking responsibility for one area and yet to achieve unity of purposes through the fact that all ministers were working together on an agreed, ten point plan. The leadership emergence of Brown, Rivers and Hammond can be seen as three different approaches that have potential for success in their own right, but become truly effective when they are put together and allowed to support each other. Jeffrey Brown’s main contribution was to shift the focus for interventions from police policies to the young people on the streets themselves. By walking the streets he was able to build trust in his own area, and he had the initiative to go and seek out other local ministers who were prepared to take the same view, and get out of their comfortable homes to meet with people on the streets. He provided facilities, and the kids came in large

Thank you for Smoking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Thank you for Smoking - Essay Example The film depicts Mr Nick Naylor’s dilemma in lobbying on behalf of cigarettes as Big Tobacco’s chief spokesperson using cunning tactics and trying to be a positive model for his son aged 12 years at the same time. This film tracks the ups and downs of the Washington lobbyist who is constantly on the hunt for new and inventive ways of rebranding the ‘cancer sticks’ for public consumption and it is set in the period soon after Big Tobacco had started cutting checks for its sick and dying former customers. The film has a well-scripted story line that is easy to follow because events unfold with a lot of easiness and actions of characters are equally justifiable through logical sequences of counteractive action-reaction sequence. The characters narrate the story amid pitches of grim humour that is well enmeshed in the dialogues and the superb delivery of key lines that creates memorable moments in the film. The film also makes a good display in terms of casting of the lead role because Aaron Eckhart is able to deliver by showing both extremes of his usual character types, to turn his ingratiating smile into a leer, and to charm even as he repels. Mr Reitman keeps the character moving so fast that there is very little time for contemplation and just as you are about to start putting a finger on the character and his tar-black heart, he is already flown out of the door.

Discuss the characteristics of notoriety Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discuss the characteristics of notoriety - Essay Example stic husbands and wives make themselves famous in their circle (family, friends and relatives) with their acts of notoriety towards spouse and other family members. As mentioned before one of the forms of the notoriety is about being famous. One type of being famous is being known to society for one’s badness. Generally the anti social elements like murderers, killers generally prefer to be unknown for the fear of capital punishment. But the notorious persons in that category tend to be famous, though working from underground. They want to make the people know about the nature and the things they do. They convey the message of their cruelty with the barbarity in the incident they are involved. We read in News Papers about serial killers who kill only women after raping them. We know about the persons who kill persons just for the sake of satisfaction of their cruel thoughts. In these serial incidents one can observe that the killers follow a system which establishes their cruelty and notoriety. Another form of notoriety is regarding the terrorists and extremists. They pretend that they are fighting for a cause, which is for the benefit of people. In that mask they do barbaric activities filled with cruelty and notoriety. They torch the busses and trains with people. They blast the public property causing harm to common people. With these incidents they want to establish themselves for the cause they pretend to fight for. But there are number of peaceful ways without showing notoriety to fight for a benevolent cause. But they do not tend to choose them. This tells us about the notorious mentality imbibed by (in) them. Terrorists are notorious when compared to common man who tends to live peacefully. But one can see notorious terrorists also now a days. For eg: when we consider the 9/11 destruction of WTC towers in US, it can be termed as notorious out of notorious as it involved not only suicide but also homicide. These types of notorious activities are the

Advanced manufacturing techniques and the advent of nanotechnology Assignment

Advanced manufacturing techniques and the advent of nanotechnology - Assignment Example Nanostructural elements are explained, with possible applications not only in the production process of physical goods, but at other phases of manufacturing, including assistance with environmental requirements due to efficiency. Nanotech has the potential for faster, cleaner industry with more effective options for waste removal and prevention of toxic emissions. Three tasks are discussed, with implications of nanostructures as they benefit circuit manufacture, factory waste-emissions, and miniaturization for ionic conductance components. The benefits as well as disadvantages are explained, with recommendations for further implementation and research. INTRODUCTION The principles of advanced manufacturing, as it pertains to manufacturing flexibility are widely recognized as critical. Retaining and maintaining flexibility in manufacturing and operational procedures boosts the organization's capability to respond effectively to ongoing customer issues and requirements, the goal being t o respond without the sacrifice of excessive time and money. A comprehension of the interaction between advanced manufacturing technology and flexibility in the manufacturing process are vital areas of investigation for any productive operation. Advanced manufacturing technology, hereafter referred to as AMT, is essential not simply in the production of more advanced consumer goods, but a more refined technical capability can also permit organizational agility, flexibility during functional operations. Modern research has produced statistical results that indicate a correlation between an organization's sourcing practices and manufacturing flexibility, essential for adaptation to both a changing marketplace, and shifting product demand at any given time. (Oberoi, et al. 2008) AMT allows control over sourcing practices. This methodology permits the achievement of desirable benchmarks in manufacturing flexibility, towards the objective of high agility organizational competitiveness. A n excellent modern example would be the growing prevalence of Nanomanufacturing. Nanotechnology and the manufacturing it entails constitute a series of chemical and mechanical techniques that allow the assembly of particles far smaller than any which could be assembled by purely hand-based tools. This paper will demonstrate a wide range of advantages afforded with nanotech and nanoscale manufacturing technology, and how this pertains to the goal of advanced manufacturing technology. Nanotechnology has the potential to act as a new methodology for reducing the energy costs and waste-production of manufacturing processes to benefit a variety of production interests. Potential uses include chemical, refining, automotive, and other heavy industries. There are projections which indicate nanotechnology yields the potential to save up to 1.1 quadrillion British thermal units (Btu) and prevent over 60 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year. (U.S. Department

A Position Paper for the Enhancement of the Strategic Ability of Air Essay

A Position Paper for the Enhancement of the Strategic Ability of Air Asia - Essay Example Following sections presents the strategies and the enhancement proposed accordingly. 1. Air Asia to control its costs and source of funding for purchase of new fleet of aircrafts. Increase of fleets’ strategy. Air Asia wants to continue to be the lowest cost short-haul airline in every market it goes in. In considering this vision, the action required is significant investment in aircrafts, distribution channels, production capacity and working capital. In this situation, there is a need to determine first if Air Asia has the capability to raise funds and its financial worth. Financial resources. Financial worth of Air Asia as of 2009 shows current net assets of RM 511,284 million which is an improvement from its RM 263,085 million current net assets in 2008. It has the ability to raise funds from creditors and shareholder, its debt/equity ratio is 2.61 and a net profit margin of 16.2%. A debt equity ratio is a measure of the company’s financial leverage and indicates w hat proportion of debt and equity the company is using to finance its assets. A high debt ratio means that the company is using a lot of debt in financing its assets as in the case of Air Asia. However, in further analysis, capital intensive industry generally has a high debt ratio of 2 (Investopedia, n.d.) Air Asia has a net cash flow of RM598million, equivalent to $181.2 million (Air Asia.com). Air Asia reports of 21.1% profit after tax margin in Malaysia, 1.8% profit after tax margin in Thailand and 17% profit after tax margin in Indonesia (Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, 2010). Chart 1 shows the EBITDAR margin and profit after tax margin in 2Q2010 for year 2010l. It will be noted that after deducting... The study analyzed the strategies used in each strategy of Air Asia, had seen its strength as well as weakness in achieving targets. On this, proposals for enhancement have been recommended. On the first position that requires funding for purchase of additional new aircrafts for new routes and replacement of old ones, recommendation is to get funding from long term debt because of tax advantages. Getting funds from outside sources will save the cash flows for internal operations of the company. Second position pertains to inventory management that will require management to maintain an RFID technology along with a perpetual inventory system that will track inventory and supplies of the airline company in its various segments. The third position calls for a study on the cost saving realized by the on line system of booking to properly explain to stakeholders the benefit of the strategy and to outline further enhancements. The fourth proposition is a recommendation for promotions and a dvertising to attract more customers in order to maximize use of airline capacity. The fifth position is the continuous training and skills development of employees as airline business is dependent on skills of employees particularly in aircraft flying and maintenance. This paper makes a conclusion that a position is presented that needs government approval for a patent to protect brand image of Air Asia as the lowest cost airline carrier in the region.

Angles and Demons by Dan Brown Essay Example for Free

Angles and Demons by Dan Brown Essay Angles and Demons by Dan Brown was a reading choice out of curiosity rather than real interest because of the Da Vinci Code by the same author. I wanted to see what other works of fiction Dan Brown came up with before his controversial book. This book had me raising my eyebrows more than a few times with story line but that did not stop me from turning the pages until I got to the end. Angels and Demons basically follows the same formula as the Da Vinci Code. It begins with a murder which only Robert Langdon seems capable of solving with his knowledge of religious iconology and history; a strong female character, Vittoria Vetra, daughter to the murder victim Leonardo Vetra, assists Langdon in his â€Å"quest†; a hired assassin who is delusional, a fanatic and has unquestionable loyalty to his belief carries out an unforeseen but well-crafted plan; an ancient secret society, the Illuminati, is out to get revenge on the Church; finally, an unexpected mastermind who calls himself as Janus, works behind the curtains. An anti-matter canister was stolen from CERN when Leonardo Vetra was murdered and this is assumed to have a life span of 24 hours before the batteries die and it explodes. Brown remains true to using archaic bits of knowledge to leave a trail for Robert Langdon and Vittoria Vetra to follow from Switzerland to the Vatican City in order to find the missing anti-matter canister and find the murderer of Leonardo Vetra. The plot thickens when the anti-matter canister bomb threatens the Vatican and the conclave in the process of choosing the new Pope. The book ends dramatically with a seemingly miraculous event followed by the declaration of a new Pope. Though I enjoyed the chase more from Angels and Demons rather than the Da Vinci Code, I must say that, as a priest, Brown seems have some issues with the Church to come up with troubling concepts for his books. First you have Leonardo Vetra, a priest who turns away from the Church. He becomes a leading physicist of CERN and, together with his adopted daughter, tries to find God through science and research. They seem to be successful with the development of the anti-matter, which was stolen when Vetra was murdered. You also have a Pope who sired a child with a nun, though through artificial means. The child later becomes his camerlengo, the Pope’s Chamberlain. The camerlengo, Carlo Ventresca, unaware of his paternal parentage, murders the Pope upon knowing his dark secret with the belief that he is both cleansing and protecting the Church. Though the book is admittedly a work of fiction, it borders on tarnishing how Catholics and non-Catholics may view the Church and its priests. Brown puts into question the honesty and loyalty of priests to the Mother Church and their commitment to the vow of celibacy, as seen with the Pope. It is appalling to think that Jesus’ surrogates on Earth would be the first ones to violate their vows. Brown also pits religion versus science. Leonardo Ventra is murdered for his research on anti-matter which can supposedly prove the beginning of life, that science can prove God’s existence. I’d like to think that religion is a matter of faith and science is a matter of fact, the two just can’t mix when it comes to explaining God. Then you have the camerlengo who is himself delusional and a fanatic in his belief that the Church, and not science, is the saving power of the world with himself at the wheel of salvation. He goes to great lengths to get the world’s attention, discredit Science and put the Church on a pedestal for the world to see. Angels and Demons made me uncomfortable with the image of the Church that it created – a divided, secretive, vindictive and vulnerable body. Readers, both Catholics and non-Catholics should be discriminating of the events in this book, lest they forget that this is only a work of fiction.

Malaysia Airlines Essay Example for Free

Malaysia Airlines Essay Malaysia airlines:   what they did in real life and outcome performance after their adjustment and solution? Malaysia Airlines reduces fuel costs Malaysia Airlines reduces fuel costs on 40 aircrafts, including their A380 fleet, with SITA’s FMS Wind Uplink service. Flight Management System (FMS) calculations are constantly updated by the new service, therefore the airline can adjust flight plans easily owing to adjusting wind and weather conditions. The system also let the aircraft using fuel more cost effectively. From trials results, Wind Uplink saved of up to 600 kilograms of fuel within one flight. Captain Izham Ismail, Director of Operations for Malaysia Airlines, said: â€Å"This new service from SITA delivers savings straight away. We have already trialed SITA Wind Uplink with great success in reducing our fuel costs. It has also helped improve our final fuel on board predictions and made our estimated time of arrival predictions more accurate. We are experiencing real business benefits following introduction of this service at Malaysia Airlines.† Katrina Korzenowski, Director, Aircraft Services, Asia Pacific, SITA, said: â€Å"Wind Uplink enables airlines to take advantage of beneficial changes in weather so crews can bring flights in on time and on budget, reducing fuel costs whenever possible. Due to high fuel prices, we anticipate increased demand for Wind Uplink in the future and are already in discussions with many other potential customers. In addition, because Wind Uplink is packaged as a single service, it can be up and running in just a few hours for SITA Flight Briefing Service and AIRCOM Datalink customers—without any capital expenses.† Resources http://www.sita.aero/content/malaysia-airlines-reduce-fuel-costs-with-sita-s-wind-and-weather-service Etihad presents solution to MAS Etihad developed a track record of partnership and investing with MAS. The reason is MAS would provide Etihad a stronger offline network in Southeast Asia. Etihad put its code on Garuda-operated flights in five offline Indonesian destinations from Jakarta to Singapore. MAS can also provide Etihad connection to Indonesia. Indonesia is the second largest international market for MAS. During the limited code share, Kuala Lumpur-Bali is also one of seven MAS-operated routes covered. http://centreforaviation.com/analysis/malaysia-airlines-considers-tie-up-with-etihad-as-restructuring-process-slowly-begins-172934

Market Segmentation Toyota Consumer Buying Decision Process Hilux Marketing Essay

Market Segmentation Toyota Consumer Buying Decision Process Hilux Marketing Essay Market Segmentation of Toyota and Consumer Buying Decision Process for Hilux Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) is a widely recognised car manufacturer in Malaysia and around the world. Currently, Toyota is the top carmaker in the world, beating their closest rivals, General Motors in both production numbers and sales. Even though the major markets of Toyota are in the United States and Japan, they exert no less influence in the Malaysian market, holding a large portion of market share. Let us now take a look at how Toyota segments their target market in Malaysia. The purpose of market segmentation is to divide the general market needs into smaller defined groups. Toyota has come up with a variety of models to tend to the needs of Malaysians. The models released in Malaysia are Camry, Vios, Hilux, Avanza, Innova and Fortuner just to name a few. These different models aim to capture different levels of income of consumers. One of the segments that Toyota aims to attract is the middle to high income earning group. Toyota provides its customers with a broad range of prices for both middle income and high income earners. Middle income customers are able to afford the lower range Avanza and Vios which are within the RM70,000 range while high income earners can go for the more luxurious Camry and Fortuner of which can cost within the range of RM140,000 to RM170,000. Aside from income, Toyota also targets consumers who live a luxurious lifestyle. Lexus is a luxury car division under Toyota. Lexus sets itself apart from its competitors by offering high quality luxury cars at lower prices. Lexus models that can be found in Malaysia include the LS 460, IS 250, GS 300 and RX350. Instead of the classic Mercedes Benz and BMW, drivers can now feel as luxurious and classy driving a Lexus car which cost less. A more affordable Lexus car also allows lesser earning drivers who always dreamed of driving a luxury car to realise their dream, bringing in more customers. Another segment that Toyota targets is geographic needs. Malaysia is a tropical country with lush rainforests and there is a need for reliable four wheel drives to traverse them. Therefore, Toyota has designed several 4X4 vehicles meant for off road travels. The vehicles currently sold in Malaysia are the Fortuner, Hilux and Rush. These four wheel drives work well on tough terrain and has been proven to be durable under the worst of conditions, thus satisfying the needs of consumers as well as capturing market share. Next, we will be evaluating the buying decision process of consumers for a renowned Toyota product, the Hilux. Buying decision process is a series of steps that a buyer would experience as he/she buys a product. This process mainly comprises of awareness of unsatisfied need, a search for information, comparing alternatives, buying the selected product and finally evaluating the product after purchase. A driver who frequently drives off road on rough terrain knows that it is difficult to find a reliable 4X4 that would carry them through the steepest of slopes and dense pools of mud. Jungle four wheel drive expeditions also frequently find themselves in need of a powerful machine to pull other four wheel drives out of a sticky situation. This brings about awareness to find the solution to these problems and births an unsatisfied need. The next step for the drivers is to look for the answer to their need. Information is vital to the decision buying process as it gives buyers insight on the product and influences their decision to purchase it. Nowadays, buyers can find information easily through the internet and on brochures which are freely available. These sources also provide very detailed specifications to the product that they are looking for. Alternatively, buyers can also visit Toyota showrooms to have a firsthand look and experience of the product, together with precise details from a salesperson. In the same way, buyers would search and compare the various alternatives available to them. For the Hilux, there are a number of similar four wheel drives that buyers would consider. Among them are Mitsubishi Triton, Nissan Navara and Isuzu D-Max. All these alternatives share similar design and function but all have their own unique specifications in which will critically affect the buyerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s decision. After considering all the alternatives available to the buyer, he/she will finally buy the selected product, the Toyota Hilux. The purchasing process begins with the buyer going to a Toyota showroom to discuss terms with the salesperson. The buyer then settles the down payment and decides on the mode of payment. The brand new Hilux will then be delivered to the buyer. Finally, the buyer receives the car and fulfils his/her need. The buyer then starts to drive the Hilux and evaluates its performance. From there, he/she will measure the satisfaction of driving the four wheel drive and whether it has achieved the need that it was purchased for. If the buyer is satisfied with the product, the cycle starts again or he/she will introduce it to his/her friends. In conclusion, Toyota has identified their target market in more detail through market segmentation. This has helped them market their products more efficiently and made them the top car maker in the world. The buying decision process has also helped to understand consumers and their behaviour better in order to stay ahead of competitors.

How Are Women Portrayed As Victims English Literature Essay

How Are Women Portrayed As Victims English Literature Essay The portrayal of women as victims is one of the key themes presented throughout Othello, Jane Eyre and The Colour Purple. The writers employ narrative and plot as vehicles to challenge the social attitudes of the period in which they are set. The women in the texts are subjected to three forms of suffering: physical, verbal and psychological; in which the audience/reader discover how women were treated and have the opportunity to reflect on how the drive for social change was born. Shakespeares play Othello presents women through the eyes of the fellow male characters, however there is some self-representation by the female characters; although much less frequently. The Colour Purple by Alice Walker is an acclaimed epistolary novel, showing the life and journey of Celie, a poor black woman who has known nothing of love in her life. Walker uses her as a vehicle to challenge the American society and to depict the brutality of the cruelty which black women endured daily. Finally, Jane E yre by Charlotte Bronte depicts the story of a young woman on a journey of love and self-realisation; in a characteristically bildungsroman genre, but with elements of gothic genre also. The eponymous heroine in Jane Eyre is shown as a woman suffering throughout her life in this society, as an educated, astute, yet poor young woman who is neglected and unacquainted with love. Jane is in a struggle to shake off the social conformities thrust upon her, meanwhile having to cope with psychological and physical abuse from her superiors in social status. The most prominent form of abuse present in Othello, towards the female characters, is psychological abuse; the fundamental ideas, attitudes and values the men have and how they behave around the female characters. Othello is a Jacobean revenge tragedy written in approximately 1603. Despite Elizabeth I reigning over England up to this point, women in Britain still remained dormant in society, having virtually no rights or status; the only status they could gain would be through marriage. This is where we are able to see the cause of why women were treated as property in this time, due to the importance of money; where fathers can secure fortune by marrying their daughters to wealthy aristocrats. In Othello the three women, Desdemona, Emilia and Bianca are subjected to equal amounts of abuse, although Bianca is the only one to survive in the play. Desdemona is not introduced to the audience by name until she is present on stage, which is the first indication of the subservient female status. She is only referred to as a piece of property by the other male characters, Look to your house, your daughter and your baggage, showing how Iago is referring to her as a piece of baggage, amidst his household and other property. This reference highlights not only her apparent unimportance, but also her inferior position as a female as, much like the audience, she seems unable to intervene and must watch her husband break down through paranoia. Secondly, the fact that Brabantio is not offended by this remark displays how he expects Desdemona to defer to his wishes and how this attitude was routine in this period. While Desdemona is a victim due to her sex, there are other factors also bey ond her control which cause her further suffering. There are apparent similarities to the way marginalised characters are presented, whether it is due to sex, race or belief. So, while we see the contrast in living environment between male and female characters in a white patriarchal society, we can also observe the subtle similarities, particularly between black men such as Othello and women such as Desdemona, and how black men are subjected to ridicule by white men and how this accumulation affects women. Iagos murder of Emilia and deceit of Othello could also stem from the general hatred of women that he displays; Jeremy Abrams suggested that Iagos motive for betraying Othello is an underlying homosexual love for him, and the jealousy of Desdemona that comes alongside this. Many critics has dismissed this suggestion, but there is evidence in the play which testifies to this theory, such as the two-part exchange between himself and Othello in Act 3 Scene 3 Iago doth give up the ex ecution of his wit, hands, heart, to wronged Othellos service. This is similar to an exchange of vows at a wedding as they are both kneelt, creating an image of matrimony. Despite this, Iago is a talented villain for he is able to debase the strong, wilful Othello, manipulate his devoted wife into becoming part of the scheme and dooming Desdemona, all through the cunning use of one of the core concepts of any relationship: trust. This clever, yet lethal use of trust leads Othello into paranoia and to the eventual murder of his innocent wife Desdemona. In the Victorian setting of Jane Eyre two hundred years later, women seem to have attained some benefits or choices in their lives; although once more money is paramount in giving them the opportunity to do this. Women like Jane were gentlewomen who were semi-poor, and had to work. The only worthwhile role was as a governess, and it did not carry much respect. Brontes exploration of the social position of governesses in Victorian England shows how class divide between females can lead to further neglect. There is evidence of this from the disparaging remarks from Blanche, You should hear mama on the chapter of governesses: Mary and I have had, I should think, a dozen at least in our day; half of them detestable and the rest ridiculous, and all incubi. Jane is in a rather complex situation, as her education has been impressive and she has experienced childhood in a wealthy lifestyle, she possesses a sense of self-worth and dignity, trust in God, sound morals and a passionate dispositi on. But throughout the course of the novel, her integrity is tested time and time again as a young woman, and Jane must learn to balance the frequently conflicting aspects of herself and the restraints of being a governess, in order to find contentment in love and liberty. There are instances which highlight this divide and relate to Desdemonas situation, such as the time Jane spent at Lowood as a young girl, where the reader examines how Mrs. Scatcherd forces her to stand on the stool for the rest of the lesson due to hearing misleading news of Janes childhood, followed by Brocklehursts unfair tormenting of Jane under this false information; This girl, this child, the native of a Christian land, worse than many a little heathen who says its prayers to Brahma and kneels before Juggernaut this girl is a liar. Despite Desdemona and Jane being subjected to the same kind of abuse, the difference between the two is that Desdemona is subjected to this by a male, whereas Jane is subjecte d to this by another female; highlighting this extra element to female suffering from other females. Jane is in a continual struggle to overcome oppression and achieve equality. She must also fight against male domination, alongside class hierarchy, as her quest for self-integrity poses as a threat to men in the patriarchal society. There are three key males in the novel, Mr. Brocklehurst, Edward Rochester, and St. John Rivers, who threaten her goal of equality. Each stops Jane expressing her own thoughts and feelings by keeping her in an obedient state. Her unwillingness to comprise her integrity fuels her refusal of Rochesters proposal as Jane believes that she should not make herself a mistress to Rochester while he, legally, remains married to Bertha; not even to gratify her emotional needs. Paradoxically, her time spent at Moor House leads her to experience economic self-sufficiency and meaningful, educative work to prove that she can truly become her own woman; yet in this env ironment she lacks emotional sustenance. In regards to St. John proposal marriage, Jane declines knows the marriage would be based on the convenience rather than any emotion, and can therefore decline the offer, rather than deny her emotional needs for a husband. Jane later clarifies her choice when she says, I am my husbands life as fully as he is mine. . . . To be together is for us to be at once as free as in solitude, as gay as in company. . . . We are precisely suited in character-perfect concord is the result. The Colour Purple also portrays the constant psychological distresses of 20th century black women, and the constant fear of abusive husbands. Although we see the liberty of white women growing over the years between the writing of Othello and of Jane Eyre, for black women this oppression remains continuous. When black people were brought over to the western world as slaves, they lacked literacy and so were deemed inferior, leading to their constant persecution. Despite white and black women being in separate social background, the brutalisation and emasculation of black men in society meant their treatment of women was no better than the way white men treated women. Celie, the central character in The Colour Purple serves to show how, similarly to Desdemona, Bianca and Emilia, black women were victims of extreme forms of abuse, primarily due to the victimisation which black men were forced to endure through the slave trade in the white dominated society of the 20th Century. From an e arly age, Celie ensures her survival by making herself practically invisible; the only means of self expression or fortitude which she possesses are in her letters to God. The cause of this lies with her stepfather, Alphonso, who physically, verbally and sexually abuses her from a young age, but she represses any retaliation; contrasting greatly to view of Jane (even from a young age) but comparable to Desdemonas inert attempts to defend herself at the climax of the play. Later in life she reacts in a similarly lifeless manner when subjected to the abuse of her husband Mr._____. However, we see a change in the psyche of Celie when she meets the unconventional female character, Shug Avery. Celie has had every female relation or role model taken away from her, such as her mother or her sister Nettie, so when Shug appears as a new part of her life, Celie attaches herself to Shug and relishes the chance to find a female companion. Shug offers Celie an insight into an unknown world of su ccess, opportunity and hope, and reawakens the lost youth and vitality which Celie has spent so long restraining. This new relationship draws parallels to the unity between Jane and Helen Burns at Lowood. Helen gives Jane insights into Christian thinking and how our actions determine our place in heaven, which is similar to the way Shug opens up a world of success for Celie and an opportunity to escape her life of torment; something which she never thought possible. The second form of abuse to be addressed is verbal abuse. The letters from her sister Nettie, which Celie discovers in Mr. ______s trunk, reimburse a sense of hope and resilience for Celie, as she learns of the lives of her children which have been a mystery to her for many years. Gradually, we see Celie able to formulate and communicate her thoughts and feelings which leads to her violent outburst at Mr. ______, in which the years of abasement and maltreatment which he has put her through, is finally lifted from her shoulders. Celie takes the act of sewing, which is traditionally thought of as a mere chore for women who are confined to a domestic role, and turns it into an outlet for creative self-expression and a profitable business. So, now the reader sees her finding solace and happiness in traditional conventions which woman have been saddled with for centuries, and after remaining docile for years, she, like Jane, is finally contented and self-fulfilled And when her family are reunited with her, she has truly everything she has ever dreamed of and needed, evident as she says, Dont think us feel old at all. . . . Matter of fact, I think this the youngest us ever felt. It is interesting to see how, although she is subjected to arguably harsher levels of abuse, Celie represses these feelings and shows no signs of resistance, whereas Jane struggles continually to overcome oppression. Furthermore, Desdemona surfaces as a much more submissive character, which conforms to archetypal views about marriage and the role of women, and breaks the theme of militancy and fighting oppression amongst the three texts. These three female characters represent the authors attitudes to the oppressive nature of which women were subject to, and would have acted as a symbol of hope for all women who feel pressured in a male-controlled society. They would inspire confidence and show that perseverance through the repression thrust upon them will lead to success; although in Desdemona and Emilias cases there is an exception. Perhaps, through the deaths of Desdemona and Emilia, Shakespeare aimed to draw attention to female suffering and, although their lives will have been i n the balance earlier on in history, perhaps this was one of many stepping stones towards female equality.

The righteousness of God

The righteousness of God The righteousness of God emphasizes the perfection of His divine character while exposing the fallen nature of man. Romans 3:10 says There is no one righteous, not even one. Verse 11 goes on to say that there is no one who understands, and no one who seeks God. Mankind is fallen, and doomed to eternal damnation if not for the righteousness of God. The thesis of this study will demonstrate that Pauls epistle to the Romans more than any other book of the Bibleprovides profound insight into the free gift, and meaning of the righteousness of God. Gods righteousness is attained by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ. Righteousness is a relationship word, and at the foundation of its meaning is the idea of being right with the other person; doing what is called for to preserve and continue the relationship. God has placed us in right relationship to Him through Christ. Gods righteousness demands He condemn sin, and judge sinners (1:18-3:20). In lieu of that condemnation and judgment, He has provided forgiveness of sin for all who believe in Christ Jesus (justification; 3:21,5:21), and power for living a holy life in right relationship to Himself (sanctification; 6:1, 8:39). Righteousness is the position commanded by God, in which we put on the new self that is created to be like God (Eph. 4:24; 2 Cor. 3:9; 6:14). Its conformity to all He commands or appoints. Since God Himself is the standard, the righteousness of God is the righteousness which belongs to God (Matt. 6:33; James 1:20). Righteousness is Gods standard for which people are expected to attain. Righteousness is what man should do, and righteous are those who do it. What does righteousness mean? The righteousness of God is a righteousness of faith (Rom. 4:11). A brief study of the word righteousness and faith, in their Greek and Hebrew form, will be necessary in order to fully comprehend the righteousness of God. Word Study Righteousness: Greek: (dikaiosune); (1) Pauline thought of the divine action by which God puts a person right with himself, and which then becomes a dynamic power in the believers life making righteous, or a state of having been made righteous (Rom. 1:17). Hebrew: (1) righteousness, justice, rightness, i.e., the state of doing what is required according to a standard (Ps 31:2); (2) justice (Is. 5:23); 3. innocence, i.e., the state of not having any sin or its associated guilt. Faith: Greek: (pistis), (eos), (he): a state of certainty with regard to belief (Ac 17:31); the state of complete dependability (Ro 3:3); Christian faith, belief in the Gospel (Ro 1:8; Eph 2:8; Gal 1:23; Jude 3). Hebrew: (emuwnah); 49 occurrences; AV translates as faithfulness 18 times, truth 13 times, faithfully five times; faithfulness, trustworthiness, steadiness, entrusted, i.e., a state or condition of being dependable to a person or standard. The message of Romans essentially says, we are made righteous because God puts a person in right standing with Him through the faith of the believer in the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Righteousness of God expressed in the Old and New Testaments The idea of the righteousness of God is a fundamental biblical idea that encompasses both Testaments. In the Old Testament God says: Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other. I have sworn by Myself, the word has gone from My mouth in righteousness, and will not turn back (Isa. 45:22-23). I bring near My righteousness, its not far off: my salvation will not delay (Isa. 46:13; 51:5). In these passages the righteousness of God is conceived as going forth, as projected from the Divine essence, and realizing itself among men. In Is. 54:17 its expressly said, Their righteousness [which] is of Me; and in Is. 45:25 the process is described as one of justification (in the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified. In close attendance on the righteousness of God is His salvation; where the one is, the other immediately follows. Pauls message to the Romans shines a new light on the righteousness of God. His righteousness flows forth and embraces man, when its met by faith. In Romans 3:21, Paul claims that this righteousness of God is attested to in the Old Testament. Paul makes clear that only those who believe will experience Gods righteousness. He reiterates the importance of faith with a quotation from Habakkuk 2:4, The righteous will live by faith.? No other New Testament book exposits the righteousness of God as thoroughly, and precisely, as the book of Romans. From the opening introduction to Pauls final exhortation, Gods righteousness is the pervasive topic. The Righteousness of God by Faith Its unlikely that one can find a passage in Scripture that concisely summarizes the message of salvation more effectively than Romans 1:16-17. The word righteousness occurs ninety-two times in the New Testament, and thirty-six times in the book of Romans. Paul states the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith (v. 17). Its difficult to know exactly what Paul had in mind with this phrase. He may be saying its a faith from first to last, indicating that faith must govern our approach to God throughout our walk with him. We never outgrow our need for faith, and God never changes that requirement. My view is that Paul is describing the faith that Gods people had in Old Testament times (Old Covenant), and the faith that is in Christ Jesus in the New Testament times (New Covenant). Its a continuation of faith from old to new, and first to last; from faith to faith. Righteousness is doing that which is expected within the Covenant relationship. Under the Old Covenant God gave the Law, and thereby demonstrated that man is under obligation to meet with his approval. Under the New Covenant; God gave His Son Jesus, and promises to give his approval if man responds to Christ in faith. Christ is now the object of our faith. Apart From the Law, the Righteousness of God is Manifested In this section (Rom. 3:21-26), Paul shifts to a more positive approach to the gospel. This passage restates the thesis of Romans 1:17, after elaborating its antithesis in 1:18-3:20. If 3:21- 26 is contrasted with all of 1:18-3:20, then its possible to say, As the wrath of God dominated the old era (1:18), so the righteousness of God dominates the new. Now but without Law rightness of God has been demonstrated having testified by the Law, and the spokesmen (Rom. 3:21). This translation shows the challenge of bringing the full meaning of one language into another, but in this verse we see the changing of the guard, so to speak, in relation to Gods righteousness. The fulfillment of the Law is in Christ Jesus: its in Him, and through Him that we obtain righteousness. In other words, according to Paul, God gave the Law not only to regulate the conduct of his people, but more importantly, to reveal their sin until the fulfillment of the promises in Christ. Righteousness came to man by way of proper behavior under the Old Testament Law. The Law reveals the righteousness of God, because the Law is holy, righteous, and good (Rom. 7:12). Through the Gospel righteousness comes by believing in the person, and work, of Jesus Christ. The righteousness of God refers to the manner in which God brings people into a right relationship with Himself. He does this apart from the Law, because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified (v. 20). If it were possible to keep the Law perfectly, where is righteousness to be found? That encapsulates Pauls theology of Justification. Righteousness is attained through faith (3:22). The cost of Justification is free to us; for God, the price is His Son. Gods wrath was poured out on Jesus as a ransom in order to purchase us for Himself. Through the sacrifice of his Son, God has demonstrated, and satisfied His righteousness (3:25, 26). Its the righteousness which proceeds from God (gen. auctoris), which personally appeared in Christ, who is our Righteousness,? and which is communicated to the believer for Christs sake in the act of justification by faith. This new method of acquiring righteousness does not rely upon works; but on faith, and devotion to Jesus Christ. Its therefore no longer confined to any particular people, but is thrown open without distinction to all, on the sole condition of believing; Jew or Gentile. As stated previously, Justification is through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. However, its not enough to say, I believe, and go to church. Even demons have belief in God, yet they are not justified (James 2:19). A person must believe in the Person, and work of the Lord Jesus Christ; the source of justification. Justification is for all people. Its not what you have done or who you are, its what Jesus has done, and who He is. What mankind could not do for himself, God has done for him through Jesus Christ. All have sinned, and become unacceptable to a holy and righteous God (v. 23). Paul reminds us that the universal invitation to believe is the flip side of the universal need for salvation. There is no difference, he affirms at the end of verse 22, continuing in verse 23 with the well-known summary of 1:18-3:20: all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God. Everyone stands condemned: in need of Justification. There is none who seek God; all have turned aside.there is none who does good, not even one (Rom. 3:11-12). Abraham Believed and Righteousness was Credited to Him Romans chapter four is one of the key chapters relating to the righteousness of God. Continuing his discussion on justification by faith from chapter three, Paul presents Abraham in chapter four to establish his argument for the righteousness of God, to all who believe (Rom. 4:3-5). Paul refutes the assumption of 4:1 by arguing in 4:9-12 that Abraham is not simply the father of the Jews but of all who believe (4:11b). Abraham was not justified by his works but rather by faith (4:2-3). Abraham; the father of us all, and the heir of the world, was credited with righteousness because he believed God through the righteousness of faith (4:13). No other chapter demonstrates Gods righteousness through faith as succinctly as chapter four of Romans because it ties together the old and the new Covenants. Jew is not superior to the Gentile because of their father Abraham. The faith of Abraham is the same faith that allows all nations to accept the righteousness of God through Christ Jesus (4:16-18). When we believe in Christ an exchange occurs, Christ allows our faith to be the incentive for forgiveness, and the bestowal of His righteousness on us. There is absolutely nothing we can do to earn this new position in Christ; its a gift of grace. The remainder of chapter 4 is quickly explained. Pauls remark in 4:16 concerning the faith of Abraham cues the description of Abrahams faith in 4:17-22. Then Paul makes the present day application of the Abraham example in 4:23-25. The Free Gift of Righteousness Where Adam inaugurated a solidarity in sin and death, Christ is presented as the inaugurator of a new, and immeasurably more powerful solidarity in righteousness and life. There is nothing in man that would give cause for God to save him. No person seeks God on his own (Rom. 3:11). That is what makes Romans 5:8 so amazingly incomprehensible. God demonstrates His love for us while we were yet sinners, and died for us. Everyone deserves condemnation unto death. Through Gods perfect love, He chose to provide everyone with the opportunity of receiving His free gift of grace that leads to the righteousness of salvation (5:8-9). Our righteousness is a gift from God, turning condemnation into justification (5:15-17). The disobedience of the one man, Adam, caused many to be made sinners, and the enemies of God (5:8;10). In contrast to the disobedience of Adam, the obedience of the one man, Jesus, made the free gift of righteousness possible through His atoning work on the cross (v. 16). Since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul frequently uses the term righteousness in a paradoxical sense by showing how God offers righteousness to the unrighteous as a free gift by declaring them justified through Jesus Christ (Rom. 3:24). In Romans 5:9, the ungodly of v.6, sinners of v.8, and enemies of God in v. 10 are now declared righteous. They become the recipients of the abundant provision of the gift of grace, and righteousness, through Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:17). There is mercy in God, there is sufficiency in the satisfaction of Christ: the promise is free, and universal. Nothing is or ever can be goodness in man except for the spirit of Christ revealed in his soul. Christ in us is our only goodness, as Christ in us is our hope of glory. Christ in us is the pure free gift of God to us because the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 6:23). There are many things we will never fully understand this side of heaven. Gods love is one of those things. How can we comprehend the love He has for us? He laid down His life for His friends. (John 15:12-14). We are His friend if we love each other as He loves us. The origin of Gods justification is His grace; the historical basis of this gift is the redemption that came through Christ Jesus. Living Out the Righteousness of God The righteous requirements of the Law . . . fully met in us who do not walk according to the flesh, but of the spirit (Rom. 8:4). When Paul said that the righteous requirements of the Law are fully met in the believer, he was making an astonishing statement. Rightly understood, the Law does not just speak to what we do and say outside, it calls for us to be changed inside as well. Do not let sin reign in your body so that you obey its lusts (Rom. 6:12). Paul says we are to count ourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus (Rom. 6:11). The person once guilty, but now saved by grace, has been set right in relation to God. Christs work fulfils the need for sanctification. He made allowance for this in His atonement, and in the abundance of His grace. Its completed in Him, and must be accepted as the free and perfect gift through Christ alone. You are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from Godthat is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption (1 Cor. 1:30). Does sanctification mean we are dead to the sinful self? That life has been crucified with Christ already, on the cross. We need only hand it over to Him. He will do away with it, and lay it to rest forever in His grave. Is sanctification a new life of purity, righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit? Christ Himself must be our life, our peace, our purity, and our full and overflowing joy. We are to live as living sacrifices to Him, presenting our members to Him as instruments of righteousness (Rom. 6:13). The word Instruments (opla): properly signifies arms, or implements of war; but it also denotes an instrument of any kind which we use for defense or aid. Here, it means that we should not devote our members; hands, tongue, etc., as if under the direction of sinful passions, and corrupt desires, to accomplish purposes of iniquity. We should not make the members of our bodies the slaves of sin reigning within us. Christians must cultivate peace and harmony with each other. We are to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Eph. 4:3), and be of one mind; live in peace (2 Cor. 3:11). The cultivation of unity and peace are derived from love. Love will lead us to bear one anothers burden, and so fulfill the Law of Christ (Gal. 6:2). That Law is freedom through grace, and faith in Christ Jesus. The slaves of sin can have no part in this freedom from the Law since they are still subject to the penalties of the Law, which are the necessary results of sin. In Romans 6:16, Paul is saying the one who is our master is the one whom we obey. If you obey sin, then that is your master. Do not say Christ is your master if you are living in sin; sin is your master. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed (John 8:36). Free to live for Him, and free to obey Him. Sin is our former master; grace through Christ is our new master. You have been set free from sin, and have become slaves to God (Rom. 6:22). As long as we are living on this earth, the flesh (the body) will cry out for attention, and that is the instrument by which Satan works to destroy our faith. Platonists frequently use metaphors relating to warfare, imprisonment, rule, and slavery to explain the relationship between the souls parts. Platonism is distinctive in appealing to a vision of the soul locked in a fierce struggle between reason and the emotions, the rational and irrational faculties, or the better and worse parts of the soul. In Romans 6:12-14, Paul sees a mind that has been formerly enslaved to sin, now liberated by Gods intervention. Sins rule still threatens, as Paul eloquently points out in chapter 7 of Romans. Roman 7 presents an extended monologue about the struggle with sin. Sin does the exact opposite of what the soul knows is just and good. The rule of sin, and the rule of God are developed as antithetical forms of enslavement. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Rom. 7:24-25). Conclusion This paper has clearly shown that the epistle of Romans describes Gods righteousness more thoroughly than any other book of Scripture. Pauls letter to the Romans takes the reader on a journey that outlines the sinfulness of man, the Good News of the Gospel, and application of the righteousness of God to daily life. God does not judge us on the basis of who we are, or on the basis of how much we know about Him, but on the basis of what we do with what we know. Paul begins in Romans 1:16 by stating he is not ashamed of the gospel because its the power of God unto salvation. Its the power of God unto salvation because the righteousness of God is revealed in it from faithfulness unto faith. Gods righteousness is the righteousness that belongs to God, and more specifically, the righteousness God gives when a person trusts Christ (Rom. 10:3-4). God righteousness is the theme that flows from the beginning to the end of the letter to the Romans.